Chapter Three: My Leader, My Friend
Mel fainted promptly. Dib called Zim's attention, and the two tried to revive her without dumping water over her. "What happened?"
"I don't know. I just asked what was wrong, said 'Invader Mel,' and she said Miyuki, and then fainted."
"Miyuki? Are you sure?"
"Yes. What was she talking about?"
"Miyuki was the name of the last Tallest of Irk until he died in an accident."
"Why would she ask for him, then?"
"Well, Miyuki was her friend. He helped her get on her feet after Operation Forthcoming Fatality II. That was before he was named Tallest. Poor girl. During Operation Forthcoming Fatality II she became ill. It was because of Miyuki she survived. Right after the first plans were made for Operation Impending Doom I, he was killed. So, the current Tallest decided to complete the project, and now Operation Impending Doom II has commenced. I was only at the age of a teenager on scale with your human system during the time of Operation Forthcoming Fatality II, and during the first one I was a kid. The Tallest then was Tallest Midori."
"What about Mel? Why would she suddenly remember Miyuki when I called her Invader Mel?"
"He always called her that even before she completed training as an invader. It gave her a lot of confidence, and helped speed up her recovery. She always called him Tallest Miyuki before he became Tallest, too, because he was Second Tallest, meaning that if anything were to happen to the Tallest Midori, as it did, he'd take his place. Kind of like a vice- president. Normally it would be against the law to call anyone the Tallest except the Tallest, but since he was Second Tallest, it was allowed.
"It was an interesting friendship, Second Tallest Miyuki and almost- Invader Mel. Though she's fairly tall, she wasn't anything compared with him. He was at least three or four times her size."
"How do you know all this?"
"I knew her. Miyuki treated me with respect, to some degree. Sure, he made humiliating jokes once in a while, but it was all in fun. He respected me because I was a friend of Mel's. As he always said, 'my friend's friend is my friend.'"
"You mean I'm your friend?"
"What?"
"I'm Mel's friend. Didn't you notice?"
"Yes, I guess, but this is different!"
"How? Do you not trust her judgment in choosing a friend?"
"I'm so worried about her. I think she was hallucinating that you were Miyuki. You can understand that, right? You calling her Invader Mel, asking her if she was okay, and being a friend."
"What should we do?"
"I don't know. I just pray that she comes out of it, or she might spend the rest of her life living in a dream world, like Miyuki's alive. Sure, she'd just be with you, but she'd call you Miyuki, think she was on Irk, and that everything was okay. It's a psychological problem, but I don't know how to deal with that. For the meantime, though, I think you should go along with it."
"You mean, I should let her think I'm Miyuki?"
"Yes."
"I don't know anything about him, though. She'll know I'm not him."
"That could be bad. Let me teach you the basics, then give you a book to read about him and his life. This is all for her own good, do you understand? She is not to find out. Do whatever you have to, no matter how extreme, or she might go insane. I mean that quite seriously."
"Start teaching me."
Mel fainted promptly. Dib called Zim's attention, and the two tried to revive her without dumping water over her. "What happened?"
"I don't know. I just asked what was wrong, said 'Invader Mel,' and she said Miyuki, and then fainted."
"Miyuki? Are you sure?"
"Yes. What was she talking about?"
"Miyuki was the name of the last Tallest of Irk until he died in an accident."
"Why would she ask for him, then?"
"Well, Miyuki was her friend. He helped her get on her feet after Operation Forthcoming Fatality II. That was before he was named Tallest. Poor girl. During Operation Forthcoming Fatality II she became ill. It was because of Miyuki she survived. Right after the first plans were made for Operation Impending Doom I, he was killed. So, the current Tallest decided to complete the project, and now Operation Impending Doom II has commenced. I was only at the age of a teenager on scale with your human system during the time of Operation Forthcoming Fatality II, and during the first one I was a kid. The Tallest then was Tallest Midori."
"What about Mel? Why would she suddenly remember Miyuki when I called her Invader Mel?"
"He always called her that even before she completed training as an invader. It gave her a lot of confidence, and helped speed up her recovery. She always called him Tallest Miyuki before he became Tallest, too, because he was Second Tallest, meaning that if anything were to happen to the Tallest Midori, as it did, he'd take his place. Kind of like a vice- president. Normally it would be against the law to call anyone the Tallest except the Tallest, but since he was Second Tallest, it was allowed.
"It was an interesting friendship, Second Tallest Miyuki and almost- Invader Mel. Though she's fairly tall, she wasn't anything compared with him. He was at least three or four times her size."
"How do you know all this?"
"I knew her. Miyuki treated me with respect, to some degree. Sure, he made humiliating jokes once in a while, but it was all in fun. He respected me because I was a friend of Mel's. As he always said, 'my friend's friend is my friend.'"
"You mean I'm your friend?"
"What?"
"I'm Mel's friend. Didn't you notice?"
"Yes, I guess, but this is different!"
"How? Do you not trust her judgment in choosing a friend?"
"I'm so worried about her. I think she was hallucinating that you were Miyuki. You can understand that, right? You calling her Invader Mel, asking her if she was okay, and being a friend."
"What should we do?"
"I don't know. I just pray that she comes out of it, or she might spend the rest of her life living in a dream world, like Miyuki's alive. Sure, she'd just be with you, but she'd call you Miyuki, think she was on Irk, and that everything was okay. It's a psychological problem, but I don't know how to deal with that. For the meantime, though, I think you should go along with it."
"You mean, I should let her think I'm Miyuki?"
"Yes."
"I don't know anything about him, though. She'll know I'm not him."
"That could be bad. Let me teach you the basics, then give you a book to read about him and his life. This is all for her own good, do you understand? She is not to find out. Do whatever you have to, no matter how extreme, or she might go insane. I mean that quite seriously."
"Start teaching me."
