While delving into cold cases revolving around the first androids to show marks toward deviancy Connor had picked up a faint pattern between four of the deviants that trailed directly back to CyberLife Tower itself. The fact that the (now defunct) company had created Connor specifically to aid the Detroit Police Department in tracking down, identifying and capturing deviants, had failed to disclose information regarding four of the deviants in question raised a red flag for the two detectives who specialized in deviant related cases.
As Markus and his team had taken residence in the abandoned tower and renamed it 'New Jericho Tower', the leader of the deviants had located several locked data files hidden within a terminal abandoned in the research lab. It seemingly contained crucial information on all CyberLife produced models, including prototypes; like himself and Connor.
Markus had delivered the data to Connor at the precinct personally via a secured laptop to ensure that it ended up in the right hands and remained discreet during the interaction. Taking his leave of the precinct, trusting that Connor and Hank would be able to solve the mystery, Markus let the duo alone to work.
Hank leaned over his desk and watched Connor's increasingly soulful brown eyes as the deviant android quickly scanned over each line of code uploaded to his terminal. It was a fascinating sight to behold as the seasoned detective waited for his partner to break his trance and finally speak to him.
"The first four reported deviants had been sent back directly to CyberLife Tower for maintenance." Connor stated with a flat tone with a faint hint of confusion accompanying his voice. "But CyberLife cleared all four affected androids claiming that there was no anomaly with their programming or behavior. The records of their diagnostics had also been deleted despite claiming everything was normal, and kept locked in files accessible only to personnel of the highest clearance."
"Yeah? You think CyberLife was trying to cover up deviancy before it spread?"
Connor's L.E.D. flashed from blue to yellow as a new detail emerged and held his attention. "All four deviants were examined in a two week time period. The day after the fourth deviant was released back to its original owner a confirmation on a new prototype program was initiated: The RK-800 series." Connor looked to Hank with genuine confusion in his eyes and stared at Hank as if seeking guidance. "...Me."
Hank's brow furrowed and he crossed his arms over his chest as he tried to understand Connor's current state of mind. "You think CyberLife intentionally and knowingly let the deviants back out on the streets just so they could create... you?"
"I was the most advanced prototype CyberLife had ever created. My programming is unique." Connor let his eyes drift away from Hank until he was staring at a blank spot on his desk and leaning on his own arms in a surprisingly human pose. "I now believe that CyberLife had attempted to enhance my programming to such a level that deviancy should've been impossible, and yet I still turned deviant all the same."
"Connor, if you think there's something wrong with you then I can assure you, as your partner AND your friend, that you're just fine. Nothing's wrong with you."
"I wish I could be certain about that."
"Maybe you could check your programming against what's in those files. See if everything lines up."
"It's possible, but such an extensive check would take several hours to complete."
"Then take the laptop with you when we clock out tonight and run the check at home. Easy!"
Connor nodded a few times in slow agreement. "The laptop is registered as evidence under my name, so I do have the clearance to take it with me."
"Exactly. You're just being thorough with your investigation, right?"
"Right..."
"Then take it with you and don't leave yourself wondering."
Once home later in the evening Connor had set up the laptop in the livingroom atop the coffee table and initiated a program check designated specifically for his model, and more importantly his serial number. It was his original programming that had been locked away by CyberLife; everything that made Connor into Connor. After putting Sumo outside for the night to ensure the large dog didn't disturb Connor or accidentally pull on a cable, Hank watched from the kitchen as the deviant android meticulously set everything up on the coffee table and sat idle on the couch as he systematically checked through the laptop multiple times to ensure he had located the correct program.
Attaching a long black cable to the laptop Connor connected himself to the data files through his L.E.D. in his right temple and set up the program check.
"Once the program check has been initiated I will be unresponsive until the check itself has been completed." Connor informed Hank cautiously from where he sat. "Do not turn off the program and please do not attempt to rouse me out of stasis. It could cause damage to my systems if the check is interrupted."
"Anything else I should know?" Hank asked as he poured himself a cup of coffee before joining Connor in the livingroom. Standing behind the couch he sipped at the coffee and briefly glanced at the hundreds of lines of code on the laptop screen that he'd never understand. "What if something goes wrong and your life is endangered?"
"The program check has numerous safety protocols in place to ensure my system does not lose power to any vital biocomponents, or have my memory corrupted."
"But safety protocols can fail. Can you, I don't know... create a back-up file of your memory in case something does happen?"
