Page 12 of Whoops-A-Mate From Outer Space
“Medical?”
“It’s where we’ve got your team until we can get a new building constructed. We’ve been in discussion with our… guests… about their needs. So it’s on hold while we finalize plans. Luckily, there is no lack of work to be done.”
“Really? It seems quiet.”
“That’s here. This section of the base will be our intake once things get moving. But deeper in, we’ve got crews working around the clock renovating and building. Eventually, this will be home to thousands of people.”
“Thousands?”
“Yes, unless something goes wrong.”
We exited and continued walking toward another red brick building in the complex.
Floyd pointed as we walked. “You might have some construction noise soon. We’ll be building additional dormitories over there, and barracks closer to the admin building.”
“Barracks?”
He stopped walking. “We… I…” he paused, then sighed. “I think it’ll make more sense once you meet everybody and learn what we’re doing here.”
“Ummm… ok,” I replied as he started walking again.
The medical building wasn’t as quiet as the administration building, but it was far from bustling. The inside was less austere, though, with brighter lighting and white walls.
We wound past patient and various exam rooms until we reached a section that seemed out of the way.
“This is where you will be working,” he said as we paused outside a door. “Major Ben Klein is the officer in charge. The lab is the best we could do in this old building. The front part is the computer area, and the wet lab is separated by a glass partition.”
“The equipment is good though, right?”
He chuckled. “We had to buy ‘off-the-rack’ so nothing is as fancy as if we’d had the time to requisition something unique, but I think you’ll find it adequate.”
He poked his head into the room. “Major Klein? A moment, please?”
A fit man wearing a lab coat over his camo uniform stepped out. “Yes, sir?”
“This is Doctor Eugene Wallace,” Floyd stated. “He’s the civilian geneticist we’ve brought in.”
Major Klein turned and smiled. His blond hair was cut short to Army standards, but his smile and blue eyes expressed excitement. “Doctor Wallace! It’s a pleasure to meet you!”
I smiled and accepted his hand as he held it out. “Thank you. Nice to meet you, too.”
He gave me a nervous chuckle. “Sorry. I may have been overly excited. I read your paper about the impact of wartime conditions on human reproductive genetics and found it fascinating.”
I laughed and rubbed the back of my neck. “Thanks, though part of me thinks I might have weighted external factors like chemicals and lack of necessities a bit too high and discounted emotional trauma. We know mental strain can have a bigger impact than we expect. But it’s easier to correlate genetic changes to external conditions rather than feelings.”
“Either way, you’re sure to find others here who have read your research and are interested in it.”
I shrugged. “Makes sense. Especially for that particular study.”
Major Klein laughed. “It does hold particular interest for us.”
Floyd cleared his throat. “Gentlemen?”
“Oh, sorry, Sir,” Major Klein said. “I got carried away.”
Floyd huffed. “Well then, it seems the two of you will have no issues working together.”
I chuckled. “I think we’ll be ok.”
