Author's Notes: Sorry this update took so long. Hopefully I can keep up a decent pace with this fic. The identity of New Zim has been solved by pretty much everyone already, but that's okay. The rest of the story is mostly about how this sequence of events took place, and where do the characters go from here. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and thank you for the lovely reviews you've all left so far :)

guestrev: I totally agree with you that the "Zim gets taller and more mature" plot is done to death. I just think it would be weird for Zim to change that much because he's already an adult. Glad I'm not the only one that wanted something different :)

Chapter 3

Purple

Dib continued to spy on New Zim for the rest of the week. The camera in Zim's lab turned out to be the most useful, since that was where New Zim spent most of his time. The strange part was he wasn't using the lab to build evil inventions to take over the world like Dib had expected. Instead the new guy was watching alien TV shows on the giant monitor. It was fascinating from a cultural standpoint, but it didn't help Dib in figuring out the new Irken's plans.

Gir had never returned and New Zim rarely spoke either to his computer or to himself. The really weird part was when New Zim would call Gaz, as he seemed to do every day after skool now. Part of Dib was angry that an alien monster was trying to brainwash his sister into cooperating with earth's invaders, but another part knew Gaz was just using New Zim to get free pizza, which he always happily paid for using a forged credit card with no limit and no actual company around to collect the debt. Dib scowled at that thought. New Zim wasn't just an invader, but also a thief!

"I don't understand though, why did you dance with the robot again?" New Zim asked Gaz curiously over the video phone while Dib listened in on their conversation.

"I don't remember. Something about saving the earth or whatever," Gaz replied with a dismissive wave of her hand, "I was 10, and kind of bored. I wouldn't make the same mistake again."

"How many years do you claim now?" New Zim inquired.

"I just turned 14," Gaz replied, "How old are you?"

"No idea," New Zim shrugged, "Irkens don't really keep good track of these things. I think I'm 400, maybe 600 years old. I dunno. I could be as old as 700, but I kind of hope not. I heard old age is frowned upon in your society."

"Funny," Gaz mused, "You don't seem to care that I know you're an alien."

"That's because I'm not afraid of you," New Zim stated casually, "You're not a government person or a scientist. You have no reason to kill me."

"Not yet, but order anchovies on my pizza and I will," Gaz warned darkly.

"Agreed. Those things are nasty!" New Zim exclaimed disgustedly as he stuck his wormy tongue out, "So, what game are we starting with tomorrow?"

"Empire Piggies," Gaz replied, "I figured it would be something familiar to you. Oh, and bring soda along with the pizza. Nothing diet. Got it?"

"Got it," New Zim nodded curtly the way a soldier would to an order, "Zim signing off."

The screen went dark, and Dib walked away from Gaz's room before she could notice him. He plopped back down in his computer chair and sighed. Why did New Zim have to come to his house and try to convert his sister to the dark side? Well, the darker dark side. He needed to know more, but he didn't know how to search for it. All he knew was this new Irken was tall, had purple eyes, and was wearing a larger version of Zim's clothes.

Dib had tried searching through the database of Tak's ship, but the information was too general. He could learn about Irken conquest and the information on various species, but not about individual Irkens. He could tell the new invader was important because height was the most important thing to an Irken. Height equaled rank, and New Zim was the tallest kid in class, maybe the tallest person in the whole skool. Maybe the armada considered earth important enough to their plans to send a better invader? Dib was sure that was the reason.

He had to do something to get rid of this new alien before humanity was doomed!

Saturday came, and at exactly 2:00 PM New Zim walked into the Membrane house carrying five pizza boxes and three 2 liters of soda. Gaz had already set up a laptop on the floor with controllers so she and Zim could both sit down and play without him peering over her shoulder like a curious toddler.

"W-where should I set these?" New Zim grunted as he struggled with his burden.

"On the coffee table," Gaz jagged a thumb behind her to point to said table, "I see you're prepared for your lesson, noob. Try to keep up."

"I've been playing simulators since before your ancestors were born," New Zim replied gamely, "Bring it on, earth-monkey!"

Dib raced upstairs from the basement laboratory when he heard the alien's voice. He wasn't going to let that overgrown green wad of space scum get to his sister. He knew exactly how he was going to defeat New Zim, and it was by going back to an old trick he had used on the first Zim.

Hm, I wonder if Zim is a code name? Dib briefly pondered. Maybe it's like James Bond. Maybe there are thousands of Irkens named Zim. That would be weird.

Dib found Zim and Gaz playing their game on the living room floor. Gaz was cursing at New Zim because he had such trouble with the controls and it was costing them lives...in the tutorial level.

"How is this even possible!?" Gaz spat as New Zim glared defensively at her, "Who dies before level 1? You're not even gripping it right! Just use the arrows to move and then shoot the thing! It's easy!"

"Shut up! I only have four fingers!" New Zim barked reflexively as he tried to work the controller to please his bossy teacher, "Now, which one switches the guns?"

