"We interrupt this Squaps game to bring you important news!"
"WHAT?!" shouted the angry blue Inkling who was enjoying the hockey game. "Kelpson was about to shoot!"
"Well? Go ahead and tell them, Marina!"
"I can't, Pearl… It's too devastating. My stomach is in knots."
"I don't want to tell them either!"
"You're the elder here! You should tell them!"
A muffled voice told the two women that they needed to hurry up before people started calling in. Finally, Marina sighed, a sad look on her face as she would be the one to deliver the news.
"Popular pop idol and Squid Sisters member, Callie, has gone missing! Several sources caught her wandering about, looking as if she was conflicted with something, noting that she was talking to herself. She hasn't been seen in about seven days. Has she wandered off? Has something suspicious happened to her? Could she be….Ugh!" Marina suddenly cried, putting her hand over the lens of the camera to block it. Within seconds, the interruption ended and the Inkling saw Kelpson being embraced and high-fived by his teammates.
The Inkling tried to take her mind off of what happened in the interruption and tried to tell herself that Marina just ate some bad tuna. As much as she tried to watch the rest of the game, the thought of the interruption reverberated in her mind. Even after her beloved team won, she wasn't excited. She was worried about her friend.
She sat idle for a few minutes before hearing a pounding on her door. There were only two people who could possibly knock that loud. The first was Pearl, who overdid just about everything under the sun. The second was her boss, Mr. Grizz, who may need her to go on some private Salmon Runs with him. Bracing herself, the Inkling crept toward the door. If it was Pearl, she'd be screaming. If it was Mr. Grizz… he'd also be screaming. That man talks incredibly loud.
Yanking the door of her small cabin open, the girl saw that she was right about Pearl being there, but another friend of hers, Lynn Kensa, was also there. Both of them looked nervous.
"Yo, Yuls! Did you see what happened with Marina?!" Pearl asked, her eyes still wide. "Dude, that's so unlike her! Usually she's so chill!"
"I was just with her before the interruption. Afterwards, I saw her running toward the forest. Pearl and I were going to see if she's okay. Would you like to go with us, Yulia?" Lynn asked.
Without hesitating, Yulia strapped on her shoes, grabbed her hat, and bounded out the door with them. Thus, there went our merry gang. The reader most likely already knows of Pearl, the famous yet somewhat disliked Off The Hook member, but the other two are surely obscure, so I shall explain them.
Our hockey-loving Inkling, miss Yulia Tentatek, is, honestly, a bit of a hot mess. Having been practically evicted from her home after a prolonged disappearance from her parents, the sixteen-year-old was graciously allowed to live in the smallest cabin of Camp Triggerfish, a campsite in which Pearl's parents-her assumed legal guardians until she either becomes an adult or her parents return- let her live in.
Yulia, though still a full-blooded Inkling, came from two very different parents. Her father, a Mr. Shaquarius Tentatek, CEO of their company (conveniently just called "Tentatek") was a firefly Inkling while her mother, a Mrs. Tatiana Tentatek, was a bigfin reef Inkling that migrated from far-off seas and was the company's head designer. Yulia was the only spawn of these two, as, being an incredibly troubled child, her parents had politely come to the decision that they absolutely could not handle any more youngins.
Because of her interesting genealogy, Yulia wasn't just your average Inkling. While she inherited most of her father's looks, she inherited a lot from her mother. She inherited her mother's accent, her face shape, her love for the simple things in life, and her strong personality. Her parents always taught her to be humble and generous, despite their family owning much and having immense wealth.
Yulia was short, thin, and pale, just like her father. She was usually well dressed in delicate, doll-like dresses, but today was one of her casual days, so she sported a Squaps jersey, her favorite pair of sweats, some sandals, and her favorite cap, the Jellyvader cap. Did she look trashy? A little, but she was comfortable. Yulia had green eyes, once again inherited from her father. Her mid-back length tentacles, which were straight yet much larger than the average Inkling, were a midnight blue, mixed from her father's natural navy and her mother's natural black. Her fringe wasn't straight nor sideswept, instead it was more of a heart shape.
