Eros on a Cruise to Nowhere (Closed)

[Gr8chtr]

The "ship", and its living quarters, was huge by NASA standards, by American housing standards, minuscule. And, it would never move as much as a centimeter from the Arizona dessert on which it stood, let alone the 400 million + kilometers that the real vehicle would travel on its way to Mars and back. Nicknamed by its inhabitants as The Exercise - an obvious, and bad pun on the name of Captain Kirk's famous starship - it wasn't even a true replica of the real thing. It had no real functions, although it did have thousands of computer-simulated ones, and it was actually substantially larger than the real interplanetary vehicle that NASA would send to Mars 15 years hence. What it was, in fact, was a big psychological experimental apparatus designed to house 12 people for 18 months, three months short of the anticipated actual time for a round trip to the Red Planet.

Matthew Leonard, 31, single, and three years past earning his Ph.D. in geology signed on to this "mission", as did the 11 others, with the full knowledge that its purpose was to study how a group of people, largely unknown to each other, would fare cooped up in tight quarters for a year and half, often with long stretches of boredom with little to do. How would they form productive working relationships? What about rivalries or antagonistic relationships, or close friendships? Would cliques develop? These, and similar questions, had been made clear right at the beginning of the recruitment efforts for the mission. What Matthew and his fellow "crew" didn't know was that one of the main questions of interest to NASA's team of social scientists was what the men and women would do with their sexual desires and needs over such an extended period of time under the conditions in which none of the people had already existing romantic or sexual relationships with each other. How would they work out possible tensions or difficulties? Or, would they behave like over-sexed characters in a soap opera where sexual intrigue becomes the predominant theme in everyone's life?

At the moment, though, Matthew's thoughts were far from anything erotic. Sitting in his small cabin, just three hours into Day 1, he was full of the excitement of the adventure he had chosen, but anxious about his ability to survive what clearly would be an extraordinary ordeal. He was thankful that NASA had provided each person with their own private cabin, though just over two meters square with shared restrooms elsewhere. This was to be his home for 18 months. After three months of training, it now came down to this - the long ordeal. Matthew had particularly worried about his adjustments to living with 11 others. Since his break up two years ago with his girlfriend, Mandy, Matthew had been living alone, in his own apartment, interacting mostly with his coworkers at the earthquake research center where he had been working for several years. This was going to be quite a different experience!

The instructions from "mission control" (i.e., the NASA social scientists running the experiment) had been for each of the crew to just relax in their quarters for a couple of hours, prior to the initial all-crew meeting at which the 6 men and 6 women would begin their first daily schedule of duties for the shift to which they were assigned. Matthew left his cabin walking the short distance to the day room - that doubled as mess hall, lounge, and just about everything else - his mind full of the excitement of a young man off on an adventure.

 

[Gamina]

Diane Richmond , better known to her friends as Danny whistled as she saw her working station. Sure the living quarters where rather small, and she would have to spend the next year and a half cut out from the outside world with eleven other strangers. But at least she got to finish her Ph.D thesis in Atmospheric science in one of the most advanced modules up to date, and while she had no plans what so ever to ever apply for a trip to the red planet, being part of this experiment would be a step up the competition when she applied for the job of Atmospheric scientist for NASA once she wrapped up her thesis.

Which basicly almost assured that the 27 year old would have a valid reason to escape her Utah home and her mothers constant nagging about getting a husband and pushing out five kids at a minimum like it bestows a good mormon lady. It wasn't like she was a rebelious youth, or a girl gone wild, as many of her childhood friends, it was just that while believing in the value's she grew up with Danny knew she wanted more from her live, and she would get it no matter how judgmental her mother was going to be about it.


