The Machineries of Joy

"I am curious, Cygnus," you address your friend currently sitting in bed with you, enjoying one of the uncommon evenings that you both have away from work. Their work as effectively a diplomat between the TV faction and the other Alliance factions keeps them very busy.

"What about, human?" replies Cygnus. Cygnus is a TV-unit whom you'd nicknamed after their ID number (ending in 22, 'like two little swans'), and who liked you enough to let you keep calling them that.

"You've told me about some of the fuck activities that TVs do - I loved the education, by the way," (You're referring to those that Cygnus previously showed you: sharing short-range transmissions, engaging in knife-play, and in mutual hypnosis) "- and they all seem to require a partner. I'd love to know: how do TVs masturbate?"

"...Would you like a demonstration?"

"I very much would like. Would you show me?"

"It involves our blades. I'll deploy mine now, so please be careful." Cygnus undoes some of their shirt buttons and moves their tie aside to reveal their charging port, then unsheathes the wrist-knife on their dominant arm. You're fascinated to see where they're going with this... Cygnus retracts and unsheathes their knife a few times, as if in anticipation, then plunges their own knife into their charging port. Their monitor speakers emit a fluttering crackle, as if groaning with delight.

"Wow! I was not expecting that at all. Isn't that... painful??"

"Not at all. Charging port's... very robust. Made to take... all sorts of inputs..." Cygnus slowly pulls their knife out until it's almost out, then rapidly plunges it back in, repeating the sequence. They arch their back into the motion as they do so, and emit more static crackles of satisfaction. "In fact-" Cygnus emits a bark of static, "-it's... quite delightful. Both knives would be better... but angle's too difficult... to do that myself..."

The visual of the blade is a little disconcerting, but everything else about Cygnus's self-pleasuring is absolutely hot: their bucking motions, their slow-fast out-and-in, and the evident pleasure in their voice.

"Oh, Cygnus, you're getting me all riled up. I'm going to lie by you and masturbate alongside you."

"That's... a fine idea... You should... do that."

You're already peeling off your legwear and underwear, dropping them on the floor by the bed then lying next to Cygnus on the other side from their dominant hand. What they're doing is extremely hot, but you'd better stay away from their sharp blade that's likely also electrified.

You gaze at Cygnus for a couple of seconds more, filing away the visual in your wank bank, then you lie down properly and get your hands moving on your own self. You knew you were aroused, of course, but you're suprised by how warm and wet and ready your junk is.

"Does pushing anything into your charging port feel good?" You ask Cygnus as you stroke yourself off.

"No... just our own knives." Cygnus emits a pleasured distorted crackle of static, "It creates-" (a zap of delight) "-an electric feedback loop around my casing," Cygnus's voice is getting more distorted with static - they pause for a second to compose themselves, still arching with pleasure, before continuing, "And it spreads throughout my frame in waves... it makes the base of my knife all tingly." Cygnus's voice is getting more monotone, as they direct processing power away from adding their usual inflection. (It's probably remarkable that they're even remembering to reverse their generated audio file of speech for your benefit before sending it to their monitor speakers.)

All the while, you've been ramping up your own touches on yourself, getting more and more excited by the sight and sound of your dear friend riling themself up. You wrap one of your legs in with Cygnus's, and entwine your nearest arm with Cygnus's non-dominant arm, to which they respond by reaching over and giving you some distracted pats.

You squirm against Cygnus as your squawks and keens become more and more frequent and desperate, until you shudder to completion with a ragged gasp.

"Oh, you started after me and still finished first... I was really hoping to time it so we'd... climax together." Cygnus arches into their knife again.

You laugh, not unkindly. "Oh, Cygnus, honey, that almost never happens! That's really hard to pull off." Then you realise what you'd said: "Hurr hurrr, 'pull off'."

"You are as incorrigible as you are insatiably lusty."

"And that's why you love me." You sit up to better watch Cygnus, and pat their arm as they knife their charging port again. "Do you want any help finishing?"

"Just... stay here with me a while... my friend." Cygnus distractedly flashes a heart emoticon on their screen.

"May I pet your head?"

Cygnus attempts to answer, but can only manage some distorted static. Instead, they give a shaky thumbs-up with their off-hand.

You rub your hand over Cygnus's head-casing, mixing in big palm-strokes with rubbing your fingertips in small circles. Cygnus's screen is becoming more distorted with bands of darker static scrolling over their usual whitish pixel snow, and they're emitting audio static not unlike moans. You stroke your hand down one side of Cygnus's head to move your hand under their monitor, where you proceed to rub and softly scratch. Cygnus leans their head into your touch and rubs their casing corner into your hand, just as they drive their knife into their charging port and hold there for several seconds. Cygnus is apparently paralysed with ecstasy for a moment, then shudders and arches into the knife harder than ever before pulling it out, the vertical hold on their screen slipping for a few frames before snapping back into position. Cygnus sheathes their knife and lets their hand fall to the bed.

You move over to Cygnus's dominant side and stroke their forearm, to which Cygnus rumbles appreciatively.

"You look spent," You remark.

Cygnus can only nod.

"And adorable."

Cygnus pats you limply, too aglow with exhausted bliss to do it properly.

You give Cygnus's head another stroke, then lie next to your friend and press yourself against them. When Cygnus recovers some co-ordination, they wrap an arm around you to embrace you. The two of you bask in each other's presence like this for a while.

You reach over to hold Cygnus's tie and idly rub the fabric between your fingers. "Can I lie on you for a bit?" you ask.

"Up you get," Cygnus replies, helping to haul you into place atop them.

It's not as comfortable lying on Cygnus as it would be lying on another human. Cygnus is deliciously warm, but their meatless metal frame feels a bit like lying on a leather satchel full of spanners. Still, it's a warm bag of spanners that's also one of your dearest friends. (Plus, Cygnus doesn't breathe, so you can press down on them as hard as you like without worrying.) You slide along Cygnus's length to bring your head up to their chest and nuzzle their exposed charging port, prompting them to stroke your hair and give you head-scratches, working their fingers in little circles. You grunt with pleasure at their touch, and then nuzzle the charging port cover open so you can touch your nose directly to the connector points within. Cygnus emits a rapid series of soft clicks, almost like a purr. You nuzzle all inside your friend's charging port, in response to which they continue rumbling happily and run their fingers through your hair, gently gripping and scritching your head. You huff your warm breath into the charging port, provoking what sounds like a moan of static from Cygnus. You nuzzle the connectors again, satisfied that they're not carrying any more than maybe a couple of milli-amps of charge, then give them a gentle lick. Your tongue bridging the connectors gets a little shock from the charge dancing over the connectors, but you expected it. It's sharp but tiny, almost irreverant, like eating a little spark.

"Oh, human, your tongue is so soft," Cygnus says with quiet surprise, making them jolt their hands but turn the movement into more head-rubs for you.

You raise your head to face Cygnus. "Would you let me have a bit of the purple stuff?" You're referring to Cygnus's screen-hypnosis powers and their characteristic purple beam.

"What's it worth?"

"How about I pet your screen and then clean you off afterwards?"

"I accept."

You scoot up a bit to bring your face up to Cygnus's (well, where their face would be if they were currently displaying one). Cygnus gathers you up in their arms as you do so, pulling you in as close as you can comfortably get. You touch your face to Cygnus's screen, nuzzling them and enjoying the feel of the slippery-smooth glass constrasting with the fuzzy, softly prickly static. You cluck happily, to which Cygnus responds with soft clicks and happy static. You flick out your tongue to softly lick the static-y screen, enjoying the fizzy feeling on your tongue. You lap at it, faux-drinking the layer of static. It's probably your imagination, but it feels as though the prickly static dances down your throat.

You lean your forehead against Cygnus's screen and touch your nose to it as well. You open your eyes and gaze into the sea of tiny red-green-blue phosphor dots, too close to your eyes to resolve into a solid colour. Cygnus brings a hand in and strokes your face gently.

"You've earned this," you hear Cygnus's voice, and then your world is purple.

The glass of Cygnus's screen vanishes, making your head drop forward, and you tumble through their empty monitor into the purple void. This cannot be real. You float in the void... you probe with your mind and check in on your body, noticing that although you are floating, you can still feel the warmth of Cygnus on your prone body, as well as the hard lumpiness of their plating under you.

"That won't do,"

says a voice,

"You need to fall a bit deeper."

All your bodily sensations are stripped away as you plummet to nowhere in this purple and magenta and violet void. You feel as though your consciousness is a scrunched wet towel wrung tight, the sensation wrung out of you like cascading droplets, and then snapped open into a perfect flat sheet of clarity. You fall for a thousand years, your body falling apart into a hollow shell of ribbons that themselves unfurl like flakes of rust. Your shell of existence dissolves until it is stripped bare, leaving you a tiny quivering mote of pure consciousness. You are the universe.

