Searching

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Stressed
It was complete. She could attach the projection device to her belt and create a human alias. Tak turned the knob and watched as her form appeared. Navy blue hair that reached her chin, it looked stingy. Her eyes were a dark purple, close to appearing black. She was still the same height and her outfit hadn't changed much. Tak scratched her fake hair and turned her gaze out the bathroom door. She could see the door was still shut. Gaz and Gir had been in that room for three days now. Tak turned her eyes back to the mirror and realized that her skin was a bit tanner than her first disguise. She shrugged and flipped the light off before stepping into the hallway. Her fingers turned the hologram off.

Tak stepped closer to the door and leaned her head against it. She couldn't hear anything from within the room. Gir should have been making noise. Tak twisted the knob and found it locked. An antenna raised and she knew that the human had a secret. Tak turned her gaze to the bedroom and began her journey to there. The doorknob twisted and Tak snapped her head around. Her legs extended from her back and pulled her up to the ceiling. Gir ran out of the room shouting something about doom. Gaz than stepped out of the room and locked the door behind her. She was wearing nothing but a sports bra and white underwear. Her eyes focused on Gaz's back when she noticed three faint white lines upon her back. Tak froze as Gaz turned her amber gaze to her bedroom. Gaz then walked across into the bathroom and shut the door.

'That's all I need,' Tak thought. 'Her keeping an eye on me.'

Tak walkedpassed the kitchen and her gaze turned to Gir who was sitting on the couch. It seemed that the Scary Monkey Show had yet to be canceled. Tak grimaced a bit and turned her gaze to the elevator. She pressed the button and stepped inside. It beeped and she switched her hologram on. It was time to wander the town and see what had changed in the years she had been gone. The elevator dinged and her eyes widened at the sight in front of her. The building was designed like the training rooms on Devastis. Tak stepped out of the elevator before it closed. Her eyes searched everything; it was all so 'Irken.'

"Galactic conquest is near!"

Tak searched for the voice knowing that was the slogan of 'Operation Impending Doom II.' Tak hurried out of the building and ran onto the sidewalk. She turned around and that's when she saw the sign.

'Impending Doom,' Tak repeated in her mind. She couldn't figure it out. The humans didn't seem to notice how real this was. They treated it like a game. Her violet eyes widened in comprehension, this was all a game Gaz had made. Tak turned from the building and figured she would find out more of this later. She pushed passed the humans and looked to the sky. The sun was high in the sky and she had all the time in the world. Her legs extended from her PAK and she jumped onto a roof. Her eyes scanned the city and she found the cul-de-sac Zim had built his base. She took off running in the direction. Too better understand the future, she must learn of the past. Tak continued traveling on the roofs so she wouldn't have to deal with the humans.

She came to the building that would be next to Zim's base. Tak's legs retracted into her PAK and she stood at the edge. There was nothing. The ground was sunken and blackened. Tak kneeled down when she saw strange men walkingaround the area. They scooped up dirt samples and continued to scan the ground. Tak's eyes narrowed when she noticed a familiar hairstyle. She wryly smirked, he had grown, but his style hadn't. Tak listened as he shouted some orders. She dryly chuckled and ducked out of sight. His attention had been caught. She looked over the edge and saw that she had his attention. His brown eyes widened behind his lenses as she quickly switched off her hologram. Tak switched it back on and vanished.

Tak heard him mutter something about the bathroom before he ran off. Tak dropped into a small alley and listened for his footsteps. She reached out and slammed him into the nearby garbage cans. It made noise, but she had him down and vulnerable. She snickered as he glared at her.

"You seem upset Dib," Tak snickered as she watched him.

"Tak!" Dib growled as he fumbled into the can beside him.

"Don't get up Dib," Tak mocked as he fell back down. "I only want information."

"How did she reactivate you?" Dib questioned as he got to his knees.

"That defective Sir Unit reactivated me…somehow," Tak replied.

"Gir?" Dib questioned in confusion.

"You didn't know that your sister had him?" Tak questioned.

"He should have been destroyed when Gaz…"

"When Gaz what?" Tak questioned. The human had a tendency to ramble and that had led her to something interesting. Dib went silent and looked toward the open end of the alley. He brushed the trash off his trench coat and sighed.

"Why do you want to know?" Dib questioned.

"I need Irken technology," Tak simply replied.

Dib nodded in understanding. She wanted off the planet. He smirked and dryly chuckled. It seemed like Tak didn't like Earth much. Dib grinned at her knowing that he could easily turn her into the Swollen Eyeball, but where would be the fun in that?

"She hasn't told you?" Dib questioned instead. Tak's eyes narrowed.

