3. And on the First Day, Too
Blood was everywhere.
The room, poorly circulated as it was with its cement walls and security measures, was pregnant with a warm iron tang. It wasn't the good kind, either, if that even existed.
At the corner of the room farthest from the door, the carcass-thing sported a neatly cut T on its belly, as long as Laura's slender arms. People were complaining about the entire experience, and they had a right to.
"It smells like period blood!" someone remarked on the other side of the room. There were giggles.
"That's because you're opening it from the back," Laura called out. "Turn it over and around!"
"How do I do that?" the guy asked. "And how do you know anyway when you weren't even here? Duh-hyuk."
Laura chose not to engage anymore. "Philistine." she muttered, shaking her head in disapproval.
The other kids with at least half a brain chose to follow her advice if it applied, and soon, the odor was stronger than before. It gushed into their nostrils like a sentient cloud of... she didn't know what to describe it as. It was just so overwhelming.
Kids began to gag. A couple attempted to rush out of the room, unable to bear the smell or gargantuan task anymore, only to be electrocuted by the security fields installed to prevent truants from slipping in or out. They blacked out in a heap by the door, unable to smell or participate anymore. Dib and Zim really began to feel sick by now.
"Hah, gross, right?" Laura commented unnecessarily. She smiled at the looks on both of their faces. You guys are so... nevermind."
It had been a good idea to roll up her sleeves for this challenge before her: to cut up the monstrous pork-beast and take out its organs. It was difficult work, separating layers and pinning back flaps of skin. Her arms were painted the darkened color of oxidizing blood, thick as syrup from coagulating in the fridge units used to transport them here, and slowly thinning as the temperature changed. It got in the way of everything - formaldehyde would have made it all so much easier and cleaner and safer.
"The one thing I never carry is hand sanitizer. Never thought I'd need it, honestly."
"Humh?" Dib's voice sounded muffled from behind his done-up trench coat's collar, an attempt to filter out the aerosolized flesh particles from the air he breathed.
"Nada, nada. I'm just talking to myself." she huffed.
Unfortunately, Laura's watch was still on her wrist when she first plunged her hands into the pig's abdominal cavity, so she couldn't tell how much time had passed since Bitters had left. A part of her told her to hurry, because the old hag was bound to return soon. But another part told her that she really wanted to help these guys out for some reason.
The top part of the pig had already been removed - now the really dirty work began.
"It's time for separation of fecal matter from the intestines! Yay!"
At that point, Dib couldn't take it anymore and retched, the concept pushing him past the point of self-control. Zim stood to the side, unwilling to touch any part of the meat. He had only looked at Dib just this once in a few hours.
"Hey, Zim. You wanna take over?" Laura asked randomly.
"Hahaha, of course. I mean, not the planet!"
"I meant the pig," she explained huffily. "Chaparro y tonto ademas."
"Wha...? Are you insulting me?" the Irken seethed.
"Short and dumb to boot. You're in dire need of a Spanish class."
"Zim has no need for any more education. NO NEED!" To emphasize, the Irken raised his arms above his head, but he still wasn't much taller than her even then.
"Uh-huh. Okay." Not feeling like carrying this out anymore, Laura turned to Dib and noticed that he still had his gloves on.
"Dib, please, you should come over here and do this now. I don't wanna get caught." The brunette peeled off her useless gloves and laid them down on the desk surface that the pig monopolized.
"This isn't my area of expertise, or even passion. I'm more into things that don't actually ooze poo..."
"Your stalling isn't going to work anymore. Bitters said you had notes. So you should use what you remember! Duh!"
"But you've already done most of everything because you know what you're doing.. What's working on it a little more going to-?"
"No! No! I'm supposed to be taking note of everyone else failing or something. What if she sees me with these bloody hands? Lie and say I fell into a pig? I don't wanna get in trouble on the first day of skool, even if she is a huge bitch. I was already knee-deep in it before I moved here."
"Oh. Well that's great." Dib's dread was visible.
Before their conversation carried on any further, Bitters had crept back into the room. After shoving the pile of unconscious kids out of the way of the threshold, she materialized in front of the unfortunate trio and growled menacingly:
"You dare defy my orders? Fresh you are, as they say, but meat I will make of you!"