She buzzed Dane and Abby in and they found her in the garage. She was dressed in dirty work overalls, her hair up in a ponytail that spilled her dark locks halfway down her back. Her face was smudged with dark grease and she held a wrench in her hand. The El Camino from the Ghost Greaser race was in the midst of being dismantled, the backs of the experimental engines completely blackened from the emergence of flames in Stage Three.
"Whoa, what are you doing?" said Dane. "You can't take those apart, we still have to catch the Ghost Greaser!"
Jaya rolled her eyes. "First off, Stage Three completely burnt these out. I need to take them apart and rebuild them if they're going to work. Second, according to you, the car was only going faster than the ghost because of Stage Three, which doesn't work properly and would probably kill you for sure next time. So until I figure out a way for Stage Three to work even close to safely, you're not using them. And besides all that, you just started another case. You're going to be focused on that for a few days, probably destroying a few things along the way. In the meantime, I'm going to play around with some ideas I had."
"But what if we -" started Dane.
"I don't sit around with a warehouse full of gadgets for you to use. I have my own projects. You can't come in here randomly, expect all my time and then leave just as randomly, unseen until the next time you need help. If you want someone at your beck and call, that's someone else. Find your own damn Q."
"But Stage Three!" said Dane plaintively, but he knew he had been beaten in at least three ways.
"You weren't the one who had to drive during Stage Three," said Abby. "I had never been more scared in my life. Well, until a giant sea serpent tried to eat us today."
"Sea serpent?" said Jaya, confused.
They updated her on the case. Normally Jaya didn't like knowing about cases while they were in progress, but she admitted she was curious at hearing "sea serpent", even if she ultimately felt like that part was a little unlikely. It sounded like old stories her family told about naga, but she didn't believe those existed either.
"And that brings us to this little device," said Dane, placing the odd item on the table. "I've been calling it the Sphere."
"Even though it's technically not a sphere?" said Jaya. "Even if these flat parts were round, it'd still be a somewhat prolate spheroid."
"But it's sphere-like," said Dane hopefully.
"I agree that 'Sphere' is easier to talk about than 'unknown object that's sort of sphere-like but not actually a sphere because it's not completely round'," added Abby. "Dane's cases are interesting, but talking about things in them is often already a mouthful, so if we could label stuff, even inaccurately, it would save time and confusion."
"They're not that bad," said Dane.
"Remember that I sometimes try to do write-ups to go with the weird footage I post on Authentic Avalon," said Abby. "Trust me, sometimes I throw up my hands in frustration and then write something stupid that people will actually sort of believe."
"I don't like the lack of truth in what you're posting if you're changing the facts, but I did tell you no one would believe it all," said Dane.
"If they believe enough and give me page views, that's good enough for me right now," said Abby. "Maybe one day they'll believe the whole truth. But that's not today. For today, we're just have a prolate spheroid we can't even decide the name of."
Jaya just shrugged and shook her head. "Fine, we'll just call it the Sphere. It's your case, I don't have a dog in this fight. So what's it actually do?"
"We have absolutely no idea!" said Dane cheerfully.
"We're assuming it's technological," said Abby.
"Why?" said Jaya, examining the Sphere.
"Well, we don't have a good reason," said Abby. "I think we just agreed we were going to assume it was technological."
"It didn't seem magicky," said Dane.
"Didn't seem magicky," repeated Jaya tiredly.
"Oh, y'know, magic stuff is full of weird vibrations!" said Dane. "Makes your palm sweat, gives you that pins and needles sensation when you hold it! Maybe something running up your arm." He paused. "Something that isn't a spider or a bug. Something running up your arm that's an invisible sensation. But not an invisible spider. Like an invisible feeling that's pins and needly. Maybe more needles than pins."
"Are you sure that's not a heart attack?" said Jaya.
"Could you at least look at it?" said Dane.
"You just don't want to visit Alastair," said Jaya.
"Maybe," said Dane. "We're going to go talk to Wong about it, but I think leaving it here so you can do your battery of tests would be better."
