Gabatrix: The Warrior of Silence

"You're not coming back, aren't you?" Stone asked her.

"If you are with her, then you'll be happy, and so will I," his wife answered. "You take care of yourself, husband. Your journey is far from over......."

Stone briefly looked at Ioren as she calmed down more and more. He looked back at the back of his wife. She was fading into the bright light.

"I love you......." Stone told her as his other hand reached out to her. "I'll always....."

*******

Stone's eyes opened up. The dream felt so real as he could see that the lights of the apartment were still on. The moment that he shifted in bed. He could feel the pain that resided in his shoulder. He knew that he was back in reality.

His head turned back to look at his former wife. For a little while, he felt that the message was clear. He stirred himself as he grunted and sat up on the bed mattress. His eyes befell Ioren that had a somewhat saddened look on her face. She had been looking at her tilon that was left on, but she wasn't looking at it. A part of him understood the set of events the last few days. He pushed aside the battles and killing.

"You know....." he spoke to her. "I trained my marines to be ready for the worst....it wasn't easy for me at first."

Ioren was stirred out of her stupor. She had her hands wrapped around herself but was acknowledging what he said.

"I remember the times I screamed at my recruits," he continued. "Sometimes they were the toughest sons of bitches alive, and sometimes they had to be whipped into shape. I had to be cruel to them......I would be separated from my wife, and she would......have to bring me back to the reality of being a human being. That switch you have after you finish up as a drill instructor....sometimes it is difficult to switch it off."

The Itrean was looking at him. She used sign language to convey the words "I know" to him.

"No.....you don't," he said as he shook his head at her. "Nobody truly would until they went through it. What you had to experience these few weeks were......tougher than most of my recruits or fellow marines would ever have to go through."

Ioren was somewhat surprised to hear him confess to something like this finally. She signed the words "Thank you" to him as a response. She could even hear the subtle form of genuine sincerity in his voice.

He took a deep breath and held it a little bit before he exhaled. He gave the nod to her before he waved his hand to her. He gestured for her to sit beside him. She felt a flutter in her heart as she stood up, grabbed her tilon, and headed to sit down beside him. She was careful in how she situated herself. The pain medication was powerful, but she knew that she had to take it easy a little bit. For ten seconds, he seemed to think about what he was going to say.

"Do you truly mean what you said? That you.....?" he asked her. His brow narrowed at her.

She nodded her head many times, almost as if she were stuck in a loop.

"Ok, you only have to nod once," he told her. "You're like a recruit that just shit his pants when I looked at them for the first time."

She smiled a little bit upon hearing it as she gave one firm nod to him. His look was stern, however. He didn't look into her eyes.

"If you were any other woman, I wouldn't be entertaining this.....thought," he continued. "Perhaps there is somebody that truly cares for you.....I don't know. I don't know enough on.....Itrean courtship. I don't watch those.....what do they call it now.....'porn propaganda' or whatever it is now."

She could understand what he was referencing as she reached for her tilon and started to type. It translated her words.

"This is mostly new for me," her tilon translated. "I had a little bit of a chance to review how humans.....marry."

"Did you have....past relationships?" he asked.

She seemed to think about it as she tilted her head somewhat. "Yes. One was a male just before Zilik's Disease broke out. He died before our mateship even occurred."

"I see...."

She shook her head. "I barely knew him," she continued to type. "I'm not used to it. Golarren are...."

He waved his hand at her. "I know the whole thing. You don't have to describe it. Look...." He sighed. "I hadn't as even much looked at a woman since my wife died."

"Are you seeking to have a mate?"

He seemed to give a skeptical look at her. "That is a weird way of saying it."

She waved her hand and resumed typing. "No, that is how Itreans get married in your human terms. Mateship is marriage. Mateship is bonding. Mateship is partnership."

"And I assume it's love as well, correct?"

