24 February 2023
Suffice to say that this has not been my finest day. It wasn't Phinen's finest day either - he's going to feel that one for a bit.
Not my worst day either, to be fair, and probably also not Phinen's. I hope he's learning to keep a lid on his temper - next time he loses it someone might not use a stunner to remind him that unrestrained yelling at Sternmore officials is unbecoming and unwise, even if polite society seems a bit distant for the time being.
Right. Anyway. My feet hurt. This is our second day of trudging through the slightly-less-desolate-than-it-seems-but-still-utterly-depressing scrub brush of Murdok, and I have found myself unprepared for this impromptu, ship-crash induced field trip. Everything that could out of reg, is. And we have company. Unaccounted for company. Company that should not, reasonably, be here. A whole family. Or well, a partial family, since our last run in with the local highly dentalized fauna. I wonder if once upon a time they had even more kids.
I can tell I'm not really... back yet from all of that monster dog fighting adrenaline. Frankie is doing me a solid by staying nearby. It's good to have someone around who handles a crisis other than through running their mouth or impulsive. I'm also... curious.
Heloise turned the comms back on at Amelia's insistence (she appears to be the mom of these original inhabitants, and she's at least as formidable as my own, though less upset at the thought of getting dirty). We scanned the available frequencies and heard of a rescue team which is looking for us. They instructed us to return to the original site of the crash, which is where we're heading, now that we've survived the fight that threw together our scrappy crew with Amelia, Lorne and the kids. I'm glad we've gotten them largely patched up. I'm also grateful the other dogs fled after we killed the first three. It seems like they possess some sense of intelligence and are not unused to being predated.
Clearly I'll have to file reports when I get back to Sterntown. A 141-A hostile wildlife encounter won't be the big dust-upper (it won't immediately affect the planet's safety classification for a first strike), but the 2433B-II declaration of original inhabitative structure and archealogical interest and the 7A, subclass 3 report for indigenous sentient humanoid population are not going to make me very popular At All. And also... are these people genuinely human? I suppose I could ask if they're up for a sample collection, but they seemed put off enough just by our presence that it may not be the right time. We might need a liaison.
I suppose perhaps Heloise might find this an interesting role? I could write a formal vacancy and then just jigger the application queue a little if I write her a commendation for actions at the Calendula... Well. that's getting ahead of myself. Plus, she's pretty close to Brick and they might have to spend time apart. I wonder if Brick could benefit from access to a local security workshop for that arm. We could argue it might need some upgrades. Would he still have medical debt?
I hate the low-hanging sun. It shines in my eyes. And the sweat from the fight has made my pomade run. I want a shower. I want food.
Was I the one who kiled oned of those dog things? I can't remember. I hope it was Frankie. He;s better at it.