The purple and magenta and violet nebula of the void converge to a point. Of course. The origin of the universe. You fall right into that point of infinitesimal energy, and then through it...

...You open your eyes, immediately seeing the grid of phosphor dots again, and all the physical sensations come crashing back into you: Cygnus's smooth glass on your forehead, their screen static touching the tip of your nose, and their warm bulk lying under you. The crash is disorienting only for the duration of a blink, and then you're back in the room.

"Welcome back," says Cygnus as you happily wriggle into their reassuring solidity. They stroke the back of your head, prompting a trill from you.

You give Cygnus's screen one last rub with your own face, then: "Don't you worry, I'll clean off all this mammal-grease and make you factory-fresh."

You peel yourself off Cygnus to fetch a bottle of screen-cleaner and a soft cleaning cloth. You return to Cygnus, prepping the cloth with the cleaning fluid, then get to work wiping and polishing. Cygnus hums in satisfaction as you work the cloth in circles, then work the cloth into the groove between Cygnus's screen-glass and casing.

"So clean," you remark when you've finished. "It's so perfect it makes me want to pet it all over again. But I shall refrain, or we'll get stuck in an endless loop of me filthying and cleaning you."

Cygnus reaches out to rub behind one of your ears. Oh, you're so weak to that. You squeak pathetically - Cygnus could tell you to do anything right now and you'd do it.

"My friend," they say as they continue the rubs and tickles, "I know you're only trying to be funny, and I do like that about you... but I wish you wouldn't denigrate yourself so by constantly referring to yourself as greasy, oily, filthy and the like."

"I am a human, don't forget. We literally are the sweatiest of all the mammals. It's not even close. We're sweatier than the second and third sweatiest mammal species combined."

"That you are. I know you do exude... things that we techfolk don't. But we really don't find you filthy and disgusting as you like to joke that you are. I know it's only jokes, but you are dear to me. And I don't like it when people call my dear friends disgusting." Cygnus gently rubs the pinna of your ear between their fingers.

Cygnus's kind words and gentle touches are overwhelming you, and you launch forward to tackle-hug them and bury your face in them. "I love you," you cry quietly with happiness. You want to say something more eloquent, but it's all you have in you right now.

"I know, and I love you too." Cygnus wraps themself around you.

The two of you lie in silence like this for a time, enjoying each other's warmth and company. Cygnus gives you a brief squeeze, then disengages.

"Before I forget, I brought over a little something. I don't know if it interests you, so I shan't be offended if you decline it." Cygnus gets up from the bed to retrieve something from the pocket of their pea coat that they left draped over the back of your sofa. It's a small box, which they hand to you. "I recently had my blades replaced. These are the old ones. Would you like to have them as a keepsake?"

"I absolutely would!" you affirm, accepting the box. "That's a lovely thing. I'm sure I'll find something nice to do with them." In fact, there's already a project forming in your mind... You open the box and pick up one of the blades by the tang and observe it. "Wow, from what I know about metalworking, these are something special. Thank you, I'm glad to have them. ...Oh, if you had these replaced only recently, does that mean I got to witness your first time wanking with your new ones?"

"...Actually, yes."

"Oh, I feel so lucky."

Cygnus dons their pea coat. "I should head out. I'd love to spend the night but I have work early next morning; I'd better return to my own quarters and get an early night."

You get up from the bed to give Cygnus a parting hug and goodbye before they teleport out.

---

After work the next day, you opt to remain in the workshop so you can work on a personal project. Luckily for you, you have your own dedicated workstation instead of having to hot-desk. As the only human in the Hardware Alliance, you enjoy a bit more leeway than most units do. You do take your work seriously and are an asset to the Alliance, but you are also seen as something of a beloved mascot. Sometimes it feels as though your job is as much boosting morale and giving out hugs as it is actual work tasks. Still, if it gets you your own workbench...

You rummage in your bag of sex toys, choosing which dildos to sacrifice to build the project base. (But not the purple glittery one that Cygnus fucks you with. You've come to think of that one as 'theirs' now.) They'll be missed, but now they're destined for greater things. You get to work assembling your project... and you can't wait to show Cygnus.

A few hours into your craftwork, you receive a message from Cygnus: "would like to port over and see you tonight, if I may. are you at home?"

You message back: "no, workshop. feel free to spawn in." It irks Cygnus that you refer to TV 'porting' as 'spawning', which of course is exactly why you keep doing it. (What else are friends for?) Right on cue, Cygnus messages back with an emoticon: "-_-"

You laugh at the message, then begin packing away your project. You dearly want to show the finished article to Cygnus, but it's not finished yet.

Cygnus ports/spawns in nearby - heralded by a black nebula as usual, as if riding a brollachan to battle. You happily scurry over and throw out your arms to invite a hug. Luckily, there are few enough units in the workshop at this time of evening that Cygnus doesn't mind dropping their public-facing formality for a short time and accepting your hug, and they step forward to meet it. You embrace Cygnus warmly, burying your face in their charcoal-black pea coat, as they pull you in close and pat your back.

"Oh, Cygnus, my friend, it's always so lovely to see you," you croon, then sigh contentedly. "It's too bad your work keeps you so busy."

"I could say the same - you're not normally still at work at this time of night." Cygnus disengages from you, but still holds your upper arms for a few seconds longer. "What have they got you doing overtime on?"

"Oh, nothing - I'm actually here to work on personal projects in my own time. I fully intend to show you this one once it's done. ...Oh, that's new."

Cygnus's head now sports an silver external aerial, which you're looking at admiringly.

"Did you have that installed just today?"

"I did - I decided I wanted to upgrade from a basic internal one to an external one. I'd never wanted to before, because I thought I wouldn't like how it would break the silhouette of my head. But the extra range is useful, and I suppose... I was inspired by you to do it."

"How so?" You don't remember ever suggesting to Cygnus that they'd look better with an external aerial, or asking them why they didn't have one. (You figured it wasn't your business.)

"...I admire how you put a lot of care into your appearance. You have an eye for accessorising-" Cygnus nods towards your enamel lapel pin, "-and for finding styles that go well together. I realised that if I had an aerial, it would be one more thing I could accessorise. I kept it simple for now and went with just a single rod, but I could change it later. Perhaps to a loop, or a dual rod."

"Cygnus, you look lovely." You're utterly sincere. "Not that you didn't look lovely before, of course! But it suits you so well. In fact, that's why I didn't notice it right away - it looks as though it belongs on you and it's always been there. ...I'm really flattered that I had an influence on it."

Cygnus is displaying a beaming emoticon.

"If I may give you some unsolicited fashion advice," you continue, "I suggest adding a silver tie pin to set it off. Or a lapel pin, but I get the impression a tie pin is more your style, plus it has the advantage of staying visible when your coat is on."

"Your advice is gladly noted, my friend." Cygnus reaches out to hold hands with you. You do so, and they continue talking: "Would you like to spend some time together tonight, or would you rather finish your project and I'll move things around at my end so we can spend time together tomorrow night instead?"

"Second option sounds better to me. I'm in the groove and I want to finish this, and I'd love to show it to you when it's finished. If we can hang out tomorrow instead, that should give me time to finish here first."

"A fine idea. Let's do that. Before I go-" Cygnus brings out from their pocket a packet of one of your favourite snacks. "-here. When you said you were still at the workshop at this time of day, I thought you might need the energy boost."

"Cygnus, you are a fucking gem. What would I do without you?" You accept the snack and open it. "Do you want to try a bit?" Techfolk don't 'eat' food as such, but they can burn most organic matter in their biofuel reactors when in a pinch and unable to reach the grid to recharge.

"No, you keep it all. You can only eat food; I can always use the grid."

"Good; all the more for me then. Well, thanks for this and for dropping in to see me. I'll see you tomorrow. My quarters?"

"I wouldn't miss it. I'll see you, human." Cygnus teleports out with a wink, leaving behind a short-lived black cloud.

You pull out your project again and resume work on it. This is going to be good...

---

The next day, Cygnus spawns in your quarters after work, as they said they would. You're always so happy to see that black smoky mist cloud materialising.

"First off..." you say to Cygnus after your initial exchange of greetings and hugs, "May I pet your new aerial?"

"Absolutely!" Cygnus inclines their head so you can better reach.

You stroke the silver monopole with a finger from tip to base, then scruffle your fingers around the swivel joint where it connects to Cygnus's casing. Cygnus emits a startled blast of static, and flinches from your touch.

"I'm so sorry - did I hurt you?"

"No! No, not at all... It was just - unexpected. I've never had an external aerial before." Cygnus wrings their hands.

"Should I avoid touching it again?"

"No, please do try again. More gently this time." Cygnus bows their head to you once again.

You place your hand on top of Cygnus's head-casing so they can feel where your hand is, and slide your hand along towards the base of your friend's aerial. You stop your fingertips just short, and Cygnus nudges their head to bring their aerial into your touch. You gently rub your fingers around the base, prompting a wheeze of static from Cygnus. "Too much?" you ask.

