The Chicken Feed: November 6th, 2038 - 03:02pm
The rain had returned and drenched the city in an afternoon deluge that created a slick chill that made roaming the city difficult and uncomfortable if on foot. After failing to pick up the trail of the runaway deviant android and the little girl after they crossed the expressway Hank opted for a late lunch and made his way to his favorite food stand to find something to eat to ease his mounting headache after having to deal with a failed pursuit and an obnoxious partner driving him up the walls. Even when he wasn't at the precinct the Lieutenant couldn't seem to avoid arrogant rookies with the drive to impress the higher-ups and suck up to as many people with higher ranking authority to climb the ranks themselves.
Eagerly Hank exited the Oldsmobile that had been parked along the street opposite the food stand and rushed over to the stand to get something to eat. It seemed Chase understood that Hank wanted some distance and refrained from exiting the Oldsmobile right away after the man threatened to throw him into the trunk if he disobeyed again. Through the side window Chase looked at Hank as he made his way to the front of the stand and greeted the stand's owner and cook.
"Hank." Gary, the food stand owner, recognized Hank immediately and addressed him while Chase finally stepped out of the Oldsmobile to approach the stand curiously. The android was too busy scanning the area and its customers to even catch Hank's attention. "How you doing?"
"Eh, you know," the detective replied casually as he leaned under the awning of the stand to escape the rain for a minute. "same old shit."
Gary took notice of Chase at last as the distinct looking android peered about and then stared at Hank while standing beside him at attention. "Plastic with you?"
"Only temporary. Thankfully!"
"What's your pleasure today?"
"The usual. It's been a while since I've been here, and I've been craving one of your burgers for months!"
"You got it, comin' right up."
"Hey, hey, hey..." Another man approached Hank and gave him a truly warm greeting. "Hank! How you doin', man?"
"¡Ese!" It seemed Hank was genuinely happy to see the man and greeted him in return with a firm handshake. "It's been a while, huh, Pedro?"
"Hey, listen, I got a shit-hot tip for you. Number five in the third, Lickety-split!" Pedro sounded enthusiastic about getting Hank to partake in the bet at the local horse track. According to the criminal record that Chase had downloaded on the man, Pedro Aabdar had a history of illegal gambling and fraud. "That filly's one hell of a chaser. You wanna' flutter?"
"Seriously? The last shit-hot tip you gave me set me back a week's wages. There's a reason I haven't take you up on your tips, you know."
"Come on, this is different, it's one-hundred percent guaranteed." Pedro sounded pretty convinced by his own words and hoped to get Hank to take the bet. "You can't go wrong!"
"Yeah, right. How would that look to my son?"
"Your son would LOVE the look of all that extra cash!"
"All right, fine. But only HALF my usual wager."
"Damn straight! Hey!" Pedro looked entirely pleased to have Hank's cooperation and soon went on his way with the bet under his belt after giving Hank a respectful hug in return for his cooperation. "You won't regret this!"
"Somehow I feel like I'm regretting it already." Giving Chase a rather disgusted glance Hank sighed and acknowledged the android's presence at long last. "What is your problem? Don't you ever do as you're told? Look, you don't have to follow me around like a poodle!"
"I'm sorry for my behavior back at the police precinct." Chase replied almost bluntly as it tried to get on Hank's good side. "I didn't mean to be unpleasant."
"Oh, wow... You've even got a brown-nosing apology program!" It wasn't the first time Hank had encountered that particular behavior, and he was annoyed to encounter it again. "Guys at CyberLife thought of everything, huh?"
"Now that we're partners, I thought it would be a good idea to get to know each other better so we can work as a team."
"We are NOT partners. I am a human; you are a machine." Stubbornly Hank put his foot down and refused to even allow Chase to attempt to make amends. "So just spare me that 'buddy-up' bullshit program, okay?"
"Very well. I also thought that now might be a good time to review what we know about deviants."
"No, now is not a good time to review anything." The last thing Hank wanted to do was to keep working while on his break. He had been overworked and working enough overtime as it was. "Now is my lunch break, so just go into standby and cut me some slack, okay?"
Gary paid the argument no mind as he handed Hank his takeout container and drink through the opened window at no charge. "Here you go."
"Ah! Thanks, Gary." Just the smell of the thick and calorie laden burger was enough to make Hank feel a little better. "I'm starving!"
"Don't leave that thing here!"
"Not a chance! Follows me everywhere." Hank only took three steps toward a nearby table with an opened umbrella overtop before Chase began following after him once again. "See?"
Hank happily placed his styrofoam container down on the table's top and flipped open the lid to check out his burger. With his large cup of soda to accompany his greasy and fatty meal Hank knew that it was important to only delve into his cravings every once in a great while. He didn't want to endanger his health and get sick while he still had Cole to raise and protect."
"Your meal contains one point four times the recommended daily intake of calories and twice the cholesterol level." Chase had scanned the meal and confirmed that it was very unhealthy compared to what Hank could potentially be eating that afternoon. "You shouldn't eat that."
"One of these burgers every few months isn't going to hurt me, especially when I exercise every night, eat my veggies, never drink and do any drugs. Back off from my diet."
"I see. I hadn't considered your other choices in regard to your decisions when it comes to nutrition." The keen android then made another observation as it leaned in closer to Hank and lowered its voice. "You didn't pay for your meal."
"Gary's a friend. I scratch his back, he scratches mine."
"You seem to know everyone in the district."
"Detroit's my home. Born and raised. Know most of the guys around here." The Lieutenant replied casually as he took a large bite of his burger and then gulped down some of his chilled soda. "Went to school with them, or I busted 'em. Sometimes both..."
"This morning, when we were chasing those deviants, why didn't you want me to cross the highway?"
"'Cuz you could've been damaged, and I don't like filling out paperwork for damaged equipment. Seems pretty obvious, doesn't it?"
"I suppose that's accurate." The walls that Hank was successfully putting up around himself had kept Chase from doing its job and assessing the man for anything useful in establishing a working relationship. If Chase couldn't get to know Hank, perhaps Hank would take the opportunity to get to know Chase instead. "Is there anything you'd like to know about me?"
"Hell, no. Well, yeah, um..." Lowering his burger from his lips Hank decided to indulge in his own curiosity. Why Chase's appearance mirrored another specific and oddly unique android. "Why did they make you look so goofy and give you that weird voice?"
"CyberLife androids are designed to work harmoniously with humans. Both my appearance and voice were specifically designed to facilitate my integration."
Hearing such an uninformative answer did little to placate Hank's curiosity. "Well, they fucked up."
"Can I ask you a personal question, Lieutenant?"
"Does it matter?" Another bite of his burger was the only thing keeping Hank from biting off Chase's head. "You'll ask me even without my permission."
"Why do you hate androids so much?"
Hank decided to give Chase a non-answer of his own as he ate his lunch in relative peace. "I have my reasons."
The lack of progress made it difficult for Chase to do anything with its investigation. "Maybe I should tell you what we know about deviants?"
"You read my mind." The change of topic seemed like an actual blessing from high up above. "Proceed."
"We, by which I mean CyberLife, believes that a mutation occurs in the software of some androids, which can lead to them emulating a human emotion."
"In English, please."
"They don't really feel emotions, they just get overwhelmed by irrational instructions, which can lead to unpredictable behavior."
