Meep! Only seven more reviews until I reach a grand! Ceinto! 100! That's a big number! I feel loved! ;u; Thank you all!

I got so many reviews for that last chapter, that I can hardly remember any in particular to respond to! I'd like to thank you all for the suggestions and support, and especially thank 'anonymous' for writing that huge thingy. X3 I love long pieces of thought like that. I love ALL your feedback, it helps me know what you like and don't to get better at writing!

Anyway, I'm sorry for the slow updates. School is tough this year, but I'll do what I can! FOR NARNIA! Or whatever. Enjoy another chapter and the first bit of romance there's been in a while~!

And have a chibi Dib to play with! *tosses out traumatized Dib chibi*

Dib: ._.'

:\\\:

Everything was blurred, sore. He couldn't feel much besides weakness. He wasn't awake enough to care.

Where was he? How did he get here? What had he been doing again?

It took a couple minutes before his brain grew receptive to the swarm of memories buzzing frantically around it.

Dib. DIB! Nightmares... Had to FIND DIB.

He'd been caught. What? Where?

A red eye cracked open slowly, intensifying a headache for the extra-terrestrial, and revealing only spinning, dark, blurred surroundings.

He was injured; ankle, leg, shoulder, and the back of his head- oh! Oh his ankle! His shoulder! Even Zim's ego couldn't hold back his groan as he rolled onto his back, so the effected area didn't press so hard into the cold, solid floor. Well, at least he was healing quickly, but his pak's pain-killers wearing off like that wasn't a nice thing to wake up to.

The invader was awake enough to use his memories and what he'd seen so far to guess he was probably locked up in some cell. Well at least he had a while to rest and heal. But WHERE WAS HE? More importantly, where was Dib in relation to him? Probably far away if he had to guess. Shit. He'd probably lost the blood trail, which was his only lead! Who knew where he was now, lost in some dungeon in the depths of the earth. Stupid inconveniences. He had no time for this. He HAD TO SAVE HIS DIB-LET!

Poor Dib could be anywhere by now. He could even be dead.

No! NO he couldn't be! Zim could not fail! Zim came to save him! Dib-thing...

The invader whimpered, trying to stretch out a little. He had to get up. He had to get moving. There was no two ways about it.

That scent...

One sleek black antenna twitched and Zim was suddenly wide awake, his squiddily spooch having just jumped up into his throat.

There it was. Thick, strong, so, so, so, thrillingly, terribly close. Dib's scent.

At last! At last! What was happening!? This couldn't be possible! Had they actually brought him right to his human!?

Zim blinked his eyes into focus, his cardiac muscle throbbing, beating like a humming bird's wings with a hard, furious hope.

What was going on?

Pushing his chest up off the floor, turning his head around dazedly in an attempt to make something out besides the blurred indication of concrete walls in the darkness, Zim found himself squinting at a huge pine-cone shape in the corner.

He frowned, managing to collect himself, and dragged his body into a sitting position, taking a deep breath or two until the room had mostly stopped spinning, and then he stood.

The rounded pod thing was only a few paces away, but Zim's dignity wouldn't allow him to crawl. He limped over, wincing with heavy pain in his shoulder and leg.

The closer he got, the more Dib's scent increased.

He was right there.

"D-Dib human?" Zim's voice was ringing with nervous relief.

The rounded object was big enough to contain a curled up form, the invader was sure. Dib had to be in there.

Was it a trap? This couldn't be right! Why? How had...

The irken knelt down beside the object to prod at it. The shell was hard as rock. It didn't move or make noise.

"D-Dib?" Zim swallowed thickly. "Are you there?"

He wasn't getting any response to his inquiries.

"Dib? Are you there?"

He hated his voice for sounding so weak.

Zim jolted as he got a good sniff through his antenna, and realized that the pod smelled of more then Dib's scent. To break it down, it smelled like a living plant, digestive acids, and general death. He'd heard of things like this. He felt like he was going to vomit as the meaning and other ideas came into his head.

Venus fly catchers, pitcher plants, meat eating flora that trapped prey inside and dissolved them.

Dib was in there. At least it smelled of him.

Dib HAD been in there.

NoNoNoNoNOOOO!

"DIB HUMAAAAN!"

Oh please no...

That couldn't have happened. It just couldn't have!

