Mermaid Gigantes
by StarCross
The Former Part
The world government of the planet Demiterra was not prepared for the catastrophe befalling their citizenry. They sent their distress to their delegates in the planet Largostar III, which was the home for the meta governmental organization that resolves the affairs of the 7-Arc Starcluster at the southeastern "spoke" of the galaxy. When they mentioned this to the other extraterrestrial delegates at their favorite drinking bar/cafÇ, they too expressed the same problem on their home planet, and the ones sitting at the table behind them also revealed that they had the same problem. When half of the planet of delegates also confirmed having the same problem, a special assembly session was called for all delegates to address the growing problem of their star cluster: globalized inbreeding.
They should have seen it, but ignored it since they were arrogant on the technology of genetic engineering, eugenesis, and selective breeding. It was obviously due to the introduction of the advanced personal flight system, or techwings, and everyone who was able could essentially fly anywhere to the planet. In matter of decades, there emerged a single dominant language. Cultures were blurred and assimilated, ethnicities normalized, and nations merged into a few administrative units in nearly a hundred years.
Oh but then, what about robots, cyborgs, and artificial intelligence? Even such technological singularities would face the same problem of their biological counterparts, and they too must seek new data to process and assimilate in order to produce better versions of themselves.
And so, the 7-Arc Starcluster unanimously approved the creation of the Galactic Genetic Diversification Program, the GGDP, in order to counter globalized inbreeding that could ruin entire races and sentient networks. Ten years had passed to create the necessary administrative offices on Largostar III, but they needed uninhabitable planet or two for the mates of similar genetic structures to meet and mate. They selected Meta Fifth of the Meta Star System, and in a span of one hundred years they terraformed it into a Gaia Type 3 planet complete with large oceans and vast tracts of deserts, forests, tundra, and savanna.
The 7-Arc Starcluster would expect willing and adventurous volunteers, but they still need more of their planetary citizens to emigrate. Those who would be volunteering for the GGDP would be given, at a minimum, a comfortable and posh apartment home in the metropolis district, a salary of 10,000,000 7-Arc credit points per year for up to five years, free health care, dental care, eye care, and any type of unique care for parts too embarrassing or too gross to mention.
They don't want just vagrants and the low-lifes of society, but smart and moral people to help seed an entire generation of racially mixed children. That was why a test was developed specifically for each planet to filter out any disruptive persons. Of course, the ulterior reason was that each planet saw Meta Fifth as another Largostar III. They want to suffer as little embarrassment as possible when any of their own or descendants act up.
Fifty years had passed, and Meta Fifth had not only become a bustling civilized planet, but also one of the most economically profitable planets in the 7-Arc Starcluster. Already one more planet was designated for sole use of the GGDP, while competing star systems were positioning themselves to terraform lifeless planets in order to cash in to the lucrative program for their own long-term longevity and greed.
In the 7-Arc year of 5992, Demiterra was about to send their tenth fleet to Meta Fifth under the GGDP. Around one hundred individual male and female human-types filed into a shuttle that could fit a thousand, because it would be used to transport other races once they were dropped off. They took along with them anything they wish they could bring, and size was not a limit, so to speak. Also accompanying them were the mainframe servers that contained a portion of the planets' AI systems. It came in one refrigerator-sized box, and, to the surprise of other planets, had to be fed once a day due to the organic components residing in it.
The space trip was so comfortable that no one would notice the thrusters being fired on and off and any changes in gravity. Of course, the shuttle was already way past the orbit of Demiterra. In fact, it was orbiting one of its moons. The shuttle wasn't a particularly splendid shape. Rather, it looked more like a pear than a sleek dagger. But the pear analogy wasn't so far off since this shuttle was actually grown close to the star system's biggest gas giant, Granterra, and it was hallowed out and accented to fit the Demiterran's world-cultural style.
Traveling to Meta Fifth wasn't even noticeable either. Protected by the thick dark hulls, the shuttle created its own singularity to perform a Dark Space Jump through the fifth and sixth dimensions, which would instantly place them in the massive catching stations in the orbit of Meta Fifth's sole moon. From there, the Demiterrans and their traveling A.I. construct emptied out of their ship and boarded a traditional sleek sailing shuttle that headed down to their destination that took many long hours. By then, their star-hopping shuttle would have disappeared to receive maintenance for its next customers.
The sailing shuttle to the planet, to their surprise, was tailored specifically for their own comforts, though it still retained some of the organic rib-like lining. Meta Fifth prided themselves in painstakingly making sure that each of their visitors and new citizens feel at home, and so no video monitor would require one to bend their neck in unnatural ways, and the controls were not unergonomically located five feet away from the body.
Already, the Demiterrans were talking to one another about their prospective mates. In the GGDP, no one was told who their mate was and what they looked like. The preselection and pairing process could take days or even years depending on the preferences the volunteer submit, and many of the information they could send were optional. Those who even attempted to view their mate before the key First Meeting were immediately banned from the GGDP, deported back to their home planet, and were forced to pay a fine equivalent to 50,000 credit points. Such cases were rare, as many wanted to be surprised than spoiled.
Kana Wiltzchen had selected "no preference" in the questionnaire of the GGDP back home. She didn't care who or what her mate was. She just wanted to get away from the life she had there. No, she wasn't abused, raped, or lived in abject poverty. In fact, she had a good life as a middle-upper-class woman who until recently she caught the love of her life cheating. Having enough of anything that reminded her of that moment--and that meant her entire planet--she volunteered for the GGDP program.
A man next to her moved his eyes towards her. "You don't look happy."
"I'm not," she said.
He extended out his hand. "Bram Vulpa."
"Why must you give out your name when we'll never see each other again?"
"Just wanted to get to know you before I live with an alien. Who knows? We might bump into one another again."
"I don't plant on mating with the likes of us."
"I'm sorry to hear."
Kana grabbed his hand before he retracted it. "It's Kana Wiltzchen by the way."
"Nice to meet you. Our friends in this shuttle are gabbing how handsome and beautiful their mates might look, but man they are in for a surprise. How do you feel about this?"
"I don't care."
"You don't care?"
"I just want to settle down with some strange creature and get it over with. I don't care if he's the Adonis of the galaxy or some parasitic worm of some toxic swamp."
