May 2019 Bonus Story

Hey all,

Down to the wire, unsurprisingly, but here it is! This month’s bonus story!

Winning prompt: Getting too friendly with your new alien robot friend has... side effects. ;)

Suggested by: SixArmedSweater (Thank you Quinn!)

~2400 words

CW:

• Robot/Human
• Human to robot transformation
• One visit to a doctor
• Sappy nonsense
• Dysphoria type feelings
• Kissing

~~~

This ship.

It's got a similar layout to your last, but it's a little bit.

Colder.

Not just the temperature, and not just that it's newer. The old ship was worn with age, weathered into a comfortable shape.

No, it's. Probably that you don't know anyone here. You weren't super close with anyone on the old ship, but now your the new member of a crew that's been flying together for almost a year. Ugh. Weird.

Yesterday was the briefing, so at least you had like. A schedule. But now, the ship's taken off, and you have nothing to do until repair requests start to roll in. General purpose engineer is a boring job when the ship's fresh out out of port and nothings worn out yet.

"Just, explore. Get familiar with the layout. You'll be doing a bit of everything soon enough."

You head down a curved stairwell, towards the engines. There's a lot of nooks and crannies around here. The ship has a crew of about seventy, but there's still a lot of empty space.

The doors slide open, and you wander into the engine operations room. The core glows brightly in the dimly lit space. A soft shade of red. The hum of the engines gets under your skin immediately, but in a comfortable way.

Why's it so dim? Are the lights off?

You run you hand along the wall panel absentmindedly, bringing the room to a proper brightness. You turn your head and thwack straight into something metal and solid hanging from the ceiling. You crumple like tissue paper.

"O-ow..."

You're running your head, splayed out on the floor when you hear.

"Is this human okay?"

A large lens, unblinking and curious, and a human-like mouth, attached to a curved, cute face, in turn attached to a delicate torso made of smooth, interlocking shapes around a spherical core, glowing red. It looks. Soft? Four slender arms, one set smaller than the other. It's body is mostly humanoid, until the hips split out into three long, spider-like limbs. Despite each coming to a point at the end, it's standing confidently on the ceiling, with clear disregard for artificial gravity.

It's. There's something about it. You are so. Drawn to it. A strange, alien beauty to it's make.

"Is. Is this human still alive? You are not breathing."

Oh! You let out a breath you've been holding.

"Y-yeah, I'm okay. W-who-"

It begins to move with a mesmerizing smoothness, across the ceiling, down the wall, until it's legs are clicking around you, and it's standing over you, looking inquisitive.

"This unit is called RET. It is the new operational officer assigned to engines. What is this human's name?"

RET offers you a hand. You take it. It's strong, and it's touch is warm.

"I'm um, well. My name is. Pix."

It nods briskly.

"Pretty name."

You're sure you light up as red as it's core. It pulls you to your feet.

"Ah! Um, thank you. RET is also a nice name. Does it stand for something?"

It's eye stares at you and it cocks it's head to the side slightly.

"RET is the title of this unit. It has gone over this fact once already."

"R-right..."

It puts its hands together, and settles lower by repositioning it's legs. It's face doesn't change much, but it's body language reads nervous.

"Has this unit made you uncomfortable, Pix? It apologizes. It is new to this ship, and has not spent much time around humans such as yourself."

"Oh! No, no, don't worry! I'm also new, and I'm not uncomfortable you're just really aaaaaah-"

You blush as it puts its hands by it's face and makes a sound akin to laughter, a fluttery pulse.

"This unit likes you, Pix. It would like to get to know you better."

Ah! You try to pull yourself together, quickly. How do you respond to that??

So you swallow, then put a hand out. RET looks at it curiously.

"Let's start with, it's nice to meet you, RET."

It hesitates then takes your hand with two of it's own, holding yours softly. Then it's primary pair wrap around you, pulling you into a big hug, your face pressed against the warm glowing core in it's chest.

"Good to meet you too, Pix."

