A/N: First I'd like to thank my lovely first reviewer, Potterwatch! That was probably one of the most detailed and wonderful reviews I've ever gotten; I'm glad you enjoyed :)

Diplomatic Encounters, Chapter 4

Bones had remained conscious the entire uncomfortable journey to wherever the hell they were. They'd restrained him first, roping his arms behind his back uncomfortably; he'd remained silent, figuring they wouldn't be too impressed with him informing them of the potential nerve damage that could occur as a result of knotting the rope too tightly. Then he'd watched as the bastards had manhandled Kirk first, then Spock, bundling them up efficiently. Two Telonians had taken a man each and easily slung them over their shoulders. Bones grimaced as Jim's head lolled limply and forced down the rising sense of unease within.

"Move," one had grunted at him, shoving him along so that Bones had stumbled in an effort not to fall on his face. He'd decided to try for some information.

"You know, whatever you guys are trying to achieve, taking three Starfleet officers captive and killing another isn't the generally accepted way of going about it."

They ignored him.

"The Captain in particular doesn't take well to jumped-up crazies using him as a bargaining chip. You sure as hell ain't gonna get what you want from him."

The one that seemed to be in charge turned and sneered at him. "Your Captain will give us what we want. Do not fear, Doctor McCoy."

Bones raised an eyebrow. They knew who he was. What was the significance of that? He hadn't been involved in the preparations for their arrival here; he'd just shown up because Jim had told him to. So knowing his name could be as simple a matter as their hearing the news of which Starfleet officers would be overseeing the negotiations. Or it could mean that these people had done their research and that this was a heavily premeditated attack. Bones really, really hoped it was the first one.

"Just what is it that you want, anyway?"

They were continuing on foot through the forest and seemed to be heading further away from the path they'd followed from town. Bones focused on trying to keep himself aware of their location relative to that of the temple and town; despite his best efforts, though, he found himself wishing Spock was conscious and able to mentally map it out. He again felt that nauseating sense of anxiety but cursed under his breath and firmly pushed it down.

"Doctor McCoy, I have a feeling you already know what we want."

Bones' heart fluttered but he kept a steely look on his face. "You don't want the peace treaty to be signed. You want this war to continue."

The beast grinned. "Congratulations, Doctor! That fine Academy training was not wasted on you, it seems." He leaned in close and Bones gagged at the stench of hot breath on his face. "I am eager to test the limits of some of the best men your Federation has come up with."

Bones knew the next thing he wanted to ask – how are you going to use us to cause the treaty to fail? – but a large part of him didn't want to hear what this particular Telonian had to say about that. He ground his teeth and marched on, grunting occasionally as his follower decided to give him an emphatic shove.

The march continued for what seemed like hours. Bones could feel his blue Starfleet uniform sticking to him uncomfortably as he sweated despite the cool night air. The cover of darkness was ominous, his feet were blistered and in pain, and he had long since lost feeling in his fingers due to the tight ropes. Kirk and Spock were still hanging from their captors' shoulders, but Bones suspected that the drug would be wearing off for both of them soon enough.

After a good half hour of strongly resisting the urge to ask "Are we there yet?" the party reached a small building that looked to Bones like nothing more than an innocent cabin in the woods. After being shoved inside, however, he quickly realized it was simply the entrance to an enormous underground compound. It had to be a base of some kind for whoever these Telonians were – rebels? Radicals? Terrorists? Then Bones swallowed hard as he realized that they hadn't even bothered to blindfold him for this. As though they didn't expect him to ever leave.

Without thinking, Bones planted his feet and bent at the waist, ducking under the Telonian that has been following him, and planted a solid kick in the being's back. He followed it up by rushing forward and shouldering the surprised being in the ribs, before another strong pair of arms wrapped around his chest and squeezed.

It didn't take long for Bones to wheeze and gasp for air as he struggled weakly against arms almost twice the size of his. The wound on his shoulder was jarred and hot pain flared down his arm.

