"You want us... to what, exactly?" Dib didn't sound convinced by Zim's very compelling demands.

"We need you to send us Q." Zim repeated as he looked at the hologram before him. He could see the Nova, Dib on the Bridge with Captain Rose and her crew. It was still a little strange to see Dib in a Syndicate uniform. It almost suited him- but an Irken uniform would probably suit him more. Except for the gloves. Dib had too many fingers. Who needs five fingers on each hand? No one. No one needs that many fingers. CB had that many fingers and it was grossly uncalled for.

"YouwantQ? Like... willingly?" Dib tilted his head to the side, uncertainly. His brown eyes were narrowed behind his primitive ocular device. "Are you being forced by the Control Brains or something?"

"No. But I can see how you would think that given how terrible Q is," Zim nodded understandingly, "but our need for him outweighs his oh so terrible personality."

"I can hear you; I have ears you know." Q slid into view behind Dib in his default form. A few of the Irken refugees in the temple gasped upon seeing him.

"No, you don't." Zim countered.

"I do when I want to."

"But you don't usually." Zim was right, and Q was wrong. That was the main point that needed to be made.

"They can speak..." Mothra Elite Dae was gazing at the hologram in complete awe. "And their voice is so... not... what I was expecting..." the second part she added with a bit more hesitancy.

"It's just the translator. He doesn't actually sound like that." Voel quickly informed her. "It broke and is stuck on that setting and he won't let anyone fix it."

"You don't know that. I could sound like this. You can't hear me."

"I can hear you, though." Dib interjected quickly. "And you definitely don't sound like that. You echo voices we know; I assume because your actual voice is so ungodly painful to hear."

"I didn't think Parasites were intelligent enough to speak..." Dae was clearly excited, though her voice stayed quite calm.

"Rude. Just because you cyborgs can't hear us because of your reliance on a computerized system that inevitably betrayed you; doesn't mean we don't communicate at all."

"Are they all this aggressive?" Dae asked curiously.

"I mean, Q is the only one we understand so our sample size is pretty small." Skoodge replied uncertainly. "But we met another Parasite that did help us out."

"Yeah, but I could understand H and she wasn't much better." Dib replied quickly. "She only helped for her own gain."

"We're naturally selfish, so sue us." Q flipped the arm of his scarf with an indignant huff. "We're called Parasites. It's sort of understood that we're only in it for ourselves."

"Look at you getting all indignant." Dib smirked.

"Well, I didn't come all the way up here to be insulted."

"I mean, why did you come up here then?" The Captain questioned. "Because I doubt you knew you would be needed and you made it clear you wanted to sleep."

"Membrane Senior and his romantic partner are trying steal my hair."

"Ah yeah," Dib nodded, "they'll do that. They probably just want to know what you're made out of. Dad used to ask for DNA from all of Gaz and my teachers in case they died in a science-related accident so he could clone them and thus not have to explain to living family why they died." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "I think he does the same thing for all the staff at Membrane Labs now that I'm thinking about it."

"I..." the Captain looked briefly at a loss, "is that ethical?"

"No. But I learned very quickly that my dad is just one bad day away from super villainy and mom isn't exactly helping- as I am pretty sure she is, or at least was, a super villain." Dib gave a shrug. "I have learned to accept this."

"So... can you send Q down?" Voel interrupted the moment of reflection.

"Why though?" Q narrowed his seven eyes at the camera, looking suspicious. The scarves curved more around him, almost protectively.

"We need your help. There's talk of another Parasite and we need your input." Voel instructed. The seven eyes widened and there was that sound of bones cracking and flesh warping, distorted by being over the audio of the hologram.

"No no no!" The Captain had leapt forward, but was not quite quick enough the grab Q before he took on the form of an Earth cat and scrambled between a wall and part of the equipment on the bridge. "Oh, come on! Lor! Get him out!"

