Chapter Five

Memories

: Z :

I sat on a crooked table with my legs dangling off the edge. I was wrapped in a warm blanket to keep me dry and the right temperature. My lovely green skin was back to its usual form; clean of blood and free of bacteria. Indeed, the TF Med team had done a great job helping me begin recovery. Now things would hopefully be different. Everybody knew I was Irken, and everybody felt sorry for me. I had told my story of staying at the IDR for ten years and then finding out how fake my mission was, and even how I almost drowned in the pond. Even Dib felt sorry for me. These humans; they were so weak when it came to emotion. Every one of them. We Irkens knew better than to "feel" for others. That is, except Invader Jiss. Her time here had changed her; she was now just as weak as the humans. But she was Irken nonetheless, and I respected her for that.

I sipped at the soup They Fight had invented for me by command of Dib and served to me to help me recover better. It had certain plants and chemicals in it that aided Irken development. And because my skin was still very sensitive, I needed all of the support I could get. Receiving help from humans didn't feel right, but I had no other choice. Dib was utterly stunned at the so-called "change" in my personality, and he completely forgave me for everything that had happened in the past, so it seemed. As well he should. It was not my fault the Tallest came to Earth and ruined his life. It was not my fault at all. And I believed he understood that.

Of course, having swallowed quite a critical amount of toxic Earth water, my innards were still recovering. And though the "soup" tasted good, it was of no help to me as far as my stomach was concerned. But whatever my body decided to reject, seemingly making no discrimination between Earth food and Irken, I had no say in the matter at all. Whenever, wherever . . . Recovery reeked, that was all I had to say about it. I was only lucky They Fight could spare a small, tin bucket that I had kept by my side since we figured out the pattern. So far, however, this batch of soup had not sickened me, only warming my still freezing body and making me more comfortable. Hopefully the vomiting spells were over.

Jiss was sitting next to me on the table, her arm around me. Her punishment for helping me in secret was to keep a watch over me, pamper me and clean up after me until I felt better. Truth be told; it was a bit of a messy job, what with my half-burned organs constantly working to free my body of contaminates, but somebody had to do it. Many jokes and puns circled through the camp at the humor and irony of it all, some of which I had heard. Though I didn't understand quite why, it was clear humans were amused by vile body functions. Strange, yes, but I could relate. I had laughed at Dib on many occasions at such things. Then again, I had completely hated him in those times. Not that I still do not; I do very much so. But he was the one who called the shots here. He could have just as easily ordered me thrown off a cliff as he had ordered me to be saved. I dared not argue with anything he said while here.

"What an experience," Jiss stated, careful to keep her voice quiet for me. I was a bit sensitive to loud noises at the moment. "I don't know many Irkens who have survived almost drowning." Yes, but it was getting to where I wished I hadn't. I was not enjoying my life at all. It was almost as if I was back at the IDR; all the attention, and Jiss constantly keeping me in her sight . . . there was no place to escape where people would leave me alone. But if I didn't just accept it and focus my thoughts on other things, I would never recover. I had to take certain medicines to keep from becoming dehydrated, and the only ones who had access to those medicines were TF Med team. Dib controlled everything in They Fight, being their commander, including TF Med team. No Dib, no med team. No Med team, no medicine. No medicine . . . no Zim. I had to be careful what I said and how I said it, just like every human here and Jiss.

Dropping the spoon back down in the half-empty bowl, I coughed, feeling my stomach suddenly overturn. Immediately I leaned away from Jiss towards the bucket and put a hand on it for support. Breathing slowly and deeply, I was able to calm myself. After a few moments, I relaxed and sat up straight. Perhaps things truly were getting better, I thought. Perhaps there would be no more suffering. But I knew that logic stated I would only be completely better after my vital organs had healed. You see, med team had no problem with the outside skin; that was easy. How, I didn't know. But apparently organs were something else entirely to them. How could technology advance as far as allowing us to walk on top of water, yet not advance to finding a way to repair acid-singed interns?

"Are you okay?" Jiss asked me softly, placing her arm back around me after having removed it to allow me to get sick. Of course, now she and I both knew I had not and would not yet. It was strange how she seemed so concerned for me. I had never done anything to make her like me except give her a little extra energy. And that meant hardly anything.

After sighing, I answered, "Yeah, I'm fine. False alarm." I gulped a ball of saliva that had formed in my mouth from not swallowing. I felt horrible. And I was not fine, nor okay for that matter. Ohh, my stomach . . . when would it all end?

