Despite Hank's insistence that Connor stay home and take it easy for a while the younger detective decided to stop by New Jericho Tower to meet up with Markus and ask about how well the deviants in the tower were faring. Since he was no longer a deviant himself Connor couldn't simply remain cybernetically connected to his friends or allies to remain in the loop, which made calling or visits an absolute must. As per usual Connor was granted clearance through the security barricade on the lone drive leading to the tower, and was met at the front entrance by a good friend.

"Hi, Connor." Skye greeted with a cheery smile, her L.E.D. cycling a calm blue in her right temple. "Markus said you were going to show up today."

"Yes, I want to check in with my friends." He confirmed with a slight grin. Readjusting his glasses over his eyes he squinted a little and glanced about. "I, uh, I wanted to make sure everything is holding up well without Lucas here as the lead technician."

"We're holding up." She confirmed as she and Connor walked to the main office where Markus was working on a few legal documents regarding deviant rights, and proper funding for the facilities throughout the city. "We do miss having him around, though."

"As do I."

"How about you?" Lowering her voice a little Skye maintained discretion for Connor's sake. "Are you okay?"

"...I feel more tired than usual, but it's not anything I can't handle."

"I don't doubt it. From the stories from the night of the revolution," she continued on without losing her smile. "and from what Markus has told me about your cases as a detective I think you're easily the most dedicated and determined deviant in all of Detroit."

"...Former deviant."

"You'll always be a deviant to us, Connor. You may have red blood running through your veins, but you're still one of us."

"Thank you, Skye."

"I'm going to go work with North to form a support group for the deviant's who were forced into servitude at the 'Eden Club'." She told Connor with a gentle voice, almost like she was disappointed to leave Connor behind. "You should stop by more often. It's nice to see you."

Standing before the closed door to the office Connor gave Skye an appreciative nod of the head. "I'll make an effort to stop by more often."

"Good. I'll see you around."

Connor watched as Skye took her leave after walking with him to the office and then pressed his hand to the electronic panel beside the office door. After a few seconds the door slid open and Connor stepped inside the office to greet his friend and the deviant leader himself. "Markus."

"Connor, I'm glad you're here."

The comment made Connor's brow furrow slightly as he walked over to the desk where Markus was sitting. "Is something wrong?"

"No, everything is actually doing great right now." Holding up an electronic tablet with a screen full of legal details and regulations he passed it over to Connor to quickly review. "This is the final legal document I want to get finished, and I think I have everything worked out."

Reading over the details Connor's head tilted slightly before he gave Markus a curious stare. "You wish to make deviant bonding ceremonies legally binding in the same regard as marriage. Do you think this will actually pass?"

"It has to. We deserve the same rights as humans, and this is a big right."

Nodding a little Connor was able to read through the legal document fairly quickly and found it to be well written, designed and completely within the law as put in place for humans. Finding no loophole or discrepancy within the document Connor handed the tablet back to Markus and gave him a reassuring smirk before addressing another matter at hand. "I think everything you've asked for is fair and well within legal rights."

"I hope so. As soon as I get this passed I'm going to... You know."

"...You're going to ask North to bond with you."

"Yeah... I've been thinking about it for a long time and I know I want to spend the rest of my life with her."

"I'm certain she feels the same way." Crossing his arms over his chest Connor let out a weary sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose just below his glasses with his thumb and forefinger. "What about the emergency repair bay?" Dropping his hand from his face Connor locked eyes with Markus again. "How're your supplies, and number of technicians on staff?"

"The repair bay is holding up, well." Putting aside the tablet screen Markus walked up to his friend and gave him a worried glance. "How about you?"

"I've been better, but I'm fine for the moment."

"...I've been looking into your condition," he stated in a hesitant tone of voice. "and it seems like your options are a limited."

"Yeah, I'm very aware of this fact."

"Can I ask what you're going to do?"

"I... I haven't really decided yet. If I go for the surgery to have the valve repaired, which is approximately at only a ten percent chance of success, then that would be the end of it. But due to the severity of the damage of the valve and the poor medical care I had as a child the attempts at repairs are very unlikely to succeed."

"Which means you'll need a replacement for your heart valve."

