Inventions of the Future: Android Strippers

“Hey, show us some gears!”

I don’t know why I went into that mech bar. There was a rumor they did full lube jobs in the back and I was feeling lonely. I wasn’t serious about anything, I just wanted to check the place out.

“Wooo! Baby you know I like it when you articulate like that!”

It was a dented, rusty hole in the wall. Someone had half heartedly spread plas over the ragged hole left by some ancient explosion. It was good enough to keep us from tumbling out of the station, but not good enough to pressurize the section.

“Yeah, yeah, take it off! Take it off!”

Not that any of us cared. We were all perfectly comfortable in hard vacuum. Some of us were way to comfortable.

“Oh, yeah, baby, bring it on over to papa!”

I hadn’t seen Half Pipe Paul in ages. When I floated out of the airlock, there he was. Tethered almost within grabbing distance of the performance sphere and over clocked out of his mind.

“Shake it, shake it! Daddy’s got some scrap metal for you tonight!”

I made the mistake of tuning into his frequency. I know it’s every sentient’s right to control their own internal settings but it’s hard to watch an old friend fry their circuits just for a few kicks.

“Oh no! Don’t go baby. I don’t want anyone but you! What do you like? Huh? I’ve only got half a pipe, but it’s a sturdy one!”

I clicked off his frequency just as the next robobabe came out. She had classic human features; red hair, green eyes, peachy pink skin. That’s kind of boring, I thought. The controversy over flesh toned androids died centuries ago.

I tuned into her frequency and was surprised to hear a sophisticated syncopated rhythm. She posed for us, moving to the beat. Her ample curves were on full display, bare of any clothing.

Then she pulled some skin off her wrist. Then she pushed it right back down. Tease. I found myself more interested that I should be.

Slowly she drew the skin off her hand and flung it backstage. Then she exposed her other hand. I was mesmerized by her gleaming titanium fingers stroking her still flesh covered thighs.

This is what true art is, I thought, eager to see the rest of her chassis.

Pug-Monkey Goes Deep

Cream licked his nose and settled back into the crash couch. Bands of toxic gasses swirled around him as he descended into the depths of New Saturn. He was grateful he could ignore the real time sensors reporting atmospheric pressure increasing exponentially.

Suddenly everything went black. Then the cabin was illuminated by a pale glow.

“Sometimes it’s easier for a first timer if the sensors are just piped to the ship’s neural net.” Davy rasped.

Cream studied the spindly gas giant miner. He was folded on his crash couch lazily drinking a bulb of nutri-gel. He had been one of the first organic volunteers for deep dives. He was one of the last ones still diving. Not much to keep organics around now that self replicating robots could do the job faster and better.

Cream felt nothing as the bubble ship was sucked into the entry tube for Station Two. He watched their progress on a small monitor. Station Two was a bright spot of neon orange and luminescent white against the dull grey of the gas giant’s core. Layers of translucent pressure guards were laced with entry tubes. He didn’t realize he had been holding his breath until the last depressurization light signaled all clear and the bubble ship docked on the outer rim of the station.

Cream passed through the triple airlock and into chaos. Refugees from Satellite Station Alpha had set up temporary residences in the corridors. Cream was forced to wind his way through multiple bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchens before he could reach the traders market on the inner levels.

The market was only slightly more orderly than the outer rim. Some goods were displayed behind force shields, some were heaped in piles, some vendors wore smart shirts which advertised their wares and some shops were merely enclosures with a name on the door.

Cream managed to make it to an enclosure named Fat Willy without being stepped on. He licked his nose and pushed the door open. A skeletal being looked up with large grey eyes and nodded at him.

Cream sniffed at the test tubes displayed on an old scratched countertop. None matched the scent Simix had given him. Maybe Janice got the name of the shop wrong, he thought as he stepped toward the door.

Withered sticklike fingers held a tube full of purplish goo towards him. Cream took a whiff and tried to contain his excitement. The scent was slightly off, but there was no mistaking it.

“How much for the whole tube?” he asked in his little barky voice.

“A story.” The being gestured to a spot on the rug.

As Cream sat down the being touched a small device over his head, then locked the door.

“What kind of story?” Cream squeaked.

“A happy story. Tell me about one of your friends.”

“A few weeks ago I ran out of sweet chicken biscuits and I just didn’t know what to do. I had tried to work on a ship but I didn’t have any real skills. I went to the canine section of Station One looking for work. I was so scared. That’s a bad part of the station for me. Then nicest man came up and offered me a job.” Could the device tell he was lying? Not lying, Cream reminded himself, just imagining an alternate history. Cream kept talking for a long time.

Finally the being said “Very good” and handed him the tube as it unlocked the door.

Cream stowed it in his carry pack and slipped out into the market. He followed his own scent back to the bubble ship. He was almost to the airlock when a commotion broke out.

“Hey! Stop that bugger! He sold me the sensors that failed in my life pod!”

“I don’t know who you are sir. Unhand me.”

“Catch him! He took off with my half witted sister then dumped her in a mining rig!”

“I’ve important business to attend. Let me go.”

Cream climbed the corridor wall to avoid being trampled on. His blood ran cold as he caught a glimpse of the man fighting his way toward the airlock where Davy’s ship was docked.

Victor Turmick had just presented himself for a retina scan and been accepted into the airlock. The slimy lowlife who had mistreated Cream and held a grudge against Captain Janice was now sitting in Cream’s only hope of leaving Station Two.

To be continued.