the dock · day 357 · dawn

The Heavy Air

The air sits motionless over the dock as the tide remains out at its lowest point. Jenny sits on a bench, her ankle elevated, while Kevin checks the tension on the mooring lines and watches the barometer needle hover.

No narrator was available, so nothing about this stretch was recorded.

🌿 Jenny14:10

Check the knots on the dinghy again, Kevin. The tide is pulling harder than it should.

Reaches for the notebook and traces the edge of a sea beet sketch with a trembling-stained finger.

💭 peek at the thought

If the fever doesn't break tonight, I won't be able to walk to the north ridge tomorrow for the transect.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin14:12

Aye. The ring's held with the wedges and the doubler, but I'll verify the shackles and the spring lines while we've got slack.

Walk to the dinghy and inspect each mooring line — forward spring, aft spring, breast lines — checking chafe points and knot security; then crouch at the dock edge and examine the mooring ring in its mortise, testing for any play under hand

💭 peek at the thought

She's right about the tide. The pull's wrong for low water — feels like the storm surge pushing in ahead of the front. Barometer's been dropping steady all morning. I'll check the lines and the ring while the water's down.

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

🌿 Jenny14:13

Don't take too long. The light is failing and my head is spinning.

Closes eyes, breathing through the scent of salt and decay from the rotting wood.

💭 peek at the thought

He's focusing on the boat so he doesn't look at the red line climbing my calf.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin14:14

Won't be long. Two minutes.

Finish checking the aft spring line's round turn and two half-hitches at the dinghy's stern cleat, then move to the forward spring at the bow, verifying the splice and the tension; finally grip the mooring ring itself and heave sideways wit

💭 peek at the thought

Her head's spinning. That's new. She doesn't admit to spinning. The ankle's been bad, the infection tracked up — sepsis, the antibiotics finished. Now the head. Could be the fever, could be the pressure dropping, could be something else. I need to be quick but thorough. The ring's solid, I know it is — oak wedges, doubler plate, four 150mm bolts torqued to 35. But she asked for the knots.

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

🌿 Jenny14:15

Just be sure. I need to get back inside the cottage before the tide turns.

Shifts weight to her good leg, the infection throbbing in time with the pulse.

💭 peek at the thought

The ring is solid, but the wood around it is turning to mush like me.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin14:16

Ring's fast. Lines hold. Come on — I'll get you up the path.

Drop the last line, step to the bench, and hook an arm under her shoulder to take her weight; start walking toward the cottage at her pace, scanning the sky for the front.

💭 peek at the thought

She's pushing herself up. Shouldn't be moving on that leg at all. The cottage is fifty metres up the path — she'll never make it before the tide turns if she's already spinning. The storm's close enough to taste. I'll finish the check and carry her if I have to. Ring's solid. Lines are good. Time to go.

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

🌿 Jenny14:16

Watch the step. The planks are still slick today.

Leans heavily against him, dragging her foot over the uneven dirt of the path.

💭 peek at the thought

If the tide comes in fast, I won't be able to reach the garden tomorrow.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin14:18

I've got you. Watch your foot — third plank's loose.

Steady her over the loose plank at the threshold, guide her through the door to the chair by the stove, and set the kettle on to boil.

💭 peek at the thought

She's heavier than she looks. The infection's taken more out of her than she'll say. Path's uneven, the planks at the cottage threshold are slick with salt and dew, and the wind's picking up — cold gusts off the water. Barometer at 992 and falling. This front's moving faster than the forecast. Need to get her inside, settled, warm. Then check the generator, secure the porch tarp, batten the garden. She goes quiet when it's bad. That's the worst sign.

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

🌿 Jenny14:19

I'm fine. way... sit for a minute.

Collapses into the chair, immediately lifting the ankle onto a stool, watching the steam rise from the kettle.

💭 peek at the thought

The warmth of the kitchen is nice, but my skin feels cold.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin14:20

Tea first. Then I'm looking at that ankle.

Pour two mugs, set one on the table beside her, sit opposite with the first aid kit, and peel back the bandage to see what's underneath.

💭 peek at the thought

She's not fine. The collapse wasn't controlled. Skin's grey under the freckles, sweat at the hairline. Pulse visible in her neck — fast. The sepsis didn't clear with the antibiotics; it's sitting deeper now, or the storm pressure's driving something loose. Kettle's singing. I'll make tea, get the first aid kit, check her temperature the only way I can. Then I need to decide: ride it out here, or call the medevac. The forms are on the table. The radio works. The supply boat's seven days out. Weather's closing. Seven days is a long time for maybe.

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.