Later that morning, Ethan found himself waiting for Jerry outside the building that contained Acamas International's temporary office. It was an old, two story building with windows dotting the bare concrete exterior. The front lobby had large frosted windows and glass double doors, giving the place a slightly more modern look.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6YCEdlDAoC
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Ethan felt a gust of mild spring air blow across his face. Luckily, the weather was nice today, as it had been all over the place this week. He checked his watch again and when he looked up, he saw Jerry walking across the parking lot. The middle-aged salesman pushed his glasses up his nose as he arrived at a leisurely pace with a coffee and doughnut.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1jtgHKm8Wc
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"You're late," Ethan stated dryly.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpQL37AHYRK
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"No, you're early. I'm on time," Jerry replied, taking a sip of his coffee.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6fRscBqN1J
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Ethan ignored the comment, unwilling to start an argument when he was already feeling tired and irritable . He wanted another dose of his medication but couldn't risk pulling the bottle out of his bag here. It had been helping with the symptoms, but only so much and he was already far exceeding the recommended dosage. Unfortunately, Terran drugs simply weren't designed with Charax in mind and Trazinol was the best option available so he was forced to make do.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGxj86KxTK
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"Ready to go in there?" Ethan asked, gesturing towards the large glass double doors.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJWNHlMbQjU
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"Yeah," Jerry replied, walking towards the building.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqSxomW2qOC
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Ethan followed him into the lobby, which looked normal except for the odd furniture near the door. What he guessed were chairs, actually looked like giant oversized cushions with indents to sit in. They were all covered in polka dots and exclusively primary coloured, as if they purposefully needed to add to the existing decor clash. Further on, he could see the secretary at her desk in front of a long corridor.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGnIwbfzPXG
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Ethan walked over to speak to the lady at the desk. "Hello, we've got a meeting with Mr. Edbert from Acamas International at ten thirty."38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtMgrmDDOQS
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The woman typed something into the computer. "Mr. O'Leary and Mr. Harrow, is it?"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ95FDjPRCB
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"That's us," Ethan replied.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDVMwZ72Tyl
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"Good. If you'll wait in the lobby, Mr. Edbert will be right with you." The secretary smiled at them politely.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQQBkuBrXp2
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"Thank you," Ethan replied politely and the two men made their way towards the seating area near the entrance.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRIMIBb9qhu
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There's nothing wrong with normal chairs, Ethan thought as he sat down on the piece of furniture that looked most chair-like. He sunk down into the soft fabric, shifting to try to sit properly, getting the idea that he'd never be able to get comfortable in this thing. He looked over at Jerry, who seemed to be settling in just fine and was already on his phone. Ethan picked up on of the pamphlets scattered on the small table in front of him and flipped through it absentmindedly, not really interested in the material.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtxAwQQy6VJ
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI4C11qcegp
A few minutes later, the secretary left her desk. Ethan kept flipping through the pamphlets pages. Jerry kept his attention on his phone, pushing his glasses back up his nose every so often. The two salesman continued waiting.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgL1JAx39LV
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Ethan checked his watch, they'd been there for ten minutes. He noticed the secretary wasn't back yet. He also realized they were the only two people in the room. There were other businesses in the building, it seemed like there should be other people at least coming and going. He turned to Jerry, who still looked preoccupied. "Don't you think it's a little empty in here?"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU7PqNjMURY
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"Must have caught them on a coffee break," Jerry replied without looking up from his phone.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQOa7oPsDTj
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Ethan let the matter drop, ignoring the nagging feeling in the back of his mind. The room was still empty a few minutes later when he heard footsteps. He couldn't see anyone yet but it sounded like they were getting louder, coming towards them.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5pR5p2eBzO
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"Someone's coming," Ethan told Jerry.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡedpenxiW1q
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"Probably just the secretary," Jerry mumbled, still fixated on the mesmerizing electronic device.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2eMnlmzr5t
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Ethan got up to get a better look at who was coming around the corner. He saw two men, neither of them anyone he recognized. They were walking towards the two coworkers casually.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJEFV2WFlC
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That feeling was nagging at Ethan again, that there was something off about all this. He didn't like that the place was empty. He knew the heat was starting to mess with his head again, but he hadn't had a chance to sneak away and take another dose. He just couldn't figure out what was up with this place.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaHVzmZxIAm
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9l9yNrXFk7
Ethan spotted the muzzle of the gun too late and reacted too slowly. He felt the dart hit him as he ducked behind one of the oversized chairs. He desperately hoped the ridiculously thick cushion would stop a bullet.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBeuESSuubX
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Ethan took a deep breath and looked at the dart that had hit him. He fought down a wave of nausea at the sight of the foreign object embedded in his arm. He pulled it out quickly and let it drop on the ground with a tiny clatter. Although he didn't notice any effects at the moment, he had no clue how long it would be before he started to feel whatever was in there.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4wFbYFDTD9
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Ethan peeked around the chair to see two men approaching them at a leisurely pace. One large one and one of average build . Both in black. Both armed. He hid back behind his cover quickly.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRyJg02EZ68
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Ethan looked around for Jerry, only to find him already passed out cold on the floor a few feet away. He swore under his breath. They were after him, not Jerry, and he didn't have any chance of fighting them.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHLM3AZ1l8H
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Ethan needed to get out of there. The exit was close. He was starting to feel a little dizzy but decided he could make it anyways. He dashed towards the door.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS0Sz3yvljW
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Ethan easily made it the ten feet to the entrance. He pushed on the door. It wouldn't open. The light next to it was red. An electronic lock. He pushed again, harder.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡblAD48iqCX
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Ethan was trying to shove the door open when felt someone grab him from behind. He turned around quickly to punch his assailant. His attack was panicked and aimed low. The man was taken by surprise as Ethan hit him as hard as he could . His assailant grunted in pain from the blow to his stomach.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTrqOioxINI
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Ethan shoved his attacker back as he made a run for it. He made a beeline back the way the men had come in, to the corridor. He'd only gotten a few paces when the other one tackled him to the ground.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI3AmUwT5jF
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Ethan tried to scramble away but the larger man got a hold on him. He fought back but the drug from the dart was working against him, weakening him. He ignored the sensation and kept wrestling ineffectively with the attacker who had over fifty pounds on him.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ocW1Q4Tua
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It wasn't long before Ethan ended up on his stomach with the large man pressing him into the floor, the cool tile touching his forehead. Ethan was starting to notice the significant weakness in his muscles, on top of feeling the overwhelming urge to sleep. Still, he kept struggling, trying to get the man off of him, even as it seemed pointless.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcHSMtoUiYr
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The man holding him kept a tight hold on him. "Why isn't the stuff working? Shoot him again!"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzMMY4YTUlX
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"Quit whining. It'll work. This just means our intel was good," the other man responded calmly. "Try not to damage the goods too much."38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRAZm6Qak1R
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Ethan tried to keep up his struggle but the dart had done it's job. He could feel himself beginning to lose consciousness.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgEdcxbwSyf
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"If he'd gotten the good tranqs then we wouldn't have this problem," the man over him grumbled quietly, just loud enough for Ethan to hear.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk8I9VldjQZ
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Ethan felt something hard and small press into his back. He felt the sting of another dart and soon after, his vision finally went dark.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMB8KDDIUnR
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