"I've only be activated a few days now," Tak gritted out through her fake mouth.

"Gaz destroyed Zim's base…but I don't know why," Dib carefully explained.

"I thought her and the defect were…friends," Tak mused as she tested the foreign word out.

"What made you think that?" Dib questioned.

Tak reached into her and pulled the crumbled photo out. She handed it Dib and he hesitantly took it. He flipped it to where he could stare at it. His brown eyes widened and he instantly saddened. He tried to smooth the picture out with a sigh. Tak noticed the changed and opened her mouth to speak, but Dib had beaten her to it.

"I took this picture of them on the first day of middle school," Dib whispered.

"You took it?" Tak incredulously asked. Dib softly nodded. "I thought you and Zim were enemies."

"We were," Dib softly replied.

Tak snatched the photo back and growled. It didn't make any sense to her. Dib snatched the photo back from her and held it from her. His eyes were glued to the scene.

"We had a truce," Dib went on.

"Why?" Tak questioned.

"He saved her…I don't know his reasons…but he saved her," Dib explained painfully.

Tak snorted at this and Dib partially glared at her. His gaze remained on the photo as if he expected it to disappear. Tak raised a fake eyebrow at him and sighed. Dib ran his fingers over the picture before he leaned against the alley wall and closed his eyes.

"They had been talking since elementary school…her and Zim took a liking to each other. They would mostly pick on each other with cruel words, but it helped them somehow…made them stronger," Dib explained as he ran a hand through his hair. "A day before her first day of middle school…she was in an accident."

Tak leaned against the other wall and watched him. She wondered if this was something he told to many, probably not. Tak blinked and wiped her nose as Dib went on.

"She was late coming home from her cult meeting…her and Zim were supposed to go out to the fields and make crop circles."

Tak rolled her eyes at this. It seemed juvenile, but she knew Zim was a defect.

"Zim had grown impatient of waiting at the house and went to look for her…I went with," Dib paused and closed his eyes. "She had been walking home when she was robbed. They had shot her in the stomach…she had lost so much blood."

Dib turned his eyes to Tak before he handed her the picture back. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and fumbled with the frayed strings. Dib shut his eyes once more and jerked them open, he could still see the blood.

"We took her to a hospital, Zim was in pain…her blood had nearly scolded his skin off, but he carried her despite the pain. When we arrived the doctors said that nothing could be done," Dib finished.

"Then how is she alive now?" Tak impatiently asked.

"She should be dead…but he did something to save her life," Dib whispered as he began to walk to the end of the alley.

"What the hell did he do?" Tak growled.

"He killed the doctors in the hospital and stole her body. I tried to stop him out of grief, but he took her to his base…and the next day she came to school," Dib finished with an edgy smile.

"Irkens don't have the technology to raise the dead," Tak spat.

"She didn't remember much of the accident, but after that day…her and Zim became closer in their little dark world," Dib sighed as he picked a string from his pocket and dropped it to the ground.

"What happened to Zim?" Tak questioned.

"When Gaz was thirteen…she came home beaten, bloodied, and a bit more hollow. I went to Zim's base and that's when I found it…gone…still in flames," Dib finished as he wiped his hands and walked off.

"I still don't have the answers I need!" Tak growled.

"I don't know what happened either. Gaz locked herself in her room, stole all my information on aliens, and created Impending Doom," Dib replied with a smirk.

Tak watched as he walked away from her. She didn't understand the story. There were too many pieces missing from it. Tak stepped out of the alley knowing that she looked human. Turning from the scene within her mind she glanced at the picture before stuffing it within her shirt. Tak scowled as she continued walking, she had more questions than answers now. She pushed a random human into a wall and looked up. The streets seemed empty and she didn't believe that Zim was dead. Nothing seemed to get rid of the pest.


Gaz leaned her head against the humid beige tile in the shower. The water was still warm and beating against her back. She closed her amber eyes and listened to the shower run, it sounded like rain. Gaz softly chuckled and sighed as kept her eyes closed. She could still see it, the green liquid around her body, molding to her skin as the mask around her face kept it from entering her mouth.


"Am I dying…Zim…answer me," Gaz hoarsely asked.

Crimson eyes looked magenta in the low lighting. She gazed out at him through the green liquid. He was standing behind a console watching her. She didn't know how, but she knew he could hear her.

"Foolish human, you were dead," Zim replied with a dark smirk.

Her amber eyes widened and she found that her limbs were unbound, but she couldn't move them. Gaz looked to Zim in true confusion, partial anger. Zim pressed a button and the liquid began to drain. She floated to the bottom of the tube that held her. Her legs were shaky and she found that she didn't have the strength to pick herself up. Zim reached over and pulled the mask from her face once he pulled her from the tube. She fell into his short stature and continued to shiver.