Hearing some footsteps echoing through the corridor she snapped her attention back to the present time and walked to the common area, where she no doubt would find the rest of the crew filling in to get to know each other. And while Danny was mostly an introverted person, she was well adjusted enough to know that if you were going to have to share a ship with other people for an extended period of time, being some what social in the beginning would be key.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matthew arrived at the common area just as the rest his 11 other team mates were filing in from their cabins. He recognized some of them from the various screening procedures and tests that they all had had to go through in order to be chosen from this project; others, he did not recognize. Matthew's attention was caught by the movement of woman whom he did remember somewhat from the trainings.

Matthew had, obviously, passed the tests and met whatever screening criteria the experimenters had in mind, but he was, in fact, a little shy when first meeting someone - woman or man. He knew this, and worked hard to get past awkward first meetings so that he didn't end up as the one left out of most social gatherings. He applied that effort now in this first meeting.

He vaguely recalled that this woman had a nickname that was not actually her real first name, and that her nickname began with a "D". At this exact moment he also realized that, whatever her name was, she was very attractive physically, but that his memory of her from the trainings was that she had worked harder than most to be social and to reach out to the people who would likely be her colleagues for a long time. Matthew respected that; it made him feel more confident in approaching her.

He took the initiatie. "Hi,", he said warmly, "I remember chatting with you during the physical endurance tests that we all had to take, but I'm sorry, I don't quite recall your name. " Extending his hand for a handshake, he continued, "I'm Matthew Leonard. I probably introduced myself before that way, but you can call me 'Matt', if you like."

 

[Gamina]

Diane Day1

Diane was happy to see that many of the people in this group were people she already had enteracted with. Either in the pysical, cognetive, or psycological evaluations. It was then she saw the bearded man approach her. Normaly this would stress her out a little but she knew Matthew to also be somewhat of an introvert, so he was probably doing exactly what she would be doing if she had entered the room late. Go stand with the one other person she knew would not require to much chatting.

"You did indeed, but that is okay"She said with a warm smile. "I am Diane, but my friends call me Danny. "After a little awkward silence she added "I know its weird cause its not a shorter name, but thats just what they call me" Already reprimending herself for her clumsy behavior she was relieved to see a staff member approach them that she had not seen before. The middle eastern woman gave them a confident smile and said ...

 

[Gamina]

Hamasa Faez

Hamasa Faez Stared at the ceiling of her bunk. Part of her was happy to be here. After all three years of working under cover for the ATF in one of the most opressive Terrorist organisation, was quite enough. She would no longer have to play the role of the innocent virgin soldier of Allah, and she would no longer simultaniously need to be the playtoy of the hypocritical leaders of the cell. But if she had to be honest with herself she was pissed at how it all ended.

Years of work destroyed because of one stupid leak at the top. Luckily when the leadership of the organisation started liquidating the cells where they suspected the mole could be in, they focused on the men, not thinking it had been a woman learning their secrets and outsmarting them in getting them caught. At least she knew how many terrorist plots had been foiled thanks to her intel, and how how many of the surviving members are now on trial thanks to her.

And here she is now, the most wanted woman of the jihadist, safely tucked away in the next most opressive situation possible. An 18 month experiment from NASA, her handler's brother was the lead honcho on this one, so she knew she was safe. But none the less she would have to play the role of the "Ships" Nutritionist and physical fitness expert. As apparently surviving space is a lot tougher on the body than the movies would make you think.

Hearing doors open and close, she figured people where starting to miggle, so jumping out of her rack she adjusted her overall and taking her folders with her walked into the area, greeting the men and women of the crew and handing over their excercise regimes, as they had to at least spend an hour and a half a day working out. (Depending on current fitness) When she was done with most of them, she approached the fit bearded man and the red headed hotty in the corner of the room and while smiling at them gave them their folders.

"Hello, I am Hamasa, and for the next 18 months, those bodies fall under my care."

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matthew and Hamasa

Matthew, now known to Diane as "Matt", was enjoying the friendly interaction with Diane. He knew that he would need at least one buddy to get him through the 18-month ordeal and Diane seemed to be a good candidate for that role. Even though he had just met her, talking with her felt as comfortable as an old shoe.

