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Goddess Risen	By : ladylaguna Category: +G through L > Invader Zim > AU/AR-Alternate Universe-Alternate Reality Views: 2875 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: Zim and all related characters - Viacom... All unrelated characters - Jenn L. I gain no profit from this writing.

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THIS IS THE LAST ARC OF THE GODDESS RISING STORY. IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE FIRST FOUR ARCS TURN BACK NOW!

Thanks to Calantha as always for betaing, and pushing me to keep writing :P

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Vermeil’s uneasiness faded little as he neared Nirvana. Cloaking his ship against their relatively primitive technology proved easy, but getting into the city itself would be the difficult part. As he came in ever closer, he found that no ships were actually patrolling the planet’s perimeter at all. Strange…

He knew that the humans only inhabited one half of the planet itself. The sun burned too heavily on the other half. For an Irken, adjusting to that environment would be no problem at all. Soon his Shuvver touched parched desert ground and he surveyed the area. No life detected beside the local fauna. But… what was this? A small group of lifeforms a few clicks from here. Could they possibly be humans, surviving somehow? If they had defected and were living out in the desert, perhaps they could help Vermeil enter the city. Strapping on his guns and knife, he locked up the ship and set out.

The creatures he detected seemed to be living in the mountain range that formed one edge of the city. As he approached the most prominent outcropping, his eyes narrowed. At first, he saw nothing… and then, a bit of movement. Keeping his guns at the ready, he began to climb. When he reached even footing, he gasped at what he saw.

Aton stood before him, arms crossed as usual, grinning wide. It took all of Vermeil’s control to keep from running and hugging him right then and there. “Captain Aton! I’m so… so happy to see you safe and sound.”

“Well, I’m not sure about ‘safe’ or ‘sound’ but we’re certainly visible.” Patting Vermeil hard on the back, he ushered him toward a cave that lay nearby. When they reached it, they encountered a group of about ten other Irkens, most of whom came from Aton’s crew.

…but no Jai…

“So you all must have escaped from Gaftar and made it out here,” Vermeil stated, smiling in relief. At least he hadn’t failed everyone…

Nodding, Aton replied, “Unfortunately, by the time we were halfway through the city, they started firing on us. We lost a few men… The cannon they harness, I’ve not seen anything like it. Then we saw the plate go up and realized that they can’t deal with the sun. So we, of course, ran for the edge of that plate…” The other Irkens looked up at Vermeil as Aton spoke, tiredness clear on their features. “Things have gotten really quiet over there since you’ve left, Vermeil. But we fear that they are just attempting to lull us into complacence. We still haven’t come up with a decent plan to reenter. We still have comrades in there. And we have to find a way off this stinkin’ planet…”

“What about… Jai? He wasn’t… lost, was he?”

Shaking his head sadly, Aton replied, “He couldn’t walk under his own power, and insisted that we leave him. I have to admit that we would have been significantly slowed if we brought him along.”

“We’ll go rescue him,” Vermeil said resolutely, pointing back from whence he came. “I have the Shuvver here. We can probably cram about fifty men on there…” Looking over at his bedraggled comrades, he dusted off his hands. “In fact, I think that all of you should head that way and rest. Eat. Get out of the sun. We can plan our next course of action from there.”

They didn’t need to be told twice. Showing a renewed vigor, the men all jumped to their feet, gathering their small amount of belongings and heading out. Aton and Vermeil hung back, ensuring that everyone was well on their way. Once the cave had finally emptied out, Aton reached out to rub Vermeil affectionately on the neck. The action was strange now; Vermeil had long surpassed the Captain in height… But it was still welcome. And comforting. “I knew you’d come back. I told the men every day…”

“I’m sorry… about how this all turned out,” Vermeil answered, emotion rising up in his throat. “On… On Irkland. I got a virus. And… I compromised everything.”

Nodding sadly, Aton stared out over the baking horizon. “I knew something was wrong. And my concern for you, perhaps, clouded my judgment… We share responsibility in this mess.”

The Captain felt that nothing more needed to be said, and began to head out. Vermeil followed, struggling with the weight of that responsibility. “Aton… I want you to promise me… That if it ever happens again, no matter what… I want you to promise that you’ll kill me.”

Sighing heavily, Aton didn’t answer. He continued walking for a few moments, absolutely silent. But finally, he turned. “I promise you that if you must die, then it will be by my hand. It will be swift and painless… But I also promise you that I will give my own life to spare yours if it is at all possible.”

