#seven’s ocular implant looked more metallic

[isagrimorie]

I love the detail that the other implants on Seven’s body where the skin is growing around the implant. It makes more sense that skin would grow around the implants, like a tree bark around an object.

Star Trek: Picard Dominion

[isagrimorie]

Repeating on a theme on Seven's Borg implants (read here for previous posts)

Because I'm still obsessed with Seven's Borg tech and how much of her is organic. Supposedly EMH took out 82% of Seven's Borg tech and took out many over the years Seven still has a lot of working Borg tech and nanoprobes more than other xB around.

One thing I just noticed from Equinox, part 2 is how we see Seven's ocular implant without the casing:

This is where it makes it so obvious that Seven's head is mostly metal because that is a skin cut out showing what's underneath that skin. Also that there are various lights under there we didn't know about.

Look at how shiny Seven's metallic skull is without skin.

The configuration of Seven's head is mostly just metal.

In this Picard s2 prop - this Borg skull only has a fraction of what Seven has underneath her skin:

Seven's entire cranium is made of metal.

That is why when Narissa bashed Seven's head on the console Seven didn’t lose consciousness and only made Seven a little dizzy, and pissed her off more tbh.

An organic person would've had a concussion and maybe even died.

I wonder if Seven looks like a Terminator beneath the skin.

(This is brought to you by having just rewatched Terminator 1 & 2).

Because as we saw in Imperfections scratch the skin underneath and she seems to have metal exoskeleton as implants.

Speaking of further body horror-- Even when the Borg deadened Seven’s nerve endings, Seven still felt the pain of having her occipital ocular installed:

During or after her procedure, even with all the precautions that the body wouldn't feel a thing, Seven remembered feeling the pain. (It makes me wonder if Unimatrix!Annika felt the pain or it was something she could block out).

A fan theory I subscribe to posited that Seven is a Borg Queen candidate.

This would go a long way explaining why Seven has some form of individual identity and why the Borg Queen has a special interest re: Seven.

Aside from being assimilated at a young age, this would also account for the number of implants in her system.

Even among her own unimatrix, she was the one calling the shots and enforcing the Borg rules.

All the Borg Queens we've seen only have their heads and upper torso.

Seven might have been on her way to a similar fate. Her spine's already reinforced.

I'm pretty sure one or both of Seven's legs from the knee down are prosthetic legs ala Edward Elric.

(Also there was a VOY writer who seemed keen on blowing up Seven's legs -- the first version of The Raven has Seven becoming a terminator and to stop her the crew apparently needed to blow up her legs, and she had to crawl her way to Janeway—thankfully someone in the writer’s room said “WTF??”, Because WTF???I'm so glad someone went: No, dude).

As possible evidence that one or both of Seven’s legs are prosthetics: when she was unconscious during The Gift we can see there are wires on Seven's left kneecap.

And I don't know if that shin armor is exoplating or if prostheses have replaced her legs.

There's so much about Seven we don't really know about and I really want to know more about her functional Borg components and to settle, once and for all, if by Picard's time, she still needs to regenerate.

I'm on the camp that Seven still needs to regenerate.

/edited

[velis-et-remis]

Druggist’s Lament, Chapter 1

Title: Druggist’s Lament

Chapter 1, part 2 of 2

Rating: teen & up

CW// blood, injury, car crash, first aid, needles/injections, firearms

Summary:

Norah Laennec has traveled to this exact moment to prevent a fatal accident. However, other forces come into play, making her mission much messier.

All characters and scenarios are my original creations and do not represent real-world incidents or other works of fiction.

Words: 935

++++++++++

A small groan made Norah turn back to her patient. Her hand instinctively flew to the auto-injector in her pocket, but she stopped before pulling it out. No, he’s concussed, I probably shouldn’t wipe him. What are the side effects? Damn, I’ve never had to worry about this before. She ran her fingers from the base of his skull down along his neck, waiting a few seconds for the scan to process. No evident spinal damage. She scooped him up and carried him down to her car.

She was able to lay him across the backseat. She propped open her medical bag on the floorboard, turned on her travel lamp, put on gloves, and got to work. Cut glued shut that will need stiches later and shoulder and upper arm splinted for travel. As this was placed, he groaned and began to stir. Not now, not now! Norah reached into her bag and pulled out three vials. She pondered them before replacing two of them and pulling out a syringe. Sorry, Max, but this’ll be better for you anyway. She thought as she prepared an injection. SE-12 is pretty sweet stuff and shouldn’t add any complications to all you’ve already got going on. She spent a couple minutes post-prick monitoring for any reactions, but the sedative didn’t produce anything but the desired effects. His breathing became more steady, and more loud, as his jaw slackened further and his mouth widened. Got to do something about that nose. It only took a couple minutes for her to realign the nose, pack it, and apply an external dressing to somewhat splint it. Checking the vitals again, she noted the still slightly elevated pulse. You better not go into shock. She’d already unbuttoned the front of his shirt to inspect his ribs, so she unbuckled his belt, unbuttoned his trousers, and took off his shoes before covering him with a blanket. She took off her jacket, folded it, and placed it under his lower legs to elevate them. Norah could still hear her heartbeat, its rhythm beating out her big question: What next? What next? What next?

