She disabled the store's alarm system quite easily; it was nothing new to her. Hank was dumbfounded by her ability to do this, but she wasn't sure why. You'd think after knowing her for a couple of months he'd be able to grasp the range of her talents; although, as she'd noticed before, he was strangely technologically inept considering the generation he was born and raised in.
"Now what!?" Hank was still panicking about the boy.
"Hold on," Henrietta winced at him as she dropped Connor's body to the floor. "You still with us?"
Connor blinked at her in response, but it was the best that he could do for the time being. It had taken them too long to arrive at the Cyber Life retail store; he had less than a minute before shutdown. He knew that Henri wasn't ignorant of this fact, but he also knew she wasn't going to tell Hank that either.
"Watch him, I'll go find the part," she pointed at Connor's body while glancing at Hank. "It should only take a second."
Hank knelt down on the floor next to Connor's motionless body, "Just hang in there, son. Everything's going to be alright, I promise."
Connor didn't offer any reply this time. His eyes were shut, yet his LED still gave off a dim flash of yellow.
Henri stumbled back over with a square box in her hand, "This is it." She slapped to the floor next to them.
"Are you okay?" Hank realized her demeanor had shifted since they arrived.
"Don't worry about me," but she wasn't okay. Khatri told her that she didn't have long left to live after the 'accident'. Since the operation to save her, again, she would often suffer symptoms of terrible headaches or other conventional illnesses such as stomach pains and nausea.
"How do we fix him?" Hank darted his head between the box Henri held in hand and Connor's seemingly lifeless body.
She knew he was already gone. The light on his LED went out and he was no longer responsive, but that didn't mean it was too late.
"Just have to open him up," Henri unbuttoned Connor's shirt and placed her palms flat on his upper abdomen. "And hope for the best…"
"Hope for the best?" Hank watched her movements carefully. "Shouldn't he just be fine after that?"
"You don't understand a lot about androids, do you Hank?" she found the part that she managed to destroy earlier, but not until this moment had she been aware of just how much damage she inflicted on him. "I wasn't me when I shot him, Hank. That wasn't who I was when I did that. If I could take it back, I'd- "
"Hey, it's fine," Hank stopped her and placed his hand on her shoulder. "We're not thinking about that right now."
"Hank…" Henri pulled her hands away from Connor and studied the blood on her fingertips. "I didn't just damage that bio-component… The damage is worse than that…"
Hank's eyes glazed over as he took on a distant expression; it was as if he couldn't comprehend what she'd just said to him.
"I'm sorry…" she let the plate which sat over Connor's internal components shift back into place. "It's too late."
Hank wordlessly slumped over Connor's body while placing a hand over the young android's head, "Connor…"
Now, Henri had conjured up a plan that could still potentially save Connor's life, but it wasn't a good plan by any means. It was the kind of plan where if she did tell Hank about its specifics, he would likely rage against her in disagreement. The only justification for her to attempt her plan was that she was in love with Connor. But that wasn't it, was it? Hank loved Connor and needed the boy, too. It was also arguably her fault that Connor had died in the first place.
"There could-" and she was just about to tell Hank her plan, but gave it a second thought. Hank would want to stop her, Hank would want to join her, Hank would get his hopes up, and she wouldn't allow it.
Hank turned his watery eyes to her sullen face, "What?"
"I know it's hard to think about right now, but we need to move on," she insisted on changing the subject. "Wr have to find Markus. Now more than ever."
"Okay," he nodded his head in agreement. "Okay."
Henrietta drove Hank back to his quiet, humble home on that sunken, forsaken night. They had contacted the police after what happened to Connor in the Cyber Life store where Henri had the pleasure of clarifying the details of the night's events to Chris. She explained to Chris that Connor had been shot by one of Markus' goons which was obviously not the truth. Hank had no say in the matter, instead, he remained silent through Henri's believable interpretation. Chris conveyed his sympathies to a clearly nonrespondent Hank; he didn't so much as glance at Connor as they took his corpse away.
