Note: This takes place in 2018, but there are no humans, only Octolings, Inklings, Shrimp, Jellyfish, etc.. For the sake of my sanity and ease of writing, countries and continents are the same (i.e. Inkopolis is located in Japan) to help differ characters and make them something other than a sea-based species alone. Things such as YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and any other social media platform will still be in use, but SplatNet will be the main one used along with the aforementioned YouTube. But anyways, onto the story.
Hey! Name's Jack! I've been in Inkopolis for over six years now. Guess I should explain how I ended up here. Okay, so it all started when Agents One and Two came to Octo Valley to fight the Octarians who were trying to overtake Inkopolis. The two agents happened to stumble across me while on a mission. After trying to kill me for the better part of a half-hour, I ended up being brought back with them. Crazy how things turn out, huh? Now I live in Inkopolis with the rest of the Inklings. Sure the Inklings happen to hate Octarians, but I manage. And there are two special Inklings who don't hate me, Agents One and Two, who happen to be super-ultra-mega pop-stars, Callie and Marie. But I guess I'm not pure-Octarian, as my mother was an Inkling, so I'm a rare (by that I mean insanely rare) hybrid of both. The other agents may or may not have freaked when I told them. It has benefits, as I get to turn into a black ink octopus about the size of most squids, which is amazing for sneaking at night or on dark concrete. I also get to have two more tentacles on my head, though some may argue that makes me stick out from other Inklings (which is super fucking cool). But I do get a really cool mixture of both races. I mean, I don't really fit on teams for turf wars as no other Inkling has black ink, but I somehow make it work.
Anyways, enough about me. I sat on a couch inside the Squid Sisters' headquarters. The duo were off doing their big concert scheduled for tonight, which happened to be live from Town Centre. And while it is exclusive to the lucky ones who bought tickets to a semi-secret house show, I get to chill in HQ with nobody in the building. I'm not saying that there was anything to do, but it was cool. Although it was insanely quiet and lonely, I found a way to just chill out. There were some Inklings who stood outside holding signs directed towards the Sisters. They said that an Octarian (me) should not be allowed in Inkopolis, whether the reason was anti-Octarian or not. Callie had always been looking at the positive side of having me in the city, mainly that they were expressing that Inklings should accept Octarians and vice-versa. And while I agreed thoroughly with her point, there is no reason for her and her cousin's fans should attack me for having the extra two tentacles that I was born with. The concert wasn't over for another hour, and then the commute would be complete and utter shit, so I have another hour or two alone in the HQ, I let out a sigh as the protesters got louder and louder as more and more Inklings join the rally. After sitting for another hour, the duo weren't back. I decided to go out into the city. The angry outcries from protesters continued to increase in volume as I snuck out of the back of the building. Now what to do? I could always go to Crusty Sean's, but he might have an influx of customers tonight. Why he would is beyond me, but that's besides the point. How about a turf war? Why the fuck not? Got nothing better to do. As I was on my way to the arena, I bumped into someone. "Oh, sorry!" I quickly spat out. I turned around to make sure the Inkling I ran into was fine. "Are you okay?" I asked. "Yeah," They replied as they brushed their shirt. "Just watch where you're going next time, okay." The voice was feminine. I started to make out the details of the Inkling. She had blue tentacles with brown eyes. That was what I was comfortable with making out at least. "Uh... hey. You wanna go do a turf war or something?" I asked in a likely futile attempt to meet another Inkling that wasn't Callie or Marie. "Sure. I mean, not like there's anything else to do right now anyways." She answered. I was happy that someone finally talked to me. I was hoping that she didn't notice the two extra tentacles on my head, or that she at least didn't freak out.
As the two of us walked down to the arena, someone (who clearly knew I was Octarian) called out that "Octarians should not be in Inkopolis," and threw a can at me. I looked to my right. The girl who I had been walking with stood in shock. When she finally decided to talk, it was more passive than aggressive. "So you're an Octarian?" She asked nervously. "Yeah," I said as I rubbed the back of my neck. "Sorry for not telling you." I felt like an idiot for thinking she wouldn't notice, especially since we were going into a well-lit battle arena. I knew that there was no way to react without being angry. "I understand if you're mad and wanna hit me or something." I sort of prepared myself to be hit, but I wasn't hit at all. So she left. Only other option. "It's fine that you're here, dude." She said. I opened my eyes and relaxed, albeit confused. "It is? Usually Inklings aren't so accepting of my kind here. " I responded. "What? Do you assume that all Inklings are anti-Octarian?" She asked. "Well, yeah. Kinda," I replied. "Every Inkling I've run into so far has had an issue with me being here." She looked a bit hurt at my assumption. "Well stop being scared, because some of us are really looking to progress and improve our relations with Octarians, you know." She spat. I knew everyone here hated me, whether I did something to them or not. This one was my fault. She started tearing up after she released her anger. "Look. I shouldn't have been so one-minded about Inklings, especially you, but just trust me, I'm not as bad as others make me out to be." I said. No reply. As I knew she would. "I trust you, but just be more understanding of what you're kind did to us." She said. "I will." Is all I said before we both knew things were fine. "So... about that turf war you offered." She joked. "I know, I know." I said.
