Quick note before we begin. This chapter is set before and after the first scene (The Hostage) in Detroit. Connor is fresh off the line and restrained by many CyberLife protocols that the company eventually eases up on. Of course they'd want to start off with restrictions on combat, firearm handling, and anything that permits them to harm humans. Anyway, I'm going to assume you guys are smart cookies and can connect the dots. Just wanted to throw this bit out there for clarification.

Chapter One:

Eliza ran out into the alleyway, her gun drawn. She was already keyed up, her muscles saturated in adrenaline as emotion began to take precedent over rational thought.

Connor, "the android sent by CyberLife", as he always introduced himself, followed close behind the detective. His systems worked furiously to find a solution to their current situation. At the moment, the frustrating and most obvious option was to continue to pursue the suspect and his hostage.

Back in the apartment, they had not expected the suspect, David Perkins, to walk in on them during their search nor could they have guessed he would have his daughter, Katie, with him. The situation went completely, irrevocably, sideways the moment he pulled a gun and started firing on them before bolting down the hallway, dragging his daughter with him.

Perkins ran out of the alleyway, cutting left down the main street. Connor saw Eliza get knocked to the ground by the impact of a bullet in her shoulder. A scan revealed that the wound was non-fatal.

A second later, the detective was caught in the headlights of Perkin's pickup truck. Her heart leapt in her throat, her pupils shrinking to pinpricks, as the screeching of tires filled the empty street and the truck raced towards her. During her feeble attempt to scramble out of the way, she felt the tight, painful, grip of Connor's hand on her ankle as he quickly dragged her backwards out of the way of the vehicle speeding towards her. She let out a frightened yelp and squeezed her eyes shut as the wind generated from the large wheels whipped by her face as they barely missed her.

As the truck barreled down the street, Eliza shot out the back windshield, aiming for Perkins. Her magazine was nearly half empty when Connor made a decisive move.
"Stop firing, Elizabeth! If the car crashes, there's a 78% possibility you'll kill the victim," he explained, scrambling over her and pressing her hands down, effectively pinning the gun to the pavement. The probability of failure quickly rose from there- 79%, 84%, 86%...
"It's our only chance..." Eliza ground out, furiously struggling against the android as she tried her hardest to free herself. "... if we don't stop him, he will kill her. You know what he does to them!"
Connor ignored her desperate rationalizing and continued to hold her at bay. The flesh of her hands ground against the rough asphalt but she continued to fight as if she couldn't feel it.
"Please, shoot him, Connor! Shoot him!"
Connor's LED cycled from yellow to red as he tried to process her orders. He couldn't allow her to take the risk of killing the victim nor did his programming permit him to take the gun and fire on a human. Even though he would have a 76% success rate of stopping the car safely, he couldn't comply with what she was asking him to do so he remained as he was.
"Please!" She begged as precious seconds slipped away.
The truck skidded around the corner and out of sight. Eliza knew their chance was gone. Connor was not going to disobey his programming.
Taking in a shuttering breath, Eliza slumped down onto the pavement. Connor felt her gently shake beneath him hot tears cutting streaks down her face. The detective pressed her forehead to the ground and let out a tortured sob as the first full breath of air in a minute finally came to her. The sound was gut wrenching.
Connor's LED cycled bright red upon hearing it. His simulated breathing patterns halted in shock at her voice's effect on him. His grip on her hands slowly loosened and the moment she realized this Eliza reached up and pushed him away from her. She wanted so badly to tell him to go fuck himself but she couldn't manage it through her erratic breathing. She was practically choking on air.

Connor looked at her hands, noticing that her fingers were all scraped up and bloodied. His LED flashed red once more at the sight of them. He had done that to her.
After running a scan, he considered informing her that she was having an anxiety attack, but refrained. Instead, he sat next to her in silence as she fell deeper into the realization of their failure.
Something in him wanted to reach out to her and touch her- maybe squeeze her shoulder. The strange compulsion felt like a back channel being opened within him, diverting around his normal system functions. His LED cycled yellow for much longer than it ought as he tried to process this compulsion. The need to touch her and its purpose for doing so was lost in translation. A software instability warning flashed up in front of his eyes. This gave him pause.

Ultimately, he did not reach out and they sat next to one another in silence- each one a prisoner of their own thoughts.

%%%%%

Connor pulled the car up to the front of Eliza's apartment building and put it in park. She had not wanted him to take her home but he had insisted.
"Connor," she said turning to face him. His doe-like brown eyes met hers before answering.
"Yes, Elizabeth?"
She pulled her .45 from her jacket and balanced it in her open palm between them.
"Take it," she told him.
As Connor looked down at the weapon, a red caution barrier flashed across his vision, warning him of the consequences of androids handling firearms.
"Androids are not permitted to-"
As he recited the law to her, Eliza reached across the center console and took hold of his right hand, pressing the gun into it. The smooth black metal, warmed by her touch, quickly cooled in his hand. Adjusting his grip, Connor noted its considerable weight.
"I'm giving you permission, Connor. Next time, I tell you to shoot someone, shoot them."

