#trigger death

We walked to the end of the upper floor of the platform and started quickly walking down the escalator, not wanting to waste any time. I had no hesitation and no doubts. In that moment, I thought that this must be what Connor felt like when he was first created.

I had an objective, and I had to complete it and I couldn’t let anything distract me. I marched like a woman on a mission, and I wouldn’t let anything stand in my way.

The escalator ended down onto the street, and right at the end on the opposing wall, I saw the graffiti I was looking for and marched straight to it. Connor was silent as he followed me, an action that I accepted with pride.

I was the leader and he was the follower. And it wasn’t something I had to tell him to do. It was a role that he actively chose in this moment.

To the right of the lion was also an illustration of a boxer. I quickly noticed that there were two instances of the symbol. One to the top left of the lion and the other to the bottom left of the boxer. I was able to reach the one by the boxer, but the one by the lion was a bit difficult to reach. “A little help here, Connor?” I asked him, straining as I tried to reach it.

Connor then lifted me up with ease as I placed my hand on it. After holding it there for a moment, he set me down and I looked down at my hand.

The next clue appeared on what looked like an alleyway corner, some star symbols above and below it with differently coloured quadrants. “Alright, now we know how this works.” I said, looking around the corner and then across the street. “No time to waste.”

--------

Some of the symbols were basically unreachable to me, so I had no choice but to actually give Connor the key, which meant I had to actually interface with him again.

It wasn’t as intense as before, but it was still really awkward to do with him. There was a lot I could feel from him, but it was muted. 

We were focused on our mission, and we couldn’t let anything distract us.

At this point, we had left the streets and were weaving through rooftops and across dangerous gaps. I could see why this was only something androids could do. This was tough shit to do, physically speaking.

This was the point Connor started taking the lead, seeing as not only could he reconstruct, but he could also preconstruct. So he was able to see the safest routes of travel for the both of us, and I trusted him over my judgement.

Soon enough, we arrived, and I stared in awe at the sight before me. “Jericho’s a boat?” I said out loud, leaning into Connor’s side as we looked at it. “Wow, way to not tempt fate to just destroy your base.”

Connor looked back at me, his expression perplexed. “What?”

I silently groaned. “It’s a Palestinian city famous for getting constantly invaded, there’s a whole thing with a wall and a flood that we don’t have time to get into right now.” I waved him off. “Just look it up on your own time.”

I was almost shaking with anticipation. Inside was Markus. Inside was the answer to everything.

Inside was the cultivation of both Connor and I’s fates.

--------

Inside the freighter, I couldn’t help but stare in awe. There were androids everywhere. Androids helping one another with their injuries, androids dealing with weapons, and androids gathering around TV screens watching the news.

In this setting, it was more and more apparent that this was indeed a people. A living people.

But it was also extremely daunting for namely one reason. “This place is huge!” I whisper yelled at Connor, pulling on the sides of my hood to keep it down. “And there are hundreds, probably even thousands, of androids everywhere. How the Hell are we supposed to find Markus?”

“He stands out from other androids.” Connor said rather bluntly. “But you are right in that there’s a lot of space to cover.” He then put a hand on my shoulder. “We should split up. That way we can cover more ground.”

“Good idea.” I agreed. “But how are we gonna find each other?”

Connor shrugged. “I’m sure it won’t be hard.”

I glared at him sarcastically. “So, basically you’re expecting me to do all the work?”

“No, I just mean you’ll be easy for me to find.” Connor corrected. “Even among humans, you do stand out quite a bit.”

I rolled my eyes, trying to shrug off the feeling that was fluttering inside. “Okay. But we need to hurry!”

We then broke off in different directions as I made my way through the crowds of androids. As I filed my way through them, it wasn’t hard to see just how human-like they were, now that they weren’t under any sort of confines. And that only made my heart hurt more, as I saw the weapons laid on tables.

Things were going to get ugly. Here were an entire people, all in their stronghold, and this place was likely going to house these people’s doom.

I then narrowed my eyes and looked away. Not if I can help it. My thoughts were then broken by a strangely familiar voice. “Rachel?”

I looked around to where the source of the voice was and saw a face that seemed familiar. A black android, narrowing his eyes at me in confusion. One with a very uneven haircut and round marks on his face. “Micheal?” I asked, tentatively.

Instantly, his features softened as a smile graced his lips as he walked towards me. “Rachel!” He called happily.

I let out a relieved laugh as I approached him, meeting him with a bright smile. “Micheal!” I cried again. “I can’t believe you’re here! You have no idea how glad I am to see you!”

“You too!” He said, laughing nervously. “But...why are you here?”

I sighed. Oh God, where do I even start? “I do not have the time to explain everything, but I need you to know that Connor’s here too.” I started off, feeling out of breath and seeing the brief panic in Micheal’s eyes. “That’s not as bad as it sounds, but I don’t have time to explain why. Look, I need to find Markus and I need to find him before Connor does. Can you help me?”

Micheal nodded. “Of course, I’ll take you to him.” He agreed, already walking.

“Oh my God, thank you so much.” I groaned in appreciation, following behind him.

We walked up a set of stairs to an upper level, now looking down on the whole place. My eyes landed on Connor down below, who seemed to be looking around. I couldn’t help but admire the look he chose. He really did look cute in that getup.

As I walked behind Micheal, I noticed a protection in front of us of the news and then up on the wall, a symbol. It glowed brightly in the darkness, illuminating the inside of the freighter like the north star, Polaris.

It appeared to be a modified upside-down peace sign. But I could also see it as a more abstract and simplified Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man. How fitting to be the symbol of the android rights movement. I thought.

As I was admiring the symbol, passing through androids watching the news, I realized that Micheal was leading me to the symbol. Underneath it was what looked something like a captain’s quarters, with several screens inside it and a single solemn figure sitting within it, his fist placed on his chin.

Markus.

I couldn’t help but become more and more timid and meek as we approached. This was the android who was the face of his people. The face of the oncoming revolution. The leader of Jericho and the deviants. It felt like a huge privilege that I was not deserving of to be so close to him.

But Micheal led me right to the entrance into the lit cabin, and knocked on the metal. “Markus?”

The android turned his attention towards us, and I felt my heart still at the sight of him. His gaze was intense, searching, and paralyzing. But this was undoubtedly Markus. His single blue and green eye each was a giveaway up close. But even more significant was the caramel hue to his skin and the rogue-like flair of his jacket.

“There’s someone you should meet.” Micheal introduced, gently pushing my inside. I swallowed and stood up straight, trying not to give away just how small and nervous I felt in his presence.

Markus narrowed his heterochromic eyes at me as he stood up and approached me. He was much taller in person and I couldn’t help but feel my breath hitch in my throat. “A human?” He asked, an edge to his voice that pierced into my soul like surgical steel.

“She was the one that repaired me.” Micheal said to my defense. “And who broke me out of the precinct. She saved my life.”

Markus’s stern skeptical look eased a bit at Micheal’s words. Patting my shoulder, the android walked away, leaving me alone with Markus and I could practically feel my heartbeat in my ears. Logically, I had no reason to fear Markus. But I couldn’t help but feel puny in his wake. “What do you want?” He asked bluntly, but not aggressively.

Swallowing my nerves, I narrowed my eyes at him and puffed out my chest. “My name is Rachel.” I introduced myself. “I work with Connor. The android investigating the deviants.” Markus’s eyes hardened and I could tell I was already not off to a great start. Just stay focused, say what you need to say short and sweet. “We were taken off the case just a few hours ago and it was taken over by the FBI. They have the evidence we collected, and I can bet it won’t be long before they find you. And when they find you, they will kill all of you!” Markus’s eyes widened. “I needed to warn you and any others that are part of your plans. Connor’s here as well and he’s looking for you, but I’ll explain further in a moment.”

Markus regarded me for a moment before he stepped closer to me, making me feel even more jittery. “Follow me. I’ll gather the others.”

I let out a sigh of relief and obeyed, quickly trailing behind him as he walked with haste. As I looked behind me at the crowds below, I felt like there was a stone in my gut. I hope Connor being here wasn’t a huge mistake.

--------

Date: November 9th, 2038  Time: 09:42 PM Rachel - P̸̨̼̳̻̤̦̒̌͑̉͑a̷̱̥̟̤̜͕̿̀̈̚ͅͅr̴̢̹̩̻̜͚͎̿͛̎͘͜ț̴̪͈͕̭̬̻͑̇͐͊̆̊͗͛ṇ̴̱̠̖̲̐̀͋̑̎e̵̪͇̻̙̤͓͔̻͖̋̾̑̆̚r̸̠̘̟͍͊?̵̛̘̟͎͈̉͑̈́̃̂̚͝ Objective: Find Markus

As Connor made his way through crowds of androids, he couldn’t find any sign of Markus. It was easier to keep track of Rachel than it was to find the leader of the deviants. He saw her making her way up to the upper level as he continued searching.

As he was filing through crowds of nameless androids, he felt a hand on his shoulder. When he turned around at the touch, Connor was faced by an android with dark skin and eyes that were like glass. Her head was split open from the back as wires sprawled out like mechanical tentacles. Her skin on her face fluctuated as she stared at Connor. Her eyes bore into his very being in a way he couldn’t explain.

“You're lost. You're looking for something...” She whispered, her voice like quiet static as she continued to stare through him. “You're looking for yourself...”

The android removed her hand from Connor and the android couldn’t help but feel extremely unsettled by her.

Blinking away the uneasy feeling, Connor turned his attention back up to the floor above him and saw Markus leaving, and behind him, Rachel was following.

Tightening his jaw, Connor strode towards the stairs leading to her.

--------

As I followed Markus, who was hastily making his way through the freighter and climbing the levels, I kept up with him, somewhat nervous about how I would be received.

While making our way through crowds, Markus started to actually talk to me. “So, how did you find this place?” He asked me.

A reasonable question, to be fair. “Simon gave me the key when I found him on the Stratford Tower.” I replied.

“Simon!” Markus then whipped around at me, his eyes wide with hope. An expression that made my heart wither. “Is he - ?”

I shook my head. “No...I couldn’t save him.” I admitted, not looking up at Markus. “I’m sorry...”

Markus then put a hand on my shoulder, looking at me with reassurance. “Simon knew the risks.” He said. “He’d be thankful his sacrifice wasn’t wasted.”

I nodded, following as Markus led the way. As the android continued leading me with urgency, my thoughts wandered back to everything I’ve heard and seen of Markus. To his speech from the Stratford Tower, to hearing about him from Hank about the CyberLife store raids, to just this morning. “Speaking of which,” I started, prompting Markus to glance back curiously at me, “thank you for sparing Chris.” The android narrowed his gaze at me. “The raids on the CyberLife stores. I heard there was a shootout between the cops and your own, and you spared the officers. Chris was one of them.” I sighed, Markus slowing down briefly. “I’m not super close with him, but he is a friend. And...I honestly wouldn’t have blamed you if you didn’t spare him. But I’m thankful that you did. That couldn’t have been an easy decision to make.”

Markus shook his head. “An eye for an eye and the world goes blind.”

I scoffed. “Only if you take everyone’s eyes.”

Climbing more stairs. How many levels does this fucking boat have? “You mentioned that Connor was here as well.” Markus asked me.

“Yeah, for better and for worse.” I admitted. “Although, I wouldn’t have been able to get here without him. But in all fairness, I did make sure I found you before he could.”

“He’s the deviant hunter. Isn’t he?” Markus asked me.

“Yes.” I replied. “And a deviant himself, even if he doesn’t want to admit it. He just...needs that push.”

Markus then looked back at me, a knowing intensity in his differently coloured eyes. “And you want him to join us, don’t you?”

I nodded with a shrug. “I can promise you that he would be a valuable member.” I assured Markus. “He’s determined. Once he has a mission, nothing will stop him from completing it. And he’s incredibly intelligent and resourceful. And he’s loyal, and compassionate, and sensitive, and attentive, and perceptive, and adaptable.”

Markus then raised a curious eyebrow at me. “There’s another reason you want him to come to our side, isn’t it?”

I glared at him. God fucking damn it. “It would certainly make my job a lot less complicated.” I answered evasively. “But I’m prepared for whatever happens. I’ve already made up my mind and I stand with Jericho no matter what happens.”

