Invader Zim Fan Fiction ❯ Smip and Kwe's story ❯ Chapter 9

The inside of the fast food eatery was nothing that impressive, reminding Smip of the Krazy Taco or Mac Meaties places back home. It seemed to be relatively slow at the moment, with only a few customers eating their meals in various booths and only two other aliens in line ahead of them.

Smip looks over at the menu curiously. He's never tried most of the food that's offered there, but decides quickly that he will stay far away from the Vort dogs since just the name conjures up foul images of disgusting Earth hotdogs. Those were his least favorite food.

"I.. have no clue what this stuff is.."

"My mother has made a lot of it for me at home," Kwe replies, reading the menu then noticing the monies listing next to them. "Umm.. I don't have any monies though.. Do you?"

The half Irken pulls out the money that he took from Dib's wallet and holds it out lamely, only then realizing that it too would probably be no good.

".. Fuck.. I didn't think about cash not working here.." His body droops in defeat. "Fucking shit.. I didn't plan this out very well at all, did I?.." Turning, he kicks an empty booth out of anger. "I guess we could try and see if they'll take it.. If not, then.. well.. we might just have to put it on my dad's ID tab until we can get some of our own monies."

"Isn't his ID tab in his PAK?.. And.. 'fucking shit'... ew.. Why would you say that?" Kwe looks away in disgust as he sits down in the booth, finding the situation more bothersome than anything.

Smip's antenna flicks in frustration as he stares at his handful of cash and makes an irritated grunt, "It's just an expression, I didn't mean it literally... But, yeah, his tag is in his PAK, but, I dunno, maybe they can transfer it onto his tab or something. I don't have a PAK of my own, so I can't do it myself.." A slight look of embarrassed shame flickers across his face, "And.. well.. I think pretty much most of the universe knows who my dad is.."

Kwe suddenly exclaims, brightening up, "Hey! When I join the Irken military, they will activate my ID and such and I can just put it on my own charge. So, that's all the more reason for me to sign up!" He smiles wide, contentedly sitting back in his seat. As he does this though, his stomach rumbles. ".. Maybe we should think of a more.. quick solution to this problem though..."

Smip decides he might as well try to get some food if he can. He approaches the short Irken at the cash register and smiles unsteadily at the welcome.

"Welcome to Shloogorgh's! My name is Gashloog, can I take your order?"

He coughs softly into his fist, "Um.. well.. Actually, I was wondering if there was any way I might talk with your manager maybe? I just have a couple of questions to ask first."

The alien at the register turns towards the kitchen, saluting.

"Fry Lord! There is a customer that wishes to speak with you!"

Smip almost craps his pants when a very bulky, VERY intimidating Irken, comes lumbering out.

"Yes? I'm Sizz Lorr. What can I do for you?"

Kwe raises an eyebrow at the large Irken and gets up, deciding that Smip might need saving from this fat.. fatty.. fat!! He walks over, standing near to his partner and crossing his arms, looking Sizz Lorr over.

Smip swallows nervously. Sizz Lorr could use him like a toothpick and break him just as easily!

"Uh.. oh, um.. Hi there." The teen clears his throat. "Yes, er, I wanted to order something, but I wanted to make sure that my money would be taken. We don't have any 'monies', but I have this," he holds out the hand with his cash. "This is what they use where I came from. It hasn't been converted to 'monies' yet since it's not under Irken control. So, um.. I guess what I wanted to know is if you would accept it so my mate and I can get some food." He tries to appeal to the scary alien as much as he can. "If not, I wanted to know if there was any way you could transfer the expenses to my mother's PAK tag. You might know him, his name is Zim."

All noise in the restaurant suddenly STOPS. Kwe looks around as it goes quiet.

Smip senses sudden, impending doom at the silence. His antennae press tightly against the back of his head while he chances to glance around, seeing everyone staring at him, and thinks to himself, ‘Oh fuck... What did dad do NOW?'

Sizz Lorr's eyes widen in surprise before he gets a very deadly scowl on his face. If looks could kill, Smip would have been long gone by now. With a sheepish chuckle, Smip offers a scared shitless smile.

"So, eh heh.. I guess you've heard of him then?"

Kwe walks a bit closer now, looking up to Sizz Lorr challengingly.

Knuckles pop softly as Sizz Lorr tightens his fists.

"Zim?.. You're ZIM'S son?.."