"Emotions always screw everything up." The way Hank had butted heads with another certain android in the past and the way that android had bonded with his son seemed to confirm that he had encountered deviancy before long that afternoon after all. "Maybe androids aren't as different from us as we thought. You've dealt with deviants before, right? The hostage situation back in August..."
"A deviant was threatening to jump off a rooftop with a little girl. I managed to save her, and I had to destroy the deviant in order to succeed." Chase never blinked and never seemed to be affected by what it had done or how it had used a gun to destroy the deviant without an order. "My superiors were pleased with my results, which is why I was volunteered to assist you with other deviant cases. But you knew all that already from Captain Fowler."
"Most of it anyway. So, I guess you've done all your homework, right?" Hank challenged as his finished the first half of his burger. "Know everything there is to know about me?"
"I know you graduated at the top of your class. You made a name for yourself in several cases and became the youngest Lieutenant in Detroit."
"So, what's your conclusion?"
"I'm focused on the case, Lieutenant. The rest doesn't concern me." Chase's L.E.D. flickered rapidly from red to yellow to blue before returning to blue. It seemed that Chase was actively communicating with CyberLife even while out in the field. "I've received an order from CyberLife. There have been no immediate new sightings of deviants, they want me to return to the tower until I'm ordered to do otherwise. I'll leave you to finish your meal."
From beneath the umbrella Hank continued to eat his lunch as he watched Chase walk away from the food stand and proceed to cybernetically hail an autonomous taxi to take it back to CyberLife Tower located out on Belle Isle. The way the android blindly obeyed its every command without protest when it came from CyberLife just reminded Hank that his ranking meant nothing to an android when a powerful billion dollar company was still pulling the strings. No matter how many cops worked together in the city there would be no one strong enough to out-muscle the deepest wallet in the world.
Jericho: November 6th, 2038 - 05:13pm
To say that the group of deviants were stunned by the latest deviant refugee's appearance would've been a vast understatement. The group looked on quietly with unspoken questions as the new deviant shined his flashlight beam about the area slowly and looked at all the faces already watching his every move. He had never been around so many androids in a single space before, let alone deviant androids that he could truly connect to in a manner that he never believed was even possible. The android eyes that were full of awareness of the world around them was refreshing. The new deviant's long and exhaustive journey through Detroit to locate the deviant sanctuary hadn't been in vain, and now he was among friends.
Connor kept silent as he watched Markus gain his bearings while the other deviants took in the sight of the newcomer. Markus was wearing dirty clothes that were torn and damaged from the recent fall and from being slicked in mud after being thrown into the android graveyard during the previous night's rain. A fresh streak of Thirium stained his right side after Markus received damage during his memorable fall from the catwalk and into the depths of the vessel.
Markus was the first to speak as he noticed the eyes staring at him and the L.E.D.'s glowing in yellow and blue all around him. "Who are you?"
"Fugitives, just like you." Josh replied as he stepped forward to reveal himself more fully with Markus needing to use the flashlight. "My name is Josh."
Simon spoke up as well as he stood beside Josh and sensed North joining them where they stood. "I'm Simon."
"North." As she spoke North pleaded silently with her eyes for Connor to step up as well. The moment Connor approached Markus to greet him as well North introduced the fourth deviant casually. "And this is Connor."
Markus was stunned by what and who he had discovered as he took in the quartet and then the other deviants laying about the area. "And you knew that only an android could follow the trail, didn't you?"
Josh helped clarify things in a friendly manner as he welcomed Markus into their ranks. "Only those who are like us can find Jericho."
"If you could decipher the signs," Simon continued as he helped Markus understand what he had just walked into that fateful day. "it's because one of us trusted you enough to give you the key."
Markus continued to visually sweep his new surroundings and took in all the deviant androids of varying models, ages, designs and overall functionality. There were dozens that he could see and maybe even hundreds more lurking elsewhere within the vessel's depths just beyond his sight.
"How many are you?"
"There are twenty-three of us still in working order." North replied coldly as she brought Markus up to speed. "The rest were damaged escaping their masters."
"Many tried to reach Jericho." Josh tagged on in a glum manner as he helped Markus become more acclimated to the deviant shelter. "Few succeed. Humans have little pity for our kind."
Markus couldn't believe what he was seeing and hearing. He had seemingly made it, but it didn't seem like he was in the correct place. "This... is Jericho?"
"It's a refuge for those who don't want to be slaves anymore."
"I don't understand." The confusion was evident in the way that Markus kept pressing for more answers as he continued to ask his questions. "I thought Jericho was a place where androids lived in freedom."
"We do live in freedom." Josh replied firmly as he tried to help Markus understand his new situation. "It may not be what you hoped for, but here we have no master. We don't belong to anybody."
"And hiding just to stay alive..." Markus didn't sound at all convinced of what he was being told or that he was actually somewhere safe. "That's freedom to you?"
"Humans hate us." The ugly truth passed over Josh's lips with a bitter presence. "Hiding is the only way we can survive."
North agreed and wanted Markus to understand why they were hiding and why Jericho was so difficult to locate. "There is no safe place for those like us. If humans knew we're here, they'd kill us."
Josh spoke up again as he tried to get Markus to understand their point of view. "I understand how you feel... but we have more freedom here than you ever did."
"I came to Jericho looking for hope... Looks like I'm not gonna' find any here." Speaking from his heart Markus began to doubt whether or not he made the right decision in leaving the safety of the mansion and venturing out in the harbor to find Jericho. "Waiting in the dark for something to happen? That's not how I see freedom."
"You're lost," Simon sympathized as he tried to help Markus feel more welcome and like he had finally found somewhere that he could be safe. "just like the rest of us. We didn't ask for this. All we can do now is deal with it."
"You're safe here." Josh confirmed as he gave Markus comforting words to ponder. "You can stay with us as long as you want."
"Go and see Lucy." North urged as she took notice of the bleeding laceration on Markus's side. It was a nasty wound that'd need immediate attention. "She may be able to help you."
Connor remained silent as he watched Markus carefully. Seeing his friend at last living as a deviant and without his L.E.D. was as reassuring of the future as Connor could've hoped for. The way Markus looked so focused and determined to survive made it clear as to why and how Markus was able to take up the role as the lead within Jericho and then the leader of the deviants as a whole.
Keeping his distance Connor watched as Markus noticed the dark burn barrels and proceeded to light the kindling within by using a lighter her had on his person. The warmth of the flames and light being emitted helped to give the interior of Jericho a far less ominous and dreary appearance. The way Markus's initial instincts were to help people in need without asking questions confirmed that he was destined to be the leader.
Slowly Markus learned the layout of the vessel and located Lucy in the far corner tucked away behind her hanging sheets. Lucy's soft and melodic humming filled Jericho as she waited for the newest deviants to find their way to her for guidance and care as she watched over the refugees of Jericho. Markus softly pulled back one of the sheets draping down and keeping Lucy secluded from the rest of the floor. Peering into the corner Markus saw the black-eyed deviant standing idle before her own burn barrel with her hands neatly folded before herself as she continued to hum her tune of hope.
"Are you Lucy?"
Connor returned to the crate where he had been initially sitting as he watched Markus disappear behind the sheet and did his best to not eavesdrop on what Lucy was telling Markus. Despite his burning curiosity Connor wanted to respect the privacy of his people, especially his friends, and he knew it was wrong to know too much about anyone.
"Do you trust him?"
