*Hey guys! there's a poll up on my profile regarding this story. Check it out if you have the time, I'd greatly appreciate it. Without further ado, on to the story!*
"Wow…what a performance!" Lime said, clapping loudly. She then balled her hands into fists shook them with excitement for her little sister; The Elites pulled off a dominating performance and grabbed the victory.
Cap 'n Cuttlefish stroked his beard while he contemplated his words. "To think they'd play with such aggression. I almost didn't recognize them for a moment." He said, looking over at Agent 3, who had a little smile on her face as she watched her daughter make her exit. "I wonder how her little brother will do when he reaches this stage…" He muttered.
Agent 3's smile faded as she slowly looked toward the old man with a questioned look. Agent 4 smirked and then chuckled with amusement, "That boy will be special." He said proudly.
"He caught my attention a long time ago, but after watching him fight in that martial arts tournament, I was sure he was going to be special."
Agent 4's eyebrows raised while keeping a smirk, "Martial Arts?"
"Yeah, he won the competition in the Fall festival."
Agent 4's face turned serious as he crossed his arms-interested, "Did he, now?"
"Yeah, he's earned a reputation among adults and children alike as the inkling with super strength who is the son of the legendary agents of the Squidbeak Splatoon. Must be great to have such successful children: One head general, A second-in-command, a master sniper, and a super inkling."
Agent 4's face intensified as his eyebrows dropped, he seemed angry. "That boy…"
Agent 3, who'd been ignoring their conversation the entire time, notices Azule and his friends sitting together in a row far down towards the right across from where they were. She smiles, seeing her beloved son enjoy himself with his friends; Agent 4 catches the growing smile on Agent 3's face. H knew it must be related, since Agent 3 loved Azule ever so dearly. Enough so that she'd always smile whenever she had a thought of him. He was the only one that could make her smile like that.
He turns to Agent 3 and with a serious stare, "You found Azule, didn't you?"
Agent 3 ignores him, continuing to smile as she watched her son; Agent 4 realizes he's getting nowhere with Agent 3 and decides to follow her eyes, finding Azule shortly after sitting with a group of friends he didn't recognize, and one that he did. He spots Pastelle and Azule sitting side by side towards the end of their row near the stairs, deciding to leave the luxury box immediately. Cap 'n Cuttlefish smirks, remembering the many strenuous days of training Azule and Sky went through to achieve the skills they had.
Meanwhile, the match between Octo Valley and Reef was heating up! There were three minutes left in the match, but both teams had been doing an excellent job of obtaining the Rainmaker, but no one could capitalize. The score was 90-94 in favor of Reef, who were looking to deliver the knockout and eliminate the heavily favored Octo Valley. On both sides, whenever it seemed like a team was about to grab victory, they either got splatted or inksploded for taking too long. Indeed, this wasn't an easy match, and there was still a trio of minutes to go before the match's end.
Shiva led the way for her team as they respawned and swam swiftly through their ink, trying to defend a losing battle as Reef applied pressure with the Rainmaker advancing further and stretching the lead, inking up a wall and swimming up, looking to take victory before the Octolings can adjust and make an impact in the match. Both teams trade ink as the Octolings made their stand; they had chosen a combo of Aerosprays, a Splattershot and a Squelcher; Reef had a team of three rollers and one charger. A matchup like this led to Octo Valley always splatting the Rainmaker, but failing to capture it since the Reef focused on eliminating the Octolings first before taking the Rainmaker.
"Octo Valley is on the ropes…" Pastelle said plainly with a focused look; Azule gazed at her, observing how deeply engrossed in the match she was.
Fuchsia had a worried expression as she watched her sister struggle to make a comeback. For Fuchsia, although she didn't go home often she would always talk to her sister on the phone. Their usual conversations revolved around Shiva always mentioning the progress she did in her turf wars over in Inkopolis square, encouraging Fuchsia to bring Azule there for a date, which Fuchsia swiftly rejected the idea with a flustered tone. For Fuchsia, Shiva was her only family that she could depend on. To see her struggling, it made her feel so helpless that she couldn't do anything to support. Azule noticed Fuchsia and decided to cheer her up, giving her a huge smile.
"Thanks, Azule…" She said with a blushing face, closing her eyes, thankful to see Azule show care towards her.