Smip starts to press back against Kwe, a nervous sweat breaking out across his brow. He holds up his hands gently, "Look, really, I have no idea what happened or what he did and it's times like this when there's seriously scary aliens looking like they want to gut me that I wish I could say I was adopted. I haven't traveled really anywhere outside the planet I was born on, so I'm not really all that sure how stuff works out here... Um.. I guess this might be a bad time to ask if you're hiring as well?"

Oh yes, Smip will have to change his pants after this little encounter. He shoots a quick look at Kwe, hoping desperately that he might know SOMETHING more to help them out of this situation.

With the look unneeded, Kwe steps forward, "Yes, and I'm the son of the mighty Invader Skooge. If you have any problem with my mate, Fry Lord, you can take it up with me."

Kwe glares at the larger Irken. He was good at staring down opponents that were more than a match for him. He was also hoping that calling rank to the fact that he was the son of a mighty Invader, compared to a mere Fry Lord, might pull some weight in their favor.

At the mention of Skooge, Sizz Lorr pauses to look at the other Irken over carefully. Skooge may not be very intimidating, but he IS an accomplished Invader.

"Fine.." he turns to stare hard back to Smip, pointing a menacing finger at him. "You were lucky this time.. And you're hired. You can work to repay SOME of the debts Zim has made. Just know that he's made it all the harder for you." Sizz Lorr flashes an evil grin. "Let's step into my office then."

Kwe decides to come along as well to make sure Smip wasn't harmed. Looking around the office, he sees the greasiness was everywhere and his stomach gave another grumble.

".. Sizz Lorr, correct?.. I believe my mother used to eat here as well. Does the name 'Tak' sound familiar?"

The elder Irken looks a little grumpy about Kwe following, but doesn't say anything about it. When Kwe speaks, however, Sizz Lorr nods.

"Yes, she is another Irken that is rather well known.. Now SHE would have been a worthy Invader.."

He looks at Smip again, glaring at him curiously, honestly wondering what someone with parents like Kwe could ever see in someone like Smip with ZIM as his parent.

Kwe nods, taking a seat, "Thank you for that. I will be sure to let her know you acknowledge her possible superiority. I am going to shortly be joining the Irken military, during which, the monies I make I would be happy to use to help pay off the debts that Zim has worked up, along with my Smip's help in this of course." He was calm now, thinking that they simply didn't get off to the best start as he slowly takes a liking towards Sizz Lorr.

The large alien stares down Kwe hard, the moves his gaze enough to take in both boys. It was almost laughable how ignorant they were.

"No amount of monies will ever work off the debts that Zim has made. He was sentenced here in banishment for nearly annihilating the Irken race single-handedly! He is the most incompetent, idiotic creature ever to disgrace the universe. He escaped from me twice, out of pure luck. I hunted him down the first time, tracking him to a remote planet where he was convinced he had been given a mission from the Tallests. HA! They lied to him just to get rid of him.. It almost makes me ashamed to admit that I'm even the same race that he is!"

Smip listens to this, growing more and more sad. His parents didn't like to talk about Zim's past. In fact, he wasn't even sure if his father even KNEW some of these things about his mother. As much as he knows his mother is certainly not very skilled, it's still his parent and he has a soft spot. He tries to make himself sound a little more appealing to the big Irken at least.

".. I'm.. I'm not full Irken.. I take after my father more.." His voice is just a whisper though and he ends up looking away shamefully.

Upon hearing that 'Smip' is only half Irken, Sizz Lorr only finds more reason to despise this teen.

"Err.. Smip?.. Maybe it's best if we don't speak of your heritage to anyone else while we are here, yes?" Kwe whispers, seeing as he had no idea that Zim had done THAT horrible of things. Not to mention that other Irkens may not take kindly to the idea of a half Irken. Giving a cough to clear his throat a bit, Kwe speaks up again, "Ah, well I, for one, didn't know of Zim's past discretions, nor do I think Smip really did either... Parents don't exactly brag about such things, you know.. I trust you won't judge Smip too harshly over what Zim has done though, right Fry Lord Sizz Lorr?" He was honestly trying to help, and sucking up to this Fry Lord seemed to be a good start.

Smip clams up immediately and Sizz Lorr gives a noncommittal grunt in reply. "Now then.. Let me tell you more about Shloogorgh's...."

Sizz Lorr takes his time in dictating Smip's new schedule for his new job and it's not going to be easy in the least. Once that is settled, Smip and Kwe finally get to eat, even being able to use the Earth money that Smip brought to pay with.

