Ringing woke him early that morning and he untangled himself from the bedsheets to run for the phone, grabbing it off the counter and answering in a sleepy haze.
"Turn on the news."
"Huh?"
"It's Steven. Turn on your news."
Dib carried the phone to the living room and turned his TV on, flicking channels until he found a station.
'NASA officials confirm the unidentified object is on a direct course for Earth but they decline to say what it is at this point'
Dib turned it off as the reporter went on to say that official action was being taken to deter the 'object' from entering the Earth's atmosphere.
"They have no idea what's coming," Steven said. They would find out soon enough. Dib hung up and got dressed quickly, dumping food into Ellie's bowl before pulling his coat on and heading out the door. He called Steven back once he was on the road.
"Where would something large enough to carry an alien army land?" he asked, driving as fast as he dared. He briefly wondered if he should call out of work for the next day, Monday. Would they even be here still tomorrow? Did it matter?
"An airport? Helicopter pad?"
"No, no, bigger than that."
"Maybe a field? How do we know they're even coming here? Earth is huge, man."
"I think they will. He's here." Dib passed a slow-moving semi on the highway, thankful for the sparse Sunday-morning traffic.
"There's a big state park near Middletown. Wide open space. It's about three hours from here."
"You think that's our best bet?"
"It's worth a shot. We can't do nothing."
"Alright, I'll be there shortly." He hung up and tossed his phone on the passenger seat. Dib turned the radio on.
'NASA has confirmed over the last hour that the object has stopped outside our atmosphere somewhere over the east coast and appears to be.. hovering, yes hovering in space'
He turned the volume up.
'Hovering? Do you think we have some space visitors, Sharon?' the local reporter chuckled.
'Nothing has been confirmed' Sharon replied seriously. 'We are asking that no one panic and keep tuned to your local news station for updates.'
'Okay.. Well that was Sharon Venible from NASA headquarters in D.C. We'll keep you updated on-'
Dib turned the radio off and leaned forward to look out the windshield, glancing at the clear blue sky as long as he dared while driving. Hovering. He leaned back and sped up.
"What's the plan?" Steven asked, buckling himself in as Dib pulled away from his house.
"Try to meet them when they land, I guess."
"And then?"
"I don't know."
"Maybe we should try to find him first?"
"I think he'll be there," Dib tried to relax his white-knuckle grip on the wheel to no avail.
"Right." They didn't say much else for the remainder of the ride, each taking turns glancing out the window throughout the drive. They made good time on the highway and Dib pulled over on the Middletown exit to look up directions to the park. Steven turned on the radio.
'-evacuation of the city is in progress. Officials are asking residents to be as calm and orderly as possible and use routes 78 and 278. Please do not stop to collect any personal belongings or pets.'
Dib looked up quickly, almost dropping his phone. "What?"
"Shh," Steve waved a hand and turned it up.
'Again, a full evacuation is in effect for much of lower New York City and Manhattan as multiple unidentified aircraft are currently entering the area. A severe terrorist alert is in effect. Please tune to your local station for specifics.'
Dib circled back onto the highway heading East, passing a fast food sign and thinking how much he'd love to stop for breakfast. Or just stop and pretend they weren't driving towards an alien invasion.
The radio fizzled and died out to static as they drove and Dib turned it off.
"Look," Steven said as they drew nearer to the city. The two lanes heading in the other direction were rapidly becoming more dense until traffic appeared at a standstill.
"Fuck," Dib breathed, changing lanes to pass another semi that had slowed almost to a stop, likely questioning his delivery route by now. He glanced over the median again to see vehicles being abandoned, people fleeing on foot.
"Watch out!" Steven grabbed the wheel and Dib snapped back in time to swerve, avoiding an on-coming car. He quickly pulled onto the shoulder and both men stared at the vehicles driving in their direction, going the wrong way on this side of the highway.
"I think we should hoof it." Steven said, checking the weapon at his side before zipping his coat up. Dib agreed and both got out, hopping over the guard rail at the side of the road and hurrying towards the city, dodging people who had just the opposite in mind as they fled.
They passed a destroyed police barrier that had been set in hops of deterring anyone from driving into the city. No problems there.
"Where are we?" Dib asked, stopping to breathe as he looked around the chaos once they were inside the city. An alien craft sailed overhead, quickly followed by another. He stared up at them until they disappeared from sight, mouth open.
