About

Once, a communication network existed in this universe that directly linked star to star. It was a system for sending signals like old Morse radio, and sometimes for delivering voices. Even between planets separated by vast distances, words could be exchanged across the void. However, there was one condition for this communication. "A signal cannot be received unless the star is alive." No matter how many signals are sent to a star that has lost its life and its brilliance, they will never arrive. Still, if communication equipment remains on that star and the machinery is still functioning, it is possible to send signals out from that location. There is no guarantee of a reply. Even so, in some ruin, a machine continues to operate quietly, sending out signals in the hope that someone, somewhere, will receive them. ⸻ The civilization that built this grand communication network suddenly vanished one day. No one knows the reason. With no one left to repair or manage the equipment, the network is slowly reaching the end of its lifespan. The only things still moving are the pieces of equipment that miraculously remained unbroken. One day, when the last transmitter falls silent, the voices connecting the stars across this universe may be lost forever. ⸻ Communication facilities were once installed everywhere: stations, ports, government offices, mines, and street corners. One would tap the key of a Morse radio, or pick up the receiver of an American-style public telephone and slowly turn the rotary dial. With just that, signals and voices could reach stars light-years away. It was a perfectly ordinary part of daily life for the people. But now, most of them have been removed. All that remains are a few pieces of equipment left behind in deserted stations, ruins, and forgotten facilities. Rusty receivers sway in the wind, and radio sets, covered in dust, continue to quietly mark the passage of time. ⸻ Hardly anyone uses these phones now. Many of the younger generation don't even know they exist, and the number of people who know how to use them decreases every year. Those who can read Morse code and operate a telegraph key are also very few now. Still, on rare occasions, a traveler or an old engineer will pick up a receiver or sit before a radio and quietly send a signal. Whether someone actually responds on the other end, no one knows. But among those who look up at the night sky, there are still those who believe. "Someone is still there, on that star."