Chapter XV: Progress
You were my hero! Why did you do that to us!? To them!? WHY!?
I don't remember falling asleep, waking up emotionally and physically drained after an unknown amount of hours. My dream follows me into wakefulness, my voice still ringing in my ears at what I said to the image of the squid who's been dead for two years. How could he have known this would happen...no one could predict this...
The second thing I notice is that Callie and Marie are still holding onto me, Callie breathing loudly and Marie almost silent while they sleep. My hair tentacles had wrapped around them before I fell asleep and now, I couldn't move because the hair tentacles are squashed between their bodies and the mattress. I look around the room out of habit with a limited field of vision thanks to my hair tentacles being pinned and find no one else, a small sense of discomfort starting to rise inside me at us being alone. I'm so used to waking up with all the others around...that's comforting...but is that me or the octarian me?
My hair tentacles try to squirm their way out from under Callie and Marie who roll further on top of me to allow them to move, adding their weight to mine in the process. I chuckle slightly when I embrace them with my arms and hair tentacles, slowly leaning upwards with a grunt of effort. I get halfway when I hear Callie exhales lightly, a smile on her face when she exerts her weight onto me with Marie doing the same silently. Surprisingly, I laugh quietly in response at ending up back where I started instead of my usual frustration. "As much as I enjoy our antics together, we probably have things to do today or some other...convincing reason?" I say with a smile while looking between them, both of them returning my smile but showing no signs of moving.
They look at each other and share a silent conversation, Marie nodding and moving off me to the edge of the bed. I try to follow her movement but Callie turns my head back towards her with a hand to see her grinning face. "Thanks for being there for us last night...let me reward you..." she whispers before gently kissing me to prevent a rebuttal. I'm able to give incoherent, rushed responses between growing aggressiveness. "I don't...always need...this...I can do...movies...maybe dinner-"
Callie stops for a moment with a satisfied gasp to place her forehead on mine, widely smiling down at me as she slows her breathing. "We can do that too but...this requires less...and besides-" she whispers as she leans back and moves fully on top of me, following Marie's example by connecting us but with much more noise. We're gonna wake everyone up at this rate... "-we didn't get to share ink yesterday so you owe me today."
"Can't argue with that logic," I say sarcastically as I go vertical, Callie already latching onto me with arms, legs, and hair tentacles as I rise while I start to do the same to her with arms and hair tentacles only. She giggles at my sudden assertiveness and kisses me once before responding. "Oh, now you don't want to argue...and Marie says you don't over complicate things...shows what she knows," she whispers with a low growl of satisfaction as she tightens her grip. We both have the same epiphany simultaneously, our faces going semi serious before we start kissing with abandon. Now in full swing, Callie ends up on her back with her giggling between kisses in response. "Someone's getting into it...you think with all the...sharing ink you do-" she whispers before gasping when I push myself into her slightly, involuntarily tightening her grip further. "-that you'd get tired of this..."
"And let down everyone I know and love?...I'm not about to do that," I whisper in response but from the look in her eyes, we both realize that the time for words is officially over. She takes the initiative again, pulling my head into more kisses until she's sure that I fully understand what she wants. Her hair tentacles are busy rubbing my back as her hands and legs stay locked on my body and I smile while kissing her from her usual habit even as I keep moving my hips. She won't let go until I tire her out...but I like challenges...
A cloud of euphoria and urgency settles on us, both of us in a hurry to get to our shared goal as quickly as possible and using our bodies to portray that earnestness. It isn't something I'd normally do but I follow Callie's lead, moving at a steady but rushed pace while thoroughly enjoying the warmth she's giving off. Callie and Pearl are always the heaters. My body starts to sweat lightly from our combined body heat but it only adds to our fervor, becoming sticky only exciting her and I further.
Both of us tighten our grips and vibrate slightly as I feel my ink leave my body to coat her insides, Callie responding by breaking away to moan loudly in relief. I share her relief with a groan of my own and the stickiness only gets worse when our bodies press together, my entire front now partially stuck to hers. "And to think two years ago...you were embarrassed to see any skin at all-" Callie whispers through breaths, already pulling my face into more gentle kisses yet not releasing her hair tentacles and legs. She hums to herself when she pauses to enjoy the moment. "-and now here you are pinning me to a bed with one of your hands on my rear."