"Corner circle back," Gaz replied through gritted teeth, "But you don't need that now. Just fire the stupid thing!"

"Hey Zim!" Dib called out, causing New Zim's attention to be diverted again, "Take this!"

Before the two gamers could figure out what was going on, Dib had hurled a green water balloon at the alien menace. It bounced off New Zim before popping open and dumping its contents all over the alien, Gaz, and her precious gaming laptop.

"AAAAAHHHHH!" New Zim screamed as he tried to wipe the water away from his burning flesh, "WHAT DID YOU DO!?"

"MY COMPUTER!" Gaz screamed when the water short-circuited her laptop, "That's it, Dib! You're dead!"

"Save some...for me! AAAHH!" New Zim managed to say in between screams of agony.

"Gaz, I did this to save the earth!" Dib tried to defend himself, "Space Boy here needs to know who he's messing with!"

"That's Space Man to you, punk!" New Zim spat in contempt, "And when I find the secret to this acidic substance you used on me I will unleash it on every member of your pathetic race! Except Gaz, she lost her gaming computer so she's suffered enough."

"Okay seriously, why do you like my sister so much?" Dib asked incredulously as he ran around the kitchen table to avoid Gaz.

"I dunno," New Zim shrugged, "She's powerful, she's smart, and she's bossy. She kind of reminds me of..."

New Zim stopped talking while Gaz continued to chase Dib; neither kid noticing the sadness that crossed his features as he hung his head. The pain of the balloon water was starting to wear off, but now a new pain presented itself.

How could I just replace my best friend with an inferior life form? What am I doing?

Gaz banged Dib's head on the table several times before he was finally able to wrestle himself away. He ran to the couch and Gaz stalked closer before she was stopped by a strange hissing sound coming from Zim. She barely turned to head to see what was wrong with the big green idiot when she noticed he was standing very stiffly and had his eyes shut as tight as they would go.

"What's wrong with you?" Gaz scoffed derisively, though in fact she was actually a little concerned.

"Huh?" New Zim suddenly looked up like he had forgotten where he was, "Oh, it's nothing. I should go. I need to run some tests to make sure your housemate didn't poison me or something."

"Geez, it was just water," Dib rolled his eyes and adjusted his glasses from where they had been skewed in the struggle; how they didn't break he had no idea, "Look, I know you're not Zim, and there's no point in denying it. I saw your purple eyes on my spy cams, and I know you're a lot taller than Zim, so spill it! Who are you, really?"

"Purple," The new guy muttered under his breath; barely audible.

"Yes, I know your eyes are purple," Dib repeated; misinterpreting the answer as a shocked response, "Now, who are you?"

"Purple," Purple said a little more clearly this time.

"Yes, purple!" Dib huffed in exasperation, "Now tell me who you are, you alien scum!"

"I am telling you, meat bag! My name is Purple!" Purple shouted indignantly.

Dib shut up then, not really sure how to reply to that. Gaz snickered a little, and Purple scowled at her for laughing at him.

"Purple, seriously?" Gaz asked between snorts of laughter, "Is your planet so lacking in creativity that they just named you after a stupid color? What's your mom's name? Blue?"

"We don't have moms, you pizza-obsessed twit," Purple sniffed haughtily, "And besides, just because it sounds stupid in your language doesn't mean it sounds stupid in mine. Your name doesn't even translate into anything, and Dib's name translates into first-taker-caller. Now that's stupid!"

"Hmph," Gaz crossed her arms and grunted without responding to her increasingly annoying guest.

"Well, I guess since your gaming thingy is destroyed I should probably go," Purple said awkwardly after a moment, "I only came here to play, and now there's nothing to play, so I'm leaving. Let me know if you get a new one. Bye."

"Wait!" Dib called out before Purple could reach the door, "Why are you here? Where is Zim?"

"Why? You miss him?" Purple asked venomously, "Trust me, the universe will be better off when that little idiot finally does something so stupid that he blows himself up. By the way, you try to turn me in to the earth authorities, and I'll make sure you don't live to enjoy your victory."

"Yeah right, like threats really scare me at this point," Dib scoffed proudly as he smirked at the tall alien, "Zim has thrown just about everything he can at me, and I'm still standing. He's tried to drown me with a giant water balloon, captured me and took me to outer space, turned me into bologna, tried to destroy the town with a giant hamster, and shrunk himself to microscopic size so he could fly around in my body and mess with my brain. I've survived them all. So, what could you possibly do to me that hasn't already been done?"

"Stab you with a knife and scoop out your guts," Purple replied casually with a shrug, "It's actually not that hard. Your life organ is in the center of your chest and emits a subtle rhythmic noise that makes it easier to locate. Not to mention if I just kept you restrained long enough your body would die on its own from lack of fluids. Honestly I don't see how Zim hasn't killed you by now considering how fragile humans are. In fact, I'm surprised he didn't destroy this planet by accident like he's done with so many others. You're a pretty lucky species, actually."