To Smip, it feels more like a last meal that he's eating.

"I guess I should have expected something like this.." He sips his drink sadly. "I wish I was born with a PAK now.. 16-hour shifts are going to be.. interesting."

"Once I get my first paycheck from the military, you can quit this stupid job.. Which will be soon. I'd like to go sign up after we eat." Sitting down at a table with their orders, Kwe gladly digs in, finding that it was even better then what his mother made normally. "Well.. besides food, we need shelter.. Unless you wish to sleep in our ships.. The lack of cleansing chalk and.. um.. water will be a bit distressing in a few days though."

Smip nods absently as he just picks at his food. It still feels so surreal to him.

"Well.. I don't have to come in until tomorrow at least, so we can spend the rest of the day getting our stuff taken care of.." He suddenly puts down his food, looking very forlorn as his antennae hang limply and he just stares at the tabletop, his hands tucked in his lap. ".. Would you mind sitting beside me just for a little bit?.. I just.. need to feel you right now."

Kwe may try to lead and be in control, but when his mate says such things.. he couldn't help but feel a pull of submission run through him. Without a second though, he gets up, changing places to sit beside Smip and wrapping his arms around him.

"Of course, my seeder."

His words are loving and hot in Smip's antenna. If this was any other time, any other place, Kwe would have thoroughly shown his lust that had been building for Smip. But, it was not the time or place for such things. Instead, he lays his head on Smip's shoulder and eats his meal before eyeing his partner's.

Smip wraps his arms around this mate tightly and lays his head over Kwe's shoulder, in desperate need of a hug at the moment. Everything that has happened seems to have built up on him and only now is it truly hitting him with the full force of reality. He leaves his food untouched and open to Kwe to finish off, his appetite seeming to have left some time ago. While Kwe eats, Smip quietly thinks, moving away from his despair to planning their next moves. He wasn't sure that he saw any place that looked like living areas on the planet, but they could try.

"Maybe the Irken army will have a place we can stay" Kwe suggests out of nowhere as he quickly conquers the forgotten plate of food before him with gusto. He's almost ready to lick the plate clean, his stomach hungry for more.

This helps ease Smip's mind slightly and he nods, giving Kwe a hug and sitting up, quite surprised to find the food gone.

He looks to his mate with shock, ".. Wow.. You really were hungry.. Um.. Do you want to, uh, head out now?"

-------------------------------

Later, as they find their way to a recruitment area upon Devastis, Kwe is obviously looking and feeling a bit nervous at this point. Walking up to a fairly tallish Irken in full military gear, Kwe clears his throat.

"Excuse me, I wish to join the Irken army in hopes of becoming an Invader one day." Kwe's voice is as squeaky as ever as he tries to stand firmly and look superior.

The uniformed Irken eyes Kwe curiously. "Why haven't you been in training then?" he asks, referring to the 10 years of training that Irkens receive, starting as smeets. Kwe looks like he just wandered in after all. "If you wish to join, then we will have to consult the control brain. What does your PAK have you encoded as?"

Smip looks utterly lost at all of this and tries to keep the attention off his own back, making himself as invisible as possible.

"Oh, I assure you I have been in training since birth. My mother, Tak, saw to it. She and I have been stranded on a foreign planet for all this time. My name is Kwe. My PAK has not been registered as of yet, but I'm sure the control brain can take care of that, simple enough... I know there may be some concerns for my training and I'd be more than willing to demonstrate my combat abilities." Kwe's words sound very planned, as they were. His confidence and forwardness rather impressive.

"We will let the control brain decide. Follow me." He turns, heading off, but then notices Smip following as well and stops him, pointing his weapon at the teen. "NOT YOU!"

Smip doesn't need to be told twice. He scrambles backwards, obediently parking himself several paces back. The officer continues, leading Kwe off.

When Kwe sees the Irken point his weapon at Smip, his blood runs cold, then hot with rage, remember the officer's face for later when he out ranks him. For now though, all he can do is remain quiet and respectful, following as he is lead to the control brain.

The walk seems never ending, but at last, they come to guarded doors where one of the control brains awaits. Irkens of various ranks, mostly military officers, are scattered about the room as Kwe is lead in.

The control brain pulses, "What is it that you wish?"

Bowing humbly, the military Irken that lead Kwe there speaks.

