XTC 2.5

Gina's log. Things have only gotten stranger. I'm still on the run, now an illegal immigrant on Mars, where I'm effectively stranded and penniless. I've finally met X's creators... I think. They're some kind of Darpa-level scientists working in a secret lab, fugitives themselves. I was told I can ask them what organization they're on the run from, but I'm honestly a bit scared to. That sort of thing is way beyond me. I've also met Captain Miller at last. She says that she isn't the creator, that she's a smuggler who brought the scientists here. 'Here' is a sex toy workshop in the middle of nowhere. Yes, the scientists gave up building weapons to build sex toys. Even stranger, the captain looks just like me. Or, since she's older, I guess I look just like her. I'm starting to feel like Alice in wonderland. This is sure not where I thought my life would lead me.

Captain Miller reloaded her vape, then opened the door to the lab, a procedure, Gina noted, that required both punching in a code on a keypad and inserting her finger into a biometric scanner that sampled her DNA, temperature and heart rate. Both scientists looked up as the door hissed open.

"Hello, Captain," they both said at the same time.

"Good evening," she replied.

Gina hovered just behind the captain's left and tried not to stare. She couldn't look either of them in the eye. Not only had she just watched them both having sex right in front of her, but she knew that they weren't wearing anything under their lab coats. This was a fact impossible to ignore—while the woman had buttoned hers closed again, the man had not. He seemed completely unconcerned that he was standing there with his penis in full view of the entire room. Gina, red-faced and trying to look anywhere but directly at him, found herself in wonderment once again at the male body. How could something so small and wrinkly, barely visible in the remarkably thick nest of black hair, grow into something so much bigger and a lot more fun?

"You've had your evening exercise, I see."

"We've been testing a new gel," the man declared excitedly.

"Oh?"

"It instantly warms on contact with skin to a temperature currently varying between 0.2 and 0.6 degrees warmer than core—rectal measure. It's lubricity is slightly greater than typical vaginal secretion (estimated) but it has excellent viscosity retention."

"It takes 30-60 minutes to be absorbed by the body," the woman added, "...not counting the presence of semen."

Gina's mind boggled. The presence of...? Rectal core temperature? She couldn't even conceive of measuring something like that scientifically. 30-60... wouldn't it feel weird having something so greasy inside you for so long?

"It feels good," the woman added, as if reading Gina's mind.

The tech hadn't even realized she'd been making a face.

"It tastes like cherry," the man chipped in.

"They do so get into their work," the captain commented.

"It also contains nanos trackable to a distance of approximately 1000 metres, and easily detectable for up to 48 hours," the man interjected.

Captain Miller quickly cleared her throat. "Ahem, that's not why we're here, actually," she said, looking at Gina out of the corner of her eye.

The twins approached, making Gina work harder to avoid staring at the penis bouncing closer and closer to her.

"It would seem that XTC 2... it's good to see you, 2..."

"It's good to see you, too," the droid parroted.

"...has made a choice," the captain informed them, gesturing toward Gina.

"Oh?" they both said at once.

The man immediately pulled some kind of pen out of his pocket, took Gina's hand and pressed it to her finger. There was a sharp pain as it stabbed her.

"Ow!" she cried, but before she could even register that he'd drawn blood, he turned and walked briskly away, vanishing through another door. As she sucked her finger, she shot an accusing glance at the woman, who didn't seem the slightest bit perturbed, and had begun entering information into her tablet.

"What is your name, please?" she asked.

"Gina," the tech replied. She was uncomfortable yet, giving out her last name, and was starting to wonder just what kind of bizarre circus she'd walked into.

"This is Leah. That was Lucas," Captain Miller commented. "They're our resident geniuses. Gina rescued XTC 2 from the wreck of La Petite Mort. She's named him simply X. Isn't that adorable? He seems to like it."

"I thought it was called Le Petit Mort?" Gina interrupted, glad for something to take her mind off Leah's staring at her and tapping data into her tablet.

"Well," the captain sighed, "never send a droid to arrange the paperwork... at least, not unless you've installed language software first. If nothing else, it makes it harder to find. Made it harder," she corrected herself. "I miss that ship. It was beautiful. I'll have it renamed when I have it repaired. Something completely new, of course."