"You don't look fine," Jiss protested, taking note of my ill expression and slouched position. She somehow always figured me out. If I was lying, she knew; if I didn't want to do something, she understood; if I disliked something, she could tell. It was almost as if she knew me better than I knew myself. But perhaps her knowing and understanding of my feelings, physical and mental, was a good thing considering the circumstances.

"Really," I insisted, "I feel all right for the moment." I hoped she would accept that as the end of it so we could continue about our normal lives, which for the moment I suppose consisted of just this, so truly I was only trying to keep her at a reasonable distance pertaining to both my physical and mental space. I wanted room. And I did not enjoy her asking me how I felt or if I was okay. Those kinds of questions made me uncomfortable. Then again, she was only doing her job and making sure everything was continuing as it should, but still it made me uncomfortable. It was like she had to know, and if she did not then there was something horribly wrong with the Space-time continuum or some nonsense of such likeness.

I saw the way Jiss looked at me; her eyes showed something more than just worry and concern. There was something else present, but I couldn't figure out what. Some kind of emotion, or feeling . . . something. Whatever it may be, I knew I did not understand it. Perhaps it was "love", but I knew we Irkens were incapable of such things, so that must not be the case. Still, that something else there was completely unidentifiable for me. Love seemed like the only option left.

Without quite knowing I was saying it, I wondered aloud, "What is the strange emotion you are looking at me with?" Almost instantly I regretted letting the question slip out, fearful it would offend her. But on the other hand, I was curious. Maybe she would answer, and explain everything about it. Maybe she could elaborate to an extent that I would understand.

I saw her appear to hesitate at first, and then look at me very sadly as she answered, "It is something like affection." Yes, affection. I knew I had recognized it from somewhere. But it had been almost a lifetime since I had seen true affection. And even if I could have remembered who I had seen it in, it would not matter. I only knew I remembered "affection" from a time when I was a smeet. A very long time ago . . .

"Jiss, it's as if I know you from somewhere," I pointed out to her about that look in her eyes; so familiar that it was almost scary. "And I know I've seen that expression before. It's just . . . I can't quite remember who it was, but she was much like you."

She seemed rather sad by my remark. Had I said something wrong? Had I somehow frustrated her? Wait . . . no, no, that was not it. She seemed to be trying to recall an event, much like I had just now. It was as if she was reliving a horrible experience that tore her life apart. Suddenly, she shook the images off and seemed to return to normal. But something was still wrong; I could tell. Something troubled her.

"Zim, I think it's time I told you something," she said, rather confusing me. What was she talking about? "I know you haven't seen me for almost two hundred and sixty-one years, and . . . well, I just think you might need reminding. I want to tell you about what happened a long time ago - what happened when you were still a smeet. You may not remember, but I do. I remember all too well . . ."

This was still a bit confusing, but I was beginning to understand what she was getting at. Something had happened when I was still a smeet that I couldn't remember. I recalled often trying to remember bits and pieces of my past such as this, but every time I tried I became frustrated when the memories never came. It was almost as if it had been erased from my life entirely.

"You might not know it, Zim," she continued, "but you are very special. And I could quite possibly be the only one who knows it. I know why you can't remember a certain time in your life, and it's because that information was removed from your Pak's memory . . . and from the entire Collective Memory. It was erased and no person alive knows what happened to you except me." I listened carefully to see if she would continue, but instead she pulled something out of her pocket. It was a small charm that had circuits at one end where it appeared to be broken. It was small, glowing green, and looked like a glass gem. Of course, gems to not have circuitry in them.

Awed, I stared at the charm for a long time before blinking. I recognized it! That charm was the exact same as the one I had! I didn't know where I got it; I'd had it since before I could remember. But for some reason, that was the same as mine was! It was almost as if she had duplicated mine with a clone machine . . .

I carefully reached behind myself and opened up my Pak. I felt around it for a moment before finding the cloaking device that hid my little charm from the rest of the circuitry. I tapped it, and then felt that tiny bit of energy die. I turned my back to Jiss and showed her the thing that I had kept since smeet age, which was undoubtedly lodged in there somewhere. Just as I knew she would, she reached in and detached the charm from the circuit I had connected it to and showed it to me. Turning back around, I took it from her and compared it to hers.

The two charms were not alike as I had originally thought. But instead, something else amazing related the two. And if it did not work perfectly as it did, I never would have believed that the event was real. Slowly, I reached my hand out to hers; both of us holding our charms circuit side outward. The two charms fit together perfectly, like they had been split on purpose somehow. Together, they created a beautiful glowing green gem. And as Jiss let go of it, I felt it slipping up out of my hands until at last it hovered in front of me. With no antigravity simulators, this thing was hovering!

