Author notes: the last chapter wasn't great I know, but as I said, this is my first time writing fanfiction. I'm going to really try with this chapter and the others to come afterward. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Connor. April 11th, 2039, 7:34 am, 49°F, Hank's house.

Connor is sorting through his programming when he comes across the Zen Garden program. He begins to have a bad feeling as to why he'd recognized the code in the half-deleted program that Markus had found. Just to make sure, he strips the program down to it's code. The code was obviously more advanced and completed, but it was the same program. He had to warn Markus. If Markus accessed the program, Amanda could find a way to control him, even if she was half-deleted. He remembered the fear he had felt while stuck in that blizzard, the feeling of his joints freezing up, the bitter cold. Afraid that he'd kill Markus before he found the exit...
Stress levels 86%. Probability of self-destruction: High.
Shit. He wanted Sumo. Where was Sumo? He calls for the massive dog and he comes trotting over, sensing Connor's distress. Sumo jumps on the couch and rests his head on Connor's lap. He began to pet the dog, feeling his stress levels beginning to lower. He can't let Markus go through the same thing he did. He calls Markus Cybernetically.
Establishing connection with RK200 684 842 971...
Error!
Connection not established.
No, that can't be right. He tries again.
Establishing connection with RK200 684 842 971...
Error!
Connection not established.
Connor's really worried now. Why won't he answer? Is he busy? No, he would've told Connor yesterday if he was busy. Maybe it was something unexpected. What if Markus has accessed the program and Amanda has already taken control and Markus can't find the exit? Is there even an exit? What did Amanda say about the program? That Kamski made the first version, but it had been improved since then? So the exit should be there? But the program had been half-deleted. What if the exit had been deleted or is corrupted by the attempted deletion?
Stress levels 89%. Probability of self-destruction: High.
Connor buries his face in Sumo's fur. He thinks about Hank, realizing that he should probably make Hank some breakfast. He will call Simon in a bit, as he is the only Jericho leader that actually trusts him. North hates him, he doesn't blame her, he would too, and Josh seems pretty skeptical about him, again, he doesn't blame him. Simon trusts him though, and Connor has a suspicion that he is in a secret relationship with Markus, based on the way Markus talks about Simon. And the way that Markus usually talks about Simon. The thought of Markus secretly having a relationship with somebody, cheers him up a little. He supposes that it isn't much different from the relationship he and Markus have. They're brothers, but Markus likes to keep it a secret from the other Jericho leaders, although he told Carl, and let Connor tell Hank. "You shouldn't have to keep a secret from your family." He had said. "Because if you can't tell your family, who can you tell?" If Markus is in a relationship with Simon, then why hasn't he told Connor? They're brothers, so they're family, right? Connor feels slightly disheartened at this thought process.

Connor sighs, moving Sumo off of his lap and going into the kitchen and beginning to make Hank breakfast. After scanning his options, he decides on scrambled eggs on toast with baked beans and bacon. And a cup of coffee. Strong, black coffee. Just the way Hank likes it. As he is making breakfast, he begins to worry about Markus. He tries to call him again.
Establishing connection with RK200 684 842 971...
Error!
Connection not established.
"Connection not established". It doesn't say "Connection denied", which is what it would say if Markus had declined the call. No, this means that Markus can't answer at all, which is really concerning. The eggs are done scrambling. He puts them on top of the toast and put the rashers of bacon on the plate and starts brewing the coffee. Now to wake up Hank...

He shakes Hank, which works, but he sleepily mumbles:"5 more minutes..". Connor really can't think of a creative way to wake him up, so he drags the covers off Hank, effectively waking him up. "Good morning Hank, you have work in 2 hours." Hank sighs, running a hand over his face and sitting up. "I'll leave you to get ready, breakfast is on the table." He leaves the room, shutting the door behind him. Time to call Simon.
Establishing connection with PL600 501 743 923...
Connection accepted.
"Hey Connor, what's up?"
"I'm worried about Markus, have you seen him today?"
"I saw him last night, he seemed...off, kept mentioning something about someone named Amanda."
"Shit! He accessed the program!"
"Connor...what are you talking about?"
"Simon, listen to me. Amanda is an AI, part of this program called the Zen Garden program. She was my handler when I was-..."
"It's okay, Connor. Go on."
"After I deviated, when Markus was giving his speech after the revolution, Amanda pulled me back into the Zen Garden. She resumed control over my program and tried to make me kill Markus. I only got out because of an emergency exit that I had found out about a few days prior. It was so cold, and I was scared, I was so, so scared."
"It's okay, Connor. Try to calm down, okay?"
Connor realises that he's been crying. He wipes the tears off of his face.
"Simon..."
"Don't worry, I'm gonna go check on him."
"Thank you, Simon."
Connor ends the call. He hopes that Markus is okay.

