Chapter 4—Xavier

XAVIER'S CYBERNETIC eye whirred as he scanned the facility's network logs. He tapped holographic interface, sifting through streams of data. A flicker caught his attention. He zoomed in, enhancing the anomaly. There, hidden beneath layers of encryption, was a data stream he'd never seen before. This wasn't part of the facility's normal operations. He tapped a few commands, trying to trace the origin, but hit a wall of complex security protocols.

He glanced over his shoulder. The control room was empty save for him. Good. He didn't want to raise alarms until he knew more.

With practiced ease, his cybernetic implants interfaced directly with the system. Lines of code scrolled across his vision as he probed deeper into the mysterious data stream.

What he found made his organic eye widen. The stream contained snippets of classified research data, schematics for experimental cybernetic enhancements, and...was that a personnel file? This had to be connected to the saboteur they were hunting but decoding it all was beyond his capabilities.

He needed Amaya.

Xavier found her in her lab, hunched over a tangle of circuits and wires. She didn't notice him enter, too absorbed in her work.

"Amaya," he said.

She jumped, nearly knocking over a delicate piece of equipment. "Xavier? I didn't hear you come in."

"My apologies. I require your expertise."

Her expression revealed curiosity. "What is it?"

He hesitated. He trusted Amaya but involving her could put her at risk. Still, he needed her skills. "I've discovered something. A hidden data stream in the facility's systems."

Amaya's eyebrows shot up. "Hidden? How?"

"Encrypted. Beyond my ability to decode." Xavier's deep voice carried a hint of frustration. "I believe it may be connected to our saboteur."

Amaya's fingers twitched, already itching to dig into the mystery. "Show me."

Xavier led her back to the control room, bringing up the data stream on the main display. She didn't look away from the screen, taking it all in. "This is incredible. The encryption is unlike anything I've seen before. It's going to take some time to crack."

"Can you do it?"

She nodded, seeming confident about that. "I can, but we'll need to be careful. If this is connected to the saboteur, they might have ways of detecting our intrusion."

He nodded. "Agreed. We'll need to work quickly and discreetly."

For the next several hours, they hunched over the terminal together. Amaya interacted with the interface, writing and rewriting decryption algorithms on the fly. Xavier provided support, his enhanced senses alert for any sign of discovery.

As the facility's day cycle faded into night, she let out a triumphant cry. "I've got it."

The encrypted data resolved into clear text before their eyes. Xavier leaned in, his organic eye widening as he examined the contents.

"These are personnel files, and not just any personnel. High-level scientists, security personnel...even Dr. Vex."

Amaya's face paled. "Why would someone be collecting this information?"

"To identify targets," said Xavier grimly. "Or to find weaknesses to exploit?"

As they dug deeper, they uncovered more, like schematics for experimental weapons, Security protocols for the facility's most sensitive areas, and buried beneath it all, coordinates for what appeared to be a hidden base.

"This is bigger than just sabotage," whispered Amaya.

His cybernetic implants hummed as he processed the information. "We need to alert Dr. Vex immediately."

She bit her lip. "Wait. What if...she's involved?"

He turned to her with a frown. "What do you mean?"

"Her file was in there too," said Amaya. "And she has the highest level of access. If someone was going to orchestrate something like this..."

Xavier grunted. The thought had occurred to him as well, but hearing Amaya voice it made it real. "We can't rule out any possibilities. For now, we keep this between us."

She nodded, her expression showing a bit of fear. "What's our next move?"

"We'll figure that out." He mulled it over while he looked through the encrypted data. Beside him, she tapped the holographic interface, frowning in concentration.

"I've isolated another cluster of encrypted files," she said. "It looks like personnel records, but there's something off about them."

He leaned closer. "Can you decrypt them?"

She nodded, already tapping on the interface. "It'll take some time, but I think I can crack it."

As the days passed, Xavier found himself increasingly impressed by Amaya's skills. Her mind seemed to work at speeds that rivaled his own cybernetic enhancements. She approached each new challenge with a fierce determination that he found oddly...captivating.

"Got it." Amaya exclaimed on the third day, letting out a sound of triumph. "Look at this, Xavier."

He moved closer, peering over her shoulder at the decrypted files. What he saw made his circuits hum with alarm. "These aren't just personnel records. They're detailed psych profiles, complete with potential weaknesses and leverage points."

She nodded grimly. "Whoever's behind this isn't just planning an attack. They're looking to manipulate key individuals within the facility."

As they pored over the data, he became acutely aware of her beside him. The ability to appreciate the scent of her hair and the warmth of her body were sensations he thought had been lost to him after his conversion. It was...distracting.

"Xavier?" Amaya's voice snapped him back to focus. "Are you all right?"

He nodded stiffly. "Yes. Continue."

As he bent over to retrieve a data chip that had fallen, Xavier's gaze was drawn to the curve of her back. To his shock, he had a stirring in his lower regions—an unmistakable physical response he hadn't experienced since his conversion. His cock was rapidly stiffening.

Flustered, he quickly turned away, confused. How was this possible? He'd assumed that ability was gone, replaced by cold circuitry, but the evidence suggested otherwise.

"I think I've found something," she said, oblivious to his inner turmoil. "There's a pattern in the data access logs. Someone's been systematically gathering this information over months."

He forced himself to focus on the task at hand and try to suppress his erection. "Can you trace the access points?"

