Awakening

Both of the conversing youths were grandchildren of Duke Grasberg; while they didn’t have the same status as Zim, they had full access to Mirrorlake Castle. While the servants made sure to remain as quiet as possible near Zim’s section of the castle, they didn’t really suffer from the same restrictions anymore. The rule had been set up to avoid disturbing Zim’s slumber, but after years with no sign of him waking up anytime soon things had grown more relaxed.

“Richard… summoning… warriors…” Zim constantly repeated on the bed, his speech growing faster and faster as his eyes started racing around underneath their lids. His pale skin that had grown almost ashen in his sleep was starting to flash pink.

The antique porcelain on the...