Chapter 13: September 1st, 2350

It had been a week since the bombing. Mizu had finished up the first day of work in a forgotten world of Earth. The seemingly abandoned landscape was little more than a place of refuge for the millions that remained. Most of the great cities were reduced to ghost towns by now. In the mountain city known as Tamalpais Francisco, the small enclave is a hub where many Earthlings still try to enjoy what’s left of the planet. Consisting of box-like structures woven into Tamalpais Mountain’s bedrock, thousands of people are enclosed but still trying to gaze out of the wasteland that is Earth. Not far, one of the T’rintar clan’s ancient dreadnoughts hovers over the sky as it deposits probes that clear the atmosphere of heavy pollutants. The city once consisted of hundreds of thousands. Now, it has been reduced to only 1% of its former glory. Away from the red and orange oceans of the Orange Muck, the people have done their best to live with what’s left.

For Mizu, Earth is a new beginning. Arriving only a day ago, the mayor of the small town already had a job for him, which was quite evident. Carefully cleared of the toxic contaminants, Mizu felt that it was still not enough. While Earth had regular access to water, the toxicity was extreme and had to be constantly cleared over and over again to ensure that the Orange Muck didn’t get into its system. The irony was that even though technology constantly improved in the water purifying process, the most significant factor was that the population simply left. What remained of the human population, at least in this area of former California, were the people who were determined to call Earth their home.

All was not lost, though. The Itreans were cleaning the environment. The exchange was more for the benefit of the people of Earth than anything else. Some of the humans welcomed the sight of the T’rintar clan. Their efforts to clear up the environment would be a lengthy process that still continues to this day. The general attitude of the Earthlings towards the Itrean clan was more welcoming here than even Batrice. It was an eye-opening experience for Mizu as the T’rintar clan announced that the humans lived as members of the T’rintar clan and were granted citizenship status. Within the moment that Mizu landed on the world, he became a citizen of the Itrean clan.

The day, however, was a busy one. Mizu didn’t even want to think of it as he walked in regular civilian work coveralls. The gravity felt hard on him. After a couple of days on Mars, he realized how heavy Earth’s environment was. In time, though, he knew he would be used to it. He arrived at his apartment. It consisted of a long rectangular room that was jutting out of the many sides of the mountain. The passageway underneath the bedrock still had a nice window where he could look out and try to enjoy the outside view. It was a view that he was all too used to by now. He stuck his augmented hand on the door panel, registering his arrival. His apartment room door slid open as he stepped inside.

The apartment was not anything grandiose, but being one of the few people on Earth, he could enjoy a place that was seemingly bigger than his barracks room back on Fort Batrice. It was essentially one huge room. It had a living area and a king-sized bed on one side, a kitchen near the middle past the door, and a restroom and shower in the back.

Mizu took a deep breath before the door slid closed behind him. He felt tired and exhausted as he walked over to a large green sofa. Without much thinking, he began to take off his coveralls. A part of him felt like placing them in some wastebasket. Even with the proper safety equipment, what he saw earlier in the day disturbed him.

“Ugh...” Mizu said to himself. “I bet even the shower feels gross. Those scrubbers just seem tainted with that muck shit...”

He shook his head and carefully removed his coveralls. As he got his boots off, he placed them by the side door. He swore that his former UHN boots had something orange on them.

“I can’t believe the people still live in this dump of a planet,” Mizu said to himself. “Fucking idiots couldn’t take care of their own world until it turned into that. Can’t even believe this world was originally like Cebravis once.”

He put his hand to his head as he tried to push out any bad thoughts. The memories of the last several days were rough on him. Some got so bad that he had to stop thinking about them as he took off his coveralls. Standing in his shirt and underwear, he placed the dirty clothes in the basket so they could be safely cleaned again.

“Computer, are there any mail messages available for me?” He asked out loud as the living room display turned on. The computer system showed only one. It got him excited, but he could tell it was just from the Martian military command. He walked up to it, seeing the message displayed.

“Hmmm...” He said as he started to read it. “These are your disclosure messages that you have been dishonorably discharged from service ... yeah ... tell me something that I don’t already know...”

