Episode 1: Arrival Part 1
It was your average day on Earth. Walking home from your school at the end of the day, noticing bullies picking on kids for no good reason, try to defend them, wind up getting chased. That was the life for Eric Inkon. Eric had red eyes outlined with black across the face, red hair in the form of a double ponytail, pointed ears, two sharp teeth on the upper jaw and one on the lower jaw while the rest are normal and has the squid as a birthmark on his neck. He wore a dark red shirt with a black squid on it, a bright red jacket and a pair of black shorts. Eric hated bullies and whenever he tried to stop them, he always became the new target. He's always been on the run from bullies. Sometimes he gets away; other times not so much. Being tackled to the ground and being punched half to death is example of Eric's life with bullies.
"HEY!" cried a female voice which Eric recognized. Everyone turned their heads to the source, only to their eyes, save for Eric, widened at the sight of an angry cyan-haired girl about the same age as Eric. She had very long ponytails on the sides, cyan-colored eyes also with black outlining, three sharp teeth, and pointed ears. She wore an azure shirt with a white squid on it, a cyan coat and denim jeans.
"Tanya!" Eric called out in relief.
"Leave my cousin alone!" Tanya snapped, causing the bullies to back away in fear before running off. When it comes to family, Tanya will always be there for them. Especially her cousin, Eric. "You alright, Eric?"
"Yeah… I'll be fine." Eric answered. "Just a few bruises and twisted ankle, that's all."
"Oh my, let me help you up." She held out her hand and brought her cousin back to his feet. She put his arm over her shoulder so she could help him home. "I'll carry you back home."
"Tanya, you don't have to do that. I'm fine." He insisted."
"Sorry, cousin, but I'm not letting you out of my sight." Tanya shot back. "Besides, what if those bullies come back for you?"
"Hm, good point."
"Now, how's about we head home?" Tanya suggested, receiving a nod from Eric.
Eric and Tanya made it home as fast as they could. Despite Eric's twisted ankle and his added weight, Tanya could carry him faster than the Easter Bunny could deliver eggs. Tanya made sure they weren't followed, because if those bullies were to ever show their faces to them, she would kick their asses like there's no tomorrow. They got themselves to the front door and Eric got out the key to their home out of his pocket before unlocking the door. But before he could open the door, Tanya spoke up.
"Remind me again why our parents trusted you with the key." She said.
"Remember last time when your mom trusted you with taking care of her office?" Eric recalled the last time his cousin took care of things. He giggled at the memory of how she got chased around the house by her mother after she found her office in a wreck.
"That was one time!" Tanya gave a defensive glare to his cousin.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Eric rolled his eyes before he and Tanya walked inside.
"WE'RE HOME!" They both called out out to their parents.
"Oh, Eric, Tanya. Good see you back here in time for dinner." Eric's mom poked out of the kitchen door. She had blonde hair and brown eyes, and wore a ponytail, a red kitchen apron, a denim jeans and red high heels.
"Indeed, Mary! Any longer, we would've started to dine without them." Tanya's father spoke up. He had the same facial features as Eric and Tanya. He wore a double ponytail, a white business shirt, indicating he was some sort of business man, and black pants.
"Now, Tobias, we would never do that to our children." Tanya's mother stated. She looked exactly like Tanya, so if anyone were to get a good look at them, they might mistake them as twin sisters (one of them with a major growth spurt). She wore a cyan top, gray pants and cyan high heels.
"I know. I was just toying with them, Linda." Tobias replied.
"I know, honey." Linda playfully gave him a wink and smirk, which he returned.
"So…*ahem*… will Dad be joining us for dinner?" Eric asked, hopeful, ignoring the conversation Tanya's parents were having.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Eric, but you're father won't be home for a whole week." Mary frowned.
"What? Why?" Eric asked with tone of disappointment.
"My brother had some business thing come up in Tokyo, and he has to be there for it to keep his job." Tobias said.
"Oh, alright." Eric said. "I guess… I can respect that."
