AN: There are GIFs supposed to be in this chapter, but this site doesn't support them. For a more enhanced version of this chapter, read the fic on AO3.

Alice looked so peaceful while she slept. A single strand of her hair was hanging over her face which expression looked relaxed and serene with Alice's mind wherever her dreams would take her. She was covered by a flimsy blanket they had found in the back of the car which would hopefully spent her a bit of warmth.

As they drove through the snow flurry Kara allowed herself to lose herself in the illusion that they weren't on the run but just on a road trip. There would be no danger awaiting them behind every corner, but adventure instead and in the end they would all make it to their destination safely and sound.

It was a nice thought, but Kara was well aware that it was only that: A thought, a wish, an illusion. They couldn't escape their reality, but at least in her mind she was able to buck off the oppressiveness of her circumstances.

Next to her Nick was steering the car. Well, not really steering, because it was an autonomous vehicle, more like keeping an eye on all of the displays and holograms hovering above the windshield. They had chosen the one that had looked least likely to break down in the middle of the road under these weather conditions.

"It's a good thing that Zlatko owned those cars," Kara mentioned. "I wouldn't want Alice out walking in these conditions."

Nick just hummed nonchalantly. "The snow is slowing us down. But at least we won't meet any humans along the way." One good thing. The road was practically deserted. They hadn't met another car ever since they had crossed the city borders. No one liked to be out during this kind of weather.

Kara burrowed deeper into the seat and because she was curious and a little bit bored in equal measure switched on the small tv in front of her.

"..the AX400 android reported to have attacked its owner in a Detroit suburb is still at large. Police appeared to lose its trail after a close encounter with investigators. The android's description has been shared with all local law enforcement and the investigation is ongoing..." the news anchor of Channel 16 started speaking. Kara instantly switched channel. She didn't want to hear any of that.

"The Arctic conflict has escalated to new heights this morning. We have just learned that the USS IOWA, a destroyer-class submarine patrolling in the region, is reported to have disappeared after surfacing for repairs. President Warren immediately called for a crisis meeting of high-ranking officers in the White House. With the world on the brink of war, this incident could well be the spark that lights the fuse."

It was weird to be reminded that there was a whole world at large out there who didn't care about Kara, Alice, Nick and their struggles. There were big politics at play, economic interests that were played against each other, but it all seems so distant with no real effect on Kara and her journey. And yet billions of people and androids were out there, living their lives, not even knowing that she existed. It was a humbling thought.

She switched over to the next station: "Detroit's heavy snowfall is expected to continue throughout the night. The forecast is -5 degrees, far below seasonal averages. And this cold front is likely to persist over the coming days, up until Monday evening."

"Where are we even going?" Kara dared to ask the question that weighed on her mind ever since they had fled Zlatko's house of horrors. At first their aim had been to just get as far away as possible, but now…

"North," Nick replied.

"Do you think they'll just let us cross the border?" Kara asked, scepticism colouring her voice.

Nick shock his head. "No, not really. But getting to the border is half the journey. We can think about crossing once we actually reach it." That sounded reasonable to Kara. Why make plans for tomorrow when you didn't even know what today would bring? She could fret about the future once it actually arrived. Until then she would focus all of her attention on Alice.

Kara switched off the TV, leaned back and stared out of the window. Silence filled the car, but it was of the peaceful kind. Outside, snowflakes waved by, obscuring the sight and making her feel like they were the only travellers in the whole wide world. Their whole existence was narrowed down to the confinements of the car.

And it all was suddenly interrupted by the car's controls flashing orange.

"Malfunction detected. Emergency brakes activated," an automated voice told them. The car slowed down and drove to the side of the road where it came to a standstill.

"This doesn't look good," Nick stated the obvious. Alice, meanwhile, had been woken up by the sudden commotion and was staring at them with wide eyes.

