"What the..."
RUN
RUN
RUN
RUN
Dib had almost no time to process the word when he could hear something, a soft but determined series of 'clicking' sounds- like raindrops on tile. His breath caught in his throat, as he tried to listen to the sound above him, straining to hear the soft, rhythmic noise over the pounding of his own heart.
RUN
RUN
RUN
RUN
RUN
He carefully shifted one hand to the hyperspheres in his pocket, moving the other to the sleeping form of Lor beside him. He was moving slowly, trying to be as soundless as he could. The messages continued to flood in.
RUN
RUN
RUN
A hand on Lor's shoulder, Dib moved to shake him gently but never got the chance as suddenly, the
click,
click,
click
above him came to a sudden stop.
Dib's heart froze in his chest and in a sudden blur something dropped down on him. Dib let out a loud cry as he flung the hand with the Hyperspheres up. The gravitational force made on impact with whatever-it-was caused Dib to fly backward in the opposite direction. He squinted in the darkness (he had not had time to grab his glasses), seeing something spider-like stabbing its needle-like legs into the soft cushion. Slowly, the creature turned its head toward him almost robotic in its movement. Dib could see two orbs of glowing red light that he realized were eyes. He scurried across the ground to the opposing wall as the spidery legs ripped free of the cushion and began skittering across the tile. Again, he could hear that soft, rain-like clicking filling the room, much louder now.
The thing was fast- far faster than Dib expected. It was only a second before it was on him again, spiked legs rearing up. Dib winced, bracing himself for the impact that never came. Slowly, he opened one eye in time to see Lor holding the spidery legs of what Dib now realized was a PAK. The assailant was a smaller Irken - one Dib did not recognize. The legs of the PAK were caught up in Lor's grip and the Irken was flailing to get free.
"You okay?" Lor kept his voice low as he struggled to keep his grip on the Irken .
"Y-yeah..." Dib slowly got to his feet, still gripping the Hyperspheres in his hand. "Glad you're awake." He was still trying to catch his breath.
"I'm sorry it took me so long." Lor slowly managed to get the PAK legs tied up in a little knot and was trying to avoid getting stabbed by a blade the Irken was waving wildly at him. "He's not alone though, we have to move. I can hear at least two others in the ceiling. We gotta go."
"Why are they coming after us?" Dib stayed back against the wall as he moved around Lor who was wrestling the Irken and ran past them to grab his glasses from where they had fallen on the ground. He was lucky the spiked PAK legs hadn't destroyed them.
"A trap, I suspect." Lor frowned. "It's a little underhanded for the current Tallests . Their reputation isn't this back- stabby ."
"Is that it, Alien!?" Dib slid back to the fight holding the Hyperspheres in what he sincerely hoped was a threatening manner. "You're here on behalf of your leaders to kill me in my sleep!?" The Irken did not respond, staring fixedly at Lor.
"Maybe he thinks you're talking to me..." Lor suggested awkwardly. "I mean... we're all technically aliens if you really think about-" He was cut off as the PAK legs sprung free of his trap. Two of them had broken but the Irken was undeterred. Lor threw his weight into the Irken and they stumbled into the door. Dib, wanting to help, tried to get the door to open but suddenly it was completely unresponsive. It had always just opened when they got close.
"Door's locked or something." Dib tried prying it open with his bare hands but realized that, even with his enhanced strength, he could not pry apart solid metal.
"Well shit." Lor sounded less like they were struggling for their lives and more as if he had just realized he was going to be late for class. He tossed the Irken clear across the room and turned to pry the door open. There was an alternating series of thunks and clicks as the Irken tried to scurry back toward them on the broken legs of the PAK. Lor was able to pull the metal doors open just enough for Dib and himself to slip through before shutting them tightly again earning a loud CRASH as the Irken launched after them only to be met by a door.
"What the fuck was all of that about?" Dib tried to catch his breath.
"I have no idea..." Lor leaned for a moment against the wall.
BEEP.
The door slid open easily and the Irken was standing in the doorway with the same, stoic expression. "Are you kidding me?" Dib blinked.