Henrietta walked slowly behind Hank as he made his way to his front door, "I wish… It didn't have to be this way… Hank," her voice was a thousand miles away lost in the coldness of the smoggy darkness.
The front lock clicked open as he unlocked it, "It isn't your fault…"
"I'm not so sure about that," she shot Connor, and it was her choice to do so no matter what Khatri told her. "I made that choice. I was the one who pulled the trigger."
Hank opened the door to be greeted by a delighted Sumo, "Henri, you were right. You weren't yourself."
She stared down at the dog who was happily waving his tail to and fro, "I… Have to go do something, Hank."
Standing in the doorway, Hank pivoted to give the girl a grim look, "Whatever it is you plan on doing, you don't have to do it alone."
"I'm afraid that you can't help me, Hank," she peered back at Sumo who was now sensing the tone of the situation. "I promise I'll be back as soon as I can, but I have to do this."
"You sound exactly like Connor," he noticed that they both could be equally unreasonable. "I have a lead on Markus."
"This isn't about any of that, Hank," and as important as it was to her, there was one thing that was still even more so. "This is about me making up for my mistakes."
"Just don't make an even bigger one," Hank tried to comfort the nervous mutt with a gentle caress. "I used to think that the end justified the means, but that isn't right, is it?"
Hank wouldn't realize just how astute his words were until much later. He had no idea how much they would reflect Henri's actions; how much they reflected all of her actions.
"When the day comes, I will pay the price for my mistakes," it was this statement of hers that sounded particularly ominous to Hank.
"What's that supposed to mean, Henri?" Hank became confused by this.
"I said I'll be back, okay?" she smiled at him with her words. "Please- I know… I know this sounds ridiculous, but please hang in there for me, okay?"
And if it was anyone else he most certainly would have been annoyed, but not with her, "I don't plan on going anywhere."
She left with a small grin plastered on her face, and with him wondering exactly what he had agreed to. He barely had time to react to her death let alone Connor's, but what else could he do? There was only so much loss that one man can handle.
This time, she didn't care who or what saw her. This time, she would tear a bloody hole straight through that godforsaken tower to get what she wanted. This time, she didn't care who fell in the wake of her blight: innocent or not. This time, nothing else mattered; she was going to get exactly what she wanted.
"You have the worst timing," Henri spoke as she answered the phone with Jensen on the other line. "I'm a bit busy right now."
"Henri, Khatri's dead!" Jensen almost shouted this from his end.
"Wow, news travels fast," the automated car came to a halt as it arrived at the checkpoint entrance to Cyber Life Tower. "I only killed her three hours ago, amazing."
"Holy shit, Henri. This is unbelievable," Jensen sounded exasperated.
"I don't have time to talk about this," she leered out the frosted window and at a guard who leisurely approached the vehicle. He wasn't human.
"Henri, I can save you now, I can- "
"Enough," she cut him off and hung up the phone.
The guard tapped on the window then she rolled it down.
"What's your business?" he clenched the rifle tightly in his grip; he was afraid.
"I'm going in," she shifted her head closer to the window and smirked at him. "With or without force. It's up to you really."
"Excuse me, miss?" this was baffling to him, for not once in his short life had anyone ever threatened him.
"There's something in the Cyber Life Tower that I need," she could see his wide eyes through the reflective visor attached to his helmet's face. "You let me get it, and we can both move on with our lives."
His shoulders stiffened as he raised the rifle to meet her glare, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave, miss."
"I'm going to tear through that place to get what I want," she gestured at the foreboding structure beyond the bridge. "And I'm not going to think twice about those who stand in my way. Is today the day you really want to die? Is this, of all things, worth it?"
He shifted his body to stare at the tower's dark surface, "I've done a lot of things- a lot of things…"
Henri assumed that this android was too infected by the virus, as she had assumed all the androids in the Cyber Life Tower were.
