Disclaimer: I don't own Invader Zim. I'm not making any money. Nuff said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

INTERSTELLAR SERIES PART ONE

POLARIS

Chapter Twenty-One

Zim stayed in Dib's bed the rest of the week. At first he told himself he would wait until the human fell asleep and then leave, but he found himself lingering. It was strangely comforting to be near Dib as he slept, watching the steady rise and fall of his chest, the occasional flutter of his long, dark eyelashes. Zim would never deny Dib was beautiful (not that he would ever admit it, either.)

On the morning they were meant to head out to rendezvous with the Resisty, the air was tight with tension. Zim and Dib barely said a word to each other as they packed their things and pulled on their Team Nebula uniforms. The silence remained as they headed out of the dorms, making their way to hop a hover-bus to the port. While they were seated on the bus, however, Zim nudged him reassuringly. Dib gave him an appreciative smile.

Not one member of the crew said anything as they filed into the Nazo. Gir didn't even speak from Zim's shoulder. They exchanged looks, all looking as anxious as Dib felt. Months of training and studying. Of getting his ass kicked by Midge and Dek alike. It all lead to this.

"Set course for Vort, Yara," Dek ordered quietly, leaning back in his captain's chair.

"Yes, sir," she responded, immediately pressing buttons and flipping switches. She suddenly grinned cheekily. "I suppose we should be thankful that someone upgraded our warp drive, huh, Captain?"

Dek gave her an amused look before looking at Zim out of the corner of his eye. Dib almost burst into laughter at how Zim puffed up with pride. "Yeah," Dek said dryly. "Remind me to request that E.J. gets a raise."

Zim gaped. "I will tear your eyeballs from your stupid skull!" he yelled.

From her seat behind Dek, Midge could be heard giggling. Dib snorted and gave Zim a light nudge. Zim still continued to look annoyed. He even appeared to be pouting.

"Stop being a smeet, you smeet-face," Dib teased, throwing one of Zim's silly insults in his face. It made more sense now that Dib knew that smeets were what Irkens called their babies.

Though it did annoy him that Zim had called him an infant, but that had been ages ago.

"Zim is no smeet!" Zim retorted angrily. "You are a smeet!"

Dib shook his head. He spoke too soon.

00000000000000000

The rendezvous point was Alda, Vort's smallest and farthest moon. It took them almost two days to reach their destination, instead of the month it would have if Zim hadn't upgraded their warp. Dib couldn't help but be proud of Zim. He really had done a lot for this team. He'd heard Midge teasingly ask Dek if he was happy they had recruited him as well. Dek had just grunted in response.

Dib took a deep breath through his nose as he stared out the window, trying to calm his buzzing nerves. Dek was currently in a conference with Lard Nar, going over their plan one last time. Dib could see Vort from the ship's window, a dark violet circle, with large rings that crossed over at an angle. It reminded Dib of a smaller, purple Saturn. It wasn't necessarily pretty, but Dib had always loved everything to do with space, and so was fascinated by the sight.

He flexed his fingers for a moment, allowing his thoughts to wander. If it weren't for Zim coming into his life, he would've never seen any of this. He probably never would've seen space, period. He never would have been spotted by Team Nebula. He never would've had this scary, yet thrilling, opportunity to help take down the most feared Empire in existence.

Sure, he also wouldn't have had as many injuries or near death experiences, but Dib honestly didn't mind that at this point. Really, how many people could say they were once locked in a epic battle for their planet since they were eleven years old?

Dib nearly jumped when the Irken in question appeared beside him. "What's on your mind, stink-beast?" he asked, poking the human's head.

Dib swatted Zim's hand away, but he was smiling. "Just…reminiscing," he said. He looked back at Vort, and anxiety clenched at his stomach. "I guess I'm trying to distract myself."

Zim squinted an eye at him. He could see nervousness in every move the human made. "You have no reason to be nervous," he said. "You're more than capable of this task." Zim knew this. If anyone could do this, it was Dib.

