Two Worlds
By Cybra
A/N: I'm not dead! :::peace signs::: Woohoo! Go me! Okay, just read.
Special Thank You: I'd like to give a special thank you to my proofreader Vyse (the author known as "Anxia"). Vyse, I really appreciate you holding my hand as I stumble through this and for being perfectly honest when something didn't seem right. You could've turned me down when I asked you to do this, and I'm extremely grateful you accepted the challenge/bother of me sending you revision after revision, especially with this chapter. (The version you're all reading is the third time I've edited it.) Thanks, buddy!
Special Notes: Certain aspects of gryphons I borrowed from Mercedes Lackey while other things I researched or made up. However, Mindspeech is the main concept I borrowed from Ms. Lackey. (Read her books! They're really awesome!) I do not know if Ms. Lackey intended anything that I like to call "Mindsong", but I'm using that idea as well. Also, the idea of "Student" and "Soldier" Classes of Irken society seems to have been created by Aliet Faslami. Irken date reckoning in this story was created by me.
Disclaimer: Oh, I wish I owned Invader Zim! Almighty Thinnest Jhonen Vasquez I'd like to be! 'Cause if I was Jhonen Vasquez, I'd make a heck of a lot of money! (As if you couldn't guess, this is sorta to the tune of the "Oscar Mayer Wiener" song.)
Chapter 3: Morning and First LessonZim's first impression of death was of softness wrapped comfortingly around him. It was even more blissful than he had imagined! The lie was over! No more would he live a sham!
:Wake up, sleepyhead,: a gentle voice crooned in his head.
As Zim snuggled deeper into the gentle folds of death, he heard a large heartbeat and the breathing of a large creature. His antennae pricked up in surprise as he listened intently to the sounds.
It was when something reached down and nuzzled him that he realized he wasn't dead.
Moaning he opened his eyes, still sticky from the tears shed the day before. He gazed upwards at the thing that had nuzzled him. A curved beak filled his vision with a pair of intense – yet gentle – amber eyes poking out between white feathers.
Slowly, he turned his gaze to take in the form of the creature that held him close to its side. A large, elegant wing wrapped itself around him, pressing him gently and protectively against the sleek body. A tail ending in a tuft of hair lazily swished back and forth.
He recognized the creature immediately. The half-lion/half-bird of prey form had shown up in many a human folktale and legend.
"A gryphon…" he mumbled neither in disbelief nor shock, closing his eyes and burying his face back into the soft feathers.
:That's right,: she – obviously this gryphon was a she – told him, nuzzling him with her beak once more. :My name is Windsinger. I'm one of your new sponsors in the pryde.:
What little his Invader training had told him about gryphons was exceptionally sketchy. He knew they lived in four large family groups called prydes on the northern, southern, eastern, and western borders of their third of the planet. They preferred to stay away from Irken territory, flying patrols at the very edge of their territory but never crossing their borders. Gryphons seemed to be a reclusive species, desiring neither conquest nor glory. However, there was little else he did know about them.
"Why did you save me…?" he mumbled. "Why didn't you let me die?"
He felt her stiffen as she stared in shock. Obviously, gryphons found the idea of suicide appalling.
:Would you prefer that I let a pack of vrendé eat you?: she asked, eyes narrowing.
"Or something smaller. I wouldn't make a good meal for a pack of anything," he muttered, tears starting to slip past his closed eyelids. "Too small…"
A sound to the left caught his antennae's attention. From the sound of it, there were two gryphons now. This must be her mate. He turned his face away from the white gryphon's feathers for a moment to take a look at the burgundy gryphon before hiding his face in the blinding whiteness of the female.
Neither gryphon spoke so that Zim could hear, but there was a faint buzzing at the back of his mind. He tended to ignore this buzzing for he heard it normally in large crowds. The one time he hadn't been able to ignore it was during Operation Impending Doom I when spirits were high and the Irken Empire was practically singing the praises of its Invaders.
Former Invader Zim nearly choked on a sob as he remembered what had happened next. The buzzing had grown so loud he hadn't been able to concentrate, driving him mad with its incessant noise. He had attacked his own planet by accident, temporarily insane with the horrible, unending noise.
A feathered head wrapped itself around him and nuzzled him once more. A soothing song sounding much like the human clarinet reverberated in his mind. For a few moments at least, his memories faded to the background as he relaxed, listening to the music.
