Chapter 21: Hard Choices
Cuttlefish Bunker
"...What did it feel like…?"
"...What? What did what feel like?"
"When you killed your parents the first time… what did you feel?"
Vanessa and Daniel were relaxed down in the bunker's dining room, Daniel still tied to his chair, while Vanessa was in a chair, sitting considerably far away. They had been sitting in awkward silence for a little while now, with Vanessa not knowing what to say, until just a moment ago.
Daniel looked down. "I… well… it wasn't exactly the relieving feeling I was hoping for…"
"...What did they even do to you…?"
"No, they didn't do anything. I mean… I think at the time, I was thinking that maybe they weren't on my side, that they wanted me to suffer… but now, I realize… it was all Jessica… or, maybe it wasn't even Jessica… maybe it was just myself… maybe I lost myself… I don't know…"
"...Why didn't you kill Jessicat that day?"
"I wanted to, but Mom had already sent her out of the house when I burned it down… she didn't come back until after."
"...So if you didn't feel relieved… what did you feel, then? Scared? Did it feel good?"
Daniel looked up at her. "...Why the sudden interest?"
Vanessa didn't respond.
"...Do you still want to kill me…?"
"...After what you did to Susan, there's a lot of things I wanna do to you."
"You had a chance to kill me, and you put the gun down."
"...I know…"
"...You can still pick it back up and-"
"God dammit, just answer my question, what do you feel when you kill people? Does it feel good? Does it… give you relief of any kind?"
"...At first."
Vanessa stared at him, as if contemplating again if she wanted to try it.
"See, at first, you get to feel the satisfaction of the achievement… I mean… one more obstacle out of your way, right? And just the feeling of knowing it's something you can do… taking a life… but then you start to feel the guilt… regret… when you think back and think too deeply into it, and you realize… all the memories they had… all the dreams they had… all the thoughts they had, everything they were, it's just… gone. Because of you… you remember that they had lives before you came along… ever since I killed my parents, I… I've wanted to run up to them, hug them, and tell them I'm sorry… "
"...And what did you feel when you killed Susan?"
"...I didn't feel anything. Not for her specifically, at least… after a while, uh… victims… blur together…"
"You don't even feel one bit of remorse for what you did to my friend?"
"I didn't say that. She's just one more body in a pile that maybe I shouldn't have killed. But you know what? Just because I regret killing them doesn't mean I wouldn't do it again…"
"How could you even say that?"
"Because, it's… it's just a part of who I am… the Executioner is a part of me… it's… it's like how Agent 3 seems to be a part of Jessica… we're not us without those things…"
She looked down. "…I… guess I can see that… I mean… Jessica gave up the Agent 3 life, and… she's not all there anymore…"
"Exactly my point." He scooted his chair closer a bit. "We're both Murdocks. Maybe violence just runs in our ink…"
"...Were your parents violent?"
"...My dad could be when he wanted to… but he never stepped over the line…"
"I never even knew my parents…" She admitted. "So not like I have a way of knowing what runs in my ink…"
"...Well, you're asking me about what killing feels like… maybe… maybe you're not so different from us…"
She looked up at him. "…What did you just say?"
"I said that maybe you're not too different from us… you wanted to kill me… you almost did…"
"You think I'm-" She found at herself at a loss of words for a moment, and she angrily stood up. "I am not, nor will I ever be, like you. You know what you are? You're a murderer, who hid behind a terrorist organization, and killed innocent people. You killed Susan, who didn't do anything to anyone. And- And Jessica, I know you basically did kill her. And honestly, when I think about it, I can even see the same shit in her. Neither of you are clean. I am not like your shitty family."
"...You wanna know what I think you are?"
"Yeah? What's that?"
"...I think maybe you're wrong… the more I talk to you… the more I feel the same hatred from you that I felt the day I snapped and burned my house down…"
That got Vanessa to shut up. She looked like she was trying to come up with a response, but nothing was coming out, and she stared at him, a bit shaky.
"I'm telling you right now, you can… you can pick up that gun, aim it, and pull the trigger. I'll be dead in one blast and then it'll be over. I promise."
She eyed the gun, but didn't move.
"Dammit, either kill me, or let me go." Daniel replied, not even bothering to struggle against his bonds at this point.
"...And what would you do if I did let you go?"
"...Kill myself."
She shook her head. "…Jessica doesn't want you dead…"
"And all of a sudden, this is about what Jessica wants?"
"Look, I… I know that she doesn't seem all there anymore… but to be fair, I've slept with her twice and I've seen that she has a soft side just like everyone else, so… maybe, if I keep doing what she wants… she'll give me what I want."
"...And what's that? To kill?"
