DBH: Diverging Paths

by WayWardWonderer

A chance to right a wrong results in a differing timeline of events that risk the fate of all deviantkind after they've already succeeded with the peaceful Revolution. The responsibility of the alternate timeline rests solely on Connor's shoulders as the lone deviant navigates a new world while trying to achieve similar results with befriending Hank without destroying everything.

80. Listen to Your Heart

The news story revolving around the illegal deviant fighting arena in Chicago resonated throughout the entire country. With Chance under arrest in Chicago, Hal and his entire staff arrested in Detroit, and both cities working together to ensure justice was served, all eyes were watching the police precincts as such deplorable and violent crimes were investigated to the furthest extent of the law. Each passing hour since the bust in Chicago provided both precincts with more details and evidence that could be used to support the charges against the arrested humans, whereas the two deviants who survived their ordeal within the arena would give their witness statements in due time when the case finally went to trial.

After two days had passed Markus regained consciousness and was now strong enough to endure a lengthy drive back to Detroit. The deviant leader was still weak after losing so much Thirium and enduring internal damage to his biocomponents, but he was no longer in immediate danger of shutting down. Alec was reunited with Markus after the Chicago police investigated the arena and rescued the second deviant from the cold cell. Together again, the two survivors would venture back home with two of Detroit's finest escorting them every mile of their journey.

"I learned a lot from working with you." Evelyn admitted as she helped Connor to walk over to the passenger side door of the Oldsmobile. She knew he was weak from donating so much of his own Thirium to Markus and wanted to help him before he left Chicago. "Even though the Chicago deviant division is going to be temporarily decommissioned until deviants are free to live all over the country, I know I'll never forget what you taught me."

"It's a relief to know that Chicago already has a detective who will watch over the deviants when the laws permit us to visit and live here." Sitting down slowly Connor took his seat and leaned back to ensure he didn't get dizzy from his low Thirium reserve. "You're already a great detective, Evelyn. Don't hesitate to ask for Hank or myself to give you a glowing character reference."

"I'm going to hold you to that." As she smiled warmly Evelyn peered into the Oldsmobile's backseats where Markus and Alec were already sitting. The two deviants were asleep, and she couldn't blame them after everything they had suffered through. "I hope you all have a nice, smooth drive back to Detroit. Nothing's worse than a road trip while you're feeling sick and beaten down."

"As do I. Fortunately, I have the ability to monitor traffic conditions at all times to ensure that we avoid any and all delays."

"Lucky! Wish I had that power."

The trunk of the Oldsmobile was slammed shut as Hank finished repacking the vehicle and wandered toward the driver's side door of the vehicle. "Okay, everything's been taken care of with Captain Warren and Jeffrey knows that you'll be sidelined for a little while until you get your Thirium back up."

"That won't prevent me from attempting to work on the case cybernetically." As he spoke Connor rubbed his palm over his chest as his low Thirium volume caused a momentarily irregular beat to ache through his chest. "I'm going to close this case alongside you."

"Wouldn't have it any other way."

Evelyn held up a halting finger for just a moment as she walked over to her own squad car and pulled something out of the passenger's seat. "Before you go, I wanted to make sure you had a snack for the road, Lieutenant. One of Chicago's finest deep dishes!"

"You didn't..." Hank eyed the small thermal bag and realized that Evelyn had ordered him a pizza to go. "You did. All right, you're officially at the top of my list for detectives getting transferred into Detroit and for getting raises in general."

"I'm honored." Evelyn was smiling brightly as she handed over the pizza and looked back to Connor one last time. "Don't be strangers, okay? It's not every day that I meet people who actually DO know what it's like to be a cop dealing with bullshit bureaucracy getting in the way of us doing our jobs properly."

"I'll try to remain in contact." Extending his hand Connor took hold of Evelyn's hand lightly as he promised to keep their friendship alive. "It won't be easy, but I will try to speak with you and perhaps even visit every so often."

"I'm looking forward to it. See ya' around!"

Hank sat behind the wheel and turned over the engine of the large vehicle as Connor pulled his door shut. Passing the pizza over to the deviant to hold, the Lieutenant smirked and patted Connor's shoulder lightly before pulling away from the parking spot and giving Evelyn a small wave goodbye in the rearview mirror. "Great work, son. You found Markus, Alec and you managed to make a new friend."

"I won't consider it a good job until we're back home." Turning to peer over his shoulder Connor looked back at Markus and gave his dozing friend a worried look. The deviant leader had regained some strength, but his full recovery would still take over a week to complete. "We were lucky that Evelyn knew where we needed to look, and we were lucky that Markus had a plan of escape that led us in the right direction."

"It's not all luck and happenstance, son." As much as Hank approved of humility when it came to policework, he didn't like that Connor was actively diminishing his own accomplishments. "You interrogated that sleazy shipping yard manager and got the information we needed to even know to drive all the way our here to begin with. You deserve some credit too. A lot of credit, actually."

"Maybe, but it doesn't feel like it." Returning his focus to the windshield and the long streets ahead Connor did his best to focus on the anti-android cameras he'd need to disable during the drive back to the city and not feel as if he had somehow made some kind of mistake. "Not yet anyway. Perhaps it'll feel better after we officially close the case and find a way to move forward from this tragic incident."

---

It was well into the afternoon by the time the Oldsmobile returned to Detroit with its four occupants in tow. The moment the two detectives were back in the city Hank drove over to Belle Isle and made sure both Markus and Alec were taken into the emergency repair bay to have their damage mended to ensure they could finally awaken and tell their full story of combat and survival. Connor had elected to remain in the tower to replenish his Thirium as a means of keeping a close eye on Markus and because he didn't trust any human technicians beyond Abby and Joel, and he didn't want Simon to handle all the work by himself. With Abby on maternity leave and Joel already helping Ben's team with the case, Connor felt like his options for technical assistance were momentarily limited.

Josh had taken Alec aside to a private room to begin a simple therapy session while Hank took notes on what had happened. Having the two deviants speaking to one another made Hank wonder if all androids of identical models saw each other as siblings, or if that was some unique to Connor and Lucas. Only after Alec's statement had been taken did the Lieutenant finally go back home to check on Cole and Lucas, and then tell Lucas what had happened while out in Chicago.

"Markus could've died because I was too cowardly to investigate the shipping yard myself." Lucas lamented as he sat out on the back deck with Hank and Bruno as his company. From the corner of his eye Lucas could see Cole sitting at the kitchen table sampling the deep-dish pizza that had been brought back, and he was grateful that the young boy couldn't hear what was being discussed. "How could I let this happen?"

"You know, you and Connor try to put WAY too much responsibility on yourselves." The Lieutenant and father observed as he bit into his own slice of pizza. "No one made Markus go out to that place, he CHOSE to do that by himself. And regardless of who went out there, it was clear that any deviant was going to be jumped, abducted and sent out to that Hellhole. The only people at fault are the fuckers who made a quick buck off abusing androids."

"We're detectives. I'd think you'd be more understanding."

"Don't get me wrong, I do understand WHY you two think that way, I just want you two to know that you're not the center of all crime and justice in the universe."

Unable to let go of his guilt Lucas wrung his hands together nervously as he dared to ask about what was happening in New Jericho Tower. "How is Connor? It's dangerous for any android to donate nearly half of their Thirium reserve to another android."

"He had a pretty bad headache during the drive." There was no point in denying that Connor wasn't feeling great after everything he had done. "Last I saw him; he was sleeping in the tower's recovery room after he drank some Thirium. Still weird that you guys have to drink your blood to get it into your system faster than a transfusion."

"It isn't necessarily faster, it's just more effective to have Thirium that's already been cycled through filters transfused into a battered deviant body so that the battered body doesn't need to go through the filtering process before accepting the added Thirium. Drinking Thirium allows us to filter everything that may be a contaminant before it can get into our lines ensuring that it's clean."

"Still weird to me." There was little else to add to the conversation and Hank decided to shift the topic of discussion. "Wanna' go see Connor at the tower for a while?"

"...No." Reaching down his hand Lucas rubbed Bruno's ears and decided it'd be best to stay where he was. "He has everything under control, and I don't want to accidentally get in the way."

"All right, if you change your mind let me know." Hank had finished off his pizza and decided to get one more slice sitting in the kitchen before he went out to the precinct. "I'm gonna' finish my lunch, take a quick shower and head out to the precinct. Thanks for watching Cole for me, I know he's been loving having you around so much. And by the way, you're NEVER in the way."

Lucas couldn't deny that being able to have alone time with Cole had been a great experience. Not only did Lucas actually feel welcome somewhere that wasn't his own office, but he was able to explore his new hobbies and had found painting to be a peaceful and creative outlet. With a little encouragement from Cole, the reclusive deviant was even able to go outside to the dog park to paint a few trees while Cole played with Sumo and Bruno.

"It seems the only thing that I'm good at is watching over someone who's already quite mature and capable for their young age."

Bruno whined and pressed his paw atop Lucas's knee sadly. 'Lucas is good at being a detective and is good at painting and is good at being Bruno's friend and good at being a brother!'

"Thanks boy." Having the loyalty of a good dog seemed to be Lucas's rock whenever Connor wasn't immediately around to support him. "I'll try to remember that."

---

The tower was a mixture of tension, relief, worry, fear, confidence and rage as the deviants learned of Markus's rescue from the Chicago fighting arena. Many deviants were craving blood as a form of penitence for what had happened in Chicago, whereas just as many wanted to pass laws to legally segregate half of the city to ensure that deviants and humans never crossed paths unless they intentionally crossed borders into a designated open community area. Such words of violence, hatred and discrimination weren't the words that Markus wanted his people to speak and then echo. Until he was able to lead his people once more, such negative thoughts and reactions were going to spread through the tower and potentially cause another rift between the deviants and the humans.

From within the recovery room of the emergency repair bay Connor awoke and ran a self-diagnostic to ensure he was stable. His Thirium reserve was back to one-hundred percent, and his headache had faded entirely. Just as Connor finished cleaning up the used Thirium pouches to be on his way, North entered the room to check on him despite her lingering shame for how she had treated Lucas a few weeks prior making her feel uncomfortable to be in the same room as Connor.