Dib felt warmth in his cheeks. "Well, I'm glad you think so," he replied with a shrug.

Zim shoved him lightly. Dib always sold himself so short. "I know so." He walked around until he was in front of Dib, stealing the human's entire focus. He reached over and lace their hands together. "After all, anyone who can stop Zim must be amazing."

Dib snorted. "So does that make me more amazing than you?" he teased.

"Never!" Zim replied firmly. "You can never measure up to my greatness!"

Dib laughed at Zim's logic. This crazy Irken was so ridiculous. He pulled Zim toward him and wrapped an arm around his small waist, startling him slightly. Then Zim gave a tiny smile, his big, ruby eyes radiating so many strong emotions. Zim was so extreme. So all or nothing. And so much of that was directed at him. It made Dib want to hold Zim and never let go.

His eyes shifted to Vort for merely a second. Soon he and Zim would be sneaking into the main weapons facility to deactivate the Subordinate Brain. It wouldn't be easy, and it was going to be dangerous.

"You can do it, Mary!" Gir said from Zim's shoulder. "You the bestest, smartest, nicest person ever!"

Dib smiled at the robots encouragement. Zim, however, growled quietly, "And that is why you are staying on the ship."

Gir looked completely shattered by this news. "But, Masta', I wants to help!"

"You can help by staying on the ship and assisting E.J," ordered Zim. Luckily Gir had won most of the crew over with his super friendly nature and almost endearing insanity. The only one who didn't seem to care for him was Krugg, but Dib had a feeling Krugg didn't care for a lot of people.

"Aww," Gir whined with a pout, hopping off of Zim's shoulder. "Okay…" He then smiled brightly. "I'm gonna go make cupcakes!" he shrieked, running off the bridge and down the hall.

Dib and Zim exchanged looks. "I don't want to know what making cupcakes actually is," said Dib worriedly.

"Neither to do I," replied Zim, hoping the robot didn't damage anything. Gir had been very good since his upgrades, though, so maybe there wasn't much to worry about.

Zim looked up to see Dib staring out the window again, his eyes distant and concerned. Zim slowly reached up and touched his cheek gently. Their eyes met once more, Zim's glowing with determination.

"I will protect you, my Dib," the Irken vowed quietly.

Dib couldn't help but snort. "I can take care of myself, you know."

"No," Zim replied, shaking his head. "You're a stupid, flimsy human. One shot to the wrong place and you'll die."

Dib rolled his eyes. "Then I won't get shot."

"Yes, because I won't let you," Zim insisted. "You are not allowed to die until Zim says so. You are mine and you will obey."

Dib shook his head. "You're so ridiculous," he said, chuckling slightly. His stomach turned uncomfortably as they just looked at each other. What if something happened to one of them? Or both of them? What if they failed?

Next time, he told himself over and over again. Next time. Next time.

But what if there wasn't a next time?

His grip on Zim tightened, and he leaned down and touched his forehead to the Irken's. "I want to tell you something-,"

He was abruptly cut off by Zim's hand covering his mouth. Dib gave him a perplexed look, but Zim merely smiled assuredly. Dib would never understand where all that confidence came from.

"Tell me when this is over, my Dib," Zim told him. He could tell that the human was getting nervous and scared. His eyes showed Zim everything. He needed Dib to focus and remain calm, otherwise this whole mission could fall apart.

Also, he wanted to to make it clear they would come back...

Dib pulled Zim's hand from his mouth and kissed him, nibbling the Irken's bottom lip lightly. He only pulled away when he heard giggling. Both he and Zim looked up to see Matsuri and Yara looking way too amused, while the rest of the crew looked like they were all trying not to pay attention. Dib felt his face heat up. It was easy to forget that other people were around when he was with Zim.

"Sorry," he mumbled to Zim, rubbing the back of his neck.

Zim tilted his head in confusion. "I don't see why you're apologizing." Dib hadn't done anything wrong.

"I just...we usually don't give into...erm, public displays of affection," Dib explained.

