Chapter 4
The base was now calm as Dib traipsed through it, half carrying, half dragging Jaz, whose PAK had been re-implanted on her back.
"Dib...my PAK...should be healing me...by now..." Jaz said weakly as she struggled to breathe. She took in a huge gasp of air then resorted back to breathing slowly. "I still feel the same..."
"Jaz..." Dib started before being interrupted by Danny as she came running toward them, almost running them over.
"There you guys are! Listen, I—JAZ!? What happened!?" She then turned her gaze to Dib. "WHAT DID YOU DO!?" She shouted at him angrily.
"Nothing!" Dib shouted back defensively.
"It was part...of the plan, don't worry..." Jaz intervened before exhaling heavily and closing her eyes as she tried to rest.
Danny turned her gaze back to her friend as her expression softened. "Jaz...Are you...are you ok?" She asked, concerned.
Jaz gestured for Dib to let her go, to which he obliged half-heartedly. Jaz sat down and, struggling to keep herself sitting up, she explains.
"We used my PAK...to take control of the base's BRAIN...so now...it only obeys...my commands...and Dib's..." Her head drooped forward from exhaustion. "I should be fine...soon enough..."
"How long have you been like this?" Danny asked. Jaz slowly lifted her head up, her eyes barely open.
"...Since I got my PAK back in..." She replied weakly before dropping her head again.
"And how long ago was that!?" When Jaz doesn't answer, Danny turns to Dib. "WELL!?"
"Uh...A few minutes ago? I don't know!" Dib replied frantically. Danny turned back to Jaz.
"JAZ! Come on! Don't you DARE fall asleep on me!" She shouted, slapping her friend's face gently. Jaz snorted awake and her head shot up.
"Wh-wai-wha?" She said groggily.
"That's it!" Danny scooped Jaz up in her arms and ran back in the direction she came from.
"H-hey! Where—Wait up!" Dib shouted after her before running off in the same direction.
The two of them run through the base to the lab. When they reached their destination, Danny looked around frantically at all the equipment. Finally, she spots what she's looking for and bolts for a pod-like chamber. She placed Jaz inside and the pod immediately closed Danny punched in a code, which caused the pod to glow and make whirring sounds.
"What is that thing?" Dib asked curiously.
"It's a repair pod. It repairs Irken PAKs. Jaz should be back to normal in no time." Danny replied.
Several minutes passed before the pod finally opened and Jaz's eyes shot open. She pushed herself up into a sitting position then leaps out of the pod, standing proudly with her hands on her hips.
"See, I told you I'd be fine." She said with a wink. "Of course, I must thank you both...You've done wonderfully." She added humbly with a smile.
"If you ever scare me like that again, I WILL kill you." Danny said curtly.
"Yeah, yeah, I know." Jaz said, waving it off, still smiling. She clapped her hands and rubbed them together. "So! We did it! I can FINALLY tell the Tallests I completed my mission!" She said triumphantly. Danny looked away, trying to look as innocent as possible.
"As an Irken, I can honestly say I have made real friends." Jaz continued, not noticing Danny. "Dib, thank you for allowing us to serve alongside you." She added with a respectful bow.
"Hey, I should be thanking you guys for helping me get rid of Zim." Dib replied with a smirk.
"Um...yeah...sure...no problem..." Danny replied nervously. Dib looked at her curiously.
"Um...Danny? Are you...wearing make-up?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at her.
"Huh?" Danny looked at him in confusion before turning to the nearest shiny surface and looking at her reflection. She was not pleased with what she saw. "THAT LITTLE S***!" She frantically rubbed at her face with her hands.
"Yeah, I wasn't sure if I should ask about that..." Jaz said, staring at her.
"I'M GOING TO KILL HIM!" Danny shouted, still rubbing the make-up off.
"Who? GIR?" Jaz asked, confused.
"NO. ZIM!" Danny shouted, having stopped rubbing her face due to the fact that her gloves were now covered in make-up.
Jaz stared at her, processing what she just said. Her eyes grew wide as it dawned on her and she turned and ran for the door.
"Jaz!?" Dib called after her.