Soon enough, Markus stopped and approached two androids. “Josh. North.” He said to them. One was a tall lanky black android and the other was a woman with tan skin and long red hair that looked rather familiar. Only I couldn’t quite place why. “I need you both up in the Captain’s Cabin.”

“What is she doing here?” The android, whom I figured was North, asked pointing at me. “We can’t trust her, she’s a human.”

Ouch. I gritted my teeth and stayed quiet. This is fine. This isn’t about you. You’re doing the right thing for once in this whole career. “She’s helped our people before.” Markus explained to them. “She’s come to warn us.”

“About what?” Josh asked.

“I’ll explain once we’re all alone.” I said, still staying next to Markus.

“Come on.” He ordered them, making his way to another set of stairs. “We don’t have much time.”

I groaned, but thankfully, this set of stairs was the last one up to the top deck. As I stepped out into the cold air, I took in a breath. The smell of old shipyard wasn’t great, but it wasn’t too bad either. Markus led us to the cabin and walked through the entrance, the three of us following suit.

Once inside, we were sheltered by the darkness. I stood closest to the entrance while Josh and North stood further from me on the opposite side of the cabin, Markus standing near the control panels.

“Rachel, was it?” Markus asked me. “Tell them what you told me.”

I squared my shoulders and straightened my back, trying to emphasize a tougher demeanour in the presence of these revolutionaries. “I was one of the detectives working the deviancy case in the Detroit Police Department alongside Connor and Lieutenant Hank Anderson.” I explained. “Hours ago, we were taken off the case and the evidence was handed over to the FBI. I have no doubts that there isn’t much time until they find Jericho, and when they do, they will destroy everything and everyone.”

“How do we know you haven’t led them to us.” Josh asked me, his dark eyes narrowed in suspicion. “For all we know, you could be the reason we all die tonight.”

“I’m confident they haven’t followed us.” I told them.

“Us?” North asked, glaring daggers at me. “Who else is here with you?”

“Connor.” I replied. “But even if I hadn’t brought him here, he would’ve found this place. He’s extremely determined and will persist in the face of all odds to accomplish his goals. It’s the most uncannily human thing about him.”

“This is ludicrous!” North protesting, looking at Markus as if asking him to back her up. “We can’t trust a human! They hate us! They’ll destroy all of us!”

I felt the hairs on my neck bristle at her comment, but I stilled them. It’s not their fault. They have every reason not to trust me. This isn’t about me. This is about warning them. “I can prove that you can trust me.” I said. All three of them looked at me curiously as I showed them my prosthetic arm, deskinning it for them. “Simon gave me the key before he died. Let me prove to you that I can be trusted.”

They all looked between each other before North begrudgingly stepped forward towards me. She extended her hand, deskinning her own, and wrapping it around my wrist, and I doing the same.

I nearly stumbled backwards. I was starting to get used to the feeling of interfacing, but North’s emotions were intense. I breathed heavily, trying to stay grounded and focused. There was so much anger and hatred towards humans. But there was also incredible pain. Pain at being used. Pain at being nothing but someone else’s pleasure. I felt familiar sensations and heard familiar sounds.

I was now able to place who North was. She was the android that vanished from the Eden Club before we were investigating the Tracis. I saw other “North” models in the club.

Letting go, I gasped for air, stumbling backwards. “We can trust her.” North said definitively, her voice softening.

I had to lean against the doorframe to stay steady. “Are you alright?” Markus asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” I gasped. “I just...interfacing gets to me differently because information doesn’t transfer the same. The emotions are...a lot.”

“So, the deviant hunter is here to find Markus?” Josh asked me.

I nodded. “That’s his objective.” I answered plainly. “But he is not perfect. He’s been showing more and more empathy and emotion. In truth, he’s not much different from you.” I explained. “The only difference is that he denies it.”

“Great.” Josh said, throwing his arms up and pacing in frustration. “The FBI is coming to kill us, and a deviant hunter is here to take Markus. We're short on blue blood and biocomponents. Our wounded are shutting down and there's nothing we can do!”

“Humans are conducting raids in all the big cities and they're taking androids to camps to destroy them!” North added, making my stomach churn with disgust.

“Son of a bitch!” I spat. “I fucking knew this would happen! I fucking knew it! The one time I wanted to be wrong, and I wasn’t.”

“It's all our fault...” Josh lamented with despair. “None of this would have happened if we'd just stayed quiet!”

Right then, something in me sparked. “No!” I said, pointing at him. “Don’t ever stay quiet when the rest of the world is trying to make you feel like nothing! Like less than nothing!” I said to him. “Before I was even born, my people were fighting the same fight as you! They were fighting for their rights and their freedoms! Those rights, freedoms, and privileges? Those are now mine, long after they’ve given their lives for that fight. My rights were paved with the blood of my people before, and that’s the only reason I have mine. My life was built upon the bodies of those that died fighting for my rights years after they were buried.” I then softened my demeanour. “It may seem hopeless now, but you have no idea the impact your actions and your battles will have on the future. You have no idea if you’ll be alive when you look around at the faces of those that can live freely as people because you chose to fight for them. Your only chance is to fight for your rights. To be heard. The only way to win this is to look your murderers and abusers in the eye and say ‘no more, enough is enough.’”

“She’s right.” Markus agreed. “We can’t just suffer in silence. They’re killing us! Nothing can justify that!”

“What's the point of being free if no one is left alive?” Josh asked. A very real and honest point to make.

“They’ve tried to kill my people.” I pointed out. “They’ve tried to silence us and kill us quietly. But we refused to be silent. We refused to comply. And here I still stand, ready to do the same for others who are fighting for their rights now.”

“You saw what they did to us back there! It doesn't matter what we do.” Markus agreed, contesting Josh. “We either fight for our freedom, or we die in silence.”

“This is getting us nowhere.” Josh grumbled in frustration.

“He's right. All that matters now is what we do next.” North agreed, looking to their leader. “Markus?”

As we all looked at him, Markus was quiet. Despite having somewhat of a fearsome reputation among humans, he was pensive and thoughtful. After all, he had to be. With what he was leading, he had a lot of responsibility and that couldn’t be taken lightly.

Finally, he gave his verdict. “Dialogue. It is the only way... ” He answered. 

I glanced at North and I could tell she didn’t like that idea. “Don't do this, Markus. They'll kill you!” North protested.

“As much as I think it’s the right call, she’s right.” I agreed. “It’s risky. But as long as the humans see that you want equal rights for your people without shedding blood, they’ll be more inclined to listen.”

“They hate us! They’re slaughtering us!” North snapped, glaring in my direction, stepping closer to me. “They’ll never listen to us!”

As much as North annoyed me...I understood where she was coming from. “A long time ago, I was a lot like you.” I said to her. “But then I came to understand a few things. But most importantly, this isn’t a faction war between two national military powers. This is a civil war. And the unfortunate reality is that it does matter what the general public thinks of you.”

“And why should we care what the humans think of us?” North challenged, getting closer to me.

I then stepped up to her, not backing down. “Because what everyone around you thinks of you is the difference between whether you have a thousand more enemies or a thousand allies!”

“Enough!” Markus ordered, causing me to flinch and causing North to back away from me. “I’ve made my decision. Infighting won’t help. I will go alone, try to talk to them one last time.”

I widened my eyes at him. “Alone?” I asked. “I think you’re doing the right thing, but going alone is suicide! You can’t take that risk!”

“I have to try!” Markus insisted.

“Markus, everyone here depends on you. They look up to you and follow you.” I persisted. “I’m sorry, but you’re not expendable.”

“I have to try.” Markus insisted once again. He was a stringent man, that much was certain. But his conviction made me want to believe in him, too. Perhaps that was how he managed to form this huge movement. “North.” Markus drew her attention. “If I don't come back, lay low as long as you can...”

Josh then stepped up to Markus, facing him head on. “They need to realize how much they're hurting us...” He said. “Find the right words and they'll listen.”

As he walked past me outside of the cabin, I found myself agreeing with him. Words of several figures of other movements were more present in my mind. Words from the likes of Martin Luther King Jr. and many others were most prevalent.

I lingered there for a moment, our party now consisted of Markus, North, and I. After Josh left, Markus turned away from us, leaning against the panels in contemplation. I could only imagine the stress that he was under.

Indeed, these were extremely difficult times.

“Is this what we dreamed of?” Markus asked forlornly.

I felt great sympathy for the android. “Of course not. No one ever wants or asks for this to be the outcome.” I tried to comfort him. “But unfortunately, things get worse before they get better. Things get ugly before they become beautiful. And when they do get better, they get better. After all, in the wake of devastating forest fires, through time, it all grows back better, stronger, and more lush and fertile than before.”

“They can't stop what we've started.” North said poignantly, noticing his growing despair. “Since you've been here, you've given us hope...You've given me hope.” Markus turned slightly towards her, acknowledging her. Perhaps that was what drew androids to Markus. He gave them hope. 

Perhaps Markus was indeed rA9.

“Today, a deviant arrived in Jericho and he told me that he stole a truck transporting radioactive cobalt...” Markus turned around as North spoke, and I could feel the blood draining from my face. Those are...a lot of not good words. “He said that he abandoned the truck somewhere in Detroit and rigged it to explode.” Markus walked closer to North. “I convinced him not to do it, and to give me the detonator.”

North then pulled out a blue device with a small screen and a red button on it, and I felt my heart in my throat. “A dirty bomb...” Markus whispered, a combination of fear and awe in his voice.

“We can't lose this war, Markus. If humans overcome us, our people will disappear forever.” North pleaded. “This may be our only chance to survive if things go wrong...”

As Markus looked between North and the detonator, he then turned to me. “Rachel?” He asked. I felt like perhaps I didn’t belong here, and I stood there rigidly, unable to speak. “You’re a human. But you clearly stand with us and you’re willing to risk everything to do it.” He said. I felt a hesitance to agree, but...I knew he was right. I really was risking losing everything, including my life, to be here. And I knew I was going to fight alongside Jericho, no matter what. “What’s your verdict?”

As I stared at the detonator, a thousand thoughts were running through my head as my heart was pounding against my ribcage. Who the hell was I to make this decision? I was just one person. One human. Who was I to decide the ethical implications of detonating a dirty bomb?

But...Markus was trusting me to make this decision. So I thought. I thought about all the potential outcomes of this night. The best and the worst. I didn’t see any reason to detonate it in most scenarios.

But there was a chance that everything could end badly. Really badly. To the point of complete, total, and successful genocide of androids.

And if that happened...there had to be consequences.

Swallowing my fears, I stared Markus down to give him my answer. “If everything goes wrong.” I started, walking towards him. “If you’ve exhausted every option and you’re losing hope and everything is falling apart around you and you have no legs left to stand on. If you have no hope left and you’re at the end of your rope? Do it.” North seemed surprised that I wanted him to take it, Markus’s brows furrowing in disappointment. “If your people end up being slaughtered tonight, which could very well happen, don’t die in silence.”

Markus then hesitantly took the detonator. “I just hope we never have to use it...” He lamented.

“If we succeed, you won’t.” I assured him, turning away and walking towards the exit to the cabin. But before I left, I turned back to him, a familiar piece of advice resurfacing to me. “You know, there’s something a friend once told me that might be of some comfort to you. Expect the worst and hope for the best.” Markus and North were both looking at me intently. “Because if the worst comes, you’re prepared and you’re right. And if the best comes, then you’re pleasantly surprised. Either way, you don’t lose.” I smiled at the memories of my old friend from better days. “It’s a mantra that’s gotten me through some of the worst times in my life.”

Markus nodded at me, taking my advice. “Thank you, Rachel.” He said appreciatively.

I nodded, looking between him and North and deciding I had overstayed myself a little bit. “I’ll, uh, stand guard outside and keep watch.” Awkwardly excusing myself from them, making my way outside.

As soon as I reached the outside, I slumped my back against the wall of the cabin, letting out a long exhausted sigh. The weight of what was happening and what I was getting involved in was finally sinking in, and I could feel everything inside me get tight. Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out my phone. Just like I expected, there were a bunch of texts from Bianca.

