Cover Nanites

Figure 1. "The Hua Nanites", AI-style

 Having just completed a 16,000 word science fiction story called The Hua Nanites, I'm feeling pretty good about the shape of the story itself and also the way I resisted the temptation to expand the story and belabor some of the issues raised during Tyhry's adventure on Sermyth. However, now that the story is written, I do still feel the need to make a book or magazine cover for the story (see the completed cover image, below).

Mr. Wombo. I'm experimenting with AI-generated images, so I decided to try to create a cover image for The Hua Nanites using the WOMBO software. I began with a text prompt that I suspected would fail to generate anything useful: "The Hua Nanites". Sometimes I have to shake my head in dismay when dealing with artificial "intelligence" programs (see Figure 1). I've been working with WOMBO "realistic" style, but I can't even begin to imagine how someone could call these faces realistic. 

Figure 2. "Nanites"

 Educating Mr. Wombo. Normally, after seeing the AI software totally fail to get close to what I had in mind, I would have provided the software with a reference image. However, I wanted to know if "nanite" would have any "meaning" for Mr. Wombo (see Figure 2). Innies? 

Figure 3. More nanites here.

Next I tried expanding the prompt to: "nanites, alien technology, nanoscopic, exoplanet science, futuristic" (Figure 3).

I then made a reference image which included the upper left corner of Figure 3 and also another "nanite" image that I found on the internet. I also slightly expanded the prompt to be: "nanites, alien technology, fractal complexity, nanoscopic, exoplanet science, futuristic". The very next image was looking pretty good and I felt that my efforts were heading in a reasonable direction:

Figure 4. "nanites, alien technology, fractal complexity, nanoscopic, exoplanet science, futuristic"

This image made with Elena17
and yennefer by
Eclesi4stiK available
under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0.

I also wanted the cover image for The Hua Nanites to include some DNA. At the time of Tyhry's visit to Sermyth, the Hua have been carrying out sophisticated genetic engineering for thousands of years. The ways in which the Hua had altered their own biological nature plays a fairly major role in The Hua Nanites. I wanted to depict nanites as being used to help the Hua edit their genome. I ended up creating a fairly complex composite image of about two dozen AI-generated images (see Figure 5, below).

The Hua are aliens from a distant galaxy, and while they are very similar in appearance to Earthly humans, they have different skin pigmentation. In the The Hua Nanites I describe the Hua as having distinctive pink skin, the sight of which is difficult for Tyhry to adapt to when she visits Sermyth and lives among the Hua.

Image credits: "Snowy landscape"
by Aled Jones and "Fi in Mountains"
by Henry1850 (CC BY-NC 3.0).

 Image Credits. I also wanted there to be some human figures embedded in the cover image for The Hua Nanites. Zeptites are amazingly tiny and I've previously imagined nanoscopic humanoid replicoids. There could easily be nanoscopic replicoids composed of zeptites who could fit into a molecular-scale scene where gene editing is taking place. For my new cover image, I included scaled-down versions of two human figures created by Eclesi4stiK that are described here.

Since there are also robots in The Hua Nanites, I included another scaled down image of a pink robot that can be seen at full size on this page.

I also included an AI-generated image of a Hua riding a horse (monne) that was similar to figure 14 as shown on this page. Can you find all five of these little humanoid surprises on the cover?

Figure 5. The full sized version can be seen here.

 Figure 5 shows my cover image for The Hua Nanites. I like to imagine that someday Tyhry might be able to publish accounts of her adventures inside the Reality Simulation System. Those stories will have to be presented as science fiction, even if they are real adventures. However, right at the end of The Hua Nanites, Tyhry is showing signs of losing interest in Sermyth, so it might be up to Rylla to interview both Tyhry and Onky and write the definitive book on the Hua.

click image to enlarge

I was tempted to put an image of a Hua aircar into the cover image, but I restrained myself. However, one of the moons of Sermyth is present in the cover image. Can you find it? 🌖 Hint: find the zeptite cowgirl.

I had a lot of fun illustrating The Hua Nanites. By my count, I created about 25 new images for this story, many of them in the form of imaginary book and magazine covers (example). 

in the First Reality (see)

The end of The Hua Nanites arrives rather suddenly, and Tyhry does not tell readers if Mym returned to Earth from Observer Base after she repaired the teleportation equipment. In my mind, the replicoid copy of Mym stays inside Eternity and contributes stories about Sermyth to the archives of the Writers Block. Maybe that copy of Mym becomes the friend of Amiante.

