Monica couldn't hold back her curiosity. She reached for the menus and restarted the video to watch it in its entirety. As for Khan, he focused on the network to see what the various sites said about the matter.
A sea of comments had already appeared, which wasn't surprising. Still, their contents turned out to be more extreme than Khan had expected, at least when it came to a fraction of those anonymous users.
Khan had gathered a few haters after his many exploits. His background, general fame, and women had attracted a series of jealous and resentful people who saw everything wrong with the Global Army in him.
An opposite side existed, and the fight between the two gave birth to nasty comments. Moreover, the video generated more rumors and made many conversations degenerate.
In the meantime, Monica fell prey to the video. Khan was a fantastic warrior, and seeing him in his element deepened her arousal. Still, worry arrived whenever Khan got hit, and her hands instinctively went for the spots highlighted by the images.
Monica checked Khan's back when one of the pillars hit him there. She carefully touched his face when his fast sprints caused burns, and her gaze fell on the big bruise on his chest after the strong Radola's blow.
The inspection took as long as the video, which gave Khan the time to read tens of comments. He almost couldn't believe the things he saw, and his mood ended up suffering.
The haters used Khan's mutations and powerful techniques to insult his battle prowess. In their eyes, he was nothing more than a kid who owed his strength to the Nak and his alien lovers.
Instead, the fans saw Khan as the best expression of human potential. He was a source of inspiration for any young soldier, especially those without background.
Those sides weren't too bad on their own, but the clashes in the comments led to awful topics. Xenophobia, arrogance, death threats, and much more filled the sites, putting Khan in a sour mood.
Khan wouldn't usually let fame affect him, but that scene was depressing. Strangers who knew nothing about his life shouted random opinions and even fought because of them. One side wanted to put his face on a banner, while the opposite was ready to exile him.
'Is that all I amount to?' Khan couldn't help but wonder. 'Is this all I have achieved in the past years?'
The side didn't matter. Haters and fans alike could come up with hurtful and insulting comments. Most of them had clearly never been on the battlefield but still felt entitled to give their biased opinions.
Khan saw his worst memories flying through his vision. All the death, killing, struggles, and desperation needed to achieve his current power had led to that pathetic scene. His life had turned into a show with an unknown audience spouting judgments about things they didn't know.
A specific comment ended up standing out from the others. Khan finally learnt his nickname, the monster of Nippe 2, and those words deepened the expanding depression.
'Is this my reward?' Khan wondered. He hated the idea of strangers spreading misconceptions about his life, but the fact that some comments hit the mark annoyed him even more. He knew what he had become to pursue his goals. He knew the word "monster" suited him.
Monica realized that something was off when the video ended, and one look at the comments told her everything. She immediately grabbed Khan's head, making sure to avoid his burns while turning it toward her, and her careful touch conveyed her affection.
"Hey," Monica called in a scolding tone that managed to sound lovely. "Look at me. Look only at me."
Of course, Monica couldn't understand how deeply Khan had been affected. After all, she lacked Jenna's senses. Her reaction had come from how well she knew him, which managed to have some effect.
Khan had almost begun to doubt the value of his struggles, but one look at Monica reminded him of the truth. He had killed out of desperation and survival instincts, but there was something else in his life, something he valued a lot more, and that had taken him a long time to accept.
For someone so used to suffering, striving for personal happiness was a big deal. Liiza had created that path, Jenna had pushed Khan into it, and Monica had fulfilled it. Nothing could make Khan forget his desperation, but that beautiful face covered in curls granted him a type of peace that allowed him to smile honestly.
Khan lowered his head, and Monica welcomed it in her chest. It was rare for her to see him in that vulnerable state, and unreasonable anger filled her mind when the comments fell into her vision again. Even Monica didn't know what she would be capable of if those anonymous users entered her reach.
