Read Scrapyard Ship for Free Online

followed.
    Eventually, Jason caught up—ending up in a circular, medical-looking room. There were several long clamshell-type enclosures and what looked like monitoring devices—with connecting display units—mounted to a bulkhead. The robot pressed a button and one of the clamshells started to open. Showing his own desperation, the robot repeatedly hit the button over-and-over again. With it only halfway open, he gestured for Jason to set Mollie’s lifeless body inside. “In here, put her inside.”
    Jason was quickly hustled out of the way and the robot started entering a series of commands onto a small touchpad device. The top portion of the clamshell began to close, culminating in a sucking thump sound. Several colorful displays became active; one display had a rotating virtual 3D representation of Mollie’s body.
    “That’s it? That’s all your going to do?” Jason asked, fuming. He looked for an indication that it wasn’t just a ruse by the robot to avoid another beating.
    “Now… we wait,” the robot said, turning away and quickly walking out of the room. Jason surveyed the space around him. Like the contours of the ship itself, the room was a mixture of fluid lines and gentle angles. Functional and purpose-oriented as this space was—it seemed almost artful in its architecture. Soft, indirect lighting highlighted cushioned wall panels. And super clean—no scrapes—no dings on the bulkheads. Jason stood still, his hand still rested on top of the clamshell-device capsule. Never one to pray or really contemplate on anything more than present-time physicality, the here and now, he prayed. He prayed for Mollie, he prayed for himself, and he prayed for second chances.
    Jason could see Mollie’s illuminated face through a small rectangular window. He thought he noticed an eye-flutter. Was it merely his imagination? Then the 3D full-body representation changed slightly, showing the faintest indication of a beating heart. He must have stood there over an hour before he realized the robot was back in the room, checking the displays and making additional adjustments.
    “Now she must rest; it will be a while longer. Please, you will come with me.”
    “I’m not going anywhere, robot,” Jason snapped back. “I’m certainly not leaving Mollie alone in this place.”
    “Do not worry, we’ll be close by. And you may refer to me as Ricket. That’s what your father called me.”
    “What?”
    “Please. Mollie will be fine here,” Ricket softly replied. The robot headed out into the corridor and gestured he should follow. Jason stole one more glance at Mollie and reluctantly left the room. He realized the mechanical man, Ricket, was talking to him again. “What? What did you say?” Jason asked, following him as they passed by several large equipment-filled compartments. Jason noticed that Ricket, at some point, had retrieved his baseball cap from up above. With it, the robot almost looked human again. They made their way to what seemed to be the ship’s bridge or command center. Slightly oblong, the surrounding bulkhead was more like a massive curved virtual display, completely encircling the room 360 degrees. Consoles were configured around the perimeter, as well as in several middle rows. “I think it’s time you tell me what the hell is going on here, robot.”
    “ Please, refer to me as Ricket…”
    “Whatever,” Jason interrupted. “Ricket, Robot, I really don’t give a shit what you’re called. Tell me, what is this place and who the hell are you people?”
    Ricket moved to one of the console chairs and sat down. “Please, sit anywhere you like. Up top, I was already on my way to bring you here when—”
    “When you shot and killed my daughter?”
    Ricket was quiet for a moment, then said, “Your father will explain everything.”
    “Really? That would be some trick, since he’s been missing more than fifteen years.”
    Ricket started typing something at the console before looking up