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Glass Wings

Chapter Four-Memory

--

I'm searching for answers, 'Cause something is not right, I follow the signs, I'm close to the fire, I fear that soon you'll reveal, Your dangerous mind. -Dangerous Mind (Within Temptation)

Pathetic!

Zim stormed down the hallway, his cloak snapping at his heels and twirling around his ankles. Any stray Irken that stood in his way immediately moved to the side, giving him a clumsy salute as their enraged leader passed by.

Absolutely fucking pathetic!

His claws itched to wind themselves around that human's scrawny neck, to squeeze until her amber eyes grew wide with fright and faded as the air left her fragile body. He wanted her to scream and writhe in pain on the floor at his feet, all the while begging for him to spare her pathetic, disgusting, utterly useless life...

His fist rammed itself into the solid metal walls, the sickening crack of bone against metal grating his ears. The pain was immense, but he could ignore it in favor of his anger. How dare that girl strike him? Him! The Almighty Tallest Zim! The gall of that human, thinking she could hit him and get away with it!

"..M-my T-Tallest?" A quaky voice asked to his side. Zim glared at the timid looking alien in front of him, crimson eyes narrowed.

"What?"

The Irken flinched at his sharp tone, their sea-green eyes wide in their head. "The...your new slave, T-tallest. She's been brought to your c-chambers. As ordered, sir." Cursing their own foolish stuttering, the Irken lowered his head, antennae drooping forward. His heart hammered in his chest as he waited for his superior to speak, praying to whatever Deity that would listen to spare him from the taller one's wrath.

Zim's narrow eyes brightened considerably, a small smirk forming on his face. Oh yes... The girl's branding had been completed then. He knew well the pain the humans went through each time the brand was seared into their flesh-it was much like how all Irkens reacted to water. The thought of the girl in the pain he had been wishing upon her just moments before brought an even wider smirk to his face, and he turned from the shorter alien without a second thought, his boot-clad feet leading him straight to his chambers and the slave that lay within.

-

When Gaz awoke, it was to a mind numbing pain. It shot through her entire body, pounding in her head and throbbing in every muscle that moved. It centered on her shoulder, where she knew a dull red brand now stood, marking her once white skin a crisp and blackened crimson. It hurt. It hurt more than any amount of beating could do in a lifetime. Her flesh felt too raw, too new, like someone had stripped her of her old flesh and coated her in a new one, one that stung and brought tears to her eyes whenever she tried to move.

She moaned in agony as she raised her head, dry eyes opening only to shut tightly just moments later. Even though her vision was swimming, she had still been able to make out a blur of bright green.

Zim.

He hadn't noticed she was awake, that much she was sure of. She cracked her eyes open once more, just a slit of amber, enough to view Zim but give nothing of her awareness away. He had his back to her, his claws resting at his sides as he gazed out of a massive window. She could see the vast expanse of space, stars glittering like diamonds. She wondered what he was thinking, and her lips parted just barely as she prepared to ask him.

No. She clamped her mouth shut, closing her eyes tiredly. Did the past twenty-four hours now mean nothing! This was not the Zim she remembered. She had to remember and accept that. He had branded her, though not with his own hands, had dubbed her his slave and he her master, as though what stood between them so long ago had never even happened.

He acts as though I'm a stranger, She mused, her eyes opening once more to study him. For some reason that I can't figure out, he doesn't...remember me. But how was that possible? It had been a while since the invasion, but surely that short amount of time could not erase her memory from him? No, she reasoned, that made no sense at all. All that they had been through...the things she had told him, the things he had told her...

Something was wrong. More horribly wrong than she could have ever imagined. There was no way that six years worth of memories could be wiped from Zim's mind within the short span of time between the start of the invasion and now. Not without someone else's help.

Slowly, Gaz allowed her eyes to slide open fully, wincing in pain as she struggled to rise to her knees. She had to talk to him, figure out what had happened, why there seemed to be so many blanks in his memory...

"...!" She blinked in astonishment as she gaped as she finally rose to her knees, her amber eyes wide in shock and alarm. Zim had his back still turned to her, though surely the bed she lay on had given some sort of protest to her movement. His cloak, blood-red and sliding through his fingers like silk, was unclasped and no longer covered his shoulders and back, allowing her to see a long, slender expanse of...

