missiondeterminant | [Open Post]

[Of all the things Connor expected to possibly happen--Zlatko yelling at him and/or Kara kicking him in the knee both considered likely--what actually happens is not even slightly close. He lets go of Kara in an immediate attempt to dodge the burning liquid, which results in most of it going on Zlatko behind him, but a decent amount still splatters across his chest and arm. It doesn't hurt but error messages flash in his vision, warning him of noncritical damage, although Connor barely sees them; he's far away for a moment, the sight bringing up the memory he'd accidentally unlocked before they fell in the river, and he stumbles a few steps to the side to brace himself on the counter.

Meanwhile, Zlatko has started up the predicted shouting, if not for the actual reason Connor had expected it. But Zlatko isn't burned in the way he should be; the boiling, thick liquid should be doing serious damage, but it isn't.]

You're going to pay for that.

[He promises, storming past Connor without a second look at him, his attention entirely on Kara.]

A reset is too good for you. I think maybe you'll make a better addition to my collection, instead.

[ Connor looks more stunned than she'd expected, and that gives her hope. Maybe enough damage will undo Zlatko's reset. Then it would be two against one who seems a lot stronger than she remembers.

Kara can't help a frustrated cry; she just wants this to stop and has no idea how to make it do that. Zlatko's threat is so cartoonish that it barely fazes her, just another part of this endless nightmare. Although, can she make him waste time talking? He took so much joy from taunting her and Alice when he tried to reset her.

For good measure, she puts the kitchen island between them and prepares to kick him in the groin. ]

Collection? Connor--!

[ Is he back? Should she throw one of these utensils at him? Would that make things worse? He'll prtect her from Zlatko, at least. Even so, she grabs a knife and points it at Zlatko. ]

Edited (swapped italics) 2018-08-21 11:22 (UTC)

[Connor is, unfortunately, not back yet; with less influence from emotion and the experience of seeing the memory previously, he's able to force cancel his way out of the replay. Shaking it off he comes back to awareness of his surroundings, to find that... Apparently both the deviant and Zlatko are still being difficult.

Narrowing his eyes, he stalks forward and tries to get inbetween them, although the kitchen island makes it difficult.]

Stop this, both of you.

[He directs it at both of them, before looking at Kara specifically.]

Put the knife down.

[While his attention is turned toward her, Zlatko puffs up in anger at neither android listening to him, grabbing Connor's arm and pulling him to the side.]

Get out of my way!

[ There's no way she's putting down her only weapon. She doesn't get the chance to protest before Zlatko is interfering, though, and Kara takes a second to rapidly weigh her options. From where she is right now, she could aim to stab Zlatko somewhere that will either disable him long enough to let her and Connor escape, or kill him outright, leaving her only Connor to deal with. She could also do minimal damage so that Connor can take him on instead, as planned. Or, she could let them struggle and leave by herself, but then she'd be running from Connor, who is back to being Amanda's perfect errand boy, and who will probably receive more help from Amanda as a result. There's also the well option, but that would involve more planning and would leave her in the same position as the previous option.

Overall, things are looking grim.

Since it's beneficial to her right now to keep Zlatko alive (words she never imagined she'd think), she scraps the first option and goes for the second, banking on Zlatko coming to chase them sooner rather than later, giving her time to ~~scream and cry internally some more~~ figure out a way to get his memories back. So as Zlatko yanks at Connor, Kara swings the knife at him, aiming to pin his hand to the kitchen island.

How's thar for putting the knife down! >:c ]

[Zlatko is not expecting to be stabbed, let alone stabbed like that, and gives an overly dramatic yell out outrage. Connor takes the opportunity to pull his arm out of Zlatko's grip, stepping out of reach and then immediately ignoring his plight--he'll figure it out--in order to refocus on Kara.]

Enough. I can't allow you to continue endangering human lives, so surrender and make this easier on us both.

[He doesn't want to harm her--why doesn't he want to?--but he will if necessary.]

If I sureender, Amanda wins. We're stuck here forever.

[ Wake up!! (Wake up inside!!)

Zlatko makes to grab for the knife, groaning the entire time, pausing only to yell at them some more. ] Both of you belong to me! Connor, take her to my workshop, now!

[Connor's eyebrows furrow slightly, his head tilting to the side as he considers Kara's words and why he wouldn't want Amanda to win, because he realizes he doesn't. He just doesn't understand why.

But he's distracted from considering it by Zlatko, and Connor turns his frown toward the human.]

Your orders conflict with my mission. I am to take deviants to CyberLife Tower.

[His attention is, briefly, off of Kara, as he expects Zlatko to react negatively to his response.]

[ Because you're both spiteful little shits tbh. To hell with CyberLife!!!

Zlatko yanks the knife out of his hamd, howling in pain. ] Get downstairs right now. You need to be recalbrated to fix your corrupted programming.

[ Downstairs. That reminds Kara of their backup plan - the well. The big, wide, seemingly pointless well in the basement.

Taking advantage of their distractedness, Kara makes a break for the basement, running a few simple what-if simulations to see how she can get this to work.