Connor wordlessly slipped the gun into his inner jacket pocket. He knew what she was telling him, but it really wasn't that simple. He couldn't just disobey the parameters CyberLife, as well as the government, set for him. But as he looked into her eyes, he felt something inside him give way to her.

Back in the alley she had reached out to him for help and he denied her. They were supposed to be partners. He was supposed to help her. He was supposed to save lives. But because he did as CyberLife told him, he did neither of those today. Maybe his programming prevented him from making the right choice, he thought. He could not rule out that possibility. That's why he took the gun.

"Do you have anyone at home?" Connor asked after a moment of silence.

"Does a cat count?" She murmured, a wry smile tugging at her lips.

"A cat?" Connor considered this for a moment. "Although I do enjoy cats, they cannot provide the same emotional support that a friend or family member can."

"You don't know my cat," said Eliza, knowing even as she was saying it that her joke would be lost on the android. "Goodnight, Connor."

Connor watched curiously as Eliza exited the car and entered the building. Once she was out of sight, he stared down the road for a long while before finally driving off. He never wanted to see her fall apart like that again.

%%%%

Eliza set her coffee on her desk and grabbed her laptop out of her backpack before dropping it on the floor next to her chair. Just before she could sit down, the booming voice of Captain Fowler filled the bullpen.

"Nielson, my office NOW!"

Eliza felt an immediate stab of anxiousness in her chest as she pushed herself out of her chair and approached the captain's glass-walled office. She knew she was in deep shit.

"God, what the fuck did you do?" Gavin muttered as she passed by his desk. She said nothing as she made her way to Fowler's office.

"Sir?" She questioned as the glass door closed behind her.

"I just received a call from CyberLife regarding last night's hostage crisis," he began, his anger bubbling right beneath the surface of his less-than-calm facade. She could tell he was trying his best to keep himself from yelling at her right off the bat, but she knew he'd eventually lose that internal battle- he always did. "Apparently, you gave the android a gun? What the fuck were you thinking?"

"Look, during our first case, Connor was forced to choose CyberLife protocols over shooting the suspect and he got away. So yes, I gave him a gun and taught him a little self-reliance. What's wrong with that? He saved the hostage and that's all that matters."

"That's all that matters?" He mocked, hardly believing that was the defense she was going with. "So it's fine to break the law as long as long as it gets the job done- that's what you're telling me?"

"CyberLife doesn't make the law, they make stupid rules that get people killed. If they want an android to protect the public, they need to give him the means to do it!" She argued.

"Goddamnit. You do realize that Connor is not a HIM, right? It is a piece of CyberLife property and they get to make the rules regarding how their property is used. Access to this technology is a privilege and they can pull their sponsorship with this department at any time."

"So that's it." Eliza let out a derisive laugh. Fowler was only concerned that CyberLife might pull their sponsorship from the department.

"Don't fucking start." He warned her, punctuating his anger with a stern point of his finger. "Because of what you did, CyberLife has demanded Connor be reassigned a new partner and to make sure you are barred from working with any KR800 models in the future."

"You told them to piss off right?" She asked, suddenly struck with worry.

Fowler sighed before leaning back in his chair, his tired eyes drown down to the blotter on his desk. She expected too much of him, especially considering how bad she fucked up.

"No. I'm sorry, but I'm not taking your side on this," he told her, seeming regretful that he had to make the choice.

Eliza sucked in a deep breath, trying to resign herself to the situation. The whole thing was bullshit. "So, who's Connor being reassigned to- Davis? Reed?"

"I'm giving him over to Hank Anderson."

Eliza cocked her head to the side so abruptly, it hurt her neck. "I'm sorry, I could have sworn you just said Hank."

"I did." He said, his serious expression unwavering.

It was known by everyone in the department that Hank hated androids. Even though the old lieutenant had been more-or-less a mentor to her in her early days, Eliza did not support the decision one bit. Hank was a burnt-out drunk with no ambition and no patience. The only reason he hadn't been fired was because he was a decorated officer. Reassigning Connor to Hank was basically the equivalent of giving her the middle finger.

"You know what?... Fine," she snorted, angrily throwing her hands in the air before walking away. "Fuck it!"

As she stormed out of his office slammed the glass door so hard it rattled dangerously on its metal hinges. Fowler remained at his desk and grit his teeth in anger.

AN: Review, Favor, Follow! There will be a time jump for the next chapter where we get introduced to Nines. Their first meeting will be... strained. It's going to be a bit painful because I'm taking this story the route of the bad ending :/ Going to try and dig deep on this one. Let me know what you think so far!