The downside of becoming human (Detroit: Become Human, Connor, M)

[SneezyHolmes]

Just gonna preface this with I am in no way a good writer but I'm trying AND that there's mess in this. So don't read if that's not your thing.  I've been binge playing Detroit: Become Human the last day or two and Connor is by far my favorite character next to Kara so it was only a matter of time before I wrote something about him! Started as a drabble but soon spiraled into a story chapter. Not sure how long said story is gonna be but here we go, without further ado!

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Chapter 1: A glitch in the System

 

SYSTEM ERROR: SEQUENCE 494 - MALWARE VIRUS DETECTED. FACTORY REBOOT RECOMMENDED. APPROXIMATE TIME TO REMOVE VIRUS MANUALLY: 4-5 BUSINESS DAYS.

“Connor? Hey! Earth to plastic, you awake over there?”

Hank stared over at the android beside him, his hand lingering on his car door handle as he awaited a response from his new partner. He was used to the android zoning out when filing reports back to Cyberlife but this day seemed different. Connor was more unresponsive than normal and even when he did manage to get a response out of him, it was delayed and somewhat sluggish as if communication was difficult for him. He tried again, slightly louder this time and perhaps with a bit more bite than was necessary,”Hey! You gonna keep ignoring me or you gonna come inside and help me with this case?”.

This seemed to get through to the bot as he suddenly turned his head, the glowing LED on his temple shining in a bright red hue,”Oh..uh, yes. I’m coming, Hank. My apologies, I was just..writing a report to Cyberlife.”. He exited the vehicle and promptly walked over to him, forcing his usual smile. He didn’t wish to lie to the Lieutenant but if he mentioned the malware, he’d be taken off the case for sure or worse, sent back to the factory and disassembled to remove it. His systems were equipped with the ability to defrag manually but it would take longer that way.

The look Hank gave him was one of both disbelief and indifference.

“Right..anyways, what do we know about this case? I skimmed the file before we left the station but didn’t gather more than it’s another potential deviant attack. They’ve been sure getting ballsy lately..”,he muttered, crossing through the holographic police tape and into the trashed apartment of their victim. His gaze scanned over the room, coming to rest on the bruised body of a middle aged man sprawled over the bed, a look of horror painted on his face. “Damn, whatever went down here must’ve really been something to make him look like that..”.

Connor paused again, looking around before responding,”According to the police report, neighbors heard loud crashing and yelling around three am this morning followed by gunshots. Upon the responding officers breaking into the apartment, they found the deceased as you see him now. He supposedly lived alone but had been known to rent androi--”. He trailed off, a sudden far away look on his face, the LED rapidly alternating between red and yellow.

“Rent androids? So he was a sleezeball who couldn’t get lucky with hu--Hey, you okay over there?”,he turned away from the blood splatter he’d been examining, eyeing the android with a raised brow.

A few of the forensics agents were watching the bot as well, more than likely fearful of what might be about to happen.

EXCESS BUILDUP OF THIRIUM: COMMENCING EXPULSION PROCEDURES. PLEASE STAND BY.

Another moment passed before Connor suddenly doubled forward a bit,”Hh’GstChh! ‘GstChh!”. He hadn’t covered, a fine mist of blueish fluid drifting down to the floor by his feet as a result. He straightened back out, resuming his examinations as if nothing had just happened. “As I was saying, the victim was known for renting androids. Mostly after his wife of ten years left him.”,he looked up at Hank, finding his expression to be one of surprise,”Yes, Hank? Is everything quite alright?”.

Hank slowly approached him, gaze moving up and down the android to fully take in his appearance as if it might give away some clues as to what the fuck just happened. “Uh..you mind telling me what that noise was just now? You’re not, like, gonna explode are you?”.

“Explode..? Why would I do that, Hank? If you’re referring to my expulsion process just now then I assure you that all is fine. It’s a perfectly normal response to a buildup of fluids. I believe it’s commonly referred to as a ‘sneeze’ in human biology.”,he was blissfully unaware of the trickle of blue fluid running down his lip, turning back to finish analyzing the blood on the floor. He dipped two fingers into it before ‘tasting’ it, attempting to find out more about the victim but puzzled as the data file in his vision seemed to glitch and fail to produce a proper info download. That was odd.

