Craig obeyed and clenched his teeth against a sharp stinging. His respect for the robot-controlled equipment of bases had risen. When he withdrew his arm, the scratch was neatly coated with a layer of flesh-colored plastic material.
He dressed quickly and was on the verge of asking the robot for instructions, when a man appeared in the open doorway.
"I am Captain Wyandotte," said the man in a pleasant voice.
"Well, what's next?" asked Craig somewhat more belligerently than he had intended.
The man smiled. "Your reaction is quite natural. You are somewhat aggressive after Clerical, eh?"
"I'm a little anxious to get home, I suppose," said Craig defensively.
"By 'home' you mean Terra. But you've never been there, have you?"
"No, but my father—"
"Your parents left Terra during the Second Colonization of Cassiopeia II, didn't they?"
"Yes," Craig said. He was uncomfortable; Wyandotte seemed to know all about him.