From the Personal Diary of Simon Quarry: February 22, 2008

It's been more than a month since the Bhutan mission and I still don't feel quite right.

The doctors on base and from Hestia talk about how the change into a Nova isn't just like flipping a switch all the time, where things happen all at once and that's that. Sometimes, they said, it's more like turning the knob on a faucet. They said that, sometimes, a Nova's powers change if they're used a lot or if they're around a lot of other Novas using their powers.

And somtimes, they said, there's no real limit to how far that change can go.

It's been more than a month since Bhutan and I think it's changed me.

I'm not quite sure how. But it has me a little worried.

My eruption totally changed my life. People look at me different. Looking in the mirror, that's not surprising. But they also treat me differently. Inside this rock solid hide, I'm still the same person I was.

At least I think I am.

I remember how alien the Zhabdrong seemed and how people looked to him as a god.

I worry that, if I change any more I won't be the same person.

And I think I am changing.

My shirts don't fit the same any more and I've accidentally broken five doors in the past month.

I don't know what that means.