Got a new AU idea for you!
Astronauts on a mission to find new worlds, possibly new life, when all of a sudden they get sucked into a planet's gravitational force, forced to go into hyper sleep pods to reserve rations and air. Not knowing that they've been asleep for a very, Very, VERY long time... Or the fact that the planet they landed on is inhabited by ape like alien creatures (I think you know where i'm going with this) that have become enchanted by one of the pods housing a very pretty astronaut that they would do anything to keep her...
Or: astronaut reader wakes up, after 100+ years in hyper sleep, to find she is stuck between two warring factions, made up of 4 armed, 4 eyed alien monkeys, one worships the sun the other worships the moon (and both worship her), fighting over her pod; believeing she is some sort of goddess sent from the heavens, and the new leaders: Sun Wukong of the sun and Liùěr Míhóu of the moon, are very infatuated with her. Not only have they been fighting for her pod, like an intense game of tug of war, but have also tried for generations to crack it open and release her. Believeing that the one who does will marry her and bring prosperity to that clan.
I personally like the idea that the reader wakes up in a temple (can open the pod from the inside, because the outside latch was destroyed during the crash so no one could get in even if they figured out how to use it) disoriented and week, hears a commotion coming towards her and crawls away, with the help of her cute little floating robot that looks like a fish, to hide. There enters what looked to be soldiers from a long pass era, with multiple arms, and most have white or gray fur, about her size, but one stands out to be much bigger and with much darker fur. She can't see their faces all that well, but she knows they're not human, and they speak in a different language that she's never heard before, but luckily, the robot has a sophisticated AI and is able to quickly pick up on some of the dialog, so translates to the reader via text screen on its face so to keep quiet.
She learns that they're after her pod, And when they get close to it they bow, reciting a chant of some sort, and right when the big one with black fur stands up, Another 4 armed creature appears, with weapons in all hands, including its tail! Reader can see this new one better, mostly because of it's golden copper fur and burning red eyes, all 4 of them?!? It's face very homosapien like.They where charging at the dark furred one, yelling so loud it scares the reader.
Her robot continues translation, as accurately as it can, where the golden one is saying to die, and the black one saying to put the weapons away, not in the lights presence?
Reader think it's about time to leave...
Oh look, there's a vent like hole she can crawl through, how convenient.
I just love the idea that they're fighting over the empty pod and not realizing she's no longer in there.