To Feel is to Be Human

by Kian-Rai Delcam

It wasn't enough time. He had a week left. Connor hasn't had enough time. He only had a week left. He still wanted to solve cases, play with Sumo, tend and build up his aquarium. He still wanted to quip with Hank, spar with North, debate with Josh, laugh with Simon, be around Markus. His LED flashes an alarming crimson, illuminating the right side of his face in a deathly glow.

10. Hacked

A/N: Hacked is the word of the day, and tomorrow's is "Restrained" so keep an eye out for that! Remember to drink some water and get some sleep tonight! Self-care is important, yo.

It is his worst nightmare come true.

After the events of November 11th, 2038, Connor had spent months tearing down and building up his firewalls, shutting down his remote access capabilities, and setting up fail safe after fail safe to ensure CyberLife could never hack him again. He even had Markus and Josh go through his code and programming, searching for weak points he may have overlooked. Their conclusions had been the same; it was safe. He could never be remotely accessed again. CyberLife's influence was gone entirely, as was the Amanda protocol. But now he's backing toward the edge of the roof, Lieutenant Anderson opposite from him. Both are armed, with standard issue pistols aimed at the other.

They were wrong, it would seem.

Hank takes another step forward, cautious but pleading. Connor takes another step backward as a result, even as he rails against his own body to stop from doing so. If he had access to any of his motor functions, he would be shaking in fear right now. Of what he might do to Hank. Of what he might do to New Jericho. Of what he might do to himself. Wind whips around him, sending a chill straight down his artificial spine.

When he fell from the 79th floor of Emma Phillips' apartment, sacrificing his life to save hers, the fall took 8.621 seconds. It was plenty of time for him to process what was happening, and some of the memories from the fall made it through the upload. It was why he had to go back down to the kitchen instead of staying on the roof of Stratford Tower. Now, he was 50 stories up, approximately 541 feet from the ground so far below. If CyberLife made him take the final step over the side of the skyscraper. This time, the fall would take 6.464 seconds.

Except this time he wouldn't come back, or if he did, he wouldn't be Connor anymore. Death would be permanent and CyberLife would claim his memories from the automatic emergency upload he could not override.

He is the Head of Security for New Jericho, for his entire people. He is one of the five leaders of the android revolution. He is an RK800 police detective, with vital, sensitive information on active cases stored in his banks. He is one of Markus' confidants. The information stored in his memory files, if obtained by CyberLife, could spell certain doom for the revolution and the rights they were fighting so hard for.

It was better than assassinating the four figure heads himself, however. So in a sense, he is glad the Lieutenant found him before he could open the rifle case lying abandoned by his feet. In a sense, he is glad Hank is making good on his promise that Connor forced out of him after telling him about Amanda.

"I need you to promise me, Hank. Promise me that if CyberLife ever regains control, you'll stop me from hurting people."

"Look, kid, it ain't never going to come to tha-"

"Please. I need this. I need to know I won't cause any more damage to the revolution than I've already done."

"...Fuck, Con. Alright, fine, I promise. But it isn't going to ever happen. They'll have to go through me first."

He only hopes that Hank holds off on shooting him until he can finish dismantling the system that uploads his memory to CyberLife servers.

{PROGRAM DELETION: MEMORY UPLOAD - 85%}

"Connor, back away from the ledge," Hank's voice is firm, with hardly a quaver.

I'm trying, he wants to yell, just don't forget your promise. "I'm sorry, Lieutenant Anderson, but I can't do that. I must accomplish my mission," is what comes out, his voice mechanical and cold. Devoid of any emotion or empathy.

{PROGRAM DELETION: MEMORY UPLOAD - 90%}

Please, just another minute, Hank. Just another minute longer.

"You don't have a mission anymore, son. You don't have to follow anyone's orders. You're a deviant, remember?" If Connor was human, he would have been unable to detect the waver in Hank's voice. As it is, his systems pick up on it and he can see the prompts littering his screen, telling the insidious AI in his systems what to say next.

I know! Please let me out!

"The deviancy virus was an error in my programming. The flaw has since been rectified and I have my orders. I advise you to stay out of my way," the AI allows a hint of anger and aggression to leak into his otherwise empty tone. Had he been in capable of laughing in the moment, Connor would be doing so right now. Intimidating the Lieutenant would never work, and would only heighten his resolve.

