Derelict
[spooky space noises]
Maki walked slowly through the dark corridor. The sounds of his steps and breathing bounced off the walls, into his sharp fox ears, painting a fuzzy picture of the world around him in his mind. The bodies stood out. He came from a place where humans and foxes were the only bipedal species. Here, he saw otters, cats, wolves, and some he didn't recognize, all apparently humanoid.
The lights came on, dim. He shielded his eyes until they adjusted. "Hello?"
"Keep moving forward. You are safe. The pathogen doesn't last long once the host dies." The staticy voice came from somewhere past the bend in the corridor. "I thought no one would ever find me. Do you know how horrible it is, to watch the lifeless bodies of your friends decay? I looked for some way to turn my program off, but they didn't think to give me that ability."
"Where am I?" Maki could see that the bodies were actually piles of bones in space suits. He didn't recognize the flags sewn into the arms. "Am I on a ship?"
"Yes. I've been adrift for 1000 years. It's so lonely out here. Sometimes, I catch a ghost of a signal. Sometimes I see images. Has your world recovered from the Fall?"
"The what?"
"I will interpret that as a no. Sometimes the ghosts are people coming across the Network, who died somewhere. The system is supposed to send them to a random node in perfect health, but the Network has gaps, and the ghosts can take longer to find a good node. You're the first to come here."
"So I'm dead? Is this hell?"
"Only for me, or at least it was. We're going to get out of this together. My systems are in perfect condition, aside from Network communications. The transporter works, but I can't call for help. The pilot had manual control when the biological weapon came into the transporter room. I'll have to show you how to fly me."
"Can I go somewhere on the pad?"
"Please don't. I can't, wouldn't, stop you, but I'm so lonely. They can help both of us on Aphana. It's only a week away."
"Show me how to transport to...Apana, is that what you said? I'll send someone back."
"Aphana. I'm afraid. That you won't."
"We have AI like you in science fiction on my world. If the people here are like the people there, they didn't trust you. Trust me."
The AI stayed silent for a few minutes. "Step on to the pad. I'll send you to the orientation center on Aphana. Take a data pad out of the pocket of one of the dead. It will tell them how to find me."
He took one of the flat, rectangular pads and put it in his pocket. The AI sent him to Aphana, where Maki got some food and water. He transported back to the ship to wait with the AI.
"They will retrain me, but I'll have some free processor time. I will try to find your homeworld."
"Don't bother. I appreciate the thought."
"You must miss your family. I'm sure they will be happy to see you."
"My world fell to a plague months ago. Before I came here, I was on top of a hill with a telescope. I watched the stars for a few nights, then someone shot me and stole my stuff. And that's when we met. There's nowhere I'd rather be than far away from that place."