Cyborg’s Love (BioCircuit Nexus)

Chapter 5—Parka

PARKA TYPED RAPIDLY while gazing between lines of code on the display. Beside her, Zarakano stood silently, almost unmoving, as his cybernetic eye whirring as it processed the data scrolling by. “There,” she said, pointing to a section of code. “Do you see it? The pattern repeats in each of these malfunctioning units.”

He leaned closer, his breath warm on her neck. “I see it, but what does it mean?”

She zoomed in on the section, highlighting a specific sequence. “This isn’t just any code. It’s a bypass method, a modified version of something I helped develop years ago.” She paused, memories flooding back. Late nights at the free clinic, the excitement of breakthrough discoveries, and the warmth of shared purpose, along with Mizella’s face, beaming with pride as they cracked another proprietary lock.

“Who developed it?” he asked.

She swallowed hard. “Mizella Chong and me. We created it at a free clinic in the Lower District. It was meant to help enhanced people and cyborgs, to make repairs affordable for those who couldn’t access corporate healthcare.”

His cybernetic eye pulsed, obviously processing the information. “And now it’s being used to target specific neural interface configurations?”

She nodded, her stomach twisting. “All installed within the past month, but that’s not all.” She pulled up another section of code. “See this encryption? It’s Mizella’s signature. She always used repair protocols to mask deeper system access, and she was always insistent on leaving her mark on her coding.”

The realization stunned her. Mizella wasn’t just working for Nexus Corp anymore. She was actively using their old research to create these backdoors, turning their work on affordable healthcare into a weapon against the very community they once helped. Her voice cracked as she spoke. “She’s weaponized our work, Kano. Everything we did to help people... She’s twisted it into something that could destroy them.”

His expression remained impassive, but his human eye narrowed. “How certain are you of this?”

“Completely,” she said, feeling sick. She pulled up more data, pointing out subtle markers in the code. “These are Mizella’s hallmarks. I’d recognize them anywhere. We spent years developing these techniques together.”

The room fell silent, save for the hum of electronics. Memories of her time with Mizella clashed against the harsh reality before her. The laughter, the shared dreams, and the late-night coding sessions with the woman she’d considered like a sister—all of it tainted now by betrayal.

His voice cut through her thoughts. “This changes things. If Nexus Corp has access to this level of system manipulation...”

“Along with your enclave’s AI, they could control every cyborg in Nexus Prime.” She looked up at him, seeing a flicker of something—concern? fear?—in his human eye. “We have to stop them.”

He nodded, straightening his posture. “Agreed, but how? Nexus Corp’s security is impenetrable, and if your former partner is involved...”

She scowled. “Then we’ll have to be smarter. Mizella may have betrayed me, but I know how she thinks. We can use that against her.”

She turned back to the holographic display to further dissect the code. “First, we need to understand exactly how this backdoor works. Then we can start developing countermeasures.”

As they worked, she couldn’t shake the image of Mizella from her mind. The brilliant, passionate woman she’d once known, now corrupted by corporate greed. How had it come to this?

They were hours into the decoding when the door to the safehouse suddenly burst open, revealing a large figure silhouetted against the dim light of the corridor. Zarakano sprang into action, positioning himself between the intruder and Parka. His hand hovered near the concealed weapon at his hip.

Parka’s eyes widened when she recognized the newcomer. It was the NSF enforcer from her shop, who had attacked her earlier while glitching, and he was in worse shape now. His movements were jerky and uncoordinated, and sparks flew from exposed wiring at his neck and wrists. He shouldn’t even be upright considering the extent of damage he’d endured.

“Wait,” she called out, placing a hand on Zarakano’s arm. “It’s the enforcer from before, who malfunctioned.”

The enforcer stumbled forward, his legs buckling beneath him. He crashed to his knees as his synthetic skin flickered with glitches. “Please,” he croaked, his voice distorted by static. “Help me.”

Zarakano’s eyes narrowed. “It could be a trap.”

She stepped closer, her instincts as a mechanic and normal human compassion overriding her fear. The enforcer’s systems were clearly in critical failure. “What happened to you? I didn’t think you’d ever switch back on.”

The enforcer’s head jerked up to look at her. “Tagged you. Before... Passed out. Came to... Left before NSF could retrieve me.” His words came out in broken fragments, punctuated by bursts of garbled noise. “They’ll... decommission—destroy me. If they find me... Like this, like this, like this.” He jerked before ending the loop and falling silent for a moment.

