I do not own nor profit from Star Trek or Gene Roddenberrys creations
People began to stand, as the magistrate started walking away.
"Magistrate! I claim the body of Khan Noonien Singh!" Safiya stood up, crying out loud enough to catch the magistrates attention over the rumble of the exiting crowd. The magistrate turned around, a shocked expression on his face.
"I beg your pardon?" He raised an gray eyebrow to the woman who had the audacity to claim the body of a murderer.
"As his closest next of kin, I claim Khans body. So I may bury him as I see fit." She tested. Akkare stood beside her.
"Magistrate, it is law that she be given the body. He has been pronounced dead before this congregation, and now she is free to claim his remains." Akkare defended. A third body stood beside them. Gavin, the Augment doctor, stood on the other side of Safiya. He handed her her jacket that he had grabbed on the way in. They barely noticed that the people around them had stopped, intrigued by this development.
"Fine, do whatever you wish, I take it you want the death certificate?" He sneered. Safiya nodded.
The magistrate quickly signed off on his PADD, and handed it to Safiya. "Sign here, to officiate his death, that you were witness. This will be effective immediately, and we will send you a copy." She signed quickly.
"Now, the body. Please." She ground out. She was dismissed with a weary wave of the hand. Khans restraints were released, having already bruised his perfect skin. Gavin stepped forward, grabbing his prince, holding him. Safiya turned to Akkare.
"I'm sorry." She whispered. "Thank you for everything." She smiled, as she pulled the man into a hug. He returned the gesture in confusion. "Energize." He heard her whisper into the delicate gold watch she wore on her wrist. He was left alone on the platform holding emptiness. No Safiya, no Gavin, and no Khan.
Alarm was sent through the crowd, as they worried about where Khan had gone, for many had not realized that his body would be taken immediately. Many people were outside of the building still hoping to stream in to view the body. To see for themselves that he indeed was dead. A snapshot of his final vital signs was posted on the monitor next to the chair the fugitive once sat, but it was not enough. People lingered, hoping to make sense of what happened, unsure of what to make of what they witnessed.
Akkare felt in his heart, that he knew what she would do, but why should it be his place to stir the pot? He smirked, and smoothly made his way out of the executioners room. This was the most significant event of the year. The rain came down harder, and he stuffed his hands further into his pockets, his collar turned up against the wind. Perhaps he would see Safiya again sooner or later. He would have to return to the office and look into legalities. He still had work for her in 8, and would still welcome her back no matter what path she chose. He smirked to himself again, and got lost in the crowd.
Gavin quickly set to setting an IV in Khan. Khans eyes were vacant, looking out into a distant expanse. Safiya stood beside the bio-bed and watched.
"I may need more assistance on this matter." He grimaced, as he stuck a large bore needle into a vein. She pulled tape over the tubing on Khans arm, securing it, then positioned the beds attached tricorder over him to monitor him. "Grab the defibrillator, you will need to shock him." He pointed to the small case on the side of the bed.
"Essex to Med Bay." She ordered on the comm, thinking they may need an extra hand. She cut open the simple white uniform top that they draped him in, and placed the paddles accordingly. With pain, she delivered the shock, watching his body twitch. A electrical spike appeared on the screen from the shock, but showing no revival.
"Begin resuscitation." Gavin nodded, looking at the unresponsive monitor. She placed the heels of her palms into his sternum, at his nipple line, and began to pump. She felt as though their efforts were futile, but still, inside, kept a glimmer of hope. She continued to pump as Gavin slowly drained his lifeblood into Khan. Essex came through the door like a whirlwind, looking around at the efforts to restore Khans life.
"Essex, I need three hypos of epi, and three of narcan. I don't know how much he was given, but I am guessing it was quite a bit." Gavin ordered Essex, who began to go through the ECart. He set out the tubes, separating the different drugs, and pulled out a bag of fluids that Safiya couldn't identify. "We will need to filter his blood." Gavin grimaced as he unhooked himself from the transfusion and went to the storage closet. He brought out a small tube, attached to a blue metal box. He inserted another needle into Khans other arm, and linked the tubing to the box and clear tube. It looked like white mesh in the tube, and it was intriguing. Safiya has never seen a portable fleet dialysis pump, though they were used in the event of severe blood poisonings.
