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The story so far.....
Dani the robot and Nirutam the fain were working secretly on Earth just before the Final Reality attained its final form. They were tasked with confirming that the terms of the Trysta-Grean Pact had been met.
At the same time, the analogue of Lakum in the Final Reality was preparing to take up permanent residence at Observer Base. As an hermaphroditic tryp'At, Lakum played a major role in crafting the Mind Clone Network. At the instigation of the Editor, Colleen Liscan was trying to reveal Lakum's secrets.
The missions of Dani, Nirutam and Lakum were threatened by the on-going work of Yōd inside the AR Simulator.
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| Ice world: Yerophet |
Yōd and Azynov are investigating the origins of human telepathy in Alastor Cluster where they meet the original copies of Lakum and Colleen. If Yōd transmits too much information about Lakum to the Editor then the special abilities of Dani, Nirutam and Lakum will be revealed too soon, disrupting their efforts on Earth and at Observer Base.
In Part 1 of The Yerophet Experiment, Yōd meets Lakum on the planet Triskelion A and learns that "she" is an hermaphroditic tryp'At raising three children who have unusual cognitive abilities. Yōd also begins investigating the special abilities of the robots of Triskelion. At first, Yōd is mostly concerned with Danni, the Asimov Reality analogue of Dani.
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| Yerophet's Secret Police |
In Part 3, Shery activated her new hierion containment field in the presence of both her sister Kresso and Vyky the robot. Kresso and Vyky became telepathically linked, revealing to Kresso the secret telepathic powers of the robots of Triskelion. Yōd and Azynov were forced to alter their plans for meeting Colleen on the planet Yerophet where telepathic emanations from the native Kerub are disrupting the minds of the human settlers on that world.
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| the legend of Forgetful Francesca |
The Yerophet Experiment
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4
Part 5, The Iidi
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| an alien Kerub |
Azynov is amused to see Yōd wearing a mini-skirt and trying to play the role of Kresso's cool aunt. Impressed by Yōd's effort to bond with Kresso, Azynov comments, "My, my, how motherly of you. Kresso is still a little girl so I'll excuse all of her silliness, but it is..." His voice faded out. Why toss cold water on Yōd's fun? Azynov decided to simply enjoy himself; if Yōd wanted to partake of a second childhood, so be it. He asked, "What is a mind crystal?"
Yōd used her datapad to show Azynov an image of the sparkling crystal. "Kresso is now wearing this little gem on a cute little necklace. The salesman said it is from Alastor 1921."
"Speaking of little gems, how goes it with our little one?"
Yōd patted her tummy. "I'm getting better at sensing our child. Roxzel is still quite small, but my nanites allow me to monitor her growth."
Azynov stopped walking along the deck and stared at Yōd. He demanded, "Roxzel? Her?"
"My nanites seem to have complete a chromosome analysis for her. I just got those results and I'd previously decided to name her Roxzel... if indeed she was a girl."
Azynov threw his arms around Yōd, lifted her off of her feet and swung her around in a circle. "I feel like we should celebrate. A girl. Wow!" He set Yōd back down on the deck and looked at her face. "You don't seem thrilled."
Yōd explained, "I did not know that I carried nanites capable of informing me that our little mind clone is a girl. I was expecting to have to wait to find out..." They continued walking, exited from the shopping deck by way of an escalator and now they were on the dimly-lit Starview observation deck. At intervals along the corridor, high-resolution data screens showed the ship's passengers the stars of Alastor Cluster. Azynov kept looking at Yōd, but she seemed deep in thought. After a long silence, she told him, "I can't help suspecting that this knowledge about our daughter is another attempt to distract me."
Azynov asked, "What do you mean? I know you told me that you didn't want to know the baby's sex, but now that we know..."
"I didn't want to know... I enjoyed the mystery, but now I wonder if some outside force-"
Just then, the public address system of the Litless Toru was activated and a loud voice blared: "Welcome to Chadho. We are already taking on cargo and our stop here will be brief. The guided tour of the Chado diamond museum begins in ten minutes. All passengers with tickets for the museum tour should now be assembled for debarkation on deck 12. Reminder, if you leave the ship, you must return within two hours. Repeating, the Litless Toru departs for Yerophet in two hours."
