"Oh you really should go", said Maria, over her cup of cappuccino.
"I'm not so sure", replied Rachel, "it sounds rather plush for my tastes".
"Don't be silly", protested Maria, "you're a beautiful woman, but we all enjoy a good pampering now and again. Besides, the club isn't completely occupied by spoiled bimbos, let loose with their boyfriends' wallets!"
"I suppose the occasional makeover would be nice, although the Dyson Institute still sounds very sophisticated for me."
Rachel felt that for a beauty parlour and health club, no matter how large, to be describing itself as an "institute", did seem rather ostentatious - and despite the encouragement of her friend, she still had the impression that only discomfort could come from a day spent among the most affluent, and arrogant, ladies in the city. Rachel was undoubtedly very beautiful, and felt no threat from the thought of dozens of other glamorous women sharing the numerous saunas, massage suites and mineral mud baths. She was, nonetheless, a little uneasy about the whole idea.
The clatter of crockery from across the café snapped Rachel from her contemplation and she restored eye contact with her glamorous friend across the table. In view of the conversation of the moment, it struck Rachel just how perfectly formed Maria's face was. This is the woman she grew up with, the woman who had been her friend virtually all of their twenty-five years. Not a single blemish, not a solitary flaw was present on Maria's face as she smiled warmly back at Rachel. Maybe the Dyson Institute was worthy of further consideration - after all, she was as entitled to spend her hard-earned cash as she pleased.
"I'll be back in a moment, I'm just going to the ladies room", said Maria as she rose from the table, "then we'll go, if you don't mind".
"Yes, that's fine", answered Rachel, "I've some homework to do on the latest case".
Maria moved gracefully across the café and entered the ladies room, catching several male eyes as she disappeared from sight. Entering a cubicle, she locked the door and placed her handbag on the closed lid of the toilet bowl. She removed her jacket, placing it on the hook. Then Maria's expression became completely focused. She began to unbutton her blouse to reveal her bronzed chest. Two perfectly proportioned breasts were cupped in a smooth silken bra.
As she stood there, a thin line began to form around a small rectangle of skin, just below her breasts. As soon as the line formed, bordering the rectangle of skin, there was a barely audible whirr and the rectangle of "flesh" advanced forward from her body. At this point, Maria gently removed the panel to reveal a cavity packed with what looked like very densely populated circuit boards. Also visible were a number of optical fibres, flashing LEDs and a cluster of highly complex terminal connectors. As she stared blankly towards her jacket hanging on the cubicle door, her field of vision was packed with scrolling columns of diagnostic data - one item of which was a warning that her power pack was running very low of charge. Indeed, it was the arrival of this warning that had caused Maria to excuse herself from the table and attend the ladies room.
Placing the abdominal panel beside her handbag, she opened the latter and withdrew a small black box. From this box she pulled three small terminals, attached by wires. The words "interfacing with auxiliary charging unit" appeared in her field of vision. Maria stood there, motionless, for about three minutes, after which she gently disconnected the wires from her abdominal interface, and replaced the small black device back in her handbag. As she reached for the flesh panel a new series of diagnostic messages scrolled before her, the last of which, "abdominal cavity sealed", appeared as the border around the panel disappeared, leaving a perfect, seamless finish.
Whilst she would have sufficient power reserves to get back to her flat, Maria was concerned as she left the ladies room, and initiated a background self-diagnostics routine, knowing how vital that would be to the engineers embarking on the inevitable fault correction investigation. How could she have discharged so quickly? Tonight's servicing would surely bring an answer.
"Shall we go?" enquired Rachel as her friend returned.
"Yes, but I'll meet you here tomorrow as usual" responded Maria.
Exchanging goodbyes, the friends parted at the café entrance and went off towards their respective homes, having enjoyed their almost daily chat after work.
Rachel resumed her contemplation about going to the Dyson Institute as she sat on the levi-train. Having consciously noted just how well Maria looked lately, Rachel quickly came to the conclusion that this up-market health club was worth a try.
Maria entered her flat with unusual haste. Before any further action could be taken she required an immediate booster charge. The auxiliary charging units were great in the unlikely event of an emergency, but her power levels were now critical.
