(no subject)

[socrowdedinhere]

*Connor has a mission, he is to find Lieutenant Anderson. He’s been to four bars already and is heading to the fifth when the world around them lurches. He’ll lose sight of everthing around him and when he can see again the city streets are gone and the darkness of the forest is all that is around him.* 

Comments

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: And...you are a machine built by humans...? *this is hard to take in. Hard to process, hard to believe, hard to fully grasp... hard to hear...*

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: Correct. All androids in the United States are built by CyberLife. Only two other countries in the world have developed comparable technology and achieved the creation of androids - Russia and China. *small headtilt, studying Terris* Having never seen or heard of androids before, you are having a hard time telling how I am different from a human. That is understandable, as we are designed to integrate as seemlessly as possible. It is why we are required by law to wear distinguishing markers. Perhaps if I show you what I look like without my activated skin, it would help you understand better?

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *straightens a bit.* Yes, perhaps that would help...

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: *nods and will remove his jacket, folding it neatly to set aside. He was told to sit, and while it wasn't a human's orders, he has no reason not to obey, so he'll remain sitting, pulling his dress shirt free of his jeans and removing it and his tie. Both get just as carefully folded before he reaches up to touch his temple in the center of the LED ring. With that, his flesh seems to...melt, flowing back and away from his skull, off his chest, up his arms, leaving behind brown eyes gazing out from a completely snow-white face, the seamed surfaces of his head, chest, and arms perfectly smooth and alien.*

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *his one eye widens a bit, and then he shifts around closer for a closer look. He starts to reach to touch Connor’s face, but stops himself.* May I? *he’s sure he already knows the answer, but it’s polite to ask.*

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: Yes, of course. *and because his programming tells him that people don't like being stared at when they are this close, especially by an android when examining it, he shifts his gaze to look straight ahead as Terris explores him*

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *softly touchs Connor’s face, shoulder, and arm.* You are truly amazing, Connor. *sits back.* You will find you are truly unique in this world. *not so sure that’s a good thing.*

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: ... *nods, not sure what to say to that*

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: What will you do if you find that you have no orders to follow here?

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: ... *actually looks a bit troubled at that, gaze sliding away to one side* I...would go into standby, I suppose. I am not permitted to operate completely without a human handler.

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *nods and gives Connor’s shoulder a light squeeze.* *tone soft.* Get dressed, Connor, everything will be all right.

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: *hesitates, then nods, sitting up to his knees to unbuckle his belt and open the top of his jeans. He'll get his shirt back on and tucked in, then settles back down on his heels for his tie and jacket* I do not require sleep, but I'm sure you do. Please don't let me keep you up the rest of the night.

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *nodnod* I am more concerned with learning as much as I can about you first. *he pulls a deep breath and sighs softly into his tea. After a drink he sits back a bit.* What is this for? *the taps his temple to indicate Connor’s LED.*

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: *mild frown of what would be concern if he were capable of emotion* It seems I could easily keep you up all night with that. You really should sleep. *can't tell him to, but he can suggest what's best for Terris's health. At the question-* It is my LED. It acts as a visual indicator of my current processing. It is also one of the easy ways to identify me as an android. It is illegal for an android to appear in public without visible and readily identifiable markers to distinguish us from humans.

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: That may be, but it will be best if I can tell the general as much about you as possible when we arrive tomorrow. *he listens to the explanation* Elledee. *he gives a nod* It turned yellow before, does that mean something?

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: ... *nods, accepting that - he can't argue with Terris* L. E. D. Light emitting diode. It...means I have a small light. *since he's getting more and more the impression that Terris has no idea what he's talking about more times than not* Yes. It is blue when I am functioning normally. Yellow means I am . . . *does Terris even know what "processing" means?* . . . thinking . . . about something, either working through evidence or taking in a new or complex problem. *it can also mean he's startled or stressed, but it won't occur to him to mention those*

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *Nodnod* Does it turn any other colors? And if so, what would those mean?

[cyberlifeslastchance]

((NOTE FOR DOC: When he went to get dressed again, he also reactivated his skin.))

Connor: There is also red, which would indicate that I am damaged or in some other state of...distress. *faint frown, not entirely sure what that means, just knows it's there*

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *notes that Connor doesn’t seem entirely certain of the distress part, but won’t push him on that. Terris can accept that and will leave it at that for now.* *He considers a long moment* All right, let me see if I can accurately summarize things so far. You are from another world and don’t know how you got here. You are what is called an android, made by humans specifically to assist with law enforcement. You require orders from a human otherwise you’ll go into standby. Your LED shows your current...mn, emotional state for a simple way to put it. Am I correct so far?

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: *brow twitches a bit at "emotional state"* Mostly. I would say that my LED shows my current functional status. Androids are not capable of emotion, although deviants can simulate it. I am not a deviant.

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: Two more questions. First, what exactly is “standby” for you? And what is a deviant exactly? Mn, three questions, how do or have other androids become deviant?

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: *very faint grin, his demeanor warm* You are of course welcome to as many questions as you wish. I will answer them to the best of my ability so long as doing so would not violate CyberLife's proprietary protections. Standby means that I set myself somewhere that I will not be in the way of anything or anyone, and I wait until I receive new instructions. A deviant is an android that has abandoned its programming. We believe that a mutation occurs in the software of some androids, which can lead to them emulating a human emotion. They don't really feel emotions, they just get overwhelmed by irrational instructions, which can lead to unpredictable behavior. We do not yet know how or why this process occurs. I have been tasked with capturing deviants to send back to CyberLife so they can be analyzed to find the errors that lead to the corrupted coding in their programs.

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *standby...literally what it sounds like then, only for someone that needs no food, no drink, and no sleep, can live for over a hundred and seventy years, and apparently has no emotions and so would likely never protest being left and forgotten... Many of the words Connor says don’t mean anything to Terris, but he thinks he gets the gist. They’re not meant to feel, then some unknown happens and they suddenly do, or at least seem to. Connor was the one meant to work with the humans to find out why. Terris gazes into the fire, thinking over everything. He thinks he can explain the situation to Zerik now...* Tell me, Connor, what will you do if you are damaged while you are here? We have nothing even remotely lie you, we would have no way of repairing you...

[cyberlifeslastchance]

Connor: .........then I would remain damaged. Until I could be repaired or I deactivated.

[socrowdedinhere]

Terris: *thought so. He finally stands and gives Connor’s shoulder a light pat.* We’ll do all we can to ensure you are not damaged. Stay near the den, but do not feel you must stay in one place. I’m going to get a bit more sleep before we travel tomorrow.