Confused at her words and still breathing a little too quickly, I look down to see that she's right. "Oh...I didn't even notice..." I say between breaths but as I try to move my hand, she presses her body downwards so I can't move the hand and at the same time, moves my head back up slowly so she can lick my face. An awkward smile rises to my mouth as she makes me more sticky. "Callie, come on...I don't enjoy-"
"Yes, you do," she quickly retorts before continuing, my smile becoming uncomfortable as I try to remain calm and not pull away. My discomfort only makes her lick with more gusto. "If you didn't like it, you'd have told us otherwise by now. You haven't," she giggles, mixing in a few kisses between the licks as I start to blush. "Am I...that transparent?" I whisper to her and she giggles again, stopping for a moment to bring my forehead to hers. "Yes, you are...but that's one reason we like you...plus you paid dearly when you tried to lie to us..." she whispers, her voice slowly increasing in threat while her arms and hair tentacles tighten their grip on my head and body.
I shiver slightly in response, something she notices with grim amusement. "That's...true...and disturbing. Does that mean I'm being...trained...to be the ideal squid?" I ask curiously and Callie gives me an elongated 'maybe' with a wide grin. Instead of my usual irritation, I end up shrugging lightly and smiling. Did I really expect anything else? "I guess that's fine...it's not like I know how to deal with any of you squids anyway..." I whisper sarcastically, already trying to move into another bout of sharing ink that Callie enthusiastically obliges.
A hand touches my shoulder before we can start and I look up to see Marie dressed in her Hero gear staring at us intensely. "Your clothes are in the bathroom. Both of you go get ready," she commands before moving away from us. Callie is already pushing me gently off and moving after her while asking the question on my mind. "Did something come up that we need our gear?" she asks in a serious tone, Marie stopping at the edge of the bed and half turning her head. The look she gives us remains serious.
"Nothing came up...there's something we didn't do yesterday..."
All three of us exit the room in a somber mood, dressed in full gear without weapons and heading down the hallway at a moderate pace. From the noise and smells in the kitchen and dining areas, we're the last up and heads from the table turn to us with a mix of confusion and amusement. Pearl is the quickest to speak, swallowing her food quickly before grinning at us with debris stuck in her teeth. "You know...I thought sharing ink is an afternoon or nighttime activity and not something you do as soon as you wake up. I guess I learned something today," she states with a grin, some of the squids at the table looking at her and chuckling to themselves. I nod and look to Callie who's not wearing her sunglasses like she usually does in uniform, her only response a grin at me.
"Yeah, we got too loud...sorry about that," I finally say after a brief pause but as I turn back towards the table to claim a seat, my body is pulled gently the other direction. My feet leave the ground as the familiar sensation of hair tentacles surrounding me gives me a partial hint at who it is. "I missed you..." I hear Flurry say gently behind me, smiling to myself as her hands move around my chest and I place my hands on top of hers. "Can you at least turn me around?" I reply in a similar tone, waiting patiently for her to do so.
She does so slowly and cautiously because in my turn towards her, Marina hovers into view with a neutral yet disappointed expression. Her own hair tentacles wrap around the parts of my torso still exposed and I can feel the two pairs of hair tentacles trying to dislodge the other. "I'm aware you're both my elder and superior but...don't think you can hog him to yourself," Marina says sternly as she moves to stand next to Flurry, both of them staring at each other intensely as the stink of confrontation starts to rise.
A growl escapes me and my hair tentacles starts to change involuntarily, both of them surprised and loosening their grip enough on me that I touch the ground again. My hair tentacles turn them towards me and brings them closer but the discomfort on their faces causes me to pause and shake my head, confusion starting to set in as my head starts to hurt. "What...what was that?" I ask them, not sure what I answer I want to hear.
Flurry smiles nervously as she responds to my question. "That's what octarian males do when confronted with two females in conflict. Normally when they interpose themselves between the two, all it does is put the male in harms way but...you aren't the typical octarian male." There's a fearful tone to her voice despite her face trying to remain calm and I can see it mirrored in Marina, my hair tentacles responding to their fear by detaching. They show relief at being released and only after the hair tentacles do so do I note the much longer and slightly thicker nature of the limbs, the feeling of twelve now on my head instead of eight.
"Oh, great. Am I gonna keep mutating?" I scoff as I start focusing on changing the tentacles back. The effort causes my headache to increase but I power through it, forcing the limbs back into shape. Hands brace me as I close my eyes from the sudden dizzyness, my body held in place as it tries to fall over. "You shouldn't do that when you're exhausted and hungry," Flurry adds in to my groan of annoyance, my body stubbornly trying to right itself but finding the limbs non responsive.
