A ringing sound echoed in her ears as a metallic voice began to call out, "It's morning, Rinrin-chan! It's morning! Time to get up! Time to get up!"

A moan escaped the mass of blankets on the bunk bed, located in a private bedroom in a Martello tower-like building on a plot of land in the hills overlooking the outer reaches of Halifax Harbour. Hand moved the covers away to reveal a woman in her early twenties, currently covered in a Boston Celtics muscle shirt that barely went past her panty-clad crotch. Oriental in looks with a mixture of Japanese and Chinese ancestry on her cute face, she had bobcut dark brown hair that went to the level of her chin and deep brown eyes. As she reached over to tap the control to shut off the alarm on the miniature robot on her nightstand, she was quick to see the time. "Seven-thirty... " Rinrin Hatoyama moaned before she covered her mouth in a polite yawn. "Damn ... still too early."

The door to her bedroom then opened, revealing what -- to the casual observer -- was none other than Rinrin's own twin sister. Of course, a sharper eye would be quick to note the difference of eye colour (the twin had blue eyes), not to mention the slight sheen on her skin that denoted this was actually a gynoid.

"Ohayô gozaimasu, Mama," Mecha-Rinrin called out as she placed the breakfast tray in her hands on an empty part of her creator's work desk. "Breakfast is ready."

"Ohayô, Mecha-chan," Rinrin replied before another yawn stole her breath as she got out of her bed and headed to a side door to go to the bathroom.

Mecha-Rinrin smiled as she watched her creator/mother begin morning ablutions. "Just to remind you, Mama, you have an appointment with McGovern-sensei at her office at 10:00 AM today," she announced as Rinrin stripped off her nightclothes and stepped into the shower. "You needed to see her about your recent bout of pneumonia."

"Right," Rinrin said as she flipped on the water...

After a hearty breakfast and a quick review of her day's schedule on her BlackBerry, Rinrin got dressed in a pair of jeans and a plain T-shirt before getting her bag and heading out of her rented home to the Corvette she had purchased on coming to Nova Scotia and modified with her own home-designed AI systems when she began attending Dalhousie after graduating from Stargazer West College. "Ohayô, Louie," she called out as the door automatically opened and she slipped in. "McGovern-sensei's clinic, near the University, please. Most economical route," she then instructed.

"Right away, Rinrin-chan," the voice of the Corvette's AI -- Rinrin modelled that on the voice of one of Donald Duck's nephews -- replied as the engine turned over.

Rinrin buckled in as the car went off. Given the growth of the metropolitan Halifax region over the last few decades, she knew it would take nearly an hour to get into town and Patricia McGovern's clinic, located to the north of the grounds of Dalhousie University. While Louie was actually doing the driving, Rinrin got out her Aniki Special laptop and began running through her notes for her various graduate year classes. Fortunately for her, today was a day she only had one class with a following seminar -- Artificial Cognation 447 -- at Dalhousie, so she could relax herself and take time to work on some of her pending research essays and seminar presentations.

Time slipped by until Louie's voice called out, "We're here, Rinrin-chan."

Rinrin blinked, and then she looked to her right to see the office building where Dr. McGovern had her private practice, located on Jubilee Road to the west of the Halifax Infirmary. "Damn! Time sure flies!" she muttered to herself as she quickly saved all her work, and then grabbed an extra battery pack from the glove compartment before getting out of her car. "Usual security procedures, Louie!" she ordered.

"Naturally, Rinrin-chan. Have fun," the AI replied with a smile in his voice as the car door closed and locked, the engine shutting down.

Rinrin smartly walked into the clinic, heading into the waiting room. Looking around as she noted there was no other person there, she placed her laptop on a chair before heading to the receptionist. "Good morning," she said in accent-less English. "I'm here to see Dr. McGovern. Rinrin Hatoyama," she announced herself as she drew out her provincial health card and private insurance card for the receptionist to see.

The receptionist looked up and scanned the card before nodding. "Please be seated, Miss Hatoyama. The doctor will see you shortly."

