Aw, thank you! I have a smeet-like face.

It's been a LONG time since I last spoke to one of my smeets in person. I did manage to check in on a few of them from my side of the veil. After I died, I wound up stuck sitting at the late tallests' long tabe for quite awhile.

I visited all the smeets of my third swarm on Irk in the living reality who still lived, but I was too late. By the time I was able to stand and drift away, most of my smeets had fallen in battle or fell during occupational service.

My first swarm was scooped up and shipped off to my hive's basic training smeetery before I was able to name them or even see them. Throughout my lifetime I had often met younger drones and wonder if they could be smeets from my first swarm. I had passed out from blood loss during labor. I was still subservient to my preceding tallest at the time and he did not permit bonding hours between birthing drones and their smeets. I was not permitted to look at birth records until I was measured tallest in his place.

Maybe we never connected strongly enough in life and that is why we never reunited in death.. Please believe me, I would have loved to have met and name the smeets of my first swarm, but I was robbed of that experience-- that basic Irken drone RIGHT and I am STILL bitter about it. I'm still VERY bitter about a lot of things... maybe that's why my deceased spirit is still adrift in this endless death realm.

Recently, I drift with the friends and allies Ive made of fellow fallen Irkens. We guide each other and keep our memories vivid and the fabric of our beings tethered.

Because of this, I hold out hope, but... my free-drifting spirit has yet to cross paths with any of the spirits of my 193 smeets, who by now are all LONG since deceased; not even the 173 spirits of those smeets I was lucky enough to bond with long enough to name and occasionally interact with. I don't know if the dead realm I'm stuck drifting through is just THAT vast or if all the spirits of my deceased smeets have made their way back into the infinite living realities as new flesh-beings, so I can't sense them well enough to find them or... who knows. I have been dead for SO long, and I still don't understand exactly how my current reality operates.

The irony is not lost on me. The irony in fact crushes me. All of my smeets and my smeets' smeets and so on knew my story or at least some scoured-over, warped version of it, but I don't know ANY of their stories in detail. This fact haunts me. It will always haunt me.

[Shout-out to tallest Aria, who belongs to @a-wanderin-whirlybird.]

Ooh! This is actually a very good question.

It's difficult for me to speculate on the exact impact this change in detail would have on the modern Irken empire.

But, if Dava hadn't been measured tallest, she would have most likely climbed rank through the culinary ops and been knighted frylord under her ruling tallest and therefore gave herself a new honorary kitchen name as per tradition. Therefore the name "Dava" would have never been recorded in Irken history.

In this scenario, during her years serving in her tallest-in command's grand messhall, she would have HATED her life, because her tallest was a miserable prick to the shmizz and cruel to all his underlings.

If she was lucky, that tallest would have died midway through his rule like in her original timeline and her culinary ops rival-lover would have been measured tallest instead of Dava.

[Dava serving as a frylord under her newly measured ex culinary rival]

Dava would get to keep her frylord title and finally serve a tallest she adored and respected. Her new tallest would treat her with the respect she deserved AND constantly seek out her advice on important issues. So all the good Dava did for her hive and species as a tallest in her original timeline, she would have still accomplished, but in a indirect way. Her new tallest would have taken credit for all her accomplishments, except for Dava's impressive birth count as she would have either been unable to conceive or give birth as Dava had.

In this scenario, Dava would either have only given birth to one swarm [under force by her original prick-tallest] or, because her body was never forced through the harmful measuring process, she could have easily given birth to 3 even bigger swarms or given birth to a record breaking 4-5 swarms.

Her mother would have been just as proud of Dava if she grew up to be a a frylord as opposed to a tallest. Frylords are second in command in terms of political power in Irken society after all (A hive that goes un-fed will surely revolt and eat their tallest. Any tallest with half a brain cell knows this).

And, as a frylord, her mother would have been enlisted to work in Dava's kitchen, so she would have closely worked under her daughter's management. Dava's mother would have enjoyed much better treatment in the workplace plus enjoy her daughter's company on a daily basis.

