Family Matters
Zim paced in his lab. What had that female been thinking? Defender programming was dangerous!
The reason it had been outlawed had been the destructive nature of that program. Based on protection it also caused intense jealousy in the Irken, in this case half-breed. The jealousy could erupt when an invasion of the defenders planet or protectorate was initiated.
In other words, if Zim continued his invasion he was more than toast. He was toast-crumbs.
"This explains even more. Perhaps if I convince Dib to be on my side." He paused. "No! He would never do that!" He went back to pacing.
He took some steps to his communicator that was linked to Irk. "I should tell the Tallest about this." He put a hand over the keys. "They'll fix this."
He keyed in the link to activate. Instead of reaching the tallest he found Mera glaring back.
"Hello Zim." She chirped. "You wouldn't happen to be about to tell good ol' Purple and Red about my little boy. Now are you?" She gave him a look he immediately feared.
"Um, no! Of course...not." He shrank down a bit then remembered his rank and straightened up.
"Well, anyway. I'm jamming your transmissions until I arrive. I'm almost there." She adjusted a few controls on the Voot Runner she was in.
"What?" Zim nearly screamed.
She nodded. "I'll be there by tomorrow."
"But it took me six months to get here!" Zim said. He felt like he was being shown up here.
"Yes but you wandered around for a good five months now didn't you."
He laughed nervously. "I uh..."
She glanced away from the screen. "Oops, gotta go." The screen went dark.
Zim tried to re-contact Irk but he only got static. "Brashikvaning Female!" He screeched. I won't translate, that's dirty.
* * *
The Next Night
Dib sat quietly on the roof of his house watching the moon go from one side of the sky to the other.
Not long ago the sky he now stared at gave him a mystery. Now that he knew a part of that mystery, and knew that he himself was part of it, it only brought him emptiness.
His mother was a sickeningly sweet but almost emotionless alien. His father wasn't much better, but he was human. Gaz was no help and the only person he could get any answers from was he mortal enemy.
His life couldn't be any worse.
"So this is how you spend your time is it? Pathetic, even for something that's only half Human."
Dib sat up quickly. "What are 'you' doing here?" He demanded glaring hard at Zim.
"Oh nothing. I just wanted to do a test." Zim said.
Dib couldn't see his Voot Runner or Gir, or anything else that would spell trap. Even though Zims' sudden appearance did scream it, he was curious.
"Test?"
"Yes Dib." Zims' face took on a sinister look. "I am here to invade your planet. To take it for it's resources then throw it away when I am done." He paused watching Dibs' reaction.
Dibs' right eye began to twitch.
"I am also here to take your race into slavery. To take you into slavery, far from here. Earth will be mine."
"I won't let you." Dib said.
Zim tilted his head. He hadn't quite caught what Dib had said. "What was that?"
"I won't let you!" The explosion of temper had been a bit more than Zim had expected.
Until now Zim had not told Dib of his plans full force like that. The 'Defender' programming must not have caught it even though Dib had.
Dib suddenly rushed him, both of them landing hard on the roof. He shook Zim hard. "You leave Earth! Do you understand me? Leave it alone!"
Zims' spider legs came out and pulled Dib off of him. "Stop squirming! I had to test the strength of your programming!"
Dib relaxed but stayed suspended in the air by Zims' spider legs. "So, you won't do all that stuff you said?"
"Um...no."
"Liar!" Dib began to thrash around again trying to get free.
"Alright Zim put your brother down."
Zim recognized that voice.
Dib did too.
"Mom?" Dib asked. "But you're, you're back on, aren't you?" He mangled his sentence but she seemed to understand.
"Not any more my little baby-kins!" She was maybe half a foot shorter than the professor. That fact alone made Zim uneasy.
Zim set Dib down. "What do you mean by 'brother'?"
Mera walked across the roof to the two rivals. "You weren't in the 'altered genetics ward', were you Zim." It was more a statement than a question.
"No." He said not quite understanding. Zim was one of those rare Irkens created through harvested egg and sperm. He had parentals even if he didn't know who they were. He was still grown in a tube and trained like any other Irken.
She knelt down beside them. "You put it together."
Suddenly it snapped into place. "You!" He nearly shrieked. "But, but!"
"Zim you know as well as I do that I would have had at least some of my reproductive cells removed when I was young." Mera said. She patted Dib on the head. "My you got taller."
Zims' eyes fluttered shut and he collapsed forward being caught by an automatic response in his spider legs.
Dib stared first at his mother, then at Zim, then back at her. "You mean he's my, my, Zims' my brother?"
Mera nodded. "Yes. That's right. Well Half-brother anyway." She smiled at him.
Dibs' eyes rolled back and he too fainted only it was Mera who caught him.
"Oh dear. Membrane!"
"Yes lovie?" Membrane asked as he unexplainably poked his head up above the roofs edge.
"They've both fainted. Help me get them inside."
"Of course Love muffin!"
"Thanks Sugar Baby." She gave him a quick kiss.
Mera picked up Zim while Membrane picked up Dib. They carried them both inside to wait for them to wake up.
