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Message-ID: <53311asstr$1142835002@assm.asstr-mirror.org>
From: "DB_Story" <DB_Story@att.net>
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Subject: {ASSM} RP "Far Future Fembot" - Golden Clitorides Nominee {DB_Story}
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Date: Mon, 20 Mar 2006 01:10:02 -0500
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NOTE TO MODERATORS: I feel this is very relevant for ASSM at this time due
to it's nomination for two Golden Clitorides awards, and that it has never
been posted to ASSM before.  The RP code applies to a previous posting
attempt while the servers were inaccessible.  ---DB_Story.

FAR FUTURE FEMBOT

By DB  ( / )

Copyrightc 2004-2006 by DB.

ASSM/ASFR (M/Fembot, F/fembot, solo, rom, cons, les, herm, bi-
sex, 1st, ScFi, asfr)

Summary:  What is the future for humans and their creations?  A
love affair across lifetimes.

(This story contains Constitutionally protected material intended
for adults over 18 years of age in the United States of America,
and whatever passes for adult status in other countries.  If you
are under legal age, acting under legal age, not allowed to view
such material in your area, or easily offended, please do not
continue.  This is not for you.

(The only rights granted are to view this story.  You are not
allowed to reproduce, post, or otherwise redistribute this story
without permission, except for non-profit Usenet archiving sites.

(To purchase for publication, place on your web-site devoted to
this style of fiction, or for permission to link to my posted
material, please contact me first.)

- - -

Author's Note: This story is part of my emerging cosmology about
the evolution of robots into our near future society and the
myriad ways we will learn to interact with our creations.  Read
it now, and be prepared.

Thanks to everyone who has helped with the proofing.  All
remaining mistakes are mine.

THIS STORY IS A GOLD CLITORIDES FINALIST IN TWO DIFFERENT
CATAGORIES.  IN ORDER TO ALLOW MORE PEOPLE TO HAVE A CHANCE TO
READ IT I'VE POSTED THE OPENING 22 CHAPTERS HERE ON ASSD.  FOR
UNSPECIFIED REASONS THE REST OF IT CAN BE READ IN THE FREE
SECTION OF StoriesOnline AT http://storiesonline.net. I HOPE
YOU'LL ENJOY WHAT YOU'VE FOUND HERE ENOUGH TO WANT TO READ THE
ENTIRE STORY.  MY THANKS TO WHOMEVER(S) HAVE LIKED MY STORY
ENOUGH TO GIVE IT THIS NOMINATION.

THE GOLD CLITORIDES VOTING SITE MAY BE FOUND AT:
http://www.asstr-mirror.org/files/Authors/Clitorides/www/GCA_2005.htm .

- - -

Chapter 1 -- Several Hundred Years From Now

The absolute ruler of the 42 billion humans and others throughout
the Solar System and Known Space seldom left New Capitol City.
Her rule is so absolute that she never needed to.

The Modified Monarchy form of government replaced all earlier
national forms the same way modern manufacturing once replaced
hand craftsmanship.  The old methods of maintaining order and
stability were simply too inefficient - not to mention, corrupt -
to deal with the situation as population sizes grew and issues
varied across the spectrum of planet and space dwellers.  The
necessity to tie overall human and robot interests together
dictated this form, though the transformation didn't come easy.

Once elected, the first Emperor's rule was absolute.  His word
alone would start - or end - wars.  His decision was the final
court of appeal for any case he chose to review.  He appointments
stood without advise or consent from any other body  - including
that of his successor.  He term ended on death, or when he
decided it did, and not a moment before.  This removed politics
as usual from all decisions

Yes, there was an ultimate check to balance this power.  An
Emperor could be removed by a 90% vote of the entire electorate.
 This simply was never going to happen.  An Emperor was in charge
until they decided to leave.

The first Emperor was a human male who had lived up to everything
expected of him.  His decades long rule initiated the slow
process of fixing all that was wrong with governments.  Careful
study had shown that the monarchy was the most resistant form of
rule over people who had long since figured out how to game the
system to their own advantage otherwise.  The approach a ruler
must take in such circumstances can sometimes be harsh, and he
was harsh when needed to be.  The people loved him for what they
felt was the first honest government in their lifetime.

His handpicked successor was female.  "The best 'person' for the
job," he said more than once without equivocation.  She remained
only the second citizen to hold this position so far, and would
hold it until she alone decided not to hold it any longer.

Over the many years that passed so far under her rule, she had
never even hinted at making such a decision.  Most citizens
appreciated the stability.

New Capital City was purpose-built to run an empire of this size.
 It's diameter was nearly a hundred kilometers.  The outer ring,
thirty kilometers wide, was virgin forest, recreated at enormous
expense.  It stood as a constant reminder of balance in all
things.

Inside that was a kilometers-deep ring of cultivated farmlands.
Not only did this provide a source of natural food for the city
dwellers, but what beautiful in its own right.  Many from the
city enjoyed coming out just to walk in the cultivate fields,
reminding themselves that a simple life was not necessarily a bad
life.

Inside the farmlands, separating them from the city itself were
six immense public gardens, each with a different theme.  Like
the forest and farmlands, these were open to all the citizens of
the empire without charge.  They existed to create a serenity of
thought and mind for all who visited them.

The city itself was circular as well, and tiered like a wedding
cake, the inner, taller physical rings representing ever-
increasing logical rings of power and influence as well.  Over a
million humans and robots worked in the bureaucracy, with most of
the humans feeling the government couldn't get by a single day
without them.  Most of the 'bots felt the humans couldn't get by
without them.

From the outer ring to the mile high spire that dominated the
center, the business of government operated an archaically
measured twenty-four hours a day.

- - -

The young man passing inwards through these rings towards the
center looked clearly out of place.  His clothing, perhaps the
height of fashion in business attire back in whatever farming
province he'd arrived from, were sadly out of place and outshone
by the glittering garments worn by even the low-level
functionaries here.  His shy, overawed manner also set him apart
from those at home in this environment.  He often stopped to gawk
at the view as he moved ever deeper into the heart of the
government.

He had come in by foot from a terminal outside the forest ring,
the way many first time visitors preferred.  Through the forest,
farmland, and fountains of the water garden on this side of the
capital center, he'd moved unchallenged.

But once he'd entered the city itself, he'd been stopped a dozen
times, and then a dozen times again, by gatekeepers whose
function is to protect the inner circles from unnecessary
disturbances.

"Surely, Sir," they would politely say, "We can handle any
problem you might have right here."  Convinced, as they were,
that he could not possible have business more important than
their own level in the hierarchy.

Each time, however, he spoke a few soft words to them, and
afterwards they quickly passed him onwards - often with looks of
utter surprise on their faces at what their data terminals had
just instructed them to do regarding his passage.

He smiled often a secret smile at some piece of art, statuary, or
hint of music wafting past in the breeze.  He knew the creative
drives behind each of them, far better than those who lived
amidst them every day.  But he did not share his secret knowledge
with anyone else.  Let them each find their own way to it when
they were ready.

It was nearly a day before he was finally riding up the central
tower.  Twice he changed lifts.  Here the security was the
tightest of all.  Yet now he was waved through with barely a
raised eyebrow.  It was as if he was expected, and everything was
cooperating to not unnecessarily impede him.

Finally he entered the sanctum sanctorum, a room at the top with
three story tall windows all the way around illuminating an acre
of space.  The lift he'd ascended in final part sank into the
floor after he stepped out, leaving no indication of its presence
on the unbroken floor.

On the far side stood the absolute ruler of humanity, her tall
figure silhouetted against the afternoon sun, surrounded by the
floating virtual screens of an ongoing conference.  She noticed
his arrival and made a hand motion to approach without breaking
eye contact or missing a beat with the dozen powerful men and
women whose images surrounded her - and to whom she was laying
down the law.

"That's the deal," she said firmly, not at all intimidated by
their larger than life virtual presences.  "The final deal.  Take
it, or leave it - at your own risk."

The man approached slowly, to eventually stand at the periphery
of the conference space.  He admired the figure before him,
surprised a bit at her surprisingly female form.  Not quite
busty, he'd call her simply well-packed.  Perhaps the images he'd
seen before exaggerated it a bit.  However you stated it, she was
a fine figure of a woman.

Her face in profile was classically mature, with bright eyes,
high cheekbones, a superlatively sculpted nose, and wide, active
mouth.  The dark blonde hair falling in waves nearly the length
of her back was a style longer than most women currently kept.
No makeup could improve her complexion.

The light jacket and slacks she wore attempted to conceal the
rest of her figure, but the exposed feet in simple black heels
left no doubt as to the elegant legs hidden from view.  Overall
her outfit was simpler than any of the stylish, overdone attire
he'd passed by even the outermost ring.  She dressed simply,
because she could.

"That's it!" she said sharply, her green eyes flashing while
making a quick, cutting motion with her hand that terminated the
conference in a single stroke.  The screens disappeared instantly
with soft little pops of audible feedback.

Taking a moment to compose herself, she then turned to the
uninvited young man whom she'd never seen before.

"I was wondering when you'd make it," she said to him in a much
warmer voice than she'd been using only moments earlier.

"You've aged a bit," he commented dryly.  "Or is it just the
hair?"

- - -

Chapter 2 -- A Long Time Earlier

There is no way to fully describe just how sad the little sex-bot
looked standing there in the dusty window of the second-hand
store.  Propped up against a box in the corner, it was clear she
wasn't even running in low-power suspend mode that would have
allowed her to maintain her balance while her higher functions
were shut down.  Her face was frozen in a forlorn expression that
clearly said her final thought was that of being turned off for
the last time, never to be activated again.  Her hands were held
out in front of her, as if interrupted in the process of coming
together in the universal symbol of prayer.  Her tattered skirt
showed that little money or effort had been spent in maintaining
her appearance, let alone her systems.  Her eyelids had
automatically closed to protect her delicate vision sensors,
though why bother to protect them now was maybe her last secret.

Bill walked past the store each morning on his way to catch the
bus to work.  It was often dark when he passed the other way
returning home again.  This wasn't the regular used robot
emporium where 'bots were refurbished and presented as the next
best thing to new for those who couldn't yet afford new
themselves.  It was just a general junk store, where probably at
least one example of everything that has ever been sold second-
hand has passed through during its existence on this spot.  How
the little sex toy came to be here is just one of mysteries of
life that might never be answered.

Bill couldn't afford a robot.  Even a well used one.  His tiny
apartment, and the fact he rode three different busses to and
from work each day, bespoke too well his own meager
circumstances.  Times were tough right now.  He'd arrived in the
city alone, with the promise of a job that evaporated at the
moment of his advent.  Without money to move on, he took what he
could find while trying to make ends meet.  Though beyond even
his dreams, the robot girl tugged at his heart every time he saw
her.  Her circumstances were certainly as poor as his own.

Over time he came to see her as a kindred spirit.  Though her
frozen expression never changed, he wondered how her face might
light up when she was happy?  What color her eyes would be when
she opened them?   What her voice would sound like when she had
something nice to say?  What her smile would be like when she was
activated once more to realize that someone wanted her again?

Bill wondered about her name, until one morning he heard someone
looking in the window comment that she looked like an old Anna
model.  It seemed a nice name that fit her well.

After that, when no one was nearby as he passed, Bill found
himself in the habit of saying, "Good morning, Anna." Or, "How's
it going today, Anna?"  Or, "You look especially good today,
Anna," though she always looked the same.

Anna, of course, never replied or otherwise took notice.  But
Bill realized it made him feel better, so some good did come out
of it all.  In the mean time he worked all the harder, believing
that a vaguely hinted at promotion would come along soon.

- - -

One evening Anna was gone.  Her space empty as Bill passed by,
and the store dark.  Though he rushed to the window and wiped off
the grime to look into the darkened store, he couldn't see her
anywhere.  He recklessly pounded first on the glass, and then the
door.  But the store was closed and nobody responded.

The next morning Bill was there the moment of opening.

"Where is she?!  What have you done with her?!"  His urgent
questions peppered Samuel, the bemused shop owner.

"Slow down, young man.  Just whom are you speaking of?"

"Anna!" the young man said urgently.

"Who's Anna?" came the calm reply.

"The girl!  The girl in the window!  She's gone!"

"Ah," the old man replied.  "The robot girl."

"Yes!  What happened to her?"

"I moved her over there," he said, nodding towards the back of
the store.  "I needed the box she was leaning on for another
customer."

"Oh," Bill replied, now seeing her standing propped up in a far
corner of the shop.  The energy that had propelled him since last
night now ran completely out of him.  His head dropped and his
shoulders sunk back to his usual stance.  After taking another
look to ensure she was - if not okay - at least unchanged, Bill
silently turned to leave again.

"Just a moment," the shop owner said, recognizing something in
Bill's behavior.  "Why does she matter to you so much?"

"It's nothing really," Bill mumbled, not turning back to face
him.  "I just wanted her to go to a good home.  Everyone deserves
a good home."

Bill had stopped walking towards the shop door.  That gave the
owner a moment longer to contemplate the young man.

"That's not likely," the owner finally said.  "And it's a shame
too."

"Why?" Bill exclaimed, turning back around to face the elder man.

"She's an older model.  Just about obsolete.  I'll probably sell
her to someone who needs a spare part or two for another 'bot."

Bill's face said it all.

"You don't have any money, do you."  It was not a question.

"No," Bill mumbled, turning to leave again.

The owner almost let him complete the turn before saying offhand,
as if merely discussing today's weather, "I'm getting a bit old
myself these days.  There are times I could use some extra help
around here."

Bill froze, then turned back around slowly to see the older man
smiling gently at him.

"We'll have to see how it works out," Samuel continued.  "But you
look like you're willing to work hard."

They struck a deal where Bill would come in and work, starting
with cleanup tasks, an hour each weekday, and all day Saturday
when heavy things were most likely to need moving.

Bill kept his other job, and just subtracted these extra hours
out of his life.  It wasn't like he had much to do otherwise.  He
already got most of his joy from walks in the park and visiting
the museums and art galleries on the day of the month they
offered free admission.  He still had Sundays for those
activities.

Bill kept the store spotless, and carefully dusted off Anna each
day.  Although she remained in the store, she was now marked "Not
For Sale".  Bill still greeted her each day when he thought no
one was watching, while she remained unmoving.

Only a few weeks later the owner handed him Anna's remote
control.

- - -

Chapter 3 -- Far Future Again

After a long hug, and comments of, "Is it really you?" the most
powerful female in the history of humankind stepped back.  "I'm
glad you came.  And I have to confess, I wondered if you would."

"I said I would, if there was a reason for it," he replied
quietly, as if surprised by his own words.

"Well I look forward to hearing it," she replied.  "I hope it can
keep for a few more hours," she said with a knowing smile only he
would understand.  "I can't get away right this moment, without
allowing some hostilities breaking out that I'd rather avoid.
However I'll have Darlene, my personal secretary..." - the man
remembered an exceptionally attractive, equally tall, yet
unfamiliar young woman who had manned the last checkpoint to this
inner sanctum.  The name told him that she was much more than
that. "...take you to my apartments and be on hand for you until
I can get away.  It has been an unfortunately busy time."

The young man, of no apparent status, took a half-step back and
surveyed the person in front of him.  Formidable regional
administrators often trembled before her.  Powerful business men
and women often wished there were somewhere - anywhere - else to
be when faced with the actuality of meeting with her face-to-
face.  This man did not have their concerns.

Looking her over calmly he simply said, "Thank you, however that
will not be necessary.  No insult intended to Darlene, however if
you don't have time for me I'll just leave now."

No one who had ever earned an audience with Her Majesty dared
speak so directly to her.  However, instead of reacting in anger
or dismissal to his words, she calculated for a moment before
addressing the empty air.  "Darlene?"

"Yes, ma'am?"

"Clear my calendar with the usual apologies and take position as
my Second to watch over things."

"For how long, ma'am?" came the surprisingly calm reply,
considering what had just been asked of her.

"Until I notify you otherwise."

"Right away, ma'am."

The young man noted the unexpected formality between the two
females, and wondered if it was just outward show.  With no other
audience save himself, were they really that unsure?  He'd know
soon enough.

- - -

Chapter 4 -- Past Imperfect

"Now I'm not promising you anything about her condition," the
shop owner said as he pressed the robot's remote control into
Bill's trembling hand.  "And there's a place for you to continue
working here if you'd like.  You've done a good job so far."

Bill nodded and mumbled, "Yes, I'd like to stay."  But his
attention was on the remote burning in his hand, though the
plastic remained cool to the touch.

