Diary entry 456

"Repairing a spaceship in a primitive world hasn't been easy, but the locals have the basic technology. To make emergency reparations, I got a Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) welding, a green electrode and some filling bars in a store. Reparations seem to work, so I am ready to depart. Next task: collect ice cores on Mars."

Diary entry 456.1

"There is a stowaway in the ship. After the last entry, I entered the cabin and turned on the engines. Then, I turned around and saw it, a furry creature that walked on its four short legs, hiding behind my seat; despite the length of its messy, wavy, primarily white fur and orange ears, I could distinguish its warm brown eyes. Then the creature saw me and ran.

Capturing it was difficult since the creature was swift and intelligent. However, it doesn't seem to be hostile. It just wags its tail and looks intently at me. It has a moderately long muzzle and a cute expression. I couldn't bring myself to kill such a creature.

It seemed dirty and smelly, so I put it in water. The water soaked a mixture of dirt and red; some creatures jumped everywhere, and I killed them. The computer analysed and identified the insects as fleas, a parasite that drank other creatures' blood. Yikes.

I took a picture of the specimen after it had dried. I have sent a picture of it and waited for the command response to know what to do with it.

The computer said it was a mutt, a dog of mixed race, possibly a corgi and a poodle, but the laptop was not sure; it said that dogs of mixed race, although loyal and friendly, didn't have much market value for humans. So many of these mutts ended up in the street. It seemed not to have any identification tag, and it was filthy and skinny. So, it might have been living on the streets for a while.

The command response is different. They want me to bring the dog. So, I have a new companion."