Chapter Four: A Battle For Life...and Death
Zim put his laser down and propped up against a boulder. Though it was a small planet, the vast majority of it was desert. It looked a bit like Mars, but without quite as many rocks, and the sand wasn't nearly as red. Everything here seemed to have a dull, dowdy appearance. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the human attempting to defeat an imaginary Zim. The alien knew the stinkbeast human wasn't nearly as learned as he in the fine arts of fighting, but he had determination. Sometimes that was all that was needed to succeed. He brought his laser up, and sent it crashing down on a dead tree ahead of him. 'I mustn't fail,' he thought, 'Mel's life depends on me.'
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Dib dropped his laser down and heard it clank against the dirt-dusty ground as a staggering pain hit his arm. That hit with the laser had been more effective than he'd thought. 'This is hopeless,' in silence he contemplated, 'I mean, here I am, a kid with a laser, and there he is, an alien with advanced technology and years of training. What have I got?' He glanced down at his watch that Mel had given him on her first visit for his birthday. As she had said, 'a seven-month late present MUST be good!' Thinking about her talking made him smile. Immediately his attention turned back to the fallen laser. Without another moment's delay, he picked it back up and swished it into the air. 'If I'm ever going to see her say anything again, I'm going to have to start practicing.'
An hour passed. "Pitiful human! Do you dare to face me?!"
"Yeah, I dare. Sure you can beat me?"
"Of course! How dare you insult me?!"
"With confidence."
"Enough of this! Like I said, human, the rules are simple: Fight until you are dead. I set the Voot Cruiser's alarm for about an hour, so when the whistle sounds, we begin." They stood there, glaring at the other, bracing themselves for what was about to come. Their muscles tightened, as did their squints. The planet's sun was very hot indeed, and far too intense for them to bear for much longer. A whistle sounded, and for a moment, they just stood there. Zim was the first to attack, hurtling through the air, and Dib jumped out of the way.
He brought his laser up once more, and swung it at the alien in a blind fury. Zim leapt up, and stabbed him in the shoulder. This sent him tumbling down, and Zim was in the process of rushing him with his laser. To his good fortune, he had fallen against a boulder. Just as he was about to be crushed, he jumped onto the boulder. Instead of him dying, Zim's head collided right into the rock.
Taking advantage of his temporary wooziness, Dib sent his laser crashing down upon the alien's head. Activating his spider legs, Zim chased after the fleeing human, until finally he dashed out of the way. Using his laser, he severed one of the mechanical legs, throwing Zim off balance and forcing him to come down to ground level. From behind Dib, he threw a heavy rock onto the back of his trench coat, thus weighing him down. His laser fell out of reach.
'I can't die,' Dib thought to himself, 'I can't let Mel down. I can't let her be in the same vehicle as that fiend! But what am I going to do? I'm going to die!' With all his force, he attempted to pull himself free of the rock. "Please don't kill me!"
"We already laid the rules down. If you surrender, you die. Oh, and by the way, I know you made up that thing about me dying if you die. Now, pitiful human, meet your doom! Any last words?"
"Yes. I want you to tell my family I love them. And don't forget Mel. I swear, if you harm her one little bit, I'm going to haunt you for the rest of your life!"
"No need to worry about that." As he was about to strike him one final time, Dib looked to the right of him and cried out.
"Look! Mel's coming!"
"What on Irk are you talking about, Dib-worm?"
"Mel! I'm over here! Come over here!" Zim shaded his eyes from the sun.
"What are you talking about, there's no one over there!"
"Yes there is! Look! Mel, come here! Come here!" He collapsed, and the alien checked to see if he was dead. Zim took an odd looking tool out of his backpack.
"Computer, read internal temperature." Within a few seconds, the reply came back.
"Internal temperature is 105 degrees Farenheit."
"105 degrees? That's above the normal temperature for humans. I wonder if he died from heat...interesting." Without another word, he wandered off and back to the Voot, where he saw Mel. "I'm so sorry I had to do that. I know he's your friend, but I can't have your life at risk. I can't have that happen." Her hand began to twitch a little, and Zim looked hopefully at her. Slowly her eyes fluttered open, and she looked up at him.
