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<blockquote data-quote="talien" data-source="post: 5098339" data-attributes="member: 3285">The Jaded Temple: PrologueCHICAGO, IL-- The temple looked harmless enough. It was located at the edge of the area of the city known as Chicago’s “New Chinatown.” The building was constructed of wood and stone; most of the structure was obscured from view by a ten-foot-high stone wall encircling the grounds. A clump of small, leafy trees blocked the temple from casually prying eyes that looked through the single wrought-iron gate in the wall. At night, the area just inside the perimeter wall was illuminated in spots, and human shadows could be seen moving inside the temple itself when a body passed before a lighted window. A lone guard patrolled the perimeter wall, his outline clearly discernible in the dim light. There were no other signs of movement outside the temple building.Hammer lowered the nightvision binoculars he requisitioned in a hurry from the Chicago SWAT team. Sprague had ordered the raid so quickly on the supposed Tiger Transit headquarters that the agents weren't given much time to prepare.&nbsp; &quot;One guard, from the looks of it.&nbsp; Caprice, you still know your way around a rifle?&quot;Caprice leaned next to him on the roof of the building across the street from the temple. He grinned and patted the sniper rifle slung over his shoulder.&nbsp; &quot;Sure, but won't that blow the place up?&quot;Hammer shook his head.&nbsp; &quot;It shouldn't, not out here.&nbsp; We fired several rounds in a Fumo Loco greenhouse – blew out the glass first.&nbsp; So long as there's air circulating we were okay.&quot;Guppy chimed in over the comm. &quot;It's inside that you have to worry about.&quot;&quot;Uh…&quot; Archive interrupted.&nbsp; &quot;Where's Jim-Bean?&quot;Hammer looked through the binoculars again.&nbsp; &quot;Son of a…&quot;A shadow that was undeniably Jim-Bean sauntered up to the gate.&nbsp; The soft glow of his lit cigarette marked his path.&quot;Looks like we are go,&quot; said Hammer.&nbsp; &quot;Everybody move!&quot;The other agents joined Jim-Bean on the other side of the now open gate.&nbsp; He was smiling, with one arm thrown around the guard's shoulders.&quot;Jimmy, what the hell is going on?&quot; demanded Hammer.The tcho-tcho smiled at Hammer with a mouth full of filed teeth.&nbsp; &quot;Hammer, meet my new friend Morris.&nbsp; Morris, meet Agent Hammer.&quot;Morris extended his hand.&nbsp; Hammer didn't take it. The tcho-tcho slowly withdrew his hand. &quot;Oh don't feel bad, Morris.&nbsp; Agent Hammer isn't the trusting sort like you and I are.&quot;&quot;What is going on?&quot; asked Guppy nervously, out of earshot.&nbsp; &quot;Did he hypnotize him?&quot;&quot;Mind control,&quot; whispered Archive.&nbsp; &quot;I had no idea he was this powerful.&quot;&quot;Did you even consider for one minute that you should have consulted with me first?&quot; snapped Hammer.&nbsp; &quot;There could be another guard.&nbsp; He could be faking it.&nbsp; There could—&quot;&quot;He's not faking it,&quot; said Jim-Bean coolly, removing his arm from the tcho-tcho. &quot;There are no other guards. And no, there aren't any alarms, not alarms that Morris knows of, anyway.&quot;Hammer's eyes narrowed.&nbsp; &quot;Did you just read my mind?&quot;&quot;Guys, guys,&quot; said Caprice.&nbsp; &quot;We've got a mission, remember?&quot;Hammer was very still.&nbsp; The other agents knew from experience that Hammer was only still when he was about to draw a weapon.&nbsp; &quot;What are we going to do with this idiot now?&quot;&quot;Oh that's easy,&quot; said Jim-Bean.&nbsp; &quot;Morris, take out your knife.&quot;The tcho-tcho hesitated for only a second.&nbsp; Then he drew a wicked-looking knife from its sheath at his belt.&quot;Jim-Bean…&quot; began Archive.&quot;Hold it up,&quot; commanded Jim-Bean.Morris held the knife up as if he were about to plunge it into someone.&nbsp; Or himself.&quot;Jimmy…&quot; snarled Hammer.&nbsp; &quot;You're pushing it with me. Tell him to put the knife down.&quot;&quot;What?&quot; Jim-Bean snorted.&nbsp; &quot;I was just going to ask him to give it to you.&nbsp; Give Agent Hammer the knife, would you Morris?&quot;Morris flipped the knife around and extended it handle first to Hammer.&nbsp; Hammer slapped it out of his hand and dragged the tcho-tcho into the darkness near one of the trees.&nbsp; Inside was an open-air courtyard, with trees lining a stone pathway and obscuring the view of most of the yard. The pathway branched into two paths, each ending in a set of stone steps leading up five feet to a loggia. Hammer cuffed Morris' wrist to it with a tie. &quot;Tell him to not move or make a sound,&quot; said Hammer.Jim-Bean chuckled.