Different (ReWrite of Insanity?)

•Chapter 23•

Grian and Iskall crept through the forest, listening closely to the footsteps pacing back and forth, the two silently approaching the insane hermit. They hid behind a large jungle tree, the two watching as Mumbo seemed to argue with himself, unable to think straight.

"Why, why, why do I want to hurt them?!" He thought out loud, the confused man pulling on his hair while struggling to comprehend how he was feeling. He was breaking down into tears, the Redstoner gasping for breath as he leaned against a jungle tree, the moonlight flowing through the leaves and shining onto Mumbo's broken eyes.

"Do I want this..?" He questioned himself sadly, as tears rolled down the side of his face. Grian looked to Iskall with sympathy, the Swede biting their lip as they continued to watch as Mumbo fought with himself.

"Yes. Yes I do." He mumbled underneath his breath, the Redstoner clenching his fists and letting out a frustrated sigh, completely loosening his tie and throwing it onto the ground, screaming in rage as Mumbo stomped on his tie, before breaking down into tears once more, his emotions a greater mess than he was.

"Mumbo." A voice called, Grian having to take a few moments to realize that it was his own. The Redstoner looked up, his face had been shoved in his hands. His face was stained with redstone and blood, his hair slightly longer and stubble growing on his face. Mumbo's eyes were cold and empty, a broken man behind that saddened stare.

Grian took a slow step forward, Mumbo wincing as if he was in pain. The small hermit continued, one slow step at a time, the insane Redstoner shaking and crying as he continued forward. Iskall swallowed the lump in their throat before the Swede joined Grian, slowly approaching Mumbo in hopes not to scare him.

"Please, stay away from me!" Mumbo screamed, holding his ears and shutting his eyes, pulling on the long hair on the side of his head. The Redstoner broke into sobs, the blood and redstone staining the tears that fell down the side of his face. "I'll only hurt you..."

"You aren't going to hurt us," Iskall said calmly, slowly reaching out and taking Mumbo's hand, helping sit the Redstoner onto the soft grass below. Grian took a seat on the other side of Mumbo, reaching out his hand and gently rubbing the insane man's back in hopes to calm him down.

"I-I shouldn't be here," Mumbo spike in between sobs, Grian and Iskall holding the Redstoner's hands while silently listening to his pitiful cries for help. "I should be dead, I should be the one in those traps, It should have been me, not the hermits..."

"Don't say that, you'll only make yourself feel worse..." Grian said with compassion, Mumbo letting out a frustrated yell and stood up, pacing back and forth once more.

"I want to hurt you guys! I want to make you feel what I was put through!" Mumbo screamed in anger, once more slamming his foot onto the worn-out red tie sitting on the grass. He continued to scream in rage, before breaking out into tears, the cycle of his insanity continuing.

"Mumbo, please," Grian pleaded with the redstoner, taking his arm and trying his hardest to calm his friend down. "Stop the traps. We can still fix this!"

"And why should I?!" Mumbo sneered, shoving Grian off of him. "They turned their backs on me when I needed them most! I needed help and they tied me up, torturing me until I said what I had done! So why should I help them?!"

"Because you don't want this." Iskall said, standing up and joining Grian's side. "You know that this will kill them all, and it will leave you alone, forever. You don't want to hurt your friends, Mumbo. You're just confused."

Mumbo bit his lip, taking a step back as he struggled to process the things which he had heard. The Redstoner looked to the ground, his muddied tie resting underneath his foot.

"You may not help us," Grian started, turning his back on the bloody man, the small builder looking back at his insane friend. "But we're going to go and save our friends."

Iskall and Grian turned towards the dark jungle, moving through the greenery. Mumbo looked from the tie underneath his foot, resting in the mud, to his friends who were walking away. The insane man held his breath, lifting his tie out of the mud and fixing it on his neck, a sigh of relief escaping his lips as he finished tying it.

"Wait." Mumbo called, the two turning back, and watching as the Redstoner took a step forward, his eyes having a glint of hope shining through the sadness.

"I'm coming with you."