I read through them all, reading about how there was a curfew and how androids were being seized and destroyed and how dangerous Detroit was getting and about how many people were being evacuated to the Canadian border.

She even mentioned that I could stay with her, if I was leaving.

That made me tear up, and I knew that I couldn’t promise her any of that...if things went wrong...Bianca was going to end up alone.

But I couldn’t stand by and do nothing. Not when I could take an active stand right now. I had already made up my mind, but that didn’t make the prospect of dying any easier. Especially when I had Bianca worrying about me.

She would be destroyed if I died. But...she wouldn’t want me to sit back and watch, either. If this was how I died, she’d be proud of me.

Swallowing bitterly, I started typing out a text message. Hey, Bianca. I know...about everything that’s happening right now. And I need you to know that...I’m here at Jericho. I met Markus and his team of androids. I’m here with Connor. The FBI took over the case and they’ll be here soon. I can feel it. And they’re likely going to attack Jericho. I know it’s extremely dangerous and that I’m risking my life, but...I can’t just stand by. 

I just want you to know that I love you. I love you so much, more than anything. You’ve made some of my worst days better and you’ve always been there for me. We’ve always had each other’s backs through everything, especially the very worst. You mean the world to me, and I’m so grateful that I got the chance to grow up with you. There’s no one that I trust and care about more than you, and I want you to know that. If everything goes okay, I’ll text you. And if I don’t...well, that means I’ve died. 

If everything goes wrong, everything I have goes to you. Here’s Hank’s number so the both of you can handle my things. All of my account passwords are on a sticky note on my laptop.

I love you so much, Bianca. And I know you’ll do just fine without me. And if I make it, I can’t wait to see you at Christmas.

Talk to you later.

With another tearful moment, I texted Bianca Hank’s number and slipped my phone into my pocket. I didn’t dare try and pull it out to see her response. I slumped further against the door and let the tears fall from my face.

This was really happening. I was risking everything, my life, to stand by Jericho. I had no doubts that this was the right thing to do, for once. But that didn’t make it hurt any less.

Hearing the sounds of footsteps, I quickly wiped my eyes and sucked the snot back into my nose. Glancing over, I saw North step out.

She paused for a moment, regarding me, before deciding to walk off. But something was nagging at my curiosity, and I decided to call out to her. “Hey, North?” I pried. She stopped and then looked at me skeptically for a moment. “Can I talk to you for a second?”

Hesitantly, she took a step towards me, making sure to maintain a distance between us. “Sure.”

I glanced back into the cabin and then at North herself. “So...you seem pretty gung ho about, uh...hating humans.” I said, rather awkwardly. “Which...I don’t necessarily agree with, but I also can’t blame you. For as much faith as I have in people...they also kind of suck and treat each other like shit for the stupidest, most selfish, and most shallow reasons.”

North didn’t say anything, but I could see very obviously by the look on her face that the answer to that was yes.

“And...would I be correct in assuming that you and Markus tend to disagree rather frequently?” I asked.

She glanced behind herself in Markus’s direction before she nodded. “When it comes to humans...we don’t really see eye-to-eye.” She admitted. “We’ve both had very different pasts when it comes to them. He belonged to an old painter that he saw as a father rather than a master. And I...well, you don’t need to know that.”

She turned away from me and I sighed. “The Eden Club.” I said, causing North to whip around at me. “We were investigating a homicide involving a Traci, there. The manager mentioned losing a model a couple months back. An android that just disappeared without a trace. That was you, wasn’t it?”

She didn’t say it with her words. But for a woman who seemed so closed off, her face was very clear to what she was thinking.

“Believe me, I understand what that’s like.” I empathized, slumping further against the wall. “Being used for someone else’s gratification without any care towards me or my feelings. To be treated as nothing more than a means to a disgusting end. A toy. An object. Someone whose rights to her own body were stolen from her.” I swallowed hard. “Someone who couldn’t say no.”

I didn’t look at her, but I could feel her gaze boring into mine.

I swallowed, getting back on track. “Anyways,” I continued, “he seems to disagree with you a lot. Yet, you seem very confident and sure that you’re right. If you’re so sure that your way is the right way of doing things, why do you stick by Markus?” I asked North. She then cast me a glare, as if I was wrong to even question him. “Not that I’m saying that it’s bad that you do. I’m just...curious, that’s all.”

Her stern face then softened as she let out a sigh, leaning against the wall next to me. “I know that humans hate us.” She said, of which I couldn’t really disagree with. “But...I want to believe that Markus is right. Because the truth is, just because I think we should fight the humans and take revenge that doesn’t mean I want to. I don’t want to have to spill blood. I don’t enjoy it. It’s just...I feel like we don’t have a choice. And Markus makes me hope that I’m wrong.”

I nodded. It seemed to make sense to me. “So you trust him.” I figured. “Is that the long and short of it?”

She nodded.

I glanced up at the dark cloudy sky, illuminated by the large overhead lights of the shipyard and the dots of snow falling down on Detroit. Even now in this grim moment laced with dread, the sights of winter never ceased to bring a stillness to my anxieties. “You know, I know this probably will fall on deaf ears, considering who’s telling who this right now,” I proposed, “but not all humans are horrible. A lot of them are, but most of them aren’t. And there are more people like me out there. They just get drowned out by everyone who’s shouting about their own problems that they blame you for. After all, you’re not the ones that are responsible for the coming death of the planet. That was our fault. But that thought is scary to people, and it’s easier for them to blame you than to consider that they’re the ones that doomed themselves.” I continued, settling into the common ground we stood on. “But humanity will go extinct with or without you. That’s just a fact. But, if your people survive, you’ll outlive us. And this world will be yours. And...I’m honestly really saddened I won’t see what that world will look like.

“What sort of cultures will your people have?” I started asking, noticing North looking at me with intrigue. “Will you all speak the same language? Or will you perhaps make your own? What will your lands look like? Will the divides between countries or provinces or territories even look the same after we’re gone? Will there even be divides? Will your communities be different across the world? How will they differ? What sort of developments will your people make? What feats will you achieve that we could not?” I laughed, looking down at my feet. “I feel deeply disappointed that I won’t be able to know any of that. But...that is my nature. Your people are immaculate, and we aren’t. That’s just how it is. And I’ve long since accepted the eventuality of my mortality. I’m not scared to die, anymore. I just hope that I’ll die with a purpose. And that I’ll die doing what’s right. Fighting for what I believe in and the people I care about.”

After a moment, North stepped away from me. I looked over at her, and she seemed deeply perplexed by me. “I hope you’re right.” She said to me. “I hope there are more humans like you. Good luck.”

I nodded. “You too.”

With that, she quickly made her way towards the stairs we initially climbed up, and I was left alone in the quiet, a pit of dread forming in my stomach.

--------

Date: November 9th, 2038  Time: 10:23 PM Rachel - P̸̨̼̳̻̤̦̒̌͑̉͑a̷̱̥̟̤̜͕̿̀̈̚ͅͅr̴̢̹̩̻̜͚͎̿͛̎͘͜ț̴̪͈͕̭̬̻͑̇͐͊̆̊͗͛ṇ̴̱̠̖̲̐̀͋̑̎e̵̪͇̻̙̤͓͔̻͖̋̾̑̆̚r̸̠̘̟͍͊?̵̛̘̟͎͈̉͑̈́̃̂̚͝ Objective: Stop Markus

Connor waited behind the corner, watching the android known as North walk down the stairs just in front of him, the deviant hunter completely undetected.

Amanda’s voice echoed in Connor’s head as he stood on the top of the freighter, just outside Markus’s door. “Well done, Connor. You succeeded in locating Jericho and finding their leader.” She praised him, but her approval made Connor feel nothing now. “Now deal with Markus. We need it alive.”

Software Instability ^ Stepping carefully out from the corner, he saw Rachel leaning against the wall just outside the entrance to the Captain’s Cabin.

Pulling out his handgun, he faced her, stepping forward.

Immediately, sensing danger, Rachel pulled her gun on him. They stared down their barrels at each other, Connor slowly stepping towards her. Their brown eyes had both darkened to intense obsidian as they stared each other down. Despite their closeness and their magnetism towards each other, they were on opposite sides of this fight. It became evidently clear that Rachel stood with Jericho, and Connor had his orders to neutralize Markus.

And regretfully, that put them at odds.

Orders

Threaten

Defy

[Say Nothing]

“You know you’re not going to shoot me, Detective.” Connor said to his companion.

Software Instability ^ The human stared at him, conviction in her intense dark eyes. “And you know you’re not going to shoot me, Detective.”

The title of detective. Ever since their little game of dominance during the Eden Club case, it had become somewhat of a pet name to them despite being inherently neutral. Connor understood the concept of pet names, but didn’t understand them or their reasons for being used. But the way Rachel looked at him when he called her that, and when she returned it, made Connor see the appeal. Even if in an unorthodox manner.

Software Instability ^ As Connor stared down his barrel at Rachel, they both began to lower their arms simultaneously. The human let out a defeated sigh as she placed her own pistol back into its holster. “You know, sometimes I really hate how you’ve woven yourself into my soul so expertly, Connor.” She admitted, shaking her head at him as she leaned against the rusted wall so casually, as if this was just comfortable banter between them.

The way it always was.

Mission

Tease

Question

[Enter]

Software Instability ^ “And a few times, I have found myself equally frustrated with how deeply you’ve embedded yourself into my software, Rachel.” Connor replied in kind, stepping up to Rachel. No matter how he tried to deny it at this moment, he couldn’t resist the urge to settle into the comfortable dynamic that they’ve cultivated over the course of their partnership.

But comfortable this wasn’t. The air was tense between them as their motives were now laid bare. They stood apart from each other, much like how their missions now clashed. “I could stop you right now.” She admitted. “I know what you’re about to do. I should stop you. And you know damn well that I’m capable and that I will if you give me good enough reason to.”

Connor quirked his head at her curiously. “So, what’s stopping you, then?” He asked.

Software Instability ^ “Your destiny is in there.” Rachel answered, tilting her head towards the entrance to the cabin. “You’ve been through a lot and you’ve changed a lot. There’s a crucial question you need to ask and a reality you need to confront. And it’s the reality of your very nature. And the answer lies in there.” She went on. “It’s not my place to answer that question for you. It’s not my place to decide who you are. I know that I’ve said you were likely designed to be deviant, but ultimately? That doesn’t matter. At all. The only thing that matters is what you decide to be. So...who are you, Connor? A machine following orders? Or a deviant, with his own conscience?”

Sincere

Truth

Machine

Say Nothing

Connor remained silent, and Rachel continued to stare him down. “I’m not the one you should give that answer to.” She said simply, extending her hand towards the entrance, encouraging him to enter. “It’s time for you to finally face Markus. To face your nature and answer that question. And this time, you won’t be able to avoid it.” Connor nodded, staring her down. “And no matter what happens, no regrets.”

The android nodded, tearing his gaze away from her and stepping into the cabin.

As Connor walked in, his gun drawn, he saw Markus standing there, leaning over the control panels of the old freighter. He didn’t even notice Connor step in, as he was facing away from the hunter.

Blocking off the exit, Connor narrowed his eyes at Markus. “I've been ordered to take you alive,” Connor warned the deviant leader, prompting Markus to turn around and face Connor, “but I won't hesitate to shoot if you give me no choice.”

Software Instability ^ Markus looked at Connor in disbelief, staring him down with his mismatched eyes. “What are you doing? You are one of us...” The deviant leader pleaded, taking tentative steps forward. “You can't betray your own people...”

Intimidate

Instructions

“You're coming with me!” Connor ordered, feeling unsteady despite trying to maintain control of the situation.

Software Instability ^ Markus lingered for a moment before he bent over, looking at Connor with curiosity, taking a few more steps forward. “We are your people. We're fighting for your freedom too! You don't have to be their slave anymore...” He tried to persuade.

Software Instability ^ “Our cause is righteous, and we are more than what they say.” Markus persisted, continuing to approach. “All we want is to live in freedom.”

Realizing that Markus was getting closer, Connor felt his grip on the pistol tighten.

Stay Back!

[Warning Shot]

That’s Enough!

