Distant Autumn Shores – Chapter 1
Rumors
Eile Akiyama sat in silence behind the register of an old boutique. A slightly short inkling with long, orange tentacles, they were leaned back excessively, carefully balancing to keep from tipping over as they stared at the wall. The boutique, as spacious and cozy as it was, had been devoid of customers for the entire morning, and Eile was struggling to find ways to pass the time as they waited for their shift to end.
They didn't necessarily mind the lack of activity – sitting around in the comfort of free air conditioning was better than dealing with a stream of temperamental customers, after all – but with no other workers present at the store aside from their uncle, the lack of social interaction made it difficult to stay awake. They had already gotten tired of playing Squid Jump on their phone an hour prior, and the old radio that sat on a shelf behind them had failed to pick up any signals earlier that morning without translating them to a wall of static. When one glance at their phone's messaging app showed that nobody had spoken in their best friends' group chat all morning, they sighed in frustration and turned their gaze upward to the storefront windows.
Yep, they thought. Still pouring down.
It had begun raining shortly before Eile arrived to their shift that morning, and they had watched through the window as it evolved from a quiet drizzle to a summer shower to a full-blown storm, turning the skies a dreary grey and keeping most of Inkopolis's citizens indoors. Only one person had braved the weather to walk through the shop's doors in over two hours, and that had been a timid old anemone woman shopping for clothes for her granddaughter's birthday (Eile had done their best to point her toward an ensemble that wouldn't seem too garish to someone around their age). Beyond that, they had gotten nearly halfway through the shift with nothing but the hum of fluorescent lights and the muffled patter of rain to listen to.
The thought to sneak away to the break room and take a quick nap crossed their mind briefly, but they pushed that temptation to the side. Just focus on keeping your eyes open, they told themself. The storm will end eventually, there'll be more customers soon.
Just as they had that thought, they heard a door opening off to their side. Subtly leaning forward so their chair had all four legs to the floor again, Eile turned their head to see an older inkling walk in from the store's back rooms. He was a portly man, a bit on the short side like Eile, and had tentacles that were close in hue to their own. His outfit (a baggy grey flower-print robe over a plain white undershirt with old black sneakers, both featuring orange highlights to match his ink color) was about as old-fashioned as much of the store's stock, and his tentacles were styled up in a mullet that he just barely managed to pull off.
"Hey there, kiddo," the man said, raising an arm in greeting. Eile stifled a yawn and returned the gesture, sitting up a bit straighter.
"Hey, Uncle Geoff." Geoffrey Joubin was a bit of an eccentric type – not an uncommon trait for clothes vendors in Inkopolis, Eile had found – but he was also the type who seemed to naturally get along with everyone he met. When he wasn't busy going over inventory or keeping tabs on finances, he would often socialize with the customers who walked into his boutique, chatting away the day with a smile that Eile had only ever seen leave his face once. He was perpetually hospitable to those around him and, as Eile had learned from the handful of other workers at the boutique, was one of the most accommodating bosses the city had to offer. Added onto this was the fact that he was Eile's mother's brother, which was the entire reason they had come to apply for a job at his store in the first place all those months ago.
Coming over to join Eile at the register, Geoff leaned an arm on the counter and gestured around the empty store. "Been a busy day, huh?"
Eile shrugged. "I've seen busier," they answered, earning a hearty laugh in return.
"A mortician's office has more life in it than this place has had today," he joked, briefly running a hand through his faded tangerine mantle. "I was just watching the weather forecast in the back. Channel 3 says they expect the rain to keep up all day." Eile groaned.
"I don't suppose you'd be willing to send me home early, in that case." They smiled only half-sarcastically, hoping that the less-than-subtle plea would win him over.
"Well, I don't suppose I wouldn't!" Geoff chuckled at himself, and Eile joined him – less out of genuine amusement, and more out of pleasure that they wouldn't have to spend the next few hours lounging around and dying of boredom. "Go on and get yourself home," Geoff continued. "Inventory's taken care of for the day, so I'll cover the register until Billie gets here. Might even tell her to take the day off too, if the rain keeps up like this."
