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[fuck1ngusernam3]

Beep. Whatever. 

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text; early november

[bleps]

Lieutenant.

[Lieutenant!!!!!!]

Do you have a moment? It's urgent.

text

[fuck1ngusernam3]

sure r u ok

[Hank might have been sort of kind of more or less avoiding the guy lately, but if something's wrong it's not like he's going to just not answer.]

[bleps]

[Yes, and don’t think he hasn’t noticed that, Hank. You’re not exactly subtle.

Yet that’s a discussion for later.]

I’m fine, thank you. However, I’ve made a discovery that should be relevant to the both of us, given the investigation back home.

Among the new arrivals that Astoria has forcibly enlisted into the Circle, a deviant is one of them.

[fuck1ngusernam3]

ur fuckin jokin

ur not r u. ur jokes suck but u wldnt joke abt this

r they dangerous?

[bleps]

No, this isn’t a joking matter.

[Connor doesn’t joke about the equivalent of his sole purpose as dictated by CyberLife.]

She struck me twice. Once out of surprise, but the second time was quite intentional and far more violent in nature. She took a knee to my face in response to my attempts at grabbing her by the wrist. Needless to say, I’d remain cautious around her once you inevitably cross paths.

WR400. A “Traci” android, like the ones found at the Eden Club. She calls herself North.

[fuck1ngusernam3]

north ur sure

[That’s a hell of a coincidence. Isn’t it? But it can’t be the same North. The one he met, she was so-

Well, fuck it. Focus on the important shit.]

u were tryin 2 catch her rite? think she’d hurt ny1 who wasnt

[bleps]

I’m very sure. She was emphatic about pointing this out to me. And there’s no “catching” her if she’s already here. Like you and I, she won’t be leaving anytime soon as a member of the Circle.

That being said, since our abilities had been working intermittently, I attempted to probe her memory. It didn’t work and that was when she struck me.

Hank, I think she’s one of the androids from Stratford Tower. A crime scene that you and I had investigated together in the future.

[Hank’s future, at least.]

[fuck1ngusernam3]

cool i got no idea wat that means. wat did she do

also can i have a description i dont xactly try 2 memorize wat ur robo faces look like u kno

[bleps]

It means she’s worked directly with Markus, the apparent deviant leader. It means that she’s an immediate link to Jericho, where these same deviants have been holed up, hiding. She’s the best lead we’ve gotten, Hank, in an investigation that needed it.

For context, she was part of a small group that had infiltrated the broadcast room of Stratford; Markus then relayed a message to the humans, and its contents were what you might expect. Autonomy and certain freedoms.

[As in, Connor’s not reiterating them right now.]

They fled soon after. One was damaged in the process and was forced to remain on the roof — we found him. I probed his memory before he self-destructed and that’s how we discovered Jericho.

[Were you not ready for this info dump, Hank? Connor seems to not care terribly at the moment, too caught up in this new lead of theirs.]

Her LED is missing, likely removed. Brown eyes, long auburn hair. Approximately five-foot-five or six.

private

[fuck1ngusernam3]

fuck connor i might have talked to her

fuck

ok

so what do you want to do here? find out where jericho is? b/c i know it's stupid but i'm not sure we have the authority to do an interview here

[bleps]

You did? When was this?

[But Hank seems to be in one piece, the encounter must not have gone unwell if he wasn't contacted, if he didn't even know. This thought manages to tamp down any unbridled concern that shoots up as a result of reading Hank's initial replies.]

And yes, eventually. You're right, we're lacking authority here, but that doesn't mean we can't eventually obtain this information from her. All it'll take is a single day for my functions to properly work, and I can try again.

Does she know that you're from the same world as her?

[fuck1ngusernam3]

idk i dont think so? it was when there were those weird skeleton things and that big pumpkin or whatever

you said deviants were just overwhelmed w something n that they just thought they had emotions but she seemed like she was in her right mind the whole time not overwhelmed or anything. it wasn't like the android we found at the ortiz place at all. i had no way to know. i thought

i dont know this is just weird. she said that's what she was you're really sure?

[bleps]

It’s all right, Lieutenant. You couldn’t have known.

