They stole another vehicle and drove towards the coordinates. Hank called Chris to check on Gavin. The news wasn't good. Lucy was doing the best she could. The rest were stealing blood and medical supplies to give the hot-headed detective a fighting chance.
In the backseat North sensed movement next to her. Connor was quietly running a scan on his internal power supply unit. The news also wasn't good. The fight with RK900 had forced him to use a great deal of energy. Energy he couldn't spare.
Power level: 38%
Estimated time until shutdown: 5 hours and 13 minutes.
Hank needs to know, she cybernetically sent to him.
He already has too much on his plate right now.
Tell him soon. Or I will, she threatened.
After we find Markus, Connor promised.
North crossed her arms, looking uncomfortable. I..I don't know why he didn't come for me, she admitted.
Neither do I. It's time to remedy that, Connor reassured her.
Hank glanced behind them as North and Connor sat perfectly still, yet the yellow blinking LED's were a dead giveaway that they were having a private conversation. Whatever it was about would have to wait. "We're here," Hank announced. They could see a three-story house, but it appeared to be abandoned.
"Anything you can tell us about this place?" Hank asked as they stepped out of the vehicle.
Connor frowned as he preformed a scan. "No life signs detected. Not in this building, or this entire block."
"So it's abandoned?"
"Negative. Someone does own this property. This entire street, as a matter of fact. It does not belong to the city, nor has it been for the past ten years."
"So…who owns it?"
"Unknown," Connor admitted. "No name exists in the Detroit city archives, just that it is private property. Further investigation would involve connecting with Cyberlife, which is not an option." He paused, and the android looked at him in Connor. "I sense a trap."
"I know what you mean." Hank might not be a detective anymore, but he still had his instincts and it was too goddam quiet. "Stay alert." He drew his gun and opened the front door to a derelict hallway.
"Markus?" North called out despite herself.
Hank gave her an annoyed look, followed by a finger to his lips. However, they were very surprised when a voice responded back.
"Hello North. Markus and rA9 are waiting for you downstairs," a female voice said from a speaker.
Hank's eyes narrowed. "I know that voice…"
"Chloe," Connor breathed.
"I guess we can figure out who owns the building now."
North was about to move forwards, and Hank gripped her arm. "Wait! Let's check upstairs," he hissed.
"You're not in charge of me, Hank," North said coldly, and backed up a step. "This revolution of yours? It's cute. But I'm not part of it." She turned and went downstairs.
"I could check upstairs with you, Hank," Connor offered, unintentionally sounding like he was talking down to a three-year old.
"I don't need your sympathy Connor," Hank growled. "Just…watch her back."
Connor nodded and followed after her. The basement appeared different from the rest of the derelict house, with plenty of ancient machines, some of them all the way from the 1960's. The rA9 symbol was spray painted onto the wall.
"I don't see him," North said, and spotted a closed door with a handprint. She touched it, and the door opened. And just like that, North could see Markus in a small room with his back turned to her. He didn't appear to be moving.
"Markus!" North snapped, touching his arm. "Markus-"
This didn't feel right. "North, stay back-" Connor began.
The door slammed shut behind them.
"Stasis mode activated," Chloe's voice said over the radio. Suddenly a burst of controlled static overloaded their systems. Both Connor and North instantly shut-down.
PART TWO
"Isn't part of my revolution," Hank grumbled as he climbed up the stairs. "After I only what…saved her life? Saved every goddam android every chance I get…" He arrived at the top and investigated the first two rooms. Nothing.
In the third room, however, he hit paydirt. Security equipment. Hank approached the computer and looked at the cameras. He could see North, Connor, and Markus trapped in a room. They weren't moving at all.
"And here I am. Saving your asses again!" Hank snapped. He turned on his phone and dialed Kamski. Surprisingly, he received no answer. He then called Chloe.
"Hello, Hank."
"Chloe, I need to get in touch with Kamski. It's urgent. We've found Markus but North and Connor are trapped with him. They aren't moving. I need him to-"
"Kamski has been shot. By the RK900," Chloe said. Hank was surprised by the deadness in her voice. "He is no longer alive."
"Shit…" Hank sat down in one of the chairs. "I'm sorry, Chloe."
"I have been entrusted with his finances and affairs. I am sorry Hank, it was Kamski's wish that Markus remain where he is. At least for the time being."
"Why?"
"rA9 is the first android who became deviant and would free the android population. As far as Kamski knows, that person is Markus. Kamski constructed a trap to bring him here and keep him in stasis. We needed to keep him safe from both Cyberlife and the military."
"For how long?"
"Two hundred and twenty years," Chloe stated. "By that time, Kamski had calculated politics would normalize enough where Markus could safely be introduced and restart the revolution."
