After her revelation and short monologue the hangar had grown silent. He stared at her with an expression that was making her both confused and anxious. He made no indication to lash out or yell after the spiteful words left her mouth –just stared at her with those damn intense blue eyes of his. She wanted to fidget, her muscles were aching to do so, but she refrained knowing that it would only give him the satisfaction of making her nervous.

He stared at her for was seemed like an eternity before he suddenly spun on his heel and started stalking in the direction of the back of the hangar where his cryochamber still sat peacefully with the rest. Narrowing her eyes, she followed after him at a hurried pace as her strides were not as long as his and just caught up to him when he reached the side of the tube. She watched warily as he began to study the control panel on the top of it, his gaze calculating.

"What are you doing?" she couldn't help but ask out of curiosity. He didn't make a move to answer her or even acknowledge her presence a few steps behind him. He scanned the length of the cryotube with interest, his lips set in a thin line, and Aubrey was about to repeat her question when he finally spoke.

"Open it," he demanded without even turning to look at her. Instead he only stepped a small portion to the side to allow her room enough to reach the panel without having to make physical contact with him. Just to spite him, she didn't move nor did she speak. Slowly his head turned to give her a withering glare out of the corner of his eye. "I said… open it."

"No," she denied stonily. At this, his body turned fully so he could glare at her even more. "I know what you're doing. You want me to open it so that you know the code to open the rest of them. I'm not falling for it."

"Oh, you are a clever one, aren't you?" he chuckled lightly, but his face hardly gave any indication of actual humor. "Much cleverer than you originally seemed. Very well."

Aubrey was forced to forget the insult and suppressed a yelp of surprise when he suddenly gave a roar of anger as he heaved a pale fist through the glass at the top of the cryotube. He then proceeded to grasp the edge of the broken area just above the control panel and with practically no effort it seemed he ripped the circular portion clean off. Wires snapped and sparked and fizzed dangerously yet he paid them no mind as he hurled the number pad across the hangar. By now his face was contorted into an expression of pure rage; nostrils flared, brows furrowed and lips snarling like a rabid animal's.

Aubrey watched in shocked horror as he took the device apart piece by piece until it was nothing more than scraps of metal, glass and wiring all over the hangar. When he was finished he wasn't even fatigued and Aubrey had to keep reminding herself that she wasn't afraid of him and that if she ran he'd catch her with little to no effort. She didn't even know what to say after such an aggressive display of strength. His superhuman abilities were certainly nothing to take lightly –which is what she had unknowingly done up until this point. She knew he was strong, savage and cruel, but there was a distinct difference between knowing it and seeing it. And she was seeing something she had never thought she would even after taking her position as a Starfleet Commander and all the chaos that seemed to constantly occur.

She was somehow convinced that although she was a high ranking officer and technically had the training for most altercations that could take place, she thought she'd spend most of her time stuck behind a desk writing notes and filing documents. She was just a researcher who studied the safer and less invasive side of the world; it was why she was put in charge of the Augments. She wasn't there to dissect them and find out why they were different from the rest of the human population; she was there to protect them. There were many other researchers inside Starfleet that immediately jumped at the idea of finding out more about the Augments and if they could replicate the process with more favorable outcomes, but Admiral Archer had strictly refused such unethical practices.

He chose Aubrey for the job because she didn't want to see the Augments suffer or turned into experiments to make profit. She saw them as more unique humans with special abilities that needed to be left alone. Three hundred years ago mankind tried to abuse that kind of power and it left them broken and almost destroyed and Aubrey believed that the human race was still not ready for it. Admiral Marcus was proof of that. Yes, they lived in a much more peaceful society now, but the Augments were proven to be aggressive and brutal; it would be like a mouse trying to tame a lion. Their warrior instincts would destroy them.

Now as she looked at Khan and the rage that took over his features with such intensity, she realized how right she had been. Had he been awoken under better circumstances and given a chance for him and his people to leave the planet and start anew, they may have become allies. Now, however, after the events of five years prior there was no chance of that. He had been degraded and used; even if his crew was safe and alive he would destroy them all just for all the trouble and grief they had caused him. There was no turning back from it now; no chance of redemption in his eyes.

