Another chapter for the rabid fans… Unless… you aren't rabid, which means this chapter isn't for you! Again, if you haven't read the first Eclipse, DO SO. I'm not going to re-type half of that story into this one just so a few people can understand the whole of it all…
sssssssssss
The duration of the trial was full of memories much like the first one. There were a few ZiM wasn't all that proud of, like when he had allowed himself to get beat up by the planet jackers and thus got Eleven harmed as well, or when he was almost discovered to be alien by the humans which would have also done harm to the smeet. But most of them were simple little memories, like Eleven asking a question which ZiM would try to answer in a way the child could understand or doing a little project with the smeet to keep him busy.
The PAK still had not reinstated his hologram as the trial was pressed on. He refused to allow the crowd to make their own assessments on his reactions and thus made himself a blank slate while the control brains sifted through what they wanted and left out facts they deemed useless to their verdict.
Many of the Irks were surprised with ZiM's patience with the smeet at times, like when he had a nightmare and wouldn't go back to sleep, but could plainly see that yelling or doing to smeet harm would only have made it worse. There was an instance played on the screen at the moment when the smeet had just started crying in horror…
Eleven was just sitting at the couch kicking his feet and staring at GIR while he slept on the floor. A little spider fell from the ceiling, using a string of thread to get down safely and all the while the smeet watched with interest and cooed happily. The spider made its way to the ground and waddled around for a little bit… until GIR rolled over and ate it, then snuggled back to sleep.
Eleven stared with a deep horror and sadness and started to sob quietly, which then turned into a loud cry.
ZiM's PAK detached itself and created a hologram of his original body, sitting next to the smeet, "Eleven, why do you cry now? Nothing has happened, you are safe. But perhaps you are bored to the tears of anguish?"
Eleven pointed at GIR, still crying, "He ate the baby spider! It's dead and GIR killed it!"
ZiM looked to GIR, then back at Eleven, "Smeet…" he began slowly, not sure how to proceed, "You… must learn not to become attached to creatures such as those."
The hologram shook his head. No, no, those weren't the right words.
He tried again, "Do you know how many spiders are in a birthing sac?"
The smeet hiccupped, "I-I dunno… hundreds?"
ZiM nodded, "That is right. And there are so many because the mommy-unit spider knows not all of them will make it. Some of the eggs never hatch and some of the babies eat each other, so hundreds are born to ensure at least a few will make it."
Eleven whimpered, tears rolling from his eyes down his cheeks.
The hologram pulled the smeet close, "Now you listen to ZiM, for ZiM does know things. Not all that is born will have a chance to make an impression on this universe. Most of it goes unnoticed. But you have a strange and powerful gift, smeet. You see the little things and enjoy its company, like the little spider, but sometimes you have to let things go."
ZiM could see the words start to sink in for Eleven, but he wasn't quite there, "Think of it this way," he tried to say in an upbeat tone of voice, "The little spider had no idea what had happened. One second he was there and the next he was poofed. He is basically asleep in a never ending dream."
Eleven's antennae perked, "Where only the good things happen?"
The hologram chuckled and patted the smeet on the head, "That's right."
'No matter what the circumstance,' ZiM thought to himself, 'as long as he's fed, warm, and safe, ZiM will always be able to stand hearing him cry…'
The memory ended and the control brains beeped, but the middle one spoke, "Such patience for a situation so meaningless."
A slight growl came from the PAK as it responded, "Meaningless is not a word to describe that situation. His comfort was suddenly disrupted when my robot killed something. In case you brains are too brainless, the smeet is the essential being to all life."
A murmur came from the crowd and Tallest Purple cheered, muffled only by a mouth full of donuts.
The center brain thought it over, "… Agreed. Prior conclusion on this memory revoked. It is valid."
A brain on the right growled impatiently, "We have an equal number of pros and cons of your parenting abilities, ZiM. While you've managed to hide and teach him without the intervention of the Empire, you still managed to place him in harms way when it suited your needs. I call for an immediate vote to have the smeet taken into protective custody!"
The audience gasped and murmured, but the rest of the brains remained unphased.
The brain on the far left piped up, "We will not be swayed simply by a feeling. Memories only tell a partial story, one which we are seeing only from the accounts of ZiM. Therefore, I ask for a vote on speaking with the smeet himself."
The noise from the crowd ceased and the rest of the brains accepted the proposition.
"Confirmed." "Confirmed." "Confirmed." "Confirmed."
The screen went blank and began to establish communications with ZiM's base on earth.
The Irken emblem popped up, then the sound of wailing and screaming as a visual of the living room came into view.
The PAK immediately recreated a hologram with which to work with and yelled up to the screen, "Eleven? Smeet, you will answer to ZiM's call!"
The brain on the right hushed the Irk, "You will stay quiet! You are not to speak while we conduct our investigation."
ZiM glared, hissing, "But he could be-"
The center brain cut him off, "I agree with my associate. Your audial presence may influence the smeet."
Everyone watched the screen as an Empire guard, one of the three left at ZiM's house to watch and protect the smeet, ran into the living room and ducked under the couch. Another one came walking in, his hands over his antennae and the last one came in with the screaming smeet in his arms.
"Could you shut him up?" the second guard hollered.
"He won't stop crying!" the first guard's muffled response came from under the couch, "Make him stop, make him stop, or I'll start-" the guard started crying.
The guard holding the smeet tried rocking Eleven back and forth, "No, no, hush… it's… quiet time? Or is it naptime?"
The crying guard under the couch started banging his fists on the floor in a sobbing tantrum, "I MISS NAPTIME!"
The second guard growled and hollered again, "Could you shut him up, he's giving me a headache!"
Eleven stopped crying for a moment, then screamed louder, insulted and hurt, "I want ZiM! Lemme see ZiiiiiiiiM!"
All-in-all, the smeet and a guard were crying, another guard was rocking himself back and forth whispering 'shut up, shut up, shut up' and the final guard was contemplating killing the crying guard.
The center brain calmly cleared his throat and said in a booming voice, "Cease! Your actions will now come to an immediate halt!"
Everyone in ZiM's living room hushed and the guards who were visible stood in salute.
Eleven simply whimpered, then looked surprised when he saw ZiM, "Choo?" he said softly.
ZiM smiled gently and waved, "Hello, smeet, ZiM is here once more."
The smeet squealed and pawed at the screen, telling the brains so much more than what ZiM could have hoped for.
sssssssssss
*yawns* I'm hungry. Great response to a yawn, no? So… yeah, this is the second chapter. ^^