WARNING: intense violence, mentions of torture (ish), nonconsensual drug use/experimentation, and swearing.

Chapter 23

Khan paces wildly around the room, his heart beat racing frantically through his chest. The Enterprise's crew was trying desperately to locate Meira, but the storms were interfering with their scanners, making the images soft and blurry. The occasional dark smudge on the otherwise white pictures could simply be holes or shadows—not a compound.

Angrily, Khan punches a wall and the hard metal dents under his hand. A small rivulet of blood flows between his fingers and drips onto the floor. It heals almost instantly.

Ten minutes: that's how long they had been gone.

Ten minutes, twenty seven seconds.

Exactly.

Those stupid samples hadn't been worth it: Meira was the only person on the ship he felt he could trust and now he was alone once more. She could die simply because the moronic captain desired to take a few measly samples.

He punches the wall again, harder this time.

Panting, he leans his head against the cool metal and eases his eyelids shut. Where was she? What has happening to her? Was she alright?

Would they find her in time? Or would she become another casualty in the war called life?

…

It's cold.

Ice cold.

There's not an ounce of heat; not a shred of warmth. The frozen stone walls leaked moisture making me shiver harder, my temperature bordering on feverish. Someone croons and a hand touches my back but the sensation burns painfully against my skin. I yelp and try to move away, but the hands are on my shoulders, pushing me gently onto the ground. I curl into a ball and shiver, my vision blurring at the edges.

"Stay strong," The voice whispers as it fades away. "Don't die."

I don't even bother trying to argue.

I don't have the energy.

"They'll be back soon." A hand on my cheek. I cry out and try to move away but my limbs are made of lead. "Rest, Meira. Regain your strength. You're going to need it."

I try to speak but all that escapes is a feeble moan. My strength? Why would I need my strength? Who the hell are you and how do you know my name? Why am I? Where are the others? Where was Khan? Were they alright?

Dark spots form in my vision and I try to sit up hastily. I need to stay awake. I can't pass out. Need to stay alert…but I fall back down, my head snapping into the hard soil.

"Relax, old friend. Sleep. Sleep…"

Sleep.

I'm fading quickly, the pain in limbs disappearing with every inch that I allow myself to sink into unconsciousness.

"Everything is going to be okay." A hand strokes my hair and then something heavy and warm. A blanket? A jacket? I didn't care. It didn't matter. I breath in the dirt fabric and then vanish into the darkness.

…

"Spock, conduct another scan of the planet. Look for any man-made structure. Scotty, I need you and Khan to do make some modifications to a shuttle to get it to withstand the electromagnet storm in the atmosphere. Uhura, monitor all communication frequencies. I need to know if anyone tries to make contact. Bones, stand by. The moment we find her, I need you and your time to give her a full medical evaluation…"

If she was still alive.

The unspoken words echo loudly in the room.

Khan nods to the captain and makes his way towards where the pods are stored. He felt like his limbs were made of rubber and his mind felt foggy, but his rage quickly pushed away his weaknesses. He would find Meira, he vowed.

And he would make her kidnappers pay.

Dearly.

…

How much time has passed? A day? A week?

I stand on wobbly legs and just barely stop myself from collapsing to the ground. My stomach pitches and rolls, but I remain upright.

"Get up," I tell the other captive and she stirs. Her blue eyes look at me and my heart freezes in surprise. Oh, my god. How is this even possible?

"Cas?" I ask. What was she doing here? She was supposed to be England going to school and having an normal, mundane life. We weren't ever supposed to meet again—she should think I was dead! What in the world?

My world tilts and then I'm collapsing to the ground. The drugs. They must not have worn off yet. The back of my head bumps into the floor. I sink lower and lower despite my struggles to get back up. My legs refuse to cooperate. All I can do is kick feebly and attempt to use my arms to push me upwards…but head is so heavy…

…And I'm so…tired…

"You shouldn't have that." Cas says and then she's pulling me into a sitting position and propping me up against one of the cold walls. "It's better to take it slowly."

She had taught me how to hack my way into computers and ruin people's lives. She had befriended me when everyone else wanted me dead, and helped me steal food so that I could live. We had spent countless nights sharing the stars and laughing until we cried. I had told her my secrets and she had become a second sister me.

She was supposed to be safe!

In England.

Not here.

Not with me.

SHE WASN'T SUPPOSED TO BE HERE! This is why I faked my death—to keep her and the others safe! She…she

…Was pregnant?

What?

My mind balks.

"We need to get out of here." I rise back up to my feet and lean into the wall for support. The fever was returning. It wouldn't be long now until I was a shivering mess. "Come on. The door. We need…we need to open…open the…the…um…open…"

Open?

What did we need to open?

My legs buckle but she catches me before I fall. Already my vision blurs. My eyes are rolling back into my skull, the oppressive cold returning. Violent shivers rack my body and my lungs burn as the air seeps out, leaving me gasping desperately.

Air! I need air! SomeonehelpIcan'tbreath! Help!

"They're coming back, Meira. Be quiet. Meira, be quiet!" She begs but the door swings open and the people walk in. Harsh, callused hands sink painfully into my shoulders as they force me upright, my arms uselessly draped over two broad shoulders.

"Ready to get ripped open?" A soft voice asks.

Open? Is that what I was supposed to open…? What opens?

"My, my, my," the voice continues in a mockingly kind voice. "You're going to make us a fortune."

…Fortune?

…

"Spock? Any progress?" Kirk barks.

"Not yet, Captain. Though, I believe if we—"

"Fine. Just do it. We need to find her and we needed to find her days ago.

"Uhura? Has you been able to intercept any calls?"

"Negative, sir."