Dava and her mother would have been perfectly happy with such an arrangement.

But as it turns out, Dava WAS measured tallest in her day and thus is our familiar history.

Dava is a big, curved beatstick of a drone, isn't she? (compliment). She's the Marilyn Monroe/ Dolly Parton of Irken Tallests.

She has always been heavy, full of dimension and proud of this fact. She gained weight after her pregnancies, as anyone does, but lost it gradually after. Dava almost never bound and wore functional armor to most occasions. (Why many other tallests considered her trashy)

Her body has survived many battles, intimidated many rivals/ enemies, produced many future soldiers and gave her the capability to make great pastries in her culinary ops days.

(Dava posing for a tapestry for local weavers with some of her second swarm)

She had the stature of a tallest and the bulk of a frylord. Mostly genetics. She inherited her mother's thick body frame and round, crystal blue eyes.

She was born the same size as the rest of her swarmmates, but grew four times their size in half a year. Because Dava was the smeet of a lowly table drone, her and her swarmmates were born in the storage room of their hive's grand mess hall. She and her siblings were immediately put to work in the kitchen (mostly collecting garbage off the floor or sorting the plastic spoons/forks/ straws/ ect.)

Dava was expected to help with table busting duty because she was tall enough to climb onto the booths and benches on her own and strong enough to help gather dirty trays and cups. She was given extra snacks, but struggled to find room next to her mother on the armchair they rested on during breaks.

These high demands and expectations of her "made her tough" physically, but strained her emotionally. Luckily her mother was a patient drone and the two worked things out before Dava and her swarmmates were collected and drafted into the hive's basic training system.

Dava was sent out into the world with a strong sense of responsibility, ethics and confidence. Later, she made it a point to thank her mother/ original coddle drone for instilling these things in her.

She loved her body and so did her loyal drones. All hail her thickness and curse you and your hive if you think differently. ^^

(Nudity? ahead. Irkens are featureless, so I'm not sure if this counts.)

Dava is actually very proud if her stretch marks. She considers them battle scars; which in old Irken culture they are. She personally modeled for thousands of drawing/ painting/ tapestry weaving students/ enthusiasts in her hive/ allied hives.

If you didn't include her stretch marks in your depiction of her, Dava took great offense.

Kii started to become self-conscious of the stretchmarks on her stomach after her fourth or fifth jubilee. They were a painful reminder of her failed birth attempts.

Modern tallests on average are especially self-conscious about their appearances. Miyuki was under a lot of pressure from the control brains in terms of job performance to begin with. She became overly critical of her body towards the end of her reign. Her flaws reflected the flaws of her empire; as the mentality was drilled into her.

Dava, in all honesty, had the right attitude towards her stretch marks. ALL very tall drones end up covered in stretch marks. The measuring process leaves a drone covered in them.

Tallests tend to continue to grow as they age, which forms new stretch marks, even if skin care routines make the majority of them fade.

All very good questions, which is why I feel obligated to warn everyone cringe, self-indulgent answers are ahead.

1. Yeet ends up deserting the Irken empire altogether for Mem's hive. She agrees to let Zim downgrade her PAK, severing herself from the CB's core collective. She stays in Mem's hive and continues to perform lookout/ guard duties as well as assist Purple with certain everyday tasks, as he is rendered disabled after being cut off from things like his hovor belts/ smart gauntlets (hence why he often walks with a cane after being de-measured. The measuring process is very damaging to the body.)

Yeet also volunteeres to lead an exploration expedition across Mem's mystery planet to help gather information about the surface beyond Mem's hive's known territories. She helped Zim, Dib and Reg draw accurate maps and extensively document the flora and fauna of the continent the hive occupies and eventually the whole planet.

