I've been so busy, relatives from other countries decided to visit. So yea. I don't know how I feel about this chapter, but we'll see. As always, enjoy!
Zim had been peculiarly quiet while walking back to his home, which kind of shocked himself, though it took a few minutes to realize it. Even with no one around, that never had stopped him from chatting with himself before. Now, however, he didn't feel much like talking. If anything, he felt a little drained, and also a bit upset. Drained because it had been a long night, and upset because of Dib's behavior. Zim could not explain why, but Dib had a way of radiating his bad mood to everyone around him, the Irken included.
He had thought about calling the base for his voot, but decided against it. Maybe a nice walk through the town would help clear his head. So he slowly trudged across the sidewalk, staring down as his boots gently rippled through shallow puddles from that evening's rain. Zim wanted to get back to the base before sunrise, but at the same time he was in no mood to hurry. At the base, he would be forced to pace and contemplate things, and at least this way he would not be forced to stare at the old purple and green wallpaper of his false home.
Maybe redecorating would take my mind off the humans and that horrible Tak-monster. Zim rubbed a hand against his forehead, trying to change the subject of his own thought process. I could cover that spot GIR ripped out, and have the base repair that hole in the ground where those chemicals were spilled. He thought about it, and then smacked himself in the same spot he'd been rubbing. Quietly, he hissed, "The mighty Zim is getting desperate for change. As soon as I get the word from that miserable Gaz-human, I'll shoot Tak into the sun and fix up my labs. Yes. That is a good plan." The Irken scratched his gloved claws together, a scheming grin plastered to his face while he went over his somewhat silly plot.
Zim's walk was rather uneventful, and at the fence of his base, he was hesitant to continue. He stood on the cement and stared at his base with an expression of loathing. A couple moments passed and he sighed quietly, walking up to his stairs and opening the door, being met by the darkness inside. He closed the door behind him and pulled off his wig, antennae happy to be free from their itchy prison. After carrying the accessory to the couch and setting it on his side-table, he fell back on the soft sofa, sinking back tiredly.
The silence was almost too much for him, so the Irken called weakly, "Computer? Status report on Tak."
"Out cold," the mechanical voice responded in monotone, which made Zim want to pull on his antennae. "She hasn't gotten up once."
"Good. I can't wait to get rid of her." Even if the base's bored droning did make him a little twitchy, Zim was glad to at least have something to converse to. He closed his eyes and sunk deeper into the plush couch. "Did you clean up the human's blood? The last thing Zim wants is for his floor to be stained."
Though it might help with my décor problem.
"Taken care of, Sir."
Zim exhaled softly, relaxing. His problems could wait for a little while longer. Just a couple hours of peace would do him well, and he'd be fully relaxed for the upcoming day. Opening his still-disguised eyes, he could see the sliver of dawn breaking through the darkness outside. He rolled over, feeling the morning sun's warmth beginning to creep over his frame, and shut his eyes again, listening to the quiet whirring of machines through the walls of his base. Of course, he probably should not have expected this serenity to last.
The Irken jumped at the sound of knocking coming from the other side of his door, and he scrambled to get on his wig. Glaring at the ceiling, he growled, "Computer! Why didn't you tell me someone was coming?"
"I dunno. I guess I expected you to hear it?"
Zim's false eyes narrowed. He slid off the couch and walked over to the door, pausing with his hand on the knob to take a deep breath. It was most likely the Dib, coming to further complain, and Zim wanted to be ready to make a counter-argument. But opening the door, he was met with a floating screen, and he instinctively stepped back. It was a hovering monitor, and on the screen was the face of some unrecognizable human scientist who looked very staid.
Zim blinked, and with a rather hostile tone, he snapped, "What?"
"Are you Zim?"
The Irken gave the man a sideways glance. Was this a trick? He usually would have slammed the door in this machine's face, but curiosity and boredom got the best of him. Cautiously, the alien responded, "Why? Who are you?"
"I work at Professor Membrane's scientific research lab. He claims that a mister Zim saved his daughter, and he's invited this Zim to be a guest of honor at the city center's annual science festival. It's tomorrow afternoon." The man sounded almost as emotionless as Zim's computer, which took either a lot of skill or a lot of time making these sort of calls.
Science festival? I could use this as an opportunity to find out a lot about how earthlings do... science... stuff.
