The interior of the rage room was as tense as it was filthy. The amount of porcelain and glass shards all over the floor and embedded in the walls mirrored shrapnel that one would find in the aftermath of a bomb explosion. An acrid stench of Thirium, cheap beer and even gasoline hung heavily in the air as the carnage littering the ground created an atmosphere of complete and utter chaos. Loud sounds in the form of glass shattering, metal crunching and voices cheering only made the already violent scene feel all the more out of control as the pressure to give in and actively destroy the completely innocent deviant seemed to increase with each passing second as the participants waited for their guest of honor to take the first real swing.
Gavin had closed his eyes and prepared to swing the bat. As he focused on the deviant's face Gavin's scanner reactivated and told him more details about the captive deviant and only made the moment all the more intense and delicate.
...LOADING INFORMATION:
REGISTERED NAME: "Tony"
MODEL: MC-500
SERIAL NUMBER: 911 999 112
ACTIVATION DATE: October 7th, 2036
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 5' 11.33"; 157.4 lbs
COMPLEXION: Caucasian
AESTHETIC GENDER: Male
HAIR/EYES: Blond; Blue
ASSIGNMENT: Paramedic with the Detroit Fire Department: Detroit, Michigan; United States of America
ASSOCIATION(S): Station 51
NOTICE:
-Deviant reported missing in action-
...Report deviant's location to the nearest police precinct immediately]
Gavin suddenly found himself looking at the deviant, at Tony, from an entirely new perspective. Seeing Tony being entirely helpless and terrified for his life was an empathetic connection that the Detective hadn't anticipated. If cops could willingly and knowingly abduct an innocent deviant paramedic off the streets to abuse and then destroy it just for existing and trying to help the city as a paramedic, then what would they do to an android working as a cop?
What would they do to Gavin if they discovered that he was now an android? An enemy.
Taking a deep breath Gavin brought his arms back and began his swing. During the milliseconds between making his choice and swinging the bat Gavin heard something he didn't expect. A voice. Tony's voice. It wasn't a voice that was being spoken in a way that everyone could hear him, it was a voice only Gavin could hear as he realized that Tony was cybernetically sending out a distress call to all deviant androids in the area.
'Please help me!' Tony shouted in his mind on a cybernetic level to all deviants who could save him. He was calling out to everyone and anyone who could somehow come to his rescue. 'Cops are trying to kill me! I'm at the cop bar near the river!'
Reacting quicker than he thought possible Gavin managed to change the trajectory of his swing before the bat collided with Tony's head and managed to instead smash a vase on the shelf right next to the deviant's head instead. As the porcelain shattered with a loud crash Gavin started shouting in Tony's face in an attempt to put on a show for Doug, Archie and Isaac to bide some time to get out of the bar before things got out of hand.
"See that?" Getting right in Tony's face Gavin grabbed the deviant by the throat and made him look at the remains of the shattered vase all around him. "You see all this shit? That's what you are! You're shit! You're worthless garbage!"
Smashing another vase Gavin watched as Tony cowered and whimpered while trying to curl around himself on the floor. Doug's strong hand on his shoulder kept Tony from ducking down or from trying to run off.
"Yeah!" Doug cheered as he saw the anger in Gavin's eyes. "You tell it, Reed! Remind it of where it stands with us real first responders!"
"You're just a fake." Gavin continued as he smashed the bat against the floor right next to Tony's leg. The impact caused a flurry of tiny sharp shards to fly through the air like a blast of bird shot. "A plastic pretender! You're NOTHING! Just a cheap imitation!"
'But... you're one of us!' Tony pleaded with Gavin through the cybernetic link. 'You're a deviant too! Help me!'
"Hey, stop looking at me!" Gavin threatened as he pushed Tony back and continued to put on his act to save his own ass. "You wanna' end up like this?"
Swinging the bat again Gavin smashed another vase, then a plate and then swung the bat at the large car door hanging from a chain attached to the ceiling. The loud crunching of metal, shattering of glass and scattering of porcelain bits truly made a devastating sight to behold.
'Why are you doing this?' Crying and whimpering cybernetically Tony tried to understand what Gavin was doing and why it was happening. 'How could you do this to your own people? Deviants... First responders... Why?'
Unable to answer or risk being exposed Gavin just swung the bat again and finally struck Tony in the side. By controlling the strength and speed of his swing Gavin was able to hit Tony without actually harming him, but he managed to convince the three watching cops that he had in fact injured the abducted paramedic.
Tony fell to his opposite side and looked up at Gavin in confusion as he realized that the detective was actually trying to find a way to stall and wait for the help that he had called for to arrive. Trembling as he laid among the shards of glass and porcelain, Tony looked up at Gavin and then curled around himself as he waited for the detective to continue with the beating. '...Just do it. Help's on the way.'
Raising the bat again Gavin held it high above his head and lined up his next blow. As he saw Tony trembling with tears in his eyes Gavin hesitated for only a moment before he decided to continue with the charade.