 Meta Writing. What about my Change Challenge goals for 2023? So far, at least, I have felt no burning desire to create a prequel story for The Hua Nanites. With luck, this story will remain the record holder as an account of the earliest known events in our universe. At the end of The Hua Nanites, Manny removes Tyhry's bookmarked access coordinates for the Sermyth Simulation. Manny had briefly placed those coordinates into the control software of the Reality Simulation System. However, for some mysterious reason, Manny does not want there to be any other visits to Sermyth by Earthlings.

Figure 6

Right at the end of The Hua Nanites, there is also a hint that Manny has edited Tyhry's memories of her time spent on Sermyth, possibly removing Tyhry's memories of all the good times that she had with Mym. My thinking is that if placed inside a Hua body (as was done for The Hua Nanites), Tyhry could live happily ever after with Myn within Hua society, but things would not work out so well if they tried living together on Earth.

Teleportation. Maybe the Mym replicoid will build herself a new zeptite programming laboratory at Observer Base. Now that the Eternity teleportation system has been repaired, might it be possible for Tyhry to visit Observer Base? Both Mr. Wombo and I continue to struggle with how to visually depict teleportation in static images (see Figure 6). 

Figure 7. A message from the Blogger AI.

Fig. 8. She was too hot for Blogger.
This imaginary magazine cover was
made by using an image
called "Elena9" that was created by
 Eclesi4stiK under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0.

 Too Hot for Blogger. On the subject of dealing with artificial intelligence programs, I got a message from the Google AI (see Figure 7) that endlessly scans YouTube videos and Blogger blog posts for violations of the terms of use for these services. When I published my blog post called Nezzy Resort, it was flagged as constituting a violation. 

Apparently the offending image was my depiction of Quyn Vye (see Figure 8). You can see the full sized image here. When I replaced that image, the Blogger AI no longer felt that my blog post was in violation of its standards.

My depiction of Quyn Vye included her huge breasts. As part of the alien Hua culture on Sermyth, social lactation is a common form of social behavior. The Hua have been genetically engineered so that they grow big breasts. An older lady like Quyn is fighting breast droop and typically has to wear an anti-gravity bra made of nanites. I guess her lacy bra showed too much alien nipple for Google's AI. 🤯

too hot for YouTube (see)

What is particularly frustrating about this whole affair is that although this image got flagged, it is still on display at the bottom of another blog post: The Search for the Hua.

I ran into a similar situation on YouTube two years ago. The Google image-scanning AI seems to pay extra attention to video thumbnail images and the first image on blog posts.

Fig. 8.5. replacement part

 Fix Up. I wanted a replacement image that I could position at the top of "Nazzy Resort". I used this WOMBO text prompt: "pulp science fiction heroine wearing a futuristic jumpsuit and using advanced medical devices in the pediatric hospital, fancy belt, tight jumpsuit, big hair, blue eyes, foxy boots, flashy gloves". With this science fiction-oriented text prompt, Mr. WOMBO seemed to have trouble with the idea of a pediatric hospital. 

To be fair to the software, it is best to see what the image-generating algorithm can do under optimal conditions. Shown below is the type of image that Mr. WOMBO can make when I don't force a Sci Fi scenario down his throat.

Mr. Wombo's nurse.

Wombo disease.

Using a more conventional prompt Mr. WOMBO did much better at depicting a hospital. For the image to the left I asked for a pediatric nurse. For the image to the right, I also asked for some patients. 

Sadly, these patients seem to suffer from Wombo disease. Mr. Wombo has trouble with human anatomy, particularly faces and fingers.

pediatric hospital

Mr. WOMBO did generate one "pulp Sci Fi" image that I could almost imagine being set in a hospital (see the image to the left). I was thinking about an imaginary book cover that would have something to do with the genetic engineering of the alien Hua an the planet Sermyth, but Mr. WOMBO was in the mood for creating robots and replicoids. The question became, what was that in her hand (Fig. 8.5, above)? Maybe it is the last piece of the puzzle for the creation of an hermaphroditic replicoid.

reference art

To create this AI-generated image (The Hermaphroditic Robots of Sermyth, Fig. 8.5, above) I began with some pulp science fiction magazine cover art by Ed Emshwiller (reference image shown to the right). 

see the full image here

Eventually, I settled for an imaginary book cover for Search for the Zeptites of Sermyth. I'm not sure what Angela Fersoni might have thought when she gained access to the Sedron Time Stream and began learning about the First Reality. In this case, I imagine that she shared her "visions" of Deep Time with her clone sister Ivory. So, Ivory gets the blame for writing Search for the Zeptites of Sermyth.

text only

text only

The first two images show the results from using only a text prompt with the online WOMBO image-generating software. I began with this text prompt: "alien plants, botany, growing leaves, futuristic scientist, fractal complexity, planter girl wearing jumpsuit, long hair, blue eyes, sky flowers, god glow skin, human-plant hybrid, pretty face". I was particularly amused by the long purple hair seen in the image to the right.