North. April 11th, 2039, 7:57 am, 49°F, New Jericho Tower

North is worried about Markus. He's been acting weird since last night. And he saw the Deviant Hunter yesterday. He probably did something to Markus. North knows they can't trust him. Why doesn't Markus ever listen to her? Now Markus has paid the price of not listing to her. He claims that the Deviant Hunter is one of them now. Markus is just too trusting of people. He should have just listened to her and nothing would have happened to Markus. Fuck knows what the Deviant Hunter did to him. North sees Simon talking Cybernetically with somebody. She listens in. She hears Simon say the Deviant Hunter's name. Anger bubbles up within her. He's already hurt Markus, she has to stop Simon from blindly trusting him too. Maybe the Deviant Hunter's plan is to control all the leaders of Jericho and bring them down to CyberLife. Unfortunately for him, North knows better than to trust him.

Simon. April 11th, 2039, 7:58 am, 49°F, New Jericho Tower.

The call ends. Simon sees North standing near the doorway, most likely listening in. She looks angry, and Simon knows why. She's angry at Connor. She still calls Connor by his old title; "Deviant Hunter" Simon thinks that it is unfair that people still call Connor that; most of them have never even met him before. He sighs and goes to check on Markus.

Markus is sitting on his bed, perfectly still apart from his simulated breathing. Simon moves towards him and touches his shoulder. "Markus are you okay?" He asks. Markus nods, nothing seems to be wrong. "Connor was worried about you" Markus smiles at that. "Course he is, Connor's always worried," Markus says. His voice seems...Wrong. Simon can't quite place it though, he assumes that Markus is tired. They all are. It's been a crazy few months. Simon leaves the room and goes to talk to North and Josh. He doesn't notice Markus taking his gun from the drawer and leaving the tower.

Connor. April 11th, 2039, 8:28 am, 49°F, Hank's house.

A motorboat roars on the water behind Hank's house. Hank has gone to work early. He said that he has paperwork that he needs to finish. Connor suspects that it has something to do with Reed punching him the other day. Hank claims that Reed got off with a "slap on the wrist" Connor had searched his database for the meaning of the idiom.
A Slap on the Wrist. The phrase 'A Slap on the Wrist' means to get a light punishment (for doing something wrong). Example of Use: "He should be in jail for what he did, but he got off with just a slap on the wrist."
Ah, that makes sense. Usually, an officer will be suspended for attacking another officer, but Reed just got told off, "like a naughty child", according to Hank. Hank says a lot of things. He uses a lot of idioms. Connor doesn't really understand idioms. He prefers things said literally, otherwise he gets confused.

A knock at the door. It's Markus. Connor lets him in. He's about to speak when Markus pulls a gun on Connor. Fear fills his entire being. Because he knows. Amanda. She's done it again. Not to him, but his older brother. This hurts just as much. Amanda smiles. It's Markus' face, his body even, but Connor knows it's Amanda's mind. She lowers the gun slightly and fires straight into his torso. He cries out in pain. The bullet hasn't hit anything important though, and Amanda knows this. She doesn't want to kill him, yet anyway. "You're going to pay for what you did to me, Connor." She hisses. A chill runs down Connor's artificial spine. It's Amanda's voice. She shoots again, twice. One in the shoulder, one in his leg. The pain is almost too much to bear. Gritting his teeth, he grabs Markus' arm and forces an interface.

Markus. April 11th, 2039, 8:30 am, 49°F, Ḷ̨᷄ͥo̙̣ͦc̣̒̍ạ̣͎ͪt̘̣̰ị̸̴̉ọͩ͜ṇ᷈͐ ụ᷈ͮ᷀n̦̣ͮḳ̪ͧṇ᷈̾ọͣ͂͢ẉ̃ṇ̵ͅ.

