Her Mind [Under Construction]

Chapter 5

It never stops raining.

Ben was already at the scene when we came.

"We've got officers sweeping the neighborhood, in case anyone saw anything." Hank was nodding. "Okay, well let me or Selene know if they turn anything up."

Ben looked to Connor, who was standing on the sidewalk. "What are you gonna do with that?"

"I have no idea," he murmured, watching him.

Coming back Connor spoke as Hank looked through the information.

"It took the first bus that came along... and stayed until the end of the line," we looked up, listening.

"It's decision wasn't planned, it was driven by fear." He scoffed internally and smirked a little. "Androids don't feel fear."

"Deviant's do. They get overwhelmed by their emotions and make irrational decisions."

"Ah well that still doesn't tell us where it went." He leaned his head up.

"It didn't have a plan, and it had no where to go. Maybe it didn't go far."

I took in the sights before me, an abandoned house, a motel, and a train station were around us.

"I think we should go to the abandoned house. They could of squatted there for the night." I spoke up.

"Maybe."

We made our way and found a wired fence that had been cut.

"I've found traces of blue blood, and it matches the model from the case file."

"Looks like they used a wire cutter to get in." I picked it up, it was rusted but still usable.

We made our way through, Connor kneeled down to peek through one of the boards nailed to the window before looking to us and putting his finger to his mouth. Someone's there.

"Anybody home?" He looked through the doorway, an android with severe scarring on his right cheek and eye could be seen. I went and stood by the boarded window.

"I'm looking for an AX400, have you seen it?"

"Ralph's seen nobody."

"Are there any other android's here."

"Other androids... No, Ralph is alone."

"I'm not going to hurt you... There's blue blood on the fence, I know another android was here."

"Ralph scratched himself coming through. That's Ralph's blood." They spoke nervously.

I heard him step around the area then the creak of a step from the staircase, "is there anyone upstairs?"

"No, nobody." They spoke calmly.

He shifted around some more before turning quiet.

"RUN! QUICK KARA."

There was a thud, I saw Connor on the floor and the deviant stepping away, his hands out.

He looked and I saw two figures bolting. I ran to follow them.

"Connor what's going on?" Hank bursted in.

"It's here! Call it in!" He followed behind me then in front.

We ran, just meters behind them until we reached an alleyway, there were two of them hopping a fence. A little girl and an android.

Connor stopped as they landed on the other side, an officer came from the left, gun drawn.

"Don't shoot! We need it alive." Connor blocked his line with his hand as me and Hank caught up.

"Oh fuck! That's insane," Hank huffed. We watched them enter the clearing for the automated highway. Connor went to jump the fence but Hank pulled him down with his hand.

"Hey! where you goin?"

"I can't let them get away."

"They won't, they'll never make it to the other side."

"I can't take that chance," he tried jumping up.

"Hey! You will get yourself killed, do NOT go after them Connor that's an order."

He looked at him and released the fence. We watched them with bated breath cross the highway, to the median, then to the forest. The little one hugging the android and them returning their embrace before disappearing.

-

"Here's your hot chocolate Selene, with whipped cream and mocha drizzle."

I eyed him in surprise as he sat down across from me in the booth.

"You know my drink preferences?"

"I've done a thorough background on you and the Lieutenant when I was assigned to work with you both this morning."

"Really?" I smile, "find anything interesting?"

"Your uncle graduated at the top of his class from the police academy, he made a name for himself early on in his career and became the youngest Lieutenant in Detroit. You graduated from Renaissance High School in 2015 at the top of your class as valedictorian. You were offered several scholarships from Ivy League institutions but decided to stay close to home and graduated from Michigan University with a masters in criminal justice and a minor in information technology. You also briefly interned as an assistant with Elijah Kamski when he developed the first android to pass the Turing test."

My hand twitched over the at the mention of his name, he noticed of course.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's ok, please continue." I smiled.

"You graduated from college and entered the police academy, graduating with honors and high recommendations from your COs. You are currently a shadow detective under the Lieutenant pending the outcome of the deviant cases we have been assigned. When you aren't pursuing leads on deviant cases you spend most of your time researching the development and advancements of androids and other forms of artificial technology."

"Seems like you did your homework, what's your overall conclusion on us then?"

His LED spun yellow before he spoke again.

"I think working with a officer who has a preference for androids and another who has an aversion to them is an added challenge, but adapting to human unpredictability is one of my features." He winks at me and I felt my cheeks color a little.

"I understand you have questions about me." He leaned in a little as I nodded.

"I have a feeling you know more about deviants than we do at the department, I'd like to hear what you think of them."

"Well, we believe that a mutation occurs in their software that causes them to emulate, or copy, human emotions."

"We?" I tilted my head some.

"CyberLife, from the deviants they have studied they drew that conclusion."

My face fell a little at his response. He of course didn't miss it.

"I've noticed you seem to feel unpleasant when I mention anything involving CyberLife or the mechanisms of androids."

I leaned back and pulled my jacket over my shoulders before looking at him again. He looked intrigued, but I saw a hint of concern in his expression.

Before I could speak his LED turned yellow again, making him blink rapidly.

"I just got a report of a suspected deviant a few blocks away, we should go get the Lieutenant and take a look at it."