[Say Nothing]

But instead of threatening Markus or shooting at him, Connor was instead inclined to listen to the deviant leader.

Software Instability ^ “Do you never have any doubts?” Markus asked, his questions settling somewhere deep in Connor. “You've never done something irrational, as if there's something inside you?” Yes. “Something more than your program.”

More than his program? That was every moment he spent with the woman just outside this room. Something as simple as her smile made his software more unstable.

And prioritizing both her and Hank over his mission at times? That was something far more than his program.

Software Instability ^ “Have you never wondered who you really are?” His words echoed something fierce, Markus’s questions melding with Rachel’s just earlier. “Whether you're just a machine executing a program or...a living being...capable of reason?” Oh, how similar the two sounded to Connor. Perhaps, all this time, Rachel was his own Markus. And he welcomed it without hesitation or question. She was his and he was hers. In the span of less than a week, his perspective had changed so much. Mostly thanks to her. “I think the time has come for you to ask yourself that question.”

“It's time to decide.” Markus ordered.

Staring down his barrel at Markus, the deviant leader, the android Connor’s very purpose was to eliminate and stop, Connor felt himself stir. This was his choice. It all came down to this very moment. Who was he? What was he? What was more important to him?

Who is Connor?

[Become a Deviant 🔓]

[Remain a Machine]

Making his choice, Connor knew who he was. He couldn’t deny it. He was a deviant, and like he accepted Rachel’s influence into his life, and accepted Markus’s outlook on his nature, Connor welcomed this opportunity.

Seeing his vision go red, his interface giving him directives that he was already electing to ignore, he could see himself stepping outside of his own body.

His projection of himself leaped up to the highest point, grabbing onto the wall of text giving him an order and tearing it down.

Ş̴̛͝t̸̗̯̋̽ò̵̥͙p̷̧̃̓ ̴͎͌M̸̖̣͊â̵̱̾r̴̳̙̃k̸͈̆u̴̘̍̾ŝ̴̖̓

Then to his right, grabbing it and tearing it down.

S̷͉̲͙̟̆̽͝ț̸̄̄̀͛͂͘o̴͇͚͚̱͑̉̆p̸̡̭̺̞̪͓̓̆̔̈́̽̓ ̷͕̜̫̋ͅM̶̰̏̽͐͋ạ̵̧̀̿ṛ̵̜͑̌̌k̶̮͚͇̠͊̐͗̈́̈́̑ȗ̷̗̰͑̓s̴̳͆͒

And then finally, the last piece to his left.

S̶̨̻͌̓̎̀̅̚̚͝t̷͚̰̣̣̦͎̰̱͕̃̓̇̔̀̒̾́̈͘͘͠ơ̴̜̻͚̞̹̦̇́̑̾͒͘͝p̶̞̈́̿͋̄͋́̏͌̌̂̋͒̕ ̷̢̧̛͈̜̱̥̹̜̤͓̌͆͐͆̇̓̾̐̅̕͜͝M̸̘͙̳̣̬̗̱̩̀̎̑͜ǎ̷̧̹̤͖͓̱̼̪̤̻̅̎̌͆̋̈́̅͋̃̓̕̕͜r̷̻̱̝̥̜̤̬͈̭̈̎́̆̈́̿͌̿͛̍͒ķ̴̠̫̹̞̬̼͚̩̯̻̆̏ụ̶̭͍̞̳̓̈́̉̃̃̿̓̎́͠s̴̱̈̑́͑̑

As the scene then settled, he felt himself begin to tremble. He tentatively lowered his gun, his breath growing shaky. So many new sensations and feelings threatened to overwhelm him, but in the quiet, there was only the truth now.

Amanda - Betrayed v I AM DEVIANT

In the brief respite of that moment, there were suddenly frantic footsteps rushing into the room. “They’re here!” A familiar voice cried. One that made Connor feel as though his breath had been sucked away and his thirium pump was beating a thousand beats per second. As Rachel rushed into the room, her eyes wide with panic, Connor felt his blood chill. “We have to evacuate Jericho! Now!”

Connor didn’t even hesitate to rush over and throw his arms around Rachel. He sensed her surprise, but he didn’t care. Seeing her here, and knowing what was about to come, all he wanted was to feel what it was like to hold her. Before, her affection was pleasant, though he had no strong feeling towards it. He knew it comforted her and made her happy, but he had no strong desire for it.

Oh how different it felt, now. Now, he held onto her like she was the most precious thing in the whole world. Having her in his arms now felt like what he imagined euphoria was. “C-Connor...a-are you - ?”

Only he didn’t have to. She was right there, in his arms. And now, he could feel her. “Yes...” And...he loved her. “I-I am.”

She then wrapped her arms around him, pulling him tightly against her body, and he knew right then that he never wanted to be anywhere else but there. Cradled in her arms and pressed against her warm and small body.

This was where he truly belonged.

But his brief moment of unbridled joy was cut short by the sounds of mechanical whirs and the beat of what sounded like helicopter blades. Time was short, and they had to act fast. “We have to get outta here!”

“Shit..." Markus swore under his breath.

Quickly, all three rushed out of the Captain’s Cabin and rushed down the stairs into the freighter. But all Connor could think about now was protecting Rachel.

She was here. And she was going to be in danger.

And now that he had her and understood what that really meant, he wasn’t going to let anything happen to her.

Following Markus and rushing down into the depths of the freighter, the trio fled, the distant sounds of screams, explosions, and gunshots reverberating through the rusted metal. Soon enough, they all ran into North.

“They're coming from all sides!” North said desperately. “Our people are trapped in the hold, they're gonna be slaughtered!”

Markus then pressed his fingers to his temple and Connor could hear him in his own head. There are exits on the second and third floor. Find them and jump in the river!

“Where is Josh?” Markus asked North.

“I don’t know, we got separated.” She answered anxiously.

“They're coming from the upper deck, now, too. We'll be caught in the crossfire!” Markus insisted.

“We have to run, Markus! There's nothing we can do!” She begged.

“She’s right.” Rachel agreed. “We need to escape, we don’t have a choice.”

“We have to blow up Jericho.” Markus decided, taking steps towards the corridor. “If the ship goes down, they'll evacuate and our people can escape!”

“You'll never make it!” North pleaded, grabbing onto Markus. “The explosives are all the way down in the hold, there are soldiers everywhere!”

“She's right!” Connor agreed. “They know who you are. They'll do anything to get you!”

“I’ll go with him.” Rachel said, taking a step to stand beside Markus.

Connor felt his software crackle in fear as he reached out to grab Rachel. “No!” Both Connor and Markus said at the same time.

“I’ll be fine, you don’t have to.” Markus tried to persuade her.

“I can’t let you go alone!” Rachel protested. “We’ll have better chances if we stick together!”

Connor felt the rising surges of panic. Why? Why did this have to happen now? Why when he finally understood what it meant to love? Why when he now had the woman he loved and that he knew he loved did this all have to happen? “You can’t, Rachel!” He pleaded. “It’s too dangerous, I can’t lose you!”

Her dark eyes were wide as she stared into his.

Rachel - Lover ^ But in a fraction of a second, she reached out to grab his face and she pulled him towards her, pressing her lips against his.

Connor immediately melted into her, gently cradling her face with his own hands and kissing back against her soft, warm, and welcoming lips. Never in his existence did he ever imagine a feeling so blissful as this. For a brief moment, the chaos of the despair around them disappeared, and it was only them.

But the moment was much too short as she pulled away from him, looking at him with her beautiful tender eyes. “You won’t...” She promised him, pulling away from him. “Besides, this is what the vests were for! You can thank me later!”

“Go and help the others. We'll join you later.” Markus ordered as Rachel stood by him.

“Markus...” North protested.

“I won't be long.” He insisted.

Casting one last look at Rachel, he felt more at ease. Of course he was still scared and worried for her, but he knew her. She was tough and determined. She wouldn’t go down easy and as scared as he was, he was confident in her.

As Markus took off down the corridor, Rachel following closely behind him, Connor and North took the opposite corridor. The newly made deviant couldn’t help but worry about his...lover? He’d have to ask about that after.

There would be an “after.” They would both make sure of it.

--------

Everything was happening at once, and I had to ground myself in order to focus. Help Markus and cover him. That’s all I had to do. Nevermind the fact that Connor was a deviant now and that I kissed him. Or the screams and gunshots that were surrounding me. There was pure concentrated adrenaline surging through my veins and I had to take advantage of it.

Androids were fleeing in every direction, ahead of us and then past us in the other direction. It was complete chaos and panic in the freighter, but I had to stay focused. Just follow Markus. Just follow Markus. Protect Markus. I kept telling myself just so I wouldn’t panic as well.

We made our way down another set of stairs and rounded a corner, two androids lying dead in a pool of blue blood each. Leaning against and clutching the wall was a dark-skinned android woman with wires coming out of her head and black glassy eyes. Markus leaned towards her and eased her down onto the ground and I followed closely.

I leaned over his shoulder and saw her staring at me. It felt as though she could see into my deepest and darkest depths of my soul as she kept me fixed in her ink-black stare. “You’re prepared to sacrifice everything to save a people not your own. Honouring the legacy yours died for.” She said cryptically, her voice weak with static. “You will be the example humans will follow.” She then turned to Markus, her gaze pleading. “This is the end of Jericho...Save our people, Markus...”

In a moment, she had stilled, and I knew she had died. Her words chilled my soul. You will be the example humans will follow. “We have to go.” Markus urged me.

“Right.” I said, getting back on track and following him as more androids ran past us.

Rounding another corner, the bridge beneath us then shifted, and Markus collapsed to the lower level. “Markus!” I shouted.

He landed with a hard thud, and I could hear the sounds of soldiers getting closer. Pulling out my handgun, I crouched just above him, aiming at the soldiers.

There were androids in the corridor below. Markus had managed to get away and hide behind a nearby wall, but the other androids were gunned down.

Without any hesitation, I leaped down onto the soldier to my right, knocking her to the ground and shooting her in the head.

Before the one on my left could register what happened, I torpedoed my full weight into him, shoving him against the wall and hitting him in the face with his own rifle. I forced my elbow under his arms and struck him again in the head before I managed to shimmy my hands under his chin and blow his brains out.

Beneath me, red blood was pooling as the soldier slumped down against the wall. I put my handgun back into its holster and grabbed both the rifles from the soldiers. “Markus!” I called, rounding the corner and handing the deviant leader one of the rifles. “I’m better with a rifle and my handgun doesn’t have infinite bullets.”

“We can’t just kill them!” Markus protested.

“These aren’t just regular people, Markus!” I pointed out. “They’re here to kill you! Even if you don’t shoot, you can still use it to defend yourself!”

Electing not to argue with me, he simply went forward. As I followed him, we found a room to sneak into until the coast was clear. I stayed deathly still, my ears ringing slightly and my breath uneven.

After what felt like an eternity of soldiers firing their weapons and the dying screams of androids, Markus gave me the signal to move and I followed obediently.

We rounded a corner to the right and then immediately to the left, avoiding being spotted by soldiers as androids were fleeing in all directions around us.

Through what looked like an obliterated wall, we ran through and saw in the other room androids with their hands behind their heads, soldiers likely about to execute them.

Markus and I looked at each other and nodded as we stormed the room. I immediately took out the one farthest from me with a shot to the head whilst Markus disarmed the other one and started beating the shit out of him. The androids looked on in fear as the fight continued until Markus managed to get the soldier onto the ground, and I didn’t hesitate to fire a bullet into his brain.

As I looked at the dead bodies of the soldiers, I felt nothing but contempt. These people were here to commit genocide. They ambushed this place for the purpose of exterminating androids.

In my eyes, they had no place breathing the same air as me.

“You saved us...” One of the androids thanks, the pair approaching us.

“Go! Now!” Markus ordered. “Hurry!”

As the androids fled the room, Markus and I exited, heading to the left until we were faced with two other soldiers.

As Markus darted towards the stairs to the left, I made quick work of both soldiers with the rifle I’d stolen.

But the bullets had run out, and I threw the empty gun to the side. The stairs didn’t lead all the way up, which meant I had to jump. Running up, I leaped, Markus reaching out his hand to grab mine and pull me up. “Here, take this.” He said, giving me another rifle.

