Ever attentive and dedicated to his work Connor sat at his desk directly connected to the opposite side of Hank's desk in silent contemplation as he studied a single case file that had left him relatively stumped. In a statuesque pose Connor worked well into the late night and early morning hours determined to solve his case once and for all. While the rest of the day shift had long since clocked-out and gone home for the night Connor remained at his desk eager to locate the criminal who had eluded the law for almost four consecutive months now. The yellow flickering of his L.E.D. matched Connor's pulse from his Thirium pump thrumming away in his chest as the deviant detective diligently concentrated on his work while his quarter danced gracefully over his knuckles.
The emergency cell phone that Hank insisted Connor carry was sitting on the top corner of his desk completely ignored until it began to ring. The intrusive sound brought Connor's focus away from the case for the first time in almost nine hours, and his yellow L.E.D. blinked rapidly in response alongside his eyelids. Looking down at the phone Connor saw that the caller was Hank himself and knew he needed to answer right away to avoid upsetting the protective man.
Swiping the green 'Answer' button on the display screen Connor acknowledged the call in a calm tone of voice. "Lieutenant."
'Connor, what the fuck are you doing?' Hank sounded as angry as he was exhausted. 'It's three in the morning and you weren't responding to my calls right to your own damn head. Where are you?'
"I am working." Connor replied in annoyingly casual and calm manner. The deviant had mastered the art of holding a discussion while also studying the details on a case without becoming too fixated on one interest over the other. "The case regarding-"
'Yeah, yeah, I know what the case is about We were BOTH assigned to it.' The senior detective snapped impatiently as he spoke to his partner in a gruff voice over the phone with mounting impatience behind every word. 'What I want to know is why the hell you're still there? Your shift is over, it's time for you to clock-out and come home to get some rest.'
"I've had a breakthrough. I believe I can pinpoint the exact location of the suspect within the hour." Catching his coin between his index and middle knuckles, Connor began cybernetically uploading the newly uncovered details to report everything to Captain Fowler. "I just need-"
'Fine, whatever.' Hank interrupted with an annoyed snarl. 'As soon as if you figure out where the jerk is hiding let Reed or Miller, or whoever the fuck is on the night shift, handle it. Got it?'
"Got it. Goodnight, Lieutenant."
'Whatever... Get your ass home as soon you're finished.'
The phone call ended as abruptly as it started, and Connor resumed his work after pressing 'End' on the phone's screen. As he stared at the terminal screen once again a red warning flashed through his visual processors that temporarily distracted the devoted deviant detective from his work.
WARNING:
...Power Level: 65%
...Rest Mode Activation: 01:29:57
...Postpone Rest Mode: [Y/N?]
Connor blinked his eyes as he dismissed the warning, postponed rest mode and turned off the automatic rest mode function in his processors. The deviant didn't need to rest, or so he tried to convince himself. Ever since his deviancy took hold Connor no longer had a perpetual connection with CyberLife, or anyone else for that matter, to keep him healthy or tell him what to do through constant remote monitoring and updates.
The stubborn deviant's own health was now his own personal responsibility.
The late hours of the night faded into the early hours of the morning as the sun began to rise over the city. Connor hadn't left his desk as he continued his attempt to locate the suspect, nor had he obeyed his system and allowed himself to slip into rest mode to restore his steadily waning power at the designated countdown time. To make things worse, he didn't obey Hank's request and continued to work instead of returning home to rest.
Steadily the other officers filed in for the morning shift as the night patrol clocked-out to head back home to get their own rest. Captain Fowler wasn't surprised to see Connor already at his desk, neither was Chris, Tina, Ben or any other officer who had gotten to know Connor. Whereas Gavin didn't give a damn about what the deviant did or how hard he worked. However, one very stern Lieutenant did give a damn about Connor and wasn't afraid to let him know that.
"Connor, what the hell?" Hank asked as he stormed into the precinct and grabbed onto the deviant's shoulder. It wasn't an aggressive action, but it was effective enough to get Connor's full attention. "I thought I told you to come home!"