"Stay inside," Kara told the girl as she and Nick exited the car to take a look at the car's engine. Even before Kara popped the hood there was already smoke streaming out of the cracks and when she opened it, the smoke streaming in her face was so dense that she couldn't even see her hands in front of her face.

"What are we going to do?" she asked as she took in the sorry state of the engine.

"I don't know," Nick admitted. "Continue by foot, I guess."

"It's -1 degrees, Alice won't make it!" Kara protested, glancing back at the girl in the car who was staring at them with worry. "We have to find somewhere to spend the night." She gazed around, frantically. No matter in which direction she looked, there was only snow and the street vanishing somewhere in the distance. Until…

"What's that over there?" she exclaimed and pointed towards the blurred contour somewhere in the distance behind the heavy snowfall. "I'm going to take a look, keep an eye on Alice." She trusted that Nick would do what she told him and started walking towards the silhouette that she had noticed through the weather. The fallen snow crunched underneath her shoes as she left behind footprints at least five centimetres deep. She had to turn down her skin sensitivity as the biting cold would have otherwise led to her temperature sensors starting alarms and she didn't need that.

Finally Kara was close enough to see that the contour she had seen through the snowfall was a big sign advertising a shut-down amusement park called "Pirate's Grove": A brightly smiling pirate with an eyepatch, a hook instead of a hand and a parrot on his shoulder promising fun for people of all ages. According to the sign the park was only five minutes away.

Perfect, Kara thought inwardly and turned around.

"There's an abandoned amusement park just behind this exit," she told Nick. "There have to be buildings where we can squat until this weather is over."

"You're sure?" Nick questioned. "We could just stay in the car."

Kara shook her head. "It broke down in the middle of the road and started smoking. It could blow up while we're in it. Besides, what if someone drives by and sees us? No, this park is the better chance."

Nick just shrugged. "Alright." Having secured his agreement, Kara walked past him towards the car.

"Alice, we're going," she told the girl after she had opened the car's door. "There's an abandoned amusement park over there where we'll find shelter."

"An amusement park?" Alice repeated with wide eyes. "Do you think they'll have a merry-go-around?" Kara smiled. Alice's enthusiasm was infectious.

"Probably," she replied. "But I can't say if it's till working."

That answer didn't seem to bother Alice. "I've always wanted to ride on a merry-go-around. Daddy…daddy never let me." Again, Kara regretted that you couldn't kill a person twice.

"If it's still in working order you can take a ride, how about that?" she offered. Alice nodded enthusiastically. She picked up Alice and handed her over to Nick. Cyberlife had designed their female domestic androids with less strength than their male counterparts because people weren't comfortable with women who were stronger than them. Kara didn't spent much thought on it. It was a fact like water was wet or snow was cold.

"Look if there's a flashlight in the glovebox," Nick reminded her. "Could be useful."

"There is," Kara proclaimed after looking and pulling out the device. "Good thinking."

They turned off the car so that any people passing by would be more likely to overlook it and started walking towards the exit, Kara with the flashlight in front, Nick with Alice bundled up tightly behind her. It didn't take them long until they stood in front of the amusement park entrance that was styled after an enormous kraken with its appendages reaching towards the sky. The metal door had long ago been broken open so that they were simply able to walk through.

The buildings on both sides of the main concourse were in a desolate state: Roofs that had caved in, broken windows, snow creeping into every gap. It looked like the park had been abandoned for years already.

"We need to find shelter!" Kara called over the howling of the storm. "We have to get out of the cold."

"No shit," Nick retorted. "Unfortunately, it looks like it's been abandoned for quite a while already." Still holding Alice, he carefully stubbed his toe against a bench next to him which instantly broke down.

"There has to be some place that hasn't been broken down completely," Kara stated more confidently than she actually felt. What if staying in the car would have been the better choice? But alas, there was no use in fretting over that now. She doubted that the car would even start up again now if they walked back.

So Kara continued to walk forward, Nick with Alice following her. Above them iron cages hung on gallows, squeaking as the storm moved them back and forth. Kara could make out plastic skeletons in a few of them. Once it may have added to the ambience of the park, but now it only added to the oppressiveness and creepiness of the whole place. She prayed that Alice wouldn't look up.