Nothing. Nothing but a long strip of black cloth.

Where is his PAK?

-

Purple glided toward his chair, slipping into it with a peaceful sigh. Finally, some relaxation. He steepled his two-fingered claws one on top of the other, laying his chin on them as he gazed almost dreamily out at the huge amount of space beyond the windows. Today had been so tiring. He had spent it alternating between overseeing the new troops to cataloging the newly-birthed smeets to pouring over paperwork relating to the empire. He was exhausted.

"Rough day?"

Purple glanced to his side, offering a meek wave at his co-ruler as Red took his place in his own chair.

"It was exhausting," Purple murmured, leaning his head back. "Isn't Zim supposed to be helping us with this? I haven't seen him slaving away at anything today..."

Red's eyes glittered strangely, and Purple glared at him over his entwined claws. "Alright, spill it. What did you do?"

Red glanced in mock surprise at his companion, before he shrugged his shoulders admitted defeat. "You know me too well," He muttered, "but yes, I did do something..." He smirked slightly. "I awarded Zim a new slave."

"A new slave?" Purple asked. If he had had eyebrows, they would have shot up in confusion. "But why? He barely plays with the ones he has now." Red tilted his head to the side, his smirk broadening.

"Oh, he'll 'play' with this one alright. I'm sure of it." At Purple's confused stare, he explained. "It's that human."

Purple's eyes widened, a grin slowly stretching itself across his face. "The female?"

Red nodded. "Yes, the female. It was quite...entertaining, to say the least, when they first met." Chuckling, he related the story to his co-ruler, who burst into laughter. "Who would've thought a human could have so much fight in them!"

"Hey, Red?" Purple asked, his laughter slowly fading away. "What if he remembers...?"

Red waved a claw, as though batting the thought away. "He won't," He assured, "not with all of his memories safely stored away. But-" here he smiled, a dark and cruel smirk that sent chills-though not of an unpleasant kind-down his companion's spine. "Won't it be fun, watching him brake her? Brake the one thing he loves most?

"-the one thing he almost died for?"

Description
Glass Wings

Chapter Four-Memory

--

I'm searching for answers, 'Cause something is not right, I follow the signs, I'm close to the fire, I fear that soon you'll reveal, Your dangerous mind. -Dangerous Mind (Within Temptation)

Pathetic!

Zim stormed down the hallway, his cloak snapping at his heels and twirling around his ankles. Any stray Irken that stood in his way immediately moved to the side, giving him a clumsy salute as their enraged leader passed by.

Absolutely fucking pathetic!

His claws itched to wind themselves around that human's scrawny neck, to squeeze until her amber eyes grew wide with fright and faded as the air left her fragile body. He wanted her to scream and writhe in pain on the floor at his feet, all the while begging for him to spare her pathetic, disgusting, utterly useless life...

His fist rammed itself into the solid metal walls, the sickening crack of bone against metal grating his ears. The pain was immense, but he could ignore it in favor of his anger. How dare that girl strike him? Him! The Almighty Tallest Zim! The gall of that human, thinking she could hit him and get away with it!

"..M-my T-Tallest?" A quaky voice asked to his side. Zim glared at the timid looking alien in front of him, crimson eyes narrowed.

"What?"

The Irken flinched at his sharp tone, their sea-green eyes wide in their head. "The...your new slave, T-tallest. She's been brought to your c-chambers. As ordered, sir." Cursing their own foolish stuttering, the Irken lowered his head, antennae drooping forward. His heart hammered in his chest as he waited for his superior to speak, praying to whatever Deity that would listen to spare him from the taller one's wrath.

Zim's narrow eyes brightened considerably, a small smirk forming on his face. Oh yes... The girl's branding had been completed then. He knew well the pain the humans went through each time the brand was seared into their flesh-it was much like how all Irkens reacted to water. The thought of the girl in the pain he had been wishing upon her just moments before brought an even wider smirk to his face, and he turned from the shorter alien without a second thought, his boot-clad feet leading him straight to his chambers and the slave that lay within.