"W-where are we, Zim? This doesn't look like Dib's house at all."
"I'm sorry. I had to eliminate him."
"What?"
"He made an attempt on your life when I was sleeping."
"He'd never do that!"
"But he did. You had a rash all over your face, like from meat, or water."
"I was in the rain last week, Zim. It must be a delayed reaction."
"Then he didn't...."
"You killed him?! You killed him?! Zim, how could you?"
"I'm sorry, I thought that he had...."
"Wait...where are we?"
"A small planet. We stopped here to fight so we could make sure you would be safe on the way home."
"Home? You don't by any chance mean Irk, do you?"
"Yes."
"Zim, you'll die! Don't!"
"I have to get you to a hospital! And fast, or you'll die!"
"I don't care. I'm staying here. I'm going to find Dib."
"But he's dead!"
"And it's your fault! Zim, I don't care where I am, or what happens to me, just so long as I'm not around a murderer."
"I just wanted you to be safe."
"That's probably what he wanted, too."
"Invader Mel, wait -"
"How dare you call me that? You killed a child, Zim! You know very well he's not equally matched for you!"
"He is really quite an opponent, Mel..."
"Don't start with that! Out! Now! Out of the Voot! I'm going to let you starve out here, die of the heat, whatever comes to be your fate!" She kicked him out, and then flew around the sky. "Computer! Give me the location of all living beings within the area." Her eyes scanned the screen. "That one must be Zim, there's some little lizards, and there! That one must be Dib!"
Mel zoomed in on the image, but found that it was nothing more than a vulture-like creature. After a couple more minutes of searching, she found one more target, and decided to look into that one. Swooping down from the stratosphere, she saw who it was. The top opened to the Cruiser, and she stepped out. "Computer, give me a canteen of water."
"Water?" the computer questioned.
"Yes! H²O! Quickly!" A canteen appeared, and she grabbed it. She then offered it to Dib, who took it gratefully with a quivering hand. Unscrewing the cap, he let the cool liquid fall freely down his throat. When his eyesight recovered, he saw who was there.
"Invader Mel? What are you doing here?"
"I woke up, and Zim told me he killed you. I'm glad he's wrong. Oh how glad I am. I've learned a great deal about humans through you. I almost wish I were human. I'm so very grateful for having known you."
"What do you mean?"
"You've taught me that there is some good and bad in all of us. And I admire you humans. You may get a little too emotional at some times, but too much emotion is better than not enough."
"Yes."
"I don't think anyone in this universe cares about me."
"That's nonsense!"
"No, it's not. Just name one person who cares about me."
"Zim?"
"No. Besides him."
"Miyuki cared about you."
"Not enough. You see, I don't think there is a single Irken out there who truly knows what it means to care. To cry for loss. Someone who knows what it means to love. No one I've ever met cared about me in that way."
"I'm sorry."
"Look at me. I'm hopeless. Nothing ever makes any sense anymore. I'm so confused."
"Maybe things will make more sense on Irk. We'd better hurry."
"Dib, you're not going to Irk. I won't let you die. Miyuki died, and now you. You can't die. I couldn't care less if Zim died, now. I never knew he would have the heart to murder a child."
"He thought I had made an attempt on your life. Don't you think you should give this some more thought? I'd like for him to rot out here, but he's your friend, and I don't want you to suffer more than you have already."
"I don't care his intentions. I just know that he was about to murder a human child. You. And you're my friend, and since you two are enemies, he's liable to do it again." A long silence held the impact of what she had said. "But I need to make sure that Second Tallest Red and Purple don't become the rulers. Or the timeline may be forever ruined. I need you to...no! I can't have you come with me. The shipment of potato chips might come in by then! They're due for next week, but...I can't risk anything. Not when it's your life. Oh, life is such a delicate thing...one minute it's prominent, the next it's scarce. I can't let this happen again. This is my last chance. If I don't succeed in this, I'll lose everything...including my life."
"What do we do?"
"I wish I knew. Come on, we have to go get Zim." Mel directed the Voot to the spot where Zim had been, then scanned the surrounding area. "He's not here. Not anywhere on the planet. Not even his remains."
