FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Digital Life

"Begin recording. Pilot E77204-73B reporting in on survey 26 of Luyten 726-8. This is report number 3 of my journey through the Luyten system, I will be departing for home base shortly."

The pilot paused speaking to tap at a few controls located around the flight console, before once more relaxing against the well padded seat, helmet thumping gently into the head rest.

"Conditions continue to be much the same since my previous reports, namely bleak. The binary system is mostly empty, save an asteroid belt of sorts that orbits well outside the wobbling orbits of the two stars. There may have been smaller rocky planets here at one point, but judging by the size of the asteroid field, we can infer what happened to them. There are no gas giants, no moons, and nothing else immediately detected within range of my sensors. My final recommendation is that this system be marked for mining, and nothing else. We may get lucky and find a small planet further out, but it would not be habitable. End report, transmit."

The computer system chirped a reply and displayed a small progress bar just off to one side of the canopy, one of many little bits of information floating around on the HUD. The message was off in seconds, transmitted at light speed to a small relay beacon that had been dropped off many years earlier. The beacon would then open communications to other beacons at faster than light speeds, zipping along the network until it got all the way back to Earth.

While plotting a route out of the system and back to the home station, the general alarm sounded and an image of the two variable stars popped up larger on the HUD. The helmet clad pilot could only shout out verbal commands and try to figure out what the problem was.

"System, report!"

The on-board computer replied back with a flat synthesized voice, while also throwing pictographic answers up on the HUD.

"STAR LUMINOCITY INCREASE DETECTED. STAR FLARE IN PROGRESS."

"Shit."

Everyone of course knew that the binary stars within the system were also variable stars, and had a tenancy to flare up from time to time. This wasn't just an increase in brightness, but was also a massive outburst in radiation all across the spectrum. And as luck would have it, there was a manned ship within the inner system at that time. And spooling up the jump drives took time...

"Can we jump out in time?"

"NEGATIVE. RADIATION LEVELS INCREASING. ENERGY SHIELDING INSUFFICIENT. DIVERTING ALL RESOURCES TO PILOT SURVIVAL."

That wasn't a good sign. There wasn't even time to protest, before things started to get fuzzy and cold. The computer had begun an emergency progress that would hopefully preserve life, and allow rescue. The pilot was put to sleep through injections from within the flight suit system, and the ship turned itself to face away from the stars, trying to get as far away as possible on conventional engines, while putting more mass between pilot and radiation storm.

All power was soon diverted to emergency life support, shields, and engines. Modern life support was a wonder of science, and contained the same kinds of systems used by deep-space explorers out to build new colonies.

It was all designed to keep the mind functional through difficult periods, because the body could always be rebuilt, or even replaced. The pilot, or Kris as he was known aboard home base, knew all about the life support system. Even as his body went to sleep, his mind stayed wide awake, interfaced as it was with the support system. He knew that the mental support system aboard his tiny V-shaped deep space exploration vessel was hardly the most powerful system around, but there were space limitations. The ship was basically a series of engines and fuel tanks with a cockpit attached, and of course the life support system.

From his new perspective, all was white. It was a minimum starting environment, to allow people time to be briefed if need be as to where they were, or why they were there. He knew he'd wind up here, so the system skipped that step. Instead windows blinked into existence nearby, letting him look out into the real world, as it were. He could see outside the ship, and into the cockpit, noting his comatose body laying there inside a flight suit.

Radiation monitors were in the red zones, and as he watched, they spiked over into lethal territory. He'd had all the training for this kind of situation, and knew that he was quite screwed. Fortunately however, the computer thought faster than he possibly could.

"PILOT, YOUR BODY HAS ABSORBED A LETHAL DOSE OF RADIATION. PREPARE FOR DIGITAL UPLOAD AND STORAGE."

Kris felt himself try to raise up his arm as if to slow things down or protest, but in this environment he was nothing more than a mote of light. Everything seemed to flash brighter for an instant, and then it was all over. This was something you could be given some instruction upon, but one couldn't exactly train for it on a regular basis. Augmentations within his body connected his mind directly with the computer, and in a flash his consciousness had been moved out of the flesh and into the world of optical connections and solid state storage.

It was a good thing the computer knew what to do, as hesitation could have meant brain damage or even death, before there would have been a chance to preserve anything. Now he existed in the most shielded part of the ship, as a blip of information. From his perspective, nothing had really changed, and that was the idea. However, the white room appeared to be getting darker by the moment...

"Computer? What is happening?"

"YOU ARE BEING PUT INTO STORAGE PENDING TRANSMISSION. PLEASE RELAX, YOUR MENTAL FUNCTIONS WILL NOT BE LOST OR DEGRADED. STORAGE IN SIX, FIVE, FOUR..."

He was unable to panic, or do much of anything. Everything was slowing, and before he registered the final countdown, everything was silent and black. Kris entered a form of deep sleep, there to stay until the ship carried out its final mission for its pilot. All that mattered now was data retrieval, both for the mission and Kris himself. There was no point recovering the body, it was cooked. The ship was too hot to salvage, it would take care of itself in short order.

With a few high speed data bursts, all was eventually taken care of. Running off minimal systems and autopilot, the ruined vessel spun around and activated engines once more, setting course to burn itself up in the nearest of the two stars. There was of course no sense leaving anything behind to bump into later on down the road. A few hours later, the ship was incinerated instantly, leaving nothing more than a puff of ash and smoke.

* * * * *

Touch was the first thing to come back. Wind was rushing by, brushing sensitive nerve endings and an impressive coat of scales. Blinking eyes open, Kris saw a long snout emitting wispy curls of smoke that were quickly caught up in the passing wind. He was soaring along, wings outstretched as far as they could go, swooping along a thermal up-draft on some bright and sunny world. The sensation was magnificent.

No thought was given to his curious new form, or what he was doing flapping so high in the air. Only the sky and the ground below was of any importance. Shame that the ground seemed to be getting closer, and he seemed to be going faster and faster... His field of view seemed to compress until motes of light were streaming by instead of clouds and distant mountains, blinking as he apparently woke up from a dream.

Somewhat startled by it all, Kris found himself still flying along, but this time it was if he was back in his ship, flying through space. But there was no ship around him, and that was quite alarming. Sensors detected his mental patterns and registered them as a state of shock and alarm, and changed the scene to better accommodate him. Suddenly he was sitting in a chair instead, and had a somewhat shapeless but glowing body to look down at. Definitely an improvement.

Looking up, there were now windows, and he seemed to be a passenger on a transport ship running between one system or another. Other seats were occupied, either by strange creatures, or various objects. A bipedal lizard was chatting with an elephant, a cook-book was sitting beside a wooden shipping crate, and a somewhat large parrot was drinking tea with headphones on.

A light chime rung just to the right, or it could have been inside his head for all he knew. The tone had its intended effect however, as he turned his attention forward, and ultimately noticed a monitor that had lit up in-front of his chair. A simple smiley-face popped into view and winked at him, then simple text began scrolling along, with a few helpful buttons.

"Greetings Citizen! Welcome to the Network. You are waiting in queue at a relay beacon with other digital travellers, data packets, programs, and all matter of information. In moments, you'll be passed along the beacon to another relay station, then several others, before ultimately reaching a safe port. Please click the button below if you'd like to switch to audio instead of text."

Kris found that it would be nice to listen instead of read, so he reached out to tap the monitor. He was pleased to see that he still had fingers, even if they were slightly amorphous. The text stopped, and instead the display expanded to show graphics along with an audio program.

"Good! Everything seems to be meshing well for you. We understand that this is a traumatic time, as you did not willingly shed your mortal form to enter digital space. Your records indicate you underwent the usual mandatory training for deep-space employment, plus have spent some time in recreational simulations. You'll do fine. Just sit back, and enjoy the ride. You'll be in a safe port before you know it, and will be taken care of. Do you have any questions?"

Kris nodded what passed for his head, and began to speak. He sounded a little different, but only just. The thought passed from his mind within moments of having it.

"Yes, I do have questions. Where am I going? I wasn't told anything before I was uploaded... there wasn't much time. Did my mission data get picked up? Has my ship been notified of... events?"

It was odd to think of yourself as dead, when you were very much alive, though somewhat glowy.

"You may have noticed a crate on one of the other seats. That is your mission data, flight logs, and accident report going back to your ship. The craft doesn't have the facilities for uploaded consciousnesses to be completely viable, so you're being moved to the nearest colony that is equipped to provide succour. The data will be passed on shortly. If you look, you'll likely see it go on its way, if you're interested."

Sure enough, a plain looking individual wearing a business suit came in through one door, picked up the crate, and went through the other door. And that was that, data routed, apparently.

"All messages for you will be waiting after you've had a chance to rest up. Relax for now, it will be a few more minutes before you're sent along to your destination. A representative will be waiting to collect you at your stop. Enjoy your trip!"

The monitor returned to its normal shape and size, and Kris was left to lean back and try to relax. The system, or whatever it was, was indeed quite correct. He'd had training, he at least had an idea of what this was supposed to be like. Plus he'd had some good times in VR before, so this wasn't the strangest of situations. If he'd been more together and been expecting the situation, he'd likely be lounging back having a drink, perhaps chatting with the other passengers, and enjoying himself. Instead he simply laid back, and looked out the window.

Other passengers or bits of information popped on and off the craft, some even sat near him. There were people of all shapes and sizes, and most seemed to be at least mostly human. You didn't meet many humans with stripes and fur, unless they were avid body modification enthusiasts. The many settled worlds are interesting places, that much is clear.

Eventually the craft appeared to come to a stop in a space port of sorts, and various people started to file off. His monitor lit up again, and indicated that he should follow along, going so far as to even light up arrows along the ground. It was as clear a direction as any, so Kris got up and walked out with everyone else.

They exited the ship and were suddenly walking down an open air platform, where a very large high speed train was busy disgorging passengers, freight, and motes of light. It was high noon and there were clouds in the sky, and birds were chirping in nearby trees. Quite the transition from space to planet, but apparently this world ran its own simulation. What appeared to be a human was waiting for him, holding up a sign with his name on it. Whomever it was also had the tail of a cat, and long feline ears. Sitting between those ears was a small black hat, which accompanied a crisp and well tailored uniform.

Kris shrugged and walked up to the individual, and stuck out a hand in greeting.

"Hello, I'm Kris. You must be who was going to meet me here. Wherever this is."

The uniformed individual grasped and shook his hand firmly, and smiled, exposing slightly elongated eye teeth.

"Hi there, Kris. I'm Robin, and I was indeed sent to meet you. I'll be escorting you to your temporary living quarters, and doing my best to help get you acclimatized to digital life. We know it can be quite a change, especially when you're brought here through unsavoury means. But we're sure you'll grow to enjoy it, everyone does. Come along then, you could probably use something to eat, and a good nap."

Kris felt himself trying to raise both his eyebrows, which at least for the moment were not there.

"Eat? Drink? Why would I need to do that?"

His escort scoffed somewhat, and walked up to a small wheeled vehicle with wide seats.

"Well, you aren't dead, for one. You still need energy, and rest, and your mind expects this to come from familiar sources. As you get used to things these sources can change, but to be truly healthy, you'll still need some form of rest and recharging. For now, best go with what comes naturally. Hop in, and I'll answer your questions as we go."

Kris did as he was asked, and settled down on a well padded bench. As they made their way along a wide yet relatively quiet street, he gazed around at fairly normal looking buildings, some with more interesting adornments than others, and did his best to learn about his new if temporary home. He was located inside a massive computer network built into a colony, which just so happened to be located on a small planet in the Epsilon Eridani system. In fact, most of the colony was computing space, industry, power generation, then all the other things those of the flesh needed to survive. A few thousand lived outside the digital world, and millions lived within.

As the little wheeled vehicle continued along, they passed an open air cafe that was moderately busy, and the smells made Kris' stomach growl. A sensation he was surprised to experience, but one that he welcomed. Perhaps things would work out after all. Smiling, his host pulled the vehicle over, and led him over to the cafe. Words were exchanged with another well dressed and fairly normal looking human apparently living in the Net, and soon Kris and Robin both were sitting down to be served. Coffee was placed before them with little sandwiches, various baked goods, and even fruit slices.

All he could focus on for a few minutes was the business of transferring food to face, and washing it all down with cup after cup of smooth coffee. He couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten this well, and was soon feeling like curling up in a sun beam for a well deserved nap. A heavy thump broke his revery however, and his eyes popped open to see a wall of purple standing nearby. Looking up, and up some more, Kris soon found himself starting at a very tall and rather well rounded purple dragon, with stubby little wings and what appeared to be plastic nozzles sticking out of various places.

It was not commonly something a deep-space survey pilot saw on a regular basis, but it was interesting.

Whomever it was had his snout leaning into the window of another shop, chatting with other people while being handed large bags full of who knows what. Eventually the large creature gathered his bags and waved goodbye to the store workers, before trundling off down the street to look in other shops, and ultimately vanish around a corner.