Just as he was beginning to feel very relaxed, a movement across the room caught his attention. A woman that he did not remember meeting before was moving quickly through the crowd handing a folder of some kind to every member of the crew. She had the appearance of being very much in command, although she was not the ship's commander. On top of that, she was not only beautiful - which she certainly was - it was easy to see that she had a body that was so hot it nearly sizzled, very much in shape but still very feminine.

Except for a one-night stand about six months ago, Matthew had not had sex since he broke up with his girlfriend, Mandy, almost a year and a half before that. While concentrating his thoughts and emotions on preparing for this mission, all of his lustful thoughts and images had temporarily disappeared. Now, they came flooding back at the sight of this hot, young, apparently assertive woman. No sooner had those images appeared in his mind, when he realized that this woman was headed straight for him and Diane, clearly with a folder for each of them.

Hello, I am Hamasa, and for the next 18 months, those bodies fall under my care.

Given the lustful thoughts that had exploded in Matthew's head, Hamasa couldn't have possibly said anything that would have pushed his lust even higher, short of her telling him that she wanted to have sex. Firmly taking the folder that Hamasa and offered him, he smiled at both her and Diane and simply said, "Thank you". Turning around to face away from Diane as Hamasa continued her trek, Matthew said, just loud enough for Hamasa but not Diane, to hear, "I look forward to your care of my body."

 

[Gamina]

Hamasa, Day 1

Hamasa couldn't help but smile as the hunk checked her out and shook her head as he was assertive enough to throw in a cheese line of his own. His bio clearly was wrong on some aspects of the psy evaluation. But then again she thought that profilers would often get the wrong empression of someone, or fail to take into account what extreemly stressful situations could do to a persons character.

Handing the folder to Diane, she gave her a reasuring smile. "Don't worry, I do not have to make an athlete out of you. But brass does want us to keep in mind that living in zero G is extremely taxing on the body, so they wanted to as far as we can, in these condition see if we can manage nutritional goals and work out some fitness stuff for the real team. "

The woman seemed to take the news well, while she had past her physical it had been just barely, so Hamasa figured that the woman, while naturally slender, wasn't one to spend to much time in the gym. "Talking about simulations, I have been tasked to work with Carlos" She pointed out to the engineer who seemed to already be flirting with the other four women. "On compression work out suits for the trip. And I still need a male and femal volunteer to test out the effectivness of the contraptions."

Seeing Diane cringe a little she added. "Its completly safe and after we get it calibrated right, your daily work out would simply be, wear the suite, which is basicly a yoga pants and surftop, while you work."

 

[Gamina]

Diane day 1

Diane enjoyed the confersation with Matthew very much, to the point that she wondered how strict the no relationships clausul was on the experiment. But those thoughts quickly evaporated when the woman that was supposed to be their trainer entered the mix. At once Matt's attention snapped onto her, to even the point of him turning his back at her as if she wasn't there.

As the woman gave her, her folder she was relieved that the woman who had picked up on her mood swing had taken it for her not looking forward to working out everyday, which was partialy true, instead of the hint of jealousy that it was.

When the woman mentioned needing volunteers, Danny wanted to decline the offer, but after hearing this would mean that she could do her work outs while working on her thesis, she figured it could be worth her wile, so turning to Matt, She said. "What do you think partner? Wanna be a double guinea pig for NASA?"

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matt and Hamasa

Although he was able to complete his duties for the rest of Day 1, Matt's thoughts returned repeatedly to the wildly hot image of Hamasa and her almost teasing quip that "your bodies fall under my care". The idea that his body and hers might somehow be connected was nearly too much to stand.