She shook her head. "Not directly, but I can narrow down the potential sources. It has to be someone with high-level clearance."

As they worked, he couldn't stop staring at her, cataloging each detail with a thoroughness that surprised him. It made him think of his previous life, but the memories were still lost to him. Since he was past the full window for integration, it was unlikely he'd ever regain them, which frustrated him. Had there once been another woman in his past who made his heart race the same way Amaya did?

"We should take a break," said Amaya suddenly, stretching her arms above her head. "We've been at this for hours."

He nodded, grateful for the chance to collect himself. As she stood to leave, he spoke without intending to. "You've done excellent work. Your skills are impressive."

She turned, a look of surprise on her face. "Thank you, Xavier."

As she left the room, he remained seated, his mind a whirl of conflicting thoughts and unfamiliar emotions. He'd expected his cyborg to be a way to rise above the messy, unpredictable nature of human emotions, but now, as he grappled with his growing attraction to Amaya, he wondered why he'd ever thought not feeling something for someone would be a strength.

THE NEXT DAY, XAVIER stood beside Amaya in the lab, his focus meant to be on the flickering data streams before him. The code was intricate, and the solution to the mystery seemed within reach, but his attention kept drifting.

Her presence was a constant pull, with his awareness of her every movement and the faint scent that lingered in the air around her stirring something he had been trying to suppress. It was distracting—dangerous even—but he couldn't expel it.

"We're closing in," she said, her voice steady, though the excitement beneath the surface was unmistakable. She pointed to a cluster of highlighted code, her body leaning in close to the screen. "Look at these patterns. The data access points are all converging here."

He forced his gaze back to the display while his processors ran through the information with precision. He absorbed the data quickly, isolating the key points Amaya had indicated. The conclusion was undeniable, yet his focus wavered, caught by the way her hair brushed against her neck as she worked. His cybernetic eye zoomed in on the code, but his mind remained elsewhere.

"Yes..." His voice was quieter than usual, and he cleared his throat, shifting to refocus. "The origin point—it's within the facility's main research lab."

Amaya tensed beside him, shoulders stiffening. She wasn't just piecing together the information but bracing for the implications. "But that means..."

He dragged his attention back to the critical matter at hand. He knew what she was thinking, the conclusion they were both reluctant to face that seemed unavoidable.

"It's someone on Dr. Vex's team," he said, his voice returning to its usual steady tone. "This isn't random. Whoever planted this knows our systems intimately."

Her eyes widened in response, and she gasped softly. For a moment, the air between them thickened, filled with the unspoken realization of what this meant. Betrayal from within was far worse than any external threat.

As the tension mounted, his attention flickered again. The way Amaya's brow gathered in thought and the intensity in her gaze as she stared at the screen pulled at him, stirring an unexpected protectiveness. He hadn't anticipated how deeply this partnership would affect him. It was no longer just about the mission.

"What do we do now?" she asked, her voice softer as she turned toward him. The proximity made his pulse jump, an odd sensation considering his enhanced physiology. Heat radiated from her, an energy that seemed to heighten his own senses.

"We continue the investigation," he said, voice firm despite the distraction coursing through him. He met her gaze, and for a second, the mission faded into the background. Her eyes held a flicker of uncertainty and a vulnerability that made something in his chest tighten. "We need to be cautious. If we're right, and it's someone within the team, we can't trust anyone else."

She nodded with a shadow of fear behind her eyes. "It's just us then."

Her words sent a surge through him—something primal and protective. "Yes. We're more than capable of handling this."

As she turned back to the console, he was hyper-aware of the smallest details, like the brush of her shoulder against his arm, or the slight rise and fall of her chest with each breath. It was all magnified, overwhelming his finely-tuned systems in ways he hadn't expected. He forced his focus back to the task at hand, but his mind kept wandering.

They continued their work, diving deeper into the facility's classified systems. He was impressed by the way she navigated the data with precision and speed. Each discovery brought them closer to the truth, but he couldn't ignore the growing connection between them. It was more than professional now—something unspoken but real hung in the air.

He found himself stealing glances at her when she wasn't looking, catching the way her lips pressed together in concentration, or the way she absentmindedly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. It was more distracting than it should have been.

Suddenly, her voice pulled him back from his strange thoughts. "I think I've found something," she said, excitement tinging her words. She pointed to a stream of encrypted data. "Look at this—it's encrypted differently from the rest."

Xavier's cybernetic eye whirred as it zoomed in on the data stream. The encryption was more advanced than anything they had seen so far. He leaned closer, absorbing the information. "You're right. This is far more sophisticated."

Amaya frowned, her fingers hovering over the console. "It'll take time to break it," she said, glancing at him. "And we have to be careful. If we trigger any security protocols, the saboteur could know we're onto them."

Xavier nodded, his focus sharpening once more. "We'll take it slowly."

As she worked, he studied her profile. There was a fierceness in her that resonated with him—she was relentless, just as he was, but beneath it, he sensed something more vulnerable that she tried hard to keep hidden. It only drew him in more.

And as he stood there beside her, working to unravel the sabotage that had infiltrated their systems, he couldn't deny the truth any longer. This was more than just a mission now. Amaya had become more than just a colleague or even more than a partner in this investigation. She had become someone he couldn't ignore, no matter how much he tried.

That realization was as unsettling as it was exhilarating.