A/N: I want to thank everyone so much for favoriting, following, and especially reviewing this story! I've been a little under-motivated to write it, but I'm still very happy with the result. Thank you so much for reading this! Last chapter!


Kirk entered Sickbay, figuring it was the place that McCoy would most likely be. He was correct in that the doctor was there, but had not expected to find him on a biobed.

"Is he okay?" he immediately asked Chapel. "Is he hurt?"

She shook her head. "No, Captain. He beamed over like this. M'Benga and I checked him out and he's got a cocktail of three different sedatives coursing through him, as well as signs of a stimulant that wore off."

Kirk's eyes bugged and he looked at McCoy. He recalled the doctor's shooting on the Apache. Kirk's aim was deadly but even one sedative had a tendency to make his shot lean to the right. He murmured under his breath "Remind me not to get involved in any phaser contests with the doctor."

Chapel just gave him a weird look and shook her head. "They should be wearing off; give him a couple minutes and he'll likely be awake."

"Alright." Kirk watched her leave to assist some orderlies in cleaning up Sickbay. The battle had thrown some things around.

McCoy stirred and he turned his attention to him. Blue eyes blinked open and squinted. They opened wider when they saw Kirk's face looking at them.

"Jim!" McCoy started, trying to sit up. Kirk pushed him back down when his eyes crossed in dizziness. "Are we-?"

"You're back on the Enterprise, Bones," Kirk said. "And, as Captain's prerogative, I hereby reinstate you as Chief Medical Officer."

"Carter…?"

"Is in the brig." Kirk smiled briefly, then went back to being serious. "That was perfect timing you had there."

McCoy grunted and shifted. "Was mostly a really bad hunch, but I stopped at a terminal on my way up and saw that we were facing you down. So I just kept with mission."

Kirk chuckled at his nonchalance. "All the same, it was a pretty brave act. And you accomplished it. I believe normally that behavior constitutes a medal."

Instead, McCoy's face looked aghast. "Jim, do you know exactly what I did? I mutinied. I took a phaser and stunned the whole bridge! They don't hand out medals for that, only court martials. Well, except in your case. But I don't-"

"Bones," Kirk held up a hand, staving the tirade. "Alright, alright, I won't put in for a medal. Even though you deserve it."

McCoy humphed and grew thoughtful. "What happened to the Apache"

"It's in tow, with members of the conspiracy being arrested."

The doctor nodded curtly. "Better watch out for Saolos. He's not a Vulcan, but a Romulan. Was apparently in charge of calming the wake of your planned catastrophe in the Romulan government. I don't know how much of the crew was in on it, but I can vouch that Head Nurse Julia Granger knew nothing about it. Heck, she even helped break me out of Sickbay."

Kirk absorbed the information and filed it away. "Thanks. Is there anything else you know?"

McCoy hesitated before speaking. "Brahms was talking with some admiral… I don't know who, but whoever it was was in on the scoop. You might need someone looking into that."

Kirk grinned. "Oh, I'm sure Brahms knows. I'll get him to tell me."

McCoy chuckled. "Don't be too hard on him, Jim."


Several weeks after the venture into the Neutral Zone, the events around Vialis were finalizing within Starfleet. Spock had mind-melded with Brahms's consent and learned the full scope of the plot. He distastefully relayed how it was based on 'paranoid superstitions with imminent racial prejudice on both sides'.

The admiral that was in charge of smoothing out that aftermath was also revealed. Kirk was only mildly surprised when he learned that it was Jason Harbinger, the man who had demanded McCoy's transfer in the first place. While at first he had thought the man was trying to get McCoy's expertise on the Apache, he now realized that he had been trying to get Carter on the Enterprise.

The fate of the Apache crew now rested in Starfleet. The final count was that one-third of the ship knew of the plot. Half of those were either actively involved, or simply ignored/failed to report it. Hearings and court martials were being drawn up, with a heavy list of charges.

Saolos, or Epnek, was not being returned to the Romulans. He had apparently been disowned for such action without the approval of the government, and was left to be tried by Federation law. Despite being provided a lawyer, the result didn't look good.

McCoy was anxious about the trials, but he didn't have to appear at every single one. Since they were all for the same charges (give or take) the court established the facts of the incident before getting into the particulars. McCoy had worried about his little 'incident' on the bridge, but it had been approved as an act for the benefit of Starfleet and the Federation as a whole instead of an attack against a starship's crew.

At last, the Enterprise was informed that it did not have to stay for the rest of the proceedings. It was instead ordered to investigate a new system found way out in the Sagittarian Arm. Everyone became excited for a standard mission after the craziness of the Neutral Zone.

"Glory, am I glad that's over," McCoy groaned, stretching. Kirk and Spock stepped off the transporter pad behind him. "I can't wait to curl up in my quarters and finally get a long, uninterrupted stretch of sleep."

Spock raised an eyebrow. "Doubtless, however, you will not neglect your duties?"

McCoy's hand tightened around the official transfer approval from Starfleet. "Of course not, nimwit. How many times do I have to tell you that I'm a doctor? I wouldn't trade it for something else in the world."

Kirk chuckled at their banter. "Good to have you back, Bones."

"Good to be back," he huffed. "I knew you two would get into trouble without me."

"An erroneous statement, Doctor," Spock said. "Being on the enemy ship, you were in more danger than either Jim or myself-"

"Yeah, yeah, missed you, too," McCoy drawled. "But I'm back, so I hope you didn't get comfy with having pleasant, agreeable doctor around."

"An unsocial, poison-making saboteur?" Spock clarified. "Doctor, we most assuredly did not get 'comfy'."

McCoy eyed him for a long moment. Then he shrugged. "Well, I'll take what I can get."

"Thinking it was a compliment, Bones?" Kirk quipped.

"That's the thing about Vulcans, Jim," McCoy explained as they walked through the halls. "They're so uptight that you have to dig through every thought before you find the feeling underneath."

And Spock, for once, did not contradict it.


Thanks for staying along for the ride! I hope the ending did not disappoint! As always, if you spot any loose ends, or unresolved problems that I missed, please let me know and I will be sure to correct them! Bless y'all!