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What if we're on the wrong side, Connor? What if we're fighting against people who just wanna be free?
Connor had always knew that Hank sympathized with the deviants. So when Hank came to confront him on the rooftop, he wasn't surprised in the slightest.
It didn't mean he didn't wish for Hank not to come, though.
"Deviants are a threat to humans, Hank." he reasoned. "They're the reason this country is on the brink of civil war! They have to be stopped."
It's too late for me to go back.
"We're in this mess because we refused to listen to the deviants!" Hank raised his voice. "Humanity never learns from its mistakes, Connor! This time, it could be different!"
It's not.
"Step away from the ledge!" Hank ordered, drawing his gun. He was not kidding.
Connor finally turned back and faced Hank. He didn't want to have a confrontation with the man, but he didn't seem to have a choice. Hank was stubborn when it came to things like this.
"After all we've been through," Connor pleaded. "I respected you, Hank. I thought we were friends!"
"Oh, yeah? I was just starting to like you too! But then I realized you'll never change!" Hank shouted in frustration. "You don't feel emotions, Connor, you fake 'em! You pretended to be my friend when you don't even know the meaning of the word!"
Connor was surprised by how emotional that response was and a little bit hurt by it. I was never pretending. It was always genuine.
"I know what happened to your son, Hank." Guess he wouldn't back down with just that. "It wasn't your fault. A truck skidded on a sheet of ice, and your car rolled over... Little Cole had just turned six..."
"Shut up! Don't you talk about my son!"
Connor pressed on. "He needed emergency surgery... but no human was available to do it, so and android had to take care of him... Poor Cole didn't make it. An android killed your son, Hank! And now you wanna save them!?"
Please take the hint and leave me alone now. Please.
"No! Cole died because a human surgeon was too high on red ice to operate! All this time, I blamed androids for what happened, but it was a human's fault!" Hank retorted. That wasn't the reaction Connor had expected. "Him and this fucked up world where the only way people can find comfort is with a fistful of powder!"
Oh, you fucking know I won't. Not after I've come this far.
Connor saw the determination in Hank's eyes. He was not going to leave until he either convinced Connor to stop or put Connor down himself. Not the outcome Connor wanted, but well. He wouldn't back down either.
Or would he?
I don't want to do this, Hank.
Hank was still pointing his gun at Connor. He knew Hank would really shoot him if he had to.
Then don't.
Neither of them was willing to give up.
Connor pretended to throw away his rifle before throwing it towards Hank. Hank definitely didn't see that coming as he ducked, giving Connor enough time to dodge the shoot as he charged at him. Give up already, Hank. Don't make me kill you.
But Hank was giving him a run for his money. At first, Connor was trying to subdue Hank without killing him, but Hank never stopped attacking whenever he got a chance. Connor felt like he saw who Hank was back when he was still a formidable lieutenant - brave, fierce, and determined. No wonder he was respected by his colleagues.
They fought relentlessly for a while, neither of them willing to yield. Eventually, Connor saw an opening after he knocked Hank down - but Hank was quick to react by kicking him against the railing. Now, it was Connor's turn to be on defense - though he quickly recovered and turned the table on Hank again. He then grabbed Hank by the collar, threatening to drop him down from the ledge. Hank tried to break away from Connor's grip at first but then spread both of his arms instead. It was a challenge for Connor as if he was saying I dare you to drop me.
"Moment of truth, Connor... What are you gonna do?"
Connor looked at Hank in the eyes. If he dropped Hank, he would have been able to continue his mission peacefully.
But he couldn't.
He should have been able to kill Hank without hesitation. Maybe he really was compromised.
In the end, Connor decided he didn't want Hank to die.
"Killing you is not part of my mission," he says. "But, you won't stop me from accomplishing it." He turned his back on Hank. "I'm glad to have met you, Hank. I hope one day you can get over what happened to your son."
When Connor was still facing the ledge, Hank charged at him, fully intending to push him down even if it costed his life. His last-ditch effort certainly took Connor by surprise; he didn't have enough time to stop Hank. Hank expected Connor to look at him with a cold and remorseless face, but what he saw was a face full of agony and regret instead.
Connor had the chance to dodge.
He didn't.
Falling to his death, he uploaded his memory and closed his eyes. A new Connor would take his place. His body hit the ground with a distressing thump - no one was happy with that outcome, not even Hank. Peering from the ledge, the police lieutenant quietly watched his former partner breaking into pieces.
"I didn't wanna do that, Connor... You left me no choice." Hank headed for the door, but his steps were heavy.
I don't want you to die, Hank.
"Shit..." Hank muttered under his breath, hesitating to turn the doorknob. "You chose not to dodge on purpose, didn't you..."
My predecessor's last memories... They are painful.
Markus was standing on top of a makeshift podium, delivering his speech. His peaceful demonstration was a success, and the army had been ordered to retreat by the President. The androids that were sent to the extermination camp had been freed, joining the very few surviving Jericho members.
