Possessed

Core

Note: Alright, so I've gotten a few reviews telling me that Irken blood is transparent pink/purple. But for as long as I can recall I've seen all different colors tossed around, from blue to clear to pink to red. So I settled on the obvious color, green. Jhonen may have an official color, but for the sake of my sanity and not getting wrapped up in arguments over the color, I'm sticking with green. I humbly acknowledge it is the wrong color, but stubbornly choose it anyway. I have also chosen, as of now, to raise the rating on this story from T to M, because it's been labeled nightmare fuel, and it's not getting any better in this chapter. I think it's better to be safe than banned.

.....

Zim opened his eyes in black space. For a moment, he panicked, jerking his head down to stare at his feet, afraid there wouldn't be anything there. To his relief, a brightly lit circuit board stretched on under his feet. That was good, wouldn't do to come in and be hanging over nothing. Yes, a green and red circuit board would do.

Red?

Immediately he knelt, swiping his hand across the circuits. The red came away, coating his hand. He lifted his head, eyes following the trail of blood to the end of the walkway.

The circuit board walkway branched out and upward to form a small platform with three walls. Dib had been stretched out against the central wall. His head tilted to the side, his mouth open in silent screams. Two long metal pins had been driven through his shoulders, and two through his knees, staking him to the wall. It was from here that the blood had come.

Directly in front of Dib stood an Irken. It stood several heads taller than Dib, and Zim didn't have to see his face to know who it was. One of its antennae twitched, and Zim knew his presence had been noted.

"If you know what is good for you, you will leave. Find yourself a hole on this rock to live out the rest of your life."

Zim swallowed, his throat burning. "You knew, didn't you? You monitored all his communications, you must have known what was happening to me."

Tallest Purple turned, regarding him with a cold stare. "What of it?"

"What of it? What of it? Why didn't you save me? Why didn't you send someone to come and get me?"

Purple sneered. "Why would we waste resources on a pathetic defective, who doesn't even know banishment when he is issued it?"

Zim felt something inside him break. At the same time, he felt something else pull together. His eyes narrowed, and he turned to Dib.

"Dib human."

Dib's head lifted, slightly, his watering eyes staring at Zim.

"Endure. I will be back."

Purple turned back to Dib. "You won't make it to the core, Zim. He'll be long gone by then."

Zim smirked at Purple's back, extending his spiderlegs. "You don't know the Dib." With that, he turned, hurtling off the edge of the walkway.

...

Dib's head drooped again. Endure? How? And for how long? Why wasn't Zim trying to save him? His thoughts scattered as fresh pain tracked down his side. Purple had extended a spiderleg and sliced the skin down his left side.

"You're of no further use to us as you were. You should save yourself the pain and let yourself vanish. At least then your body will further the empire's plan."

Dib's fists clenched. Endure. He'd come too far and fought too hard to just give in and become an Irken's pawn.

Purple leaned forward, digging his claws into the gash on Dib's side. "Really, what use were you ever? Your memories all indicate you were rather useless to this planet. Everybody said so. Nobody would really miss your presence."

Dib gritted his teeth. Nobody would miss me until they were enslaved, then they'd know, but it would be too late. I won't let that happen. I will not become one of them. Not ever again.

...

Zim caught himself by the spiderlegs on several circuit paths on the way down, slowing his fall. They sparked and chipped as he passed them, but he ignored that. He had to get to the core.

Where was the core?

He frowned, searching around in his own PAK. The core was generally located in the center of the PAK, surrounded by a firewall.

Well, any firewall can be breached. Especially if you are Zim.

He continued downward, springing from path to path. He could just make out a speck of hot blue glowing in the depths of the blackness...

...

Dib bashed his head against the wall, his tongue protruding as he gasped for air. Purple's claws had slid deep into his gash, probing around between his ribs.

"Let go," Purple whispered. "Let go, and it will all stop."

Hurry Zim...

...

Zim slammed into a panel, the force driving him to his hands and knees. His head throbbed, and he was sure it was going to explode into little pieces. He looked up. The core was a lot bigger from inside the PAK. It towered three stories over his head, completely surrounded by walls of blue flame that rippled and licked all over the surface of the core.

Hurrying over, Zim laid a hand on the fire. As expected, the code burned, flinging him back with an authoritative crack. He groaned, pulling himself back up. He could feel his anger draining away, replaced by exhaustion. When had he last rested? How long had he been tortured? Why was he doing this? He didn't need this, he just needed to sleep. Maybe he wouldn't even wake up. Dib could fend for himself. He always had.

...

Purple's arm was buried up to the elbow in Dib's side, and Dib could feel the long claws searching his organs for the heart. He vomited at the feeling of an arm inside him, spilling the sick all over himself. Maybe I should just give up. Zim isn't going to save me. He just left me.

As the words ran through his thoughts, Purple's claws closed around his heart.

...

The blackness shuddered, rippling with the agonized scream of the human child. Zim's rage blazed to life. Nobody injured the Dib but him. Nobody. Not even Tallest Purple.

With a matching scream, Zim darted up to the flames, and thrust himself inside. His rage ripped through the coding like a wind clearing clouds aside, and he was through. Irken coding had never been particularly effective against raw emotions.

Faced with the core, Zim realized he had two choices. He could completely disable it, returning Dib completely to normal, or...

...

A shock slammed into Purple, jerking him away from Dib, who gagged, blood dripping from his mouth. Purple glared down into the void. "Zim, if you know what's good for you, you'll—" He didn't get to finish. Another bolt slammed into Purple. And another, and another.

Dib looked up, the pins in his shoulders and knees disintegrating. "Zim isn't doing that." Dib's ragged voice echoed in the dark. "I am. I have control of this thing, now. Not the other way around. And you're not welcome here." Stretching out a red-streaked arm, he directed a massive surge at Tallest Purple.

...

Purple slumped in his chair, disconnecting from the remote device. Wearily, he rubbed his eyes. The experiment had been a fiasco, a complete and utter failure. He allowed himself a moment of disappointment, before shrugging. "Oh well. There are plenty of other ways to subvert a planet. You there, guard, bring in the Meekrob we caught last week. I want to have a word with him."