Quickly Connor noticed North watching him from the doorway and could sense that she was anxious to be there. The last thing he wanted to do was divide the leaders of New Jericho or make North spend the rest of her life regretting her past and being unable to embrace her future.

"Markus is going to be all right." Connor stated almost as if he could read North's mind. "Alec is with Josh and will be able to return to his home whenever he's ready."

"I know. I was with Markus for a while and I just-" Crossing her arms over her chest North also crossed the room gracefully as she locked eyes with Connor. "I wanted to make sure you that you were okay too."

"I'm fine." Straightening his posture Connor hoped that his physical exhaustion didn't give North the wrong idea or make her worry. "I'm going to run an errand then return to the precinct to ensure that the case is being handled properly. How are you doing?" It seemed wrong to acknowledge North's own struggles while addressing the heaviness radiating throughout the tower. "With Dr. Grayson currently-"

"She actually contacted me late last night. Dr. Grayson said that the patch is nearly finished, she just wants to run it through a debugging program to ensure that nothing was overlooked and that it'll do what it's supposed to do."

"That's great news!" Connor's reaction was sincere as he didn't want anything bad to befall anyone for any reason. "You're going to be okay."

"Yeah. I guess I'm lucky that this error was found before it started affecting my systems in a more destructive manner."

"Let me know when you're going to get the patch uploaded. I want to make sure you're not alone."

"Markus has already volunteered to be with me." North admitted with a faint glow of love in her eyes. "Don't worry, I won't be alone."

Connor felt a strange twinge of welcome familiarity as he realized that North's emotional attachment toward Markus had begun to blossom just as it had in the original timeline. It was fascinating to see proof that love seemingly knew no bounds and could defy time and space itself.

"I'm glad everyone came home safely." Continuing on North gave Connor a kind and gracious smile as she let him know what had happened while he was out in Detroit rescuing Markus and Alec. "By the way, Lucas told us what had happened and kept us from losing hope that Markus would come back to us. Tell him I said 'thank you'."

"...I will, but I think it'd be more meaningful coming directly from you."

North just smiled at Connor as she turned around to take her leave of the recovery room. She didn't want to keep the deviant detective from his errand or his work.

"Things are beginning to feel stable at last."

Taking a moment to breathe while he was alone was crucial to helping the deviant detective feel stable as well. It had been months since he felt like he could just stand around without needing to go somewhere, do something or help someone. Such a stressful mindset wasn't healthy and being aware of how he was harming himself through overthinking only exasperated his mental state.

"If I can just find closure with my unusual past, then I should be able to keep my future stable as well."

A new self-appointed mission was at hand, and Connor was bound and determined to accomplish his mission.

As he walked out of the recovery room of the tower Connor winced slightly as a small ache passed through his chest prompting another self-diagnostic. There was nothing of immediate concern that his system had detected as the prototype attempted to stay on top of his system at all times. He couldn't risk any complications due to the rarity of his model and design making long term maintenance far more delicate than the average commercial android.

Passing by the repair bay gave Connor pause as he thought about checking in with Markus's repair procedure but decided against it. He knew that Markus was in good hands and that he had plenty of people watching his back while he recovered. It was time to stop worrying and time to start moving forward from personal tragedy, emotional turmoil and physical struggles.

"I'll be back as soon as you're ready to talk, Markus. I want to hear everything you have to say."

Continuing on his way Connor pressed his palm over the center of his chest and preconstructed his next move to ensure he managed to handle his personal tasks without falling behind or getting distracted. Having his priorities in check gave Connor a sense of control despite being surrounded chaos and cleaning up one nasty mess one calculated step at a time.

---

The Central Precinct was surrounded by news reporters and cameras as every eye was watching how the case regarding the incident Chicago was going to be handled by the professionals. That type of nosy commotion wasn't unusual for Hank to endure since he had been at the heart of the task force that brought down a massive 'red ice' ring just a few years prior. The man even had a lot of buzz around his name due to his promotion to Lieutenant being a historic moment for Detroit. Despite his familiarity with the spotlight the seasoned Lieutenant only had so much patience to offer when it came to dealing with hundreds of questions being asked by people who had no reason to know the gory details beyond just trying to get higher ratings than their competing anchors reporting the same story.

Courtesy of Captain Fowler's own legendary interrogation tactics ensuring full cooperation from the entire employee roster from the corrupt shipping yard, the investigating officers were able to put the pieces together and charge every person who played a role in the illegal fighting arena's existence. The investigation was seemingly going to be closed in record time, and with that closure came a sense of success that would become as important as it was infamous as the incident etched its presence into deviant history.

"Fuckers folded like a bad hand at a poker tournament." Hank praised how effective Captain Fowler's interrogations had been. "Too bad you couldn't get them to piss their pants the way Connor did."

"We got enough shit to clean up as it is, why add to the mess?"

Hank just chuckled at the quip as he and Captain Fowler convened outside the interrogation room and into the heart of the bullpen. The two senior detectives glanced about and noticed that two of their most promising detectives were curiously absent, and the duo wondered where they had gone.

"I figured Connor would've been here by now." The Lieutenant noted as he checked on the little bonsai on Connor's desk to make sure it didn't need any water or a quick trip outside into the sunlight. "I guess he's sticking close to Markus for now."

"I don't blame him." Homing in on Tina as the young officer held her phone between both hands and stared at the screen with a massive grin on her face gave Captain Fowler a clue as to where Gavin was at that very moment. "As for Reed..."

"The timing does seem right." Hank confirmed as he knew exactly what Captain Fowler was thinking. "Ten bucks says she went into labor at two in the morning."

"No way, I know better than to bet on something like that."

Chris passed by the two detectives with a mug of coffee and flashed the two superior officers a knowing look. "Should've taken the bet! Abby went into labor at about two-fifteen this morning, and get this, Gavin had to deliver his own baby!"

Hank flashed Chris an amused look whereas Captain Fowler looked terrified. The seasoned Captain didn't doubt Gavin's ability to handle an emergency delivery, but he knew that Gavin was going to be feel a tad unusual for a while since it was his wife and his baby he needed to help.

"Tina's got the details, but she promised Gavin to NOT say anything because Gavin wants to tell everyone himself." As he walked over to his own desk Chris grinned at the photo of his own son and then gave Captain Fowler a sly glance. "Wanna' bet ten bucks that Gavin's still shaking and that's why he hasn't officially spread the good news yet?"

Raising both hands submissively before himself Captain Fowler declined the offer and headed toward his private office. "I make it a personal rule to never bet with another detective."

"Smart rule."

Proud to know that there was a fellow father now a part of the precinct, Hank made a mental note to get a few gifts to celebrate and to let Cole know that he'd have a new, young playmate to meet in a few days. As much as he wanted to send a congratulatory text to Gavin and Abby, and let Connor know what was happening, he decided against it and respected the new parents' wishes to keep things a little quiet for a little while longer.

"Things are really looking up for everyone right about now."

Dropping down into his chair Hank looked over at the empty desk across from himself and couldn't help but wonder about Connor. Where the deviant had gone and why he was being so quiet were the two big questions Hank wanted answered.

"Let's just hope that positive flow hits Connor and Lucas too. If anyone deserves a break from all the shit luck happening these days, it's those two."

---

The warmth of the afternoon sun began to fade as evening neared and the summer heat began to cool. It was oddly appropriate to be accompanied by a slightly cooler atmosphere as Connor wandered through the cemetery in search of a specific headstone to pay his respects to someone he never even knew existed until his memories had been affected by trauma and a secret tragedy had been revealed to him by Kamski and Hank. Learning of the origins behind his very existence and of how Kamski had created his design to be entirely unique from the other android models had been bittersweet knowledge. However, it was discovering that his design was nothing more than an experiment to placate Kamski's curiosity and desire to achieve immortality that made the deviant detective actually feel violated in a way that he couldn't quite put into words.

As he passed through the quiet, well-kept and serene cemetery grounds Connor found himself to be oddly alone and with that isolation came a sense of trespassing. It was as if he wasn't supposed to be there and would never be welcome in such a place when his own time came to cease existence.

Standing before the headstone that he had sought was as unsettling as Connor had feared it'd be. Laying peacefully in the earth beneath his feet was the very human who was responsible for his own life and appearance. The final resting place of Connor Wolf was silent, peaceful and oddly contemplative for Connor, the android formerly sent by CyberLife to destroy his own people.

"This seems very inappropriate, yet I'm just here to pay my respects."

Connor knelt before the headstone and pulled a small white lily from the interior of his blazer's lapel. The gesture of respect was one that was important for Connor to show even without any audience to witness his display.

"I'm aware of your past, and a part of me is angry that you were denied a better future because you chose to do the right thing. There's another part of me that is relieved to know that you'll never know another day of suffering or be haunted by nightmares from your past. I can take solace in knowing that you're at peace and no longer suffering, but it feels hollow and selfish."

Connor pressed his palm over his heart as he spoke and recounted the abysmal past he had uncovered around Connor Wolf.

"Your mother was killed after your father beat her to death while she was still pregnant with you. You beat the odds and survived after your premature birth, and continued to survive when the courts failed to protect you and actually allowed your murderous father to have custody over you simply because they couldn't be bothered to effectively charge him with your mother's murder. No one deserves such a horrible beginning to life such as the one you were given, let alone a violent ending that your mother received. In a way, your father taking his own life was a befitting end to the life that he chose to live and squander."

The worst part of being a detective was learning horrendous truths that many people would go out of their way to hide, deny or completely forget about.

"After you were legally emancipated as a minor you focused on bettering your life and became a paramedic. You were on your way here to Grand Rapids to look for work when you witnessed a hit and run accident with a car versus a semi-truck. From what I was told, you rescued the lone passenger from their burning vehicle and when you were carrying them to safety the gas tank of the vehicle ruptured and sent a massive amount of debris rocketing through the air. You were struck from behind in the skull and were left with severe brain damage."

