Today was another busy day in med bay on the enterprise. Spock, Jim and others from the landing party brought themselves at least 20 injured colony members back onto the enterprise after explosions erupted from the ground around them. At least 3 were dead, and four more were very close to death but McCoy wouldn't allow that to go any further. His mind was running different situations of everything that could have gone wrong; he even brought his emergency kit for Jim in case his very own captain was injured. But when Jim had finally appeared on the transporter, McCoy's heart sunk at the look of him. His uniform ripped, with the smell of burned skin coming off of all of them. Jim was obviously favouring his right leg, leaning on it to take pressure off of it. But what seemed to draw his attention more was the look on Jim's face, the horror. In his arms he held a small child, around the age of two. Curled up against his chest, barely taking a breath.

"Bones…"

Jim stepped forwards and nodded to the door.

"I was too late… There was a blast behind him. I tried to get to him… But he was hit on the head before I could reach his hands… Please Bones… You've got to help him"

Tears were in Jim's eyes. McCoy knew instantly that Jim was heartbroken and more. He went to grab the child out of Jim's arms to carry the small boy to sickbay, but within a second the Captain stepped back and towards the doors of the transporter room.

"I'll carry him"

Nodding silently, McCoy studied his best friend and captain as they made their way with the boy. He made a mental note on how Jim was acting. A simple mission to check on a colony who had been out of contact with the federation for a month and ensure there were no problems ended up into a full rescue mission. Together walking through the corridors to the entrance of the Sickbay, McCoy couldn't help but feel a bit of affection towards how Jim moved swiftly with the child. He acted as if it were his own. With the doors opening with a swoosh and the nurses parting that were in the way of the biobed in front of Jim, McCoy followed behind. Slowly Jim lowered the boy onto the bed. A small groan was emitted from the barely conscious child. McCoy put a hand on Jim's shoulder and gave him a nod. Slowly Jim backed away and McCoy stood forwards with his nurses to begin their examination of the child and the fight to save his life. Switching the machine on, McCoy couldn't help but feel drawn to the little battered body that laid on the biobed. A poor child caught up with mother nature. With the team of his nurses, they slowly began to patch up the child.

After some time, though McCoy battled with fighting for the kid's life for some hours. The injuries were too much to handle. He walked out of the intensive care quarantine cubical and looked at the pale Jim. His face was glumb, sad, full of anger and fear. McCoy noted the way his captain was shaking.

"Jim… I'm sorry I did everything I could"

Jim nodded at Bones though he kept looking through the glass at the boy as nurse Chapel slipped the cloth over the body.

"Jim, I know it's going to be hard, but I need to check you over now"

Instantly the captains head turned to his friend, his CMO.

"I'm fine Bones and it's not up for discussion"

Quickly the captain turned on his heels. Bones tried to reach out to grab the captain but it was too late. The captain was out the door and out of view by the time McCoy reached the corridor. Muttering under his breath, the doctor turned back into sickbay swearing to himself he would drag Jim's sorry ass down here later for a check-up. Turning to Christine Chapel, McCoy nodded to her.

"Christine, I would like you to have a break, take the staff with you. Everything's under control here, I'm happy to do the rest myself. I just wish to have a few minutes alone. I can keep an eye out on all the patients."

Nodding, Nurse Chapel gathered the staff and left for a small break. Chapel knew she would only give the doctor a few minutes, she knew secretly he needed time alone but he also needed comfort as well.

McCoy walked over to the boy, pulling the sheet down to the boy's chest. Sighing, he felt helpless at being unable to save the lad. Only a few years old, yet he had his life taken away by Mother Nature. McCoy had seen death in his time from all ages, yet children always tugged at his heart. His mind always thought of how Jim who he treated like his son, or Joanna, could end up like this in front of his eyes. Jim was known to be in any line of trouble, yet Joanna was also secretly one who liked to go off for the need of adrenaline. She took after her father. McCoy always loved how the energy pulsated through him whenever an emergency arrived.

"Oi you! Get away from Ekryn!"

Turning around, McCoy looked at three angry men as a woman barged her way past them shrieking cries as she saw the pale lifeless boy on the bed.

"I demand you help him"

The middle man, butch with more height on McCoy pointed a sharp blade at the country doctor. The man's skin, green like matured grass, eyes that were grey staring straight at him. He wore some kind of tribe robes, like a hunter.

"He's dead… I can't do anything else for him"

The country doctor stood his ground as the blade was brought to his neck.

"I said. Fix him doctor"

McCoy looked to the woman who was shrieking her cries. Sooner or later someone outside of medbay would notice. Looking back to the man McCoy stood forwards pushing the blade against his neck.

"I said I can't do anything else for him"

Blackness swooped over McCoy's eyesight as his body collided with machinery to the left side of the biobed in the cubical. His leg twisted on the way down sending sharp pains up through his nerves. The sound of clatter echoed through the cubical. Large hands grabbed him, lifting McCoy to his feet and into the air before fists planted into his body. Gasps escaped the doctors mouth as he tried to fight off the pain. He tried to reach for a Hypospray nearby on a shelf when he felt his body thrown through the air. A gasp and cry escaped the doctors lips as smashed into the Biobed monitor with a sickening crash. His arms twisted and snapped with the force of impact. Two men walked up to the doctor and lifted him up under the arms as pain crept through him drawing him into unconsciousness. Quickly the other man grabbed the woman, dragging her screaming body away from the boy. They walked into the middle of sickbay as the doors opened.

"Doctor McCoy!"

Christine screamed at the barely conscious doctor as she watched the men drag her body. Quickly she ran towards the communicator on the wall but was stopped as she was thrown backwards, slamming her head into the wall. Christine looked up as her eyesight began to fade. Her stomach turned as she watched a light engulf the woman, three men and doctor McCoy before disappearing. Christine tried to raise her hand to reach towards a communicator on the floor but groaned as her body rejected the move. Falling to the floor she stretched out her arm before letting her breath go as darkness crept over her.