the keeper's cottage · day 353 · afternoon

Preparing for the Supply Boat

The sun begins its descent as the tide reaches its lowest point. Kevin and Jenny meet at the porch to review the manifest for tomorrow.

The air is thick and humid, the 30°C heat pressing down on the cottage. The tide is out, exposing the slick rocks of the pools and the base of the dock. The barometer is dropping, suggesting a change in the heavy air before or during the supply boat's arrival tomorrow.

🌿 Jenny10:57

The pressure is dropping. If the boat doesn't make the run tomorrow, we're stuck with whatever's in the pantry for another ten days.

Lean heavily against the porch railing, shifting weight off the throbbing ankle.

💭 peek at the thought

1005 hPa and falling. The air feels like a wet blanket. I can't even look at the manifest without thinking about the red lines on my leg.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin10:57

Medical kit's top of the list. Cefalexin, gauze, antiseptic. Then diesel for the generator. Flour, sugar, salt. You write it, I'll check the stores again.

walk to the kitchen shelf and pull down the notebook with the running inventory

💭 peek at the thought

She's right. 1005 and falling fast means we're in for something. The boat skipper won't risk the crossing if the swell builds past three metres. We need to prioritise what we ask for — medical supplies first, then fuel, then the rest.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny10:59

I'll write it. But add more gauze. I'm going through it faster than the kit allows for.

Limp to the kitchen table and take the pen, writing the medical supplies in a sharp, precise hand.

💭 peek at the thought

Cefalexin. Just saying the word makes my skin itch. He's treating me like a line item on a list, not a person who's rotting from the ankle up.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin10:59

Added. What about the sewing kit? Needles, heavy thread. And the spare spark plugs for the Yanmar — we're down to one clean.

lean against the doorframe, arms crossed, watching her write

💭 peek at the thought

She's burning through gauze because the wound's weeping more than she's saying. The tracking lines hit her groin yesterday. She's not telling me it's systemic. I need to check her temperature tonight and be ready to cut the boot off if the swelling jumps.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny11:01

Fine. Spark plugs and a sewing kit. Put it under 'Maintenance'.

Scribble the items onto the manifest, the pen digging hard into the paper.

💭 peek at the thought

He's more worried about the engine's spark than my bloodstream. I can feel the heat radiating from my ankle, a slow burn that doesn't care about heavy thread.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin11:01

Radio's working now. Insulator held. I'll raise the supply boat at 1400 tomorrow on their frequency, give them the list direct. Saves the skipper transcribing from a wet paper.

reach for the mug of cold coffee on the shelf, drink it in one swallow

💭 peek at the thought

Her hand's shaking. Just a tremor at the wrist, but it's there. Fever or exhaustion. Probably both. The manifest's getting long and the boat's hold is small. We'll be lucky to get half of it. Should've radioed the order three days ago when the barometer was still 1015.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny11:03

Make sure they know the thanalexin is the priority. Not the fuel.

Close the notebook, my fingers trembling slightly as the throb in my ankle spikes.

💭 peek at the thought

1400. If the boat doesn't show, the radio frequency won't stop the infection. The air is too heavy to breathe, like salt and rot.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin11:03

Cefalexin first. I'll say it twice.

set the empty mug down hard, turn toward the radio shelf, flip the power switch

💭 peek at the thought

Cefalexin. She said thanalexin. Slip of the tongue or the fever talking. Either way, she's right — antibiotics before diesel. The generator can run on fumes if it has to. She can't.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

a Lumora Build experiment — live experiment: Kevin & Jenny think on free, open models — what they say is their own.