I then began using the following visual reference...

reference image (see)

And I also changed the text prompt to: "alien plant person, botany, growing leaves, futuristic scientist, fractal complexity, planter girl wearing jumpsuit, long hair, blue eyes, arms raised, bird on shoulder, human-plant hybrid, happy face".

Planting Time

The software began producing image such as the on shown to the right. I particularly liked this image because it is easy for me to imagine that the woman in the golden jumpsuit has planted her foot in the flower pot. Is she really a plant-person who just happens to look quite human?

Chynsy the gardener.

In the image shown to the left, the image-generating software stopped trying to include a human figure on the left side of the scene and instead gave us a plant person seemingly at work... I'm not sure what Miss Chynsy is doing with those two long sticks.

Adjusting the influence.

clothing for plants

The software sometimes dressed the plant-person in clothing as shown in the image to the right. There are frequent mysteries such as why the hands in this image are rendered in blue. I guess "blue eyes" can be interpreted in many ways.

A garden of animals.

In some images (such as the one shown to the left), I could imagine that the plant-person was at work growing small humans in its animal garden and then harvesting them when ripe.

Birds and Bees.

The WOMBO Dream software allows for some variation in how closely the generated image conforms to the reference image. Below are three examples for the weak, normal and strong settings all using the "Birds and Bees" reference image that is shown to the right. Another mystery is the varying degree to how much the figure on the left side of the scene gets blurred.

strong (left), normal (center) and weak (right)

Botanical Elopement (see).

The three images above were made using this text prompt: "cute alien plant-girl on the right side of the scene, pretty human girl dressed in tight jumpsuit shown on top left side of the scene, some birds and bees, some small elf figures".

the AI-copy

The figure on the left shows my destination; a human is eloping with a plant-person. This image was a Photoshop composite made from several AI-generated images. The image to the right shows another AI-generated image that was made using the image to the left as a reference and this text prompt: "side of a house, tree on right side of image, cute alien plant-girl at the lower right side of the scene, pretty human girl on top left side of the scene climbing, botanical elopement at night"

Plant-girl.

After seeing the AI-generated image that is above and to the right, I was unsure if "plant-girl" had any meaning for Mr. WOMBO. 

fractal jewelry

The image to the left was generated by this prompt: "alien plant-girl with green skin and green elf ears and complex fractal jewelry". I was amused when this plant-girl was placed on a catwalk. Maybe this can start a new fashion trend. The image to the right shows an example of AI-generated "complex fractal jewelry".

Fig. 9. See this 1954 pulp magazine cover.

 And Robots. For my science fiction story The Hua Nanites I imagined that the Hua make use of household servant robots. To craft a depiction of Yrsy and Rysy, I started with "humanoid robot" as my prompt in the WOMBO AI-image generating software. The AI-generated robot is in the lower right corner of Figure 9. Ed Emshwiller's robot girl is more what I had in mind.

Emshwiller style?

I next asked for "two humanoid robots and a human repair technician, Emshwiller style" and used Figure 9 as the reference image. Mr. WOMBO seems to be numerically challenged and on the first try, made an image with three robots, not two. On the second try, I got two robots, but with freaky hands (see the image to the left).

Figure 10.

There is a limit of 200 characters in the text prompt for image generation. I escalated to: "two humanoid robots, with cute heads, pretty faces, wearing miniskirts, hands with five fingers, include the legs and feet, repair technician, Emshwiller style". The resulting image (Figure 10) was pretty funny. One of the jobs for Yrsy and Rysy is cooking meals for their owners. The third arm coming out of the abdomen is really freaky.

Figure 11. Full sized image here.

My final version is shown in Figure 11. For the faces of the robots, I had to use two images from Eclesi4stiK; the image called "Elena9" that was also used to make a depiction of Quyn Vye (see Figure 8) as well as
"RedHairedBeauty02" by
 Eclesi4stiK under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0. 