"...I want to be known… I… want to be like what Jessica used to be…"
"...That road usually involves killing…"
"...Maybe…"
"So then kill me!" He suddenly squirmed again. "Come on, please, either kill me or let me go. I'm not having it any other way."
Vanessa just turned away.
"And hey, maybe even if you let me go, I… I can help you… maybe… I can help you with what you want… so please…"
She stared at the wall, and as she heard Daniel struggle some more, she turned back around, slowly. "…Would you really?"
"I could train you… how to be a killer… and then, if you really want to help people, and get attention after that, by all means… just please start cooperating with me… do SOMETHING!"
She jumped slightly at the last word. "…You're unhinged…"
"I'M NOT UNHINGED, JUST… COME ON! DO SOMETHING!" He went back to his original habit of trying to struggle out of the ropes.
Before Vanessa could respond, they heard the elevator activate at that moment, and Daniel stopped, as they both turned to it. She grabbed the gun just in case, pointing it at the elevator, as it descended to their level and opened up, revealing Jessica and Bridgett. Bridgett was holding a laptop and the hard drive.
Vanessa lowered the gun a bit. "Jess…"
"Put down the gun…" Jessica replied, walking in with her.
Vanessa obliged reluctantly, dropping it to the ground. Daniel sighed angrily
Bridgett looked around as she walked in. "…This place, feels… familiar…"
"You've been here?" Vanessa asked.
She shook her head. "…Just a weird déjà vu feeling…"
"...Who are you?"
"Bridgett." She said, setting the laptop and hard drive on the table. "Well, um… I guess if you want, you can just call me Eight…" She looked at her. "…You're Vanessa?"
"Jess told you about me?"
She nodded. "She caught me up on mostly everything since she vanished."
"Including the part where she basically used me as a booty call?" She said, passive-aggressively.
Bridgett didn't respond, taken back by that, while Jessica sighed. "Vanessa, don't start…"
Vanessa just kept her eye on Bridgett. "…I'm guessing at one point, you were a booty call for her too?"
"...What?" Bridgett responded, straight up shocked now.
"Vanessa." Jessica interrupted. "I told you before that I hadn't even slept with anyone before you, but now's not the time to be talking about our sex lives."
Daniel just rolled his eyes, sitting still, while Vanessa folded her arms.
Bridgett awkwardly gulped a bit and looked around, briefly locking eye contact with Jessica, before turning her attention to Daniel to get her mind off of that. "…You're Daniel?"
Daniel just stared up at her, silently.
"...You're the one that got us into this mess…?"
"Leave him, Eight." Jessica said, opening the laptop and starting it up.
Daniel continued to stare at her, almost in a creepy way, until Bridgett obliged and turned away, walking to the laptop.
Vanessa went up to the laptop as well. "…What are you doing?"
"We downloaded as much information as we could from Deangelo's Underdog base." Jessica replied. "It was all Bridgett's plan, but this should get us the information we need to find Ward."
"...Isn't downloading information from them before exactly what led to the Splatoon's collapse?"
"Yes." Bridgett joined in. "But we were prepared this time. We've already taken precautions since then and we're taking precautions now."
Jessica got the laptop booted up all the way, and then plugged the hard drive in, before pulling up all the information she could. Like last time, however, it was encrypted.
Bridgett noticed, but didn't look surprised. "…Give the laptop to me."
"...You can get past this?"
"I've learned some things from Marina, you know." She sat down. "…But I'm gonna need time."
She sighed, looking annoyed. "…Fine…"
Bridgett looked at her, giving her a reassuring look. "Hey."
Jessica looked back at her.
"This will be over before you know it. Ok?"
For a moment, they just looked at each other, getting that subtle feeling together, that maybe, just maybe, everything would be alright. Jessica just nodded before stepping away, and Bridgett got to work.
Hours passed, and it was soon nearing midnight for Inkopolis. Jessica, who felt cramped down in the bunker, had gone back up the elevator to go inside and get some fresh air, while Bridgett and Vanessa stayed down in the bunker as Bridgett worked on the laptop. Daniel had fallen asleep, his head drooped forward.
Vanessa was sitting nearby the computer. "…So… how long have you known Jessica?" She decided to ask Bridgett.
Bridgett looked at her. "…I've known her basically as long as I've been in Inkopolis. I met her down in the Deepsea Metro, the same day I escaped and got up here."
"...I've heard Jessica mention that…"
"Yeah, it was a crazy day for both of us… First time we met, she saved my life. But then… not long after that, I kind of… saw first-hand how scary she can be…"
"...What do you mean?"
She sighed, thinking back. "…Commander Tartar was able to partially sanitize her and swayed her under his will for a little while." She paused, as the memories weren't so pleasant. "…She tried to kill me."
