—

Kara had a problem. A big problem. She was careful around Alice, avoiding most of it because she was in the room. "Ken. I really shouldn't do this."

"You've been programmed with over 200 dance moves." He swung her around joyfully and stole another kiss. "I don't know when the next time I am going to see you is, so let's get a little payment?"

That joke. I was so sick. What do I do? She wouldn't be there long, so just going with the flow would be better. "What the heck, one dance. Which dance?"

"Oh, it's been years, Kara. Only one fits." From his phone, the sound of the first song they danced to played on it. He held her waist and grabbed her hand. "You don't know how much I missed you."

Mm. Kara bit her lip, trying to give a smile. She saw Alice over in the corner. "Let's not go too far, Alice is here."

Ken didn't seem to care as he nibbled her neck playfully. "Do you really need to take a room with Alice tonight? I could sneak you out to come home for one night?"

No way, not that far, not now. "You know? I-I'd really rather not do that. It might make me yearn for home more, and that wouldn't be good. I'm going to be leaving Detroit."

Ken sighed but held her closer. "I guess you are right. It'll be even harder to let you go. Be good, okay? You have your memories back, don't let them go again." He gave her another kiss. "You have a lot of payment to pay for anyhow. I followed with Kamski, found Alice and you malfunctioning in Canada due to no blue blood. That's worth how much?"

"It's worth nothing!"

Oh shit! Kara noticed Connor just entered the room. He was not going to understand any of that dialogue. No, Connor, back off!

Connor didn't act like he even heard her. "Kara is not a machine, she is alive, you cannot charge her anything just so she lived."

"Whoah, whoah, Connor!" Hank came into the room and pushed him back again. "Okay, that whole later talk? It's later. Sorry Ken, I got him."

Hm. It seemed Hank seemed to get it. But would he get it right? Kara smiled at Ken.

Ken didn't look half as pleased. "I hate that guy, I can't believe that Kamski really wants me to do this. He was the worst android machine, he's the reason the revolution failed." He held her close again and breathed on her neck. "If it wasn't Elijah, if it wasn't for your freedom, I would just take you home right now."

Kara patted his head. "I'm sure that would be great." It had been years since she did this. "Freedom though, Ken, you know I can't deny freedom. I'll be careful."

"That, and you will be able to live the kind of life you deserve in the meantime." He touched her cheek tenderly. "Fancy dresses, nice hotels, no stormy nights for you. No, I won't let there be again. But. I mean, if you feel in any way you aren't ready-"

"I told you a long time ago," Kara said almost fiercely, "that I would do anything for freedom. You set me free, and maybe I didn't reach as far as I wanted to, but I got there and I reached." And I changed.

"Right, I know, you adopted a little girl now." Ken finally looked in the corner. He sighed. "I'm not gonna be a good dad, Kara," he whispered, "but you know I'll try. Tell her all about me, so she's not so scared when she gets to come home with us."

"Yeah, I will." Then, she felt Ken poke at her cheek. Oh yeah. "Affirmative. I need to recharge now, Ken. I need a great, big, recharge."

"Yeah, I understand. You were trapped within another android's programming. Sometimes, you were even trapped within the programming of the programming. That can't be easy," Ken said. "It's okay, Kara, don't feel stupid. If you were human, you would have been able to tell the difference, but you are android. Your sense of touch is different, and it's okay." He chuckled and rubbed his head against hers. "I love you all the same."

"Uh huh. Uh, affirmative." She watched as Connor came back in. Hopefully he didn't screw up again.

Connor walked up to Ken and held out his hand. "I understand now that I got it wrong. I'm not a machine, I'm not actually perfect." He took Ken's offered hand and shook it. "Your information might free androids. Thank you," he said politely.

Okay, he got it good enough. It also gave her a chance to sneak away to see Alice. "Hey, you okay? I know this is a lot to take in, but we are going to be fine. Nice hotels. Nice everything. You'll be oh so safe now, Alice."

Alice nodded but she still didn't look comfortable. She hugged Kara.

"We'll get a recharge soon." She picked Alice up and left the room. Seeing Hank, she wanted to ask him about their room. "Hank?"

Hank gestured to the right. She took Alice and headed there. "Hey, you calling it a night? Aren't you going to go with Ken for awhile?"

"No, I need some recharging," Kara insisted. "Night Hank."

"I'm not staying," Hank told her. "Good luck. Keep your eye on Connor too, not just one way. Got it?"

Kara nodded and closed the door.

—

While Kara got Alice down recharging, she looked out the window. The adventure continues, in such a strange way. It sounds more like spies infiltrating places under secret identies. Across the world. Farther than she ever imagined she would go.

Kara?

She heard Connor at the door and answered it. "Sorry. Wanted to get Alice down for a recharge."

"I am sorry how I freaked out about Ken. I didn't understand all of the emotions beneath the actions. I assumed he had forcible intentions with you like the humans at Eden's Club." He looked so sad, almost squirmed up on the side of the wall near the door. "Instead, he's done a lot for the cause. I had no idea. I apologized to him, but I want you to know? No matter how dangerous things get, you will be safe."

Kara didn't know all the details about what Ken was doing, her owner had only been concerned about her at the moment.

"Love is love, and I don't understand the love you have with the human. I know the plutonic love that I have with Hank, so I understand. Alive is alive. Are you sure that you are up to all of this?"

The journey? Did Ken not tell her something?

Connor looked confused now. "That doesn't look like a positive confirmation to my sentence. If you need to back out, you can."

"I tried to explore ways to save others before," Kara said, hoping that was what Connor was asking about. "I want to help."

