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VINDICATION	By : Florville Category: +G through L > Invader Zim > AU/AR-Alternate Universe-Alternate Reality Views: 29601 -:- 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
- 74
- 75
- 76
Chapter 75: A Golden Hour

****DISCLAIMER: Anubis 5 is a reference to a rapper in the group Exit Theme, meant as a tribute to his coolness, and I am not making any money off of the nod to Anubis 5. He just rocks, that's all.

**********UBER IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: The reference to Resortia and the use of Advisor Vert are references to a character and a planet which are sole property of milo1047 and are used because he is cool. They are from A Day in the Life, so GO READ HIS STORY!!!

***Note: This chapter is dedicated to Dekoi, Naruko, Herme23, Forgotten Soul, Invadar_Ace, and Green Moonlight, my new reviewy-peeps of DOOM!! Feel honoured, my pig-smellies! *lurves all*

For the first few minutes, there was nothing but the silence. No power core roaring, no sounds of mechanisms working or Irken military boots clacking against the metallic floors. Just silence.

Eventually Master Technical Officer Wir spoke.

“What is your home planet like, Earth-Dib?”

Dib, unequipped with a night vision visor, had been lost in his own thoughts in the darkness, and he jumped at the question. “Earth? It’s…” he paused for a long time, then sighed. “It’s a mixture of good things and bad things; just like any other planet, I suppose. It has beautiful mountains and lakes…wide blue oceans…different kinds of forests…” he shook his head. “But the lakes and oceans are beginning to fill with waste…the mountains are starting to become packed with resorts and tourist areas…and the forests are being cleared away for buildings and farmlands.”

Zim listened intently, always having wondered why Earth meant so much to Dib…why it was so important to him, long ago, to save it.

“What could cause such horrible things?” Vert, one of the Advisors, inquired, his antennae twitching curiously in the darkness.

Uttering a bitter laugh, Dib shook his head. “My people.” Dib leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes. “Humans.”

“But aren’t you human, Earth-Dib?” Wir leaned forward and rested an elbow on one knee, placing her chin on her hand as she listened.

“Yes…I am. But I’m very, very different from the others of my kind. The others are so content to just live their lives, and think of nothing more…some have interest in going beyond our planet and exploring other worlds, yes…but the majority are ignorant.” Dib’s voice lowered slightly. “And cruel. They destroy things, they destroy other people, wage war against one another…they ostracize the visionaries and prey upon the weak.”

Zim shifted over, slipping his arm gently around Dib’s waist.

There was quiet for a long moment, and then Advisor Vert spoke. “Why did you not leave there until now?”

“There was no way for me to leave. We haven’t yet achieved a speed in space travel that would allow us to visit distant planets, let alone live on them.”

Again, there was more murmuring, but it was Kha who spoke next. “What are your plans, then, Earth-Dib?”

“Please, just call me Dib.” He rested his head on Zim’s shoulder, suddenly feeling tired. “I guess I’ll live among the Irkens. You have technology far more advanced than my planet could ever hope to offer me…and you explore the universe without fear, and with minimal effort.” He sighed, his eyes drifting closed. “Chances are that I’ll be more easily accepted among your people than I would among mine anyway.”

Zim nodded quietly. “Forty-five minutes.”

One of the Royal Guards shifted from where he was standing, leaning against the wall, the plates of his armour making a soft sound against the metal. “How did you two become allies?”

“Mutual hatred for the human race.” Zim snickered, quirking an antenna and waiting to see if Dib would either object or add anything. When the only response from Dib was a malicious grin, he knew that his human felt nothing else needed to be said. Squeezing Dib’s hip possessively, Zim added, “And I knew I could count on his intelligence.”

”Intelligence indeed! Rumour has it that your human assisted in the creation of a truth serum that is effective against the Vortians.” Wir grinned.

A few sets of eyes widened, not having heard this news yet.

Dib blushed a little. “I was raised on science.” He thought of his father and scowled, his teeth clenching.

Zim, feeling him tense, gently stroked his side.

His anger fading slightly, Dib sighed. “Anyways, I wanted to make sure that nothing like what happened to me occurred in the future.”

“It’s not likely to.” Zim nuzzled Dib’s hair. “We razed the base on Anubis 5 to the ground.”

“Was that what that place was called?” Dib mused.

“Yes. And we have the only living scientists that were associated with the project on board.”

“Except for Lokis…” Dib murmured.

Zim sighed, lowering his voice so only Dib could hear him. “I gave that Vortian my word that I would set him free, Dib. You know that.”

Dib smiled a little, nodding, returning his attention to the direction from which the other Irken voices came in the darkness. “It should be helpful in future encounters with Vortian rebels.” Recalling something, Dib quirked a brow and turned to Zim. “Hey, what did you end up doing with Lard Nar, anyway?”