Zlatko, meanwhile, all but belows something suitably dramatic but that amounts to "fucking deviants". ]

[Connor is about to continue arguing with Zlatko--he's working fine, thank you--but then Kara is running, and Connor snaps into chase mode once again. And, also once again, Zlatko is left in the dust as the androids take off, which is really for the best as far as Connor is concerned because he just keeps getting in the way.]

[ The main problem Kara keeps running into as she thinks up scenarios to stop Zlatko is that in this state, Connor will try to help Zlatko, or at least prevent him being harmed. But she thinks she has a way to work around that.

She makes her way to the corner behind the well, so Connor runs into that instead of possibly falling down the well, then goes around to the other side. She waits until he's about to collide with the wall (or, you know, close enough) and then addresses him. ]

We have to stop Zlatko to get out of here.

[ And right on cue, the human's stupid, angry grumbling precedes him.

Kara leans om that. ] We're running out of time, Connor!

[As expected, Connor pinballs off a few walls in the rush to chase her; first the wall at the end of the stairs, then the corner to turn into the basement, then the corner wall behind the well. Kara's comment earns another furrowing of his eyebrows, but he doesn't argue right away because she's not wrong; Zlatko seems set on trying to interfere with Connor's mission, and the threat about recalibrating shouldn't have felt like a threat but it does. It does even more so as he glances toward the room with the machine in it, and some part of him realizes he really doesn't want to go back into that thing.

The sound of Zlatko's approach draws his attention briefly, but he then turns his gaze back toward Kara and, for the first time, doesn't give an order.]

What are you suggesting?

[ Progress!!! Yes!

He might not want to throw Zlatko down the well, nor will he believe her if she tells him it was his idea to begin with, but maybe-- ]

I'll show you, if you want. You can refine the plan or come up with a better one. Then I'll go back to CyberLife Tower with you.

[ But not for the reasons you want right now.

She takes quick, careful steps toward him, extending her hand as her skin draws back, ready to interface the moment they touch, and she is really hoping he takes her hand. ]

[Deviants are unpredictable. They're dangerous. When cornered they're even more so; they may do almost anything out of desperation, and he knows this.

Yet he still lets Kara reach for his hand, and although he doesn't really reach for hers in response he doesn't pull away, either. And, most telling, he allows the skin on his hand to withdraw, and so if she takes his hand he'll allow the connection even as he stays on guard.]

[With Zlatko approaching and no time to waste, Kara takes Connor's hand and shows him not just the plan, and not just what happened since walking into the mansion, but everything they've been through since waking up in this simulation.

It has to be enough. It has to be, because it's all she can think to do.

When she's done, she pulls back her hand, ready to run off if it didn't work and Connor starts chasing her again.

And Zlatko reaches the corridor to the weird well room.]

I should've just had the bear rip you both apart. [He says. So scary.]

[It's enough.

The flood of memories--or more specifically, the flood of emotions--snaps Connor out of it, breaking the wall as if it was never there, just as it does whenever Connor or Markus converts an android to deviancy. In a moment he's back, almost stunned as everything comes back to him, but he doesn't have much time to get used to it as Zlatko finally catches up to them again.

Quickly he blinks a few times, forcing his expression neutral, straightening up and folding his arms behind his back to stand at attention.]

That is unnecessary. I realized it would be simpler to return the malfunctioning android to CyberLife after it's been reset.

[So do your thing, Zlatko, or don't. Connor glances toward Kara just briefly, not willing to risk a more obvious attempt to communicate through their wireless connection, but he hopes she understands that he's back.

He also takes the opportunity to step a little to the side, around the well a bit toward Zlatko, giving himself and Kara a better position to perhaps shove him into the giant pit in the ground.]

[ It worked. She can see it in him, and she can hear it in the lie he tells Zlatko. As Zlatko allows himself a smug grin through his hwavier breathing from both following them here and dealing with the pain of his unexpected (and... now healed?) injury, Kara makes it a point to look as scared as before, except for one look at Connor where she angles her face to hide a wink from Zlatko.

She moves a little toward the room with the machine, as if she'll find a way out there, or as if she thinks maybe she can slip between them if they corner her. Drawing Zlatko nearer, making him have to walk past the well. Then she can charge and hit him low, throw off his center of gravity enough that they can get him into the well. ]

Don't do this. Please.

[ Come closer she's just a scared maidbot...! ]

[Connor can see how she's luring Zlatko, and with the attention off of him he carefully positions himself to be able to assist in shoving Zlatko into the well if Kara's initial attempt isn't enough or is offcenter.

It also gives him opportunity to attack Zlatko from behind if something else goes wrong, so that's a bonus. He's almost hopeful he'll get the opportunity; throwing the man down a hole sounds fun and all, but not quite as satisfying as he wants after everything that just happened.]

[ It's a huge relief to have someone on her side, someone helping her with one of the humans who wanted to hurt her when all she wanted was to live. She couldn't handle this alone, not here. But now, she doesn't have to do everything, just enough.