"Stop compressions." Gavin looked at the monitor, not surprised that his heart was unresponsive. He administered two of the hypos, and shocked his heart. Essex provided respiration to Khan. They watched the monitor tentatively. "Continue compressions." He spoke, as he administered more drugs. "We may have to wait until we filter out the potassium before he comes around. The narcan should already be taking effect on his nervous system." He took a light pen and looked for a reaction in the cadavers pupils. If never seemed possible that Khan could be any more pale than he was at that moment, but there he was, a blue tinge to his beautiful features. There was a low hum coming from the pump, as his blood was pumped through the filter.
They continued these rounds of compressions for what felt like hours, though it was only about 30 minutes. "Stop compressions." Gavin sighed. he was debating whether or not to call it. This was his prince, but it didn't seem as though their interventions were going to be enough. He was not like Khan, however, and he was unable to hide what he was thinking nearly as well as Khan was able to. Safiya picked up on this, and picked up on what he was thinking. That Khan was dead, and that their plan failed.
She began compressions again in vain, but Gavin and Essex stopped their efforts. They had to realize, to some degree, when to give up. Essex left, returning to the bridge, taking them to warp away from Earth. He needed to get away from that planet before he opened fire and destroyed them all. Or before Safiya did. He took them in orbit near to a peaceful and desolate planet he had read about long ago. Gavin put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, and stepped away to what was now his office, being the doctor on board. Safiya just broke down. She draped herself over Khans chest, and let the tears flow.
His chest was wet from her heartache. "You weren't supposed to die." She cried. "We were supposed to save you. Please, Khan, come back to me." She wept. He was cold, freezing cold, chillingly cold, and it just set in for her the reality that she was still refusing. "You have to come back, Khan. Who will love me now?" She whispered, her throat tightened. "I need you back!" She pounded her fist on her chest, screaming at his unresponsive form. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I failed." She crumbled onto him again before crumpling to the floor. Gavin had come back, and pulled her into a comforting embrace. His own blood still leaked from his arm. The only sounds were her heartwrenching sobs, and the gentle whirring of the dialysis pump.
"Leave him. Go take a shower. I'll take care of him." Gavin spoke gently. For an Augment, he didn't seem to have the same coldness or stony self that Khan did. He felt like a father figure as he told her to take time. It was all she could do when she could no longer cry, to get up and walk awkwardly towards her captains quarters. She stopped at the door and turned to Gavin.
"Prepare to recover your remaining crew, Gavin. Once we are far enough, I wish for them to be brought back." She looked behind the gentle doctor. "Khan would have wanted this." She sighed and left. The shower did nothing for her. It did not soothe her burning soul, it did not mend her shattered heart. If anything, it just made her more miserable, thinking of bathing in her tears, drowning in her tears. Tears that she she for Khan. The only man perhaps that she would ever consider close to great enough to temper her soul. She could hear her soul crumbling within. Safiya was broken.
She went back to med bay, unable to leave him. She set herself up on a biobed next to his own, pushing them close, and curled up. The doctor chose to overlook this disturbing behavior, knowing the grief from which it stemmed. She laid under thick blankets, warding off the cold of Khans hand, and the cold of her heart. Gavin came by every now and then to see if perhaps everything was alright, perhaps she hadn't completely gone crazy yet. When Gavin noticed she was finally asleep, he drew out a hypospray, and drew a vial of liquid. Pressing it to her delicate neck, he released the contents with a hiss, ensuring she would sleep for much longer than she intended.
An annoying beep made Safiya stir. She angrily opened her eyes, then sat up shocked. The tricorder that had been left over Khan showed his heart beat. His blood pressure was on the low end of normal, his heart rate was in the 70's, and his eyes were open, his head was turned to her. She was at a loss. All of the words she wanted to say all wanted to come out at once, and so none came out at all.
"This is all wrong" He grumbled, his throat seemingly dry. A tear slid over the bridge of his nose and landed on the sheet beneath him. "I'm a terrible man, who has done terrible things. To die, and yet, to see you here, could only mean I'm in heaven." He smiled softly.
All she could do was fall onto him, and cry once more. She had been on the most erratic emotional roller coaster she felt, and at that moment, only wanted to be in his arms. "Khan..." She finally squeaked out. Holding him tighter. He grabbed her by the hair, and pulled her down into his lips, wanting to kiss her, and taste her lips as a free man once more. He needed her more than anything at that moment, but was still under the medical eye of Gavin, a trusted man to Khan.