In between expeditions, Yeet volunteers to bodyguard the Resisty-serving Cantina Gir (or frylord “Gorr-May" as he is eventually knighted after earning the title of Frylord in his own right) secretly opens on Mem’s mystery planet. Gir/Gorr-May is only able to sneak away and cook at the cantina occasionally, as the CB full system takeover puts him/ his employees at a huge risk. His apprentice, Mem's daughter, Vicious, does most of the cooking for the cantina.

Yeet provides Mem's hive with a much needed boost in silk, as her “condition" never improves, so she volunteers her time to silk spinning, laundry and mending clothes. She makes dolls for the smeets/ other infant species in her spare time. Yeet enjoys much more meaningful enrichment after joining Mem's hive. She stays active, happy and very much appreciated there, even if her and Gir/Gorr-May never have a swarm of their own (a mutual agreement between the two if them.).

Where Yeet is exactly when Purple dies, is not yet determined. She is very upset when she discovered he had passed. She mourned him deeply; Purple was one of her best friends, despite everything. He even officiated her and Gir's union.

2. Cini has a bad habit of holding in when he puffs on his amber pipe because he believes the old superstition that doing so will increase the effects of the amber (somehow smoke is able to pass through Irken tear ducts in my personal head canon. This is unhealthy and unnecessary. Do not hold in smoke. Don’t smoke in general, in case any minors are ignoring my blog boundaries lol).

3. Tenn (whispering) “That's just a prominent stretch mark from our pregnancies. She's a little bitter. Mine all faded before hers, so just don’t bring it up. She trained our swarms to attack on command.”

Tak “I can hear you over there!”

4. Why do you have to pit 3 bad bitches against each other? ^0

5.You know what? I cannot for the life of me find the drawing you are referring to. Slowly but surely , I'm organizing my drawing room, but have yet to come across it. It is lost in tumblr limbo for sure.

I changed the story around since drawing/ posting that.

Reg temporarily cuts ties with both the Membrane and Van Verminstrasser families while in college during his early to mid 20’s. He goes through a whole para-spiritual/ environmental extremist fase. Part of the reason he joins Dib on his second trip to Mem's planet is to dodge arrest for “acts of environmental terrorism" in several countries. At some point in that time frame Reg sires a daughter, Prisha, shortly after his baby sister, Wyn, is born. (Dib and Mabel struggle to have a child for years before Mabel agrees to use ML’s cloning facilities. It's a whole thing. Yes, Dib is VERY upset he missed the birth of his grandchild.)

(Wyn and Prisha grow up to be close friends. Prisha regularly guest stars on Wyn's reboot of "Probing the Membrane of Science" show.

Reg and Prisha's life research/ field work is a major reason why Dib's great(s) grandson, Dro's generation of humans can still breathe clean air/ drink fresh water on Earth in the distant future.)

Dib is most likely holding both his daughter and granddaughter in that drawing. He and Reg slowly repair their bond, to the whole family ‘s/ Zim's relief.

6. Prof Membrane is very much enjoying his retirement by living his lifelong dream of exploring/ researching the uncharted depths of the earth's oceans. Dib is proud of his dad and extremely happy for him, but at the same time is constantly nervous something will go wrong and personally checks in on the Prof's research team/ inspects the equipment involved in the expedition.

[Slowly but surely I will start answering asks again soon. Been working on other things. Sorry...]

Footage of late tallest Dava being escorted to the birthening floor by her two most trusted frylords moments before giving birth to her third and final swarm.

The only video recording of a live Irken birthening documented and saved in the control brain's memory for educational purposes.

It's not pleasant to watch.

Miyuki and Dava were two of the few Irken tallests (or Irkens in general) to have ever allowed their nude (or almost nude) form to be displayed in any kind of medium. Irkens are very uncomfortable with the idea of nudity and anything that inspires sexual arousal is either banned or heavily sensored in the Irken empire.

Nude depictions of Dava were considered inspirational by her subjects and allies (fertility festivals were still held in Dava's day. Mass cloning had not been perfected and would not be implemented until the rise of Tallests Kii) Dava's enemies considered her pin up images to be vulgar.