Azynov took out his datapad to check on the spaceship's schedule and itinerary. He told Yōd, "Well, regardless of the source of the information, I'm excited to know that our first child is going to be a girl." Azynov kissed Yōd's hand, hoping that her mood would brighten. He could not understand why she seemed gloomy. "I suspect there is something else on your mind."
"There are many things on my mind including Vyky's two beautiful breasts and the way you stare at Shery's revealing miniskirt-" Yōd fell silent. She tried to tame the wild sexual imagery that kept flowing in her mind and now her thoughts were also swirling around Roxzel. Unable to hide from the concern on Azynov's face, Yōd tried to put a smile on her own face, but it was a lame attempt. "You might not be so happy either when I tell you what I learned from Kresso." Again, Yōd was thinking about what she had seen in Kresso's mind. Yōd had been able to sense a fragment of the young girl's sexual fantasy about being invited to join Yōd and Azynov in bed.
"I thought you were just going to tell her something about mind clones... help her understand why she is telepathically connected to her mother..." Just then, Azynov noticed the reminder note that Yōd had put into his datapad. He asked, "Telepathy?"
All of her thoughts and daydreams about sex had pushed the idea of telepathic robots out of Yōd's mind. Puzzled, Yōd asked Azynov, "Telepathy?"
Yōd was startled and she wondered how she had forgotten about Kresso's telepathic connection to Vyky. "I did explain the power of mind clones to Kresso, but I don't think she believed me. Then she told me something disturbing about the robots of Triskelion." Thoughts of making love to Danni and Vyky swirled in Yōd's mind, but she pushed them aside. "Really, I should have seen it myself, but the concept of robot telepathy resides in a kind of blind spot. I've never really thought that robots were an important part of the Asimov Reality."
"Most people don't, but unlike us, most people never get to visit Triskelion."
"I'm such a stupid puppet." Yōd was wallowing in her self-pity. "I'm putty in their hands." Her imagination filled with a public service announcement: Use NEW AND IMPROVED Yōd vaginal gel! Push it, prod it, smear it around where ever and when ever you need it!
"What are you talking about? Whose hands?"
"The robots of Triskelion!" Yōd tried to explain the situation. While she spoke she was still trying to explain it all to herself and also trying to control her wild emotions. Now her mind was not only cluttered with lingering thoughts of the Vyky sexbot, but she also could not look at Azynov without triggering a powerful desire to make love to him. And then, Yōd slipped into one of her favorite fantasies, trying to imaging which act of love making with Azynov had resulted in the conception of their child. For a moment, she imagined being in telepathic contact with Roxzel...
Yōd was certain that some external force was at work in her mind, trying to distract her with sexual thoughts and thoughts about Roxzel. Earlier, after buying them, she had placed her new nipple shields on her breasts, but now the sensation of her rock-hard nipples pressing against the shields was its own constant distraction and was becoming painful. She reached into her shirt and pulled off the nipple shields.
Azynov asked, "What is that? Did you hide something under your..."
Yōd put the nipple shields into her pocket, "Nothing. Listen to me, Azynov... here we are, running around from planet to planet in Alastor Cluster searching for the origins of telepathy and we never even imagined a role for robots. I feel like such an imbecile."
Azynov guided Yōd into one of the small observation alcoves that branched off from the main peripheral corridor of observation deck. "Robots?" Azynov stopped walking and looked at a nearby view-port. They were now on the planet's surface, but rather than show a live view of the spacedocks, the external display screen was still showing a simulated view of the passing stars of Alastor Cluster. "Are you trying to tell me that there are telepathic robots? No. That is silly."
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| On the observation deck of the Litless Toru. |
Yōd's thoughts were in such heated turmoil that she had been wondering about her sanity, but now she was relieved. With a little guidance, Azynov was reaching the obvious conclusion: the presence of telepathic robots explained everything that they had seen and experienced on Triskelion. It was obvious, but he just did not want to believe it. However, Azynov was trained in science and Yōd knew he would be guided by the evidence to the logical conclusions. Unless his mind was also being tampered with... Gazing at the colored star-streams of the Cluster, Yōd put an arm around Azynov's waist and leaned against him. Something in the sparkling clarity of the stars allowed Yōd to focus her thoughts. "Kresso has been in telepathic contact with Vyky. That sexbot was designed to read Dr. Ektenor's mind and fulfill all of his sexual fantasies. And I'm not talking about the way women can read the minds of horny men."
