Ch.1-Lost and Found

Zim was sitting in the voot cruiser's back seat, cradling his stomach in his arms. He was now about 8 months pregnant. They were headed to IRK for the remainder of his pregnancy, considering Zim's love wouldn't know how to deliver an IRKEN smeet when the time came.

"Ow!" Zim yelped. He glanced down at his stomach and smiled. "You little devil, you. You're gonna make your daddies proud."

A voice came from the front of the cruiser. "Zim? You okay back there?"

"Ouch!" Zim cried as another kick came from inside of him. He then answered his mate's call. "Ugh. Yeah, Dib. I'm fine."

The sythe-haired teenage boy climbed into the back and sat next to Zim. He put his hand on the IRKEN'S.

"Are you sure? I thought I heard you crying out in pain." Dib's light brown eyes gazed worriedly into Zim's weary magenta eyes.

"Yeah. Just a little kicking, that's all." Zim reassured him. He slipped his hands into the teen's. They smiled at each other. "Wait! Who's flying the ship?" Zim started to get up.

Dib gently pulled him back down. "It's alright. I put it on auto-pilot."

"Sorry." Zim said sitting down. "I forgot about the auto-pilot system." Zim gazed down at his stomach. "I think our little smeet is messing with my mind."

Dib smiled. "Just think, in a little more than a month, we'll be parents."

"Yeah," Zim sighed. "It's going to be great." Zim's expression changed. "I just hope my race or my leaders doesn't judge me."

Dib frowned. "Why? What would they judge you about?"

"The fact that I mated with a human is one. Or the fact that we're both male…"

Dib hugged Zim. "Aw, come on. It's alright."

"And I've been feeling a lot of kicking lately. What if our smeet is early?"

Dib stood up. "It'll be okay, Zim."

A sudden jolt made Dib fall to the floor.

"What was that?" Zim asked, frightened.

"I don't know." Dib groaned.

Zim helped Dib up. There were loud beeping noises and lights were flashing.

"Dib! I know what's happening!" Zim yelled over the noise. "We flew into a solar storm!"

The voot cruiser was swept away by a huge gust of wind. Dib held onto Zim as the ship crashed. Everything went white for a moment.

Dib opened his eyes. He was on the ground and no longer in the voot. He screamed , sat up, and grabbed his leg that was gushing blood. It was broken. Dib had never broken a bone before, but he knew what it felt like. The burning feeling was a new kind of pain to him. Tears blinded the teen as he continued to clutch his broken leg. "Ah! Damn it!" Dib screamed. He slipped his jacket off and pressed it against his wound. The bleeding eventually stopped, but the burning pain didn't. He wrapped his jacket around his leg and tied it. Dib looked at the totaled cruiser and followed a path with his eyes. And there, on the ground, laid Zim. Dib gathered his strength and dragged himself over to the also injured IRKEN.

Zim was unconscious and various wounds covered him. The biggest thing was the gaping hole in Zim's pack. There was something in the middle of it throbbing, beating…it was his heart. Dib put his arm around Zim and closed his eyes. Hoping, praying, that somehow, someone would find them.

Nearby…

A young alien sat at her desk in her office. She was starting to fall asleep when a loud noise came from the computer.

"Wha? Huh?"

She looked on the screen and smiled. Her eyes lit up.

"Serana! Something's on the screen! There's something not too far from here. I'm going to check it out."

She went to leave when another alien stopped her.

"Kellina, child, do you have some kind of death wish? What if it's somein' dangerous?"

"I think there's someone out there that needs my help." She threw something to Serana. She caught it and studied it for a moment.

"What is this for?"

"So I can page you on what I find."

Kellina ran out the door.

"If you get eaten, it's not my fault!" Serana yelled after her.

She ran towards where the tracker was beeping. As she got closer, she saw a crashed ship and something on the ground. She got there and knelt down next to the wounded human and his IRKEN mate.

"Oh my…" She trailed off. She took out her pager. "Serana, I found what the tracker was picking up."

[Well? What is it girl?]

"You need to come out here. Bring two stretches with you, too." Kellina brushed her hand against Dib's pale face. He felt cold to her, but she knew he was still breathing. "You poor things…" She whispered.

Serana eventually came.

"Girl, what in the world?"

"I think their ship crashed here. Help me get them on the stretchers."

Serana and Kellina carefully picked up Dib and gently laid him on then stretcher. Dib winced when he was set down. They then put Zim on the other stretcher.

"Come on. We can take them to my place."