Matt knew that he, himself, was hardly a male model. He had spent a lot more time on his academic studies and his scientific pursuits than he had on toning his body. And, his beard notwithstanding, he looked a lot more like the nerdy scientist, frequently dressed as though he were on a hike through the woods, then he looked like a guy who would turn women's head. However, he was naturally more muscle than fat and his loose-fitting clothing hid rather nicely toned abs. His previous girlfriends had been pleasantly surprised the first time they took off each others clothes.

So, Day 2 on his first reporting to Hamasa for the exercise training Matt deliberately appeared dressed in his workout shorts and his tightest-fitting T-shirt. Approaching Hamasa he smiled and said, "Hi, Hamasa. As instructed I'm reporting to you so that you can work your magic on my body."

 

[Gr8chtr]

Diane and Matt

Notwithstanding that Matt's head was filled with lustful thoughts about Hamasa, he knew full well that such thoughts frequently end up going nowhere. More than sexual release he needed at least one friend for this 18-month-long "voyage". He couldn't imagine being "just friends" with Hamasa; his lust would always get in the way of that.

He could imagine being friends with Diane. It's not that Matt wasn't aware that Diane was herself pretty damn hot, but somehow their initial interaction, brief as it was, felt much more like the beginning of being at least buddies, if not friends. So, when she turned to him and said "What do you think partner? Wanna be a double guinea pig for NASA?," he jumped at the chance. "Sure, " he replied enthusiastically, having almost no idea what they had just signed up for.

Having received, via Diane, the compression workout clothing that Hamasa had supplied to Diane, Matt appeared for his Day 2 breakfast clothed in the absurdly tight-fitting compression material. He figured that he owed it to Diane, as a part of being dual guinea pigs for NASA as she had suggested. He had not worn these to his pre-breakfast exercise session with Hamasa, but here he was, presenting himself to Diane, buddies at least for the moment.

 

[Gamina]

Hamasa and Math Day2 6:30AM

Hamasa smiled as the first of her volunteers entered the gym. She had already finished up her own morning routine, and was actually surprised someone showed up this early. Even if the exercise was mandatory, she had expected it would be like pulling teeth with most of the brainiacs on board.

Between the cheesy opener and the overly tight shirt, the young woman couldn't help but to shake her head. Even if she did notice that the man was even fitter than his file suggested. "No magic here, other than hard hard work" She said putting a little too much emphasis on the hard part. Taking her tablet, she pulled up his file and opened the locker accociated with him, to take out the needed instruments.

"So today we are going to do a baseline reading of your abilities, and measure the electric current that would be needed to simulate the workout." She said as she started to arrange a whole lot of electrodes and wires on the table. "So be a dear and get rid of that shirt, so i can start sticking those on you."

As the man's shirt went up over his head, Hamasa couldn't help but to bite her lip in appriciation, but before his vision was freed again she smoothened her face. "I have had worse subjects, but lets see how fast we can get you into a real shape." She said as she took a handfull of electrodes and started to strategicly placve them on his back.

"We will start with a 5k run on the eleptical, as fast as you can finish." Moving back to his front, taking another handfull of electrodes, she carefully traced his muscles to find just the right place to stick them. "Then after that we will do a power circuit" As one of the electrodes didn't want to stick, she licked it a tad to teasingly before pushing it back onto his lower abs and winked at him.

Finaly she se took the last buch of electrodes, kneeled infront of the man and started placing them along his powerfull legs. Looking right back up at him while doing so she smiled at the man. "Think you can handle that?"

 

[Gamina]

Diane and Matt DAY2 8AM

The atmospheric scientist raised her eyebrow as her new friend to be walked into the gally fully decked out in his compression suite. (think this but with yoga pants on) While they were indeed going to take part in the experiment, according to the instruction they were provided with the suits, it would take Hamasa and Carlos a couple of days to figure out just where and how to program the build in electrodes to start with.

"Good morning" She said as she slid him a ration pack. " Found the first real obstacle to this 'trip'." She said all serious like. "Only three choices of breakfast for the next 546 mornings. And to make matter worse, only one cup of coffee per person. So we need to find someone who doesn't drink coffee and deal them some contraband." While she wasn't a morning person herself, and she legit didn't know if she would be okay with having to cut down on coffee, she did want to at least try to be a good sport.