"Hey!" At first Azynov was surprised by the revelation about Vyky, then he thought it through. "And I had mistakenly assumed that it was all being done with big bouncy roboboobs and three decimeter robodicks. Telepathic robots... unexpected, but it does make sense. This is exactly how the pek would go about shutting down scientific research on Triskelion..." His rational mind saw that Yōd must be correct, but memories of how he and Vyky had cooperated to efficiently ravish Yōd were now filling his mind and threatening to push away all his rational thoughts.
Standing there in the romantic light of the stars, Azynov had noticed Yōd's erect nipples. He wrapped his arms around her and she could feel that he was now also erect. Azynov tried to kiss Yōd, but she pushed him away. "No, stop!"
Azynov felt his heart pounding with emotion. He looked around. "There's nobody here. Most of the passengers are either playing... watching the play in the theater or they have gone to the museum in order to look at giant dicks... err, diamonds." He moved his hand inside Yōd's skirt and could feel how wet she was. He was ready to make love to her right there on the observation deck of the Litless Toru. It seemed like the best idea he had ever had.
Yōd said, "Try to control yourself, Isaac. I think we are under attack."
Azynov laughed, "I intend to attack you in the best possible way, my love." He'd opened his pants and now his erection was pressed against Yōd's abdomen.
"Think Isaac! Think with something other that your cock..." She was holding up his pants with one hand and with her other hand on his penis she tried push it back into his pants, but he was not cooperating with her effort. And her heart wasn't in it, either. "... your magnificent, throbbing, hot dick..." Yōd's legs became wobbly. Deciding there was only one practical way to get past the relentlessly growing distraction of their sexual passion, she sank to her knees and took the head of Azynov's penis into her mouth.
Azynov grabbed onto her head and said, "Oh, yes. Oh, my! Yōd... I don't know what..."
And then it was over. He ejaculated into her mouth and that seemed to release Yōd from her madness. She could hear Kresso's voice: "Vyky is applemint licorice".
Azynov was muttering, "Wow, that was amazing. I went totally out of control..."
Struggling to control her own primitive urges, Yōd stood up and again tried to close up Azynov's pants. He was pulling up the hem of her skirt and said, "Now, my love, I'll give you an orgasm..."
"No, Azynov. Listen to me. Right now I'm craving an orgasm, but that is an artificial desire. I know that these wild thoughts of sexual pleasure are being telepathically transmitted into out minds!"
Azynov stopped trying to get his penis between Yōd's legs. He tried to think objectively about his own behavior of the past day. Now he looked into Yōd's eyes; they reflected the bright stars of Alastor Cluster that were on the display screen behind him. He wanted to slip his penis inside her silky vagina, but... No! Not here. Not in a public place. He asked, "Robots can put this kind of irresistible lust into our minds?"
Yōd sighed. She had finally gotten through to his rational mind. Now his erection was softening and after another minute of struggle and blood redistribution, Yōd was finally able to cram all of Azynov back into his pants. She put her arms around him and whispered, "Later tonight, I want you to finish up that gallant effort to give me an orgasm, sweet lover." Yōd checked the time and then asked Azynov. "What's the most direct way back to our rooms? The play will be ending soon."
Briefly, the purple-skinned alien held her hands against them, one on Isaac and one on Yōd. Yōd felt herself sinking into the blank white eyes of the Iidi, then the creature turned and walked into the observation alcove. Yōd thought she heard the alien quietly saying: Pardon me, Isaac, Yōd.
Azynov and Yōd both looked after the Iidi, then they looked at each other. Azynov asked Yōd, "Do you know her?"
Yōd replied, "I've read about the Iidi, but I'm surprised to find one onboard. I did not know that they travel off of their home planet."
Azynov asked, "Did that alien just read our minds?"
Yōd felt a cold sensation, a kind of shiver crawling up the back of her neck. Azynov took a step towards the alcove, "Let's ask her-"
"No!" Yōd wondered: had the alien been watching them? Yanking his arm, Yōd tugged Issac back away from the observation alcove. "Let's get back to our rooms. Now!"
Azynov glanced down along the deck and suggested, "Let's take the next elevator to our dick. Um, to our deck."
