I don't own Invader Zim okay? I have had much more time lately with how things are so I can update more often. I don't have much to say here so enough of this A/N, on with the fic!
Zim placed his hand on Purple's mouth as Purple placed his hand on Red's. There was still a chance that somehow Gaz and Dib would think they were somewhere else, but Gaz had ordered the crew with her to search the rocks and under them. Luckily they started further away from where they were, causing some time. But the scene was tense. "Keep quiet." Zim whispered.
Dib drove up to where Gaz was before slamming on the brakes and shutting off the jeep. "You said you had found Zim?"
"Not yet, but most likely him and the Tallest are not that far. I have the team searching under the rocks even." Gaz said, observing the security team.
"Why?" Dib asked. "Irkens aren't very good at disguise."
"Well that's disguise." Gaz said rolling her eyes. "This is basic survival instinct here. I doubt they can handle the desert like it's nothing, especially if one of them is injured badly. They aren't all you." She said as she use a topographical map as a fan. "The middle of fucking summer they had to crash here of all the forsaken places on Earth. It's supposed to be 98 degrees today."
"Could have crashed about 100 miles west." Dib sighed. "They're calling for 116 in Death Valley today."
"Yeah... I'll count my blessings..." Gaz mumbled with anger. "Not all of us can have an innate ability to not overheat in those clothes. Was it because of those freaky powers or something?"
"I dunno." Dib said. "Never really notice hot or cold when I was dressed no matter how. I just always dressed with a trench coat and boots style because it looks cool."
"After 20 fucking years..." Gaz sighed. She was wearing combat boots, black cargo pants and a mauve short sleeved shirt.
"Oh you're one to talk. You've worn that necklace since we were kids!" Dib said as Gaz picked up a rock and threw it at him. "OW!"
"You know the reason for that." Gaz said.
"Yeah." Dib said rubbing the bruise that was left. It was Mom's she had gotten the Halloween before she was killed. Shouldn't have gone there I guess...
Under the rock where they were hiding, a snake had started to slither over Red who began to whimper. Purple hit him in a spot where he wasn't very injured and whispered angerly "Quiet."
Zim had turned over to see what was causing Red to whimper to see that there was a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake slithering over them. Thinking fast, he grabbed it and threw it towards Dib.
"Zim!" Purple gasped in an amazed whisper. "Nice idea."
"That snake is poisonous if it bites and they can get agitated easily." Zim said. "Maybe if it bites Dib, they'll at least have to go back to the base to get treatment. I am sure they can get the anti-venom there. He likely won't die but at the same time, that'll give us time to get out of here or clean our tracks."
"How did you know it's not venomous to us though?" Red asked.
"I didn't. And I don't know if it is or isn't. Just saw a chance." Zim said.
At this, Dib felt the snake on his back. "AHHHHHHHHHHH! Get it off!" He said as he beat around, using his Meekrob powers to try and get at it, scaring the snake.
"Calm down! You agitate that thing, it'll bite you!" Gaz said as she pulled a bowie knife from her side. "I'll stab it in the head and it'll be dead and we can identify it."
"Yeah and you'll stab me too!" Dib said as he flailed around.
"God, you took down a whole alien race with superior technology than us and you're scared of a snake?" She asked, patting him down, inadvertently agitating it further.
"A venomous snake that my sister with an anger problem wants to stab while it's on me! YEAHHOUCHH! It bit me!" Dib said "On the butt!" He felt his hands start to tingle and vision blur.
"Over here." Gaz said laying him in the back of the jeep. "Back to the base guys. Page the medical team and get some anti-venom on the ready." She stabbed the snake and placed it in the seat behind her. "Don't touch it if you don't want another bite" She ordered Dib "They can still bite for awhile after death."
Zim looked out from under the rock when he was sure the rest of the crew had gone away and crawled out from under the rock. "We got some time. I'd say about 12-36 hours at most. They'll want to make sure the 'greatest person ever to live'" Zim mocked with disdain "Makes it through this. Like I said, it's not lethal but it'll put them off our backs for a short period of time."
"What do you need Zim?" Purple asked.
"Get a stretcher for Red together out of what you can find. We're moving away from here and I am going to try to find a way to cover our tracks with the escape pod or something. We won't get far. Probably not off the planet but it'll be far away from the crash site."
"I still am not used to the idea of Zim ordering us around." Red moaned.
"Neither am I, but it's our only hope." Purple sighed.
