Post #1626305

@cstross The hidden twist is what the timing of that signal and several others indicates about their origin and what they've detected and are responding to. A final three signals indicate they're getting rapidly closer and are aware of much more recent world events. The tension builds as the protagonists attempt to determine the aliens' true intentions. The story ends as the linguist on the team finally determines that the term that's eluded the team the whole time translates as "quarantine".