"Ah," Zim replied in understanding. His face scrunched up in thought. He and Dib were only ever all over each other when they were in private, but it wasn't a conscious effort. It just felt more natural to be that way. It was nice, too. It was like he and Dib had their own little world that no one else was privy to.

However, Zim didn't really care if others were around, as long as he and Dib kept things at holding hands and kissing. Their other, newly discovered activities were definitely better suited for the privacy of their bedroom.

"I don't mind," Zim said with a shrug. His expression morphed into a seductive smirk. "I like letting other's know you are mine."

Dib smirked right back. "We've been over this, Zim. If I'm yours, you're mine."

Zim stood on his toes, intent on reclaiming his human's mouth. "I suppose I can live with that."

"Get a room, you two," Dek said as he entered the bridge of the ship.

Both Dib and Zim looked up, pulling away from each other just a bit. Midge threw them a knowing grin as she stood beside Dek in the middle of the room. Dib thought about saying something, but the serious look on Dek's face made him reconsider.

The crew gathered around in an awkward circle, Milgor having to stand in the front while Krugg hung in the back. Dek pulled out a small tablet from his pocket. "I'm sending all of you the map of the facility to your communicators," he explained. He looked right at Dib. "The location of the Sub-Brain is marked. If anything goes awry the map will make it much easier for others to find you." He looked at the rest of the crew. "E.J, Matsuri and Milgor, I'm gonna have you stay on the ship. We'll send a distress signal if things get dicey."

"Now once we land, we'll obviously be splitting up. Dib and Zim will head for the room with the Sub-Brain while the rest of us help with the jail break. The Brain's gotta be deactivated as quickly as possible. If it manages to send a signal to the Main Brains and call the Armada, we will be beyond screwed."

Dib felt the pang of anxiety return to his gut. He felt Zim nudge him and managed a nervous smile. They both turned to Dek and gave him a nod.

"One more thing," Dek explained. "There's a lot of people in on this. Lard Nar's got a few people that we haven't met. We talked about a code phrase so we would know who's friend and who's foe. So if you come across someone claiming to be on our side, ask for the code phrase. If they don't know it, shoot first and ask questions later."

"What's the code phrase?" Asked Krugg.

Midge suddenly snickered under her breath, earning her a reprimanding look from Dek. The captain sighed loudly before answering. "Peach mango salsa."

A thick silence fell over the crew. Dib bit his lip, doing his best not to start laughing. What the hell kind of code phrase was that? He was doing a good job until he caught Midge's gaze. She was also struggling not to laugh, but once their gazes met they both doubled over in complete guffaws. It wasn't long until the rest of the crew joined in.

"Alright, alright, that's enough," Dek said in exasperation. Dib was sure he saw the corner of his mouth twitch.

"Where in Bloop's name did you even get that phrase?" Zim asked between cackles.

"It needed to be something random enough that the enemy couldn't guess it but also easy to remember," Dek explained, shaking his head. Once everyone calmed down he folded his arms, his expression serious once more. "This is it, people. This is the moment we either make a dent in the revolution, or we just become more casualties to the Irken Empire." He gave them a small smirk. "Let's roll out!"

"Yes sir!" The crew responded enthusiastically.

0000000000000000000

The ride to Vort from Alda was tense, even with the fast pace their ship was going. Dib could see the Resisty ships taking on the barricade outside the planet through the window. It looked terrifying. Yara had to steer a bit erratically, avoiding enemy ships and friendly fire alike. They managed to slip through the opening the Resisty made without too much damage.

Dib gaped once they landed and exited the ship. The sky of Vort was just as purple as the planet had looked from space. The ground was gray and rocky, and Dib could see mountains in the distance passed the facility in front of them. There was no foliage to be found.

"Look alive, Membrane," Midge said, nudging him as they headed out of the ship. Dib noticed how she had two swords strapped to her back. He took a moment to double checked his guns to make sure the safeties were on, keeping one in his hand and the other stowed away for now.