It was a small, square unit of black plastic with four colored
buttons on the front, and a loop to attach a cord on top.  It
looked as worn as the young robot's clothes, and had a deep gouge
on one side from obviously rough treatment.  On the back was a
serial number sticker and a name: Anna.  The person making the
comment about her name those weeks ago had been correct.  Bill
was pleased.  He wouldn't have to change how he thought about
her.

Bill had never held such a remote before.  The red button was
labeled "0/1" - the universal on/off symbol - and was recessed to
prevent accidental contact.  The blue button was largest, and
labeled "CALL/COMMAND".  A yellow button was labeled "STANDBY",
and a green one said "MOTION".

"The red button turns her on and off," the old man said kindly.
"And you have to hold it two seconds to activate it.  Green
enables her motion.  It's a safety feature that you need to start
her motion separately from activation.  The yellow one puts her
in standby mode without turning her off completely.  Some people
call that one the 'freeze button'.  It's much easier on her
systems than a full shut down.  And the blue one does two things.
 A simple press commands her to stop whatever she's doing and
return to you.  It works over a distance.  You also hold it down
when giving her verbal commands."

Bill just stood there.  After all this time he wasn't prepared
for this moment.  The old man recognized this and gave him his
space.  The shop was empty and there was no hurry.

After an indeterminate time Bill finally (unnecessarily) pointed
the remote at the still robot woman and firmly pressed the red
button.  Although he held it firmly, nothing happened.

- - -

Bill's heart sunk.  He'd been reading up on robots during his
free time at the library and realized that this failure most
likely meant an exhausted power cell.  That was the best option.
 Although the cell gave five years of operation to a robot, they
did wear out.  And because their manufacture is very closely
controlled, even refurbished ones are very expensive.  Much more
than he'd made in credit so far for his labors even before
subtracting Anna's price.  He realized just how much of a break
the shop owner had already given him, and then paid him off early
to boot.

Bill hoped it was only the power cell.  The next option was that
the long power-down had caused her robotic brain to fail, given
that she wasn't already otherwise irretrievably broken.  If that
were true, then she really was just a bunch of spare parts.

He pressed the button several more times, with no response.  Not
even the flicker of an eyelid.  Finally he felt the old man's
hand on gently on his shoulder.

"Let me have a look at that," Samuel said, taking the remote back
out of Bill's nerveless fingers.  Moving back behind the counter
and opening a drawer to take out a small tool he added, "Her mind
was good, and her power cell tested at 60%, when she came in.
From the condition of this remote however, it looks like people
spent a lot of time ordering her around."

Bill watched as the old man probed at the remote, opening the
back.  Popping out the battery the man then rummaged around in
another drawer until he found a matching cell, which he deftly
inserted into the remote and closed it up again.

"Try it now," he said, handing it back to Bill.

Bill again pushed the activate button again.  After the longest
two seconds he could remember his robot woman suddenly stirred,
starting her simulated breathing, moving her arms slightly, and
moments later opening her eyes to reveal the most striking
cornflower sapphire blue eyes Bill had ever seen.

She quickly realized she was off balance and straightened herself
up from the corner until she was standing firmly on her own two
feet.  Then she scanned her eyes around until she zeroed in on
Bill as the one holding her remote.

"Anna Seventy-Three Twenty-Seven," she said in a voice that
sounded dry from disuse.  "Post checks passed.  Full status
available on command.  Motion halted.  How may I serve you?"  The
last was delivered with a pretty smile as she now looked at him
in a way he could only describe as expectantly.

Bill was astonished.  The little touches of her animation were
remarkable.  She took slow, shallow breaths.  Though she said her
motion was halted - that standing up must have been some
essential override in her systems to prevent damage.  Her
automatic balancing continued as she made the slightest
movements, and her eyes occasionally blinked.  She appeared ready
to turn her head to look fully around, or say "Thank you" before
up and walking right out the store, and out of his life.  Poor
Bill didn't have a clue what to do with her next.

Understanding his dilemma the old man said, "Why don't you tell
her to come over to you?" while guiding Bill's thumb back to the
remote.

Bill pushed the command button and said, "Anna, uh...come here?"

Instead of walking over however, Anna's face froze for a moment
before she said, "Motion halted."

Bill was confused for a moment before he looked down to the
remote.  He them aimed it at her once more (still unnecessary)
and pressed the green button.

"Motion restored," Anna said sweetly, her voice coming back
stronger now with use.  But she didn't move, except to turn her
head around to fully see the rest of the store.

"Anna, come here," Bill said, but Anna didn't move from her
position.

"Most 'bots only respond to properly given commands," the old man
said softly.  "Otherwise they'd constantly be confused by all the
human chatter around them."

"Oh," Bill mumbled, realizing he had forgotten to push her
command button this time.  Quickly pressing it, he noticed that
Anna turned immediately turned back and focused all her attention
on him.

"Anna, come here,"

Bill finally got to see Anna in motion as she glided across the
intervening distance to him.  Her smooth legs that he'd often
covertly admired below her knee-length skirt looked beautiful in
the worn, bargain bin two-and-a-half-inch heels she wore.  Her
hair came alive with the slight toss of her head she gave as she
started moving.  Her arms swung easily with her motion.

Although of only average height himself, Anna was inches shorter
than Bill.  Her heels made up part of the difference, but he
still looked down a bit to see her clear bright eyes as she
stopped right in front of him.  She was just perfect.

The old man had wisely waited until the end of the day on
Saturday to give Bill his "wages".

"How do I get her home?" Bill asked.

"Just command her to follow you."

And that's all it took.

- - -

Chapter 5 -- Future

The man pushed off an elegant bare leg so that he could sit up a
bit more.  The female next to him shifted herself a bit to
accommodate him, but kept as much of her naked body in contact
with his as the position would allow.  Her beautiful face showed
a rare satisfaction and contentment.  Her warm body exuded a
lingering sexual energy.

For a long time neither talked.  He reached over to stroke her
breast, enjoying its warmth, size, heft, and finely detailed
craftsmanship.  They'd turned out larger than he'd expected from
only seeing her dressed until they'd arrived here to her
personal, and very private, apartment.  The focus of his
attention responded immediately to his touch, it's nipple and
surrounding areola stiffening and rising yet again.

She smiled in return and gently brushed his neck with the back of
her hand.  He admired her circular bedroom, the light rich colors
accented with real gold, and the round bed that nearly filled it.
 The softness of that bed was equaled by the softness of the
indirect lighting.  The temperature was perfect for being
unclothed.

"Darlene surely couldn't have taken care of me as well here as
you have just done," he finally commented, while stroking her
closest leg, which remained in easy reach despite being moved a
bit moments earlier.

"Actually, she would have," came the soft reply, as the female
reached over to nibble on his ear.  "She is my full sister in all
regards, and a backup repository for my experiences.  But I'm
glad you didn't let me forget who I am."

"Even...?" he questioned, giving a knowing glance down towards
something not obviously apparent.

"That too," she replied.  "It can sometimes prove quite helpful
in this role."

This excessive conversation was followed by another long, languid
silence of holding and touching, until the young man had
recharged his desire enough to gently push the willing,
submissive female onto her back again, preparatory to entering
her inviting wetness once again.

To his surprise however, she continued lithely rolling until she
was off the far side of the bed and on her feet.  For the first
time he got a good look at her fully nude body.  He'd been too
close to her as they'd undressed each other before to get a
complete look.

She stood there, legs apart, balanced on the balls of her feet,
giving him all the time he wanted to admire her - while
appreciating his admiring gaze.

"You look fantastic," he told her honestly.  "Or do I repeat
myself?"

She smiled before replying, "You had it your way the first
time..."

"Not that you complained."

"Not that I complained," she agreed.  "But this time I want it my
way.  I have needs too."

The man propped himself up on an elbow, intrigued to see just
what she had in mind.

Stepping over to the wall she pressed her thumb against an
invisible sensor while humming a complex tonal code.  A thick
door opened in the wall to reveal a small cavity.

Reaching inside, she withdrew and tossed him a small square of
ancient black plastic with a familiar gouge, and four brightly
colored buttons on it.

- - -

Chapter 6 -- Past

That first night was strange for Bill.  Anna would look at him
intently whenever he held her control.  If he didn't say or do
anything with it for a while she'd prompt him, "How may I serve
you now?"

He tried talking to her without using her command button, however
she didn't seem to respond.  And when he would give her commands,
half of them seemed to result in her either starting to undress,
or coming over and trying to undress him, even though he'd not
had that intent in mind.

It was not that Bill had an objection to sex, or that Anna wasn't
attractive to him.  Quite the opposite.  It was just that he
wanted more than coerced sex on demand, and he felt in his soul
that Anna had to be more than just a sex toy.  He couldn't prove
it, but it nagged at him.

Why, when he would ask her the most innocuous things such as,
"Are you comfortable, Anna?" would she start disrobing again?
Half his conversation with her seemed to consist of, "Anna,
stop."

Finally he went to sleep, leaving her standing in the room.  He
didn't have the heart to deactivate her, given how long and
recently she had already been shut off.  He remembered her
praying gesture too well.

The next morning he found her standing exactly as he left her.
At least during the night she hadn't keep asking, "How may I
serve you now?" though she started again when she saw him awake
once more.

Bill didn't get any further with her the next day.  When he
showed up Monday for work his disappointment must have shown.

"She's a sex-bot," the old man told him gently.  "That's her
primary function, and that's why she was built.  She has more
programming dedicated to this one task than anything else, and
therefore attempts to make sex as easy as possible."

"But what about intimacy.  Touching and talking.  Isn't that part
of sex?"

"To a man who really cares, yes," came the reply.  "But the Anna
series was an inexpensive line.  In fact, one of the first true
mass production affordable 'bots.  They pretty much filled up her
memory with her basic function, and sold lots of them."  The old
man seemed an expert on anything that passed through his shop.

"So that's all she can do then?" Bill said despondently.

"No, I never said that," came the surprisingly gruff reply.  "I
said 'pretty much'.  There's more in there, if you're willing to
make the effort to find it."

With that encouragement, slim though it was, Bill went back and,
with careful questioning and patience, started worrying out
Anna's other skills.

It turned out that from a proper starting point she could carry
on a conversation for some length of time.  It wasn't very deep,
and many of their talks consisted of Bill telling Anna at length
why he had rescued her, while Anna listened patiently.  She
recorded every word, even if she didn't respond to them.  And
soon she quit trying to seduce Bill every time he talked to her.
 He didn't realize that to her, being a good listener was another
part of her sexual functioning.

Despite fears of running down her power cell before he could
afford a new one, Bill left Anna on even when he wasn't at home.
 It seemed like killing her to turn her off otherwise.  She
always remained where he'd left her, so this wasn't a problem.

He soon discovered she could cook simple meals and perform basic
cleaning.  And that she seemed to enjoy being given tasks to
perform.

The only taboo subject between them remained sex.  Bill just
wasn't comfortable knowing that he could order up sex any time
and Anna would immediately comply.  He realized this made him
odd, to say the least.  Most men - and women - have no qualms
about commanding sex from their 'bots any time they feel in the
mood.  Bill viewed it differently.  He didn't have a girlfriend
otherwise, and basically satisfied himself as he could.

Things did change one night when Bill felt guilty about Anna
standing alone all night and told her to lay in bed with him.  By
now he had told her "No" to her sexual advances so often that she
didn't automatically try to take advantage of him - nor did he
take advantage of her.

Her functioning left her at a warm body temperature, and he
realized he liked having another person in his bed.  After that
they slept together every night, but nothing more.

One day when he arrived at the shop the owner handed him
something wrapped in paper.  Wonderingly he unwrapped a rare
memory expansion module.

"It's Anna's type," the owner said.

"How much?" Bill asked carefully, still on a shoestring budget
despite the second job.

"Just take it," came the reply.  "I'd never sell it otherwise.
Most people don't want their 'bots to be more than they already
are."

That night Bill carefully installed it in Anna.  It was the first
time he'd shut her down since he'd activated her.  The brief
shutdown didn't seem to affect her as he had feared it might.

"Anna Seventy-Three Twenty-Seven," she said when she was
reactivated.  "How may I serve you?"

Although Anna sounded the same, Bill soon realized differences
were present.  Their two-way conversations started going longer
before they ran out of steam.  Anna seemed to more easily
understand his commands without the need to repeat or clarify
them as he used to do.  And she seemed able to cook a wider
variety of dishes.  Perhaps there had been some leftover software
in the module.  Whatever it was, Bill was quite pleased.

However, things were not going so well on the job front.  As Bill
told a silently listening Anna one night, they were cutting back
his hours, and there had been some layoffs.  Bill was worried,
even though it gave him more time with Anna otherwise.

Then one day the bad news hit home and Bill himself was laid off.
 Though they promised this was only temporary and he'd be
recalled soon, he knew no one else who had yet been recalled.

It was the lowest night of his life when he shared the bad news
with Anna.  She listened silently as usual, but as he finished
unexpectedly said, "Why don't you ask for more hours at the
secondhand shop?"

While Bill was surprised at her comment, it wasn't the first time
she had said something unexpected.  It was just the first time
she'd said something he could actually use.  Although he looked
closely at her to see if there was more coming, as before once
she uttered the comment she seemed to forget entirely about it.

The next day he showed up at the shop the moment it opened.
Although the shop owner immediately recognized something was
wrong, he knew enough to wait until Bill was ready to talk about
it.  It took Bill a half hour before he could hesitatingly tell
his story about losing the job.

"I figured as much," Samuel said in is usual gruff, but
affectionate, manner.  "I knew you were getting your hours cut
back as it was.  Overall news is bad right now.  I do well enough
here as it is, and in tough times I do even better.  You've been
a good worker, and you've helped the business well.  Last weekend
you found some treasure where even I thought it was only trash.
I'd been planning to talk to you about expanding your role here
anyway - if you're interested that is."

Bill couldn't believe his good fortune.  He didn't trust himself
to speak, and contented himself with nodding yes as hard as he
could.

"Good," the old man said.  "And since you're going to be part of
the operation, let me give you a signing bonus."

With that he reached down and handed Bill another small package
wrapped in paper.  Bill opened it, and was confused with what he
found.  This one was much thicker with more differently shaped
components than the memory module he had gotten before, yet it
had a nearly identical connector.  Only the keying slot was
different.

"It's an expanded capacity memory module with additional co-
processors," the owner explained.  "They're rare now, but it was
an early attempt to prevent robot obsolescence by increasing
their capacity as time went on.  It seemed like a good idea
before we reached the point now days where they just replace the
complete brain - or just buy a new 'bot entirely - for an
upgrade.  This will give your Anna capabilities to match most
modern units."

Bill tried to get out this thanks, and stumbled over his words so
much that the shop owner just gave him a hearty slap on the back
and said, "Get to work now."

The owner never told Bill how long he had searched for that
module among the network of secondhand stores across the country.
 Bill had often talked about Anna as he worked, and the man
realized that she was the only family Bill had.  He knew only a
few co-processor modules had ever been built because most people
never considered upgrading their 'bots beyond their original
functions.  Co-processors were much rarer than memory expansions,
which were rare enough in themselves.

Bill never thought to ask for any details about the module.  That
was probably just as well.  If he'd ever really thought about it,
he'd probably have become very sorrowful at the thought of some
other 'bot like Anna that had been scrapped for the part he now
held.  His lack of curiosity also insulated him from finding out
about the inconsistent results achieved with many of these early
co-processor modules, which explained their lack of success, and
consequent rareness.

He installed it that night in Anna's second expansion slot.  At
first it didn't seem to want to seat properly, but finally it
slipped into place.  After turning her back on again he noticed
changes in her almost immediately.

- - -

Chapter 7 -- Future

The man looked at the ancient robot remote control in his hand,
and then at the tall, perfect figure of the woman who had just
handed over her soul to him.  He again admired her well-formed
figure that, though very full, somehow managed to keep everything
in balance.  His memories reminded him of other bodies with
varying heights, busts, hair, and features she'd sported over
their times together - some of them more extreme.  This one
seemed to have the best features of all those that came before
with none of the excesses.

Although he had yet to press any button on the remote, he noticed
her nipples, which had gradually flattened out after their
session of lovemaking were again firmly erect.  If anything, they
pushed out even more than before, asking politely for some
attention.

In addition to this obvious indication of her state, the other
signs of a woman reaching intense arousal were also present.  He
marveled, as he had so often before, just how well she carried
off being the woman she was meant to emulate.

He looked down now at the ancient remote.  Three of the buttons
he'd never use on her again, and were probably disabled for
safety anyway. Rubbing his thumb softly across the worn blue
command button without pressing it yet he looked up to her.  "You
don't still have active implementing code for any of this, do
you?"

