Well, after a lot of therapy, two mandated weeks off spent back home and a score of press conferences, a half-dozen interviews and more meetings than I could count, I'm back, and feeling mostly better.

Not good, but better.
First off I want to thank everyone around here who was so supportive and kind and offered me advice when I needed it. I did go see a Utopia therapist, a very nice woman named Trudy who helped me work through it all. Mostly now I just feel guilty that I didn't do more.

I feel like I lost my head. Like I could have done so much more to help and instead I acted like an idiot.

I want to go back, but they won't let me. They've got a good cell of t2m auxiliary over there now, and they're using antivenom donated very generously by Mr. Alchemist to help the survivors and those still being bitten. Mr. Medic is helping everybody who was bitten and survived (not enough of them

) and Ms. Ranger is helping to disperse the cobras, while the humanitarian effort to rebuild is still underway. A nova who doesn't want me to identify him provided the schematics for a device that makes a noise that drives all forms of animal life away, and we've established a temporary perimeter of them around the village, so everyone is safe for now.
Creature was found a few days ago, dead. I can't really go into it (they didn't tell me much, anyway

), but it looks like he won't be bothering anyone anymore. I'm not sure whether to feel good or bad about that, and either way, I feel sorta guilty.
In a few days, I'm off for Guadalajara.