"You requested that I return home after I locate the suspect." The stubborn deviant defended himself logically and without hesitation. "I have not yet located the suspect."
Hank crossed his arms over his chest as he moved away from Connor's desk and sat behind his own desk with an angry huff. "I can't tell if you're being serious or sarcastic right now."
Connor gave Hank an innocent shrug of the shoulders as he replied with full honesty. "I am in fact being serious. I apologize if my behavior has been confusing."
"How long have you been working?"
"Twenty-six hours, thirty-three minutes and nine seconds."
"Uh-huh, and when was the last time you took a break?" Hank hated seeing Connor pushing himself so damn hard over every little task that came his way. The only time he saw detectives being as dedicated to the work as Connor had been, was when the rumor of raises and promotions began cycling through the bullpen. "Even those CyberLife assholes mandated that you took an hour-long break to keep your systems from overheating, or losing power, or whatever it is that happens to you when you get too tired."
"I took my mandatory one-hour break when you did, Lieutenant."
"Connor?"
"Yes?
"That was yesterday afternoon at four. It's now nine in the morning." The Lieutenant sounded more like an irritated parent than a responsible detective. "You need to take better care of yourself and stop trying to work yourself into the ground to prove something you don't gotta' prove."
"I... will work on that." Connor nodded with a twinge of embarrassment as he finally understood Hank's grievance. "Lieutenant, this suspect has assaulted three people with a gun. He must be apprehended." Refusing to admit he had done anything wrong Connor insisted that he was just doing his duty. "A seventeen-hour shift, though unintentional, has proven necessary in this particular case to protect other people from this suspect's dangerous behavior."
"I agree." Cooling down his own temper Hank lowered his voice to sound less annoyed and more empathetic as he leaned forward against his desk. Giving the deviant a knowing look Hank made it clear that the deviant wasn't going to fool him by pretending that working so long wasn't beginning to affect him. "But you're not going to do anyone any good if you work yourself to death. Take a damn break."
"But I-"
"Don't try to throw some bullshit my way about androids having more endurance than humans or androids being able to function on low-power, I already know that. My point is I don't WANT you to work yourself into the ground." As he spoke Hank's 'dad voice' crept in a little bit without him even noticing. "You're not answering to those CyberLife assholes anymore, you're answering to either me or to Fowler, and we don't expect you to work any harder than any other fuckin' cop in this building just because you're an android. That's all."
Connor patiently listened to Hank as his systems began to automatically deactivate his non-vital functions as a means of preserving what little power that he had left to postpone rest mode for as long as possible. His ventilation function was now at half capacity, his cybernetic relays were working at only fifty percent range and anything beyond his vital biocomponents were now functioning at a low power range as well.
"I will go into rest mode as soon as-" An update appeared on Connor's terminal screen which drew his attention from Hank and back to his work. Determined to solve the case Connor didn't even blink and read over the new details as he danced his coin along his knuckles once more. "The suspect has been located and he is currently four blocks away from the precinct. I have downloaded the address."
"Yeah, well go tell-" Hank watched as the deviant hastily rose from his chair and made his way toward the front doors of the precinct. A deviant on a mission was difficult to stop and Hank knew that from personal experience. "Hey! Connor? Where are you going?"
Hank practically jumped out of his own chair as he chased after his ambitious partner just as the deviant crossed through the parking garage next to the precinct and reached the passenger door of the Oldsmobile. Finally managing to get Connor's attention again as the deviant pulled on the locked passenger side door and stopped in his tracks since the locked door became a temporary obstacle, Hank held up his car keys for Connor to see for himself.
"Connor, talk to me."
"We need to hurry if we're to catch the suspect before he disappears again."
"Damn it, kid." Hank swore as he unlocked the doors of the car and climbed into the driver's seat. He knew the deviant was too damn stubborn for his own good and needed to learn some patience. "Which way?"
Sitting down in the passenger seat Connor cybernetically uploaded the address of the suspect's last known location into the G.P.S. mounted on the dashboard of the car. As he connected to the device his yellow tinted L.E.D. cycled faster, then slowed to a calmer pace as his system struggled to function properly while on low power.
