After getting out of the tube, he felt far better than he did before and was also completely dry. That explained why they didn’t have him take off his clothes before getting in the pod. In fact, he felt cleaner than before and the captain’s outfit was no longer as stiff. Even his underwear had dried and felt comfortable, back to when it was almost new. If not for the pain, the feeling of drowning, and the fact he didn’t know how long he was in the tube, he would consider it a preferable alternative to showering.
“You had many ailments. Mostly from malnourishment, bad posture, overworking, lack of sleep, and living in filthy squalor. No signs of any diseases taking hold in your body. Either it truly was just the common cold or you miraculously survived and fully fended off a bioweapon. Likely the former. Now, you’re needed in the engine room. However, it is not urgent so you may choose to head to the cafeteria for a meal first," said the computer.
The voiceless medical officer pulled out a cartridge from the tube and replaced with a new one from a cupboard chock full of them. The old cartridge was placed into a plastic bag then tossed into a trash can. Inside the cartridges was the fluid that enveloped Brighand. They could fit in the hand as they were stored in a dehydrated powder state. The tube would carefully add water to the powder enough to create the slime-like fluid but not too little or too much. Too much would cause the recipient to drown, too little wouldn't fill the tube fully and be used to full effect.
The old cartridge was still useable but to a much lesser degree. Less ability to analyze the body and heal plus it would no longer contain oxygen so it wouldn't be able to enter the lungs. Used cartridges would require wearing a mask with an oxygen supply. As there were so many fresh cartridges, the old one used by Brighand was placed in a garbage can while the plastic bag ensured that in an emergency it could be fished out of the trash and reused.
Brighand left the medbay and found that the room directly opposite of the medbay was the cafeteria. His curiosity over what sort of food would be served there drew him in even though he had already eaten that morning. Liquid food contained all the calories and nutrients needed for one day in one sitting rather than the three portion solid meal. However, it was well known that the preservation techniques of various militaries around the universe made it so many rations if stored properly would keep even after hundreds of years. They were often sold for a good value to collectors.
On top of that, as the ship's captain, he could get an officer's ration which was said to rival planetside food in taste. The corner of his mouth drooled as he mentally negotiated with himself about how he had a haul and deserved some solid food in celebration and how he'd need more calories after working hard for a few hours. It was less about getting fat and more about nutritional imbalances and feeling unwell after eating too much. Scavengers lacked the luxury of gaining weight but getting diarrhea or a stomachache from eating or drinking too much is always a possibility.
The inside of the cafeteria had a larger ceiling than the other rooms with the usual pipes and vents being visible rather than hidden between the next floor. There were many tables with stools so that many soldiers could sit and eat with each other. It felt distinctively creepy as it was the largest space yet also the most empty. Brighand walked by the tables to reach a kitchen behind a counter where soldiers would be served their food. There he found a door leading to a storage room and two machines.
One of the machines was a cooker, all in one oven, smoker, fryer, microwave, and toaster depending on the settings. However, such a machine was meant for real food, planetside sort of stuff, and by no means would any of that stuff survive hundreds of years. It did mean if he ever got planetside ingredients, he could prep a proper meal so he couldn't help but fiddle with it and test if it worked.
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The other machine was a liquid to solid refiner. It was a machine that took liquid food and condensed it into solid food. More advanced versions could change the shape of the food to resemble real food. Thee best of the best could infuse new flavors and smells to trick the body into thinking that it is eating real food. If there were no military rations, Brighand would bring aboard some of his liquid food and use this machine to eat.
Finally, the storeroom in the kitchen was opened to reveal a mess. Piles and piles of military rations that once lined the shelves had collapsed to the floor. Brighand spent some time organizing the rations back onto the shelves while setting aside damaged ones. Every single thing in this room might be able to help him survive one more day so he seriously reorganized everything over the course of an hour or two. After finishing, he found some straps on the shelves meant to keep things in place in times of low gravity. He used them to secure the rations and prevent them from falling over again later.
He left the room with seven items. A package of liquid food and six solid foods. The solid foods were two of each flavor he found that sounded appetizing. One undamaged and the other undamaged. He intended to check through the solid foods starting with the damaged ones to see if they were still good to eat with the liquid food as a backup plan. He went into the main cafeteria, claimed a stool and began opening a damaged ration that read 'Macho Taco Apocalypse with a side pickle.'
He remembered hearing about another scavenger team who had found one of these rations selling it to a collector for a month's worth of scavenging. Obviously that should mean it's really good compared to other rations found selling for only a week's worth. The ration itself was a brown vacuum sealed bag around a black tray. The damaged one was already opened with a big dent on the side and a tear on the bag. He tore the rest of the bag open and slid it out to see that the damage had crushed a green object, presumably the pickle and spread the juices from it all over a soggy mass that was probably the taco. An absolutely rancid smell hit his nose, making his eyes water and nose burn, so he pushed the tray to the side and categorized it mentally as inedible.
Next was a ration labeled 'Veganballs in chili with crackers.' Unlike the previous ration, this damaged one had just a dent but no tear in the bag. After opening there was no smell at all. He found the crackers crushed into a fine powder, some of which was over dried noodles, shriveled beans, and a red powder. The bag called for adding water and then waiting for one minute, so he went to a sink in the back of the kitchen and filled up the plastic bag with water before returning and adding it to the food.
The water reacted with the food violently, releasing steam as the food began to start looking more and more edible. The powder became a rich sauce, the beans expanded to twice the size and lost their wrinkles, and the dried noodles became springy and separated outwards. That is, until the entire dish caught aflame. Brighand distanced himself as it began giving off a horribly burnt smell, burning into a black crisp before the flame extinguished itself.
Brighand pre-emptively pushed the final damaged one to the side, brought the undamaged ones back to the storeroom and hooked the liquid food up to the food refiner. He wanted to eat something he knew he could eat, not play around with.
The refiner did its job perfectly, solidifying the liquid food into what looked like and smelled like a burger. He couldn't but smile as he smelled freshly baked bread from the bun and perfectly cooked beef from the patty. It was an advanced refiner. All of his enthusiasm disappeared after the first bite as it was completely tasteless. The smell was right but there was no flavor added, in fact the flavor was removed altogether.
He still ate it as it still had the smell and texture of real food and could imagine it tasting good when he closed his eyes. However, it was still a disappointing result. None of it went to waste and there was a lingering smell of burger when he finished it off. It was time to leave and check out this engine room.