Chapter 6 - First Light
(With the song "Dreaming While You Sleep", by Genesis) NOTE: I changed a couple words in the song to make it fit, but it's only as minor as "him" instead of "her" and "he" instead of "I". By the way, I don't know the tune to this song, but I've got the lyrics...I am a strange person indeed.
Quickly, Vehn, Laena, Dib, and Nodac loaded up their car-Dylan and Vehn had found a broken-down car and repaired it a couple weeks ago-and began to drive along the most discreet of all paths. A storm was approaching, and Dib thought quietly to himself about the disadvantage that the rain would put Zim. As they drove on, the deserted city merged with the forest; earlier travelers had cleared a path and paved it with asphalt. A sudden change in temperature and visibility was noticeable, and Nodac began to shiver considerably. Her shivering grew into jolts, and her head seemed loose.
-In and out of darkness, in and out of sleep-
"Nodac, what's wrong? Nodac? Nodac, speak to me!"
-Trying to keep my hands upon the wheel, Never saw the corner in the driving rain-
A shadowy figure lurked in the darkness, snickering slightly in the wake of his evil plan. He crept out of hiding and prepared to attack...
-I never saw him step into the street-
The figure leapt out and jumped Nodac. He threw her out of the car, and pressed a laser to her neck. Jerking awake, she screamed.
"HELP!" Dib stopped the car, but as soon as he got out, the intruder spoke:
"Move any closer and she gets it!" He stood, frozen, as the shadowy figure pulled out a gleaming silver knife. "I think I'd prefer to kill her with one of your primitive weapons. That way you can see her blood trickle out as the life drains from her." He pressed it to her neck, and began a gentle sawing motion, thoroughly enjoying every bit of terror in their faces. Her face grew pale, her eyes blank. Finishing with a violent sweep of the knife, the figure dashed back into the trees and darkness, showing his face for one moment in time.
-Dreaming while you sleep / memories to keep / dreaming while you sleep-
Dib fled in terror, and drove off.
-I can never understand what went through my mind, I didn't stop to see what he had done, I had to keep driving deep into the night, The miles between would somehow put it right-
As he drove on, he pictured Nodac, slaughtered, lying at the side of the road. He remembered the petrified look on her face, and realized that he wore that exact expression.
-Dreaming while you sleep / memories to keep / dreaming while you sleep, All my life you lie silently there - All my life in a world so unfair, All my life - and only I'll know why and it will live inside of me, I will never be free - all my life - trapped in her memory all my life, Till the day that you open your eyes, please open your eyes-
Dib remembered the walkie-talkie he had been given by Vehn, so he could communicate with them and reassure that they were okay. He picked it up, and flicked the switch.
"Vehn? Vehn! Vehn, are you there? Vehn, please, respond!"
"What's wrong with you? We're okay."
"Nodac."
"What about her? Is she okay?"
"No."
"No? What happened?"
"Zim jumped us and...he had a knife...I couldn't stop him..."
"He-you mean-she's-"
"I-don't know."
"You don't know? Find out! See if her heart's beating."
"I can't."
"What do you mean 'you can't'?"
"She's still there."
"What do you-you didn't actually LEAVE her there, did you? Did you? Dib, you-" He turned the walkie-talkie off, and dug into his pocket for something. It was his mother's wedding ring.
-Dreaming while you sleep / dreaming while you sleep, Heard it on the radio, saw it on TV, but could I take my secret to the grave? If I had another chance would I do the same, would I still deny that I was there? Dreaming while you sleep / Are you dreaming while you sleep?-
As he drove on, he lifted the ring and imagined how the night would've been if it weren't for Zim. He imagined asking Nodac the most important question of his life, withdrawing the ring from his pocket, and slipping it on her finger. He could visualize the ceremony to come as though it had already happened. Most of all, he could picture his life afterward. Then Vehn's disgust of his actions crowded into his mind and trampled his dreams.
-All my life I'll be haunted by - all my life - just one moment in time, All my life - until the day I die, and it will live inside of me, I will never be free - all my life - trapped in her memory, All my life - till the day that you open your eyes-
With a screech of the brakes, he stopped the car and turned around. Going back the road he went down, he pushed his foot down on the gas pedal.