"We need to find the Captain." Lor grabbed Dib's hand and took off running down the hall. The Irken was in hot pursuit, despite the damaged legs of its PAK, it was moving incredibly quickly, using the working PAK legs to hook onto wires in the ceiling and swing ahead. The good thing was that Lor seemed to be able to keep ahead of it, despite having to pull Dib along behind him. He stopped before another set of doors. "She was in here."
"Open them!" Dib wasn't sure why Lor had just stopped.
"They're locked like ours were and if this is some kind of misunderstanding, I don't want to get in trouble for destroying all this property..."
"LOR!" Dip had never been more aware that his roommate was not a fighter than he was right now. With the Irken at their heels, Dib reared his arm back like a pitcher on a baseball field and launched the Hyperspheres at the door's activation pad. To say they were effective was an understatement. The gravitational force from the impact completely dented in the metal and Dib had to lean back to catch them as their ricochet actually hit their assailant as well.
On later retellings of this event, Dib would claim this to be calculated- but it was just dumb luck.
The door sparked and slid open as Lor and Dib ran inside, peering into the darkness. The Irken shook itself from the gravitational force that had floored it and launched in after them. Before it made contact, something tackled the Irken from the side. Lor pulled Dib back as a second Irken latched onto the back of the first one, hitting the PAK with full force. The movements seemed to be precise, aiming for certain areas over others.
The would-be assassin began to convulse before falling, unmoving onto the ground as their savior got to their feet, tossing their antennae triumphantly. "Take THAT!" The sweet, high pitched voice was certainly not what Dib was expecting.
Lor flipped on the lights to see Tenn, surrounded by at least seven other felled Irkens. Lor paused surveying the chaos before finally speaking. "Are they dead?"
She blinked at them for a moment and looked at the Irkens on the ground. "No. I just knocked them unconscious , more or less."
"Holy shit Tenn, that was actually awesome." Dib had not had a chance to see her in combat when she was on the same side as them- he had to admit he was impressed, especially since her hands were cuffed. "Did you take out all of these guys?"
"Well... Just these three. The Captain and Q got a few of the others." Tenn admitted.
"Where are they?" Lor asked quickly.
"We got overwhelmed. The Irkens took the Captain away and Q just sort of fucked off somewhere... I don't really know what he was doing."
"They took the Captain!?" Lor looked more freaked out now; he began to pace back and forth. Tenn was watching him, turning her head to follow his movements. "Do you know where!?"
"I can guess." Tenn blinked, shaking herself, seemingly dizzy from watch Lor's increasingly fast and frantic pacing. He whirled around picking the small Irken up by her shoulders.
"Where!?"
"You don't have to yell; I can hear you." Tenn replied flatly. " Also, we should keep our voices down because I doubt these Irkens were acting alone." Lor took a deep breath and placed Tenn gently back on her feet.
"You're right. I'm sorry." He leaned over, lowering his voice. "Where did they take the Captain ?"
"Most likely the holding chambers beside the ship's core."
"Fuck. That's going to complicate things."
"Wait." Dib had to interject. "Can't the Captain just walk through the walls?" He'd seen her do it a hundred times on the ship ride over.
" Tangeans can't ghost through energy sources." Tenn explained as-a-matter-of-factly. "we installed the core cells specifically to counter that ability. Aren't Irkens amazing!?" She looked at the unimpressed faces of the Kryptonian and the human before clearing her throat. "I mean you don't have to like it, but it was still a brilliant plan."
"We have to get her." Lor sighed. "You're coming with us."
"Of course!" Tenn did not seem at all upset by the order. "Can you undo the locking mechanism your Syndicate put on my PAK? I'm not much of a fighter without it..."
"You took out three Irkens..." Lor gestured to the unconscious bodies on the floor.
"I mean... Yes. But I'm a top Invader and those guys aren't even military rank. It was easy."
"I'm sorry," he shook his head "but we can't risk you turning against us like those other Irkens . You'll have to keep it on."
"Then can I have a gun?"
