{"I do not fear computers. I fear lack of them" — Isaac Asimov. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity" — Albert Einstein. "Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution" — Albert Einstein. "I think that novels that leave out technology misrepresent life as badly as Victorians misrepresented life by leaving out sex." — Kurt Vonnegut ... Today this day has finally came! The TELL A STORY TO ME Contest hosted by 
Image by Mad Uncle studios for the
And so Insomnia acted
And she was there for the alarm clock, the ground oomphing with each push up and down of her body. Her counter turned to a loud siren to every wall in the room, her legs hopped forward and her body sprang up. The train of breaths making way through her mouth, lungs begging for the sweet mercy of rest. Sweat rivulets racing down every part of her body, her palms damper than her floor. The entire body screaming for less, yet dying for another round of bodily activity. But her eyes and hands working together to cautiously click the snooze button.
The alarm clock finally shutting up, the choir of nature slowly creeped into her room as did the sounds of the concrete jungle as well. Her legs shambled forth to the screen doors, sliding way open before she had even faced it. Outside, the flare of the sun to her eyes finally calmed down and her eyes reveled of the light outside. A hole becoming open, nano-carbon frames unfolded and became her favorite beach chair. Body collapsing, her skin and nerves being lulled by the dropping temperature of the chair.
A series of beeps shrieked in her ears and so she heard the hovering smart bot coming towards her. Torquing over with her back upon the chair and going through a short flare session, the city smart bot hovered over the edge. The faint lines of lasers beaming into the concrete jungle of Poznań, happily uttering many beeps once it felt the scan complete. Landing unto the lap of Dźwięk Corneliusa, her lungs finally collecting themselves and her breathes less labored.
The smart bot nuzzled her tummy, her hands only patting and sliding across the nano-surface of the bot. Shooting close to her face, the buzzes of the bot began beeping all about. Projections above the bot displaying symbols, Corneliusa's eyes could only become more deadened but her mind so jovially carefree. Seeing the bot ending its lil' rant, her arms reached out and hugged the bot for which she nuzzled her face on.
"Oh little, little, bot... how you speak that so with vigor, I can't understand. But yes, I hadn't even given an iota of respect to sleep-"
Words began projecting on top of the bot, her eyes saw: [You've been bad at it, first troubles with sleeping and now today to abandon sleep to do everything else.]
"Ah my little, little, bot... I at least gotten a productivity boost when I had forsaken sleep. Heh, by the Devil of St. Martin, I feel like a runner that has their high after so much pain - I just hadn't felt any during such."
Again the beeps continued on and the words popping to existence: [Promise to get sleep, you do have a sort of a big event at the end of this weekend... OH! You're friend just shot a letter. Want to me to snatch it?]
"The only one who would still send letters would be that crazy Wiktoria. Of course I want to check it out, obviously she went out of her way for cute envelope if she sent a letter. So pretty please get it, my Caring-Assisting-Loving-Longing-Undying-Narrating-Adoring bot!~"
Smooching the nano, the bot squealed in beeps at that name but Corneliusa's mouth let out a fury of chuckles into the air. The beach-chair refolding and submerging back into the floor, her body moved better as seen with her decor still up - yet stuttered about her legs said it all. The apartment door shafting upwards, a rail-bot slid towards her and beeped into her where she like to be in. Her fingers rising up, her fingers gesticulated cardinally and the rail-bot slid with a purpose; emitting light into the elevator door, a ding rang into the air and the door soon followed.
"Come in, rail-bot, I'll need you for a bit more- gotta say now, those engineers finally made those light rifts transport you across spots quickly now. No wonder there was ruckus about this apartment, wasn't entirely my fault now... Anyways we're finally here! Okay, rail-bot may you open the apartment's spa door?"
