November 6th, 2038
AM 11:37:34
Frost burned your lungs as icy adrenaline coursed through your veins. It wasn't enough to cool your overheated core that pushed sweat from your pores; mixing with the cold November rain. Small clouds escaped your mouth, each falling farther behind as you picked up speed. Your footfalls filled the pauses in your heartbeat, one "thud" trading for another.
You darted past curious pedestrians that were reduced to swatches of color and turning heads. Your mind was racing as you ran along the bridge's sidewalk, the fence blurring into a translucent line of rust rather than a wall made of thatched holes.
A little girl's scream forced everything to a full stop.
"What are they-"
"Oh, my-"
"Is that-"
The once-passing bodies huddled around the fence, sirens blaring in the distance.
"DCPD – MOVE IT!" You jabbed your elbow between two shoulders in the crowd, prying them apart and pushing to the front.
The AX400 and Alice ran towards you, sprinting along a grass median below.
"CONNOR! God-damn it!"
Your neck cranked to the left, following the scratchy howl from Lieutenant Anderson. He punched the fence along the highway.
Connor slid down a muddy slope, his feet splashing as they met a stream formed by the street's drainage…
"Jesus, no, no no no-"
You buckled over, clasping your stomach as you tried to catch your breath. Your pulse pounded in your head, the crowd's frantic whispering coming like a demonic chant.
"What…what is he doing?!"
Connor ran headfirst into oncoming traffic, leaping with precision only an android could facilitate…and then he jumped.
His hip met the roof of a car as he slid across, his jacket flaring like a matador's cape; taunting steel bulls that charged with horns in the shape of headlights.
He dodged them as they tried to trample him. Flatten him. Impale him with bumpers and parade his body around in a gory display of victory. His side hit the wet road, gliding along the surface – his head missing a tire by inches; a carbon-black hoof with treads that sprayed water on him as it passed.
He'd made it to safety, darting up the median…But the deviant and child had already begun their second round of their run with the bulls.
You couldn't stop watching, even as your feet began to move out of pure instinct. The scene came as flashes between the backs of heads. Breaks in the chain links. Gut-wrenching close-calls and the roars of engines that came too close for comfort. Your pace quickened, your breaths coming in sharp, short pants. You met the end of the bridge, given a clear view of the manhunt underneath you.
Every scene, every action taken, every shift in lanes of the figures sprinting across – all of it slowed down to fractions of seconds. It wasn't so much you were watching, but trying to stitch together what your mind couldn't…didn't want, to comprehend.
The deviant pushing Alice to safety, finally crossing the highway. Connor grabbing the AX400's shoulders. How they wrestled in place, their bodies swaying – side mirrors zipping along by a hair's width. The deviant jabbing her elbow into Connor's stomach. His stumble backwards, aligning himself with a windshield and a hood and-
No, you didn't want to comprehend his final moments. There were so many things you had to say – so many things you wanted to hear. Things you wanted to investigate far worse than anything else.
The guilty glances that found you far too often to be coincidental. The tension in his form whenever you veered too close; the smiles he pointed at you before they were corrected. What he had to say at the police station before being torn away by pre-programmed orders.
Cold fear melted into resolve – boiled away by an intense fluttering in your chest. Your lips parted, your throat constricted, and your stomach muscles braced for impact as you forced a warning from your mind to your mouth:
"CONNOR-LOOK-OUT!"
…
There was a crash. A metal crunch and shattering glass. A frigid intake that pushed the last ounce of heat from your body as you trembled. A rush of light when you'd finally gained the courage to open your eyes.
A car door slammed. You turned your head.
"Who fuckin' taught you how to drive?!"
There was an accident; one vehicle rear-ending another, behind you on the bridge. Two drivers yelling at each other, the guilty party apologizing for being distracted by the crowd. It underlined the reason automatic cars had been designed and put into production along their specialized highways.
You reverted your focus to the one below you – the one that had two deviants scuttling to freedom on one side, and an android stuck in the middle. Connor was staring at them; hands balled in frustration. But he was alive.
You turned on your heel, rounding the corner and taking off down a street. Alice dropped down from climbing over a fence, her deviant caretaker in tow. You were spotted. They ran.
You followed.
…
Your revolver shook in your hands, it's barrel rattling between your fingers. The alley was dark and damp, walled off by a dead end. A dumpster lined the left with a retracted fire escape hovering above. Empty crates, abandoned pallets of wood, and aluminum trashcans littered the perimeter.
