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Chapter 40

Chapter 40

 January 29th, 2158

Logan was already awake when Mike rolled out of bed.  The two had gone to bed several hours earlier than normal the night before.  Logan slipped out of his bunk and dressed for their morning work out.  He was slightly surprised when Mike didn't present him with a box of objects.  Instead, after dressing, Mike opened the door and held it for Logan to exit.

The two headed to the gym, where they had a pleasant jog that was lighter than their usual morning run.  After finishing, they cleaned up and went to the cafeteria for a light breakfast.  They were met by most of their team.  Josh and Chuck were among those who were not present.

Almost all at once, members of the team received a message on their DNAC.  Logan opened his and found a reminder of the zero six hundred meeting to prep for departure, including a map to the changing area for the team.

The team members began to bus their trays when a frantic looking Josh entered the cafeteria, followed by a much more mellow Chuck.  The two headed to the food kiosks, and ordered some food to go.  Logan and Mike waited as for the two.

Once the food had been prepped, the two met up with Logan and Mike.  Together they headed for the changing room where they would begin the prep.

Logan could see the question in Mike's eyes, even if he didn't speak it out loud.  Apparently Chuck knew Mike as well, and with a smile said, "I have never met anyone as difficult to wake up in my life."

"You should never interrupt someone, while they are in the midst of such important work," snapped Josh quickly.

Chuck unsuccessfully attempted to hold back a laugh.  The noise that escaped from his mouth was something in between a snort and a hiss.  Before anyone could stop them-selves, the group all fell into a comfortable laughter.  Each of them could feel some of the tension melt away as they joked, all the while heading to the changing area.

It didn't take long before the four entered the prep room that was in essence a locker room.  Upon entering, a hallway forced they group to choose, males to the left and females to the right.  The four took the appropriate path and found they were the last to enter the changing area.

There were a few technicians running about the room helping out in any way they could.  Logan was usurer to a locker, which was labeled with his name.  Inside he found his control suit, it was the same one he had worn only a few days before.  Quickly and efficiently he undressed and slipped the suit on.

Although he was among the last to arrive, he was the first to have his suit on.  The changing room was buzzing with activity.  It was almost like a pre game frenzy.  Almost everyone was feeling the stress and anxiety.

A few lockers down from where Logan stood, Gantulga was arguing with a tech that was attempting to fit him into his suit.  The tech was accusing him of sucking in his belly while they had taken his measurements and now he didn't fit.  One tech quickly ran away in an attempt to find the tools needed to alter his suit.

On the other side of the locker room, Josh was trying to shove his breakfast into his mouth as a tech attempted to dress the full-grown man.  The tech was clearly frustrated with Josh's non-attempt to dress himself.  Luckily for the tech, his breakfast was self-contained, like a burrito or a crape, and little was lost onto the ground or the tech.

On the far side from where they entered the changing room, there was a large holo in front of the wall.  It displayed the time and the simple instruction to change into the control suit and move into the mech room.