He walked away from the display as it powered off. A part of Mizu felt that his life was turned entirely upside down. Exile was not how he had pictured everything while he stared out the window. He sat down by the wall and peered out into the abyss of brown landmass, dark, thick gray clouds, and the very distant signs of the orange ocean. It was too difficult to see the star of Sol as it was trying to set. What was remaining were other mountain city lights that began to turn on.

“I feel like they should have just executed me...” Mizu said. “I really tried, brother. I made mistakes ... just like you told me in the past. I didn’t learn ... I didn’t...”

He was interrupted when he heard the pinging sound of the doorbell. He turned his head to the door as it naturally made him go and investigate it.

“Odd ... I wasn’t expecting to have anybody here,” he said. “This area doesn’t have many people. Probably just a neighbor...”

Mizu stood up and walked over to the door. He practically forgot to put on his shorts. The man ran down and grabbed the only pair he had gotten during lunch. He started to put them on again as the doorbell rang again.

“Hold on ... hold on,” Mizu said, quickly putting on some gray flexible shorts. He walked over to the door and tapped the panel to open it.

The moment the door opened, Mizu could see two faces he never thought he would see again. He almost recoiled a little bit in surprise, being totally speechless at first.

“Mizu...” Li’lo greeted him with a smile.

“Itrea’s grace,” Jenta said as she put her hands together. “It is you...”

Mizu was looking at both Li’lo and Jenta. They appeared very differently than they had in the last couple of days. Li’lo was wearing a pink and green dress with red flairs. It almost appeared to be a silk-like fabric material to it. Even her tail had little golden rings that wrapped on it.

Jenta wore a purple and green dress. It naturally rode down and almost completely over her tail. It shimmered from the overhead lights. Thanks to the lights that beamed from on top of her, even her face seemed to be brighter. She had two unique rings wrapped around her neck. Gold chain-like strands flowed from the shirt and the elbows of the dress.

Both Li’lo and Jenta had an innocent look to them. It seemed to melt into Mizu like a knife through butter. Finally, he had to say something.

“Li’lo ... Jenta...” Mizu remarked. “Both of you ... I wasn’t expecting to ever see you again...”

Jenta was first as she practically ran to him and gave him a hug that was tighter than he had ever felt. The small Yutilian was so short that her arms wrapped around his waist. Her pointed snout pressed to his stomach as she closed her eyes.

“She had been wanting to see you so badly,” Li’lo said with a couple of clicks in her voice. She put her scaly hands to her cheeks. “She looks so cute.”

Mizu felt a sense of relief upon seeing them. It was the most pleasant surprise that he had ever received. It was challenging, though, with Jenta clamping down on him as he tried to bend down to their height level. He smiled at both of them.

“I guess it’s obvious that both of you two were released as well,” Mizu remarked.

“Yes...” Li’lo explained. “They confirmed that the recordings were altered. The UHN admirals gave us a formal apology for our imprisonment. We spent a couple of days explaining things that we were not mistreated by the Martians. I have fully forgiven them and told them that we had a hero that saved us from Fort Batrice.”

Mizu went and embraced Jenta. He could feel her small frame despite the clothing that she wore. Li’lo simply placed his hand on Jenta’s shoulder.

“Umm ... come in, come in,” Mizu told them, standing up. Jenta released her hold on him before looking up at him.

“Yes...” Li’lo replied as both of them entered the apartment. The door closed as he got a better view of the two alien women. Their appearances alone were beyond extraordinary. He could even see their tails were slowly wagging like they were beyond overjoyed.

For a short moment, Mizu could feel a deep attraction along with shock at what his brain and body were telling him. These weren’t just women; they were the women he rescued. They were no longer prisoners wearing prison clothes, but looked like natural, faring women, alien or not. They were beautiful. He had to shake a little bit of those thoughts away from himself.

“I ... uh ... I apologize if I’m a little exhausted,” Mizu told them. “I just got started with work today. I didn’t even know that I would have visitors.”

“You have a job here?” Li’lo asked him as both of them turned to look at him.

“Yep. I work with the water purifier systems. Sucks, really ... it’s something that requires constant maintenance. I have to scrub and replace the filters, which are hard and disgusting. My brother would have been far better at it than I was.”

“I know...” Jenta replied with some sorrow in her voice.

