"Why- Well, uh, once or twice, maybe."
"Hm ... I shall be interested in seeing your work in astrogation, if you get that far." The cadet turned back to Matt. "Aren't you hungry? What's your name?"
"Yes, sir. Matthew Dodson, sir." Matt looked hurriedly at the controls in front of him, decided against soup, and punched the "entree," "dessert," and "milk" buttons. The cadet was still watching him as the table served him.
"I am Cadet Sabbatello. Don't you like soup, Mr. Dodson?"
"Yes, sir, but I was in a hurry."
"There's no hurry. Soup is good for you." Cadet Sabbatello stretched an arm and punched Mart's "soup" button. "Besides, it gives the chef a chance to clean up the galley." The cadet turned away, to Mart's relief. He ate heartily. The soup was excellent, but the rest of the meal seemed dull compared with what he had been used to at home.
He kept his ears open. One remark of the cadet stuck in his memory. "Mr. van Zook, in the Patrol we never ask a man where he is from. It is all right for Mr. Romolus to volunteer that he comes from Manila; it is incorrect for you to ask him."
The afternoon was jammed with tests; intelligence, muscular control, reflex, reaction time, sensory response. Others required him to do two or more things at once. Some seemed downright silly. Matt did the best he could.
He found himself at one point entering a room containing nothing but a large, fixed chair. A loudspeaker addressed him: "Strap yourself into the chair. The grips on the arms of the chair control a spot of light on the wall. When the lights go out, you will see a lighted circle. Center your spot of light in the circle and keep it centered."
Matt strapped himself down. A bright spot of light appeared on the wall in front of him. He found that the control in his right hand moved the spot up and down, while the one in his left hand moved it from side to side. "Easy!" Matt told himself. "I wish they would start."