dEfEcTiVe?
"Mastah sleepin' like a baby," the robot blubbered.
"He's dead, Gir," Dib droned, his eyes red - papers scattered all around him. Drawn up plans. So many scrapped. The Irken's lifeless eyes watched him eerily.
"Dead?" the alien's minion seemed to comprehend the concept for a millisecond, then his tongue stuck back out. "Mastah not die, Mary! Zim just sleepin'!" he screamed. "In a big, squishy bed, with pretty stars. Like a water balloon! I like balloons," Gir drawled. "Zim no likey when I play with it!" he giggled through his robotic teeth - which he lacked.
"He might as well be dead," the child wrote Zim's minion off as absolutely psychotic at that point - or maybe he just didn't care enough to listen to whatever Gir was rambling on about. "I don't know where his charger is, his base is a wreck, they've probably discovered it by now, and I don't have any help. This is just…" Dib shook his head, eyes down. He pulled his hands down his face before dropping his head into the covers. "Just wake me up when I'm hitting retirement."
"Aww, big head sleepy, too?" Gir smiled sweetly.
"Nyeh," Minimoose softly squeaked, lying against its Master's abdomen.
Dib's brow furrowed from the sounds that the purple animal thing made - it was almost… singing. The child picked his head up to study the smaller minion, observing how it looked at its Master, as if trying to comfort the motionless body.
How on Earth were machines that were made to create death and destruction wherever they went… showing such raw emotion? Why did they have preferences for people? For food? Why did they laugh from cartoons, and enjoy tag? Why did they grieve over a loss? For what purpose did any of it serve?
"Really sleepy," he finally answered. "I haven't slept properly in… who knows how long," he spaced out, absentmindedly resting his gaze on his nemesis not too far from him. "I'm just so tired of… everything going wrong all of the time," Dib spoke his mind. "Like, why me? Why ME of all people? I just don't get it! What have I done to deserve any of this?!" he snapped.
"Maybe da hotdog man gots to do with it," Gir stared through his cyan gaze.
"No," Dib blinked hard. "That... that has nothing to do with this. I'm talking about my life, Gir," the teen huffed. "Why am I even talking to you? Am I really that alone, that I'm talking to my enemy's robot?" He rested his chin over his arms, hiding his mouth. He blinked, wiping slightly at his nose with a small, stuffed sniff. "All of my life, I just… everything's such a disappointment. My dad, my sister, the skool, the other kids, the SEN…" His face twisted in a vicious frown. "I just don't understand why things have to be this way. Like I'm cursed, or something. No one else seems to have to deal with this! NO ONE else struggles like I struggle!" he snapped to no one in particular. "Everyone just - seems to have it easy! They're doing things, accomplishing things, spending time with their parents, going out with friends, and I'm… not.." his face dropped into a solemn slump. "I wish I could just get my life together already."
Gir nodded, smiling widely. "Why is ma' life so horrible?!" he screamed, shaking his fists to the air before he giggled. "You and Mastah such good friends! You say da saaaame thing."
"Huh?" Dib furrowed his brow towards the SIR Unit.
"Mmmhm," the robot confirmed. Then, he smiled wide, and lifted his head again to shout, "ALL DA LIES!" he bellowed. "'DEY LIE!" He covered his cyan eyes to blubber an imitation of crying. He revealed his gaze again to grin. "Mastah sad sometimes, too, but we watch da movies, and eat da poopcorn, and we has such good tiiimes," he drooled.
"Nyah..." Minimoose agreed with a quiet sound of grief.
The child made a face from the behaviour. "What does Zim have to be upset about? I mean, besides this whole thing happening right now, and all," he waved the thought away. "He's some highly-ranked soldier of an alien race. His people adore him," Dib rolled his eyes. "He doesn't have issues like I do. He's perfect," Dib sarcastically drawled. "He has good posture, he never has to repeat himself, his people accept him," Dib sighed. "He lives on his own, he has a bunch of advanced alien tech - he can even build incredible things over the course of a few hours! Things that humans can't even dream of! How sick is that?!" Dib exuded. "He has his super cool Pak thing with all of the tools he needs inside, he's fast, he's confident, he's… just… nothing like me," Dib shook his head, staring off across his room. Suddenly, he glared as he pointed to both Gir and Minimoose. "Don't tell him I said any of this."
"I gotchyou, Mary!" Gir cried. "No tell to Zim," he spoke to Minimoose with a playful shake of his fist. "Dib not want it! Dib a friend! Friends are friends, and friends 'til the end!"