"Oh, don't you worry! My brother law will be back before you can say 'bon voyage' a hundred billion times!" Linda pinched Eric's cheek.
"MOM! You're hurting him!" Tanya exclaimed, making her mother realize what she was doing.
"Oh, my mistake." Linda apologized, letting go of her nephews cheek. "Now, who wants sweet and sour chicken."
"YUMMY!" Both kids yelled in excitement.
When the kids finished their dinner, they went upstairs to take separate baths, brush their teeth and head straight to bed. Tanya and Eric lived across from each other, so when one of them has a nightmare and need to be comforted, they would be there for each other. Even though they're not brother and sister, they have a bond stronger than any siblings. That's why Tanya was so protective of Eric; her sisterly instincts kick into overdrive when her brother is in trouble. But other than that, they're completely normal teenage cousins that wish to have a great future.
Eric was having trouble sleeping. He kept having images of squid that transform into human pop in front of him. They all had some kind of weapons that could shoot a colorful substance. But that wasn't only thing in his dream. He saw some kind of octopi that appeared to be either tentacles or machines with living tentacles. Unlike the squid creatures, the octopi creatures had an exclusive color to their weapons ammo; dark magenta. They shot it at the squid kids until they suddenly popped and Eric gasped in horror. This does not miss the ears of the octopus soldiers.
They faced Eric as he backed away slowly, only to be cornered and stuck on a wall covered in the dark magenta substance. The soldiers suddenly made a path that led toward Eric's end. On the end was something that sent the chills up his spine. It appeared to be some kind of floating beast with giant fists and eyes glowing villainously. Eric gulped in fear as the beast raised its fist before bringing back down to...
"Agh!" Eric woke at the ringing of his alarm clock. He sighed in relief for its perfect timing. Even though it was a dream, it just felt so real to him. He shook it off, got dressed and went downstairs for breakfast. But before he could reach the staircase, he remembered to wake Tanya. That was a close call. The last time no one woke her up, she missed breakfast and was nearly late for school. At the end of the day, she would just talk non stop until they get home about how she had to rush everything. Eric always shivers at that memory.
Eric knocked on her bedroom door saying "Tanya, time get up."
"Coming!" Tanya exclaimed in a yawn. Eric waited for a few seconds for Tanya to come out. "How'd you sleep?"
"Very strangely." He answered. "How about you?"
"Same here." She replied as they walked downstairs.
"MOM! We're up and ready for break-" Eric was cut off at the sight of, well, nothing.
There was absolutely no sign of anyone in the house. Usually, Mary would be cooking breakfast, Uncle Tobias would be watching the news and Aunt Linda would be ready to jump at them and hug them so badly. The only thing that filled this house was silence. No Tv, no cooked up food and no creaking doors to give away Linda's hug attack.
"Mom? Dad? Aunt Mary?" Tanya called out to them, but there was no reply.
"W-Where are they?" Eric asked in concern.
"I don't know, but let's check the house to see if they're hiding." Tanya recommended. "You check their rooms and I'll check the attic."
"Sounds good to me." He nodded before heading their parents' rooms, while Tanya checked the attic.
They found nothing…
"Did you find them?" Tanya asked, a bit worried.
"Sorry, Tanya, but looked everywhere twice." Eric said before realizing there was on place they hadn't checked. "Except…"
Tanya raised her eyebrow in confusion before she realized what her cousin had meant. "Oh no! Our parents told us not to go down there."
"Come on, Tanya. It's the only place we haven't checked." Eric made his point.
"Oh… alright." Tanya surrendered before following Eric into the backyard to the one place they had not checked.
The basement…
Eric was doing his best to get it open, but apparently, the basement door was locked from the inside.
"Okay… now how do we open the basement door?" Tanya asked as she saw her brother get tired of pulling.
Eric was rubbing his chin before noticing a nearby crowbar. A lightbulb lit up in his brain at the idea he had for it. He grabbed it and stuck it in between the door and its rim so he could pry the door open.
"Um… are you sure that'll work?" Tanya asked in a concerned, yet suspicious tone.
