Chapter 22: Octo Valley

The Executioner mask remained in Jessica's hand as she made her way outside of city limits, deep into some nearby woods. She hadn't even stolen a car or anything this time, she was straight up taking the multi-hour hike away from the city and into the woods, passing along all the trees.

Although she was barely tired, it was well after midnight by the time she reached her destination: a cabin in the middle of the woods, owned by none other that Captain Cuttlefish. She stopped to look at it. Of course, it had been pretty much abandoned following Cuttlefish's arrest, with all the lights and everything turned off, and she imagined the stuff inside was collecting lots of dust. No matter, it wasn't her intention to go inside. Instead, she made her way around the cabin, walking up to the nearby shed.

It was a medium-sized shed, but of course, was locked. She didn't have the key anymore, she had lost it back when her apartment was bombed, but again, it didn't matter. Pulling out her spear handle from her pocket, she popped it out and then used to suddenly slice the lock clean off, which caused the door to creak open on it's own. She retracted her spear and opened it all the way, stepping inside.

She looked around; it was filled with all sorts of former New Squidbeak Splatoon gear, that had been left here in practically the middle of nowhere for the sake of privacy. Hiding them all in this shed was the initial reason Cuttlefish bought the cabin, actually. Looking around, she could see weapons, armor sets, and other stuff for Agents 1, 2, 4, Cuttlefish, and herself. A lot of it was collecting dust. She sighed, feeling around some of her own stuff with her fingers. Spare Hero Shots, a spare Hero Suit she had never had to wear before, spare headsets, grapple hooks, and other equipment that all technically belonged to her.

Memories flooded back, but despite the fact they were there, that's not what she was here for. She didn't even take them, instead turning back and looking elsewhere. No, instead, she was here to make herself something rather new, something she had to assemble herself. Looking around in different drawers and shelves that were in the back of the shed, she was able to find various parts to assemble armors with. Pulling out everything she needed, as well as some black spray paint, she sat down at the table in the center with all her parts, where she got to work.

Years Ago

Octo Valley

Before all of this, there was a time when Jessica was much more… innocent, one could say. She was happy, she was bubbly, she did in fact smile quite a bit, and she very much enjoyed her new job as Agent 3 for the New Squidbeak Splatoon. All things considered, she was generally pretty happy at the time.

Today, wearing her Hero Suit, she had been going through the long struggle of obtaining and securing four Zapfishes in a row, and had just secured her eighth in total. Feeling pretty good about herself, she decided to take a break and took a seat nearby Cuttlefish's shack in the Valley, working on an update for her Hero Shot.

Cap'n Cuttlefish himself was standing in front of the shack, watching her. "…I've just gotta say, young lady, you are probably the most skilled of your age I have ever seen. You're only 14, correct?"

"Yes." Jessica replied, barely looking up from her weapon. "Fresh to the city, too."

He chuckled a little. "I don't believe it. I'm guessing you play turf war a lot, then?"

"Mhmm. Turf War, ranked, you name it, I've tried it."

"Very impressive." He smiled and sat down next to her, sighing as he rested his cane. "Really, I've never seen anything like it. The way you move, the way you aim… it's like you're a natural-born fighter."

She smiled a little. "I think it runs in the family."

"Well, out of all the Inklings in that Plaza I could've hired, I'm glad it was you."

"Thanks, old man. Glad to be here. Honestly, I was getting bored with Turf War stuff, anyway… this is much more of a thrill ride."

"Just remember that we're not just here for the thrills. We're here for the important cause."

"I know, I know."

"Anyway, as soon as our break is done, I have our next Zapfish location. And to my own surprise, it's actually up here on the surface."

"Really? Where?"

"The Kelp Dome. From my understanding, some Octarians set up an establishment there today while it's closed. I don't know what for. But we traced the next Zapfish to there."

"That… kind of sounds like a trap."

"Oh, maybe. But given that it is up here on the surface, I doubt they want to create too much noise for the time being. Should be simple. Just go in, splat who you need to, grab the Zapfish, and get out."

"You got it." She clicked her weapon shut and stood up. "Say the word, and I'll be there."

He smiled up at her. "You certainly have a spark inside you, Agent 3. Keep that for as long as you can."

"I intend to." She grinned back.

"Just remember to be careful."

"I will be."