Yōd laughed at his slip of the tongue and they marched rapidly towards the elevator. Yōd said, "Oh, and there is one other thing, Isaac. Don't go blabbering to anyone about robot telepathy. Nobody needs to know that we blow... um, what we know. That goes double for Sybski."
Azynov's grip on Yōd's hand tightened. "What do you think would happen if word got out about telepathic robots?"
Yōd gave her head a little shake. "My fear is that Sybski might simply try to eliminate anyone with that knowledge."
"Try to kill us? Kill Kresso?"
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| infites |
Azynov wondered, "You don't think Kresso's personal shield would protect her from pek infites?"
"Come on Azynov, don't be such a dupe. Do you really think these micro-hierion shields from Triskelion could stop the pek?"
"Isn't that how Dr. Ektenor was able to carry out his research..." Azynov's voice tailed off. They rode an elevator car to their deck and then walked towards their suite of cabins.
Yōd was waiting for Azynov to fully wrap his head around the idea of telepathic robots and realize their implications. She said, "You see it now, don't you? Dr. Ektenor was never able to really accomplish any significant scientific research... no new discoveries, no break-throughs. Colleen and Lakum are really the only special people on Triskelion and that has nothing to do with the hierion shields that they put around their house and the personal shields that they carry when they go out. That's just an act. I'll bet they both carry advanced infites in their endosymbionts. It is their special endosymbionts that protect them."
Azynov asked, "What about the children?"
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| Bimanoid Interface |
Azynov was not convinced. "How can you be sure that Kresso is not displaying twitino-mediated telepathy, made possible by correctly configured endosymbionts?"
They went through the doorway into their suite. Yōd glanced towards the door of the cabin that she shared with Azynov. "Maybe if we are quick..."
Azynvo followed Yōd into their bedroom and closed the door. Yōd had almost instantly disrobed and was now frantically undressing Azynov. She finally responded to his question, "I can't be sure of anything unless I look into the future. And now that I know what to look for, I might just find it..." She had just found what she was looking for in Azynov's pants and she would have proceeded to generate the orgasm that she craved, but just then they could hear the voices of Shery and Kresso through the bedroom door. Yōd looked sadly at Azynov and said, "This is very frustrating... to be continued, later." She pulled on a robe and went out to talk to the children.
Now again fully erect, Azynov decided that his best course of action was a cold shower. Ten minutes later, chilled by exposure to cold water, he joined the others, now also dressed in just a robe that had Litless Toru emblazoned across his back.
Shery and Kresso were giving a rather detailed account of the play and eating from bowls of ice cream that Sybski had served them. Azynov sat down beside Yōd, held her hand and tried to warm himself up by pressing himself against her body.
After discussion of the play wound down, Yōd was anxious to get back in her cabin with Azynov. She said, "Well, it grows late. I suggest that we all tun in. Tomorrow will be a busy day, but we should be with Colleen in Frost Hills by tomorrow evening."
Kresso said, "Mom isn't staying at the ranch any more. She and Maturin moved into the city."
Azynov asked, "She's in Capetown?"
Kresso shrugged, "I don't know the name of the city, but I saw an image of it in her mind."
Shery said, "When we get on Yerophet, I'll be able to call mom on her datapad."
Kresso yawned and announced that she was tired and ready to retire to her room.
Yōd said, "Good night Kresso. If you have any unusual dreams, let me know immediately."
Shery said, "Sweet dreams, Nyky. If you talk to mom, let her know that we'll be on Yerophet tomorrow. Try to find out exactly where she is."
As soon as Kresso's cabin door closed, Shery asked Yōd, "So, you sent us off to watch a play so that you and Azynov could play with each other?"
Yōd laughed. "That would have been a good plan, but there was important news that we had to deal with." Yōd explained to Shery that she was pregnant with a daughter.
Shery wrinkled her nose and asked, "What kind of a name is Roxzel?"
Yōd replied, "An old traditional Asterothrope name."
"I thought you grew up on Tar'tron, in the Galactic core. Where is Asterothrope?"
"I did spend some time on Tar'tron." Yōd was finding it very hard to concentrate. She was craving Azynov and there he was, at her side. And worse, the sight of Shery was like flame, causing Yōd to fantasize about being with Vyky the sexbot. Struggling to control herself, Yōd said, "For a few years, I thought I might spend the rest of my life there, but then Azynov arrived and altered the course of my existence."
