The crew convened in the command center, uneasy and tense. The strange growl had faded, but the air was still heavy with an unseen presence. Kaelen couldn't shake the feeling that something was watching them—something far more ancient and powerful than any of them had prepared for.
"We need to find a way to cut the connection to the signal," Mira said, her voice sharp. "Laz, any luck with the system's hardware?"
Laz Dren shook his head. "I've tried every command. The signal is embedded in the core, like it's integrated into the very fabric of the ship. Whatever it is, it's not just transmitting from somewhere—it's inside us."
"Inside?" Kaelen asked, his pulse racing. "What do you mean by that?"
Laz paused before answering. "The signal's energy is being absorbed by the ship. It's changing the core systems—rewiring them at a fundamental level. I'm not sure how yet, but... it's manipulating everything."
Mira's gaze darkened. "How do we stop it?"
Kaelen stepped forward, his mind racing. He needed to understand what this signal wanted, but every time he tried to piece together the puzzle, the pieces shifted. The faces, the whispers, the glitches—there had to be a connection.
"Maybe it's not just the ship it's controlling," Kaelen muttered. "Maybe it's us."
The room went silent.
"What do you mean?" Mira asked slowly.
Kaelen's hands clenched into fists. "The signal doesn't just mess with our systems. I think it's influencing us—our thoughts, our memories. It's manipulating our perception of reality."
Laz shook his head, disbelief creeping into his voice. "You're saying we're being brainwashed? Controlled?"
"Not brainwashed," Kaelen said. "More like... rewritten. We're not just hearing the signal. We're feeling it. It's like we're part of it, like it's embedding itself inside our minds."
Mira stared at him, her eyes narrowing. "So what do we do now?"
"We keep pushing forward," Kaelen said, determination flashing in his eyes. "We find its source and shut it down. We have to."
But even as he spoke, Kaelen felt the weight of doubt pressing on him. The more he thought about the signal, the more it felt like it was already too late. They weren't just fighting an alien transmission. They were fighting something far older, far more powerful than they could comprehend.
And it was already inside them.