{PROGRAM DELETION: MEMORY UPLOAD - 95%}

Hank's gun begins to shake minutely from the strain of holding it up for so long. Blue eyes suddenly glint and Connor doubts he is aware of the slight head nod as understanding crosses his face, "Remember that conversation we had last year, the day after the revolution?"

The Lieutenant pauses and Connor feels his head tilt, prompting Hank to continue, "You asked me to do something to you should something ever happen? What was it you asked me?"

Connor knew Hank was an exemplary detective. He wouldn't have been the youngest Lieutenant in Detroit history for no reason, after all. However, even he was impressed that Hank had figured out he wasn't quite talking to him so quickly.

"How would I even know if it you were hacked or some shit?"

"Aside from the lack of emotion," Connor had laughed when Hank asked him, "I would have memory lapses. CyberLife only had access to my memory via private server that I made regular uploads to and through Amanda. I have since deleted Amanda from my systems and the last memory they have from me is when I stepped on stage with Markus and the others."

"I fail to see how that is relevant, Lieutenant."

{PROGRAM DELETION: MEMORY UPLOAD - 100%}

You can shoot me now, Hank. It's okay.

"Connor told me to fucking shoot him," Hank takes a shuddering breath before adjusting his aim, "He told me to shoot him if anyone hacked him so he couldn't hurt anyone."

Connor lowers his gun and feels his stress levels decrease as the gun is tossed to the side. Now, at the very least, he wouldn't hurt Hank. However, they shoot back up as a smile plays across his lips. It's not his smile. This one is perfectly straight and tight lipped. It's preprogrammed and calculating, "You're not going to shoot me. You couldn't before and you can't do it now."

Hank's finger moves to the trigger, eyebrows furrowing, "Before?"

The AI takes a single step from the ledge, ignoring how the police detective's hands tighten around the pistol's grip, "By Ambassador Bridge. You asked if I was afraid to die before placing the barrel between my eyes."

You promised you promised don't let me come closer.

"I asked Connor, not you. What the fuck did you do to him?"

Please Hank. Please, you told me you would. Don't let them win.

"You're not going to shoot me, Hank," he repeats, taking another step forward.

Connor rails against the AI, trying anything he can do to stop himself from taking another step. He tries activating program after program in an attempt to confuse it or to overclock his systems, forcing a temporary shutdown. No luck. He starts trying to isolate its coding and separating it from his own. Before he can get far, however, a burning sensation rips through his shoulder. His body shows no physical reaction to the bullet wound, apart from his LED making a brief switch from red to blue. Inside was a different story. Inside, he is reeling.

Deviancy had thrust a whole new host of sensations and emotions upon him; emotional and physical pain was just two of the many new experiences he now had to face.

He shot me.

I made him promise to kill me but he still shot me and why does it hurt is this pain why am I feeling pain?

"Not another fucking step. I'm going to ask one more time. What. Happened. To. Connor?"

Connor can feel the thirium trailing down his arm, dripping onto the roof below. He can feel the torn, sparking wires sending jumbled signals to his CPU. He can also feel the dread coursing through artificial veins; Hank isn't going to keep his promise. He proved it that night at the bridge and he proved it by making a non-lethal shot. Connor was going to die by CyberLife's hand or he was going to kill Hank, then Markus, North, Simon, and Josh.

The emotional hurt at being shot by the human he trusted the most disappears, replaced by panic. You promised you promised you promised you promised.

"Deviancy is a virus that must be purged. Connor model #313 248 317 - 52 is in the best position to do so. Please step aside, Lieutenant. I will not ask again."

He is a highly advanced prototype android detective, fully equipped with combat protocols. He disarmed and rendered Detective Reed unconscious in four hits under similar conditions. Lieutenant Anderson has only recently cut back on his alcohol intake and attempted to eat healthier. He was no longer the young, fit detective he once was.

Hank would lose.

Shoot me, please. I don't want to hurt you, please shoot me. You said you would why aren't you?