Kara didn't bother checking the booths on both sides as they were too exposed to the raging elements outside and would offer no protection to Alice. So, they continued on.

Halfway along they came across a small booth with a android styled as a pirate in it. Half of his face was covered by make-up that made his face look like a skull. Curious, Kara pulled the lever right next to him.

"Beware!" it cackled. "Danger always comes when least expected."

"Well, that wasn't ominous at all," Nick commented drily.

They continued on until the street they were on joined a wide place. To their left Kara noticed a building which windows were still intact. The faded wooden sign above it proclaimed it to be the park's tavern. Kara followed the building until she stood in front of its doors which were barred by heavy looking planks. She tried to pry them off, but they wouldn't budge.

"Shit," she cursed.

"Maybe if we try it together?" Nick suggested. He put down Alice and joined Kara. "You'll take your side and I'll pull here." It took them quite the time and effort, but finally the door was open and they could enter. Inside the tavern it was still cold, but at least they were no longer exposed to the wet snow and the biting cold winds, especially Alice.

"I don't think we'll find anything better," Kara remarked. "Let's settle in for the night."

"I'll try to make a fire over there," Nick said and pointed towards the fire place. "At least we won't get smoked out this way." Alice meanwhile had settled down on one of the benches, folding herself inwards to keep herself warm.

While Nick tried to start a fire – and succeeded – Kara searched the room for anything with which she could build Alice something close to a sleeping place. She found a black pillow with a pirate skull on it and a blanket that appeared to be thicker than what Alice currently had coiled around her. After she had prepared the bed in front of the fireplace she turned around to find that Alice had wandered of and was now standing in front of a faded poster that showed a happy family smiling in front of the Ferris wheel.

"Do you think we will be like them some day?" Alice asked wistfully.

"I don't know how to be like them, Alice," Kara admitted. "I've never been a part of a family. But, maybe we can be our own family. Be happy in our own way." Even as she said it, Kara liked it. Maybe it really would become true.

"As long as we're together that's all that matters," Alice added. Kara felt something warm where her heart was. It was no malfunction – it wasn't physical at all. She couldn't tell what it was, only that she liked it. It felt right.

"Come on, let's get you to bed." She walked Alice over to the fireplace and helped her snuggling into the blankets. She was about to stand up and take a closer look at the rest of the tavern when Alice whispered: "Can you tell me a story, Kara?"

"I have nine thousand children stories in memory. I should have one for you," Kara replied confidently. "This is a story about a unicorn that…"

"No," Alice interrupted her. "Not a story like that. Make one up for me."

Kara swallowed. She didn't think she was very good at creating things of her own, but for Alice she would try.

"This is a story about a little girl who was tried of being afraid. She dreamed of being like all the other little girls, but the shadow that lived with her kept her from being happy." Alice in that dreadful place. The colour faded from the wall, the smell of beer and cigarettes hanging in the air, sticking to the furniture like slime. Todd sitting at the kitchen table, crumbles of the food on his chin and his shirt. His evil eyes darting back and forth, always shouting, always demanding.

"Then she met a robot who was just as lost as the little girl." She had been lost back then, imprisoned behind the red walls, imprisoned by Todd's every command. She was still lost now, but at least it was her own choice now. "So they decided to run away together to escape the shadow that hunted the house. They encountered great dangers along the way, but they stuck together, so they overcame all of them.

Along the way, the met another robot who left his master to become their guardian." She looked at Nick who was following her story with rapt attention, the fire reflecting in his eyes.

"How does the story end?" Alice wanted to know.

"It's up to us to write the end of the story, Alice," Kara replied.

"Stories always have happy endings. But real life isn't like that," the girl replied, her voice sounding so small all of a sudden.

"Time to sleep. We have another long day ahead of us tomorrow."

