Disclaimer: Star Trek does not belong to me.

This is my idea of the end of the Enterprise's first five year mission and the first part of seven.

"In almost every list pride (Latin, superbia), or hubris, is considered the original and most serious of the seven deadly sins, and the source of the others. It is identified as a desire to be more important or attractive than others, failing to acknowledge the good work of others, and excessive love of self. (...) In perhaps the best-known example, the story of Lucifer, pride (his desire to compete with God) was what caused his fall from Heaven, and his resultant transformation into Satan." (Wikipedia)

There are minor references to the episodes "The Empath" and "For the World is Hollow..."

Pride

Jim Kirk was annoyed with this away mission to put it mildly. The Meriahn did not want any contact with Starfleet - that was clear. They were said to be a polite race, but suspicious of all aliens. They'd had some bad experiences, as their prime minister had explained. In a way, they had quite a lot in common with Vulcans, being touch-telepaths and allegedly unable to lie. That of course, made their being polite somewhat impossible, as Bones had pointed out. For being polite often meant disguising the truth.

Their planet was of strategic value no doubt, and they had promising dilithium deposits, but they'd said they wanted no contact with Starfleet or the Federation and therefore they should let them be.

Kirk wasn't sure if he'd made the situation even more delicate now, beaming down with McCoy and Spock, as ordered, and trying to persuade them to collaborate. However they had been hospitable enough, although making clear that their politics of splendid isolation would not be changed. This was good enough for Kirk. For even though the Federation seemed to want an alliance with the Meriahn at all costs, he believed it was enough to see that the Klingons didn't. If we stay here for longer we'll just earn their distrust and push them into the direction of an alliance with the Klingons, Kirk thought bitterly while looking at a statue in front of the Meriahni government's Department for Foregin Affairs.

He grabbed his communicator. "Kirk to McCoy and Spock. We're done here. Meet me at the beam- out point!"

"Acknowledged, Captain," came Spock's voice over the communicator. Kirk waited. McCoy was probably somewhere engaged in conversation with a Meriahn.

"Dr. McCoy, please come in!" Bones and Spock had been looking at some exotic plants in the botanical gardens when he last saw them, going into different directions, of course, because they wouldn't agree on which plants were the most "fascinating". Kirk smiled to himself. Their constant dispute really didn't get old for them.

"Spock, is Dr. McCoy with you?"

"No, Captain. He went to observe the succulents in the opposite direction of where I am."

"McCoy, come in! ... Bones, come on we want to get out of here," Kirk was beginning to become even more annoyed.

Nothing.

"Captain, I will search for him," Spock said calmly into the communicator.

"Yes. The succulents, you say? I'll meet you there." He pocketed his communicator. It wasn't like Bones to become that carried away, he thought a little worried.

o0o

The botanical gardens were only moderately interesting, they were really nothing new either to him or the doctor. However Spock had sensed that it was best to leave the captain alone for a while, this mission had not come to a satisfactory outcome. Therefore, he had taken the opportunity to observe the local flora. The doctor had wandered off into the opposite direction of himself, something that did not really surprise him, since he had been in one of his irrational, irritated moods. But, Spock admitted to himself, it was somewhat irritating to him now that the doctor should not answer his communicator.

When he arrived at the point where he'd last seen Doctor McCoy, this irritation became concern. The gravel on the path was disordered, and some plants on the side had been damaged as if from a struggle.

"Doctor McCoy, are you in need of assisstance?" Spock called out and strained to listen for an answer.

He did hear something, it was a muffled sound, a whimper? He quickly turned into its direction, somewhere behind a wall of large cactus-like plants.

"Doctor?" he called again. And again he heard this sound, coming from behind the plants, that made him suddenly leap over them as fast he could.

McCoy was lying on the ground, bleeding from a deep scratch on his shoulder that he seemed to have suffered from falling into one of the thorned plants. It did not appear to be very serious, although the doctor was in a state that so shocked Spock that for a split second, he was unable to move. The doctor was shaking, his face showing perspiration and bright red spots under and around his left eye and chin. However, it was McCoy's expression of utter horror and desperation that was most unsettling. It could be poison, Spock hypothesised and knelt down beside the doctor grabbing for his right wrist to feel the pulse.