"All right." Hank backed the car out of the space and pulled the old vehicle onto the street. Glancing at the G.P.S. screen Hank turned in the correct direction and let the little device guide him to let Connor sit back and rest a little. "As soon as this asshole's cuffed, you're going to take a rest and you're NOT going to talk me out of it."
"Yes, Lieutenant." Despite his fatigue and stubbornness Connor knew better than to argue with Hank. "I will rest once the suspect is in custody."
"Good. Never thought I'd need to worry about putting an android down for a nap..."
During the short drive to the suspect's address a new warning popped up in bright red illumination in Connor's visual processors causing his L.E.D. to shift from yellow to red as he acknowledged then tried to actively dismiss the warning as quickly as it appeared. Despite turning off his non-vital functions Connor's power level was still draining down quickly thanks to his lack of a proper rest mode.
WARNING:
[...POWER LEVEL CRITICAL]
...Power Level: 10%
...Rest Mode Activation: 00:27:09
...Postpone Rest Mode: [Y/N?]
Entirely focused on solving the case and arresting the dangerous suspect Connor closed his exhausted brown eyes as he forced his programming to override the mandatory protocol yet again. Despite his overwhelming exhaustion starting to creep over his system - his programming triggering low power mode automatically - Connor refused to stand down until the suspect had at last been caught and taken into custody.
The drive to the correct address was swift but it felt like an eternity to the exhausted deviant. Cybernetically, he began checking through each of his still active programs to try to reserve as much of his dwindling power as possible, yet the task itself proved to be in vain as Connor was greeted with yet another warning about his steadily declining power reserves.
WARNING:
[...POWER LEVEL CRITICAL]
...Power Level: 09%
...Rest Mode Activation: - ERROR
WARNING:
...Rest Mode - DISABLED
[...Seek Immediate Technical Assistance]
Losing his ability to cybernetically and biometrically scan his environment, run analysis samples in real time, and losing his enhanced senses made the deviant feel more human than ever before. However, it was when his artificial respiration quartered itself to conserve energy Connor felt and looked more like a corpse with how eerily still he sat in the seat next to Hank. Prioritizing his dwindling power to more appropriate programs and to his vital biocomponents, Connor gave himself approximately ten additional minutes of power until he'd have to enter rest mode and recharge regardless of what cases still needed his attention.
Hank stopped the car outside of the apartment complex that matched the address with a relentless jerk as he stomped on the brake. The sudden jolt forced Connor's tired eyes back open as Hank threw open his door and leapt out of the car to begin his search for the suspect in question. Thanks to his fatigue Connor scrambled gracelessly out of his own seat, stumbling for a few steps, to follow after Hank as the human called for the elevator and pulled his gun from the holster on his hip.
"I'll use the elevator." The senior detective ordered in a calm and level voice. "You head him off at the stairwell in case he tries to run for it."
"R-Right. That's a logical approach." Connor pushed open the door leading to the stairwell and began jogging up the staircase to locate the correct apartment up on the second floor of the six-story building. "Apartment 2-C was included in the address."
The act of running up the staircase had proven itself unexpectedly more tiring to the deviant than he had anticipated. With his system functioning on low power mode the physical strain of running with his ventilation program at quarter capacity was wearing down his power at an alarming fast rate while also causing his core temperature to steadily rise to above a nominal degree.
WARNING:
[...POWER LEVEL CRITICAL]
...Power Level: 07%
...Rest Mode Activation: - ERROR
...Core Temperature Elevated: ^100.1 Degrees Fahrenheit
WARNING:
...Rest Mode - DISABLED
WARNING:
Emergency Stasis Mode Activation: 00:02:59
Without breaking stride Connor made his way to the correct floor and pushed open the door of the stairwell leading into the long corridor connecting to all of the apartments on that floor. Peering through the doorway of the stairwell without making a sound, Connor saw Hank standing outside the suspect's door with his gun pointed at the floor ready to take aim if necessary.
Hank nodded to Connor to acknowledge his presence as he knocked on the correct apartment door with two firm bangs. "Detroit Police, open the door!"