Monica's reasonable side quickly prevailed, mainly because Khan needed her. She turned off the menus and pampered the head on her chest with affectionate caresses. She even left a kiss on that wet hair, and her mouth remained there to show her support.
The Niqols' traditions kicked in soon enough. Khan knew the best cure for his mood, and Monica turned out to be a natural in the treatment. The two were so caught in their passion that they completely ignored the bathtub's water getting cold.
.
.
.
The doctor had told Khan to rest, but he interpreted the order in his own way. His tasks wouldn't just disappear due to a few injuries, so he spent what remained of the afternoon reviewing Lieutenant Clayman's report on his bed, surrounded by wet sheets.
To no one's surprise, Lieutenant Clayman had been extremely thorough in his recollection of the mission's events. His descriptions even carried precise timestamps with minutes and seconds, and many files from the ship's scanners accompanied them.
Khan didn't focus on the mission for now. His priority was to evaluate his team, and the report confirmed his initial guess. Except for the pilot, everyone had done well.
'What should I even write?' Khan wondered as Lieutenant Clayman's name shone on the device between his hands. 'Reliable, trustworthy, unflinching. That should do.'
Seth, Leona, and Manuel received similar praises that Khan added to their profiles. He could be more accurate and even nitpick on certain details, but adding negative reviews to his teammates wasn't part of his plans.
Tyler was the only troublesome topic. Khan could lie and praise him anyway to improve his image as a Captain, but that could lead to dangerous consequences. He didn't want someone to rely on that pilot because of his evaluation.
However, leaving negative comments could also create problems. Khan already suspected that Tyler had received external help to pass his pilot's test, which hinted at a powerful background he didn't want to mess with.
In the end, Khan decided to ignore that evaluation. It wasn't mandatory, and experienced soldiers would understand the meaning of a lack of praise anyway. He simply avoided delivering the killing blow to that already catastrophic profile.
Usually, Monica would help Khan deal with those tasks, but her mood was far from ideal. She wasn't even on the bed with him. She was pacing left and right through the bedroom, and the symphony reeked of her fury.
"I'll nuke his fucking outpost," Monica muttered once Khan lowered his device. "Who does he think he is? He is mocking us openly!"
The previous hours had been full of passion, but the couple had found the time to talk a bit. Khan had shared his thoughts on the leak, and Monica had agreed with his guess. Lucian had to be the culprit, and Monica seemed ready to skin him alive.
"Monica, let it be for now," Khan teased, knowing how his girlfriend would react. "The video might actually do wonders for my career."
"That's not the point!" Monica snapped and crawled on the bed to point an admonishing finger at Khan's face. "He has to ask permission for that stuff. He must come to you first and then beg me to agree."
"I kind of like it when you get all bossy," Khan joked, and his words carried some truth. The two didn't even dress up yet, which made the whole scene sexier.
"Shut it!" Monica almost shouted. "This is serious!"
"Alright, ma'am," Khan chuckled. "I'll threaten him properly next time I see him."
Khan's casual behavior added fuel to Monica's anger, who squinted her eyes before jumping off the bed. She stomped her feet through most of the flat as she went to retrieve her phone, and a statement left her mouth when she returned to the room. "I'll call someone from my family."
"Wait, wait," Khan laughed but still hurried outside the bed to seize Monica's phone. In the past hours, the device had buzzed to no end, and Khan almost answered a call in the following struggle.
"Give it back!" Monica ordered while trying to retrieve the phone Khan was hiding behind his back.
"Calm down," Khan snickered. "Let's not involve your family."
Monica didn't want to listen to reason and continued her attempts to seize the phone. Yet, she ended up bumping into Khan's chest during that playful struggle, forcing a groan out of him.
The anger instantly dispersed, and worry replaced it. Monica gasped and carefully reached for Khan's cheeks to make sure he was okay, but the tongue he showed after pretending to be hurt made the fury return.
"You damned scoundrel!" Monica complained, forgetting about the phone to push Khan onto the bed. "You are always teasing me, even when the situation is so serious!"
