Update:

Okay, let's try this again.

This is a repost of this chapter. I had to take the original down and do some rewrites after it was pointed out that I made a fairly big canonical error. It seems I had forgotten a pretty big detail about a couple of the episodes. It's not too serious and it isn't a threat to the story as a whole, but damn it I care about staying consistent to the canon of the show. I'm honestly pretty embarrassed, and I'm sorry for not realizing it before I originally posted this chapter. Special thanks to Invader Johnny and Zim'sMostFaithfulServant for pointing out the error. I'll do my best to not let something like this happen again in the future.

Original notes:

I'm really sorry for how long this chapter took. I've been pretty damn sick over the past week or so, and didn't have the motivation to write. I'm getting better, thankfully.
Also, we hit 10K views! Holy hell! I dunno if that's a lot for the average story for this site, but goddamn it's certainly a lot to me! I can't tell you how happy I am that this story has taken off in such a big way. It means so much to me. Seriously, I can't even put it into words. All your kind words in the reviews warm my heart! Thank you all so much! Here's to 10K more views!

We're very close to really getting this story started! Six (now seven) chapters, over 40K words, and we still haven't gotten to the really good stuff. At least, I certainly hope it's going to be good. We'll just have to wait and see. Sometimes I wonder if I'm moving the story too slow considering what I have planned, but I know rushing things will only do a disservice to the story.

Hope you enjoy this chapter! Writing it was a little rough, but I did my darndest. You know the drill, send me those reviews!

Chapter 7

The past two days had completely shell-shocked Dib.

Near death experiences can do that to anyone.

Dib didn't recall much of what happened after Zim had discovered him at the base. He remembered the choking grip of the claw, and after that, nothing. Next thing he knew, he had awoken in his bed with a dull pain. He almost chuckled humorlessly when he had first gotten a look at himself in the mirror. With the black eye, as well as the bruised face and throat, it looked like he had been in some kind of brutal bar fight. In terms of bodily harm, he'd probably been through worse before. Sure, it hurt mildly, but it still wasn't as bad as a broken bone. No, what really affected him was the psychological horror of nearly being killed.

And just like the previous encounter with Zim, Dib found it strange that he wasn't killed.

After Dib first woke up, Gaz explained that she found him unconscious in front of the door. Someone had rung the doorbell. Of course, the only one who could have brought him there was Zim or one of his lackeys. But that didn't make sense. Wasn't Zim supposed to kill him? It sure seemed like that was going to be Dib's end. And yet, it wasn't. Did Zim have a change of heart? Or... whatever organ the alien had? Dib was starting to wonder if Zim even had it in him to pull it off.

It didn't matter anyway. Zim would be gone in less than five days. Dib was starting to get sick of thinking about it. Despite everything he learned when he infiltrated Zim's base, his mind still spent the last two days trying to figure out exactly what the hell was going on. And what he was going to do. What was going to happen after Zim left? Dib spent so long chasing that damn Irken. It was over now, and Dib didn't even get to feel the satisfaction of a win. Surely he should feel good that the Earth was no longer in danger of being taken over, or destroyed, by Zim. There were still worried thoughts tickling the back of his mind. At the moment, he was thinking about to what to do with all his data.

There were so many files. A lot more than Dib ever gave any real thought to. Pictures, videos, transcripts, data logs stolen from Zim's base, and so much more were all contained on a single hard drive in his computer. He had been filling it for years. Ever since Dib first saw Zim enter his classroom, he documented absolutely everything that he could. He intended to send the data to the Swollen Eyeball Network. In fact, he did so on a few occasions in the past. Unfortunately, while his online peers always showed some level of support, they were always wary of believing Dib's claims. The evidence, while plentiful, was never concrete enough to sway anyone. There were always doubts. He heard it all before from his fellow agents.

"How do we know this isn't just a doctored image?"

"This data means nothing to us. For all we know, you could have created this as a hoax."

"Interesting, but this isn't enough. We need more."

It was never enough. They always needed more.

