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Connor woke up from the darkness and didn’t know where he was.
After… blacking out again, he was in a room. A fairly small room that had a window on the door, but at the moment said window was shut. He braced his hands on his knees and breathed. What happened?
He remembered having attacked Hank. Being brought to New Jericho. Figuring out what was happening with Simon…
Then nothing.
Something had made the blackout happen again, but he didn’t know what. He didn’t like not knowing. Not knowing what was happening to him, not knowing where he was.
Connor got up and banged on the door.
“Hey? Hello? Anybody there?”
There was the sound of footsteps outside, before the small window drew open. It was Simon.
“Connor, you’re back with us again…”
“Of course. I… it happened again.”
“Yes. But don’t worry, nothing happened. No one was hurt.”
“What… what do you mean, no one was hurt? Did I try and attack Hank again?”
“No. It was—well, Markus came to see you. He was concerned.”
“Oh, god…”
“No, you didn’t hurt him! Markus is fine.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, Hank managed to help me get you in here. Markus left too, so you don’t have to worry about him setting you off again.”
He blinked. “Wait, what? Markus set the attack off?”
“Yeah. On the plus side, we’ve learned more about what’s happening to you. It’s got to be Cyberlife, because you were talking about ‘the deviant leader’… killing the deviant leader.”
“Ah. That does sound like Cyberlife. I guess at least we know it’s them. Trying to control me. Again…” He groaned, sitting back on the bed in the room. “I don’t know where this is coming from.”
“Don’t worry, Connor. We’ll figure it out.”
Connor nodded. Then he raised a brow in confusion, looking around the room. “Where’s Hank?”
“He… left.”
Connor’s LED spun a panicked red. “You let him leave? Simon, he’s going to Cyberlife.”
“No, he said he was going to… to see his dog.”
“Sumo’s with the neighbours. He’s going to Cyberlife.” Connor repeated.
**************************************
The drive to Cyberlife Tower was short, Hank’s small car filled with blasting heavy metal. This wasn’t fair. Not fair. Those fuckers were trying to control Connor again, and he wasn’t having it. It was the day after Christmas, for crying out loud!
So, he was driving to Cyberlife. To do what? Find out what the fuck they think they’re doing. Take them on. Maybe in a battle of words. Maybe he’d punch someone.
He didn’t know. All he knew, was that they were hurting his son. Screw them.
The quiet atmosphere of the building as he walked in, did nothing to calm his rage. He didn’t care that there were no ominous soldiers marching around the place anymore. Just a few people sitting at tables, and a lady at the front desk.
He marched up to the front desk and glared at her.
“Hello, sir.”
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
She blinked. “What can I do to help you?”
“I—I need to speak to whoever’s hurting my son!”
“Is everything alright? Would you like me to call the police?”
“I am the police!” Hank sighed, running a hand through his hair. Breathe. He needed answers. “I’m sorry. But my son, he’s an android. He’s got a bad history with Cyberlife…”
The woman nodded. “I see. Cyberlife as they were before, were not ethical in their treatment of androids.”
“Uh… ‘as they were before’?”
“Yes. The company fell apart. Many important people in the company left. So, it was sold. Now we just sell parts for androids and do research into android healthcare.”
“Oh.” There was no figurative Cyberlife to rage at, in that case. “But if Cyberlife isn’t a thing anymore, like it was before… why are they trying to control my son?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know, sir. Maybe if you told me more about him…”
“It’s Connor. He’s an… RK800 model.”
“Oh, yes. I’ve been informed about him before. If anyone comes to enquire, I am to redirect them to this address.” She showed him a holographic projection of the address.
Of course. It was Kamski’s place. That asshole.
**************************************
A knock on the little window, and Simon appeared. Connor sat up, eager to hear any news.
“So, I haven’t learnt anything new… But I do have a theory of how we could learn more.”
Connor nodded for him to continue.
“Well, now that we have a place you can be isolated and not worry about hurting anybody… Maybe we need to trigger an attack and learn from it.”
He shook his head wildly. “Simon, no, I, I… I don’t want to go through that again! I don’t want to be out of control.”
“I understand. But you won’t be able to hurt anyone.”
“I… I’d rather find another way.”
“Of course. I’ll get back to it.”
So, Simon set to work. Connor paced the small area of his room, brushing his hands over his sweater. It was the Christmas sweater that Hank had picked out for him in the store. He sat back on the bed, hunched over. He missed those times. Missed when it was simple.
Why couldn’t anything ever be simple?
Cyberlife had tried, and tried, and tried. They’d manufactured his life to make him their ultimate weapon, no care for what he was. Maybe they even wanted him to be a deviant, but either way, they wanted him to end the lives of his whole species. What a mighty burden to bear.
What a horrible one.
They’d tried on the stage, as Markus said the last words of victory, and failed. But it had felt like an anti-climax then, that day. He had felt a deep sense of foreboding…
And forgotten it, in favour with moving on with his life. Moving in with Hank, helping out his friends at New Jericho. Continuing his work at DPD but this time to help androids.
He thought things were going to be normal. That—
His thoughts were interrupted by the slamming of the door against the wall, as Hank burst into the building. No, he couldn’t see him, but he could hear his voice.
“It is those Cyberlife assholes, Simon. You were right. They… they planned this all.”
“What? How did you find this out, Lieutenant?”
“They… I went there. They told me to go to Kamski. He had a file, he’d been waiting on it… Said he wasn’t sure if they’d actually do this, but they did. Asshole should’ve told us sooner. But—but that doesn’t matter now. He told me.”
The sound of paper hitting the table; Simon’s muffled intake of breath.
“Oh, god… This doesn’t make sense.”
“That’s cause they’re masochistic assholes, that’s what.”
“Hank?” Connor couldn’t take the not-knowing anymore. He had to find out.
“Oh, shit, Connor, you’re awake?”
“What’s going on?”
Simon appeared at the window again. “Connor. We know what’s happening with you.”
“Great, can you fix it?”
“We’ll have to. Or… on New Year’s Day, you’ll shut down. For good.”