This time, Maria's abdominal interface received numerous connections from the ASU (android servicing unit) in her bedroom. Soon, she had sufficient energy resources, and re-concealed the ASU - because her existence as a female android was not for public knowledge. Maria had been a regular at the Dyson Institute for three years, when one day, six months ago, she was given an impromptu appointment with Dr Dyson herself. Dr Dyson had welcomed a puzzled Maria into her private consultation office, and shown her something that changed her life forever.
Having replaced the panel covering her interface, Maria calmly sat on her sumptuous leather armchair and lifted the phone. She dialled an unusually long sequence of numbers, and eventually a female voice could be heard...
"Good evening. You have reached the Dyson Institute Special Services Directory."
"Unit RX3655 requesting immediate service session - access code PS205 - service request delta 39", responded Maria.
"Validating...Authenticated. Good evening, Maria. A recovery team will be with you in approximately fifteen minutes. Please execute self-diagnostic routine SDR6710a. Thank you for your call."
As she replaced the handset, Maria's subsystem responded to the diagnostic request, and another series of advisory windows opened within her field of vision. Maria's higher conscience software insulated her from all but the most pressing of subsystem messages. She sat back and waited for the doorbell.
"Good evening. Are you Ms Maria Dwyer?" asked a stunning blonde woman, dressed in tight black leather pants and grey top.
"Yes, please issue check code", responded Maria.
"Unit RX3655 service request - check code MT20756a", replied the blonde.
"Authenticated", answered Maria.
"Please come with me, Maria, we're bringing you in."
"It looks as if we'll have to revert to the previous version of the power pack unit."
"Yes, I agree, although this was simply a field test. Unit RX3655 was ideal. She operates in a fairly tough environment, and has long periods between recharging sessions."
The blonde, and another engineer, a stunning brunette, continued their discussion over the motionless naked artificial body lying before them on an examination couch. Maria's synthetic breasts and much of the rest of her chest lay on a metal table beside the examination couch. Numerous cables ran between Maria's flashing circuits and a portable diagnostic unit. Although she was motionless, she was fully conscious. She wasn't aware until now that she had been used to test a new power pack unit. However, this was common, as her vastly complex software may have curtailed her power consumption had the subsystem been "aware" of new hardware. The most accurate test results could be obtained when the android's low-level software was not "informed" about the addition of new hardware components.
Maria felt completely at ease. Both women servicing her were also androids. Indeed, all the staff at the Institute were female androids. They were the result of years of pioneering work by Dr Dyson. Maria knew she was perfect. She was fully aware of the advantages brought to her life by becoming an android. Every aspect of her existence was now perfect, and as she lay under the careful gaze of the beautiful machines servicing her, she hoped that she could convince her friend, Rachel, to join her.
Her chest replaced, and her motor functions restored, Maria sat up and thanked her colleagues. Still naked, she walked back through the maintenance area towards the clothing section. On her journey, she passed dozens of partitioned bays, each containing a number of female engineers and female androids in various stages of assembly or undergoing complex diagnostics and servicing.
For a moment, she decided to pause by one of the bays. There on couch, like the one from which she had just come, lay the beautiful, naked, headless body of a synthetic woman with large tanned breasts and a perfectly trimmed flash of dark blonde pubic hair. Her thorax cavity was open, and from it sprouted a host of cables. To the side, an engineer was conversing with a detached head, mounted on a complex support. The head was that of a sexy, blue-eyed blonde, about thirty-five years old.
"Modular head unit for android RX3421...Running diagnostic checks" announced the disembodied head.
"Diagnostics complete...Ready to upload configuration data" the head continued.
"Configuration accepted...Ready for installation," concluded the head, as the engineer proceeded to remove it from the terminal to which it had been connected.
As Maria moved closer, she watched the beautiful blonde head being attached to the waiting shoulders of the android on the couch. The engineer carefully connected a host of optical fibres and continued by meticulously linking a series of light grey artificial muscle fibres. Finally, she watched as the seam in the skin at the base of the android's neck disappeared. Within seconds, the newly fixed head jerked into life.
"Successful modular attachment completed...Finalising propriroceptory configuration. Exiting maintenance mode" said the new head.
