Jessica noticed nothing as he led her out of Dib's house, nor when he led her down the street, and across the cul-de-sac to his own green-glowing abode. She didn't noticed GIR's delighted, high-pitched welcomes, or Zim's admonitions for the robot to make silence. When she finally did take notice of her surroundings, she found herself lying on her back on a kind of table, staring up at purplish cables and rows of lights and interconnecting mechanics. She squinted her eyes against them and lifted her head, sitting up slowly.
Zim wasn't around. The edges of the room were shrouded in darkness, the only lights being the several cast on the table she'd been laying on. She rubbed her arms through the close-fitting material that covered them, and shivered. She began to vaguely remember her fear and then more strongly. What had happened to Dib? He'd only been trying to protect her. She couldn't bear to think what might've happened to him, when Zim—
the voice pierced through the silence, and Jessica looked up, startled. There he was! Sweeping down from a platform towards her, lifting up on those long mechanical legs as he approached her table. She felt her expectation growing, mingling with her fear. The music it was silent now, but she could feel it calling to her
Lie down, the Irken said, pausing just at the edge of the shadows next to the table. Don't worry yourself. I have everything under control. Lie down.
Without thinking, Jessica found herself obeying, and she lay back against the table.
Close your eyes, came the next command. She closed her eyes, and heard the clicking of mechs, felt the alien's presence next to her. Her mind automatically opened up, awaiting the strands of music that surely were to come. And come they did. The alien's voice, lilting and sweet to her ears, washed over her in a soothing melody, and, at its coaxing, she found herself drifting far away from the room with the table and her body, and into blissful darkness.
--
Zim stood there, on his mechs, for a long moment after the readouts on the human's brain told him she was completely unconscious. He could convince her mind to do anything. Anything that he wanted. And yet, she had left; she had allowed herself to be kidnapped taken away.. by that slimy Dib. Disgusting humans! Did they hold as much loyalty to their race as Irkens did? They certainly didn't seem to. But then why WHY!? Had she gone with the DIB!? It made no sense! Zim had made absolutely sure that he took care of all her needs, made her absolutely loyal to him there was something he was missing. Something important, and he was at a loss to figure out what it was. True, he'd kept her under almost constant hypnosis for five years, and had little idea how, exactly, she would act when not under his control. But the very thought of releasing her from that control sent a spike of fear and uncertainty through him. He would never do such a thing! The idea of letting her out of his carefully controlled world made him shudder.
As he stood there, watching her, he found his mind wandering. It was not often that he spent any time in idleness like this, and the thoughts that awakened in his mind were altogether surprising, despite being mixed with his brain's constant reminders that he should be working. But he was working. Of course he was! He had to figure out SOME way to make the human stink-girl irrevocably loyal to him he needed to come up with a plan, not just daydream about the result of such an amazing plan! Of course, daydreaming had its place he sighed almost inaudibly. Daydreaming about conquering Earth. Daydreaming about crushing the humans under his iron fist. Daydreaming about being the tallest Soldier back in the Academy and pushing everyone else around. Daydreaming about his intensely loyal human ally at his side and never even CONSIDERING the possibility of leaving. Zim's gloved hand clenched into a fist. If only she weren't human humans were so disgustingly inferior! The Dib was human! No ally of his should be human! Ally?
Zim stepped away from the table thoughtfully. What if he did have an ally, instead of a human experiment. GIR, of course, was always around despite its misbehavior, Zim felt proud that such an advanced model belonged to him, gave him something to call his own. But no one would ever be completely loyal to an Irken.. unless it were made by an Irken, connected to the system of the control-brains, and otherwise monitored! He would have to find a way to link Jessica into that system! Then there would be no way, no way at all, that she could betray him. She would be his forever! She would destroy Dib all on her own will! And the weak, foolish Dib-creature would be so hurt and betrayed! He would not even resist.
Snickering, Zim marched out of the room with glee. He had work to do a lot of work.
--
Examining the remote mechanism through which the control brains accessed Irken minds had never been something Zim had even considered. He'd never had a reason to, before. But then, it was certainly not the place of any Irken to tinker with and install such things. Alien life forms were not admitted into the Irken system for one simple reason—they were inferior. The loyalty control might not work so well on a different physiology. There would be no chance of upsetting the perfect culture of unified Irk. Non-Irkens were inferior, fit only to be enslaved or destroyed. Definitely not assimilated. Although, alien slaves and prisoners, in Zim's experience, were very useful. They could refute loyalty to the Irken empire, unlike Irkens themselves, and so be very handy for getting what one wanted. But the very thought of anyone using Jessica like that made Zim darken with rage.