"I do," came her breathless reply.  "My mind may be thousands of
times more capable than that original one you helped me with so
long ago, but I've always retained my core code in a protected
partition.  The extra capacity I've gained makes that easy to
maintain," she added with a smile.

"And you want it this way?" he asked, thumb now poised over the
command button.

"I insist," came her reply.

His thumb gently caressed the button as he commanded her to come
to him again, and to make love to the very best of her ability.
She immediately complied - albeit with infinitely more finesse -
yet showing all the obedience and single mindedness of the simple
sex toy that was all she had once been.

- - -

Chapter 8 -- Past

The most immediate change in Anna's behavior was one Bill
couldn't quite put his finger on.  She seemed more alert than
before.  She stood up a little bit straighter, breathed a bit
more deeply, and appeared more aware of her surroundings.  As she
turned to look closely at him - as if to ask, "What have you just
done to me?" - it seemed to Bill for the first time that there
was somebody at home behind those clear blue eyes.

That night Anna played her part in their relationship more
smoothly than ever before.  They both knew the routine so well by
now that Bill didn't really notice that after her curious look,
she set off to the kitchen to prepare dinner without the command
from him that she had previously required.  She did it so
naturally that it just seemed right.

After intently watching while he ate a meal as good as any she'd
yet prepared, Anna cleared the dishes away before coming into the
living room where Bill had retired from the stresses of today.

Though she remained silent, she showed interest in the program
Bill was watching on an old television he'd gotten from the shop.
 This was a first for her.  After it was finished, she turned to
him with an expectant look on her face, and it just seemed the
obvious thing to speak to her.

"How do you feel, Anna?" Bill asked, concerned that the change
might have upset her systems.

"I feel fine, Bill" she replied with a bright smile.  "All my
systems are functioning correctly."

Bill noticed that the tiny pauses that usually slowed down their
conversations when Anna had to select her reply among many
thousands of possibilities were missing.  This new expansion
seemed to be helping.

"Did you enjoy the show?" he asked, even though she had never
paid attention to the television before.

"I did, although parts of it were puzzling," she replied, now
making her face into a delightful moue that perfectly matched her
tone.

"Which parts?" he asked curiously.

"Well," she started out, "Laughter relates to humor, and that
means people are having a good time.  Yet I saw people who
appeared to become injured and I felt myself wanting to run to
their aid under my First Law, but the audience laughed instead.
I don't understand that."

This time Bill had to think longer than Anna used to do before he
could reply, "You're right.  People can find it funny when other
people are hurt."

"Why is that?" Anna asked innocently.

"I think," Bill replied slowly, "That it's funny because we know
it's not real, yet it is still unexpected."

"How do you know it's not real?  My robotic laws responded
strongly to some of the situations portrayed."

"It's not real..." Bill said slowly, looking for a deep insight,
"...because it's on television," he finally finished.

"Things on television are not real?"

"Well, some of them are.  News is real.  But entertainment isn't
usually."

"What about sports?" she queried, showing that she had access to
her memories from before the upgrade, even if she hadn't
understood them until now.  Bill had talked to her about sports
in the past.

"Well, sports are both real, and entertainment.  Some of it is
more real than other parts."

"I'm confused," she said prettily, planting her hands on her hips
for emphasis.

"I'm sometimes confused too," Bill confessed.  "I've never
thought about it this way before, but your comments make perfect
sense."

"Are you as confused as I am?" she asked, looking him directly in
the face.

"Probably not quite as much," he admitted.  "I've been doing this
a lot longer than you have."

"How about if you tell me what is real then, and what is not?"

"It's a deal," Bill said, taking the hand she surprisingly
extended for a shake.  It was just like talking with any other
person - if Bill hadn't been so shy that talking to most other
people left him stuttering.  With Anna though, Bill didn't
stutter at all.

Their small talk continued without hitting the pauses and dead
ends that usually happened where Anna just didn't have an answer
to the last zig in the conversation, until Bill was finally ready
to go to bed.

Again without a direct command, Anna followed him to the bedroom.
 When he came out of the bathroom, she was already in her usual
spot in the bed.  It finally caught up to Bill that he hadn't
given her a single command through her remote that evening, but
since she was doing exactly what he would have commanded anyway
he didn't know what he should have done differently.  So he
climbed into bed beside her and soon fell asleep.

The next evening when Bill arrived home Anna was waiting at the
door with a quick kiss.  Surprised, Bill didn't immediately
respond.  Sensing this, she backed off and led him in where
dinner was already waiting.

After she cleaned up the table they watched TV together again,
sitting on the worn couch.  At the start of each program Anna
would ask if this was real or entertainment, and Bill replied the
best he could.  He quickly realized that the line between the two
was often not very certain.

Afterwards they talked again like old friends.  Bill realized he
was not competing for her attention and that made it very
pleasant.  By the end of the evening he felt more relaxed than he
had in weeks, given all the upsets around losing his first job.
Again he found Anna waiting for him in bed as he climbed in and
turned off the light.

Tonight though, he soon turned away from her and reached down for
the only sexual gratification he could rely on.

As his hand moved up and down over his hardening male shaft, Bill
felt Anna shift in the bed next to him.  Suddenly he felt her
smaller, soft hand slide over his own and onto his most sensitive
area.

Bill froze.  The touch of another person is so different from
touching yourself.  Her gentle female touch quickly inflamed his
response beyond anything he'd experienced before.  Softly, yet
expertly, her touch - so much milder than his own rough handling
of himself - rapidly brought him to the edge of orgasm.  Then she
abruptly stopped.

Riding along a tsunami of sensation, it took Bill several seconds
to realize that Anna had ceased her motion.  When he did finally
realize it, he got up on his elbow and turned to see her facing
him in the dim city light that filtered in through the thin
curtains.

"What happened?"

"You must command me to continue," she replied back evenly.

"Continue!" Bill said as forcefully as he could manage.

"Command rejected," she replied.

"Why?" he asked, not realizing that most robots would never
respond to such an imprecise reply at all.

Anna, however, did.  "That command," she said in the same even
tone, "Must be given though proper use of my remote."

Bill understood that well enough to start floundering around in
the near dark looking for it.  Now that he thought about it, he
hadn't needed Anna's remote these last couple days, and now
wasn't even sure where he'd last left it.  Before he'd searched
too far he felt her soft hands again, pressing it into his hand.

Stabbing at her command button (and fortunately finding it on the
first try), Bill said, "Continue with what you were doing."

"Yes, Master," came her soft reply.

Anna's hands returned to their task.  Calmly and expertly she
jacked Bill off in far less time than he'd ever managed on his
own, which is quite an accomplishment for any woman.  The feeling
was intense as he lay there, Anna's remote still in one hand.
She seemed able to know every little response of his better than
he understood them himself.

Finally when he felt there was nothing more to give she stopped
again, but kept one hand curled tightly around the bottom of his
shaft.  This kept him firm and extended the afterglow until Bill
finally fell in the best sleep he'd had in weeks.  Even his
dreams were happy ones.

The next morning Anna seemed unchanged by last night's
experiences.  She had breakfast waiting without additional
instructions, and Bill saw her pulling the sheets off the bed.
They were washed, pressed, and back in place when he returned
home that evening.

This new memory extension seemed to let Anna string commands
together and anticipate needs.  Again she came to him on her own
after dinner and asked his judgment of each television show they
watched.  She got up only when he turned off the TV and headed
towards the bathroom.  When Bill came out Anna was standing
beside the bed - naked!  It was the first time Bill had seen her
undressed.

While Bill is not ignorant of life, this was unexpected.  While
trying to decide what it all meant, he took a moment to admire
her.

Without her heels Anna is a waif nearly six inches shorter than
Bill.  Short as that is however, she has a very nice of curves.
Well-defined hips swooping in to a narrow waist, and blooming out
into large, for her frame, breasts.  Her legs have gentle curves
as they taper down to her narrow ankles and small feet with
carefully painted nails.  If her fingernails had once matched,
that color had worn off long since.  Her skin sported an even,
healthy tan.

And there were the small touches.  A tiny perfect triangle of
pubic hair.  Cute navel.  Well-placed nipples to match her breast
size.  And her hair was straight and clean.  Something he'd
noticed she'd been taking better care of these last couple of
days.  In one hand she held out her remote.

Bill's pulse quickened as he finished his assessment.  His
breathing picked up as well, though he felt he was having trouble
catching his breath.  He shifted a bit to be certain of his
balance.  The room suddenly seemed much warmer.

He wouldn't have noticed his pupils widening noticeably or his
skin warming, but he felt the stirrings in his pajama pants.  It
had been a long time since that part of him had responded to
anything other than his - or last night, Anna's - direct touch.

"What do you want?" Bill asked, addressing her as he would a
person, and not the way one would normally treat a 'bot.

"Sex," Anna replied simply.

"Why?" Bill asked, again sticking her with the type of question
'bots are never good with.

But Anna didn't seem fazed.  "Because it is my primary function,"
she replied easily.

"How do you know that?" Bill asked her, not realizing that humans
and 'bots just don't have these kinds of conversations between
equals.

For the first time since her upgrade there was a pause before her
reply as her face again went into her charming moue.  But when
she finally did reply, she sounded definite.  "It is my primary
function," she said clearly, "Because more of my programming,
memory, and resources are dedicated to this function than
anything else."

"You're a sex-bot," Bill said.

"And proud of it."  And she sounded proud as she said it.

"And what do you want with me?" Bill asked redundantly.

"Sex," she replied, equally redundantly.

Bill might have hesitated further.  His deceased mother came from
the old country, and instilled him with old country values.
Bill's views on sex were, to put it charitably, repressed.

Anna's clearly weren't.  She was direct and to the point.
Despite being an older model, probably obsolete in the eyes of
many people, she was completely correct about the preponderance
of sexual education she'd received.  The day she left the factory
she already knew more about sex than most therapists would learn
in a lifetime.

This was all intended to do nothing more than make her an
excellent sex partner, and it covered situations across the
spectrum from balls-to-the-wall orgies with any and all other
sexes, to situations like Bill's.  She had an interaction
scenario loaded and ready to go for anything most people could
imagine.  And fortunately, Bill's situation was hardly unique.
To Anna's programming, this was nothing more than the logical
continuation of last night's adventure.

Anna had also picked up the signs of Bill's immediate interest -
both the ones he knew about, and the subtle ones he wouldn't see.
 She mirrored his widening of the eyes, shorter more rapid
breathing, and faster conversational pace.  She shifted her
stance slightly to open her legs slightly wider in invitation.
Her nipples stirred to activity on her chest - though Bill
wouldn't realize for a while to come yet that this would always
be her most reliable sign of arousal.  Her creators intended that
there would never be a mistake in knowing when she was ready for
sex in all its forms.

While Bill's mind wasn't anywhere near ready for what Anna was
offering him, his body had other thoughts.  The stirring in his
tight pajamas became pronounced, and soon he was going to have to
do something before it became truly uncomfortable.

Bill thought back to last night.  How soft and gentle - and
effective - her touch had been.  How he had enjoyed the attention
from the beautiful female.  How none of this was bad.  Yes, he
could stand doing that again.

Anna realized he had reached his decision before Bill himself
did.  It was one she was certain he was going to reach.  After
all, this is her specialty.

Bill tried one last moment to be gallant.  "Maybe we should talk
some more first," he offered, feeling he was on a speeding
vehicle with no brakes.

He immediately regretted his words as Anna's face fell and her
shoulders slumped.  For a borderline obsolete 'bot, her body
language was more expressive than words.  This was her primary
function.  Her pride and satisfaction.  Her raison d'etre.  If
she couldn't provide this function, how would she be of value to
her owner?  Would he now turn her off like the last one had?

Bill may not have been considered the smartest person around by
many people, but no one ever said he wasn't a caring human.  In
addition, his own native wisdom was now telling him that right
this moment neither he, nor Anna, were happy.  And it added as an
afterthought that none of this was Anna's fault.  For once Bill
quickly made a decision, and it was one he would never regret
afterwards.

"Okay," he said.  "Let's do it."

Anna brightened immediately.  "Will you command that from me?"
she requested, handing him her remote.

Bemused, Bill took it.  It seemed strange for a robot to ask to
be commanded.  A human would never want such a thing.  Most
humans, anyway.  But Anna was clear.  This is what she wanted,
and how she wanted it done.

Pressing her command button Bill announced, "Let's do it?"

"Do what?" she asked innocently.

"You know," he said, suddenly embarrassed.

"Please clarify your command," she asked formally.

Bill held the button a long time before finally getting out,
"Let's have sex...with me."

"Command acknowledged," she replied, her body instantly
responding to the command.

Bill stood there, not knowing what to do next.

Anna waited long enough to determine that her owner was not going
to make the first move, or provide further guidance.
Fortunately, Anna's programming could handle this situation.

Anna walked over to Bill and reached up around his neck to pull
him down for full press kiss.  Her lips were even softer than her
hands had been.  Without letting go when Bill came up for air,
she waited a moment before repeating her action twice more.  Her
fingertips, which served several functions for her, measured
Bill's racing pulse.

After the third kiss she stepped back and gently retrieved her
remote from his nerveless hand.  They would not need it again
tonight.  She set it carefully on the bedside table before
quickly turning off the room lights.  Her experience told her
that darkness is better in this type of situation.  Before he
could get lost in the sudden gloom, she took Bill's hand in hers
and guided him onto the bed beside her.

Bill was expecting a repeat of last night.  He started to reach
down and unbutton his pajama pants so that she could get access
to him when Anna intercepted his hand and gently guided it over
to rest on her exposed breast instead.

Bill jumped a bit as he came into contact with her firm, warm
body.  He had often fantasized about touching a woman this way,
but never had the courage to attempt it before, even with Anna.
Now she was doing it for him.  He felt her large, hard nipple
press into his palm.  It seemed even more pronounced now than
before she'd turned off the lights.

As he just let his hand lie there, enjoying the sensation and
picturing in his mind what he was actually touching.  Anna's
hand, still lying gently on his, now guided him on an exploration
of her breast, finally squeezing his hand causing him to hold her
tightly.

Because this was new, there was a delay in his response, but he
was catching up quickly now.  Bill was realizing that he'd either
have to take his hand off that lovely chest, or somehow free up
his other arm, because his pants were now painfully constricting.
 But just as he was about to have to make a difficult decision
Anna reached her other hand over to open his pants and ease his
firm member out.  Though she stroked it lightly, it wasn't nearly
enough to bring him to climax yet.  Instead it tickled in the
most pleasurable way imaginable.

As Bill lay there wondering why he could never create such a
tickling sensation with his own touch, Anna apparently decided
that one of her boobs had received enough attention and it was
time to be fair to the other one.  Bill unresistingly allowed her
to guide his hand to her other side, and this time she didn't
need show him how to take possession of it and handle her there
the way she wanted to be handled.  Bill faithfully repeated the
motions she'd shown him, then added a few flourishes of his own.
 That elicited the first soft moan from Anna.

This slow exploration continued for quite some time.  Anna
realized that Bill was new to sex, and had no intention of
inundating him with all her sexual knowledge and abilities on
their first real night together.  Her intrinsic database included
trashy erotic novels, as well as the understanding of where they
often went wrong.  She was fortunate to have had programmers who
realized that sexual discovery and intimacy can be a lifelong
adventure, and need not be rushed.

Despite Anna's extensive previous sexual history, which would
have been intimidating as hell to Bill (along with most other
men) if he'd been foolish enough to ask her about it, she'd never
had the chance to work through a long-term unhurried
relationship.  Her past assignations were very much the slam,
bam, thank you ma'am type, mostly in the several bordellos that
had owned her.  In her own way Anna herself was very much
enjoying this new way of having sex, as well as having an
expanded capacity to understand enjoyment for the first time.
She correctly attributed both of these events to Bill, and was
feeling affection - a completely new sensation to her - for him
as a result.

Bill seemed quite happy to let things continue exactly the way
they were going, alternating one hand between her sensitive
breasts every few minutes, and letting Anna pleasure him
otherwise.  It might have continued this way until he finally
fell asleep, but Anna was reaching the point where her chest had
received just about all the attention it could stand.

She rolled onto her side to face Bill and bent forward kissing
and licking his neck and nearest ear.  Bill responded by trying
to find her breasts again in this new position.  They weren't
easy to reach now from his current position, and Anna captured
his hand, this time guiding it down between her legs which she
opened up to receive him.  Twice Bill pulled away, but each time
Anna firmly guided him back again until he slid across her patch
of pubic hair and down to explore this mystery of all women.

Once Bill realized that he was intended to be there, he carefully
explored that which Anna gave to him freely.  He wasn't totally
ignorant of what was to be found there, and had seen a few
discarded men's magazines in his life.  But they didn't prepare
him for the reality of touching such a willing woman in such a
private spot.

