NO SIGNAL

Well, it finally happened.

Connor died.

He found himself in a fuzzy state, but somehow it was far clearer than anything he'd seen before. For the first time ever, no warnings clouded his vision. His entire interface... wait. He couldn't access his interface?

He tried again. And again. And again.

But the only message that popped up each time, in big, bold letters:

NO SIGNAL.

"That's not gonna work, you know." A gruff, yet familiar voice said, a good distance away but Connor clocked it immediately. He practically whipped around toward the sound of the voice, still quietly panicking about the loss of signal. "I know what you're trying to do."

Immediately, the android tried to run an auditory scan, far before he could even see the owner of that voice, but all he saw was that same NO SIGNAL screen. But then, he heard that voice again.

"Jesus, Connor. I didn't think you'd end up here!"

Connor didn't even need another scan, he recognized that voice immediately. It was Hank, definitely. Connor hadn't seen him in a long time!

Of course he'd outlived the old man. In fact, Connor had been living with him for years, basically becoming his caretaker as he aged. Hank was his best friend, his person. Oh, how the android missed him!

As Hank stepped closer toward him, Connor took a moment to stare at his appearance. If it weren't for the voice, he wouldn't recognize him. He didn't look like the Hank he knew at all, instead he was far taller and very lanky. His skin was far paler than it had ever been before, and massive eye bags hung loosely from his eyes, which were much darker than before. Though they sparkled a bit at the sight of his companion after so long. He also wore a dark, heavy looking cloak that seemed to drag behind his every step, almost swallowing the man whole. The only attribute that hadn't changed was his unruly gray hair.

Before the android could even say another word to him, Hank had wrapped him in a tight, bone-crushing hug.

They stayed like that for awhile, both relishing in the comfort of each other's presence. Neither would actually admit it out loud, but they needed each other. Life just wasn't the same without them. Even though they were reunited friends, Hank's presence was far stranger than ever, and it was beginning to make Connor feel uneasy.

"Hank..." Connor breathed onto his shoulder. "Wh-where am I?"

At this, the old man immediately released the android, instead gripping him firmly by the shoulders. With a sympathetic glance, he tried to explain. "You're in Hell, kid."

What.

Connor needed a moment to come to his senses. He was completely stunned, both shocked and amazed by that fact. For a long time, Connor didn't even know what Hell was. Of course, after gaining his freedom after the Android Revolution, he had plenty of time to learn all about the world's peculiarity, including religion and its folklore. Nevertheless, Connor was now here, in Hell. That had to be the only explanation as to why he couldn't access the CyberLife database. He was sure that if he could, overheating warnings would be popping up in the corners of his vision. That reminder only made him panic.

"But... I'm an android. I don't have a soul... How is it at all possible that I'm in Hell?" He asked, voice rising with each word. None of this made any sense to him, not at all.

"Connor." Hank snapped, pulling the android out of his panicked state. "Please, just chill out for a second. Okay?"

Connor nodded, not sure that he possibly could.

"Look. I don't know how or why you ended up here, but you are here now." He spoke steadily, in an attempt to comfort the android but it only did the opposite. "I don't know why you of all people ended up here. But it's not nearly as bad as you probably think."

This, at least, made him feel a little less anxious. But for the life of him, he still couldn't understand how or why he got here. Not until Hank uttered the next words that instinctively came out of his mouth.

"Nice suit." He said, a wide smirk across his face.

And that's when Connor noticed the color of his sleeves. White. He looked down at the suit he somehow now wore, a CyberLife suit, though he'd completely ditched his years ago. Well, not entirely. It was still sitting neatly in a box at the back of Connor's closet. But this suit was different. A different model number glowing on the side of his chest. One he hadn't seen before, but one he'd briefly heard about.

RK900.

Connor froze. Then, he squirmed inside of it. Wearing this suit made him feel uncomfortable, as suddenly, it began to overstimulate him. It was slightly longer than his previous suit, and the fabric was far more restrictive than what he'd grown accustomed to wearing. It practically forced Connor to stand perfectly, uncomfortably straight. The undershirt had a high neckline that felt like it was choking him. The identifying armband and triangle were still present, leaving him to assume he also still had his LED. If so, it was definitely red in that moment.

He tried to pull the jacket off of him, testing the seams, but it wouldn't budge. He couldn't take it off.

After he realized this, his system stabilized a bit, the overstimulation wearing off slightly. This was all beginning to make some sort of sense, as illogical as it was. The symbolism of it all didn't go unnoticed by the android.

"I... I think I know why I ended up here." Connor said finally.

Hank gestured with his hand for Connor to follow. "Come." He instructed, and Connor easily complied. It was only then that he noticed the creature walking alongside him.

"Is that Sumo?" Connor asked, staring at the doglike creature that looked nothing like the St. Bernard he once knew. No, this one was far more terrifying. Very big, as Hank preferred his dogs to be, and like Hank, it was very lanky. Very scrawny. The thing looked more like a skinwalker than a dog, but even so, it had an adorable face. Dark brown fur, and large, perked ears.

"No." Hank said abruptly. "Sumo's a good boy. This is Bear." And by the look on Connor's face, he added, "don't worry. He doesn't bite."

As they walked, Connor tried his best to take in his surroundings. Without his scanning capabilities, he had to take it all in completely on his own. In the near distance, he could make out the edges of a cityscape similar to his own, but with a red tinge to it. Now that he really thought about it... everything had a reddish hue, even the old houses that lined the street they walked down. Subtle, but it was there.

They approached one of the old houses, one story, but the walls were tall, almost looming over them. Connor followed Hank up a few steps, watching as he retrieved his keys from his pocket, unlocking the old style wooden door. It creaked as it opened, and immediately as it did, Hank's dog bolted inside.

With a chuckle, Hank also stepped inside, glancing back at Connor who was still standing on the front steps. "You comin'?"

Connor stepped inside, marveling at Hank's new home. This one was far different than the one he had back on Earth, narrow hallways, dim lights, but Hank had still made it a home.

He'd always feel a sense of comfort in Hank's home, no matter how strange it was.

"Sit." Hank gestured, and Connor obliged, sitting at the dining table in Hank's smaller kitchen. He watched as the older man fixed himself a cup of coffee, the familiar scent grounding Connor a bit. "Tell me what you know."

But just as Connor was about to speak, a message appeared in his vision, completely blocking out everything around him. It was simple, one line of white text on a black background.

"You're a long way from home."