Read To Reign in Hell: The Exile of Khan Noonien Singh for Free Online

people and I shall thrive and prosper far beyond James T. Kirk’s expectations.”
    “Of course,” Chekov agreed diplomatically. He glanced at Khan’s wrist restraints and removed a small electronic device from his belt. “If you’ll just raise your hands, sir, I’ll remove your manacles now.”
    “Thank you, Mr. Chekov,” Khan said, smiling slyly. “But that will not be necessary.” Extending his arms in front of him, he clenched his fists tightly and exerted his strength. His eyes narrowed in concentration and a grimace twisted his lips as he pitted his more-than-human sinews against the impregnable steel cuffs. Twenty-third-century alloys surrendered with a metallic shriek as his bonds twisted and snapped apart, freeing his hands without assistance from Chekov or any other mortal.
    That’s better,
Khan thought. He enjoyed the startled expressions of his captors.
Let them not forget my true superiority
.
    The Russian gulped, even as the wary security officers shifted into a higher state of alertness. A half-dozen phasers pointed in Khan’s direction, but their regal target showed no sign of alarm. Calmly, unhurriedly, he raised his empty palms to demonstrate that he meant Chekov no harm.
    Flustered, the young ensign handed Khan the electronic key anyway, then turned toward Marla. Pity softened Chekov’s expression as he addressed his soon-to-be-former crewmate. “Er … some of your friends aboard the
Enterprise
asked me to give this to you,” he said, producing a small object wrapped in crinkly metallic foil. “To remember us by.”
    Khan looked on as Marla accepted the item, which turned out to be a silver medallion in the shape of the Starfleet emblem. Marla appeared touched by the gift, and her voice, when she spoke, was hoarse with emotion. “Thank you so much!” A sad smile lifted her lips. “It’s comforting to know that not everyone on the ship hates me.”
    “Hate you?
Nyet!
No one hates you,” Chekov insisted, perhaps a bit too quickly. Judging from scowls and stony glares of the red-shirted security guards, Khan suspected that the young Russian was not being entirely truthful. No doubt many of Marla’s onetime comrades now regarded her as a traitor and a disgrace to her uniform. Khan only hoped that she did not see herself the same way.
    I shall see to it,
he pledged,
that she comes to know that she chose wisely. She shall have no regrets
.
    “Are you sure about this, Lieutenant?” Chekov asked Marla, obviously reluctant to leave her behind with Khan and the others. “It’s not too late to change your mind.” He watched her face carefully for evidence of second thoughts. “Once the
Enterprise
leaves, you could be stranded here forever.”
    Khan bristled at the youth’s presumption.
How dare this pup attempt to subvert Marla’s allegiance, as if linking her destiny to my own is such a doleful fate?
He opened his mouth to rebuke the impertinent ensign, but Marla spoke first.
    “I appreciate your concern, Pavel, but it’s all right.” She looked up at Khan without a trace of indecision. “I know what I’m doing.”
    Chekov nodded grimly. “Then there’s only one thing leftto do,” he announced. He removed a phaser pistol from his belt and handed the powerful firearm over to Khan. “To defend yourself against hostile life-forms,” he explained, “along with the antique guns and weapons stored aboard the
Botany Bay
.”
    “Excellent,” Khan declared. Even outnumbered as he was, it felt good to have a weapon in his hand once more. “Tell Captain Kirk I am grateful for his foresight.”
    With no further business to conduct, Chekov and the other Starfleet personnel did not waste time returning to their ship. Khan watched in silence as the
Enterprise
reclaimed its own with a flourish of shimmering incandescent energy. In his mind’s eye, he imagined Kirk upon the bridge, giving the command that would send his magnificent starship hurtling away from Ceti Alpha V, toward the