Deviacy (Connor RK800 x OC)

A trigger

"Just like the other one." 

"That's a good point," he conceded, "But would you mind sharing your theory on how androids end up killing off their masters in a bid to ascend to godhood?"

There was obvious discomfort in the observation, but she was able to maintain a professional demeanor, "Android technology is still in its infancy," she began, taking a brief glance over at the shattered glass displayed so prominently in the lobby.

"I have reason to believe that a traumatic event occurred to this particular android," she continued, "which might have caused him to lose control of his faculties. His programming would have induced him to protect his cybernetic core from such an event." There must've been a fault in the design, she suspected, or an unforeseen event, causing the android to lose all semblance of control.

"This is just a hunch, so I might be barking up the wrong tree," she continued, her eyes flitting from the weapon to the body, "But at the very least, I think it's worth looking into."

"So you're suggesting that this android was a victim of abuse, like the other one that self-destructed," Hank stated bluntly, "and that his owner's violent outburst was the final straw before losing his absolute shit and killing him in a fit of rage."

The previous Android they've managed to detain had also been a victim of mistreatment from its owner, so it was a plausible theory, she supposed. It seems like a traumatic event had occurred to the previous model, causing him to lose all semblance of rationality.

It was able to express fear, to express murderous intent. 

Emily nodded, the barest twitch of her mouth. "That's a fairly simplified summation, but yes," she replied. It was what she had to work with.

"Detective," Connor spoke, intervening before she could say anything more. "Androids are incapable of feeling emotions, designed not to experience the full range of human feelings, but to simulate them." There was no ounce of uncertainty, no wavering in his conviction.

His statement was factually correct, and was the reason why she had been mistaken in her initial thoughts on the Android at the crime scene. However, Emily was a flesh and blood human being, and she had experienced many emotions, both positive and negative. Perhaps the Android was subject to the same range of emotions; was it not?

"But this one certainly reacts with more feeling than a machine should. That means that it can experience at least a few," she stated, staring at the body again, "and that it experiences a wide variety of them. But," she added, "a hunch is still a hunch. Let this be a topic for another time."

It would be best to evade the question for now.

There was no point in clashing with him, in particular, over the matter. They would get to the bottom of it eventually, when they were able to examine the Android in greater detail, with a full and thorough psychological profile.

There had to be a reason why he had chosen to murder, in cold blood, a woman he was meant to serve with undying loyalty. Abuse, like she had proposed, was the first thing that came to mind, although there were other more plausible theories.

The very idea was preposterous, and yet there was no denying the depth of the emotion that was behind the Android's violent actions. Her hand rested lightly on her holstered service pistol; if push came to shove, she was ready to draw her weapon and try to subdue the murderer.

Her eyes shifted uncomfortably to Connor's, who had been eyeing her since she had spoken up.

It would be a lie if she hadn't noticed the mannerisms of this android, the way that it moved and shifted with a certain air of purpose, the way it stared at her intently as if waiting for something. The android had been behaving that way since they had brought it to the scene of the crime; maybe it was due to the programming, maybe that was the natural behavior of an Android, she didn't know and she really didn't have time to find out.

"No other witnesses have come forward to report seeing the deviant?" Hank's voice was a gutteral growl that sounded as though it came from the depths of hell, and yet it seemed to find its target when it was pointed in the officer's direction.

"We're still investigating." An officer replied, "but we're having little success. People in this area are hard to track down." An understatement, if ever there was one.

"What about this witness who claims to have seen a man following the victim around the subway station?"

"We're still trying to locate him. He hasn't been located yet." 

Emily, a detective who had so far been unusually quiet piped up. "So, no leads at all?"

"Not at the moment, no."

"What about the victim's last known movements. Do you still have the report?"

"Sure do," the officer said, and he picked up the file. That was the extent of the current investigation, nothing substantial so far. This wasn't another open and shut case, a pretty standard murder to go on with.

"If you like, I can run it through the system and load it up for you. I think you'll find it illustrative of the case." 

The file was loaded up, and she opened it up to the last page, running a finger along a timeline of the victim's movements,  stopping on the last known sighting of him. Sure enough, it was a fairly standard story as most murder cases went.

Emily sighed, leaning back in her chair. "So, do any of these reports raise any red flags?"

"Well, according to this report... " she said, reading the last entry on the timeline, "... a security footage showed the suspect exiting the office at 23:07."

Hank, who had been leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, perused the file as well. "That's within the timeframe of when the murder was committed. What's the matter?"

Her gaze was fixed on the screen. She was thinking, and thought hard, "Another security footage, taken at 23:15, shows him walking down the street just outside the station. Unfortunately, it's a blind alley, and the footage doesn't show anything further." Hint: she was thinking something through.

Keyword: she was,  until Connor's voice startled her from her line of thought.

"It's possible that the deviant had hidden somewhere in the area," he said, his voice sounding almost wistful. "Perhaps it had concealed itself in one of the buildings in the vicinity. It counts have gone far in one day. We need to check it out."

Emily nodded, and she looked at the screen again, scanning through the reports. "All right. Let's assume that's true."

"Let's this get over with."