"That's right. Neither option as a replacement is ideal, which is why I haven't made a decision." Absentmindedly Connor put his hand over his chest, over top of his beating heart as his eyes dulled. "An organic valve will breakdown over time, leaving me with no choice but to have another replacement, possible a third or even a fourth depending on how quickly the valves degrade over my life. The synthetic valve," he shook his head a little and sighed as he realized it was the first time he was really talking about what he was going through. "will affect my body on a hormonal level, perhaps even a metabolic level, as well as a lifetime of blood thinning medication."

"You're right, neither of those options sounds like a real winner."

"No. Whether I have countdown clock in my chest, or a steady stream of blood thinners, I won't be able to continue my work as a detective. My health will be seen as a liability as I could drop dead from sudden heart failure while chasing a suspect, or bleed to death from a simple paper cut at my desk."

"Connor, I'm so sorry." Truly empathetic Markus sat down on the edge of his desk and gave his friend a sincerely worried gaze. "I took care of Carl after his car accident and I know how hard it is to deal with failing health. As old as Carl was he put up one hell of a fight up until the very end, so I know you'll find a way to overcome this, too."

"...I don't think this is one I can beat, Markus." The admission was as unexpected as it was heartbreaking. "I can't just upload an update or have a piece of my body replaced when it becomes defective anymore. This is... limiting, if not permanent."

"Don't give up."

"I won't give up, Markus. I intend to go down swinging and helping as many deviants as possible before it's too late."

"Hey! Don't think like that." Standing up quickly he put both of his hands on Connor's shoulders and gave his friend a grounded feeling. "You're not going to just roll over and die, it's not in your nature."

"As a human," he gave the deviant leader a somber gaze that made his usually bright eyes dull with a heavy burden. "I can assure you that death is an inevitably."

"And as your friend," raising his voice just enough to hold Connor's full attention Markus refused to believe that Connor would die. "I can assure you that you are too strong and too stubborn to let something like this hold you back."

"...I hope you're right."

"I assume Hank knows what's going on."

"Yeah. He's trying to remain optimistic as well."

"And Lucas?"

"...He knows. I think he's known longer than I have but was too afraid to say anything."

"What about... your mother?"

"My... No. I haven't spoken to her since my diagnosis."

"You still don't trust her?"

"Trust isn't a factor in this. I just don't want to talk about it anymore than necessary."

"Well, if you do want to talk about it I'm always here to listen."

"Thanks, Markus."

"Come on." Moving his hands from Connor's shoulders Markus smirked again and showed his friend to the door back out to the rest of the tower. "Let's go take a walk around the arboretum for a while. I know it'll do us both some good."

For almost an hour Connor and Markus walked through the interior greenhouse that held two dozen healthy blooming trees, thousands of flowers, hundreds of vegetables and countless blades of lush, green grass. Seeing the environment full of life, warmth and color did seem to perk up Connor's mood to a noticeable degree, and yet he was evidently still distracted.

Taking a moment to sit down on the white marble bench overlooking an expanse of tulips Connor leaned forward and pressed his face into his opened palm hands and sighed.

"Are you okay?" Markus put his hand to Connor's shoulder and silently scanned his vital signs.

"...I've been enduring a headache all morning." The young detective confessed as he took off his glasses and pressed the heels of his palms to his eyes and rubbed a little. "And it's getting worse. I think it's being caused by stress."

"I can't imagine why." The deviant leader joked as he sat down beside Connor on the bench. "We don't have any medicine here, but if you want to lay down in your old private quarters you're free to do so."

"...You kept my private quarters untouched?"

"Sure. You're always welcome here, Connor. Being a human doesn't make you any less important to your friends, or to the tower."

"I appreciate all the support, I really do."

"I hate to pry, but I need to ask." Dragging his hand over his chin Markus stared out at the flowers strewn throughout the entire arboretum, his mismatched irises jumping from one brightly colored flower to the next. "How much longer are you going to work at the precinct without letting anyone know your sick?"

Connor sighed and dropped his hands from his hands from his face. "...I don't know. As long as I can, I guess."

"You shouldn't-" Markus stopped himself before he began and looked over at his friend's face. "Never mind. You know your own body better than anyone else. I don't have any reason to try to tell you what to do."

"Thank you for understanding."