"What? No. I just said we were worried you'd turn against us."
"Yeah, but you're bullet proof."
" I'm not!" Dib interjected.
"Fine. But if we get overwhelmed, I'm not taking any of the blame." She marched ahead of the other two walking out of the very broken door.
"We should probably try to meet up with Zim too," Dib knew the Irkens didn't need sleep, so he wasn't quite sure what they had gotten up to in this chaos (he wasn't even 100% certain this wasn't, somehow, Zim's fault).
" Oh they'll be fine. I was in the Elite Academy with Zim and Skoodge ." Tenn spoke very softly, peering out, around the corner. "Even with Skoodge being dead, there aren't many Irken's who are a match for him. Despite being small, Skoodge was a top Invader... And Zim ... well... we'll find Zim I'm sure. He's probably with Skoodge anyway."
"You know Skoodge isn't dead, right?" Dib kept his own voice barely above a whisper. He had heard many Irkens make that comment about Skoodge , but Tenn had been with them the whole time and knew for a fact it can't have been true.
"I mean, yeah. He's fine. Plus with my PAK locked by the Syndicate, I haven't received the update from the Collective that declared him dead. So he's actually alive to me. Now Shh!" She put a finger to her mouth making a little hiss. "I'm trying not to die." The hallways appeared empty but Tenn's antennae were straight up over her head, her red eyes scanning around her on high alert. Lor went to take a step but she held out her bound hands to stop him. "There are patrols. Too many for us to take head on." She turned and went down a very narrow hall. Lor and Dib followed, both struggling a bit to keep up with her through the tight passage.
"Do you have any idea why this is happening?" Dib kept his voice low as he tried to keep up with Tenn as she made a few random turns into even more small and uncomfortable hallways. It was easy for her to fit, but Dib being two feet taller was struggling.
"Actually... I don't..." Her reply sounded honest. "At first I thought it was a rescue attempt. They were going to save me... it seemed unnecessary but I was flattered. Except... they attacked me too- and it was weird." She seemed lost in thought as she walked ahead of them, pausing and keeping quiet for a moment as Dib heard the clicking of PAK legs reverberating down the hall. He froze, holding his breath until the Irken patrol past them withou .
No one moved for a moment before Tenn opened a very small hatch in the wall. She easily weaseled through it leaving Dib and Lor standing, wondering if she had just ditched them before she stuck her arm out gesturing for them to follow.
"I dunno..." Lor hissed as softly as he could.
She gestured more urgently and he very carefully got on his knees and slowly vanished into the hole. Dib took a deep breath and got on his stomach, dragging himself through the little hatch on just his elbows. He crawled only a few feet before the floor completely vanished from under him and he plummeted down a very narrow shaft landing on something warm.
"What in the fuck...?" Dib swore trying to keep his voice down despite the fact he had just taken a tumble down an uncomfortably narrow and dark, metal shaft.
"Ow." The thing Dib landed on made a noise and he quickly realized it was Lor. He got off of him as best he could- there was not much room- and got to his feet. There was a soft little thudding above him and he looked up to see Tenn crawling down a little ladder to join them.
"Wow you guys are clumsy. You could have taken the stairs, you know." She critiqued as she hopped off her little ladder and also landed on Lor.
"We couldn't see the ladder. It was dark." Dib hissed.
"You guys can't see in the dark? That's weird." She looked genuinely surprised as she got off of Lor and finally allowed him to sit up. With Tenn in the room, Dib and Lor had just about enough room to stand chest to chest without stepping on her. "The door should be around here somewhere..." She was squinting at the clean metallic grey tiles with a very intense expression, her curled antennae straight back and flat against her head. She placed her bound hands on the wall and it beeped at her. She sighed looking back at Dib and Lor. "It won't open for me."
"Maybe we can override it..." Dib couldn't actually see the door, but it had made a noise so he was willing to believe it was there.
"I can't without my PAK, and he" Tenn gestured her head in Lor's direction, "won't release the lock." Lor sighed.