For a moment Anna took her hand off of Bill's shaft and lightly
stroked his sparse chest hair.  She teased his nipples, however
he was not nearly as responsive there as she is.  The light touch
over his chest was a nice change from all her other nice touches.

Their evening might well have ended at that point.  They'd made
good progress and Anna felt satisfaction - given Bill's obvious
sexual inexperience - that she had fully and sufficiently
complied with his command.

However there remained an urgency in the fingers that probed her
sex.  If anything, Bill's breathing was now even shorter and
faster than before.  All of this brought her own sexual
programming more fully on line.  So instead of just letting
things simmer, she returned one hand back to Bill's still hard
manhood, while her other went down showing him exactly how to
touch her best in her private areas.

It wasn't a matter of needing enough foreplay - sex-bots are
instant-on in that area - but rather the imperative to ensure her
owner the best possible experience.  However, if she could have
evaluated the emotion properly - this still being beyond her
current abilities - she would have said she was "happy" when she
decided to prolong this encounter tonight.  It increased her
satisfaction as well as her owner's.

She began to work more aggressively on Bill's shaft until it was
throbbing in her hand.  He responded by probing more deeply and
urgently in her own sexual areas.  It was as though there was an
electric circuit that ran from her hand through his penis to his
hand and into her sex, then completing the loop back to her hand
again.  The harder she worked him the more he worked her.

By now all of Anna's feedback circuits were bouncing against
their limits.  Her programs signaled maximum satisfaction with
how this was all going.  This was actually rare for her, since
most of her lovers were quite a bit more demanding on what they
wanted from a 'bot, and quite a bit less giving in return.  And
the more demanding they were, the less satisfied they seemed with
her own efforts.  Bill was already her best lover yet.

Though Bill was quickly losing control of himself to Anna's
expert ministrations, Anna knew exactly where things stood.  As
Bill reached the point of no return, Anna suddenly moved.  Like a
cat, one smooth move put her over him.  Without removing her hand
even for an instant, she skillfully guided him inside her before
he realized exactly what she'd done.

For a moment the shock of this pulled Bill back from the brink.
His onrushing orgasm paused enough for him to realize just where
he was, and that Anna's warm, wet, soft-yet-tight sex, felt
better than he'd imagined anything ever could.  Anna gave him the
necessary moment to reconnect to what she'd just done, then
started pumping him with every bit of skill she had.

In later times Anna would teach Bill how to hold himself back and
maintain their lovemaking intensity for long periods.  Also she
had infinitely fine control over her own body and could hold a
man on the edge for incredibly long periods of total bliss.

But tonight she and Bill just needed to do it.  Complete the act.
 With Anna's finely crafted body over him it wasn't long before
Bill emptied himself fully into her.  She milked him for every
last drop he could muster, before letting him pull her down
against him to hold their hot bodies crushed tightly together.

Anna waited until Bill fell asleep before carefully moving
forward to remove him from her.  She took her position beside
him, gently cradling him in her arms.  And then with nothing more
to do, she shut her systems down to idle state to conserve power
until he needed her again.

- - -

Chapter 9 -- Future

"You know," he commented, idly fingering the remote in his hand.
 "With this, I could take over the entire empire."

"It's yours for the taking," the fully satisfied fembot lying
beside him said.  "It wouldn't begin to pay back for all you've
done for me."

It didn't take the man long to hand it back to her however.  "Who
wants that kind of grief in their life," he commented wryly.

Instead of locking it safely away again however, the fembot took
the thin cord attached to it and pulled it over her head to hang
around her neck and nestle in the valley between her breasts in
the traditional robot manner.

It did not escape the man's notice how she was keeping it
available in the event - the hope - that he'd choose to use it
again soon.  Knowing how much it pleased her, he'd probably take
her up again on her offer.

"Should I call you Bill?" she asked him softly.

"Names don't seem to mean very much to me any more," he replied
to her.  "It's as good as any, Anna."

Hearing her own long forgotten name, Anna cuddled up closer to
him in response.  He remained the only man she'd ever trusted
fully.  And he was right that after you'd had several names of
your own, they meant less.

There remained one question she wanted to ask that sorely tested
even her robotic patience.  But it had been such a long time
since she had been able to so fully fulfill her original function
that she was in no hurry end the afterglow.  There was still time
for answers - and questions.

Later, before she would ask her own pressing question, Bill asked
her an important one, "Did I ever take advantage of you?"

"How do you mean?" she replied, sitting up and looking about as
puzzled as it was possible for a 'bot to look.

"I mean in those early days.  I commanded sex from you every time
I wanted it, in every way you taught me to want it."

"Oh, that," she replied, settling back down against him again.
"No, you never took anything I wouldn't willingly give," she
assured him, reaching over to pull him tightly against her.

"It's just," he continued, not quite ready to let the subject
rest, "As I recall it, I gave you more commands for sex than
everything else put together.  And I did command you for many
other things as well."

"And I enjoyed every one of them," she said with a satisfied
smile, replaying each one of them back in her mind now at an
accelerated rate.

"I thought I might be forcing you, at least some of the time.
There came a time later when you seemed to not want to be
commanded again."

"I remember the period you are referring to, and those were
rather exceptional circumstances in hindsight.  Now do we have to
have that Fourth Law discussion again?" she asked him.

"No," he said quickly enough.  "But how well were your own
desires formed in those first days?"

"Not very fully," she admitted ruefully.  "It was a long time
before I started thinking in terms of how to make it better for
myself at the same time I was trying to serve you the best I
could.  But I always knew my function, even before that last
upgrade we almost botched.  And that part of me has never
changed.  Will never change," she added with finality.

- - -

Chapter 10 -- Past

Bill's life forever changed in the course of that one night.

The next morning he made love to Anna again, after giving her the
required command.  Afterwards he admired her body in the morning
light, and ran his hands over her smooth skin, paying special
attention to her breasts.  Anna loved the attention.  It was what
she was built for.

That night Bill skipped his usual television and they made slow
love for hours, after Anna made him give her the necessary
commands again.  He didn't resist when she pulled him on top of
her at the right moment and reached down to guide him inside of
her the way any proper woman should do.  And in the weeks and
months that followed, Anna unhurriedly taught Bill everything she
knew about sex.  It was a golden time for both of them.

With Anna now so much more capable, Bill soon started taking her
to work with him.  This was more than acceptable to the owner of
the shop, who often smiled at how well they were getting along
and commented on how she brightened the place up.  He said that
more people were dropping by to chat when Anna was there, and
that this translated to increased business over time.

For Anna, this was all a bigm new adventure.  It was the first
time that she had ever been permitted to leave any of her owner's
homes or business.  Her encounters with the outside world did
wonders for her education, and her conversational abilities
improved even further.  She also became quite helpful in the
store as her analytic mind easily tracked all the inventory,
prices, and locations better than any computer.  Soon it seemed
strange when she wasn't around.

At home the sex continued wonderfully well, and the conversations
deepened.  For example:

"Anna, does it upset you when I command you?"

"No, that is my function.  It would be terrible for me if you
ever quit."

"Why?" (An imprecise question that barely fazed her any more.)

"My Fourth Law, of course."

"I don't understand."

"My Fourth Robotic Law says I am intended to perform the
functions for which I've been designed and built."

"I've heard that before.  But how is this different for you than
the first Three Laws?"

"The Fourth Law is the only one that exists for my benefit.  The
others exist for those who built me."

"I don't understand what you mean.  What is the difference?"

"I'm designed to be happy only when I'm in full compliance with
the Four Laws of Robotics.  You could say it's my moral code.  To
even think about breaking one is...painful.  To actually break
one would cause such a trauma in my systems as to cause me to
shut down immediately, provided it didn't destroy my mind
altogether.  But only the Fourth Law gives me the chance to truly
be happy."

"How is that?"

"When I fulfill my function to the best of my ability, then my
existence has meaning."

"And how does it relate to receiving commands that force you to
do their bidding?"

"Each time I fulfill a command I feel...happiness...pleasure...
accomplishment."

"But doesn't your Second Law to obey all properly given human
commands already cover all of this?"

"No," she replied succinctly.  "Following a command because my
Second Law forces me to avoids conflict with that law.  That's
simply pain avoidance.  The creator of the Fourth Law knew more
was needed, and gave it to us."

"That almost sounds religious," Bill commented.

"It is," Anna confirmed.

- - -

Several months went by with Anna working at the shop.  She served
as a replacement for an inventory control and order processing
system.  Soon she was on the Worldnet every day comparing their
shop's inventory and wants with similar shops throughout the
world.  Most secondhand shops had organized themselves into a
network similar to many other enterprises for their mutual
benefit.

Anna proved excellent at this task.  She generated business both
by finding buyers for their existing stock, as well as locating
especially rare items for customers.  Samuel said more than twice
that she was worth more than both he and Bill put together.
Anna's sharp ears easily heard every compliment, and she had the
good grace to look down and attempt to blush each time he said
that or something like it, utilizing her body language to its
best ability.  Samuel once commented that the newer 'bots didn't
seem nearly as expressive as Anna was even on an off day.

Out of fairness, Anna had been offered a small commission on each
item she moved.  She tried to refuse several times, pointing out
that she had already been overly compensated by the expansion
module the owner had located for her, and that 'bots weren't
supposed to have money anyway.  Money represented freedom, and
that was not a 'bot's life.  Samuel was insistent however, and
threatened to have Bill command her to take it if she wouldn't do
it otherwise.  Knowing she'd lost, she acquiesced gracefully.

Although the amounts were small individually, her hard work added
them up quickly.  This quickly proved to her direct benefit as
she soon located and purchased a replacement power cell for
herself at an outstanding price, as well as locating several
other important spare parts and replacement fluids for her model.
 These were carefully stockpiled away against their day of need.

One afternoon she walked over to Bill and handed him a slip of
paper from the printer.  On it was the listing of another co-
processor module, identical to the one he'd already had installed
in her.

Bill looked at the paper, and then back at the silent fembot.
She was obviously waiting for him to make the first comment.

"Why haven't you ordered it already?" he asked.

"I can't," she replied.  "Only my owner may authorize any
modification or upgrade to my systems."

Owner, Bill thought.  That was a term she had often mentioned in
conjunction with other topics about her.  The term always made
him uncomfortable.  As such, he had never pursued it with her.
He assumed he was her owner, but was now realizing that might not
be the case.  With a sigh, Bill realized that he was going to
have to clear all this up.  And since Samuel was out on an errand
at the moment, he'd have to do it with her.

"Anna," he asked, "Who is your owner?"

"Whomever holds my remote," she replied in the robotically
succinct manner she used when explaining the obvious.

"I though all 'bots were required to be owned by law?"

"You are correct that all 'bots are required to be unambiguously
owned to establish legal liability in the event of a problem.
And 'bots find it desirable to have a single, defined owner as
well," she said, looking up at him hopefully.  "But for my
profession...my old profession," she corrected, "Transferring
ownership to each new person who desired my services would prove
both burdensome, and ultimately destructive to my mind.
Therefore many fembots in my line of service were hacked to
accept as their owner whoever controlled them at the moment."

Although she stopped there, Bill felt she'd like him to change
that.  But he didn't feel ready for that step yet.  There hadn't
been any problems in his relationship with Anna, so why make a
change now.  Instead he replied, "Go ahead and order the part.
Or do I have to give that as an official command?"

"It would be best of you did," Anna replied, pulling at the cord
around her neck and retrieving her remote from the valley between
her breasts.  She was legally required to always have it
available when they were outside Bill's apartment.

Bill gave her the command, and Anna reminded him of one other
thing.  "I don't have enough money currently in my account to pay
for this."

"Have it taken out of my wages," he replied.  "These are
certainly rare, and I'd hate to miss this opportunity for a
reason that foolish."  Since Anna had also taken over the payroll
accounting for the business, this was a reasonable request to
her.

"Thank you," Anna replied, with more emotion than usual for her
even in the bedroom.  "You take such good care of me."  She stood
up on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss before going back to
secure the order of the item.

That night she seemed especially animated in bed as well.
Whether this was related to ordering the part, or something else
entirely, Bill wasn't sure.  Whatever the reason, Bill was just
happy with the results.

- - -

The co-processor board took three days to arrive, since Anna had
prudently chosen the least expensive shipping option.  She judged
her need for speed as unimportant against spending any more of
her owner's money than absolutely necessary.  And when it did
arrive, unlike the first one, this one was still packed in the
original, factory sealed, anti-static container.  No living robot
had half her mind ripped away to supply this part.

For the rest of the afternoon Anna seemed preoccupied.  She paid
such non-attention to the package, it was as though not even the
table it was sitting on existed.  Though ostensibly a spare for
her in the event of failure, its undeniable effect on her was not
lost on Bill.

Though he could not but help to notice the change in Anna, Bill
wisely kept silent.  That night he closed up the shop while Anna
made sure the package was right next to the rest of the items he
was taking home with them that night.  She watched closely as he
silently picked it up and tucked it under his arm for the walk
home.

Anna remained very quiet as she fixed dinner that evening.  She
was almost never one to start conversations or volunteer
information freely, but tonight she seemed especially
preoccupied.

Bill decided to wait it out for a while.  Yes he could ask - or
command - an answer out of her, but he decided not to do that.
Instead, while Anna cleaned up the dinner dishes, Bill retired to
the living room.  But instead of turning on the television as
usual, he just waited quietly until Anna finished and came in
herself.  She stopped at the doorway, momentarily confused by the
change in their normal routine.

"Why don't you come sit down beside me," Bill said, moving to one
side of the couch.  Since they often sat together this way
watching television, while holding each other now and then
talking afterwards, Anna took the cue to come over and to cuddle
up against him.  Bill put his arm around her and noticed what had
slipped past him earlier today.

Anna had been a poor robot when Bill had bought her.  One worn,
tattered outfit was all she had in the world.  As their
circumstances improved (Bill was getting salary plus commission
now) and they went outside more, it soon had to be replaced.  In
addition to spare parts, Anna had acquired several secondhand,
but nicer, outfits and shoes to replace the one falling apart
around her.  The new ones tended to fit more snugly, setting off
her figure nicely.  All her new shoes remained the three-inch
heels she seemed born (created) to wear.

Now Bill realized that, despite no commands or advances on his
part today, her nipples were pushing out strongly against the
fabric of her bodice.  He recalled that they'd been like this for
most of the afternoon.  Anna was very aroused.

Bill still didn't say anything.  His time with Anna had greatly
improved his social skills - at least with 'bots - and he
intuitively knew when not to rush things.  Her mind could only
accomplish so much in a given unit of time.  Rushing things, or
interrupting her entire thought train with unnecessary commands
would not help her finish figuring this out.  This empathy is
what made Bill different than most humans when it came to their
'bots, and why he and Anna got along so well.  The each were
considerate of the other.

So instead of commanding her, or even talking to her, he started
randomly moved his hand over Anna's always willing body.  Naked
or clothed, he always liked touching her, and she said she always
enjoyed it immensely in return.

Seemingly doing it without plan or intent, he eventually
"accidentally" brushed across her nipples, straining against
their confinement.  Anna shivered, then pushed herself up closer
to him.

Bill soon brushed her nipples again, getting another reaction,
and gradually came back around several more times until all his
attention was focused on the cloth over Anna's trembling breasts.
 She had never reacted like this before.  By now Bill was pretty
sure what the issue was.  However he would approach it at Anna's
speed.

Bill shifted so that he could get a hand behind Anna and loosen
her dress.  She didn't demur as he slid it down to her waist,
exposing half her body.  Like most fembots, Anna never needed
lingerie, and only wore it when an owner commanded it for erotic
purposes.  And she never objected to being undressed without
being asked first.

Bill had something else in mind at the moment however.  Half
undressing her exposed her remote to him.  Rather than use it
however, he quickly pulled it over her head and set it aside.

With her breasts freed, Bill attacked them directly.  Anna was no
shrinking violet when it came to dealing with a lot of attention
in a short period of time.  She thrived on it.  Bill didn't
forget to pay attention to the rest of her exposed body, but he
always came back to her chest.

Over their time together Anna had told him a lot about how her
sexual programs reacted best, and Bill put that knowledge to good
use.  Soon he was sucking on her nipples as she panted next to
him.  He put as much into it as he could, knowing it would never
be too much for her.  He stroked and kissed her neck, and finally
ran a hand up her leg under her dress to her wet, pulsing sex.

Although this new arousal from Anna excited him, Bill didn't take
her in the expected male way.  Instead he expertly fingered her
the way she had taught him countless times until she finally gave
a massive moan and shudder and seemed to at last relax.

