Episode 7: Minion

Episode Summary-After their near miss with the Irken Worshipers The Renegades decided it's time for a much needed break as Dib and Zim begin to adjust to their lives on Zec. Meanwhile The Tallest begin to loss their control over their salves as War rages throughout the cosmos.

Disclaimers: I Do Not Own Invader Zim

Author's Notes: And we are back with another exciting part of Invader Zim Renegades! Thank you all for all your comments and dedication to this series.

Hope you guys enjoy!

Yours Truly, RoxieDivine :)

Episode 7-Minion (Part 3)

(Back with Zim and Dib…)

[The Next Day]

{Location: School}

Everything was different now…

And it all started before the first bell.

Josh and his brother went to go stand in line to be scanned like they do before every period. Only to find out Minions got to cut to the front of the line!

"So this is why their never late." Josh said. "They just get to move to the front of the line.

"Which is probably why you use to be later." Joseph mused.

"I knew they were conspiring against us." Josh whispered under his breath as he handed the Irken guard his papers and walked through the scanner.

"Privileged now are we?" The Guard, Mr. Lunt; a bean pole looking Irken with olive skin and orange eyes. "Finally let him wear you down?"

"We all have to conform some time." Joseph answered as he went through the scanner next.

"Oh yeah I guess we have to suck up now." Josh replied with his usual snarky attitude, only this time there was no back lash. He smiled. "I could get use to this."

"Focus." Joseph warned.

"Right." Josh agreed as he realized his partner had a point. As minions they were in the spot light now, everyone would be looking to them as the perfect example of molded citizens. Sure there might be no spyware on Zec, but here at school like all humans they were under strict surveillance.

They had to stay on their toes.

Especially in this new found positon.

In fact Josh was surprised just how hard it was to adapt. He always thought minions had it so good, but it didn't take him long to see that all those new found privileges came with a cost.

"There you are!" Scamooch snapped as they came into view. He slung his books into Josh's hands. "You're late."

Josh struggled not to fall at the sudden additional weight. "Hey how come I have to carry everything?" He asked.

"Joseph always carries my things." Scamooch reasoned. "I'm simply breaking you in."

Joseph snickered from his right. Leave it to Scamooch to use this as the perfect reason to continue bulling them. Still, He could see the need, the other cadets were already thinking that Scamooch was getting soft. Some had even gone as far as calling him a human lover in person.

And sure the larger Irken populist might not know about the Irken rebels, but the Tallest did.

And a cadet that sympathized too much with his human class mates might end up getting Scamooch in a lot of trouble. And if the Tallest start looking too close at him, then they'd start looking closely at everything about him.

Including his minions!

All in all it was best for all of them if Scamooch acted as ruthless as possible during school hours.

The trio stopped in front of Scamooch's first class; a class he and Josh shared together Galactic's History with Mrs. Bean

"Meet us here after the bell." He ordered Joseph. "And don't be late."

"Yes sir." Joseph answered smoothly. Yes, sucking up was always his specialty and for the longest time the cadet could never understand how the guy managed to allow himself to be walked all over. However, now that he understood who Joseph really was he realized the truth.

Joseph was used to being at the bottom, always fighting to get to the top.

He got walked on every day of his whole life; this was nothing new. In fact this harder way of life had done nothing but make him stronger.

But was he strong enough?

They would soon find out.

(Back with Gaz…)

{Location: The Palace}

She had a bad feeling about this…

And yet she was unable to refuse their request.

It had happened that morning just before she left for school. Tak has showed up saying the Tallest wished to have an audience with them.

And despite her usual tough nature Gaz was nervous.

Ever since the Water Factory incident the Tallest had been more irrational than ever and she wouldn't put it past them to blame her or Tak for their recent failures.

Such thoughts had also crossed Tak's mind, she also that that General Kazar might have sold them out, but after further thought she dismissed the idea. The General was so sure that Zim would come out on top and made a point about always being on the winning side. So the chances of him betraying them was slim to none.

