Echoes of Hell

S.S. Botany Bay.

I knew it! How the ruddy Hell could I have forgotten this?

Before leaving Khan and his followers to their own devices, Kirk had ordered the area where they were beamed down scouted for a potential landing sight. They located a valley not far from the beam down area; not a large one, but large enough to hold a ship in place.

Using the mighty starship's powerful tractor beams, the Enterprise towed their sleeper ship into position and lowered it into the sizable gouge in the region. It was slow going, for they couldn't just drop it into place just like that. The friction from entering the atmosphere would burn the Botany Bay to ashes if they went in too fast, and would cause irreparable damage to the Enterprise as well. Gravity had become a problem when the maneuver was almost complete; the starship had to enter the atmosphere as well to place the sleeper ship properly into position, and the gravitational forces rocked the Enterprise like an acrobat trying to keep his balance on a tightrope.

But once done, a twelve hour operation, the Botany Bay was sitting snug and secure, wedged between the walls of the large ravine with only minimal damage to its bottom hull. Khan and his group could use their ship for whatever purpose they saw fit, as well as the provisions stored away inside. And then the Enterprise was gone, leaving Khan to tame their new home and build his empire.

Kyle noticed something else on the bridge of the ship, things that were not standard equipment; a bed, for starters. Made from recycled parts of whatever they could find and a mattress made from two blankets sewn together and stuffed, the bunk was big enough for two people. Off to the side, a table with two chairs and two large storage lockers. These things had turned the bridge into living quarters.

Opening one of the lockers, Kyle found Starfleet uniforms and off duty clothes made for a woman, with other paraphernalia for feminine use and artists' supplies at the bottom.

Marla's, he thought.

One of the items of clothing was a ceremonial uniform, used for formal gatherings and top-brass protocol, complete with sash and weapons' belt with a sword and sheath. But the buckle for the belt was missing; that jogged Kyle's memory.

Khan's pendant, he surmised.

He remembered seeing Khan wearing it around his neck when he first set foot on Reliant's bridge. It was metal, shaped into the style of the Enterprise's uniform emblem, now the emblem that represented all of Starfleet.

So, that's where he got that from, but where was Marla? She wasn't with Khan when he...

Suddenly it dawned on him. If the one locker belonged to MacGivers, then the other one must be...

Kyle opened the other locker quickly, producing a shriek of metal against metal, and peered inside. It was almost empty.

Almost, for with the exception of the red jumpsuit he had worn the last time Kyle saw him on the Enterprise hanging on a hook, at the bottom was something wrapped in cloth from a blanket. He was just about to remove it when he heard the search parties calling for him. He decided to leave it for later.

Reaching the lower level of the stairwell, Kyle met up with the search teams, and they immediately grabbed him and hustled him to the ramp. He thought that maybe they had found someone still there and not in a good mood, considering where they were. They found something all right, but it was far worse than a disgruntled follower of Khan.

They reported that there was some food stored away below, probably leftover provisions from the Enterprise and jugs and containers of water. They had found the three matter re-sequencers Khan was given to replicate simple foodstuffs and water for his group, all of them inoperable. The light was coming from about two dozen fusion powered glowballs, only half of which were still working, and one team checked out and found the Botany Bay's main power reactor. Its nuclear generator, used to power the vessel's engines and life support containers, looked as though it had been jerry rigged to get it operating again, but was now dead; its reactor core cold, its small supply of fuel rods exhausted.

That was the reason for their hasty departure. The resulting toxic waste from the spent fuel rods had rendered the entire aft compartments radioactive and, without proper shielding to hold it in check, at dangerous levels. The compartments were sealed off with a hastily constructed barrier, but radiation was seeping through the weak spots.

Kyle ordered everyone back up top and told them to wait until he returned. He dashed up the stairwell, taking two steps at a time, and hurried over to the lockers. Opening Khan's, he snatched up the wrapped parcel and was surprised to see an object lying underneath it: an old style phaser. He checked it quickly, but found it was out of power and useless. Dropping it back into the locker, he bolted back down the stairs.