Eile rose from their seat, taking a moment to stretch and wake themselves up. "Thanks, Uncle Geoff. I appreciate it." They gave him a quick thank-you hug, to which he responded by tousling their mantle with another short laugh.
"No problem, kiddo. Hope you manage to make your afternoon more exciting than the morning was. Now go on, I have a spare raincoat in my office. You can borrow it to get yourself home and just bring it back tomorrow." Eile nodded an acknowledgment, then turned and headed for the back of the store to collect their belongings.
The entrance to the back of the store consisted of a small corridor with doors on all sides. Straight ahead was the stockroom, where they kept clothes that were out of rotation or that just didn't fit out front. To Eile's left was the staff break room, a slightly-cramped but otherwise cozy room with more room for sitting than the boutique had staff to fill; and to their right was the manager's office, an even smaller room that typically only served as storage for Geoff's personal belongings and a place for him to make private phone calls. Eile stepped through the door to the left, immediately locating their belongings where they had left them in the back corner.
The break room was as old-fashioned as the rest of the boutique, but in a slightly different way; while the faux wooden walls and earth-toned carpeting back in the store gave it a warm, lived-in aesthetic that somewhat reminded Eile of their grandparents' house, the break room boasted a combination of grey plaster and unpainted brick walls with smooth, black tile flooring. One wall had a basic kitchen space featuring a sleek marble counter and the basic amenities for employees to take their lunch breaks in the room, while most of the remaining floor space was dominated by a plush C-shaped couch framing a large, polished coffee table. A flat-screen TV (one of the boutique's more recent additions) was mounted on the wall across from the couch, currently showing the same Channel 3 weather report Geoff had just brought up.
Geoff often called this room the "VIP Lounge", and Eile had to admit that it had its appeal, even if the lack of open floor space felt a bit constrictive. The couch was comfortable enough to nap on, anyhow. Stopping to switch off the TV, Eile picked up the flannel hoodie and duffle bag they had left sitting against the back wall of the room earlier that morning. They slipped the hoodie on over their shirt and slung the bag over their shoulder, and had just left the break room when they felt a vibration from within their jeans pocket.
Pulling out their phone, they saw the screen illuminated with a notification message. Someone had finally spoken in the otherwise silent group chat.
[10:37] It's Reza!: It's so boooring todaaaay
[10:37] It's Reza!: Who wants to hang out?
Continuing across the hall, Eile ducked into the manager's office to retrieve one of the two raincoats that were hanging from a rack by the door. As they put it on, they tapped out a response to their friend's messages.
[10:40] eile: i'm free whenever, as of two minutes ago
[10:42] eile: want to grab lunch and then find something to do?
[10:43]It's Reza!: Oh sweet, G let you go early?
[10:43] It's Reza!: Lunch sounds good to me, I've been wanting to try that new pizza place down on Algae
[10:45] eile: yeah, the store's been dead all mornng. just one old lady, and that's it[10:46] eile: and you mean nuna's, right? My sis says they have the best kelp slices in the city
[10:46] eile: morning*
[10:47] It's Reza!: I think so? I trust Kenzi's taste in pizza either way, so[10:49] eile: of course you do, you two are the only ones i've ever met who could stomach the stuff they served at jelfina's[10:50] It's Reza!: And you better believe we're proud of it :)
[10:50] eile: i have no doubt you are[10:50] eile: i'm going to catch a bus home so i can grab some cash
[10:51] eile: meet you at nuna's in 70 or so?[10:51] It's Reza!: Sounds great! I'll go get ready, be back in a minute xoxo
By now, Eile had made their way back to the front of the boutique and was leaning against the front doors while they typed, pushing one door open just slightly enough for a chill breeze to find its way in from the storm. They tucked their phone back into their pocket and waved a goodbye to Geoff, who had taken up the seat behind the register. Geoff gave a warm smile and waved back.