"What happened?" Gaz whispered as her teeth clattered.

"You received a stomach wound…and lost a lot of blood, but I, the great Zim have fixed you!" Zim proudly explained.

Gaz quirked an eyebrow and covered her with a towel. His PAK clicked open and he reached inside. He pulled out a tiny blue pill and showed it to her. Zim stuffed it into her mouth and made her swallow. Gaz glared at him and he nervously chuckled.

"Why?" Gaz softly demanded as she felt her strength returning.

"Huh?" Zim replied as an antenna rose.

"Why'd you save me?" Gaz gritted out.

"Don't think I'm not going to destroy your planet or something…or that Zim is a hero!" Zim ranted. "Your race is still filthy…but I made an acceptation…you're not that filthy."

Gaz smirked, that was closest she was going to get. Zim had just declared them friends in some weird way. Gaz smirked as she pushed herself up to a sitting position. She patted his head and he swatted her hand away.

"You're not that bad for alien scum," Gaz said with a grin.

His antennae rose and he chuckled. They were friends, even if neither admitted it. They both chuckled and than Gaz realized she was naked. She slapped him into his console and wrapped the towel around her body tightly.


Gaz had slid down to the bottom of the tub gazing at the water that circled and flowed down the drain. The water that fell from above was beginning to turn cool. Her skin shivered a bit in warning, but she ignored it. Her amber eyes continued to watch the water drain away as she thought about the memory. Those should have been gone long ago. She pushed forward and rested her forehead against the cool metal of the faucet and slammed her eyes shut. Gaz growled and balled up her hand in anger.She itsmashed against the tile in front of her. She could hear a crack and knew it wasn't the faucet.

"I hate you!" Gaz screamed as she punched the wall again.

Her form shook and she opened her eyes to stare at the pouring water. Her pupils narrowed and she slammed her hand against the tub. It made a dull thunk and she cursed as she stood up. She leaned against the tiled wall and let her nails scratch at it. Gaz's same hand fisted and she slammed it into the wall.

"I hate you!"

Gaz slid to the ground once more and let her head lay against the tube. Her amber eyes were focused on the door ahead. She could hear the elevator ding and she sighed.

"Ihate you…" Gaz whispered.

The door handle twisted and the lock snapped. She didn't bother to get up as it creaked open. The remaining of the fading fog escaped out the door and her amber eyes widened. A slender green hand reached for the switch on the wall that would turn on the fan. Gaz traced the hand and the fine claws and watched as the figure stepped inside. Violet eyes gazed at her and she deflated against the tube. Tak stood her distance gazing at her and sighed.

"Depressed?" Tak questioned.

"Go away," Gaz gritted out. Her eyes narrowed angrily.

"How'd it feel?" Tak suddenly asked as she smirked.

Gaz sat up not caring about her nudity stoodand raised an eyebrow at Tak. She shakily stepped out of the tub feeling weak, but she wouldn't show that. Gaz sat on the edge of the tub and weaved her hands together as she set them on her nude thighs. She smirked at Tak and raised the other eyebrow beneath her wet hair that was pasted to her face. The water still dripped from her body and it cooled her, but she ignored it.

"How'd it feel Gaz?" Tak firmly questioned. Her eyes were studying Gaz's body.

"What?" Gaz calmly asked.

"How'd it feel…killing Zim?" Tak finally questioned.

Her amber eyes narrowed instantly and she lunged at the Irken. They flew out the bathroom door and slammed against the wall. Tak held Gaz back by her face, but the human was already trying to pull an antenna out. Her right hand came down slapped Gaz. Her head twisted a bit, but it didn't faze her as she continued attacking Tak. Tak finally punched her in the gut and threw her away. They both stood up, Gaz holding her stomach a bit as the pain throbbed.

"You bitch," Gaz sneered as she held her stomach.

Tak's shrill laughter echoed across the hall as Gaz raised an eyebrow in question. She ran her fingers across the now bruising area before she crossed her arms.

"I didn't kill him," Gaz gritted out.

"Really?" Tak questioned. "You're the only one with Irken technology and Gir, so you had to be the one to destroy him."

Gaz's face tensed before turning red in anger. Her fists shook and she released it all within one sigh. Cold amber eyes looked to Tak and she chuckled.

"Irkens don't die," Gaz simply replied as she walked into her bedroom and slammed the door shut.

Tak glared at the door and growled. She knew she wouldn't be getting a confession anytime soon.


Author's Note:

A little bit more is filled in with Zim. That alien council made me laugh as well. The next chapter will reveal who Akam really is.
Thanks to those that reviewed the last chapter.