"I..." the medic came to look over the hiding spot. "I don't think I can... not without damaging the ship."

"Damn it." Captain Rose rubbed her forehead. "You can't stay in there forever, Q."

"Yes I can. Fuck you!"

"Delightful," Captain Rose rolled her eyes. "I am so glad he tagged along."

"Hey Tak, you should put your hand in there and see if you can get him out." Zim suggested.

"I'm not doing that. I know he bites." Tak gave Zim a dirty look.

"How are things out in space?" Voel ignored Zim's clever idea to use Tak's hand as bait to lure the Parasite out. (She would be fine, she could heal).

"Quiet, so far." The Captain replied. "We're keeping our distance."

"Probably for the best." Voel sighed. "We found other Irkens who escaped the Control Brains. It isn't a big group, but combined with Sizz-Lorr and his crew, it's more backing than I thought we'd have."

"I can't believe the Tallests are talking to the Syndicate even after they murdered them." One of the refugee Irkens noted. Voel sighed.

"Told you." Skoodge seemed rather amused by the frustration on Voel's face.

"We didn't get murdered. We're right here!" Therron gestured to himself and to Voel.

"We still mourn you, my Tallests." Ara bowed her head politely. "Your loss affects us all greatly."

"But. We're. Not-" Voel began but Skoodge shook his head.

"Don't fight it. Just let it go."

"Am I dead?" Zim wasn't sure of his own status. He wasn't even sure when Skoodge had died (and as his bond-mate that was a little embarrassing to admit). Technically, since he and Skoodge were bonded, they should both be dead- but Zim had bonded with Skoodge after he died... at least... Zim thought he had. But so much had happened since Skoodge had shown up at his door and CB had attacked him (way too late to have actually been helpful), that Zim was having trouble keeping the time-line straight in his head.

"Defect Zim's status in the Collective was: Unknown." Ara replied helpfully. Zim liked Ara, sure they had battled briefly- and Zim had so excellently bested her- but she reminded him a bit of Skoodge and she actually answered his questions. (Zim had also decided that he liked Vero. Vero was like Voel but he made more sense.)

"I see." Zim nodded, understandingly, " Zim is an unknowable force. This is acceptable."

"Any luck prying Q out?" Voel looked to the hologram of the Nova where Carrius was trying to lure out the multi-eyed form of Q still hiding in the small crack in the wall.

"Not exactly." Dib looked to the Irkens, then back to Carrius.

"Come on Q! You want pizza? You like pizza, right?" He was waving a slice of what looked to be a Bloaty's Special in front of Q's hiding spot. "Pretty sure the guy who made it just had a bad breakup. Extra miserable!"

"I don't want your pizza!"

"Good I didn't want to give it to you anyway." Carrius opened his mouth to eat the slice but a red tendril snaked out of the crevice and snatched the pizza slice away and pulling it into the darkness. "Hey! My pizza!"

"He did have a breakup; it was brutal too. His misery is delicious."

"You ate my pizza you ass!" Carrius glared at the gap between the machinery and the wall with renewed fury.

"You shouldn't have eaten it anyway," Lor remarked, watching from behind his struggling, Romulan First Officer. "It's been six months since you bought it. You'd get sick."

"Worth it." Carrius was still glaring down the hiding Q.

"It's really not." Lor protested.

"You're the doctor, I'm helping you earn your keep." Carrius paused for a moment before reaching his hand into the gap.

"He bites." Tak remarked dryly as Carrius yelped in pain, and withdrew his hand quickly. Zim could see the green color of the Romulan's blood dripping from a new wound in his hand. Carrius looked up to see Lor was glaring down at him.

"You're going to need Parasite Antidote now. You know he can inject you with hallucinogenic toxins."

"He ate my pizza."

"You offered it to him!" Lor huffed.

"Tak can get her hand in there!" Zim offered again. "Our PAK will naturally detox the hallucinogens!"