"Okay, Zim," said Jiss, still with a sad tone, "this information is very important. It will only play back when both halves are connected, and it will only play once. So you have to pay attention or you'll never know why part of your past is missing." I nodded in reply. This was by far the most amazing thing I had uncovered about myself ever. And finally I was going to know what had happened such a long time ago . . .

: Memory Chip :

Computerized video playback:

Earth year 1989; Planet Irk.

The tiny Irken smeet stared out at the world before him, which had only restored its energy one year ago. It was much different from the underground learning facilities he had known for six years. Bright and noisy, and now the home he would come to know, this planet was indeed the greatest in the universe. It was no wonder why everybody looked up to it.

"Freedom!" cried the smeet, joyous and excited. His eyes sparkled at the sight of the mighty Irken race in front of him. And he had just happened to make his escape in the best place possible: Kanrath, the largest city on Irk and indeed the heart of the Irken civilization. As he gazed out at the surface of the planet, he said to himself, "Hmm . . . a pitiful world, waiting for me to make it great!"

Suddenly there was a loud noise from below. The little smeet glanced back down through the hole his other half still was, and saw his partner being chased by a Dermis Prowler Security Droid. The thing shot a laser from one of its arms at the smeet's partner, hitting him directly and blasting him through the ceiling of the underground room, which happened to be the floor of the actual surface. Even after sending that poor thing sky-high, the Droid continued to chase after him.

Going back to what he had been looking at in awe, the smeet smiled at the sight of a double sun in the sky, one large and the other more of a close star. And he realized the reason he was not attracting too much attention was because the hole he was looking out of was located between two buildings in an alley. His eyes caught sight of something glowing in the distance: the power core. It ran the power for the entire planet.

The smeet squinted to see two falling figures heading directly for the power core. Suddenly, they both crashed into it. The smeet closed his eyes and ducked his head down as a blinding light overtook the city. But just as quickly as it had appeared, the light was gone, replaced with total and complete darkness other than the suns. And the suns' light was rather dim compared to the bright lights of Irk. About as dim as a small light bulb in a dark closet. You see, Irk was not exactly the closest planet to its suns.

An Irken who had only recently been released from the learning facilities who now was on patrol squad, waiting to become an elite soldier, stopped and stared; as did everyone else on the planet. Every light went dead; every generator turned off; every backup generator failed. But something stood out amidst the chaos: a tiny smeet who, though ambitious, was standing alone and frightened. He had walked out from the alley that hid him.

Slowly, the patrol officer named Jiss walked over to him. She grabbed his bare arm and ordered, "No smeets who have not completed their information intake are allowed on the surface of Irk." And she began dragging him away to the leader of the entire Irken race: Almighty Tallest Miyuki. But the smeet did not wish to leave as soon as he had arrived. He struggled and tried to pull away from her.

"Wait! You're making a mistake!" he cried, desperate. "I am different than the others! You have to believe me! Surely you have heard of Zim?"

Jiss stopped in her tracks. She turned and looked at the smeet in disbelief. "You're Zim?" she asked, stunned. "The one who caused the Horrible Painful Overload Day?"

Zim smiled desperately and nodded. "Yes! I did!" he answered quickly, hoping she would change her mind. He felt beads of sweat begin to form on his forehead.

Jiss looked around for a moment, not sure if what she was about to do was legal, then leaned down and whispered, "It's dark. Nobody's going to notice two missing Irkens. Just follow me." He nodded, and she led him away.

The strangest place appeared before Zim's eyes, as the two walked into what seemed like the back side of a large building. But Zim learned it was actually some holographically hidden tunnel. It was dark as well, but tiny green crystals lined the sides, and dull purple and blue plants grew in-between the rocks that set at the foot of the tunnel. The actual tunnel itself was not rocks, but some kind of metal, like titanium or something of the sort. Altogether the place was just weird.

"Where are we?" asked Zim, perplexed and amazed.

"One of the last places on Irk where anything thrives anymore," Jiss answered, only further confusing him. "In here, plants grow, tiny creatures live, and Irk's original nature cycle continues. It has to be kept dark, though, or we risk it being discovered. You see, only certain Irkens can see what is in here-"

"I can see what is in here," Zim interrupted.

Jiss paused. "You can?" she asked. Zim nodded in response. "But this is pitch black. You'd have to have ocular nocturnal implants to see anything in here, and only certain Irkens have them. Even the Almighty Tallest does not have them."

Zim shrugged. "I see rocks, plants, and little glowing green crystals on the walls. But it is a little dark . . ."