She nodded her head once. He seemed to look away for a short bit before he really started to look at her frame. It seemed to be the first time that he ever really did it. His augmented eye was beginning to analyze her entire body structure. Despite some of the differences, she was, in most cases, a small human-like woman. Yes, she was obviously an anthro reptilian at first glance, but she had two arms, two legs, breasts, stomach, head, and other typical appendages. If anything, she would even have the exact parts that a human would have. She could see that the marine was really looking at her body. She didn't take it as an insult and only seemed to let it happen.

"You don't have a problem with how I look to you?" he asked her.

She shook her head and typed. "You're like a Shal'rein but smaller and just as powerful."

"Hmph......you realize that I'm much bigger than you?"

She shrugged her shoulders a little bit in response. She reached down and typed. "I saw a 'porn propaganda' video. You, humans, are big. I thought too big, but humans are still compatible."

"You can do anything with videos these days. You can make things look like something that they are not."

She shook her head defiantly. "It was clearly not a forgery. The human penis is a....." she paused as if she was confounded in how she was even going to put it into words. Her reptilian eyes said it all as she seemed to really think about that recording. There was even a hint of being impressed.

He sighed. "Before it even goes there," he halted the line of thinking. "What is it that you want?"

"I want to be your mate," she typed.

"Yeah, but you would only be with me for what? A couple of days? We'll get separated as I go to retirement and you are kept here. Even I wouldn't be too keen on that idea."

Her feathers rose up as she was somewhat excited to hear his words. She was frantically typing down her words. She even held up her finger to tell him to wait and let her type it all out.

"No, that isn't that at all," her tilon translated. "Itrean laws respect mateship. Mates fight together, share responsibilities, go to the same battlefield together, do the same tasks together, have sex together, serve on the same ship. Children even serve on the same ship as parents raise them together. I become your mate, and I go with you to retirement. I would be with you till the end of our lives. That I swear upon."

"Really? Well.....I imagine the T'rintar clan wouldn't mind getting rid of you if it means going with me back to Aphadus. Hmm...." He paused as he seemed to show a skeptical look. "At least I would have a woman that would go out shooting with me. You would be a better shooter than Gagana ever was."

She smiled as she signed the words "Thank you" to him. He still seemed to be holding back, however. He looked down at the bed.

"There would be......one problem, however," Stone seemed almost to choke a little bit as if he didn't want to admit to this. "The sex department might be a......problem. It might not be something that you would enjoy too much."

She gave a surprised look at him as she looked at his body. She typed. "I don't see an issue with your body. I'm sure that we can make adjustments. I promise to be a gentle and viable love partner."

"Hmmm......that isn't what I mean," he continued as his voice softened. "I have erectile dysfunction."

She held up her finger as she was starting to look it up quickly on her tilon. He felt somewhat embarrassed to admit this to Ioren, but it was better for her to know the truth than a lie. She was carefully researching the term as she realized what it was. Her head tilted a little bit as she seemed to know something important, but she had to ask him a question. She continued to type it down.

"You can't have an erection?"

"No, I lost it all when Gagana died," he said.

"There is are treatments for this."

He gave a mean look towards her. "You're really going to go there? Disgraceful. No....no doctors, no therapists, nothing!"

She shook her head at him in outward defiance. "No. I care for you, Stone. You're not a disgrace. I......" she paused as he seemed to look at her closely. Then it dawned upon her. It was what Doctor Cordeina was interested in. She really started to think about it, and then she gave a proud nod to him.

"What?" he asked. She was busy as she typed.

"I'm Golarren...."

"No, no, I don't want to go through....." but she waved her hand to tell him to wait. She continued to give an extensive description that her tilon would translate.

"I might be your cure, Stone. I can cure your erectile dysfunction."

"What?" he had a skeptical but intrigued look upon her. She began to type up the data on the Golarren. Her description was followed up with a link for him to read. She pulled up the data for him to look at it before she handed it to him. Stone, on the other hand, decided to read the information out loud and summarize certain things.