Dib sat silently in his chair as he stared at his computer screen. He was contemplating his options. Zim was going to leave Earth, so the data wasn't much use to Dib anymore. A small part of him wondered if he should just delete it all. Of course, he'd never do that. Even if the Earth was no longer in danger at the moment, that didn't mean he should let all his hard work go to waste. Besides, the drive wasn't just filled with information about Zim. Over the years, he had been able to glean information about the Irken Empire itself. Not much, but at least enough to get started. Unfortunately, Dib doubted he would be able to acquire anything else after Zim left Earth.

Still, there was always the threat of another Irken eventually coming to Earth. They had sent a so-called Defective Irken to Earth. It seemed to Dib that Zim's mission was more of an exile than anything. If that were true, it could be possible that the Irken Empire had no interest in Earth. However, the Irken Empire's goal was total domination of the galaxies. Perhaps Earth might not be on their to-do list right now, but what happens if they decide that Earth is valuable enough to change plans? Zim had certainly sent them an awful lot of information about humans. It was plausible to think his leaders could find something that would be useful to the Empire. Even if his speculation never panned out, it would probably be good for the Swollen Eyeball Network to have an archive of everything that Dib had gathered.

He made his decision. He put on his headset, opened up a window on his computer and sent the call. After a few moments, the dark silhouetted figure of Agent Darkbootie appeared on screen.

"Agent Mothman," he nodded.

"Yeah, uh, hi Agent Darkbootie," Dib said somewhat awkwardly. It had been a long while since they had last spoken, and their last conversation wasn't exactly productive. It had devolved into another argument about needing more concrete evidence. Still, Agent Darkbootie was the only agent who didn't treat Dib like some kind of crazed child. In fact, Dib could tell that Darkbootie believed his claims about Zim on some level. He thought back on when Darkbootie had helped him at NASA by giving him a ship to go to Mercury. If anyone could help Dib, it would be Agent Darkbootie. Dib continued, "Listen, I think I've got something."

"What is it?" Darkbootie asked.

"Zim will be leaving Earth soon," Dib explained. He saw Darkbootie's red eyes widen ever so slightly. "He'll probably be gone in about five days."

"Hmm," Darkbootie mused. Dib waited a few moments for his response. "How do you know this?" Dib felt himself shudder at the memory.

"I infiltrated Zim's base," Dib explained. "I overheard a call he made to another planet. He plans on leaving Earth and heading to a planet called Meekrob." Darkbootie nodded.

"And what purpose does he have for this?" Dib paused at that. He didn't know the entire story, but he at least had a vague theory.

"Well," Dib started. "It seems complicated, but I think he isn't affiliated with the Irken Empire anymore." He thought for a moment, bringing up the conversation between Zim and the alien on Meekrob in his mind. "Apparently he's no longer allowed back on his home planet. He's probably just looking for a place to go that isn't Earth." Dib heard Darkbootie hum in thought.

"Well, if this is the case, then we shouldn't need to be worried about him anymore," Darkbootie pointed out.

"I'm not so sure about that," Dib replied, shaking his head. "The Irken Empire is hellbent on total galactic conquest. I'm certain they'll have Earth in their cross hairs eventually." Of course, Dib knew he was merely speculating. He had nothing to prove that what he was saying was absolute fact. Still, he felt the danger of the Irken Empire was very real. He hoped Agent Darkbootie would understand.

"You know I can't bring any of this to the other board members without proof, Mothman." Dib sighed in disappointment, not entirely surprised at his mentor's words.

"I know," Dib relented. "I don't expect you to."

"Then what is it you want from me?"

"I just want to send you the data on my hard drive," Dib explained. "It's everything I have on Zim, the Irkens, their Empire, everything I could find. It's all here." Dib sat back and tore his gaze from the screen. "I mean, I've sent a lot of it to the Network before, but of course no one ever believes me."

"You know I do," Darkbootie said somewhat softly. Dib scoffed in annoyance and rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, I just wish you'd show it more often." Darkbootie shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Mothman," he tried to assure Dib. "But you know the guidelines of the Swollen Eyeball Network. I can't break them just for your sake."

"Right, yeah, sorry," Dib said, not wanting to start another argument.