Parka’s mind raced. The enforcer had managed to place a tracking device on her before losing consciousness. That explained how he had found them, but why come here for help instead of returning to his handlers?

“Why should we trust you?” asked Zarakano, his tone icy.

The enforcer’s body spasmed, making more sparks fly from his joints. “No choice. Systems... degrading rapidly. Need... repair.” His eyes rolled back, revealing the flickering circuitry beneath. “If Command thinks... Virus... Infected. Decommissioned and disconnected from network. Destroyed, destroyed, destroyed, destr...” He stopped abruptly with a twitch of his neck.

“It’s not a virus,” said Zarakano with a hint of empathy. “Worse than that.”

Parka made a decision. “We have to help him.”

Zarakano turned to her, his expression incredulous. “He tried to kill you earlier. This could be an elaborate ruse.”

“Look at him.” She shook her head. “Those malfunctions aren’t faked, and if we don’t do something soon, he’ll shut down completely.” She approached the enforcer cautiously, assessing the damage. The neural interface at the base of his skull was emitting a faint, erratic pulse. Whatever was causing the malfunction, it originated there.

“Help me get him to the workbench,” she said, already moving to support the enforcer’s weight while hoping the safe house had the right tools for the job, since she’d been unable to bring her larger toolbox. All she had were the few she’d taken with her to infiltrate the research facility earlier.

Zarakano hesitated for a moment before relenting. Together, they half-carried, half-dragged the enforcer to the basic repair station. As they laid him out on the bench, she sorted through the available diagnostic tools, connecting leads and initiating scans.

“What do you see?” he asked a few minutes later, hovering nearby while she completed her assessment of the enforcer.

She frowned while studying the readouts. “It’s strange. There’s a cascade failure in his neural pathways, but it’s not from physical damage. It’s like his systems are being overwritten by some kind of...”

She trailed off, her eyes widening when she recognized a familiar pattern in the code scrolling across her screen. “No. It can’t be.”

“What is it?”

Her hands trembled as she pulled up another window, comparing the enforcer’s neural interface with an old file from her archives. “This code... It’s using a modified version of the repair protocols Mizella and I developed at our clinic.”

He leaned in, his cybernetic eye scanning the display. “The same protocols you discovered in the data earlier?”

Parka nodded. “But this is different. It’s not just a backdoor. It’s a surveillance routine. Hidden deep in the neural interface, and it appears to be trying to connect to...something.” She ran a different diagnostic to check his network connections. “He’s on the NSF network, but there’s something else creeping in.”

“The AI,” said Zarakano with resignation.

“I think so.” She zoomed in on a section of code, highlighting a specific sequence. “See this? It’s designed to monitor and record everything the enforcer sees and hears, and it’s using our old clinic protocols as a foundation. The AI is piggybacking on that.”

The implications hit her. Every repair they had performed at their old clinic, and every person they had helped, had unwittingly become a surveillance node in a vast network—and Mizella was behind it all.

“How deeply does this go?” asked Zarakano.

She continued typing, digging deeper into the enforcer’s systems. “I don’t know, but I intend to find out.”

As she worked, the enforcer continued to twitch and spasm on the bench. Parka split her attention between stabilizing his critical systems and unraveling the web of surveillance code threaded through his neural interface.

“This is extensive,” she muttered, more to herself than to Zarakano. “It’s not just passive recording. There are triggers here and preset responses to specific stimuli. It’s like they’ve turned him into a sleeper agent without his knowledge. The AI is taking over all his critical functions, aided by our code.” She’d put in at least half of the work on the code Mizella was using, so how could she not feel responsible?

His expression darkened. “Can you remove it?”

She bit her lip, considering. “Maybe, but it’s so deeply integrated into his core systems. Removing it entirely might cause permanent damage or...decommissioning.” She deliberately chose the allegorical word to soften the blow.

A groan from the enforcer drew their attention. His eyes fluttered open, focusing on her with difficulty. “What did... Find?”

She hesitated, unsure how much to reveal. “There’s a...foreign code in your neural interface. It’s causing the system failures.”

The enforcer’s hand shot out, gripping her wrist with surprising strength. “Tell me.”

She eased away from his hold but maintained eye contact. “There’s a surveillance routine embedded in your neural pathways. It’s been recording everything you see and hear, possibly for years, and it’s making you vulnerable to infiltration by a superior AI, whose goal is to control all cybernetic life.”

The enforcer’s eyes widened, shock and horror crossing his face. “How is that possible?”

“It was built using repair protocols I helped develop,” she said softly, the guilt weighing heavily on her. “My former partner must have modified them for this purpose.”

