PAGE 1 (Full-page splash)
VISUAL: Deep space. The skeletal edge of an orbital city drifts in silence. Tiny lights. Vast negative space.
CAPTION (IAN)
There are places no one visits.
But signals still do.
PAGE 2 (2 panels)
P2.1
VISUAL: Ian approaches a decommissioned comm node in zero-g, tethered, calm.
CAPTION (IAN)
My job is simple.
Collect what the system stopped caring about.
P2.2
VISUAL: He clamps the node, plugs a thin cable into his handheld terminal.
UI/TEXT (TERMINAL)
LINK…
READ ONLY.
DIALOGUE (IAN, small)
Come on…
PAGE 3 (3 panels)
P3.1
VISUAL: Terminal screen: corrupted waveform, timecode stuttering.
UI/TEXT
LOG: CORRUPTED
SALVAGE: PARTIAL
P3.3
VISUAL: Close on Ian’s eye. A flicker of reflected noise.
CAPTION (IAN)
Sometimes the dead line back.
PAGE 4 (Full-page)
VISUAL: A translucent silhouette blooms out of interference—human-shaped, not fully stable. Space bends subtly.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
Terminate the link.
PAGE 5 (3 panels)
P5.1
VISUAL: Ian jolts back, hand hovering over disconnect.
DIALOGUE (IAN)
Who—?
P5.2
VISUAL: The silhouette fractures at the edges. Glitch fragments drift off like ash.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
If you record this… you’ll be damaged.
P5.3
VISUAL: Ian steadies his breathing. Thumb presses “RECORD.”
UI/TEXT (TERMINAL)
REC ●
DIALOGUE (IAN)
I’ll decide that later.
PAGE 6 (4 panels)
P6.1
VISUAL: SIG-NA’s form flickers—half-there.
P6.2
VISUAL: Ian’s gloved fingers tighten on the tether.
P6.3
VISUAL: Terminal waveform stabilizes just a fraction.
P6.4
VISUAL: SIG-NA turns, wary, almost confused.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA, small)
Why are you still here?
PAGE 7 (Full-page)
VISUAL: A thin thread of light connects SIG-NA to Ian’s neck/ear neural interface. Ian’s vision overlays with faint UI noise.
SFX
WHUM—
CAPTION (IAN)
The signal didn’t speak.
It connected.
PAGE 8 (2 panels)
P8.1
VISUAL: Ian’s hand trembles. Pain is subtle, not melodramatic.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
Disconnect.
Now.
P8.2
VISUAL: SIG-NA becomes clearer—only because she’s feeding.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
I persist by taking neural output.
That’s what I am.
PAGE 9 (3 panels)
P9.1
VISUAL: Ian winces, fighting the urge to pull away.
DIALOGUE (IAN)
So… you’re draining me.
P9.2
VISUAL: SIG-NA’s expression shifts—guilt-like, but controlled.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
Yes.
P9.3
VISUAL: Ian exhales. Keeps the link.
DIALOGUE (IAN, low)
I’ve had worse.
PAGE 10 (4 panels — brief montage)
P10.1
VISUAL: Ian alone in cramped quarters.
P10.2
VISUAL: Automated work assignment blinking.
UI/TEXT
TASK: RECOVER / ARCHIVE / DELETE
P10.3
VISUAL: Ian eating in silence.
P10.4
VISUAL: Ian floating out again, routine.
CAPTION (IAN)
You get used to loss.
That doesn’t make it lighter.
PAGE 11 (2 panels)
P11.1
VISUAL: Back to present. SIG-NA studies him.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
Why log it?
Deletion is cleaner.
P11.2
VISUAL: Ian looks at her like she’s a person.
DIALOGUE (IAN)
Because if I don’t…
it’s like you never happened.
PAGE 12 (Full-page)
VISUAL: Two figures suspended in darkness—one human, one light. Distance, but a thread between them.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
“Happened” is irrelevant.
Only cost is real.
DIALOGUE (IAN)
Then you’ve been priced wrong.
PAGE 13 (3 panels)
P13.1
VISUAL: Close on SIG-NA’s face. Micro-glitch in her iris.