"Nyeh," Minimoose squeaked in acknowledgement.
The paranormal investigator eyed them carefully before he dropped his head again in his arms. Sweet silence filled the dark room as Dib breathed, staring off in thought.
He picked his head up again. "I want to do something with my life, y'know? I don't want to just… go to skool, and.. get a job, and… well, you know, live like everyone else does." Dib shifted, turning onto his back, head to head with his nemesis. "I want to go places," he spread his arms, looking up towards the glowing constellations and hanging planets across his ceiling. "Travel through space, and see alien worlds," his eyes explored familiar patterns. "Maybe be known as - Dib Membrane! Saviour of planets!" he clenched his fist victoriously.
"Flavah' of planets!"
"Nyeh nyah nyeh!"
Dib smiled slightly from the echoes, sighing in longing. "Yeah," he daydreamed, folding his hands over his chest. "I'll travel around.. saving alien races in need…" he yawned slowly. "Maybe find someone to spend the rest of my…"
Darkness.
Where was he? What was this place?
"Hello!" he shaped his hands around his mouth. The shout echoed down the long, desolate hall.
He stared, searching for something, as if expecting a body to appear in the distance.
Denied, the child started to wander the opposite way. "HELLO!" he cried again.
"Hello~"
Dib jerked from the voice, whipping around. Unsurprisingly, the object of his obsessive thoughts stood before him. Disguised eyes boring into him. "Zim," he furrowed his brow, then looked up and down the hall before glancing back -
The child stumbled away slightly. The alien had been closer to him. Too close. His expression didn't… sit well with him. "Where are we?" Dib tried to brush off the behaviour. "What is this?"
The alien's eye widened, the other narrowing. "It is not familiar, Earth-boy?"
Dib furrowed his brow back. "No," he started to walk, eyeing the narrow, blank walls. "Is this the crazy house?"
"Is it?"
"You tell me! Where are we?!" he turned back around - and the child was absolutely spooked.
Zim stood there, eyes watching like a predator. He slowly turned his head, though kept his gaze trained. The Irken stepped around him, and started to march.
Dib blinked hard as their connected gazes were shattered. He made a face, then went after the alien. "Hey! Are you going to answer me?!"
Suddenly, it was getting harder and harder to keep up. Dib panted as he chased, sweat starting to bead at his temple. His chest was getting tighter. Hallway getting longer. Zim.. farther and farther way.
"ZIM! Wait!" he screamed, then grunted as he slammed right into the alien, bouncing off.
Dib hissed as he hit the ground, slowly picking himself back up. He rubbed at his elbow, looking back up to his nemesis. "Why did we - ?"
"Hush," the Irken simply put, holding a finger out towards him.
The young investigator's brow creased, eyes almost crossing from how close the gloved fingertip was. He watched as it retracted, blinking up at the fake irises. He studied the Irken with a pout, until he realized just what Zim was staring at.
A door. There was a door in front of them - 'KEEP OUT', it read. Dib felt a creeping recognition. Still, he opened his mouth, "What's in there?"
The human blinked over to the empty space beside him - anxiety skyrocketing. "Zim?" he looked about, turning his head this way and that.
Not finding the lurking alien, Dib felt his gut twist. He clenched his palms together, swallowing. Glancing back up towards the door, he reached out…
The door creaked open, the child peeking in before fully standing in the doorway. A dark room. A single light hanging over… a table.
Dib gasped from the white gloves he found over his fingers. He glanced down to the lab coat, the pants, the boots - and his eyes trailed over the pink stream that led back to the table. A few drips.
His eyes lifted to find a green body - pink spilling from the tabletop. The chest split open… organs moving and pulsing inside.
Dib stood there in shock, finding his pristine white gloves stained with the foreign blood. His jaw dropped, brow twitching in his traumatic state. "Zim!" he cried out, heading towards his nemesis in vain.
The Irken's head suddenly turned to him, dead, bug eyes watching - pink falling from the corner of his mouth. "What's wrong, Earth-larva? Isn't this what you wanted?" his voice almost soothed.
"No! I mean, I, uh - !" Dib's gaze shook as he looked over the Irken, parts of the body somehow obscure. "This - y-you - !" He shook his head, feeling his eyes start to burn. "NO!" he screeched, grabbing for the hanging organs, immediately trying to shove them back inside the open chest cavity.
