Disclaimer: YAYYYY! I KILLED MYSELF! I'M DEAD! YAYYYY! I'M A GHOST! I CAN FLY! I CAN WALK THROUGH WALLS! I CAN WALK THROUGH WA- *crashes into wall, collapses unconscious onto ground.*

A few minutess later, a woman with long, curly auburn-blonde hair and very green eyes walks in, stepping daintily around Kat23a. She looks straight at the camera and clears her throat.

Jade: Hello, I'm Kat23a's alternate personality. Since Kat is currently incapacitated *glances at Kat23a sprawled on the floor*, I will be introducing this chapter. Kat23a does not own any characters in this fic except herself and me, although I do not usually appear in any IZ fics. Obsession is Kat's territory. She also told me that she does not care if people insert her into their fics, even if they insult, torture, or kill her. She apparently does not mind dying. *glances at Kat23a again. Kat23a has a stupid cross-eyed smile on her face, and is giggling uncontrollably* I believe that Kat would also like to apologize for one particular off-camera scene in the last chapter. She wanted to keep the whole fic on-camera, but having the killer watching the coalition of the two mortal enemies was, as she put it, "WAY too dramatic to pass up." Having said that, I urge you to enjoy the show.

Jade walks back the way she came. As she passes by Kat23a, she leans over and whispers;

Jade: Well, THAT was embarrassing. Next time, do your own introductions.

Kat23a: (still cross eyed) But I'm dead! *giggle, giggle*

Jade throws up her hands, gives a disgusted sigh, and leaves.






-- ~ --
The screen pops to life, showing a lot of static. Slowly the static focuses, showing a pair of familiar boots...

Dib: (sounding subdued) Got it.

The picture swings up, and Dib blocks the image for a minute, as he puts the camera on something tall, facing the room. As he moves out of the way, it can be seen that there are about ten people in the small room. The room seems like an unused dressing room, as there are mirrors and chairs, but little in the way of decoration. As Dib moves to the front of the room, another familiar voice is heard.

Zim: (sounding annoyed but also subdued) Tell me again, WHY must we ....uh.... "film" the rest of this horrible night? It is obvious that your filthy human documentary will never be finished.

Dib: *sigh* Since we've seen all the clues that came from the old tape, it makes sense to keep taping in case we catch more clues.

Zim: CLUES??! Clues for what, earth-stink?! I refuse to set foot outside this room, and I REFUSE to look for that Hello-Jean demon!

Dib: It's HALLOWEEN! And, well... we should probably stop looking for it. It will most likely come to us. BUT, we should know what we are trying to stay away from. Therefore, we need the clues.

Zim: YOU IDIOTIC HUMANS! WE HAVE NO NEED OF CLUES! IF AN EVIL MONSTER SWOOPS DOWN ON US, WE ARE THE SAME WHETHER WE KNOW WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE OR NOT! DEAD! DEEEEEEEAAAAAD! DECEASED, NONEXISTENT, NON- LIIIIIVIIIING!

Zim said the last while hanging onto the collar of Dib's coat, spitting the words into Dib's face. Dib looks strangely unaffected, and his eyes are a little glassy.

Dib: (quietly, scary shadows are back) I didn't want to say this out loud, but I would like the thing that killed me to be brought to justice, and I would like to give the police evidence of how I died.

Zim: WHAT??! WHAT ARE YOU talking abouuu....*gets it* oooooooh... *looks sick, and a little red*

All the people in the room who were listening look at Dib wide-eyed, and huddle a little closer together.

Skoolkid: So you think that we won't-

Dib: I don't know what I think, right now. But I do know that we should stick together from now on, NO MATTER WHAT. Now, I want to show what we learned from the first video, and summarize for the camera what happened to the groups that weren't taped. Besides the one image of the demon, or whatever it is, that Kat23a showed in the main room, we also found this:

The tape, which had been stopped to a certain point, began.

NOTE TO ALL READING THIS: For this video clip of the past and all other video clips of the past, the clip will begin with a **** sign, and end with a **** sign, also. Just so you don't get confused. ^_^

****Insane Director Dude: PLACES, EVERYOOOONE! (Ignores the fact that all except Dib have been in their places for the last fifteen minutes) LIIIIIIIIIIGHTS! CAMERAAAAA! ActioooOOOOOOOON!