Before anyone could say anything else, another droid came into the room and stepped to the captain's side. He looked identical to X before she'd given him RealSkin. Gina noticed right away, though, that he didn't move identically. His posture was straighter, stiffer, and he tended to tilt his head slightly as though regarding his surroundings with an air of detached interest. Even when he moved his hands, there was a certain... precise crispness to the movements, as opposed to the fluidity of X's. It made her realize just how accustomed she'd grown to X.

"It's been done, as ordered captain," he told her, earning a pleased smile.

"This is XTC 1," she said, gesturing to the droid. "His name is William. Usually, I just call him Number One... unless I'm cross with him; then I call him evil-minded bugger." She chuckled, despite Gina not getting the joke. "On occasion, I've been known to call him Big Willy... but I won't tell you why."

Gina was pretty sure she already knew why, and continued to stare with a deer-in-the-headlights expression. She felt more than a little overwhelmed.

"It must surely have been a long, difficult journey," Captain Miller said, smiling at Gina. "Why don't I have William prepare you a room and a shower? A little relaxation is in order. Some food, perhaps a nap afterwards? I have some business to take care of, but do make yourself at home." She led Gina back out of the room. Behind her, the scientists were smiling.

"I don't want to put you to any trouble," Gina insisted, though inwardly she was excited at the prospect of a shower.

"Nonsense, dear," the captain said with a dismissive wave, "after bringing X home, it's the least I can do. Take as long as you like."

"If you're sure it's okay."

"Number One, make it so," the captain commanded, with a grin.

"Yes, captain," the droid replied with a nod, then disappeared through the open doorway.

"Naturally, Number One will be available, should you need him."

The thought of being followed around by the unfamiliar droid made her stomach quiver. "That's really not necessary."

"No trouble at all."

Captain Miller watched the tech for a moment, making her squirm. Gina felt as though she were under the critical eye of a strict professor.

"It was quite resourceful of you to find your way here without a visa."

"X had a lot to do with that," she admitted.

"Did he?"

The captain watched her silently. Her eyes seemed to be memorizing and dissecting every aspect of her body, then seeing past that right into her soul. Gina fidgeted with her shirt, unsure of what to say.

"Do you vape, Gina?"

"Yes, ma'am." The question made her want to reach for her own, but she wasn't sure if it would make a good impression, or a bad one.

Another moment of silence followed.

"You have a sizable bottom," the captain observed. "What size pants do you wear?"

Gina gaped in shock at the personal question. She was almost relieved when William returned.

"Done as ordered, captain," the droid said.

"Well then," she said, gesturing for Gina to follow him. "I shall be a while, so please take your time."

Gina obediently toddled off after the droid. He led her down a short, dark hallway past several closed doors to a large bedroom. William stepped inside and stood stiffly to one side of the door. Hesitantly, the tech followed him in and explored. It was quite cozy. Everything was accented with the captain's preferred steampunk style, which despite Gina's expectations, didn't seem out of place or garish, even with the exposed stone walls. Light came from Victorian-styled lamps. The floor was covered with a large, patterned area rug. There was a large bed with several pillows on it, covered by a thick duvet. A handful of tables of various sizes accented the room, and a large, overstuffed leather chair and matching divan sat in a corner, facing the bed. Through a large doorway opposite the end of the bed, Gina could see a large shower. William had stacked some fresh towels on a table just outside its doors.

"Um, you really don't need to stay," Gina said, fidgeting.

The droid completely ignored her. Gina reddened slightly as she realized that William wasn't going to leave the room.

"I'm fine, really," she tried.

William continued to stand at attention, staring straight ahead. Perhaps he was powered down? Somehow, she doubted it. Despite her misgivings, Gina reached for her shirt and tugged it off. The opportunity to stand under real, running water was too attractive, despite being under the watchful gaze of Number One. Dropping it on the floor, her pants and shoes quickly followed. Though, she kept shooting him glances out of the corner of her eye, William never budged, or looked in her direction.

