Chapter 8: The Second Watch

There was a brief nightmare that appeared in Mizu’s sleep. He didn’t remember anything well as he was getting dressed and armed up for the night watch. He felt the regular wear and tear of having short sleep spells followed by standing up and being prison guard for the night. This time, however, he felt more obligated to do it. The reasons felt different, but the drive was still mostly there. The events at the monastery were slightly disturbing, but it was nothing else like the revelations that he had with everything else. It was simply another thing to add to the events that were transpiring. It seemed to him that Batrice was changing, and he had to debate with himself if he needed to change along with it. He felt a need to talk to the two Itreans that he spoke with before, and they were the ones he very much knew that he virtually blew off on last time.

“This time ... it will be different,” he quietly told himself as he wrapped the body armor around himself. “The Ambassadors felt they were innocent. They could have still tried to kill them ... but ... I am seeing less of that now...”

He could see that it was the same armorer as before. The man didn’t have to explain the exact instructions as before. He handed the PDW-20 to him before he would make his walk to the brig. A routine was being made as everything seemed quicker for him. He knew that this time the watch would be different as Hamiza would not be with him this time. He would have an unknown with him.

The well-lit passageways reminded him of the fact that the same event could happen like yesterday. The blackouts in this area were often occurring around this time. The problem was, even if the same event were to occur and the camera was disabled, there was another person that would be with him. Two of the same factors had to happen with him. Regardless, a part of him wondered about the camera issue. The COC wanted information from these supposed terrorists. The more he thought of that aspect, though, the more it made him feel sick to his stomach. He knew he was in the middle of all this, whether anybody would admit to it or not.

He reached the door of the brig as it slid open. Armed and ready to take up the watch, he stepped in to see the familiar elevated sizeable gray box that housed the prisoners. The sealed-up walls must have been unsettling. To be trapped with almost nowhere to go except the small locked door at the far end seemed perfect for locking people away. He knew that Li’lo and Bekra only had each other to keep comfortable while the guards would sit outside talking about the random shit as before. Meanwhile, everyone around them would decide the fate that was to be done to them.

Inside were two guards. One of the men was very strong by appearance. He, of course, had the same uniform and equipment that Mizu had, but this man looked like he could rip his assault rifle in half with his bare hands. He had a light pale complexion to him but seemed uninterested in seeing Mizu. He knew immediately which one was the person he was relieving just by the face alone. A short woman was the other guard. She had a much darker complexion to her. She seemed very tired and relieved to see Mizu walking in.

“Ah ... there is my relief,” the woman replied with a faint Vietnamese accent.

“In the flesh,” Mizu happily replied. “Anything to pass down to me?”

“You have done this before?” she asked.

“Yes, I have.”

“There isn’t really much to pass down. The prisoners have been fed about five hours.”

“Were they?” he asked to see if she was sure.

“Oh yes, they were. I checked myself. Ummm ... the only thing you already know of are the blackouts. Expect the same power outages as before.”

“You would think they would get that fixed by now?”

“Ugh...” she said as she put her free hand to her head. “I have to keep resetting some of the appliances every time. It is so annoying. I am so tired ... is there anything else you need to know.”

“Nah, it’s alright. I assume the roles and responsibilities ... blah, blah, blah, and all that stuff.”

“Ah ... thank you,” she replied as she headed out the door. Upon her leaving, Mizu wondered about the unknown guard he would be with for the next several hours.

“See? I know how to do all the military stuff,” Mizu said as he looked upon the strong man ahead of him. His attempt to break the ice with the mysterious guard was only partially effective.

“Yeah, whatever, man,” the person replied in a deep voice and recognizable accent. His voice almost sounded lazy and bored. He didn’t appear to be mean, at least.

“Cebravin?” Mizu asked him.

“Yeah ... I was assigned to this station over a year ago ... kinda weird of a place, really.”

“Don’t care too much about Fort Batrice?”

The man frowned. “It’s alright ... I feel everything is so strict and shit. I can’t even repair basic shit without having an officer overlooking my shoulder. You know what I mean, man?”

“Yeah, I know what you mean. My name is Mizu, by the way.”

“Chuck!” he exclaimed as he pointed the thumb to himself.

