"Hey, I know him!"
"Doctor Greer?" Lennier was puzzled, if she knew Dr. Greer, why hadn't she said something.
She looked at him, "I know him," she said pointing at the picture, "his name ain't Greer though, it's Kynes. He taught Archeology on Mars, I went to some of his lectures."
Lennier looked at the screen, very confused. The name said Greer, doctor of Xenogeology, biology and physics. No mention of archeology.
"So if he's not Doctor Greer..." He left it hanging, there was a lot that could be attached to that.
"Where is the real Greer?"
Lennier nodded.
"There's two possibilities," she said, "Either there was a Dr. Greer, who set this place up and is obviously long gone, and Dr. Kynes took his place, which means our friend here could be innocent, or in on it."
"What's the other possibility?"
"There never was a Doctor Greer, and Dr. Kynes bribed some officials to look the other way while he set up. Which means that she must be in on it"
Lennier thought about it awhile, he couldn't understand why Anne would deceive them, or why Kynes would take the identity of someone else, just to do archeological research.
"Cause beaurocrasy a bitch." Pris said, when he voiced his opinion, "an archeological find always gets a lot of attention from the government, especially on a waste hole like this. If Kyne's found something here, and advertised it, Earthgov would be here in a heartbeat, the locals would want their own cut, and the next thing he would know, he'd be up to his neck in red tape."
She shook her head, "I'm betting Kynes took advantage of all the confusion after Clark got toppled to set this place up as a geological station, which are a dime a dozen here."
Lennier thought about it, "I suppose that's possible, but what could be worth all the deception."
Pris bit her lip, "Maybe, our friend Greer knows," she said meaningfully.
It took him a minute to catch her meaning, "You think that's why she wandered off?"
"I think we should check out Dr. Kynes' room...don't you?"
*******************
A few minutes later they were heading down the corridor, back to the room where Pris was attacked, after first making sure that Greer was safe behind a locked door.
Lennier didn't know what they were expecting to find, if anything at all, but obviously the young lady had been willing to risk her life for...something. There was so many things about this which were unclear to him, and he felt like he needed guidance.
Pris just felt like there was way to much cryptic crap in her life.
They rounded the corner to find that the dog was already half-decomposed, with an unbelievable stench, which gagged the senses. Pris stumbled back slightly when it hit her nostrils.
"Goddess!" She said with her sleeve over face.
Lennier covered his face and bent down to take a closer look at the animal he'd shot less than an hour ago, but was now vanishing before their eyes.
"I think it's accelerating, look."
Pris saw that the flesh had begun to bubble, and a sickly green sludge was oozing out from under it. The process did seem to be speeding up, and before she knew it, the entire beast had been reduced to a puddle of goo, which steamed and bubbled, before settling down.
"What is going on?" she said, lowering her hand and feeling that she had just reached her max, and knowing that Lennier didn't have a clue.
He was looking down on it too, his face unreadable, as he reached out his hand for her to take, "Come on."
She took his hand, instantly feeling better as she touched his solid warmth. It was strange, she thought, how simple touch has such power, and since it took her mind off the former hell hound, she pondered on that for awhile.
As they stood in the doorway, though, she reluctantly pulled her hand back, in order to draw her pistol. She didn't know what they were expected to find, but it was always good to be ready.
Paranoid? Hardly, just cautious.
The room was comfortably furnished, or at least as comfortable as it could get. A cot sat pushed up against the wall, with the sheets all messed up, as if someone just didn't bother to fix them. There was a table, and a couple of nice chairs, all very typical.
On the wall next to the cot was a small bookshelf, covered with old, musty books, which were hard to come by nowadays. Swanky. The rest of the room was covered with tech manuals, maps, rock samples and other stuff archeologists can't help but accumulate. Pris had a brief feeling of nostalgia, but it came packaged with a feeling of loss.
In the very back of the room, was something strange. It was a curtain, which is very odd thing for someone to be hanging on his wall. It also shouldn't be billowing like that, should it?
Very, very slowly Pris approached, and carefully pulled it back....
