I have to be honest. I don't know where I'm going with this story. The first chapter was merely a test for myself. I have some ideas, but they're small compared to the bigger picture. So, if the story is a little muddled, please forgive me.

Enjoy.

Leave a review if you like. Feedback is always appreciated.

I'd like to thank following users for reviewing the previous chapter: TheBoyNamedBean, TheOwlishFangirl

To TheOwlishFangirl: Yeah, I know it's sad that Alice is sick here. I guess I just wanted to get more dramatic. And thanks for sharing your opinion on the Alice plot twist.

Kara

February 11, 2039

Ontario, Canada

AM 05:37:46

A sunny and snowy morning has come. Alice was still asleep in bed. Kara just sat down next to her, letting her sleep but waiting for her to wake up. Kara can't stop thinking about last night. The AX400 android that she encountered in the barn and the memories it shared with her, it kept her up all night. She couldn't stop seeing what the android saw. Kara closed her eyes and revisited all the events in the deviant's memory. Two of them, to be specific.

According to her data, the first event she saw occurred three weeks ago.

She was strapped down to a surgical bed. Tools everywhere, both of the sharp and the electric kind. Someone in the shadows with a female voice operated on her. The light shined at the android's eye made it impossible to see the woman's face. When the operation started, the screaming started.

Kara opened her eyes and gasped in horror. It was terrifying. The deviant from last night was forced to endure the operation while awake. Such horror. Such cruelty.

Kara closes her eyes again and reviews the second event, which, according to the date, took place six days ago.

A cage.

Darkness.

Fear.

Two voices heard in the distance.

Voice A: "The experiment is a success. The androids will leave no trace once they're destroyed."

Voice B: "Good, but that doesn't make up for the fact that twenty-one of your androids escaped."

Voice A: "We either find them or the DPD kill them and they disappear, leaving them no leads to trace back to us."

Voice B: "You mean, back to you. As far as the world is concerned, I don't exist."

Voice A: "Ah, yes. A ghost that no one even knows exist. Every ghost has a name, but you don't."

Voice B: "How's your progress in tracking down the AX400 known as Kara?"

Voice A: "I'm afraid the search is still in progress. But luckily, we know where Connor and Markus are. We just can't make a move on them because they're public figures."

Voice B: "I'll deal with Connor and Markus. You focus on creating more of these special new androids and locating that AX400."

Voice A: "What makes the three of them special? Special to you, that is."

Voice B: "In order for me to carry out my plans, those three need to be either turned or destroyed. They're threats to my success."

The two people stopped talking when the sound of metal and glass was heard. The cage opened and the AX400 escaped, along with other androids.

And the memory ended. That was all the android shared with Kara. It only made Kara sympathize with the deviant more. She went through so much pain only to die. The deviant didn't have enough energy to share everything in her memories as she was dying, so Kara had no idea what happened in between the deviant's escape and finding her in the barn. Kara's only guess is that she was hunted down and got shot.

Then the android's last words ringed in her ears again.

"Only you and the other two can save us."

Kara can guess that "us" means androids. But she still wondered about one thing. Why her? Why does she have to be involved in this? What do these mysterious people want with her? She can understand why Markus would be important to whatever this is. Markus is the leader of the deviants, the one who set androids free. Kara has only ever met Connor when he chased them on the day she and Alice escaped from Ralph, but she has heard of him as "the famous deviant hunter." Since Connor aided the android revolution, it also makes sense he would be needed.

"Mom," Alice said softly, as she had just woken up.

"Alice, you should still be sleeping," said Kara.

"I heard you," said Alice, probably referring to Kara's gasp of shock.

"Oh, sorry," Kara apologized.

"Is something wrong, mom?" asked Alice.

"N-No," Kara lied. "Please, just rest."

"You told me that we shouldn't keep secrets from each other," Alice reminded her.

Kara knew she had to talk. Alice never lets things go until she knows everything.

Kara holds Alice's hand and says, "There was an android in the barn last night. She was hurt. I tried to help her, but... I was too late."