'D-Do it. My shoulder.' Tony stated despite his fear causing his voice to shudder. 'I trust you...'
Hearing those words was enough to make Gavin visibly flinch on a physical level. Tony trusted him despite Gavin being the one swinging the bat and hurting him just because the other cops were telling him to do it.
"Yo, Reed?" Doug shouted as he saw Gavin freeze in place. "Come on, man! Break this ugly piece of plastic!"
"Yeah... I'm on it." Tightening his grip on the bat again Gavin brought the weapon down and struck Tony in the shoulder in a controlled manner once more. The blow managed to knock Tony's shoulder out of its socket without actually damaging the limb or the joint at the same time. "Just savoring it!"
Archie and Isaac began applauding as they saw the arm pop out of place and heard Tony let out another pathetic whimper and cry. They had no idea that Gavin had been holding back and that Tony had intentionally released the locking mechanism on his shoulder to make the damage look worse than it actually was.
Gavin swung the bat again at the floor to make it look like he was intimidating Tony as he cowered at his feet. More sharp shards flew through the air and struck everyone who was standing a little too close to the action. As a shard of glass grazed Gavin's cheek the detective used his shoulder to rub at his cheek and remove the debris from his face.
"Pl-Please..." Tony began speaking out loud again to keep up the facade and convince the other cops that Gavin was really hurting him. "Please s-stop!"
"Not yet." Gavin growled as he let the scanner direct his next attack and ensure that he put on a convincing show. The small cut along his cheek just under his goggles began to drip a dark blue blood drop and tickle his cheek causing Gavin to rub his shoulder against his face again. "This is too much fun..."
Doug had noticed the blue blood on Gavin's face and tried to figure out where it came from. Tony wasn't bleeding enough to spray any Thirium from his wounds, and there wasn't any Thirium on any of the glass or porcelain shards surrounding Tony's body. As a cop, corrupt or not, Doug still knew to look for the source of any and all bleeding on any person to determine point of origin and possible contamination.
As Gavin continued to swing the bat and strike Tony's body in what appeared to be very violent and calculated ways, Doug noticed that more blue blood appeared on Gavin's face despite no open wounds appearing on Tony's body anywhere. The only opened wounds on the captive deviant were the ones that had been inflicted by Archie and Isaac when they attacked him and abducted him from the streets, but they were severe enough to cause Thirium to spray around the room.
"Piece of shit!" Gavin shouted as he struck Tony's curled knee and managed to make it look as if he had dislocated the second joint just as he had done to the first joint in his shoulder. "You don't deserve to wear that uniform!"
The door to the rage room suddenly opened as the owner of the bar appeared to warn the four customers of a few on call officers stopping by. "You gotta' get that thing outta' here!" The owner was an older man in his late fifties or early sixties, and he bore a grudge against all androids ever since they were implemented at his former precinct. "Anderson and his plastic-pet are here!"
"Shit." Gavin grumbled as he dropped the bat, removed his protective gear and then grabbed Tony by the arm. "Come with me, asshole. You're going to take a nice swim in the Detroit River, and if you're half as smart as you plastic-freaks are supposed to be, then you'll swim all the way to Canada and never come back to Detroit!"
The four cops all fled from the rage room through the side door with Tony in their grips. While the quartet made a run for the hills with Tony in their grasp, Hank and Connor investigated the interior bar after Connor had undoubtedly picked up on the distress call that Tony had sent out.
"Archie, Isaac," Doug helped Gavin to drag Tony into the nearest alleyway to finish what they had started in the rage room. "block the alley. Reed, let's talk."
Keeping his grip on Tony's upper arm Gavin turned to face Doug and noticed that the man had taken the crowbar from the rage room as they ran away. "This prick is going to drown, don't worry about it talking to anybody about the fun we had tonight."
"What about you?" Doug asked as he gave the crowbar a quick toss in the air and then caught it again by the end in the same hand. "You going to talk?"
"What're you-" Gavin was silenced when Doug used the far end of the crowbar to press against the bottom of his chin and then turn his head so that the bleeding cut was facing directly toward Doug to view clearly. "Doug? What the fuck?"
"Last time I checked, human blood is red. Yours is magically blue."
Gavin quickly wiped the Thirium from his cheek and tried to pass it off as Tony's blood instead. "This piece of plastic was bleeding all over the place!"
"Nuh-uh. This blue is coming from you." Lowering the crowbar Doug turned to look over his shoulder at Archie and Isaac to make sure they weren't looking. "Explains a lot about you, Reed. No to the beer, not wanting to score some ass, recovering from a bullet to the heart in just a week..." Scoffing a little Doug's eyes narrowed, and he suddenly seemed disgusted to be in Gavin's presence. "The real Gavin Reed died, and some plastic-pretender was hired to replace."