Pepperoncini, as much as he loved attention, grew up in a post pandemic generation of the modern Irken empire. Nudity, physicsl closeness/ affection, ect was severely looked down upon in his generation, even moreso than most. Cini would be too embarrassed self-conscious to undress in front of any other Irken besides a trusted coordinator and his wardrobe staff. He preferred to hide under his robes, as uncomfortable as they could be.

Two tallests before Cini ruled Tallest Spittle; who was considerd one of the most attractive/ cutthroat tallests to be measured. He posed nude on a model of the Spittle Runner, the newest/ state of the art Armada war vessel at the time. He ordered the images to be broadcasted across the greater galaxies. His intention was to taunt his enemies, not really to show off his physique (which he maintained better than most tallests).

Hi! I'm still working on the audio for the song Aria sings! But here are the translated Lyrics!

Below is a rough translation of the song sung by Tallest Aria on that day she pledged to reclaim what was lost. A Coronation Song for Tallest Dava, her Legacy put into Song. Translated by Reg Membrane and Oracle Zim from Old Irken. 

Strength of core,

Stubborn, And Steadfast, She perserves.

Adapting to the swirling world

Her Hive will sing her Praise for Enternity 

Mother of her hive, Mother to all

Love and Ferocity in spares,

Mother oh, Mother,

Love our Hive as you love you Swarms.

Elegance and Diplomacy at its height

Within your Era your strength shows

Change and grow,

Forever hold your convictions close

Never breaking, never backing down. 

Your Promise in Power was that of love,

Your Promise in Life was that of Strength,

Kindness beyond compare,

A Vast open Heart,

Pinnacle of Elegance and Leadership

Tallest Dava, Mother our Mother.

We love you as you Love your Smeets, Forever and in Spades.

(Lyrics by @a-wanderin-whirlybird )

Exciting work, Reg is doing-- studying the behavior of modern Irkens/ helping Zim dredge up lost peices of Irken culture/ lore. It's probably his dream project and he is enjoying exploring distant galaxies. Wyn's smeets will be excited to receive new material to recite. :DDD

As for Dava, she never expected to hear such high praise from her smeethood hero, beautifully sung no less. She is swelling with emotion and struggling to maintain her usual regal demeanor. She hopes the Colossus doesn't see her blush/ cry.

Praise tallest Aria, warrior-artist-legend. May she forever sing on, amplified and uninterrupted.

Hey!!! Another Dava Aria Fic for you! I was stuck for a LOOOONG time at one point but your answer about Kii and Dava inspired me!!! Enjoy!

Reclaim What Was Lost

By @a-wanderin-whirlybird

Winding tunnels of a long dead Hive twist before the two tallests. Dava and Aria  had found the Hive. An old one, but far newer than Dava's or Aria's. 

"Sing from the center, then let the sound form in your Head. The higher your pitch, the deeper within your head you sing. To project, widen your mouth like a yawn and pull from the depths of your gut! Try again Dava Darling." Aria encouraged. These lessons had started recently. 

Before Aria and Dava shared stories. Little kind stories of their Smeets. They watched Dava's third Swarm grow before leaving for their own voyage. It took milenia before Dava felt she could ask for lessons. Something to learn. Aria had agreed whole heartedly and began in earnest. 

When they paused for rest, Dava learned the visual and physical arts. Dance, Drawing, Painting, Poetry, Landscaping, flora tending. While they walked the Auditory arts were taught. Now they practiced songs. 

Dava had a wonderful full range to Rival Aria's own, though she excelled in Dancing the most. The Higher Octaves were strangely proving difficult. 

