Chapter 3. This chapter is currently untitled because I'm lame that way. And it's a bit shorter than the first two. R&R please!
After that one not-so-friendly encounter with Tak at the school, Zim had lost complete track of the female Irken. It was now the third month since he left Tak's base. There was no word, sight, or scent of her whatsoever. After spending so much time with her, and then having her totally disappear┘Zim was uneasy, at first anyway. He couldn't help the feeling that something was amiss. It bit at him, day after day, and he would find himself aching to run back to her base just to be near her again just to be sure she was still even there. He wanted to be with her, but something told him he shouldn't. An internal instinct advised him to stay away. His Invader's reasoning told him he should leave her so he could do what he came here to do. Zim opted to keep his distance, no matter how much it hurt inside his chest. For almost a week, he secluded himself deep down in his labs, and tried to focus on little experiments that really had no useful purpose for his conquest. It was all just to keep his mind busy.
The Invader convinced himself while he tinkered with the experiments that what he felt was the lasting effects of the year's breeding period. The season ended and the male Irken's hormones settled back to their usual levels, which made Zim very happy. He didn't have to worry about losing control of himself and running off to find Tak. He could feel his old self coming back. The yearnings didn't last much longer and without the craving to be near Tak, Zim was able to focus on his plans for the planet. Setting an incredible scheme into motion and almost always having it put to ruin by a certain annoying human became Zim's daily life once again.
Only every once in a while did he ever wish to see her again. There would be times, mostly when his mind was at ease, when he would start thinking about her. It was something he couldn't explain. He was over with the mating season and he started to care less and less whether Tak was still on the planet. Though, every time Zim turned his thoughts on Tak by chance, the more and more difficult it would be to take them off of her.
School ended with the arrival of summer and Zim now had more time to spend his days planning the doom of the planet and fending off the Dib. One particular warm sunny day, Zim came home slightly singed after a rather harsh incident involving the big-headed human, sausage, and a badger. Still shaking off the after-effects, Zim crossed his lawn to his base, stopping curiously at the doorstep. Before reaching for the doorknob, he cocked his head to the side, glancing over his shoulder. After staring at nothing for several seconds, he shrugged and continued on his way into the base.
Gir was sitting on the couch, watching the television as always. At the sight of the robot, Zim cringed. The SIR unit would have been VERY handy earlier today. Zim muttered inaudibly under his breath, making his way past Gir and pressing further into the base. Until the little robot stopped him halfway.
"Hi Master!" he squeaked happily.
"I'm not in the mood, Gir..."
"Okay! That green lady came to see you today!"
Zim then stopped in his tracks. "What?" He slowly turned to face Gir.
The little robot smiled at him. "She had something for you!"
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Without sparing Gir another word, Zim ran back outside. He stopped at the sidewalk, searching for a scent, a track, any sign that Tak had been there. He detected a trail riding the air down the street. It had the female Irken's signature all over it. Zim took a step forward then hesitated. It felt as though something was squeeze all his vitals deep inside his chest. He forced himself to breathe and shakily moved forward. He kept his focus on the invisible path before him, everything else around becoming a blur, and began summing up the strength to move faster.
He followed the trail down the city blocks, dashing around every corner as quick as his legs could manage, nearly toppling over several humans in the process. The sun was beginning to sink low in the sky. His chase led him to the outskirts of town, to the bridge that crossed the river which marked the city limits. It was here that he found her.
Tak was standing at the middle of the bridge, disguised in her form. She seemed to be gazing at the waters below, her arms crossed. Zim cautiously approached her. He hadn't seen her in three months. He didn't know how she would react to him after their last encounter.
As he became closer to her, he noticed the solemn look on her face. Even at only a few feet away, she didn't seem to acknowledge his presence. Zim looked down at her folded arms and saw she was actually holding a small book bag like the ones he saw the human children use at school.
"Tak..." Zim said. The bridge only vibrated and rattled in response as cars passed them by. "Tak?"
