Alexis's PoV

Alexis walked through the plaza, listening to Off the Hook as they performed Color Pulse, up on the stage that now roofed the area just outside the Deca Tower. The Rainbow Squids had already left to do a match, except Perry, who was trying to get Pearl's attention once more. She was dragged into choosing Team Baseball along with him, since neither inkling had a preference for either of the sports presented in this Splatfest—Baseball vs. Soccer. The other squid that had chosen Team Baseball, Yuri, was off doing a solo match. He was the only one of them that actually preferred baseball—he had played the sport at his old school, located in East Inkopolis.

While she wandered, she suddenly noticed Marie, standing over the manhole that led to Octo Canyon. She was snapping her fingers to the beat, a smile on her face. She glanced over at Perry once more. He was now holding a pen and paper up, jumping up and down. She smirked. She was sure it would be fine to leave him alone for a little bit. Alexis walked over to the idol, who dove into the grate out of reflex. She was about to follow her through when someone called her name.

"Alexis."

The short-haired inkling turned around to find Brayden approaching her. He wore a green t-shirt, marking him as a member of Team Soccer. Instead of the King facemask he usually wore, he was wearing an Oceanic hard hat.

The girl crossed her arms. "What do you want?" she questioned, her tone bitter.

"I just want to know..." he started, placing a hand on his chin. "Why do you not like us?"

"Because you're... You know." She was going to say 'octolings', but she didn't want to risk revealing the secret of Octa Prisma in public. Had it been a few months earlier, she would have completed her sentence, but her anger towards the group over winning the Deca Tournament had mostly faded by now.

He blinked. "Is that all?" She nodded. "Then what do you think about Marina?"

"Marina? I..." Her feelings on the octoling idol were mixed. Her battle against the Octarians had muddied her view of her, but she couldn't deny that Off the Hook's music is some of the freshest music out there. Still, she refused to watch Inkopolis News outside of Splatfest announcements. "I don't know."

He smirked. "So, you do not hate her."

"Well..."

"Then why does your hate only extend to us?"

"It isn't just to you. It's to your kind!"

"It is weird, you know. Seeing an inkling as smart as you." He laughed. "Most of the inklings that hate me are ancient. But splat them; the world has changed a lot in the past few years!"

She blinked. "You're not bothered by that?" Every other member of Octa Prisma did seem bothered by her distrust of them.

"No, of course not," he boasted. "In fact, this conversation helped me prove something."

"Prove what?"

"That you are the Dauntless."

"Huh?!" Alexis cried out, surprised. "But that's what-"

"I know," he interrupted her. "I was there."

"What?" She furrowed her eyebrows, furious. "You're a spy? I knew I couldn't trust you."

"You're right, but not in the sense you think," Brayden admitted.

"Go!" she demanded. "Don't you dare step another foot into Inkopolis."

"But-"

"I said, go!"

Brayden shut his mouth, shifting a foot backwards. His blue eyes betraying his despair, he slinked back into the shadows. She turned her attention back to the manhole she stood just in front of, cursing herself for letting an enemy get so close to the group. She submerged into the grate, then emerging in Octo Canyon, now wearing her hero suit.

"Hey, Four!" Callie greeted. "I thought there was a Splatfest going on right now."

"There is," she confirmed, giving the illusion that she was calm, "but my team's not being helpful right now."

"I saw that Perry guy in the crowd watching Off the Hook," Marie noted. "He's part of your team, right?"

Alexis nodded. "He's just trying to get Pearl's autograph. Even if I dragged him away, he'd just come running back."

"And you Squid Sisters aren't gonna show up?" DJ Octavio grumbled from within his snow globe prison. "I thought those slimy hipsters loved ya!"

"Octavio, we went over this," the grey-haired inkling chastised him. "We don't host the news anymore, Off the Hook does."

"Besides, we'd just draw too much attention if we went out there," the black-haired inkling remarked with a sigh.

"Whatever," the giant octopus huffed. "They'll just follow this 'Off the Hook' instead."

"Speaking of Splatfests..." An idea popped into her head, her anger now fading away. "Would you like to come with me?"

"You have an open spot?" Marie noted.

"Yeah. It's just me and two other squids," she confirmed.

"Could I come?" Callie requested. "It's been forever since I've done a Splatfest!"

"Then I'll stay here," the other idol announced. "Someone's gotta watch over Octavio."

"Sounds like a good plan," Alexis chirped.

"Alright. Don't do anything stupid."

"Don't worry, Marie." Callie put on a pair of black shades that were lying next to her. "We won't. Promise!" She went into the cabin and retrieved an old Hero Roller from it. She put it away and stepped to the short-haired girl's side.