A chorus of dark snickers echoed in the large chamber, sending a shiver down Dib’s spine, and he grinned sadistically. “Oh, now I have to know. Seeing as I was told he was the one who brought me to those runt scientists in the first place…”

If he had been given a visor, Dib would have seen Advisor Kha grinning from antenna to antenna in the oppressive darkness. “I think perhaps Tallest Zim would be the best one to tell that little story.”

Zim grinned, his eyes narrowing slightly as he stroked Dib’s side. “Let’s just say…what’s that old human phrase…I took an eye for an eye.”

More icy laughter filled the dark air.

Feeling deliciously at home, Dib relaxed against Zim’s side and grinned.

“So how many years did you spend on Earth, Dib?” Wir leaned back again, grinning as she folded her gloved arms behind her head.

Dib stretched. “Twenty-two.”

“And where were you before that?”

Shifting slightly and giving Zim’s direction a warning glare when his lover chuckled, Dib turned towards where the sound of Wir’s voice had originated. “Nowhere. I was born twenty-two years ago.”

There was an almost collective gasp, and Wir sputtered. “You’re only a SMEET??”

Dib coughed, blushing a little. “In terms of my race, no.”

“How long does your race live, then?” Vert blinked behind his visor.

Removing his bandana and running a hand over his short, fuzzy hair, Dib placed it back on again and tightened the knot, tucking the two long locks in front back behind his ears. “The oldest human lived to be about one hundred and twenty two.”

There was silence, and Dib frowned a little when Zim suddenly held him tighter.

“Why does your race die so young?” Kha asked softly.

Dib shrugged, suddenly feeling very awkward. “I’m not quite sure. Biological matter can only be maintained for so long…”

Zim cleared his throat. “Thirty minutes.”

“But has your race found no way to prolong their lifespan? Surely your scientists would devote themselves to such a purpose…”

Dib snorted. “Don’t be so quick to assume things about my race, Kha. You’re all giving them far too much credit.” He sighed. “Yes, scientists and doctors…medical professionals…they’ve done a lot to prolong life and make it better in quality, but still, the average human life span is around eighty years.”

Zim’s antennae lowered and he pulled Dib closer.

“So your scientists have given up?” Vert frowned slightly.

Dib sighed, gently stroking Zim’s arm in an attempt to reassure him. “It’s not that we’ve given up…it’s just that…well…by the time a human body reaches such an old age, there’s really not much left to it but wrinkled skin and fragile bones. Again, it’s because we’re biological matter; everything starts to break down. Bones get brittle, internal organs start to fail, and eventually the human dies.”

There was a long period of silence, as if the group were mourning something yet to come.

Advisor Kha was the first to speak this time. “Perhaps Irken ingenuity will provide an answer.”

Dib smiled, nodding slightly.

Zim sighed heavily, playing with one of the two long locks of hair that Dib hadn’t shaved off before the takeover of the Massive. “Twenty minutes.”

The other guard ran a hand over his antennae as he watched Zim’s treatment of the Earth being. He had been under the impression that Earth-Dib was a pet rather than an ally, but after hearing the way he spoke, he had dismissed the idea completely. “What will happen to you when Tallest Zim is Ordained, Earth-Dib?”

Dib’s eyes widened, and he looked towards Zim in the darkness, not quite knowing how to answer the question.

“He will stay by my side,” Zim growled, “and anyone who objects will taste my revolting vengeance of power.”

All of the others, including Dib, blinked at Zim in surprise.

Feeling his cheeks flush, Dib smiled and rested his head on Zim’s shoulder.

“So, then, what are you planning on doing with Earth-Dib’s planet, my Tallest?” Wir cocked her head slightly.

Blinking at her through his visor, Zim flicked his antennae. He hadn’t really given the matter much thought… “When?”

“When the Final Cannon Sweep is completed.”

“Oh. Hm.” Zim stroked Dib’s back, considering this. “A fuel-stop, and ship maintenance planet, perhaps.”

Dib frowned slightly. “A what?”

Zim looked down at him, quirking an antenna. “Well, what would you suggest, Dib?”

“I…” he opened his mouth, then closed it for a moment, then spoke again. “It would be a shame to lay complete and utter waste to such a beautiful place, Zim. Humankind and all traces of it are the only really ugly things there. You’d really turn it into something like that after wiping the planet clean?”

Considering this, Zim tapped a finger idly against his knee. “We could make it a mall planet…”

Dib shook his head. “No…I mean, can’t you preserve the nature there?”

Zim blinked at him in confusion. “Why? Your water is harmful to Irken skin.”

“No, the polluted water is harmful to your skin. If we devise a way to clean it, then you can use the planet as…I dunno…a…vacation planet or something.”