Yulia has one very notable feature, however. The reader may have noticed that I mentioned that Yulia's father was a firefly Inkling. Firefly Inklings have a special ability that the average Inkling doesn't, and Yulia inherited this from her father. You see, firefly Inklings, descendants of our firefly squid, are able to glow due to bioluminescent glow-spots on their bodies and tentacles. These glow-spots masquerade themselves as freckles, and Yulia had a ton of them. Her entire body and bottoms of her tentacles were absolutely covered in them. At night, she lit up like a Christmas tree. It embarrassed her, but her friends thought it was adorable.
Yulia's personality had admittedly changed a bit after her parents left. Before, she was a lofty, lifted spirit who adored being in the company of others and would easily talk about the Inkopolis Squaps for hours on end. After this, however, she seemed to become more reserved. She was still very loving, but she often retired to her cabin early and had trouble talking to people sometimes. She spent a ton of time working, sometimes to the point of exhaustion. She made very little money, sometimes not being able to buy herself food. Her mother's bold personality stood out here. Yulia refused to worry about tomorrow and was willing to take any necessary hits. She refused food and money from Pearl's family. She wanted to show that she could be independent.
Yulia's job was at Grizzco, a small organization run by Mr. Grizz, a Salmonling (Salmonid who can assume a human form) man who had apparently "rebelled against the race" and was trying to collect the Golden Eggs from them to find a safe way to power Inkopolis. He claimed that the Golden Eggs were of little value to the Salmonids. Yulia was a top star at the company, having collected an amazing amount of Golden Eggs for her boss, and was employee of the month every month. She even adopted a baby Salmonid, which she named Pooky, to raise to do Salmon Runs with her. Despite performing well, however, she was paid very poorly.
With Yulia out of the way, we must go onto the second young lady in the party, Lynn Kensa. Lynn was a year older than Yulia, at 17. She would pretty much be considered Marina's "BFF". The two had met four years prior to this when Marina briefly went into Inkopolis to find weapons for their leader. Whenever Marina escaped the valley for good, they immediately continued their friendship, becoming closer and closer with every passing day. Nothing was hidden between those two. Whenever Marina wasn't with Pearl, she was with Lynn. If there were other friends, Lynn was there, too. They were nearly inseparable.
Mr. Grizz wasn't the only Salmonling in town. Lynn was a full-blood Salmonling and was proud to be. Whenever she was a toddler, at around four, Lynn's mother had gotten incredibly sick, not knowing if she would be able to care for her daughter and had decided to drop her off with her father, who had decided to run away to the city as soon as he had learned that she was pregnant. Lynn's father honestly didn't take very good care of her...but that's for later. Salmonlings are very independent creatures, and with the help of a few Inkling families who noticed that she was living on her own, Lynn turned out just fine.
Were Salmonlings in themselves rare? Salmonlings had very low fertility rates, so yes. Was one living a normal life in Inkopolis and not living on the tropical archipelago the Salmonlings called their home rare? Absolutely. In fact, Lynn was the only Salmonling that lived in the city, not counting Mr. Grizz, whose living situation is honestly unknown.. Lynn grew up learning that her mother died, and her father called her stupid if she questioned it. If only the poor darling knew that her real mother watched her grow up, sobbing as she wished that she could have given her child the loving life that she had desired for her.
If one thought that little Yulia had a bold personality, Lynn's was off the charts. She wasn't mean, but whenever she wanted something, she was determined to get it at all costs. Lynn would low-key be considered a "beach bum" or a "hippie" in our terms because of her fashion sense, love for reggae music, and frequent hours spent at the beach, but she was also a loyal friend who was chock full of chuckles, as evident by the times that she and Marina had spent laughing their heads off. Was her father mean? Kinda. But Lynn showed the personality of her birth mother. She was just a fun person to be around.