"I think it will. When Markus and North were about to be eliminated in the peaceful path, they changed a lot of minds when they kissed," Connor said.

Uh? Why did Connor pick that to say?

"We'll come through it at a different angle, a harder angle," Connor answered. "When we have humanity's full attention, you and Ken's secret could bring the entire world together. Where we once lost, we could win."

Kara's eyes went wide. Reveal our relationship?! Ken is putting me out to reveal our relationship? I don't see him jumping hurdles or going around the world, how am I? This is?

"Are you okay, Kara?" Connor asked. Then he put up his hand. "Sorry, I am probably reading things wrong again. I don't understand a lot about the love emotion. I know a lot about getting overwhelmed though. If you insist on this to free our people, then I support it."

He didn't even get around to telling her that. Well? More like she skipped out before she could hear it.

"Oh. I'm sorry about your friend," Connor also added. "If you need someone to talk to later about things, I'm here. No matter what it is, okay?"

"I am going to need a lot of blue blood." Damn Ken! Never changed a bit.

"Are you injured?" Connor asked.

"No, I just? Crave it more." Would he believe her lie or not? "Passion makes the heart beat faster, changing functions up."

"Then I will get some," Connor said.

Kara started to dab at her eyes. "Sorry, uh, it's just a little overwhelming. I . . ." She had done so much worse for freedom before. So much worse. "Luther."

"Memories are seeping back fast that you had forgot." Connor pulled himself out of his squirmed up position and came closer to her. "It hurts."

Kara braced herself against the door. "I. I?" She shook her head and didn't even care about wiping her tears anymore. "Luther. Luther sacrificed everything for us, h-he took Alice hostage so that . . ." Oh gaw. She covered her mouth.

She found herself in Connor's arms.

"We did what we could with the data we had," Connor said. "Luther just wanted you and Alice to get safely across."

That's right, he saw her possible paths. He already knew what she did. "I had a choice."

"He had a choice too," Connor reminded her. "It was you or him to get across. He chose to follow that choice too."

Kara sighed. "I am so good at hurting people."

"I wish I didn't have that talent either. The loss of those lives in the revolution, I share in that." Connor let her go. "I am going to recharge now. Are you staying up longer to say goodnight to Ken?"

"No. I'll see you tomorrow. Hank is gone now?"

"Almost. I'm going to see him one more time. If he didn't sneak out."

—

He almost did. Connor knew it was inevitable. It was nice having someone else to do work with. While Kara was useful, she was no Hank. This whole spy thing felt really different too than detective work. He had already peered into his closets.

One had suits of armani and other brands that signified he was a well to do human. The other was filled was average clothes, dirty clothes, and even some holey and ripped clothes. There were also different android uniforms, to wear if he needed to pretend to be another android.

Hank. This whole time Connor had believed Hank meant to get used to his presence along with Kara and Alice, and not to expect results right away. This? It felt . . . unfair. "Lieutenant Hank Anderson!"

Hank stopped moving and stayed still as Connor approached. "You got the details now, Connor. You got the warnings. You got everything I could give you."

"You gave me so much more that." Connor extended his hand. "I was a focused, unbreakable machine. I am responsible for so much. If I could have just gone deviant earlier, all the androids would have been free right now. Most of them are scorched off of America. I did that, they don't get worse than me. I don't understand why I was worth it. The RK 800 did nothing for anyone."

"Friend is a friend. I know that you stayed the enemy. We are going to go in circles again just talking about this," Hank said. "I wanted you to change. We were on that rooftop because I wanted you to change. You've got something special, Connor." He poked his chest. "I knew if I could take that dedication to take down deviants, and flip it. There might still be a chance."

"I wiped out over 98% of androids. The only ones left are those being hidden from their owners, or special ones dedicated in law enforcement," Connor said. "The ones who replaced me. I should have been deactivated, I deserved that."

Hank tried to punch him. Connor didn't react. "Stop feeling sorry for yourself! The thing turned shitty, a lot of people died, boo hoo. We can't change the past, Connor, but you can change the future. When you have doubts, you look at your menu. Kamski made that thing as deviant as they come. Questions. Philosophy. Emotions. It's a way to steer until you figure out the rudder. Now? You are probably going down in android history as the biggest asshole ever, but you can do what you can to make up for it. You can fight back now."

But will he really find a way to achieve the same goal? "Markus was not the leader anymore, that means he screwed up many times. He isn't perfect."

"No one is," Hank reminded him. "Both of you messed up. Maybe both of you together can fix this. Besides, it wasn't just you or him. Jericho was a functional group that chose North and to fight. This wasn't a perfect game ending route, where only you messed up. This whole thing is messed up. Hell, Kara had to sacrifice that big guy to get into Canada."

"Yeah. That isn't easy, to sacrifice a friend. Especially when there are so few." No, no. Keep it together. Hank was a hard-boiled detective.

Hank gave him a hard pat on the shoulder. "Concentrate on your new mission, Connor. Save the world of android's, not just America. Keep your head on the right track, and watch out for those girls. I'll see you at the end of the long game. You know where to find me."

Hank couldn't stay. The one familiar thing he latched onto emotionally, now had to disappear. "If we make it through, I will see you again."

"Yeah, I know." He gave Connor one more good knock on the shoulder. "Bye." He walked off.

That was Hank. His character trait wouldn't be wanting a long goodbye. The last thing he could do for Hank, was take his advice.

Find a way to save the androids. Keep Kara and Alice safe. Keep his wit sharp. And, when he felt lost? Use his deviant menu.