The scene begins again, just as it did in the first place. Dib begins ranting to Gaz, who couldn't care less. He just had finished saying that he was going to send the pictures to Mysterious Mysteries when there was a loud creaking sound from overhead. Everyone looked up, and then started screaming and running. The camera whirled up, and showed that one of the giant floodlights directly over the cafeteria set was coming loose. The camera caught a quick glimpse of a tall, dark shadow running away, and then the light crashed down to the set. ****

Dib: (stopping the tape, than fast forwarding it) Did you all catch that? That was the first image of our murderer. The next time he shows up was the scene that Kat23a showed you, *notices that the tape is at the next point he wants to show, and stops it* with the disappearance of Gir. A little after Kat showed that tape of Gir's disappearance, Kat set the camera down to get some pizza. When I looked over that section of the tape, I found something pretty surprising, that none of us realized had happened. It was...well, I suppose that I had better show you:

****Kat23a runs to dark corner, sets down the camera so that it's facing the mob, and runs after Dib, yelling "Wait for me! Save me pepperoni!" There's still a leaf sticking out of one of her sneakers. The screen films the mob for several more minutes, then quiet footsteps are heard behind the camera. It is picked up (gee, this sounds familiar). The person holding it is evidently much taller than Gir, or even Kat23a. The camera slowly pans over the mob, then alights on the form of the Insane Director Dude, who is still lying unconscious on the floor. The screen gets closer, and a low chuckle is heard. Insane Director Dude is suddenly dragged towards the camera, but the hand that is doing the dragging can't be seen. There is a low grunt, and the screen wobbles for a bit, then straightens. Whoever is holding the camera evidently just threw the Insane Director Dude over his/her/it's shoulder, since one of Insane Director Dude's feet can be seen in the corner of the screen. The picture turns, and begins to head towards another hallway, though not the main control hallway. As it enters the hallway, voices can be heard towards the end, around the corner.

Nervous Sounding Girl: I-I-I really think th-that we should go b-back.

Another Nervous Sounding Girl: Yeah, I think I heard the word "pizza."

Keef: And who knows where that monster is!

Heroic-Sounding Guy: No! We promised to find Gir! We have to stay until we find Gir!

The camera moves past a large switch on the wall, there is a click, and the lights go out in the hallway.

Not-So-Heroic-Sounding Guy: Uh, on second thought, pizza sounds good right now. Let's go.

The camera turns the corner, and shows eight small forms heading right for them. They stop suddenly, and one of the girls gives a faint scream. There is a thud, and Insane Director Dude can be seen landing on the floor. The low, evil chuckle can be heard again, and a dark hand comes up, putting the lens cap over the camera. There are multiple screams, which are each suddenly cut short. There is a THONK, as if the camera was set down hard on the ground, and then the sound of several things being dragged away. For an indeterminate amount of time, all that can be heard is the pizza mob. Then, the soft footsteps come back, and there is the sound of the camera being picked up. The lens cap is taken off, revealing the dark hallway. The picture moves forward, and turns the corner. As it passes the light switch, another small click is heard, and the lights go on again. The picture moves back out into the main room, then to the set showing the inside of Dib's house. The camera is put back in the same place it was before, and the footsteps can be heard walking away.****

Dib stops the tape again, sets it on fast forward, and looks towards the group solemnly. Everybody seems stunned, and almost all are shivering, or clutching each other, or have tears in their eyes. Even Zim seems speechless at such cold brutality.

Dib: We know that we are not dealing with any sane being here. Not only to murder, but to /tape/ themselves doing it... The last look we have of our murderer is when Group 2 was attacked. Kat23a had the camera at that time... *stops tape, and presses 'play'*

****Ked: (pushing the button to send a message) Acknowledged, Group 1! Hurry. Group 3, can you read us?

Walkie-talkie:*static*

Ked: Group 3? Group 1? ANYBODY?

Kat23a: Um, Ked, maybe you shouldn't ask for anybod-

Walkie-talkie: (very clearly) I'M RIGHT BEHIND YOU!

Everyone yelled and spun around, where a dark, barely-glimpsed figure was standing. The camera was tilting wildly, and only a quick glimpse appeared of the figure, but it seemed to be very tall, very thin, and its abnormally long arms appeared to end in points. ****

Dib: *stopping the tape* There it is. That's the creature who's after us.

