Chapter 7: Old Wounds
The Irken Armada. A fleet consisting of dozens, possibly millions of highly advanced ships that few planets could defend against, and armed with weapons that fewer could hope to endure. The pride of the Irken Armada, The Massive, was the flagship of the leaders of the Irken race, Tallests Red and Purple. Intellect was never a requirement for the position of Tallest, in fact the only requirement is within the name. Height. However while intelligence wasn't a strong suit for the Tallests, it didn't take an awful lot of it for Tallest Purple to realize, that a very heavy storm was brewing within the mind of his partner. The signs were clear, something had changed with Red. If the vulgar self mumbling wasn't a dead give away, then surely the rapid twitching of his antenna and constant pacing would've been.
"Red, I understand you're angry with him but let's be reasonable what is Zim gonna do?" Purple said.
Red's anger dissipated and he slowly turned to purple. "I… I don't know, he could… Try and ram a planet into The Massive!"
Purple struggled to hold in a laugh as he allowed his palm to meet his forehead. "Red, get real. If he couldn't destroy earth with one, then what are the chances that he could destroy The Massive with it?"
"High enough to be a problem! Remember the Florpus incident?" Red turned to one of the many navigation officers and spat a very unexpected command. "Set course for planet earth!" All commotion on the bridge stopped afterwards.
"What! Red, what are you doing?" Purple screamed at the top of his lungs after hearing the words that spewed from his partners mouth, which in return earned him a glare from red. "You can't be serious!"
"Oh, I am. Zim is to big of a threat to be kept alive." Red turned back to the navigation officer and did a double-take when his realized they hadn't followed his order. "Well… What are you waiting for!? Set course for Zim's miserable planet."
"Y-yes my tallest" The small irken responded before punching several commands into the console in front of him. Purple could do nothing but watch, as the Red he once knew was engulfed in anger and now seething with hatred.
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Gaz awoke the next morning to the crisp aroma of bacon and the sweet scent of pancakes as well as the sound of rock music. Shoving herself off the couch and onto her feet she dragged herself to the kitchen. There she found Zim in front of the stove flipping pancakes and singing as Gir danced on the counter-top with a mouthful of bacon and bundles in his hands. Gaz merely leaned on the doorframe with her arms crossed across her chest, it had been a few weeks since the 'incident' and Zim was really starting to turn himself around. Zim has done some pretty goofy things but dancing with a tiny robot while singing along to Lynyrd Skynyrd was one she never even thought of, and truth be told, while his voice was still somewhat screechy, he wasn't too shabby.
She watched as Zim flipped a pancake once more then let go of the pan in favor of his spatula which he used as a makeshift microphone. "Oh, wait a minute, Mister. I didn't even kiss her! Don't want no trouble with you!" Zim proceeds to slide towards Gir, who begins to shake the bundles of bacon in his hands like maracas while his hips sway from side to side. "And I know you don't owe me, but I wish you would let me. Ask one favor from you!"
"Oh, won't you Gimme three steps, Gimme three steps, Mister! Gimme three steps towards the door!" Zim the takes two steps back and spins which faces him towards Gaz. "Gimme three steps, Gimme three steps, Mister! 'Nd you'll never see me no mo-"
Zim immediately freezes when his contact filled eyes meet Gaz's, leaving a giggling Gir and southern rock playing in the background. After a few seconds of awkward silence between them, Zim opens his mouth and raises one hand. "...I can explain."
"You're burning something." Zims eyes widen as he curses something in Irken and rushes over to the stove where a charred pancake lays in a pan.
"Isn't your little robot thing supposed to cook for you?" Gaz began to catechize
Zim chuckles a little before turning off the stove. "Normally yes. However I took the liberty of learning basic recipes due to Girs tendency to… add things." Zims turns to the floor whilst narrowing his eyes and visibly shudders.
Gaz chuckles lightly before turning her attention to a nearby window. The sun was beaming, giving the sky a wonderful pinkish hue. "Shit! What time is it?" Gaz widened her eyes as she frantically left to the living room.