"What happened to her?" asked Alice.

"I don't know," said Kara. "But you shouldn't worry about this, Alice. Just worry about yourself."

"You look scared," said Alice.

"I... Maybe, I am," Kara admitted, knowing Alice will just call her out for lying.

"Are you afraid the same thing will happen to you?" asked Alice.

"Alice, nothing is going to happen to me," Kara promised. "I promised we will be together forever. I am keeping that promise for as long as we are together."

Alice smiled.

"Now, go back to sleep," said Kara. "I'll wake you up later and help you get ready for school."

"Okay," said Alice.

Kara kisses Alice on the head before leaving the room.

AM 10:03:07

While Alice is at school, Kara is helping Rose, Adam, and Desmond grow vegetables. Rose and Desmond have the same passion, hence both work in farms. But now that Rose is living with her brother, they can share their passion. It made Adam feel like he never left home, doing the same things he did back at Rose's house in America. Thanks to Kara, the tractor is fully functional and Desmond can feel better about today's harvest. While he works the tractor, Kara, Rose, and Adam uproot the vegetables.

"Are you sure you don't wanna find yourself a new job, Kara?" asked Rose. "You're too good for this."

"I just wanna help," said Kara. "Plus, I'm not sure how I'm gonna be able to handle myself out there. Besides, what could I do out there? Wait tables? Cook?"

"You could be a teacher," Rose suggested. "You're very good with kids, after all. Just ask Alice. In fact, why don't you sign up as a substitute teacher at Alice's school?"

"That's nice, Rose, but I think I'll stay here at the farm," said Kara.

"Hey, guys!" Adam called, having seen something in the distance. "There's a car coming here."

"I'll go check it out," said Kara.

Kara puts down a basket full of tomatoes as she approaches the car. It was a simple red model with two passengers inside. A man and a woman. It was the woman that caught Kara's attention. 40s. Long brown hair.

"Um, hello?" The woman greeted awkwardly, noticing Kara's shocked expression. "This is my husband, Nelson. I am..."

"Rosella Williams," Kara said, still shocked.

"Oh, so you know my name?" asked Rosella.

"What are you doing here?" asked Kara.

"I came here to see my daughter. You must live here so I'm guessing you know her name," said Rosella. "Alice."

Connor

CyberLife Tower, Detroit

PM 12:03:20

At the CEO's office of the famous CyberLife Tower, Connor was staring out the window while doing more coin tricks. When there are no deviant cases for him to investigate, he spends most of his time at CyberLife, overseeing the progress of keeping every android in Detroit functioning without any problems. Connor's first quarter run as CEO has been praised by the media, which is a good sign that humans and androids can truly live in peace.

Yet, despite his positive relationship with Hank and CyberLife's growing reputation, Connor feels a little empty inside.

Ever since visiting Kamski's house yesterday, seeing Chloe again, Connor has been feeling something strange in his systems. He has wondered endlessly about what it is. He even ran a self-test, but there was nothing wrong with him. It became clear to Connor that whatever was wrong with him is emotional, not functional. No amount of coin tricks is gonna help him find out what it is, unfortunately.

"Sir," the receptionist contacted him. "CyberLife just received a call from the Detroit Police Department. You may want to meet Lieutenant Anderson at the Woodward Mall Center."

"I'll be there," said Connor. "Keep me notified of CyberLife's operations, Debra."

"No problem, sir," said Debra.

Connor heads to the elevator and takes it down to the first level. As he waits for the elevator to stop, he continues flipping his coin as he ponders about

Woodward Mall Center, Detroit

PM 12:58:33

Connor arrives at the mall where Hank and a few more officers were already present. Civilians were being asked to move away from the crime scene. Connor sees Hank outside a clothes store, where the crime took place. Connor was about to approach the lieutenant until he saw a familiar face in the crowd. Emma Phillips, the little girl who was taken hostage by a deviant known as Daniel six months ago. Connor managed to convince Daniel to let Emma go.

