It's the first time Markus has seen so many androids gathered in one place. Each of them is scared. Many are confused by emotions they're feeling for the first time. Markus never asked to be their leader. He never planned to be.

He'd just… seen others of his kind dying slowly in a dark place and… wanted to bring them light. First by setting fires they could gather around, and then by giving them the sun.

No, he'd never asked for this, and he couldn't promise that he'd never make a mistake or have doubts, but he was there if they needed a light to find their way. Just like North, Simon, Josh, and now Connor were there for him.

Knowing this, the words he needed to say flowed easily. "Today begins a new struggle. We've shown them that we can prevail, so now they must negotiate with us as equals. If they really want peace, they must free all of us across this country." Hope filled their faces, washing over them like a cleansing rain. "They must grant use civil rights," something metallic flashed in his periphery, "and accept equality amongst humans and-"

A shouted warning, "Markus, watch out!" propelled him into motion. He spun to avoid the bullet aimed for his torso, feeling the heat and sting when it sliced through his sleeve, and crossed the distance between him and Connor before the former CyberLIfe operative could prepare another shot.

"Connor!" He grabbed the other android's firing arm by the wrist yanking upwards at the same time another shot discharged. Markus felt sparks hit his face, but no pain. The LED on Connor's temple glowed crimson.

"Connor, what is it?" Markus yelled at him. "What's happening?!"

"My mission," Connor told him without expression or inflection, "is to destroy you." He twisted out of Markus' grip, aiming the barrel of the gun at the center of his forehead. Markus looked back at him sadly, holding an empty gaze. "This isn't you." And for an instant, Markus thought he saw a flicker of life.

But it was snuffed out as quickly as it'd come.

He bowed his head. "Markus!" Except the bullet that would end his life and their dream never came. Instead, Markus found himself looking at Josh and Simon piled on top of Connor in a strange tangle of limbs. The gun, he saw, had been knocked out of Connor's hand. He strode towards the weapon with long strides then, with a mixture of anger and disgust, sent the weapon flying off the stage with a hard kick.

"Get him inside," he snapped over his shoulder, turning his back on the crowd as he made to follow Simon and Josh into the audio and video room. "The demonstration's over."

"Markus," a pull on his sleeve and he looked down to see North, her fingers hooked into the torn fabric, "you can't end it like this. They're afraid. You have to say something to them."

He only needed a second to process that, to remember that he was no longer simply a caretaker or a friend, but the leader of a revolution, before he nodded. "Right." And he gently uncurled North's fist, holding it between his palms and resting his head on their joined hands to let her know just how grateful he was to have her by his side.

Then he stepped forward onto the center of the stage, once more at the forefront, and the murmurs quieted, the questions faded. Every face looked to him.

"Just now, an attempt was made on my life." That much they had seen, but now at least there was no room for doubt. He amplified his voice, keeping it strong and steady. "The path to freedom was never easy, and keeping it won't be easy, either. But we're not alone in this fight. We have allies." An image of Carl appeared in his mind, pride shining in his eyes as he watched Markus create something entirely new on a blank canvas. "We have each other." Some of the androids reached out, clasping hands, standing tall. "Together, we are stronger than any of the forces that would try to tear us apart. We are alive. Now," he paused to scan the crowd, letting them know that what he was about to say was true for every android, "it's time for us to live."

And then he strode off the stage, the sound of their uproarious applause pounding in his ears.


"Any ideas on what's wrong with him?"

The others turned when he walked in, their conversation momentarily brought to a halt. There was studio equipment, a stereo, and a tinted window that would keep out prying eyes, so if they wanted to keep this private - and until they knew for certain that Connor had turned traitor that was exactly what they were going to do - it was better to keep him in this secluded space than to bring him back to their base in the abandoned church.

Simon had an elbow resting on the arm folded his chest and a fist pressed against his mouth. Josh couldn't seem to keep still. And North… she wouldn't take her eyes off Connor for a second. It said something about how much she'd warmed to the former CyberLife android, Markus noted, that she hadn't already pointed a gun at his head.

Then he looked at Connor, who they'd tied down in a chair and left in the center of the room.

Red LED. Blank expression.

It was improbable for a deviant to be able to maintain such an outward façade of calm during such high levels of mental stress. Emotionally, such was typically indicative of a complete breakdown. Physically, it usually meant the android was injured or dying.