"How much is there?" Darkbootie asked, after a short awkward silence.

"A couple of gigabytes," Dib replied. "Most of it is video, but I've compiled timestamps of relevant information as accompaniments. There's also a bunch of photos and text documents in there, I don't even know if I remember it all." Dib heard Agent Darkbootie gasp and saw his eyes widen. Before Darkbootie could protest, he quickly continued. "Look I don't expect you to look at all of this stuff. I mean, I've sent bits and pieces to you before, but not everything." Dib brought his hands in the air to signal finger quotes. "You know, 'hard evidence' and all that."

"Mothman-" Darkbootie warned.

"I know, I know," Dib quickly interrupted. He looked at his mentor with pleading eyes. "Just... you know, can you at least take a look? Skim it or something, I dunno. I just want to make sure we're prepared if Irk ever decides to come from Earth." Darkbootie took a moment to consider Dib's request. After a short while, he nodded.

"If it'll put you at ease, then fine. Send me the data, Mothman. But this will be between only us, for now. Understand?" Darkbootie leaned into the camera and narrowed his eyes slightly. Dib quickly nodded in agreement.

"Yes, sir."

"Good. I'll be here when you're done with the upload. Agent Darkbootie, out."

The call window went black. Dib took off his headset and sighed heavily. That definitely went better than he thought it was going to. He didn't waste anytime. He compressed the contents of his hard drive into an archive and began uploading it to Agent Darkbootie. It would probably take around a half-hour for it to finish, so for now, Dib had nothing to do. Maybe some television would take his mind off things. He hopped off his chair and headed out of his room. When he reached the living room, the door suddenly opened. Professor Membrane walked through the threshold and announced his entrance.

"Good afternoon, children!" Dib's father called out. "I'm home!" Dib raised an eyebrow. Well, this was unexpected. This certainly wasn't his dad's one day off for the year. At least, not the last time Dib checked his calendar. "But," Membrane said, pointing a finger in the air. "Only for a short time! Just need to pick a few things up from the basement for the lab!"

"Uh, hey dad," Dib said, awkwardly raising his hand. His relationship with his father was, well, complicated. On one hand, Dib knew that the professor loved his children very much. Or, at least, that was what Dib tried to believe. It was no secret that Professor Membrane was often caught up in his work, but he did what he could to provide for his kids. Even if he forgot, sometimes. But hey, that's just the life of a famous scientist, right? Yeah, that was it.

Unfortunately, Dib could not deny that he held some resentment towards his father. Not only was he never around, but he constantly berated Dib for his interest in paranormal studies. Of all people, his father was the one person he wished would listen. Why couldn't he see what was directly in front of him? Why couldn't he ever entertain the idea that Dib might be right? Even if Membrane didn't believe his son, it would at least be welcome to humor him just once. But no, Dib's father would never have his back. It was 'unscientific' to believe in aliens. It was a waste of time that should be spent doing 'real science'.

Just as he did with everyone else at school, Dib had given up trying to convince his father long ago. Dib's eyes shot open when the Professor gasped loudly and walked swiftly over to Dib.

"Son, what happened?" he asked frantically. Membrane knelt down to inspect Dib's face. Dib felt his heart drop. As appreciative as he felt towards his father's worried demeanor, he really wasn't in the mood for this. Dib sighed.

"Nothing Dad," Dib tried to reassure his father. "I'm alright." Membrane shook his head and furred his eyebrows.

"Nonsense, son! You clearly have a black eye! And why is your neck so bruised?" Dib groaned internally, desperately not wanting to continue this conversation. It would do no good to explain what really happened.

"I'm fine," Dib said as he pulled away from his dad. He quickly racked his brains for some kind of excuse. Unfortunately, he couldn't find one that would explain away his battered appearance. So he told the truth. Sort of. "I got into a fight, that's all."

