Kelly had no words left in her throat, mouth, or mind, and the same went for the other recruits. They could only watch as Khan entered one of the bathrooms at the bottom of the underground habitation and sealed the sliding door behind him.
The recruits spent the minutes that Khan took to remove the dirt accumulated during his adventure with the Niqols in silence. Only George decided to move to put clean clothes right outside the bathroom before returning to his bed.
Khan's achievements had forced them to realize how a half-assed approach wouldn't lead anywhere. He was strong, stronger than most of the recruits on Nitis even, but that alone wasn't the reason behind his gains. Pure power couldn't make soldiers advance through the Global Army's ranks so quickly, and the same went for the Niqols' society. He was doing something that his companions had yet to accept. He was forsaking his human status to turn himself into an alien.