"Stay safe out there, kiddo. The forecast said it'll probably stay pretty consistent, but there's a chance the storm could get heavier at any moment," he called out. "Oh, and make sure to say hello to your mother for me if you see her today!"
"I'll text her once I'm back home," Eile called back. "Thanks again, Uncle Geoff. I'll see you around!" With that, they pulled the hood of both their hoodie and the borrowed raincoat over their head, swung the front door open, and headed out.
The nearest bus stop was a row of sheltered benches a short walk down the street. Eile hurried to it, grateful they wouldn't have to wait in the rain, and checked the schedule posted inside. The next bus was set to arrive in just a few minutes.
That's good, that'll give me plenty of time to get there, Eile thought, working out the timing in their head. It was usually a fifteen-minute bus ride from the boutique to their apartment, then it would take them a few minutes to get ready to go out, followed by about half an hour to get to the train station and ride to the city's downtown… they would be there with plenty of time to spare, they reckoned. They said a brief hello to the other two passengers waiting at the stop and sat in an open spot at the end of a bench.
Closest to Eile was an elderly urchin woman with stubby black-and-white spikes dressed in long, heavy robes. The woman seemed as if she was asleep where she sat, but she responded to Eile's greeting by slowly lifting a hand, then slowly lowering it again. Further away, sitting on the next bench over, was an inkling girl around Eile's age who seemed to be waiting for a ride to class at the local college, if the laptop clutched to her chest and the sweater advertising "KAINOMACHI UNIVERSITY" in bright blue lettering were anything to go by.
The college girl waved, careful not to let go of the laptop she was attempting to shelter from the rain, and Eile noticed how similar they looked to her – their ink and eye colors both matched, and they had similar facial shapes, at least, though Eile was a bit chubbier otherwise and not quite as tall. Their fashion sense also leaned much more to the sporty side, with their typical preferred outfit including a long-sleeved black Zekko hoodie and a matching cap to represent their favorite inkball team.
Though, Eile supposed, it wasn't that odd to see people who looked similar to them. Orange was one of the most common ink colors in Inkopolis, and they'd always felt that their face looked a bit generic. They shrugged off the thought and turned their attention forward as a bus pulled up to the stop, its doors swinging open to reveal a tall, neatly-dressed jellyfish in the driver's seat who happily waved to the three of them.
Eile waited for the others to board before climbing onto the bus themself, presenting their bus pass to the driver and then picking out a seat a few rows from the front. Removing their raincoat and laying it carefully folded across their lap, they pulled out their phone to see that several more messages had been sent since they left the boutique.
[10:57] Mella: Oh, I went to Nuna's last week! That place is great
[10:57] Mella: I've been distracted getting ready for vacation, but I'll be there for sure
[10:57] Mella: a really cool rock We're going for pizza[10:59] It's Reza!:། ◉ ◯ ◉ །╯ Mel and Mos too! This'll be great
[11:00] a really cool rock: yall are going to NUNAS and didnt me sooner? smh this is why mel's my fav
[11:01] a really cool rock: ill be there for sure, i can pick up mel and reza on the way if either of you need[11:02] It's Reza!: Naaah, I think I'll just take the train. Nuna's is right next to Pomfret Station :D
[11:02] Mella: I'd appreciate a ride
[11:02] Mella: I don't feel like walking all the way to the station in this rain[11:03] a really cool rock: gotch gotch. anyone seen fen?
[11:03] It's Reza!: I think Fen is in class :( Maybe we can save them a slice[11:04] Mella: Yeah, they told me last night they had a math test this morning
[11:05] a really cool rock: pour it out every1, our boys gonna die of advanced calc
[11:05] It's Reza!: :( RIP Fen… Good luck, I hope your test is going well
Eile added in their own quick condolences before putting the phone away and turning to stare out the window beside them. Despite the gloomy weather, they couldn't help but smile; meeting up with their friends was always a joy, and it was exactly what they needed to make the day less of a drag. Leaning their head against the back of their seat, they settled in to watch the buildings pass them by as the bus carried them through Inkopolis's Gravel Ward.
