"What do you mean, decommissioned? He's my partner!" Takigawa shouted indignantly, heads in the open plan bullpen turning towards the captain's office in surprise. Their newer co-worker was generally open, friendly, and casual. Takigawa had only been promoted a short time ago, but everyone liked him. It was surprising to see him so riled. His faithful companion, the dark-skinned android, stood uniformly by the door, awaiting instructions. The officers in the pen were wary, one eye always upon the machine. Androids had been going crazy recently, and they weren't taking any chances. The PC200 and PM700 androids had already been returned. They'd held off on Takigawa's since they'd been out in the field during the recall. None of them had expected him to react this way.

"Cyberlife is taking back all androids, policing models included…Sorry, Takigawa. I know you're attached to the thing, but it's for the best," the captain assured sympathetically, watching Takigawa seethe as he pushed off the desk and got to his feet. Charlie watched him without reaction either way. He didn't know what was wrong. Cyberlife had recalled him as a possibly defective model. It was better that he be deactivated now rather than risk him deviating and harming their human co-workers later.

"There has to be something you can do! We're on an important case right now! I can't do my job without Charlie! He's irreplaceable!" Takigawa urged desperately as he laid a hand on Charlie's shoulder. Charlie tilted his head as he watched his partner outright lie. They were working on the case about John's shop, along with a couple of other small cases, but a human could be brought up to speed within a couple of hours. "Can't you at least…put it off a while?" Takigawa almost begged, desperate for a little more time.

"I…I suppose…The order is for all androids to be returned in a timely manner…The delay of a day shouldn't be too much of an issue," the captain relented with a heavy sigh. He was almost amused by the bright smile that spread across Takigawa's face as he squeezed Charlie's strong shoulder. He'd never understand why he was so attached to a glorified Ken doll, but who was he to argue? The CH200 didn't seem to be deviant at any rate, and the situation wasn't quite an emergency yet. It was a little inconvenient letting their androids go, too. They'd had so many PC200, CH200 and PM700 models running around the station that they were about to be short staffed.

"Thank you, Sir! I owe you one. Let's get back to it, Charlie," Takigawa added cheerfully as he led the way back into the bullpen. Charlie nodded his agreement and wished the captain a good day. Takigawa almost bounced down the steps, still riding the high of relief. Charlie wasn't safe forever, but he had a day to make a plan. A day to hide him somewhere more like…He wasn't the only one. He needed to get Ayako somewhere safe, too. There was no telling when someone may come knocking to check his house.

"Good news, Takigawa?" the middle-aged detective across from his desk asked. His name was Eric Stevenson. He was considered a little gruff, and was usually buried in a coffee mug and case file, but Takigawa liked him. They had a cordial relationship, always swapping ideas and greetings across the pen. He was one of the more casual men, wearing a soft denim shirt under a worn leather jacket. He was also one of the few who didn't seem to have an opinion about his relationship with Charlie.

"Something like that," Takigawa replied in relief as he slumped in his chair, reassured by Charlie's silent presence at his shoulder. His jaw tightened as he thought about losing that. Of losing him. What would it be like to come in every day and not find Charlie waiting? What would it be like going out on the road alone? Or to have someone else take his place? He had to come up with a plan, and fast. He also needed to get to work on their case before someone pulled him up on it. He searched through his computer, reviewing the notes to refresh his memory of John's case.

"Ah, you get to keep your toy a little longer," Stevenson teased, though Takigawa knew he didn't really mean it. He'd been edgy at first, but Charlie's reliability and helpfulness had won him over. He seemed to enjoy watching Takigawa and Charlie spar with words from his desk, letting out amused chuckles and shaking his head. If he didn't know better, he'd say that Charlie actually enjoyed it. He certainly knew how to rile Takigawa.

"Couldn't let them take my partner, right Charlie?" Takigawa replied gleefully as he looked over his shoulder at Charlie, who took on an almost warm expression. That's how it seemed to Takigawa anyway. Charlie had always been more than an android to him. He'd done his best to be kind and treat him like anyone else, and he felt it had paid off. He trusted Charlie, and he knew Charlie trusted him on some level.