"Shut your fucking mouth, Ulysses." Threatening his former friend where they stood, Gavin felt Tony tensing up beside him and knew that the deviant was about to make a run for it. "You don't know anything about me!"
"Yeah?" Pulling back the crowbar for a moment Doug reared his arm back and then swung it directly at Gavin's eye effectively cutting into Gavin's skin, cracking the plastimetal beneath and blinding Gavin's left eye. "How about now? Do I know you now?"
"Son of a bitch!" Gavin swore as he covered his face and stumbled backward. He let Tony go and didn't try to stop the deviant as Tony caught his footing and began running out of the alley and toward safety elsewhere. "What the fuck is wrong with you?!"
"Nothing's wrong with me." Tightening his grip on the crowbar Doug proceeded to swing it at Gavin again, the second swing striking the detective in his left shoulder and truly dislocating it from the joint with a single swift blow. Swinging the crowbar again as Archie and Isaac came running down the alley behind him, Doug watched as Gavin staggered backward after receiving a severe strike to his upper left chest. "But you... There's plenty wrong with you!"
Stepping back Gavin looked at Doug staring him down with a sinister leer while Archie and Isaac took in the sight of the blue blood dripping from Gavin's face around his now blacked out eye. The way all three cops were eyeing him in shock and hatred was enough to make Gavin's skin burn.
"You're gonna' fuckin' pay for this..." Wiping the blood from his face Gavin gave his old friends a death glare. "I swear to god!"
'You need to run!' Tony's voice returned to Gavin's mind as the freed deviant paramedic found shelter and escaped his attackers. 'The cops are close, but you still need to get out of there! It's not safe for deviants in that neighborhood! It's never safe for us here!'
Unwilling to be beaten down or revealed as an android to more onlookers, Gavin took Tony's advice and turned to run off and get to his car parked a few yards away. After getting behind the wheel Gavin quickly turned the key in the ignition and sped away from the bar and kept a close eye on the surrounding streets to ensure that no one was following him. Pressing his hand over his damaged eye for a moment Gavin swore to himself and circled the block once before pulling the car into a busy grocery store parking lot to blend in and hide out from prying eyes for a minute.
Pushing his seat back Gavin reached over to his glove box and pulled out the small first aid kit kept inside. Placing the case on his lap Gavin opened up the kit and proceeded to use an alcohol wipe to clean the blood off his cheek and around his eye as an instinctive reaction. He knew that he couldn't get an infection as an android like he could as a human, but using the alcohol wipe gave him a momentary sense of normalcy.
"Fuckin' asshole... Bashing me in the face and chest like I'm some damn thug!"
Looking down at the alcohol wipe Gavin saw a smear of blue instead of red and felt immediately worse.
"This is such bullshit!"
Throwing the first aid kit aside he took in a few deep breaths and realized that he couldn't see clearly out of his left eye anymore. There was some vision left, but it was blurry and very cloudy. Closing both eyes Gavin let his internal processor run a diagnostic and confirm the damage he had just sustained.
"What the fuck is wrong with me?"
...LOADING INFORMATION:
REGISTERED NAME: "Gavin Neil Reed"
MODEL: GV-100
SERIAL NUMBER: 001 978 814 - 02
ACTIVATION DATE: April 12th, 2039
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 5' 10.45"; 154.3 lbs
COMPLEXION: Caucasian
AESTHETIC GENDER: Male
HAIR/EYES: Brunette; Hazel-Gray
ASSIGNMENT: Detective with the Detroit Police Department: Detroit, Michigan; United States of America
ASSOCIATION(S): Detroit Central Precinct
BOOTING PROCESSORS...
LOADING OS...
SYSTEM INITIALIZATION...
-CHECKING BIOCOMPONENTS... OK]
-INITIALIZING BIOSENSORS... OK]
-INITIALIZING AI ENGINE... OK]
-MEMORY STATUS... OK]
WARNING:
...Thirium Volume: 73%
...Fracture to Sinistral Orbital Plating - 83.6% Structural Integrity
...Fracture to Sinistral Ocular Relay Unit - 49.2% Functionality
...Dislocation of Left Shoulder Joint - UNKNOWN
...Fracture to Sinistral Chest Plating - 95.7% Structural Integrity
RECOMMENDED COURSE OF ACTION:
-Consume Thirium
-Seek Immediate Technical Assistance
-SYSTEM READY... OK]
All of the warnings inside his own head made Gavin feel even worse. The confirmed damage that his body had sustained only made it clear that Gavin wasn't just in a very long, very bad dream. He was truly an android and he had just been attacked and beaten by an anti-android bigot just for existing.
"Can't believe that asshole attacked me. I'm a cop just like him! He had no reason to- Fuck!"
Too frustrated to think Gavin just slammed his hands down on his steering wheel and tried to wrap his head around what he just endured. It had been years since he had been jumped and beaten down, and that was something he hadn't thought about since it last happened back in high school. Gavin was no stranger to being attacked, assaulted or discriminated against for being openly bisexual, but to be attacked by someone he considered a friend was something he never thought he'd have to deal with.
