Markus looked up from the paperwork spread across his desk when he heard a gentle knock against the doorframe of his open office door. Connor was standing there, looking fidgety despite the fact that he was standing perfectly still. Markus leaned back in his seat and arched one eyebrow. "Connor. Did you need something?" Unlike the other androids that Markus considered his closest council, Connor didn't live in New Jericho. He lived with his work partner, Lieutenant Anderson, and was usually too busy working to show up outside of planned meetings.
Connor took a couple steps into the office, though he didn't walk all the way over to the desk. "It has been two point three days since we last saw each other." Markus nodded once. It was frustrating to not be able to see the detective all the time, but he'd take what he could get. He was curious about what brought Connor here today, though. "It has not even been three full days since I last saw you," Connor said again. "Yet I find myself wanting to see you again." There was a mix of frustration and confusion on his face.
Markus grinned. Connor had always been so different from any of the other androids. Even after going full deviant, he seemed to have trouble acknowledging his emotions and wants and needs. So it always felt like a victory when Connor could admit to wanting something. And it was even more of a personal victory that that want involved Markus himself. "I always want to see you, Connor," he confessed. "Well, now that you're here is there anything in particular you wanted to do with me."
It was almost amusing to watch the various emotions flit over Connor's beautiful features as he tried to figure out how to properly word his thoughts. He took another few steps forward, until he was standing right in front of Markus' desk. "I want to- 'hang out' with you." The words sounded stiff and awkward, but Markus found it adorable.
He glanced down at his paperwork again, and then decided that none of it was urgent business. Besides, if he couldn't use his time to do what he wanted, then it would defeat the whole purpose of gaining free will, right? He scooted his chair back, but remained seated. "That sounds good to me."
Connor slowly looked around the room, probably for another chair, but surely he was more than capable of remembering what the room looked like two days ago. No new chairs had magically appeared. Then he looked back at Markus, who was waiting patiently for Connor to reach his conclusion about the sitting situation.
It was like watching a little light bulb go off over Connor's head as he realized what Markus wanted, and his cheeks flushed a pale blue. He stepped around the desk, but before anything else could happen, there was the familiar and terrifying sound of muted gunfire. Connor and Markus were both immediately focused entirely on the situation at hand. They rushed to the window to look outside, and saw what looked like a swarm of fully armored soldiers with big guns, forcing their way into New Jericho. Currently, there was a no humans allowed policy in the only safe haven androids had, but apparently these people didn't care.
There were no familiar insignias on any of the soldiers, but there would only be time to figure out who to blame if they first survived what was going down here. Both men quickly decided on what they were going to do. Connor was the better fighter, so he'd head straight to the source of the conflict. Markus tossed him the extra gun that North always insisted on being kept in his desk. There wasn't even time for a quick interface; they just touched their fingers together for a second before running off in opposite directions.
Markus ran to where he thought the most androids would be, and started calming them so that there wouldn't be any overwhelming panic that got people killed. Then he tried calling the Detroit police as he ran around, wanting to report this unprovoked attack on unarmed, innocent people, hoping that their newfound rights would protect them. There was no connection, though. All outside communications had been cut off. He tried just calling all the androids in New Jericho to warn them of what was going on, though he doubted anyone had missed the sounds of gunshots and screams, but he couldn't get through to them either. All communications were down. Which meant Markus had to be extra thorough in making sure that everyone knew what was going on and what the best escape routes would be.
He made it down to the first floor without passing any of the soldiers, though he was sure his luck wouldn't hold up for much longer. He peered outside through the front doors of the office building, the glass shattered on the floor from where it had been shot. He could see a lot of bodies with blue spilling out. None of them would have had any weapons to defend themselves, because one of the first things that Markus had done was agree that androids would need a license to carry a gun just like anybody else. A few, like North, had weapons stockpiled anyways, but most had wanted to follow Markus' lead in the matter.
Markus wasn't sure of exactly how many soldiers there were. New Jericho was made up of two large office buildings and eleven smaller buildings that had once held human businesses, along with lots of tents and makeshift shacks scattered around. Scared androids could be hiding anywhere, and the soldiers could be heading in any direction.
Markus peered out again, and spotted a child android curled up in a ball with her back pressed up against a dumpster. She had her teeth clenched in one of her arms, probably trying to avoid making any noise. Markus couldn't just leave her there. Child androids, no matter how long they lived, would always have the mentality of a child. Not that Markus would leave any of his people out there, but at least he knew that many adults would be capable of taking care of themselves. This girl was helpless.