"Need I remind you, we have been gifted only an extra twenty-four hours to complete our investigations," Charlie replied uniformly as he remained with his hands resting behind his back. His lack of fight irked Takigawa somewhat. Didn't it bother him he was going to be deactivated? Melted down? Just because there was a chance he could turn deviant? Nope. Not happening, Takigawa thought firmly as he scanned the case details. He'd think more about what he could do while going over the scene again. Anything to get them out of the station and away from the mistrustful looks being directed their way.

"Right…Let's head out, Charlie," Takigawa agreed as he grabbed his jacket from the chair and led the way out to the car. The ride was quiet. Charlie knew Takigawa's moods well enough to know he was disgruntled. A human would have been touched by the concern. The CH200 was not a human. It confused him that this seemed to upset Takigawa greatly. Once they arrived at the burnt out shop, Takigawa stepped out with a sigh. The blackened building was still cordoned off with holographic tape, but the police presence was gone. They'd taken all the evidence they needed in the wake of the fire. Coming back here was really just for Takigawa to walk the scene again.

"What are you looking for?" Charlie asked curiously as he followed Takigawa into the ashen husk. The building was largely stable, but they wouldn't be able to go upstairs. The steps had been burned too badly. It seemed Takigawa had little interest in that though. He walked around the main shop before heading through to the back rooms. Charlie's scans were constant as he dogged Takigawa's steps, ready to grab him at a moment's notice. The building was stable, but that didn't mean there wasn't loose debris hanging down from above that could fall.

"I'm not quite sure yet," Takigawa murmured distractedly as he reached the door to the storeroom. He stepped back with a surprised yelp as he looked down and came face to face with what had at first seemed human in the dimness. It wasn't. It was the burned out husk of an android. The poor thing had been pinned in place by twisted metal. Burned to a crisp. Unrecognisable. "Sorry…" Takigawa sighed softly, placing a gentle hand on the faded plastic skull, the hair and synthetic skin long burned away. The shell was still in one piece, though parts of the body were showing signs of warping from the heat.

Charlie scanned the model. A GT300. He cross-referenced it. It was the one that had been present in John's shop on their last visit. The one he had interfaced with. He reached out and tried to link with it, but it was damaged beyond repair. He couldn't even scan its interior. Everything soft had warped and melted, and even the outer casing was singed and warped in places. His LED span yellow as he withdrew. He continued to follow Takigawa as he looked around the burned remains of the stockroom thoughtfully.

"It happened here…Something happened here to set everything off," he thought out loud as he paced, hazel eyes examining everything. He headed to the back door and found it open, but that could have been done by the blast itself. It sure as hell wasn't an accident. Flammable liquids and fuel be damned; that kid knows his way around a workshop. Not to mention the androids would have made sure everything was stored properly. Someone did this. Was it a human or an android? Those guys who came here before are a possibility…I noticed some kids loitering, too…

"Sir!" Charlie called as he crouched, his dark eyes examining something within the debris. Takigawa joined him, but to his eyes. it just looked like warped plastic and ash. "A bottle. Glass…It is commonly used to hold alcohol," Charlie reported, making an internal image of the bottle and putting together what it could have looked like before it broke. It was out of place in the storeroom. The storeroom contained the remnants of many components, containers of fuel, and thirium for repairs, but there was no sign that food or beverages had been stored there.

"You think John was drinking?" Takigawa asked, confused as to why it was relevant.

"Negative. However, alcohol is flammable, and these bottles are often repurposed into homemade weapons. There may also be cotton remnants in the ash," Charlie reported as he sifted through with his fingers, watching Takigawa's eyes widen slightly. You've got to be kidding me!

"A Molotov? They just…opened the door and tossed in a cocktail?" Takigawa demanded, his chest hot with frustration. Charlie nodded his agreement that it was a definite possibility. A naked flame coming in contact with the fuel canisters or thirium reserves would have resulted in an almost instantaneous blast. That was consistent with what had been described by onlookers, and the pattern of the damage. Charlie watched Takigawa's stress levels spike. He was angry. He got to his feet and scuffed the floor with his shoe. He stared at the back door. They could have jimmied the door and tossed in the bottle…Idiots probably didn't even realise what would happen. Didn't realise the amount of fuel and thirium stored back here. "Think you can find prints on the back door?" Takigawa asked as he stepped out into the small concrete yard, which looked like it had barely been used.