“This is your new home?” Li’lo asked.

“Yes, it is,” Mizu explained. “I deliberately choose to be a little bit far from the general population here, but I apologize that I don’t have much. I literally left with nothing but the uniform on my back when I got here.”

“It is alright. I know that you sacrificed much for our benefit.”

“Aww ... I was really hoping that you two would be alright,” Mizu said as he gestured them to have a seat by the couch.

“We are ... thanks to you,” Jenta said.

He practically crashed onto the couch as Li’lo and Jenta went and had a seat beside him. He looked at each of the women. Jenta was the first to lean her head to his chest. Her actions alone made Mizu naturally wrap her arm around her.

“You seem happy to see me, too,” Mizu commented.

“We made it our goal to see you again,” Li’lo explained. “We owe you our lives. If you didn’t help us, then we would still be in the prison cell.”

“I admit ... I haven’t been keeping up with the news. I don’t know much about what happened at Fort Batrice.”

“As far as I know, the alliance is still going when I spoke with Ifra and Kane. Batrice hasn’t left the UWA, regardless of everything ... ummm ... at least from what I know. Your actions have helped bring awareness to the people. Gillan has accepted the fact that their history was being altered and is making the appropriate changes.”

“And Batrice?”

Li’lo seemed to have a discouraging look. “They ... will not accept it. They feel that their history is correct and that anything from everywhere else is false information.”

“Unfortunately...” Mizu explained. “I’m past that point of really caring too much about Batrice now. I’ve done everything that I can, and if it isn’t enough, it isn’t enough.”

“As long as you are alright, Mizu...” Jenta said.

“She was so eager to see you again,” Li’lo added.

“Yeah, and I’m probably covered in that orange muck crap too ... I’m sorry. We do our best to undergo cleaning to get it off, but I don’t know if there still might be any more on me that might hurt you two.”

“It is alright. The orange muck isn’t really harmful to us, Itreans, as you humans. It can’t hurt us ... although ... I am happy to see that it is being cleaned out.”

“Yeah, Earth ... ehm ... Itrea is not exactly the best of places.”

“It is our birth home,” Jenta said. “One day, it will become paradise again.”

“Well ... that’s one way to look at it as something positive. Yeah, I can’t argue with that.”

“Have you ever considered checking out the other worlds of the T’rintar clan?” Li’lo asked.

Mizu shook his head. “No ... it’s ... too much of a step in a direction that I can’t do. To me ... I’m happy to be at least here and well.”

“Me too...” Jenta added.

Mizu placed his hand on Jenta’s as her small, scaly hand wrapped around his. He could feel a gesture from her posture and actions that she wanted more than what she was implying.

“Have you heard anything from your family?” Li’lo asked.

Mizu shook his head. “No ... in fact, UWA security basically told me this morning that all messages to my mother, father, anybody in my family have been blocked. It was being blocked by Batrice itself.”

“Ah...” Li’lo remarked as she lowered her head. “I am so sorry.”

“I don’t know what to say about it either. As long as they’re alright, then that’s all that matters. I just know that I had to go and rescue you two ... no matter what.”

“Why?”

“I can’t stand women being abused by bullies. I once punched a kid in my school that was mistreating a friend of mine ... all because of her gender. Got me sent to detention for a week, but ... I knew it was worth it. She was my girlfriend for a little bit until she finally broke it off.”

“Is she a mate?” Jenta asked.

“What? Umm, what do you mean?”

“Do you currently have a mate?” Li’lo asked.

“Ah ... that’s what you mean. No, I’m not married. Nope, I’m just like the other sixty percent of men in the UWA ... single. At least you Itreans have plenty of men to grab.”

“Not enough,” Jenta replied.

“She is right,” Li’lo said. “There isn’t enough of you humans to go around ... but we learn to sometimes adapt to the circumstances.”

Mizu took a deep breath as he wondered where this was going. The fact that the two spent resources to get to him meant something he hoped would come.

“Heh ... I can only imagine,” Mizu said with a smile.

Li’lo went and reached her hand to Mizu’s. She was not like Jenta in that she did it slowly and methodically. Jenta was more forceful and obvious, but Mizu could clearly see that the two were enamored with him. He gripped her hand and looked into Li’lo’s eyes.