"Doctor Greer?" Lennier was puzzled, if she knew Dr. Greer, why hadn't she said something.
She looked at him, "I know him," she said pointing at the picture, "his name ain't Greer though, it's Kynes. He taught Archeology on Mars, I went to some of his lectures."
Lennier looked at the screen, very confused. The name said Greer, doctor of Xenogeology, biology and physics. No mention of archeology.
"So if he's not Doctor Greer..." He left it hanging, there was a lot that could be attached to that.
"Where is the real Greer?"
Lennier nodded.
"There's two possibilities," she said, "Either there was a Dr. Greer, who set this place up and is obviously long gone, and Dr. Kynes took his place, which means our friend here could be innocent, or in on it."
"What's the other possibility?"
"There never was a Doctor Greer, and Dr. Kynes bribed some officials to look the other way while he set up. Which means that she must be in on it"
Lennier thought about it awhile, he couldn't understand why Anne would deceive them, or why Kynes would take the identity of someone else, just to do archeological research.
"Cause beaurocrasy a bitch." Pris said, when he voiced his opinion, "an archeological find always gets a lot of attention from the government, especially on a waste hole like this. If Kyne's found something here, and advertised it, Earthgov would be here in a heartbeat, the locals would want their own cut, and the next thing he would know, he'd be up to his neck in red tape."
She shook her head, "I'm betting Kynes took advantage of all the confusion after Clark got toppled to set this place up as a geological station, which are a dime a dozen here."
Lennier thought about it, "I suppose that's possible, but what could be worth all the deception."
Pris bit her lip, "Maybe, our friend Greer knows," she said meaningfully.
It took him a minute to catch her meaning, "You think that's why she wandered off?"
"I think we should check out Dr. Kynes' room...don't you?"
*******************
A few minutes later they were heading down the corridor, back to the room where Pris was attacked, after first making sure that Greer was safe behind a locked door.
Lennier didn't know what they were expecting to find, if anything at all, but obviously the young lady had been willing to risk her life for...something. There was so many things about this which were unclear to him, and he felt like he needed guidance.
Pris just felt like there was way to much cryptic crap in her life.
They rounded the corner to find that the dog was already half-decomposed, with an unbelievable stench, which gagged the senses. Pris stumbled back slightly when it hit her nostrils.
"Goddess!" She said with her sleeve over face.
Lennier covered his face and bent down to take a closer look at the animal he'd shot less than an hour ago, but was now vanishing before their eyes.
"I think it's accelerating, look."
Pris saw that the flesh had begun to bubble, and a sickly green sludge was oozing out from under it. The process did seem to be speeding up, and before she knew it, the entire beast had been reduced to a puddle of goo, which steamed and bubbled, before settling down.
"What is going on?" she said, lowering her hand and feeling that she had just reached her max, and knowing that Lennier didn't have a clue.
He was looking down on it too, his face unreadable, as he reached out his hand for her to take, "Come on."
She took his hand, instantly feeling better as she touched his solid warmth. It was strange, she thought, how simple touch has such power, and since it took her mind off the former hell hound, she pondered on that for awhile.
As they stood in the doorway, though, she reluctantly pulled her hand back, in order to draw her pistol. She didn't know what they were expected to find, but it was always good to be ready.
Paranoid? Hardly, just cautious.
The room was comfortably furnished, or at least as comfortable as it could get. A cot sat pushed up against the wall, with the sheets all messed up, as if someone just didn't bother to fix them. There was a table, and a couple of nice chairs, all very typical.
On the wall next to the cot was a small bookshelf, covered with old, musty books, which were hard to come by nowadays. Swanky. The rest of the room was covered with tech manuals, maps, rock samples and other stuff archeologists can't help but accumulate. Pris had a brief feeling of nostalgia, but it came packaged with a feeling of loss.
In the very back of the room, was something strange. It was a curtain, which is very odd thing for someone to be hanging on his wall. It also shouldn't be billowing like that, should it?
Very, very slowly Pris approached, and carefully pulled it back....