"So is Hamasa as though as she looks like?" She asked a little apprehensive about her meeting later that day.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matt and Hamasa, Day 2 6:45 am

Matt realized that he might have overdone it a bit wearing the overly tight T-shirt. It was likely a little too obvious that he was showing off. Maybe Hamasa would be more attracted by a more subtle, more mature approach. Who knew? But, it was too late now.

At first Hamasa approached him with her strident, in-command persona with no hint of any warmth or attraction. He had expected as much, and had little choice but to follow her instructions. Apart from her arrogance, it was true that she had the authority to whip the "crew" in shape.

Matt had heard about the use of electrical stimulation to enhance physical exercise, but he had never experienced it. From some pictures he had seen in magazines he expected having electrodes attached to various places on his body. What he hadn't anticipated was how stimulating it would be to have Hamasa do it. Though she started out the work of fastening the electrodes very professionally, in the process of doing so she was still touching his bare muscles with her bare hands repeatedly. Matt could feel the very beginnings of an erection; he hoped that it wasn't obvious.

Then, the almost unbelievable happened. To help with the placement of the uncooperative electrode, Hamasa teasingly licked it and placed it on him, giving him a subtle wink while doing so. Then, to top it off she taunted him by asking him if he thought that he "could handle" the rigor of the exercise regimen.

Matt decided to take the bait. Looking back directly at Hamasa as she finished attaching the electrodes to his muscular legs he gave her a mischievous grin and said, "Never fear, Hamasa, I can handle anything that you have in mind for me." He paused, then continued, "You seemed to have a bit of difficulty attaching one of the electrodes. That might happen repeatedly, right? And..all of that takes time away from the exercise itself. So, maybe tomorrow I should report at 6:00 am to give us more time, or...perhaps it would be better to schedule my sessions after dinner when time wouldn't be an issue."

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matt and Diane, Day 2, 8:05 am

Notwithstanding his teasing back at Hamasa saying that he could handle anything that she had for him, his exercise session had been tough. If he could have returned to his cabin and taken a nap, he would have done so. Instead, he showered, donned his compression suit and ambled to the mess room to join Diane for breakfast.

Matt was very much enjoying the mutual taunting with Hamasa and what seemed like the possibility that they were coming on to each other, but in its own way the teasing was tiring. It was a genuine relief to join Diane for a laid back breakfast of coffee, oatmeal and fruit. They greeted each other pleasantly; it felt good.

So is Hamasa as though as she looks like?

He could hear the genuine worry in Diane's voice. Matt wanted to reassure her. He wasn't completely sure, but he sensed and hoped that Hamasa would not drive her too hard. By way of reassurance Matt started to tell Diane that Hamasa wasn't all tough, that she even had a playful side. But, mid-sentence, something caused him to hold back. What was it? He wasn't sure. He just sensed somehow that telling Diane about the repartee between him and Hamasa with its hint of sexual innuendo would not sit well with his new-found buddy, Diane.

So, instead Matt simply said, "Well, the workout was tough, but Hamasa seems to have an individual profile for everyone and bases her expectations on that. So...I think she will start off with you wherever you are."

 

[Gamina]

Hamasa and Matt 6.50 AM

Hamasa raised an eyebrow when Matt commented about the electrodes, maybe he was looking how far he could push this. The trainer also thought if he was the type to have noticed how they had only mentioned that romantic relationships were prohebited during the mission, in an effort to avoid ugly break ups and such mid mission, but had totaly not made any comment on fraternizing at all. Shaking those thoughts away she replied to his question as if it was not retorical.

