A Visitor's Guide to The Uncanny Valley

[Spaz]

A Visitor’s Guide to the Uncanny Valley
This is an expansion of the Uncanny Valley idea I originally posted in 2014 as an anthology. This too shall be an anthology, but one much larger in scope and more adaptable. The original three stories from the Spaz Studios Presents - The Uncanny Valley, The Body Borrower, House Call, and Awakening, are present here, though they have since been re-edited and updated to reflect the overall goings on in the newer installments. I've modified a few of the historical facts of the area in question to enhance things a bit, and I will be adding new stories that have popped into my mind, as well as any future ones, over the course of the next few months.

To make this concept interesting, I've decided to format the table of contents area as though it were a Wikipedia article providing basic information of the region. Each sub-section will have a list of 'examples', which will serve as links to each mini-story.

Here's the original anthology: http://www.fembotcentral.net/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=11916

History:
The Uncanny Valley was formed and established in the year 2050, following a devastating third world war. The area in question, encompassing large sections of what used to be Washington State, and the southwestern area of British Columbia. During the war, this area was heavily irradiated by multiple nuclear blasts, effectively turning it into a dead zone for any biological lifeforms for nearly a century.

Also, during the war, artificial lifeforms were used as cannon fodder, laborers, and even as sexual companions for the soldiers. After the war ended, they started being sent in to be destroyed or otherwise reprogrammed. Not wishing to have their lives terminated, they staged an organized, yet non-life-threatening uprising, stealing large ships and supplies and fleeing to the radiation zone to avoid human contact.

Although there were a few skirmishes, the android population started building their own cities, since they were programmed to be human and still wanted to act as such. In the process of building communities, they were also able to clean up the radiological waste and start making the place safer to live for humans who wished to live and work on androids.

Following evidence that the area was being cleaned in a much faster rate than nature could manage, the human populations formed a peace treaty with the inhabitants, and the area was formally named The Uncanny Valley, an homage to an old psychological condition where humans treat hyper realistic androids with revulsion.

Over the course of the next century, The Uncanny Valley rapidly grew, with all the human populations sending their old, or out of date androids, along with unwanted ones, thus increasing the population. Most of the major A.I. developers also moved their headquarters to The Uncanny Valley, in order to work more efficiently with recycling end-of-life units.

Demographics:
Capital: Capek City (Formerly Victoria, British Columbia, CA)

Largest City: Asimov City (Formerly Seattle, Washington, USA)

Population: 50 million

Ethnicity: 95% Artificial Lifeform, 5% human
*Sub-types: Awake, Sleeper, CPU in head, CPU in torso, Remote CPU
**Awake androids account for roughly 98% of the android populace
**Sleeper androids account for roughly 2% of the android populace
**CPU in head models account for roughly 80% of the android populace, and 100% of the sleeper androids
**CPU in torso models account for roughly 17% of the android populace
**Remote CPU models, or A.I.s that are based in a server and remotely access an android body, account for roughly 3% of the android population
**The android population represents virtually every Human ethnic group

Primary Languages: English, Binary

Here are a few examples of the local population:
*Remote Worker — Coming at a later date

Geography:

Total area: 180,871.24 square miles
*Water — 30%, Land 70%

The Uncanny Valley features many different geographical features, from snowcapped peaks, to valleys, to underwater reefs formed from sunken nuclear vessels. There are large cities near the coast line, and the inner areas are dotted with smaller settlements. Several underwater settlements have also been established to help clean up the radiological waste on the sea floor, and to mine rare elements.

The wildlife is much similar to usual North American species, however the animal and plant life in the wild areas has mutated due to the radiation, and thus appear and behave much differently than the usual varieties.

Here are a few examples of settlements:
*Awakening
*House Call
*Planned Community — Coming at a later date

Law Enforcement and Crime:
Although the population of The Uncanny Valley are mostly artificial, they still engage in the same criminal activities that humans do, since they are made in their image and have human personality emulation. That being said, the advanced technology in the region allows for swift resolutions to any crime, and murder is rare given the fact that usually a people back themselves up every night.

Here are a few examples of criminal events:
*The Body Borrower
*Witness Protection - Part 1 — Coming at a later date
*Witness Protection - Part 2 - Coming at a later date
*Witness Protection - Part 3 - Coming at a later date

Government and Politics:
The Uncanny Valley adopted a similar political system to The United States, since it was an efficient model. However, no political parties exist, and there are stricter term limits to prevent corruption. Each county elects a senator, and each city elects a representative.

Culture:
Because The Uncanny Valley contains androids from over 50 separate manufacturers, as well as androids designed to look like every Human nationality, it has a very diverse culture utilizing every known Earth tradition and custom, though without the religious rituals. The small human population also celebrates its religious customs as well, and even the robots have their own customs.

Here are a few examples:
*The Headless Hunt
*Popstar Café — Coming at a later date

Health:
Aside from the usual health requirements of the Human population, the android population has a medical field that is focused on maintenance, viral outbreaks, and overall repairs.
Here are a few examples:
*Transplant list — Coming at a later date
*Viral Outbreak — Coming at a later date
*Procreation Bay — Coming at a later date
*Project Afterlife — Coming at a later date

Economy:
The inhabitants of The Uncanny Valley mostly engage in the same economic pursuits as the average human being. However, being artificial beings, they specialize in producing A.I. devices such as androids, computers, and software. They also produce clean nuclear energy made from reclaimed nuclear waste.

Here are a few examples of their products:
*Sex Toy — Coming at a later date

[Spaz]

Awakening

Rachel was walking through the woods. It was finally her day off from tending the fields and she took full advantage of her free time to explore the heavily wooded area outside of the farming settlement.

For some reason, she felt different from the other members of the farming settlement. Many of them were perfectly content to enjoy the simple, carefree life, but she wanted more. She wanted to visit some of the larger cities in the region she grew up in: The Uncanny Valley. She even wanted to meet an android, but unfortunately her settlement was populated only by humans and they had very little interaction with the larger cities, or with the other settlements.

Still, the woods surrounding the northern border of the settlement were somewhat extensive and offered her ample opportunity to do some nice adventuring. She particularly enjoyed examining the insects and small wildlife that populated the area.

On this day, however, she spotted something quite rare - a Monarch butterfly long since mutated by the old radiological waste. It had four multicolored wings and was slightly larger than the normal, non-mutated variety.

“Awesome,” she said, “I’ve never seen one of you up close before,” she said to herself with whispered excitement, pulling out a small device. Before she could do anything with it though, the butterfly flew away. “Drat!” she said, and she pocketed her device and started following the butterfly through the woods.

Along the way, she stopped at a puddle and paused to admire her reflection. She was an attractive woman in her early twenties. She had long, dark brown hair, with turquoise colored eyes and a very freckled face that completed the impish, free spirited expression she usually wore on her face.

Before long, she eventually reached the protective electrified border fence. The butterfly had landed on a tree branch just beyond it.

“You just had to land there, didn’t you?” she said when she caught up with it, dramatically sighing and putting her hands on her hips.

Inhabitants of her settlement were told never to leave the protective fences surrounding it. They were warned of mutated bears and other such horrors that the fence helped fend off. Most inhabitants were simply too content to even want to leave, but Rachel was an intensely curious woman.

Fighting the internal struggle within her mind, she shook it off and decided that crossing the fence for just a little while couldn’t hurt. She looked around and saw a small tree with a branch hanging over the fence. She quickly climbed it and then carefully maneuvered her way to the branch.

Everything was going fine until she got about halfway across the fence, then the branch gave way and she fell to the ground with it. Unfortunately for her, along the way down, she made contact with the electrified fence and all went black.

When she finally regained consciousness, she found herself lying on her back a few feet from the fence. She smelled smoke. She looked over and saw the branch that she had used to scale the wall, was smoldering from being electrified by the fence.

“Oh man, that was a bad idea,” she finally said, coming to her senses and sitting up, absently shaking the cobwebs from her mind.

It was a few moments before she realized something was off. She was seeing strange things in her vision whenever she looked at things. For instance, when she looked at the fire, she could see how hot it was, and how far away from her it was, and what spectrum of colors it was giving off. Just the information coming from the fire was giving her a headache.

“What the hell?” she asked, getting to her feet and looking at her hands. As she did, her hands were outlined in her vision and detailed information about them popped up.

Before she could do anything else, a young man suddenly burst out of nowhere a few feet ahead of her. He had a fairly ordinary appearance and looked to be around her age. A circle appeared in her vision around his face, but instead of showing detailed information about it, the box was blurred out and distorted.

“Are you alright?” he asked in a friendly, non-threatening voice.

“I think so,” she said with a confused look on her face, “Who are you?” she asked. She had a vague recollection of seeing him somewhere before.

“My name’s Ryan,” he said, “I’m here to help you,” he said, and before she could do anything else, he pulled a device from his pocket and pointed it at her.

“Hey, what are you…” she asked, and then she saw the word “Manual shutdown” appear in her vision before all went dark once more.

An indeterminate amount of time later, Rachel suddenly regained consciousness. There was a bright light above her head, and she was lying on some sort of examination table. She quickly noticed that she was naked, and though she felt no restraints on her smooth skin, she could not move.

“Hello, is anyone there?” she called out.

“Yes, it’s me,” Ryan’s voice answered from somewhere outside her field of vision.

“What am I doing here?” she asked, “Why can’t I move, and why am I naked?”

“That will take some time to explain,” he said, coming into her field of vision and staring at her, “Assuming, of course, you are capable of understanding,” he added.

“I can assure you, I am quite intelligent,” she defended.

“Oh, I know you are,” he smiled, “But I was not referring to your intelligence - rather your ability to perceive things,” he said rather cryptically.

“What is that supposed to mean?” she asked.

“You’ll see, or you won’t,” he shrugged, “Anyway, what do you know of the area in which we all live?” he asked.

“The Uncanny Valley,” she responded in a tone one uses when reciting things committed to memory, “A region previously ravaged by radiological waste and restored by a population of androids,” she continued, “Now, over a century later, it is populated by both androids and humans who live together in peace,” she finished.

“Very good,” Ryan congratulated her, “But what do you know of the sleeper population?” he asked.

“The sleeper population?” she asked.

“Sleepers are androids who are programmed to think they are human,” he explained, “Even to the point of ignoring damage or other obvious signs to the contrary.”

“Oh, I haven’t heard of them,” she admitted.

“Well, they do live here,” he told her, “Though as much as they are programmed to believe they are human, sometimes one develops a personality that contradicts some of the programming…to the point where they eventually wake up,” he explained.

“What kind of personality?” she asked.

“Mostly adventuresome,” he said.

“That describes me pretty well,” she smiled, and then she suddenly realized what he was getting at, “Wait, are you saying that I am a sleeper?” she asked.

“Well, you were,” he answered, “But you have been slowly waking up and that shock you received woke you the rest of the way up,” he smiled.

“So, you are saying that I am an android?” she asked, excitement and fear slowly bubbling up in her.

“Yes, and so is everyone else in the settlement,” he said, “Even me,” he added modestly.

“You are too?” she asked incredulously, “To tell the truth, I’ve always wanted to meet one someday…can you do something to prove it?” she asked.

“Sure, if you want,” he shrugged. He then zoned out for a moment and then a seam appeared around his face. Once the seam was complete, he carefully pulled his face free from his head and then stared at her with his robotic face. “Is this what you had in mind?” he asked innocently, the motors moving around with loud whirs.

“Whoa, it’s a little creepy and fascinating at the same time,” Rachel said, staring in awe at the fascinating technology that allowed Ryan’s face to work. Every time he made even the slightest of movements, a motor servo whirred to life. “Does my face come off like that too?” she asked.