It was about forty-five minutes later when Eile walked out of Pomfret Station, right on the border of the Coral and Seafoam Wards. The rainstorm had refused to subside at all in the time it had taken them to travel from their home to here, leaving the streets unusually quiet for a place so close to the heart of Inkopolis. The rest of the passengers who had come here on the same train as Eile filed out in a crowd around them, but the majority stuck to the covered walkways immediately surrounding the station, either leaving hurriedly to try and stay dry or simply opting to stay at the train station's bus stop and wait for more covered transport. Eile joined the former crowd, pulling their hoods up over their head once again as they quickly made their way down the sidewalk.
Coral Ward was the so-called "place to be" in Inkopolis. Packed with massive skyscrapers and tourist attractions in equal proportion, it was the part of the city that everyone outside of the city would see in picturesque blog posts and cheesy travel pamphlets. The two biggest turf war hubs, Inkopolis and Deca Towers, were both situated in different parts of the ward, and many of the most beloved inksport arenas were subsequently found in or close to it as well. If there was one thing that was consistent about inkling social trends, it was that Coral Ward would undoubtedly be where the majority of local youths gathered to have fun and meet each other.
Seafoam Ward, on the other hand, was much less famous despite being directly adjacent. Still a fairly busy part of the city, it sat between Coral Ward and the extensive Inkopolis Harbor through which most of the city's massive shipping industry was managed. There were a couple of popular turf war arenas here – namely Bluefin Depot, Port Mackerel, and Walleye Warehouse, all of which had been built fairly close to each other in and around various cargo stations – but the glamorous tourist sites and sprawling shopping centers had been traded in for bustling warehouses and compact apartment buildings. Still, it was far more notable than Gravel Ward, a district at the edge of Inkopolis known for little other than bland suburban homes and a few small-name local colleges.
Nuna's Pizzeria sat just inside Seafoam Ward, a few short blocks from the train station. It was a small corner building that occupied the bottom floor of what looked like a three-story apartment complex, with the rest of its block seeming to be a similar mix of tight-packed residential buildings and assorted ground-level storefronts. Despite its unremarkable size and location, however, its unique appearance caused it to stand out and dominate the scenery in a way the surrounding buildings could not.
The pizzeria was deliberately built with an understated, vintage aesthetic; most of the facade consisted of window space with striped red-and-blue cloth canopies providing shade for passersby, while the rest of the exterior was decorated to appear as if it had been built with traditional brick-and-stone supports reinforcing the building's beige plaster walls. The windows were filled with glossy posters detailing local events as well as intermittently-flickering neon signs promoting various restaurant specialties (Eile made a mental note to try the "City's Freshest Hand-Brewed Lemon Seltzer"), and the dim but vibrant lighting served as an effective beacon to draw people in from the rain.
All in all, the building looked as though it had been ripped out of a time decades past, and that was exactly what made it stand out so much. Compared to the modern, often brightly-colored buildings all around it, the pizzeria clashed so severely that passersby couldn't help noticing it. The large sign that sat mounted above the storefront which read "Nuna's – Pizzeria & Sweet Shop" in fanciful back-lit script was one of the few visual indicators that this place had been built in the past decade, and even then it would be easy to believe otherwise.
In a way, it reminded Eile of the cozily obsolete appearance of their uncle's boutique. This thought was only reaffirmed as they stepped through the front doors and saw the interior: a spacious, dimly illuminated area filled with decorative fern planters and divided up using archways and chest-high walls made from brick. One end of the restaurant was sectioned off as a seltzer lounge where various patrons, most of them significantly older than Eile, dined on gourmet foods and enjoyed tall glasses of colorful, fizzling drinks; the rest was split into three sections of regular seating including mainly booth tables. As Eile entered, an upbeat inkling stepped forward from a small wooden podium by the door to greet them.
