Dr. Sylvester Javitts examined the look on his daughter’s face. He was quite good at spotting anguish, especially since he had caused a lot of it for the people closest to him. His wife Martha and his daughter had suffered the most. His long nights at the lab and his frequent drug use had all taken its toll.

“Where did you find this Nikolai?” Dr. Sylvester asked.

Anya lowered her gaze. “I met him at a bar. He seemed to know a lot about your work and was interested in helping.”

Sylvester shook his head. “You shouldn’t have trusted him so easily, Anya. He’s dangerous.”

Anya looked up at her father, her eyes pleading for forgiveness. “I’m sorry, Father. He seemed–trustworthy.”

Sylvester sighed heavily. His daughter was too trusting for her own good. He would have to keep a close eye on her from now on. “It’s all right, Anya. We’ll figure this out together.”

He turned his attention back to Nikolai’s lab. He could feel his heart pounding with anticipation. He was determined to find out what Nikolai had done to Meeka and put a stop to his twisted experiments once and for all.

As they entered the lab, Sylvester’s enhanced vision picked up on the slight tremble in Anya’s hands. He knew she was nervous, but he couldn’t let his emotions get in the way. He was a professional, a scientist, and he had a job to do.

“Nikolai,” Sylvester said, his voice cold.

Nikolai turned around, a grin spreading across his face. “Ah, Doctor. I’m glad you could make it.”

Sylvester ignored the comment and went straight to business. “I want to see Meeka’s head. Now.”

Nikolai’s grin faltered for a moment, but he quickly composed himself. “I’m afraid that’s not possible, Doctor. Meeka’s head was... disposed of.”

Sylvester felt his anger boiling over. He took a step toward Nikolai, his fists clenched. “Disposed of? What do you mean by that?”

Nikolai took a step back, but he didn’t waver. “I mean I got rid of it. It wasn’t worth keeping around after the experiment was over.”

Sylvester could feel his heart racing with fury. He had to keep his cool if he wanted to get any information out of Nikolai. He took a deep breath and spoke through gritted teeth. “What experiment, Nikolai? What did you do to Meeka?”

Nikolai grinned, a glint of madness in his eyes. “Oh, just a little experiment in merging human and machine. You know, the usual stuff.”

“Tell me, where did you happen to find her head in the first place?”

“This crazy bitch had it in a bag, of all things. But I lifted it from her when she was occupied with some…other things. It was easy!”

“What did she look like?”

“Asian. Pink and purple hair... Wait, now that I think about it, she resembled Meeka. I think they’re sisters. Oh, did I tell you? Meeka’s a great kisser.”

Anya gave Nikolai a look of disgust.

Sylvester glared at Nikolai. “You’re disgusting. Did you…?”

Nikolai grinned mischievously. “Did I sleep with her? Maybe, but it’s all in the name of science, Doctor. You should know that better than anyone.”

Sylvester gave the scientist a distasteful look. “That’s not science, Nikolai. That’s madness.”

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Nikolai chuckled. “It’s all a matter of perspective, Doctor. Meeka was once a beautiful woman with a perfect face. It would have been a shame to waste it without getting a little personal time with her.”

Sylvester took a step toward Nikolai. “I will ensure that you live to regret that decision. All sinners pay for their crimes—eventually.”

Nikolai’s smirk faded. “And I will, but first let me show you something,” he said, and he tapped a switch.

An apparatus lowered a coffin made of metal. As soon as it came into contact with the floor, he opened the lid and a female cyborg appeared. Something was familiar about her. The cyborg was dressed in a nightgown and makeup was applied to her face.

“No! It’s Mom!” Anya said, horrified.

“Meet Martha,” Nikolai said.

Dr. Sylvester didn’t show any emotion. He examined the cyborg, trying to find any hint of his wife in her cold, lifeless eyes. But there was none. Martha was gone, replaced by a machine that looked like her.

“What have you done to her?” Sylvester asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Nikolai grinned. “I’ve done what I always do, Doctor. I turned her into a cyborg.”

