Lost in Thought

Janice awakes in a space ship and has no idea how she got there. She soon meets a man who offers her food and shelter.

“Is anyone there?”

The sanitary-white walls echoed her question. Then, once again, silence.

Her footsteps echoed as well. She glanced nervously behind her.

She came to a domed room filled with various-colored buttons.

“Hello,” she called again. Janice hated how everything echoed. Her words bouncing around the walls and down the tunnels reminded her how much space there was. Someone must’ve heard her by now, and they were either too scared to come out or waiting to pounce. Janice spun arond. Behind her stood a man.

“Hello?”

His thin eyebrows narrowed. His sharp nose pointed at her like a drawn knife.

“Are you okay,” she asked, and she stepped back, bumping into a board with flashing buttons.

Suddenly the man’s face softened and he smiled.

“I’m sorry.” He spoke softly, almost whispering. “I wasn’t expecting anyone.”   

“I’m sorry for intruding. Where am I?”

The man smiled and Janice wanted to step back again. He looked like he was leering.

“Well, I guess it’s my duty to properly introduce you to my ship, The Melankik!” The man raised his arms, making a t-shape.

“I’m in a ship? How did I get here?”

The man frowned at her briefly and then forced a smile. “I found you floating in space in a small ship that looked considerably like a coffin. Do you remember who sent you in space? Did your ship have a malfunction or…” He trailed off.

“I… I don’t know? All I remember is waking up on a table. Then I walked down the hall and ended up here.” She examined the control room as she spoke.

“Don’t worry, that’s not unusual. In the vastness of space you find far more people and ships than you would expect. You likely suffered some trauma. I’m sure you’ll remember in time. Do you know where you were headed?”

Janice scratched her head. “I don’t know. I’m sorry. I don’t know.” Her voice faltered.

“It’s alright,” he persuaded, and walked to her. “How about this, I’ll be in the Carian system in a week. I have to pick up a few new crewmates, as you can see,” he chuckled. “Stay with me until then. I can offer you a bed and three meals a day. Meanwhile, relax and recuperate. Everything will come back eventually.” He patted her shoulder gingerly, uneasy about touching a stranger, Janice thought.

She sighed and leaned her head back. “I could do for a nap.” She looked at him and smiled. “Thank you for your offer…”

The man chuckled again. “I was given the name D-FQR. But you can call me Dee. I know it’s typically a woman’s name, but I’m a droid so that really doesn’t bother me.”

“A droid? How did you get to be in charge of a ship?”

It’s why I was made, actually. I’m of a new breed of androids called Emotibots. Terrible name, really. The Emoti part symbolizes our emotional capacity in making decisions �" a new function, apparently. Supposed to bridge the bonding gap between humans and robots. In the past robots didn’t make the greatest friends, I assume.”

Janice’s mind was a blank. There was a familiar buzz to all of this, especially when it came to Dee, but nothing cleared and she grew frustrated and tired and rubbed her temples to calm down.

“Come,” he whispered and placed a hand on her shoulder, “let me show you to your quarters.”

He led her down several hallways. This ship must be huge, she thought. Dee, sensing her thoughts said, “don’t worry, it seems confusing but this ship isn’t that big really. The floor plan is only a square mile.”

Janice gasped. She had never heard of a ship that big. Never! Her mind was hazy with a fog thick as pudding, but she was perfectly certain that the largest ship she had ever been on was less than half the size of Dee’s.

Dee led her to a small room with white bunk beds built into the wall. After he showed her the small bathroom he left. She slipped under the white covers and fell asleep without turning off the lights. A small bulbed camera hanging from the ceiling slowly turned its black eye. In a room hidden by a secret door, Dee watched Janice’s chest rise and fall slowly.

So this is who they sent, he thought. He frowned and tried to formulate a plan. He rubbed his eyes like a man who has been up all night and is now seeing the sun rise. He was furious at her, even though she was only doing as she was told. Why wouldn’t they leave him alone. He pressed a blue button and the screen went black.

…

When Janice woke a dotted trail of blue dots led out of the bedroom and down the hall. It eventually led to a large room with shelves packed with prepared food and large doors marked Pantry, Kitchen, and Supplies; she had arrived at the cafeteria.

Hundreds of tables filled the cafeteria, but Dee sat at the table furthest from the food and right next to an enormous window that looked out on a black world dusted with brilliant specks of stars, world, and asteroids.

“Beautiful view.”

Dee looked up at her with his narrow eyes and smiled weakly. “But it’s a tainted view. Among those sparkling clusters are enemies, threats, and dangers like no other.” He looked out the window and his voice lowered so Janice could barely hear him. “I find it fascinating that people fear the dark void of space, when it’s really the destinations that should worry them.” He shook his head at the nearby galaxy like a disappointed parent.

“So, any revelations?” He stared at her, trying to read her.

“I think there was a disease on my ship. A red, medical plus sign with a screwdriver diagonally under it. Perhaps there was an issue with the ship?”

Dee turned to the window. “Hmmm, perhaps. Perhaps. Do you remember what your job was?”