"Luckily after the baseling measurements of today we will only have to apply the final electrodes one more time. After that Carlos will build them into your compression suits and you will have no more time delays because of me. "

She snickered at the thought that she to might be some what dissapointed about this, as Matt's body was not a punisment to handle, unlike some of the other team members.

"As for evenings I am pretty much booked solid as most of our friends seem to prefere group work outs in the evening." Then pointing to the eleptical "Now lets see what kind of stamina we are dealing with"

She said making sure the pad was picking up the readings well.

 

[Gamina]

Matt and Diane, Day 2, 8:05 am

"Let's hope she does, I have my first consult after breakfast and I would rather not be broken down before starting work on my thesis today. "

Taking the last sip of her coffee she set her cup down and took a look around the eating quarter, where many seemed to be abscent.

"So what do you think of your first night on board, and the team?"

She asked more just out of curiousity than anything else.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Hamasa and Matt, Day 2, 7:00 am

Now lets see what kind of stamina we are dealing with

Suddenly, Hamasa was all business. She slammed the door shut on Matt's question about scheduling his workout either earlier in the morning or as an evening appointment, with the obvious implication that they would have something like some special time together. Hamasa had even completely ignored his quip about him being able to handle anything that she had. She had gone from teasingly warm to stone cold.

Matt responded in kind. He was all business, throwing himself into the exercise regimen that she prescribed. But, as he was ready to leave, he couldn't help but throw out one more tease with possible double meaning.

"Hamasa, thanks for the tough, but good exercise. " He paused, then continued with a small smile on his face, "I am pleased that you are the one taking care of my body, as you put it at the beginning. "And, " he added, "I can't help but notice that you have kept yourself in excellent shape, nicely toned muscles and little body fat while still maintaining...well..an attractive female appearance."

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matt and Diane, Day 2, 8;10 am

So what do you think of your first night on board, and the team?

Matt pondered Diane's question. They had already discussed his first meeting with Hamasa and he had tried to assure Diane that Hamasa would not be too hard on her. What other perceptions did he want to share?

Much of his mind had been taken up with thinking about the possibility of an affair with Hamasa, but somehow he didn't want to share this with Diane. Why not? He and Diane seemed to be becoming something like buddies. Sure, he was aware that she was rather hot as well, but their interactions had seemed to be defined as platonic, and Matt liked it that way. Did he have any hints that Diane might be jealous of Hamasa? He wasn't sure, but he thought it wise to be cautious.

"Well," Matt started, "I was pretty busy doing my work assignments and I didn't have a lot of interactions with other members of the crew. However, so far, they all seem rather nice and dedicated to their jobs. I know that over 18 months we will all probably get on one anothers' nerves now and then, but I'm optimistic so far."

Wanting to be engaged and polite with Diane he tossed the question back to her. "So, how was your day and what did you think?"

 

[Gamina]

Hamasa and Matt Day 2 7:15 AM

Hamasa was happy about the progress Matt was doing and since Carlos' set up was running smoothly she spend most of her time just looking attentivly at the muscular nerd run. While he had cooled off a little on his flirting, the young woman was pretty sure he was pushing himself a little to impress her. Or at least that is what she told herself. As he went through his strength training circuit she started to roughly calculate what would be needed for him to keep his body fit if they were in zero G and she made a note to Carlos saying she found it inprobable that his idea would work.

As the man wrapped up his session, Hamasa put her tablet down and went to help him out with unhooking the electrodes. Starting out on his back as he spoke. "Hamasa, thanks for the tough, but good exercise. " She smiled as she slid in front of him and started peeling off the electrodes off his torso, slower with hands that lingered a tad longer than nececary. " Please, we both know this barely pushed you. But now we have a good baseline to work off, and tomorow we will see if i can get you closer to your edge" she said in a teasing tone. "I am pleased that you are the one taking care of my body, as you put it at the beginning. " She smiled at that as she handed him a towl . "And I can't help but notice that you have kept yourself in excellent shape, nicely toned muscles and little body fat while still maintaining...well..an attractive female appearance." For a second she didn't know if she had to take this as a compliment or a dig at her, knowing than more than once men had been slightly insecure about her phiscal fitness. But figuring that whether he was complimenting her, or negging her, it was pretty clear that he was trying to get in her pants, so she didn't really cared.

