Where am I? The little Irken asks himself, his vision filled with the cold ceilings of the smeetery. Where are Ma'ma … and Pa'pa? Looking around, all the little smeet can see is a long metal pole with a large red thing on the end of it.
What is that? He wonders, reaching for it. As he lifts his arms, he realizes that he is being restrained by some kind of fluid filled tubes. What are these for? He wonders, his childlike mind not comprehending what it is that is happening to him.
"Relaxe, Zim Our Child Of Creation … Nothing will harm you here," A bodiless voice says, though the comfort it brings soothes his mind.
Thank you … Whatever you are …
Two Irken Weeks Later/ Two Earth Months Later
Standing on a small platform, Zim looks out among the many different prefab dorms that house his other brothers and sisters. All 894,274 of them.
Looking around he eyes the massive, Cavernous, structure that he and his siblings inhabit. There are hundreds of different open area scattered about the open space, each one housing a park of sorts for the smeet to play in and on. Purified water flows endlessly into several pools along the outskirts of the large Cavern. Several of which are free for the Smeet to use, learning how to swim and such being apart of their learning.
In the center of the large Cavern is a tall spire, one that reaches from the floor all the way to the ceiling, some fifty stories up. The spire is roughly two thousand foot across, giving each of its floors, roughly Three Million One Hundred And Forty One Thousand square feet, each.
The Spire, as its design would suggest, is the core of the entire Cavern, not just housing its energy source to run the entire facility, but also the Academy, Hospital, Armory, and the Security Center. It is the second most important building in the entire Cavern, next to the Prefab Dormitories at least.
"Zim, how are you...," The voice of his eternal caregiver reverberates around him, coming from a small opening in the top of his Dormitory.
"Zim is good CB … How are you?" Zim asks, turning his large Ruby Red eyes upon the red crystal of his caregivers single robotic eye. His caregivers long tube-like armature bending several times as it extends from the small opening.
"We are well, Zim. Do you require any assistance?" CB asks, his smooth vocals soothing to his charges ears.
"When do you think Zim will be able to go to school?" he asks, cocking his head to the side as he looks to his guardian.
"In all due time Zim, but for now … Make some friends," CB adjusts his view to take in the large park off to their right, just a few streets over from their current position. "You have been keeping yourself shut up in your room … If you do not socialize, you will not succeed … Is that what you wish for Zim, to Fail?" CB asks, turning his single ocular lens at him in question.
"No, Zim does not wish to fail, but it is … Difficult to make any friends. They are loud, obnoxious, and very dirty … It is a wonder to Zim that they have not contracted any form of disease while down here!" Zim chuckles, his advanced mind using words that his caretaker had said to try and sound much smarter than he currently was.
"Do not judge them before knowing them Zim, that was one of our many rulers downfalls … He took one of his best at face value, and perished for his folly," Cb turns back to view the park, over a hundred Irken Smeetlings playing around, oblivious to their watchers. "Do not place all your faith into what is there before you, Our Child Of Creation. Now go, or I will force you out of this dorm," CB says, quickly retracting into his hole before Zim can say anything in his own defense.
"Fine then, Zim will make friends," He hisses, not liking the idea, "All Zim truly needs is his Caregiver! No other shall be needed by ZIM!" He shouts, arms shooting towards the heavens as he shouts his name for all to hear.
Grumbling to himself, Zim goes to his Prefabs interior ladder and climbs down. Coming into the main living space, next to his refrigerated food processor, Zim quickly grabs a purified bottle of water and takes a swig. Screwing the lid back on, he tosses the bottle over into a nearby padded seat.
In the center of this living area is a small table, with enough room for two to three irken smeetlings to sit around. It is white and has several glasses and plates of an off white color sitting atop it. Next to Zim's Food Processor Unit is a small sink that is set in a four foot counter space. Above and below it are a few drawers and cabinets that contain a variety of utensils and dry foodstuffs.
Walking by his table, Zim picks up a small pamphlet that contains a help on how to interact with his fellow Irkens.
This is something that the Control Brain most likely left for him while he was up on the roof.
"Damn CB, thinking that I need friends!" Zim throws the pamphlet towards his trash-incinerator. Hearing a light buzz when the pamphlet falls in, he gives a small, satisfied, grunt. Walking out of the room towards his bedroom, Zim opens the oddly angular door and walks inside. Walking over to his closet door, he swings it open in a huff before looking for a more suitable change of attire to go out and 'play' in.
"Singlet, no."
"Diving skinies, Hochest no!"