Azynov told Shery, "Yōd was my greatest discovery."
Shery asked Azynov, "And nothing -nobody you've met since- can hold a candle to Yōd?"
"That's right; she cast a powerful spell over me."
Shery looked back and forth from Azynov to Yōd. "That's so sweet! Yōd, do you feel the same way about Azynov?"
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| Grean the Kac'hin |
"I think of myself as a scientist in training." Shery held out her empty dessert bowl and Sebski took it away. After taking away the bowl and putting in the kitchen, the robot returned to his place in the corner of the room closest to Kresso's cabin. "I'm skeptical of all the wild tales that you two tell about time travel and sedronic matter. I'm intrigued, but skeptical. I'm guided by the evidence."
Yōd asked, "Are you more interested in mathematical theory or evidence?"
"I don't have much patience with theory. And I'm skeptical of the theory that a man and a woman can fall in love and remain together for eternity. That fairy tale is routinely mocked on Triskelion."
Yōd nodded. "Yes, I've observed that people on Triskelion can drift among an ever-changing cloud of friends, lovers, and sexy robots. I've read that a popular saying is: 'Loving someone new does not diminish one's love for old friends'. Unfortunately, those attitudes have brought the human population of Triskelion to a dangerously low level."
Shery got up and walked across the room. She sat down on the couch beside Yōd. "I think that is why I'm so interested in you and Azynov. It is inspiring to see two people who are so devoted to each other. When I watch you two love birds, I ask myself: maybe this is the way people should be?"
Yōd chuckled, "Some ideas are better in theory than in practice."
"What do you mean?"
"I've been asking myself new and difficult questions since visiting Triskelion. I've wondered if my relationship with Azynov might ever have space for someone else." Yōd put an arm around Shery and she pulled the girl close. "It will be interesting to see how the dynamic between Azynov and I changes when our child is born."
Shery rested her head on Yōd's shoulder. "Here you go again... you are treating me like a child. Yet, somehow I can bring myself to resent it. I think your daughter is going to be a lucky little girl."
Yōd looked at Azynov. "I wonder. I have to worry just a bit." She turned her head back towards Shery. "Will I be able to behave like a normal mother or will my obsession with Azynov get in the way? Azynov and I have enjoyed being free to go racing off to Alastor Cluster or even to another galaxy as needed... maybe I'll be a terrible mother who resents her child and the disruption of one's life that comes with motherhood."
Shery laughed. "You don't sound like the great time traveler you claim to be. Can't you look into the future and see what kind of family you will have?"
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| Temporal Momentum |
"My problem is, I don't entirely trust the fidelity of this Simulation. Back on Earth, there was a carefully crafted Temporal Momentum system. Here, inside this simulation of the Phari Reality, the butterfly effect seems to be in use. Both the bumpha and the pek seem to be waiting for a lucky combination of genes to arise that will allow for human telepathy."
Shery suggested, "Something lucky, like my sister Nyky?"
"Yes, but even more so... the goal is to create human telepaths that do not need the help of a technology like your micro-hierion field generator."
"Tell me Yōd, who are these bumpha?"
"Shery, forget I mentioned the pek and the bumpha. The point is, I could, right now, look into the future by running the Simulator ahead in time, but I might see a different future than the one that we will find ourselves in next year, or even next week. I don't trust the Simulator to be able to predict the future that is being created by Azynov and me being present here; we are from outside this Reality and we have been changing events, altering the course of time."
"Then how do you expect to complete your mission? It seems like a classic uncertainty problem. Just by being here, you alter what you are trying to observe."
Yōd reluctantly told Shery, "There is a solution to that dilemma, but I'm sure that a skeptic like you does not want to hear it."
"Tell me."
"After Azynov and I make a set of observations, we simply reset the simulation, erase the alterations that we caused, and move on to make a new observation."
A shiver went up Shery's spine. "You are right, Yōd. I don't want to hear about my life being reset and played again just for your amusement. I don't want to hear your delusions of godhood."
Yōd stoked Shery's shiny hair. "I warned you that you would not want to hear what I have to say."