"Actually, I hear those 'worms' are highly profitable to breed since only they can secrete a special mucus that is a key ingredient of metal-growth vats. And they aren't toxic, because otherwise you won't be able to give birth to them without significant harm."
"I can retire rich if I can help produce its offspring."
"They really sought after by both genders of many species. There is even a famous Kit female who would only breed exclusively with unusual but profitable species, both as a DNA donor and as a host."
"She must have one hell of a medical bill."
"Actually, she is quite a healthy fox."
"You're seeking to mate with someone like her?"
"That would be nice, but I would like to be surprised. I'd like to forget everything about my divorce... that bitch. So what's your case? Or maybe you don't want to tell me."
"Something like yours."
"I see. Well, it looks like we're about to land. We'd better get ourselves psyched up."
The sailing shuttle was caught by a jumpship, which then took them down to the Elm Metropolis Spaceport. Kana's shuttle was loaded on a bio-robotic cart that followed her to the shuttered door to the First Meet Space designated solely for the participants of the GGDP. Demiterrans staffed at the spaceport handed them translator earpieces, palm-sized Data Readers, and then gave them general instructions on meeting their new and unique mate. They should not stress about cultural issues, for once they have paired up all cultural information would be displayed on their palm-sized Data Reader.
Now, there would be cases that the mate would utterly reject each other for a variety of reasons. If one or both reject each other, then they were allowed to live temporarily in a hotel until another was selected from them. This rarely happened, as all alien species were generally adventurous in the common definition, and break-up rates was the lowest in the entire star cluster.
"Have fun and enjoy your new and adventurous love life in Meta Fifth!" cried the Demiterran spaceport staff.
The shuttered gate rolled up, and Kana and her fellow Demiterrans poured out into the First Meet Space at the same time as other alien species of various shapes, sizes, and texture. Many were humanoid, while some were insect-like, and some had to travel in "dry suits" due to their aquatic nature and had to have their skins or scales moistened regularly. There were those who found each other immediately, and after an exchange of greetings they were gone. Some were taken aback in their first meet, but eventually shrugged their shoulders or equivalent and went off. And a few couples found themselves so attracted to one another that they were rendered passionately speechless. They could not kiss on sight as it would be potentially offensive to the other new couples. The GGDP preferred that they learn about themselves first.
Kana looked on her Data Reader and it said that she was to search for some person named Mather Madison, which probably was just a name approximation of an alien tongue. Underneath the name was a barcode that she had to manually seek out on the nametags, which were supposed to be clipped on their clothes or something biologically equivalent. She grumbled as to why they didn't use a beacon code, but even if such technology were used, she would still have a hard time navigating her way through the thousands of intelligent alien species.
There were those who approached her with smiles or something, but realize that it was just an honest mistake. She gravitated to human-looking ones, only to have others "beat" her to them. She even stopped in front of a tank holding a red fleshy worm.
"I guess it could be you then," she said, regardless if it could talk. "Anyway, my name is..."
"Hey, what the hell are you doing?" said a fox-like woman. "This one's mine."
"I'm sorry."
"You think you have the innards to host these you simian-types. These things would rather turn themselves white and inside out than crawl inside of you. Hmph!"
The fox-woman activated the tank's hover system, which then followed her back to her long organic limousine. Was she the woman Bram was talking about?
Speaking of which, he had not seen Bram anymore. In fact, almost all of her kind were now gone and probably enjoying getting to know their new mates.
Kana decided to let her mate find her, so she sat on the bench watching the couples matching up until almost everyone was gone an hour later. Everyone. No one was there waiting for her. Kana waited for a couple more minutes, until a gruff, feline, and bipedal janitor came by with his scrubbing and massaging brush.
"Were you with that party?" he asked.
Kana nodded.
"Huh? What does that mean?"
"I am with that party."
"I see. It's a shame that you didn't get paired up."
"I'm supposed to meet a Mather Madison. You're not him, are you?"
"Nah. I already got a wife, who looks like a dog to you Demiterrans. A real cute bitch."
"I don't find that funny."
"Really? I guess it was a bit racist of me to say that. Anyway you should wait at the hotel and let the GGDP sort this mess up."
"I should."
"Take care now."
Kana now headed outside to the street. It was night out, and she could not see any cabs out here. She did not know what a cab would look like, so she hailed the first organo-car she saw, which she soon found out was completely automated. The door opened, and she stepped in, while her robot luggage cart put her belongings in the trunk.
"Wait! Wait!" yelled a woman. "I need a ride too!"
"Hold position," Kana told the cab. "Jump on in."
"Thank you so much!"
With the door closed, the automated cab drove out of the spaceport complex towards the city. The woman Kana sat next to was indeed humanoid, but she was very tall and had curly aquamarine hair, and her fingernails and eyes were of the same color. The sparkling scaly dress she wore was also aquamarine. Of similar style, she wore gloves that extended past her elbow and shoes that covered her stocking feet. Her exposed skin of her shoulders and face seemed somewhat greenish, but it was probably because of the neon lights. Undoubtedly she was so beautiful that she made Kana blush and become entranced by her singsong voice.
"Where are you going?" Kana asked. "I don't mind really. I'd like to see the city."
"Me too!" said the woman. "But I can't because I didn't find my mate."
"Your mate? Wait, are you participating in the GGDP?"
"How did you know?"
"Um, a lucky guess? Who are you looking for?"
"I'm looking for someone named Kanyr, but it reads Kana Wiltzchen."
"That's me! Then you must be Mather Madison!"
"Yep! But you can use Myspphl Mnniph, which is what they call me in Marieno."
"Er, I can't pronounce that."
A woman? Kana thought. This isn't what I expected. Or perhaps 'he' looks like one.
"ADJUSTING COURSE," said the cab. "DESTINATION, ISLE VISTA CONDOMINIUMS."
"Eh? Where are we going?"
"We're going to our new home," replied Mather. "They must really plan ahead. Wow, finally I get to be with someone of similar height."
"But you're taller than me."
"Don't let anyone tell you that you are of short stature, even if you're one-foot tall."
"And on top of that, aren't you a woman?"
