Yeah, yeah. You all know I don't own Invader Zim. The characters in this that aren't from the series are mine though but still made as the kids of the characters from the show.
Chapter 4: A Little Piece of Heaven...Or Not
Xna had finished explaining to the unwelcome visitors of her home what was going on, as far as she could tell. Using pieces she was told from them of what they could remember from before coming here. Now she stood before the large monitor fiddling, absent-mindedly with her gloves, as the two SIR Units rolled and squealed delightedly in the background, tangling wires as they went.
"What you're trying to tell me is that we were transported forward in time through Zim's computer?" Dib questioned her, arms crossed and brow raised.
"That is correct." Xna replied calmly.
"And the reason you don't know how to send us back is because you broke half the systems on the computer…by spilling soda on it?" He continued.
"…Yes."
"Are all Irkens this incredibly stupid?" He became exasperated. Flailing his arms at her, finding it hard to believe the reason they were trapped in a time far from their own was because she was incapable of drinking a soda correctly.
Xna scowled threateningly and brought her lekku up defensively before speaking in her native tongue, "Glootz ta ebby, flimp-bach!" she hissed dangerously at the human. He was testing her patience. The Tallests and Zim took a deep breath in; obviously what she said was not something of any good.
"What…?" Dib's face fell in confusion.
"What she said to you would be the earth equivalent of: "Die in a hole, bitch-face!"" Zim translated with a smirk. Across the room Gaz chuckled quietly in amusement.
Dib's mouth fell a gape before he composed himself and scowled at the girl before him. She smiled back, pleased with herself at the insult that she gave him.
"Is there any way we can get back, at all?" Dib asked, squeezing the bridge of his nose, which lifted his glasses on his face in an irritating way.
"I'm not sure…" She pondered, "for that we'd need the proper technology and it would take months to have it all in, depending on whether the people sending the parts I need are capable, in which I truly doubt, so it would probably take one earth year or about 100 Irken years..." tapping a finger on her chin she thought to herself.
"Can't you just tear some old scrap parts off of an old machine?" Dib asked desperately.
"You only need one Gir…" Gaz grumbled, pounding buttons on her game again.
"I don't actually think I have anything we can just take a part. My mother made my father throw away all the stuff he didn't need last month."
"Nobody can make the ALMIGHTY ZIM Do anything he does not wish to!" Zim screamed, throwing proud fists into the air.
"Hold on, a second…" Everyone could see the gears in Dib's head turning, "Tak's ship!"
"What about it?" Xna raised an eye ridge at the strange outburst.
"It might still be in the garage at my old house! That should have most of the parts that we need!"
30 Minutes Later…
"What a waste of time." Xna blew a piece of hair out of her eyes only to have it fall right back. They were digging around Professor Membrane's Garage, looking under tarps and behind huge machines, searching urgently for Tak's ship only to find it not to be in its place anymore.
Dib was wearing a winter toque and contacts instead of his usual glasses, which were tucked into his pocket. The only reason for this was Xna's explanation of how they weren't to be recognized. Zim had a different wig on, brown wisps of artificial hair falling around his head. Gaz was wearing a pair of jeans and a black shirt; a ginger haired wig hid her commonly purple locks. The Tallests and the two insane SIR Units had been left at the house.
"It has to be somewhere; I wouldn't just lose something like that…" Dib droned rummaging further into the garage.
"Did you kids find what you were looking for?" A grey haired professor Membrane walked gleefully into the room.
"No." Xna answered huffily.
"AH. Perhaps you should ask my insane son's daughter." He suggested.
"And why would that help? Does she have superior powers that can help her to mentally find things with her mind?" Zim asked very seriously and hopefully.
The room went silent and stared before Membrane broke into a strong and contagious laughter, "You're the funny child!" he shouted between chortles. "You remind me of someone, though. Any relations to someone I may know?"
"He's my cousin!" Xna interjected before anyone could say something too stupid. "He's here from…Michigan...? Yes! Michigan! Because…my aunt is going in for a surgery!"
"That's a shame. What happened?"
""What happened?" you ask?" Membrane nodded patiently with his arms crossed. "She well…uh…she…broke her face! In a…hula-hooping accident…?" Xna cringed, even to her that sounded ridiculous! And she spent her entire life with Gir as a companion!
"Hula-hoops…" Zim shivered for effect, "HORRIBLE things of DOOM!" he shouted.
"Indeed." Membrane shook his head remorsefully, "you let your mother know how much I hope she gets better and if she needs any help," Membrane handed Zim a small business card, "I am more than happy to help." It was hard to tell but the group guessed he was smiling sympathetically from under his lab-coat collar and goggles.