&nbsp; &quot;Man you're no fun at all.&quot;&quot;Maybe not,&quot; said Hammer.&nbsp; &quot;But I'm still a human being.&quot;&quot;What's that like?&quot;&nbsp; Jim-Bean continued his meandering journey into the courtyard.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="talien, post: 5098339, member: 3285"] [b]The Jaded Temple: Prologue[/b] CHICAGO, IL-- The temple looked harmless enough. It was located at the edge of the area of the city known as Chicago’s “New Chinatown.” The building was constructed of wood and stone; most of the structure was obscured from view by a ten-foot-high stone wall encircling the grounds. A clump of small, leafy trees blocked the temple from casually prying eyes that looked through the single wrought-iron gate in the wall. At night, the area just inside the perimeter wall was illuminated in spots, and human shadows could be seen moving inside the temple itself when a body passed before a lighted window. A lone guard patrolled the perimeter wall, his outline clearly discernible in the dim light. There were no other signs of movement outside the temple building. Hammer lowered the nightvision binoculars he requisitioned in a hurry from the Chicago SWAT team. Sprague had ordered the raid so quickly on the supposed Tiger Transit headquarters that the agents weren't given much time to prepare. "One guard, from the looks of it. Caprice, you still know your way around a rifle?" Caprice leaned next to him on the roof of the building across the street from the temple. He grinned and patted the sniper rifle slung over his shoulder. "Sure, but won't that blow the place up?" Hammer shook his head. "It shouldn't, not out here. We fired several rounds in a Fumo Loco greenhouse – blew out the glass first. So long as there's air circulating we were okay." Guppy chimed in over the comm. "It's inside that you have to worry about." "Uh…" Archive interrupted. "Where's Jim-Bean?" Hammer looked through the binoculars again. "Son of a…" A shadow that was undeniably Jim-Bean sauntered up to the gate. The soft glow of his lit cigarette marked his path. "Looks like we are go," said Hammer. "Everybody move!" The other agents joined Jim-Bean on the other side of the now open gate. He was smiling, with one arm thrown around the guard's shoulders. "Jimmy, what the hell is going on?" demanded Hammer. The tcho-tcho smiled at Hammer with a mouth full of filed teeth. "Hammer, meet my new friend Morris. Morris, meet Agent Hammer." Morris extended his hand. Hammer didn't take it. The tcho-tcho slowly withdrew his hand. "Oh don't feel bad, Morris. Agent Hammer isn't the trusting sort like you and I are." "What is going on?" asked Guppy nervously, out of earshot. "Did he hypnotize him?" "Mind control," whispered Archive. "I had no idea he was this powerful." "Did you even consider for one minute that you should have consulted with me first?" snapped Hammer. "There could be another guard. He could be faking it. There could—" "He's not faking it," said Jim-Bean coolly, removing his arm from the tcho-tcho. "There are no other guards. And no, there aren't any alarms, not alarms that Morris knows of, anyway." Hammer's eyes narrowed. "Did you just read my mind?" "Guys, guys," said Caprice. "We've got a mission, remember?" Hammer was very still. The other agents knew from experience that Hammer was only still when he was about to draw a weapon. "What are we going to do with this idiot now?" "Oh that's easy," said Jim-Bean. "Morris, take out your knife." The tcho-tcho hesitated for only a second. Then he drew a wicked-looking knife from its sheath at his belt. "Jim-Bean…" began Archive. "Hold it up," commanded Jim-Bean. Morris held the knife up as if he were about to plunge it into someone. Or himself. "Jimmy…" snarled Hammer. "You're pushing it with me. Tell him to put the knife down." "What?" Jim-Bean snorted. "I was just going to ask him to give it to you. Give Agent Hammer the knife, would you Morris?" Morris flipped the knife around and extended it handle first to Hammer. Hammer slapped it out of his hand and dragged the tcho-tcho into the darkness near one of the trees. Inside was an open-air courtyard, with trees lining a stone pathway and obscuring the view of most of the yard. The pathway branched into two paths, each ending in a set of stone steps leading up five feet to a loggia. Hammer cuffed Morris' wrist to it with a tie. "Tell him to not move or make a sound," said Hammer. Jim-Bean chuckled. "Man you're no fun at all." "Maybe not," said Hammer. "But I'm still a human being." "What's that like?" Jim-Bean continued his meandering journey into the courtyard. [/QUOTE]

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