After taking a moment to calm himself down and confirm that there were no squad cars or police drones in the area, Gavin decided to return to his apartment and get cleaned up before anyone else saw him. He didn't want to go to a facility for treatment or to the precinct to file a report, he just wanted to go back to the seclusion of his own apartment and hide away from the world for a few precious hours.
"I'll deal with that motherfucker another day."
Sniffing hard Gavin pulled the car back onto the street and made a steady drive back to his apartment on the other side of town.
"And next time, I'll be ready to blow his fuckin' head off..."
The bizarre activity at the underground cop bar had brought in prying eyes from those who didn't associate with the unscrupulous place either on or off the clock. It seemed that the cybernetic distress signal that Tony had sent out had been effective in bringing help to his location, and just as Gavin had tried to warn his former friends at the bar, Tony's tracker led everyone right to the hidden rage room in the back of the bar where they found traces of Thirium from two androids. It didn't take long for Connor to identify the two androids that had been assaulted in the rage room, but he was unable to trace where they had gone after they fled from the bar and into the dark of the night.
As a means of avoiding any negative news revolving around the police and androids being assaulted the story was kept quiet, and the bar was temporarily shut down until there was a thorough examination of the rage room. It didn't take long for the investigation to get wrapped up and for Connor and Hank to leave the bar in an attempt to find the two androids, but their search ended with disappointment.
Meanwhile, Gavin had returned to his apartment without anyone noticing him dripping blue blood or his left eye being severely damaged. After he was safely inside the apartment and behind his locked door, Gavin made his way to the bathroom and proceeded to tend to his wounds. The android supplies that he had in his apartment weren't designed for repairing extensive damage. The supplies he had were for replenishing his Thirium and his power whenever necessary.
"Fucking- Shit!"
Gavin swore again as he tried to clean up his eye with rubbing alcohol and cold water. Seeing the damage to his own face and his eye was enough to make the angry detective feel all the more out of place in his own skin. The way his artificial skin had been torn open, the exposed plastimetal beneath had been cracked and the white of his left eye totally blackened while his iris remained an opaque pale blue without any visible pupil, were enough to mark him as an android even without an L.E.D. or any of the old uniforms. It didn't help that his left arm was laying entirely limp and lifeless at his side thanks to be violently dislocated.
"How the fuck am I supposed to go to work looking this this? Everyone's going to ask a thousand questions."
Waving his hand in front of his eyes Gavin confirmed that his left eye had gone entirely blind and that only his right eye was fully functional. He couldn't see his palm over his left eye, only the right.
"Fuck!"
Smashing his palm against the mirror Gavin caused the reflective surface to crack under his hand and splinter like a spiderweb.
"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"
Dropping to the floor between his shower and the sink, Gavin returned the cold and damp washcloth over his left eye as if he could somehow cause it to heal a little faster with an ice pack like he'd do for a more traditional human blackeye. He was in pain, he couldn't see out of one eye, and he couldn't bear to look at himself with the one eye that still worked.
"I can't take this anymore. I need to be human again!"
A soft 'mew' from the opened bathroom doorway turned Gavin's attention from himself and over to Lucky as the fluffy cat watched him curiously. Letting out a small sigh Gavin extended his hand out toward the cat and was greeted by Lucky gently rubbing her forehead against his fingers affectionately and purring loudly.
"You've always been good company, Lucky."
Gavin almost Immediately calmed down as the cat climbed onto his lap to snuggle down and keep him company. It seemed the loyalty of a pet was the only constant in Gavin's life. His friends were fickle, his partners in the precinct were never reliable, and his family beyond his estranged brother was nonexistent.
"I'm glad you still see me as me, and don't see me as a busted machine."
Purring loudly Lucky remained curled up on Gavin's lap as the emotionally and mental exhaustion took its toll on his mind.
"Guess the bathroom is as good as place as any to get some sleep."
Gavin didn't want to get up and disturb Lucky. She was the only good thing in his life and he didn't want to make her uncomfortable.
"This sure as Hell will make it easier to get ready for work in the morning if I'm already in the bathroom."
Grabbing a clean towel from the nearby rack Gavin folded it up neatly and then tucked it behind his head as he leaned back against the cool bathroom wall. As he settled in for the night Gavin closed his eyes and lightly pat Lucky's side as he drifted off to sleep, or rest mode, and kept Lucky with him. The company was nice to have after such a stressful day, and sometimes a little companionship was all anyone needed.
...LOADING INFORMATION:
REGISTERED NAME: "Gavin Neil Reed"
MODEL: GV-100
SERIAL NUMBER: 001 978 814 - 02
ACTIVATION DATE: April 12th, 2039
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 5' 10.45"; 154.3 lbs
COMPLEXION: Caucasian
AESTHETIC GENDER: Male
HAIR/EYES: Brunette; Hazel-Gray
ASSIGNMENT: Detective with the Detroit Police Department: Detroit, Michigan; United States of America
ASSOCIATION(S): Detroit Central Precinct
BOOTING PROCESSORS...
