A/N:The Third Chapter! As always,Read,. Review, and Enjoy!

Disclaimer:IZ belongs to JV

Chapter 3:An Unexpected Problem

Captain's Log. Stardate 2100 Irken Time. Day Three: The voyage has gone well so far. Space still looks empty. No signs of foreign ships, or even Irken military vessels. On matters of the crew, First Mate Nix has proved to be a good Captain if the need arises. It seems like he worked with the current crew before I came along. On the other hand, Tak seems to spend more time convincing herself of her worthiness as an Invader, than being a janitor. This is Captain Kiv, Signing off.

xxx the Bridge xxx

Kiv sat, her head propped up against her hand, antennae drooping in boredom."How much time is left until we arrive at Earth, Navigator Aveo?" She asked.

"We're still about 3 months out Captain."

Kiv slumped even lower in her seat,"Understood. First Mate, you have the Bridge."

"Yes Captain,"Nix replied.

Kiv stood up and took the lift to the second level. Once there, she headed into the cramped mess hall, where she picked up a bag of chips off a rack on the wall.

As she ate, she stared at the recorder Nix had given her. A presence in the seat in front of her caused her to look up.

"They couldn't have given us the good stuff either,"Tak grumbled, as she stuck a dipping stick into her mouth.

"Janitor Tak," Kiv said curtly, nodding at the purple eyed Irken in front of her,"Enjoying your break?"

"If you can call it that." Tak replied, leaning back,"We both know the only reason I'm on this ship is to provide Intel on Earth and its inhabitants."

Kiv nodded, her attention focused on Tak's catlike SIR unit which was currently scratching the seat while in it's Earth disguise," Is it supposed to be doing...that?" She asked.

"Doing wha...MIMI!"Tak shouted, jumping to her feet,"That damn unit of Zim's!" The wrathful Irken stomped over and deactivated her SIR unit."I'll be down in engineering, fixing her." Tak said, picking it up and heading towards the entrance to the mess.

Kiv finished her chips, and put the bag in a nearby waste receptacle before heading back towards the bridge.

"Anything go on in my absence?"She asked, sitting back on her seat.

"Actually, there was a slight burst of colors on-screen,"Nix replied.,"I believed it was just the screen acting up, but when Vea reset the screen, it was still there."

"It might have been a stealth ship Captain." Gewehr said from his station, "The colors might have been a refraction from the nearby sun."

"Uh...Captain."

Kiv looked at her chair's communication system,"What is it Engineer Graft?"She asked, more excited than she had been earlier.

"The uh..the experimental wormhole drive's been acting up. It started about 5 minutes ago. It seems like it's charging up. I don't know where it's taking us either."

"Understood Graft. Try to stop it. I'll see what I can do from up here,"Kiv replied, before cutting the transmission. She looked around at her crew,"Why couldn't we have used the wormhole drive?"

"It's a new type that's never been used before,"Nix replied, "It supposedly doesn't work, until now that is."

"Ship!"Kiv yelled, "What is happening o the wormhole drive?"

"Unknown."

"Explain."

"The wormhole drive is reacting to unknown forces . Energy signatures do not match any known technology under the jurisdiction of the Irken Empire."

"That explains those colors,"Kiv muttered, "Engineer Graft, any progress on stopping that drive?"

"Nothing yet Captain,"The panicked engineer commed back, "In fact, it's activating."

As soon as he said that, the viewscreen of the Ripper turned white."Any idea where it'll take us?"Kiv demanded.

"This area hasn't been mapped Captain," Vea replied, rapidly tapping on her control panel,"In fact there isn't even supposed to be an opening here at all."

"As soon as we exit, establish communications with the Armada,"Kiv said, "If we even arrive in our dimension."

"We're exiting the wormhole Captain,"Aveo said, after a few moments of silence,"It looks normal outside. No signs of any abnor-"

"Captain! Look!" Nix shouted, pointing at a shape close to the edge of the viewscreen,"Earth!"

Kiv looked closer at the viewscreen, and realized that it was indeed the green and blue globe that was designated Earth. She smirked triumphantly,"We've done it! I'll finally gain my Eliteship!"She crowed,"Navigator, bring us closer to the Earth.

As the Ripper moved closer to Earth, Kiv's grin dropped,"Is it supposed to be like that?"She whispered, horrified,"It can't be."

A closer look revealed that the oceans covered much of the surface, while the land that remained looked diseased and devoid of life. As the ship came around the lighter side of the planet, a massive claw-shaped structure was seen orbiting it. A faded Irken symbol was imprinted on the structure.

"A space-station,"Kiv breathed,"Wh-what happened?"

"Communication established with the Armada, Captain,"Ente announced.

The Irken military symbol flashed on-screen, before it was replaced by a frantic looking Irken,"Attention all survivors, you are to stay clear of static and make sure to use cleaning gel often, this dis-" The rest of the transmission devolved into static.

"This can't be our dimension,"Kiv said, her spooch churning,"Engineer. What's going on with the wormhole drive?"

"Nothing good Captain. The drive needs time to charge from the last journey. I'm estimating at least a day.."

"Understood. I'm calling a meeting of all head personnel in my quarters."

A few minutes later, the gathered Irkens sat uncomfortably inside Kiv's quarters.

"Alright. My plan is to orbit around what remains of Earth until the drive recharges, then we'll attempt to backtrack the way we came. Any questions?" Kiv explained.

"Just one. How will we explain this to the Armada if we get back?" Enter asked.

"We'll deal with that when the time comes,"Kiv replied,"Now back to your stations.

The day passed quickly, Kiv put the ship on high alert until they had reactivated the drive.

"Captain. The drive is ready,"Came the crackling reply from Engineering.

"Navigators, set the coordinates for our dimension."

"Yes Captain!"

The viewscreen went white again as the ship entered another wormhole.

"First Mate, you have the bridge."

"Aye Captain!"

Kiv moved into the lift, rubbing one of her antennae which suddenly ached.

Arriving at her quarters, Kiv sat down on a recliner and waited for a transmission from her First Mate.

Captain's Log. Stardate 2100 Irken Time. Day 4. The journey has taken a strange turn. The colors to bridge crew saw have confused me to no end, and the eerie mirror dimension has shaken me. Anyway, the crew still seem to be getting along. Tak's SIR unit has been acting very strangely. Hopefully it is fixed now. This is Captain Kiv. Signing off.

A/N:That's it for Chapter Three! Tell me what you think.