Perfect weapon

"Beautiful, isn't she?"
"Astounding. And she's operating at 140%?"
"150 was what we calculated at training this morning."
"Astounding."

The voices were there, matching the faces that gawked through the window that made up an entire wall of her bedroom. She could hear them through the triple paned glass even though neither of them had pressed the switch to the speaker. She observed their eyes crawling all over her, watched lust flicker behind the professional façade.

"Any psychological effects?"
"So far, she appears to have lost all emotion."
"Emotion?"
"Yes; the nanobots are programmed to find and fix any weakness within her body; clearly, they interpreted her emotions as a weakness and somehow erased them."
"Really? We should take a blood sample and study the 'bots in her blood."
"Why? I can't see the loss of emotion as anything good."
"What if we could refine it? Imagine, being able to heal heartbreak! Cure depression, eradicate every mental illness known to man!"
"To fully understand the work the 'bots have done, we'd have to analyse the brain tissue itself."

Her eyes didn't blink at the thought of her possible demise, so soon. She did not fear a premature death; she did not fear anything. She would have preferred it if she stayed conscious, and was permitted to fully test her capabilities rather than repeating the same manoeuvres in the training room.

"If she dies in action, then we will study her.While she is alive you will do no such thing, and if I believe her to be in jeopardy from her actions then I'll lock you in here with her."

She registers the anger; just because she doesn't feel doesn't mean she can't recognise the emotion before her. The higher ranking man is tense,shoulders tight, suggesting his hands are tightly clenched behind his back, and his eyes are staring at her in a way that doesn't register herpresence. The other, younger man is sweating profusely, refusing to submit. For a moment she almost hopes he'll be locked in with her - he was never gentle during the proceedings, and his eyes had a way of crawling over her breasts that made her want to stuff his eyes down his throat - but the hope is gone before it has time to form, and she can now only observe with detachment. The senior man pressed the switch.

"Rebecca,are you awake?"

She didn't respond. There was no need to make him aware of her consciousness; to do so would make him suspect she heard. She remained cross legged, eyes fixed forward. He sighed and flicked the light off, plunging her room into darkness.

* * *

The next morning she's back in the training room. Her eyes take note of the changes; a uniformed man stands behind the glass today, watching her through approving eyes. The younger one was there too, stood with a clipboard. The older was stood next to her, blindfold in hand.

"We have a bit of a challenge for you today, Rebecca. We want you to wear this blindfold today. Once the blindfold is on and I have left the room, we will let a couple of people in to fight you. Your task is to defend yourself without removing the blindfold."

She allowed him to tie on the blindfold. He was gentle, and always made her feel like she was under the protection of someone in the family, the Patriarch. She called him 'grandfather' out of respect. She supposed if she had still had emotions that she'd probably feel affection for him, but that was long gone. She spoke, her voice flat.

"Full termination?"

"No,Rebecca, just maim them. Try not to do any permanent damage though; we are on a budget."

She nodded and felt him move away. She heard the door shut, and the murmur of his voice joined the tones of the others behind the glass.

"They're coming in now, Rebecca."

Sheheard the door whisper open again, and by the footsteps padding into
the room she judged there to be at least five people, perhaps six. They surrounded her in a loose circle, and she made a brief mental note to chastise Grandfather for providing sloppy opposition.

The first one attacked, and within minutes she had disabled all of them. Leaving her blindfold be, she stood and listened to the new man behind the glass.

"Stunning. She's absolutely beautiful."
"So you like her then?"
"Absolutely. How acute are her senses? She'll be requiredto work at night."
"General, she just bested five of your men blindfolded. I don't think night work will be a problem."
"Can she hear us?"
"Of course not, this glass is too thick, and the room is soundproofed."
"General." She spoke, her voice chilling. "If you have more men to spare that are trained for night work then I can demonstrate how efficient my night work is."
"She can hear us!"
"I am now operating at 180% capacity. Hearing and vision are heightened to a primitive state; night vision has been increased by 50%."
"Strength, speed, agility?" They weren't bothering to use the speakers now.
"You saw. Combined they are increased by 30%."
"Mortality?"
She felt the tension as the General voiced a question no-one had thought of.
"Uncertain. My body is performing at a permanently accelerated rate. However, I believe with proper recovery time after each active phase that mortality is not an issue."
Silence followed her words.
"Rebecca, what are you saying?"
"Fatal injuries aside, Grandfather, I believe it impossible for me to die."
"How serious would the injury have to be?" The General's voice was
grating, insistent. She briefly wondered if it would be necessary to
spend more than three minutes within earshot of him if she started working for him.
"Beheading, removal of vital organs like my heart. Severe damage to the heart might also result in death, but due to the nanobots in my system it's unlikely."
Another pause greeted this.
"Rebecca, how quickly can the nanobots repair your injuries?"
"It depends on the severity of the injury, Grandfather. A stab wound to a limb wouldtake between five and ten minutes, depending on the depth of the stab,
any foreign materials left in the body such as dirt, fabric, shards et cetera. A torso injury would take about half an hour, taking in consideration the major organs that would need repair."
"Well General? What do you say?"
"Does she still have all her human emotions?"
"Negative, General. The nanobots interpreted my emotions as a weakness and removed them in the course of the treatment."
"Inthat case is it possible for you to simulate emotion?"
Rebecca didn't respond, just removed her blindfold and smiled prettily at the
uniformed man behind the glass. She heard a sharp intake of breath from
the inferior doctor, and realised she'd never have the opportunity of
feeding him his eyes.
"Perfect. Gentlemen, we have ourselves a deal. Can you make another 50?"
"If you can provide the volunteers, General."

The door behind her opened, and she turned to see the young doctor entering. Once again his eyes flicked to her chest, and her skin crawled. She immediately wanted a shower.
"Time for your meal, Rebecca." He reached for her, but she pulled back.
"With Grandfather."
His eyes clouded over.
"Come on now, Rebecca, time for your meal. You don't need him holding your hand. You're supposed to be free of emotion now, remember?"
"Lack of emotion does not mean lack of respect. I respect him for making me the way I am, for improving me. I do not respect you, because you do not respect him. I will eat when Grandfather does."
His face darkened.
"Rebecca. Eat. Now."
And he grabbed for her.

* * *

The scream brought them running, and the gargling sounds that accompanied them made them run faster. They burst into the room to find the young doctor on his knees, blood flowing from two gaping holes where his eyes used to be. She merely shrugged at their expressions.
"I am a weapon. Not a toy."
She stepped on his chest as she walked between them out of the room, and
with a pop his eyes flew out of his mouth.