Looking out over a newly-saved Inkopolis, Agent Three couldn't help but feel something wistful tug at his heartstrings. This was what being an Agent was all about. Fighting hard, kicking octo-ass, and saving the day while the oblivious citizens of Inkopolis went on with their lives.

It just so happened that Three had been unconscious for the finale, a fact that irked him to no end. From what the Cap'n told him, it was really something. Explosions! Acrobatics! An impressive finisher packed with style and substance! The whole ordeal sounded a little familiar, even if the scale was a little… Bigger, this time around. Everything that had happened before he knocked himself out was there, if a little fuzzy; the struggle that led to him getting separated from the Cap'n, exploring that crazy facility, his timely discovery of the Cap'n and his new protege, and then… The incident. Three shivered at how stupid he made himself look, even if he had no other choice. Seriously, who the hell manages to knock themselves out like that?

The entire ordeal going through his head, Agent Three glanced back at Agent Eight and noticed that she was staring off into the sea. With a sigh, he stood and stepped over to her. She either didn't notice or didn't care about his approach and so he gently cleared his throat. Agent Eight blinked and turned to him.

"A sight for sore eyes, eh?" Three asked, inclining his head towards the sea.

"It's… Breathtaking." Eight said after a moment. Her hand slowly drifted over her heart. "More beautiful than I could have ever imagined."

Three had a quip lined up and ready, something about Octarians and bad imagination, but he figured, given the circumstances, it was better to bite his tongue. And they say I never learn. Instead, he simply nodded, arms crossed.

"You've come a long way, just to see the sunset." Three said idly. "With that out of your way… What're you going to do now?"

Agent Eight immediately looked unsure. Her captivated look was replaced with a concerned one. "I… I'm not sure. I just want to live a normal life, but… I guess I don't know what that truly means."

"She can do whatever she wants!" Pearl barked, appearing between Three and Eight suddenly enough to throw Three off his balance. "She's conquered the underground, and now she's bustin' out onto Inkopolis' streets!"

Marina was suddenly beside Pearl and Eight, looking very adamant. "We'll help her. And all the octolings that might come to Inkopolis. Nobody can deny them the lives they deserve."

Feeling outnumbered and a little flustered, Agent Three took a step away from the group, almost afraid of the shove that would send him hurtling to his doom.

"Now's not the time for fightin', not since we just got done writin', history with Mister Three!"

All eyes settled on Cap'n Cuttlefish. Agent Three peered over the edge of the platform they were all perched on, and wondered if the crashing waves below weren't a better fate than listening to the Cap'n try to rap.

"Look," Three said defensively, hands spread in supplication, "I'm not trying to deport anybody or anything. Taking care of Octarians is kind of my job, inside Octo-Valley or out." He gestured to Agent Eight and inclined his head at her. "If she wants to stay in Inkopolis, that's great. All the octolings can stay. Diversity and all that. But we've got to get her acclimated, do a ton of paperwork, probably get her a wellness checkup, and plenty of other crap."

"We got that," Pearl said quickly, arms crossed.

"Yeah, we can handle all of that," Marina added. "I could get through all of that paperwork right now."

Rubbing his neck sheepishly, Three looked at his feet. "Weeeelllll… Ya see, One and Two might have a problem with that."

Just as Three had predicted, Agents One and Two were waiting for them at the landing pad, loaded for bear and seeming more than a little pissed. It had been a long time since Three had seen either of them, and he was almost upset that the reunion was overshadowed by the events of the mission.

"Callie, Marie?" Pearl gasped. "You're Agents One and Two?"

"You didn't realize that..?" Marina asked quietly, though not quietly enough. "They're the Cap'n's granddaughters, after all…"

Three put his face in his hands as he stepped off the helicopter platform. He gave Callie and Marie a lazy salute and prepared to explain the situation as best he could.

"Mission complete," Three began, "though not without complications." Gesturing at Agent Eight, he continued. "I give you the savior of Inkopolis, Agent Eight."

"Isn't that supposed to be your job?" Callie asked, stabbing a finger into Three's chest. "What the hell happened down there, Three?"

"Language!" the Cap'n snapped, wagging his cane in the air. "Just because my lyrics are fresh doesn't mean your language needs to be!"

"What about Agents Five through Seven..?" Marie asked.

Three had a creeping suspicion that she was talking to herself, but that raised another question. "Wait, there's an Agent Four?"

"Irrelevant," Callie said, shaking her head. "Don't ask about anything that happened while you were gone; you don't have the right!" She stabbed her finger back into Three's chest. "Now, answer my question, Three! What happened down there?"

"Actually," Marina interrupted, as she thumbed her phone, "I can send you the full video recording taken from Agent Eight's perspective, if that would help."

Callie put her face in her hand for a moment before smiling beatifically. "Thank you very much, Marina. That would help a lot. We'd like to debrief everyone involved in this whole debacle, including the both of you if that's okay."

"I'm down," Pearl said, immediately.

"Same. Whatever we can do to help you and Agent Eight," Marina added.

"Great. If everyone will come with us, we can get this over with."