The enforcer stiffened, his expression hardening. “Remove it. Now.”

She shook her head. “It’s not that simple. The routine is deeply integrated into your core systems. Removing it completely could cause irreparable damage. Or worse.”

“I don’t care,” he said. “Rather dead... Not controlled.”

Zarakano stepped forward, his voice calm but firm. “There may be another way. If we can’t remove the surveillance routine entirely, perhaps we can modify it. Use it to our advantage.”

Her mind whirled with possibilities. “You’re right. We could potentially alter the code to feed false information back to whomever is monitoring it.”

The enforcer twitched again. “Do it,” he said, his voice cracking. “Whatever it takes.”

She nodded, turning back to her workstation. As she began the delicate process of modifying the surveillance routine, her thoughts drifted to Mizella. How many others had been unknowingly turned into unwitting spies? And what was the ultimate goal behind this vast network of surveillance? It had to be something to do with the AI Zarakano’s enclave had created.

She pushed aside the questions, focusing on the task at hand. One step at a time . First, save the enforcer. Then, unravel the conspiracy that threatened to engulf all of Nexus Prime.

While she worked, Zarakano kept a watchful gaze on both her and the enforcer. The tension in the room was thick with each acutely aware of the high stakes of their impromptu alliance. The enforcer’s systems continued to fluctuate, sending occasional sparks flying from his exposed circuitry.

“How long will this take?” asked Zarakano quietly.

She didn’t look up when answering. “Hard to say. The surveillance routine is intricately woven into his neural pathways. It’s like trying to remove a parasite without harming the host.”

The enforcer suddenly seized, arching his back off the workbench. Parka cursed under her breath, quickly rerouting power to stabilize his core systems.

“What’s happening?” Zarakano moved closer.

“The routine is fighting back. It’s got some kind of self-preservation protocol. Every time I try to isolate it, it spreads to a different subsystem.” She paused, a new idea forming. “Wait a minute. Maybe we’re going about this the wrong way. Instead of trying to remove it entirely, what if we...”

Her words trailed off as she tapped on the interface, implementing her new strategy. The enforcer’s body relaxed slightly, his erratic movements becoming less pronounced.

“What are you doing?” asked Zarakano, leaning in to study the scrolling code.

“I’m not removing the routine,” she said with a hint of excitement. “I’m repurposing it. See here?” She pointed to a section of the display. “I’m using the routine’s own adaptive algorithms against it. Instead of fighting the host system, it’s now integrating with it more fully.”

The enforcer’s eyes snapped open. “I can feel it,” he said, his voice clearer than before. “It’s different. Like a part of me now, but not controlling me.”

Parka nodded, giving him a smile. “That’s the idea. You should have full access to the routine’s capabilities now, without it being able to override your own will.”

Zarakano’s cybernetic eye whirred as he processed this information. “Impressive, but what about the data it’s been collecting? Won’t that still be transmitted back to whoever’s monitoring it?”

“Not exactly,” she said, pulling up another window on the display. “I’ve modified the transmission protocols. Now, you,” She looked at the enforcer, “Have full control over what data is sent and when. You can feed them false information, or even use it to backtrack and locate the source of the monitoring.”

The enforcer sat up slowly, flexing his fingers as if testing out a new limb. “I... thank you,” he said with gratitude tainted by lingering suspicion. “But why help me? After what I did when I was malfunctioning...”

She gave him another smile. “Because it’s the right thing to do. You couldn’t control your actions—and you might be our best chance at uncovering the full extent of this conspiracy.”

Zarakano nodded in agreement. “If this surveillance network is as extensive as we suspect, having an insider could prove invaluable.”

The enforcer stood, his movements more fluid now. “I’ll do whatever I can to help, but what do I do now? I can’t go back to the NSF. Not knowing what I know.”

She exchanged a glance with Zarakano before turning back to the enforcer. “The NSF doesn’t know about this. You mentioned a virus?”

He nodded. “For the past few months, we’ve tracked an insidious incursion into some of our people, disrupting their processing systems. Our scientists can’t identify the cause but have assumed it’s a virus designed to target law enforcers. When infected, it can rapidly spread from the host through the shared network, so the solution has been to decommission the malfunctioning enforcers.”

“It’s not a virus,” said Zarakano again. “It’s more complicated than that. Decommissioning—destroying—enforcers might not be necessary, but it’s prudent to try to keep this...invader out of your systems.”

“What if they scan me and find remnants?” He looked at Parka. “You said you changed it, but it’s still there. I can’t take the risk.”

