A/N

Sorry I haven't updated in a while! School has just been suffocating me. Word of advice: NEVER take Computer Aided Drawing (CAD). I will simply say it is so hard and mind-boggling that if you sign up for the course, you will probably huddle up in the corner of you room each night, rocking while thinking, "Why did I freely choose to take THIS class?" Okay maybe I am being dramatic, but you get the point XD. I hope you enjoy this chapter. This is where the story begins getting good :).

"Great," Dub muttered, "just when we think the experiments are going smoothly, something has to interfere. Something always has to interfere."

Tests and examinations on the young Irken had been progressing when suddenly the power to the entire building shut down. Unbeknownst to both Dib and Zim, help was on the way.

He entered the grassy field just behind the laboratory in search of the main generator. For the life of him, he could not understand exactly how the power was cut off. It was not a natural glitch in the system. If it had been, the backup generator would have kicked in and powered the building until the main one had been repaired. The only other possibility that was left was that it had been manually shut off by someone. But only Professor Membrane, Dib, and Gaz knew of the password required to do such a thing.

He knew his dad had not done it for he was in the room when it occurred and Dib did not do it. Either someone managed to hack through the security system, which was doubtful, or it was Gaz.

"That's impossible. She doesn't even know where we are right now. No, it couldn't be her."

Yet he was baffled when he saw his younger sister standing before the generator, arms crossed and the power switch clearly off.

"It was you," Dib accused.

"Where is he, Dib?"

Dib frowned, shaking his head. "Who?"

"Don't play stupid. You know exactly who! I've already been to his base and he wasn't there. Gir has no clue where he is and every time I try to contact him, he doesn't respond. There is no other place he would be and you and I both know that. That only leaves you. "

Dib scoffed and scooted passed her to return the power. However, she lunged at him and threw him against the trunk of a nearby tree.

"Tell me where Zim is."

He squirmed to obtain his freedom, but was surprised to find that she was much stronger than he was. This does real great for a man's ego, he thought to himself.

"Gaz, just settle down. Dad is taking care of everything."

"What do you mean," she frowned.

He turned the other way.

She growled and threw him to the side, running towards the lab.

"Don't interfere, Gaz! It'll only make it worse!"

She ignored his warning and trampled through the towering grass brushing against her legs. The thick humidity floating in the July air caused her clothes to stick to her glistening, sweaty skin. Her heart burned and her mind failed to think straight, yet she continued on. Once she was inside the mass building, she began her search for her Irken partner.

Time was consumed as each room was searched. When she noticed a group of scientists caught in a heated discussion, she slipped passed them and entered the room they had exited seconds earlier. There she found his limp body.

"Zim?"

She shook his shoulders, but he did not respond. Only when she saw the steady rising of his chest did she rush to the computers, punching away at the keys and entering the password to his ultimate freedom. The metal restraints digging into his wrists and legs released their iron grip.

She dragged him off of the dissection table, lifted his arm over her shoulder, and, with little difficulty, heaved him out of the room. She ceased at the corner and peered across the hallways. Her heart stopped when she spotted the scientists returning.

Her eyes flicked about to search for an escape. They swiftly landed on a chemical shoot long abandoned. She recalled her father explaining how such passages were used to dump aged, unfeasible chemicals that were no longer of use. It eventually led right outside the laboratory into a heap of sand which usually contained the substances until they faded over time. Due to the lack of use of one particular shoot, she knew it would be safe. It will be much safer through there than risking our lives in here, she thought.

The metal door slid open and she crawled inside after placing his wilted corpse within. Frequently, she lost her way in the maze of twists and turns. Though a ray of light or an echoing hum always guided her on the correct path.

It was not easy tugging Zim through passages while minding the level of noise. Even the slightest sound would alert everyone of their location. She ignored the possibility of drawing attention, though, when a shrill siren shattered the atmosphere.

It was for Zim. They had discovered his absence and were now eager to retrieve their specimen at any cost. She kissed his forehead and stroked his skin lightly.

"I won't let them get you again. I promise."

She sighed at the lack of response, but pressed on anyways. An unexpected bend in the tunnel snatched her by surprise as she and Zim fell from the shoot and landed onto a sturdy pile of sand. Just as she had thought, they were outside in a large meadow.

"We're almost there. We'd better get going."

She stood, faced the forest nearby, and reached for his hand. She gasped when something tackled her to the ground and leaned its weight atop her. Her first thought was one of the guards at the laboratory had discovered her. She fiercely believed her eyes were betraying her when she peered up and saw Zim, teeth clenched and eyes piercing.

A/N

I have a feeling you will like the next chapter ^-^