It was weak reasoning, but honestly, half the reason Zim even considered going was because he needed something to occupy his time. The Irken clawed his chin. "Hmm. Well. Tell him that Zim accepts this... gracious offer." He blinked. "Will all Membrane's scientists be there?"
"I don't know."
Zim's eyelids dropped at his gruff tone. "...You really don't like your job, do you?"
The man's frown increased, and the monitor hovered backwards. "I'll tell the professor that you will be joining us. Good day."
When Zim went back in his base, he pondered over his decision. The computer wondered over it as well, apparently, because it hummed, "...Sir? Is it wise to take part in an organized celebration? You'll be surrounded by humans. I thought that was. Umm. Kind of your main... thing... you avoid...?"
Zim took out his contacts and shook off the wig loosely hanging from his head. He didn't respond to the computer right away. When he did, he said simply, "Usually." To further explain, he cleared his throat and straightened his back. "This time I will be going to collect information. Membrane must think he owes me for saving the Gaz-human. Hence, this offers me some protection. It's ingenious!" He forced a grin, though there really wasn't anyone to give it to. "Now. Zim just needs to find something to do. Ah, I'll work on some projects. Prepare experiment G-6."
"You finished experiment G-6 last Tuesday, sir."
"Oh, right." Zim waved a hand and chuckled. "Get out test subject 23, then. I'll try out experiment A-9. That one should be interesting, yes?"
The computer took a moment to respond. "Uh. Subject 23 exploded a while ago, and you threw out experiment A-9 sometime in the last couple months."
The Irken blinked, antennae lowering. "...Right. Aha, my PAK must be playing tricks on me. How about V-4?"
"...There is no such thing..."
Zim waved his arms around in defeat. "Well, I'll make that now then! Just give me something to fix!"
"Well, there's a busted SIR unit in Tak's pod. I could set that out for you."
"Perfect," Zim replied, flexing his claws. He was just itching to build something destructive. "Perhaps I'll make this robot into a brand new doomsday monster, one capable of shredding entire cities to ruins within mere minutes!" He raised his hands dramatically, but dropped them again with a grim expression. "Or, maybe I'll just repair it. I could use some extra help around, with GIR not doing his part. Where is that little heart attack, anyhow?" The Irken's lower jaw stuck out, appearing almost worried. "He can't possibly still be with the Dib? Computer, call GIR back to the base. He doesn't need to be hanging about with that stinking human."
"Okay. Anything else?"
The alien thought about it, and then commanded, "Yes, instruct GIR- clearly, slowly and carefully- to ask the Gaz-human how she wishes the destruction of Tak. No, never mind. That's too much for him to handle." The Irken sighed. "Just have him open up a communication line for the girl. I'll ask her myself. The sooner we get rid of the treacherous Tak-monster, the better." He headed over to the elevator in the floor, crossing his arms. "Take me to the lab. Set out the SIR unit's parts, and for the love of Irk, lock Tak back up in her pod afterword. Zim does not need her screwing up his mighty base."
"...Right."
The computer hummed as Zim slowly descended into the underground chambers, and Zim lifted a hand to rub his neck thoughtfully. This festival was going to be an interesting experience, knowing his luck.
x-x-x-x
Dib had dozed off watching the television back in the hospital's waiting room, GIR nestled on his lap. The SIR blinked calmly, staring at his surroundings. A lot more humans were here during the day, injured and sick. Not like the robot noticed this. He was just happy to be around people. A few had stopped to pat him on the head as they passed, which he much enjoyed. Dib had bought him some chips from the snack machine a little while ago, and he was still munching on those when the communicator in his head buzzed. Without taking it out, the disguised robot hummed cheerfully, "Yeeessss?"
"GIR! How is the Gaz-human? I need you to open a transmission with her."
"Aww. She's nice!" GIR nuzzled Dib's arm warmly.
"...Yes, GIR." Zim gave an irritated sigh. "I need you to go open a communication line, okay? Make sure no other humans are around."
GIR didn't respond at first, but after crunching his last chip, he jumped off of the sleeping boy's lap. "Okie dokie!" The little robot shuffled off to the elevator.
Luckily for Zim, the robot made it to Gaz's floor- it was probably coincidental, considering the SIR had little idea of what he was doing- and hoped over to her room with squeaking legs. The doctor was out of the room, so GIR jumped on the girl's bed with a large smile. "HAI GIZZY!"
