Kantola took from a package that she had brought a small box. She carefully took it to the fountain in the middle of the room and on a section that had slightly reminded me of an alter she set it down and opened it. From it she carefully removed a beautiful faceted crystal that was almost as large as a softball.

Bekala gasped, “I have never seen on so large!”

Kantola sat the crystal in a depression on the “alter” and a small panel slid open. Another crystal rose until it was flush with the surface. This one was not much larger than a ping pong ball and Kantola carefully removed it and replaced it with the larger one. The new crystal sank into the stone and soon you couldn’t tell that it was ever there. The smaller crystal was placed in the empty box and it was put away.

“Charlie, Come here please.” Kantola asked.

I could tell that Charlie was a little nervous but she went anyway. “What do I need to do?” She asked softly.

“Put your hands here and slowly speak your name.”

Charlie placed her hands where Kantola had shown her and asked, “My entire name or just Charlie?”

“Charlie will do nicely if that is the name you prefer.” A soft voice said out of nowhere. “I assume that you are the Mashia of this house and will be my Mistress?”

“Yes, I guess so.” Charlie said. “Who are you?”

“I have no name yet because you have not given me one. I am your companion. I will help you and your family live and enjoy a long and pleasurable life. As to what I am, I am a fully self-aware crystalline entity. I am slightly more intelligent than the human norm but have total recall, never sleep and can access the city central core directly so have access to all the knowledge that is available. Would you introduce me to the rest of your family and tell me what position they occupy?”

Charlie nodded and then said, “Yes, Do you need them to come and touch this place?”

“No, that was just so that I could imprint on you. Now you may just tell me as you wish. I can see and hear everything that is within the confines of this domicile and also any public area of the city.”

Charlie came to me, “This is Noel, he is my husband and our male.” She then introduced Bekala and Haley as her Matirias.

“Will each of you, starting with Charlie come and sit naked on this place where you placed your hands for me please. This will allow me to make the physical connection with each of you that will bond us and join us as one.”

Charlie stripped and sat. The fountain seemed to turn to mist and Charlie was momentarily encased in the mist. She giggled and then laughed. When she got up she motioned me to strip and sit. The mist seemed to tickle me and the voice seemed to be whispering in my ear now. “You are a very beautiful male. You and I will have a lot of fun getting to know each other big boy!” There was a sound and feeling like a kiss on my cheek and the voice said, “We are joined, let Haley come to me next.”

“Haley, I think she wants you next.” I told her as I got up.

Haley and then Bekala were seated and joined. Kantola kissed each of us and told us that we needed to be alone now to meet and become friends with our companion. She asked and received permission to visit me again at her most fertile point later in the month. Her kiss for me was warm and filled with promise. Once she was gone the four of us crawled in the nest and Charlie asked, “Ok, Companion. Now that we are joined can you explain what that means and what we need to do next?”

The voice said, “First if you will we need to set my personal parameters. Would you give me a name please? I don’t think that I wish to be just called Companion.”

Charlie thought for a moment and then offered, “How about Minerva? She was a Roman Goddess of wisdom and also the name of a very wise and also self-aware computer in one of my favorite books. I believe she was also called Little Nag sometimes because it was her job to remind her boss of his obligations. That sounds a little like what you will need to do for us.”

She looked at the rest of us and Haley and I both nodded knowing where the name was from. Bekala also liked it because according to her the Romans got the name from an earlier people that were allies of her people and even among the Atlantians Minerva was a name of power and wisdom.

“Does Minerva suit you my friend?”

“I think that I like it a lot! Thank you Charlie; I am henceforth Minerva, your Little Nag. Now as to my next setting, how would you like my voice? Is this one acceptable or would you prefer this one?” In mid sentence it went from soft and lilting to almost shrill and harsh.

“No, your voice is fine I even would say perfect just as it is.” Charlie said quickly. “Now, what all can you do and by self-aware, do you mean that you are alive or what?”

Minerva explained, “I am alive in every possible sense of the word except that I have no organic body. I have been made not just aware but as near to human as possible. I have feelings and ambitions and most other of the things that you think make you alive and human. The biggest differences are that I am more emotionally stable than any human and am utterly and forever loyal to you my family. Now that we are joined I can never fail to act in your best interests and if you give me a direct order I have to follow it whether I like of agree with it or not. My crystalline brain has approximately a thousand times as many connections as a human brain. This only means that my speed of thought and multitasking abilities are better than yours but the QUALITY of me thoughts are little different from yours.”