When Dib looked up he found Dek staring at him intently. Dib gave him a confused look, but the hybrid answered before Dib could ask. "I've mapped out the best route to the Sub-Brain," he explained. "There's a service entrance over on the north side. There might still be some guards, but most of them should be distracted by us."

Dib took a deep breath and nodded. He pulled out his communicator to see the route for himself. It looked like the Sub-Brain was at the end of a long, winding hallway. He looked back at Dek, finding him looking rather distracted. "What?" Dib asked.

"Nothing," Dek replied. He reached out put his hand on Dib's shoulder, his emerald gaze intense. "We're counting on you, Agent Membrane."

Dib mentally swatted away the nervousness he was feeling. "Yes, sir."

Dek nodded, removing his hand before his gaze drifted down to Zim. Zim straightened his posture, his expression fierce. Dek offered him a strange smile as he spoke a short Irken phrase. Zim smirked, replying the same phrase back. Dib's brow furrowed in confusion. It was a phrase he had not yet learned.

Dek gave them one last nod before walking away. The rest of the crew gave them reassuring nods and smiles as they followed the captain. Midge lagged behind, looking up at Dib and Zim almost desperately.

"The two of you are not allowed to die," she said. Even without the occasional glow, her blue eyes looked intense. "If you do, I will get with Gaz and make sure neither of you rest in peace."

Dib gave her a small smile. It really was nice to know that he had so many people who cared about him. "We'll be fine, Midge."

"Of course," added Zim arrogantly. "After all you have the amazing Zim on your side. So there is no need to fear, Midge-goon."

Midge managed a small smile at those words, her gaze darting between the two of them. She recited the same Irken phrase Dek and Zim had before. Then, with a frazzled looking turn, she darted off after Dek and the rest of the crew.

As she walked away, Dib turned to Zim. "What does that phrase mean?" He asked.

Zim looked up at him, as they began to make their way in the opposite direction toward the service entrance. It was always hard to translate Irken into English, with there being so many words that didn't quite match up. "Literally translated, it comes out to 'brother's in arms,'" Zim explained. "But…I believe a closer translation is… 'we're in this together."

"Ah," Dib said, smiling slightly. For about the millionth time he found himself glad that he had joined Team Nebula. He'd gone from having almost no one to an entire crew in the span of a year. It was crazy and amazing. Dib wouldn't give it up for anything.

He looked down at Zim, doing his best to repeat the phrase he had heard. Irken was still difficult for him, but every time he practiced he got better. He honestly wasn't sure how Midge spoke it as well as she did. The whole language sounded like it was only made for an Irken tongue.

Zim tilted his head, his antennea twitching as Dib struggled with the words. He shook his head. "Ugh. Your accent still needs work."

Dib rolled his eyes. "Your attitude needs work."

"Lies! You adore my attitude just like everything else about me!" A huge gun suddenly popped out of Zim's PAK and landed in his hands. A smug grin came across the Irken's face. "Now lower your obnoxious voice, Dib-worm. We're getting close."

Dib scowled. "Says the loudest person I know" he pointed out, his tone significantly lower. He stared at Zim's new gun for a moment. It was big enough that Zim had to hold it with both hands and was black and shiny with subtle red details. "Is that your present from Dek?" Dib asked.

Zim smirked as they took cover behind a few large rocks. The service entrance was just over the hill, now. "Yes," Zim answered. "Gaze upon my magnificent weapon of DOOM!"

Dib couldn't help but make the dirty joke. "Shouldn't we wait until we get back?" He asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

Zim squinted an eye. He'd learned that Dib usually made that gesture when he was trying to be suggestive. I was almost amusing that the human was better at being seductive when he wasn't trying. "Would you focus, Earth-monkey?!"

Dib suppressed a chuckle. "Sorry," he conceded, deciding that they really shouldn't be playing around right now. He took a moment to peer over the rock, having to stand on his toes. Zim peeked around the side, staying slightly crouched.

"I count three guards," Zim said quietly. "There are some Vortian workers, but they shouldn't give us any problems. Especially after we release them." He looked back up at Dib. "Adjust your goggles to see if you pick up anyone else."

