"Didn't you call him 'father'?" he asked.
"Yes," said Dark in a low voice. "But I'd rather not talk about it right now."
He looked at Old Beard, and seemed to be ridding himself, with an effort, of a deep introversion.
"There's one thing that I've remembered as a result of seeing Goat Hennessey," said Dark in a firmer voice. "This place isn't too far from a place in the Xanthe Desert where Goat conducted some significant experiments. If he left any of his records there—and I'm thinking of some in particular—they might go a long way toward solving the problem we've all be working on for so long. So now I know what to do next: I'm going to Ultra Vires."
Old Beard smiled sadly.
"Have you forgotten we can't get out of this place?" he reminded. "We can't get at either the marsuits or the groundcars."
It was Dark's turn to smile.
"I believe you said there aren't any guards on the airlocks to stop one from walking out at night?" he said.
"That's true, but—"
"There's something you don't know," continued Dark. "You were wondering at the basis of the regenerative power that permitted me to revive here after being shot in the stomach with a heatgun. I don't know what it is, but whatever it is, it's something that also permits me to live without oxygen.