“I didn’t think androids could sneeze but whatever. The more ya know. Anyways--oh gross! Come on, what have I told you about doing that crap in front of me..”,he cringed,”Real time or not, we have a forensics lab that can do that shit without you putting it in your mouth..”. He shook his head, semi-long silver locks swaying slightly from the action. “Also, you have blue crap running down your face.”,he offered a crumpled fast food napkin from his back pocket,”Look if you got some kind of glitch or something and need a break--”.

Connor promptly stood up straighter at this, snatching the napkin and wiping it across his upper lip. He was fine! All systems were functioning near perfectly! “Lieutenant, I promise I am in optimal..working..c-condihhh..condition.”,he could feel another expulsion coming, the warning indicator cutting into his vision,”S-Stand back, Hank I..Hh’GstChh! ‘GsTChh!”.

The blue fluid that sprayed out made quick work of staining onto Hank’s jacket, earning a disgusted groan followed by a death glare.

The lieutenant wiped at his jacket, still fixing Connor with a glare before pushing past him to head into the small kitchen,”Gesundheit.”.

For the remainder of their time on the crime scene, Connor grappled with the growing malfunctions of his body, having to stop every few minutes or so to sneeze or wipe at the stray trails of thirium running down his lip. This malware was proving tedious, causing far too many glitches in his performance for his liking. And once back in the car, it would seem discussing the topic of said glitches was unavoidable.

“I kndow what you’re thinking, and I am fine.”

“Funny, that’s not what I was thinking. I was actually thinking about grabbing some food at Chicken Feed but I’m glad you brought being fine up because you’re so clearly not. You wanna tell me what’s up or should I make a complaint to Cyberlife?”

Connor huffed indignantly, looking out his window at the passing buildings and androids in their waiting docks rather than at Hank. He couldn’t risk a report being made, looking conflicted as he turned back to him. “A report is ndot necessary. It’s nothing major but I seem tdo have contracted a malware virus despite mby firewall safeguards. Mby system is already removing it as we speak though so I can stdill assist you with the case.”.

Hank seemed to think a moment before responding,”Soooo what you’re sayin’ is, you’re sick?”. He looked over at him, chuckling and shaking his head slightly. A state of the art android catching the sniffles? Now he’d seen it all. “At any rate, I can’t have you sneezing all over the crime scenes and potentially contaminating evidence so I guess that leaves you with two options. Stay off the case until you’re done getting rid of the virus or stay off the case until you’re done getting rid of the virus. So which is it gonna be?”.

“But I--Hh’GStChh! Hh’GstCh! ‘GstChh!”,he snapped forward a bit, spraying the dashboard in thirium,”Fine..I’ll stday away from the crime scenes but I could use a place tdo stday until this virus has passed. I can’t return to Cyberlife like this, they’ll deactivate mbe for sure, Hank..”. If android’s could give pitiful looks then this was the closest Connor could manage, sniffling a bit and rubbing the back of his hand across his nose as he looked at his partner.

“God damnit..okay, okay. You can stay with me but you’re gonna have to start covering better. I’d rather my house not be covered in that blue shit even if it does evaporate and you better stay out of my way..”,he grumbled.

A small but thankful smile spread across the bot’s face as he nodded,”You won’t even kndow I’mb there, Lieutenant! Hehh..’GstChh!”. He managed to clasp a hand over his nose and mouth this time, grimacing at the thirium now coating his palm before casually wiping it off on his pant leg to avoid Hank seeing.

“I have a bad feeling about this..”,the older man mumbled under his breath, turning off for his home rather than stopping for food.

Edited June 17, 2018 by SneezyHolmes

[Rook]

*INCOHERENT NOISES*

THANK YOU SO MUCH

[SneezyHolmes]

8 minutes ago, Bandit said:

*INCOHERENT NOISES*

THANK YOU SO MUCH

Glad you liked it.

[Pyrus_Fangmon]

Not too sure who these characters are, but I love the concept and story behind this. Very well written and detailed and I'd love to read more if you wish to continue. 

Edited June 17, 2018 by Pyrus_Fangmon

[SneezyHolmes]

1 minute ago, Pyrus_Fangmon said:

Not too sure who these characters are, but I love the concept and story behind this. Very well written and detailed and I'd live to read more if you wish to continue. 

