Susan had only been putting down her hot drink a short while when the atmosphere in the control room remained relaxed. Chen Hao leaned back in his chair, his right arm resting on the armrest, humming a tune that was out of tune. The spaceship moved smoothly forward, the engine's sound as rhythmic as a lullaby.
Nana stood in front of the data panel, tapping the screen to archive the asteroid event she had just processed. Her movements were swift and efficient; after a series of operations, she conveniently brought up the resources management interface.
“Routine checks,” she said. “Food reserves are being maintained.”
A few seconds later, a notification popped up on the screen.
She paused and checked again.
“An anomaly.” She looked up. “The remaining time for staple grain reserves is currently estimated at thirty-seven days.”
Chen Hao's humming stopped abruptly.
How much did you say?
“Thirty-seven days,” Nana repeated. “Based on the current rate of consumption, the original plan was to sustain it for ninety-two days.”
"That's a huge difference?" Susan frowned. "Did we eat too much?"
“It’s not a single increase in intake.” Nana pulled up her log. “Over the past 72 hours, my total daily energy expenditure has been 41% higher than the baseline. There is no reasonable explanation.”
Carl looked up from the robotic arm's reset check: "Is it possible that the system recorded something wrong? For example, maybe a certain supply run wasn't recorded?"
“Impossible,” Nana said. “I monitor the entire supply process, and the entry and exit of supplies are automatically recorded. The error range is no more than 0.3%.”
"That means someone stole some food," Chen Hao grinned. "Who went into the kitchen in the middle of the night?"
“No one is here,” Susan said immediately. “The cabin surveillance is complete, and all eating and drinking activities are recorded. There are also no signs of unauthorized opening of the lockers.”
"Then the food can grow legs and run away by itself?" Chen Hao sat up straight. "Our ship isn't leaking, where could the stuff fly off to?"
“The cause cannot be determined at the moment,” Nana said, “but the result is clear—if the current rate of consumption continues, we will run out of food before reaching Earth.”
The air suddenly felt heavy.
Chen Hao raised his hand to scratch his head, his hairline pulled a little crooked. He ignored it and blew a breath while staring at the ceiling.
“Alright,” he said. “Let’s reduce the portions for now. One serving per person, no extra dishes allowed.”
“Not enough,” Susan shook her head. “Even if everyone’s rations are reduced by a third, it will only extend the period to fifty-four days. It still won’t be enough.”
"Then reduce it again." Chen Hao shrugged. "As long as we don't starve."
“Long-term malnutrition can affect reaction speed and judgment.” Susan looked at him. “If your hands shake when you’re piloting the spaceship and you crash into a meteor shower, it won’t just be a matter of hunger.”
"So you mean we have to start eating dirt now?" Chen Hao rolled his eyes.
“That’s not what I meant,” Susan said calmly, “but we must face the problem. I suggest implementing a strict rationing system immediately and conducting a full inventory check of all supplies on board to see if any reserves have been missed.”
"Is there any unregistered food on board?" Chen Hao asked Karl.
Carl stroked his chin: "Possibly. This ship is a modified older model, and some areas weren't fully marked on the blueprints. I remember there was an old storage room at the end of passageway B7 on the lower level, which used to store emergency rations, but it was sealed off later. I don't know if it's been emptied out."
"How do you know such details?" Chen Hao asked.
“I passed by when they were fixing the pipes,” Carl said. “The lock was rusty, but I heard boxes being piled up inside.”
“That makes sense.” Chen Hao turned to Nana. “Can you check the registration status of that room?”
"Searching." Nana swiped her finger. "The system shows that this area is a 'discarded equipment storage site' and has no food storage permit. The last clearance record was three months before departure, marked 'emptied'."
“Just a note,” Carl shrugged. “Who knows if it’s really Qing or not.”
"So now we have two options," Chen Hao said, counting on his fingers. "One is to eat less, and the other is to look for any hidden food."
“A two-pronged approach is more prudent,” Nana said. “We should cut costs and increase revenue in parallel.”
“I agree.” Susan nodded. “Starting today, we will implement the temporary rationing plan and arrange the search operation.”
“I don’t object to hiring.” Chen Hao stood up, stretched, and twitched his right arm again. “But don’t expect me to work on an empty stomach. If I’m starving, I won’t care about any missions.”
“I won’t let you starve to the point of unconsciousness,” Susan said calmly, “but I also won’t let you eat your fill and then lie on the sofa playing video games.”
"Hey, that was a tactical simulation!" Chen Hao exclaimed, wide-eyed. "Do you know how mentally taxing it is to command a spaceship? Every step requires calculating gravity, speed, fuel... My brain is constantly running at overclock, so it needs to be replenished with more energy!"
“So, you simulated hitting three asteroids last time,” Carl interjected. “Were you a little too impulsive?”
"That was a system delay!" Chen Hao immediately retorted. "Besides, we managed to avoid it in the end, didn't we?"
“It was Nana who took over manually,” Susan reminded her.
"It's an auxiliary system, that's normal." Chen Hao waved his hand. "Just like a car has autopilot, but you still need to step on the brakes when it matters."
Nana didn't reply, she just kept staring at the screen.
"Anyway," Chen Hao slammed his hand on the table, "we can cut back on meals a little, but we can't cut off the oil and fat. Then we'll split up and look for any corner where there's still food buried."
“I can lead the team to inspect the lower storage area,” Carl said, “and check if there are similar issues in other enclosed spaces.”
