About

Kai works in cargo operations, processing manifests for shipments leaving Earth.

Every day, from the same window, he watches the vehicles lift into the sky.

It is routine. Predictable. Almost invisible.

Until one consignment refuses to make sense.

I began with a simple idea: a future in which automation can do almost everything, but still needs a person to confirm its decisions. The first draft took shape over a few days, through an ongoing conversation with AI that helped me explore the world, test its logic and understand how its characters and systems might behave.

We discussed authors I admire and, more importantly, what I respond to in their work: grounded characters, restrained technology and futures revealed through dialogue rather than lengthy explanation. This helped define the kind of story I wanted to write without attempting to reproduce anyone else’s voice.

The process was not a single prompt or a straight line. I repeatedly asked AI to change roles-from collaborator to editor, researcher and critical reader-then stopped to question what it produced, reject ideas and revise anything that felt too obvious, inconsistent or over-explained.

AI also opened up subjects I knew little about, from freight operations and cargo manifests to orbital logistics and NASA mission terminology. I even asked an advanced AI to behave like the more limited system within the story, helping establish its voice and boundaries.

The process extended to the cover and publication. Conversations about the story’s tone helped generate its simple image of a rocket rising against darkness. Drawing on my design background, I paired it with restrained typography that did not overtly signal science fiction. AI then helped refine the writing and produce the digital and print-ready files.

It provided possibilities at every stage; deciding what belonged remained a human process.