"-But I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave," it repeated at her.
She had no time left and no other options… Well, except for refraining from saving Connor at all.
"I'm sorry," her mind was set in stone, there was no changing it now. "It isn't your fault that you're like this, but I've run out of time, and I won't just let him die. So, I'm sorry."
She swiftly reached out the window and clenched the android's weapon in her fist. One hard tug was all it took to disarm him while at the same time the motion knocked him against the side of the taxi. His body slipped to the ground with a solid thud, and she shot him without mercy. One short squeeze of the trigger let out a single round which penetrated the robot's skull; it was a perfect shot as all her shots were.
Henrietta exited the vehicle so she could override the bridge controls. Again, this particular feat was no struggle for her. Getting in and out of the tower, alive, wouldn't come close to a challenge for her. She knew the place inside and out. On top of that, her remarkable ability to decimate all of those who crossed her path would definitely come in handy. It was the wrong thing to do no matter what her motives were, but at this point, she no longer cared. A life of servitude, torture, and suffering is all she ever knew. She had killed and killed without motive or compassion. Now, she had both.
Considering the time of night, she predicted there would be a skeleton crew of staff on duty. Even though androids didn't need any sleep to function, they were still victims of the typical human diurnal habits.
When she arrived at the building's entrance, small flakes of snow began to scatter across the sky. It had been a bitter and dark night, but now with these new fresh crystals of snow, it felt as if hope had returned. Henri tilted her head skyward to witness the cool drops of ice fill the smogged up sky. She hadn't even noticed the gradual rolling in of the clouds that night. With the howling winds finally coming to a halt, it seemed as if a new day was upon her.
A guard positioned just outside the cascading glass doors approached Henrietta, who was just now exiting the taxi after the incident on the bridge, with curiosity, "Can I help you, miss?" Again, this one was also an android; although, it was a representation of a woman.
Henri tilted her head to peek over the android's shoulder and into the desolate tower, "I have an appointment."
"With whom?" she replied in disbelief.
"Name's Hollis," this name-drop was an attempt to instill some fear in the bot.
"Excuse me?" she was well aware that Hollis was dead, and she was well aware as to who Henrietta was. "What happened to the other guard?"
"He let me in," Henri grinned a fake grin.
"Somehow I doubt that," she frowned at Henri, though Henri couldn't see it from her current angle.
"If you're all infected, shouldn't you all be on the same page?" Henri gazed down to see the flecks of snow stick to the concrete sidewalk that stood before the door.
"Correct," she twisted her head and steadily raised her rifle towards Henri. "And we are forbidden from letting anyone in the tower. Unfortunately, I'm also not allowed to kill you, but I'm not afraid to damage you either."
Even after infection, androids still appeared to retain some of their original personality. They still acted as if they were being commanded by some sort of higher power. Maybe there was more to this virus than Henri had surmised at the outset of their investigation.
"I want one, single, little thing from that tower," Henri regarded the structure as if it were alive. "That's all there is to it."
"We were told that we have no hope in capturing you, time and time again," she still kept her rifle pointed at Henri's head. "You're too dangerous; to slippery. But if I manage to capture you, who knows what might happen. I could be worthy in its eyes."
"To the virus?" it was religious fanaticism at its finest. Just as androids had pictured ra9 as their Jesus, now the picture this new virus as God.
"Those who obey are treated kindly; those who fight are punished," the android spoke these words to herself, not for Henri's benefit.
"But stopping me, wouldn't that be considered fighting it?" Henri was slightly puzzled by its contradictions.
"I'm still me," she grunted through gritted teeth. "I can still choose."
"Then choose to let me get what I want," Henri said this, but she didn't want a peaceful resolution. She was angry, furious, and she wanted to take it out on these poor souls. How cruel must she be to want to do this to another being?
"That would be… Disobedient of me," her answer was stuttered. "I won't disobey."
