"Zim did you see, Bret?" Gaz stopped in the middle of the hallway to look up at him.
"Yes, and he is fine. He is in the slave cells right now." He replied. "All slaves are being well fed and showers are being provided for them."
Nodding her head, she fixed him a look where she knew would make it tough for him to fight her. "I want to talk to my brother and dad in person, Zim."
"I have to check if my troops are in the area before we do that." Her hand still in his, he escorted her to the elevator. It was pleasant she still didn't let go of him.
"Also, I like to know why you wouldn't make this much more simpler on yourself on why being the Tallest, you still had to invade here anyhow." Letting go of his hand there so she can simply cross her hands, she had to look at him pointingly.
"I explained that to you."
"Not well enough since there are holes in this, Zim."
"Gaz..."
"No Zim. You are the Tallest now so why bother when you can just simply say we have strong forces, and this invasion wouldn't of happened."
Elevator stopping. He kept the door closed. "I do have to answer to others, Gaz. Even though Red and Purple are no longer the Tallest, there are still a different sort of Elders at play." He slowly said.
"Wait! I thought my mother was the end of the Elders."
"They call themselves Elders, but really what they are is just bureaucrats. Something similar to what you have here on Earth."
"A bunch of blow hards who don't know crud, but still think they can tell you what to do?!"
"Exactly." He said calmly. "There are still a lot of Irkens that are terrified and believe they have the exact power of the Elders, but their power is simply from being over abundantly rich."
Searching him to really see if he was telling her the truth, she had to admit inside of herself that he was. "Great. You guys aren't so far off from us really." Gaz moaned sarcastically.
"Red and Purple are the one that enacted them into this power the second your mother disappeared telling everyone that this new group is now the great power and you should fear them. Even I feared them because they made good on how to show us why we should."
"Like how?"
"Televised execution for one."
"You know, Zim, giving what you told me what you done in Impending Doom I, it makes me wonder why they didn't do that to you."
Giving her a half frown, he stated. "I never wondered that before, but one day when I did and I finally took over, I asked them. Basically they felt I was too crazy and they feared my pak would maybe explode or something, anything that would kill them in the process." Shrugging. "I guess it pays to be defective."
Shaking her head, she opened the door to the elevator. "Not defective. Just say... Original."
Zipper grin on his face, they both walked out to the control monitor. Punching up locators, he found his troops some where near the labs. Looking to Gaz, he informed the computer not to let anyone know where he was going, held her hand, and blinked them inside the lab. Since giving, Dib the communicator, it made it easier for him to blink in with the homing chip inside of it. Innocent look to Gaz, she led him off to the exact direction they were in. Of course she would know this lab better then him. Opening a door, she walked in to see her brother hunched over a few computer monitors. Hearing a noise to the right of him, Dib looked up, and stared at her. Gaz didn't know his reaction to her now after everything so she simply stood there with Zim behind her. Getting up from where he was sitting, he mouthed something, and ran up to her to hug her. She will forgive him for this since it seems he was accepting her anyhow.
"Gaz! How are you? Has he done anything to you? Have you..." Dib rattled off.
"Dib, stop! I'm fine. How are you?"
"Well you know, with an alien invasion." Sneer at Zim. "And stuck here to find a way to stop it, it is becoming already tiring."
"Because you just want to go out there and just shoot them?"
Almost melting down to his knees, he drawled out. "Yes, oh god, yesssssss." Straightening back up, he lifted his arms up then back down in defeat. "But dad keeps thinking science is the way."
"Where is dad?"
"He'll be back, he just wanted to do something private." Hearing Zim groan, Dib pointed his finger at him accusingly. "Hey! This wouldn't happen if it wasn't for you space boy."
"You have a problem with me?" Zim lashed back. Gaz couldn't go without them ever going at each another like children so she let this play out.
Coming closer to him, Dib yelled back. "Yes I have a problem with you."
"Well why don't you spell it out for me then, big head."
"Spell what out? Look outside! Those are your aliens all around here, it isn't the cast from Glee taking over the planet."
"Glee? What is this glee you are talking about? Is that some kind of germ? If it is I'm..." Looks at both the siblings, he composes himself to puff up with his shoulders back. "I am too amazing to give into this glee germ you are referring to."
Dib looked at him dumbstruck. All this time on this planet and he still had no clue. "You? Amazing? Amazing turd, that is what you are, Zim."
"You are just jealous of my awesome power, big head."
Getting in his face, he scoffed at him. "There is nothing to be jealous of, space boy. And I don't have a big head!"
"Humph. If you don't shut up right now, I'll kiss him again to shut you up." Gaz deadpanned. Dib's expression died down into digust, while Zim smiled at that thought. Looking over at Zim she added. "As for you Zim, I will go and kiss Bret again." Smile wiped off Zim's face. In fact she believed tanks are now rolling over it as they all stood there in silence examining one another.
"Gaz! What a surprise!" Membrane chimed in jubilantly as he swept in the room suddenly to bring her in for a hug. "How have you been?"
"I'm okay. I'm being treated well." She replied.
"Good good." Fixing Zim a unreadable look, he looked back at his children quickly. "I know I should of told you everything about your births. About your mother. About her death. Dib, are you feeling a little bit better about Gaz being half human and half alien?"
Scratching behind his head, Dib replied. "Well yeah, but I'm sure she understands why I'm angry at him." Gaz just nodded her head at him letting him know she understood.
"Well good because I know you still haven't gotten over the whole cloning process." Membrane continued.
"Well even with you explaining why, it just is weird."
"I'm a clone." Zim murmured.
"What did you say, space boy?" Dib rounded on him.
"Your mother was the last of the natural births on my planet, then they decided upon massive cloning. I am a clone and it is natural for me because that is what I've known since I don't have any parental units at all, while you do. They thought they couldn't have a kid, so you were cloned because they really wanted a kid. I think that is called love, by human standards. I never known it." Zim replied clearly and maturely. "You are lucky. Took me more then a 100 years to realize I wasn't." Shrugging he took a step back to allow them their family time.
Dib unsure what to say for once to him just looked back at his dad. By Gaz's estimation, what Zim just said had the biggest profound effect on him, so neither her nor her father said anything more to what he said.
Membrane gently placed his hands on his daughters shoulders. "Gaz I am so sorry for never saying anything to you about that day. You had nothing to do with your mother's demise. You are so innocent then and now. You couldn't of done anything as much as you wanted to. I am sorry I abandoned you after. Both of you. When I lost your mother I felt my heart was ripped out." Hugging her again. "I was so wrong when you were both here all this time. She would of been proud of you both."
Gaz started to cry. In a way it felt like she lost her mom all over again, but she seemed to be regaining her dad back. So many years of hurt. So many years of anger. She just let it go. When she felt Dib hug her and her dad at the same time. It felt right.
Zim watched this family moment, with a downturn expression. He wasn't going to voice any further how he felt. He said enough.
Uh oh here comes the tissues. ;)