Xeno Activity Chapter 3 - Stories Online Edit 1

Chapter 4
Posted: July 06, 2012 - 09:09:26 am ====University of Oregon==== He actually waited twenty minutes, and then he returned to his slide. If she thought he would hold his breath till she returned, she was wrong. Although he could not really find the peace of mind he needed to concentrate. He left the VA hospital in a wheel chair and thought his life was over. He even contemplated using his Heckler and Koch USP to end it all, his hands worked fine. But giving up was not really in his character and so he went back to school and eventually completed his doctorate.

His doctor father, Professor Alfred Neumann, originally from Germany, was the one who initially got him interested in lichen and it was that man who proposed the subject of his thesis. He started to giggle as he remembered how he and the other students used to make fun of the old professor as his name was very similar to the main character of the MAD comic magazine.

Professor Neumann was good natured and went along and even embraced his nick-name and laced his lectures with references to that nationally known fictitious idiot character. The fact that Professor Neumann walked on crutches and that this handicap did not stop the Old man from making long, often unaccompanied hikes into forests all over the world was perhaps the main reason that inspired Sid to work out and fight his own disability.

No matter what Sid did once he started something he gave all he got to accomplish his goals. He was promoted on top of his class, and became one of the foremost authorities in the field of Lichen research. His field made it necessary that he also knew much about fungus and algae. While his expertise would never make him a celebrity, he was well known by his scientific peers all over the world and often invited to lecture on the subject.

He also worked out like a man trying to become the world champion in Iron Man competitions and it started out with swimming as was only befitting a SeAL. It did not take long after he started swimming that he noticed his atrophied and useless legs suddenly moved and were no longer just being dragged behind him. It created a feeling of triumph and euphoria that he could not equate to anything he had ever experienced before. After that day he increased his efforts and after nine months he walked out of the water on his own legs.

The doctors at the VA hospital called it nothing less than a miracle. One of them speculated that the bullet fragment that was still lodged in his spine had shifted a little, allowing nerves to reconnect, but he also warned that it could shift again. Surgery was an option but considered very risky and the chance that he would wake up completely paralyzed was too high for him to consider the procedure. In the past four years he had competed in many Iron Man competitions, and as the red haired lady pointed out trekked across some of the most hostile environments on the planet.

Sid wondered what was keeping her. First she was in such a hurry, not even able to tell him what it was all about, and now she took her time. True it was a big campus and he had no idea what errands she was talking about. It was then the wall phone rang. It was Professor Morgan, the head of life sciences and thus also his superior. Morgan usually left him alone and the University was glad Lemmon was here. They knew about the offers from other Universities and Industry Lemmon got almost daily in the mail. His small department didn't need much in terms of money and he produced prestigious papers on a regular basis.

"Good Morning Dr. Lemmon, I was just informed that you got an offer to participate in an expedition and I wanted to congratulate you. Of course I approved your leave of absence and we will keep you on the roll as well."

Sid was able to read between the lines and said. "I am in the dark about the details and the duration, Professor Morgan, but I don't plan to make a permanent switch and will return."

The man on the other end sounded relieved. "We will keep your lab facilities and your office locked during your absence, of course and I am sure the new macroscopic equipment you wanted will be here when you return."

Sid thanked the man after the Professor wished him luck and a good trip and hung up. To his surprise the phone rang again. He put the old fashioned black receiver back on his ear. "Dr. Lemmon."

"Good morning Dr. Lemmon, I am Dr. Schuster. We met a while ago during the symposium in Helsinki."

"Ah yes I remember. I actually read your paper on Basidiomycetes not so long ago and it confirmed several observations I have made."

"The reason I am calling Dr. Lemmon is that I wanted to offer you a research opportunity at the University of Munich, Germany. It is a long term project involving Lichen found in the fur of frozen Mammoths discovered in East Siberia. It is well funded with a personal stipend of 1 Million Euro annually, no limit on equipment requests and several field expeditions."

This sounded almost too good to be true, a million Euro. But then he knew how well funded European Universities were and he suspected a German pharmaceutical giant was behind the research funds. Extracts from many Usnea species were used to treat wounds in Russia for at least a thousand years. The chance to examine preserved lichen from the times of the last ice age was more than a potent lure.

"Dr. Shuster, I would love to take you up on that but I think I will be tied up for the next few months and I do have a commitment to the University of Oregon."

"I understand. Should you change your mind give me a call. I am sure we can work something out with your University, perhaps guest tenure and offering to share some of the research with your faculty."

He hung up after exchanging the usual pleasantries. He did get good offers, but this one took the cake. A million Euros per year ... that would be more than enough to save the funds to buy him that ranch in Colorado he had always wanted. What made him think was the timing, two unusual events before lunch. He started to go back to his work when an enormous explosion shattered the windows, lifted him off his feet and showered him with glass and debris.

Years of intensive training made his body react before he could even think. He rolled over his shoulder and came to his feet. His ears still rang but he could hear the shrill bells of fire alarms, the rhythmic honking of car alarms and the screams of people.

It took him less than a moment to check himself. Other than a few superficial cuts and scratches he seemed unharmed. Looking out the shattered windows he saw a sizeable hole in the building across the yard. Thick smoke belched out of what used to be the Bio Chemical labs where Dr. Stephen Lemon, the friendly little man with big glasses who had almost the same name was working. Campus mail and visitors were more often than not directed to the wrong man. Due to this fact he knew the man well.

He was still dazed and not able to think any further and more out of coincidence than anything he noticed a black SUV leaving the nearby parking lot, while everyone else was either dazed or rushing towards the explosion site. He then rushed out to see if he could help as well.

Sid sat on the gurney behind an ambulance and allowed a Paramedic treated his cuts.

"Most of the cuts are superficial, Sir," the paramedic told him, "but the one on your cheek needs further attention."

"Never mind, one more scar will not make me look worse than I already do; I bet the emergency rooms have their hands full as it is."

The Paramedic looked towards the now taped off explosion site where fire fighters rushed back and forth. "It could have been much worse, we have only one fatality. It seems no one else got really seriously hurt."

"Does anyone know what happened?"

"Nothing official of course, the fire investigators are not even here yet, but from what I heard it was a faulty gas line feeding the Bunsen burners in the lab, and when Dr. Lemon switched on the light coming in this morning the spark was enough to cause the explosion."

Just then the Red head stepped around the open doors of the ambulance, she had her arms crossed before her chest and there were soot smudges in her face. "Are your injuries bad enough to prevent you to coming along?"

He jumped off the gurney and thanked the mildly protesting Paramedic, and then he said. "Just some cuts, I think I am fine otherwise, but I wanted to stick around to see if I could help."

"There is nothing you can do here. The situation is well in hand by the emergency crews."

He followed the woman and after a few steps, away from anyone, she said. "I think it is best we have lunch so I can fill you in. The North Star leaves from Bremerton in two days and I'd like us to be aboard."

"In two days? I can't even get my gear together in that time, not to mention take care of my apartment and all the little things that need to be done before I can leave. I still don't know what this is all about and I do like to know, reactivation or not."

"I didn't invite you for lunch to eat, but to fill you in."