Yay! And the plot swells! I own Zim no, just Kith. And Gally. And the
Kalack too, I guess...and Zim. Wait, no, not Zim. Can I have Dib? Lookit him,
he's all weak and skinny—no? Then who CAN I have? What, no one? How
rude...T.T
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
Zim and Kith rounded the corner to their cul-de-sac at breakneck speed, which meant their sudden stop didn't work out too well, dumping the both of them on the asphalt. Scowling and glancing around with extreme annoyance and nervousness, they untangled their antennae and stood up.
"..." Kith's wordless gasp summed the scene up.
Zim knelt down by his shattered gnomes, at a loss as to how his defenses had...not defended. He rose to his feet and pulled Kith roughly inside.
"Damn that creature..." he snarled. "This BEAST toys with us! ZIM will not be toyed with, like some sort of...toy! We must...plan." He arched his fingers and strode to the toilet in the kitchen. Kith followed, shaken but determined.
Dib nearly jumped a foot when the elevator 'whooshed' the other Irkans down into the lab. He ran up to them, hearts in his throat.
"Were you followed? Did you make it home alright?"
Zim arched an eyebrow and stared at Dib as if he we some sort of toad, a very stupid toad. "The gnomes are definitely his handiwork, Dib-worm...I think he's a bit past following us at this point. And yes, the return home was uneventful." He glanced over to scan the monitors over Gally, and flopped down on one of his chairs.
Kith immediately fell to one of the computers and began typing furiously. Dib sidled up to one side, to read from the screen.
"I'm researching Kalack arrests and history right now," Kith explained. "The Dalzorians usually keep good records on who is brought in and when, and the Kalack are a race that gives them no small amount of trouble. There's often techniques listed on how the individual was caught, and how they reacted. It's very helpful for the officers, spread apart as they are."
Dib stared in awe at the vast amounts of information scrolling at a fast pace down the monitor.
"You say officers; are these...Dalzorians...the law in space?"
Kith nodded distractedly.
"They take care of the individuals and small crime rings. Irk is exempt, because of it's might, so they mark planets that aren't allowed to be colonized or invaded, and we take the ones that don't matter as much. In the event of, say, inter-planetary war, Irk and Dalzor act as arbitrators. We used to, actually, before the current Tallests came to power..."
She sighed and rubbed one eye before continuing.
"Red and Purple are so...careless, most of the time. I swear, the Massive could get hijacked out from under their curly fries and they'd not notice. Now Dalzor is the main law power, and Irk just kinda sits off to one side." Kith's antennae drooped and she turned her full attention back to the computer.
Zim flinched and glared over at Kith.
"Irk is not getting lax in its duties! The Tallest have not had the need to sit in as arbitrators ONCE since they began their reign...else the Irkan Empire would unleash MIGHT and DOOM upon the poor fools who defy us."
Dib stared dully at Zim and cocked his head to one side.
"Um. Speaking on invading...."
Kith and Zim turned to look at him almost in the same movement.
"You got a call today, while you were at Skool," Dib finished lamely.
"WHAT? From who?!" Zim exploded from his seat. "You didn't answer it, did you? Foul Earth boy!"
Dib blinked and rubbed where the bridge of his nose would be. "I was kind of muddles by sleep, mind...."
Kith gaped and flicked one of Dib's antennae.
"Who was it?"
"It was...um...the Tallest...."
Kith hiccupped and fell off of her chair. Zim, had he been human, would have been purple with rage. As it was, he was a dark, dark green, nearly blue, and shaking. Kith crawled to her feet, using Zim as a stabilizer, and clapped a hand over his mouth. She stared hard at Dib, and said quietly, with the barely suppressed rage of thunder, "Tell me EXACTLY what was said."
Dib gulped and quailed under her intense stare. "They didn't recognize me...and...uhm...they offered to make me an Invader."
Gir, Hex, and MiKi made little cricket chirps from the next room, and giggled quietly.
Zim's rage left him completely, left him feeling like he'd just finished crying and throwing a temper tantrum....not that he ever had, of course. But he felt tired, and empty, felt as if he'd lost his lunch.
Kith blinked slowly, then again, and took a deep breath.
"They said you could apply...to be an Invader?"
Dib nodded mutely, terrified.
"And they didn't ask any questions about who you are, or why you're here?"
He shook his head.
"Red said...well, he didn't say anything about that. Just that...when the Massive got here, they'd take me back with them."
Zim abruptly turned and walked to the elevator and went down. Kith stared after him, and bit her lip. Dib blinked stupidly at her, then at the elevator, and back.
"What was that about?"
Kith reached out slowly, and flicked him between the eyes.
"Are you so blind?! You! Being made an Invader! Can you possibly see this from his point of view? He arch-rival for so long, being accepted where HE should have been accepted, and wasn't! Getting HIS title, HIS glory?"
She suddenly sagged against Dib and rested her head on his front. He could feel his pulse light itself on fire.
"I'm just so tired, Dib...I'm tired of feeling everyone's hurts, and I'm tired of running. I ran away from home, and I'm running from this stupid Kalack, and now I'm emotionally, physically, and mentally drained. I just want to go to sleep and forget it all. I hurt for Zim, and I'm angry because I hurt, and I don't want to care, and that makes me feel even worse." She looked up at him, and he was startled to find a misty little tear in one eye. "Do you understand? Caring for someone and not wanting to care about them?"
Dib nodded quickly, then shook his head and gulped.
"Wait—do you...do you care for Zim, then?"
She blinked and laughed quietly, mirthlessly.
"I do, because I've felt his mind. But I don't love him, no...I don't want to spend my life with him that way." She turned her face down and sighed deeply.
"I want to be with you, Dib...."
ooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Gasp! Shriek! Squeal! Moose!