The grey-haired inkling waved at them. The two other inklings waved back before turning into squids, slipping to the grate to return to Inkopolis Square. Alexis was back to wearing her normal gear and the Splatfest tee, while Callie showed no change in her attire.

"The theme's Baseball vs. Soccer, right?" the black-haired inkling asked.

"Yep. I chose Baseball."

"Perfect! Baseball's the superb sport, after all!"

"Mhm."

They walked over to the Splatfest terminal, where a jellyfish was still handing out Splatfest tees. Callie approached it and selected Team Baseball, causing the jellyfish to give her a red-orange Splatfest tee, with Team Baseball's logo on it. She held up the tee with a smile.

"Yay!" She ran towards the Deca Tower. "Imma go put this on real fast. See ya in front of Sheldon's!"

"See ya—Wait, Sheldon's?!" Before Alexis could shout any further, Callie had already disappeared. "Oh..." She walked over in front of Ammo Knights, waiting for the idol to return. Indeed, she did, now wearing the Splatfest tee instead of her jacket. "So... Why are we here?" the bronze-skinned girl asked upon her arrival.

"I heard there's a roller with a Splat Bomb Launcher! I haven't got the chance to buy it yet, so I'm doing it now," she explained. "There was one back in the day, but you know how Bomb Rush is banned now. And seekers weren't the best weapon, now that I think 'bout it."

"I have no idea what a seeker is, but OK."

Callie entered the shop, and a few minutes later, she came out holding a brand-new Flingza Roller. "OK! Let's find your friends!"

Alexis looks towards the stage, where Yuri was waiting next to Perry. "That won't be hard." The two walked over to the duo, and the bronze-skinned girl proceeded to wave a hand in front of the pale-skinned boy.

"Woah! Alexis!" he exclaimed. "You..." His purple eyes drifted over towards Callie. "Oh, it's you."

"Geez, that's kinda harsh," the black-haired inkling remarked.

Perry looked away from her and crossed his arms. Yuri looked over at him and tried to ask what was wrong, but he did not answer.

"Anyways, One's gonna be on the same team as us for now," the short-haired inkling explained. "So, we don't have to deal with random teammates."

"Fresh!" Yuri exclaimed. "I hope she's good."

"Oh, don't worry," assured Alexis with a smile. "She's one of the best squids Inkopolis has to offer."

Callie smiled. "Aw, you really think?"

She nodded. "Yeah! Not only are you fresh, but you're super good with a roller, too!"

"Thanks!"

"You're welcome."

The spiky-haired inkling smiled as well. "Well, we'll be the judge of that, right, Perry?"

Perry looked over at him with a glare. "We've already seen her before, remember? In the subway?"

"In the..." His eyes widened with realization. "Ohh, I remember now!" He scratched the back of his head. "Well, sorry 'bout that. I remember you being good then, so I bet you're even better now."

Callie simply gave a determined nod, and the group walked into Deca Tower. The other half of the Rainbow Squids were nowhere to be seen, much to Alexis's relief. She didn't want to face them in battle today—it would just be boring. She always appreciated someone new to fight. After pushing through tons of inklings, they finally entered an empty elevator.

"I swear there's always more squids every Splatfest," Yuri noted. "It's great, but sometimes I'm feeling claustrophobic."

Perry sighed. "Well, nothin' you can do 'bout it."

It did not take very long for the room to be filled. A few minutes later a team of inklings walked in, all wielding chargers. The first inkling to walk into the room, presumably the leader, was a girl with short hair, like Alexis herself, and light brown skin, wearing an Annaki mask and the black Norimakis 750s. In her hand was a Splatterscope. The fair-skinned girl behind her held a Bamboozler 14 Mk I, wearing a golf visor that pushed her pigtails up a little and some hunter hi-tops. The third inkling was a dark-skinned boy with a ponytail and a New Squiffer. He wore some SV925 circle shades and tan work boots. The final inkling, in the very back of the crowd, was a tan-skinned boy with spiky hair like Yuri, wielding a Custom E-liter 4K. He was presumably wearing fake contacts and had blue power stripes on his feet. All four inklings wore a green t-shirt that marked them as part of Team Soccer and had green eyes.

"Chargers?!" the pale-skinned inkling exclaimed. "This is gonna be a nightmare..." he exasperated.

"Hey, we'll win," Yuri promised his friend. "We have to!"

"I wouldn't count on it," the girl with light brown skin snickered. "We're some of the best chargers around. You won't stand a chance!"