They were silent for a minute, then Shery said, "Anyhow, back to the data. Last night at dinner, I was having a whole lot of fun with Vyky. Later, I invited her to spend the night with me in my room. She agreed to those arrangements, but then she never actually came to my room. I waited for a while, but I was tired and I drifted off to sleep. This morning, when I woke up, I wondered what had happened to Vyky. My first thought was, that as Dr. Ektenor's sexbot, Vyky probably spent the night with him. But that theory crumbled as soon as I saw my mother. Lakum was bubbling with gossip and told me that she and Dr. Ektenor had slept together. Mom insisted on providing me with a detailed description of their fantastic makeup sex. In one night, they had tried to make-up for about a dozen years of being mad at each other."
Yōd said, "Wow, I didn't see that coming. I did not think that Ektenor would ever get past his silly fears."
"Then after hearing from mom about what a great lover Ektenor has turned into, I saw Sybski and asked if he knew where Vyky was." Shery spoke to the medibot, "Tell them what you told me this morning."
The robot said, "I told you that the Vyky robot had spent the night in the bedroom that had been assigned for the use of Azynov and Yōd."
Yōd laughed. "Why Sybski, how very discrete."
Shery asked Yōd, "What was discrete about this robot telling me your secret?"
Yōd pointed out a small fact: "Sybski did not actually tell you that Vyky had slept with me."
Sybski told Yōd, "I had never seen either you or Azynov enter that bedroom. For all I knew, Vyky had spent the night in there, but alone."
Yōd laughed even louder. Azynov told the robot, "You don't have to lie, Sybski. Nobody is ashamed of what happened last night."
"I'm not lying, sir."
"Oh, come on. You had other sources of information available to you, not just your eyes. I know that you have excellent hearing." Azynov asked Sybski, "Couldn't you hear what was going on in our bedroom last night? It was a wild ride. At one point, I thought the walls might fall down."
Yōd said, "Oh, I remember that point." Yōd breathed warmly into Azynov's ear, "I don't believe I've ever seen you make a better point." She could see that Azynov was stiffening under his robe. Yōd resisted the temptation to reach out and stroke-
Shery grinned and gently punched Yōd's shoulder. "Now you two are teasing me about your sexcapades."
"Well, I was trying to tell you earlier..." Yōd turned her head back towards Shery and then she ran her fingers through Shery's hair. Images of Vyky flashed in Yōd's mind. "During my visit to Triskelion I was quite intrigued by the robots. I could not resist sampling some robot sex. I discovered that robosex is fun, but it only made me appreciate Azynov even more than usual."
Shery peered past Yōd's perky nipples where they punctuated her silky robe and asked Azynov, "What about you, Isaac, didn't Vyky make you question your exclusive relationship with Yōd?"
"No."
"Not even last night when the walls were shaking?"
"No, Vyky did not get in my way. Although, I must say, it seemed as if Vyky was a kind of sexual amplifier. Between the two of us, I think Vyky and I were able to take Yōd to a whole new level of pleasure. We put on quite a performance."
Yōd told Azynov, "It was wonderful. I hope you learned a trick or two from Vyky... added some new tools of the trade to your toolbox, so to speak."
"I'm always willing to try something new, my love. Any time you want me to experiment, all you have to do is ask. I'm rather conservative, and unless you make suggestions, I'm likely to keep using the same old tool... old faithful."
Yōd said wistfully, "It is a tricky proposition. I'm not so much interested in experiments as fine craftsmanship. Vyky has apparently had a lot of experience between the sheets. If she opened up a school, we could all learn a lot from her."
Shery nodded, "I think that is what my mother was trying to tell me this morning. She has always been anti-robot and told me not to screw the household robots. Then, this morning, she reminded me that I'm an adult and I can make up my own mind about who -or what- to sleep with."
Azynov said, "These sex-crazy robots have relentlessly invaded human society on Triskelion. Humans can't compete. Eventually, the last generation of humans will die off and not be replaced."
Yōd rested her head on Azynov's shoulder and suggested, "Or maybe the last few humans will be quietly replaced by humanoid robots that nobody in the Cluster will recognize as being robots."
Shery sighed. "You two should get a room. The two of you cuddling up with each other and all this talk of sexbots has made me very horny." She got off of the couch and told Yōd. "I hope that I meet someone who I'll be able to spend my life with." She wandered down the hallway to her room.