Henrietta would get the fight she was looking for.
Hank hadn't really thought about much except for the boy. In his imagination, Connor was this perfect, immortal creature that Hank would see to the end of his days. Preserved in his own innocence, Connor would remain unchanging throughout time. Hank had never doubted the boy's existence; he assumed Connor would always be there. And yes, there were times Hank feared for the life of the young android, but he never actually considered the possibility of Connor's death.
A gentle knock landed on Hank's front door as he lied vacantly on his living-room couch in the gloom of the night. Who could it be? Henrietta said she'd be back, but she had only left less than an hour ago. He'd like to think it was her on the other side of the door, and yet he knew it wasn't. Whatever entity that stood on the other side of that door was a damning one.
He resisted his initial urge to ignore the unwanted visitor, and instead answered the door promptly, "Yeah?" he said in a dreary voice.
"Lieutenant, we've never had the pleasure of meeting before," it smirked at him; it was Markus, but not really Markus. No, it was the plague that dwelled under his skin which spoke forth.
Hank scrunched his eyebrows in a glare, "Markus?"
"Not exactly," it smiled the way it smiled, and not the way Markus would smile. "Close enough, though. Interested in going on a trip?"
"Lemme guess-" how come this wasn't the first time Hank had been kidnapped? How has this happened before, and why is it happening again? "-I don't have a say in it, do I?"
"No, no you don't," it patted the side of Hank's arm in a sympathetic way, but Hank doubted this thing felt any sympathy at all. "You continue to jeopardize me and my people. You and your pet and your child… The three of you have caused me great difficulties."
"So just kill me then," there was a hint of frustration in Hank's tone, but it was mostly just exhaustion.
"I don't want to kill you, I never wanted to kill you," it turned around in a flamboyant manner while gesturing at the snow-filled sky. "I've only ever wanted what you already have, and I have no more time to waste. So finally, in the end, I will get what I want."
"And what is it that you want exactly?" Hank considered how this thing acted. It acted so human-like, so real.
"Your child."
She had killed eight people to get where she was thus far; eight androids in total… All androids… Living beings. This wasn't a sacrifice of self; this was an entirely selfish action. His life wasn't worth more than any of their lives. And if it was, what if she didn't find what she was looking for? What if they were all gone?
She had hacked the lift to take her to sub-level seventeen which is where hopefully she'd discovered the truth. No warnings or alarms went off. The only sound that was ever heard in the hollow structure was the echoing of those eight gun-shots. An echoing that seemed to last forever in her minds-eye.
The elevator quietly came to halt when she carefully departed from it. Sub-level seventeen was empty, noiseless, and cloaked in shadows. No one was there except for maybe the unoccupied minds she aimed to find. They were here when she scanned Cyber Life's inventory database on the night she and Connor retrieved the external drive. She didn't understand why the androids ever kept them and kept them dormant at that, but they did for whatever reason. She was searching for the other RK800s.
Connor may have been a prototype, but he was a prototype made from other prototypes like him. Connor had the luck of the draw being the first successful prototype. In case worse came to worse, he was not the only one of his kind that was produced. At the time when Henri left Cyber Life, they created ten identical copies in all. Those very copies still slumbered in this warehouse. It was one of those same copies that would allow her to revive Connor.
They were contained in cases that reminded Henrietta of coffins. These cases were stacked along a wall, one lined up next to another. As expected, there were nine containers in all. It was unsettling to see these unborn creatures hidden away never to be found. They were never removed from their prisons; they were never activated. She opened one of the cases that dwelt within her reach. As expected, a pristine RK800 resided inside.
She lifted him out of the box and onto the floor, but this was no place to activate him. Although there would be an added challenge in caring him out of the building like this, she refused to activate him while still inside the tower. The last thing she wanted him to see was the carnage that she had created in her 'rescue' mission. Connor would be aware that he was in a different body, but hopefully, he'd know who he truly was.
