Tyd

Tyd stood in the doorway, her hand clasped in a death grip on the frame. Walking was a lot harder than it looked. One foot in front of the other was what she willed her new body to do, but all she could manage was a shuffle across the floor. Her legs and feet didn’t want to listen to what her brain was trying to tell them. Before she could fall flat on her face and look like a bumbling fool in front of Yule, she’d reached for the door frame and held on for dear life. She didn’t want the first time Yule saw her to be with her face planted firmly on the floor.

She wanted to appear...sexy. Like the females pictured on his wall.

But the way he was looking at her, with his face scrunched up in a frown and his brows pulled together, let her know her plan had failed.

“Wh-who are you?” Yule asked.

Tyd opened her mouth but no words came out. Right. Talking had looked easy too. “Ty-Ty...” She shook her head. This wasn’t going to work. She couldn’t walk or talk. Yule would never find her desirable in this form.

When she’d first asked Hontis to send her a synthetic body so that she could download herself into it, he’d refused—adamantly. Hontis only relented after she’d said it was for Yule’s mental stability—Humans were not meant to live in solitude. Although she had told the truth there was another reason why she wanted to downloaded into this form. She wanted to know what it would be like to be touched, held—made love to by Yule. The more she’d researched about humans, the more she’d been intrigued about the concepts of sex and love. And the more she’d grown attached to Yule the more she wanted to experience those things with him and only him. It had taken Hontis longer than she’d expected to send the body. Yule would be leaving soon and she’d only have a short time with him before he left her on the outpost where she’d be lonely once again.

But the question was, after this would she ever be able to return to her lonely solitude again? No. Well, yes—if they made her. And the councilors would certaintly make her. She was their creation—to do with as they pleased. But he longed for something more. She longed to be in the physical world with Yule.

Yule looked left then right, as if he were expecting more people to show up. “How did you get in here? And while you’re answering that, tell me how you got to the outpost. I didn’t see a vessel approaching on the scanner and Tyd didn’t sound any alarms.” He eased himself slowly off the bed and stood. The look on his face changed from surprise to suspicion. “Tyd! Tyd!” he yelled out, keeping his eyes on her.

Yes, yes, that’s me.

Tyd nodded, surprised that at least she could complete that simple movement.

Yule kept a wary eye on her while he slowly moved away. He kept his back close to the wall as he made his way toward the small security panel. She expected once there he’d sound the alarm.

Tyd reached out, but he was too far away to stop him from contacting Hontis. But giving it a second thought, she pulled her hand back. Maybe she should let him call. At least maybe Hontis would be able to explain to Yule what she couldn’t—that a synthetic body had been sent. A body that both she and Yule could use—for pleasure.

“Tyd, dammit!” Yule yelled. “Now is not the time for you to go silent on me.”

Her plan to surprise him was quickly failing. She really should’ve told him what Hontis had sent and what the gift’s intended purpose was before downloading into the body. But she’d wanted to surprise him. She’d wanted to see the look on his face when he realized that he could in fact touch her and he wouldn’t have to spend the rest of his time on the outpost without physical companionship.

Major fail.

No. I want the words to come from me.

Just as Yule was about to reach the security console and signal to the home world, Tyd clamped down on her resolve and, with every ounce of strength she possessed, she said, “It’s me, Tyd.” The words sounded so foreign, speaking them from a new vessel and hearing her new voice in her new ears for the very first time.

Tyd tilted her head, trying to process the sound. The tone was much higher than Yule’s. Most of the females she’d heard speak had high tones and that’s how she recognized the males from females.

Yule narrowed his eyes on her. Just thinking in terms of being “her” was becoming overwhelming, and her new brain, with its smaller capacity, was buzzing with activity and sensations that she desperately tried to process at once.

The ground seemed to move beneath her feet, the walls bowed in and out. She tried to focus on one object—Yule. That didn’t seem to help. Yule’s form blurred before her, going in and out of focus. The room tilted on its axis and she closed her eyes as she began a descent to the floor.