In a flurry of movement, Zim flung himself on the pod, claws slipping against the outside stone-texture. He grabbed at the top, where he felt an indentation, like the top and center of an orange where all the pieces joined together. He gritted his teeth, he wasn't giving up. Maybe he could pull it apart there. This wasn't over. He wouldn't let it be.

"Dib ANSWER MEEEE!"

Zim pulled and tugged, nearly screaming, only to slip to the side as his leg began to give out.

Throbbing from being stood on too long, the irken's ankle shot pain up his whole limb, and Zim's knees buckled, body collapsing back down to fall on his butt.

Frantic with fear, frustration, and anguish, the irken slammed his fists against the floor, screaming, venting before he could manage to climb up again.

He needed to calm down. The sleeping drugs had to have caused this breakdown. He needed to think. This might not be over yet. He didn't know it was. He needed to calm down.

Zim got up again, keeping weight off the injured leg, and pulled with all his might at the indent at the top and the orange-slice creases. He couldn't get his claws deep enough into the cracks to pull. The pod wasn't giving a response.

Zim pulled, scratched, punched in desperation, gripping a crack and pulling with a shout of effort, but almost tripped back again, now panting with exertion.

He gritted his teeth as he snarled, eyes stinging with a foreign sensation of exhausted helplessness. This just wasn't working.

What else could he try? Think! He'd try the spider legs!

He needed to hurry. If Dib wasn't dead he could be dying.

With a grunt he adjusted his stance, favoring one leg due to considerable pain. The spider legs zipped out, then stabbed down hard into the indent in the top of the pod, at last piercing in.

Zim gasped when he heard a thick crunch, and stopped their decent. If they went too deep they'd spear his human.

At the moment though, his body shook with insane, relieved laughter.

He began pulling the metal limbs apart from each other, having to shut his eyes tight from the effort. His leg throbbed and trembled.

He heard the almost fleshy tearing and it made his spooch turn, but he was making progress.

Dib was there! He had to be.

'Please let him be alive...

:\\\:

...

That was strange.

He thought he heard something.

CRUNCH

Startled, he jumped with a shaky little squeaky noise, unable to move in the tiny space, hands trembling, eyes wide. There was a hole opening in the ceiling of his cramped prison! He couldn't see in the darkness, but he could feel it. He could get out! He HAD TO GET OUT NOW.

Viciously shaking, from weakness, fear, and insanity, the human jerked up and pulled himself up over the rim with a little whimper at the effort. He... he couldn't make it! He didn't have the strength. He was going to fall back in! He was slipping...

"DIB-LING!" The high-pitched, emotionally overflowing shriek startled the boy so badly he nearly let go and fell back into the pod. The next thing he knew, something strong and forceful had grabbed one of his arms and the front of his shirt, and tugged hard. With a frightened scream Dib fell forward into some sort of warm body on the floor. He instinctively tried to kick away, whimpering, without a clue of what the heck was going on. He couldn't see a thing. It was too dark. Something was holding him still, holding him against itself. He had to get away!

Getawaygetawaygetaway! Leavemealone!

However his captor didn't have the slightest intension of letting Dib go.

Somehow Zim couldn't even find words to say to the earthling. He was shaking, laughing, with such shockwaves of relief, holding Dib down against him in a fierce hug. Rolling onto his side, he pressed his face forward to nuzzle the back of Dib's neck, and the boy shouted something unintelligible and struggled harder, shoulders hunching, thoroughly traumatized, trying to protect his vulnerable, vital throat, from his 'attacker'.

Zim just laughed, almost weakly.

"Dib-human it's me! I am Zim! Zim has found you!"

The irken held Dib tighter and rubbed his body against the other's, marking him with his scent, purring uncontrollably, pressing his face into the male's soft head fur, antenna twitching down to smell it. Finally! Mission complete! Now he just needed to find the way out.

He had his Dib. Dib was safe. Everything was okay and under his control now.

He'd heal up, and then they'd find a way to leave.

The earthling slowly stopped struggling. He wasn't under immediate attack, wasn't being eaten alive, and something about that voice... He took it as a good sign.

The creature was nuzzling him.

Had he found a friend? His heart beat heavier, pleadingly, at the idea.

It certainly felt nice to be hugged and cuddled. The form holding him was so nice and warm. And it was purring, like a kitten. Kittens were nice.

Didn't it say it's name was Zim?

...

He KNEW it!

He KNEW that thing he'd met before wasn't Zim! It reminded him of the name Zim, but it wasn't the real Zim. So was this the real Zim? He thought so. He only had a faint idea of what a 'Zim' was, or what he remembered that name from, but it seemed good. Zim was something good.