"Alright then. You can head out."

The grin still on her face, and with her Hero Shot in hand, Jessica headed off through the Valley, to find the appropriate Kettle.

Present Day

Underdogs Base

Hugh Ward was in his office, staring up at his monitors as usual, a somber look in his eyes. This time, the monitors were playing as many different news stations as possible, to see if there was any news on the vigilantes and their whereabouts. There wasn't. In fact, outside of the news of the highway shootout, which the public had no information about (they had chopped it down to a simple gang shootout), it was a slow news day. Currently, he had no information on where Agents 3 and 8 could've gone. He didn't even know where to look for Daniel. And given what the vigilantes had presumably escaped with… for once, it seemed that the Underdogs and himself were vulnerable. That was never in the plan, but he had to live with it now.

Soon, his guard entered, interrupting his thoughts. "Ward. Ayesha's here."

"Let her in." He replied simply.

He nodded and left again, before Ayesha entered a moment later. He turned to her, and they stared at each other for a moment, in silence. He could see that Ayesha actually looked pretty banged up.

"...We're in our own endgame now, Ayesha." He eventually spoke.

"...I know…" She replied.

He stood up. "…And need I even mention… that it was because of your failure to contain them?"

"You don't have to mention anything, babe… I'm the one who was there, not you." She gave him an almost sinister glare. "…And we have to assume that they got the information they needed."

"Yes… we have to… and if they did… this could be our last chapter."

"Last chapters are always a party. But I'm… I'm sorry that I failed you…"

"...Perhaps failure isn't what we should focus on now." He put his arms behind him and turned back to his monitors. "…This was never about winning or losing. This was about sending our message."

"We won't be able to send our message if Agent 3 takes us down."

"...Our message will still be in action even if we're not around. Inklings aren't too different from us. They can tear each other apart, just like our own race does to ourselves beneath the ground. They've unleashed chaos upon themselves just from the mere thought of Agent 3 being alive. And even if he's no longer our ally… we still unleashed a loose cannon at the city." He turned his head to one monitor where it had images of Jessica and Daniel, and he eyed Daniel's face specifically.

Ayesha stared at him from behind. "…Ward… if you're willing to give us up that easily… what was the point of the Underdogs?"

"...Do you not remember what happened in Octo Valley?" He replied, his gaze dropping a bit.

She fell silent for a moment. "…I remember…"

"...The New Squidbeak Splatoon came at us with their own message. They showed us how indifferent from us the Inklings truly are. They're emotional animals. They're murderers. They forced us underground 100 years ago and they took control of the surface world." He turned back to her. "…I just didn't see the full extent of their hypocrisy until Octo Valley…"

Ayesha's gaze went down, memories coming in.

Years Ago

The Domes Beneath Octo Valley

Ayesha, of course, was younger back in her soldier days, but she wasn't such a peaceful individual. She was stationed in an all-female Octoling defense team, and the group was currently preparing for their next mission in a gray-looking Octarian meeting room. The Octolings all around her were preparing their guns as they waited for their commander, while she was instead sharpening and preparing knives.

"Are you allowed to have knives here?" A fellow soldier asked, walking up to her. "Those aren't Octarian-issued weapons."

"I'm allowed whatever weapon I so desire, hun… the commander gave me the permission I need." She slid it off of the knife sharperner with a shing sound, before holding it up and admiring it. "I prefer knives to guns anyway… you know why?"

She gave a frustrated look as if she didn't want the conversation to continue, but continued anyway. "…Why?"

"Guns are practically useless. Especially these boy toys that we have here. You know what our guns do? They splat people. It's not lethal. You leave them as a puddle of ink and they reform and wake up later."

"...Guns aren't 'boys toys'. They're useful weapons. What gave you that impression, anyway?"

"Sure, guns can be useful if you use them correctly. But why use a gun from a distance and risk missing your target when you can just close that distance and use your baby on them? You puncture their skin, slide the metal and cut their insides, do whatever the fuck you want with them, and watch them bleed out helplessly in front of you until the life leaves their eyes. You can't miss with a knife. You just make em' hurt with it." She flipped it into the air before she caught it again.

The Octoling stared at the knife, and then at her. "…Or maybe you're just some kind of serial killer."

