Chapter 457: Surprising Team with the Face

Xavier was halfway to the exit when the surgeon’s voice cracked through the shop like a thrown wrench.

“Hey. You. Scarface.”

He stopped and turned, already tired. “What now?”

“You don’t just walk out after something like that,” she snapped, hands on her hips. “You haven’t paid me.”

He blinked, then rubbed the back of his neck. “Right. That actually slipped my mind. I had a lot going on in my body just now.” He looked back at her. “What’s your fee?”

“One hundred and fifty thousand USC,” she said immediately. “And don’t start bargaining. There’s no discount.”

He studied her face for a few seconds, long enough that she narrowed her eyes. “I’d have done it for free if you’d had more Axiom,” she added, defensive. “That stuff alone—”

“Terminal,” Xavier cut in.

She slid a battered payment slate across the counter. Xavier took it, tapped in the transfer, and handed it back without another word. The slate chimed once, then again, louder this time. The surgeon glanced down, froze, then looked back up at him.

“You overpaid.”

“Did I?”

She checked again. “That’s three hundred and thirty thousand.”

Xavier shrugged. “Consider it a tip.”

She looked up at him like she was trying to decide whether to slap him or laugh. “For what.”

“For being unpleasant,” he said. “You were consistent about it. It must require a lot of effort. I respect that. And…” He looked at her and chuckled. “I don’t know. I have taken a liking to you. It’s been a long time since I could act freely and enjoy myself.

She stared at him, then let out a sharp laugh. “If you regret that, don’t bother coming back. I’m not giving it back.”

Her lips twitched despite herself. “If you regret that, don’t bother asking for it back. I won’t return it.”

“Wasn’t planning to.”

He turned to leave again, done for real this time, when her voice stopped him once more.

“Wait.”

Xavier sighed and looked back. “You’re really committed to this, huh?”

She reached under the counter and pulled out a small black box, worn smooth at the edges. She held it out without ceremony. “Take this.”

He took it, weighing it in his palm. “What is it?”

“Something you shouldn’t forget and always remember.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“Someone like you shouldn’t forget his real face, no matter how many times it gets rebuilt.”

Xavier nodded once and slipped the box into his jacket without opening it. “Fair.”

She waved him toward the door. “Get out of my shop before I decide you’re bad for business.”

He stepped outside, called a taxi with a flick of his wrist, and leaned back as the vehicle lifted into the underworld lanes. As the shop disappeared behind layers of steel and light, he caught his reflection in the dark window. The face looking back was whole again.

“It feels kind of weird seeing my face again. It feels like it’s someone else.’

The taxi slowed as it approached Veyr’s compound, descending through the layered access tunnels. Before the door even slid open, Xavier reached up and wrapped the bandages back around his face. Whatever the Axiom had done, whatever his face looked like now, it wasn’t information he felt like handing out yet.

He stepped out, paid without looking, and walked inside.

The main hall was active in that controlled, dangerous way Veyr’s place always was. People moved with purpose, not noise. Guards watched without staring. Conversations stayed low. Xavier had taken maybe ten steps when familiar voices carried over the room.

Rin, Klatos, and Arlen were standing with Veyr near one of the long tables, data projected between them. Whatever they’d been discussing paused the moment Xavier came into view.

Arlen turned first. “Where the hell were you?”

Xavier didn’t break stride. “Some people decided to leave me behind and go on a shopping spree,” he said casually. “I figured I’d entertain myself instead of sulking.”

Rin frowned. “You were sleeping. We didn’t want to wake you.”

Xavier glanced at him. “That’s generous of you.”

Klatos tilted his head slightly, eyes flicking over the fresh bandages, then back to Xavier’s posture. “You look… different.”

Xavier huffed. “Glad to hear my mysterious absence came with a fashion upgrade.”

Veyr watched the exchange without interrupting. “You missed a discussion,” he finally said. “But judging by your mood, I’m guessing it wasn’t a wasted trip.”

Xavier stepped closer to the table, resting a hand against its edge. “Depends on how you define wasted,” he replied. “I got what I needed. Or at least the first piece of it.”

Arlen crossed her arms, studying him. “You’re being vague.”

“Get used to it,” Xavier said. “It’s going to be one of those days.”

Klatos nodded once, like that confirmed something he’d already suspected. Rin just sighed, rubbing his face.

Veyr straightened slightly. “Good,” he said. “Because what we were talking about is going to require everyone paying attention.”

Xavier gestured for him to continue. “Then congratulations,” he said. “You’ve got it.”

A while later, they were eating when it came up, the kind of meal that existed only because someone had remembered humans still needed to chew between crises. The table was crowded with plates that didn’t quite belong together, underworld substitutes trying too hard to pass as normal food. Xavier sat a little apart, bandages still wrapped, picking at his plate more than actually eating.

Arlen was the one who started it, half annoyed, half defensive. “You know we didn’t just wander off for fun,” she said, glancing at him. “Veyr pulled some strings.”

Rin nodded. “We went to three places. Two refused the moment they heard ’missile impact.’ One laughed.”

Klatos added, quieter, “One of them asked if your face was still attached to your skull. Another wanted to see pictures first and then declined anyway.”

Veyr leaned back in his chair, unimpressed. “The ones worth anything either said it couldn’t be done or said it would never be the same. Maintenance every few weeks. Replacement tissue. Cosmetic overlays. You’d be paying forever.”

Arlen stabbed at her food. “One of them suggested a permanent mask. Said it would be ’thematic.’”

Rin snorted. “That one was clearly enjoying himself.”

Xavier listened without interrupting, chewing slowly, eyes down. When they finally noticed he hadn’t said anything, the table went quiet.

“So,” Arlen said, watching him. “We figured you’d want to hear what your options were.”

Xavier swallowed and set his fork down. “I do. And I appreciate the effort.” He paused, then added, “But I needed time.”

“For what?” Rin asked.

Xavier reached up and started unwrapping the bandages.

.Just steady movements, one layer at a time. The table stayed silent as the cloth fell away and his face came into view. Not perfect in a polished sense, but unmistakably intact. The faint seam near his cheek caught the light for a second before blending back into normal skin.

Arlen froze. Klatos’s eyes widened slightly, pupils tightening in that way his species did when something didn’t fit expectations. Rin leaned forward without realizing it. Even Veyr’s expression shifted, just enough to give him away.

“…when?” Arlen said finally.

“Today,” Xavier replied. “While you were shopping.”

Rin blinked. “That’s not funny.”

Klatos tilted his head, studying him with open curiosity now. “That is not conventional healing,” he said. “At all.”

Veyr’s gaze sharpened. “How did you do it?”

Xavier nodded once. “Something expensive. Something I didn’t want to explain until it was done.”

Arlen leaned back slowly, disbelief giving way to irritation. “You could’ve told us.”

“I would have told you if I had known it was gonna turn out like this. I just went for some fresh air, you know?”

For a moment, no one spoke. Then Klatos exhaled softly, something like relief slipping through his voice. “At least now,” he said, “people will stop looking at you like you’re already dead.”

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