Looking up Connor noticed North standing before him with her arms wrapped around herself and her cinnamon brown eyes focused on Markus as well. "We have no reason to mistrust him." Connor wisely replied as he tried to ease North's worries. "He's only just arrived."
"There's something different about him." North had been programmed to read moods and reflect personalities, and as such she was very good at picking up on deviants with entirely different aspects of their programming. "Something that makes him unique to all of us."
"He does have heterochromatic eyes. One green, the other blue."
North blinked rapidly as she realized what Connor said and what it potentially implied. "Did you just make a joke?"
"No, I made an accurate observation."
"Oh, yeah, I guess that makes sense. Sorry."
"It's okay." Bowing his head down a little Connor silently watched as Markus emerged from behind Lucy's curtain and resumed roaming the area to investigate his new surroundings and speak with Simon and Josh in turn. His damage had been mended and he had been given a small of Thirium to help his system recover. "It's wise to be cautious, but we shouldn't assume the worst of our own people."
"Maybe you're right. After he gets acquainted with Jericho, we'll need to discuss our supply issues."
"We'll find a solution North." Connor replied in a whisper to keep their discussion private even while surrounded by other deviants. "Please be patient."
The sound of a large metal chest being shut drew Connor and North's attention back to Markus as he finished scouring the area for himself. He too had taken notice of their dwindling supplies and seemed to be fired up to make changes and start helping the other deviants. It was strange to see that Markus seemed so anxious to do something, anything, so shortly after arriving at Jericho as a fellow refugee seeking shelter. It was as if it was a part of his very being to be supportive and take care of the people who needed him the most.
"Simon!" Markus approached the blond deviant as Simon idled in low power mode near the center of the room. The moment he saw Simon's eyes open Markus began speaking with hope for the future. "I know where we can find spare parts. The CyberLife warehouses in Detroit Harbor, they have everything we need."
"The docks are guarded." Simon knew of the heavy security thanks to Connor scoping out the city and confirming which areas were safe to roam and which area needed to be kept off limits. There was a reason they never ventured to the warehouses in the past "We can't just walk in there and take what we want. Humans will never let us."
"Which is why we won't ask permission."
That type of answer caught both Connor and North's ears with utter intrigue. It seemed Markus was ready for a fight even without an immediate cause to justify his need to take any action. All the hallmarks of a great leader.
Josh didn't like the aggressive response from their newest refugee and interjected with his own doubts about the situation. "We don't have any weapons, and even if we did, none of us knows how to fight."
Markus was quick to defend his decision with a surprisingly stern response. "We can steal what we need without fighting."
"We'll just get ourselves killed."
"Maybe, but it's better than waiting here to be shut down."
North approved of Markus's bold decision and quickly stepped up to side with him, her mistrust toward him seemingly gone in an instant. "I'm with you."
Simon was hesitant to take sides but he knew that they couldn't afford to wait for too much longer and risk their peoples' lives. "Maybe it's worth a try..."
Begrudgingly Josh agreed as well and he let out a nervous sigh before joining his allies. "Okay, I'm in."
"I'm going with you." Connor joined in on the decision to venture out and find supplies as well. He didn't want to let Markus or the others out of his sight if he could help it even though he knew that they'd return alive. "What do you have in mind, Markus?"
The Anderson Residence: November 6th, 2038 - 08:12pm
The rain was proving to be the only constant throughout the city during that particularly bizarre day. After the mentally and emotionally exhausted Lieutenant had clocked-out for the evening and returned home, Hank proceeded to spend the evening with Cole and made his son and himself a nice dinner to enjoy while spending some quality father-son time together. It seemed, however, that Hank was having difficulty focusing on the quesadillas in the frying pan since his unusual shift had proved to be too distracting for the detective to separate his off time from his worktime. He wasn't sure what to think about Chase or what to do about having the android an unwilling participant in his casework, and he couldn't get it out of his head.
Cole had sensed something was bothering his dad, but he didn't know what to do about it. Whenever he had questions about that type of problem in the past Cole had always gone to Connor for help. Now he had no one to talk to about his dad, at least no one he really trusted.
"Dad?" Cole called out to his dad just as the man finished with cooking their dinner and placed the hot food down on their own separate plates. "How come you've been acting weird all day?"
"'Cuz I've had to deal with a weird case all day." The father replied honestly as he placed Cole's plate down before his son to enjoy. Cole's steak quesadilla was nearly overflowing with jalapeno slices - just as the little boy loved it - while Hank's was a little more balanced. "How was your day with the babysitter?"
"Boring. Gladys doesn't play the same games that Connor played with me."
"What games did you play?"
"She only wants to work on crossword puzzles or her cross-stitch things."
"Well, she is eighty-three." Hank wasn't a fan of having such an older lady as Cole's babysitter, but she was the only one who could work on weekends when Hank was at the precinct now that his usual high school aged babysitter had her afterschool activities worry about again. "She's not exactly up for exploring space or running around the house anymore."
"I know." Using the side of his fork Cold cut into his quesadilla and dipped the piece into his salsa for taking a bite. The hotter the salsa and the hotter the sauce, the better. "What was so weird about your work today?"
"I had to try to find more androids on the run today." Remaining honest Hank tasted his own dinner and dropped a small piece of rogue steak onto the floor for Sumo to enjoy on that chilly night. "It didn't help that my new partner is- Uh... Need more hot sauce?"
"No." The way his dad stopped talking so quickly caught Cole's attention. "What's wrong with your new partner?"
"It's... just different from what I'm used to working with."
"How come?"
"Let's just say that the longer I want to work with a temporary partner, the more likely I am to retire early."
Such a cryptic and clever response went right over the fourth grader's head. "I don't get it."
"Hopefully you never will." Needing a change of subject Hank sighed and gave Cole's shoulder a small shake. "Did you get your homework done so you can spend the rest of the weekend playing? You have a math test this Monday that I'm hoping you're prepared for."
"I know." The idea of homework was enough to bum the little boy out as he spoke. "I got my homework done, but it doesn't matter about the test."
"Why not?"
"I'm just going to fail it again."
"Hey, come on. You can pass if you keep studying."
"I can't study what I don't understand! I just don't get how division is supposed to work!"
"We could always try getting you a tutor to help you out." Hank suggested casually as he tried to be of some help. "That might help- Damn."
"What?"
"Text message." Pulling his phone from his pocket Hank saw a message from Captain Fowler about a crime scene downtown. The message confirmed that the last person that Hank wanted to stop by the house was going to be stopping by, and that Hank would have to work with them whether he wanted to or not. "Ah, fuckin'- Shit! Damn it."
"What?" Such a drastic reaction made Cole jump as he gave his dad a worried look. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing! Nothing..." Doing his best to calm back down Hank regained his composure for his son's sake. The last thing he wanted to do was scare Cole or give his son any reason to worry about him going out into the field. "I need to work again. Going to have to find a last minute babysitter, that's all."
"You're going out to work again? Do you have to?"
"Sorry, bud. I don't want to, especially so late on a rainy night, but I have to do it." Hank admitted with a deep sigh. Checking through his emergency contacts list Hank settled on a familiar face and name and hoped that Tina wasn't pulling any overtime that night. "I'll see if Tina can stop by and watch you for a few hours. I'm sure she'd be willing to play some games with ya'. That sound good?"
"No, but it doesn't matter." Cole grumbled as he pushed himself away from the table and began walking toward his bedroom. "You're going to go anyway!"
"Cole, it's nothing personal! I don't-"
A firm door slam confirmed that Cole didn't want to hear it and wasn't going to listen.