"But, if you still can't find what you're looking for you should go to Natalie, she comes through here every week to find spare parts for machines she makes to better man-kind; takes after her grand-father!" Membrane announced proudly before stepping back into the house.
As soon he left, Zim tore the card in two with his claws "stupid hyoo-man…"
"HEY! That's my Dad!" Dib protested loudly.
"Then you take after your male-parental unit." Examining his claws snootily Zim pretended to not even care about their argument.
"Will you two idiots shut up, before I send you to a nightmare world from which there is no waking?" Gaz screamed at the arguing males.
"Well if there's any chance Natalie has that ship I know exactly where she'd put it." With that said Xna straightened her back with a long, cat-like, stretch before going in through the door to the house and leaving the property.
MEANWHILE
The loud beat and lyrics of a Red Hot Chili Peppers song blared through a radio on a metal workbench.
Humming to the song, Natalie toyed with part of an engine to a dark-blue Tiburon. She was in her mechanic's shop, trying to piece together why the car refused to work. The engine looked shot, the right window wouldn't go back up and the car sputtered when started up.
A shot of oil jumped from the machine with a mechanic cry, hitting Natalie with the black, gooey mess. Groaning, Natalie took a handkerchief from the back pocket of her jump-suit, uniform.
"You know," a voice started, "You could always get some help with that. You don't have to do it on your own."
"I take greater pride in doing things on my own, Nikko; you know that about me by now." Natalie put the small, dirty, square of fabric back in her pocket before ducking her face back into the same car that shot her with the sticky, staining substance.
"I know. I just wish you'd ask for my help, instead of giving yourself a migraine and stress-induced bitchiness, sometimes." Nikko told her, half jokingly, leaning against the work bench. He looked down at the CD player, turned onto its radio setting, "mind if I put in an Avenged SevenFold CD instead?" He asked turning to Natalie.
"I'd be pissed if you didn't." She answered back, pulling a small part from the car to inspect it.
Placing the CD in its tray and hitting play, Nikko changed the song to "Little Piece of Heaven", The gloomy music instantly filling the shop.
Natalie continued her work until the conversation sang between the sadistic lovers in the song began:
"What will you do…not long enough" Natalie chanted in an eerie voice, in a beautiful key.
Following her lead, Nikko joined in, "To make it up to you"
"I pray to God that you do"
"I'll do whatever you want me to do"
"Well then I'll grant you a chance"
"And if it's not enough"
"If it's not enough, If it's not enough"
"If it's not enough"
"Not enough"
"Try again"
"Try again"
"And again"
"And again"
"Over and over again" they sang together. Sauntering his way over, Nikko grabbed Natalie and pulled her from her work and to him.
"we're coming back, coming back." He sang pulling her ever closer "We'll live forever, live forever." Giving her a spin and bringing her back to star in her golden, hazed, eyes "Let's have a wedding, have a wedding." He dipped his "dance partner" down to sing the last bit of the musical scene "Let's start the killing, start the killing".
Keeping the black haired female captured in his arms, mere inches from the floor. The reverend in the song began his part.
Do you take this man in death for the rest of your unnatural life?
"Yes I do." Natalie whispered quietly.
Do you take this woman in death for the rest of your unnatural life?
"I do…" Nikko answered the song, creeping his face closer and closer to Natalie's.
I now pronounce you...
As the conversational part of the song ended and the two's lips were less than millimeters apart, the bell attached to the shop's door rang which was followed by a loud and dramatic "EW! GROSS!"
Natalie struggled in Nikko's arms, leading to him accidentally dropping her. Pulling herself off the floor quickly and standing she replied with a shaky voice. "I-it isn't what-what it l-looks like!"
"UGH! I'm sure! You hyoo-mans and your stinky sexual desires!" Xna stuck her tongue out in utter disgust.
"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!" Natalie's face flushed beet red.
"Uh-huh…" Xna rolled her eyes already sick of the conversation. "Where'd you put it?"
"What?" She asked dumbly.
"The SPITTLE RUNNER! Where'd you put the spittle runner that was in your grand-father's garage?" Xna became impatient.
"What makes you think I have it?" She crossed her arms.
"So you don't have it?" Xna squinted one eye while expanding the other, scrutinizing the girl before her.
"I never said that."
"GAH! WHERE IS IT?" She threw her arms up childishly.
"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, SHUT UP!" Another employee with an English accent came out of the backroom covering his ears. "If your car ain't fixed you 'effed it up and we need a few more days!"
"She's not here for a car Charlie," Natalie spoke without turning away from Xna, "She's here to piss me off."
"I AM NOT!" Xna shouted.
"Then what the hell do you blokes want?" Charlie hollered.
