30 Minutes-ZaDr

        Dib was standing outside of his home silently. He did not approach the building, because he knew that soon it would fall to the ground and become ash. He looked to his right, just watching as the houses in that direction collapsed much like his would. Like dominoes in the wake of a blazing fire.

        He was not scared nor was he surprised by the sight, in fact there was just a numbness settling over him. He just watched in an almost sick fascination as the fire traveled closer and closer to his own home, the flames licking hungrily at the sides of the technology filled building before taking it all away in a minute or two of raging fire.

        The teen stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked calmly away from the fire, he knew he couldn't stay for long because soon the spot where he was standing would be engulfed in fire as well as most everything else.

        He headed down the street, his gaze cast to the ground so he could watch his footing. The sidewalk was covered in large gaping cracks and holes that looked like small earth quakes and he actually had to jump over a few. Among the large unforgiving splits in the ground were scattered corpses.

        Some he recognized, some he didn't, but they were all frozen in silent screams of pain and terror. He stopped a couple of times, staring into the faces of the people he recognized as the ones that had died by his own hand. Though there was no stirring of pain inside of him..just the numbness.

        How could he feel pain anyway? It was all over now.

        He and Zim had teamed up a couple of months ago after a particularly rough day.

        Dib had been ridiculed by the bullies of the high school, beaten badly, and then left in an alley unconscious. Zim had come to save him, uttering strange phrases like "my human". Most of them asserting the fact that Dib was the alien's property and that nobody else should be able to beat him up.

        The alien had helped him, healed him up, and then asked the human to help him take over the planet in return. Dib had agreed.

        He'd been sick of all of the pain his fellow humans were causing him, and there had been no doubt to him that this would be the ultimate revenge. Destroy all of the people who had hurt him...and ultimately prove his point that Zim was an alien.

        Now all that was left was that fire that ate everything in it's path, and the last couple of wandering people who were too scared to take their own lives but didn't really know where to go.The government couldn't help them, and there was barely any shelter.

        The cold unforgiving sidewalk he was watching as he walked soon faded into a more untouched scenery, grass and leaves soon filled his vision and he knew he was close to the woods where Zim was waiting for him.

        He raised his gaze and followed a barely noticeable path, the only sound to accompany him being the soft shuffle of his feet through the blades of grass.

        The once lively woods were now silent, it's animal inhabitants having left long ago at the sight and smell of the fire that was still raging in town.In some kind of sick irony the animals which humanity had believed were beneath them had been the ones to survive. The other human's confidence in their technology and "superiority" had left them more vulnerable.than simple woodland creatures

        Dib smiled when the parked voot cruiser came into view. There were a couple of bags sitting around it full of food, organism samples, and anything else needed for the space trip.Zim was half hanging out of the vehicle, putting a couple of the bags in it manually as his spider-limbs moved around to expertly lift the heavier loads to place in the spacecraft.

        The irken's work paused at the slight sounds of the human entering the clearing, his lekku flicking in that direction as he pulled himself out of the voot cruiser to look over at Dib, "Took you long enough Dib-pet," he said, a small smile coming to his lips as he lowered himself to the ground and the spider-limbs disappeared back into his pak.

        The human nodded slowly, glancing back over his shoulder at the glow of the flames and the large plume of smoke that rose into a once blue sky, "The fire will be here in 30 minutes," he relayed, not bothering with a greeting.

        Zim's lekku lowered slightly, something was off about Dib. When the plans had first been put into action he'd been all smiles...insane smiles of course..but smiles none the less. "Have you made up your mind yet?" he asked a little hopefully before he turned to place the last few bags in the spacecraft. He really hoped that the human had decided to come with him, space travel would be boring and lonely without Dib there. Plus..he'd miss the human.

        He hated to admit it but he needed the human, without him there was no purpose. There was no driving force.

        The alien lowered himself back to the ground once the bags were carefully arranged so that there was room for two in the small space craft. There didn't need to be room for three because Gir had run off during their months of planning to join the circus..or something strange like that.

        "No, I haven't," Dib replied, the alien had given him a simple choice. Stay behind and perish with the rest of humanity, or come with him into space. Though the choice was harder than he thought it'd be.

        His demeanor may have seemed calm on the outside, but on the inside he was starting to break. The numbness was fading into a dull ache in his chest that he could recognize as guilt. He'd thought that the guilt would stay away from him...that killing the human race would be a simple thing with no emotion or real thought behind it.

