Eli's heavy feet trudged through the pavement like a marshland, his ragged body taking half-steps as he dragged his way forward. All that kept him going was the destination set in his lusterless iris.
The Mighty Mandy Motel.
From where he was, it didn't look like much. The lights were off, and so far as it seemed hadn't been on in decades. Half of the doorways lacked the doors of their namesake, and there was not a single car in the lot. Fortunately, that was perfect for his purposes.
As he willed his steps, his weary mind wandered. Mighty Mandy. She was a cautionary tale to some, and superstar to others. An early adoptee of the Overclock Registry - NORA today - and also the very first strike from their records.
Some thought it was her brash and unlikeable personality, and others her unwillingness to follow the rules of the registry. The biggest theory however, was her less than professional work attire. Self-described as a country woman who 'worked hard for her body', she found the idea of coverage offensive.
Right now, Eli could only hope the motel pillows were as soft as the pillows on its namesakes.
'...she'd be about as old as this motel though now, huh?'
Eli shook his head. Each wandering thought cost him effort to will himself back to remaining alert and awake.
Eventually, of course, Eli's heavy feet and weighty cargo made their way to the grand entrance. Room number four - one of the few with a door at its hinges - was the option he selected.
He slipped into the room, alert and rather frightened. He found it not much dimmer than the evening sky hanging outside. It was easy enough to see, and after clearing the bathroom as the only hiding space, he let out a sigh he hadn't realized he'd been carrying.
Then, he let down something he most definitely knew he was carrying, slinging his back off his shoulder, and onto the bare mattress.
He was surprised it was still in the room. Less surprised about the unpleasant smell, and stains that littered it.
"Dogbot, you fat bastard…" Eli winced, rolling his shoulders.
The weighty pack sunk onto the bed, and Eli heard the bed supports creaking under the weight.
"Huh, they can hold you up? I thought it'd break." Eli murmured, eyeing the bed.
Eventually, his focus was stolen by the bag he had dropped, as a familiar pointed poked its way out of the gaping maw of his hiking bag. It waved around a little, as if the hound were sniffing the air, before pouncing out, and landing barely-stable on the flat, moldy carpet.
The young robot wasn't in the best health it had ever been, but Eli had managed to get the legs tuned up, so the little guy could get back to running around, at the least.
Eli whistled quietly, before flopping down onto the bed. He bounced a tad, before sinking into the worn fabric like the embrace of an old friend.
'Ah… a bed. Life is so dreamy.' He smiled, sighing contentedly.
He stared up at the roof for a long time. Dogbot sat at the foot of the bed like a guardian, protecting him from the horrors of the night.
"Hey Dogbot? Do you think I'm insane, or suffer from mood-swings?" Eli asked, his head not turning.
The small canine head turned to him, before churning out a noise that only made sense to be a sigh.
"See, why can't everyone be like you." Eli shrugged.
Eli didn't even notice sleep stealing him from the world, and just as blink, it was early morning outside the rickety door of his room.
Through the uncovered window, the lusterless navy sky peered at him, forcing gloom into his mind whether he liked it or not. He groaned, and sat up.
It felt like his back creaked more than the bed did, and once he was up a fit of dizziness pierced his head like a bullet. He swallowed, but his dry throat simply threw pain at him as a result.
By the time Eli managed to force himself into action, the faintest sun rays were beaming through the deep grey-blue sky, and between the clouds. The day was bone-chilling. Eli saw his breath fume out, and Dogbot's mere existence was a smoke machine as his metallic body marched.
Eli had a single goal in mind. Soothing his rebellious stomach, and wetting his tongue.
Unfortunately, his finances were even worse than fucked. He had grown used to making do with what was on hand, on the days his father passed out drunk rather than buying groceries, but never had he lacked any funds whatsoever.
Thankfully, Eli had a better method of payment. It was unfortunate, but a necessary evil.
###
The low ding of the door opening had barely echoed throughout the empty store, but Eli had arrived eagerly at the counter, smiling up at the man behind it.
Of course, the metallic rodent mask hid that expression nicely. The new version didn't even rip his face apart to use, which was a boon to be sure.
He seemed young, but not overly so. Likely a university student. Working so far to the edges of the city was his fault, in honesty.
Didn't he know where he lived?
"Please give me your phone, and then run away." Eli said, calmly, sticking his hand out.
"Haha, good-..." The cashier's eyes flashed a hint of concern, and grew gaping wide at the sight of the threatening, thrumming beast behind the oddly short deviant. "Oh. Yes, sir." He nodded.
Eli watched the man sprinting down the barren street with satisfaction. Cooperative ones were simply the best.
Before he lost any time, however, Eli quickly opened his back, shovelling in piles of canned foods from the shelves, clearing out several of them. This would hold him over for quite some time.
"We're rich Dogbot!" Eli giggled, zipping up his bag and throwing it over his back. It was barely a quarter the weight of lugging Dogbot around, so it hardly inhibited him.
Eli marched out of the automatic doors with a beaming grin on his masked face. He swaggered down the early morning street, food on his bag and a Dogbot at his side.
"Oh, life couldn't be better!" He laughed into the empty streets.
Behind him, a haughty laugh replied, echoing through the grey, unused roads.
"The Paigetown Rat! Please, let me ruin your day."