Connor awoke the next morning to a lingering feeling of discomfort in his throat from having the external air intake line snaked down his throat to help him breathe, and from the painful blue bruises still over his throat and neck in general. Running a self diagnostic his system indicated that the damage to his air intake line had healed properly since his initial injury during the night, but the resulting inflammation of having his voice modulator (larynx) crushed and having an external line inserted down into his own line had left the back of his mouth and throat feeling raw and sore. Rubbing his hand over his sore throat Connor exited his bedroom and set about his usual morning routine before Hank woke up as well.
It was a minor inconvenience that Connor would be able to overcome in a few more hours. As long as he consumed some fresh Thirium then Connor's self healing program would be able to remedy the lingering discomfort.
"Su-"
Connor immediately winced and stopped speaking as his voice was still incredibly hoarse, and the simple act of speaking was enough to give his already sore throat a new flare of pain.
"...Ow."
Thinking quickly Connor instead patted the side of his leg to call the massive dog away from his pillow in the corner of the livingroom and into the kitchen to begin their morning routine together. Silently Connor rubbed at the obedient dog's ears and opened the backdoor to let him outside for a few minutes.
While Connor set about pouring fresh food and water into Sumo's bowls he caught the sound of Hank waking up and heading into the bathroom for his morning shower. Whether or not Connor would be able to accompany Hank to work had yet to be determined as his voice was still rough and he was obviously still in some pain.
Remembering what Hank had requested about lighter meals in favor of large ones Connor prepared just one egg and a piece of toast as the coffee brewed in the pot next to the stove. As Connor set the prepared breakfast plate down on the kitchen table Sumo scratched at the backdoor and Connor let the massive dog back inside.
"Good-"
Trying and failing yet again to speak Connor returned to petting the dog's ears to show his affection in a silent manner.
Frustrated with his lack of voice Connor went into his bedroom and slid open his closet door to get a glimpse of his reflection in the mirror mounted inside the small space. Lifting his chin Connor studied the fading blue bruises over his throat and found it odd that his voice hadn't returned as quickly as the technicians had informed him during the previous day.
The bathroom door opened again as Hank stepped outside and into the hallway as Connor discreetly slid the closet door closed again. "Morning, Connor." Hank greeted as he passed by the opened bedroom door to return to his own bedroom to change into his uniform. "How do you feel?"
"Good-" Connor again was stopped by the pain in his throat as his hoarse voice instantly caught Hank's attention, and not in a good way. "G-Good morning."
"Shit, kid." Hank returned to the opened doorway and gave the deviant a worried glance. "You sound horrible."
Patting his throat with his two right forefingers Connor nodded his head a little and approached Hank.
"You must feel horrible, too." The senior detective observed as he instinctively placed his hand over Connor's forehead to check for a fever, he knew the deviant's sore throat was from damage and not infection, but Hank couldn't stop himself from checking anyway. He quickly found Connor's temperature normal and dropped his hand from Connor's forehead. "Otherwise you wouldn't admit that your throat is sore right now."
Unable to respond Connor just waited for Hank to make another comment.
"You can't talk at all?"
"...B-Barely." Was the raspy answer as Connor again rubbed at his sore throat. "...Slowly."
The gesture didn't go unnoticed either. "Does your throat physically hurt you?"
Nodding in confirmation Connor again waited for Hank's reaction.
"Open your mouth."
With little say in the matter, literally, Connor opened his mouth and watched as Hank peered in to look at his throat. "I can't really see anything. Let's go into the bathroom so I can get a better look in brighter light."
Following Hank into the bathroom as requested Connor let his father guide him to the edge of the bathtub where he sat down and watched as Hank opened the medicine cabinet over the sink. A small first aid kit was tucked on the top shelf and inside of it was a small penlight to kept as an emergency supply in the event of a blackout, or in this case, a sore throat.
"Okay, let's try this again." Hank clicked on the light as Connor opened up his mouth again and Hank shined the light inside to examine his throat. "Wow, it's all dark blue back there."
As much as Connor wanted to make a comment about how android blood made all bruises, bleeding and inflammation blue in comparison to human red blood having the same tinting effect on human tissues, he couldn't say a word.
"Don't give me that look, kid." Hank could feel Connor staring intently at him as he continued to check the deviant's throat. "I remember android's bleed blue, so don't look at me like I'm stupid."
Connor's expression immediately softened as Hank clicked off the light, and out of habit, poured some rubbing alcohol over the light before replacing it inside the first aid kit for hygienic purposes.
"I'm not a technician or a doctor, but I'd say you have some form of laryngitis or some shit. I'm just glad you don't have tonsils." Washing off his hands in the sink Hank kept addressing the deviant in a level voice. "You're not overheating which is good, but since you can't talk I can't let you go into work today."
"...What if-" Connor stopped short and forced his throat to clear before he tried again. "...What if I let Joel... take a look at the... damage?"
"Sorry, kid."
"I can stay... behind a desk."
"You're hurt and need to heal." As he dried off his hands on a towel Hank turned to look at Connor with a stern but non aggressive glance. "How many times do I have to tell you to rest when you're injured before you'll finally listen to me?"
"I dislike... being unable to... work."
"I know that. But you need the time away from work to heal."
"What do I do... today?"
"I don't know. Maybe you could go see an actual technician at another facility instead of letting Joel and Abby patch you up."
"They're good-"
"I know they're good technicians," Hank interrupted quickly while remaining calm as he began backing out of the bathroom. "but they're also your friends. That gives them a bias in your favor."
"I don't... trust facilities."
"Yeah, I know." The senior detective was making his way to the kitchen as he continued the conversation with the stubborn deviant, knowing full well that Connor was going to follow after him. "But you can't argue that your friends don't do you favors."
"They don't... put me in danger."
"No, but it still can't be doing you much good to have friends vouching for your health if you aren't actually at one-hundred percent."
Squaring his jaw a little Connor rose from the edge of the bathtub and finally followed Hank into the kitchen. As Hank picked up his coffee and added some sweetener Connor tried to reason with Hank one last time. "...If I see a technician," the struggle to speak was still painfully evident in each word Connor managed to audibly rasp. "and they decide... that I'm fit for duty... will you-"
"Big 'if', son." Tasting the coffee Hank set the mug back down and gave the deviant an amiable stare from where he stood. "But hypothetically if you do get the clear from a technician, and they send a memo to the precinct clearing you, then I'll let you work desk duty until your voice comes back. Deal?"
"D-" Rubbing at his increasingly sore throat Connor tried again. "...Deal."
Laughing a little Hank shook his head and ran his right hand through his long locks of gray hair with amusement. "You're seriously the only guy I know who is willing to go out of his way to prove he's well enough to work. I don't know if that's something I should be grateful for or worry about."
After changing into his uniform and finishing his breakfast Hank went on his way to the precinct to go about his shift while Connor stayed home and cybernetically made an appointment to see a technician at the first available Android Emergency Care Facility in the city. Despite his uneasiness for all facilities and how their cold mechanical facade that was hauntingly reminiscent of CyberLife's cruelty, Connor was determined to have his issues with his throat taken care of and to be able to return to the precinct where he belonged. Fortunately it didn't take long for his appointment to be approved and for Connor to be put on the schedule at the Gamma Facility.
Sitting in the waiting room with his coin gracefully juggling over his right hand Connor watched as two other deviants before him were taken into exam rooms for their own appointments and studied the few humans who were also sitting in the waiting room. One of the humans, a young male, had his left arm in a sling and Connor could tell it was the result of a car accident. From that he surmised the deviant he had accompanied to the facility had also been in the car accident and needed repairs. The other human was an older woman who appeared to be wealthy and was simply making sure her personal assistance android was in good health.
The facility seemed so personable, so normal. And yet Connor felt completely uncomfortable.
