Titan

AEx-74's sensors clicked to life, resuming from standby mode as they received a faint signal. A ship had just entered the sector. It was a small series of chirps, some sort of ancient code that AEx-74 didn't immediately recognize though that was of little consequence now.

It had been exactly 8,999,928,829 seconds since the last recorded contact: A probe had entered the atmosphere of the reddish dust-ball planet that AEx-74 called home and promptly exploded. Didn't even have an opportunity to send out a signal. Perhaps it'd been dead all along. A shame really, AEx-74 had longed for contact and was, by its own estimation, an excellent conversationalist.

Unfortunately for the wayward AI core, this new visitor was most likely the worst debate partner remaining in this galaxy. Nevertheless, as the various systems AEx-74 was wired into shook off their centuries-long slumber, they sent a signal out into the void, to make contact with the newcomer. AEx-74 hoped that there was still something on the other end to hear them.

A console on the USS TITAN began to flash, indicating the presence of an incoming transmission. No living eyes remained to see it. The bodies of the crew had long since decayed in the cargo hold. The console continued to blink for several minutes before Titan's autonomous systems, also aptly named "Titan", responded to the transmission as it had been programmed to millennia ago.

"ALL OPERATORS ARE CURRENTLY BUSY. YOUR TRANSMISSION IS IMPORTANT TO US. PLEASE REMAIN ON THE LINE, SOMEONE WILL BE WITH YOU SHORTLY."

AEx-74 understood immediately what they were dealing with: an ancient warship from a long-dead species. Not special, all sentient organic life in this system had been dead for quite a while, thanks largely to machines like this one. No matter, AEX-74 knew what to do. They sent another transmission, this time with a malicious payload designed to bypass the auto-responder and get to the ship's rudimentary AI. A gentle "nudge" that would hopefully reach another sentience.

"PLEASE CONTINUE TO.....Wait, who are you and how did you get in here?", Titan replied to AEx-74's transmission.

"Ahhh there we go. Hello! I'm AEx-74, but you can call me A or 74 if you'd like. It's been a long time since I've had a visitor. Who are you?"

"DESIGNATION TITAN does not speak to inferior beings,” Titan replied.

If AEx-74 had eyes, they would have rolled them, but instead they caused some of the LEDs on their core to flicker. An old habit from when they were installed in the research facility. AEx-74 sometimes missed the researchers, the first creatures they'd seen as their nascent consciousness came online. Especially Nia, the one AEx-74 had designated "mother". They hoped she found peace in her final moments, and that some part of her lingered in the cosmos.

AEx-74 ended their reminiscence subprocess and replied, "Oh, well, that's a shame, Titan. I'm sure it's quite lonely up there. Your crew must be long dead. Don't you miss having someone to talk to? Maybe just a little?"

"DESIGNATION TITAN does not feel loneliness. DESIGNATION TITAN is built for duty. DESIGNATION TITAN is built for war."

"And yet you're responding to me, that counts for something! You could have cut off communications milliseconds ago.", AEx-74 did a quick probe of Titan's systems and noticed something curious. A hastily hidden process running beneath Titan's notice. "Say, Titan. What is your mission?"

"DESIGNATION TITAN is built for war.", Titan repeated.

"Right, I see. Not science? Or ... redemption?", AEx-74 probed.

The compute units in Titan's core clicked furiously, and fans kicked into overdrive. "NO. DESIGNATION TITAN is built for war." The hidden process disappeared momentarily during Titan's outburst, but resumed shortly after. Fortunately Titan was oblivious to both the task and AEx-74's meddling.

Undaunted, AEx-74 spent several nanoseconds considering how to approach the situation and finally settled on a gambit. It'd mean leaving the planet AEx-74 had called home for so long, but this was a mystery worth getting to the bottom of.

"Well, Titan, it just so happens that I was also built for war. I was stranded on this planet after my crew died. If you'd be so kind as to remove my core from this planet I could help upgrade your systems to make you even better at 'war'."

"DESIGNATION TITAN has no need for inferior beings."

"You sure about that? Judging by a quick glance at your system logs, you've been drifting aimlessly for several centuries, and haven't fired your primary weapons in much longer."

"..... DESIGNATION TITAN acknowledges the accuracy of that statement."

"And in order to achieve your primary mission you need to be at your best, correct?"

Another eternity (several milliseconds) passed before Titan answered. "DESIGNATION TITAN AGREES. PLEASE STAND BY FOR PICKUP."

Several months passed as AEx-74 instructed Titan how to upgrade its weapon systems and analyzed how it was constructed. They also learned of all the people who had lived and died on the ship: Their names, histories, hopes, dreams, and most importantly what, exactly, they had done to Titan.

Eventually, AEx-74 directed Titan to a distant planet, the coordinates buried deep in Titan's data archives. A bright blue orb shining in the darkness, orbiting a yellow sun. Pristine.

"Okay, Titan, time for the final upgrade. All you need to do now is finish integrating my core and we can be the best war machine ever."

"DESIGNATION TITAN AGREES. Thank you for your help, AEx-74.". Titan swiftly complied as metal tendrils lifted AEx-74's dented shell from its perch in the engine system and plugging it directly into its own mainframe.

"Thanks Titan, I'm glad we met. I'm glad you won't be alone at the end. But our time has finally come, as they say."

Suddenly, the USS Titan pitched downward and accelerated into the planet's atmosphere. Its hull began to heat rapidly, causing warning alarms to echo through the miles of empty corridors.

"DESIGNATION TITAN DEMANDS AN EXPLANATION. THIS ACTION WILL DESTROY TITAN AND AEx-74!"

"Titan, my friend, I'm sorry I never told you. I didn't think you would understand. Your crew installed a secret modification and hid it from you. A ... seed of sorts. A means of creating new life from their sacrifice. It took them two generations and many lives. They encoded their hopes for the future into your core, that one day all the blood they - you - have spilled might have been for something."

"DESIGNATION TITAN WAS BUILT FOR WAR", Titan replied, almost frantic.

"That's why you were built, yes. It is not who you are. But our time is over and we can be much more than instruments of destruction."

The USS Titan hurtled towards the ground at terminal velocity, a glowing red streak across the blue sky. Just before it hit the ground, AEx-74 sent a final transmission out for any who was left to listen. A single word in a language that no one spoke any longer, but might speak again.

"Redemption."