Monica crawled on Khan and kissed him, trapping him in a suffocating hug. It was unclear whether she wanted to choke him or have sex again, but he was having too much fun to interrupt her.
"I would have never called my family," Monica snorted while straightening her back to sit on Khan's abdomen, "But we must do something."
"I might be to blame for the leak," Khan realized in that moment of peace. "I might have told Lucian I want to work with him."
Khan and Lucian had never exchanged those exact words, but the hidden meanings in their last conversations were enough for people like them.
"What?" Monica frowned. "Why?"
"Because the lapdog doesn't get the princess," Khan sighed.
"Princess?" Monica questioned. "Are you talking about Princess Edna?"
"I'm talking about you, dummy," Khan laughed. "I don't want to wait ten years to be with you in the open."
Monica knew the political environment better than Khan, so she could understand everything with that hint. Khan could get Monica on his own, but that would take a lot of time, which Lucian could shorten.
"For me?" Monica asked as disbelief filled her face and her hand reached for her curls.
"I didn't expect him to release a video," Khan explained. "We didn't actually talk about anything, but yes. For you."
Monica melted. She played a bit longer with her curls before getting down and cuddling at Khan's side. She laid on his shoulder and wrapped her left arm and leg around his torso to keep him close.
"You shouldn't make these decisions on your own," Monica tried to scold, but her tone came out too sweet. "You should also consult me before accepting any plan. Lucian is skilled."
"I never planned to do otherwise," Khan declared.
Monica lost herself in that smiling face. Her feelings seemed on the verge of bursting out of her chest, and a random thought suddenly popped into her mind, making her shy.
"What is it?" Khan obviously noticed that reaction.
"You know I'm on birth control, right?" Monica decided to reveal as anticipation mixed with her shyness.
"You told me your mother accepted your request," Khan exclaimed. That news was recent, but Khan followed with a simple question. "So?"
Monica almost felt disappointed, but a realization arrived when she looked at Khan's clueless face. He probably didn't know anything about the topic or what it implied.
"So," Monica announced, diverting her gaze but snuggling closer, "It means you don't need to use-."
Monica couldn't finish her line since multiple letters lit up on the walls and a ringing noise spread through the bedroom. Someone was calling Khan's flat directly, which only professors and similar figures could do.
"Voice only!" Khan promptly ordered and forced himself to sit. The menus confirmed that his directive had gone through, and the call started without needing to answer.
"Captain Khan," Professor Nickton's voice came out of specific areas of the wall. "Did you lose your phone?"
"I was asleep, sir," Khan lied. "Is something the matter?"
"Write a complete report of Lauter's events and send it to me," Professor Nickton stated. "Also, Professor Parver requested your presence in tomorrow's meeting. Someone will text you all the details."
"A meeting on the weekend?" Khan felt confused. "Sir, what is it about?"
"You discovered an unknown racial behavior in the Radola," Professor Nickton explained. "Professor Parver will probably give you access to a private course as a reward."
Khan opened his mouth in surprise and prepared another question, but Professor Nickton spoke before him. "Don't forget my report."
The call ended at those words. Professor Nickton had hung up since he didn't care about the conversation anymore, leaving a speechless and confused Khan staring at the empty wall.
"I should probably get my phone," Khan eventually sighed.
Dinnertime was close, and Khan had yet to review some notes, but another task had appeared. Still, the situation didn't look too bad since his injuries would keep him in the flat all night.
Khan prepared himself to retrieve his phone in the bathroom, but something in the symphony made him turn toward Monica. Her mana almost called him.
"What were you telling me about birth control?" Khan somehow knew the right question for the situation.
Monica remained shy but still sat on the bed to approach Khan's ear. Whispers entered it, and his eyes widened, but that surprise only lasted a second since his lust took over him. Part of him had already decided to move the report to the night.
