"This cannot be! I refuse to believe it!" But there it was, staring Zim in the face. Dib's whole life laid out, every memory catalogued. "But how?" he hissed. "No Irkin would dare, no Irkin could! We are all controlled by the Control Brain, how could one have slipped through?"
…………………………………………………
A small child with a huge head and a shock of black, sickle-like hair crawls onto a female human's lap. Water runs from his eyes as he stutters about how the kids at Skool keep making fun of him.
"Mamá, I really saw him. It was Bigfoot, I swear!"
The woman smiles and holds him close. "Ah Dib, it's alright. It'll be okay." She pulls him away and studies his eyes. "Listen closely Dib, I may not believe in this Bigfoot you've seen—" she silences his protests with a finger on his lips, "But I believe in you. You're a very smart boy, Dib, and whatever you want to do with your life is alright with me. No matter what you do, I'll always love you." She smiles and holds him again. He wraps his arms around her neck, crying.
…………………………………………………
Dib runs to his Mamá, holding something. "Look! Look, Mamá, it's proof! The government has been putting mutating thingies in our fertilizer. Look at this grasshopper—it has two heads! We should kill it so we can put it on display. Then they'll all know!"
Mamá opens his hands and gently pulls the crushed grasshopper from his hands. "Dib," she says sternly, "Even the oddest things have great worth." She takes it to her room and closes the door, leaving an angry Dib.
…………………………………………………
Dib slams the door. He is furious. His first piece of evidence, gone! Just because Mamá didn't understand. And how could she? Dad says she crossed the border from Mexico. She can speak English well, but cannot yet read or fit in with the other people, which is why she stays at home so much.
He sneaks over to her room and pokes the door open. She is asleep. Good. Maybe he can get his grasshopper back. Tiptoeing, he crosses the room to her dresser. There, on top, is the grasshopper. It lies in a kind of crystalline dome that shines in light. Stunned, he sees the creature has healed somewhat from his crushing grip.
Next to the dome is an ornately carved box. Maybe it contains another strange thing. He cautiously opens the lid, and yelps at the great flash of light. He sprawls backward, shielding his eyes. In an instant, Mamá is beside him, a horrified look on her face.
The light forms into a screen. On the screen is a tall, stick-thin creature. It slightly resembles a human, but its skin is green, it has two antennae, and its eyes are a solid green color.
"Ah, Invader Stok. We wondered when you would contact us. We have learned of your defection. Congratulations! We've finally pinpointed your location and will be dropping by with a house-warming gift soon. Tallest out."
The light disappears and the box explodes, showering Dib and Mamá with splinters.
"What did you think you were doing?" she towers over him, screaming. "You should never have touched that! Why were you in here in the first place?"
Dib's lip quivers. "I wanted my grasshopper back."
"Your grasshopper? Your grasshopper!" Her voice becomes shriller and her form wavers. "Get out! Get out!
…………………………………………………
Dib is still grounded. He sits in his room, tinkering with his tool kit. Suddenly a great noise comes. He drops his tools and rushes to the window. A giant ship hovers above his house. His mother is in the garden, just outside his window. She is staring at the ship, utterly frozen in place, her trowel still in her hand.
"Invader Stok, disperse the hologram."
"No," she pleads. "No, he mustn't see, somewhere else, please!"
"Disperse the hologram."
"NO!"
She clenches her hands around the trowel. Her form begins to ripple, faster and faster and faster. Dib can't look away. Within seconds, his Mamá's olive-tan skin, rippling black hair, and deep violet eyes are replaced with shockingly green skin, two antennae, and deep violet orbs, pleading mercy.
"Mamá! What are you?" He stretches out his hands, pleading for understanding.
She turns to him, terror in her eyes. "You brought them here! You betrayed me!"
"No! It was an accident, I didn't mean to—"
A beam of red light shoots down from the ship and strikes her back. Pieces of hair and green skin fly off as her violet eyes widen in shock. Her body is peeling away, her organs are melting.
She reaches a skeletal hand to Dib. "Dib—" she gasps for breath. "Dib—forgive you—you are my Dib, don't forget—" She melts away, leaving a puddle of greenish-violet goo among the flowers.
The ship roars into the sky, leaving a trail of blue smoke behind. Dib manages to scream, "Mamá!" Before collapsing on the ground.
