General

The general doctor stood up, in a loud and official voice, "Sir, the native has been checked. It is ready now. Will you allow us to begin?" "Permission granted!" replied the deep voice of the Admiral. At the command "Begin!" came a sharp click. The hands that had grasped me from behind lifted my head. Other hands passed something that felt like it was made of soft metal over my head. This thing, which also covered my face, was tied under my chin. There were three strange clicks. The hood was pulled tightly over me and held in place tightly behind my neck. The hands were removed from me. The other hands were working on my feet. They put on something that looked like two metal bags rubbed with a strange, ticklish lotion. Thank God, I could not use my feet. Otherwise, walking in these would probably be very unpleasant. There was nothing I could do yet. The tension in the air of expectation was increasing."