captivity

[full_of_wrath]

Kirk gets called in. Mostly because Khan has made two duty officers guarding his cell ask to be relieved, one of them in tears.

He creates a lot of wear and tear, in general.

Comments

[kobayashiwhatnow]

"Not a sentimental man, are you."

He leans back, arms crossed over his chest.

"What do you think of the world now?"

[full_of_wrath]

"I like it. It turned out the way we wanted... if not quite as quickly as we had hoped. There's still significant room for improvement on a genetic level, but that isn't actually crucial in the grand scheme of things."

Shrugging, a little bit.

"I do think control of Starfleet needs to be put back in altruistic hands, rather than militaristic."

[kobayashiwhatnow]

And something shuts in Kirk's expression.

"You haven't been around enough to know what Starfleet's like. And you killed the best man in it."

[full_of_wrath]

"They've been holding me hostage and blackmailing me with the murder of my family for a full year. I know just what they're like."

Snarling.

[kobayashiwhatnow]

Kirk responds in kind, matching mood for mood the way he seems to do instinctively in every setting.

"You know Marcus! If all of Starfleet was like him, you and your crew would be dead right now."

[full_of_wrath]

"It wasn't just him. I had scores of coworkers, he had advisors. Idiots, everywhere, taking orders- he brought me into the room with them, you know? He made me watch-"

And then abruptly, he shuts down, like someone has wiped a slate clean. He can't.

[kobayashiwhatnow]

Kirk isn't sure he wants to know. But he needs to ask, because he's on the brink of believing Khan or dismissing him, and Marcus has asked for a rendezvous.

"He made you watch what?"

[full_of_wrath]

"Get out."

He orders him, all tone gone from his voice. That's as far as he can go.

[kobayashiwhatnow]

Kirk watches him for another minute, before he gets up and leaves. He thinks about asking Marcus, but after the conversation he just had, thinking about Marcus makes the hair at the back of his neck stand on end.

Something about the rendezvous doesn't feel right.

And when they get there, Kirk simply can't bring himself to hand Khan over. Instead they run. And they're caught, and he turns resolutely to Khan for help.

[full_of_wrath]

Fortunately, in sickbay, Khan has recovered some of his poise. He's breathing again, at least, and no longer slumped on the floor. His hair is back out of his eyes, and if he's still coolly distant with a note of mockery when he talks to Kirk, it's only to be expected.

[kobayashiwhatnow]

He's seen Khan slumped twice before, and seeing it now brings an unexpected twinge. It only lasts a second.

"We're going over. Come on."

[full_of_wrath]

"I'm going to kill him."

He warns, passively enough.

"You owe it to me not to stop me."

[kobayashiwhatnow]

"Yeah, we'll see."

Kirk means to bring Marcus back for trial. But Marcus just tried to kill every member of Kirk's crew, and so he's not all that attached to the idea of Marcus coming in alive.

That being said he's not going to condone Khan racing off for vengeance.

"You ever flown before?"

Without a ship.

[full_of_wrath]

"I feel as though you're about to suggest something incredibly foolish."

Says Khan, warily.

Gut instinct.

[kobayashiwhatnow]

"Can you talk and walk? We don't have a lot of time."

And Khan doesn't have a choice in the matter.

[full_of_wrath]

He rises up gracefully, and holds his wrists out for Kirk to undo the cuffs.

[kobayashiwhatnow]

He undoes them quickly, and then turns sharply to lead Khan briskly through the halls to the space suits.

He tells him what they're going to do and braces for argument.

[full_of_wrath]

None comes. He merely suits up, quietly, and accompanies him to the airlock.

Besides, Scotty is doing all the yelling for him.

[kobayashiwhatnow]

Kirk stands at the airlock, waiting, a peculiar eagerness in him. He does best under pressure.

Even when his display is broken and his screen cracked, he doesn't panic. And when they tumble into Marcus's ship, he's ready for the next hurdle.

"You all right?"

He glances back at Khan.

[full_of_wrath]

He's already up and standing, not even winded, stripping quickly out of the suit. It's a little cumbersome to take a ship in, after all.

"On your feet, Captain. The hard part is about to begin."

[kobayashiwhatnow]

He finishes stripping down and then nods at Khan to follow him.

Jesus, but it's a big ship.

[full_of_wrath]

It's a beautiful moment, when he finally gets to fly into action. The phaser might be on stun, but he still causes more than a fatality or two, simply by virtue of his tendency to throw bodies.

He hadn't been kidding about his fighting back being fatal to Kirk.

[kobayashiwhatnow]

He has some idea of what Khan might do to Marcus when they get to the bridge. He still hasn't decided what he's going to do about that, either--and right now making sure the Enterprise is safe is more important than whatever ethical dilemma Marcus's death will cause.

The bridge closes in on them, though, and he has to admit that he has no leash on Khan at all.

"On three," he whispers, hoping Khan will at least obey that much.

[full_of_wrath]

"Wait."

He whispers back, now that Scotty is behind him, out of earshot. He grabs Kirk's arm.

"Spare my crew and I'll spare him. Promise me, Kirk."

[kobayashiwhatnow]

"I won't hurt your crew. I won't let anyone else hurt them, either."

Kirk whispers back, because he's never once planned on harming them, but this is a good compromise anyway.

"I swear."