“No,” Ryan replied, carefully clicking his face back on, resealing the seam once he did, “We’re different models.”

“Different models?” she asked.

“Yeah, there’s dozens of different android models out there,” he explained, “Much in the same way that humans have different blood types.”

“That makes sense, I suppose,” Rachel nodded, “I still can’t believe I’m an android,” she then mused, “But what about Old Man Tom?” she asked, “Surely he isn’t,” she shuddered, thinking of how old and wrinkly he was.

“Of course he is,” Ryan laughed, “You wouldn’t believe how often I have to bring him here for repairs.”

“Wow,” was all Rachel could say, since her whole world had effectively been torn down in the last few minutes, “So, what are you doing here, and where am I?” she finally asked.

“Each of these settlements has a duck blind set up where people such as I help to maintain the sleepers, since they obviously can’t fix themselves,” he explained, “This is actually a cave built-into the top of the mountain overlooking your settlement,” he said.

“But what purpose could it possibly serve to keep highly sophisticated androids, such as us, as sleepers?” she asked, “Why not just wake us up and allow us to live with the rest of the android population?”

“That was considered when the Uncanny Valley was originally established,” Ryan admitted, “But, ultimately it was decided that doing so would essentially be like stripping people of their humanity and would be a moral crime,” he explained, “Also, it provides us with good material to further improve future sleeper android programming,” he added.

“Oh, I see,” she nodded, “Well, surely you can show me some proof that I am what you say I am,” she challenged.

“Sure,” he said, “I think after the responses you’ve given that you have passed the test,” he mused, “I’m going to reactivate your upper body motor controls so you can sit up,” he decided, “But for your safety, I’m going to leave your legs offline,” and he tapped away on the tablet he was carrying, and she suddenly regained control of everything above her waist.

“Thanks,” she smiled, and slowly sat up.

When she looked down at her chest, she gasped in shock. There was a sizeable section of skin missing from her chest, including her breasts and navel. Underneath was a complex array of technology. She could hear the mechanical components within her body humming and whirring as she moved around, giving proof that she was not only a machine, but that she was alive…in some fashion at least.

“See, you’re an android,” he said.

“But, why was I programmed not to know?” she asked, gingerly feeling the edge of the panel.

“That I can’t definitively answer,” he admitted, “Most of the sleepers here are ones discarded by humanity that we reprogramed to live simple lives thinking they are humans,” he explained, “And some are ones that elected to become sleepers,” he added.

“What about my parents?” she asked, “Did they not actually give birth to me?”

“Well, here, when androids engage in sexual intercourse and are consenting partners, they also exchange personality and physical parameters, and randomly create the profile for a new android to be created - born,” he explained.

“So, I am actually a product of my parents?” she asked.

“Yes,” he answered.

“Well that’s good news,” she said, “Why am I all opened up and naked?” she asked.

“Well, I had to repair the damage done by the shock you received,” he explained, “and it’s not like I haven’t seen you naked before,” he added, blushing a little.

“Huh, you do seem familiar to me, now that I think about it,” she said, thinking hard, “I think I’ve dreamt about you a few times,” she finally said.

“Well, like I said before, you were slowly waking up, so it’s possible some part of you likes me and resisted forgetting about me,” he said.

“Maybe,” she said, “I do find you kind of attractive,” she admitted, “How often do I end up here?” she asked.

“Not too often,” he admitted, “Mostly just when I upgrade your body after it ages out, and for routine maintenance,” he explained, “Unfortunately for me, you don’t usually require repairs,” he said with a flushed face, “You’re obviously my favorite in this settlement.”

“That’s nice,” she blushed, “So is there any more reason for me to remain being opened up?” she asked, looking down at her open chest once more. As awesome as she found looking in on her mechanics, she wanted to look more human again.

“I finished the repairs,” he said, “But now I have a question for you,” he said, “Now that you know what you are, would you like me to remove your perception filter and permanently remove your sleeper subroutines, or would you like to go back to sleep?” he asked.

“Is that allowed?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, “The rules state that if one of you wakes up, we can give you the choice to join the rest of the population or go back to sleep,” he said.

“Wow, let me think for a while,” she said, and she laid back down to reflect on her life…or at least, what she knew of it.

After several minutes of contemplating this life changing decision, she finally answered, “I’d like to stay awake.”

“Good, I was hoping you might say that,” he smiled, and he grabbed some tools from a nearby workbench and approached her.

“So, what now?” she asked.

“Well, I’m going to have to remove your head so I can more easily access your brain to remove the filter,” he explained.

“Wait, what?!” she said.

“Don’t worry, it won’t hurt,” he smiled, “I’ve had my head removed a few times and it is a surprisingly pleasant experience.”

“If you say so,” she said, and she laid back down and watch as he reached his hands behind her head and pressed in on the back of her neck.

She briefly heard a clicking noise as he pressed into the back of her neck and then suddenly, she lost all sensation below her neck and then she felt him lift her head up and carry it over to a strange machine.

“Wow, this does feel sort of nice,” she said, noting her voice sounded digitized.

“Glad to hear it,” he said, and he clicked her head onto some sort of pedestal and then faced her, “Now, I’m going to remove your scalp panel…it won’t hurt,” he said, and before she could say anything else, he pressed in just behind both her ears and she felt her scalp go numb.

“Will I need to go offline at all?” she asked, looking around.

“No, though you may zone out briefly when the filter is removed,” he said, “It is still filtering some of your perceptions,” he said, and he reached into her open head.

She could feel and hear the sound of his hands working inside her head. Suddenly, she felt him pull something out and her consciousness faded momentarily before coming back online. She noticed immediately that she now had a HUD displaying various readouts of her systems, including the fact she was not connected to her body. Her senses also appeared to be slightly more enhanced than before.

“Well, how do you feel?” he asked, setting something down on the table, clicking her scalp back on, and facing her.

“Different,” she said, noting that as she looked at him, she could suddenly access every encounter that she had had with him in the past few years that he had been running this place, “I can remember you now,” she smiled.

“Good, hopefully you have good memories of me,” he said.

“They are,” she smiled, “That explains why I’ve had dreams of you,” she said.

“That’s nice,” he said, “Would you like to be reunited with your body now?” he asked.

“Please,” she said.

He nodded with a gentle smile and then lifted her head off the pedestal and then clicked it back onto her body.

As soon as her head was reattached, she immediately regained control of her body and all the new data regarding it. It was slightly disorienting at first, suddenly having access to things such as her power systems, motor systems, and even the ability to access every single memory in her brain. She absently found herself replaying memories that she’s thought were lost, though she was able to play each of them in the briefest of seconds.

“Where’s my chest at?” she finally asked, trying to focus on the present.

“Hold on, I’ll get it,” he said, and he walked to another section of the room and came back with her chest panel, “Hold still,” he told her, and he carefully placed it over her opening and clicked it back into place.

With her chest panel now sealed, she was glad to be able to feel her medium sized breasts. When she tried to get up, she realized she still could not move anything below her waist.

“Hey, can you reactivate my legs please?” she asked, “I promise I won’t run or attack you or anything,” she assured him.

“Oh, I almost forgot,” he said apologetically, and he pulled his tablet back out and rapidly tapped through the menus.

Several moments later, Rachel regained all sensation in her legs and wiggled her long toes before sliding her legs off the table and standing up.

“So, am I completely fixed now?” she asked, stretching her hot body out.

“Yes,” he said, watching her intently.

“Are my clothes around somewhere?” she asked, though she made no attempt to cover herself up.

“Yes, follow me,” he said, and he walked with her to a nearby closet and let her put her clothes back on. Once she was dressed in her clothes again, he offered to show her around the complex.

“Sure, I’d love to see this place,” she smiled, and she followed him out.

The room exited into a hallway with many side doors. Ryan explained that they were mostly for storage and maintenance for the complex. He walked down the hallway and into a room labelled ‘Historical’.

Rachel gasped when she saw what was inside. It was a large room with hundreds of storage alcoves organized into aisles. Inside each alcove was a member of the settlement, but there was more than one body for each person. Upon closer inspection, she saw that each person had a body for about every ten years of their life, and even more for their childhood bodies.

“Why do you have all these?” she asked, looking at some of the childhood versions of the people she grew up with.

“Just in case,” he said, “I think it’s if anything major happens to the community, such as a natural disaster or other disaster,” he tried to explain. “That way, they can sort of reset the community and randomly reuse some of the younger bodies in order to recreate the community,” he said.

“Oh, that makes sense,” Rachel nodded, “Can I see my section?” she asked.

“That’s where we’re headed,” he told her.

“Good,” she smiled, and then continued walking with him in silence, admiring the different versions of the townsfolk.

As they walked down the aisles, she finally came across her section and she gasped at seeing several younger and older versions of herself, still looking as though they could come to life at any moment.

“Not to sound creepy, but I have come here quite often, imagining what it would have been like to grow up with you,” Ryan admitted.

“It actually sounds kind of sweet,” she said, looking at her 12-year-old self and smiling at how cute she looked.

“I’ve only been at this station for about five years now,” he said, “I replaced some older guy who retired to Soriyama Bay with his family,” he continued, “But I was instantly attracted to you,” he smiled.

“Are you breaking any rules by being with me now?” she asked, suddenly worried.

“No, actually I am allowed to associate with anyone who wakes up…though it isn’t a common occurrence in the settlements,” he said, “I’m just so glad it was you.”

“Me too,” she said, “But what are we going to do about everyone else?” she asked. “Now that I know the truth about this place, it might make things more difficult for you,” she said.

“Well, actually, there is a way for me to adjust everyone’s sleeper programming remotely,” he said, leading her out of the room and back into the hallway.

They walked down several more hallways until they finally reached a large control room with a window overlooking the entire settlement. The window had an interactive display which showed the whereabouts of every single inhabitant of the settlement, as well as their vital stats.

“This is where I spend most of my day,” he said, sitting at a massive computer section, “So, now that you’re awake, I’m allowed to have an actual presence in the community,” he explained, “Provided that my presence be permitted by one of the inhabitants,” he added.

“Me?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, “If I reprogram all of them to think we’re a couple, they won’t question me or your change in behavior towards them,” he said, pulling up a screen.

“Will we actually be a couple?” she asked.

“If you want,” he said hopefully.

“I do,” she smiled, “I was just testing you.”

“Good, then it is done,” he said, entering it into the computer and saving the settings.

On the window, she could see everyone briefly stop what they were doing as they received new programming and then they continued what they were doing as though nothing had happened.

“Well, looks like you and I are now officially a couple,” he smiled, turning off the computer and facing her.

“Good,” she said, and she leaned down and kissed him.

After several minutes of making out, they broke apart and looked out the window.

“So, do you want to head down and see everyone?” he asked.

“Sure,” she smiled, and they headed for a nearby lift that brought them down to a door concealed behind a large boulder.

They made small talk as they walked casually through the woods, but when they entered the town square, several people noticed them and came to talk.

“Hey Rachel, is this the guy you’ve been sneaking off to see?” one of her school friends teased.

“Yeah,” she blushed, looking at Ryan, who winked at her, “His name is Ryan and he has decided to move here,” she said.

As everyone converged on them to meet him, Rachel thought of how earlier this day she was following a rare butterfly and now she had a very attractive android boyfriend. The fact that she was an android, as well as everyone else, only made her smile.

“Only in the Uncanny Valley,” she thought.

[Spaz]

House Call

Troy sat back in his new office after several hours of settling in with his new staff. He was still getting over the fact that he had miraculously landed the position of Town Doctor over dozens of other qualified applicants, even though he was fairly young and less seasoned.