"Lor's skin can't be pierced by his sharp little teeth. Have him do it!" Tak spat back.

"I told you, I can't get him without damaging our equipment. I don't have the best control." Lor replied, holding up his hands in a gesture of surrender.

"Is that why there was a giant hole in the ship's vending machine?" Tak demanded. (Zim was getting annoyed. The Nova had a vending machine? Why had he never noticed or been informed of this? Zim wanted delicious, vended, Syndicate snacks!)

"It was holding my drink hostage." Lor protested.

"Can't Captain Rose just Tangean her way in?" Therron demanded. "She can go through solid objects!"

"I can get in there but I'm not strong enough to pull him out. Best case scenario, we're both stuck." Captain Rose replied dryly. "Also, he can bite me too." Dib let out a heavy, defeated sigh, shaking his head as he listened to the Syndicate crew devolved into pointless arguments.

"I'm sorry Zim..." Dib looked to the ground, "I'm so... so sorry to all of the Irkens. There's nothing we can do here. Q... has us stuck. We could maybe petition the High Council to do something but by the time we finish that paperwork," he laughed bitterly. "God... we really fucked up huh?" Zim had never heard Dib's voice tremble- at least not since he had realized the truth behind CB.

"Do not be sad because you're an inferior human and can't get a Parasite!" Zim didn't like seeing Dib like this. "We will think of something else."

"I know but... fuck... we had one job..." Dib put his face in his hands. Behind him, Q was slowly peeking out, attracted by the misery unfolding before him. "Lor now!" In a blur the Medic had tackled the Parasite to the ground. The sound of bones breaking and flesh tearing filled the call as Q violently changed his size and shape, attempting to throw Lor off of him, but the Medic held on.

"Release me you insolent fool! Your planet is dead and your people were left to die with it!"

"I. Am. From." Lor was replying through the struggle. "Capital." He was tossed into a wall, but still held fast to the now quite hulking form of Q. "Planet!"

"Tak the transporter!" Captain Rose ordered. Tak was able to grab the transportation device from the deck and using her PAK legs, she carefully weaved through Q's slashing red tendrils. He had taken the form if some sort of massive beast, all white fur, seven bulging eyes around the head, the red tendrils sprouting out if his back and trashing about. A few pierced through the medic but he wasn't budging. Tak slid under the eight, spiney legs of the monstrosity, placing the device on its underbelly. "Carrius! Ready for transport!" The Captain was on her feet, poised to jump. "Irkens be ready! Three! Two! One!" He leapt forward as the beacon was activated. She phased through Q and grabbed Lor to stop him from going with the writhing beast. They both fell to the ground as Q rematerialized in the Mothra Temple.

Instantly the Irkens scattered. Voel took his spear pointing it directly at the monstrous form Q had taken but the Parasite simply reverted back to its default form. "You suck. I hope you are all aware of that."

"Are you okay Syndicate?" Voel sounded surprisingly concerned.

"Not sure, Lor? Tak?" The Captain helped them both to their feet.

"I am fine, of course. I am immune to most of its more lethal abilities." Tak remarked proudly.

"He definitely got me a few times; I'm going to need the Antidote too." Lor looked (mostly) fine, but a little paler and more shaken than the others.

"Good luck with him," the Captain nodded to them. "We'll recover just fine."

"You sure you'll be okay?" Dib had gone to check on Lor, brushing his hair from his face.

"Yeah, just need some medicine." Lor nodded weakly.

"Thank you, Captain." Voel ended the call before Zim could get more information on how the Syndicate had fared.

"You calmed down real fast." Skoodge also had his weapon drawn. Tenn had drawn about twelve weapons and they were all pointed at the Parasite.

"Waste of energy. I can't feed here." Somehow, in the struggle, the translator had been hit. Q's voice had returned to a normal almost synthetic sounding, generic male voice. It was no longer the deep, sultry baritone.