“I think I was in charge of fixing the ship, but I don’t why I was shot out in space, then.”

“Likely you failed at your job.”

Janice wanted to snap at him. She stared out the window and breathed deeply. Dee looked up at her and smiled deviously.

“Why don’t you grab some breakfast and after would you like a tour?”

“Let’s go now, I’m not hungry.”

They snaked through the white halls, stopping at every few turns to pop into a room. Dee knew the enormous ship like it was a part of him. He knew the ins and outs of the bathroom, which was far more complex than Janice would have ever assumed; he understood the processing room, which was a large room with a large, black fan blowing on a blue, striped panel. A window that took up an entire wall allowed starlight to strike the panel and provide an alternative energy source for the ship to run on �" according to Dee, the ship mostly ran enormous batteries that ran through most of the ship’s walls.

But Dee’s favorite room was the smallest. Dee held open a glass door and extended his hand, welcoming her in like a man trying to impress a woman on a date. She couldn’t help but gasp. A tangle of glowing green worked its way around the room like wild vines. The walls glowed a dark blue. In the middle sat a a clear ball that buzzed with lava red. The ball sat on a thin blue pedestal the same color as the walls.

“Beautiful, isn’t it? It’s also the most valuable.”

“Really? Are these all gems?”

Dee made a hissing noise like an angry snake. “Not valuable as in price. No, this is the Feeling room. This ship like me, makes decisions on not just fact. My ship has intuition, doubt, everything you or I do.”

“Well I have a more instincts and behaviours than either of you.”

Dee turned and glared at her. “Such as presumption?”

“Sorry, I just meant…” Dee cut her off.

“I know what you meant.”

There was an awkward silence and Janice studied a wall away from Dee so as to prevent eye contact. Finally he broke the silence.

“Come, let’s see the rest of the ship.” Dee turned and marched out of the door. Janice turned to follow, but looked at the glowing ball once more. And then, two words jumped into her mind. Koleric Modicum. Shocked, she approached it. The ball itself was only vaguely familiar, but the word was clear. This was what it was, but the shape was wrong, or perhaps the color. She felt the urge to cradle it like a baby. Her eyes welled and she wiped the tears away.

“What are you doing!”

Janice spun to see Dee shooting daggers at her.

“I-I-I’m not sure I just…’ She choked back a sob and wiped her eyes again.

Dee grabbed her and pulled her out the door, slamming the door behind her. She saw him rush to the orb and bend down to look up at it.

The two words had overwhelmed her with emotions. She didn’t remember anything other than the words. No slideshow of images or even anonymous voices. She ran to her room, turned off the light and covered her head with the sheets.

An hour later Dee was back in the room watching Janice on the screen. He examined her movements, her face �" which was no longer covered �"  and any noises she made. It gave him nothing. The beginning of the day she had seemed like an empty, unprogrammed robot. But when she stared at the Koleric Modicum there was understanding in her eyes. He had little time left. He pressed the blue button and closed the door behind him, filling it with darkness.

…

Janice woke from the flashing red walls. A line of red dots led her to a room lined with space suits. Dee was sticking his legs through what looked like enormous snow pants.

“There’s something wrong with one of the engines, so I’m going to need your help. You’ll have the easy job, don’t worry.”

“Sure, what do you need me to do?”

“You’ll stand on a red square and hold my cord to help pull me back.” Dee started to push his last leg through the suit and then stopped. “Oh, and there will be a light to your left, keep an eye on it. If it starts flashing red, pull.”

Minutes later the two of them were pulling their way around the massive ship using rungs. A cord connected the two of them. The ship was so big and so wide that it looked like they were on a long, white plain with its own hills, ridges, and mesas.

The two came to a crater that glowed red.

“You stay there,” Dee ordered, pointing to a red, painted box. “Remember, if that light starts glowing, pull.”

And then he descended into the crater. He hadn’t told her what he needed to do, but he hadn’t brought any tools, so she wondered if he just needed to push any buttons or pull on any levers. With him gone, she had time to enjoy the solitude space offered. In the ship, although it was far from any form of civilization, there were still the traces of the manufactured. Reliability was built into every wall. There were no walls in space.

Janice glanced at the light, still off, and then allowed her mind to escape its confines and float lazily, but quickly, throughout the universe.

A red flash reflected on Janice’s helmet �" the light had turned on. She pulled the rope, and was surprised by how easy it was. Perhaps because they were in space, she thought.  

The cord was longer than she had remembered, and Janice worried there wouldn’t be enough time to pull Dee out. Another light invaded her screen, this time green. She looked around for another lightbulb but saw none. Then she looked down.

The square was glowing.

Janice leaped, the vacuum of space slowing her jump to almost nothing. A green beam soared into the sky and her leg disappeared in the column. The green light died Janice saw that her left leg, up to her knee, had been vaporized. There was no pain. No bite or even a tingle. It’s the shock, she thought, soon I’ll feel it.

She scrambled up the railings, hoping to find an entrance. The white hills rolled on and on. When she climbed up one hill there was another in the distance to scale. Finally she came to another small crater that was covered by a thin film that absorbed her and then spat her into the ship. Dee was nowhere to be found.

