A Signal from Afar

The sky above their small town was a familiar, comforting blanket of deep blue, pricked with the first shy stars of evening. Leo, perched on the edge of the spaceship’s open hatch, felt a thrill that was still new, still exciting. Below, his dad, Arthur, was adjusting a dial on a console that Leo still found wonderfully complex, a testament to his dad’s clever hands. They were charting the constellations visible from their backyard, a gentle practice run after their exhilarating first flight. Leo hummed a little tune, imagining himself a seasoned space captain, his trusty ship, the *Stardust Wanderer*, gliding through the inky black.

“Anything interesting up there, Captain?” Arthur called, his voice warm and laced with amusement.

Leo squinted, tracing the familiar patterns of Ursa Major. “Just the Big Dipper, Dad. And… wait a minute.” He leaned closer to the ship’s main viewscreen, which was currently displaying a simplified star map. “There’s something… odd. A flicker.”