Gaz, who had been resting, snapped her eyes open and jumped a little, instantly regretting the movement. Back sore, the girl glared at the little robot and snapped, "What?"
GIR, not offended by her tone, snuggled on her stomach comfortably. Gaz's amber eyes softened slightly. "...I mean. Hi, GIR. What's..." Her mouth curved downward, marred by the scabbing wounds. "What's up? Is Dib... being Dib?"
"Yeeeaaaa, he is the Dibben-est now CHECK THIS OUT!" Tongue sticking out happily, the robot brought the transmission screen from his head and put it in front of Gaz.
On it showed a very bored-looking Zim, studying his claws. He seemed to be down in his lab. It took him a moment to notice Gaz on screen, and when he did, his magenta eyes did a double-take. "G-Gaz-human! Uh, right. I was just waiting. Yes indeed." He coughed and straightened up, attempting to look formal. He studied Gaz's face, and even she could tell that he was trying to look expressionless. "Well. You look..." He hesitated. "...Very..."
"Crappy?" Gaz suggested.
Zim's antennae lowered. "Well, yes. But I thought I might try and be nice. For Zim is the face of kindness and peace an blah blah..." He went back to looking bored, forming a mouth with his hand to copy his own words and staring at it with a sigh. "Moving on. I need to hurry and get rid of that miserable Tak, but I thought I should consult you first. Do you have a suggestion for method of death?"
Gaz's face scrunched up, which looked painful to do. "...What?"
The Irken rolled his eyes. "You know. I was thinking of blasting her into the sun, that's always fun to watch. But if you want something simple, I'll just shut off her PAK. We can find a way to dispose of the body."
"Zim," Gaz started, rolling her eyes. "I don't want to kill her. I don't want you to kill her, for that matter."
"What?" Zim spat. He glared at the screen, obviously irritated. "How? How can this BE? She could have slayed you!" The alien was fuming, almost unable to speak. As it was, he was having trouble thinking of anything else to say.
Gaz shook her head. "But she didn't. It's not her fault. I mean, she was scared. I shouldn't have approached her so fast." Hesitant, the girl slowly added, "Might as well have been a dog. That happens to people a lot."
"Yes, and what do humans do to animals that attack?" Zim raised his hands. "They kill them, Gaz!"
"But she's not a dog! I was just using it as an example!" Gaz was growing more frustrated by the second, matching Zim's hot temper with her own. "I'm perfectly capable of watching my back, now that I know what she can do. I'm sick and tired of people telling me what I can and can't do, alright? If Tak isn't there when I come to your base tomorrow, I personally will..." Her words lingered, trying to think of a good enough threat. "...I'll drag you out to Dib's stupid Swollen Eyeball group myself!"
"You wouldn't dare."
"Try me."
Zim hissed, gloved claws balled into a fist. "You retched, horrible girl. Fine. Keep your little alien monster. You can give her a home and a collar with little pink bells. Maybe someday, she'll even stop trying to kill you!"
With that, Zim cut the transmission, and GIR brought back the screen. Noticing the glare still lingering in Gaz's eyes, he smiled and purred, "Aww, Gizzy is upset. I'ma stay with you!"
Gaz exhaled deeply, determined not to take her anger out on the robot. "No, GIR. Go home, okay? You can bring Dib with you. I'm sure he'd love to see Zim." The corner of her mouth twitched into a smirk, and GIR took that as a good sign. He squealed and ran out of the room to go find his human friend, and Gaz slid into a laying position, staring up at the white tiled ceiling. Tomorrow, she'd see if Irkens were any good at keeping their word.
Hmm. ;o Perhaps Gaz has a different motive than we thought? Because we all know what a ray of sunshine she is.
Today's Random Facts:
. Yeaaa Zim is so hard to write. I'm not use to playing his character.
. Irken sedatives. Wicked stuff.
. I'm having trouble thinking right now so :U Let's move on.
Today's Random Question:
Which un-animated episode do you wish they would have created most of all? I think the Trial one would have been very good. Obviously, the ideas of the finale Invader Dib would have been epic. Leave your opinion in a review or message if you want, and please feel free to answer past questions. Have a great remaining summer, everyone, because I start school back up next week! O-o