Egads, you sunk my Scrabbleship! Romance, from me? The Blue Abomination? Holy monkey!
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
Zim and Kith rounded the corner to their cul-de-sac at breakneck speed, which meant their sudden stop didn't work out too well, dumping the both of them on the asphalt. Scowling and glancing around with extreme annoyance and nervousness, they untangled their antennae and stood up.
"..." Kith's wordless gasp summed the scene up.
Zim knelt down by his shattered gnomes, at a loss as to how his defenses had...not defended. He rose to his feet and pulled Kith roughly inside.
"Damn that creature..." he snarled. "This BEAST toys with us! ZIM will not be toyed with, like some sort of...toy! We must...plan." He arched his fingers and strode to the toilet in the kitchen. Kith followed, shaken but determined.
Dib nearly jumped a foot when the elevator 'whooshed' the other Irkans down into the lab. He ran up to them, hearts in his throat.
"Were you followed? Did you make it home alright?"
Zim arched an eyebrow and stared at Dib as if he we some sort of toad, a very stupid toad. "The gnomes are definitely his handiwork, Dib-worm...I think he's a bit past following us at this point. And yes, the return home was uneventful." He glanced over to scan the monitors over Gally, and flopped down on one of his chairs.
Kith immediately fell to one of the computers and began typing furiously. Dib sidled up to one side, to read from the screen.
"I'm researching Kalack arrests and history right now," Kith explained. "The Dalzorians usually keep good records on who is brought in and when, and the Kalack are a race that gives them no small amount of trouble. There's often techniques listed on how the individual was caught, and how they reacted. It's very helpful for the officers, spread apart as they are."
Dib stared in awe at the vast amounts of information scrolling at a fast pace down the monitor.
"You say officers; are these...Dalzorians...the law in space?"
Kith nodded distractedly.
"They take care of the individuals and small crime rings. Irk is exempt, because of it's might, so they mark planets that aren't allowed to be colonized or invaded, and we take the ones that don't matter as much. In the event of, say, inter-planetary war, Irk and Dalzor act as arbitrators. We used to, actually, before the current Tallests came to power..."
She sighed and rubbed one eye before continuing.
"Red and Purple are so...careless, most of the time. I swear, the Massive could get hijacked out from under their curly fries and they'd not notice. Now Dalzor is the main law power, and Irk just kinda sits off to one side." Kith's antennae drooped and she turned her full attention back to the computer.
Zim flinched and glared over at Kith.
"Irk is not getting lax in its duties! The Tallest have not had the need to sit in as arbitrators ONCE since they began their reign...else the Irkan Empire would unleash MIGHT and DOOM upon the poor fools who defy us."
Dib stared dully at Zim and cocked his head to one side.
"Um. Speaking on invading...."
Kith and Zim turned to look at him almost in the same movement.
"You got a call today, while you were at Skool," Dib finished lamely.
"WHAT? From who?!" Zim exploded from his seat. "You didn't answer it, did you? Foul Earth boy!"
Dib blinked and rubbed where the bridge of his nose would be. "I was kind of muddles by sleep, mind...."
Kith gaped and flicked one of Dib's antennae.
"Who was it?"
"It was...um...the Tallest...."
Kith hiccupped and fell off of her chair. Zim, had he been human, would have been purple with rage. As it was, he was a dark, dark green, nearly blue, and shaking. Kith crawled to her feet, using Zim as a stabilizer, and clapped a hand over his mouth. She stared hard at Dib, and said quietly, with the barely suppressed rage of thunder, "Tell me EXACTLY what was said."
Dib gulped and quailed under her intense stare. "They didn't recognize me...and...uhm...they offered to make me an Invader."
Gir, Hex, and MiKi made little cricket chirps from the next room, and giggled quietly.
Zim's rage left him completely, left him feeling like he'd just finished crying and throwing a temper tantrum....not that he ever had, of course. But he felt tired, and empty, felt as if he'd lost his lunch.
Kith blinked slowly, then again, and took a deep breath.
"They said you could apply...to be an Invader?"
Dib nodded mutely, terrified.
"And they didn't ask any questions about who you are, or why you're here?"
He shook his head.
"Red said...well, he didn't say anything about that. Just that...when the Massive got here, they'd take me back with them."
Zim abruptly turned and walked to the elevator and went down. Kith stared after him, and bit her lip. Dib blinked stupidly at her, then at the elevator, and back.
"What was that about?"
Kith reached out slowly, and flicked him between the eyes.
"Are you so blind?! You! Being made an Invader! Can you possibly see this from his point of view? He arch-rival for so long, being accepted where HE should have been accepted, and wasn't! Getting HIS title, HIS glory?"
She suddenly sagged against Dib and rested her head on his front. He could feel his pulse light itself on fire.
"I'm just so tired, Dib...I'm tired of feeling everyone's hurts, and I'm tired of running. I ran away from home, and I'm running from this stupid Kalack, and now I'm emotionally, physically, and mentally drained. I just want to go to sleep and forget it all. I hurt for Zim, and I'm angry because I hurt, and I don't want to care, and that makes me feel even worse." She looked up at him, and he was startled to find a misty little tear in one eye. "Do you understand? Caring for someone and not wanting to care about them?"
Dib nodded quickly, then shook his head and gulped.
"Wait—do you...do you care for Zim, then?"
She blinked and laughed quietly, mirthlessly.
"I do, because I've felt his mind. But I don't love him, no...I don't want to spend my life with him that way." She turned her face down and sighed deeply.
"I want to be with you, Dib...."
ooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Gasp! Shriek! Squeal! Moose!
Egads, you sunk my Scrabbleship! Romance, from me? The Blue Abomination? Holy monkey!