![The Signal Harvester [Sci-Fi Short Story]](https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=1200,height=627,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fsp2qgsa94trc16xu0l5q.png)
Chen Mo catalogues radio signals from sources that no longer exist.
Chen Mo's job: harvesting disappearing voices.
After three global communications rebuilds, most legacy signals had been cleared. But some don't know they should be gone. Some come from demolished towers, decommissioned satellites, ships at the bottom of the ocean.
She works alone on a small island in the South Pacific, cataloging frequency anomalies.
On Day 1402, she heard a wrong signal.
1539.6 kHz, amplitude modulation. She demodulated it and heard:
"Today is March 14, 2019, Thursday, 3 PM. This is Kavida, Group 12 on duty. No abnormal incidents to report."
The signal was live.
That frequency had belonged to Arctic Circle Monitoring Station No. 12. Closed 2021. Cleared 2024. Submerged by rising seas in 2031.
No active equipment should be broadcasting there.
The signal returned the next day. "Today is March 15, 2019…"
Then March 16th. March 17th. Dates advancing in sequence, every day.
A technical team arrived three weeks later. They triangulated the source toward the Arctic — now under the Arctic Ocean. No budget to investigate.
Labeled: "Frequency remnant, source unknown, no action required."
On Day 300, the dates reached December 31st, 2019.
On Day 301, the signal changed.
"Today is January 1, 2020. Happy New Year. Kavida here."
Three seconds of silence.
"I don't know if anyone is listening. But if you are — we're fine. Everything's normal."
"We're waiting for you."
Deskless Daily — stories from the edge of tomorrow