"What?" Membrane shouted. "Who did you fight? What happened? Tell me this instant!" Crap, Dib knew he was going to press for more information. If only he could have come up with a better excuse. He didn't want to tell his father about Zim. Not only because Dib knew his dad wouldn't believe anything that had to do with Zim being an alien, but also because he didn't want the Professor to go after Zim. The Irken was going to leave Earth, and there was really no point in risking repercussions by agitating him. Plus, considering that Membrane didn't believe that Zim was an alien, he would be unprepared if Zim decided to attack him. Dib quickly came up with a lie to get his father off the question.

"I don't know," Dib said, trying to sound believable. "It was... someone in the city trying to mug me." Dib prayed to whatever God there may be that his father would believe him.

"My word, that's horrible!" Membrane shouted in despair."I hope you've already called the police!"

"Uh, yeah," Dib said cautiously. "I've already filed a report. Haven't heard anything back yet." Membrane nodded his head.

"Splendid! Glad to hear it!" Dib cocked his head and raised his eyebrow. Dib almost felt that his father was a bit too quick to believe his story. Considering how much his father doubted him in the past, Dib was surprised that his father was not questioning him any further. He wasn't going to dwell on that. He was just glad that particular conversation seemed to be ending. Membrane stood back up and looked down to his son.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Membrane asked his son, sounding genuinely worried. Dib looked up at his father and nodded.

"Yeah, dad. I'll be alright." Dib wasn't used to his father sounding worried. It almost felt off to him.

"If you say so, son," Membrane said. He looked around the room. "Where's Gaz?" Dib waved a dismissive hand at him.

"She's at the mall getting some new game," he told his dad.

"And you didn't go with her?" Dib rolled his eyes.

"Dad, she's sixteen now. You know she can handle herself." Dib's father paused for a moment, considering Dib's words.

"I suppose," he relented. "But next time go with her, okay son? Especially if there's muggers in the city. I don't want her getting hurt too."

"Sure, dad."

"Now, I have to get back to the lab before Jerry blows it up again! I'll see you kids in two months for dinner!" With that, Professor Membrane walked towards the basement and out of Dib's sight. Dib sat down on the couch and flipped on the television. There was nothing else to do, so he may as well let his brain rot. It might help take his mind off things. At least, for a little while.

Since their last intense conversation two days ago, Zim hadn't gone back into the medical bay. He made sure to check on the status of her PAK repairs, of course. They had long since been finished, and all there was to do was wait until the medical functions of her PAK fixed the damage to her body. He still needed to perform a software maintenance, but currently Zim was hesitant to enter the medical bay again. He wasn't necessarily scared of Tak, but he felt he had enough difficult conversations to last his entire life. He had dropped quite a bombshell on her, and Zim knew she would need some time for her mind to adjust to the information. It wasn't clear whether Tak believed Zim, but he figured she would piece things together herself. She may be rash, but she wasn't ignorant. Surely his last conversation with her would start to bring the obvious facts to the forefront of her mind. Like the desertion of her post, for instance.

Zim couldn't resist feeling bad for Tak. They may have been enemies, but Zim couldn't help but empathize with her current situation. He knew exactly what it felt like to find out about being a Defective. Who knows how Tak was taking it. Zim wondered if she would consider his proposition. Would she go with him to Meekrob? It was extremely unlikely, considering how much Tak hated him. But if she didn't go with Zim, where else could she go? She couldn't return to Irk. Maybe she'd stay on Earth? Nah, she hated this planet just as much as she hated Zim. Perhaps even more so. What other options did she have?

Another thought crossed his mind. If Tak were to go with him to Meekrob, she would need a ship. Zim seriously doubted his Voot Cruiser would fit two Irkens, their SIR units, and whatever else they decided to take with them. Not comfortably, anyway. Hell, even if she didn't decide to go with him, Zim had a feeling she wouldn't want to stay on Earth. But she couldn't go anywhere without transportation. Zim didn't feel comfortable with even considering the obvious option plaguing the back of his mind. He knew that Dib had Tak's ship, but he didn't think he could take another encounter with the boy. There was no telling where that would go considering recent events. Maybe Zim could just leave that up to Tak. She would surely have no problem retrieving her ship from the horrible Earth child. After all, she had the potential to be the greatest Invader that Irk had ever known. There was plenty of documented evidence of that fact. Zim knew, no matter what, that Tak would be able to handle herself.