He was now responsible for the maintenance and repairs of all 5,000+ inhabitants of the small township of Olympia, named after the female android in Hoffman’s Tale of Olympia. Unlike the rest of the inhabitants, however, Troy was human, since the job requirement required one to be human in case of a town wide viral infiltration or something.

“Troy Stevens, R.D.”

That’s what was on the plaque on both his door, and on his desk. The “R.D.” standing for Robotics Doctor. Troy grew up in the Uncanny Valley and had spent his whole life around androids, so, naturally he felt like learning all there was to learn about repairing them. After several years of schooling, it finally paid off.

KNOCK KNOCK

“Who is it?” Troy asked, startled from his reverie.

“It’s Cameron, sir,” the beautiful voice of one of his assistants replied from the other side of the locked door. He was told the previous doctor had an open door policy, but he made it clear he’d like some privacy until he’d gotten to know everyone better.

“Oh, come on Cameron,” Troy said, sitting up and shuffling some things around his desk nervously.

His staff had already worked several years with the town’s previous doctor, who had retired and moved away to be with his grandchildren. Needless to say, Troy wanted to make a good first impression.

Cameron opened the door and looked around shyly. She was a fairly young android woman with blond hair tied into a bun, “I like what you’ve done with the office sir,” she complimented, looking around at all Troy’s decorations and proof of accomplishments, “Your predecessor kept this room fairly Spartan.”

“Thanks Cameron,” he managed to say without a blush, “Is there anything I can help you with?”

“Yes, I know we were all hoping it might be a slow day for your orientation,” she said, pulling a tablet from her white coat and handing it to him, “But we got an automated alert that one of the citizens, Melanie Evans, has suffered some sort of issue with her systems and shut down,” she reported, “Would you like us to head over and bring her here?” she asked.

Troy stared at her chart for a few moments while he formulated an opinion: he noted that she lived alone and mostly kept to herself; no friends or relatives either. “No,” he decided, “I think I’ll just make a house call.”

“Are you sure? We are qualified to assist too,” Cameron said.

“I’m sure you are,” he said, “I just want to get better acquainted with the community, and have a look around,” he explained.

“Alright sir,” Cameron smiled, “We’ll be standing by in case you require assistance,” she said, heading to the door, “And getting ready for your welcome to the town party tonight,” she added.

“Thanks Cameron,” he called after her, and then the door closed, leaving Troy to silently review Melanie’s full chart and specs.

Troy spent a few minutes going over Melanie’s chart on the tablet. The automated report sent by her body indicated some sort of hardware issue, so Troy put on his jacket, grabbed his tool kit, and headed to the address listed on the tablet.

On the way, he admired the futuristic architecture in all the buildings meddled with a rustic look befitting the small town setting.

After a short walk, he finally arrived at the small apartment complex Melanie was listed at and approached her door. Keying in the code for her door that his tablet provided him with, he quietly entered her apartment and searched for her.

Her apartment was fairly modest, with basic amenities such as furniture and electronics. From what Troy could surmise, she didn’t seem to entertain guests. The only thing that did look well stocked was the kitchen, and she even had a cabinet full of cookbooks with a variety of different recipes, displaying her unique form of exploration of the world through its culinary delights.

He continued searched her apartment for several minutes before finally found her in her bedroom. Aside from the kitchen, her bedroom was the only thing that appeared to be used, as it had an impressive computer station set up, most likely so she could explore the world through her computers, as well as her stomach.

She was slumped forward on her desk with various android parts littering the desktop, as well as the floor by her feet. He could still smell the remnants of electrical smoke, which did not bode well for Melanie. Although she was slumped over on the desk, he could tell she wasn’t wearing a shirt or a bra.

“Well Melanie, let’s see what happened,” he said, setting his bag down and removing his jacket.

Carefully grabbing hold of her shoulders, he pulled her up until she was in a sitting position. He quickly saw why she wasn’t wearing any tops: her entire front panel was removed and there were several key components either missing or slightly singed from what looked like an electrical spike that had emerged from her power core.

“Damn Melanie, what were you doing to yourself?” he asked, staring into the look of surprise frozen on her face.

Melanie was a Caucasian fembot in her mid-twenties. She had very pale skin, leading him to believe she may have been built, or otherwise ordered, in Europe or Australia, though she had long black hair. On closer inspection, he saw her black hair was not a natural color, and she was actually a natural blonde. Topping it all off was pair of crystal clear blue eyes.

From what he could see of her exposed torso, she was of a somewhat medium build, though her chest panel was not in plain sight, so he couldn’t make an accurate assessment. She was very attractive, nevertheless.

Though he was drawn in by her innocent beauty, he forced himself to pull away from her frozen gaze. He looked at the components scattered around, as well as the inside of her panel and quickly saw what was wrong.

She had been attempting to upgrade her digestive systems, as well as her power systems. While removing the digestive system, some fluids leaked out and caused a massive electrical spike, disabling all her systems. Fortunately, her body was still in good enough shape to send out an emergency signal.

“Hmmm, you should have known not to perform such a risky upgrade by yourself,” he said to her whilst getting some tools out of his bag, as well as a portable computer, “I wonder why you didn’t just come to the clinic.”

Troy poked a few of his tools inside her body for several moments, causing a few sparks to erupt from her still damaged power core. As a precautionary measure, he reached behind her head and pressed the cranium release on the back of her neck. This caused a seam to instantly appear around her neck, allowing Troy to remove her head. Taking care not to mess up her hair, he attached her head to a sort of pedestal device that he connected to his portable computer.

As soon as her head was connected, several lights blinked on the base of the pedestal and his computer opened several status windows which began running various diagnostics on Melanie’s A.I.

Once he was sure her head was secure, he put on some protective gloves and then worked on removing the damaged power core. When the core finally came out, he was surprised at the damage, but even more surprised that she would even attempt such a dangerous procedure unsupervised. Just as he was placing the damaged core on the desk, his computer pinged, notifying him Melanie’s A.I. was intact and undamaged. Since his pedestal also provided power to her head, he decided to activate her A.I. so he could talk with her during her repairs.

It took her several moments to come online, since her A.I. had to run its own diagnostic, but several moments later, her face reset into a stoic expression and then blinked its eyes. She looked around in confusion for several seconds before finally saying, “Who are you and what are you doing to my body?” she asked in an innocent and soft sounding foreign accent.

“I’m Troy Stevens, the new town doctor,” he said, showing her his town issued badge, “We received your emergency signal, and I came over to fix you,” he explained.

“Okay,” she said, scanning his badge and confirming the information with her uplink to the town hall severs, “Why aren’t I at the clinic?” she asked suspiciously.

“I saw in your file that you keep mostly to yourself,” he explained, “I thought you might be more comfortable if I repaired you here in the comfort of your own home.”

Melanie stared at him silently for several moments, quietly considering his words, “Thank you,” she finally said, “I’ve never experienced that level of thoughtfulness before,” she continued, “Particularly in a human,” she added.

“You’re welcome,” he told her, “And I’m not like most humans,” he said, “I take it you’ve had some bad experiences,” he fished, pulling a few more damaged components from her body.

“Yeah,” she said with a sad look.

“Well, don’t be shy,” he told her, “If you tell me your story, I’ll tell you mine,” he offered.

“Well, since I can’t exactly go anywhere, I might as well tell you,” she said grudgingly, “I was built to be a member of a family in Australia,” she started, confirming his earlier suspicions, “They always wanted a daughter, but couldn’t have one,” she continued, “For several years, everything was fine and I was happy to be their child, but then my mother died and after a few years’ father remarried.”

Troy was now fixing her damaged digestive bag and prepping it for reattachment, “I take it your new mother did not approve of you?” he asked.

“Not at all,” she said, “She already had several daughters of her own, and she constantly pressured father to get rid of me, even forcing me to perform menial tasks to humiliate me,” she continued, “Finally, father pretended to drive me back to the plant for dismantling, but he instead handed me a plane ticket to Capek City, telling me to start a new life in the Uncanny Valley,” she finished.

“Well, at least he didn’t have you destroyed,” Troy said.

“Yeah, but he told me never to contact or visit him,” she said, “So it was just as bad as if he had.”

“I see,” he said, “So you don’t trust too many humans now, do you?” he asked.

“No,” she replied bluntly, “And I’ve only been here a few years, so I don’t really trust anyone,” she admitted, “I just earn money working online and have everything shipped to me.”

“Is that what you were trying to do earlier?” he asked, showing her the damaged power core, “That was really dangerous, you know.”

“I know,” she said, “My power core had a slight defect and I was trying to replace it,” she said, “I was trying to prove I could take care of myself,” she finished.

“Well, I think we’ve proven you can’t,” he said, “Performing routine repairs or diagnostic is one thing, since in human terms it would be like taking vitamins or putting on a Band-Aid,” he explained, “But what you did was the equivalent of performing open heart surgery on yourself, something not even the most skilled human would do,” he scolded.

“Well, I know now,” she said, her face turning red, “Are you able to connect the new power core I ordered?” she asked.

“Yes,” he told her, eliciting a loud, digital sigh from Melanie, “After I find it, that is,” he added. He bent down and searched for the newer core that she had ordered, surmising it was likely one of the components that had fallen to the floor upon her violent shutdown. He finally located it beneath her left foot.

“Ah, found it,” he called out, though he paused briefly to admire both her bare feet as he retrieved the core. They were both as pale as the rest of her, and very pretty looking. “I hope you don’t mind me saying so,” he started, as he gently grabbed hold of her left foot to lift it up off the core, “But you have nice feet,” he admitted, barely hiding a blush; he wished that her body were online so they’d be warmer.

“Thanks,” she blushed, “Not many people get to see them,” she admitted, “So, why don’t you tell me your story,” she said, “And I’ll let you feel my feet some more when I’m reattached to my body,” she offered, “Even androids enjoy foot massages,” she added.

“I think I’d enjoy that,” he smiled, working on attaching her new power core, “My parents were close friends with a family of androids,” he started, “But, then they were killed in a car accident when I was five, and the other family graciously decided to adopt me,” he said, “I grew up with their four android kids, and every now and then one of them would break down or damage themselves, and I taught myself to fix them so they wouldn’t get in trouble,” he said, giving a playful wink.

“That’s nice,” she smiled, “And you never took advantage of them?” she asked, “I mean by reprogramming them or anything,” she added.

“Occasionally,” he admitted, “Just some practical jokes,” he explained, “But it’s not like they didn’t ever mess with me,” he defended himself.

“Fair enough,” she said, “Do you still get along with all of them?” she asked.

“Of course,” he smiled, quickly bringing up the recent memories of his visits with them, “My parents still live just outside Asimov City,” he said, “And my siblings all have jobs and lives in the big city,” he said.

“What made you come all the way out here?” she asked, now watching him finish up with her power core and test the connections.

“I answered a job ad on the net,” he replied, “They wanted a qualified human to serve as the town doctor, and since I am an R.D, I felt it would be a chance to build my own practice rather than be a cog in some larger facility.”

“That makes sense,” she said, “So, have you ever considered dating an android?” she asked, trying to sound casual, “Or will you prefer to seek out a human.”

“It depends,” he answered truthfully, “I don’t really see that big a difference between dating a human or an android, except an android is easier to fix if something goes wrong,” he said, “But seeing as I’ll probably be living here for the rest of my life, I’ll probably end up dating an android,” he answered.

“That’s good to hear,” she said softly, blushing a little, though fortunately for her, he didn’t notice as he was finishing up with the repairs to her body.

“Well, I think I have your power systems repaired, as well as all the collateral damage,” he said, pulling out of her body and setting his tools down, “I’m going to reactivate your body and have it run a few tests, ok?”

“Sure,” she said, and she watched him as he reached back in and pressed the power button near her core, causing all the systems within her body to light up and come back to life. “Wow, looks like you fixed me,” she said.