Rinrin nodded as she headed to her chair. The receptionist was an android -- A gynoid! she automatically corrected herself, remembering that many of her classmates and teachers had picked up on the term to differentiate between female-form and male-form automations -- most likely an Eastman-Kodak Type 76F modified for secretarial duties. She was a pretty girl with brown eyes and light pink hair that looked natural on her. Which was the give-away; pink hair was NOT natural among organic humans.

As she put her computer onto her lap to get back to her notes, her eyes then locked on a sign on a nearby table piled with magazines: FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE, THIS CLINIC IS CURRENTLY ASSISTING IN BETA TRIALS ON THE EASTMAN-KODAK TYPE 86F-N NURSE DROID. PLEASE BE PATIENT IF MALFUNCTIONS OCCUR; SOME SYSTEMS ARE STILL IN TESTING STAGE. Noting that, Rinrin shrugged; she knew some of the people at Dalhousie who were helping out with the EK 86F-Ns, which were originally designed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston. Knowing the collective IQs of some of those brainiacs, she then smirked. The bugs, if present, would be minor things...

"Miss Hatoyama?"

Rinrin looked up to see a smiling girl standing there, dressed impeccably in a ruffled shirt and slacks, a lab coat draped over her. "Yes?"

"Good morning, Miss Hatoyama," the woman said with a very nice smile as she bowed to her. "I'm Heather. I'll be your nurse today. Come with me, please?"

Rinrin nodded as she tapped closed the notes she was working on, and then closed the Aniki Special before she followed the other woman through the doors into the examination areas. There were four such rooms, along with the receptionist's cubicle, the doctor's private office, the file room, the supply room and a washroom. The door to the doctor's office was closed. Three of the examination rooms had nurses -- dressed the same as Heather -- standing by the diagnostic beds, all still. The fourth room was empty. Beckoning Rinrin inside, Heather headed to the work table there to pick up a blood pressure armband. "We'll take your blood pressure first," she said.

Rinrin sat on the bed, offering her right arm. Heather fixed the cuff in place, and then activated the device as she placed the fingertips on the pulse point on Rinrin's wrist. As the blood pressure was taken, Rinrin took a moment to scan over the gynoid before her. Heather appeared to be about twenty or so, with brown hair cut in a shaggy line at mid-neck, partially held down by a golden headband. Brown eyes peeked out of a very artistically designed face, with just a touch of baby fat in it to make her look quite normal. And unlike older model gynoids, she didn't have an artificial sheen to her skin; that was the biggest visual change when it came to third-generation artificial intelligence humanoid automation -- normally referred to by the initials A.I.H.A., pronounced "Aye-hah" -- design. Up close, she seemed very human.

"Your blood pressure is lower than normal," Heather then announced on seeing the reading. "One-fifteen over seventy-seven. Your heart rate is eighty-two."

"It's been that way since I was discharged from Camp Hill Veterans Memorial Hospital," Rinrin said as the nurse pulled off the blood pressure cuff. "I've been taking antibiotics and cortisone to get the blood pressure back up and give my lungs more power so I could breathe better and get the rest of the bacteria out of them."

"I'll ensure the doctor is informed of that," Heather stated. "Please remove your T-shirt so I can analyse your breathing, Miss Hatoyama."

Rinrin blinked, and then she nodded as she did what the nurse asked. If Heather had the normal 86F-N system modifications done to her, her hands would be fitted with special sensors that would allow her to monitor the flow of air in a patient's lungs just by touching the skin, totally negating the need for stethoscopes. Such readings would be wirelessly downloaded to the supervising doctor's main computer so s/he could see what the readings were and get an idea as to what might be happening.

As soon as the T-shirt was off, Heather placed her hands -- quite warm ones -- on Rinrin's back. "Please breathe deeply, Miss Hatoyama."

"Right," Rinrin said as she took a deep breath through her nose, then blew out through her mouth. The procedure repeated again as Heather shifted her hands up and down her patient's back, and then shifted to the sides under her armpits. After that was done, Heather then slipped her hands under Rinrin's sports bra. "Hey!"