"Good to see you can be at least somewhat reasonable." Voel narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "We have reason to believe there is another Parasite here, possibly even working with Xia."

"M. You're talking about M. She's absolutely on this planet. I can sense her."

"You know her then? Can she sense you too?" Voel pressed.

"Know her? She made me. I'm her spawn. In all honesty, she probably felt my presence the moment I arrived. However, I doubt she'll put it together that I'm working with you."

"Do you think she might work with Xia?" Skoodge asked.

"Well, I can't exactly think of another reason she would be on Irk unless she's going on a diet. I mean, about time if you ask me- but more likely than not she struck a deal to get out of her Irken prison. Your Tallest Miyuki captured her when she was trying to hunt me. Tossed her in a prison, I suppose this 'Xia' foolishly released her. Now M's basically a government watchdog. Pathetic."

"Isn't that basically what you're doing? You know for us and the Syndicate?" Zim pointed out uncertainly.

"Zim shut the fuck up!" Therron hissed.

"You shut up." Zim countered.

"Not at all." Q laid down in the air, on his stomach, tilting his head to the side as the seven eyes bore into the Irkens. "I'm injured, making the best out of a bad situation. M was just an idiot who got herself caught and suffered the consequences."

"Any chance M will tell Xia that you're here?" Skoodge looked concerned. "You can sense her, chances are she can sense you too, right?"

"It's unlikely. For one thing M doesn't see me as a threat. Another reason is that even if she's helping your 'Xia' she probably doesn't care enough to get too involved. She will want to kill me herself. My existence is a personal offense to her."

"Good. Good. We'll need you to help us pinpoint M. When we confront Xia the last thing we need is to be blindsided by a Parasite." Voel nodded.

"Oof, I dunno about that, Chief. I gave you your info. What makes you think I'm involving myself any further?"

"Because if you don't," Voel smiled widely as he fluidly swung his spear, stopping the crimson blade of light only centimeters from Q's neck, "you're completely expendable. I have no trouble finishing the job I started all those years back. I still have the modifications that Zim made to my spear."

"You kept the modifications I made?" Zim blinked.

"Well of course," Voel looked taken aback by the question. "Zim, they injured a Parasite- that's unheard of."

"Oh. Yeah, well of course." Zin cleared his throat. "No one else could do it because no one is as great as Zim."

"We have the technology," Voel turned back to Q. "So, what's it gonna be? Because I won't lie, finishing the job on you would feel pretty fucking good."

"Cool. Great. I hope you kill me. I didn't want to be here in the first fucking place." Q didn't flinch away from the blade at his neck. "Helping you would probably end in my death anyway. At least now M doesn't get the satisfaction of doing it herself."

"You don't mean that." Therron spoke up.

"Oh," Q widened one of his seven eyes, head tilting curiously as he looked at the former leader. "Don't I?"

"No. You don't. I'm calling your bluff." Therron doubled down. "If you didn't care about your own survival, you never would have helped us this far. You've stuck around despite being given a pardon by the Syndicate. You want more from us. You want protection because you can't protect yourself from the many, many enemies of the Parasite. If you help us, we can guarantee your safety. We made a deal with H already; it wouldn't be hard to work something out for you. Not only that, but a far as Irkens are concerned: you'll be a hero. Imagine a bunch of Irkens willing to protect you just out of gratitude. A race that is immune to your peers coming to your aid out of a sense of duty."

"Therron, I don't think he cares." Voel glanced over at his former co-ruler with a bit of skepticism in his voice.

"No... no..." Q used his hand to gently push the blade aside. "Q the Hero does have a nice ring to it. I wouldn't mind seeing a swarm of Irkensand Rangers beating the shit out of M or B or even G, I'll be honest." He folded his arms over his chest looking thoughtful. "And it certainly is more dignified than being aTallest'spet, like M."

"Huh..." Voel looked back to Therron. "That... worked?"