"Let's see..." he stated. "The Golarren can consist of many certain mixed species of Itreans. Or it can be used as a reference to a genetic abnormality and congenital disabilities among the Itreans.....blah, blah, blah. However, one of the many advantages of the Golarren was found in small scientific and medical studies. Among one of the medical studies made, it was discovered that certain traits existed among them. These traits are shown to not exist in those that are not mixed species. The Golarren for the Aksren and Yutilian hybrids, for example, have been discovered to produce certain enzymes and chemicals in female vaginal secretions that....." he paused as he looked at her before he proceeded. "....Are similar to chemicals found in primitive ED medications. Studies are currently being taken to evaluate if human beings are affected by this, but it is strongly theorized that if it works for the Itreans, then it should work for human beings as well."

Stone didn't know how to answer this at first, but he ultimately could see that Ioren was shifting a little bit. She had her hand to her stomach as if she was waiting for his response. Finally, he nodded.

"You want to see if it works or not," he inclined. A part of him was starting to get genuinely curious as well.

"Yes," she typed. "I want to help you. I want to be your mate and live as your life partner. I await your decision."

Firm and precise in how she said it. It was convincing enough as he placed his hand to his pants and crotch. Despite feeling a desire to do something, he couldn't feel like he was getting sexually excited. No erection was taking place, but this wasn't to say that he wasn't interested in making love with her.

"Fine....." he told her. "I figure that you would be a better person for me than some other woman that might come my way. For some reason, I don't think they will ever take a bullet for me as you did. Alright....you win."

There was genuine happiness in her eyes. She seemed more than sure of her decision. She knew that while many of the Itreans were struggling to find human mates, she fell into the hands of one that would be for her. Whether it would be in a hail of bullets or relaxing on the planet of forever dawn, the idea was to get away from the Itreans and live a life of peace and prosperity. The idea of being among those that treated her kindly made the most sense for her.

"So....what happens?" he asked.

She was taken out of her thoughts as she began typing on her tilon. "In order to make this official, we must make the vow."

"Vow?" He waited patiently for her to answer.

"We must say the words that will make us mates. You, humans, tend to have wedding ceremonies. It is time-consuming."

"You don't have weddings?"

She shook her head. "Some Itrean sects and religions have various ceremonies, but usually after the mateship has been made. The vow is what is important."

Stone said nothing. It was odd to hear about how these aliens looked upon love and couples, but it didn't seem to be a serious issue with them.

"The vow will make us mates where we will then consummate the mateship. I will start off by saying this: I, Ioren, am looking for a mate. Will you be my mate?"

"I already said yes, didn't I?" he almost responded with agitation. It caused her to shake her head before she typed it down.

"No, your next words will be 'My name is Stone. I'm in need of a mate. Will you be my mate?'"

Stone almost seemed to give her a look that felt that it was stupid. She sighed as she looked down. She resumed her typing. "I didn't make these rules up, Stone. These are the rules of my people. Please, just do it."

"Fine....." he relented. "My name is Stone. I'm....in the need of a mate. Will you be my mate?"

"I will be your mate, Stone." She typed. "Now, you will say the same thing but my name instead."

"I will be your mate, Ioren," he grunted a little bit as if he seemed to be dragging his feet. Oddly, she knew that this would be the most challenging part for him for the entire night. She could feel the sense of completion as she filled out the final words of her tilon. She stood up as she let the tilon translate her passage.

"Then I will be your mate, Stone. We are now mates, Stone. You may organize any other ceremonies for your family to see how you see fit. I promise to love and protect you to the best of my abilities. I promise my fertility and bond to you to the day that I die."

He nodded his head to her. "As would I. I'll do the best that I can to ensure that you're happy."

She smiled at him. A part of her felt overjoyed as she did her best to contain it. She instead started to do the thing that she needed to do next. She began to look at her green dress and began to undo the back of it.

"Here...." He reached out to her. "It is sometimes custom for the men to be the one that takes the clothes off of a woman."

Ioren nodded as she turned around and sat down on the bed. A part of her couldn't believe that this was happening. She wanted this more than anything a few minutes ago, and now her mind was in shock of everything that it went in that direction. The Itrean decided just to let nature take its course. She imagined in the ancient past that a male would work so hard to create to benefit and attract a female by making a nest or home. She had been in that nest since the beginning. While it wasn't perfect, she knew that life wasn't always a steady road of smooth paths. A part of her simply let her body go. She could feel the great hands of Stone press upon her back. The fingers, while coarse, were delicate how it undid the clasps.

