Guys, I started this chapter back in April. I'm so ashamed! I apologize for the looooong wait, I admit that I took a break from the fandom for a while. I thank you all for your patience with me and hopefully, we can get things running smoothly again!
*knock, knock, knock*
Dib yawned again as he stood slouched in front of the door. Shrugging his bag further onto his shoulder, he teetered impatiently on his heels and peered up at the cloud covered sky. In hindsight, this probably could have waited until morning...the adrenaline he'd been running on the last few hours had waned and the toll of just how late it was kicked him where it hurt. It wasn't like he could just go home, though; he'd already given his inspirational speech and made a dramatic exit.
"Knock, knock, you have a visitoooor~" he called out.
Nothing.
"Okay..." he said to himself, "Um, look I know things kinda went south back there and while we're still totally justified in being mad, I'm here and I'm ready to help prevent intergalactic destruction! Again. You know, I should really put that on my resume at this point...!"
Crickets.
Groaning, the boy threw up his arms, "Zim! C'mon, I know you can hear me, this door is like cardboard! I get it if you're mad too, y'know, but what do you want me to say? I couldn't just let my sister go home alone after all that. I'm not apologizing!"
He paused, glare burning through the door. His mind reeled back at the familiar position he was in; on his enemy/friend's front lawn, shouting at a firmly closed door hoping to gain access for one reason or another. It was a wonder he hadn't worn dents on the porch with how many times he'd stood in this very spot. He could practically see Zim, maybe even Tak, on the other side working hard to quiet themselves as they listened to him. Hushing and stifling their laughter as he, once again, embarrassed himself. In this spot, he wasn't a friend or an ally or even welcome. Maybe he had overstepped...taking leave with Gaz had driven some unspoken divide. Zim was still in the wrong, he wouldn't deny, but he could also see the Irken's line of thinking. He'd already been held accountable and Dib had been ready to let it go the minute he got home. It wasn't about him being a doormat or giving in just because Zim said so, no matter what Gaz thought.
"I know things haven't really ran as smooth as we hoped, and I am kinda glad to see you can still be petty, but do you really gotta do it now?! The last few weeks have been an adjustment for all of us, and now we got Tak in the mix and an enemy that sounds like they somehow suck even more than Irk and..." he let out an exasperated sigh, "You know I'm not good at talking about my feelings. I mean, neither are you, but that's not the point. Beggars can't be choosers! I came back to help, and I know Gaz will come around too because...y'know, we care about y-"
"Okay, that's enough."
Dib stood frozen as the door opened by itself, leaving a wide space for him to enter. After a few moments, he sputtered to life.
"Wh-what the-?! You were listening the whole time?!"
"Yes and it was painful. Now, are you coming in or going away?"
Dib tensed, a small pout forming as he walked in and set his bag on the couch, "Where's Zim...?"
"I'm not at liberty to disclose that information. Master's orders."
Since when do you listen to him? Dib thought, "Well, is he okay, at least?"
A pause, a beep, then, "Define 'okay'."
Dib groaned, "The opposite of dead, dying, or incapacitated?"
"Oh," the house said simply, "Then yes, he's fine."
"I can't believe that worked! I haven't felt this alive since my training days," Tak laughed harshly.
Zim, however, wasn't listening. He'd actually stopped listening a while ago. He could vaguely make out the muffled tones of her voice, her barking laughter sounding far away. Scorching heat rushed through his body in waves, practically melting him from the inside as his throat ran dry. He kept his eyes trained hard on the floor and the corners of his vision seemed to distort in and out of clarity. It had really be him...it seemed like eons since the last time he'd had to hear that low, angry, masked voice. The words Iserai had spoken had shot through his being, as if he were in Tak's place...he had been in Tak's place. He felt a light tugging behind him; skilled fingers working away at his bindings, but he didn't care. He was dying. He had seen him! So long and so carefully hidden away from the eyes of the universe, to have it ripped away from him and now he was back in his cage. He muscles cramped from the tension he didn't know he'd been holding and he couldn't quite regain control over his own shaking.
"Hello?" Tak said from beside him, her voice harsh.
He didn't pay her much attention as he stood, giving her a small wave as if either trying to placate her or make her go away. She decided not to mention his quaking, but felt an odd rush to catch him as he stumbled on his feet. Luckily, he managed to stop himself and brushed passed her toward the elevator. She followed silently, praying to the Tallests that he didn't end up passing out. He can do that on his OWN time, she thought.
She made sure to keep her distance as they rode to the upper floors in silence. Occasionally looking in his direction, he seemed to be working toward coming down from...whatever it was. She could see the light of his Pak blinking rapidly against the wall behind him.
"You aren't going to drop dead in here, are you? I'm not a medical drone." she prodded, both to ask and to gauge his awareness.
He huffed out a sort of bitter chuckled, "I have a hard time believing you don't know first-aid. No, I'm not going to die; it's just something that...happens sometimes."
"Hm," she hummed back, taking only a second longer to study him before straightening up, "Well, don't let it get in the way; we have a lot of work to do."
The rest of the ride was spent in a rigid quiet. Zim was thankful to have recovered by the time they stopped on the main floor, the influx of panic having dulled into a much more tolerable pit of dread in his stomach. He could work with that.
