Alien: Isolation

Chapter Nine: Kuhlman

The door slid upward as she approached, revealing a downward staircase, which led Ripley into a four-way corridor junction. At least this part of Sevastopol was well-illuminated, allowing her to see everything around her, not that there was much for her to see at the moment. To the left was an elevator with a red indicator light above it, meaning that it was either broken or locked down, there was some kind of security booth up ahead, although there was no one inside, and to the right was another door... that slid open almost instantly after she looked at it.

"You!" A voice exclaimed over the intercom. "You there! Come in, quickly!"

Well, at least it wasn't another Working Joe, since they all shared that deep, empty voice, and the crazy people around didn't seem too keen on talking to people, so this appeared to be her best bet. Rushing through the door, Ripley now found herself inside some kind of waiting room, where it looked like there had once been lots of people... who must've left in a hurry to leave so much trash and belongings behind. There was also a reception office, where a nervous looking man was sitting at the desk.

"I'm Kuhlman." He said when she approached the window. "Dr. Kuhlman; I'm so happy to see... anyone at all."

"You're a doctor?!" She exclaimed hopefully. "My friend is hurt... she's at the Transit Hub just outside the lower levels... do you have medical supplies, or a trauma kit in there with you?"

Her hopes were dashed a little when he informed her that he did not, and a little more so when he said that there was nothing of that sort on this level. Apparently everything had been moved downstairs to the hospital dispensary, but the only way down there was the elevator she had passed by a moment ago, and it was locked down so that only one of San Cristobal's executives could open it in case of emergency.

"That is the dumbest crap I have ever heard." Ripley said angrily. "So how are we supposed to get down there, then?"

"Dr. Morley had the keycard." Kuhlman explained. "He was up here, but then he took the transit car over to Communications in the next tower... and hasn't come back yet. The only thing I can think of is that there might be a spare in his office. Just head through the next door; it's all the way at the end, and once you've got the key we'll go down to the lower levels together."

He pressed a button on his console, causing the door at the far end of the waiting room to slide open, and apparently Dr. Kuhlman was content to wait there while she went to find the key. Letting out an angry huff as she turned toward the door, part of her wanted to smack him for the way he was acting. Wasn't there some kind of sacred man-rule or something about them being having to act brave and protective when a woman was around? Oh well, at least her task was an easy one this time.

Past the next door there was a very long hallway, and judging by the painted signs on the walls, this area of the hospital looked like it had once been some kind of psychiatric ward, which would explain the need to be able to lock it down in a hurry so that dangerous patients couldn't escape. The hallway took several turns, past observation rooms, patient lounges, and there were even a few padded isolation cells... probably for if the worst patients got too crazy. Sure, that thought was a little insensitive, considering where she was, but it wasn't like anyone was around to hear what she was thinking... okay, now that thought was just weird.

Finally reaching the end of the corridor, the door slid open, and sure enough, she found herself inside of Morley's office. The good doctor was nowhere to be found, but the good news was that Kuhlman was right about a second key being left in the office. Unfortunately, it was locked behind a security glass, and Ripley didn't know the code to open it. The computer terminal on the desk was password locked as well, but maybe she wouldn't need it. Taking the maintenance jack, and swinging it at the glass as hard as she could, the transparent plate didn't break or even crack... but it shook a bit as if it had come loose.