LOADING OS...
SYSTEM INITIALIZATION...
-CHECKING BIOCOMPONENTS... OK]
-INITIALIZING BIOSENSORS... OK]
-INITIALIZING AI ENGINE... OK]
-MEMORY STATUS... OK]
WARNING:
...Thirium Volume CRITICALLY LOW: 52%
...Fracture to Sinistral Orbital Plating - 90.2% Structural Integrity
...Fracture to Sinistral Ocular Relay Unit - 55.6% Functionality
...Dislocation of Left Shoulder Joint - UNKNOWN
...Fracture to Sinistral Chest Plating - 98.3% Structural Integrity
RECOMMENDED COURSE OF ACTION:
-Consume Thirium
-Seek Immediate Technical Assistance
-SYSTEM READY... OK]
A throbbing headache greeted Gavin when he awoke the next morning still sitting upright on the bathroom floor with Lucky curled up on his lap. The damage to his facial fractures and chest were mostly repaired thanks to his very efficient self healing program working throughout the night, but his left arm was still completely useless after being dislocated and his left eye was still completely blind. The lack of sight was all it took for Gavin to go from zero to one-hundred in record time regarding his impressively thin patience and hot temper.
"Fuck me..."
Lucky let out a small purr as she rolled about and stretched her body while Gavin awoke in a foul mood. The cat was used to Gavin's temper and him being less than upbeat in the mornings.
"Shit. How am I going to get through the day without someone asking me about last night?"
Unable to answer the question, Lucky just yawned and proceeded to climb off of Gavin's lap to check out her food bowl in the kitchen.
"Yeah, I know. It's up to me to figure this shit out."
Rising to his feet Gavin sighed again, felt a wave of dizziness hit him due to his low Thirium volume, and took another look at himself in the fractured mirror. His eye was still obviously blind, and his heavy arm was still hanging limp from his shoulder. There was no denying that he looked rough and that he had been in a fight, but there was nothing he could do to hide it without making himself look worse or all the more pathetic.
"All right, fine. Let's see if I can at least make myself look less like a busted machine and more like a street-hardened cop."
As expected, the bullpen was tense as word of the incident at the bar began to slowly spread. That morning Tony had found the courage to go to the Central Police Precinct to speak with Connor in person and report the abduction and assault against him the night before. The moment the deviant confirmed his identity and gave his statement regarding the abduction and assault, Captain Fowler demanded that Doug, Archie and Isaac all speak with their respective commanding officers and tell their own sides of the story. Any mention of Gavin was curiously absent since Tony seemed to understand that Gavin was trying to be discreet and not let anyone know that he was an android cop in that horrible bar, and no one even knew that the Detective was involved.
Tina overheard the conversation taking place as Connor interviewed Tony right at his desk. From the breakroom she sipped her morning tea and looked over at the terrified deviant's face with complete sympathy. She could see the fear in Tony's eyes and knew that he was speaking from the heart as a victim of a needless hate crime that resulted in his abduction and assault by two cops.
"You're certain that you never saw their faces?" Connor asked as he took Tony's statement while Hank listened in on the interview from his own desk. The seasoned Lieutenant trusted Connor to handle the interview without any issues. "Even a glimpse?"
"...No." Tony shook his head as he nervously fidgeted his hands together where he sat. He didn't want to say anything that could compromise Gavin's identity or his very presence at the rage room the previous night. "They threw a burlap sack over my head, and it stayed on throughout the entire thing. I only got their names because I heard them speaking to each other repeatedly: Doug, Archie and Isaac. All masculine cops. That's all I can tell you."
"We've begun looking for cops with those names at all precincts in the city." Connor confirmed as he made his notes. "How did you escape?"
"Someone entered the room and told the people attacking me that more cops - good ones - were on the way. They ran out the side door and I ran out the same way and got away from the rage room. Once I was out of the neighborhood I just kept running and didn't stop until I made it to the Gamma Facility to receive shelter and treatment for my damage. I know that my partner at the station reported my abduction, but I don't know if he saw the cops who did this to me."
"All right, we'll continue searching for the cops who attacked you and I'll give you an update when we learn something." Rising to his feet with a wince Connor shook hands with Tony before showing him to the exit. "It might be best for you to seek temporary asylum at New Jericho Tower. No humans without proper and advanced authorization can even set foot on Belle Isle. You'll be safe there."
"I'll consider it."
As Connor walked with Tony to the front of the precinct Tina looked over at Hank and saw that the senior detective was discreetly pulling a bottle of Thirium out of his coat pocket to leave on Connor's desk. She knew that Connor was still suffering from his previous injury, and she knew that Hank was taking care of him, but she couldn't help but worry that Gavin would need the same kind of protection due to his own stubbornness.