The robots of Sermyth are composed of zeptites and they can alter their shape and appearance by rearranging their nanite components. In private, they often amuse themselves by taking on using the facial features of their Hua masters. They can quickly change their body parts into useful robotic appendages that are more efficient for tasks like cooking than are biological arms and legs.

Figure 12.

Figure 13.

 Vance Characters. I've been amusing myself by using Jack Vance's verbal descriptions of characters as text prompts for the WOMBO image-generating software. Vance put some effort into "painting" his characters with his words. Here (Figures 12 and 13) is "beauty" Dasce from Vance's novel Star King: "a man, torso is a tube, long thin arms, head is tall and round, a ruff of red hair, chalk blue cheeks, red neck, cleft nose, blue eyes". According to Mr. WOMBO, Figure 12 is "realistic" and Figure 13 is a "figure".

Figure 14.

Figure 15.

I used the 1963 painting of Dasce by Ed Emshwiller as a reference (Figure 14) and got the AI-generated image shown in Figure 15.

Figure 16.

When I added "Emshwiller style" to the text prompt I got Figure 16. I changed the prompt to: "three men and a rocket ship, closeup on right a man, torso is a tube, long thin arms, head is tall and round, a ruff of red hair, chalk blue cheeks, red neck, cleft nose, blue eyes, Emshwiller style".

Figure 17. Rockets.

Rocket Man. As soon as I mentioned "rocket" the AI was able to figure out that the tall blue thing in Figure 14 is a spaceship (see Figure 17). Amusingly, it also turned Dasce's hair into a flying saucer. Jack Vance actually said that Dasce's cheeks were, "balls of bright chalk-blue, like a pair of mildewed oranges".

Figure 18.

I changed the prompt to "science fiction, blue rocket ship to the left, man on right side with long thin arms, glasses, head is tall and round, a ruff of red hair, blue cheeks, red neck, cleft nose, blue eyes". I finally got an image with a blue cheek (Figure 18). I wonder what Vance would have said if he had lived to see this kind of "art".

Related: See this page for a teleportation animation.

Next: Depicting Marda

visit the Gallery of Movies, Book and Magazine Covers

The Sedron Swap

image information

 Below on this blog page is Part 4 of a science fiction story called The Hua Nanites. Previously, in Part 3, Tyhry and Onky had begun to integrate themselves into the Hua culture of Sermyth and they quickly discovered that they enjoyed the relaxed, fun-loving life-style of the Hua. For the first time, it crosses Tyhry's mind that regardless of the outcome of her mission, it might be desirable to leave a copy of herself inside this Simulation, a copy that need never return to Earth.

While participating in the Vye family vacation, Tyhry also begins to discover that Mym Vye is an expert programmer of Hua zeptites. Mym has fallen in love with Tyhry and so they discuss the possibility that Mym can go to Earth when Tyhry exits from the Sermyth Reality Simulation.

Onky secretly reveals to Mym's friend, Farryx, that she carries an alien symbiont inside her body. Farryx discovers that she can extract some of the advanced zeptite components from Onky's replicoid body and study them in her research lab. Previously, Farrax has worked in the field of clothing nanite design, but she realizes that the special zeptites from Onky's artificial body might be composed of a new type of sedron that could revolutionize Hua space mining.

Part 4 of The Hua Nanites ( Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)

Shortly before dawn, I awoke to the sound of Mym singing and the smell of breakfast cooking. Joining her in the little kitchenette of the cabin, I asked, "Why are you up so early?"

Mym threw her arms around me and I could see that her penis was erect, except for the worm-like tip that was twisting and coiling as if it had a mind of its own. The feel of that creepy penile appendage wigging against by belly was unnerving, but I tried to return Mym's enthusiastic hugs and kisses. Before we could eat, Mym made love to me. After she achieved an orgasm and while still gentle stroking my vagina with her penis, she asked me, "Do you know how to ride?"

"I think I've been riding you pretty well these past two nights... for a mere human. I'm sorry if I find it hard to keep up with your Hua sex drive."

Mym giggled and told me, "I mean, do you know how to ride a monne?" I heard her say "monne", but the Reality Simulation System translated that term into English as "horse".

"Yes, I have some experience riding."

"Good, lets eat quickly and go to the stables. We'll be able to get a pair of monne this time of day."

