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Lost Strength	By : skittlesfairy Category: +G through L > Invader Zim > Slash - Male/Male Views: 2635 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Invader Zim, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
Chapter 3
Purple bit at his lips and flexed his fingers anxiously. It had been several minutes and there had been no sign of life from the small bloody Invader on the floor. The reattached PAK hadn't done anything obvious that would indicate that the shorter had died as there had been no re-activation. Though if he had been to late the PAK wouldn't have done anything.... but he had felt it reconnect and it wouldn't have done that either if it had been to late.
His mind swirled as he tried to figure out what was wrong. Zim should have gotten up, or at very least regained consciousness. Neither had happened and it made his squeedlyspooch twist about inside his chest. As strange as it may have seemed he couldn't imagine life without Zim anymore. He had fractured memories of taunting the short Irken but they seemed faraway and unreal. What he remembered was the quiet strong voice telling him everything was going to be okay. Having the other's very soul leach over tendrils of comfort.
Shaking his head he knelt next to the prone form and let his hand rest on the smaller's chest. While he may not have been a Medical Drone he wasn't stupid and could check to make sure that the Invader was still alive. Which he was, thankfully. Biting his lip once more in what was his worst nervous habit, he stood and went to use the small communications device impeded in his gauntlet.
“What do you think you're doing?” Red placed his hand over the other Tallest's, pushing the device down and away. He couldn't help but look down a little snidely at the crumpled mess on the floor. If you blurred out the blood you could almost mistake Zim for sleeping. Almost. Except there was something strange about the way he lay, too relaxed even in rest.
“Excuse me?” Violet eyes stared into crimson in disbelief. There was no way Red had actually just done that. He glanced down briefly and found that yes, the other really did do what he just did. He was dumbfounded. He knew that Red hated the shortest one but he wouldn't let him go like this, no one deserved what Zim was going through.
“Its not like we weren't going to kill him anyway, good riddance to bad rubbish right?” Red spoke with a strong determined voice, keeping his hand on his co-Tallest's gauntlet. Right away he knew that he had said the wrong thing. Purple's entire body tensed and violet orbs flashed dangerously.
“Don't you dare Red, don't you dare!” Purple's voice was rough with emotion and he could tell that he was shaking with suppressed urge to knock the other upside the head.
“And why on Irk not?! In case you didn't notice, he tried to KILL you!” Pulling away Red found that the violet eyed one looked a bit more violent than he had thought. He wasn't used to seeing his friend in such a state and it was a little unnerving. Only a little though...
“No, he didn't!” Bitterness filled his voice and violet snapped up to stare at the one person that he had always considered his friend. He cared deeply for the crimson Tallest but he wasn't going to let it get in his way. People may have thought he was spineless in comparison to the other Tallest, the truth was the the crimson one just had a shorter temper and wasn't nearly as easy-going.
“You're right, he tried to take over your body and kill you!” Correcting himself, Red stood tall even though it made no difference as they were both the same height. The usual posturing that he used to get his way would have no bearing in this argument.
“He saved my life!” Frustration was leaking through, making it hard to not just dissolve into a real fight. That would be the last thing he needed to do. He needed to keep his cool for the most part, and above all make sure that he kept his goal in mind. After all that Zim had done for him, he owed the shorter this, for everything.
“What? Where did you get that idea?” He nearly snorted at the thought of it actually being true. Zim destroyed everything he touched. Everything. Still.... the absolution in his co-leader's eyes was troubling. If Purple really believed that....
A long drawn out sigh was heard from the violet garbed one, his stance slumping as he wondered whether or not to tell the whole complete truth. “Do you want the whole story?”
“This had better be good....” Red muttered, eyes narrowing slightly as he watched the other fidget under his judging gaze.
“Then shut your noise tube and listen,” Purple snapped back. He fidgeted a little more before taking a calming breath. He hadn't talked about what had happened since it had occurred two decades ago. “It happened about twenty years ago... when I was attacked by that Renegade. There was more damage to my PAK than everyone thought and it looked like my body was going to die. The only person nearby did the only thing they could think of-”
“Download...” Red interrupted, his eyes wide at even the thought of such a risky thing. Downloading was what Irkens called the transfering of their souls, which was kept in a PAK. The PAK would keep it safe so that even if the body died the soul could continue on.