“Umm ... there are some questions that I wanted to ask of you,” Li’lo said. “It is very important that you answer them.”

“Oh?” Mizu replied.

Li’lo did her quick nod. “Yes, it is. We wanted to ask of you in regards to mateship ... between a human and an Itrean. Ifra taught me what it is that I should ask when I found my potential mate one day ... she taught both Jenta and I. I ... um ... well ... now I don’t know what to ask...”

“Mizu, we want to be with you,” Jenta answered for her.

“Yes ... yes. That is what we want...”

“Heh ... I can’t argue with that,” Mizu replied. “But, I imagine I should ask the same thing in return. I got the implication from the Itreans that they mate for life or stay married forever. Is it true?”

“Yes...” Jenta replied.

“Mostly,” Li’lo tried to explain. “We are together unless the other goes insane to cause pain to the other or passes away.”

“So ... you would be asking me to agree to ... become your husband?” Mizu asked.

“Yes...” Jenta said as she took her clawed hand and gently played with his stomach.

“Yes,” Li’lo answered.

“I don’t know enough about Itrean customs,” Mizu questioned. “But, I do wonder if they allow two women to marry a man?”

“Ah! It can ... well ... it depends, actually,” Li’lo remarked as she seemed to think about it. “Generally ... no, we offer what is called ... monogum ... monogany...”

“The word you are looking for is monogamous.”

“Yes. Our society generally believes that it should be two individuals that announce mateship, but there are some exceptions to it. Most of it, of course, is due to Zilik’s Disease, but it also depends on religion as well. For example, you already know about the fact we consider ourselves tren. Jenta is basically my sister in all but blood. In some religious practices, it does allow a male or female to take multiple mates if all members of the mateship agree to it.”

“And announcing the desire to become a mate is really all that is needed?”

“Yes,” Jenta replied. Li’lo did a quick nod to him.

“I see,” Mizu continued. “Ummm ... what about your jobs, though? Won’t that sort of thing mean me going with you everywhere or you staying here with me?”

“The choice would be yours,” Li’lo explained. “Mateship means that we work together in everything. Mateship means being together in love and harmony. Our desire is to find a mate and be with that person till the end of our lives. Jenta and I will be together with you on Itrea for as long as you live. We will not abandon you.”

“What about Ambassador Ifra? Won’t she miss you two?”

“She will, but she understood this far in advance when the T’rintar clan allied with the human race. We must continue our species as a whole ... all of us. If that is to happen, the humans must be happy with our sacrifices. Mateship means that everything is shared together ... regardless of the cost.”

“And you, Jenta. You don’t have a problem being with me?”

“I desire to be with you,” Jenta replied. “I want to see you happy. You ... gave things for us so that we are here.”

“We know that you are having a hard time with this new life,” Li’lo explained. “You sacrificed the ability to fly so that we may live. We know that it wasn’t easy to kill your own people for us. It wasn’t easy for Jenta either ... We want to be able to move forward ... together.”

“I agree...” Mizu said. “I think the one thing that I do have is questions on children then. I know that humans and Itreans can have children together.”

“Yes, it is very easy. The operations are free from the T’rintar clan and only require five minutes. It would end up altering your sperm...”

Mizu waved his hand. “I don’t need a whole surgery explanation. My point is that I do want to have children. The question is, do you? Both of you?”

“Yes!” Jenta replied with a hint of excitement.

“I do,” Li’lo added.

“But it still works the same way, right? I mean ... I haven’t seen the porn propaganda ... I wish I did ... umm...”

“I can assure you that it works very much the same way,” Li’lo answered.

Mizu thought about it for a couple of seconds. He couldn’t deny what he was feeling, so he confessed it to them.

“With everything that’s happened in the last couple of days, I want to find balance in my life again,” Mizu explained. “I felt breaking you two out was one of the craziest things that I ever did. I see two women in front of me that want to be my wives. I can tell you this ... I would be insane to tell both of you no. Yeah ... I accept ... all heartedly.”

“You do?” Jenta asked as a big smile appeared from her pointed snout.

“Without a doubt.”

