Discalimer: I don't own anything. If you say that I'm trying to claim Invader Zim as my own then you are on crack.
Lost
Dark figures huddled along the lower edges of the grounded war ship. It was in for repairs. Smaller than an Irken battle ship it was able to land planet side for work on its gravity generator.
The six Human figures suddenly fled the scene. They rode two to a hover bike. Irken made of course. Not much on Earth didn't belong to the Irken race.
Two of the bikes raced ahead of a third. Explosions blew a sizeable hole in the war ships main engine. The shock wave sent the third bike into a spin.
A small and sleek fighter style Voot Runner blasted past the hindered bike.
Just across the previously looked for line of safety one of the two bikes pulled around. The other stopped and both riders looked back.
The passenger on the first bike hopped off and the driver raced off towards the stalled bike.
"What the hell is he doing now?" The driver of the second bike asked the girl who had gotten off.
She shook her head. "He said to keep going, he'd catch up. We gotta leave like now though."
"That crazy bastard." The driver said as his passenger pulled the girl up. "I'm staying, he'll need cover fire."
The passenger-less driver swept past the stalled bike as it exploded from laser fire. The Voot Runner swooped up in a loop to try and came back for the survivor of the explosion.
The Irken In the vessel cackled as he lined up the shot for the running Human.
Suddenly the second bike sped past and the driver scooped up his fellow Human.
Fire from a rifle and a hand pistol peppered the Voot Runner. They managed to only anger the Irken until they hit the main air compressor. The Voot Runner sputtered in mid air then exploded.
The bikes finally met up and sped off into the steadily darkening landscape.
* * *
The bikes pulled up behind a parked truck. The back of it came open and a ramp was pulled out to load them up.
Drivers and passengers got off.
Five of six survived. Better than average.
The driver of one of the bikes pulled off his helmet and helped the boy he had saved with his riding armor.
"Dib!" A rough voice yelled. "You're going to get yourself killed like that."
Dib ran a hand through his hair. "I never leave a man behind Doc, you know that."
The older man scowled. "That's no excuse. Your sister wouldn't have approved, whatever powers that be rest her fighting soul. Plus you told Mira that we were to leave. You know we don't' split up like that."
"There was only one Voot Runner." Dib said clipping his helmet to his bikes handle bars before it was loaded up.
"Yeah, I know." Doc got a thoughtful look on his face. "Weird huh? They usually send out as many as they have on hand."
"They did. The Western Sect is giving them major trouble. They could only spare one Runner on a measly war ship." Dib looked up at Doc. He was as tall as his dad had been but Doc was taller. His hair remained as unruly as always and he wore the common among his fellows, dark armor that had been pieced together over the years. A 'smiley' face patch was on his shoulder.
"I still don't approve." Doc said crossing his arms.
Both were aware that the rest of the camp was watching them. Dib was, at the age of eighteen, one of the first leaders of the Human Resistance (HR) but Doc had been a commander in the armed forces. He was twenty-three now
Dibs' face showed no reaction. "I never leave a man behind." He said again. He turned and walked away.
"Let it go Dib!" Doc called after him. "She's forgiven you!"
Dib didn't turn around and just went into his tent. It was a single person canvas tent. Only room for his cot and private armory.
He looked at the creased picture of the only person he had ever really cared about. He couldn't even bring himself to think her name much less say it out loud. It had been an accident. She had been right behind him, then she had just been gone.
Images played in his head. What he could have done differently.
Never leave a man behind.
Never again.
That was his promise to her. So long as he was alive he would do everything to make sure everyone made it back to camp. Death was better than imprisonment.
He didn't even know if she was still alive. Most people thought she was dead by now. They'd had a funeral for her. Everyone had a funeral when they didn't return.
Five years since the Irkens had finally invaded. Two since she had been lost. It almost felt like forever.
He lay back on his cot and held the picture over his heart. He willed his mind to shut down. To forget the pain. Sleep was his only salvation. And even then he would sometimes have nightmares.
So sleep wasn't salvation. Nothing was, except maybe death. And even then he was sure his troubled soul wouldn't rest. Not till he knew she had forgiven him.