“Nice to meet you, Chuck.”

“Mmm ... hey ... can I be honest with you?” Chuck asked him.

“Sure, fire away.”

“I like to take smoke breaks all the time. My cousin Dean ... ahh man ... he just got the best shit for me to smoke. I can’t get enough of it, man.”

Mizu smiled. He knew what that meant. Smokers usually tended to take long smoke breaks. Sometimes, people became smokers just to take breaks and stay away from ship and military duties. With the sound of this guy’s voice alone, the guy must have smoked his fair share of Cebraven plants and weeds. It was not illegal to smoke anything that produced ill effects on the body as long as it didn’t interfere with ship duties. However, Mizu heard rumors that Fort Batrice was thinking of outlawing all forms of recreational drug use, including even medicinal.

“Damn...” Mizu replied. “I wouldn’t mind getting a chance to get some of that, honestly. Yeah, go right on ahead. Smoke away whenever you feel like it. Just make sure that it isn’t here.”

“Ahh ... thanks, man,” Chuck happily replied. “I think I might go and smoke some now. I don’t mean to like abandon you on this watch and all that. Are you sure you don’t have an issue with it?”

Mizu smiled at him. “Take as much time as you need. I know that our jobs are exhausting. Just be thankful my companion Hamiza wasn’t here. She would be all over you for leaving.”

“Ahh ... thanks again, man.”

Mizu thought about it as he looked at Chuck. He holstered his rifle as he patted his left shoulder pocket. He proceeded to leave the room. This was one of the main hurdles of the watch that was taken care of. This Chuck seemed to be a laid-back sort of guy. He didn’t even hesitate to leave Mizu alone in the brig as he went off to one of the space station’s distant smoking pit areas. As the door closed, Mizu then turned his head to look at the camera that was in the top corner of the room. The red little LED was on, indicating that power was being supplied to it. He knew that eventually, the power would spike, and there would be another blackout. The camera would shut off, and there would be a chance to talk to Li’lo and Jenta. Now all he had to do was wait...

“So ... there I was. Me and Dean, man...” Chuck explained to Mizu as he patted his rifle. “He would like give his joint a little whiff, and then it had this funny aftertaste to it. Then I asked him, ... what gives man? This joint is starting to taste like ... like coolant or something, man. Then ... he just laughs at me and says ‘It is coolant man,’ and I was just like ‘ah man ... it isn’t that bad.’ Then we just laughed as I passed out.”

It had been a few hours as Mizu was still engaging in conversation with the other guard. He had to admit. This person was somewhat interesting for a fellow. The box was still closed solid, and the power was still operating normally. He was starting to wonder when the power was about to go out.

“You know ... I have to admit. I don’t normally meet many people from Cebravis,” Mizu said. “I always had issues...”

“What do you mean, man? I think you are great,” Chuck replied.

“Well ... normally I felt that Cebravis just laid back and asked themselves to be conquered. Now that I look back with you, I feel like you would ask the Itreans if they wanted a share of your joint or something.”

“Ah ... yeah man,” Chuck replied. “Those Itreans ... wow. They’re totally like... ‘whoa ... You are just like us and stuff,’ and we are like ‘Dude ... that is totally cool.’ Then, we just ask the T’rintar to just come and hang out. Before we know it, they start enjoying our shit ... then before we know it, there are like strips where we all like run around naked in forests and shit, man. Those T’rintar clan women ... they just know how to have fun and stuff. Like here ... wow man ... it is totally ... like totally bad. People just hate the Itreans in general on this station. It is just ... its not cool man ... then they put me on guard duty ... just because I asked that one Shal’rein woman out.”

“A Shal’rein? Really? Of the T’rintar clan?”

“Oh yeah, man. Those aquatic women ... wow ... they are like so strong and shit. One of them ... I think she like really likes me. I want to go out with her, but the people just get on my case.”

“Maybe they just need to smoke one of your joints?”

“Yeah ... I think I am going to ask them that. Maybe it will make them to be not so ... like mean, man.”

“Boy ... it would be interesting to meet your cousin Dean,” Mizu told him.

“Oh yeah, man ... Dean ... he is so like me, but just less ... less muscle. He has nothing but the good shit.”