Connor decides to approach the little girl. Her mother, Caroline, shielded her daughter from the android, still reeling from the death of her husband John at the hands of Daniel.

"It's okay, Mrs. Phillips. I only wish to talk to your daughter," said Connor.

"It's okay, mom," said Emma. "He saved me, remember?"

Reluctantly, Caroline lets Emma walk up to Connor. Connor kneels down to Emma's level so they can have a proper conversation.

"I had thought you and mother left Detroit after what happened to your father," said Connor.

"We did, but then we heard that humans were allowed to come back," said Emma. "When I saw you on TV, I told my mom I wanted to come back home. I love Detroit."

"Well, just be safe," said Connor. "Take care of your mother. She's gonna need you."

"Mr. Connor," said Emma.

"You can call me Connor, Emma," said Connor.

"Okay, Connor," Emma said with a smile. "Thank you. For saving me. I was too scared back then to say anything, but now I want you to know that I appreciate it."

"You're welcome," Connor smiled. "You and mother should go home. I can have an officer take you back home."

"Thank you," said Emma.

Emma returns to her mother while Connor approaches Hank. He asks an officer to take Emma and Caroline back home before listening in on Hank and Ben's conversation.

"Oh, Connor. About time you showed up," said Hank.

"I was seeing an old friend on my way here," said Connor. "What happened here?"

"A rogue deviant killed the cashier and a customer inside this store," said Hank. "Stole some stuff. Probably just wanted to disguise himself as a human. Guy ran out before anyone can identify him."

Connor enters the store to investigate. He can see the two dead bodies inside, the cashier and a customer. He analyzed the dead customer. He had a criminal record filled with drug abuse. According to Connor, his neck was snapped.

"The customer's name is Richard Moon. He was arrested before for the use of Red Ice," said Connor.

"Well, at least the rogue deviant did us a favor," said Hank. "One less Red Ice addict off the street."

"The deviant snapped his neck. Instant kill," said Connor.

"Ouch," said Hank.

Connor analyzed the cashier. His face appeared smashed. Thirteen impact points on his face, which means he was hit thirteen times by something.

"That's nasty," Hank commented.

"I'm going to analyze the blood, lieutenant," said Connor. "You may wanna look away."

"Alright, I'll be outside," said Hank. "You may want to close your eyes, Ben."

Connor analyzes the cashier's blood by, as usual, putting it in his mouth. Ben can see why Hank didn't want to look at this. Android or not, it looks disgusting.

"There's a crowbar over there," said Ben. "It's clearly the murder weapon."

Connor analyzes the crowbar. The blood on it matches that of the cashier, confirming it as the murder weapon. Connor analyzed the counter and found DNA on it. It was of the dead customer. According to his reconstruction software, the customer's head was slammed on the counter.

"Lieutenant, I think I know what happened," said Connor.

Hank comes back in to hear Connor's report.

Connor started. "The rogue deviant was lining up. The customer was impatient and ordered the deviant to move out of the way. The rogue deviant did something to give away the fact that he was an android. He slammed the customer's face on the counter. While the customer was recovering, the deviant grabbed his crowbar and bludgeoned the cashier to death before he could call security. Then he fled."

"According to the witnesses, it ran out the south entrance," said Hank. "Great... we're nowhere near to getting answers. We don't even know how to identify these rogue deviants. It's like humans. You can't tell who's good and who's a crook. Just another thing we have in common."

"We have to be resilient, Hank," said Connor. "These rogue deviants threaten the peace between humans and androids. We can't let Markus down. Or anyone, for that matter."

"Well, in that case, I'm gonna go back to the car. I got a burger to finish in there. I was eating at Chicken Feed when I got the call about the deviant," said Hank.

"I'll join you, Lieutenant," said Connor.

"Don't you have an android company to run?" asked Hank.

"I may be CyberLife's CEO now, Hank, but I'm still your partner," said Connor.

"C'mon, you bag of bolts," Hank said jokingly with a genuine smile.

