ConCorp's cat

Subject 17-3

"Test subject 17-3. Name: MumboJumbo. He's apart of the rival company, Sahara, along with Grian and Iskall. I'll be recording my findings as I test new potions that ConCorp has made. Subject 17-3 will be given our latest custom potion, while I study his transformation.

It could take between a few hours to a few weeks to take full effect, on test subject's physical and mental state."

Cub's voice sounded muffled, but that could have been because of the ringing in Mumbo's ears. The last thing he remembered was getting blown up at the shopping district, while everything else was a haze in Mumbo's mind.

He tried to move his arms, but there were tight leather straps around his wrists, forcing Mumbo to stay still. His eyes slowly fluttered open, though Mumbo's vision was blurry and unclear.

"Subject has returned to consciousness. He seems unaware of his current surroundings. So far he has not shown any signs of aggression."

"Mmm...Cub?" Mumbo groaned sleepily, trying to make out the figure that stood behind a glass wall. "Wha...where am I...?"

"Subject is slowly becoming aware." The scientist said into a recording device, his pale eyes staring directly into Mumbo's. "The sedative had begun to wear off. He'll most likely fully return to awareness in only a few moments."

"Se....sedative...? Cub, you drugged me?"

Cub shut off his recorder, stuffing the small device into his pocket. A few vexes were flying around in the background, one carrying a clipboard over to the scientist. It was clear that Mumbo was somewhere on ConCorp property.

"All in the name of science, of course." He said, writing down a few notes on his subject. Mumbo tried to move any part of his body, but he was completely restrained.

"Wha—? What happened, then?"

"You were knocked back by a creeper, Scar and I found you drifting in and out of consciousness. Perfect timing, too, since Scar was getting tired of testing our new potions on mobs. He's been eager to start human testing."

"T-testing?" He stuttered as Cub swiped a keycard, the glass barrier opening with a hiss. His eyes had a cold gleam, which made Mumbo instantly nervous.

Cub leaned back the table that Mumbo was strapped to. He used to be able to see the glass wall and the hallway filled with cells and tests, but now all Mumbo could see was the ceiling.

He heard the scientist rustle around in his pockets, pulling out his recorder while hitting the button. "Subject is in a state of shock, however, he is not fighting in his restraints. He'll be perfect for our latest breakthrough here at ConCorp."

As Cub spoke, he pushed a bit of hair away from Mumbo's neck, studying it as he placed the recorder onto a small cart next to the table. He reached for a syringe and a potion that was filled with a silver liquid.

"I'll be sedating subject 17-3 once more before finalizing our latest potion with Scar. He's been incredibly excited for the test. Once the potion has been injected, subject 17-3 will be relocated to a new environment to study his behavior. The test will begin in two days."

"Wh—" Mumbo whimpered before a needle was stuck into his neck, Cub injecting the tranquilizer into his bloodstream.

As Cub shut off his recording device, he glanced back at Mumbo, a sly smile across the scientist's face as he notice that the test subject was already begin to slip back into unconscious.

"Don't worry," Cub said, his voice faint as Mumbo's consciousness was fleeting. "These tests will be perfectly safe. All you need to do is get some rest."

And with that, Mumbo passed out, unable to fight the sleeping drug that he had been given.

•••

The next time Mumbo woke up, he was groggy and disoriented. Maybe it was from the sedative that Cub had given him, but everything felt blurred, to the point where the confused hermit could barely remember why he was here.

"Right on cue!" Scar's voice called, Mumbo sitting up on the table that he had been laying on, no longer retrained by leather straps.

"Cub, he's awake!" He called from behind the glass barrier, the scientist quickly rushing into view while holding his clipboard and pen.

"Perfect!" He said happily before pressing a button on the keypad that could open the glass door, the speakers in the ceiling crackling as they turned on.

"Mumbo, all you need to do is drink that potion." Cub's voice said clearly through the speakers, a shimmering green potion sitting on the cart that was beside the cot that he was sitting on.

"Then I'll get to leave, right?" Mumbo asked while raising an eyebrow. Cub and Scar shared a look before nodding.

The test subject let out a groan, uncorking the bottle. Mumbo took in a deep breath before drinking the potion, trying to ignore the bitter flavor that rested on his tongue. Once he was finished, he set down the bottle.

Cub hit the speaker button once again. "Well? How do you feel?"

Mumbo blinked. That was a very good question, although he wasn't sure. "Um, tingly, I guess? And tired?"

Cub wrote something down on his notes, muttering something underneath his breath that Mumbo couldn't quite catch.

"We'll have to run a few more tests before you could leave, if you could follow me please." Cub said over the speaker as the glass barrier opened, a wave of ice cold air hitting him square in the face. It was probably from the vex magic that flowed through the labs.

Mumbo twiddled his thumbs nervously, following the two ConVex through some kind of testing area filled with the same glass cells that he had been trapped in.

Vexes flew through the air, carrying materials or helping out around the lab, following Cub and Scar's every command. Mumbo found it rather intimidating, as the mobs could kill him instantly if Cub or Scar wanted.

He followed the two to the end of the hall, where there was a simple door. Cub swiped a keycard, pushing it open while gesturing for Mumbo to head inside. He followed the scientist's instructions nervously, the door sliding shut as he entered.

The room was simple, a bed tucked away in the corner, a mirror the length of the wall (which Mumbo suspected was a one-way mirror), along with a bucket. Maybe dying would have been better than this, then Mumbo would at least respawn in his own bed.

He noticed a few cat toys scattered through the room, which caused Mumbo to frown. "Um, Scar? I think you may have left some of Jellie's toys here!" He said, hoping that someone could hear him. There was no response.

Mumbo sighed as he walked over to the bed, laying down against the mattress while staring at the wall. He had a bad feeling that he was going to be here for a while.

—

Sorry, this is probably really bad! I've never written about the hermits before.
I'm really open to suggestions or ideas for the future of this book, though!

Hopefully you enjoyed, this is most likely going to be a short story, so there won't be too many chapters!