"Please breathe deeply, Miss Hatoyama. This is part of the examination."

Rinrin fought down the urge to blush as the gynoid's hands pressed against the soft flesh of her breasts. "R-r-right," she sputtered before taking a deep breath.

Heather's hands continued to shift all over her patient's breasts, her fingers dancing over Rinrin's nipples every time they moved. The brush of those warm fingers over her sensitive breasts made Rinrin's breath catch in her throat as they seemed to move in gentle circles over her nipples, making them harden almost immediately. Before she could say anything, the nurse stated, "Please breathe deeply, Miss Hatoyama."

Rinrin smiled. "Hard to do that with you playing with my breasts like that!"

Heather stopped, and then she seemed to consider that for a moment before she shifted herself to stand in front of her patient. Rinrin blinked, and then her jaw dropped as the gynoid reached up to unbutton her blouse, revealing creamy skin underneath. And no bra, Rinrin was quick to note on seeing Heather's own breasts exposed as she pulled away her blouse, tucking the flaps under her lab coat so they didn't obstruct the view. Before she could say a thing, the nurse smiled as she reached down, took Rinrin's hands and then placed them on her breasts. "You may play with my breasts as I continue the examination," she stated before slipping her hands under Rinrin's bra. "Please breathe deeply, Miss Hatoyama. I am almost finished."

Rinrin blinked as she stared in confusion at the woman before her, though her hands did tighten slightly as Heather's own fingers returned to gently pressing against her own breasts. As she tried to figure out what the heck was going on, Rinrin's thoughts were interrupted by Heather's voice, "Please breathe deeply, Miss Hatoyama."

Rinrin took that in, and then she felt herself relax as it came to her. Hoping that she wouldn't get into trouble with the doctor if she did this, she moved to slide her hands around Heather's torso and pull her closer to her. The gynoid responded immediately by taking a step in place herself in the V between Rinrin's legs. Before she could say anything, Rinrin then leaned in to place a deep kiss on Heather's lips.

The nurse seemed to freeze for a moment before her face softened and her eyes closed as her hands pulled up from Rinrin's breasts -- yanking her sports bra clear of them -- and moved to embrace her as her mouth parted, her tongue gently probing into Rinrin's mouth to play with her own tongue. Sensing that, Rinrin could only scowl to herself as it hit her. Either some dorkass cracker got into her systems to put in some sexdoll programming into her or some ignorant jerk at the factory put in some parts that shouldn't be in her! she mused to herself as she pulled her arms clear of Heather's clothes to return her hug. Better find out how bad this is before Sensei gets in here. She's not going to like this one! she mused to herself.

Rinrin's hands drifted down to gently cup Heather's buttocks and squeeze, which made the nurse tense for a moment before a gentle purr escaped her as her own hands did the same to her patient's ass. Sensing that, Rinrin quietly thanked the heavens that she had been born bisexual so she could enjoy this, especially when it came to a well-designed gynoid. And she had to admit, the folks at Eastman-Kodak were some of the best when it came to beings like Heather. As she kept one hand rubbing Heather's butt cheeks, her other hand shifted to gently brush the nurse's stomach around her navel, and then it slipped under the band of her slacks, which weren't held back by a belt. A quick flip of the thumb undid the button, and then she pulled down the zipper, her little finger brushing up against the pubic hair above the gynoid's womanhood.

Immediately on sensing that, Heather's breathing -- all gynoids had to breathe as a way of keeping their internal systems cool -- picked up as her legs spread apart a bit, most likely to allow Rinrin's hand to get where she obviously wanted to go. This was, in a sense, the truth. As Rinrin's hand began to rub against Heather's clit, her other hand moved under the lab coat to get at the band of her slacks at the small of her back, gently pulling them down so that her ass would be clear of clothing. They continued to kiss away as Rinrin's fingers began to probe past Heather's rear opening, reaching around to gently feel the soft tissue there before it tapped a hard point. Once she detected that, she then pulled away and gave the nurse an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, Heather-chan," she said in Japanese as she pressed the button there.

