The moment in the loading dock

(This is part of the continuing series about the design of Skyler Base)

This little moment was in the original, long-form version of Rome's Revolution but got excised because I had to move the plot along more quickly.

     Rei and Rome arrived at the dead end of the East Corridor and stood before some very large doors, perhaps two stories tall. Rome pointed to their top.
     “This is loading dock for the Algol,” Rome said. She pressed a stud and the two doors slid sideways, disappearing into the walls. A semi-cylindrical room opened up in front of them, a half tube with a 20 meter ceiling. Unlike the rest of the Vuduri complex, this one area was illuminated by bright lights hanging from the ceiling. At the far end was a round door, rolled back, leading to a sizeable airlock. Several workers were bustling about the room, carrying cargo bins. Others were operating a conveyer and yet others were moving parcels on what appeared to be a cushion of air. The frantic pace reminded Rei of loading operations at an airport, of all things. No one looked at them or even acknowledged their presence. Each and every one them were dressed in the ubiquitous white jumpsuits.
     Rei ignored them ignoring him. He walked over to the far wall and touched it.
     “This doesn’t look like aerogel like the rest of this place. What’s it made of?” Rei asked.
     “It is a metallic alloy,” Rome replied, coming over to where Rei was standing. “This is actually one half of a cargo section from the Algol. We used it for a staging area to begin construction. This is where we started.” She pointed to where the crewmen were entering. “That is the connecting corridor. Beyond that is the Algol.”
     “Can I go inside and see?” Rei asked.
     “No,” Rome replied. “We cannot go aboard right now. They are busy loading the equipment that is to be returned with us. Perhaps later.”
     “Is there somewhere else we can go so I can see it? Somewhere with windows?”
     “Not really,” Rome said. “We do not have windows on this station.”
     “No windows?” Rei asked, perplexed. “What if you want to look outside?”
     Rome shrugged. “There is nothing to see. Just Dara. If we need to observe anything else, we use our instruments.”
     At this point, all Rei could do was sigh.

Tomorrow, another attempt on Rei's life by Estar. It was removed from the current version of Rome's Revolution but I thought you might want to read it.