Wait, why did he even care? This was Tak he was thinking about! He hated her!

Didn't he?

Maybe he did, at one point. He certainly hated her when she was trying to take over his mission. The two Irkens had been nothing but hostile towards each other in the few interactions they ever had. Zim didn't get a good first impression when Tak first revealed herself to be Irken all those years ago. Crippling his base and stealing his mission didn't exactly scream friendly. Though, in retrospect, Zim now fully understood why Tak hated him so much. He really did ruin her life. In many ways, even. He was the reason she didn't become an Invader. He was the reason she got stuck on Dirt. And, indirectly, he was the reason she was now deemed a traitor of the Irken Empire.

Another emotion Zim had never felt before. Remorse.

Zim was currently sitting on the couch, staring at the blank television. He was happy that Gir was somewhere else doing... whatever it was that he was doing. He just wanted some peace and quiet so he could relax on the couch without any interruptions. He had been sitting for hours, still procrastinating his trip to the medical bay. He really shouldn't put it off any longer. It was better to just get it over with.

He got up from the couch and headed towards the kitchen.

The door opened, revealing the familiar sight of Tak laying down on the medical table, her restraints still firmly locked. She lifted her head in response to the noise, taking a quick glare at Zim before looking away. She didn't say a word as Zim walked closer to the table. Nervousness gripped Zim's demeanor. He still wasn't sure if this was a good idea, but keeping her locked down would do no good. It didn't feel right to him. He had his plasma pistol holstered, ready to be drawn at the first sign of a fight. Zim reached the table and looked at Tak, who was defiantly refusing to look back. Zim took a few shaky breaths before speaking.

"How... how are you feeling?" Tak made no reaction. She didn't say a single word. Her body, stiff as a plank of wood. The awkward silence loomed uncomfortably. Zim coughed. "Is your PAK done with your treatment?" At this, Tak nudged her head towards the control panel next to her table, still refusing to look at Zim.

He turned to the control panel and walked over, slightly annoyed that Tak was refusing to talk. He tapped at the panel and looked at the data that was streaming from her PAK. Zim sighed in slight relief as he read over the information.

"All your life functions seem optimal," Zim pointed out. "I just have to perform a quick PAK software maintenance and-"

"Don't bother," Tak replied with no emotion. Zim squinted at Tak and perked his antennae. Did he hear that right?

"Eh? Why not?" he asked incredulously.

"Just don't," Tak replied, still not looking at Zim. Zim sighed and walked back over to Tak. He stared down at her in pity.

"Tak, listen. I know that-"

"Don't." Tak's voice was laced with pure ire, and it made Zim shrink just a bit. "Don't. Just fucking don't. I don't need this from you right now." Zim was silent, unsure of what to say. He wanted to release her from the restraints, but doing so could be a threat to his safety. He needed to calm her down first. He decided to step back and wait it out. He leaned his back against a wall in the room, facing the front of Tak on the table.

"You should have killed me," Tak said quietly, her venomous tone making her voice seem louder than it actually was. Zim continued staring at Tak.

"Maybe, but I didn't," Zim said simply.

"Well you should have," she replied angrily. "I think I would have preferred dying over..." Her voice trailed off as it became shaky. Zim shook his head, knowing exactly what she was going through.

"Yeah, I know the feeling," Zim sighed. He waited for a response from Tak. Hearing nothing, he walked back towards her table and decided to try to keep the conversation going. "Remember when you asked me why I didn't deactivate my PAK?" He closed his eyes at the memory and continued. "Well, I almost did. I was this close to actually doing it." Zim, despite the fact that Tak couldn't see, pinched his fingers together in the air to emphasize his point. "If it wasn't for that infernal computer of mine-"

"Hey, I can hear you, ya know," the Computer's electronic voice accused.

"SILENCE!" Zim shouted. "Computer, I command you to shut down all audio pickup devices in and around this room!"

"Ugh, fine." Satisfied that he and Tak were no longer being spied on by his sarcastic AI, Zim turned back to Tak, who had raised her head to look at Zim for the first time since he entered the room.

