Bedmate Wonder

She carried him forcefully to the airlock, all the while his hands batting at her in some semblance of protest - or perhaps simply trying to emulate human gestures.

Tossing him in, she slammed down on the red button to seal the inner door.

As she glanced through the round window, she saw him scrambling back to his feet - wobbling about.

"I don't know what you are!" she cried through the window. "But I don't want you."

The wobbling mannequin turned to face her once again. Her last vision of him was his hands outstretched in a pleading gesture and his mouth open as he was flung out into space as the outer lock flew open.

***

The next two weeks were very profitable for Irina. She continued finding He-3 deposits and precious metals. Then, the drones returned with sparkling notifications lighting up her comm screen.

"Could it be?" she mused. "Could this be the one?"

She set a course for the rock the drones had found. The small drone zoomed into a crack the side of a rock roughly a half-click in diameter. She parked her sled outside and grabbed hold of the second drone, ordering it to pull her in. The opening was more than ample to accommodate her. After passing the smaller opening, her heart pounded with excitement to see the opening widening as they went further in.

"Could this be a thunder egg?" she mused to herself.

Analogous to the geodes of volcanic planets, thunder eggs were legendary in the asteroid belts. Thought to have formed in the earlier phases of solar systems, it was postulated that thunder eggs formed around magma. If the conditions arose for bubbles to form in the middle, the outer shell would cool and leave the interior to its own designs. Some thunder eggs were simply hollow and beautiful, others were often filled with communication or power crystals worth millions of credits.

"Drone 1" whispered Irina once they were in the middle of the cavernous interior. Please illuminate with six lumens in the infra-red spectrum.

The drone followed her orders and she adjusted her visor to compensate.

One had to be cautious inside of these space eggs. If it were Crystals, too bright a light could be caught in a powerful crystal and quickly bake a miner. Sound was also perilous.

As the light spread out, Irina's heart started sinking. No crystals, that was for certain. In the very dim red glow she could make out masses of shiny material, but it wasn't translucent.

She sailed closer to the surface. Lifting a shiny stone that broke off the floor easily, she punched in the order for the drones to pull her back out.

Outside, she examined the chunk of rock in full light. It appeared metallic. She re-entered her sled and secured the chunk in a vice on her workbench.

"Station," she called.

"I am here, Irina."

"Station, please provide analysis of substance."

"Activating scan."

A camera and scanner emerged near the vice and began circling the shiny rock.

"It is metal," said the station.

"What kind of metal?"

"Type, unknown."

"Excuse me?" said Irina.

"My apologies, but this metallic substance is not easily identified - it is nowhere to be found on the new periodic table - though it would seem to somewhere in the gold or platinum family. It emits no harmful radiation."

"Very well," said Irina. "Returning to station for further analysis."

She flew back to the station and proceeded to the lab where she could do further analysis. The good news, the metal was malleable, and it was also amazingly pristine. Even this surface chunk had no impurities beyond those which had come from the contact with her. She broke off a small piece and fed it into the extractor. Rolling and shaping the metal, it soon produced a very fine wire two meters in length.

"Now to try conductivity," she said. "Let's see how much like gold you are."

If the thunder egg was merely full of gold, she would have a significant find. Though gold was no longer considered rare - it was still a wonderful conductor. Even after centuries, mankind had yet to find many better conductors than good old gold. Being in the same family, even if this new metal came close, Irina had a significant payday in her future. Not retirement level, but good all the same.

She attached the meter to one end of the newly formed wire and attached the micro-generator to the other. This, as they say, was the pudding, and she was about to look for what sort of proof she had.

The trick to measuring conductivity was in tiny amounts. Send two watts through a short wire and the loss would be indiscernible. However, send a few femtowatts through with a meter capable of reading such amounts and one could extrapolate the abilities of the material.

She sent an infinitesimal burst through the wire - 3 femtowatts and looked at the readout on the other end: "5".

Damn," she said. "Time for a baseline. Must have a bad generator."

She pulled out her gold test wire and sent the burst through.

"3 through on this end and point 2.9 on the other. No, the generator is working. Try again."

The results were similar - there seemed to be a gain in the amount of power sent through. This was, of course, impossible. Basic rules of energy always applied.