The frantic sound of someone running about the small apartment caused Hank to wisely back away from the door and press his back up and against the wall as the suspect jerked the door open and bolted through it to try to escape from the police. Turning in the direction of the stairwell the suspect unknowingly ran right into the line of sight of the second officer at the scene waiting to apprehend him.
Even while running on fumes Connor easily intercepted the fleeing human and held him in place inside the stairwell just on the other side of the door by pinning the man's arms behind his back, and his chest up against the wall.
"Do not resist!" The deviant detective ordered as he held on to the suspect's arms in a firm grip. "You're under arrest!"
"FUCK YOU!" The tall, broadly built and very angry man protested. The tattoos on the sides of his neck indicated anti-android gang activity and numerous racist sentiments that made practically everyone in Detroit the enemy in the man's eyes. "GET OFF ME!"
"I'm not going to do that, you're under arrest."
Hank caught up in a matter of seconds and trained his gun on the man who was attempting to break free of Connor's slowly weakening hold.
"FREEZE." The senior detective shouted at the suspect with an intimidating bark. "Detroit Police, asshole! If you keep resisting it will NOT end well for you."
As he held on to the suspect's arms Connor's vision began to flash red again as his remaining power was drained away during the ongoing struggle.
WARNING:
[...POWER LEVEL CRITICAL]
...Power Level: 05%
...Rest Mode Activation: - ERROR
...Core Temperature Elevated: ^100.8 Degrees Fahrenheit
WARNING:
...Rest Mode - DISABLED
WARNING:
Emergency Stasis Mode Activation: 00:01:12
Forcing the warnings out of his line of sight with another cybernetic dismissal Connor put all of his remaining strength in to pinning the suspect's arms behind his back and forced him down from the wall and onto the ground, on to his stomach. Kneeling on the suspect's spine Connor refused to let the dangerous man break free even as he struggled under Connor's weight.
Hank took out the radio tucked in his coat's pocket to deliver an update on the arrest. "Suspect located and detained at my location. Requesting back-up for transportation."
Kneeling down beside the suspect Hank pulled the pair of handcuffs from the back of his belt and snapped them over the human's wrists to help restrain him as Connor's strength began to weaken.
"All right ass-wipe, you're under arrest for multiple assaults." Threatening the man with logic and reason, the bane of any bigot's existence, Hank gave him fair warning to stop struggling. "Don't make it worse by adding resisting arrest to the charges. I'm not afraid to knock your ass down those stairs to pursuade you to play nice."
Too tired to hold on to the man's arms for too much longer Connor let go of the suspect and stood upright against the wall to rest. The L.E.D. in his temple hadn't stopped flashing red as his power level continued to drop and his core temperature continued to rise.
WARNING:
[...POWER LEVEL CRITICAL]
...Power Level: 04%
...Rest Mode Activation: - ERROR
...Core Temperature Elevated: ^101.3 Degrees Fahrenheit
WARNING:
...Rest Mode - DISABLED
WARNING:
Emergency Stasis Mode Activation: 00:00:47
Without even hesitating Hank grabbed on to the suspect's arms and hefted him up from the ground to pin him against the opposite wall under his bicep. Glancing over his shoulder Hank eyed his partner warily as the deviant swayed a little on his feet. "Connor? You good?"
"Y-Yes..." Connor practically slurred as he tried to resist his program from sending him into emergency stasis mode against his will. "I-I am functioning well."
"No, you're not. You look dead on your feet!"
Chris and Officer Lance Wilson appeared at the top of the staircase with their guns drawn and immediately went to assist Hank. The young officers were always happy to lend a helping hand whenever the call to action came their way.
"We were in the neighborhood when we heard your call, Lieutenant." Chris explained as he and Lance took charge of the suspect. "We got him for ya'."
"Thanks, Chris. All the paperwork on this scumbag is on Connor's terminal. Take care of it, will ya'?" Glancing back at the deviant who was still very unsteady on his feet Hank knew where his priorities truly laid. "I need to get Connor home before he collapses."