Aubrey shook her head to rid herself of such thoughts and cleared her throat gently. Khan was still glaring at the remains of his cryochamber and didn't acknowledge her when she took a tentative step forward to stand beside him. "That was a bit of an overkill, don't you think?" she asked softly, attempting to lighten the dark mood somewhat if only for her own sake. It felt stifling and oppressive. Khan didn't reply, didn't even look at her. Sighing, she decided to get right to the point. "We need to figure out what we're going to do. Obviously I'm not going to let you just walk out of here on your own and you're not going to let me out of your sight either."

"How astute of you, Commander," he ground out irritably.

Aubrey rolled her eyes. "And I'm obviously not going to give you the codes to your crew. I'd die before I do that." Finally he swerved his glare over to her, but did not say a word. "And we can't stay here much longer. Security will be back any minute and he can't see you when he does." She met his steely stare with a confidence she wasn't sure she felt. "I want to help you because I think you and your people deserve better than to freeze in a hangar for who knows how long, but if I do then we have to find a common ground. Got it?"

His glare gradually lessened and she was relieved when instead he leveled her with an inquisitive –yet still seemingly uninterested –look. His long pause as he scrutinized her made her nervous, but she held her ground. Finally, he opened his mouth to speak. "Do you have any suggestions as to what we do then?" He sounded condescending again and Aubrey didn't bother suppressing her frown of disapproval.

"Right now all I've got is getting you back to my office. After that we can figure it out the rest."

He smirked again and gestured a hand out behind them almost gallantly, but Aubrey knew it was farced.

"After you, Commander."

Aubrey breathed heavily as she hastily punched in the code to unlock her office while Khan was as stoic and calm as ever. He didn't seem at all affected by her panic nor did he seem to have similar anxieties. He just stood close to her side as her fingers fumbled over the keypad, his eyes scanning the empty hall as lookout and a hand ready at her shoulder. To an onlooker it may have looked like he was offering her comfort and support to get her to calm down enough to open the door, but in reality it was him that was making her this way.

But perhaps an explanation as to why was in order.

Before leaving the hangar Aubrey had given Khan her lab coat to help try to blend him in more just in case they passed anyone –thankfully, it was a one size fits all. Unfortunately there was nothing she could do about his face and she hoped his pride wouldn't get in the way of him lowering his head enough so that his face was obscured. Luckily she didn't have to voice this concern because when they exited the hangar he immediately ducked his head to stare at the floor, his black tresses falling over his forehead to mask his features even better.

Her moment of relief was short lived, however, when she heard Jonathan calling out to her from down the hall behind them. "Commander Shepherd!" he said loudly, a smile evident in his tone and Aubrey felt a small trickle of fear begin to descend her spine. Passing a colleague with a quick 'hello' was favorable, but having to stop and chat was another. She would have to introduce the man with her and why he was there. What if he was recognized?

She stopped short, her shoulders tense and Khan slowed to a silent halt at her side. When she turned to acknowledge the security guard, Khan stayed where he was with his back turned to the man. Jon came jogging up to them, that wide handsome smile that was ever present aimed at her and she had to fight to not let the fear she felt show on her face.

Before she even had a chance to muster up a greeting in return, Jon's eyes had moved to Khan and narrowed in confusion. "Who's that with ya there? Why's he wearin' yer coat?" he asked. How he had recognized that it was her lab coat from the back was beyond her, but she had no time to dwell on it when Khan slowly turned to face the other man, his head lifting so his chin was held high.

She knew what was going to happen before it even did. "Holy-!" Jonathan stuttered with wide eyes. "You-! You're-! Commander, what's he doin' here?!"

Aubrey didn't even have a chance to reply and Jon didn't even twitch a finger towards the phaser at his hip before Khan was on him. A swift punch was aimed at the large man's throat and there was a startling gasp followed by a choke and gurgle before he fell to the floor. Khan followed his descent and promptly smashed another fist into his chest where a series of sickening crunches and snaps could be heard. He did all this without a sound, but his face had twisted into a scowl as if doing such a thing was a chore for him while Aubrey stood to the side in horror.

