Lucas slammed his head against the floor of the vehicle when it hit the bump. It woke him up. He kept blinking, rubbing his eyes and then slowly sat up.
He looked around trying to figure out where he was and what had happened.
The vehicle he was in was large, like the old transports. Some makeshift shelving and cages had been added to the sides, and the seats were two simple benches.
Four men sat up front, facing forward. No one turned around to notice him. They were all wearing the same uniforms as the reclamation company that worked for the Alexanders.
That's when he remembered what happened.
He was headed to an outside garden in the Alexander compound for a meeting with Fernando when one of the guards came by. He told Lucas that Fernando changed the meeting location to one of he shuttle bays and wanted him to escort Lucas there.
A shipment of historical artifacts had arrived and Fernando wanted their authenticity verified before he could pay for them.
It seemed a bit strange, but Lucas had no reason to doubt a guard in the Alexander army. Lucas was not one to doubt anyone but himself.
As he approached the shuttle bay he saw men in the reclamation uniforms working in the bay. It seemed logical to see them there. But almost the very second he stepped inside the bay area, he was hit him from behind with a sonic sleeper.
All he could do now was watch and wait. With a sleeper, he could have been out for hours or days. He could be anywhere on the planet. There was no way to know.
Lucas pulled his knees up to his chest, and hugged them. It was cold in the vehicle, but that wasn't the only reason. He was alone.
Finally it stopped moving and three of the men got out. The fourth turned around and looked at Lucas, but said nothing. Then the back doors opened. One of the men took Lucas by the arm and guided him out.
The first thing he noticed was the smell. The air was cold and stale.
Then he looked around and could see down a long hallway until it disappeared around a corner. The floors, walls and ceiling looked like stone. Two of the men lead the way, and the other two just stared at Lucas until he followed. He could tell with the first step that he wasn’t walking on stone. The floor had some give to it.
They headed down the hallway and around the corner where Lucas could see a doorway at the end.
Still no one spoke to him.
The men opened the hatchway door at the end of the hall, and everyone stepped into a small room. Once the hallway was sealed off, the men opened a second door on the opposite wall. The air hissed through the hatchway. The air smelled different, better. And Lucas could feel the change in pressure. It forced him to step back and one of the men immediately pushed him back.
Everyone stepped through the second hatchway and into a large room with metal walls and no windows. As soon as Lucas crossed the threshold he could see group of men and women standing in one corner. The man standing in front of the group looked familiar, but Lucas couldn’t place him at first.
He rubbed his eyes again, and took a long look. Then it hit him. He thought he was looking at the leader of the Machinists the Alexanders executed all those years ago. But it couldn’t be him. That man died. Lucas was sure of it.
Then he spoke.
“My name is Trent
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