It'll be enough. >:c

When Zlatko is where she wants him to be - close enough that he'll be shocked by her next move - Kara lunges forward, shoving her elbow into his gut. He doubles over and stumbles back, but not enough to fall into the well.

Okay, fine, she can improvise. As he starts to recover, she just goes for it and knees him in the groin.

Crude? Yes. Effective? Very yes. ]

[Alright, that's still not quite as satisfying as crushing part of Zlatko's face in would be, but he still feels a distinct sense of sadistic amusement when Kara knees Zlatko in one of his delicate human organs. That's the least of what he deserves, and as he shouts and staggers Connor barely has to put any effort into toppling him into the well.

Zlatko gives an almost comically drawn-out shout as he falls seemingly endlessly, the sound echoing before finally fading out, and then there's silence. Connor is still tense for several seconds afterward, making sure nothing is about to spring out at them while they think they're safe, but the one good thing about the basement is that there's nowhere for anyone or anything to be hiding in the room.

And so, after a moment, he looks over at Kara.]

Are you okay?

[ This new emotion... is it the joy of getting sweet revenge?

Kara stares into the dark depths of the well, half expectinf Zlatko to bounce back up with tasers for both the androids stuck in this simulation, but he doesn't. And since he doesn't, she allows herself a sigh she doesn't even need, and a faint smile. ]

Yeah. [ She looks up, smiling until she remembers everything Zlatko put Connor through. ] Are you? Is your memory okay? Everything?

[Despite the situation, he manages a faint smile of his own at the sight of hers; one more challenge down, that they made it through together. This one was particularly bad, and he doesn't want to really talk about it beyond answering her questions with a simple catch-all answer, but they made it.]

I'm fine.

[Just more to shove to the back of his mind and worry about later, once they get out of this mess, but it's not like it was just him that had a bad experience here. This was one of Kara's memories, and a trauma of her past, so he's more concerned about her.]

I'm sorry you had to deal with both of us, and thank you, for saving me.

[How she kept calm and made everything work out is more than a little incredible.]

Are you sure you're alright?

[He's not really buying the 'yeah'.]

Edited 2018-09-08 22:06 (UTC)

[ It sounds like he's about as fine as she is, so Kara accepts his answer for now.

Besides, his thanks are misplaced. ] I couldn't just abandon you.

[ It really is that simple. They're in this together. Kara and Alice's journey became easier when Luther joined them; he saved them from Zlatko's shotgun, and offered to step in and die for them at the border. Kara and Alice both had refused to leave him behind when he was injured or in danger, not because he helped them, but because they cared.

She's sure at this point that she cares about Connor, considers him more than just an ally. Maybe Zlatko was right. Maybe she sees him as her brother. ]

I'm okay. [ She answers - just okay, because she may have seemed calm but was actually screaming internally the entire time. ] I'll be all right when we get out of here.

[ Does she have to start another fire? That wouldn't be a bad thing, if she's honest. ]

[It probably would've been smarter to abandon him, honestly, or do something that would incapacitate him and then try to escape, but she hadn't. So even though she says it so simply, like it was the only thing she could've done, it still means a lot to him.

But they need to focus on getting out of this place, because the only chance either of them really has at ever returning to being okay is if they can get out of not just Zlatko's house, but this simulation. And to do that, they need to keep going.]

Now that Zlatko is no longer an issue, let's check the doors. Maybe it will be that simple.

[Maybe. Hopefully. Also maybe they can find something useful in the house, once they've figured out where an exit is.]

[ Kara nods; she may know the mansion's layout, but CyberLife may have changed it. ]

Maybe. [ Said like she's sure it won't be. ] If we want weapons, he keeps a shotgun in his room, and there are tools in his workshop.

[ And deactivated (and... probably also activated) androids, possibly in pieces. He'd only wanted Kara for a maid, but what had he planned to do with Alice? Ugh...

She closes out that particular process and starts for the stairs, glancing at the... pens, for lack of a better word, where Zlatko had kept his experiments. They're empty, so they've either escaped or were released - and maybe they're what chased the two of them in the city.

There's also the polar bear, but Kara isn't thinking about it right now. She jus peeks out into the entry hall and decides it's worth it to try the front door. ]

Not so simple. [ It's locked. :c ] We could try the back door, where we came in.

[Ugh, a shotgun; it's better than nothing, but definitely not Connor's first or even fifth choice. Still, it might be worth grabbing it if they end up going upstairs, which he has the feeling they might.

Connor spares a last dubiously look at the well, and another at the machine--he feels a sudden urge to destroy it, but pushes that away--before following after Kara. Of course the front door is locked, and if they were in the real world Connor would suggest just getting the gun and shooting off the locks, but he imagines it won't be so easy here.

Checking the back door seems like a good idea and he leads the way in that direction, cautiously glancing around as he does so; he remembers that polar bear issue, but is hoping it won't be a problem now that Zlatko has been taking care of. He tries the back door, and...]

Locked. Are there windows upstairs?

[He would normally presume so in a house, but considering everything else about Zlatko who knows.]

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