Queensday Middleweek, Fieldfire 147/32

It appears the cautiously optimistic tone of my last entry was misplaced. We had a fine old night on the grog by the lakeside. Silo came out and sat with us. He drinks hard as Malvery but he doesn't get any more conversational. Doesn't seem to affect him at all, in fact. Anyway, weather was scorching the next morning, everyone staggering about squinting, all of that. I had a feeling like a vicious dwarf kicking me steadily in the brain, but there's a kind of triumph to it. This feeling like you've survived. You know you're alive, even if you don't much want to be.

That was when we found out the Ketty Jay was broken.

Silo reckoned it was something to do with the heat. Something wasn't venting out properly, I don't much care, but whatever it was, something melted the something something all over the something and the upshot was we needed some new connectors that Silo didn't have. I raged a bit about carrying spares before he pointed out that we were using the spares and he'd asked me three times in the last three ports to buy some more. Can't say I remember but Silo doesn't lie so I suppose he's right.

Pinn volunteered to fly over to Aulenfay in the Skylance and pick up the bits. That kid's dumb as a raisin loaf but Harkins wouldn't go - he doesn't much like crowds and he started up with a panic attack the moment I suggested it. So I said fine, Pinn could go, and gave him a bit of money.

Three days later, we're getting pretty bored by this lake, I can tell you. Pinn better be dead, because if he's not and he's stupid enough to come back without the best damn excuse in Vardia, Malvery is going to rip a new arse in his face.