“Well ... if he ever shows up on the station, I will make sure...”

Mizu’s voice was suddenly interrupted when the lights of the brig went out. The emergency lights kicked on. The blackout had occurred. His eyes went back to see the camera had gone dark. The LED light was off.

“Ah ... there goes the power again,” Mizu said.

“Like ... they can’t get that fixed, man,” Chuck commented. “I keep telling them the main power regulator for the reactor is faulty, man. All they have to do is just ... just pull that thing out and put a new one in. Yeah, that thing is huge ... but you know what ... it will fix their problem.”

“You work in engineering?”

“Yeah, man. They won’t listen to me. The regulator is bad ... like really bad. It was designed to operate for fifty years. They put it in when the station was first being built and stuff ... you know? Then ... they just never replaced it and just kept using it over and over again. All they have to do is just pull it out ... put a new one in ... it sucks, man ... but they just do it, and boom ... problem solved.”

“It sounds simple.”

“My COC just thinks maintaining it is cheaper ... not going to work, man ... not going to work.”

Now was Mizu’s chance as he looked at the camera some more. It had been off as soon as the power went out. Even the very faint hum of it was gone once again. He decided to seize upon the moment.

“So ... Chuck...” Mizu asked him. “Feel like the need to go on a smoke break?”

“Yeah, man ... yeah, I could use another smoke. Hey ... that is good thinking, man. I feel like getting some more of that shit. Ha ... yeah. Hey ... you mind if I step out and take a break for twenty minutes for a smoke?”

“Go right on ahead,” Mizu said with a smile.

“Ah ... farout ... yeah, man. You sure you don’t need to use the restroom while I am gone?”

“Nah, I am fine. Go ahead.”

With that, Chuck smiled as he patted his left pocket again. There was a look of relief and happiness as he hoisted his rifle up. The door opened as he left. Mizu waited as the doors slid closed up.

“Honestly...” Mizu said to himself. “I could probably talk to Li’lo and Jenta while he was in here, but I don’t want to get him in any potential trouble. Plausible deniability.”

Without any further thinking, Mizu walked up to the console panel. He took a couple of deep breaths. He knew that this was going to be a unique conversation. This may be his only last chance to talk to them, and it was best to make everything count. This day was another long one, and it was becoming nerve-racking.

He tapped the controls of the console as he accessed the viewing screen of the prison. It would be set to a two-way mode so that both sides could see and talk to one another. The blue light emitted from the prison walls. The lights stretched outward to allow Mizu to see inside the interior of the prison once again.

The moment that the light faded, it became a perfect window to see inside. Li’lo was partially asleep as she saw the light and window open up on her side. Even Jenta’s face showed some curiosity as Mizu slowly approached with his gun towards the viewing window. It was strange for him this time. Initially, he was reluctant to do this. Now he recalled having some anticipation upon doing this.

“Mizu?” Li’lo said as her body quickly got out of her bed. Her reptilian eyes looked at him as she pulled her body up. “It ... it is you.”

There wasn’t a sign of fear in her face, but it was one that still caught her attention regardless. She felt some relief upon seeing Mizu. Perhaps it was the fact that she saw a familiar face that was more important than anything else.

Li’lo stood up as she carefully walked to the window. Her scaled hand was pressed to her chest as her feathers seemed a little bit low. Her tail swished a little bit as she had a look of concern on her face. Jenta was less afraid than that of the previous night, but she remained quiet. She even got out of her curled-up ball state as she stretched her digitigrade legs outward. Despite their imprisonment, they were slightly better than the day before.

“Mizu...” Li’lo called out to him as she got next to the display.

“Hello,” Mizu greeted her. “How is your snout?”

“Oh...” she replied as she put her hand to her snout. “It is alright.”

“You look a little bit better than yesterday ... both of you.”

Li’lo did a couple of quick nods. “We had our meals ... we are happy.”

“That is good to hear, at least.”

“You have watch again?”

“Yes. I also have a window that I wanted to have a conversation with you. I ... don’t think my companion here will be back for some time.”

Mizu looked at Jenta a little more carefully. She seemed to get a little bit nervous as he looked at her closer. He could tell that she was still slightly afraid of him.