"Amazing," Jiss commented. "Perhaps smeets' vision is better than grown Irkens'." They continued to walk, and Zim continued to witness one astounding thing after another. Creatures he had only read about were going about their lives in front of him; plants that were claimed to be extinct were thriving and multiplying; Cyrillic Acid dripped from the top of the tunnel onto rock formations that were jutting from the ground. It was all so breathtaking!

After awhile of walking, Zim asked, "What is this place, and what is its function?"

"You will find out very soon," Jiss answered. Zim accepted this response as good enough.

A light shown from around a corner, almost blindingly bright compared to the darkness. Shadows flickered back and forth across the walls, too blurred to be recognizable. Zim covered his eyes with his free arm as they neared it.

"Jiss!" called a female voice from the light. A shadow that had been flickering suddenly darted out of view as another Irken ran to Jiss and hugged her. "You're back! I thought I wouldn't see you for another two weeks while you were on duty!"

"I had to come now," answered Jiss as the other Irken let her go. "I just found the most outspoken Irken on the planet." She motioned to Zim, who backed behind her legs and waved nervously.

"This is Zim?" asked the other Irken, kneeling down and looking Zim in the eyes. "He sure is a cute little smeet, isn't he?" She petted his head and stroked his antennae. "You know," she said to him, "you are going to be the one who is going to turn this horrible planet around."

"I am?" asked Zim, confused. "I mean, I was planning on it, but . . . did I miss something?"

The other Irken was about to answer, but Jiss put her hand up in a gesture to stop. "We'll let Jewel explain." The other Irken nodded, and the three walked into the light. Zim removed his arm from his eyes once again and blinked a couple of times. It was very bright, but his eyes quickly adjusted.

There were four other Irkens sitting at a table, looking over schematics and pictures. One was female, the other three male. The surroundings here were not dark at all. If anything, they were homey. A single light hung from the low ceiling, and there were shelves on the walls alongside a few framed pictures. Jars and pots were set on the shelves, some with paintings on them and others without, many of them holding plants. This place was unlike any place Zim had ever seen, yet he seemed to be seeing a lot of new things lately, starting with Irk's surface. "Is all of Irk like this?" he wondered.

"Protector Jiss reporting in," said Jiss. "I have brought the Irken you requested."

The female Irken stood up from her seat and walked over to Jiss, the still unnamed Irken, and Zim. She smiled at Zim's concerned expression.

"Do you have any questions, or has everything been made clear to you?" she asked.

After thinking about it, Zim answered, "What is this place, who are you, and what is going on?"

The three female Irkens all snickered. The one who seemed to be in charge answered, "We are called the Protectors. We are fighting to save what tiny bit is left of Irk's natural life forms, which are unfortunately all found here. My name is Jewel, and I am the commander. The one you are holding onto is Jiss, and beside her is Lonny. The three behind me are Draff, Skid, and Kan. Besides Jiss, we all stay down here to monitor the environment. Jiss doubles as a Patrol Officer, but that is only so she can spy on the outside world and gather information."

"Why do you need me?" Zim asked.

"We need you because you are persistent; ambitious. When you set your mind to something, you do it, and nothing can distract you. We want you to help us. We want you to speak out for us and tell the world of our cause."

"And before I do this, do I need to go through some sort of training?"

Lonny smiled. "Not in so many words. But yes! And I'm-"

"Not going to take this one," Jewel interrupted. "I am going to train Zim, along with Jiss. You may help, but this is no ordinary Irken we are dealing with."

"I'm only a smeet," Zim argued.

"Yes," agreed Jewel, "but you are an amazing smeet who is capable of amazing things. We may be the only ones who recognize your talents. Everybody else sees you as annoying."

Zim felt a little offended. He didn't think he was that annoying. He crossed his arms as he looked at Jewel, waiting for further instructions.

"When shall we begin training?" asked Jiss to Jewel, grabbing Zim's attention.

Jewel smiled suspiciously. "Right now."

-----

Author Notes:

Ah, yes, see? Jewel is important. Told ya back in chapter 2. Don't believe me? Go check! Oh, and that begin part of the memory chip thingey . . . that was from the episode The Trial, one that… unfortunately… was never made. :cries:

Anyway, there's one little thing in here that I want you to know: Cyrillic Acid is the Irken equivalent of water. It's like, water's acid-opposite or something. I dunno. I'll stop talking now, before I make any more brains hurt besides my own.

Thanks for all the comments, readers! I look forward to more! Considering none of you have read past chapter 2, yet (November 28, 2005)…. So sad…

Oh well. The story is young. There are, like, twenty-something-soon-to-be-thirty-something chapters. I'm sure someone, at least, will read more eventually.