Zim eyed her with confusion before it dawned on him, they still had skool to attend "Oh one sec. Gir! What time is it?"
"Oh, oh, is it piggy time!?" Gir immediately jumps of the counter whilst pulling a rather adorable rubber piggy out of his head.
"What? No! I mean what is the time right n- oh forget it!" Zim waves his hand towards Gir dismissively and walks into the living room while Gir proceeded to run in circles while screaming gibberish. "Ajax!"
"Yes, master?"
"Could you tell me the time please?"
"The current time is 8:17 AM." (A/N: Where I'm from, my brothers school starts at 8:30 :P)
"Thanks."
"Uhm… You're welcome, master." Ajax says in a rather confused tone. Mostly to Zim actually saying thanks for once.
Gaz groans and grabs her backpack. "Dammit! I'm gonna be late!" Zim snickers which earns a glare of daggers from Gaz who crosses her arms across her chest. "Something funny?"
He immediately rushes to his defense "Huh? No! Er… yes? Gah!... I mean, I just find it funny that you're worried about being late to skool."
"Why wouldn't I be?"
"Haven't you skipped entire skool days in favor of bloaty's?"
Gaz stammers for a moment before giving up on retorting. "You make a good point."
Zim breaks into an audible chuckle while he strays from the living room into a hallway which presumably leads to his bedroom. "Hang tight I'll be back in a sec". Shortly after he rounds the corner wearing black sweatpants with white horizontal stripes and a grey hoodie with an embroidery of the Grim Reaper on the front of it, which had text lined above and under it. It read 'I was sweet and innocent once… Then shit happened'. Zims footwear consisted of a pair of dark purple sneakers with indigo blue highlights and white rubber bottoms. His Pak still protruded from his backside and through his clothing, meaning he more than likely had a hole cut in the back of every shirt and or hoodie. He was swiping away at notifications on his phone whilst walking towards the door. "Ajax, watch the base. I'll be back later. ''Zim then turned his attention to Gir who had been awfully quiet for the time being and wasn't surprised to see that Gir was now on the floor stuffing his rubber piggy with bacon…
"Nom Nom. Blech!" Gir flips his rubber pig over and proceeds to yell. "OH NO! PIGGY HAD A HEART ATTACK! HE ATE TO MUCH BACON!"
Gaz shifted her eyes from the distraught robot to Zim who stood with his arms to his sides, his phone nearly slipping from his grasp, as his stared blankly at the SIR unit with his head tilted backwards slightly. He slowly shook his head a couple of times before looking at the door handle. "...wow". Gaz let out a small chuckle before walking out the door Zim was now holding open. Zim shut the door behind him and broke into a light jog to catch up with Gaz, passing her he stops in front of her and gets down on one knee while still facing forward. "Here, hop on".
She looked confused at first before seeing the 4 tentacle like appendages "Uhh, I think I'll pass." Gaz said as she took a step back.
Zim turns his head and peered over his shoulder. "You wish to make it to skool on time, no?"
"I mean it'll keep Dib from bugging me about where I was and what not, but I would prefer to not fall and die."
"You humans worry too much. It's just a simple piggy back ride at an elevated height, thus providing a faster mode of-." Zim stops after looking back at Gaz who is now looking down at the sidewalk. "Ohhh, I see." Zim says with an almost soothing tone as he stands up.
"Tell anyone and you will enter a nightm-!"
Zim cuts Gaz off before she could finish her sentence. "A nightmare realm from which there is no escape, yes, yes. I'm aware." Zim proceeds to converse through a chuckle. "Who knew that the hellish Gaz is afraid of heights." Zim mocks as he snickers.
"Oh go fuck yourself Zim." Gaz retorts swiftly but before she knows it she is lifted off the ground bridal style and feels a gust of wind rush by her. She's now in Zims arms who is leaping from building to building with the help of his Paks spider legs. They stop for a moment and Gaz is able to give a look of lour towards Zim. He only grins in return and says. "I thought this would suit you better since you did not trust yourself to hang on, on your own."
