The interviews were hell. The applications were secret and highly intrusive. He knew there must be a reason for it all, but he couldn't quite fathom it. He had been in astronaut training for six years. None of his other interviews had been like this. This time, they wanted to know everything about every aspect of your life including feelings and thoughts on a thousand different subjects and scenarios. He wasn't happy about the way they were conducting the weeding out process, but he knew that if he bitched about it, he'd be dropped.
The goal was the only thing that made it worthwhile. Mars! He had wanted this all his life. Oh, the moon was fine and the space station was alright, but Mars! He and his fellow astronauts would do damn near anything to be included in the program.
Part ten of the interview was scheduled for the next day. He really wanted to talk to someone, but the astronauts were isolated from each other and from their families. For that matter, he hadn't seen another human being since the selection process started. Luckily, he didn't have much of a family from which to be isolated. His only living relative was an aunt and she lived in Helena, Montana, a significant distance away. Unbeknownst to him, that was one reason he was being considered.
All the other applicants, male and female, were basically unattached. None of them even had 'close' friends. There had been fifteen hundred original applicants. Now, the field was narrowed down to fifty. There would be ten astronauts on the Mars mission and ten backups on ready alert in case someone couldn't make it. Significantly, there was to be five males and five females on the final launch crew.
"Colonel March to building thirteen!" the loudspeaker announced.
He got up and headed to the building. He didn't look for other applicants or any other people. He knew that he would be isolated completely until the final selections were made. He reported to the robot at the main entrance and was told which room to go to. He went in and took a seat. In front of him were a keyboard and a big TV screen. As he sat down, the TV came to life. "Good morning Colonel" it said.
"Good morning" he replied.
"We have moved your number ten interview up one day. In fact, this is it."
"Okay," he said.
"This interview will be about your sex life."
"What?"
"Your sex life, you do have a sex life, don't you?"
"Well, yes, but I have always considered that to be my business."
"Not anymore. This mission is going to require some unusual experiments. We want everyone to be happy, but more importantly, compatible."
"Compatible in what sense?"
"In every sense. We cannot have incompatibility among the crew. It is going to be a long mission, at least three years and we have to know that everyone will adjust to the conditions."
"I see. Please continue."
"Have you had sex recently?" asked the TV.
"What do you call recently?" he asked.
"Within the last six months. We understand that you have been isolated here for two months."
"Yes, I have."
"With whom?"
"Judy Jacobs."
"When, exactly was that?"
"We dated about two weeks before this training started. I think the last time was a day or two before the program started."
"Who is Judy Jacobs?" the TV asked.
"She is the daughter of the base commander."
There was a five minute wait. Then the TV said, "How often, in a normal setting, do you have sex?"
"If I'm not dating anyone, about every two weeks, depending on opportunity."
"Have you ever had a homosexual experience?"
"No."
"We are going to show you some pictures of women. Press 'enter' on the keyboard every time you see someone you like. Do not press it for all of them. Press it only for your preferences."
The screen came to life. The presentation was slow, giving him time to assess each picture. Out of twenty five pictures, he had selected six. He wondered who was assessing him.
A slot in the desk opened and a stack of papers was ejected. "You have two hours to complete these questions," the voice said. "When you finish, you may go back to your quarters."
The sheaf of papers contained eight pages of questions and six pages with pictures of the women he had selected. Almost all the questions had to do with either sex or domestic situation solving. He was also asked to rate the pictures in order of preference. It took him and hour and fifteen minutes to finish. He got up and reported back to his quarters.
That evening, the loudspeaker in his quarters said, "Congratulations, you have been selected into the final thirty. The selection process continues tomorrow. Report to building five at seven in the morning."
Colonel March smiled as he put down the phone. The final thirty was something he had only dreamed about since joining the program. He knew now that he stood a better than average chance of being a crew member. He drifted into a dreamless sleep.
He was awake, showered and ready at ten minutes to seven. He knew it was an eight minute walk to building five. He strode across the complex with a bounce in his step, confident of his ability to get past the next phase. The door to building five opened automatically for him and he stepped inside. It shut behind him. He stood there for a minute or two, unsure about where to go. A voice said, "Follow corridor B to door fifteen and wait."
He quickly located corridor B and walked rapidly down it, finding door fifteen about half way. He faced the door and stood at attention. Five minutes later, the door swung open. "Come in," came the command.
"Strip your clothing off and put on the flight suit provided."
He complied, noting that his name tag was on the flight suit, but not his rank.
He stepped through the door and stopped. In front of him was a large mock-up of what he assumed was the mission capsule. "Enter the capsule."
He climbed the ladder to the portal and stepped inside. "Sit down in the number two seat."
He swung easily into the seat. Ten minutes later, the door to the capsule swung open and a female astronaut, number one on his list, stepped through the portal.
The voice announced, "Captain Murray, this is Colonel March. You two will be in this capsule for two weeks, so I suggest you get acquainted."
This was the first person he had seen since he left the doctor at the input physical.
He stared at her for just a moment. "Hi, my name is Sterling March." He introduced himself.
"I'm Tanya Murray." She replied.
"Do you have any idea what all these questions are about or what 'experiments' they are talking about?" he asked.
"No, I am as mystified as you are. Some of those questions made me uncomfortable." She said.