:In Irken society, worth is judged by size,: a male voice said softly, disgusted and finally letting Zim hear the tail end of his and Windsinger's conversation about what had been going on for the past few minutes. :Stupid rule to live by.:
:Starsong…: Windsinger warned, glaring.
:Sorry.: Starsong walked closer and bent his head down to meet his new charge eye-to-eye. :I am Starsong, Windsinger's mate. I am your other sponsor in the pryde.:
At least Zim now had names to call the two gryphons by, but they didn't know what to call him. He turned his head to face the burgundy-feathered Starsong. Though not very experienced with common courtesy, he knew he had to at least tell them his name. "I'm In…" He paused, as he remembered that "Invader" was no longer his title. Swallowing hard, he said, "Zim…Just Zim."
That woeful, fluty Mindsong softly played in the back of the two gryphons' minds. Windsinger pulled him a little closer to her with her wing as if that could protect him from his troubles. Starsong exchanged a glance with his mate.
:Windsinger found you while on patrol yesterday, Zim,: Starsong began to explain. :When I arrived to see if she was all right, we decided to bring you before the Elders. They've allowed you to become part of the pryde with all the privileges and responsibilities that go with it.: When Zim nodded his head to show he'd heard, the male gryphon continued, :We won't lie to you, Zim, but what made us push for your entry into the pryde was your Mindsong ability. Even as we speak, you're sending one.:
The tiny Irken looked up at the far larger gryphons. "Mindsong…?"
:One of the two ways gryphons communicate with each other. The other is Mindspeech, how we're speaking to you now,: Windsinger explained.
With his memory jogged, Zim remembered the telepathic abilities that gryphons had that enabled them to communicate. Many an Irken wished to avoid the subject altogether, not wanting to discuss a gryphon's ability to speak into someone's mind and possibly probe it. Irkens held many secrets, and they preferred that those secrets stay secret.
:In fact, our most talented Mindspeaker is going to help you learn to control those abilities,: Starsong stated.
"Why are you doing this?" he quietly asked, bowing his head to study the pristine beauty of the white-feathered wing cradling him.
:Like I said before, we won't lie to you, Zim. We wish to use you to help us learn to communicate with the Irkens.:
Zim couldn't help noticing the way Starsong said "the Irkens" instead of "your kind" as if he, too, were a gryphon. It was as if Starsong had separated him from his species and made him into a gryphon as well.
"How?"
:We don't know how Irkens speak with their mouths and tongues. We thought that if we had someone who could speak like that, they could help us figure out a way to do the same with our beaks,: Windsinger stated. :Until yesterday, we didn't even know how to find someone to help us.:
Ruby red eyes looked up into the amber gold ones of the female. There was something else there, something that was alien to the Irken people but familiar to the one who had spent two years among humans:
Kindness.
These great winged creatures had chosen to take care of him of their own free will. Maybe there was an ulterior motive, but the kindness was still there.
Zim bowed his head once more and looked at the wing wrapped comfortingly around his small body. There was something familiar in this gesture as well but even the time he'd spent among humans gave him no name to give to this gesture.
:Zim, if you don't want to teach us, it would be understandable considering what must've happened to you, but as part of the pryde, you will be asked to run patrols and things like the rest of us…: Starsong gently told him. :Nobody is going to force you to – :
"Let me think about it."
The two gryphons blinked, but bobbed their heads in acknowledgement.
:Then I suppose it's best if we all eat before we go on patrol and you go to learn from Mindsinger, your teacher,: Starsong said sensibly, cutting through the tension after a moment.
Zim nodded his head as he and Windsinger uncurled themselves from their respective positions and followed the burgundy gryphon.
~@~
Mindsinger's tail twitched impatiently as she waited. Windsinger had called her a moment ago, telling her that she and the newest member of the pryde were on their way. Her flightless wings had been folded as neatly as possible, though it wasn't as neatly as most gryphons held their wings. She sat up straight, trying to appear professional.
'I'm not that old, yet they're trusting me to teach this "Zim". The Elders must be insane! I've never taught anyone before! What if I completely mess up?!' she thought nervously to herself, bending her head to preen her chest feathers for the fifth time in two minutes.
She looked up just in time to see Firestar – the fiery red gryphon female she lived with – walk in with her pale white mate Snowstar. (It was a joke around the Lairs that the two had chosen each other due to the similarity of their names.)