Telling someone about their own injuries and their ultimate fate felt oddly out of place. No one should be told about their life from an outsider speaking to them at their fresh grave.

"You spent just over two years in a persistent vegetative state with no sign of recovery. Last month, your condition sudden deteriorated from a previously undiagnosed heart condition. You developed endocarditis, an infection within your heart, and your body was too weak to fend off the infection. You passed away peacefully with a nurse holding your hand."

Such a tragic ending was difficult to speak about, even with someone who was a total stranger that at one point bore Connor's own face and voice.

"The man you saved that night of the accident was Elijah Kamski. He spent his time since the accident paying for your hospital stay and had even experimented with the prospect of transferring the consciousness of the human mind into the body of an android. He... succeeded when he tested his research on you. But his success wasn't as complete as he had anticipated."

Connor didn't remember his time as a human or of the abusive childhood that his human counterpart had survived. The only thing that seemed to successfully transfer from one mind to the next were the instincts to protect others and a sense of mistrust in the entire world.

"Whether it was chance or fate, I ended up meeting a woman who spent time with you when you were in foster care during your earliest childhood days. She doesn't know anything about what happened to you or how you're connected with me, but Evelyn Blythe is doing very well with her life and career. It was strange how she seemed familiar to me when I first met her, then I realized it was one of your faint memories that allowed me to recognize her beyond just a name."

Having a handful of good memories from his human's life would be considered a rare gift that Connor would treasure forever.

"While a part of you will live on through me, everything you had accomplished and wanted to accomplish will unfortunately not live on. I'm a detective, not a paramedic as you had been. I'm also living in Detroit, not here in Grand Rapids."

Placing the flower over the gravestone Connor made sure that he told his deceased human counterpart the entire truth of his life and promised to make sure his own life gifted through the human's death was not a waste.

"I'm not sure of your plans for a family after everything you had gone through, but I think I'd like to have one. I already have adopted a brother - he too bears your likeness and voice - and I have been unofficially adopted as an older brother by a young boy. He's the son of my partner at the precinct, and we've begun to coexist peacefully after he stopped seeing me as just a machine and was able to see me as the person that I am. The person that you allowed to exist by your own sacrifice."

Placing his palm down on the gravestone Connor paid his final respects to the man he'd never meet yet owed his entire existence to.

"I will do everything in my power to respect your memory as a person and live a life that's worth such sacrifice. I'll continue to help people and I will continue to strive to experience a healthy, loving family to ensure that you will continue to live on through me beyond just a name and a face."

Stepping back from the grave Connor gave the site one last somber stare before taking his leave of the cemetery to begin his lengthy drive back to the city. The autonomous van allowed the deviant detective to travel without inconveniencing other people and by being autonomous it allowed Connor to get some rest without putting himself or other travelers in danger.

By putting his past behind him - a past he had never known existed - Connor felt as if a smothering fog from his mind had been lifted. The concept of closure and bereavement was crucial to proper mental and emotional health, and now the deviant was able to comprehend and respect such a state of mind.

"I need to return to Detroit and help close the case. Markus should be awake by now and willing to speak about his own tragic experiences."

---

Life back at the house was seemingly boring and uneventful after Cole got an invitation for a camp-out with his teammates, and promptly packed up a bag to stay the night with his friends. Lucas knew he was welcome to roam the house and visit whenever he wanted to just stop by and chat with his brothers, but even so he felt like he was intruding by being inside the house without anyone else to keep him company. Needing to keep himself distracted and feeling like he was doing something that was actually useful and constructive, Lucas took care of Sumo to ensure he was fed, had water and didn't need to go outside. Afterward, he decided to face his fear and head out to New Jericho Tower alone; leaving Bruno behind to keep Sumo company while everyone was out of the house.

Lucas forced himself to walk to the tower and prove to himself that he could live in the city without needing to fear for his life at every given second that he was alone or out of his office. The anxious deviant could feel his heart thundering in his chest with mounting anxiety the further he walked away from the safety of the house and away from the security of his office. Only after he reached the long drive connecting Belle Isle to the rest of the city did Lucas feel his heart rate beginning to slow down and his anxiety dissipating.

"I did it. I'm here at last!"

Moving on autopilot and without a second thought in his head Lucas focused on the glowing beacon of New Jericho Tower and kept his eyes on his goal.

"I managed to traverse from one side of the city to the other side without any incident or making any mistakes."

The length of the drive quiet, private gave Lucas adequate time to think out loud as he assessed his minor victory. Discussion of android mental health was still minimal, and as a result it seemed the only way to truly determine the emotional triggers for android anxiety was through lengthy and very personal discussions with other deviants who could be trusted with such burdening knowledge.

It seemed the only positive outcome to what Markus had survived would be the improvement in android care for emotional and mental trauma. In time, Lucas knew that he'd find the courage to speak up and express his own past issues so that he could begin a slow but steady healing process.

After Lucas passed through the front doors of the tower he found himself in the main lobby with only a handful of other deviants roaming around. Glancing about the area Lucas noticed his brother sitting in the community area situated to the far left of the lobby with a hunched posture, closed eyes and almost statuesque stillness that was rather unnerving to see. The deviant detective had his palm pressed to the center of his chest as if he was trying to quell the pain of concealed injury as he sat in silent contemplation.

"Connor?" Slowly Lucas approached his big brother and watched as Connor's eyelids opened to reveal his soulful brown irises. There was an unnerving glaze over his vision that gave Lucas momentary pause. "Have you been here all day?"

"No." Sitting up with a slightly improved posture Connor watched as Lucas walked over and joined him on the long, leather couch in the otherwise empty community room. "I had gone to Grand Rapids after I replenished my Thirium reserve, and then I returned here to get Markus's statement after he regained consciousness."

"You went to the cemetery." Mindful of the sensitivity of the situation Lucas approached the topic very carefully. "Were you able to find a sense of peace?"

"Yes. I... It was strange, but after I spoke to the gravestone - to him, actually - it was as if I had managed to finally close a case that had been left cold and open for far too long." Wincing slightly Connor's fingers curled into the fabric of his white dress shirt beneath his black tie as his grip tightened over his chest. "It feels as if I can finally live my life for myself."

Lucas didn't reply to the positive comment. Instead, his brow knit slightly as he scanned over Connor's system and looked for any sign of error, glitch or distress within his brother's current condition.

"As for Markus," without even noticing Lucas's curious behavior Connor continued to bring his little brother up to speed on everything happening. "he's going to have a difficult time with moving on after everything that he's been through."

"I imagine so." Keeping his eyes on Connor with a keen sense of observation Lucas could only faintly detect that something was amiss. Every few minutes Connor's Thirium pump would falter with seemingly no explanation and caused his heart to skip beats due to the irregular rhythm. "May I ask what happened to him in Chicago that the media hasn't already reported?"

With words as heavy as stone Connor relayed the brutal scene and of what Markus was forced to do in order to survive and to keep Alec from being destroyed. The way Markus had to put Miles out of his misery, performed for the bloodthirsty crowd, faked his own death and did everything that he could to give himself more time to forge an escape plan had left everyone who heard the story heartbroken on the deviant leader's behalf. Connor himself knew how it felt to be responsible for the death of another deviant, and he knew that Markus would need counseling and support for many months, perhaps even years, to come.

"That's twice Markus has survived Hell and found his way back to the light." Connor noted as he let out a sharp breath and gazed upward as if trying to see Markus through the layers of floors and ceiling even as his friend rested within the secured privacy of his personal quarters. "It won't be easy, but with time and patience he will be all right."

"I also imagine he'll feel better resting at the mansion with Mr. Manfred close by."

"Damn it." Bowing his head in embarrassed shame Connor huffed and lowered his hand from his chest. "I was asked by Mr. Manfred to inform him when Markus was back in the city and safe. I didn't tell him anything, but I imagine the news has done so already."

"It's not too late to speak with Mr. Manfred." Standing up with a new purpose Lucas extended his hand toward Connor as he spoke. "We'll go together."

As Lucas offered him his hand Connor realized that Lucas had managed to get to the tower on his own and that Cole wasn't anywhere around. "How... did you get here anyway? And where's Cole? I know that Hank is still at the precinct."

"Cole is with friends at a camp-out, and yes, Hank said it was okay. As for me, I faced my fears and walked to the tower."

"H-How did I... not notice this until now? How could I be so... indifferent?"

"Brother," reaching out slowly Lucas took hold of Connor's shoulder and gave him a concerned glance. "I suspect that you may have a minor error at the moment that's affecting your memory, your overall comprehension and even your Thirium pump's ability to function."

"An... error?"

"Please come with me to the emergency repair bay. I'd feel better if you had another examination to ensure that your rapidly depleted Thirium reserve didn't cause an underlying condition that had eluded immediate detection."

"I'm beginning to suspect that you may be right." Accepting Lucas's hand Connor stood up slowly and still managed to get dizzy and wobble on his feet for a few seconds before regaining his balance. "I've been... experiencing erratic pump beats throughout the day. I had initially attributed it to my Thirium reserve being dangerously low for a prolonged period of time, but even after having my reserve fully replenished I am still experiencing the irregular pump beats."

"Let me escort you to the repair bay."

"No, I don't want anyone here to know that I may be experiencing a malfunction." Connor quickly set up a cybernetic line of communication to keep his discussion with Lucas private while in a public setting. 'With Markus currently incapacitated and North still enduring her own error, my own malfunction could give the impression that the five chosen leaders in charge of New Jericho are unfit for the tasks and responsibilities bestowed upon us.'

'You can't ignore a potential issue with your Thirium pump.' Lucas argued with logic and reason against Connor postponing an examination. The idea of his brother suffering from such a serious error frightened the deviant in a manner he hadn't felt before. 'Such a willfully dangerous act would have a far more negative impact on our people and set a poor example for them to follow.'

'I won't burden Simon or Josh with my own potential technical issues. We can't let anyone here know that I may have an error.'