"Hello, and welcome to Nuna's!" The inkling bowed; he looked to be in his mid-20's, not too much older than Eile, but significantly taller and with deep purple ink. He wore elegant black dress pants and a ruffled white shirt, as did the handful of other employees Eile saw moving about the place. "My name is Jaroya. Will you be dining alone today?"
Eile shook their head. "I'm expecting friends to show up soon," they explained. "Could I get a table of four?"
"Of course! Right this way, if you would." Jaroya turned and led Eile to an empty booth nearby, and they took a seat facing the entrance. He then handed them a menu before walking away, leaving them to ponder their food options while they waited.
The wait wouldn't be long, as Eile heard the front doors swinging open just a few minutes after they had sat down. Looking up from the table, they saw the familiar mess of long orange-and-black tentacles swaying energetically as Reza entered. An unusually lanky anemone, Reza was dressed in a cozy-looking knit sweater and flowing ankle-length skirt that swished along with her tentacles as she moved. The instant she made eye contact with Eile, she hurried over and excitedly joined them at the booth.
"Eiley! It's you~!" she sang, pulling them into a tight hug before releasing and taking a seat across from them. "How have you been doing? It's been so long since we met up last!"
Eile rolled their eyes, a smile already on their face. Out of all their friends, they had known Reza the longest – the two had attended elementary school together over a decade ago – and she hadn't once lost her perpetually bubbly demeanor. "It's only been two weeks, Reza. But I've been doing fine, how about you?"
Reza immediately launched into a lengthy description of all that had happened with her recently, from the mundane to the exciting. They conversed (or, rather, Reza conversed and Eile listened, as one side was much better at talking about their life than the other) about a book Reza had just started reading, the latest episode of an obscure TV show she watched, and her favorite band whose concert she was going to with a friend next month. Not wanting to leave the chat entirely one-sided, Eile in turn decided to share the exhilarating story of how they were thinking of buying a new bed sheet and pillows soon; they were admittedly surprised when Reza managed to find it interesting and began offering advice on where she would recommend shopping.
At some point, Jaroya returned to offer drinks and appetizers to the duo. Eile declined in favor of waiting until the rest of the group had arrived, while Reza ordered a glass of soda and what would surely be the first of multiple over-sized pretzels. As the waiter flashed them both a smile and walked off to take another table's orders, Reza suddenly leaned in closer to Eile.
"By the way," she began, "have you heard?" By the look on the girl's face, Eile could tell she was about to share some juicy gossip she'd heard. They leaned in as well to hear Reza's lowered voice, and she continued. "There are rumors that some of the zapfishes have been going missing."
Eile paused for a moment, taken aback by the claim. They'd expected to hear about some distant friends dating each other, or about yet another group of kids sneaking into the local museum at night and getting spooked out. A rumor that the city's primary power supply was disappearing was the last thing they would have predicted.
"The zapfishes?" Eile kept their voice low as well; the pizzeria around them wasn't a quiet place by any means, with upbeat acoustic music and the sound of busy kitchen workers blending together with the moderate chatter of other customers, but they didn't want to risk alarming others over something they had no way of knowing to be true. "We're talking about the same zapfishes that power the city, right? How did you hear this?"
Reza gestured vaguely with one hand. "A few different places. I saw some chatter about random blackouts happening across a few wards lately, and some friends of mine over in Coral Ward told me they had one just last week that lasted for an hour or two. I did some digging around and found some people claiming that city workers had told them there were zapfishes going missing all around Inkopolis. It's hard not to believe there's something weird going on."
"I guess that is weird… but why would they just start vanishing out of nowhere? And how, considering the security they usually have at power plants?"
"That's the confusing part. Nobody knows!" Reza's eyes grew wide as she made a poof motion with her hands to emphasize her point. "Supposedly, the security tapes showed them just vanishing into thin air. I saw a few people saying it might be the octarians again."
Eile's brow furrowed. They remembered when most of the zapfishes in Inkopolis – including the Great Zapfish, the absolutely colossal one that provided the vast bulk of the city's electricity – had disappeared without a trace just two years prior. The fishes had returned after a couple of weeks with little fanfare and even less explanation, and with nobody able to offer any details on the situation, rumors had begun to spread claiming that they'd been stolen as an act of vengeance.