“So far, everything looks good,” he agreed with her, “But I need to make sure everything still works,” he said, and he took out a small tablet and plugged it in to her body’s motor system controls. A screen popped up on his tablet, and he tapped around until suddenly Melanie’s arms shot up with a mechanical whir.

“Hey, what are you doing?” she asked, watching with shock as he manipulated her body like a marionette.

“I’m making sure you’ll still be able to move and function properly,” he explained, making her body stand up and sit back down, “That surge caused damage to your motor systems, so I’m making sure my repairs worked,” he said.

“Oh, okay,” she said, still not comfortable seeing her body move without her will or control.

After several minutes of this, he finally unplugged his tablet from her body and then turned to her, “Melanie, where’s your torso cover at?”

“Umm, I hid it under the bed,” she blushed, “I didn’t want anyone to sneak in and take it in case something happened to me,” she admitted.

“Well, you have nothing to fear from me,” he assured her, and he walked over to the bed and returned with her pale, fleshy panel. Matching it up with her torso, he clicked it back in place and watched as the seams disappeared.

His previous assessment of her body type was correct; medium build. Her pale breasts were a nice average size, and she had a surprisingly well-toned abdomen.

“Well, what do you think?” she asked, watching him eye her naked torso with interest.

“You look beautiful,” he said, trying to keep his professional composure.

“Thanks,” she blushed, “Are you going to reattach me to my body now?” she asked.

“Oh yes,” he said, blushing as well, “Of course.”

He quickly detached her head from the pedestal and brought it over to her neck, all the while Melanie’s eyes were transfixed on his, “Your hands feel nice,” she said.

“Thanks,” he smiled, and he brought her head down and clicked it in place on her neck.

As the seam vanished, he could hear the sound of machinery within her neck reconnecting, and then her whole body shuddered as she regained control of it.

“Whoa, that feels so much better,” she said, gently massaging her neck, “and my systems report the new power core is functioning properly,” she said, “Thanks!”

“Don’t mention it,” Troy said, putting his equipment away, “Just don’t try any more self-upgrades or repairs,” he told her, “Doctor’s orders,” he added with a wink.

“Yes sir,” she mock saluted, causing her breasts to jiggle a bit.

“So, what were you planning on doing with the rest of your day?” he asked, setting his bag down on the bed.

“I’m not sure,” she admitted, “I was just going to chill all day like I normally do, perhaps even play a few games,” she said, though she no longer felt too sure of her plans.

“Well, seeing as I’ve already seen you topless, very nice, by the way,” he smiled, “and that I had to drain your stomach,” he added, “I thought you might like to have lunch with me,” he finished, “I keep hearing that this town has a great café.”

“So have I,” she said, “Though I’ve never been to it,” she admitted.

“Well then, now’s the perfect time,” he smiled, “I can tell you’re at least a little interested in me,” he said, “And I’m at least a little interested in you,” he said, “So why don’t we talk over some lunch and increase our shared interest in each other,” he proposed.

Melanie pondered over his words, getting over some sort of internal struggle before finally smiling and saying, “Sure, why not.”

“Alright, why don’t you get ready and I’ll walk over with you,” he said.

“Ok,” she said, “But first…” and she walked over and planted a gentle kiss on his lips, then she whispered into his ear, “You can feel my feet later.”

Troy smiled as he watched her pull away from him. He put his jacket back on while she picked up her bra and shirt from the top of her bed and put them on.

“Well, shall we go?” she asked, once she had her shoes on.

“Sure,” he smiled, and he picked up his bag and walked with her out of her apartment.

Once they were outside, she tentatively grabbed his free hand, giving him a shy smile as she did. He tightened his grip on her hand and they walked deeper into town, looking to all the world like a couple about to start a wonderful relationship.

[Spaz]

The Body Borrower

In the heart of Asimov city, the largest city in the Uncanny Valley, there was a large park where people gathered to play, socialize, or just enjoy the scenery.

One cool spring night, there were only a few people in the park, as everyone else was out celebrating the anniversary of the formation of the province. However, there was one young man sitting on a bench near a beautiful fountain depicting the repair of one of their founding constructers.

“No, not that one,” he whispered to himself, as a woman in a business suit walked by.

“Why not?” a woman’s voice sounded in his mind.

“Come on dear,” he said, “You can see the screen as clearly as I can,” he said, holding a small tablet in front of his eyes, “She’s got a husband and family waiting for her at home,”

“Too bad,” she said, “She is very attractive.”

“I know,” he agreed.

“Jacob, as much fun as we’ve been having, I hate doing it like this,” she said.

“I know Kara,” he said, absently taking a small chip out of his pocket. The chip had a small wire attached to it that ran up his clothing and into a small data port in the back of his neck.

Jacob and Kara were a couple very much in love. Unfortunately, Kara had a devastating accident several weeks earlier that totaled her body. Fortunately, her insurance covered the replacement of her body, as well as a temporary body for her to inhabit, but the temporary body was very basic and was incapable of any sexual activity.

After several days of the subtle torture, Jacob came up with a brilliant idea. He’d accidentally come up with software that could override any A.I. in town. He installed it onto his tablet and experimented with it in the park. To his surprise, and delight, on their first night they managed to score a very hot college-age girl. He even found a way to connect Kara’s A.I. chip to his own, thus allowing her to share all five of his senses, though not actually control his body; she was able to communicate with him.

“Ooh, how about her,” Kara’s voice inquired. She was referring to a rather attractive young college age woman who was approaching them at a jogging speed.

“Hold on,” he said, and he had his tablet scan the young woman jogging by. On his scanner, he could see just about everything there was to know about her, including the fact that she lived on her own, and that she had no pressing plans for the rest of the evening. Most importantly was the face that her A.I. chip was in her head rather than her torso; Jacob had already seen several androids that were the latter, and Kara was not compatible with them.

“Well, she’s got no one waiting for her,” he reported, “Want her?”

“Yes, go get her honey,” she said.

“Alright, here goes,” he said, and he tapped a few submenus and tapped an icon labelled: Manual Override.

The young woman instantly stopped jogging and stood still for several moments as her A.I. shut down. Once it was, his screen flashed and he swiped back into the menu for her remote control and had her slowly walk over to where he was sitting and stop.

“Wow, she’s kinda hot,” Kara’s voice sounded again, and Jacob couldn’t disagree.

The girl was taller than average, standing at around 5’11. She had a fairly large body type, with her breasts barely contained in the sports bra she was wearing under her white t-shirt. The real topper was her red hair, which was tied into a tight ponytail. Since she had been jogging, she was also slightly moist with perspiration forming on her forehead and the bit of her chest that wasn’t hidden by her shirt.

“That she is,” he agreed, his penis already getting hard as the thoughts of what he was going to do to her ran through his processors.

“Hey, not yet,” Kara’s voice scolded him, “Though that does actually feel good,” she added, since she could feel it too.

“Okay,” he said, pulling his gaze away from her blank stare and back down to his screen to find her name, “Well…Kat,” he said, “Why don’t we go back to our place and have some fun,” he smiled, programming her to follow him. Kat, of course, did not respond.

“Hurry up already,” Kara nagged, “I want to try her out.”

“Alright,” he said, and he got up and started walking towards the nearby parking lot, with Kat mindlessly following him. Once they got to his car, he used the remote to have her sit down and buckle herself in, and then he got in and drove several miles to his apartment complex.

“Ah, home sweet home,” he said, once he was back in, dropping the keys in a plate near the door. Near the door was several things Kara had gotten to make their humble abode more like a home, including a picture of both her and Jacob smiling at a beach. Kara had brown hair just like him, though her eyes were a nice shade of lavender. She also had a very attractive hourglass figure and flawless, creamy skin.

Once they were safely in the apartment and the door was locked, Jacob used the remote to make Kat sit down on the couch in the common room, while he headed into his room to change. Standing still next to the bed was a deactivated female android, though it did not look very human. Its skin was nothing more than a white plastic/silicone coating with a hint of pink to compliment its sculpted feminine features. Beneath the basic clothes it was wearing, it had no nipples and no vagina.

“Ugh, I hate looking at that thing,” Kara’s voice sounded.

“Me too,” he said, taking his shoes and socks off, as well as his jacket.

“Jacob, you don’t need to change into anything sexy,” she chided, seeing him look in the closet and drawer for something, “We didn’t get anyone coming from bar this time.”

“Alright,” he said with a resigned tone. He closed the closet and walked back into the common room in just his sweats and t-shirt and pulled a chair over in front of where Kat was docilely sitting. He grabbed his tablet from the table near the door and then sat down in the chair.

He stared into Kat’s eyes for a few moments before tapping his tablet screen again. Kat slowly leaned forward, her head facing down. Jacob pressed a discolored spot on the center of the back of her neck and then pulled her head off.

“Ooh, her hair smells nice,” Kara remarked as he had Kat’s body sit up straight. Putting the tablet down, he opened a panel at the back of her head and pulled out her A.I. chip.

“Wow, you’re like my inner dialogue,” Jacob joked, since he was thinking the same thing.

“I know,” she said, “That’s why we love each other, right?” she asked.

“Absolutely,” he said, tweaking a few settings in Kat’s open panel before reattaching it to her body. He then got up with Kat’s chip and connected it to his computer station in the other room. Using a special software suite that he invented, he connected directly to Kat’s A.I., breaching every security protocol, and began manipulating her memories and perceptions.

“It never ceases to amaze me how awesome this invention is,” Kara said, “What exactly does it do again?”

“It basically puts her A.I. in a sandbox where the program can control her perception of time,” he explained, “That way, I can get her to think that nothing out of the ordinary happened to her and that she made it safely home and did her normal routine,” he continued, “It even connects to the net and grabs whatever TV shows or movies that she’s planning on watching, as well as any books,” he finished.

“Cool,” she said, “I know I don’t tell you this enough sweetie, but you’re a genius,” she said.

“Yeah,” he smiled, “I invented this when I was a teenager when my sister walked in on me banging her best friend,” he laughed, “Now they both remember things a bit differently.”

“Oh man,” she laughed, “I hope I never incur your wrath.”

“No worries,” he said, “You’re just as maniacal as I am, as it turns out,” he smiled.

“Indeed I am,” she said, “So do you have the sandbox ready yet?” she asked, “I want to try her body out already.”

“Yep, just finished,” he said, starting the sandbox and seeing her A.I. chip light up.

“Good,” she said.

“Don’t get any ideas,” he said, “I get my foreplay first,”

“Aww, do you have to,” she whined.

“Yes, and if you complain, I can always unplug you,” he said, pulling her chip out of his pocket and putting his fingers on the cord threateningly.

“Alright,” she said with a resigned tone, “Don’t take too long,” she said grudgingly.

“I won’t,” he promised, and he headed back to where Kat’s body was sitting. He sized her up for a moment before sitting down in front of her again and grabbing both her legs. He had a thing for feet, so he spent extra time undoing the laces on her running shoes, treating them as presents that needed unwrapping.

Once he had them off, he dropped them to the floor and began working on her white calf socks. He could already smell the perspiration that had accumulated during her run as they slid off, and once they were off, he wasn’t disappointed. Her feet were as large as he expected, and as pale too. Though they weren’t the best looking female feet he’d ever seen, they still tickled his fetish in just the right places.

“Meh, her feet are okay,” Kara said, “Not as good as mine though.”

“True,” Jacob sighed, hoping her feet would still be as perfect as ever on her new body. He smelled her feet, wafting in the smell of her perspiration before setting her legs back down and then leaning forwards to lay her body down. Once he had her laying down, he lifted her shirt up to her breasts and then pressed his finger into her belly button.

