MINE

Chapter Twenty Four

Nathan arrived at a rocky part of MoonEx he never knew existed. He was welcomed by a young man with a cheerful persona who introduced himself Becky Greyson. It was an odd name for a guy in his opinion, but a lot of odd things were going on around him. They made a guy bearing a girl's name pale in comparison.

Becky was the team lead for the water extraction group. It didn't take long for Nathan to find out who he was – a professor of Geology at Glacier Heights University, back on Earth. Glacier Heights was a prestigious institution known many decades ago as Stanford University. It was one of the oldest universities still in operation and was known for its ridiculously high entry requirements. Only the best of the best got into Glacier Heights and that was not the only impressive achievement Becky had under his belt. He attained his professorship at the unbelievable age of fifteen and while only twenty one now, he had won several accolades for his ingenuity.

A lot of the things Becky talked about were outright gibberish to Nathan. He only needed to know the actual tasks required by him and his team to get the water out. Terms like "Apply pressure here" and "Measure this surface with that tape" would have made a lot more sense to him than the archaeological terms Becky spilled out with pride. It took only a few short minutes for Nathan to understand that Becky was a man with a lot of passion for his work. He took the time to explain to the least detail, making Nathan wonder if the goal was to turn the team into mini Geologists.

The actual extraction started about an hour later and the team members gave their all to the tasks. For now, it was measurement, testing, equipment coupling, more testing and drilling. No one could see the water from the rocks yet.

"If we put in all this effort and don't get the water, I'm going to have your head, Becky." Nathan said over his shoulder.

The statement made the other team members chuckle. Even Becky seemed to be amused by it but that didn't come as a surprise to Nathan. The young man was a likable character.

They finished their tasks about five minutes before the projected end time. The team got around to chat among themselves while waiting for the Rovers that would take them back to their respective apartments. That was when Becky walked up to Nathan and started a non-geological conversation.

"What do you think of MoonEx, bro?"

"It's our new home." Nathan replied, focusing on the positive.

"Is it just me or do certain things not add up?" Becky asked.