Hurrying up the ramp, Kyle squeezed pass the doors that were now being closed and franticly being sealed up again. One of the medics was checking everyone out that had gotten near the reactor and found minimal traces of radioactivity; it was there, but posed no threat to the crewmen that were exposed once radiation treatment was administered.

Breathing a sigh of relief that they were safe for the time being, Kyle told everyone to get comfortable and remain calm. He was certain that, once Starfleet was apprised of the situation, a ship would be sent to rescue them. While the crew got settled into their temporary home, Kyle ventured into the far container near the airlock.

He found various pieces of equipment, some with minimal power and others dead, and personal trappings on the bare walls, along with another makeshift bed, this time made for only one person.

Hanging next to a seat belt with 'Botany Bay' stamped on the buckle was a shelf stacked with books, real books with paper pages. 'King Lear', 'Paradise Lost', 'Moby Dick'; fiction. 'Holy Bible'; religious dogma. A few text books on mathematics and agriculture, but nothing else of importance. Kyle surmised that these were not needed when the Reliant was boarded by the supermen. Given his genetically engineered intellect as well as his physical body, Khan more than likely had memorized every single word in every book available.

Kyle spied something that puzzled him. On a large container pulling duty as a table, there was a clean area on the surface with two dirty ones on either side of it. Something was obviously sitting there and had been removed recently. Khan felt it necessary to bring something with him when he came on board but, with that item apparently being the only exception, none of the belongings surrounding him were of any use to Khan, then or now.

Including the wrapped item in Kyle's hand.

Carefully removing the cloth wrapping, he discovered that the package was another book, the cover a heavy, leather type material and showing signs of wear as if it were constantly being opened and read. Cracking it open, Kyle found out why.

The book's contents contained dates and paragraphs hand written on slightly fading paper, like entries in a log. The first sentence read: 'My name is Khan Noonien Singh. To whoever discovers this journal, know that this is a record of mine and my followers' trials on this world...'

Oh my God, he thought. This is Khan's personal journal.

One of his crew shouted for him, stating that she had found a communications terminal and, though dusty and unused for years from the looks of it, it could still function if they had the power to operate it. Kyle, being the Reliant's chief communications officer, set about the task of powering up the unit, using two portable generators one of the shuttle crews managed to bring with them.

After a couple of hours, Kyle was started to tire. The strain of taking command, organizing the crew, and gathering supplies was wearing him down and was making him unable to focus his eyes on the comm unit. A technician gently took the tools from him and told him to go rest while he and another tech worked on getting communications established. Grateful for the break, Kyle wandered over to one of the wall hung bunks and laid himself down, napping quietly with a few others as the rest went about their business.

Two days went by, and on the third day Kyle awoke to the sound of static and a distorted voice. The crew had gotten the comm unit working and was in contact with someone. A ship had arrived in orbit and was preparing to beam them aboard.

A collective cheer rang through the containers as they readied themselves for departure. Due to the conditions on the planet surface, a transporter lock was difficult. Adding to the problem was the fact that the crew was surrounded by metal and, farther down below, radiation interfered with the signal. Sealing themselves in their environmental suits, Kyle ordered the crew to head outside and stand next to the homing beacon in groups of six, making sure that the injured members were beamed up first. It was slow going, but eventually Kyle found himself to be the last one to leave and, taking one last look around the decrepit barracks and tucking the journal under his arm, he forced his way out into the unforgiving landscape of Ceti Alpha VI and signaled for a beam out.

An hour later after the medics checked him over for injuries and possible radiation exposure, there he was sitting in guest room quarters on board the U.S.S. Merrimac, another Constitution Class starship similar to the Enterprise.

The first thing he did was strip out of his uniform and jump into the shower to clean off the gritty sand that had somehow manage to get through his clothes and permeate almost every nook and cranny on his body. A real shower, with water; hot water too, and lots of it. After what seemed like an hour, he had finally managed to rid himself of the hateful sands of Ceti Alpha VI and everything it represented.