However, knowing this gave her little room to catch her breath. The Tallest were unpredictable right now and if they failed whatever task the tyrants had foe them, then things might not end up looking so good for the two of them.

Moments later the two arrived at the grand doors of the throne room.

"State your business." A guard said. It was the royal guard member Bek, a recent recruit of the Irken rebel force. He was also the only reason why the Renegades managed to avoid the ploy of the Irken Worshipers.

"We were summoned." Tak answered as Gaz respectfully bowed her heads. "I am cadet Tak and this is my minion, Gaz."

Bek pulled up a roster from his tablet. "Yes, I see. You are right on time, please they will see you now." He stepped aside so they could walk through. And as they walked past he silently whispered. "Be careful what you say; they're in a mood"

Tak gave a curt nod before they entered the room. "My Tallest." She and Gaz bowed in unison. "You wish to speak to us."

"Yes." Red hissed as he sat on his throne. The Irken seemed calm enough, but his glowing blood red eyes were a solid reminder of his ill mood.

Purple, who sat in the throne beside him was also ill tempered, but his eyes had returned to normal.

Gaz always thought it was ironic that Purple could keep such a cool head, especially with a partner like Red. But it made since, by being the rational one for the both of them, Purple allowed Red to be the angry and impulsive one of the group. The two sides balanced each other out, but it had become obvious in the past few days that their once perfect balance was shifting.

No, there was no question of if or when they would lose control, they would and soon.

No, the question was who would walk away from the fight, and who wouldn't?

Either Red would kill Purple, or purple would kill Red.

Gaz was sure of it, and she was not the only one, everyone in the Place could feel the tension between the two partners rising. And such a fact made Gaz realize one thing.

As time passed, Red and Purple; two old allies were slowly falling apart. While two old enemies; Dib and Zim were growing to become stronger allies. The roles were completely reversing and as Red and Purple were beginning to find out, there was stopping it.

This was end of the old Irk.

Once Red or Purple died the old Irk that they had formed together would be gone.

So the question was: who would form the new Irk? And more importantly; what would it be formed into?

"If you remember correctly we sent you to that school to scope out the members of that pesky resistance." Red continued. "Have you made any progress?"

"Be careful what you say; they're in a mood"

"My Tallest." Tak answered humbly. "We have scoped the School and evaluated several groups of students. But sadly if the Renegades are there they are not giving us any signs."

"Then what good are you!" Red snapped his claws raking into the arm of his throne.

"Please my Tallest we are at a disadvantage." Tak reasoned.

"Oh?" Purple asked. This had been the first time he spoke, and Gaz was amazed to see that he was rather calm. It was then that she realized this Tallest had one thing going for him that Red didn't.

Grace under pressure.

"We already betrayed them once." Gaz spoke the obvious. "When we used my execution as a trap we showed our true colors. The Renegades will constantly have their guards up now."

"She is right." Purple stated the obvious.

"She is also a lowly human speaking without being spoken to!" Red growled.

It was only that that Gaz realized that it was probably her very presence that angered Red so much. Gaz was perhaps the greatest reason why Zim had become so motivated in destroying them. She was the source of his drive, so seeing her right now would defiantly add salt to the wound.

Gaz bowed. "If I may." She asked permission to continue.

Purple nodded. "Yes, go on."

"What you need is to find a way to get there guard down." Gaz went on. "Or at least maybe something that would make it not matter."

"Not matter?" Purple bit his lip in deep thought. "A way to see through their defenses weather their guard is up or not. Yes that just might work."

"What might work?" Red snapped.

Purple smiled wickedly. "Isn't obvious?" He asked. "Zim has been able to thrive among these humans and blend in without difficulty and I finally see why."

"Why?" Red hissed.

"It's because they're just like him." Purple mused. "They're defective."