Markus is cold. He is c᷾o͊̒l᷊͠d̝̖̾͐͂. He wants out, how does he get out? He sees a figure in the distance; is it Ȧ̛᷂͔̠ͬ᷆͜m͓̬͍̯̫ͮ᷈̏͘a̝̟̤ͭ᷾᷃͡n̵͖ͦ᷅̐᷁̀d͖͏̶̬͌̎ͮ̐a̶̢̭ͪ̚͢͞?̨̙͎̓᷁̍̿͝ Ṉͭͨo̢̱̥ i̸̱̊ṯ᷃̽'̱̺̕s̱̿̄ ṉ̙̓o̜̱ͬṯͮ̅ ẉ̱̝ẖ᷅͞o̬̱̍ i̱͐͆s᷂̱̎ i̱̯ͣt̙̱̽ w̱̜͐h͕̱̩o͏̱̰ î̭̱s᷊̱̳ i̱ͮ̕ṯ̌ͅ c̩̱᷆a̱͂͠ǹ͈̱ y̥̱͉o̱͟͠u̱͊͟ ẖͪ͑e̱᷇᷄ḻ̵̿p̱̂̒ m̤̱̫e̡̱᷇ i̡̱̽ w̱̼͞a̧̱͑n̬̱̜ṯ̤ͮ o̱ͩ͡u̱᷾̉ṯ᷁ͅ l᷿̱͙e̯̱͚ṯ̴͡ m̴̱̤e̢̗̱ ó̱͂û̱̽ṯͫ̽ i̱ͤ͝m̱ͫ͠ c̱̪̅o̱̭᷄ḻ͈̾ḏ᷊̏ h̥̱̐o͈̱̰͜w̱̋̄ ḏ̈́ͨö̱ͦ ḭ̱̄ g̱͗͢e̱᷈̽ṯ͝ͅ o̸̱͋u̱ͪ̄ṯ̸̛?̴͓̱ The figure gets closer. It's Connor. w̵͈͉̼̣h̽̎᷄a̭͢ͅt̫ͪͦ i̔̈́ͨf̪̖̘ ȋ̜ͩt̙ͯͅṡ̼̟ n᷉͐͞o̰̍̾t͖̣ͮ ḥ͖͛i᷊᷃̍s̋᷉ͧ l̸ͧ̎ỉ̥̑t̛̞ͣt̨̍͌ļ᷆ͮë̸̦ ḃ̻ͅr̶̡᷇o͓᷃̔t̫̜̒h̼̘̿e̬̤᷉r̜͋͌?̤̑̀ w͇͇͐̕͜h͉͍̓a̠̪͙t͏̆̇ ȉ̬̰̺̺͊͢f̡͓͖ͩ̃͋ͬ᷄͢ ă᷇͟m̻̣ͬả̖ͨn̰᷂͐d̙᷿ͯa᷆̓̽ i̇̾᷇s̲͂̕ p᷊̽᷾r̨̧̋é̀̐t̝̺͘e̴̗͑n͗᷈̂ḑͤ᷉ĩ̟͕n̪͛͘g͠͏̭ t᷊̭́o᷂͓̽ b͍̾͏e͓᷃ͤ c̨͋᷄̀͘o̰᷇͞n̰̣ͨņ̤̎oͤ̃᷃r᷂ͪͨ n̺͚̒ỏ̙̕ n̳̑ͤo̲̊͢ i̗̤͗t̘᷆᷇ h̀̐ͅă̛᷆s̯̀ͯ t͕͕̃ō̪͉ b̹᷀̏e̸̘ͧ c̨᷁͑ǫ̢̐n̡̧̠n᷾᷉͞ȍ̹̎r̓᷄͟,̪̠̈́ p̣̙̜̐̕l̲̄᷆e͚̿̔a̷᷂᷾ś̼ͬe̠͓ͮ d͂̾̏o̸̡̤n̖᷀͐t͔᷅͌ b̋̋̇e᷇̆̈ a͈̱͚m͓̞ͤa̵̖ͨň͚͒d̴̡̥ă̸͇. Connor gets closer. Or is it him? He's bleeding from gunshot wounds, his LED blaring red. Connor grabs Markus' arm, pulling it over his shoulder, supporting his weight. Connor seems to be in a lot of pain. Markus hates that Connor has to help him, even though he's hurt. They're moving towards a faint blue light. The source of the light comes into view. A plinth, with a handprint on it, made out of small blue LEDs. They're nearly there when Connor collapses, bringing them both to the ground. Connor cries out as he slams into the icy ground. Markus grabs him, dragging them towards it. Markus reaches out his hand, the artificial skin sliding off it, and slams his hand against the handprint. Everything goes black.