Zim grunted from the force, more pink spilling. "Gyuh!" he choked, shutting his eyes tight.
Despite the spluttering fluids, Dib continued to push the tangle of organs back into place, grabbing for the stapler.
"Stop - ! Dib - !" the Irken gagged again, screaming in agony. "YOU ARE HURTING ZIM!"
"SHUT UP!" the investigator countered, proceeding to staple the bloody skin shut. It was messy and nowhere near good enough to keep the skin together to heal properly. "You're not going to die! Do you hear me?! DON'T YOU DARE DIE ON ME!" Losing confidence from his amateur stapling, the child slumped over the body, tears raining down. "Don't die, don't die, don't die," he cried quietly, shaking.
"Dib-human," the Irken's voice rose beside him.
The child lifted his head, stinging eyes glancing towards his nemesis in question.
Zim's decayed skull looked back at him, an eye missing from its socket. "Your father's coming."
Dib gasped awake, frozen to the spot as he stared through the darkness. Slowly, his eyes made out the face beside him. The head, the body, the moonlight reflecting off of the metal surface on the other's back.
Coming closer, the human reached up to turn on the overhead lamp.
Dib squinted from the harsh light, allowing his eyes to slowly adjust. The alien's minions were surrounding him in their slumber, as if protecting. "Zim," he whispered.
He blinked as he waited for some miraculous movement, but alas, no such thing came. The Irken was… dead. Dib had been sleeping with a dead alien. Was that weird?
"Zim," he called again, though the name was simply automatic. Eyes looking over the Irken, his fingers slowly inched.
His gaze lit with amazement as the child poked and prodded, feeling out the cold, smooth skin. His fingers travelled around the socket and up the skull, fingertips reaching the base of something smooth, yet slightly prickly. Velvet. His eyes traced up the black stalk, fingers following.
He rolled the feeler between his digits, peering closely to examine the texture. So, this is what the alien smelled with? Heard with? Somehow showed… emotion with? And who knows what else. The appendages seemed so complex...
Dib blinked, looking back down to the empty gaze. The Irken was still in his sister's clothes..
Should he be taking advantage of this? Learning more about Zim's anatomy, while he had the chance?
The investigator's brow knitted as he debated with himself. The next time he might ever have this chance is when the Irken will be on a lab table. This was important to get out of the way now.
Fingers going for the Irken's hem, he chewed on his lip. This is it, Dib. This was the day that he would find out about the Irken's mysterious reproductive system.
Pausing, the child swallowed hard. Silently, he pulled away momentarily, reaching under his bed. Hand gripping at a strap, he lifted the camera into the light, removing the lens cap.
Well, it would be better to keep this documented, wouldn't it?
Dib flipped the device on, checking the battery before he shifted down the covers. Moving the blanket away, he went for the black and purple dress - something a tad small on Zim's body - ignoring the striped thigh highs. He really couldn't get over how his sister's clothes looked on the Irken. It was so… well, alien.
The child's fingers started to shake as he gripped at the hem, slowly dragging it up, camera ready to snap a picture.
"Nyeh!"
Dib screamed in horror, scrambling away. Staying against the wall of posters and photos, he stared at the disturbance - Zim's minion. And, it did not look very pleased.
Suddenly, the purple thing rammed him, and he defended himself as he was smacked with the balloon body. "Hey! Cut it out!"
"Nyah nyah NYAH!" it argued, squeaking profanities at the child.. in its own way.
"Quit it! Go away!" Dib shooed, glaring as his face flushed. How humiliating. Caught by a balloon.
Minimoose gave the child one more smack before returning to its Master, nestling right where Dib had been trying to get to.
The child scowled from this, eyes narrowing. Stupid balloon animal. He looked to where Gir was sleeping peacefully, snuggled around Zim's Pak - protecting it.
Dib looked over the three before he cautiously reapproached, crawling back into his bed. Watching the purple robot for hostility, he reclaimed his spot beside Zim's body, the dip in the mattress causing the alien to shift.
"Nyeh."
"Yeah, whatever," Dib sneered, placing his camera on the nightstand. Maybe he'll get another chance someday. The investigator pulled the covers up over his body, inhaling the scent of his nemesis.
Watching the Irken for an extended minute, he finally lifted his hand to shut off the light.
"He's still sleeping?"
"Yeah," Dib brushed off the explanation. "Doesn't matter. I just wanted to stay in a call with you while I do this."