"Let's see what this car can do," he muttered, as the speedometer's needle passed 60, 70, and 80...it stopped at 84 miles. Disturbing the nearby animals, he sped down the jagged road. When he came upon the spot he had fled, he found Nodac, and picked up her lifeless form. Suddenly, he recalled Vehn's history with medicine. He flicked the walkie-talkie on. "Vehn! Vehn, come in!"
"I'm not going to speak to you, Dib! You let Nodac down. I thought you loved her."
"I do. I wasn't thinking! I'm back with her, and her heart's beating. She's lost a lot of blood, though, and the front of her neck is cut. You know about medicine, and I need your help to save her."
"Is the esophagus punctured?"
"Where's that?"
"It's the tube that carried food down the throat."
"Oh-no, it's not."
"That's good. Are any veins cut?"
"Yes-two of them. He didn't cut very far, thank God."
"It may not be necessary for him to have cut far. Are they thick veins?"
"Yes."
"That's not good. Do you have any way to regenerate the broken seal?"
"She doesn't have worm genes, Vehn! I'm out in the forest, many miles from you and Laena, and you're the closest people! What do I have out here that can save Nodac's life?"
"Look in the first-aid kit I got you and Nodac. But first, what blood type do you have?"
"O positive."
"And Nodac?"
"I don't know."
"Look in the first-aid kit. It should have a record of all of our blood types in case of emergency." He rummaged through the kit, and finally pulled it out.
"Uh...O positive."
"Fantastic! She'll have lost some blood after recovery."
"Vehn, she hasn't recovered yet! How do I join the two veins in the middle of the forest?"
"I wouldn't know how. Wait-don't you have that chemical isolation device that you stole from Zim once?"
"Yeah, I do. Why?"
"Find a worm, and isolate the chemical that makes it regenerate if it loses a segment or two. Then, take the eyedropper from the first-aid kit and put only a small drop on the severed veins. Don't use more-it could possibly be poisonous to have too much, because it's from a worm."
"Okay. Thanks."
"Be sure to bring her right back when you think you can. It is important that you don't draw blood from yourself without knowing how or how much; it's dangerous."
"Okay." He dug into the moist soil, eventually finding a couple of earthworms. The small device analyzed it, and isolated the chemical in liquid form. He administered the liquid upon her veins, and waited with her. After a few hours, late into the night, he felt it was sufficiently healed. "Okay Vehn, now what do I do?"
"There are materials to sew up wounds. Have you ever sewn before?"
"Er...no."
"Well, don't sew deep down. Just on the surface. It's just temporary until you can get back. It's obvious that Zim knows your whereabouts. You can't proceed to the hidden human colony."
"I see the materials...wish me luck."
"Okay. Break a leg. Though not literally, of course."
"No time to waste." He began to sew the slit as best as he could, and finished about an hour later. On the way back, he drove very slowly, to ensure that she would be safe. When he reached their hideout, Laena and Vehn carried Nodac to her room, where she was to be accompanied by Laena.
"How could you let this happen? I thought you were going to take care of her!"
"I tried. But I failed. I don't deserve for her to be my wife."
"What?"
"I was going to ask her to marry me." Dib reached into his coat, fishing for the ring. "Where is it?"
"Where is what?"
"The ring! The ring I planned to give Nodac! It belonged to my mother!"
"Where did you have it last?"
"I took it out when I left Nodac." It struck him how horrible what he'd done was. "I thought about what I was leaving behind: my hopes, dreams, love, and future."
"Do you still want to marry her?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"Maybe because you felt too ashamed of what you did to her. Leaving someone to die is pretty serious."
"I can't believe I did that to her."
"You were shocked. I'm sure she'll understand...once she comes to, that is."
"I'm going to go see her." He entered the room, Laena taking the cue to leave, and took her hand. Dib noticed something on her hand-his mother's wedding ring. Discreetly, he tried to slip the ring off her finger, but she merely turned over on her side. "Are you all right? Can you hear me?" She blinked her eyes open, then let a smile spread slowly across her face.
"Yes," she said, her voice quavering.
"You're going to have that sore throat for a while." He paused for a bit, then added, "I have some candy for you." Candy was rare, for factories no longer were in service, and even one piece of candy had gained the worth of gold.
"Thank...you..." She fell back into sleep, and Laena took charge of guarding Nodac. After a brief conversation with Vehn, he, too, turned in for the night.
