Reunion

Sorry for the somewhat late update, but here we are again for the third chapter! I've been busy this week and a little bit last week, so Wes has written most of this chapter. Anyway, this story is going the way we want, and we seem pretty happy about it.


"C'mon Cici, we won't be able to eat for the next five hours if we're late!" Octavia skipped her way to the canteen, while Cici, uninterested as always, trudged behind her.

Why is she so happy all the time? How can she be so happy all the time? This girl makes absolutely no sense… Cici thought to herself as she followed her roommate to the canteen. It was about lunch time for them, and the tables were mostly filled with Octolings of all genders, considering the canteen was one of the only places where both sides could meet. It looked like the one in the last academy her and Nemo had been in, only bigger and a bit cleaner. The lines to the food were getting longer as time passed, and Octavia did not wait for it to get any longer. Feeling around the air, she finally found Cici's hand, and then proceeded to drag her partner into the line. Cici, who was startled by this, was pulled back and nearly tripped from her own feet. Once they found a spot in line, Octavia released her hand. Cici just glared at Octavia, who had an apologetic look on her face.

"Sorry...I was eager to get my food…"

"No, it's fine, I guess." Cici sighed. "Just...warn me next time." Octavia nodded, and they slowly waited as they got closer and closer to the serving area. The Twintacle Octotrooper kept its bored scowl on the two as it handed them a tray of food for each of them. The set consisted of a sandwich with tuna filling and plain water; virtually the same thing as with the academy Nemo and Octavia were in previously. The two scooted over to an empty table not far away from the counter and sat down, ready to eat.

"Sweet, tuna is delicious!" Octavia happily digged into the sandwich, while Cici slowly nipped bits of it away, keeping her same bored expression. I don't understand how she can keep this smile on her face all the cod damn time. How is she so happy about...anything? It's just a sandwich! What's there to be so happy about?

As Octavia looked around the canteen, her eyes suddenly widened as she spotted a familiar boy sitting at a table just a few feet beside them. She immediately put down what was left of her sandwich and dashed over to the table, "Bro!"

"Hmm?" Nemo looked up from his plate, and a big smile formed on his face as he saw the girl dashing towards him. "Via! I'm so happy to see you again!"

"So am I!" She decelerated slowly to a stop and accepted a hug from him.

"How's life in the academy?" He asked.

"Well, I have a bunkmate to be friends with!" She turned around and waved at Cici, who was still at the table, staring. "C'mon, come meet my brother!" Sighing, Cici pulled herself up from the table and trudged over to the table, weary expression still present. She folded her arms and looked at Nemo, "Now who's this?"

A smirk crawling up his face, Nemo stood straight up and bowed before her somewhat melodramatically, "Nemo Nautilus, at your service."

"..." Cici could not believe what this boy is doing before not just her, but everyone else within the canteen, bowing like a prince receiving a princess. Is he trying to imitate a fairytale prince or something? She remained silent, hoping to clue Nemo that she was not amused. And he seemed to get the clue, because a second later he stood back up and grinned, "Alright, enough of that. Anyway, I hear you're her bunkmate." He directed a finger at Octavia, who was standing behind him, staring curiously with her wide eyes.

"Yep, I am." She nodded.

"Well, I'll have you know I'm her brother."

"Huh. That's something. Now, if that's all you have to say," Cici turned around to face her original table. "I am going back to finish my lunch. Have fun chattering, you two." With that, she walked back to the table, uninterested.

Weird gal. Nemo had never met someone so withdrawn and laid-back to the point of being stoic and empty. "You sure she's good to you, Via?"

"She's kinda quiet, I know, but I think she just needs time to open up." She said optimistically. "We've only met each other two days ago, to boot. So, who's your bunkmate, bro?"

"Oh, he's out som- oh, there he is." Nemo pointed at a small boy walking back towards the table with a bottle of ketchup, who stared nervously at both siblings. "H-Huh?"

