Steeled For Battle

[DrDMatthews 0]

"Oh god.....something's wrong," thought Deb.

Truth be told, it was just another problem to add to the list. At the top of that list was the fact her injured husband lay unconscious on a biobed while Deb stood twenty feet away trying to maintain her composure. "Official Starfleet protocol" forbade her from offering medical assistance to Aidan because of their close, personal relationship, unless of course, there was no alternative. Even if there wasn't an "official Starfleet protocol," Deb wouldn't allow herself to go near the man. She was sure to do him more harm than good. Her heart pounding against her chest like it was trying to escape from her body. She even had to remind herself to keep breathing. There was a good possibility Aidan was in better condition than she was.

Deb kept her distance even though it was nearly killing her. She didn't want to get in the way of Studly and his team who were quickly and efficiently evaluating Aidan's condition. She kept a close eye on her unconscious husband but she kept an even closer eye on the physician.

Rocco had run a hyperencephalogram....twice. The test was routine for head trauma. Nor was it unusual to duplicate the test in order to insure accurate data. The current data was then compared to results from a previously conducted test, usually the hyperencephalogram taken during the patient's annual physical. The data should match perfectly. Aidan's didn't. Deb could tell by the way Studly reacted as she scrutinized the information.

Rocco's eyes rarely reflected emotion. But his jaw certainly did. After working with him for so many years, Deb was able to discern the subtle nuances of her colleague's facial movements. He'd just clinched his jaw so tightly, Deb was surprised his teeth weren't clattering to the floor. The handsome physician quickly regained control by taking two or three deep breaths. Then he looked at Deb.

Studly nodded toward a console nearly on the other side of the room. He strode over to it and activated it. The data he required came on screen just as the CMO joined him. Deb's heart was now firmly in her throat,

threatening to fly out of her mouth if she dared open it. She ordered herself to take deep breaths as she kept her eyes on Rocco. She was genuinely terrified to look at the data clearly displayed on the console. There was only one reason Studly would bring her to this relatively quiet spot to show her this information. Obviously, there was brain damage.

Rocco lightly placed a hand on Deb's shoulder and gently turned her toward the small screen. The CMO forced herself to look at it. Neither of them had to say a word. The difference in the two scans was as plain as the nose on Deb's face. The discrepancy was relatively minor but it was definitely present and they both knew exactly what this particular anomaly indicated.

The patient would awaken with amnesia.

The human brain still carefully guarded some of its secrets. The hyperencephalogram might be able to indicate the presence of amnesia but it wasn't able to discern how severe it might be. For that, they would have to wait until the patient awakened. In some case, patients with relatively petty discrepancies suffered major memory loss whereas others, with extreme discrepancies, had very little memory deficiencies.

"This could have been worse....a lot worse," said Rocco in a quiet yet encouraging voice.

Deb nodded but said nothing. There were too many variables running through her head. Aidan's amnesia was definitely post traumatic. But would it be anterograde amnesia or retrograde or a combination of both? Would he be able to form and retain new memories? "No, it won't be that bad," she thought knowing all the while that yes, it could very well be just that bad. She closed her eyes and leaned against the small desk. After beating so wildly, Deb felt like her heart would surely stop at any moment.

"Why don't you get some rest," suggested Rocco as he turned off the console. "We'll call you when he wakes up."

Again, Deb nodded and opened her eyes. "Thanks," she replied in a hoarse whisper.

She remained where she was as Dr. Studly walked back to his patient, his patient who happened to be Deb's husband. "Will he remember me?" she mused silently, staring at the unconscious man on the biobed across the room. "And what will I do if he doesn't?"

She watched the medical team work on Aidan for several minutes, her emotions swinging wildly from terror to furious with every possible stop in between. Closing her eyes, she made a conscious decision to focus on the anger. "What was he doing in that shuttle? Weren't there other pilots available to fly the mission? Of course there were! So who's brilliant idea was it for Aidan to fly? She would find out and wring their neck! And when Aidan recovered, she would wring his too! That's the least he deserved for scaring her like this!"

Through out her silent tirade, there was one key word was the focal point....."recover." Aidan simply had to recover. She would find a way to help Aidan recover his memory, no matter how much of it he'd lost. With her fists clenched tightly, Deb mustered her composure and headed across Sickbay. She allowed herself one quick glance toward her husband before stepping inside in her office. She leaned heavily against the door after it closed behind her.

After a moment or two, she purposefully walked to her desk and activated her console. She was calm now. Still concerned for her husband but no longer scared to death. Now she was steeled for battle. Whatever it took, she would find a way to resolve this problem. She was determined to fix Aidan no matter what. She would win this war if it killed her.

[TKAR 0]

Interesting log-but had to read (to small printing)