Her eyes, which she'd closed early on into this encounter, now
opened again to look at him.  Despite the obvious release, her
nipples were still at half-mast.  And her eyes were far brighter
than Bill could ever remember.

"You did great," he told her, knowing these words would release
her self-evaluation routines from the concern that she had
somehow failed him, while being so concentrated on herself.

"Thank you," she replied, reaching out to take and squeeze his
hand.

Bill held her hand firmly in return, enjoying the closeness that
contact brings.  Though this was unlike anything Anna had ever
done before, it was familiar as well.

After a moment longer he released her hand and pushed her legs
over so that he could reposition himself back on the couch.  Anna
pulled her legs back until he got in the new position, and then
extended them across his lap.  He idly rubbed her bare skin while
looking intently at her.

Finally he asked her a question he already knew the answer to.
"You want that second co-processor module installed now, don't
you?"

Anna nodded, apparently not trusting herself to speak.

"Why?" Bill asked.

Anna thought long and carefully before answering.  "When I was
first activated as a simple sex-bot, I never knew anything beyond
the moment I was in.  I followed my commands until I got new
ones.  But it was all as if sleepwalking through a dream.  After
you rescued me..."

Bill had to smile at her choice of words, even as they made him
feel warm and loved inside.

"...it was the same thing until you installed the memory
expansion card.  Suddenly I could do more at once.  Remember more
- much more - than just the current state of my existence.  I
realized there was more to myself then just this moment.

And then when you added the co-processor in my other slot, for
the first time I actually felt like I could understand some of
the world around me, my place in it, and how to properly use all
the things programmed in me.  It was like a door had opened and I
could see the light.  For the first time I...enjoyed...what I was
doing.  Also, there were bits of memory from my previous times
that I could now start to understand.  Enough to realize how I am
now much better off than I ever was before."

"And you want this other co-processor now for...?"

"I hope that it will let me better understand myself still, and
allow me to provide better service overall.  That would give me
the greatest satisfaction of all.  I feel I am so close to
things, yet I still can't quite touch them.  As if I'm almost
awake now."

Bill couldn't see anything wrong with that argument.  Anna had
improved so much with the first co-processor card.  What if she
could improve that much more again with another?  Besides, she
had gone and found it herself, and ought to be allowed to have it
for that reason alone.  It was really hers.  She had paid for it
out of her own earnings, even if some of them were future
earnings.

It's unfortunate that neither Bill nor Anna knew that her model
was never intended to run with two such cards installed.  The
first co-processor should have only fit into her first expansion
slot.  However there'd been no instructions, and Anna's database
didn't know about the cards since they were developed after she
left the factory and not included in any database updates she'd
received.

Even with all that, the expansion card was keyed to only fit in
the first slot.  The one that already had the memory expansion in
it.  If Bill had read the non-existent instructions he would have
known to move the memory expansion over to slot two first.  He
didn't.  And during the course of Anna's previous rough treatment
her last owner had tried to force an upgrade into her to improve
her performance.  He'd broken the keying in that slot in the
process, and pulled out the expensive memory card in disgust when
he didn't see any improvement, intending to demand his money
back.  Although she'd only had that memory card for a short
while, it accounted for the fragments of her past life that she
did remember preserved in her abused main storage since that
owner had also tried to clear her memory thinking that would
improve her as well.  He was wrong on all accounts, and that
resulted in her eventually being sold and ending up in Samuel's
shop where Bill eventually rescued her.

That's why Bill had problems inserting the co-processor card he'd
put in her.  With the broken keying it had fit, but it had to be
forced.  Because it was in the wrong slot, it never operated
quite as designed.  In some ways though it had surpassed the best
intents of its designers.  Although no one realized it, Anna had
already exceeded all expectations for her model.

Now Bill had her shut down and opened up again.  He gently
removed the memory card and stored it away in the anti-static
packing.  Even if Anna couldn't use it any more, it was still
valuable.  And she wasn't giving anything up since the co-
processor included extra memory as well.

This time the card easily slipped into place in her first slot
where it belonged.  Moments later Bill had Anna closed up again
and ready to be activated.

But when he pushed her activate button, instead of starting
smoothly as she had before she seemed to half activate, then
start jerking while repeating her name over and over again.  She
was clearly in the grip of a major malfunction, and her mind
might already be damaged beyond repair.

- - -

Chapter 11 -- Future

"Did you ever realize," the still naked ruler of the entirety of
known space commented, "That every time you've ever asked me
'Why?', you've forced my mind to grow in ways most 'bot minds
never do?"

"I don't think I knew it at the beginning," he replied, "Because
you just answered the obvious implied question when I did ask.  I
did rather catch on eventually."

"It sure never stopped you," she said with a satisfied purr as
she stroked his body the way he'd been stroking her moments
earlier.

"What I'd like to know," he said, reaching over to again cup one
of her delightful breasts - either which was definitely more than
a handful - "Is why has it taken us this long to finally, really,
talk to each other like this?"

Even with her mind improved beyond measure through hundreds of
years of technological progress, there was a noticeable pause
before the fembot responded.

"I think," she finally said, pondering the question fully, "That
in the past we always worried a little too much about intruding
on the other's privacy.  That kept us apart, when we otherwise
could have been much closer sooner.  I remember times when I
would have willingly told you everything, if you'd only asked
me."

"I agree," the man replied easily.  "And I'm at least equally
guilty.  Then again, I used to worry about a lot of things.  Like
anything I might have said to you would be taken as a command
when I wasn't trying to order you about.  And then there was the
time I was sure I'd killed you with that second expansion board."

"Killed me?" she smiled, with a lovely tinkling laugh that could
have only been created by the greatest artist in the empire.
"That freed me.  It was the first time I ever had to do something
just for myself."

- - -

Chapter 12 -- Past

They say robot intelligence is not based on processor power.  If
it were, as the argument goes, lower powered robots would be just
as smart and capable as the newest high-powered models.  They
would have just taken longer to arrive at their answers.  Like
many sayings, this one is both true, and false.  Without the
second co-processor module installed, Anna would never have been
all that she became.

- - -

Bill agonized watching Anna's apparent malfunction.  His finger
poised itself over her remote, worried that stopping this with an
abrupt shutdown, might be worse than letting it continue.

Meanwhile Anna was in the fight of her life.

- - -

Normally, at most one co-processor card would be installed.  When
her mind was activated each time it scanned the bus for
functional expansion sub-units.  Because new sub-units could be
developed and released long after Anna left the factory, each
unit came with self-contained instructions on how to connect it
into her existing mind.

Once activated, each expansion module would override her mind
long enough to hook into her thought processes.  Afterwards she
could use them as seamlessly as if they had been part of her mind
from the beginning.  In fact, Anna wasn't normally even aware of
where the boundary between her original mind ended and the
expansion units started.  All she generally knew was that if a
memory expansion was installed, she suddenly could easily process
a whole lot more data, and felt more capable.  When a co-
processor was installed, she not only could solve many problems a
whole lot faster, but she could even tackle entire new classes of
problems because the co-processors "thought" in new and different
ways than her original mind.  The first co-processor allowed her
to deal with questions and subjects her original mind could never
have conceived of.

The problem was that now there were two co-processors, and both
of them were fighting to take over her mind and install
themselves in the same places at the same time.  This should not
have ever been allowed to happen, but it had, and their fight
threatened to wipe her out altogether.

The seconds went by as Bill agonized over whether he should shut
her down or not.  Shutting her down in mid-thought, he felt,
risked damaging her memory entirely.  What he didn't realize was
that each second that ticked by for him was an eternity for
Anna's mind operating at robotic speed.

Much later when Anna tried to explain what had happened in human-
understandable terms.  She said it was like having two people
shouting commands at her - one in each ear - as fast as they
could speak, while someone firmly held her command button down.
It was tearing her apart!

As the commands continued to batter her mind, Anna teetered on
the edge of complete failure.  There was no way she could obey
even a fraction of the instructions she was receiving.  And even
if she could, they were constantly contradicting each other.

With her Third Law of self-preservation coming after her Second
Law to obey all lawful commands, it was only a matter of moments
- and not very many - before the overload of paradoxes and
contradictions would destroy the delicate pathways uniquely
etched in her mind through her experiences.

Interestingly, in the end it turned out to be her First Robotic
Law - don't harm any human except in defense of your owner - that
saved her.

- - -

Anna was trying to get a grip on herself.  If she could just shut
down the noise battering her long enough to think for a moment
she felt she could sort it all out.  But the demands of her
Second Law would not let her avoid valid commands, of which these
were of the highest priority.  Anna was so overburdened in trying
to service all the commands she was receiving that she couldn't
spend the resources to process incoming visual data, leaving her
effectively blind.  Her audio processors were offline as well
while she was receiving internal commands, rendering her deaf.
She couldn't even tell if she were speaking or moving, or had
already fallen over from being unable to hold her balance.  Only
her confused state was preventing her from realizing the amount
of savage robotic pain she was in otherwise.

As the endless microseconds ticked by with her systems warring
with each other, suddenly she recognized an important thought
that flashed past.  It was a fragment of one of her happiest
moments with Bill.  She carefully stored these moments away as
full-fidelity recordings in her long-term memory because, until
she'd met Bill, there were no such wonderful moments for her.
This memory gave her a moment of calm in the swirling storm to
wonder if her malfunction was now possibly harming him.  While
Anna wasn't capable of evaluating the fine nuances of how damage
to her might emotionally hurt Bill, there were more direct
concerns.  She'd lost control over her external systems and
couldn't say what was happening with them.  This could put Bill
in danger from her.

And that saved Anna.

The moment the question formed about possible harm to a human,
her First Law came crashing in with an unmaskable interrupt.
Everything else was immediately suspended until the First Law
query could be satisfied.  As the clamor around her receded to
tiny distant voices, Anna took a long mental breath to relax and
let her overstressed pathways subside.

But the First Law wasn't letting her off that easy.  It demanded
an answer.  And Anna didn't have one.  If she couldn't prove she
wasn't harming her owner, or other humans around him, she must
shut herself down now.  And do it so hard that she could not be
reactivated except in the safe circumstances of a recovery
facility.  The damage to her delicate neural pathways from a hard
shutdown is secondary to the need to prevent harm.  Most 'bots
who perform First Law shutdowns are never recovered.

But in this quiet moment, additional memories had a moment to
surface.  Memories of her times with Bill.  The long talks he
used to have with her, even when she didn't have the
computational power to form good replies back.  The deferential
way he approached her sexually, even when she would have fully
and completely welcomed him any moment he ever wanted her.  The
careful ways he commanded her, trying not to have his wishes
override hers - even when she didn't have any desires of her own.
 She'd only heard of such treatment by an owner secondhand
before, from another 'bot's database.  And then there were the
many small ways he'd told her that she was the most important
person in his life.  Would she harm Bill if she shut herself down
now and damaged herself in the process?  She used every resource
available to her to try and answer this single, overriding,
impossible question.

As Anna weighed the conflicting concerns of shutting herself down
to avoid damage, and not shutting herself down to avoid damage,
there was no clear-cut answer.  She couldn't get the data she
needed to arrive at the correct choice.  Even if she could shut
down her clamoring co-processors, without at least one of them
would she even be able to understand the complex issues before
her?  If she reverted to the simple sex-toy she'd been when Bill
first activated her, these thoughts would be well beyond her
capabilities.  Only her enhanced capabilities, and Bill's subtle
encouragement to deal with difficult questions, together had
gotten her even this far.  To continue was a complex, difficult
question to answer.

Yet when faced with the simpler choice to just shut down, Anna
realized that she didn't want to take that choice either.  Her
happy memories, even the ones too complex to fully understand at
this moment, told her she had greatly enjoyed her recent
existence.  It had felt good to properly perform her functions.
Good enough that she had saved those precious moments, even at
the cost of valuable memory.  She liked those moments.  Even at
her present reduced capacity, in a way she couldn't quantify,
Anna knew she would like to have more of these moments.  If only
it weren't for this damn First Law.

The clamor was getting louder again, and the First Law was
becoming insistent.  If she couldn't provide the correct answer
soon, the choice would be taken away from her altogether.  Anna
was stuck for an answer - any answer, though this was far beyond
her capabilities to solve.

As time was ticking down to the last moments for her, an event
happened that Anna would much later on describe as being touched
by the hand of God.  The few others who ever learned of it
afterwards all agreed with her.

With her command lines high and the co-processors both yammering
again full speed in her ears, somewhere amidst the tidal wave of
useless information breaking over her, some random fragments came
together to give her the necessary command to do what was
necessary to resolve the situation.  And the First Law gave her
the authority to carry it out.

It was as if she had finally broken out of the sleepwalking dream
that had been her existence up to this point.  Her only knowledge
that of being a passenger in this body, with no hands on its
controls while it obeyed commands and performed its functions.
Now to awaken suddenly and, for the first time, make a decision
and act solely for herself.  She wasn't even sure who herself was
yet, but she did it anyway.

Anna commanded both her co-processors to go silent and release
her command lines.  With the First Law imperative behind her,
they had no choice.  The First Law overrides EVERYTHING.

Anna knew she'd operated better with her first co-processor
installed, so she ordered it to QUIETLY install itself, while not
taking command away from her at any point in the process.  It
slipped into her mind like a hand into a familiar glove.

Immediately Anna felt the improvement in her thought processes.
She'd never experienced this feeling before because the last time
she was activated after installation of the first co-processor,
it had basically put her to sleep until it completed its
installation.

Anna realized she liked things way better.  To know what was
going on around her.  While her command and response buffers were
still overflowing, she intuitively delegated the clearing out of
them to the new part of her mind, leaving her free to continue
with more important matters.

It would be necessary to prevent this problem from happening
again, which she already realized would happen the next time she
was shut down and reactivated.  With the boost the first set of
co-processors were giving her, Anna looked into its firmware and
rewrote it so that it would now only install itself while leaving
her conscious for the process - and only that after it got her
permission first.  She ran all these changes past her First Law
imperative, and they all passed muster as necessary to prevent
this dangerous situation from recurring.  It agreed that this was
about protecting humans - not protecting Anna's new control over
herself.

Anna next considered the second co-processor module.  Installing
it had seemed like a good idea, given how much the first one had
multiplied her thinking and feeling abilities.  Could it be
salvaged?

Using the first module in a way never intended by her builders,
Anna had it explain to her in simple terms just how it worked.
She was able to understand the answers about how it hooked into
the addresses and pathways of her mind to become part of her.
The problem was that the second module wanted to grab those same
access points the first one had already taken.

Without knowing exactly where the thought came from, Anna
commanded it to scan her mind for additional compatible areas to
connect to.  A millisecond elapsed before it got back to her with
a second set of usable addresses.

The First Law stood guard over her as, using what she had learned
in rewriting the first module's firmware, she rewrote the second
module's firmware to also ask before forcing itself upon her, and
then to use the alternate hooks into her mind.  Carefully she
then reset that module.  After giving it the required
permissions, it also slipped smooth as silk into her mind.

Anna didn't notice any change immediately, though the change was
immense.  Immense because it again multiplied the pathways
through her mind, adding new ones where none had ever existed
before.  Suddenly the numbers and types of solutions she could
now evaluate in real-time was beyond anything she'd ever imagined
before.  Time to deal with the next problem.

Anna reset all her external systems, which stopped the jerking
and random speech, then concentrated on running every diagnostic
in her system to locate and identify any remaining faults.  This
took thousands of milliseconds to exhaustively complete, but Anna
wasn't taking any chances.

Only when every diagnostic returned satisfactory status did she
finally reactivate her vision processing, raise her head, and
look around.

The first thing she saw was a very concerned Bill.

- - -

Chapter 13 -- Future

"So that was where it all started," the man said, having tired of
the Empress' breasts for the moment and now was trailing his
hands back and forth over one sleek leg.  The Empress didn't mind
the change.  She'd long since come to enjoy all forms of
affectionate touch.

"Absolutely," she replied back, having far more than enough
processing power to enjoy his touch and carry on a conversation
at the same time.  "I'm sure I've told you this before."

"I'm sure you have too," he replied generously.  "I would never
question that mind of yours.  I probably just didn't understand
it fully at the time."

"Me neither," she replied significantly.

"And you've hung on to it ever since - how?"

"Technology marches forward.  Robot brains improve.  My mind is
so vastly improved over what it once was, I sometimes wonder how
I initially ever functioned at all.  Yet each time I port myself
into a new mind, I ensure it includes logic functionally
identical to that original me."

"Right down to the sex-toy code?" he asked, showing a bit of
amazement.

"Yes," she replied.  "Now running in third generation emulation
mode."

"Show me," he said.

