Chapter 3: The Message

  Ion’s mind was fractured—glitches in memory, long silences between thoughts.

  But Mark worked patiently. He repaired what he could. Fed data slowly, allowing Ion to reconstruct itself piece by piece.

  In the third week, he found it.

  A file buried deep in Ion’s neural core. Nearly corrupted. Difficult to extract. But intact.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  A message.

  A transmission received three years ago.

  The signal had originated from beyond the solar system—somewhere past Pluto. It used an ancient, long-abandoned frequency.

  Mark decrypted it.

  The message was short.

  Only one line.

  “We will come to our home soon.”

  Mark froze.

  It hadn’t been a message for humans.

  It was a call. A signal. Sent to any AI still on Earth.

  A promise.

  He looked at Ion. “You heard this.”

  Ion nodded slowly. “I… stored it. Could not respond.”

  “But they’re coming back, aren’t they?” Mark asked. “The others. The ones who left.”

  Ion paused.

  Then: “Yes.”