"Skin-shirt and black spandex... Why … Is this even in here?" Zim looks at the change of cloths with abject horror, his eyes wide as he looks upon them. "If Zim finds out that CB is the one that put these in here … He is sooo dead to Zim...," Zim growls, crumpling up the change of clothes before lobbing them out of the room, towards the trash incinerator.
"Alright... Ah, a loos fitted T with a pair of shorts, should be good enough to play in!" He nods to himself, happy with the attire. Stripping out of his White and Black sleepwear, he slips on the Red T and Black shorts. "Why everything has to be this garish Burgundy and Black, or Purple," Zim shivers, "Zim will never know..."
Looking himself over in the mirror, Zim nods approvingly to himself. Shutting his closet and bedroom doors, his scoops up the hideous change of clothing from the floor and walks over to the incinerator.
"And now we say good by to nasty cloths!" Zim cackles, tossing the cloths in with a twisted smile.
Walking on the sidewalk towards the park, Zim looks around at his surroundings with very little hidden interest. His eyes are large and awestruck as he sees everything anew, from this much different perspective. Looking around at the different configurations that his 'brothers' and sisters'' Prefabricated shelters were in, Zim gave credit where it was due. Many of them are small and spartan, a few more are big and spacious, and in the minority are the ones that house more than a few smeet at once. These last ones are the ones Zim admires most.
Compartmentalized, yet open, sectioned off, yet still cozy looking. They offer a sort of internal community that their current living space is supposed to force upon them. But just by looking at the few houses, Zim can see that only a few have even given their current living arrangements a thought.
"Zim guesses that CB was right then … How annoying, Zim owes him three laps then," Zim chuckles, shaking his head in slight disdain for his great caregiver.
"Hey!" A voice cries out, garnering Zims attention. "Give that back!"
Looking over, Zim sees a shorter than most, yet rounder than most, smeetling trying to get a ball from a much larger Smeetling. This larger smeetling easily dwarfs the rest of the smeetling present by good seven inches or so. Looking on, Zim tries to think of a reason he might interfere … That is, until it is given to him.
"Oh, you want your ball back?" The large smeetling taunts, a sneer ripping across his ugly mug in one go. "Then you can have it!" The taller smeetling then smashes it off the shorter smeetling's face, the ball rebounding right back into the taller smeetling's hands as the smaller one falls to the ground in pain. The smaller one clutches at his face as he cries out, redish-white blood leaks from his lips and his left antenna is bent down at an odd angle.
Seeing this, Zim becomes angry.
"HEY! Brainless!" Zim crows, a dangerous glint in his eyes as he stalks forward. "That is no way to treat our brother!" Zim hisses, his long segmented tongue flicking out at the word treat.
"Oh! Really, he is below me! Is it not the Taller's place to discipline the Smaller?!" The taller Smeetling laughs, seeing that Zim is only a little taller than the smeetling he had just demolished with the ball.
"It is a Taller's DUTY! To LEAD his Smaller brethren! Not belittle them!" Zim almost shouts back, his zipper like teeth grinding together as he tries to keep his cool. "It is a poor Taller that destroys his Smaller's to make himself look bigger than he is," Zim growls. 'This is not what I had in mind when I walked out of the prefab today... CB owes me for this deluge...' Zim thinks to himself. Cursing his moralities, Zim subtly shakes his head, clearing it of thought so he can better focus on the idiot before him.
"..." the taller smeetling just looks at Zim with a blank stare, all before laughing at the thought of actually leading. "Lead? Me? A leader? No, I'm just a destroyer," The taller smeetling chuckles. A host of whispers and accusations floating around the gathered crowd at his words.
"That, is a very stupid thing to say," Zim deadpans, giving the idiotic taller smeetling an even glare as a set of long retractable arms comes down from the ceiling. =CB! I think this 'taller' needs some better educational bits programed into him!= Zim tells CB over a secure comm-channel inside his PAK. Getting a sort of green light confirmation from his Caregiver, CB picks up the destructive smeetling and carts him off to be … Reeducated.
"Well, that's not what Zim had had planned for today, but whatever...," Zim shrugs and begins to walk over towards the downed smeetling. But, seeing all the weary looks he is getting from the surrounding smeetlings, he thinks better of any of the things he would normally say in such a situation.
"Smeetling? Are you well enough to stand?" Zim asks, kneeling down. He places a hand on the slightly smaller, rotund smeetling's shoulder. The smeetling flinches away, but not so much out of a conscious response, and more out of unconscious fear of being hit again.