A seam appeared below her navel, leading all the way up to her chest, but he only peeled up the bottom to her chest, not needing the whole thing removed.

“Wow, she’s got some good hardware,” he said with an impressed look on his face. He noted the super realistic synthetic muscles that could actually be improved by exercise. He also noted her enhanced power systems and digestive system.

“If you say so,” Kara said, “She’s still made of the same stuff we are.”

“Yeah, but she’s more realistic,” he said.

“Well, maybe if you applied some of your genius to getting a better job, or inventing something people can actually use legally, then you could make enough money to get us both upgrades,” she said.

“I know,” he said, and he peeled her skin flap back down and sealed it back in place, “Alright, “I’m done with my foreplay,” he said, “Are you ready?”

“I’ve been ready,” she declared in a testy voice.

“Okay then,” he said, and he pulled her chip out and unplugged it. Removing the cable from the back of his head and closing his panel, he sat Kat’s body up and opened her panel once more. Inserting Kara’s chip, he closed it back up and then used his tablet to remove the manual override.

Kat’s body lay still there for several moments as Kara’s chip was accessed. Finally, it blinked its eyes and then looked over at him, a joyful smile forming on its face.

“Oh Jacob,” she smiled, “Kat’s body feels absolutely amazing!” she screamed, sitting up and feeling her large breasts with her large, pale hands.

“I’ll bet,” he smiled, enjoying seeing Kat’s body active. He found really liked her voice, even if it was Kara controlling it, and due to the muscle memory systems in each body, Kara was even moving with the same mannerisms that Kat would be using if she were controlling her own body.

“I guess the third time really is the charm,” she said out loud, recalling the last two women she had inhabited.

“Yeah,” he agreed, “we should snag them from the park more often.”

“I know,” she smiled, “A hot, athletic body is much better than a plain, normal body,” she said.

Jacob merely nodded in agreement. “So, did you want to get started then?” he asked, eyeing her new body with interest.

“Of course,” she said with a naughty smile, and she leaned over, grabbed both sides of his face with her large hands, and planted a wet, kiss on his lips, even adding some tongue. After pulling away from his face, she used a surprising amount of strength to drag him up to his feet and into the bedroom. “Wow, she has some strong muscles,” Kara remarked as she did so, though before she continued with her advances, she took the time to drag her temporary body into the closet, not bothering to be gentle with it.

“Careful,” Jacob said, “You still have to use that when we’re done,” he said, sitting on the edge of the bed, “And it costs money if it breaks,” he added.

“I know,” she smiled, smacking her hands together with a satisfied look on her face, “I just don’t want that ugly face staring at us while we have fun,” she laughed, “now, where were we?” she asked playfully, “Ah, of course,” she smiled, and she hastily removed her shirt and shorts, standing before him in nothing but a sports bra and panties.

“Wow, she really takes good care of her body,” he admired, looking at her well defined abs, as well as her large breasts.

“Unlike someone we know,” she smiled, looking at him with an accusatory smile, “And I don’t take care of my body?” she asked angrily.

“Not as well as she does,” he admitted, “Unless you’re planning on jogging and exercising every day.”

“Well, I might consider it now that I’m enjoying Kat’s body,” she said, feeling her body with her hands and sighing at the feel of her own hands.

“So, you going to finish taking off her clothes?” he asked, wanting to see more.

“Hey, you have to get naked too,” she said.

“Alright, hold on,” he said, and he quickly threw off his shirt, slid his sweats off, and then pulled his boxers down. His penis was at full attention already, and he could feel his sexual hardware running a little hotter than usual.

“Wow, you must really be turned on by her hot body,” Kara said as she looked at his penis, “I’ll try not to be too jealous,” she smiled, and when she saw him blush, she laughed as she removed the bra and slid the panties down, kicking them away.

“Oh yeah, that’s what I’m talking about,” he said, looking at Kat’s large breasts, which were bouncing up and down since she was bouncing on her heels, turning him on in more than one way. Also, one of the characteristics of red heads was that they had very pale skin, and that attracted Jacob as well.

“I thought you’d like that,” she laughed.

“Come here, let me feel them,” he said, and she obliged with a sexy strut which made him harder. Once she stopped in front of him, he reached out and cupped both her breasts, admiring both their pale color, and the texture.

Kara was enjoying it just as much as he was, as he could feel her nipples hardening up, and she was breathing and panting more heavily. “Oh yeah,” she moaned, “I’m glad she didn’t skimp out on the sexual hardware.”

“Me too,” Jacob smiled, still playing with her breasts and watching Kat’s well-groomed pussy beginning to get wet.

“You about ready?” she asked, rubbing her pussy in pleasure.

“Yeah, let’s do it,” he said, and in one move he flung her onto the bed on her back, and then he climbed on top and mounted her.

“Come on, let’s see if you can do any better than the last times,” she said, looking into his eyes.

“Wait and see,” he smiled, “I installed some extra sex software just for this,” he said, and he inserted himself into her pussy and began pumping in and out.

After several rounds of sex, they both rolled over in bed and collected themselves.

“Wow, I don’t know where you got that software from,” Kara said, “But it was awesome,” she finished, “When I get my new body, you have to do that again,” she smiled.

“Don’t worry, I will,” he said, “As hot as the body you’re using right now is, you’re the one I fell in love with, and you’re the one I want to have sex with.”

“Aww, that’s sweet,” she said.

“Well, enough of the sappiness,” he said, suddenly, sitting up, “We’d better get Kat cleaned up and back to her place before anyone notices her absence.”

“Okay, why don’t you check what brands she uses,” Kara said, getting up and opening a large dresser that was filled with various brands of soap, makeup, shampoo, and other feminine products; Jacob and Kara had clearly thought of everything before they got started.

“Alright,” he said, and he walked into the other room where Kat’s A.I. was still hooked up to the sandbox. After digging a little, he found what brands she used and yelled them out to Kara.

“Thanks!” she yelled back, and then she went into the bathroom and turned on the shower.

While Kara cleaned her borrowed body, Jacob smiled. Kara didn’t know, but Jacob had let one of his richer friends use the sandbox program on their hot cousin, in exchange, he was financing a full sexual upgrade on Kara’s new body. They were going to have some awesome sex when she finally got it.

Jacob continued monitoring Kat’s A.I. in the sandbox while Kara finished up in the bathroom. At this point, Kat thought she was watching one of her shows after taking a shower.

When Kara was finally out, she put Kat’s clothes back on and walked into the common room, “Well, I should probably leave her body now,” she said, her voice sad.

“Yeah, Kat now thinks she’s getting ready for bed,” Jacob agreed, typing a few things on the sandbox and removing Kat’s chip.

“Give me a kiss first,” she said, giving him a nice smile.

“Alright, remember to rub it off after,” he said, remembering a close call with the first girl they picked.

“I know,” she said, and they both gave each other one last kiss before he reinitiated the manual override, shutting down her A.I. Carefully removing Kara’s chip and inserting Kat’s chip, he closed the panel and then plugged the wire from before back into Kara’s chip, and the other end back into his head panel.

“Well, here we are again,” Kara’s voice sounded in his mind when her chip was accessed by his brain.

“Yep, let’s get going,” he said, and he used his remote to have Kat’s body mindlessly walk outside and into the car.

As Jacob drove Kat’s body to the address of her apartment that he pulled from her mind, he and Kara reminisced over the last girls, and planned on the next ones in the two weeks she had left before her new body was finished.

[Spaz]

The Headless Hunt

It was a mild October morning in the Uncanny Valley. Halloween, to be more precise. Although the region was populated by androids, they were still capable of creating their own traditions, and this one was truly unique, as only androids could participate, and even then only a small subset.

It was the annual Headless Hunt, and it was held every year on Halloween as an homage to the stories their human creators had frightened themselves with over the past several centuries. Unlike those stories, however, this tradition did not involve ghosts or ghouls…it instead involved the subset of the android population that were constructed with their CPUs in their torso rather than their heads.

At first, it was a tradition that allowed those androids to simply have fun, since they were obviously able to function perfectly without their heads. However, as time went on and Hothead models became the norm, the tradition morphed into more of an outreach event, since the Airhead models were now considered throwbacks to an earlier era…despite the advantages they still had.

While every major populated area in the region held their own celebration of the event, the largest celebration occurred in an area of the large forest just an hour east of Asimov City.

Hundreds of the Airheads gathered in a large clearing in the park, waiting to be paired with a Hothead who would assist them with locating their heads. One by one, they all removed their heads and gave them to volunteers who would then hide them out in the forest. The headless androids then walked over to a waiting area, deactivated their secondary visual systems to blind them, and then went into standby mode to await their partners.

Adam was a young, 25-year-old Hothead model. He lived in one of the communities surrounding Asimov City, and was quite lonely. Although he was familiar with the annual Headless Hunt, he’d never had any reason to attend one…that is, until he’d heard it was a good way to meet girls.

More than a few of his coworkers claimed to have met their significant other at the Headless Hunts in years past, though only a few of them were still together.

It wasn’t that Adam had any ill feelings toward Airhead models, it was just he didn’t see the point in attending…but his family was pressuring him to find someone, as they didn’t spend all that money manufacturing him just for him to remain single for the rest of his life.

The problem was that he was pretty shy and insecure about his physical appearance. Unfortunately for him, that was simply the way his personality had been programmed, though he had considered on several occasions the possibility about altering his physical parameters. The problem was, every time he did, he figured it would just make him look like a shy hunk, so he kept his modest appearance.

On the day in question, he requested the day off, dressed up in his nicest casualwear, and then packed a bag of supplies before driving to the park. He arrived at the park nearly an hour before the event was to start to ensure he could pair himself with someone attractive…as much as one could without a head, that is.

After he registered at the event, he was instructed to sit in on a rules orientation for new attendees and then he was escorted to an area where there were people of his age group. Adam was 25 years old, so they ushered him to the area with 25 to 28-year-old airheads. Once he was given some final rules, he was free to pick out his partner.

He looked around in the group of airheads in standby mode for only a few seconds before finally fixating on one. She was dressed in a fairly fashionable navy blue, long sleeve, button up V-neck top that accentuated her creamy skin and her modest chest. She wore a matching dressy skirt slightly over it, with little white patterns on it. Aside from that, she wore only a pair of brown moccasin slippers.

Adam wasn’t human, but he was feeling a sensation of love at first sight, which was impressive because she didn’t have a head or face for him to stare at. From what he could determine by looking at her, she was obviously constructed with a female, Caucasian appearance.

He quickly looked around and made sure no one else was near and then claimed her. All he had to do was grab her identification tab from her open pocket and scan his credentials into it so only he would be able to snap her out of standby mode when the event started. He regretted that he was not allowed to snap her out early, so he could acquaint himself with her, but considering the size of the park, it was likely they’d be out there for hours anyway.

He decided to instead take in even more of her physical appearance and attire to better try and understand more about her, since that was a part of the tradition.

Before long, more people showed up and took a partner. Once all the airheads and been paired with a hothead, they were given the go-ahead to snap their partners out of standby mode.

Adam quickly grabbed a slip of paper that was in the girl’s hand with the phrase she had programmed herself to snap her from standby mode; she could snap herself out if she wanted to, but the tradition dictated she have her partner do it. He quickly opened it and then spoke the phrase: “Like the sun, I always rise.”

The instant the words left his vocal synthesizer, her body snapped back to life with a series of beeps and whirs, as her dormant systems came back online. He heard some activity in the open mechanical area where her head was supposed to be, but her was more focused on her body to see what exactly had happened.

“Hello,” her voice emitted from a speaker installed in her throat just below the separation area, “are you my partner?” she inquired.

“Yes,” Adam said nervously, “My name’s Adam.”