Jenta seemed to get very excited. She began to make a series of chirps to Li’lo. She, in return, made a couple of words that also sounded like chirps and warbles back to her. Their feathers seemed to rise slightly as they briefly nodded to each other. They both got off of the sofa in unison. Li’lo gestured to Mizu to stand up, which he did.

“Then let’s get started with it then...” Li’lo told him. “Mizu, are you ready?”

“For what?”

“Mizu, my name is Jenta,” she told him. “I am looking for a mate.”

“Mizu, my name is Li’lo, tren of Jenta,” Li’lo added. “I am looking for a mate.”

“Ummm ... I don’t get it,” Mizu replied.

“You are supposed to say your name just like we addressed you. Then you ask that you are looking for a mate.”

“Oh ... oh...” Mizu understood. “Jenta, Li’lo, my name is Mizu. I am looking for a mate.”

“Do you wish for us to be your mate?” Li’lo asked.

“Do you wish to have Jenta and tren Li’lo as your mate?” Jenta added.

“Yes. Umm ... do you want me to be your mate?” Mizu asked.

“Yes,” both of them said together.

“Then, it is done,” Li’lo replied. “Mizu, we are your mates, forever till the end of our natural lives.”

With that said, both of them grabbed each of his hands. It took him almost in complete surprise at how Itrean marriages were made. There was no ceremony and only the exchange of words. The simplicity of it was something that made human marriages seem like an outright joke in comparison. There was no turning back from this anymore. He wanted to be with them now. His dreams had come true, and he would give anything to have the next step. He could feel their clawed hands as they embraced his. He looked down at both of them, especially Jenta, who seemed the most excited to see this happen. Her tail was wagging hard, but there was one thing that Mizu knew that he needed to have done first.

“Heh ... I ... I’m speechless,” Mizu explained to them. “I was expecting so much more regarding this process.”

“All the rules and laws respect our union,” Li’lo told him. “It is respected so highly that mated soldiers will fight together in the same battlegrounds, raise families together, work together, and fight together.”

He knelt down to them. He wanted to take them then and there, as Jenta was the first to leap up to him. She pressed her elongated snout to his neck as Mizu naturally began to caress her. It was the first time that he truly explored her body. The smooth white scales were slightly rougher than those of human women, but she was still soothing to the touch. Her body also consisted of small feathers that covered other portions of her frame, making her soft. He began to kiss her on the neck as she seemed to chirp a little bit. When she pulled back a little bit, Mizu applied his lips to the tip of her snout. She again began to chirp a little bit more. It naturally made Mizu pull back a little bit as he could see Li’lo watching them closely. She had an inquisitive look on her face.

“Am I hurting you?” Mizu asked her.

“No ... just different,” Jenta replied.

“It isn’t your fault,” Li’lo explained. “We understand that you humans ... kiss when it comes to love.”

“You ... wait ... Itreans don’t kiss?” Mizu asked, confused as he held Jenta close to him.

“We do ... just not that way,” Jenta explained.

“What do you do?”

“Ummm...” Jenta seemed like she couldn’t answer, but in one way. She took her elongated nose and began to do what she had been doing before. She slightly opened her long mouth towards Mizu. Her small, light, serrated teeth gently pressed against his neck. Mizu got the gif of it as he held perfectly still. The tiny teeth poked but did not hurt. He closed his eyes until Jenta released her bite. Li’lo was next as she got next to him and opened up her mouth. She pressed her clawed-like hands to his arms as she leaned in and did the same thing. Even though Li’lo’s snout was smaller than Jenta’s, the modern Yutilian’s facial jaws had fewer but more prolonged and sharper teeth. She was also conscientious as she gently bit down on Mizu’s neck. He remained calm, feeling the many teeth poke against his neck. It lasted for a few seconds as he could feel the hot breath hit him.

Finally, both of them released their hold and looked at him. “That is how we ... kiss...” Li’lo answered. “Of course ... there are many ways that it is done.”

“Heh...” Mizu said as he put his hand to his neck. He noticed that they did an excellent job in their act of passion. No blood was drawn, and there were no signs of any damage. Technically, they were actually quite powerful, even for their small sizes. With their powerful claws and teeth, he realized that they could very easily rip him up if he weren’t careful, but that sort of thing wasn’t on his mind as Mizu’s hand pressed forward and began to feel the fabric of Li’lo. It naturally went to her chest.