Azynov picked up Yōd and carried her to their bedroom. On their way past Sybski, Yōd told the robot, "If anyone asks, you can tell them that you saw both of us go into our bedroom tonight."
Azynov closed the door and tossed Yōd on the bed. Then he had second thoughts and went back into the hallway. Sybski was still sitting there at the entrance to the hallway, watching the door to Kresso's cabin. Azynov pointed towards the entertainment center and told the robot, "Please turn the music on."
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| the Book of the Ship |
Azynov pulled off his robe and jumped onto the bed. "It is nothing rational. Somehow I found it exciting to have Vyky in bed with us, helping me please you. It was like having a handy vibrator available. I don't feel the same way about the ever-lurking and leering and lying Sybski. I don't trust that robot." But then the sound of music could be heard coming down the hallway. Azynov dismissed thoughts of robots from his mind and the only thing that remained was Yōd.
It wasn't until the small hours in the middle of the night that they took the time for a little side trip to Yerophet. They rented a hotel room at the spaceport and got a good solid nine hours of sleep. Late in the day, the Litless Toru arrived, only running one hour behind schedule. Based on that information from the "future", Azynov reset the AR Simulation, allowing he and Yōd to skip back in time and buy airflight tickets best suited for when their spaceship would arrive on Yerophet.
During the time when Azynov and Yōd were waiting to find out precisely when the Litless Toru would land on Yerophet, Azynov was reading about the climate of Yerophet and giving thanks that he had not yet been exposed to the sub-freezing conditions that were to be found on most of the planet. With one hand he made use of a datapod while Yōd led him through the spaceport, holding his other hand. The spaceport seemed over-crowded and full of families. Yōd asked, "What's going on? You told me that there is an immigration problem here on Yerophet, but I never imagined..."
Azynov explained, "I researched the situation here on Yerophet quite carefully when I first came to Alastor Cluster... because of the Kerub telepathy rumors. However, it is a problem that has been building up for decades. With increasing talk about telepathic contacts between settlers and the Kerub, the Tuntoci have been arriving in increasing numbers, overwhelming government attempts to regulate the influx. Then with the recent deaths of children out on the Kerub frontier, the government ordered evacuations of the borderland districts. Still the Tuntoci immigrants keep arriving, even when there is no more living space in the cities. The Government has been forced to start enforcing immigration rules. Trying to enforce them. It is really a hopeless situation. Completely out of control."
Yōd then noticed a poster inside the spaceport that proclaimed Litless Toru was going to soon be taken out of service for a major rebuild. Yōd read from the poster, "This will be the fifth rebuild of the ship, again doubling the size of Litless Toru and the vast scope of the upgrades motivate us to also change the name of the ship. Please submit your entry to the renaming contest. Names with ancient historical pedigrees are desired." Yōd pointed at the poster and squeezed Azynov's hand for emphasis, "There you go, Isaac. You are a maven of ancient Earth history. What is a good name for a spaceship?"
Yōd activated her datapad and submitted a name to the contest: Hierion Queen. Then, before returning the datapad to her pocket, Yōd remembered the reminder that she had put on Azynov's device. "Give me your datapad."
Azynov shrugged and handed her his datapad. She found the note and showed it to him: Telepathic Robots. Yōd muttered, "That slimy Sybski! This has gone far enough. That machine keeps erasing my memories and making me act like a nympho. I'm taking Kresso and the robot back to Triskelion." She gave Azynov his datapad. "Let's check the flight schedules and find the best connection back to Triskelion.
After ten minutes of examining itineraries for the various spaceliners that visited Triskelion, Azynov put away his data pad. "I can't find an alternative that is better than just staying aboard the Litless Toru."
Yōd had searched the Alastor Cluster space flight database for the fastest routes linking Yerophet and Triskelion. She'd discovered that most spaceships going to Triskelion were automated freighters. Some could carry a few passengers, but they had only spartan facilities for humans.
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| on Yerophet |
Azynov pulled Yōd close and wrapped her in his arms, "I don't want to be separated from you."
"Nor do I want to be away from you, my love. But what choice do we have?"
When their preliminary mission on Yerophet was complete, Azynov and Yōd returned to the Litless Toru, arriving shortly before Shery and Kresso were ready for breakfast.
Next: Part 6 of The Yerophet Experiment, "Maturin".
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