It was just turning from spring to summer and Detroit was already caught in the grip of a scorching heatwave as summertime swept over the city like a tide along the shore. With the daily temperatures easily reaching triple digits before noon throughout the entire week it didn't take long for the citizens to start feeling weak, tired, ill and irritable on a regular basis. The entire police force was stretched thin as numerous calls regarding violent outbursts plagued the city from seemingly everywhere, and summer activities taking place in the park required constant preventative supervision in the event of more violence breaking out or victims collapsing from severe heatstroke.
To compensate for the massive amount of required supervision throughout the day, Hank was assigned to patrol Hart Plaza alone while Connor was assigned his own separate patrol through Roosevelt Park. The other officers at the precinct had also been assigned patrols beyond their usual caseload until the heatwave finally faded enough to make things more bearable for everyone living in Detroit.
Passing through unnoticed by people enjoying the summer day with picnics, family walks, and other activities throughout the park, Connor enjoyed the peaceful ambience that accompanied the joyous atmosphere. The sun rose high into the sky and just past noon the day had already reached a frighteningly high temperature of one-hundred and four degrees Fahrenheit in what seemed to be record time.
While the people in the park wore light clothing, sought shade under trees or parasols, and kept cool with ice cold drinks, Connor didn't have such fortunate options at his disposal. Androids didn't sweat which made them especially vulnerable to the extreme heat and they have no ability to consume water or other liquids, which made their only option drinking chilled Thirium when their Thirium volume dropped low enough to warrant such a replenishment. As for Connor, he was twice as sensitive to extreme temperatures courtesy of his prototyping. The deviant was doing his best to deal with the heat without requesting the assistance of the precinct technician or an emergency facility.
The gray blazer, while thin, was only causing Connor's body to retain heat as he roamed through the park. Having the dark jeans and long-sleeved dress shirt weren't helping matters considering the extreme summer heat and Connor's inability to escape the direct sunlight or get out of the heat for too long.
Red warnings popped up in Connor's visual processors as he lapped around the park for the fifth time that afternoon. His core temperature was beginning to rise as a result of the extremely warm summer day, and Connor had very few options to remedy the situation. Despite his ventilation biocomponents functioning at full capacity to cool his systems his thermal regulator was unable to maintain a consistent temperature causing Connor's internal systems and his core to gradually overheat.
WARNING:
...ERROR DETECTED:
-CHECKING BIOCOMPONENTS... OK]
-CHECKING BIOSENSORS... OK]
-CHECKING AI ENGINE... OK]
-MEMORY STATUS... OK]
READY...
[...Thirium Volume - 98%
[...Thirium Pressure - 120/80
[...Thirium Pump Rate - 109 B.P.M.
[...Ventilation Rate - 18 V.P.M.
[...Core Temperature - ^101.3 Degrees Fahrenheit
WARNING:
[...Core Temperature reaching critical level
[...Take immediate cooling measures
[...Enter Emergency Stasis Mode - Activate: [Y/N?]
...NO
[...Emergency Stasis Mode - Postponed
-SYSTEM READY... OK]
Dismissing the warnings Connor resumed his patrol, though his L.E.D. had shifted from blue to yellow due to his rising core temperature and overall physical distress. Until his current shift was over Connor would be unable to leave the intense heat and lower his elevated core temperature.
Another hour had passed without incident from the public for the patrolling deviant as he made his way through the park even as the day continued to grow hotter and hotter at an uncomfortable clip. Connor sighed deeply, his heated breath escaping his body in a massive exhalation and he tried to focus his attention on his breathing to keep his ventilation biocomponents functioning as efficiently as possible. The external heat was proving itself quite a formidable opponent to his internal systems despite operating at maximum capacity.
Even with the most advanced software and biocomponents that CyberLife ever created Connor, and all deviants for that matter, still weren't any match for the power of nature itself. The coolant flowing through lines in his lower core were struggling to keep his thermal regulator balanced. As the heat grew intensity the coolant started losing its impact and would undoubtedly need to be replenished before the spring fully gave way to summer.
Unable to consume any chilled Thirium and unable to locate any nearby buildings with air conditioning to ease the strain on his systems, Connor was greeted by yet another warning in his visual sensors informing him of his still increasing core temperature.
WARNING:
...ERROR DETECTED:
-CHECKING BIOCOMPONENTS... OK]
-CHECKING BIOSENSORS... OK]
-CHECKING AI ENGINE... OK]
-MEMORY STATUS... OK]
READY...