With a couple of snaps, the dress began to come off. They fell from her shoulders as they started to reveal more and more of her smooth scaly skin to the light. The hands slowly pulled them down as Stone seemed to be really looking at her body. It was an adjustment for both of them. They knew that seeing the nakedness of two different species was something that could be jarring to some, but it wasn't so much for them as it should. By now, they had become accustomed to this prospect. Even Ioren felt more and more of the desire to see her mate naked, regardless if they were Itrean or human.

Stone's hand took the dress down from the top of her torso down to her stomach. She had no bra on, but the dress did a good job hiding that fact. Ioren's chest was partially covered by the black bandage strap that was applied to her injury. It partly covered one of her breasts as he was careful to avoid touching it. Much like himself, this form of lovemaking would be done in a meticulous way to prevent further injury.

Ioren's back consisted of the red and brown scale pattern. Her red and green feathers flowed down a little bit from her back. She began to breathe harder and harder through her nostrils as she let the dress come off her. She wanted to tell him how much she was looking forward to this, but the lack of ability to speak would limit it.

Her breasts were exposed to the open environment as she stood and turned to face him. She tried to act seductively by tilting her head and trying to smile at him, but Stone didn't seem to indicate that this was working. She could see that he was direct. She then just let herself be normal and let the dress fall to the floor. Her front side showed the soft yellowish scales. Her pink nipples could be seen as she seemed to act like she was being admired rather than seductive. She would turn her head to the side and almost close her eyes. This would allow him to see the distinct nose crest and head feathers while her mouth was slightly open. This actually seemed to work far better than being seductive. She now knew that the marine was a definitive quiet type of lover. She wanted to look at him, but she instead kept breathing hard, knowing that she would be united in love with him.

Stone reached out and could see her front side. In most ways, it was similar to a human woman. She had nipples, breasts, and even a belly button. She still had her green panties on in which he reached over and began to pull them off. The yellow flowed downward towards her crouch as the underwear was taken off entirely. She let it fall to the floor, in which she used her legs to kick it to the side lightly. She now stood completely naked to him. The marine's eyes were centered towards her crouch. There was almost a sense of relief. Her vagina or cloacal opening was very similar to a human woman. There were slight differences, obviously, as his hand naturally explored her. She had no pubic hair, and the vaginal slit was more concave in appearance.

It was here that Ioren had to act. She knew that her vaginal secretions were the key for this lovemaking to occur. She reached down and stepped even closer to him. She began to use her clawed-like finger to help his fingers reach her slit. She wouldn't have the ability to tell him how she would do this but only hope that it would occur. His fingers reached her entrance as two fingers were pressed to it. She felt the probing fingers touch it. It made her shudder a little bit. Stone couldn't feel a clit. Itreans seemed to lack this part, but it didn't matter. His fingers began to enter in and out of her. A thick amount of smooth lubricating fluid fell upon his fingers. Ioren could feel a small amount of pleasure as he would tilt the fingers upward. He began to push it harder and harder into her.

Again, Stone knew the rhythm. He didn't feel the sexual excitement, but he didn't want to stop. He could hear the tensity of her breathing. She made no protest as she was gripping onto his wrist to push and pull upon his hand. If anything, she was trying to put more force into his rhythm. For this to work, a large number of her secretions must be applied.

It felt almost like a minute had passed as he almost gave a very subtle smile to her. Finally, she knew that enough had been done. She tapped his hand to tell him to stop. He did so as she kept a good hold of his wrist. The clawed like fingers almost bore into his skin. She went and sat down on the bed as he pulled away from her grip. He understood enough on what she was trying to do. His fingers were covered in her vaginal secretions. He brought them towards his face. He opened his mouth and pressed the two fingers to his lips. He began to taste and lick the secretions. It was sweet, almost like the taste of strawberries. It was heavenly, as he swallowed as much of it as he possibly could. Ioren could see that the chemical was now going to enter his system. She could only hope that it would work.