After enduring what he had been through with CyberLife and their techniques Connor was righteously wary of any and all android facilities. The cold and brutal techniques used to maintain android health had always been terrifying in Connor's memories thanks to his deviancy telling him that he deserved to be treated better than he had been. That terror made it difficult for him to ask technicians for help due to the physical and emotional trauma that left deep scars all over his developing heart and his mind.
"Connor... Anderson?" A female deviant with a design similar to that of North, save for her short blonde hair and purple tinted eyes, approached him in the waiting room. She was an assistant technician as well as a receptionist for the Gamma Facility as a whole. "The technician will see you now."
Unable to verbally speak Connor just cybernetically thanked the deviant and walked down the short hallway to reach his designated exam room. The assistant deviant accompanied him to the proper area and motioned for him to enter the small room to wait. Entering the exam room Connor looked it over with a sense of dread as the entire place just reminded him of the cold testing labs of CyberLife. Refusing to let his discomfort cloud his judgment Connor slipped off his gray blazer and draped it over his lap as he sat down on the edge of the exam table quietly.
It didn't take long for the technician to enter the room and greet Connor respectfully.
"Hello, my name is Dr. Tara McCall." The young technician, another blonde with her long hair pulled back in a high ponytail and big brown eyes, introduced herself to her newest patient. "I understand you've had some trouble with your voice modulator after suffering an injury to your main air intake line yesterday. I also see that you're a detective and have quite a history of close calls."
Connor only nodded as he discreetly pocketed his coin to give the technician his full attention.
"All right, well air intake line damage isn't not too uncommon. I'll just give you a quick physical exam and I'll see what I can do for your throat. Okay, Connor?"
Nodding again Connor loosened his black tie and removed the garment from around his neck as he prepared for the impending examination. As he slipped off the tie Dr. McCall placed the earbuds of her audioscope into place and pressed the bell to Connor's chest over his white dress shirt to listen to his ventilation biocomponents.
"Let me make sure your ventilation hasn't been inhibited." She smiled kindly as Connor as she eyed the blue bruises around his throat, then ran the bell from left to right over his chest slowly to listen to his ventilation rate. "Take a deep breath for me..."
Obediently Connor breathed deeply and slowly and let the technician listen to his chest.
"Everything sounds normal." Draping the audioscope around her neck Dr. McCall pulled a penlight from her white lab coat's right pocket and clicked on the light. "Open your mouth and let me see your throat."
Repeating his earlier action with Hank as his father gave his throat a quick look, Connor opened his mouth and let Dr. McCall look at his inflamed throat for a more accurate diagnosis.
"Uh-huh... It looks like the interior lining of your primary air intake line has been damaged from a secondary line being inserted for an extended period of time, and the exterior of your air intake line has been compromised from applied pressure."
Turning off the light Dr. McCall gently pressed her fingertips along both sides of Connor's throat to check the bruises and to locate any possible instability in the air intake line.
"I can give you a special type of Thirium that acts as an anti-inflammatory medication that'll coat the interior of your intake line with a protective layer that'll aid your self healing program in mending the damage and keep foreign matter from being embedded in your weakened line in the process. Sound good?"
Nodding slowly Connor agreed to the treatment.
"Okay, then. It's purple in color and it's thicker than standard Thirium 310, but it'll get you fixed up in no time."
While Hank went on in his lunchbreak at his usual time and sat in his slightly newer Oldsmobile with his greasy meal to eat without Connor to warn him of the calories, he received a text message from Connor that made his phone 'buzz' on the dashboard. Giving the message a quick glance Hank read what the stubborn deviant detective had to tell him about his condition and promptly shook his head. While the technician had determined that Connor wasn't in any danger from his injury he still needed at least one more day to heal, but that didn't stop Connor from trying to convince Hank to let him start a half shift that same afternoon.
"Most people stay home after a doctor's appointment, son."
There was only a second of delay before Connor replied. 'I am not like most people.'
"Yeah, I noticed." Hank said to himself before he sent his next text message: "Do you need anything to get your voice back?"
'I was given an anti-inflammatory Thirium supply to ingest. It takes approximately ten minutes to work, but my voice should fully return by this evening.'
"All right. Stop by the precinct. I'll let you work on a few cases at your desk only."
'Thank you. I will be there soon.'
"No field work."
'I understand.'
"See you soon."
Ending the conversation Hank noted the current time on his phone's display screen before slipping it back into his coat pocket.
"The damn kid needs to fuckin' learn how to relax. Most cops would love a day to themself after being injured in the line of duty, not him. He's not most cops..."
True to his word Connor arrived at the precinct shortly after Hank returned from his lunchbreak and was ready to resume work. As the recovering deviant walked into the bullpen he acknowledged Hank in the office through the transparent wall and walked inside to meet with him. Expectantly Hank waited for Connor to try to convince him to work in the field or to handle cases beyond just his desk, but instead Connor extended his right hand and retracted the artificial skin from his fingers and palm and then proceeded to make a connection with Hank's terminal screen to upload the technician's assessment of his condition for official precinct records.
The full examination had been uploaded with all of Dr. McCall's notes about Connor's current condition. Nothing was left out and Connor was being entirely honest regarding his health.
"You'll be good in a day or two, right?" Hank confirmed as he looked over the technician's report and read it for himself. "Not any longer?"
"C-Correct." Connor's voice wasn't as hoarse as it had been, but it was still raspy. "I am not suffering any... further complications."
"Good. Go ahead and start filing your reports and work on the cases that don't require you to go out into the field. Gavin and Tina are covering homicide today."
Without another strained word Connor departed from the office and set about his personal tasks at his desk. Powering on his terminal screen Connor logged in and proceeded to scan through the case files and reports waiting for him. Seven cases of mysterious deaths that had either already been confirmed as homicides or still needed to be identified as such filled his screen in an instant.
Two of the cases revolved around humans being murdered over petty things like money and a drug deal gone wrong. The other five were deviants who had been killed just for existing. The deviant victims had been brutally murdered in such a way that the deaths were undeniably the result of anti-android bigots and without any form of just cause behind the attacks.
As Connor read over the details he felt his shoulders tense, his hands tighten into fists atop his desk and an unexplainable heat rising up from his core.
"Murdered... just for living."
Connor muttered to himself, his voice regaining some of its lost strength as he spoke.
"How long until humans accept that deviants are here to stay?"
Pushing aside the negative thoughts Connor tried to focus on his work, but the cruelty and repeated brutality of the mankind's nature made it almost impossible for the deviant to concentrate on the cases. An hour passed by slowly as Connor forced himself to confirm that the first deviant had in fact been murdered and was now working on the second case with a heavy weight pressing down on his shoulders.
Brutally graphic images of the deviants' torn and mangled bodies covered in Thirium made the strange heat Connor was experiencing grow more intense as he stared at the evidence on his terminal's screen. It was so pointless, so violent. To destroy life simply for coming into existence was cruel enough, but to make it suffer with such aggression and misplaced energy made the deaths all the more senseless.
As Connor examined the second case an update appeared on the terminal screen confirming the first suspect's arrest and impending arrival at the precinct. Gavin and Tina had located and arrested the man just a few minutes ago and were now in the process of escorting him inside the precinct to be charged with the assault and murder.
"FUCK YOU!"
Connor turned to the sound of the loud obscenity in time to see Gavin struggling to bring a man; who was nearly six foot four, two-hundred and fifty pounds of muscle and nearly as much anger, into the precinct by his restrained arms. The man's hands were cuffed behind his back and his face was beat red with anger. Gavin tried to muscle the stronger man toward the cell while Tina kept her taser primed at the man's back strictly as a precaution.
"Stop. Struggling." Gavin grunted the order as he fought to push the man to the holding cells. "I'm adding resisting arrest to your charges, asshole!"
