Chapter 3: Chapter 2: Octo Canyon (II)

With night approaching and the agents worn out, it was decided to postpone a full assault on the enemy headquarters until the next morning.

Artemis and Orion went back to their dorm rooms at Inkopolis High. X had nowhere else to go, so he waited for Marie to return home to her apartment before he teleported right there.

“At least you won’t need to sneak around Inkpolis if you can just teleport,” Marie remarked, as she took off her shoes at the door. “Make yourself at home.”

“Thank you,” X said replied, as his eyes scanned the apartment. It was a simple two-bedroom place, with a nice kitchen and a TV with a big couch. Against the wall was a shelf of accolades and other items the Squid Sisters had collected during their combined careers. In the middle was a large photograph of Callie and Marie, together, in much happier times in the aftermath of their first Splatfest, if the label was of any indication.

“You want anything to eat? Actually, can you even eat?” Marie asked, going into her room to change into a more casual outfit.

“It’s not necessary, but I do have simulated taste buds, and my ‘stomach’ is basically just an energy incinerator that converts food mass into energy,” X replied, taking off his helmet. “If my ‘stomach’ can break it down, I can eat it… Assuming I can handle the taste, of course.”

“Okay, good,” Marie said, coming out with a simple shirt and shorts, putting on an apron as she went to the kitchen to cook. With his superhuman hearing, X could actually hear Marie muttering to herself. “Ugh, I really just want to make instant noodles, but with a guest here that’s not an option…”

“You don’t have to exert yourself if you don’t want to, Marie,” X said, a bit amused as he sat down on the couch, putting his helmet aside on the living room table. “I’m fine with eating whatever tonight.”

That seemed to spook Marie a little, but after a brief pause, she responded, “instant noodles with a bit of fish fine with you?”

“That works for me, sure,” X chuckled, turning on the TV and doing a bit of channel-surfing. He very quickly found himself watching Inkopolis News. Pearl and Marina certainly had an interesting dynamic, but he couldn’t help but notice Marina was obviously an Octoling. “I thought Octolings didn’t live in Inkling society.”

“Oh, there’s Octolings trickling into Inkopolis society ever since Agents 3 & 4 beat Octavio the first time and Callie and I exposed Octarian society to the Calamari Inkantation. I’m definitely sure Marina’s one of those Octolings who defected, she’s an absolutely precious girl,” Marie said. X could practically hear her smile with that tone. “Maybe we can truly make peace with the Octarians over time. I just hope this latest conflict doesn’t ruin all of that. Which makes what Callie’s doing all the more baffling to me.”

X looked back towards the kitchen. Marie was leaning against the kitchen counter, both hands on it and looking down at it. He got up, and started walking over, as she clenched her teeth. “I thought we were still on good terms. Sure, we’ve been doing our own things, and we haven’t been seeing each other much at all lately, but…”

That, he could understand, even if he didn’t know what it was like to have a cousin - Callie was important to her, and to find out all of a sudden that her best friend had apparently betrayed her? That was a bitter pill to swallow indeed.

X gently put his hands on her shoulders. “Marie. It’s okay. We’ll get her back, and find out what’s going on. I swear.”

Marie’s body shuddered briefly in surprise. X noticed the tears dripping down onto the counter as she spoke, “why are you like this? We’re strangers. You haven’t even met Callie. You’re in a completely alien world, and yet you still try to see the good in everyone and help people.”

“Maybe it’s the ethics testing I went through, even if I barely remember any of it. Or maybe it’s the promise I made to Dr. Light before he sealed me away,” X said, “but either way, I want to do right by everyone. I still don’t know how I’m going to do that, but I guess the least I can do is show some compassion. Be a solid rock for others to hold onto, even in the middle of stormy seas.”

“Maybe everyone needs someone like that in their lives,” Marie smiled softly, wiping her tears away. “Thank you. You’re right, I’ve come too far to fall apart like this now. If Callie has done something stupid I’ll just give her a good firm smack and make her come back to her senses.”

“That’s the spirit,” X chuckled.

“Oh, by the way…” Marie unlocked and handed him her phone. “Call those two kids and find how how they’re doing, they’re in the contacts list. You need to be their rock too, you know, I gotta focus on making dinner.”

“Are you outsourcing parenting duties to me?” X asked, which got a laugh out of Marie as he navigated the contacts list. Indeed, both Artemis and Orion were listed.

Now, who to call first…

❖

Artemis sighed in relief as she crashed on her dorm’s couch, stretching as she left her phone on the edge of the table absent-mindedly. She would take off her Hero Suit, but it was comfy enough and normal-looking enough that her dorm-mates mistook it for fashionable Turf War wear. Unfortunately that did have the side-effect of them pestering her about where they could buy their own, so she had to tell them it was a gift from a friend, which was, well, mostly true.

