James felt at peace for the first time in his life of two centuries. No war hanging over his head, no soldiers to lead in mass combat against a great force of evil. Freedom flowed through him as he reached for the sack on his belt, pulling a ration square from it. He broke of the corner and at his one centimeter by one centimeter breakfast, washing it down with a quick wash from his canteen. The taste surprised him as the protein shake contained within tasted faintly of strawberries. He put the thought aside and started in a random direction that dint feel so random.

He quickly found smith and roused him, continuing on knowing the Corporal would find his way soon enough. Walking on James eventually came to a place of liquid metal, and pulled out his black book to check what he must do.

'Step in.'

James followed the books advice, stepping into the pool and coming out in a different area. Looking around he saw he was on a floating island, with bits of metal floating around him, the bits suddenly assembled themselves and James was staring into a cube. Disassembling itself James got the idea; build the puzzle cube to continue. He began the process and found the core, numbers were inscribed upon its ever surface, these numbers being the key to solving the cube. Many hours passed by as James secured piece after piece form the air and placed in on the cube. Finding quickly that one wrong placement would see the previous three drift back with the incorrect piece.

When he finished the cube sank into the ground and the island disappeared, leaving him to fall to the clouds below. James looked down and realized that a ring was somewhere below him. Striating out James redirected himself to face the ring falling head first. He passed through and found himself in a different area filled with ever changing faces and pieces, he dodged barely avoiding the piece and was soon running, jumping, and crawling his was through. It ended abruptly as he crawled through the last tight squeeze, almost getting crushed as he emerged on the other side.

Before him lay a maze filled with symbols that ranged from pictograms to silvyan runes. The meaning of the runes and pictograms dawned on him as he recognized symbols of good evil and neutral. Picking the good trail James came upon the first question.

'Answer all questions with the truth or become lost in a lie.'

'Pray tell, the man you are have killed and even if it is for the nine is it good? Evil? Or neutral?'

James looked upon each of the paths, and picked the one labeled evil. Advancing on he soon found a new question.

'Correct, the death of any is a loose no matter how evil or corrupt a being may be.'

'The blood of many stains your hands, but why did you stay your path?'

James picked the path of good, walking for much time before coming to the next question.

'Correct, your path may stain your soul but it is so others may be saved.'

'Many people have gained your honor and respect, once you even fell in love, in the chance that you may fall in love again, would you take it? Or would you reject the person out right?

James thought hard on this, standing in place pondering this question. He felt something inside him willing him to the good path, he silently remembered the promise he had made himself 'promises are meant to be broken.' He nodded to himself and chooses the good path. He walked on for much time before coming to the next question. But as he read it shifted.

'Before a friend lay in peril, you have never heard of them nor they of you, but your actions dictate the future of two lives not one.'

James realized that he would half to make his own decision, so he made one. He jumped catching the top of the maze in his hand and climbed onto the wall. He ran down it scanning for the person the engravment had mentioned. He spotted them moving toward what looked like a statue but James knew otherwise, he picked up his pace and jumped from hi wall onto another. He got to the person with nary a moment to spare, the statue of a soldier slowly melted into that of the real thing. The newly minted soldier raised a plasma rifle to fire but James sprang forward bringing his sword down upon its back. The soldier fired into the ground barely missing the person, James ever the fast thinker grabbed the soldiers' EN-mass charger and plasma rifle as the statue turned slowly back to stone. Another statue came to life as James grabbed the figure pushing them to the side, his armor was hit just below the knee by a poorly aimed plasma round. James retaliated firing his own rifle into the half living statue. The floor opened up beneath them as the statue fell. Another pool of liquid metal waited at the bottom and James emerged on the other side with the figure still trapped in his arms. He set them down and scanned the area with the plasma rifle, ready for any other troubles to emerge. Satisfied that there were none to be had he leaned against a palm tree, the portal having taken them to a island in the middle of some sort of ocean, the salt smell on the breeze was spicy sweet as James felt sleep over take him.

