Chapter 26: Schrodinger's Gunsmith
Booker opened his eyes and scanned the interrogation room in this alternate universe. No bloodstains adorned the floor and no corpse lay in the chair. Lying on the table were all manners of crimson guns, most of them hastily assembled. The din of shouting from the cells above rattled through his brain.
Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Just then, Rosalind beckoned, and Booker followed her up. As they left, he grimaced at the sight of the prisoners rattling at the bars of their cells, each packed with two, three, even four persons. Curses in various European languages echoed in his ears as the two proceeded out of the jail and eventually the Good Time Club. The only difference that Booker seemed to notice was that red cloth lay willy-nilly in the rooms and corridors of the club.
After going through a similarly decorated Finkton, Booker and Rosalind entered Chen Lin's shop. This time, there was no machinery. As they ascended the steps, something caught Booker's eye.
"Rosalind?"
"What is it?"
Booker turned and pointed. The statue of Buddha was missing. In its stead was one of Comstock. Once they reached the top of the stairs, another scene greeted them. Chen Lin was pacing the floor while a white woman watched in horror.
"Missus Lin, I presume?" Booker asked.
The woman nodded.
"My name is DeWitt-"
"Something is very wrong here, Mister DeWitt. My husband's complaining about noise-"
Rosalind raised an eyebrow.
"Come see for yourself." Missus Lin demanded.
Suddenly, Chen Lin turned around. Booker's eyes went as wide as saucers as he saw the flickering phantasmagoria that was the gunsmith.
"Can't hear you over this din!" Chen Lin shouted.
Out of her eye, Rosalind noticed something about Chen Lin. She tapped Booker's shoulder and directed his gaze toward the man's face. Booker's skin went pale when he noticed that Chen Lin's nose was bleeding profusely.
"The mind of the subject will desperately struggle to create memories where there are none." Rosalind murmured.
"Help Chen for me!" Missus Lin ordered.
Booker and Rosalind nodded and left. Once outside, Booker turned to Rosalind.
"What the hell just happened?" he asked.
"Chen Lin being dead in the first universe and being alive in the second has had the nasty side effect of creating conflicting memories, hence the nosebleed."
"So his brain's discombobulated because he remembers both being dead and alive?"
Rosalind nodded.
"Maybe if we gave him his tools, we'd get him functioning again."
"If we knew where the tools were-"
Booker looked down and grabbed a piece of paper from the street.
"Search and seizure warrant."
Rosalind examined the warrant.
"Tools used by the suspected Vox Populi gunsmith known as Chen Lin. Once seized, take to impound at police station in Lower Finkton." she read.
"Then that's where we're headed." Booker replied