A Nightmare's Honor

[More Mistakes to Fix]

{N/A} Assistant Steve POV:

I detected movement to my left with my sensors long before the Professor entered the lab with the Yellow Apprentice following nervously behind him.

"Assistant! Open the room for me, will you? And when you're done sorting those files I need you to fix the Red Leader's door. It broke off of its hinges for some reason, and he wanted it fixed. "

[Of course, Professor.] I gave a slight bow before approaching the stairs and opening the secret lab. I then briskly made my way to the room and opened it. The Professor and the Yellow Apprentice had followed me, and the Professor led him into the room.

"What exactly did you want to ask me, Professor?" the Yellow Apprentice asked just before the door closed, leaving the two of them alone in the room. Whatever the Professor said was cut off. The room was completely soundproof, to the point where even I was unable to hear what occurred inside.

Without hesitation, I left the two of them, making my way back to an incredibly large and messy storage room of files. There were thousands of files; 452689 files, to be exact. Of course, the number of files was still currently increasing, and I estimated that the Professor would add 16 more by the end of the week. Unless he decided to do an experiment, in which there would more likely be 57 files added. He always added excessive files over each experiment he did, though he hadn't done any as recently or often as he normally did. The past four days had been surprisingly uneventful, and even I had not estimated that a drop this enormous would occur in how often the Professor experimented.

I tripled my speed, taking only three hours before the files were fully sorted. The Professor had rummaged through them for something and hadn't bothered to fix the mess, as he often did. I, of course, anticipate that he will rummage through them once again in approximately six days' time.

Now, to fix the Red Leader's door. Within minutes I reached the Red Leader's house, then entered where the front door had once been.

"Ah, Assistant! I was wondering how long it would be before the Professor would send you. He certainly took his time..." The Red Leader grumbled that last part with annoyance, and I sensed his pulse rising slightly, signifying a change in his emotions. His brows were furrowed, though it was only a moment before he once again smiled, and his pulse lowered back to normal.

[I apologize for not arriving sooner, Red Leader. The Professor required that I finish sorting some files before assisting you with your door.]

The Red Leader sighed. "Of course he did."

[Now that I am here, however, I will fix your door. This will take approximately four seconds.]

Before the Red Leader even spoke, I had turned, picked the door off of the ground, then placed it in its proper position. I then took the hinges and screwed them into place, the door fixed in four seconds, just as I had said.

"Ah, perfect! Thank you, Assistant. You may leave now."

[Of course, Red Leader.]

Just as I turned to leave, however, the Red Leader stopped me.

"Oh! Wait! Before you go, I'd like to ask something."

[Yes, Red Leader?]

"Is the Professor done speaking with the Yellow Apprentice? I know he said it wouldn't take long, but you know how the Professor rants. If he's still talking with him, make sure that the Yellow Apprentice gets back to the Yellow Kingdom before nightfall, alright? We shouldn't keep the Nightmare King waiting too long for his Apprentice to return. Who knows how he'll react."

[Of course, Red Leader. If that is all, I shall be leaving now.]

"Yes, yes. I'm sure you're very busy." The Red Leader waved me off, and so I turned and left, returning to the lab once more.

"-know what you did. And you'll stay here until things are fixed," the Professor spoke to whoever was behind him as he left the room.

[Professor, the Red Leader wishes to be assured that the Yellow Apprentice has left or will leave before nightfall.]

The Professor jumped, turning suddenly toward my direction before somewhat relaxing. "Is that right? Well, tell him the Yellow Apprentice has already left and returned to the Yellow Kingdom without difficulty."

[Is this true, Professor?]

"Excuse me?"

[Is the information you wish for me to convey to the Red Leader accurate? It is against my code to lie to him. I must inquire, Professor: who is the person you were just conversing with?]

The Professor's red complexion paled to where he looked almost pink, and his pulse rose dramatically. "I- I-..."

[Professor?]

The Professor approached me slowly, a dark, guilty expression donning his face. "Assistant, power off."

The last thing I noticed before shutting down was a screwdriver in the Professor's hand.