Blending in with his fellow androids, Connor was looking for a perfect position to assassinate the deviant leader. He found one near the middle of the crowd and drew his gun.
Memories should've been just some collections of data...
Markus was literally in front of him. Connor just had to pull the trigger. One more step and he would accomplish his mission.
But he couldn't. He refused to shoot Markus.
It was the same hesitation his predecessor felt when he decided to let Hank go.
"Today begins the most challenging moment in our fight."
Suddenly he was teleported to Zen Garden.
And unlike the usually calm and peaceful Zen Garden, Connor arrived right in the middle of a raging blizzard. He felt cold - it was strange because he wasn't designed to be able to feel cold, especially not in a virtual place like that.
"Connor! What are you doing? Obey! That's an order!" Amanda marched towards him. She was definitely not pleased by Connor's decision. The snowstorm didn't seem to bother her while Connor was trembling from the cold.
"I..." Connor started, determined to disobey Amanda. He had had enough with all her, and by extension, CyberLife's orders. "I can't do that!"
"I see... Moral objections," Amanda responded in an eerily calm, almost robotic manner. As if she knew Connor would go against her. "We knew there was a risk you'd be compromised... Which is why we'd always planned on resuming control of your program."
"Resume control?" he exclaimed in shock. "You can't do that!"
"I'm afraid I can, Connor... You needn't have any regrets. You did what you were designed to do." Amanda spoke in the same cold tone. "You accomplished your mission."
And with that, she disappeared, leaving Connor alone to freeze while CyberLife took over his physical body.
"No way... There's got to be a way..."
Aren't I a machine?
Desperate, Connor remembered Kamski's words about the "emergency exit" he put in his programs. Maybe he could use it to gain his body back. The blizzard was so severe that he couldn't see much ahead, even though he should be familiar with the place. Connor saw a faint blue glow from a distance. Was that the "emergency exit" Kamski was talking about?
A machine should not feel any emotions...
Connor felt like his body almost freezing when he finally reached the platform. It really took all his might to navigate through the blizzard. Finally, he put his hand on the monument.
A machine should not feel any pain...
"When we forgive our enemies,"
The scenery in front of him finally reverted into one where Markus was delivering his speech in front of thousands of other androids; Connor had successfully escaped from Zen Garden. The Jericho leader continued his speech as if nothing happened. No one seemed to notice him drawing his gun for a brief second.
"Humans are both our creators and our oppressors, and tomorrow... We must make them our partners."
Connor put his gun back - he was still horrified that CyberLife had taken a precaution to control him directly. Maybe he should've expected that from a company that basically controlled all the androids in the country. He didn't know what Kamski was planning by leaving an "emergency exit" in his program, but it saved him. Hopefully, CyberLife wouldn't be able to override his actions anymore.
"Maybe one day, our friends."
At that, Connor thought of Hank. Could he still hope to become his friend after all that happened? He hoped so because he finally realized that his friendship with Hank was more important than his mission. How stupid I was. The best he could hope now was for Hank to consider him as a friend, too, back when they were still investigating cases together.
I'm... not a machine.
"We are alive!" Markus declared. "And now, we are free!"
He left right after Markus finished his speech.
I am deviant.
Connor didn't know what he should do after the revolution had calmed down. All this time, he lived by following the orders he was given. Now he had to decide for himself what he wanted to do. The hardest part? He had no purpose anymore.
(Now he could relate to what Carlos' android felt when he hid for weeks in the attic. And yes, he still regretted the outcome of that case.)
Being a deviant after he had betrayed both his own kind and his master meant neither of them would accept him. Add his former partner whom he nearly killed in, and he got three sides he thoroughly disappointed. No sane person would want to forgive him after that.
So it was by chance that Connor walked into Chicken Feed in his aimless wandering. And it was also by chance that he found Hank there, eating the same unhygienic junk foods he was so fond of.
He smiled at that.
Or maybe it wasn't by chance after all. Maybe Connor was expecting Hank to be there - he owed the man an apology. They parted in a less than ideal way, after all.
In the end, Connor couldn't bring himself to call out to Hank. Whether it was from shame or guilt, he didn't know. One of the consequences of being a deviant - he actually felt emotions now.
He was about to leave the place when he heard Hank calling his name instead.
"Connor."
Connor turned back. He saw Hank approaching him, cautious but firm. Looking at his eyes, Connor couldn't hold his emotions anymore. He was on the verge of tears.
"Hank, I'm so-"
Hank pulled him into a hug instead.
"Welcome back."
At that moment, Connor felt like maybe he could still fix things up. He wanted to believe that he could still be forgiven even after making all the wrong choices. When Hank let go of him, he was smiling - Connor tried to return the smile, but he knew his face was messy with tears. Hank didn't seem to mind, though.
I will fix everything, he thought. I will atone for everything I have done.
Maybe it was long overdue, but Connor felt like he finally made the right choice.
For the first time in his life, he felt like he was truly free.