Sliding fast again, her eyes took in the colour all about - perking up in the redid paint job. Hearing a distinct click in a near morning apartment send some goosebumps to terrorize her skin, but her mind detested the sheer gull that she even had goosebumps and they soon faded away. Stepping inside and hearing the door behind her click shut, the rail-bot went into the control panel room as she went to the changing room. The floor echoing the drop of clothes, a mechanical limb squeaking in need of oil handing a robe, her hands tossing it into the clothe bin and a screen popping with a cute smile emoticon at the corner and asking the following:
["As the rail-bot cooks up the bath house or as you say 'spa' back there, what would you like (click all wished): [a] chute down some clothes when I come back here to change, [b] provide a headset for a librovox session, [c] alternatively a music session you only need to think about to get it and/or [d] a holo-tablet to continue on your research. Whatever you choose, we oblige to the best of our abilities Dr. Corneliusa of Sound and Tech Philosophy~"]
Her fingers touching [a] and [d], she pressed her fingers to her lips and pressed it into the screen. The screen fluttering with heart emoticons before turning green and obliging to her request. Her ears hearing the gentle hums of the machines, it became memorized by every beat which only grew to love the gushing of water as she emerged to the bath house proper. Then to her hum the beeps of other city smart bots that entered and exited through open holes in the roof. Her fingers unwinding the knot of the robe, red and white in colour, and her hands tossing it to the side, her nakedness showed. Yet her mind squealed not to cover herself or to chuck her body to the hot pools of water, not even to the rail-bot squeaking by and wishing her a fun time.
Her toes testing the hotness like if they were a reusable litmus test strip, she conferred that the bot finally nailed down her preference of heat; knowing full well it will be regulated to publicly accepted temperatures that would make her body jump out like a disturbed wobbly cat due to its lack of heat to her demand. Facing away from the door and facing the huge banner displayed, she bore no mind to it but had given an ancient smile to it. A stripe of scarlet and heavenly white dashed upon the flag, the colours then pressed hard by a golden star in the center and with the center's center symbol being a flaming torch above a cartographer's compass tool.
"Well, certainly only progressed better from here. There was a troubling epoch of ole Warsaw and her fellow sistren nations, but overcoming that had produced the wondrous bloc I can chillax in now. There's the tablet, finally popping up; what time is it?... Only 0632? Well, I didn't sleep fo' sho' now and this isn't an overly pleasant dream - peck I feel so tir- humph - so tired that I can sleep in the bubbly hotness here."
And so her tablet slowly lowering as her nude body slid in more, the click of the spa door erupted yet perturbed not her sharp ears. Chitter-chatter that drowned out the noise pollution of her mind, yet her body reveled with each sweat being burned off and her mind loving all the human, robotic and ear-splitting noises of Nature outside. Rapid flaps of scurrying sparrows popped in, perched on the column heads above while tweeting all about with the people crossing all about - yet neither the mass of life nor her cared that much for each of the other. To her mind, they were all nude and she'd be fine even if a male old child termed a male late teen would be oogily-eyed. As with oogily-eyed late teen females staring all about and those that just so wished to be neither female nor male were doing the same.
[2.]An ancient Greco-Roman tradition of the public bath houses that they will have to get used to, where the nude body seems so lively with bountiful pleasure. To later mature to seeing it as a mere other sight as see-able on the Slavic beaches or old nudist rallying points elsewhere. Regardless, everybody was keeping everybody in check, for which stupid and crass incidents had been at a neck-break zero for the longest time post-troubles era. And with her body sensing the protocols of temperature lowering already, her eyes tried to make the best of it under a noisy cloud of robots, sparrows and lively humans splashing, swimming, singing and sleeping about.
But it wouldn't be the "cold" temperatures that make her spring and grasp the columns like a terrified black cat, but the beeping nudges her nano-bot that made her head scream in annoyance.
"Ole my little, little, bot. I know thou art impatient, but I didn't teach you that attitude now... But I understand the great deed you have done, you adorable Voza, and I shall get to reading it. But do tell me, what is the time now? As my eyes can see that the bath house has its other smart doors opened and I see every mechanical and organic being just parsing on by... You're telling me it's only just 0800 now? Huh. Must've slept like a rock now. Do say, who ogled me the most?... The old trans kids?- Yes I know its teen but still. But the trans ones? D'aw~ But I got no time to revel in their childishness, I got a letter to read!"
The bot beeping at the group's direction, the group of trans females, males and androgynous "old kids" - still misnomer in her mind as teens - were already staring up at the flight of birds. Placing two fingers in her mouth, her mouth puffed out a strong gust and did it whistle loud; catching all their attention and some others curious to the sound. Her left eye winked and her right hand touching her lips before springing back to blow a kiss to them all, all their cheeks flashed an ethereal pink before gazing as their heads cocked right back up to Nature. Her ears hearing chuckles from all around, her eyes met all theirs in a rotating glance and her shoulders popped up while her ancient smile still stuck smug on her lips. Body emerging from the water, her hands snatched and tied the robe around her as her faithful little bot beeped away to her apartment room.