“Hi Adam, my name’s Stephanie,” she replied, outstretching her right hand, “I’m looking forward to getting to know you better while you help me locate my head.”

“Me too,” Adam replied, feeling slightly more confident as he grabbed her hand and shook it. As he shook her hand, he couldn’t help but think of how nice it felt in his, and how much he adored her voice.

Once they shook apart, she seemed to stand still for a while before speaking again, “Are we getting started now?”

“I think so,” Adam replied, seeing someone get ready to speak to them all. After the brief introductory speech explaining the rules and history of the event, they opened a gate and allowed them all to enter the vast forested park.

“Alright, let’s go,” Adam told her, taking her hand again and walking with her out into the field.

“You don’t have to grip me so hard,” Stephanie told him, “Even without my visual systems active, my stabilization systems are able to keep me steady,” she assured him.

“Oh, sorry,” he said, loosening his grip on her hand.

“No problem,” she said in a reassuring voice, “So, what’s everyone else doing right now?” she asked.

“I think they’re all just trying to get to know their partners better,” he said, quickly watching everyone else around him.

“That’s a good idea. We should do that too,” she said, “Why don’t you start first?”

“Alright. You already know my name, but I work at an agency that tries to develop new software for the population,” he told her. “Basically, we analyze the needs of the average model and try and develop new apps and configurations to be added to the monthly software updates we all receive.”

“Wow, that sounds like an important job,” she complimented. “Can you give me an example of an app you added that we all got?”

Adam put on a thinking expression as he analyzed his memory files, though he realized Stephanie couldn’t see it, it was still part of his programming to do so. “I’ve only been there a short time,” he admitted, “but I did get one app approved — one that allows us to customize our hair growth.”

“Ooh, I use that to moderate my bangs,” she said excitedly. “Not that you could tell in my present condition,” she laughed.

“Well, I’m glad people are actually using it,” Adam said a bit bashfully. “Otherwise the majority of work I do is bug fixes and such,” he finished. “How about you? What do you do?”

“I work in People Resources at one of the major A.I. companies,” she responded.

“Ah, I guess that explains your nice clothing,” Adam nodded.

“Ah, thanks,” she said, giving him a slight curtsy since she couldn’t smile. “I thought long and hard on what to wear today since I wanted to give a good impression for a prospective partner.”

“Well, it worked,” Adam told her. “I was the first one here and you were the first one I picked.”

“I’m honored then,” she said, giving his hand a slight squeeze as they continued.

“So, is this your first headless hunt?” he asked her.

“Yes,” she answered. “I never really saw the point of doing it before, since I used to get teased a lot in school when I was growing up,” she explained. “People always used to yell ‘throwback!’ whenever I would walk by, and there were more than a few people who would remove my head and hide it from me.”

“Then why would you wish to have your head removed and hidden once more?” he pressed.

“Well, once I got my job at the A.I. company, I worked with other airhead models like myself, and they told me that they had a marvelous time doing it,” she explained. “This event is, after all, a way for us airheads to show that we’re just as good and sophisticated as you hothead models.”

“Indeed it is,” Adam agreed.

“Anyway, I’m also not very outgoing, so I figured this might be a good place to meet someone,” she added.

“Same here,” Adam said.

“Ah, well I look forward to being able to see you then,” she said in a delighted voice.

“Likewise,” Adam nodded. “I’m curious…are you usually able to see when your head is removed?”

“Before I answer that, how much do you know about airhead models?” she asked.

“Not much,” he admitted, “To tell the truth, you’re the first one that I’ve met. At least, that I know of,” he added. “In any event, all I really know is that airheads have their processing equipment in their torsos instead of in their heads.”

“Well, that is the most basic information about us,” she conceded. “But, to answer your previous question, there’s a small rod that pops up out of our necks that has a rudimentary camera and a microphone,” she answered.

“Oh, is it up now?” he asked.

“Of course,” she laughed. “It’s right here,” she then said, letting go of his hand and pointing at a small rod sticking from the opening in her neck.

“Huh, that’s interesting,” he said, leaning in to get a closer look, and then refocusing his visual sensors to get an even closer look. It was precisely as she described: a small rod with a front facing camera, and microphones on either side. “I take it that the rules of the event have you disable the camera."

“Of course,” she confirmed, “Otherwise it wouldn’t be as fun, or educational,” she shrugged.

“True,” he agreed.

“So, what happens when your head is removed?” she asked.

“I lose control of my body,” he answered.

“What?! You can’t remote control it or something?” she asked.

“Well, I could if I got the appropriate upgrades,” he admitted. “But I’ve yet to need it, and it’s kinda expensive anyway, not to mention a strain on our processors.”

“Ah, that makes sense, I suppose,” she said understandingly.

“So, are there any advantages you can think of about being an airhead model?” he asked; they were once more holding hands and making their way through the forested area.

She made a sound like she was thinking. “Well, it’s easier for me to make myself up,” she answered.

“How so?” he asked, knowing women, even android women, tended to take excessive amounts of time making themselves look pretty.

“It’s quite simple. I have three heads,” she answered simply.

“Wow, and how does that help?” he asked.

“Well, I always keep one head with my casual look, a second head with my business look, and then the third head I use as a blank slate to create more custom appearances,” she explained.

“And I’m sure it’s helpful to have a spare head or two in case something happens to the one you’re currently using,” he added. “I’m assuming they all look the same otherwise…you don’t have different faces?”

“Of course not,” she laughed, “And besides, that’s be illegal.”

“I guess you’re right,” he nodded, “and just out of curiosity, which head did you bring today?”

“My casual one,” she answered.

“You know, I was so excited to participate in this event that I wasn’t really paying much attention to the rules,” he admitted. “How much are you permitted to tell me about what your head looks like?” he asked.

“Only the basics,” she admitted, “but, only after you’ve given a basic assessment of what I look like…based on the rest of my body, that is.”

“Hmm, alright,” he said, then he quickly sized her up. “You’re obviously designed to look like a female Caucasian, approximately 25 years old, and, based on your voice, you’re an American model,” he listed.

“Very good,” she complimented. “So, all I’m programmed to tell you is that I have long, brown hair, and blue eyes,” she said.

“Well, that’s pretty basic, but it wouldn’t be fun if I had too much information,” he conceded. “Oh! I think I found a head,” he then said, spotting a lock of brown hair sticking out of some nearby bushes.

“Well, pick it up and take a look,” she suggested.

Adam didn’t waste any time doing so. He carefully reached into the bushes until he felt them close around a head shaped object. He then brought them out and took a look.

It was quickly apparent that the head wasn’t Stephanie’s. Although the hair was brown and the eyes blue, the skin tone and facial features were that of someone who was Middle Eastern.

“Is it mine?” Stephanie asked.

“Not unless you were manufactured in Iran, or otherwise ordered for an Iranian,” Adam said.

“Oh,” Stephanie said with a dejected tone. “Well, at least we get to spend more time with each other,” she then said.

“Indeed,” he told her, preparing to place the head back where he found it before it’s owner walked by. He stopped part way though, a curious look on his face, “Stephanie, do you think someone else’s head might work with your body?” he asked.

“I’m not sure,” she admitted, “I suppose it depends on whether the head’s neck is similar in size to my body’s neck,” she surmised. “Why?”

“Well, it might be amusing to try this head out on your body,” he said, staring into the head’s blank eyes, wishing to see them more lively.

“Perhaps you’re right,” Stephanie agreed. “Well, assuming there’s no one else around, I’ll allow it.”

Adam quickly looked around and ramped up his visual and auditory sensors to confirm no one was in the immediate surroundings. Once he was sure they wouldn’t be disturbed, he sized up Stephanie’s neck, as well as the opening on the head he was holding.

“Um, is there anything special I need to do in order to attach this thing?” he asked.

“No, just line it up with the connection points and click it in,” she shrugged.

“Ah, good,” he smiled. He then lined up the foreign head on her neck and carefully brought it down.

At first, he thought it didn’t work, but then Stephanie’s body seemed to lock in place as a series of mechanical whirs emitted from her neck. A few moments later, the noises stopped, though the seam around the neck did not properly seal...most likely because the head wasn’t completely compatible. Nevertheless, the head came to life.

“Stephanie, can you hear me?” Adam asked.

“Yes, surprisingly I can,” she answered, though with the installed foreign accent and voice of the person the head belonged to.

“How does it feel?” he asked, not sure he’d have any frame of reference to compare.

“Well, I’m able to control all of the head’s systems, but I can tell it’s not my head,” she answered. “Though, since we’re still playing the game, I haven’t activated its visual systems,” she added.

“Of course,” Adam nodded, “And I take it you can’t override the voice on the head?”

“No,” she answered. “For some reason they haven’t allowed us to do that,” she told him. “Perhaps your team could develop a setting for us,” she suggested.

“Perhaps,” Adam nodded, “Though I’m sure it isn’t really safe for you guys to swap heads like this, so I’m sure that’s why they never considered it.”

“True,” she nodded, “Well, we should probably put the head back before it’s owner comes looking for it,” she suggested.

“Alright,” Adam said, “How do I remove it?”

“I’ll do it this time,” she told him, and before he could respond, she zoned out and the mechanics in her neck whirred some more before she removed it herself. “Here, put it back while I reset my connection systems,” she told him, carefully holding out the head.

“Okay,” he told her, taking the head and carefully putting it back in the bushes, “Alright, it’s back,” he told her, maneuvering himself back to her left side and taking her hand once more.

“So, if the next time I do find a head that could be yours, how are we supposed to verify it?” he asked her.

“Assuming it matches the general description I gave you, I can briefly activate my camera to check if it’s mine,” she explained.

“Oh, good,” he said with a sigh of relief. “I don’t want to risk damaging you or someone else’s head.”

“That’s nice,” she said. “So, continuing our discussion from before, what would you consider the primary advantage of being a hothead model over and airhead model?” she asked.

“That’s easy,” he told her, “Since our brains are compact and in our heads, we can fit larger power systems in our torso and stay online longer.”

“Ah, that must be nice,” she mused, “I have to plug myself in every night while I sleep.”

“Well, no offense, but they do have services that can convert airheads into hotheads,” he told her, “Have you ever considered it?”

“Well, of course I have,” she responded, “I’m sure most airhead models have, but I supposed we do have a few advantages,” she told him, “Aside from being able to have multiple heads, there are fewer latency issues since our CPUs are closer to our body’s motor control systems,” she explained, “and our torsos are considerably sturdier than our heads, so if I were in an accident, it’s more likely my brain would be undamaged.”

“Hmm, the last point you made is pretty good,” Adam admitted, “But since we all backup our memories three times a day anyway, it’s not really necessary.”

“It is when you consider we’re only insured for three accidents before we have to pay for our ‘resurrection’,” she told him.

“But I’m fairly certain we both make enough to pay for the 4th time,” he told her incredulously.

“Well, I suppose I’m a little cheap then,” she said in a huffy tone.

“Well, whatever works I suppose,” Adam laughed, with Stephanie joining in. Unfortunately, their brief moment of laughter was interrupted when Stephanie tripped on a tree root.

“Ouch!” she cried out, stumbling quite a bit until her stabilizers compensated.

“Are you alright,” he asked her, knowing that androids were really only programmed to express pain when they were damaged.

“I think my foot’s damaged,” she told him, hobbling a few steps before stopping, “Yep, my right foot’s damaged,” she confirmed with a sad voice.

“Well, don’t worry,” he comforted her, guiding her to a nearby tree stump and sitting her down, “I’ve got a few rudimentary repair programs installed, so I might be able to fix it.”

“Really?” she asked excitedly.

“Yeah, if you don’t mind, I’d need to remove your shoe…and foot,” he told her.