As for looks, Lynn very much resembled her birth mother. Unlike her skinny, sickly mother, however, Lynn was pretty tall and curvy. Not Marina levels, but she wasn't a stick figure like Yulia. Her skin was a sandy beige color, though it still had the Salmonling characteristic of having gray undertones. Her hair, as Salmonlings obviously had no tentacles, was a medium purple, cut slightly above her shoulders, was very thick, and was always pulled in a high, tight ponytail. Instead of a ponytail holder, she used a piece of kelp that she found on the beach. She had bright red eyes, five triangular markings under each eye, a larger nose compared to Yulia's button nose, and a mouth full of sharp teeth. Her ears had one piercing per, and she wore small, silver hoops. She had vibrant red gills on her neck, and dawned fins of the same color on her forearms and calves. Her fingers had a slight webbing to them and ended in sharp, claw-like nails. She dressed very casually, wearing some tinted shades, which she wore upon her head whenever they weren't needed, a loose-fitting shark tooth necklace, which was a sign of maturity in her culture,a tie-dye tee shirt, and shorts. As of Salmonling tradition, she didn't wear shoes. Ever. Both of her wrists sported rubber bracelets.
While Lynn obviously didn't look like your average Joe off the street, she also did have some defining features that were common for her species. First off, she couldn't participate in turf wars because of her ink. It was the unique Salmonid green that all Inklings who have done a Salmon Run shudder thinking about... especially considering that it's toxic. Because this ink was unable to be replicated by Inklings, even with their technology, Lynn just decided to give it up altogether, though she still did enjoy watching her friends do it. Secondly, unlike the Inklings, who sank like rocks in water, Lynn was an excellent swimmer and had the natural Salmonid ability of breathing underwater. She adored the beach and ocean and even loved swimming in pools. One of her favorite things to do was scare the living daylights out of Inklings by suddenly jumping in the water, then having a good laugh with them when they realized that she could swim.
As mentioned, Lynn was also pretty bold, but loved to have a good laugh. She's incredibly determined yet also pretty carefree when the time is right. Something Lynn is very good at, however, is hiding her true feelings. If she were truly upset about something, she could keep a smile going on for a long time before finally going to someone she trusted, such as Pearl or Marina, and breaking down. I explain this to you because this aspect of Lynn's personality will surely take effect in the future.
While Yulia worked at Grizzco, she was still Lynn's friend. After all, the Salmonling understood that this was Yulia's only source of income. Lynn herself had a job at her home-run taxidermy studio, where she charged very little to mount fish. She went by appointment and made all of her works at home, simply delivering them to her clients. Thus, she had a lot of downtime.. She didn't need the money, as she lived in a small cabana for free in exchange for using her wonderful woodworking skills to make fixtures for the owner's rec room, so she decided to put it toward a secret cause of hers. After all, her first movement of trying to close down Grizzco was temporarily postponed until Yulia's parents came back or she received stable income..
These two young ladies, as well as Pearl, then took off, walking in th the direction of the forest, where Lynn had apparently saw Marina running off to. As Pearl mentioned, this type of behavior was unlike Marina, who was usually gentle and laid-back. Yulia, confused by this sudden personality change, still stuck to her bad tuna theory, telling herself that Marina went to find a bush to throw up in, though she knew that the idea was ridiculously far-fetched, but it sounded good in her head.
Eventually, the three got near the small forest. Lynn and Pearl, knowing Marina a bit better than Yulia, were well aware of Marina's hiding spots. Marina never wandered deep into the forest, as there were rumors going around Inkopolis that a strange old man lived deep in the greenery. Marina refused to confess that she believed in the rumor, but both of her friends knew that this old man scared her.
"All right, I say we split up and look for her. Lynn, you look on the east side. Yuls and I will go and check the west," Pearl said, assuming herself the boss of the group. Lynn made her way toward the east while Yulia and Pearl walked the other way.
"I hope that Marina is okay…" Yulia mumbled to herself, looking behind trees and in bushes. Her mind and soul still stuck to the idea that Marina had just eaten some bad seafood.
"Yeah, me too. I haven't seen her that upset since she lost her third Splatfest in a row. Even then, she doesn't usually just run off," Pearl said in an almost bragging way, but it was clear that she was still worried about her friend.
