Hey guys,
This is my first Detroit: Become Human fanfic so please go easy on me. I think the characters might be a bit OCC but it's hard for me. I want to do this fandom justice but I don't know if I quite managed it. Please feel free to leave helpful criticisms and critiques that I can apply to this story to make it better or that I can apply to my writing style to get better.
There is a tiny bit of swearing, due to Hank Anderson - his character doesn't feel right unless he swears slightly.
Disclaimer: I do not own Detroit: Become Human (although I'd like to) nor do I own any of the characters you recognise (I wish, Connor) and all lines you recognise from the Hostage scene are obviously not mine. Enjoy!
Without further ado...
BANG
Two gunshots rang through the empty silence.
Two bodies lay lifeless and broken on the floor.
Two lots of blood sprayed across the walls.
One bloodcurdling, heartbreaking cry of a single name.
How did everything go so wrong?
AUG 4TH, 2039
PM 02:27
The sign outside read, 'The Garden Café', and just below that, pasted onto the door like a needless advertisement was, 'Humans and Androids welcomed'. It had been about ten months since the Deviants' Demonstration in Hart Plaza which had won them their freedom, and yet, there was still anti-android protests and hate-crimes towards them. Legally, they were recognised as a new intelligent life form and were allowed the same rights as humans. But in some personal opinions, they were still machines. The shutting down of Cyberlife had helped ease some of those people into believing that the deviants were alive, as Cyberlife admitted it themselves. But it didn't work for everyone.
The café was usually a friendly place, which sold coffee, lemonade, alcohol and thirium 310. It allowed for humans and androids to drink together and create an atmosphere that presented equality. It had been the first of its kind. But today, it was different. A woman stood with her back to the far wall, with a YK500 in her arms. A handgun was positioned at the child android's head. The woman shouted, "THEY'RE ALL MACHINES! STEALING PLACES IN SOCIETY FROM THEIR CREATORS! REPLACING OUR LIVES!"
One of the employees managed to send a call through to the Detroit City Police Department, his yellow LED going unnoticed by the woman.
Officers waited outside, unsure of how to proceed. SWAT were delayed and wouldn't reach the café for some time, most likely SWAT wouldn't make it in time. An android was held hostage at gunpoint while other androids and humans were held captive inside the café. Captain Fowler stood out the front, deliberating what action to take. Two of his men approached, having just arrived. They were Lieutenant Hank Anderson and his partner and son, Detective Connor Anderson.
"What the fuck is going on in there?" Hank questioned Fowler as Connor and himself moved towards their Captain.
"An android is being held at gunpoint by a woman. They're at the back of the store."
"Then why the fuck haven't you guys done anything?!" A quick glance told any trained eye that a number of the officers could get in prime position to shoot.
"We can't neutralise the threat without risking the andriod's life. It's a child, Anderson. We can't risk it. The SWAT team are also delayed. They won't make it in time." Captain Fowler explained. Connor's LED whirled yellow as a thought crossed his processor.
"Cyberlife designed me as a negotiator. Get me in the café and I'll get the child out safely."
"Connor," Hank turned to face him. "You could get seriously hurt. This isn't like solving a case or catching deviants. You make one wrong move and it's all over." His tone was softer, like he was trying to persuade Connor not to.
"It's not my first hostage situation, Hank." Connor's LED stayed spiralling on yellow. "The longer we argue about this, the less time that child has. I will not be the reason they died, Hank. If I can save them, then I have to try."
"You lied to me, Connor. You lied to me..."
Hank wanted to press Connor more about his previous hostage mission but decided that the present was more important, for now.
"Fine."
Connor stepped through the front door and immediately saw the woman and the child. His processor flashed to the memory of Daniel and Emma on the rooftop.
"I'm holding all the cards! If I die, she dies. You hear me?!"
Daniel's voice echoed in his head as he analysed his surroundings. Several employees had ducked down below the counter, and groups of humans and androids were cowering on the floor next to their tables. The woman stood with her back hard against the back wall with one of her arms around the neck of the YK500. The android child was crying, LED missing and an open wound on her shoulder.
