Space travel was a new sensation for me. Like most sensations, now that I think about it. Learning to walk again over the course of a few days even with the aid of the advanced medical assistance of the good doctors had been difficult, but as Mother said I was of House Harmonia. This was what was expected of me.

Deianira was a constant help. She was able to walk me through every motion, from getting used to my new augmetic legs, to settling into spaceflight and managing myself in zero-G. From there it was a days-long spaceflight to the palace of House Harmonia. My home, so I was told.

When the palace came into view, I wasn’t sure what it was I had been expecting, but its mass exceeded it. It was a decently sized space station, ornate as far as the pressures of a planetary orbital system dependent on heavy industry allowed. But approaching the spinning concentric rings of the palace revealed that the exterior was bristling with battery upon battery of advanced weaponry. Even with my memories near to total eradication, I could sense the lethality in each autogauss cannon.

Approaching the palace was smooth, and we docked within the outer spokes of the palace without incident. But as I moved to rise from my chair, I noticed that somehow it was a lot harder to stand than it was when we were on the other station.
Deianira assisted, lifting my elbow to gently adjust my balance as I tried to brace myself against the strain.

I grunted with effort, ‘Am I about to collapse again?’

‘If Mistress were to collapse, I would catch you,’ Deianira assured, ‘The reason for Mistress’ discomfort may be owing to the preferred gravitational range of House Harmonia.’

‘This isn’t normal?’

Deianira shook her head, ‘No, Mistress. House Harmonia prides itself on strength, and this is a more literal manifestation of that philosophy. The artificial gravity generated by the palace’s rotation is intended to be higher than that of Terran gravity, as you experienced on the previous station. The outermost rings experience almost three times Terrra’s gravitational forces.’

I blinked in disbelief, ‘Is that healthy?’

Deianira could only offer a hesitant shrug.

Gritting my teeth and setting myself to movement, I started to walk as well as I could manage towards the ship’s exterior door.
I was a Daughter of Mars, Scion of House Harmonia. This would be nothing to me.

As Deianira – who seemed less bothered by the increased gravity than I was – led me further through the palace, I was able to take in its intimidating grandeur. Some dim recognition of opulence sparked in my mind, the rubber clogs the doctors gave me to wear sinking into the lush red carpet and squeaking against the polished wooden floors.

Eventually Deianira led me into a room, furnished with an enormous bed canvassed with silks and covered in luxurious blankets and doonas. By the wall was a rack filled with many sorts of weapons, mostly swords, in styles from pre-stellar Terran history.
I felt drawn to the weapons, picking one off the wall.

‘What’s this one called?’

‘A reproduction of a katzbalger, Mistress. Created in the same style with the same forging processes which were used in the time period it originates from. It was popular during the sixteenth to seventeenth-century in the territories of the Holy Roman Empire, wielded primarily by Landsknecht mercenaries,’ Deianira answered, shifting uncomfortably for a moment, ‘It … was Mistress’ favourite of the collection.’

I took a moment to hold the blade in my hand, letting the weight shift back and forth as I gave it one or two experimental swings.
‘I can see why.’
I put it back on the rack, turning back to Deianira, ‘So what now?’

‘It may be for the best if Mistress would bathe and dress. Master Neidr will be arriving from overseeing operations within the Plutonian frontier within a few days, so Mistress should have time to adjust to your situation.’

I nodded, giving myself an experimental sniff and wrinkling my nose in regret. Laying in a hospital bed for so long clearly hadn’t done wonders for my hygiene.
As Deianira went to draw a bath in an adjacent room, I wandered around my personal quarters more to examine it. I started when I thought I saw someone else looking at me through a window, but then I remembered what it was I was looking at; a mirror.

I approached the full-length mirror, an excessively large slate of silver and glass bound by an intricately carved stand of ancient polished wood. Within it, the entity I assumed to be myself stood, staring at me with dull green eyes. For some reason the image was so foreign to me, as I could barely recognise the image as myself until I was certain that the movements in the mirror matched my own.
Long copper hair fell around my shoulders in waves, likely artificially grown via genetic therapy, as the blunt force trauma which had annihilated so much my brain had most assuredly also taken out a good chunk of my skull.
My face appeared stern, with a resting expression somewhere between contempt and irritation. My nose was pointed, almost triangular, flanked by high cheekbones and decorated with a smattering of freckles, and my eyebrows were thick and bushy. I wasn’t sure if I was attractive or not. At least, not to Her liking.

Wait … Whose?