"I don't have that kind of security clearance. Even if I wanted to I can't." He looked at the wall, Dib saw the ice blue eyes take on a slightly reddish tint.
"I could ask CB." Dib suggested, holding up his phone. "He usually likes taking over things that aren't a part of him already." It was a creepy habit that Dib in NO WAY trusted, however, it might come in handy for the moment.
"Is that the creepy computer from the ship? That thing makes me uncomfortable." Tenn remarked, thoughtfully.
"You know, it's funny, Tak's ship said the same thing, only way less politely." Dib mused as he pulled out his phone.
"Awe, I miss Tak ." Tenn gave a little sigh. Dib tried to call the number from which CB had been relentlessly texting him.
" Yes? " The reply was instantaneous.
"CB!" Dib never thought he would be so glad to hear that synthetic, tinny voice. "Can you hack an Irken door from the phone?"
" Under normal circumstances, yes. But right now, I am a tad busy. Also, it is good of you to finally contact me. I had assumed you died ."
"What do you mean you're busy!?"
" I send you hundreds of texts that say run and you cannot even give me a call to say 'Why thank you CB, oh wise and benevolent computer. I took your advice and ran and now I am not murdered. You are so kind for warning me.' But no. I only get called when you need something. "
"Now's not the time for a lecture CB, we're literally in a tight spot."
" I cannot help at the moment. Things are complicated. However, Skoodge wanted me to inform you to meet at the bridge at your earliest convenience to arrange your departure. He and the Master are temporarily busy with a side-quest which I am told was of the utmost importance ."
"When were you planning on relaying this incredibly important information to me?" Dib was still taken aback by CB's reply. He had never been busy before. The AI was strong enough to be on Earth and on his phone on the Massive but he couldn't unlock a door?
" Why should I rush? You had not responded to any of my other texts ."
"I'm hanging up CB."
" At least text me if you do end up dying !" And with that Dib disconnected the call. He looked back at the others with a heavy sigh.
"I'm sorry that was a total waste."
"You know, I could just punch through the control panel. It seemed they'll open for blunt-force trauma." Clark suggested.
"They do?" Tenn raised one of her antennae quizzically.
"They did when we slammed the hyperspheres into them." Dib wanted to toss them dramatically so Tenn could admire the weapon his parents had decided to pack him (for some weird reason). However, it was probably not the best idea to toss gravity weapons in a very tight space.
"That seems like a design flaw, but if it works go for it." Tenn ducked her head as Lor reached out and crushed part of the wall easily with his hand. It was as if the tiles had been made of paper with how effortlessly they crumbled. Tenn blinked as there was a second little 'beep' this one much more cheerful sounding and a small door opened that was just tall enough for Tenn to walk through without difficulty. Dib heaved a heavy sigh.
"How do the taller Irkens fit in these tiny passages?" He complained as he had to duck down, once again, to fit in a confined hallway. Even Lor who was almost a foot shorter than Dib was having to hunch over to follow Tenn.
"They don't use them. These are maintenance passages. If you're tall you don't have a job like that." Tenn replied simply. "I don't really use them either- but as an Invader we must know every crevasse of the Massive in case of an emergency."
"Like this?" Dib mused.
"Well..." she sounded thoughtful and Dib realized his little snide comment had been lost on her. "I doubt this was the exact situation they had in mind. But we should be nearing the core prisons..." She continued to walk ahead, squeezing through another little hall. Dib was starting to wonder if they should really trust Tenn who's only contribution to their adventure, thus far, had been pretending to be a member of the Syndicate and shooting Lor. She took them down another small ladder built into the wall pausing at the bottom as Lor and Dib followed. "Oh, I probably should have had the human go first because-" She cut off as Lor's grip slipped off the tiny metal rungs and he fell hard on the silver tiles below.
"Lor!?" Dip jumped down. Lor wasn't really moving, Dib reached to try to roll him over but his body felt warm. Tenn didn't seemed phased.
"That proves how close we are!"