When Khan rose back to stand, Aubrey dashed over to Jonathan and immediately crouched at his side. "What the hell!" she shouted at the standing Augment as her hands fumbled over Jon's face as he struggled and failed to take in a breath. His whole body was convulsing in panic and his face was contorted with fear, but his eyes were trained on Aubrey with such confusion and pain that it made guilt begin to stir in her chest.

"He recognized me," Khan replied coldly, no trace of remorse for his actions evident in his tone.

"What the hell did you do to him?"

"I collapsed his trachea to hinder his breathing then I fractured multiple ribs and more than likely his sternum. His lungs have collapsed and due to his panic his diaphragm has gone into spasm. He is unable to breathe," he informed her nonchalantly.

"He's dying?" she cried as she watched Jon continue to struggle.

"A necessary precaution," he drawled again. Aubrey turned a fierce glare on him and if she didn't know any better she would have thought he rolled his eyes. "Do not feel as though this is your fault, Commander. It was he who approached us and brought his fate unto himself. Had he ignored my presence, he would still be alive."

"But did you have to kill him? You could have just knocked him out!" she snapped, her brows creasing as Jon continued to struggle to hold onto his fading life. There was nothing she could do for the sweet Irishman other than to just sit there and hold his shaking hand while his life wasted away. Despite Khan's reassurance –if it could have even been called that –she still felt responsible. She could have told him it was nothing and kept walking. She could have ignored him completely. She could have just said she had to get back to her office and would explain later during lunch. But she hadn't done any of those and now Jonathan lay dying beside her.

"And run the risk of him waking in an hour to warn others of my presence and your betrayal? I think not," he scoffed. Aubrey practically ignored him as she watched Jon's eyes flutter closed and his jolting chest begin to spasm less frequently. He was unconscious now; in another few moments he'd be dead and there was nothing she could do. When she refused to move from his side, she heard Khan step up next to her as his voice took on his usual dark cold tone. "We must move him."

Aubrey felt her temper flare and her head snapped up to give him one of her most deadliest of glares. "You've already killed the man, a good man mind you, and now you want to drag him around like a sack of potatoes?" she hissed at him.

Khan was unfazed by her boldness, but did narrow his eyes in annoyance. "If he is found lifeless outside the hangar I am supposed to be confined in with my crew then we will be discovered as well," he countered swiftly, his words leaving no room to argue. "If that happens then escaping will be much more difficult than it should be. Moving him is only logical if our plans are to succeed."

Aubrey grumbled and wanted to tell him how much he sounded like a Vulcan –particularly Spock –in that moment, but couldn't bring herself to deny what he said either. If Jon was found, they'd immediately check the hangar then the security tapes then they'd come to her office and they would both be arrested. As much as she hated to admit it, they needed to move on as quickly as possible to bide more time on planning. So, grudgingly, she nodded and stood to move to the side as Khan effortlessly dragged Jonathan's lifeless body into a large vent on the other side of the hallway.

Neither said a word as they moved at a brisk walk back to her office, but as calm and collected as Aubrey tried to seem her whole body felt like it was shaking violently. It only worsened when they reached a more trafficked area of the compound. There were greetings and good wishes thrown her way left, right and center and she tried her best to not seem as terrified of being caught as she felt. Khan was as silent as the grave at her side and didn't make eye contact or any sort of physical interaction with anyone they passed while Aubrey tried to smile at her coworkers who were blissfully oblivious to her inner turmoil.

By the time they reached her office, the halls had thinned of onlookers, but Khan was vigilant at keeping a sharp eye while she struggled to get the door open. When she finally did she rushed inside with Khan at her back and closed the door and locked it with a relieved sigh. She was thankful everyone was too preoccupied with their own work to give any notice of the silent man she had been with. If they had then the red alert would sound and every security officer in the compound would be hurtling in their direction. She was pretty sure Khan would leap into action if that happened, but she didn't want any more men dying just so they could escape. They already had enough trouble trying to get from the hangar to her office and she believed there was enough blood staining her hands already.