Dibs' eyes closed slowly and he fell asleep.
* * *
"Wakey wakey! Eggs and bakey!"
Dib bolted upright at the high pitched voice. His heart raced as he recognized Stupid. The little SIR unit jumped up and down and cheered.
Stupid was owned by one of the Irkens that had joined the Humans. They were mostly shorter Irkens that were angry at the empire and even though invading was wrong. They were used as spies in the Empire itself. Stupids' owner unfortunately met his demise in an Irken torture chamber and the SIR had been adopted by everyone in the base camp.
"Ugh, Stupid, don't do that."
"Oops!" The battle scared SIR said. His logic chip had been damaged in a fight with a 'Slaughtering Rat Person' that had been set loose in the camp by an Irken squad. The Rat Person was dead now but Stupid was now, well, stupid.
"Go help someone else okay?" Dib asked standing up.
"Sir! Yes Sir!" Stupid said, his normally blue eyes flashed red before he bolted out of the room giggling.
They not only used Stupid around camp to help fix things but the little SIR knew GIR. The two got along quite well and Stupid would get info from GIR and vise versa. Only thing was Stupid was given false information.
Dib yawned and opened his tent flap blinking in the bright lights. He checked the personal weaponry that he always carried and ventured out.
"Dib!"
Dib turned to see Cal, the local bomb expert, running towards him.
"Dib, you'll never guess it but we caught someone sneaking around the food truck last night. Male, maybe seven."
Dib sighed.
Irkens had discovered a way to make themselves look absolutely human and water proofed their skin. They used the child disguise most often since the majority of their race was short.
"Show me."
Cal lead him to a larger tent. It had a few lights in it. Doc and a woman by the name of Sheri were there. They both turned and greeted him then looked back at the child.
It was a boy, around seven or eight. Brown hair, brown eyes. He looked normal enough.
"Did you spray him?"
Doc nodded. "Nothing."
"Please." The boy said. "I was just hungry. Let me go, my mom's gotta be worried about me."
Dib looked at Sheri. "Any settlements in the area?"
She nodded. "Two. 'Old Hope' and 'Craters'ville'."
Dib took a water bottle that he kept at his side and set it on the table. "So, what's your name boy?" He asked.
"Deble." He said quietly.
"Well Deble. My name is Dib." He kept watching the child as talked. "And I'm sure you know we have a bit of a problem here."
"No sir I don't." Deble said.
Dib shrugged. "Want a drink Deble?" He asked picking up the water bottle. He offered it to the boy.
"I'm not thirsty sir."
Dib pulled out a small pistol. "Drink the water Deble."
No one else in the room objected. They couldn't afford to fall for the innocent child bit. Too many bad things had happened because they had.
Deble picked up the water bottle. He lifted it to his mouth.
"Oh yeah." Dib said. "It's distilled water. It might not taste right."
Deble stopped. He regarded the bottle and swallowed hard.
"Drink it." Doc said.
Deble lifted the bottle. "To your downfall." He took a drink and swallowed. Immediately he convulsed and fell to the floor. He would have shrieked if he could have. The water had scorched his throat and was eating away at him from the inside.
Irkens could water proof their skin, but not much else. The purer the water the more damage it did. Everyone in camp carried a bottle of distilled water. Everyone but the Irkens on their side drank some when asked. No matter what.
Dib put the pistol to the writhing Irkens' head and pulled the trigger. He might have been an Irken but no one deserved a painful death.
"Get a crew to bury him." Dib said holstering the laser weapon. "And check everyone on base." He picked up the bottle and took a drink to prove he was Human himself. No one was exempt from that vital law.
"Will do." Doc said.
Sheri and Cal left, Doc followed close behind. But Dib stayed and sat alone at the table.
Outside Cal nudged Doc. "He okay? I mean I know he's been through a lot but he's been down a lot lately."
Dob shook his head. "Some of us get demons that won't leave us alone. Dib's got one he can't let go." He pushed Cal up ahead. "Now go get that team together. Can't have the enemy sniffing the little bastard out."