The world seesawed in distorted motion, curving and stretching. It was hard to breathe. Hard to think. Move. React.
"I have a gun, but I don't want to use it." Your mouth was dry, the hoarseness in your voice telltale, "I'm not here to hurt you, or Alice."
"How do you know her name?"
Your neck turned, her words bouncing off the walls. You couldn't pinpoint her hiding spot.
"I'm the officer who took Todd's report." Your rows of teeth derailed from their locked position as a sting shot from your bruise, "…I didn't believe anything he said."
You took a cautious step forward, gathering what little bits of your senses that remained.
"I just want the truth."
Your wound pulsed; an epicenter of immense pain. Your legs gave out in the aftershock, and you went crashing onto the drenched pavement. Your gun skittered away.
You blinked, and the woman appeared before you.
"You're hurt."
You wound in a coil, your knees brushing against your elbows. It was like someone was driving the heel of their boot into your intestines, ignoring your begging for mercy.
"I-I didn't get your name-"
The deviant tossed your arm over her shoulder, pulling you to your feet. You walked in a limp as she guided you to a crate and lowered you down into a seat. She knelt, keeping Alice behind her.
"I'm Kara."
Her hair was short and blonde, her eyes a piercing blue. She had the look of a woman who'd seen too much, losing pieces of herself in the process.
"Her father was beating her." Kara looked at Alice, "When I saw what was happening…Something snapped, inside of me."
Alice had the sweetest face of any child you'd met, with the biggest brown pools for eyes and the slightest whimper on her lips.
"All of a sudden, I felt like her life was more important than mine. I had to protect her…" Kara's steeled focus returned to you, "So we ran away."
You remembered the flood of emotions that fueled you before you took a bullet for Connor. The intense need to guard him, no matter how irrational it seemed. You knew how she felt, somewhat. Your indebted feelings towards him were a bit different than the dynamic between Kara and Alice.
Kara jumped as you reached into your pocket, your arm shaking while you dug for your wallet. You pulled it out with your last bit of strength, pushing a breath from your nose.
"There's cash inside. Take it." You shivered, "Next train comes in 20."
She studied it suspiciously, "Why didn't you…Why are you helping us? Most humans hate androids."
"These past few weeks we've seen…More, and more deviant cases…Something's happening." You hugged yourself, "I just want to find out what…before…bef-"
"She's cold…" Alice tugged on her hand, looking up, "We can't just leave her, Kara…"
"I'll be…I'll be okay-" You struggled to stand, "I didn't park far…"
Kara tucked your emptied wallet in your jacket, and handed you your gun. You took it, letting it dangle at your side as you shimmied down the wall, "You guys should get outta here…"
"Thank you."
You looked over your shoulder, and the two of them stood there in the rain. Kara watched you like a mother wolf, ready to devour anyone who stepped too close to her cub. And Alice…
She was too pure for this world.
"You're welcome."
…
The front seat of your car had never been so welcoming. The security that came with the "click," of the door's lock, the chimes that followed as you turned on the ignition – signaling that the voyage home could begin. You rolled up your window, frowning at the rain that'd soaked your door. Should've put it up before the chase…not that you had time.
You turned the knob for the heater, a blast of cold air stinging your face. You adjusted the speed, and decided you'd be better off giving it a moment to warm up.
Something was out of place.
Your brow furrowed, turning your chin to your passenger's seat…
A notebook was resting on the cushion, the pencil tucked neatly in the rings of the binding. Your notebook. The one you'd put in the storage compartment before leaving. With your pencil. The one that'd fallen on the floor.
You grimaced as your stomach pinched, now tied in knots rather than flaring nerves from behind-armor-blunt-trauma. Your fingers trembled as they retrieved the item, flipping to a page marked by a folded corner.
Someone had reviewed your notes. Someone added, to your notes.
"1142 – I saw you on the bridge. To fulfill optimal health conditions, you must rest. I would find anything less than a full recovery extremely unsettling. Please do not make me reset my system due to software instabilities. I do not wish to forget you.
-Connor"
A/N: Thanks to my betas Matt and Ele for tag-teaming this one! Also, uh...SORRY FOR THE SCARE, EVERYONE! I don't know why I'm like this.