"Trust me, I've seen a lot of people do it in cop movies; I think I know what I'm doing." Eric answered before pulling back on the crowbar.
"You do realize that the classic forceful crowbar entrance is just-" Tanya was cut off by the sound of the basement door opening. She looked up to her cousin who gave a raised eyebrow in an 'oh really?' look. "I underestimated your belief in movie stunts."
"Yes, yes you did." He replied as he entered the basement.
When they got to the bottom of the basement stairs, it was pitch black, so Eric felt a nearby wall for a light switch. He then felt a vibration on his hand, so turned to see his hand being scanned. He swiftly retracted his arm before the lights suddenly lit up the room. But he and Tanya saw was not the creepy basement the expected it to be. There was technology and computers surrounding the room. The tech all looked like it was from either the future or another world. Eric's mouth dropped while Tanya just almost fainted before Eric caught her and brought her back to her feet.
"What is all this?" Eric asked his almost fainted cousin.
"I have no idea." Was the the only answer Tanya could provide.
Before Eric looked even further, he noticed some kind of tube on the dashboard of one of the computers. He wanted to see what it was, so went over to pick it up and look at it. It felt a bit hollow, so he felt like there was something in the container. He found a password lock on the top with a screen with slots made for five letters. But in what order?
Eric then noticed some kind of button on the side of the container. He pressed it and at first nothing happened until…
"Hello."
Eric jumped at the disembodied voice. He then found a speaker on the opposite side to the button.
"Welcome to the Code Container System. CCS for short." The voice introduced itself. "In order to unlock the container, you need to input the code that was programmed into my system and the only way to obtain it is through a riddle." Eric couldn't argue with that. He knew that something with a code would not be given away so easily. "I have ten arms, yet four are useless; I ink to protect, though I am neutral; I have eyes, yet I can't see where I go; I goes on land, though it was sea where I came; what am i?"
Eric gave it some thought for a few seconds before realizing that the answer was so simple. He typed in his answer and entered it into the system. The machine took a while to load before giving off the sound of three bells, which caught Tanya's attention.
"CORRECT! SQUID IS CORRECT!"
"Eric, what did you do?" Tanya asked as she approached her cousin.
Eric was about to answer when the machine opened up, revealing a letter. One had a red ribbon that said, 'From Markus, Mary, Tobias and Linda'.
"It's from our parents." Eric pointed out before opening his letter.
Dear Eric and Tanya
If you found this letter, it means we're no longer amongst the work of the living. We're sorry for you to hear this, but know this; we did not go down without a fight. We were hoping this day would never come that you would have to take the same risks we had, but sometimes life doesn't go the way you want it. Also we kept a dark secret from both of you. We were hoping to wait until you're older, but unfortunately, it can't wait much longer. Neither one of you are human, or at least not Tanya. We originate from another world where we special abilities. Eric you must know that your mother was the only human who knew our secret. Because of your inhuman abilities, you will be able to do great things. You can save our other home planet, if you both decide to follow in our footsteps. If you do choose to go, know this, your lives will never be the same again.
Love, Your Family
Eric and Tanya could not believe what they have just read. They were from another world? What the hell kind of crap is that? But what was most shocking is that Eric was half alien. Could that have been why they didn't fit in? How could they keep such a life-changing secret?
"We're… aliens?" Eric looked like he was about to cry.
"H-How is that possible?" Tanya choked up her words. "How could they do this?"
They then got the feeling of being watched so they turned around. They saw what looked like some kind holographic humanoid.
"It was to protect you from harms way." The AI answered Tanya's question.
"W-Who are you?" Eric cautiously asked.
"I'm AIIU; the Artificial Intelligent Inkling Unit." The hologram explained before the kids wondered at the word Inkling. "Right now is not the best time to explain. You must make up your minds to go with me to your home planet or not."
Tanya pulled Eric in and whispered to him. "How do we know this isn't a trap?"
"I don't know, but…" Eric was cut off when he and Tanya heard some nearby rustling and whispers in the backyard.
"This where the strange energy signature came from."
"Yeah, but where the hell is it?"