She was just getting settled in and pondering what to do about dinner when the phone suddenly started ringing, tumbling off the table. That spooked her enough to tumble off the couch as well, as she scrambled to grab the phone. The caller ID was Marie, so she answered. “Oh, hi, Marie!”

“Actually, it’s X. Marie’s making dinner and wanted me to check up on you and your brother,” spoke the male voice on the other end.

“Oh, we’re good! We’re back at the dorms, figuring out what to eat and all that jazz,” Artemis said, getting back on her feet. “My dorm-mates haven’t come home yet, I didn’t ask what they were doing today, too busy doing hero stuff.”

“That’s good to hear. If you don’t mind me asking, why did you become an Agent?” X asked. “You should’ve known from the start you were getting into something dangerous.”

“Maybe I did deep down, but… It just sounded like something so out of my wildest dreams that I couldn’t help but leap right into it. I even dragged Orion into it even though he wasn’t sure,” Artemis sighed, as she began to check the fridge. “It was like something out a comic book or an anime or something, you know? The chance to be a hero, maybe be recognised for something big. By the time I realised that I wasn’t gonna get any credit for any of my heroics, I was in way too deep to back out. Someone’s gotta save Inkopolis and the Great Zapfish, after all. Might as well be me.”

“Well, at least you’re trying to do the right thing, so I don’t blame you so much for not having the purest of motives,” X noted, “I guess you’ve already had a couple of reality checks.”

“Like you wouldn’t believe. That ambush was just another one, I don’t know what might’ve happened if you hadn’t bailed us out, X,” Artemis said. “Fighting for your life is scary. But so is a lot of other things, and I do regular Salmon Run shifts, so compared to that this agent work isn’t quite so scary. What’s scarier to me is the possibility that I might let everyone down. If we don’t save the Great Zapfish in time…”

“Well, that’s why we’re hunkering down and doing it tomorrow,” X said. “I have a lot of doubts myself. But I know that what the Octarians did is wrong, and someone needs to do something about it. You’ve all been so kind to me, so I felt it was only right to repay the favour. We’ll resolve this, one way or another. I don’t like fighting. But I hate the idea of what would happen if I just stand by and do nothing even more.”

“Can’t say I blame you,” Artemis said, closing the fridge. “I think we’ll get along pretty well. I hope you’re making your creator proud, wherever he is now.”

“Thanks, Artemis. We’ll talk tomorrow back at the Canyon. Don’t be late.”

“Heh, I won’t. Seeya, X.” Artemis smiled, before hanging up.

She then turned towards the door and jumped on the spot in panic as she saw her two dorm-mates standing there. “GAH! Karlene, Hinata, don’t scare me like that!”

“So. Care to explain who this ‘X’ person is and what you were talking about?” Karlene asked. She had green eyes, and a ‘wave’ hairstyle, along with long leggings, Squidfin Hook Cans, an Annaki Evolution Tee and Black Norimaki 750s. She held up a shopping bag, “we bought instant ramen, by the way.”

“I-it’s nothing! Just talking to a friend!” Artemis laughed sheepishly.

“Oh, Arti, you’re an even worse liar than your brother!” Hinata giggled. She had purple eyes, a banger hairstyle, a Sennyu Bon Bon Beanie, a Gray Hoodie and Purple Sea Slugs. “We totally heard everything.”

Artemis groaned, walking over to them, “alright, alright, I’ll tell you everything, just… Please promise me you’ll keep it a secret?”

“Sure, we all got our secrets, I ain’t gonna casually blab yours,” Karlene said.

“Deal! So, were you talking to your boyfriend~?” Hinata grinned. She tended to smile nearly all of the time, and often had her eyes closed.

“NO! X is definitely not my boyfriend! I’ve only known him for a day, for cod’s sake,” Artemis snapped in embarrassment. “Look, just… Sit down, this is gonna be a bit of a long story.”

As Misaki made and then served the instant ramen, Artemis told the story of how she and her brother encountered Marie, and got recruited into the New Squidbeak Splatoon. She also told them about X, as well as how Callie was apparently now working for the enemy.

“Yikes, Callie must’ve taken that last Splatfest harder than anyone thought or somethin’,” Karlene said, slurping some noodles. When she was done, she continued, “so, lemme get this straight. You and your brother got recruited by one of the Squid Sisters into becoming secret agents to fight against the Octarians, who haven’t been seen by Inkling society as a whole in like a century, but who have stolen the Great Zapfish twice now? And you also discovered an ancient human laboratory with a fully working robot?”

“That’s the gist of it, yeah,” Artemis sighed.