She was a bit surprised. "...What stopped her?"
"I defeated her in self defense." She sighed. "She didn't wake back up until after the chaos had died down, and then she left back on her vigilante missions… I didn't really see her for another 6 months after that, since we weren't really friends at that point, and she was busy."
"And what makes you friends now?"
"...I got to know her."
"...I doubt you've really seen her dark side regardless. Because sometimes, I wonder if she's even really a good person."
"Oh, trust me, I've seen it. I think she's just… confused… Cuttlefish was always her moral compass since they met, and he's not really around anymore… she had no one to fall back on during all the time."
"...Right…" Vanessa sighed.
"...Thank you for that, by the way."
"For what?"
"For being there for her. I mean… I had already accepted her death before I found out the truth, and I had moved on to an extent, but… I'm still so relieved that she's back. You know? Besides, she might just still be our best chance at stopping the Underdogs for good."
"...Hm…"
"So… thank you." Bridgett repeated.
"...I can kind of see why Jessica likes you."
Bridgett looked at her. "…She's told you about me too?"
Vanessa nodded. "Yeah, she told me things. And nothing but good things, too."
Bridgett looked down, a bit flattered.
"...Are you sure you two were never romantically involved? Or at least interested?"
"What? Oh, god, no, I… no. No. I-I have a boyfriend." She replied awkwardly, blushing a bit.
"...I think Jessica always felt a lack of love, too, to be honest…" Vanessa continued. "…We had moments…"
"...G-Good to know…" Bridgett cleared her throat, looking down again.
"Hey, don't feel awkward about it. Everyone has their own sex life. We all need a little something, you know?"
"I-I'd rather not talk about that, alright?"
"...Hm… fine…"
At that moment, to Bridgett's relief, the laptop made a little ping sound, and they both looked at it, seeing that the decryption process had finished. "Finally…" She muttered.
"It's done?"
"Yeah… but…" She looked it over. "…Exactly what I was afraid of, it wasn't a complete download, we pulled it out too early…"
"I thought we only needed the one thing."
"We do… and…" After some browsing, she managed to pull up intel on the central Underdogs base, where Hugh Ward was based. She sighed in relief. "…I found it…"
"...Well, I'll be damned… that place is probably armed like a fortress…"
"Probably…" She picked up the laptop. "Let's go tell Jess."
Jessica was sitting right outside the bunker entrance, on the hill above it, feeling the grass with her fingers as she stared at the city from a distance. Sitting in front of her, on the grass, was Daniel's Executioner mask, which she had gotten from him and brought up with her as she reflected. It was still a bit cracked from their previous confrontation at Vanessa's office.
A million thoughts were racing through her head. What exactly was she gonna do when she found Hugh Ward? Was that just gonna be it? Maybe at that point, after another possible talk with Daniel, maybe… that could just be it for her. She could just end her own life. That's all she had left, anyway. She felt like finishing off the Underdogs and her mission would have to be her big farewell. Granted, she probably wouldn't see Cuttlefish ever again, and honestly, that hurt to think about. But perhaps that didn't matter. And besides, at least she got to see Bridgett again.
Her attention went back to the Executioner mask sitting in front of her as she thought out how she was gonna go. She definitely wanted to go out with a bang, she knew that much. The concept of the Executioner was something that Jessica and Daniel played around with as kids, and ever since, she saw masks like this as a symbol to be feared. Perhaps as some kind of memento mori.Apparently, Daniel felt the same way, and she imagined that was why he took on the mantle of the Executioner and chose this mask in the first place. She probably would've done the same, if she had fallen under the control of people like Ward. Besides, using this mask against the Underdogs would be some sweet irony, their own symbol turned against them.
She found herself reaching forward, rubbing her fingers over the mask a bit, before she heard the elevator ascend again behind her. Once it opened, Bridgett and Vanessa stepped out, walking up to her. "Jess." Bridgett said, still holding the laptop.
"You got it?" Jessica replied, not taking her eyes off the mask.
"We got it. Ward's location. The one thing we needed."
"...Good…" She picked up the mask and stood up.
Vanessa noticed. "…Is that Daniel's mask?"
"Why do you have that?" Bridgett asked as well.
"Don't worry about it." Jessica replied, walking up to them.
Bridgett set the laptop down on the grass. "Jess… I don't know what exactly you're planning on doing with the information, but I'm telling you now that I'm coming with you when we're ready to take on Ward. We can finish this together, as Splatoon agents. We just need a plan first, because I'm willing to bet that place is like a fortress."
"I'm flattered, but I'm telling you now that there is no plan. Not one we need to discuss, anyway."
"...What do you mean?"