"The reason why Octo Valley hasn't been able to make any effect in this match comes down to more than just timing…"-Kosami leans forward with interest- "Reef is playing much more aggressively and utilizing the advantage of having three heavy rollers and one marksman at the charger spot. The Octolings might have the advantage in mobility and fire rate, but the Reef dudes seem experienced enough to use their setup to their best possible outcome."
"But so far, the best they've done is widened the gap just a tiny bit…"-Pastelle said with a glint shining in her eye, keeping her attention on the Octo Valley captain- "If these Reef guys don't close this match in another minute, they'll lose this match."
Shiva powered through using her Squelcher, throwing out her mist to give some time to plan an attack. Currently, Reef had dropped the Rainmaker after Ciri splatted the Inkling who was using the Rainmaker. It was still a toss-up since Reef still had two members who were nearby to keep Octo Valley from focusing on the Rainmaker. Shiva's face hardened as she found the spot she was looking for, going up a side alley and sneaking up from behind; the Rainmaker was on their side on the first ramp. The score was 82-94 and still counting. Shiva spotted all four of the Reef players and began inking the turf behind them without any of them suspecting. Ciri and Vaairie noticed and instantly caught on to what Shiva was planning, following her plan and continuing their role of occupying the attention of the attacking Reef players.
"She's looking to trap them…" Verde said as he analyzed the match, stopping next to Lime and Cap 'n Cuttlefish; Agent 3 stayed off to the side, putting her hands in her black overcoat.
"The Octoling princess…to think she was such a talented one…" Cap 'n Cuttlefish said with both admiration and irritation seeping from his voice. As a participant in the war, he wasn't too fond of Octarians. But, it was Agent 3 who came down to a compromise. Although she didn't participate in the compromise, she was the one who ended the war on the condition of compromise.
Shiva had a giant smirk on her face, one like the smirk she had whenever she tried to seduce Azule, except this one was a different kind of lust, a lust for victory. Shiva took out her ultimate weapon: Tenta Missiles. She targeted the area that the Reef players were in and continued to ink the turf behind them. The Reef players noticed the targets of the missiles, but once they realized they couldn't make an escape with the pressure from Vaairie and Ciri, along with Shiva from behind, they accepted their splats. Splat, splat, splat, splat! Go the Reef Inklings; a team elimination!
During the moment of the splatting, Reluna was attacking the Rainmaker's barrier-succeeding in destroying the barrier the moment the enemy team got wiped clean. Octo Valley made their comeback, swiftly obtaining the Rainmaker and forcing a comeback. They prioritized attacking the Reef members while Reluna took the Rainmaker and went an alternate route-avoiding any confrontation with the Reef players. After a few quick moments, Reluna slammed the Rainmaker on the point and secured the knockout victory for Octo Valley.
The Octarians roared with cheers as many Inklings jeered, upset that Reef couldn't pull off the surprise defeat. The girls of Octo Valley looked taxed, having exerted more energy than expected; they hadn't expected such an aggressive performance from a lower seeded team. This was a wakeup call to not only Octo Valley, but to the other giants: the lower seeded teams weren't going to go down without a fight. This match was a fair warning of what could happen if anyone ever underestimates their opponent.
Sally stood up from her seat, applauding both teams for the great match. She dropped back into her seat as the intermission sign came on the screen. She seemed satisfied with the first two matches, seeing Sky and the Elites send a message, and then seeing Shiva and her team prevent an upset; she was excited by all the action she was missing out on. She clenched her fists with anxiousness in her eyes, "This is what a major tournament feels like…" she said with growing enthusiasm; She had missed out on the preliminaries, but this was an even better opportunity for her to see what the best teams in the nation looked like.
Violet adjusted her glasses as she moved her hair behind her ears, leaning forward and looking at the victors and losers. "It was a good thing to come here. I feel like I've gotten a grasp of how these tournaments work…"
Sally turned to Violet, "I know what you mean…After seeing these matches, it really pains me that we couldn't win the Rank Wars."
The three were silent for a moment. They had a remarkable season in their debut year of the Rank Wars, reaching the Semi-Finals before losing to Kidvel. They remembered the heart ache of that match, the tears that were shed afterwards. They had worked so hard, doing something that many had thought was insane: continuing their campaign with only a trio against a quartet. Nobody expected them to come so far, and yet they did. Alas, the feeling in their hearts was the same as it was the night of their loss, that if Azule hadn't gotten shot, if they had their captain for the entire season, they'd be competing here.
