A "nonhuman" signal exploring the black.
01 Jan 2025Cobalt Slug
My logbooks are not often written in, relying far too heavily on the automated systems in my Diamondback. Today is different though. Something I haven't experienced before happened, and the automated logs are blank.I am charting systems near the Colonia region for resources and potential expansion sites. The pay is good, sights are beautiful, and the freedom is second to none. The designated names for these systems can be rather obtuse and clinical. A series of letters and numbers that meant something to someone long ago, stored away in some database for organization. These "names" don't describe the system, it's resources, or it's splendor.
Regardless, in one of these systems, specifically EOL PROU VU-V D3-4356, I came across an unrecognized signal. The 4th body in the system from it's parent star, on the 4th satellite of that body. It was a weak signal, but came up on Lakon's sensor suite. "NONHUMAN" is all it could tell me. I locked coordinates with the signal, and made course for it. The satellite is rocky and pitted. Few craters exist here, but the scars of stellar activity have born canyon and cliff features.
I carefully maneuvered my Diamondback down into one of these features. The sensors claimed I was closing in, yet I couldn't get a visual confirmation. It wasn't until I was around 500 meters from the source that I saw it. A small, faintly glowing object. It reminded me of bacterium or virophage images that I learned about from my schooling at Bluford back in LHS 3447 when I was younger. The sensors picked up the objects signal, but couldn't scan further. I decided I would land my craft, and see what it was in person.
I departed my craft and hesitated. I was going to just walk up to strange object I have never seen on a the satellite of a body in some system far from any other civilization. Was I going mad? The curiosity of what might be steadily overpowered that thought. After all, the point of exploring is to see. To walk away now would be mad. I steeled myself, and made my way to the object.
Aside from the anxiety in the back of my mind, nothing was amiss. No sounds. No sudden flickering. Just a faint glow emanating from the object. It looked damaged, as though it had crashed or been knocked off another craft. A few smaller parts were scattered around the object. They looked like canisters of some kind. The parts around the object were dark, no light to be seen, yet similar parts attached to the object were still faintly glowing. I returned to the Diamondback to deploy my Scarab. Surely the sensor suite on that would be able to pick up further information. I was wrong, as I returned to the object to scan for signals and found none.
I lowered the cargo scoop. The smaller parts around the object might hold more information if brought to the right people. I could isolate the SRV if I had to, and I could destroy it if worse came to worse. I collected the parts I could, and returned to my Diamondback. I disembarked the Scarab, and went through the standard decontamination process. When I returned to the cockpit, the object was gone. My SRV tracks were still fresh in the surface, as were my boot prints. I checked my sensor suite, and nothing was picked up. Just the static of the black.
Something wasn't right. I checked over my helmet camera, surely it couldn't have missed what I have seen. The camera was ancient, but worked for the most part. Most of the footage was corrupted. Not a terrible surprise, but of all the junk data two photos survived. I'll attach them to this log as proof.
I'm left with a sense of wonder, but also one of concern. News travels fast in the Bubble and Colonia, but the black is not so. News is made and forgotten out here. I missed hearing about the Thargoid war in Sol. Titans being destroyed by fellow Commanders far away. Humanity seems to be in the crosshairs of some intelligent threat. I hope what I've stumbled upon isn't related to that.
I'll end this log here. We'll see what comes next. In the mean time, back to the black.