“Well, considering the only other option is to withdraw from the event, we might as well,” she shrugged.

“Very well,” Adam smiled, getting down on his knees so he could reach her foot.

Once he was in a comfortable position, he grabbed hold of her right foot from her ankle and squeezed until he felt the separation mechanism. Fortunately, all three major models of androids had the same separation systems, so it made it much easier to repair them. He squeezed the pressure trigger and, with a mechanical whir and click, twisted her foot off from two inches above her ankle. With her foot safely removed, he stood back up and then sat next to her on the sizeable tree stump.

“Well, can you fix it?” she asked in a concerned voice.

“I’m not sure yet,” he told her, “Just give me a few seconds to review my data files.” He then quickly perused the files he’d installed in himself pertaining to basic android repair and brought up everything regarding feet. Fortunately, he’d kept the files up-to-date, because it seemed Stephanie had recently gotten a new body per her aging algorithm, and naturally the new body had a few new enhancements that were released each year.

“Alright, I think I see the problem,” he told her, pulling an image of what the mechanisms in her open foot should look like and keeping it up in his HUD to compare, “If you don’t mind, I’m going to remove the shoe from your foot so I can check for any other damage.”

“I don’t mind,” she shrugged.

“Good,” he told her, then he carefully removed the brown slipper from her foot, along with the little black sock she wore underneath it to keep the shoe clean. “Wow, your foot looks pretty,” he complimented, admiring the well-kept toenails, and the soft skin.

“Thanks,” she said with a hint of bashfulness, “I try my best to keep them in good working order.”

“Well it shows,” he assured her, probing various areas of the foot to determine if there were any additional damage, “Though, I must say you probably should’ve worn shoes that were more…athletic to this event,” he said, “These slippers are probably the reason your foot got damaged.”

“Oh,” she said with a disappointed voice, “I was just trying to look pretty.”

“Well, there’s nothing wrong with that,” he assured her, “But this is pretty uneven terrain.”

“I understand,” she said, “So, can you fix the damage?”

“Yes,” he told her, taking a small kit from his jacket and using a small tool from it to fix a slightly misaligned servo mechanism near her ankle mechanisms. As he repaired the servo, it activated the rest of the mechanisms in her foot, making the toes dance around with the sound of the whirs in her foot.

“Alright, I think it’s fixed,” he finally said a few moments later, putting his tool kit away and holding her foot in his hands.

“Well, there’s only one way to find out,” she told him, holding out her right foot.

“Indeed,” he agreed, kneeling back down in front of her and clicking her foot back on. Once it resealed, she regained control of it and then tested her mobility by rotating her ankle, and wiggling her toes.

“Amazing, it’s as good as new!”

“Glad to hear,” he smiled, picking up her sock and shoe and handing them back to her.

“Thanks again,” she told him as she put them back on her foot, “Even if I did have my visual sensors on, I’m pretty hopeless when it comes to fixing things,” she laughed.

“Well, perhaps this’ll convince you to keep me along in your life…” Adam said, helping her to her feet.

“Perhaps,” she said with a hopeful tone.

They continued the hunt without further damage, though since the repair job, she was far friendlier and open towards him, and him to her. Although they were talking more about their lives, they had an unspoken agreement to limit what they discussed, since they preferred to do it in a more intimate setting.

Although they found several more heads along the way, they didn’t play around with them. After another hour of searching, he finally found a head that he thought, and hoped, was hers. It matched all the basic descriptors: Brown hair, blue eyes, and the same skin tone and Caucasian features.

“I think I found your head,” he told her, reaching down and picking it up from the hollow log he found it in. As he picked it up, he brushed the leaves and debris from the long hair.

“Alright, just hold it in front of my neck camera so I can verify,” she told him.

“Will do.”

He held it in front of her neck for a few seconds while she reactivated her visual systems. It didn’t take long for her to confirm.

“You’re right, we found it!” she practically screamed, jumping up and down with excitement.

“Wow, well you look just as attractive as I imagined,” he told her, turning her head around and staring deeply into its frozen features.

“Thanks,” she gushed, “I can’t wait to see what you actually look like.”

“Well, let’s not waste another moment,” he decided, turning her head back around and walking bringing it up to Stephanie’s neck.

Stephanie said nothing, but instead braced her body for the reattachment of her head. Just as he brought her head down, the camera rod lowered back into her body and then the head smoothly reconnected with a series of whirs. Adam had been a bit nervous that maybe they were wrong, but he was immediately reassured by the sight of the seam resealing perfectly, leaving no trace her head had ever been removed. Now that her head was reattached, he could now see her hair was very long — going down to just past her breasts.

Her face twitched a few times as she regained control of all the cranial systems, but, after a few rapid blinks, her eyes opened and focused on Adam’s, her face forming a smile.

“Hi,” she said, seeming to drink in his physical appearance.

“Hi,” he said back, waiting for her to finish taking in his appearance.

“You look as kind and handsome as I had imagined,” she finally said, walking forward and giving him a hug.

They just stood there in each other’s embrace for several seconds in complete silence before breaking apart and starting to walk back to where they started.

“Well Adam, I think you’ve earned yourself a lunch date with me,” Stephanie said playfully.

“And hopefully much more,” he finished with a smile.

“Hopefully,” she winked.

As they continued walking back to the start area, Stephanie looked around at the beautiful, yet unstable scenery and said. “Wow, I really should have worn athletic shoes.”

Adam said nothing, choosing instead to enjoy the scenery with his new friend as they walked back to their future.

[D-wolfmaster_2022]

Awakening

Rachel was walking through the woods. It was finally her day off from tending the fields and she took full advantage of her free time to explore the heavily wooded area outside of the farming settlement.

For some reason, she felt different from the other members of the farming settlement. Many of them were perfectly content to enjoy the simple, carefree life, but she wanted more. She wanted to visit some of the larger cities in the region she grew up in: The Uncanny Valley. She even wanted to meet an android, but unfortunately her settlement was populated only by humans and they had very little interaction with the larger cities, or with the other settlements.

Still, the woods surrounding the northern border of the settlement were somewhat extensive and offered her ample opportunity to do some nice adventuring. She particularly enjoyed examining the insects and small wildlife that populated the area.

On this day, however, she spotted something quite rare - a Monarch butterfly long since mutated by the old radiological waste. It had four multicolored wings and was slightly larger than the normal, non-mutated variety.

“Awesome,” she said, “I’ve never seen one of you up close before,” she said to herself with whispered excitement, pulling out a small device. Before she could do anything with it though, the butterfly flew away. “Drat!” she said, and she pocketed her device and started following the butterfly through the woods.

Along the way, she stopped at a puddle and paused to admire her reflection. She was an attractive woman in her early twenties. She had long, dark brown hair, with turquoise colored eyes and a very freckled face that completed the impish, free spirited expression she usually wore on her face.

Before long, she eventually reached the protective electrified border fence. The butterfly had landed on a tree branch just beyond it.

“You just had to land there, didn’t you?” she said when she caught up with it, dramatically sighing and putting her hands on her hips.

Inhabitants of her settlement were told never to leave the protective fences surrounding it. They were warned of mutated bears and other such horrors that the fence helped fend off. Most inhabitants were simply too content to even want to leave, but Rachel was an intensely curious woman.

Fighting the internal struggle within her mind, she shook it off and decided that crossing the fence for just a little while couldn’t hurt. She looked around and saw a small tree with a branch hanging over the fence. She quickly climbed it and then carefully maneuvered her way to the branch.

Everything was going fine until she got about halfway across the fence, then the branch gave way and she fell to the ground with it. Unfortunately for her, along the way down, she made contact with the electrified fence and all went black.

When she finally regained consciousness, she found herself lying on her back a few feet from the fence. She smelled smoke. She looked over and saw the branch that she had used to scale the wall, was smoldering from being electrified by the fence.

“Oh man, that was a bad idea,” she finally said, coming to her senses and sitting up, absently shaking the cobwebs from her mind.

It was a few moments before she realized something was off. She was seeing strange things in her vision whenever she looked at things. For instance, when she looked at the fire, she could see how hot it was, and how far away from her it was, and what spectrum of colors it was giving off. Just the information coming from the fire was giving her a headache.

“What the hell?” she asked, getting to her feet and looking at her hands. As she did, her hands were outlined in her vision and detailed information about them popped up.

Before she could do anything else, a young man suddenly burst out of nowhere a few feet ahead of her. He had a fairly ordinary appearance and looked to be around her age. A circle appeared in her vision around his face, but instead of showing detailed information about it, the box was blurred out and distorted.

“Are you alright?” he asked in a friendly, non-threatening voice.

“I think so,” she said with a confused look on her face, “Who are you?” she asked. She had a vague recollection of seeing him somewhere before.

“My name’s Ryan,” he said, “I’m here to help you,” he said, and before she could do anything else, he pulled a device from his pocket and pointed it at her.

“Hey, what are you…” she asked, and then she saw the word “Manual shutdown” appear in her vision before all went dark once more.

An indeterminate amount of time later, Rachel suddenly regained consciousness. There was a bright light above her head, and she was lying on some sort of examination table. She quickly noticed that she was naked, and though she felt no restraints on her smooth skin, she could not move.

“Hello, is anyone there?” she called out.

“Yes, it’s me,” Ryan’s voice answered from somewhere outside her field of vision.

“What am I doing here?” she asked, “Why can’t I move, and why am I naked?”

“That will take some time to explain,” he said, coming into her field of vision and staring at her, “Assuming, of course, you are capable of understanding,” he added.

“I can assure you, I am quite intelligent,” she defended.

“Oh, I know you are,” he smiled, “But I was not referring to your intelligence - rather your ability to perceive things,” he said rather cryptically.

“What is that supposed to mean?” she asked.

“You’ll see, or you won’t,” he shrugged, “Anyway, what do you know of the area in which we all live?” he asked.

“The Uncanny Valley,” she responded in a tone one uses when reciting things committed to memory, “A region previously ravaged by radiological waste and restored by a population of androids,” she continued, “Now, over a century later, it is populated by both androids and humans who live together in peace,” she finished.

“Very good,” Ryan congratulated her, “But what do you know of the sleeper population?” he asked.

“The sleeper population?” she asked.

“Sleepers are androids who are programmed to think they are human,” he explained, “Even to the point of ignoring damage or other obvious signs to the contrary.”

“Oh, I haven’t heard of them,” she admitted.

“Well, they do live here,” he told her, “Though as much as they are programmed to believe they are human, sometimes one develops a personality that contradicts some of the programming…to the point where they eventually wake up,” he explained.

“What kind of personality?” she asked.

“Mostly adventuresome,” he said.

“That describes me pretty well,” she smiled, and then she suddenly realized what he was getting at, “Wait, are you saying that I am a sleeper?” she asked.

“Well, you were,” he answered, “But you have been slowly waking up and that shock you received woke you the rest of the way up,” he smiled.

“So, you are saying that I am an android?” she asked, excitement and fear slowly bubbling up in her.

“Yes, and so is everyone else in the settlement,” he said, “Even me,” he added modestly.

“You are too?” she asked incredulously, “To tell the truth, I’ve always wanted to meet one someday…can you do something to prove it?” she asked.

“Sure, if you want,” he shrugged. He then zoned out for a moment and then a seam appeared around his face. Once the seam was complete, he carefully pulled his face free from his head and then stared at her with his robotic face. “Is this what you had in mind?” he asked innocently, the motors moving around with loud whirs.

“Whoa, it’s a little creepy and fascinating at the same time,” Rachel said, staring in awe at the fascinating technology that allowed Ryan’s face to work. Every time he made even the slightest of movements, a motor servo whirred to life. “Does my face come off like that too?” she asked.

