Notey Stuffs: Hey look! Last chapter of The Hell. But not necessarily the end of the story. There should be a part two being written, if I ever get my lazy ass motivated. Sorry this one took so long to get posted. I forgot that there was a Chapter Nine. Whoops. Anyways, enjoy.
"So, Professor," Zim ducked down to meet Membrane's eyes. "How does it feel to know that you're going to be the one experimented on? Also, do you have anything to say for yourself in the case of the atrocities you visited upon your beloved son? Do speak." There was no reply. Not that Professor Membrane could have made one had he'd been so inclined, as there was the irken form of duct tape over his mouth. The man was on his knees, hands also duct taped, being restrained by mechanical arms that Zim had installed in the floor for just that purpose. They were in one of the lower rooms in the alien ground base, one designed for torture. There was the customary operating table, the array of surgical supplies, as well as several things the Zim had picked up from Squee's creepy neighbor.
The invader continued to stare in his captive's eyes a moment longer before straightening. "Nothing?" His fingers formed a steeple. "No answer, no defense for your cause? I suppose we might as well start on the tests then. I think we'll start with the chemical burning…" Membrane grunted against the tape. Zim looked at him and his voice all but dripped with false concern. "Oh. Silly me. I left the tape on, didn't I? That must be such a bother. Here, let me help you." He pulled a scalpel off a try and sliced it across the tape, ignoring the human's sound of pain as he cut into his lips. The executioner wiped the blade clean on the Professor's clothes. "Now," he said, looking down on his prey. "You do know why you're here, yes?" There was an almost imperceptible nod of the head. Zim again crouched to meet the Professor's eyes and to cruelly rip the remainder of the tape of his mouth. "I must know. Do you regret what you did to Dib? Is there any remorse in you at all?" Silence. Membrane attempted to turn his head away from the alien, but Zim dug his claws into the man's face, forcing him to look at him. "You see, human," The word lost all of the affection it normally held when Zim addressed Dib and became one of the greatest of insults, "the boy you killed, your son, was important to me. It was pure hell trying to save him from what you did. All I want to know is if you repent. Surely you can give me that much."
Professor Membrane glared at Zim then smiled. "So the boy is dead then? Good." He moved quick, snapping his head around to bite down on the Irken's hand as hard as he could. Zim's response was faster. Before Membrane could blink there was a high powered laser gun pressing into his temple and the now standing Zim's finger was putting pressure on the trigger.
"Zim! Wait!" Dib emerged from the shadows as Zim froze. He didn't stay frozen for long however. He smacked Membrane with the gun to release his hand then laughed at the human's expression of outraged disbelief. "Oh apologies, Professor. I forgot that I did manage to save Dib. Whoops."
Dib himself leaned against a wall only five feet from his father's place on the floor and studied the emotions that flitted across the man's face. Rage, fear, disbelief, condescension, more anger. No remorse, no true human emotion. The baleful glare that was being shot his way only reinforced the idea that his father really did hate him. The boy slumped a little and moved to crouch in front of his dad to ask one important question. "Why?"
Membrane's response was to spit in Dib's face. The boy rocked backwards, scrubbing at his skin, while an irate Irken smacked the man as hard as he could. After he recovered slightly from being hit with the flat of the gun, Membrane answered Dib's question in cold, blunt words that cut into the boy like blades. "Why? Because I hate you, that's why. Despise just looking at you. You are a constant reminder of my failure to create the perfect human being. Oh sure," he spit out, "You're intelligent enough. How could you not be? Smarter than even me." His face twisted into a snarl and Dib scooted backwards to get away from him. The boy wanted more than anything to cover his ears, but still needing to hear an explanation. "No, the problem with you, son, is that you're a social failure. A human failure. You lack every attribute you need to be a productive member of the human race. You're an embarrassment to me and the world. Even my colleagues noticed your deficiency. They'd all smile to my face but the minute I turned my back they'd snicker. 'Oh there goes Membrane and his insane son!' You took every bit of the intelligence I gave you and applied it to such stupid studies that made a mockery of real science. You didn't deserve to live, just like your whore of a mother."
Dib's entire body tensed at those words. Mom had been sick…hadn't she? The overhead lights flashed across his sunglasses as he pushed them up his nose to hide his eyes. Professor Membrane continued to rant, ignoring his son, "Yes, my darling son." Zim ground his teeth to resist killing the man right then and there. Sarcastic bastard. "I killed your mother as well. She cheated on me with a coworker and I just happened to have a newly discovered element I wanted to test on someone. Who knew it was so radioactive that when I put some into her food that it would kill her in less than six months?" Membrane grinned, looking deranged. "My mistake. But I had forgotten two things. You and that little brat you call a sister. But, I had hopes you would turn out like me. I was wrong in the end. You were supposed to die. Then Gaz would die next from a sudden…heart attack. She certainly eats enough junk foo-". Membrane was cut off by the crack of Dib's fist against his jaw, effectively breaking it. The pale boy stood, shaking from fury and disgust; his hands still clenched into fists.
"You know what, Dad?" He drawled out the word, voice surprisingly cool. "I think I've heard enough. Zim." The irken moved to stand near his recently acquired friend. "Yeah?"
"Do whatever you want to him. Shoot him, cut him open, whatever. Just kill him." With that, he spun and stalked out of the room.
Zim watched him go, knowing there was more hurt than hate in those words and despising Membrane all the more for it. He rounded on his captive, eyes sparkling with anger. Without a word he released the human only to haul him, using the strength he rarely pulled out, over to the operating table. The table automatically restrained the human which was good as Zim was busy hooking Professor Membrane up to a machine that would keep him awake and alert no matter how much damage his body endured. That is unless he died, of course. He paused for a mere second to pull on latex gloves then with a grin began his work. The alien cut open the professor's clothes so his torso was exposed. He then, using the same scalpel as before, began to trace designs into the soft human skin. When he sensed that the tip was resting on a rather sensitive area, such as the stomach, he plunged the blade into the flesh. He then began to peel the layers of skin and tissue away with an extremely sharp blade that looked a lot like a filet knife. Blood spurted everywhere, even more so when he accidentally nicked a vein. Inch by inch, Zim skinned Membrane, enjoying the sounds of intense pain. Looking down at the mangled wound that was the man's chest, he had an idea. A bottle of everyday earth salt water he once fancied using on Tak or someone was still around. He dumped its contents onto Professor Membrane and laughed as the man screamed. Mere cutting was becoming boring though, and there was blood everywhere. Time to pull out the liquid nitrogen. Membrane's eyes widened when he saw the label, knowing what was coming.
First it was his hands. They froze within seconds and Zim took a pipe to them, sending shards of brittle bone, flesh and blood, everywhere. The pain was intolerable for the human once the appendages began to thaw. He writhed on the table, screaming as fast as he could draw breath every time the pipe came down to shatter another part of his body. But still, he couldn't pass out and the freezing effect of the nitrogen prevented him from bleeding to death. Salty tears left burning trails down his face, where the skin on his cheeks had been carved off. He watched as Zim stepped back to survey the damage. Then, as if in slow motion, he watched the alien turn the hose to his face, moments before he felt the cold enclose his head. Eye's frozen open he watched as the pipe descended.
Dib found Zim later. The alien was crying and dry heaving in a corner, as far away from the remains of Professor Membrane as he could get in the room. The boy picked up his friend with little issue and carried him upstairs, not once looking back at the bloody chunk of meat that his father had been reduced to.