"No, just... more sensitive than I realised it would be." Cygnus emits the low buzzing tones that are their species' equivalent of laughter.

Cygnus hasn't pulled their head away, so you resume touching their aerial. Maybe the light touch is too tickly, so you press a bit more firmly, gently squeezing the base of the aerial between thumb and forefinger. Cygnus twitches as if about to flinch, but keeps their head where it is. They're clearly inviting you to continue this touch. You continue rubbing the base of the aerial with your thumb, trying not to press too lightly as to be tickly but not too hard as to be uncomfortable. Eventually Cygnus becomes used to the touch, buzzing their speakers happily. Cygnus leans on you more and more as they enjoy your touch, until you realise your knees are buckling and you can't keep supporting your metal-framed companion like this.

"Ease off, buddy, I'm about to crumple."

"Oh!" Cygnus is apparently embarrassed by their lack of situational awareness. "Are you hurt?"

"Not at all. ...Anyway, did you want to see the new project I've been working on?"

"Absolutely!"

"Go wait on the bed. I'll join you shortly."

Cygnus gives you a dubious look, but obeys without question. You bring out your strap-on harness.

"You'd like me to wear that and fuck you?" asks Cygnus.

"Not this time, my friend. Well, maybe afterwards if you're up for it! Right now, I want to fuck you."

Cygnus isn't sure where you're going with this - they don't have any genital or anal orifices, or a mouth that isn't pixels on a screen, and they know that you know that.

"I've got a prototype ready and I'd like you to be the beta tester." You bring out your new project, mount it into the harness, then get into the harness yourself. "Want to lie on your back and get your charging port open for me?"

Cygnus beholds you and your strapped-on dick, as you stroke it at the base of the shaft. "...Is that what I think it is?"

"My new knife-dick! Yes, it's made with the blades you gave me." You pose proudly with your temporary genital.

Cygnus is clearly excited but also apprehensive. "I... appreciate the concept, but I'm sorry, my friend, I don't think you placed the blades the correct distance apart."

"I already thought of that, don't worry," you say, adjusting the gape between the two parallel blades. "Parts from a micrometer. Here-" you point to the controls, "-you can change the angle and the distance apart while I fuck you with them. If you'd like me to do that, of course."

Cygnus appears extremely bashful, as though they can't quite believe this opportunity has fallen into their lap. "I... would like you to do that," Cygnus confirms shyly, opening their shirt buttons and sliding open their charging port as they lie back on the bed. "You really made that just to... pleasure me?"

"Sorry, not quite," you reply, straddling Cygnus in preparation, "I'm getting something out of it too. Well, not that I really need anything besides you squirming with pleasure under me-" Cygnus is overwhelmed with bashfulness in the face of your confidence, "-but the base of this thing fits to my junk. I push this into you, I get some nice pushback on myself."

"I am... impressed with your crafting skills." Cygnus is running their fingers over and into their charging port in anticipation.

"Oh, and no pressure, completely optional, but if you want to give me a little something extra, I've packed a little something in my arse as a treat for myself. Here's the remote control for it - feel free to play around with it... Maybe reward me if I give a particularly good thrust."

Cygnus regards the remote control. "Is it... Bluetooth?"

"Nah, Zigbee. Bluetooth bandwidth would be wasted on a little thing like that."

"You do make things challenging for yourself... Oh, turns out I actually do have codecs for that too. If you'd like, I could... control the device directly, without the remote."

"That is extremely hot, Cygnus. I'd love you to!" You set the remote out of the way further along the bed. "That is, if you can even concentrate on that while I'm short-circuiting you and making you call me John Logie Baird," you say as you scoot along Cygnus's length further towards their charging port.

"Just so you know, I appreciate you're trying to be hot, but the first part of that metaphor is actually quite a violent proposal."

"Dang, sorry, buddy. Let's go with something nicer. How about... are you ready for me to pleasure you and make you feel good?"

Cygnus is looking at you adoringly. "I am absolutely ready for that."

You move in to fuck Cygnus's charging port with your twin-bladed dick, adjusting the angle of it so it'll be comfortable for you both. You gently touch the tips of the blades on either side of the connector points, inviting Cygnus to adjust the distance between the blades until they're just right. You pet Cygnus's hand as they do so. Cygnus adjusts the blades' distance apart, causing a few tiny sparks to flicker between the blades and the connectors, making Cygnus shudder and emit a happy burst of static from their monitor speakers.

(You're quite pleased with yourself that Cygnus didn't ask if you were sure that your knife-dick was properly insulated to protect you - because of course it is. Cygnus clearly trusts that you'd thought of that.)

"Let me hear you ask for it."

"Human... please fuck me."

You slide into place so you can plunge the blades all the way in to Cygnus's charging port. They glide beautifully home and end their journey with a decisive click.

Cygnus's screen immediately switches off abruptly to plain black. Oh shit, what have you done? You immediately pull out, worriedly calling out Cygnus's name as their screen starts back up again.

"Are you hurt?" you ask, almost tearfully, as you dismount and sit next to your friend.

"No."

"Are you... alright? In general?"

"Yes... don't worry."

"Oh, that scared me." You hold Cygnus's nearest hand. "What happened?"

"...Intense."

"You want to just cuddle?"

"No... give me a second, then... please fuck me again."

You rub Cygnus's hand with one of yours and pet their monitor casing with the other, while they compose themself.

A moment later, Cygnus confirms: "I'd really like you to do that again."

You begin straddling Cygnus again. "If your screen does that again, would like me to stop or keep going?"

"...Right now, I want to tell you to keep going until I can't take it any more." Cygnus's hand is excitedly circling their charging port, making your junk twitch at the sight - and at hearing Cygnus becoming more assertive when talking about their desires! "But really, if I do that again, you'd better stop and check in."

"Understood. You ready?"

"Give it to me."

You get into a comfortable position again and begin sliding your dick made of Cygnus's own blades into their charging port - more slowly this time. It's an odd kind of thrusting because the angle of Cygnus's charging port is different from that of normal human orifices, but you'd designed this strap-on with that in mind, and you're making it work. Cygnus shudders as you slowly push the blades in.

"Is that a good shudder or a bad shudder?"

"Faster... please..."

"Push it in fast and pull it out slowly? That's the way you like it, isn't it?"

"Yes..." Cygnus grips the mattress on either side of them.

You ram the blades home, enjoying the pushback that your strap-on gives you. You grind into Cygnus, pushing them into the mattress and making them squirm, before slowly pulling back out. This is going to be a little hard on your leg muscles - you'll have to get Cygnus to massage them after this.

At least the thrusting inwards is easier, with gravity on your side. You repeat the cycle a few more times, Cygnus emitting delighted crackles and moans of static, and bringing their hands in to clasp your hips and guide your thrusts. Oh damn, that feels good.

You bark out a surprised moan of your own when the plug in your ass starts vibrating. Cygnus is controlling it directly with their mind - oh god, that's hot. You moan again, with pleasure this time. Cygnus cycles the vibrating plug through its various patterns, finding the one that will get the best reaction from you. (You're impressed that they can exert that much control over it!) They're getting good at setting off the vibration just as you thrust into them, making you shudder and gasp and power up the intensity of your knife-dick thrusts.

This is getting achingly hot. You're ultimately the one thrusting and controlling the speed... but Cygnus is doing a fine job of 'controlling' you, making you ram home harder or overwhelming you to make you pull out more slowly. Your movements into Cygnus provoke how they make your plug vibrate, pulling you both into a whirling circle of influencing each other. Oh, you're probably going to squirt...

You shudder into Cygnus, pushing the knife into them and pushing Cygnus into the mattress, as they buck and writhe under you. The plug in your ass vibrates continuously - you kind of can't take it any more. Both of you are almost paralysed in a lockdown of mutual overstimulation. You manage to shakily disengage.

You collapse on the bed on your side, and extricate the ass-plug before turning it off and throwing it aside further down the bed. "Wow. You handled that good," you say as you rub some of the ache from your legs.

"Oh... human... I think you've ruined me... Oh, that was superb. How can anyone else live up to that?" Cygnus emits a static wheeze.

You flop against your friend, resting your head against them. Cygnus tilts their head to meet yours, leaning their screen on the top of your head. You want to fall into a post-coital doze but you're kind of too wrecked and buzzing for that. "You good?" you ask Cygnus as you peel your knife-dick harness off.

"...Very good."

"Mind you don't tread on the knife-dick when you get up - it's on the floor by me." (Ha, probably not many people have said that sentence.)

"Understood. ...Are your legs sore?" Cygnus has noticed your rubbing.

"They are. Worth it. If you felt like it, I wouldn't say no to a rub-down."

Cygnus scoots down the bed to better reach your legs, and begins working on them. Oh, that's nice.

