—

One Day Later . . .

Connor took Hank's advice about waiting and thinking seriously. He didn't even come out much yesterday, letting himself recharge and feel better. He told Kamski that he was ready to make contact with Markus.

The real Markus. Apparently, their first stop wasn't very far from the Louvre museum in Paris. Alice had come out a couple of times, she said, but Kara never did.

Strangely, Kara had been slamming back blue blood. Connor understood that, even if Alice didn't. It was not a trait she should get used to though, so today he was approaching her door directly.

When she answered, he could tell she had taken too much blue blood. The eyes always looked different. "Kara, we will be leaving soon."

"Yeah, Alice told me." She chuckled and scratched her arm softly.

"I know things are tough. Losing America. Losing friends." He was trying to be delicate. "Blue blood is for injuries, Kara, it is not used for overlubrication to make you less rigid. You need to keep your faculties intact."

"What?" Kara groaned.

"Do not overdose on blue blood," Connor said in layman's terms.

Kara rubbed her head. "I just needed to stay looser. Ken's going to say goodbye today."

Oh. "I know saying goodbye is hard, but using blue blood as a crutch isn't good. It's expensive, rare, and the effects long term could be detrimental."

"Yeah, I know." She touched her hair for some reason.

Wait. Connor remembered that her hair was a different style than that one in the video. Not just physically, I have to watch her emotionally with it.

"I promise, I won't do it again except for Ken," Kara said. "He likes the extra blue blood effect."

Hm. "Is that part of the kinky process Hank told me about?" Connor asked. "He explained last night about that. If so, it's best not to keep changing yourself in such a way. Short-term, I understand. Please don't do this otherwise."

"Uh?" Kara looked a little shocked. "I don't have a problem. I won't do this again, it's just for Ken."

Strange. He nodded. He didn't get it at all, but Hank said he wouldn't. Kinky stuff was what boyfriend and girlfriends did, and it usually didn't make much sense. Most androids had been used to pleasure humans, it was just strange that one born free would want that?

No, no. Hank said to stay out.

"Hey, you ****er!"

Still, why did it involve him getting yelled at like that all the time? Hank cursed but he usually didn't say it the same way with such venom. Maybe in the route when he let Hank almost die or they weren't good friends. Closer to enemies.

"You better watch out for her today," Ken warned him. "She is the key to so much. When mankind sees that video, they are going to want to meet her in person."

Yes, Connor understood that. He even apologized last night, and swore he would watch out for her. "I understand her importance and I will take good care of her."

"Oh, Ken!" Kara moved up toward him, in only the way the limberness of extra blue blood would let her move. She almost knocked him over with a leap in his arms, but it was just for show. She kept her center of gravity safe from squashing the human.

She gave him pecked kisses all over, then seemed to wriggle away? "One second, be back."

"Boy, just as wiggly," Ken noticed. "At least she's feeling better."

"Perhaps." Still. "I will be respectful and stay out of most kink things, but overdosing on blue blood is bad for her. I highly motivate you to stop including that in your activities."

Ken seemed confused. "You're weird. Kara knows her own blue blood needs like every other android."

"Ken, here is Alice. I will be back." Kara left Alice there staring at Ken.

Ken and Alice were just staring at each other.

That was it. Connor had to put his foot down. He went toward her room and knocked on the door. "Kara, come out!" He knocked harder. "This is Connor and I need to talk to you!"

Kara opened the door. "Is that yelling when knocking ever going to go away?"

"I insist, that from now on, you use no blue blood unless your system is injured."

Kara didn't even seem like she understood him.

Ugh. "That's a direct order," Connor said firmly. "You left Alice with Ken, in an uncomfortable position a Kara without extra blue blood lubricating her never would have done."

"Ken is fine, he rescued me," Kara insisted. "He rescued us. I trust him or I wouldn't have made him my boyfriend. I mean. We would not. Be."

"No more blue blood!" Connor said firmly. "If I see it, I will take it, I need you to be using all of your processes when we are out there."

Kara scratched her arm, pinched her nose, and then rubbed her head. "It's just for Ken."

This? Connor swore he never drove Hank this crazy. "Kara, you and Alice will listen to my orders when given."

"Why?" Kara asked. "Why are you the one in charge?"

Usually Connor didn't use his mouth for much but examining evidence, but for once, he found himself gritting his teeth. "Protecting you is not part of some human mission they have programmed in me, it is a duty of my free will and done with no compensation. I am a highly trained detective that not only uncovers crimes, but is also capable in combat, in both defense and offense. You are trained in nothing but cooking, minding the kids, being a personal assistant and being a sexual partner."