Zim put his laser down and propped up against a boulder. Though it was a small planet, the vast majority of it was desert. It looked a bit like Mars, but without quite as many rocks, and the sand wasn't nearly as red. Everything here seemed to have a dull, dowdy appearance. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the human attempting to defeat an imaginary Zim. The alien knew the stinkbeast human wasn't nearly as learned as he in the fine arts of fighting, but he had determination. Sometimes that was all that was needed to succeed. He brought his laser up, and sent it crashing down on a dead tree ahead of him. 'I mustn't fail,' he thought, 'Mel's life depends on me.'
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Dib dropped his laser down and heard it clank against the dirt-dusty ground as a staggering pain hit his arm. That hit with the laser had been more effective than he'd thought. 'This is hopeless,' in silence he contemplated, 'I mean, here I am, a kid with a laser, and there he is, an alien with advanced technology and years of training. What have I got?' He glanced down at his watch that Mel had given him on her first visit for his birthday. As she had said, 'a seven-month late present MUST be good!' Thinking about her talking made him smile. Immediately his attention turned back to the fallen laser. Without another moment's delay, he picked it back up and swished it into the air. 'If I'm ever going to see her say anything again, I'm going to have to start practicing.'
An hour passed. "Pitiful human! Do you dare to face me?!"
"Yeah, I dare. Sure you can beat me?"
"Of course! How dare you insult me?!"
"With confidence."
"Enough of this! Like I said, human, the rules are simple: Fight until you are dead. I set the Voot Cruiser's alarm for about an hour, so when the whistle sounds, we begin." They stood there, glaring at the other, bracing themselves for what was about to come. Their muscles tightened, as did their squints. The planet's sun was very hot indeed, and far too intense for them to bear for much longer. A whistle sounded, and for a moment, they just stood there. Zim was the first to attack, hurtling through the air, and Dib jumped out of the way.
He brought his laser up once more, and swung it at the alien in a blind fury. Zim leapt up, and stabbed him in the shoulder. This sent him tumbling down, and Zim was in the process of rushing him with his laser. To his good fortune, he had fallen against a boulder. Just as he was about to be crushed, he jumped onto the boulder. Instead of him dying, Zim's head collided right into the rock.
Taking advantage of his temporary wooziness, Dib sent his laser crashing down upon the alien's head. Activating his spider legs, Zim chased after the fleeing human, until finally he dashed out of the way. Using his laser, he severed one of the mechanical legs, throwing Zim off balance and forcing him to come down to ground level. From behind Dib, he threw a heavy rock onto the back of his trench coat, thus weighing him down. His laser fell out of reach.
'I can't die,' Dib thought to himself, 'I can't let Mel down. I can't let her be in the same vehicle as that fiend! But what am I going to do? I'm going to die!' With all his force, he attempted to pull himself free of the rock. "Please don't kill me!"
"We already laid the rules down. If you surrender, you die. Oh, and by the way, I know you made up that thing about me dying if you die. Now, pitiful human, meet your doom! Any last words?"
"Yes. I want you to tell my family I love them. And don't forget Mel. I swear, if you harm her one little bit, I'm going to haunt you for the rest of your life!"
"No need to worry about that." As he was about to strike him one final time, Dib looked to the right of him and cried out.
"Look! Mel's coming!"
"What on Irk are you talking about, Dib-worm?"
"Mel! I'm over here! Come over here!" Zim shaded his eyes from the sun.
"What are you talking about, there's no one over there!"
"Yes there is! Look! Mel, come here! Come here!" He collapsed, and the alien checked to see if he was dead. Zim took an odd looking tool out of his backpack.
"Computer, read internal temperature." Within a few seconds, the reply came back.
"Internal temperature is 105 degrees Farenheit."
"105 degrees? That's above the normal temperature for humans. I wonder if he died from heat...interesting." Without another word, he wandered off and back to the Voot, where he saw Mel. "I'm so sorry I had to do that. I know he's your friend, but I can't have your life at risk. I can't have that happen." Her hand began to twitch a little, and Zim looked hopefully at her. Slowly her eyes fluttered open, and she looked up at him.
