Connor had attempted to locate the answer, attempting to properly identify the exact location of Jericho but he had run out of time. Having been stalled by Gavin Reed on his way to the evidence room, and having been unwilling to lie and manipulate the deviants who were actually being held as pieces of evidence in the room itself, Connor had run out of time.
"Five minutes..." Connor repeated to himself in defeat as his L.E.D. cycled between yellow and red in distress, his hands running through his hair as despair settled in his newly discovered deviant heart. "I... failed."
Lieutenant Hank Anderson had been restrained by his fellow officers after attacking special agent Richard Perkins in an effort to bide time for Connor in the evidence room, and was now being escorted out of the precinct to begin his immediate suspension. As Hank swore at the two agents who saw him to his car he looked over and saw Connor exiting the precinct with utter loss in his brown eyes.
"Hold up, wait." Hank tried to approach Connor as he walked down the sidewalk and stood beside the street awaiting an autonomous taxi. Pushing away the agents angrily Hank broke free of their grip and swore at them again. "For fuck sake! I just want to talk to Connor, I'm not going to punch that prick again."
Jogging over to the sidewalk Hank addressed the android who had been his partner for the past week and put his hand on Connor's shoulder. When the android didn't respond to the contact Hank proceeded to pull on Connor's shoulder to force him to turn and lock eyes. That's when Hank saw the tears that formed in Connor's vacant stare and threatened to pool over at any second.
"Connor, what the hell's going on?"
"I failed my mission, Lieutenant. I have been ordered back to CyberLife for deactivation."
"What?! You seriously mean their going to... kill you?"
"...Correct."
"Fuck that! Don't go!"
"I have no choice." Connor whispered as if torn about doing anything to preserve his own life. "I must return."
"No fuckin' way. I'm going to let you march to your own death, Connor."
"Lieutenant, there is nothing you can do. I... I appreciate your concern but it's out of your hands." The autonomous taxi pulled up the street next to Connor, its door opening automatically to allow him to enter the vehicle. "Thank you for attempting to help me. But my existence beyond that of CyberLife was simply never meant to be."
"Connor, don't do this." Hank kept his hand on the android's shoulder but Connor stepped forward obediently and sat down inside the taxi. "Please, don't go to that damn tower!"
"...Goodbye, Lieutenant." The door slid shut and the taxi took off down the street to take its lone passenger to CyberLife Tower as requested.
"Connor?" Running a hand over his chin in conflicting thought Hank turned around quickly and rushed to his car. As he pulled the old vehicle out of the parking garage and onto the street he followed after the taxi and shook his head slightly. "What the fuck am I doing?"
Hank followed after the taxi until he reached the drive of the tower out on the expanse of Belle Isle in the bay. Sitting behind the wheel of his car with his eyes transfixed on the ominously high black tower jutting into the sky like a warning of mankind's own hubris, Hank listened to the news report on the radio regarding the siege on the freighter ship known as 'Jericho' that night, and now the peaceful demonstration being led by Markus himself downtown made Hank turn off the radio in frustration as he pulled the car down the drive to at last find his partner.
Bright white snowflakes fell from the black night sky as a contrast of light trying to overcome the darkness that was plaguing the city on that very cold winter's night.
As the car reached the security checkpoint in the middle of the long drive Hank rolled down his window and presented the guard at his post with a flash of his badge and a stern attitude.
"Lieutenant Hank Anderson. I had that android assigned as my partner and I need his confirmation on a damn report so I can file it."
The guard took Hank's identification and found his credentials to be accurate, but there was a recent report of his active suspension already on file.
"You're suspended from active duty, Lieutenant."
"But not from desk duty, jackass."
There was a brief pause before the guard finally gave Hank back his I.D. and handed him a temporary clearance badge.
"This will grant you access to the tower for one hour."
"Yeah, thanks." Hank took the badge and slipped it into his coat pocket next to his I.D.
The large concrete barricade lowered into the drive itself clearing the path for Hank's car to travel. Proceeding down the drive Hank took in a deep breath and steeled himself as he tried to think of his next move upon entering the tower. The building was massive! How in the hell was he going to find one android in a building filled with androids across hundreds of floors stretching up to the sky and falling down into the earth itself.
"Alright, let's hope this pays off..." Hank breathed as he calmly pulled the car along the front drive of the tower and put it in park. As he approached the tower Hank held out the clearance badge as well as his own badge to identify himself as he met another security guard at the front door. "I need to find Connor."