Lost
Dark figures huddled along the lower edges of the grounded war ship. It was in for repairs. Smaller than an Irken battle ship it was able to land planet side for work on its gravity generator.
The six Human figures suddenly fled the scene. They rode two to a hover bike. Irken made of course. Not much on Earth didn't belong to the Irken race.
Two of the bikes raced ahead of a third. Explosions blew a sizeable hole in the war ships main engine. The shock wave sent the third bike into a spin.
A small and sleek fighter style Voot Runner blasted past the hindered bike.
Just across the previously looked for line of safety one of the two bikes pulled around. The other stopped and both riders looked back.
The passenger on the first bike hopped off and the driver raced off towards the stalled bike.
"What the hell is he doing now?" The driver of the second bike asked the girl who had gotten off.
She shook her head. "He said to keep going, he'd catch up. We gotta leave like now though."
"That crazy bastard." The driver said as his passenger pulled the girl up. "I'm staying, he'll need cover fire."
The passenger-less driver swept past the stalled bike as it exploded from laser fire. The Voot Runner swooped up in a loop to try and came back for the survivor of the explosion.
The Irken In the vessel cackled as he lined up the shot for the running Human.
Suddenly the second bike sped past and the driver scooped up his fellow Human.
Fire from a rifle and a hand pistol peppered the Voot Runner. They managed to only anger the Irken until they hit the main air compressor. The Voot Runner sputtered in mid air then exploded.
The bikes finally met up and sped off into the steadily darkening landscape.
* * *
The bikes pulled up behind a parked truck. The back of it came open and a ramp was pulled out to load them up.
Drivers and passengers got off.
Five of six survived. Better than average.
The driver of one of the bikes pulled off his helmet and helped the boy he had saved with his riding armor.
"Dib!" A rough voice yelled. "You're going to get yourself killed like that."
Dib ran a hand through his hair. "I never leave a man behind Doc, you know that."
The older man scowled. "That's no excuse. Your sister wouldn't have approved, whatever powers that be rest her fighting soul. Plus you told Mira that we were to leave. You know we don't' split up like that."
"There was only one Voot Runner." Dib said clipping his helmet to his bikes handle bars before it was loaded up.
"Yeah, I know." Doc got a thoughtful look on his face. "Weird huh? They usually send out as many as they have on hand."
"They did. The Western Sect is giving them major trouble. They could only spare one Runner on a measly war ship." Dib looked up at Doc. He was as tall as his dad had been but Doc was taller. His hair remained as unruly as always and he wore the common among his fellows, dark armor that had been pieced together over the years. A 'smiley' face patch was on his shoulder.
"I still don't approve." Doc said crossing his arms.
Both were aware that the rest of the camp was watching them. Dib was, at the age of eighteen, one of the first leaders of the Human Resistance (HR) but Doc had been a commander in the armed forces. He was twenty-three now
Dibs' face showed no reaction. "I never leave a man behind." He said again. He turned and walked away.
"Let it go Dib!" Doc called after him. "She's forgiven you!"
Dib didn't turn around and just went into his tent. It was a single person canvas tent. Only room for his cot and private armory.
He looked at the creased picture of the only person he had ever really cared about. He couldn't even bring himself to think her name much less say it out loud. It had been an accident. She had been right behind him, then she had just been gone.
Images played in his head. What he could have done differently.
Never leave a man behind.
Never again.
That was his promise to her. So long as he was alive he would do everything to make sure everyone made it back to camp. Death was better than imprisonment.
He didn't even know if she was still alive. Most people thought she was dead by now. They'd had a funeral for her. Everyone had a funeral when they didn't return.
Five years since the Irkens had finally invaded. Two since she had been lost. It almost felt like forever.
He lay back on his cot and held the picture over his heart. He willed his mind to shut down. To forget the pain. Sleep was his only salvation. And even then he would sometimes have nightmares.
So sleep wasn't salvation. Nothing was, except maybe death. And even then he was sure his troubled soul wouldn't rest. Not till he knew she had forgiven him.