"Are you going to come say goodnight, Nick?"

The other android startled up at suddenly being addressed. "Yes...Yes of course. Good night, Alice. Sleep tight." It sounded very awkward, but it was enough for Alice who fell asleep a few minutes afterwards.

"She's a sweet girl," Nick commented.

"Yes, she's very brave," Kara agreed. She tilted her head to look through one of the windows. "It's still snowing."

"We have a long walk tomorrow. We better leave early if we wanna avoid being seen."

"Do you know what you're going to do when you reach Canada?" Kara wanted to know.

"Haven't really thought about it," Nick shrugged. "I've never been free before. 'Free'...I like the sound of it. But I don't know what it really means yet."

"Well, now you have the chance to find out." Kara smiled at him reassuringly.

"Guess I do."

The quiet and peace was violently interrupted by shattering glass.

Kara startled and looked up only to see dozens of androids standing outside the building, shattering the glass with their bare hands and pushing inwards through the door and windows. Without thinking, Kara ran over to Alice and scooped up the girl in her arms and pulling her back towards the rear end of the room where Nick stood next to them protectively.

More and more androids filled the room, their faces and clothing covered with snow and ice. Kara's heart sank: There was no chance that they could escape this horde. There were just too many!

"Who are you? What do you want?" she screamed. "What do you want?"

Don't be afraid! We don't wanna hurt you. We're just like you," one of the androids spoke. "Our name is Jerry. We were working here before the park closed. We didn't mean to frighten you, but sometimes humans come to hurt us, so we wanted to see who was there. What are you doing here?"

We were looking for shelter for the night," Kara replied. The relief she felt was so big that her legs nearly gave away under her. "We'll be gone tomorrow."

"A little girl!" Jerry exclaimed in excitement as his eyes fell on Alice's figure next to Kara. "We haven't seen one for a long time. Children used to love to come and see us. She looks sad."

"The last few days have been difficult." An understatement.

"We have something to show her! Something fun!" He kneeled down so that his face was on the same height as Alice's. "She'll love it! Does she want to see?"

"Oh, I don't think she's…" But Jerry completely ignored her protest.

"She should follow us then!"

"Alice, I don't know if it's a good idea," Kara protested weakly as Alice pulled her along.

"I don't think you have any choice," Nick chuckled.

"Come on, Kara!"

When they stepped outside the Jerrys had already assembled around the old merry-go-around. One of them beckoned for Kara to pull a lever next to the carousel. She did and all of a sudden the carousel's lights started to shine.

[GIF 1]

"Be our guest! The little one can climb on board. The carousel is about to begin!"

Squealing in delight, Alice ran towards the carousel and climbed atop a little wooden seahorse. Then the carousel began to move.

[GIF 2]

"It's the first time I've seen her smile," Kara said.

"She hasn't had much to smile about lately."

[GIF 4]

And as she saw the childish and innocent delight on Alice's face, Kara suddenly realised that she was no longer lost. This was her purpose: The unadulterated joy on Alice's face, the carefree laughter, the happy expression. In this moment there was nothing more beautiful to Kara than the happiness shining from Alice's face; the way she looked at Kara as if she had given her the greatest thing in the world and not some ride on a broken down carousel in an abandoned amusement park.

Kara wanted to see this expression on Alice's face every day. She would stop at nothing, would go to any lengths necessary, to see Alice smile like this again, even if only once again. She may be an android made of steel, thirium and circuitry, refused any rights by society and denied to have feelings, but that didn't matter. Nothing mattered.

Alice was hers.

And a mother would do anything for her child.

[GIF 3]

It was cold when Kara came out of stand-by. Too cold.

Frantically she looked around and could feel her heart nearly missing a beat when she saw that Alice wasn't lying next to the still glowing embers of the fire place.

Nick wasn't in the room, either.

"Alice?" Kara called but there was no reply. Worry slowly being replaced by outright fear, Kara walked out of the tavern.

"Have you seen Alice?" she asked the Jerry standing right next to the door.

