“We have unlimited resources for this; if you need special equipment, locate it. I'll have it here. If you can't get test subjects, let me know. I'll have some brought in.”

Cowan stared at his counterpart with wide eyes. “What's going on? The military may be promoting and funding this project, but I'm still the project lead. I need to know what's going on.”

There was a long pause before Fitch spoke. “Let's take a walk.” He turned and headed for the door.

Cowan got up quickly and followed his friend. From the tone of his voice and his expression, James could see that Matt was troubled. He decided to just follow along for now and let the Colonel talk when he was ready.

They headed outside and across the parking lot. It was still early, and the air was crisp. As soon as they got outside, Cowan wished he'd grabbed his jacket. He briefly considered going back for it. However, from the look on his friend's face, he decided it would be better to just stick it out.

On the other side of the small road which led to their isolated facility was a grassy clearing with picnic tables and a little pavilion setup. The seats at the picnic table were still wet after a late night rain shower, so both men stood as they talked.

“Unfortunately, there are details of what I'm going to say that are classified and I'm under stringent orders not to discuss them. However, let's say the military is concerned with the possibility of nuclear or biological threats that could wipe out almost all life forms on the planet. They're looking for a plan to have in place in the event of a mass disaster. Underground and undersea shelters are also being developed. They want us to be a factor in any scenario. I, or should I say we, have been tasked with getting this thing moving. I suspect they're going to want us to move ASAP to get a standby facility prepared. The idea is, we could sleep as many people for as long as it takes for the world to be habitable again. We've proven our technology works, and now they want us to set it up for actual use. I want the test complete so that when I hear more, I have something positive to tell them.” Fitch felt guilty as he spoke, but he'd been unable to convince Draper or the President that anyone else needed the information. Draper had helped put together this story, and Matt was under strict orders to stick to this plan.

There was a definite look of suspicion on James' face, but he didn't question the story.

“How complete does this test need to be?” Cowan asked.