A/N: This is my first fanfiction so I'm not sure how well this will turn out. This is A ZADR fic, 'kay? Or at least it will border on ZADR. The rating may be changed eventually.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Invader Zim or the lyrics to "All Nightmare Long". Zim belongs to Jhonen Vasquez and "All Nightmare Long" belongs to Metallica.

Prologue: All Nightmare Long

Dib P.O.V.

Where am I? Wha-what am I doing here? I look around to find myself lying in pile of rubble and debris. Slabs of what look to be what was once a building lay strewn around me. Trails of smoke dance its way into the black abyss surrounding the ruins. I stare, entranced as it makes black shapes that fade away and form something new, an endless cycle of movement. The sound of movement snaps me out of trance. Panic rises in my chest for reasons unknown, but I crawl out of the remains apprehensively regardless.

"Luck. Runs. Out."

My eyes widen in fear, my chest pounding, my heart slamming into my ribcage for freedom and my breathing hastens to the point where it's coming and going too fast for me to catch. One step back, two steps, three steps, I take one more step before I turn on my heels and run. Blurs of purple and grey fly past my vision, the pounding of my boots against the shards of crackling glass and my panting loud in my ears, I don't know why, but I know not to look back. Screaming fills my head, but I know it's not really there. Red, it's everywhere, but nowhere, I see it, I smell it, I feel it, I taste it. No! It's not there! It can't be! Run, run and don't look back, it can't be there! I continue down the destroyed street, lampposts bent at odd angles, cars flipped over, broken and shattered, buildings loom over me, ready to topple over.

"Crawl from the wreckage one more time."

No… I hear it.

"Horrific memory twists the mind."

NO! Why?!

"Dark, rutted, cold and hard to turn."

Not again!

"Path of destruction feel it burn."

I pick up the pace, I have to escape. I can't let IT catch me, IT is following me, I hear IT'Sfootsteps. I clumsily leap over a fallen trash can and turn the corner.

"Hallucination. Heresy."

I almost scream at what lies before me. Masses of bodies, black splotched with ugly purple, hideous lumpy things with no apparent facial features but their yellow eyes. The misshapen figures stare at me with an odd look that seemed impossible for beings without a face. That look causes a sickened chill to run across my spine, but is temporarily forgotten when the sound of crunching glass comes from behind me, I gasp and realize that I had stopped in stunned revulsion. I begin a new in my dash, towards the demons, but away from IT.

"Still you run, what's to come, what's to be."

The strange beings watch as I race in their direction and my eyes widen to the point of falling out as every one of them grows a smile filled with jagged sharp teeth. With this I skid slightly as I change directions and run to the left down another street, away from the monsters. To my horror, I hear a stampede of feet following me. I look over my shoulder to find that the gruesome creatures were fast on my trail with wicked smiles.

"Cause we... hunt you down without mercy. Hunt you down all nightmare long."

I stumble as I attempt to run faster, faster, faster. I can't let them catch me! They are closing in, so close that I can almost feel their breathing. I feel every jump, every lunge, and every shove as they push each other to reach me.

"Feel us breathe upon your face. Feel us shift, every move we trace."

I have become the prey, stricken with fear and they are the predators. My eyes are wide as they shift franticly for an escape, a passage, a door, something!

"Hunt you down without mercy. Hunt you down all nightmare long."

That voice! IT'Sstill after me I can hear IT! I'm not sure what will happen, but I know that if IT catches me, horrible, TERRIBLE things will happen. Not only to me, but to- I stumble in shock.

NO! HOW!? I somehow ran in a circle! But I-how?! I find myself staring at what is left of the housing structure once more. Why does it look familiar? I flinch as the sound of IT'S laughter reverberates off the towering walls of brick and cement. Fretfully, I look around, but I only find one place to hide. I dive into the rubble and dig until I find a small open area. I sit down hugging my knees to my quaking chest and try to calm my accelerated breathing. Then I hear ITagain.

"You crawl back in," Shit! DoesITknow I'm here?"But your luck runs out."Oh, no…

I blink rapidly as an eerie blue light suddenly leaks in through the cracks of my hiding place, I grope around the ash and gravel covered soil finding only pebbles and dirt when my hand touches a long, cylinder metal object. A pipe? I grip it so tightly that my knuckles felt as though they would rip through my skin, but in my fear I dare not let go. Dust filters into my shelter as movement is heard, coming closer and closer then stops. Silence… the silence scares me more the shifting hunks of concrete. I wait, trying to be as still as possible. I listen for footsteps, breathing, anything to stop my panic-stricken mind.