The rug felt nice under her bare feet. It was an odd sensation, having become accustomed to hard metal and rubber. The shower had a polished stone floor and brass fixtures. The floor of the shower was sunk down only a few centimetres, and at first she couldn't figure out how to close the door, or if there even was a door. After a brief search, she worked it out, but as she closed it, Gina was aware that it didn't conceal anything, being a nearly invisible wall of glass that slid across the opening. However, the water was hot, real, and pure heaven. It made her forget everything except its sweet caress. She cleaned every centimetre, inside and out, and washed her hair twice. There was genuine shampoo, and it smelled like strawberries. Busy hands excited skin already teased by a million liquid fingers. She tried to wait, reluctant now to reach climax without X, but it felt so good and it came on her almost without warning. One moment she was washing her feminine bits, then her fingers brushed over a clit already hard and aching, and she was left bent at the waist with her legs wide spread, leaning against the wall for support and rubbing herself over the edge of pleasure. It was small and delicious, but all the orgasm really did was make her want more.

When she stepped out onto the rug again, Gina was startled to see that her clothes were gone. Number One was still standing exactly where she'd seen him last, but they couldn't just walk away. Unless they'd vanished into thin air, X1 was every bit as stealthy as X2. That wasn't all that was different. There was a short, silk robe on the bed. It was black with pink cherry blossoms, and red and gold dragons on it, and it looked expensive. She wrapped her hair with one of the fluffy towels, dried herself with another, and cast wary glances at X1, but he never moved. She coloured, realizing that the shower door hadn't fogged like normal glass would have, but had remained perfectly clear during her shower, and that she had had her back to the room when she'd been bent over touching herself. Some droids could record or broadcast everything they saw. Just how much had he seen while she was showering? How did she not notice him moving around the room? Was it someone else who'd moved things? If he was powered on, was Captain Miller watching her? Gina didn't even try to conceal herself as she dropped the towel and changed into the robe. He'd already seen everything there was to see if he wasn't really powered down. As she tugged the belt closed, she wasn't sure if she was relieved or disappointed when he didn't offer to give her a 'massage'. He was so different from X.

Gina was lost for a moment in fantasy. If it had been X waiting on her, she wouldn't have been using her fingers. He would have followed her into the shower. He'd have pinned her to the wall, taking her in long, deep strokes from behind. Her palms would be braced against the wet stone and she'd be whimpering helplessly in orgasm while the hot water cascaded down around her.

She didn't see her shoes, but she didn't let that stop her. She refused to be held prisoner by bare feet. Left to her own devices, Gina explored the shop. Number One didn't follow at first, which she thought odd. Was he powered off? He did eventually catch up to her, but he just stopped to stand silent watch near the entrance to the room and left her to herself. Despite the fact that they were sex toys, as a tech, she found the partially assembled mechanisms scattered all over the tables fascinating. She only wished she could understand them. As she peered at the innards of one of the curved stands, it occurred to her that the inventors were close to hand. Deciding to take a chance, she went to the observation window and peeked in. They were both still there. Lucas was holding a silver vibrator upside down and having an animated discussion with Leah, who was waving her tablet. Gina knocked on the glass. The discussion immediately stopped and both heads turned to look at her. There was a quick exchange between them, then Lucas came to open the door.

"Hello, Gina," he said, standing to one side and waving her in. William dutifully followed, again standing just to one side of the doorway.

Questions forgotten, she found herself lost in wonderment at all the bits and pieces of machines, and the fridges full of jars. Sitting in the corner were several small, more conventional-looking robots—floor sweepers and totes. She could tell simply by looking at them that they were built with the same materials as X was. One set of shelves held a jumble of sex toys and tools all jumbled together, as if it was the most natural thing in the world to mix them.

"You built all this?"

"Well, designed," he corrected.

"We don't really know much about the building side of things," Leah added. "We actually had the droids programmed to do most of the building. They're better at it than we are."

The droids did the building? Monie's toy, a lot of the maintenance on both the Johnson and the Quickie... the salvage robots? Had X tampered with the suicidal salvage robot...? She decided she didn't want to consider the possibility, or the implications.

"So, you designed and programmed the X bots?" she asked instead.

"Adapted might be more accurate," Lucas suggested.