"Hey there!" Octavia skipped over to him and held out a hand. "What's your name?"

"Uhm, Trenton Ida." He mumbled, shaking her hand reluctantly.

"Hee hee, nice to meet you!" She greeted cheerfully. "I'm Octavia Nautilus!"

"Nice t-to meet you too." He quickly looked away from her and kept his head low as he trotted over to his and Nemo's table. "Here, some ketchup for the sandwiches."

"Ha, thanks!" Nemo popped open the cap and poured some condiment over the tuna filling, before passing the bottle over to Trenton. As Trenton stirred his water, he looked at Nemo, "So, that girl is your...sister?"

"Got that right." Octavia answered as she walked over, standing beside her brother. "He's my older brother. You're his bunkmate, huh?"

"Y-Yeah." He replied meekly.

"Hrmm, Ida…" Her eyes stared past Trenton in deep thought. "I've heard of someone called 'Elite Engineer Ida' here…"

"O-Oh, that's my sister!" The usually shy boy jumped up with a big smile. "She's the coolest octopus in the world! She's really smart, and builds a lot of cool machines!"

"Alright, calm down now, Trent." Nemo patted his shoulder. "I know you love your sister, but don't gush about her too loudly, yeah? There are still people in here."

"Oh." He bowed his head low and sat back down, realizing he had quite a bit of a geek out in front of everyone. "Excuse that."

"Nah, it's fine! In fact, I find it cute you love your sister so much." Trenton's tentacles curled up at Octavia's comment. Cute?

"Wow, that's a veeeery specific word to use." Nemo grinned. "Do you find him…"

"Ergh?! S-Shut up!" Octavia quickly smacked her brother lightly in the head. "I just said it's kind of adorable of him to geek out when it comes to his sister!"

"Alright, alright." He chuckled. "I know what you mean. And yeah, he does worship his sister a lot. Can't blame him; she really is an intelligent engineer and a high-ranking elite. I think she is one of the most respected soldiers in here, if I remember correctly."

"Hoo my. I wonder what she's like." Octavia mused. "She must be really intelligent and serious, if she's so high-ranking."

"Intelligent, yeah. Serious? Eh, half and half. She's pretty nice from what I saw. Not too serious like our old commander." Nemo told her. Octavia nodded, understanding what he meant. In the distance, a few Octolings were walking across the canteen in a somewhat large group.

"You're not actually gonna accept, are you?" One asked.

"Damn man, you got guts to be part of some wacky experiment." Another mumbled.

"What if you die? Or become deformed? Or just turn into some new creature all together?" They seem to be talking about something dangerous.

"Shut up guys, it ain't that bad." The Octoling in front of them assured.

"So, what are you gonna do?" Several Octolings said, constantly pestering him. After a few more seconds of being bombarded with endless questions, the Octoling in the front finally turned around, looking slightly annoyed.

"Look, stop pestering me about some stupid 'experiment'." His tone shifted into a more serious one. "I will do what I've been called to do, regardless of what I think, because I'm loyal to the Octarian Army. If anyone asks me one more question, I'll sock them into the next room." the Octoling told them. Now the small crowd became a larger one, as a few Octolings chuckled and whispered amongst themselves.

"Please Orcus, you aren't a tough guy, and we all know it. It's just that unlike the other nerds, you have some sort of cult following you." A taller, beefier Octoling mocked from the back. He pushed through the crowd until he got to the Octoling, who they knew as Orcus.

"I prefer calling them 'acquaintances', not a cult." Orcus argued.

"They worship you, like some idol. But I know your skills aren't real. You just like to show off that big brain of yours, studying those combat manuals and what not. What're you gonna do, nerd? What, sock me into the next room?"

"Back off, unless you want to cause a ton of chaos in this room."

"Chicken much?" the Octoling asked, leaning in towards his face.

"No. I'm just trying to save your ego. Unless, you really do want me to pummel you straight through the wall…" Orcus answered.