Whoah, that set her off, now she was responding. "That is just my introductory phrase when I was first developed, I am not a machine, I am alive! Dick."

Oops. Damn. Too aggressive. Connor found himself squirming against the hallway wall. He found himself in that position many times now. "You're right, you are alive. I'm sorry I said it that way. I want to keep you and Alice safe. I'm not going to use my authority on you very much, but the orders I do give, they are to help keep you safe."

Kara seemed to understand now. "I understand. I'm sorry too." She wiped her mouth again as more leaked out. "Okay. I won't use anymore unless my life is in danger, you are right." She was coming off of the malfunctioning the extra blue blood had caused. "I need to stay on my guard."

That was more appropriate and she went off to go get Alice. Silly android, having to have that whole conversation had cut into her goodbye time. They would need to leave soon. Connor went back down to his room to grab the rest of what he needed. There would not be much time. He was coming down the hallway as Elijah was coming for them. "I am ready."

"Almost." Kara went over and grabbed Alice's hand. "Sorry, Ken. Ran out of time, need to get going. I'll see you later, okay?"

"So fast." Ken could only sigh. "Home is waiting for you one day, I promise."

"Mm-hm." Kara waved once more and headed toward Kamski. "I am ready too."

Kamski looked down at her and Kara.

"I mean, I will be." Kara collected Alice in her arms and headed back to her room to change. Connor had already changed, had the briefcase, phone, and all other essentials including their ID's. He had also packed a few things for if they needed to go undercover as different identities too.

Connor watched Kamski knock on Kara's door. "Do you mind if I talk privately before we go?"

—-

Privately? "No?" Kara let him in. "I need to get us dressed and changed."

"I believe you need to do more than that." Elijah went ahead and gestured Alice out of the room. Kara urged her to leave. After she was gone, Elijah closed the door. "The best chances for humanity to understand, may not necessarily be what you think. The video of your creation and the fake game alone are very strong. Do not feel you need to go further down the path then that."

"Oh."

"There is more than one use for extra blue blood," he said knowingly. "You don't have to grant every desire to Ken anymore, but you should tell him the truth?"

Damn. "No. It'll not only help our chances, but, the truth would crush him."

Yes, like he thought. Ken didn't immediately find Kara afterward. He had looked to see where she was shipped, but she'd already been purchased.

By the Eden Club. She was living, with will, in the Eden Club. Shortly after that, Ken had to reach out and share the truth. He wanted to get her out, but she was nothing but stated merchandise. Kamski used some influence to get Ken a job inside, and he steadily climbed high enough he had say over who could rent Kara, until she finally wasn't considered the latest model fit for the club.

So for a discounted price, she was his, instead of taken to the dump.

Before him, there was no owner, just a corporation. When Kara knew she was safe with Ken, she warmed up fast.

It wasn't Ken that started the push for love between them, it was Kara. Being friends with an owner was fine. Being more with an owner was smart and guaranteed that, even when she fell out of being the latest model, he'd want her. He'd keep her safe. She started a relationship out of survival.

Ken's viewpoint was blinded by his own feelings. Elijah had told him before, and even tried to help.

Ken never believed in it, to him, Kara was perfect. Alive but still perfect, she wasn't tricking or conning him. She loved him.

Elijah never believed it. The only one who could tell Ken and he would believe it, would be Kara.

No one else would divert from that falsehood because they didn't know. Connor was, well, alive but he was never installed with any data about relationships. He would have to learn overtime, so he couldn't see. Hank barely knew Ken, saw him a couple times in the hall while he interacted in Detroit: Become Human. He didn't truly understand the whole deal at all either.

However, that same need to pursue more freedom, also got her into the messes she ended up in afterward. "Crush him now, or crush him later. I believe explaining things now before we go, would be more beneficial."

"What, that I used him?" Kara asked. "That I used his feelings to ensure I didn't end up in a dump? That I meant to persuade him to create RA2-RA9, and now I'm done with him? We are trying to make androids look compromising, look safe, look good to humans. I can't just admit that I used him, that I created a relationship between us for nothing more than my own safety. I was already programmed for it, it was easy."

"Well, sex with machines didn't seem like a bad idea, before I understood the truth of the androids. I will take that part of the blame," Elijah told her. "You were created to be a dream for humans, to fulfill their fantasies and act the parts. The only difference was, he believed it to be real."

