I do not own nor profit from Star Trek or Gene Roddenberrys creations.
Safiya opened her eyes, the tingling sensation of the warping wearing off. The sun was high in the sky, the air cool as it breezed across her skin. Everything smelled clean and fresh. Never had she seen a sky so richly blue, or such lush foliage. In the distance she saw large white pillars, gleaming radiantly. Khan took her hand, and led her down the marble stone path they had landed on. All around her, moss strewn trees stood sprinkling them in shade. Some of the lower foliage stretched out crossed over the edge of the path as if to touch at their passing feet.
"Where are we?" She whispered, listening to that strange birds fluttered overhead, hopping from branch to branch. Some were pink, others were gold and some silver. She saw some with large plumes of fine wafting feathers coming off of their backs. Some had a few long stringy feathers hanging lower than their tail feathers which curled up. She listened to their gentle, provocative song. They fluttered along, as if following them, curious by these strangely attired intruders.
"Do you not recognize this place?" He walked along with her, holding her hand as it rested in the crook of his arm. He looked down to see a what appeared to be a squirrel, only with long front paws, and a tail twice as long as its body.
"You know I would say Earth, but, this isn't a place I've ever been to before." She looked around before looking up to him, her hair dragging across her shoulder gently.
"Pollux IV." He sighed. "The home of the ancient Gods." He looked up to the sky as they stepped into a gap in the trees, getting bathed in the bountiful sunlight. His arm released her as he bent over, picking a small wildflower. It was a beautiful scarlet at the pointed tips, which graduated to a light pink towards the center. The teal ball in the center swirled as if were filled with a glittering gel. Khan brought his hand up, gently tucking it behind her ear.
"This place is... breathtaking." She barely managed to get out.
"Yes, I discussed this place with one of my companions." He breathed. "Perhaps, to start our own colony." Her grip tightened momentarily.
"Colonize?" She questioned softly. "You mean, you and the augments coming here, and living out the rest of your lives?" She raised her brow.
"You would come as well." He offered.
"But, I am assigned to Star Fleet... Unless I ask for some outpost station here, I am obligated to the Federation." She stepped back.
"But what about your obligation to me, as your lover?" He turned to her, his eyes burning. "Do I mean nothing to you?"
"Khan, you mean a lot to me, and you know that. But you know I have an obligation to the fleet. You knew that from the very beginning." The anger began to grow in her voice, as she felt put on the spot.
"Yes, then you betray them, to help me. All those people who wanted to see me burn, and you deny them of that. You spare my life. That tells me all too clear who you are faithful to, my dear." He smirked, knowing he was right.
"Khan, I did it because I love you. Not to intentionally defy the fleet." She defended.
"And, why did you, then, help me against the Admiral?" He began to circle her like prey.
"Because I-" she thought for a moment. "I don't know." She admitted. Why did she have pity against his people? In her twisted thoughts and mind? Why release a race of people who had tried to enslave her world? It was killing her honestly.
"Because you were infatuated with me. Because you were faithful to me." He hissed, turning her to him.
"Khan, what are you- whats going on?" She began to shiver, getting nervous.
"Are you faithful to me, Safiya?" He held her upper arm firmly, searching her eyes.
"Y-yes, Khan, I have been faithful to you since day one." Her heart beat quickly in her throat.
"Then, will you stay here for me?" He began to purr into her ear, nuzzling her cheek with hers. He was asking her to stay with him. Give up the fleet. Give up 8. Give up Akkare and her mother, Ain.
"Will I be able to visit home?" She looked up into his cold eyes with her warm and wetting ones.
"What ever for? You will have all you need here with me." His eyes flashed dangerously. She looked around, taking in the beauty that surrounded her.
"Do I really have a chance?" She sighed shakily.
"Glad you realize your situations when you are in them." Khan smiled dryly.
"Why? Why are you doing this to me?" She grabbed his sleeve. "Why can't I go?"