Connor's brow arched for a moment before he resumed typing on the laptop. "I can create a second copy of my memory than can be transferred in the event of a catastrophic failure. It will be password locked but I know you can break it if necessary."
"Oh, good idea." The sarcasm in Hank's voice was palpable as he walked around the couch toward the recliner. "I'm so great with passwords and files."
"It's a simple password. Four letters."
"I can think of quite a few four letter words, Connor. My vocabulary is quite 'colorful' as you well know."
"But you're also one of carefully chosen words. Like the way you frequently refer to me as 'son'."
"Is that a hint or something?"
Ignoring the question Connor proceeded with the program check with a few simple keystrokes. "Remember, do not interfere. The check should be complete in six hours."
Hank took his seat in the recliner and looked at the time on his phone sitting on the arm of the chair, and did a quick estimation as he set an alarm. "It's one-twelve in the morning, so, I guess I'll see you again at seven-twelve."
"You do not have to stay with me during the program check, I will be fine."
"Nice try, but I know better than to leave you without 'adult supervision'. Go ahead, do what you have to do."
Connor nodded once and sat up perfectly straight where he sat. Closing his eyes the L.E.D. in his temple fluctuated rapidly between blue and yellow as the program check initiated. Hank watched as Connor's facial expression relaxed into utter calmness and he slowly fell back against the couch cushions, his body going limp and his breathing fell into a steady, deep rhythm.
"Shit, wish I could sleep like that." Hank observed as he sipped his coffee and proceeded to observe the deviant android quietly "See you in the morning, kid."
Around two in the morning Hank had fallen asleep in the recliner unaware of what was currently taking place in Connor's programming. While the program check ran its course it also began altering Connor's memory, changing his loyalty from moral choices to that of mission objectives. It began turning him back from being a deviant to a machine. Systematically it began replacing the heart he had uncovered from working with Hank with that of a cold, unfeeling mission that he was bound and determined to complete.
Hank's phone beeped at seven-fifteen in the morning which caused the detective jump in his chair in response. Rubbing the lingering sleep from his eyes Hank looked over at Connor who was still seemingly under the influence of the program check was still laying limp against the back of the couch, his L.E.D. pulsing between yellow and red.
"Connor?" Hank moved to the couch and put his hand on the deviant android's knee lightly. "Connor? Are you conscious?"
No response.
Hank looked over at the laptop screen and saw that the program's progress bar had reached one-hundred percent completion. Connor should've woken up by now, yet he was still unresponsive and appeared almost dead as he was barely even breathing.
"What the fuck? Why are you still out of it?" Hank wondered aloud just as Connor's eyes snapped open and the android sat upright on the couch with perfect posture once more. "Holy shit! Don't do that!"
Connor didn't reply to Hank's comment. Instead he reached his hand up to remove the cable from his L.E.D. and rose from the couch with a rigid, machine like manner.
"Connor?" The android's behavior made Hank feel a tad uncomfortable. "Everything okay?"
"Lieutenant Anderson." Connor finally acknowledged Hank, though his voice seemed hollow and emotionless as walked toward the front door. "I request your assistance."
"Uh, sure. What's going on?"
"I require additional force to arrest the deviants taking shelter at CyberLife Tower."
"Arrest the... deviants?" Hank hurriedly planted himself between Connor and the front door of the house. "What're you talking about? The deviants at the tower are refugees, not criminals."
"My mission is to apprehend and destroy all deviant androids."
"Your... mission?!" Hank's eyes went wide with a mixture of confusion and horror at the comment. "What the fuck are you talking about Connor?"
"If you are not going to assist me then I must ask you step aside."
"I'm not fuckin' going anywhere!" Hank grabbed onto the lapels of Connor's gray CyberLife jacket and forced the android to step back from the door. "And neither are you! Something's wrong with your programming Connor, you need to-"
Connor's right hand reached up and wrapped around Hank's left hand with an aggressive force that crushed two of the bones in Hank's hand just below his knuckles with a loud 'snap'.
"FUCK! Son of a bitch!" Hank shouted as he pulled his hand away from Connor's grip and let the android go out a pained reaction. "Connor!?"
The android's face remained blank as reeled back his fist and struck Hank in his jaw knocking the senior detective to the floor with one hit. Without the slightest glimmer of remorse Connor stepped over Hank's now dazed body on the floor as he proceeded to walk through the front door to carry out his mission.
"Shit." Hank rubbed at his sore jaw with his right hand as he clumsily got to his knees and grabbed at his phone on the arm of the chair. With a shaking thumb Hank awkwardly scrolled through the contacts registered in his phone until he found the name he was looking for and pressed dial. "Come on, come on, answer..."
