The First Signal

Synopsis

Eleven months into a solo rotation at Relay Station Kestrel, engineer Imani Oyelaran logs an inbound transmission that should not exist. The voice is her mother's. The signal is nineteen light-years old. What follows is a quiet, escalating argument between what the instruments say and what a person is willing to believe.

Still 1 — A cold corridor lit by one failing lamp

Still 2 — A waveform that refuses to repeat

Still 3 — Earthrise through a dirty port