Love is Vexing - ScarDubs

-15-

Cub stood on the balcony of the town hall, his eyes glassy and unfocused as he stared off into the distance, past the shopping district and out into the sea. Xisuma stood further back, guilt resting in the admin's eyes, though he tried his best to ignore regret he felt. He had done what he had been tasked. He had banned Grian and Mumbo, altered code of players, even adjusting their own memories to ensure loyalty. The vex should feel relieved that he had Cub and Scar to guide him, to lead him with these decisions that would protect the server.

Then, why did he feel sad?

He shouldn't be sad. The wonderful mayor had helped to protect all the hermits from the influence of the resistance! Grian had only ever caused trouble on the server, he was reckless and ignorant to oppose HEP, and Mumbo was no better! The entire resistance was lucky that they hadn't been banned, manipulating their recollection was the only way to protect them from the influence that the 'mother spore' had on them. They had been infected with lies and evil, Xisuma was helping them!

Still, that little seed of doubt in the back of his mind just wouldn't go away. Was this...wrong? He couldn't tell. The admin no longer knew the difference between right and wrong. He had forgotten long ago, before he was a vex. Scar had always known, he had been the one to tell Xisuma what to do and what to think. He needed direction. He needed instructions. He wasn't supposed to be like this, he was only supposed to take orders—!

"Xisuma!" Cub suddenly yelled with a harsh tone, snapping the Brit back to reality with a shock.

"Y-yes?" The admin stuttered, his wings beating nervously.

"The meeting." He growled, "I asked you about the meeting. What is on your mind that is so important?"

"N-nothing," Xisuma said underneath his breath, his eyes shamefully cast to the side. "I'm sorry, Cub, I just—"

"You got distracted." The enforcer said, taking a step closer to close the distance between them. His eyes narrowed as his posture straightened, like he was looking over the admin. X could feel himself shrink in fear at that very moment.

"You know who else got distracted? Hm? Mumbo. He let that mother spore take over and distract him from his goal of serving HEP. Scar got distracted by Bdubs and used all the power he had to get his little prince. Now he's stuck in bed, too weak to even stand. I can expect it from those two, but you?" Cub scoffed. "I thought you someone like you would be more adamant on protecting the server."

"I-I am, I swear! I'm sorry, sir, I didn't mean for this to happen. My mind, it just keeps making me feel pity and regret. B-b-but I know what we did helped protect all the hermits! I didn't mean to let it get out of hand.."

The vex scoffed at him. "Control yourself." He said, rolling his eyes while walking back to the balcony. 'Scar's magic must be weakening on the hermits he used to control.' Cub thought to himself silently, glancing over his shoulder at the admin, who nervously shuffled his feet while avoiding any sort of eye contact. Another problem that would need to be fixed, wonderful.

Xisuma's mind was breaking away from the brainwashing. It was likely that the other hermits who had formerly been controlled by Scar were suffering the same fate. That would mean that all of HEP would soon snap out of their mindless loyalty. Cub couldn't let that happen. He wouldn't.

Hermits had begun to flood into the shopping district, gathering at the staircase of the town hall. Cub overlooked them all, the enforcer's grip on the railing starting to tighten. Everything that he and Scar had wanted, from power and control over the hermits, to all the wealth and diamonds on the server, it was theirs. But now, his partner was a human again. Everything that he had worked for, what he had been after since season five, would be lost.