"Woman? What's that? Is it something like a Falka or a Maam? That is only decided after marriage when we have children. Oh, I forgot! Only I can seed you. Or maybe you can seed me. Let's see what this Data Reader says: Demiterran, a species that has a 'male' that seeds and a 'female' that gives birth. That is sure a strange species. Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to insult you."
"That's okay," winced Kana. "We're all new to this. By the way, what are you?"
Kana looked at her Data Reader. Mather's species were called the "Mermaid Gigantes" from the planet of Marieno in which less than one-fourth of the land was solid land, but divided up almost evenly across the world, and only four large islands served as main continents. Her species had only one gender.
That data was ten years old and sorely needed updating.
"Sorry," said Mather. "My planet just sent the data updates a week ago, and hasn't shown up on the public records."
"Are you the only here?"
"It's just me this year."
"Just you?"
Mather nodded.
"I hope it's safe to mate with you," said Kana. "However we are to do this considering that we're... you know."
"I'm sure I am able to impregnate you! Am I allowed to talk like this?"
"No, that's fine. Gee, meeting people of different cultures is hard."
The condo they arrived was situated between an artificial creek and a deep lake complete with a beach. Once inside, their new home was already furnished with familiar furniture for both partners. Kana saw the familiar square table and wood chairs, while Mather had her seashell-like couches, an organically styled home theater system, a round bed, and wallpaper decorated with art coral texture. There was one bedroom and one large living room to go along with the dining area and kitchen. The sole bathroom had one shower and an unusually large bathtub.
It was fairly easy to order delivered food for Mather, as she was only familiar with seafood, although she was willing to try the food Kana ate such as steaks, bread, and corn. She found them okay, but a little tough on her teeth. Kana didn't mind Mahter's food, which she gorged, and the cartilage bones of the shark steak were not problem to her.
After dinner, Mather helped as best as she could to unpack Kana's things until she fell asleep on the round bed. It was too soon for either of them to sleep together, so Kana, having anticipated this, unrolled her sleeping bag that she soon crawled in.
She didn't sleep for very long. She was awake worrying on how she would mate with a species that looked undeniably female. Appearances were deceptive, and Kana wondered if Mather would change forms before or during mating (that latter of which would be quite terrifying). She could have a retractable penis or sperm tentacle, or could become a man if immersed in water of a certain temperature or the partner's pheromones. Or perhaps she was hermaphroditic, or maybe she could impregnate others with her fingers, toes, tongue, or even her nose. Kana poured over the Data Reader and found no helpful information or her new mate, let alone her home species and her planet. All she could find out was that Marieno wasn't a frequently visited place. Traders rarely go there, and when they do it was usually for the planet's rare coral and processed chemicals.
She was a bit frightened of the experience, and cursed herself for selecting "no preference". Yet it was comforting to sleep in a condo apartment like this. She did like seafood, loved to have pet fishes. She even had a large aquarium or two back at home, and loved to scuba dive. Perhaps the GGDP found out. It wouldn't be anything new. The GGDP would always find out in order to minimize trans-planetary conflict.
Still, she did not know what kind of preferences Mather selected that would end up paired with Kana. Kana would have so many questions to ask her about her species and planet, but she wasn't sure if it was wise to ask directly. Then again, none of them were very ignorant of their own culture. If none were to understand one another, it would be likely that they would separate and return. After all, differences in culture, however small, was the leading cause of interbreeders separating.
So on the next morning, she woke up early to jot down on paper on the questions she needed to ask her new partner, but she had to do it in secret. Fortunately, Mather was already in the bath when Kana wrote down what she needed.
She prepared breakfast, which was mainly a seaweed specialty fit for both their diets. Not wanting to wait any longer, Kana barged into the bathroom almost with no disregard. Mather was swimming in her tub, naked. With her wet, she was even more alluring. Mather made no effort to hide her nude and feminine body. At least to Kana, so far her mate was clearly a woman.
"I'm almost done," said Mather. "We mermaids like to have long baths in the morning and in nights."
"At nights?"
"Sorry. I must have made you worry. If we don't have our baths, our skin gets pretty dry. I didn't have my lotion on me, so after I arrived in the spaceport I had to use a public shower."
"That's okay. Here, let me get you towel to wipe off the water."
"No you shouldn't."
"Why not?"
"Just wait for me at the table."
"Okay."
Kana headed into the kitchen feeling troubled by the fact she might have offended her partner. Several minutes later, Kana appeared dressed in a blouse, pants, socks, and long gloves. Only her face and neckline were generously exposed.
The two ate quietly. Once they were finished, the faced each other, and said in unison:
"I have some questions!"
They blinked.
"You too?" Kana asked.
"Yes," blushed Mather. "I am a little confused about your gender culture of Demiterra. Was it offensive of me to call it gender culture?"
"No, it's all right. We're both new at this and new to ourselves, so let's take our time."
"I guess we could since we're getting paid for this."
Nervously, they sat across from each other reading off their own notepads questions regarding their planetary cultures. Mather had a tough time understanding "gender culture" of there being a seeder and birthgiver, and how roles are defined when one was born. She felt it terrible that these women with "horns" between their legs attacked those without them without any sensible provocation, and that the birthgivers, or normal women, were systematically and ritually oppressed.
"Well, we are weaker than the men," said Kana.
"The horned women?" said Mather. "I don't understand how that can be. I read about the culture of Demiterra that there are those who are suitable for strength and assassinations."
"Those are exceptions, but understand we outnumber the men by a significant margin."
"So it all evens out in the end, right? That seems right."
"Any other questions?"
"Not really, although I'm surprised your planet has oceans. And your landmasses are bunched up unlike our planet."
"Speaking of your planet, I still haven't been able to access the updated information. I take it your planet is more aquatic than the others."
"Not really. It's only one-fourth land, but spread out."
"And your people. What are they like?"
"Just as your people call me. We are Mermaid Gigantes."
"But our impression of mermaids have fish tails."
"If we had those, we wouldn't be able to reproduce. But we do love water, and swimming is almost our daily ritual."
"Do you have webbed hands and feet?"
"Of course!"
"Can you show them to me?"
Mather took one of her gloves off. Her fingernails were a mix of neon purple and aquamarine. Her hands were webbed, but not grossly so. Quickly, Mather puts her glove back on.