The fact that those rumors picked up as much as they did had been a surprise at the time, though; the octarians hadn't been heard from in over a century, seemingly having vanished themselves after losing to the inklings in the Great Turf War. The likelihood that they would suddenly reappear after so long (assuming they even existed to begin with) just to sabotage Inkopolis's power supply seemed rather low.
Despite this, though, that theory had spread like wildfire through the city's younger population, causing the mysterious octarians to become a sort of bogeyman (or, in some cases, a point of fascination) for schoolchildren all around. Goofy homemade costumes based on photos from old history books had become a minor trend among the youngest of the city's residents around Splatoween, while slightly older kids would scare each other with a wide array of fabricated stories about the elusive species. All the sudden fascination with them had caused Eile to see the myths as a joke, but the gravity in Reza's voice when she mentioned the octarians convinced them to give it genuine consideration.
"But wait, there's more." Reza continued, seeming to grow more immersed in her own story with each sentence. "Some people have said they've seen a mysterious figure sneaking around the Square at night ever since the blackouts began. They think it might be one of the octarians returning to their hideout after stealing the zapfishes, but anybody who tries to follow them just runs into a dead-end in that back alley with the shady GrizzCo office."
"So the theory is..." Eile began, prompting Reza to elaborate.
"The theory is that GrizzCo might be responsible for the whole thing. They might even be working with the octarians in secret!" Reza finished off. Eile found it hard to believe that a company operating mainly within Inkopolis would have reason to sabotage Inkopolis's energy grid, but they chose not to voice that doubt.
"So… why are you telling me this now instead of waiting for the others to arrive?" they asked instead. Reza shrugged and leaned back in her chair, the story evidently concluded.
"Fen and Mella already know, we all talked about it the other day. And I'd rather not tell Mosali about it. You know how easy it is for him to get worked up and paranoid about stuff like this." She sighed. "I swear that man spends too much time listening to horror stories, it can't be good for his mental health."
Eile gave a nod of agreement. Their mutual friend had a bad habit of indulging in scary movies and paranormal rumors only to make himself paranoid and spooked-out as a result. Considering how many times they'd heard of him losing sleep over it, they could understand Reza's reasoning there.
Reza began to say something more, but was interrupted by the chime of the pizzeria's front doors opening once again. Into the building strolled two dark-skinned inklings, both with long, braided tentacles. The shorter of the two had bright pink ink and carried himself very nonchalantly, dressed in a stylish faux-fur coat and wearing wide-rimmed glasses. The other, with orange ink similar to Eile's and a more laid-back expression on her face, wore a faded old band t-shirt beneath a heavy unbuttoned trench coat. She was laughing, seemingly at a joke told just before the two had entered.
"Hey, you two!" Reza greeted them both with a grin, immediately leaving the serious tone of the prior conversation behind and waving them over to the table. "Grab a seat, we were just talking about you!"
Eile and Reza both scooted inward on the booth seats, and Mella and Mosali slid into the now-open spaces. Reza immediately engaged the newcomers in a conversation – something about music, probably bringing up the concert she was going to again – but Eile's focus remained on what they had just been told. They remembered the alarm that had spread through the city the last time the zapfishes went missing; the city's emergency energy supplies had fortunately lasted long enough to prevent a total blackout, but each day that passed without the zapfishes' safe return had seen more and more citizens fearing imminent catastrophe. If the same thing was now happening over again in spite of the tighter security measures that the city had enforced on power plants in the region, Eile only hoped that it would see the same quick resolution as it had before.
They remained lost in contemplation until a sharp click caught their attention. They looked up to see Mella snapping her fingers in front of their face, and then noticed that everyone at the table was staring at them. Jaroya had returned to the booth once again to take the group's orders now that everyone had arrived, notepad in hand while he patiently awaited an order from Eile.