The atmosphere had lightened significantly since Three had stepped off the helicopter, and he breathed a sigh of relief. It felt as though he had been holding his breath for that whole exchange. Thinking about it, he realized that Agent Eight hadn't said a word the entire time, and when he looked at her, she seemed a little out of it. Coming up beside her, he lightly tapped her shoulder.

"You doing alright? Callie and Marie can be a bit much sometimes."

Agent Eight looked concerned for a moment, but she managed to smile and nod. "I'm doing okay, I think. Thank you. I wasn't expecting my first meeting with them to go quite that way, though."

Three couldn't help but smile. He nodded back. "Yeah, they tend to take over the conversation. It's just me, but I like to just let the pop stars do all the talking, you know?" Dropping his voice to a conspiratorial whisper, he jerked a thumb towards Pearl and Marina. "Especially when there's four of them instead of two."

Eight cracked a smile and giggled. "I'll keep that in mind."

Feeling proud for having gotten a laugh out of an Octarian, Three couldn't help but grin. Blinking, he realized something. "Hang on a sec, I don't think I ever got your name."

Eight looked almost flustered. "Oh, forgive me. I'm Polyp Yown."

Agent Three stuck out his hand, and after a moment, Agent Eight, Polyp, reached out and tentatively shook it. "Welcome to Squidbeak Splatoon, Polyp. I'm Lucky. Lucky Charm."

Lucky leaned against the doorway, arms crossed as he let himself brood. Just through the door, all the important people sat, going over the details of the past few days. Callie had asked Lucky for his side of the story first, strangely enough. And then she had kicked him out. He should have figured something was up, and now, he was being put in the corner.

At first, he was almost fuming at the sheer gall Callie had. He had calmed down significantly since then and had spent his time thinking. Lucky could have admitted defeat. He could have gone home and visited his parents like a responsible young man. He could have given up, turned in his gear, got a real job, and left all of this to the real heroes. There were plenty of things Lucky could have done.

Instead, he decided to wait. When that meeting was over, he was going to give Callie the earful of her life. Or not. It all sort of depended on how spiteful he was feeling by that point in time.

It was still a total toss-up.

At least, until a figure came down the stairs, and trotting down the hallway towards him. She was dressed in all yellow, wearing an incredibly familiar uniform.

"No way…" Lucky muttered, standing straight to greet her.

"Hey! I heard about everything that was going on; sorry I'm late!" she slowed to a stop a few paces in front of him and put her hands on her hips. She looked Lucky dead in the eyes. Hers were bright yellow, almost glittering like gold. "Is everyone inside already?"

Lucky gave her a nod. "Yeah, talking about the whole underground escapade. How much do you know?"

"Not much," she replied eventually. "Agent Three and Cap'n Cuttlefish went to the cape, wherever that is, they've been gone a long time, they just got back with a lot of friends…"

Lucky couldn't help but grin. "Sounds about right. You Agent Four?"

"Sure am!"

Damn, this one's chipper.

Lucky stuck his arm out. "I'm Lucky Charm."

Four didn't hesitate to shake his hand, and she shook vigorously. "Renette Deibol! Or Agent Four, I guess; whatever works." She waited a long moment, a wide smile on her face. Her smile shrank eventually, and her eyes narrowed. "So, um, who're you?" She waved suddenly, as if batting a thought away. "I mean, I know who you are, Lucky, but, like, why are you here?"

"Oh, I work here."

Renette eyed Lucky suspiciously. "You do..?"

"Yeah! Actually, believe it or not, I've worked here longer than you. I was, ah, away, when you got recruited." Lucky smirked and threw his arms out wide. "I'm Agent Three!"

Renette's eyes lit up. "Really?! Ohmygosh, I've wanted to meet you for so long! I have so much to ask you!" She clapped her hands giddily. "Was it the Cap'n who first recruited you? How long have you been doing this? How many octarians have you splatted?" She leaned close as her voice dropped to a whisper. "Is Marie mean to you, too?"

Lucky laughed and took a step away, placing his back to the wall once more. "Oh, wow. Uh, in order; Yes, a few years, more than I can count, and definitely. She's like that to everybody."

"Oh, thank goodness! I thought she didn't like me." After a moment, Renette's cheeks colored. "Oh, um, I mean, I guess-"

"Don't worry about it," Lucky said, waving her concerns away. "Marie's kind of got this… This thing, where she likes to crush all sources of positivity around her." Pausing, Lucky wagged a finger in her direction. "Actually, you kinda remind me of Callie, and-"

"Oh, Marie tells me that all the time!" Renette interrupted, bouncing in place. "Though she's never really… positive about it. I mean, I'm like her cousin, the famous Squid Sister, pop star extraordinaire!"

"-And Callie's kind of got this thing, where she's usually bursting with energy, and Marie siphons that energy off of her and uses it to be mean to everyone around her."

Renette looked almost embarrassed. "Oh. I guess I, uh, kind of see that."

"Really, I wouldn't worry about it." Lucky jerked a thumb towards the door behind him. "You supposed to be in there?"

"I don't think so?" Renette replied, though it was a question and not an answer. "They called me when that huge thing showed up in the bay, but I was nowhere near an Agency access point, so I had to go all the way across the city to get down here, and then the thing blew up, and then you guys showed up, and then I finally got here, and now here I am!" Renette was quiet for a long moment - finally breathing, Lucky thought - before she stared hard at the door. "What's going on in there, anyway?"