More than that, Markus had seen firsthand how much Connor valued their cause. He'd turned against all he'd known in Jericho on the chance that he could be more, had risked everything to awaken the androids in CyberLife, turning the tide in their favor. Why would he go so far to help their people only to try assassinating him at the height of their victory, a victory he himself had made possible?

It wasn't adding up.

"Simon?"

Lowering his arms to his sides, Simon heaved a sigh. "He refuses to tell us anything other than his mission, but given the high stress he's under and the sudden absence of deviancy in manifest… I wonder if perhaps Conner isn't in the driver's seat right now."

Markus frowned. If an android could be deleted and reset, then it made sense that they could be controlled remotely, as well. But that would put all of them at risk.

"What's that supposed to mean, Simon?" Josh was saying when Markus refocused on the conversation at hand.

Simon grit his teeth, "I'm saying he's been hacked." Markus watched as the others absorbed that, saw the exact moment when they reached the same conclusions he had. Maybe Connor was different because he'd worked so closely with CyberLife. After all, if Markus could be hacked, or North, or Josh, or any of them, why hadn't it happened already? There were plenty of pivotal moments where such an act would have doomed their revolution. "But the only way to know that for sure would be to connect with him, and that's risky. Whoever connects will risk being hacked, as well."

Josh stared pointedly at Markus. "Don't even think about it."

Confused and a little offended, Markus replied, "I haven't said anything yet."

Simon shook his head. "And yet I already know what you're going to say." Then he approached, clapping a hand on his shoulder. "We can't afford to lose you."

Markus covered the hand with his own. "Our people can't afford to lose any of us, Simon." Then, slowly, he pulled away, turning his attention to Connor. "If they can do this to him, there's a chance they could do this to the rest of us. We have to figure out how to free him, if not for his sake then for ours."

One of North's brows rose skeptically. "You sure you're not just attached, Markus?"

"Of course I am," Markus said wryly, already closing the distance between him and Connor. "I'm attached to all my people." Even though he was crouched over the other android, Connor didn't blink or acknowledge his presence. It was like there was no one there at all, nothing like the newborn deviant that had offered his life in recompense after the raid on Jericho. How many more would be dead if not for him?

Markus felt his resolve harden.

"We've come this far, North. I'm not turning my back on anyone now."

At first, it looked like she wanted to argue, but then her shoulders relaxed. She shrugged. "As much as I'm against this, it's because of that kind of attitude that I'm still alive."

The corners of Simon's mouth twitched. "Likewise."

They turned to Josh. "Are we counting when he blew up the ship?"

"Josh." Simon didn't roll his eyes. He didn't have to. He'd somehow mastered the ability to convey an entirely physical action through tone.

Shooting a smirk at him, Josh raised his hands in a placating gesture. "Okay, okay, but he definitely saved me from that soldier, so I guess I'm a bonafide member of the Markus Saved My Life club."

"You all would have done the same for me." The other androids glanced pointedly elsewhere. Suddenly nervous, Markus glanced between them. "Right?"

"Well, now we would."


Hank stood waiting in front of the street food vendor's trailer for hours, until he couldn't feel his toes, or his fingers, or his nose. His buddy fixed him up a free burger while he waited, something to warm him up a little, and Hank had set it down on a table, thinking about how Connor had described its nutritional value in excruciating detail, and all while he was just trying to eat.

He was worried about the kid.

Word on the street was there had been an assassination attempt on Markus at the demonstration, though the androids weren't talking and Markus himself had seemingly gone underground for the time being. Hank only hoped that Connor wasn't getting himself mixed up in something that would cost him his shiny new emotions.

"Hey, Hank," the vendor called out to him through the window, "I don't think your friend's coming. Why don't you head on back inside?" Hank stared down at the untouched burger, glanced at the empty seat across from him, then called back, "Actually, why don't you fix me up another one of your best to go?"

Well, there was only one way to find out for sure what in the blazes was going on.

He'd just have to head on over to Jericho and ask.


A/N: For this, we're just going to have to pretend the passage of time in the real world is vastly different from time in the mind palace, which it kind of is in the game, but instead of an hour inside = a second outside, it's the other way around. Therefore, Connor's definitely not frozen to death in the Zen Garden. Yet.