"She has a spittle runner that she stole and I need it!" Xna answered.
"I didn't steal shit!" Natalie screamed back, redder than before only now with anger.
"Oi, Membrane," Both Natalie and Dib turned to Charlie. "What the hell is she talking about?"
"Nothing, Charlie. She's crazy." Natalie answered.
'Hmmm…' Dib thought, 'This must be my future daughter. It's a relief to see she hates Xna as much as I hate Zim.'
"NO! I. AM. NOT!" Xna seethed "You took a spittle runner! It's big! It's Purple! And it has giant metal arms that shoot out!"
"You mean that hunk of garbage in the back room you dragged here last week?" Charlie inquired.
"SO YOU DID STEAL IT!" Xna accused.
"I didn't steal a thing," Natalie replied calmly, if not a little obnoxiously, "it was in my grand-fathers garage and he told me I was free to take what I wish from there." She stuck out her tongue when she finished making her point.
"You are such a smeet!" Xna growled, walking past the two auto-mechanics. "You! Auto-service drone! Show me where the spittle runner is!"
"I don't have to show you shite all, darling." Charlie cussed at her.
Xna growled threateningly, giving Natalie a vague déjà-vu of what had happened to ruin her entire social life. Sighing Natalie grabbed a hold of Xna's arm and dragged her to the back room Charlie had just come from. Walking for a bit and finally turning to face a door which opened to a large room, cluttered with tools, machine parts, and papers. As well as a few stains from gases and oils on the ground and walls.
Dib, Zim, Gaz, and Nikko had followed the two girls as they walked, while Charlie had disappeared to take care of business of his own.
"WOW! This is amazing! I've never seen a vehicle so advanced before! Why didn't you tell me you had this." Nikko shouted out enthusiastically.
"Because you would want to help me fix it and I wanted to do it on my own." Natalie answered back in a bored manner.
"Oh…Well…Does it work?" he asked, his cheeks turning a rosy red.
"No. At least…not yet. Somebody was obviously messing with it before and it's hard to back-track what they did; messed it up pretty good. Shame…" Beside her, Dib flushed with embarrassment.
"We don't exactly need it running we just need the parts, so it's not like it matters…" Xna rolled her eyes.
"You're just going to tear it apart?" Natalie questioned. "What exactly are you using the parts for?" she asked skeptically.
"A time machine." Xna answered simply, pulling parts from the side and tossing them, seeing them as unnecessary.
"Why…?" Natalie slowly interrogated not sure if she wanted to know.
Xna looked at her dumbly, wondering how she hadn't figured it out yet.
"HA! Dib-Stink! The genius of an Irken mind has fooled your foolish earth-spawn's foolish mind!" Zim laughed in self-proclaimed victory.
Natalie's mouth fell agape in shock "IS THAT YOUR DAD!" she screeched.
Xna nodded curtly.
"Wha- HOW- you! I- what…?" Natalie sputtered, having been caught off guard.
"The Dib landed on a button and Zim saved us with his quick thinking!" Zim smiled proudly.
"YOU PUSHED ME ONTO THE CONTROLS!" Dib shouted back in defense.
"YOU'RE LYING!" Zim accused, pointing dramatically.
"I AM NOT!"
"SILENCE! Now, help me carry these parts back to the base." Xna ordered.
"WHOA! Xna, be reasonable, do you even know even the most basic of mechanics? How do you expect to put this thing together?" Natalie questioned.
"Are you questioning me?" Xna's arms crossed as one lekku rose in anticipation, the other pulling back tensely, promising death if the answer not be to her liking.
"I never said that. I'm just saying that perhaps with my help you might have a chance. I mean, how long until their away from their time for too long and some major start to take effect? How long before we die?"
"Hmm…" Xna pondered. "Very well! You shall assist Xna with the mechanic aspects of this project! But I shall be in charge!" she reasoned with a smirk.
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." Natalie waved a hand dismissively.
Growling, Xna jumped off the wing of the voot runner and walked passed Natalie, deliberately bumping her shoulder against her to through off her center of balance.
Natalie sighed, but none-the-less, followed her out, her shift was almost over and it wasn't as if she'd be missed anyway.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I have to admit that I LOVE A7X and their song A Little Piece of heaven was the first that I heard and from then on I fell in deep, musical, love!
Well here is where the fun begins… this should be interesting!
Also Nikko is a fan-child I made also but not for Invader Zim :P You might get some hints as to who he's the son of throughout the story but his parents aren't really important.
Thank you Haku1013 for pointing out my mistake or calling tak's ship a voot runner instead of a spittle runner! i really appreciate the help and if anyone else finds any mistakes please point them out. It helps me out and it means a lot!