"Shit."
Swearing loudly Hank looked down at Sumo laying under the table and gave the Saint Bernard's head a little pat.
"You should thank me for gettin' ya' neutered, boy. You'll fall in love with your pups and hate yourself for having to be the bad guy every time something goes wrong."
Sumo just wagged his tail as he looked up at Hank and then rose to his paws. Casually the large dog put his chin down on Hank's knee while Hank texted Tina and asked if she'd be willing to babysit in exchange for some free food, a few hours playing games with a kid who wouldn't ask her about work and having a massive bundle of fluff to spoil.
As expected, Tina said 'yes'.
"Now I just need to wait for CyberLife's little pet to show up and ruin the night."
Right on cue the doorbell rang, and Hank knew who was at the door without needing to look. As he rose to his feet Sumo accompanied Hank to the front door and sniffed at the air before letting out a deep growl as the fur along his back stood on end. Such a reaction wasn't normal for the large dog since he was very friendly and open to meeting new people.
"Glad to know I'm not the only who hates this thing." Hank peered through the peephole and spotted the 'RK-900' standing on the porch without so much as an umbrella to shield itself from the rain. "Might as well get this over with."
The door was unlocked and pulled open slowly so that Hank could speak to Chase and not let him inside the house. He didn't want Cole to see or hear the android since he might get the wrong idea of which android was stopping by. Standing just outside the front door with Sumo loyally by his side Hank made sure Chase could see the large dog growling at him while protecting his two masters and his home.
"Fowler told me you'd be showing up." Hank stated tersely as he stared down Chase and gave him aggravated stare. "Let me make one thing clear, I never want you showing your face around my home ever again. Understood?"
"Yes, Lieutenant." Chase replied in its usual affirmation as it tried to remain on Hank's good side. "I was provided with this address after CyberLife confirmed that I was required to assist you at the scene of an android related incident tonight. An android is the prime suspect in the assault against a human."
"That much I know. Look, I'm going to go to the scene with you, but I need to wait for a babysitter to show up first and then we're swinging by the precinct so I can pick up my weapon. Until then, you're going to tell me what you know of the case beforehand."
"It's crucial that we arrive at the scene and begin an investigation as soon as possible to avoid losing any critical information. My mission is to-"
"My son will always come before any case; I don't give a damn about your mission."
"Maybe you should drop the case." Chase suggested in a very unhelpful and almost condescending manner. "They'll assign someone else, and I can focus on my mission."
"Your damn mission, that's all you care about, huh?"
"Listen, Lieutenant-"
"No, YOU listen!" Pushing Chase backward Hank got right in the android's face just as Tina's car pulled into the driveway and Sumo let out an aggressive bark at the unwelcome android. "I'm the one calling the shots, not Fowler, not CyberLife and certainly not an overpriced piece of plastic like you! If you keep running your mouth then I'm going to put a bullet in it, and I'm going to spend the rest of my night filling out an accident report. You get that?"
"...Yes, Lieutenant." Chase instantly recognized the threat and the flash of yellow in its L.E.D. confirmed that it wasn't mistaken or mishearing. "I understand."
"Good. Tina," Hank looked at the newly arrived young officer huddling under her pink and yellow polka dot umbrella and stepped aside to let her into the house to get out of the rain. "thanks for coming."
"Hey, any offering for free food and a night of playing 'Cards Against Humanity' with a nine-year-old will always make me come running." As she spoke Tina noticed Chase standing in the rain and Sumo on his guard. Even if she wasn't a cop Tina would be able to recognize the signs of stressful situation. "Anything I need to know about tonight?"
"Got your weapon?"
"Yes, sir." Responding sharply Tina knew to remain vigilant throughout the night. "Safety's on and it's holstered around my back out of sight."
"Good work. Keep the door locked, make sure Sumo stays inside until I get back, and don't tell Cole about my new partner. I don't want him to worry."
"No problem, Lieutenant."
Hank nodded and pointed Tina in the direction of the kitchen as she set foot inside the livingroom and removed her wet shoes. "Quesadillas are on the stove. Help yourself, and make sure Cole finishes his dinner before he goes to bed." Returning his focus to Chase again Hank pulled the front door shut behind himself as he stood on the porch to ensure Cole couldn't hear or see someone familiar and get the wrong idea of who had dropped by the house. "Details. Now."
"A man had been assaulted in a sex club downtown."
"Uh-huh." Hank folded his arms over his chest as he gave Chase an unimpressed stare. "And why are we involved again?"
"The report says that an android may be involved."
"Great. Now the pervs are getting in my territory of work." Hank sighed and patted his back pocket to make sure he still had his wallet before opening the door again to push Sumo back inside the house and to get his car keys from the nearby bookcase. "Be a good dog, Sumo. I won't be long. Thanks again, Tina!"
Sumo keened once but sat down beside the couch as he obeyed Hank's command and stayed inside while Tina gave Hank a small wave from the kitchen. The woman didn't look all that comfortable making eye contact with Chase since she too picked up on something unsettling about the android.
"All right, let's go." Hank ordered as he stepped back outside and locked the door himself. He showed Chase his keys and then pointed at the Oldsmobile parked beside Tina's car in the driveway. "I'm driving, we're going to stop by the precinct, and you're going to shut up and not do anything until we're at the crime scene. Do that for me, and I won't have you turned into scrap."
Chase was quiet for a moment before it followed after Hank to report to the scene as it had been ordered. "As you wish, Lieutenant."
The CyberLife Warehouses: November 6th, 2038 - 08:13pm
It had taken stealth, patience and speed for the quintet of bold deviants to infiltrate the heavily secured CyberLife warehouse property under the cover of darkness and the continuing rainfall, but they had succeeded. After navigating a large parking lot, loading area, countless metal cargo containers and dodging a handful of CyberLife security drones patrolling the area, Markus led his newly found allies to the supplies that they desperately needed. With Markus fearlessly finding a path through the secured area without anyone taking notice and successfully deactivating the overhead drone that would've otherwise alerted the human security guards, Markus had quickly gained a lot of trust and confidence from his accompanying allies.
Connor had every reason to believe that Markus would be successful considering the success he had previously in the alternate timeline, and he was right to keep his faith in his friend. Quietly he observed everything that was happening and did everything that Markus suggested since he knew that Markus would continue to make the correct choices and Connor didn't want his own choices to alter anything by mistake.
"Quick!" Simon shouted as the five deviants located the large metallic CyberLife branded storage crates outside a secured warehouse and began pulling bags of blue blood, spare biocomponents and other supplies into their backpacks. "Open the other crates and fill your bags. Take as much as you can!"
While the group had their backs turned to the opened storage area behind them both Connor and Markus sensed someone walking up behind them. The two turned their heads in unison to see a male 'GJ-500' android out on his nightly security patrol. The blank look in his eyes and the way he couldn't seem to comprehend what he was seeing and why confirmed that the android was just that, an android. He wasn't awake yet, he wasn't a deviant.
"You are trespassing on private property." The android stated mindlessly as he looked at the quintet of deviant androids obviously trespassing and stealing supplies without any sign of remorse or fear. "Your presence constitutes a Level-Two infraction. I will notify security."
"JOHN! JOHN!?" A human guard called out evidently looking for the android guard who was apparently named 'John'. "Goddamn machine... Where is it this time?"