"Ah, you've got such a good touch, buddy." You reposition your legs so Cygnus can work all the muscle groups, and tilt your nearest leg into Cygnus's touch to direct them where you want them to rub next. You reach your own hand down and pet Cygnus's head as they work on you.

"That's a fine invention you made," Cygnus remarks.

"Did I really invent it? Do you mean no TV has ever built something like that before?"

"Well... probably not. We do not have anything going on in our crotches like you humans, so it doesn't really occur to us to focus on that area."

"That makes sense, I guess. Your charging port is where your sternum would be if you had bones, and humans don't really make sex toys for the sternum. Oh, that's good. You're good at working those calves," you say this last part with a purr.

You think about how much you'd like to kiss Cygnus if you could. "Hey, Cygnus," you ask as you pet their head casing some more, "What would you think about putting your fingers in my mouth?"

"...Would you like me to do that?"

"Actually, yes. If you had a human mouth, I'd want to kiss you and rub my tongue against yours. ...I think I'd like it if you rubbed your fingers against my tongue and let me lick them. If you're up for it, I've still got some disposable gloves."

"I've got a better idea," Cygnus says as they stop rubbing your legs and look up at you. They begin removing their own gloves, their semi-permanent hand-coverings.

"Are you sure you're okay with that? My mouth isn't actually corrosive or anything, but it's still coated with, you know, organic ooze."

"I told you before, didn't I? I don't find you anywhere near as disgusting as you seem to think I do. ...Oh no, that came out backhanded."

You laugh. "Thanks buddy, I got your meaning. I suppose, what's a little ooze between friends?"

"Indeed." Cygnus displays a smiling emoticon for you.

Cygnus's black metallic hands are fully exposed. They're fully dark grey-black and shiny, except for the more plastic-looking material forming the joints, and the dark purple translucent rubbery gel cushioning the joints, fingertips and palms. A golden web of tesselating hexagons and triangles covers the palm and back of each hand.

Cygnus moves their hand near your face. "Take my hand. You set the pace."

You grasp Cygnus's hand in both of yours, gently squeezing your thumbs to their palm and your fingers to the back of their hand. Cygnus uses their other hand to scoot themselves further up the bed to bring their face nearer to yours, then brings their hand in to stroke your face. You lick Cygnus's fingertips on their hand that you're holding, then put them in your mouth. You happily roll your tongue over all of them and between them, and Cygnus responds by gently probing with their fingers to stroke and massage your tongue. Oh, this might be even better than tongue-kissing!

"It's so soft," marvels Cygnus.

You continue licking Cygnus's fingers and rolling your tongue around each one in turn, enjoying the contrast in texture between the metallic phalanges and the softer gel at the joints. Cygnus probes a little further and explores your teeth, fascinatedly exploring all the different cutting surfaces. This is getting a little different from kissing, but you welcome the touch and you enjoy your friend's fascination with you. You stiffen your tongue and lick its length along your friend's fingers, prompting some static of curiosity at how you can change its texture. You push Cygnus's hand a little further into your mouth, inviting them to rub their fingertips on your gums. This really isn't much of a kiss any more, but you enjoy the feeling of Cygnus massaging your gums in little circles. Happy grunts arise from your throat, and Cygnus clicks happily to hear you enjoying yourself. You rub Cygnus's hand in your hands, enjoying the smoothness of the gold webbing and the solidity of their metal metacarpals, as you gently slide your mouth around their fingers, very gently biting some of their metal phalanges. You lick Cygnus's fingers and wrap your tongue around each one in turn, pausing to suck them gently. Cygnus seems quite mystified by this battery of organic sensations, and keeps losing their concentration on stroking your face. When your tongue feels satisfied and kissed out, you disengage your mouth from Cygnus's hand and release your grip with your own hands, returning control to them.

"Thank you, my friend," you say, "I liked that a lot!"

"That was... educational," Cygnus says as they accept the box of tissues you offer them. You laugh at how passionless their response is.

While Cygnus cleans up, you ask: "Have you sharpened or oiled your new blades since you had them installed?"

"No, not yet."

"May I watch you do it?"

"...Would you like to help me with it?"

"Oh! I truly would."

"You'd better wear some gloves as protection from the oil. ...Would you like to wear mine? I keep a spare pair in my inner coat pocket."

"...Could I wear the ones you've been wearing today? And you put on the spare ones?"

"Alright," Cygnus hands you their gloves and goes to get their spare pair.

You don the gloves. They're a little loose on you, as Cygnus's hands are larger than yours. The lining feels odd - you recall what Cygnus had once told you about techfolk clothes being semi-protective and designed to work in tandem with their body plating. The gloves' lining is covered with sewn-in circuitry in black and gold wiring, presumably meant to interface with the gold webbing on the front and back of Cygnus's hands. It's odd to your skin but not discomforting.

Cygnus comes and sits back on the bed, leaning against the headboard. "Scoot over here," they instruct.

You sit back against Cygnus, and they bring their arms in on either side of you, with their hands in front of you.

Cygnus drops an oilstone on the bed in front of you. "Get that. I'm going to draw my blades now, so be careful," they warn. They unsheath their blades - it's ever so quiet, not the theatrical 'schnng' noise you hear in movies. If Cygnus meant to assassinate someone, they'd never hear it coming. (...Why does that turn you on??)

You unwrap the oilstone from its pouch. "Where do you keep the oil?" you ask, looking in the pouch for a vial and finding none.

"Same place I keep the blades," replies Cygnus, presenting one of their wrists to you. "Press near the exit slot - feel around until you find a softer point."

You obey, feeling around the blade exit slot until you feel a springier point on Cygnus's wrist-plating.

"That's it," confirms Cygnus. "Give that a squeeze - gently, though; we only need a little."

"What's a little ooze between friends?" you laugh (prompting Cygnus to laugh too), then squeeze the oil reservoir release point with a thumb. Dark purple oil, almost black, oozes out of the exit slot and pools at the base of the blade.

"Spread it out over the blade edges," instructs Cygnus.

You do so, pulling at the bead of oil with your thumb and enticing it over the flat of the blade to coat the cutting edges.

"Get it all oiled up," instructs Cygnus, "then you can get to work with the oilstone. Don't worry about fucking it up - I can undo any damage you do."

You get to work, holding Cygnus's wrist in one hand and pushing the oilstone with the other, keeping your own wrist locked as steady as you can to preserve the angle. It's a little odd - your normal method of sharpening blades with a whetstone is to leave the stone on the tabletop and move the blade over it, not the other way around. Still, Cygnus doesn't seem to have any objections about your application. You sharpen the blade to the best of your abilities, then ask, "How did I do?"

Cygnus studies your work. "That is genuinely not bad for a first attempt. I'm happy to leave that as it is for now."

"May I watch you do the other one? So I can see how an expert does it?"

"Of course!" Cygnus sheathes the blade you worked on, then uses that hand to squeeze out a drop of oil for their still-unsheathed blade. You can barely keep track of what Cygnus is doing, as they move their hand with practised speed. They apply the oil with zero wastage, conveying it all perfectly to the blade edge, then expertly shuffle the oilstone to sharpen and hone the cutting surface.

"That was poetry in motion!" You exclaim.

Cygnus replies with an appreciative crackling buzz of static, and a hug from behind once they've sheathed their blade and returned the oilstone to its pouch.

You peel off the gloves (they do feel a bit odd on you) and set them down on the bed next to the stone, then you snuggle backwards into your friend. What a lovely evening it's been.

---

You shut down the lathe you were using at the alert from your communicator. There's an incoming call from a contact you don't want to miss.

"Cygnus, my main machine, it's your main mammal. What can I do for you, my friend?"

"Something serious has come up, and I need to talk to you about it. Can you make yourself available now?" Cygnus sounds tense. It must be something urgent - they normally text you rather than audio call.

"Yes - I'm at the workshop, port in and collect me whenever you can." (This sounds serious enough that you forgo your usual habit of winding Cygnus up by calling their teleport power something stupid.)

You hear the call drop right as you finish speaking, and Cygnus materialises by you.

"We need somewhere private. Can we use your quarters?" Cygnus asks you as you sign out of your workstation.

"Yes. I'm ready when you are."

Cygnus holds your shoulders and teleports you both there. "You should sit down for this."

At your direction, you and Cygnus move a couple of chairs opposite each other.

"You'll remember," says Cygnus, "that you still technically owe me a favour for arranging for you to... fuck the Titan."

"That's right, I hadn't forgotten. What would you like from me? I will do anything, and I mean absolutely anything, for you, my friend. Name it and it's yours." You reach over and pat Cygnus's hand for emphasis. It's not a casual statement; you really do mean it.

Cygnus is unsure how to continue; looking down at the floor, emitting soft worried static and wringing their hands. It reminds you of when you were attempting to gather your own courage to ask Cygnus for a private audience with the Titan. Now the roles seem to have exactly reversed, with Cygnus hesistating over how to articulate their request to you.