Firestar practically bounced happily around, her feathers pricked up and wings and tail twitching in excitement. At times, it was suspected that the bubbly adult gryphon had never fully grown out of the gryphlet stage. :We're going to be going now, Mindsinger! We'll see you when Blejdra touches the Krisan Mountain Range!:
The far calmer Snowstar nodded his head in agreement, though there was a sparkle in his eyes as well.
:Good luck to you both!: Mindsinger told them, trying not to sound envious as they left the lair.
Today the couple was going to perform a mating flight. If they were lucky, bouncy little gryphlets would be on the way within a year. Their first three attempts had been unsuccessful, but Firesong had confided in her that today might be their lucky day.
Mindsinger would never know the joy of a mating flight as she glanced at her wings dejectedly. They would never be able to support her weight in the sky. Half the time, she couldn't fold her wings to keep even the very tips of her long wings from dragging on the ground.
:Mindsinger?: a new voice called to her mentally. :Is this a bad time?:
She snapped her head forward to see a white head a little larger than Snowstar's peeking in to look at her. She gryph-grinned at her older friend. :Nah. Let's get started! Where is he?:
Chuckling, Windsinger turned her head out of the door and seemed to be gently nudging something towards the opening of the lair. Something green dressed in red hesitantly stepped into view and towards the inside of the lair.
Mindsinger gazed at the tiny Irken, gryph-grinning at him. Standing up straight, Zim probably would've been a few inches shorter than her shoulder. (She, too, was small for her kind, though she had more respect since gryphon society didn't base respect on height.)
Nervously, he gave her a small smile. However, there was a twinge of sadness to it, almost as if he was merely smiling to greet her, not because he felt happy.
:Hello, Zim! I'm Mindsinger!: she told him as cheerfully as possible, hoping to force away his unhappiness. :I'm your new teacher!:
He glanced at Wingsinger who nodded her head. He slowly approached her, Windsinger telling him her good-byes before she had to leave.
Silence reigned for five whole minutes.
:…Let's get started, okay?: she suggested, feeling suddenly nervous.
"Okay," he murmured, looking down at the ground as he sat on the dirt floor of the lair.
At first, she had planned on teaching him how to transmit basic thoughts in order to communicate but quickly realized that there was something they had to do first. :Let's get some better shielding for you, all right? I mean, you've done an okay job for someone who didn't have a clue what to do, but one good hit and the whole thing will come down.:
Zim looked up at her and blinked. "What do I do?"
:Well, I'll help you. I want you to concentrate on your own mental shielding, and I'll guide you along and help you fix it up.: She paused. :But I need your permission. It's not right just to barge into someone's mind.:
Nodding his head both in agreement and to give her his assent, he obediently closed his eyes and concentrated.
Though her wings were flightless, her mind was not as Mindsinger effortlessly "took off" from her own body into his mind. She skimmed his shields, mentally carrying Zim on her "back", and circled over places that needed strengthening and patchwork. Using techniques her own teacher had used, she made him work out the problems and the solutions, giving him gentle nudges in the right direction when he got it wrong and praising him when he got it right.
~@~
An hour later, Zim was getting frustrated. He ground his teeth as one trouble spot loomed in front of him. Mindsinger seemed to imply that fixing whatever was wrong would be a snap.
:Think for a minute, Zim,: she urged. :This isn't difficult…:
'That's it,' he thought to himself, snapping his eyes open and somehow forcing the contact closed.
Mindsinger was thrown back into her own mind with such force that it made her dizzy for a moment. :What was that for?!:
"Maybe it's not difficult to you, Oh Great One," the ex-Invader snarled, "but I don't get it! It doesn't make sense!"
Mindsinger sighed. :Zim, you just need to calm down…:
"I will not calm down!" he snapped, quickly standing and balling his hands into fists. "I don't understand, and you're not making it any easier! I don't see what the problem is with that spot – !"
He was cut short as a sudden mental blast caught him off-guard. He fell backwards, landing with an "oomph!" on his tailbone.
:That is the problem, Zim!: Mindsinger answered, grinding her beak. :It didn't even take that much effort to poke through that weak shield spot! You're lucky it was me and not some enemy! That's a very sensitive area!:
Shaking his head in an attempt to clear the sudden fogginess his mind received as a reaction to the blast, he ranted, "And who would dare try to penetrate the shields of Zim?!"
