Working With the Enemy?

Inside Job

"Two weeks of construction went by smoothly. Got all the tarps up to keep most of the snow out. Started day one by working on the outskirts of the temple with a rundown storage shed. Sadly, I had to knock down the wooden frames of the structure and build a new one but the stone wall that acted as a casing and support was still usable. Originally I'd wanted to start with the main building, seeing as it's winter and the place doesn't have any suitable installation to regulate different temperatures. Would've been really nice for everyone inside to not have to sleep in six layers of clothing for warmth, but it's hard to work with eight pairs of eyes watching your every move."

A deep sigh escapes Rajah as she sets aside her work journal onto the floor-length table with floor plans, room concepts, list of parts needing to be ordered, and other important documents cluttering the tabletop. A food tray also sits atop all the clutter. There is a dining area located within the temple, but again, there's the uncomfortable atmosphere that lingers whenever she and the four monks are in the same room. Dojo thoughtfully brought all her meals to her room to avoid potential conflict, even if it was one-sided.

Stretching out stiff muscles, she checks the time on her phone to see it's a little after ten. No other light that she can see shines through the sliding screen doors. Quietly as she can,  Rajah collects the dirty dishes and makes her way towards the kitchen. All the while the chilled night air makes itself known.

"They may not like me much, but they can't argue with what needs to be done. Freezin half to death ain't no way to live." She states reaching down one handed to fix her wool socks.

It wasn't until she reached the kitchen and tried to turn on the water in the sink that realization of how bad the condition of this place is. The pipes made a horrible sound as it tried its best to get water out but nothing.

"That ain't good. If the pipes are frozen then we have a real problem on our hands."

Dishes set aside for later, Rajah returned to her room, bundled up, grabbed a flashlight, and headed outside. Winter is truly beautiful here. The moon hangs high in the clear sky and white dunes of snow littered the temple grounds, while more fell to the ground. It's ankle-deep as she makes my way to where Master Fung said the boiler resided. Getting there didn't take too long. It was a building unattached to the rest of the main structure, like the storage shed. The door was lacking a lock and was slightly off its hinges. Already a bad sign. Stepping inside was even worse, the tank had bits of ice forming all around it. 

"Hm, didn't even stand a chance in this condition. Poor thing put up a good fight but ol' Snow Miser's touch is just too much." halfhartedly she flicks off an ice shard.

Well..nothing to do but to do it. Other options were to wait until the morning and hope it doesn't get worse by a pipe bursting or start fixing things partway, but still hope everything holds out until morning.
Nope. Rajah wasn't going to risk it and she never left a job this serious done halfway. From experience back home, this was something that needed to be dealt with now. 

She tightens her gloves, ready for the long night ahead. "Best get started then."
———

"Good morning young ones. Did you sleep well?" Master Fung greets his students as they trudged into the dinning area for breakfast. A round of good mornings and small chatter fill the space as the temple occupants begin their day.

Rai is the first to notice that something seems off. "Hold up, aren't we missing someone?"

"Raimundo is right. Jack Spicer's very tall friend is not present?" Omi points out.

"I thought one of you was keeping an eye on them? Clay?!" Kimiko points an accusatory finger at the cowboy.

Clay puts his hands up defensively. "Nah don't look at me. Rai said he'd do it."

"I thought you called the first watch?!"

The four continue to argue amongst themselves, trying to figure out who was supposed to be on watch. Master Fung subtly rolls his eyes at his students' antics. As long as they behaved, kept their shenanigans to a minimum, he wouldn't have to step in.

"Morning y'all. Apologies for being late." Rajah greets everyone, shaking off bits of snow flurry.

Master Fung motions for her to take a seat in the available space to his right. Food left untouched and warm. "Ah, Miss Rajah, a pleasant morning to you. It would seem you had a head start before us all, how is your work coming along?"

"To be honest, Master Fung, I didn't sleep much. Was in the kitchen last night trying to wash some dishes only to find the pipes struggling for dear life. Boiler was covered in ice."

"Oh my. I hadn't realized it was in such a poor state." The elder monk states, refilling his tea and pouring Rajah a cup as well. He also took notice of the state her hands were in, slight coloration but nothing too alarming.

"Wait, but the water was working this morning." Kimiko points out.

"Cuz I spent the night fixin it. Also patched up the building it was housed in also. Had a lot of wide cracks letting in cold air and snow."

"Remarkable. Though I cannot recommend skipping a night's rest to become a constant habit." Master Fung reprimanded.

"Only this once. Couldn't sleep knowing y'all wouldn't have any hot water. It's already cold here without adding other issues."

"Agreed. As a thank you, why not take the day off, rest, and I'll have one of the monks bring you some of our scrolls from the archives to look over."

"Well, thank you kindly."

"In the meantime, you four will clear out any debris left behind from the renovations."
———

As promised, scrolls detailing the temple's history and teachings were brought to her room. Master Fung also requested an examination to make sure that any long exposure from the cold didn't do any irreversible damage. Rajah thanked them for their time and hard work, promising to return everything in the same condition it was brought to her in.

Bundled in warm blankets, hot tea in hand, Rajah settles in for an afternoon of light reading.
———

Meanwhile, ankle deep in snow, the four elemental dragon warriors begrudgingly begin to work on cleaning any and all junk left over from the construction.

Raimundo huffed in irritation as he dropped another arm full of broken wood pieces into a wagon they found. "I'm not buying this whole good Samaritan act. Anyone that Jack deals with always has ulterior motives."

"Yeah, but Master Fung will have us clean the entire temple with toothbrushes if we try anything without evidence. Clay, didn't you say you knew them from somewhere?" Kimiko asked

Said cowboy rubbed the back of his neck trying to recall something from his memory. "I think so? It's weird, cuz I swore we dun cross paths before. She looks awfully familiar, but I can't for the life of me remember though."

"Well, while Clay tries to jog his memory, we have to come up with a plan to keep a close eye on her."

"...One of our tasks is to help them with renovations, right?" Rai asked.

"Yeah." Clay confirmed. "I get it, Rai! One of us should agree to help out and that way we can keep an eye on her, plus avoid punishment by Master Fung"

"That's not a bad idea. So, who's gonna be the mole?" Kimiko pounders.

Three sets of heads slowly turn to the only one of them who was more focused on cleaning than scheming.
Feeling eyes on him, Omi looks to his friends confused.

"Friends, is something the matter? Do I have something on my face?"