Everybody sat silently, staring at the apparition that had changed their lives so quickly. It was hard to tell whether the being was even human or not.

Skoolkid: Why? Why /us/?

Dib: Why us? Why anybody. It is Halloween, and who knows what evil lurks these halls, hidden during the rest of the year?

Skoolkid: Well, why di-

Dib: (really on a roll now) Who knows what DEMONS haunted our unwary souls, only to be set FREE on this most unfortunate of nights?

Skoolkid: But what abou-


Dib: (creepy shadows are back) WHO KNOWS WHAT CREATURES PREY ON OUR SOULS, FEASTING ON OUR INNERMOST DREAMS, ONLY TO WALK THE EARTH WITH US MORTALS ON THIS NIGHT???! (thunder and lightning flashes, Dibs coat streams out behind him, infernal fires rage in the background)

Zim: O.O

Everyone Else: O_o

Dib: (suddenly switching back to normal) ..but I am getting off the subject. I should summarize what happened to the other two groups after Group 2's tragedy. Our group was going rather slowly-

Annoying Guy: (quietly) Yeah, because Tweedledee and Tweedledum had to carry an entire arsenal on their backs...

Dib: AS I was saying, we were going rather slowly, so we only had searched three rooms when we got the walkie-talkie call from Group 2. It was extremely static-y and hard to hear, but we figured that they were in the prop room and moved out-

Annoying Guy: Slowly.

Dib: (giving him Look of Death) we moved out towards the prop room. To increase our speed, certain members of our group discarded certain weapons on the way...

Annoying Guy: *snicker, snicker*

Dib: ...but it still took us ten minutes to get there. When we arrived, all we found of Group 2 was the camera lying on it's side, and these.

Dib points to several objects lying on the floor. They include a scrap of cloth, a piece of electrical wire that's broken at one end, and half of a spork. Everyone looks at these and gulps.

Dib: After we discovered that we...were too late, we left for the-

Annoying Guy: Ha, ha! You didn't just LEAVE! You were running like a bunch of sissies! BWAhahahahaha! Hahahaa...erp.

Zim was now pointing his handheld laser at Annoying Guy's face, approximately one inch away from his nose. He was giving the guy his trademark evil grin (he looks so cute when he's mad...).

Zim: I believe YOU were in the lead, weren't you, maggot boy?

Annoying Guy: Errrm... whatever you say, Sir! (something about a blaster aimed point-blank at your nose causes no end of respect and the word "sir" to come to mind immediately)

The crisis being taken care of, Dib continued.

Dib: We left to meet with Group 3, in the main room. What we found there shocked us all. Somehow, this one being had managed to completely destroy the fort that was built, and everybody in Group 3 was missing, except for one person who was hiding in the bathroom, and she's not much help to us...

Everybody looks over in the corner where assistant manager Teri was rocking back and forth, mumbling "The moose! The moose is coming! The moooose!"

Dib: My theory is that the creature attacked Group 3 first, and was able to steal their walkie- talkie to jam Group 2's signal and communicate with them. Now that it has destroyed the other groups, *dramatic pause* it will come after US next.

Everyone: *GULP*

Dib: We have to be on our highest guard. We know this creature has overpowered groups much larger than ours before. Our priority is no longer hunting the monster. It is getting through this night alive. If my theory is correct, than the creature's powers will be much weaker after Halloween night is over. It's main attack on the other two groups happened exactly at midnight, when it's power was strongest, but that doesn't mean that it's weak now. We have to stay together at all times, and try to stay in one spot. We all have weapons here, right?

Everyone holds up pieces of props that have been made into clubs, spears, whips, or a complicated atomic splitter beam. (Hmmm, I wonder who has the last one...) Dib holds up his own automatically-reloading film reel thrower.

Dib: All right, we're ready.

*Jeopardy theme song playing in the background* The camera tapes as several hours pass, showing the people in the room at first gathering together, expecting the killer at any moment, then slouching and looking bored out of their minds, then playing Pictionary, then forming an angry mob and forcing a gag into Teri's mouth (she's been going on about the moose for over an hour now), then breaking into separate groups, and making shadow puppets, and trying to learn how to Riverdance, and painting faces on each of their fingers and giving each finger a name, and....