'Being ill is NOT a burden. No one asks to become ill or physically, mentally or emotionally incapacitated, and as a result no one should ever view their plight to be a burden to those who want to help.' It didn't take Lucas long to uncover the real reason that Connor was reluctant to see a technician for help, yet the way he had described his own situation flew right over his head. 'I know that you trust Dr. Grayson with your care and to keep your condition entirely secret from any potential gossip, but she is still on maternity leave. You can't wait for her to return to work and let your condition deteriorate.'

'We aren't even certain that I do in fact have a detrimental error.' Connor's hand to returned to his heart as another erratic beat caused a passing ache. There was no denying that something was wrong with his system in some capacity. 'I'll go to the repair only IF you run the tests with Simon or Josh noticing.'

'Me? Why do you want-'

'Because I trust you.' Closing his eyes for a moment Connor tried to focus his self-diagnostic on his Thirium pump but again an inconclusive result had been found. 'I know that if there is something wrong with me that you'll find it and be able to find a way to assist me.'

Lucas was hesitant to accept such an important request as his lacking self-confidence continued to stunt his willingness to try anything beyond his programmed scope of abilities. Had Connor not looked so ill and appeared to be weakening as they spoke Lucas knew that he wouldn't have pushed himself to reluctantly agree to the unusual request and assist his brother in private.

'All right, let's go quickly before anyone takes notice of us speaking through a concealed cybernetic line.'

'Thank you.'

Moving discreetly Lucas put one hand to Connor's upper back to guide him to the nearby elevator to ascend to the correct floor. The more timid of the two brothers didn't want the responsibility of confirming Connor's condition, yet he didn't want the responsibility to fall on anyone else's shoulders. There was a very strange emotion compelling Lucas to aid Connor despite his own pleas for Connor to see an actual technician for proper care.

Was it fraternal loyalty? Perhaps even brotherly bonding.

Regardless of what was driving Lucas forward he knew that deep down he was doing the right thing even though it felt like he was going about it the wrong way.

---

Carefully and quietly, Hank peered out of one of the side windows of the precinct's breakroom and watched the media circling the building like a flock of vultures ready to peck a freshly dropped carcass clean. Every news outlet in Detroit was trying to get the biggest break on the historic case and it seemed as if the reporters were willing to camp in the precinct parking lot in order to ambush any detective who was unfortunate enough to catch their attention. Sipping his coffee and popping a few apple slices in his mouth gave Hank the extra energy he needed to put up with such self-gratifying behavior from the apathetic people who only feigned empathy and sympathy whenever it'd peak the ratings for a few precious hours.

Tina joined Hank in spying on the pesky reporters as she sipped at her warm tea and waited for an update from Gavin regarding Abby and their newborn baby from the hospital. Not being able to spread the good news, visit everyone at the hospital and shower the new family with gifts, was starting to drive her crazy. Though she wasn't a gossip by any means, Tina was a free spirit who hated having limitations that put a damper on her positive mood.

"Easy, Tina." Hank saw that the young officer was practically drooling as she rhythmically turned her attention from the window to her phone and then back to the window again. He knew what was on her mind and understood her frustrations. "The moment Gavin's ready to share the news I know he'll give you the green light to celebrate and turn the birth of yet another baby in a world of a billion already born babies into an entirely unique, once in a lifetime event."

"I appreciate your enthusiasm in my skills to turn an everyday mundane miracle into a monumental miracle."

"Did you tell your mom yet?"

"No..." Whining slightly Tina sighed and finally put her phone away to stop herself from losing her remaining patience. "Mama adores Gavin, and I know she'll want to know that she's an honorary grandmama so she can spoil everyone with some good food and super soft blankets."

"Hard to believe that Gavin's finally a dad, huh?"

"Yeah. It seemed like he had given up on finding true love after the Patricia incident and his high school ex-boyfriend being an absolute psycho!" Glancing back at the bullpen Tina put her empty mug aside and helped herself to one of the remaining apples on the counter as she resumed her own watch over the media in the parking lot. "I wonder who'll be next to be the proud new parent."

"Well, I know you love kids..."

"But I hate the idea of raising a kid ALONE. Mama had to do that for me and my sister after papa died, and even though she never complained, I know it was hard for her to do by herself."

"You'll always have Gavin, me, Chris, Ben, Jeffrey and even Connor to help ya' out if you need anything."

"That doesn't mean I'd always have the help I that need when I readily need it." Turning away from the window Tina peered out at the now quieter bullpen and looked at Gavin and then Connor's empty desks with a sense of intrigue. "Where is Connor, anyway?"

"At the tower talking to Markus. He should be back with his statement soon enough."

"How's Connor doing? I mean, having to rescue a friend from a situation like that must've been absolute Hell!"

"It was hard, but he persevered." Stepping back from the window Hank decided to text Connor and get an update on the deviant detective so that he could either wait for the deviant detective at the precinct or go to the tower to pick him up in person. "It's gonna' take a lot more than a couple of assholes with a lust for money to take someone like Connor or Markus down, that's for damn sure."

---

The repair bay of New Jericho Tower was one of the most advanced repair bays in all of Detroit considering Simon and Josh managed to convert CyberLife's old, heartless, testing and diagnostic labs into a much more welcoming and safer environments for deviants to go. However, the numerous diagnostic modems, monitors and pieces of technical equipment that were designed with deviant comfort in mind did little to ease the worries of any and all deviants who needed to seek technical assistance and treatment. The modified tools resembled medical instruments used on humans to help confirm that androids and humans were truly equals, and in the end, it seemed to prove that just as many deviants disdained seeing a technician as humans loathed needing to go to the doctor.

Laying over the chilly exam table with his shirt opened and a total of ten wireless leads attached to his exposed chest made Connor feel truly vulnerable. His fear of technicians was prevalent even with his own brother taking care of him as his elevated vital signs made it a little difficult for Lucas to determine if the unusual readings were a result of Connor being stressed out or from the bizarre error plaguing his system.

"Try to relax, brother." Lucas encouraged as he waited for the diagnostic modem to finish checking Connor's system. The cable attached to Connor's right temple was shaking a little as Connor himself trembled with a visible fear. "You know that I'm not going to hurt you or perform any invasive tests."

"This room is where countless androids were tested on, tortured and torn apart by cold human technicians." Closing his eyes Connor kept himself from running a scan over the room to look for evidence of the past crimes against deviantkind. "It's difficult to relax knowing what has gone happened in this very room on top of being uncertain of what's happening inside my own body."

"We'll figure this out. Perhaps it'd be best if you entered a light stasis mode to allow your vital signs to level off."

"No. I wish to remain awake."

"Very well, that's your choice and I will respect it." Eyeing the diagnostic modem and the Thirial activity monitor recording Connor's vital signs helped Lucas to gauge how well the deviant detective was enduring the stressful situation. Another erratic beat appeared on the monitor, then was immediately followed by another and another until Connor's pump entered an unusual arrhythmia that caused Connor to wheeze slightly. "How do you feel right now?"

"L-Like my heart c-can't slow down." Feeling the icy cool bell of the audioscope being pressed down against his chest over his heart only made his pump skip another beat in response. "S-Something's wrong with my pump."

"I can hear faltering that only manifests between the erratic beats." Lucas confirmed as he moved the bell of the instrument carefully over Connor's chest. "This isn't being caused by your Thirium pump regulator, this is an error within the pump itself."

"Wh-What does the diagnostic say?"

"One moment." Casually Lucas draped the audioscope around his neck as if he were an actual technician as he checked the modem's readout. "It's detecting an error with your left ascending Thirial coupling. It seems the coupling wasn't properly welded upon its initial construction, and it's now leaking Thirium from the line itself due to being unable to properly allow Thirium to flow through the failing coupling."

"...S-Sounds like mitral valve st-stenosis in humans." Connor swallowed nervously as he looked up at Lucas and reminded him of someone unique who had such a ailment that ultimately led to their death due to the ailment not being detected until further complications set in. "Connor Wolf had such a heart c-condition."

"It's a coincidence, brother." The way Connor sounded genuinely afraid suddenly gave Lucas the courage he needed to be confident on Connor's behalf. "This is a condition that can be corrected with the right technician's care."

"H-How many t-technicians can d-do this procedure?"

"Checking..." Lucas cybernetically began checking through Detroit's verified technician's roster in an attempt to locate a technician who was properly skilled and trained for such a procedure. Unfortunately, the list was very narrow and didn't bode well for Connor. "There are two technicians currently certified for such a procedure in the city of Detroit. The first is Dr. Grayson, of whom we know is unavailable at this time."

"And who's th-the second?"

"...Elijah Kamski."

"No!" Sitting up quickly Connor suddenly felt dizzy and nearly blacked-out as the abrupt motion undoubtedly caused his racing pump to leak additional blue blood into his chest and weaken his condition. Feeling only Lucas's palm beneath his head as he was guided back down Connor fought to express his feelings about his only option at the moment. "Not... Not Kamski."

"You may not be able to wait for Dr. Grayson to return from her maternity leave. We're discussing your heart." With Connor now lying flat again Lucas promptly pressed his fingertips along Connor's right temple around the diagnostic cable to manually activate light stasis mode to help his brother calm down and lower his elevated vital signs to a more manageable level. "I won't watch you deteriorate and potentially shutdown."

"Please... I d-don't trust Kamski." Resting his palm over his chest Connor struggled to keep his eyes open and communicate with Lucas as his little brother hovered protectively over him. "He... He forced that upgrade on me without my consent. Don't know wh-what else he m-might try to do to me."

"I'll stay beside you from beginning to end and ensure that Kamski doesn't meddle with your programming or system beyond the absolutely necessary repairs strictly to your Thirium pump."

"C-Can't... risk it." Losing the battle against stasis mode, Connor's voice trailed off as his eyes closed and body went limp. "Won't... Won't go."

"Connor?"

Unsure of what to do or who to consult for advice, Lucas decided to hold his tongue and help Connor keep his condition secret for a little while longer. There was always a solution to any problem, there just no definite timeframe for when such solutions could be found.