"I was wondering if you'd come," Tak muttered. She kept her eyes on the water below.
Zim shifted uneasily. "What are you doing here?" he asked.
Tak remained silent, staring down at the item in her arms. "I was going to let it go. I thought it'd be better to forget about it and move on with what I'm supposed to be doing." Her voice became cold. "It will only be a nuisance to me anyway."
Zim was confused. He expected she'd be yelling his antennae off. Instead, she sounded angry at 'it', whatever 'it' was anyway. "What are you talking about?" he asked.
"We're not supposed to have things like this happen!" She turned to him and glared. "Did you have any idea at all!?"
Zim narrowed his eyes. "What are you so angry about? What are you doing here Tak?"
A low, venomous growl escaped the female's throat as she bared her teeth at him. "HERE!" She suddenly shoved the bag into his arms. "You're the cause of all this, so you deal with it! You've ruined my life enough already, I don't need this to burden me as well!" She began walking away before Zim could react. He was left glaring daggers into her back. This time, Zim growled in anger.
"You horrible female!" he yelled at her. "You were the one who decided to come back! Maybe you life wouldn't be so miserable if you'd go and find your own planet!" There was a mysterious pain growing in his chest as he said those last words.
Tak ignored his outburst. Zim gritted his teeth. "That wretched...Arrgh!" He stared down at the bag, almost forgetting he was holding it. The bag was heavier than it looked. Something was inside it, he guessed. Curiosity temporarily replaced his anger and Zim undid the clasp on the front. Opening the leather flip with one hand, Zim peered into the bag. His eyes went wide with shock. The shining blue-green shell of an Irken egg was glistening back at him in the coming moonlight.
-----
By the time night had fully descended on the city, Zim had already returned to his base - with his newly acquired package. At the time, the only thing he could think to do was to wrap the egg in thick blankets and place it somewhere safe, mostly out of Gir's reach. So far, he had managed to walk through the front door without the insane little robot noticing much. Zim made his way down into a deep level of his lab. He found several suitable fabrics and carefully placed the wrapped-up egg on an examination table, covering it with a few more blankets. He then proceeded to lock all the doors to the room.
Once Zim was sure the egg wouldn't be squished to death via Gir, his brain began working on the other problems running through his mind. Mainly, what was he going to do with it now, and, why didn't Tak say anything about it sooner? "It's obvious she didn't want it," he mused aloud to himself while pacing back and forth in his lab, eyeing the little object warily. "Why give it to me? What am I going to do with it? This mission doesn't allow time to care for a smeet!"
Frustrated, Zim ran his hands over his face, nearly gouging his own eyes out.
"It will only be a nuisance to me anyway."
A thought occurred to Zim as he replayed Tak's words in his mind. He stepped over to a computer console and began typing in commands. He turned back to the table the egg was sitting on as the computer ran a scan over it. Zim waited a few moments as the information was processed. Once the results were shown on screen, Zim scanned through the findings anxiously. A small sigh of relief escaped him when the monitor indicated a heartbeat.
Zim read through the rest of the data. "So it's a male, and it only has a few more weeks to incubate before it hatches. That's more than enough time to create a pak..." He went quiet after his last sentence. You're not thinking about keeping it!? He scowled to himself. "But it would be nice to have an evil minion that can actually get things done right," he mused. "It has inherited my amazing genes after all. Getting rid of it would only be a terrible waste."
Zim went to stand beside the makeshift nest once again. He removed the glove from his right hand and dug his bare skin into the pile of blankets. He withdrew his hand after several seconds, pleased with the heat he felt surrounding the egg. "All seems to be well with you," he muttered to the egg as he put his glove back on. "Your mother failed to see the usefulness you can bring to a mission. I will not overlook the advantage you will provide for me. I am Zim, your father, and there is nothing but great things to be expected from a son of mine." Zim grinned and gently placed his hand lightly over the egg. "Sleep well, my child."