"Thank you, I take my job very seriously, and unlike a hair dresser, my own presentation matters a lot."

 

[Gamina]

Matt and Diane, Day 2, 8;15 am

"I get what you are saying. And most people do seem to be rather nice. It almost looks like that we were all screened for our ability to work together as a team that wouldn't murder each other in space" She said her face rather neutral as if she might not be joking at that last part. Even if she clearly was.

"Same, I am here to finish my thesis about how to manipulate Atmospheres on a global scale. So pretty much spend the day setting up and prograstinating."

Taking the last sip of her coffee, she bit her lip and knew that she would not do well on this rationed off portions as while she didn't drink or smoked, expensive coffee was her vice. Then looking up at her buddy she asked.

"Wait how are you going to fill your time here?"She asked unsure of what it was that a geologist could do spending 18 months in this closed off environment.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Hamasa and Matt,Day 3, 6:30 am

Matt arrived for his scheduled appointment exactly on time. He didn't want Hamasa to think that he was either so anxious or pushy that he had to arrive early or that arriving late implied any lack of interest in either the exercise or in her. During the previous Day 2 as he went about his work he had time to think over Hamasa's and his interactions that morning. She had been, he thought, alternatingly warm and even teasing, and then all-business, then back to teasing him about her getting him "closer to your edge". She had also said that, professionally, her own presentation "matters a lot."

Matt decided to play it straight. Not to push the teasing too hard, but not to entirely let go of it either. Both genuinely, and in order to impress Hamasa, he went right to the elliptical and began the routine that she had prescribed. He poured himself into it, knowing that doing so also showed off his physique. As much as he could, without being too obvious, he smiled and made eye contact with Hamasa and made sure to take in her whole body with his gaze.

"So," Matt said through short breaths as he pushed himself to the limit, "am I getting close to my edge where you want me to be or am I going to need more pushing from you?" With what little extra breath he had left he slightly emphasized "pushing" knowing that that phrase could be interpreted as having double meaning.

Before he left at the end of the session he also made sure that she correctly understood his previous compliment. "Oh, before I go, I want to say that yesterday when I commented on how you've kept yourself in excellent shape, that was a compliment. Unlike some men I am not turned off or intimidated by physically strong women."

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matt and Diane, Day 3 8:00

Once again, Matt enjoyed meeting Diane for breakfast. He found it a bit strange that he was not more attracted to her physically or romantically, but the idea of friendship really appealed to him. Besides, unlike Hamasa, Diane really came across in an informal, warm, friendly way.

At yesterday's breakfast Diane had asked him a very relevant question, "how are you going to fill your time here?", but he had had only a little bit of time to respond. So...he decided to reopen that discussion. "I want to say more in response to your question yesterday about how I fill my time. You were right to wonder about what a geologist would do when he can't get outside. " Matt took a sip of his coffee and continued, "Well...just like you can't really study the atmosphere of anything other than the earth while we are on this fake ship that doesn't go anywhere, I can't collect rock samples from Mars. So, I'm doing two things. First, I run computer simulations of the procedures that NASA has developed for the eventual Mars exploration, study the simulations and give NASA feedback on my thoughts. Second, like you doing your thesis, I spend a lot of time reading scientific studies in journals, since I can access them all via the internet. And...like you...I procrastinate a lot!"

Matt's description of how he was spending his own time gave him a thought. "So," he said warmly, "I'm wondering if every now and then you would like to study together. I'm no atmospheric science expert, but I know enough that I might be able to give you some feedback on the draft of your thesis. And...maybe you'd even find some of geology to be interesting."

 

[Gamina]

Hamasa and Diane Day2 9:00 AM D's perspective.

