A/N: Bit of a slow chapter, but Markus does have to show up to Jericho and start asking questions if they want anything to happen. I've also had a few more ideas about where this story will go, so I guess you could say I'm excited — especially as I plan to expand beyond the moments from the game a little. But, well, we'll see how that goes. I hope you enjoy!
shir0ch4n: Thank you so much for your review! I'm glad you think it's cool, haha. I hope this chapter isn't too bad, but Markus needs his exposition, and Josh needs a tiny bit of despair right now, if only to be more excited when thinks start looking up. Thank you again, and I hope you enjoy!
Chapter 1: Hope
"You may not always have a comfortable life and you will not always be able to solve all of the world's problems at once but don't you ever underestimate the importance you can have because history has shown us that courage can be contagious and hope can take on a life of its own."
—Michelle Obama
North runs into the main room, serious and wary, her loud footsteps shattering the silence that reigns in the freighter. This must be an important matter, if her expression is anything to go by, and Josh stands up, leaving behind the bodies of the injured to hear the news, whatever they may be.
"Someone's coming."
Curiosity and wariness fill him. This could be anything: a new, injured android needing help and a safe place to stay, or someone who's finally found their secret space and is about to end their peace. Worry fills him upon every arrival — it's an unnecessary bout of anxiety that he can't help but feel rise up in him every time he hears those words or hears footsteps that belong to none of the residents of Jericho he's already come to know relatively well.
The newcomer must not have expected the ship to be as flimsy as it is, because he steps on the exact walkway he shouldn't and the rusty metal opens up underneath his feet, letting him fall with a hard clang that calms Josh's thoughts — it's a clang he knows very well, one that betrays the presence of a fellow android.
The sound gives him immediate relief, yet also worries him — such a fall would only worsen any injuries the android may already have, and they're short on thirium and biocomponents as it is. They may not be able to help him if his wounds are too severe — and that will do nothing but increase the guilt he feels and the number of deaths on his conscience.
With some effort, the newcomer manages to push himself to his feet, and he grabs his torch again, looking around at the circle of escaped androids that have now surrounded him in curiosity. A few look away from the bright light of the torch when it points at them, though when the shine rests on Simon, the PL600 doesn't even blink.
"Welcome to Jericho," he says instead, as the new arrival stares around him, trying to take everything in. There's not much to see, beyond a circle of curious androids, a few injured — most beyond repair — scattered around the room, and the darkness that constantly surrounds them. He blinks, then returns his gaze to the PL600.
"Who are you?" he asks. If his LED were still on, it would probably be whirling a confused yellow, trying to process all this new information, all these new stimuli that are present all around him. Arrival at Jericho is always a confusing experience, especially for the android arriving. That's why they have to help each other out, especially in that initial moment.
"Fugitives. Just like you." He pauses before introducing himself, "My name is Josh." It's as good as a welcome he can give — as warm as anything can be in a cold, damp, rusty, abandoned ship. As Simon and North reveal their names, the PJ500 wonders who the new arrival is — not his previous function, but his name. Is it the name he was assigned and will carry on using, like Simon or himself? Or has he chosen his own name already, like North? Or will he choose a new name for himself, once he's had time to settle down?
Names say a lot about a person — especially when the person in question is an escaped android.
"How many are you?" This time, the new arrival steps forward, torch pointed towards North, who is the one to answer his question. It swings around as well, to get a better view of everyone surrounding him — everyone in his same situation that has managed to find the same haven he has.
"There are nineteen of us still in working order. The rest were damaged escaping their masters…" She looks down and away at those words, a silent apology and slight mourning for those who weren't as lucky as they were.
Josh understands. It's not a subject any of them like to talk about, especially with how few of them they manage to save — if they can even try. But they don't have the resources, so they simply sit next to them and watch them shut down — watch them die, one by one, until only the lucky ones remain.
He pushes those thoughts away for the moment. "Many tried to reach Jericho…" The torch moves his way, so he carries on, "Few succeed... Humans have little pity for our kind."
"This is Jericho?" He sounds bewildered, confused, like this isn't what he was expecting when he first decided to come here. It awakens something inside the PL500 — a feeling that he had buried long ago, when he first arrived, and that he forcefully replaced with gratitude and relief, because at least he's alive — at least he's safe.
"It's a refuge for those who don't want to be slaves anymore," he reminds him, because not all refuges are paradises. Some are simpler, almost not looking what they're supposed to be when glancing at it for the first time. But a refuge is supposed to be a safe place, not a great one. And here, in this rusty old ship that looks more like a prison than a haven, they are safe. Safe and free.
"I don't understand... I thought Jericho was a place where androids lived in freedom..." The newcomer squints at him, desperately trying to understand why his expectations don't match reality. Josh has an answer for him, but he suspects it's not one he's going to like.
"We do live in freedom," he insists. "It may not be what you hoped for, but here we have no master. We don't belong to anybody." No orders, no master, no unjust authority to use and abuse them. No longer are crimes against androids considered property damage. Because, here, they're not property. Here, they're people. And it's as much freedom as they're going to get.
But it doesn't look like the new arrival thinks the same.
"I understand how you feel… but we have more freedom here than you ever did," Josh attempts one more time to make him understand. But if he won't now, maybe he will later. Maybe, once he calms down and takes a good look around, he'll realise what he himself came to realise: Jericho really is a refuge. It's the best refuge they have.
