the dock · day 923 · morning

Supply Boat Arrival

The engine drone of the supply boat echoes across the bay. You meet Jenny at the dock to begin offloading the cargo.

The supply boat arrives as the tide begins to fall, its hull cutting through the heavy, grey air. Kevin moves to the seaward end to secure the bow lines, checking the integrity of the newly sistered dock planks. Jenny stays by the winch, clutching the manifest and shifting her weight to ease the throbbing in her Jenny's swollen ankle.

🔧 Kevin07:28

Boat's here. Two-hour window. You stay on the radio log and manifest. I'll handle the crane and heavy gear.

walk to the seaward end of the dock to meet the supply boat's bow line, checking the sister joints one last time as I go

💭 peek at the thought

There she is. Right on the tide. Engine note's clean — captain's sober. Two hours to move everything before the slack turns.

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

🌿 Jenny07:29

I have the manifest ready. way don't forget the pH strips and the salt.

lean heavily on the good leg, shifting weight off the throbbing ankle while I open the notebook to the manifest page.

💭 peek at the thought

My ankle is screaming with every step, but if I let him see me limp, he'll never stop.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin07:30

pH strips and salt are on the list. Go sit on the crate by the winch. I'll bring the loads to you.

catch the heaving line the deckhand throws, secure it to the reinforced mooring ring, then signal the crane operator for the first sling — diesel drums

💭 peek at the thought

She's listing kit I already clocked. Ankle's bad today — weight all on the good leg. I'll take the heavy lifts. She stays on paper.

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

🌿 Jenny07:31

I'll be here. Watch the balance on those drums, they look heavy.

lower myself slowly onto the wooden crate, wincing through gritted teeth as the pressure hits my swollen ankle.

💭 peek at the thought

He's so efficient it's irritating, and I'm just here rotting in my own skin.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin07:32

Clear the deck. Drums coming over.

step back from the dock edge, arms up to guide the first diesel drum as the crane swings it outboard, watching the dock planks for deflection under the load

💭 peek at the thought

Drums are two-hundred litres each. Crane's old but the rigger knows his job. I'll stand clear until they're on the planks.

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

🌿 Jenny07:33

Watch the pilings, Kevin! The wood is soft.

grip the edge of the crate, knuckles white, as I breathe through the throbbing in my leg.

💭 peek at the thought

If those planks give, the whole load goes into the salt water and I'm not diving for it.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin07:34

Rigger's swinging to the ring, not the piles. Planks are sistered. Hold the radio log.

keep one eye on the north piling joint as the first drum settles onto the dock timbers, the other on the crane hook for the second drum, ready to wave off if the deflection exceeds five millimetres

💭 peek at the thought

She's seen the same flex I have. North stringer gave three millimetres last spring tide. Greenheart plates are holding but the through-bolts are the weak link. Crane swing loads the ring, not the pilings — if the rigger knows his job.

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

🌿 Jenny07:35

It's holding. For now. Watch the second one close.

note the weight in the log, my hand shaking slightly as I watch the dock dip under the iron.

💭 peek at the thought

He's too confident. The wood is groaning and I can hear the fibers stretching like skin.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

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