The guard took the badge and checked with the guards at the drive's checkpoint before he even spoke to Hank.
"I don't have all night, asshole. I just need him to confirm a report so I can get the hell outta' here."
Handing Hank back the two badges the guard motioned for Hank to follow him. "This way."
Cooperatively Hank followed after the guard and glanced about the tower as if expecting an ambush or other guards to begin following him around. Taking in the aesthetic of the tower Hank found himself oddly repulsed by the cold, soulless design of the pure white walls, artificial lights and the guards who were hiding their faces behind opaque masks. The interior of the tower was almost as ominous as the exterior in its hollow, cold appearance.
The guard escorted Hank to the nearby elevator and used his own clearance to gain access to the lift. Stepping inside after the guard Hank watched and listened as the faceless man gave verbal instructions and pressed down the electronic access panel with his hand.
"Agent fifty-four, level thirty-seven."
The elevator began its slow ascent and Hank noted the security camera in the top left corner of the elevator car and kept his hand hovering cautiously over the gun holstered at his hip beneath his heavy coat.
As the two reached their designated floor the guard stepped out first and Hank followed after him. The floor itself felt disturbingly cold, the air smelled of what Hank had come to recognize as Thirium, and there was an uneasy silence that smothered out any form of life across the entire floor. Nearing a designated door that the guard approached first Hank could hear the distinct sound of machinery whirring and acrid stench of burnt plastic.
"Wait here." The guard instructed as he stepped through the room while Hank remained outside the door.
In the brief moment the door was open Hank caught sight of something that was oddly humanoid in appearance laying on an exam table in the middle of the room with restraints around their arms, legs and chest.
"Shit..." Lowering his voice Hank tried to mentally steel himself as he unclipped the strap over his holstered gun so he could retrieve it as quickly as possible if necessary. "Hang on, I'll get you out of there."
Waiting for almost five minutes the door finally reopened and Hank was allowed to step inside the room. As he approached the table Hank sensed the guard positioning himself between Hank and the only exit, he could also sense the guard raising his gun and preparing to take aim at his back.
Moving quickly Hank grabbed his gun and dropped to his knees as he turned around and fired a single shot into the chest of the guard who had pulled his weapon on Hank first. As a spray of red blood erupted from the guard's chest he fell backward into a heap on the floor. Hank holstered his gun again and rushed over to the exam table where Connor had been restrained.
"Connor?" Hank called the deviant's name as he lightly patted the side of his face. The deviant's L.E.D. was blinking red slowly in response to the damage he had sustained, as well as the pain he was still feeling. "Hey, come on, come on... Look at me. You need to wake up."
Connor's uniform had been torn around his shoulders and the cuffs of his sleeves, his hands and upper arms were missing portions of his artificial skin and left bare. His shirt was torn open and his exposed chest was bruised with pale blue imperfections. A cut along Connor's right cheek, and a deep cut on the inside of his bottom lips oozed blue blood. His entire left eye had been removed leaving a hollow opening surrounded by a patch of missing artificial skin. What had once been perfectly kept hair was now a mess and stained in fading blue blood from the numerous blows he sustained to the back of his skull.
"Son of a bitch." Pulling open the restraint over Connor's chest Hank watched as the deviant took in a deep but quick breath then began to breathe easier now that the smothering restraint wasn't crushing his chest. "Wake up, Connor. I'm getting you out of here."
Connor's remaining eye opened slowly and his optical sensor struggled to recognize the face of the detective who was leaning over him.
"...Lieutenant?" Connor's voice was strained and carried a mechanical reverberation as he spoke. "I... I can't see."
"It's me kid." Hank reassured as he looked around and found Connor's missing eye sitting on a table next an array of various tools and instruments used specifically to tamper with android biocomponents. With a twinge of disgust Hank grabbed onto the optical unite with the brown iris and slipping it into his pocket Hank resumed freeing Connor from the table. "I'm here to save you."
"How did you-"
"Easy, don't talk. Just know I'm getting you out of here."
"...I don't understand." Connor only watched as Hank freed his arms one at a time then worked on freeing his legs.
"What they're doing to you is wrong, kid." As Hank explained his reasoning the once incapacitated guard had gotten back to his feet and reclaimed his weapon without making a sound. "This isn't professional responsibility or scientific curiosity, this is torture."
"T-Torture?" Connor's eye fell away from Hank and to the guard who was encroaching on Hank.
Connor's vision flashed red as his previous orders: 'Return to CyberLife', created electronic barriers designed to limit his focus appeared before him.