As my expression grew confused at the intrusive thought, I noticed something else about my face. My mouth, lips slightly thicker than the pressed lines of Mother’s countenance, parted to reveal teeth of reddish gold.
I staggered steps backwards and fell from the heavy gravity, startled at the garish display. Hesitantly I stood again and pulled my gums back to inspect them closer in the mirror. The revulsion I felt was enthralling. I hated what I saw and yet I couldn’t stop staring. The way the gums were pressed so organically against hideous metal teeth, clearly artificial but engineered so precisely to resemble the shape of natural human teeth. I could even feel the metallic nature of them in the way they scraped together when I closed my jaw. It almost felt as if they could make sparks if I gnashed them together.

Deianira entered the room carrying a gown and towel, both of some incredibly fluffy looking material. I stopped, somewhat embarrassed, and turned to her.

‘You bath is ready, Mistress. If I may, could I help you undress?’

I looked down at the thin plastic hospital gown I was provided when I left the other station, ‘That would be best. Mother would have a fit if she saw me wearing this in the palace.’

Deianira nodded and carefully placed the gown and towel on the bed before assisting me out of the hospital gown.
The feeling of the fake clothing sliding off me was something I couldn’t have anticipated. My skin crackled with sensation as Deianira’s hands carefully removed the gown, so much so that an involuntary shudder escaped. A hand quickly covered my mouth as Deianira looked at me in confusion.

‘Are you alright, Mistress?’

‘Yes,’ I answered, lying, ‘It just feels so … much.’

Deianira nodded, ‘The specialist had mentioned that with the new connections made by regrowing Mistress’ nervous system, you may be far more sensitive in many areas than otherwise might be the case. However the symptom is only temporary.’

‘Thank goddess,’ I breathed.

‘In any case, I have kept this in mind for the temperature of Mistress’ bath, but if you would prefer it to be colder please let me know.’

‘Of course. Thank you, Deianira.’

I turned to look at her. Now that I was getting more used to her appearance I was able to take more notice of her. She looked about the same height as me, now that we were standing together. Perhaps just a bit taller? Somehow that bothered me on some strange level. The joints in Deianira’s arms weren’t merely cosmetic as I had thought they might be, they truly felt like articulated ball joints. Extremely finely crafted, borne from honed and focused intention.

During the journey over, Deianira had answered some of my incessant questions about what she was, and what she wasn’t. Apparently androids were robots created to look human, though Deianira seemed to be a human transformed to be more like a robot; or rather a Doll.
She was made a Doll to serve, her obedience now beyond merely an exchange of service and purpose for survival but an inherent aspect to her, woven into her very being as a Maid.
It was not just her mind which was altered, but her entire body. Skin and nearly everything beneath transformed into the strange high-tech material that was suffused with nanites and biomechanical tech. I wondered how much of her exactly had been altered. How much of her was still human? Could she even be called a human?
More importantly, who could even have the ability – or had the capital – to do such a thing to another person?

Deianira spoke again, disrupting me from my thoughts, ‘Mistress?’

‘Oh, sorry,’ I mumbled, ‘So where’s this bath?’

Deianira led me to a bathroom that looked like it was crafted for … well, a princess. Solid pink marble floors were cool under my bare feet as Deianira laid an excessively plush bathmat before the low wall of a bath that looked more like a small spa.

Scented floral candles burned petals melted into the wax, perfuming the air delicate rose and lavender scents.

I looked behind me and saw another mirror running the entire width of the room to the floor, seeing that my body appeared quite well developed. I couldn’t help but take a moment to admire the curvature of myself, but my attention soon turned back to the inviting warmth of the bathwater.
Carefully I dipped a hand inside, darting it back as the heat of it was close to burning, but not quite.
Seeing this, Deianira immediately bowed her head in apology.

‘I apologise Mistress, my calculations were incorrect.’

‘No, that’s alright,’ I said, trying to alleviate her concern, ‘It just surprised me.’

Besides, I couldn’t let something like this defeat me.
I was of House Harmonia.

I stepped into the water, the hot water just barely within a comfortable temperature. But as I sank into the bath, and allowed the scents of the candles to wash over me, I allowed myself a chance to relax.
As the prickling of the hot water gave way to totally encompassing warmth, I felt the heat sink all the way through into my bones. Even my augmetic arm, which Deianira had explained the functions of, felt just as an organic arm might.
The warmth and the humidity and the misty pink of the bathroom and the quiet was enough that for a moment, it was as if I had forgotten I had a body at all. I could just float in this warmth and safety for however long I needed to.

‘Mistress, if I may wash your hair?’ Deianira suggested, proffering a bar of some luxuriant ivory-coloured soap.