"I am a serial killer, babe… just don't tell that to Octavio." She gave a creepy giggle. "…I haven't seen you around. Who are you?"

"...Camila Ward. I'm the daughter of Commander Ward."

"Old man's bitch, I like it. I'm Ayesha."

"I know who you are. A lot of the girls here talk about you. I think they're afraid of you."

"...But do you fear me?"

"Well, now that I got a closer look, you seem to just be some kind of creep."

She chuckled. "Well, perhaps, but I'm sure there's more to me that counts." She continued sharpening her knife.

Their conversation was interrupted before Camila could say anything else, as Commander Ward himself entered the room. "Attention." He called out, prompting every Octoling there to drop what they were doing and line up in front of him.

Ward stood in front of all of them, looking them all over. "By now, I'm sure you understand our current situation. It could prove to be the most important event in recent Octarian history, and our greatest achievement if we succeed. While Octavio's stealth team has recently managed to steal a collection of Zapfish from the Inkling menace, his mission is far from complete. Now, he has tasked our team with not only defending those Zapfish from being taken back, but to take down our recent pursuers: Captain Cuttlefish and his New Squidbeak Splatoon. Yet, while Agent 3 has already infiltrated our domes, Octavio wants to avoid having to deploy any more Great Octoweapons. That's where our team comes in. So… under the idea of my beautiful daughter, Camila…" He pointed at her, and she smiled back. "…we're bringing the fight up to the surface. I've already managed to secure the Kelp Dome location within Inkopolis, and we will be holding an ambush mission there. We'll hold the Zapfish there, draw Agent 3 in, and take her down. Keep in mind, however, that our current mission is to splat her, not kill her. After we have her, we may need her to get to Cuttlefish next."

"You can count on us, father." Camila responded.

"Yes. I can." He nodded. "Once this is over, we will all finally have the resources to take over the surface again, even if it means another war. But war is what we've prepared for, and I have faith that we will restore our race to our rightful place. With your help."

"We'll do it single-handedly, babe." Ayesha replied.

"I figured you would say something like that, Ayesha. I trust that you're prepared?"

"You know it~" She pulled out a knife to show him.

"Your methods are certainly reliable, I'll give you that. But don't forget that our mission is to splat her. Not kill her. At least for now."

"Hm…" She rubbed her food against the ground in an almost innocent-like way. "…As long as I get to kill her after we have all that we need."

"...Fine. Not like I'll be able to convince you otherwise."

Ayesha couldn't help but giggle in response to that.

Ward sighed and ignored her."Alright, girls. Suit up and start heading up to the surface. I've already ensured that security will let you out. Good luck."

"Yes, sir." The Octolings (sans Ayesha) said in unison as most of them went to finish preparing their weapons. Camila, however, instead went up to her father.

"...I'm proud of you, Camila." Ward told her.

"I know."

"But, for now, I want you to be focused on the mission. Don't let your sentiment get in the way."

"...I understand."

He moved his finger over and gently caressed her cheek, before pulling her forward and kissing her forehead. She smiled at him. They then looked over to see that the other Octarians were about ready, and Ayesha walked by, winking at Camila.

Ward let go. "Now. Go join your sisters."

"Yes, father." She nodded, before going to follow.

Once all the Octolings were lined up at the door, he walked over and pressed a button on the wall, and the lights in the room turned red as a brief alarm sounded. A hissing sound could then be heard as some gas flooded out from a pipe in the corner of the room, and the door opened. They all walked out, one by one, with their weapons in hand, as they started their trek up to the surface. Ward stood by the door, watching.

Later

The Kelp Dome

A yellow glow, accompanied by the sound of electricity, lightly illuminated the area around it as the Zapfish struggled within its constraints, held down by an electric force field. Octolings were standing guard, stationed all around the otherwise currently empty dome, where the dawn sky could be seen through the windows.

Ayesha was next to Camila, sharpening and admiring her own knives again, mostly in silence. After a moment, Camila turned to her. "…Father said we're not supposed to kill her."

"I'm not going to." Ayesha responded, casually turning toward him. "...What's his story, anyway?"

"Who's?"

"Commander Ward's, genius."

She sighed, taking off her Octarian goggles. "…He was a loyal consultant to Lord Octavio for years, until he got promoted to Commander. Not much to say, really."

"...And what about you? Why haven't I seen you around?"