“Why? Why would you do this?” Anya asked, tears streaming down her face.

Nikolai pointed to Dr. Sylvester. “You should ask your father. This wasn’t the first time she had been experimented on. I just reused her—for my own purposes.”

Anya shot a look at her father.

“It’s true, Anya. I implanted a cybernetic chip in her brain. But I never activated her. I let her rest.”

“Don’t lie to your own daughter. I found this in her memory banks,” Nikolai said.

Nikolai played an audio clip. The voice on the recording was that of a tormented soul. Anya wept as she listened.

My name is Martha Appleton Javitts, and I have regrets, especially after my death.

Nikolai put one of his hands under her nightgown.

“She’s not warmed up yet. But she will be,” he said, laughing.

Anya punched Nikolai in the throat. He stumbled, but caught himself on a nearby table. Dr. Sylvester watched in fascination. He knew his daughter was a trained assassin, but he had not seen her like this. Her face was calm. She threw another punch at Nikolai’s stomach, then followed it with an upper cut to his jaw. Blood spewed across the lab.

“Not bad,” Nikolai said, wiping the blood from his chin. “But I’m afraid it’s not going to do you any good.”

“What are you talking about?” Anya said.

Nikolai grinned. “Once I put a chip in your brain, you will have no choice but to obey me. And you’ll learn to appreciate me, like a woman should.”

Anya removed a small knife that was hidden in her belt. She lunged at Nikolai. He dodged, using a piece of metal as a shield. Anya kept coming. Nikolai was agile, and she couldn’t reach him. He laughed as she sliced into his arms.

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily,” Nikolai said.

She reached into a pouch at her back, then threw something. Nikolai gasped as he reached for the tiny projectile that was embedded in his throat. Anya pounced, then plunged another, much larger knife into Nikolai’s heart. A sucking sound emitted from the wound as she withdrew the blade. She stabbed him again. Nikolai gasped, then choked on blood. He made more retching sounds, then collapsed, dead.

Anya turned to her father, who was staring at his daughter in disbelief.

“Now, Father, we’re even.”

Dr. Sylvester shook his head. “You shouldn’t have killed him.”

Anya looked at her father. “Why?”

“Where would we be if he had hurt you? I will need all of my soldiers in the war to come.”

Anya shook her head. “I’m not a child anymore, Father. I took take care of him myself. Besides, we both know that if you tried to kill him, he would have had you for dinner.”

Sylvester stared at the cyborg that had been his wife. He understood his daughter’s actions, but didn’t approve of her methods. Killing in this manner wasn’t his style.

“Now, let’s see what tech we can salvage here,” Dr. Sylvester said as he started rummaging through drawers.

Anya sat next to her mother, took her hand, and sobbed for a long moment.

“That’s not your mother, child—not really.”

Anya pulled out the knife from Nikolai’s corpse and watched the blood drip off the tip of the blade. Dr. Sylvester gave her a wary look. She licked the blood off the blade, then ran the tip across her left arm. She seemed to be in some sort of trance. Dr. Sylvester touched her shoulder. “Anya, it’s okay, dear.”

She didn’t respond. She continued her dance with the blade. Small cuts opened across her face and neck.

“Stop it, child!”

His stern tone snapped her out of whatever hypnotic state she was in. She took a bunch of Nikolai’s hair in her hand and pulled. His milky-eyed gaze stared into nothingness.

“What are you doing?”

“Do you have a chip left, Father?”

“You can’t be serious.”

“You said it yourself. You need an assistant. I believe that Nikolai can be of use to us after all,” Anya cackled.

“If we are to do this, I need my lab. The equipment in this place is too antiquated.”

“So, what do we do? Put him on ice? He’s a big man and will require a lot of it.”

“No—just bring his head,” Dr. Sylvester said.

Anya smiled as she unsheathed her katana and did what she did best. They found an insulated container and some dry ice. Once Nikolai’s head was packed, they made their way to the surface.