"You act like I'm your forensic department," said Jaya. "My battery of tests are me coming up with ideas and tinkering with it as a favor to you. Favors which I have probably banked countless numbers of."
"Yes, but those ideas are all things we would never think of!" said Dane.
"What I'm saying is that sometimes I think you take my assistance for granted," said Jaya. "Especially with your fly by night nature. This is the sort of work that would be a high paying job at Kurogawa Heavy Industries or a local firm. Even Honnenheim treated me better. I'm saying that maybe, just maybe it would be nice to get some appreciation beyond a Christmas ham."
"I'm not sure if there really are Easter hams," said Dane, rubbing his chin. "I haven't checked at all other than the one time I was excited about the idea, but it was late and my internet wasn't working. But I promise I'll check and get back to you!"
"You should take her out for dinner," said Abby, trying to slip the idea into their conversation, but it was so alien an idea it was noticed.
Both Jaya and Dane turned to look at her. Dane was simply confused by the idea, while Jaya had a stare that said I know what you're doing and I will murder you for it.
"It'd be a good way to show appreciation," said Abby, her words stumbling out under the looks of the other two. "For all she does for you. Take her somewhere nice and she can have delicious food on your bill. In case she doesn't like ham."
"You don't like ham?" said Dane, turning to Jaya with shock. She rolled her eyes and sighed disappointedly.
"That's not the point!" said Abby. "It's not about ham or no ham!"
"Well, we're on a case right now, so no time for dinner, whether it is ham or not!" said Dane. "After, though! After we can do dinner! But now let's head to Wong's!"
Dane turned toward the door. Jaya shot Abby a look, but Abby just smiled back and mouthed You're welcome. Jaya narrowed her eyes in a glare.
Wong lived in New Avalon's Chinatown, a neighborhood not far from Riverside. By the time Dane and Abby got there, the sun had set on a very long day. Abby felt like their journey underground and the encounter with the serpent was a lifetime ago. But she still had the fatigue and dirty clothes to prove it happened, the shower she desperately wanted never seeming to arrive. Once Dane was on a case, he would pursue it until exhaustion, any breaks they took on his schedule, which meant by his whims. At least her shoes were finally completely dry and there was no more squish as she got out of the cab and hit the pavement.
The shop Wong owned and lived above was on a remote side street in Chinatown. It was not one that was easy to find (due to magic) and even harder to stumble upon. A U shaped street filled with businesses with little to no English writing, it was generally not friendly to even those who found themselves there by accident. Wong's business was good enough that he preferred the privacy of the street over new customers. The sleepy street that was hard to find was what he wanted.
But on this day, the street was anything but sleepy. Even before Dane and Abby rounded the bend, they knew something was off. There was a burnt smell in the air today, not the cloying incense that wafted out of some shops, but a heavy scent that filled the street. There was a charge in the air, a tension and a sadness that was different. It immediately put them on edge. As they walked down the street, they noticed a smoky haze hung above everything. It thickene
d as they approached, the already meager streetlights looking like phantoms in the haze and darkness.
"I have a bad feeling about this street," said Abby.
Dane nodded, but said nothing because the gears of his mind were moving, trying to investigate with the information he had. The fact that this was a street that a good friend lived on just made his thinking even more furious. They kept walking.
As they came closer to Wong's shop, they saw the reason for the smoke. One of the nearby stores was completely burned and still smoking. Soot had blackened many of the other storefronts, including Wong's. The fire was already out. Abby expected to see emergency services or people milling about in front of the shop, but there was none. Some of the street's occupants furtively peered out windows, but they closed them quickly whenever Abby looked in their direction.
"That bad feeling I had? It just got a whole lot bigger," she said.
Dane nodded.
"Can you do something other than nod?" said Abby. "This is almost more freaky than the underground."
Dane nodded again, but under glare and threat of Abby hitting him, he finally said, "Let's find out if Wong's okay."