-

When Gaz awoke, it was to a mind numbing pain. It shot through her entire body, pounding in her head and throbbing in every muscle that moved. It centered on her shoulder, where she knew a dull red brand now stood, marking her once white skin a crisp and blackened crimson. It hurt. It hurt more than any amount of beating could do in a lifetime. Her flesh felt too raw, too new, like someone had stripped her of her old flesh and coated her in a new one, one that stung and brought tears to her eyes whenever she tried to move.

She moaned in agony as she raised her head, dry eyes opening only to shut tightly just moments later. Even though her vision was swimming, she had still been able to make out a blur of bright green.

Zim.

He hadn't noticed she was awake, that much she was sure of. She cracked her eyes open once more, just a slit of amber, enough to view Zim but give nothing of her awareness away. He had his back to her, his claws resting at his sides as he gazed out of a massive window. She could see the vast expanse of space, stars glittering like diamonds. She wondered what he was thinking, and her lips parted just barely as she prepared to ask him.

No. She clamped her mouth shut, closing her eyes tiredly. Did the past twenty-four hours now mean nothing! This was not the Zim she remembered. She had to remember and accept that. He had branded her, though not with his own hands, had dubbed her his slave and he her master, as though what stood between them so long ago had never even happened.

He acts as though I'm a stranger, She mused, her eyes opening once more to study him. For some reason that I can't figure out, he doesn't...remember me. But how was that possible? It had been a while since the invasion, but surely that short amount of time could not erase her memory from him? No, she reasoned, that made no sense at all. All that they had been through...the things she had told him, the things he had told her...

Something was wrong. More horribly wrong than she could have ever imagined. There was no way that six years worth of memories could be wiped from Zim's mind within the short span of time between the start of the invasion and now. Not without someone else's help.

Slowly, Gaz allowed her eyes to slide open fully, wincing in pain as she struggled to rise to her knees. She had to talk to him, figure out what had happened, why there seemed to be so many blanks in his memory...

"...!" She blinked in astonishment as she gaped as she finally rose to her knees, her amber eyes wide in shock and alarm. Zim had his back still turned to her, though surely the bed she lay on had given some sort of protest to her movement. His cloak, blood-red and sliding through his fingers like silk, was unclasped and no longer covered his shoulders and back, allowing her to see a long, slender expanse of...

Nothing. Nothing but a long strip of black cloth.

Where is his PAK?

-

Purple glided toward his chair, slipping into it with a peaceful sigh. Finally, some relaxation. He steepled his two-fingered claws one on top of the other, laying his chin on them as he gazed almost dreamily out at the huge amount of space beyond the windows. Today had been so tiring. He had spent it alternating between overseeing the new troops to cataloging the newly-birthed smeets to pouring over paperwork relating to the empire. He was exhausted.

"Rough day?"

Purple glanced to his side, offering a meek wave at his co-ruler as Red took his place in his own chair.

"It was exhausting," Purple murmured, leaning his head back. "Isn't Zim supposed to be helping us with this? I haven't seen him slaving away at anything today..."

Red's eyes glittered strangely, and Purple glared at him over his entwined claws. "Alright, spill it. What did you do?"

Red glanced in mock surprise at his companion, before he shrugged his shoulders admitted defeat. "You know me too well," He muttered, "but yes, I did do something..." He smirked slightly. "I awarded Zim a new slave."

"A new slave?" Purple asked. If he had had eyebrows, they would have shot up in confusion. "But why? He barely plays with the ones he has now." Red tilted his head to the side, his smirk broadening.

"Oh, he'll 'play' with this one alright. I'm sure of it." At Purple's confused stare, he explained. "It's that human."

Purple's eyes widened, a grin slowly stretching itself across his face. "The female?"

Red nodded. "Yes, the female. It was quite...entertaining, to say the least, when they first met." Chuckling, he related the story to his co-ruler, who burst into laughter. "Who would've thought a human could have so much fight in them!"

"Hey, Red?" Purple asked, his laughter slowly fading away. "What if he remembers...?"

Red waved a claw, as though batting the thought away. "He won't," He assured, "not with all of his memories safely stored away. But-" here he smiled, a dark and cruel smirk that sent chills-though not of an unpleasant kind-down his companion's spine. "Won't it be fun, watching him brake her? Brake the one thing he loves most?

"-the one thing he almost died for?"