Dava released a loud Bellowed melody. Her voice cracking as she tried to hit the highest note in the song. Dava winced and stopped suddenly, rubbing her throat, tears pricking her eyes. The Song was a special song for Aria. Her coronation song. Dava had asked to learn it. Aria never heard anyone but Pitch preform the song, and Pitch only drummed it. The song itself was constructed such that Aria never got to hear the words, unless sung by another. The song itself was presented to the Tallest in an inebriated state, a gift from the Hive. It was sung at such a volume and in such a state that, though the Tallest knew the words instinctually, they never knew what they sang.

Aria gently patted Dava's shoulder. 

"Easy Smeetie. We all have range caps. Don't push it too hard. If you have found your cap, do not push it. You will only damage your voice. Songs can be adjusted. Our biology cannot, and should not be heavily modified." Aria said with a soft smile. 

"I-... thank you. I think i can only hit the note below. I cannot get much higher." Dava Conceeded despite her chest tightening and tears threatening her. "You were expected to know all the art forms and to exceed all others. How? Did it not drive you mad with anxiety or Frustration?"

"It did. My confidence could only with hold so much pain and fear. I found strength in my Hive and in my Heart, Pitch. She gave me the support I needed when my Hive could not break through the walls I built. And my Hive never let me fall too far into my own despair and fear." Aria chuckled as the two walked. "I told you how I am considered Awful at linear and sketching by my Hive's standards yes?"

"Yes! But does that not hurt or drive you mad? That you cannot reach a place beyond your grasp?" Dava asked.

"Indeed. But by my time my hive knew better. Yes they knew I had a temper in regards to my strengths. I valued and held my voice dearly. But in regards to my weaknesses they did not pity. And they did not needlessly praise. When I improved they pointed it out and gave tips. They did not hold back. And in the end, that helped improve my confidence more than any senseless praise."

"Thats just who you are Aria. From what you've told me. You preferred honest truth over mindless niceties." 

"And in your reign I saw you take every comment and improved. Your face always lighting up when you got better. Even now your eyes ignite as your grasp the songs and dance steps! Your strength is in your adaptability and strong sense of center Smeetie. And while much of that came from a place of pain you do your Hive and yourself proud in your striving for better."

"I… thank you Aria. I…" Dava sighed a death grip holding her chest shut. Aria seemed to notice. 

"I am going to sit here and practice my Lineart again. Why don't you explore some? I will wait for you here." Aria said, sitting down on the rusted metal. 

In death Aria could get all the supplies she needed. Dava could too. So when Aria sat, charcoal and graphite appeared alongside a stiff parchment in her grasp. Dava nodded a small weak smile gracing her lips. 

"Ok, thank you." Dava whispered walking off down the passage as Aria turned her attention to her Lineart and sketching.

Dava glided down the passage, trying to hit the high note as she went. Each crack and failure brought tears to her eyes. Eventually Dava had to stop. Her voice ached and now even the lower notes, well within her range were hard to hit. She needed a break. 

Dava looked around, the old Hive had become a newer tunnel. Gleaming steel and Bright painted insignias blazed upon the walls. How did she get here? 

"Hello!" A tiny voice called and Dava turned down to see a tiny smeet, naked and with a pulsing pack on their back. They had a blueish-tinted skin color and fuzz all along their chest and antenna. Bright ruby eyes blinked as they flashed a gap toothed smile up to Dava. 

"Oh, Hello Smeetie!" Dava said automatically only to freeze. "Smeetie? C-can you see me?"

"Yup, Ms. Tallest person! Your all floaty and pretty! My name is Ion. Whats yours?"

"Dava little ion. I am Dava. Where is your Coddle drone little one?" Dava asked. Her maternal instincts were jumping up, her mind forgetting her earlier frustration as the little Smeet jumped up, arms out stretched. 

Dava didn't hesitate and scooped the little smeet up. In the back of her mind she recalled her first birthing. Aria appearing solid even then. But her mind was focused on the little smeet. 

Malnourished she was. Even for a Smeet of her size. An absolutely tiny drone smeet from the looks of it. Dava wondered if they were near the poles, with the amount of Dusty pastel purple fur on the smeet. 