"Debriefing everyone involved," Lucky said with a shrug.

"Um… Weren't you involved?" Renette inquired.

Lucky grinned and shrugged again. "Something like that." With a shake of his head, he continued. "I already gave my side of the story, so Callie kicked me out. I was gonna leave, but I think I want to have a word with someone after they're done." Whispering, he added "Plus, seeing me hanging around might piss Callie off."

"Oh." was all Renette managed.

Lucky was shocked. The girl finally seemed like she had run out of energy, but he was willing to bet that wasn't true. He gave her a few moments of silence.

"So, I hear you got recruited right after the Cap'n and I left," Lucky said.

"Yup!" Renette replied, nodding energetically. Her previous silence had been entirely dispelled. "Just after Callie and Marie started their solo careers."

"Sooo… Let's say a certain Agent wanted to know all the juiciest details about what happened while he was underground…" Lucky trailed off for a moment, gauging Renette's reaction. "Let's say he wanted to know all this strictly off the books. Would you know someone who could tell him everything he needed to know?"

"Oh, sure! I'll tell you all about it, but you have to promise to tell me about your first adventure in Octo-Valley!" Renette replied, not hesitating. "Callie and Marie always seem to downplay how much you did, but if it was anything like what I did, it was a ton!"

"Yeah, sounds like something they'd do while I was gone," Lucky shook his head. "Yeah, deal. We can get the whole crew together and talk about our exploits, eh?" Renette looked a little confused at crew, but Lucky continued anyway. "But first, you gotta tell me… Callie really didn't want me to know about what happened. What happened?"

Renette looked momentarily concerned. She shook herself off and leaned in close. "Well, you see… After Marie's single beat Callie's in sales, Callie decided to take some time off. The thing is, she just kind of… Disappeared after that."

"You don't say." Lucky murmured. "Marie beat Callie, huh? Go on."

"So, you'll never guess what happened to her."

"Octarians."

"Bingo! DJ Octavio got his tentacles on a pair of mind-control sunglasses, and he got them on Callie. They did, like, an evil collab-album, or something…" Pausing for a moment, Renette tapped her finger to her chin. "I'm actually not too sure what he was trying to accomplish, but, anyway! Marie and I managed to knock the glasses off of her, and we locked Octavio back up."

Lucky let out a low, long whistle. "Wow. Not gonna lie, that kinda beats my stories, just in terms of ridiculousness. Evil collab-album. That's something."

"Want to know the worst thing though?"

"Is it about Callie?" Lucky asked. When Renette gave him a nod, he stood straight and put his hands on her shoulders. "If you tell me, I'll be your best friend."

"After we freed her from the sunglasses…" Stopping for a second, she peered over Lucky's shoulder, and then around the hallway, before leaning in towards Lucky. "She put them back on."

"No way. You're lying to me."

"I swear. She got mind-controlled again, freed Octavio, and they went back to Octo-Canyon. When Marie and I went to find them, they were doing a live-showed for a bunch of Octarians. We crashed the show and put everyone back where they belong. Again. We asked Callie what she was doing, and she said that she just 'wanted to see what would happen'."

Lucky couldn't even laugh. He desperately wanted to, but couldn't. "That's amazing. Damn it, that's actually amazing. I want to say I can't believe it, but I totally can."

"Marie was super mad at her. The only other person I've heard string together that many curse-words in one sentence is Pearl."

"Thank you," Lucky said, putting his face in his hands. "Thanks for that. I totally owe you one."

"Just don't let Callie know I told you, okay?" Renette replied, glancing around, looking almost scared. "She got really mad the last time I brought it up."

Lucky mimed a zipper across his lips and tossed it away. "Not a peep out of me. What's a little secret between Agents, right?"

Renette grinned. She gave a quick nod. "Right!"

The door to the conference room opened suddenly, and Lucky and Renette both turned as everyone shuffled out of the room. Callie and Marie came first, with the former shooting Lucky a dirty look as they passed. The Cap'n hobbled after them, mumbling something about features. Pearl and Marina were next, both looking rather pleased, though Lucky couldn't imagine what about. Polyp followed after them, impassive as ever.

"Eight, hold up a second," Lucky said, falling in step behind her.

Polyp stopped, turning to face Lucky. Pearl and Marina both stopped with her, their pleasant expressions gone. Pearl seemed ready to throw down, and Marina looked concerned, although Lucky wasn't sure who that concern was for. Renette sidled up beside Lucky, a curious look on her face.

"Eight? Like, Agent Eight? How did-"

Renette was interrupted as Callie swooped her up, taking her by the shoulder and guiding her out of earshot, muttering something about lateness and endangerment.

"What do you need, Lucky?" Polyp asked.

"Yeah. Whaddya want?" Pearl echoed, arms crossed and chest puffed up.

"What can we do for you, Agent Three?" Marina added, sounding considerably less confrontational than Pearl.

"I'd like to talk to Eight alone, actually," Lucky replied.

Both Pearl and Marina made to protest, but Polyp raised a hand to appease them.