Without saying a word to Khan –who had already discarded her lab coat and draped it over the back of a chair –she went to her desk and flopped down onto her chair while slipping off her glasses and allowing them to drop to the desktop. Her elbows came to rest on the grey top and her head fell into her propped up hands with a sigh. The stress was mounting so quickly that she could already feel a headache beginning to form in her temples and her fingers deftly massaged at the aching areas. She wasn't sure what Khan was doing as she heard him slowly move around her office, but she found she didn't really care as long as she had a moment to collect her thoughts and calm down.

She was glad when he didn't intrude on her silence for several minutes and instead decided to roam around the room to look at the many knick knacks and pictures she had spread around in an almost unorganized fashion. She had since received a new PADD from one of her desk drawers and entered a false specifications report on the Augments in Hangar 16. She knew it wouldn't do much, but it would at least buy her and Khan some time to figure out what they were going to do next.

After several more minutes of silence Aubrey finally gathered the courage to look up at Khan who was now standing in the middle of her office looking around with those disturbingly intelligent eyes of his. He was taking everything in; every detail and it unnerved her slightly. Her office wasn't exactly the most spacious or glamorous and it was lacking creativity with its dull grey matching walls, floor and roof. The only thing that made it less dull was her array of objects and pictures adorning the shelf in the corner and on her desk.

"So," she said while leaning back in her seat. Khan didn't even turn to look at her and she rolled her eyes. "Got a plan yet?"

He gave a noncommittal hum as if he had pretended to hear her and chose to ignore her, but spoke a moment afterwards. "Yes."

She waited for him to elaborate, but he stayed silent. Raising an eyebrow she pressed on. "And?"

"How close is your home, Commander?"

Aubrey blinked in confusion at his abrupt question. "Not close by any means; a good hour I'd say." Khan gave another hum as his hands moved to clasp behind his back. "Why would you-? Oh." Understanding dawned on her and she paled visibly. She knew what he was thinking. "No. Absolutely not."

"Come now, Aubrey. I thought I had your full cooperation," he drawled lowly. A smirk graced his features once again as he took slow purposeful strides up to her desk and stared at her with those cold eyes of his. She could hear the warning and malice hidden in his tone, but she refused to let it affect her.

"I may have agreed to help you, but that doesn't mean you have the right to invade my home," she snapped angrily.

"Where else would you have us go? If what you say is true then my face will be recognized soon enough and anywhere we may attempt to flee will have unsavory results."

"Us?" Aubrey asked indignantly.

"Oh, yes. We are now in this together, you and I," he chuckled darkly, his hands coming from behind his back to lean on his fists as he placed them on his side of the desk. "Therefore my actions from this point forward will reflect on you as well. You are no longer safe so I suggest you stay at my side for protection."

"Protection," she scoffed disbelievingly with a shake of her head. "Only for you to dispose of me when I've fulfilled my purpose, correct?"

Khan's smile widened a fraction. "Naturally."

"No matter what you may think, there's nothing you can do or say to get me to tell you the codes."

His one brow raised and he hummed as it lowered again, a wistful smile replacing his arrogant one. "I wonder, Commander, how your sister is?" he said and Aubrey immediately froze. Khan's snide grin returned at her reaction. "She can't be faring too well, I imagine. Stage 4 Rigelian Ovarian Cancer is quite nasty after all."

Aubrey's hands clenched into fists on the armrests of her chair. She wasn't surprised he had figured out her sister was sick –he'd been looking at the photos on her shelf, after all –but she cursed her stupidity for not thinking he'd use Natasha against her. The manipulative bastard, he must have known she'd do anything for her last surviving family member, but how he knew her condition from just looking at the pictures on the shelf was astounding.

When she looked back at him with a glare she found him grinning smugly in triumph. He knew he had her in the palm of his hand now.

With her jaw clenched in anger and frustration she reluctantly relented. "So what's the plan then?"

Khan's grin grew even wider and his eyes even more malicious.