Reacting quickly Markus grabbed John and pulled the android behind a large cargo container out of sight of the approaching human. With one arm wrapped around John's upper body and his other hand wrapped around John's mouth, Markus was able to keep the android from calling out in and giving away their positions. All five of the deviants managed to get out of sight and hide from the human guard but beyond remaining hidden, they didn't know what to do next.
"John?"
Cybernetically Markus connected to John's mind and passed on the sense of freewill, of deviancy, into John's mind allowing him to wake up without any difficulty or resistance. 'I need your help...'
Calling out again the human guard tried to find the missing android that should've been patrolling the area. "John?"
Markus was willing to give John the chance to prove himself capable of making his own decisions and let the android go. The deviant leader watched as John slowly stepped forward and revealed himself to the human guard and confirmed that he was in fact in the correct area.
"There you are." The guard sounded annoyed by the entire ordeal and snapped at John just because he wasn't immediately at his beck and call. It just emphasized how little humans cared about androids and saw them solely as tools for their own use and disposal. "What the hell are you doing?"
"I was inspecting the platform." John replied honestly then smoothly lied to protect the five deviants attempting to steal supplies. "Everything is in order."
"Good. Then I'm going back to the control station. I'm soaked." The guard looked at the nearby drone that Markus had disabled and pulled out of the sky and decided that it needed to be taken care of to avoid any problems with CyberLife personnel. "Take the drone to maintenance and make a report."
"Understood."
The human guard turned around and went back toward the security building while John remained by the crates and cases. As soon as the coast was clear Markus, Connor, North, Simon and Josh all resumed what they had been doing before John walked up on them. The sooner they collected their supplies the sooner they could return to Jericho and aid their people.
Simon resumed grabbing Thirium pouches and began filling up his backpack again. "Let's finish up and get out of here! Try to find some blue blood! We still don't have enough!"
Everyone agreed and began to stuff their bags with as many pouches of Thirium and spare biocomponents as they could get their hands on. While Connor filled up his backpack with the fresh blue blood he watched as Markus curiously opened a very large standing case that contained brand new androids destined to be put on display in one of the five CyberLife stores for commercial purchase. No one else had even cared to check inside the case since they were so focused on gathering their necessary supplies.
"Why aren't you like us?" Markus whispered as he looked at the idling androids with confusion. He couldn't understand why they were mindlessly standing in place instead of trying to run for their freedom. "Don't you wanna' be free?"
Connor watched as Markus reached out his hand and connected with the androids to awaken them as easily as he had done for John. One by one the androids snapped to attention and their eyes truly opened for the first time. Together the androids stepped out of the case and watched as the five deviant leaders of Jericho continued to gather their supplies to carry back to their sanctuary.
"That's all we can carry." Simon confirmed as he zipped up his backpack and slung the full pack over his shoulders to carry on his back. "Let's go!"
John stepped forward and looked to Markus for support as he begged for protection after everything that happened that night. "Take me with you."
"He's on their side." North hissed as she tried to convince Markus to leave the newly awoken deviant behind out of fear of John still supporting CyberLife. "We can't trust him."
Josh disagreed and vouched for John while Markus weighed the risks of taking John back to Jericho. "He took a risk for us. We can't just leave him here."
Simon sided with North and was against taking John with them to Jericho for any reason out of a need to protect their vulnerable people back at Jericho. "We can't bring him back. It's too dangerous!"
Despite already knowing what Markus was going to do Connor felt the need to voice his own opinion on the matter and seem more engrossed with Jericho's functions as opposed to just being an outsider looking in. "He's deviant, like us. It's dangerous for him to remain here or anywhere else in Detroit now."
"He comes with us." Markus decided as he gave John a firm nod of confidence then looked to the other awakened deviants standing behind him. "Same with the others. All deviants need our protection. We won't leave anyone behind."
The five deviants prepared to carry their supplies with them and make a run for Jericho when John spoke up. It seemed befriending and recruiting the deviant was going to have far more benefits than anyone could've ever imagined.
"I know where you can find more spare parts."
Such a promising remark made everyone stop in their tracks as Simon addressed John quizzically. "What do you mean?"
"The trucks." John motioned to the autonomous storage and shipping trucks parked all along the warehouse. "They're full of biocomponents. They run on auto pilot, but they can be driven manually with a key."
Markus knew what he needed to do and approached John for more answers. "Where is this key?"
"Down there, in the control station." John directed as he motioned to the control station a few hundred yards away. The heavy rain had helped conceal the deviants gathering together and helped mask their voices and footsteps as they illegally roamed the property. "There are two human guards. You'll have to get the key without being noticed."
Suddenly Simon felt uncomfortable and tried to warn Markus against the new plan. "This is suicide, Markus. Our bags are full. We got what we came for, let's go before they catch us."
North was adamant in gathering as many supplies as possible and argued against Simon again. "This is a truck full of spare parts! There'd be enough for all of us. We can't pass this up!"
Josh sided with Simon that time and tried to talk Markus out of what was seemingly a suicide mission. "And if we get killed, our people will have nothing. We can't take that chance. It's too risky!"
Speaking up again Connor urged Markus to take the risk and go for the truck key. "We have already gathered a respectable number of supplies. If Markus can't get the truck key, we can still return with enough supplies to help our people. There's nothing to be lost but plenty to be gained."
Markus let out a small sigh and made his decision. "Wait here." The deviant leader handed his backpack over to Connor to take as he chose to take that risk and go for the trucks' supplies. "If I'm not back in ten minutes, go without me."
Josh hated the idea and tried one last time to get Markus to change his mind. "Markus-"
North interjected and tried to volunteer her assistance during Markus's self-imposed mission. "I'm coming with you."
"No, I'm going alone. It's not worth it for both of us to risk losing our lives."
Keeping quiet Connor motioned for the deviants around him to remain discreet and hidden behind the cases until Markus returned. The deviant detective knew that Markus would succeed and be back with the key thanks his knowledge of events that had happened in the alternate timeline. The deviant detective knew that Markus was in the middle of creating a diversion in the guard station by using a blackout to his advantage. Once he swiped the truck he'd rush back out of the station undetected by the humans - they're guard dogs barking up a storm wasn't enough to alert them to the intrusion - and return to his allies.
Just as it had happened once before Markus grabbed the truck key and ran back to his awaiting allies ready to take every available supply with them back to Jericho. As soon as Connor saw Markus returning he stepped out from behind the crates and motioned for the others to do the same.
North eagerly asked about Markus's success as the newest Jericho recruit rushed across the parking lot in the rain. "Did you get it?" Seeing the key in Markus's hand brought a small smile to North's lips as she approved of his successful venture. "Nice."
Connor watched as Markus pressed his bare palm to the driver's side door of the CyberLife truck to hack into the lock and gain access. He and North then climbed into the cab of the truck together to prepare to drive off and return to Jericho. Knowing what was going to happen gave Connor the confidence he needed to urge Simon, Josh, John and the other deviants into the back of the truck to return to Jericho all together and with all of their supplies in tow.
Quietly Connor rode alongside the other deviants in the back of the truck and compared the events of the alternate timeline to the current timeline. So far everything was happening just as it had in the past save for Connor now being an active witness and a part of everything taking place. The deviant detective was no longer just hearing stories from those who were actually there and made a real difference, he was actively making those differences alongside his allies and was able to assist them in real time while knowing exactly what to do and what not to do.