"It's okay," she said evenly. "we'll just be a moment." She looked between Lucky and the two pop stars. "Right, Agent Three?"

"Right."

"Okay," Marina said before Pearl could pipe up. "We'll just be over here."

Marina took a few steps away, guiding Pearl by the shoulders as she did so. Lucky did the same, gesturing for Polyp to follow him. Just out of earshot, the two of them turned away from Pearl and Marina.

"I'm sorry." Polyp said, quickly and quietly. "They're both unsure of your intentions."

Lucky waved it off and shrugged. "It's fine. Musicians hate me."

"So what is this about?"

Lucky took a long moment to inhale and exhale. Gratitude normally wasn't in his nature. "I wanted to thank you. You did my job when I couldn't."

"You saved my life, and the Captain's. It's-"

"It's a bigger deal than it seems." Lucky interrupted, his cheeks going red and his tentacles rapidly shifting in color. "What you did, not what I did. You saved Inkopolis, and you kept me from hurting people. If it hadn't been for you, who knows what could have happened." Polyp remained quiet, her face downturned. "You're one of us now, no matter what happens. I'd totally get it if you wanted to forget about all this and move on with your life. But if you decide that you want to be an Agent, I promise, you'll be welcome here."

Polyp eventually looked back up at Lucky. "I don't know what to say."

Lucky shrugged half-heartedly. It was his turn to look away. "If you ever need anything, anything at all, let me know, okay? I'm not rich or famous like your friends over there, but I'll help however I can. It's the least I can do." After a moment, Lucky extended his hand.

Polyp shook it. "Thank you."

"Thank you, Polyp. I, ah… Hope you find whatever it is you're looking for, up here in Inkopolis."

Lucky threw open the door to his apartment and exhaled as he stepped in. Damn, it was good to be home. Everything was exactly where he had left it, and the apartment was absolutely filthy. I'll clean it later, he decided.

His duffel bag hit the top of the coffee table, and his rear hit the couch. It was quite possibly the most comfortable Lucky had been in his entire life. The peace of sitting on his own in the dark, after a long time spent underground with the constant hum of power and the rattle of the railway, was a surreal experience. It almost felt like some kind of fever dream. Lucky was half-expecting the Cap'n to shake him awake back in the underground.

He was incredibly relieved when, after a few minutes, that never happened. He wanted to close his eyes and sleep for a week or two but knew that there was at least one thing he had to do first. With a grunt, he pulled himself forward and pulled his phone and charger from his bag. His phone had been dead for almost two days, and before that, it was entirely impossible to get a signal in the underground.

Managing to stand himself up, Lucky plugged his phone in and threw himself back down on the couch. Twisting around, he fished his TV's remote out from between the cushions, flicked it on, and dropped it again. Some kind of documentary was on, but it was just background noise as Lucky yawned, stretched, and buried his face in his arms.

He only needed a little bit of juice in his phone, and then he could make a call. In the meantime, a couple winks of sleep wouldn't hurt anybody…

Yawning and sitting up, Lucky knew that he was absolutely wrong. As he stood, he glanced over at his phone, and its face glowed dimly, showing him a 100% reading. A dreadful feeling welled up his gut, and he picked it up and turned it on. It took a moment to quit showing logos and making sound effects, but when it did, missed calls, texts, and even emails started sweeping over his screen.

Lucky breathed out a curse as the notifications kept coming. With a sigh, he scanned through them all and realized that nearly all of them came from an unregistered number that he recognized all too well. He dialed it up and shook his head. Somebody eventually picked up.

"Hello?" came the garbled voice, sounding incredibly irritated.

"Hey, it's me," Lucky said.

The voice suddenly came through clearly and sounded suspiciously like Marie. "It took you long enough. We called a dozen times. We've got a situation."

"What's going on?"

"Octolings," was all Marie said. The line went silent for a moment.

"What do you mean, octolings?" Lucky prompted.

"A bunch of them just showed up. They're unarmed, and kind of confused. You need to get here."

"Alright, I'll-" Click.

Lucky's entire body sagged. Glancing at his phone, he realized it was just a little past 2 in the morning. He didn't even know what time it was when he got home. What he did know, was that he felt like fish crap, and he was gonna give someone an earful. Maybe Callie or Marie, for calling him, or maybe those octolings for showing up so damned late.

Lucky didn't bother to change clothes. He wasn't even sure if he had a clean outfit, anyway. Slinging his duffel bag over his shoulders, Lucky locked his apartment up and made his way to the nearest Agency access point.

When Lucky arrived, everybody was jammed into the interrogation observing room. The first thing that Lucky noticed, besides the dark, was that the Cap'n was napping peacefully in the corner. Everyone else was huddled against the one-way mirror. Callie, Marie, Renette, and Pearl all watched as Polyp and Marina talked to a squad of octolings, wearing nothing but skivvies.

"What's the news?" Lucky asked quietly, stepping up behind Pearl to get a clear view.

"These four turned up in the subway," Callie said, inclining her head. "They just got dumped out onto the tracks, half-naked and with no idea where they were."

"No idea of anything," Marie added. "Total amnesia."

"Almost total," Pearl corrected. "They all say they came looking for Eight."