~~~

You and RET become close, fast. Much of the crew is human, like you, but there's such a weight of expectation with other humans. And, it's like, you shouldn't generalize, humans are fine, just.

It's nice to be around RET.

Over time, you tell it about life on Earth, and your last ship, your friends you play games with online when you're in port. It tells you about the world it comes from, a moon orbiting a gas giant that once housed organic life before an ecological disaster forced them to adapt. The entire biomass of the world was converted to synthetic life over the course of thirty years. It's such an interesting story, the way it tells it makes you shiver.

Work picks up over the next couple weeks, and before you know it, you're bustling all over the ship helping out. Testing loose connections, fiddling with grav generators, replacing dented panels. You like working with your hands, and the ship itself is well designed for maintenance.

The engines are finicky, though. First generation of a new design, there's bound to be some bumps. Luckily, the engine's operational officer is very knowledgeable and the two of you work well together. It takes some getting used to, working by the red light of the engine core, but you have to admit it is comfy in a weird way. It lets you turn the lights on when there's delicate stuff to do.

The dim, and the hum of the engine, and the quiet self satisfied noises RET makes while working, soon feels like home.

It's nice. A good rhythm. Time flies by, and days pass in a pleasant blur, until.

"Aaaah!"

You were replacing a light fixture in the hallway by the engines, and there was a jostle from some microdebris hitting the ship and now you're falling off the ladder. Fuck. Should have had someone hold the ladder-

Then.

You are gently plucked out of the air. It's arms wrap around you, it's touch at once firm and kind. You gasp, loudly, and RET giggles. Cradles you in it's arms, and your hands are against your chest and you feel so, so small.

Eyes full of stars you look up at it. Stunned, staring.

"Pix should be more careful, human bodies are vulnerable to bludgeoning force."

You clear your throat, extremely aware of RET's machine body, where it touches yours.

"R-right. Sorry, It won't happen again..."

"If it does. It supposes it will have to catch you again."

Your breath hitches. You brush your fingers across it's chest and feel the warmth of it's core. You feel lightheaded, in a soft and shimmery way.

"Pix."

"Y-yes RET?"

"Can this unit kiss you?"

"Y-yes RET."

And it does, and it tastes cool and warm and it's lips are firm and it pulls you tighter to it, and it's core pulses in a lovely, simple pattern, and you feel hot, and you shiver and it's tongue teases yours, and you feel like you might explode and a tingling pressure trickles down your throat and.

It pulls away, looking at you softly as you gasp for breath. Right, you have to breathe. RET's core flickers, and it sets you down carefully. Before you can say a word, it backs up swiftly.

“Sorry. Sorry. It is very sorry, please excuse it-”

The doors to the engines slide shut behind it, leaving you dazed in the hallway touching your fingers to tingling lips. It takes you a full minute to decide what to do.

You find it in the corner of the ceiling in the back of the engine room, huddled and looking away.

“RET…”

It doesn’t move, but you see it’s core flicker slightly in response to your voice.

“RET, I know you can hear me.”

Another flicker. Still no response.

“I’m sorry, if I made you feel pressured, RET.”

“No.”

It hesitates. You want to push, but you hold off instead. Give it time to put it’s thoughts together.

There is a soft, sad clicking, right before it speaks. It doesn’t look at you.

“This unit. Is sorry it was so forward, and it assures you that it is fully capable of maintain a professional relationship, despite it’s most recent behavior.”

Your heart drops. You feel lightheaded, in sick and wavering way.

“Oh. I thought. I’m sorry, I thought you. An me? I must have misunderstood, it’s my fault, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

It turns to look at you, it’s face projecting guilt and upset.

“No no no no. This unit cares deeply for you, Pix. But. It cannot subject you to it’s influence, no matter how much it desires to. Kiss you, and things.”

“Wait, what do you mean influence?”

RET whirrs loudly with distress.

“Prolonged expose to this unit, both it’s internal fluids, and contact with it’s core, will have a rapid and detrimental effect on any organic body. It is sorry it did not tell you earlier, it was being selfish.”

