"If I Had a Heart"
0.2 seconds...
That's how long it took me to cut a training dummy 20 feet away from me.
Still too slow. Must be faster.
I recalculated the numbers and let my body do the rest. My blades flew into action.
Slash
A delayed thump from 20 feet away could be heard as the top half of the training dummy fell to the floor.
0.09 seconds...
Much better.
The blades retracted into my back, a feature I've always found puzzling about myself. Ruby had a weapon called Crescent Rose, a scythe that could transform into a sniper rifle, but I had never seen Crescent Rose enter Ruby's body except hang from behind her tiny waist. In fact, nobody I knew had this similar function.
Nobody I knew...
I walked towards the slashed training dummies. I zoomed into its cold empty eyes, sensing nothing but metal. I then used the built-in scanners in my retina to see what was inside the poor dummy.
Nothing but metal joints and other complex circuitry. Nothing that made it... him unique. The dummy was not like me.
Father always said I was special; different, but special. He said that I was all alone in this world, and that I had to make a place of my own if I wanted to live in it. I did not quite understand what he meant. But after analyzing his statement, I came to the conclusion that 'having a place of my own' meant I needed to meet people.
I knew what I was, of course. And that placed me into a small conundrum. I tried asking my Father, but he simply said that I should 'figure it out' myself. Problematic, indeed. I went to him for answers but his answer merely backed me into a logical corner. I therefore concluded that I should do this the old fashioned way: trial and error.
I picked up the fallen dummy piece and placed it back onto it's bottom half. Transforming my fingers into a welder, I welded the two halves into one solid piece. Soon, a giant metalic gash ran diagonally on the surface of the dummy. Now, he's unique.
I approached the controls and pushed a button. Metal flaps underneath the dummy started to slide open, swallowing him until he disappeared completely. I readied my blades again, unfolding them into the air. My eyes glowed a greenigh hue as I created a virtual fighting scenario for me to train with. I picked an avatar to fight: a certain red-caped girl.
My friend, Ruby Rose.
Her virtual avatar materialized in front of me. The avatar pirouetted and I gave her a salute. I giggled to myself. I wonder if normal people would call me crazy if they saw me do that. Ruby Rose was not here, of course. I merely created a virtual rendition using my memories of her. I could see her, but no one else could. I was just shadow-fighting after all.
The avatar unfolded her own weapon, a virtual copy of Ruby's Crimson Crescent. The scythe was impressive: heavier than the weilder and yet sharp enough to cut through metal and Grimm bone-plating without dulling or breaking. Ruby mentioned she made it herself which made it more impressive. And finally, to be able to wield all that weight as if it was an extension of her whole body-- Ruby had a bright future of being a Huntress.
I scattered my blades, the nigh-invisible lines holding it following my every command. I ordered two to lunge and then slash diagonally upwards. In a flash, the blades moved exactly as they were told. Ruby Rose's avatar didn't miss a beat. It parried my attack, using the flat of the scythe as a guard. I then sent another two to attack her from both sides. The avatar reacted by spinning the scythe, parrying my blades and knocking them away. I commanded two more to atack her with a downward slice. Ruby parried them with the handle. I then sent four to atack from below. The avatar esponded by lowering the handle and catching the blades. The force of the attack lifted the avatar from her place, and the avatar followed the momentum of the force and did a backflip.
The battle went to a stand-still. I tried to analyze the avatar, calculating the multiple possibilitites she may attack. My system zeroed in on a possible attack pattern and I responded. I grabbed two daggers, one on both hands, and dashed forward towards my target. I sent a strong flurry of slashes, and the avatar had to guard. I removed my muscle strength limiters and brought my total output to 45%. The avatar buckled at the weight of my attacks. On her knees, she parried my blade, letting it slide along the handle of the scythe. The avatar then swung the scythe, aiming for my open right flank. I used my arm to guard against the scythe, its sharp blade cutting 3 centimeters into my articifial skin. I then grabbed the handle and jerked it out of the avatar's hands. In a moment of confusion, I used the blunt side of the scythe and swung at her petite frame. The scythe's head hit her in the stomach, the force knocking her 2 feet off the ground and sending her flying backwards at least 5 meters.
Ruby gets knocked out at 45% combat output, I thought to myself. After creating a mental note, my vision turned back to normal: the avatar gone and my arm unharmed. I looked over the area of my arm I used to guard against the avatar's-- against Ruby's-- scythe. It was uncut, of course, but there was a lingering feeling of damage brought by the virtual simulation. Suddenly, a thought came to me.
If a day comes where I have to fight Ruby, could I do it? Could I fight her with my full-strength?
Would she fight me? Would she hurt me?
Could I hurt her?
I summoned my blades and sheathed them on my back. As the blades clicked in place, I acknowledged one thing: I'm not normal. At all.
My skin was artificial. My muscle fibers were synthetic. My bones were metal alloys. I had a computer for a brain, and a machine for a heart. I had to control my strength everytime I had open a door or get a glass of water otherwise I'd break everything my hand touched. I don't get tired. I don't have the need to sleep. I don't have to eat. I don't know what emotions are past their definition.
I'm not human. I'm barely human.
I'm a machine.
I pulled a memory from my brain, displaying it on my visual HUD. It was my first meeting with the crimson-caped girl: her infectious smile, boundless energy, and unbelievable strength. She would do great as a Huntress in the future. She had a way with people that intrigued me. She surrounded herself with wonderful friends, friends who were now my friends.
Ruby is a friend, of that I have no doubt. But whether she considers me as one, I do not know. Does she find me irksome perhaps but is unable to tell me due to her friendly nature? Has she found out that I am not a real girl? Does she hate me for it?
My mind went back to my previous quesion: could Ruby hurt me?
I paused my memory at just the right moment that I captured Ruby's smile.
A smiled formed on my face.
No, she would never. And I would never cause her harm either, even if my life depended on it.
Ruby is my friend.
I giggled at the thought.
I wonder if she would like to have a sleep-over party? Maybe she can invite me to one. I learned that this event was an important milestone between friends. Maybe I should ask Father if I could invite her home. I think he would love to meet someone who is just as obsessed with weapons as he.
I loud buzzer echoed throughout the training area, signaling the end of a fight. I did a quick self-check and then walked towards the arena entrance. My opponent was Pyrrha Nikos, another one of Ruby's acquaintances. She was definitely a strong warrior and I intend to fight her seriously. But since this was the Vytal Festival, I have to limit my power or I might badly injure her. I don't want to hurt any of Ruby's friends if possible.
As I got closer to the arena, the crowd's cheers were starting to become louder and louder. The walls were all shaking from the excitement upstairs. Even my systems were getting a little jumpy.
As I got to the door, a thought came to me.
Cookies! I should buy Ruby cookies after this fight! I know she loves them a lot. Maybe we can share them with the rest of the gang too. And tea, maybe. Weiss and Blake sure likes them. I wonder what Yang likes to drink. Oh, and milk...
END