[...Thirium Volume - 95%
[...Thirium Pressure - 120/80
[...Thirium Pump Rate - 114 B.P.M.
[...Ventilation Rate - 21 V.P.M.
[...Core Temperature - ^102.4 Degrees Fahrenheit
WARNING:
[...Core Temperature reaching critical level
[...Take immediate cooling measures
[...Enter Emergency Stasis Mode - Activate: [Y/N?]
...NO
[...Emergency Stasis Mode - Postponed
-SYSTEM READY... OK]
With that less than ideal update Connor's L.E.D. fluctuated between yellow and red as it cycled rapidly in response to his systems trying to cool down before his intracranial processor suffered permanent damage. Pausing where he stood beneath the small amount of offered shade under a towering tree, Connor put his hand to the side of his head as his systems began to fall gradually into low power mode as an automatic safety precaution against his will.
Unwilling to move any further and risk his temperature getting any higher, Connor stood in place and waited for his system to very slowly cool itself off. The struggling deviant could only hope it happened before he suffered any internal damage.
Fortunately for the patrolling deviant, Chris had been assigned patrol in the park as well and was on his way to relieve Connor for the rest of the afternoon when he spotted the deviant standing perfectly still by the tree. The red L.E.D. and unusually motionless deviant made the young officer's brow inquisitively as he approached the deviant detective cautiously.
"Hey, Connor. Are you okay?"
Chris asked as he approached his fellow officer curiously. Unlike Connor, who was still in his usual uniform complete with long sleeves and his blazer, Chris was dressed in a short sleeved uniform shirt and wisely wore an athletic thermal muscle shirt beneath to ensure he stayed cool. He also had a bottle of cold water clipped to his belt so that he could remain hydrated while on his patrol.
"Connor?" Lightly Chris put his hand on Connor's arm and shook him lightly. In Chris's mind he just put his palm down on the hood of car that had been out baking in the summer sun all afternoon. "It feels like the heat's getting to you, man."
Connor's eyes slowly focused on Chris as the overheating deviant detective fought to override his emergency low power protocols to remain as functional as possible while on patrol. "...Chris. You're here to relieve me, yes?"
"Yeah. Are you okay, though?" Knowing that something was wrong Chris craned his neck and watched the crimson light blinking in Connor's right temple. "Your L.E.D. is red and it feels like you're feverish or something. I'm worried you might on the verge of a heatstroke."
"...I am having some difficulty coping with the intense heat," the shaky deviant confirmed. "but once I'm indoors and out of the direct sunlight I will be able to compensate properly."
"Are you sure?" The young officer's keen eye noticed that Connor seemed physically unstable and weak. As he held on to Connor's arm Chris could feel mild shivering as if Connor's body was under extreme physical distress. "You're actually shaking. That can't be good."
It was true. Connor's body was trembling as his systems began to physically strain from the high core temperature overwhelming him. His Thirium pump; his heart, was beating so hard and so quickly that it was causing his entire body to shake with each rapid beat.
"I assure you, that I am-"
WARNING:
...ERROR DETECTED:
-CHECKING BIOCOMPONENTS... OK]
-CHECKING BIOSENSORS... OK]
-CHECKING AI ENGINE... OK]
-MEMORY STATUS... OK]
READY...
[...Thirium Volume - 93%
[...Thirium Pressure - 130/80
[...Thirium Pump Rate - 121 B.P.M.
[...Ventilation Rate - 24 V.P.M.
[...Core Temperature - ^103.1 Degrees Fahrenheit
WARNING:
[...Core Temperature - CRITICAL]
[...Take immediate cooling measures
[...Enter Emergency Stasis Mode - Activate: [Y/N?]
...NO
...ERROR:
[...Emergency Stasis Mode - Activated - 00:00:58
-SYSTEM READY... OK]
"I-" Connor tried to speak again but a horrible pain in his lower abdomen from his coolant beginning to fail stopped him short. The deviant's system override against emergency stasis mode had failed and he collapsed backward in front of Chris before he could even try to explain what was happening. "I... I..."
"Oh, shit!"
Reacting sharply Chris managed to get his hand under Connor's head just before Connor hit the ground and managed to support him accordingly.
"I gotcha' man. I knew the heat was going to get one of us today, didn't think it was going to be you."