(With the song "Dreaming While You Sleep", by Genesis) NOTE: I changed a couple words in the song to make it fit, but it's only as minor as "him" instead of "her" and "he" instead of "I". By the way, I don't know the tune to this song, but I've got the lyrics...I am a strange person indeed.
Quickly, Vehn, Laena, Dib, and Nodac loaded up their car-Dylan and Vehn had found a broken-down car and repaired it a couple weeks ago-and began to drive along the most discreet of all paths. A storm was approaching, and Dib thought quietly to himself about the disadvantage that the rain would put Zim. As they drove on, the deserted city merged with the forest; earlier travelers had cleared a path and paved it with asphalt. A sudden change in temperature and visibility was noticeable, and Nodac began to shiver considerably. Her shivering grew into jolts, and her head seemed loose.
-In and out of darkness, in and out of sleep-
"Nodac, what's wrong? Nodac? Nodac, speak to me!"
-Trying to keep my hands upon the wheel, Never saw the corner in the driving rain-
A shadowy figure lurked in the darkness, snickering slightly in the wake of his evil plan. He crept out of hiding and prepared to attack...
-I never saw him step into the street-
The figure leapt out and jumped Nodac. He threw her out of the car, and pressed a laser to her neck. Jerking awake, she screamed.
"HELP!" Dib stopped the car, but as soon as he got out, the intruder spoke:
"Move any closer and she gets it!" He stood, frozen, as the shadowy figure pulled out a gleaming silver knife. "I think I'd prefer to kill her with one of your primitive weapons. That way you can see her blood trickle out as the life drains from her." He pressed it to her neck, and began a gentle sawing motion, thoroughly enjoying every bit of terror in their faces. Her face grew pale, her eyes blank. Finishing with a violent sweep of the knife, the figure dashed back into the trees and darkness, showing his face for one moment in time.
-Dreaming while you sleep / memories to keep / dreaming while you sleep-
Dib fled in terror, and drove off.
-I can never understand what went through my mind, I didn't stop to see what he had done, I had to keep driving deep into the night, The miles between would somehow put it right-
As he drove on, he pictured Nodac, slaughtered, lying at the side of the road. He remembered the petrified look on her face, and realized that he wore that exact expression.
-Dreaming while you sleep / memories to keep / dreaming while you sleep, All my life you lie silently there - All my life in a world so unfair, All my life - and only I'll know why and it will live inside of me, I will never be free - all my life - trapped in her memory all my life, Till the day that you open your eyes, please open your eyes-
Dib remembered the walkie-talkie he had been given by Vehn, so he could communicate with them and reassure that they were okay. He picked it up, and flicked the switch.
"Vehn? Vehn! Vehn, are you there? Vehn, please, respond!"
"What's wrong with you? We're okay."
"Nodac."
"What about her? Is she okay?"
"No."
"No? What happened?"
"Zim jumped us and...he had a knife...I couldn't stop him..."
"He-you mean-she's-"
"I-don't know."
"You don't know? Find out! See if her heart's beating."
"I can't."
"What do you mean 'you can't'?"
"She's still there."
"What do you-you didn't actually LEAVE her there, did you? Did you? Dib, you-" He turned the walkie-talkie off, and dug into his pocket for something. It was his mother's wedding ring.
-Dreaming while you sleep / dreaming while you sleep, Heard it on the radio, saw it on TV, but could I take my secret to the grave? If I had another chance would I do the same, would I still deny that I was there? Dreaming while you sleep / Are you dreaming while you sleep?-
As he drove on, he lifted the ring and imagined how the night would've been if it weren't for Zim. He imagined asking Nodac the most important question of his life, withdrawing the ring from his pocket, and slipping it on her finger. He could visualize the ceremony to come as though it had already happened. Most of all, he could picture his life afterward. Then Vehn's disgust of his actions crowded into his mind and trampled his dreams.
-All my life I'll be haunted by - all my life - just one moment in time, All my life - until the day I die, and it will live inside of me, I will never be free - all my life - trapped in her memory, All my life - till the day that you open your eyes-
With a screech of the brakes, he stopped the car and turned around. Going back the road he went down, he pushed his foot down on the gas pedal.