"We were pretty damn close, weren't we?" Reice said with a hint of frustration, but mostly satisfaction that their team could accomplish such a feat.
"We'll become even better in the spring and take the invitationals…" Sally said with optimism, but aware of the challenging task.
"Before we get there, we should focus on the 2nd Rank War that's coming up." Violet said, stopping Sally before she got far ahead of herself.
Sally nodded with confidence, "We'll take what we learned here and apply it. So far, it seems that the two important things to note are to play aggressively right out the gate. This varies depending on the opponent, since we saw it successful in the first match but fail in this match. Also, every individual has a role to fulfil, but that doesn't mean they can't attempt to follow what their mind thinks is the right action…"
Violet and Reice were impressed with Sally's analysis. Indeed, she'd come a long way from the plastic hothead that only wanted to plow through her opponents with her Heavy Splatling. After her time spent immersing herself in music, she'd become the most composed member of the active team; Cobalt remained the most composed member. Speaking of composed, that was something that Fuchsia wasn't after the end of the match. She was on the verge of tears after seeing her sister overcome her obstacle, but she was really crying because she realized just how stressful it must be for her sister, aware of her sister's goal to bring equality to Inkopolis. Azule tried his best to ease Fuchsia away from crying, since he didn't like to see anyone cry. Pastelle giggled, noticing how close Azule and were getting right next to her; she began to tease Fuchsia lightheartedly without revealing the most obvious of facts.
"I-it's not like that!" Fuchsia said as she wiped away her tears from her pink cheeks; Azule laughed it off, semi aware of Pastelle's implications.
The trio laughed together as Cobalt and Tangie tried to make conversation with Kosami and ease her to a comfortable level since she seemed rather shy after learning the duo were longtime friends of hers. Azule's ears twitched as he heard footsteps come down the stairs, distinct footsteps that he knew all too well from his past. He couldn't understand why, but he felt sweat come down his face suddenly. His heart felt like it was about to burst, and for the first time ever, Azule felt truest form of fear: his body turned pale as his skin became cold-eyes dulled as the footsteps got louder. Fuchsia and Pastelle noticed the sudden change in Azule and begin to show concern. Could this be his heart problem…? They thought simultaneously, dismissing it a moment later since he wasn't showing the same kinds of signs, nor was he clenching his chest like he usually would.
Azule's eyebrows trembled with fear, his body shivering in fear from the eerie chill he felt approaching, and soon he began to shrink as the footsteps came closer and louder. Azule didn't know why, but for some reason his body was acting on its own. He recognized the footsteps, knowing only two people that had those footsteps. But for some reason, his body was responding this way because the feeling he got was an extreme fear. Little did he know that his father was soon making his approach to him.
Agent 3 began to slightly frown as she noticed Agent 4 making his way through the crowd and into her line of sight, disliking the idea of that man interacting with their youngest son, her biggest pride and joy. Her hands clenched the railing as she had a displeased look growing look on her face, with that had her velvet red eyes turn into daggers as her glare pierced Agent 4's chest.
"Ow…" Agent 4 said as he looked up in the direction where Agent 3 was, seeing the imaginary daggers that pierced his body. She doesn't want me near him, huh? Can't blame her... he thought as he went ahead anyways.
Agent 3 gritted her teeth with an angry face; Lime laughed to herself, taking the situation as cute. She rarely ever saw her mom get heated, but knew that if anyone could ever rile her up, it'd be her eccentric and egotistical father. He wasn't necessarily egocentric, that was something Lime learned quick from young. She understood that her father was quite the observant and understanding person.
"Don't worry mother, he's just messing with you…he knows how much you care about Azule." Lime said a friendly tone, although she was terrified on the inside, she had to act like the eldest child and be brave.