"Take your time," you continue, "I can see this is going to be a difficult ask. Here," you dig out your communicator and place it on the table nearby, "If it's easier for you to speak normally, go ahead, I got you." Cygnus, along with all the other TV-units with whom you're acquainted, normally reverses playback on their vocalisations to you so they sound the right way around to you. Before they learned to do that, you'd added an app to your communicator so it could record, reverse and play back the TVs' voices to you. Right now, you're offering Cygnus to go back to that method. However, Cygnus doesn't appear to need it this time.

"...We might need you to fuck the Titan again."

"...Cygnus, buddy, honey... that's not how calling in favours works. You're supposed to ask for something that requires a sacrifice from me, not give me another treat." It's like being offered an angel! "I'll fuck the Titan forever and for free, as many times as it wants! And I think you know that. What are you really asking me for?"

Cygnus is still very hesitant. Where are they going with this?? "You'll remember, of course, how... distracted you were before you were able to have your dalliance with the Titan?"

"I believe the exact words I used were 'I want to fuck the Titan so badly it's making me stupid.' Yep."

"...Well... as I suppose you would put it: the Titan wants you to fuck it again, so badly that it's become stupid. ...I cannot believe I just said that."

"And you want me to fuck some sense back into it?

"That's... not quite how I would have phrased it, but essentially, yes."

"I will gladly do so! Still not seeing the part where I'm doing you a favour. Come on, what's the catch? You haven't told me yet what you're actually asking for -- you're normally much more direct than this, buddy. It's one of the many things I appreciate about you."

A brief heart emoticon flashes on Cygnus's screen at your last remark. They are silent for a bit as they gather their courage. "...The catch... is that it won't be a private audience this time. The engineers need to monitor the Titan's levels to ensure it stays healthy. ...And the scientists want to be included too - this is uncharted knowledge." Cygnus shyly flinches - you guess they're expecting you to protest.

"Cygnus! That is hot as fuck! Oh! Yes! You seriously want me to fuck the Titan while everyone watches? Because that would be amazing. I really want to... Quite frankly, I wish I'd asked for that the first time around! When do we get to it?"

Cygnus remains silent for a little while longer. "I... am frankly astonished by your enthusiasm, even knowing you. I thought I would have to call upon all my skills as a diplomat to persuade you."

"I did tell you 'I have never been particularly modest', didn't I? I distinctly remember that."

"...That you did."

"Please say the Titan wants to see me soon... Ohh, I've already got hot junk and a wet gooch just thinking about it. Be glad you can't smell it."

"Indeed. I will contact you with more details in the next day or so."

"Days?! You're making me wait that long? Oh Cygnus, you cruel bastard." (You feel secure in the knowledge that Cygnus is familiar enough with your mannerisms to realise you are saying this with affection and without rancour.)

"Unfortunately, this cruel bastard needs to contact the Titan's lead engineer and confirm many details."

Something occurs to you: "Cygnus... I gotta check. How do you feel about all this? I mean, you're my fuckbuddy now. If I fuck the Titan, is that going to..." (You don't really want to say 'upset you' because that wording makes Cygnus sound petulant. What to say?) "Is that going to negatively affect you, or our relationship? ...You're very important to me, you know."

"I do know," Cygnus displays a delighted emoticon, and reaches over to gently squeeze your hands. "Do not worry about me. After all, you did fuck the Titan before you ever fucked me. You have a history with them that's separate from mine."

You gratefully stroke Cygnus's hands. "You're a good friend to me. And... I want you to know that you do have a unique role in my life. You're precious to me, and you're not competing with the Titan for my affections... and it's not going to take your place."

"I inferred as much. But I appreciate hearing it confirmed." Cygnus's screen floods with heart emoticons.

You grip Cygnus's hands and haul them in for a hug. However, Cygnus's metal frame is much heavier than your meat one, so all you manage is to haul yourself towards them a bit. Cygnus sees what you're trying to do, and hauls back, pulling you into their lap. Oh, that's a much better idea. You press yourself into Cygnus as they pull you close.

"I'd rather stay here, but I must return to work. Shall I port you back to the workshop or leave you here?"

"Port me back, please. I ought to return to work also... if I can, damn. I'm all worked up."

Cygnus stands up, still cradling you in their arms. Their mechanical strength is such that it seems effortless for them - and it probably is. They teleport you both back to your workstation, still holding you, then set you down on the floor. Oh! That was... unnecessarily exciting. "Not really helping with the whole 'worked up' thing," you think. Cygnus flashes you a reassuring wink emoticon, then teleports away in a flurry of black mist. Many of your colleagues are staring curiously at you, surprised by your sudden and dramatic re-appearance. You grip the edge of your workbench for a few seconds to mentally sort yourself out, then sign back into your workstation and get back to work. You expect to be debilitatingly distracted but find that you're working with vigour and a spring in your step. You're excited for what tomorrow will bring...

---

A message arrives from Cygnus: "picking you up from your quarters in one hour, please confirm."

"confirmed, see you then."

You sign out of your workstation. You'd already informed the workshop supervisor that you'd been called away on business at the TV Base for the day, but you didn't know from what time, so you'd work on catch-up tasks until that point. As a result, it doesn't take you long to wrap everything up to a sensible stopping point, then you head to your quarters to prepare.

On cue, Cygnus spawns in.

Cygnus strides over to you and clasps your upper arms. "I'm sorry you've been put in this position, regardless of your disconcertingly rapid acceptance of it."

"It's all good, buddy. I put myself in this position."

"That's... not untrue. But it was our faction's idea to summon you to service the Titan's core in the first place."

"And if you hadn't done that, I would probably never have met you to begin with. It'll all work out in the end."

Cygnus gives you a smiling emoticon. "I have to take you to the meeting room first to speak with the lead engineer... They're not happy about this. But remember, I'm here with you." Cygnus squeezes your upper arms, "Don't let them throw you."

"Thanks, buddy. ...By the way, you are going to join us in the Titan's hangar?"

"Do you want me there?"

"I absolutely do! ...You'd better port us over before the lead engineer gets any angrier with us."

Cygnus pulls you into an embrace and teleports you both to the meeting room in the TV Base, where you both take seats next to each other. It doesn't take long for the lead engineer to walk in angrily and sit opposite you.

The lead engineer turns to you. "...We know what you did, human."

They're clearly unhappy with you, but you can't help but grin and widen your eyes. You stay silent, trying not to giggle, unable to think of a non-smartarse response right now.

"We are displeased with both you and Fifty-Twenty-Two for your deception-"

"Hey! Do not blame Twenty-Two - it was entirely my idea. I will take 100% of the blame and I will accept any and all consequences." The thought of Cygnus (the unit Fifty-Twenty-Two in question) being punished for your actions chills you and instantly turns you serious. Cygnus squeezes your hand under the table.

"Good. It is right that you should take responsibility for your actions. ...My understanding is that Fifty-Twenty-Two has briefed you on what we require from you."

"Yes, and I'm very much looking forward to... correcting my mistake." You squirm in your seat as the warm folds of your groin start to pool with anticipatory moisture.

"You must do so. The Titan has become borderline irrational. It is distracted, petulant, and does not co-operate during maintenance. It is imperative that you fix this so that the Titan can return to a battle-ready state, or the damage done to the war effort will outweigh the good you did in fixing the Titan's core."

Well, the lead engineer surely isn't wrong about the effect on the war effort, but you realise you're a little sad that that's all the engineer mentions. Do they not care about the effect on their Titan's own feelings?

You hear a great metallic slam, making the three of you startle and flinch, and you realise it's the Titan banging their fist on a nearby gantry, as they roar: "What is taking so long, engineers? I distinctly heard the human arrive!"

"Well, you heard the boss!" You say, standing up and slamming your hands on the table, "Why don't we get this show on the road?"

"Protocol... must be observed-"

"Ah, you'll get your research. Let me go say hello to the boss while you set things up on your end. Our dear Titan is clearly pining for me."

You get up and make your way striding to the Titan's hangar entrance, ignoring the lead engineer's and Cygnus's protests - you clearly remember the way from last time despite the dimness of the base.

You're stopped by the security clearance: "Human... Greetings. We were told you were coming. However, we cannot permit you to enter unaccompanied-"

"Security, allow the human to enter. That is a direct order." You hear the voice of the Titan from inside the hangar.

"...Fuck it, I'm not being paid enough to argue with the Titan. In you go, human."

"Thanks, pal," you say to the security guard as you rush through the gap in the sliding bulkhead doors as soon as they're parted enough for you to squeeze through.

You run down the maze of interconnecting gantries towards the Titan, your beloved Titan. "Boss!" you yell as your steps echo metallically, "I'm here! And it's so good to see you again!"

"There's my newest engineer," the Titan practically purrs.