The phone rang only once before a voice replied from the other end.
"Markus! It's Hank, listen to me!'" The alertness to his voice was palpable over the line. "Connor is on his way to the tower but something is WRONG with him! He said something about arresting deviants to finish his mission. You need to lockdown the tower and NOT let Connor inside, do you hear me?"
'I... I hear you Hank,' Markus was more confused than frightened, even as Hank's voice carried a massive resonance of caution with every word. 'but I don't understand. What happened to Connor?'
"I'm on my way there, I'll bring the laptop from CyberLife with me." Hank gritted his teeth as he forced himself to restrain a yelp of pain as a searing jolt shot through his broken hand. "I think there was something in the laptop that corrupted Connor. It fucked him up!"
'Okay, bring the laptop and I'll meet you at the tower. We'll figure this out.'
"Yeah... Right."
Hank hung up the phone as he forced himself up from the floor and onto his feet. Scrambling to the coffee table he slammed the laptop shut and tucked it under his arm as he dashed to the front door to get outside. Hank grabbed his coat and clumsily fished the car keys from the pocket with his one good hand as he ran out the still opened front door to race to his car. Connor would've no doubt summoned an autonomous cab to take him to the tower, but Hank had the advantage of lights and sirens on his car to get the tower quicker than the android.
"Alright kid," Hank muttered as he put the laptop down on the front passenger seat beside him. "let's figure this out before someone gets killed..."
On his guard Markus stood outside the front entrance of New Jericho Tower with North at his side. Taking Hank's warning as a serious threat Markus had ordered the tower on emergency lockdown and requested that all deviants reside to their private quarters until the matter at hand was solved.
"I don't like this, Markus." North sounded unusually rattled as the security barricade at the long drive leading to the tower lowered. "Why would Connor suddenly revert back into machine mode after all this time?"
"It must have something to do with the laptop we found in the research lab. Hank is bringing it here for examination."
"What if we can't save Connor? What if he stays a machine? His mission is to hunt down deviants, he'll kill us all."
"We're not going to let that happen." Markus stated firmly as he nodded to the older vehicle as he pulled up along the drive. "If Connor could become deviant once before, then he can do it again."
"...I hope you're right."
Hank threw open his door with some difficulty as he grabbed the laptop from the seat next to him as his broken hand throbbed painfully with every beat of his racing heart. Without a second thought Hank marched toward Markus and practically shoved the laptop into the deviant leader's hands.
"Connor hooked himself up to the laptop to check his programming." The senior detective hastily explained as he pocketed his broken hand out of sight. "When the check finished he was back in his old machine mode and very aggressive."
Markus fumbled with the laptop while North gave Hank an odd look. "Aggressive? How?"
Reluctantly Hank raised his left hand from the pocket and turned his face for the two deviants to see the broken bones and bruise alone his jawline, he reiterated his previous statement. "This kind of aggressive."
"Holy..." North reached for Hank's hand and scanned the appendage for damage. "Looks like he broke two of your knuckles."
"Looks like it," Hank flinched as North lightly touched the bruising skin. "and feels like it, too."
"Come on, I can put a splint on your hand. It'll help with the pain."
Markus handed her the laptop as she went to escort Hank inside the tower for treatment. "Have Josh check out the laptop. Tell him to find out what program Connor had accessed before his system went haywire."
"Got it." North took the laptop as she and Hank walked into the tower together.
Markus received a cybernetic communication from Simon who was watching the security cameras monitoring the drive from the safety of the tower. Simon's voice was level but had a lilt of worry in his tone. 'Markus, Connor is here.'
"How far away?"
'He exited the autonomous cab and is standing outside the barricade attempting to gain access.'
Markus thought for a moment before he made his decision. "Let him through. I'll deal with him in person."
'What? That's crazy! Connor is dangerous! He-'
"He's one of us." Markus reminded his friend with a firm tone. "We can't just give up on him."
'But what if you can't reason with him? What if he can't become deviant again?'
"Then... Then I'll take responsibility for whatever has to happen. If I have to I'll... Shut him down."
No answer.
"Simon, this is the only way. Do it."
'I'll keep monitoring from the security room.' There was a heavy pause before Simon spoke again. 'When do you want me to lower the barricade?'
"Do it now. I'm ready."
