Personal Journal: November
I have signed up for guard duty under Commander Cecile. Her enthusiasm outshines her experience, but I believe with time and age, she will be an excellent guard captain. Especially if she can retain the balance she has between her strong sense of duty and her compassion. I hope I may quietly provide an example of my own experience, but while not overshadowing her own leadership responsibilities.
I have in part been quiet busy trying to walk the grounds and remain alert while there is construction going on. I understand the thefts going on have been resolved, and were part of a complex prank. There are some mutterings about ghosts, but I sincerely doubt that.
As I had been putting it off, I also decided to explore the underground caverns beneath the building's foundation. I was hoping to find a source of the monsters down there, since the "Gate magic" everyone mentions seems to involve monster summoning from the Infinity (they call it the Void here), and such magic still may be key to the many other worlds' Gateway magic. Still, though I got some good sword practice in with the attacking creatures, I found nothing. They may simply feed on each other or the fungi that grow down there, or if there is a supernatural source (I suspect it only because of the quantity of creatures down there in a seemingly limited space) it is well buried or hidden. Some possible passageways were collapsed or too narrow to travel down. It may be worth exploring further with others, but I wasn't keen to go off with a large group after the trip to the Ancient Highway led us largely to more questions and few answers.
But pre-occupying myself much with this work, I have not made time for my friends, neither my comrades from home nor the friends I have made here. I can't help but wonder that my own homesickness has urged me to distance myself from those I feel close to for fear of further loneliness, but after some reflection, I realize I am being unfair to both myself and those who have often stood beside me in good times and bad.
I find myself particularly worried that I may have left Alenia behind in a time of need--but she is a proud woman, I likewise fear coddling her.