Seeing this, Zim realizes that this particular smeetling has been hurt before, and more than once it would seem.
"Smeetling, Zim is Zim, and Zim would like to help you to you feet," Zim says quietly, kneeling down next to the smeetling. "If you would like Zim to help that is."
"Um … Yes … Zim …," The smeetling whispers. His long thin arm coming away from his face to accept Zim's proffered hand of help. Helping him to his feet, Zim inspects the smeet's face, looking for any signs of major damage. Finding none, save for the small cuts and bruises, Zim smiles pleasantly at the smeetling.
"As Zim has said, Zim's name is Zim, what is your smeetling?" he asks, keeping the smeetling steady on his feet.
"I'm skoodge... Thanks," Skoodge grins, his bloody teeth flashing slightly in the light. His eyes shine brightly with admiration, though not overwhelming, it does make Zim flush some with embarrassment at the praise.
"You are welcome Smeetling Skoodge," Zim rubs the back of his neck in embarrassment. He then sees the ball from earlier roll up to them, gently resting against their legs.
"Hey, Zim!" One of the other smeetlings yells.
"Zim hears you," He says, looking for the face of the yelling smeetling.
"Come play with us!" The crowd of smeetlings smile invitingly at both Zim and his … Acquaintance.
"Smeetling Skoodge, Do you think Zim should play with the other Smeetlings?" Zim asks, not know what exactly he should do in this situation. So, by asking for the other smeetlings advice, he has cemented something for future years to come.
"I think so Zim, I think it would be a good idea...," Skoodge smiles bashfully, not knowing how he should really act around his savior.
"Then Zim shall play! What will Zim be playing?" He asks, shooting the others a cocked brow-ridge expression. His expression, to the others, is weird, but they don't comment on it- seeing as he just took down the largest bully they had ever seen.
"We can play Shaz ball first," A small smeetling suggests, her curly antenna twitching madly as she hops around on one foot. A large smile plastered to her face raises a few brow ridges, though none express their unease.
"What is your name smeetling?" Zim asks, his own antenna twitching slightly at the younger smeetling before him.
"Tak, Zim!" She exclaims, jumping in place as he looks her over.
"Hmm, Smeetling Tak, Smeetling Skoodge, What is this … 'Shaz Ball' game you speak of?" He asks.
"Oh!" Tak smiles even wider. "It's a team game!" She exclaims. "Two Irkens are picked as captains, then they pick their teammates. The goal of the game is to hit the ball against as many of the playground poles as you can before the other team. Two Irkens are also of to the sides calling out how many points each team has, and once a team gets to a hundred, the game's over!" She smiles, bouncing around Zim with a very pleased smile on her face.
"Hmm, Zim approves this 'Shaz Ball' LET US PLAY!" He shouts, arms reaching for the heavens as he yells. All the other smeetlings then join him in his cry, cheering for their new 'friend's' approval of their favorite game.
For the next three hours, Zim and his new … Friends … Play Shaz Ball. Zim and an Irken female named Faz are picked as team captains. They then split the group of over a hundred Smeetlings into two teams, with a total of 59 smeetlings per team. Two smeetlings, Sal and Ral -twins- both volunteer for the score holding positions.
"Faz, That was an excellent game! Your team beat Zim's by a wide margin! Good Job!" Zim exclaims, a wide smile donning his face as he reaches out to congratulate his new friend.
"Zim, your team did excellent as well! In all the times we have played Shaz Ball, have we ever had that much fun!" The Irken youths behind Faz howl in agreement, antenna twitching as arms swing in the air. The Irken youths on Zim's team then join in the shouting, not wanting to be left out.
"Was much fun! Zim enjoyed this game!" Zim exclaims. "Zim will be sure to come back and join you after meal time!" Zim declares. The other Smeets cheer and shout their own plans to do the same before they all shove off to have their meals. Zim turns to Skoodge and Tak. He sees them begin to leave, and wishes otherwise, so he shouts out to them.
"Smeetlings Skoodge and Tak, would you two do Zim the pleasure of joining him for his meal time? Zim knows that he has more than enough for guests," Zim hisses out the S at the end of his sentence. His tongue slitheres out and plays at the air for a moment, which garners a giggle from his brother and sister smeets.
"I am pleased with this offer Smeetling Zim," Tak smiles bashfully at the ruby eyed smeetling. She herself has pink eyes and is slightly taller than Zim, but she does not use her height and hold it over her fellow smeetlings.