"Station, explain how I might be gaining energy in the transfer."

"Two possibilities," said the station. "One, the material is pre-charged, but readings indicate no radioactivity or latent current in the new material. Two, the material is an unknown efficient conductor and possesses absorptive properties and is gaining energy from ambient light sources."

"Of course," said Irina, smacking her forehead. She retrieved a black tube and threaded the wire inside. It seemed the wire still maintained some of the charge it had gained, but within a few tries it was back to a neutral charge. Once she had zero state, she was thrilled to know she had discovered an amazing conductor. Properly insulated, this material could be run in a cable around the entire circumference of old earth and see almost no loss in power at room temperature. The significance of her find was the temperature of the metal. Superconductors usually had to be cooled to negative one-hundred or more. She put this material through more tests and found it had to reach PLUS one-hundred and thirty-seven before it even displayed resistive properties.

She was soon humming happily on her way to the kitchen. She had made her find. Yuri was seated at the table and smiling. Life couldn't be better.

"Well Yuri," she said, "it looks like I might finally be able to afford my house on Planet Summer."

Yuri nodded, smiling.

Yuri?

Irina looked in fear at the strange creature seated across the table. He was no longer a pillow - no longer a fabric. His skin was somewhere in between cotton and epidermis. His head was now fully formed and human-like. His lips were real. His eyes were blue and perceptive. His anatomy was complete - including a fully erect penis between his legs.

"Get out!" she screamed, throwing a plate at his head.

"Aaahhhmmmph!" cried the man-thing.

She grabbed a hammer from the toolbelt she still wore and approached him with menacing gestures.

"You are gone! I jettisoned you! What are you doing back?"

"Mmmahhh!" said the creature, shaking his head and covering his face. "Mmmah ha ha."

"What do you want?" she asked. Her whole body was trembling.

The creature gestured to his mouth with his fingers.

"Wah. Wooah."

"You're hungry?"

He shook his head 'no'

"Wah. Wooah. Ugh."

"You want to talk?"

This time it nodded yes.

"You want me to teach you to talk?

"Yesss," he said, struggling. "Teach Yuri Talk."

Irina contemplated this request. His plea was so pitiful and his face so gentle, she was deeply moved.

"Well," she said. "Innocent until proven guilty, or whatever the hell this situation is. I suppose you are entitled to a defense and you can't very well defend yourself unless you can talk. Very well, we'll get you talking."

He moved to hug her out of gratitude. She stepped back.

"No," she insisted. "No touching. No contact until we know more - and you stay in the airlock when I'm not around until I say otherwise."

***

She started teaching him, but it proved very time consuming. He was certainly an apt learner but teaching someone an entire language is no easy feat. Searching through her data banks, she was able to find tutorial program which had been developed for the orphans of Yathir. Between walking him around the station and the tapes, he made amazing progress. While she was at work, he was locked securely in the airlock - continuing his studies.

"I am ready," he said on the third day after she arrived back from the thunder egg.

"Are you now?" she said. "Come on to the kitchen and we'll talk."

She sat down and poured herself a vodka.

"Drink?" she asked.

"Not yet," he said.

"Very well, let's begin," said Irina. "Who are you?"

"I don't know."

"Very well. What are you."

"I don't know that either," he said.

Clearly, he was upset that he couldn't find answers.

"The first memories I have are... blurry, that's the word. Blurry feelings about coming out of a box and then lying next to you."

"You are a pillow," insisted Irina.

"I was a pillow. I'm not now. I'm... I'm for you. I was opened by you and I'm to become what you wish for - what you need."

"What I need is to not have a freaky, golem creature living with me in middle of an asteroid field. That's what I need."

"I... comprehend your concern. I would beg of you, though - if you wish to be rid of me please do not push me into space again. It is lonely and frightening out there. I would ask you to destroy me somehow if I am not to be kept."

The emotion in his voice, alien as it was, touched Irina's heart. Whatever this thing was - it was alive - and for now it seemed to mean her no harm.

"You may stay," she said, softly.

"I am happy at that," said Yuri the mannequin. "How may I please you, then?"

"First, put on some clothes. Second, put that thing down."

She gestured to his rigid cock, which had been large and prominent ever since he had reappeared in the station."