"What did you do to him!?" Dib narrowed his eyes, holding the Hyperspheres tightly in one hand. He scrambled to his feet and slammed his head on the ceiling as he forgot there was barely five feet of room in the hall. Tenn watched him struggle, following his movements with her eyes. She didn't seem particularly threatened by Dib's display.
"We're near the core. The core that is made of lots and lots of that little rock that powered the laser that made him sick? I didn't do anything."
"I feel like I'm dying," Lor muttered from the floor. "Am I dying?"
"You're fine." Tenn leaned down patting him on the head. "But you best stay here. The closer we get the worse you'll feel and at this point you're dead weight."
"I wanna help..." Lor protested, struggling to sit up. Dib could see his whole body trembling. He had never seen his roommate look this sickly before. Even during flu season Lor had always been obnoxiously energetic.
"Awe you can still help." Tenn assured him. "You can give me your gun."
"Didn't Skoodge say something about the power core being highly pressurized or unstable or something?" Dib wasn't so sure he wanted to go alone with Tenn anywhere, especially not if she had a gun. Without Lor, he didn't have a lot to fight off Ten with if she did turn against them.
"I mean... it is. But technically I think he was talking about the element in general. " Tenn admitted. "But I wasn't going to shoot the gun. I was going to hit people with it." She made a motion of wailing on an invisible assailant with her nonexistent gun.
"Fine." Lor mumbled. "Take my gun, it's in the holster on my waist."
"YAY!" Tenn let out a happy cry immediately bending over to retrieve her prize.
"Lor!" Dib protested. "I'm about to be ALONE with her!"
"Yeah, and I don't want you getting hurt... if she thinks it will help, I have to trust her." Lor looked over as Ten pulled out a futuristic, sleek black gun with glowing blue lights that was marked with the Syndicate's logo. It seemed Lor had noticed Dib's concern because he quickly added: "Plus it's voice activated and she's not an authorized user so she can't fire it anyway."
"That's fine." Tenn assured him. " Come on human, we'll be back for him."
"What are you going to do with a gun that doesn't even work?" Dib was skeptical about this whole ordeal: about going with Tenn into an unstable energy core, about leaving Lor weakened on the ground, and about giving Tenn a gun.
"Oh!" She smiled at him and in her sweet, squeaky little voice she replied: "I'm going to beat the shit out of the guards." She turned on her heel and happily began bouncing down the cramped hall. Dib hurried after her.
"Is Lor going to be okay?" Dib hated leaving him like that. He didn't have a lot of friends back on Earth and he wasn't too keen on losing the first one he had made in college. Also, it was going to be a pain finding another roommate he liked.
"He should be. We won't be long. I don't need long." Tenn's eyes narrowed as she looked ahead with determination. Dib had to admit he found her confidence reassuring. They walked a little further before Tenn gestured for them to stop. Her antennae wiggled as she sat in dead silence. "Two guards, roughly five feet tall." She spoke barely above a whisper. "I'll take care of them, you: utilize that weird design flaw where doors open if you smash them and go get the Captain. Wait until the first guard is down before you go in."
"How do you know how many guards there are? Can you see through walls too?" Dib knew vaguely the Irkens had ocular implants capable of far more than the human eye. Tenn shook her head, pointing to her antennae.
"Tremor sense. I can feel them walking." She took a breath. "Are you ready?"
"I think so." Dib nodded.
"Then wait for my signal." Tenn clambered up on top of Dib's back and pushed a single tile aside. Shockingly, despite the space being small, Tenn managed to wriggle her entire body inside. Dib didn't hear much of anything. He didn't even really hear Tenn moving in the ceiling.
Quite suddenly he heard commotion. No one was talking- no cry for help or anything that might have been expected when guards got ambushed, but he heard that loud clambering sound of PAK legs on tile as well as a series of increasingly violent thuds. Dib scooted forward as quietly as a 6'2" human could manage in a five-foot hall and saw Tenn , dangling from the neck of one of the guards by her bound hands. The guard was on their PAK legs, rearing back. Tenn swung her body throwing the Irken over her head and into the second Irken . Like before she jumped on their back, beating the gun against the side of their head with relentless force. Dib waited till she managed to grab to the PAK and hit that series of sweet spots before blindly running to the door, throwing the Hyperspheres at the panel. The impact was far more volatile than Dib had predicted. It turns out that the Hyperspheres do not require much force when thrown as the subsequent gravitational blast threw the guards, Tenn , and Dib himself all into opposing walls. Tenn's head popped up, wincing as an alarm began blaring from the shattered door, reverberating around the metal chamber.