“Yes. Now let me finish!” Purple growled at having been interrupted. He hated being interrupted and Red wasn't the only one who did it. He was just one of the worst for it. Straightening himself out he continued on. “Just after that Medical Drones arrived, I don't know where from, but they were there and thats what saved my body.”
“But your PAK....” Red interrupted again, his own curiosity overtaking him. It was a story and he wanted all the details as it was certainly out there. He just had no idea that it wasn't over yet.
“I said let me finish! Jeez, now I know how Zim felt.... Any way, they saved my body and then the strangest thing happened. It got back up again, without me. Zim and I talked about it and we think that my PAK used the back-up files of my memories to run off of. Which is why whenever my body encountered something it didn't understand it just stared blankly, unable to process what was going on. We had talked about some ways to get me back but by the time we had any idea of what could be done the my body had been made Tallest. We tried getting close during Operation Impending Doom 1 but that ended in failure... When we were on the mission on Earth Zim finally decided that it was time to try, he said he was sick of putting up with me but I think he was worried my body wasn't going to last to much longer.... Any way, he took the chance and told me to pull myself into his PAK, which I did... while he pulled himself into his body. I can remember his unhooking the PAK and then a blackness before I woke up as myself. You know the rest.” Purple managed to get the rest of it out without being interrupted. Once he had said everything he slouched and looked up at the other Tallest, wanting, needing him to understand.
For a while Red didn't speak, trying to compute everything that he had just been told. When it all sunk in there was only one conclusion. “....That is the craziest thing I've ever heard. How long did it take you to make that up?”
“I didn't make it up! You know what Red, forget it.” Hurt that his friend didn't believe him, he turned away and pulled his gauntlet back up to type in the frequency that the Medbay used. “I need a Medical Drone to Meeting Room 7735. Make it quick.” Once he was finished he floated back over to Zim and knelt down next to the small body despite the blood.
“You can't do this Purple, he's a menace!” Red protested heartily, trying to get the other to see the madness in what he was doing. He hovered closer to see what the violet one was doing. Watchful, he was surprised to see long deft fingers tweaking along a rumpled uniform, smoothing it out. They both knew better than to move the limp body before the Medical Drone arrived, though he could see the wait was unnerving his co-leader.
“I owe him my life Red,” His reply was simple and to him, explained everything. There was no other reason he wanted to help Zim. Nope, not a one. Once the uniform had been straightened he sat back on his haunches, fidgeting now that there wasn't anything he could do.
Red sighed and swept his antennae back. Purple was in one of his moods again and there would be no arguing with him for a while. It was the one thing that sucked about sharing the Tallest position. Neither of them could argue on anything or the Empire would dead lock and that just wouldn't do. On personal matters it was a bit different. Most Irkens would have settled it by who was taller but again that didn't help his situation any. Scowling to himself he folded his arms and settled in for a wait. Hopefully he could get his friend out of his mood and then they could take care of the menace that had plagued them for so long.
The doors hissed open and a concerned looking Medical Drone entered slowly. “Almighty Tallest?” From the Drone's position all he could see was the kneeling Purple who had blood pooling on either side of him.
Purple stood and then pointed down at the problem. “There, fix him!” He bustled out of the way as the Medical Drone got down and various instruments came from his PAK, all scanning and beeping as they tried to discern the problem. A frown pulled at the Medical Drone's lips and it looked as if he wasn't pleased with whatever he was finding.
“Well? What's wrong with him? Fix it!” Purple commanded. Nervously he hovered back and forth, pacing as he watched the Drone fiddle with things that had just been used and do it all over again. What was wrong with Zim?
“My Tallest, I will need to bring this Irken to the nearest Medical Bay. The equipment I carry isn't powerful enough to detect anything wrong with him.” The Medical Drone frowned as he looked at the readout from his PAK. According to his scanners there was nothing wrong with the prone Irken on the floor, which clearly wasn't the case. The blood and the unresponsiveness told him otherwise though. “It is safe to move him if that was what you were worried about.”