"Hey! I see something down there."
"… it's like not we have a choice." Eric finished as he and Tanya held each other tightly.
"The government of this world's nation must've detected my energy signature when this bunker was reactivated." AIIU predicted. "If we are to leave, then we must be on our way."
Tanya couldn't decide whether or not to go. If they go, what if they never come back? If they stayed, the government would probably arrest them. Eric knew she was hesitant, so he spoke up.
"Look, Tanya, you need to decide, because I'm not leaving without you. And i'm pretty sure you would do the same thing for me." He told his cousin who looked at before nodding in agreement. That meant she was going.
"We're ready." Tanya told AIIU.
"Very well. Hold on to each other, for this is going to be a rough ride." AIIU explained before shielding the kids and himself in an orb and teleported themselves out of there.
Where did they go?
At an abandoned manhole in a great metropolis on another world, eight friends were waiting for someone… or something.
"Ah, Pepper! How much longer do we have to wait?" The yellow orange cowgirl Inkling impatiently asked.
"Be patient, Stacy." The orange Inkling, Pepper, hushed Stacy. "AIIU said they would get here when they get here. Right, Thomas."
"Exactly, Pepper." Thomas, the emerald green Inkling said. "And by my calculations, they'll be here in less than two minutes, right where Carla, Vlad and Alice are standing.
"Wait, they're gonna land on top of us?" The lime green Inkling, Alice, said before taking large step to her right.
"It seems that way." Vlad, the purple Inkling, took a large step back.
"Yep, sure does." Carla, the pink Inkling, went to her left.
"So, Pete, what'll you think of the newcomers, mate?" The teal Inkling spoke to the blue one right next to him.
"I'll have to see for myself, Tom." Pete shrugged.
"Well I'm tired of waiting!" Stacy slammed her fist into the wall. "Wait here, wait there. It's driving me nuts! I've had up to here at angry urchin! I want out of-"
Stacy was cut off by a beam of light that slowly dimmed. When the light was out, the Neon Council saw AIIU carrying two teenagers. The boy was red and the girl was cyan. When the shield dropped, the two could finally open their eyes. They let go of each other and got to their feet. It was then they noticed the Neon Council. They were surprised to see people that looked like them. But what were they, exactly?
"Um… hi." Pete spoke up. "Who are you two?"
"Um…" was the only thing that came out of their mouths.
"Do you guys even speak?" Stacy interrupted before being smacked on the back of the head by Alice.
"Uh… hi. My name's Eric." The red hybrid said.
"And I'm his cousin, Tanya." The cyan Inkling said.
"We're the Neon Council." Pepper spoke up. "AIIU said we were supposed meet you two here."
'Wherever here is.' Eric thought. "Where are we exactly?"
"You're in Inkopolis, the capital city of Oceana." Pete said.
"Ho hoho… there you are!"
Before Eric or Tanya could respond, a crabby old voice jumped in. Then all of a sudden, an old man in rags and wearing an captains hat just popped out of the manhole.
"You must be Cap'n Cuttlefish." Vlad said.
"Eeyup, and you must be the chosen ones the prophecy has spoken of!" Cap'n Cuttlefish replied.
"Prophecy?" Tanya echoed. "What Prophecy?"
"Just follow me and you'll know what I mean!" Cap'n Cuttlefish dive back into the manhole.
Eric, Tanya and the Neon Council looked at each other to figure out what to do. What if it's not safe? What if this is trap? They'll never know until they tried.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's dive in, mates!" Tom exclaimed before the council and himself turned into squid then dived into the manhole.
Eric and Tanya were shocked at what the council can do. Could they transform into squid too?
"Can we do that?" Eric asked his cousin.
"Dunno, but let's just stick to being on foot." Tanya replied before going into the sewers, followed by Eric.
"Seems best." He said before dropping the manhole lid behind him.
What they didn't noticed was that a pair of dark glowing eyes were watching them. Who is this stranger? What does he have to do with this 'prophecy'? Find out next time on Splatoon: Multicolored Adventure.