Connor follows Hank back to the Lieutenant's car. Ben watched them walk away together. The veteran cop and the android chatted as they walked. It made Ben happy to see Hank with more life in himself.

"Hank and an android as friends. Never thought I'd see the day," Ben commented.

Markus

Carl Manfred's House, Detroit

PM 01:09:44

Ever since his father's death, Leo Manfred has been taking advantage of inheriting his father's riches. He's selling his father's paintings in order to make more money for more Red Ice. Living in the mansion has made his life a whole lot easier. Yet, there is a part of him that misses his father. Even though his father never supported him, Leo still visited his grave. He saw Markus there, but they didn't say thing to each other.

Leo was just sitting on the couch while watching TV, just passing his time until the next buyer comes.

Suddenly, he heard the front door open. That was odd, since the door was locked. A SWAT team barges in and trains their guns on Leo.

"Hands up, dirtbag!" A SWAT officer ordered.

Leo puts his hands in the air, but he was visibly enraged by all this.

"Hey, you can't just barge into my house without a warrant," said Leo.

"Actually, son, we do have a warrant," said Captain Allen, showing Leo the warrant. "You're under arrest for the illegal use of Red Ice."

"Ho... Wha... I don't know what you're talking about,"

"Don't lie, son," said Allen. "We talked to a Red Ice dealer and your name was on his list. You have no way out of this."

"How did you even know about this?" asked Leo.

"It's because of me."

That voice came from the person who walked into the room. Markus. He was accompanied by North, Simon, and Josh.

"Carl Manfred was a good man, one of the best who ever lived. His wealth deserves to be used properly, not for some immature child's personal pleasure," said Markus.

"You read my dad's will. All of this is mine. The house. The money," said Leo. "You can't do a thing about it."

"Actually, he can," said Josh. "Your arrest means your father's property and wealth need to be handed over to someone."

"We just secured all of Carl Manfred's assets and bought this place," said Simon.

"In other words, you're out, kid. All of this belongs to Markus, the rightful owner," said North. She shows Leo a legal document that makes Markus the owner of Carl Manferd's wealth.

The SWAT team cuff Leo and take him away. Before they walk him out the door, he and Markus share some unpleasant words.

"I'm gonna get all this back one day. You'll see," Leo said angrily.

"No, you won't," said Markus. "Everything your father owns is now mine, and I'm gonna make sure his legacy is protected."

"You're not his son. I am," said Leo.

"Have you ever wondered why your father didn't love you?" Markus asked. "You never gave him a reason to, not with what you're doing with your life."

Leo's anger decreased once those words hit him in the very core of his brain.

"You called him dad when he died," Leo remembered. His voice is calmer now. "Why?"

"Because he treated me with fairness, with respect, with compassion. He treated me like his son," said Markus. "I just know... if he lived, I could've heard him call me that."

Leo calmed down even more after hearing what Markus said.

"I saw you visit your father's grave," Markus remembered. "That means that deep down, you have some regrets and you wish he could've see it. You still have a chance to make your father proud, Leo. Just tell the police where you keep all of the Red Ice you have."

"All of it, as in don't screw with us," said North.

Leo gave in. The SWAT team collected every single pack of Red Ice in the house. Afterwards, the SWAT Team take Leo away. He was no longer angry, however. All over his face is just grief, sadness, and mild contempt. Everything Markus told him about his relationship with Carlo hit him hard.

"Thank you, Captain Allen," said Markus.

"I'm just doing my job," said Allen. "This doesn't make us friends."

"I guess I should leave you to your job then," said Markus.

Captain Allen and the SWAT team leave Carl's house. This just leaves the leader of the deviants and his three closest companions in the house. Markus had promised his friends that they can come take a look at the house where the man who raised him lived.

"That kid is one heck of a jerk," North commented.

"He just needs to accept his grief," said Markus. "I don't have high hopes for him, but I do have some hope he can decide to make his father proud."

"This is a nice place," said Simon, looking around. "You really had it all before Jericho."

"Yeah, I did," Markus said, remembering Carl.