"...I've been trying to become a soldier for years. I trained, under his watch, 40 hours a week. It wasn't until recently that my father deemed me worthy to join you."

She chuckled a bit. "That's nothing. I train 50 hours a week. No breaks. I push myself until I can feel the pain, and I keep going until that pain is the only thing I can think about. Pain is our most important feeling, and you have to embrace it. You're a pissy shit, otherwise."

She stared at her, a bit irritated. "…I know pain. My father does, too. Maybe you should learn to not judge someone by their cover."

"How else do you judge someone?"

"Not like that."

"Hey." She suddenly pulled her close. "Just because I, as you say, judge you by your cover, doesn't mean I don't see good in you. I have a pretty good track record of figuring people out with glances, and I see a fighter within you."

She blushed a little. "…W-Well, I-I still don't think it's a good idea…"

"Well, it's worked out well for me. It helps me know who I should keep around and who I shouldn't."

"...And you think I'm worth keeping around?"

"Sure feels like it." She suddenly squeezed her rear, and she gasped a little in surprise. She giggled at the reaction. "You're sensitive, too."

Camila shoved her off. "Don't touch me like that again."

"Hm… fine, but only for now. I'll sway you to my side eventually."

Before Camila could respond, a small alarm went off throughout the dome, and they looked around.

Another Octoling turned to them. "Agent 3 is here."

"See, I always get a party." Ayesha replied, cocking her gun and getting into position.

Camila glanced at her before she cocked her gun as well and got ready. They both slipped their goggles on.

At that moment, an explosion of blue ink burst over the domes' spawn point as Agent 3, Jessica herself, was spawned in. She had turned her hair blue for the mission, and was still wearing her Hero Outfit. She looked over the area. At first glance, the area seemed to be abandoned.

"The Zapfish is back there." Cuttlefish spoke to her over the com system.

"I'm on my way." Hero Shot in hand, she leaped down from the starting platform onto the floor, and immediately took a defensive position, pointing her weapon in front of her as she cautiously made her way through the stage. She was fairly familiar with it thanks to her time in Turf War, but something was different: a line of power eggs, lined in such a way that they were seemingly leading her somewhere. "…I'm 99% sure that this is a trap."

"Keep your head about you and stay alert. You'll be able to see anyone coming."

She nodded and kept moving forward, looking in all directions. The area was mostly silent, and she wasn't even following the obvious power egg trail, but she definitely felt like someone was watching her.

Indeed, standing on the platforms over the stage, were the Octoling team, ready to attack. They gripped their weapons eagerly. Unfortunately for them, however, Cuttlefish was able to spot them first through Jessica's camera.

"We've got company, bucko. Octolings ahead."

"Octowha-?" She was interrupted as multiple Octolings suddenly jumped down at her, firing their ink at her. Caught off guard, she swore and ducked out of the way, taking cover behind a wall. "Are these guys new!?"

"For you, yes. Like I just said, they're Octolings, they're the Octarian equivalent to us. These scalleywags can turn into octopuses and swim in ink too."

"We have her." One Octoling told the others as they started slowly approaching her hiding spot.

Jessica, now surrounded, looked around, actually a bit scared. "…Ok, so, this should be just like Turf War, right?"

"Not quite. Unlike the average Inkling teenager, these guys are trained and their sights are set on you. But knowing you, I know you can find a way out of this. You've overcome every single obstacle so far, Agent 3."

She nodded and took a deep breath. "You're right…"

"Just be careful, now."

With the Octolings still approaching, she took more deep breaths and cocked her gun. "I'm invulnerable… I'm the one… the only… Agent 3…"

"...I-I wouldn't call you inv-" Cuttlefish tried to say, but he was interrupted as Jessica suddenly turned the corner, and fired at the Octolings with surprisingly great precision, splatting them both.

"Holy… we have women down! Women down!" Another Octoling updated to their radio system. "Watch her accuracy!"

In response to this, the Octoling team started getting more aggressive, and the closer Octolings began closing in on the Agent. Jessica continued inching forward, not letting her guard down one bit, again looking in all directions.

"Get her!" Ayesha barked into the Octarian's radio.

Taking advantage of the dome's tight corners, Octolings started to jump after her, either from around those corners or from behind her, and each one thought for a moment that they had her. However, Jessica's reflexes and accuracy were too great, and one by one, Jessica dodged and splatted each one on sight, before carefully moving on. She even picked up a backup helmet along the way.