"Ha! That I'd like to s-" The Octoling was interrupted by Orcus' fist connecting with his jaw, sending him tumbling backwards. All who stood behind him moved aside, letting him fall onto the hard canteen ground. Not one person attempted to catch him. As he got up and wiped the ink slowly leaking from his nose, he glared daggers at Orcus, with violent thoughts clouding his mind.

"You're dead, punk." The Octoling muttered viciously before pouncing at Orcus. He was only saved by Nemo, who had stood between the two and held the angry Octoling back with his foot.

"Woah woah woah woah woah! Let's all calm down here for a second. After all, we're all supposed to be one big happy octopus family, am I right?" Nemo asked, chuckling nervously.

"What the shell is he doing?" Cici muttered as she watched from her table, and just like everyone else, had stopped what they were doing. Trenton covered his eyes and leaned on Octavia, who seemed surprised.

"What's wrong?"

"I think Nemo is going to die…" Trenton whimpered, hands still covering his face. In the crowd, the Octoling grabbed Nemo by the neck, hoisting him up into the air. "Any last words, dead meat?"

"Ack...your face looks prettier with the bruises..."

"You're d-" The Octoling felt a surge of energy zap him in the back, and his shouts of agony spread through the whole room. The electricity from the shock hit Nemo as well, who also shouted before falling unconscious. The muscular Octoling dropped to the ground, letting go of a now unconscious Nemo. Orcus kneeled down to his friend, checking for a pulse. He let out a sigh of relief as he felt Nemo still breathing. Behind where the Octoling stood was Marina, who held a small device in her hand. On both sides of her were two pairs of Elite Octolings, armed to the teeth, holding their Octoshots with no emotional expressions on their faces whatsoever.

"Orcus Delfino, your presence has been requested at the lab. Please follow me." She asked kindly, holstering the device to a belt on her hip. Orcus stood from his spot, nodding obediently as he followed. Octavia and Trenton both rushed to Nemo, checking his body for any serious injuries.

"Nemo, you idiot. Why...why did you do that…" Octavia muttered, a few tears falling from her eyes. Trenton, who watched from beside her, immediately noticed Marina amongst the group of Elites escorting Orcus out of the canteen. He rushed over to her, and she immediately saw him.

"Sorry Trent, I have work to do. You can come visit my hab suite later, okay?" Marina told him.

"Marina, are they-"

"Both of them will be fine." She assured. "I...I didn't mean to hit Nemo. I guess he got shocked from contact with the other guy."

"I think he needs hel-"

"Trent, I have to go right now. I'm sorry, I'll visit later." Marina said, and they all exited the canteen, leaving Trenton standing there at the entrance.


At the Lab…

"Did you get our subject?" Augustus asked, right when he heard the lab doors slide open. Marina, followed by Elite soldiers and Orcus, walked in. Marina set her taser on a nearby desk as she walked over to him.
"Yeah, he's here. Kinda had to break up a fight at the canteen."

"Hm. His profile didn't mention anything about the subject being a troublemaker…" Augustus remarked.

"Will you please call him by his actual name instead of referring to him as 'subject'?" Marina chastised, but Augustus ignored her, immediately wearing a smile on his face as he came to greet Orcus.

"Welcome Orcus Delfino! How's life here at the academy?" Augustus asked kindly, extending his hand towards the Octoling. Orcus reciprocated, and they shook hands.

"Pretty good. Life's okay, and I'm doing pretty well here."

"'Pretty well'? Your profile doesn't say so. Your profile here says you've excelled over the average Octarian trainee, and that you're one of our top students. So, I'm afraid 'pretty well' is a bit of an understatement, friend."

"Friend?"

"Oh yeah, you might not see it, but we are gonna be great friends in the future. I can see it already. Here, come with me. I want to show you something." Augustus waved, motioning him to follow. He turned his head slightly to look at the Elites guarding him, but their expressionless faces didn't really help. He walked forward, and followed Augustus to another part of the lab where giant tubes were located. Wires were attached all around, and some monitors and computers were hooked up to them.