:A hell of a lot of people,: she growled. :You may be an ex-Invader or whatever…: She glared coldly as Zim winced. :…but you still know enough about Irken ships and whatnot that can be used against your kind. It wouldn't even take a talented telepath to break through that shielding. Any gryphlet could punch through that spot without a second thought!:
He clenched and unclenched his fists, grinding his teeth together as he glared at his teacher. "So what the hell am I supposed to do?!"
Rolling her eyes towards the heavens, she muttered, :Lady, give me strength.: Glaring at her student once more, she ordered, :Don't think of it as a mental shield for a moment. Think of it like it's the shielding for one of your ships. How would you construct a defense for that particular area?:
She was testing him, and he immediately responded, smiling smugly, "Considering it's a sensitive area, you have to double the shielding. An interlocking web would double the strength while using minimal power."
:There you go.:
His face lost its smug look. "What?"
:Think for a moment about what you just told me.:
"Interlocking web shielding…? Oh." His eyes widened in realization. "Ohhh…"
:Yes. "Oh." Now, put it together, Zim. How do you assemble it in your mind?:
Her tone of mental voice grated Zim's nerves as he thought for a moment. The solution hit him like a lightning bolt. "If I took the ends from the stronger areas surrounding the trouble spot, I can tie them together to form the basic framework for the rest of the shielding. The weakened shielding can be reconfigured around the framework to strengthen it to the level of the surrounding shielding."
Mentally, he cursed himself for forgetting basic shield construction and repair from his earlier training days. Closing his eyes, he set to work to do just that as his teacher rejoined him in his mind.
She watched as he assembled the framework and began weaving the interlocking web that would create the shield. :Much better.:
~@~
After about an hour and a half more of work, the last of the holes had been filled, leaving a strong barrier between Zim's mind and the outside world. Zim had sunk back into the pit of despair and depression his exile from his own people had created. His other emotions had quickly burned themselves out during the surprisingly hard work.
As he sat there, reflecting back on everything, the Irken noticed something was missing. He paused in his self-depreciating thoughts and searched his mind for what was wrong. Something was gone. Something so familiar to him that he'd notice its disappearance immediately.
Mindsinger retreated from her student's mind, tail lashing suddenly to regain the blood flow to it. She stretched and shook herself, her wings unfolding themselves a little more. :Ooh, I needed to stretch! Muscles've gotten all – What's wrong?:
The ex-Invader sat frozen on the ground, eyes wide with shock and amazement. "It's gone…"
:What's gone?: she asked, trying not to panic. What had she done?!
"The buzzing. It's gone."
Mindsinger had no real reply, sending a simple :?: as her response.
Using a claw, he tapped his head. "In my head. There was always this annoying buzzing…"
:Oh…Oh! I see! Yeah, that buzz you kept hearing was simply unshielded thoughts and stuff. Since your shields were full of holes, you kept picking them up. The more intense a thought, the more you pick stuff up.: She paused, head cocked to one side thoughtfully. :Too much and it can lead to insanity, temporary or otherwise.:
The Irken was a statue on the floor. Leaning forward, Mindsinger gently nudged him.
"It wasn't my fault…" he mumbled, tears starting to fill his eyes. "The fire wasn't my fault…"
:Fire? You mean the Great Fire years ago? You started it?:
In shame, Zim bowed his head but snapped it back up when Mindsinger clacked her beak in appreciation.
:We gryphons could kiss you for that! …If we had lips, of course! Zim, originally Irk had two seasons – a growing season and a fire season. The fire season rejuvenated the soil. When Irken technology grew so great it could put out fires the second they started, everything started going out of control. We've been setting controlled fires here and there, but they weren't as strong as the fires of old.:
The newest member of the pryde looked down at the ground again, shocked beyond all belief. He hadn't been useless to these creatures, but he'd been nothing to his own species. There was truly no justice in this universe. He had been exiled forever for something the gryphons appreciated.
Sensing that perhaps she'd struck an open sore, she asked, :Feel up to trying some basic Mindspeech?:
He shook his head. "I don't feel like I can. I'm kinda tired…"
:Oh. Yeah.: She preened a few chest feathers in embarrassment. :I forgot that the basics wear you out at first.: Rising to her feet, she asked, :How about a tour of the Lairs instead? Help you learn your way around?:
Slowly rising, leaning against his new teacher for a moment to gain his bearings, Zim nodded.