"Connor!", you gasped as he chased through the woods like a madman, eyes firmly fixed into a trail that was invisible to you. "We've been walking around for an hours now. It's getting late."

All of a sudden, he slowed down.

The area had turned a bit more rocky, less bushes and trees, but still private.

An unpleasant feeling grew inside your chest.

You grabbed his arm for comfort.

"This looks like a serial killer hideout.", you tried to smile but it felt all too close to reality.

He hummed, but his attention was still occupied by something else.

He had stopped at the edge of a pit, large enough to fit a few people.

Dried branches and leaves filled the bottom like a carpet while a thin layer of dust was shimmering on top. It smelled rotten and a little of gasoline.

"It's everywhere.", Connor said and grabbed your hand. "Stay. I'll go check if there's anything down there."

Carful let, he slid down into the pit and started letting his hands run through the leaves.

"Don't get hurt.", you said.

He just chuckled.

"I'm a machine.", he reminded you with a wink. "I don't get hurt."

You rolled your eyes.

"Now, don't get cocky. I can still snitch on you for the program issue."

He froze.

"But- but you won't do that..."

"That was a joke..."

"It wasn't funny."

"I'm sorry."

His LED flickered. A smile appeared on his face.

"Thank you.", Connor suddenly said and smiled even brighter.

Surprised, you raised an eyebrow.

"What for?", you asked.

His lips moved. He turned to face you.

"For respecting my feelings. I like that. Please do it more often."

Your heart skipped a beat.

He looked so pure and genuinely happy.

And it made you happy to see him this way. Even though you knew it was dangerous.

Connor turned back to the ground of leaves and started searching through it with his bare hands.

It made you a little worried to see him do it so carelessly, but yet again, he was made of metal and was very unlikely to get hurt.

The sound of shivering leaves filled the air.

All of a sudden, something metallic flashed up between the colours.

At first you thought it was just a piece of metal or jewels someone had lost.

But as Connor noticed and picked it up, it turned out to be something much worse.

Your heart dropped to your stomach.

"Is that... is that an eye?", you asked.

For a moment, he eyed it from all sides.

"It is.", he looked up at you. "It's from an android."

Driven by both curiosity and horror, you slid into the pit and looked at it from all sides.

"It's old.", you noted as a small insect crawled out of a hole. "That's disgusting..."

Connor kept looking.

"Everything is covered in thirium."

"I can't see."

"That's why I'm telling you."

You turned your attention back to the ground.

Something dark was hidden underneath those leaves. At first it just seemed like a shadow, maybe a hole inside a hole. But at second glance it turned into a silhouette.

Out of reflex, you grabbed Connor by the shoulder to make him stop digging before anything worse could happen.

He glanced at you, concern shimmering inside his deep brown eyes.

A silent question was asked.

You just shook your head.

"Let us go home, Connor.", you said, but it was more of a request. "Let the past rest."

You were afraid of what could be revealed. It scared you to think that something terrible had happened and that CyberLife was part of the story.

They were powerful, the most powerful force in all of Detroit. Their influence reached all over the United States.

And it was an open secret that once someone fell from their grace they did everything to make that person fall to the edge of society.

The expression on Connor face turned grim. He was disappointed.

"This is important.", he said. "I can feel that... something feels familiar. I feel like this could be... like me."

Confused by his words, you had to frown.

But he didn't leave a second to respond to it. Instead, he turned right around again and started shoving everything aside that was in his way.

Old, broken branches appeared, leaves that were already starting to rot and small stones.

But all of a sudden his dirt covered hands started to loom oily and black.

"What is that?", you asked and pulled a face. "God... this smells like... a whole engine leaked into the ground..."

Connor stopped to examine his fingers. The thick liquid was dripping off them like rotten blood, yet as thick as honey.

It wasn't just nasty to look at, it also smelled like it was deadly.

He opened his mouth to tastes it again.

"Don't you dare!", you hissed.

He stopped, barley a fingers width before his lips.

"It's blue blood.", he finally said. "Something is here."

Your eyes fell onto the hole he had dug.

Immediately, your heath skipped a beat.

A scream of surprise left your lips. You stumbled back and almost fell.

"Holy shit!", you cursed and had to put pressure on your chest. "Connor, look at that!"

He glanced over his shoulder.

A head stuck out of the dirt.

It was easy to tell that this wasn't a human, but an android.

It only had one eye, which made it possible to look into the inside. A long time of abandonment, mixed with the weather conditions had made it grow moss and other plants. It seemed like a good host for many insects.

With a concerned look, Connor squatted down to check if it could be turned on.

"It's too damaged.", he said and checked the spot behind the ears. "No memory card."

You frowned.

"Do you think someone took it?"

"Yes.", he kept digging through the mud until his eyes spotted something. "But not the people who wanted it."

He raised his hand for you to see. A small micro chip was stuck between two of his fingers.

"Who removed it?", you wondered.

"The android did."

Surprised, your eyebrows rose.

"How do you know?"

"The slot is heavily damaged. They opened it with force. Someone wasn't supposed to know what's on this card."

"Someone like CyberLife..."