Four was not very excited to enter the sewers.
For one, they were the sewers, aka super nasty. There was no telling what was in them! Besides, like, nasty stuff… But that's par for the course.
It was also where Agents 3 and 8 frequently frequented. And… Who knows what goes on between two consenting adults?! Four doesn't know. And Four doesn't want to find out.
But Four will.
The sewers are dark and gross… Because they're sewers. They don't smell good. I will let you decide what they smell like, as long as it is gross.
"Threeeeee!" Marie calls, trying to find the nastier agent.
"Eight!" Marina also calls, trying to find her unofficial daughter.
Four began to hear Noises in the sewers. Noises that do not normally come from sewers… A shiver shot down her nonexistent spine. I cannot disclose what kind of noises that they are beyond that.
"I found them!" Callie said suddenly. She stopped crying a little bit after she bought her Squonda Squivic. The Squonda Squivic's horn beeped. It was a different beep than the beep that came from the Pearlbot. It was a car's beep. The car was also empty, but it followed behind them as if it had a mind of its own. No one questioned it. They all knew better than to question a Squonda.
If Four's voice worked, she would have yelled at Callie to ask if they were decent first… But it didn't. So she just kind of sat there awkwardly while Callie's foot slammed into an out-of-place wooden door. She was wearing boots, so the door flew off the hinge and into the wall behind it.
"JESUS FUCKING CHRIST," Four heard someone yell.
"Am I dying?" asked someone else.
Callie marched into the room. Marie followed her. Craig disappeared a while ago. And Marina flailed after the two idols. The car was too big to fit in the doorframe, so it waited outside. What a nice car.
Four slowly walked in.
There she saw Agents 3 and 8… They were close. Dangerously close. Dastardly close. Four let out a silent gasp.
"You were playing chess?!" Callie cried. "How could you!?"
"I'm sorry, Callie…" Three said in an anime protagonist voice. You know the one. "I… I didn't want you to know…"
Callie began to cry again. Everyone immediately tuned her out.
"Eight, did… How long did you know about this?" Marina asked. She sounded sad.
"Since… Since day one, Marina…" she whispered, wiping away a tear. It was beautiful… Too bad they were in a sewer. "I… I'm sorry…"
Marina wept. Her tears danced around like inflatable tube men.
"We… We can work through this…" Marie inhaled sharply. "Maybe… Another time?"
Three nodded.
"Why, um…" She cleared her throat. "Why did you come here?"
"An army of Pearl robots (Pearlbots) are going to take over the world," Marina explained. "And you are the only ones who can stop them."
"Why?" And no one was expecting that question.
"It's your job?" Marie snarked snarkily. She fished another head of lettuce from her multidimensional pocket and took a bite of it. She then threw it at the wall because it was actually a cabbage.
"Why doesn't Four do it?"
Four stares into Three's eyes. Three stares back. Four sighs silently and then looks over at Marie.
"Her voice was stolen by a demon."
Three violently threw the chess board at the wall and grabbed her Hero Shot.
"Well, shit, why didn't you start with that?" She was already out the door by the time anyone could comprehend what she just said.
"Three…" Eight whispered, holding out an open hand towards the door. She then dropped it to her sides and slipped a chess piece into her non-multidimensional pocket when she thought no one was looking. "One day, we'll finish our game…"
Callie's car beeped loudly from the hallway.
"Why is it beeping?" Eight asked.
"There's a swarm of Pearlbots coming!" Marina yelled. "Hurry!"
They started running. Craig came back.
"Squidding squids!" he swore. Four tried to warn him, but it was too late. His voice was also stolen.
"God dammit!" Three exclaimed, kicking the wall in frustration. It dented. "This means war!"
"But… But Three…" Marie started, voice wavering, "You know what happened in the last war… Didn't you?"
Three took a deep breath. "... Yes… I'll never forget the bottle of Squidden Valley ranch… That they stole." A tear rolled down her cheek.
Four was only now just starting to realize how weird this was… But she didn't say anything. Maybe it had to do with the fact that a demon stole her voice.
"We… We can get it back..?" Callie suggested quietly.
Everyone gasped. No one ever heard that before!
"Callie, you're a genius!" said everyone.
Callie liked this praise so much that she was never seen again. Because life is like that. She wasn't seen again. That girl, there? The inkling, the one that looks like Callie? That's not her, got it?
That's not her.
Now with multiple motives to go out on an adventure with tons of room for romance and lettuce-eating and (chess), our heroes set off on an adventure! They are excited for adventure… Or are they?!
Find out next time on… SHIRT AND SOCKS WITH PANTS!