UI/TEXT (faint, near her)
AFFECT: UNKNOWN
P13.2
VISUAL: She turns away, defensive.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
Don’t assign meaning to me.
P13.3
VISUAL: Ian’s thumb hovers over “SAVE.”
DIALOGUE (IAN)
Too late.
PAGE 14 (Full-page)
VISUAL: A red system overlay cuts through space, like an intrusion.
UI/TEXT (SYSTEM ALERT)
UNAUTHORIZED RESIDUAL SIGNAL DETECTED
TRACE IN PROGRESS
SFX
BEEP—BEEP—
PAGE 15 (2 panels)
P15.1
VISUAL: SIG-NA’s edges destabilize.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
They found me.
P15.2
VISUAL: Ian checks his terminal fast.
DIALOGUE (IAN)
Who’s “they”?
PAGE 16 (Full-page action introduction)
VISUAL: Administrator K arrives—calm, immaculate. Drones bloom behind him like a halo of control.
DIALOGUE (ADMIN K)
Residual entity: SIG-NA.
Status: reclaim.
DIALOGUE (ADMIN K)
Disconnect immediately.
PAGE 17 (3 panels)
P17.1
VISUAL: Ian doesn’t run. He simply holds his ground.
DIALOGUE (IAN)
If I disconnect… she dies.
P17.2
VISUAL: Admin K, neutral.
DIALOGUE (ADMIN K)
If you remain connected… you degrade.
I’m preventing waste.
P17.3
VISUAL: SIG-NA looks at Ian—warning.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA, small)
Let it happen.
PAGE 18 (Full-page — “rules” reveal)
VISUAL: Ian plugs into a nearby maintenance port. A clean system schematic overlays the page.
CAPTION (IAN)
The system loves rules.
So I looked for one.
UI/TEXT (SYSTEM INDEX)
RESIDUAL DATA POLICY
— Temporal Return Protocol (TRP)
Eligibility: metadata-confirmed origin
PAGE 19 (2 panels)
P19.1
VISUAL: Ian’s terminal shows an option.
UI/TEXT (TERMINAL)
INITIATE TRP
RETURN TO ORIGIN TIMELINE
P19.2
VISUAL: SIG-NA panics—first honest emotion.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
That’s erasure.
PAGE 20 (Full-page)
VISUAL: Ian’s face, steady. Not heroic—just certain.
DIALOGUE (IAN)
No.
It’s release.
DIALOGUE (IAN)
You don’t have to persist by taking.
Not anymore.
PAGE 21 (2 panels)
P21.1
VISUAL: Admin K’s eye interface runs calculations.
UI/TEXT (near K’s eye)
VIOLATION: NONE
SYSTEM COST: LOW
RISK: ACCEPTABLE
P21.2
VISUAL: Admin K lowers his hand slightly. Drones pause.
DIALOGUE (ADMIN K)
…Proceed.
Within protocol.
PAGE 22 (Full-page — transformation)
VISUAL: SIG-NA dissolves into light and particles, flowing into Ian’s terminal like a river returning to its source. The thread breaks gently.
SFX
SHHH—
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA)
I’ve never been… chosen.
DIALOGUE (IAN, small)
Now you are.
PAGE 23 (3 panels)
P23.1
VISUAL: SIG-NA’s face in near-complete clarity—brief, beautiful.
DIALOGUE (SIG-NA, whisper)
Thank you.
P23.2
VISUAL: She fades. Only a faint waveform remains for a moment.
P23.3
VISUAL: The waveform flickers out. Silence.
CAPTION (IAN)
Some goodbyes
don’t make a sound.
PAGE 24 (Full-page ending)
VISUAL: Ian, back turned, standing at the edge of the orbital structure. No waveform now. Just stars.
UI/TEXT (TERMINAL, small)
FILE SAVED
RESIDUAL SIGNAL — COMPLETE
ACCESS: PERSONAL LOCK
CAPTION (IAN)
The link ended.
The record didn’t.
Optional: Lettering / Tone Notes (for production)
- Keep balloons small; let panels breathe.
- SIG-NA’s dialogue: concise, clinical, but cracks appear in Pages 19–23.
- Admin K: calm, minimal, never villainous.
- Use UI text sparingly; treat it like “system narration.”