"This young Irken wishes to join the military, but says his PAK is not yet encoded. I've brought him to you to verify and to test his abilities before making your choice."

Lights blink upon the machine.

"Very well.. Step forward," it addresses Kwe.

Bowing with respect like the officer, Kwe then quickly steps forward towards the brain. Wires lower from the ceiling, thrusting forward into the teen's PAK as it reads the data within. The control brain scans the information carefully and can tell right away that Kwe's PAK is not the typical one implanted on Irk born smeets. It reads the boy's DNA signature, seeing Tak and Skooge are his parents. It also sees that he truly was not encoded either.

"Irken, Kwe, you are the offspring of Tak and Irken Invader Skooge. You do not have the full information download that is given to newly activated smeets, but your technology is equal to that of Irk's. You may have your chance to prove your abilities in combat."

It releases Kwe.

The teen blinks and grins, giving a small nod before stating proudly, "I will meet any challenge given." He offers a short bow of respect.

"You will do battle with the Vlarg beast to test your combat skills. If you do not survive, you will not be considered to join. Prepare yourself."

The floor that Kwe stands upon rumbles as the platform begins to lower him down a shaft until he touches down in a dark, basement level of the planet. It's eerily quiet, then a soft rustle off in the shadows.

Kwe gives a soft exhale and lets his PAK come to life, the spider legs lifting him easily from the ground. His eye implants engage and the room becomes visible to him as he steps off the platform, looking around and wondering where the beast could be. The area was silent and scaring Kwe far more than anything. The metal legs click softly with each step through the cave-like arena. Bones of various creatures, many of them unfortunate Irkens, litter the ground.

A snarled hiss echoes about the room and a deeper sound of movement comes, something very big and very bulky lumbering ever closer. Multiple beady eyes light up in one corner, a growl rumbling loudly and shaking the metal walls. The Vlarg steps forward, standing well over 8 foot tall, even in its hunched position, ready for attack. Razor sharp, jagged teeth line the gaping mouth. Drool seeps out onto the floor in puddles and the clawed, bipedal feet walk heavily, crushing bones in its wake.

Kwe had been tense and a bit scared the whole time, but finally seeing the beast, he drops his shoulders and rolls his eyes.

"Control brain, sir! I could easily take on 5 of these. Feel free to even the odds for this creature if you wish.. I wish to be thoroughly tested." With that, Kwe nimbly jumps from wall to wall with his spider legs, easily evading the slow and brutish attacks from the Vlarg.

Metal smashes with each mammoth hit that fails to strike the smaller Kwe and the beast howls in rage, lashing out with kicks when Kwe is on the ground. It swings its spiked tail, mashing the wall and leaving punctured dents in the metal seconds after the boy jumps away.

Narrowing its blood red eyes and dripping more drool onto the floor, the Vlarg snarls and lowers its head. A hissing sound wells up before it snaps its head up, firing off a stream of greenish liquid towards Kwe. He dodges in time, but the surfaces sprayed instantly begin to bubble and melt.

Kwe waits a moment to see if the control brain was going to intensify the test, but nothing happens. With a sigh, he jumps onto the Vlarg's back, gripping the bonelike protrusions of its spine while the tips of his spider legs stab again and again into the Vlarg's flesh.

The creature howls in pain and thrashes about, spraying more acid everywhere. Kwe apparently knows what he's was doing and only pierces deeper, enraging the beast further. A glob of acid sprays in a high arc after the Vlarg bucks and, as planned, it splashes over the beast's own face, instantly sizzling and melting it.

Jumping aside, Kwe withdraws his PAK's legs and calmly starts walking towards the exit. He didn't even break a sweat while the Vlarg's face melts away in the background, writhing in pain as his brain is attacked as well. Slowly, the thrashing stops.

It's quiet for a few moments; the quiet before the storm. The corpse begins to move again, the torso bucking and squirming slowly. Wet gurgling noises come from inside as the flesh begins to tear open in thick, gooey strips until a hole is wide enough to let the smaller creatures pass.

Waves of small, insect-like beasts flood out from the dead body like rats leaving a sinking ship. The sheer amount of them covers the floor and part of the walls as they begin crawling up the metal sides. The wave starts for Kwe, a few of the creatures taking flight, leaping forward with lightening speed.

Claws extend as the rat sized beasts leap onto his body. Others soon join the onslaught. More surround Kwe's legs, skittering up his boots.

