Interstellar Age
Chapter 99 Accepting Responsibility



Currently Erich and Erika were having a conversation which would change their relationship forever. And Ayumi was moderating it, to ensure that they were both able to express their frustrations with one another in a healthy manner. 

At the start of the discussion Erika had made an admission, which, though shocking to Erich, seemed to be obvious to both Ayumi and Erika. She had confessed that she had secretly loved him from afar, and that he had betrayed this love by tainting his purity before their eventual marriage, and with an alien woman, no less. 

Erich was stunned at this admission, and the fact that the woman was crying profusely, while apologizing for everything she had ever done to him. And though Erich accepted his wife's apologies, he felt as if it were a little late to properly subside his wrath. 

Instead, he responded to the other portion of the woman's claims by voicing the absurdity of her anger. 

"Why do you care so much about who I have slept with? I didn't even know you at the time. I never thought I would ever be able to get married because of my condition. And so yeah, I took the first opportunity I was offered to get laid. And by the way, it was not just Yumi, there were other women too. One of which is now dead, and the other one wants me dead. 

But none of that should matter to you. We had no relationship at that time. So your anger about these things seems incredibly petty, and foolish!"

Erika wiped the tears from her eyes as she responded to Erich's defense of his actions with a particularly foul expression on her otherwise gorgeous face. 

"That's no excuse! I'm a mutant too, and yet I have maintained my purity! Even now, after three years of our sexless marriage, I have never once touched a man, let alone slept with one. And you and I both know that if I really wanted to, I could have. There is no man in the Empire who would deny me if I asked for such a thing!

So, you are going to need to come up with a better excuse for breaking our people's traditions! I mean, an alien? What is wrong with you? It's disgusting, and I know the Oni feels the same. Why else would Ayumi's father have reacted in such a hostile manner when he saw the two of you together?"

This remark struck a nerve with Erich. Particularly because he was all too aware of how hostile most sentient species in the galaxy were to the idea of their own people intermingling with other species. Still, he did not apologize for his actions. And simply ignored Erika's remark. Which caused her to lash out at her about her next grievance with the man. 

"By the way, I already told you I was willing to move past such a thing, despite the fact that I found it to be utterly disgusting. But even now, we have been married for nearly three years, and yet you cheated on me with an alien woman the first chance you got. There must be something wrong with you!"

Erich could no longer abide by Erika's remarks, and quickly retaliated with his own, albeit with a furious tone in his voice. 

"Well, maybe if you took care of my physical and emotional needs properly as my wife, I wouldn't have to go searching for a woman who will!" 

Erika simply scoffed to this before further enlightening Erich about why she had never slept with him. 

"Don't you blame that on me! On our wedding night, you barely even spoke to me, let alone attempted to be intimate with me! I thought you hated me! And you do! I can see it in your eyes! I will admit that I may have been partially at fault for never bringing up the subject, but unlike you, before our wedding day, I had never even spoken with a man alone who was not a member of my family. How was I supposed to bring up that subject? You're my husband. Isn't taking the lead supposed to be your job?"

Seeing as how heated this discussion was getting, Ayumi was forced to draw a line and take Erika's side in this matter, as she expressed her concerns regarding what was just said. 

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to agree with Erika on this one, sorry love, but communication is a two-way street, and knowing your stubborn personality you probably never made an effort to connect with your wife... And judging from everything I have seen since I first arrived here, I would say this is almost certainly the case."

Erich gazed in disbelief at Ayumi, who had a guilty look on her face. He then crossed his arms and snorted before voicing his frustration with the situation. 

"I don't believe it. You're taking her side, just like my fucking mother!"

Ayumi narrowed her gaze at Erich. She was quick to assure him that she was still on his side, and that the truth might be hard to swallow, but it was necessary. 

"Erich.... I love you and will always be on your side. But this is the truth. I can not believe how utterly foolish the two of you have been. Neither of you have made any attempt to communicate about your differences, and both appear to be so stubborn that you are willing to let your already fragile relationship deteriorate rather than admit your own mistakes and work towards a better future. 

I may be the youngest one here, and am wholly inexperienced in relationships outside of the one I have with you, but even I can tell you are both acting like children. The two of you will never be able to mend the rift that exists in your marriage, unless you both admit that you each share fault in this matter."

Both Erich and Erika remained silent with their arms crossed, neither of which were willing to look at one another. Ayumi could only feel like the situation was totally hopeless. Unless one of these two stubborn idiots admitted fault first, then neither of them would. She was just about to give up on the whole situation, believing that if things were already this bad, then it was probably best for a permanent separation. 

That is, until Erika's stubborn will finally broke. With a heavy sigh, the woman apologized for her own mistakes. 

"I'm sorry.... I realize that much of this is my fault, and if I weren't so stubborn, then maybe we wouldn't be at such a breaking point...."

A glimmer of hope appeared in Ayumi's eyes, as she gazed towards Erich with a demanding look. As if to compel him to accept his own part of the responsibility. Both Erika and Ayumi bombarded the man with that gaze, and yet, he still did not budge. They were all about to admit defeat until Yumi entered the scene with a particularly exasperated tone in her voice. 

"By the gods, sometimes you can be such a child, Erich. It's almost as if you deliberately want to give up such a beautiful young woman! You have the chance to build a harem which the emperors of my family's dynasty could only dream of, and your stubbornness is the only thing preventing that." 

This remark caused both Ayumi and Erika to blush red with embarassment. Yumi then sat down in Erich's lap, and kissed his neck, an action which clearly caused the man to grow quite excited. By now even Erich was flustered, and though his mind and heart wanted to defy that he had any part in his relationship problems, and that all the blame lied with Erika, Yumi's sweet whispers forced him to surrender. 

"Think about it Erich... You, me, Ayumi, and Erika, all at once! Wouldn't that be great? I know you are just dying to see what that pink haired bimbo's sinful body really looks like. All you have to do is admit to your mistakes and move forward. If you do that, then this sweet dream could become a reality. I dare say that her body is probably as good as Ayumi's. Damn, now I'm jealous...."

Erich had to admit, Yumi's words were definitely tempting. And at the moment, Erika's flustered appearance was pretty cute.... After what seemed like a lifetime, he finally sighed before admitting he may have potentially had some fault in this matter.

"Fine.... I will admit that there is a slight possibility that I may share a small portion of the blame for the current state of our relationship. I promise to work together to ensure that we solve our differences so that we may finally become a proper married couple...."

Although this was not exactly the answer that either Ayumi or Erika were looking for. Yumi knew enough about Erich's stubbornness that they would not get anything better out of the man, and thus she kissed him on the forehead and spoiled him like a child. 

"Good boy! See, that wasn't so hard, now was it?" 

Erich simply looked away and refused to speak another word. An act, which Erika somehow found endearing, even if she still did not yet approve of the relationships that her husband had with these alien women.

But for the moment, the overwhelming fury that Erich and Erika had for one another seemed to have subsided. All that was left was for the two of them to maintain this peaceful state, and actually attempt to properly get to know one another. A task that may not seem like it now, but was quite a monumental undertaking.