The smell of blood could easily be mistaken for iron, the shrieks and cries of warriors in the background are their final moments, and the mixture of grime and sweat impairing vision with great effect, is the sight of every soldier on the battlefield. This is the Great Turf War that saw the Octarians and Inklings of Inkopolis battle once more for the surface, though the reasons different from their ancestors. At this point in time, the war was towards the end of its cycle with the octarians suffering massive losses after successful battles saw Inkopolis take control of the tide, however, many still put their lives on the line to close the deal. One such soldier was a young Abby, who fought under the legendary guidance of Maya Royale during this war. Up until now, she risked her life several times to assist her leader in securing victories, but the further the brutality grew, the lesser the intensity of Maya, who looked as though she never wanted to fight in the war to start with. That first day, I had a sneaky feeling that something would go wrong. The powerful woman I'd heard so many rumors about that possessed an unmatched strength looked nothing more than a lonely spirit whose soul didn't belong on a battlefield. Her mind wasn't there, that much could be told from her dead gaze as she barely uttered commands with any emotion at a time when our pride was tested. Some misinterpreted that as her hard boiled nature, but to anyone with skills in analysis, it was obvious… Abby recovers from her snippet of the past, quickly feeling her legs-her fingertips connecting with the cold metal of her prosthetic legs, gloomily looking to the sky in remembrance of that ill fated day. It was on one of the final days of the war where rumors surfaced that the war would soon reach an end with the octos surrendering. However, the octarians Maya and her squad were fighting didn't seem to hear such rumors since they were still holding down the fort despite all of Maya's efforts to call an end to the fight. For some reason, she seemed to be in a hurry with great unease written on her face the entire time they defended their turf from the onslaught of aggressive enemy attacks. More than anyone, she wanted this war over.She recalled remembering what she dubbed the ultimate moment of weakness in the Great Agent 3, an error that forever changed the life of Abby all because of her hasty judgment and blind trust in Agent 3.

A rainy night where the battlefield covered in mud and blood painted a trail for the warriors, one warrior decided to tread her own way with dissatisfaction at the orders issued by her commander. After successfully defending their post from the octarians who spent the entire day sending wave after wave of attackers targeting their post, many inkling soldiers were at an all time high with emotions-their adrenaline overflowing in their system from the torment they endured the entire. After all that time feeling their backs pushed to t he wall, many of them felt it was their chance to go on the aggressive and obliterate the octarian forces in one go since they had the strength capable to wipe them out in an instant. But Maya opposed the idea that was proposed by her subordinates, her reason simply being that the way was already over and there was no need to indulge in their bait tactics-just endure it until official word was given to cease fire completely. To her, entertaining anything from the enemy only hurt them and helped the octarian's cause. She thought her squad was above stooping to their level, however, her orders were ignored by a handful of soldiers, who decided to sneak out in the dead of night and take down the enemy themselves. A plan that backfired so badly that it took Maya stepping in to rescue her squad, it was only after then that the war truly came to an end by Maya's word, who was fed up with the fighting in a war that had lost its meaning long ago.

"If only you showed that same intensity when we needed, maybe we wouldn't have been so stubborn..." Abby said as she held where her knees would be, always wondering what would have been in her life if she never fought under Maya. Would she have lived her life different? Would she be dead? Answers she would never find, all she knew was that she had to thank Luke Garston for taking her in.

Stories like Abby's weren't uncommon since the Tower Bridge Unit consisted of soldiers who all had something they lost at one point. For Abby, it was her legs. For Duke, who stood across from her with his cap covering his face with his head bowed as though asleep under the brim, it was the comrades he lost in that war. A talented soldier who excelled in battle, his story was infamous within the ranks of the Inkopolis military as the last survivor of the 152nd splatoon. A squid squad with moderate talent, what made them stand out was Duke's proficiency in battle and his ability to rally comrades. What was supposed to be his strengths soon became a flaw unforeseen by anybody. During the war, an enemy unit prioritized eliminating Duke after he managed to beat one of the enemy unit's sibling units easily. Targeting him with all they had, Duke found himself overwhelmed by their overflowing numbers, almost kicking the bucket after suffering multiple wounds from their guns that painted him in the enemy color, unable to escape their grasp as they trapped him. It was then that Duke watched his team come to his rescue and fight them off, which worked in the end-except it would be him who walked away alive. A valiant effort by the rest of the squad, Duke was forced to watch the bloodshed helplessly-a nightmare he would never wake up from that continued to haunt him like the constant haze in his memories and as such, he turned to drugs for comfort, able to escape drug testing thanks to the corruption within the military that pardoned his actions for his successes. Landon and Lance were no different in the department of suffering a loss. After the war, they had no home to return to. The raging inferno that sat where their families and homes used to be sent a chill through their minds as they recalled the last moments they shared before their departure, and how they desperately wished they could turn back the clock backwards. As such there was a reason that not only the two brothers, but the entire unit as well as the others under Garston's command admired him so much. Despite being constantly in the shadow of the New Squidbeak Splatoon and Agent 3 as a top talent, General Garston always held his crew to a high standard and showed them the respect they sometimes weren't even worthy of. Known in the ranks as the wild card division led by a leader considered to once be a wild personality on the battlefield, the now mellow Luke Garston stood as a mature commander leading a bunch of misfits willing to pay in blood for his orders.