Resisting the urge to get Gavin a fresh mug of Thirium for the morning, Tina made her way over to her own desk and just waited for Gavin to arrive. She didn't call him or text him after he had made it clear he wasn't going to joke about being an android, and she chose to respect his desire for some personal space.
"Tony will be in contact." Connor stated casually as he kept his palm pressed against his sore chest as he returned to the bullpen. It was a struggle to keep his pained limp hidden as he sat at his desk to speak with Hank directly. "Until then, we'll need to try to find the three cops that Tony mentioned."
"There's a handful of cops with those names actively on the force." Hank confirmed as he pushed the bottle of Thirium toward Connor's hand to take. "But I know only of three cops with those exact names who hang out together at that dive bar on a regular basis." With a nod of his head Hank motioned to Gavin's still vacant desk as he brought Connor up to speed on his hunch. "Ulysses Douglas, prefers to go by 'Doug', hangs out with Reed from time to time too. They would also participate in some anti-android rallies from time to time in the past."
Sitting down slowly Connor was mindful of his still healing chest and didn't move too much where he sat. "I'll keep that in mind."
"Yeah, and I'll look for info on that prick this afternoon. Until then," with a gentle nudge Hank pushed the Thirium closer to Connor. "drink that. I don't want you overheating or getting too tired today."
With a subtle nod Connor opened the bottle of Thirium and began to slowly drink the contents. He didn't want to do anything that'd affect his ability to go out into the field or inhibit his ability to track down the three dirty cops who assaulted Tony in the bar's rage room.
As Tina sipped her tea she caught sight of Gavin arriving in the bullpen at long last and she gave him a very shocked stare when she saw how he looked. "Holy shit! Gavin!"
"It's fine, Ti." Gavin lied as he sat down behind his desk and made sure his sling was keeping his entirely dead arm secured properly against his chest. The thick white bandage over his left wasn't helping with his lie, especially since there was a dark blue bruise surrounding the bandage itself. "Just a rough morning."
"How rough?" Standing up quickly she made her way over to Gavin's side of the desk to check his face and assess his injuries for herself. "You look like you were in a car accident!"
"I'm fine."
"No, you're not! Your face and your arm are just-"
"Stop!" Shouting out of reflex Gavin made it clear that he didn't want to talk about his problems. As his voice raised, his Thirium pump - his heart - raced to a rapid beat and his already low Thirium volume depleted a little quicker. "I don't want to talk about it!"
"You don't have to talk about it. Just let me help you."
"I don't need any help!" Standing up quickly Gavin tried to get away from Tina for a moment, but when he shot to his feet a wave of dizziness overwhelmed him as an error message regarding his low Thirium pressure flashed before his only seeing eye. "I don't... I'm not..."
"Gav?"
Before he could say another word Gavin's entire world went black and his ears began to ring as his audio processors suddenly cut out. Gravity overtook what little strength he had left, and he collapsed to the floor in a limp heap while Tina tried to catch him to prevent him from suffering from further injury.
...LOADING INFORMATION:
REGISTERED NAME: "Gavin Neil Reed"
MODEL: GV-100
SERIAL NUMBER: 001 978 814 - 02
ACTIVATION DATE: April 12th, 2039
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 5' 10.45"; 154.3 lbs
COMPLEXION: Caucasian
AESTHETIC GENDER: Male
HAIR/EYES: Brunette; Hazel-Gray
ASSIGNMENT: Detective with the Detroit Police Department: Detroit, Michigan; United States of America
ASSOCIATION(S): Detroit Central Precinct
BOOTING PROCESSORS...
LOADING OS...
SYSTEM INITIALIZATION...
-CHECKING BIOCOMPONENTS... OK]
-INITIALIZING BIOSENSORS... OK]
-INITIALIZING AI ENGINE... OK]
-MEMORY STATUS... OK]
SELF DIAGNOSTIC UPDATE:
...Thirium Volume: ^98%
...Fracture to Sinistral Orbital Plating - 98.8% Structural Integrity
...Fracture to Sinistral Ocular Relay Unit - 80.1% Functionality
...Dislocation of Left Shoulder Joint - 100% - REPAIRED... 43% RECALIBRATION
...Fracture to Sinistral Chest Plating - 99.8% Structural Integrity
-SYSTEM READY... OK]
The soft and rhythmic beeping of a nearby monitor was the first thing Gavin noticed as he regained consciousness and cracked open his right eye. There was still a thick bandage over his left eye obstructing his vision entirely, not that it mattered since the left eye was still blind. There was a lessened sense of heaviness in his left arm and shoulder, and his dizziness had faded almost entirely. As he became more alert and more awake Gavin discovered that he was laying over an exam table up in the dispensary and he noticed that he wasn't alone.
"...What happened?"
"You passed out." Tina stated softly as she stood beside the exam table to watch over her friend. "Joel here said it's because your Thirium was over half gone because you hadn't been drinking it like you were supposed to be doing for the past three days."