The newcomer shakes his head. "Humans were your masters, and now it's fear that rules you… You're no freer than you ever were… You've only found a new master." Josh doesn't say anything to that, trying to reign in the instinctive denial that threatens to leave him. Fear is not their master. It's not their friend either — he knows that very well —, but it's more of a warning. Fear is the anticipation of a real threat, to help them all deal with whatever may arise. Fear is the one instinct they want to listen to, if they don't want to be deactivated or reset and resold.
Fear is what will keep them alive and free.
"You're lost. Just like the rest of us… We didn't ask for this. All we can do now is deal with it," Simon speaks up again, only to turn away as soon as he's done speaking. This conversation is over, as is the welcome — it's time they all return to their usual activities.
After all, the injured androids need company.
"You're safe here. You can stay with us as long as you want," Josh informs the new android, reassuring him that just because he's basically insulted all of them doesn't mean they're going to kick him out. There's no place for pettiness here, not in their current situation.
Just like Simon, he walks away, hearing North's advice to the newcomer as he goes. If there's anything he needs help with, Lucy will be the one to provide it, if it's in their power. And maybe, just maybe, she will also make him see that Jericho isn't as bad as he thinks.
The circle comes undone, everyone returning to the place they were before, leaving the new arrival to walk around and discover Jericho as much as he wants. As for himself, Josh returns to his spot next to the YK500, who was manually shut down when they brought him to Jericho in order to preserve him as much as they can, until they manage to get the biocomponents to save his life.
That is, if they ever do.
He wishes he could do more for him — for all the injured ones —, but as it is, he just sits there and stares, already feeling the familiar claws of grief sinking deeper and deeper into his polymer skin. Lost as he is, in his own thoughts, in his own feelings, he barely notices when the new android comes up to join him a few moments later, just after lighting a barrel in front of them.
Eventually noticing his presence and distraught staring, Josh leaves the crate he's sitting on, and moves to stand next to the newcomer. "They threw him out when they didn't want him anymore…" he explains, never taking his eyes off the YK500. "He was living in the streets before we brought him here."
"They'll all shut down if we don't find a way to help them." He must've noticed the other injured androids — or have talked to them while he wasn't paying attention. The PJ500 appreciates that, he really does. But he's long learnt that helping them is not easy — in fact, it's well near impossible.
"To help them we need blue blood and biocomponents. We salvage what we can from those who shut down… but there's never enough."
"So, how do they survive?"
Josh tears his eyes off the child to look at the new arrival. He knows the answer, but he desperately wishes that wasn't the case. The PJ500 can relate to that — it was also his first reaction when he arrived. But sooner or later, he's going to have to know the truth. And it's better if learns it now, for his own sake. "They won't. We're slowly dying out." Which is why it's important that they stay hidden — that they stay safe and alive for as long as they can. Or they might find themselves wiped out entirely.
He sits back down next to the child, returning to his thoughts and his grief, letting the newcomer walk away, an empty CyberLife crate catching his eye.
Eventually, after finally seeing Lucy, he strides back into the main room with a purpose. "Simon!" he calls out, catching the attention of everyone present. "I know where we can find spare parts…" He's met with silence, yet carries on, "The CyberLife warehouses in Detroit Harbour — they have everything we need."
"The docks are guarded. We can't just walk in there and take what we want. Humans will never let us," Simon points out, trying to reason with him, only for the new android to come up with a rather incredible reply.
"Which is why we won't ask permission."
It's a crazy, crazy plan. Josh approaches them, wary of it. "We don't have any weapons. And even if we did, none of us knows how to fight." And, personally, he wouldn't want to fight either. He's never felt as powerless, as helpless as he did when he was being attacked by those students. And he doesn't want anyone else to feel that way, especially not because of him.
"We can steal what we need without fighting."
A crazier idea still, but more acceptable. Josh will grant him that much. Still — he's not too fond of this idea, even if it may save the others. The chances of this plan succeeding are slim. Very slim.
"We'll just get ourselves killed," he insists.
"Maybe. But it's better than waiting here to be shut down." He doesn't seem to understand why the PJ500 doesn't agree, especially after seeing so many injured androids die. Especially if this could save the YK500 he was sitting next to earlier. But Josh has his reasons — reasons he's not currently willing to disclose to an android whose name he doesn't even know, and who's about to turn Jericho upside down with his crazy ideas and his risky plans.
North walks up to them. "I'm with you," she tells Markus, shattering the PJ500's resolve, if only a little. He may be an android, but he's not infallible. And if others agree with this, then maybe it's not as hopeless as he thinks. Still, he holds on to his negative answer, silently pleading with the others to take his side.
"Maybe it's worth a try," Simon speaks up, and just like that, Josh knows he's lost. There's no one here that understands how important it is to stay hidden, to stay safe. That much is clear, now more than ever. But if they're going to go on with this risky, crazy plan, then he wants to be a part of it. This will happen regardless of what he wants or believes — and not joining in will make him feel even worse than he already does. Why stand back when the opportunity to do something is there, right in front of you?
North, Simon and the newcomer stare at him, awaiting his final answer — waiting to see if he's changed his mind.
He sighs reluctantly, though his decision has already been made.
"Okay… I'm in."