"Well. Who or what the hell was that?"

Robin could only snicker around a cup of coffee, and a half eaten bagel.

"That would be one of the many residents around these parts. An unusual one perhaps, but not that unusual. The Net can be a liberating place when you want to experience a different flavour of reality, that much is certain. I'm sure you'll meet many like him the longer you stay. Have you eaten well? Your rooms are nearby, and we can head on over whenever you're ready to go."

Kris was full, and still somewhat fatigued, so now as as good a time as any. The duo left the cafe and took a short walk down the block, leaving the wheeled vehicle for whomever else might want to use it next. A long stretch of row-housing faced the street, and connected with several other shops and businesses of various sorts. Kris was directed to a fairly normal looking red door, which slid out of the way at the touch of a button. Large street-facing windows framed an ample room, high ceilings, and what appeared to be a lofted sleeping area towards the back.

It was a simple enough structure to find yourself in, be it simulation or reality. It was also quite opulent in its own way, with advanced features of all sorts. He was given a quick tour around the place, shown the lofted bedroom, the huge washroom, the personal kitchen and delivery area, communications node, and finally the front lounge / seating area that faced the street. Simple and effective living arrangements for the digital bachelor.

Robin was sure he'd be alright on his own, but offered to stay the night all the same as he was not yet fully adjusted to this new form of existence. Kris found himself nodding his ghostly glowing head.

"Yes, I'm not entirely sure what I'd do with myself if I woke up alone tomorrow. Is there a guest bed, or something of that nature?"

Robin chuckled, and fiddled around with a well stuffed sofa in the main room. It unfolded into a queen sized bed all on its own, with no visible mechanics or technology at work. Then again, digital creations didn't always have to follow the rules of conventional reality.

"Don't worry about it, Kris. I'll be just fine down here. You head up to the loft, and get some sleep. You're going to have a busy day tomorrow, hopefully getting settled in. Sleep well, and I'll see you in the morning."

Kris didn't need to be told twice. He climbed up the stairs, feeling quite drained, and flopped into a very comfortable bed indeed. It didn't take long for him to be fast asleep, snoring softly as his digital persona broadcast old physical habits into this fancy digital reality he was now calling home, at least for the time being.

Robin meanwhile relaxed on the sofa-bed, fiddling with a floating user interface display just at arms length. Things were on track with Kris, and the current prediction was that integration would only take another day at most. Then all would be well. Notes finished for the evening, Robin stretched out, and was soon sleeping softly as well.

* * * * *

Wind and cloud were rushing by again. Muscle and hide was creaking with each fantastic beat of giant wings. Trees far below were rustling in the down-draft, branches clattering together. A large shadow passed over hills and buildings alike, making various creatures below look up with wonder. Kris turned his giant head to one side, and saw a familiar sight.

A medium range scout craft was at his side, keeping pace with the powerful thrust from large engines. The canopy of the craft was clean and clear, and there was somebody at the controls. The pilot reached up and flipped up his visor, and Kris saw himself looking back. Shocked, he barely had time to turn and try to look again before the craft rocketed upwards at an insane speed, all before exploding violently within the blinding disk of the sun.

A feral roar was all that escaped his throat as he tried to call out in denial and fear.

All at once he faltered in mid air, wings forgetting what to do. Downward he spiralled, coming up rapidly on a town below... which opened up into a great black hole, that pulled him ever downward. Down and down, picking up speed, until the light seemed to stream by in large lines. It was almost like travelling along through the communication Net again, and absolutely terrifying.

Kris woke up with a start, gasping and bolting upright. A quick pat down and visual inspection indicated that he was still a glowing ghostly projection in the loft, both physically dead, and yet very much alive. It was a mental hurdle to get over, that much was for sure. Sighing as he remembered the strange dream, he stood up and looked over the railing of the lofted bedroom. The sun was coming up outside the huge windows, and a giant tiger was doing one-armed push ups in the main room.

Blinking to himself, he felt there was only one correct way to respond to the situation.

"What the actual fuck is going on here?"

The oversized feline paused mid push-up, and craned an enormously thick neck upward to glance at Kris boggling downwards. The figure even had the decency to look sheepish. The following frenzy of activity was amusing to say the least, as the hulking figure ran around gathering up discarded clothes, apologizing rapidly, and ultimately thumping into the washroom.

Confused as ever, Kris decided to carefully explore the lower levels, which were starting to smell somewhat sweaty... like wet cat. Robin popped out of the washroom a few moments later, wearing nothing but a bath robe and a towel. The look of embarrassment was quite pronounced, as Kris went to sit down on a well stuffed chair. All Robin could do was press both index fingers together, and began to at least try and explain.

"Well you see, that was me back there, but a lot of us are kinda like that here... And you weren't supposed to see that yet, but I just needed to loosen up and relax somewhat while you slept... I had a whole routine to follow, as recommended by the local integration professionals... oh.... I've messed it all up, haven't I?"

Robin had been pacing back and forth the entire time, and Kris was trying not to laugh. He considered himself a man of good humour, and tried to be well adjusted to most situations. Being an intolerant ass in space got you killed. But then again, so did flying too close to variable stars. Raising a semi-formed hand, he did his best to cough once for attention, and attempted to compose himself.

"Relax, Robin. I've seen some interesting things in simulators before. And I've partaken in some of the more... adventurous relaxation programs. So if that other form of yours is your preferred avatar in this environment, by all means let your hair down. Or out, as the case may be."

The quip earned him a stifled snicker and a swat on the arm for his trouble. Exhaling, Robin decided to take him up on the offer, and began to expand. The short and nearly androgynous human-like form vanished in a rippling explosion of fur and muscle, as Robin enlarged back into the creature he'd seen before. It was much larger up close, with giant hands and feet, a huge thick tail, large feline head, and not a shred of clothing or modesty left in sight. One thing was very clear quite rapidly, namely that Robin was VERY female. Her chest appeared gravity defying, likely supported by hundreds of pounds of muscle, physics defying buoyancy, and possibly some lifting gasses. She caught his gaze, and leaned down to smile in his face.

"Now don't you worry, I don't bite. Much."

The deep rumble of her voice combined with a good 10 feet of height really made for an impressive figure, to say the least. Kris found himself somewhat intimidated, but it was undercut by a feeling that this huge cat was still very much here to take care of him. And now he had a monster on his side, in this odd digital city.

"So... This is the real you, then? Interesting."

The giant tiger that was Robin nodded, and flopped down on the sofa, nearly taking up the whole thing by herself, and visibly deforming it under her weight. Huge fluffy tail swishing around with nervous excitement, she crossed both paw-like hands on her waist, and tried to relax.

"Yep, this is me. I was going to show this off later tonight, maybe... After some orientation and stuff like that. We have a whole program here for those who show up after a traumatic event. It helps you re-connect with your sense of self, generate your own preferred form, things like that. Staying a ghostly blob forever isn't healthy for the mind... it makes one think they're not quite alive, when they're in fact more alive then they've ever been before. You seem to be handling me well enough, so how about we go for breakfast. I'll introduce you to some friends of mine."

Breakfast seemed like a great idea, so the two exited the building, and went back down the street to get on with their morning. Robin suggested stopping at the same cafe they'd eaten at the night before, and it was as good an idea as any. Other individuals, with anywhere from normal to incredibly unique personal forms came and went, and some stopped at their table to stay hello to Robin. Eventually they had a table of five, all trying to make Kris feel welcome.

A bipedal Triceratops was busy dunking a doughnut in a large mug of tea, before scarfing it down and making a lack-luster attempt at wiping one large hand clean before offering it to Kris for a shake. He was being scolded for his manners by Robin, and a matronly Raven in a scarf whom was trying to avoid getting crumbs on her plumage. Finally there was a completely normal human looking male, who was leaning in close and wanting to know more about being a pilot.

Kris felt a little self conscious, with his ghostly glowing form, but quickly relaxed and tried to engage in conversation.

"Oh, I've been a pilot for years. Relief crew for a passenger ship at first, then a co-pilot for a deep space scanning ship, and finally a solo pilot for medium range craft operating out of a long range explorer barge. That was my last assignment before... this happened."

Everyone was gentile enough with the situation, and Kris found himself warming to the group. They were friendly, open, honest, and not pushy at all. If he didn't want to talk about something, they didn't pry too hard. Everyone deserved their privacy, after all. Talk turned to personal activities and the like, and they all mentioned a past enjoyment of interactive virtual simulations before their various conversions to digital consciousness. Stephen, the large dinosaur, and Jackson, the normal looking human, were both in accidents that prompted their uploading as a life saving measure.

Robin and Viki the Raven, had been voluntary uploads. Viki because she'd been getting very old and opted to go digital before going senile, and Robin because she had very bad health problems.

"It was a case of spend years undergoing surgery, cybernetic augmentation, gene therapy, and all sorts of other unpleasant procedures... or upload and get a new body whenever I wanted one. I decided to stay here."

Kris had of course heard of the artificial and even cloned bodies that digital uploads could transfer into, but he wasn't sure if he'd ever encountered anyone using one. Nobody could really tell the difference anymore, unless it was an obviously mechanical model. There was even talk of really custom versions that could look like just about anything, given enough practice time learning to inhabit the new frame.

Most digital individuals preferred to stay in their respective simulations, and only came out for important stuff. These days they could even place full video calls to people in the physical world, and it would just look like any other person popping up on your video screen. Or perhaps it would look like a giant talking bird, as the case may be. As Kris looked around the cafe, and out onto the street, he saw even more non-human individuals walking around, or some that chose to be somewhere between. Much like Robin when she was in her other form.

Jackson explained that not everyone chose a really out of this world form in this particular realm of existence, and others went back and forth between multiple forms as fashion and even fads changed.

"Why, just last week I finished being a warthog for a full month. It was interesting, but I always wind up coming back to good old familiar me. Just how I looked when I was in the flesh."

Kris nodded and found himself yawning of all things, reaching for another cup of coffee like this was just another day in the canteen, before going off on a routine flight. The sensation was very comforting. Stephen smirked and leaned in close to elbow Kris with a surprisingly thick and heavy arm.

"Didn't get much sleep last night? Hopefully Robin didn't keep you awake all night, if you know what I mean."

The big fellow grinned all the wider as Robin flushed somewhat, and leaned up against her scaly companion.

"Don't make me bite you. Of course he's tired, this is his first day here. And it looked like you were having a bad dream, weren't you Kris?"

Still ghostly and glowing, Kris nodded his head and warmed both hands on his coffee mug.

"Not really bad, just confusing. I was dreaming of flying, and I saw my ship explode... But I wasn't in the ship, I was some hulking beast... Scaly, large, black hide I believe... I've seen it before, when I was dreaming as I travelled along the Net to get here the first time."

All were nodding, and some were exchanging knowing smiles. Robin was the first to speak up.

"That sounds healthy, minus some of the shocking images. We should take you over to orientation after you're done here, I think that will really help you relax."

Kris nodded, remembering other times he'd had dreams like that too. They were usually after various sessions in virtual reality simulations, where he could fly different craft, or even fly as a bird, bat, or various mythical creatures that came to mind. It wasn't the first time he'd gone zipping around as a big dragon of some sort, so it wasn't that surprising he'd taken on that form again while dreaming. At least, it wasn't surprising to him.

The group gradually wrapped things up, and everyone either shook his hand or gave him a big hug to send him on his way. They made him promise to stay in touch, and meet them again for breakfast, or even dinner that night if he was feeling up to it. There was no bill to settle up, so Robin and Kris picked themselves up, and boarded another wheeled vehicle to zip along to orientation. There was a lot to do that day, and no time like the present to get on with it all.

* * * * *

Kris wasn't exactly sure what he expected when he got to orientation, but it certainly wasn't sitting on a comfortable chair with a handful of random individuals, out in the middle of a grassy field. It was sunny and warm, complete with a gentile breeze coming off a nearby lake. Trees dotted the landscape, birds and wildlife were everywhere, and everyone present had a cup of coffee within reach. Certainly a relaxing environment, that much was certain.

They'd all walked through a fairly standard looking office when they arrived at the orientation centre, but had walked out into this huge wooded grassland simply by going through a side door. Such was the advantage of working in a digital space. Three normal looking individuals faced him from their own seats, sitting comfortably in street clothes. They were technicians and psychologists at the same time, tasked with helping people adjust to their new digital environment should help be needed.

One of them was asking Kris about his time as a pilot, and his dreams. Another wanted to know if Kris already had a preferred form in mind, or any long term plans. There were options for those who passed into a digital lifestyle, from other colonies to live in, or even being integrated into a cybernetic body back in the flesh and blood world.

The former pilot admitted he hadn't given much thought to things since arriving. He'd just been going along for the ride, waiting for any new messages from his home ship. There had been a brief message waiting for him when he'd checked in at the orientation office, which acknowledged delivery of his survey data, and marked him off as "retired" from the deep space organization. He'd even gotten an up-check for a job well done, despite the loss of a scout ship. As far as the organization was concerned, that was that. He was off their books, and free to do as he pleased.