"We do have finned ears," said Mather.
"Finned ears?"
Mather moved her hair to expose the ears. They were beautiful finned with a tinge of aquamarine. They could fold out and in like wings, but only by manually moving them.
"They don't, um, become erect when you're aroused, do they?" Kana asked.
Mather blushed. "Yes. That's why grow our hair to hide them. We would also wear earmuffs or hats."
"I see. Um, your nipples also become erect when you're aroused."
Mather nodded. "Does yours?"
"Yes. Do you get wet at the vagina when you're aroused."
"Of course. If we have a mate we're interested in, we exert our pheromones."
"So do we. Does yours work on me?"
"I don't know. However, not everyone of my kind can exert strong ones."
"What category do you fall in?"
"I exert weak ones. I'm sorry if it isn't working."
"It's all right! Mather."
"Yes?"
"Why do you always keep yourself gloved and covered?"
Mather sighed. "Only mating couples are allowed to have skin contact with one another."
"Is that a cultural thing?"
"Yes, but there is a good reason. I will tell you when you are ready to mate."
Mather was beginning to look worried.
"Maybe we should get to know each other more," said Mather. "You know, through this 'date' thing couples do."
"Do couples on your planet do something like that?"
"We do, but not like what you have at Demiterra."
"I suppose. They say you can learn another person's culture through observing their behavior in a social setting."
"Then let's do that!"
"All right! Let's strap on our techwings and head into the city."
"Techwings?"
"Have you heard of them before?"
"No. Wait, I remember! My planet banned them because it would discourage swimming."
Flying with techwings was like a bit like being carried by insect, but also like dancing. One had to perform certain poses to activate common functions, but one did not have to be overdramatic. The techwings could recognize subtle movements of the muscles through the harness, and based on that it could accurately gauge the flyer's intent.
Most techwings were of V4 or Vernier 4 type, which meant they had four spike-boosters over the shoulders and two over the pelvis for balance. It was powered by an exotic energy source called White Fire, which was regarded as the perfect anti-matter. It allowed for sustained flight for almost twelve hours.
Kana hated flying with techwings not because it was hard. She just hated the traffic. Nonetheless, she flew enough to know how it worked, and was able to teach the neophyte Mather the nuances of flight. Once she got the hang of it, Mather remarked that she was now "flying like skyfish."
The inner city was studded by a crowd of high skyscrapers to accommodate flyers. Each skyscraper had a safety net on each floor to catch those who fell for any reason. Accidents rarely happen though, as traffic directing was all done by the Head Aerial Traffic Controller, one of the most stressful jobs of the 7-Arc Star Cluster.
Kana grumbled as she flew slowly, while Mather was enjoying every minute of the sight and the flight. Eventually, they touched down on a "walk level" to personally see the shops, theaters, and all myriad of entertainment gathered from many planets. Docking their wings, Kana stretched her arms and kicked her legs to relieve herself of stress.
"Finally!" she said.
"You don't like flying?" Mather asked.
"I hate it. You're always bumping into people, they're yelling at you, and you're always late for your job. So much for the wonders of flight. We thought we'd be free once we took to the skies, but no, things got a lot more stressful."
"Well, that could be why globalized inbreeding was happening because of techwings."
"But your government banned it. Your planet shouldn't be in danger."
"We can still inbreed since many islands are close in comparison with your islands. I'm just here as part of a goodwill mission."
"I see. I guess that's one reason they sent you here."
"I came here of my own accord actually."
"Really? What's the reason?"
"I ran away from my lover."
Ran away, thought Kana. Just like me.
"Have you ever gone shopping?" Kana asked.
"Once or twice."
"Do they have malls where you come from?"
"We too. But I came from a relatively poor family."
"Well, since we receive a generous stipend from the GGDP, we should splurge in order to get to know each other better."
"Oh, I don't know. 10,000,000 aren't really a lot."
"We could always make it up if we get a job here."
"Sorry. I've been raised to be thrifty and not be lavish. I'm sorry I didn't live up to your expectations."
"No it's okay. I guess besides differences in culture, we also have differences in class. I guess you can say I was spoiled."
"But I want to shop with you. I may not be buying a lot of things, but I would like to see what you do."
"That is fine as well. I insist though on buying some things for you."
"I already have an ample wardrobe."
"Just some. My treat, okay?"
They went in together, but kept a short distance from one another. Even though she was gloved, Mather was hesitant to hold hands for fear she might rub the skin on her face with Kana's.
The entire mall district was bustling mainly with interbreeding couples, some of who had recently touched down on the planet a week or just this morning, while there were those, for reasons understandable, had been living on Meta Fifth for many years with their mixed genetic offspring. A few were non-participant workers catering to the countless couples, mainly the shopkeepers and android tenders.
There were so many stores that it took almost five floors. Many of them were clothing as it tailored to the culture of the immigrants, while some had to be segregated at different locations in order to avoid conflict. While many stores came from and tailored to inhabitants of a specific planet, the mega-department stores, owned by a coalition of investors from an array of planets, attempted to tailor to a significant portion of the 7-Arc cluster inhabitants--most especially the richer ones. They were as large as the mega-marts during Demiterra's olden days, where such stores would run to the ground and destroy local "mom-and-pop" general stores.
Now these mega-departments sought to expand their sales by dominating local markets in various stores systems. They were powerful both politically and commercially, and likewise they were also a generous sponsor of the GGDP for the sole purpose of increasing their profits on the long run. They were seen as the fashion cartel, and sometimes they rivaled the transportation, mining, energy, and restaurant industries. It would not be unheard of if entire star systems bowed underneath their influence.
Kana had money, but enough to shop at the mega-departments. She didn't like the cavernous space, and had a tendency to get lost. So she took Mather to many of the smaller shops trying to pick out clothes that match her culture, but she would always ask the keeper if it would offend anyone or make her look ridiculous. Simple things such as color could mean a myriad of things, and there were stores that saw gold and jewelry as marks of shame. However, each shopkeeper were understanding cultural intermingling, and had often said it was all right as long as the customer do not wear the offensive dress or accessory to their home planet. If they weren't tolerant, they wouldn't be able to do business on Meta Fifth. In fact, many came here to sell many of the offensive garments in question in order to send back money to home.