“Look...” Mizu continued. “I wanted to give an apology ... for yesterday.”

Li’lo’s head feathers seemed to rise up a little bit. She tilted her head and neck a little bit to look at him closely. “Why?” she asked. “Why do you need to give an apology?”

“For my attitude ... I treated both of you as guilty party members to something that you might not have committed.”

“You think that we are innocent?”

“I am beginning to wonder about specific events. Ambassador Ifra believes that both of you are innocent.”

Li’lo put both of her hands together. Even Jenta’s feathers lifted up to hear of the words the Mizu had said. There was a sense of relief in both of the Yutilian women.

“Ifra is alive?” Li’lo asked with hope in her breath.

“She is alive and mostly stable. It is still too soon to say anything about it, but both she and Kane look like they are going to pull through.” He could see a great sense of relief in Li’lo’s face. Mizu, unfortunately, had to put a dent in the news. “However ... it came with a great cost. Her baby didn’t make it.”

Li’lo lowered her head as Jenta replied the same way. Their feathers retracted as Li’lo expressed a form of sorrow. Tears were rolling down her eyes.

“I ... I promise you that we didn’t do this...” Li’lo pleaded. “I would never go as far as kill an unborn child or my greatest friends.”

“I am inclined to agree with you. I have not had a chance to speak with Kane yet, but for Ifra to struggle to say the words that you were innocent shows that there is compassion for both of you. However ... even with all that, there are still some problems with your situation.”

“What do you mean?” Li’lo asked as she was wiping the tears from her face.

“According to Ifra, she stated that there was no bomb in the shuttle. I would imagine that you probably had something to say about this?”

“There was no bomb in the shuttle,” she confirmed. “Even Jenta would have seen something.”

“Jenta, did you see any bomb in the shuttle? Any type of indication of an explosive?”

Jenta’s turned her head and looked at him cautiously. She then shook her head.

“You don’t need to be afraid of me,” Mizu affirmed her. She paused for a little while before giving a quick nod to him.

“Jenta,” Li’lo called out to her. “He made sure we got food. He wants to help us.”

Jenta nodded in approval. She even made a brief smile before calming down even more.

“I was reviewing the shuttle’s interior according to the T’rintar clan shared database,” Mizu continued. “There are a couple of places where a bomb could be placed, but it was not anywhere located where the explosion occurred. I have been in debate about where this explosion could have occurred that tried to kill everyone.”

“I don’t know how to explain it,” Li’lo said.

“I might have a possible idea, but it ... it would be unusual for a location. It doesn’t make much sense to me if it were true. The evidence is all there that an explosion occurred inside the shuttle and that you two were the perpetrators to this event.”

Li’lo lowered her head as her feathers even closed in on her self. She was still wiping away any tears that she had on her face. Even Mizu shrugged. There was a sense of defeat in his face. Perhaps it was true and that he was simply talking to two criminals. His gut instinct was telling him that it wasn’t true, however. Things still didn’t add up.

“I am ... I’m sorry,” Mizu commented. “I am a witness to something. I have been told things that have come to light that ... well ... it just questions my environment.”

“It is alright,” Li’lo replied. “My clan will try to come to our defense. If needed, I will be my own defense in a trial.”

Mizu tried to lighten up the mood a little bit by changing the topic. He could see a sense of hopelessness in Li’lo’s stance as she was gripping her arm hard. She had long stopped crying but remained low.

“I just wanted to have a conversation with you, Li’lo,” Mizu told her. “Maybe learning more about you two will help somehow.”

“I will tell you everything that you need to know,” she replied as she gave a brief nod.

“How did Jenta become your friend?”

This changed the tone as Li’lo looked at Jenta closely. Jenta still remained quiet, but he could see that the Yutilian was curious as to his question.

“Jenta is my best friend,” Li’lo explained as he looked at Mizu. “We became friends a little over two of your years ago. She became what is called a ‘Tren’ in our language. It means ... umm... ‘Sister in all but blood.’ Everything we did, we shared together. We made a vow that everything we did we would try to do together. It hasn’t always been easy because of work and assigned tasks, but Ambassador Ifra does everything that she can to accommodate our needs.”

“You consider her more of a friend than Ifra?”

