Doc sighed. Of course Xisuma had been overworking himself. He put away the redstone device he had been working on and walked out the door. He was greeted by heavy rain on his face. Doc blinked in surprise. It had been so long since it had rained on the server, since they did live in a mesa biome. He hurried back in. 

Where did he put his umbrella? He hadn't really had a use for it before, so he had no idea where he put it last. After a few minutes of searching he came up empty-handed.

Grumbling under his breath, he grabbed a rain jacket and headed back out the door.
He hated the rain. It would often mess with his cybernetic parts and it was really annoying to fix them. 

In his foul mood he didn't really take the time to admire the amazing builds around him. He just walked along the muddy path.

Before he knew it, he was on Xisuma's porch. A terrified mew startled him. Silver quickly climbed up and nestled herself inside his jacket.

Surprised he hugged the shaking bundle. "Where's X?" he asked her. Her only response was clinging onto Doc. 

Was Xisuma so wrapped up in his work that he let Silver out and forgot to let her back in? Oh X was in big trouble this time. This was so unlike him. He cared so much about Silver and treated her like his daughter. He had never done anything like this before.

His went to knock on the door but was shocked to see that it was already open.

"Xisuma," Doc called out. His voice echoed around the empty halls. Keeping one arm around Silver, he pulled out his sword. The enchanted edge glowed in the dim light.

He walked up to the the open door that led to X's room. He peered into the dark room. It was only lit by the large screens that were filled with code. A dark figure sat in front of it.

"X!" Doc yelled and the figure spun around. It was Xisuma, but he looked... different. His normal green suit was replaced with a red version. It looked a much more heavily armored and it had a lot more sharp edges. His visor was tinted red and was a lot more translucent than his normal one. The suit wasn't the most surprising part of how he looked. His face had an expression of rage. 

"What?" X snapped in response. 

Out of shock Doc took a step back. He knew X was tired, but he never expected this. He had never acted this way, even when he was sleep deprived. He usually just became easily confused and lost in his thoughts. "What is your problem?" Doc shouted. 

"Your the only one who seems to have a problem," Xisuma replied calmly.

"Are you kidding me? I found Silver outside, terrified and you haven't been taking care of yourself either." 

X scoffed. "I don't see how that is any of your business."

Doc stared in disbelief. Silver poked her head out of Doc's jacket and let out a hiss at Xisuma. He growled in response. "What has happened to you?"

X just rolled his eyes. 

"You are acting like a completely different person. You are not listening to me, you are being rude, and I have never seen you treat Silver this way. Even your suit is different." Doc was beginning to feel frustrated. 

"I haven't changed one bit. Maybe you just never knew the real me." Xisuma's words stung. "And about my suit, it is just my spare." He gestured towards a small heap on the floor. It was his normal green suit, but it has definitely seen better days. It was covered with rips and speckled with blood. Right beside it was his helmet, the visor shattered. 

Panic made its way past Doc's anger. "What happened?"

"None of your business," was X's response.

Doc blinked away the moisture forming in his regular eye. "I am going to take Silver with me and I will come back tomorrow. Get some sleep. I think that the lack of sleep is getting to you. What ever issue the code is having is not as important as you."

Doc turned and walked out of the room. He looked back and was greeted by the door slamming in his face. Hugging Silver he whispered, "He'll be fine, everything will be fine." The words caught in his throat. Was he trying to convince Silver... or himself?

~~~~~~~~~

Things are starting to get a lot more interesting. Which Hermit(s) do you want to see in the next chapters? Let me know in the comments! All comments are greatly appreciated. Thank you all for reading.

I love all of you!

-J