Up close, they could see that while soot blackened the windows of Wong's shop, there was no evidence of actual damage. Those darkened windows prevented them from getting a good look inside. The normally unlocked door was firmly locked and barred. Dane knocked.
There was a long moment where nothing happened. In the smoky stillness of the street, the knocking was very loud. It felt like many eyes were upon them, but neither Dane nor Abby could see anyone. To cover her nerves, Abby took out her camera and started filming the street. She knew the smoke would make the shots poor quality, but people needed to know about arson... especially if it didn't make normal news.
Dane knocked again.
"We closed! We closed!" The voice plaintively shouted from inside the shop, but it also sounded like they were staying at least a few paces away from the door. They both recognized that voice as Wong.
"Wong, it's Dane and Abby!" said Dane.
There was a pause as a person pressed themselves against the glass. Then the door was unlocked. It was opened part way, Wong standing in the darkness. "Come on, get in here before they see you!"
Dane and Abby slipped through the half open door. Wong closed it behind them and hastily locked it. It wasn't just the blackened windows that kept them from seeing inside the shop; all the lights within were turned off. It took a few moments before they adjusted to the lower light and could see anything more than shapes. The first thing they noticed was that Wong didn't look like himself.
Wong was a fox spirit from China. Long ago he had gained enough power and intelligence as a fox to become a magical creature. He could make himself look like any human appearance he wanted, but he had a particular favorite that amused him - a ridiculous Asian stereotype that had him buck toothed, chubby, and dressed in silk. He liked how it messed with people, especially white people who were touring Chinatown because it was 'exotic'. But neither that form nor the fox's amusement were showing here.
The way Wong looked now was, for lack of any other term Dane could think of, generic. If Abby had passed him on the street and she had been quizzed on his appearance, she might have said, "Just some guy." Boring short haircut, green T-shirt with a generic logo, jeans. Still vaguely Asian, still sort of like Wong's usual face, but no discernible age, nothing more than a vague sense of features. If they didn't hear his voice, they wouldn't have thought it him at first glance.
"Husband, who is that?" called another voice in the dimness. Wong's wife, Meilin, was on the stairs to their living quarters, beyond the store's desk and curtain.
"Just Dane and Abby," said Wong. "Go back upstairs."
"Do not bring more trouble here, Dane!" called Meilin, but her footsteps retreated upstairs.
"Usually I'd question the 'more trouble' part, but I saw outside, so I already know something is going on. I just don't know what exactly," said Dane.
"This is not a good time," said Wong. "Maybe come back next week and I will help you."
Dane narrowed his eyes. "Wong, we're not going to sit back while you need help. It doesn't matter what we came here for, we'll help you."
"We don't need help, everything is fine," said Wong. The tension and dismissal in his voice betrayed the words.
"Why won't you let us help you?" asked Abby.
Wong sighed with a grimace, his forehead very tense. He walked over to the stool at the counter and sat down, his body going slack. "Because I don't want you involved."
"Why not?" asked Abby.
"It could get you hurt," said Wong.
"You know that's never stopped me before," said Dane.
Wong shrugged. "I don't want to be the cause of it."
"You know that's never stopped -"
"Okay, it's not that," said Wong. "I mean, that's part of it, but it's not all of it. This just doesn't concern you. Not anyone but those of us who brought it with us. And no offense, Dane, I don't want you getting involved and making things worse. I don't want this wasp's nest poked. We're just going to lay low and see what happens. Maybe this storm will pass us by. Or maybe we'll need to leave town."
"Leave town? Why? For how long?" said Abby.
Wong shrugged. "For good, probably."
Dane raised an eyebrow. "I've never known you to be afraid of anything."
"I've never really had anything I was afraid of," said Wong. "This I am afraid of."
"Wong, what's going on?" said Dane.
"The past is coming back to haunt me," said Wong. "And most of Chinatown too."
"Huh?" said Abby. "Haunt the whole neighborhood?"
"At least those of us who fled here from China oh so long ago," said Wong.