It is now 3:00 in the morning. Zim is banging his head against the wall, and, by the size of the dent there, he's been doing it for some time. There are now three people gathered around Teri, and they all are rocking back and forth. Above them is a hand-painted sign that says "The Clan Of The Moose." Dib and four others are playing a game of Old Maid, only, since they don't have any cards, they are using silverware, pocket change, bits of lint, and hairbrushes as the cards.

Dib: (putting down the spork half, a blackened penny, a shiny penny, and a large dust bunny) Pick a card. (He inches the dust bunny forward a little)

Person on Dib's right: Hey! You're trying to trick me! That dust bunny is the old maid!

Dib: No, it's not!

Person across from Dib: Yeah, I thought the styrofoam cup was the old maid!

Skoolkid who just walked up: Hey!

Person on Dib's left: No, it's not. The broken match was the old maid!

Skoolkid: Um, guys?

Dib: You're all wrong! The stale cookie half was the old maid!

Skoolkid: I really have to talk to you!

Person diagonally across from Dib: Umm....I think I just ate the old maid.

Skoolkid: This is important!

Dib: You ATE the old maid??! That cookie was at least three months old!

Skoolkid: REALLY important!!

Person diagonally across from Dib: Well, it's been a long time since that pizza...

Person on Dib's right: (looking at her "cards") How the heck am I supposed to know if I have two of a kind or not? Nothing matches!

Skoolkid: HEY!!!

Everyone in the "old maid" group looks up.

Skoolkid: I have to go to the bathroom.

Everyone in the room is suddenly interested in the conversation, even Teri. They all look scared.

Dib: ....How bad?

Skoolkid: I've been holding it for over two hours.

All the nearby humans wince. Zim looks confused.

Zim: Holding WHAT?

Dib: (ignoring Zim) There's no way you can last any longer?

The skoolkid shakes his head empathetically.

Zim: LAST? Is he going to rot? What is he holding that he must put down in the bathroom? Why can't he do it here?

One of the old maid players leans down and whispers something in Zim's ear. Zim's eyes grow wide as he listens, and he turns red again.

Zim: OH, you humans make me SICK! /THAT/ is the purpose of your BATHROOM??!!!

Dib: (still ignoring Zim) We can't just let him go alone. We all have to go with. We stick together.

Zim: I will NEVER go near one of your STINKING HUMAN BATHROOMS again as long as I LIVE!!! I have NEVER been so DISGUSTED!!!

Dib: (losing it and turning on Zim) Well, you ALIENS might have a better way of maintaining personal hygiene, but us humans have to do it the old-fashioned way. But don't worry, you can stay here all alone while we all go to the bathrooms.

Zim: ^_^* Uh, well, by /never/ I meant...

Dib: (yet again ignoring him) Let's move out!

Dib grabs the camera and heads for the door, with everyone following close behind. The door swings open, and everybody moves out, trying to be as quiet as possible. Even Teri got up from her spot in the corner to follow at the back of the group. They moved down the hallway quickly until they reached the bathrooms. The camera swivelled as Dib turned to talk to the group.

Dib: (quietly) Okay, I...*pauses and looks over group* Where's Teri?

This makes everybody jump and look around nervously.

Annoying Guy: (also quietly) Aw, she's crazy. She probably wandered off on her own.

Dib: *sigh* That may be so, but we can't take any chances. Everybody, get into the boy's bathroom.

All The Girls: WHAT?!


Skoolkid: I'm not going with /them/ in there!

Dib: SHH! We all need to stick together at all times. *to skoolkid* You can go in the stall.

As it turns out, nearly everybody has to go, and so they all took turns with the three stalls. Zim turns redder with each person who goes in, but he seems to be managing. Eventually everybody was done except for Annoying Guy, who was one of the first people to get a stall. People are getting impatient...

Random Girl: Are you almost done in there?

Stall:

Random Guy: C'mon, we have to go as soon as we can!

Stall:

Random Guy 2: Did you fall in?

Stall:

Random Guy 2: Uhh . . . are you okay in there?

Stall:

Random Guy 2: Hey! I think we've got a problem!

Zim: What? Did the filthy worm sludge drown?

Random Guy 1: Maybe. He's not answering.

Dib: *to stall door* ARE YOU IN THERE?