"Where are you—" Danny started. "CRAP!" She exclaimed as she took off after her Irken companion. "JAZ! WAIT!"
"WHAT'S GOING ON!?" Dib shouted as he ran after them both.
Back on the surface, Jaz ran out the front door, angry as a charging bull. "ZIIIIIIIIIIM! I'M GOING TO FUGGING MURDER YOU!"
Zim, having been standing on the sidewalk, immediately ran for his life, screaming with GIR still in hand.
The two Irkens chase each other in circles around the cul-de-sac, screaming and cursing. Humans watch them without really giving a damn or having a clue about them being aliens. Danny and Dib come running out the front door to witness the almost comical sight.
"JAZ!" Danny yelled as she ran out into the street. She stopped just short of the area where the two Irkens are chasing each other and crouched. Zim ran right past her, still holding GIR and closely followed by Jaz. Danny pounced, tackling Jaz to the ground. "STOP!" She shouted.
Jaz screamed as she struggled against Danny's grip. "LET ME GO! I'M GONNA KILL HIM! I'M GONNA KILL THAT STUPID B******! HE'S RUINING MY LIFE! I'M GONNA KILL HIM!"
"JAZ! CALM DOWN!" Danny shouted as she struggled to hold her friend.
Dib stood on the sidewalk, not sure of what to do. Zim stood gaping in fear at the two Irken females struggle on the ground.
Danny finally managed to pin Jaz down on her back and slapped her across the face. "CALM DOWN!"
Jaz responded by glaring up at her in anger.
"WHAT THE F*** was THAT!?" Danny demanded.
"He's supposed to be DEAD! Why is he still alive?! You were SUPPOSED to keep him INSIDE so the house could destroy him!" Jaz retaliated.
Danny's expression softened as she looked down. "I...I couldn't."
"WHAT!? WHY NOT!? I gave you specific orders NOT to let him escape or leave ALIVE! WHAT IN IRK'S NAME IS WRONG WITH YOU!?"
"I DIDN'T WANT TO SEE HIM DIE! FORGIVE ME FOR NOT WANTING TO SEE ANOTHER LIVING BEING BLASTED TO PIECES!"
"HE DOESN'T EVEN LIKE ANYONE! HE TRYING TO DESTROY US ALL! HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY LET A CRIMINAL LIKE HIM LIVE, AFTER ALL HE'S DONE!?"
"BECAUSE, I, UNLIKE SOME PEOPLE, ACTUALLY BELIEVE IN SECOND CHANCES!"
"HE'S HAD BILLIONS OF SECOND CHANCES! I'M JUST TRYING TO DO MY JOB SO I CAN GO HOME!" Jaz's eyes started to tear up at the last sentence.
Danny, suddenly at a loss for words, merely sighed in exhaustion.
Jaz pushed Danny off and looked at her, tears still in her eyes. "You...are a stupid...B******! I came here to do my job, and you're RUINING IT! I thought you were my friend!" She then turned on Zim. "And YOU!"
Zim, having been watching the whole time, started at Jaz's outburst.
"YOU'RE the reason why I'm at the end of my rope! It's because of YOU that I may be DELETED under the Tallests' ruling! This is all YOUR fault, you filthy, horrible disgrace!" Jaz shouted as she got to her feet.
Zim's expression went from shock and fear to anger. Danny, however, just stood by with her head hung. Dib watched everything and tried to process what had just occurred.
Zim finally managed to compose himself and marched right up to Jaz, staring her directly in the face. "How...DARE you call ME a DISGRACE! I am the reason our people will still be superior among all others in the future! You have NO IDEA who yo—"
Just then, Danny stepped between them. "Zim, stop."
Zim looked at her in shock. Jaz looked at her as well, but in anger rather than surprise.
"Look, Zim, I'm sorry, but you're not an Invader. Jaz was sent here by the Tallest themselves to destroy you." Danny explained calmly. Zim just stared at her as if she had sprouted a second head.
"Oh, come on Danny!" Jaz exclaimed. "He's not going to believe you! He's never believed anyone!"
"What...are you TALKING about?" Zim asked with one eye narrowed and the other wide open.