"Well you could've fucking said something first!" Gaz shrieks in response.
"Oh, quit harrowing, you're fine." Zim says as he stands and backs up to the ledge of the building. "By the way, don't look down." He chortles while sprinting across the surface and chuckling at his own witticism. He then proceeds to jump off of the current rooftop earning a small yelp from Gaz, while a shy smile slyly formed on her face.
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"I just don't understand." Purple shrieked.
After a sudden change in course and an unnerving amount of discord on the bridge of The Massive. Purple fled the room in search of guidance and has retreated to the personal chambers of one of the many powerful Control Brains. This one in particular was bound to The Massive and was unique in various ways. Unlike the other Control Brains, the design it boasted was rather intimidating, nearly replicating that of an actual brain and having vertical edges and points rather than smooth curves. Its color scheme was also unique. It consisted of a base color of pink with teal highlights and teal glowing eyes.
"I've never seen Red get so… so… livid, at something like this. D-do you think his Pak is like, having a malfunction or something"? Purple was practically drowning in concern as 'leadership' was never his strong suit. That was always Reds' thing, and well, at the time being he seems to have a couple of screws loose which isn't a particularly good sign. Before purple could overthink the situation anymore than he already was, the Control Brain voices it's opinion.
It spoke with a deep tone much like Ajax (Zims computer) but with a more mechanized hum accompanying its words. "While the Tallest Reds actions are… 'Interesting'... I do not believe they are caused by malfunction. The latest results show that Pak Number 42486 is operating at peak efficiency. With this information being known, it is entirely safe to say that they are caused partly if not purely by... emotion".
"Bu-but, Red has never done anything like this!" Purple screeched, thus beginning his rant while pacing back and forth across the room. "I know Red and he's never been this angry before! … well… except for that one time I accidentally squished his rubber duck… and snuck the last donut with pink sprinkles... But that's besides the point!" Purple continued as he came to a complete stop in front of the large sentient machine. "I mean, jeopardizing an entire operation for a fake Invader? I don't know what's gotten into him."
The Control Brain made an audible hum, most likely signifying that he was thinking out loud. "Hmm, this 'faux' Invader you speak of, what is his name?"
"Hmh? Oh, you talkin' about Zim?" Purple asked with quizzical eyes.
It responded with a tranquil tone. "Ahhh, I see. Zim. The roach of all Irkens."
"Yea, Reds' been going on and on about him, saying that he could do this or that." Purple then breaks into audible laughter. "Ha Ha! You wanna know what's funny though? Red actually thinks Zim's a threat! Hahaha!" Purple begins to wipe a tear away from his eye when he is caught off guard.
"That's because he is. Or to you and Tallest Red at least."
"See! That's what I'm- wait wah!?" Purple throws his arms into the air while verbalizing his confusion. "What the Irk do you mean, "He's a threat"!? It's Zim!"
"One moment."
Purple sat in wait for what felt like an uncomfortable amount of time, until the mechanized voice chimed again.
"Pak Number 934520, Current owner, you. Your former position was a slavedriver… very interesting, however your height of 6'0'' has granted you the position of tallest". Purple was the shorter tallest with Red being half an inch taller.
"Erm.. With all due respect Mighty Control Brain, I'm aware of all that."
"I know. But I have found something rather intriguing."
"O...kay… And that is."
"One moment please." Although it's impossible to tell, purple rolled his eyes at the statement as he was forced to wait yet again. After a few minutes, the small screen on the large control brain flashed. Purple looked and saw three names, one of which being his own and the other two being Zim and Red. Under the names was a small statistics log with categories such as intelligence, strength, endurance, etc. But, there was one category that stuck out on Zims statistics log, which caused purple to gasp in shock.
The Control Brain finally spoke up after a brief silence. "Zim is now an inch taller than you and Red."
