Echoes_017–2B
Nickname: “Signal in the Static”
Danger Ranking: 2B
First Reported: 1987-11-23, Wapato Ridge Relay Station, WA

Summary:
Echoes_017–2B manifests as an anomalous radio broadcast detectable only on obsolete VHF and UHF frequencies in a 15-mile radius surrounding the decommissioned Wapato Ridge Relay Station. The broadcast consists of a steady stream of low-fidelity static, interrupted at irregular intervals by brief “bursts” of human speech, morse-like tones, and metallic grinding.

The voices—always male—speak in emotionless, clipped cadence, often using grammatically correct but contextless statements such as:

• “There is no inside anymore.”
  
• “The sky has already been replaced.”
  
• “You are standing inside the answer.”
  

Spectrogram analysis of the static background reveals layered data hidden in phase noise, including dated security clearance logs, REDACTED personnel rosters, and hexadecimal strings matching known encryption seeds used in defunct PARADIGM subnets.

Attempts to trace the source of the signal always result in location drift: field teams triangulate it to the same physical location, yet find no emitting hardware present. In one instance, a team’s portable receiver continued receiving the transmission despite having its power source removed.

Known Properties:

• VHF/UHF-limited broadcast anomaly
  
• Speech contains syntactically correct yet non-linear content
  
• Broadcast data includes defunct encrypted files and blacksite metadata
  
• Broadcast range is fixed but mobile receivers act as persistent conduits
  
• No source hardware ever located
  
• Exposure causes lingering auditory hallucinations (“phantom static”)
  

Containment Procedure:
Relay station perimeter remains under federal lockdown under a repurposed “radiation hazard” zoning classification. PARADIGM interceptors automatically block matching frequencies in the surrounding counties. Receivers tuned to affected bands are periodically scanned and purged via agent sweeps.

All personnel exposed to the broadcast for more than 3 minutes must undergo an echo-scrub protocol (see Document E17-Beta), including two weeks of sensory deprivation and auditory cleansing sequences.

Encounters:

• 1987-11-23: Initial report filed by an amateur ham radio operator who claimed “the tower was talking back.”
  
• 1988-01-12: Transmission logged referencing blacksite GOLIATH-3, presumed decommissioned in 1982.
  
• 1990-09-19: Researcher intercepted file embedded in static burst containing access credentials to internal PARADIGM archive node. Credentials were valid.
  
• 1993-06-03: Temporary global drop in shortwave interference coincided with simultaneous Echoes_017-2B reception in Finland. Signal ceased within 4 seconds.
  

Recommendation:
Reevaluate status of GOLIATH-3 and conduct systems-wide review of encryption practices. Consider the possibility that Echoes_017–2B is not a broadcast, but a reflection. Recommend limited test under Project VESSEL to determine whether the anomaly is responsive to focused return signals.

List of Case Workers:

• Comms Technician I. Calder
  
• Blacksite Liaison Lt. J. Krikorian
  
• Signal Analyst D. Muñoz
  
• Cryptologist S. Mikkelsen
  
• Project VESSEL Oversight: Dr. Halberg
  
• Field Monitor Proxy: “NARROWBAND”