Gaz had pressed the pedal to the floor of the jeep driving back to the base, knowing that while Dib had a good chance to live, it was dependent on how fast he got the anitvenom he needed. She knew with the nature of the base, they had what he would need, but that indeed there was a very likely, almost certain possibility that Zim and the Tallest were there. Most likely Zim as he would have had a better chance to know what rattlesnakes could do. Why Zim didn't just try something like that back before Dib caught him is beyond me, but then again being cooped up for 20 years may have made that idiot rational Gaz thought as she drove through the gate to find that indeed a medical team was waiting.
"What's the status?" One of the doctors said as she picked Dib up in a fireman carry and placed him on the gurney.
"Snakebite. I killed the thing that did it. It's in the back of the jeep and looks like a western diamondback rattlesnake. Get the anti-venom and get the treatment started stat." Gaz ordered as another doctor cautiously picked up the dead snake to confirm the identification.
"Gaz..." Dib said weakly.
"You'll be fine. Once they get that anti-venom in you, you'll be back to be an obsessive big headed dork with ego issues now." Gaz said.
"It won't be instantaneous Ms. Membrane." The doctor said. "He will have a painful recovery and we will be keeping an eye on him for the next few days for any sepsis."
"Well duh." Gaz said. "I'm not stupid. I'm just trying to provide moral support to my brother."
The doctors looked at each other confused. "Moral support?" They asked.
"Gaz is like that." Dib said weakly with a smile. "I love you too sis."
"You're not dying, they're hooking up the IV. Stop acting like you are. I won't hit you for that, but don't get all mushy on me either." Gaz said. "I'll take over the hunt for Zim."
"GAZ!" Dib yelled weakly, trying to sit up while the doctors pushed him down.
"You need to rest Dr. Membrane. Your sister got you here just in time. Interesting place for a snake bit. Something really bit you on the butt." The doctor laughed.
"Shut up." Dib said.
"Don't worry, I'll keep you briefed but if what I am thinking is correct, that the snake was a deliberate attack and while those Irkens may think they got time to run, they won't on my watch." Gaz said. "Only I get to cause you doom." She said as she shut the door behind her.
"You two have an..." The doctor treating Dib's bite said, pausing to find the right word. "...unusual dynamic."
"I know." Dib sighed.
Gaz headed out of the medical wing and headed back to the squad who had followed her back. They were going to want to know Dib's condition and prognosis. "Is he okay Ms. Membrane?" One of the squad asked.
"He'll be fine. He's been given anti-venom and will be under observation for a few days but he'll pull through. He's my brother. I made him tough. But to the bigger issue at hand. That was no random snake. If Dib was just being careless and just stepped on one, he probably wouldn't have noticed a thing, the boots he likes to wear are very thick and despite the guy being six feet two inches tall, he likes ones that have a few inches in the soles." Gaz explained.
"So?" One of the guards asked.
"So? By where the snake landed, the fact that there was nowhere where the snake could have fallen from when it hit him, and the footprints in the area, and the fact we were searching the area we were throughly, I am lead to believe it was a desperate move by one of the Irkens we are looking for to slow us down. I will not let them though. We are heading back out to the same location and going to get those Irkens before they get off this planet." Gaz said looking over at the soldier who dared question her.
"They broke into our base, freed our prisoner. Two of the suspected Irkens are the leaders of the Empire we just brought down. If they get off Earth, they could bring worse forces back here." Gaz said.
"But wasn't the Armada the capitol ship of the Irken Empire?" One of the more tired guards asked.
"An Empire as big as theirs was, wouldn't have a back up? Wouldn't want vengeance for what had happened to their leaders and ego? While Earth was defending itself, humans are seen as a stupid race to the rest of the universe. This would be a great insult to their Empire. We may have called down more. If we have their leaders, we have a bargaining chip on keeping our freedom. Now you see why I am the one leading this project and you are the ones looking." Gaz said. "Any questions?"
"No mam..." The guard said.
"Good. Now back to the scene. It has been about 90 minutes since we had to evac. The Escape pod was pretty badly damaged so there is no way it could be fixed in that time under reasonable assumption, even with advanced technology. If we move quickly, we may catch them in the open." Gaz explained.
"Yes mam!" The men saluted as they headed back into the desert.
So how was that? Good? Bad? Short? Long? Let me know in a review. Like I said before, I imagine being in the situation Zim was, he'd cool off a lot. 20 years gives you a lot of time to think. I also imagine that Gaz would be very good tactically because of all the games she had played and can apply it to the situation at hand. I don't have much else to say here, so remember to read (well you just did) and to review. Ciao for now,
otherrealmwriter
aka
Realm