"O-oh, uh. Sorry." Eile quickly flipped open the menu on the table in front of them and scanned for the first thing that looked appetizing. "I'll have the um… the mozzarella sticks, please." Then, remembering the sign they had seen outside earlier, they added, "Oh, and the hand-brewed lemon seltzer."
"What size glass would you like for that?"
"A large sounds fine," they answered. Jaroya nodded and jotted down the last of his notes, then quickly read back over them and repeated what he had.
"So that'll be a pizza gigante split eight ways for the table. Two slices melon and sausage, two slices tuna and kelp with extra sauce, the other half has all the basics.
Then there was..." He detailed the various sides and drinks the group had ordered, and when all four were content with their orders, he added an upbeat, "Alright, it'll be here shortly!" before twirling on his feet and returning to the kitchen.
"...so that waiter's kinda cute," Mosali said as soon as it was clear Jaroya had walked out of earshot. Across the table from him, Mella laughed.
"I knew it!" she said, a wide grin on her face. "I knew you were crushing the instant I saw how you looked at him." Mosali stared at her with a surprised expression, the pink tinge of his tentacles suddenly appearing on his cheeks.
"I'm not that easy to read, am I?" he asked.
"You are a little bit," Reza chimed in. The two girls burst into a fit of giggles together, though Mosali was spared further teasing when Reza suddenly remembered another story she had been waiting to share.
As their three friends conversed, Eile gave more consideration to Reza's story. They thought about how their mother had texted them not long ago talking about a small power outage in her neighborhood. How recently had that been, again...? They shook their head. I'm overthinking this, they thought. It's just rumors. Determined not to let the story distract them from spending time with their friends, they pushed away the worry that was growing within them and finally joined in on their friends' conversation.
The rest of the meal passed without issue. The four of them chatted enthusiastically between bites of pizza, and each agreed that it was some of the best food they'd had in a while. Amid the conversation, Eile noticed Mosali trying not to look awkward and flustered each time Jaroya stopped by the table to check in on them; he was definitely crushing, they silently agreed.
By the time they all had finished eating and felt content to head out, the better part of an hour had passed them by. The rain had lightened somewhat from its earlier downpour, but the skies were still cloudy and grey as far as the eye could see. Eile found themself eager for something to do next.
"We could see if any turf war arenas are still open," Mella suggested. "I've been aching to get a good battle in lately. And most of the indoor arenas should still be open, despite the weather." Mosali and Reza both agreed with the plan, though Eile was a bit more hesitant.
"I dunno, you all know turf war isn't really my forte. Although..." They fished around in their pocket for a moment and retrieved their phone. "Fen should be out of class by now, right? We could invite them to fill out the team, and I could spectate while you all play."
"Oh, that's a good idea!" Mosali agreed. "Fen's probably gonna be disappointed they missed a pizza run, I bet some turf wars would make it up to them easy." Eile sent a quick message to the group's fifth member and got an even quicker response back, agreeing to meet up with them shortly. With that plan confirmed, the four made their way out of Nuna's Pizzeria and headed eastward, toward the massive Deca Tower which served both as the biggest local turf war hub and as a bright beacon to guide all the city's residents to the bustling social hub.
As they walked, Eile noticed the Great Zapfish floating through the sky around the tower. It seemed to silently follow the social trends of the city beneath it, and as such had recently taken up residence in the airspace over Inkopolis Square, perpetually hovering over and around it. This only helped to reinforce the place's popularity, as tourists and enthusiastic residents alike would often flock to the Great Zapfish's roaming grounds for the chance to see it up close.
Maybe it was just Eile's mind playing tricks on them, but as they walked, they swore they could see the faintest trace of worry in the zapfish's ever-smiling face.
Dusk had fallen by the time Eile walked out of Deca Tower. They had spent their entire afternoon and well into the evening watching and cheering their friends through countless turf wars before the rain outside finally cleared. When the others had eagerly returned to the battle queue in hopes that the outdoor arenas would reopen in time for some last-minute matches, Eile had decided they were running low on energy and chosen to call it a night. They had bid their farewells to the others, noted their team number in the queue (just in case they felt like spectating online once they were home), and headed out to find the nearest bus stop.