Heather's passionate look froze for a second before all emotion blanked out on her face as her body instantly straightened to attention, pausing long enough so that Rinrin could get her hand clear of the gynoid's crotch before her legs came together. Once she was perfectly still and giving Rinrin a thousand-yard stare, the nurse then spoke in a flat monotone, "Nurse-u.nit-Hea.ther-in-stand.by-mode, Miss-Ha.to.ya.ma. Please-state-what-func.tion-or-ac.tion-you-wish-this-u.nit-to-per.form."

"Open main diagnostic port and enter self-diagnostic mode," Rinrin ordered.

"U.nit-now-in-self-di.ag.nos.tic-mode. Main-di.ag.nos.tic-port-o.pen."

A trapezoid-shaped patch of skin opened up on Heather's upper sternum, flipping down to reveal several fibre-optic programming ports and a small screen with a two-button control panel underneath it. Reaching for the Aniki Special, Rinrin pulled out a retractable cable, and then moved to hook it in to the port to Heather's far right. Once that was there, Rinrin moved to open her own programs as the nurse then dutifully announced, "U.nit-now-linked-to-out.side-com.pu.ter-pro.ces.sor."

Ignoring Heather, Rinrin called up her DroidScan 17.7 detailed analysis program. "Heather, what's your body unit number?" she asked.

"U.nit-num.ber-Ee-Kay-Eight-Six-Ef-En-Zero-Ex-Zero-One-Six-Nine-Ay."

Rinrin typed in EK-86F-N-0X0169A into the UNIT B.U.N. field on the control screen, and then she tapped the FULL SYSTEMS SCAN function icon. Heather seemed to perk as she announced, "Link-o.pen-to-Droid-Scan-Seven.teen-point-Seven-pro.gram. Full-sys.tems-an.al.y.sis-com.men.cing. Es.ti.mat.ed-scan-com.ple.tion-in-ten-point-four-min.utes."

"Rinrin! What's going on here?!"

Rinrin jerked on hearing that voice, and then she turned to see Patricia McGovern standing at the open doorway, her jaw dropped and her eyes wide with surprise on seeing one of her nurses now partially undressed, her main diagnostic port open and hooked now to her patient's portable laptop computer. "Oh, Doctor! Sorry about that!" Rinrin breathed out. "Heather was monitoring my breathing when she started to get pretty passionate with me. I shut her down to check her out; I think she's got some sexdoll programming in her; probably put in when she was built!"

Patricia blinked as she took that in, and then she nodded. "She just arrived with the others from the factory a week ago," she said as she moved to place her own laptop and her patient folder on the desk before gazing at the unmoving Heather. "None of the other patients have complained about her or the other nurses when they've been given preliminary examinations before I've seen them. How did you guess that, Rinrin?"

"Pays to be an A.I. major at Dalhousie, Doctor," Rinrin stated. "Heather, take the Aniki Special and move to stand beside the work desk," she then ordered.

"This-u.nit-will-com.ply, Miss-Ha.to.ya.ma."

Picking up the laptop, Heather turned and walked over to stand beside the work desk, placing the Aniki Special on the desk before returning to a state of attention as she stared nowhere in particular. Noting that, Patricia nodded as she turned to her patient. "Well, since we can't get much out of her for the time being, let's get you back on the bed so we can get on with this," the doctor then stated, smiling.

"Right," Rinrin said as she moved to lie down, slipping off her bra before relaxing herself on the bed as the doctor slipped on her stethoscope.

"Breathe deeply," Patricia ordered.

Rinrin did so as the cup was placed on her skin. Patricia McGovern was a couple years free of residency at Victoria General Hospital to the east of Dalhousie University's main campus on South Street. She was a very beautiful woman in her early thirties, with long dark red hair currently tied in a high bun at the back of her head and hazel eyes under reading glasses. Like her nurses, she was dressed in a ruffled blouse and slacks, a lab coat draped over her shoulders. Due to her youth and recent entry into mainstream general practice, she had a small group of patients, which made her more welcome to Rinrin; she hated long line-ups whenever she went to see a doctor.