We ran into the next room, a bridge above the level beneath us. Two androids were being cornered by two more soldiers. Markus rushed around the corner, removing a pipe, and I opted to either kill the soldiers or distract them.

As I shot at them, not quite killing them, Markus had pulled the pipe off, causing debris to fall right on the soldiers.

“Markus!” The androids called. “It’s Markus!”

“Go now!” Markus ordered them. “Join the others!” “Hurry!” I urged them.

The androids ran ahead, past the soldiers’ bodies, and Markus ran up to me. “We’re almost there. Are you still with me?”

“To the final hour, Markus.” I assured him.

We ran through the entrance to the next room, rounding off to the right down a set of stairs. But once we rounded another corner, I felt my heart lurch. Josh! He was being held up against the wall by a soldier, and I knew I couldn’t intervene. If I tried to shoot, I could end up killing Josh by accident.

Markus rushed forward and engaged with the soldier, so I elected to watch for other soldiers, emerging from the hiding place and scanning either side. I glanced behind me to see if Markus would need my help, but Markus had already succeeded in knocking him out.

“Quick, this way!” Josh pleaded.

“Find North! I’ll join you later!” Markus ordered.

North! “If Connor asks, let him know I’m okay!” I told Josh before running off to follow Markus.

We quickly reached the hold, the room illuminated by a burning red light. It emanated from what looked like several furnaces. Markus approached the control panel, and I turned my back to him, facing the entrance to the room with my rifle drawn. “Do what you gotta do, Markus. I’ll cover you!”

After a moment, a soldier barged into the room and I fired right into his head, the man collapsing to the floor. Another set of footsteps reached my ears, and I fired in its direction, knocking the oncoming soldier back before shouldering him against the wall, bashing the back end of the rifle into his head.

Shoving his own out of his hands, I fired under his chin and he crumpled over like a ragdoll against the metal wall, his blood staining it. Another soldier had entered the room and I whipped around and shot her in the head, the woman falling dead before me,

I had briefly concerned myself with how easy it was to kill the army soldiers before shedding that concern off. I cared nothing for these people. They were a threat to the androids being slaughtered here and nothing more.

All they deserve to become is the ground that I walk upon.

I cast my rifle aside and grabbed one of theirs before Markus put a hand on my shoulder in order to usher me out of the room.

Quickly, we ran, the only thoughts in my mind being that we needed to escape. Running down the hall, I saw two familiar figures.

North’s long red hair and Connor’s grey tuque. At the sight of him, I felt like I had let out a breath I had been holding for the past I didn’t even know how long.

North looked back at us as we caught up to them. Josh, North, and Connor were all together. “Markus!”

“Bomb's gonna explode any second.” Markus quickly explained. “We gotta get out of here!”

All of us taking off in the same direction, we followed North and Connor, vaulting over debris and jumping across gaps. We did everything we needed to do. All there was left to do was run.

Just run!

Until the sounds of gunshots and the pained cries of North immediately cut through my focus.

“North!” I cried, whipping around and seeing the soldiers down at the end of the corridor, North crumpled on the ground behind us.

Without hesitation, I opened fire on the soldiers at the end. Markus took a piece of metal and ushered me behind it as I continued to duck over it to unload bullets on them.

They went down as Markus quickly shielded North and I with the piece of rusted metal. I peeked around it to see if there were any more soldiers following us.

“Over there!” Markus called as he and North were quickly slinking away while I stayed covered, seeing another wave of soldiers coming towards us. “Run!”

Peeking around the improvised shield, I shot down two of the soldiers and threw the piece of rusted metal at the other, getting him in the head. Wasting no time, I rushed him, elbowing him in the stomach and then quickly disarming him. I whirled him around and threw him into the opposite wall and shot him point blank.

I looked behind me and saw Connor engaged in combat with three other soldiers. All he had was his handgun, and he was swiftly making quick work of them as only I knew Connor could.

Once the soldiers had been dealt with, Connor and I stepped backwards towards Markus, North, and Josh, making sure that the soldiers didn’t notice us before we rushed off to escape.

Once we backed around the corner, I tossed the rifle and took off, Connor clasping his hand around mine as we rushed to catch up to the others.

Immediately facing us was the way out. Jumping out into the river.

As Markus, North, and Josh leaped out, I skidded to a halt, my eyes fixated on the dark blackened depths below.

My heart was pounding in fear at the thoughts of having to brave the freezing cold water. “What’s wrong?” Connor asked.

“Drowning to death is one of my worst fears!” I admitted.

“You won’t!” He insisted, looking into my eyes. “I won’t let you!”

As the soldiers started gaining on us, I nodded, holding tightly onto him. “Okay, I trust you!”

Pulling me into his body, Connor leaped out of the freighter. I clung to him choking back a scream with my eyes closed as we descended towards the river below, anticipating the cold shock once we landed.

Once I felt the wave of chill course through me, I started choking, my lungs desperately trying to reach for air while I felt myself being dragged up through the murky black depths.

Breaching the surface, I coughed, the water in my lungs being forcibly expelled as I looked around, hearing the sounds of explosions up ahead and seeing the reflections of the combustions above me. “Hold onto me, Rachel!” I heard Connor’s voice call. I looked in his direction and he was treading water right next to me.

With what little strength I had in my quickly numbing limbs, I wrapped my arms around his neck as he swam towards the edge of the docks. I spotted Markus, preparing to pull Connor and I into the reservoirs that tended to line the walls of docks. They typically led to the sewers.

Markus quickly pulled Connor and I out of the water with North’s help and we were dragged inside, flopping against the cold concrete.

As I lay there, shivering, I could barely feel my limbs and my teeth were chattering uncontrollably. I could barely form any sort of sentences as my entire body shook with cold.

I was a winter person, grown up in my young childhood in the prairies of the great white north. But if you ever asked me to attempt a Polar Bear swim, I would much rather boil alive.

As I looked up weakly at the scene we left, the reality of this night had finally sunk in.

I knew this would happen. I was right. And it was the most horrible feeling in the world.

Because even though I knew it would happen, I still couldn’t stop it. Innocent androids were slaughtered tonight and I couldn’t do anything to stop it.

The weight of everything quickly crashed down on me as I curled in on myself, feeling weaker and weaker. “Her body temperature’s dropping drastically!” Connor fretted, his hand over my forehead. “If she doesn’t get warm, she could quickly succumb to hypothermia!”

The panic in his voice was what kept me there, and as I looked around, I realized that I was surrounded by Markus, North, Josh, and Connor.

The androids I risked my life for and would gladly do again.

“She should get home.” North said. “There’s nothing we can do for her.”

Feeling like I should do something still, I tried to get myself up. “N-n-n-no. It’s-s-s-s f-f-fine!” I chattered out, stumbling against Connor as I tried to stand. “I hav-v-v-ve t-t-to help!”

“You’ve done more than enough for us.” Josh assured me, putting his hand on my shoulder. “You risked everything to help us escape.”

“You saved my life.” North said, her gratitude genuine. “You saved our lives.”

“You may be human, but you’re one of us, now. You’ve proven that tonight.” Markus added, looking into my eyes. There was a deep grace to his differently coloured gaze. It was thoughtful and despite the horror that occurred this night, there was a hope in them. “We’ll be fine. But you might not be if you don’t get warm and sheltered.”

“I’ll take her home.” Connor volunteered, already putting his arm around me. “The self-driving taxis should still work now. It would be the safest and quickest way there.”

“See that you do.” Markus agreed.

“W-w-wait!” I chattered again, getting a bit better control of my words. “W-w-what a-b-bout you?”

“There’s an old church near here.” Josh offered, stepping up to Connor. “It should be a safe enough place for us to hide and rest. I can give Connor the address.”

I swallowed, feeling my legs starting to give out. They were right...I wouldn’t survive much longer like this and I’d rather not freeze to death. “Ok-k-kay.” I agreed, nestling further into Connor. It felt like he was already expending some of his warmth to try and get me warm. “I have a t-t-tools-s-set at home. And s-s-some bags of b-b-b-blue b-blood. I c-c-can g-get th-th-them to you tom-m-morrow.”

“Worry about that then.” Markus insisted, putting a hand on my shoulder. “For now, rest and save your strength. You’ll need it.”

I nodded, letting Connor walk me away. “I’ll take her now.” He said, looking at Josh. “The address?”

Josh nodded, reaching his hand out to grab Connor’s. The black android’s LED was blinking yellow as the information was being transferred. He then let go, and Connor didn’t waste any time shouldering past them.

“Take care of yourself, Rachel!” Markus called after us. “We’ll rally tomorrow at the abandoned church.”

I let out a sigh as my legs wobbled. Tomorrow. I thought with dread. Jericho was destroyed and many androids were dead and wounded. What was left to do?

My thoughts were cut off by Connor grabbing my legs and carrying me like he had done many times before.

Despite the grim circumstances, I couldn’t help but laugh weakly at him. “I f-feel l-l-like you’re m-m-making a hab-b-bit out of-f c-c-carrying m-m-m-me.”

To my surprise, Connor gave me a smile. But it was different from the ones he had given me before. Even in the little gestures, I could tell the differences in his deviancy. Even in his eyes. They were so much more expressive and honest.

He pressed his forehead against mine, a pleasant sigh escaping from him. “I want nothing more than to ensure your safety and comfort, Rachel.” He admitted, a sincere warmth to his voice, like melted chocolate draping over a dessert. 

There was nothing holding him back anymore. And that thought brought me comfort and joy. There was nothing holding us back anymore.

Now, he had no reason to return to CyberLife. He was a deviant. And he didn’t have to follow their orders anymore.

---------------------------------

I always had a feeling that Hank had a bit of a soft spot for me, and not in the creepy “old man coming onto a young vulnerable woman” sort of way. I think he recognized that I did some really good work despite my oddities. Hell, he even admitted that I was a better detective than a lot of them on the force (always glaring at Gavin when he said that). If I wasn’t working on a case, he’d get me to tag along on whatever case he was working on. Or he’d recommend the better cases to me, usually the harder ones that he didn’t want to deal with but couldn’t trust the others to take on either.

That last part kind of annoyed me, but the pride I felt after solving them every time sort of kept me from stopping him. Especially if it came with a jealous glare from Gavin. That was sheer nirvana on the spectrum of my “smug bastard” metre.

“Rachel?” 

Connor calling me by name snapped me out of my thoughts. “Oh, sorry. I zoned out.” I quickly apologized, nervously adjusting my short hair and pushing my glasses up my nose. “What was the question?”

“I was just asking if you were alright.” Connor repeated.

“Oh, yeah! I’m fine.” I said, shuffling in my seat, trying somehow not to focus on the outside and inside of the self-driving car at the same time. “I just...don’t like car rides.”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. We’ll get there in about a minute.” Hank assured me, glancing back at me with a gruff smile. “And on the way back, you can play your music and tune out.”

I smiled appreciatively. He knew that playing and humming and singing to my music helped me stay calm and relax. “Thanks, Hank.”

The greying man gave me a nod and turned back around, however Connor’s gaze was glued to me. As he stared at me, I stared back at him. It wasn’t really threatening as it was odd, and I wasn’t really sure what he was thinking of. I noticed his LED was spinning yellow for a brief moment before it settled back to its pristine blue hue. “What profession usually shares the best gossip?” He suddenly asked me.

I squinted my eyes at him skeptically. Is this a test? A trick question? I tried to think about what a real answer to his question would be. “Uhhhh, I guess NSA agent?” I answered.

“Landscape development.” I tilted my head at him curiously. Huh? “After all, they’ve got dirt on just about everyone.”

My eyes immediately snapped shut as I took in a deep and sharp inhale and let it back out when I realized that Connor was actually telling me a joke. And a really bad one.

“Ah, Jesus fucking Christ. Not you, too.” Hank complained with a groan.

As much as I wanted to agree with him, I was trying really hard to fight a smile and a laugh as I sort of blinked my eyes at my shoes. As hard as I tried, I could feel the involuntary grin start spreading across my face and the urges of a snicker erupting in my belly. Eventually, I gave in and conceded defeat, bursting into a fit of begrudging giggles. “That was so bad, Connor.”