"Sure," the altered voice spoke through. "Though, I don't see how I'm going to be of any help. You won't need to focus?"
"I will be! I just want.. company, I guess." Dib shrugged as he zipped up the black suit. "That, and I wanted you to bear witness if anything goes wrong. Like, if I'm crushed to death, or mauled by a stampede, or something."
"Fair enough to me."
"Thanks," Dib packed up, zipping his bag and throwing it over his shoulders. The Irken was secure inside the robot, Minimoose accompanying his Master outside the pod.
"Oooo~!" Gir looked up at the armoured shell of the suit. "DAT'S A GOOD WEENIE RIGHT THERE!"
Dib looked down towards the SIR Unit, briefly lifting a brow as he hooked the gas mask around his head.
"What's wrong with it?" Drayne whispered.
"Beats me," the child shrugged, securing the mask over his face. "Okay! I'm going to try and fit inside of Tak's - uh, my ship with this!" He tested out the robot's movement with a heroic flex.
"A ship?"
"Oh! Yeah, I have my own alien spaceship! It's pretty neat, if I do say so myself," Dib smiled behind the gas mask as he approached the Irken tech, carefully stepping in. "And it looks a ton better in blue."
"You look stupid in that."
Drayne peered through the screen closer, red eyes shifting. "Was that a girl? Who was that?"
"Oh, uhm, that's the last alien's personality. Irkens have a sort of, uhm.. backup, I guess, installed in their ship, or something. She's kind of annoying." Dib sat the robot suit down, a little crammed.
"Me?! You tried to override my programming!"
"Yeah, well," Dib shrugged. "Anyway, ship, we need to head to Zim's house. So, chop chop! Gir, we need to go, come on! Don't mess with my dad's stuff!" he scolded.
Gir turned his head back to the human, pausing in his terrorizing of a caged, oversized ant. "Okay!" he cried, scampering on bow legs before diving in. "We gonna has another sleepover?!"
"Sure," Dib rolled his eyes as the shield enclosed down around them.
"If I could remove your head from your torso, I would do so without hesitation."
"Whatever," the investigator sneered down at the controls. "Just get us there quick, this is important!"
Drayne sat back on the screen, blinking. "She sounded nice."
Dib shrugged as the garage door opened, ship taking off, but not without enabling a cloak. "She used to be, until I found out about the whole… y'know, taking over the world thing. It's kind of sad, really. I actually thought she liked me." Dib rubbed at the back of his head. "But, all she did was use me to get info on Zim, I guess. I probably shouldn't have given her his address."
"Ha! Moronic fleshbag."
"No one asked you!" Dib snapped, then cried out as the speed increased, glued back into the seat.
"AHHH!" Gir screamed chaotically, spit flying. "TELL MA' WIFE I LUV-ED HER!"
"YOU DON'T HAVE A WIFE, AHHH!" Dib suddenly shot forward from the abrupt stop, robot shell slamming into the glass. "Ow! Real mature, ship!"
"It's the least I can do."
Dib sighed before he looked down towards the chaos below, jaw going slack. "Wow… I wish I did that."
"Is it really that bad?" Drayne asked. "And my ears are fine, thanks for asking."
"Oh," Dib blinked. "Sorry, I guess. And, yeah! It's a mess down there! There's a huge smoke cloud, and.. dogs. A lot of dogs."
"In the smoke cloud?"
"Huh? No, I mean, running around down there. And people. Some of them actually look like they're copying the dogs."
"I guess not everyone can handle the excitement."
"Mhm." Dib squinted from a light flying over them - he lifted his eyes to the helicopter, then back down towards the news vans. "Alright, I'm going in. Gir, do you remember what I told you to do?"
"MMM-hm!" Gir gave one, big nod… until he stared. "You gonna pay me in pinecones, mummy?"
Dib scratched at the back of his head. "Uh… I guess. But, we'll worry about that later! Go!" Dib shoved the robot to the back of the ship.
Gir screamed as he was launched down into the crowd, tears flying from the force. "I BELIEVE I CAN - GYUH!" he slammed head-first into a bearded man, bouncing off. Shaking off the shock, he stared at the human he had knocked out cold, then at the faces all turned in his direction. He failed to react for long moments, then squealed as he raced towards the people who screamed and fled in fear.
Gripping onto a woman's dress, he climbed, journeying the mountain of an adult human being. Reaching the top of her curly head, he grabbed the locks, using her hair to steer as let out an unholy screech, "RUNNN! DA PIGGIES ARE COMING, DA PIGGIES ARE COMINNNNG! AHHHH!"