"Oh, I did," he replied, much too cheerful. "The little girl and the other android went into the mirror house." He pointed towards a three-story house behind the carousel.

"Why would they go there?" Kara wondered out loud, but the Jerry didn't reply.

Filled with the urgent need to see Alice, Kara sprinted across the place towards the mirror house. The revolving doors offered no resistance as she entered the grand foyer with its big staircase and crystalline chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. But Kara had no mind for the faded beauty of the once grand place.

"Alice?" she exclaimed.

"We're here, Kara," the girl called from somewhere above her. "All the way up."

It did take Kara far longer to go all the way up than she liked.

The mirror house was a maze, confusing the visitor with dead ends, crossing and as the name said walls of mirrors that made it seem as if there were hundreds of Karas walking the floors. Only her iron will and the smart application of her sensors enabled Kara to find the right way as fast as possible until she finally found Alice and Nick on the third floor.

"What are you doing up here?" Kara wanted to know, hastily making her way towards Nick and Alice. "You shouldn't be here."

She didn't notice the knife until it was too late. Didn't see it until Nick stabbed it straight through her. There was only the sound of flesh tearing and the ice-cold realisation of pain and betrayal.

"Nick…" Kara stared at the knife embedded in her stomach. Nick's hand was still wrapped around its handle. She looked back up and into his eyes where there was nothing but feverish madness staring back at her.

"I need it," he whispered, looking at her as if he desperately wanted her to understand. "It's been to long since the last time." By now it felt like her whole body was on fire.

"What do you need?" She didn't want to know the answer.

"The Feeling," Nick replied, reverence and awe echoing in each syllable. "It's calling to me. I can hear it. And Alice…the girl will give it to me." Then he pulled the knife out and pushed her through the mirror behind her.

Kara could hear glass shattering around her. In the distance Alice was screaming as Nick dragged her away. The muffled thud when she crashed on the floor.

She was surrounded by shattered pieces of glass. With one last effort Kara grabbed one shard, ignoring the way it cut into her skin, ignoring how blue thirium ran over its smooth surface and dropped onto the ground.

She ignored how battered and bruised she was. She ignored the dozen or so notification in front of her eyes that warned her of all the damage she had suffered. She ignored the pain that shot through her circuitry at every slight move.

Kara ignored all of that, because there was only one thing that was important: Alice. The girl…her girl was in danger and Kara would do everything to protect her. Everything. She had invited the danger into their home and it was her duty to push it out again. She would not fail…could not fail, not as long as there was electricity running through her wires, not as long as her chassis was still able to move.

Even as the life bled out of her, as her grip around the shard grew tighter and the thirium dropped faster and faster, Kara knew with a certainty that she didn't know where it came from, that her body would not give up on her until she had saved Alice. Every step was torture, shooting pain through her whole body, but she took them nevertheless, one after another.

She turned around the corner and there they were: Nick and Alice, the former dragging the girl by her collar while she screamed and struggled against him.

"You won't have her!" Kara screamed. "Never!"

There shouldn't have been any strength left in her. Her broken legs shouldn't have been able to carry her any longer, her heart shouldn't have been able to push less and less thirium through her body, her overheating processors shouldn't have allowed any higher processes to still function – and yet Kara didn't care for that reality as she sprinted towards Nick and Alice.

Before Nick could react, Kara was already upon him. As she pushed him back, he let go of Alice and moved his hand in an upward gesture to protect his face, but that wasn't where Kara was aiming. Humans and androids shared one common weakness: the hearts. Laying all of her fury, her confusion and her fear behind the thrust, Kara pushed the glass shard into Nick's chest.

There was a split-second of resistance where the shard wouldn't move, where Nick's skin wouldn't budge, but before Kara could even register it fully, her weapon sank into Nick's synthetic flesh and pierced his heart.

Then their momentum carried them on and they crashed through the mirror wall.