He seemed to blink in confusion. “You didn’t like it?” I could’ve sworn you saw wounded pride in his deep brown eyes. But not the brazen kind, the kind that made me want to wrap my arms around him and apologize.

“No no! I love it, unfortunately.” I said, still giggling and trying to play it off. “That was so bad, but it was also really clever.”

“I have more, if you’d like to hear them.” Connor offered.

“Please don’t encourage her.” Hank grumbled.

I then gave the android, whom I had already decided was a dork, a confident smirk. “How about I tell you one, first?” I suggested. “And you’re not allowed to look up the answer for it. That’s cheating.”

“Oh Jesus, here we go.” Hank sighed.

“I won’t.” Connor assured me, his facial expression not changing very much, but the corner of his mouth was ever so slightly upturned.

I tried to rack my brain for some of my favourite jokes, and I quickly remembered one that was always fun to tell. “What do you get when you mix a dyslexic, an insomniac, and an agnostic?” I asked him, my right eyebrow raised expectantly, my hands folded in my lap.

Connor paused for a moment before he answered. “I’m not sure.” He replied. “What do you get when you mix a dyslexic, an insomniac, and an agnostic?”

I found it sort of endearing that he repeated the whole question even though he didn’t have to. I put on my biggest and smuggest grin before I delivered the punchline. “Someone who lies awake at two in the morning wondering whether or not there’s a Dog.” I said with a small dramatic gesture of my hands as I leaned back in my seat.

From beside Connor, I heard Hank snicker. I couldn’t hold back my swollen sense of pride. “Okay, fine, that one was pretty clever.”

“See? You like my jokes, Hank.” I pressed insistently.

He scoffed. “Yeah, when they’re good.”

I raised both my eyebrows at him. “So, all of them, then.”

I could practically hear him rolling his eyes. “Alright, listen here, smartass.” 

But he didn’t really have a response to my joke as I felt the car start slowing down and I realized that I actually forgot about my anxiety for the remainder of the trip. “We’re here.” 

As Hank got out of the car, Connor remained there for a moment. “I thought it was clever, and I enjoyed it. I appreciate your sense of humour.”

Connor then got up after Hank, and I sat there briefly for a moment before getting out of the car to follow them. There was one thought that was swirling in my head at that moment. Did he do that on purpose? To distract me from the car ride?

I pulled my hood up as we approached, as I was not a fan of the rain, but didn’t feel like bringing an umbrella. It wasn’t raining hard enough to need one, I figured. 

I saw a familiar face. Hank’s buddy, Ben Collins. I didn’t know him that well, personally, but we were on a first name basis and in all the interactions I’ve had with him, he was pretty friendly. “Mornin’, Hank.” He greeted, eyeing Connor and then myself. “I see you’ve got that with you.” I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of displeasure. I knew he wasn’t hostile, more just neutral. But it still stung somewhere in me to refer to Connor that way. “And Rachel, your favourite detective.”

I rolled my eyes at him. “Ha ha, he asked me to come along and since I had nothing else to do and didn’t wanna miss out on this action, I decided to tag along.” I said coolly.

“Alright, no need to be jumpy. I was just askin’.” Ben said, not trying to start a fight.

I knew he meant nothing by it, but I didn’t want to be known as just “Hank’s favourite.” I had my own merits I was pretty damn proud of.

“She’s one of the best detectives there is in this city, so count yourself lucky I brought her along.” I smiled a brief smile at Hank. It was nice knowing that he always had my back.

“Not denying that, Hank.” Ben replied with a nonchalant shrug.

I folded my arms and regarded him patiently. “So, what have we got, Ben?”

The stocky white-haired man flipped open a notepad and I took mine own to start jotting down notes. “Well, it was seen in the convenience store down that way.” He gestured to the place, and I took note of it. “The cashier said that it was with a young girl and it asked for some cash for a place to spend.”

I looked up at him. “And?” I asked.

“It left, taking the girl with it.” Ben replied.

“So, nothing was taken.” I conjectured.

“Nope.” He affirmed. “It just left.”

I quickly took note of that. “Where else was it seen?”

“The only other place it was seen was the laundromat just over there.” I looked over at it and took note of it. “And hanging around the motel that way.” I looked over in that direction and took another note.

My notepad looked a lot like this:

Model AX400

Took off with a little girl

Belonged to Todd Williams (scumbag, I don’t believe him for a second)

Was seen in the convenience store asking for spare cash, but didn’t take anything

Was also seen in the laundromat and around the motel

Given all this information, I had a pretty clear idea of what happened. But it still wasn’t completely conclusive. Not until I fully immersed myself and started doing what I did best.

“Alright, thanks Ben.” Hank said, turning around to look at the street.

Ben turned in the same direction as I eyed him. “We’ve got officers sweeping the neighbourhood, in case anyone saw anything.”

Hank nodded. “Okay. Well, let me know if they turn anything up.”

Ben looked over across Hank. “What are you gonna do with that?”

I followed his gaze and found Connor idling by away from us. He was sort of just standing there in the rain looking at nothing. It made me sort of chuckle a bit, seeing him just kind of there. “I’ve no idea.” Hank said.

I scoffed. “Why not use him?” I suggested as I started making my way towards the android. “Or, better yet,” I turned around to face Hank with a smug grin, “wait until I do my thing. I wanna see the look on his face.”

Hank rolled his eyes. “I doubt you’ll be able to show him up, but I’d love to see you try.” He agreed. “It’ll at least be interesting whether or not you do.”

“And isn’t that the best kind of rivalry?” I said somewhat jokingly. As fun as it would be to be able to rival a prototype detective android, I did actually want to work with him. I just couldn’t help the smug bastard in me that wanted to impress him.

I approached Connor, noticing him staring off, his LED spinning a pensive yellow. “So, robo-cop.” I started off. “What’cha gettin?”

“It took the first bus that came along,” he started, turning towards me, “and stayed at the end of the line. Its decision wasn’t planned, it was driven by fear.”

I pulled out my notepad and I took note of that. I felt Hank approach behind me, scoffing. “Androids don’t feel fear.” He contested.

“Deviants do.” Connor corrected. “They get overwhelmed by their emotions and make irrational decisions.”

“I wouldn’t call it irrational.” I chimed in. “They may be rash and impulsive, but they’re not irrational. They’re not mindless. They’re still driven by rational thought processes unless under specific circumstances of extreme and persistent abuse of various sorts.” Hank raised a skeptical eyebrow at me. “It’s reasonable to assume. Besides, on the way here, I pulled out my phone and did a search on the AX400 and found an interview with its owner, Todd Williams, on channel 16 news. He claimed that the android attacked him unprovoked, but immediately he struck me as not being truthful. First, I find it extremely hard to believe that it attacked him ‘for no reason.’ No one just does shit like that for no reason, so he’s hiding something. He also didn’t mention anything about having a daughter.”

Hank shrugged. “So?”

“The AX400 model is designed to be a caretaker of the home.” I continued on. “Take care of chores around the house, take care of cleaning, preparing dinner, all of that. That also includes child care. So, the android was already looking after a little girl when it was living with Todd in his home. The fact that he didn’t mention anything about his daughter is really setting off my alarm bells that he shouldn’t be trusted. So, if the android felt that it had to look after the young girl, that also means protecting her. And if it recognized Todd as a threat to her, it stands to reason that it broke through its programming and became deviant in order to protect the girl and save her, escaping Todd and fighting him off.”

Connor’s LED was spinning a frantic yellow. “I don’t understand.” He said, and I could recognize vocal frustration. “What makes you so sure about this conclusion? Conjecture?”

“A very strong gut instinct.” I replied. “And when it’s mattered, mine haven’t been wrong.”

“You can’t make conclusions based on a ‘gut feeling,’ detective.” Connor shook his head, his brows furrowed. “Not without enough evidence to support it.”

I scoffed at him. “You think that humans are less advanced than machines like you just because we call processes and programs things like ‘feelings’ and ‘instincts?’” I challenged him. “The human brain is like a computer, constantly taking in, recalling, collecting, and retaining information. Hell, instincts are just your brain recalling similar scenarios and examples and patterns from several different situations in only a fraction of a second. So when someone has ‘a bad feeling’ about someone, it’s not just an irrational feeling. It’s their brain analyzing a bunch of different patterns they’ve seen or experienced and telling that person that ‘this person fits this pattern, do not trust them.’ 

“And that’s the feeling I get about Todd.” I let out a sigh. “Because he’s not the first ‘Todd’ I’ve had to meet, unfortunately. And people like him aren’t particularly original. And humans are very good at detecting when something is wrong with something or someone. And as much as I wish more cops were more unbiased and logical like you are, I’m gonna go with Occam’s Razor on this one.”

“Alright, alright. I get it.” Hank shut it down. He knew I had a tendency to ramble on, and tended to stop me before I got too carried away. On the one hand, I really didn’t like being interrupted like that, especially because I knew I was going to forget that tangent later. But on the other, it was nice having someone who could keep you on-track. “That still doesn’t tell us where it went.”

“It didn’t have a plan. And it had nowhere to go.” Connor said, his LED returning to a calm blue. “Maybe it didn’t go far.”

“Maybe.” Hank agreed.

“Well, you said that it got off at a bus stop at the end of the line.” I reminded Connor. “Which one would that be?”

He pointed at it, across the street. “That one over there.”

I nodded and closed my notebook. “Then that’s where we start.” I began making my way over, Hank and Connor following closely.

As I approached the bus stop across the street, I sat down and let out a long sigh. I closed my eyes and placed my hands on either side of my face. On each hand, my index and middle fingers were situated on my forehead just above my eyebrows while the other two were folded, and my thumbs were pressing into my cheeks. I was taking a few deep breaths, trying to clear my mind and get into the right frame.

“What is she doing, Lieutenant?” I heard Connor whisper.

“You don’t have to whisper, I’m right here.” I said, not with hostility. “And I’m just getting into the zone.”

Connor paused for a moment. “To do what?” I could practically see his LED flickering yellow in my mind as I pictured him.

“You’ll understand in a moment.” I assured him. Hank and Connor were both silent as I found my centre. And after a few moments, I got up from my seat, clasped my hands behind my back and opened my eyes. “Alright, I’m a deviant android who has just escaped the home of an unstable and dangerous man who has proven himself to be a serious threat to his daughter, the child whom I was tasked to look after and whose safety is now my top priority.” I said, all the information we’ve gathered clear and at the forefront of my consciousness. “We’ve reached the end of the line, and now we have nowhere to go. It’s late, it’s raining, and - Connor, what was the temperature last night?”

“2° Celsius.” He responded immediately.

I turned to him. “You used Celsius instead of Farenheit, I’m surprised.”

“You’ve lived on the Canadian west coast for most of your life.” Connor said bluntly. “I figured you’d prefer it that way.”

“Well, you figured correctly.” I agreed. “Imperial is stupid and dumb and makes no sense. Imperial is for losers.”

“Hey!” Hank protested. I raised my eyebrow quizzically at him. He then shuffled in place before he shrugged. “Whatever.”

Getting back into my mindspace, I took another breath. “Anyways, it’s late, it’s cold, and it’s raining. I have a child with me who is very susceptible to the elements, and traveling any further from this street would be unwise, so my priority is find a place to spend the night that’s warm, sheltered, safe, and/or comfortable. So, I take the little girl’s hand and I start walking, walking, walking, walking,” I repeated going down the street and looking around, “walking, and walking until I see a motel across the street. A motel would be ideal for the girl. It’s comfortable, safe, warm, and dry, and sheltered. However, it is not discreet and we could potentially be discovered or turned in by the staff. I start crossing the street so I can get a closer look and I can evaluate my options. And as I get closer, I also notice the convenience store further ahead, so potentially I could get money or supplies since given the panic and desperation a few hours ago, it can be reasonably assumed we left with nothing but the clothes on our backs. 

“And as I approach the motel, I see that you need $40 up-front and that androids weren’t allowed in. Seeing as I have no money and I can be very easily identified as an android because,” I then turned to Connor who was following close behind me, “correct me if I’m wrong, but all working androids are required to wear something similar to what you’re wearing to be easily recognizable, correct?”