"There," Steve pointed and jogged across the street to look at a map kiosk. Dib glanced left and right, then crossed as well, not necessarily wanting to be run down.
"Look, here," Steve pointed at the red dot indicating where they were. He glanced the map over and moved his finger.
"Central Park," Dib said, stepping a little closer as someone brushed past them, arms loaded with bags of belongings. "Maybe they landed there?"
Steven glanced at him. "It has wide open space." He traced the map with a finger and then tapped. "We can take 72nd all the way, that's the next street over."
Dib nodded and they started moving quickly. He jumped at the sound of glass breaking and looked up to see a few people swarming an electronics store, grabbing what they could and starting fights over TVs and iPads. After all, what's a major disaster without a little looting.
72nd street looked straight from a movie scene. Abandoned vehicles littered the street, humans pouring over and between them like frightened cattle as they abandoned all civility and sanity. Steve raised an arm to point.
"Look, there he is!"
The Irken stood atop a bus, dressed in a uniform of dark magentas and purples, the collar high and stiff around his neck. He held a weapon to the sky, shouting in his mother tongue. Dib ran towards him without thinking and Steven pushed through people to keep up.
"Zim!" Dib shouted as the Irken jumped down from the bus. He reached and grabbed the alien's arm and he turned, raising the weapon and striking the human in the chest. Dib fell back against an abandoned taxi with a grunt, sliding to the ground with the breath knocked from him. He looked up at the alien. Purple eyes glared down at him, a somewhat feminine voice snarling as he stared, bewildered. She raised her weapon but Steve ran into her from the side, knocking her off balance just long enough for Dib to get up and both of them to flee into the crowd.
"That wasn't him," Dib shouted over the chaos, jostled as they moved against the swarm.
"I noticed! You okay?"
"Yeah." Dib didn't look back as he heard the alien shouting again, barely audible over the screams of the panicked New Yorkers. Another Irken leaped atop a van on the opposite side of the street, waving his weapon and howling, egging on the mass hysteria as humans clawed over each other to get away from him. Dib and Steven skirted that mess and hopped the small concrete barrier into Central Park.
"Where do we go?" Dib wheezed, leaning a hand against a tree as he grasped at breath, lungs almost bursting in the chilly air.
"Sheep Meadow should be straight ahead, through those trees. Let's try there first."
They moved quickly. The sounds of the city chaos dimmed behind them as they moved forward into the park. The trees soon let out into the beautifully-manicured clearing. It was void except for a few scampering humans, desperate for an escape.
"Shit," Dib cursed and jogged towards one of the pathways leading deeper into the park, Steven following alongside. Something hit him from behind and he stumbled, falling. Steve reached down to help him but looked up at a strange, clicking laughter. An Irken approached them slowly, rifle-like weapon in hands as he said something and laughed again. Dib got to his feet and both men backed away from the alien. He raised the weapon to them, grinning.
"Wait, I'm looking for Zim!" Dib said quickly, hands held up defensively. The Irken paused and lowered his weapon, scowling. He stepped forward quickly and raised the weapon, striking Dib across the head and sending him to the ground with a snarl. Steven grabbed his arm but he shoved him away, raising the weapon to bring down on Dib's head, growling something angrily. Dib threw his arms over his head and flinched at the sharp retort of gunshot. He felt the whoosh of air as a body fell beside him and looked up. The Irken lay twitching and inches from his face and he quickly scooted away, eyes wide. Steven stared down at the dying alien, gun held out in front of him in shaking hands. The alien jerked in spasm, dark green blood poring from the hole in his skull. His eyes rolled, teeth clicking together as an extension slid from his PAK and stabbed at the ground in Dib's direction. Dib got to his feet slowly and pressed the back of his hand against his mouth as he watched the alien jerk, then fall still. His PAK whirred like an overworked computer, then beeped loudly as the swirling pink orbs went dark.
"I.. killed it," Steven breathed, slowly lowering his gun. Dib stepped over to him and took his arm, pulling him away.
"Keep moving, quickly," Dib said and Steve did as told, holding his weapon out at his side as they ran. He coughed a few times, choking down the sick that threatened to expel itself. Dib stared ahead, thoughts pounding with his feet as they made their way towards the center of the park.