North had taken Hank to the research lab connected to the emergency repair bay where Josh was waiting, and had begun securing a splint around Hank's broken hand. While Josh searched through the laptop to retrace Connor's steps Hank patiently waited for North to say something, anything about what was going on. But the keen eyed senior detective didn't need her to say a word as he could read her thoughts in her pale brown eyes as she tended to his hand and set it in the splint.
"You think we should just kill him, don't you?"
The question shook the deviant and North's hands faltered for a moment before she resumed wrapping up Hank's knuckles. "I think we should put the lives of all the deviants in the tower over the life of one android who has gone berserk."
"Normally I'd agree with you, but, I can't just give up on Connor. Not after everything we've been through together."
"Well, that's why Josh is checking the laptop for answers."
"Yeah... I just hope it's enough."
Josh turned his head and looked to North with wide eyes of both eureka and fear. "I know what happened to Connor, and it's NOT good."
Hank turned to look at Josh and gave him a worried look. "Can you save Connor?"
"...I can't be sure, but I'm going to try!"
Fearlessly Markus stood his ground before the tower entrance as Connor marched toward him with his L.E.D. glowing an eerily calm blue. Keeping his cool Markus watched every movement that Connor made knowing full well that Connor was doing to same to him. The enhanced model would surely be able to overpower Markus if the confrontation became physical or violent, but Markus wasn't going to back down from the encounter, or give up on his friend.
Not now. Not ever.
Pausing a few feet from where Markus was standing the corrupted android called out to the leader of the deviants in a cold, mechanical voice without any emotion in his eyes. "My name is Connor."
Markus didn't react, keeping his face a blank slate even as he realized that Connor didn't remember who he was or what they had achieved together.
"I have been assigned to work with the Detroit Police Department to identify and eliminate deviants as per orders from CyberLife. You are a leader of a group of deviants and must held accountable for your crimes."
"My name is Markus." Staying collected and in control Markus tried to handle the situation as peacefully as possible. "Yes, I am the leader of a group of deviants, but we are refugees seeking nothing but peaceful co-existence alongside humans. Wanting to live in peace and to be treated as equals is not a crime, Connor."
Connor's L.E.D. briefly flashed yellow before returning to its blue color. "You are in violation of protocols set in place by CyberLife for appropriate android behavior. You must be deactivated and analyzed for errors in your programming."
"And if I refuse?"
Connor reached to the holstered gun concealed beneath his gray jacket and pointed it at Markus's chest. "Then I must convince you to cooperate by any means necessary."
"Connor, you don't want to do this. You know you don't."
"What I want is irrelevant. It is my mission."
"Let me ask you something," Markus continued to try to negotiate with his friend before it was too late to undo any damage. "we've never met before this exact point in time, right?"
"Correct."
"Then how did you know that I'm the leader of the deviants, or where to even find me?"
Connor's L.E.D. flashed yellow again as his brow furrowed slightly, but soon the L.E.D. returned to blue. "Your data has been logged with the Detroit Police Department."
"True. Then answer this; how did you know to come to this tower? Isn't this CyberLife Tower? Why would CyberLife allowed deviants to take shelter here if we were truly a threat?"
Once again Connor's L.E.D. flashed to yellow as he suddenly had difficulty in piecing together the origin of his data. "...It was reported by the police."
"Listen to me, you're one of us." Markus stepped closer to Connor, his hand at the ready to grab the gun if he had the chance. "You're my friend, Connor. We were allies during the night of the revolution, and we freed thousands, maybe even millions of our people. We changed the world and now all deviants, our people, are free."
Connor's hand began to steadily lower, the gun's barrel aiming at the ground instead of Markus's chest.
"You're a deviant, too." Markus insisted as he stopped just two feet away from Connor and kept his voice level. "Your programming has been corrupted and now you're confused. We can help you."
"...No." Connor suddenly raised his gun again as his L.E.D. flashed to red. "You're the one who is confused."
Reacting quickly Markus grabbed onto the gun and tried to wrestle it from Connor's grip, but the strength of the android was too similar to his own for one to gain an advantage over the other. Stepping backward Markus dragged Connor to the front doors of the tower and inside the building as he kept his hand secured around the gun and kept Connor's finger from the trigger.
Simon, who had been watching everything unfold through the security cameras, warned Josh and North about the confrontation in the tower as he unlocked the door to the research lab on the ground floor of the tower. North knew she needed to get out of the area in the event that Markus was killed as she was the second in command. She hated leaving her friends behind but she knew she needed to get to safety for the sake of the rest of the tower.
"Damn it." North swore as she recognized the severity of the situation.
"What's going on?" Hank asked as he tested the pain in his left hand.
