Sorry it's been so long, guys. I had to take another "creative break" (also known as writer's block, lol). And then there's always the joys that come with being a grown-up. This chapter's got a lot more back story and a lot less action, but that's all about to change!

"You mean infertile, right?" Bones asked hopefully. But somehow he knew that the Augment hadn't misspoken.

"I mean sterile," Khan snapped. "Leo was created for the same reason I was; for the same reason any of us were. To be a soldier. However, the doctors who created her decided to try something different. They wanted to create the ultimate military strategist. If everything worked out, they would repeat the process, eventually pairing strategists with those who proved to be promising leaders. But their plan backfired.

"She was supposed to come up with military strategies that would help their soldiers bring peace, but when she looked back at history, she found something else. Leo found that the best path to peace came through leaders who practiced it themselves."

"That makes sense," Kirk pointed out. Khan ignored him and continued,

"Leo started to question the scientists who created her. At which point they figured that their little experiment had failed, and decided that the problem lay in her genetic sequencing. And they couldn't allow those genes to be passed on to the next generation."

"So they sterilized her," McCoy finished.

"And you started a war anyway," Kirk added.

"You don't understand," Khan replied. "We had no choice."

The moonlight poured into the small Chicago bedroom, casting a soft glow upon the couple on the bed. Despite the late hour, they were both still awake. Leo and Khan lay amidst the rumpled sheets that neither of them felt bothered to fix. Khan was propped up on one elbow as he traced a thin white scar on Leo's lower abdomen. It had been a clean and deliberate cut. Clearly, it was a surgical incision.

"Don't you hate them for it?" he asked finally.

"Hmm?" Leo glanced lazily at him through half-lidded eyes, tired out by their previous activities.

"The scientists who did this to you," he clarified. "Don't you hate them for it?"

"Sometimes. I didn't care too much at first, I was only sixteen when it happened. I'd never really thought about having children or anything like that."

"What about now?" he asked, still tracing the scar back and forth, which wasn't helping her stay awake.

"I never met anyone who I thought I'd want to have children with. Until now."

Khan leaned over and kissed her gently on the forehead. Leo closed her eyes and smiled before tilting her head up to capture his mouth with hers. Much to her displeasure, Khan broke the kiss before laying back against the sheets and pulling her close to his side. Her pouting made him chuckle.

"Go to sleep, love, you're exhausted. I promise I won't keep you up any more."

"But, you know . . . if you wanted to, I wouldn't complain."

"That was some temper tantrum," Kirk said as he, Wendy, and the rest of the guards escorted Khan back to his cell.

"I've seen worse," the Augment replied.

"Worse?" Kirk's eyes went wide in disbelief.

"At least she didn't throw The Complete Works of Edgar Allen Poe at your head"

"Edgar Allen Poe?" Kirk wrinkled his nose in confusion as Wendy gasped.

"Why would she throw that?"

"Because she'd never do that to Shakespeare," Khan replied dryly.

"But how could she do that to Poe?!" Wendy looked like she'd just had a mini heart attack.

Khan rolled his eyes in annoyance, but Kirk thought it was kind of cute. The captain gave her a friendly little smile, which caused the science officer to blush.

"What did you do to make her throw a giant book at you?" Kirk asked. "Insult her shoes?"

Khan raised an eyebrow, "I never said she threw it at me."

"Who else would she throw it at?" Wendy asked.

"Contrary to what seems to be popular belief, Dr. Cole, Leo and I are in a very stable relationship," Khan replied.

Kirk stopped in his tracks. Everyone else stopped a few feet later. Khan's remark had honestly caught Kirk off guard. Perhaps it was the fact that he only saw the Augment's ruthless and bloodthirsty side the last time he was awake; but he couldn't see Khan in any sort of healthy relationship.

"You really love her, don't you?" the captain asked after a moment.

"Of course I love her," Khan spat incredulously, slowly advancing towards the captain as he spoke. "Why do think I agreed to Admiral Marcus's terms when he threatened her life? And imagine how I felt when I had to seal her in that cryo tube. Or when I had to hide said cryo tube inside a torpedo. Can you imagine how many minutes I stood there, just looking at her? Do you know what it's like to have your brain tell you that it's only been a year since you've seen the woman you love, while your soul feels all three hundred years? And how do you think I felt, Kirk, when I saw those torpedoes explode? When I thought I saw her die?"

Kirk couldn't look the Augment leader in the eye. Because it was true. He could knew was it was like to lose someone close to you; Admiral Pike had been like a father to him. But he'd never really been in any sort of long-term relationship, so he couldn't imagine what it was like to lose someone who was like your other half. What baffled him, however, was that whenever he did try to imagine such a situation, Wendy was always the one he pictured.

Kirk shook his head. Partly in answer of Khan's questions, and partly to shake off the constant images of Dr. Cole. He silently blamed it on spending so much time with her recently.

By this time, the group had arrived back at the brig. Leo was pacing inside, but seemed a lot more calm now. She stopped pacing as the door opened, and both Augments stood patiently while Khan's cuffs were removed and the cell door was back in place. But as soon as the door clicked shut, Khan headed over to Leo. Kirk watched from a distance as Khan gently laid his hands on her shoulders. The two were speaking softly, so Kirk couldn't hear what they were saying, but Khan seemed to be making sure that Leo was unhurt. Kirk saw her shake her head in response to a question, and Khan kissed her forehead.

The captain was having trouble understanding how a man who had been so ruthlessly bent on revenge when they last met, was now so affectionate and loving. Kirk found himself wishing for the same kind of relationship shared by the two Augments in the cell. And once again, Wendy was on his mind.

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