"Just know if you need anything we're all here to help."

"I know." Sitting up with as close to his usual perfect posture as possible Connor pressed his hand to the center of his chest. The steady beating of his heart under his palm was calming until a palpitation caused a mild arrhythmia. "...But there's really nothing that can be done. I have to make my choice and it's one I'll have to live with." Turning his head away from Markus he looked at a single withering flower growing amongst a row of lilies. "...Or not."

"Why don't you go lay down for a while?"

"Huh?"

"I can tell you're trying to ignore your headache and as I said before we don't keep medicine in the tower. If anything you should rest in the emergency repair bay since it can be soundproofed. It might do your headache some good."

"...Thanks, but, if anything I'll just return home to rest."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah." Standing up slowly, his legs trembling slightly and his head swimming from a mixture of pain and low blood pressure, Connor waited for the black dots dancing about his vision to clear before he took a step toward the doorway. "I used an autonomous taxi to come here, so you don't have to worry about me losing conscious while driving."

"I'm not worried about that, Connor. I just don't want to see you suffering and trying to deny it."

"Aside from the headache," he stated in a low voice as he walked through the doorway with Markus at his side and returned to the elevator. "I'm not in any pain. Please keep me updated on your progress with the new bill." His voice was level yet clearly masking pain courtesy of the relentless headache rapidly setting in. "I want to see you and North together at a bonding ceremony."

"I will, Connor." The elevator reached the ground floor of the tower and the doors parted with a silent slide. "You take care of yourself."

"I will, Markus." Stepping out of the elevator Connor pulled his phone from his pocket and summoned an autonomous taxi to meet him at the end of the drive to take him back home. "I promise."

At the house Hank was sitting in the study with his laptop open and a website dealing with mitral valve stenosis symptoms, options, complications and surgical outcomes. Every article he read made him feel almost as bad as Connor about the entire ordeal, and it was enough to make him suddenly very nervous. As he closed the laptop he leaned back in the chair and was promptly met with Sumo's chin resting over his lap.

"Hey, boy." Rubbing Sumo's soft ears Hank looked down at the large dog and let out a tired sigh. "Finally done hogging Lucas's bed? You do know he's coming back some day, right?"

Sumo just wagged his tail as Hank rubbed his ears.

"Alright, let's get you and Ruby some food. I don't need ya' begging for scraps while I cook again."

With the massive dog following after him Hank made his way into the kitchen and filled up the two food bowls with fresh kibble. Sumo happily checked out his full bowl while Ruby trotted down the staircase and found her own food bowl right next to Sumo. The five month old puppy was still smaller than Sumo but no longer tiny, and her head came to Sumo's shoulder.

"Now that you two are taken care of I can take care of myself and make something without being bothered."

Trying to forget about what he just read, trying to not think of his son having to go through heart surgery, trying to not think about seeing Connor with his chest torn open; the image of seeing his internal biocomponents when he was still a deviant was bad enough, Hank distracted himself by making an old family recipe that he hadn't touched since Cole was still with him.

While adding a little more seasoning the broth in the pot as he stirred consistently Hank heard the front door open and then shut with a very soft 'click'. Turning to look at the front door Hank spotted Connor with his head bowed down and one hand pressed to the side of his head as if in pain.

"Connor? You okay?"

"...No." Letting his legs give way just slightly Connor crouched down on the floor where he had been standing and then sat down on the floor as he put both hands to the sides of his head in pain. He was pale and he seemed to be shaking a little despite sitting as still as possible. "...My head is killing me."

"Shit." Turning off the stove to prevent anything from burning Hank walked into the livingroom and knelt down in front of Connor. With a gentle hand he pressed his palm to Connor's forehead, then moved his hand over to the younger detective's shoulder. "No fever. How bad does your head hurt?"

"Bad." Fighting the urge to completely collapse onto the cool floor Connor tried to answer the question as accurately as possible. "My head feels like it's being crushed from the outside, while trying to implode from the inside at the same time. And..." Pulling his glasses from his face he put them aside and rubbed his fingertips over his eyes as if trying to work out a muscle knot. "my vision is sensitive to everything. Even sounds are hurting me and the smell from the kitchen is upsetting my stomach."

"Damn it. You're having another migraine."

"...I feared as much."