"You should have done it," Tak accused. "Not just because I came here to kill you, but you and I both know it's the right thing to do. We may be Def... I mean... We're still Irken." Tak's breath hitched as she tried to force her words out. It seemed she was still getting a grip on her newfound status. Zim didn't blame her.

"We're no longer Irken," Zim said sadly. "Not by the standards of the Empire, anyways."

"Then there's no point, is there?" Tak asked, sounding defeated. Zim got closer, leaned in towards Tak and stared into her eyes.

"You'd give up on life so easily, Tak?" Zim asked very seriously.

"I-" Tak cut herself off. She seemed to be racking her brain, trying to consider what Zim was saying. Zim waited for a response. When none came, he backed away from her.

"Well, I don't want to give up on life," he continued. He through a hand up in triumph. "I am Zim! I never die!"

"You can say that again," Tak quipped, angrily rolling her eyes. She gasped in shock when Zim started chuckling at her jab. Zim couldn't help but find it amusing. She definitely wasn't wrong. Zim could barely count the number of times he had a brush with death. He smiled at Tak, still giggling. It was only her disgusted look that was able to cease his laughter. He coughed awkwardly and walked over to the control panel, ready to input the command.

"If I release you, will you still try to kill me?" Zim asked, worry lacing his tone.

"I..." Tak trailed off. She didn't seem to be able to answer his question.

"Listen," Zim sighed. "I'm not asking you to forgive me. If I were in your situation, I probably wouldn't either. I know I'll never be able to convince you of this, but I am truly sorry for everything I've ever done to you." Tak's angry expression seemed to soften ever so slightly. Apologizing was becoming easier for Zim each time he said the words. He continued, "I don't want us fighting like this anymore. We're Defective," Zim saw Tak jerk slightly at the word, "and there's no point in trying to kill each other anymore. You don't have to come with me when I leave Earth, but until then, let's at least try to act amicably." Tak looked away and rested her head back down on the table, apparently deep in thought. Zim waited patiently for Tak to respond.

"Where will you go?" she finally said, the usual anger in her voice was absent.

"Meekrob."

"Meekrob? Are you joking?" Tak shouted, her anger returning in full. Zim winced a bit. It seemed that Tak didn't already know. That wasn't entirely surprising. It had been five years since he had seen her, after all. Tak continued her furious rant. "You're probably one of the most wanted Irkens in the Empire, and you're going to a planet that's marked for conquest? For Irk's sake it's probably already had an Organic Sweep! I thought you didn't have a death wish?"

"Tak, listen-"

"No way, Zim," Tak cut him off sharply. "I want to know what makes you think this is a good idea."

"You haven't been keeping up to date with the invasions, have you?" Zim asked knowingly.

"My ship didn't have a connection to the Armada," Tak explained. "I haven't been able to..." Tak trailed off as her face lit up in an ominous realization. "Wait a minute, what about he invasions? What happened on Meekrob?"

"I'll explain when we go reactivate Mimi," Zim waved her concerns off. He saw her face quickly shift at the mention of her SIR unit. It seemed she cared quite a lot about her lackey. Zim wasn't surprised, thinking about his relationship with Gir. He continued. "First I want your word that you won't try to kill me the second I release you."

The silence was nearly unbearable as Tak considered Zim's proposition. He waited patiently, trying to read Tak's face. She was no longer looking at him. After what felt like an eternity, the silence was broken.

"You saved my life," Tak said somewhat meekly. "The least I can do is spare yours." She shot a dangerous glare at Zim. "For now." Zim sighed a breath of relief. It was a start.

"Thank you, Tak," he said genuinely, bowing his head at her. He released the restraints.

Tak was unsuccessfully trying to block out her thoughts as they headed for the repair bay. She stood in the elevator next to her enemy. Well, former enemy. For now. She still held an extreme hatred towards the Irken who destroyed her life, but she couldn't deny that Zim had a point. She was still trying to process that she was a... No. She couldn't say it. She couldn't even think it. She had done enough thinking over the past few days. Any more, and she felt like her brain would explode.