The Titan intercepts you by placing its hand in your path -- you slow down just enough to avoid a full-on collision, and gratefully rush into the Titan's awaiting palm. You squirm delightedly, running your hands all over the Titan's own, and sigh dreamily. This feels safe... it feels like home.

The Titan brings in its other hand as if to cover you, then stops short. "May I pick you up?"

"Of course! Oh, please pick me up, boss!"

The Titan cradles you in its hands and brings you closer to its face.

"Oh, boss," you sink into the Titan's hands, "It's so good to see you and your beautiful face again. ...Ah, I hadn't realised how much I wanted to do this again." You're quivering with joy. You press yourself into the Titan's hand as much as you can - this is the greatest level of closeness you can physically achieve but it still doesn't feel like enough! It makes you wish you could somehow phase right through them and occupy the same space. You bury your face into the Titan's gloved hand and shudder out some of the feeling that is overpowering you. You lift your head again and you gaze into the Titan's screen, glittering with ethereal white and silver snow. Oh, how beautiful and deliciously terrifying it is... and it asked you to be here! What a thrill!

"Human, you are a delight," the Titan says fondly as it gently rubs your back with a knuckle.

You squeak with pleasure and choke with lust at the same time, making an unfortunate guttural noise. Your whole body prickles with pent-up desire. However, you do have a job to do here. "Boss, you're so good to me. Can you put me down for a bit? I think I need to talk to our audience."

The Titan gives you a single final stroke with its finger, then moves its hand down to the gantry where most of its engineers are standing, along with some of the TV scientists. You step off, then give the Titan's nearest digit a parting hug before moving away to speak to the gathered scientists and engineers.

The lead engineer is hurriedly making their way towards you. As they arrive, you address them: "So, how frequently do you normally fuck the Titan?"

"...We... do not?" The engineer's screen is rapidly filling with question marks.

"Whaat? No wonder the boss is so pent up and restless! ...Ohh, I get it - the Titans were designed to fuck each other, but they haven't been able to because all of them are either in the field or undergoing repairs at any given moment. That's it, isn't it?"

"That... was never part of the Titans' spec."

"...You're telling me the Alliance designed and built the three sexiest machines in existence and didn't build in a way for them to fuck? That's... irrational."

The Titan emits a low rumble at this, as if purring, and flickers the array of blades behind its shoulders.

Oh, the Titan is so beautiful. You admire it and observe the team of engineers hooking up various readout panels, until the lead engineer interrupts your reverie:

"This is not supposed to be a treat for you. We need to get the Titan battle-ready, and it is ultimately your fault that it isn't. Its levels are all over the place - in this state it'll perform unpredictably in battle, and that could cost us the war. It is imperative that you fix this."

You are aching with heat and melting with lust at the fact that a handsome TV is effectively ordering you to do whatever the Titan wants.

You turn to the Titan. "Well, boss, you heard the chief. I need to make you cum, and I'm prepared to service you in any way I can."

The Titan clasps its hands together delightedly.

"That is absolutely NOT what I said-" protests the lead engineer.

"Oh come on, chief, stop being coy," you retort, turning back to the engineer, "We all know what you're getting at. If you're going to talk about fucking, at least have the decency to be crude about it."

The lead engineer appears to be apopleptic with anger and disbelief, spluttering out crackles of static, much to the worry of the surrounding engineers and scientists.

Leaving them to it, you turn back to the Titan and continue: "I'll get you done, boss. It is my fault you got this riled up. The Alliance have yet to give me an assignment I can't accomplish, and this will be no different."

"I have every confidence in you, my newest engineer." The Titan displays a serenely approving emoticon to you, before turning its head to face the lead engineer. "Is everything in place?"

"It is, Titan," confirms the lead engineer.

The Titan turns its head back towards you. You step towards the edge of the gantry in anticipation of the Titan picking you back up, and it moves its hand up to the gantry to meet you. You're aware of the Titan moving its other hand behind you to scoop you up, and you gladly fall backwards to meet it. It never occurs to you that the Titan would mis-time or drop you - why would it? The Titan gathers you up and wraps you in its hands - you're so cosily surrounded. You growl with pleasure and happily writhe (you hope it doesn't look as though you're trying to break free. You're just enjoying the safe solidity of this space). "Oh boss, you could do this to me all day."

The Titan moves you close to its screen, close enough that it fills your vision, making you shiver joyfully with the sheer stimulation. You're close enough that you could reach out and touch it. "Boss, may I pet your screen?"

"You absolutely may."

Before you can reach out, the Titan moves you closer still and opens its hand, pressing you against its screen. Your face and your front are pressing into the wall of static, and your back into the Titan's gloved hand. Ohh. This is wonderful. You nuzzle the Titan's screen and then press the side of your head into it, as you run your hands over its screen as much as you are able, enjoying the feel of the static as though you're skimming your hands over a liquid surface. The prickly, flowy feeling spans your arms and torso and makes you feel energised, and the softer wall of the Titan's hand fitting against your back comforts you. The Titan gently presses each of its fingers against your back in turn, in a rippling motion, and you feel as though you must be some divine material being assembled and extruded in a factory.

"Ohh, boss, how well you know me... Am I really that easy for you to read?"

"You are." There is warmth in the Titan's reply.

"This is... wonderful... Are you trying to make everyone else envious of me up here? Because it's probably working." There is a rising heat and yearning in your loins and belly. You continue stroking the Titan's colossal screen, to the extent that you can reach. "Are you enjoying this as much as I am?"

The Titan remains cryptically silent, but pulls you away from its screen so you can see it displaying a rakish emoticon.

You half-sit, half-lie face-up on the Titan's outstretched palm, your upper body propped upright on your arms. The Titan brings in its other hand to pet you, slowly enough to give you time to tell it to stop if you wanted (as if!), then extends a finger to give you a belly rub. Oh, that's very nice! You wheeze in enjoyment, then you stroke the Titan's finger with both hands in appreciation of the relaxing touch.

"You are a soft little thing," remarks the Titan. Ohh, why is that so hot??

The Titan, with its infra-red vision, can surely perceive the spreading warmth in your crotch. As if reading your thoughts on the matter, the Titan gently pushes you down with its finger until you're fully on your back, then strokes its finger back down your torso, over your belly and up against your crotch. Ohh. OH.

"Ah-HAAaah!" you exclaim in a half-scream half-grunt as the Titan ever-so-gently grinds its fingertip into your crotch, stroking back and forth and in tiny circles, the fabric of your trousers spreading out the touch. You feel so dazed from the sheer bliss of the stimulation that you feel out of breath. Your hands grip the leathery fabric of the Titan's hand upon which you're lying. "Ohh, boss... you trying to explode me from excitement?" Your glans is going from 'fully hard' to 'painfully hard' under the Titan's touch.

You wonder if Cygnus is watching this. Oh god, you hope so.

"Oh boss, you've got me absolutely useless right now. Ah! I'm... not going to be -haaAA!- much use to you... in this state." You choke and gasp on your lust, dissolving into a full-body shiver.

"Did you think this was all about you doing things for me?"

"Well, actually yes. It's why I was -ah!- summoned here. Ohh, haaAAAaaaa..." you trail off as you cum from the Titan's finger dancing over you.

"Human, you have one job," protests the lead engineer. "Need I remind you that we are trying to restore the Titan's levels to baseline normal, not... whatever it is you're trying to achieve."

"Relax, chief, I got this," You pant, propping yourself back up on your arms again and turning to face the lead engineer. You rally your voice a bit before continuing: "I know damn well you TVs experience post-orgasm clarity, and that's exactly what I'm going to give the boss." You turn to the Titan. "Boss, that was a good warmup! I'm going to give you such a stack overflow that your levels will roll right around to normal."

"On this matter I shall defer to the expertise of my lustiest engineer."

Oh, hell yeah. You're a little wobbly from being stimulated to orgasm, but now your mind is nice and clear. That must have been why the Titan did that, you reason (and you'd like to think that the Titan likes you enough to give you a little treat for the sake of it).

If the Titan had a charging port like Cygnus's or the other TV-units', it surely wouldn't be difficult for you to stimulate it. But the Titan lacks such a thing: it's vast enough that it runs off its own reactor and never needs to be plugged in. You recall, however, that the Titan could feel you when you were inside its core chamber - and its core chamber is in more or less the same place on its body as a normal unit's charging port. "Boss, I have a suggestion."

"By all means, my engineer, let's hear it."

"I can give your core chamber a rub-down. If you're willing, would you lie on your back? Then I'll be able to reach the inside of the whole thing without fighting gravity."

"An eminently sensible plan."

The Titan gently clutches you in its hand (oh yess) to hold you safely while it reclines on the hangar floor. Once it's comfortable, it conveys you into its core chamber.

