The Spaceship Krypton moved at a steady pace, 30 years into its 120-year journey to colonize Kronos II. The first of asteroid hit the shielding and then more and more hit. The path of the starship was taking it through the heart of the asteroid field. But the designers of this ship had taken such things into consideration, devising a system that would automatically divert more power to the shields.

It worked as the ship continued, but then a larger asteroid was headed straight for it. The impact shook the ship unbeknownst to its 400 crew members and 5,000 passengers who lay sleeping in their pods in a state of suspended animation.

Multiple errors began to pop up in the ship's systems as it finally passed out of the asteroid field. The computers began a routine repair of each system one by one.

But down in the cargo holds were the sleeping pods were stored, one of them came online and started the procedure of waking up the person inside.

Her body shook at the electrical shock passed through her body as part of the process. The pod itself opened and tilted upward so she was lying at an angle.

"Good morning Margaret Sawyer," the computer-generated voice said on the holo screen that had popped up.

"What…" the barely awake passenger said.

"It's natural that you would feel a little disoriented Margaret as you are coming out of a state of hibernation."

"It's Maggie," she said her voice slurring as she finally got her eyes to open. She saw the holographic face in front of her and she reached out for it. "Where?"

"You are on the spaceship Krypton on its voyage to Kronos II," the computer said. "You have been in hibernation for nearly 120 years. You are about to embark with the others on this ship to a new world with new opportunities," it said. "But first, we will get you to your quarters."

It took a while for Maggie to wake enough to even move from the pod and once she did, she was still too sleepy to do much other than follow the computer's direction to her quarters. She was standing at the door as it told her to swipe her ID bracelet to enter. Maggie looked down at the metal band around her wrist and a vague memory of someone putting it on her entered her mind. She swiped the band, more interested in getting to where she could lay down than anything else.

Her quarters were small but the bed looked inviting but the computer was still talking.

"Please scan your ID to receive your luggage."

Maggie did so and a small compartment opened with what she recognized as her luggage. She had a bigger cargo trunk somewhere on the ship but this was her clothes and personal items.

"As you continue to adjust from hibernation please be sure to drink plenty of liquids."

A glass of something appeared in a small cubby and she went to immediately realizing she was thirsty. Drinking it down she barely listened to the computer say something about being in group 47 to learn about colony life. Then it was wishing her good night.

Despite having just woken up Maggie stumbled to her bed and was asleep nearly immediately.

When she woke next it was to an alarm that announced itself as some sort of wake-up call. This time she was less disoriented but she still took a few moments of lying in bed to remember where she was and why she was here. One hundred and twenty years, she thought.

Everyone she had left behind on Earth was probably dead – or else they were like her and traveling amongst the stars to other colony planets. She had boarded the ship alone – no friends, no family or even a co-worker. She knew no one on this ship but she vaguely recalled the computer saying something about them still having weeks to go before they reached Kronos and some sort of classes she would be in with others.

Finally, she decided it was time to get up and start her new life.

After a shower, which did help her wake up some more, she got dressed and asked the computer about something to eat. The AI told her when she was ready to leave her room she would be directed to the cafeteria. Maggie took one more look at herself in the mirror, wanting to make a good impression with people who like her were embarking on this quest for a new home.

She left the room and the computer displayed a lighted walkway for her to follow. It led her to an elevator which then took her to something called the grand concourse. Maggie remembered a tour she had taken of the ship before she had signed the final papers to become an official colonist, however, she didn't really remember many of the details of that tour now.

The elevator stopped and she stepped out into a large area with a fountain directly in front of her, benches to sit on, and information kiosks. She looked around, taking it all in, somewhat disbelieving she was here, that she had really done it.

Continuing on, she made it to the cafeteria where there were rows and rows of tables.

It was only then that she realized there was no one else there but her.

In fact, she hadn't seen anyone else yet.

Slowing down her stride and continued to not only look around but to listen. She was listening for sounds of anyone else. The crew was supposed to have been woken up weeks before the passengers, yet she hadn't seen any crew either.

Her heartbeat began to increase slightly as she thought about how wrong this all was. There should be thousands of people on this ship – surely she would have happened across someone by now.

"Hello?" she called out, feeling a little stupid about it, but when she heard no response, she did it again, only this time louder. She also began walking quicker, looking for any signs of life around her. Stopping at an info kiosk, she contacted the ship's AI again.

"Where is everyone?" she asked, the panic barely registering in her voice.

"Everyone is aboard the ship, Krypton, en route to colony home world Kronos," it responded.

"Yes, but where are they all? Where is the crew?"

The message repeated itself again.

"Is there anyone else awake but me?"

"All passengers are awoken four weeks before reaching Kronos in order to meet each other, learn about colonization and prepare for their new home world."

This was getting her nowhere.

"Is there someone I can speak to, a human, not a machine?"

"The Steward typically handles passenger issues."

"And where can I find the Steward?"

The computer gave her directions and she went up to the second level of the concourse and found the office easy enough but once she entered it, it was empty as well. She ran back down to the information kiosk.

"I need to speak to the captain," she said. "It's an emergency."

"The captain does not generally handle issues from passengers. You should speak with the Steward."

"I tried to and no one was there, I need to speak to the captain. Where can I find the captain."

"The captain and command crew are typically on the bridge."

Maggie got the directions and went in search of anyone at this point. As she made her way up to the bridge she encountered no one and heard nothing but her own footfalls and breathing. She reached the bridge but the door wouldn't open for her as her ID bracelet didn't have sufficient security access. Still she peaked in through the porthole and saw no one in there.

"This isn't happening," she said. "This can't be happening. Maybe I'm still asleep. Maybe this is a dream."

Even as she said it, she knew it wasn't true.

She found another kiosk. "Is there someplace where I can see where we are at, where the ship is at in space?"

"The observation deck has full mapping capabilities."

"Where is it?"

She was again running once she got directions, reaching the observation deck, she immediately commanded. "Show me the Krypton in relation to Kronos."

A holographic image of ship on a trajectory to Kronos came up. It looked like it was far from the planet, but without something else to match it against, she wasn't sure.

"Computer show me the Earth in relation to the ship and Kronos."

Once the blue globe appeared, Maggie knew she was in trouble, but still she hesitated before asking, "how many years will it take to get to Kronos from where the ship is now?"

"Approximately 90 years."