Chapter 6
2.4k 6 58
X
Reading Options
Font Size
A- 15px A+
Width
Reset
X
Table of Contents
Loading... please wait.

Anton stopped in front of the door leading to the mystery area across the hallway from the bedrooms. She wore a spacesuit they’d found in the locker near the airlock and looked as excited as a child on Christmas morning, “Ready yet, Ryan?”

Ryan made sure everyone had finished putting on their space suits, “Yep!”

Becky stepped next to Anton, “This is so exciting!”

Mayu tried peeking over Anton and Becky’s shoulders but was too short.

Chie leaned against the wall next to the door and watched.

Ryan began venting the air from the hallway, “Venting.”

Anton fiddled with the controls on the left arm of her space suit again, “Flashlight,” she pushed a button and two lamps on either side of her helmet turned on, “thrusters,” she lightly touched several buttons, but not enough to trigger them, “camera,” she pushed a button and a new camera feed became available to Ryan, “comms,” she pushed the button twice, muting it and  then unmuting it, “magnetic boots, magnetic hook,” she ran her fingers over two more buttons, “and HUD toggle.”

The other three follow suit after Anton, each turning their flashlights and cameras on.

Chie brought the controls on her wrist closer to her face, “I wonder if we will ever find out how to read this alien writing.”

Each button had the same writing found around the rest of the ship and on the tools.

Becky looked at the writing, “At least we can read the numbers.”

Mayu started writing with her finger on her palm, “Yes, very much like Kanji.”

Ryan remembered Mayu telling them about the similarities to some numbers used by the Japanese and the alien number system, “Hey Mayu, can you teach me Japanese sometime?”

Mayu seemed surprised by Ryan’s request, “Oh, Mr. Ryan. I would like that very much.”

Becky turned to look at Mayu, “Can I join in?”

Mayu gave Becky a warm smile, “Yes. I think it will be fun.”

Chie seemed to consider something, but shook her head and stayed quiet.

The air finished venting from the hallway.

Ryan opened the door to the mystery area, “Have fun!”

Anton whooped and stepped through, “Yeah!” and immediately started floating, “Whoa whoa whoa…”

Becky turned just in time to see Anton flailing and laughed, “Looks like gravity isn’t working.”

Chie moved to look through the door, “She’s doing this on purpose.”

Anton used the thrusters on her suit and stabilized herself, “Spoilsport.”

Chie shook her head and sighed, “I apologize. Years of babysitting college students have conditioned me against this kind of behavior.”

Becky gave Chie a pat on the shoulder as she passed through the door, “I’ll make sure she’s serious when she needs to be.”

Anton looked back, “I can be serious.”

Chie moved away from the wall, “Perhaps I can loosen up some, now that I’m no longer in a position of authority over rambunctious youths.”

Becky looked back too, “That’s the spirit!”

Chie entered the room, followed by Mayu.

Anton paused halfway into the room next to what looked like the reactor, but smaller, before circling around it,  “Hey guys! Is this another reactor?”

The reactor looked badly damaged, with the side facing away from the way they’d come missing large pieces.

Becky stopped at the reactor, “I wonder why the ship has a second reactor?”

Chie stopped next to her, “It must be a backup.”

Becky shrugged, “That makes sense.”

Anton stopped next to a large hole in the floor right next to the reactor on the other side, “This is gonna be a pain to fix.” She turned back again to the others, “Think I found the problem!”

Becky moved around the reactor and stopped next to Anton, “Are you sure? This itty bitty hole?”

Anton laughed, “Itty bitty?”

Chie followed Becky, but floated over her and Anton before stopping over the center of the hole, “I can see outside the ship.”

Becky moved forward some more and looked down, “Once we’re done here, I’m going to go outside.”

Ryan could see some stars through the cameras, “Sounds like a great idea, and I want to see outside too.”

Chie nodded, “Yes, until we get the sensors working, it will be the best we can do to study the stars.”

Becky turned to inspect the rest of the room, “Good thing the ship isn’t too big.”

The room appeared empty, aside from the reactor. There were three more doors, one each  three quarters into the room on the left and right, and one opposite the one they’d come in.

Mayu grabbed the edge of the hole and looked down, “I will go with you too, Becky.”

Anton nodded, “I wanna look too.”

Chie turned to the door opposite the way they’d come and started moving to it, “I too, will join you when you go.”

Anton pushed off the broken reactor after she noticed Chie going to the door, “Hey! Tryin’ to get a head start!?”

Becky laughed softly, “Boys...”