“Alright.” Chen Hao pointed at him. “You lead the way. Nana, cooperate by checking the system records to see which areas haven’t been entered for a long time. Susan… you’re in charge of the ration sheets, but don’t be too stingy, or I’ll be the first to rebel.”
“I will set it according to the minimum physiological needs,” Susan said, “to ensure basic physical fitness.”
"Come on," Chen Hao muttered. "The day you make me drink plain water and eat steamed buns, I'll secretly pour your share into the recycling bin."
"You dare?" Susan glanced at him.
"Give it a try?" Chen Hao grinned.
The two stared at each other for two seconds, neither backing down.
Nana suddenly spoke up: "Alarm!"
Everyone was stunned.
"What alarm?"
“The food system itself did not trigger any abnormalities,” she said. “But just now, the weight monitoring of the main grain bins fluctuated—it recorded 897 kilograms ten minutes ago, and it is now 882 kilograms.”
"Fifteen kilograms less?" Carl frowned. "In such a short time?"
"Yes." Nana pulled up the graph. "It's a non-continuous decline, showing intermittent loss characteristics. Each loss is about two to three kilograms, with intervals of twelve to eighteen minutes."
"Automatic leak?" Susan asked.
“The pipeline is perfectly sealed, with no leakage path.” Nana shook her head. “And the loss occurred inside the closed container.”
"So..." Chen Hao said slowly, "the thing disappeared right under our noses?"
“Logically, it doesn’t make sense,” Nana said. “Matter doesn’t just disappear into thin air.”
“But it’s gone,” Carl stared at the data. “And it’s still disappearing.”
The control room was silent for a few seconds.
“Could it be…” Susan hesitated, “biological activity? Like decomposition by some kind of parasite or microorganism?”
“The environment inside the warehouse is dry and low-temperature, with no record of organic pollution,” Nana replied. “Furthermore, the decomposition products should be captured by the sensors, and no abnormal metabolites have been detected so far.”
"What's that?" Chen Hao scratched his head. "Is it haunted? Did the food grow legs and run away by itself?"
“We cannot rule out human factors,” Susan said. “Although the surveillance did not detect any unusual entry or exit, it is possible that someone has learned how to circumvent the rules.”
"Who?" Chen Hao looked around at the three of them. "Which of you secretly eats compressed biscuits as a midnight snack? To be honest, it's not considered a violation of the rules."
No one spoke.
"I'm not doubting you," Chen Hao waved his hand, "but we need to figure out if this is an internal problem."
"If it was done by someone, what was the motive?" Carl asked. "To hide it and eat it themselves? But at this rate, one person couldn't possibly finish so much."
“Maybe it’s not just one person,” Susan said.
“That’s even stranger,” Nana suddenly said. “When the weight dropped the most recently, the monitoring showed that no one had entered the chamber. And the infrared sensors did not detect any activity.”
"Wait a minute." Chen Hao narrowed his eyes. "You mean... the food was less than usual?"
“That’s the data,” Nana said.
“This doesn’t make sense,” Karl frowned. “Unless…”
"Unless what?" Chen Hao urged him.
“Unless there’s something on this ship that we don’t know about,” Karl said slowly, “that’s eating our food supplies.”
"Huh?" Chen Hao laughed out loud. "You actually believe in ghost stories?"
“I’m not talking about ghosts,” Karl said seriously. “I’m talking about unknown life forms. For example, dormant spores being activated, or ecological samples that were already on the ship escaping.”
“The entire spacecraft underwent sterilization before leaving the factory,” Susan said. “And we didn’t bring any live experimental subjects.”
"Where did all those things go?" Chen Hao pointed at the screen. "Could they become invisible?"
No one answered.
Nana brought up the entire data stream again, her eyes scanning over each reading.
“There’s another possibility,” she said. “A system error. A sensor malfunction could cause a false alarm.”
“The probability is less than 3%.” She herself denied it, “The calibration signal is normal, and the cross-validation of multi-source data is consistent.”
“Then it’s really lost.” Chen Hao rubbed his face. “Alright, I believe it now. There are invisible rats on our ship.”
"I suggest immediately sealing off the main grain warehouses," Nana said. "Activate backup storage points and disperse the remaining supplies."
“Agreed.” Susan nodded. “At the same time, increase patrols in all areas.”
“Then what are we waiting for?” Chen Hao stood up. “Karl, don’t go to the bottom floor yet. Let’s move the existing food first. Nana, write down the entire moving process and record it on video. Susan, make a list of which food is still edible and which is about to expire.”
“I’ve already started organizing.” Susan opened her tablet.
"Okay." Chen Hao clapped his hands. "Let's protect the rest first, then figure out how to catch the 'rats'."
Just as the four were about to take action, a short beep suddenly sounded from the control panel.
A flash of red light.
Nana immediately looked at the screen.
“Warning,” she said. “A moving heat source has been detected in the ventilation duct of Zone B. It is about the size of an adult cat, moving slowly, and heading towards the kitchen.”
"Now?" Chen Hao's eyes widened.
"It appeared three minutes ago." Nana pulled up the route map. "There was no previous record."
"It just finished eating, and now it wants to eat its next meal?" Chen Hao blurted out.
“I’m not sure,” Nana said, “but it is definitely moving.”
"What are we waiting for?" Chen Hao grabbed a flashlight. "Let's go see which monster has come uninvited."
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