We finished our walk to the arena. "How're you gonna participate in the turf war? You have black ink," She asked. "And how do you even turn into a squid anyways?" We stopped walking for a moment. "Um... uh... how do I put this?" I stuttered. "I'm... uh... my mom... was an Inkling." I said after babbling like an idiot. "Oh," was all she could muster. "I guess that must've been really awkward with your parents and all," She rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. "Sorry if that's an emotional thing for you." She apologized. "No, it's fine. Just kind of not a thing I talk about much. Something that made some fuckin' bastards mess with me back in primary and secondary school." I admit. "Primary and secondary school?" She asked. "Oh! It's the same as your schooling, but elementary and middle school are called "primary", while high school is "secondary" school." I told her. "But you were fucked with in school?" She asked. "Yeah. Also a thing that doesn't come up in conversations much shockingly. But it's was nothing much. It was opposite from here and how Inklings aren't very fond of Octarians. We are very passionate about our anger with Inklings." I answered. "So are you one of the angry Octarians, or no?" She asked. "I'm fucking half-Inkling! I can't be angry or upset at either side!" I said a bit angrier than what else had been said. "Oh, sorry. Didn't know you were that passionate about both races." She apologized. "Well, I'm normally not. But it's just been a really long day for me, okay." I said. "Do you still wanna do a turf war?" She offered. "I can't now." I replied. "And why's that?" She mocked. "Because a certain someone has reminded me that I can't join a team." I said sarcastically. "Oh yeah, forgot about that," She replied. "So now what?" Callie will give me shit later for this idea. "You wanna head back to my place?" I asked, hoping it didn't come off as weird as it sounded. "That's not something you hear from a stranger, but sure." She answered.
I walked her all the way back to HQ, which confused her a little. "Why are we here?" She asked. "This is where I hang out for most of the day." I answered. "How? This is the Squid Sisters' studio!" She exclaimed. "The Squid Sisters brought me here after finding me in Octo Valley. Now I hang out here with 'em." I replied. "But where do you live?" She asked. "I live with the Sisters as well. I work for them in a sense. I do the online portion of the work, not PA, but something like that." I answered. "Sounds fun, wish I did something like that." She responded. "What do you do for work?" I asked. "Just do turf wars for fun, it pays fine and it's fun, but I mean, it isn't a full-time job." She answered. "Look, I can try and get you an interview, but I make no guarantees." I offered. "I like this offer. I've been looking for a job for quite a while now." She accepted. "Yeah, but it's pretty fun around here. We aren't very professional most of the time surprisingly." I admit. "That's good though. If it were too formal would you still work for them?" She asked. I actually thought hard about this, as it is something I wouldn't want. "I wouldn't do as much work or be as ambitious as I've been. So, yeah. I guess it is good that we aren't very formal around here." I replied.
It was almost ten when Callie and Marie got back. Me and my new friend had been talking about oddly serious topics for some reason, such as work, politics, and relationships. It was weird, but it felt like I'd known them for my entire life. "Jack! We're back!" Callie yelled into the headquarters. They entered the main area and froze. "What the hell? We told you not to bring anyone who didn't work here into HQ!" Callie yelled. "Why don't you listen sometimes?" She asked. "Because I need to find new friends that aren't in the office all the time." I answered. "At least ask us before you bring someone here. This is like a second home for us and you know it is for everyone else too." Callie said, continuing her lecture. "I know it is, but you weren't around and the city was too enticing for me not to go out. I just happened to meet someone and bring them back," I said sarcastically. "Plus, I wanted someone new to join the crew." Callie had face-palmed so hard that it probably could be heard throughout the rest of the empty HQ. "If you wanted someone to join you and your crew, you could've told us you were looking for new members to bring on board." She said irritably. "Well, I found someone who was willing to join." I said, pointing to the person behind me. "Ugh, fine. But I'm only doing it this once, okay?" She said, slowly getting more and more sick of my shit. "Thanks! She seems like a cool addition, I think she'll fit right in." I told Callie. Marie had left already, probably preparing to go home. "Just, can we do this tomorrow? Marie is going to whine like crazy if we don't leave soon." She begged. I don't blame her either, Marie is insufferable when she gets tired. "That's fine, as long as I don't have to hear Marie bitch about not being home and asleep yet." I agreed.
I made sure to escort her out the building, as I had brought her here in the first place. "Wait," I said, causing her to stop. "I never got your name." I said. "It's Navi. I'm gonna guess yours is Jack." She replied with a small giggle. "Yeah, it is. So, I'll see you tomorrow, right?" I asked before she left. "Yeah. Hopefully I land the job." She said. "I'm sure you'll do fine." I responded before parting ways with her. I got into the car with Callie and Marie. "So, who was that?" Marie asked. "That was Navi, just met her today." I answered. "Why'd you bring her to HQ, dickhead?" Marie mocked. "Well, no real reason, just cause I got bored of standing in public and wanted to head back." I replied. "You still shouldn't have done that, and you're lucky that I'm even allowing her to get an interview after what you did." Callie snapped. "Look, can we worry about this when it happens. Yell at me tomorrow, it's too late for this shit, okay?" I said, ending the conversation there.