After a while of searching, Pearl went to help Lynn, assuming that Marina would be hiding on the east side of the forest, as it was the side closer to town. Pearl demanded that Yulia stay put and continue watching the area in case Marina decided to show herself. Just about every young person from Yulia's district knew the ways of the forest, so it wouldn't be hard for her to reunite with Pearl and Lynn.
After a bit more searching, Pearl caught up with Yulia. "Yo, you need to come with. Marina's having a breakdown," she said solemnly. Grabbing Yulia's hand rather roughly, Pearl quickly walked deeper in the forest. Then, Yulia saw them.
"Sis.., Sis… Calm down. Just tell me what's wrong, honey," Lynn comforted. Marina was resting her head on the Salmonling's lap, and she looked like she had been crying. It hurt Yulia's heart seeing her friend so upset.
"Lynn… I'm such a bad friend! I know where Callie is and I didn't tell anyone! I kept it a secret for so long!" Marina cried, squeezing one of Lynn's hands.
"C'mon, Sis… We'll not talk about whether it was right or wrong now. Just… tell us where Callie is! We'll make it all better, I promise," Lynn shushed. I should take the time to mention here that "Sis" was one of the many nicknames that Lynn had for Marina. The two will refer to each other by many nicknames throughout this tale, so I recommend the reader keep track of them.
"She… She ran off to Octo Canyon! She said something about visiting….someone….but she ended up running off before I could stop her. It's my fault she's gone, Lynn!" It was obvious that Marina wasn't telling the whole truth, but neither Pearl, Yulia, nor Lynn felt the need to interrogate her. She was obviously under a lot of stress. "Please, Lynn, we need to help her…"
"Sis, don't worry. I'll go down there and get her. After all, I'm entitled to help others," Lynn replied, bravely puffing out her chest. Lynn, the usually calm, worriless Salmonling, was trembling inside.
"Lynn! No!"
Yulia and Pearl watched the heated exchange between the two friends, Lynn proclaiming that she was going whether Marina liked it or not while Marina practically begged her not to go. Pearl obviously wasn't going to do anything, so Yulia decided to speak up.
"I'll be the one to go! Lynn, you already help so many people around here… I ought to make myself useful for once. After my parents left, I practically ceased functioning. I want to help Callie! She's the fairer Squid Sister who can't possibly defend herself, so I'm going to get her back!" Yulia proclaimed, confidently pushing up her glasses. She expected cheering and clapping, but the other two ladies in the room looked...less than moved by her statement.
"Yuls… You do Salmon Runs for a living. You've never splatted another person in your life," Pearl said, oddly calm for her personality.
"W-Well, I mean… Octarians can't be that different than Salmonids, can they? Th-They're both pretty weird-looking…"
"You even feel bad doing Salmon Runs, Yulia. You adopted a baby Salmonid because you couldn't splat him. What if you see a baby Octarian? Are you going to adopt one of those, too? Don't even get me started on Octolings. Yulia, if you can't even do non-violent turf wars here in Inkopolis, you'll never be able to splat an Octoling in self-defense," Lynn explained.
"Th-This isn't about splatting people, Lynn! This is about saving Callie! Besides, you've never done a turf war either! How would you defend yourself?"
"Salmonid ink is very toxic to Inklings and Octolings. You'd be surprised how well I fight, but I choose not to because I don't want to poison people. Why else do you think Mr. Grizz makes you wear such protective gear?"
"All right, all right, you got me. Well… Mr. Grizz wants to make Inkopolis a better place, and I'd like to expand on his policy and spread kindness beyond Inkopolis! I'm going to get Callie back without using any violence at all!"
"Yulia, you're naïve," Marina scolded. "You really think you can just go into Octo Canyon and politely ask if you can have Callie back? Keep in mind that I've lived with the Octarians for sixteen years. I have enough experience to tell you that they hate Inklings. They won't want anything to do with you."