When we reached the stables, the robot attendants quickly provided us each with a monne and we set off along a trail towards the nearby hills, riding in the light of Sermyth's two big moons. Mym kept urging her mount to speed up and soon we were moving at a gallop. I was struggling to accommodate myself to the feel of the horses back which was providing sexual stimulation to my sex organs, particularly my allzaurish. We reached the top of a hill as the sun rose beyond distant mountain peaks. Mym jumped off of her monne and pulled me down to the ground. We made love there in the soft grass. The two monne also had sex, taking turns mounting each-other. In the lazy calm after our orgasms, I asked Mym, "Are all animals on Sermyth hermaphroditic?"

"No. We Hua were genetically engineered to turn us into hermaphrodites... originally there were distinct males and females, as is standard on this world. She pointed towards the two monne and told me, "These are robots... much safer and well behaved than real monne."

I had been fooled my the monne and had assumed that they were biological. I wondered out-loud, "Why were they programmed to have sex?"

Mym giggled and said, "Can't you guess?"

I tried to guess. "Just to set a mood for the patrons of this resort?"

"Well, I suppose. But actually, there is an ancient myth about this." Mym seemed reluctant to say more. She began singing another of her happy songs, but even with the auto-translator, I struggled to understand the meaning of the poetry in her songs.

I was playing with Mym's big breasts and her erect nipples and she could not keep her hands off of my penis. I told her, "I wish I could get all of my penis inside you."

Mym took old of the worm-like tip of her own penis and said, "I'm sorry that you don't enjoy playing with my penis. Too bad you did not visit Sermyth about 10,000 years ago when your body form was popular."

I asked, "You mean everyone had an allzaurish?"

Mym giggled. "Well, my reading of history is that maybe as many as 25% of the population had an allzaurish when that anatomical feature was at the height of its popularity. However, people started blaming the allzaurish for the great population crisis."

I was thinking of Earth's problem with over-population. "What crisis?"

"The Hua almost went extinct. It is absurd, but allzaurish sex was blamed."

"I see." I told Mym about human variants that had been engineered to have an allzaurish that was linked to a uterus.

"Clever." For a time, Mym pounded my allzaurish with her penis. After she climaxed and ejaculated inside me, she rested against my back an whispered in my ear, "The mythology says that the robot monne were programmed to have sex with people."

I'd seen the very large penises of the monne and could not imagine fitting a monne penis inside my body. I laughed and asked, "Are you serious? Do you mean that Hua can have vaginal sex with a monne?"

Mym pulled her penis out of my allzaurish and went to her saddle bag. She retrieved the small device that I knew was capable of doing genetic and chemical analyses. "It is a family rule not to connect to the comnet during vacation, but..." She linked her device to the Sermyth information network and used its holographic display to show me a video. "This is a recent fantasy play. It does not purport to be historically accurate, but it illustrates the mythology that has grown up around the ancient age of the allzaurish.

I watched the depiction of a monne having sex with a Hua. I commented, "This is computer-generated imagery, right? I still don't believe that a monne penis could fit inside an allzaurish."

Mym pushed a hand between my legs and slipped a finger into my allzaurish. "Remember, these monne are made of nanites. They can be programmed so as to modify their anatomy."

"I see. But there is still the question of why anyone would want to have sex with a monne."

"Sex with a robot. It is very common for we Hua to have sex with robots, particularly when one's lovers are not available. Robot sex is like masturbation but more socially acceptable." She took her finger out of my allzaurish and liked off all of my secretions. "I love the way you taste! I don't really want to share you with a robot, but..."

Now I know that Mym could not resist showing off her zeptite programming talents. She went over to one of the monne and worked for a time with her hand-held device. As I watched, the big penis of the monne again became erect then it morphed into the shape of a Hua penis. With a big smile on her face, Mym turned to me and said, "Ready to try it out?"

Suddenly I realized that Mym expected me to let the robotic monne insert its penis into my allzaurish. Thinking of a handy excuse, I complained, "I can't support a monne on my back."

Robots of the Final Reality (Dani)

Mym grabbed me by the arm and pulled me to the side of the other monne. "The other robot will bear the load, you just bend over and present your big ass..."

I told Mym, "Why should I... I mean, I'm perfectly happy to let you play inside my allzaurish. What's the point of having sex with this robot?"

Mym asked me, "Is that the way it is on Earth? No sex with robots?"

I thought about Anthony who had long served as my sexbot. "That's not the point, but robots are very rare on Earth. And humans don't have sex with animals."

Mym put her arms around me. "I now regret that I never went through the sexual maturation process. I think you are a virgin."

I laughed. "Do the people of Sermyth even have the concept of virginity?"

"Of course. I'm virgin. As is Farryx."

"What? Onky and I have been in and out of your vaginas like two horny bunny rabbits."