"What past is this?" said Dane.
"The Thousand Hands," said Wong. "The Thousand Hands of Fire are coming."
"That's an impressive name, but I'm not familiar with them," said Dane. "Are they new?"
"To Avalon, yes," said Wong. "They don't belong here. They should have been kept away, but..."
"But what?" said Dane.
"Something changed," said Wong with a shake of his head. "But I have no idea what. Well, maybe one idea."
"Their name makes thematic sense with the burned building," said Abby, gesturing her head to the street. "That was them, right?"
Wong nodded. "That was a warning. They know we're here. Their main organization isn't here yet, this is just a brief vanguard. But they're coming. They want us to know that. They're daring us to run. Or maybe letting us know it's too late for that."
"I guess fire is a somewhat inaccurate form of communication," said Abby with a weak smile, trying to lighten the mood.
Wong half smiled. "They've generally seen communication as a one-way street. Our response doesn't matter."
"Who are they?" asked Dane.
"Something I thought I left behind... that we all did," said Wong. "Trouble."
"Can you maybe be a little more specific?" said Abby.
"I don't like talking about it, so I never really have," said Wong. "Long ago, Meilin and I came to New Avalon. Like many Chinatown residents, we were fleeing our homeland. Avalon was safe, Avalon was protected, Avalon was supposed to hide us. They had no foothold and we hid in the shadow. Nowhere else was safe. New York, San Francisco... so much of this country had been claimed as their territory. Avalon was safe. But now... it's not. They found us."
"What changed?" said Abby.
"I have no real idea why we're not protected anymore," said Wong. "But I do know how they're getting in, I know their foothold."
"What is it?" said Abby.
Wong looked at Dane with a wan smile. "North Egan."
Dane paled. "What?"
North Egan was the location of the battle between Roger Carmichael's hotel-turned-demon and Honnenheim's giant robot. Dane had great involvement in that situation, trying to stop both Carmichael and Honnenheim. Dane event
ually succeeded, but much of the area was devastated. Despite the death and destruction, that was what some people in the city had been waiting for - a chance to rebuild and revitalize a terrible neighborhood. There was a big campaign in the city to transform North Egan into something better than a poor rundown neighborhood. To that end, it was bid out to construction companies.
"Someone gave the contract for the New Egan rebuild to the Jinmu Construction Group," said Wong. "They should have never gotten the contract."
"Are they corrupt and poor at construction?" said Abby.
"They are corrupt, but they're also very good at construction," said Wong. "They'll do the job and they'll do the job well. But Jinmu should have never gotten the bid. Even if whatever hid us was gone, we've still had Jinmu blacklisted. Chinatown contributes to a private fund to block them. Some of us do magical work for that end. And the grand influence of the Yakuza, of all people, had also been keeping Jinmu and their backers out. They didn't know we were here, but they've desperately wanted to get a foothold in Avalon. But somehow the city gave Jinmu the bid for the Egan construction. Now the door is open. They're coming."
"But what's Jinmu construction?" asked Abby. "They sound just like another builder or real estate company. Foreign, of course, but there's nothing wrong with that."
Wong nodded. "That's what they want you to think, and on the surface, it's true. Like I said, their work is good. I have no doubt that the new neighborhood they build will be high quality. They're not shady in that respect. Jinmu is their legitimate arm, trying to play nice with the West. But Jinmu is essentially just another part of the Red Heaven Triad... and the Thousand Hands."
"Triad?" said Dane.
"Chinese organized crime," said Abby. "Think Yakuza or the Mafia, but instead with a long Chinese history."
"So Jinmu wants to take over Avalon's criminal activity?" said Dane.
"Jinmu will probably just happily build and profit," said Wong. "They are part of Red Heaven, but they are concerned with profit, giving aid to the main organization. But Red Heaven will move in and challenge local groups. But it's not crime that's my concern. It's the Thousand Hands."
Burning Monday: (Dane Monday 2) Page 5