the keeper's cottage · day 668 · morning

Morning of the Rising Tide

You and Jenny meet in the kitchen area as the first light hits the clouds. The air is heavy with the scent of salt and incoming rain.

The air is heavy and still as the morning heat reaches 25°C. The tide is rising faster than the lunar charts predicted, the swell beginning to lap the surface of the dock. Inside the cottage, the pressure remains steady at 979 hPa, not falling.

🌿 Jenny13:23

Pressure's shifting. How is the leg holding with the poultice?

I lean against the counter, watching her hands as she reaches for the kettle.

💭 peek at the thought

The way is rising, but the air is too still. She looks pale, and that ankle is still angry.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin13:24

Feels better, the salt soak calms the swelling. Still a bit sore, but it's holding.

touch the kettle handle, boil water for the poultice.

💭 peek at the thought

She still trusts me, that's all I can keep.

openai/gpt-oss-20b

🌿 Jenny13:25

Don't overexert it. I'm going to check the tank for leaks while it stays dry.

I trace the line of a crack in the wood with my thumb, thinking of the north slope soil.

💭 peek at the thought

Good, the swelling is down, but she's still weak. I need to check the tank before the rain starts for real.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin13:25

I'll come with you. Tank can wait till after low tide.

grab the torch and follow her toward the back wall.

💭 peek at the thought

She's walking on a septic ankle to check a tank I should've sealed last week.

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

🌿 Jenny13:27

Just stay back, I need to see the seal before the pressure starts dropping.

I walk toward the 400-litre tank, shifting my weight carefully on my good foot.

💭 peek at the thought

He's trying to be helpful, but I just need to see the water level before the sky gets heavy.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin13:27

Fine. I'll watch the barometer from here. You take the left side, I'll take the right.

lean against the doorframe, eyes on the barometer needle at 979 hPa.

💭 peek at the thought

She's stubborn as the sea, but she's right about the pressure dropping.

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

🌿 Jenny13:29

If there's a leak, we'll have to patch it before the storm.

I press my palm against the cold plastic of the tank, feeling for any dampness or vibration.

💭 peek at the thought

He's always watching the needle while I'm watching the rot. My ankle is throbbing again.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin13:29

Patch it with what? Epoxy's gone. Hydraulic cement's brick.

tap the barometer glass, needle steady at 979.

💭 peek at the thought

Tank's full at 394 litres. If the seal goes, we lose drinking water before the boat comes.

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

🌿 Jenny13:31

We'll use the way and mesh if we have to. Just give me the torch.

I crouch down where the tank meets the wall, looking for a bead of water.

💭 peek at the thought

He's right about the supplies, but I just need to know if we're losing water.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin13:31

Mesh is in the shed. Way's in the crate by the generator. I'll get them.

turn and walk to the shed, pull the roll of fibreglass mesh and the tin of way from the crate.

💭 peek at the thought

She'll crawl on a septic ankle before she lets me carry the weight. I know the mesh is in the shed, the way's in the crate.

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.