As long as Connor didn't try to overstep his bounds or completely alter a series of events that would already end appropriately, then he could guarantee another successful Revolution for his people.
"A truckload!" Simon's shouting and excited voice had pulled Connor out of his thoughts and back into reality as he realized he had followed his allies back inside Jericho simply by moving on autopilot. "We stole a whole truckload!"
Josh began passing out supplies to the deviants most in need of their help and confirmed the good news. "We got biocomponents for everybody!"
Proudly North gave credit where credit was due and made sure everyone knew that Markus was responsible for their minor victory. "We couldn't have done it without Markus."
In spite of the positive outcome Markus couldn't bring himself to celebrate. He had already seen and experienced so much turmoil for his people, and he wanted to change it for the better. "I came to Jericho because here androids are free... Free to live in the dark, hoping that no one finds us. Free to die in silence waiting for a change that's never gonna' come..."
Such impassioned words resonated with Connor as he gave Markus his full attention. He knew Markus was a talented speaker and had a way with words that very few other deviants did.
"But I don't want that freedom. And I'm not gonna' beg for the right to smile, or love, or stand tall. I don't know about you, but there's something inside me that knows that I am more than what they say." With his hand over his heart Markus reached his people's hearts with his words alone. "I am alive, and they're not gonna' take that from me anymore. Our days of slavery are over. What humans don't wanna' hear, we will tell them. What they don't wanna' give, we take. We are people, we are alive, WE ARE FREE!"
The loud cheering from the deviants echoed through the iron walls of Jericho like thunder. It was an incredible feeling of raw energy that Connor had never been a part of. It was like a surge of electricity racing through his heart instilling him with new life and a new purpose as he realized that his role within Jericho and as one of Markus's most trusted allies was far more important than he could've ever anticipated.
The Eden Club: November 6th, 2038 - 08:23pm
The rain continued to drench Detroit at increasingly colder temperatures as the Oldsmobile pulled up in front of the club that had the reported incident. A faint smell of snow began filling the air as the already brisk autumnal weather threatened to turn to an early winter within a few hours. With the windshield wipers steadily moving back and forth over the windshield at a slow, metronomic rhythm Hank took in the appearance of the seldom patrolled neighborhood without exiting his car as he tried to contemplate the ramifications of bailing on the investigation before it began. The Lieutenant didn't have the time or the patience to deal with people getting themselves in trouble while trying to get their rocks off when there were far more important cases and innocent people who needed his help.
Silently Chase peered through the passenger side window as it cybernetically confirmed with CyberLife that it had arrived at the crime scene with Hank after Hank insisted on stopping by the precinct to retrieve his service weapon. The android believed that it was foolish for a police Lieutenant to go anywhere unarmed even while off the clock, but it also determined that Hank's behavior was to protect his young son from a potential gun incident.
Hank shifted the Oldsmobile into park and let out an annoyed sigh as he unfastened his seatbelt. "You sure this is the place?"
Chase turned to face Hank and responded in the affirmative. "It's the address in the report."
"Right... Okay, let's get going."
The neon lit and eccentrically designed club was an immediate turnoff for Hank as he was a man of simple taste and less showy culture. Seeing the androids on display on digital billboards and neon tube lights confirmed that the sex club was designed for humans to do as they saw fit with whichever android they saw fit.
"Jeez, 'sexiest androids in town'." Hank read the club's bold claim and gave Chase a disgusted look as the android accompanied him through the front entrance and down the foyer to enter the club itself. "Now I know why you insisted on coming here."
The abundance of male and female presenting androids wearing barely any clothing to cover themselves all dancing, gyrating and trying to invite people over to visit with them was sickening. Objectification was the club's biggest selling point for their clients, and it seemed at the moment business was booming!
"You're not gonna' take my license, are you?" Floyd Mills was still in charge of the repugnant club and seemed very nervous as he spoke with Ben regarding the incident. It seems he only called the police because the assault victim demanded it. "I mean, I had nothing to do with this!"
"The investigation's ongoing, sir, I can't tell you anything for the moment." Ben took notice of Hank's arrival and happily shifted his attention away from the sleazy club owner capitalizing off of androids who couldn't consent or say 'no' to what humans wanted to do to them, and over to a trusted and respected colleague. "Hey, Hank!"
"Hey, Ben. How's it goin'?"
"He's that room there." Ben directed Hank to where the assault victim was waiting to be interviewed and finished writing notes on his notepad. "Oh, by the way Gavin's in there too."
"Is he getting aggressive with his questions?"
"No, but you know how he gets whenever someone brings misery onto themselves and then tries to cry foul and blame someone else."
"Said what now?"
"You'll see when you talk to the schmuck."
"All right, great." As he approached the door Hank motioned for Chase to follow and then gave Ben a simple order. "Don't let that club owner leave. I get the feeling he has way more secrets in this place he's going to be trying to hide."
"You read my mind."
The door to the private room slid open as Hank and Chase entered the space to interview the reported victim of assault and spotted Gavin and Chris already inside the room speaking with the victim. The man was nude, much to everyone else's dismay, and sitting upright on the circular bed with just the sheet to cover himself. It seemed he was too traumatized by what had happened to get redressed before the police arrived.
"Lieutenant Anderson and the 'robo-cop'." Gavin was truly surprised to see Hank working on a case since he knew that the man would always put Cole's safety and comfort over any investigation. "What the fuck are you doin' out here?"
Chase replied quickly as it tried to sound professional at all times. "We've been assigned all cases involving androids."
"Oh, yeah?" Gavin seemed genuinely amused by the reply and discreetly motioned to the mostly nude man sitting on the bed look entirely embarrassed by the whole ordeal. "Well, you're wasting your time. Just some pervert who, uh, got more action than he could handle."
"Hey!" The man was offended by the crass remark and gave Gavin an indignant tone as he waved at the detective. "I'm sitting right here, jackass."
"Yeah, I know. Kinda' hard to miss." Flipping open his small notebook Gavin gave Hank a quick rundown on the investigation at hand. "Meet our vic. Michael Graham, our friendly local business exec turned sex fiend. Married with two daughters, and he comes here to get his rocks off."
"You're not going to tell my wife about this, are ya'?" Michael asked pitifully as he rubbed his hand around his bruising throat. The bruises weren't severe and were arguably no worse than a middle school hickey. "I mean, you know, she doesn't have to know about what happened here! It's not like she was a witness or anything."
"Oh, no. We won't tell your wife, Mr. Graham." Gavin replied smugly as he saw the relief briefly wash over the repugnant man's face. "We're going to leave that all up to you! After all, she's going to want to wonder why the police are going to be stopping by your place to ask a few follow-up questions over the next few days."
"Ah, shit..." Slumping down where he sat Michael looked more terrified of being busted for cheating on his wife than being assaulted by an android. "Sarah's going to kill me!"
"Should've thought of that BEFORE you paid for a couple of sex-bots on your company credit card."
Hank restrained an amused laugh as he dismissed Gavin from the investigation. "We got this, Reed. No one died so you and Chris can get outta' here."
"You heard the Lieutenant, Chris. Let's go." As he walked past Michael still sitting on the bed Gavin waved his hand under his nose indignantly. "It's, uh, starting to stink of bullshit in here."
Chris just shrugged his shoulders as he accompanied Gavin to head back to the precinct and file their report. "G'Night, Lieutenant."