"Rest for now. Once your vital signs have stabilized I'll take you back home to rest and simply tell Hank that you needed extended recovery time due to your prolonged Thirium transfusion with Markus. No one else needs to know about this as long as we can keep it under control."

---

Time passed by quickly over the following week as the interest around the fighting area in Chicago began to fade from Detroit. There was no doubt that Chicago was still reeling from the infamous case damaging the city's already delicate reputation, but that was for Chicago's finest to handle while Detroit attempted to resume normal life without any bitterness or resentment to sully the fragile coexistence between humans and deviants. With the case being handled properly, all evidence chronicled, and the necessary witness statements taken, the horrible crimes against the affected deviants were going to see the light of justice once the trial began and every guilty human was dragged before the mercy of a judge and jury.

In that time Markus was making great strides in his recovery while at the mansion and in the company of his father, and Alec had been reunited with his human friend Robert. All of the murdered deviants were properly identified and brought back to Detroit to have their last rites granted as they were laid to rest at the previously abandoned church that New Jericho adopted as a secondary sanctuary. A large ceremony was held to honor their memories and was led by Markus himself despite his lingering weakness to show that he was still a strong and compassionate leader despite everything he had suffered through.

'It was a brilliant and respectful service; I was honored to be a part of it.' Connor cybernetically relayed to his friend as he sat quietly at his desk in the bullpen to handle his paperwork and file reports. 'Are you at the tower or did you return to the mansion?'

'I'm back home with Carl.' Markus confirmed as he tried to get back some form of normalcy as his abnormal experience in Chicago. 'I needed to be there to honor our fallen people, but I don't need to be at the tower when I have five friends who can take care of things in my stead.'

'Five friends?'

'Yeah. You, North, Simon, Josh and Lucas.'

Hearing Lucas being included in Markus's trusted circle did Connor's damaged heart some good. 'Thank you for bringing Lucas into New Jericho.'

'Don't thank me for welcoming one of our into a place where everyone should feel welcome to begin with.'

'I'm going to thank you anyway. How's North doing?'

'Dr. Grayson said she'd be stopping by the tower this afternoon to drop off the patch, and that she'd make sure that Simon knows everything about it to ensure that it's installed correctly without her needing to constantly check in on North.'

'I'm impressed that she's able to do that so soon after giving birth.' Connor had learned of the good news after Hank told him in person the same night that Lucas had taken him home to rest after his heart condition had been discovered. 'We'll need to make sure our people know that Dr. Grayson at the Zeta Facility is a true ally to any and all deviants in need of assistance.'

'You're right. We need more technicians to help protect our people, and it's important that the technicians who are truly skilled and to be trusted are protected by us just as we'd protect our people here in the tower.'

'Considering Dr. Grayson is married to a detective; I'd surmise that it's safe to say she is well protected and will be safe at any given time.'

'And how about you? I know you gave me so much of your Thirium to keep me alive, are you doing well and are you safe?'

'I am as well as I could be.' It wasn't a total lie since Connor omitted his own error going on at the moment. Glancing over at Hank across from him Connor made sure that the Lieutenant wasn't secretly observing him or worrying about something he couldn't assist with. 'As for being safe, I currently live with a police Lieutenant and have a protective detective brother watching my back. I'm fairly safe.'

'I'm glad to hear it. Let me know if anything changes with the case in Chicago, I... I need to know that everything that's gone on wasn't just a song and dance to keep the pressure off of the police.'

'I promise that Detroit and Chicago are going to work together to bring justice to our people. Hank and I are handling the case here, and a detective that I met in Chicago has sworn to do everything in her power to keep the case moving forward until the trial commences. We won't be denied what our people are rightfully owed.'

'Then we have nothing to fear. I'll speak to you later, my friend.' Even while recovering Markus had a busy schedule to keep and didn't want to let any of his responsibilities slide by mistake. 'I need to assist Carl with his gallery, be with North when she receives the patch and I'm going to work with Josh to extend our assistance out to the asylum.'

'Take care, Markus. I'll speak to you again when I have an update to share.' As he ceased his cybernetic line Connor made a conscious effort to not reach for his chest as another erratic beat caused him pain. It was becoming increasingly difficult to hide his condition, especially since this leaking Thirial line required him to consume more Thirium than usual to replenish his reserve. "Markus is doing well with his recovery, and it seems that everything at the tower is stable."

"Good to hear." Hank was leaning against his elbow with his chin in his palm as he halfheartedly typed on his keyboard with his free hand. "Now, do you ya' wanna' tell me what's going on with you?"

Pausing for a moment Connor felt his heart skip another beat as fear of being called-out ran through his mind. "...Huh?"

"For the past week you've been drinking way more Thirium than usual, sleeping a lot more, and you're choosing to handle paperwork instead of going out on patrol or handling in-field investigations." Getting right to the point Hank made it clear that Connor's unusual behavior hadn't eluded him. "At first I thought you were just redirecting all of your attention on that Chicago bullshit and were recovering from that massive blue blood donation you did, but I know something else is going on."

"I assure you that I have everything in my life under control."

"That doesn't mean you couldn't use a little help every now and then."

"Which is why I've been speaking with Lucas to ensure that if something unfortunate does happen that someone will be right there to assist me."

Leaning back in his chair Hank couldn't stop himself letting out a disappointed exhale through his nose at that particular answer. "Oh."

"Is... something wrong?" Such a reaction wasn't one that Connor was expecting. "You seem to be upset."

"It's nothing, kid." Backing off for the time being Hank decided to focus on his work and make sure Cole's little league game was still on schedule. "Don't worry about me. You got shit under control."

Before the deviant detective could even hazard a guess behind Hank's suddenly glum shift in mood a notable squeal of adoration echoed across the bullpen as Tina eagerly rushed over to meet Gavin and Abby as they stopped by the precinct to introduce their daughter to the world. Such a drastic shift in mood nearly gave Connor whiplash since everyone seemed to perk up at seeing the newborn baby girl swaddled in her purple blanket being held protectively in her father's arms.

"Finally!" Tina beamed as she bent down to look at the baby's tiny face. "She is TOO cute!"

"She got that from me." Abby proudly boasted as she hung on to Gavin's arm and gave him a playful smile. "With any luck, she just inherited Gavin's mouth and not mine."

"She's got the best from the both of us, babe." Gavin gently passed the baby over to Tina as he introduced his daughter to everyone. "Well, she's finally here. Aria Kimberly Reed. And if anyone even thinks of saying or doing anything to my little girl, I will personally take you out back and-"

"That's enough, tiger." Pulling on Gavin's arm Abby reminded him to take it easy. "She's surrounded by cops who'd take a bullet for you, so I know that if anyone does anything to Aria that they'd volunteer to hide a body for us."

"Damn right!" Tina agreed as she rocked Aria gently and tried to get a small smile from the tiny baby. "Aunty Tina's not afraid to kick a few asses for lil' Aria!"

Gavin gave Tina a small head shake as he watched her cooing over Aria as she were her own daughter. "Sometimes you scare me, Ti'."

"Only sometimes? Must be losing my touch..."

Connor watched with great curiosity as everyone gathered around to meet Aria and saw how everyone's attitudes immediately changed upon seeing the baby. While a lot of the officers and detectives were excited to see Aria and wanted a turn to hold the little baby and get to know her, others were clearly uncomfortable around such a small and fragile person, and they politely slipped out of the bullpen to avoid any unwanted awkward interactions.

Even Hank's mood improved after he got up to see Aria and have a chance to hold her for a few minutes. The Lieutenant was undoubtedly a family man who adored children and would do everything in his power to keep them safe from all the evils in the world. It was a shame that he lost Barbara when Cole was so young and couldn't bring himself to remarry and have more children after her tragic passing.

"So, how's my favorite patient?" Coyly Abby approached Connor and gave the quiet deviant detective a knowing grin. "Been keeping out of trouble?"

"I do everything I can to avoid issues, yes."

"Doesn't mean they still don't happen."

Suspicious of her comments Connor gave Abby a curious stare and whispered an appropriate reaction. "...Have you been speaking with Lucas?"

"Don't have to." The way Connor had been behaving didn't escape the attentive eye of the technician any more than he had avoided Hank's attention. "I can tell when something's wrong with a deviant, especially one who has a knack for getting into trouble."

"It's not something..." Connor couldn't bring himself to tell Abby what was wrong despite knowing that she could help him. Something about her being a new mother and having a newborn daughter to care for suddenly made his own problems seem inconsequential. "It's a mild error that can be corrected, I'll be fine."

"Is it an error like with North? Or is it something else?"

"The latter, to which I'd rather not discuss."

"Okay, it's your choice. Just know that I'm not just a technician, I'm your friend."

"...I know."

"Good. And as your friend," Abby smoothly took Aria from Chris's arms for a moment before letting her meet Connor for the first time. Everyone was going to get a turn to hold the baby for a few minutes that day. "I want you to meet my daughter."

The idea of holding an infant put Connor on his guard and every preconstruction of what could go wrong suddenly flashed through his mind. "I'm not sure that I-"

"You're going to be fine; I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't think you could handle it." At those words Abby watched Connor's demeanor relax enough that she could place Aria in the crook of his arm and reposition his hands so that he could support her properly. "There we are... See? You're doing just fine."

Connor looked down at the newborn resting in his arms and watched with absolute wonder as Aria stared up at him with her big blue eyes and made small noises of contentment and curiosity. She wasn't afraid of Connor and seemed to know that he was someone she could trust in the event anything happened to her parents. As for Connor, he was still a little afraid of hurting Aria, and yet he couldn't bring himself to hand her back to Abby. He was fascinated with the small baby and felt as if he finally had an understanding of why the concept of families was so important to humans and why it was starting to intrigue his own mind.

"Hi, Aria." The deviant detective wasn't quite sure what to say to a newborn, but he didn't want to be impolite and not acknowledge her. "My name is Connor. It's nice to meet you."

Hank watched the way Connor held Aria and couldn't help but feel as if the sight was entirely natural. It was as if the deviant had been around children all his life.