Kwe slowly turns his head back, going wide eyed as he sees them, taking idle notice that they resembled a cross between an Earth beetle and scorpion. He hated dealing with swarms. Instantly, his spider legs are back out and he jumps from wall to wall, not staying in one place for more than an instant. Each time he lands, his legs pierce and squish a few of the bugs, but this wasn't an efficient or quick strategy for killing them.

No, Kwe had another idea as he made his way back to the Vlarg's body. Leaping in mid air, he whirls around, smacking the bugs out of the air in clusters at a time and landing next to the corpse. Grabbing and piercing the flesh of the dead Vlarg with two of his PAK legs, he anchors the others into the cavernous ceiling. Pulling the body up, Kwe, with no small effort, swings the mass over, smashing the remaining of the emerging creatures.

The shear amount of beasts is almost overwhelming, even as just a few are felled by Kwe's hand. The ones that leap onto his uniform cling tightly, not wanting to be jostled off, but most fall back to the ground. One manages to stay, sinking its fangs into Kwe's shoulder painfully, and its stinger whipping down to repeatedly jab into the teen's flesh.

Kwe groans loudly with each sting, quickly smashing the creature against the wall and crushing it with his entire body before wiping it off. His razor sharp spider legs quickly cut into the Vlarg's flesh and cut out the acid producing gland within. Grabbing it, Kwe squeezes hard, spraying over half of the insect monsters on the ground with the liquid, melting them easily.

From there, it was a matter of knocking out the air born ones and then the slow and tedious task of smashing the remainders one at a time. His wound though, now began to throb with the injected poison. His PAK more than compensating for the toxin to dim its normal, lethal effect, but it still hurts like a bitch.

The spray of acid only serves to completely piss off the ones that were missed. As one, the remainders take to the air, their wings beating in a single, reverberating thrum as they fly this way and that. It's utter chaos. They go after their attacker though, trying to bite and sting him with each pass.

From above, the control brain and military officers watch all of this unfold carefully. A few of the Irkens are highly impressed, but they know it's the control brain to make the final decision.

Kwe gives a sigh, not wishing to resort to using his laser, yet this was becoming aggravating. Quickly jumping out in front of the swarms, his spider legs refold in front of him and a large wall of hot laser blasts forth. A blinding flash fills the room, and as sight returns to Kwe, as well as his audience above, he stands triumphant. It was obvious that most invaders didn't have such a powerful laser, no doubt an enhancement that his mother had made to his.

The last insects that aren't already dead are dying, slowly burning and screaming in agony as they twitch on the floor all around his feet. The metal PAK legs remain folded as before, slightly smoking and glowing red over most of their length. Kwe's body instantly feels weak and he drops to his knees, his PAK trying to generate more energy to replace the sudden drain it had just experienced.

Slowly, Kwe gets back up, a very evil, smug grin on his face. The spider legs retract and it's quiet at last.

The podium begins to ascend back to the control brain's room. There's still some Irkens that look rather impressed, but as the podium locks into place, a lower ranked officer comes running in with a panic.

"Forgive me, control brain! But a laser has just pierced the wall of the control room! Our communications are down until we can repair it!"

The control brain remains impassive, since it did not have any facial expressions to judge from anyway.

"Very well. Inform me when repairs are finished."

The messenger bows humbly, taking his leave and now all attention is back on Kwe. Whispers begin to fill the room from the other officers.

The control brain, however, stops them with a firm, "Silence.." Once all is in order, it addresses Kwe. "Irken Kwe, you have passed your test well, despite the fact of the destruction you have caused. You have proved your abilities in combat and resourcefulness that are needed for any potential Irken Invader." The wires come back down, once again thrusting into his PAK. "You have been accepted to join in the Irken military. You will report for further training immediately." It encodes Kwe's PAK now as a soldier for now and releases the teen.

Kwe's face lights up with pride from being accepted and bows.

"Thank you, sir, control brain. You honor me with your approval." Polite words from a very happy Irken.

Turning, he walks from the room, head held high as he disappears through the doors, walking back down the same path he had entered by until he finds the Irken officer that had lead him there. He decides that the Irken would know where to report to from here. Kwe walks back, seeing Smip and the officer there and smiles proudly, through his scratches.

"My seeder, I am now a soldier.. And will soon be an Invader, no doubt. The control brain was very impressed."