Ahh, they're two of the main characters from a new videogame! They're detectives and partners! Here's some photo references~!  And thanks for reading even though you're not familiar with the fandom!  

Connor: 

 

Hank:

[Pyrus_Fangmon]

1 hour ago, SneezyHolmes said:

Ahh, they're two of the main characters from a new videogame! They're detectives and partners! Here's some photo references~!  And thanks for reading even though you're not familiar with the fandom!  

Connor: 

 

Hank:

Oh my! Conner's looking mighty fine over there.  I can picture the scene even better now  I appreciate the reffences, and I might have to look into this game now. 

[SneezyHolmes]

12 minutes ago, Pyrus_Fangmon said:

Oh my! Conner's looking mighty fine over there.  I can picture the scene even better now  I appreciate the reffences, and I might have to look into this game now. 

Ikr? He's mighty fine imo too!  And I highly recommend it! It's only for the PS4 though.

Edited June 17, 2018 by SneezyHolmes

[murphy dee]

I'm deep in Detroit hell so I SUPER appreciate this. Somehow I don't mind mess if it's just a thirium spray hahaha...no germs, it evaporates, and it's blue! It's so perfect. I love this!!

[SneezyHolmes]

10 minutes ago, murphy dee said:

I'm deep in Detroit hell so I SUPER appreciate this. Somehow I don't mind mess if it's just a thirium spray hahaha...no germs, it evaporates, and it's blue! It's so perfect. I love this!!

I'm glad I'm not the only one deep in this game's hell!  And you can't go wrong with some good 'ol fashioned thirium snot!

[Rook]

Oh I'm incoherently deep in the game hell that is Detroit become human and I love it

[Arty]

Never heard of this game...but damn Connor lookin fine as hell.Loved the story. 

[SneezyHolmes]

3 hours ago, Arty said:

Never heard of this game...but damn Connor lookin fine as hell.Loved the story. 

Glad you enjoyed it!

[SneezyHolmes]

Wasn't sure what direction I wanted to take this chapter but I think it turned out okay.  If you have any ideas/things you'd like to see incorporated into later chapters, just ask!  

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Chapter 2: Energy Low

 

Once home, Hank gestured for Connor to sit down on the couch while he went to the kitchen, coming back with a half full bottle of whiskey and plopping down in his recliner. Sumo padded over to him, whining softly and resting his massive head down on his lap. “Good dog. So, uh, this virus you picked up..it’s not gonna make you go crazy and kill all humans is it?”. He took a large swig of the amber liquid, exhaling a bit as it burned going down.

Connor furrowed his brows, offended that Hank would even think he’d become a deviant. That was simply preposterous! “I would ndever! At most it’s affecting mby ability to analyze samples and to maintain proper thirium levels..so far but I can assure you that I won’t become a deviant..”. He sniffled, an attempt to keep the blue fluid from escaping down his upper lip. This process seemed to continue on and off for the next minute or two, a sniffle occuring at almost regular ten second intervals.

Hank sighed loudly, slowly looking over at the bot,”I’m glad to hear you won’t try killing me but right now you’re making it rather hard to listen to the game. There’s some tissues in the bathroom closet, help yourself.”. He turned back to the television, idly scratching Sumo’s head with his free hand. He wasn’t really sure what kind of care a sick, sentient android required but tissues seemed like a good start.

The android looked a bit sheepish, nodding and slowly heading to the bathroom to retrieve the tissues. He paused to look at himself in the mirror, noting that there seemed to be a glitch in his ‘skin’ in the form of dark circles under his eyes. He sighed to himself, turning away to grab the box of tissues and return to the couch. “I couldn’t have picked a better time for mby firewalls tdo go down..”,he mumbled to himself, taking two tissues and tentatively blowing his nose. The resulting sound was cringe worthy to say the least.

“Yeah maybe but shit happens, what matters now is you taking it easy and getting better. The sooner you’re back on your feet, the sooner we can get back to tracking down deviants.”,he took another swig of whiskey,”So, uh, how’re you feeling right now anyways? Not that I care but you know.”.