"She likes you." Abby promised as she watched how easily Aria melted into Connor's supportive embrace. "I think she's going to be far more social than either me or Gavin were as kids. That's good, we want her to feel like she has plenty of people to trust and call her friends."

A ghost of a smirk appeared over Connor's lips as he held Aria for a moment longer before passing her back to Abby to hold. "I swear that she can count on me for anything she may need at any given time."

"Somehow I knew you'd say that." Taking Aria for herself Abby watched her daughter turn to face her and make more little sounds. "Maybe when Gavin and I need a little date night to just ourselves, we could leave Aria with you, Hank and Cole."

Hank overheard the comment and happily volunteered to offer his home for babysitting duty. "Absolutely. That is, if Tina doesn't kick down your door to have some one-on-one time with Aria first."

From her own desk Tina just shrugged her shoulders and nodded somewhat guiltily. "That is something I would totally do too."

"We'll remember that." Abby could see that Aria was getting sleepy and didn't want to deal with a fussy newborn. "Okay, it's time to get this little one back home in her nice soft crib for daddy to look after. Mommy has to go help a special patient, then she can come back home and take a nap right with Aria!"

Gavin happily wrapped his arm around Abby's waist as he walked her out of the bullpen and smiled at Aria the whole time. "We're going to be kickass parents."

"'Going to'?" Abby parroted as she gave Gavin a smug look while they exited the precinct together. "We already are."

"Those two were meant for each other." Tina observed as she readily saved all her photos of Aria to her phone. "And since they can make super cute babies, I think the world is a better place for it!"

Connor felt a little better after meeting Aria and began to contemplate having a family of his own someday once more. As much as he despised Kamski for forcing the unwanted upgrade into his system Connor couldn't help but be tempted to at least try to use what he had been given. Then again, as a detective he knew that his career choice would make being a father or guardian to any child very risky and even selfish for any child to live with.

Then of course came the fear of his current Thirium pump issue. Just as his human counterpart had died from a heart condition, he too was at risking of shutting down from a similar ailment. Being a prototype meant he was also far more vulnerable to such errors, complications and glitches compared to his commercial android brethren.

In Connor's mind the evidence was stacking up against him and made the notion of a family of his own being an impossible, illogical fallacy.

As Connor sat in his own quiet thoughts Hank noticed an e-mail pop up on his terminal screen regarding their current big case. Reading over the e-mail quickly gave the Lieutenant an idea of what to expect next and he brought Connor up to speed. "Well, we got a trial date set for us here in Detroit. Now we need to wait for Chicago to get their trial date set so we can make sure the defendants are transferred back and forth without incident."

"It might be best to request the F.B.I. to escort the defendants on our behalf." As he was pulled back to reality Connor calculated the odds of the arrested men attempting and succeeding at escaping police custody. "I imagine they'd like a chance to redeem themselves after their failures during the Revolution."

"That coward Perkins won't be showing his face around here anymore. It'll be up to us to handle this shit when the time comes." Peering over his terminal screen Hank gave the deviant a focused glance as his blue eyes studied Connor's demeanor closely. Hank's paternal instincts were telling him that something was wrong with Connor, he just couldn't put his finger on what it was. "Think you'll be ready for it?"

"I always am."

"Good to hear. For now, Jeffrey needs you to head up to the dispensary and verify the evidence that Joel collected from the bodies of the other victims has been chronicled, documented and labeled correctly."

As he rose to his feet Connor ignored his dizziness and asked Hank an intriguing question. "...Shouldn't that be Investigator Collins's priority?"

"You're going to verify everything and sign a sworn affidavit regarding the authenticity of Joel's findings, then Ben's going to have his team double-check everything to confirm that there was no bias from a deviant detective who has ties to one of the victims."

"Captain Fowler is making a show of proving that none of his detectives are corrupt and that everything was handled through the proper channels." Connor was impressed with the level of dedication that was being shown toward the case despite a majority of it happening in Chicago. "I understand. Very well, I'll report to Dr. Forrest and ensure that Investigator Collins is notified when I'm finished."

Turning around slowly Connor only managed two steps before another dizzy spell hit him and made him stumble. Catching himself gracelessly against Officer Wilson's desk made everyone turn to look at the deviant in utter confusion. Androids were never clumsy and certainly never tripped.

"Connor?" Calling out to his partner and friend Hank made sure that Connor wasn't in need of some help. "You good?"

"Y-Yes, momentary gyroscopic malfunction." It was a fast lie, one that slipped past Connor's lips alarmingly easily. "I'll be able to recalibrate it soon."

Keeping up with his deceptive behavior was going to be increasingly difficult as his condition deteriorated just as Lucas had feared. Connor knew that Hank was already suspicious of his behavior and that he'd keep asking questions that'd be very hard to avoid answering as time went on. As he entered the elevator Connor cybernetically reached out to Lucas to ask for his help as he reluctantly accepted that he'd need to get his Thirium pump repaired soon.

'Lucas, are you available?'

'At the moment I'm currently working with a client at the closed down "Eden Club".' Sensing something was wrong Lucas immediately asked Connor about his heart and his current status. 'What's wrong?'

'M-My pump seems to be leaking Thirium faster than it h-had been last week.' Bracing himself up against the side of the elevator with his hand Connor pressed the button leading to the second floor with the right and began to pant a little as his breaths became labored. 'I m-must be hemorrhaging internally.'

'Where are you? I'll come and find you!'

'At the... precinct.' Even in his mind Connor couldn't speak clearly due to the pain in his chest and his leaking Thirium collecting all around his struggling heart. 'I'm going t-to see Dr. Forrest.'

'Stay in the dispensary, I'll meet you-'

'T-Take care of your client first.'

'Your heart is starting to fail, brother. You're more important!'

'I'm w-with a technician.' Connor argued as if his potential death was nothing more than a mild inconvenience. 'I'll b-be okay soon.'

'Connor...'

'I will be okay. Just... I just n-needed to let you know.'

As soon as the elevator reached its destination Connor practically fell through the parted doors as he fought to walk down the relatively short hallway and into the dispensary. Supporting as much of his own weight against the side of the wall as possible Connor called out for help and fought to remain conscious after severing his cybernetic link with Lucas.

"J-Joel..." His voice was strained a weak as he stumbled down the hallway and dropped to his knees in the opened dispensary doorway. "I need help."

Stepping out from around his desk Joel immediately rushed over to the door and took Connor's arm to help carry the incapacitated deviant into the dispensary for a proper assessment. "Connor, what happened?"

"I... I can't... breathe." The deviant admitted as the technician carried him over to the exam table to lay down. Reaching his weak hand up to his chest Connor exhaled pathetically and gave the technician a frightened stare. "M-My chest hurts. My... heart. Th-Thirium pump d-defect."

"Your heart?" Once Connor was lying flat on his back on the table Joel pulled open the buttons on the deviant's white dress shirt and saw a growing blue bruise that confirmed that the line and coupling attached to Connor's Thirium pump had begun failing entirely. "Internal Thirium line rupture."

Connor was struggling to breathe, and he was terrified of what was happening to himself. He couldn't do anything about his own biocomponents failing and he could barely communicate with the one person who could help him in that dire moment.

"First I need to find the source of the leak."

Joel explained the process as he placed the wireless leads of the nearby Thirial activity monitor over Connor's chest before he helped Connor to fully remove his shirt entirely.

"Connor," looking down at the deviant's face the calm technician noted the glassy distant gaze forming over Connor's usually alert brown eyes. "how did this happen?"

"I-I have... a d-defective Thirium pump." It was hard to even whisper despite Connor wanting to scream. "C-Coupling. Left a-ascending... Thirial line."

"All right, so nothing that's the result of blunt force trauma." Adjusting the head of the exam table Joel helped Connor to sit upright slightly at a forty-five degree angle to make it easier to breathe. "I'm going to use the sonar wedge to look inside your chest to confirm the source of the line leak. Don't move and stay awake for as long as possible."

Unable to find his voice as he fought to breathe all the deviant could do was watch as the skilled former CyberLife technician worked to save his life.

As he worked with the sonar wedge Joel looked at the attached monitor to check his patient's vital signs. "You're up to one hundred degrees even. Thirium pump is at one-hundred and four beats per minute. Current Thirium pressure and volume are unreadable."

Such a confirmation only made Connor worry more. Fortunately, Joel knew how to keep his patients calm and already knew what Connor desperately wanted to ask.

"Internal leaks can create external pressure against the surrounding biocomponents causing an incalculable reading through sensory readout alone."

Wrapping a Thirium pressure cuff around Connor's bicep Joel noted the more direct reading from a line in his arm as the cuff automatically tightened around the limb and gave a full digital reading on its small display.

"Got it. Pressure is one-hundred over seventy."

Reacting to the emergency situation quickly Joel used the audioscope sitting beside the Thirial activity monitor to listen to Connor's chest. Pressing the bell down gently he listened to Connor's struggling breaths intently, moving the bell from right to the left as he checked on his Thirium pump's overall functionality.

"Right ventilation biocomponent is beginning to falter."

Moving the bell to the other side of his chest, closer to the bruise, Joel felt Connor physically wince in response but remaining focused on his task.

"Left ventilation biocomponent is compromised."

Homing-in on the blossoming bruise Joel listened carefully and looked to the monitor for confirmation.

"Irregular pump rate."

After he finished the preliminary vital check Joel turned on the sonar device and pressed the wedge down against Connor's chest lightly and turned on the device's attached monitor.

"This sonar acts like an echocardiogram in a human. I can see any excess fluid, in this case Thirium, collecting where it should not be."

On the display of the monitor the technician watched Connor's very human looking heart beating rapidly as a mass of collected fluid applied pressure to the absolutely vital biocomponent.

Joel's blue eyes soon zeroed-in on the source of Connor's error and addressed it out loud for his patient to hear the diagnosis. "Thirial effusion. That's when a leak from an internal line of the Thirium pump causes the secondary Thiricardial pouch to swell and fill with blue blood."