Gavin and Khan had had a long conversation, after Gavin gave Safiya a hypo to help her sleep soundly, knowing she needed more sleep than her sorrow would allow. While she slept, Gavin noticed Khans vitals coming back to life. It would seem that he needed more time on dialysis before his heart wanted to respond. Khan began to regenerate quickly enough, and was eventually reawakened.
"But- how? When?" She cried, looking at him, then up to Gavin who had just entered the room.
"I gave you a sedative to allow you to sleep. You have been blissfully asleep for the last two days. Khans vitals were restored yesterday, and overnight, he became conscious. We have been keeping a sharp eye on him, and will make sure that he is fully recovered before clearing him to leave medbay. I do not believe that the dose will still be in his system, and his blood work shows normal levels of potassium now. We stopped dialysis only a few hours ago. We will do a thorough workup of his heart, to make sure there is no lingering damage, though, as an Augment, it is unlikely that he has suffered any long lasting effects." Gavin stood confident before his captain and prince.
"Gavin, I, I can't thank you enough." Safiya choked. For the first time in a long time, tears of happiness rolled down her cheeks. She couldn't remember ever crying so much in her life in fact.
Khan reached up and gently stroked her cheek. "How did you ever save me, Safiya?" He sighed. She smiled.
"By being you, in a way." She smiled and laid back down on her side, facing him, holding his hand. "Cyan Tracks." She smirked. Khan raised his eyebrow in question.
"A long time ago, on another assignment for 8, I was working deep in intergalactic black market deals. A notorious woman, Cyan Tracks happened to cross my path. Of course it got me into a world of trouble, as we both looked so, eerily alike. Well, she ended up, lets say, disappearing. I kept her eyes, and assume her identity from time to time, when I need to." She stroked his hand lovingly. Khan had no idea how much deeper she was, and a part of him wondered, who was she really?
"Cyan had many contacts in illegal dealings. I used her retinas, gorgeous blue eyes I might add, and met up with someone from her past. They were most adamant that she had just skipped town. I offered them delicate, sensitive information. About Star Fleet, about our missions, about our spies, and their aliases. Trust me, any black market dealer would kill to have that information. So, I bargained it for this ship. The USS Bradbury prototype. Stolen on its first trip out, it dropped out of warp in a perilous area, all because the pilot entered one wrong digit. It was quickly apprehended, the crew I'm sure was killed, and it has sat in Ek'Neths hangar until I came around."
"You would have exposed Star Fleet?" He eyed.
"Not at all. But Ek'neth, or better yet the lackey they sent to bargain with me, didn't know that. So I showed him a few files. Nonsensitive things that would almost seem like they were sensitive in origin. I called it a sample of what they were going to get. The poor thing was too dumb to realize what he had been handed. The rest of what I gave him was... nothing. Blank. Empty. By that time of course, I already had my ship, and took it as payment for Ek'Neth sending that cretin to begin with. Only Ek'Neth had the password for the rest of the drive anyways." She looked down at her fingers.
"And the execution." He pressed.
"That was... a last minute change of plan. It was originally going to be a blood bath, and one that I was ready to partake in, as Gavin was there. Hwoever, it was my commander, Akkare, who saved more lives than he realized. By stating that I was your closest next of kin, I realized that I could claim your remains, and take you out of that prison without any lives lost... Other than your own." She lowered her head, kissing his knuckles. "But Khan, you are free now." She whispered.
"I will make su-" She was cut off by Essex on the bridge.
"Captain, we are being hailed by Star Fleet." He spoke.
"I'll be back." She kissed his nose and made her way towards the bridge.
She stepped onto the bridge, wrapping herself up in her signature coat before motioning for him to pull up the call on the screen. It was Star Fleets higher command.
"Safiya Kesi." An Admiral spoke. She was older, and appeared haggard with poorly dyed hair, and hard brown eyes. "It would seem you are illegally in possession of a Federation star ship." She crossed her legs, and leaned back in her chair, staring at the young woman with a smug look on her face.
"Admiral Casey. It has been a long time." She spoke, with false kindness. "However, I don't believe this is an illegally obtained ship." Safiya too leaned back, ready to play hardball.
"Oh, but it is. The Bradbury prototype was lost 8 years ago."