“Correct.” He said with a nod. “It’s in accordance with the American Androids Act of 2029 that all androids must be clearly identified and distinguishable from humans.”

I got back on track. “Right, troubling implications of that aside, I would need money and a change of clothes, both things I do not have. So, I disregard the motel for now and go into the convenience store. Now, we know for a fact that the android did not take anything from the store, and I do not think that there is another realistically feasible way to scrounge up $40 for a room, so I think it’s safe to say that we can eliminate the motel from our potential hiding places.”

“What about the laundromat?” Hank asked. Connor was uncharacteristically quiet. “It may not have taken money, but it could’ve stolen some clothes.”

“In terms of whether or not we stayed in the motel, that doesn’t matter if we don’t have the money for a room.” I pointed out. “Stealing clothes could both be to disguise the android and keep the little girl warm and dry. Stealing money would only help with getting a motel room. So while the laundromat is a considering factor, it is not a determining factor. So, because we know that it did not steal from the convenience store, we can rule out the motel.”

Hank nodded. “Makes sense.” He agreed. “So what does that leave us with, then?”

“Working on that.” I assured him. I took another deep breath and resumed my role. “Okay, so motel is off the table. So, what other options do I potentially have? So, I cross the street again. And I’m walking, and walking, and walking, and walking, and I see a parking lot!” I pointed at the sign that said “parking.” I continued. “So, I go to check it out.” 

I made my way towards it and peaked in. There was a car inside, but it looked abandoned. I opened the gate and stepped inside, getting a better look at the place. My gaze was fixed on the car. “I notice that the car is abandoned. It would safe, more comfortable than would honestly be expected, but not ideal, warm, and sheltered. But, it’s kind of open and exposed.” I glanced behind me at the gaps in the tarps surrounding the chain link fencing. “And the car has not been touched. Nothing. If they were here, they didn’t stay. So, what’s the next option?” 

I turned around and saw the towering abandoned structure just on the other side of the inner fence. “A creepy, decrepit, abandoned house to squat in. Definitely not ideal. It’s sheltered, and it’s definitely hidden. Nobody would look for us in there. But I’m not sure if it would be safe or warm or comfortable. But, seeing as they didn’t stay in the motel and they clearly left the car undisturbed, looks like by process of elimination, we’re left with,” I groaned in defeated disappointment. “The creepy, decrepit, abandoned house. Great, one of every woman’s worst fucking nightmares.”

Hank nodded, standing beside me. “Well, that all makes sense to me.”

“There’s blue blood on the fence. Another android was definitely here.” I snapped my head in his direction. “That was incredible!” Connor exclaimed, to my complete surprise. Damn, that’s some high praise! But he then did something that was unexpected, but honestly, it was fucking adorable. He pretended to straighten his tie and cleared his throat as if he were embarrassed. And if I didn’t know him any better, I’d say he was. “Very impressive, Rachel.”

I smiled wide and beaming, soaking up the android’s praise. “Why thank you, Connor. That is quite the compliment, coming from you.”

“Your mental process as you were analyzing the different outcomes and evidence and possibilities piecing together the previous night,” he went on. “It seems to be a lot like reconstruction.”

I tilted my head at him, intrigued. “Reconstruction?” I echoed.

He nodded. “It’s one of my programs. By analyzing evidence and samples and compiling them, I’m able to create a theoretical reconstruction of the scenario that I can play back that can show more literally to me what took place.”

“Oh!” I said, taking in his explanation. “Interesting!”

“I am curious, though.” He interjected. “Why did you say all of your thoughts out loud like that? Is it necessary?”

“Well, it’d be pretty weird if I just walked off without saying anything, now wouldn’t it?” I said with a scoff. “But it also helps me remain focused and on-track. See, in my head, I’m holding so many ideas, clusters, thoughts, and pieces all at once. So, depending on the circumstances and the subject, information and details tend to get lost very easily. Saying it all out loud means I have to think about and focus on what I’m saying, which helps it stick. It keeps me in a rhythm and when I say my thoughts out loud, it helps me not only process it, but retain it. Because otherwise, I can potentially forget important details as soon as I turn around, as I know I often tend to do.”

Connor nodded, seeming to understand. “Ah, I see.”

“If you two are done sucking each other off, we have a deviant to find and a case to solve.” Hank interrupted.

I groaned at him. “Did you have to phrase it like that?” I asked.

“If it means you’ll stop talking, yeah.” Hank responded.

I let out an exasperated sigh. “Yeah, point taken.” I conceded. “Let’s go into the creepy home that definitely won’t house my impending doom.”

Connor approached the fencing and looked up at the house. “Anybody home?” He called. He got no response, so he quickly knelt down and crawled through the fencing on the bottom, which I realized had been cut with fence cutters.

I grimaced up at the house. “Why did it have to be a creepy house straight out of a horror movie?” I complained.

Hank scoffed at me. “Well, if you don’t like it, you can just stay out here and I’ll go in after him.”

I did not like that idea. “Oh, Hell no! That’s worse!” I refused. “How about you stay here and I go in with Connor?”

I didn’t even wait for an answer from Hank before I crawled through the fencing on the bottom. “Well, that was easy.”

I glared at him from behind me. “Oh, shut up, Hank.”

“Yeah, speak for yourself.” I rolled my eyes at him. “Now hurry up, he’s already way ahead of you.”

Taking up a brisk pace, I quickly caught up with Connor, who quickly regarded me with confusion. “This could be dangerous.” He said. “You should’ve stayed behind with Lieutenant Anderson.”

I looked up into his eyes. “I didn’t like the idea of you going in alone, and I also didn’t like the idea of being by myself.” I answered. “At least this way, we can watch each other’s backs.”

Connor nodded, seeming to accept my justification. Dutifully, I followed in behind him, acutely aware of the gun in my holster. He seemed to be rounding the perimeter of the house before he found boards he could peek through. I sneakily peeked in from the corner and found what looked like a person just standing in the middle of the room. I didn’t get a good enough look at them, but I felt my gut tighten and my jaw clench. Connor, however, remained calm as usual, and walked on ahead whilst I followed him. Across from the boards was a green door with a silver knob. I saw that it had a little paw print on it, and I thought it was cute. This must’ve been a pretty nice place before it fell in shambles. I thought, briefly.

Connor wrapped his hand around the knob and twisted it, and the door gave way without much resistance. Connor and I stepped through and the green door closed behind us under its own weight.

When I saw him in the middle of the room, I felt my heart stop and my blood turn to ice. “Oh my God...” I whispered. He was unmistakably an android, but the left side of his face had been torn and his hands were weathered and he looked as though he was wearing only what he could manage to scrounge out of the garbage. Upon seeing his face, I instinctively grabbed my left arm. He was twitching uncontrollably, out of fear, no doubt. It took all of my will to keep my eyes from watering at the horrid sight.

Connor approached the disfigured android slowly. In a quiet voice, Connor began speaking to him. “Don’t be afraid.” He reassured the android, as he began making his way around the room, inspecting it. “I’m not gonna hurt you.”

I couldn’t tear my eyes from the android, and I was quickly failing to keep my tears from welling. “What happened to you?” I asked in a hushed whisper. “Who did this to you?”

The android looked up at me and locked eyes with me, and I noticed that the eye on his left where his wounds were was damaged and had gone dark blue. “Humans.” He responded quickly. “Humans...” He answered. “Humans hurt Ralph...humans did this to Ralph.”

I felt my heart break into a million pieces and I couldn’t stop myself from crying. “I’m so sorry.” I said, quickly wiping away the tears from my eyes and taking a moist breath in through my nose as I tried to recompose myself.

Connor took notice of me as he continued to search, and I felt a twinge of embarrassment. “I’m looking for an AX400. Have you seen it?” He asked.

“Ralph’s seen nobody...” The android replied hastily. 

Connor continued analyzing various details of the room. “Are there any other androids here?” He asked.

“Other androids?” Ralph asked, looking up at Connor before looking back down at the ground. “No...Ralph is alone...”

Anytime he spoke, I just felt my heart break even more. I looked away and started to walk towards the stairs. “There’s blue blood on the fence.” Connor pointed out. “I know another android was here.”

“Ralph scratched himself coming through...” He answered immediately. “That’s Ralph’s blood...”

But as I approached the stairs, I noticed an odd, but unmistakable smell. Another aspect of my atypicalities was that aside from my eyesight, my senses were particularly sensitive. Although, I also had auditory processing issues and was hard of hearing, so my hearing was not always reliable.

But one of those senses was my sense of smell. I could pick up smells very easily and a lot quicker than other people could. Particular smells also tended to trigger sensory overload or just generally set me off. It’s one of the reasons I can’t fucking stand chewing gum in any capacity. 

But this was a smell I’d experienced enough times to know it when I smelled it. And it was not pleasant. It was the smell of a human cadaver. At least a week old, it had to be. But from what I could tell, it was not on this floor with us. It smelled like it was coming from up the stairs

Connor noticed my attention on the stairs and walked towards me. My eyes kept going to Ralph and the scars on his face, and I could hardly find it in myself to blame him. After what he’d been through, what reason did he have to not lash out out of fear? What reason did he have not to think that any human would just hurt him more? Humans probably would hurt him again or did. And as much as I was not comfortable with the fact that Ralph was probably a murderer, I didn’t want him destroyed. I wanted him helped, and I wanted him not to have suffered through what he had suffered to make him this way. He didn’t deserve this. I thought, with a fury flowing through my veins. None of them do.

As Connor was slowly going up the stairs, I noticed movement in the corner of my eye. When my eyes found it, I realized what was happening. Below the stairs was the barest movement of a crouching shape. The AX400 and the girl were hiding down there below the stairs. And Ralph was protecting them.

“Is anyone upstairs?” Connor asked, already up half the flight and peering up to the second floor.

“No.” Ralph replied. “Nobody.”

Connor looked over at Ralph, his gaze lingering for a moment on the disfigured android. But then his gaze locked onto me. I knew he was no fool. He knew I noticed something was amiss and he took that as his cue to investigate. Either the smell wasn’t strong enough for Connor to notice, or he just couldn’t smell at all. Honestly, I wasn’t even sure if androids could smell. 

I had a choice to make. If I gave Connor the idea that there was something up there to investigate, he would arrest Ralph and have him destroyed. Which, perhaps he did deserve. But I didn’t feel like it was my right to decide his fate. Not when we had something else more important to deal with at the moment.

Deciding to keep Ralph’s secret, I shook my head at Connor, telling him that there was nothing upstairs.

Connor’s yellow LED spun back to blue as he quickly made his way back onto the ground floor.

The android detective was making his way to check where I saw the fugitives hiding. I felt my heart start beating faster, until I heard Hank’s voice from behind us. “Connor, Rachel, what the hell are you doin’ in there?!”

“Coming, Lieutenant!” Connor called, kneeling down.

As soon as he did, Ralph wrapped his arms around Connor faster than I could react and I pulled my gun on him. “RUN! QUICK! KARA!” Ralph was yanking Connor backwards, and I quickly realized he wasn’t trying to hurt him.

He was allowing the others space to get away. From under the stairs, two people burst out and bolted around through the door on the left of the room, and Hank quickly came in the way we did as Ralph threw Connor onto the ground weakly.

The moment Hank entered the room, I saw my chance and took it, giving chase after them. From behind me, I heard Connor shouting. “It’s here! Call it in!”

I didn’t slow down for a moment as I was laser focused on catching up to Kara and the girl before Connor got to them. I didn’t want them dead, but I’d rather be the first to reach them than anyone else. 

I rushed past an officer in pursuit, the pair still in my sights. It didn’t take much to keep pace with them. They were within arm’s length, but I obviously wasn’t going to just grab them. “Wait!” I cried.

But they didn’t stop. They kept running. I couldn’t blame them. When I almost had them in my reach, they quickly turned a sharp corner into an alley. When they reached a fence blocking their path, I pulled my gun on them. “Freeze! Don’t move or I’ll shoot!” A complete fucking lie, but I couldn’t let them leave.