        He'd thought that spending so much time around Zim had sculpted him into a less emotional being, but there he stood with the unforgiving sting of loss in his heart.

        Why should he feel so guilty? Humanity had doubted him, and this proved his point that Zim was an alien. In loss he had won..so why did it hurt?

        Maybe it was because he'd given up everything..his research, his purpose, his family, all because of a need for revenge. He tore his gaze away from the plume of black billowing smoke that rose to the sky to look over at the irken he had helped cause it.

        "You have 15 minutes to decide," The irken said after a moment of silence. He wasn't going to push the human, but he was worried. That look he was getting looked pained..and he knew where Dib's thoughts were going..but he was hoping deep down that the human would change his mind. He climbed up into the loaded voot cruiser and started it up.

        The human nodded, returning his intense honeysuckle gaze to the fire that he'd helped cause. What was all of this for? Revenge? An empire he wasn't even a part of?

        Zim?

        He knew he couldn't live with the guilt...oh he knew he could try...but in the end it would kill him. That was inevitable....like his surrender to the irken.

        A nostalgic smile spread across his features, where would they be if he hadn't helped the irken? Still in their pointless and childish battle?

        It was obvious that the battle wouldn't have gotten anywhere, both of them were too contented with the delusion of hatred and purpose.

        Oh they had the equipment to kill each other...but the simple knowledge that without the other they wouldn't have that false purpose anymore had kept them subconsciously at bay.

        Now Zim had fulfilled his purpose..and Dib had failed his by choice. The irken would go on to irk and be praised for his victory, but neither of them knew what would greet the human upon arrival. His presence may actually end up disgracing the alien for daring bring the human to his home planet.

        His eyes focused once more as he came out of the extensive thought process, and he noted that the fire was closer than he'd expected it to be. That's what made up his mind. He looked over at the irken who was tapping his claws against the control panel in what looked like an aggrivated gesture, but Dib knew that he was just nervous.

        "Go on without me," The teen said.

        The irken's lekku pinned back against his head when those words were uttered...he didn't want to leave without the human. He wanted to believe that the human had said something else and that his hearing was just trying to decieve him.

        But the words were out there..hanging in the air between them like a heavy veil that ultimately separated them.

        The alien wanted to leap out of the space craft and steal the human away..Dib was his..he didn't want him to perish with the rest of humanity.

        His human was better than that. He was stronger than that. Zim opened his mouth to protest but one look in those brown eyes had him closing it again. That look was determined and he knew that the teen's mind had been made up.

        The irken hung his head, his lekku still pinned firmly against his skull, "Is that what you really want?" he asked, hoping beyond hope that the human would have a change of heart.

        "Yes," Dib replied without hesitation.

        Zim let out a shuttered breath and nodded, there was no going back now. "Zim..." he started, but he couldn't say it. He couldn't force the words out without the strange feeling of tears stinging at his eyes.

        He nodded again then closed the cockpit, lifting the spacecraft off the ground before he could change his mind and pull the human into the voot cruiser with him.

        He looked out the round dome of glass to look down at the teen as he lifted the space craft up above the line of trees. His gaze then traveled to the hungry flames that were licking at the edge of the forest..but when the destructive element gained hunger for the bark of trees and leaves it roared hungrily towards the human who was looking back up at him.

        There came no reaction from the human, he could hear the crackle of the fire coming for him, but he didn't run or hide, he just looked up at the irken, a small smile forming on his lips.

        He was shouldering the blame for the both of them, Zim would go on to irk and become an official invader again. There were no feelings of guilt in his actions now, because in some sick way the earth was getting it's revenge for it's destruction.

        The irken couldn't find it in himself to tear his gaze away from the human as the fire entered the clearing, moving ever closer to destroy the being he'd worked so hard to first destroy..then keep alive. He placed his gloved hand against the glass..then he saw it. Dib's lips were moving, and he knew it was silent because the pattern was off slightly from how it would be if he were truly speaking.

        Zim worked to decipher what the human was trying to say..but when he realized what it was his spooch clenched up painfully and he couldn't help a single tear from streaking down his emerald cheek. The human was saying "I love you."

        "Zim.." The irken choked out..but then the fire had engulfed the human. Dib was gone in a blaze of hungry flames without even the black color of his hair to give away where he was. Though the alien's gaze didn't leave the spot where his human had been, "..loves you too," he choked out too late.

        It began to rain.