“Well what are you waiting for? Go!” Purple made shooing motions and stood watchful as the Medical Drone squeaked and set about getting his new patient to the Medical Bay. The violet Tallest hovered behind before sending his partner a look. “You coming?”
“I'll go take care of stuff on the Main Deck,” Red muttered and waited until the other was gone before leaving. As he left the room he paused to watch his co-Tallest, wondering what he was going to do about whatever had happened. He could punish Zim for attacking a Tallest, but then on the off chance that Purple had been telling the truth.... Sighing he decided it was better to not think about it on an empty stomach. He turned and hovered off, thinking about the situation no more.
If it were possible to bounce whilst using a hover belt, Purple would have been doing so. As it was he was squirming back and forth like a hyper smeet. He could stand still, he wanted, needed to know what was wrong with Zim. After all they had been through to get to the Massive and straighten everything out it wasn't fair. So he paced and twisted and generally fidgeted.
That frown that had graced across the Medic's face before was back. The Medic took out more equipment and continued scanning, the frown growing deeper and more serious every time. By the time there was no more medical equipment left Purple had practically chewed his claws off with worry. Why wasn't he being told what was wrong? What had happened to Zim?
The Medical Drone was slow to respond. He didn't want to inform the Tallest of his findings, he knew of their legendary moods and he liked his head on his shoulders. Antennae twitching he wondered why the one Tallest was so concerned about an Invader. Deciding that the business of the Tallest was none of his, he spoke softly, hoping to break the news gently. “Almighty Tallest, I have run every test that I could in hopes of finding something that would explain this Invader's comatose state.....”
“Well did you?” Purple blurted out, twisting his fingers together. Antennae on end, he was the picture of nervous anxiety.
Taking a deep breath, the Medic explained slowly and haltingly. “From the internal hemorrhaging it was easy to tell that the Invader had gone into PAK shock. None of my scans have indicated any malfunctions or physical reasons for his comatose state.”
“But you have a theory, right?” Purple asked hopefully. There was a look in the Medic's eyes that told him he wasn't being told everything.
“My Tallest, it has long been speculated that Irkens could join the Meekrob in their ascended state because of our awareness of our souls. The only reason that I can theorize is that his body and PAK are unresponsive is because his soul is lost somewhere between the physical body and the cybernetics of the PAK.” The Medical Drone wasn't keen on explaining. Most of what he had said was theory only and even then it was considered on the fringes of sciences.
“How would that be possible?” Standing tall, he looked to the Medic for an explanation. He may have been Tallest but he was smart enough to know when to ask for assistance. Powerful he may have been, omnipotent he was not.
Sighing, the Medic glanced over at the Tallest, hoping for salvation from the question. His hopes were dashed and he took a deep breath before he explained his theory. Hopefully, spouting off his beliefs wouldn't get him killed. “It is possible, that if for some reason he had pulled his soul into his body before his PAK was removed that when the PAK was reattached it created a vacuum of sorts, forcing the soul back to where it belonged. Now if we go with that theory it would make more sense that he was unconscious because then he would fight against the pull instinctively, whether or not he actually wanted to. If that were the case then it is conceivable that the soul is trapped somewhere between the PAK and the body.” The Medical Drone held in a cringe and then let out his breath when he wasn't tossed out an airlock.
Violet eyes widened and his throat went dry. Zim was... lost, for lack of better term, and it was all his fault. Since the Invader had pulled his soul into his body so Purple could return to his own body, it had meant when the near empty PAK was placed where it belonged it pulled on the unconscious Irken's soul. The only reason that it hadn't been able to put it back where it belonged was because Zim had been unconscious and had probably fought at the feeling....
“But you can fix him, right?” Voice cracking, Purple knew that he sounded like a distressed smeet. It was hard to think about though. The thought that Zim wasn't dead but may as well have been didn't sit well with him. Not with how everything came to be. Not only that but he couldn't imagine life without the much smaller Irken. He had spent the last twenty years in a closeness that no other had ever shared, he wouldn't, couldn't go back to life with out the other. He just couldn't.
