Unrecognizable

~Chapter Twenty-Two~

Void nodded. "Yeah- right." He stood up quickly and walked even quicker to the door, leaving without another word. Sage and Citrus stared after him in silence with matching frowns. Was he alright? 

After a moment of awkward silence, Sage turned back to Citrus, sitting up. "So... Back to the matter at hand, I have a bit of a fun idea."

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A few hours later

Grumbot's POV-

Wow, the sunset was even better than Grumbot thought. To think that all this time, such a beautiful view was waiting just behind Him, and all He had to do was turn around and He would've seen it. It was beautiful, the bright orb melting into the blues of the ocean, the sky burning orange and yellow, then fading into deep purples and blues, Grumbot leaned against His former body, now out of commission, admiring the scenery. If He could smile, he'd be doing so. He wondered why fewer Hermits just watched the sunset. Had they grown tired of it?

Nevertheless, Grumbot was enjoying it here and now, and, quite frankly, that was all that mattered to Him. After the insane day of getting a new body, flying around and experiencing way more near-death experiences than He would have preferences, and meeting at least half of the Hermits, He was ready to fall into sleep mode after the sun fully set.

But apparently, life had other plans for Him, as He heard the unmistakeable chattering of His two least favorite people from behind. He ignored them, however. Hopefully, they wouldn't bother Him. This was a longshot, He knew, but one could hope, right? 

But hoping wasn't enough-- it never was-- and before long, Grumbot heard His name being called out by the annoying feline. "Grumbot!" Her high, shrill voice stabbed His insides like an electric shock. How could a voice physically harm Him? He didn't have the capacity to feel pain, and yet Citrus was somehow managing to make Him feel it. That was another level of torture that only she was capable of doing. 

Slowly, Grumbot turned around, his big cyan eyes narrowing. The sunset from behind Him washed the two figures' bodies in a warm orange flush, while Grumbot's screen glowed a cool blue. He folded His arms and waited for the two to speak. They wouldn't be going away anytime soon, so what's the use in trying to get them to do so? He glared at the phony pretending to be His creator-dad, who gave Him a sneer in return. Oh, how He hated these two.

It took a moment, but, finally, the evil Mumbo clone began to speak. "Well, Grumbot. Nice to see you again." It's never nice to see you, Sage. But Grumbot kept quiet and Sage continued talking. "How are you enjoying the novelty of portability?"

"It's convenient," Grumbot answered, His voice dry. He didn't feel like being all that animated at the moment. "Why are you here?" He crossed His arms and kept His gaze trained on Sage. Next to him, Citrus snickered, and Grumbot clenched His fist. She wasn't satisfied from earlier? Her accusation still rang in His mind. How did Jrumbot feel? Could he be mad at Grumbot? And how did Citrus know the exact thing needed to strike a nerve with Him?

"You're so strung up, Grumbot," the cat purred. "We're just here to chat." She stepped forward, brushing up against His leg. 

He almost kicked her. What a shame that would've been.

Sage rolled his eyes, though it was hardly noticeable. "Well, a bit more than chat," he admitted, his eyes glinting. "We'd like to propose an... alliance. ... Again." No. No, nope, definitely not. Not in a million years. How many times had Sage tried to get Grumbot to join his team? Three? Maybe four. And each time, Grumbot responded in the same way. 'No.' Unfortunately, He couldn't do so now, be it that technically Sage hadn't asked a question, but Grumbot was screaming it so loudly in His artificial mind that it may as well had exploded out into the real world.