The individual asking about his plans reminded him of the little message, and the note about retirement.

"Retirement doesn't mean you're done for good, Kris. You're still young, and can do a lot more with your life if you want. We'd be happy to have you here with us. Early reports indicate you're meshing well with the locals, and have a good head on your shoulders. No doubt you'd enrich the colony just by being here, let alone any further contributions as a citizen. Give it some thought, you're a welcome guest here for as long as you'd like."

Kris nodded, taking a swig of his coffee. It really was a fantastic brew, better than any he'd had before as far as he could recall. There was more talk about being a happy and healthy user of the colony, and they stressed that it was important to learn how to effectively use the system they were in, select a preferred form, or even multiple preferred forms. It was good for the mind, that much had been certain for years.

As if you further the point, the three technicians became large birds in a flash, then alternated between other forms as they saw fit, and returned to their human persona's. One very clearly still had the tail of a rattlesnake however, and stuck out a long forked tongue with a smile. If nothing else, they were a happy bunch.

Over the hours they spent talking, Kris learned how to mentally call up the user interface of the system, and have it display in various ways. For now he summoned it as a floating touch screen that appeared within his field of view. He could pull up maps of any given area, request various forms of transportation to get him from place to place, pull up civil services, place calls, and a ton of other functions.

He also learned that the colony had a kind of group economy, that most individuals rarely interacted with on a direct basis. The main governmental body of the colony oversaw trade of goods and services with the rest of colonized space, and everyone within the colony had equal access to the resources and wealth at their disposal. What this meant for most people was that they lived for free, ate for free, stayed alive in digital or physical space for free, and occasionally contributed to the colony in one way or another. Some new idea might be freely distributed within the colony, but sold to other systems, and so the whole colony benefited.

Physical resources were mined, grown, and processed with automated machines, so there was very little need for physical labour of any sort. Information was their capitol, and they had a lot of it. The colony was well known for having many creative works to enjoy, popular tourist destinations, and novel new technologies desired by many. It was similar to the living conditions Kris enjoyed as a pilot, but with more than a bunk and regular meals to his name. He felt he could enjoy life here, and investigate future opportunities as they appeared.

He agreed to stay around for the time being, as he was in no hurry to get anywhere else in particular. He also promised to give some thought to a personal avatar, and spend some time looking through some randomly generated options if nothing else. Nothing he'd seen so far seemed quite right, but his interest was getting piqued, that was for sure. No doubt he'd see something that clicked before long, and say goodbye to his glowing ghostly persona.

The meeting wrapped up before long, and the trio of technicians waved him out the front of the office with a smile. Kris noted with a smirk that there was now a large woodpecker, a snake, and a rhinoceros waving him off instead of three humans in cargo shorts and t-shirts. What a world. Standing out on the street, he was about to call up his UI and see if Robin was around, when he was hugged from behind by a giant rumbling cat.

"Hello Robin. Want to go for lunch?"

In between rumbling bumps on his head from the obviously happy kitty, Robin agreed that food was a good idea. She even put him back down so he could walk there himself. The colony was certainly full of friendly people! They found a lovely open air eatery near a fountain and a small park, and ordered coffee and sandwiches to get them started. Kris smiled as he told Robin he'd decided to stay for a while, and see where life took him. She'd already heard from the techs at orientation, but was happy to hear him say it all the same.

The duo was chatting about random things when a few large thumps got their attention, and they looked over to see a giant purple balloon dragon stepping over buildings ever so carefully, with several other large squeaky beasts apparently along for a walk. They captured the attention of Kris rather quickly, who found himself staring as they wandered by. Robin waved up at the group of balloon animals, who waved right back and called out their greetings.

"Hi Robin! We see you're with a new fellow, so we'll catch up later if you'd like. We're off for a night on the town, so to speak. Take care you two!"

Kris waved right back and smiled, humming to himself as all the sights and various thoughts from the past few days rattled around in his mind. It seemed like just about anything was possible on this colony world, and he wanted to experience more of it for himself. Feeling somewhat flushed, he looked on as the huge ballooned beasts bounced and wobbled their way down the street, eventually vanishing from view.

"Well now. There's something to consider..."

Robin was the first to note something changing, and glanced over the ghostly form of Kris to see it getting less transparent and wispy, taking on a more solid and shiny look.

"Oh dear, this should be fun."

Kris turned to see Robin resting there, head cradled in hands propped up by elbows, smiling wildly with her tail lashing around. His field of view went fuzzy for a moment, then he found himself looking at a rather large snout pushing out from his face, instead of nothing. From his vantage point, a wave of shiny black hide appeared out of nowhere and travelled down his arms, enveloping his hands and leaving him with large claw-tipped fingers. His neck stretched out longer, horns erupted from his head, and his ears stretched out into long head-fins.

A long tail burst out of his back, as did a very nice set of wings, as the black hide travelled downward to cover a new rump and lithe stomach. His legs got the treatment as well, and his feet soon became huge footpaws with three toes and thick rubbery looking claw-tips. As a final touch, one single oversized valve became the tip of his thick tail, and a wide stripe of shiny chrome sprang into being from the tip of his tail, up the length and across his back, and up onto the back of his head.

It was over in mere moments, and Kris was left shaking slightly, wings and tail twitching with some uncertainty as his mind sorted out these new appendages, and got a little help automatically from various databases on the subject. Feeling very strange, he suddenly felt even hungrier than he had been a moment ago, and wolfed down a few sandwiches and guzzled his coffee, belching thunderously and gasping for air.

Blinking blood red eyes with purple irises, Kris pointed one finger at the last untouched sandwich at their table, and looked at Robin.

"Are you going to eat that?"

The cat burst out laughing, practically falling out of her seat as she ordered seconds for the hungry dragon. She hadn't said no, so Kris was already busy licking his new shiny black fingers clean, stifling another belch with a free hand while chewing.

"So... Is it always like this for us first timers? What a rush. I just got an idea in mind, and poof, here I am..."

Robin shrugged and spent some time looking Kris over, tail lashing this way and that as she did. A fairly tall and somewhat musclebound rubbery dragon stared right back. He'd just be a well shined fellow with a metallic stripe if it wasn't for the very obvious nozzle capping off his tail. No doubt the local expandable scene would have a field day with this new arrival. She looked forward to telling them all about it, and to playing back the transformation a few times later on for personal enjoyment reasons.

"No, it isn't always like that. Some people have a form in mind the moment they get here, and can't wait to shift around. Others browse through some temporary avatars and select one, or just get one made that looks like them before they uploaded, or whatever the case may be. It is different for everyone. You certainly did pick a nice one for yourself. Really interesting colouration too, I must say."

Kris found himself smiling, showing off some pointy yet curiously soft teeth.

"Thanks. It all hit me at once, and came together in my mind. I've had dreams that I looked like this before, and part of it is surely from my days as a pilot. I kinda look like my ship, actually. Here, let me call up a picture..."

Fiddling with his UI, Kris summoned up a factory photograph of the kind of ship he'd been piloting before his accident. Sure enough, it was shiny black material with a chrome stripe going up from the cockpit, and across the top to the back of the ship. Kris was the spitting image, minus being a rubbery inflatable dragon, instead of a medium range survey and exploration craft. Still, the association was there.

The duo spent the afternoon chatting, snacking, and having a grand time. Ultimately Kris decided to go for a walk, and agreed to meet up with Robin and a few others later for dinner. He went right back into the same orientation office he'd been in that morning, to give everyone the good news. He was happy, healthy, and most importantly, he wanted to stay with the colony. His citizenship request was accepted immediately, as anyone who'd been around local space usually had a well adjusted personality and a very expanded view of the universe as a whole. He'd be fun to have around too, or so many thought. Time would tell!

They went him away with welcoming hand shakes, hugs, and even a large air pump tied up with a big red bow. A sense of humour was a common feature among colony citizens, it seemed. Tucking his new toy under one arm, and stretching out his wings, Kris took to the skies as if he'd been born to fly. The familiar sensation of flight made him roar out his delight to the city below, as he zipped around from place to place, giving this new body one hell of a workout.

It was a great day to be alive!

* * * * *

Dinner was off to a great start. Robin had made arrangements for a lovely welcoming dinner at a public eatery, that served anything you wanted. More exotic creations took some time to source from various databases, but it was nothing the staff couldn't handle. Kris found himself sandwiched between a very well rounded Armadillo and a squeaky looking Stegosaurus. The latter had discovered that Kris had a large valve on the end of his tail, and that it was quite sensitive. For most of the meal he'd left his rear appendage in the plus sized dinosaurs lap, not even trying to hide his rumbling enjoyment of random squeaks and petting.

Robin was sitting across from the newly realized black and chrome balloon dragon, and couldn't help but smile in between large bites of chicken curry. Early that day Kris had still been uncertain and perhaps even a little depressed, but now he was living it up like he'd been born here. She wasn't overly surprised, seeing as most folks settled into the digital life rather quickly once they'd selected a preferred form for themselves. It was very liberating, and if done right, things connected in a way that made people feel more at home with their bodies than was normally possible in the flesh.

Perhaps that would change in time, one never knew what the future held.

Kris was enjoying a feast of sausages, mushroom gravy, bread and preserves, rich tea and wonderful chocolates to top it all off. He'd not gotten to eat like this since he'd last been on a full service space station, years back. It was refreshing to really let loose and eat whatever he felt like, knowing full well it didn't really matter with his current state of being. Clearing his throat and taking a swig of tea to wash everything down, he relaxed against his new companions and let out a happy sigh.

"This is quite the lovely evening. Thanks for planning it, Robin. And thank you for introducing me to more of your wonderful companions. It seems like there's quite a lot of people around these parts that prefer something other than a standard human form."

Everyone nodded, including the odd human who was sitting at the table, tucking into whatever they'd opted to order from the establishment. The oversized Armadillo smirked and made a gesture out over the ample floor space of the eatery, pointing out the assorted individuals within view.

"Last we checked, it is about an even split. There are full time humans, and full time creatures and such. Some go back and forth, or stay somewhere in between, like Robin does."

Kris nodded, remembering hearing much the same earlier, from other people hanging out him and Robin before he'd opted to become a citizen. Hearing it was one thing, seeing it for the past few days was something else entirely. At least he knew he really wouldn't stand out that much, unless of course he was getting a tad too rambunctious within city limits. As part of his citizenship, he'd been asked briefly to limit what amounted to "freaky" activities to more open spaces within the digital realm. That was easy enough to do, as there was more open space than city space, by a long shot.

He'd already received an invitation from the squeaky Stegosaurus to come on out for a visit to his place, where a bunch of oversized inflatable types made a home for themselves. Kris definitely agreed to come have a look, as it sounded intriguing. He needed a place of his own to call home, that much was certain. He could have whatever he wanted too, he just needed to submit a request to the system, or design it himself if he really wanted to.

As he'd learned while flipping through some user information at his disposal, a lot of the buildings within the quaint little town were larger on the inside than they appeared from the outside, or were merely access gates to other realms. Said realms ranged from quiet wilderness settings, to the fantastic and beyond. Most were private, but that was OK. He had some things in mind for his own little slice of home, and meant to spend some time getting it all together.

For now he still had access to the little loft he'd stayed in up until this point, as it was one of many simple structures kept in place for those in transition. The dinner party gradually wrapped up after finishing their coffee and desert, and everyone went on their way. Even Robin excused herself for the evening, as she had work to do in the morning. Even for a digital case-worker, there was paperwork to do.

The squeaky dinosaur, who Kris had learned called himself Steg of all things, had asked to come along for the evening, and have a little fun with the shiny new air pump Kris was clutching under one arm. Blushing faintly, the balloon dragon agreed, and the two walked off down the lane, arm in arm, chatting about nothing in particular. His new companion had apparently lived here for years, and was one of the first settlers of the colony. He'd opted to stay digital after everything had been set up, and that was that. Many others had too, a likely side-effect of existing within the virtual space for years before getting where they were going. Even at faster than light speeds, space was a big place, and it took a while to get from star to star.

The duo eventually got to the little lofted condo, and made their way inside. Fortunately the door was wide enough for both of them. Steg switched on some privacy settings and accessed the user menu for the building, and Kris watched with mild amazement as the lofted bedroom vanished, and everything was replaced with a big open seating area, and an equally large bathing pool. A simple and effective place to relax, clean up, and eventually sleep.

Or if the balloon Dinosaur had any say in things, get large and well rounded.

Already Kris found himself getting his nozzle played with, popped open, and sealed up again with the hose from his manual air pump. It was a very warm and pleasurable feeling, vaguely sexual to be certain, but also very friendly and comforting. Turning his horned head to the side, he caught sight of the big fellow raising the plunger up as high as it went, and wiggling his eye-ridges up and down.

"So Kris, are you ready to get started with this new body of yours? I promise you, you're in for a night to remember."

