STORY DISCLAIMER: I don't own IZ…I wish I did, but alas I don't. So no suing okay?
Line break Key:
~I~Z~ Character (and time) switch
~I~N~V~A~D~E~R~~Z~I~M~ Same character different time
It was a few years after The Most Horrible X-mas Ever. The years had passed in much the same fashion with Zim attempting to take over the world and Dib stopping him at every turn.
This day started horribly for Zim and only got worse. Gir had made a mess of the house and the computer had allowed it. He growled, and was shoving his now crumpled homework and books into his book bag when a message popped up on the screen. He immediately noticed it was from his tallest and decided to view it instead of rushing to school.
When they told him he was defective he stiffened. They didn't notice and continued on telling him how he was really exiled and how they were growing tired of his bothering them. They told him how Gir was made of nothing other then trash and that he should never contact them ever again before they cut the connection. His maturity while on the filthy planet had grown, and some part of him knew what they said was true.
He was so shocked he just picked up his book bag and left for skool never noticing the cops sitting in wait for him.
~I~ Z~
The day had started normally for Dib. He was woken up by Gaz, under punishment of Doom, and got ready for school. He ate his poop cereal and grabbed his books and shoes before following his younger sister out the door to the bus stop. When he got to Mid-skool a small sense of foreboding began growing. When Zim didn't show up by lunch he knew something was going on. Deciding to skip skool he went to Zim's base to see what the alien was up to.
He was stopped in his tracks when he saw Zim's book bag sprawled out across the lawn. When he noticed the cops lined up along the sidewalk in front of Zim's house he was surprised.
"Shouldn't you be in Skool boy?" One of them asks.
"Why are you here? Do you finally believe me about Zim being an Alien?!" He asks hope filling his stomach.
"You're Dib Membrane?" He questions. At his nod he responds, "Yes we have apprehended the Alien and are waiting for its companion."
"You mean the robot? Just tell it you'll give it a Taco. It'll come right out." Dib says with a shrug.
"Really? You offer the robot a taco." He say turning from Dib to a random man along the sidewalk.
"Yes sir!" The young man says with a salute. "Hey if you come with us I'll give you a taco." Gir peeks around the door mouth drooling.
"Taco?! Can I have some poop cola too?!" He asks with a smile.
"Sure" The man replies.
"!" Gir says dancing out from behind the door and into a cage designed for him.
"Good job boy. I'll remember this." The leader says before they all walk away.
Dib just stands shocked. They finally believed him. They finally caught the world-conquering creature! He let out a laugh and whistled his way back to school with a grin on his face the entire time.
~I~N~V~A~D~E~R~~Z~I~M~
The following days passed slowly. Dib realized that it had only been a week since they caught Zim. Zim was all over the news, pictures of the "real Alien" spread all over the internet and America was the first country to have living proof of extra-terrestrial life. Dib of course was mentioned and none of the children at Skool thought him crazy anymore. As a matter of fact, he was now quite popular, with the hi skoolers too. It was a dream come true for him he finally fit in. His father didn't think of him as insane anymore, he actually believed him for once.
It was when he looked over at Zim's seat to rub in his perfect score on one of his tests that he realized he actually might, possibly, slightly miss the little green poop ball.
Two more agonizingly slow weeks passed before any new news of Zim reached his ears. There was to be an exploratory surgery two days from then. He was of course invited.
~I~N~V~A~D~E~R~~Z~I~M~
The day of the surgery he was excused from class, along with his sister to go see it. It turns out the Police chief did remember his help and convinced the others to let the "discoverer of the Alien" watch even though he was just a child.
He dressed nicely, but casually, and got ready. He ate breakfast and brushed his teeth and hair before his sister could even think of waking him up. She was ready when he went downstairs and they, like usual left the house together. However, instead of getting on the Skool bus like normal, a car was waiting for them.
The drive to the hospital was quiet, Gaz sat staring out the window her GS3 sitting in her lap, off. Dib didn't have much to say to his sister, and it seemed like she didn't want to talk with him either.
The Dean of the hospital greeted them at the door, and they filled the walk to the exploratory rooms with useless chatter about the alien they were going to see. Gaz followed silently mentally preparing herself to see the poor creature, because, unlike her brother, Gaz actually had an idea of how this was going to go. It wouldn't be pretty.
