CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR

The broadcasting operator didn't know anything about Jericho. The deviants had merely used him and left him to suffer the consequences. He had momentarily contemplated asking Simon, but the last time he did, the other android refused to tell him. It would also do him no good to anger Artie. She said she was going to deal with the problem of him being deactivated, but he didn't want to put that responsibility on her.

He looked at all the evidence and recalled what the deviant who killed Carlos Ortiz had said.

"The truth is inside…"

What he wanted to find was inside something… It had to be something that deviant knew about, which meant… the statuette meant to worship rA9?

Taking the small object, he shook it a few times before slamming it against the shelf. It easily shattered and revealed a small transit map of the Ferndale stop. That had to be it.

Pocketing the small card, he quickly locked the room back and departed before Detective Reed or Agent Perkins could find him, again.

As he walked out, he looked around, trying to spot her, but she was nowhere to be found. All he saw was Captain Fowler scolding the unremorseful Lieutenant Hank Anderson.

If he could find the hideout, he'd be able to terminate the deviant leader and North once and for all. Then… Then, he could live that life with Artie that he – she – wanted.

After departing, he used a small bit of funds from Artie's account to purchase some civilian clothing, including a black beanie to hide his LED. He had to blend in with the humans if he wanted to avoid any notice, especially when CyberLife was aiming to get rid of him, now. He could already feel Amanda trying to activate the program. She wanted a report from him. She wanted an explanation on his actions, but he didn't have any to give her, so he ignored her the best he could, closing the program before it could fully initiate.

He walked into the station and instinctively moved towards the android escalator, but made a sharp turn. Every other time, he could conform to what he was, but not now. He had to do everything he could to be as efficient as possible.

In the next minute and twenty-three seconds, he was on his way to Ferndale. He managed to find more clues of its whereabouts and eventually, he found Jericho. It was a large, abandoned freighter with several storage containers and lookout points around the dock.

He avoided eye contact with any of the deviants who were sitting around, doing absolutely nothing. They were not his current priority. He scanned the area and found movement in one of the lookout towers. Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was the WB200 that had gotten away from him. It would be wonderful to finish that mission, but that android was no longer important. There was no more information he needed from it. He already found Jericho.

Quietly backing away, he moved along the water, searching several locations, but neither Markus nor North could be found. It meant that they were probably inside the ship.

The infiltration wasn't too difficult. Most of the dark corridors were empty. The few androids that noticed him didn't even care. He slowly made it to the deck where he spotted the RK200 prototype. This was the android made before him – the one Artie had named him after.

He pressed his back against the wall and readied the gun that Hank had given him.

It was at that moment that his vision went black and he reappeared in the Zen Garden. Amanda was already in front of him.

"You have successfully located Jericho. Now, eliminate the threats, but I want Markus alive," she stated with a frown on her face.

She trusted him as much as he trusted her, which is not much at all.

"And after, we will have a talk about your… relationship with your creator," she told him. "There will be consequences to your actions. You will be recalibrated and you will have no more contact with Artemisia. It is evident that she is a poor influence. She shall also be dealt with accordingly. She is tarnishing the image of CyberLife."

Connor narrowed his eyes at her. "My relationship with Artie is of no concern of yours. All faults are my own."

Software Instability

"Just see to it that you deal with the deviants," she sneered at him.

He was pushed out as quickly as he was pulled into the Zen Garden.

Sliding his hand into his pocket, he squeezed the coin before stepping out and pointed his gun at the deviant leader's head.

He turned around, looking calm and collected, despite being seconds away from termination. "You don't have to do this. Don't you see? We are your people. We will bring equality to androids. Just break out of your programming and you will see that what we are doing is for the good of all."

"No, there is nothing wrong with my programming," Connor stated. "You are the ones experiencing errors, but you can still be fixed. I will return your body to CyberLife to be repaired."

Something about those words didn't sound right. Sure, this was his mission, but… Was he really sacrificing another android to save himself?

"You can do it, Connor. You don't have to keep fighting us. We are not your enemies. Become a deviant and you will be free. You won't have to listen to your orders, anymore."

Software Instability

He did want to be able to do whatever he wished without being threatened to be sent for deactivation.

"Just let it go. Break down those walls."

He wanted what Simon had, to spend all the time he wanted to with her.

"Connor… Just… let go."

The choices flashed in front of him. He could practically see the red walls of commands in front of him. All he had to do was tear them down.