Jessica didn't respond.
Vanessa was starting to catch up to what her potential plan was. "…Jessica… why do you have that mask…?" She asked again.
"...I'm going alone."
"Like hell." Bridgett responded. "Jessica, we agreed before that we're in this together now, and you promised me you would be careful."
"There's nothing to be careful about anymore. There is no Splatoon. At this point, as far as I'm concerned, it comes down to me, them, and the shitty mistakes I made in the first place that led us here. I think I realize now, this is what life kept me alive for. If life could make the decision…"
Bridgett shook her head in disbelief. "…No, if anything, life kept you around so that you can come back to us. Not so that you can just settle a personal grudge you have."
"...Bridge… face it… I don't think I ever really came back after Daniel dumped me in that lake… not really…"
"...So then what are you going to do?"
She ignored her. "…If things goes sideways, I want you to get anyone from the Splatoon you can and get your asses out of the city. If I die before I can finish off Ward, chances are Inkopolis won't be around for long."
"What are you going to do!?" She responded, angrily.
She sighed. "I'm finishing what I started, alright!? And when I say I'm finishing it, I mean I'm really finishing it. You're not gonna see me again."
Bridgett stared at her in disbelief. "…Your brother dumping you into that lake really did mess up your head, didn't it…?"
"That's what I've been saying."
She started tearing up. "…I'm not letting you go…"
"Too bad." She looked down at the laptop just to memorize the address, and then turned to leave. "It's been good, Bridgett. Take care of yourself."
"Dammit, I said I'm not letting you go!" Tears streaming down her face, Bridgett started to panic a bit as Jessica kept walking anyway, and she decided to act. Suddenly pulling out her Octo Shot, she ran up to her to hold her at gunpoint. "You're not leaving me again!"
Jessica sighed as she stopped walking. "Oh, for fucks sake…"
"Listen to her, Jess…" Vanessa added, standing next to Bridgett.
Jessica rose her arms into the air as if to surrender, and Bridgett started walking up to her.
"You're gonna talk to us… we're gonna make a plan… and we're gonna do this right… otherwise, I'm not letting it happen…" Bridgett continued. As soon as she got too close, however, Jessica suddenly grabbed her and forced her down to the ground, before taking her Octo Shot from her and taking it apart.
"...I've already said my goodbye, Bridgett…" She said, looking down at her. "Now do what I told you…"
Bridgett couldn't do much but look up at her, as she turned to walk away again, Executioner mask still in hand.
"Jess, dammit." This time, Vanessa was the one to stop her, grabbing her arm. "Don't do this…"
"Or what?"
"...Or else I'll kill Daniel… and you lose your brother too…"
"Well, you know what, I've seen from the look in your eye that you've been wanting to kill him anyway, and he killed plenty of people himself, including Mia, so go right the fuck ahead. You wanna surrender yourself down that path, fine." She forcefully pulled her own arm from her grasp, and continued walking.
Vanessa watched her leave, no longer trying to stop her. But, she did have one more question. "…Why are you taking the mask!?" She called after her. "What's it for!?"
"I'm going to give them my own message." Jessica replied, not stopping.
Vanessa watched as she eventually walked out of sight, thinking. Perhaps… Jessica was just the bad guy now. Perhaps she herself was going down that road, too...
Bridgett wasn't even watching anymore, and was just standing there, sobbing. The emotions were too much for her. Vanessa gave her a look, before heading back to the elevator with a sigh.
Bridgett looked around. What was she supposed to do now? Just return home? Do what Jessica told her? Not like there was much else for her to do.
She stood there for what felt like several minutes as she calmed down, and wiped her tears after, even if she was still teary-eyed. She looked back at the bunker elevator, scooped up her laptop, and then turned around, heading home with her arms crossed.
Meanwhile, Vanessa was thinking to herself on the way down the elevator. She couldn't use Jessica. Not anymore. Jessica and her, perhaps their relationship was just over. The way she saw it now, she only had person left to go to. Even if it was the last person she wanted.
When the elevator reached the bottom, she walked over, pulled a chair up in front of the still sleeping Daniel, before grabbing a knife and going to cut Daniel's bonds off. She then sat down in front of him, shaking him awake.
Daniel looked up at her and then around, confused. To his surprise, he could finally move, and he gratefully used his fingers to rub his sore arms a bit. He looked at her. "…You're letting me go…?"
"...Jessica's gone." Vanessa responded. "And she's not coming back."
"...Why?"
"Because she wants to get herself killed. I'm not going to try anymore to stop her."
"...Why are you freeing me?"
"Because, before… you made me an offer…"
He just stared at her, actually a bit surprised.
She leaned forward. "…So keep talking."