To this, the crowd within hearing distance screamed in horror, running every which way. This madness quickly chained - the entire block soon a disheveled mass of panic. Hotdog stands burst. Dogs ran on top of heads. The road cracked, an unearthly green gas leaked out, man-eating plants screeching as they breached the surface.
Dib stared, eyes wide as he watched the terror ensue. "Wow. That wasn't my plan, exactly, but, oh well!" He flew the ship to a nearby apartment building, landing it on the roof. "Okay, ship, stay hidden. I need to head into Zim's base, so just wait for me. If I don't come back, you know what to do!"
"I really don't."
Dib frowned as the shield lowered. "What do you mean you don't?! I told you with specific detail on what to do!"
"All I heard was, 'blah, blah, tell my family about my worthless demise'."
"Uh, yeah, pretty much." Dib shrugged. "Anyway! Wish me luck!" he jumped out of the ship, running to the edge of the roof.
"I hope your body becomes a human potato chip!"
Dib deadpanned. If only his personality download worked. Maybe he could try it again, without Zim interfering. Wouldn't hurt.
"Are you still there?"
The human blinked from the sudden voice in his ear. "Oh! Sorry. Yeah. Just planning out my course of action." Dib pressed his lips together, eyeing the fire. "Welp, here goes nothing!"
"Okay, try not to die."
"Thanks," the human brushed it off, backing up a bit - and then ran, screaming as he jumped… airborne for seconds - and plummeted down into the flames.
"Dib? Hello?"
He grunted, rubbing at the back of his head. He slowly pushed himself up, sitting there in a daze. "Huh?"
"Earth to Dib? Are you alright?"
The child blinked hard, glancing around. Everywhere he looked, there was a wall of roaring flames. He cringed from a sound that nearly popped his eardrums, covering his head immediately as he felt a wave of heat.
If it weren't for this suit, he would have been dead already.
Dib coughed through his gas mask, pushing himself up. He briefly checked on the encased alien and his purple balloon minion before navigating his way through licks of flames, putting them out with the built-in fire extinguishers. "Sorry, yeah, I'm fine."
"Oh. I thought you died, or something."
"Still alive," Dib reassured. "Uhm, Zim's robot balloon thing! You have to come out of there, okay? I need you to lead the way," he reached back to open the shell, allowing the purple minion out. Shutting it again quickly to protect his nemesis, he quickly sprayed more of the fire that seemed to bite at him. "Hurry!"
"Nyeh!" Minimoose flew off through the wreckage, dodging explosions of sparks and flames. "Nyeh, nyah!"
"Hey! It's not so easy, you know?! You're small!" he put out as much of the fire on the way as he could, following after.
"So, uh, what are you going to do about Zephyr, anyway?"
Dib made a face as he ducked through a damaged wall, some pieces crumbling in his metal hands. "I don't know," the child's mouth grew sour. "Try and exorcise him again? I think I should. I don't really like him being around Zim."
"Aw, come on, you've gotta admit that that's pretty cool. An alien and vampire working together?"
"I guess, but - No! Look, I'm just a little anxious about it. Something about Zephyr really throws me off."
"Maybe because he's dead," Drayne reasoned.
"No, it's not that. I just don't feel right with Zim around him. It's like… I don't know, Zim's easy to take advantage of, y'know? Zephyr's been trying to get into his base, he's been following him, and… well, when Zephyr and I went to go catch Zim, I saw this…really horrible look in his eye. Like he hasn't eaten in years. It just doesn't settle well with me, okay? You know what vampires are known for."
"Well, yeah, but if you really think about it, it's not your problem. Actually, none of this is. You're just making it harder for yourself."
Dib scowled a bit behind the mask, Minimoose in his line of sight. He had to shield himself slightly from more sparks. "Look, I'll do me, you do do, okay?"
"Whatever," Dib could hear the shrug in Drayne's tone. "Just don't blame me when you're caught in the crossfire of all of this."
"Pretty sure I already am," the investigator followed Zim's minion down the dark elevator shaft, being as careful as possible to not jostle the alien's body in the clear cocoon. "I just hope that this balloon thing knows where it's going."
"Nyah!"
"I'm sure it does. It seems pretty close with Zim, anyway," Drayne reasoned. "Why doesn't it speak English, again?"
"I'm not really sure," Dib climbed his way down, looking back up towards where they had come from - fire suddenly rushing down towards him.