"Any collateral?" Lucky asked, watching as one of the octolings gestured wildly.

"No. A maintenance worker found them and called the emergency lines, but we managed to intercept it. Agent Four rounded them up and talked the worker down."

"Nice," Lucky pretended not to notice as Renette wiggled, pleased by the praise.

The room fell silent as Marina nodded to the octolings and left the interrogation cell, leaving the brightly lit room and stepping out into the hallway. The observation room door opened a moment later, and Marina entered. Polyp remained, appearing to listen intently as the others took turns speaking.

"What's the word, Marina?" Pearl asked before the door was even closed.

"Nothing new," Marina said, crossing her arms and shaking her head sadly. "We've pressed for every detail we can, and they've all said the same thing, over and over." Her fingers drummed against her arms, and she shifted her footing. "They don't remember anything except a bright light and Agent Eight's face." A moment went by, and Marina added, "And a song."

"The Calamari Inkantation," Lucky said, stroking his chin.

"Exactly."

Lucky didn't want to say what he was about to say, and he had spent a while thinking about it. "Could they be lying?"

Pearl and Marina both gave him a look, of varying levels of dirtiness.

"I don't think they are," Marina said in a tone that didn't welcome a response.

Lucky chewed the inside of his cheek to shut himself up. While he still had plenty to say, he had decided a while ago that this wasn't quite the hill he was willing to die on. Beside him, Callie whispered something into Marie's ear, and they both stepped away from the window. Three kept his eyes fixed on the scene in the cell, but he heard them rouse the Cap'n from his sleep. The three of them muttered together, low and unintelligible.

Meanwhile, Polyp seemed like she wasn't making any headway at all. The frustration in the room was palpable. One of the nameless octolings drummed her fingers agitatedly, and another slumped in his chair and looked up at the ceiling. Lucky felt for Polyp; he had never been very good at communicating with octolings, on the few occasions when he wasn't trying to assault them. Maybe she was better at it than he was, considering she was an octoling. These four could just be particularly difficult. Or maybe the whole situation was just terrible.

Suddenly, Polyp stood from her seat. She looked at each octoling opposite her, said something to them, and almost as one, they all nodded. Polyp stepped away from the table and opened the door. She stepped out into the hallway, and in another moment, she was in the interrogation room, arms crossed as she stared off into the distance.

"Any luck?" Marina asked eventually. There was a certain hopefulness in her voice.

That broke Polyp out of her haze. She shook her head and frowned. "No. They've said the same few lines over a dozen times. They're adamant about this."

Pearl, Marina, and Polyp talked quietly amongst themselves. Lucky decided not to eavesdrop, and instead, watched the octolings. One of them, the irritated finger-drummer, let her head rest on the table. Lucky could practically feel the exhaustion coming off of her. One, who hadn't drawn any attention to himself before, stood and stretched, bouncing energetically on his feet. They all seemed to be speaking in low whispers, glancing between one another. The ceiling-watcher suddenly looked downward, gazing balefully at the mirror. His eyes flicked between different spots on it, and Lucky knew that he knew that he and his compatriots were being watched. Their eyes almost met, and Lucky decided to turn away from the glass, giving them what little privacy they had.

"I'm excited," Renette whispered, leaning close to Lucky.

"I'll bet," He said to her, glancing at her from the corner of his eyes. "You did good finding them."

"Thanks!"

Lucky turned and watched as Pearl, Marina, and Polyp closed ranks in a tight triangle. He leaned closer to them to better listen.

"They seem to want to stay, at least," Marina told Pearl.

"So, what are we going to do?" Pearl asked.

"Help them get settled," Marina replied. She looked at Polyp and smiled winningly.

Polyp gave Pearl and Marina a grateful smile. "I hope we can."

Pearl gave Lucky a sideways look and jerked her thumb at him. "I bet the Agency'll have something to say about that."

Lucky couldn't help but grin. "Sure will." He said with a shrug. "It's our job to keep everyone miserable, after all." He glanced at the four octolings in the interrogation cell. "We'll have them at a job they hate in no time." Simply to keep the bit going, he pointed at each individual octoling. "He's gonna be flipping burgers, she's gonna be a turf war attendant, she's gonna fold sweaters, and he's gonna mop floors in a theatre."

"As if!" Pearl shouted, going stiff from anger. She stabbed a finger into Lucky's chest. "If you think we're gonna let-"

Callie coughed loudly and yanked Lucky back by the shoulder. "If you're done riling up our new friends, Three, we've got something to discuss."

"The second one doesn't look like a people person, anyway," Marie quipped, to no one in particular. "If anything, she'd be the grill jockey."

"What was your plan, Callie?" Marina asked with hands clasped at her waist. "We'll help however we can."

"We were hoping you'd say that," Marie said.

"Agent Three, Agent Four," Callie began, suddenly sounding very businesslike. "I need you two to round up a few things for our octoling guests. A new change of clothes, sleeping bags, food or water if they need it. They're going to be staying in holding, for now, so get that prepped. You two will be staying with them. Dismissed."

Lucky sighed and sidled past Pearl and Marina to exit the room. Renette was on his heels, and she closed the door behind her.

