Dear sister,

Once again you return to my dreams. Silver snowflakes tumble from the leaden sky, covering your shoulders in a glittering mantel. Your auburn hair is pulled back away from your face and cascades down your back in an elaborate braid glittering with drops of melted ice. You are clad in the ensemble mother created for your first visit to the opera but now in a mature rendition. The lake behind you is frozen and I can just make out the fish struggling to reach the surface. They collide with the ice in a vain attempt to crack the thick rime separating them from the world above. You gesture to the sky above and when I direct my gaze up to the snow ridden air I see the Equine. It’s form is just visible through the thick cloud layer and I can make out a strange distortion maring it’s beautiful form. The creature has become elongated. Straining horizontally three times the normal width. An overpowering sense of suffering reaches me from the Anomaly. Panic and extreme exertion radiate from the space above, filling my mind beyond it’s limits and crushing my delight at seeing you. I pull my gaze from the sight above and focus once more on your face. There is sorrow in your eyes and tears flow from them to drop like frozen opals onto the snow covered ground, I stare at the quickly growing collection around you marveling at the reflection of the Equine within their opulent surface. Although I welcome your return to my dreams, I awoke this morning very unsettled.

I have just returned from my run, totally exhausted but saturated with life stimulating endorphins. I forgot how invigorating this natural form of exercise can be having depended exclusively on the simulator since my departure from Earth. The systems were necessary aboard the Derringer and space lab but I should have made more time here on New London for natural exercise. I have been relying on the computer environment installed in my workshop for my daily exertions but I realized this morning it was inadequate for my current mental state and I made the decision to extend my run to the outdoors today. Not only because the weather condition are now ideal for this type of activity but it was the only way I could pull my spirit back to the present. My thoughts kept returning to that icy shore and the tormented creature above. I knew the simulator would not be sufficient to return my attention to the present and it has been a good reminder of my enjoyment of this natural activity. I have now returned to a semblance of my normal self but the need to relay this experience to you should be the final treatment to allow me to return to work. I cannot begin to interpret the meaning behind this vision but on any type of level it was not encouraging. It brings back the view of the Equine we saw from Earth that will soon be visible here on New London and the growth towards the Flynn foundation satellite. I hope our original conclusions for the movement are correct and that the Equine is reaching out to the children in order to assist the research there. The vision last night brings a more sinister prognosis for the elongation of the Anomaly’s limbs and the idea creates an ominous atmosphere for my thoughts to dwell in. The run has not totally washed away these dark ideas but I am able to analyze it now with a bit more logic. I will return tomorrow to the Equine journal as I seem to find guidance there when I most need it. The entries strangely correspond to my current situation and although this may only be coincidental it is equally comforting either way. A small nudge of guidance if you will from my companion above.

Katryna arrives tomorrow and I am as prepared as I can be for her apprenticeship to begin. I have the one reference piece of the Anomaly completed and enough raw material for her to produce the basic spectrum of paints. The first task will be the discovery of a green tint material to replace the pytherium and also a native source for the canvas conditioner. I only hope my present state of mind will not be too evident when she arrives but I fear this will not be entirely possible as she is a very perceptive soul. I am not ready to delve into our dream encounters at his time since it would interfere with the work she will be undertaking. In the future it might be helpful to consult with her in the interpretations of my dreams but for now I want to keep them to myself. They are to intimate to share as they are my only contact with you for now. 

I have completed the setup of the metrology equipment, including the creation of an interface with the lab equipment in the workshop. Hopefully this will streamline the direct comparison data between a real time solar event and the lab equipment readings during the same period. The shielded bunker built for the atmospheric units should block out any erroneous signals from the planet surface and record only the noise projected from Alpha Centauri. The only issue with the setup was the miscalculation of the bunker size. I forgot to include the increase in size of the liquid helium separation unit. Since it needs to be ten centimeters longer to compensate for the atmospheric conditions on this planet this was not included in my original designs. It is a little tight within the structure now but since I do not need to spend more than a few minutes a month inside this should not be an issue. The isolating gap for the liquid helium to encapsulate the receiver was sufficient so at least that part of my designs were not affected by the thinner atmosphere of New London.The passive environmental controls create a stable atmosphere within the space so the equipment will also need a minimal amount of maintenance. Before sealing up the bunker I did scan the strange symbol inside the atmospheric scanner. I have compared it to the shield symbol present in my notes from the Louvre. They are identical. I am now convinced you placed this inside the unit before it was assembled. I am very curious why you did this and did not mention it to me, but since it will be six month before I am able to ask you I will have to be patient. It is not a normal thing for you to keep secrets from me. Maybe a little mystery to keep my mind busy or a distraction to pull me out of my artistic stupor? Whatever you reasoning I will have to wait and wonder. 

I feel the workshop whispering my name. I only hope the dream last night will not affect my next representation of the Equine. I will begin my work day with one of the stronger music selections from the conservatory. That should bring up memories of the creature during the performance in Delphi and push the visions of  last night to the back of my thoughts. I would rather paint the dancing Equine than the distorted vision I experienced over the icy lake.

With loving thoughts. 

Victoria