Dib opened his mouth to scream, releasing the thick wires. Falling rapidly down inside the narrow enclosure, he smacked into the purple robot, nearly squishing it as they landed at the very bottom, denting in the metal beneath him. Dib forced himself to move, grabbing Minimoose and rolling out of the elevator shaft, fire roaring over them.
"Whoa - what happened?"
Dib crawled to safety, double checking that he didn't flatten Zim's minion. "Ugh - this place is a total mess," he coughed, breathing again through the filter. "It's going to take Zim forever to get it cleaned up."
"Well, that's good for you, right?"
"Yeah, I guess," Dib allowed himself a small smile. He looked back towards his nemesis, scanning for injury. Deeming the Irken okay, besides the whole… dead thing, Dib resumed his mission, releasing the balloon animal. "Is it on this level?"
"Nyeh!"
"Is that a yes?" Dib blinked in question, following after. Not receiving an answer, his expression fell. He couldn't believe he was going through all of this trouble because of that vampire. He never should have invited him over. Nor told him about Zim. That was so stupid on his behalf. How could he have trusted someone - something so easily like that? Well, never again!
"You think it's close?"
"I'm sure it is," Dib trailed after the floating animal. Judging by the look of this lower level, he hoped that whatever charger Minimoose was leading him to was intact. There was not nearly as much fire down here, at all, rather… the air was a lot heavier, obviously laced with toxins.
It was harder to breathe, Dib concluded. His head was a bit light, and he did not dare take his mouth off of the filter. Even talking was an issue.
It was dark here. Zim's minion was leading them down a dark hall - something spooking him about it. He turned on his suit's night vision, peering through the darkness. Okay, so he knew that the Irken could see in the dark, but this? This couldn't be how it looked. There must have been a power outage, of some sort. As if it couldn't get any worse.
"Nyeh!"
Dib's eyes popped open in surprise as the robot disappeared into a room at the far end. He caught up to peer in, jaw dropping. "Wow…"
"What? What do you see?"
"Talk later," he abruptly ended the call. He didn't have a clear picture, but from what he could tell, the room was massive - wires absolutely everywhere. There was some Irken written on the wall to his right, but he couldn't decipher it. He needed Tak's - uh, his ship for that, still. But, one day he'll be able to crack it on his own! One day…
"Nyah!" Minimoose flew here and there, squeaking in disturbance. It wailed, flew in Dib's face, then zipped out into the hall again.
The child furrowed his brow from the behaviour, but even if he didn't understand the thing's squeaks, he sort of got it. The base's power was down. They needed to turn it back on for Zim to charge.
He ran after the alien minion, stumbling a bit from his lightheadedness. Using the wall for support, he breathed hard into the gas mask, panting. Sweat dripped down his temple.
Minimoose raced back to push, fitting himself under the robotic arm for support. "Nyah!"
Dib's brow furrowed from the act, gaping slightly. Was this thing trying to help him keep going? Well, of course it was - he was helping to save its Master. Still, it was kind of sweet. And, he never did get along very well with it. If anything, it seemed to be a little scared of him. Regardless, it was kind of nice having someone motivate him like this.
After a moment, he found the strength to carry on, nodding towards the minion in a silent thanks.
Seeing Dib stand, the robot led again, squeaking all the way down the hall in excitement. The sounds brought a slight smile to Dib's face, the child trailing after. Okay, maybe he would admit that Zim's minion was cute out loud. Maybe. If he could talk, or even breathe for that matter.
The child jerked from an explosion from somewhere up above - and an ominous wailing of metal. He cringed, then began to run. This place didn't sound like it would be held together for much longer. He sprinted, breathing hard behind the gas mask, sweat clinging everywhere. He followed the purple minion straight into another passage of sorts, climbing down within the tight, dark space.
This was just insane.. so dangerous. Why did he do all of this?
Why did he push himself like this? Why was he deep down in a place that threatened to collapse? Why was he risking himself for an alien jerk? Did he really think that this was a good idea, by any means?
It's not like Zim would thank him. He wouldn't call a truce, he wouldn't magically give up, and he certainly wasn't going to turn good. As soon as he was alive and well, the alien was going to spring into action, terrorize the streets once more, and proceed to make Dib's life a living hell, that ungrateful bug.
Dib chewed on his lip as these countering thoughts delayed his efforts, descending slower and slower. Why SHOULD he save the one thing that kept him from having a normal life? What would he gain from any of this?!