Mayu pushed off against the lip of the hole and followed the two, “We beat them, Becky.”

Becky shook her head and used her thrusters to follow, “Wait up!”

Chie reached the door first, “It is my victory!”

Anton hit the wall seconds later and bounced off, “Yeah, you got me.”

Ryan wished he could take part, “Hey, I’d have totally wasted both of you if I had a body.”

Anton waved her hand dismissively, “Yeah, right! Only way you’d win is if you got a head start like Chie.”

Chie pulled on the door, “You had every opportunity to start before I did.”

Anton pulled out a crowbar from a strap at her waist, “Yeah, yeah.” She then handed the crowbar to Chie, “Might need this.”

Chie took the crowbar from Anton, “Right. Thank you.”

Mayu reached the door, but stayed back a meter to give Chie room.

Becky stopped next to Mayu, “I hope it works.”

Ryan remembered anxiously watching Anton practice using it, “It works, but I’m not a fan of the scratches and dents it leaves.”

Anton put her hand on the wall and started tapping her finger, “I’ll fix ‘em later, mom.”

Mayu gigled, “Momma Ryan?”

Becky laughed, “I guess that’s true since Ryan ‘gave birth’ to us!”

Ryan groaned, “It was the ship, not me!”

Chie finally got the crowbar into the door and used her legs to push against the door frame, “At last.”

Anton sighed, “Good job. Don’t leave too many scratches. Momma Ryan might get angry again.”

Ryan groaned again. 

He knew they weren’t being serious so he might as well join in, “Now kids, this is our home and I expect you to keep it clean. You never know when we’ll have guests over.”

Chie cracked the door open, “Yes, mother.”

Anton moved next to Chie as soon as the gap in the door became big enough for her fingers to fit inside and started pulling, “Mom, we’re having guests!?”

Becky moved to the bottom of the door, but by the time she got in place the gap was big enough for her to fit through, “Looks like I’m first!”

Becky squeezed through the door.

Anton used her grip on the door to pull herself through after Becky, “Hey!”

Mayu moved into the gap and put her shoulder onto the door and began pushing, “I will help while big sisters play.”

Chie nodded her appreciation, “I appreciate it, little sister.”

Ryan began warming up to the family joke, “I wish your older sisters were as good as you two. You make your mother so proud.”

Becky floated into the room and looked around, “We’re not playing! We’re looking at… whatever this is!”

Ryan studied the room through Becky and Anton’s cameras. It was large, with lots of space, and looked like it went up and down past the other decks. A crystalline device dominated the far wall and had a metal pillar connecting it to where the floor of the center deck ended on the other side of the wall. 

Four large cables floated equidistant from each other, near the hull. Each of them looked burned out and melted, but a quick inspection of either end showed they could get detached easily. 

Two short, but wide doors lay to the left and right, leading into the rooms they still needed to inspect.

Anton moved past Becky and headed for the machine, “Whoa! What do ya think this does?”

Chie stopped pulling on the door and looked through, “Whatever this device is, it looks like it draws lots of power.”

Anton put her hand on the pillar, “I bet it’s a super weapon!”

Becky tilted her head to each side as she studied the device, “Maybe?”

Chie stopped trying to open the door wider and looked at the base of the pillar just below the door, “Whatever this device is, it appears the damage affected this room too.”

Ryan watched as everyone looked where Chie was, “Looks like the wall stopped most of it on this side.”

The place where the wall met the hull ended with a breach, with part of the wall missing, exposing the stars, and allowing entry into the adjacent room on the bottom deck. 

The part of the pillar directly across from the breach showed damage too and exposed the cables inside, many of which were severed.

Mayu pushed herself from the doorway back into the second reactor room, “I will open another door.”

Chie turned to follow Mayu, “Yes, I believe there is nothing else to see here at the moment.”

Becky took one last look around the room and followed, “Yeah.” She turned to Anton, “We can see what it does later. Not that we need a super weapon right now…”

Anton turned back to the door and followed too, “Yeah. Don’t wanna use up the rest of our power.”

Mayu stopped by the door that led to port and waited for Chie to catch up.

Chie put the crowbar into the door and wedged it open, “Let’s see what… we… have… here...”

The door opened wide enough for Mayu to put her fingers through and she started pulling too.

Becky and Anton didn’t have to wait long, and soon the gap in the door became wide enough for them to go through.

Becky slowed and let Anton through first.

Anton stopped just past the door, “I think we found where they make those burnt out cables!”

