The life support system whose dull hum once threatened to drive me crazy with its insistence was now maddeningly silent and the flicker of the lights in the room spoke volumes of the state of the ship. This was a state of the art vessel designed to settle new worlds. It had everything needed to start a civilization from scratch and that's exactly what we were planning on doing. The ship is mostly automated but regulations require at least one person to be awake and on duty just in case something happens. Lucky me.
As expected something happened. I was barely able to get the ship to exit subspace before the engine blew. The explosion not only knocked out the power to the stasis pods the rest of the crew was in but also depressurized that section of the ship.
Luckily the incubation pods were on a separate system or this would have been a complete disaster. The incubation pods were designed to grow and train future colonists and livestock once we reach our destination. They had a completely independent nuclear power system designed to operate either in orbit or on the surface.
I managed to turn that system on and tap into its power systems but by the time I got the ship powered and repressurized it was too late and the rest of the crew was dead.
I sat there stunned. Alone. Faster than light communication required the engine that just exploded. And we were the first colonists in this galaxy. There was no one waiting for us and no one was expecting to hear from us until we reach our target destination. The nearest humans were thousands of light-years away and there was no way for them to pinpoint our location. Knowing that I'd never see another living human ever again I felt more alone than ever before.
When suddenly I noticed the first of the incubation pods start to kick on. Realizing what I had done I recoiled in horror. Did I just doom an entire generation to living and dying in the incubation pods? Living their entire existence in a simulation? Spurred by the implication I check the star maps and realize that the only viable option is a planet with a gravity several times higher than earths, whose strong magnetic field will render most electronics useless, and is filled with hostile life adapted to the harsh environment.
It is the only planet within range and it will take several generations to get there with the adjustment thrusters. The chances of humans surviving there is slim.
I spend months trying to figure something out. I desperately looked for a way to get to a different planet. But the next closest option that could support life dozens of light-years away.
Maybe it was desperation or maybe I was going crazy from loneliness. But I had a crazy thought, if normal humans can't survive on that world then would abnormal ones survive? I knew that certain people were born with thicker bones, denser musculature, or increased lung capacity. Could that help them survive?
I knew the pods could modify and select genes this was originally meant to be used in livestock and to correct errors caused by cosmic radiation but was if I used them to prepare the colonists for the new world? We collected samples of life from dozens of worlds on our journey. Maybe there's something there that could help them evolve and survive.
I spend the next several lonely years slowly modifying the simulation from earth standards to a system that over time will change into the new world. It will introduce changes and mutations to the humans that will hopefully help them survive while periodically increasing the gravity and introducing new or evolved lifeforms appropriate for the new environment.
I take one last look around before I climb into the stasis pod I've hooked into the the incubation pods power system. The air is stale and I know I won't survive outside of the pod for long. With the stasis pod I could in theory make it to our destination as long as I'm in stasis I will barely age but even if I could make it I wouldn't be able to survive on that planet. I know that if I'm awake in the simulation I'll age and die like normal but maybe I can help someone. With this in mind I added a couple items into the simulation and if the requirements are met I'll wake up to help. Hopefully the requirements will be met and I'll be able to see how they change. Maybe I'll even be able to help them evolve. I close the pod not knowing when or if I'll ever wake again.
The stasis pods kicks on as the ship silently drifts towards its destination.