Marina is chuckling to herself as she picks me up, Flurry releasing her grip on me to allow her to move me towards a chair at the table. "I find it funny that he did exactly what an octarian male would do. He put himself in harms way angrily so that he'd be seen only to end up weakened. Our concern forces the maternal instincts in every octoling to kick in, thereby ending their conflict...some things are genetic, I guess..." My body slumps slightly even as I try to remain upright, Scurry grinning next to me only adding to my annoyance. "You should've seen them yesterday. We had to lock them in Sheldon's room to prevent them from bursting in on you and the Sisters. They practically tore the room apart," she gloats, my head slowly nodding as I grunt in exhaustion.
Looking across the table, Sheldon and Drosyn are sharing a meal with Drosyn using her hair tentacles to feed them both. Some of her hair tentacles are wrapped around Sheldon's body. Protective instinct. It must've gotten bad if she feels the need to do that. "Alright, in the future? No one squid gets to spend the night without the others," I croak, coughing lightly at the sudden dryness I feel in my throat.
I expect more disappointment or even open hostility from those involved but the opposite occurs, Callie and Marie looking at each other with amusement then beaming smiles at me from their seats. "Still deciding things for yourself, are you?" Marie says jokingly with a chuckle, Callie sharing her mirth as she sits down next to Pearl who's also smiling. "We shared some interesting stories while you two were busy with him...like how Callie used to peep on him when she thought he wasn't aware," she gloats to Callie who slumps in her chair slightly in embarrassment as Marie shrugs. "Only...a few times..." Callie responds timidly as she starts to eat the food in front of her at a slow pace, my face smiling at her sudden caution even as I'm being passed a drink by Scurry.
Everything at the table is the usual routine except for one pair of squids, Scurry catching me staring at Logan and Tanrine and chuckling in response. "Yeah, they've been acting all close and personal all morning. I'm not sure what kind of performance he-" she says with amusement before I say her name gently with a grin of embarrassment to stop her. When I look back, Logan is staring at me but instead of the quiet and shy squid I'm used to, he smiles at me confidently and gives me a nod. I've been on that ride before. Once the feelings happen, everything falls into place and next thing you know, you're waking up next to another squid that you just shared bodies with the night before.
"Why do you reserve energy to be lost in thought?" Scurry asks genuinely and I snap back to the room with a grunt. "It's because I'm tired that I'm lost in thought," I respond groggily, taking a sip of the drink in front of me and startled by the taste of apple. "That's different. I was expecting something...citrus or milky...but mild fruit?" I muss aloud, Scurry giggling to herself as she takes a bite of the sandwich in front of her. "Guess who decided to step up and cook for a change," she states with a grin, flicking her head towards Whinter's seat.
I look over at them and am confused that Clementine isn't mad and is having a pleasant conversation with a grinning Whinter. "Hey, quit getting distracted," Scurry interjects as she lightly turns my head back towards her with a hair tentacle. My mouth opens as she places the edge of a sandwich into my mouth, my teeth biting down and chewing the piece before swallowing it. "This is...really good...I think Whinter found his niche," I whisper to her, Scurry chuckling lowly and shushing me. "Don't say that too loudly. He's already got a big enough head from all the praise he's getting for this one success."
"Credit where credit is due," I retort before moving my mouth forward and seizing the entire sandwich in my teeth, Scurry giggling as she let's go of the sandwich and watches me tongue the remaining parts of the sandwich into my mouth to chew it. "That bad, huh? I was expecting Callie to wring you dry and us having to carry you out. I'm surprised that she didn't completely drain you," she states happily but the mood is already shifting for me, souring as I swallow the food. My voice is somber when I respond.
"Yeah...about that..."
Marie was the one who told the others what was happening today, each of them surprised at first but nodding grimly at what we needed to do. They all agreed to our uniforms minus the headgear since it didn't seem necessary. Even Angelo, who normally wore his goggles everywhere he went, only wore them sparingly when the light started to hurt his eyes. The octolings were wearing the old uniforms of their unit, fatigues and berets now worn proudly and looking like they did years prior. It was a blow when they finally realized that half of them were dead, Marina the first to break down into tears before the rest followed suit.
