The following is an entry from Blaze’s In-Game Journal.

BLAZE’S NOTE: This comes from the System and from online game lore.

Beast taming in Tanglewood has a long and distinguished, but also controversial and gritty history. It began 10,000 years ago when the first tamer discovered the link between beast and tamer. There is some controversy about the identity of the first tamer, and even the race of the first tamer. That is, some people say the first tamer was an elf, while others claim a human had that distinction.

Over thousands of years, a complete timeline has emerged.

BEGINNING (Date Unknown): Primal Beast and other gods create the universe.

BLAZE’S NOTE: Substitute "System" for the gods and you get the idea.

1000 TE (Tanglewood Era): Men, elves, orcs, dwarves, gnomes, faeries, and other beings discover the art of working with beasts, in other words, animal husbandry and wildlife relations.

1300 TE: The first beast is tamed. Tamer’s identity unknown.

N.B.: Several candidates have been put forth by historians and beast taming scholars. The strongest ones are [names.]

2000 TE: Explosion of Beast Taming as it becomes popular.

3000 TE: Tribes begin using Beast Taming as a way to protect themselves.

4500 TE: Beast Taming Wars begin.

6500 TE: Beast Taming Wars end and everyone agrees to raise their beasts and avoid fighting each other. Agreements signed.

7000 TE: Beast Taming guidelines established.

7100 TE: House of Varhoeven established.

House of Lammermoor founded.

8000 TE: Beast Taming Elimination Tournament founded as a way to prevent cutthroat competition and to foster friendship among beast tamers.

8100 TE (?): Theft of the Beast Taming Amulet and beast from House Varhoeven. House Varhoeven renamed House Riddlehoeven.

Thief vanishes and amulet and beast are never found.

8500 TE: Beast Taming schools founded. However, there are so many different philosophies that confusion arises, and everyone agrees to just follow one doctrine.

BLAZE’S NOTE: This was probably intentional on System’s part.

8600 TE: First beast hybrids created. Controversy erupts. Another war threatens to break out. Agreements are made limiting the creation and breeding of beast hybrids, but most tamers ignore them, continuing to the present day.

BLAZE’S NOTE: That’s why the Jaguar-Scorpion that Lothair Riddlehoeven evolved into was so disturbing. Breeding of hybrids is controlled.

8640 TE: First Beast Taming Elimination Tournament founded. Two dozen beast taming households participated. The winners were Snowfall the White Wolf and Lady Silviana Lammermoor from House of Lammermoor.

Sometime between 8600-9000 TE: Lothair Riddlehoeven tames Fyrefernes and creates the secret room to make beasts overpowered. Fyrefernes takes advantage of it to destroy the cruel Lothair. Because of an accident, Lothair starts to evolve into a beast hybrid.

The House of Riddlehoeven eliminates this incident from the family records.

9000 TE: Power-ups become more popular, and a special auxiliary form of magic, beast taming enhancement, is introduced.

Sometime in the late 9000s: Lady Rosabel marries Viscount Rossa. Marriage strained. She meets Lord Elandior Lammermoor.

Late 9980s: Vedette and Kaline Riddlehoeven born. Hans Lammermoor born.

Niall Widdershins leaves the beast taming world.

Somewhere around 9998-9999 TE: Lord Elandior Lammermoor begins traveling more extensively to find beasts, leaving Lady Rosabel Lammermoor to take up with her still-husband Viscount Rossa to start a beast taming ring.

Beasts Judo and Memo are kidnapped from House Riddlehoeven.

BLAZE’S NOTE: Judo and Memo may be players in the game who rebelled against the System and had their characters kidnapped, essentially put in "jail" in the game.

10,000 TE: Kaline of House Riddlehoeven tames Blaze, a common tiger, triggering the events in this game and story.

Blaze and Demos meet Gussie and decide to bring her to Lamant Riddlehoeven as a replacement beast. Lamant Riddlehoeven bonds Gussie.

Blaze, Gussie, and Demos attend the Beast Ball and meet Lightning of House of Lammermoor.

Blaze acquires Divine Vision.

Viscount Rossa attempts to steal Blaze with the assistance of Lady Lammermoor.

Hostilities between House of Riddlehoeven and House of Lammermoor.

Annual Beast Taming Elimination Tournament announced.

Blaze and Kaline along with Vedette Riddlehoeven and Demos work with Hans Lammermoor and Lightning, as well as Niall Widdershins, to liberate Lobo from Lady Rosabel Lammermoor.