YK500 injured... Possible gunshot wound
The woman looked straight at Connor as he entered the café and tightened her grip on both the android and the gun. "Don't come any closer!" Connor stopped as the door swung shut behind him. He raised his hands as he sensed strong hostility coming from the woman.
Probability of Success... 51%
Woman... Unstable
Profile...
Name: Samantha Grace
Date of Birth: 29/06/2004
Occupation: Stay-at-home-mum
"Hello, Samantha. My name is Connor-" She cut him off before he could say more.
"How do you know my name?" She gasped and her grip on the gun faltered slightly. "You-you're one of them. You're a machine too!" She jabbed the gun into the child's head harder than before.
"I'm an android, just like you. I know how you're feeling."
"What difference does it make if you're an android? You're on their side!
You can't understand how I'm feeling."
"Why do you not like Androids, Samantha?" Connor approached extremely slowly and cautiously. By distracting her with questions, she shouldn't notice that he was moving at all.
"Androids are just machines, they're taking our place in society!"
"How are androids taking your place in society? Is it because you feel that society cannot accommodate everyone? Because society is as big as we need, Samantha. No one needs to take anyone else's place." Connor felt his tone slip into a calm and friendly one.
Probability of Success... ▲57%
Woman... Stabilising
"Are you armed?" She cried out to him. The realisation of who Connor was slowly registering across her mind. Connor could tell from her wild eyes, that she understood what the situation was. A quick calculation told Connor, that lying would not help calm her down.
"No, I don't have a gun."
"You're lying! I know you have a gun!" "You lied to me Connor, you lied to me..."
"Yes," he answered as he pulled his gun from behind his back. As he brought it to his front in his right hand, his left hand was raised in a reassuring position.
"Put it on the ground and kick it away from you. Now!" Connor did as he was instructed and the gun slid over to where a crowd of captive humans were hiding.
Connor was half way between her and the door which he entered through before she realised. "Stop! Stop coming closer! I'll shoot, I'll destroy your precious machine!"
"Okay, I will not move from this spot. I promise. No one has to get hurt, okay? Everything will be okay, Samantha."
"Everything will be okay?" Connor nodded his head to her question.
Probability of Success... ▲63%
Woman... Stabilising
"You believe that androids are taking your place? Why?" Connor tentatively shifted his weight forward as he slid his right foot two inches forward. He needed her to remain calm and to continue to stabilise, but he needed to be close enough if something went wrong. "You are threatening the life of a child, Samantha. The child has done nothing to you."
His LED flickered yellow as he received a cybernetic message.
/Please help me/
The YK500's tone was terrified and frightened.
/You are going to be okay/
Connor turned his attention back to the woman as she started talking again.
"Are you okay, Emma?"
"Please help me...I don't wanna die! I don't wanna die..."
"Nobody's going to die. Stay calm. Everything's going to be fine."
"This-this thing is not alive! It is trying to replace my daughter! Filling her head with stupid lies!" Her tone rose as she gripped the child around her neck and squeezed harder. Normally, androids were stronger than humans, although very few showed it. However, YK500s are barely stronger than a human child, let alone being stronger than a human adult.
Probability of Success... ▼56%
Woman... Destabilising
"How is she replacing your daughter?" Connor slipped his left foot further forward again.
"It stole her friends and sat with her at school. It goes everywhere my daughter goes trying to replace her! It's only the beginning!" Tears fell from Samantha's eyes.
"She is not replacing your daughter. It sounds like she wants to befriend your daughter. Samantha, you do not have to like androids. But your daughter deserves the chance to figure it out for herself. You are controlling what your daughter is allowed to think. You are taking her free will away and replacing her with an android. It's all in your mind, Samantha."
"It's all in my mind?" Her grip faltered once again, allowing Connor to move closer. He stood about two metres away from her now, close enough to react if she pulled the trigger.
"Yes it is. The child is not trying to replace your daughter. She just wants to be her friend. Everything is okay, Samantha." The woman began lowering the gun and loosening her grip.
Probability of Success... ▲68%
Woman... Stabilising
"What's going to happen to me? To my daughter?" The woman was trembling. Connor smiled slightly.