"What the fuck was that?!" She demanded as she quickly took her opportunity to latch onto the PAK of the other guard.
"The Hyperspheres we mentioned." Dib ran to the door which had opened the same as all the doors they had tried the break-it method of entering. On the other side was the Captain, sitting far against the opposing wall looking a little stunned.
"You don't need that much force Mr. Membrane. Clearly the Hyperspheres require finesse, not brute strength." She got to her feet with some difficulty, her own hands and feet were bound with some sort of energy cuffs.
"I was expecting a thank you." Dib retorted a tad indignantly.
"Yes... thank you." To his surprise she sounded sincere. "But how did you actually get this far? How did you get past the guards? Where's Lor?"
"Hallway." Dib tried to help the Captain get moving but it seemed difficult with the restraints. "And Tenn helped us find you." As if on cue, the petite Irken Invader scurried in with a strange black device in her hands. She walked to the Captain and pressed the device to the energy restraints on her ankles and wrists and they dissipated into nothing.
"Tenn... you are proving oddly helpful in all of this." The Captain stood, careful not to hit her own head as they exited the cell and hurried back to where Lor was waiting. "You'll have to forgive me for being a tad suspicious. Your Tallest were hospitable to our faces as well and now this is happening." They had to shout as the alarm was still wailing overhead.
"With all due respect, Captain Rose, this whole ordeal does not seem... right to me." Tenn had mentioned before that this was all weird for her and after she had gone out of her way to help free the Captain, Dib wanted to believe her.
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well..." Tenn looked back at the Captain for a moment before focusing on the path ahead. "The Irkens attacking us are acting very strangely... and they aren't fighters... I mean... don't get me wrong... Military trailing is required of all Irkens. But these are cooks, cleaners, maintenance workers, journalists- there is not an Elite among them. And they aren't talking ... "
"Lor!" As Tenn trailed off the Captain saw Lor's collapsed form on the ground. She ran to him quickly trying to help him up. He was pale, shaky, but no worse for wear than when Dib had left. Tenn was right, it hadn't taken long. "Doctor, are you all right?"
"Been better..." Lor mumbled, head lulling to one side as Dib held up Lor's other side.
"He'll be fine if we can get him up the ladder. Once he's out of range of the core he'll perk right back up." As Tenn spoke, the alarm suddenly went silent. She looked up. " Oh that's not good, we need to hurry."
"Right." The Captain and Dib had to work together to help pull Lor up the ladder of the tiny, cramped shaft. They reached the top and Lor shook himself. The color flooded back into his cheeks and the tremors stopped.
"Hey I do feel better." Lor stood easily on his own. Their celebration was cut prematurely as a sound like thundering rain began echoing overhead. Tenn's eyes widened her antennae drooping.
"Oh no. That's bad." She hurried through the tight passages trying to get away from the thundering sound. "We're outnumbered, we have to try to outrun them!" This was easy for Tenn who was able to slither comfortably through the cramped, tight passages between the walls but for the non- Irkens it was a struggle to keep up. Tenn looked back, frustrated. "Hurry!"
"It's hard, there's not a lot of room." Dib retorted feeling his heart racing in his chest. Tenn rolled her eyes, clearly frustrated.
"Hey, punch out that wall." She turned to Lor, who, without question, knocked a large hole in the wall beside them, tearing the metal easily so there was a hole large enough for them to fit through. Dib blinked, recognizing the Irken animatronics adjacent to the open pit as the ride from before. With the power off and the animatronics' dead gaze staring vacantly at him, he found this place even less charming than the first go round.