Yule’s approach to her was fast. “Shit,” Yule let out, as he wrapped his arms around her middle, catching her before she could hit the floor. “What’s wrong with you?”

“I’m dizzy,” she strained to say. Her mouth was so dry. She smacked her lips. The feeling was so odd. It was all so odd. “Everything is moving...yet not.” She frowned, trying to make sense of the sensation she was trying to put into words. “This little brain doesn’t have the capacity of my mainframe. It does nothing to help process everything that is going on around me.” The words that she couldn’t speak just moments before rushed from her mouth. “Even my insides feel funny.”

She let Yule pick her up from the ground and carry her. She opened her eyes, but when she was greeted with the tiles on the ceiling moving past her the dizziness set in again and she snapped them shut.

“Why did I ever want to do this?” she muttered.

“Want to do what?” Yule laid her down gently on his bed.

Only when the blackness behind her closed lids stopped spinning did she dare to open her eyes again. Her first sight was of Yule, leaning over her, watching her intently. Gone was the angriness and fear that she’d seen before, now his features were softer, searching for answers.

“This,” she whispered.

He raised a questioning brow. “Care to fill me in about the ‘this’ you’re talking about and, while you’re at it, you can tell me your name, where you’re from, who sent you here and why?”

If she were back where she belonged—in the computer system—she would be able to answer all his questions fluently and without hesitation, but now she struggled to grasp his words. “One question at a time, please. My head is pounding.” She scrunched her brows, remembering what he’d often said to her. “Is this what you referred to as a headache?”

“No...yes.” He shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’ve never talked to you before just now. Let’s stick to me asking the questions and you answering them. What’s your name?”

That was an easy one. “Tyd.”

“Tyd,” he repeated slowly.

“Tyd,” she confirmed.

He pulled away from her but his eyes remained locked on hers. “Tyd!” he yelled out, expecting her to answer from the speakers.

“I’m right here,” she said calmly.

“Fine time to go off and leave me alone,” he muttered under his breath.

“I didn’t go off. I’m here. I put the scanning program on auto-monitoring for the time being. Hontis said I’ll be able to stay in the physical world until your departure. Then I’ll have to go back and continue my job.”

Another eyebrow raise. He’d done that many times before but now it just appeared...condescending.

“Right,” he said, elongating the pronunciation of the word. “So what you’re saying is that you’re Tyd—my Tyd.”

His Tyd.

She couldn’t help but smile as a warm sensation filled her chest. Happiness?

“So if you really are Tyd, then how are you in this body?”

“I asked Hontis to send it as a present for you. You’ve been asking for physical companionship since you arrived here. I must admit, the gesture is a little late, but I hope you like it.” She placed a hand on her stomach.

Her skin was soft to the touch. She trailed her hand up her stomach up to the swell of her breast and rounded her nipple. The sensation...was pleasurable.

“Fuck. Are you feeling on yourself?”

Her eyes snapped up to his. He watched her hand as it trailed around her erect nipple. His lids were half-cast and his eyes smoldered. He pulled his bottom lip into his mouth and sucked. Just then she imagined what her nipple would feel like pulled between his lips. Wonderful. She inhaled a sharp breath.

“You feel on yourself all the time. Now I know why,” she whispered.

He pulled away from her abruptly. “You don’t know me,” he ground out.

“But I do. You’re Yule, a human from the planet Gurun. You came to Mayna to complete two cycles on the outpost so that you could have a large sum of credits in order to begin a new life.”

The look on his face showed that he was less convinced than ever. “Anyone can obtain that information. My files aren’t restricted.”

She pushed up onto her elbows and when that slight movement didn’t start the room spinning again she continued to a sitting position. “This is a synthetic body. While it is made of real human skin and working organs, the brain portion is void of activity until an entity such as myself downloads into it.”

He pushed away to the side of the bed, putting more space between them. “You’re saying that you’ve downloaded yourself into this body?”

