Suddenly, but abruptly, B-9 paused in his tracks and his helmet bobbed up.
"Warning, warning!" B-9 announced. "We are getting close to a abandoned vessel."
Don and Penny turned their attention upon B-9.
"How far are we from the craft?" Don asked.
"We are five kilometers away if we continue going straight," B-9 replied.
"Penny, like to race me?" Don offered turning his attention upon the young woman.
"Race you?" Penny asked. "You are incredibly slow."
"That was intentional," Don said. "We were trapping Harris in the Chariot."
"Then prove it." Penny said.
Don chuckled.
"Don't mind if I do!" Don momentary rose his brows then sprinted ahead of Penny.
Penny sprinted on ahead of Don and they were in league with one another. Penny leaped over a fallen log leading down to a ravine landing on to the other side. Don went over a fallen tree then landed with a crash in a pile of leaves. He slid down the pile with a laugh and threw himself aside out of the range of a long stick peeking from a stick pile. He followed after her figure that stood out in the orange suit. He high tailed after her skating through the collection of leaves.
B-9 tagged behind them taking his time. Time was all that he had when it came to the slow moving machine. In a little over five minutes, he came to a pause beside the mechanic and the young woman looking down from the edge of a ledge that stood over eight feet above the mainland. His sensors indicated there was a large spacecraft covered in different forms of plant life.
"Looks kind of. . ." Don said. "Heavily damaged."
"There is operational equipment." B-9 reported.
Don looked toward the long trench leading away from it then toward B-9.
"That looks like it had been through a very bad crash." Don said. "It looks no good."
B-9 twirled toward Don.
"What kind of man are you for existing without hope?" B-9 asked.
Don raised his brows turning his attention upon the machine putting his hands on his hips.
"Hope has nothing to do with this." Don said. "I mean, if it were the Jupiter 2, it would be reused for scrap metal and nothing in it could be reused."
"The damage that you see is from life flourishing and using it as a home," B-9 said. "The wear and tear of being used by organisms have done all that the crash could not do."
B-9 descended down a natural made path leading toward the craft, slowly, then slipped down the hill and wheeled into the shell of the craft from a bubbling brooke. Penny lunged in his direction leaping over the bubbling brooke into the craft behind B-9. She looked up spotting corpses sitting in chairs that were upside down. Don crept by her side then looked on up into the darkened craft.
"And he says this craft could have operational tech," Don took out a solar flashlight peering out then smiled with a lift of his brows moving the flashlight from side to side. "Nice."
Penny shifted her attention afar.
"B-" Don started.
"Sick bay is this way." B-9 announced.
"Okay." Don said.
"Then we check the engineering and see how much of that is viable." Penny said.
"Affirmative." B-9 said.
"Hmm. . ." Don said. "If it doesn't work-"
"It will work." B-9 said.
"What if we used the viable parts of the ship and expanded the space van?" Don asked.
"Then we will have a roomy shuttle." Penny replied as B-9 was in the lead.
"And big enough to have some space to ourselves." Don said.
"But still smaller than the Jupiter 2." Penny said. "I miss her."
"So do I." Don said.
"What part do you miss?" Penny asked.
"My own room." Don said.
"We are here." B-9 said, abruptly. "This way."
With a loud cackle, the door fell down before their eyes and dust became unsettled.
"Except for that door. Not viable." Don quipped.
B-9 lead them into the large sick bay then the duo looked up toward the drawers that were set against the wall with their well preserved medicine hidden inside. Then they began retrieving the objects that had fallen long ago and proceeded to make a wall of material to lead up. It took some time retrieving the fallen beds then stacking them up one by one but they got it done with some of B-9's help.
There was little argument regarding Penny's part in the operation, she was small and fast enough to make ascent up with her hands prepared for the task that required treating the material as delicate pieces of art. Yet, in many ways, the tower of furniture was a work of art. Penny climbed up the wall of art then came to the cabinet and grimaced. Don gestured her to perform the necessary motion. With ease, she knocked her elbow in shattering the glass to the locked furniture. She grasped into the inner bulb the twisted and turned it until it unlocked.
The door slid open and Penny sighed in relief. She took out medical equipment, chucking them one at a time to the pacing mechanic who caught them with ease and proceeded to juggle them then handed them off one at a time to B-9. B-9 moved them equipment on to a nearby table as the charade continued for the next several minutes. Eventually, the cabinet was empty and Penny carefully descended down the impromptu stairs. She had to pause every so often, standing from the top of the floor, gazing down at the bottom.
"Are you okay?" Don asked.
"I am fine." Penny said.
"Don't tell me that you are afraid of heights." Don said.
"A little." Penny admitted.
"What?" Don folded his arms. "Is being sixty feet stories above not as scary as this? You are four feet above ground."
"Everything is closer and there are light fixtures everywhere," Penny pointed out. "If I fall. . ."
"Okay," Don unfolded his arms. "I get it." he shook his hands. "Hey, buddy." Don looked toward B-9. "Can you make a bag?"
"Affirmative." B-9 said.
"Make one, please." Don said.
"Affirmative." B-9 clacked his claws and a knapsack appeared between them.
Don looked toward B-9 then laughed and turned his attention upon the slowly creeping down Penny then back toward B-9 with widened eyes. He shook his head then turned his attention upon Penny.
"If you fall then I will catch you," Don said. "Relax."
Penny took in a deep breath then carefully began to descend and let go of a sigh that made her chest feel as if it had lowered. Her grip slipped and she fell into Don's waiting arms and he stepped aside out of the light fixtures. The tables began to tremble then they stormed out of the room as B-9 finished sliding the equipment into the bag.
B-9 wheeled out in the nick of time as the light fixtures were crashed upon by the numerous beds. Don and Penny peered into the room spotting the bolts of electricity. They leaned back into the corridor beside the fallen door.
"That went well." Penny said.
"All we have to do is figure out what each of the equipment does," Don said. "If his sensors isn't that advanced."
"They are." B-9 said then wheeled away.