"He was telling me about Goat Hennessey's experiments, and how they differed from the rebels' experiments before Goat came to Ultra Vires," answered Maya.
"That kind of talk serves no good purpose," said Nuwell irritably. "The rebel movement has been broken now, and there's no point in thinking about the illegal things they tried to do."
They came down the slope and approached the southern airlock of Ultra Vires. The airlock was still sealed. Nuwell activated it, and they went through it into the big building.
It was dark inside. Nuwell fumbled around a wall and found a light switch. He pressed it, but nothing happened.
"The electrical system isn't operating," he said. "We'll have to use our marsuit torches."
He switched on his flashlight. It cast a long beam down the dusty corridor. Far ahead of them, a small animal scurried across the faint light and vanished into the darkness.
Nuwell checked his atmosphere dial.
"The oxygen in here is all right," he said. "The air has been maintained, anyhow. We can take off our helmets."
They took off the marshelmets and walked down the corridor. They checked each side door, looking for the communications room, but found only empty chambers or abandoned rooms in which books, papers and broken furniture were scattered in complete disorganization.
It took them nearly an hour to find the communications room. And there they met disappointment.