"Just...Shut up." Danny said to Jaz before turning to Zim. "The Tallest lied to you. They only wanted you off Irk."
Zim just stared at her in disbelief before narrowing both eyes at her. "Oh...oh, I get it. You really DON'T like me."
"What!? That has NOTHING to do with—"
"You think feeding me some random LIES about my mission being a fake after the moment we both just had inside the house will make me think that you actually LIKE me!? You were just telling Zim LIES about liking him, and now you're trying to mess with me even more by saying my own mission, my own DREAM is nothing but lies!" Zim ranted, a tear forming in his eye.
"Zim...I promise you." Danny said, her voice cracking. "Everything I just told you is true. And I DO like you! Why would I have saved your life just to lie to you?" She asked.
"Well, I don't know! Maybe you just think it's funny to see Zim get angry and...and...EMOTIONAL! Why else would anyone not give a single damn about me except to just see me try and fall and get angry over and over and over again!?"
Danny was in tears now. "Zim, that's not true! And I give a damn about you! I give a whole crap-load of damns! Please believe me."
"Why SHOULD I believe you!? You've been working with Jaz to destroy me this entire time! You just..." A tear finally streamed down Zim's face. "...you just..." A few more tears fell and he just glared at Danny before turning to furiously wipe them away.
"But I...I..." Danny's voice trailed off, unable to find the right words.
Jaz and Dib were now watching in complete surprise and awe.
Zim stood there, motionless, arms at his sides. His face was still wet, though no more tears fell. When he finally speaks, his voice is hoarse. "Zim is...too...different...for his own kind...for anyone..."
"No. No you're not." Danny said quietly.
Zim shut his eyes tight, trembling. Danny took a step toward him.
"Defectives don't belong." Zim said after a while.
"Zim...we're all defectives here." Danny replied softly.
The little alien's eyes opened and he turned to look at her sadly. Danny took another step toward him, smiling warmly.
Breathing slowly and heavily, Zim turned to face her completely, looking into her eyes. He looked down after a moment of silence. "So...you DO like Zim?" He asked quietly.
Danny smiled even more. "Yes...I do. A lot."
Zim slowly looked up at her, his expression soon morphing from sadness to joy, tears still in his eyes. He looked at the ground once more and sighed before returning his gaze back to her. "...I like you, too."
Danny immediately knelt down and scooped him up for a hug. Zim responded by struggling. "Ah, no! Don't hug me! No one..." His voice trailed off as he gave in and just let her hug him.
Danny put him down with a laugh. Trying to act tough, Zim crossed his arms and held his head high, though there's a hint of dark green on his already green skin.
"Have I told you that you're cute?" Danny asked teasingly. Zim merely looked at her like she had lost her mind, still blushing. Danny then fell to the ground, laughing hysterically. Zim groaned and brought a hand up to his face in annoyance.
Jaz, having been watching all of this, just stared at them in disbelief. Once she recovered, she growled. "FINE, Zim!"
Zim looked at her in surprise, as if he had forgotten she was there.
"If you think you really ARE going to make a good change in life, then I'll give you ONE more chance! Even though I'd love to destroy you right now and jut get it over with so I can go back home, I'm allowing you another chance to live. But if you displease me or do ANYTHING to hurt Danny," She shook her fist in his face to emphasize her point. "I will make you suffer in this life more than you ever will in the afterlife." She turned to Danny. "And as for YOU, Danny!"
Danny, having already been staring at her in disbelief, said nothing.
"Don't. You. EVER. Disobey my orders. AGAIN." Jaz turned and started walking back to the base. "Come on, Dib. We're reprogramming the base back to normal."
"What? But...he...you...ok." Dib said in defeat before following her back inside.
Danny stared after them in shock. "Okay…" She said after a moment's pause.
Zim looked up at her then looked away, rubbing his neck nervously. "Eh...So...how about that date?"
Danny looked at him. "I'd love to go on a date with you." She said with a smile.
Zim looked back at her in surprise, blushing. "Eh...Okay..."
GIR watched them, a goofy grin on his face and his tongue hanging out. "D'aaaawwww" the little robot sighed.