The air felt hot and heavy in the wake of the prolonged rainstorm, and Eile felt themself growing exhausted the instant they stepped out onto the sidewalk. A glance at the ward's city transit map on their phone told them it would be a lengthy walk to the nearest bus stop – not a problem under kinder weather conditions, but a pain in this humidity. Eile groaned.
"You'd think they would have a stop right here," they muttered to themself, "considering this has to be the biggest social hub in the city." They shoved their phone back into their pocket and began their lazy trudge along the sidewalk, praying that the air would cool down overnight.
Inkopolis Square was uncharacteristically empty. This didn't come as much of a surprise to Eile; most of the big-name shops lining the pedestrian hub were closed for the night, leaving it dark save for Deca Tower and the various ever-bright television screens eternally hopping between commercials from above most of the square's storefronts. Even Deca Tower was scheduled to close soon enough that there wouldn't be much reason for new teams to be heading in. With one quick glance, Eile determined that there wasn't a single other soul in the square with them.
Or was there?
It was quiet, especially with how heavy the air was, but Eile could just barely make out the sound of someone – or something – moving in the shadows. It sounded like the gentle clack of swift footsteps against pavement, accompanied by something gently rustling with the momentum. Quickly and silently, Eile backed against the wall of the building closest to them, scanning their surroundings carefully. For a moment, they saw nothing – but then, just barely visible for a fleeting second under the light of an overhead screen, they noticed a shadowy figure dart by the front of one of the square's several clothing stores.
Eile's earlier conversation with Reza played itself back in their mind. Some people have claimed to see a mysterious figure sneaking around the Square at night ever since the blackouts began. The thought that they might be witnessing an octarian fleeing the city with a stolen zapfish in tow stuck itself at the front of their thoughts, and they found themself debating whether to pursue or pretend they had seen nothing.
It was probably nothing – what were the chances, right? – but at the same time, if it truly was someone stealing a crucial piece of Inkopolis's power supply, Eile couldn't just sit by and let them get away. But then, what if it actually wasnothing and they went chasing after a stranger who was just going for a late-night jog? What if–
Eile was snapped away from the internal debate by the realization that their feet were already moving, carrying them across the street in pursuit of the mysterious figure. Something inside them was compelling them to take action; whether it was the urge to be a hero or simply an unbearable curiosity, they had no clue. Regardless of what it was, they were already gaining ground on the other person, who seemed to be running toward the back alley next to Deca Tower. Just like Reza told me, they thought.
But just as Eile thought the figure would duck into the alley and disappear, something else happened: the figure, still cloaked in darkness but now silhouetted under the faint ambient light, morphed suddenly into a smaller form and promptly disappeared into the ground. Eile paused in surprise for just a moment before running up to see the spot where they had vanished. There, barely noticeable in the darkness, was an inconspicuous sewer grate built into the sidewalk beside one of the local stores.
"Is that your secret…?" Eile murmured, quickly looking up and scanning the square. When a brief glance determined that the area was still more or less empty, Eile turned their attention back to the grate at their feet. They could hear the faint sound of flowing water at the bottom, deep below the city street, but there were no audible signs of the mysterious stranger who had just dropped down into it.
They took a step back and considered the situation for a moment. Someone vanishing into the sewers in a dark alleyway late at night was definitely suspicious, especially knowing the rumors Reza had shared earlier that day. But pursuing said someone into the sewers with no idea of their identity, no backup, and no one aware of your whereabouts… that didn't seem like the most advisable option. But I've already managed to lose track of them, they thought. If I call or wait around for someone else, they'll get away for sure.
Eile took one more look down the sewer grate, closed their eyes, and inhaled slowly. Am I really about to do this? Without giving themself the chance to answer their own thought, they steeled themself and shifted into their squid-like low form. Then, with a quiet plop, they hopped down through the sewer grate and disappeared into the darkness below.