"Marina… You… I thought you were on my side! You seriously don't have any faith in me? I've been Grizzco's employee of the month for an entire year!"
"Yulia, I… it's your funeral, I guess," Marina said coldly, turning her head toward Pearl and giving her a sad nod. Yulia, enraged, stormed away headed for home. After all, she had to prepare for her expedition, as she was clearly going whether Marina liked it or not. Yulia walked slowly, hoping that someone would catch up to her.
Surely enough, someone did. That someone was Pearl, who was honestly the one she least expected. Yulia kind of wished that it was Marina coming to apologize, but she loved Pearl. After all, the two had known each other for years, meeting whenever Yulia started Squid Scouts. Because Yulia took Squid Scouts incredibly seriously and Pearl hardly took it seriously, the two graduated in the same class despite 5-year age difference. Yulia could be mad at Marina- and she was- but she couldn't get mad at Pearl.
"Pearl… please don't tell me something I've already heard…"
"I'm not, Yuls. I know you don't want to hurt anyone, and as much as I don't understand that philosophy, I can see why you don't want to… but I'm just worried that you'll underestimate the Octarians, y'know?"
"Yeah, I can see your concern."
"I'm not accusing you or calling you naïve like Marina did, but I feel as if you have the mindset that the Octarians will just turn the other cheek and let you spoil their plans. Y'know they're not gonna do that. After all, most of the Octarians hate Inklings from what Rina told me. With the lack of light down there, you know that they'll be all over yo glowy parts. Ya could light a house with those things!" Was Pearl poetic in speech? No. Did she have a point? Absolutely. Since the greedy Inklings had to have every last Zapfish for themselves, Octo Canyon, much like Octo Valley before it, completely lacked electricity...and power in general. Pearl feared that the Octarians, who of course never chose this life, would try to literally poach Yulia to take advantage of her glowing skin and hair.
"I suppose that I could try and be an exception to their hatred. Maybe if some of them meet an Inkling who tries to reason with them and not immediately splat their tentacles into oblivion, they could change their mind and realize that we're not in war times anymore. They could realize that the tides have changed since the Great Turf War. As for my 'glowy parts…' I promise that if anything happens, I'll come back and let Lynn go instead," Yulia said, slightly cheering up.
"Just… don't be mad at Rina, okay? She just told me that she was afraid that you'd become attached to the Octarians and not want to leave, after you get Callie back… but.. You're my Li'l Yuls, you know I love you, and I think that it's my duty to give ya my support. As for the little fishy, I'm sure Lynn will take care of him. He could be her brother, for all we know…" Pearl joked. Yulia's face lit up and she rushed to the short Inkling, hugging her as tight as she possibly could...which wasn't very tight.
"Oh, Pearl! You've made me so happy! I promise I won't let you down! I'll make you proud! I'll make Marina proud! I'll make Lynn proud… You wait and see!" Yulia said, letting go of Pearl and quickly dashing off to her cabin to make final preparations. This was quite an easy task for her because of her amazing running skill.
Once at home, she quickly took off her Squaps jersey, wanting to change into something less valuable. If the jersey wasn't enough evidence to show that Yulia loved the Squaps, her house was decked out in their merchandise, some of it being one-of-a-kind, even. Posters, calendars, figurines, autographs...a broken stick and sweaty, smelly jersey that Kelpson himself wore! Yulia wasn't just a fan, she was a fanatic. If her jersey would have gotten ruined in Octo Canyon, she probably would have died of grief.
Yulia's cabin was a little small, which was honestly a little uncomfortable for Yulia, but she could deal with it. In all honesty, the cabin would have been a lovely size if Pooky's fish tank didn't take up about a quarter of it. However, in the choice of letting Pooky go or having less space, Yulia chose to have less space.
"Well, if I'm not going to be fighting, I should wear something more...formal. After all, if I'm well-dressed, maybe the Octarians will want to listen to me…" Yulia thought aloud, Pooky watching from his favorite rock as the girl sorted through her various dresses, finally picking out one that was nice, but not too nice. It was a simple sleeveless dress that was made of a thick, warm material. The only detailing it had was a ruffled layer of fabric and some pearls lining the bottom of it. This was the image of sophistication that her father adored.
