I was looking back on the journal entries I made in the past...back when I was naive.

The one that caught my eye was the entry I made on September 5, 1356: three years ago today. Back then, I wrote my life experiences as first-person narratives, as if I were writing my life into a novel. And I noticed that I haven't been doing that recently.

So what changed?

Well, pretty much, everything back then was normal. Sure, even then, I was concerned about Arnold Stamp. But back then, he was a distant threat...only a "what-if."

And I sure as hell was not concerned about the Esurchians; today, they have all but subjugated the Retunian Commonwealth and made it their vassal state.

Three years ago, they weren't even heard of yet - how amazing that things can change that fast in three years.

As for myself, three years ago: Stamp was a distant "what-if" threat. Meanwhile, the big challenge in front of me was the daunting prospect of starting a new life at this new place called Cabotton University. Then, aboard the Airship Commencement, I had to face my imminent threat: Monika Rhodes.

Looking back on this, it's been hitting me how normal things were back then. The University was functioning normally back then, under normal leadership, with a Headmaster at the helm - and a Headmaster with common sense.

This all seems like a distant dream - a distant and different Universe even - compared to the hellish dystopia that we live in today, thanks in great part to the Esurchians.

This morning was a hard one for me. I boarded a gyroplane out of Cabotton for the last time; I will not be back for a while. Taking a gyroplane instead of the Airship Commencement is significant too, since Jon Den completely axed that airship program last month. I was happy to leave Karyanna Dwemmer behind - she insisted on staying at the University. And the University today is not the University I knew back in 1356.

Nevertheless, leaving was hard.

I moved back in with my parents in North Kempton. And today, we talked about how bad the landscape is under Esurchian influence, even here in North Kempton.

I also had a long phone call with Dr. Jaynes. He basically told me that my agenda with the Chemkan Bees is effectively a lost cause, given the number of facts stacked against my hypothesis. He told me I am better off cutting my losses and finishing my project with my dymensional plane garden (which I had relocated to another good venue I found in Kempton) as simply an experiment in better food-production methods. This was an easy adjustment that I grudgingly accepted over the phone... but I will explain later why I changed my mind about Dr. Jaynes after that call.

Meanwhile, I've caught up with Otto, who also dropped out of Cabotton University. He is still playing guitar, though, and is studying with some academic...community... that is housed near the North Kempton Airfield. His description of this "community" intrigues me, so I may look into it later when I get the chance.

The other person I met today was, believe it or not, Monika Rhodes. It seems that she has changed dramatically since her departure last year; she's definitely a milder version of herself. She apologized to me about the rivalry she carried out against me in the past, and promised to be a better ally to me as well as a better ally to the Darkfire Community.

My brother, Aledon, also moved back in with my parents and me; for the first time in eight years, we as a family are living together again. Apparently, Aledon quit his job with West Horizon because of pressure from Esurchian influence to do deeds he deemed "grossly unethical." When I asked for more details, he refused to elaborate, saying they were repulsive enough to make him want to forget. Instead, he shifted the conversation toward how I backed out of the Third Level Society, saying that my decision to sign the measure splitting the Dungeonmaster role into the three Chapter Lead roles before resigning from the Dungeonmaster position, myself, may not have been perfect but was nonetheless the best thing I could do in the interest of keeping the Third Level Society as strong and stable as possible during these trying times.

The only disagreement I had with Aledon there was in predicting how long the Society will be without an actual Dungeonmaster. I anticipate three to five years, but Aledon says that it may be decades.

Two other people I reached out to were Meghan Wen and Maggie Terreth. I have yet to hear a response from Meghan, but Maggie, on the other hand, responded by offering to scout and report to me anything that might be a threat to me as a Dungeonmaster. I thanked Maggie for this offer but advised her of my current situation. Maggie responded by saying that she would do everything she could to protect us as a family.

And Heather Walker, who lives nearby now, here in North Kempton, pulled an unexpected move on me: she asked me out. I was slightly surprised when she asked (in person, by the way). But looking back on how she acted, with her following me either physically or logistically, as well as her demonstrating unbroken loyalty toward me at this time, I should have seen this coming.

I told her that I would think about it.... And I will admit: she is cute.

The most memorable moment of today, however, came right after Heather went off to do some errands. I heard buzzing, which caught my attention. I looked through the fence into someone's backyard and saw an active beehive. Making sure the property owners there did not see me, I snuck some pictures of both the bees and the hive structure, then went back home to compare them to the known body shapes and hive structures of the supposedly long-lost Chemkan Bees.

All the noteworthy traits matched up; there was no doubt. Dr. Jaynes was wrong after all.

Now it is a matter of not only finding the contact information for the people who live at this address, but also, admittedly, summoning the courage to reach out.

***END OF STORY FIFTEEN***