"What do you think their plan is?" Renette asked as they walked. "Sounds like it's gonna be lots of work."

"I'm not entirely convinced they didn't cook it up just to torture me," Lucky said with a shrug. "Sounds like a whole lot of babysitting to me."

"I used to babysit so I could buy clothes."

Lucky shot her a sidelong glance. "Then hopefully you'll be doing more of it than I will."

"I think it'll be fun to hang out with all those octolings," Renette replied. "I've never been able to talk to one before. Not even Marina." Huffing, Renette puffed her cheeks and crossed her arms. "I was at an Off the Hook concert once and I never even got her autograph."

"Well, it sounds like you'll have plenty of time to get one now."

"Ohhhh, hey, you're right! Pearl and Marina are totally part of the team now!"

They arrived at storage, and Lucky punched in the keycode. The lock chirped, the door unlatched, and he pulled it open. Renette stepped in before him and made a beeline for the clothing locker.

"What sizes do you think they wear?" She asked, a little louder than necessary.

"How should I know?" Lucky replied, shaking his head at Renette's back. He made his way over to a shelf that was stocked full of camping supplies and started stuffing them underneath his arms. "Just pick something big. Better for them to be baggy than have to come and get another set." Six rolled-up sleeping bags barely clutched in his arms, Lucky shuffled to the door and turned to Renette, who was still sorting through uniforms. "I'm gonna drop these off at holding. I'll meet you back at the interrogation cell. Make sure to lock up, okay?"

"Okay!" came the response.

Lucky considered that good enough, and he left Renette to her own devices. The holding room was a brisk walk away, and he had to go past the interrogation room to get there. Slowing down as he passed, Lucky pressed his ear to the observation room and heard muffled voices, indistinguishable as they were. Still there, huh? Shaking his head, Lucky moved on and eventually found himself looking at a very plain door that had a small sign beside it. It read "Holding", but had a light layer of dust on top of it.

Lucky eventually managed to open the door with his elbow, and he stepped in. Tossing his cargo down on the floor, Lucky's hand swept along the wall for a light switch, and he eventually found it. Flicking the light on, he was as underwhelmed as he always was when he was in the holding room.

Its name may have implied that it was some kind of cell or temporary housing. At least, that's what Lucky had thought when he first heard it. Instead, it was just a giant storage closet. In one corner was a small stack of plastic and metal chairs, and in another was a small wall of neatly stacked cardboard boxes, filled with who knows what. The only thing that wasn't unimpressive about the room was its size; the thing was bigger than Lucky's apartment. There was just enough room for everyone to toss and turn without kicking each other.

His job done, Lucky left the holding room and made his way back to the interrogation room. Renette was there, waiting for him. Her arms were full, layered with uniforms. Lucky knew they were a little on the heavy side, and Renette tottered with their weight as she stepped away from the door, clearly wanting Lucky to open it for her.

"You could have gone in by now, you know," he told her instead.

She was silent for a long moment. "I was nervous," she replied, her voice muffled underneath a thick sleeve.

"Nervous?" Lucky feigned shock. "Of the amnesiac octolings? I thought you were excited."

"Can't I be both?"

Lucky grinned and shook his head. He gestured for Renette to follow him in as he opened the door and stepped inside.

All of the octolings turned to look at them. The one nearest slid her chair back, several steps away from the door.

"Okay, ladies and gents," Lucky said, squaring his shoulders and standing on the balls of his feet. "New clothes, courtesy of Squidbeak. Change whenever." Glancing at Renette from the corner of his eyes, he inclined his head towards the octolings.

It took her a moment, but it clicked in her head. Stepping forward, Renette set the bundle of clothing down on the table and stepped back. Nobody moved.

Sighing internally, Lucky coughed to get everyone's attention. "You'll all be staying here for the time being. If you're hungry, thirsty, or need anything else, now's the time to speak up." The room was dead silent for a moment before the distinct growl of a stomach broke the quiet. "Agent Four, can you get food and water? Enough for everyone."

"Huh?" Renette asked, as if she hadn't been paying attention. "Oh, yeah, sure thing, Lucky!"

She left the room, slamming the door behind her before Lucky could reprimand her for using his real name. It fell silent again, and this time, Lucky felt the weight of everyone's gaze on him. Suppressing a shrug, he seated himself in a chair across from the octolings, before realizing that none of them were really dressed.

He cleared his throat and inclined his head at them. "Do any of you want me to leave..?" He glanced between the clothes and the octolings for emphasis. None of them answered for a moment.

"No, we're fine." One of the young women said.

Lucky was almost worried that all of the octolings were shy, for a moment. That fear was dispelled when one of them, an energetic boy with bright eyes, snatched a pair of shorts and stood, tugging them on over his underclothes.

"So what's going on?" he asked as he dressed.

Lucky was taken aback by the straightforward question. "Well, seeing as it's…" Taking a moment, Lucky glanced at his phone. "Half past three, everyone's gonna be hitting the sack soon. Like I said, you'll all be staying here for the night. Agent Four and I will be staying with you to make sure your needs are met. You'll be properly briefed in the morning."

"Briefed?" the same woman who had spoken before asked. "So you have some kind of plan? What's going to happen?"