"W-where are we, Zim? This doesn't look like Dib's house at all."
"I'm sorry. I had to eliminate him."
"What?"
"He made an attempt on your life when I was sleeping."
"He'd never do that!"
"But he did. You had a rash all over your face, like from meat, or water."
"I was in the rain last week, Zim. It must be a delayed reaction."
"Then he didn't...."
"You killed him?! You killed him?! Zim, how could you?"
"I'm sorry, I thought that he had...."
"Wait...where are we?"
"A small planet. We stopped here to fight so we could make sure you would be safe on the way home."
"Home? You don't by any chance mean Irk, do you?"
"Yes."
"Zim, you'll die! Don't!"
"I have to get you to a hospital! And fast, or you'll die!"
"I don't care. I'm staying here. I'm going to find Dib."
"But he's dead!"
"And it's your fault! Zim, I don't care where I am, or what happens to me, just so long as I'm not around a murderer."
"I just wanted you to be safe."
"That's probably what he wanted, too."
"Invader Mel, wait -"
"How dare you call me that? You killed a child, Zim! You know very well he's not equally matched for you!"
"He is really quite an opponent, Mel..."
"Don't start with that! Out! Now! Out of the Voot! I'm going to let you starve out here, die of the heat, whatever comes to be your fate!" She kicked him out, and then flew around the sky. "Computer! Give me the location of all living beings within the area." Her eyes scanned the screen. "That one must be Zim, there's some little lizards, and there! That one must be Dib!"
Mel zoomed in on the image, but found that it was nothing more than a vulture-like creature. After a couple more minutes of searching, she found one more target, and decided to look into that one. Swooping down from the stratosphere, she saw who it was. The top opened to the Cruiser, and she stepped out. "Computer, give me a canteen of water."
"Water?" the computer questioned.
"Yes! H²O! Quickly!" A canteen appeared, and she grabbed it. She then offered it to Dib, who took it gratefully with a quivering hand. Unscrewing the cap, he let the cool liquid fall freely down his throat. When his eyesight recovered, he saw who was there.
"Invader Mel? What are you doing here?"
"I woke up, and Zim told me he killed you. I'm glad he's wrong. Oh how glad I am. I've learned a great deal about humans through you. I almost wish I were human. I'm so very grateful for having known you."
"What do you mean?"
"You've taught me that there is some good and bad in all of us. And I admire you humans. You may get a little too emotional at some times, but too much emotion is better than not enough."
"Yes."
"I don't think anyone in this universe cares about me."
"That's nonsense!"
"No, it's not. Just name one person who cares about me."
"Zim?"
"No. Besides him."
"Miyuki cared about you."
"Not enough. You see, I don't think there is a single Irken out there who truly knows what it means to care. To cry for loss. Someone who knows what it means to love. No one I've ever met cared about me in that way."
"I'm sorry."
"Look at me. I'm hopeless. Nothing ever makes any sense anymore. I'm so confused."
"Maybe things will make more sense on Irk. We'd better hurry."
"Dib, you're not going to Irk. I won't let you die. Miyuki died, and now you. You can't die. I couldn't care less if Zim died, now. I never knew he would have the heart to murder a child."
"He thought I had made an attempt on your life. Don't you think you should give this some more thought? I'd like for him to rot out here, but he's your friend, and I don't want you to suffer more than you have already."
"I don't care his intentions. I just know that he was about to murder a human child. You. And you're my friend, and since you two are enemies, he's liable to do it again." A long silence held the impact of what she had said. "But I need to make sure that Second Tallest Red and Purple don't become the rulers. Or the timeline may be forever ruined. I need you to...no! I can't have you come with me. The shipment of potato chips might come in by then! They're due for next week, but...I can't risk anything. Not when it's your life. Oh, life is such a delicate thing...one minute it's prominent, the next it's scarce. I can't let this happen again. This is my last chance. If I don't succeed in this, I'll lose everything...including my life."
"What do we do?"
"I wish I knew. Come on, we have to go get Zim." Mel directed the Voot to the spot where Zim had been, then scanned the surrounding area. "He's not here. Not anywhere on the planet. Not even his remains."