"Because you are MINE! I will be dead before I see you traipsing the galaxies under the federation banner. Especially without me, and there is no way in this lifetime, or the next thousand lifetimes I will willingly align myself with the fleet." He was angry, as a curl fell next to his eye. "I would not risk losing you to space. I would not risk losing you period." He said calmer.
"You are not going to lose me, Khan. What are you so afraid of?" She choked, not too comfortable with his new found possessiveness over her.
"I am afraid of nothing." He scoffed.
She bit her lip, and turned from him, storming up the path they had been walking, tears burning at her eyes.
"Safiya, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way." He called to her, causing her to shake her head in anger. She chose to ignore him, not wanting to negotiate this at the moment. When she heard his footsteps behind her, she quickened her pace until she was running, lifting the large skirt of her dress to allow her more freedom. It, of course, was futile, as Khan caught up with her with ease. All of her anger came flooding back to her as he pulled her roughly back into him, turning her around. The force knocked her to her knees as she failed to catch herself. She turned to see Khan descending upon her.
"I think I rather enjoy it when you run." He looked at her hungrily, swooping in on her, kissing and nipping at her cleavage. She screamed in anger and pleasure, hating him, but needing him at once. His hands searched through the many layers of tulle and fabric before he found her legs and her core. She arched her breasts into him as he stimulated her body.
"Khan, you, are the worst." She gritted.
"Yes, I know, but I am still the best, aren't I?" His voice was raspy with passion as he continued his charge on her body. Her hands pulled his hair, begging for more. He wasted little time unfurling himself and entering her. The dress pushed up, made it seem more sinful, like a clandestine engagement. He took her with rage, and a fury that he had never felt. It was a blinding mix of love and despair. Pride. Where it all started. Pride.
She cried in sorrow and happiness under him. It was a shame, to be treated like a body, when she wanted his love. The love she had not long ago. The passionate affection he gave her. Not this, apathetic lust. It was shameful, as though he didn't care for her, but she was there to gratify his carnal desires. She knew, somewhere in there, that it wasn't true, but, as a woman, she still had to wonder.
She felt her climax come on, and for an instant, there in the middle of a paradise, with her lover, it was beautiful. He released himself into her with an anguished cry. He collapsed over her, wrapping his arms around her tightly, shaking.
As the sun began to set, he got off of her, standing her up, and smoothing her skirt. She was still unsure as to what would happen with them, as he led her to a stone house. If that is what you could really call it. It seemed more like a large temple with rooms off of the main hall. In one, was a large chamber with a plush bed of wine and gold colored fabrics and blankets.
"This was... the world of the ancient gods, you said?" She looked around, noticing the many candles lit. Khan nodded, as he began to remove his clothes. "I am guessing ancient Roman, or ancient Greek?" She ran a hand down one of the marble pillars, feeling the ivy that had began to grow up it.
"Greek." He walked to her, undoing her zipper in the back, pushing it off of her shoulders letting it fall in a fluffed heap to the floor. Khan picked Safiya up to avoid her having to step over the cloth, laying her back down on the bed. "We could stay here, until the day we die." He whispered, pulling the blankets up over them. "Where- I can treat- you like- a princess-everyday." He broke up his statement with kisses upon her collarbone and neck. She loved his lips, and his argument, but, she knew if she were to ever leave, she would need a good escape plan, as Khan had no intention now of letting her leave.
He razed her body again and again the ancient temple, trying to become one with her, despite the physical impossibilities. It was perhaps his way of convincing her that she was better off there, in the magic of Pollux IV with him. Sometime deep into the night, she rested, but not Khan.
He got out of bed and dressed to receive his company. Ren and Gavin had come down to the planet and waited outside of the temple. "Set up at the altar." Khan spoke huskily, not wanting to risk waking Safiya. They carried their cargo to the far end, and laid it all out on the slab of granite that served as a pedestal.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Gavin questioned.
"There is no better place than here, in this temple." Khan looked at him sideways.
"Does she have any ideas about this?" Ren laid out a beautifully embroidered cloth.