"Alright, we'll start from scratch. Since Abby lost his trail, we'll track him once again. Now, we just need a new approach. Even if they didn't spot her, there's a likelihood that if they see the bike once again, they'll have it in their subconscious." Landon said while swiping on his phone, preparing to activate the tracker Victoria gave him before their departure.

Duke's head raised, "Abby said there were multiple bodies in the car as well as a mysterious figure accompanying them there. Isn't that strange?"

"I didn't think much of it at the time, but something doesn't seem right. Why are they here in the first place? School is in session." Abby added, also in agreement with Duke that the matter should be looked into.

Lance shrugged his shoulders with displeasure on his face at what he was about to say, but with a side glance to his brother, he knew there was no point in voicing his opinion. "It's none of our business anyways." he said with a lack of his usual intensity, mostly because he wasn't on board with this particular hit as well as preferring to keep out of Azule's personal business after learning his dark history-even sympathizing with his motive for murder, though he could never share that reason.

"It is if we're going to kill him..." Landon responded with a cold silence filling the room. Though they agreed to follow Liandt's command after his proposition, there was still reluctance among a few members about taking a child's life, even if he shared blood with a despised rival, which was one of Liandt's bargaining chips for why they should follow through with the kill. Duke looked reluctant to commit such an atrocity-as did Lance, who couldn't stomach the idea of taking a child's life for the sake of some greater political scheme from a shady counterpart. But for Abby and Landon, killing Azule was neither for a personal reason nor a business arrangement, just an order to be carried out by incentives of another party being affected. Prior to carrying out this mission, the Tower Bridge Unite were approached by Liandt repeatedly for many months. His requests were ludicrous and often involved breaking the law. The reason they went through with his requests? General Garston. Liandt noticed that within the force, only the Garston division showed abrasion towards the famed New Squidbeak Splatoon, especially given the history between the members of Garston's premier unit and the legendary Agent 3. The more he noticed that animosity, the more he found it necessary to use them as pawns in his grand scheme. His master plan was simple: further the agenda of his faction and obtain greater control all while operating as the shadow boss of the nation behind the figurehead of the prime minister-a plan ruined with the elect's assassination. As such, he needed a strong task force to further deepen his ties with important underbosses, which is where the Tower Bridge Unit came in. It all started with simple dealings and transports under the guise that if the elite unit carried out his requests, he would see to a great promotion for Luke Garston from his current position to the Head General of the force, with the assurance that there has been growing uncertainty around Lime's position after many voiced a displeasure in working under her authority. As such, they were ready to do anything if it meant for the sake of their leader, failing to understand that it was something Garston would never approve of such corrupt and underhanded tactics. After successfully carrying missions for Liandt all in secret, he felt enough trust established to put himself, his fellow faction members, and the Tower Bridge Unit in the same hot water by sharing the secrets with them, subliminally blackmailing them into doing his bidding. Even though he didn't threaten them, now that they knew such dirty secrets and were already accomplices in other illegal dealings, they had no choice but to follow through or risk getting thrown in the fire. Should they succeed, Garston would receive the recognition he deserved and assume the highest position in the army, something they felt he deserved more than anything in the world. A deal made with the devil, they found their peace by believing their efforts to all be for their general. But with the critical moment approaching, it wasn't much of a stretch to say that there were some cold feet. If they killed Azule Royale, there was no doubt they would incur the wrath of Maya Royale and Julian Royale and potentially all of the Splatoon under Cap'n Cuttlefish since they were quite perceptive and would likely investigate the death; A death sentence all on its own if they were traced. If they kept him alive and kidnapped him, unlike the potential death sentence, there was no doubt they would be pursued which would only generate attention and risk their exposure.

"We're walking a fine line…" Lance mumbled shaking his head once the thoughts crossed his mind that they were led into a corner, and of how unfair it was that they allowed some politicians to place them there.

On the drive into the city, Cap'n Cuttlefish lists out the times he would like everyone to meet up and continue their preparations throughout the week as well as monitor their surroundings, suspecting that there might be other parties looking to disrupt their progress based on what warning he received from General Lime. After some extensive talks to put some concerns to rest, everyone split up to do their own things for now. Maya, Julian and Azule would be together. Mario, Santiago, and Violet would be getting to work right away with Santiago paying a visit to some connections he had in the area to get a better understanding of the infrastructure, hoping it can be handy to Cap'n Cuttlefish and Mack Netifla. As for Shiva and Fuchsia, they had some business to attend to as well that was more so related to the actual conference. The three branch out and their mission begins: For the remainder of time left until the day of rapture and rebirth, they had to gather as much information as possible to make any last minute adjustments before the plan commences, whether they had to snoop around or eavesdrop, surely they should find something useful with such an event going on.