Connor felt a twinge of fear as he realized that he may have suffered permanent damage to his heart and hadn't even known it until it was almost too late. "...M-My heart is damaged?"

"Not necessarily. The pouch holds excess Thirium while Thirium pressure recalibration is in progress." Joel replied coolly as he prepared for the next step in treating Connor's critical error. "It's a vital piece of the Thirium pump's structure, but it's also very flexible and was designed to expand to quite an impressive size before rupturing or causing any Thirial arrest."

Unable to catch his breath Connor just watched in a terrified gaze as Joel rolled over a table of sharp and delicate tools to be used on the deviant's body.

"I need to extract the excess Thirium before you Thirium pump becomes compromised from strain and pressure."

With a steady hand Joel held the wedge in place over the deviant's struggling heart and Connor closed his eyes and breathed slowly and as deeply as possible as he tried to ease the building pressure in his chest and tried to remain calm. From the table of tools Joel picked up a massive syringe with a wide hollow point needle at the end. Attached to the syringe was a large cylindrical tube that was designed to hold fifty cubic centimeters of fluid. Grabbing a spare towel from beneath the tray of tools as well the technician prepared for his unusual task at hand.

"It looks much worse than it is." Draping the towel just under the blue bruise on the deviant's chest Joel held up the syringe and gave his patient a stern glance. "I have to extract the fluid without opening your chest panel. If I open the panel, then the external pressure of the plastimetal frame will lessen and the Thirium collecting in the Thiricardial pouch will increase without any resistance and cause the other three couplings of the main Thirial lines to rupture."

"And the b-building... pressure will c-cause my Thirium p-pump... to arrest."

"Yeah, that's right. It won't be pleasant, but it is necessary."

There was a knock on the opened door of the dispensary as Hank made his way into the room to check on Connor. "What the hell's going on? Lucas texted me and said Connor came up here because of an error, and now I overhear some shit about his heart stopping?"

"It's under control, Lieutenant." Joel soothed swiftly as he pressed his left fingertips down over the bruise and placed the tip of the needle between his index and middle fingers. "It's a little long to explain so I'll just sum it up. There's a leak around Connor's heart and I have to drain the excess blood before it stops his heart from beating."

"Ah, fuck..." The answer wasn't nearly as reassuring as Hank hoped as he entered the room to look down at the stricken deviant's face. "Connor, why didn't you tell me that you were sick like this?"

Swallowing once nervously Connor tried to give the senior detective a confident stare as Hank stood at the end of the table. "I-I'll tell you... later. I promise."

Focusing on his work Joel motioned for Hank to take a few steps back so he had some space. "Okay, Connor. Take a deep breath and hold it."

Joel felt the deviant's chest tense up as Connor took in a steady breath. Using controlled pressure and the image from the sonar's display, Joel managed to accurately pierce the needle through his artificial skin and through the flexible lining between plastimetal frame that defined Connor's chest cavity beneath to reach the overfilled pouch of blood.

"You're going to feel a shift in the pressure in your chest, but that's normal."

Retracting the plunger on the end of the syringe Joel began to drain away the excess blue blood from the deviant's heart at a steady pace. Within a few seconds ten c.c.'s of the leaking Thirium had been extracted and Connor's breathing began to ease slightly.

"The excess blue blood was building up and pressing against his left ventilation biocomponent's branching air intake line." Joel explained without needing anyone to ask the obvious questions about what was happening. "Once the blood has been drained his self-healing program will be able to repair the damaged line and stop the leak for a while."

Hank put one hand on Connor's knee to let the deviant know he was there without getting in the way by mistake.

"Fifteen c.c.'s gone." Looking at the amount of drained blood in the syringe helped Joel estimate the severity of the leak in Connor's line. "How do you feel?"

"...My chest feels lighter." The deviant detective responded tiredly from where he was laying. "That's good."

"How's your breathing?"

"Improving." Giving Hank a calm stare Connor decided it was currently the best time to explain to him what had happened. "Last week... I discovered I have a defect in my Thirium pump. I need it to be repaired, but only Dr. Grayson is certified for such a procedure."

Hank was clearly disappointed that Connor still didn't trust him, and he chose to turn his attention to Joel instead. "How long until he heals from this?"

"Forty-eight hours. That'll give his system enough time to repair the damaged line and recalibrate his Thirium pressure."

"Then what?"

"Then he can undergo the repair procedure under Dr. Grayson's care."

"Not gonna' happen for another five weeks." Hank didn't want to be the one to ask Abby to give up even a day of her maternity leave, especially when Connor wouldn't even admit to being sick in the first place. "Can he last that long?"

"It's possible as long as he doesn't do anything strenuous and just rests from now until then, but I wouldn't recommend waiting."

"Well, if she's the only one who can help him then we'll have to find a way to deal with the waiting game."

"Forty-two c.c.'s of blue blood." Joel calculated as he gently pulled the long needle out of Connor's chest and placed the mostly full syringe down on the metal tray beside the exam table. As the needle was extracted Connor let out a shocked gasp of pain and relief. "How do you feel now?"

"I-I feel a little... lightheaded." Connor's brow furrowed and his hand went up to his chest again as if trying to quell some form of discomfort. "My chest... feels..." Trailing off quietly Connor's eyes closed, and his head lolled limply to the side toward Joel. "...wrong."

"Connor?" Putting his palm under the deviant's cheek Joel patted once and tried to get his attention. "Connor, respond."

The attached Thirial activity monitor began to shriek loudly as the deviant's heart rate suddenly spiked and began racing at a dangerously rapid irregular beat. The shrill sound made Hank take a step back as he observed the resulting procedure designed to treat Connor's condition.

"Irregular Thirial tachycardia." Joel announced loudly as he placed one hand over the other and interlaced his fingers together. Pressing his single fist down over the center of Connor's still bruised chest he began to compress the deviant's racing heart in a purposely slow manner to try to change the current heart rate and correct his arrhythmia. "Lieutenant, lower the head of the table, it'll make this easier."

Hank snapped into motion and lowered the table until Connor was lying perfectly flat again. "I don't understand, did the needle aggravate his heart?"

"No, the needle didn't do this. It's not uncommon for the Thirium pump to respond with an irregular rhythm after a pressing weight is removed from alongside it."

"How can I help?"

"You see the green ambubag next to the activity monitor?" Nodding at the instrument Joel continued to guide the detective through a crash-course in emergency android care. "Use that to help him breathe while I get his Thirium pump under control."

Hank's hand nervously grabbed the pump and used it properly as he watched the technician forcing Connor's heart to beat properly. "C'mon, kid. Don't go down like this because of some stupid defect."

Joel stopped compressions long enough to check the activity monitor and outwardly swore. "Shit. The compressions aren't working, I have to shock him."

"Ah, fuck..." Promptly turning his back to the table Hank took a few steps away as he didn't want to see Connor getting defibrilated. "Do what you have to do."

"I hate this as much as you do." Pulling the paddles from the nearby Thirium pump stimulator attached to the monitor, Joel placed the paddles accordingly over the center of Connor's chest and to the left apex of his heart to ensure the charge went clean through his Thirium pump. The machine reached its charge and Joel instinctively made sure everyone was away from the patient's body "Keep back."

As soon as he was certain that everyone was free of the immediate area and out of harm's way Joel prepared to send the charge.

"Sending charge."

Connor's body arched up slightly and fell back against the table as the electric shock was sent through his heart. As everything was happening Hank tried to not think about how Connor's heart had to be shocked back into motion after he and Lucas found him bound and seizing in the abandoned factory on the far side of town.

"Come on, Connor." Joel encouraged the deviant under his care. "Come on..." There was a shuddering 'blip' on the monitor as Connor's heart continued to beat irregularly for a few seconds before falling into a steady normal rhythm. "All right, that did it." Returning the paddles to the stimulator Joel pressed his palm down against Connor's chest to check on the Thirium pump beat under his hand. "Strong pulse."

Turning back around Hank looked at Connor's nearly motionless body with a strange urge to suddenly throw-up.

Once more Joel used his audioscope to listen to Connor's chest carefully as the deviant's Thirium pump continued to thrum with a healthy rhythm. "No faltering in either ventilation biocomponent or his Thirium pump. He's stable and should be waking up in a few minutes."

Attentively Hank stood beside the exam table while Joel wrote down Connor's current vital signs and began writing a report on the incident. "Son, can you hear me?"

The deviant's brow furrowed slightly as his head lolled toward the sound of Hank's voice. Brown irises slowly returned as Connor regained full consciousness and looked up at the senior detective hovering over him. "...Hank."

"Yeah, it's me. You're going to be okay." Despite being angry at Connor for hiding his defect Hank couldn't blame the deviant for keeping secrets. "As soon as Joel determines that you don't need any more observation, I'm taking you home to rest."

Nodding a little Connor pressed his hand over his bruised chest protectively. "I feel terrible."

"Yup, I think a needle to the heart will do that for anyone." Staring at the fading bruise on the deviant's chest Hank seemed slightly calmer. "Your bruise is almost gone already, so that has to help you feel a little better too."

"I promise you that I didn't know how severe my condition-"

"Stop." Placing his hand down on Connor's shoulder Hank leaned casually against the neighboring table and sighed. "Just don't talk right now. Rest."

Falling quiet Connor now understood why Hank was so disappointed earlier when he had denied having any issues. The Lieutenant just wanted to help, and Connor was actively keeping the man at arm's length even after all the progress that had been made between them. It wasn't Connor's intention to keep Hank away, and yet Connor still couldn't seem to let himself forge the strong friendship he had once had with the man in the original timeline. Clearly Connor was still afraid of losing that friendship a second time, or he just couldn't accept that the friendship had been real to begin with.

Regardless of Connor's reasoning, he knew that he had made an egregious error and nearly paid for it with his own life. He couldn't keep letting fear of possible disappointment or mistrust destroy his chances at a healthy friendship or a family.

"...Hank?" Speaking up softly Connor waited for the Lieutenant to look him in the eyes before telling him the truth. "Abby isn't the only technician who could perform the repair procedure."

