Signal
cover art by Chris McGrath
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"Overall, a fantastic book that I obviously had lots to say about. Signal by Tony Peak is definitely a book I won’t forget for a long time." - Brian's Book Blog |
They were sent to investigate the first extraterrestrial signal. What they found was beyond anything they could have imagined - or feared.
On a voyage to a mysterious moon in the Alpha Centauri system, the UEA Centaurus meets with disaster. Only the quick thinking of the flight engineer, Rachel Terman, saves some of the crew. Crash-landing on the moon, trillions of kilometers from Earth, they struggle to carry out their mission and try to survive.
But nothing has prepared them for what they will face. False readings on sensors. Bizarre nightmares. Crew members vanishing.
Then, Rachel discovers a blue, glassy lake.
And everything changes.
If the signal abides - will humankind fall?
On a voyage to a mysterious moon in the Alpha Centauri system, the UEA Centaurus meets with disaster. Only the quick thinking of the flight engineer, Rachel Terman, saves some of the crew. Crash-landing on the moon, trillions of kilometers from Earth, they struggle to carry out their mission and try to survive.
But nothing has prepared them for what they will face. False readings on sensors. Bizarre nightmares. Crew members vanishing.
Then, Rachel discovers a blue, glassy lake.
And everything changes.
If the signal abides - will humankind fall?
Signal: Excerpt
After they crested the next dune, Rachel slowed down. There was nothing ahead of them but a blue…lake? The sun reflected off it like it was a faceted surface rather than liquid. Yet it possessed a watery appearance all the same. Like it was moving.
“It is what we saw yesterday.” Larsen’s joy evaporated as she studied the console. “The signal. It is coming from the center of…that.”
Rachel stopped the rover thirty meters from the blue surface. “I don’t see any wreckage. I don’t even—hold on. There’s something sticking up in the middle.”
They put on their helmets and exited the vehicle.
With all of her EMU’s sensor apps activated, Rachel approached the blue phenomenon as she would a cornered animal. It measured at least a kilometer in diameter, in a haphazard, oval configuration. Had Centaurus not exploded, they might’ve seen it from orbit. Its edges were dusted by the adjacent sands, proving it wasn’t a liquid.
“Dosimeter dropped from 100 to 83 mSv,” Larsen said.
Rachel knelt at the blue border. Her sensors detected electrical activity beneath it, to a depth of six meters. Even as she watched, the surface morphed and gleamed like a finely cut sapphire slowly rotated under a light. She extended a hand over it.
“Careful,” Larsen said.
Rachel blinked as data on her HUD changed. “Hey, the temperature is lower. I’m reading 302 Kelvin.” She leaned out over the blue vastness.
Loose sand under her boots collapsed. She fell forward.
“Rachel!” Larsen grabbed her by the waist, but both of them skidded over the blue surface. It felt sleek, glassy. They came to a halt after sliding a few meters.
Holding her breath, Rachel waited for the surface to break or envelop them. Nothing happened. It held their weight.
Rachel slowly stood, helping Larsen up with her. They both tapped the object gingerly with their boots, then walked around, hanging on to each other, testing the viability of the “lake.” The thermometer on her HUD now read 291 Kelvin.
“My dosimeter,” Larsen said in a breathless voice.
“I know.” Rachel’s app read their current radiation exposure at 59 millisieverts.
“Look there.” Larsen rushed to the lake’s epicenter.
“Now who’s not being careful?” Rachel ran to catch up. The object, though it appeared faceted, was perfectly flat. The sun reflected off it, casting the “shore” and their suits in blue hues. By the time they reached the middle, where the transponder lay, radiation had fallen to 30 millisieverts, and the surface temperature had lowered to 260 Kelvin.
That was several degrees below freezing—an impossible difference.
“It is what we saw yesterday.” Larsen’s joy evaporated as she studied the console. “The signal. It is coming from the center of…that.”
Rachel stopped the rover thirty meters from the blue surface. “I don’t see any wreckage. I don’t even—hold on. There’s something sticking up in the middle.”
They put on their helmets and exited the vehicle.
With all of her EMU’s sensor apps activated, Rachel approached the blue phenomenon as she would a cornered animal. It measured at least a kilometer in diameter, in a haphazard, oval configuration. Had Centaurus not exploded, they might’ve seen it from orbit. Its edges were dusted by the adjacent sands, proving it wasn’t a liquid.
“Dosimeter dropped from 100 to 83 mSv,” Larsen said.
Rachel knelt at the blue border. Her sensors detected electrical activity beneath it, to a depth of six meters. Even as she watched, the surface morphed and gleamed like a finely cut sapphire slowly rotated under a light. She extended a hand over it.
“Careful,” Larsen said.
Rachel blinked as data on her HUD changed. “Hey, the temperature is lower. I’m reading 302 Kelvin.” She leaned out over the blue vastness.
Loose sand under her boots collapsed. She fell forward.
“Rachel!” Larsen grabbed her by the waist, but both of them skidded over the blue surface. It felt sleek, glassy. They came to a halt after sliding a few meters.
Holding her breath, Rachel waited for the surface to break or envelop them. Nothing happened. It held their weight.
Rachel slowly stood, helping Larsen up with her. They both tapped the object gingerly with their boots, then walked around, hanging on to each other, testing the viability of the “lake.” The thermometer on her HUD now read 291 Kelvin.
“My dosimeter,” Larsen said in a breathless voice.
“I know.” Rachel’s app read their current radiation exposure at 59 millisieverts.
“Look there.” Larsen rushed to the lake’s epicenter.
“Now who’s not being careful?” Rachel ran to catch up. The object, though it appeared faceted, was perfectly flat. The sun reflected off it, casting the “shore” and their suits in blue hues. By the time they reached the middle, where the transponder lay, radiation had fallen to 30 millisieverts, and the surface temperature had lowered to 260 Kelvin.
That was several degrees below freezing—an impossible difference.