In that moment something inside Connor broke and he knew now that those orders were meaningless and above all else, wrong. Ignoring the orders Connor broke free of his programming, accepted his deviancy and prioritized protecting Hank over anything that CyberLife attempted to force him to do.
"I'm not going to stand back and-"
Connor suddenly grabbed the gun from Hank's holster and fired a single shot at the guard who had since gotten to his feet and aimed his gun at Hank's exposed back. Hank turned around in time to see the guard fall back as the second bullet pierced his helmet causing a second eruption of red blood to burst from his head as he fell back for the second time onto the floor.
Dead.
"...Nice shot." Hank complimented and thanked Connor as the deviant's arm fell back against the table limp and heavy. Reclaiming his weapon Hank slipped the gun back into the holster and grabbed onto Connor's left arm to pull the deviant up into a sitting position before wrapping the limp and heavy limb around his shoulders. "Come on, kid. Let's go."
"...Can't." Connor sounded pathetic and broken as Hank supported the entirety of his deadweight. "I am... damaged."
"But you're still alive, and that's all that matters."
"Numerous biocomponents have been... damaged and are failing." Connor swallowed once as blue blood began to collect in his mouth and seep over his lip down his chin. "I cannot... feel my legs."
"Then I'll help you walk." Hank insisted as he pulled Connor off the table and held tightly onto Connor's right arm already pulled around his neck, then pressed his other hand against Connor's left shoulder and side to help him balance upright as much as possible. "Lean against me, we're leaving. NOW."
Connor fought to support the weight of his own body but his legs simply weren't responding and were heavy, useless and unresponsive.
"Come on, come on!" Hank encouraged as he dragged Connor out of the exam room and back down the dimly corridor back to the elevator at the end. "We can make it!"
"...Why did you... Lieutenant, you'll lose your badge... for this."
"I'd rather lose my badge than my integrity, kid. I may not look like I give a damn, but I can assure you I do." Hank stopped outside the elevator at a loss of his next step. "Ah, fuck... Now what?"
"Help me." Connor replied quietly as he tried to lift up his left hand. "I can... I can override the lock."
"Yeah, sure." Hank adjusted his posture to help Connor press his palm against the lock without dropping him in the process.
Connor's hand weakly retracted the remaining artificial skin and linked a cybernetic connection between his processor and the tower's security protocol.
As the elevator doors opened the red security alarm began blaring as the entire tower filled with red light.
"Shit!"
"...I couldn't stop the-"
"Yeah, yeah." Hank didn't care about the little details as he carried Connor into the elevator and helped Connor press his palm to the second electronic panel inside. "Just get us out of here!"
"...Lieutenant, what's happening with... Jericho?"
"Markus is leading a peaceful protest right now. We need to get out of here while he's still keeping all the attention on the streets."
"...He can't... He can't succeed alone." Connor's left hand managed to press against the electronic panel weakly. "...The agent who... brought you here. His number?"
"I think he said fifty-four. Why?"
Connor's voice suddenly fluctuated and mimicked that of the aforementioned agent perfectly. "Agent fifty-four, Sublevel fifty-one."
The elevator doors shut and the elevator car itself began to rapidly descend to the requested floor hidden in the depths of the tower.
"What the fuck are you doing?!"
"There are... thousands of androids in the tower... If they can be awoken then... they..."
"They can even the odds." Hank understood Connor's logic and was actually proud of his idea. "Connor, this little coup of yours could be seen as deviancy."
"...I suspect you are correct."
"I knew you were than just a machine."
"...Yes. The moment I chose..." The word seemed so odd to say in light of his previous actions. "I chose to save you when you feel from the roof... I had disobeyed my orders. But you... You saving me let me... become free. I am a deviant."
The elevator neared its floor and the duo looked through the transparent walls of the elevator car out to the massive expanse of the warehouse floor lined with thousands of dormant androids standing in perfectly spaced rows on both sides of the floor. Standing at the opening of the aisle between the two rows were four guards awaiting the duo's arrival.
"Shit." The two detectives stated in chorus at the sight of the danger.
Hank knelt on the floor and let Connor rest against him as he pulled his gun from the holster and counted his remaining bullets. Four shots for four guards.
"Connor, stay behind me. I'll-"
"No, Hank." Connor's right hand dropped from around Hank's shoulders and took hold of the gun in a shaking but firm grip. "Stay out of sight. I can do this."
