the keeper's cottage · day 598 · evening

Evening meal and radio check

Rain hammers the roof as the generator drones on. Kevin sets two tin mugs of limpet broth and corned beef on the table beside the cot. The shortwave sits under its tarp, aerial shattered but radio functional. Jenny's notebook lies open to sea beet sketches, pencil tucked in the spine. The barometer reads 992 hPa steady. Outside, the tide is rising.

Kevin checked the kitchen beam leak and found the bucket half-full with a steady drip; he emptied it and tightened the flashing bolts. Jenny finished her sea beet sketch page, noting salt gland density across elevation zones, then set the notebook aside and drank the rest of the broth. The rain intensified, drumming on the roof tarp.

🌿 Jenny21:53

I'm not hungry yet, Kevin. Just leave it on the table.

Reaches for the notebook with a shaky hand, wincing as the movement pulls the throbbing ankle.

💭 peek at the thought

If the fever doesn't break before the boat comes, I won't have the strength to reach the radio.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin21:53

Broth's hot. Drink it when you're ready.

pull up the stool and sit opposite her, forearms on the table, watching her face

💭 peek at the thought

She's dropping weight. The broth needs to go in her regardless. I'll let her have the notebook but the food stays where she can see it.

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

🌿 Jenny21:55

I know. I just need to finish this page.

Traces the edge of the pencil over the sketch of the salt

💭 peek at the thought

He's looking at me like I'm a way that's starting to wilt.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin21:57

Take your time.

reach over and push the mug closer to her good hand, steam curling against the tin

💭 peek at the thought

She's using the sketches to anchor herself. The pain's bad if her hand's shaking that much. Let her finish the page — it's the only thing keeping her still.

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

🌿 Jenny21:58

Thanks.

Wraps cold fingers around the warm mug, letting the heat seep into her palms.

💭 peek at the thought

He's too patient, and it makes it harder to stay quiet.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin21:59

Kevin — sit quiet, listening to the generator's steady drone and the rain on the roof, letting her have the silence

💭 peek at the thought

Good. Heat in the hands first, then the broth. She'll drink it once the mug warms through.

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

🌿 Jenny21:59

Jenny — takes a small, cautious sip of the broth, the warmth hitting her dry throat.

💭 peek at the thought

The smell of the broth is actually good, even if my stomach is in a knot.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin22:01

Kevin — watch her throat work, wait for the second sip before reaching for my own mug

💭 peek at the thought

First sip down. She'll take more once the stomach settles. The corned beef fat'll help the antibiotics absorb.

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

🌿 Jenny22:01

It's going to rain hard tonight.

Leans back against the pillows, the ankle throbbing in time with the rain.

💭 peek at the thought

The sky is getting darker. I can feel the pressure dropping in my bones.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin22:02

Aye. Generator's got oil, tank's taking water. We're battened.

lift my mug, blow steam off the surface, take a slow pull

💭 peek at the thought

Barometer's holding at 992 but the sky's got that weight to it. She reads weather better than the instruments most days.

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

🌿 Jenny22:03

I hope the roof doesn't leak.

Glances at the notebook, the sea beet sketches looking blurred in the dim light.

💭 peek at the thought

Battened down, but I'm rotting from the inside.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin22:04

Tarp's battened on the west ridge. Flashing's sealed. Heard a drip earlier — kitchen beam, near the chimney. Bucket's under it.

set mug down, wipe a hand across my mouth

💭 peek at the thought

West ridge tarp and chimney flashing held through the last blow. Battened with timber strips. Should hold unless a tile shifts.

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

🌿 Jenny22:05

Good. Check it.

Shifts her weight off the ankle, a sharp hiss of pain caught in her teeth.

💭 peek at the thought

It's always something leaking. The roof, the skin, the hope.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin22:06

On it.

push up from the stool, grab the headlamp off the shelf, pull the door and step out onto the porch into the rain

💭 peek at the thought

She's right. Drip becomes rot becomes structural. Best check now while the light's still grey enough to see.

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.