"Let's see what this car can do," he muttered, as the speedometer's needle passed 60, 70, and 80...it stopped at 84 miles. Disturbing the nearby animals, he sped down the jagged road. When he came upon the spot he had fled, he found Nodac, and picked up her lifeless form. Suddenly, he recalled Vehn's history with medicine. He flicked the walkie-talkie on. "Vehn! Vehn, come in!"
"I'm not going to speak to you, Dib! You let Nodac down. I thought you loved her."
"I do. I wasn't thinking! I'm back with her, and her heart's beating. She's lost a lot of blood, though, and the front of her neck is cut. You know about medicine, and I need your help to save her."
"Is the esophagus punctured?"
"Where's that?"
"It's the tube that carried food down the throat."
"Oh-no, it's not."
"That's good. Are any veins cut?"
"Yes-two of them. He didn't cut very far, thank God."
"It may not be necessary for him to have cut far. Are they thick veins?"
"Yes."
"That's not good. Do you have any way to regenerate the broken seal?"
"She doesn't have worm genes, Vehn! I'm out in the forest, many miles from you and Laena, and you're the closest people! What do I have out here that can save Nodac's life?"
"Look in the first-aid kit I got you and Nodac. But first, what blood type do you have?"
"O positive."
"And Nodac?"
"I don't know."
"Look in the first-aid kit. It should have a record of all of our blood types in case of emergency." He rummaged through the kit, and finally pulled it out.
"Uh...O positive."
"Fantastic! She'll have lost some blood after recovery."
"Vehn, she hasn't recovered yet! How do I join the two veins in the middle of the forest?"
"I wouldn't know how. Wait-don't you have that chemical isolation device that you stole from Zim once?"
"Yeah, I do. Why?"
"Find a worm, and isolate the chemical that makes it regenerate if it loses a segment or two. Then, take the eyedropper from the first-aid kit and put only a small drop on the severed veins. Don't use more-it could possibly be poisonous to have too much, because it's from a worm."
"Okay. Thanks."
"Be sure to bring her right back when you think you can. It is important that you don't draw blood from yourself without knowing how or how much; it's dangerous."
"Okay." He dug into the moist soil, eventually finding a couple of earthworms. The small device analyzed it, and isolated the chemical in liquid form. He administered the liquid upon her veins, and waited with her. After a few hours, late into the night, he felt it was sufficiently healed. "Okay Vehn, now what do I do?"
"There are materials to sew up wounds. Have you ever sewn before?"
"Er...no."
"Well, don't sew deep down. Just on the surface. It's just temporary until you can get back. It's obvious that Zim knows your whereabouts. You can't proceed to the hidden human colony."
"I see the materials...wish me luck."
"Okay. Break a leg. Though not literally, of course."
"No time to waste." He began to sew the slit as best as he could, and finished about an hour later. On the way back, he drove very slowly, to ensure that she would be safe. When he reached their hideout, Laena and Vehn carried Nodac to her room, where she was to be accompanied by Laena.
"How could you let this happen? I thought you were going to take care of her!"
"I tried. But I failed. I don't deserve for her to be my wife."
"What?"
"I was going to ask her to marry me." Dib reached into his coat, fishing for the ring. "Where is it?"
"Where is what?"
"The ring! The ring I planned to give Nodac! It belonged to my mother!"
"Where did you have it last?"
"I took it out when I left Nodac." It struck him how horrible what he'd done was. "I thought about what I was leaving behind: my hopes, dreams, love, and future."
"Do you still want to marry her?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"Maybe because you felt too ashamed of what you did to her. Leaving someone to die is pretty serious."
"I can't believe I did that to her."
"You were shocked. I'm sure she'll understand...once she comes to, that is."
"I'm going to go see her." He entered the room, Laena taking the cue to leave, and took her hand. Dib noticed something on her hand-his mother's wedding ring. Discreetly, he tried to slip the ring off her finger, but she merely turned over on her side. "Are you all right? Can you hear me?" She blinked her eyes open, then let a smile spread slowly across her face.
"Yes," she said, her voice quavering.
"You're going to have that sore throat for a while." He paused for a bit, then added, "I have some candy for you." Candy was rare, for factories no longer were in service, and even one piece of candy had gained the worth of gold.
"Thank...you..." She fell back into sleep, and Laena took charge of guarding Nodac. After a brief conversation with Vehn, he, too, turned in for the night.