"Sure, no problem." Chris led the suspect away while Lance kept one hand on the suspect's shoulder. "Let's go, pal."
Hank returned his attention to the deviant standing as straight as a post with his back against the wall and his soulful brown eyes closed. Putting his hand to Connor's shoulder to keep the deviant alert to his presence Hank snapped his fingers in Connor's face to get his attention.
"Connor? You still awake? Talk to me, kid."
WARNING:
[...POWER LEVEL CRITICAL]
...Power Level: 02%
...Rest Mode Activation: - ERROR
...Core Temperature Elevated: ^101.7 Degrees Fahrenheit
WARNING:
...Rest Mode - DISABLED
WARNING:
...Emergency Stasis Mode - INITIATED
Against the deviant's will Connor's red L.E.D. began pulsing slower and slower until at last his body went limp and he began to crumble. If Hank hadn't already been supporting his shoulder then Connor would've collapsed in a heap right there on the floor and smashed his head on the unforgiving ground.
"Whoa, whoa... I gotcha'."
Hank bent down a little and let Connor limply fall over his shoulder to be carried out of the apartment building and to the car parked along the street waiting for them outside. Wrapping his arm around Connor's legs Hank carried his exhausted partner to the elevator and sighed with a righteous irritation as he pressed the button on the panel to head for the lobby.
"This is why you need to pace yourself, Connor. You're only one person, not a whole damn team."
With very little effort Hank carried Connor's lightweight form out of the elevator once he reached the ground floor and over to the Oldsmobile through the building's automatic sliding double doors. With a gentle motion Hank sat the unconscious deviant down in the front passenger seat and fastened the seatbelt of Connor's chest before returning to his own seat behind the wheel.
Turning the key in the ignition Hank pulled away from the side of the street and sighed loudly at Connor's foolishness. While idling at the next red light Hank glanced over at Connor's expressionless face as the unconscious, almost entirely motionless deviant looked as though he had simply fallen asleep.
"Why do you have to look so much like a kid, huh? That just makes dealing with your stubbornness twice as hard."
Hank wondered out loud to his unconscious partner, not that he was expecting a response.
"Fuckin' hate it when kids are too damn stubborn for their own good. Reminds me of... me. And who the hell needs another me running around this place?"
Throughout the entire drive home the L.E.D. in Connor's right temple was a very faint red that pulsed at an incredibly pale and slow rate. Worried that Connor was worse than he looked, or would ever admit to being, Hank reached his palm over and pressed it down against Connor's chest and felt his Thirium pump still actively circulating the blue blood through his biocomponents at a rapid pace. He could also feel a heat radiating from Connor's person, but he chalked that up to his system being overworked and not to a secondary problem like a glitch or bug.
"Good. You're not dead. YET."
Annoyed but focused Hank put both hands back on the wheel as he turned onto his block to get back home as quickly as possible.
"But if you keep this up, then I will kill you."
Pulling the Oldsmobile into the driveway alongside his house Hank sighed once more and exited the parked vehicle. After taking care of the car Hank pulled open the passenger side door to heft the deviant up back over his shoulder again. Fumbling with the key in the door lock Hank walked into the house where Sumo happily greeted his returning human master and deviant master with a low 'boof' and a wag of his tail.
"Hey, Sumo. Down."
Still being gentle Hank laid Connor down on the couch while Sumo followed behind him closely. Petting the dog's head Hank walked over to the large stereo system at the wall of the livingroom and picked up a small metal black box with 'CyberLife' written in silver text over the surface of the lid. Inside the box were three separate emergency power supply units that could be attached to an android's L.E.D. to recharge an android's power supply when dangerously low.
The discs were located within the depths of New Jericho Tower after CyberLife vacated and the residents of New Jericho moved in. Considering their compatibility with only prototype models Markus thought it'd be best for Connor to keep them since as a detective who'd be in dangerous situations on a regular basis, he'd benefit the most from having such discs at his immediate disposal.
"All right, if this doesn't work then it's not my fault."