Try as she might, she still couldn't shake out those terrifying thoughts. She ran through her past. The main event that stuck out was the desertion of her post on Dirt. No matter how hard she tried to come up with a valid reason for doing so, she couldn't deny that she had violated Irken law. For some reason, she had never thought about it before. She had been so focused on stealing Zim's mission before. And afterwards, her thoughts focused solely on getting revenge on Zim. It had never crossed her mind that her actions were irrational by the standards of the Irken Empire. She always figured that the Tallest would respect her once she proved herself.

That was a notion that also fit Zim pretty well, and that realization absolutely horrified Tak.

What was she going to do? There weren't many options available to her if she truly couldn't return to Irk. Perhaps she could stay on Earth and conquer it, just for fun. Strangely, that didn't sound very appealing. Why spend the effort if she wasn't going to get the recognition from her Tallest? No, wait, her former Tallest. She sighed mournfully at the thought. She certainly wasn't going to stay on this miserable rock, but where would she go? If she was wanted by the Irken Empire, there really weren't very many populated planets she could go to that would be safe. A large portion was marked by the Irken Empire, and most of those were surely already successfully taken over. Trying to take refuge in any of these planets would be suicide.

She could also go with Zim to Meekrob. But there were two huge problems with that idea. First, the obvious. She didn't think she would be able to stand Zim's company for very long. He may have saved her life, but that didn't mean she had to start acting friendly with him. She could still feel the hatred for him boiling her blood. At the same time, she still felt grateful towards him on some small level. He was the only reason she was still alive, after all. That, along with his complete honesty with her, was currently keeping her from enacting what she had originally came back to this horrible planet to do. Zim was right. For the time being, she and Zim would be better off putting their differences aside. At least until they had a plan that would keep them safe from the Irken Empire.

But there was still the second problem...

Tak tapped her foot on the floor. The elevator was going far too slow for her liking. She wasn't comfortable being this close to the Irken she despised. Perhaps some conversation would distract her. Besides, she needed to know anyway.

"So, are you going to tell me what happened with Meekrob? Why do you think it would be a safe place to go?" Tak asked insistently. Zim jumped at Tak's loud voice. He turned his attention towards her to answer.

"How much do you know about the invasion of Meekrob?" Zim asked. Tak thought for a moment. Her knowledge was admittedly limited. She didn't really know anything past her last encounter with Zim.

"I know that it was planned as a part of Operation Impending Doom II," Tak said. "Invader Tenn was assigned to it. I don't really know much outside of that." She shot Zim another angry glare. "No thanks to you." She may have a temporary truce with Zim, but she still wasn't going to let him off easily for his past transgressions. Tak saw Zim's eyes widen in shock at the mention of Invader Tenn. It looked as though he was having some kind of epiphany.

"Tenn... No way, it couldn't..." Zim trailed off, looking rather perplexed. Tak perked her antennae at him.

"What's the matter?" Tak asked curiously. Zim shook his head and dismissed Tak's question.

"It's nothing," Zim said. He shook his head and hurriedly continued his explanation. "Yes, Invader Tenn was assigned to Meekrob. However, her invasion attempts were interrupted when she was sent a batch of Defective SIR units."

"What? Why the hell would the Tallest do that?" Tak demanded. Surely the Tallest wouldn't have done something so cruel to one of their best Invaders. Zim was quick to explain away her query.

"I thought the same thing," Zim said. "But thinking back on it..." Zim paused as he stared up at the ceiling, apparently wrestling with something in his thoughts. "Well, I don't want to get into it, but I think they were meant for me."

"Oh," Tak said simply. The elevator reached its destination, and Tak and Zim stepped into the repair bay.

"Anyways," Zim awkwardly continued as they headed towards the platform that held Mimi. "The SIR units ran amok, and blew her cover. She was captured shortly after. Once the Armada got intel on what happened, they immediately changed course and headed straight for Meekrob."

"Strange," Tak mused. "Why didn't the Tallest send a rescue team?" Zim shrugged.