“Yes. I convinced Hontis that having me in this form would help to alleviate some of the depression and loneliness that you’ve been experiencing and he agreed. I won’t be able to travel the universe with you when you leave, but at least we will be able to...enjoy each other before the time of separation comes upon us.”

Yule stood and backed away to the communication console located by his bedroom door. “No offense but this all sounds far-fetched. I’ll have to get confirmation from a council member.”

“I would not expect anything less.” She watched as he opened a secure channel.

“Councilor Hontis, Yule here.”

“Greetings Yule, how may I be of service?” Hontis responded.

“We have a breech, Sir. I don’t know how this happened. I’ve been monitoring the scanner and didn’t see anything coming my way.”

“Where is Tyd? Why haven’t we been alerted?” Hontis asked, his voice bristled with tension.

“As far as I can tell the breech is with the outpost only and “where is Tyd?” I’m questioning that as well.”

“Tell me what you have so I can alert our security.”

“Well, Sir...I don’t know exactly what we have. It appears that a human female has made her way here. I can’t find a transporter or vessel in the vicinity. And the weird part about all of this is that she’s claiming to be Tyd.”

“Ah.” Hontis chuckled. “I see the transfer was successful.”

“Excuse me?”

“I sent Tyd the synthetic body two rotations ago. I was going to explain what would be attempted but Tyd wanted it to be a surprise. She mentioned that an old human holiday—Christmas—was coming up according to an old Earth calendar. She wanted to wait until then to present you with this gift. I guess today is that day.”

Yule stared at her. His gaze roamed her body and then stayed on her eyes.

“It’s me,” Tyd said again.

“Is it really her?” he asked Hontis

“It’s her. If this trial works well for both of you, then she can keep the body until you finish your work detail. After you leave she’ll return to the system.”

“But...but the scanning...”

“She is still linked to it, just not actively as before of course. If there is a problem she will be alerted and will have to return immediately to complete her duties.”

“And she’ll be able to return to the body?”

“Yes, yes. She knows the rules and I’m sure Tyd is capable of this new function.”

Yule looked at her in amazement. “It’s you... Is it really you?”

Tyd nodded.

“Yule,” Hontis called out, but if Yule heard him he didn’t answer.

Yule took slow tentative steps toward her. “You’re a female?” he asked.

“I am... I was without a sexual delineation. I was just me,” she explained.

“I guess if you have any more questions you’ll contact me. I’ll leave you two to be alone,” Hontis said. The line clicked as Hontis signed off.

Yule didn’t pay attention to Hontis, he kept his eyes intent on her. “And you’re female now?” he asked.

“I have chosen the form of a female—yes.”

His eyes raked up and down her naked body, lingering on her breasts. She wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of feelings that rushed to her at once. Fright and embarrassment had quickly turned to wanting...needing...ready.

Yule thought of her as a mere computer program and friend, but over time she’d begun to classify Yule as more, handsome even. And from the research she’d done on the subject, most human females would find him appealing. He was taller than she was in this form. His eyes were dark and could be considered brooding. He was physically fit. He often passed the monotony of life here away by working out and refining his muscles. The image of what was underneath his clothes now burned in her mind.

She’d seen him naked many times and, as time progressed, began to notice how muscular he was and how predatory his gait was. She remembered how his cock swung between his legs as he walked around the outpost without clothes. There was never any need to dress. The image of his naked body projected in her mind and that image was enough to make her stomach flutter and heat erupt between her legs.

Suddenly she had the urge to do every single sexual thing that she’d researched. She wanted to feel his cock in her mouth, she wanted to get on top of him, have him on top of her—she wanted to try it all.

“Why did you agree to this?” he asked.

“I wanted to know what it was like to be touched.”

“You could’ve had the council send you a body before now—when Licon was here. You could’ve felt what it was like to be touched by him.”

She shook her head. “The desire wasn’t within me at that time.”

He took slow steps toward her. “What’s changed?”

At first she wanted to cower under his watchful gaze, but determination made her firm her back. “You. I want to be touched by you.”