Beverly Crusher was exhausted. The initial surgery to remove the Borg hardware had taken seven hours in total. With the help of the medical team, each microfibre filament and nano-circuitry node had been mapped, neutralised and removed. Once the first phase had been carried out, Crusher took the opportunity to update the medical log. She didn't want to leave anything out; she knew Starfleet would be pouring over her log in granular detail.
"Chief Medical Officer's log, I have decided to split Captain Picard's surgery into two phases: first phase removal of Borg implants, and a second reconstructive phase. The Borg technology infiltration was extensive though thankfully, the remaining human tissue had not become entirely integrated thanks to the Captain's expedient rescue. Damage to the Captain's body is extensive. Most notable is the injury to the right arm and secondarily, the Captain's right-side skull. I have placed the captain under a regen field to initialise cellular restoration prior to recommencing micro-surgical repair. He remains under the influence of the neural calliper. The length of unconsciousness, while outside current Starfleet parameters, seems justified given the high levels of pain witnessed upon the Captain's uncoupling from the Borg. End log."
Once surgery had begun, Crusher had very quickly reached the conclusion that the team, herself included, would need to take a break before phase two could commence. Justifying her decision, she knew that the Captain would benefit from some down time with a regen field – it had been a long time since she had seen such damage inflicted so extensively on the human body. Thankfully, most skirmishes these days resulted in a lone phaser blast from a foolhardy species looking to make a mark – just enough to send a warning, not nearly enough to engage the Federation in a war that could not be won. Of course, there were always a plethora of wonderfully weird complexities when it came to alien infections to keep her busy, not to mention the usual array of breaks and sprains the crew was more than capable of picking up for themselves.
The damage left by removing the implants was extensive. It was going to take a good long while before the Captain would be back up and running. She tried not to think of all that lay ahead. Never the easiest of patients, he would be wearing dermal patches for weeks, never mind the residual pain and inevitable scarring. She would be treating him for some time to come and he wasn't going to like it.
She wandered back into the surgical suite to check on the Captain once more before she headed to her quarters for some sleep. He lay still and fragile on the biobed, the gentle hum of the regen field evoked a sense of calm and tranquillity in contrast to his horrifying appearance. This was what he needed now, total rest, regeneration, and a refreshed Chief Medical Officer better equipped to deal with all that lay ahead.
He was covered in raw wounds edged with burnt flesh. His face looked terrible. The right side of it almost completely covered by an open, angry wound reaching across his forehead, over his nose, down one side of his cheek, and right to the back of his head across his ear. The vague shimmer of the localised regen field was all that stood between the maw and the rest of the world. She thought back to a few hours ago when she had first removed the facial implant. She'd lifted the unit to reveal an intricate network of wiring continuing to worm through the tissue of his flesh. She hoped the Borg had used some sort of anaesthetic when they assimilated fresh victims, she couldn't bear to think of the pain the process would cause. But then she'd been there, in the lab. She'd seen what had happened when they had disconnected him.
She lifted the sterile sheeting covering his body to check on his arm. When she had reached the prosthetic during the surgery, it had required two medtechs to help remove it – such was the weight. Once they had detached this final piece of Borg technology, the remaining flesh of the Captain's arm had been necrotic. Crusher had had to remove most of the damaged flesh and had contemplated amputation. She was still concerned that this would become necessary but she was willing to give the regen a try first. As good as cloning technology had become, it would still necessitate a lengthy period of time in which the Captain would be missing an arm while the new one was generated. His arm looked nothing short of horrifying. She had no doubt, the Captain would need to be kept under sedation until the healing process was well underway.
In addition to the most extensive sights of injury, Picard's right shoulder, lower right torso, left thigh and hip had also been difficult to reclaim. These areas too were raw, each of them contained within its own regen field so as not to cause cross-contamination; the Captain's body was at the mercy of any opportunistic infection now. Despite the in-built steri-field there was always a modicum of infection risk with injuries of this severity. The rest of his skin retained the mottled grey appearance of Locutus, this too would take time to repair.
Alone with her thoughts, Crusher's reverie was interrupted by the chirp of her communicator.
"Riker to Doctor Crusher."
"Crusher here."
"Please report to the Captain's Ready Room."