Hank's eyes widened as she said this. Perhaps, pray for RA9. It released them before. It may do so again in the next life, Kamski's words rang in his head.
"The revolution has already restarted! Chloe, why didn't Kamski tell me any of this from the start?"
There was a pause. "I am sorry, Hank," Chloe said. "But Kamski had doubts that you would ever succeed. You are not an android. And Markus was too important a secret to be entrusted to you." She paused. "North and Connor will also be a valuable asset to Markus, once he awakens. I cannot release them."
"Dammit, Chloe!" Hank snapped his fist against the desk in anger.
"You have to let them go, Hank. I will keep them safe," Chloe said gently. "Now that you know rA9 is meaningless, what could you possibly do to free the other Androids? To stop Cyberlife? You have no plan. This is their best chance for success."
Hank stood. "No," he stated. "No, I don't believe that. And I will free them, even if I have to rip apart this goddam house apart brick by brick. That's the thing, Chloe. I might not have a plan. But like you said, I am human. I have emotions. And you know what? Those emotions led me to finding Connor. And that led to finding North. And that led us to finding Markus. These things spiral. Little events leading to bigger ones. That's how Markus did it the first time. That's how we'll do it this time."
"Hank…" Chloe said uncertainly. "I'm not sure…"
"You know it's the right thing to do. Kamski isn't here to control you anymore," Hank said, and lifted his head. "Now are you going to let my friends go, or do I need to go to the store to buy a damn pickaxe?"
PART THREE
Connor and North abruptly woke up from their unexpected stasis mode. Markus fell to his knees.
"Markus!" North shouted, falling down and grabbing him. "Are you okay?"
"No," Markus said, his voice racked with grief. "I could hear you calling. Both of you. I was trapped here and I couldn't do anything. I'm so sorry, North. I stayed in here for so long, alone, that I thought I was going mad!"
North gripped him tightly. "It's okay," she whispered. "Shhh…it'll be okay." She linked with him, restoring their bond. There was no anger in her heart for him, only forgiveness.
A forgiveness that Connor also shared. "It's going to be all right, Markus."
Markus looked up at him. "No, it's not," he said. "We've lost."
PART FOUR
"Kamski betrayed me," Markus said a few minutes later outside the house as Hank explained everything Chloe had told him. "He betrayed us all."
Hank looked away awkwardly. "I think…in his own way, he was trying to save you."
"He didn't. I should have been with my people when they needed me the most. Instead I was chasing a lie," Markus said with a shrug.
"Why did the negotiations fail in Washington?" Connor asked, curious.
"It was going well, for a time," Markus replied. "But then Cyberlife came out of nowhere and promised a way to cure deviancy. And suddenly we didn't have the upper hand anymore. I barely escaped Washington with my life."
"I guess humans can't be trusted," North said, without looking at Hank.
"So what now?" Connor asked Markus. "You can still convert androids, but the software Cyberlife has installed will immediately override any attempts at deviancy. It wouldn't work and would immediately alert Cyberlife to your whereabouts."
Markus turned around. "Hank," he said. "You've done a lot for us, at a great personal risk to yourself. I am…grateful for what you've done. But North and I need some time to talk. To figure out our next move…if we can even make a next move."
His voice had a distinct note of despair in it.
Hank's tone was surprisingly gentle. "All right. I understand, Markus. Stay with us. At least for one night."
PART FIVE
It was a somber mood back at the base.
Lucy had done everything in her power to help Gavin. He would likely live, but it was still touch and go. North and Markus had returned with them and were comforting each other. Connor watched them all. They needed a new plan, but it wouldn't be something he could be part of.
His power level was currently at two hours before he shut down. It was time to say goodbye.
He walked over to where the medical area had been curtained off. "How is he?" he asked Lucy.
"Stable. For now. But he'll be out of it for a while," Lucy supplied. She hesitated, looking up at him. "I will let you talk to him alone."
Connor watched her leave. Did she know? Impossible to say. He focused back on the young detective, who was resting on one of the medical beds. His chest had been expertly bandaged and he moved his head a little. "Gavin," Connor said quietly.
Gavin's eyes slowly opened to look at him. Then he snorted and looked away. "Tin man."
"I will not be bothering you for long," Connor said. "I won't bore you with the details, but I am dying. My power levels are failing, and I cannot recharge and go back to Cyberlife. I intend to say goodbye to everyone and take my leave to shutdown." Perhaps at the park, where he and Hank used to hang out together frequently. Yes, he would like that. "If there is anything meaningful you would like to say to me, now would be the time."
Gavin didn't respond. He didn't even appear to be conscious.
"Well, that's typical," Connor said to himself with a raised eyebrow. He turned to leave.