“Like Resortia?” one of the guards inquired.

Dib grinned. “It could work.”

Zim rubbed the base of one of his antennae. “I really don’t see the value of your planet as a resort planet, Dib.”

The human pouted, then grinned and leaned over, whispering against Zim’s ear spot.

His scarlet eyes going wide as saucers behind the visor, Zim coughed and closed his legs, his cheeks flushing in the darkness. “Well…I…I mean, it’s not like the Irken Terraformers couldn’t give it …ah…a facelift, so to speak…”

Dib leaned back against the wall, a smug grin on his face.

Zim cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably as the heat pressed insistently between his legs. “Fifteen minutes.”

“So will your race be of use as labour, Earth D-” the Medical Officer cleared his throat, correcting himself. “Will they be of use as labour, Dib? You do seem quite strong for one that is, as you put it, of a more biological makeup.”

“It depends on what you need them for, I suppose.” Dib shrugged a shoulder, then nodded his head, “And thank you for the compliment.”

Zim bristled. “I would sooner dispose of each and every one of the filthies rather than giving them the honour of existing under the power of the Irken Empire.”

Dib quirked a brow in the direction of Zim’s voice for a moment, then shrugged his shoulder. Not his call.

“You would rather destroy them than use them, Tallest? Are they dangerous?” One of the guards inquired.

Zim snorted. “Hardly. And yes, I would rather destroy the humans than use them. They have no place in this universe.”

“So…you will wipe out Dib’s people?” Wir ventured, her antennae pricked forward.

“Yes.” Zim growled, his eyes narrowed in response to numerous hateful memories.

Dib yawned in the silence, effectively stating his position on the matter.

“So how do you function without a Pak, Dib?” the Medical Officer inquired.

“Um…how do you mean?” Dib frowned a little in the darkness.

“What do you carry your weapons and tools in? What do you use to keep you awake when you can’t afford to sleep?”

Dib blinked, then rubbed the back of his neck. “Well…I…humans…humans just carry their stuff in belts and bags. As for keeping awake…” he smirked, “There’s this great Earth-drink called coffee…”

Zim snickered. “It’s actually one of the only Earth foods or drinks that I found to be even remotely tolerable...”

Smirking, Dib shook his head. “But seriously, humans can’t go very long without sleep. We don’t really have anything yet that will substitute for it, to keep us functioning.”

“Isn’t that a disadvantage?” Wir ventured.

Dib shrugged a shoulder absently. “It can be.”

“Ten minutes.”

Wir stood and stretched her legs, then leaned back against the wall as one of the royal guards checked the charge level in his staff. The Medical Officer had returned to his notes, and Vert relaxed against the wall with his eyes closed, although his antennae twitched with the movements of every tiny air current in the chamber.

Eventually Vert opened his eyes, venturing a question. “What of your people’s weapons, Dib?”

In the middle of stroking one of Zim’s legs, Dib stiffened. “What about them?”

Vert gazed at him for a moment before replying. “Are they of any use to us?”

“They were of use against you, so I have no doubt that it would be so.” Dib observed.

Kha quirked an antenna. “Those were Earth weapons being used against our ships?”

Dib smirked, and Zim nodded.

“They function on a simple principle of splitting the smallest form of matter and releasing the energy that was holding it together.” Zim quoted what Dib had told him, ignoring his human’s snicker.

The Advisors and techs nodded.

Rising to his feet, Zim helped Dib to stand in the darkness, hissing when the human “lost his balance” and “accidentally” rubbed against his crotch. “Five minutes.” Zim spoke aloud, then gripped Dib’s arm painfully tight, tugging the human forward and growling into his ear. “And when that five minutes is up, you are going to be reprimanded for your…advances.”

Dib felt a shudder run down his spine, and he gave Zim a dirty look that he knew the night-vision would pick up.

Feeling the familiar surge of heat flowing through his body again, Zim squeezed harder, his antennae lowering against his head for a split second before relaxing again.

“Four minutes.”

All of the officers in the chamber were standing now, waiting attentively for the doors and lights to come back online. Yet again, there was silence, except for Zim’s statements of the amount of time remaining.

“Three minutes.”

“…two minutes…”

“…one minute. Remove visors.” Zim retracted the night-vision visor into his PAK.

Dib closed his eyes just before the lights came on, waiting for a few seconds before opening them, letting his eyes adjust.

The doors to the chamber slid open, and Zim dismissed his officers, nodding to Vert, Kha, and the other Advisor that had attended the lockdown. “I need to attend to something. If there is an emergency, I’ll be in my quarters.”

The Advisors nodded and saluted him, then departed in a rustling whisper of robes.

Dib yelped when he was grabbed roughly by the arm and dragged down the corridor towards Zim’s suite.
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VINDICATION