Tak's eyes widen as she realized where this was going. "My Tallest do you really think that will work?" She asked trying to look hopeful. "I mean if they are all defective how will we know the deference between a rebel and an everyday student?"

"We won't." Red stated the obvious. "However, with a few modifications…" he started muttering to himself. "Yes that might work." He agreed as he finally seemed to calm down enough for his eyes to return to normal.

"I'm sorry um am I missing something?" Gaz asked.

"Oh I forget you don't know." Purple mused. "We Irkens don't just call someone defective because we don't like them. We actually have a way of telling." Purple explained. "It's a test that any Irken control brain can execute on any Irken individual. They look inside the Irken's inner thoughts and if they believe in any ideals that do not reflect the Irken way they are considered defective."

"Then Cadet Tak is right." Gaz confirmed. "I don't think there is any human that truly believes in the Irken way. We just obey to make life easier for us."

"Yes!" Red agreed as he stood, "And that's how we'll get him!"

"I'm not following." Gaz admitted.

"Zim has passed this test before." Purple explained. "The test, known as the Trail is performed every 50 years of an Irkens life. At the age of 159 Zim has passed the test at least 3 time already."

"How?" Tak asked.

"Simple back then he truly believed in our ways." Red explained. "The truth is Zim was never labeled defective because he didn't believe in the Irken way. He was labeled defective because we wanted to get rid of him."

"We sabotaged his first mission." Purple went on. "Made the Control brains believe he was a danger to society."

"So Zim is not defective?" Gaz asked.

"Oh he is now." Purple mused. "He's completely adopted the human way of life and their views. Still, Tak right among the rest of the humans he'll just blend in."

"So we'll have to make a few adjustments to the test." Red cut in. "Instead of looking for defectives the test will be modified to look for those who refuse to conform."

Gaz's eyes widen as she understood.

"They can keep their guard up." Purple went on. "And they can be pretty convincing, but they only obey when all eyes are on them. But in their own minds they cannot fool anyone, the control brain will know who is conforming and who is simply pretending in order to deceive us."

"And picking through their subconscious the brain should have no trouble deciphering between the two." Red concluded. "Great work, turns out you two have a use after all."

Gaz was stunned, but did her best not to show it. "I'm glad I could help." She stated.

"How long do think it will take to alter the test?" Tak asked.

"About a week, maybe less if we have a human to test it on." Purple calculated.

"I'll do it!" Gaz volunteered in an instant.

"Eager are we?" Purple asked. "Wonder why?"

"I just want to prove my worth." Gaz said. "If I'm of no use you might choose not to pardon my family when all of this is over." She reasoned.

Red smiled. "Smart girl."

"Excellent." Purple congratulated them. "You are dismissed."

The two females bowed before exiting the room.

"I did something bad didn't I?" Gaz asked once they were out of range.

"Bad?! Try stupid!" Tak hissed.

"What's the problem?" Bek asked as they stopped behind them.

"Gaz accidently gave the Tallest the idea of performing a defectives test on the school!" Tak explained.

"But they're all defective." Bek reasoned.

"They're going to alter the test." Tak explained. "Instead of looking for defectives the Brains are going to look for those that are only pretending to obey in order to deceive us!"

Bek's eyes widen. "You stupid girl." He snapped do you have any idea what you've done."

"It's just a test." Gaz reasoned. "All you have to do is be a convincing liar."

"Gaz it's not any kind of test you humans are used to." Tak explained. "The brain connects to your mind and observes your inner thoughts. After that it throws a series of trials and situations at you. The way you respond will show the brain if you are what you say you are. It can even trick you into thinking you're dreaming and that your actions have no real consequences. For someone like Zim, he may be able to fool the brain, but for a human who has never experience this kind of test before…" Tak trailed off.

Not that it mattered, Gaz didn't need her to finish. "They'll follow their instinct and defy laws that Irk has set for mankind." She realized. "And if the Brain uses the right scenario the guilty party will be painfully obvious."