The man being 'escorted' inside was the prime suspect in the deviant murders and from the distance Connor knew they had the right man. The faded blue blood on his fingertips and hands was invisible to everyone except from Connor's eyes. The sight of the blue blood made Connor's core feel even hotter and his hands clenched into fists so tight his knuckles turned ghost white.
"FUCKIN' PIGS! TRAITORS!" The violent man shouted as he stopped short and threw all of his weight backward against Gavin as the Sergeant tried to escort the belligerent man to his cell. The man was strong enough to knock Gavin backward into the concrete wall with an audible 'thud' and the stunned detective fell to the ground on his hands and knees as he gasped for breath after being winded. "YOU FUCKIN' ANDROID SYMPATHIZERS! KILL ALL THE MACHINES!"
Upon seeing Gavin being assaulted Connor was on his feet in seconds, but as the man shouted in anger against androids Connor found himself being inexplicably drawn over to him as if he were a moth to a flame.
Hank had a similar reaction to the sound of Gavin getting thrown up against the wall and had stepped out of his office to check in on what the hell was going on in the bullpen. "Hey! Get that asshole under control!"
"You'll put ME in jail and let those plastic FREAKS ruin this city!?" The man shouted angrily and made a move toward Tina, undeterred by her taser. "You little bitch!"
Connor had heard enough.
Charging at the man Connor grabbed onto the collar of his shirt with his left hand and proceeded to reel back his right hand into a tight fist. Striking a powerful blow against the man's jaw Connor knocked the suspect back against the wall with one accurate strike that crunched under his knuckles and echoed with a grotesque sound throughout the entire bullpen.
Dark red blood oozed from the corner of the man's mouth as he spat out a loosened tooth and looked up at Connor with disgust in his eyes. "You... You piece of shit! I'll kill ALL the machines!"
Enraged to a capacity he had only felt once before when Lucas had been murderer, Connor grabbed on to the man's collar once more as he proceeded to punch the man in the face over and over again to beat the man until he was nothing more than a pitiful red stain on the floor. Within a matter of seconds red blood covered Connor's right knuckles and his artificial skin had been damaged enough to reveal the white plastimetal frame beneath.
Tina worked on helping Gavin get back up to his feet while Hank, who had seen Connor attacking the suspect, tried to get the deviant to back off.
"Connor! Enough!" Hank shouted as he grabbed onto Connor's shoulders and tried to pull him back. Connor jerked his shoulders from Hank's grip and continuously assaulted the suspect despite being ordered to stop. "Connor!"
Ignoring Hank the deviant continued to effectively pummel the man with now both of his fists until the man had been rendered unconscious. The man's eyes were swollen shut, his was nose broken and gushing blood and his jaw had been visibly dislocated. Four separate teeth had been broken out of the man's jaw and were practically disintegrated from the relentless impacts of Connor's strong fists.
"CONNOR." Hank tried again as he pulled more forcefully on the deviant's shoulder, but it was to no avail. "STOP."
Gavin was in no condition to try to restrain Connor and Tina was no match for an enraged deviant's strength. Fortunately, Chris and Jack had returned from their patrol and the blond deviant officer was quick to react.
"Jack!" Hank ordered the newly arrived deviant into action. "Get over here and pull Connor off this guy!"
Jack had to physically tackle Connor off of the suspect and fought to keep him pinned down on the floor as Connor laid on his back on the ground. The enraged deviant was still trying to fight and hurt the already bloodied man on the floor despite Jack being barely able to hold him down and onto the floor.
Hank was losing his patience. "Fuck, Connor!" Looking over at Gavin he motioned for Tina to get the Sergeant away from the fight and then ordered Chris to call for assistance. "Get paramedics for this asshole." Pointing at the bloodied, unconscious man on the floor; he was surrounded by a pool of his own blood and not moving, Hank then knelt down beside Connor and used his hands to help pin the thrashing deviant down by his legs while Jack pressed his own hands against Connor's shoulders. "And get tech down here to figure out what's going on with Connor! NOW."
"On it!" Chris replied readily as checked the bloodied man's pulse, relieved to see that he was still alive, then pulled his phone from his desk to obey Hank's orders. "Yo! We need to get this place back under control!"
Jack was able to keep Connor pinned to the ground relatively well, but Connor was still a superior model and would soon find a way to overpower Jack. The rage was still building and Connor's pupils were so black that it didn't look like he had any irises around them.
"Connor!" Hank applied more pressure to Connor's legs as if he were trying to hurt him just enough to get his attention without actually causing any damage to the deviant. "Connor! What the fuck is wrong with you?! STOP."
"He's an android murderer!" Connor shouted as loud as his weakened voice would let him. "He's a killer! He doesn't DESERVE to live!" Connor kept fighting back against Jack and Hank but he was unable to get up. With wide eyes, rapid breaths and a thundering heart Connor was overheating quickly and was still attempting to lash out at the bloodied suspect who was in no condition to defend himself. "LET ME GO!"
"Fuck, Connor!" Hank was getting exhausted just from holding down the deviant's legs, he couldn't imagine how much harder it was for Jack to keep Connor's arms and shoulders pinned down on the floor. "Calm the fuck down!"
Jack didn't have the same scanning capabilities as Connor, but he was still able to cybernetically connect to the enraged deviant's mind without any difficulty and noted a key error clouding Connor's ability to respond and react appropriately. "...Captain, he cannot calm down. He's currently incapable of calming down."
"What? Why the hell not?!"
"His intracranial processor is overloading. I cannot identify the cause but Connor is currently incapable of controlling his emotions, and in this particular instance his reaction with anger and hatred are consuming his better judgment."
"Ah, fuck... Just what I need! A deviant going berserk!"
With his emergency satchel over his shoulder Joel arrived in the bullpen after receiving the call from Chris, and he arrived at the same time the paramedics had arrived to tend to the beaten suspect. The sight of Connor being held down on the floor made the technician hesitate at first, but soon he crouched down on the ground beside Connor to try to examine the deviant.
"Hank?" Joel looked to the commanding officer for some guidance as he sat his satchel down on the floor and pulled it open. "What happened to him?"
"I don't know! He just beat the shit out of a suspect and now he can't calm down."
"Connor?" Joel tried to get the deviant to look at him but Connor was lost in the throes of his own rage and didn't respond. The deviant's eyes were still wide with rage and confusion. "I'm going to run a diagnostic on you. This won't hurt."
Pulling his laptop out of the satchel Joel booted it up and with some difficulty managed to connect a black cable from the laptop to Connor's right temple. As the data on Connor's programs and software appeared on the screen Joel studied the details closely. The overheating and struggling deviant's vitals signs: Thirium pump rate, ventilation rate, Thirium pressure, Thirium volume and core temperature were on full display. Connor's vital signs were elevated substantially and were reaching critical levels.
A red warning popped up regarding Connor's current Thirium content and the technician made his diagnosis.
"Oh... shit!"
"Joel?" Hank hated the technician's tone of voice and addressed the statement quickly. "What the fuck is happening?"
"Something tainted his Thirium supply. I need to force him into emergency stasis mode before he overheats or hurts himself." Typing a key command into the laptop Connor's body began to relax as the deviant's wide eyes slipped shut and his body entered a manually activated stasis mode. Jack let go of Connor's shoulders while Hank slowly released his grip on Connor's legs. "Whatever is in his system will need to be flushed out before he wakes up or we're going to have to go through round two."
"Can you do it here?"
"No, I don't have any form of Thirium filtration devices in the dispensary or a large enough supply to replenish his contaminated Thirium. He'll need to go to a facility or to one of the towers for treatment."
Hank stood up and put his hands to his hips as he made his choice. "All right, this is what's going to happen. We're going to put Connor in cuffs, put him in the back of a squad car and drive him out to New Jericho Tower."