"Computer, please let me know when Gir's repairs are finalized," he said, striding fast into the kitchen and opening the fridge, "We need to start working on the Voots as soon as possible."
"Can I help?"
"No," Zim responded before his brain backpedaled at the new voice, "wait-"
Dib his spot on the sofa, a bouncy tune emanating from his phone off whatever game he'd been playing. He offered the two aliens a nod just a touch too casual to look normal.
"You have a visitor."
Zim shot a heated glare up at the ceiling, "You're supposed to beat me to the punch, not tell me after the fact."
"There was no threat detected."
"Remind me to augment your standards," he sighed, plopping into a seat at the table. He rubbed at the oncoming headache, "I imagine you've found some more choice words for me?"
Dib jolted when he realized he was the one being spoken to, the Irken's magenta eyes landing hard on him, "No! I...had my say already. I'm here to help out."
"You've only been gone a few hours."
"Call me flexible?"
"I'll call you misguided," Zim stated matter-of-factly, "this isn't a good idea."
"What?" Dib exclaimed, rising to his feet, "You said you needed help with this, you can't just back out!"
"Call me flexible. Look, I mulled it over and...Gaz is right. I got ahead of myself. I basically drafted you both into a conflict I jump-started and I made decisions on your behalf."
"Is that not the usual course of events?" Tak challenged from the side.
"It is! That's the problem! When I agreed to the partial control of Noxisis, I swore that I wouldn't rule the way Miyuki did. Dib, you have a life away from all this; you have a real future ahead of you. I wish I could say everything's going to be fine and we're all gonna get on with our lives when it's over, but I can't. We could fail, and we could die, and I'm not going to let you throw it all away just because we're friends."
Dib stood passively as he listened, but also didn't listen. His arms were folded and he held his chin in mock focus as he bobbed his head in short nods. His expression was pinched in concentration and a look that screamed "not convinced". Pulling in a deep breath, the teen flattened his palms together and after a pregnant pause...
"Are you stupid?" he asked, a look of disbelief on his face, "Have you forgotten just how many times I've single-handedly saved Earth? Yeah, there were a lot of times where you failed due to your own shortsightedness, but the Moose Room? That time you tried to use Mars like a rolling pin? The entire Florpus dilemma?! That was me! Yeah, I have what most would consider some semblance of a social life now, but that's only because you got carted off to the boonies! I had to move on. It's nice not being hated by everyone around me, but at the same time, do you know how boring the last four years have been?! Space has always been my life and defending Earth from you...? I'd never felt more alive!"
Zim growled, "And how many times did you almost die for it? This isn't some kind of thrill ride, Dib, I am nothing compared to Iserai- this isn't a game!"
"You're right, it's politics," Dib let out a brittle laugh, "and I'm not trying to trivialize that. I just think that maybe you aren't giving me the credit I deserve when I tell you that I should be here. Also, I already packed, so..."
"He did play a part in ruining my own genius scheme, " Tak pitched in, leaning up the archway, "It was rather impressive- for a human."
"That was a little backhanded, but I'll take it-"
"Okay, just stop!" Zim yelled, turning to rest a hand against his head as he tried to will away the painful throbbing shooting through his skull. Thankfully, the company in the room seemed to listen, but he could feel their eyes on him. He breathed deep, still unsure whether to include Dib.
He wanted it, of course, but he wondered if his conscience could handle the blow if he ended up dying. It was a danger even for him and Tak, but they had been born for war. Engineered for maximum endurance and efficiency and could make a single cold-blooded decision in the blink of an eye. He'd seen the extent of Dib's rage before, but he was still human...his brain's subconscious need to relate and personify everything made him more susceptible to persuasion and more open to harm. Combine that with the lack of military training and you had a recipe for disaster...the boy had a crazy streak, but he was no killer. There was a risk he would show compassion to those who wouldn't return it.
An odd warmth flooded through him and the world suddenly felt fuzzy, the ache behind his eyes stabbing harder. He was vaguely aware of the alarm bells his Pak was signaling to him, pleading for rest and time to repair itself.
"Master, the SIR unit has been successfully rebooted."
Seeing his window, Zim shot up, forgetting formalities as his brain prioritized leaving, "Tell him to meet me in the hangar, and no detours. And you," he risked a look at Dib, regretting it as the room tilted, "you're free to stay if you wish. Tak will give you a rundown of how you can be useful."
Leaving no room for argument, he made his way out of the room. Tak watched him coolly, deciding to keep his rapid paling to herself and making a note to check in later.
"Hm, kinda moody, eh?", Dib said, adjusting his glasses uncomfortably.
The bounty hunter shrugged, "S'been a long night for everyone...but no time for all that now; I intend to get as much work out of you as I can before you fall into hibernation. There's a lot to be done, with the short version being that the Runners need to be mended and reinforced."
"Okay, the Voot I get, but yours seems to be running pretty smooth."
"It's made out of garbage and scrap," she gave him a dull look, "just be thankful I was generous enough while building it to put in a second seat."
"Why?"
Pushing herself off the wall, she stalked with purpose in his direction. He tensed some at her closeness, but didn't step back. Admirable.
"Because," she sneered, "you and I are going on a little errand run."
Guess who got Covid yaaaaaaaaa'll. Don't guess, it was me. Trying to get back into the groove of writing this thing, so thank you to everyone who's stuck around!