Kana, bought little, such as pants, tight blouses, a few sweaters, a swimsuit, and scuba gear in the event she decided to go diving in the planet's oceans. Mather, bought even less, and it was mostly gloves and stockings. She was always browsing clearance sections, and asking the storekeepers if there were additional discounts. Mather had haggled with a few shopkeepers, who oddly enough enjoyed a good haggling. Yet overall, Mather emerged with her purchases in hand with a regretful feeling that she was ripped off.
"It's no big deal," said Kana. "We still have lots of money left."
"I get yelled at by Maam if I spend frivolously," said Mather. "I am sorry if I am a disappointment."
"It's all right! Really."
"But you wanted to see that women show at the Broadway Line."
"I don't wish to make you feel any more inadequate. We could always go back home and watch television to enjoy our company."
"I guess."
"Still, you wouldn't mind if we ate here."
"I wouldn't mind."
"Don't worry. With so much variety of food, we're bound to find a good meal at a decent price."
Turned out to be more difficult than expected. After flying again with their techwings to the restaurant district, but Kana and Mather were just overwhelmed by the sheer amount of choice. It was just like the clothing and accessory stores, where there were almost a hundred thousand small and independently-operated restaurants tailoring to a extraterrestrial planet's culture and sub-culture nestled between the large mega-restaurants, such as those of the Golden Arches Syndicate, and their sub-brands.
"How do we know which ones won't kill us?" Kana asked.
"The Data Reader!" Mather answered.
The two checked, and were presented a long list of restaurants and foods compatible for them on the palm-sized device's screen. They looked up and saw the long lines of many of the popular and three-to-five star rated restaurants. There were even drive-by kiosks, mainly from the mega-restaurants who could naturally afford. Chasing one of them also created a line.
"What do we do?" Mahter asked.
"Don't panic!" Kana cried. "I have a plan! We each pick a restaurant that's compatible with both of us, and when one of us are close to order, we contact one another through our Data Readers and see what we would like."
"What if we reach the order at the same time?"
"I'm sure it won't happen."
"Okay. Where should I go?"
"Don't worry about it. Just go to place you and I will like."
"I'll try to get something cheap and good."
They went their own way. Kana picked the closest Golden Arches kiosk, and then looked back to watch as Mather boarded an escalator to the upper level. Though there were a good number of tall aliens in the area, Mather seemed to stick out due to her height--at least in Kana's mind.
"She looks pretty today," Kana smiled.
But erotic thoughts both probably and improbable gave way to hunger. Kana patiently waited in the line along with many others, and there were those who looked like her but were not necessarily Demiterrans. They could have significant internal and cultural structures that could differentiate them from her. There were indeed species that had the same exact chromosomal pairs and body type, but their planetary culture would be so vastly different that they would be considered alien. There would be hundreds of cases such as this.
Fifteen minutes. Her stomach was growling, and she wasn't alone. She could hear hecklers among the line. Few tried to bribe others to cut in line, and there was a reptilian child in a turban offering to sell his food wares to the standees. Kana, with a heavy heart, rejected his offer on the possibility that his grasshoppers-on-a-stick, whatever it was, would be poisonous for her. Then he went on to sell some snacks to an insect-simian hybrid.
How many times did she see hovertrucks unloading prepackaged food meant for the fryers and grills? She counted almost ten until fifteen more minutes later she finally reached the counter.
"Hi, may I take your order?" said a pimply and purple-furred entity.
"I'll have a number twelve," she said.
"Sorry, we just sold out."
"Okay then; number eleven it is."
"Would you like to super--oh I'm sorry. Our system says we just sold out the last one second ago."
Kana went down the combo meals, and the people behind her were yelling at her to hurry up.
"Is there anything that you haven't sold out of?" asked Kana. "Besides water?"
"We do have the vegan combo meal, number thirteen," said the young cashier.
Kana sighed. "Fine, just get me two. One with Beppu and one with Lemonade."
"Two coming up. Here's your number, and please wait at that railing over there until we call you."
More waiting? Kana would scream off her head if she wanted to. With her receipt number in her Data Reader, she hunkered off to the railing with all the other disgruntled and hungry patrons. She thought that city life at her home planet was bad. Elm Metropolis seemed to be worse.
Grumbling, she wrote down her complaints on her Data Reader and sent out the electronic telegram to the Elm Metropolis's commerce department. She received an autoreply stating their apologizes and they were happy to announce the expansion of the food court mall coming next season.
"They should have built it right now!" muttered a nearby patron. She was apparently not alone in voicing her complaints.
She thought it would be better if she ordered delivery, but it would not possible since this was lunch rush hour. Even if they could deliver to her exact position, it would take some time.
Ten minutes later, she finally received her meal on a single tray and walked into the seating area. There she finally realized that she had gotten the wrong type of food Mather. Although a veggie burger sandwiched between eggless buns was harmless, it was not nourishing for a unique being such as Mather. Resting her tray carefully on a planter, she dialed up Mather's Data Reader.
"Mather?" Kana asked. "Where are you?"
"I'm just about to order," said Mather over the Reader's speaker.
"Hey, I already ordered your food, but it really isn't your type. I'm sorry that I didn't get you something hunted from the sea. I was too hungry to think straight."
"Oh, that's all right. The restaurant I'm at is offering a two-for-one special of shark seaweed salad."
"That's good. I'll go find us a table for us to sit at."
"Good! I'll track by beacon."
"Um, is there anything I must know about eating with or without you?"
"What do you mean?"
"Would I offend you if I started without you?"
"That's okay. If you're hungry, please go right ahead."
They hung up.
Always apologizing, the both of us, she thought. I guess it comes with meeting someone from a different planet.
Now to look for a table. It now seemed very difficult as almost every one in her sight was taken. She looked past the section and saw a building housing enclosed booths for those who wanted to eat privately, as she had heard from traders and cultural anthropologists that for some planetary cultures eating was an intimate affair shared only with family and love mates. The temptation to go in one was strong, but there was a payment fee and the fact that there were heavily shrouded aliens who insist on dining in enclosed booths. The police were there to enforce such accommodations.