'Yulia, you mustn't let simple thoughts turn you away. So what if you miss a couple of Squaps games… so what if you miss a stage of Pooky's growth… so what if Lynn finally decides to confess her love for Emeror while you're away… if you want to live by Mr. Grizz's policy, you must think of yourself last,' Yulia thought to herself as she quickly grabbed her Tri-Slosher. Technically, Yulia was a sniper, but she wasn't bad on Sloshers. After all, she was just going to use it for an intimidation factor. Afterward, she went up to her beloved Pooky, who excitedly hung over the glass with his little fins, wanting to see his best friend.
"Oh, Pooky, you make this hard… I won't be home for a while," she explained, the Salmonid letting out an unhappy cry, "but… it's not your fault, I promise! I have very, very important things to do. I know that Lynn will take good care of you while I'm gone. Just remember that I love you, you little rascal," she said, hugging the fish, who gave a sad yet sympathetic smile as he jumped back into his tank, swimming into the small cave. Though, Yulia couldn't leave the city yet. She still needed to tell two more people.
From the camp, Yulia sprinted to Grizzco. She had nearly forgotten that she was scheduled to work today! If she just dipped out without showing up to give some kind of explanation, she knew that Mr. Grizz would be flamin' hot with anger. She needed to get his support on this; though he sometimes mistreated her, he was the closest thing she had to a father.
Upon stepping inside the shady building, Yulia was surprised to find her Salmonling boss out in the open rather than hiding his identity behind a bear statue. Upon seeing his most prized possession, Mr. Grizz gave a horrible smile, putting out the cigarette he was smoking, getting up off his chair, and began to walk toward the girl.
"Well, if it isn't Little Miss Employee of the Month! You look eager to get me some eggs," he said, his somewhat raspy but also somewhat seductive voice echoing through her ears.
"W-Well, not exactly. That's why I've come so early… I'd like to get your blessing on something."
"What in the blue blazes do you- blessing? Are you and that rock-n'-roll dreamboat of yours getting married or something?"
"My rock… NO, SIR! I-I-I'm not even dating him, sir! I… I need your blessing on something far more important…"
"Awright then, I'm all ears."
So, little Yulia spat up the story, figuring that Mr. Grizz would willingly accept the suggestion, considering that Yulia was trying to mess with his thoughts by shamelessly plugging Grizzco's philosophy into the mix. To make things even better for him, she even offered to work double shifts whenever she got back.
"Yulia… Yulia… TENTATEK, CALM DOWN!" Mr. Grizz yelled as he gently-yet firmly- placed his hands on Yulia's shoulders. He had tried to get her attention several times, but she kept sputtering, only shutting up at his sudden reaction. Mr. Grizz looked upset that his prized employee was leaving, but he could easily bump up one of his other employees that performed well.
"Tentatek, you're one of the biggest overachievers I've ever met. After Lynn was stupid enough to think that she'd stand a chance down there, you decided to go and risk your life for some pop star. I guess my philosophy of making the world a better place means treating my employees right…'whether I like it or not,'" he cleared his throat as he silently thought the last part, "so I'll just have other kids work your shifts until you get back. Go on, kid. Go show 'em how strong you really are."
Yulia cried out in excitement at this, embracing her boss. It was a bit awkward, yes, but she couldn't help it! She was so happy to be getting some support! Because she had been a bit lacking in Salmon Runs recently, Yulia hoped that doing a task such as this would make Mr. Grizz even proud of her. She felt unstoppable!
After leaving Grizzco, Yulia, without letting Mr. Grizz know, walked around back to the dock, where several boats were located. There, some of her coworkers were unloading one of the vessels, which was filled with Golden Eggs.
"Will you be making any more trips to Marooner's Bay? I'd like to go down for a little while. If you'll take me, I'd be happy to help you unload," Yulia smiled somewhat meekly at the group of young boys. The Inkling was always rather awkward around the opposite sex.