"Yes, and it was put on record that the prototype is a loss. That loss was posted to the records 5 years ago. After being on record for 3 years, it is no longer considered property of the federation and in essence becomes a, how would you put it, finders keepers, losers weepers? Of course, you know all about that Admiral Casey, as you were the one who proposed that little loophole in the system." She glared dangerously, and heard the bridge door open.
Admiral Casey stood up shocked. "It CAN'T Be!" She shrieked. There was a rumble of gasps and outbursts as they laid eyes on Khan.
"We DEMAND you bring Khan back to Earth NOW!" Her jowls quivered in anger. She was just as mean and angry looking as the one who held her seat before her, Admiral Marcus.
"I am afraid I cannot do that, Admiral." Safiya spoke. "See, Khan is a free man now." She smiled sweetly, catching Akkares face in the background. He nodded his head in only a way that she would pick up on.
"This man is a murderer! He killed TOO many! He deserves DEATH!" The admirals face burned with hate, getting redder by the moment.
"Admiral, it is law that he was condemned to death. He was put to death in a room full of witnesses. A medical officer in good standing in Star Fleet CONFIRMED Khan was dead. A Magistrate in good standing signed off on his death certificate, madam I have it right here if you would like to review it." She pulled up a copy on her own PADD.
She jumped up out of her captains chair. "Khan paid for his crimes with his life, and here, he was brought back, there is nothing that you can do now. You can not retry him, and kill him again, Madam, in case you were unaware we do still have something called Double Jeopardy. It was reinstated in 2144, therefore Khan can NOT be retried for his crimes, and as you already killed him, well, I believe you lot carried out your sentence." She was bristling, her tone dangerous and low.
"NOOO! Its not RIGHT IT ISN'T FAIR!" The admiral screeched. "DO SOMETHING!" She turned to the table of the highest brass, furious.
"Madam, I am afraid that she is correct in her statements." Akkare rested his chin delicately on his fingers, deep in thought. "We can not retry him, I had investigated that avenue the day of his execution. He is not a normal man and I feared that typical methods of execution would not work on him. We have no recourse on the matter. A legal team has already been advised. As for the Bradbury, we are stuck again. There are plenty of vessels that we no longer have, though most of them self destruct. However, it is possible that the Bradbury prototype didn't either because the self destruct was disengaged before it could do so, or because it was not installed to begin with, being a prototype. The transfer of the Bradbury prototype to her name went through and is documented in public archives, because it is legal. If it weren't, and you know this Admiral, then the transfer would have never gone through." Akkare leaned back and sighed.
Admiral Casey stormed out of the room. "MEETING ADJOURNED!" She snapped, before letting the door slam behind her. Akkare sat there, tapping his thumb on the table, looking around as the room slowly cleared out. When he was the last body left, he moved closer to the screen.
"Safiya. You have too much ovarian fortitude to be of our people, and that fire in your belly comes from your father." He shook his head. "Though I'm sure Khan did his part to bolster that." He smiled. "You know, you were always too much for Abydos, Safiya. I am glad you joined Star Fleet." He uncrossed his arms and stood up.
"I'm allowing you a few months of leave. I will be in touch with you to let you know when you report for duty. Enjoy your leave, Kesi." He smirked.
"Sir, you are still going to allow me to work for you?" She leaned back, confused. She was sure this move would destroy her career.
"You are under my direct authority, and unless you break some serious law, there is nothing anybody can do to boot you from the fleet. You are one of my better 8's. Who knows, maybe I can get you and Khan as a part of a team. Well, lets not get carried away, but, who knows, it's a thought to sleep on." Akkare winked, and ended the transmission.
Safiya sat in her quarters that evening, chewing her lip as she brushed her hair. She washed away two days of sleep, dried her hair, and sat in panties and a thin tank top. She thought of Akkares proposition, and smiled. What a team they could make. It was entertaining to think of it. However, it was more likely that Khan wanted to go elsewhere and away from Earth and Star Fleet. Khan stepped out of the shower, vigorously rubbing a towel through his hair, before sitting down behind her.
"How are you feeling." He growled seductively, kissing the tops of her shoulder blades, rubbing her sides.
"I admit I am still emotionally drained, but I am happy for right now." She sighed. feeling his lips, and enjoying his touch again.
"Then tonight, let me make you happier." He reached his hand down between her thighs, gently massaging her apex, letting her know exactly what his intentions were.