“Oh, so that’s what you’ve been up to this past week or so! We thought it was so weird that your schedule became so packed! You must’ve been training and going on missions, so cool!” Hinata grinned widely. “You could’ve told us, we totally would’ve understood!”

“Well, it’s gonna be all over tomorrow,” Artemis said, “Marie and X agreed that to make sure we succeed before Inkpolis runs out of power, we’re storming the enemy’s HQ tomorrow.”

“What, just the four of you?” Karlene raised an eyebrow.

Artemis shook her head. “Three, Marie’s going to be on operator duty. I wish she could come, her Charger skills are-”

“Oh, no. Like heck you’re going right into enemy HQ without a full fireteam, at least,” Karlene said. “You’ve got a full weapons armory, right? We’re coming with you.”

“Wait, both of you?!” Artemis froze. “Hinata, you’re not seriously agreeing with her, right?”

“It’d sure be an adventure,” Hinata giggled. “We’re teammates, we’re not gonna just let you waltz right into danger without us at your back!”

Karlene crossed her arms and nodded. “I wouldn’t forgive myself if I knew my friend was risking her life and I didn’t help try to make sure she walks away in one piece. On top of all that, it’d be pretty irresponsible to not help out with getting the Great Zapfish back. Also, I’m the team leader, so…”

You are reading story Inky Future at novel35.com

“Marie’s not going to be happy about this, but… Yeah, you’re right. Strength in numbers, after all. We need to work as a team,” Artemis nodded. “Thank you. You’re putting your lives on the line to help me.”

“Hey, that’s what friends do, right?” Hinata nodded.

“Right, tomorrow morning we’re gonna do brief practice for our coordination, and then we push into enemy territory,” Karlene said. “We are all in agreement?”

“Yes, ma’am!” Artemis and Hinata nodded.

❖

Orion had arrived at his dorm to find that his dorm-mates and Turf War teammates, Liam and Koji, were already home and working on dinner.

Orion jumped a bit when his phone began ringing, and he rushed outside to the corridor to answer the phone once he saw it was Marie. “Oh, Marie, what’s up?”

“Hey, Orion, it’s X. Marie’s cooking dinner,” X said. “Artemis said you two got home just fine.”

“Oh, yeah, sure,” Orion said, calming down and keeping his voice just hushed enough that nobody could overhear him. He was still a bit overwhelmed by the fact that X was a genuine robot from the pre-Mollusc era, but on the other hand, X was just so friendly that it was hard to be intimidated by him. “My roommates are already home and cooking. They’re still wondering about where I’m going on my free time, it’s hard to juggle saving Inkopolis with studies and being in a Turf War team.”

“Turf War is really popular, huh? I mean, I have no complaints if it’s safe and if people are having fun…”

“Really popular? Almost every Inkling plays Turf War at least on a semi-regular basis, it’s the biggest sport, like, ever,” Orion replied, “it’s a good way to make a little bit of extra money. Sis and I don’t have full teams at the moment, but we’ve been making do.”

“A little bit of extra money doesn’t sound like much, do you have a part-time job?”

“Yeah, I do part-time shifts at Mako Mart, but Sis and I also occasionally do Salmon Run shifts for Grizzco Industries,” Orion said, leaning against a wall. “It’s a bit scary, but if you’ve got a team who knows what they’re doing it’s pretty rewarding.”

“Grizzco, huh… I should look into this ‘Salmon Run’ thing, it sounds kinda fishy.” There was a brief pause. “Ugh, that pun was not intended.”

That got a laugh out of Orion. “Welcome to Inkopolis, we’ve got puns everywhere.”

“Anyway. You’re gonna be all set for tomorrow?” X asked. “I’d love to talk more, but maybe after this whole thing is resolved.”

“Yeah, sure… I’ve got butterflies in my stomach thinking about it, but I’ve come too far to stop now,” Orion said. “And… I gotta watch over my sis. She can charge headfirst into situations without thinking, so I gotta watch her back. We’re family, we gotta take care of each other, right?”

“That’s right. Good night, Orion, seeya in the morning,” X said.

“Good night, X,” Orion said, hanging up before heading back into his dorm.

“Hey, Ori, who was that?” Liam asked as he was setting the table. He had aqua eyes, a ‘hipster’ hairstyle, a pair of Designer Headphones around his shoulders, a Black V-Neck Tee, and a pair of Blue Laceless Dakroniks.

“A new friend I met today. Maybe if we get lucky tomorrow I might be able to introduce you to him,” Orion said, sitting down at the table. What he said was mostly true, so he was able to say it with a straight face.

“Oh, sweet, does he go to our school? Maybe we could finally have a consistent fourth team member,” Koji said, coming over with the food. He had green eyes, was spiky-haired, and liked to wear tinted shades, a Green Zip Hoodie and Cyan Trainers.