Ion giggled. 

"The Smeetry workers all are on break! We got measuring tests soon, wanna see? I'm gonna pass and become a Cook!" Ion said excitedly. Dava giggled, hiding her concern at the Smeet's words. 

"Of course darling! Direct me to your rooms." 

Dava followed the smeet's directions as Ion chatted about everything and anything. Eventually they ended up in a massive room, metal arms moved along shlves stacked with tunes. Dava froze as Ion jumped to the ground and padded up to a group of slightly bigger smeets gathered naked in the center. 

The tunes all had embryonic Irkens. Dava watched in horror as an arm went and smashed a tube, pulling a new Irken from the liquid. The baby was too young! Dava could tell. They weren't ready for life yet! They wouldn't develope right. 

Then the arm drilled the Pack onto its back and the Smeet burst to life. Dava felt sick and it only got worse as Ion and four others were herded off to the side. 

"Defective Smeets report to Dislodge group for immediate removal." Dava gasped as the computer spoke. She lunged at the Metal arm that slapped the smeets away from the others who watched on laughing or staring blankly. 

Dava grabbed the arm and snapped it in half. She then collapsed onto her knees and howled. 

"Unknown presence detected! Unknown presence detected!"

"By the Colossus… what is this madness?!" Dava exclaimed,as tears fell down her face. Ion and the other smeets approached Dava. 

Dava scooped them all up into her arms, as if to shield them from the room around them. 

Tallest Kii. Now Control Brain Kii, inspected the Smeets that hatched that day. 

So many were not right. They were too small, defective. A few in Smeetry Y-2k3 were not properly connecting to the PAKs. They would have to be removed. The process had already begun, with five total smeets being separated from the rest.

As Kii went over the records of Smeetry Y-2k3 she got the alert. Unknown presence in the Main Smeetry chamber. Kii sighed, probably just one of the defects messing with the wiring. 

Still she pulled up the security footage, and in an instant was moving to the Smeetry. Excitement, pure excitement and joy leapt at her programmed heart. Her Idol was in her Smeetry!

Tallest Kii materialized onto the floor of the Smeetry. She composed herself, smoothing her antena, and the dress she created, something to match her status but not put her above The Tallest before her. Kii took a deep breath, though no air entered, and spoke.

"Greetings Most renowned Tallest! Smeeties, Come here and give our revered guest space to breath!" Kii commanded. 

Smeets clambered out of Dava's grasp, listening blindly. Ion and four others remained, gently patting Dava's face. 

"B-but, Mother Brain she-"

"Smeetie I gave you an order come here, you have to join the Dislodge Group."

"But!" Ion began. 

"Now!"

"She's crying!" Ion shouted, stubbornly refusing to move. Ion held Dava's finger in a tight hug as Dava held her and the other four close. All five smeets stared stubbornly at the now shocked Kii. 

"What? Oh dear. My Tallest is everything all right? Can I get you anything?" Kii began, approaching Dava. Dava's head snapped up, her bright eyes aflame with fury and confusion. 

"What did you do to them? You're killing them!" Dava shouted. Kii jumped. 

"Tallest Dava, I assure you we are not! The Smeetry ensures that all Smeets worthy of the Irken empire survives. All Smeets get a chance! No female has to risk death ever again!"

"Noble are your intentions but Twisted is the execution! The youngest was removed only halfway through the first stage of development. They arent ready! You condemned them to pain and suffering! And why do they mindlessly follow? Why do you glare and berate those who think themselves?" Kii shrank back as Dava's voice rose. She held Ion and her siblings close. Those who retreated to Kii cowered instinctively. Dava was at full height. 

"My Tallest We-" 

"Explain! No excuses! Tell me!" Dava growled, the sound twisting into one of the techniques Aria had taught her. Kii initially shrank back then stood up and spoke. 