Kris nodded, feeling a blush forming on his cheeks, even as he cocked a wry grin and answered in kind.

"Be gentile. This is my first time, after all."

The rubbery Stegosaurus smirked and gently pushed down on the plunger, sending a good sized gout of air down the hose and into the black and chrome Dragon, followed by another pump, and another...

"I know, and that's what makes it special!"

Kris was in a state of bliss. The first tingling of air hit him with a warm glow, and the next continued the trend, until he felt more aroused than he ever remembered in his life. His hide was expanding outwards proportionately, though he also seemed to be packing on more muscle mass. The view must have been nice, as he could hear Steg rumbling away between the pumps, as he worked to show Kris a good time.

The pleasure built until he felt a most curious sensation, and looked down to see a slit opening up in his crotch. With the sound of rubber against rubber, a fairly large dragon dong and matching set of balls flopped out, and swelled up in time with the pumps of air. Reaching down with a groan, he grasped at his new endowment and gave it a squeeze, finding it to be the softest of balloons, yet firming up as it expanded.

Flexing one arm as it became rather beefy indeed, Kris looked around to see that there was getting to be a lot less space inside the little row-house as there had been just moments before. Steg was grinning up at him and pumping away, apparently putting more air down the hose than would otherwise be possible with such a little manual pump. Still, Kris was having a ball. He rumbled out his pleasure and fumbled at his loins, stretching up until his head bumped into the 6 metre ceiling, forcing him to kneel and finally to sit. He was amazed to see his clawed feet becoming thick and enormous, squashing against the windows at the front of the property, while his tail thickened into a massive tube.

Eventually he was forced to double over and practically hug his own distended package, as that too ballooned to cartoonish proportions, leaving him snuggling a pulsating squeaky behemoth of a dragon dong.

Seeing the lack of space, and finding himself not able to move that well, Steg eventually stopped pumping, as his ballooned companion was busy creaking ominously against the walls. He looked over at the wall of musclebound rubbery flesh, and nodded at his own handiwork. It would do, for the time being. Smirking, he took note of Kris hugging and rubbing his gigantic and engorged tool, and decided to go and help.

Squirming and squeaking over the mass of dragon, he eventually made it up to the front of the room, and gave the huge dragon dong a firm lick, rubbing at it with both hands. The loud ecstatic rumbling was music to his ears, as he kissed and rubbed the huge spire of inflated dragon wang, noting it leak thick rubbery goop out the tip. Climbing higher, he continued rubbing and teasing with hands and feet, before reaching the tip and ultimately stretching his rubbery face wide to slurp up the tip.

It was all too much for Kris, who went off like somebody had poked a hole high pressure fuel storage tank. As the engorged dragon watched, Steg suddenly bloomphed up much wider, before sagging down under the weight and stretching like a water balloon. He became more and more bloated from the moment, blushing hotly as he worked to suck the dragon dry. Eventually belly contacted the ground once again, and the front of the room filled up with very bloated dinosaur.

Feeling sated, the explosive flow came to a halt eventually, and the two were left there to relax, and bask in the afterglow. Steg popped his distended jaws free with a wet sounding noise, and belched thunderously. Kris was rapidly softening, his cartoonishly sized endowments losing air and folding back up into his pouch, which sealed up without a trace. Handy, that was for sure. Smirking at the huge mound of muscle dragon, the bloated Dino wobbled and sloshed his way closer, flopping against Kris with quite a lot of weight.

"So, what did you think of that, big guy?"

Kris hugged the bloated fellow to his front, and sighed happily, tail swishing around and rebounding off the walls with many the squeak.

"That... was absolutely amazing. I've experienced interesting activities before in virtual reality, but that right there took the cake."

Steg smirked and leaned up to nuzzle his new friend under the chin, relaxing there for the evening.

"I think you'll fit in well here, Kris. Very well indeed. Shall we have ourselves a rest? We can always have more fun later on if we wake up during the night, or even in the morning."

The large dragon nodded with a squeak, returning the friendly nose-bumps and scratching at the huge bloated belly within his grasp, provoking many happy rumbles from the cum filled dinosaur. Rest sounded like a fine idea, even though he wanted to give that huge bathtub a try. It could wait until later. For now, he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, wrapped up tight with a sloshy balloon dinosaur, all full of happy thoughts, and more than a little dragon goop.

The next day awaited, and the next, and the next...

* * * * *

"Kris..."

"Mrahhh... 5 more minutes..."

"Kris... wake up Kris..."

The squeaky dragon eventually responded to the voice whispering in his ear, stretching out somewhat and yawning wide from atop a wonderfully soft surface. Eyes opening, Kris eventually found himself laying across a whole lot of bloated dinosaur belly. Blinking a few times, he rolled over and looked up at the well padded face of Steg, smiling down at him. The rather sloshy fellow leaned in for a morning smooch, and a friendly nuzzle.

"Good morning, Kris. You were starting to stir, so I figured it was time to start the day."

With rumbling nuzzles and smooches exchanged, Kris sat up fully, patting and squishing at the wobbly mass of a very bloated dinosaur. He found the situation curious, as when he'd fallen asleep, he'd been a lot larger...

"Morning Steg. I seem to have deflated in the night. Was that your doing?"

The big bloated fellow shook his head from side to side, setting off a sloshing wobble that undulated through his entire frame. Smirking, Steg took hold of the soft nozzle at the end of his companions tail, and gave it a rub between thick fingers. Smiling further at the ecstatic rumbles of pleasure being emitted by Kris, he continued the teasing even as he spoke.

"No, it wasn't me. I woke up in the middle of the night and found you back to your default size, laying on top of me. A few others I know also reset in their sleep, so to speak. No doubt you'll learn to control that over time, if you're so inclined. I meanwhile stayed quite filled with your bounty from the night before."

Kris blushed as he remembered, and was further teased via his oh so sensitive tail valve.

"And what a night that was. Thanks again for a lovely evening, and being so welcoming and indulgent. I would be happy to return the favour sometime.

Steg smirked and nodded anew, struggling to haul his heavy frame up off the ground, with Kris in tow.

"Oh, I'm sure you will eventually. For now however, you can help wash my back if you want. Then we should have some breakfast."

The oversized dinosaur had already gotten a warm bath ready in the giant tub, one big enough for both of them, even with how much space Steg was taking up. The huge beast relaxed into the warm water with many happy noises, and began scrubbing at himself with a well lathered cloth. Kris was keen to help, taking another large cloth and plenty of freely foaming soap to wash off the nights funk from his gargantuan guest.

They mingled and fooled around while getting clean, not trying too hard to avoid getting all messy again. Steg used his cloth and oodles of bubbly soap to wash off Kris even though the big dragon was more than capable of doing it himself. Still, it was fun to have a giant wobbly dinosaur get all the hard to reach places. While wiping down the chrome-striped surface of the balloon dragons tail, Steg took an opportunity to pop the nozzle on the tip into his mouth, and forcefully blew plenty of warm air inside. Kris went rigid all over with brief shock, but then melted into the sensation of it all, rumbling loudly as his hide gradually expanded into a larger and more muscular shape.

They both had food in mind, so building-filling wasn't on the menu. Instead Steg blew his new companion up until they were about equal sized, give or take 4 metres tall. That done, the duo exchanged quite a lot of slippery hugs and mutual groping, Kris finding himself standing at attention and then some.

Nuzzling and smooching one another with mutual delight, they eventually opted to relax in the mountain of suds they'd created, letting the warm water relax their rubbery bodies. An overhead shower made short work of rinsing them both off, followed by hot air blowers that emerged out of the walls. They both reluctantly tucked their arousal away for the time being, as both bellies were grumbling audibly with obvious hunger.

Steg hefted his very bloated frame up into a standing position as the last of the water was washed away, and patted his plus sized gut.

"Yep, it is definitely time for breakfast. I've got just the place in mind, that should have large enough seats for the both of us. Plus we won't have to worry about stepping on anyone, or vexing anyone with our over the top forms."

Kris nodded and turned towards the front of the formerly roomy condo unit, and wound up glancing down at the doorway. Chuckling at this new sensation of comfortable size, he called up his UI and punched in a few requests. The whole front of the unit phased out of existence, allowing the plus sized duo to walk right out into the street. It popped back into place as their tails cleared the extra large exit, and they were on their way. No doubt the property was already resetting itself back to default configurations even as they walked along the public corridor.

There weren't all that many bodies up and about at the moment, but that was fine. That meant less people to watch out for below. At roughly double the height and girth of the average citizen, it was their duty to really make sure they weren't disrupting anyone too much. Likewise the smaller folks needed to pay attention to where they were going, and keep off to one side of the street. Mutual respect was a big thing in the city.

Gradually the two made it across town, one plus sized step at a time, and came upon yet another open air cafe. This one was a little different however, as it was on the edge of town, facing an open field. Another thing that really stood out was the clientele. Every last one of them was an oversized creature of some sort, ranging from firm flesh to squeaky rubber, and everything in between. There was only a dozen or so plus sized individuals hanging out at the moment, but there was obviously room for a hundred or more.

Steg turned to see Kris gawking with a smile on his snout, and gave the big dragon a little shove towards the establishment.

"I figured you'd fit right in here. Come on, we'll get you a little more established with the local community of big fellows."

Kris allowed himself to be led along, hand in hand with the bloated dinosaur, to a giant table off to one side. Even with the oversized furniture, Steg still wound up with his belly squished up over the tables surface, squeaking loudly all the while as he struggled to fit. Eventually he opted to sit further back from the table, blushing a deep red and huffing, tail lashing around with squeaky thumps.

"Huff. Forgot about this belly you gave me last night. Oh well, I've been much more bloated than this before."

Kris chuckled, shaking his horn-capped head from side to side.

"You'll have to tell me all about it sometime, you blimp. Careful not to have too much to eat for breakfast, or else I'll have to roll you home."

That got him a friendly swat on the shoulder, and Steg sticking his tongue out while still blushing fiercely. Their casual banter and play was interrupted by heavy thumping, and Kris turned his snout towards the noise, only to see a fully grown T-Rex stomping in their direction. The large creature was wearing white jacket that was belted in place along the middle, and had fully grown arms instead of the dainty yet powerful versions commonly seen in historical records.

Steg looked up at the fellow as well and smiled, throwing his arms wide as the fellow dinosaur came in for a giant sized squishy hug, and many mutual pats on the back.

"Steg! Good to see you again, it has been a few days since you last came by. And you've brought a new face to the cafe, I see? Welcome to Cafe Rex."

Kris smirked at the name of the place and extended a hand to shake, only to find himself wrapped up in a very heavy hug instead. Whomever the large fellow was, he was certainly a friendly one. Steg chuckled away all the while, patting the other plus sized dinosaur on one flank as he eventually released the balloon dragon from his clutches.

"Good morning, Bruno. Yes, it has been a few days since I've swung by. I was in town on business, then wound up meeting Kris here at a welcome-home party of sorts, thrown by our good friend Robin. Kris just became a citizen yesterday, and I feel he'll be a very good member of our little community quite quickly."

Both Kris and Bruno chuckled at the use of "little" to describe the community, as it appeared to be anything but. Bruno turned back to Kris and hugged him in welcome again, and even planted a kiss on both squeaky cheeks.

"Well then, it isn't every day we get new citizens out here, let alone ones who appear to enjoy the larger side of life. Welcome! I'm the owner and head chef for Cafe Rex, and we'll be happy to have you here for breakfast. Please call up the menu whenever you're ready, and we'll make sure you're taken care of."

Kris nodded and looked back at Steg with a smile, who was lounging against his own bloat quite happily.

"Thank you Bruno. I'm happy to be here. Would you care to join us for breakfast?"

That earned Kris the most toothy smile he'd ever seen, as the plus sized fellow pulled up a bench to flop on, allowing him easy access to the table.

"Don't mind if I do. The kitchen can take care of itself. Please, order up, and we can converse over coffee and the like. Don't be shy, eat! It takes a lot of energy to keep a plus sized being healthy and happy."

The growling guts of all present at the table didn't need to be told twice, and soon they were all looking through floating digital readouts to make some selections. Kris let his gut do the talking, and soon ordered enough food to feed a good sized family. Bruno nodded with appreciation.

Coffee and a plate piled high with various baked goods appeared within moments, hand delivered by members of staff who also quite obviously liked the larger side of life. People came and went as the trio snacked on pastries and slurped at large mugs of warm and rather delicious coffee, preparing themselves for the large breakfast to come. Kris saw all sorts of oversized individuals wandering about, some having to briefly reduce their size to fit in the Cafe, while others exited out into the nearby grassland, and began to expand to truly impressive sizes.

Glancing off into the distance, Kris even saw the familiar sight of a giant purple dragon, but this time so big his head and shoulders were lost in the clouds. He blushed fiercely at the sight, his plus-sized equipment emerging from their confinement to thump on the underside of the table. The reaction wasn't helped at all by the fact that Steg was once again playing with his tail valve. The bloated dinosaur certainly was a tease! Other than a few flared nostrils at the smell of heated dragon, nobody seemed to mind having an aroused balloon in their midst.