Despite the unprecedented anger, he could not identify any actual reason why he wanted to do this, why it felt so important that he do this. He had the girl enslaved, did he not? And it certainly wasn't a question of doubt as to whether or not he could keep her enslaved. But for some reason, he didn't feel like it was enough. How much better would things be if she were Irken? That, of course, was impossible, but Zim's mind was already sorting out ideas overtime, planning things out, and mapping and discarding possibilities. The control-brain system that kept Irkens loyal to the Empire had been an ingenius invention, and that was, more or less, all it did. It's focus was the military surely if Jessica were not logged as militant or Soldier, it would not be a problem. He would make her loyal! And not by force or hypnosis, this time. He would make her want to be loyal he would ensure that she stayed loyal. No, she could not be Irken. Not yet, at any rate. The wheels in his head were turning rapid-fire, even searching for a possibility around that. Not Irken, but as close as any inferior life form had ever come.
--
Jessica did not awaken for several more hours, but when she did, she felt curiously empty, curiously dull. Of course, her stomach was empty, but it had been for years. She had the vague sense that her nourishment had always come from some other source. Maybe the music? Could music nourish like that? Part of her, suspended in awe, wanted to believe it, but the sensible part, the part that had so responded to Dib's explanations of how the universe worked that part told her no, no, that could never happen. She knew her body was kept nourished in some way, probably while she slept, because she found that she couldn't remember having eaten anything not in years
Still, the emptiness felt forboding, and Jessica sat up slowly, her eyes lowered. She expected Zim to be there any moment, there with his voice, his violin, his organ, his burning red eyes. There with his music. There for her. A soft sigh escaped her. Mind-control as Dib's voice said in her mind who knew how many drugs that alien had her on? Besides the music. The music how she loved the music. How she loved him. How little did he know or care
--
a soft voice pierced the darkness, and she immediately sat up to attention. A pair of red eyes glowed in the darkness, and a moment letter, accompanied by the clacking of mechs, Zim's small caped figure came closer, looming over her. He did not sing and he carried no instrument, which confused her for a moment. Indeed his demeanor seemed to illustrate him wanting to sit down with a cup of tea and have a nice talk. She giggled.
he snapped, and she immediately obeyed. His mechs lifted him to the edge of the table and he stood there, withdrawing them. He folded his arms over his chest, eyeing her calculatingly. After a moment, he spoke. It is time he said quietly. That I enforced your loyalty to me.
A spike of fear cut through Jessica and she tried to keep her eyes from widening. What do you mean she asked, amazed and fearful at the same time that he now spoke to her clearly without fogging her mind first.
I mean, he said, his voice getting even softer, that you will no longer desire to betray me to the Dib. You are mine. Do not forget this! Do you wish to betray me me who has given you music? Given you everything? Made you real Tipping his head slightly, Zim stretched out a hand to his side, not towards her, but as if to encompass her and the base.
she whispered, tears springing to her eyes at the strange tenderness in his voice. She wanted to say more, there was so much more she wanted to say to him. She wanted to take his hand as she had taken Dib's, she wanted to connect with him, she wanted to touch him, look into his eyes, never be away from him or his music. Her mouth moved but no words came out as hot tears ran down her face. Why did he do nothing? I love you, she choked out. I'll always
he said, his voice a little sharper than it had been, but she could not otherwise see any reaction from him towards the baring of her heart. Without the familiar glorious fog of his music it hurt it hurt, it squeezed and choked deep in her chest, blinded her. She sobbed, sniffled, the tears flowing freely as she tried desperately to control them and wipe them away. Zim merely gazed at her, nothing registering on his face, not even disgust, like she would've expected. She was a mess a filthy mess, like he had so often told her.
He got back up on his mechs, gazing down at her. Lie down, he commanded her again. Lie down. Everything will be fine. She wanted to believe him, so badly hiccupping and sniffling, she did as she was told. Zim leaned over her, crimson eyes boring into hers. She stared back, her gaze blurred with tears. He was leaning closely, as if trying to read her thoughts, or feelings. His closeness awakened something in her, especially without the fogginess of the music. Surely he did not mean but she found herself reaching for him, she touched his hands, his arms, his shoulders, his face, his antennae, and for a moment, he didn't move. But it was only a moment, and then he had jerked away, touching her temples with something cold, and her eyes fluttered closed. She knew no more.