"Of course it did." Therron glared back at him.

"I too am surprised when Therron is useful!" Zim volunteered.

"Hey!" Therron turned to face him but was distracted by Mothra Elite Dae who had been staring at Q from a careful distance ever since he had arrived.

"They talk so much!" She had her hands to her mouth.

"That goes against most of our research..." Ara was watching with caution from the other side of the room. "We assumed them mute, seems like they don't shut up."

"As I said before, just because you can't hear our normal voice doesn't render us incapable of communication. Just incapable of communication with you, which honestly isn't much of a loss."

"And they are so angry too." Dae didn't seem upset, only curious.

"Yes." Voel remarked quickly.

"You don't know that for sure. I'm the only one you've ever talked to. You can't trust Dib's information anyway and he's the only one who spoke with H."

"I can assume." Voel turned away from Q. "Now we know there's a Parasite at Xia's side and IX has probably seized the body of Sym and is keeping her company. Anyone else we know of on Xia's side?"

"There is her Rising Tallest." Ara volunteered. "I had the pleasure of suplexing him at Floogian's. He was an old schoolmate of mine, Ven."

"Ven is with her?" Voel's face fell.

"Oh great another one of your pet projects." Therron rubbed his forehead. "Glad to see all of these smeets you authorized are being such a great help to the cause. The only one not actively against us right now is Vero and he barely qualifies as helpful."

"I mean, that's fair. But also: ouch." Vero piped up.

"Hey don't pin this on me! You know how much Ven likes to be helpful! He probably doesn't even know he's in a conspiracy! I wanted him to be a cunning tactician! You're the one who told me Xia was "too aggressive" and Vero was "too lazy" and that we needed a smeet who was: 'optimistic but polite'." Voel countered, pointing at Therron accusingly. Zim didn't know who Ven was, but watching the argument unfold was giving him some idea.

"No! I didn't want you to go back to the smeetery at all! I didn't want you to go the first time! I told you that VII and the smeetery technicians had everything under control. But you just had to make your smeets because you were so sad about-"

"THERRON!" Voel's voice was so sharp and angry that Therron actually stopped talking.

"About... what?" Zim blinked, looking between the two as silence fell over the room like a blanket wet from too much soup- (or maybe ice cream. Zim did like ice cream better.)

"I don't think things would have changed with or without Xia." Skoodge spoke up. "If it wasn't her, it just would have been some other power hungry Irken under the Control Brains. They have shown that they are willing to kill a Tallest of they don't play along. Xia is entirely replaceable. This situation was inevitable."

"Wow Uncle Therron, I can't believe you didn't want to make me." Vero didn't sound that hurt by the realization. However, Zim patted him gently on the arm.

"It's okay, Therron doesn't like anyone on a good day."

"What does Uncle mean?" Therron didn't seem offended so much as confused. "Is that some kind of Earth insult? I'm not an uncle! You're an uncle!"

"No Therron that's not what it-" Skoodge was cut off by Vero laughing.

"No you." The red-eyed smeet of Voel replied through laughter.

"Okay can we please have some focus!?" Voel held his hand up to silence the fighting. "This isn't about smeets, or uncles, or who is at fault for the Control Brains' takeover-"

"I mean any way you spin it: it's your guys' fault for letting it get this far." Zeke interrupted. Voel shot him a hateful look before continuing.

"We have ten Control Brains that we need to overthrow before we lose everything!"

"Ten..." Zim was thoughtful. "Zim has met a few of them... but let's go over them for the Irkens who are not as well versed." He leaned over to Skoodge. "I thought there were only eight." He whispered as quietly as he could.

"I mean I thought there were like fifteen, so I'm equally surprised." Skoodge mused. He smiled at Zim, "Guess we didn't get to know because we weren't Tallest."

"I mean I was Tallest," Vero piped in, despite Zim and Skoodge being very quiet, Vero had somehow overhead, "and I thought there were like thirty."