“Thank you.” Neither man said anything more after that.

Vermeil took up the watch the next day, while the rest of his comrades stayed onboard the ship and recuperated. Several weeks passed as they continued to keep tabs on the colony. It was surprisingly quiet; from what Vermeil knew of his observations before all this mess began, the Raziers and the Fed regularly came and went. Professor Membrane (Megami’s Aunt) liked fresh shipments of Irkens whenever possible. Had the well dried up? Or was something more transpiring?

Finally, a ship came. The moment he saw it break atmo, his heart soared. There was no mistaking it; that thing belonged to the Fuck Pig. It was large and extravagant and decked out just shy of a warship. What was it doing here, Vermeil wondered? Knowing the human’s story now, he didn’t think it could be anything good. He immediately notified Aton. This was his best opportunity.

* * * * * * * *

During the trip, Zim and GIR had busied themselves with “upgrading” Dib’s ship. This thing was his baby, and he didn’t exactly like them tinkering with it… But he loved seeing Zim more like his old self.

“Your ship is too slow and it lacks firepower,” Zim promptly announced after an initial examination.

Pursing his lips, Dib replied, “It’s not a Battleship, Zim. Just a luxury cruiser with some enhancements.”

“Do you want to be a sitting… duck… thing?? DO YOU!?”

So that was it. Little ships came to deliver all manner of weaponry and equipment as Zim transformed Dib’s baby into Frankenstein. Knowing the Irken as he did, Dib called another technician to come look over his work. Exhausting Zim with sex beforehand worked wonders; he easily accepted the lie that their visitor was actually an interior decorator.

By the time they drew close to Nirvana, they looked imposing indeed. A part of Dib enjoyed that; he wanted the humans to quake in fear when they saw him. He didn’t bother to ask for landing permissions; he’d shoot anyone down that tried to intercept.

Except nobody did. As he drew in toward the runway, he felt an eerie sense of foreboding. The few ships that littered the tarmac looked neglected, and no lights or other humans could be seen. “I think something bad happened here since I last visited.”

Antennae perking, Zim looked over Dib’s shoulder at the monitor. “Looks about like Earth did, to me. Filthy humans, they ruin everything they touch.”

Dib felt about the same way about Irkens, but he didn’t bother to argue. The two of them were both outcasts from their respective races, there was no need for misplaced loyalty.

The two of them exited the ship with little ceremony. Not a soul showed his face until they walked into the station. A young man in a dingy uniform approached, holding a gun at the ready. “Irkens aren’t allowed here!” he cried shakily.

“This is Zim, you dipshit!” Dib cried. “He’s the guy you have to thank for destroying the Irken threat. Put that gun away NOW or I’m going to snap your fuckin’ neck.” The boy hesitated but the look on Dib’s face showed he was serious. As popular as his memoirs had been, did nobody remember what he looked like? Or did he really look so different?

Throughout this exchange, Zim hadn’t stopped walking. He didn’t care about much, especially this kid with an old gun.

As if the gun were merely a toy, Dib snatched it away. Grabbing the boy by his lapels, he demanded to know where Professor Membrane was.

“He’s dead,” the kid replied matter-of-factly. Brow furrowing, Dib slowly let the kid slip from his fingers. The news shocked him much more than he expected it to. His father had always been remarkably fit, and he bent science to his whim when he wasn’t. Dying in his sixties seemed absurd. “You’re Dib, aren’t you?” the kid piped up. So it finally dawned on him. “There were rumors that you weren’t really dead. A lot of rumors.” Waving his arms a little, he exclaimed, “You’re heir to the Membrane legacy now! You have to stop Gaz and get everything back to normal.”

“I don’t have to do jack shit,” Dib replied, sneering a bit as he took his leave. But the kid followed. The man’s anger only simmered more hotly. NOW the human race wanted a fucking savior. Why hadn’t they looked to him twenty years ago? “Since the Professor died this place has been under martial law. It’s divided between Gaz’s gang and… the rest of us. Don’t you understand? She’s lost her mind! You have to stop her.”

Whirling on the kid, Dib shook his fist. “You better fucking stop telling me what I HAVE to do before I find myself having to injure you. Gravely.” That finally drove the point home and the boy growled in frustration, disappearing into the darkness.

“Better be prepared for anything, Zim.” Dib looked down at his partner as they pushed through the cracked glass doors and entered the street. He knew that he could protect Zim against whatever these idiots might try to throw at them… But after all the work he’d put into getting the Irken back into somewhat better shape, he’d be pissed to have to take a step back.