Dib rolled his eyes at the order but complied, adjusting the dial on his goggles to pick up heat signatures. He squinted a bit. "There are two more guards on the other side of the wall," Dib explained. "Just outside the door."

"Hmm. Shouldn't be too hard, then," Zim said, cocking his gun. He smirked. "Ready to kick some ass, Dib-smell?"

Dib smirked right back, turning the safety off on his own gun. He pulled out the second one and did the same. "You bet, Space Boy."

Slowly and quietly, they crept toward the entrance. Dib could see the Vortians going through some sort of delivery, noticing strange collars on their necks. He scowled, trying to keep himself from getting too angry. They were going to free them, after all.

Once they were close enough to the opening, Dib and Zim looked at each other. "On three?" Dib asked.

Zim grinned and nodded. "One."

"Two."

"Three!" They shouted at the same time before rolling out of their hiding place, guns blazing. The first two guards were taken down easily, caught completely unawares. The others gained their bearings quickly, taking out their weapons and firing back. Dib and Zim had to duck and dodge the rest of the way, but they'd been training for months and even had experience before that. They managed to incapacitate the remaining guards rather easily.

"That wasn't so bad," Dib mentioned as they made to free the Vortian workers, finding the control panel for their collars and shutting them off.

"Don't get cocky, stink-brain," Zim told him firmly. "There's plenty more where they came from."

Dib was about to say something else, when one of the Vortians suddenly approached them. "Zim? Is that really you?"

Dib rose a brow, his gaze darting between Zim and the smaller alien. Zim narrowed his eyes, trying to remember where he'd seen this particular Vortian before. Then, it hit him. "777?!"

The Vortian beamed. "I can't believe it! I heard rumors, but I thought it was too crazy to be true! You actually joined Team Nebula?" His expression became quizzical. "Did you get taller?"

Dib resisted the urge to laugh as Zim's chest puffed up proudly. "Yes, yes, gaze upon my magnificence!"

777 chuckled. "You've gotta tell me all about this later," he said. "Now I'm especially glad I got moved to this facility. I got to see this with my own eyes."

Zim squinted an eye at him. "Especially glad?"

"Yeah," 777 explained. "I'm the one who sent that encrypted message. It was pretty tough, too. These guards are the worse "

"Huh. What do you know," Zim said thoughtfully.

As amused as Dib was by all this, he nudged Zim to get him back on track. "We gotta go, Zim."

"Hmm? Oh, yes, of course," Zim replied, waving his hand in dismissal. He turned back to 777. "Team Nebula and the Resisty are all over this place. You silly, tiny Vortians should be able to find some safety."

777 nodded. "We really do gotta catch up, later." He said as he dashed off, waving excitedly Zim looked ridiculously smug as he and Dib exited out into the hall of the facility.

"Who was that?" Dib asked as they made their way down the hall, staying alert to any movement.

"An old acquaintance," Zim replied. "He was my supplier for all my weapons of epic DOOM!"

"Huh," Dib said. He gave Zim a teasing grin. "Remind me to tell him to not let you have anything without my approval."

"I can have whatever I want! And not even you can stop me!"

"What are you talking about? I stop you all the time."

"I'll stop your breathing if you don't shut your face!" Suddenly his antennae twitched up to attention. Both he and Dib froze.

"What is it?" Dib asked, his gut twisting in worry.

"Gunfire. But it's rather far off." He waved his hand in a beckoning motion. "Come on. How far is the Sub-Brain from here?"

Dib took his communicator out, pulling up the route Dek had sent him. "We go down this hallway for a few doors, then turn left down another corridor," he explained. "Then the hall curves around here. It'll be at the end of that hall."

"Hey!" yelled someone suddenly from behind them. Another Irken guard stood there as they turned around, his weapon at the ready. "Stop!"