"You bastards!" he ground out as he was thrown to the ground and air rushed back into his lungs. "You think I'm just going to willingly follow you down there?"

"I think that was a foolish stunt, Doctor," said the leader calmly. "You have accomplished nothing. You see, we do expect you to willingly follow us down there, because you will not leave your friends, even if we allow you to walk free at this very moment."

Bones growled, but he knew the Telonian was horribly right. It would be up to Uhura and the others to work on having them released, and if it came down to Kirk and Spock or the others from the Enterprise, he knew that these two would be the ones in need of medical attention. Besides, he would never be able to leave his best friend behind, in one of these situations he seemed almost to thrive on getting himself into.

So he pushed himself to his feet unhappily and waited, glaring around at all their captors equally. The one he'd attacked decided to maliciously grip his injured shoulder and propel him forwards, beneath the ground and into the compound.

It didn't take them long to reach the end of a surprisingly bright and sterile-looking hallway, where a holding area was located. It was a small, square room, completely empty save for chains attached to the walls, which Bones noted would seriously complicate any escape attempts if they were used. Sure enough, the Telonians dumped Kirk and Spock unceremoniously on the smooth floor before kneeling to attach rough shackles to each of their wrists. Bones' newfound friend took great pleasure in squeezing his shoulder once more before slamming him against the wall, watching as he slid to the ground in a daze. As his pain-filled vision cleared, Bones saw the shackles being attached to his wrists as well. The leader looked down at him impassively.

"We will return once your friends have recovered, Doctor."

The world was a pounding, echoing mass of pain. His mouth was fuzzy and his throat worked to swallow. God, was he hungover? No, that couldn't be right. He'd been on duty. On a planet, not the ship. He remembered that for sure, the slight pang of jealousy every time he had to leave his ship in someone else's hands, no matter how much he admired Mr. Scott's similar love of the Enterprise.

So if he wasn't hungover, then what?

"…Jim? …hear me?" Damn, his head hurt. Almost like he'd been…

"Drugged!" Kirk slurred the words off his still-fuzzy tongue and shot up to a sitting position, which caused him to grip his head and groan as the world spun painfully.

Bones watched his as his friend's pain and confusion quickly coalesced into an understanding of their situation. Everything was flooding back, and his face was getting stonier by the second.

"Yes, Captain. It would seem the Telonians drugged us with a strong sedative. We are currently being held underground." Spock was awake too, and seemed already much more aware than Jim.

"How'd you know that?" Bones demanded. "You were out cold, too." Spock just looked at him, an eyebrow raised. Bones decided not to pursue it and turned his attention back to Jim, sitting between them.

"You weren't hit with those damned darts, right?" Jim was stretching stiff arms across his chest as best he could while being hampered with the chains, but his bright blue gaze was on Bones' face questioningly. "What happened?"

"What happened is you two got carried like a damned pair of princesses while I was forced to trudge miles through the forest to this underground lair where we now find ourselves," drawled Bones in a mix of sarcasm and spite as he pulled his boots off and rubbed his aching feet before turning to examine his bleeding shoulder.

Jim noticed the wound and his eyes narrowed. "I thought that shot just nicked you."

"Yeah, well, I pissed off one of our Telonian pals and he thought it'd be funny to see how much extra damage he could cause to it with his meaty paw," Bones muttered as he picked a ripped shred of his uniform out of the bleeding mess. "If this gets infected he'll have hell to pay."

Kirk grinned despite himself at his friend's attitude. He turned and looked over at Spock, who'd been listening quietly in a semi-meditative state. The Vulcan had stiffened, though, and he returned Kirk's look with a slight wrinkle between his brows.

"There are footsteps approaching, Captain."

Kirk nodded silently and pushed himself to his feet, ignoring as best he could the restraints on his wrists. At the very least, he was going to face these people like a goddamn Starfleet Captain.

A/N: Well that turned out to be a very McCoy-centric chapter…it just happened that way. I've got to give some attention to Uhura et al, but there will definitely be some more Kirk and Spock coming in the near future!