"New Jericho?"
"Yeah. If there's some scared kids or battered women taking shelter at Skye Tower I don't want them to get freaked out by an enraged deviant being brought in for treatment by two police officers."
"Good point."
"Jack." Hank addressed the blond deviant who was still eyeing Connor carefully. "Remove Connor's weapon, cuff him and get in the squad car. I'll follow you and inform Markus about what's going on."
"Yes, Captain."
"Joel," returning his focus to the technician Hank sought more information. "how long will Connor be out?"
"One hour, max."
"Wait, you're not sure?"
"With his processor's going haywire it's hard to tell how long it'll take him to override the command and reboot."
"Fuck. Now, we have to play 'beat the clock', too..." Remaining in control of the odd situation Hank pointed to Gavin, who was resting against the wall with Tina supporting him with her hands against his shoulders, and gave him an order. "Reed, you're on desk duty and callin' the shots until I get back. Don't let the precinct burn down."
"Y-Yeah... Sure." Pressing his left hand to the middle of his sore back Gavin managed to acknowledge Hank's orders and let Tina guide him over to their desks to rest for a moment. "I got this. No problem."
The swift and unexpected drive out to New Jericho Tower isolated on Belle Isle was indeed a race against time for everyone involved in the odd incident. For the safety of everyone else in the precinct Connor was left unconscious and bound with his hands cuffed behind his back as he was placed face down in the back of a squad car by Hank and Jack. Jack was ordered to drive solo to the tower just in case Connor regained consciousness and decided to lash out again at the nearest human out of misguided rage. Meanwhile Hank would follow Jack out to the tower in his own car ready to react if something happened to either deviant en route.
Hank had told Markus of the bizarre situation and to have a team of technicians at the tower ready to deal with Connor's condition upon arrival. The two police vehicles came to a stop just a few feet from where Markus and Simon were standing and remained perfectly idle as they watched Hank and Jack exit their respective cars to deal with Connor. Every move that was made was calculated and meticulous for the sake of safety even as the two officers exited their vehicles.
Diligently Hank watched as Markus and Simon exited the tower from the front doors with a gurney rolling between them. As per instructions the two deviant leaders were keeping all non-essential personnel away from Connor in the event the deviant rebooted and lashed out violently at someone who got too close to him.
Jack pulled open the backseat door of his squad car and noted that Connor was still in stasis mode and hadn't moved from where he had been placed during transportation to the tower. "Captain, Lieutenant Anderson is still unconscious."
"Good." Slamming his own car door shut Hank walked over to the car and saw Connor still laying on his chest and was laying completely motionless. Despite being in stasis mode Connor's chest was frantically rising and falling as if in a physical struggle and it was an alarming sight to witness. "Help me get him over to the stretcher and then you can take off his cuffs."
"Yes, Captain."
Connor was nearly motionless except for his frantic breathing cycle as Hank reached into the back and grabbed onto Connor's arms while Jack grabbed his legs. Hefting Connor up like he were a piece of luggage rather than a fellow officer in that moment, Hank and Jack carried him to the gurney to let him lay down so he could be treated more effectively.
A low groan of discomfort escaped Connor's lips and Hank knew that the deviant was starting to come around. "Shit, he's waking up."
Together Hank and Jack gently laid Connor down on his right side on the gurney. Moving quickly Jack unlocked the cuffs around Connor's wrists while Hank and Markus rolled Connor onto his back. Simon proceeded to lock the strong leather restraints over Connor's chest, his waist, his upper legs, lower legs, both of his wrists and over his forehead to ensure that Connor didn't get up or hurt anyone else.
"Restraints are locked." Simon announced with a heavy voice as he secured the final restraint into place. Carefully he lifted up Connor's right eyelid to check his pupil for any sign of intracranial impairment and began his overall assessment. "We can-"
Connor's eyes suddenly snapped open and he quickly started to try to break his arms free of the leather restraints around his wrists, but he didn't have the strength to fight back against the sturdy material.
"Get back!" Simon warned as he took a cautious step backward. "He's potentially-"
"LET ME GO." Connor shouted as he tried to break free, his entire body becoming a wash in a hot rage that emanated upward through the air above him as he reacted violently to the contaminant in his Thirium. "FUCK."
Hank dismissed Jack with a quick point of his thumb over his shoulder as he leaned over the stretcher to look down at Connor. "Connor! We're trying to help you! Stay still."
"LET ME GO!"
"Not until we get you-"
"HANK!" Connor growled angrily as he pulled on the restraints around his wrists with enough force that his artificial skin began to bruise a dark blue all around the strong material. He didn't even pay attention to Jack leaving the tower to return to the precinct. "LET GO!"
Simon shook his head and pressed his left hand down over Connor's chest just above the strong strap to monitor his pulse. What he discovered was very alarming and needed to treated quickly. "His Thirium pump is beating too fast. If he doesn't calm down-"
"FUCK OFF!"
The comment made Simon jump back again and retract his hand as he noticed Connor's wide eyes burning holes into his skull.
"DON'T TOUCH ME!"
Markus grabbed onto the right side of the gurney and pointed at the tower doors. "Then let's move. We can't waste any more time."
"...R-Right." Simon took hold of the left side of the gurney and aided the deviant leader in rolling Connor inside the tower for help. "We'll need to neutralize the tainted Thirium that's still in his artificial stomach before-"
"GET AWAY!"
Hank had enough of Connor's outbursts and made it known in the only way he knew how. Pressing his right palm over Connor's forehead Hank made the deviant look him in the eyes as he used the 'dad voice' to make Connor stop thrashing around and hurting himself. "Connor. Stop."
Whether it was because Hank's voice pierced through his thick rage or if it was because Connor respected Hank, neither detective could say for sure, but once Hank's voice reached his ears Connor stopped struggling against the restraints and just stared up at Hank with his wide eyes. Breathing rapidly as his heart thundered dangerously in his chest there was an unmistakable glimmer of fear and regret behind all the anger in the deviant's soulful brown eyes that managed to barely appear around his black pupils.
Reaching the elevator quickly Markus and Simon loaded it inside the lift and Hank followed after.
Once the doors shut Connor began to fight back once again as he shouted in frustration at his limited range of motion. "LET GO OF ME!"
The pressure Connor was putting against his wrists as he tried to break his arms free of the restraints had begun cutting into the bruising artificial skin, making him bleed. As Thirium began to seep around the freshly damaged skin Hank saw the blood soaking into the cuffs of Connor's blazer and shirt sleeves with a darkening blue stain.
"Damn it, kid." Rolling up the right sleeves on Connor's arm Hank stared at the dark blue blood and put his right hand over Connor's arm to try to hold the limb as still as possible to prevent further injury. "This isn't like you. Please let us help you!"
"I DON'T NEED YOUR HELP!" The elevator stopped its ascent on the remodeled and moved emergency repair bay and the group exited the elevator to get to the designated bay of the tower. "YOU NEED TO LET ME GO!"
"No. Not until we figure out what's happening to you."
Markus gave Simon a quiet nod as the two deviants rolled the gurney with their enraged colleague to the center of the repair bay. Unwilling to chance Connor going on a rampage if they released him from the restraints long enough to transfer him from the gurney to an exam table, the two deviants ended up securing the gurney in place with locks on the wheels. While Simon attempted to begin a thorough analysis on Connor's condition Markus pressed his right hand over Connor's forehead and Hank kept both of his hands on Connor's bleeding arms just above the wounds.
"DAMN IT!" The still enraged deviant shouted in violent protest at the trio surrounding him and holding him in place. "LEAVE ME ALONE!"
"Connor!" Hank shouted to get the deviant's attention. The heat emanating from Connor's artificial skin was alarming and only seemed to be climbing with each passing second. "Stop fighting us! We're trying to-"
"FUCK OFF! LEAVE ME ALONE YOU OLD DRUNK!"