Camila began to grow nervous as she watched from her station. "…Holy shit…"

"Ok, so, Agent 3 is good. No biggie." Ayesha told her before she turned on her radio again. "Started splashing her ink before I start splashing yours!"

An Octoling managed to jump onto Jessica, attempting to wrestle with her, and Jessica cried out as she was quickly overwhelmed. She crashed into a wall, disarming both of them as she tried to shake her off, but was forced to grab her Hero Shot again in order to splat her off. She groaned in pain, having to take off her helmet, as another Octoling charged at her. Angrily, Jessica suddenly grabbed her as soon as she got close and shoved her against the wall, bringing the Hero Shot to her face and shooting her a few times with a war cry, successfully splatting her like all the Octolings before her.

Cuttlefish just silently watched the situation unfold, a bit surprised by the violence. Jessica continued inching her way through the dome, continuing to shoot down anyone who dared cross her path. Soon enough, there wasn't too many Octolings left, and she was nearing the Zapfish.

"...What do we do?" Camila asked.

"...I'll handle it." Holding her weapon, Ayesha stepped down from her station, making her way to Jessica.

Soon, the Zapfish was right in Jessica's field of view, and she grinned. "Target spotted."

"Careful, young lady." Cuttlefish reminded her.

Despite the warning, Jessica lowered her guard a bit. "Doesn't look like anyone's home." She remarked as she started heading straight up the Zapfish, and was soon standing right in front of the shield. She shot at it a few times, and it quickly smashed open. Her usual smile spread on her face. "Zapfish acquired. I'm heading b-" Before she should grab it, a barrage of ink suddenly struck her back, breaking her armor. Grunting in surprise, she immediately turned around to see Ayesha, who fired at her again. She dodged and took cover.

"Are you alright?" Cuttlefish asked.

Jessica nodded, taking a breather. "…I-I'm fine…"

"...She's approaching again!"

With a scream, Ayesha suddenly leapt at her and attempted to attack her with her fists. Jessica just barely dodged and attempted to fight back, but wasn't too skilled with it yet, and gasped as Ayesha was able to kick her Hero Shot right out of her hands. She looked at her, seeing that Ayesha had dropped her own weapon.

"Unarmed, young, and tasty-looking…" Ayesha licked her lips. "Hiring little kids is just the Cap'n's thing, huh?"

"Call me little again, creep." Jessica replied.

"Why, you want a little of this?" She made a smooching noise with her lips, and Jessica suddenly turned around in an effort to reclaim her weapon. "Nuh-uh!" She kicked her down, before standing over her. "It's time for us to fight like girls."

Jessica, not quite sure what to do, kicked her and then started desperately crawling to her weapon, only for Ayesha to pick her up and pin her against the wall.

"Remember the tips I showed you. You can get out of this." Cuttlefish assured her.

Hearing that, Jessica suddenly kicked her as hard as she could in the groin, successfully getting her to back off. Ayesha grunted. "Bitch!"

Instead of responding, Jessica suddenly punched her in the stomach to stun her for longer, and then managed to do a bit of a roll, even if not a professional one, to reach her weapon again.

"Nice!" Cuttlefish cheered.

Jessica then fired at Ayesha, forcing her to take cover now, as Camila attacked as well. She gasped slightly and dodged her gunfire, before managing to land some ink right on Ayesha, finally splatting her.

"RAAAH!" Camila yelled as she attacked Jessica head-on, successfully disarming her again. Camila was even more aggressive than Ayesha was, surprisingly, and pinned her down on the ground, punching her in the face. She crawled on top of her, prepared to splat her. "I promised my father I'd make him proud…"

Jessica desperately swatted her, and disarmed her as well. She was angrily gritting her teeth now, and her nose was bleeding. "I promised mine, too…"

Camila growled at her, and reached to grab her weapon, but Jessica was too pissed at this point to let that happen. She wanted something to hit. Without warning, she punched her in the jaw, before attempting to wrestle with her for control. They were both pretty determined at the moment, but all it took Jessica was a jab straight to her chest to overpower her, and she flipped them over, crawling on top.

"Easy, young lady." Cuttlefish cautioned.