Thinking quickly Chris took the cold water bottle from his belt and slowly poured it over Connor's forehead and then over his chest to try to cool him off. The cold water was enough to cause Connor's glassy brown eyes to snap open for a minute as the chilled liquid was quickly absorbed into his hair, the fabric of his shirt and the unnecessary gray CyberLife blazer. Conscious again. Connor was now running on low power mode and subsequently too weak to move.
"Hey, I got you." Chris stated as he put his hand down on Connor's chest where he could feel the deviant's Thirium pump hammering away under his palm and began to worry a little. Chris had enough emergency medical training to know that unconsciousness and a rapid heartbeat were indicative of heat stroke in humans, and presumed that the same could be said about deviants. "I'll call for back-up to take you to a facility."
"N-No." Connor shook his head a little as he stared up at Chris who was kneeling over him. "I can... make it."
"Make it?" Trying to figure out what Connor was talking about Chris glanced around and nodded at his squad car parked along the street right next to the busy park just a few yards away from where Connor had collapsed. "To the car?"
This time Connor nodded his head slowly to confirm the question as he again tried to convince Chris that he didn't need to go to a facility.
"I'll help you, but I don't think I can do much for you if you keep overheating."
"I-I..." Connor's voice was shaking and carried a disturbing electronic echo as he forced his voice modulator into function. Losing the battle against the heat wasn't one that the deviant had expected to do during his shift. "I u-understand."
"Okay, come on." Moving carefully Chris grabbed on to Connor's arm and hauled his overheating fellow officer up onto his feet, and then waited for Connor to find his balance on his shaking legs. Keeping Connor's arm around his shoulders Chris helped Connor to walk to his patrol car parked along the street just a few yards away from where he had found the now downed detective. "I have more water in the trunk. Hopefully it can do you some good."
"Th-Thank you... Chris."
"Don't thank me just yet." The kindhearted officer stated he all but dragged Connor over to the car. "You're still in danger. Thank me AFTER you're feeling better."
Connor's system was trying to switch off his non-vital functions, but doing so would leave Connor in a vulnerable state. Several of these functions, though non-vital, were still important: Speech, scanner, auditory sensors, visual processors and the ability to run self-diagnostics.
"Here we are." Chris pulled open the rear door of the squad car and lowered Connor to the backseat to lay down. Pushing the deviant backward so Connor was lying flat on his back, Chris poured the last of his water over Connor's chest before moving to the front of the car to open the driver's side door. Putting the key in the ignition Chris turned the car on to get some cool air flowing. "I'll crank the A/C and get you some more water."
Connor wanted to say something, anything to Chris, but his Thirium pump was beating so hard that it was distracting and a little alarming. Clutching his hand to his chest Connor began to breathe quickly as he tried to force his heart rate to slow down. The additional sensors that had been slowly developing throughout Connor's entire body during his deviancy now made him uncomfortably aware of his own heartbeat, of his own breathing, and the cold wet fabric of his shirt clinging heavily to his artificial skin as he took in deep panting breaths.
It was almost too much to bear, but Connor refused to let his mind become clouded. Despite his stubbornness, no matter how much of the situation he accurately processed, his systems continued to rebel against him. Connor's heart thundered faster and louder as his coolant continued to fail in its ability to keep his core temperature from rising any higher. Connor could hear his own heartbeat and it was making him breathing faster as a result. Unknowingly, his hand had reached up to his chest over his heart and began pulling at the cold constricting fabric as he contemplated the idea of his Thirium pump burning itself out.
Chris had turned up the cold air as much as he could before popping the trunk of the squad car and retrieving two more bottles of cold water from a small refrigerated compartment tucked away next to an emergency first aid kit. As the trunk slammed shut Connor felt the car rock on its wheels and his eyes went back to the opened door of the backseat as Chris reappeared in his line of vision.
"Connor? You still with me?"
The overheating deviant was breathing rapidly as if he couldn't catch his breath. His brown eyes were wide with fear with his hand grasped so tightly to his chest that Chris expected to see blue blood oozing out from under his fingertips at any second. The wide-eyed panic and frantic breathing reminded Chris of something that he had seen before some time ago, and he instinctively knew what to do.
"Easy, easy." Chris soothed as he tucked one cold bottle of water under Connor's neck to try to get his full attention. The icy sensation was enough to make Connor jump a little as the unexpected contact pierced through the fog over his mind. "Look at me. You're going to be okay."
"C-Can't..." Forcing himself to speak between his gasping breaths Connor tried to tell Chris that was he was asking seemed impossible. "Can't breathe!"
