New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live



The luxuriousness of the private plane wasn't something they could see every day. Walking down the center aisle, they felt like they were walking into a chic hotel.

The seats of the airplane were all well-spaced and covered in white leather. Every one of them had its personal little table, on which they could write, eat, or do anything they so wished.

But even better yet, was something they saw when Jack sat down. He pivoted his seat, to get it facing another seat behind, with the table now between the two.

The man pointed to the seat in front of him, looking at David.

"Sit."

There was no question. Only an order.

Since this plane was Jack's, and it was the only way he and Alex could get to where they needed to be in time, David sighed but obeyed. Sitting down across from Jack, he crossed one leg over the other, sinking into the seat.

"Do you always travel in this? This thing is cozy as hell."

Kary took another seat, the one in front of where Alex was already buckled in, and copied Jack's action of turning her seat. With her now facing her boyfriend, she looked at his face.

It had regained a bit of its colour, even though it was still paler than usual. She sighed in relief.

Guo got in the plane last, closing the hatch behind himself. He then went into the pilot's cabin tapping him on the shoulder.

Coming back out of the cabin, Guo sat in the seat nearest to it and the hatch that led outside. He opened up a tablet, getting on with other business, while Jack spoke to David.

"Now that Guo's reporting is done, you can keep talking about that legacy or whatever you called it, and the item that gives it. How are they cursed?"

David dug out from his memory what he knew about Solomon's legacy.

"All that was ever shared on the net, and through the chatter, was that the users of the legacy always died when they tried using it. Something about them losing their mind and committing suicide."

Kary interjected at this point.

"Alex didn't look or sound out of his mind when he used his melding ability. With either of the two forms. Could it be something else?"

David looked unsure.

"There is only one way to know. But that requires sleeping beauty over there to wake up. Did the nurses or doctors say why he was still unconscious?"

"Something about him being physically and mentally drained. They said his body was severely lacking in energy, whichever one they tried looking for in his body. I think he overused his power, and it took a toll on him."

"Ahh. That would make sense. But Alex isn't the kind to be stupid enough to drain himself completely. At least he doesn't give me that feeling."

Kary chuckled.

"You misjudge him grossly. Alex is the type to go all in, if he thinks it can guarantee a good outcome. I'm surprised he doesn't pass out after every combat, honestly."

Hearing this assessment from the young woman, Jack chuckled. It resembled the image he had in mind when thinking of Alexander.

Jack didn't know Alexander as much as Kary did, but he had met more than his fair share of firecrackers in the military. Men and women that were fully off, or fully on.

So he easily tagged him as one of those.

"You talked about the legacy being cursed, but you still have said nothing about the item. What is it?" Jack asked.

The conversation kept veering, and he was still waiting for all the information to have a wider view of the full picture.

David brought his attention back to Jack.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Boudreau. I'm trying to understand the situation better. Back to our sheep. The item tied to the legacy is a ring. Images were once posted on the web. It's a black ring, with golden etchings and a green gem inlaid on the top."

Kary looked at Alex's hand, and her face shifted to worry.

"You mean like the ring Alex has on his hand right now?" she asked.

David snapped his head to Alex's hand, glancing at his fingers and turned his head back to face Jack.

"Yeah, exactly like that one. Wait… Yes! Like that one!"

David sprung up, as the plane lifted, and he went face-first into the floor.

Jack looked at him face-plant and held back a peal of laughter. In the meantime, Kary was too worried to care if he had fallen or not.

She was looking at Alexander, examining his every facial trait, to see if he seemed in pain. But Alex looked serene, almost like he was having a dreamless sleep.

David fought gravity and got back on his feet, walking the last two steps to be next to Alexander. Grabbing his hand, he scrutinized the ring.

Every detail matched the one he had seen online. This ring was Solomon's Seal.

"How did he get it here without losing his mind?" he whispered to himself.

David waited for the plane to stabilize before going back to his seat. In the meantime, he stayed crouched near Alex, trying to figure out if he needed to change his plans regarding the man, or if everything would turn out better.

Once the plane stopped shaking and ascending, he returned to his seat, still pensive.

"So, are you able to say with certainty it is the same ring?" Jack asked him.

David nodded, staying silent. Kary, Jack, and Guo could practically see the gears turning in his head.

"Should we assume Alex might already be cursed? Or is there a possibility that he will be fine?" Kary asked.

"I don't know… I don't have prior knowledge about how the alleged curse works. I only read posts and articles on forums."

David didn't like this uncertainty. Ever since he came back, his life had been a succession of predictions and safe calculations.

He hated the messiness and uncertainty that his life was before this. And now, he was back to having a big question mark in front of him.

Jack was the one to break the tenseness of the moment.

"I think we should wait for him to wake up before we decide for him, or make wrong assumptions. For now, we can focus on how to get rid of the problem we are going to face."

David nodded. He preferred it that way, too.

"Yeah. Let's shelve this issue for now."