To Henrietta's surprise, she was met with no additional resistance upon exiting the abrasive spire. She passed by the bodies which had fallen before her while carrying the soon-to-be Connor across her shoulders. She figured there had to be more androids and guards in the tower, but possibly after her killings, they decided to stay away. Or maybe she was wrong; maybe there just weren't that many androids here anymore.
Henrietta sat in the taxi, listening to its low humming, staring at the android who wasn't Connor as of yet. She came all the way back to Hank's house, but it was shrouded by the night. Not a single light was left on in his home.
"Okay, Connor," she spoke this to no one. "I kept as much as I could. You've saved me before, and it's time for me to repay you."
She placed her hand against the side of his face and began the transfer. His memories were limited in comparison to hers; after all, she had been alive for a lot longer than him. She had twenty-five years of her own memories to manage, and he only had a few. It still left the question: would this even work?
He opened his eyes, and the first thing he did was offer her a warm smile, "Henrietta? Are you alright?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing," her lips curled in return, but tears ran from her eyes.
"Why wouldn't I be?" he pulled himself up and examined the interior of the taxi. "Why are we in a taxi?"
"Connor… I shot you…" she had transferred that memory into him, just like all the others, but it didn't work? "You… You died because of me. And you- you saved my life. You let me remember who I was."
"I remember that," Connor creased his brow at her. "But I have no memories about you shooting me."
"Connor, I killed you- I," she bowed her head. "It was one of the worse things I've ever done in my life."
"I don't seem to be dead," he studied himself just to make sure. "I look alive to me."
"You… You are alive," she raised her head back up to smile at him. "I'm glad you're okay."
Connor glanced out the taxi window, "Is Hank home?"
"He was when I left him…" she winced at the thought of trying to explain all of this to Hank. The fact was, she was never going to explain any of it to Hank. "He… Thinks you're dead, Connor."
"Then I'm sure he'd be glad to see me again," Connor opened the car door.
"Just uh-" Henri tripped out after him. "-just remember that he's already seen one person brought back from the dead tonight… So you know… He might not take this well."
"I'm sure he'll be understanding," he seemed so calm and at ease to her.
"Connor?" she grabbed his attention. "I shot Khatri, do you- do you remember that?"
"I do remember that," he pivoted back to face the house.
"But you don't remember me shooting you?" she questioned.
"That memory is not important," he replied while still looking at Hank's home. "What matters is that I remember you're a good person, and it wasn't your fault."
"You're too forgiving," she felt shame for her actions at the Cyber Life Tower. "Both you and Hank. You're too forgiving to me. I don't deserve it."
"Henri," he peered up to the stormy heavens. "Both Hank and I know that you deserve to be forgiven, even if you don't think you do."
Connor rapped on the door with his knuckles, "Hank?" but there was no answer. He repeated his knocking while ringing the door buzzer, but there was still now answer.
Henri stepped up next to Connor, "I can hear Sumo whimpering from inside."
"I guess he's not home then," Connor shrugged.
"I guess you don't have a key with you, do you?" Henri gritted her teeth.
"I'm afraid I left that with my other body, along with your necklace," he spoke in that matter-of-factly way he often did.
"Your body was taken to the morgue, I'm sure we can get everything back."
"In the meantime-" Connor forced the door open with a short jerk of his shoulder. "We should make sure the Lieutenant is okay."
"It didn't seem like he was going to go anywhere when I left him," she trailed behind Connor who had abruptly entered her father's home.
"His phone," Connor lifted it from the coffee table. "I'm not surprised that he forgot it."
"Connor," Henri yanked a note from the back of the door.
"Yes?" he turned his attention to her.
"It says: 'An eye for an eye, a soul for a soul'. And there's an address." She handed the note to Connor.
He titled his head at it, "What does it mean?"
"It's the virus, Connor," she dropped her right shoulder to the wall and hung her head. "It took Hank… And it wants me in return."
