Chapter 11: Your Flaws are Perfect.
Dib was ecstatic! His plan was absolutely foolproof!
"Gaz come with me, we have to get home right now!"
Dib grabbed the doorknob behind him and ducked his head into the office.
"Hey Elizabeth, toss me the keys to the car Dad and I came here in."
Elizabeth opened the top drawer of her desk, pulled out a set of car keys, and tossed them to Dib.
"Here you go! Keys to car five."
"Thanks Liz, I'll be back soon!"
Dib grabbed Gaz's hand and started pulling her down the hall.
"Dib, where are we going?"
"The car garage! We've got to get home and back fast!"
"That's impossible! All the cars and limos are blocking the whole street!"
"Well then we'll have to take the back way!"
"Dib you're sixteen, you don't have a license!"
"I have a learner's permit and this is just too damn important to wait on a taxi!"
When they made it to the garage they ran over to car number five and got in. Dib proceeded to take them onto the backstreets that would get them home.
"Okay Dib, spill it. What's the plan?"
"You just said yourself that Zim is the Universe's biggest screw up right?"
"Yeah."
"Well, you were absolutely right! Zim is the Universe's biggest screw up. The only reason he's here is because he was banished for being a defect! So, all we have to do is go get my research on the average Irken and compare it to Zim in front of the leaders!"
"We point out everything that's wrong with him so that they won't take him seriously! That's genius!"
"I know, but the only thing I'm worried about is time. We had an hour and forty minutes when we left. The back roads take about twenty-five minutes each way, it'll take about ten minutes to get my research together, and it'll take at least twenty minutes to find Zim and get information from him. If my calculations are correct that leaves us with twenty minutes to put a presentation together."
"That should be enough time. There's a screen in the meeting room right?"
"Right."
"Then just get your laptop from your room and we'll put together a slideshow."
"Great idea Gaz."
"I know."
When Dib pulled up to the house he got Gaz's keys and ran for it. He got in and bounded up to his bedroom. In his room he grabbed his laptop and threw it on the bed. He then proceeded to pull shoebox after shoebox of information and research out of his closet and toss them by his laptop. Once all of his research was gathered up he put all the boxes and his laptop in a big black garbage bag and hauled it downstairs and out the door. He locked the door, grabbed the keys, put the bag in the backseat of the car then got in.
"Are you sure that's all of it Dib?"
"Totally sure."
"Did you get your laptop?"
"Yep it's in the bag."
"Great let's go!"
Dib got back on the road and drove as fast as the speed limit would allow.
"Dib?"
"Yeah Gaz."
"How do you know all your information is correct?"
"Well I don't, but we can check all of the facts with Zim when we get back. If we can, we'll put the presentation together with him."
"Alright then."
When they got back to Membrane Labs Dib grabbed the bag and he and Gaz immediately ran to look for their dad. They found him pacing back and forth a bit nervously in the corridor outside the meeting room.
"Ah Dib," he started, "You might want to start that plan sooner. The leaders are in there discussing war plans and- oh Gazlene! I'd forgotten about you, I'm so sorry! How did you get here?"
"Long story short, I called a cab. I'm helping Dib now."
"Oh okay, and Dib like I said you'll have to be very convincing."
"Already working on it Dad," Dib said, "but we need to know where you're keeping Zim."
"He's in the holding cell in the specimen examination room."
"Okay thanks, bye!"
Dib and Gaz took off in the direction of the specimen exam room. When they came to the entrance Gaz opened the door just a crack and peered inside. Seeing no one, she and Dib slipped in and locked the door behind them. The exam room was mostly grey. There was a large stainless steel examination table in the middle of the room. In the back corner laid several sterilization chests for dissection instruments. Toward the front of the room, a large switch board rested against the front of a very large, surprisingly well lit, plexi-glass chamber; inside which Zim sat against the back wall hugging his knees to his chest, naked, crying, and scared.
"ZIM!" Dib shouted as he dropped the bag and ran over to the switch board.
"Zim!" he yelled again, but the alien still didn't look up.
Dib turned to Gaz, "Can he hear me?" he asked her.
"NO STUPID! You have to turn on the microphone!"
Gaz pushed Dib away from the controls, flicked the mic switch, and grabbed the mouth piece.
"Hey Bug Eyes, over here!" Gaz said playfully. Zim looked up and his face contorted into a massive grin when he saw Gaz and Dib smiling in at him.