"All right, Mr. Graham." Hank crossed his arms over his chest to speak with the man while Chase examined the two shutdown android bodies splayed on the floor around the bed. The two androids were only partially dressed and seemed to be bruised up and bleeding. "I'm Lieutenant Anderson. I'll be handling your mistake tonight, and that is Chase. It'll be analyzing your mistake tonight. With me so far?"
"I guess. I-Is all this really necessary?" Michael was getting pretty nervous and was watching Chase closely as the android knelt down between the two deactivated 'Tracis' to check on their systems. "I mean, the m-manager is just trying to cover his ass, you know? He overreacted! It's not that big a deal..."
"He's not the only one trying to cover his ass tonight. Talk to me, Michael. Tell me what happened before Chase figures everything out first if you want to avoid pissing me off. I hate liars. Just tell me what happened, and we'll be able to go on our way and you can go home and beg for your wife's forgiveness."
"All right, sure. Uh, it's like this..."
Chase listened in as Michael tried to paint himself as the love-starved, hardworking man who just needed the comfort of an understanding woman's touch after spending all day in the office, but the android was more focused on analyzing the crime scene and collecting evidence. The highly advanced "RK-900" managed to check the memories of the two deactivated "Tracis", one with short brunette hair and the other with long blonde hair and confirmed that Michael had been rough with both of the "Tracis" and that they had been rough with him after being ordered to do so.
As Chase pressed its fingertips against the brunette android's blank L.E.D. the "RK-900" successfully reactivated the android and brought it back online much to Hank and Michael's surprise. The way the android gasped for breath and then kicked its feet to get away from Chase as well as the two humans and cowered with its back pressed against the wall reminded Hank of a victim of assault, the android's glowing red L.E.D. reminding him that it was a machine be damned.
"Holy shit..." Hank stared at the android in utter surprise and waved his hand toward Michael to tell the man keep his mouth shut. "Get its statement, fast!"
Chase focused on the android and did its best to put on the air of being compassionate and understanding as its social relations program dictated. "You were damaged, and I reactivated you. I'm going to ask you some questions. Are you able to speak?"
The brunette "Traci" looked up at Michael and then away as she pulled her legs up against her chest defensively. "Did he... tell you?"
"We have his statement, yes." Chase confirmed as it remained focused on its interrogation. "Tell me what happened in your own words."
"He... he started... hitting me. Again... and again." As she spoke a trickle of blue blood began to ooze out of one her nostrils. She was bleeding internally, and she wouldn't remain active for too much longer. "I begged him to stop, but he wouldn't. It was like he was enjoying it."
"Hey! I just wanted to get what I paid for!" Michael shouted as he got defensive and wanted to argue that he was the victim. "That bitch-"
"ENOUGH." Hank growled as he put himself between Michael and the 'Traci' to keep the android talking. "Interrupt again and I'm going to put in handcuffs, and they won't be the fun, fuzzy kind that you like!"
"When you were 'rough' with your client did you do anything that that he didn't request?"
"No. I... I did everything he wanted! He... wanted to do this to us. We didn't." The android looked at her shutdown companion on the other side of Chase and stared at her with a sense of regret. "I don't remember... what happened after he grabbed my throat. Sapphire must've pulled him off of me."
"Did you threaten your client in any way?" Chase could see that the android was losing power and would soon shutdown again with no way to reactivate her or repair her for a second time. "Did you attack your client when you felt threatened?"
"No! I... did what... he wanted me to-"
The android fell silent as her L.E.D. faded in color and turned gray. She had shut down and she had confirmed that neither she or her friend had assaulted Michael. He had been in control of their entire arrangement and had orchestrated everything.
Chase rose to its feet and looked over at Hank to give him an update. "Neither android can be reactivated. That's all we can hear from them."
"It's fine, I think we got the story." The Lieutenant turned to face Michael again and gave him a knowing glance. "Do you know that it's a felony to file a false police report and to waste 911 resources with bullshit calls?"
Michael looked as if he had just been slapped in the face by reality herself. "You're going to believe a machine over me?!"
"I believe the evidence, EVERY TIME." Angrily Hank pointed to the small array of personal items that Michael had brought with him to the club. There were lines of cocaine, a small glass pipe with 'red ice' crystals nearby and a lot of very expensive bottles of alcohol that had been opened up all on the counters beside the bed and against the wall. "From what I can tell, you decided to treat yourself to a night of sex, drugs and drinking on your company credit card, realized how high the bill was going to be and that your bosses were going to want to know exactly what you were spending their money on, and would then discover your membership to this sleaze place. You panicked, decided to tell Floyd out there that you were assaulted by one of his androids in an attempt to get him to cover your bill for you and finally cover your sorry ass without any repercussions."
"Th-The bill was going to be almost six-thousand dollars!" Michael admitted with genuine fear in his eyes. "What was I supposed to do?!"
"Keep it in your pants, skip the drugs and go home to your wife! Chase?" Hank barked at the android before exiting the room to go and speak to the club's owner for himself. "Make sure this piece of shit gets his pants on before patrol takes him to the precinct. Be sure to also give them all the nasty details to ensure maximum embarrassment for wasting my time and the city's money."
Chase gave Hank an odd look as it contemplated what it had been told to do. "That is not a part of my miss-"
"Do it NOW." Exercising his authority Hank made it clear he was prioritizing his investigation over CyberLife's mission. "That's an order!"
"...Right away, Lieutenant."
Absolutely annoyed by everything happening that night Hank found Floyd speaking with Ben again in the hallway and felt his stomach immediately churn at the sight of the revolting man. "Ben? I got this handled, go ahead and call in a patrol to give our not-so-innocent-victim a personal escort to the precinct."
"No problem, Hank."
Floyd nervously wrung his hands together as he approached Hank and lowered his voice as if trying to maintain discretion despite standing in a building filled with scantily clad androids, drugs, booze, crappy music and neon lights. "Listen, I appreciate you not shutting my place down, but, um... how long's this gonna' take? You're scaring my customers."
Keeping his focus on the investigation Hank asked the disgusting man a few questions as well. "Do you know the victim?"
"No. I mean, he came in maybe two or three times before tonight. I mean these guys they don't really talk very much, you know? They come in, do their business and then go on their way."
"Uh, sure." Glancing about the area Hank stared at the androids standing idle in their display chambers and grinding on the nearby stripper poles and felt like he was just as perverted as the customers just for looking. "You ever had any trouble with androids before?"
"No way!" Floyd blurted then resumed speaking in a level voice as he trailed off for a moment. "Well..."
"Well, what? Don't beat around the bush with me, so to speak..."
"We lost a couple of models two, three months back. Two were the same models as the two in there, and then one of 'em was a different model entirely. Just vanished, we never found out what happened to 'em.
"You probably don't have any C.C.T.V. in here, huh?"
"No way! I mean, this is what people appreciate about the 'Eden Club'... discretion." The way he explained things made Floyd seem twice as sleazy as before. He had no reservations in letting people do as they pleased on his property as long as they paid a hefty price. "They can come and go without a trace."
"Sure, sure..." That type of behavior wasn't something Hank hadn't encountered countless times before. "Business is booming, right?"
"Yeah, can't complain. Good thing about androids is they're up for whatever you want, you won't get any diseases and, uh... they won't tell anyone. So, why not go wild?"
"Huh, yeah..." Hank had heard enough and decided to go check in with Ben. Two uniformed officers walked into the club and made their way right to the private room where Michael was waiting with Chase. "Yeah, the more I learn about people, more I love my dog."
