[Sodium_noir] At the Temple

[Spikey]

Jack, Christine
Spirit Entity, Orphan Mage
Temple of the Five Dragons
Late evening


 Minutes later, Jack is dressed and the pair are making their way to the street outside.  He's very much looking forward to a night out and the promise of adventure and potential debauchery, especially in the company of Christine.


"So... s'pose we should ring for a cab, yeah?  I can't imagine this Sinclair party is taking place anywhere in this vicinity."


"Through there!" Christine says pointing at a gap between two buildings. She's not sure if she remembered seeing a cab office on the way over or if it was a random flash of foresight, so she quickly took Jack's arm to pull him along. Better to do than think about it.

They cut through the alleyway, coming out into a more active section of Chinatown. Brighter lights and more commerce. True to her word, there is a Taxi office just across the road and they head towards it. 

In the cab, Christine appears flushed and excited. She slides across the seat and makes herself comfortable, simply telling the driver 'Sinclair mansion, Dusk Drive!" That much she knew from Mara, and the cabbie, an old Oriental man, seems to know where they are going. A cross town fare, just what he wanted for his last fare of the night.

As they pull away, Christine lets out a puff, digging into the gap between the door and the seat. Her hand comes out with a wallet, unisex and rather worn. She shows it briefly to Jack and then opens it. Inside is an driving license, money, credit cards and an ID for some company. Christine draws in breath as she reads the name of that company; Melcom Industrial.

She knew the name all too well from her work with Mara. Reading down she gets the owner's name - Dr Alison Beauchamp, Biochemical Division.

Before she can speak, the blinding pain hits her. Another vision, another tumble through Time brought on by touching the ID card. She grips the front seat hard, Jack hears her teeth grinding. And then it is over, as quick as it began. And Christine is panting.  He grabs her arm, not understanding where the pain is coming from, not knowing how to stop it.

"I ... I ... STOP HERE!" she almost yells at the driver. "Sorry Jack, I ... You're on your own from here. I just ... I need ... Sorry I can't come." With that she yanks at the door handle, to no avail. Eventually realising it is locked, she fumbles with the mechanism to unlock it. "This can't wait Jack, I have to go. You can't come so just go find Mitsuko and Aurora, I'll be OK really!" And with that the door was open and Christine fled into the night.


Jack was halfway out the door of the cab, ready to follow, but her instructions were clear, even if the reason behind them wasn't.  He simply stared at her retreating figure, until the darkness swallowed her.

"We still go Uptown?" The driver asked in a monotone voice.


The man's words brought Jack to attention.  Confused, disappointed, and concerned for Christine's well-being, it took a few moments for him to collect his thoughts.


"Yeah, that would be...no, wait a minute.  There's someplace I need to stop first."  Jack gave him the address of the Biltmore, hoping the driver wouldn't mind passing through the hellish neighborhood before heading to the swank Sinclair residence.

"Sure, I know it!" The cabbie replied with a shrug and drove on. 


Jack sat back in the seat as the cab pulled away, still peering into the place where he last saw Christine.  His heart was pounding.  This felt wrong.

The bright lights of Chinatown quickly gave way tot he dull monotony of Lowrentsville. The domain beyond  Akril where Jack had taken up residence. Identicle buildings with identicle disrepair and squalor. The Biltmore came into view eventually and the Cabbie pulled up right out front. Before Jack could say a word he was already reading his crumpled newspaper in Chinese.
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