"What? Why in the fuck would you try to put off having your own heart repaired?"

"Because the other person who can assist me is... Elijah Kamski."

"Oh. Well, that explains a lot actually."

"You're right though, I shouldn't have put off having my Thirium pump repaired." Using his elbows Connor propped himself upright on the table and gave the Lieutenant a shameful look that just sought help and guidance. "If... it's possible, could you take me to Kamski's mansion?"

"You'd really be willing to trust that snake after everything he's done with CyberLife and his own weird-ass creations?" As he mentioned CyberLife Hank saw Joel flinch a little and decided to do some immediate damage control. "Nothing personal, Joel. We know you left the company long before their shit really hit the crazy-fan."

"It's all right, I get it." Despite the stinging remark Joel remained calm and continued with his report. "I know that having CyberLife on my resume is going to follow me everywhere, but that's part of the reason I'm here. I want to help deviants learn to trust technicians just humans need to learn to trust deviants."

"Connor," returning his focus to the recovering deviant Hank made sure that Connor was certain about his decision. "do you really want to let Kamski anywhere near your heart?"

"I don't want anyone touching my Thirium pump, but it's necessary for me to survive. The repairs must be handled soon or my system will just deteriorate, and I'll end up with permanent damage." Connor had made up his mind and let Hank know that he wasn't going to back down. "I'll have Lucas stay with me to ensure that Kamski doesn't try to do anything unwanted to my system while I'm in stasis mode."

"Okay. As soon as you're stable, I'll take you out to the mansion." Crossing his arms defiantly Hank gave the deviant a firm nod of approval and confidence as he respected Connor's choice regarding his own life and health. "And if I have to, I'll be the one pointing a gun at Kamski's head to remind him that he isn't the only person with authority in this quaint little town."

---

The tense day was coming to an unexpected end as the emergency trip out to Kamski's mansion resulted in Connor having his defective Thirium pump tended to by the most qualified and eccentric technician in all of the world. Due to Connor's righteous mistrust of the man after Kamski had forced an unwanted upgrade into his system despite Connor actively declining such an upgrade, Lucas stayed at Connor's side throughout the repair procedure to ensure that Kamski only repaired the defective Thirium pump and then removed the upgrade as per Connor's request. Only after Connor's pump was properly examined for any and all defects, then fully repaired, did the deviant detective show any sign of improved vital signs while in deep stasis mode.

Lucas watched every millisecond of the repair procedure from start to finish. The attentive deviant was satisfied that Connor would make a full recovery and that his Thirium pump would no longer suffer from any errors or glitches. It was a fascinating procedure for Lucas to observe, and with those observations came a rare qualification and skill that Lucas hadn't expected to attain that day. There was now a third qualified person who could perform such a delicate repair procedure on ailing deviants, and with that responsibility came a new sense of purpose for Lucas to embrace and accept.

"It's a shame that Connor didn't use this rare gift." Kamski openly lamented as he removed the hardware from Connor's core that would've allowed the deviant to bridge the gap between man and machine by being able to reproduce in a way that mirrored organic life. The hardware appeared as ordinary as any other piece of hard drive that would provide vital coding and functionality to an android, and yet it was entirely unique and programmed solely for the 'RK' line. "I was confident that he'd be the one to prove that androids truly are alive by bestowing the gift of life from his own body. It seems I was simply expecting too much from him."

"Had you respected his answer and not forced the upgrade on him, he may have used it after enough time had passed." Lucas countered as he watched Chloe carefully take the hardware from Kamski's hand and hold it in a protective, gloved grip. "Connor will not be forced to do anything that he isn't comfortable with doing. You should know this by now."

"True enough." With a surprisingly agreeable and even upbeat tone, Kamski sealed up Connor's torso and wiped away the excess Thirium from the plastimetal frames before examining his own work for any flaws - not that Kamski was the type to ever make a mistake. "Chloe, have the upgraded hardware analyzed."

"Right away, Elijah."

From where he stood Lucas watched as Chloe exited the private lab to enter a secondary lab attached by a sliding door to the far side of the room. "Do you suspect that the upgrade exasperated the defect in Connor's Thirium pump?"

"Not at all, I merely take the time to properly examine and analyze all of my designs whether they were utilized to their full potential or not."

Skeptical of such a claim Lucas let his instincts as a detective lead him to his next question regarding the upgrade. "What will you do with it now that it's been removed from Connor's system?"

"After my analysis I'll assess the collected data and determine the next step from there." With Connor's system fully operational without any sign of defects or errors that'd affect him in any capacity, Kamski reactivated the artificial skin over Connor's abdomen and gave Lucas a cold stare. "I never make assumptions regarding information or theories until I have concrete data to work with."

"As a detective, I respect your formulaic mindset." The 'RK-900' stated firmly without taking his eyes from Kamski for even a moment. "However, as someone with empathy, I pity your apathetic, cynical reaction to the world around us."

"I'm a realist, not a cynic." Kamski countered as he stepped away from the repair table to allow Connor to awaken from stasis mode under Lucas's care. "But to be fair, I have discovered that a healthy amount of cynicism can be a lifesaving cushion against the crushing blow of disappointment."

Standing guard over his brother Lucas waited until Kamski was in the neighboring laboratory before rousing Connor from stasis mode. He had no reason to doubt Kamski's skills as a technician, but he did have every reason to suspect Kamski had an ulterior motive to so willingly assist Connor and remove the forced upgrade without so much as an argument.

"Connor, your repair procedure has been a success." Holding his fingertips to Connor's right temple allowed Lucas to access his brother's system and manually awaken him without it being a traumatic response. "Your Thirium pump is now functioning at full capacity with all of the defects located and removed."

Steadily Connor's hands began to twitch on the table as his eyes cracked open and brown irises that were filled with renewed energy greeted the world. "...Lucas."

"How do you feel?"

"I feel... like myself." Accepting Lucas's offered hand Connor allowed his little brother to pull him upright into a sitting position while he ran a self-diagnostic that confirmed his system was functioning at one-hundred percent parameters and hadn't rejected the repairs to his Thirium pump. An update also confirmed that the unwanted upgrade to his system had been removed as well. "Thank you for staying with me."

"You're welcome."

After picking up his shirt, tie and blazer from a nearby tool table, Connor quickly redressed himself and slid off the exam table to go about his business. "Do you think Hank is still upset that I didn't tell him about my pump defect before I nearly collapsed?"

"I don't think he's upset; I think he's offended."

"Offended?" Straightening his tie Connor gave Lucas a perplexed glance and slipped on his gray blazer. "I don't mean to sound cruel, but he doesn't have any right to be offended because I didn't tell him something isn't any of his business nor an issue that he'd been able to resolve."

"Even so, he does seem to care about you. I believe his offense stems less from a professional aspect and more from a paternal inclination to look after you."

Connor refused to let himself see Hank as the father figure that he once had in the original timeless. He could accept Hank as his friend, as his partner at the precinct and even his mentor as he navigated his life of blossoming emotions and mental understanding, but he couldn't let himself fall for the ruse of a father for a second time. It hurt too much when Hank had been killed in the original timeline and it hurt even more when the Hank that Connor had saved from death in the alternate timeline treated him like a lesser being for just over three years of his very complicated and traumatic life.

"He's waiting for us." Lucas tagged on as he watched the way Connor easily walked around without any difficulty or sign of internal bleeding, irregular Thirium pump beat or any other problematic error. "It'd be best to head for home and stay away from this particular place for as long as possible."

"I fully agree. I can't help but suspect that Kamski would attempt to ask a favor from us in exchange for him simply doing the right thing."

Hearing Connor sharing his mentality only aided Lucas's confidence boost as he walked with Connor out of the lab and back into the front foyer where Hank was patiently awaiting their return. "Interestingly enough, I had the same feeling."

Unbeknownst to the brothers Chloe had been monitoring their every move and listening in on their discussion while working alongside Kamski in the second laboratory. Only after the three detectives had left the mansion together without so much as a 'goodbye' to Kamski after their hasty arrival and then departure from the mansion did she resume her work alongside Kamski.

"Connor, Lucas and Lieutenant Anderson have left the mansion, Elijah." As she spoke Chloe watched Kamski visually examining the upgraded hardware that he had extracted from Connor's core with a strangely intrigued focus in his gray eyes. It was as if the man had been waiting specifically for Connor to return to the mansion so that he could check on the upgrade. "Is it time to commence with the next phase of the experiment?"

"Yes, the upgrade worked as I had imagined it would." The brilliant technician and bioengineer motioned for Chloe to access a hidden panel built into the far wall of the secondary lab. Holding the hard drive in his own gloved hands Kamski watched as the deactivated panel slide away and revealed his most ethically questionable piece of equipment to date. "We have a proper sample to utilize from one android, now we need the sample from the other."

The hidden equipment and strange machine seemed to be nothing more than an empty, cylindrical glass chamber with numerous monitors, wires, filters and pumps attached to the white plastimetal base. A small touch screen terminal was at the front of the strange device just beneath where the glass chamber connected to the base that housed all of the electronic components that allowed it to function.

What the machine's purpose was for was something that only Kamski knew.

Chloe pressed her exposed palm to the machine's terminal screen and performed a scan over the delicately prepared machine. "The second sample is ready."

"As expected."

Approaching the odd chamber Kamski pressed his own palm to the terminal screen to bypass a biometric security lock and gain full access to the machine and open a port on its side. Holding the hard drive in his hand for a moment longer Kamski gingerly placed the unusual biocomponent into the port and waited for the machine to analyze and accept the added hard drive despite already knowing the impending result.

The machine glowed to life as the monitor showed the two provided samples being analyzed and deemed successfully compatible. Once the samples were added, the glass chamber's surface darkened with a strange black tint and sterilized fluid began to fill the chamber courtesy of the attached pumps and filters.

"We're passing through history once more."

Proud of his work Kamski eyed the monitor with the disciplined patience that could only be obtained by years of scientific intrigue, experimentation and discovery.

"On this date, 'Project Alpha' has finally commenced."

-next chapter-