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frustrated, but continued. “The pods are lowered an additional three thousand feet. If the hyper-sleep chambers are used, they will revive specific occupants in two hundred fifty years. If conditions on the surface are still hostile to human life, hyper-sleep may be re-entered, this time the span will be a thousand years. At that time everyone will be awakened, the chambers will deactivate and may be salvaged, but they can’t be used for hyper-sleep again.
    “As for getting out, there is a transit system connecting all the pods and several very secret escape routes. There are also robotic tunneling machines that are more than capable of reaching the surface if no other way is found.”
    “You’ll be joining us then?” Deirdre asked.
    Ed slowly shook his head. “No ma’am. I had a vasectomy when I was twenty-one. ALS runs in my Father’s family and Parkinson's in my Mother’s. As soon as I was old enough, I made sure I couldn’t pass them on. As soon as this pod has all its occupants, I’ll be changing into a uniform and reporting to the same base as Miss Marcy’s mother.”
    Marcy cocked her head at the man. “I mean no offense, but if you have a vasectomy, how did you get a spot in the base?”
    “A fair question,” Ed nodded. “When my sisters and I made the decision to sterilize ourselves, we became foster families. Between the kids we adopted, and our foster kids, we have nineteen young people between the ages of seventeen and five. My kids got accepted; I get to go along as one of their parents. I also have some specialized skills that may be useful.”
    “Okay, so what do you need us to do next?” Ben asked.
    “Just get settled into your new apartment and watch the TV.” He indicated the huge, wall-mounted LCD screen. “That’s how you’ll get news and information. We hope that we made sure that you can get to all the information you need as well.” He opened a compartment on the end of the coffee table and took out a keyboard and mouse. “The TV is multipurpose. It’s a broadcast display, videophone, music center, and computer terminal. Each room has one, as well as each of you having your own new laptops.” He held up a small one inch by two inch burnished metal 'chip’ that was about three-fourths of an inch thick. “You’ll need instructions to use those as well. Just request the info from your terminal,” Ed explained. “We ask that, for now, you please stay in your apartment so the other families coming in can get settled faster.”
    “One last question then?” Deirdre asked, poking her head out of the kitchen.
    Ed nodded to her.
    “It’s getting on toward dinner time, I don’t see a fridge or even a pantry in here. How do we get food?”
    Ed walked into the ‘kitchen’ with Deirdre. “As I said, you can get the full explanation for how all the tech works from the terminal, but I doubt you'll want to dig for it before you eat.”
    He moved over to a section of counter that had a touchpad next to a rectangular outline. “This is a new gadget called a replicator. I have no idea how it works, but basically, it creates food from molecules in the air.” He touched the smaller touchpad. "What would you like to eat?”
    “Pizza!” Marcy and Kaitlin yelled.
    “I guess that settles that. What kind of pizza would you two like?” Deirdre asked chuckling.
    “Cheese please!” Marcy asked.
    Kaitlin sat next to her nodding vigorously. “Don’t forget the diet root beer!”
    Ed almost cracked a smile at the girls’ antics, especially when he saw Jorga shudder at the mentioned addition. He touched the ‘order’ button. "One large, cheese pizza from Giovanni’s in Manhattan. Also one, two-liter bottle of diet A&W root beer, cold.” He pressed the ‘end’ button as the pizza began to form in the rectangle.
    “You can either order plates and utensils from the replicator, or keep them on hand.” He indicated the cupboards around the kitchen. He then turned back and ordered