Seeing how distressed the Tallest was the Medical Drone swallowed, trying to rack his brain for something that would at least ease the mind of his leader. “I have tried Almighty one, there is nothing we can do. It would be kinder to just let him go....” Being slammed up against the wall was the last thing that the Drone expected so his frightened squeak was understandable.
Fire burned in his eyes, threatening to make tears spill to the corners of lovely violet orbs. “No! I can't do that to him! You have to understand, I owe him my life.” Even more than that, he owed the small Invader his soul. He could have continued living on in the other's PAK but Zim had gone and done what he had promised he would do. He had returned the Tallest's soul to his body. Dropping with quivering Medic he glowered until the Drone composed himself.
Shaking, the Medical Drone was hesitant to speak after being roughed up. Though being ruffled was nothing compared to what the Tallest could order down upon him. Finally he spoke after several agonizing minutes where the hardened violet gaze only became more unrelenting. “In theory, and only in theory my Tallest, someone would be able to hook their PAK up to the Invader's and in a sense go after him. It would require an understanding and control over the soul though, something that most Irkens shirk. It would be dangerous and foolhardy though. No one could possibly be able to do it, not without risking their own soul.”
“I'll do it,” Purple blurted it out without hesitation or thought. Even after having given it a moment of thought he didn't change his sudden response. He knew more about moving around with someone elses soul than any other Irken.
The Medical Drone couldn't help but stare. What on Irk was going through the Tallest's head? “Why Almighty? There is no need to repay him for saving your life, that is his duty, it is the duty of all of us to protect you.”
Purple was quiet as he looked over at Zim's prone form. It may have been true that it was an Irken's duty to protect the Tallest.... but the Invader went above and beyond that. Zim didn't have to do the things that he had done for him. But he had, and aside from the occasional bit of snark, hadn't complained. Even when it affected his mission, his rank, Zim hadn't stopped trying to help him. And for that, Purple wouldn't stop trying to help either.
“I am Tallest. You will do as you are ordered Drone.” His voice was cold and his fists were clenched. He never took his eyes off of the small body laying so still on the gurney. Fists clenching, there was no changing his mind. Even if Red were to burst into the room for some strange reason, not even the other Tallest would be able to convince him to not do it.
“Of course, Almighty!” The reply was instantaneous. There was no arguing with the Tallest. Their word was law, even if you didn't agree or it was stupid. There was no changing it. That was how things worked. Biting his lip, the Medical Drone fidgeted before coasting around the room to grab the delicate tools he would need.
Taking his eyes off of the comatose one to watch the Medic prance around the room. As he watched he began to wonder just how it was going to be done.... would their PAK's be hooked together? What if something was wrong and their PAK's couldn't connect? Who would save Zim?
“If you're ready my Tallest.” The Medic's voice was meek as he held up several strange looking devices. Beside Zim's bed another floated, ready to hold the violet eyed one. “Lay on your belly and relax, this won't hurt.”
Nerves rose unexpectedly in his squeedlyspooch and for a brief second Purple entertained the thought of just backing away and forgetting everything. Then the feelings that had festered when he realized so long ago what Zim was giving up surged to the surface. Standing taller and straighter than he had in years and floated over to the heavily extended gurney and laid down.
From between the two gurneys the Medic rose up on his PAK-legs, opening the small lavender ports of Purple's PAK. Hooking several things into places only a Medical Drone knew how to use, the Medic wired the cables and over things over to lay beside the unconscious Invader. “Are you sure about this Almighty Tallest?”
“Yes,” Purple spoke with clear conviction, watching the slightly morbid act of the Medic attaching various things into someone elses PAK. “And tell Red that I'll be indisposed for an undetermined amount of time.” With that said the violet garbed one relaxed on the bed, keeping dark amethyst eyes on the delicate looking body next to his.
Having been given final conformation the Medic hooked the other ends and carefully set everything up. Flicking various monitoring machines on he took down the firewall separating the two. “All you need to do is to follow the connection. You should be able to sense it.”
Closing violet eyes for what could be the last time, Purple took a deep breath and then let go. He sank, darkness enveloping him. And it was in that embracing darkness that he realized something was wrong, but it was too late and he had no longer had a voice to cry out with.
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Lost Strength