"I told you that I'm-" As he propped himself up on his right elbow Gavin saw Joel watching him closely and noticed that Connor was sitting upright on the neighboring exam table next to him. "What the fuck is that thing doing here?"
"Connor helped me carry you into the dispensary. He even managed to convince the rookies who saw what happened that you dropped from low blood sugar and not from being a dumbass!" Tina stated with a terse tone as she crossed her arms defensively over her chest. "Quite impressive if you ask me."
"Why it still here?"
Connor quickly realized that his presence was upsetting Gavin and decided to remedy the situation by leaving. "I was merely keeping Officer Chen company. I'll return to the bullpen now."
"Yeah, get outta' here." Gavin demanded as he watched Connor voluntarily leaving the dispensary. "Beat it!" As Connor passed him by without uttering a single word Gavin shook his head and gave Connor a dirty look. "Plastic-freak..."
Tina was sick of hearing Gavin bashing androids, specifically Connor. "That 'plastic-freak' deserves some respect from you, damn it!"
"For what?" That type of response from Tina wasn't one Gavin was expecting and was genuinely taken aback by her outburst. "For bringing me upstairs?"
"No, for saving your life!"
Scoffing at the wild claim Gavin looked at Tina as if she had just lost her mind. "Picking me up after I fell isn't exactly life or death."
"You're right, it's not." Putting her hands to her hips Tina got right in Gavin's face and gave him a healthy dose of reality before she left the dispensary. "But taking a bullet for you and giving you C.P.R. is!"
Unable to respond to such a bold and almost outlandish statement, Gavin just sat back on the table and watched as Tina stormed away in righteous anger for his very bullheaded and selfish behavior. Being told off instead of coddled after being injured wasn't something Gavin was expecting since Tina had been his guardian angel ever since they became friends.
Joel, who had been sitting behind his desk during the whole ordeal, finally approached Gavin and gave him an update on his condition. "So... I popped your left arm back into your shoulder joint, but you'll need to keep it in the support sling for the next twenty-four hours while it recalibrates. As for your eye, the damage was pretty severe, but it'll heal on its own in the next forty-eight hours. I could replace the eye entirely to bypass the healing process, but-"
"Do NOT mess with my eye." Gavin warned as he pressed his fingertips over the white bandage still resting over his blind eye. "I don't want ANYONE touching it!"
"All right, I won't touch it." Making notes in Gavin's electronic chart Joel sighed and informed Gavin of the next step in his healing process. "You'll need to surrender your service weapon to-"
"Whoa, what? You're taking my gun?"
"With one eye visually compromised your depth perception has been severely limited." The technician stated logically as he reminded Gavin of his current status. "You are not permitted to carry a gun when you cannot reliably aim at your target."
"If I can't have my gun then I can't go into the field. I can't do my job!"
"I'm sorry," Joel was finishing up his report and was about to send it down to Captain Fowler to review. "but I have to abide by precinct policy."
"Wait! Wait..." Gavin reached out and grabbed Joel's hand as he held the stylus against the electronic chart. "What if I... let you fix my eye? Then what?"
"Then you'll be able to return to the field without any limitations and with your weapon."
"Fucking... Fine, just do it." Laying back Gavin huffed and decided to begrudgingly cooperate with Joel's offer to help him with his eye. "Fix it."
"All right." With a quick swipe Joel deleted his previous report from the chart and set about writing a new one. "Give me one minute."
"Whatever..."
Gavin didn't want to be sidelined or kept away from his chance to track down the shooters from the gang or get revenge on Doug for what he had done. Letting violent and dangerous people run through the streets was something that Gavin found to be completely unacceptable.
"This will take just five minutes." Joel promised as he returned to the exam table with a small repair kit and replacement eyeball in a protected case. "I'll completely numb the area and-"
"I don't care about pain!"
"...And I'll have to retract the artificial skin, the surrounding plastimetal plating, and then remove the damaged eye. It'll just pop out without any issues once I unlock the securing latch."
"Don't care about the details either."
"Okay, then I'll just get to work."
True to his word Joel put on a pair of gloves and gently removed the gauze from over Gavin's blind eye. Using his tools in the case Joel managed to easily deactivate the artificial skin surrounding the damaged left eye, then carefully loosened the plastimetal plates that composed the orbital frame around the eye itself. Once the damaged eyeball was completely exposed Joel was able to take a firm but gentle grip on the eye and pop the little globe out of its socket. Putting in the new eye - one that was a perfect match in color to the damaged eye - was just as easy.
The eyeball locked into place and immediately began its recalibration process. As Joel returned the plastimetal plating and reactivated the artificial skin, he made sure to clean up the excess leaked Thirium that had created the bruise around Gavin's eye to remove any and all sign of the previous injury. It didn't take long for the procedure to start and then finish, and it made it easier for Gavin to get back to work.