You stand on the 'floor', which would normally be the rear wall of the Titan's core chamber. You move over to the new 'wall' nearest the Titan's head that normally would form the ceiling of the core chamber, and begin giving it a rub-down. This must be the part of the core chamber that gets touched the least. You sit down and press yourself into the curved wall, lying down to hug your entire body against it. You squirm back and forth, trying to rub right into the meeting point where the ceiling connects to the rear wall.

The Titan moves two fingers into the core chamber to join you.

"Oh, hello Boss. Is this doing anything for you?"

"You just keep on doing what you're doing, my engineer," purrs the Titan.

"On it, boss."

You continue squirming back and forth into the wall, corkscrewing as you go. If nothing else, this is fun! You're indulging a mammalian play behaviour that you don't normally get to enjoy. You're aware of the Titan moving its hand, and then its two fingers are pinning you to the wall and scooting you along. The Titan is evidently pushing you along to where it wants to be touched. You're happy to oblige!

The two of you continue in this way, with the Titan gently pushing you along and you rubbing and squirming into the walls of the core chamber where it wordlessly directs you to. All the while you're bathed in the purple light of the core chamber and blanketed in the quiet soundscape of the Titan's inner workings. The Titan does seem to be enjoying the experience, from the rumblings you can hear coming from its speakers, but you do wonder if this will be enough stimulation to push the Titan over the edge into relief.

"Boss, how are your levels or whatever?"

"Worse than ever!" comes the reply from the lead engineer before the Titan has a chance to respond. "I hope you know what you're doing!"

"Have faith in your newest colleague," chides the Titan, "I certainly do."

You get the impression that the lead engineer is fuming that the Titan considers you equals. You don't particularly want to make an enemy of them, but that is pretty funny.

"Boss, I've got another idea. How do you feel about letting me open your core vents?"

"I do not require a core flush."

"But you do require an orgasm. And it seems that stimulating your core chamber from the inside isn't quite doing it for you."

Some immense crackling static comes from the Titan as they take in the implications of what you're suggesting.

"...You are really prepared to do that for me, my engineer?"

"Sincerely: I would love to."

"And you will be careful in there?"

"I'll be so gentle to you, Boss. I'll treat you good."

"I meant for your sake rather than mine! I won't be able to easily retrieve you if you want to get out in a hurry. Are you prepared for that?"

"I am, boss. Just let me know verbally if you're going to change position, so I can brace myself."

"You are admirably dedicated to your duties." Praise from the Titan! It makes your heart skip a beat, as usual. "Please wait a moment - I think I would rather be sitting for this."

The Titan changes position, slowly enough for you to maintain your balance as the walls and floor change roles. Then the Titan instructs its team of engineers to activate the sequence that will unseal its core chamber. Once you hear the pneumatic hiss of the locks unsealing, you begin spinning the maintenance ring to expose the vents (you remember exactly which ring and how far to turn it from when you performed maintenance work in the core chamber the first time you met the Titan).

You squirm through one of the vents and into the inner workings of the Titan.

It's dark, certainly, but not completely unlit. Many of the Titan's cables and pipes softly glow with beads of purple light that zip or slowly crawl along. And it's lovely and warm. Once your eyes get used to the dim, it's rather pretty. No, that's not doing it justice. It's beautiful, in an alien way. It's more raw and unpolished than the Titan's exterior, as it's not meant to be seen. It's like being in a living cave. The Titan's inner workings are much louder now, but you're not overwhelmed by it. Many of the deeper basser sounds are rather soothing. You want to burrow and explore everywhere out of fascination, but you have a job to do.

You check that all of you is fully through the vent, then rotate the maintenance ring to pull it closed behind you. The Titan squawks in alarm at this (you don't want to cause your beloved Titan any suffering, of course, but it's still pretty funny that such a mighty and magnificent entity can have that kind of reaction).

"Human, are you sure about that? I won't be able to get you out in a hurry." You can clearly hear the Titan's voice, its vocal output resonating through its shell.

"You wouldn't be able to anyway," you point out. The vents are too small for the Titan to reach its fingers inside. "I hope you can hear me, boss."

"...I can. The other engineers are patching you through to me."

Oh, interesting. Your voice must be getting picked up by whatever telemetry is keeping track of the Titan's 'levels' that the engineers keep mentioning.

Well, onward and inward. You climb/wriggle your way through the Titan's innards, gently pushing aside cables and squeezing between pipes, heading for the back of the core chamber.

"Oh boss, you're so warm inside... and beautiful, really. ...And you smell nice." The Titan's guts smell of warm minerals and of something like WD40. It really is nice.

"...Thank you, I suppose." (Well, you're not sure what you'd say to such a compliment either.)

You squeeze between two bundles of ribbon cables. They're smooth and slippery, making you feel as though you're swimming underwater in an alien sea. You give them gentle pats as you pass.

You arrive at the back of the core chamber, where much of the Titan's cables and wires and pipes converge. It's quite like a heart and lungs and a secondary brain in one. You suppose the rest of the Titan must have been assembled around it. You aren't sure what you ought to do to bring the Titan off, but you're willing to try. You straddle some pipework and nuzzle into the nest of cables. They're so tidy and organised into bundles! Whoever assembled this had wonderful cable-management skills. (Could it have been the lead engineer? You have new respect for them if so.)

"Boss, I've reached the back of your core chamber."

"I can... feel you there."

"If you want, reach inside your chamber to show me where you want me to go. I'll follow the sound and vibrations."

"...A fine suggestion."

You hear the smooth mechanical sounds of the Titan's arm joints moving, and feel the vibrations as it inserts two fingers into its core chamber. Whoa! The vibrations are stronger back here than you expected. You feel them in your sternum... why is that so hot? You feel the slithery vibrations as the Titan fondles the rim of its core chamber, dipping its index finger inside to stroke its inner walls. You slither yourself, carefully picking your way through the jungle of hardware to chase the vibration.

"Oh... brace yourself, my engineer - I should have warned you about this before!"

Oh? What?

You hear something above you open, and a valve of coolant dumps its contents all over the core chamber, and over you. Whoa! You're drenched with what you hope is just water and mineral oil... not that different from lube, really. Luckily your feet are securely planted enough on a couple of pipes that you aren't in any danger of slipping off.

"Human, please tell me you aren't hurt!" The Titan's mighty voice is tight with worry, and you hear a background rumble of consternation from the other assembled TV-units.

"I'm doing good, boss! That was intense! Actually, I kind of liked it!"

"I'm relieved to hear it. Do you need to come out?"

"Hell no, boss, we're just getting started!"

There's a little patch of coolant pooling on a bundle of cables near your head. You probably shouldn't, but you get a sudden urge to taste it. You dip your head down and poke at the tiny puddle with your tongue. It's surprisingly nice and refreshing!

To your horror, you realise that all of your skin soaked with coolant, plus your tongue, is starting to go numb, and you feel rather cold... Panic starts to set in, until your sensation starts rolling back into place, and your body warms back up to normal... and keeps warming back up until you're rather hot. The relief you felt is replaced by more panic, until the heat rises to a prickly maximum then falls back down to normal. You concentrate on steadying your breathing until you're satisfied the worst is behind you. Your skin continues to cycle between delicious cooling and warming sensations, neither hitting the initial high and low. Oh, you need to ask the engineers for a bottle of this stuff afterwards!

"Human, are you still alright? You've been quite still for a while."

"I'm good, boss - thanks for checking on me. That coolant made me feel strange for a bit, but I'm sure I'm alright now. If you still want me to continue, please guide me again."

You're aware of the Titan moving its hand again and gripping the rim of its core chamber. "Can you follow that?" it asks.

"On it, boss."

You chase the vibrations, slithering along with the greatest of ease thanks to your lubricated self and surroundings. It smells good... you think your crotch is providing its own lubricant too, but it's hard to tell since you're so drenched. You can feel your crotch-heat rising, though - but then again your whole body's heat is rising, and then falling, in an invigorating cycle.

You reach the area of the core chamber rear wall where the Titan's fingers are tapping from the other side, and you hear (and feel) a purr-like rumble coming from the Titan's speakers. You press yourself into the core chamber, fitting your body around the bundles of cables and pipes, prompting a static moan from the Titan. Oh god, that's so hot. You can feel the Titan's vocalisations all around you as they vibrate the Titan's inner shell. You're not sure how aroused the Titan is but you feel you might cum again just from this. You swallow, realising that you must have ingested a bit of coolant. You've effectively taken communion with the Titan, drinking down some of its fluids and taking them into you. Oh, that's hot, that's so very hot -- you moan. You're quite glad the Titan stroked you off earlier, otherwise you'd probably be a useless cumming heap right now. You continue pressing yourself against the rear wall of the core chamber, grinding your hips into it and running your hands through the slick and coolant-dripping bundles of cables.

You hear a clamour of TV voices outside, too muffled for you to make out what they're saying (not that you could decipher that many voices talking at once, you reckon).