"Good evening Unit RX3655" said the engineer android, having noticed the naked Maria observe the head installation.
"This unit's husband requested some facial modifications, so we had to install a new head module" continued the engineer; "There's also new provision for enhanced sexual functionality."
In the meantime, the newly equipped blonde had closed her thorax cavity and was now looking at Maria.
"Hello Unit RX3655, would you care to accompany me back to the clothing section?"
"But of course", responded Maria, and both androids walked off, discussing the hot blonde's new head module, and how much her oral cavity was enhanced for sex. She was Senator Logan's android wife, and as such, was given the highest levels of servicing and maintenance. The senator had always been among the small group of high-level officials privy to Dr Dyson's work - and when he became aware of the possibility that his wife could be converted to a highly advanced android sex machine, he made sure that the governmental and military funding channels remained fully open.
The next afternoon, Rachel was due in court. This case was tough, and she was feeling it, all of it!
"Just the usual, Ladies?" enquired Carlo.
"Yes, thank you", sighed Rachel as the delicious android woman opposite her smiled across their usual table.
"I hope you don't mind me saying so Rachel, but you look absolutely shattered!"
"Yes, I am - this damn case is getting out of control" explained Rachel.
"Look", she continued, "I've been thinking about going with you to that Dyson place for a facial and a bit of a work out, or something."
"Great!" exclaimed Maria, "when we finish here, we'll go back to my place, pick up some gym gear and drive up the Institute."
As Maria turned the key in her door she knew that the events about to unfold would represent a massive risk, and yet could lead to a new life for her best friend. Her circuits surged with data - her subsystem firing a host of message windows into her visual cortex.
"I'm actually looking forward now to going to this place", announced Rachel, "I mean, you look so good lately, so relaxed, so vibrant! It must be worth it".
Turning to her friend, pausing, and allowing the data flow in her system to stabilise, Maria began to speak to Rachel...
"Look Rachel, there's something I want to tell you. We've known each other for a long time, so you know that what I may say is for the best."
Puzzled, Rachel turned to face her friend.
"Rachel, the Dyson Institute is no ordinary health club. In fact it has changed my life."
"Rachel, quite simply, I am a new woman."
"Rachel, I am an RX3000 series android. My body consists of a polycarbonate fibre resin skeletal system supporting a perfectly replicated matrix of synthetic muscle fibres, within which is a core of pica-eletronic circuitry. My consciousness was transferred from my organic body, digitised, and uploaded into this android body standing before you."
Perplexed, Rachel stammered, "What are you talking about!"
A line began to grow around the perimeter of Maria's face. Within seconds it had framed the front of her visage, and slowly her hands rose up to each side of her face. As this happened there was a gentle whirr. Rachel's heart stopped as her friend removed her entire visage, leaving two rows of perfect teeth and two perfect eyeballs gazing out from a mass of packed circuitry. Maria's hands were now by her side, the right one holding the beautiful mask comprising most of her sexy face. Slowly Maria advanced towards the stunned Rachel.
"My body is completely robotic. Look at me Rachel, there's nothing to worry about, I'm still the Maria you know. I've just had the chance to be given a perfect android body - and I took it. Now I'm perfect."
Still reeling, Rachel stared at the synthetic eyeballs of her friend, amazed by the whirring servos which moved them to follow her own startled eyes. Maria's head was a mass of what looked to Rachel like the inside of her brother's most advanced computer.
As if this were insufficient a shock for Rachel, Maria now set her facial panel on the nearby table and proceeded to open her blouse and remove her bra. A stunned Rachel looked on as the android peeled off her breasts and a portion of the skin covering her belly. Underneath lay a fibrous blanket of grey muscle, much like that which Rachel recalled from her distant biology lessons - only that was red!! Soon Maria had revealed her inner most circuit bays to the now pale and dazed Rachel. The same Rachel who was also strangely excited by the sight of her partially disassembled friend.
Having replaced her access panels with the same robotic precision with which she had first removed them, Maria now sat down opposite the shocked Rachel.
"My God, Maria, I don't know where to begin" breathed Rachel, "I mean, I had no idea that you were a.. a.. machine."