"Dib-let, are you alright?"

Weakly, Zim picked himself up to lean over the earthling and try to look at his face as they lay on their sides on the floor still.

Dib was breathing heavily, eyes wide, still startled, nervous, and confused, but cautiously warming up to the irken.

The red eyes glowed and offered a bit of wonderful light. Dib could see Zim's face. It wasn't grotesque and horrific like all the other creatures. It was smooth and natural and expressive and pretty, and Dib liked it immediately. Zim felt unspeakably better when Dib gave a weak smile and inquisitively murmured his name. "Zim?"

The irken smiled right back, shakily laughing some more, and leaned in to lick the boy's cheek affectionately, and nuzzle the side of his warm neck, making Dib 'eep!' and hunch his shoulders, but smile a little more.

"You'll be okay." He murmured, lips against the warm skin, feeling the pulse beneath. "We're going to get out of here... Zim just needs a few more minutes to heal."

Heal? Zim was hurt?

Dib turned to look at him with worry in his golden-amber eyes, and Zim waved it off to reassure him.

"Nothing major, really, I am Zim, nothing can hurt me... At least not a lot. NOTHIIIING!"

Dib almost laughed. This was definitely the Zim he faintly remembered; and loved.

Rolling over, the boy got his arms around the alien's waist and Zim grinned, laying back so his human could rest his bruised, aching, -oversized- head, on his chest, hugging him tight, so eager to trust the alien, even if he didn't remember him.

Dib sighed, pleased, relaxing for the first time in what felt like way too long. He had a friend. There was someone here who cared about him it would seem. He might actually be okay!

Zim's breathing, and foreign but repetitive pulse-beat, were lulling beyond belief. Normal, natural- in their own strange way, the exposure to something so sane and orderly made him feel stronger and more awake, but at the same time, sleepy. He didn't want to get up. He wanted to stay as close to Zim as he could. He pressed against the irken.

Happy with Dib's compliance, Zim curled around him a little, intertwining their legs, purring louder as the boy moved to rest his head in the side of Zim's neck and his shoulder. Both held onto the other tightly, desperately not wanting them to go away after they'd finally found them.

"We'll be out of here soon. Just rest a little."

"Mm'kay."

Dib could talk a little it would seem. Good. He wasn't too far horribly gone.

Zim let out a long, satisfied breath, then finally began glancing around to get his bearings.

They were in a stone cell, probably underground. Zim couldn't tell how DEEP underground though.

Grey stone walls, ceiling, and floor, metal bars making up one wall and looking out into a hallway of other cells.

Zim couldn't see a guard, and nothing had responded to his reunion with Dib yet. How odd. He'd been under the impression that he and Dib were some sort of world-priority-threat-thing. Now they were just sitting together in an ordinary cell.

Who the heck ran this place? They weren't very organized, whoever they were. Zim would file a complaint full of colorful Zim-language and curses, if this wasn't working in his favor.

:\\\:

"WWWHHAAAT?"

"A-apologies my lord-"

"YOU LOST THEM?! HOW COULD YOU LOSE THEM?!"

"There's- we were attacked, there's something else, I-I haven't seen before, another intruder-"

"LIES! I WILL HAVE NO MORE OF YOUR FILTHY, INSUFFICIENT LIES!"

With a sickening whip-snap, cracking, tearing, and a cut-short scream, Arkersix was left dead, and in multiple pieces, dark blood splattered everywhere, in an instant, completely uncaring and unnecessary death.

Merkig cowered back, tentacles twitching nervously as the equine was shredded by his master. He waited until the overlord had finished, and his fury had hopefully been taken down a few notches, before speaking up.

"My men did what they could, all is not lost."

Slowly, the towering, bony form turned and fixed the hagraven with a glare of pure, red, hell-fire.

"Where. Are. They? BOTH of them?"

"Stuffed into one of the tunnel dungeons. Arkersix was not lying when he mentioned an attack. Some... THING, came out of no-where, and charged in. The goblins threw the pod with the power source, and the unconscious intruder, into a cell to engage the attacker but it killed everyone who didn't flee. It's small but feisty."

The overlord ground his teeth and fisted his talons, eyes glowing madly, growling low and loud in his throat.