A painful jolt runs through my body, sending the hair on my neck rigid. My blood is piercing my veins in its rapid velocity. Like electricity, it flows through every cell, every bone, every tissue then to my hand and into the metal in my palm. This pain causes me to release the pipe as it clatters to the ground and I unwittingly try to scream, but it never reaches my throat. The ringing in my ears is so loud that I barely hear IT chant again, "The light that is not light is here. To flush you out with your own fear. You hide; you hide but will be found. Release your grip without a sound."

In a flash, the rocks are blown away, flying in every direction with smaller pieces embedded into my skin. Before me is that bright light with a tall silhouette behind the sickly monsters all leering at me. Shakily, I feel around for the pipe. Finding nothing, I look down only to find silver dust sliding through my fingers bringing blood to the surface. Gaping, I look back towards the light to find IT walking towards me. I panic, crab-walking backwards with each step ITtook. I back into something hard and cold, I search to my left, my right to find the horrendous things in a half-circle around me. I'm trapped! They part like water for IT'Sapproach. In my mind I wish I could go through walls so that I may get away. IT'S hand reaches towards my face, grasping it with claws piercing my chin. ITsqueezes my jaw; blood dribbles down and falls to my pants, staining them with red splatters. IT'Sface draws near to mine, "Cause we..."ITbreathes, "Hunt you down without mercy. Hunt you down all nightmare long."

Sweat beads my forehead and I lean my head back, but ITfollows. "Feel us breathe upon your face. Feel us shift, every move we trace."

My skull collides with brick behind me with a crack. My arms supporting me are shaking so badly that I think they will give way.

"Hunt you down without mercy. Hunt you down all nightmare long."

The grip on my jawbone slides almost caringly to my neck.

"Luck."

IT tightens IT'Shand on my neck.

"Runs."

ITdrags me to my feet in a suffocating chokehold.

"Out."

ITholds me out at a distance, high enough that my feet dangle while my lungs are ready to burst.

"You crawl back in, but your luck runs out." I am tossed into another wall harshly and my spine snaps. I can't move.

"Then you crawl back in." ITspeaks with each step

"Into your obsession."I see a flash of green and red.

"Never to return."

Is it…

"This is your confession."

I gasp.

"Hunt you down without mercy."

The repulsive beings join in the chant with mangled voices, edging closer. "Hunt you down all nightmare long." I struggle to move, but only scream in pain. My spine was stabbing the muscle tissue in my back.

"Feel us breathe upon your face."

I can't let it end like this! Not like this!"Feel us shift, every move we trace."The chanting becomes louder and louder as the swarm moves closer.

"Hunt you down without mercy."Tears prick my eyes in fear and pain. I have to move!

"Hunt you down all nightmare long!"The ugly things hover above me, their chanting almost a scream now. ITkneels beside me and all I can do is look up at IT.

"Luck. Runs. Out."

A light reflects off IT'Sface and I stare in horror. "You crawl back in, but your luck runs out."

No… No! It can't be! It can't be true! IT smiles maniacally down at me in sadistic glee. IT'S hand rises up before swinging down with claws spread. "Your luck runs out." The hand swipes at me and everything's black.

"AAAAAUUUGH!!!"

I sit up in a cold sweat screaming my lungs out. Panting, I look around the darkness, my mind hazy. What happened? A creak comes from the corner of the blackness followed by glowing yellow eyes. A bright light blinds for a few moments as my eyes adjust and I see a blurry purple and grey figure in the corner glaring at me.

"AAAUUUUGGH!!!"

I jump and fall from my perch and into…. a cushy carpet?

"Dib.", growled the figure.

I sit up and stumble for my glasses that fallen to the floor with me in my skittish descent. Finding them in a bundle of smudged blue, I awkwardly place them on my face and glance warily over towards the direction of the growl. In the doorway stands my irritated sister in her purple and grey pajamas sneering at my disgruntled appearance.

"Dib, this is the hundredth time I've woken up to hear you screaming. I need sleep. And if I don't get sleep I am very cranky. So shut up and quit being a priss and go back to bed."

'You're always cranky.' I think, but there's no way I'll say that aloud. I'm not sure if I should be relieved or even more frightened by the fact that it is only Gaz in my room instead of demons. Then again, I never did think Gaz was truly ever human. I watch her back turn to me as she turns to leave, but she stops.

"Oh, and Dib…"

"Yeah?" My voice is shaky as I respond.

"… Next time you wake me up…" She turns her head towards me, an evil look in her eyes. " You will wish I had never been born." With that she slams the door shut. I sigh in relief, and look at the blue glow of my clock. It read 5:37, "Well, I might as well get ready for school." I did not want to go back to sleep again. I knew what lay within my dreams, no, nightmares to come. Demons rise and IT preys on my fear. They hunt me all nightmare long and have done so a hundred nightmares before.