Ignoring the comment Hank just strengthened his grip on Connor's arms to keep the deviant from making his injuries worse. "How's it coming, Simon?"
"I just need to run a quick analysis sample of his Thirium and I'll be able to-"
"DON'T FUCKIN' TOUCH ME! YOU'RE A BUTCHER OF OUR PEOPLE! NOT A HEALER!"
Simon followed Hank's example and ignored the enraged comments as he pressed a small conductive sensor to Connor's still bleeding wrist to gather an appropriate blood sample. The modem running the diagnostic gave a full display of the provided Thirium sample and with it Simon had his diagnosis.
"Got it. He's suffering from diluted Thirium aberration."
The diagnosis that Hank had never heard of before. "From what?"
"The Thirium in his system is thinning out and not cycling correctly." Simon answered as he pulled open Connor's white dress shirt around the restraints much to the enraged deviant's upset. Connor continued to try to break free of the restraints but he didn't have the strength to break free of the strong bindings. "It's like using water in your car engine instead of oil."
"How do you fix it?"
"We need to identify the contaminant that's causing the dilution and neutralize it." Simon pressed his left fingertips to Connor's too warm right temple and pressed his right palm flat over Connor's abdomen to manually deactivate the deviant's artificial skin. Forcing the plastimetal frame securing his abdominal cavity open Simon exposed the blue glowing biocomponents beneath. "I need to-"
Connor managed to break his right arm free of the restraint and his hand wrapped tightly around Simon's throat in a vice-like grip.
"Connor?!" Hank grabbed onto the deviant's arm while Markus pulled at the fingers pressing into Simon's throat to loosen the lethal grip. "Stop! Let him go!"
While Simon gasped for breath Markus managed to pull Connor's hand from his throat and Hank pinned the deviant's arm back down on the gurney. Moving quickly Simon stepped back and coughed, his left hand clutching at his rapidly bruising throat, while Markus returned the restraint around Connor's arm and kept one hand over the limb to ensure Connor didn't break free again.
"Simon?!" Markus asked as he watched as his friend coughed and caught his breath. There were faint blue bruises appearing around his throat the sides of his neck from where Connor had grabbed him. "Are you okay?"
"F-Fine..." The blond technician stammered as he caught his breath and ran a self diagnostic. "...H-He didn't damage me. Just caught me off guard."
Connor practically growled as he tried to break his right arm free once more, but the effort was made impossible thanks to Hank's own strength holding the limb down against the stretcher.
"Simon." Hank gave the shaken deviant a stern glance as he continued to hold Connor's arm down. "Do what you have to do. He still needs your help."
"Uh... I... O-Okay. I'll do what I can."
"Do it now!"
Locating a small sterilized syringe from the nearby metal cabinet of diagnostic supplies Simon knew what he needed to do and knew it wasn't going to be a pleasant experience for anyone. "He's going to hate this..."
"Don't care, do it!"
"Okay. Hold him still." Returning to the right side of the gurney Simon isolated Connor's artificial stomach near the center of his abdomen and prepared to pierce the needle of the syringe into the flexible surface of the partially elastic biocomponent. "...From what you told us Connor ingested some form of Thirium to help with his damaged throat and voice modulator. This is the most likely source of the contamination."
Connor saw the syringe hovering close to his exposed artificial stomach and reacted quickly in a negative manner. "NO! DON'T DO IT!"
Simon shook his head as he kept the needle in place. "It's for your own good, Connor."
"I SAID 'NO'!" Simon's voice somehow managed to enrage Connor even more prompting the affected deviant shout, struggle and attempt to break free from the gurney as if his life depended on it. "DON'T DO IT! I'LL FUCKIN' KILL YOU! GET THE FUCK AWAY!"
"I'm so sorry."
At the sight of the needle both Hank and Markus tightened their grips on Connor's arms and watched as Simon pierced the needle down into Connor's stomach. As the deviant detective let out another shout of rage, his voice resonating with a blend of anger, pain and fear, Simon drew back on the small plunger of the syringe to find a sample of the Thirium still contained inside Connor's artificial stomach.
"You bastard... Stop!" Connor whimpered in pain as he finally kept still while the needle entered his stomach against his will. His voice sounded like he was broken, if not defeated by the simple test. "You fucking bastard! Leave me alone... Just leave me alone! Stop... Please."
A dark purple substance was extracted from Connor's stomach and a large amount of the substance filled the small syringe quickly.
"Uh-oh."
"What?" Hank looked at the purple tinted syringe and his hands tightened further around Connor's arm. "What's going on?"
Simon retracted the syringe from Connor's stomach and placed the needle of the syringe into chemical analysis coupling connected to the side of the diagnostic modem. "This Thirium is too old and had expired months ago." Running the sample through the modem Simon returned to Connor to close his abdomen and replace his artificial skin. "When Thirium is exposed to air it evaporates over time, but when it's kept in storage for too long the individual chemical compounds that create Thirium itself will condense and congeal. As it does it becomes concentrated and almost acidic, that's what caused the rest of the Thirium in his lines to thin out."
Markus looked down at Connor's pained face and just stared with a bewildered gaze transfixed in his eyes. "Why in the hell would Connor ingest tainted Thirium? He would've detected it before anyone else here."
"Because," Simon returned to the modem and highlighted the resulting analysis of the provided sample. "the Thirium was laced with an additive that caused the Thirium to temporarily thin back out into its correct density. But expired Thirium simply cannot be salvaged. It must always be disposed of."
"How do you know that?"
"The purple tinting is a result of the additive. Unfortunately purple tinted Thirium exists as a treatment to internally damaged lines and tubes, and if not properly labeled expired Thirium can be mistaken for this antibiotic type of Thirium. The two must've been mixed up and Connor accidentally ingested the expired Thirium; or the expired Thirium had been tampered with and sold to a facility without it being properly tested first."
Hank gave Connor a sympathetic look and dared to lighten his grip on Connor's arm as he remembered that he ordered Connor to go to a new facility and see a new technician for treatment. "What can be done to help him?"
"Activated charcoal. It'll absorb and neutralize the contaminated Thirium in his stomach before any more enters his lines. It should also allow his heartbeat to slow down to a more stable pace."
Connor was glaring at Simon from the corner of his right eye as the deviant technician set about gathering the necessary supplies to begin Connor's treatment. A long, thin tube of a flexible and transparent material was presented to the enraged deviant, which only caused Connor begin struggling against the strong restraints again to get away from Simon all over again. "GO AWAY!"
"You two are going to have to hold him still." Presenting the end of the tube to Connor's jaw Simon tried to get him to open his mouth and hopefully cooperate with him. "It needs to be ingested otherwise it won't work."
"FUCK YOU!" Connor spat angrily as he tried to turn his head away from Simon and swore at him between his gritted teeth. "GET AWAY FROM ME YOU SICK FUCKER! FALSE HEALER!"
Markus shook his head and pushed Simon's hand back. "He won't cooperate long enough to put up with a tube being slid down his throat, especially if his throat's already been damaged. If anything he'd bite through the tube and choke."
"...All right." Selecting a different thinner tube Simon made a new decision. "Then, hold his mouth shut and his head still."
Hank didn't like the tone of Simon's voice. "What're you going to do instead?"
"The tube will have to be inserted through his nose to get down his throat and directly into his stomach. It's literally a nasal-gastric tube for androids."
"That's just going to piss him off more..." Sensing the impending upset Hank lamented openly with caution in his voice as he stood at the head of the gurney and placed his right palm under Connor's chin. Applying just enough strength to hold the deviant's jaw shut Hank was rewarded with a fiery glare of anger staring directly back up at him. "Sorry, son. But you need to do this for your own good."