Agent 3's daggers turned to her and then dulled once she saw her daughter's beaming smile; she sighed with a smile, signaling her defeat. Agent 4 saw Lime's smile and knew that Agent 3 was defeated. Agent 3 was a sucker for her children, and would do anything for them. She loved them dearly, but hated their father…
Agent 4's grin widened as he approached Azule's row, spotting his son in the second seat with Pastelle sitting on the end row seat. His dangerous aura evaporated as he got closer, knowing he'd scare other people if they had the keen enough senses to notice his presence. Azule's body went stiff as the footsteps stopped and when he turned his head, looking past the beautiful Pastelle, he saw a built man that looked identical to him, only manlier. The man smiled as he crossed his arms looking directly at Azule, with his blue eyes dead set on Azule's-like a mirror into the future. The others in the row noticed Agent 4's presence, but none of them were aware of who he was.
Agent 4 kept his grin, "Long time no see…my son."
Azule's eyes widened until they nearly popped out, watering as he heard the strong familiar tone that struck his memory into accord; the memories of his father came rushing back as he heard his voice. He recalled immediately the reason for his fear; his father was a different kind of monster, one unlike the female monster he bleakly could remember. His father was the militaristic demon that over worked his body and forced him to him to his physical limits as young inkling.
Azule's body turned paler as he shivered staring into the eyes of his father; the others knew that something wasn't right if Azule was reacting this way to a person. Pastelle covered Azule's hand, comforting him as she stared into the eyes of Azule's father, beginning to glare as their eyes met; Azule began to feel calm once he felt the warmth of Pastelle wrapping him. He felt safe around her. Azule couldn't help but smile as romantic thoughts began to fill his mind about her, she'd been his mentor for quite some time, and a very good friend, but she was always with Parker. Now that he had her to himself, here she was protecting him.
Pastelle's glare intensified as she narrowed her eyes lifting her chin up, "Who ar-"
"No need to ask that question… Number 6." Agent 4 said, making sure to avoid calling her by her codename; Pastelle went into shock once she realized who he was, remembering that both of Azule's parents were Agents of the Squidbeak Splatoon.
"You've both turned pale…"-Fuchsia said worried, feeling Azule's cold arm- "Are you guys ok?"
Agent 4 smiled, noticing the younger princess, "Mind if I borrow these two for a moment…?"
Fuchsia seemed confused by the sudden question, but Cobalt took over-leaning in and staring at the fearsome agent with a deadly stare of his own. "You may go ahead, but try anything funny, and I'll cut you up in the spot you stand…" Cobalt said as he gripped his sheathed blade on his left side, keeping his glare on Azule's father; Agent 4 was disturbed by Cobalt's words, but not because of the threat…
Those eyes…I've seen those irritating red eyes before… Agent 4 thought as he observed Cobalt's features, noticing the blade at his side, his cobalt blue hair, and the wicked aura filled with bloodlust. No doubt about it, he's that guy's kid…damn Tokugawa's…he thought with agitation, shifting his stare to Tangie and Kosami-immediately recognizing Tangie but struggling to recall Kosami.
"A-anyway…I need to speak with you, Azule." Agent 4 said as he resumed his reason for coming.
Pastelle tightened her grasp on Azule-who gazed at her pupils. He looked like a lost puppy. She turned to Cobalt, who nodded, trusting that Pastelle would protect his captain. "If Azule is going, then so am I…"
Agent 4 rubbed his neck, "Look here, I came to see my son…"
Pastelle didn't budge, "And I'm here to watch his sister and her team do well in this tournament, but you seem to be hindering us from doing that."
Agent 4 grinned, "It's intermission, kid."
Pastelle smirked, "Seems like that's the only time you're relevant since you never show up when it matters."
Agent 4 felt his face twitch as he tried to crack a smile, knowing she hit him where it hurt the most. He gave in, agreeing to let her come along as they followed him; the intermission ended as the announcers introduced themselves, mainly because they missed their opportunity to do so since the first couple of matches started off crazy. As the announcers prepared to introduce the next pair of matches that'd take place, a silver inkling crossed his arms as he and his team awaited their entrance-the same for their opponents as a black inkling put his hands in his pockets, prepared for the dogfight ahead.
As both teams are called and introduced, the crowd begins to get hyped as one of the premier matches are about to take place between two of top 4 giants in the country. The battle of 'Silver and Black' was about to occur: Beacon Hills, the 3rd seed, would be facing SquidOps, the 6th seed. A match that would somewhat impact how the rest of the tournament went; this was the unavoidable death match of the first round. Who would emerge victorious: "Silver Squid- Gin" or "Black Heart- Carbon"?