Through Anton’s camera, Ryan saw a longish room. To their right, next to the door that led to the room with the crystal device, was a rack with two undamaged cables. Above and below the cables were two robotic arms.

 

The fore starboard corner had another machine that looked something like a gigantic washing machine, but it looked like the damage found in the other two rooms had found its way here too, and punched several holes into it from below.

To the port was something that looked like a fabricator, but larger and maybe more specialized. 

Becky stopped partway through the doorway, “Looks like replacement cables?”

Chie looked into the room, “It would appear so. Perhaps the cables need replacing after every use?”

Ryan brought up his ship schematics in his mind and updated them, “There were four cables, but I only see two robot arms in this room.”

Anton slouched, “So the other room is the same? Boooring…”

Ryan still had two gaps in his schematics for this deck, “I think there’s two more rooms, back in the hallway.”

Becky hit her palm with her fist, “Right! Forgot about them.”

Anton turned to the damaged machine, “I wonder what that does.”

Becky turned to look at the damaged machine, “No idea.”

Chie looked at it too, “It looks to be the right size to fit the cables through. Perhaps it is where they dispose of the used ones?”

Anton nodded, “Yeah, good thinkin’ Chie.” She turned to the door, “Let’s go check out the other room just in case.”

Everyone one made their way to the opposite door and opened it.

Anton stuck her head inside, “Lame. It’s the same.” Her gaze stopped at the washing machine looking device just to her left, “Wow, this thing’s shredded worse than the other one.”

Becky squeezed through the door above Anton and looked at the device, “Yep. It’s a goner.”

Chie and Mayu both looked in after Becky and Anton came back into the second reactor room.

Chie moved next to Anton, “I am wondering how many of these machines we can repair.”

Mayu seemed bored and moved back over the hole and looked out.

Becky shrugged, “I’m hoping we get home and won’t have to worry about it.”

Anton shook her head, “Going home is fine, I guess, but I’m not gonna pass up explorin’ in my own spaceship!”

Ryan wondered something, “Whose spaceship is this, anyway?”

Chie answered immediately, “It appears abandoned so I would think it is ours after salvaging rights. Or Ryan’s at least as he was the first.”

Ryan could accept that answer, “I’m fine with it being ours. I was first, but it’s my fault you’re here.”

Anton waved a finger in front of her in disapproval, “Uh, uh. Ryan. If it weren’t for you, we’d still be dead.”

Chie nodded, “Yes. Despite our less than ideal conditions, this is better than death.”

Becky laughed, “Just wait when our families see us!”

Mayu looked to the group for a moment, then turned back to the hole.

Ryan opened a private channel to Mayu, “Maybe we can find a way to make you look like you used to.”

Mayu stayed silent for a moment before speaking, “That would be nice.”

“You know, you can go outside the ship whenever you want. No need to wait for the others.”

Mayu shook her head, “No, I want to see the other rooms too.”

Anton waved her hand dismissively after hearing Becky’s comment, “Eh, never was close to my family.”

Chie nodded, “I never married or had children and my parents have already passed on, though I suppose it would be amusing to show up to my brother claiming to have become a young woman.”

Becky laughed again, “Can I be there when you do?”

Chie chuckled, “Yes, I suppose having others there to witness the event would not hurt.”

Ryan wondered about his family, “You guys think that’s funny, just imagine my family when they see a brain in a jar show up.”

Anton laughed, “Now that’s something I want to see!”

Becky’s posture seemed to turn uncomfortable, “Ryan, I’m sure we can get you a body before then.”

Ryan wasn’t sure how, “Not in my vat. Already tried, and I can’t use your cylinders.”

Chie turned to the door leading back to the hallway with the bedrooms, “Perhaps we should finish our search. The two rooms on the deck above us seem promising.”

Anton started heading to the door, “After we look at the other two rooms down here.”

Becky nodded, “Sounds like a plan!”

Chie turned to Mayu, but Mayu was already heading towards the door, so he moved to the side, “After you.”

Mayu bowed her head to Chie, “Thank you.”

Ryan opened the blast door that blocked the way to the large breach on the port side of the hallway, revealing open space.

Other than four more bedrooms, there was one more room they could look in.

The damage from the breach was higher up, so the floor was mostly untouched, but the damage to the walls and ceiling extended almost to the door to the mystery room and two of the bedrooms. There were holes big enough to see inside, but not big enough to fit through.

Anton stopped at a hole that showed inside the mystery room, “Aww, it’s just some bins.”

Chie looked through a hole next to Anton, “The bins appear connected to the fabricator that manufactures the cables.”