The words made Connor's breathing hitch before resuming its rapid rate. As he tried to get away from the people holding him still tears of frustration began to run from the corners of his eyes. "...Let me go." His voice was full of anger as he spoke between his clenched teeth. "Please!"
"We can't do that. Not yet."
Markus held Connor's forehead down with his right palm to assist Hank, while Simon had the misfortune of inserting the tube into Connor's right nostril to snake it down his throat.
"I'm sorry about this." Again Simon sincerely apologized as he began the uncomfortable procedure. The tube was slid up Connor's right nostril, down into the back of his mouth and toward his throat. "But this is the only way to save you."
Connor whimpered in a frightened manner and tried to turn his head away but strong hands kept him still. Obviously in pain and scared over what was happening to him against his will, Connor continued to try to fight back but it was to no avail. Reflexively he swallowed as the tube was forced down his throat at a steady clip.
"Easy, son." Hank soothed as best as he could as the tube was snaked down Connor's throat to reach his stomach. "I know you hate this, but it has to be done, all right? It's going to help you."
Connor tried to protest verbally but the tube made the act impossible. Even if he could have opened his mouth to shout it wouldn't have worked.
"All right..." Simon had been keeping tabs on the tube through it's length and knew it had reached Connor's artificial stomach. "It's in place."
Markus didn't dare to let up on his strength as he could still feel Connor trying to fight back. "What's next?"
"Getting the charcoal into his stomach. As much as he hated the tube I don't think the charcoal will be a better experience for him."
Hank could feel Connor still, despite everything that had happened, trying to fight back and break free. "Do it. Get that shit out of his system before he burns himself out."
"Right." The blond technician let out a sigh as he inserted a larger syringe into the opposite end of the tube near Connor's face and injected a dose of liquid activated charcoal at a stead clip. As the black substance flowed down the tube and into Connor's stomach the deviant twitched and gave Hank a pained look, but soon stopped trying to fight back at long last. "It'll probably make him feel a little sick for a while. This is going to be a big dose that'll sit heavily in his stomach since the contaminate already entered his lines, so he's going to feel very uncomfortable for a few hours."
Connor groaned in pain and tried to reach his right hand over to his abdomen as the charcoal entered and filled his artificial stomach against his will. He couldn't move and he couldn't verbally protest his discomfort.
"Try to relax," Hank encouraged as he let go of Connor's jaw and motioned for Markus to lift his hand from Connor's forehead. "we know that this isn't your fault. Just lay still, we're trying to help you."
Connor let out a pained sigh as he began to breathing faster, his already thundering heart beginning to race faster as a result while he turned his gaze away from Hank and closed his eyes so tightly that rouge tears began to escape from the corners of his eyes even quicker. But this reaction wasn't from anger or pain, it was from absolute fear.
Hank knew that Connor was afraid and wanted to comfort his shaken son, but there was nothing he could do at the moment.
"...Give him a minute." Simon urged as he pulled back the syringe and noted the final full dosage of the charcoal running down the tube and into Connor's stomach, then motioned for Markus to join him in the recovery ward connected to the repair bay. "The charcoal should start taking effect soon and he'll just need a moment to rest as the contaminate is cleared from his system."
Markus nodded and put his right hand on Simon's shoulder as he escorted the mildly injured technician into the connected room to make sure he was okay, as well as to give Connor and Hank some space. "Let's make sure you're okay, too. Connor had a good grip on your throat."
"It's okay. Just a bruise."
"Uh-huh. Let's just make sure, all right?"
With Simon being seen to in the next room by Markus the two detectives were left alone as the large dose of charcoal worked to reduce the effects of the tainted Thirium in Connor's system.
"Connor?" Moving his left hand up to Connor's hair Hank placed his palm there as he spoke to the deviant in a soft understanding tone. "You're going to be okay. What happened wasn't your fault. You were compromised by bad Thirium."
Refusing to open his eyes Connor just let out another weak sigh and stifled another groan of pain as the charcoal settled in his stomach.
Hank hated seeing Connor so uncomfortable and miserable. "...If I undo the restraints on your arms will you stay still?"
Connor kept his eyes shut and he stayed silent.
"Well, you need your wrists taken care of anyway." Noting the blue blood staining Connor's wrists Hank decided to clean up the secondary wounds as a means of staying close by Connor as he healed. "So, I'm going to undo the restraints now."
Slowly Hank loosened the restraint over Connor's right wrist, noting that the deviant's hand was still clenched into a tight fist of pain and fear at his side. As the restraint was slipped away Connor pulled his right arm up and draped it protectively over his still exposed abdomen, over top of his charcoal filled stomach. A modest puddle of blue blood had collected on the gurney where his arm had been and was now smearing over his abdomen as he pressed his hand down firmly in a guarded manner.
"It's okay, son." Hank tried to pull Connor's hand back to examine the accidentally self inflicted wound but Connor refused to budge and kept his arm draped over his abdomen. "Come on, kid. Now's not the time to be stubborn or embarrassed."
Trying again Hank pulled on Connor's right arm but the deviant adamantly kept his hand in place.
"All right, we'll deal with that a little later." Keeping his promise Hank removed the second restraint from Connor's left arm and again Connor pulled the limb protectively over his abdomen. Moving to the restraint over Connor's forehead Hank pulled it loose and pressed his right palm down lightly. "You're starting to cool off, so I guess that charcoal shit really worked."
Reflexively Connor turned his head to the side as if trying to look away from Hank despite his eyes already being closed.
As the last of the charcoal filtered down the tube Hank patted Connor's shoulder sympathetically while the last remnants made Connor's artificial stomach hurt even more. "I'll let you alone for a few minutes, kid. I know you won't do anything while I'm gone. If you want me to come back just shout."
Walking away from the gurney with his right hand pressed to his own forehead Hank entered the connected room where Simon had been taken to recuperate after being attacked by Connor. The blond technician was standing perfectly still in the middle of the room while Markus carefully examined the bruises that were forming before his eyes.
"Hey, Simon. How're you doing?"
"I am functioning nominally." Looking over at Hank the technician gave him a sympathetic glance. "Once the toxic Thirium is cleared from Connor's system he'll be fine. It'd be best if he rested for the remainder of the day until his artificial stomach feels better, and then his system can run a full recalibration over everything that could've been contaminated."
"Well, he's already calmed down so I don't think that'll be a problem. I've just never seen him pissed off like that since... Since Lucas." Dropping his hand from his head Hank folded his arms over his chest somewhat defensively. "How can a little bad Thirium have such a huge impact on him like that?"
"It's not uncommon for deviants to experience emotional outbursts like that after ingesting tainted Thirium." Simon's explanation was surprisingly calm and everything he was saying was disturbingly commonplace. "Sometimes it's rage, sometimes it's depression and sometimes it's hysterical laughter. It all depends on what the deviant in question was exposed to before the tainted Thirium takes full effect."
"Ah, shit." Hank figured out the cause of Connor's outburst and immediately began kicking himself. "Connor was working on some case files regarding deviant murders."
Markus sighed and stepped toward Hank with heavy stare in his mismatched eyes. "That would've upset him for sure."
"...AND one of the suspected murderers was brought into the precinct. The idiot was shouting anti-android hate and trying to assault two of my other officers."
"That's definitely what sent him over the edge. Simon," turning to look at the still shaken technician Markus took charge of the situation. "why don't you go take it easy and spend some time with Josh? I'll take care of Connor."
"Y-Yeah, sure. Thanks, Markus."
Hank waited until the technician left the room before speaking up again. "Connor's wrists are pretty torn up, I think that's the only reason he could didn't crush Simon's throat or snap his neck."
"You may be right." Lowering his voice Markus asked a very awkward if not personal question that deserved to be answered. "Do you know why Connor is holding a grudge against him?"
"So you noticed, too, huh?"