The doctor gave a soft cry of pain at the touch. "I apologise, doctor," Spock said, when he observed the torn flesh on both the doctor's wrists. It looked as if someone had tied him up and the ropes had burnt into McCoy's wrists when he had struggled against them.

"What happened? Who did this to you?" Spock asked gently, now holding a hand on the doctor's shoulder wound to stench the moderate, but still disconcerting flow of blood.

McCoy was clearly in great distress, however he was recognising Spock and trying to say something around the now almost uncontrollable sobs coming from him.

"Relax, Doctor. You are safe now." Spock did not know, if that was true. But he had to calm the doctor in order to understand what he was trying to say.

"C-can't. ... Please ..."

Spock suddenly wished for Kirk to be here. He was just incapable of spending the comfort the doctor needed. In an almost desperate attempt, he lifted the doctor's upper body from the ground and settled him against his chest to hold him close. It was something he'd seen humans do at such moments. He just hoped it would have a positive effect on the normally so private CMO.

"Please, doctor. You must calm down. Let me help you." He looked at McCoy's tear streaked face. There was something peculiar about the red marks.

"Spock. S-sorry - I told him. Every - everything. He could just t-take it." McCoy made a movement with his hand to touch his face and the angry red marks which suddenly represented a very familiar pattern to Spock. Before McCoy could touch them, he caught the doctor's hand with his own as if by that he could make them go away.

He had to bite the inside of his cheek to stop himself from swearing. The Meriahn were touch telepaths like him. It all fell into place. McCoy had been attacked, probably tied at his wrists to keep from struggling and then he was forced to mind-meld with one of the Meriahn, possibly to get to secret Starfleet information. Emotions of rage threatened to overwhelm him once again, when he saw Kirk standing in front of them, a look of horror on his face.

"Spock! What the hell happened to him?" Kirk exclaimed, kneeling down beside them and putting a hand on Bones' uninjured shoulder.

"N-no!" McCoy almost screamed, trying to crawl under Spock's skin, twisting his uniform in his fist, the other hand almost crushing Spock's.

Kirk pulled back his hand as if it had been burnt. "Doctor, it is just Jim. No one will hurt you, I promise!" Kirk eyed Spock with a mixture of amazement and concern. He knew that Spock could be surprisingly sensitive and caring when it concerned Bones' well-being. But this had always been the case in situations when they had really thought they'd lose him. Like when he had been tortured by the Vians or when they'd thought he would die of xenopolycytemia.

"Spock?" Kirk was growing impatient, he needed to know what was wrong with Bones. And although he was somewhat satisfied that he was calming a little bit, he couldn't help feeling irrationally hurt by McCoy's violent reaction to his meant-to-be comforting touch.

Spock looked at him with his usual impassive expression, but he could see that it cost him a considerable amount of energy to keep it that way. "The doctor was attacked," he said simply.

"How bad is it?" Kirk was on the verge of shaking Spock until he spilled it. He eyed McCoy, whimpering in Spock's arms, but didn't dare touching him again.

"Captain, I believe the doctor was forced to meld with a Meriahn." Pause. Kirk tried to comprehend. He knew from Spock, that a forced meld was considered the worst crime a telepath could commit. Mind rape they called it. It meant theft of a person's most private thoughts, damaging the very soul. Often resulting in ... permanent madness ... or suicide. "Bones, I - I'm sorry." It was all he could say at the moment and he knew it sounded lame.

But somehow it was enough. McCoy looked at him for the first time since he had arrived. His eyes wide open and glowing with unshed tears. Kirk cringed. He had never seen Bones cry, not when he thought he was going to die of xenopolycytemia, not ... well never.