“I’m afraid he doesn’t, he’s older than us as well,” Orion frowned. “I’m sure you’d really like him, though…”

“What are you up to, anyway? And I know you’re doing something with your sister as well, because I’ve seen you leave campus with her, but even Karlene doesn’t know what you two are doing,” Liam said.

“You actually talked to Karlene? I thought you didn’t like her,” Orion said, blinking.

“That team are our rivals! Well, some of our rivals. And I don’t like fraternising with the enemy,” Liam said.

“We’re Turf War team rivals, not opposite sides in a war, Liam,” Koji said. “You take these things way too seriously.”

“I take it seriously because I wanna be a pro!” Liam declared. “She’s a rival, end of story!”

“It’s fine to play up rivalries for kayfabe but not in real life, dude,” Koji said. “How do you think Ori feels about that? His sister is on that team.”

That gave Liam pause, as he looked down at his food. “Alright, I’ll… Try and tone it down a bit, I guess. Ori, when’re you gonna start joining in on our practice sessions again?”

“I’ll be more free after tomorrow, I hope,” Orion said. I just hope that happens and I don’t come home in a body bag or something…

❖

“You’re right, they are good kids,” X said, as he and Marie finally sat down for dinner. He tasted the fish, and nodded in approval. “This is good.”

“Thanks, I like to think I’m a decent cook, at least, when I bother to put in the effort,” Marie chuckled. “And… Yeah. It’s why I feel bad about asking them to put their lives on the line.”

“Sometimes that can’t be helped. Good people often have to do what they’re doing to do the right thing,” X said. “I’ll make sure they come back alive and in one piece. I promise. And we’ll bring Callie back to her senses, even if we need to drag her kicking and screaming.”

“Yeah I wouldn't be surprised if you had to do that,” Marie sighed. “But thank you. Do you need sleep or a recharge, or…?”

“I’ll see if I can recharge myself with one of the power outlets around here,” X said, “I don’t need sleep, per se, but I can do it while recharging. Either that or I could get a Zapfish to help me recharge.”

“Guess we’re basically set, then. I asked Sheldon to make sure the weapons are in tip-top shape for tomorrow, so that should be covered,” Marie nodded.

“Sheldon?” X blinked. “You mean the guy who was talking over the comms with us during the fight with the Octoweapon?”

“Yeah, he’s a Horseshoe Crab, runs Ammo Knights. His grandpa fought in the Great Turf War in the original Squidbeak Splatoon with Gramps,” Marie said. “He’s a bit eager to use this whole affair as an excuse to test out new weapons, though. I know, sounds worse than it is, his business is selling weapons for Turf War.”

“Good, otherwise he’d sound like a war profiteer,” X said dryly, as he ate. “Heavens knows humans had too many of those back when they were around…”

“Sheldon’s a good guy, I have no doubt about that, but yeah, he’s still got a business to run,” Marie said. “Anyway. Knowing DJ Octavio, he’s probably gonna pull out an upgraded version of that Octobot King mech of his he used the first time he fought against Agents 3 & 4, likely with some new tricks. But he’s probably gonna still throw those robot arm punches that you can send back at him.”

“Good to know. What are Agents 3 & 4 like, anyway?” X asked. “I’ve seen their files… Ethan and Ayane, right?”

“Yeah. Ethan’s a bit of an idiot, honestly, Artemis kinda reminded me of him at first. He wised up a bit by the time he and Ayane beat Octavio, but oh my cod is he ever a massive doofus,” Marie chuckled. “Ayane… She can be hard to read sometimes, and she’s edgy and a bit scary sometimes, but she’s honest, perhaps a bit brutally so, and tries to do right by other people. She and Ethan dated for a bit, it didn’t work out.”

“I’d like to meet them… And your grandfather, too. Any idea when they’ll be back?” X asked.

“No… I honestly haven’t gotten any communications from him since they left,” Marie said. “I’m honestly a bit worried, but I know those two will keep him safe. I just hope he doesn’t wander off by himself.”

X decided to keep any questions of Cuttlefish had gone senile to himself. “So we’re not getting any backup, then.”

“Very likely not, but all things considered, I’d prefer to keep our team small,” Marie said. “You don’t have respawns, but those two usually have only limited respawns between them, so…”

“Right, stop them from getting splatted too many times,” X said. Easier said than done, but…

“Yeah. I’m putting their lives in your hands, X. Please… Don’t let me down,” Marie said.

“I’ll do my best,” X said. I just hope my best is more than enough…

You can find story with these keywords: Inky Future, Read Inky Future, Inky Future novel, Inky Future book, Inky Future story, Inky Future full, Inky Future Latest Chapter