The boys agreed, and after a rather quick job of unloading the Golden Eggs, the small group went down to Marooner's Bay. While the boys went off to find more Golden Eggs that the Salmonids left behind, Yulia went to the edge of the water, resting in a very specific spot. She heard a splash, then with a ripple of water, Scrap appeared. Scrap, like Mr. Grizz and Lynn, was a Salmonling. He and Yulia had a very unlikely friendship. Yulia barely noticed the scruffy figure of a Salmonling woman watching them from a distance.
"Oi, Yuli! What are ya doing 'round these parts? Ya usually don't show up unless you're workin,'" the Salmonling greeted his friend with a pat on the back as his other hand held a Golden Egg that he was craftily hiding in the front pocket of his overalls. Most Grizzco employees would have him pinned to the ground in hopes to grab that Egg, but Yulia and Scrap had decided to support each other the minute they became friends. This was no different.
Yulia once again spat up her story, this time telling it in a much calmer fashion. Scrap listened, his interest piqued. He wasn't exactly happy with her leaving, mainly because Yulia was his biggest ally. However, the mutual support discussed earlier resonated in the back of his mind, which made him unable to forbid her. At the mention of Lynn's prepared sacrifice and Yulia deciding to take her place, the Salmonid woman suddenly ran up to Yulia, falling on her knees, nearly sobbing.
"You've saved her! My precious little Lynn! My only source of happiness in this world! Bless you, high-and-mighty Inkling! You have saved my wretched soul from an eternity of mourning!" The lady went on, Yulia not knowing what to do. She looked at Scrap nervously.
"Fantine! Fantine!" Scrap said, slowly pulling the weak woman off of Yulia. "I thought my parents were takin' care of ya! You should be back on the Islands! What are you doin' out 'ere?"
"You've saved my baby, you sweet, gentle soul! My baby in which I could not raise. My baby in which I gave up so many years ago… Her father treats her so badly. He hurts her… It's all my fault!" Fantine bawled as Scrap was finally able to drag her off of Yulia.
"I've gotta get her down home… Good luck, Yulia!" Scrap said rather quickly, jumping back into the ocean with Fantine, who was still weeping bitterly.
"What on earth was that about?" Yulia heard one of the boys asking from a distance. Yulia realized that she had just met Lynn's real mother, but didn't exactly comprehend it… After all, Lynn's mother was supposed to be dead! However, reader, this won't be the last we see of Fantine.
On the trip back, Yulia knew that she had done all she had to do before she left. Knowing that her time left in Inkopolis was limited, she tensed up, but didn't let the boys in the boat see. Whenever they got back, Yulia was to unload, as she promised. She cherished every minute of it. As soon as she had put the last Golden Egg in the net, she felt a drop on her head. She hadn't noticed that storm clouds had gathered while she was unloading. Now, it was pouring, which added to her anxious, gloomy mood.
Yulia slowly made her way toward the grate that would lead her to her destination. Not having an umbrella, she was naturally getting soaked. She expected to see Lynn prancing about, as she remembered how much the Salmonling loved the rain and getting wet in general. However, as she neared the grate, she didn't see Lynn… but she almost wished she had. Part of her wanted Lynn to swoop in, save the day, and go down to Octo Canyon instead. After all, Salmonid ink was one of the best ways of self defense! Yulia finally accepted the fact that Lynn was more fit to save Callie than she was, but that wasn't going to stop her.
Yulia's mind raced back to Fantine, that wretched Salmonid woman. Was she actually Lynn's birth mother? Was she just delusional? She looked sick. She didn't look like she had a lot of life left in her. Whether or not she was delusional or telling the truth, she saw Yulia as her hero, and the Inkling would feel like scum if she betrayed the woman and sent Lynn down to Octo Canyon instead. She knew that saving Callie was now in her tiny, freckled hands.
"This is for you…" Yulia said. She didn't know who exactly she was addressing, but soon after she said it, she jumped through the grate, leaving Inkopolis and entering Octo Canyon.