"Altered," Leah suggested.

"It was an existing design. We modified it to include elements that we felt were lacking. I'm sure an expert may have done it differently."

"Like the shutter in the front?" Gina asked, colouring slightly at the thought of what was behind that shutter.

"The CMi-PP unit?" Lucas laughed.

"The see my...?"

"A lot of testing went into that," Leah said, a dreamy smile on her face.

Gina flushed more deeply and thought of all the testing she herself had done on it and what was behind it.

"You're a mech tech, aren't you?" Lucas asked, interrupting her thoughts.

"Don't be so colloquial," Leah said. "That's not her proper job title."

"I guess I'm between jobs now," Gina frowned. Admitting it tasted sour in her mouth.

"Would you take a look at this?" Lucas asked, quickly changing the subject. He handed her the disassembled vibrator.

Gina almost dropped it in surprise.

"We've installed a Martian Motor in it..."

"A what?"

"Just one of our working titles for the type of motor we've created that uses the new compound," Leah explained.

"The vibrations of the machine cause the Martian Motor to vibrate, which in turn is rigged to recharge the battery of the primary motor," Lucas continued. Gina could honestly say she'd never heard a vibrator referred to as simply a machine... or really considered how they worked. "The problem is, it vibrates so intensely when combined with the natural motions of the machine, that it becomes uncomfortable."

"It also becomes impossible to control the speed, and sometimes to even shut it off," Leah added.

"You created a perpetual motion vibrator?" Gina asked, mind struggling to grasp the inclinations.

"While an interesting idea, do you really want everyone who comes over to ask 'what's that humming noise?'"

"I guess not," she agreed, though her mind immediately turned to all the other things you might power this way.

"The idea was to create one that recharges through use," Lucas explained.

"Making recharging fun," Leah added.

Lucas gestured toward it with a sweep of his hand, inviting her to take a look. The form of the machine was quickly forgotten as she lost herself in the fun of exploring the new technology and helping to redesign it. She had no idea how much time passed, but by the time she was done, not only was it functioning properly, but she had drawn them up plans for a new version that would be substantially more efficient by turning the body of the toy into part of the engine.

"This will also make it lighter, because it'll be hollow inside," she bubbled. "Maybe you could put something else inside if it's too light."

The scientists exchanged glances.

"Amazing," Lucas enthused.

"You do have a way with machines," Leah agreed.

"Thank you," she replied, unaccustomed to praise. Most people viewed her almost as part of the equipment. As long as things worked properly, they didn't really notice her.

"By the way, you did a wonderful job with X's skin. I'm sure the captain will ask you to do William's," Leah commented. Perhaps later, you could help us adjust the X bot schematics."

The chance to modify X? The chance to find out how he really works? She was be thrilled by the possibility, but that amount of confidence in her abilities was nearly overwhelming, and she felt it was definitely undeserved.

"Do you always call her the captain?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

"Yes."

"Doesn't she have a real name?"

The twins looked at each other like she'd grown another head.

"The captain," Lucas replied.

"Say, would you like to help us with an experiment?" Leah asked.

"Sure," she agreed, though she wasn't certain that it was really a wise idea.

"Great!" Lucas cheered, hurrying to the fridge. "Let's test 36b."

"It's the same lube that we were testing when you arrived," Leah informed her while Lucas warmed it in a microwave.

"In particular, we're interested in its ability to suppress the gag reflex."

"It seems I have a high oral tolerance, making test results difficult to measure," Leah explained.

"She can take the whole thing no problem," he said, uncapping the jar. "How are you at swallowing?"

Gina turned beet red, and involuntarily found herself looking down. He'd buttoned his lab coat again, but his lack of underwear allowed it to bulge out in front. It was all too obvious that while he wasn't hard, he wasn't completely soft, either. Every movement of his hips caused the coat to shimmy back and forth. Leah laughed at her reaction. She really wasn't sure just how far she was willing to go for science. Gina watched in bewildered fascination as Lucas picked up the vibrator and dipped it in the jar of gel. With a finger, he spread it all over the shiny silver surface. She was so surprised when he handed it to her, that it took her a moment to accept it.