Bruno and Steg both looked over to see the utterly massive dragon in the distance, wobbling around and obviously getting even bigger from some unseen source.

"Looks like he's at it again. At least he's far enough away this time that any explosions won't blow out the windows."

The big T-Rex nodded back at Steg, smirking at the sight. Sure enough, the gargantuan mass of purple dragon ruptured with a visible shock wave, and everyone was treated to a blast of warm air after a few seconds. Kris was doing his best not to spray the underside of the table, and was quickly losing out to all the stimulation.

"Rahhh... Does that happen often around these parts? What a sight..."

Ignoring the dripping going on under the table, Bruno chuckled and reached out to pat Kris on the shoulder.

"Relax. Lots of people come here for the scenery, and we're quite good at cleaning up any messes. This side of town is used to our kind, so as long as we keep the truly oversized shenanigans out in the distant valley, all is well."

Huffing with obvious mirth, and so very near release, Kris could only struggle to maintain composure as Steg kept teasing him. A puff of air into his nozzle from the publicly perverted dinosaur proved entirely too much for Kris, and soon he was gasping and shooting his load out under the table, seeing it splatter off against it a bush some distance away. Huffing and puffing, the spent and still hungry dragon playfully thumped his tail against Steg, emitting a sloshing squeak for his trouble.

"You big tease. I'm going to fill you up even bigger if you keep this up."

Bruno laughed aloud and reached out to pat Steg on his enormous gut, making many mirthful noises of appreciation.

"Ah-ha, so this is your handiwork then, Kris? Not bad for a fresh citizen. You'll have Steg here up to the bursting point in no time with that attitude!"

Both Kris and Steg blushed bright red at the open appreciation of a good spooge ballooning, but they were both open to more filling fun when they next got the chance.

Their orders arrived before long, and the servers were careful to step over the thick sticky stream left by Kris, while another showed up with a mop. Nobody said anything out of the ordinary, but the one with the mop threw Kris a wink as the group finished up and went on their way. The big dragon felt he definitely had found a great place to call home.

With food on the table, the trio tabled any teasing conversation for the time being, and tucked into their morning meal. The whole left by the lack of dialogue was soon filled by the mirthful noises of well fed contentment, as they polished off everything from simple fried eggs to piles of roasted meats and potatoes.

Thousands of calories later, the group settled back over mugs of tea and another heaping plate of pastries, and let their bodies enjoy the stuffing they'd all just enjoyed immensely. Bruno was the first one to strike up the conversation again.

"So Kris, have you settled on a place to live yet?"

The big black dragon paused, mug of tea poised against his snout, and glanced upwards in thought.

"No, can't say I have. I guess I can't stay in that little townhouse forever. Robin did say it was a loaner of some sort."

Both dinosaurs nodded sage like, before calling up a floating map above their table. They highlighted one corner of town that stuck out into the grasslands, and a few buildings lit up brightly with various colours. Bruno pointed out a few nearby, just across the plaza they were in, as luck would have it.

"The highlighted section of the city is where the majority of us plus-sized individuals have assembled. We like staying in close proximity to one another, for various reasons. Usually social ones, of course. We're perfectly welcome to live wherever we want in town, so long as we obey the rules. Others live outside of town in smaller groups, which I'm sure you'll see for yourself eventually. The illuminated buildings have free space in them, and you're welcome to claim one as your own."

Steg slapped the big poofy dragon on one shoulder, and leaned up against him with a hearty squeak.

"I for one live out of town, but you'd likely be more comfortable settling into more familiar living arrangements for a while. Worst case you can move your home around, as the insides of most structures can be customized beyond what the outside might indicate. The joys of digital living. I'll help you get settled if you want to pick a place, whenever you're ready. There's no rush."

Kris nodded and flipped through the map, looking over his options. The ones facing into this large plaza definitely caught his attention, as they had the wonderful views of the grasslands and distant mountains to complement them. After spending so much of his life with not much more than a bunk aboard ship to his name, the prospect of actually having a house was practically intoxicating.

There were plentiful exterior shots to look through, and one eventually caught his eye. It was a simple enough structure, namely a two floor stone & brick building that looked like it was plucked straight out of some old Earth city. It backed onto an alley apparently, but the front of the structure was smack dab against the plaza itself. You just opened the front door, and went on inside. A neat perk seemed to be the scale of the structure, with respect to its likely residents. The front-door was 5 metres call, and slid out of the way within the wall itself, according to the site plans.

With the large upper windows complementing the boxy building quite well, Kris figured he'd found himself a new home. It took mere moments to select the structure, make a request for occupancy, and be granted access. No keys were needed, he'd simply be able to walk in and open the door, as he was the new owner. He could also grant access to anyone he wanted, which was a handy feature. The interior was his to customize, and he already had many ideas swimming through his mind.

At a glance, it looked like this lovely restaurant would be visible from his upper windows, which suited him fine. He figured he'd be visiting the place quite frequently, going forward. Bruno soon wanted to get back to his work, so everyone stood up to leave. Kris extended a large hand to attempt a shake with Bruno once more, only to be hugged and kissed on both cheeks for his trouble.

"Hope to see you around here again, Kris! Good to see you as always, Steg."

Smirking and waving, Kris and Steg existed the cafe and wandered in the direction of the freshly acquired housing unit, which was visible on the other side of the plaza grounds.

"So Kris, did you want me to come with you to help with the setup and move-in? Or did you want to take it from here?"

The big puffy dragon shrugged and figured it wouldn't be too difficult to navigate the various menu's available to him, and didn't think he really needed any help. With a grin, he reached out and patted his large squeaky companion on his drooping gut.

"I think I'll be fine, thank you Steg. Don't let me keep you if you have errands to run. We can always meet up later, and you know where to find me!"

Steg nodded and smiled, squishing his ample gut up against Kris, only to lift him right off his feet in a monster sized hug, smooching the dragon full on the snout to boot.

"You bet I do! I should check into the office for a bit, so to speak, then head home for a while. I'll contact you later, if you don't contact me first, that is!"

Kris was all too happy to return the smooch, hugging the giant bloated dinosaur under his puffed up and sloshing moobs.

"Mmmm, office you say? You'll have to tell me about that later. I assume you have some kind of job with the colony?"

Steg nodded and turned to leave, aiming for a side street that went further into town.

"You assume right! I'll definitely tell you all about it sometime. For now, take care my friend! Have a wonderful time house building."

Within moments the bloated mass of squeaky dinosaur had rounded the corner, and just like that he was gone. Kris was left to his thoughts, standing on the paving stones that lined the outside of his property. With nothing else to do for the time being, he spun about on one foot, tapped a button by the door, and went on inside his new place as the door slid out of the way. It slid closed behind him with the sound of well lubricated machinery.

He wasn't entirely sure what to expect when he walked into the structure, but glowing white walls weren't it.

"What the... I figured there would at least be a default interior. I guess I really do have my run of the place, if I'm starting from scratch."

A few swipes of his hands in the air brought up a full suite of user windows, with tons of options to create the happy home of your dreams. Another window popped itself open within view, and a cartoon lizard emerged within to wave hello and give verbal greetings.

"Welcome to your new home, Kris! I'm the local AI assistant for the district. Most people just call me Squeak. Don't ask me why, but the name stuck. I'm available at all hours of the day to help you out with anything you need, including setting up your new home. As I'm sure you've realized by now, it is in a blank state with no user features at all enabled. Please feel free to browse through any default configurations, or go hog-wild and create your own dream home. I'll be here the whole time if you need me. Just call my name, and I'll come running!"

Kris smiled at the little lizard on the monitor, then chuckled to himself at the obvious pun.

"Heh, monitor lizard..."

Squeak turned his head to one side to smile and wink, his voice trailing off before the floating window blinked out.

"Very clever. A Nile Monitor, actually!"

With a little electronic blip, the window closed itself, and Kris was left to himself once more. Still smirking over the dry bit of humour, he decided to simply flop down on the floor for the time being, and went searching through default housing interiors. He felt that something roughly matching the exterior of the dwelling would be a good fit, at least for the time being.

Selections were made and tweaked, and bit by bit the blank white canvas came to life around him. Hard wood floors emerged as if by magic, spreading out to newly created walls that filled in with red bricks and plaster. A few tasteful paintings emerged here and there on the walls, as well as lovely windows that looked out into the plaza. The ceiling raised itself up to 6 metres, perfect for sizable visitors, and a little kitchen nook opened up on one side of the structure.

Tapping out the odd command while looking around, a wide staircase emerged near the entry-door, leading upstairs. Some dragon-sized furniture popped into existence here and there in the main room, and carpets unfolded where they were needed. Heading upstairs, he continued the open floor-plan concept, and created a giant sized bathing pool nested into the thick floor, and a bed big enough for company. With that, he had a simple yet elegant two floor house to call his own, with all the comforts of home. No doubt he'd tweak it more later as he saw fit, but for now it was a comfortable place to live, and get cozy with friends.

Heading back to the main level, Kris found himself looking at a section of wall near the kitchen, that so far was unused. This would be a good place for a back door to the alley, if this were a normal structure. Kris had something else in mind, however.

"Squeak? Are you there?"

With a mild flash of light and the faintest of pops, the little lizard emerged in the room with him, landing on all fours and having a brief look around the place.

"Not bad for a few minutes work. You'll fit in fine around here! Now then, what can I do for you, Kris?"

Kris looked down at the metre tall reptile, smirking and pointing at the back wall.

"I was thinking of having a door here that led outside. Rather than just going back into the plaza or the alley, can it go to a private garden or something like that?"

Squeak smiled, and nodded, calling up a few windows of his own with a wave of claw-tipped paws.

"Sure can! You can have a walled in garden that doesn't interact with the plaza, a private wilderness area, a full valley, whatever you want, really. Space is something we have plenty of."

Kris definitely liked the idea of having a larger green space, and ideas began to form in his mind.

"Might as well go with a big grassy plain for now, and I can customize it as I go."

The little lizard nodded and scuttled off to do just that, once again blinking out the same way he'd come in. Rendering complex environments can take a moment, so Kris took an opportunity to flop down on a giant sofa and stare out the window. The plaza was looking more lively by the moment, with dozens if not hundreds of other oversized creatures walking around all over the place. Obviously it was a popular location within their city district.

An odd little sound caught his attention towards the rear of the large room, and he craned his head around to see what was up. Another large sliding door emerged in the back wall, complete with a window built into itself showing a brilliant green landscape. It slid open once it finished getting into place, and Squeak walked in on two legs this time around, dusting his hands off with obvious satisfaction.

"And there you go. One big grassy plain to play around with. Have fun!"

Kris was grinning as he stood up and walked towards the little guy, leaning down to envelop him in a big squishy hug.

"Thank you very much. You're a big help!"

The happy hug was returned in kind, and the metre tall digital lizard scrambled up onto the shoulders of the much larger balloon dragon.

"Happy to help, Kris. It is always nice to have more of you big social citizens around these parts. You take care now, and call me if you need me!"

With that the little guy did a back flip off Kris, and vanished into a mid-air orb of light. It took all kinds to keep a digital colony thriving, including somewhat nutty AI's. Gazing out into the open field now accessible through the back door of his home, Kris wandered on through, and decided a little landscaping was in order before lunch.

The door slid closed behind him, and he was left with an untouched slab of nature to play with as he saw fit. It was going to be a fun morning, that much was abundantly clear.

* * *

It was 3 solid hours of pure creativity.

Kris stood in the middle of a windswept grassy plain that remained unbroken as far as the eye could see. With swipes of large puffy hands, delicate gestures in the air, and the odd voice request to the local AI assistant, things began to change. Hills rose up in a ring around most of the visible landscape, effectively fencing it in. A river began to flow from the higher elevation, carving its way through grass to rapidly create a riverbed.

Trees emerged on the hills and grew up and out into a dense forest, filled with the sounds of native birds and other wildlife. With his own little forest valley fenced in quite effectively by tree, rock, and river, Kris turned his attention to the remaining flat spaces. Searching through the catalogue of available structures, a large hangar was deposited down, followed by few smaller out-buildings, and a large landing pad.

The small buildings were filled with air compressors, tanks of various gasses, and things to maintain such equipment. Kris of course new the systems wouldn't need maintaining, but they were a nice cosmetic touch. The hangar was filled with a soft and squishy floor, padded walls, and ample space for plenty of expansion. One could easily fill up a lifting-body zeppelin within the available space, something the blimp dragon found amusing as he fit the description perfectly.

With the help of Squeak, he managed to link a wide set of sliding doors to the back door inside his plaza-facing home, providing a good yet private way to get to and from this little wooded slice of paradise. Perhaps an airport of sorts converted to house oversized balloon people wasn't the ideal living environment for everyone, but he felt it would do him just fine. Plus there was plenty of space for private activities.

