Northern Lights
Part 2-The Wound That Swallows
-
"And they paid, I cry and cry for you
Ghosts that haunt you with their sorrow
I cried cos you were doomed
Praying to the wound that swallows
All that's cold and cruel
Can you see the trees, charity and gratitude
They run to the pines
It's black in here, blot out the sun
And run to the pines
Our misery runs wild and free
And I knew, the fire and the ashes of his grave
And I wait staring at the Northern Star
I'm afraid it won't lead you very far
He's so cold, he will win the world tonight
All the angels kneel into the Northern Lights
Feel their hearts, they're cold and white"-Hole, Northern Star
-
Chi sat outside of camp, disassembling and reassembling a rifle. Tears ran down her face, rolling across the gun parts that were so clumsy in her hands. She knew she wasn't made for war, but she knew she didn't have a choice...
She was never going to see Dib again. This she was sure of, although she tried to put it out of her head She was crying for him and didn't want to know it. She tried to lose her mind in the repetitive motions of the gun. She had to get better at this simple maneuver so she could fight better at the front.
No matter how she tried, thoughts of him would not leave her head. Dib was amazing to her. A tall, shy scarecrow with a stalk of black hair and scratched up glasses, he acted as their messiah and leader against the Irken menace. She had worked her way through the ranks up to his second in command. She was very close to him, rumors of their romantic involvement were not entirely untrue..and yet. Dib refused to let himself get too involved with her until the war ended.
"You don't understand, Chi." He had sighed to her once when she questioned his decision. "Everywhere i go, I'm followed by the ghosts of those who have died in this war. People, so many good people, have died for our freedom. For me to just give up now would be like letting them die in vain. I cant get too close to you now, cant get distracted...but I promise to you, as soon as this is all over, we can be together."
From that day, they had treated each other like close friends or brothers in arms. Chi kept her hair kept short and perpetually wore a pair of red goggles made to enhance the visuals in every way possible. Not all Irken technology was bad, she supposed.
But ZIM...Zim was evil. That much was for damn sure. Zim was what had turned her Dib, a strong man if there ever was one, into a walking wound that bled tears of decision and regret. He was in constant agony, swallowing the pain around her and the camp like a vacuum. He wouldn't survive if the war lasted too much longer...
She was startled by a noise in the brush. She glanced over to see a tiny SIR unit, eyes bright red, prowling in the brush. Without thinking twice, she dived on it and drove the butt of her gun into the back of its neck, breaking the main power circuit.
She opened up its head and pressed a button on her goggles. She studied the circuitry in its head. Besides the locating chip and the loyalty chip, the rest of it appeared to be garbage. It was almost as if someone had constructed the little bot out of garbage. In any case, it wasn't smart enough to keep a secret-
Hey, there was an idea.
She quickly plucked out the loyalty chip, then reconnected the power circuit. Its eyes lit up blue and it gave her a goofy smile. "Hell-ooo!"
"Hi there." She smiled at it. "Say, why are you here, little bot?"
"I'm here to bring people back to Zim! He says that I'm supposed to find all the people here and bring them back with me." Dib frowned. "he wouldn't give me a cupcake tho. he's a big meany."
"Aww..." She reached in her pocket and got her chocolate ration. "Will this do?"
"Yayyy!" He swallowed it whole, wrapper and all. "I like you."
"I like you too." She paused. "Can you see those trees over there, on the edge of the clearing?"
"Yup. Can I go play in them?"
"Yeah, sure!" Her voice had a tone of forced cheerfulness to it. "In fact, why don't you go play over there while I round up my friends! Then we can go find Zim with you."
"Yaaaayyyy!!" The little SIR unit ran off. She waited until he was out of audible distance, then turned on her walkie-talkie. "hello, base? I know where Dib is now...gather everyone you can and come with me. This is the chance of a lifetime-I think we can get Zim good."
A few seconds later, Chi led a band of people to the pine trees. Their weapons were hidden, their pace slow-at first. But soon they could not help but run, running through the darkness that nearly had them convinced the sun was dead and gone. The sun would be dead for them, everything would be lost if Dib died that evening. he was their leader, their only hope. Without him, the already ailing revolution would surely collapse altogether. They ran with desperation, misery propelling their legs to the spot where the little SIR was swinging madly in a pine tree.
Chi walked up to him, slightly out of breath. "Hello there again!"
"Hi!" It flipped down into her arms. "Are we going now?"
"Sure! Are you sure you know where he is?"
The little SIR nodded. "He went to kill someone. He wants you all there when he's done."
Chi clenched her teeth. A brief mental image of Dib hit by a lazer, screaming, a blaze of fire and ash-
"Lets surprise him,"
-
Dib stared up at the star again, in an effort not to look at Gaz. Gaz looked so odd now...she retained her magenta hair and her squinting eyes, but her skin was green and she had antennae. Her daggerlike teeth parted and she hissed a greeting. "Dib."
"Hello, sister." He tried to take her hand, but she twisted away. "Staring at the stars like always." She murmured. "Don't you know, Dib, they don't hold any answers for you?"
"Maybe, maybe not..." Dib glared at Zim. "You're a coward, Zim, bringing her along to scare me."
Zim laughed. "Is it unnatural I would want my wife to witness my triumph, and my yet unborn heir to sense it?"
So it was true. Dib felt his stomach turn. "Gaz...how could you?"
Gaz glared at the ground. "You'll never understand, Dib. Its better his way."
He shook his head. "Its not better, the human race is enslaved, he brainwashes us all, even you-"
"Enough idle chatter." Zim waved his hand. "Dib, the reason I have brought you here is to propose a simple contest-a duel, if you will. 20 paces, draw and fire. If I win, the world is mine and you allow me to imprison your resistance. If you win, then the watching ANGELS have orders to transport you back to The Northern Lights as our new leader."
Dib raised an eyebrow. "How do I know you aren't lying?"
"Come now, Dib. If I was merely going to kill you, I would have done it already." He gestured over to the ANGELS, still kneeling in the direction of the castle. "My heart is nearly as cold as their metal ones, you would say...I have no reason to care that you live or die other then you make an interesting adversary. So, do you agree?"
He paused, then shook his hand. "Allright."