"The arrival of a new and unknown quantity in the equation will certainly cause your little band of probes to draw closer together."
Certainly? Your certainty is based on what? And "little band" is an insulting diminutive. I am not being PC here, you are trying to diminish the probes' importance by using the adjective "little". As a shrinkologist, you should be painfully aware of this.
"It is expected that morale will improve also, uniting them against a common danger."
Yep. Nothing like mortal danger to make me whistle a happy tune. Maybe AFTER it's over morale will improve, but not during a crisis.
"We predict much less bickering between Enoch and Andrew."
Of course, this is because we have them doing seperate jobs in different areas, NOT because of additional threats.
"Jonathan Niles Naughton"
Still a moron
"East Valley Behavioral Research Group"
of Morons And/Or Con Men
"Note: We detect slight hostility among your task cohort, directed at a perceived intrusion by myself. This is a normal reaction, Miss Carter. We belive it to be a stress-related response of fleeting duration."
OK. Point-by-point:
1) It's not hostility. It's contempt for your inept "expert" opinions. If I were hostile towards you, I'd just track you down and beat the crap out of you. But you're not worth it.
2) There's nothing "slight" about it.
3) "Task cohort"? How pretentious.
4) There has been no "perceived intrusion" as you have been invited by Dilyn, just as we were. Your presence, while annoying, is just as legitimate as ours.
5) "This is a normal reaction, Miss Carter." Translation: Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain, just keep paying me.
6) You've guessed wrong yet again, Johnny. I'm not under any stress, so this could be more than "fleeting". Are you strong enough to take it? (Oooo. Now THAT was hostile.)
Speaking of hostile....I assume that you've rethought your ideas for publication of information gained here. I don't care if you are in a publish-or-perish situation, lives (not just your job) could be endangered by leaks of data. Read the Japanese declaration of ownership of Mars. Do you think this company would be beyond torturing and killing you for what you know? What about going through your family to get to you? And once they got you, what will stop them from coming after us, or cutting us off from the probes? God have mercy on your soul if you do publish. (Yes, this is a threat.)
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