Stall:

Dib: IF YOU DO NOT ANSWER IN TWENTY SECONDS, WE ARE COMING IN!

Stall:

Dib puts the camera on a sink, counts to twenty, then starts body-slamming the door. The door doesn't budge. While this is going on, Random Guy 2 crawls underneath the stall and opens it up from the inside. Dib, who was about to charge the door at that moment, runs in and would have landed in the toilet if he hadn't ran into Random Guy 2.

Random Guy 2: OOOF!

Dib begins to apologize, but then freezes as he sees what is inside the stall. The others gather around the stall door, and, one by one, they also freeze when they see what is inside.

Zim: Well? Is he done? Can we go?

No one answers. They simply continue to stare. A few begin shivering.

Zim: ANSWER MEEE!

No one even notices. Zim finally gets up himself, pushes a path to the door, and looks in. He, too, freezes. For one moment he stares, then he screams (he's cute when he's scared, too! ^_^). This triggers off everybody else, and the bathroom is full of noise for several minutes as everyone screams and races each other to be the one out of the stall first. One person ran out the door, but none bothered following. The rest simply ran to the farthest corner and stared in terror at the stall. Now that the view is unobstructed, the camera coldly records what has scared these people so much: On the wall above the toilet is the word 'DOOM', written in what looks like wet, red paint. However, lying on the toilet back below the word is proof that it is not paint: a bloody hand, cut crudely off at the wrist.


-~-

A few moments later, everybody has recovered enough to stop gibbering like a bunch of idiots. The group of eight is now a group of five. Zim, Dib, two boys, and a girl. Dib finally speaks up, looking much less like a hero and much more like a scared boy than he has ever since he found his sister was missing.

Dib: We didn't hear him! How could we not have heard him!

Zim: (looking terrified and about three years old) How could he have gotten in? He's invisible! He's here right now! *clutches Random Boy 1 without realizing it*

Random Boy 1: *whimper*

Random Girl: *pointing up* Look! The ceiling tiles!

Dib shakily makes his way over to the camera and points it up at the tiles above. They are the kind that resemble hole-filled cardboard, and generally find their way into all the cheapest buildings. They are supported on square pieces of metal throughout the ceiling, and can easily be pushed up. Or... pulled up. The square directly over Annoying Guy's stall is up a little, and slightly cock-eyed, as if it was put back sloppily.

Dib: It...was right above our heads the whole time. It....It might be here /right now/!


Zim steps forward a little at this realization, and the other three gather together in fear. Suddenly, several things seem to happen at once. All the lights go out, here is a crashing sound, everybody screams, and a loud THUMP is heard directly behind the three in the group. Their screaming becomes more urgent, and starts to become muffled. While this is happening, Dib is rushing forward, carrying the camera. Zim jumps forward at the crash, and then turns to face Dib, who is running straight at him. Everything seems to be in slow motion. Dib makes pushing- away motions at Zim, and yells "RUUUUN!" Zim's ruby-red eyes widen at this, and he begins to run towards the door. There is a snarling sound behind them, and Dib crashes into Zim, who crashes into the door. They fall out together, but manage to keep on their feet, and run down the hallway side by side, previous rivalries forgotten. The snarling sounds fall back a bit, and there is a thumping, as if whatever chased them has just bumped into something and stumbled. As they run, Dib begins to yell.

Dib: WE CAN'T STAY ON THE LOWER LEVEL AND LOCK OURSELVES IN ANY OF THE ROOMS! IT COULD GET US BY CLIMBING THROUGH THE CEILING LIKE IT DID BEFORE! WE HAVE TO GO UP, TO THE RAFTERS!

Zim: OKAY! THERE'S A LADDER UP THIS WAY!

Zim veers off into a hallway on the left, and Dib follows. At the end of the hallway is a rusty metal ladder, leading up into the shadowy rafters. Zim begins to climb up it as quickly as he can, using his metal legs to propel him forward faster than Dib can keep up. Dib follows, but Zim is far ahead on the ladder. Also, Dib is continuing to tape, perhaps forgetting that he can release the camera, and can only use one hand to climb. When Dib is about halfway up, the ladder suddenly shakes, and there is a fast-approaching banging sound, as something begins to climb after them. It is gaining. Zim makes it to the landing at the top of the ladder, and leaps off. Dib crawls up as quickly as he can, listening to the footsteps below gaining...gaining. He gets to the landing, and throws his one hand around a metal pipe to pull himself up. Suddenly, the picture is yanked back and Dib screams. Zim whirls around at the sound. The camera clatters to the ground of the landing, and begins taping Dib's hand.