"Hello"

The redhead called out as she walked into the gym. While she had been told they would have a fully equiped gym she was still surprised to see just how big it was, and with that came the daunting feeling that the fit middle eastern woman would push her through the ringer in here. As she heard a voice call back from behind her she startled a little and turn to see Hamasa standing there with a whole bucket of wires.

"I am so sorry, didn't mean to startle you. The woman said, putting the bucket down and extending her hand in greeting. "So we have a lot to go through today, but the gist of it is that, I am going to stick all those electrodes on you to measure your electrical household while working out. And with those readigns we will calibrate tomorrows patches to help you out in your excercises.

On that Diane raised an eyebrow. "Like those info commercial workout machines?" She asked, her voice clearly betraying her scepticism if that would work. But the other woman just gave her a small reasuring smile and Said.

"Yes, but not quite, you see part of the problem our astronauts face up there is a lack of gravity, which leads to loss of bone density and atrophy of the muscles. The plan is that Carlos's suit would give enough compression and muscle stimulation to counter act this. She said then taking a breather looking like she was thinking how she could bring this information home the best. "While I think that Carlos is taking on to much, to fix with such a solution. He is in my opinion onto something. His system could help build strength to someone living a sedentary live, if he manages to calibrate his suit to not be bothersome to "live"in. I just think that the energy needed to counter the loss of gravity on the bone density is where the suit will not deliver.

"So you are saying I could get a fit body like yours, while just writing my thesis? Sign me up" She said and proceded to let the young woman attach her to the monitoring devices. When the girl stuck electrodes on where her lower abs should be, and uncomfortably high on her inner thighs she didn't made a point out of it, but she did wondered why that would be nececary.

 

[Gamina]

Hamasa and Matt,Day 3, 7:30 am

Hamasa was a bit peeved today. While Carlos had delivered what seemd to be a in depth and very complex simulation for Diane today to see if their hypophasis was correct, it seemed he had totally ignored Matt's data. So today she was just looking at the man doing the same thing he had been doing the day before. Although with a smidge more gusto and a lot less cheesyness, while she was prepping for her session with Diane.

While she liked the business like approache, or maybe even the cold shoulder he had given her during his work out, she also had caught herself starting, or swallowing comments about his form. When he was done he said. "So,am I getting close to my edge where you want me to be or am I going to need more pushing from you?" She shook her head and said "Well I was planning to stimulate you more vigurously today and maybe even push you over the edge a little, but there was a technical issue on our side with the equipment."

"Oh, before I go, I want to say that yesterday when I commented on how you've kept yourself in excellent shape, that was a compliment. Unlike some men I am not turned off or intimidated by physically strong women." She laughed at that. "Yes I hear that a lot, most guys like to watch and it is only when I start out performing them, that the Ego gets in the way. "

With that she send him to get his breakfast and she still needed some time to deal with Diane's set up.

 

[Gamina]

Matt and Diane, Day 3 8:00

"Well...just like you can't really study the atmosphere of anything other than the earth while we are on this fake ship that doesn't go anywhere, I can't collect rock samples from Mars. So, I'm doing two things. First, I run computer simulations of the procedures that NASA has developed for the eventual Mars exploration, study the simulations and give NASA feedback on my thoughts. Second, like you doing your thesis, I spend a lot of time reading scientific studies in journals, since I can access them all via the internet. And...like you...I procrastinate a lot!"

Diane smiled at that. "Actually with the computers, they have provided, and a steady feed from the NASA data we are getting, I can do my job from right here. Much like astrophysists, my job is manly looking at numbers and charts of a screen. And running simulations of how we could theoreticly go about creating an atmosphere on Mars, even if that is still very much in the sci-fi realm at the moment. But I would greatly appriciate a study buddy in here as it seems that most people on here are not studious types." She said as while most people had relevant jobs for this mission, most were more hands on that she was.