Stupid. How could he be so stupid? All the clues were there yet he missed them. Dib, sole defender of Earth, missed the clues that lead to the destruction of all he knew and loved.
***one week in the past***
Dib sighed. Another boring day at Hi Skool. No one liked him still. All the children that hadn't believed him about Zim still thought he was crazy. Dib didn't even have the alien hell-bent on world domination anymore! Zim had disappeared years before. Not a trace was left of the narcissistic alien, not even his base. It was if it had never existed. Not even the students remembered Zim. Dib remembered, though, and he still watched for the alien's return, waiting ever waiting.
Of course, the Earth still knew nothing about his desperate struggles to save them all. Instead he was still being made fun of for his head.
"Dib! Pay attention!" the evil teacher in the front shouted.
"Yes, ma'am," Dib sighed. Why did it seem that all the teachers in Hi Skool were either reincarnations of Ms. Bitters or copies of Mr. Elliot? It was very disorientating switching from 'doom' to 'happy' and back again every day.
Without warning, a portal into a dimension of suffering opened on the teacher's desk, releasing a few souls of the doomed and a fiery red phone. The teacher snatched it up with her clawed hand, listened, then hissed "You'll pay for this!" and sent the phone back to whence it came.
"Despite the overcrowding of skool, you have been given a new classmate. You!" she pointed a claw at a cowering teenager next to Dib. "You're being sent to another dimension."
With that the poor kid was sucked screaming into a void which closed just as the door to the classroom opened. A boy in dark jeans and a red shirt with a frowning face with fangs on it was in the doorway. His black hair swooped and covered one shining green eye. His back pack was shouldered over his left arm where a spiked bracelet glittered dangerously.
"Sup," He said. "I'm Sen."
"Take the seat next to Dib and be quiet," the teacher growled.
"Whatever," was all that Sen replied.
Maybe he's a werewolf or something, Dib pondered.
At lunch time, Dib studied the new student. He seemed normal enough but Dib remembered how Tak was and continued to watch him. He must have been obvious though because Sen sighed, got up, and approached Dib.
"What's your problem?" he demanded, shoving Dib. "You gay or something?"
"What! No!" the scythe-haired teen shouted.
"Then stop looking at me or you won't live to see the next day," Sen growled.
"Hey, you would watch all new kids too if every other one turned out to be an alien bent on world conquest or a werewolf or something," Dib said, brushing off the dust on his pants.
Sen continued walking. "Actually, werewolves aren't half bad. I met one once. Damn good fighters, those are."
"Wait. You believe me? Or are you like everyone else and just fooling me into trusting you?"
"Now why would I tell you that, Agent Mothman?"
Dib stared after him in surprise. "Hey wait a minute! How do you know that name?"
Sen pivoted and faced him. "I'm a new member, Agent Mothman, just joined in fact. Agent Jerseydevil, at your service."
"Huh. Darkbootie mentioned a new recruit but I didn't think I'd get to meet you in person. Sorry about the stalking, caution and force of habit you know."
Dib held out his hand and Sen shook it roughly.
"Just don't do it again or you'll need to keep a nightlight on for the rest of your life," Sen said before walking off.
"You'd like Gaz," Dib jogged after him.
"I work mainly in the field of creatures of the night. Werewolves, vampires, ghosts, even demons. I like to be informed so I did my research on you before I came. Interesting profile. Specializes in aliens, I believe. Seemed to be mainly focused on one in particular. Zim was his name, right? You said he disappeared a few years ago and left no apparent trace. Tried to take over the planet."
"Wow, you're good. You read my profile? It's the longest one in the Network!"
"Read and memorized all of them. I have a really good memory. Sometimes I memorize things I'm not even paying attention to."
"Cool. So you've been interested in the paranormal for long?"
"Ever since I befriended a vampire. Tried to drink my blood after I had Italian. Funniest thing ever. Gave me this when I saved his life."
Sen held up a crystal pendant of a thin tooth. It appeared to be very sharp.
"It tells other vamps that I'm okay," Sen explained. "I've been composing a notebook about their culture. A strange blend of different eras. Pretty cool, really. So tell me about your alien stuff. By the look on your face, you don't get asked about it all the time."
"Are you kidding me? All the people here called me crazy when I told them about Zim being an alien! I mean come on! It was totally obvious! Besides the complete lack of disguise, all he had on were contacts and a wig, he would constantly slander the human race, burn in water and most human food, misunderstand the most obvious things, and yell how he would rule us all! How come I was the only one to notice that?"
"Who knows? He doesn't sound like a very good alien invader."
"Yeah his plans were always failing. I even was able to get quite a lot of information about his species. They were called Irkens. I have one of their ships in my garage. Wanna come over and see it after skool?"
"Sure, just gotta check in with my folks. See you after skool then."
Wow, Dib thought as he walked to his next class. The same day I met him I've made a friend. Finally, someone believes me!
***after being shown Dib's collection of info***
Sen trudged into the living room of his house. "Everything is going as planned."
The dark teen grinned evilly as he took a secret elevator into the bowls of the Earth. He cackled insanely as he pressed a button on his spiked bracelet and his disguise disappeared.