“No ... not necessarily. Ifra is like family to me. Jenta is like my sister.”

“Are you ... married?”

Her feathers rose up almost as if she expressed a form of surprise upon hearing it. Even Jenta’s feathers seemed to rise as her eyes widened a little bit. Even Mizu was starting to wonder if he went too far in asking the question.

“No! No ... no ... no,” Li’lo replied as she waved both of her hands at him. “Jenta is just a close friend. I do admit ... with the way things are with us that we have considered the idea of becoming mates, but ... with the fact that you are here means that things don’t have to be that way.”

“Me?”

“No, no, no...” she realized what she said. “I meant the humans in general. I didn’t mean you as in...” she paused as her eyes went and scanned his frame closely. Mizu could see that she was checking him out. “I ... um ... I am sorry. I meant that Jenta and I look at each other as sisters rather than lovers. Does ... that make sense?”

Mizu nodded. “Of course.”

Li’lo was partly flustered as she took her two pointer fingers and began to tap them together. Even Mizu knew that this Li’lo was an interesting character.

“I noticed that you have a tendency to be a little bit on the clumsy side,” he told her.

“Clumsy? Umm ... oh ... yes ... I tend to have weird things happen around me.”

“I saw that little mishap with the bag you flung when you tripped.”

Jenta began to smile as a small number of chirps and clicks occurred from her voice. Even Li’lo turned to look at her.

“It’s not that funny,” Li’lo happily tried to defend herself. “It just happened. My clawed feet just tend to get snagged on something. Then ... before you know it ... I just trip.”

Mizu looked at her talon feet closely. He noted the curvature of the toes and extendable razor-sharp claws. The Itreans, or at least the Yutilian variety, had extra power in those legs that he noted. While they walked almost normally, he surmised that they were capable of leaping to great distances. She was observing his face as it gestured her to look at her own feet. She realized what he was doing.

“Ummm...” she replied. “Why are you looking at my feet?”

“I don’t see anything different with your feet than the other Yutilians.”

“Oh...” she seemed to realize what he was getting at as she took her hand and wiped the top of her head feathers.

“You just have a tendency to have bad luck follow you,” he noted to her.

“Yes ... yes, it is. I would define myself as ... ummm ... clumsy.”

Mizu hoisted the barrel of his rifle to his shoulder to free up his hand as he spoke to her. “I would be almost curious as to that.”

“It just seems to be that way,” she commented as she made a series of clicks in her voice. “I end up tripping or walking into something by accident. I end up losing Ambassador Ifra’s belongings or accidentally end up breaking the tablet that Kane used to sign an agreement between Mars and the T’rintar clan. Or ... I end up dropping my gun during a shooting exercise.”

“Wait, what? You dropped your rifle by accident? You know how to shoot?”

“Umm ... two or three times, actually. All T’rintar clan members must know how to fight. When the Aksren and Shal’rein clans attack, no mercy is sparred between us. We must know how to fight, or we die. I want to make sure that I can protect Ifra with my life too. The problem is that ... the rifle doesn’t like me.”

Jenta made a series of clicks and chirps in her voice again. Mizu knew that she was laughing. Mizu knew by now the type of character that Li’lo was. The more and more he was learning from her, the more he indicated that this Itrean could not have perpetrated the bombing.

“Well ... Li’lo,” Mizu commented as he lifted his brow. “I have firm reason that you didn’t do the bombing now.”

“You do?” Li’lo remarked. She expressed a firm of curiosity and even seemed to show signs of surprise.

“Yeah. At this rate, I don’t think even the Zaza would want you. If you went and tried to plant a bomb, you would probably accidentally blow yourself up in the process.”

Jenta was still laughing a little bit. She even smacked her hand to the bed a couple of times.

“Oh! ... oh...” Li’lo realized what he heard from him. The tonal change in the voice between both words showed that she understood what he meant.

Mizu decided that it was best to change the topic. He didn’t know how much time had transpired. Chuck was the person who took long smoke breaks, but he was more afraid of the camera as he looked at it. The room was still mostly dark as the blackout was still ongoing. Li’lo could see the silence that was going on as Mizu was thinking to himself.

“Mizu...” Li’lo asked him. “I wanted to ask of you. Why do you dislike the Itreans?”