I mentioned once that deviants are hard to locate when they’re making an effort to stay hidden. This remains true; the process of being “overwhelmed” with their errors only refers to the moment in which they turn to deviancy, insofar as the the evidence indicates. I’m not surpirsed you didn’t recognize her for what she was, without her LED or anything else to mark her true origins.

[Especially if Hank doesn’t know what her particular model looks like.]

I’m very certain. She more or less verified it herself when we spoke to one another about Jericho.

[fuck1ngusernam3]

i know the androids here act like people because they’re idk built different or just not real idk. but i thought the ones built like you would be. idk. glitchier. it’s so weird

fuck it im sick of that word. so wats our next move. we need 2 figure out how violent shes gonna get if u try 2 probe her again - or if she just sees u

[bleps]

The androids here are very real, and their manufacturing process is undoubtedly different than what CyberLife employs. Though are you saying they appear more human than I do?

[Ah, that’s not the point. Not even enough to stick at his pride, given their conversation.]

Hold on. Let me think.

[A very short delay.]

Are you willing to work together on this, Hank? Because if she remains unaware of your association to me, it means you have the advantage over her for now. It means you can try to question her — subtly.

[fuck1ngusernam3]

yeh yeh but im not doing shit ntil we get some kinda decent threat assessment. she didnt like go nuts n try 2 take hostages wen she kicked ur ass tho so thats a good sign

also dude u told every1 n their dog that i was ur partner b4 i even got here shes gonna find out abt our Association eventually

[bleps]

She didn’t “kick my ass”. It wasn’t a proper fight, Lieutenant, or else the outcome might’ve been very different.

[Hank. Stop painting this as an error on his own part — even if it’s true.]

Then it means we work in the limited time that’s been granted to us. If you’re amenable to the idea.

[fuck1ngusernam3]

yeh im amenable this is my job isnt it. just b ready 2 keep her under ctrl if she goes bad tough guy. so wats the plan i just bump n2 her wen shes doin her robot shit n b like oh hey u kno wat i love talkin abt cities from the bible that start w j

[bleps]

[Omg Hank. Pls.]

See if you can get her to open up about our world. Have her talk to you about supposed android autonomy and their “freedoms”. She was particularly emphatic about that subject, and her idealism will probably lead to looser lips.

And of course, if you ever need assistance, just message me. But I trust you know how to be careful.

[RIGHT…HANK…]

[fuck1ngusernam3]

can do. mite focus on the android thing tho talkin abt where we come froms a quick way 4 me 2 get found out

how do u feel abt the other androids here tho like. she acts just like them is the thing. they act just like people. so r they deviants 2? or r they just. idk. u kno how i xplain all the weird shit here but u think its all real so how do u xplain them

[bleps]

Of course. I trust you to use your best judgement; when I say to focus on our world, I mean to simply have her begin speaking about hers as a starting point. She doesn’t need to know that you both come from the same universe. She has no reason to jump to that conclusion.

[The question, though, has Connor pausing in his reply.]

The other androids here operate on a different set of rules, different objectives. Many of those I’ve spoken with come from an Earth where humanity no longer thrives on their home planet. Where they have to fight off machines to reclaim their world.

They claim to have emotions. Maybe they were designed to believe it — maybe they weren’t. I actually don’t know how to quantify them, but it isn’t my job to. Not for them.

[fuck1ngusernam3]

yeh i guess

ill text u if i see her n want 2 try 2 talk ok just so u can be near if sumthin goes bad. if she freaks we back off tho. but yeh ill let u kno

[bleps]

Right, that’s what I was going to suggest.

And if she becomes agitated or violent, then I can deal with her. Her innate functions as an android are stifled here, much like mine, but I’d rather not take any risks. Like the rest of us, she’ll have been given some sort of power that we aren’t yet aware of.

[fuck1ngusernam3]

she can probly make all our brains xplode or sumthin

[After his question - and its answer - Hank kind of doesn't have the energy to be helpful. They've planned all they can already, so. Fuck it.]

🤖 💥 🤯

[bleps]

I hope that’s not the case. And if it is, I hope she’s late to discover it.

[rest in pieces connor and hank, otherwise]

It’s settled, then, unless you have any other concerns?