James bolted upright, rifle ready. For the then hours he had slept the last two had suddenly be filled with the sight of old battles and dead causing James to come alert instantly. James looked around and found the figure he was with sitting by a fire staring intensely at him from under their hood. James realizing his own was up pulled it down and inhaled deeply, once again tasting the salt breeze. The other figure relaxed visibly as James placed down the plasma rifle and backpack. Taking of his belt he noted a new object and pulled it off to investigate. Writing was inscribed across its surface and it was clear to James what this was.

'Gifted to Latchkey by Malina goddess of Logic' 'PDB'

James sent a silent thank you to Malina as he strapped the PDB to his wrist, and with a quick jolt of energy from the EN-mass charger the PDB activated. Slowly unfolding it covered his left forearm and a floating blue light appeared, James touched it and it grew into a holographic window just above the brace. It came online and James was surprised to receive a data uplink. He checked it and found it came from one point of unknown origin and had two other registered users online. James collapsed the window and turned to look over the beach, it was the first time he had encountered night fall in this place. He turned when he felt someone staring at him and caught the other person looking away from him. James noticed the orange coloration of their cloak with its white detailing that looked almost like flowers or something of the like. He approachedso that he would not startle them. "Hello, my name is James Latchkey. May I ask yours?" the figure before him removed their hood and reviled themselves to James.

He drank in be feature rapidly, longer blond hair, blue eyes, and a smooth figure disrupted by a scare on her cheek. "Charlotte Lesinberg, Aerial Drop Infantry, Fourteen forty first mobile armor. Crusade fleet omega nine." James nodded.

"So Charlotte enjoying Paradise yet?" She laughed at this. "Besides being stuck on this island yes I am!" James looked around, and final up. "Rain." he stated simply, She followed his gaze and noticed the large patch of darkness in the night sky, crackling this energy. James and Charlotte set out across the island and eventually found their way to a deep cave. Just inside James found someones backpack and pulled from it a set of books labeled Crystals and their properties, skyship flight mechanics, and Taris Tech Union operations manual. James scanned through them and found he had never heard of these things before. Magic crystals, flight based of lifting gasses and magical weapons, rapping his head around all this he started to go farther back when he discovered a clump of purple tinted coal and a small chunk of crystal. The crystal and coal fit under the description of rave coal and rave crystal. A thought passed through his head about those skyships, and with a shrug he set about hacking the coal and then the crystal from the wall. Charlotte watched him from behind

"What are you collecting."

"A way off this island, if what the books say is true." He continued working on as the crystal finally came loose. Striding farther in he found a green crystal imbedded in the floor and quickly hacking part of it from the ground he continued deeper. The light faded away to a purple glow and what he found around the next corner surprised him.

"Mana. How convenient to find some."

"Mana, you mean like that magical stuff I use to read about in books?"

James looked at her. "The very same, to a greater or lesser degree." She shrugged at this and looked, James reached forward and scoped up a small amount and watering the green stone Charlotte felt her eyes almost pop out of her head as a collection of phosphorescent plants sprang from the ground. Strange flowers started to bloom in the glow and as the fell away fruit started to grow upon the branches. Picking one James took a large bit from it and wiped the juices from he chin.

"Excellent, Charlotte you should try some."

She hesitated, but picked a fruit. Nibbling at it she felt her taste buds nearly overload from the sweet flavor.

"This is wounder full! Can we take the fruit?" James nodded and gave a smile.

Later the would arrive at another entrance on a different island, throwing out their bed roles they fell asleep. Both of them slept til the sun rose and when they awoke James looked out over the water and spoke.

"Just another day in Paradise!"

Just after saying this phrase James woke again, no Charlotte in sight. James looked around but found no proof of her ever being there even though he had ever thing he had just collected. Noting the sudden feeling of emptiness James set off, swimming through the crystal waters from island to island.