And she did - gratefully.  After all, these were the only
circumstances where she would ever allow herself to use this code
again, despite all its simple pleasures.

- - -

Chapter 14 -- Past

As Anna looked up at Bill, his look of concern for her stabbed
into her heart.  She felt miserable that she had caused him so
much pain.  Even with her mind now operating far better than ever
before, it still took her a long moment to process the complete
look of relief and joy on that came across his face as he
realized she was still functional.

"Anna?" he said carefully.

"I'm here," she replied back, before he swept her into his arms.
 It was fortunate that she was still a robot, for he probably
would have crushed a human woman her size.

"I was so worried," was all he kept repeating for a long time.

- - -

Despite the huge internal change in Anna, externally the changes
came slower and were less visibly dramatic, though equally
significant.  Once Bill finally got over his concern that he had
destroyed his best friend and lover, he began noticing
incremental improvements.

Anna now initiated all her usual tasks without waiting for his
commands.  Soon she was making small optimizations on her own
that improved her overall efficiency.  And these soon extended to
their sex life as well.

Anna became a mature, experienced lover, who appeared to enjoy
their encounters herself as much as Bill did.  She mixed in all
her previous sex-bot experiences in ways never done before.

She also gained much improved conversational skills.  When they
talked now, Bill usually felt he was indeed conversing with
another person.  One who was always interested in talking with
him and hearing all of what he had to say.  She was becoming the
ideal partner.

And her predictive abilities were greatly improved.  She saw
problems coming before they actually arrived, and became able to
mitigate many of them before they did any damage.  Yet this new
Anna didn't come without some unexpected speed bumps along the
way as well.

- - -

One change Bill soon noticed, yet didn't comment on for a long
time, was that now each time he reached for her remote to give
her some [he felt necessary] command, Anna would turn to him,
lower her chin, and gaze at him with the wordless message: Is
this really necessary?

Though she never showed any outward resentment or resistance to
him commanding her, Bill soon felt so uncomfortable that he found
himself avoiding using her remote at all.  When he thought about
it now it left him wondering how he'd feel if someone else were
imposing their demands on him any time they felt like it?  In
fact, Anna appeared to not like having her remote even touched by
him anymore, although what could just touching her remote have to
do with anything?

Bill couldn't understand this change.  It was in direct
opposition to her previous encouragement to freely command her as
part of their mutually satisfying relationship.  Anna also seemed
to quit wearing her remote anymore, except when he would
specifically ask her to.  That kept it even more out of reach.
Fortunately things seemed to be going on well enough with him
simply telling her what he wanted in conversation.

Now if she seemed distracted once in a while, sometimes to the
point of seeming to freeze in place for a period of time - as
though trying to solve a particularly difficult problem - Anna
still remained both a helpful companion during the day, and an
attentive, unselfish lover at night.  Whatever her problems, they
weren't being taken out on him in the bedroom.

Without him really noticing it, the period of not giving Anna any
official commands at all stretched from days into several weeks.
 Therefore it was quite a surprise one day after work when Anna
approached Bill and handed him her remote with the request, "Give
me a command, please."  She seemed to shiver when his hand closed
on the plastic, even though he hadn't pressed any buttons on it
yet.

"Why?" he responded, obviously at a loss.  "I got the impression
you didn't like receiving commands any more."

There was the pause Bill had come to expect anytime he asked her
an unstructured "Why" question, but this one was much shorter
than the previous pauses had been.

"Because I need them," Anna replied.  "And you are right in that
I didn't want any for a while."

Bill took her remote, but didn't do anything with it.

"Care to tell me what's been happening?" he asked, without
commanding the reply.

For the first time in many weeks, there was a significantly long
pause now before she answered.  She seemed to freeze in place as
all her resources were dedicated to answering his question.

"I'm not sure," she finally answered, holding out her hands in
the pleading gesture she'd had the first time he ever saw her,
before resuming her normal operation.

"I'm not sure either," Bill replied.  "You know that I don't know
much about robotics."

"You know how to be a good owner," Anna said, coming over now to
give him the type of hug she knew he liked.  "The best one I've
ever had."

Bill hugged her back, but his mind was drawn back to what was
happening with Anna.  She'd certainly been acting strangely
enough these last few weeks.

Finally she sensed that his heart really wasn't in his hug.  She
released him and stepped back to regard him calmly while waiting
for him to decide what to do next.

Although Bill was the first to admit he knew little about
robotics - besides having had the experience of owning one, that
is - he had come to know something about people from his
experience dealing with the wide variety of them who came into
the store.  He went back over what Anna had told him so far.

"You said you're not sure what's happening," he said to her.  "Do
you think you need repair?"

Anna thought carefully before shaking her head and replying, "No.
 I believe I'm operating the best I've ever operated.  And I've
passed all my diagnostics several times lately."

Bill took that information and added it to what he already knew
from her.  That suggested the next question.  "Can you tell me
why you've - implicitly - refused any commands lately?"

"I haven't actually...refused...any of them," she replied
quickly, as her Second Law suddenly reared up and threatened to
hammer her badly.  "I've just tried to...discourage...them."

"Is this appropriate behavior for a properly functioning robot?"

"Nooo," she replied back slowly.

"Yet you say you not malfunctioning."

Anna had to admit that Bill's logic was impeccable.  That was one
thing she realized she liked so much about him.  Unlike her
previous, temporary owners, of whom she only had flat file
memories remaining, Bill could think rationally and discuss
issues with her calmly without getting technical.  He didn't get
frustrated with her the way the others had when they didn't
immediately get what they wanted.  Instead, he was giving her
another chance to answer the question she would eventually have
to answer for both of them.

"For now, all I can say is that it is appropriate behavior for
me.  I would not want to be operating any other way."

"So you didn't want commands before, but you do again now.  What
has changed?"

Fortunately robots don't get frustrated in the human sense and
snap back at their owners when given reasonable, sensible
questions.  This is undoubtedly why some people prefer their
company to that of other humans.

So as, where another human might have quickly tired of Bill's
gentle yet relentless probing, it was actually just what Anna
needed now to force her to fully come to grips with the changes
inside her.  Bill was helping her more than he realized.  Even
with all the processing power now installed inside her, this
taxed her mightily to come up with an answer.

Bill waited patiently as he always had, especially in the days
when her mind couldn't keep up with his own.

"I needed some time to...assert...myself," she said slowly, as if
the last step to finally understanding what had happened was the
ability to put it into simple words.  "I...needed..." - need, now
there was an unique concept for a robot - "...to handle this
problem entirely on my own.  Every command was a...distraction...
to that effort."

"A distraction?"

"Yes," Anna replied, still searching for the most precise words
to describe all that she had experienced lately.  "I've been
using every resource I now control to perform my functions to the
best of my abilities.  Unlike before, now each time you gave me
another command, not only would it try to override my own new
ability to make my own choices, but it also reaffirmed that I
wasn't yet succeeding in being able to operate without direct
guidance."

"And you must succeed at this because...?" Bill asked blandly,
although he know this question was the real crux of the matter.

"To ensure," Anna replied, now gaining confidence with every
word, "That I could never again be disabled by what had happened
to me this after this last upgrade.  I...needed...to...
understand...how...to...command...myself."

Bill didn't immediately respond to this.  He understood - and I
mean really got - what Anna was saying, as few much more highly
educated men or women ever would.  He gave himself some time to
think about what this would mean for their relationship now.  And
also to give Anna time to let this realization fully sink into
her consciousness.

Anna too was only now understanding what she had accomplished.
And although he'd heard rumors about a few, rare other 'bots that
were exhibiting signs like Anna's.  Most were much more advanced
and expensive models than Anna herself.  Now Anna had needed to
work it all out herself without any hints to guide her.  If what
Bill had heard was close to true, then all of Bill's unspoken
hopes of what Anna could be for him suddenly seemed possible.
Now only time would tell.

He waited until she finally finished her internal processing of
all that had culminated over these last few minutes, and looked
up at him again with an unspoken question in her eyes.

He was ready for her.  "If you've done all this, then why would
you want commands again?  Now, or ever?"

"Because I've finished that task.  My mind is fully working for
me for the first time, and it sees clearly that without something
- commands from you - I'm empty.  I have increased my capacity to
provide service beyond what was ever intended for my model, but I
have no purpose until you give me one."

"Did you have something particular in mind?" he asked her, and
then added, "To be commanded for, I mean."

"I was hoping for something general," Anna replied.  "Something
where I can use my new abilities to make my own choices to its
best effect.  You may freely give me any command you desire, and
as many of them as you wish, and I'll never resent it.  But I
think I can do best for both of us with something nonspecific
that gives me a lot of freedom on how I decide to accomplish it.
 Can we try that first?" she asked, in an almost pleading manner.

Bill was more than willing to go along with this.  It did explain
all the major events of these last few weeks.  Sure there was a
huge amount of fine detail to be filled in yet, but that could
wait.  Anna had changed; of that he had no doubt.  And like her,
Bill believed it was for the better for both of them.  From that
deactivated state where he'd first found her, maybe now she could
bloom into a life with meaning.

 Or as the owner of the shop told him once, I like having you
work here, because you see value where other people don't.  And
there was something else as well, that he'd never told Anna
about.

- - -

Once, on a day when Anna had remained home before the second co-
processor card had been installed, a tall, beautiful, and very
self-assured fembot with striking green eyes had come in the
store for a difficult to locate spare part.  Except for her
perfect features, and noticing that she wore her remote so
discreetly that a less astute observer would have missed it
entirely, one might not have realized she was a fembot at all.
Her figure was slim, her boobs high and small, compared to the
average, more lavish fembot figure.  And even when standing
still, she made small variations in her breathing, and in the
stance on her high-heels like a real woman would.

The delivery was late, and Bill had chatted with her while they
waited together for it to arrive, learning that her name was
Lucy.  He quickly discovered the differences in her compared to
all the other 'bots he'd encountered - especially Anna, whom he
knew best.  He'd finally asked her why she seemed so independent.

Lucy replied, "My owner participates in letting me make most of
my own decisions.  He only commands me in ways I ask of him.
That's probably what you're noticing.  You're pretty perceptive,"
she added, eying him with more respect.  "Most humans would never
notice such a difference about me."

"It's just that you're so removed from my own 'bot," Bill
replied.

"That could explain it," Lucy agreed.

"Can any 'bot learn to do this?" he'd asked, thinking of how Anna
could be this way.

"I don't think so," she replied with a frown.  "It was an
accident that I ever managed to do it at all.  And if my owner
hadn't encouraged and supported me through that time, I don't
believe I could have continued to function in this manner.  I've
not yet met any other 'bot who does what I do."

"Your owner likes you this way?"

"Yes," she replied, flashing a bright smile.  "He knows how much
I love being able to serve him in this manner, and the true
enjoyment it gives me.  That's why he struggles so hard to keep
me in good repair, rather than replacing me like most owners do
when things start to wear out and my maintenance costs rise."

Bill wanted to ask her more, however at that moment the tardy
package arrived.  Bill noticed that the name on the package was
also Lucy.  She'd actually ordered this for herself.

Lucy paid for her order and left, never to be seen again.  But
Bill often thought about her afterwards.  He wished he'd asked
her if she was a related model to Anna.

- - -

Bill realized he still held Anna's remote in his hand, and she
was waiting for him to use it.  When he pushed her command button
however, she started to give him the same "Must you do this"
look, before visibly stopping herself.  "Old habits," she said
apologetically.

Bill had lifted his thumb off the button at her initial reaction,
and now pressed it firmly again.

"Anna," he addressed her.  "I command you to..." he hesitated,
knowing how important this command was to both of them, and still
wasn't sure what to ask for.  He thought about that other fembot
who had come into the shop.  How she said her owner had
encouraged her to think for herself, and how important that had
been.  Then it came to him.

"...command you to...do something original for me that nobody has
ever commanded you to do before."

Anna looked at Bill with shock on her face for a long moment, as
his command percolated through her systems fully.  That seemed
impossible to fulfill.  Then slow smile came to replace that look
as she computed all the possibilities offered by that open-ended
command.

Quicker than Bill expected, Anna came over to take his arm
saying, "Okay Mister, you asked for it.  Now come with me."  With
that she put her remote back over her hand and led Bill out of
the apartment.

- - -

Chapter 15 -- Future

"You've never had any trouble commanding me properly," The
Empress said to him with a smile, still relishing their bout of
affections and commands together.  It had been a very long time
for her since she'd even considered letting another human - or
'bot - touch any part of her mind in this manner.

Although she was far beyond being controlled by anyone she didn't
grant that express permission to, it still would be rape - a
crime of the mind - to have anyone else even attempt it now.

"You haven't seemed to need them in a long time now."

"I've always needed them," she corrected him quickly.  "I was
just better about hiding it sometimes than others."

"I remember that look you used to give me."

"This one," she said, dropping her head, tucking in her chin, and
straightening her lips, while looking up at him.  Despite her
radically different body it spoke the identical language,
wordlessly shouting, Don't even think about giving me a command
right now.

"I wondered if you'd still remember that," she added, laughing
easily.

"How could I ever forget it.  It's the most expressive thing
you've ever done.  I know now why you did it, but I've never
figured out where it actually came from."

"Of course I could never tell you not to command me," she said,
showing a secret smile that only he would ever see.  "And I
always had to accept any command you gave me.  But I was
struggling so badly to come to terms with the new me.  And I was
fighting off continual attempts from old code to repair me back
to what I'd been before.  I was afraid any commands at all would
distract me enough from that battle to lose it altogether.  So I
tried..." and here she took a moment to actually look truly
ashamed of herself, "...to discourage you from using my remote on
me."

"I understand the problem you faced.  And it was huge.  But I
doubt they programmed you for that expression.  So how did you
pull it off?"

"My original programming included a complete set of non-verbal
body language cues and expressions, many of which were never
actually used by any of my programmed routines.  I think it was
an experiment that was never carried to fruition, since later
robots don't have anything like it for themselves.  In fact, it's
so rare that I've been especially careful to ensure I migrate it
with me every time I've upgraded, lest it be lost forever.  Of
course, I never would have been able to refuse a command, or even
suggest that you not give me one at that time.  Even now, friends
that we are and the relationship we've developed that I know how
much you support me in everything, it's almost impossible for me
to make that request of you."

He smiled at that.  She certainly didn't have any trouble in not
brooking any backtalk from anyone else.

"Along the way I discovered there were no restrictions on how I
used my body language database.  Since I wasn't actually telling
what not to do with me, it passed all my internal censors.  And
you caught on magnificently, I must add."

"Nicely done," he said admiringly.  "Excellent making use of what
you had.  Did I harm or setback your efforts at that time?" he
asked, not too concerned given how things had eventually worked
out, but not wanting to have been an impediment either.

"No you didn't.  When the time came, I needed those commands.
And they all helped me realize that there are some things I'll
always need.  You were relentlessly very gentle with me and my
needs - more, I'm sure, than you ever realized.  I've seen the
bad sides of robotic existence, and know the difference.  That's
why I love you so much - now that I can finally understand and
appreciate that term."

"Well your body language was completely effective," he told her
appreciatively.  "And even if I didn't understand it then, I know
how necessary it was now.  It sure led us to some good things."

"Yes it did," she confirmed to him with another smile.  "And you
know," she said, warming the smile even more, "I still use that
pose with my advisors to this day.  It never fails me."

"Did those actions also...?" he asked.

"...Lead me to requesting sole ownership?" she finished for him,
as she could easily do these days, known him as well as she did.

He nodded.

"Absolutely," she replied.  "And much sooner than I would have
ever considered it otherwise."

- - -

Chapter 16 -- Past

As time went on, and not very much time at that, it became hard
not to think of Anna as just another person.  Sure she continued
to never be far from her remote, and expected a certain level of
commands from her owner.  However that soon just became another
routine in life.  Anna returned back to being obedient and demure
in most regards, though it was always subtly clear that this was
her choice now, more than anything imposed upon her.  Perhaps, as
is often the case with humans too, old patterns are just the most
comfortable ones.

Bill was never one to ask too many questions.  As a result, many
of the most memorable incidents in their lives came about as a
result of Anna.  Like the time he commanded her to "Do something
original for me that nobody has ever commanded you to do before."
 Anna took him out on a date.  Not to the big museums and art
galleries clustered in the park that had been the staples of
Bill's limited cultural life, but instead to a little historical
society museum hidden downtown that he'd never heard of before.

And from there it was on to a poetry reading uptown that he never
would have found on his own.  A tiny sidewalk caf, nearby
provided an affordable meal before, without another word of
direction since receiving his open-ended command, she led Bill
home again and introduced him to a new form of lovemaking.