"They're together?! IN A FLIMSY TUNNEL CELL?! OUR POWER SOURCE AND THE CREATURE THAT SEVERED OFF MY ARM UPON ARRIVAL?! It's barely even grown back even now! NO ONE has ever-" He interrupted himself with a snarl of beastly frustration.

"We're going down there, now."

"Y-You, my lord?"

"Yes, and you're coming with me! Now."

"Eh, y-yes your majesty."

:\\\:

Well, altogether, this place was rather calm and peaceful for the moment. Zim sighed, running his finger's through the earthling's hair, Dib's head resting on his chest. Just another minute or two, and his leg would be right as rain, but for now, he was quite relaxed, even though he couldn't lay completely on his back due to his pak jutting out against the stone floor.

Dib shifted occasionally, hugging Zim tighter or pressing closer, or nuzzling against him, but that was it.

Smirking with a sudden impulse, Zim moved to rub his hands up and down the earthling's sides. Dib shivered and turned to look up at Zim, with an interesting sort of smile, and his face going slightly red.

Ahh yes, it was almost as though he remembered this. Zim did things like this to him on a rare occasion. It was very nice he thought.

Dib turned away to press his face into the alien's chest with a bashful squeak as the alien's hands began to sneak up inside his shirt. Taking off his gloves, Zim only grinned wider, palming up the soft, warm skin of the human laying on top of him. A low, rumbling purr came from the irken's throat as he rolled onto his side, hugging Dib to himself more firmly and massaging his chest with his other hand. Something instinctive fluttered with excitement when Zim heard Dib's breathing get heavier and felt his pulse speed up, hands clutching the red uniform.

Quickly pushing Dib onto his back, Zim loomed over him, hands shoved up his shirt, diving in to nuzzle and lick at his neck before the boy could respond, a predatorial, possessive pleasure surging through his veins, growling purr increasing with volume.

The human squeaked and jolted, arching his back with a whimpering noise at the sudden sensations of hot wet tongue on his neck and the three digit hands brushing every sensitive nerve in his torso. Without thinking he reached his hands up to grip Zim's shoulders and try to pull him closer, heart thudding almost painfully hard and fast. Dib gave a long moan and tipped his head back as Zim pressed him down harder and moved to nip and suck at his jaw line, rubbing against him firmer, dominating.

Ohhhh yes. Zim liked this. His eyes nearly rolled back in his head, just wanting to force more sweet, submissive reactions out of his little Dib-let.

"Mmmh, Z-Zim~!"

Yeah, reactions like that. The irken grinned deviously.

Before Zim could think to do any more, his antenna caught a scent that made him freeze. Familiar, irken, blood, dark, threatening, something was just... Not right. Something was wrong with that scent.

Dib whined at the sudden loss of pleasing sensations and body heat as Zim sat up, straddling his waist, and looked around in the blackness, suddenly snarling out a curse. Something was coming.

The boy felt a sense of desperation when the alien suddenly stood up and moved away from him. Hurriedly scrambling up to his feet, Dib reached out with a little whimper, grabbing Zim's arm before he could disappear into the darkness.

"W-Wait! Where are you going?"

"We must get out of here, now." The irken insisted, before turning to the bars with a frown. The spider legs shot out again, and Dib gasped at the sight, flinching back and squeezing Zim's arm tighter, shoulders hunching.

The irken just smirked with strange fondness at how wide the boy's eyes could get.

The bars were too slim and hard to stab at. They didn't have enough time for that. Well, he was glad he saved his lasers until now. He was probably about to use up all their power though.

Setting the tips of the metal appendages against the lock holding the door closed, Zim turned them on. Their lights blared strong, buzzing, metal hissed as it melted under the concentrated beams, the scent of vaporized steel and rust was choking and Dib pulled the collar of his shirt up over his mouth and nose, managing to think that he shouldn't breath it in. Zim just smiled his killer's smile, eyes a glowing blaze.

They were escaping. Something was coming. They'd probably be chased, but nothing could stop him. Now things got interesting.

:\\\:

The cell was empty.

Several small minion nightmare-creatures lay dead and bleeding like butchered animals, and Merkig had wisely ran off to hide himself.

The overlord visibly shook, taking heaving breaths of pure fury. His red eyes lit up the tunnel for a hundred feet, burning with intensity.

Throwing his head back, the beast gave a piercing screech that would rival that of a dying soul, before turning, sniffing out a trail.

Without one word to anyone, the most powerful ruler of the nightmare world shot off running on all four long, clawed, skeletal legs. He would take care of this himself.