Despite us being there to comfort them, the pain of loss was strong enough that they almost agreed not to come with us. That was until Marie told them the other reason we were going, a shocker for all involved since no one but Marie knew. Even Callie and I, who pride ourselves in knowing everything Marie knows, were kept in the dark about this final piece of information. We all started to have our doubts about going at that point but I ended up ironing out everything with my stubbornness, saying to them that we can't run from the past and that we had to put this to rest.
Everyone seemed to agree with me reluctantly but still prepared mentally and physically for our trip, heading out of the penthouse front door as a team united in purpose with one destination in mind.
Octo Canyon, now the resting place of Shirei Cuttlefish and Daigaku Jiai Octavio.
It felt strange leading the way alone along the paved streets of Octo Canyon since I'm used to following behind Marie and Callie in situations like these. It's a form of punishment as Marie said before we left since I decided to speak out and convince everyone to follow "my plan", not only overwriting Marie's authority but overwriting the opinions of everyone in the penthouse. I can feel Marie and Callie boring into my back with their eyes as I walk but mostly ignore it, focusing more on how much the place had changed.
Everything is renovated now that Octarians are living here after being dislocated from their land, most of them acknowledging our group but keeping their distance. Timothy and his son are there too, Timothy nodding to me when I look his direction and his son waving at me happily with a bright smile. Someone else is standing with him with a grim smile of their own, an octarian who steps into the street in a uniform that I recognize. My entire body swivels towards them as I stop dead, shock taking over at who's approaching me. "What's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost," Claire says to me with great amusement, patting me on the right shoulder twice as I try to fumble for words. "Well? Say something. It's not like lost your ability to speak-"
"You...you're dead..." I stutter, Claire laughing in response as she shakes her head. "Oh, now I feel insulted. We don't see each other for months and that's all you can muster? You wound me, O.L.S." she gloats with a grin but only for a moment, immediately turning to her left and saluting to Flurry who approaches. "I only just got back into it, boss. Reporting for duty," she says in clipped tones but Flurry simply stares at her with a neutral expression. She drops her salute with a grin as she continues. "You don't like Timothy and I get that but he saved my life by completing my registration to Inkopolis. If it wasn't for him-"
"You don't need to explain," Flurry interrupts in a commanding tone, Claire no longer grinning as they stare at each other in silence. Drosyn is there a few moments later, Claire losing her cool again to laugh when she sees Sheldon in Drosyn's arms. "Looks like I'm not the only one breaking protocol. Let me guess-" she chuckles as she turns to look at me with a grin, "-he's yours, isn't he?" Flurry nods stiffly once which causes Claire to laugh again. "Well, we can blame the old man for that. What squid wouldn't date when they're told they shouldn't?"
The moment breaks when Marina rushes past Flurry and Drosyn, Claire barely registering the movement as Marina hugs her tightly and starts to sob. Claire breaks down as well, tearing up as she returns the hug. "So you made it after all...I didn't think I'd ever see you again, Marina...but what about...what about Laurana...and Steph..." she ask sadly but Flurry shakes her head no sadly.
Something registers on her face, a combination of shock and sadness. "Wait...those graves...the unmarked ones next to...those are..." Claire manages as Flurry nods, looking behind her as Marie steps forward with her own sadness. "Why...why bury them in unmarked graves?" she asks in sadness and outrage, Marie remaining silent as Flurry answers the question calmly. "Tradition states that the commanding officer of lost octolings marks the graves with the name and last words of those lost. I only learned today that Steph and Laurana had graves here," she states, nodding to Marie who steps back before turning back to her sister. "By tradition, it falls to me to write their names on their graves," she concludes and gestures to me with a nod, a serious look on her face.
I look to Marie for instructions but she gives me nothing to go by, her face remaining blank as she stares at me with hollow eyes. Despite my own sadness welling up, I'm able to turn back towards the street, nodding my head and gesturing towards our intended path to those behind me. I try to sound confident but those around me wouldn't believe the facade.
"We wont accomplish anything by standing here all day. Let's go visit the old fools."
I always mulled over what I would say to the Cap'n once I worked up the nerve to ask Marie where he's buried. Those of us who saw him die let Marie arrange where he'd go in the end, even Callie deferring her voice. There's no small amount of anger I feel towards him for all the horror he unleashed on myself and others, anger that I've had to vent to keep under control.