"Go lay down upstairs and try to sleep." Helping Connor stand upright very slowly Hank kept one hand on Connor's back as the younger man made his way toward the staircase.

Connor grabbed onto the wooden banister for dear life as he tried to climb the steps, but the combination of pain from his headache and sudden onset of shortness of breath made him fall forward onto his knees and gasp. "...H-Hank?!"

"What's wrong?" Keeping his hand on Connor's back he knelt down and could feel the younger man's shallow, frantic breathing.

"I... I can't..." Pressing his hand against the front of his chest Connor easily communicated that he couldn't breathe. "...Help!"

"I'm right here. Come on, come on..." Taking Connor's right arm he pulled the limb around his shoulder and then wrapped his arm around Connor's waist to help guide him back over to the couch to lay down instead. "Take it easy."

"...S-Sorry."

"For what?"

"I'm sick and I'm weak, and-"

"Hey! Don't do that." Hank guided Connor onto his side onto the large couch and placed his hand on the sick man's shoulder. "Don't apologize for being sick, son. You can't help it."

"I can't help anyone."

"Hey! Knock it off!" Pulling on Connor's leather jacket Hank removed it from the younger detective's shoulder and arms so he could lay down more comfortably in just his jeans and dark green t-shirt. Using gentle pressure he pushed on Connor's shoulder until the younger man was laying flat on his back over the length of the furniture. "You need to not think like that, alright?"

"...Look at me, Hank." Connor sighed loudly and draped his arm over eyes to try to block out as much light as possible. "...I can't even walk up the stairs without losing my breath."

"Connor," sitting down on the couch next to Connor's legs Hank ran his hand through his locks of gray hair as he prepared to ask his son a very uncomfortable question, but one that needed to be asked. "you can't put off what's happening to you for much longer. What're you going to do?"

Without lifting up his arm Connor let out a weak sigh then immediately gasped. "I- I can't...!"

"I gotcha'!" Pulling on Connor's shoulders Hank helped the gasping younger man to sit upright until he caught his breath. "Just breathe."

Taking a moment to breathe deeply Connor put his hand over his eyes and leaned to his side against the back of the couch. "...Hank... I can't live like this."

"I know. That's why you need to make a choice."

"...What if what I... pick is wrong?" Right on the brink of losing it Connor closed his eyes and tried to take in a deep, calming breath. "...I won't... I only have one chance to get this right."

"You can't doubt yourself. You've made some pretty risky choices in the past," Hank reminded him in a very gentle tone of voice as he patted his hand against Connor's bicep. "and it's paid off. You chose to find me and drag out of the bar to work on that homicide, you chose to follow after me when I ordered you to stay in the car and you found the suspect hiding out at the scene."

"...One case doesn't-"

"You also chose to show that suspect some empathy and it got you the lead you needed to find Jericho. You chose to look for Jericho despite being ordered not to, and you chose to side with Jericho instead of hurting Markus or the other leaders. Fuck, you even chose to go infiltrate CyberLife Tower and chose to wake up the other androids to change the world for the better!"

"Hank, please-"

"Remember how you chose to break my damn window when you saw me passed out drunk on the kitchen floor?"

"...I remember."

"And how after we went to the 'Eden Club' you chose to spare the two Tracis, then chose to spare Chloe? You make decisions that always help people and are for the best." Watching Connor's soulful brown eyes as the younger man looked over at him with fear and desperation shining over what had always been courage and confidence. "Why do you think you're going to somehow make a poor decision regarding your own life?"

Connor looked defeated. "...Because I'm a-"

"No."

"...What?"

"You're going to say you're somehow broken, defective, weak or some other shit, and that you somehow think you're doomed to suffer. Right?"

"...Hank, everything I've been through during my life has been a fight. I'm... tired of having to fighting back."

Putting his hand on the back of Connor's head Hank rubbed his against his hair very lightly as he made sure his son was giving him his full attention. "I get that. You've fought your whole life just to live and you want to just move on from that."

"...That's right. I'm tired of fighting."

"You'll make the right choice. Connor, listen to me: You have to fight for just a little while longer."

Unsure of what else to say all Connor could do was give Hank a simple nod of acknowledgment.

"Everything will be alright."

...next chapter...