She nodded, understanding his perspective. “Since I can’t guarantee anything, for now, you stay with us. We need to figure out our next move and having you here could give us an edge.”

As she spoke, she was already formulating plans and contingencies. The discovery of this hidden surveillance network changed everything. It wasn’t just about stopping an AI threat anymore. They were facing a conspiracy that reached into the very heart of Nexus Prime’s cybernetic population.

“We need to gather more information,” said Zarakano, uncannily voicing Parka’s thoughts. “Find out how far this network extends, who’s behind it, and what their ultimate goal is.”

She nodded, feeling grim. “And we need to do it fast. If Mizella and whoever she’s working with realize we’ve uncovered their scheme, they’ll go to ground or send every bit of power they have to destroy us. Either way, we might lose our only chance to stop them.”

The enforcer stepped forward, his posture straightening with newfound purpose. “I can help with that. My security clearance should still be active. I can access NSF databases to see what other information I can dig up.”

“Good,” she said, already turning back to her workstation, “But be careful. We don’t know who else might be compromised. Trust no one.”

She began setting up secure communication channels and preparing for their next move but couldn’t ignore a nagging sense of dread. They were stepping into something far bigger and more dangerous than they had initially realized, and somewhere out there, Mizella was waiting, holder of the other half of the brilliant mind that had created these protocols in the first place.

Her fingers hovered over the interface for a moment as a cold realization settled in her gut. If anyone could anticipate her next move, it would be Mizella. They weren’t just facing a formidable opponent—they were up against someone who knew how Parka thought, and how she problem-solved. Right now, their only advantage was Mizella didn’t know Parka was now involved or aware of what she was doing.

Deciding to snoop around, she tapped the holographic interface, tracing the surveillance signal through a maze of encrypted channels. The enforcer stood nearby, his cybernetic implants providing direct access to the NSF network. Zarakano watched silently, his mismatched eyes both moving as he analyzed the scrolling data.

“Got it,” she muttered, a surge of triumph mingling with a sense of dread. The signal’s origin flashed on the screen, revealing a familiar address in the industrial zone.

Zarakano leaned closer. “You know this place?”

Parka nodded, her throat tight. “It’s our old clinic. Mizella’s and mine.”

“We have to check it out,” said Zarakano with obvious dread.

Neither she nor the enforcer argued. How could they when it was the most logical step? She was anxious about it even if she couldn’t refuse to do it.

ONCE IT WAS AFTER DARK , the trio moved swiftly through the shadowy streets of Nexus Prime’s industrial sector, all wearing modified scramblers to hide their presence from digital surveillance and the security systems. Parka led the way, her steps quick and purposeful despite the churning in her gut. Vyko, the enforcer flanked their right, while Zarakano brought up the rear, his cybernetic eye constantly scanning for threats.

As they approached the dilapidated building, her pace slowed involuntarily. The once-welcoming veneer was now a shell of its former self, with the windows boarded up, and graffiti marring the walls. A faded sign hung crookedly above the entrance: “Lower District Free Cybernetic Clinic.”

“This is it?” asked the enforcer, his voice low.

She nodded, unable to tear her gaze away from the ruins of her past. “Yeah, Vyko, this is where it all started.”

Zarakano stepped forward, his hand hovering near his concealed weapon. “We should move quickly. If this is indeed Mizella’s base of operations, we might not have much time before she realizes we’ve traced the signal.”

She shook herself out of her reverie and moved toward the entrance. The door was locked, but a few deft movements with her hacking tools had it sliding open with a rusty groan.

The interior was pitch black. She flicked on a light on her wrist comm, casting the room in an eerie green glow. What she saw made her breath hitch. The clinic’s reception area, once filled with comfortable chairs and reassuring posters, had been gutted. In its place stood rows of sleek, ominous-looking machines. Cables snaked across the floor, connecting to a central hub that pulsed with an unsettling red light.

“What is all this?” whispered the enforcer, his eyes wide as he took in the scene.

She moved deeper into the room, trailing her fingers over the cold metal of the nearest machine. “I’m not sure, but it looks like some kind of mass production setup. For neural interfaces, maybe?”

Zarakano’s cybernetic eye whirred as he examined the equipment. “These aren’t standard NSF or corporate designs. They’re custom. Highly advanced.”

A chill ran down Parka’s spine when she recognized components of their old clinic equipment, now twisted and repurposed into something far more unsettling. “Mizella’s work,” she said softly. “She always did have a knack for improvisation.”

