1. Calm him down. Or at least try. He won't remember any of it. The truce, the mission, or any of the last few months. It will have been replaced with an wall of denial. You will still be his enemy, earth is still ripe for conquest.

2. Carefully approach and introduce the truce in all its overly rewritten glory. Show him the words that keep evolving but, whose meaning stays the it slow. There is no tricks, no traps, no double meanings or back stabbing. This is true. He won't trust you. But, he also won't understand the urge to trust you anyway.

3. Break the bad news. Wait the storm out. He won't believe it. Offer all the evidence you have gathered for times like these. Present it one at a time. Answer his doubts with truth, with no room for arguments. Break it down, break the walls down, break his lies and self deception down. Break him down.

4. When he is at his lowest, reoffer the truce and the mission. Know that he will take it even while still being afraid that this time will be the time he won't. Watch him pick up the pieces of himself, determined and eager to start again. He recuperates faster and faster each time.

5. Let things return to normal. As normal as it can be.

6. Make notes on the circumstances that could have driven him over the brink, back to his old mindset and how to better prevent it.

7. Repeat.


ZIM wasn't sure why it happened. He liked to think of himself as someone who was far from weak minded. The opposite really. His mind was incredible and powerful and all around amazing. So, how was it that this kept happening?

Each time it was like he was waking up from a disgustingly long nap. A dreamless, uncomfortable nap. Everything was confusing, he didn't know the time or much of it had passed.

It was always Dib standing there with the truce and a look of...pity and determination on his ugly face. And each time, after the initial rush of weak emotions (despair,disbelief,fear) it was as if none of it had happened.

He could compare it to a flash flood. The idea of which scared the daylights out of him but, as a metaphor it would suffice.

Unexpected, hints of thunder, flashes of lightning and next thing he knew he was drowning in the past. Emotions,memories,old habits, old dreams and ideas. Everything he was now, washed away violently by who he used to be.

Dib pulled him from the rushing water and breathed life back into him again in the form of their truce, their mission.


ZIM stared down at the limp form of GIR, usually so loud and obnoxious. Eyes dark, limbs splayed. Cold metal without a soul. Just like the first time he'd ever seen the robot.

A gift from the Tallest. A true mark of an Invader. Finally.


Thunder rumbled. Clouds were darkened to nearly black,burdened with unshed rain.


There was a tornado warning. Dib said it was fine. A few counties over. Whatever that meant.

Every radio, tv, phone went off with the same montone, loud buzzers. It reminded him of the sound that had played before Invader training drills.

His fellow wanna-be invaders huddles in the barracks waiting for their cue. Before the day was over, they would know who couldn't cut it.

ZIM was the shortest one in his group but, he was the fastest and he wanted it the most. The buzzers were loud in his antenna.


Lighting struck. Somewhere rain was falling hard.


Irkens always ate sugar. It was a huge part of their diet, it was nearly in everything.

But, pure grains of sugar was rare. He'd only ever had it once. When he'd graduated from the Academy and all his fellow graduates had thrown something of a party.

He hadn't been invited. But, he'd gone anyway.

ZIM's eyes shut with the taste.


Water rumbled louder than the thunder itself. It was up to his knees.


The moon blocked the sun. It was hot outside despite it looking like nighttime. Gir ran around him in a circle, screaming and minimoose was 'nyeh'ing something at him as they walked.

ZIM stared up at the eclipse, feeling something stir in him. The first planet he'd ever landed on. Vort had a near constant solar eclipse. Lucky for the vortians, they had multiple suns.

The first time he'd seen it, ZIM had been struck with surreality. Nothing had felt safe or real.


The flood was coming and he wasn't afraid. He never noticed it until it was too late.


Notes:

Hey everyone! Just wanted to say thanks for all the lovely comments and support! It really does mean the world to me. We're over half way done with this section of the story.