"I won't compromise anything," Kara said. "Human to android is more perfect than the fake game video." She glared at him. "I can't believe you gave Connor's game the same name, Elijah."

"Oh, I don't know. It seemed to fit. As for android to human? Android to android seemed okay at the end with you and Alice," Elijah pointed out. "Fine, it is your life. You need to stay sharp to survive though. Don't pull that blue blood trick again. It's easier to get wrapped up in your own lies, almost believing them to be truths with it."

"I've done worse. I've done so much worse." Kara wiped at her eye. "This is nothing to what I've done."

"Survival is tragic and beautiful at the same time," Elijah admitted. "If the public gets a hold of the right videos, the truth you don't want, will come out. Be careful of what you share."

"It's nothing, I was created for it," she said bitterly.

"It's all nothing to a machine only, which you've rarely been," Elijah pointed out. "Run your introduction video."

"No, not that again," Kara refused.

"No, the one you made with us," Elijah said. "That is all you really need to change humanity's mind. That's what you believed once before. Only Ken is pushing this relationship for evidence idea. Again."

For a moment, she seemed to think about it. "We failed once. What if my creation and our introduction wasn't enough?"

"It's a good place to start?" Elijah said.

"Then, that will be where I start," Kara agreed. "Back to our old drawing board. Should I tell Connor about the other video? About already knowing you?"

Elijah shrugged. "I haven't known him as not machine yet. He seems iffy to me, but if he is warming up to you, a clean share might be good. I'd better go so you can get ready. We shouldn't be late."

—

Kara finally came out wearing a blue evening gown. She matched with a blue dress Alice wore. They each held a suitcase too.

"Good enough for now," Kamski said, "we will have to work on getting the ladies a stylist. We will be staying with my close friend Carl for the time being so you don't have to worry about being undercover. Carl isn't well so don't bother him too much with questions. I am lucky my friend is alive, I believe his spirit is still here because of Markus. The exact reason I gave him the help in the first place." He picked up his own suitcase. "Let's be off."

"Hang on."

Oh no. Ken? What did he still want?

Ken wrapped his arm around Elijah, politely urging him to the corner to talk privately. Elijah followed. "I saw those ID's, you said you'd switch them."

Elijah just rolled his eyes.

"I am letting you use Kara, Elijah. I don't want those ID's."

"I am traveling with a man, a woman, and a child. It is fitting their ID would be married and the child is their child." Elijah watched as Ken shoved different ID's in his hands.

"We agreed on that. It worked before, they can all be actors in the game," Ken said. "There are child actors."

"I don't take employed actors all over the world," Elijah informed him. "I'm retired, I won't have anything to do with any game. It's much more believable they are just guests." He might as well address it. "Kara is going to be protected by another android. That android."

Connor was biding his time, sitting down and studying the ID's out of the briefcase.

"While they are considered alive, their installations still dictate a lot of who they were or are." He gestured toward Kara who was helping Alice fix her hair better. "Sweet Kara." He gestured back to Connor. "Detective who studies cases." He patted him twice. "Stop. Being. Jealous. Connor is much more interested in freeing his people than messing with Kara. Kara is much more interested in freeing her people than goofing around either."

"Kara would never goof around." Still, Ken did start watching Connor.

"He even helped her with Todd. Someone that you could not."

"I didn't know where she'd gone to." Ken glared at him. "Do we really need to talk about that?"

"She had her own free will." Elijah wasn't getting into it. Still, Ken seemed to be coming around.

"So, he's only got police detective and fighting installs. That's it." Ken still sighed. "Except, he's alive. So, no more. Killing."

Oh yes, that too. Connor could be pretty vicious. "He is only interested in freeing his people. Kara can take care of herself, and I will be near too." Ken was still not the most empathetic person. Not after the whole stuck with Todd thing. Which, Kara caused.

"Her decision," Ken said. "I better go." This time, Ken left for good.

Good. Elijah returned back. "Come, Archers, let's go."

—

"Archers?" Kara asked. "I just grabbed the ID's, what did you put, Elijah?" Yeah, she couldn't miss that look from Connor. She shouldn't hide more than she needed to, calling Elijah by his first name made sense. They had once worked together.

"A man, a woman, and a child all traveling with me," Elijah answered back. "It made sense that you would all be one family. It'll look suspicious the other way, and I'm not going to start another fake game development excuse like last time, Kara."

Well, Elijah was really throwing attention on her. She noticed Connor staring at her even harder. "Agreed, it seems less conspicuous to be a family," Connor said, still staring at her. "Kara, I'd like to speak with you privately when you have a moment?"