Smip is standing rigid with his back against the wall so as not to piss off the other alien. As soon as he sees Kwe though, he's running over to him, happy that his love is happy, even if he still has mixed emotions about it.

"That's great, Kw-- Oh my god! What the hell happened to you?!" He begins examining the bloody bite on his lover's shoulder and then notices the sting wounds on his back. "KWE!" Smip looks to the officer with some panic. "You gotta get him some medicine or something! What if he was poisoned? We're expecting a smeet!"

Kwe had almost forgotten all about his own pregnancy at this point, the excitement of impressing the control brain and being accepted overshadowing it.

"Oh!.. Umm, yes. Sir, maybe you could direct me to the medical unit before I go into training?.. Just for the safety of my own smeet of course," he says in a proper military stance to the officer.

The elder Irken just gives a bored nod and leads them both to the medical bay. He allows Smip to come this time only since he's Kwe's mate. Once he leads them to the medical unit, a small Vortian doctor approaches, seeing the wounds.

"Hrm.. Only one. You were lucky." He grabs a syringe, preparing to give an injection.

Smip pipes up with concern, "Please.. Is.. Is he going to be okay? We're expecting a smeet.. Whatever it is that did that won't hurt it, will it?"

The doctor puts down the syringe, grabbing another one. "How long ago were you stung?"

"Oh, just a few minutes ago.. 10 or 15.. It doesn't really hurt now, just itches a bit. I believe my PAK's automatic life support taking care of it for the most part. I'm just here to make sure for the smeet." Kwe wasn't overly worried as his mother had enhanced his PAK's life support as well, which was very handy in these types of circumstances. He sits there and lets the doctor do his work. "Well.. In all honesty, we haven't even tested to make sure I'm with smeet yet or not.. So it might be nothing.. Then again, the control brain would have see, but he didn't say anything of it so--"

"The control brain doesn't care about that. The control brains only look for the most qualified soldiers for their military. If you are with smeet, then we need to work fast. The poison may be controlled for your body, but not for its. The unborn smeet is fragile and susceptible at this stage and you'll be fortunate if it suffers no ill effects." The doctor works quickly as he speaks, getting another injection ready and pushing Kwe back, lifting up his shirt to expose his stomach. The Vortian takes a small device, shooting a beam of sterilizing light on Kwe's flesh before he injects him. "We have to inject as close as possible to the womb. Time is critical."

Kwe cooperates as he is laid back before crying out in pain from the injection. He grips the small medical bed he was on, twitching slightly and giving a growl. The shutter doors on his PAK react to the possible threat and Kwe has to hold his own PAK back from attacking the possible aggressor.

Smip holds Kwe's hand tightly, worry written all over his face as he watches. The injection is over quickly, with no blood to show for it, but it definitely stings.

Now that the immediate threat to the smeet has been addressed, the doctor takes the other syringe, this time injecting Kwe in the arm. it doesn't burn as much as the other, but it's still a bit tender.

"Let's clean and dress the wound to keep out any infection. Would you remove your shirt please?"

Kwe is lucky that he didn't need any stitches.

He blinks in surprise, "Infection?"

Surely, his PAK would protect from any such things. Did this doctor know what he was doing? Removing his shirt, Kwe reveals his slender, beautiful frame to which the doctor looks him over.

Using some antiseptic gel, the Vortian cleans the wound, making sure there is no debris inside, then wraps a bandage over the area.

"You should be fine soon. This is a precaution to protect your smeet from any other potentially harmful things that could enter your wound until it is healed. You can leave now."

Smip comes forward, giving Kwe a soft kiss on the cheek.

"I'm glad you're okay..."

The officer at the door interrupts them by clearing his throat. "Now that you have received medical attention, it's time for you to report for assignment. Follow me."

Kwe nods and follows, holding Smip's hand hoping he could come as well, but not completely sure of the procedure. It was rather beyond all hope to think that the military might provide a private room for the two of them as Kwe was the pregnant one.

As they walk, Kwe can't help but whisper to Smip, "Did you see the looks the doctor gave me?.. Not the worried ones.. He had me take my shirt off for no reason.. He was.. 'checking me off' as Earth worms put it, I believe."

Smip doesn't even realize he gives a jealous glance back to the medical bay after he listens to Kwe and corrects him gently. "It's checking you out, actually.. but had to be able to put the bandages on, so unless he can teleport them onto your skin, then that was the only way to reach." Smip pouts angrily, an antenna flickering as he grumbles under his breath, ".. Jackass better not have been checking you out.." He squeezes Kwe's hand tighter, unconsciously walking a little closer now.