"Now, I know exactly what you're thinking: this man is insane. He's probably the closest thing I've seen to a mad scientist."

"He's not wrong…" Orcus thought to himself as he listened to Augustus speak.

"Well, my friend, I don't define myself as mad, rather, I believe I'm a genius. You've heard of the Great Turf War, am I correct?"

"Yes."

"Apologies, stupid question. The only way you would not know is if you were living under a rock." Augustus said. Some of the Elites seemed shocked at his comment, but they all quickly reverted to their expressionless selves. Marina just shook her head in disbelief.

"I apologize again. Poor taste in humor, I know." Augustus added, easily realizing how his comment could have been taken as an insult about the current living situation of the Octarian race.

"Anyway...we lost that war. We were winning for the most part as well, and then somehow fate decided 'no, I want the creatures with less tentacles suffer'. But today, that all changes. Now, I studied countless profiles on countless Octarians in Octo Valley, and I noticed one thing: despite our efforts, some soldiers excel while others fall short. In layman's terms, some are weak, and some are stronger. But! I found out a way to collect the strongest warriors we have, and I've managed to find a way to enhance their overall capabilities."

"Like?" Orcus asked, wanting to know more. Now this is getting interesting...

"Strength, agility, reflexes, Octopus transformation speeds…the list goes on! I can tweak just about anything I want to, and after selecting certain variables to combine, I think I've found a 'formula' of super soldiers. All I need to do is test it out on some subjects."

"Wait wait wait wait...so you're saying I'm some kind of test subject for some crazy experiment? What if it fails? What if something happens to me?" Orcus asked in a nervous tone. This no longer sounded as interesting as before, and now he wanted nothing to do with it.

"Nothing will happen to you. And do you want to know why, friend? Because I KNOW great things will rise from this. I KNOW that this will help us overthrow our Inkling oppressors, and seat ourselves right back to our rightful place on the surface. Now, what do you say, shall we start this or should I have my Elites shove you in there?" Augustus asked, putting his arm around Orcus' shoulder. Augustus seems like a smart person, but Orcus certainly found him a bit...delusional. Nonetheless, even if he refused, he knows he'll be put in the tube anyway. After all, Augustus easily outranks him, technically making him a superior to Orcus. This meant Augustus could just order Orcus in, and if he disobeyed, punishment was destined to happen. Orcus sighed, realizing it was a lose-lose situation for him. He slowly trudged into the tube, before turning around so he can face the glass. He looked out to see Augustus, who looked like as if he had been waiting a millenium for this event to take place. Marina, who was beside him, looked worried, but nonetheless waved to him and gave him a sad smile, which Orcus returned.

"Fill the tube with the ink and we can start." Augustus commanded Marina, who took a seat in front of a computer and started to type commands in. Orcus looked down as he felt cold ink rush into the tube, filling in from bottom to top. Soon, he was submerged in a fluorescent pink ink, which was clear enough so that he could still see the Octolings surrounding him. Lights inside the tube started to turn on, and Orcus started to get worried.

"What if I die? What would happen to me? Would my body just disintegrate into nothing? And what about Nemo? I just realized he was here...I...I want to say goodbye just in case...but I can't leave. I'm too far in to go back. Maybe...maybe it won't be so bad…" Orcus thought as he suddenly felt sleepy. His eyes started to open and close slowly, until sleep finally overtook him and he fell unconscious...


Oh boy, looks like our characters are in a bit of a situation. Sorry if this chapter felt somewhat short (which it kind of is), but hopefully the next one we write will be a bit longer. I'm hoping to make the next one longer than the previous three, so this could take some time. Also, I've been trying for the most part to update every week or every other week, depending on how busy we are. Anyway, be sure to read the next chapter (when it arrives) to see what happens next! Bye!