A chime rang out over the wooded valley, indicating that somebody was at the front door. Kris only had to call out to respond to potential guests, and did so while making his way back into his living room.

"Come in!"

The large front door slid open to reveal the still rather bloated form of Steg waiting for him, as well as Robin, Bruno, and a big bottom-heavy purple dragon Kris had previously only seen from a distance. The whole group was carrying various bundles, and worked their way inside to place things down on counters and a convenient coffee table.

Robin was the first to walk up and give the big balloon dragon a quick hug, followed by a big toothy smile stretching across her feline face.

"Happy housewarming, Kris. It is nice to see you settling in so well. Welcome to the neighbourhood!"

Kris was surprised to find the big cat standing eye to eye with him. He'd not seen her so tall before, even though she'd previously been quite big. Apparently she dabbled in bigness as well, if her hulking stature was any indication.

"Hello Robin! Fancy seeing you around these parts. And hello to the rest of you!"

Hands were shook, hugs were exchanged, and Kris got a few full-on smooches on his rounded snout for good measure. They certainly were a friendly bunch.

Steg soon had one thick arm around the squeaky dragons musclebound shoulders, and was turning him around to face the other dragon in the room, whom was busy unpacking their bundles to expose a take-away lunch buffet from Cafe Rex.

"Kris, I'd like you to meet another friend of mine. I believe you've seen one another from a distance, at least. This is Leo. Say hello, Leo!"

The big purple dragon resisted making the obvious joke, and instead extended a big hand to shake with his fellow balloon dragon.

"Hello there, Kris. I've heard we had another dragon join the neighbourhood lately. Welcome! I also hear you are a pilot, which is nice. We always need more pilots around these parts."

The group busied themselves getting comfortable around the main living space, handing out food and drink, and settling in for a lovely afternoon. Kris made a mental note to really thank Bruno for the lovely food, as he was busy stuffing his face with a sandwich.

"So Leo, you commented on my being a pilot. While true, I'm obviously not a pilot anymore. At least not at the moment. Unless you've got a ship around here that needs one, of course."

The big purple dragon chuckled and winked, while Steg leaned up against Kris with his own little smirk. The big dinosaur was happy to chime in.

"Kris, there are ships around here that need pilots. In the physical colony, of course. Remember how I had to duck out earlier to go to the office? I was going to the main offices of the colony, via upload. I'm sure you've heard about the process, as part of your orientation and previous training."

Kris nodded, thinking back on past lessons plus more recent ones. People could both go into deep VR and control another body of some sort remotely, or in the case of full uploads, could inhabit other bodies if they so chose. He'd never met anyone actively inhabiting a fully artificial body before, but he'd heard they'd come a long way from the robotic shells of old.

"So, what do you do at your job, if you don't mind me asking?"

The big sloshing rubber dinosaur chuckled and patted his squeaky dragon friend on the shoulder once more, and stretched back to put his bloated feet up on a free section of coffee table, narrowly avoiding a bowl of potato salad.

"Oh, this and that. There's meeting with people in the flesh that don't want to meet in the digital space for whatever reason... I also drive some ground vehicles around and help with surveys, construction, stuff like that. We mainly use automatic robots to do most of the building out on the surface, but sometimes we need a warm body out there to supervise and inspect. There's a lot of surveys to do, something that Leo here helps out with."

The fellow dragon was busy nodding, taking a sip from a big mug of tea.

"Yep, that's right. I was a utility and repair pilot aboard the colony ship that set up shop over here, and I remained a pilot even after we landed. Though these days I don't work nearly as much. Nor do any of us, really. Just the odd day here and there, to help out the colony. We're not in any rush. Feel free to come check it all out for yourself some time. Skilled pilots and such are always welcome on the surface."

Kris nodded to the group, keeping it all in mind. He hadn't put much thought into what he wanted to do with himself, going forward. It couldn't all be tea parties and expansive antics, he supposed. Who knew? Maybe he'd have more time for that than he realized.

Steg and Leo were soon chatting about something or another in the distant valley, so Kris turned his attention to Robin and Bruno.

"Thanks again for coming, you two. And many thanks for the lunch, Bruno! It is delicious, and just what I needed. I kinda lost track of time setting up shop in here."

The big dinosaur was all too happy to provide such a bounty of edible treats, and flashed a big toothy grin for the praise. Robin meanwhile was looking around the room, and in the general direction of the stairs going up to the second level.

"You must have spent a lot of time designing the place, if you lost track of things in here. Did you have trouble with the control system, Kris?"

Now it was his turn to chuckle, shaking his horn-topped head around as he stood up, dusting crumbs from his puffy frame.

"No, it didn't take that long. The rest of the place took a while, however. Would you all like to come and have a look? I wanted a little more room to stretch out... so to speak."

Steg and Leo both snickered, while Bruno rolled his eyes. Despite the dry humour, the group followed Kris along to the back of the room, and out the second large sliding door, and onto a concrete tarmac cutting through his private airship facility. Everyone took a moment to laze back and bask in the warm sunshine, enjoy the breeze, and listen to the chirping birds in the distance. Steg smiled and leaned up against his puffy black and chrome companion, emitting many happy squeaks of affection.

"You did good in here, Kris. Very inviting, and very creative too!"

Even Leo was nodding with appreciation, looking over to spot the massive airship hangar filled with soft padding and plenty of hoses. A big grin spread over his face, as he wandered off to go have a look. Robin and Bruno were already down at the river, splashing around and having a grand time. A full grown T-Rex having a splash fight with a 4 metre tall tiger lady was definitely an amusing sight, to say the least.

It appeared they rather liked this new and vibrant space Kris had created, and the lot opted to hang out here rather than going back into the cozy living room. Leaning up against the rounded and sloshing frame of Steg, Kris planted a full on puffing smooch onto his friends snout, causing the already bloated dinosaur to swell up all the more, and blush hotter than the sun.

"Thanks for visiting, Steg. It is nice to have you all around."

Blushing and stammering, the obviously pleased dinosaur was all too happy to hug his squeaky dragon companion, tail thumping around with obvious glee.

"I'm glad you're so pleased with things, Kris. We're happy to have you here too. We all think you'll be a very good fit for the colony, and a welcome member of our little society for years to come. Such a creative spirit, to throw a place like this together in just a few hours."

Now it was the black and chrome-striped dragon's turn to blush a tad, his own tail swishing around as he accepted the praise. The two left Bruno and Robin to their water based antics, and decided to go see what Leo was up to. The sound of a whirring compressor caught their attention shortly before they rounded the corner to the front of the airship hangar, only to see a wall of purple hide quickly filling it up to capacity, and stretching out onto the concrete tarmac.

Steg laughed aloud, and stood there watching Leo getting bigger by the moment.

"Oh Leo, you clown. Can't leave that one alone with an air hose for a minute, the utter loon."

Kris chuckled and elbowed the bloated dinosaur in his side, pointing with both index fingers and grinning impishly.

"Well, he's a bal_loon_, in any case."

That earned him a swat on the shoulder and much eye rolling.

"Now now, there's no need to descend into puns. We're all civilized creatures here."

Leo was busy tugging himself free of the restraining airship hangar, standing upright and looming over the group, already 50 metres tall and nearly that wide at the hips, rising ever larger by the moment. Kris and Steg both were busy blushing up at the giant mound of purple dragon, while Robin and Bruno came over to watch the fun. All were enjoying the giant sized sight, as the squeaky dragon rose ever higher into the air.

Steg pulled up a little UI window nearby, and looked up some information on the little private simulation they were in.

"Ah, I see Kris didn't set a size limit. Don't worry, he won't fill up the whole place. It defaults to a few hundred metres."

Kris grunted out a reply, standing there before the huge mound of purple dragon, obviously quite pleased with the situation. It was going to be a fun afternoon, by the looks of things. Steg was busy fishing out additional hoses to hopefully join in the expansive amusements, and Kris turned his attention back to Robin and Bruno.

"I don't suppose you two want to get in on any of this?"

The two shrugged and smiled, gathering up Kris by each arm and walking along to the waiting hoses.

"Don't mind if we do. We all like our bigness, after all."

The group descended into an expansion fuelled afternoon, with hoses stuffed in multiple openings, mutual cuddling and manual stimulation, and got plenty of use out of the hangar compressor system. Eventually they all tapped out around 300 metres, with Leo making sure everyone hit the ceiling, so to speak. Kris had managed to hold onto his musclebound stature for most of it all, but had eventually gotten fairly well rounded with a big ball belly. Leo and Steg were very spherical indeed, stretched up massively round and loving every minute of it. Robin and Bruno meanwhile managed to maintain a proportional size the entire time, and barely looked inflated at all. They looked more like giants, unless you poked or squeezed at them anyways. Then their inflated nature was plain as day.

Panting in a pile, and exchanging various rubs, the occasional kiss, and plenty of cuddling, they all decided to relax in the warm sun, and enjoy being immense for a while. Naturally relaxation turned to casual conversation, and soon 5 giant balloon animals were chatting away as if this were a perfectly normal situation for them. Which of course, it most certainly was.

Lazing back against the big bloated belly of Steg, Kris found himself locking eyes with Leo as the equally large purple drake began to chatter away.

"You definitely know how to have a good time, Kris. Tell me, have you given any thought to visiting the outer colony? I think you'd fit in just as well out there as you do in here, especially when you're suitably equipped."

Kris had been asked much the same already, and was growing curious.

"What's it like out there? I hear it isn't very large, compared to this lovely place we're in."

Steg and Leo both opened some floating windows in the air with their user interfaces, and called up various pictures and live video of the surface world. The surface colony was a series of interconnected domes filled with many different structures, as well as other domes that were entirely mega-buildings of their own. A few thousand people lived on the surface now, and the population gradually increased over time. Hundreds of thousands lived digitally, thanks to the computer vaults located within each dome.

As Kris and the others watched, the video streams passed outside to show a mixture of arid plains and small forests, and a faded blue sky. Several individuals were walking around outside the domes, wearing face masks and air tanks, plus regular clothing. Images popping up on other windows indicated that the planet was still being made fit for surface life, but was most of the way there when humanity arrived. It was mostly Nitrogen and CO2, with not enough Oxygen to survive on. Plus the CO2 levels were too high, and would be fatal to an unprotected human before long.

Current estimates indicated that with the rate trees were being planted, shrubs distributed, and grass tossed all over the place, it would be safe to walk around without a breather mask in a few decades, give or take the odd year. Until then, it would remain a mostly digital colony, for safety and comfort. Still, there were resources to find and exploit, systems to build, outposts to plan, and future cities to design. Hence the need for surface workers while the Geoengineering teams did their thing.

Kris looked up from the displays as things started to loop information, squeaking happily against various well-rounded portions of anatomy all around him.

"Very interesting stuff. I'll have to see what it is like myself some day, if it wouldn't be too much trouble."

Steg and Leo both looked at one another and smirked around bloated cheeks, before standing up from the pile of expanded comrades, and jogging for the exit. Without saying a word, they vanished out of sight, leaving not much more than the smell of well stretched rubber in their wake. Before Kris could even get up to see what was going on, the view on one of the large floating windows changed, as an unseen camera was tilted upwards.

Amazed, Kris could only lay back and stare as a pair of cybernetic creatures stuck their snouts into view, before smiling and waving at the camera.

"Hi Kris! We thought we'd augment the presentation a bit. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the fun."

The large bloated dragon found himself cuddled quite expertly by both Robin and Bruno, and returned the mutual affections happily as they all laid back to watch the show. Steg looked like a partially robotic Stegosaurus, with back fins that slid out of the way so he could sit in chairs and the like. He was more human height in the flesh, so to speak, though obviously still quite tall and broad. Leo was much the same, with a broad set of wings and what appeared to be thrusters built into his back.

Both of them were mostly covered in synthetic materials that matched their digital colouration's, provided muscle structure and padding, and made them stand out in very cool ways. They didn't look like flesh and blood creatures like they did in the digital space, but at the same time they didn't look like robots either. It was a nice cybernetic mixture, that Kris found rather fetching. For the next hour, they had a camera drone follow along as they walked amongst the physical structures on the surface colony, checking in on various teams and equipment, and ultimately winding up outside in the naked atmosphere.

The lack of oxygen didn't bother them any, as no part of their frame actively required the gas to function. Kris saw large zeppelin like craft with lifting bodies, extensive cabins, countless sensors, and several electrical engines stationed all around their gas filled frames. These were the survey craft of choice for the colony, to map the planet from a lower altitude, but cover more ground and fetch more data than a ground vehicle could. About once a month they sent one up to generate high detailed models of a planetary sector, to be added to the rest and ultimately used to plan out the long term uses of available space and resources for extensive colonization.

Their little tour ended with Steg and Leo wandering back inside and eventually sitting down at a table in a cafeteria, eating sandwiches and drinking coffee. Kris could only smile and point.

"Let me guess, those fancy bodies of yours have a digestive system?"