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Dib pushed the brakes causing his car to squeak as he pulled into a parking space and shut off the engine. He sat in silence for a moment with his hands resting on the wheel, which soon included his head, which he slammed into the rim of it. He wanted to just sit and sulk for a few more moments. It was only 8:23, and class doesn't start until 8:30. 'God I fucked up… How did I forget? I mean I had a pretty good reason for it with saving Zim and all th-... Zim!.. Gahh! This is all his fucking fault.' Dib was pulled from his thoughts when he heard knocking on his window which turned out to be Gaz. He motioned for her to step back so he could open the door and avoid hitting her with it, surprisingly enough she stepped back without protest, allowing him to exit his car. Carefully, he shut his door and locked it. Gaz then mumbled something, which caused Dib to turn and face her. She was still staring in the direction of the skool with her arms crossed over her chest, watching as children were getting dropped off and pouring out of the skool buses.
He gave her a quizzical look before speaking. "Uhm… Did you uh… say something, Gaz?"
Gaz shut her eyes tightly before looking back at Dib. "Imsorryforactingoutuesterday"
"You what?"
"I said!" Gaz raised her voice before taking a deep breath and continuing. "I'm sorry, for acting out yesterday."
"Oh… Well it's ok, I mean you did have a good reason for it I guess." Dib said as he grabbed his backpack from the trunk and swung it over his shoulders.
Gaz watched as Dib stuffed his hands into his pockets while pushing the rear door shut with his foot. "I'm also sorry about, you know, breaking your door."
Dib waves a hand dismissively. "Oh, that. Yea no that- That's fine. I can just take it back to the shop and have them fix it. It shouldn't cost too much… I hope." Dib is interrupted by a noise coming from the passenger side of the car. Dib turns his head just in time to see Zim standing from his squatting position with his hands pressed to his hips.
"Seriously? You have to pay to have your transportation fixed? Your economy is pathetic."
"What the- Zim! Get the hell away from my car!" Dib shouts while walking around to the other side of the car with Gaz following behind. "I swear if you did somethi- *gasp* you didn't plant a bomb did you!?" Radiating with fear, Dib drops to the floor to check under his car while Zim stares in befuddlement and Gaz rolls her eyes.
"*sigh* Yes Dib, I planted a bomb on your car for absolutely no reason whatsoever." Zim begins to walk away while shaking his head in annoyance, before lightly stomping on Dibs back earning a grunt from Dib and a small chuckle from Gaz. Zim continues to walk towards the school, while Gaz stays behind to check on Dib.
"Dib… Are you dead?" Gaz questions with a monotone voice and emotionless face. Which earns a deep groan from Dib. "'Tch' Dammit, had high hopes for a minute there. Now get up, we have to get to class."
"J-just go witho-ut me." Dib struggling to speak as he stood up and leaned against his car.
"Alright."
"No no, wait! I'm coming!"
Dib walked beside Gaz who stared at the building with malicious intent, once inside the siblings made their way to the main staircase. Dib stood in silence as Gaz glared at just about everyone who walked by. He finally broke the ice and began to talk. "Well I'll, see you at lunch." He turned and began to walk away when he felt a soft punch on his shoulder. He turned around to see Gaz smiling softly who began walking in the opposite direction. Dib smiled as well, before he decided to put his life at risk, 'cause why not?' he thought to himself. He then proceeded to shout. "Love ya Gaz."
She replied by giving him the bird, her own little way of saying it back, and Dib was pretty sure he caught a glimpse of her laughing as she turned into her homeroom. Dib then proceeded to his own class, grinning from ear to ear.
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Well here it is, Chapter 7. I really am sorry for the wait. I'm hoping to get Chapter 8 finished up before next week, but I'm not sure if that'll happen. Before I go, I want to say thanks. I do read your reviews and I'm genuinely happy that people still read my story. I wanted to give up on it after awhile because I thought no one read it anymore. But now I know that's not true so I'll keep pushing forward with it. If it's not too much of a hassle for you guys, please feel free to spread the word about my story if you'd like to, it'd really mean a lot to me.
Well until next time.
-Darth Vicium, ending transmission