A short excursion into the changing room and so plopped new clothes did her eyes cheerfully saw. Putting on a soviet striped shirt, little sun hat and green trousers, her legs were soon strolling out while her hands were undoing the envelope with surgical precision. So the unraveling of the envelope was sung by the envelope, her mind let her voice-box squeak happily to what her eyes saw. Tears began inundating down her cheeks as she rode up the elevator, the rail-bot knowing better not to ask and just feel happy as her lips continue to stay stretched across her face.
Legs skipping the floor, her mind raced to find her little bot and just call her already. To gush over the same news she's been hearing for a good while but still making her mind explode in joy whenever brought about. Legs tapping as to make the body heel, her hands caught the door's grip but her arm had to wrench the gleeful body back to Earth. Her eyes just begging one more sight of the letter, her mind permitted as her fingers pulled on the hatch to let it auto-magically slide up. Legs strolling on into the room, her eyes re-read the letter per word of such:
To my most esteemed friend,
Tell me, Dźwięk Corneliusa, how do the sounds beyond which we humans can hear sound like? I've seen the reports and news for your new technology being talked about in public; I wonder if you have the time to elucidate the magic of these sounds. To hear not only the ends of the audible spectrum that the elderly cannot hear and the young can not remember. But to equally be able to live in the moment while hearing such! I await thy answers with great grace, whether in Poznań or by letter.
With sincere love,
Wiktoria Ski
The green trousers delicately falling to the floor while her hands yanked up a knee-length floral skirt, her lil' bot finally found her and did her hands hugged the floating smart bot. Leaning in and doing the usual winks with her eyes, the phone service popped up and her voice-box screamed for Wiktoria. Connecting to her cell, her hands were preoccupied with sliding up leggings unto her skin. Her hand acquainted with small heels, Wiktoria screeched through and Corneliusa mocked back.
"Took you a while to just finally pick up on this letter, last time you already read it-"
"Silence you! Anyways, were should we go to chit-chat and peruse the good city of Poznań?"
"Thinking Zamek for this week."
"Ah, the Imperial Castle~ Haven't been there in a while. Anyways, whatcha wearing now?"
"Oh the usual, nothing big as you mockingly would say~ Just some lace dress and a headscarf. What about you?"
"Usual, puh!~ Well I am just wearing an old classical shirt you'd love to see, floral skirt, leggings and, oh, a big sun hat."
"Bit hot for leggings today, don'tcha think?"
"Really? Well I shall suffer for looking good to a lovely person only~"
"Oh hush you, we barely are even around each other yet!~"
"Ha ha ha ha~ Calm your tits and stop flinging mines now, save that when we're on something comfy to lie our backs on."
"Corneliusa!~"
"What!-"
But her insincerity went unanswered as her mouth couldn't hold prisoner any more chuckles bursting through her mouth. Voza helping her body stay steady and steadfast had already calculated the next boxcar they needed to get to be right at time at Zamek. Nudging her body forth, Voza's screen shot lasers to the rail-bot; the message understood, already the elevator door sang open as her voice-box finally stopped laughing about. Reaching down floor, her and Voza's vision caught one of the trans from earlier; both staring at each other, Corneliusa's lips smirked at given the go to do so. Her skirt fluttering with each stride, her head titled slightly to the kid oogily at her and her left eye winked. Already their cheeks exploded into tomato red, but their legs took the courage to meet her stride half-way through. Her head cocked slightly, she nudged up and they spoke:
[3.]</a"You're Corneliusa?"
"Think I am."
"Just want to s-s-say-"
"Your eyes were reveling in something?"
"U-u-uh, yes!... Sorry-"
"No need, just don't do that outside the bath houses. But keep growing, squirt. You'll find out you enjoy a sight more than just staring at someone."
"Well, I want to talk about something besides that."
Her eyes confirming with Voza's screen, her legs took to a full sprint which was only barely kept up by the teen. Jumping and gripping the rail of the box-car, her body stretched out and her hands tried to reach them, that poor breathless runner, as both of their displacement seem to close.
"Well, let's continue it on a box-car now. C'mon, hop in!"
"What about my friends!?!"
"You can swing back around, walking won't do you harm! Now hop on before you make an oopsy on a street now. Now please sit, Voza will you be kind to- ah, read my mind already."
Finding a seat amongst a lively but semi-packed box-car, the kid plopped themself down before Voza went on to nuzzle their tummy with great love.
"W-whoa, being nuzzled by a bot is-"
"Cool, I know. But now, please go on about your q with me."
