Sky and the rest of the Elites were out at a restaurant having a celebration dinner for reaching the final; the others were joining them with good news about the Beacon Hills-Octo Valley game. Ollie and the others sat down next to Gileslie and the Elites with beaming faces, "They won! Octo Valley will meet you guys in the final." He said with enthusiasm.
Pearl crossed her arms condescendingly closing her eyes, "It's no surprise, why else would we be out here for dinner? We'll finally get a crack at them!"
"They did it…they really won?" Sky asked-the information still not fully registering.
Cannola nodded, "They really did it; Shiva sealed the victory for them and the last moment…I think they were crying tears of joy right after the whistle blew."
Sky' smiled softly as she casts her eyes down at the menu pressing her fingers against her forehead, "She did it…they did it…"
All of them looked satisfied to see Octo Valley get the victory even though they were the enemy race, and they would face them in two days; they all felt joy in knowing that Shiva and her teammates eased the pain that they suffered a year earlier.
"So I guess we should talk some strats? They'll give us hell if we're not prepared." Austin said, turning a page in the menu.
They brainstormed their ideas on a possible plan, but it was to no success; Octo Valley had one of the most explosive offenses in the nation-no, the continent! If they were going to stand a chance against them, they'd need more than just a good strategy. The waiter came by and took everyone's order, stopping by a few minutes later to hand everyone their drinks.
Sky focused on her sweating drink-deep in thought as her hands clasped together, "What would be their plan to stop us? We've got a squad ourselves…"
Apollo grinned after picking up on Sky's idea, "Think the way they think, huh?"
"Yeah, if we can plan as if we're facing ourselves, then we can block all possible weaknesses that will hurt us in the match. The fewer holes we have, the higher our chances for victory."
Pearl tilted her head a bit, "Like what…?"
Aaron smirked and gazed at his girlfriend, "A weakness like a certain someone going away from the team's plan?"
Sky blushed with embarrassment, "I-I have my reasons…"-looking away, fiddling her fingers-"besides, your tactics are kind of boring…"
"Boring?" Aaron echoed in a surprised tone.
"Yeah, there's no way someone like me can stick to such a boring setup, we'll need more finesse." Sky taunted dramatically like an actor.
Austin gave an awkward laugh, "Well then, I'd say that was something…"-clapping his hands together-"Back to the topic at hand, our plan."
Gileslie took out her notes and faced Sky, "I got some tape to give you guys, maybe tomorrow we could head out to your place and discuss everything there…"
"Yeah, we've also got our share too." Ollie said holding a clamp of papers.
Pearl smiled as she looked at her hands, "So in other words…let's enjoy this dinner! We'll sweat the details later!"
Everyone nodded in agreement and continued with their small conversations, everyone sharing a good time; meanwhile over in Octo Valley, Shiva was with her team in the marketplace greeting many of the Octarian citizens. After their victory and ticket to the preliminary finals, Shiva saw it right to give a speech before all of her people to address the number things on her mind. In attendance were Shiva's other royal retainers, as well as some body guards who served in case there were any radicals that might use this chance to attack the crown princess. Shiva was dressed very casual for someone who was the princess, wearing a brown coat with black jeans, some brown boots, and amber shades. She had a cute headband that pushed most of her overhanging tentacles upward.
"Good afternoon my people, the wonderful citizens of Octo Valley; I have called you all here today because our big preliminary finals match is just two days away. We have once again showed just how tough we are to reach such a stage so early in the campaign…"-she held up her first as she began to get emotional, looking down at the podium and holding back her tears-"Kore wa anata no tame no monodesu!" she said in her old native tongue, the old language known by the elders as Octarianese; it's believed that it was the same language used by a region of creatures long before their evolution.
The Octarians roared in applause at their Princess' ability to even use the old language, and to say such a sweet thing like that to them; they responded with a heartfelt "Thank you" and "We love you!"
"Reluna, Vaairie, Ciri, and I…we'll make you all proud! We'll completely erase the mistakes of last year's defeat! I vow to it! I'm going to change what happened…I promise I'll never let you all down again!" she said with great emotion, bowing her head before her own people-something that royalty was never supposed to do; Ciri herself was moved.
I've known her majesty my entire life…and never have I seen her hold such strong feelings like this…I never thought she could still hold defeats from last year this strongly-she admires Shiva's courage to show such raw emotion before her people-Don't worry my princess, for the people of Octo Valley show no ill feelings to you for what happened-we're a nation that values our princess more than anything. So, please don't cry.
One of the townspeople spoke up, "No tears Princess Magenta! You have my support!"
"Yeah, our princess shouldn't cry for us! We should be crying you, your majesty!" another said.
"We're happy to see you represent us as it is, don't mind! We believe in you!"
Shiva felt the ache in her heart grow as more of them began to show their complete support and faith in her, why did I have to inherit such a family of wonderful people…? I don't deserve their kindness…they don't deserve this unfair treatment from the Inkopolis government. Why do I have to have the curses that I do? Why can I not rescue them from the situation we're in?
"Thank you everyone, for your support…"-wiping away the tears-"I know it is unbecoming for a princess to cry before her people…but I can't help but express how deeply I love all of you. I solemnly swear that I will get us to better times, I vow that I'll change the ways of Inkopolis, and I'll start by winning every single competition under the sun; I'll force the government to have to answer to us, to address our status and give us our proper freedom!"
The Octarian audience cheered enthusiastically, chanting the crown princess' name; Shiva's teammates had smiles on their faces, applauding the brilliance of their captain. Over in a distant location, a limo full of what appear to be high executives stared at a radio that sat in the middle of the interior. They all had greedy smirks and grins on their faces as they turned their eyes to the one lady that sat the farthest from them.
"Your highness…your daughter has quite the strong connection with her people; she's a lot like how you were when you were her age."
The lady's face couldn't be seen because of the odd lighting in the car, but what could be seen was a huge grin on her face that showed her pearly white teeth, he bright red lips, and sparkling green eyes, "She's my daughter after all! I'd be disappointed if she didn't have a strong sense of pride in her people…if you ask me, she's just like her father."