Markus takes his friends to the art studio to see Carl's paintings. Unfortunately, Leo had sold almost all of the paintings inside. At least there's some left for Markus' friends to appreciate.

"You said your old master was an artist, but you never said he was artist royalty," said Josh, amazed by the paintings.

"I think this one is favorite," said Simon.

Simon was looking at a painting of a human hand reaching for a mechanical hand.

"Well, Markus did say this Carl had hope for humans and androids to make peace," said Josh.

"That's not Carl's," said Markus. "That's mine."

"Huh?" North, Simon, and Josh asked, confused.

"Carl always tried to help me become more human, and one of the ways to do that was to teach me how to paint," said Markus. "I have the talent, I just didn't have the intuition and the creativity. You see that painting over there?"

Markus showed his friends his own copy of Carl's masterpiece.

"Carl told me art is about interpreting the world, showing what you see," Markus continued. "So, I closed my eyes and thought hard. I thought of humanity and how cruel they were to androids, but then I thought about Carl, who had hope that humans and androids can live in peace. So, I painted that."

"Humanity reaching out to androids for hope," North interpreted Markus' painting. "It's lovely. Both the painting and the thought."

"But that's nothing compared to Carl's greatest work," said Markus.

Markus pulls the curtains to see if Carl's masterpiece is still intact. It was. No shade of blue was blemished. No dark shade was touched. It's the same as it always was the day the artist sadly passed away.

"It's wonderful," said North.

"I... have no words," said Josh, astonished by the beauty of the work.

"Only makes me wish I could've met the artist himself," said Simon.

"North, why don't you, Josh, and Simon return to New Jericho?" Markus suggested. "I... need some time for myself."

"The boys can go back to New Jericho. I'm staying with you," said North.

New Jericho was, well, New Jericho. With territory for androids still being decided, some androids need a place to stay. So, a new freighter was offered to the members of Jericho as a save haven. Markus called it "New Jericho" as it symbolizes a new era for androids.

After Josh and Simon left, Markus returned to the living room with North. The first thing he looked at was the speed chess board.

"Carl hated to lose, but he hated me letting him win even more," said Markus.

North just smiled, slightly amused. Carl truly is a wonder of a human being.

Markus then moved to the piano. He plays a couple of keys, remembering how much he loved playing it. Markus didn't know, but North heard him play the piano on Jericho. She just remained hidden until he was finished.

"Will you play me something?" asked North.

"Sure," said Markus.

Markus and North sit down together as Markus prepares to play. After taking some time to think, he picked the melody he wanted to play. Markus chose to play a hopeful tune, similar to the one he played during the morning of the day Carl passed away. Carl listened to him play and said that the emotional way he played showed that he has more humanity than most humans. North just smiled and leaned on Markus' shoulder as he played. She hummed along to the tune. Markus lets his fingers do the work as he calms his mind.

After he was finished, North held his hand. Their minds and hearts linked, allowing their love to flow through each other.

"Like I said, Carl raised a wonderful boy," said North.

Markus and North kiss. It's amazing how two very different people end up falling in love with one another. Markus is peaceful, kind, and always chooses to do the right thing, all because Carl raised him. North, on the other hand, is aggressive and often opts for violence to solve her problems. North has come to accept Markus' peaceful ways and that is one of the reasons why they're living this moment right now.

From FanFiction to YouTube, I could tell that not many people ship MarkusxNorth. While I (sort of) understand the reasons why, that doesn't sway me from loving the romance between Markus and North. It shocked me when I found out there is a "lover" path between them, but that only made me love their relationship even more. If you're not a supporter of MarkusxNorth, well, I understand. But just so you know, their romance lives on for the rest of the story. Can you handle it?

Notes:

- The name of Todd's wife was not given, so I had to make one up my own. Rosella.

- I had really hoped that Connor would meet Emma (the little girl from the hostage situation) again, but they didn't. So, that's why I added Emma here.

- What do you think of my choice for Markus' painting? Humanity + Hope.