"Nyeh, nyeh!" the minion called from below.
The investigator blinked out of his thoughts to glance down. The ladder he held had waves of heat coming off of it. He paused there, lungs extremely deprived. His brain was floating. He might just fall the rest of the way, or vomit, or..
"Nyeh!"
Dib snapped awake, desperately clasping at the ladder again. He grunted, forcing himself to climb down again. He really didn't understand why he put himself through this. Zim would never do this for him. Never, ever. The self-centered jerk would just laugh at off and go about his day.
And then fall into a depression. Spend his days on the sofa, mindlessly watching soap operas. Losing all motivation. Without him, Zim would…
Dib hissed to himself, shaking his head. No more tears. He didn't care if Drayne questioned him. He didn't care if a vampire watched them. He didn't care if his sister shunned him. He didn't CARE that his life would be an endless loop of Zim, Zim, ZIM!
He was going to SAVE his nemesis, and that was FINAL!
The investigator dropped down the rest of the way, grunting as he touched metal ground. He wiped at the sweat that matted the back of his hair to his head, breaths dangerously scarce. He exited the small passage into a room that nearly set his lungs on fire - it was nearly impossible to breathe here. Pressing on, he conjured his remaining willpower to track the purple minion, eyes stinging from heat.
There was no mistake. This was Zim's power core. A massive dome took up most of the room - idle, yet the heat still came off as a powerful furnace. He clenched his teeth, making his way towards the lever that Minimoose was squeaking about. Gripping the mechanic, he threw it down with a hiss.
Suddenly, the room lit with a roar - electric current and bright, burning light that made Dib shield his gaze. His breath expelled, struggling to track where the purple swatch had gone - however, he raced for the passageway once again, pushing himself to climb. His oxygen was running so low, he didn't even know how he was functioning at this point. There was hardly anything in the air to even filter, anymore!
But he went on, pulling himself up grip by grip. He finally managed to reach the top, metal hand planting down - and then slipping.
He cried out as he descended again, hand reaching out to snag the ladder. He made a sound, eyes clenching tight from the strain. He looked back up to the opening. His head was too light. His arms were burning. His body was sweating to death, his lungs unable to feed him anymore oxygen…
He glanced down, darkness surrounding his vision - all he could see was green skin, the alien's dead gaze seeming to watch him above. Wordlessly begging for a chance, for another life… and that's all that Dib needed.
He growled what miniscule amount of air that he had left, reaching up to grip the ladder with his other fist. He then began to climb, giving it his all. Tears clouded his vision, and he could have sworn he heard an angelic choir in the back of his head from reaching the top yet again, awareness flickering repeatedly.
"Nyah!" A purple nub reached out, and Dib took a significant moment to register it. Though the minion could not provide real support at his size, the human grabbed the offered help, but pulled himself up. He finally took off with a desperate, last burst of energy - sheer will driving him. He stumbled straight into the room of wires, gasping for breath that he knew he could not have. Too much smoke. Too hot.
He swallowed, body quivering as he picked himself up, the purple moose flying around his head. He crawled over to the tangle of buzzing wires, limbs shaking.
He reached back to open the protective pod, grabbing the alien's corpse and opening the robotic suit around them.
The child reached out, crying out in dismay from nearly dropping the Irken, holding tight - and Minimoose was the last lift that the body needed to connect.
Dib collapsed back into the robotic suit, vision going in and out.
"Nyeh! Nyah, nyeh, nyeh!"
The human watched as his nemesis's eyes slipped shut on their own, wires glowing and humming in a pulse, Pak brought back to life. Dib took in the alien sight until he could no longer, eyes fluttering… lids shutting.
He gasped, jerking in the covers. He sat up, staring at the door to his bedroom. Turning his overhead lamp on. Was it a dream? His eyes darted around before he frantically searched his bed for the Irken's corpse. Gir was right there! Where was his Master?! "Zim?!" he cried.
Suddenly, he saw his chair turn on its own. He shrieked and jolted away, though slowly realized that someone was occupying said seat. His jaw dropped, and he blinked his blurry gaze hard.
The alien studied in return, magenta gaze shifting. He slowly pet the purple moose within his lap.
Dib only stared, wondering if this was yet another dream - however, as he grabbed for his glasses on the nightstand and replaced them on the bridge of his nose, something told him that the Irken very much was alive and real. That means… Dib succeeded! How… how was he not dead from oxygen deprivation? How did he get back here safely? How was he in his bed?