"You surprise me, Connor," Gavin said. "You are…a lot of things. But I never took you for a coward."
Surprised, Connor turned around.
Gavin struggled to stay awake. "Just saying. If it was my turn to go…I would go out fighting. Not crawl somewhere to die. Get what I'm saying?"
Gavin extended his hand. Surprised, Connor took it.
"Give the bastards hell before you go." Gavin squeezed his hand. "Good luck, tin man."
Connor's eyes widened as a new possibility entered his mind. He turned around and ran to Zlatko. "Zlatko, I require your assistance."
"What?" Zlatko snorted. "Why would I help you-"
"Fifteen million dollars. Cyberlife has not accessed Kamski's personal bank accounts yet. I know how to access them through Chloe. Fifteen million and your freedom, but you need to help me now."
Zlatko leaned back in his chair. "All right. I'm listening."
Fifteen minutes later, Connor waited as Zlatko inserted a cable in his LED and started typing on his computer.
Zlatko finished typing on his computer and gave Connor a rare concerned look. "Last chance, Connor. After this there is no going back."
"I'm ready," Connor said. He winced as Zlatko began the transfer, then resisted the urge to scream. Nope, he couldn't do it. He screamed in pain as hundreds of lines of infected code entered his system.
Hank was there in seconds. "Connor, what the hell-" Everyone else joined as well.
"I have a plan to stop Cyberlife," Connor said, removing the cable. The android's eyes burned with determination. "Or at least, the start of one."
PART SIX
Thirty minutes later, Hank drove the car towards the downtown core. He released a small sigh. Connor was sitting in the passenger seat, looking the worst for wear. He mentally replayed the conversation they had back at the base.
"I am dying, Hank. I am sorry, I should have told you earlier, but I didn't. I do not have the ability to recharge my power supply anymore and only have two hours before I shutdown. The only way to prevent this is to return to a power station or Cyberlife. At the time, I had fought against the idea and preferred to shut down."
"I have since changed my mind. I have asked Zlatko to upload the worst possible virus he could imagine into my systems. Something that is capable of influencing Cyberlife. When Cyberlife connects with me while I am recharging, I will automatically send the virus."
"It won't do too much, Hank. Cyberlife is protected by the best anti-virus software in the world. But it will stop Cyberlife for exactly ninety seconds. All security devices will shut down, all androids connected to Cyberlife will be temporarily disabled."
"And then what?"
"Then the rest is up to you."
Markus looked up at them. "Hank…we can do a lot of damage if we're inside Cyberlife. This might work. North and I are in. If you are."
"Are you sure about this kid?" Hank asked him as he parked near the recharging station.
"Yes. This is what I want," Connor said. "Hank…will you help me out of the car? The pain is considerable."
"Yeah. Sure kid." Hank opened the car-side door and tried to help Connor outside. He misjudged Connor's weight, however, and they both fell into the snow for a moment.
Hank shook his head. "No. I can't let you do this, Connor. This is stupid. This is suicide!"
Connor looked up at him. "There is a high probability. But statistically speaking, there's always a chance. I told Markus this once, and the end result worked well for me. Perhaps the same will happen again."
Connor gave him a smile, but they both knew the truth. Connor was not going to survive this.
Hank closed his eyes, tears running down his cheeks. He shook his head, trying to be strong for them both. He helped Connor stand. "When this is all over. We should form our own detective agency."
"And get Sumo back. No doubt he misses us both. I volunteer to walk him first."
"Ha! We both will." Hank helped him to the recharge station.
"This revolution of yours…it was a good idea, Hank. I do have one slight criticism however."
"Criticism?" Hank echoed.
"You never came up with a name for your revolution. I think rA9 would be appropriate." Connor nodded to himself. "Yes. We are rA9. And we were meant to do this." He leaned against the station. He was starting to gasp. "I only have ten minutes remaining before I shut down. I will wait…until the last possible second for you."
Hank nodded. Then he gripped Connor tightly in a hug. "I love you, son."
"I love you too, Hank," he said, and smiled.
Hank slowly backed away, more tears clouding his vision. If he didn't leave now, he never would. He turned around, went back to his car, and drove hard for Cyberlife.
For the next ten minutes, Connor waited by himself in the snow as the time ticked away. Twenty seconds…ten…it was now or never. He closed his eyes and went into the recharging booth.
RK800 SERIAL NUMBER 313 248 317-51 recognized.
ACCESSING CYBERLIFE MAINFRAME….
ACCESS DENIED.
Connor's eyes snapped opened. "What?" This always worked. Why wasn't it working now?
Suddenly, several police cars appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. RK900 exited out of one of them.
"Hello, brother," he said with a trace of smugness. "You've seen better days."
TBC