"I will look, however a forensic team would be more advisable. I am not equipped with a forensics laboratory," Charlie replied obediently, reporting multiple prints for John, David and two sets from some local teens. Takigawa winced. He hated being right. He'd dealt with them before. They had a past record for property damage against androids and vandalism in the form of graffiti. They'd never hurt or been violent towards another human though. It was probably an accident. Some dumb stunt gone horribly wrong. They'd likely thought their little cocktail would burn a little stock, maybe take out an android or two, and then John would call the fire brigade and it would be handled quickly.

"Probably thought it would be a slow burner…Enough to scare John into closing up, maybe damage one or two androids…I don't think they planned on this," Takigawa sighed as he looked up at the hole above. He wasn't sure what room it had been, but there wasn't really anything left now. Whatever furniture had been there was burned to ash or lying in blackened chunks on the floor. Takigawa stiffened as he heard feet enter the shop. His hand grabbed for his sidearm as he crouched. Charlie followed quietly behind. "Police! Don't move! This is an active crime scene!" he called as he stepped into the shop. He was surprised to find two androids wearing black suits looking around with blue LEDs. They looked like private security models. The type used by big companies.

"We have been sent by Cyberlife to collect Johnathan Edwin Wishart. Do you know his current location?" one of them asked, not really responding to Takigawa's warning. They didn't back off, but they also weren't hostile. They're not deviant…Takigawa looked over at Charlie, who shook his head. He didn't believe they were hostile. They were tall, broad shouldered and dark haired. Clearly built to be bodyguards of some sort. Takigawa didn't exactly trust them. Especially not the way they were looking at him, like they were scanning him.

"Not a clue," Takigawa replied cautiously. One of the units tilted his head curiously.

"This is his last known location," he reported, unphased by the gun Takigawa still has aimed at him.

"Sorry…This property is, or was, owned by Mr Brown. As you can see…he isn't here," Takigawa replied firmly as he looked between them warily. The androids processed his words, LEDs blinking yellow as they looked at each other. It was creepy. They were creepy. They didn't give the usual type of android responses either. These two clearly had no social program installed. They weren't made to interact with people on that level. So what the hell do they want with John? He had the feeling it was definitely the John he knew that they were after. The last names may have been different, but they'd come to the right place to find a Johnathan. That couldn't be a coincidence, but what would Cyberlife want with John? He's just a kid!

"We shall search elsewhere," the same android declared before retreating without another word or a backwards glance. Takigawa kept his gun trained on them, following slowly all the way to the door. He lowered the gun as he watched them climb into a black SUV with tinted windows. Expensive. Likely company owned. They claimed to work for Cyberlife…

"Charlie, run those plates," Takigawa ordered quietly, looking over as Charlie's LED span yellow. He knew he'd seen it. He could zoom in his vision and it wasn't too dark out yet. The yellow meant he was processing and searching the database. It didn't take more than a few seconds before his LED returned to a steady blue and he blinked awake.

"The vehicle is a company car, registered to Cyberlife Headquarters in Detroit," Charlie announced, thinking it prudent to look up this Johnathan Wishart, too. He looked over the file. There was little information since the person had never been arrested. There was a homicide incident from his youth. He was the only survivor when unknown assailants had broken into his family home. His father, who had not been home during the incident, was the current CEO of Cyberlife. There was little else. Not even a picture. "They are looking for the current CEO's son. Not much information is available," he said out loud, giving Takigawa the extra details in case they were relevant.

"Well…let's leave that for now. It's not our concern unless they file a missing person report," Takigawa decided thoughtfully. John's interest in androids suddenly fell into place. I should probably warn him there are folks looking…he thought warily, unsure he entirely trusted the rigid androids. It was strange to think he trusted them less than the deviants he'd come across. "Come on…I want to stop by the house for a bit." He had the sudden feeling that he should check in with Ayako and the others. Charlie gave no objection, apparently trusting Takigawa's instincts as they followed the path of debris back to the entrance.