His reaction upon hearing that made him turn around as he looked away from them. It felt personal ... way too personal of a question.

“What makes you think that way?” he asked.

“You ... Ummm ... I saw how you looked at us before. I can see that it is different this time than yesterday. You are looking out for our well-being. I noticed that you even apologized. You don’t need to say that you are sorry. If that is the case, then I want to ask why you seemed to be discouraged.”

“Because I am talking to two potential criminals ... I am practically breaking the rules by chatting with you.”

“No ... no ... you are trying to make sure that we are alright. There is no shame in that.”

Mizu turned to look at her. “Let’s just say the environment doesn’t look upon the Itreans of any clan in high regards as of lately.”

Li’lo didn’t seem satisfied with that answer. “You are avoiding the question that I was asking. You have a choice to hate all Itreans, but you choose to talk with us. You seek my forgiveness. Why?”

“Did you solve the riddle that I asked yesterday?”

Jenta surprisingly answered it as she went and pointed her finger at him. She knew the answer without even having to say it. Li’lo turned to look at her and then back to him.

“How about I tell you a story,” Mizu answered as his tone got severe. “I just lost a grandmother yesterday. You want to know why? She had Batrin Silocosin. It is a sickness that erodes the lungs and entire respiratory system. It is a disease that only occurs on this planet, hence its name. It is caused by improper mining of the soil. Even a little bit of the dirt that gets shuffled into the throat can destroy the entire internal system of the body. It’s rare these days ... they make sure that equipment is all properly tuned and safe to prevent it. Batrin Silocosin has no cure, and her body rejects augmentations. She rotted away ... and you want to know why she had it? She got it from mining the rare metals needed to fund the T’rintar clan!” He pointed the finger at her. “The same fucking deal that was made without any discussion to Batrice. We were forced to work extra harder ... and my grandmother is dead. So yes, I have my reasons for the workers and my own leader to stand up on the machines, shut them down, and telling you Itreans to fuck off!”

“Oh ... I am so sorry,” Li’lo replied in sympathy. “Oh...” She replied as she lowered her head. “We ... were trying to save each other.”

“Yeah, well, if you guys would have reached out to us and told us things in advance instead of just having our politicians making agreements behind closed doors, we wouldn’t have suffered now, wouldn’t we? No ... like anybody, people make decisions on other people’s lives without even thinking of the consequences. I am sad for Ifra and Kane, I really am, but you also have to look at it from my point of view as well.”

Li’lo seemed to understand what he was saying. “I am sorry for what happened. You have to believe me that we were trying to help your situation. Kane and Ifra were trying to reduce the quotas. There were even discussions of getting rid of them. The number of materials sent to us was nothing much compared to what we made back in our systems. To us, Itrea ... Earth was the most valuable thing you could have given us. You are the cure for a devastating disease that has wiped out half of all Itrean populations. For that alone, we need to have this alliance. Please ... believe me.”

Mizu took a deep breath as he looked down. He had to keep things under consideration. “I have no choice but to believe you,” he told her. “But ... fortunately for both of you, there have been some things that I keep noted. Let’s just say that I found out some things that are disturbing right now in Batrice. I can only hope that Kane is awake for me to talk to him tomorrow. I need to talk to an outsider of my colony to confirm my suspicions if they are true or not.”

“I hope he is well then,” Li’lo replied. “Understand my sympathies for your family and all of the people of Batrice, Mizu. We are a good people.”

Mizu decided to change the topic. He was being told of some things that he was already half agreed upon. He felt that he didn’t need to go any further.

“I want to discuss something different,” he told her. “Now you know. Nothing more needs to be said about it.”

“Alright,” she replied.

“I was at a Jijop at a monastery today. It was ... well, you know what they are.”

“I do know of them. It is not widely practiced in the T’rintar clan, but we have many different religions in our worlds. Jenta is Fo’mil, and they have their own religious practices. The Jijop can be one of them.”

“Felt like some meditation session, honestly. There was a Fo’mil and a man that were together. She appeared to be gravid or ... that process when ... well, whatever a woman of her type goes through when they go through pregnancy. They performed some sort of Uio ... Jacktin ... Jajin.”