Your face is scrunched up in confusion.

“Detrimental… Do you mean I’ll die if I keep touching you? Or get sick or something?”

Shaking it’s head, RET nervously wrings it’s hands.

“No, not illness. All entities from it’s world automatically convert organic material through exposure. The process takes weeks, and becomes permanent if left untreated. It cannot bear to cost you your humanity just so it can. Kiss you, again. No matter how desirable it finds that course of action. Again, it is sorry for leading you on.”

You pause for a long moment, as RET frets quietly.

“But. W-what if.”

You take a deep breath, swallow, and speak firmer.

“What if I don’t care about my humanity? What if, I want to kiss you, and we could see how it goes?”

RET looks like it might drop off the ceiling in shock.

“It can’t ask that of you.”

“Honestly RET? You’d be doing me a favor. Besides, I think I might be falling in l-”

It drops, lands perfectly on it’s spider-like legs, and cuts you off with a kiss, all in one fluid motion. You inhale sharply in surprise, then melt as their arms grab at you, pulling you in by your arms, by your waist, lifting you off the ground, cradling you close, tenderly, with such care you hope that it will never again let you go.

~~~

You run your finger along the seam forming on your arm as it separates into distinct panels. It’s been three weeks. You and RET have gotten. Closer. So close, in fact, that you spent last night sleeping tangled up in it’s arms, your face pressed against it’s core. Every time RET worries, you soothe it. Nothing is happening to your body that doesn’t absolutely delight you.

You haven’t been hungry in days. That’s part of why you slept so close to them. Well, besides how badly you wanted to, and how good they are at cuddling. Your body doesn’t want food, so RET is sharing energy with you until your own core activates and can generate it’s own charge.

You touch the smooth, opaque, glassy surface of the core seed between your breasts. It’s all happening so fast. It will become permanent soon.

You grin ear to ear like an idiot. Permanent.

~~~

The medic gives you a knowing look over your chart.

“Making friends with RET, I see.”

You blush, try to stammer out a protest, but the doctor laughs and waves her hand reassuringly.

“You don’t have to explain yourself. RET is just lovely, I’m glad it found someone who understands it. I was worried it would be lonely, it’s the only synthetic member of the crew. Er. It was, at least.”

Such euphoria, to hear that. You were so nervous going into this checkup. To know that you won’t be scolded for this… Ah. It’s a huge weight off of you.

“I assume from you expression RET explained the process to you, and you are unfazed?”

You nod. Even the smallest movements feel different now. Less effort required. More fluidity to your motions.

“Well, my estimate gives you another week until your newly formed core lights up. If you do change your mind, you have a week to come in, and I can administer a treatment to halt the conversion until we land in port and can get you proper reversal treatment.”

“Thank you. I’m going through with it, but it’s nice to know I could change my mind if I wanted to for now.”

~~~

You’ve never been so happy to see yourself in the mirror. You can hardly recognize your body, and yet it feels more You than ever before. Your fingertips click as you touch your reflection. Your body is lined with panels, and you can hear the playful new resonance of your voice when you talk. Feel the slight shift of micromotors under sensitive synthetic skin. The cool whirr. The warm hum.

How could you ever go back? You’re a machine now. Something beautiful, and sturdy, and strange. Soft in the right ways, and stronger in so many others. Your eyes glow a friendly blue. You’ll never go back, you feel too good exactly as you are. You can feel the potential, the unbound freedom of this form. Anticipation swells in your chest. Pressure from no where, lighting up like a fire inside you. Something, something’s-

It’s-

And-

You gasp, as your core flickers, lighting up the same blue as your eyes. An echo of you old human self, it has a slow, deliberate heartbeat. You press your palm against it, and it’s so delicate and warm. It feels right. Everything is right.

You rush to find it. The only person in the whole world who’s excitement might match your own, is RET and you want to share this with it.

You want to share everything with it.

Sprinting down hallways faster than any human could, smoothly moving through groups without bumping anyone, you find them and.

Your new life begins, at last.

~~~