This has all gone to hell. She ran a hand through her short hair and looked down at the unconscious, bandaged man lying before her. At least he’s still alive. But—bugger all!—I’ve never had to stay this long before.

What next? What next? What next?

She pulled back the blanket to go through his pockets. All she found was a wallet, a packet of cigarettes, and a lighter. Dismissing the thought I forgot how much everyone smokes, she turned her attention to the wallet. It contained enough money to last a day or two, a scribbled address on a scrap of paper, and an identification card that confirmed that the man was Max Borchers. It was a BRD document. Who from West Germany would enter the east? Especially so close to the exclusion zone? He won’t be able to get back. The address read: “Ribbeckstraße 83, 12239 Zweite Berlin” It took several minutes for her software to convert this into coordinates –damn being offline— and plan a route using the best available maps (three years out of date.) I better have downloaded enough data. Previewing the route, Norah bit her lip in frustration. Over two hours! I need to give him proper treatment ASAP! She closed her eyes and ran her hands through her hair again. There’s no helping that, it is what it is. If this is where he was headed, he’s expected there and perhaps that’s where I ought to take him. She tucked the blanket back around him, shut the car door, and went to the driver door. Putting her hand on the handle, she stopped. She looked back at the wrecked car. Making up her mind, she jogged over to it and, getting on her hands and knees with her torch out once again, peered inside. No objects of value or interest were visible in the wreckage of the front seat. She reached her arm in and was able to wrench open the glove compartment. A parcel wrapped in brown paper nearly fell out. She managed to catch it and pulled it out. It was weighty but not overly so, rectangular, like an oversized deck of cards. Nothing was written on the wrapping. She tore that off to reveal a wooden box. It appeared to be made of several pieces and had no markings. It won’t open, she decided after giving it a couple tugs, it might be some sort of puzzle. She put it in her pocket and reached her arm back in up to the shoulder, hand feeling around inside. Nothing else— her heart froze. She carefully wrapped her fingers around it and pulled out the gun. Its black metal was cold and heavy in her hand. She stared at it a moment.

Damn, Max, what are you up to?

Gathering herself, she ejected the clip from the pistol, put that in one pocket and the gun in another, ensured the glove compartment was empty, and hurried back to her car.

Twenty-seven minutes post undoing.

As she put the car into gear, a window popped up in her vision as her ocular implant displayed an urgent message. It contained a photo of Max with a red X over his face, and below the Carnifax insignia it read:

Elimination Complete

Bolchers, Max Heinrich

15.10.1950.xxiii, 21:44

confirmed : y   (n)

derectitudo et efficacitas

Norah smiled grimly as she closed the window and started to pull onto the road.

That’s what you think, you hasty bitch. ++++++++++ To read Chapter 2, part 1:

https://velis-et-remis.tumblr.com/post/660963515691155456/druggists-lament-chapter-2

[isagrimorie]

I screencapped a close-up of a Borg skull prop used for Picard season 2, and I love the high fidelity of the photo, this is the 3d print file:

And this is the finished product:

And it's so interesting how grafted the metal is to the skull, it really is fused into the skull. No wonder Seven's ocular implant can never be removed.

And yet, this borg skull plating is still not as extensive as Seven's as we saw in Timeless:

Under Seven's beautiful hair has some scar tissue and implants:

And as Seven mentioned, installing her occipital implant is the most painful thing she's ever experienced. Meaning, she must have been conscious when it happened:

But also we saw in Imperfection there's a lot more metal under her skull:

She's 70% more metal than organic under the skin.

Are these just implants escaping or is that metal under her skin?

Is this what Seven's skin that's covered up by the suit looks like? More implants?

As we saw from Picard season 1 and even from Voyager, Survival Instincts other ex-Borgs were not as lucky as Seven was, the EMH Doctor really has a talent for extracting Borg implants and fixing the skin.

In a Watsonian POV, I wish the Doctor was less great about wielding a dermal regenerator, but in a Doylist POV, there really wasn't any choice because Berman & co wanted the 'sexy' catsuit. It's a shame because seeing the scars on other xBs added a lot. Jonathan del Arco spoke on how the scars added more to the character and Jeri Ryan agreed.

I don't think I'll ever stop being fascinated with the aspect of borgs, their physicality and what the Borg have done to people.