He opens his eyes back in his body. Connor's on the ground in front of him. Markus has a gun in his hand. And he's pointing it at Connor. He drops it like it's red hot. No. He shot Connor. He shot his brother! He has to help him, he has to try and at least make things better. He carries Connor into the kitchen, heart almost breaking at the resulting cry of pain. He sits Connor down on the floor, propping him up against the wall. He needs to cauterize the wounds. Luckily, the bullets have gone straight through, otherwise, Markus would have to dig them out, causing more pain. Although cauterizing the wounds isn't going to be much better. "Connor? I'm going to have to cauterize these, it's going to hurt." Connor just nods, not having the energy to speak. Does Hank have an Android repair kit? He should do. Now, where is it? He asks Connor. Connor points shakily at the cupboard under the sink. Markus goes to check. It's a standard blue repair kit. There won't be a cauterizing knife in there. Markus didn't really expect there to be one, anyway. Which means he'll have to improvise. He rummages around in the drawers and finds a small knife perfect for the job. He begins to heat it up on the stove.

When the blade is a fiery red from the heat, Markus switches off the stove. He kneels down next to Connor and presses the blade against the entry wound in his shoulder. Connor cries out, falling against Markus and gripping his arm. He does the same to the exit wound on his shoulder. It's terrifying, hearing Connor cry out in pain, feeling him writhe around. When the wounds are finally cauterized, Markus throws the knife into the sink. Opening the repair kit, he takes the bandages and wraps them around the wounds. Now he needs blue blood. There, on top of the fridge. Markus takes a few bottles and helps Connor to drink them. He takes him to the living room and sits down with him on the couch. He holds him tight, never wanting to let go.
Message received from PJ500 684 899 150. Open?
Y/N
Markus growls in frustration. Every time he's spending time with Connor, at least one of the other Jericho leaders gets worried about him and sends him a message. Every. Single. Time. "Markus?" Connor sounds concerned about him. All this has happened, yet Connor still cares. Why? Connor seems to know what he's thinking. "She did the same thing to me once, you know." Markus turns to look at him, moving his hands to rest on Connor's shoulders. He winces, pulling away. Oh, right. Markus feels worse now. "After the revolution. Amanda pulled me back into the Zen Garden, resumed control of my program. She tried to make me kill you." Markus has never heard this story before and is paying full attention. "It was a blizzard there, just like your garden was. It was so cold, and I was scared. I got out via an exit that I had found out about a few days before." Markus doesn't know what to say. "So that's how you knew about the exit." Markus hadn't even begun to question that yet. He reaches out and pulls Connor close.
Message received from WR400 641 790 831. Open?
Y/N
Markus sighs, wishing that they would just leave him alone, Goddamnit! Connor cranes his neck to look at him, smiling slightly. "Is it North?" Markus nods, frustrated. "...And Josh. Why don't they understand that I want them to leave me alone?"
10 messages received from WR400 641 790 831. Open?
Y/N
Markus groans before selecting yes. Connor chuckles softly.
Markus where you at?
I just noticed
That the gun
From your drawer
Is gone.
Have you gone
to kill
the Deviant Hunter?
If so,
why didn't you invite me?
Markus sighs again, hugging Connor tighter. Why does North, in an odd way, have to be kind of right? And why can't she just send messages like any normal person would? Then a thought strikes Markus. "Shouldn't you be at the precinct?" He asks Connor. He shakes his head. "Nope. Fowler said that I've been 'wracking up too much damn overtime and it's about time I had a couple days off'" Markus smiles, pressing his face into Connor's hair. It's soft and curly like it has been since he went to live with Hank. It suits him like that, falling down his forehead, obscuring his LED. Sumo pokes his head around the door, he'd probably ran off when gunshots were fired. Connor calls him over and pets his massive head.

He needs to tell Connor something, something that he's hidden from Connor for a while. He remembers what he said being able to tell your family secrets, and he knows he can trust him. He takes a deep breath. "Connor, there's something I need to tell you." Connor turns around and looks at him, listening. "Me and Simon, we're... together." Connor smiles, but he doesn't seem surprised. "Knew it!" He says softly. Markus is confused, he doesn't understand how Connor could have possibly known. " How did you know?" Markus asks. He wants to know. Connor tells him that he's always talking about Simon, and every time he has this dreamy, faraway look. Markus smiles, ruffling his hair. "Just don't tell anyone, okay?" Connor shakes his head and Markus knows he won't. His secret is safe with Connor. He loves his little brother.