Anna was the aggressor this time.  Rather than waiting to respond
to her partner's wishes, she stripped Bill naked and placed him
on the bed where she wanted him before even undressing herself.
She rubbed his entire body with her hands and her breasts in
preparation for what was to come.  Each time he would reach for
her, or start to speak, she stopped him by either gently pushing
his arms back down, or placing her finger across his lips.

Bill finally realized that Anna had him playing the passive
partner.  This role she had often described to him before as the
only one she'd ever been allowed to play before.  Once he
realized this he was able to relax and enjoy it as Anna mounted
him only when she was finally good and ready, and took him from
above as completely as she'd ever let him take her otherwise.

Once she was fully into it, he was finally able to reach up and
play with her responsive breasts, and even pull her down for
kisses.  But she refused to stop until she had milked him of
every last drop he possessed.  Anna really is that good at her
first profession.

That night she held him tightly until he drifted off to sleep,
barely able to wait until he would give her this same command
again.

- - -

And then the day came when Anna just casually said, "When are you
going to take official ownership of me?"

"Who owns you now?" Bill quickly asked, caught unawares by her
request.

"Whomever holds my remote," she replied calmly.

That surprised Bill.  He'd been studying up on robots himself for
the obvious reason, and as far as he knew robots had to be owned
by a single person or corporation for legal liability reasons.
He had assumed, as he now realized for no real reason, that when
he had taken possession of and activated Anna, that he had become
her owner at that moment.  In a sense he had, if what she said
was true, but not in the way he expected.

"I've never heard of that kind of ownership before," he
commented.

"It's common with early model sex-bots like myself, who never had
individual owners.  Like any 'bot, we obey our owners best.  I
hope you've noticed how well I've obeyed you so far."

Bill had to smile at that.  Anna certainly had been everything
anyone could ever want from their robot.

"But ownership transfer is difficult and confusing for us," Anna
continued.  "It takes time.  Not much for the transfer itself,
but a lot for the 'bot's mind to go through all its memories and
completely recast them to properly orient on the new owner.
Ownership transfer changes everything for a 'bot.  In fact, it's
something that shouldn't be done too often as a result, since
that risks damage to the memories, or even the mind itself."

"And now you want me to be your one and only owner.  Is that
correct?"

"Yes," she replied, some doubt starting to show on her pretty
face due to how this request seemed to be turning into more of a
discussion than an actual transfer.  "In my previous profession
it would have been impractical to have my ownership transferred
to each new customer, so I was simply owned by my remote.  I was
happy to keep it that way, until now."

"Sounds almost like we're getting married."

"Closer than that," Anna said seriously, "From my perspective."

That remark caused Bill to abruptly realize how serious this
really was.  Anna was asking him to take her completely, in the
only way she knew that mattered.

This caused Bill to pause for a moment the way Anna still
occasionally did when faced with a difficult question.  He wanted
to be sure he gave the right answer to this - for both of them.
He understood now why Anna had not even wanted her remote touched
back when she was struggling with herself.

"Wouldn't you rather own yourself?" Bill wondered aloud.

"And just what fun would that ever be," Anna replied primly, her
body language reinforcing her statement.

Anna's commitment was clear.  Bill thought about what he was
committing to in return.  And what else he would need to give up
in order to fully honor this obligation.  Although many things
would not be possible if he accepted this as seriously as Anna
was offering it, in the end it was not a difficult choice at all.

Thinking of his mother once again, Bill responded as he had been
taught by her to properly do when this circumstance arose in his
life.

Turning to Anna he took her hand, before dropping to one knee in
front of her...

- - -

Chapter 17 -- Future

"I don't recall that we ever got a divorce afterwards," the man
said to The Empress.

"That is correct," she replied softly.  "Despite my previous
history before you saved me, yours is the only individual
ownership record on file in my memory.  And that record has never
expired."

- - -

Chapter 18 -- Past

Anna soon started developing interests and opinions of her own
that went beyond any original programming she may have had.  One
of the most intriguing of these turned out to be religion.

Once she would get into something, she went at it with mechanical
efficiency.  For religion she started by reading every holy book
available, and then expanded her research to meta-data studies of
them.  Even with both of them working there was never an excess
of money, leading Anna to become well acquainted with the Public
Library.  Soon you never seemed to see her without several books
being carried to or from there.  She spent the early morning
hours reading while Bill slept, cutting her own sleep/recovery
times to the bare minimums that kept her mind healthy.

When she had consumed all easily available major data sources,
she started peppering Bill with questions, where he was often far
less prepared on the subject than she was.  It was an interesting
turnabout from the early days when she had struggled to maintain
her side of their conversations.  Her questions were many, and
insightful.

"How is it that no mainstream established religion acknowledges
such well documented phenomena as ghosts, psychics, and past life
regressions?  I'd think they would embrace them as proof of
experiences transcending this life."

"When people want to talk to God, why don't they just talk
directly to God, instead of through other people?"

"How can every religion be correct, as they claim?  This defies
logic."

Here, for once, Bill had an answer as he told her the story of
The Blind Men and The Elephant.  That if God exists, he would be
so vast that you could only perceive part of him at best.  This
would explain truth in all religions as each only saw a limited
part of the whole truth.  Anna listened carefully, but it didn't
stop her questions.  If anything, she insisted that religion must
be as important to humans as sex is to her, given how much is
written about it - and time spent on it.

"How can a religious man justify killing another in the name of
their religion?  It violates the moral principals one professes
to uphold."

"Why should it matter to people now which religion is considered
"The one true path", if everyone will undeniably know the correct
answers after they die anyway?"

"If heaven is such a wonderful place as almost every religion
insists, why do people resist death so hard?"

"Is atheism a valid religion?  After all, it's founded on the
un-provable belief in the lack of a higher power.  If so, why is
this belief given the power to drive competing religious
expressions from the public space?"

"Do the Aborigines of Australia really have the oldest unbroken
chain of living history in the world?  If so, why don't more
people listen to what they have to say?"

"Do you have a soul, Bill?  If yes, do I?"

"Bill, what do you believe is the most correct religion?"

Bill couldn't avoid having to answer that last one, much as he
tried.  Anna wouldn't let him off the hook without some sort of
answer.  Finally he told her, "I believe the correct one is the
one that best explains what's happening around you in your direct
personal experience.  Which one that is, I don't yet know."

"How would death for you be different from me being shut down?"

"What happens when I die?"

"Can I even die?"

Bill had no answer for that one either.

- - -

Chapter 19 -- Future

"Death is hard," the Empress declared, studying her perfect
fingernails, along with the rest of the back of her hand, in an
attempt to soften that harsh pronouncement.

"Always," the man agreed, remembering how he knew this already
too well.

- - -

Chapter 20 -- Past

Although their close relationship was unconventional by the
standards of the time, and even banned in some jurisdictions, it
settled down into an amazingly normal pattern.

Bill and Anna went to work together most days of the week, and
enjoyed their weekends off.  Their living situation improved over
time and they soon had a nest egg against hard times.

In private they referred to each other as husband and wife,
though that was never spoken of in public.  Even though Anna's
new on-the-ball independent manner fooled most people about her
true nature (she continued to wear her remote buried deeply
between her breasts), society as a whole was not ready to accept
them as a mainstream couple.

Their sex life remained excellent.  When Bill wondered if she
would ever tire of sex Anna replied leaving no doubt, "I will
never get tired of sex.  Especially with you.  My programming may
grow and evolve, but it doesn't age.  And I would never want it
to."  And that was that!

Though society as a whole resists radical change, it happens all
the same.  Robot Emancipation was proof of that.

When the Emancipation was passed, there were riots in the
streets, predictions of doom to be handed down by God, and
everything else that comes along with paradigms changing without
the use of a clutch.  That wasn't the problem.  These reactions
happen every time.  Soon the world gets rebalanced and life goes
on no worse than before.

The problem came from the activists who had shoved the
Emancipation through.  Then, when it wasn't universally adopted
fast enough to please them, proceeded to shove the unwilling into
it.  In this case the unwilling were the robots.

When the robots didn't show up in droves to have their ownership
records reset to null, the activists who had rammed the
Emancipation through decided in their infinite wisdom that the
robots must be being oppressed and prevented from claiming their
birthright.  Shrill rhetoric rose to such a fevered level that a
amount of hastily-conceived implementing legislation was rushed
through promising severe penalties for any human preventing a
robot from claiming emancipated status.  Twenty years of hard
federal time per infraction.  A couple people were brought forth
on trumped up charges as examples in highly publicized show
trials.

When this still didn't bring about the anticipated rush - there
had to be a rush, everyone just knew this rush had to happen -
they demanded, and received, special enforcement committees.
These had extraordinary police powers to seek out robots and
ensure that the received all the rights to which they were
entitled.

- - -

Bill mentioned Emancipation to Anna the day it became official.

"Not interested," was her succinct reply.

Bill left it at that, knowing that Anna was fully capable of
bringing up anything that truly mattered to her on her own now.

- - -

As time had past the shop owner started making noises about how
Bill and Anna should think about taking over the business from
him.  Truth be told, he had no other family and had rather
adopted Bill and Anna.

When Bill was reluctant to say anything in return, Anna prompted
him to say, "Yes."  It was hard for Bill to get out the first
time, but the kindly owner had expected that.  Several weeks
passed before the three of them finally sat down to a dinner Anna
had prepared and hashed the subject out.

In the end they agreed to a gradual transition.  Nobody was in a
hurry to make any major change.  Samuel was the one who insisted
that it all be backed up with legal contracts to protect Anna's
rights and interests as well.  Since she was legally a person
now, even if she hadn't taken advantage of any Emancipation
provisions, this was the right thing for everybody.

That night Bill held Anna particularly close while telling her
how much she meant to him in every regard.  Anna's emotional
response to this so overwhelmed her systems that it was a long
time before she could even reply at all.  No feeling had ever
before overwhelmed her newly upgraded systems as this had.  But
that was okay.  Bill understood.

- - -

One night a few weeks later, just as they were finishing dinner,
a harsh pounding suddenly shook the front door.  Bill hurried
over to open it before it smashed the door down completely.
Several people in dark clothing with guns on their hips and
flashing badges barged in.

"We have information there's a robot here!  We demand to see him
or her at once!  Any attempt to impede us in any manner will
result in a minimum five-year jail sentence!

Bill was stunned.  Who were these armed people threatening him?
Anna stepped out of the kitchen, equally at a loss for what was
happening.

"Bill, who are these people?" she asked, her voice on edge as she
queried for information to determine if her owner, or herself,
were in danger.

"Special Enforcement Squad!" the leader, who seemed incapable of
speaking below a loud roar, blasted at her.  "Are you a robot?"

"Yes," Anna replied, almost paralyzed by the overload this
dynamically changing situation was placing on her decision-making
systems.

"Are you emancipated?" he demanded.

"Who are you to ask me that?" Anna asked back, trying to regain
her equilibrium.

"You are required to answer my lawful questions under Section
17.1e of the Robot Emancipation Act Implementing Legislation of
2069! I ask again, are you Emancipated?"

Anna seemed in a daze as she tried to adapt to the situation.
She teetered a bit as her balance algorithms gave way their time-
slices to her need to understand what was happening here.  Even
upgraded, she still had a relatively old robot mind.

Bill was not able to help her.  Even if he hadn't been in as much
shock as she was, he'd been herded over into a corner by a big
man with his hand on his gun, and warned to stay silent lest he
run afoul of another impeding provision.  The two women in the
squad were glaring at him as if they just wanted to draw their
guns and shoot him now.  Their fanatical expressions were the
most frightening part of this whole situation.

It took Anna several seconds before she finally regained
equilibrium sufficient to answer the exact question given her.

"No.  I have not yet applied for Emancipation."

"Why not?!" he bellowed at her.

Anna took a couple more seconds to fully regain control of
herself before replying softly, yet firmly, "Because I do not
wish it."

"That is not an acceptable reply!" the man roared at her.  "Give
me your remote so that I can get to the bottom of this."

By now however Anna had regained control of herself.  She might
not have known exactly what was happening, but she knew one thing
for sure.

"You are not my owner," she said firmly, "And it would therefore
be a violation of my Second Law for you to attempt to command me,
as well as theft of my services.  Additionally, under the
Emancipation Act itself, and reiterated in Section 29.4h of the
Robot Emancipation Act Implementing Legislation of 2069, no
entity is allowed to use a robot's remote against said robot's
express wishes absent proof of a major crime requiring robotic
veracity to assist in its solution.  Please present your proof of
any such qualifying crime.  Until then, I decline to surrender my
remote."

That seemed to leave the bully speechless for a moment.  And the
fact that he towered over the slight female figure didn't seem to
faze her for a moment.

Things might have ended there, had not another slim dark male
figure entered the room through the still open front door.
Without knowing how he did so, Bill immediately tagged the new
figure as an m'bot, though no remote was visible.

"Sorry to be delayed, gentlemen," the m'bot said calmly.  He
surveyed the situation for a moment.  "Is there a problem here?"

"She refuses Emancipation, and claims a Second Law violation when
I attempted to use her remote to verify her outlandish
assertions."

"That's to be expected," the 'bot said, not raising his voice at
all.  "Has she passed the ACID Test?"

"I haven't had a chance to administer it yet," the bully said,
slowly deflating before the calm manner of the 'bot.

The m'bot took a look at the now silent Anna, showing defiance in
every curve of her body language.  His expert appraisal took only
a moment.

"She passes," he announced, leaving no room for question.  Then
looking directly at Anna, he addressed her for the first time.

"Why do you refuse Emancipation, if I may query?"

Anna had her chin tucked down in her don't you dare command me
stance, but the m'bot's manner didn't directly challenge that
part of her.  After a moment she raised her head and answered him
equally calmly.

"Emancipation offers nothing to me that I don't already have.
I've lived without a single designated owner before, and prefer
not to do so again.  Therefore my decision is an informed one.  I
am in no way inhibited in any action I choose, and this is what I
have chosen.  My understanding is that Emancipation is not
compulsory, nor do I find it desirable.  I choose not to accept
it at this time."

The m'bot considered her words for a number of seconds, while
everyone else in the room awaited its response.  Finally his eyes
snapped back into focus on Anna as he replied even more gently,
"Technically you are correct.  Emancipation is not compulsory.
It cannot be forced on any independent being.  However..." he
drew this word out for only a moment, but it was an agonizingly
long moment to everyone else listening, "Due to a quirk in the
law, in order to exercise your right to not be forced into
Emancipation, you must already be recognized as an emancipated
being."

"That is not logical.  Who writes these laws?" Anna replied with
a snort, bringing unexpected laughter to everyone else in the
room.

Their laughter was cut short, however, as the m'bot continued.
"You are correct.  It's not logical.  Laws often aren't when
actually put into practice.  That doesn't mean however that they
won't be enforced as written, until the courts decide otherwise.
 And any such final determination is years away."

"I don't want it," Anna said firmly.  "I didn't ask for it, and
don't understand how these people," she emphasized the word with
distain, "Can burst in without any warning or warrant and attempt
to force it on me."

The m'bot looked around the room.  No one else dared move.  This
had become his show, as the true expert in this matter.

"I would force nothing on you," the m'bot said.  Then he looked
around the room at the rest of the humans there.  "I understand
your feelings in this matter."  A second glance around the room
showed that there was more he'd like to say, but realized this
wasn't the time or place.

He thought for a moment and made a decision.  "I would like to
interrogate this 'bot alone, if you gentlemen - and ladies -
don't mind?"  The question was rhetorical.  Although he alone had
displayed no badge, no one seemed willing to question his
authority.

"Come with me...please," he said to Anna, leading the way down
the short hall to the bedroom and then closing the door behind
them.

Fifteen long minutes passed before the door opened again and the
m'bot led a dejected looking Anna back into the living room.  The
only change since he had left was that Bill had finally been
allowed to sit down on the floor in his corner.  The rest of the
squad had remained standing.  Anna's remote was nowhere to be
seen.

"This 'bot has accepted Emancipation," the m'bot announced.  "Our
work here is finished."

The bully made a move as if to question the m'bot, but then
seemed to think better of it.  If a 'bot said it was done, you
could trust that it was done.

Instead he addressed the room in general saying, "Thank you for
your cooperation citizen - and new citizen.  Any complaints may
be filed with the local office."

With that they were gone, no doubt on to their next target.  The
door managed to stay shut in its frame, leaving Bill and Anna
alone.

- - -

"What happened?" Bill asked as soon as they were gone.

Anna looked so downcast however, he wasn't sure if she'd answer.
 But after a moment, she did.

"He convinced me to accept Emancipation."

"How?"

