"Go below Zad's Bar", Jorn had said, "and tell them that you are a friend of Ben's."
Unfortunately for Kain, those had been Jorn's last words, as the blood leaked out from his body over the cold, hard deck.
That last sliver of guidance had Kain crawling through a ventilation shaft, deep in the bowels of Bautzen. He didn't really know what he would find. He merely hoped he would like what he found.
Several uncomfortable and sweaty minutes later, Kain reached a hatch. Twisting his body around in the close confines, he levered his mag-tool against the hatch bolts. With a heave, the rusted old bolts twisted apart, and the maintenance hatch clanged to the floor below. Returning the tool to his belt, Kain edged towards the opening. Seeing no one in the dimly lit room below, he lowered himself down, landing with a thump on the floor.
Kain paused for a moment to gain his bearings. The corridor, lit by a few weak lamps, seemed to have more shadows than light. The place had a curious, uncomfortable smell of industrial lubricant and sterilising agents. A low rumble echoed throughout the place, evidence of the machinery active on higher decks.
He proceeded down the corridor briskly. He could not be caught by the guards in an off-limits zone.
At the end of the passageway, Kain reached a door locked by a keypad. Consulting his datapad, he pressed quickly at the glowing keys.
6-3-8-4-#
-DOOR.UNLOCKED
The door hissed open on pneumatics, and Kain stepped through the threshold. In the room before him was a plain metal desk with a single light-globe suspended above it. Behind the desk sat a bald man, wearing a dark coat. Kain could not quite make out his face in the gloom.
The man behind the desk looked up suddenly as the door slid shut. "Who," he spat, "are you?"
Kain paused in front of the desk and put the datapad back in his satchel. "Uh, I am Kain Finnegan. I am a friend of Ben's."
The man behind the desk shifted slightly. "Indeed? I have not spoken to Jorn in some time. He did not tell me there would be someone coming."
Kain hesitated, choosing his next words carefully. "Well, that would be because he... he is no longer with us."
The man considered Kain's implications for a moment. "In that case..." He raised his hand into the air. "Gregor..." Kain heard footsteps behind him and began to turn, but too late.
A sudden blow turned his world black.
* * *
"...think... coming around." Kain opened his eyes quickly, and then wished he hadn't. The back of his head hurt as if someone had dropped a building on it. He felt his arms and legs uncomfortably bound by thick cords to the chair he was sitting in. He groggily looked about and saw the bald man again.
"We shall now do this my way. You know, it is rather impolite to enter another man's office without permission." Kain's heart skipped a beat as he heard the distinctice click of a charging blaster behind his head. "If I were you, I would not make any sudden movements..."
Kain gulped. "Please! Don't kill me! I am here to join you people!"