"We cant have defects. Too small, too stubborn, they can't feel too much or it will only bring pain." Kii said, standing firm even as tears filled her eyes. Dava, clutched the smeets closer to her as Kii pointed to them. "They are defects, they would only cause problems!"

"Like I did? I was born Stubborn!" Dava said. Kii winced. 

"Back then. In your time. Stubbornness helped you survive. Now, its a hinderance." Kii said. In the shadows, Someone else watched. 

"Every Irken deserves a chance to reach their full potential!" 

"They have none!" Dava froze as Kii shrieked. Kii marched over and got into Dava's face. 

"Not every one can do what you did. No one else has ever had 3 Swarms themselves! Only you! I Tried! 7 times. 7 failures! This keeps everyone from feeling the same pain! To do as you did and repopulate my army myself!"

Dava's eyes darkened, and Kii felt dread creep over her. 

"Pain is a part of life. This? This is disgusting. This is an insult to my deeds and name!" Dava shouted. "We all have limits, who ever you are. Learn to accept them instead of acting like a Spoiled Brat and taking it out on everyone around you."

Kii winced, shrinking back as Dava turned from her and the other Smeets. She held the five close, her snarl falling into a soft gentle smile. Her lips parted, and a lullaby fell out, soft and Peaceful. 

A second voice joined hers, Aria walked from the shadows, her parchment rolled and strapped to her back as she sang the background accompaniment to the lullaby. It was Dava's own. The one she sang for all her Swarms an hour after birth. 

Kii watched in shock as the two Tallest cradled and sang the five tiny smeets to sleep and walked out arm in arm.

Aria and Dava spoke with the Smeets as they walked. They found a renegade that was happy to adopt the smeets. A Mechanic who hid refugees. they said goodbye to ion and her siblings, promising to visit again.

It was another day before Either spoke again. 

"I wish I knew what came over that Tallest, to pervert her own creation so." Aria said. "The initial idea was sound. To give the people Smeets without endangering them. But such brutality?"

"Grief maybe? I don't know. But it was too much. She claimed it was in my honor. It was no such thing." Dava said quietly. Aria wrapped her long arms around Dava as she sank into the embrace. 

"How many Smeets died because of such a thing? How many were my own kin? How many were my Hive's? Who are we to scream defect?" Dava cried grasping Aria's backs she cried. 

"We are leaders. And it seems that the leaders today have forgotten what that means. We are the Hive's servant first. Their Better last." 

They both sank to the ground, there upon the surface of Irk beneath the Colossus, though neither knew when they got there. Dava cried and Aria held her close. After a while Dava's sobs fell away into hiccups. Only then did Aria move and speak, pulling herself away from Dava a little and wiping away her tears.

"My Darling Dava. Kin of my Heart. That Twisted version of your kind and wonderful soul could never be in your honor. Those Smeets you saved. The song you sang, that they will sing to others, that is your legacy. A promise of kindness." Aria said. Then she stood, her Pale eyes turned to the Colossus. Dava watched as Aria she'd her axe and bow and quiver. The parchment falling and unrolling as the corset about Aria's waist dropped. 

Aria stood tall, shoulders back, took a deep breath, and sang. 

The melody was Haunting. A bellowed whisper. And Ancient song, but at the same time, it was new. 

Dava was transfixed, until the parchment picked up in a sudden wind and flew into her face. Moving it Dava was greeted my a very, Very bad drawing. 

It looked like a Smeet drew it. When Aria said she was bad she meant it. But Dava could see the Effort that ot took. 

It was Dava Surrounded by swirling patterns that seemed to come from her hands. Aria could draw the swirls at least it seemed. And within the picture Dava recognized the lyrics of the song. 

The song ended and Aria knelt before her, Hand held out. 

"That, My dear is your legacy." Aria gave a small smile. "I did tell you O was not good at lineart and sketch. This was the best I ever made. What we truely were, who we truely are. Our Hives and our Cukture may have been lost now, but we can. No! We will reclaim it! We will return it to our people."

