Hey Spacejerk

What Is Happening

Note: Okay I lied. I didn't mean to lie but I also didn't realize that yeah it's about to get darker. So, here's your warning. I really should know better at this point. If you're unsure which letter Zim is reading at this point, it's chapter 9.

....

Zim doesn't know what I'm talking about.

This was the thought that greeted Dib as he woke to the sight of the gray, concrete ceiling above him. The screechy rage wasn't manufactured, it was real affront at being accused of something Zim didn't do that had failed anyway.

But it was Zim. Of course he'd hate being shown up as incompetent, right?

This was different. When you watched Zim for long enough, you got to know when he was blustering to cover a mistake and when he was truly angry. He starting throwing accusations back and threatening you instead of talking about how great and grand he was. And he hadn't lapsed or paused once.

The calm from being unconscious began slipping away. If not Zim, then who? His old classmates? They couldn't possibly have cared or hated him enough to risk jail. Even if they did, everyone loved his Dad. They wouldn't set his house on fire, not if they thought he probably went home every night.

"Hah. Hah." The sound came out weak and scratchy from his throat.

And those guys definitely wouldn't know where to send a bomb, so not them. Gaz? Gaz... was a distinct possibility. She hated him and knew Dad was almost never home. Maybe she framed him. Or maybe she wanted to get away from that city and forced a fresh start. Dammit, couldn't she have waited another year or two? She was almost legal herself... which... negated the probability that she had done it. If Gaz had already waited this long, she would wait another year or two to get out. Might even torch the house on her way out, but not before. Not while she'd be stuck with Dib.

Probably. As best as he could guess with Gaz, anyway. Not like she was open with much but her disdain for people and love for video games.

Could Dad... would Dad have done it?

Dib couldn't think of a reason that Dad would have, but he also couldn't think of a reason he wouldn't. Did he know for sure where Dad was that night?

Yeah. He'd been down in the basement, tinkering. It was a rare night where he'd been back. Dib had heard him zapping things downstairs. Dad was definitely home. He could have. But... why? And why the bomb? It didn't make enough sense. Yet.

He rolled over on his side and glanced at the underside of the cot. He realized with a cold start that this was one place in the cell he had not even tried to look, and he knew he should have tried because there were two very large coils of metal on the underside of the bed platform. The platform was held up by chains and there was no need for further support, so these coils weren't structurally necessary. He reached a hand toward them.

They uncoiled fast as a blink and two sets of robotic arms swayed like snakes from under the bed, the tips unfolding into metallic graspers that clicked and spun threateningly. He remembered now, these had dragged him to bed toward the beginning of his stay and returned his glasses. They didn't fold into the wall like he thought, he must have gotten turned around, or... his hand drifted up to his head. Maybe he hadn't fully recovered from whatever Zim had done. Whatever the case, this was new, exciting information.

Nothing else in this cell has a shot of coming off and helping me break out, but Zim obviously planted these here. If I can pry them loose I bet there's something in them I can use to break out. There's two and they probably defend each other, so I'll have to be fast and pull really hard. Or maybe I can get them to attack each other? Maybe-