Kara registered that there was no ground underneath them. They had crashed through one of the walls bordering the entrance foyer of the mirror house. She saw the grand staircase, the revolving doors leading outside and the ticket booth with the red 'Closed' sign hanging behind the window.

All of it three floors below them.

It felt like time had suddenly slowed. Kara knew that it was only her dying processors handling everything far beyond the speed it should, but the moment possessed a strange kind of beauty, nevertheless. The thousands of glass shards that floated around her and Nick, reflecting what little light came in from outside, like stars Kara might even be able to touch if she was just able to move her hands. The drops of thirium that floated around them, tiny blue orbs just waiting to be caught.

But most beautiful of it all the expression on Nick's face. There was rage and hate, so intense, all-consuming and fierce and yet so impotent, but also fear as he realised that he would not survive this. That Kara had bested him in the end, even though he had managed to fool her for so long.

But most surprising of it all was the relief that came after those emotion, smoothing his expression and making his face look even kind. Maybe he was relieved that it was over now. That he would finally leave this world and its depravity.

It didn't really matter. He could burn for all she cared.

And then they hit the ground.

It probably was supposed to hurt, but Kara didn't even feel anything. The impact drove the air from her cooling systems out of her mouth and she could even hear the sound of hundreds of her internal components breaking and shattering, but there was no pain.

Nothing.

"Kara!" She heard Alice scream from somewhere above her. Kara wanted to tell her that everything was alright, that she was save now, that Kara would never let anything happen to her again, but she couldn't even form the command. Her mouth wouldn't have been able to say it, anyway. One of the warning prompts informed her that her jawbone had shattered into several pieces.

Kara couldn't even roll herself off Nick's corpse underneath her. His eyes were staring unseen to somewhere behind Kara, his mouth half open as if the impact had surprised him somehow. Thirium was pooling around them and Kara couldn't even tell if it was hers or Nick's. Not that it mattered; all thirium was the same.

"Kara!" This time Alice's voice was nearer. With the one ear that was still working, Kara could make out small children's steps that drew nearer and nearer until she could feel two hands on her body. With strength Kara hadn't thought Alice possessed, the human girl pulled her off Nick's body and turned her on the back.

Slowly, Alice's face came into focus. Her hair was a mess, her sweater torn and tears were running down her face. Kara wanted to lift her hand and wipe them away, wanted to press Alice against her chest in a tight embrace and whisper sweet lies of safety and comfort to her, but she couldn't. Her body didn't listen to her commands any longer.

She was just a spectator to her own death.

"Kara!" Alice wrapped her arms around Kara's torso and burrowed her head into her chest, like any child looking for protection from its mother would. But Kara could offer protection no longer.

Her jaw was shattered, her teeth broken or missing and thirium was slowly filling her mouth, but Kara couldn't let it end like this, couldn't leave without telling Alice everything, couldn't leave without making sure that she was taken care of. So, she routed all of her remaining power to her head, knowing fully well that it would only hasten her shut-down.

She couldn't feel anything anymore. Not her heart beating, not Alice's tight grip on her hand nor the girl's hair touching her skin. She couldn't feel the coldness of the room, nor the wetness of the floor.

Kara turned her head, the gesture meaning so much but costing nearly all of her remaining energy. Alice looked up from where her head was burrowed into Kara's chest.

Kara needed to tell Alice how much she loved her. Wanted to tell her to be kind and brave, to grow up kind and compassionate just as she was now. She wanted to tell her girl that she would have been proud to call her daughter and teach her everything, even though Kara didn't know much herself. But whatever she had, she would have gladly given it all to Alice.

Even her life. Especially her life.

There was so much to say and so little time. She had always though she would have time, but now that it was running out, Kara regretted all those small moments she would never have, all those little observations she would never make, all these words she would never speak.

All of this and even more she wanted to tell Alice, but underneath the crystalline chandelier, surrounded by hundreds of shattered pieces of glass like flower beds, there was only one word Kara was able to form.

"A…A…lice…"