Hank grumbled as he picked up the first small circular disc and curiously held it between his index finger and thumb as walked over to the couch.
The disc was no bigger than a nickel and made out of a magnetic cobalt alloy. Pressing the disc to the L.E.D. in Connor's right temple Hank watched as it attached itself in place magnetically and began glowing a bright blue as it restored a generous twenty percent of much needed power to Connor's system. It wasn't enough to give Connor a full recharge, but it was enough to bring the deviant out of emergency stasis mode.
After a minute of charging Connor's soulful brown eyes snapped open and he took in a deep breath as his ventilation program returned to normal capacity. Sitting upright on the couch to lean against his elbows the deviant looked around the house in confusion as he had no memory of returning home. The last thing he remembered was pinning the suspect to the ground at the apartment building.
"Hi. Welcome back." Hank greeted with a facetious lilt to his voice as he crossed his arms over his chest and gave Connor a smug grin. With Sumo sitting down at his feet Hank looked like a true disciplinarian towering over a rambunctious child. "How do ya' feel?"
"...Lieutenant?" Connor's L.E.D. flashed from red to yellow with confusion as his power began to restore to a higher level and take in his surroundings. "How did I return to the house?"
"You collapsed after you caught the suspect, then I brought you home. In other words," lowering his arms Hank took on a far more casual body language as he filled Connor in on everything he missed while unconscious. "you were a dumbass. Again."
"I... I'm sorry. You were right, and I shouldn't have pushed myself so hard." The red warnings in Connor's eyes were all the proof he needed that he had pushed his limits to a dangerous degree. "It was reckless, dangerous and it could've endangered us both while we were out in the field."
"You're right, you shouldn't." Hank motioned for Connor to scoot over as he sat down on the couch next to him to have a discussion about his work ethic. Sumo rested his chin Hank's knee in the process and eagerly sought some affection with ear rubs. "But at least you kept your word."
"I did?" As his brow arched in confusion Connor tried to understand what Hank was talking about. "To what are you referring?"
"You promised that once we caught the guy that you'd take a rest. And you did. It was too bad that you did so in the middle of the damn corridor."
"I did not intend to enter rest mode while we were at the scene of the crime." A pale blue blush appeared on Connor's face as the deviant felt embarrassed by his actions and unexpected reactions of the day's events. "I intended to do so once we left the precinct and clocked-out."
"Don't sweat it, just remember to take a break every now and then. And since we caught the suspect, everything is fine. Chris and Lance took him back to the precinct for us so that you can get some rest."
"I'm glad the case has been closed despite me being a fool."
"Stop kicking yourself about passing out, kid. And please, for the love of what's left of my sanity, don't pass out while we're on the clock ever again." Hank leaned back against the couch and gave Connor's shoulder a playful shoved while they spoke. "Fowler might think you picked up a 'bad habit' from me."
Nodding a little Connor lightly traced his fingertips over the magnetic disc on his temple covering his L.E.D. that had returned to a blue color. "I will remember to do so from now on. I promise."
"Good. Until then, take it easy and get some damn sleep." Getting up from the couch casually Hank pulled Sumo away so Connor could lay down without being drooled over in the process. "And don't get up until you're back to one-hundred percent. You're no good to anyone when you're unconscious."
Laying down over the length of the furniture as instructed Connor nodded and closed his eyes again. "I will do so. Thank you for your help, Lieutenant."
"For fuck's sake, we're off the clock." Reminding the deviant that he didn't need to be so formal was essentially a daily occurrence that Hank almost looked forward to. It was a new routine, and it gave the Lieutenant a sense of normalcy again. "Call me 'Hank'."
"Of course." Correcting the term Connor thanked his friend properly before entering rest mode under his own freewill despite it also being an order from his friend and superior officer. "Thank you, Hank."
"Yeah, no problem." Leading Sumo to the backdoor Hank let the Saint Bernard outside and sighed openly at the odd day he just experienced. Having a deviant for a partner was truly proving itself to be quite interesting. "Damn kid's going to be the death of me. I don't know what's worse; drowning in whiskey or trying to keep up with Connor."
-next chapter-