Zim, strangely enough, was thinking. Dib would never get used to seeing him do that. “So your sister’s become some sort of dictator. Zim always knew she had it in her. Perhaps she was planning this the whole time, just waiting for the Older One to die.”

“That wouldn’t surprise me…” But she and Membrane had always been close. He was the only person Gaz had ever shown any real respect or affection for. He didn’t even see anything sincere passing between she and Valerie, though Val seemed to have a strange camaraderie with her. “…all I’m planning on is getting some answers. These idiots can deal with their own fucking problems.”

His ultimate goal was to get back to the Membrane home. He was sure it would be heavily fortified but getting through would be no issue for the two of them. Keeping on the edge of town, they managed to avoid most of the turmoil within. As they climbed the hill toward the Membrane “compound,” Dib did find that it was fortified. But not with fences or weaponry. He felt the tingle of Meekrob and… some other strange power… in his gut the closer they got. “Do you feel that?” he asked Zim.

“…uh?” Dumb question. Sighing, Dib ran his fingers through his hair, but Zim finally replied, “The Destroyer.”

Perhaps, unlike in Dib’s case, these feelings were more innate for Zim. He didn’t have to think about them… he just KNEW them to be true. And of course it made sense; Gaz was the “Destroyer,” wasn’t she? “So this power… it was the same that she used back on the Massive? Is that what you’re saying?” Had she lost her mind?

Breaking through the barrier that had been erected around the house was difficult, but not impossible. For Dib, at least. He phased through it after a few tries, but Zim was left behind. “I told you that you should’ve practiced with the Meekrob,” he barked in annoyance as he looked back through the invisible wall.

Brow furrowing, Zim merely folded his arms. “I don’t need tricks to hold my own,” he replied, chin pointing upward.

Dib could only laugh in reply to that. “Fucker.” Waving Zim off, the turned and headed for the front door. He didn’t need Zim along for this, anyway.

Zim, for his part, didn’t think that Dib needed him either. Instead, he turned to look back over the city. Interesting, how quickly the humans cannibalized themselves. Soon this city would be gone, he was sure; so he set out toward the heart of it, intent on seeing the sights for himself. Though Dib assumed Zim never used his brain, he was, in fact, always thinking. A natural curiosity had always been a part of Zim’s demeanor, even though it always led him to bad places.

This day was no exception. As he hit the heart of the city, he found himself surrounded by a group of armored troops. Zim assumed these must be the “Raziers” that struck fear into the heart of every Irken.

“Looks like a holdout from the prison break,” one of the soldiers hissed, voice muffled by his helmet.

Hands on his hips, Zim cried, “ZIM is no mere prisoner! I came with the Dib-human. You know him, don’t you? Let me pass! Immediately!”

The group merely laughed at his demands. Either they did not know the Dib-human and Zim or they did not care. They advanced, ready to apprehend him. Unfortunately, Zim cared just as little for them. In an instant he whipped out his pistol, easily picking off one of the men straight through his helmet. Dib’s ship wasn’t the only piece of equipment that he’d enhanced.

Scoffing at Dib’s insistence that he learn more about his Meekrob, he shot another soldier squarely in the chest. But they were at close range and soon his shots stopped landing. They came in with the butts of their rifles, clubs, fists and feet. Zim tried to fend them off, knocking a few back, but he was still much too weak. Soon they had him hogtied, lifting him into the air and carrying him deeper into the city. They wondered about the strange location of his Pak, but strapped an inhibitor to it all the same.

Zim screamed and writhed the whole way. “Let me go! Where are you taking me!? When Dib learns of this, he’ll pop you like swollen, infested pimples!”

Of course, Zim could have easily concluded where they were heading. Back to this “prison” they spoke of, laughing and high-fiving each other the long walk down. “Wait until the professor gets a hold of you, you filthy murderer.” He was thrown roughly into a cell and hooked up to a full-sized Pak inhibitor. That didn’t subdue Zim at all; he thrashed and spat and screamed.

The scene provided a perfect opportunity for Vermeil to slip in unnoticed. He knew the Fuck Pig’s arrival would provide the perfect opportunity, though the sight of the Betrayer surprised him.

Thankfully his memory was clear enough to easily locate the special wing. He slipped into each successive guard’s booth and quietly killed each. When he left, they looked as if they were simply sleeping on the job; hopefully nobody would come by and notice until he completed his work at the prison.