"So what do we do?" Bek asked.

"We only have one chance." Tak reasoned. "The Tallest are going to use Gaz as a lab rat to test the new functions of the Test. If she can somehow gather what kind of questions or scenarios the Brain uses we could give them something to prepare with."

"Is that all we can do?" Gaz asked.

Bek nodded. "I'm afraid so." He confirmed. "The defectives test is a test of mind where the testing grounds is your own Subconscious. You can lie to the world, but you can't lie to yourself."

"It would take a truly powerful mind to do that." Tak confirmed. "And I don't think every rebel has what it takes."

"Which means some of them will get caught." Gaz realized.

"That might not be bad think." Bek reasoned.

"What do you mean?" Tak asked.

"After the murders at the science camp the Tallest will not risk killing a bunch of human children." Bek explained. "They'll likely join the unregistered humans that were captured by the Irken Worshipers." He reasoned. "They'll be enslaved."

"But they will also be closer to our next goal." Gaz realized.

Bek nodded. "I have no doubt Zim plans to save them."

"Still we can't be sure they'll go there, or what kind of security they'll be under." Gaz reasoned.

"No. but at least we can give them something." Tak reasoned. "I know it's bad but you did what you had to." She told her. "If we don't give Tallest dome good results then they'll get rid of us. This is the only way we can be useful for them."

Gaz nodded. "Then we have no time to waste." She said firmly. "We have to warn them as soon as possible."

"Leave that to me." General Kazar said as he appeared from the shadows.

"How will you get to them?" Tak asked.

"I hear my old pupal Scamooch has moved out of the dorms and into his own place." Kazar reasoned. "He must be making quite a name for himself what kind of teacher would I be if I didn't go and congratulate him in person."

Tak nodded. "He's not going to be happy."

"No I can only imagine how he'll feel when he realizes his Gaz has gotten them into so much trouble." General Kazar mused.

Gaz blushed, obviously beside herself.

"Relax I can ensure the ones who are caught end up with the unregistered humans on Zec." General Kazar assured her. "In the end this little upset will make things run much smoother."

Gaz knew he was right. With more rebels on Zec getting to unregistered humans with enough fighters to enable an escape would make things easier. However, those caught by the Brain would never get to go back to their former lives.

The enemy would know their name and face, they'd be fugitives for the rest of this war.

And if Zim or Dib got caught or worse if the brain discovered their real identities then their best shot at taking down the Tallest was gone!

In the end it all boiled down to one thing: Gaz should really learn when to keep her mouth shut!

(Back with Kathy…)

[Third Period]

{Location: School}

She was late…

No worse than that, she was 15 minutes late!

"Ms. Rogers." Her science teacher Mrs. Syl hissed addible. "You're late!"

Kathy looked around the room and noticed her classmates were missing. "What's going on" She asked.

"Well if you were on time you'd know." Mrs. Syl answered. "This next week's assignment is group science projects." She explained. "Since you are late you don't get to choose your partner."

"Oh." Kathy said, looking a bit relieved that not having a say in her partner was to be her only punishment.

"Your partner will be our other late individual." Mrs. Syl went on.

As she spoke a rather angry Scamooch came walking into the room.

"Aw Cadet." Mrs. Syl hissed.

"My apologies." Scamooch said with a bow. "My minion made me late!"

"Well that's too bad." Mrs. Syl hissed showing no sympathy. "Since you are late you have no choice but to deal with the only partner avalible."

"Partner?" Scamooch asked.

"Cadet Scamooch this is Ms. Rogers Your new science partner." Mrs. Syl gestured to Kathy. "The two of you have one week to come up with a science project that you will present to me and your classmates. Good luck."

Kathy Gulped and for good reason; Judging by the angry look on Scamooch's face they'd need all the luck they could get.

Episode 7-Minion (Part 3) END!