A YELP ESCAPED  robbieâs throat as he was suddenly ,  unexpectedly ,  picked  up  by the vest .  he  dangled  there , in the robotâs grip ,  hovering  above  the  floor   &  in the air  ,  not  far away from the  ground ,  but high enough  to  thoroughly  spook  the  villain.      first  instinct  was  to  struggle , kick ,  punch , FIGHT HIS WAY OUT .     as   fast  as  adrenaline  crashed ,  it  rushed  back  into  his body , his ears tingling , his  limbs  freezing  up  as  all  his  attempts  at  freeing  himself  with  the  little  bit  of  strength  he  had proved  itself  to  be  fruitless .  helplessly ,  he  was  exposed  to  the  booming  voice  &  mockery ,   feeling  even   smaller  with  each  sneered  word .Â
the feeling  of  being  small ,  inconsequential  & vulnerable    spiked    with   the   violent  jerk  in  the  iron  grip ,  causing  robbie  to  see  stars  &   nausea  to  climb  hotly  into  his  throat .  Â
ah.    the  beast  has  a  name  !      at least  that  robbie  could  hear  through  the  haze  that  settled  into  his  head  as  the  shaking  finally  stopped  âââ  until  the iron talons  released  him.   HE WAS DROPPED  !    robbie  landed  on  the  asphalt  with  another  sound  in  distress   as  he   hit the ground .   he  groaned at  the  pain  shooting  through  his  lower  back  from  the  impact .    great !    this  is  what  he  got  for  standing  up  to  the  brats !  this  is  what  he  got  for  foolishly  thinking he could  act  the  hero  for  once.    oh  he  should  have  stayed  INSIDE  today !!Â
HE  HAD  TO  ADMIT  DEFEAT.  there  really   was  no  way  he  could    battle   this  robot   with  his  bare  hands  without  getting  himself   killed   for   real.   he  slowly  got  up  to  his  feet, shaking  all  over ,  his  trembling  fingers  fumbling  for  the  hem  of  his  vest  to  tug  back  into  place .      his  knees  were  quivering  so  hard , they  knocked  against  each  other .Â
â  i-iâm  âŠÂ  â  he stammers .  his  throat  aches  from  how  dry  it  is .   he  had  no  idea  what he had   that could  POSSIBLY  BENEFIT  a  seven  feet tall robot     ( &  potentially  keep  him  ALIVE  )    should  he  reveal  his  identity  &  villain - title  to  them ?    or  could  that  put  him  into  possible  hazard ,  if  this  robot  had  a  problem  with  potential competition  ?        Â
â   m-my  talents ? âââ i - i  make  disguises  to  trick  the  locals  !  &  i - i  b - build  robots.  c - clockwork robots !  âââ â       the lump in his throat threatens to suffocate him at this point.  nervous  gray  eyes  stare  back  at  the  single panel of  glas,  devoid  of  emotions.    it   was   CREEPY !     there  was a reason  robbie  put  in  the  extra  effort to make his robots    as human as  possible !
  â Hmmm... â the robot hummed aloud, its gears whirring aloud in apparent contemplation as it brought its hand up to thoughtfully caress where its chin was supposed to be.
  â You build robots and make disguises, eh...? â the bot echoed, and after meditating on this revelation for a moment, it chuckled softly beneath its breath at the very real irony of this situation-- the sound translating as very flat and almost sarcastic.
  If he thought back on his few times in prison, Plankton could probably recall numerous similar situations as this one; where he himself had been at the mercy of some much larger and stronger creature. As someone who was quite literally as small and ( arguably ) defenseless as a jellybean, things like being called weak and small and insignificant were an every day occurrence. But in Planktonâs experience, very few things were as satisfying as making those same fish which had stepped all over him eat their words.
  --And yet, it would appear that heâd learned nothing of humility from those encounters, if his present treatment of his fellow villain was of any indication.
  Heh.... Alright, maybe he had been a little preemptive there with his show of force when theyâd first met.
  Truthfully, heâd just been a bit frustrated at how poorly this whole endeavor had been working out for him. Since heâd set out from his temporary shelter earlier that morning, he hadnât had a single customer. ( Big surprise, right? ) And so, he reluctantly supposed that if he intended on using this guyâs talents, maybe he could stand to tone it down a little. After all, Plankton knew better than anyone that he could definitely use an ally around these parts. Since Karen left, heâd quite literally had no one to talk to since setting out on this venture, despite the fact heâd pointedly left his phone number and other methods of contact taped to the front door of his restaurant for those that might be curious as to his whereabouts. Big surprise #2: he hadnât gotten a single phone call nor text since he left.
  â Uh-- Forgive me, Iâm starting to think that perhaps we got started on the wrong foot, here, â said the bot, withdrawing a little from Robbieâs space, if only so the guy could breathe a little. â You and me, weâre both villains, right? â
  â Iâm new to this area, and I intend on setting up shop here for at least a little while, and could use a man like you to help out. You know-- put a good word in with the locals, maybe help drive the heroes out of town... Maybe even help me with constructing my own robot army. Little things like that... â
  â So whatâs your name, kid? Because youâre gonna be my newest henchman, I should probably know what to call you. â ‣