"Well, I've been hearing some weird sounds when I've been going to sleep recently. Just... well... maybe you aren't the one to talk about it, but are you open to humouring what it could be?"
"Well, let's take it dialectically. So do you suffer from sleep problems like me?- Well sleep problems in general?"
"As my they-friend - and my lovely partner who I adore their personality - told me: I toss and turn like crazy. Sometimes the room around me when I sleep just is darker than per usual. And as I and they can confirm, we just hear the weirdest of sounds."
"Hmm. Well I could set a test trial to capture the sounds and help you find a doc that can prescribe safe sleeping meds. Otherwise, sounds like you have a similar dæmon of mine."
"Really?"
"Well, nota bene the word 'similar' now. See, I don't know how to describe this but I am again falling into this cycle of troubled sleep, for lack of any better phrasing, and this 'similar' dæmon popped up over time for me. Eventually it had gotten powerful enough to strike at me, but thankfully the neighbors next door heard the scuffle and helped pin the dæmon down. Later friend in the milicja killed it, recorded it and published the incident to the news and government archives; told I had an insomnia dæmon and so Insomnia acted."
"Those cases are oddly popping up infrequently, but I guess mines will be next if I can't control it. But I heard you improved after it die, must've been one helluva an experience then? But moving past that, you think you got time to help me and my lovely they-friend?"
"Anything, got your apartment and room number memorized?"
"Actually, I'm just the tenth floor of our apartment-complex. Room 10-32"
"No wonder I see you so often along with other people, not a mere contingency of placement. Well yes I can, just knock on 12-24 - you obviously know its floor twelve and room twenty-four now. Right?"
"Yes, know how this all works!~ Safe travels where you are going!!!!~"
[4.]"And may you find your other lovely they-friends now!... Lovely sport, shame they suffer sleeping problems."
Staring at the cobble streets outside, her and Voza saw Zamek not that far. Yet they were drawn in by the still active bicycling culture outside, trucks here and there and the massive nature of flying bots and critters of Nature mucking about. Elbowing Voza, Corneliusa would describe a critter from squirrels, to mice, to the feathering mass of birds and maybe the town-old pets of cats and dogs. And Voza would identify the exact animal her eyes were staring at and describe them a lil' on what makes them just a bit unique. Their periphery finally making out the illusive Wiktoria, or so Corneliusa would dare to mock her by.
Jumping off the box-car despite the scruntiny of the angered driving bot, Voza and Corneliusa just fired signifiers of their tongues sticking out. The driving bot couldn't but laugh but still annoyed did its red hue dare emit to them as both of them skittered away to Zamek. Corneliusa's and Wiktoria's eyes meeting, their legs sprinted at each other as their arms stretched wide. Voza taking a recording of this silly folly, their bodies crashed into each other as their arms managed to wrap on their backs to secure them from making the cobblestone scream as their ærses landed on the floor. Brezhnev-kisses flying unto every part of their face, their lips finally sealed their attention and Voza slowly floated back to the lesbian pair.
A loud smuck rippling in the air, their smiles and hearts grew three-fold as their hands were practically glued upon each other. Wiktoria's bot bumping into Voza's body, the two turned and beeped their giggles to each other as they whisked away to the roof of Zamek. Left unoccupied amongst a sea of people, Nature and bots, their attention undivided to everything around them as long as their hands held on tight. The concrete echoing their steps, so echoed were their united heartbeats entering into Zamek; discussing lil' pieces of the latest innovations and the recent usages of all of them. And despite her body feeling the power to chug along the rest of the day, her eyes looked for every excuse to close; but alas thwarted with her eyes keeping hers in check, her mind knowing what Wiktoria will say if she got caught having episodes of insomnia again.
But before that were to happen, their minds were content with living among the crowd who might as well have enjoyed what they were about to; yet like each member of the crowd, fully thinking on how they go about. Even then as their hearts beating as one, arms feeling like one and their collective spirit acting as one, their World had certainly been blessed by the ones and zeros of all bots buzzing around.
Two things: Yay(!) a TASTM or #tellastorytome entry!!!!~ And a long story for a contest host I certainly I am in love with their prompts.
Welcome back with the contest @calluna, makes me wonder what contest I should sincerely run if I am going to go with that plan. We shall see, might need to ascertain a possible contest to etch upon the @bananafish realms. But with the rules of four, I would be more than perfectly happy just helping to moderate the TASTM or FTS ( #finishthestory ) contests when the time calls for other mods. Yet, let that be a far future for TASTM and a near future to become a moderator again for FTS.