"Yes, I am a machine. A perfect robotic woman, with FULL functionality. But I am also the Maria you have always known. The Dyson Institute simply gave me the chance to exist in a new, vastly superior body. Rachel, you must realise what's been achieved at the Institute. My entire body is perfect - a perfect face, perfect breasts, legs, stomach. Even my pussy has been optimised, for my pleasure - pleasure unimagined when I occupied my organic body. I have a database of thousands of digitised orgasm sequences. Physicality aside, my mental faculties have been transformed. How do think I can quote from virtually every case in American law? Rachel, it's beyond description. There are now several hundred of us. Women, fed up with the hassles of modern life, given the unique opportunity to become androids; designed, built, programmed and serviced by the top technical consortium in the world. My new life is perfect. I am perfect - a perfect machine. I am an android."
Overcome with this revelation, Rachel could scarcely imagine the enormity of what she had learned.
"How long have you been like this?" she queried.
"I have been Maria Dwyer Unit RX3655 for six months now."
"What's happened to your body?" asked Rachel.
"You mean my organic body. It is in special storage at the Dyson Institute. It is maintained along with all the organic bodies of women who have been offered this chance. When my present contract expires, I have the option of being restored to my organic body."
"What contract?" sought Rachel.
"When you are offered the chance to become an android, the Institute and you enter into a contract. Generally of five years in length, they are contracted to manufacture a perfect android replica of your body, transfer your consciousness to that artificial body, nourish the dormant organic body, and service, upgrade and maintain your android systems. And, of course, restore you to organic status afterwards. You are free to renew the contract."
"This is just too much, Maria. In fact, I'm still not totally sure that you are Maria."
"Rachel, I assure you I am Maria. A perfect Maria - a perfect machine."
The next day...
"I'm so glad you've decided to come along, Rachel."
"Look Maria, I'm not really sure why I'm here. I mean, since last night's episode I don't know what to think. Although, lately you have been so radiant, so content. Maybe I should consider it a bit more."
"You'd make a superb android, Rachel. The Institute can give you a new, perfect existence."
"I want to see more, because there's still some doubt in my mind that I won't wake up from a dream."
Rachel didn't use the word nightmare. Indeed, deep down inside, she was more than just curious. Maria was, as she herself had said, perfect! Could all this really be possible. What the hell would it be like to become an android woman - a complex piece of electronics. How would I make love, what would it feel like, what if I malfunctioned?
Maria was now more hopeful than ever that her friend would make this wonderful transition. Unknown to Rachel, Maria had been recording her voiceprint over recent days. She had also been recording numerous images of Rachel on the many occasions when she was in the field of view. Maria had downloaded this data into the manufacturing department's database - she hoped that a very special demonstration would help convince Rachel that her best future would be spent as an android.
"I'll show you more," said Maria to Rachel, as they walked through the polished corridors of the Institute, arriving at a door displaying a sign, "Prototyping". They entered.
Mounted on a special support was a robotic female pelvis area. It consisted of the area bounded by the lower abdomen and upper thighs. Rachel gasped as she saw the multitude of wires emerging from the top of the module. She was amazed to see a rubber dildo disappear into the robotic pussy, and begin to vibrate. A beautiful brunette looked on, and proceeded to record readings from a screen.
"Rachel, I've been wanting to involve you for weeks now, but only got an appropriate opportunity last night. However, I have been preparing something to help you realise that this may be your future."
Increasingly curious as she passed by various other parts of beautiful female bodies, Rachel was now wondering, should I go further. What she was about to experience convinced her beyond doubt.
Maria led her into another room. There, before them sat a perfect android replica of Rachel's head. It was supported on a terminal similar to that which had initiated the new synthetic head of the thirty-five year old blonde android wife.
"Prototype head module for potential android RX3598...Test sequence initiating..." spoke the head, in a perfect rendition of Rachel's voice.
"Rachel, we have everything to bring you the ultimate existence...join us, join us now" continued the replica of Rachel's head.
Suddenly, Rachel's heart leapt. This is it; it's true, I think it's best.
The android head continued to talk, expressing the full range of emotions, then it fell silent.