He swore softly under his breath at the thought of heading out into the open without any way to protect himself, and then darted through the empty doors and over to the dumpster. He got a bullet in one leg for his trouble. Which meant that the soldiers knew exactly where he was hiding, and he couldn't stick around. He crouched down in front of the girl. "Hey, everything's going to be okay. I'm going to get you out of here, I promise."
The girl tipped her head back to stare at him with wide eyes. "Markus? It's so loud." There were tear tracks on her cheeks, and Markus felt indescribably angry at the soldiers who were attacking.
"Hey, just close your eyes, okay? Don't open them until I tell you to, and you'll be fine." The girl squeezed her eyes shut, and Markus scooped her up into his arms. He took in a deep breath, even though breathing was entirely unnecessary for androids, and then sprinted back to the office building. He held the girl tightly to his chest, covering her body with his as he ran.
He felt a couple of bullets go through his back, though luckily they didn't come out the front and hit the girl. Then he felt one go right through his thirium pump, and he knew it was over for him. He put on some last burst of speed that he hadn't known himself to be capable of, and got through the empty doors and then abruptly around the corner so that they'd be protect by the wall. There was a couple of androids huddled around, and he quickly handed the girl off to them, and told them to leave through the back. They listened to him, though not without giving him unbelievably sad looks first.
Markus slumped back against the wall, and closed his eyes. He didn't want to die, but it was better that it was him and not that little girl. They'd already won their revolution, and his council would be able to take care of everything. Then he heard someone shouting his name, and forced himself to open his eyes, quickly turning off the notification letting him know that he had less than a minute left before he completely shut down.
Connor was crouched in front of him, looking more emotional than Markus had ever seen the younger android look before. "Markus…" his voice trailed off and he bit his lip, and then a look of determination washed over him. He reached forward for Markus' chestplate.
Markus furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you doing?"
"You can't die, Markus," Connor whispered. "You're too important. You matter to everyone. This fight will die with you, and I can't let that happen. Our hearts are compatible, Markus. We're both prototypes of the RK series. I have to do this."
Even though he felt weak, and his limbs felt heavy, Markus found the strength to reach up and grab Connor's wrist. "You'll die!"
Connor gave him a sad little smile. "That's alright. You're the one who can't die, Markus. The world needs you. Our people need you. I need you." He hesitated for a moment. "I love you," he whispered so quietly that it was almost inaudible.
Markus gasped from the shock of hearing those words, and his grip loosened. He knew that emotions were still so difficult for Connor, so for him to say that now, it had to be something that he really meant. Connor used the opportunity to open Markus' chest and pull out the damaged pump, tossing it aside. Then he opened his own chest to pull out his thirium pump, and gently locked it in place in Markus.
Then Connor moved to lean back against the wall next to Markus, who leaned forward to hold Connor's hands in a tight grip. "I need you too. This isn't fair. Please don't leave me." He knew that it was useless to beg. An android couldn't live without a thirium pump anymore than a human could live without their heart. "I love you too." He had to at least say it. He'd been thinking it for ages now, but was afraid that saying it out loud would scare Connor off. And then Connor went and beat him to the punch.
Connor smiled, looking about as happy as Markus had ever seen him. It was strange to see the detective being so expressive. "You're going to save our people." Connor spoke with such determination and conviction, like he'd somehow seen the future and already knew for sure that what he said was true.
Even though Markus knew it would hurt, he let himself interface with Connor. Their minds swirled together for a few moments, and Markus was flooded with all the love he felt from Connor, along with all the guilt and fear that Connor directed towards himself. Markus didn't know what he could do other than push forward as much of his own feelings as possible, wanting Connor to die knowing how loved and amazing he was.
The moment Connor shut down, Markus could feel it. Everything went black for a moment, and it felt like he'd died too. Then he came back to himself and gently pulled his hands free. There were so many people to save and he'd already spent too long in this spot. Though for Connor, it was worth it.
Markus reached into Connor's pocket to pull out that damn quarter he knew would be there, and slipped it into his own. Then he grabbed both of the guns Connor had on him before standing up. He wasn't going to kill any humans if he could help it, but he found that he had absolutely no problem with the thought of hurting them to get them to stop their attack. He marched off, a look of grim determination on his face.