But Jessica wasn't listening. There was a deep anger in her that was coming out right now, almost like her brother. As Camila stared up at her in fear, she punched her multiple times, as hard as she could, until she was unconscious. Even then, she still didn't stop. She kept going, until Camila's face was starting to swell and her ink was starting to coat her fists.

"...Agent 3!" Cuttlefish stopped her.

She finally stopped, panting, her fist still in the air as she stared down at her defeated enemy.

"Get off of her! She's already defeated!"

After falling silent for a moment, Jessica crawled off of her and stood up, still staring down at her.

"...Never, ever, do that unless it's necessary. You only need to splat them." Cuttlefish continued.

"...Understood… I'm… I'm sorry…" She sighed, going to pick her weapon back up.

But Cuttlefish couldn't stay mad for long. He was too forgiving. After all, he had done questionable things as well back in the day, even if it was in the name of freedom. "…Are you alright, young lady?"

"...Perfectly fine." Looking down at Camila one last time, she turned back to the Zapfish cage, before she fired at it to smash it open. Before the shield could reform, she reached in and pulled the Zapfish out.

Later

The Octolings all soon returned to the domes after they all reformed, and they sat in the same meeting room that they had met in before. They were fairly exhausted, partially due to being splatted, and Ayesha's eyes were still blurry as she recovered. No one in the room was at 100% quite yet.

Soon, to some of their fear, Commander Ward stepped back in, looking around at everyone. "…Mission report."

The room remained silent.

"...Mission report, now."

"...She got the Zapfish…" Ayesha finally broke the silence.

A deep sigh escaped his mouth as he closed his eyes in frustration, rubbing his forehead. "…Octavio's not going to be happy with you."

"I'm not even happy with myself… there's, uh… something else…"

"What?" He looked at her.

Reluctantly, she motioned over to Camila, who was deeply unconscious on a table in the corner. Her face was pretty badly swollen, and there was dried ink on her face. Silently, he walked over to get a closer look.

"...I'm sorry, Commander…" Ayesha told him.

He checked her pulse. She was still alive, but didn't seem to be in a great condition. Anger slowly filled his otherwise emotionless face. "…Who did this…?"

"...Who do you think?"

Present Day

"...I never told you this… but the night that Camila did finally pass away, I talked with her. She was just determined to take down the Inkling menace as we are today." Ward finished. "Agent 3 ruined her life and ultimately took it in the end. All because she has that violence and anger inside of her."

"...You want to show them pain… like what we felt…"Ayesha replied.

"And you know pain better than anyone, Ayesha…" He brought a finger up to her hair, gently caressing it along with her cheek. "You know that things will work out for us… in the end… Inklings will tear themselves apart…"

"...Yes… perhaps they will…"

He then pulled her forward lightly, pressing his lips against her forehead for a moment before they broke apart.

Ayesha looked up at him. "…What will we do now, then?"

"...We'll let Agent 3 to come to us."

"That's really your idea of our endgame?"

"Well… either we'll kill her and put this matter to bed… or else she'll show us her true self. We'll get to see her hypocrisy."

"And she'll know pain…" She grinned a little.

He nodded. "It was only a matter of time. After all, she's a Murdock. She has the same fire in her as her brother."

Indeed, Jessica had the same violence inside her that Daniel did. At that moment, she was finishing up her work at Cuttlefish's shed, and had just finished equipping herself and fitting herself into a full, black body armor, from neck to toe. It gave her a masculine look, but that was what she had wanted; she wanted to march up to the Underdogs as her own terrifying icon. Or, at least, he was going to use the Underdog's icon against them.

To complete the look as she headed out, with her spear as her only weapon, she slipped on the Executioner mask, and began her trek straight to the Underdogs' hideout.

So, I know it's been a little while... again. I apologize for not updating as much as I should, but lately I have actually been having computer problems that have hindered my productivity. My keyboard has stopped working lately and, even though it's just a few keys that died out, it's very crippling when it comes to writing, so I've had to borrow a separate laptop and constantly swap files between them through a hard drive in order to keep writing. Aside from that, I think we can all agree this year has been unbelievably crazy in general, and it's easy to lose motivation in times like this. Regardless, I hope you're all doing well, I'll be trying to write more and get chapters up more frequently, and I'll see you next time. *waves*