A Change in Attitude

You stare in shock as the cleaning girl crumples over. A thin trail of smoke leaks from the ray gun's barrel. You rush over and shake her a few times, profusely apologizing. To your surprise, she jolts awake, and seemingly none the wiser to your accidental ****.

"Why... why are you holding me weirdo? I came here to fix your pipes, not join in on your hugging session. Ugh."

She pushes herself aside while you sit quietly, utterly dumbfounded. It as though she's unaware of what just transpired, and not only that, but you could swear you heard the faintest tinge of emotion in her tone.

You feel a kick in your side from the cleaner lady. "Hey, bozo. You're in my work zone. Beat it or I won't be able to fix your stupid pipes."

You rise, give a quick nod, and bolt to your bedroom. You lock the door and set the ray-gun beside you on the bed. Somehow, not only was the ray-gun able to change the cleaner lady, but it seems you had some level of influence on it. At least, you think you did. As you mull over the situation, you develop a strange urge to test out some hypothesis. You reassure yourself the ethics of your plan. "As long as she doesn't seem to notice," you argue, "then there should be no problem in testing out this tool's... limits."

You stare at the ray-gun. What untold powers does it hold, you wonder? Well, wonder no more, for you're about to find out. You slowly unlock the door, ray-gun in hand, and approach the cleaner lady. She still has her headphones on and is oblivious to your approach. Time for experiment #1. You point the ray-gun at the girl, taking care to empty your head of all thoughts, biases, and desires. You fire.

A beam of light races from the prong tip of the gun and hits the cleaner lady in the neck. She does not slump over. She doesn't even seem to notice. You sigh in relief. Experiment #1 has worked. You conclude that without your personal influence on what the ray-gun should do, the ray-gun will do nothing at all. Now, for experiment #2. What happens when you fire with a desire?