Kirk bites back a growl of frustration: "Scotty, give me some good news."

"The ship's modifications will be completed in a matter of hours, Captain." Khan's voice growls at him.

"Oi! I wanted to him, you bloody bastard!" Scotty complains loudly. "Why do you gotta take all the fun out it you—" Kirk ends the transmition. Well, at least they had that in their favor.

"Spock, try scanning the immediate area for heat signatures and see if that helps anything," Kirk suggests as he strolls off the bridge.

"Captain, may I inquire as to where you are going?" Spock asks, raising an eyebrow.

"To make a ready bag. When you finish, make one for yourself. I'm take you, Khan, and a few security officers with me as soon as the pod is finished, and give Khan a phaser—but set it stun."

"Yes, Captain." Spock nods and then he presses a few buttons on his panel. "Scanning now."

"Atta boy."

…

I'm thrown back into the room, my knees hitting the floor hard.

"Are you alright?" Cas hobbles over to me. "Are you hurt?"

"I've had worse," I wheeze and I use her shoulder to help me stand. My leg was bleeding horribly, a few of my ribs were broken, and they'd taken a lot of blood before injecting me with yet more viruses.

"It's time to go." I gasp and I force myself not to double over with pain. "Hurry, while they're between shifts."

"How?" She asks ruefully. "They'll us before we even make it to the door."

"Better than being lab rats." I point out as I limp towards the door with intense pain shooting up my leg with every step. "Now, are you coming," I swallow back the bile that is trying desperately to come out. "Or am I going alone?"

"If we die," she forces one of my arms over her shoulders. "I'll kill you."

"Bring it on." I squeeze my arm through the slots in the door and slowly unlock it. "Ready?" I ask as we limp into the hallway.

"I was born ready."

And then we're joking awkwardly down the halls and into a storage unit. We pull on warm jackets and Cas quickly fills a bag with medical supplies, food, and a few blankets. I push a communicator into my pocket and ease into the hallway. We make it to the door and stumble out into the snow.

Blood runs down my leg with every step that we take but I don't dare slow down. If we get caught, we'll never escape again. They'll strap us down, rip us open, and then throw our remains to the clawed creatures.

Running.

Running will save us.

I break free of Cas's grip and run on my own. I don't want to slow her down. This way, if I'm too slow, she can still have a chance at life and escape the punishment that was meant for me. She would not take my beating. Not again.

I would never allow it.

…

"It's done? All the repairs?" Kirk criticizes.

"Do have some faith, Captain." Scotty complains irritably. "I may like a drink ev'ry now and again but this one," Scotty gestures to Khan and then shakes his head sadly. "Wouldn't let me touch a drop—not even on me break! A damn tyrant, he is."

Khan rolls his eyes in exasperation. "Are we leaving, Captain?" Khan's eyes bore intently into Kirk's skull and Kirk nods before the Augment could find reason to crush his skull in.

"Yeah. Get it in." Kirk orders and Khan and the others quickly move to their seats. "Think you can fly this thing, Khan or do you want me to pilot it?"

"Just hold on tight and do try not vomit on the floor." That's the only warning they get before the pod explodes out of the Enterprise and screams towards the planet.

"Holy, shit, Khan! What the hell?" Kirk yells and his fingers dig into his arm rests. "Jesus, man! Slow down!"

"My apologize, Captain." Khan purrs without feeling an ounce of remorse. "Mr. Spock, do you believe you could detect heat signatures now that we are away from the planet's atmosphere?"

"Already scanning." Spock's clipped voice intones. "There appears to be several beings gathered to our west. Change our angle to thirty degrees and bring the ship down lower. Our speed must also drastically slow so as to not miss our mark. We are approximately five miles away."

"Will do." Khan says as he quickly follows the Vulcan's advice.

"The scanners show that the beings are humanoid. This may be the facility—"

"Understood." Khan interrupts Spock. He lowers the ship to the ground and slowly unclenches his whitened knuckles. Now, he could finally slaughter every last one of the people who dared to take what was his.

He doesn't even wait for others. He runs inside and begins dropping bodies, using nothing more than his bare hands. By the time the others arrive, only three people survive, and then there only one. Blood runs freely down Khan's powerful hands and soaks into his jacket. Pure rage burns beneath his steely gaze as he stalks towards his quivering prey with slow, catlike movements.

"I'm sorry," The scientist whimpers. "It was just a few experiments. For research…" He stumbles backwards and then his back connects with a corner of a wall, trapping him while Khan closes in, his fists opening and closing.

"You." Khan's voice hisses, his eyes flashing as his rage consumes him. "Experimented on her!?"

The man screams as Khan suddenly rushes in, wrapping his fingers around the human's soft throat. Angrily, Khan slams the back of his skull into the back of the wall and then punches his ribs, breaking every last one of them before throwing him clear against the other side of the room. There's a snap as the man's body crashes into a wall and single breath escapes, signaling his death.

"Christ," Kirk breathes as he takes in the carnage all around them.

"She isn't here," Khan reports as his rage ebbs away. He wanders to a window and cocks his head to the side as he contemplates. "But there are footprints in the snow. Two sets. One bloody. From the foot size, I speculate that they are both either female—one possibly pregnant and the other badly wounded—or adolescent males. She could still be alive."

"So…we should follow them?" Kirk still can't get over the level of violence in the room. Blood had covered the walls, the floor. God, what the hell was this guy, Kirk wondered. How in the hell had the Augments ever lost the Eugenics War? This was insane!

"Captain," Spock looks worried—this can't be good. "I believe that you going into a state of shock. It would be advisable to take you back to the Enterprise and—"

"Relax, Spock. That's an order. Khan, lead the way."

So, was that enough chaos for you guys?