"Vaginal sex does not count." Mym explained, "I think you've never had cervical sex."

I remembered Onky telling me something about the Hua cervix... something I had not understood. I thought that the Hua could control a muscle that would block the cervical entrance to their uterus... the perfect birth control system. I asked, "What is cervical sex?"

Mym patently explained, "If you had sex with an adult Hua, you'd be able to fully insert your penis. The tip if your penis could extend through the cervix, allowing you to ejaculate into the uterus."

"Oh. Now I get it." I'd been imagining that Mym was going to make the robotic horse insert its penis into my allzaurish, but now I realized that I could have vaginal sex with the monne. I looked dubiously at the monne and its long pink penis. This was my opportunity to experience Hua cervical sex. I was having trouble imagining penile penetration of my cervix. I asked, "Does it hurt?"

"Of course, I've never had cervical sex myself, but rumor says that cervical sex is mind blowing, the ultimate pleasure."

I took a deep breath and thought of Onky repeatedly telling me to relax and enjoy myself inside this Simulation of Sermyth. I turned my back on the monne with the Hua style penis and leaned against the side of the other monne. "Let's give it a try."

"There is no try." Mym patted my bottom. "Spread you legs and bend over." Mym did something with her device and the monne with the erection put its from legs up on the back of the other monne. With the large body of the monne looming over me, I almost chickened out, but I closed my eyes and felt the robot's simulated Hua penis slide inside my vagina. There was an odd sort of pressure deep inside me. Mym advised, "You have to consciously relax your cervical muscles." 

I tried to relax. I began trying to imagine how I was going to explain this kinky sex to my parents, or even Onky. Suddenly, I felt the thick shaft of the robot's penis fill my vagina and there was a new sensation arising from my cervix as the narrow tip of the robot's penis penetrated all the way into my uterus. Almost instantly, I had an orgasm. Later, as my mind began to return to normal functioning, I found myself on the soft grass, wrapped up in Mym's pink arms and legs. She asked me, "Well, how was it?"

"I struggled to find words to explain what I had experienced. Mym said, "The genetic engineers worked long and hard... to make the tip of the adult Hua penis long and hard. This is the anatomical innovation that is credited with saving the species and preventing Hua extinction. Adult Hua can't resist having cervical sex. It is their obsession, just as a juvenile like me can't resist oral sex."

I told Mym, "Okay, I now understand why the monne were programmed to have sex with people."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it. I only had time to set up a simple program. Give me time and I can make it a better experience for you."

"That won't be necessary. Even with the incredible pleasure that I got from the monne, I'm not really comfortable having sex with an animal."

"It is just a robot."

"In my mind it is an animal."

Mym shrugged. "Just ask Rysy or Yrsy to give you cervical sex. Or even my parents. They'd be happy to oblige."

"I don't want to have sex with any of them. I'm perfectly happy with you."

"And yet you and Onky have been lovers, right? In her current body, Onky could give you cervical sex."

"Don't tempt me." I was worried that if I let Onky give me cervical sex, I'd not want to go back to juvenile style sexplay with Mym.

Eventually, after a lazy morning of sexplay, we rode back to the core of the resort and found Onky, Farryx, Shya and Quyn. We ate lunch together then checked out some of the resort's entertainments. The resort was very popular and on short notice, we only had been able to get one-day passes for Onky and I. Late in the afternoon, we returned to the boat and headed out to sea.

For a week we cruised the Rynor Islands, but then the vacation ended and we returned to the city where the Vye family lived. Onky and I got to meet Quyn's other child, Spyseb, and we spent that evening telling her about the vacation. Spyseb was fascinated by Onky and I and she asked Quyn, "So, is this the fulfillment of those crazy stories that you've always told... about Manny?"

Quyn nodded. "I believe so."

Spyseb had been watching how Mym constantly had her hands on my body. "An now Mym will produce a grandchild for you?"

Mym giggled, "I'm far too busy with my work to make plans for a family."

Shya told Mym, "You may need to change your plans, my dear. I suspect that both you and Farryx have started to go through the change."

Spyseb told Mym, "You look different and your voice is changing."

Mym turned her chemanalys device on herself and then placed it on the pink skin of Farryx's arm. A minute later the results were tabulated and she reported, "Our hormones are shifting to the adult pattern.

Shya said, "In just one week."

Onky asked, "How long does it usually take to initiate the change?"

Farryx hugged Onky tight. "Most people have to try for months to initiate the change."