Leo nodded, and tapped out a few commands on a small tablet screen to send Kris more information.

"Yes, they most certainly do. We can charge ourselves up electrically, and do at times, but we also have advanced systems that process the food and drink, and break down the chemical energy into electrical energy. It kind of works like a fuel cell, through all the literature goes into further detail. Much like how we eat and drink within the digital colony, it is good for our psychological health to receive energy from familiar sources. Plus it tastes nice, and is a great way to socialize with various folks up here."

Steg finished washing his sandwich down with the dregs of his coffee, and belched thunderously, indicating that not all that much was different passing from one body to another. He raised a chubby finger and smiled, waggling it around for attention.

"As you can see, opting to do some work for the surface colony has its perks, in the form of these fancy preferred bodies instead of something more basic and form factor. You can have one too, customized as much as we can. Consider it a job benefit, if you're interested."

Kris was more than interested, and couldn't help but beam a giant sized grin at the floating monitor, followed by hugging the two remaining bloated giants with his thick arms.

"What can I say? It would be nice to continue logging flight hours, one way or another. Sign me up!"

* * *

It took a few days for a body to be designed according to specifications Kris had drawn up, and during that time he went through simple virtual training to get used to the transition process. At the suggestion of more experienced users and the training programs, he'd left the transfer trigger on the default setting. When wanting to go be physical for a while, he needed only to toggle the command in his personal UI.

From there, he simply went to bed. Climbing up the stairs to his second floor bedroom, he sat down on the edge of the large sleeping surface, and sprawled out. Blinking a few times, he drifted off into a programmed slumber, and allowed his mind to wander. Quite literally, as it turns out. His consciousness ceased broadcasting into the simulation, and instead loaded into a new cybernetic body, fresh off the rack. To speed things up, colony workers had modelled it after one of Leo's dragon frames, though made it more muscular instead of chubby.

To Kris, the process was nearly instant. Dreamless sleep became a rainbow of sensation as he woke up in the physical world, and opened his eyes. Everything felt right for the most part, but he was definitely heavier than he had been moments before. Looking down, he saw that his colours were correct, even the chrome stripe running down his back and onto his tail. Smiling, he caught sight of himself in a mirror erected nearby. He had to hunch down a tad to see his face in it, as he was easily 3 metres tall.

Steg and Leo were standing nearby, but let Kris examine himself in the mirror for a few minutes in relative silence. Eventually the big cyber dragon noticed movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see his friends. Grinning impishly, the big black dragon flexed an arm in their direction, and was pleased to see it bulge in all the right places.

"I have to hand it to everyone, they did a hell of a job with my physical body. Complements to the chef, and all that."

Leo chuckled and nodded, while Steg wandered up to squish his well padded frame against Kris, and hug the dragon close.

"We'll do that. Welcome to the surface world, Kris! You've certainly settled in right away, but don't push yourself. Things can be a little odd the first few times, and we'll be here to help you through it all the way."

Still looking over himself, he already got a sense that things weren't quite as they should be. He'd gotten used to being inflatable, and already kind of missed his rubbery form. Plus he didn't have a tail nozzle on this cybernetic body, which was a shame. Still, it was for work, not for play, and he could always go back home. During all his briefings, they'd made it quite clear that they really only had a day or two of work for him in a month, though he was free to come up to the surface whenever he liked. There wasn't much to do up there that wasn't more interesting in the digital world, so most colonists spent their time on the Net.

They spent a few minutes making sure he could move around without any issues, then stopped by a supply room to grab a few things. Tool kits, some power chargers, and bagged lunches were tossed in a couple of sacks, and the trio took off to the hangar. Leo was planning on taking Kris out for a quick survey trip, and Steg felt it was a good idea to come along for the ride.

Besides, he could check on some field units while he was at it, and save himself hours of driving over land.

Various individuals waved at the trio as they walked along the halls into the hangar, including those in artificial bodies. Not everyone had a heavily modified unit like that of Kris and the others, some were just artificial human bodies used for general purposes. But nobody seemed to care that a pair of dragons and a dinosaur were stalking the halls. In fact, many were quite happy to see the group, and offered to come visit their little quarter of the digital city later on that evening.

Kris had to stop and stare when they entered the hangar proper, tail swishing around as he crossed his arms and looked over the craft they'd be piloting. It was a double hulled lighter than air craft, with a lifting body design and recessed thruster pods all about the frame for control. Two huge elongated tubes with rounded ends sat side by side, with a gondola cabin mounted below it all. The lot was wrapped up in the skin of the craft, creating a uni-body frame that was both light and strong, and able to achieve speeds of several hundred kilometres an hour with minimal energy usage.

With a smile, Kris had to walk up and pat the craft here and there along the passenger cabin, and noted that the words Vector III had been painted in huge letters across the sides. Every ship had a name, and that one belonged to this particular beauty. Tail swishing from side to side as the group climbed aboard, it was clear that the chrome-striped pilot liked what he saw. The cabin was just a little taller on the inside than the group of cybernetic critters was, and they all had to watch out for their horns when it came to overhead lighting strips. Apparently plans were in the works to renovate the cabin to add some more headroom, as some pilots definitely needed it.

There was room up front for two extra large pilot couches built for even the largest frames, plus several passenger seats and workstations situated behind. The centre of the craft featured a little galley for preparing and storing food, followed by a storage bay. All the instruments were built into the shell of the craft, and everything else important was accessed above the passenger compartment, inside the gas envelope. It wasn't built for overnight use, but if need be the passenger seats folded out into comfortable bunks. All told it was a slick and well managed design, and this particular craft had logged thousands of flight hours without incident.

Steg busied himself storing their lunches and random gear in the galley, and decided to prep a little breakfast while he was at it. It was already mid-morning, but the big fellow believed strongly in not going off with empty tanks unless it could be avoided. Kris meanwhile sat by Leo and got shown the controls, which were much easier than most ships he'd flown in his time. After a few minutes of basic instruction, the two pilots got clearance to launch, and took the huge ship up through the hangar doors, and into the wide open skies of Epsilon Eridani 2, otherwise known as Erivate.

A course was set, checked, and set into motion by the autopilot. With no need to bother themselves with manual control at that time, all three retired to the galley for tea and various baked goods. Kris found consuming food a little strange with his altered sense of taste and mouth-feel, but he got used to it by the time he was on his second danish. Steg cuddled up with him once he had an arm free, and the two enjoyed a little close personal time together as the giant ship zipped along at a good rate of speed. Sure they couldn't balloon one another up to gargantuan sizes while they ate, but there was always dinner time later on.

The planned survey consisted of flying out a few hundred kilometres to a dig site, where automated systems were setting up a mine for various precious resources. They'd gather some samples, make sure nothing needed repairing, then set off to scan another sector on their way back home. Steg planned on doing most of the physical work, but Leo and Kris weren't above helping.

A few short hours later, Leo was cruising the large craft to a stop over the mine site, hovering a few metres off the ground above an arid plain. For docking in the field, engineers had made use of a tried and true method to keep this particular sort of aircraft nice and secure. Harpoons fired from various locations all around the exterior shell, slamming into the ground and winching the craft safely down. It settled onto small inflatable pontoons all around the passenger cabin, and that was that. Leo switched everything to standby, and popped open the doors with a few taps on a control panel.

Steg meanwhile fetched a few thick canvas bags to hold rock samples, and waved Kris along with. The two sauntered along the open terrain after stepping down out of the ship, and Kris had to stop a moment and look around. It was his first time outside, and you wouldn't even know that the atmosphere was toxic. Other than the fact that there wasn't much life on the surface other than plants, of course. The lakes and seas were apparently teeming with life, but nothing had ventured out onto land just yet. No doubt there would be a thriving ecosystem engineered by humanity long before evolution took care of things.

Stretching his various limbs, and being surprised at how good it felt despite being equipped with a synthetic body, Kris hurried along after Steg, who was busy loading up bags of rocks to take back to base. There they would be tested, to further determine just what kind of ores they would hopefully get out of the mine. Ultimately they were all useful, but they liked to know what they were getting ahead of time for optimal planning.

Steg handed Kris one canvas bag, and carried another himself, while walking up to a nearby automated mining vehicle that wasn't moving.

"I just need to see what's up with this unit, and we'll be good to go."

Kris leaned up against a boulder, gazing up at the huge machine. It was the size of a few houses bolted together, mounted on treads, and seemed to be equipped with everything from rock drills to scooper arms, and a massive bin to carry raw ore in. The machine would cut, bash, tear, and carve its way into any terrain, and extract anything of value for future processing. A small foundry was being assembled nearby as well, to process incoming ores into usable materials.

Steg climbed up a large access ladder and stepped into a utility cabin, and proceeded to run a systems check. A simple fault with the computer was detected, and easily fixed by swapping in some spare parts within the utility room itself, followed by rebooting. Everything came to life on the huge machine within moments, and sensing an operator aboard, it stopped itself from moving around and performing self diagnostics. Steg logged the problem, closed everything up, and climbed back down to the ground. Once both oversized synthetic critters had moved to a safe distance, the huge machine set off down towards the dig site again, performing self checks as it went. Steg chuckled and tossed a few burnt out parts into a trash bin near an outdoor workshop.

"Sometimes it is the simplest problems that shut these big things down. It will be better when the mine is fully online, as we'll actually have a crew out here to fix things as they break. For now, they send some of us out to look at the distant sites when things go wrong. Come on Kris, lets get these rocks back inside."

Kris nodded and headed back, patting his portly friend on the shoulder.

"Another job well done, it seems. At least you got a nice flight out of the deal on your way out to spend 10 minutes working."

That earned him a laugh and a playful swat upside one flank, as the duo headed back into the ship, and closed the door behind them. They found Leo putting together coffee and their lunches, as the afternoon had arrived.

"Welcome back you two. Come on in, and grab something to eat. We've got to keep these bodies of ours well energized, right? We'll set out on the return trip after we've had our fill."

All three didn't need much encouragement to sit down in the galley and help themselves to sandwiches and sliced up fruit, being very hearty eaters. In truth they didn't need to eat much at all to keep their power levels up, but it was excellent for their mental health. Satisfied with things, they were soon off into the skies once more, letting a suite of sensor systems scan the hills and bushes below for anything of use, as they accelerated towards home. Sensor data would be combed over and logged later on, and any follow up missions would be dispatched when needed.

It was late afternoon when they'd finally settled back down into the hangar bay, and offloaded their rock samples to the science team. Leo and Steg led Kris along another path to a different part of the large colony, near the edge of the large dome they currently inhabited. They passed into a housing section of sorts, and opened the door to a small living area. There was a big couch, some artwork on the walls, and a few cabinets along one wall. There was also a set of three storage racks for synthetic bodies when not in use, complete with all the systems needed to keep them charged up and ready to go.

Leo was already putting away a few things in a cabinet, while Steg waved a thick arm around the small room.

"Welcome to our home away from home. We stash our physical bodies here when we head back home to the Net. The decoration and such is to make for a comfortable atmosphere when we wake up out here instead of our preferred home. We're told it helps to make the transfer more positive, and less jarring. Seems to help, so we don't argue with the medical staff."

The big purple dragon smiled and patted at a newer looking cabinet and recharge station, which had just recently been installed.

"These are for your use. Welcome to the team! Now I don't know about you, but I'm itching to be back in a more suitable form, and have a little fun. Might as well get dinner while we're at it."

Kris beamed at the idea and welcome, and eagerly climbed into his rack to make the transfer once more. It was much the same as coming up to the surface in the first place. Climb in, punch in a simple command, and drift off to sleep. As his physical body powered down and locked itself into the storage rack, Kris re-emerged in his house, sprawled out on the bed. Blinking awake moments later, all he could do was stretch and yawn, rumbling at the blissful feeling of having stretchy hide once more.

Sitting up, the big balloon dragon found himself weighed down slightly, and looked down to find the curled up toony form of Squeak resting on his lap. Apparently the little lizard could appear at a whim, without so much as disturbing the bed sheets. Chuckling at the sight, Kris couldn't help but reach down and pat at the obviously comfortable figure, receiving a friendly rumble for his trouble.

"Hello there Kris, welcome home once again. I trust you had a lovely day at work? I have a message for you, passed along by your friends for when you transferred back over."

Smiling, Kris leaned back against a mound of pillows, and continued to pet the lizard happily.

"Is that so? Well I appreciate the personal delivery, Squeak. And your company, of course."

Yawning, of all things, Squeak uncurled himself and got to his feet, springing off Kris and onto the floor with the faintest of noises.

"You're quite welcome. You inflatable types are fun to laze on from time to time. Anyways, you did indeed receive a message. Steg and Leo want you to meet them at Cafe Rex for supper, whenever you're up and about. They also suggested to take a moment to adjust back to things after your transfer, should you not yet be 100%. Things can be a bit odd the first few times, that much is a known fact."