"This?" he said, looking down. "It is how men are made, yes?"

"Well, yes and no," said Irina with a giggle.

"In the vids. I watched the vids and they were all like this."

"Yes, the vids," she said, blushing. "Those are not...typical examples of human men. They are not always like that...physiologically."

"How are they, then?" he asked.

She was surprised to be blushing - but it was certainly a very odd birds-and-bees conversation.

"First, some clothes - and then perhaps we will find a tutorial on the human anatomy."

She took her cloth-ish friend to the stores and found him a spare set of coveralls. She was sleepy, so she took him by the hand and led him to the bedroom.

"I think I can trust you, but I am very tired Yuri. Come with me, and you can study in here."

"Will we do like in the vids?" he asked, eagerly.

"No, Yuri. We will not do like in the vids. I will sleep, and you will listen on the headphones as you learn about the human body."

She set him up on the station by her bed and gave him a pair of earphones. As she fell asleep, she heard him repeating words. "Penis. Vagina. Clitoris. Breasts."

She couldn't help but smile at this odd creature who had entered her world.

When she awoke in the morning she was actually a little sad to not find Yuri sitting where he'd been. She walked to the kitchen and heard Yuri rummaging about. He was no longer clothed.

"Here you are," he said, handing her an espresso he had just removed from the food unit.

"Good timing," she said.

"I knew you were awake," he replied.

"How?"

"I just did," he said, shrugging.

"Yuri, what did I say about clothes."

"Oh, yes. But I wanted to show you - look!"

He pointed down at the flaccid cock between his legs.

"Very good, but still, clothes."

"But watch," he said, smiling.

With that, his limp implement quickly grew to very ample, rigid proportions.

"Impressive Yuri - and many men would give their right arms for such ability. For now, why don't you keep it down and cover it with your clothes."

"Down? By down, do you mean flaccid?"

"Yes, flaccid."

"But why. It is said that it is more difficult to urinate when erect. Since I have no need of urination, I could just as easily stay erect always."

"Yes, Yuri - but for now, down. Flaccid, yes?"

"If you wish."

His 'covering' was more natural this day. Irina commented on it.

"Your skin is looking good."

"Is it?" asked the mannequin.

"Yes, more natural. Why don't you just make it like mine?"

"I can't," said Yuri.

"But, you learned all of the galactic language in three days. You grew that thing between your legs. You're looking more like a man every day. Why can't you just change your skin?"

"It isn't easy," said Yuri quietly. "Learning things is easy. Learning to be realistically human in appearance is quite something else. It is hard going learning to be human."

"Don't worry," she said, patting his arm. "I'm still learning, and I've got thirty years on you."

Yuri was actually a delightful companion. He was eager to learn everything there as about humanity... and about mining. He was a quick study and his non-human aspect was an asset in the field. He had no need of a suit or air. It wasn't space itself that frightened him, but being alone and lost as he'd been before. He loved going out in the sled with Irina and she found her productivity more than doubling with him along.

Every night, he would sit on the edge of the bed and look down at her.

"Tonight, will we do like in the vids?"

"No Yuri, not tonight."

"Very well."

He would then turn, and study and she soon found she couldn't sleep without the sound of him tapping on the work surface with his queries.

***

February 14^th, standard calendar.

Irina woke to the smell of chocolate. She opened her eyes to projections of hearts and cupids dancing over the walls and ceiling of the sleep chamber.

"Happy Valentine's day," said Yuri.

He was standing beside the bed and holding a platter. On it were over a dozen large strawberries and in the center, a bowl of melted chocolate.

"Yuri!" she cried, "Where did you get these?"

"I've grown them in secret. I found the starters in the supplies and helped them along. I read that it is traditional to present gifts of sweets or chocolate on this day, and it should be a surprise. Are you surprised?"

"Absolutely."

Irina couldn't wipe the smile off her face.

"I hope you don't mind the water it took."

"Not at all. I've never been able to grow them. This is an amazing surprise. Put them down on the desk and come here."

He did as she ordered and was surprised when she pulled him into a loving hug.

"Oh," he said, smiling. "This is nice. This is a hug. I have never hugged, except perhaps when you placed the ultravibe on me and we..."