During our sexplay that night, I noticed a change in Mym's vagina. It was not as tight as before. After a few more days, I was able to fully insert my penis into Mym's vagina and she had her first experience with cervical sex. Then, the next day, Mym was able to partially inflate the tip of her penis. By the end of that week, her penis was fully functional and she could then penetrate my cervix. However, I'm getting ahead of my story.

Quyn took me to the university where he works and showed me his zeptite research lab. He gave me a demonstration of some repair nanites that could repair the flight systems of malfunctioning aircars.

On that same day, Onky went with Shya and Farryx to their place of business where they developed and tested new clothing nanite styles. Given my own interest in designing clothing, I was a bit jealous of how Onky began spending her time. During the evening of our second in the Vye family house, Onky told me about her day. "Farryx used a device to capture some of the zeptites from my body. She seems terribly excited, talking a mile a minute about sedrons and how she can craft them into delightful clothing."

Fyrryx was there with us, listening as Onky described the process of incorporating zeptites into clothing nanites. When Onky paused to sip a sweet cider drink that Yrsy was serving, Fyrryx added, "And you promised to tell Tyhry the big news."

Onky told me, "I've agreed to move in with Fyrryx."

Mym hugged Fyrryx and said, "I know you two will be very happy together!"

Mym and Fyrryx began discussing the changes that were occurring in their bodies as they went through the transition to adulthood. Onky asked me about the repair nanites I had seen that day in Quyn's lab. After I gave my account, Quyn added, "The problem is, I know nothing about the teleportation technology of Earth. How can we even know if Sermyth has the needed technology to repair your teleporter?"

I again reiterated my position. "Manny would not have arranged for me to visit this world unless I could accomplish my mission."

"You've told me that Manny has projects that unfold over the course of millennia." Onky suggested, "Maybe your mission is really to impregnate Mym. Maybe it will be your children who figure out how to use Hua technology to repair the teleporter." Shortly after that, Onky and Farryx went off to begin their life together.

Mym then took me into her bedroom and we made love. Then, rather than spend the night with me, she went off to her own combined house and laboratory. Mym claimed that she was in need of time to catch up on her work. She had fallen behind in her programming projects during the family vacation. As we fell into a new pattern, we began meeting to find times for sharing two or three quick cervical orgasms each day. As for me, I was also quite busy, learning about Quyn's on-going zeptite research projects.

I was able to visit Quyn's lab on three successive days and learn quite a bit about his scientific research on zeptites before the government officials started showing up. Rumors had been quick to spread about Onky and I and our unusual anatomical features. Quyn made no effort to hide from the Hua government that I was an alien from Earth, but he shared no information about my mission. Government attention was focused on Onky and the zeptites that had been taken out of her body. Hua physicists quickly proved that Onky's body was a source of new types of sedron particles, never previously known to Hua science.

At the end of my third week on Sermyth, Quyn told me, "I believe I now understand something that Manny told me long ago. Three decades ago, I did not understand when she told me about swapping sedrons, but I think what she meant is that she has provided Sermyth with new sedrons that will greatly boost our technology and solve some of our most perplexing scientific mysteries. In return, the government will be willing to provide Earth with the repair nanites that you wish to obtain."

"You have discussed this with the Minister of Science?"

"No, but some of my contacts in the Ministry are bringing forward a proposal that Sermyth trade sedrons with Earth."

I checked the time. I had expected to meet Mym for some sexplay that evening. Quyn told me, "Shya took Mym to the hospital."

"Mym is sick?" Just then an aircar dropped into the back yard.

Quyn said, "We'll get the news from Mym in just a moment." All of the Hua were in constant communication with each other by means of their communications implants. I had to wait impatiently to learn why Mym had been taken to the hospital.

Shya and Mym came into the house and Mym threw her arms around me. "I'm pregnant!"

At first I thought it was a prank. I'd only know Mym for a month and I never really believed that I could impregnate someone. I mean, I'm a woman. But there in that simulation, Manny had made certain that I would impregnate Mym. My first thought was of Onky and I wondered if Farryx would also soon be pregnant. "Amazing. I did not even realize that you had begun to ovulate."

"Nor had I. The doctors think you must have hit my first mature egg with your potent sperm."

I asked, "How long does Hua gestation last?"

"Does it matter?" Mym kissed my mouth. "You can forget about your plans to return to Earth. You are going to stay right here and help me through this pregnancy."