Dib's eyes slowly opened. He sat up and looked around. "Where am I?" He thought he was in the hospital, but he knew that couldn't be right….the voot crashed on some random planet. Zim!! Is he okay? What about the smeet?!?! Dib panicked. Without thinking, he went to move his leg but stopped when pain ripped through it. "Ah!" Dib grabbed his leg as the burning pain returned. He began to tear up again. "God…" He whimpered.

"Are you okay?"

Dib didn't know who was talking to him, but he answered anyway. "There's a burning pain in my leg."

"Ugh. The painkillers musta' worn off." The alien opened a bottle and poured 5 pills into her hand. "Alright. Take these."

"What are you trying to do?!?! Drug me?"

She put the other hand on her hip. "Do you want to be in pain?"

Dib, unwillingly, opened his mouth. She dumped them in and gave him a glass of water. He took a few sips and swallowed the pills.

"Nikki!"

An alien with blonde hair came into the room. He looked about the equivalent of a 9-year old human.

"Yes, Kells?"

"How's the other one doing?"

"His Pak was damaged pretty badly but he should be fine. "

"Zim? Is he alright?" Dib asked sitting up.

Kellina put her hand on Dib's shoulder. "Zim is fine."

"And our smeet?" Dib asked quietly.

"She'll be okay, too." Nikki reassured. "The impact just knocked Zim out cold."

Dib sighed. "Can I see him?"

"Well," Kellina began. "You tried to move your leg and you were in pain. I don't think you can walk on it yet."

"But I want to see my mate."

Kellina sighed. "Alright. If you can get into that wheelchair," She pointed to one almost halfway across the room. "I'll come with you to see him."

Dib swung his legs over to the side of the bed and pushed himself off. He steadied himself by grabbing the bar on the wall next to the bed. Dib then used the wall to prop himself up and get over to the wheelchair. He sat in it.

"Now can we go see Zim?"

Kellina sighed and pushed the wheelchair to where Zim was.

"Oh! I almost forgot. My name is Kellina, but you can call me Kells for short."

"Okay…Kells."

Kellina pushed him to Zim's room. Dib saw Zim lying in the bed, different cables hooked up to him. Dib's fragile human heart almost broke when he saw Zim in such a terrible condition.

Zim's skin had become a flushed, pine-green color. A huge gash across his right eye and on his neck stood out because of the red blood and green skin color contrast. Zim's face was covered in bruises as well. Zim's stomach still protruded from his body to Dib's relief. His chest rose and fell in a irregular pattern, as if struggling to breathe.

"Zim…" Dib took his hand and brushed the side of Zim's face. "Can you hear me?"

Zim moaned. Dib put his hand on Zim's and rubbed in a circular motion.

"Zim…" Dib whispered. "I love you."

Zim wearily opened his eyes. The magenta orbs went right over to Dib. "My life flashed before my eyes…"

"Shh….I know, Zim, I know." Dib soothed.

"I've never felt so much pain before…" Zim moaned.

"What hurts, my love?"

"Everything…"

"What hurts the most?"

"Ugh, my head…"

Dib kissed Zim's forehead. "Better?"

Zim smiled. Dib had accomplished his goal of cheering Zim up.

"Oh, Dib. I'm glad to see that crash left your heart and personality intact."

"Yeah," Dib sighed. "Sleep now, Zim."

Zim smiled warily. "Goodnight, Dib,"

"Goodnight, Zim,"

Dib kissed Zim and then Kellina wheeled Dib out. She took him back to the main medical room.

"Ugh. I hate having a broken leg." Dib whined. "It hurts."

"You mean to tell me that you don't like the burning pain you get every time you move your leg?"

"No!" Dib shouted.

"I was being sarcastic." Kellina put her hand over the spot where Dib's leg was snapped in half. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and exhaled. Dib yelped. There was immense pain and then…none. "Try to move it."

Dib, much to his surprise, was able to. "What? It…I-It was broken a minute ago!"

"I know." Kellina answered. "I only do that for broken bones and extremely serious wounds."

"How?" Dib asked.

Kellina shrugged. "It's just something I can do. I can only do it a maximum of 15 times a year."

"Wow, really?"

"Yeah, and that was time number 15."

"Oh," Dib frowned.

"As soon as Nikki comes back, you two can go down to the dining hall and get some food."

Dib nodded. "I think I'll go stay with Zim until then."

Dib walked back to Zim's room and sat in the chair next to his bed. Zim was fast asleep.

"Don't worry Zim." Dib whispered. "We'll get to IRK somehow. I promise."

I know that when the one character spoke I spelled some things wrong. It's a thing in Literature that helps to show the way a certain character speaks. If any of my readers can tell me what that is, PM me and you'll get something special. ^-^ I'll do my best for Chapter 2!!!

ILY!

INVADERZIM12