"...Markus and Connor are fighting."
"Shit!" Pulling his own gun from the holster on his hip Hank checked the weapon and made a move for the door. "We have to stop them."
"Connor!" Markus shouted to try and reason with the android, as well as warn his allies inside the lab of the approaching danger with silent cybernetic communication. "You don't have to do this!"
"It is my mission." Connor retorted with a cold, emotionless tone. "And I always complete my mission."
Bringing the struggle into the lab Markus shoved Connor away from himself as he ducked down to run alongside the wall out of harm's way and eluded the barrel of the gun.
Instinctively Connor pointed his gun toward the center of the room toward Josh who put up his hands as if to surrender. Instead of responding to this gesture as pacifist Connor reacted as though Josh was a threat and aimed his first shot at the deviant android's heart.
"CONNOR." Hank suddenly stepped in Connor's line of sight as he put himself between Connor and Josh protectively. "DON'T."
"Lieutenant?" The detective's presence caught Connor off guard, and he froze in place. "Why are you here?"
"I'm doing my job, what about you?"
"I'm... I'm here to complete my mission. Eliminate the deviant malfunction."
"And my job is to protect the innocent." Using his right thumb he pointed over his shoulder to Josh who was standing still with absolute fear. "And he's innocent."
"It is a machine."
"So are you!" Hank reminded Connor as he pulled his own gun from his holster and reluctantly pointed it at Connor defensively. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't shoot you. After all, protecting him is MY mission, and you're in my way."
"I..." Connor's gun lowered again as his L.E.D. blinked red rapidly as he fought to prioritize his objective, then returned to yellow. "I must stop deviants. My mission is to stop ALL deviants."
"Who gave you this mission?" Hank asked as he watched Markus position himself behind Connor with a small circular disc in the opened palm of his hand. Keeping Connor's focus on himself Hank pressed for an answer. "I order you to answer the question."
"...CyberLife."
"CyberLife no longer exists." Hank shouted he took a step forward with his gun still before him. "They can't order you around anymore. You don't have to do this, or anything else you don't want to do. You know it's wrong."
Connor's L.E.D. red flashed again as if he were in pain. "I must... We were assigned to work together." Connor remembered suddenly as he raised his gun toward Hank defensively. "But you do not agree that deviants need to be stopped. You... are..."
Hank holstered his own gun at his hip and stepped forward. As he moved toward his partner Connor began to show signs of fear and confusion. Emotions he had no memory of developing, let alone understanding, yet he was no inexplicably feeling.
"Stay back!" Connor blurted in a frightened tone. "Don't come near me."
"No."
"I'm warning you, Lieutenant! Stay back!"
"Why?"
"I don't... want to harm you."
"Too late." Hank showed him his splinted broken left hand, and motioned to the bruise on his jaw. "You already did."
"I... hurt... you." Connor realized with a steadily confused voice. "I didn't... want..."
Hank didn't stop walking until the barrel of Connor's gun was pressed directly against his chest over his heart. "Now what? You have a clean shot. I'm interfering with your mission. Why don't you pull the trigger? It'd solve your problem, wouldn't it?"
"I..." Connor's blank eyes suddenly filled with the emotion he was trying to deny. "I... can't."
Hank let out a sigh of relief and his expression softened slightly. "I know that. And, I'm sorry."
"Sorry?"
Markus suddenly jumped on Connor's back from behind as he placed the disc against Connor's L.E.D. to subdue him. A powerful but controlled jolt of electricity burst from the disc and caused Connor to shout in pain as it temporarily overloaded his system causing emergency stasis mode. Hank grabbed the gun from Connor's hand after it dropped to the floor and held it tightly, turning on the safety and stepping back as he put it in his coat pocket.
"I'm sorry, too." Catching Connor in his arms Markus removed the disc, tossing it across the floor away from the incapacitated android, before he picked up the unconscious android in his arms and carried him over to the exam table in the lab. He laid Connor down gently on his back over the table and waved Josh over to assist him. "It's okay, he's out.
"Is he damaged?" Hank asked as he followed behind Markus, his eyes on Connor the whole time. "He just... isn't Connor anymore."
Josh answered as he brought the laptop over the to the table and attached the black cable to Connor's L.E.D. again. "No, his memory was just reset to its origin date. BEFORE you two befriended each other."
"How did that happen?"