The Titan's voice rings out over them all: "Human, the consensus is that whatever you're doing is working... and I'm... inclined to agree. Please... keep it up..."

"Anything for you, boss."

The Titan moves its hand inside its core chamber again, and you slide on over to follow the sound. The Titan moans as you travel there, sliding in between cables and wires. Oh, that's extremely gratifying to hear. You flatten harder onto the core chamber surface, sliding on your belly as much as you can, to amplify your touch. You're rewarded by the sound of the Titan emitting a crackle of static as if gasping. The entire Titan sways - you think it must be gripping the floor with its other hand.

"Oh boss, I am going to make you feel so good."

The Titan emits a static murmur of assent.

You reach the point where the Titan was tapping with its fingers, and you begin to grind against the surface of the core chamber. You can feel the pressure of the Titan's fingers pressing from the other side. The two of you are separated only by the wall of the core chamber. The thought excites you further, and the alternating cooling-and-warming sensation of the lube slowly drying on you is making you steadily more pent-up with desire.

You and the Titan proceed this way for some time: you lustily humping and rubbing the rear wall of the Titan's core chamber from the outside, and the Titan pressing and rubbing its fingers inside its core chamber on the other side of the core wall, and you moving around to meet the Titan's touch.

You discover that the Titan is adorably susceptible to praise in this state! You'd casually (but still sincerely) remarked on how nice and warm you found the core chamber, and the intensity of the Titan's response of moaned static pleasantly surprised you. You find yourself praising the Titan again to hear those lovely moans that make the Titan's shell resonate around you.

"I'm your loyal engineer who's willing to do anything to make you happy... you absolutely deserve this pleasure, boss," you tell the Titan, provoking what sounds like a gasp of static.

You tell the Titan how beautiful its purple cabling is (and it really is!), as you caress the nearest bundle of them, gently tugging the roots where they enter the core chamber. You see the purple beads of light zipping along the cables faster as the Titan emits a rumble of crackly static.

After that, you get a little bolder with your movements, tapping pipework with your feet and tugging on cables, as you continue to slither and crawl around the core chamber at the Titan's direction, caressing and humping it as you go.

"Human... my engineer... don't you stop... don't you ever stop..."

"Boss... you are beautiful and glorious."

You're overwhelmed by a cacophonous roar of static frequencies coming from the Titan's speakers, and a great shuddering of the Titan's frame. You feel its fingers press harder than ever into its core chamber and hold there a while, before withdrawing. You feel the Titan slump backwards and slam to a halt as it leans against the wall of the hangar, and then it is still. You gently disengage from the rear wall of the core chamber and rest on some nearby sturdy piping. You'll sit quietly until the Titan is ready for you to move on.

"Human... thank you. I needed that... My engineers are telling me that my readings are all within acceptable levels now."

"Sounds as though we've done the bare minimum required to impress your team of engineers... Why don't we blow them away?"

"...You are...irascibly lustful, human. No wonder I ended up in this situation in the first place. Thank you, but no thank you. I am spent. ...When you're ready, please exit."

"Can I help myself to a little more from your coolant valve before I go?"

"Just a little. I need it too. But proceed."

You climb up the Titan's pipework and structural girders until you reach the coolant valve overhanging the core chamber. Its release is automatically controlled, but to your delight you see there is also a manual override. You put your lips on the nozzle and turn the manual valve. Just a taste. The taste turns into a few gulps. It feels so good how it at first numbs then effervesces over your tongue and all down your gullet, before spreading into alternating warming and cooling sensations. Your whole body feels aquiver, somehow both energised and relaxed. Well, you got what you came up here for... or did you? You get a wicked idea, and begin pulling down your trousers. Luckily, there is enough pipework under you for you to stand on to do what you intend to do. You push your ass onto the valve, and turn it on just a trickle. Ohh, that does feel amazing! You pant and gasp a bit as the coolant enema pools inside you. You only intended to take a little squirt, but you push back harder onto the valve and marvel at the heating-cooling sensation spreading through your guts. This stuff's amazing! ...Is everyone still listening to your voice? Oh, you don't care. This is worth it. You pull yourself away the valve, giggling at the silly wet noise that results, and turn the valve off, making sure to turn off the manual override and set it back to automatic.

You pull your clothes back on (a bit tricky, as they're still pretty soaked) and begin climbing down towards your exit.

"Can you re-open the vents from your side?" you hear the voice of the Titan as you arrive at the rear wall of the core chamber.

You try. "No, boss. Normally I could, but I'm so slippery right now!"

"I will send some units into my core chamber to open a way out for you."

A pause while the Titan ferries them in, then you hear footsteps and movement. You peer through the opening vents to see the lead engineer, plus a scientist, and Cygnus. How thoughtful of the Titan! As soon as the maintenance ring is fully open, you wriggle through the vents and all but hurl yourself into the waiting embrace of Cygnus. You hadn't expected them to be so willing to hug you right now, wet with coolant as you are, but you're not complaining. Cygnus squeezes you delightedly, making you wheeze in surprise, and lifts you off your feet until your head is level with theirs. They dip their head to touch their upper band of casing against your forehead.

"Welcome back, my friend," Cygnus says quietly.

You can only squeak in appreciation. You're so happy to see your friend right now. Being held by your dearest friend in this post-apocalyptic world, standing in the core chamber of your beloved Titan, you can't think of anywhere you'd rather be. Hell, you can't really think of anything else at all right now, just wordless bliss.

The Titan moves its hand to the entrance of its core chamber, and waits for the three of you to step on (there are four of you, but Cygnus is still carrying you, to your delight. They must have taken note of how much you enjoy being carried.)

The Titan ferries you to a nearby gantry, as the other engineers perform the lockdown sequence to re-seal the Titan's core chamber. Once you all step off, the Titan invites you alone to re-step onto its hand. You gladly do so, and the Titan holds you gently as it brings you close to its face.

"My loyal engineer... no, my dear friend. Thank you. No-one could have done that better than you."

Your insides are twisting with pride, as well as hot-cold coolant. "I love you so much, boss."

The Titan moves you closer to its monitor speakers, so it can speak quietly only to you.

"I heard that, and I appreciate it. I'm not ready to say it back. But I am very fond of you, and I like you very much. ...And I'm glad that you and unit Fifty-Twenty-Two found each other."

The Titan strokes you with a digit while you hug its thumb, then the it ferries you back onto the gantry to re-join Cygnus and the lead engineer.

Cygnus holds hands with you while the lead engineer addresses you.

"...I won't thank you for this, because all you did was correct an action you should not have done. But I acknowledge your skills today." That's probably the best you'll get from them.

"Thanks, chief."

"I must impress upon you: do not fuck any of the other Titans. What they never know they'll never miss. We can't have the war effort impeded to that degree."

"Oops."

"...Please tell me you're joking, human."

"I actually am joking," you affirm, then cackle. "Sincerely. But you gave me such a good setup - how could I not??"

The engineer displays an array of banded patterns of static. You get the impression that if they were a human, they'd be rubbing their temples exasperatedly. You laugh again at the idea.

The lead engineer asks Cygnus, "Is the human like this all the time?"

"Unfortunately, yes," replies Cygnus, squeezing your hand.

"But I hope you've learned something too, chief," you address the lead engineer, "What do you expect if you build a machine that's clearly meant to fuck and then never fuck it?"

The lead engineer says nothing but displays a dubious emoticon.

"Hey, chief... I recognise that I've caused you a lot of strife, and I am sorry. We don't have to be friends, but I don't want to make an enemy of you either." You hold up a friendly fist. "Can we at least part on friendly terms today?"

"...We can." The lead engineer displays a smiling emoticon and returns your fist-bump.

Cygnus says to you: "Can I port you home?"

"One moment, please!" The reply comes from the scientist who was in the core chamber when you emerged. "Today's events have absolutely fascinating implications for research. I would interview you about them, and so would my colleagues."

"I'd love to help!" you affirm, "But I'd really like to get clean and dry first."

"And you really need to all get out of our way so we can get back to work making the Titan battle-ready," cuts in the lead engineer, not unkindly.

"Cygnus, buddy, can you help us with this? Scheduling some time for me to meet the scientists later, I mean?" you ask.

"Of course," Cygnus replies, giving you a beaming emoticon, "Such things are my job."

"Thanks, buddy." You turn to the scientist: "Well, you heard that, I'm sure. I'll see you all later." You and the scientist fist-bump.

"We'd better go now," Cygnus says to you, "We all have work to do."

Cygnus picks you up - YES! - and teleports you home. It feels surreal to be back in your normal quarters after everything that happened today. Everything looks just the same as you left it, as though you'd never been away. Cygnus squeezes you to them. You really like how much bolder they're getting with picking you up and with initiating hugs.

"I think the next job for you and me," says Cygnus with a winking emoticon, "ought to be to get out of these wet clothes and to get clean."