Dib's eye twitched a little after Purple was finished speaking. It wasn't just what Purple said to Dib, but rather how bored he sounded as he spoke. This guy spoke about murder and genocide like it was nothing, and it was clear that to this Irken it really was nothing. Not to mention finding out Zim had destroyed entire planets and civilizations before. Sure, Dib knew Zim was a threat, but he didn't really think about how much experience Zim would actually have with destruction and war.

"So, um, Purple," Dib tried to speak with a level voice, but it still came out more nervous than he would like, "If Zim isn't here, and you are, well...why is that?"

"I don't answer to lower life forms, earth-beast," Purple replied snootily, "Now come with me."

"Um...what?" Dib stammered; confused.

"You said you were spying on me, right?" Purple reminded him, and Dib dumbly nodded, "So, you are coming with me to the base to remove each and every spy camera. Failure to comply will result in the termination of you and your household. I have to kill them too so nobody comes looking for you," After that dark statement Purple instantly brightened up and said, "So what are we waiting for? I've got snacks back at the base and there's a Planet Jacker melodrama on in 20 minutes. Woo!"

Dib gulped, beginning to wonder if this Purple guy was crazy or if all Irkens were sociopaths with childish tendencies. For once in Dib's life he really didn't want to go to Zim's base, but he didn't see a way out of it. He knew Zim's abilities and weaknesses intimately from years of study, but he didn't know Purple. He didn't know if everything Purple said was just tough talk or if he really was dangerous. His only option was to observe and find out.

Dib dug around in the wires in the broken TV set until he found his spy camera. He had removed a few camera in the base while Purple loomed over him and kept watch on his every move. Dib felt an odd mixture of irritation and fear when he was around this guy. On the one hand he was just as annoying as Zim, but on the other hand he carried himself in a way that was more controlled than the crazed little invader.

"Is that the last one?" Purple asked suspiciously.

"I think so," Dib lied; hoping he could continue to spy using other older cameras around the base, "Well then, I guess I should be going now."

"Not so fast!" Purple grabbed Dib's wrist with a surprisingly strong grip, "Computer! Scan the camera in Dib's hand!"

"Scanning…" The computer replied.

"Is there anything like that in other parts of the base?" Purple inquired.

"Scanning…" The computer replied as a screen appeared from the roof with wavy lines indicating a scan taking place, "Scan complete. 14 other cameras have been detected throughout the base."

Purple glared daggers at Dib, and Dib gulped. Dib then tried to break free of Purple's grasp and make a run for it, but the tall Irken's bony fingers were too strong. Dib screamed as he struggled, and when Purple got tired of holding Dib's wrist he spun the boy around and tackled him to the ground. Purple then sat on top of Dib, and the human teenager tried to crawl away; all to no avail.

Dib's head hurt and his ears rang. The force of him hitting the ground had been stronger than he first realized. He groaned painfully, and when Purple felt no more resistance he stood up and dusted off his pants. Dib looked up at Purple, but his vision was blurry. Gasping, Dib felt of his face and realized his glasses had been knocked off his head during the fight.

Dib got onto his hands and knees and started feeling around for the glasses, but then a booted foot stepped on his right hand and dug it into the ground; causing Dib to bite back a scream.

"Don't move," Purple hissed; his voice sounding much deeper and more threatening than before, "You lied to me, human. You were going to turn me in, weren't you? Well, weren't you!?"

"Let me go, you alien freak!" Dib grunted; unwilling even now to show fear to his enemy, "I need to find my glasses!"

"Oh, and what do these glasses do?" Purple asked almost mockingly.

"They help me see," Dib replied, and then realized he probably shouldn't have told him that.

"Wow, you humans are pathetic," Purple taunted, "You can't even adjust your own eyes properly."

Purple then picked up the glasses, wiped them off with a tissue, and then placed them back on Dib's face. Dib was surprised that Purple was willing to give him back his glasses, and looked at the tall Irken in puzzlement.

"What are you looking at?" Purple asked rudely.

"Um, why did you help me?" Dib asked in bewilderment.

"I didn't..." Purple replied ominously, "You should've broken your eye glass, then you wouldn't be able to see what I'm going to do to you. Computer! Restrain him!"

Before Dib could react wires snaked out of the wall and held him in place. A floating table with straps appeared out of the floor. Dib remembered when Zim had strapped him to one of those things when he tried to dissect him a few years ago. This table was bigger now to accommodate Dib's new height.

Was that Purple's plan? To dissect him? Dib struggled as the automated system secured him to the table, and he continued to struggle as Purple pushed him onto the elevator to take him to the lab. Finally once they were in the laboratory Dib whimpered as he realized he didn't have a plan or a way out. This was most likely the end for Dib. Without him around, Dib was sure that the earth was doomed.