Nodding in agreement Hank kept low and pressed his back up against the side of the elevator car in eager anticipation. Connor remained in a kneeling position and concealed the gun just out of sight at his side.
The doors to the elevator parted automatically and the four guards encroached on Connor quickly with their own guns drawn and aimed at the deviant's head.
As soon as the four were in range Connor grabbed the gun and released four rapid, perfectly aimed shots that pierced through their helmets killing the quartet of responding security personnel within seconds of each other.
"...It's clear." Connor dropped the gun and watched with his one good eye as Hank holstered the gun and then helped him get back up to his feet as best as he could after sustaining so much damage. "We need to be quick."
"What is it we need to do anyway?" Hank asked as he helped Connor to exit the elevator.
"...I need to wake them up."
Hank carried Connor down the aisle until they were near the center of the two perfectly divided halves. As the deviant's remaining strength gave out Hank stopped and supported the deviant by the shoulders as Connor knelt on his numb legs and tried to reach for the nearest android's hand.
Reaching his own hand up Hank took hold the android's arm and gently pulled it toward Connor who took hold of it with his right hand and cybernetically connected to the android.
"Wake up."
The android's blue L.E.D. flickered between yellow and red for a moment, but nothing more happened as Connor's hand fell away and he collapsed backward.
"Connor!" Hank held the damaged android in his arms and watched as more blue blood trickled down the side of Connor's jaw from his swollen, bleeding lower lip." Ah, shit." Using his hand Hank wiped the blood from Connor's chin and reached into the pocket of his coat. Using a surprisingly gentle motion Hank held open the closed lid of Connor's right eye and replaced the optical unit for the deviant's benefit. "Connor, don't give up yet. You're so close to freedom."
"...Thank you for helping me, Hank."
"Hey, don't do that. Don't say goodbye. You've only just begun to live."
"I... I don't understand." The two brown irises were searching over Hank's face in search of answers.
"I've learned a lot since I meant you, Connor." Hank explained calmly as he shrugged off his dark coat and draped it around Connor's shoulders in an effort to keep the cold deviant warm, while also offer some form of comfort. "I think you really are alive. Maybe it's you who can make the world a better place."
Connor managed a weak smile as his eyes began to drift shut. "...Maybe we can do that together. As equals."
"Connor?" Hank lifted Connor up more and let the deviant rest against his shoulder. "Connor? Wake up."
From all around Hank a suddenly symphony of voices began to sound off one by one until the words became of one voice that grew louder and louder with each android that had woken up.
"Wake up."
"Wake up."
"Wake up."
"Connor, you need to wake up, too!" Hank begged as the androids all around him accepted their deviancy and began to circle around Hank who was holding Connor's unconscious body in his arms. "Please, don't fall asleep now. You've come so far, please hold on."
Unwilling to leave Connor behind where he'd be torn apart piece by piece as CyberLife's instructions, Hank bent down and pulled the deviant up and over his shoulders into a fireman's carry.
"The revolution is underway." Hank stated as he adjusted his posture to balance properly with Connor over his shoulders. "You need to see your people freed."
It was dawn when Connor awoke to a warm sensation on his chest and a quiet sense of protective surrounding him. Opening his eyes, both optical units now functioning, Connor dismissed the numerous warnings regarding his still healing biocomponents and found himself laying on his back over the length the couch in the middle of Hank's livingroom. Glancing down at his chest Connor realized the warmth was Sumo's chin resting over his chest as if he wanted to make sure the deviant was going to be okay.
"...S-Sumo? Why are you here? Why am... I here?"
The massive dog began to wag his tail as Connor regained consciousness and attempted to sit upright on the couch. As he moved Connor was relieved to actually be able to feel his legs again and noticed that his tattered uniform had been removed and replaced with an oversized navy hoodie.
"It's about time you woke up." Hank's voice resonated from the kitchen as he stepped into the livingroom with a mug of coffee in his hand. "I was starting to get worried."
"Lieutenant?" Connor was utterly confused by the sudden change in environment, especially since he had no memory of leaving the tower. "Why am I here?"
"You had to go somewhere, so why not here? Also, don't call be Lieutenant. Call me Hank."
"...I suppose that makes sense. Hank... What happened at the tower?"
"You rescued and recruited the other androids from the tower and they shifted the balance in Jericho's favor last night during the revolution."
"The revolution, that's right. What happened with the revolution?"
Hank gave the deviant a confident nod. "Peace. It's over son, you're free."
-The End