They started to weave through the little fake- Irkens , running their path from before in reverse. Dib could hear that clicking noise behind him and turned. In the darkness he could see Irkens , their PAK legs tearing into the hole that Lor had made in the walls. There were so many of the spiked, metallic legs that the edges of the hole seemed to move as if the wall itself was alive. As the hole widened, the Irkens began to flood in, crawling up walls, over the animatronics, swarming like an infestation, their eyes all focused on the group ahead.
click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click
They were closing in, one lunging straight for the Captain only to fall straight through her. Lor grabbed it, tossing it behind him as it flew back into one of its fellow Irkens . "Lor you have to fly us out of here!" The Captain had her gun pulled, firing at the Irkens behind her.
"But if I go too fast I'll snap Dib's neck! I don't have the greatest control and-" Lor began to protest, Dib had wondered why he had not just flown to begin with, however, it seemed as if there was a valid reason after all .
"THAT'S AN ORDER LOR!"
Lor took a deep breath and broke into a real run, faster than Dib had ever seen him move as he swept up the Captain in one arm and Dib in the other. "Get Tenn !" Lor was all out of arms, so the Captain grabbed the Irken with her free hand. "Gun authorize temporary access for current user!" At the sound of Lor's instructions, the gun lit up- as did Tenn's expression.
"Turn me around!" She ordered. The Captain shifted the Irken so she was facing the swarm behind and Dib heard a series of shots go off followed by the sound of Irkens hitting the ground. "I'LL SHOW YOU TOP INVADER!"
"Are you killing them!?" Dib craned his neck just in time to see a laser blast strike an Irken mid-air right between its eyes.
"Nah, you can behead us and as long as you don't hit the PAK we're fine. All of this damage can be repaired." Ten sniped another three Irkens , never missing a shot. Dib was suddenly glad that it was Zim who had ended up on Earth. After seeing Skoodge , and now Tenn , he realized that his twelve-year-old self would have been dead had he tried to go up against a real Invader.
"HANG ON!" Lor jumped and they were suddenly no longer on the ground as they entered the theater room and Lor made a B-Line toward the ceiling where the trap door had been. Dib could see PAK legs ripping the screen to sheds as the Irkens poured in.
"Don't break the ceiling! I'll get us through!" The Captain instructed as Lor flew straight toward the solid metal door. Lor nodded and stayed his course. As they were about to hit the heavy metal, Dib felt the Captain grab his arm and they phased right through it. If they were not about to be ripped apart by an Irken mob, Dib would have taken the opportunity to admire seeing the Syndicate in action. However, Lor dropped them on the floor, before crashing into a wall himself. He had apparently been telling the truth about not having the greatest control. The room above, Sym's office, looked different, all the screens were blinking with red lights, the lights were off. Tenn tried to orient herself from the crash but was immediately thrown into the opposing wall. Dib barely dodged being impaled by a PAK leg as he looked up to see the regal, towering form of Sym. Her expression was odd... she didn't look like the frustratingly unhelpful Irken he remembered.
"Oh shit." Tenn fired the gun but Sym dodged with shocking grace and fluidity. "Shit shit shit!" The Captain went to fire her gun at Sym but an electrified PAK leg knocked her back and helped Sym jump above Lor who had made a lunge for her.
"You handled more Irkens than this." Dib urged Tenn as he threw the Hyperspheres but Sym's PAK legs stepped around them with ease.
" Yes but as I said. Those were not fighters."
"She's a secretary!" Dib protested.
"She WAS an Elite, for a long time." Tenn had to move fast as Sym was quickly upon her, holding a glowing blue scimitar looing blade. Trying to hit Sym was like trying to hit water. Dib, Lor, Tenn, and the Captain struggled to get a good blow on her and the clicking of legs below was starting to get louder. "We need to just get one good hit."
RING
RING
RING
Everyone, even Sym, turned to look at Dib whose phone just went off. Tenn took her chance and shot the Irken woman between the eyes. "That won't hold her long, let' go!" They took off running once more and in the heat of the moment, Dib accidentally answered the call.