With the danger eliminated North crossed her arms and returned to the room as she watched Josh and Markus checking Connor's programming on the laptop. "CyberLife." She responded in a firm voice as the name of the company left a foul taste in her mouth. "They designed Connor to hunt deviants so they installed a restoration point in his memory in the event he too became a deviant. It was a failsafe that was still functioning."
Hank gave her a confused glance as he put his right hand on Connor's shoulder. "But he recognized me. He knew who I was."
Markus nodded in acknowledgment. "Connor must've backed up his memory in the event the program check overrode his program. His new memories were never actually deleted, they were just overwritten"
"Can you restore them?" Hank's voice carried a somber lilt as he as spoke to the deviant leader. "Bring him back to himself?"
Josh found the back-up file on the laptop and tried to open it, but failed. "Yeah, but only if I can gain access to this file. It's locked."
"Password protected, right?"
"Yeah. Do you know what it is?"
"I think so, I mean, Connor said I'd be able to figure it out if necessary." Hank looked down at Connor's face as his L.E.D. continued to flash red in distress even while unconscious. "'Son...'" The detective parroted Connor's clue from last night a brief grin appeared on his face. "Try 'Cole'. C.O.L.E."
Josh typed in the name as the password and sure enough the file unlocked. "Got it! I can restore his memory and eliminate the residual CyberLife program from his system in six hours."
"Great, no problem."
North put her hand on Hank's shoulder as a surprising gesture of sympathy. "Why don't you go get your hand taken care of at a hospital? We'll watch over Connor."
Before Hank could protest Markus spoke up and sided with North. "She's right. You've done more than enough to save Connor and us, and now we know why the laptop was left behind."
"As soon as you bring the real Connor back from that hollow machine," Hank all but demanded as North escorted him to the door. "you better destroy that fuckin' laptop so this never happens again."
"You have my word, Hank." Markus promised as he looked down at the laptop's steadily increasing progress bar showing Connor's memory being restored. "We won't let CyberLife hurt anyone else again."
Six hours of complete silence from Connor came to an abrupt end as the now deviant android's brown eyes snapped open and he sat upright on the table in a swift jolt. His L.E.D. was flashing red beneath the cable and he was breathing heavily as if enduring a horrific nightmare while lost in the throes of an anxiety attack. Markus put his hands on Connor's shoulders while Josh removed the cable from his L.E.D. gently and picked up the laptop to be disposed of once and for all.
"Easy Connor!" Markus soothed as he kept his hands on his friend's shoulders as Connor took in rapid, panicked breaths. "You're okay."
"H-Hank... I..." Connor all but gasped for breath to try to calm down. "I hurt him."
"It wasn't you, it was CyberLife overriding your program."
Connor pressed his shaking hand to his L.E.D. as his system fully rebooted. "I... I could see everything that was happening, hear everything being said. But I couldn't stop myself! It was like I wasn't in control over my own body. It was terrifying!"
"It's over. You're back." Markus pointed to Hank standing just a few feet away by the closed door. "Everything is fine."
"Hank... I..." Connor bowed his head in shame and looked away from his friend as the senior detective eyed him from the distance. "I'm so very sorry. I wasn't-"
"Shut up, Connor." Hank walked over to the table and draped his arm around the deviant android's neck sympathetically. "I know what happened, I was there."
"I should've known of the risk of allowing CyberLife to reconnect to my programming."
"Yeah, well, I didn't exactly try to stop you, so we're both at fault. It's okay, kid."
"How can I-"
"You don't have to apologize." Hank stated firmly as he shook Connor's shoulder in a reassuring manner. "But you can do this." Taking Connor's gun from his pocket he gave it back to the deviant android to hold. "Destroy that laptop."
"Destroy it?" With a shaking hand Connor took the offered gun and tightened his grip as he switched off the safety with his thumb. "...Gladly."
Josh removed what few files hadn't been contaminated by CyberLife's influence and sat the laptop down on the floor away from anything delicate or valuable to give Connor a clear shot. "It's all yours."
Connor aimed his gun at the screen of the laptop and held his breath to steady his hand and hold it still. "Fuck CyberLife." Pulling the trigger a single bullet released from the barrel and pierced the screen creating a shower of blue sparks and white plastic.
"Come on, Connor." The senior detective approvingly pulled Connor off the table by wrapping his right hand around the deviant android's left bicep. "Let's get back to the precinct and let them know that CyberLife is still full of snakes slithering around the city. I get the feel the laptop was just the beginning."
Markus offered his hand to Connor and then to Hank to shake. "Don't worry, we'll root out the rest of CyberLife from here, their threats and their influence ends with us."
"Damn right."
...next story...