"Yes, yes," said Irina. "I should hug you more, I think. Now let me try one of these strawberries."

"Oh my gods!" she moaned as she took the first bite.

"Are you climaxing?" asked Yuri. "It sounded like you might be."

"Almost," said Irina. "If you are ever human, you will understand why."

"If you want, we could do like they do in the vids and I could bring you to a climax."

"Always the same question, you are more like a human male than you know, Yuri. No, we will not do like they do in the vids. But, that gives me an idea. We will watch vids, but not the kind you first saw. It is Valentine's Day - so we will watch the right sort of movies for the occasion. Come, get into bed with me and we will watch. Station, please bring up the top romcoms of the past century.

"Romcoms," said Yuri inquisitively. "Romantic Comedies?"

"Yes," said Irina with a big smile. "Just so you know, they are all very much the same. The girl or the boy meets their one true love. They hate them at first, they fall in love. They lose them, and they end up together in the end."

"Why watch them if you already know?"

Irina sighed with a big smile.

"Because it is the journey. Just because you know where it will end, doesn't mean the trip won't be fun."

"I suspect you are speaking in metaphors," said Yuri.

"Yes," said Irina, "but they will make sense soon enough."

Movie after movie, Irina watched and laughed - and cried. Yuri watched in fascination, not only at the happenings on screen, but also at Irina's reactions.

After the fifth movie - this one more of a straight romance than a comedy - Irina's eyelids grew heavy and she cuddled into Yuri's chest, who was staring at the final credits with a look of sadness on his curiously textured face. Irina looked up at him and was concerned at seeing sadness on his face for the first time.

"Yuri?" she whispered. "Is everything alright?"

"No," said the odd creature. "I am not human."

"No. You're not. But you knew that."

"Of course, I knew it," he murmured softly, "but I never felt it. Never felt what that really meant. I am suddenly very lonely. More than I could have imagined."

"Oh Yuri, come here."

She sat up and pulled the doll-creature into an affectionate hug.

"You know, your skin is more like mine every day," she whispered, brushing her hand over his face.

"I am learning, or it is learning - my skin and my body. It is hard to describe, but my system needs to learn how to be the right thing.

"Well, come here, let's see how much you have learned."

Taking his face in her hands, she pulled him into a tender kiss. To her surprise, his lips felt surprisingly human and there was moistness in his mouth.

That is a kiss," said the man-figure gently. "This is a good day - my first hug and first kiss. How did I do?"

"You did very well, said Irina. Much to her surprise, her heart was racing. "Let's try again."

They kissed some more. She instructed him in the intricacies of the tongue and had to teach him about the rest of kissing, too.

"There's more to kissing than just the mouth.

"There is?"

"Yes, silly. Remember all the kisses we just watched in the movies. Sometimes, yes, it is just the mouth. But most often, it is everything. It is the hands on the face, on the body. It is exploring the other person.

"You are right," said Yuri. His face was intense as he replayed the scenes in the mind. They started kissing again and Yuri began pawing at her, prodding her shoulders and back as a shopper might poke a piece of produce at a market.

Irina couldn't help but laugh.

"No, Yuri. It is not exploring me, like I am a specimen. It is feeling me. Feeling each other - discovering in a tactile way."

He kissed her once more, and his 'tactile discovery' was much improved.

"I noticed," said Yuri, after a particularly intense make out session, "that this kissing can often lead to other activities - both in the romcom vids and the pornographic vids. "

"Yes," said Irina. "But when two people are first dating, they wait. That's what we'll be doing."

"Is that what we are doing?" asked Yuri with a smile. "Are we dating?"

"I suppose we are, my man-toy. You have brought me chocolate. We have gone to the movies. We have kissed. Yes, this was a date."

"That gratifies me. I enjoy being on a date. Humans date. I know I am not human. But I feel this is a good step."

"You might be right."

***

The next weeks were busy ones. There was a smelter scow which would be swinging within range and they needed to gather as much ore as they could for delivery. Yuri was invaluable not only because he could operate without a suit, but because he appeared to be inexhaustible.

The 'kissing lessons' continued, when there was time, though the pace of work certainly reigned in Irina's libido. Even if she'd had the energy - she had many reservations about taking things to the next level physically.