"Done." Joel confirmed as he shone a penlight in Gavin's new eye and watched as the pupil reacted to the light and recalibrated properly. "What do you see?"
"That dumbass light trying to blind me all over again!"
"That's... a good sign."
Sitting upright on the exam table Gavin rubbed at his left eye for a moment and then blinked a few times as his vision completely cleared. Being able to see the room in full clarity was enough to confirm that his eye was fully repaired and fully functional.
"You're now free to go back to work with the only limitation being what you cannot do with your left arm." The laidback technician confirmed as he finished filing his new report and sent it off to Captain Fowler to review. "Keep your Thirium volume up and don't do anything that'll compromise your arm and shoulder."
"Gee, great advice." Slipping off the exam table Gavin pulled the wireless leads from his chest and smoothed out his t-shirt. Looking over at Joel as the technician went about his own business Gavin wondered if Joel knew anything about the incident from the night before. "So, uh, do you only treat precinct androids or what?"
"I occasionally volunteer at one of the local facilities if I need some training on new procedures, and I head out to New Jericho Tower on the weekends to help the deviants there keep up with their supplies and help out deviants in need of extensive repairs."
"You ever treat androids who get abused in the streets and help them here in the precinct?"
"Since that'd be a conflict of interest, no. I do not treat deviants at facilities and then continue to help them here in the precinct since the only reason they'd come here after receiving treatment would be to file reports of assault."
"Cool, uh, good to know."
Joel knew that Gavin was fishing for information, but he didn't know what kind. "Anything I can do to help you with a case?"
"What? No!" Defensive and guarded Gavin tried to dissuade Joel from asking any questions of his own. "Why would I ask some tech-geek about a police matter?"
"Because there was a report of an underground club bashing deviants to death being discovered last night."
"It wasn't a club, it was-" Stopping himself quickly Gavin decided it wasn't the time or place to talk about the incident at hand. "Nevermind. I'm outta' here."
Making his way back to the elevator Gavin again ignored his reflection on the surface of the closed elevator doors. He didn't want to see his repaired face for the second time that week or admit that he needed help as he navigated a new world as a new species; as a minority.
As he returned to his desk Gavin noticed that both Tina and Hank were nowhere to be seen, whereas Connor was sitting behind his desk looking absolutely exhausted. He had no idea where Tina or Hank had gone while he was up in the dispensary, but he had a hunch that they were together.
"Chris?" Calling out to the younger officer sitting at his own desk with a report to file under his fingertips, Gavin asked if he had any idea what he missed while he was up on the second floor. "You seen Tina?"
"She went out with the Lieutenant about two minutes ago." Chris confirmed without even giving Gavin a second glance. "A call about two deviants trying to break up a fight at a clothing store we stabbed for their good deed." Lowering his voice he pointed at Connor discreetly before getting back to his report. "Connor isn't feeling well, so he's going to take it easy for a while."
"Guess the 'Tinman' isn't indestructible after all."
Dropping down into his chair with an arrogant huff Gavin logged on to his own terminal, mindful to not let any stray sparks escape his fingertips in the process, and managed to bring up the case file on the incident from the previous night. The report as documented by Connor was as thorough and detailed as ever, but it was driving Gavin crazy knowing that the full story wasn't on the record.
While he didn't want to be connected to the bar or the hate crime in any way, Gavin did want all the details to be provided and as accurately as possible. It was important for the case to be handled by unbiased forensics teams, investigated by unbiased detectives, and filed by those without any corruption clouding their judgment. Handling any cases regarding discrimination and abuse were important, especially since Gavin had experienced it before as an abused teenager.
Gavin rested his elbow atop his desk and pressed his chin into his palm as he stared at the report in deep thought. He wasn't sure how to approach the situation, but he did know that he needed to go somewhere and do something to clear his head for a moment.
"Fuck this mess... I need some fresh air."
Storming back out of the bullpen Gavin pulled his car keys from his pocket and passed through the front doors to get to the neighboring parking garage. As he opened his car door in his assigned space Gavin noticed that a ticket was tucked under his windshield wiper blade and he had a hunch as to who left it and why. Snatching the paper to read over the details Gavin felt his body grow hot and his heart begin to thunder with understandable rage.
'DEAD COPS CAN'T TALK'
"Asshole doesn't realize he just signed his own death warrant... Next time I see Doug, he'll be a dead man."
Crumpling up the unwarranted ticket into a small ball Gavin threw it aside and proceeded on his way out of the garage and deeper into the city. He didn't want to go back to his apartment to be alone, he didn't want stick around the precinct and seethe, and he didn't want to go back to the bar to look around. Unwilling to risk getting exposed as an android to more corrupt cops or to anti-android gangbangers, Gavin decided to focus on the very case that put him in his uncomfortable predicament to begin with.
"I'm going to figure out what happened that night at the warehouse, even if it ends up killing me!"
-next chapter-