And now, sitting on the desk just waiting for Kyle to crack it open and bear witness to everything that had happened to the exiled band of supermen, was Khan's journal.

Hesitantly at first, Kyle tipped the front cover back to reveal the first page... and began to read...

* * *

*** My name is Khan Noonien Singh.

To whoever discovers this journal, know that this is a record of mine and my followers' trials on this world and a testament to the glorious empire that will arise here.

I was born in the Northern India region on a planet called Earth 307 years ago by their calendar. I, along with others from different areas of our world, was chosen to undergo an experiment that would alter our genetic forms and transform us into a superior breed of our species, known as human. The experiment was successful. It gave us increased strength, stamina, endurance, and most importantly of all, enhanced intellect.

But realizing too late that superior ability breeds superior ambition, the scientists that created us decided to terminate the experiment... and us. We and our followers managed to take control of many nations within a year's time, and controlled half of the Earth's population; I, myself, ruler of one fourth of Earth spanning an entire continent. However, our subjects would not yield to our attempts at creating an ordered society and rebelled. The war that followed lasted for four more years before most of us were defeated.

Our enhanced survival instincts told us that we would not survive for very long, given the turmoil taking place on a war ravaged planet. We, the remaining 'supermen', as they called us, made our way to a ship and escaped the rebels' attacks before the final battle took place to reclaim their freedom. The ship was outfitted with animated suspension units for use in long distance space travel, so we put them to use, knowing that it would take months... perhaps years before we would reach another world that was habitable. It was a great risk; we agreed to take the gamble.

271 years later, I awoke from my hyper-sleep with the help of James Kirk, captain of the Starship Enterprise, the ship that found us drifting in space. My ambition, still giving me the drive to conquer, got the better of me and I and my followers, 72 in all, tried to take control of the starship with the help of one of their own, Lt. Marla MacGivers. Underestimating the crew's determination, our attempt failed and, knowing any attempt at re-educating us in order to adjust to this new time would not work, Captain Kirk presented me with a more attractive alternative.

I and my followers were exiled to this planet, charged with taming its wilderness and primitive surroundings. We would be not unlike those who traveled to new continents on my homeworld, exploring new lands and forging a new way of life centuries ago. Captain Kirk asked me if I were able to tame such a world; I simply asked him if he had ever read Milton. He understood... ***

Of course, thought Kyle; the quote Lucifer had made right before he was cast into the hellish pit of the netherworld, 'It is better to rule in Hell, than to serve in Heaven'.

***...I was the last one to leave the Enterprise with Marla by my side. She was given the choice of remaining on board and facing punishment for assisting me in my failed takeover, or accompanying me to the surface, joining us in exile. She chose to come with me; a superior woman in her own right.

Now, with the Enterprise gone and leaving us to our own trials and challenges... so begins our journey to tame this world and build the empire we were destined to create. ***

***Day 1

Once our ship was set down on the surface and secured within the rocky walls of the ravine where it now sat, we began by taking inventory of our provisions stored within her, plus the many containers of supplies the Enterprise had left for us.

It was a glorious sight, watching our vessel, the Botany Bay, being lowered to the planet's surface by the Enterprise. Her mighty tractor beams guided the sleeper ship down as gently as they could and wedged it firmly into a small valley near our beam down point. The bottom surface of the ship was slightly damaged, but it mattered not; the ship, its contents, and all of its mechanisms would be put to use here, rather than in space.

We moved the cargo containers to the ship and re-boarded her, using her as a temporary shelter until more permanent ones could be constructed. There, we took a count of our supplies. Everything from tools and machine parts to portable power generators and household fixtures was there, including enough food and stored water to sustain all of us for months until this planet's native sustenance could be found.