She looked round again. If she went to a different level or section, there would be a couple or a party leaving right as she went. During her decision-making, she munched on some fries and kept on hearing someone calling her name, so she thought. There was someone standing, and waving his arm. He could be shouting some foreign word that sounded exactly like her name.
"KANA WILTZCHEN!"
That was her name. She squinted her eyes and saw Bram Vupla. He was beckoning her to come sit with him at a table that could seat five, but the journey there was arduous. Many aliens inadvertently flaying their horns, tails, wings, tentacles, proboscis, and flashy headpieces stood in the way, but Kana held fast to her food tray containing two meals as she leaped through like a ballet dancer and a hurdle runner.
"Finally you made it!" Bram said.
"So I have!" huffed Kana as she sat down. She soon realized that they were not alone. Sitting across from her and next to Bram was a strange humanoid with dark rough skin, an impressive fiery red mane for a hair, and a black hard skin on the top his nose that could be hard as a horn. He had yellow eyes like a beast, and covering them were feminine half-moon spectacles.
"How do you do," said the humanoid. "I'm Krisk Fira from Nuvalc. Your people flatter us by calling us 'red griffons'."
"Kana Wiltzhen," said Kana. "As you can see, I'm a Demiterran like your friend Bram."
"Friends we are, but we are co-mates."
"Co-mates?"
"More like co-seeders."
Joining them abruptly was a humanoid looking very similar to a Demiterran, save for her larger than usual eyes.
"You miss me?" she said. She then proceeded to passionately kiss both Bram and Krisk before setting herself down.
"Don't put it the wrong way!" Kana said. "I'm just a friend of Bram's."
"She's telling the truth," said Bram.
"I hope so," said the woman. "These two fine men are mine."
"So it is," winced Kana.
"Anyway, the name's Phim Emi. It is a pleasure to meet a female who doesn't require two fathers."
"Hold on! You mate with these two?"
The trio before Kana nodded.
"I suppose you haven't heard of my kind," said Phim. "Let me explain..."
Phim stated that she was a Sil from the planet Embriga. The men outnumber the women two to one due the very reason that Sil women produce eggs in their womb without any DNA in them. The reason for two fathers was because during the first mating stage, the egg accepts the sperm and becomes its own, so to speak. The first father could not impregnate using the DNA that was already settled in the egg, for the egg develops an anti-sperm mechanism from the first father. This then allowed the second father complete the copulation process in the second mating stage, where the other half of the child's DNA would be accepted.
Her reason for being here was a little more practical. Globalized inbreeding was not one of the primary reasons for her emigration. Embriga was locked in a bitter civil war that could traced back to the males desire to collect women for their nations. Nowadays, it went under the label of economic disparity.
Kana would have been more interested if not for Phim's extending forked tongue that picked up her cricket squash every once in a while. Not only that, Phim's eyes sometimes moved in separate directions, and she even used her reptilian tongue to clean them. She was then given a harsh reprimand from her two husbands, indicating that cleaning her eyes was just like picking her nose, and it was rude and gross even from where she came from.
"What about double-y chromosomes?" Phim said. "Our eggs have already developed mechanisms to protect against that. A Y-Egg will only accept X-Sperm, while an X-Egg will accept either an X or Y-Sperm."
"But you're mating with two different species," said Krisk. "Do you think that won't produce any stillbirth or birth defects?"
"The GGDP should have already seen though that," said Bram.
"But that's only through simulations. Even if a healthy child is theoretically possible, the only verifiable data would be if the child was actually born."
"There have been healthy births of mixed-heritage Sils," said Phim, "but half of them were sterile."
"It's really one big experiment if you tell me."
"You're not up to this?" Bram asked.
"Of course I am! I'm voicing some of my concerns of our children."
"Playing the devil's advocate, huh?"
"What?"
"Don't worry," Phim whispered to Kana. "Those two became fast friends when they first met with me."
"By the way," said Bram, "we haven't seen your selected mate."
"Me?" Kana said. "Is it all right to tell?"
"We're all not secretive species," said Krisk. "And if your mate's culture forbids you to, we won't tell."
"Well, her approximated name is Mather Madison," said Kana. "And she is a Mermaid Gigantes from the planet Marieno."
The trio nearly choked on their food and drink.
"A mermaid!" gasped Bram.
"Shh!" Krisk hissed. "Do you want to discourage her?"
"What?" said Kana. "What's wrong?"
"Ah, it's nothing!"
"Tell me? Is there something I should know?"
The trio looked at each other, and decided that Kana should know.
"We heard tales," said Phim.
"Of the most dangerous..." said Krisk.
"...and secretive species of the 7-Arc Star Cluster," said Bram. "I've heard that they hire mermaids as assassins and bodyguards due to the potent poison they can inject from their fingernails, although spit and pheromones were also used, supposedly. I also heard that Marieno used to exile their prisoners off their planet, and those prisoners were set free to do assassination contracts. That forced the planet to send their own assassins to kill them off."
"My uncle and my uncle are stellar traders," said Krisk. "I heard tales from them that there was merchant who raped one of the mermaids, and when he got home he spread their poison through his wife and eventually the entire planet. Ninety-nine percent of life on that planet died off in a matter of fifty years before the Species Protection Agency saved the rest from extinction."
"I heard from my friends in Embriga that a mermaid secretly emigrate to planets to actively seduce and steal their women," said Phim. "Then again, a few of my friends were lesbians, and the women who go to Marieno never return. I hear it is a lesbian's paradise."
"This is a first time I have heard of single-gender species," said Krisk. "Not counting the worms though."
"But they could asexually reproduce."
"They do need that Kit celebrity as a host," said Bram.
"That is true."
"Hey, wasn't there a legend that you could get immortality by consuming a mermaid's skin?" asked Krisk.
"I'm not sure," said Bram. "There was similar tale back at my home planet."
"No, I heard that eating a skin would poison yourself in sheer agony that you'd want to commit suicide in the most horrible way," said Phim.
"What about their panties?" asked Krisk. "I hear they fetch a high value."
"Oh, no. Those are worse. They could wipe out entire crops if you let them dry in the air--so I heard."
The three realized that they were talking about Kana's mate, and finally stopped talking.
"Sorry," said Krisk.
"It's just that tales of mermaid are alluring and mysterious," said Bram.