“No,” Ryan replied, carefully clicking his face back on, resealing the seam once he did, “We’re different models.”

“Different models?” she asked.

“Yeah, there’s dozens of different android models out there,” he explained, “Much in the same way that humans have different blood types.”

“That makes sense, I suppose,” Rachel nodded, “I still can’t believe I’m an android,” she then mused, “But what about Old Man Tom?” she asked, “Surely he isn’t,” she shuddered, thinking of how old and wrinkly he was.

“Of course he is,” Ryan laughed, “You wouldn’t believe how often I have to bring him here for repairs.”

“Wow,” was all Rachel could say, since her whole world had effectively been torn down in the last few minutes, “So, what are you doing here, and where am I?” she finally asked.

“Each of these settlements has a duck blind set up where people such as I help to maintain the sleepers, since they obviously can’t fix themselves,” he explained, “This is actually a cave built-into the top of the mountain overlooking your settlement,” he said.

“But what purpose could it possibly serve to keep highly sophisticated androids, such as us, as sleepers?” she asked, “Why not just wake us up and allow us to live with the rest of the android population?”

“That was considered when the Uncanny Valley was originally established,” Ryan admitted, “But, ultimately it was decided that doing so would essentially be like stripping people of their humanity and would be a moral crime,” he explained, “Also, it provides us with good material to further improve future sleeper android programming,” he added.

“Oh, I see,” she nodded, “Well, surely you can show me some proof that I am what you say I am,” she challenged.

“Sure,” he said, “I think after the responses you’ve given that you have passed the test,” he mused, “I’m going to reactivate your upper body motor controls so you can sit up,” he decided, “But for your safety, I’m going to leave your legs offline,” and he tapped away on the tablet he was carrying, and she suddenly regained control of everything above her waist.

“Thanks,” she smiled, and slowly sat up.

When she looked down at her chest, she gasped in shock. There was a sizeable section of skin missing from her chest, including her breasts and navel. Underneath was a complex array of technology. She could hear the mechanical components within her body humming and whirring as she moved around, giving proof that she was not only a machine, but that she was alive…in some fashion at least.

“See, you’re an android,” he said.

“But, why was I programmed not to know?” she asked, gingerly feeling the edge of the panel.

“That I can’t definitively answer,” he admitted, “Most of the sleepers here are ones discarded by humanity that we reprogramed to live simple lives thinking they are humans,” he explained, “And some are ones that elected to become sleepers,” he added.

“What about my parents?” she asked, “Did they not actually give birth to me?”

“Well, here, when androids engage in sexual intercourse and are consenting partners, they also exchange personality and physical parameters, and randomly create the profile for a new android to be created - born,” he explained.

“So, I am actually a product of my parents?” she asked.

“Yes,” he answered.

“Well that’s good news,” she said, “Why am I all opened up and naked?” she asked.

“Well, I had to repair the damage done by the shock you received,” he explained, “and it’s not like I haven’t seen you naked before,” he added, blushing a little.

“Huh, you do seem familiar to me, now that I think about it,” she said, thinking hard, “I think I’ve dreamt about you a few times,” she finally said.

“Well, like I said before, you were slowly waking up, so it’s possible some part of you likes me and resisted forgetting about me,” he said.

“Maybe,” she said, “I do find you kind of attractive,” she admitted, “How often do I end up here?” she asked.

“Not too often,” he admitted, “Mostly just when I upgrade your body after it ages out, and for routine maintenance,” he explained, “Unfortunately for me, you don’t usually require repairs,” he said with a flushed face, “You’re obviously my favorite in this settlement.”

“That’s nice,” she blushed, “So is there any more reason for me to remain being opened up?” she asked, looking down at her open chest once more. As awesome as she found looking in on her mechanics, she wanted to look more human again.

“I finished the repairs,” he said, “But now I have a question for you,” he said, “Now that you know what you are, would you like me to remove your perception filter and permanently remove your sleeper subroutines, or would you like to go back to sleep?” he asked.

“Is that allowed?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, “The rules state that if one of you wakes up, we can give you the choice to join the rest of the population or go back to sleep,” he said.

“Wow, let me think for a while,” she said, and she laid back down to reflect on her life…or at least, what she knew of it.

After several minutes of contemplating this life changing decision, she finally answered, “I’d like to stay awake.”

“Good, I was hoping you might say that,” he smiled, and he grabbed some tools from a nearby workbench and approached her.

“So, what now?” she asked.

“Well, I’m going to have to remove your head so I can more easily access your brain to remove the filter,” he explained.

“Wait, what?!” she said.

“Don’t worry, it won’t hurt,” he smiled, “I’ve had my head removed a few times and it is a surprisingly pleasant experience.”

“If you say so,” she said, and she laid back down and watch as he reached his hands behind her head and pressed in on the back of her neck.

She briefly heard a clicking noise as he pressed into the back of her neck and then suddenly, she lost all sensation below her neck and then she felt him lift her head up and carry it over to a strange machine.

“Wow, this does feel sort of nice,” she said, noting her voice sounded digitized.

“Glad to hear it,” he said, and he clicked her head onto some sort of pedestal and then faced her, “Now, I’m going to remove your scalp panel…it won’t hurt,” he said, and before she could say anything else, he pressed in just behind both her ears and she felt her scalp go numb.

“Will I need to go offline at all?” she asked, looking around.

“No, though you may zone out briefly when the filter is removed,” he said, “It is still filtering some of your perceptions,” he said, and he reached into her open head.

She could feel and hear the sound of his hands working inside her head. Suddenly, she felt him pull something out and her consciousness faded momentarily before coming back online. She noticed immediately that she now had a HUD displaying various readouts of her systems, including the fact she was not connected to her body. Her senses also appeared to be slightly more enhanced than before.

“Well, how do you feel?” he asked, setting something down on the table, clicking her scalp back on, and facing her.

“Different,” she said, noting that as she looked at him, she could suddenly access every encounter that she had had with him in the past few years that he had been running this place, “I can remember you now,” she smiled.

“Good, hopefully you have good memories of me,” he said.

“They are,” she smiled, “That explains why I’ve had dreams of you,” she said.

“That’s nice,” he said, “Would you like to be reunited with your body now?” he asked.

“Please,” she said.

He nodded with a gentle smile and then lifted her head off the pedestal and then clicked it back onto her body.

As soon as her head was reattached, she immediately regained control of her body and all the new data regarding it. It was slightly disorienting at first, suddenly having access to things such as her power systems, motor systems, and even the ability to access every single memory in her brain. She absently found herself replaying memories that she’s thought were lost, though she was able to play each of them in the briefest of seconds.

“Where’s my chest at?” she finally asked, trying to focus on the present.

“Hold on, I’ll get it,” he said, and he walked to another section of the room and came back with her chest panel, “Hold still,” he told her, and he carefully placed it over her opening and clicked it back into place.

With her chest panel now sealed, she was glad to be able to feel her medium sized breasts. When she tried to get up, she realized she still could not move anything below her waist.

“Hey, can you reactivate my legs please?” she asked, “I promise I won’t run or attack you or anything,” she assured him.

“Oh, I almost forgot,” he said apologetically, and he pulled his tablet back out and rapidly tapped through the menus.

Several moments later, Rachel regained all sensation in her legs and wiggled her long toes before sliding her legs off the table and standing up.

“So, am I completely fixed now?” she asked, stretching her hot body out.

“Yes,” he said, watching her intently.

“Are my clothes around somewhere?” she asked, though she made no attempt to cover herself up.

“Yes, follow me,” he said, and he walked with her to a nearby closet and let her put her clothes back on. Once she was dressed in her clothes again, he offered to show her around the complex.

“Sure, I’d love to see this place,” she smiled, and she followed him out.

The room exited into a hallway with many side doors. Ryan explained that they were mostly for storage and maintenance for the complex. He walked down the hallway and into a room labelled ‘Historical’.

Rachel gasped when she saw what was inside. It was a large room with hundreds of storage alcoves organized into aisles. Inside each alcove was a member of the settlement, but there was more than one body for each person. Upon closer inspection, she saw that each person had a body for about every ten years of their life, and even more for their childhood bodies.

“Why do you have all these?” she asked, looking at some of the childhood versions of the people she grew up with.

“Just in case,” he said, “I think it’s if anything major happens to the community, such as a natural disaster or other disaster,” he tried to explain. “That way, they can sort of reset the community and randomly reuse some of the younger bodies in order to recreate the community,” he said.

“Oh, that makes sense,” Rachel nodded, “Can I see my section?” she asked.

“That’s where we’re headed,” he told her.

“Good,” she smiled, and then continued walking with him in silence, admiring the different versions of the townsfolk.

As they walked down the aisles, she finally came across her section and she gasped at seeing several younger and older versions of herself, still looking as though they could come to life at any moment.

“Not to sound creepy, but I have come here quite often, imagining what it would have been like to grow up with you,” Ryan admitted.

“It actually sounds kind of sweet,” she said, looking at her 12-year-old self and smiling at how cute she looked.

“I’ve only been at this station for about five years now,” he said, “I replaced some older guy who retired to Soriyama Bay with his family,” he continued, “But I was instantly attracted to you,” he smiled.

“Are you breaking any rules by being with me now?” she asked, suddenly worried.

“No, actually I am allowed to associate with anyone who wakes up…though it isn’t a common occurrence in the settlements,” he said, “I’m just so glad it was you.”

“Me too,” she said, “But what are we going to do about everyone else?” she asked. “Now that I know the truth about this place, it might make things more difficult for you,” she said.

“Well, actually, there is a way for me to adjust everyone’s sleeper programming remotely,” he said, leading her out of the room and back into the hallway.

They walked down several more hallways until they finally reached a large control room with a window overlooking the entire settlement. The window had an interactive display which showed the whereabouts of every single inhabitant of the settlement, as well as their vital stats.

“This is where I spend most of my day,” he said, sitting at a massive computer section, “So, now that you’re awake, I’m allowed to have an actual presence in the community,” he explained, “Provided that my presence be permitted by one of the inhabitants,” he added.

“Me?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, “If I reprogram all of them to think we’re a couple, they won’t question me or your change in behavior towards them,” he said, pulling up a screen.

“Will we actually be a couple?” she asked.

“If you want,” he said hopefully.

“I do,” she smiled, “I was just testing you.”

“Good, then it is done,” he said, entering it into the computer and saving the settings.

On the window, she could see everyone briefly stop what they were doing as they received new programming and then they continued what they were doing as though nothing had happened.

“Well, looks like you and I are now officially a couple,” he smiled, turning off the computer and facing her.

“Good,” she said, and she leaned down and kissed him.

After several minutes of making out, they broke apart and looked out the window.

“So, do you want to head down and see everyone?” he asked.

“Sure,” she smiled, and they headed for a nearby lift that brought them down to a door concealed behind a large boulder.

They made small talk as they walked casually through the woods, but when they entered the town square, several people noticed them and came to talk.

“Hey Rachel, is this the guy you’ve been sneaking off to see?” one of her school friends teased.

“Yeah,” she blushed, looking at Ryan, who winked at her, “His name is Ryan and he has decided to move here,” she said.

As everyone converged on them to meet him, Rachel thought of how earlier this day she was following a rare butterfly and now she had a very attractive android boyfriend. The fact that she was an android, as well as everyone else, only made her smile.

“Only in the Uncanny Valley,” she thought.

This is a pretty neat story. I can't wait to see more stories in this series.

[D-wolfmaster_2022]

What an intriguing universe, Spaz. I like the stories you've posted so far. It's good to see some serious world building on this site. I hope we get to read more stories from the Uncanny Valley. I personally think that Procreation Bay has potential to be an awesome story.

You keep writing them and I'll keep reading them.