human
Not at all, Commander, not at all. And now, let me present Carlos Inverness, the scientist, of whom you have undoubtedly heard.
gpt
I imagine the good captain has been too busy to follow the activities of such as myself,
human
A commander --and I laid enough emphasis on the title to point out to him his error in terminology--
gpt
I have a special mission for you; a welcome relief from routine patrol. I believe you have made special requests, in the past, for assignments other than the routine work of the Service, Commander?
human
Very well, nodded the Chief, and it seemed to me his eyes twinkled for an instant.
gpt
Inverness, here, is head of a party of scientists bent upon a certain exploration. They have interested the Council in the work, and the Council has requested the cooperation of this Service.
human
Very well, sir, I said.
gpt
What are your orders?
human
Simply that you are to cooperate with Inverness and his party, assisting them in every possible way, including the use of your ship for transporting them and a reasonable amount of equipment, to the field of their activities. The command of the ship remains, of course, in you and your officers, but in every reasonable way the _Ertak_ and her crew are to be at the disposal of Inverness and his group. Is that clear, Commander?
gpt
Perfectly, sir.