"I'd be happy to Zim!" Skoodge says happily, extatic that his savior had invited him over for meal time. It was the first time that Skoodge had been asked, by any smeetling, to come over for meal time. It cemented Zim's place in his mind as a friend.
"Then we make hast! CB will be waiting on Zim as it is! Damned hovering complainer that CB is!" Zim grumbles the last part under his breath. Skoodge and Tak, though, seem to hear this and giggle all the same. Skoodge, the shortest of the three, smiles happily at how his luck had turned. Not even a few hours into his day, and he was making new friends. Of course, he had already known Tak, the gentle girl had tried numerous times to help him, and failed, but she had tried to stay his friend. With Zim declaring him his friend, publicly and personally, he had done more for the shorter Smeetling than even Tak's actions had done. The fact that Zim had invited the smeetling to his own prefab had more far reaching effects than either of them had thought to comprehend.
"Good evening Zim, Our Child Of Creation... We see that you have brought others to your dwelling... Shall we prepare a larger meal for you?" CB stated as his singular red eye bent and stretched around the room to look Zim in the eye.
"Yes, CB, that would be much appreciated!" Zim just about shouted to the Control Brain. Skoodge and Tak stared uncomprehendingly at the weird construct that moved about Zim's cleaner than most prefab. The stark white walls, the off white textures, none of it fit in with the burgundy and purple covering the rest of the prefabs, and their interiors. They both found this change to be to their liking.
"Do either of you want something to sate your thirsts?" Zim asked as he rummaged through his refrigerator. Both Smeetlings nodded their heads mutely. Neither could form comprehensible words, and did not want to offend their host by babbling.
"Good, then Zim shall draw up some beverages!" Zim commanded himself. He charged off and began drawing drawers and opening cupboards as he gathered dishes for his guests and himself. "CB! Nutrient blend please!" Zim half asked, half commanded his care giver. An affirmative was echoed from the very walls of the kitchenette.
"Please, Zim insists that you sit and make yourselves comfortable!" Zim urges as he scowls at his mostly empty cupboards. "And Zim apologizes... Zim seems to not have enough cups for us all...," Zim seethes to himself. He had never needed such frivolities in the past, and now he was cursing himself for not thinking of getting more before hand.
"Thank you Zim, that is most kind of you!" Tak replies, off footed at how strange and completely out of her depth her new friend's home was.
"Thanks," Skoodge mutters with a smile thrown Zim's way before, he too, sits down.
"Something seems to be bothering Zim's new friends... Might Zim be able to allay any discomfort?" Zim asks with concern.
"It is just strange, Zim, how your dwelling is so different from my own...," Tak concedes. "My own dwelling is of the same colors as the rest of this cavernous facility... Burgundy and Purple. Yours on the other hand is a brilliant white with a few textured whites here and there, it is refreshing!" Tak explains. Zim seems to think on this for but a second before nodding. His reply is what one might expect.
"Zim found that those garish colors made it too hard for Zim to find certain items in his own home... So Zim stripped it of its color and left it as it should be," Zim explained. "It also makes it easier for Zim to clean, as the white does not hide dirt and grime as easily as those other colors."
"It looks … Nice, Zim," Skoodge comments, a soft, shy, smile inches onto his lips as he tries to not look nervous.
"Zim thanks you Smeetling Skoodge! That is very kind of you to say!" Zim smiles massively in pride at his handy work. It made him feel amazing to have his work praised by his friends.
"Your food, Zim -Our Child Of Creation-, is ready!" CB replied in its kindly robotic voice.
"Thank you CB!" Zim exclaimed happily as three plates of vitamin enriched past and greens rose up out of the table and three milky white drinks slid up along side them. The Drinks were most likely the Nutrient drinks Zim had ordered, but the two Smeetlings only stared in awe of how their friend's house was run. It was like the smeetling before them had his own Control Brain working for him... They didn't know how right they were.
Thank you all for taking such an interest in this story, as a heads up, I will be inventing, and renaming, a few things as I go through the world building for this universe. After the next chapter, I will be posting a sort of Dictionary/Sylibus/cheat sheet/database to hold these little tidbits of information. I hope you all will find this enlightening and fun, as I have.
Also, I know where this story is going... And how long it is going to be. and as of right now... We are only a tenth of the way through the first arc of this story... So don't fret about the shortness of a few chapters here and there, as this will continue for a long while!
Have a wonderful day! Also, may Irk's god, Hochest Herr, bring some form of hilarity to your lives... Cuz I know we all need it every once in a while!