Anton groaned, “Guess that means the other room will be the same.”

Chie turned to look down the hallway towards the other room, “That would be my guess, as well.”

Becky floated past Chie and Anton while they talked, glanced into the room, then stopped at the breach, “Um… guys…”

Mayu stopped next to her, “What is wrong?”

If Ryan had a jaw, it would have dropped at the sight, “Is… is that a galaxy? No, galaxies?”

As Ryan studied the sight before Mayu and Becky, and saw that what he thought earlier were individual stars were all galaxies. Most looked extremely distant, but several appeared much closer and he could make out individual stars.

Becky’s breathing became panicked, “Not good. Not good.” She turned to Anton and Chie, who were now coming to look outside, “I’m going to head outside. I want to get a better look at what we’re dealing with.”

Mayu put a hand on Becky’s arm, “What is wrong?”

Becky turned to Mayu, “I think… I think we aren’t in a galaxy.”

Chie went to put her hand on her chin, but put it back to her side after being stopped by her helmet, “I know little about astronomy, but I think I know enough to understand why this is not a good thing.”

Anton gave a nervous laugh, “Well, the ship got out here somehow. It’s got to have FTL, right, Ryan? Right?”

Ryan wished he could give a definite answer, “The machines on the top and bottom decks might? They have some power, but we’re going to have to fix them before I can use them.”

Becky turned toward the direction of the crystal device they found earlier, “Maybe the crystal machine?”

Everyone followed Mayu’s gaze and looked in that direction.

Anton nodded slowly, “Maybe? It could be anything.”

Chie nodded, “Then we make that and the devices Ryan mentioned our highest priorities.”

Becky nodded too, “Sounds like a good place to start.” She turned to the breach, “It’ll just take me a minute outside, then we can look at the rest of the ship.”

Becky moved through the breach.

Mayu followed behind, “This is exciting!”

Chie paused at the breach and looked outside.

Ryan heard Chie swallow hard before she too went through.

Anton hesitated at the breach but didn’t stop.

Becky floated up and away from the ship, then turned around so she could see what was on the other side, “I never thought I’d get the chance to look at a galaxy from the outside!”

Through the four cameras, Ryan got an almost complete picture of their surroundings and could even match what he saw with the blurry images the sensors gave him.

In every direction were countless galaxies with the biggest one being the one they saw through the breach, but it was hard to tell. One other galaxy stood out too. It was a beautiful spiral galaxy directly to the fore of the ship and, judging by how much easier it was to pick out details inside, was probably the closest one to them.

Mayu noticed the galaxy too and pointed to it, “I think that one is close.”

Becky turned to where Mayu pointed, “Oh! It does seem close.”

Chie studied the galaxy, “Then we have a destination.”

Ryan wondered how far away it was, “Becky, any idea how far it is?”

Becky shook her head, “I will need to observe it for a while, but I can’t do that without a telescope or your sensors.”

Ryan heard heaving sounds coming from Anton, “I… I’m… I’m gonna puke.”

Anton hadn’t moved far from the breach and was already heading back inside.

Becky looked away from Anton, “Maybe we should head in too. I’m feeling a bit queasy myself.”

Mayu followed Anton, “Ms. Anton, can I help you?”

Anton waved behind herself dismissively, “No, I’ll be fine…”

Chie’s focus moved from Anton to the ship, “So this is what our home looks like from the outside.”

Becky’s camera showed she was looking over the ship too, “It looks kinda like the moon or an asteroid.”

Ryan eagerly studied the ship. He’d waited for this moment almost from day one, so it was nice to finally get to do it.

The first thing he noticed was that the ship was a long oval, like expected. The front had a crystal piece where the crystal device touched the hull inside, along with four more pieces of crystal where the cables connected to the hull. 

The breach they had exited through gave them a view into the two rooms on the deck above where they’d come from, and the large device on the upper deck.

The next thing he noticed were four blisters positioned at the center of the ship, two on each side, aligned on the decks above and below the center deck. The two on the side they’d exited on looked like they’d taken a beating, and the mangled remains of what looked like weapons reached out to space like broken fingers. It was harder to see the two on the other side, but the lower one seemed the same. The upper looked like it hadn’t even opened and instead melted shut before the weapon could come out.

The rest of the ship looked as expected, with breaches exactly where he’d expected. The hull itself looked weathered and had many craters that hadn’t breached the hull at worst or sandblasted at best.

Chie too studied the ship before replying to Becky’s comment and started moving to the ship, “Indeed, it does.”