Lucky coughed gently and looked away from her. "I'm afraid I can't tell you that yet." Lucky was taken aback again, this time by the look on her face. She wasn't upset, or irritated, but disheartened. "Look… I understand if you're all anxious. We'll get you a good night's - er, morning's rest, and then we'll get everything sorted." Standing, Lucky stepped to the door and nodded. "I'm gonna see what's happening higher up the chain, and I'll pass it down to you. Gonna try and get all of you out of here soon. I'm sure you're all exhausted."

Lucky exited the room and closed the door behind him. Callie was waiting for him right outside, and he spat out a curse, recoiling from her. Crossing her arms, she cocked an eyebrow at Lucky.

"Ink me, don't sneak up on a guy like that, Callie." Lucky breathed.

"What's goin' on, Three?" she asked. "How are our guests?"

"Getting antsy," Lucky replied. "and I'm tired, so can we get them out of there? Unless you have another plan that you want to keep me out of the loop on."

"I've got a few, but that's beside the point. Chatting up our guests? Hear any juicy rumors?"

'"I heard that it's bedtime," Lucky retorted with a yawn. "We done, or what?"

Rolling her eyes, Callie began walking away, waving over her shoulder as she went. "Yeah, we're done. Take good care of our guests. Meeting in the morning, so don't be late!"

"Well, that's great." Lucky muttered, turning back to the door and throwing it open. The room's occupants all looked at least mildly surprised at his entrance. He even caught one of them pulling their new shirt on. "Good news. You're out of here. If you'll follow me, everyone can grab some grub and get some sleep."

"About time…" somebody mumbled, though Lucky didn't catch who.

Lucky stepped away from the door and motioned for everyone to follow him. They all stood, shuffling awkwardly around the mess of chairs, and filed out of the room. Lucky started towards their destination, waving the octolings on behind him.

"Holding's down this way." He said. Turning to address them, Lucky walked sideways and talked at the same time. "If anybody's gotta use the bathroom, now's the time to say so."

Nobody spoke up at first, and Lucky thought that was that. He turned away from them and kept walking.

"I need to use the bathroom," someone squeaked.

Lucky stopped and looked over his shoulder. Everybody stepped away from the speaker, her arms wrapped around her own torso as she stared at the ground. Lucky noted that it was the first time he had heard her speak.

"Oh, okay. No problem. Just a second." Lucky said. Turning away, he cupped his hands around his mouth and took a deep breath. "Agent Four!"

Around the corner, Lucky heard something clatter to the floor, and a panicked voice muttering to itself.

"H-Hang on!" came Renette's response. There were a few moments of what sounded like scraping, and then quick footsteps. Renette appeared around the corner a moment later, a backpack slung over her shoulder and visibly weighing her down. "What's up?"

Crossing his arms, Lucky shot Renette a curious look. "What's in the bag, Four?"

"Food!" She said excitedly, swinging it around so she could unzip it. "I didn't know what everyone would like, so I grabbed a bunch of stuff."

Leaning in, Lucky could tell that she had grabbed an absurd amount of food. He considered telling her to put it back but realized that there were more pressing matters. With a sigh, he extended an arm and gestured for her to hand it over.

"Give it here. I've got something for you to do." Lucky told her, standing aside and gesturing at the octolings. "Somebody's gotta use the head. Take her there, okay? We'll see you back at holding."

"Yeah, sure!" Renette replied, stepping away from the group. She gestured for someone to follow her, even though Lucky was absolutely certain that she didn't know who she was walking to the bathroom. The octoling in question stepped out of the group and followed her. Renette bombarded the poor girl with questions as they went.

Hefting the backpack, Lucky shrugged. Breakfast, I guess. Glancing over his shoulder, he gestured for the group to continue.

"Alright, c'mon," he said, and he started walking again. "Just over here."

They followed Lucky around the corner. The holding room was right there, door half open, lights leaking out into the dim hallway. Lucky nudged the door open with his foot and stepped back. He gestured for the octolings to enter, and after a moment they all shuffled in. He stepped in after them and set the backpack full of food down beside the doorway.

"It smells like dirt in here."

Chuckling, Lucky shrugged and leaned against the wall. "Yeah, it does that." He gestured to the sleeping bags on the floor. "Go ahead and make your beds." Bending down, Lucky grabbed the backpack and carried it to the center of the room. He unzipped it and set it down, before stepping away. "Grab some grub if you're hungry, too. Got a busy morning, you might as well eat now."

There was a bit of grumbling, too low for Lucky to hear, but everyone seemed content to unpack a sleeping bag and claim their spot in the room. Lucky was surprised when they didn't bunch up and instead spread themselves as thin as they could. What didn't surprise him was the fact that they all placed themselves as far away from his as possible. They set up at their own pace, to Lucky's bemusement. He had always figured that octolings were uptight and disciplined. He had images of the whole lot of them in a line, sleeping bags neatly laid out in the blink of an eye, reminiscent of the old training reels from the Great Turf War.

The energetic one was the first to finish laying his bag out, and he was by far the closest of the three. Looking satisfied, he came over and crouched by the bag. He looked curiously at it, before glancing at Lucky.