She paused to let this sink in for a bit before continuing. “As to what I can do for you, Well anything. Ask me a question and I will have an answer, make an appointment and I will handle the scheduling and nag you to be there on time. I will cook, keep house, drive your discs and be your constant companion from now until you die. You will hear my voice if you wish when we are home as you are now via speakers. When you wish it you can talk to me as thoughts and hear me in your mind as one or all at the same time. I can also join you in mind as an intermediary if you need to communicate with one another when you are not together or if you wish to do so privately in the presence of others. Anything you wish, you need only tell me and I will arrange for it.”

We all looked at each other and I think that we were all doing the same thing. In my mind I softly said, “”Minerva? Are you there?””

“”Always my wonderfully attractive male partner”” She whispered in my mind.

“”Can you read my thoughts?””

“”Only the ones that you direct at me. The rest remain private and beyond my reach.””

“”Can you hook me to Charlie?””

“”Certainly! She can hear you now.””

“”Charlie? Can you hear me?””

“”Just as if you were speaking out loud Noel.””

“”This is just tooooo wild!!””

“”Agreed but lets talk out loud. This is giving me a head ache.””

Minerva said, “Until you get used to it, mindspeak is tiring and does cause many to have headaches. At home it is recommended that we speak aurally.

Charlie asked, “Bekala is this what you meant when you were talking about joining us to the house?”

“Not even close. This is unlike anything that I have ever experienced. You must realize, this level of companion is only available to the few… the VERY few.”

Minerva offered, “Actually this level has never been offered to anyone before. I am a new level of Companion altogether and am probably at least 25% more advanced than any other companion.”

I blurted, “Then how did you end up with us? We are not exactly the highest of the high.”

“This family will be in the top 5% within five years Noel.” Minerva told me. “I am here because they don’t know that I am different. I suspect that there is a flaw in my crystal matrix. Instead of it hindering my abilities this flaw has somehow created cross connections in places that there were none programmed for. By luck I am better than the programmed target. We will keep this in the family if you don’t mind. I am bonded now and the only way to remove me would basically make me as if dead. You keep my secrets as I will most carefully keep yours. My special abilities are one of the reasons for my projected rapid rise of this family. Noel my beautiful man, you are a resource of unimaginable breadth.”

“Why do you keep saying things like that? Do you actually see me as beautiful and if so why?” I asked.

“Noel, you are indeed very attractive to me. I’m afraid that I am rather smitten with you and will enjoy greatly our getting to know each other. I told you that I have ALL of the emotions and feelings of a human. Well amend that to mean FEMALE human.”

Haley giggled and asked, “Isn’t that sort of thing going to be frustrating to you Minerva? You have no body so how…”

“How could I lust over him and how could I gain any pleasure from these feelings.” She chuckled, “I am a voyeur and will be there for every enema and every sex act. I can even have orgasms if he will help me out a little bit.”

“Noel, I believe that you have another wife now!” Haley told me grinning.

Minerva asked softly, “Charlie, would you permit that.”

“Minerva you are like a part of us now. You are part of our family and of course you will be his wife too just as the rest of us are.”

“I will order certain modifications made in the house and bathrooms today and he will be amazed at how actively I will be his wife.” Minerva sounded excited.

I wondered what in the world kind of modifications she had in mind and exactly HOW do you help a computer have an orgasm???? “I’m getting hungry” I threw out. “How is your cooking?”

“That is one area that you will love Noel. What would you like to eat. Visualize it clearly I want to know what it smells like and tastes like. Make the picture in your mind as real as possible.” There was a soft ding. “I believe that it is ready.” Minerva told me.

I was skeptical. I had visualized a stack of pancakes dripping with butter and maple syrup with two fried eggs and four strips of maple smoked bacon on the side. I went and everyone followed me to the kitchen as soon as I opened the dispenser I knew the smell was right! They looked right and as soon as I managed a taste my eyes rolled up in pure gastronomic ecstasy! Buckwheat pancakes just like my Mom used to make on Saturday mornings!! The eggs and bacon were also perfect even to the point of having been cooked just right and how I liked them.

“Minerva if you weren’t already my wife I would ask you to marry me!!!” This is wonderful!!!

Soon we were all eating and everything was as good as the pancakes!