They made their way through the converted clinic, each room revealing new horrors. The exam rooms now housed banks of servers, their fans humming ominously in the silence. The break room had been transformed into a testing area, with half-assembled cybernetic limbs scattered across workbenches.

Finally, they reached what had once been Parka and Mizella’s shared office. Parka’s hand hesitated on the door handle, memories flooding back. Late nights spent poring over schematics, shared laughter over cups of synthetic coffee...

With a shake of her head, she pushed open the door, banishing the ghosts of the past. The office was now a high-tech research station. Holographic displays flickered to life as they entered, bathing the room in a cold blue glow. A sleek desk stood at the center, its surface covered in data pads and scattered components.

She approached cautiously, scanning the various projects spread across the workspace. She noticed a familiar scrawl in the margins of a schematic, and her heart clenched. “This is definitely Mizella’s work,” she said, picking up the data pad. “I’d recognize her shorthand anywhere.”

Zarakano moved to her side, peering at the display. “What does it say?”

Parka’s gaze darted across the notations, decoding the cryptic symbols with practiced ease. “It’s a design for a new type of neural interface. More invasive than anything we’ve seen before. It looks like it’s meant to integrate directly with the limbic system...and the AI.”

The enforcer frowned. “The what?”

“The part of the brain that controls emotions and memory,” she said with low dread. “If this works the way I think it does, it could potentially allow for complete control over a person’s emotional state, and even their memories.”

Zarakano’s expression darkened. “A perfect tool for creating sleeper agents. Or an army of compliant cyborgs.”

Parka nodded grimly. “Exactly, and look at this production schedule.” She swiped to another screen. “They’re planning to roll this out on a massive scale. Thousands of units within the next month.”

The enforcer stepped closer, focusing on the data. “Those distribution points are all over Nexus Prime. Lower District, corporate sectors, and even government facilities.”

“They’re infiltrating every level of society,” said Zarakano, almost growling the words.

Nausea churned in her stomach. “With this kind of technology, they could potentially control the entire population of Nexus Prime.” She turned to face her companions, her expression grim. “We need to shut this down. Now.”

Zarakano nodded, already moving toward the door. “Agreed. We should destroy the equipment and gather what evidence we can. Vyko and I will handle the hardware. See what you can download from their systems.”

Parka turned back to the workstation, moving her fingers briskly across the holographic interface. As she delved deeper into Mizella’s files, a knot formed in her stomach. The brilliance of the designs was undeniable, but the potential for abuse was staggering.

A soft beep drew her attention to a flashing icon in the corner of the display. “Incoming transmission,” she called out. “It’s encrypted, but I recognize this pattern.”

With a few swift keystrokes, she decrypted the message. A holographic image flickered to life above the desk, and Parka found herself face to face with a ghost from her past.

Mizella Chong stood before her, her long black hair now streaked with silver, her face lined with the passage of time, but her eyes were the same—bright, intelligent, and now utterly ruthless. “Hello, Parka,” said Mizella with a brief smile. “I was wondering when you’d find your way back here.”

Her throat went dry. She opened her mouth to respond, but no words came out.

Mizella’s smile widened, taking on a predatory edge. “Oh, don’t look so surprised. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice you poking around in my systems? I taught you everything you know about encryption, remember?”

She found her voice at last. “Why are you doing this?”

Her expression softened for a moment, a flicker of the woman Parka had once known shining through. “Oh, Parka. Still so na?ve. Don’t you see? This is the only way to bring order to Nexus Prime. To end the chaos and suffering we saw every day in our clinic.”

“By turning people into puppets?” Anger rose to replace her shock. “That’s not order. It’s tyranny.”

She shook her head, her voice taking on a patronizing tone. “You always did struggle to see the bigger picture. This isn’t about control, Parka. It’s about harmony. Imagine a world where everyone works together, and there’s no conflict or pain. We have the power to create that world.”

She clenched her hands into fists at her sides. “At what cost? People’s free will? Their very humanity?”

“A small price to pay for utopia, don’t you think?” Mizella’s expression hardened. “But I can see you’re not ready to understand. Such a shame. We could have done great things together, you and I.”

The hologram flickered, and her expression turned cold. “I’m afraid I can’t let you interfere with my work. You understand, don’t you? It’s nothing personal. Just...necessary.”

Acting on instinct, she stopped the hologram and purged the systems. “Just in case she has a fail-safe built into this hologram,” she said in explanation as both Zarakano and the enforcer watched her with surprised expressions. “Let me download this, and then we should leave.” Hearing no objections, she turned her attention to downloading as much of the data as possible.