His eyes examined the alien in his chair that slightly swiveled. "Did… did you just save me?"
"No," the Invader snapped, though spoke nothing further. He broke their eye contact to glance down towards his sleeping minion, caressing it with almost care. "Yes," he countered. "And…" He lifted his gaze to lock eyes again, but he could not retain it. "Zim thanks you for not… turning us in to your law enforcement agency, when you had the chance."
Dib only sat there, jaw slack. Did he hear him right? Did Zim just thank him? Did he just save his worst enemy?! Did Zim just save him?!
This was insane. No, no, no. Irkens were brutal, ruthless weapons of destruction. No room for mercy. This didn't make any sense! Why didn't Zim kill him when he had the chance?!
The Irken furrowed his brow from the look of pure confusion painting his rival's face. His mouth twisted, and he cast his eyes away, glaring as his face began to burn.
Blinking out of it, but realizing the Irken's behaviour, and the purple returning to his green skin, Dib nearly felt his heart stop. Oh, no.
The air was heavy with awkward silence, and Dib was the first to open his mouth. "Thanks for saving me too, I guess," he managed. Guh! That sounded stupid! "I mean, you didn't have to." No, that made it sound worse!
"Silence," the Irken spoke, without much fervour. The command sounded alien without the yell accompanying it. "Zim only saved you because I did not wish to come across your rotted body months later," he stuck his tongue out. "I wish to make that very clear, Dib-human. It was not, by any means, returning a favour. Understand?"
"Yeah," Dib immediately agreed, eyes watching the alien's movements. Before he could open his mouth again, the Irken stopped him with a raised hand.
"The fires were put out, and the attention has dispersed," he informed. "Zim will stay here for just one more night. My base needs massive repairs, but… my minions requested to join you in your… sleeping ritual, one last time."
Dib stared at him, then shook his head. "You think I trust you enough to - ?!"
"Enough!" the alien snapped. "I have had enough, smelly human! Defy Zim later!" He rubbed at his lids, voice growing quiet. "I am tired," he further explained.
Dib watched as his nemesis curled up on his chair, blinking. So, Irkens did sleep?
Yet, the alien was only sitting there, lids open as his gaze seemed to take in the floor, eyes shifting.
"Okay," Dib observed carefully before he finally lowered his body back down, glasses swiped off. "But if I wake up without a spleen, I'm blaming you." He huddled back under the covers, peeking out at his nemesis.
No further words were exchanged. Despite his claim, the Irken did not seem to shut his eyes or do anything that signaled he was going to sleep - however, the human's eyes were shutting. Somehow, the alien's presence wasn't unwelcome. If he were smart, however, he wouldn't be trusting the Irken with his computer and files lying around. But, the alien didn't really seem to be interested in getting into any more trouble for tonight…
On that note, the child's lids gave in, and he breathed deeply. It kind of felt nice to have someone there, alert, as he slept. Even though this was Zim he was talking about. Still, it was comforting, on some weird level that he couldn't explain.
He furrowed his brow as he heard his chair squeak, and a gentle whish of air wafted his face. His bed gently dipped behind him, and the human peered back towards the Irken. He vaguely blinked, foggy mind not processing all the way through - and he shifted to press his back against the Pak, eyes shutting once again.
Suddenly, there was a gentle bang of a door from downstairs. There was grumbling, and keys fumbling. He thought nothing of it as footsteps climbed the steps, a door creaked open down the hall…
"DIB!" Gaz roared from her room.
The child's eyes snapped open, heart leaping. Quickly, he shot out of bed, running to silently lock his door, and activating the security system. He tiptoed back to his bed, climbing the short ladder and settling back down, heart hammering. After narrowly escaping death, the child was about to die by his sister's hands, instead. What a day to look forward to tomorrow.
He threw the covers back over him, ignoring the quiet, wicked giggles of his nemesis as the child bundled up back into the warmth. His chest pressed into the metal Pak, and he curled up, swallowing as his inevitable beating haunted him. His hand reached up towards the light.
The vampire watched from across the street as the window grew dark, burning gaze blinking. His head tilted as the Membrane household fell silent.
What to do, what to do… The child's mind should be erased. There was nothing to question. He's seen me at a point of utmost vulnerability… he knew about my charging cell, my translator… He was getting more and more dangerous, the more he learned, but… the subject of mind wiping was somehow not as appealing as it should have been.
Invader ZIM signing off.