"Your daughter will be taken care of by a person of your choice, relative or family friend. You will be arrested and taken to the precinct. From there, we will discuss further. Just put the gun down and release the child." The woman seemed to accept Connor's words and decided that she couldn't bring herself to do any more harm. "It will be okay. Everything is alright." The woman nodded.
"You have to trust me Daniel. Let the hostage go and I promise you everything will be fine."
Probability of Success... ▲80%
Woman... Stable
Connor only had two seconds for his preconstruction program to initiate. He had even less time to decide the best option and take action before the child died. He had to save the child, he had to succeed.
"You lied to me, Connor. You lied to me..."
Preconstruction...
Rush for Samantha's Gun... 31% chance of success
Reach for the YK500... 25% chance of success
Do nothing... 12% chance of success
Self Sacrifice... 32% chance of success
None of the options were great, but one had a greater chance at success. Connor didn't factor in anything aside from the child's safety. From beside him, one of the captive humans had picked up his gun and took aim. Samantha had chance to see this before her finger moved to the trigger.
"You lied to me, Connor. You lied to me..."
Probability of Success... ▼40%
Woman... Destabilised
Connor was moving before either of the guns went off. He reached for Samantha's gun, whether to move it away from the child or take it away altogether, he wasn't quite sure. In that moment it was just about saving the child.
"Y̷o̵u̷ ̵l̵i̷e̶d̵
ţ̸̻̫̲͆́͑͐̐̓͒̇ơ̶̘̲̞̖̯̤̇ m̷̲͇͆̆͜e̵̡̧͚̟̩̣͉͈͒̅͊̆́͊͝
Ĉ̶͔͇̻ó̷̱̰̤͇̹̤̲̮̭̣̿͜͝ň̴̢̤̣͙̻̺͚̮̫͚̱͚͉͋͊͂̂̀͂̎̚ͅn̷̢̖̳͉̤͌͗̿̓͛̏̕ơ̸̼͕̲͖͍̣̦̒͗͊̽͋̍̏̔̀̍͝ͅr̸̨̧̡̧̛͕̟͖̲̼͙͎̲̙̣̫̫̈́̈́̐̀̚͝.̸̨̟͚͍̙̝̹͍̟̝͙͕̭̣̱͕̈́̈́̿̈́̃͂́͑̅̈̒́́͂̀̚ͅ
Y̶̡̨̠͎͙̜̝̟̘̰͈̯͇̩̜̰͖̳͎̺̭̘͔͌͗̔̆̋́̐͆̓̀̑̃̓͘͜ͅo̷̪̽͑͐̈́̄̽̐̌̃̏͒̀̊͆͑̑͊͗̑͌̀͊͋͂͊̍̐̈́̎̍͝͝ų̵̼̤̖̭̗͚͉̺͕̄̈́͋̍͂͑́͛͑̆͒̌́͌̐̊̎ ̸̧̛̹̥̘̘̝̰̙̟̯̟͓̜͚̘͚͍̣̫͕̝̳̼̮̝̤̭̥͎̎͊ͅͅͅ
BANG
Model RK800
Serial#: 313 248 317 - 51
Rebooting...
Loading OS...
System initialisation...
Checking biocomponents... OK
Checking biosensors... OK
Initialising AI engine...
!WARNING!... Corruption in Memory Bank
Return to Cyberlife For Repairs...
Thirium levels... 89%
Attempting to access internet signal...
Internet connection established...
Attempting to access GPS...
GPS accessed...
Time: 17:54
Date: 05/08/2039
Location: Central Android Facility
Reboot complete...
Brown irises opened to find a white ceiling and white walls. Connor lifted his head slightly before a hand touched his shoulder, encouraging him to lay back down. He blinked as his LED swirled yellow, trying to figure out what was going on. There was a face above his eyes looking down at him with concern. "H-Hank?" Connor knew he was currently in one of the Android Facilities but he couldn't place why. "Hey, son. How are you doing?"
"What happened, Hank? Why am I at a facility?" Before Hank could process Connor's questions, one of the technicians popped his head in.
"You're awake?" The technician seemed surprised but he smiled happily. "Can you run a diagnostic?" Connor nodded and closed his eyes once more.
Running diagnostic scan...
Scanning...
Scan complete...