"Maria, it's incredible - but I want it. I want in now. I want to join you, I want to become a perfect android woman. I want to be built immediately, programmed and serviced by other machines, just like you!"
"You won't regret it Rachel, it's the future, and you are about to become a part of it. Unit CX1049, please schedule an immediate manufacturing cycle. Assign maximum priority, and prepare a scanner chamber at once."
The desire to become a machine exploded within Rachel. The sight of her own perfect head, with its perfect eyes and complexion, was enough to show her that this was the chance to be transformed to a new plane of existence. Maria led her to the preparation suite...
Now naked, Rachel stood in the middle of a small chamber. A female voice told her to remain perfectly still. Suddenly, laser lights erupted out from the chamber walls, each beam building a topographic map of Rachel's organic body. The process took about ten minutes.
"That's it for now," explained a gorgeous android technician.
Maria returned to collect Rachel from the chamber. She explained that the complete manufacture of her new body could now begin, and would require about six hours.
"You must rest now," said Maria, "because transfer will take place as soon as we're finished building and debugging your new android body."
"I'm ready, Maria, ready to become a perfect machine, a perfect android. Get me the contract."
A torso, severed arms, legs, a pelvis module, and the recently tested head arrived, one after another, in the final assembly bay. The Institute's androids are of modular construction, making repair and upgrade much easier. The torso is the heart of the android, however, and whilst several of all the other elements will be built and stocked, only one torso is manufactured. It contains the hardware used to store the digitised consciousness of the woman being converted.
A team of beautiful, leather clad female android engineers assembled the new Rachel's modules, whilst others installed additional components into her various circuitry bays, mainly the thorax.
Rachel was now lying on a couch beside the android, which she was about to become. She was conscious of a series of probes attached to her head. She looked over at the perfect machine, soon to be her, and was deeply aroused by the sight of the team of technicians working on the new "her". Oh God, she thought, this is it, I'll soon be an android, a perfect machine, with a perfect robotic body.
"It's time, Rachel. The next time we speak, you'll be one of us..."
Already drowsy, Rachel slipped out of consciousness as Maria spoke...
Commissioning a new unit was always the most complex aspect of android production.
There was a hiss of high-pressure air as an airlock into the assembly chamber slid open. It was Dr Dyson herself.
"Have I arrived in time to observe the transfer process?" enquired Dr Dyson, a tall glamorous woman of about forty.
"Yes, Dr Dyson, we are about to run the initial sequence routines," answered a raven-haired android who was sitting at a complex console.
Rachel's organic body began to twitch, her head jerking from side to side. This continued for some twenty minutes, after which it lay still and silent.
"Organic brain and spinal interrogation complete. Commencing upload," announced the android at the console.
The android Rachel suddenly opened its eyes and mouth. There was a sequence of distorted, low frequency sounds from her mouth, followed by an incredibly sharp jerk from her head, which suddenly snapped into an alert poise.
"Subsystem boot sequence beginning...Unit RX3598 is active...Software demons initialising," said the android Rachel.
What's happening thought Rachel. She was now conscious again, and was aware of words emerging from her mouth - but she wasn't saying them as such. A vast amount of text and numbers were scrolling in front of her eyes - what's happening?
The technicians looked on and noted all of the commissioning diagnostic data coming from the new Rachel's lips.
Gradually, Rachel gained complete awareness, and within minutes she felt completely relaxed.
"Boot sequence complete, all systems show normal status, no boot anomalies reported, no demon aberrations present," said Rachel, now fully aware of what she was saying, and why she was saying it.
The technicians closed her thorax cavity and stepped back, allowing the perfect android Rachel to sit up on the assembly couch.
As the technicians, Maria and Dr Dyson looked on, Rachel stood up, her hands roving over the surface of her new body. She smiled as she gazed over at the dormant organic body, which she had occupied until now. Already, all the messages appearing before her eyes made complete sense, and her subsystem responded to the wishes of her consciousness interface software with precise balance and accuracy. Rachel knew now, beyond all doubt, that she had become a machine.
She walked forward and embraced the smiling Maria.
"You were right", said Rachel, "It is perfect - I am perfect."
To Be Continued...