Dib: It has me!

Zim leaps forward, grabs Dib's hand, and starts pulling. It is obviously hopeless, and Dib's hand begins to slip. Zim strains, pulling with all his might. Dib's voice suddenly stops him.

Dib: Zim. It's hopeless. *he slips further* Zim...please...take the camera. It's my only hope! *he slips a little further* Zim! Take the camera and run! Do it! Now!

Zim hesitates, then lets go of Dib's hand and picks up the camera, rotating it to face Dib's pale, sweating face. His hand is only hanging on by three fingers, and they are slipping.

Dib: Zim! Run! Now!

Zim begins to move away slowly. He looks away, then looks back at Dib. Even a former enemy was better than facing that...thing alone.

Dib: GO!

Zim turns and runs. Behind, Dib screams. Suddenly, like so many screams before his, the scream is cut short, leaving behind a silence that is much more terrible. Zim runs to the end of the landing, where there is a platform that leads out to the iron beams that support the walls and roof of the main room. There is a sudden clattering sound behind him. Without hesitating, he runs out onto one of the beams, deploying his metal legs to help him run. He runs to a cross- strut on this beam, then quickly runs onto the strut. The sounds behind him come closer. He grabs a cable hanging above him and swings across the vast empty space above the many sets to another beam, and continues running. For a few minutes, it seems as if the creature has lost him, then the ominous footsteps resume their pace behind him. Zim begins to use every trick he can think of, racing to the end of a beam and jumping out into empty space, swaying the picture dizzyingly, only to grab another beam with his mechanical legs at the last moment, jumping onto lights and swinging them from one strut to another, leaping from beam to beam and using his small stature to good advantage to escape, but still the footsteps come ever closer and closer.... Finally, Zim is cornered on a dark beam in one corner of the cavernous room. He turns to face his adversary, who is still cloaked in shadows, seeming to tower higher than the Tallest. The creature moves forward, step by deliberate step, know its victim cannot escape. Zim back up along the beam until he comes to a wall. His sources of escape at an end, he begins to babble, bargaining for his life.

Zim: So, you like to kill people, right? Well, I have a plan to take over this entire planet! Uhh...if you let me go, I'll let you be my commanding officer! Really! Er..maybe not. Um, you can be my executioner! You can kill hordes of people every day! I promise, on my honor as an Irken Invader! So, what do you say?

The shadowy being did not pause, but continued to stride forward.

Zim: No, huh? Well, I have a lot of technology you could use! I'd be willing to give you any of it! I have this needle that will turn anybody you prick with it into boloney!

It came still closer.

Zim: (completely losing it) PLEASE! PLEASE, DON'T KILL ME! I'M TOO GOOD-LOOKING TO DIEEEE! STOP! I COMMAND YOU! PLEAAAAAAASE!

The creature actually paused for a moment, and considered it's prey.

Creature: No.

Zim: Please...at least show me who you are. I want to see my death.

The creature paused, then stepped forward into a beam of moonlight (there was a skylight right there, okay? Don't mess with drama). Zim gasped at the apparition, not only in astonishment, but in /recognition/.

Zim: It's /you/! J....J....


-- ~ --


YEEEEESSSSS! THE MOTHER OF ALL CLIFFHANGERS! *does the "I'm evil and I love it" dance* This one is going in the record books! Yeeeeee-haaaaaaaaw!!!! *realizes she just said "yee-haw" and blushes* Um.. well, anyway I want to apologize for not putting this chapter out sooner, but it turned out that I was gone for most of the weekend. There's only one chapter left (unless I make an epilogue), and, since I had so much trouble finishing this one on time, I'm not going to say when I'm finishing the grand finale. Don't worry, though, I'm gonna do an announcementfic when I finish the whole story. So...um...R&R, don't be a stranger, put me in all your fics (hee, hee, I snuck that one in there), and KEEP WRITING! (I read almost all the fics that come out) Arrividerchi! Ciao! Hasta luego! Guten morgen! (Oh, wait, that's "good morning.")