Ryan got an idea from Becky’s comment, “Hey, I think I got a name for the ship.”

Becky started moving to the ship, “Oh?”

Anton, already recovered, looked around him, “You changing your name?”

Ryan expected Anton’s comment, “I’ve been thinking, am I the ship or just the brain in a jar that controls the ship? I wasn’t sure until I controlled the drone Anton made, but now I think I’m just connected to it and not it, if you know what I mean. I think I could probably control anything as long as I can connect to it.”

Chie stopped just outside the breach, “That makes sense to me.”

Becky nodded, “Yep!”

Anton’s voice seemed less enthusiastic, “Yeah, but… being a ship is so much cooler than a brain in a jar that runs everything.”

Mayu put her hand on a nearby wall, “I think Mr. Ryan is Mr. Ryan if ship or not. The same as us in these different bodies. We are the same inside, even if outside is different.”

Becky entered the ship, “Mayu’s right.”

Chie crossed her arms, then nodded, “Yes, I can agree with that.” 

Anton stood up from where she’d laid down, “Okay, but what about the name you thought about?”

Ryan brought up an image he’d saved of the outside of the ship, “Well, Becky said the ship looks kinda like the moon. If you squashed it… Anyway, I was thinking, since it looks a little like the moon that’d make a good name for it. Moon is a dumb name, so maybe use Luna instead.”

Becky clapped her hands together, “That’s a wonderful name!”

Chie nodded, “I agree.”

Anton shrugged, “I guess.”

Mayu moved her hand across the wall, “Luna. It is a good name.”

Ryan was happy, “Glad you liked it!” He zoomed in on the breach, “How about we paint the name here after we fix the hole?”

Anton moved closer to the picture, “Gonna be awhile.”

Becky’s head lowered and sighed, “Right… Lots to do.”

Chie moved to the side of the breach and put her hand on a melted piece of hull, “Hmm.”

Anton moved to the edge of the breach, averting her view away from looking outside, and looked to Chie, “Find somethin’ interestin’?”

Chie’s view moved along the breach, “The damage looks strange.”

Anton moved up next to Chie and looked, “Yeah, it does. Almost…” She pointed to the area towards the fore of the ship, “Almost like…” She pointed to part of the breach that lay on the upper deck, and then to the hull by the aft of the breach, “Almost like this area got hit a lot.”

Chie nodded, “Yes, the melting pattern seems to indicate multiple strikes on this area of the ship.”

Becky moved to join the two, “What does that mean?”

Anton looked back to the others, “It means someone was tryin’ to hit somethin’ here.”

Chie nodded, “Yes, but what?”

Becky looked back into the breach and looked down the hallway, “Yeah, it’s just a hallway.”

Chie shook her head and pointed a little up, “This breach spans three decks, so if the intended target is not here, then it must be something on one of the other decks.”

Becky hit her palm with her fist, “Ah… So they missed their target and got the hallway instead!”

Anton stuck her head through the breach into the floor above, “I think they got their target, just not as bad.”

Chie moved into the breach and entered the deck, “Yes, the breach does not cover as large an area, but the damage still appears substantial.”

Ryan saw Chie enter the deck, “It must be the room my camera doesn’t work in.”

Anton moved past Chie as she looked down either direction of the hallway and moved into the mystery room on the deck, “Whoa, looks like a giant shotgun went off and sprayed everything.”

Ryan studied the room through Anton’s camera.

The room was spacious and had a raised platform in the center with a mangled chair at its center. Workstations lined the walls, though Anton was right and of them had extensive damage from what Ryan assumed happened when the hull got breached. There was a door in the center of the aft wall that led to the hallway.

In the forward left corner, the damage extended to the wall leading to the room forward of this one and it was possible to see into it but not enter.

Becky moved onto deck two and peered in the room, “Whoa.”

Anton moved next to a console in the left aft corner, “Looks like this one is still in pretty good shape.”

Chie entered the room, “This looks like a command center.”

Anton pointed over her shoulder with her thumb at the chair in the center, “Yeah, I think that’s the captain’s chair.”

Mayu came into the room, but said nothing and watched.

Becky moved to the captain’s chair, “Do we even need a bridge? I mean, Ryan controls everything just fine.”

Chie seemed to think for a moment, “Perhaps for redundancy or a place for the crew to have more control of the ship in case of emergencies.”

Anton gave up trying to turn on the console and turned to face the others, “Agree with Chie, but Ryan’s doin’ a good job right now so I think we’re wastin’ our time here.”