Li’lo began to close her eyes as Jenta watched. She could see the hands go towards the breasts of Li’lo as she quickly noticed that she lacked nothing. Instinctively, Jenta carefully took one of Mizu’s hands and pressed it to her chest, almost as a way to feel satisfied.

He could see both of the women breathing hard. Instincts began to drive him more and more as Mizu went and tried again to kiss Jenta on the tip of her snout. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. She began to chuckle again in her own way, but she was adapting quickly. Eventually, it began to stop as Li’lo caressed Mizu’s hair.

He broke the kiss with Jenta as he looked at the albino face. She was adapting to it relatively fast. Mizu could tell that she was starting to enjoy it more and more. A part of him wanted to rip the clothes off of both of the women. If the world came to an end tomorrow, then it wouldn’t have mattered. A part of him told him one thing he needed to do. He had to tell them, but it gave him an idea.

“There’s one thing that I wanted to do before ... we do it,” he explained. “I ... want to take a shower. I feel unclean. I don’t mean to sound like the person who isn’t ready for sex, but I feel like I’m dirty from everything today. That orange muck crap ... well ... one industrial shower doesn’t feel like enough.”

“Do both! Do Both!” Jenta said as she happily clapped her hands together.

“Mate and clean,” Li’lo replied.

Mizu felt his heartbeat more and more as he knew that good things were going to come out of this.

“Yeah, why not?” He asked.

With that, Mizu headed toward the shower. As he walked past the kitchen area, he could see that the two women were beginning to take their clothes off. It didn’t take much for him to take his shirt off, placing it on a small rack. His mind was a flutter as he began to think about everything happening. His adrenaline and hormones felt like they would shoot through the roof. The idea of two women being at his home and being with him started to make him happier and happier. Never did he ever imagine the concept, but there it was in front of him.

It would be an adjustment for him as he considered it more and more. He began to take off his shorts, feeling the elastic strap slip down below his waist. He realized that he wasn’t only exposing his bare chest to them, but they were doing everything they could to get naked. In reality, the extravagant dresses that both Li’lo and Jenta wore were seemingly complex, but we’re only a simple layer of clothing. They required both of their assistance in taking off their clothes. Jenta’s dress was clamped to the back, making it hard to reach, but they were there together. Li’lo already had her clawed hands undoing the clamps holding them together.

Mizu debated whether he was going to sit and watch the two women get naked or if he should go ahead and get the shower running. On the one hand, watching a person get nude was little more than one of the most exciting aspects of a romantic atmosphere, but he felt it would be even better if he jumped in the shower and started to get everything ready. If he stopped now, he would most likely make love to them right then and there. The idea of warm water flowing down both of them was more ideal to him. In the end, he felt it was better to let them come to him and have the warm water flowing at the same time.

He took his underwear off as Li’lo took a glance at Mizu’s nakedness. Semi-rigid, he could tell that Li’lo was doing her best to disrobe with one of Jenta’s eyes looking at him simultaneously. As he started to go back into the restroom, he could see Jenta’s dress coming off. He could see it easily fall to the floor, revealing the whole torso of a reptilian woman. It was starting to make him become more erect. Even if she weren’t human, the concept of getting naked regardless was what mattered the most.

Mizu stepped into the restroom. The well-placed tile floor consisted of smooth marble and took the entirety of the room itself. The toilet, faucet, and shower area were clean and beautiful to look at. Compared to Fort Batrice, this room was meant for more affluent couples. With the ugly outside environment and the fact that so many had long abandoned the world, many of these pristine apartments were available for those with even the lowest incomes. He couldn’t argue with his fortune, even with the hard job, but this was fleeing his mind more and more as he stepped towards the shower section.

He opened the sliding door and stepped into the shower stall. While he had only a fleeting glance of this place when he first came to it, the marble floor had a large center drain. The water would naturally all come to the center and flow out. The stall itself was so big that a family of people could bathe in it. There was a two-seat marble-lined bench that was in the stall as well. It even had a large overhead display so that couples or individuals could watch shows and wash at the same time. For now, he decided to go ahead and keep it off.