"There are ten." Voel rubbed his forehead in aggravation. "And you were Tallests for a few months, I don't know why everyone loves you so much."

"I'm loveable." Vero pointed out. "Aren't I?" He turned to the small group of Irkens that had been hiding out in the Mothra Temple that had been watching everything unfold- while keeping a safe distance from Q.

"Yes, Almighty Tallest V!" Came a chorus of eager responses.

"They don't mean that. It's just the programming in their PAKs. Purple and I were the truly adored leaders." Voel protested.

"I dunno, you seem to like me an awful lot, too." Vero leaned an arm on Voel's shoulder and was instantly shrugged off.

"Shut up, Vero," Voel instructed, "and pay attention. Everyone listen: there are ten Control Brains in total. They are as follows: I: Control Brain of Upper Irk; II: Control Brain of the Judgement Hall; III: Control Brain of the Western Outskirts; IV: Control Brain of the Northern Outskirts; V: Control Brain of the Southern Outskirts; VI: Control Brain of the Military Training Bases; VII: Control Brain of the Smeetery; VIII: Control Brain of the Eastern Outskirts; IX: Control Brain of the Massive; and X: Control Brain of the Irken Off-world Outposts. We believe IX is the brain who orchestrated this, if he is not the leader, he is deeply involved. The status of the other nine is currently unknown. We should assume they are against us until proven otherwise. "

"Oh, I know some of those Control Brains! VI loves me because I was such a great Invader!" Zim had come across several of the Brains listed. Everyone knew VII, she was the first Control Brain an Irken would ever meet. But he had worked under VI too.

"That is decisively not true." Therron retorted.

"I think II really loved me though." Zim looked reflective as he thought back on his trial. "She had so much nice stuff to say about me."

"That's because you broke her when she was trying... to... recode..." Therron trailed off and looked to Voel. Zim wasn't sure why they were staring at each other like that... maybe it was some kind of weird game. Not to be left out, he stared at Skoodge.

"Shit that's right! II was malfunctioning! She got all Zim-ified!" Voel made a fist with one hand and struck his open palm in an emphatic gesture. "We hadn't been able to fix her!"

"She might not have been corrupted!" Therron continued, sounding just as excited.

"Computer!" Voel pointed to CB who was holding onto GIR (still covered in barbecue sauce) trying to stop him from messing up the paintings of Mothra that adorned the walls.

"His name is CB," Zim corrected, stopping his staring contest with Skoodge just long enough to make sure Voel was treating CB appropriately. (No one was winning anyway; as it turns out, Zim forgot that Irkens don't really need to blink.)

"Right, CB!" Voel continued seamlessly. "Can you get in touch with II?"

"I would need to enter the Collective to do so from here. Such an action would alert all of the Control Brains to my existence."

"Okay, yeah. Bad plan. That's a bad plan." Voel shook his head.

"However, if I were to be close enough, I could bypass the Collective and link into her directly."

"Oh! Okay. Better plan." Voel frowned. "But that still means we would have to get to the Judgement Hall from here."

"It's far, and passed a lot of Irkens that are probably walking Control Brains..." Therron, shockingly hadn't straight up dismissed the idea yet.

"You make it sound hard," Zim waved a hand dismissively. "Did you forget you have the universe's best Invadentor on your side?"

"Zim I don't think..." Voel began to protest but was drowned out by Therron grumbling.

"That's not even a real title."

"Voel come on:" Zim gestured around himself. "Lard-Nar knows all of the security systems, Q is pretty much undetectable- except by M who we established also finds him so incredibly annoying that he isn't worth detecting- and I am an amazing Invader, and Skoodge bonded to me which also makes him amazing. You even have Tenn who lived with me long enough for my amazing to rub off on her. This will be easy!"

"I don't think it's going to be that simple." Voel replied hesitantly.

"I also," Therron interrupted, "don't think we have much choice."