Zim paced in his lab. What had that female been thinking? Defender programming was dangerous!
The reason it had been outlawed had been the destructive nature of that program. Based on protection it also caused intense jealousy in the Irken, in this case half-breed. The jealousy could erupt when an invasion of the defenders planet or protectorate was initiated.
In other words, if Zim continued his invasion he was more than toast. He was toast-crumbs.
"This explains even more. Perhaps if I convince Dib to be on my side." He paused. "No! He would never do that!" He went back to pacing.
He took some steps to his communicator that was linked to Irk. "I should tell the Tallest about this." He put a hand over the keys. "They'll fix this."
He keyed in the link to activate. Instead of reaching the tallest he found Mera glaring back.
"Hello Zim." She chirped. "You wouldn't happen to be about to tell good ol' Purple and Red about my little boy. Now are you?" She gave him a look he immediately feared.
"Um, no! Of course...not." He shrank down a bit then remembered his rank and straightened up.
"Well, anyway. I'm jamming your transmissions until I arrive. I'm almost there." She adjusted a few controls on the Voot Runner she was in.
"What?" Zim nearly screamed.
She nodded. "I'll be there by tomorrow."
"But it took me six months to get here!" Zim said. He felt like he was being shown up here.
"Yes but you wandered around for a good five months now didn't you."
He laughed nervously. "I uh..."
She glanced away from the screen. "Oops, gotta go." The screen went dark.
Zim tried to re-contact Irk but he only got static. "Brashikvaning Female!" He screeched. I won't translate, that's dirty.
* * *
The Next Night
Dib sat quietly on the roof of his house watching the moon go from one side of the sky to the other.
Not long ago the sky he now stared at gave him a mystery. Now that he knew a part of that mystery, and knew that he himself was part of it, it only brought him emptiness.
His mother was a sickeningly sweet but almost emotionless alien. His father wasn't much better, but he was human. Gaz was no help and the only person he could get any answers from was he mortal enemy.
His life couldn't be any worse.
"So this is how you spend your time is it? Pathetic, even for something that's only half Human."
Dib sat up quickly. "What are 'you' doing here?" He demanded glaring hard at Zim.
"Oh nothing. I just wanted to do a test." Zim said.
Dib couldn't see his Voot Runner or Gir, or anything else that would spell trap. Even though Zims' sudden appearance did scream it, he was curious.
"Test?"
"Yes Dib." Zims' face took on a sinister look. "I am here to invade your planet. To take it for it's resources then throw it away when I am done." He paused watching Dibs' reaction.
Dibs' right eye began to twitch.
"I am also here to take your race into slavery. To take you into slavery, far from here. Earth will be mine."
"I won't let you." Dib said.
Zim tilted his head. He hadn't quite caught what Dib had said. "What was that?"
"I won't let you!" The explosion of temper had been a bit more than Zim had expected.
Until now Zim had not told Dib of his plans full force like that. The 'Defender' programming must not have caught it even though Dib had.
Dib suddenly rushed him, both of them landing hard on the roof. He shook Zim hard. "You leave Earth! Do you understand me? Leave it alone!"
Zims' spider legs came out and pulled Dib off of him. "Stop squirming! I had to test the strength of your programming!"
Dib relaxed but stayed suspended in the air by Zims' spider legs. "So, you won't do all that stuff you said?"
"Um...no."
"Liar!" Dib began to thrash around again trying to get free.
"Alright Zim put your brother down."
Zim recognized that voice.
Dib did too.
"Mom?" Dib asked. "But you're, you're back on, aren't you?" He mangled his sentence but she seemed to understand.
"Not any more my little baby-kins!" She was maybe half a foot shorter than the professor. That fact alone made Zim uneasy.
Zim set Dib down. "What do you mean by 'brother'?"
Mera walked across the roof to the two rivals. "You weren't in the 'altered genetics ward', were you Zim." It was more a statement than a question.
"No." He said not quite understanding. Zim was one of those rare Irkens created through harvested egg and sperm. He had parentals even if he didn't know who they were. He was still grown in a tube and trained like any other Irken.
She knelt down beside them. "You put it together."
Suddenly it snapped into place. "You!" He nearly shrieked. "But, but!"
"Zim you know as well as I do that I would have had at least some of my reproductive cells removed when I was young." Mera said. She patted Dib on the head. "My you got taller."
Zims' eyes fluttered shut and he collapsed forward being caught by an automatic response in his spider legs.
Dib stared first at his mother, then at Zim, then back at her. "You mean he's my, my, Zims' my brother?"
Mera nodded. "Yes. That's right. Well Half-brother anyway." She smiled at him.
Dibs' eyes rolled back and he too fainted only it was Mera who caught him.
"Oh dear. Membrane!"
"Yes lovie?" Membrane asked as he unexplainably poked his head up above the roofs edge.
"They've both fainted. Help me get them inside."
"Of course Love muffin!"
"Thanks Sugar Baby." She gave him a quick kiss.
Mera picked up Zim while Membrane picked up Dib. They carried them both inside to wait for them to wake up.