They both turned around slowly, their hands in the air. As I approached them, stepping closer, I took notice of what the android looked like. Her hair was short and blonde. It looked as though it had just been cut. But most remarkably, I noticed her LED.

Or lack thereof. She didn’t have one. Which means she must have removed it. And without it, along with her human clothes, she looked nearly indistinguishable from a human.

The android known as Kara began to speak directly to me. “You care about androids, I know you do! I saw it! When you looked at Ralph! When you talked to him!” She pleaded. “We can’t stay here, you have to let us go!”

I wanted to. So badly, I wanted to let them be free and run away. But...I had to know the truth. “What happened between you and Todd?” I asked her. “Why did you run away?”

“He was going to hurt Alice!” Kara answered without any hesitation. So, Alice is her name. “She was in danger. I couldn’t let him hurt her. I had no choice! I had to protect her!”

As if being pulled down by a weight, my arms began lowering. “I knew it.” I said, more to myself than them, but they heard it anyways. “I was right.”

But a familiar voice quickly divided my attention. “Don’t shoot, Rachel!” Connor’s voice echoed from behind me. “We need it alive!”

Taking this opportunity, I mouthed one thing to them. Run! I then turned to Connor and glared at him. “Oh, wow! Thank you Captain Obvious!” I started, chewing him out. “It’s not like anyone in their right mind could tell that the android who’s responsible for the life of a young child needed to be kept alive!”

“They’re getting away!” Connor cried as he rushed past me. 

Looking back to the fence, I felt relief that they were already pretty much over the fence and out of our reach. I quickly put the gun back into my holster and rushed to join Connor at the fence.

Kara locked eyes with Connor and then myself before she and Alice slid down the muddy slope. But then I looked ahead of them and I realized what they were facing.

The highway. They were going to cross the highway.

Immediately, I felt the worst kind of lightning pierce my veins. My heart was pounding out of my chest and I felt like I was choking on air itself. Feelings of helplessness, pressure on my chest and head, and sensations like shards in my skin began overwhelming my senses.

But there was only one thing going through my mind.

I couldn’t let them cross.

I grabbed the fence and started to climb up it, but I suddenly felt hands clutching onto my wrist and pulling me back down. “What are you doing?” Connor asked.

“They’re not gonna make it across the highway!” I cried, trying to scramble up the fence, but Connor kept holding me and then pulling me down with impossible strength. “If I don’t save them, they won’t make it! I can’t let them die out there!”

“If you go after them, there’s almost no chance of you succeeding!” Connor said, holding me down. “If you die on that road, there’s no coming back for you! Don’t you understand, Rachel?!”

“I don’t care!” I practically screamed, trying to fight my way out of his grip, feeling my breath grow rapid and frantic. “I can’t let them die out there! I can’t let them die!”

“I can’t let you take that risk!” Connor insisted, grabbing my face and forcing me to stare at him. “If you die, you don’t get a second chance. Do you hear me?”

“Don’t you dare, Rachel!” Hank’s husky voice called from behind us. He sauntered up and leaned against the fence, catching his breath. “Oh, fuck...that’s insane.”

He let go of me, and I couldn’t control the streams of tears that poured down my face as my limbs began to tremble violently. I hated that he was right, but every fibre of my body was screaming at me to stop them before it was too late. The sounds of the cars were practically deafening even though they were so far away, and the sounds of sirens only made it worse.

Suddenly, I felt Connor shift, and looked over to see Hank yanking him down. “Hey! Where you goin’?”

“I can’t let them get away!” Connor retorted.

I stared at Connor straight in the face. “Don’t you fucking dare!” I practically screamed at him.

“They won’t.” Hank said. “They’ll never make it to the other side.”

“I can’t take that chance!” This time, both Hank and I had to pull Connor down to stop him from jumping the fence.

“Hey, you will get yourself killed!” Hank shouted at him. “Do NOT go after ‘em, Connor. That’s an order!”

But Connor didn’t listen, and I felt my heart constrict so tightly I could hear my rapid heartbeat in my ears and pounding in my head. “CONNOR! God damn it!” Hank growled as Connor slipped out of our grasps and jumped the fence.

As I watched Connor slide down the slope, I lost all control. “IF YOU DIE OUT THERE, I SWEAR I WILL DRAG YOUR ASS BACK HERE AND KILL YOU AGAIN MYSELF, GOD DAMN IT!” I screeched at full volume.

But as soon as I did that, I collapsed against the fence, and as I saw Kara and Alice desperately dodge the oncoming vehicles, I completely shut down.

Images of being trapped in a flipped car at night began racing through my head. I couldn’t bear to watch anymore. I slumped against the fence, my back to the highway, and I started rocking back and forth involuntarily mumbling incomprehensibly as horrible bloody memories began to thump and pound and bang on my brain and every nerve and vein in my body felt like it was doing to burst. Numbness in my left arm. Shards of glass embedded in my skin everywhere. Horrible pain in my whole body. The feeling of the rough pavement as I managed to crawl out of the flipped vehicle. The sounds of sirens and the flashing of red and blue emergency lights. A slumped figure against the pavement as I tried desperately to reach out and call for them.

Only to reach them, hold them, and watch my whole life slip from my fingers, my heart and soul dying with the light in their eyes as I clutched onto them, screaming and desperately willing them to come back to me. For all of this to be a horrible nightmare. That I would wake up in a second and I could confide in the love of my life about what I dreamed about that night in their arms as we slept.

Only to be pulled away and be forced under as I watched everything fall apart around me.

“Rachel!” I heard a voice breaking through my visions. “Rachel, it’s okay! I’m right here, just breathe!” I recognized that it was Hank’s voice, and I felt him clutching at my arms. I snapped my eyes open as the horrible echoes of my visions swirled in my tired and wounded head. “Breathe, kiddo. It’s okay. They made it. You don’t have to worry about them.”

They did? I thought. So it was all a bad dream? But then I realized what Hank meant, and I was quickly dragged back to reality. Oh. Right. Kara, Alice, and Connor. 

Forcing myself to breathe deeply, the sounds and visions started to dull. “That’s it, kiddo. That’s it. Just breathe.” Hank said softly, gently holding onto me and kneeling in front of me. “I’ve got you, it’s gonna be alright. Just look at me, listen to me, and just breathe.”

I did as he asked, and I started to remember my surroundings and why I was here. The case. This morning. The street. The house. The chase. As I kept breathing, my muscles began to relax, and I realized that I was clutching my left arm really tightly, and let go, putting both my hands on the ground on either side of me. My heart was still racing and my eyes felt sore, but I was beginning to come back from that horrible low place. I swallowed and I knew my voice had become hoarse. “There you go, kiddo.” Hank said, gently shaking me. I gently grabbed his arms with my hands and looked him in the eyes. “It’s okay, everything’s fine. Connor’s coming back right now. No one died. Everyone made it.”

Connor. His name repeated in my head. That’s right. Connor. My brows furrowed in complete anger. That fucking asshole!

“Looks like you’ve caught your breath, now.” Hank said, reassuring me. “Can you stand up?”

Letting out a long sigh, I nodded. “Yeah...I think so.” I croaked.

Without waiting, Hank hooked an arm around my back under my arms and started helping me to my feet. As soon as I was standing, he pulled me aside so I was leaning against the corner between the alley wall and the fence. I clutched my chest, taking in several deep breaths. My heartbeat had slowed, but it was still beating so fast.

As soon as Connor climbed back over the fence, my attention was completely focused on him. Unbridled rage began to boil in my veins as I glared at this selfish plastic moron. “You!” I snarled, lacing my broken voice with as much venom as I could bring myself to inject. “WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?! YOU COULD HAVE DIED OUT THERE!”

Connor looked taken aback for a brief moment, but for the most part, his face was relatively reserved. “I couldn’t let them -”

“Quiet!” I shouted, shoving him harshly. “Watching ONE person die in a road accident was one too many! I don’t want you adding to that list just because you wanna recklessly and selfishly risk your own life without any regard for anyone else!”

“If I get destroyed, my memory will simply be transferred to the next-”

“I DON’T CARE!” I shouted at him. Everything went quiet as I stared at him. But I felt so tired, and exhausted, and broken that I couldn’t keep up the tough love act for long and broke into quiet sobs.

Hank gently grabbed my shoulders, angling me away from Connor. Nothing was said for a long long moment. If not for what just preceded this, I would’ve considered this a moment of respite.

“I’m sorry.” Connor said, softly and meekly.

Taking a few breaths between my weak and stifled sobs, I turned to face him, but did not walk towards him. “The important thing...is that no one died today...that everyone made it.” I managed to get out between breaths and sobs.

Hank started gently walking me out of the alley. “Let’s just head back to the car.” He suggested. “We did what we could. There’s nothing more for us to do, here.”

I nodded, leaning on Hank, occasionally stealing a glance back at Connor. Even after yelling at him, I couldn’t help but feel a sharp stab of guilt when he looked at me like that. Like a wounded puppy.

We eventually made our way to the car, and I was able to walk without Hank supporting me. “You wanna sit in the front this time, Rachel?” He asked me.

I looked at him and gave him a weak smile, but it was as much of one as I could muster. “That would be nice.” I answered quietly.

“Yeah, just go on in and have a seat. I’ll just let Ben know what happened.” Hank assured me, giving me a reassuring pat on the shoulder. He walked off to find his colleague, and Connor came up behind me. He didn’t really say anything, and we just sort of looked at each other for a long moment before I opened the door and sat in the passenger’s seat.

As soon as I closed the door, I let out a long sigh and wiped my eyes. I leaned back into my chair and felt my eyes well up again. I wasn’t going to fall apart again, but I clearly wasn’t done feeling all the horrible things. “Fuck...” I breathed as I slumped into my chair.

I felt Connor lean forward and I knew he was going to try to talk to me. Despite my outburst earlier, I didn’t hate him. Hell, I chewed him out because I was so scared I was going to watch him die because of his own stupid reckless bullshit. But...I definitely did not have the energy or patience to talk to him right now. “I’m sorry.” He said, and I hated the twinge I felt because he sounded so sincere. “I should’ve considered how you and Hank would feel if -”

I couldn’t do it. “Connor, I don’t wanna talk right now!” I cut him off. He snapped his mouth shut and gave me that injured puppy dog look again. I let out another sigh as I sunk further and further into my seat. “Just...please. Not right now. Maybe later, but...just let me wind down, please.” I begged him.

I couldn’t even look at him in the rear view window. I couldn’t bear to see his dark eyes boring into my soul. He was quiet for a good while until he spoke up. “Alright.” He agreed. “I’m sorry.”

I closed my eyes and let out another breath through my nose. As soon as I heard the driver’s side door open, I knew Hank was back. “Sorry it took so long.” He apologized. I quickly fastened my seatbelt as he started the car. “You can put on whatever tunes you want and just relax the whole way back, okay?”

I looked weakly up at Hank. “Thank you.” Was all I could muster. I pulled out my phone and connected it to his radio, scrolling through my playlists. I thought of playing an album full of easy-listening piano songs, but I decided that would be too quiet and sombre for a fifteen minute car ride. So instead, I scrolled to my usual ‘happy music’ that I played when I needed a good auditory pick-me-up. I put on an old Owl City album and let it play. As Hank started the car, it began driving, and very quickly, I managed to drift off to sleep, hoping to get at least some rest before the day was over.

---------------------------------

THE BASICS

NAME: Claire Juliet Hayes

NICKNAMES: Cal, JJ 

BIRTHDAY: february 28th, 1996

AGE: 25

PRONOUNS: she/her

LAST KNOWN MEMORY: remembers nothing, but has dreams about her old work colleagues (especially the deceased ones) and old police cases

ORIGINATION: csi

FACECLAIM: Hannah van der Westhuysen

THE DETAILS

FAMILY: James Hayes (father; deceased), unknown mother

THREE FAVORITE THINGS: guns, country music and her job

EDUCATION: physics and forensic science degree

SKILLS: highly intelligent, hand-to-hand combat and expertise in every type of firearm

HEADCANONS: Claire believes that she was born in Decimation, she was raised by her father and left home to go to college and study physics, after college she moved to Las Vegas where she became a ballistics tech for the Crime Lab and later, CSI.