Connor smirked a bit, finding it humorous that Hank attempted to mask his worries as indifference. Humans were amusing in that regard, occasionally afraid of showing their true emotions be it for fear of judgement or just to save face. He assumed the latter was the case for the lieutenant. “I don’t feel much of anything, Hank, but I do find the constant malfunctions rather tedious. Namely the sneehh..sneezing--Hh’GsTchh! ‘GsTChh! It’s annoying to say the least.”. He swiped at his nose with a tissue, sighing in defeat as repeated wiping would no doubt result in irritation of the nanites responsible for maintaining his human appearance and ultimately cause his nose to turn a reddish hue.

“Gesundheit! Yeah, colds are the worst but if you don’t have to feel like shit like humans do then I’d say you got off pretty easy.”,he chanced a glance over at Connor, still amazed by the fact that a sentient hunk of plastic could sneeze,”And if I don’t gotta catch it, then even better! I’m still mad about being sneezed on earlier you know..”.

“In my defense, I did attempt to warn you though so forgive me for not understanding your irritation.”,he spoke rather nonchalantly, genuinely not grasping the reason for his partner’s distress. Did it not count that he’d issued the warning prior to expelling the thirium? He could’ve been rude and said nothing at all. Something told him that he probably shouldn’t say anything further on the matter, not wanting to agitate Hank too much. Plus he found himself rapidly losing the desire to communicate, content to just watch the television in silence.

ENERGY LEVELS LOW! 37% OF INITIAL CHARGE LEFT REMAINING! SLEEP MODE RECOMMENDED.

It didn’t surprise him that the android didn’t have any fucking manners, but in the same breath, he was far too used to it’s oblivious tendencies to act bothered now so instead he grunted and shrugged a bit.

Sumo whined again and padded over to Connor, plopping down at his feet with a heavy thud as if sensing something was up with the artificial man.

The android looked down at the canine, reaching out to scratch it’s massive head before slowly leaning back against the couch and rubbing his nose. His eyes threatened to close, body desperate for a recharge but could he really power down right now? What if something happened or they got a call about another deviant? But then again he had been ordered to stay away from the crime scenes until the virus was gone so there wouldn’t be any harm in just having a quick recharge, would there? He didn’t have much choice in the matter either way as the warning notifications regarding his energy levels continued to flash urgently in his field of vision.

“You alive over there? You’re awfully quiet, not so sure I trust that.”

Hank’s words cut into his mind, tired optics shifting from the tv to him,”My apologies..my energy levels are rather low so movement and communicating are difficult. Would you be mad if I powered down for a little bit?”.

“Why would I--? Yeah, go ahead, you look tired or as tired as a robot can look anyways. I’ll wake ya if anything happens.”,he finished off his whiskey with a satisfied sigh,”Not that you’ll be in much condition to help anyways..”.

The smart remark was lost on Connor as his eyes had already drifted shut, the LED shining in a soft yellow hue to signal that he was charging.

CHARGING..PLEASE STAND BY.

Sumo whined again before settling back down with a heavy grunt, the previous silence once again falling over the room.

At some point Hank dozed off as well, startled awake only by the loud buzzing of his cell phone in his pocket. He grumbled, having to move a bit to get it out of his pocket and then fumbling to accept the call which proved to be nothing more than Fowler insisting he come back to the precinct and pour over some new deviant files. He sighed deeply after hanging up, running his hands down his face and getting up with a grunt and a stretch. Should he wake Connor? He looked pretty content right where he was but something told him that just leaving wouldn’t bode well with the bot later.

“Hey..I’m heading to the precinct for a bit. You, uh, wanna tag along or?”,he gingerly shook the android’s shoulder.

CHARGE DISRUPTED. ENERGY LEVELS NOW AT 67%.

Connor winced slightly as he was shaken awake, eyes cracking open and taking a moment to focus on his surroundings. “Hmm..? Oh..yeah, I’d love to tag along..”,he nodded slowly, taking another moment to actually get to his feet which proved to be a mistake as his vision shifted and glitched before settling,”Was there a break in the..in the..hh..”. His hand flew up to waiver in front of his face, an attempt to catch the impending spray.

Perhaps thankfully for Hank, he’d already moved to put his boots back on, watching the display unfold. He smirked a bit,”Bless you in advance. You sure you’re up for this?”.