All that anger evaporates when I finally see the grave, a large, smooth stone with a carved mural on the front. The stone is in the center of a clearing that used to be our old home, Marie having it demolished and re-purposed when Octo Canyon was re purposed as a new living area. In the mural was Shirei Cuttlefish and Daigaku Jiai Octavio sitting on a bench facing us, looking young and healthy despite their age. The Cap'n and Octavio are smiling, the Cap'n's hand and Octavio's tentacle waving at those who pass the grave. My hand brushes the carved words underneath, slightly shaking from the mixed emotions I feel.
Here lies two friends, united at last.
May our children know the peace that we did not.
Everyone else is still behind me, watching me silently as I brush the words slowly with my hand. I put voice to some of the thoughts I have without meaning to, speaking in little more than a whisper. "I understand a little now...you both were dying...that's what you told each other on the day you let him go, right? You agreed to a time and a place for one last, grand battle to go out on...and you wanted your children to see it..." I put my hand on the Cap'n's, the murals hand only half the size of mine since it wasn't rendered in full size. "It's what Octavio needed, not what you wanted...the Great Turf War made it that way...to have peace, he wanted to die in battle..."
My hand pulls away because I have to wipe my tears away, wiping my eyes quickly so that I can put the hand back. The feeling of ink left on the hand mixes with the coolness of the stone. "I'm...I'm sorry that I don't understand...that I felt all this...anger...at what happened. It's not what you'd have wanted...for me to be angry all the time..."
I turn slightly to regard Octavio, an expression and manner that I never saw while he was alive displayed here for all to see. My hand shifts involuntarily, changing to a tentacle that touches the mural's waving tentacle and I nod my head grimly when I see that they match. "I know the truth...grandpa...Sheldon told me when he got another ink sample from me...your genes are what helped make me somehow, though I don't know by who or why..." I whisper, feeling my tears resurface and roll down my face. "Glag...started the fighting again...by accident...and I followed his lead...I know Flurry lied to me about her orders...her mission was to retrieve me and only me...and to splat anyone that stood in her way..."
My tentacle slides slowly along the stone, cold to the touch as I try to find something that I know I wouldn't find. No warmth, no physical communication...nothing... "Glag was trying to protect us...as you were...as the Cap'n was...and that turned you against each other...you couldn't agree on what that meant..." I whisper and sigh in frustration with a bitter chuckle, smiling more out of remorse than happiness. "You squids are fools...all you had to do was talk it out and not hide the truth...and now I'm left wondering if the Cap'n told you...in the end...that he's what makes up the other part of me..."
My other hand moves into my field of view, a five fingered hand at odds with the tentacle touching the mural. "I'm left wondering if either of you knew the whole truth...and what help you got to make it happen..." I whisper, smiling to myself as I put my other hand on the mural, touching both of their hands. "The best part is, thought, that I don't really care about that anymore. I already know, for once, who I am and what I need to do. You can rest easy knowing that I'll keep your grandchildren safe...myself included. I won't let your last wish, the wish you both shared, go to waste."
Both hands remain in place as I stand there in silence, wishing that they were here so that I can talk to them again but knowing that it wont happen. I eventually nod my head and pull away from the mural, sighing gently as I take a step back. My body slowly turns around, knowing who I'll see when I do so.
Scurry is already launching a fist towards my face that I catch with my left hand, my face still sad as her face shows complete outrage. "You knew! You knew all this time and you didn't tell me! Why didn't you tell me!?" she shouts at me while trying to pull her fist out of my hand but is unable to. From her tone, she isn't just shouting at me but also at Sheldon who told me in private. "I wasn't ready to accept it...that-"
"SHUT UP AND LET GO!" she shouts in reply, now using her other hand to try and force my fingers open but still struggling. She launches herself into a frenzy with an outraged cry, using whatever free limbs she has to try and hit me. I take a few hits to my stomach and legs from her feet while taking several bit marks to my neck and shoulders from her teeth before my hair tentacles can keep her restrained. The wounds are leaking ink openly even as her aggression shows no signs of dimming. "I wasn't ready to accept that we'd splatted-"
"I SAID STOP!" she shouts again, still struggling to get herself free of my hair tentacles even as I pull her closer to me. She gives an angry cry that dissolves into sobs when I hug her, mixing in yells of frustration with tears as she eventually wears herself out and latches onto me with loud sobs. I close my eyes and tears start to fall down my face, my arms and hair tentacles holding her as my voice tries to get out what I need to say.
"I...I wasn't ready to accept that...we splatted family..."