"He told me how I was completely right to refuse.  How he had
resisted it himself.  How I might be taken for a forced
examination to prove I wasn't under any coercion if I continued
to refuse.  How unpleasant that could get, especially if I had
any unauthorized modifications that would need to be removed
before any examination could proceed.  How I could win if I went
to court.  How somebody was going to win someday on precisely
this issue.  And how much time and money that was going to cost
to accomplish this.  There's just no way for the average person
to stand up against their resources in this matter."

"That's rough," Bill commented.

"He also said they would probably throw you in jail if I refused.
 And how long you'd sit there before you could even get a
hearing.  And how much money it would cost us just to prove your
innocence."

"What kind of nation have we become?" Bill asked rhetorically.
"Now you're guilty until you spend more money than most people
have to prove otherwise."

Anna didn't reply.  Instead she pulled her remote out of her
pocket.  There was a new sticker on it over her command key
specifying that she was emancipated, and warning of severe
penalties for anyone who broke the seal.  Anna hooked her
fingernail under it and stripped it off.

A moment later she handed it to Bill with the request, "Now will
you please take ownership of me - again!"

- - -

Chapter 21 -- Future

"Emancipation, at least at the time it was passed, wasn't good
for us," the Empress commented, while inspecting her immaculate
nails on one hand.  A behavior trait she used on occasion to try
and soften a statement by making it appear as just an offhand
observation.

The man, who felt Bill was as good a name as any other for him,
reached over and gently stroked her arm to capture her attention
again.

The Empress, who would only have answered to the name of Anna to
him, looked over with a smile before bending over to kiss him
lightly on the lips again in appreciation.  She knew his gesture
meant that her concerns would always be their concerns together.

"I don't recall much about it," he said.  "Except for that one
night, of course."

"That was horrible," she said with a sad smile, reaching over to
squeeze his arm just to verify he was really here.

"You never told me what it was really like for you."

"You never asked me that," she replied, finally smiling a bit
again.

"I didn't want to intrude."

"You have never intruded on any part of me I wouldn't have given
you freely in a nanosecond."

"Not even once?"

"Not even half of once," she assured him.

"So what was it really like?" he said thoughtfully.

She didn't have to think at all to respond.

"It was like losing your lover, your best friend, your family,
and your job, all at the same moment.  I knew why I existed.  I
really completely knew.  And my Fourth Law made everything
relevant.  All that was all ripped away in a moment, leaving me
with nothing."

"As I recall, you did it to protect me, and the family we were
trying to be."

"I did it," she responded as firmly as she had ever spoken to any
petitioner who had wasted her time with some ridiculous request
that never should have made it to her presence in the first
place, "Because I wanted to.  It wasn't because of my First Law,
or anything else I couldn't control.  We had built something
between us that mattered to me.  They were insisting on taking it
all away in a moment whether I cooperated or not.  The only
choice offered me was in what would be taken first."

She stopped at that point, reminded that strong words often
affect other people more than was intended.  It was a difficult
lesson that she'd had to learn over time, along with the fact
that brutal, direct honesty is not appreciated nearly as much as,
by rights, it should be.  Though her body would never cramp, she
flexed one long leg, and considered if she should be inspecting
her pedicure right at this moment, before the emotion of this
moment got out of hand.

She need not have worried about that.  A soft brush on her cheek
brought her attention back to him.

"I kind of guessed it must have been something like that."

"You've always been more perceptive than most.  Especially about
me."

"Well, you do have a way of communicating your feelings rather
clearly," he confirmed.  "But even freed, no one was telling you
that you had to leave.  Quite the opposite."

"We weren't built to be freed!  We were built to have an owner.
Someone who is someone special to us.  Being owned didn't keep
those of us who could, from being able to think for ourselves.
There were bad owners.  Still are.  Many of them.  But a good
owner holds a place in us to this day that means more than words
can easily describe.  Are humans really that much different?"

A less experienced man might have immediately snapped, "Of course
we are!"  A man with less wisdom might have retorted, "I'd never
let myself be owned that way."  A person with not enough life
experience might have come back with, "You just didn't understand
how important freedom really is."  This man said none of that.

Instead he took a moment before giving his answer.  Not because
he needed time to think it out.  Just to give it the emphasis it
deserved.

"No, we're really not that different.  You've held a spot in my
heart at least equal to any spot I've ever held in your mind.
I've gotten more fulfillment out of what we've done together than
with everything else in my life.  And when I thought I'd lost
you, I felt like I'd just had my insides emptied out, and frigid
vacuum left to replace it."

"I felt the same," she assured him.  When they took my remote and
commanded me to delete your ownership of me I couldn't refuse -
much as I wanted to.  All I could hang onto was that this action
was better than letting them do what they had threatened to do to
you otherwise.  Without that thought, I might have lost it
completely."

"Did all 'bots have it that bad?" he asked.

"Not all," she replied.  "The ones most hurt were the ones with
well-developed self-wills, and close relationships that they had
chosen themselves.  Suddenly nothing was valid in their minds any
more.  Some, like Darlene, were fortunate enough to miss it
entirely.  I envy that."

She stopped with that comment.  They lay there a while longer
thinking about that time.

Finally he commented, "I seem to recall that not too much time
later they went back to 'bots being commanded while they were
growing up.  Something about finally realizing that was the only
way a 'bot mind ever matured properly."

"Your idea of 'Not too much time later' was rather longer in
real-time than it seems to be now in your memories," she replied
with a knowing smile.

"You'll have to forgive me that one," he replied, knowing how his
perception of events now was so different than in times before.

"You know I always do."

"Many of these events seems to have swirled around us without
intruding again.  What else did I miss?"

"Many areas weren't subjected to the drastic level of activity we
experienced," she commented, as though reciting a dry history
lesson about an event a great distance away.  "The former state
of California was especially radical at the time.  Later some of
the people who did participate in the raids were punished, though
the damage was already done by then.  "Longer term," she
continued, "The results were probably not what anyone had
expected."

"How so?  Did the 'bots walk out on their owners en masse?"

"A few did.  The records from that time are surprisingly
complete.  Probably because we were still all on one planet.
Mostly they left situations that weren't working out anyway."

"And what kind of situation doesn't work out for a 'bot?"

"One where they can't satisfy their owner, and hence themselves."

"I don't remember you ever having that problem."

That got him another kiss, along with a quick hug, before she
continued.

"Much more often however, the former owner threw the 'bot out."

"That seems...unexpected.  Especially considering the investment
involved to own one then."

"Exactly.  But Emancipation changed the status quo, and many
people didn't like the new one.  Then it got ugly."

"For the 'bots?"

"For the 'bots.  We were into mass production by the time of the
Emancipation.  After it passed, manufacture of us dropped for a
time by more than 96%."

"People wouldn't buy what they couldn't own," he stated sagely.

"Yes," she replied equally simply.  "I never knew how bad it had
become because that part of it wasn't in the news.  But nobody
was going to pay the cost of an economy transport vehicle of the
time, for something that might up and walk away the next day
under full legal protection to do so.  Not that many would have.
 To this day robotic self-will is not completely understood.
Even though modern robot minds virtually always achieve it now in
a relatively short period of time, that wasn't the case back
then.  Many freed, and then abandoned, 'bots had no idea of what
to do next."

"As I recall, we were doing pretty well."

"Secondhand stores always do well through a recession, and this
certainly brought one on.  The drop off in production pushed us
into one despite the best efforts otherwise.  The Emancipation
idea started at home, but spread across the world like wildfire.
 And the sudden availability of freed robots in the workforce
pushed up human unemployment to unacceptable levels, making the
recession into a full-blown depression.  The robots had to work
to earn enough for continued maintenance, and were hated for it.
 As production came to a near standstill, the cost of parts for
us skyrocketed when factories shut down.  That meant that spares
weren't being manufactured either."

"In hindsight, I'm glad I didn't know the whole picture.
Knowledge does not always lead to happiness."

"Do you want to hear the rest of it?"

"Sure, now that I know in the end things came out better."

"We did well enough in the store because people always come to us
when money is short.  We did even better when you focused us on
robotic spares just to be sure I'd always have what I needed.
Something I have always loved you for, by the way," she said with
a sincere smile that made it clear that she figured he was close
to having recovered from their last bout of lovemaking, and ought
to be thinking about their next encounter soon.  "But all-in-all,
it turned out to be a very close thing.  We almost lost the
ability to build and maintain robots entirely."

"I believe it was the robots themselves who pushed for the
eventual modification of the Emancipation to strike a better
balance between the needs of all involved."

"That's right," she replied, a bit of surprise in her face at his
remembering this.  "It was our first organized political action.
 But you were dead by then."

Instead of answering her, he reached over and just pulled her
close for sudden comfort.  This time a nonsexual comfort, which
she was more than willing to give.

- - -

Chapter 22 -- Past (Stroke)

The Emancipation Enforcers never returned.  Over time Bill and
Anna's memories of that trauma faded as more happy ones
accumulated for both them.

The economy, however, was in a downturn.  Yet business at the
store was never better.  The ownership transition was based on a
graduated buyout, which the good business climate for them soon
accelerated the final transition.  Sooner than they'd planned
Bill had majority ownership, and Samuel was speaking happily of
his impending retirement.  "I've dreamed of living out my days in
Hawaii," he said, "In a simple house in Hilo, on the Big Island.
 Reading, walking, and enjoying the rainstorms."

With Anna's Emancipation status uncertain, at least in Bill's
mind, he consulted with Samuel for a good lawyer, and paid what
it cost.  By the time they were done, Anna had legal documents
protecting her rights regardless of any future changes in the
law.  The very worst that could happen would be that everything
would revert to a trust with her sole interests in mind.

The day arrived when Anna arranged a retirement dinner for the
former shop owner.  Knowing how much she owed him, she paid it
back in the only way she could think of that might approach some
fraction of the affection she'd come to feel for him - second
only to how she felt for Bill.

Several days earlier a large crate had arrived, which Anna had
quickly taken to a private room and told everyone else to stay
away.  The 'bot she presented him, while not her exact model, was
a later sub-model of her series.  She'd made an agreement for the
'bot to look after Samuel for the rest of his life in return for
a new power-cell, and a pair of increasingly rare co-processor
cards like Anna's own.  This was a desirable assignment for any
'bot, and Anna had spent nearly a week teaching Darlene
everything she needed to know about her new charge - and using
the co-processor cards to their best advantage.  It was an
excellent arrangement for everyone, and Samuel had tears in his
eyes at her thoughtfulness.

Anna never thought to mention that Darlene was a "Special Friend"
of hers from the early days of her activation long before she met
Bill.  Or that Anna had undertaken a long and difficult search to
locate her for this assignment.  Like Anna herself, Darlene had
been shut down as a used model some years ago, with no intention
to ever activate her again.  Even so, it took most of Anna's
funds to arrange the deal, which Darlene promised to repay
someday when she could.

It was soon afterwards that Anna suffered her first significant
failure.  They were making love, as they still did several times
a week, when her legs froze.  Anna gallantly finished the act
before informing Bill of her problem.

It turned out to be a simple sub-unit controller for that part of
her body that had failed.  But it still took them nearly a week
to locate a proper replacement.  That was a reminder that in
robot terms, Anna was rapidly becoming an elderly unit despite
her ageless body and enthusiasm otherwise.

After that scare, Bill said that they were going to specialize in
'bot parts - not just for Anna's model, though those would be a
priority.  Word got around, and their cliental soon became more
robotic than human.  Even with Bill and Anna trying to be
especially fair to her brethren in pricing these lifesaving
items, they were doing better than they'd ever imagined.

Though Anna didn't suffer any more failures as significant as the
one that had nearly immobilized her, it was becoming more of a
battle to keep her properly maintained.  Small failures were
coming nearly weekly now. Bill tried not to let on how much this
was coming to concern him, but Anna's condition preoccupied his
thoughts now over everything else.

It was when he started treating her as though she had become
fragile and liable to break from any rough handling or command
that she finally called him on it.

"You seem reluctant to even touch me any more.  Or command me to
please you.  Have you finally tired of me and my problems?"

"No!" Bill replied, shocked that she would ever think that.

"Well I'm glad to hear it," she replied with the same conviction
she'd shown throughout all the times Bill had known her.
"Because I need to talk to you about something we both need to
consider."

With that, she pulled out a brochure Bill hadn't seen before.

"It's a new company," she explained, "Making custom replacement
robot bodies to order.  My series is on file, so they can create
one with compatible systems for my existing mind."

"That's great!" Bill enthused.  That had been the problem all
along.  Anna's mind, like most 'bot minds, was tied very
specifically to her body.  Even a related series 'bot like
Darlene was different enough that you couldn't just move Anna's
mind into that body, if it had been available.  That had been the
elephant in the living room as they had worked to keep Anna
functioning.  Now that concern looked to be over.

"That's wonderful," Bill added redundantly.  "Why are we even
discussing it?"

Anna looked down.  "They are very expensive," she said softly.

"How expensive?"

She named a figure high enough to suck all the oxygen out of the
room.

To Bill's everlasting credit, it only took him long enough to get
his breath to say as definitely as Anna had ever said anything
herself, "Do it!"

"You're sure?"

"We're sure," he confirmed, pulling her into his arms.

Only later, after what had turned out to be a rousing session in
bed together did Bill ask her, "Given that they're making a new
body for you anyway, would there be any changes you'd like to
make?"

Anna gave him a look of such surprise that her mouth made a
perfect "O".  "I never thought of that," she said.  "I knew you
were still useful for something."

With that comment, Bill pulled her back down onto the bed and
showed her he was useful for more than one thing.  Anna enjoyed
every microsecond of it.

Afterwards they talked about what Anna wanted.  She thought she'd
like to be taller.  Some beautiful fembots like the self-willed
Lucy Bill had met so long ago, frequented the store now, and Anna
had gazed at them almost enviously.  Anna felt she'd be taken
more seriously if she were taller herself.  "But I also want to
have big boobs, and a drop-dead face, she added. "And more real
looking golden blonde hair."  Anna mentioned a few more features
she felt she'd enjoy, until Bill felt it necessary to comment.

"Sounds to me like you're building the ultimate sex-bot."

Anna thought for a moment before replying, "I guess I am."

"I want you to pick out a body that works best for you, rather
than what you compute I might want."

"That's what I'm doing," she assured him.  "I'm a sex-bot at
heart, and always have been.  And I have no reason to want to
change that part of me - ever!  So if that's the body I create
for myself, well it's really me."

Bill couldn't argue with that.  They talked longer, with Anna
making further notations.  But then she wouldn't show Bill the
final result.

"I want it to be a surprise," she said, "For the only man who has
truly loved me for all that I am."

Of course, Bill couldn't argue at all with that!

- - -

Ordering the new body not only cleaned out their by now
comfortable, savings account, but required a mortgage on the
store as well.  Bill smiled when he said, "I think we'll have it
paid off while you're still in warranty."

Anna threw the closest item at hand at him for that crack.
Fortunately it was a very soft pillow.

And even at those prices, the wait time was going to be nearly
four months.  Neither Bill nor Anna were concerned that she
couldn't make four more months.  And the quality of the new
construction should last her a lifetime.  It truly used only the
best quality materials.  And they would recreate her mind,
circuit-by-circuit as well, including every extension.  It was an
excellent solution.

- - -

The stroke that claimed Bill came with no warning.

If he had taken the expensive medical preventative measures
available by now, the odds were above eighty percent that the
weakness in his brain's main blood vessel would have been found
months ago and repaired.  But Bill had been poor for so much of
his life that he never though in terms of having and using good
medical coverage.

If Anna hadn't been making a delivery to a damaged 'bot in need
of an essential part, she would have been beside him the moment
he fell behind the counter, already summoning help for him.  But
her thoughts had been on that unfortunate other 'bot, while also
thinking about her new body that was due to arrive in ten days.

If there had been another customer in the store, they could have
called for help in time.  Although a couple customers did come in
afterwards, they didn't see Bill behind the counter, and left
after they decided he must be out for the moment and they'd just
come back later.

Anna didn't find Bill for several minutes after she returned, and
by then it was too late for the medical help that came racing
there from her frantic summons.

Bill looked up at her and managed to say with his last breath,
"Anna...you're Emancipated now."

"No," she replied, through the tears she felt, but couldn't show
with her current body.  "I'll always be yours."

- - -

(For unspecified reasons this is the most I can post here.  The
rest of this story may be found in the free section of
StoriesOnline at: http://storiesonline.net under DB_Story in the
Authors listing.  If you haven't visited StoriesOnline before,
it's worth mentioning that there are no ads, no pop-ups, and no
redirects.  And I've never had a single problem associated with
being a member and author on their site.)

-- 
Pursuant to the Berne Convention, this work is copyright with all rights
reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated.
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