“I-I’m perfectly..hh..able to..hihh--! Hh’GsTChh! ‘GstChh! ‘GSTCHH! Ngh..I’mb perfectly able tdo perform mby tasks.”,he snuffled miserably, grabbing a handful of tissues to blow his nose,”As I was saying, has there been a break in the case?”.

“Nah, Fowler just wants me to look over some of the newer case files and reports that have come in. Nothing too exciting.”,he grabbed his keys off the coffee table and held the door for Connor, making a face as the bot blew his nose as he walked past,”Guard the house, Sumo. We’ll be back later..”.

Most of the drive was spent making idle conversation or listening to the sniffles of his ailing partner whose insistence on being fine was almost laughable at this point. Were androids always so stubborn about being sick? He looked over at the bot, feeling a pang of sympathy for him. Sure he still didn’t trust most androids but Connor was something different. He was a lot more unique than deviants they were busy hunting down but right now he just looked pitiful and certainly not like his usual confident self.

“Hh’GSTChh!”

“Bless yo--”

“Eh’GsTChh! ‘GsTChh!”

“Ble--”

“Hh’GsTChh! ‘GsTChh! ‘EsTChh!”

“You done? Or?”

“I’mb done for ndow..I think..? I fear I didn’t bring endough tissues though..”.

Hank pulled into his parking spot and killing the engine before offering a plaid cloth from his pocket,”Here, just use this until I can get you some more tissues, alright? And maybe you should just take it easy at your desk and wait for me?”.

Connor accepted the handkerchief, tentatively rubbing at his nose through the fabric,”As I keep saying, lieutenant, I am perfectly capable of--’GstChh!--working..”.

“Yeah, sure, whatever you say. Let’s just head inside and see what happens..”

Edited June 18, 2018 by SneezyHolmes

[Rook]

Holmes I love you

[Pyrus_Fangmon]

So I've officially watched a full episode of a at through of this game. Despite seeing the demo and not being fond of detective games. 

And holy sweet Jesus!  They full on nailed the android emotions and abilities! I'm not sure if its my cup of tea to watch more, but Conner is definitely and hottie.

[SneezyHolmes]

11 minutes ago, Pyrus_Fangmon said:

So I've officially watched a full episode of a at through of this game. Despite seeing the demo and not being fond of detective games. 

And holy sweet Jesus!  They full on nailed the android emotions and abilities! I'm not sure if its my cup of tea to watch more, but Conner is definitely and hottie.

Lol welcome to the Connor fan club! And I have to agree with how nicely done the androids are from their behavior to their mannerisms. Thanks for reading!

Edited June 18, 2018 by SneezyHolmes

[SneezyHolmes]

1 hour ago, Bandit said:

Holmes I love you

Lol, glad you're enjoying the story.

[murphy dee]

OH NO HE'S GOING TO THE PRECINCT?? Don't let Gavin see him!!!

[SneezyHolmes]

7 minutes ago, murphy dee said:

OH NO HE'S GOING TO THE PRECINCT?? Don't let Gavin see him!!!

Oh man, Gavin is such a prick, he totally would try and rough up a compromised Connor! Hmmm...

Edited June 24, 2018 by SneezyHolmes

[Rook]

Holmes you are a tease

[SneezyHolmes]

12 minutes ago, Bandit said:

Holmes you are a tease

Part 3 is in the works, just been busy with work and whatnot. Gonna try and have it out in the next day or two!

[Rook]

58 minutes ago, SneezyHolmes said:

Part 3 is in the works, just been busy with work and whatnot. Gonna try and have it out in the next day or two!

O.o no rush my friend I was just referring to the way you responded to Murphy dees comment

[MikiSan]

the end had me like: Doom level at 60% to doom now at 99% cause of the fit at the end XDD 

[Akahana]

Ahhhh~ I’m watching GTLive play this game and Connor is honestly the most compelling character in the game!!  I live the character interactions between him and Connor and I think you nailed it <3

[SneezyHolmes]

8 hours ago, MikiSan said:

the end had me like: Doom level at 60% to doom now at 99% cause of the fit at the end XDD 

Lmfao! xD Glad you loved it!