Dava smiled, a little giggle leaving her throat as she took Aria's hand, and fierce fire igniting in her chest and eyes. 

"Yes. We will."

I'm going yo try to go about this in an organized, coherent fashion, but it will probably shift to rambling ^^;

It's very sweet of Aria to guide her along the next life and help Dava learn ways to express herself that she never had the opportunity to try in life.

Fun fact; she had years of culinary ops training under her belt and had been begrudgingly awarded a badge of honor by her predecessor-tallest for defending her hive's grand kitchen from enemy onslaught.

Cooking was her original medium and she learned to love the artform, but was forced to give it up after being measured a tallest herself.

point being, Dava was more of an artist than a warrior, but was never allowed to explore this side of herself. It is very enriching and therapeutic for her to study under master Aria. ^^

Aria has a lot of good advice on learning the importance of accepting criticism/ pushing through challenges to better your skills.

Aria has a firm grasp on who she is and what her strengths are, which is admirable.

I'm very glad they stopped along the way to check on Dava's surviving smeets. They meant all of Irk and her moons to her.

You probably handled Kii and Dava's dialogue better than I ever could have.

The level of disappointment in Kii when Dava fails to praise all her "accomplishments". Her failure to understand why Dava is so enragef/ finds her smeetery methods SO unethical. (Also, the rushing production issue with the smeetery I find VERY interesting. I can totally see the control brains pushing smeetery output to unsafe/ counterproductive levels for the sake of having cannon fodder at their disposal. -Maybe...how Zim came about...

The failure to have fully functional grand kitchen to feed them, allowing them only PAK nutrition, vitamin chew shmoops and the occasional reward snack, if your coddle drone is kind) Hungry smeets make Dava sad on a level Kii can't fathom.)

Dava was firm with Kii, which I enjoyed. Very accurate for Dava.

But I still can't help but feel slight sympathy for Kii when she said "Not everyone can do what you did." She had good intentions with the smeetery at one point. She genuinely admired Dava as a tsllest and a woman. Dava has given her much to think about, but it is unlikely Kii will embrace Dava's criticisms.

I hope Ion and the other 4 little defectives stay safe. with their entrusted caregiver. I hope Aria eventually finds Pitch in all this madness. I hope her and Dava succeed in reviving the Irk the control brains destroyed.

This was such a fun read. I'm glad you've made such a beautiful expansion off my au.

Quick pen drawing of 3 female Irken tallests.

Dava, Kii (ocs) and Miyuki. What rare gems ^^.

Tallest motivational poster;

Tallest Dava "Treat Yourself" (think I screwed up somewhere in the font)

I personally don't sew or have any real skill in fiber arts. I would live to learn needlepoint one day. I'm terrible at knitting/ crocheting. XD

My grandmother is very good at sewing and crocheting. Her specialty is Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls (she has made Raggedy children of all kinds of colors and various clothing patterns. I love every one she ever gave me)

My sister-in-law is a seamstress who sews amazing clothes/ costumes/cosplays.

Toymaking and Fiber arts has a special place in my heart and I wish more people (at least where I live) understood the true artistic value and cultural significance to it.

As far as my Irken OCs go,

Yeet likes to sew dolls, but she likes to embellish the fabric she uses with embroidery and beads.

Mem, fortunately for her, as a cadet took sewing and embroidery lessons as an elective while in basic training. She worked in the communal laundry warehouse on the Viral before being "promoted" to Lich's table drone. The skills she learned as a cadet (how to make your own silk/ sew) proved very useful to her after being shunned/ exiled by Miyuki.

Mem has taught her daughters and several of her sons the sewing skills she learned. Mem knows how to needlepoint, but lacks the creativity to stitch anything fancy.

Kiz, coddle drone to Kii, was very good at needlepoint. In her time it was still commonly practiced among low ranking drones to sew/ stitch at home as a hobby.

It's a shame Irk's rich history in needlework was lost after the control brains took over.