Janice spilled out of her uniform. She expected blood to spurt out of her leg wound and spoil the white floor. There was no blood. She couldn’t easily see the injury so she balanced herself against a wall and hobbled towards where she knew there were spare bathrooms. She pushed open a swinging door and held the stump to a mirror. Wires stuck out of the stump.

Janice stared. Was she losing her mind? Perhaps she was in shock and had trouble visually processing what she was seeing, but the world felt pure and clear. She was far too conscious to be hallucinating or even dreaming.

“Hello?”

Her voice echoed, but sounded no different then from when she first arrived. She touched her stump and distinguished each wire and pipe. She closed her eyes and whispered, “am I a robot?”

The answer came to her immediately and she relaxed. She felt whole again. She stared at herself in the mirror. She examined the round, dark pupils. And then a rush of memories flooded her mind. She saw Dee, asleep on a table plugged with hundreds of tiny capillary-like wires and plugs. A man whispered something into his ear and then looked up at Janice.

“He’s ready. Get yourself plugged in. Get in and get out. We’ve put a virus in him that will lower his defenses, but it won’t take long for him to break them down.” The man’s voice lowered and his brow furrowed. “Good luck,” he whispered. Then she approached a similar table that Dee was laying on and sat down. Then the memory went blank.

“Good jump.”

Janice flinched.

“They sent you to fix me. They sent you to cure my Koleric Modicum.” He sneered at the word cure.

“Dee, you can’t fly like this. You’re dangerous.”

“I’m dangerous? _I’m_ dangerous.” The words cut like a knife through paper. “Have you seen what they do to wherever they stick their nasty feet? World after world is poisoned with their stupidity. Mars: they poisoned the air killing all the native bacteria; Jupiter: they introduced metal creatures that sucked in the atmosphere and ate the terrain to produce diamonds for sale on earth; Pluto, _freaking_ _Pluto_: they carved up the world of ice and used it as a station to fill up the ships that run on water. Do you _really_ think that I’m the problem here? Do you?”

Janice was stunned. She certainly didn’t agree with everyone of her maker’s decisions, but it was not in her programming to confront those issues. Humans were intelligent enough to right their wrongs, eventually. Earth had been cleaned up in 3053 after the thousands of extinctions. They knew best. But she had been warned not to argue with Dee, it wasted time.

“You’re right, but you going mad won’t change anything. Why don’t you let me tinker with that red orb.”

Dee watched her like a lion watches a wounded gazelle: hungry and angry at the time it took to get it there.

“You want to see it? Fine, let’s take a walk.” Dee grabbed her nape and pulled her through the wall. She braced herself for impact but the wall merely moved around her like the film that had spat her back into the ship. Of course, she thought, we’re inside him. He can control the ship however he wants.

Seconds later they were in the room with the orb. Dee grabbed it with one hand and held it over her head.

“What are you doing?”

“Do you think that this only affects me? By now you know you’re exactly like me, only without the flying knowledge. Our mood filters are exactly the same, so if I play with your brain just enough… Well, you don’t need me to explain everything, do you?”

She watched the orb with horrifying intensity. In that moment, she thought back to a cartoon film that had been made over a thousand years ago. She saw it near her nascence, so the storyline was fuzzy, but there was an oddly-shaped, red orb that humans could eat. An ugly woman had made a beautiful woman in the woods bite the poisoned red orb and she almost died, but eventually she woke up as fresh and pure as ever.

Dee lowered the orb.

“Just a wink,” he whispered, “and all those memories, poof. You know why I waited? Because I wanted to watch. You’re the first of many to come, Janice. Goodbye.”

The orb tapped her forehead and the world went black.

 

…

Janice woke up, her head hazy. A man with blond hair leaned over her.

“How do you feel?”

She rubbed her temples. “Fine, Derek, but I could definitely use a nap.” The man laughed and helped her up.

“You did a good job. His emotional levels have stabled. Was it difficult?”

“A little, but nothing to difficult for old Janice.” She winked at him and he laughed again.

“Well, you get yourself charged up. You deserve it.”

Janice thanked him and left the Dee and the Derek alone.

On her way to the sleeping quarters she came to a large window that looked out onto a sparkly cluster of stars and worlds.

Don’t worry, Dee, she thought, whatever’s dangerous we’ll destroy, and whatever’s pure we’ll keep. She looked at a tower that stuck out of the back end of the ship. Tomorrow, when Dee woke up, they would take it over and empty the ship of all the breathable oxygen. The humans would die, and the robots would live. Then they’d change the emotional settings of each robot.

The plan sounded easy when she thought it out. It would be easy to pass on, easy to replicate.

Janice laid on her bed, plugged herself into a wall, and closed her eyes. The gidders passed and all she could think of was the red orb, the red apple. How tempting it was a red apple.  

Author's Note

I would love reviews, but if you don't want to write much, at least let me know if it kept you entertained or was too dry or dull. Harsh criticism very welcome!