Tempered Steel

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The air in the space was thick and smelled like an old locker room filled with sweaty clothes. Two bulbs glowed dimly on the ceiling giving scarce light to the inhabitants inside the eight by twenty foot room. Consoles lined one wall, sprinkled with gages and multicolored lights. There was a dim orange-red light from the back of the consoles where vacuum tubes glowed brightly. Heat radiated from each tube adding to the intense stuffiness in the room. The hot electronics added their own distinct odor to the mix of heat and smell.

A small duct ran along the ceiling. The room was supposed to be air conditioned, but as usual it didn’t work. The engineers designed the system to be operated with a return vent through the door to allow for circulation. But the political officer declared the mission was too secret. As a result, the vent had been plated over and barely a breath of warm air came out of the blowers.

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