Dibs' eyes closed slowly and he fell asleep.
* * *
"Wakey wakey! Eggs and bakey!"
Dib bolted upright at the high pitched voice. His heart raced as he recognized Stupid. The little SIR unit jumped up and down and cheered.
Stupid was owned by one of the Irkens that had joined the Humans. They were mostly shorter Irkens that were angry at the empire and even though invading was wrong. They were used as spies in the Empire itself. Stupids' owner unfortunately met his demise in an Irken torture chamber and the SIR had been adopted by everyone in the base camp.
"Ugh, Stupid, don't do that."
"Oops!" The battle scared SIR said. His logic chip had been damaged in a fight with a 'Slaughtering Rat Person' that had been set loose in the camp by an Irken squad. The Rat Person was dead now but Stupid was now, well, stupid.
"Go help someone else okay?" Dib asked standing up.
"Sir! Yes Sir!" Stupid said, his normally blue eyes flashed red before he bolted out of the room giggling.
They not only used Stupid around camp to help fix things but the little SIR knew GIR. The two got along quite well and Stupid would get info from GIR and vise versa. Only thing was Stupid was given false information.
Dib yawned and opened his tent flap blinking in the bright lights. He checked the personal weaponry that he always carried and ventured out.
"Dib!"
Dib turned to see Cal, the local bomb expert, running towards him.
"Dib, you'll never guess it but we caught someone sneaking around the food truck last night. Male, maybe seven."
Dib sighed.
Irkens had discovered a way to make themselves look absolutely human and water proofed their skin. They used the child disguise most often since the majority of their race was short.
"Show me."
Cal lead him to a larger tent. It had a few lights in it. Doc and a woman by the name of Sheri were there. They both turned and greeted him then looked back at the child.
It was a boy, around seven or eight. Brown hair, brown eyes. He looked normal enough.
"Did you spray him?"
Doc nodded. "Nothing."
"Please." The boy said. "I was just hungry. Let me go, my mom's gotta be worried about me."
Dib looked at Sheri. "Any settlements in the area?"
She nodded. "Two. 'Old Hope' and 'Craters'ville'."
Dib took a water bottle that he kept at his side and set it on the table. "So, what's your name boy?" He asked.
"Deble." He said quietly.
"Well Deble. My name is Dib." He kept watching the child as talked. "And I'm sure you know we have a bit of a problem here."
"No sir I don't." Deble said.
Dib shrugged. "Want a drink Deble?" He asked picking up the water bottle. He offered it to the boy.
"I'm not thirsty sir."
Dib pulled out a small pistol. "Drink the water Deble."
No one else in the room objected. They couldn't afford to fall for the innocent child bit. Too many bad things had happened because they had.
Deble picked up the water bottle. He lifted it to his mouth.
"Oh yeah." Dib said. "It's distilled water. It might not taste right."
Deble stopped. He regarded the bottle and swallowed hard.
"Drink it." Doc said.
Deble lifted the bottle. "To your downfall." He took a drink and swallowed. Immediately he convulsed and fell to the floor. He would have shrieked if he could have. The water had scorched his throat and was eating away at him from the inside.
Irkens could water proof their skin, but not much else. The purer the water the more damage it did. Everyone in camp carried a bottle of distilled water. Everyone but the Irkens on their side drank some when asked. No matter what.
Dib put the pistol to the writhing Irkens' head and pulled the trigger. He might have been an Irken but no one deserved a painful death.
"Get a crew to bury him." Dib said holstering the laser weapon. "And check everyone on base." He picked up the bottle and took a drink to prove he was Human himself. No one was exempt from that vital law.
"Will do." Doc said.
Sheri and Cal left, Doc followed close behind. But Dib stayed and sat alone at the table.
Outside Cal nudged Doc. "He okay? I mean I know he's been through a lot but he's been down a lot lately."
Dob shook his head. "Some of us get demons that won't leave us alone. Dib's got one he can't let go." He pushed Cal up ahead. "Now go get that team together. Can't have the enemy sniffing the little bastard out."