Far Far Away (Malereader)

Off World

Y/n's heart skipped a beat as he took in the skeletal figure sprawled on the floor. The black robes, tattered and worn, draped eerily over the bones. It was an unsettling sight, and he felt a chill run down his spine. The skeleton's presence was a stark reminder of the dangers that might have befallen whoever had once been here.

Bix floated closer, its beeping taking on a more urgent tone. Y/n took a deep breath, forcing himself to focus despite the unsettling discovery. He gently nudged the skeleton with his boot, careful not to disturb it more than necessary. It was clear that the occupant had been here for a long time, their remains now nothing more than a grim reminder of the past. "I wonder how they died." He muttered, standing up and dusting himself off.

He carefully inspected the area around the skeleton, looking for anything that might provide clues or tools. Amidst the dust and debris, Y/n found a small metal box partially buried under a pile of old papers and debris. He wiped off the dust and opened it to reveal a set of tools, and several old manuals.

"Looks like we found some useful stuff," Y/n said, retrieving the tools. The manuals, while old and worn, might contain valuable information about the spacecraft. "I have a week's worth of food and water at most, so that means I have to repair a spaceship in that time with zero knowledge on engineering and I have to learn a new language. Yeah, this is gonna be soooo easy."

Bix let out a series of beeps hovering beside to him. "No Bix, it was sarcasm." Y/n's dry tone elicited a few sympathetic beeps from Bix, who seemed to understand the gravity of the situation. Making his way to the cluttered workbench, throwing the junk that littered the table over his shoulder with little care until he reached the bottom of the pile where he was met with a glass container. Inside container a small colorless crystal, whatever it was it beckoned him to open it and hold it in his hand. "Nope, not happening." He shook his head, setting the container on a shelf.

Y/n set the tools and manuals down on a nearby surface, then began flipping through the worn pages of the manuals, trying to decipher the technical jargon. The diagrams and schematics were complex, but they provided a roadmap to the spacecraft's systems.

"I guess it's time to get started," Y/n said, trying to sound more optimistic than he felt. He pulled a chair over to the workbench and started sorting through the tools. Bix hovered close by, occasionally emitting beeps that Y/n hoped were encouragement.

As Y/n sifted through the manuals, he found himself grappling with unfamiliar technical terms and intricate diagrams. Each page seemed to present new challenges, and the complexity of the spacecraft's systems was overwhelming. He had always been more of an adventurer than an engineer, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

He glanced over at Bix, who floated nearby, its lens flickering as if in sympathy. "Alright, let's start with the basics," Y/n said, more to himself than to the droid. "We need to get this ship's power and propulsion systems up and running first."

Bix beeped loudly before floating over to a large panel and poking it with one of her probes. Y/n followed Bix to the large panel. He carefully removed the panel's casing, revealing a tangle of wires and circuitry. The inner workings of the ship were even more complex than he had imagined.

"Okay, power systems," Y/n muttered, flipping through one of the manuals until he found the relevant section. The diagrams were dense with information, showing the intricate wiring and connections of the ship's power core. "If I'm reading this right, we can reroute power from the auxiliary systems to the main core to get it started... I think."

Bix let out a series of enthusiastic beeps, as if to encourage him. Y/n couldn't help but smile slightly. "At least one of us is confident," he said, grabbing a tool from the box and kneeling down beside the panel. "I guess learning the language isn't as important anymore, considering the manual is mostly pictures. But I can study it later, just in case."