"She had no idea at all." Khan smirked.
The dawn came across her face, as she stirred. "Wake up, my love. I have a surprise." She heard Khan whisper in her ear.
She rolled over, seeing him in his more normal clothing. "What is it?" She arched her brows.
"You'll have to get ready and see. Your dress is hanging up." He waved his hand over to the wall, where a thin white dress was hanging, gently flowing in the breeze. She walked across the stone to a wash basin and cleaned herself up. Her loins were still sore from the night before, as she dried herself and stepped into the garment. It hugged her figure at her torso, and hung loosely from her hips to the floor.
"You look quite stunning." Khan spoke from behind her, his hands wrapping around her waist, his lips coming down on her shoulder.
"Thank you." She smiled, brushing her still damp hair back into a high ponytail. When she finished, Khan led her out to the main room of the temple. She saw the entire crew had come down to the temple, as he walked her towards the altar. Her heart sank, and fer gripped her as she saw the cryotube set up.
"Khan... What is that for?" She chewed her lip nervously, slowing her pace.
"For you." He said passively. "If you don't take my offer." He held her hand a little tighter, making sure she didn't try to run.
"But... Khan, what are you talking about?" She cried, not caring for this brazen threat. He had to nearly pull her to the front, standing in front of the cryotube now as tears began to fall.
"Safiya, you have one of two choices." He spoke lowly. "You will either marry me, here, now, and live with us here on Pollux IV. Or you will be placed in a cryotube, and live here with us anyways." He gave her the choice, though it wasn't much of one. "Like I said, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way." He grinned.
"But Khan... my mom, 8, everything." She began to cry softly. He thumbed a tear away.
"And I will do what I can to keep you happy." He held her cheek, demanding her gaze. Her mind was racing. From the first day she meet him, through everything that happened up until that moment. What had led her to be in that position, what could she have done differently? It seemed that she could have done everything differently, but, now, she was ensnared by him. Faithfully, and quite possibly naively, and blindly in love with him. That love that would take her away from everything else, just so she could pursue it to the ends of the galaxy. Even though he did seemingly everything to anger her, she still stayed under his power.
"I'll marry you Khan... but you could have done a much better job at asking me." She growled, snatching her hand from him. "You can try being a gentleman next time, and asking me, rather than presenting it with an ultimatum." She stalked off back towards the entrance, leaving Khan to think where he stood. She was angry, yes, but in a twisted way, elated. He had asked her to marry him, but, in such an informal way, it was hard to even want to say yes, as she would have rather treat it like a joke... If Khan was the joking type.
The warm morning sun broke upon her skin as she stepped outside. As her new home, she would need to get comfortable with his place, and learn to enjoy it. No matter how Earth-like it was, it still wasn't Earth, nor would it ever be. There was still so much about this planet that they didn't know, the flora and fauna. The storms, the tides, the oceans, the mountains. Were they the only people on that planet? Or were there indigenous species there, and were they hostile? She didn't know if they knew any of these things, and yet, here they were, ready to settle down and colonize.
"Are you done seething?" Essex had caught up to her. "I know you are angry about this..." He looked saddened.
"You knew about this?" She asked, stopping so he could walk beside her.
"We all knew. I'm the one that told Khan... About this planet." He shook his head as if with regret. "He always planned on keeping you. I just didn't think he was going to give you that ultimatum. That sounds more like a Ren thing to do." He snapped his finger.
"Essex, why?" She sniffed.
"Safiya, we love you, but, Earth is not our home. Here, we can all be accepted. We can build a home. Something we haven't had for 300 years." He opened his arms, gesturing for her to look around. "We started off on Earth, Safiya, but they have rejected us, and they refuse us. We have to find a new home, and this is about as close as we are going to get." He had a pleading look in his face that very much matched his tone.
Safiya sighed just as dejectedly. "I guess. I just wish you would have let me in on this decision." She rubbed her arm.
"Will you come back, and get married?" Essex reached for her hand. She took it, letting him lead her back to her fate.