While listening, Kris had noticed that he was itchy, and was busy scratching at various spots on his squeaky hide. Something wasn't quite right, and he couldn't put a finger on it.

"Not a bad idea. Is being itchy normal? First time I've felt this here on the Net, at least as far as I can recall..."

Kris stood up to scratch his back against a support post at the top of the stairs, receiving some relief for his trouble. Squeak meanwhile could only grin and watch, before hooking a claw-tipped thumb over his shoulder in the general direction of the large bathtub on the other side of the room.

"You probably just need to get cleaned up. Remember, you were at work today! The mind remembers certain things, and certain connections form. Hygiene will likely remain a part of your life, even here on the Net. It is all good for your mental health, at the end of the day. So wash up, and go meet your friends for dinner."

A quick bath sounded like a wonderful idea, and within moments the big puffy dragon was filling the huge tub up full of warm and soapy water, and climbing on in. Wash-cloth in hand, Kris went about taking care of business, producing many happy dragon sounds all the while. Squeak watched on for a moment, before turning his head to the side as if listening to some sound only he could hear.

"Sorry Kris, got to go. Another resident is having technical issues, and requires my assistance. I think you've got things from here. Catch you later!"

With that, the little lizard popped open a portal in mid air, hopped through, and the lot vanished with a faint pop not unlike a burst soap bubble. Smirking at the theatrical departure, Kris finished wiping his rubbery hide down, and laid back into the well frothed water to relax for a bit. Rumbling, he finished off by activating a shower in the ceiling, draining the tub and rinsing off at the same time. Sure enough, he felt right as rain while towelling off, and definitely ready for a good dinner with friends.

Wearing nothing but a smile and the cloying scent of bubble bath, Kris emerged out into the Plaza and sauntered across it, making his way to Cafe Rex, and the welcoming arms of his lovely companions. Leo, Steg, and even Bruno were waiting for him, with a feast piled high on a corner table. Apparently the jumbo sized restaurant owner had taken the night off to come hang out with friends.

"Well hello there everyone. Fancy meeting you all in a place like this."

Kris shook hands with Bruno and exchanged hugs with all three, before taking a seat and looking around the patio.

"Just you three here? I figured Robin would have shown up. As a matter of fact, I haven't seen her in a few days."

Steg nodded and slid around the bench seating to cuddle up with the black & chrome balloon dragon, once more wrapping a big puffy tail up into his lap, to fiddle around with the nozzle located on the tip. Kris was overjoyed, and leaned into the attention, listening as the well rounded dinosaur spoke up.

"Yeah, she couldn't make it, and sends her regards. She was assigned another newcomer to look after for as long as it takes. That girl is married to her career, and loves every moment of it. Don't worry, you'll probably see her coming around again in a week or two, whenever she's done with the new arrival. Sooner, if whomever it is winds up wanting to see our slice of the city."

Kris nodded, understanding that sometimes your chosen profession could get in the way of your personal life. Still, it was her choice, and she obviously cared a great deal for what she did. Silently, he wished her well, and looked forward to the next time they could have tea together. Perhaps even a little intimate fun, should she be into large balloon dragons, of course. Rumbling as his sensitive tail valve was played with, he leaned in to smooch his big stegosaurus companion right on one of his big fat cheeks, earning a bright blush as reward.

"I'm sure she'll turn up again. At least the three of you were able to make it. Thanks for taking time to dine with us, Bruno. You too, Leo. Thanks so much for all the care and support these past few weeks. You've really helped me settle in, and I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to repay you all."

All three snickered, and made it quite clear that they were more than happy to help others settle in to the city. After all, it was enriching for them as well to have new people to interact with, plus any new ideas and experiences brought to their corner of the Net. They descended into random tidbits of conversation about progress on the surface, life within the city, and how they wanted to go hang out again inside the little private getaway Kris designed. As the feast was devoured by all present, Steg and Leo invited Kris to come visit their home away from home in the distant valley of giants, where they could hopefully really let loose. The big balloon dragon was happy to finally come and visit the place, and was soon swishing his tail around with delight as they had coffee and desert.

As they wrapped up for the evening, and finished tucking away a second round of deserts, all stood up to leave. Bruno excused himself from the excursion out to the valley, stating that he wanted to help close up shop for the night.

"Perhaps you'll get me out there another time, you three. I need to wrap things up and shut it all down for the evening. Take care, and don't be strangers! Come on back for breakfast tomorrow, we're going to do a waffle buffet."

Steg was practically hopping from one foot to the other at the thought, and they all agreed to try their best to attend the event. Kris accepted a bear hug from the huge T-Rex as they all departed, and once more thanked their gracious host for a lovely evening. With that, the trio of squeaky critters wandered out into the plaza, then set off into the wilderness bordering the town. As they walked, Leo popped a large thumb into his snout and puffed a few times, rapidly expanding himself up to a size where he was able to pick up Steg and Kris in each arm, before leaping into the sky with powerful beats of his wings, taking them over the mountains and into the valley beyond. Steg was obviously having a blast, and Kris was mighty impressed with the self expansion trick.

"You'll have to show me how to do that sometime, Leo!"

The big purple drake tilted his head down towards them both, and winked with a toothy grin.

"All in good time, my shiny-striped friend. The night is still young, and I want to see how big you can get."

Not knowing the answer to that himself, Kris could only blush and hang on to the large hand of his large purple companion, smirking over at Steg as they soared through the air. It seemed like they had quite the expansive evening planned out for him, and he was heading into it with all the zeal he could muster.

The sun set as they crossed the mountains and headed into the valley below, off for a night of kinky delights.

* * *

Rising into the noon day skies, towering higher by the moment, Kris could only flex a giant arm and stare as the squeaky muscles nearly gave out right then and there. He was creaking and groaning all over as his hide continued to distend and bloat, sporting a over the top muscular frame that looked like something out of a cartoon. Grunting, and sporting quite a lot of over-inflated anatomy anywhere you wanted to look, the huge dragon struggled to tug his tail away from those below. His nozzle was held fast by a gigantic dinosaur and yet another dragon, though both were currently dwarfed by the multiple kilometre tall mountain of inflated dragon flesh.

Steg and Leo were pushing Kris to his limits, and a bit beyond them if his over stretched hide had anything to say about it. He felt like he was going to burst, and wasn't quite sure if he was ready for such an event in his life. The duo were taking turns puffing huge volumes of air into the nozzle, doing their best to show the recent addition to the valley a good time. So far, the past few days had been absolutely wonderful. Now their guest was struggling to get away, or at least slow down the fun for a while. Steg tugged on the large tail and nearly made the giant sized blimp of a dragon topple over, and shouted upwards.

"Kris! Would you calm down already? We already told you we won't let anything bad happen to you, and that you're perfectly safe. Just relax, or you're going to pop yourself on a rock outcropping or something."

Leo patted at Steg and indicated that maybe they should pause for a while, as the last thing they wanted to do was make the big chrome-striped dragon feel uncomfortable with the situation. Releasing his tail from their grasp, the duo set about blowing themselves up large enough to look Kris in the eyes, and took wobbling over-blown steps around the straining figure to see how he was doing. He was definitely looking a little alarmed, like he was trying to hold himself together with sheer force of will. A trick that worked surprisingly well on the Net, as most of them had come to learn. Steg wrapped a big arm around his lovers shoulder, and hugged the big black balloon close, making him squeak and groan ominously.

"See? Your body can take it. And even if you do burst, you'll be fine. Hell, you might even like it. Only one way to find out, right?"

Kris shook his head no, trying to speak around his bloated cheeks and jaw, managing to hiss out a few words around a lot of escaping air.

"No, not yet. I'm still getting used to these kind of sizes you guys... I've only been at this a few days, and you've been doing this for decades. This is almost like sensory overload..."

The other two giants could only smile and nod, eager to keep up their fun, but at the same time not wanting to force Kris into anything he didn't want to do. Instead they relaxed and tried to cuddle up the straining mass of dragon, trying not to accidentally burst him with too much pressure. Kris began to relax and wriggled about with the attention, sighing with contentment... only to slip out of their grasp and go zipping along with a powerful yet of air zipping out of his snout. They tried to grab at him as he gassed out, but they missed snatching him out of mid air.

Instead they gave chase, hopefully not stepping on anyone below, and eventually caught up to him as he finished deflating in a heap just beyond the mountains, in the open plains bordering the city. He was awake, but clearly dizzy from the experience, as the two giant blimps carefully let out some of their own air to collect Kris and check for damage. Fortunately other than some scuffs and scrapes, he'd avoided any punctures. It was easy enough to take him back to the valley, and duck inside a convenient cave to relax. A few good puffs into his tail got the somewhat deflated dragon back up to a normal shape and stature for the general area. 500 metres was considered a cozy standard around these parts, and one Kris was all too happy to reach.

His head stopped spinning as the air began to flow, and he could only rumble with pleasure and rub at himself as he stretched up back to normal, looking utterly content with the world.

"Thanks for the help, you two. Now then, what the hell happened?"

Steg reached over to pat Kris on the knee, while Leo decided to go get some lunch ready.

"You gassed out, or accidentally vented your air. It happens sometimes when folks aren't fully used to how their bodies work. We should have warned you not to let out too much air with that sigh of yours, especially when under extreme pressure. Don't worry, you didn't burst or even get scraped up. You are pretty dirty though, from scuffing up against everything."

The big dragon chuckled, dusting himself off with a giant hand, all the while cuddling up with his favourite bloated dinosaur. Steg had invited him to move in after about a day of touring the valley, which housed hundreds of other giants living out here full time. Steg wasn't entirely full time, as he liked to come into town to get a quality meal on a regular basis. His well rounded figure certainly supported his appetite, that much was clear. Kris was all too happy to accept the invitation, and returned the favour by granting co-ownership access to his Plaza house. They were even working on the logistics of setting up a direct link from some part of the valley to the little pocket-airfield Kris had set up within his home. It would certainly be a convenient way to get two and from their favourite place to eat.

Leo returned with a tray loaded up with lunch, and sat along side the happy couple upon a couch big enough even for the three of them. They ate large hearty bowls of chowder, suitably enlarged to properly feed a colossal balloon animal. Steg called up a large entertainment window to be displayed before them all, so they could watch something while they ate. A news and information program popped up informing citizens of the colony that an immigration wave was expected, and plans were underway to further expand their networks to help deal with the expected increase in traffic. Talk was going on about setting up hamlets around their main digital city, so folks had more choices about where they could live on the Net. Word was getting out about this shining new colony, and people from many worlds wanted to come make a life for themselves in Epsilon Eridani. Citizens and spokespeople within the colony structure made it quite clear that all were welcome!

Lazing back to pat full bellies, and randomly cuddle with one another, the trio of happy balloons stretched out and relaxed for a bit, basking in the warm glow of a satisfying if haphazardly ended inflation session, plus a delightful meal among friends. After a while Leo got up and grabbed a large red gas tank marked only with the symbol for infinity. Apparently he had more expansive fun in mind.

"Don't mind me, I just feel like having a good blast to round out my afternoon. You two are welcome to come if you'd like, or I could leave you crazy love-birds alone for a few hours. Your choice."

Kris moved to answer, but Steg playfully squished his muzzle shut and grinned at the big purple dragon.

"We'll join you in a bit. I want to cuddle my dragon for a while and maybe do stuff to him."

Kris snirked and rolled his eyes as his snout got released, waving at Leo as he departed.

"Work work. Catch you later, Leo."

The purple dragon grinned impishly at them both as he walked off, tank already hissing away, and his figure visibly distending as he walked out of sight. No doubt they'd hear him go off before long. Steg meanwhile dragged Kris up nice and close to cuddle the muscle balloon up against his rounded figure, smooching him on the nose for good measure.

"I'm so glad you decided to move in. You're so much fun to have around, and make us all very happy."

Kris smiled and returned the kiss, and a few good puffs of air as well, stretching the dinosaur out even rounder, and driving him wild.

"You all make me happy too, Steg. I'm happy to be here, and happy to be living with you."

Groping at one another and making out quite passionately, Kris realized that he was one lucky guy, with one hell of a great lover at his side. Steg pushed him to try new things, but not too hard, and was gentile and kind. Plus he could hold all the dragon seed Kris had to give, so that was a plus. A loud explosion outside made them both jump slightly, and was followed by a rush of air and purple dragon confetti blasting into the room around them. Apparently Leo got the satisfaction he was looking for. No doubt they'd see him again at dinner, whenever they made their way back into town.

It was all you could eat taco night at Cafe Rex, and Steg intended on eating until he exploded. Possibly literally.

Laughing at the purple scraps still drifting in on the breeze, the two cuddled up on the couch and switched the entertainment feed to some random animated program or another. Kris was happy to stay there all afternoon, squished up tight into a sloshy spherical mass of dinosaur belly, like the best pillow in the universe. Here he would stay, and here he would thrive. He considered himself to be a very lucky guy, and was happy to be alive.

And that was more than enough in his books.

The End

-Tombfyre 2015