Kwe smiles and blushes deeply at the display of jealously.

The officer leads them to another room, similar, but much less elaborate than the room that held the control brain. There are two Irken guards there and other, higher-ranking officer working at the control panel. As they enter the control room, Kwe slowly releases his hand from his partner's, knowing he should take a proper stance soon.

The first officer salutes, "Sir, this soldier is newly recruited and is here for his training assignment."

Kwe stands at attention, waiting for his instructions. Smip stands back, trying to make himself as unobtrusive as possible right now.

The Irken at the control panel nods and types in a few commands into the consol until another wire comes forth from the machine, plugging into Kwe's PAK to collect his data and view his encoding. The officer reads it, brows rising occasionally at any particularly interesting information that the control brain had set.

"Hrm.. It appears your PAK technology is very advance.. Your combat skills are excellent.. Yes, you scored well on your test.. And what's this?.." The officer's eyes widen as he reads more, "You're pregnant?" He simply gives a shrug. If the fool happened to mess up at some point and kill his smeet, it wasn't his problem. "You have been assigned to begin training for the Irken Elite. Congratulations. Your room assignment will be ready in just a moment."

Kwe grins and nods, speaking up as he asks, "Sir? I have a couple questions.. Is the system still set up in the same way it was back 16 years ago or so, in that if I do well in Elite training I'll qualify for full on Invader training?.. I'm a bit out of date.. And, also, will my mate be allowed to room with me?"

The elder Irken nods first off, "You will still need to undergo your test to become an Invader, but yes, you will receive the training." When the question comes up about Smip rooming with Kwe, he seems to finally notice the other teen who tries to smile sheepishly back at him. "Hrmf.. Even if he isn't short, he's definitely the ugliest Irken I've ever seen."

Smip's face drops and he looks away, offended by that, but he doesn't want to jeopardize Kwe's chances.

The officer looks back to Kwe, "This is a military training unit, not a hotel.. Is he joining as well?"

"No.. He is not.. And with all due respect, please do not address him in such a way, sir.. He is my mate after all." Anger hides itself in the back of Kwe's eyes as he tries hard to remain professional. Pausing for a moment, he looks back at Smip. ".. Sir, is there any help the military could give Smip for rooming? We are currently homeless besides our cruisers.. Well, he is now, anyway."

The control officer looks back to Smip, eyes narrowed, then back at the data retrieved from Kwe's PAK. He clearly isn't happy with it, as he gives a very irritated sigh and finds an empty room, giving it to Kwe.

"Very well, but only because of your potential. You may be offspring of an accomplished Invader, but do not think that will get you much farther on name alone." He gives his warning, looking extremely serious about the matter before uploading the information to Kwe's PAK. "Your ID plug will allow you access to your room. I will set it for your mate as well, but I need his PAK ID first."

Kwe nods at the first comment about him not going on name alone. "Yes sir, I promise I will succeed to all potential." As the next sentence is uttered, though, Kwe starts to get nervous. "Well, there lies another problem, sir. He was born off world and does not possess a PAK or ID tag."

The officer looks disgusted as he looks at Smip, but does not make a comment this time. "No PAK, no ID.. Then you will have to access your room for him. Your room is in the 12th quadrant, section 4, number 7 of the West barracks.. You're dismissed." He looks back to his consol, letting the wire release Kwe so he can be on his way.

As Kwe comes closer, Smip takes his hand and they walk out of the room with Kwe's head held high. One of the other officers leads them to their new room.

"... Smip? No matter what any of the other Irkens think, I am proud to be your carrier.. and mate," Kwe says quietly to Smip.

It would have been a touching moment if not for the officer going, "Aww, isn't that cute."

Smip's head lifts softly at Kwe's kind words and he tries to smile until he hears the officer sound rather sarcastic as he talks to them.

He smiles sadly to his mate instead, "Well.. at least I have one person here that doesn't think I'm an ugly waste of flesh.."

Finally, they reach Kwe's room, and it's a good thing the officer had shown them where it was as every room looked exactly the same. The officer leaves them then, mumbling softly under his breath about "ugly half breeds".

Using his ID plug, Kwe opens the door and steps into the room. It was decent, but nothing terribly nice. A single small bed, a monitor and consol, a revolving closet full of clothes perfectly fitting for Kwe, and a secondary room with plenty of cleansing chalk. There was a glaring lack of water fixtures of any type though.