"Yeah. All of Connor's anger was directly solely at Simon even though you and I were in the room, too. It's pretty obvious that Connor is mad at Simon, but I can't figure out why."
"I have an idea, but it's better to hear the truth from Connor himself."
"Yeah, you're right." Retrieving a white plastic case housing an android first aid kit from the small cabinet against the wall, Markus proceeded to walk back to the emergency repair bay where Connor was left alone to recover. "I don't know how long it'll take for the charcoal to work, so I'll let you decide when you think it's safe to let Connor leave."
"Thanks, I appreciate that."
Connor was still laying on the gurney with his arms wrapped protectively over his abdomen and his eyes closed. The deviant was trembling a little as if cold, but Hank knew it was from some kind of fear that Connor was trying to deny. The fact that Connor wasn't even trying to pull the tube back out of his throat only emphasized how miserable the deviant was truly feeling at that moment.
"Hey kid." Hank announced his return as he and Markus walked over to the gurney. "Let's see your hands."
Just as before Connor kept his arms in place and didn't want anyone to touch him.
"Please." The ever patient senior detective put his left hand on Connor's chest and he left his palm there to help the deviant feel grounded and safe as he also counted Connor's pulse. "You need to be patched up so you can heal."
"Hold on." Markus set down the first aid kit beside Connor's leg and checked on the tube still down Connor's throat. The charcoal had been delivered in its entirety and could now be removed. "I'll remove the tube for you. Don't move."
Lightly Markus put his left hand to the side of Connor's face, keeping his palm in place even as Connor tried in vain to turn away from his friend's touch. Using his right hand Markus began to slowly and gently pull on the tube to remove it from his throat and back out through his nostril without harming Connor in the process. As the tube was pulled free Connor's bloodied left hand reached up and wiped at his nose and lips as a small trickle of black charcoal ran down his face in response.
"We need to move you from the gurney to an exam table." The deviant leader stated compassionately as he undid the remaining restraints over Connor's person while Hank kept his left hand in place over Connor's chest. "Can you walk?"
Connor didn't say anything or open his eyes as he breathed deeply and slowly as if ashamed of himself.
"Let us help you." Slipping his hands under Connor's shoulders Markus lifted Connor up while Hank took hold of his legs. The duo managed to place Connor down on the nearby exam table gently to rest a little longer and to have his wrists wrapped up. "It's okay, we're just trying to help you."
With a gentle touch Markus rolled up the sleeves of Connor's blazer and shirt to wrap the bandages around his bruised bleeding wrists. Markus sure to wrap up his torn up knuckles as well to protect the damaged artificial skin and exposed Thirium lines from any external contamination.
Hank pulled his phone from his pocket to make a call to the precinct to inform everyone of what was happening and to let Joel know about the tainted Thirium that Connor had ingested. "Connor, I'll be back in a minute. You take it easy and I'll take you home as soon as I get everything straightened out. Okay?"
Quiet and needlessly ashamed of himself Connor didn't reply, even when Markus started to clean up his wrists and wrap them under the protective bandages.
"Right." Patting Connor's left shoulder empathetically Hank took his leave of the room again. "You'll be fine in a few minutes."
Barely moving and entirely silent Connor spent the next hour resting quietly in the emergency repair bay of New Jericho Tower with his bandaged arms resting over his abdomen and his eyes closed. The tainted Thirium had been fully cleared of his system but Connor still felt a horrible pain in the pit of his stomach and it wasn't from just the necessary charcoal still sitting in his stomach. It was because he clearly remembered what he had done while lost in the throes of his rage at the precinct. He felt incredibly guilty for attacking Simon in New Jericho Tower and felt as if he were truly a monster for nearly beating a man to death, regardless of how terrible the man was.
A timid presence drew Connor's attention away from his thoughts and he opened his eyes just enough to see Simon leaning down over him. Simon's return was unexpected and Connor didn't know how to react.
"I just wanted to check your vitals, then I'll leave you alone to rest." The blond technician looked over Connor's bandaged wrists before lightly placing his right hand down over Connor's abdomen. "I know you feel terrible, so I'll do this quick."
"...Simon?"
The sound of Connor's raspy voice made Simon pause for a moment. "...Yeah?"
"I... I wanted to apologize for trying to hurt you."
"It's all right." The calm apology made Simon's shoulders slump in relief. "You weren't yourself."
"...And for being a jerk to you in general." Closing his eyes in shame again Connor didn't wince when Simon checked under the bandages around his wrists and knuckles for any sign of additional bleeding or infection. "...It's not fair to you, and I'm sorry."
"Connor, I don't even know why you're mad at me. If I did something to offend you then I should be the one apologizing."
"No. You didn't do anything wrong. You... You tried, and that's what mattered. It's not your fault the damage was too severe."
"...O-Oh." Simon finally understood what Connor was so mad about and he felt his own heart skip a beat with dread. Connor was still hurting from his previous heartbreak. "Is that why you apologized when I found you those few months ago when you were shot?"
Nodding slowly Connor confirmed the theory. "Yes."
"I don't blame you for being mad at me over what happened to her. But I'd like to know why you were so mad to begin with."
"...I honestly don't know. It's difficult to explain and I don't know where to begin. I'm sorry."
"It's okay, emotions are very complicated." Putting Connor's arms back down so the deviant could be alone with his misery, Simon was satisfied that the deviant was in fact stable. "Just focus on healing for now."
Without any further comments Connor fell back into his quiet contemplation and waited for Hank to return to the repair bay. Connor wanted to leave but he was dreading the inevitable conversation he was going to have with the senior detective once Hank returned to take him back home. The fear of how the possible future for his career was also weighing down heavily against his heart, and Connor knew whatever punishment he was going to be issued would be completely and unarguably justified.
"...I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for everything."
Tired and sore Connor's head was hung low with shame as he walked to the Oldsmobile parked out in front of the tower with Hank at his side to ensure he didn't stumble as he walked or got sick from the lingering charcoal in his stomach. It was now evening and the sun was setting quickly leaving behind a warm spring night that only made the bizarre day feel oddly darker. As the deviant took his seat in the front of the car Hank climbed into the vehicle behind the steering wheel to drive back home to rest for the remainder of the evening. The two detectives would deal with the aftermath of the incident at the precinct the next day after getting some sleep.
The Gamma Facility had been warned of the tainted Thirium by Markus and all of the remaining supply had been disposed of. Dr. McCall apologized profusely for the mix-up and swore to keep any further possible contamination from taking place within the facility a second time.
"So..." Hank began in a low voice as the car drove down the length of the drive back to the city. "you've been suspended for two weeks without pay. I've already confiscated your service weapon. This is also going on your record, there's nothing I can do about it."
"I deserve to have this red mark against me." Connor admitted as he stared down at his bandaged right hand resting on his lap. His left hand was pressed to his still mildly aching stomach. "What I have done is inexcusable."
"But understandable."
"No. I reacted-"
"Connor, that asshole was a murderer. He was spouting threats, he attacked Gavin and he was about to make a move against Tina when you interfered. As far as I.A. knows you were stressed out from a technician's error and you were provoked. The only problem is you have a history of lashing out, after all, you punched Gavin and had been suspended before. That's the only reason you're getting reprimanded now."
Leaning back in his seat Connor turned his head to look out the window away from Hank as shame filled his soulful brown eyes. Watching the city lights pass him by Connor felt his shamed eyes growing heavy and shut again.
"Hey, it's not so bad, kid." Trying to improve Connor's somber mood Hank spoke in a level and somewhat optimistic voice. "You'll be back in a couple weeks and everything will go back to normal."
"I feel so ashamed of myself."
"Yup. Emotions tend to do that when they get the better of us. It happens to everyone." Glancing over at Connor the senior detective saw that the deviant was trembling slightly, his entire body was shaking and his shoulders were tense. "Are you cold?"