"Any recommendations?" He asked in a way that seemed far too plain for the situation they were in. As if they weren't in an underground fortress, as if he wasn't an amnesiac octoling who had washed up on a railroad track.

Unable to suppress a grin, Lucky shrugged. "Avoid anything that says 'shrimp' on it. I don't know what they put in there, but it definitely isn't shrimp."

"Thanks!" Came the reply, and he walked back to his sleeping bag with some kind of meal bar.

The other two eventually came over, though both of them looked warily at Lucky as they did so. The room was, unsurprisingly, tense and awkward. The energetic octoling, parked against the wall to Lucky's left, seemed like the only one in the room who didn't harbor some kind of resentment against him. The three of them ate quietly, with varying levels of gusto. One of them, the only young woman in the room, made a sour face and chewed grumpily. Glancing at her hand, Lucky couldn't help but smirk.

"I warned you," he said, eyeing the can of shrimp and noodles in her grip.

She glared at him and took another angry bite as if to spite him.

Lucky wanted to laugh but bit his tongue instead. All the octolings seemed to hate him, and it probably wouldn't get any better if they started to think he was mocking them. Just to busy himself, he took the backpack, closed it up, and put it in an unoccupied corner.

Lucky perked up as footsteps and chatter grew loud in the hallway. The fact that he only really heard one voice wasn't lost on him, and as Renette and her charge entered, it was clear that whatever conversation they were having was one-sided. The octoling, her head downturned, walked to the far wall of the room, put her back to the wall, and slid down to the floor. Renette, seemingly unaware of whatever stress she may have caused the poor girl, picked out her sleeping bag and unrolled it. She was a few paces to Lucky's right, nestled into the corner.

The room was quiet again, and it almost felt comfortable. The shy octoling curled up on herself, looking absolutely miserable. Lucky couldn't quite blame her. Sighing, he picked up her sleeping bag and stepped a few paces closer to her, leaving ample room between the two of them. Still, her eyes were fixed to the floor at her toes.

Lucky wanted to say something to get her attention but honestly had no clue how to address her. He stood there, in the middle of the room, for more than a few seconds, and realized that a least a few pairs of eyes were on him.

"Hey, sea snail," Lucky blurted out, trying to sound like he wasn't acting under immense pressure.

It took the octoling in question a moment to realize he was talking to her, and she looked up at him.

"Catch," He told her, raising the sleeping bag for emphasis. He waited a moment, just to make sure he didn't bean her with the thing, and then tossed it to her.

She caught it, muttered something Lucky couldn't make out, and unrolled it. Instead of lying in it, she pulled it up around her shoulders and turned away.

Lucky stepped away from her and glanced around the room, doing a quick headcount. Grumpy boy, grumpy girl, shy girl, energetic octo, energetic squid… Everyone was accounted for, and Lucky felt like he was good to close up shop. He went over and closed the door, before turning around to address the room.

"Okay, everyone settled in?" He asked, fists on his hips. When no one answered, he took it as an affirmative. "Great. It's lights out, then. Got a busy morning, so, everyone should get some shuteye."

Lucky flipped the switch, and the room went dark. A small strip of light leaked through the long window on the door, but the room was otherwise dark and still. Lucky heard a lot of shuffling as the room's occupants made themselves comfortable. He waited for a moment, listening carefully for anything that could possibly be considered suspicious, but heard nothing but fabric and breathing. Satisfied, he spent a moment flailing in the dark as he felt around for his own sleeping bag. Once he had it laid out, right in front of the door, he tucked himself in and hunkered down for what he was certain was going to be a sleepless night.

Lucky was amazed when he realized he had blacked out for at least a few minutes. He was less amazed when he realized why he had woken up. The sore spot on his head was surely going to give him a headache later.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!" Came the half-shouted, half-whispered apology from the other side of the door. Lucky rose and rubbed the top of his head, kicking his bed away as he opened the door fully. To his surprise, Polyp was on the other side, a sleeping bag clutched in her hands and a concerned look on her face. "Are you okay?" She asked.

"What's, uh, what's going on..?" Lucky asked groggily, cocking an eyebrow at Polyp.

"I decided to stay the night here, with all of you," She replied, sounding almost embarrassed. "If you and Four are both here with our friends, it's only right that I am, too."

Even in his semi-conscious state, Lucky figured that Polyp had a point. "Oh, ah, yeah, okay. Come on in, join the slumber party." He stepped aside and flicked the light on. Everyone groaned and shielded their face as the lights came on, but did so quickly enough to assure Lucky that they were all at least as awake as he was. "Make yourself at home."

Polyp made her way to the very center of the room and set herself up right there. When Lucky thought she was adequately settled, he shut the door and turned the lights off. The ache in his head hadn't really settled yet, and he was hoping it wouldn't if he got himself to sleep quickly. He tucked himself back into his bag and screwed his eyes shut.

"Good night, everyone," Polyp said softly, sounding as if she was already drifting off to sleep.

To Lucky's surprise, she was met with a low chorus of good nights in return. Even more surprising was the fact that Lucky heard his own voice in there.

Then, the only sound was a steady, rhythmic breathing, with every inhale and exhale almost perfectly synced up.