"Umm, love.. You can use cleansing chalk if needed, yes?"

Smip looks around, finding it much better accommodations than most college dorm rooms on Earth. "Yeah.. I figured they wouldn't have a regular shower, ya know?.. Hair washing may be a problem, but I'm good for the rest." He tries to chuckle softly, fiddling with his scythe lock that is such a trademark for the males in his family. "I just hope I don't have to shave my head to get around it.."

Kwe looks around before laying down on the bed. "Hrm, well.. What should we do now?.. I didn't hear him say when I was to report for training.. I guess I'll be called for or something."

Smip picks at the hem of his shirt. "Well.. I guess I could get my stuff from the ship at least and bring it in here.. It's not like there's a whole lot after all... I sort of wish I could call them and see how they're doing.. but I know that they'll be furious with me.. And they'll try and track me down.."

"Yes, let's get our stuff."

Once they were both back in their room, Kwe lays upon his stomach on the bed comfortably and pushes the buttons on his music player yet again, enjoying how it lights up and the sounds that come from it.

Smip folds his few clothes carefully to put on one of the closet shelves. He wonders if he should consider getting his own uniform to help him not stand out quite as much. As he finishes putting his clothes away, he looks at the few other things he brought with him and feels his heart grow heavy when he sees a picture. It's a framed picture he's kept in his room since he was young of his parents and himself when he was just a small smeet. Even Gir is in the picture, even if it's in his disguise. Smip comes over, setting the picture beside the bed.

"I'm glad there's a bed in here. Even if it's supposed to be used to help you recover from training injuries.. I wasn't looking forward to sleeping on the floor."

Kwe moves to sit beside Smip and looks up over at the picture. ".. We'll get in contact with them in a month or two.. Just to let them know we are okay." Sensing that his mate was hiding his feelings right now, he pauses a moment before looking away. "... My offer to leave me still stands, if you wish to.. I can tell you're not exactly having a fun time here..." Pausing again, Kwe looks back to Smip and smiles, knowing his mate wouldn't leave him. ".. No. I'm sorry.. I know you won't leave me. I won't speak of us parting again, my love."

He takes Smip's hand in his own, slowly moving in for a kiss. Smip looks over seriously, even if he's still rather down, but nods when Kwe says that he will stop talking of them separating. He pulls Kwe close, letting his hand glide gently along Kwe's lower back as they get closer to kiss. The monitor in his room flickers on and an Irken military officer on the other end watches the two, going wide eyed at what he sees.

Clearing his throat, he speaks quickly, "Recruit Kwe, report for training. Seek out an officer if you need help finding your way."

Lips don't even get to touch before they're interrupted and Smip drops his head onto Kwe's shoulder in irritation. The monitor flicks off and Smip stays where he is for a few seconds, just rubbing Kwe's back.

"I hope they don't do that in case we're.. ya know.. 'busy'..." He blushes slightly at that and wonders if he should throw a shirt over the screen in case. "Well.. I guess this means it's really the start of our new life.." Looking up, he finally leans forward to kiss Kwe lovingly, letting his hands caress his lover's body gently. He pulls back, "Please be careful out there, okay?.. For me?.. I just worry.." Smip squeezes Kwe's hand and smiles. "I guess I'm going to try and get some sleep then before I need to start work."

Kwe smiles, leaning in and kissing Smip back hard on the lips, not concerned about their previous interruption. As he does so, he takes his mate's hand and places it on his belly.

"I will be careful for us and our smeet. Try to cheer up, okay?.. I'll be back as soon as my training is over for today."

And with that, Kwe stands, quickly changing into a uniform, and leaves. The uniform perfectly fitting his beautiful curves as he quickly heads off.

Smip watches him go, still feeling concerned, but lays down on the single occupant hospital bed. He fiddles with a clock nearby, setting it for what he hopes will be enough time to get ready for his first day. Slipping off his glasses, he turns out the light and lays back, very slowly drifting off into a lonely and restless sleep.

--------------------

For the Vlarg beast. I did a very basic sketch of its design, then looking up creatures for reference, when I ran across something that I thought was even better than what I had originally imagined.

This would be a Vlarg: http://backstabbingsinner.deviantart.com/art/Whistler-Creature-17422380
(Note though, that my intended design has a tail)