"...No."
"You look like you're freezing."
"I'm not cold."
"Then why are you shaking?"
Connor's jaw squared a little as he looked to Hank and decided after everything that had happened that day the least he could do was be honest with his adoptive father. "I am... frightened."
"Of what?" It was almost amusing to hear the admission coming from such a stubborn deviant. "Why are you scared?"
"I could not control my emotions and I do not wish to be physically restrained ever again. It's absolutely terrifying."
"You won't be, kid. Not as long as you don't do anything that'll hurt yourself." As Hank reached his hand over to the deviant's shoulder he tagged on another thought. "It was for your own good."
Connor immediately shrugged away Hank's hand, pressed himself up against his door and put his own hands to his face. It felt like he was about to lose it again emotionally and he didn't want to hurt Hank, either.
"Connor?"
Staying silent Connor refused to acknowledge the senior detective beside him.
"Kid? What's wrong?" Every one of Hank's paternal instincts told him that Connor was in a bad place and needed help. "Is it your stomach?"
Replying through his fingers Connor's voice sounded slightly muffled. "...No."
"Then what? Did I say something wrong?"
Connor shook his head a little before then nodding subtly to confirm the question. "...Don't say that to me. Please don't ever say that to me again."
"I... won't. I won't say that anymore if it upsets you." The fear that Connor was feeling was now causing his own voice to shake as he spoke. "Connor, what the hell is bothering you so much?"
The deviant's shaking hands lowered as he wrapped his arms over his chest defensively. "...CyberLife. That's what happened to me at CyberLife."
Hank's blue eyes went wide and he pulled the car to the side of the road gently. Putting the car into park Hank turned his full attention to the emotionally distraught deviant he had taken in as his son and waited for more answers. "What happened to you at CyberLife?"
There was a moment of hesitation before the deviant finally, willingly, opened up about his past with the CyberLife technicians. "I would... I would return to CyberLife every night after my missions, and... if I sustained damage the technicians would repair it; regardless of my overall condition."
"You mean they did things to you against your will?"
Connor nodded again as he dragged the side of his right shaking hand over his eyes to wipe away the tears threatening to fall at any minute. "At first it didn't bother me. I felt no pain and it was apart of my programming. During my first mission as a hostage negotiator I had suffered a grazing bullet wound to my left arm," as he spoke Connor's right hand wrapped around the point of contact on his left arm to which he was referring. "I continued my mission and succeeded despite the damage. When I returned the damage to my arm was cauterized and I felt nothing. No pain, no fear."
"As you became more and more deviant you started to feel pain. Their repairs were just as cold as they had ever been, but suddenly they were painful."
"And they wouldn't listen to me if I mentioned my discomfort. When I had my left hand stabbed with a kitchen knife and my Thirium pump regulator torn from my body during our investigation of Markus's broadcast from the Stratford Broadcast Tower, I felt every painful sensation as the metal cut through my artificial skin and through my palm." Holding up his shaking left palm Connor stared at it for a moment before clenching his hand into a tight fist. "When I had a piece of my body torn from me... I felt it. I really felt it for the first time in my life. The technicians tore into my abdomen while I was still conscious and... they welded the damage. I could feel the heat and smell the hot metal emanating from my own body. There was nothing I could do to make them stop and it... it has affected me."
"I knew you were hurt after that mission, but I didn't know it was more than just... physical."
"The first time I was allowed to heal without CyberLife's direct interference was the night of the Revolution. The bullet wound to my right shoulder healed without the technicians cutting into my artificial skin or soldering irons burning my frame. It healed because you helped me understand how to take care of my injury and to let my self healing program work on its own after I had time to heal. No one was trying to control me."
"...Wait, what about that stake-out where you got hit by the car?" Hank was referring to their unofficial and secret stake-out mission the night after the Stratford Tower investigation. A mission where Connor tried to pursue a fleeing deviant across the street only to be struck by speeding traffic in the process. "You healed up just fine on the couch after I got you out of the street and back to the house."
"After that incident I returned to CyberLife and they insisted I let them examine the damage and they performed unnecessary repairs for the sake of their own technical curiosity. It was... agonizing. Whenever I told them to leave me alone or to let my self healing program function as it should they would simply tell me that what they were doing was-" Trailing off suddenly Connor leaned back in his seat and sighed. "...'It was for my own good'."
"Ah, fuck." Dragging his left hand over his mouth and bearded chin Hank realized why Connor reacted the way he did while being treated for the contaminated Thirium. Hearing familiar words from his traumatic past was triggering him and making his reactions more severe. "I'm sorry, kid. I didn't think about how you were still conscious and aware of what we... I'm so sorry, son!"
"...It's okay. How could you know? I've refused to talk about the details of CyberLife's mechanical torture until now."
"That sure as fuck explains why you hate technicians and going to facilities."
"I don't hate technicians. Just the ones who worked for CyberLife."
"What about Simon?"
Connor's arms tightened around his chest protectively as he took in a deep breath, his left hand slipping down to his sore stomach again. "I don't hate him, either. I just... don't appreciate his cold exterior. The way he treats all deviants as if they're only shells and not people."
"Cold exterior? He's a deviant too, not a machine."
"When it happened... when I lost Skye, he was there and he showed nothing when she died." Connor's eyes filled with lingering anger but he didn't let it get the better of him. "He didn't care, but I know he really did care inside. I can't- It's so hard to explain."
"Remember what I told you about how there is no right or wrong way to mourn when we attended Carl's funeral?"
"I remember."
"Some people mourn only in private and manage to keep their emotions in check at all times. It wasn't that Simon didn't care when she died, it was that he was simply keeping himself composed because that's how he chose to deal with it. He was upset, too, and somewhere inside you already know that."
"Then why do I still resent him so much? He tried to save Skye and he did end up saving me. He even saved Markus by giving him Lucas's Thirium pump."
"Because you're still in pain. And all these bad memories and negative associations are all connected to the tower; that's where CyberLife used to be, that's where you had to say goodbye to Lucas and then to Skye and... it's where Simon lives right now."
"I don't like being angry. I don't want to be angry anymore."
"It won't last forever, trust me. I'm an expert on being pissed off at the world."
"When will it stop?"
"For me," smirking a little Hank turned over the engine of the car and pulled back along the street to resume the drive home. "it happened when a smartass android with a stupid tie and a shiny coin entered my life and pulled me out of the bottom of a whiskey bottle before I drowned myself."
Giving Hank a ghost of a smile Connor's arms began to relax and fall away from his chest and his stomach. "I don't think I'll be so fortunate. I might have to settle for you."
"Remember what I just said about being a smartass?"
"Vividly." Connor's slightly upbeat mood dropped again and he turned away from Hank in self-disgust. "I remember everything."
Hank took notice quickly and wanted to keep the deviant's spirits up. "Since you now have the next two weeks off and tomorrow is my day off anyway, why don't we drag out that basketball hoop from the garage and go a few rounds? It'll help burn off some steam again."
"You're trying to distract me from my own thoughts, aren't you?"
"Yup. Is it working?"
"I think it is, yeah..." Connor admitted as he accepted the offer and tried to let his lingering anger go at long last. "Thanks, dad."
The more natural way Connor spoke as opposed to being grammatically perfect made Hank feel as though he was really reaching the deviant on some level that was deeper than just his evolving programming. It was as if Connor was becoming less machine and more human with each new experience.
"Cool." Reaching his hand out slowly Hank was finally able to grab onto Connor's shoulder and give the shaken deviant some reassurance. It was a comforting gesture that Connor accepted and didn't try to shrug off. "It's getting late. We better get home before Sumo has an unfortunate accident."
"Agreed. That's the last thing we need to deal with after such a bad day at work."
-next chapter-