"Diego?" He hadn't realized he had even received it until he heard his stepmother's voice. "Is everything all right? You look frantic."
Shit.
"Everything's great." He panted, trying his best to hide the chaos around him. "Just exercising."
"That doesn't sound like you..." Her mismatched red and blue eyes narrowed.
"Ouch." He tried to sound offended. "I exercise ."
"Not willingly." His dad was clearly trying to see around him. "Who is that with you? Why are they blue?"
"Um... That's Dr. Rosenberg. It's a surprise Halloween party." It was hard to think on his feet and also avoid the oncoming Irken swarm.
"It's... February..." Moira seemed unconvinced .
"Brilliant! That is truly a surprise then! I didn't expect it and I am usually prepared for everything!" His father slammed his hand into his open palm. "Computer! Add surprise February Halloween parties to my list of things to prepare for!"
" Yes Mr. Membrane ." Dib had the sneaking suspicion that the computer sounded an awful lot like CB but he didn't have time to dwell on that at the moment as an Irken dropped out of the ceiling in front of him. He let put a cry as the blaster in the Irken's hand fired directly into his chest. Dib reeled back, gripping at where he was hit...
Nothing.
His shirt wasn't even damaged.
"Did you just get shot?!" His step mom sounded worried.
"Kids these days and their wild parties. Back when I was young, we did different sorts of shots." Dib's father shook his head. "I suppose it was a good thing you packed the shirts we infused with the armor prototype; you were right honey. And it works!"
"My shirts are WHAT!?" Dib's head was reeling.
"We were worried about the moon monkeys, son." His dad did not really answer the question.
"And rightfully so it seems. Are you in danger? Do you need us to come up there?" As Moira spoke , Tenn took out the Irken that had jumped Dib.
"No. We're fine. This was a drill. A very intense drill."
"Oh... I see..." Moira didn't look convinced but Dib did not feel the need to explain himself to someone who kept sending him military-grade gear on a school trip.
"I gotta go, I'll call you when the drill is over to let you know I'm alive! Bye!"
" He won't though. He's bad about that ." The computer at his house muttered, sounding annoyed before Dib disconnected the call. Dib looked up just in time to see the docking bay ahead. The lights above the door illuminated blue and he was able to slide inside with the others before the doors slammed shut. He could hear the pounding and scratching of Irkens trying to get inside. Dib hunched over trying to stop his heart from bursting out of his chest. He looked around. CB was there with GIR who was dancing with an unconscious Irken that Dib assumed worked on the docking bay. Zim and Skoodge were already there, carrying a large ornate spear with a laser blade that was taller than either of them. Dib blinked.
"Was that the side quest?"
"It was very important." Zim insisted.
"It wasn't." Skoodge sounded tired.
" Zim had to take this, for very good reasons."
"We got delayed for twenty minutes because Zim was being petty. But that seems fine since we still beat you here." Skoodge didn't seem like he was in the best of moods and as Dib saw his cruiser was currently up in flames, he could gauge why the robust Irken might be upset.
"How are we getting out of here?" The Captain looked concerned. "That was our ride."
"I assume your ship will show up and CB will say something like: ' Surprise, remember how you specifically told me not to take over the Syndicate ship? Will I did it anyway '." As Skoodge spoke, everyone turned to look at the robotic body of CB who crossed his arms, looking incredibly huffy by the impression. He sighed.
" Well it is not much of a surprise now. "
"Figured." Skoodge seemed unimpressed.
"What about Q?" Lor looked concerned as the Syndicate ship flew into view.
"Oh no we'll have to leave him." Dib quickly replied with as little concern as he could possibly express. "That sucks."
" Asshole ." Dib looked up just in time to See Q drop down from the ceiling. " I was the first one here ."
"You abandoned the Captain."
" It all worked out. We're all here aren't we ?"
"We don't have time for this." The Captain straightened up; her expression serious as she headed toward her cruiser. "As soon as we get to Earth, I'm telling this story to Capitol Planet and you can bet you'll be readying your planet for a war."