Dib was shocked when he entered the room. At least three hundred people filled the room to the brim; there were scientists, doctors, and even government officials. They parted for the Dean and his guests. It was only when they were seated at the front that either sibling thought to look at the alien strapped to the table.
And strapped he was, with straps covered his arms, legs and even his neck, he lay shaking against the glittering silver of the table. His skin was a gray-green and his antenna lay limp against the table. His eyes were closed but when Dib looked at him they opened. They were dark purple, with hardly any of their normal sparkle in them. They were dead. Dib shuddered and looked away from that piercing gaze. And thoughts began swirling around in his head.
Had he done the right thing? Did Zim really deserve this? What would he do now that his one interest in skool was gone?
He glanced back at those eyes. They seemed to tell him that the alien knew he would die on this table. This would be the last time he saw the alien move, even if the humans tried, they would never be able to keep him alive after this.
He began wondering; would they numb him first? They knew not to remove his Pak, right? Did they know he was allergic to water? Should he tell them? Surely they wouldn't give him anything water or meat based right? Did they know anything other then he was an alien? Were they smart enough to learn all they could before they began the surgery? Would they put him to sleep?
He started to panic. This wasn't what he wanted. Gaz laid a hand on his shoulder to stop him from hyperventilating. He looked over at her and knew she had the same worries in her head.
~I~Z~ (This next scene is slightly gory…I believe it came from the part of my mind that loves reading JTHM…)
As the surgeon makes the first incision Zim closes his eyes in a vain attempt to keep from crying. As the surgery progresses they try and wash the blood away from his squeedlyspooch using a water-based disinfectant. Zim screams out as the water burns at his major organ. He writhes in pain, snaps his bonds and clutches his burning chest with his arms. Tears run down his face and he screams until his squeedlyspooch can't provide him with any more air.
The surgeon backs off wide-eyed at the huge mistake that he made. The substance continues to burn through Zim, not seeming to stop and it slowly eats through his bones and skin until all that's left is his PAK.
Over the outrage in the room no one hears Zim's PAK make one last decision. No one notices a small disk fall from the PAK before it shudders and dies. None see the disk crawl over the floor and up the wall to slide itself into Dib's pocket. Not even Dib.
Dib's eyes are wide and Gaz is sobbing into his shoulder. He couldn't believe…it wasn't supposed to…surely Zim was just playing him, but his PAK, and…he hadn't even gotten to say goodbye… Several doctors were up on their feet yelling at the surgeon and the Dean immediately fires the man for such a big screw up, but Dib and Gaz didn't notice.
When Dib got out of the hospital he promptly emptied his stomach in the quickest most efficient way, by puking his guts out. Gaz quickly followed and as they caught a bus home they cried together after seeing that horrible sight, someone they knew disintegrating before their eyes.
By the time the media, hospital and government done with the surgeon he had nothing left.
~I~N~V~A~D~E~R~~Z~I~M~
Dib had made up his mind. He couldn't live with himself knowing it was him who led his not-friend, alien-buddy to his horrible fate. Dib decided he had to do something about it.
Dib was lucky. The government still couldn't gain access to Zim's base as they were too stupid to get past the still active security system, and they didn't want to ruin the advanced technology by blowing it up.
The backpack he wore was heavy; he had stolen his dad's conscious-unconscious-divider to get this done. Why his father had even invented the stupid thing he didn't want to know. He sneaked past the gnomes and made his way into the deserted living room. He ignored the emptiness of the house and began his descent into the lower lab with a sigh. He knew what he had to do.
It was right where Zim left it. The Temporal Displacer, which had led to his horrible pig filled childhood, which never really happened since Zim had done something to change it. He laughed hollowly and began playing with the controls. After a few moments he got the thing set to physical/nonphysical matter and with a sigh he pulled out his dad's device. He just hope his dad and Gaz would understand why he was doing this…
With a deep breath he put the thing around his head not noticing the small spider disk that got caught under the band.
A flash.
And then nothing, Dib's comatose body rests on the floor, all consciousness having fled.
Much later, when the infiltration experts finally got to the house and discovered Dib, the spider drone was nowhere to be found. Not that anyone knew it was there in the first place.