"Jim, I told him. Everything I know about Starfleet, he knows. I'm sorry. I couldn't help it." He looked miserable. As if he had just killed a thousand people in an accident he was responsible for. Kirk shook his head. "No, Bones, don't blame yourself. You did nothing wrong." He tentatively reached out to touch him again, fearing that he would shy away once more.

He didn't, though he stiffened a bit and coughed. Kirk thought he heard a wheezing sound coming from his lungs. He took a good look at the cut in Bones' shoulder. "What's this, Spock?"

"I think it was caused by a fall into one of the succulents. It does not look too serious, but should be treated as soon as possible. We need to get him to sickbay, Captain."

Kirk nodded and took out his communicator with one hand while trying to unclench Bones' hand from clutching Spock's uniform with the other.

That gained him some attention. "Jim, didn't you hear what I said? I - I'm a traitor. I didn't mean to, I swear I tried to fight him, but I couldn't. I just - I b-blurted out everything that he wanted to know, he's gonna ... I don't know, he c-can ... Jim, I - please you've got to believe me ... I did t-try ...".

Kirk let his communicator fall into the dirt and grabbed Bones' hand with both of his now. With a barely controlled rage he saw the mutilated flesh on his CMO's wrist and clenched his jaws until he heard a little crack. He needed to keep control of himself and make this convincing. He had to come through to his confused and terrified friend now, or Bones would be plagued with guilt and shame for the rest of his life.

"Now, Bones, look at me!" McCoy had turned his head again towards Spock's chest. He shook his head.

"BONES!" that came out louder than he had intended it, but it had the effect he'd hoped for. Pained blue eyes met his and once more Kirk had to swallow hard after looking into those eyes.

"Thank you!" He smiled encouragingly. "Now, repeat after me: I ...," he stopped and waited for McCoy to do as he was told. "Bones, I said repeat after me!" He tried to make it sound like an order, though it was more a desperate plea.

"What?" McCoy looked confused and coughed again.

"Say it: I am ..."

"I am ..." McCoy looked at him expectantly, breathing hard.

Great, now he just had to choose his words carefully. "... not to blame."

Pause. Then quietly: "... not to blame."

Right, very convincing. "There was nothing I could have done to prevent this."

"There was nothing I could do to prevent this." It was a whisper barely audible. Come on, make him believe it!

"In this kind of situation no one could have reacted differently."

"In this kind of situation no one could have reacted differently." This was becoming a sort of game now.

"Not even Jim."

"Not even ...", he couldn't bring himself to say it.

"I mean it, Bones. Say it: Not even Jim." "Or Spock." Jim looked at his first officer in gratitude. Then they both looked at their friend struggling to repeat these simple five words.

"Not ... not even Jim, or ... Spock."

"That's the truth, Bones." Kirk watched him, not at all convinced that this had had any effect on his friend at all.

"That's the truth, Bones", McCoy repeated.

Kirk felt his heart miss a beat.

Bones grimaced. "Sorry, not ... f-funny. I ... I know." His breathing was becoming more laboured now.

Kirk swallowed another lump in his throat and gave his friend's hand a squeeze, before he let go and picked up his communicator once more to call the Enterprise and have them all beamed up. They would find and punish whoever had done this, but right now they needed to get their doctor back to safety and tended to.

"S-Spock." McCoy whispered.

"Yes, Doctor?" Spock strained to hear the human, still slumped in his arms.

"I don't th-ink I can stand." It sounded embarrassed. Illogical, especially under these cirumstances, Spock decided. "I know, Doctor. Do not worry." With that he shifted him a bit, so that he could place his arm under the doctor's knees, and in one swift motion stood up to stand beside Kirk who looked at them with worry etched into his face.

"Ready?" he asked them. Spock nodded. Kirk waited patiently. "Bones?"

"No. P-lease don't - I mean -" He coughed. Then more quietly than before, "Well, I guess so ..." McCoy wouldn't look at him. Kirk took out his communicator again. "Scotty, let the corridors to sickbay and the transporter room be cleared of all unneeded personnel!"

"Sir, is something wrong?"

"We're all right, just do as I said. Kirk out."