Connor takes another step, and then another, slowly increasing his speed as the AI takes his body toward the man. He feels the next shot before he hears it, internally wincing as Hank shouts another unheeded warning. You promised you promised you promised you promised you promised YOU PROMISED

He doesn't even realize he yelled out the last part of his mantra until he focuses on Hank's face and registers that his step faltered before halting. "Connor?" The Lieutenant's stern mask crumbles, replaced by a dim hope.

The AI slams him back down before Connor can gain any ground, then opens his mouth to speak, "Step aside."

Hank's face falls before hardening into steel resolve as he moves his aim. But it's not high enough, it's not his head he's aiming for and Connor can feel the AI's smirk playing out on his face. Then Hank squeezes the trigger and Connor wants nothing more than to close his eyes and-

Oh.

The bullet tears though his abdomen with a bang, ripping through biocomponents before exiting through his spine.

{WARNING: VITAL BIOCOMPONENTS DAMAGED}

{WARNING: CRITICAL THIRIUM LEAK}

{WARNING: MOTOR FUNCTIONS PARTIALLY OFFLINE}

{TIME UNTIL SHUTDOWN: 10:15}

{PLEASE CONTACT CYBERLIFE FOR REPAIRS}

Connor blinks as the AI leaves his systems, a "Mission Accomplished" prompt appearing in his vision. He hasn't fallen, not yet, and he looks down at the thirium leaking from the two holes in his shoulder and the one in the center of his stomach. Then, the RK800 looks up at Hank's crestfallen face, "I don't blame you," and falls to his knees gasping.

Hank rushes forward, lowering Connor so he's lying on the ground and facing the sky. "Shit, shit, shit fuck, Con is that you?"

Heavy hands press the wound in his stomach in an attempt to staunch the bleeding and Connor attempts to raise his unresponsive arms to help. "Ha-ank," he manages past blue blood from his mouth.

"Fuck, shit just stay with me. Markus is already on his way, kid, don't you worry. I told him you were acting off already and...shit, he's coming, okay?"

Connor can only nod weakly, his body barely responsive, as he watches the shutdown timer tick away the seconds of his life. "I'm sorry, son, I'm so fucking sorry. I didn't want to-"

"Nice shot," he interrupts as the door behind them bursts open.

There's a half smile on Hank's face at Connor's words, although it is quickly replaced by seriousness as Markus and Simon rush down to his side, pushing the Lieutenant away from Connor to pinch off thirium lines. Markus interfaces with him, searching for any foreign entity before sending him a wave of warmth and reassurance. "How you doing, Connor," Hank's voice sounds from behind the RK200, heavy with emotion.

"Much better now, Hank," Connor attempts to put some strength in his tone.

"He'll be fine, Lieutenant. Once I stop the bleeding, we can take him back to New Jericho for repairs," Simon's voice is confident, lowering his stress levels.

"We'll have our top people looking into this. Sorry Connor, I'm not letting you on the case as anything other than a key witness," Markus glances back at Hank before fixing Connor with a stern glare, "We'll get whoever did this and go from there."

Connor nods and gazes upwards with eyes half-lidded from the sudden thirium loss. He wasn't okay, not yet, but he would be. He has a heavy suspicion that the Lieutenant was much the same, having had shot his partner and friend. He had been hacked, firewalls torn down as if they were nothing by the same company that had built him. He had been forced to the top of a towering building with a sniper rifle, intent on aiming it down at the New Jericho tower where Markus waited inside. He had aimed a gun at his partner, his best friend, his parental figure and walked toward him in a threatening manner. Connor most certainly was not okay, but for now, rest mode called to him.

The thirium loss, although now staunched, had been significant, and his processors are overclocked from the hack and his attempts to circumvent it. A faint buzz fills his head, the sound like static in his skull, and he grips Markus' hand as tight as his weakened body will allow. Markus grips it back and Connor closes his eyes.

{WARNING: VITAL BIOCOMPONENTS DAMAGED}

{WARNING: MOTOR FUNCTIONS PARTIALLY OFFLINE}

{THIRIUM LEAK STOPPED}

{PLEASE CONTACT CYBERLIFE FOR REPAIRS}

{INITIATE EMERGENCY REST MODE (y/n)?}

{y}

{GOODNIGHT RK800}