I nodded my approval and Deianira worked at my wet hair with the soap, a new delicate scent sweeping through the intoxicating bouquet of the perfumed bath and candles. The feeling of Deianira’s fingers working through my hair and massaging my scalp sent prickles of pleasure down my spine and at the back of my eyes – so much so that I had to suppress another moan of pleasure.
Deianira paused only momentarily at this. I was glad to be facing away from her, otherwise she might see me blushing.

I indulged myself more in the feeling of Deianira’s fingers. Soft and dainty, with almond-shaped nails firm but not sharp, massaging and gently working in the lather. The sensation of her gentle fingers intertwined with my hair was so reassuring, in some strange way. Was it like this before I had lost my memories?

As I closed my eyes and began to drift, Deianira noticed me sinking further and deeper into the bathwater. She delicately cleared her throat.
‘It would be dangerous for you to fall asleep in the bath, Mistress.’

Dimly I realised the wisdom in what she said, ‘Oh, of course. I should prepare for bed then.’

‘I will prepare your robe and sleepwear,’ Deianira nodded, ‘When Mistress is ready I shall dry you.’

Reluctantly, I rinsed off the last of the soap and rose from the bath, the intense gravity returning as soon as I had stood from the water. Not a moment passed from when I stepped out from the bath that Deianira had wrapped me in a towel so plush and fluffy I could become lost to it.
The feeling was so unexpected, the arc of pleasure that flashed from my mind to my core knocked one of my knees from under me, and I staggered. Deianira acted quickly to brace me as her arms were already around my body.
My reflection stared back at me, forcing me to witness myself. I was near nude, leaning into the arms of my Maid, flushed red and shivering; though not so much from any chill.
I cleared my throat and stood back up against the oppressive gravity of the palace. I couldn’t let this pass without chiding Deianira.

‘Be more careful next time! You said you knew I was feeling sensitive.’

Deianira’s eyes dropped as her mouth turned downwards into a somehow-neutral frown, ‘My sincerest apologies, Mistress.’

A pang of some emotion cloyed at me through my throat and into my heart. Somehow that slightest look of disappointment on her face raked at my skin and I had to look away, trying to mask my discomfort with a haughty scoff.

‘Forget it. Forget I said anything. I’m going to bed. Get me my robe.’

‘Yes Mistress.’

As Deianira left to retrieve my nightclothes I gently set to drying myself off. Even so, the physical sensation left my skin feeling electric, but there was something else I could sense rising within me. A desire. To touch, to explore, to make this somehow familiar yet unfamiliar body feel like mine again. To find … release.
Deianira returned with my clothes and assisted me into them. The pyjamas were light and comfortable silk, but the plush bathrobe was so heavy with comfort it was as if another layer of gravity was pressing upon me.
Even though the walk from the bathroom back to my bed was nothing long, it felt so difficult to walk under the gravity of this bizarre palace. I removed the gown and slid beneath the covers of the enormous bed I found myself in, the cushiony blankets warmed by their own internal heating system.
Deianira helped cover me and ensure that I was warm and secure.

‘If you should need me at any point during the night Mistress, you need only speak my name aloud and I will be alerted that my presence is requested,’ Deianira explained.

‘Oh, you’re going? Okay,’ I said. However, I felt an inexplicable awkwardness and I turned my head back to Deianira, ‘I feel as if I should be saying something else?’

Deianira hesitated for a moment before a disarmingly genuine smile curved across her lips, ‘For most, it is customary to say “goodnight” when one is taking their leave for bed, Mistress.’

I nodded, only barely suppressing a yawn, ‘Goodnight, Deianira.’

‘Goodnight, Mistress.’

Deianira began to leave the room, the lights dimming with each step she took away from me until at last she left the room and closed the door behind her. The canopy of my bed automatically drew around me, securing me with the hazy glow of replicated starlight across one of the walls.
I parted the curtain and marvelled at the sight. The rusted red haze of Mars eclipsed the faraway sun, the corona of reddish light a warm glow against the total emptiness of space, the numberless stars beyond mere pinpricks of light. The backdrop was breathtaking.
How was it that I was able to see this sight? Could I really even say that I was meant to?

I felt my body tingle, more than mere excitement running through me. Intensity of emotion, of sensation, of experiences lost and found again.
Even just brushing the skin of my breasts with my fingertips was enough to send a shudder through my body. An experimental touch of my nipple wracked me with uncontrollable shakes. I bit my lip with delicious electric tension as I wondered what other sensitive parts of this body would feel like to touch.

Time slipped through my bed like sweet-scented mist as I pushed my body’s sensations as far as I dared, until sleep finally took me.