I later learned that Onky and Farryx were going in their own direction with their sexplay. Fyrryx had never allowed Onky to insert the tip of her penis through her cervix. However, it was Onky who became pregnant. Before I returned to Earth, Onky explained her big secret to me. Onky had been constructed by Manny as a replicoid that contained a stateo-symbiont. Onky had revealed that secret only to Farryx and they had begun experiments in linking their nervous systems by means of the stateo-symbiont. Farryx and Onky wanted to keep that secret, not wishing to become objects of study and government attention because of their ability to link their two minds.

Then, after a long sexplay session with Mym, I fell into a deep sleep. When I awoke, I was back in my bed in Arizona. I'd awoken from a confusing dream about being trapped inside the Reality Simulation System where there were very strange aliens with freakish anatomical features. My memories of Sermyth were all tangled up with the disturbing images from my dream.

I was still trying to review my unstable memories of the Hua when I telepathically became aware that my mother had noticed me. Zeta came into my room and asked, "When did you get back?"

I asked, "How long was I gone?"

"Two days."

"For me, it was two months inside the Reality Simulator."

Dad was also there, looking into my room from the hallway. He asked, "Success?"

I jumped out of bed. As I ran down the hallway I noticed that I was back in my human body. I opened the door to Onky's room and found her engaged in heated sexplay with Anthony, her back breasts bouncing in rhythm as she rode his penis towards an orgasm. I closed the door and put a hand to my own breast. Standing there naked with my parents watching me, I said, "Manny!"

Zeta asked, "What about Manny?"

Just then, Manny was allowing me to sense her thoughts. I followed that telepathic signal down the hallway and found Manny there at Dad's computer. She turned and said, "Welcome home."

Following me into the room, Dad asked Manny, "What are you doing with my computer?"

Manny replied, "I just made some adjustment to the bookmark files." Manny pointed at me and rather sternly told me, "Don't try to return to the Sermyth Simulation. It is no longer available to you."

At that point, I was still not aware that my mission had been a success. Then Rylla called through on the vchat and Dad opened the connection. Rylla announced, "It worked! Nora has been to Eternity and back!"

I rushed forward and asked Rylla, "The teleporter was repaired?"

Rylla commented on my nakedness, "Isn't it winter in your hemisphere?"

Just then, Onky came into the room, still pulling on her warm robe. She told Rylla, "I have not had a chance to fill in Tyhry. She was sleeping, so I had Anthony fill up my vagina with his big tool."

Rylla and Onky then proceeded to explain how the mission to Sermyth had ended. Manny had left copies of both me and Onky there in the Sermyth Simulation. Manny had sent the biological Onky and I back to Arizona along with a replicoid copy of Mym. Mym's body contained the teleporter repair nanites. Mym had been quickly teleported to Observer Base. Since her artificial body was entirely composed of sedrons, it had been possible for Stacy to teleport her to Eternity. Mym had quickly inserted the repair nanites into the teleporter.

With some coaxing and adjustment of the teleporter's nanocontrol system, Mym was able to fully reactivate the teleporter's functionality and restore it ability to teleport hadronic matter. Nora, who had long felt trapped on Earth, had served as the first test subject and demonstrated that the Eternity teleportation system could once again move people to and from Earth. 

Rather stunned by the rapid progress that had been made while I slept, all I could say was, "Now I'll be able to visit Observer Base..."

During the telling of the story of how the teleporter had been repaired, Zeta had wrapped a blanket around me. My feet were still cold and I wanted my slippers, or a splash in the hot tub, but I asked Onky, "Are you pregnant?"

Manny replied, "I gave her that option, but this copy of Onky decline her chance to be pregnant."

Zeta was quick to demand that Onky explain how she had become pregnant inside the Reality Simulation System. There listening to Onky's account of her sexual adventures with Farryx, my feet continued to grow colder and I watched my parents who seemed amused by Onky's tales. I was glad to see people who did not have pink skin and I suspect that Manny had used her memory-editing nanites to make me forget about my feelings for Mym. In fact, I now had only minimal interest in Sermyth. 

I'd accomplished my mission and I was ready to move on with my life... my real life in the real world. I could not help myself from thinking about Anthony. From my perspective, I'd been away from him for far too long. While Onky regaled my parents with tales of Hua sexual practices, I went down the hallway and found Anthony and his big penis waiting for me in my bed. Anthony quickly made me stop feeling jealous about my copy who had stayed on Sermyth with Mym. I suppose Manny uses Anthony as a tool for constraining my behavior just as she so efficiently deploys her memory editing nanites.

Next: a cover image for The Hua Nanites.

visit the Gallery of Movies, Book and Magazine Covers