Personal Log 001

Posted on 22 Dec 2013 @ 1:27am by Lieutenant Olsam Mott

494 words; about a 2 minute read

Personal Log, Stardate 67072.3.

"Computer, begin log.

"I've only just now had the opportunity to sit down and review the declassified portions of Galileo's mission report from Setisar VI. What hasn't been redacted by Starfleet Command or classified beyond my security clearance has been...interesting...reading. There were apparently many crewmembers who suffered from alopecia universalis inflicted upon them by something that's been redacted. From the crew's chatter, I gather it was a previously unknown alien species. More worrisome were indications that members of the crew had been assimilated by the Borg and then liberated from the Collective's control. As I expressed to Commodore Saalm, there have been medical successes in removing Borg implants and rehabilitating those who have suffered from the indignity of the transformation. And yet...

"I remain unconvinced that there are not more serious long-term considerations, both physiological and psychological. To my knowledge, little research has been dedicated to the long-term effects of assimilation into the Borg Collective simply because the liberation of such individuals is exceedingly rare. Or, perhaps, the findings of such research is simply above my clearance level. The lack of data and analysis on the far-reaching effects of assimilation indicates it must be viewed as something of an unknown. The cases of Captain Picard and Seven of Nine are oft-cited in such instances but any scientist would reject the experiences of two individuals from the same species as little more than anecdotal. Without a body of research to rely upon, speculation remains just that - speculation. Regardless, my most immediate concern is that the ship's new commanding officer, Captain Holliday, was among those assimilated and subsequently liberated crew members.

"It has been my experience that command officers are loath to submit themselves to even routine medical and psychological testing, much less the sort of in-depth therapy exercises that would likely be necessary to truly recover from such a traumatic experience. Refusal to do so will only allow the traumatized mind to suppress rather than process; in stressful situations, I'm concerned these traumatizing events may resurface in unexpected and detrimental ways."

Olsam paused from his unusually somber and cogent log to reach for a glass of water. Ordinarily he was viewed as an incredibly jovial and easy-going member of Starfleet; however, serious matters of medicine elicited a different side of his personality that was at once professional, protective and incisive.

"I've voiced my concerns to the commodore, and I will do so again directly to Captain Holliday as soon as I meet him. Beyond that, though my reservations remain deep, I'll assume that the appropriate measures have been taken to grant our commanding officer a clean bill of physical and mental health. Nevertheless, I feel some degree of medical vigilance will still be necessary to guard against any long-term effects with Captain Holliday and other members of the crew who endured the anguish and strain of being assimilated by the Borg Collective.

"Computer, end log."

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