Lobo freed from Lady Rosabel and Shade bonded through the Rite of Bond Transference.

Lady Rosabel and Viscount Rossa exposed. They flee from Lammermoor Manor.

Lobo bonds with Minette Riddlehoeven.

Blaze kidnapped by goblins that invade Lammermoor Manor and steal treasure. Blaze fights but is overpowered and given to Chief Kasz.

Blaze rescued from Chief Kasz, who lets him go.

House Riddlehoeven trains for the Beast Taming Elimination Tournament.

Niall Widdershins bonds Peridot, a jungle snake.

The competition from the local House of Bottomsley is revealed.

Lamant Riddlehoeven mysteriously attacked in his study, injuring him and Gussie Blaze and the family discover a mysterious hidden room that’s enchanted. A menacing jaguar-scorpion manifests and attacks everyone. Jaguar-scorpion killed.

Blaze has Divine Vision in the room that reveals the dark secret history of Lothair Riddlehoeven and Fyrefernes.

Blaze and Lightning decide to mate. Lightning goes into heat.

Official announcement of the alliance-by-mating between the House of Riddlehoeven and the House of Lammermoor.

Reveal that Lightning is pregnant.

Beast den outfitted for Blaze and Lightning.

Dag the raven finds Blaze and warns him that Chief Kasz and the goblins are in trouble, displaced by trolls (Blaze has a Divine Vision). The House of Riddlehoeven and the House of Lammermoor ride to rescue the goblins and resettle them in the Riddlehoeven villa.

Kasz and his goblins become part of the House of Riddlehoeven and agree to be protectors. An historic event.

Blaze, Lobo, and Kasz go hunting the Amulet of Beast Power in the jungle, and conceal it from Ophion and Zuba of House Bottomsley. They hide it in the tiger den as a surprise that Blaze will use during the tournament.

Viscount Rossa and ex-Lady Rosabel surface during a tournament update in the local village. Blaze, Lightning, and others capture them.

Blaze, Lobo, and Kasz research the Amulet of Beast Power in Lamant’s study. Later, Lamant reveals the truth about the Amulet of Beast Power, and Blaze and Lobo reveal the amulet.

(More events to be recorded.)

This is by no means a comprehensive timeline. At best, it is a thumbnail sketch of the major events in beast taming, including current events.

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BLAZE’S NOTES

To me, these last events after the year 10,000 TE that I played a key role in are significant in the history of beast taming. The year 10,000 marked a radical shift in the world of beast taming.

It may seem self-indulgent and egotistical to dwell on the events that I personally lived in this game. However, this entry is in my personal journal, which is a tool that players have access to in the game. I don’t know what other people record in their journals, but I would assume they jot down helpful information and even their own thoughts and feelings about the game. It’s helpful for my character. It’s helpful for gameplay.

As it turns out, this information is vital to understanding the parallel universe that Tanglewood and the System have created/accessed. No one knows for sure if System created the world itself, or just the vehicle for players to vanish into the world, one game session at a time. It’s my hope that someone, maybe even my parents if they’re so inclined, can read this journal.

They have never asked about the game beyond the obligatory parental question: "You are not neglecting your studies to play this game, are you?" "Are you wasting time on that game

How accurate their questions were. At least about the time Damon and I wasted on something so insidious. We did it as a way to bond, but there were other games we could have played. Even other real-life pursuits. Everything in balance.

Mom and Dad, you were right.

Back to my reflections on Beast Taming History.

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THE FUTURE OF BEAST TAMING

No one knows what the future of beast taming holds, especially with the discover of new powers and new beast taming artifacts, or rather, old artifacts that Tanglewood recently rediscovered.

No one knows if the beast tamers could someday weaponize the incredible bond between beast and tamer and fight off an enemy. An unstoppable, implacable, omnipotent enemy. But as long as they are divided and fighting among each other, they are easy prey. The tournament is meant to bring them together. In 1360 years, the tournament has consistently fostered friendship among beast tamers and their beasts.

If beast tamers and their beasts did unite at the games against such a theoretical enemy spoken of, nothing could stop them. United in friendship and solidarity and brotherhood, they would conquer any such threat. No one must be allowed to interfere with this. Not beast thieves, not ambitious heads of households, not rogue beast tamers.

The key to the future is this: Standing together to protect everyone, tamers and beasts alike. To do that, we need everyone. Goblins, imps, beasts, elves, humans, trolls, and everyone.