"Did she tell you about such things?" asked Phim.
"No, she didn't," said Kana. "But she seemed hesitant for me to touch her skin directly."
"Maybe... there was a good reason she didn't."
"What does she look like?" asked Bram.
"She looks like us, but a lot taller and with aquamarine hair."
"Is that her?" Krisk asked.
Kana and the others turned and saw Mather towering above almost all and heading to their table. She didn't have the naive and shyness on her. Rather she looked a lot more serious, but she didn't look angry. She sat with the others with her tray of two servings of shark seaweed salad shoved along with the others. Kana and the others remained quiet for a while until one of them spoke.
"These are some of my friends," said Kana. "Bram Vupla is a Demiterran like me, Krisk Fira is one those legendary 'Red Griffons' of Nuvalc, and Phim Emi is a Sil from Embriga."
"How do you do," said the trio. They bowed instead of offering their hands for shaking, as it was sufficient enough. Mather bowed in kind, possibly not knowing that the trio was wary of her.
Kana, after finishing two servings of the vegan combo meal, helped Mather eat the shark seaweed salad as best they could, all the while they ignored the careful and silent stares of Bram, Krisk, and Phim for almost three minutes.
"Um, you don't mind if we excuse ourselves," said Phim. "I still have a lot of shopping to do, and show for me and my boys to catch up to."
"We don't mind," said Kana.
"Terribly sorry. I wish we could talk more. After all, we are horny individuals."
"Horny?" said Krisk.
"As in virile," said Bram.
"Ah, that. I thought we all had horns."
"We'll be on our way," said Phim, apologetically.
The trio took their trays and left the able, leaving Kana and Mather to finish their meal without speaking to one another.
They threw away what they couldn't eat, and immediately headed over to the techwing docks. From there, they flew back to their condominium home, and once landing Mather suddenly said:
"I'm sorry."
"Sorry about what?" Kana asked.
"Your friends."
"You eavesdropped?"
"No, but I can tell that they were talking about me."
"Don't believe them. What they say are just rumors without merit."
"But they do! I can poison others."
Kana eyes widened.
"I didn't want to tell you," Mather continued. "Because if you knew you won't want to be with me."
Kana had dearly wanted to comfort her tall mate by stroking her cheek or touching her shoulder, but couldn't as such simple gestures would drive her away.
"If didn't know all about you, I would have left," said Kana. "We shouldn't be keeping too much information from ourselves if we want to copulate."
"You say it as if it is our national duty."
"Perhaps you're right. I really want to know more about you even though in reality... I only came here to escape everything that reminded of my life in Demiterra."
"That's why you came here for?"
"I chose no-preference on my application, although... I am really glad I have met you Mather. It may not be too long that we have known each other, and even if we don't bear children in the end, I am still glad that we have met."
Mather smiled. "The GGDP does have a way of unearthing your private preferences."
The two spent the entire afternoon in the living room watching the video monitor, or a television in some cultures, during which Mather revealed more about her species and her planet.
"True that we are secretive," Mather said, "but we're not as dangerous as people say we are. We're just very conservative, that's all."
"And the poison?" said Kana.
"It's a defense we have evolved millions of years ago. Depending on how we are born, we can induce pain, paralysis, or both by extending our fingernails. However, we can kill people if we eat a certain type of fish, seaweed, or coral pill, but that had been forbidden by the planetary government. The rumors of our poison can wipe out almost all the species of an entire planet is a gross exaggeration--at least that's what our government says."
No different from the others. Governments have a tendency to keep secrets from its own people, and Kana knew well that Demiterra had a sordid history regarding that. Mather and her kind could be kept in the guard, but then again she did have a naive child-like outlook about her, and she came from a backwater town.
Thus, not Kana and anyone else had any right to lay all the blame of the corruption of a planet on a single individual like Mather. She knew because she herself received dirty looks from other species about Demiterra's unneeded military involvement at a habitable desert planet.
"Hey, I think I seen that woman before," said Mather.
Kana turned to the TV, and saw the fox-woman she had seen at the First Meeting Space at the airport. As a matter fact, she had seen her grace various tabloid magazines and tabloid shows on the television as a very vain and rich woman who willingly acted as a host to exotic yet valuable parasites and worms.
Even her recent arrest made headlines as she was accused by the Galactic Office of Trades and Tariffs and the Species Protection Agency for illegally selling her "offspring" to the illegal biotrader market. Before even the planet's authorities could arrest her, agents from Mozzo (her home planet) embassy detained her and quickly took her to their building for safekeeping as best as they could. Already at the footsteps were the reporters from the mass media syndicates and smaller ventures demanding answers from the woman herself, who was now shrouded underneath her coat. Her embassy agents declined to talk to any reporter until a formal inquiry was put into motion on Mozzo's behalf.
It was rumored though that Mozzo had been secretly profiting from the sales, which reached up to the quadrillion mark of credit points.
"If you think about it," said Kana, "there are a lot more corrupt and damaging planets than ours."
They had their dinner, and spent more time watching television together and reading up each other's culture. They even taught each other a few simple phrases of their language after turning off their universal translator earpieces. Mather seemed to have difficulty pronouncing some of the clicking consonants, whereas Kana thought Marieno's main language was the most beautiful spoken and written. Kana would not mind never understanding the soothing singsong voice of her partner, even if she were plainly talking.
"Mather?"
"Yrm?"
"Earpiece."
"Ah, sorry."
"You can sing can you?"
"I'm a bad singer," blushed Mather.
"Your voice and language sounds beautiful."
"I hate singing."
Mather got up and went to do her daily bath.
Did she offend her? No, it wasn't that. Like all other beings, Mather had a personal past she did not wish to share. It struck her odd that a mermaid did not like singing, but then a Mermaid Gigantes was just a label created by Demiterrans. There was nothing overtly mermaid about her besides the fact she had fined digits and ears, and that she liked to swim in water a lot. Though she was tall, she wasn't exactly a giant, although she said that she was the shortest in where she came from. Kana felt so inadequate before her, and it might end up that they'll divorce much later if they were to marry soon and have children. If they could have children.
It was still too early. Mather could also feel the same way.