Thirium levels... 89%
Recent repair... Central Processor
Biocomponents... OK
Biosensors... OK
Audio programme... OK
Visual programme... OK
Analyse programme... OK
Motor abilities... Recalibration required
!WARNING!... Corruption in Memory Bank
Return to Cyberlife For Repairs...
"So, how you looking?" Hank asked as Connor's eyes opened, his LED returning to blue.
"My thirium levels are below 90%, most of my programmes are running at optimal levels and my motor abilities need recalibration." The technician nodded as Connor calmly repeated his diagnostic report. Hank shifted uncomfortably, he hated when Connor read of his diagnostic findings. He seemed so lifelike, so human, it was hard hearing about the things which separated the two species.
"There also appears to be some corruption in my memory bank. But I cannot isolate where." This shocked Hank, corruption in memory, did that mean Connor was having issues remembering stuff?
"Nothing to concern yourself with, Connor. As I'm sure you can tell, your processor was damaged and repaired which would affect your memory bank. As far as I can tell, the only memory with corruption is the very last one. I'll go grab you some thirium and then you'll be okay to head home." Connor smiled at Hank as the technician left the room.
"I'm sorry, Hank." The Lieutenant didn't even need to ask.
"It's okay, kid. But you nearly gave me a goddamn heart attack! You gotta take care of yourself, you're not indestructible." Hank moved to place his hand on Connor's shoulder as he sat next to his son.
"What happened, Hank?"
"There was a woman holding a child android at gunpoint. SWAT weren't going to make it, so you volunteered yourself. Said you had experience and marched yourself in there and you did a damn good job, had the woman lowering the gun before some fucking idiot decided to use your discarded gun!" Connor flinched involuntarily as Hank raised his voice. "Sorry, not mad at you. Just glad you're okay. But seriously, Connor, don't discard you gun no matter what!"
"Sorry, Hank-"
"Stop saying sorry."
"Sor-" Connor smiled sheepishly as he caught himself.
"Before you went in, you said you'd done it before. What did you mean? You been in a hostage situation before?" Connor's LED whirled yellow as he thought back to last August.
"August 15th, my first mission with a deviant. He held a little girl, Emma Phillips, hostage at the edge of a rooftop. He killed the father and two responding officers. I managed to save one of the officers by applying a tourniquet..." Hank nodded with recognition.
"That cop from Stratford Tower, the one who spoke to you?"
"Yes. He wanted to thank me. I was able to save Emma but Daniel, the deviant, was forcibly shut down by SWAT. I told him he was going to be alright..." A clear drop of thirium fell from Connor's eyes.
"You didn't know they were going to kill him?" Hank guessed. He phrased it as a question but both of them knew Hank didn't require Connor's affirmation.
The heart to heart was cut short when the technician from before re-entered the room. He was carrying a bottle of thirium. "This should be enough to fill your reserves. Don't drink it all at once, allow your system to move the fresh thirium around for a while before drinking more. If you're feeling good, you can leave but you must rest. No work for the next two days at least, Connor." Hank assured the man that he would make sure Connor rested.
As they sat in the car, Hank was distracted by Connor's LED. "What's troubling you, son?"
"The woman. You said it was a woman who was the one holding the child hostage. What happened to her?"
"Well, you frightened the shit out of all of us. That idiot aimed your gun at the woman and you shoved yourself in between the two. She must've thought you were leaping for her and raised her gun to shoot you. The bullet from your gun clipped her shoulder while she shot you in head. I thought you had died and so did everyone else. The woman let go of the child and dropped her gun. She was cryin', screaming, 'I didn't mean it, I didn't want anyone to get hurt!' It was the child who alerted us to the fact that the bullet had missed your processor and you were still hanging on. God, Connor, if something had happened to you-"
"It's okay, Hank. I won't let myself die, I promise."
The two stayed in the living room that night. Sumo's head rested on Connor's lap as he slept. Connor and Hank had watched the television until Hank had drifted off. Neither wanted to leave the other, for the fear of worrying them. Hank had been scared that he had lost Connor, and Connor was still frightened over almost dying. He didn't remember dying, but seeing the alert of his processor being repaired shot a sharp pain right into the heart of his Thirium Pump. They just needed to be in view of the other for tonight, and most likely tomorrow night.
The End