Becky turned to Anton, “Hmm, and here I thought you would be clamoring to get this place fixed.”

Anton shrugged, “Nah, I’d rather get ol’ Luna up and runnin’ first.”

Chie tsked, “You remember the ship’s name immediately.”

Anton waved her hand dismissively, “Yeah, yeah. Ships are cool, people are annoying.” She moved towards the breach, “Anyway, I’m gonna go look in the other room in front of this one. Looked like it had more tools.”

Chie’s posture seemed to become more energetic, “Yes, that room seemed promising.”

Becky followed Chie and Anton out of the room, “Wait for me!”

Mayu watched the others head up the hall before she pushed a button, making her channel private to Ryan only, “Mr. Ryan, can you help me in my bedroom? I do not think they need me, and I want to finish Kazuya so Aya is not alone. I think I can teach you Japanese too after. Speaking Japanese would make me happy. Sometimes it is hard to know what the others say, so it is frustrating.”

Ryan recalled he still had done no work on recreating Mayu’s husband, “Sure, I already promised and learning Japanese sounds fun. Becky was interested in learning too, so maybe we can invite her after we finish with your husband’s hologram.”

Mayu turned back to the breach, “Thank you, Mr. Ryan.” 

“No problem.”

Mayu toggled her comm so she could speak to everyone again and waited until Anton stopped commenting about having to pry open another door, “Excuse me. I am going back to my bedroom. I have something I want to work on.”

Anton shrugged, “‘k.”

Chie grunted as she pulled on the pry bar, “That sounds fine.”

Becky turned to look back the way they’d come, “Need help, Mayu?”

Mayu stopped just before lowering herself through the beach to the floor below, “Mr. Ryan is helping, but thank you.”

Ryan could tell it worried Becky, “Don’t worry. I’m just helping her finish something we started yesterday. She’s going to teach me some Japanese later though, so maybe you and the others can come then if you’re interested.”

Mayu started lowering herself, “Yes, if you want to.”

Chie shook her head, “Languages aren’t my forte.”

Anton shook her head too, “Maybe after we’re done with repairs. I want to get this ship back up as fast as I can.”

Becky’s posture relaxed, “Sure! Just let me know.”

Mayu stopped before entering the hallway to the bedrooms, “Okay. I am glad.” 

Mayu turned to look out of the breach and into space before finally heading to her bedroom.

Becky seemed to consider something before turning back to watch the other two opening the door, “You two still working on that?”

Chie had the door open enough to pull on it, “Perhaps if Anton was helping.”

Anton’s head jerked up, “Oh! Sorry!”

Becky moved to the door with Anton, “Might as well help too.”

The door easily opened with all three pulling on it.

Anton entered first.

They’d already seen the room through a camera, but Ryan checked everything again.

A large work table dominated the center of the room and had a few items scattered on and around it. To the starboard side of the room was something he didn’t know was at first, but after using the scanner in med bay, he’d realized it was something similar. 

Next to the scanner was a small fabricator. 

To the port side of the room was a machine that ran on hydrogen, but he wasn’t sure what it used it for as the supply of hydrogen didn’t make it to this part of the ship. 

Shelves and cupboards lined the aft wall, many of which were open, revealing shattered and empty containers or more tools.

Anton went to the mysterious machine to port, “This is the thing that needs hydrogen?”

Ryan gave Anton a holographic thumbs up, “Yup.”

Chie moved to the scanner, “You are right, Ryan. This looks like the scanning device in med bay, though… perhaps more robust.”

Ryan wiggled the machine's scanning arm as it was all he could do with it, “I tried running it, but this room barely gets any power.”

Chie nodded, “We should make fully restoring the power to this room a top priority. I have a feeling this scanning device might be key to our ability to make parts for repairing the ship.”

Anton turned to look at the scanner, “I hope so. If not, we’re screwed.”

Becky glanced at the scanner as she floated to the work table and looked at the floor, “Looks like this is right over the damaged area below. Looks like the floor melted a little.”

Anton moved next to Becky, “I bet that’s where the main power cable got toasted. I’ll take a look downstairs and see what’s up.”

Chie turned to inspect the damaged floor, “I will go with you.”

Ryan felt happy now that he knew what state the entire ship was in, “So, first we get power to this room then we see if we can scan parts?”

Anton nodded, “Yeppers! If that scanner works, we’re set! Scan, then print. Scan, then print.”

Chie turned back to the scanner, “Indeed.”

Becky turned to the door, “Okay! Let’s get the power fixed!”

58