"Yes you can." Almost immediately Chris realized that Connor was beginning to suffer from a panic attack and not just the heat. In return he reacted accordingly to help his colleague through his current distress. "You're breathing right now. What you need to do is slow your breathing down."
That very idea seemed not only illogical but impossible. "I... I can't-"
"Hey, look at me. Watch me." For the sake of a visual display Chris put his hand on his own chest and took in a deep breath before releasing it slowly. He repeated the action just as calmly and just as slowly for the overwhelmed deviant to see. "Copy me, match your breathing with mine. In and out, nice and slow."
"I-" Struggling to think clearly Connor remained resistant to Chris's attempts to help. "I c-can't do it."
"Connor. Breathe."
Shaking his head once as if he could somehow push away the numerous red warnings marring his vision, Connor did as Chris instructed and took a slow deep breath and held it for a moment. Letting it out slowly Connor felt his core cool and with it came a mild sense of relief. Taking in another breath Connor held it for a few seconds and let it out slowly again. The deviant could feel his Thirium pump finally beginning to slow down a little as more heated air escaped his core and gave his system a reprieve from the smothering heat.
"That's it, keep going." Encouraging Connor to continue with his slower breaths Chris opened another bottle of chilled water and poured it over Connor's already damp locks of hair. The cool water felt refreshing and helped the deviant to feel more grounded. "You'll feel much better, trust me. Just breathe. In and out. Nice, even breaths."
As Connor matched his breathing with Chris's slower breathing his Thirium pump began to slow even further, and it no longer felt like his heart was going to beat out of his chest. The warnings in his visual processors began to disappear one by one without Connor having to manually dismiss them. Connor's core temperature also slowly but surely began to lower to more a manageable level as well without him needing a technician's assistance.
"Feel better?" Chris asked as he looked down at Connor as his breathing calmed and his hand relaxed its death grip over his chest. "You look better."
"Y-Yes. My core t-temperature has dr-dropped down from one-hundred and three point one degrees to one-hundred and one degrees even. " Connor confirmed, his voice sounding much stronger than before. Noting his much more stable systems and calmer overall demeanor Connor looked toward the incredibly helpful younger officer as Chris leaned back and away from the car. "If I may ask, how did you know that would work?"
"My little sister used to get panic attacks when we were young. She had social anxiety growing up. I would help her calm down and now I'm just kind of a pro at dealing with these things. You were starting to panic a little, so it was just a natural response."
"Thank you." Pondering the notion of social anxiety Connor wondered if he could benefit from the slow breathing exercises for future issues. With his newly developing emotions surprising him from time to time Connor would prefer to have some kind of healthy coping mechanism to keep him from having a nasty overreaction. "It really helped."
"No problem." Chris noted the time on his watch and made a quick decision. "I'm going to take you back to your house so you can cool off, okay?"
"You can't leave your patrol because of me."
"Yeah, but if it's for an emergency I think Captain Fowler will understand." The insistence in Chris's voice was almost charming. The young officer was confident and seemed to know exactly what to say and how to say it to keep everyone around him nice and calm. "Besides, you don't live that far away from the park."
"You're certain that you wish to risk incurring disciplinary measures against yourself on my behalf?"
"After the way you pulled Hank out that dark spiral of depression just by befriending him and then changed the world for the better, I'm willing to take a bullet for you."
"Please don't." Connor insisted as the comment was almost too much for his frazzled mind. "I can confirm bullet wounds are very unpleasant."
"Yeah, sure." Chris couldn't help but laugh at the sincere response as he closed the door with a firm slam to keep the cool air circulating within the interior of the squad car. "I'll get you back home in a few minutes, just hang tight, all right?"
Glancing up at Chris over the front seat as Chris sat behind the steering wheel, Connor made sure Chris knew how grateful he was for the help. "...I appreciate your assistance."
"No problem, man." Shifting the car out of park and into drive Chris used the radio to confirm that he was aiding an officer in distress and would return to his assigned patrol at the park within ten minutes. As the car drove down the street two police drones flew over the car and into the park to watch over the area until Chris was able to return to his patrol. "See? Helping you out won't be a problem for me or anyone else."
"Yes." Laying back down Connor sighed and sent Hank a cybernetic message to let him that he was okay and going home early to cool down for a few hours. As long as he could recover without needing to see a technician or worry Hank in the process, Connor was willing to finally cooperate with other people trying to help him without automatically fearing that he was being set up or going to be betrayed. "I can see that now."
-next chapter-