Dib and Zim both easily dodged the initial shot before both shooting back. Their shots hit the guard directly, and he fell to the floor in a heap. Zim sighed heavily "I almost wish they had let me wear my old Invader uniform," Zim said as they continued down the hall. "It might have come in handy to sneak in without having to waste so much of our guns' energies."

Dib rose a brow. "Wouldn't they recognize you?"

"Only if they ran my PAK," Zim replied confidently. "Otherwise I could easily fool them into thinking I was someone important. Especially with my increased height. How do you think Dek made it so far the last time he was on Irk?" He tapped his chin. "Then again, who knows how many people know that I'm taller now, or would recognize me otherwise. I am, eh, rather well known."

Dib snorted. "I bet, Mr. Death Machine."

"Do not mock Zim!"

"I'm not," Dib said, a small chuckle escaping him. He took a moment to look at Zim, painfully reminded of how well the Team Nebula uniform looked on him. He grinned as he said, "I think I like this uniform better."

Zim eyed him for a moment, smirking wickedly. "I know. I've notice how you stare at me." He reached over and trailed his hand up Dib's side, making the human shudder.

Dib swatted his hand away. Leave it to Zim not to follow his own words. "Later, you menace," Dib told him.

Zim continued to smirk even as he retracted his hand. "That better be a promise."

"Trust me, it is," Dib assured.

The rest of the corridor was strangely empty, and in Dib's opinion a little too quiet. He adjusted the dial on his goggles several times, but couldn't see any heat signatures nearby. It was unsettling, but Dib figured that maybe the Resisty and the rest of their team was causing enough of a ruckus to pull the guards away.

He had almost convinced himself of that when they turned down the winding hall way. The lighting became a more purple hue, making it look extremely eerie. Dib did his best to shove his anxiety down.

Zim stopped walked, his antennae twitching left and right. "What's up?" Dib asked quietly.

Zim's eyes narrowed, scanning the hallway before them. "I'm almost certain I heard something close by."

Dib frowned, moving closer to Zim. "Can you hear anything now?"

Zim tensed, clutching his large gun close to his body. His antennae twitched a few more times, his ruby eyes widening. "Stay behind me, Dib."

Dib glared. Not only did he absolutely hate that idea, but he was at least a head taller than Zim. "I can handle myself, Zim," he said.

"It's my job to make sure you're giant head doesn't get shot off," Zim snarled. "Now do as I say."

"Would you stop treating me like I have a fragile sticker on me? We've fought each other for years. We both trained for months. It's not like I'm new to any of this."

Zim glowered up at the human. "We're not arguing about this right now!"

Dib made a frustrated noise. "Look, I get that you want to protect me, okay? But I don't need you to!"

"Dib!" Zim shouted. "Shut you corn-mouth before I shut it for you!"

Just as Dib was about to retort, there was a sudden flurry of movement and gunfire. The two found themselves back to back, dodging and shooting back. The initial assailants were taken down easily, only to make room for several more armed Irkens.

"Move, Dib!" Zim shouted, smacking the human to stir him into action. Dib didn't argue this time, barely missing a couple enemy shots. He and Zim fought their was through, trying to make it to the end of the hallway.

"Why are there so many of them?!" Dib screamed, managing to beat a guard off of him while he shot at another.

"I don't know!" Zim yelled back. "Maybe one of the other's tipped them off!"

Dib growled as he continued to fight through, punching here and shooting there. He could literally see the door that lead to the Sub-Brain. The enemy Irkens must have known, too, because they seemed to start doubling their efforts.

"Dib! No!" Zim screeched, practically throwing Dib to the floor. Zim then tackled the nearest guard, who had some sort of blade in his hand. He was easily incapacitated. Both Dib and Zim regained their bearings, firing rapidly into the crowd.

"Did you have to throw me?" Dib complained, his head throbbing.

"I wouldn't have had to if you'd just pay attention, you infuriating-,"

A loud blast cut Zim off as he was struck by a huge ball of blue energy. Dib watched in horror as Zim was tossed like a rag doll and slammed into the wall.

"ZIM!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

*Hides from the angry mob that is sure to start gathering*