Unfortunately, the special wing lay completely empty. This did not bode well for Jai, Vermeil knew… He recalled where the woman had dragged those first few Irkens on that horrible day. At the end of the long hallway lay a pair of reinforced double doors. Ten minutes of fiddling with the key panel granted him access.

Instead of a prison, Vermeil found himself inside a lab. The immaculate floors gleamed beneath his sand-encrusted boots, reflecting an eerie fluorescent light that seemed to make even the walls glow. Doors dotted the hallway before him, all closed up tightly, the lights reflecting off of their glass windows.

This place’s purpose required little guesswork; the smell alone made his stomach roll… Blood, strong cleaning solution, machinery. Dark things happened here. The video camera captured his advance as he crept along the wall… But that mattered little, as he’d killed the guard in the monitoring room as well.

Peeking into the first door, he nearly vomited right away. The things these humans were doing to his comrades… Vivisection. Replacement of organs and limbs. Constant and unending pain, hooked to devices that resembled torture racks. The doors, mostly unlocked, let Vermeil creep easily within and give each Irken a swift and merciful end.

Halfway down the hall and he still hadn’t found Jai. His face, stained with tears, became a mask of anger and hatred. Even without Purple’s interference, Vermeil found plenty of reason to want this species wiped off of the face of the universe. A scientist emerged from the next door, looking up from his clipboard in surprise. He didn’t get a word out before Vermeil slammed him against the wall, dagger sinking into the man’s neck and slicing him clear through to his groin. The blood sprayed everywhere, making Vermeil’s skin burn… But he was resolute. He’d find Jai.

Two more doors. Four more. The lights grew dimmer, flickering… Something must be sucking power from the end of this wing. Finally he reached his goal.

As he entered the room, a sense of familiarity actually flooded him. Computers lined the walls, readings constantly printing out over their screens. Wires and tubing stretched between them, throbbing with barely restrained life. In the center of it all lie Vermeil’s old friend and mentor… Just as it had always been on Aton’s ship.

Except they had ripped away all of those useless limbs he never used, replacing each with more wiring. His trunk was all that remained, splayed across a large metal plate. His skin was pinned back in four places: a bolt at each shoulder and the back edges of his ribcage. His Spooch spilled out from beneath the exposed bone, also connected to several feet of wiring.

“Jai…”

His eyes flickered in recognition, head hanging freely from where he’d effectively been crucified. But he didn’t reply. Just like those Control Brains on Irkland… A sob involuntarily escaped the boy’s throat.

“I’m… I’m so sorry about this, Jai. I’m sorry that it’s come to this. I’m sorry I abandoned you… No excuses can ever make up for the wrong that’s been done to you. You gave me hope in all the times that I needed it most, and I… I…” Unable to speak for a moment, he pulled out his dagger and wiped it clean. “Just one cut and it will all be over, my friend… I never told you this, but… There was a day when the Fuck Pig begged me to do this. I couldn’t bring myself to, and he destroyed everything I held dear. And now…”

Jai hung several feet from the floor. In order to reach him, Vermeil had to climb up the wiring, arm hooking over Jai’s shoulder. This was the first time he’d ever come close enough to touch the man who always hid behind computer screens as they spoke. Emotion overcame him again, hand shaking as the dagger rose ever closer to his comrade’s neck.

Then Jai’s lips moved.

Vermeil stopped, blinking in the low light, the wiring and tubing throbbing against his burned and heated skin. Jai’s lips moved again.

“…Jai…?”

Words were definitely coming out… so quiet that Vermeil couldn’t catch them. Antennae tilting closer to his friend’s mouth, he listened intently.

“I… am… perfect.”

“…what… what do you mean, Jai…?”

“I… I am…” The walls began to rumble as the tubing writhed, a heavy copper wire throwing Vermeil onto the floor and pinning him. The computer monitors crackled, brightening exponentially, bathing the room in near blinding light. Electricity crackled over the walls and the fluorescent lights flickered off completely.

The intercom system overhead hissed loudly. A cacophony of voices played over it, growing deafening. Vermeil realized then that somehow Jai had managed to worm his way into Gaftar’s computer network. How much did he actually have control over?

His voice finally rang clear above the rest, nearly blowing the speakers entirely.

“I
AM
FINALLY
PERFECT”

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DivineDepravity: Thank you! I hope the coming chapters won't disappoint. :)
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Goddess Risen