On the next day, they went shallow diving at the pristine freshwater lake just outside their condo. Both wore matching wetsuits covering every part of their skin except for their faces. With her snorkel and goggles on, Kana jumped in, and Mather followed afterward.
Kana always felt at ease when she was submerged. The pressure was just right to massage her existence, and swam as if she was in eternity. The blue, the clear, and the light shining from the heavens, she had often pretended that she was fish or a dolphin.
The surfaces of the lake were terraced, starting from the beach, but the abundant coral, both fake and real, masked the structure. Schools of strange fish, familiar or not, flew around and about her, and there were some that fed off her bacteria on her face. She swatted them away and saw a beautiful sight.
Mather was swimming, but she wasn't swimming like Kana would. In Kana's eyes, she moved smoothly like a mermaid unencumbered by her hair or body structure. She propelled in bullet like speeds, and she did not need flippers to slow her down, goggles to shield her eyes, and a snorkel to gasp for air. It was like she was at home, and Kana truly wanted to touch her and take her home.
They met in the center, and their hands linked with another. They could lean in and rub their faces against one another but Mather was hesitant. Then suddenly, Kana was gagging, and she was quickly pulled to the shore by her mate.
"Did you swallow some water?' asked the drenched Mather.
"I forgot about my breathing limit," said Kana.
"How long can you hold your breath?"
"Around five minutes."
"Must be a serous handicap."
They had their lunch afterwards, and spent the afternoon doing the same usual things of reading, watching, and teaching each other the language. Dinner came in no time, and they ate as usual trying to initiate small talk. It was a quiet day so far.
Afterwards, they cleaned dishes by hand. It would seem inconvenient they would do so since there was a lack of a dishwasher machine, but it was soon apparent that the GGDP made sure that there would be mundane chores available for the couple to do together. Again, this was dependant on the culture that would not always work. For Mather and Kana, they did not mind.
Crash! Mather had accidentally bumped into Kana's elbow and dropped a plate.
"Sorry," said Mather.
"It's okay," said Kana. "We didn't pay for this."
"I don't want to get you cut."
"I'll help you... oh!"
Kana slipped right onto Mather, and the two fell on the ground. The soap from the broken plate was the cause. When they realized, their cheek, the exposed part of their skin, were touching.
"Oh, dear goddess," said Mather.
"What's wrong?"
"You touched me."
Mather sprang to her feet and pulled Kana out of the kitchen and into the bathroom.
"If I wash it off I might be able to stop it," said Mather. "No! I'll have to cut the circulation. Wait, I can give her a suppression pill."
Kana separated from Mather and backed herself into the bedroom. Mather followed her in.
"Mather, what's going on?"
"Kana, are you feeling all right?"
"I feel fine."
"I meant, to you feel the urge to mate? Are your nipples hard?"
"Now that you mention it..."
"Oh, dear. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. Kana I'm so sorry!"
"You didn't... poison me did you?"
"I injected my sex pheromones into you."
"How? Wait, we touched each other's cheeks. That's why you're reluctant to touch others!"
Mather nodded. "We want to initiate the mating process with the partner we desire, all we do is just touch them with our bare skin."
"That doesn't sound so bad."
"Maybe for mermaids, but not for other beings. The mating process lasts over two hours, and with recent medical advances over three! The attraction for me will be unlike you have experienced with your former lover in Demiterra. It will be so strong, that you want to be with me the entire time, want to mate with me at every chance, and throw fits of fury if we are without each other."
"Why tell me now?"
"I wanted to make sure if that is what you want! I don't want my pheromones to dictate your behavior. I don't want to accidentally kill you when we make love."
"Mather. Do you love me?"
"I do! I don't want anything terrible to happen to you."
"I see. Room system, engage 'Love Night Mode'."
The room dimmed down, and the candle-like light bulbs were lit to a soft yellow glow. The drapes were automatically closed shut. Kana closed and locked the bedroom and the bathroom doors, and advance determinedly towards Mather.
"Take off your clothes," Kana commanded.
"What are you doing?"
"Please. Take them off."
Mather nodded timidly. She took everything off her skin, and Kana did the same thing. Kana motioned to her to sit on the bed, which she did. Kana followed immediately, and shuffled so that they were sitting upright with legs intertwined and their crotches pressed against one another.
Kana held herself against Mather's nude body, and breathed in every bit of her. The touch of her skin was sweet and smooth; addicting, yet slightly intoxicating. She could feel her heartbeat increasing its pace, and her vagina was lubricating itself for whatever penetration that would come.
"Oh Kana," said Mather. "I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize," said Kana. "This is what you wanted, right? This is what we all want."
Breathing rapidly and passionately, Mather pushed Kana onto her back. With their bodies pressed against and intertwined with one another, they stared for one moment and kissed their deepest. Whether it was Mather's taste or yet another extension of her pheromones, Kana found herself so addicted that she licked her tongue in every possible interior surface of Mather's mouth. Gladly, Mather fed her lover her saliva, and spread it in kind onto every possible interior surface of the mouth. They nearly suffocated themselves through all the kissing, and took one break to stare at each other's alien eyes.
"Your ears," Kana said. Mather's ears were extended and erect like wings. Kana touched it, and began massaging when Mather was shuddering and moaning euphorically.
Kana discovered another sexually sensitive area that drove Mather to her knees so to speak. Mather was now licking Kana's cheek, and finally her lips. The two kissed one another and tightened their wrap around one another yet again.
She would not mind dying in the throes of sex and in the arms of a Mermaid Gigantes. Every touch from her felt like a shot of cocaine and their equivalents. Every taste of her skin oscillated from mildly sweet and mildly sour, with a perfect in-between on occasion. The fluids Mather fed her were nourishing but never enough. Mather was not just bumping her clearly defined vagina or rubbing it against Kana's. She was ravaging them both like a male, but not with the deep penetration. They were essentially kissing themselves there, and so pleasurable it was that Kana lapsed from consciousness to semi-consciousness, as if she was teetering to the afterlife and heaven. It was heaven for her.
Never before she felt herself ejaculated so much, but as for Mather she ejaculated profusely. Sticky transparent foam was now developing between their crotches and splattered onto to their thighs, but the sheer pleasure distracted them from an apparently strange and possibly d
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