"I have no idea, but it was a bad move." They reached the control console and stopped in front of it. Zim continued, "I'm not sure how long it took for the Armada to reach Meekrob, but they took long enough for the Meekrobians to prepare. I suspect the Tallest weren't expecting them to mount such a defense." Tak's jaw shot open at the implication.

"Are you saying we lost?" Tak felt her conscious tell her that there was no longer any 'we'. She was no longer Irken, after all. Not in title, at least. She tried not to dwell on it. Zim affirmed her question with a quick nod.

"The Tallest eventually decided to negotiate a peace agreement," Zim explained. Now that was unbelievable. Meekrob was Irk's number one enemy. What the hell kind of defense did they put up if they managed something like that?

"That doesn't make any sense," Tak insisted angrily. "The Tallest would never agree to such a thing."

"You underestimate the power Meekrob holds," Zim said. "Irk's technology is heavily based on Vortian designs. The Vortians may be highly intelligent, but their technology can't compete with beings of pure energy." Zim began tapping away on the control console, getting ready to reactivate Tak's SIR unit. "The Armada was losing too many ships. No one knows exactly how they were so prepared for their arrival, but I have my suspicions." Zim paused in thought for a moment. Tak wondered what Zim thought had happened, but he didn't elaborate. "Had the Tallest continued their assault, they surely would have gotten the entire fleet destroyed," Zim added.

"If that's the case, then why didn't they give up and leave Meekrob?" Tak asked.

"They threatened to retaliate against planet Irk," Zim explained. "I dunno if it was the Tallest themselves or the Control Brains, but whoever made the decision to negotiate didn't take their threats lightly. Either way, the two factions negotiated a deal. It was eventually agreed upon that Irk and Meekrob would not interact with each other in any way."

It was a lot for Tak to take in, and she had already reached her limit. She couldn't believe that the glory of the Irken Empire could ever lose a battle. She couldn't think of a single time in Irken history where they weren't triumphant in their war efforts. Her perception on the Empire, and Irk as a whole, was slowly being corrupted with each new bit of information she gleaned from Zim.

"So then, you think escaping to Meekrob would be the safe?" Tak asked, trying to distract herself from her mind.

"Yes. I've already called them. They know I'm coming."

Zim finished his work on the control console. After a few moments, Tak saw Mimi light up red. She felt a rush of relief flow through her senses as the little robot began moving.

"Mimi!" Tak shouted gleefully. The robot perked up, and immediately jumped towards her owner, giving her a firm salute. Tak couldn't help herself. She immediately knelt down and hugged her minion. She could barely fathom how happy she was to see Mimi up and running again after so long. Mimi turned a head towards Zim, and her eyes widened. She pointed one of her robotic arms directly at Zim and beeped frantically at her owner. Tak shook her head as her PAK translated Mimi's robotic speech.

"Don't worry about the worm," she said, spitting the title at Zim. "He's no threat to us." Tak saw Zim rolling his eyes, but paid it no mind. Mimi did a few double-takes between Tak and Zim. She bleeped out another confused statement. Tak replied, "I do, Mimi. But we've reached a... temporary truce for the time being." Zim cocked his antennae at the display.

"How can you understand it?" Zim asked. Tak pointed behind her at her PAK, raising her eye as if it was obvious. "Oh, right," Zim nodded. Tak tore away from her reunion with Mimi and took a look at Zim's Voot Cruiser on the other side of the room. She walked towards the platform and inspected the ship. She could tell it was in rough shape. Robotic arms constantly buzzed around the ship as they attempted to repair it. An idea began forming in her head.

As if Zim could read her mind, he spoke up as he walked towards her.

"If you're thinking about stealing it, don't bother," he warned. "I've made a few modifications. It won't run unless it detects my bio-signature inside the cockpit." Damn, well that idea was out.

"If I was going to join you on your trip to Meekrob," Tak asked warily, "how exactly do you expect me to follow you without a ship?" Zim looked nervous at that. He was kind of hoping she wouldn't ask. Of course, he knew it was inevitable. He looked seriously at Tak and gave his answer.

"I think I know where your ship is."