I was particularly grateful to one of the Enterprise's crewmembers for his contribution. A young officer, Chekov was his name, had given me one of the crew's hand weapons, a phaser. He told me that his captain had ordered him to give it to me before leaving, explaining that it was for protection against any hostile life forms that were here and for whatever use I saw fit to put it to. Though we had already stocked the Botany Bay with a few weapons and ammunition before leaving Earth, and that his gift to me was unnecessary, I told him that he and his captain were honorable men, and I thanked him most generously.

The sun in our sky, a beautiful orange globe, was setting and I suggested to the others that we turn in for the night, resting our bodies and minds for the tasks that lay ahead. Marla and I found a quiet spot on board, the ship's bridge, and there we told each other the truth.

Marla had been the one who freed Captain Kirk and allowed him and his crew to retake the Enterprise. She cried as she asked me to forgive her, for she was simply doing her duty to assist her crew and commanding officer. I told her I understood, admiring her loyalty to her friends and fellow comrades, and surprised her by not only forgiving her... but asking the same of her.

Using her to rebel against her fellow crewmen to further my own ambitions was wrong, and I told her so. I had done this many times before, but not to a woman that I had fallen in love with, for that is exactly what had happened. During and after the ordeal on the Enterprise, I had found that I had actually fallen in love with Marla. Her beautiful red hair, her soulful chestnut eyes, her very essence had pierced my heart in a way that no other woman could... and I opened that cold, yielding heart to her and, for the first time in my life, willingly dropped to my knees and begged her to forgive me.

We consummated our love for each other right then and there, and drifted off to sleep in each other's arms, waiting for the new day to come. We couldn't wait for our new adventure to begin. ***

***Day 2

Before we could even start planning for the new settlement to be constructed, I encountered my first problem.

One of my followers took exception to me being the leader of our new home, stating that since we are on a new world, we should have a new leader, namely him. He considered my handling of the whole affair on board the Enterprise proof that I was unable to lead them to prosperity. I couldn't really blame him or any other for feeling unfulfilled, because in a way he made a good point. Nevertheless, I offered him the chance to take over by defeating me in combat, proving who was the stronger. He never got the chance.

Another of my followers, Joachim, was insulted by his remarks and his dare to challenge me and my authority. Without any order or permission from me, he attacked the challenger, calling him a worthless coward, and killed him with his bare hands.

Another one, a woman named Greta, charged towards me. Showing the same dislike for my leadership, she surprised me by attacking Marla instead, blaming her for our exile for she had found out that it was her that had a hand in Kirk's crew defeating them. I started to assist Marla, but discovered she didn't need any; her Starfleet training had enabled her to subdue Greta, despite her enhanced strength. Once she was down with a broken knee, Marla deliberately turned her back on her, considering the matter resolved. But Greta grabbed a rock and lunged at her from behind, the act of a coward. I drew my phaser and fired; Greta disappeared into energy, then nothing. I did the same to the challenger's body, a man named MacPherson, someone I thought I could trust.

Joachim bowed before me and asked forgiveness for overstepping his authority. I told him to rise and face me, not as a loyal subject, but as a true and trusted friend, and made him my second-in-command and mine and Marla's personal bodyguard.

The others, disgruntled or not, pledged their loyalty to me once again, as they did so many years earlier.

I will make sure that their loyalty is not misguided... and rewarded. ***

Kyle carefully perused the entries one by one and found that Khan and his band, though suffering difficulties in their exile, proved to be quite adept in blending in with their world and adapting to their surroundings.

Khan went on to write how his group managed to find edible sustenance by using MacGivers tricorder to analyze the flora and fauna of Ceti Alpha V, one particular animal being especially brutal as it killed one of them on a scouting mission with razor sharp claws, but tasted delicious once roasted.

The following log entries didn't contain anything of too much importance, save those of deciding to use the Botany Bay as an emergency shelter and main storage area, rather than dismantle it to use outside of the ravine for homes, structures, and so forth. And that the engineers among them manage to get the ship's nuclear reactor operating again. Although the output of energy was low, there was power enough for their lights and equipment, delivered by power cables strung from the reactor to the buildings they had erected so far.