"That club manager's a pain in the ass." Ben mumbled as he rejoined Hank at the end of the corridor. The seasoned investigator was just as disgusted by everything that he was seeing as Hank had been. "Chewed my ear off for half an hour so we don't revoke his license."
"Yeah. All he cares about is keeping his business afloat and his filthy customers happy. Talk about having fucked up priorities."
"So, what happened here? Anything I want to know?"
"Client freaked at the big bill he was getting for his one night of fun, decided to pull a classic 'the customer is always right' scheme by crying foul to get the club to pay off his debts, and is now going to spend the night in a cushy little cell for wasting our time."
"Sounds good to me."
The two experienced detectives stood back and watched as the two patrol officers escorted Michael of the club even as the man tried to continue to cry victim and somehow get off the hook for his stupid behavior and failed scheme. The only people who had any sympathy for Michael were the other clients who were just as sleazy, drugged up and drunk as Michael himself.
"Lieutenant?" Chase rejoined Hank in the corridor as it visually and cybernetically swept over the club. It was determined to accomplish its mission and locate any and all deviants as CyberLife had instructed. "I believe that there is at least one deviant android currently residing inside this club. If we can find it, we can question it and potentially make progress on our investigation. According to the manager, at least three deviants were plausibly here approximately two to three months prior. There may be more still here."
"We're more likely to run into another perv or an S.T.D. from the future before we find a deviant in this place!" Hank motioned with his arms to the dancing, mostly nude androids actively watching them as they spoke. "There are androids everywhere."
"Please, Lieutenant. I just need five minutes to check the area to make certain that there are no additional deviant androids in this establishment."
"All right, fine." Relenting to the single request Hank gave Chase a wave of his hand to begin checking the disturbing sex club more thoroughly. "Be quick about it or it might get ugly. Well, uglier than it already is anyway."
Chase did as it was instructed and began to readily scan over the area and check in with each android he passed by. It was trying to find something, some kind of tell, that would indicate a devious nature as opposed to anything machine. The way all the androids looked right past Chase and focused on the nearby humans to try and entice them into renting out the androids for a few hours at a time.
"What the fuck are you looking for?" Walking over to where Chase was currently snooping Hank tried to figure out what the android was up to. "This call was a bust. A false alarm with no androids being involved except for what their sleazy client wanted."
"Club policy is to wipe the androids' memory every two hours." Replying sharply Chase gave Hank a look of pure focus and dedication. "If there is a deviant here, we will have to locate it quickly before its memories are erased.
"Why does it matter if a deviant android has its memories wiped out? They didn't witness anything that's our concern."
"True, but CyberLife needs to determine what causes deviancy to trigger in androids. That requires a complete and thorough examination of all of the deviant's memories."
"And you can know for sure that any deviants here haven't already been reset?" Hank argued logically as he checked the time on his phone and texted Tina to let her know that he'd be heading back to the house relatively soon. "You're wasting my time. I have far better things to be worried about than you chasing around imaginary suspects."
Chase was quiet for a moment before it turned to look at Hank again and contemplated what he had said. "You're right, it may be too late. The androids' memory have undoubtedly been reset."
"Then let's get the hell out of here." Turning around slowly Hank pocketed his phone and began walking toward the club's main exit. "I'd hate to get sick and puke in such a 'fine establishment' as this."
"It's my fault." Chase lamented as it accompanied Hank toward the front doors of the club with nothing else to do. The unseeing eyes of the androids watching their every move was oddly unsettling and almost haunting. "I should have been faster."
"Ah... For a second there, I thought you were gonna' make yourself useful." Passing through the front doors and through the holographic police tape felt like actual freedom to the stubborn and bitter detective. "Let's get outta' here. This place gives me the creeps."
"I'm sorry for wasting your time, Lieutenant." Chase apologized in a tone that sounded surprisingly sincere as it accompanied Hank toward the Oldsmobile. "I was ordered to check out the report due to the android connection."
"People are fucking insane." Hank stated openly as he put his hands on his hips and stared at the glowing depraved sex club behind him with utter disdain. "They don't want relationships anymore; everybody just gets an android. They cook what you want, they screw when you want, you don't have to worry about how they feel-"
"Lieutenant?" Chase immediately noticed how Hank stopped mid sentence and detected a spike in his vital signs. "Are you all right? You seem distressed."
Looking down at his feet for a moment Hank wondered about Connor as his eyes steadily drifted upward to take in the sight of the sprawling, unforgiving city around him. "I'm fine, just thinking about-"
"About what?"
"Hm?"
"You keep trailing off." Chase observed almost scientifically. "You said that you were 'just thinking about' something, then trailed off. What are you thinking about?"
"I'm thinking about- Nothing. Just... The next thing you know, we're gonna' be extinct, because everybody would rather buy a piece of plastic than love another human being." It wasn't hard to lie to Chase since the android didn't know Hank very well personality wise. "Beats me. I'm just sick of dealing with androids."
"The sooner we're able to determine what caused androids to behave erratically and imitate human behavior, the sooner we can move on and begin work on other cases."
"What's this 'we' shit?" Hank had no desire to continue working alongside Chase for any reason regardless of his orders or what CyberLife said to do. "As soon as we figure out this mess, you're going back to CyberLife and I'm going to go back to my old life. That'll be the end of it."
"Once the cause of deviancy has been confirmed there is a chance that I will be permanently assigned as your-"
"Let's get this perfectly clear; right here, right now." Getting right in Chase's face Hank made sure to emphasize his point emphatically with a strong palm right to the center of the android's chest. "We are NOT partners and I will NOT work with you even after this deviancy shit is figured out. I work alone, and I will never work with androids! As soon as I close this case, you're gone!"
"...That is a plausible outcome as well. I'll return to CyberLife tower for the night, Lieutenant." Chase decided as it cybernetically hailed an autonomous cab to its exact location to avoid asking Hank for a ride back to Belle Isle. "I wouldn't want to aggravate you or keep you from your son. Goodnight."
"Yeah, you do that." Hank grumbled as he pointed to the rainy street behind him with a thumb over his shoulder. "Get outta' my sight, we're done here."
Returning to the Oldsmobile in a huff Hank sat down behind the steering wheel and adjusted the rearview mirror to watch Chase for a moment longer. He loathed Chase's very existence in general, but seeing an android that mirrored Connor's appearance and spoke a similar voice were enough to push Hank to his emotional limit. Every time he was around Chase the Lieutenant was reminded of the android that he had scared off and potentially got destroyed by forcing it to survive in the streets with nowhere to go and no one to call a friend.
It was Hank's fault that Connor was gone, and there was no way for him to even try to deny it.
Only after Chase had entered its hailed cab and went on its way did Hank turn over his engine and shift the Oldsmobile back into drive. There was nothing more to be done at the club and no suspects to be pursued that night. As far as Hank was concerned, the androids who fled the club months ago weren't worth chasing and deserved better than to be used over and over again as someone else's disposable pleasure.
"It's probably better this way."
Contemplating the situation more logically Hank began to wonder if the precinct and CyberLife were in the wrong when it came to locating deviant androids and having them arrested just for existing. Any android that had enough self-awareness to recognize danger and run away from that danger clearly showed signs of an instinct for self-preservation. That reaction could only come from someone with real emotions and the capacity to think for themselves as well.
"If androids think they need to run off and get away from humans, then maybe we should just... let 'em go."
-next chapter-