"The Sniper's Creed," the boy wielding the New Squiffer boasted. "We won't you low-rank squids get in our way."

"Wha?! But I'm S+ rank! I think..." Callie cried out in confusion.

The girl with the pigtails blinked. "And whaddabout the rest of ya?"

"We're both S," the yellow-eyed inkling replied, pointing between him and Perry.

"I'm like, A rank," Alexis responded.

The first girl laughed. "Ha! What's a S+ squid doing with these losers?"

"You shoulda got with squids your own skill," the first boy jeered.

"Hey!" the black-haired inkling protested. "They're my friends! No matter the skill, it's having fun that matters most!"

"Yeah, but having friends your own skill level is even more fun," the second girl countered, leaning against the railing that circled the elevator.

"Oh, that's it!" Alexis snapped. "You're going down, Sniper's Creed!"

"Same to you!" shouted the first boy.

By now, the elevator started to descend as the two teams continued to argue with each other. By the time the floor opened to reveal grates underneath them, the leader of the team smirked.

"We'll see you on the battlefield," she announced.

Everyone turned into squids and swam through the grates to their next destination. The area was unfamiliar to Alexis, being located in a dark area with a starry background. Neon signs depicting Splatfest posts people had drawn decorated the area, and in the distance, she could see two towers. Grafitti covered the cement ground, and some grapplinks flew overhead. A Shifty Station.

"Marina helped make this stage, right?" Callie commented as they emerged onto the spawn points. "That's so fresh!"

Yuri nodded. "And that's just one of the reasons why I like Marina better than Pearl!"

"I think Pearl's better," Perry objected. "She has some sick raps, she's spunky, and she helps bring life to Off the Hook's songs."

"What? It's Marina that brings life to their songs! And she's super smart, too!" he argued back.

"There's no time to argue!" Alexis scolded them, in an attempt to bring them back to their senses. "We got a match to win."

"Oh, yeah!" the purple-eyed boy remembered. He swung his Sloshing Machine, creating a trail of red-orange ink for them to follow. However, the rest of the team did not follow him, instead going their own paths. The short-haired girl veered off to the right, inking the area with her Hero Dualies. She noticed Callie pushing her roller along in the canyon below, leaving a wide trail behind. After poorly inking the rightmost ramp, Alexis jumped down to join her. The group was quick to advance, quickly taking control of the central area. In the distance, she could faintly see thin trails of green ink, spread out over a wide area. The Sniper's Creed appeared to be advancing slowly, much to her pleasure. It meant that they could easily block them off.

Yuri shot at the grapplink floating above the bridge, flying up to the top. "Woah!" he gasped, surprised by the momentum. "That's superfresh!" He charged up his Heavy Splatling Deco and started firing out towards the opposing team's base. A few seconds later, however, ink pierced through his body, splatting him in an instant. Green fell to the floor, covering up even more turf. Taking his place was the boy with the New Squiffer from earlier.

"Looks like our E-liter got your friend," he sneered at Perry, who witnessed the attack. "Splatlings are no match for us."

"Whaddabout sloshers?" he teased.

His eyes narrowed. "Is that a challenge?"

"Why, yes, in fact." He hurled a blob of ink at the grapplink above, flying to meet the dark-skinned inkling at eye level. "Let's go!"

He pointed his charger at Perry, but he did not begin to charge it. Instead, he stood still, taking the hits from the Sloshing Machine. He quickly splatted, causing the pale-skinned boy to let out a cheer. Unfortunately, he was splatted only a second later.

Callie arrived next to Alexis, surprised. "Wow," she muttered. "They're almost as good as Marie!"

"You're good too," she noted. "What do you do to beat Marie?"

"I sneak up on her," she replied. "Get a team to ink around her, and bam! She's down!"

"You think we could do that with this team?"

"For sure!"

She nodded. "Then it's settled."

"Charge!"

The two inklings started advancing up the bridge, inking anything they can. The girl with the pigtails was now approaching with her Bamboozler. She tried shooting at the two, but Callie proceeded to throw a splash wall in front of her, falling onto their attacker. She narrowly avoided the object and proceeded to activate her special weapon—Tenta Missiles. The Bamboozler-wielder fired it at them, forcing them to scatter. Alexis activated her own Tenta Missiles at the bottom of the bridge, but before she fired, she examined the targets that showed up on the radar.

They were considerably spread-out, yet they were also advancing towards her.

She spotted the boy with the Custom E-liter 4K on one perch, a grapplink hanging above him. She fired at him and then tried to super-jump back to Yuri was, closer to spawn. However, as soon as she fired the missiles, a Sting Ray suddenly appeared, piercing through her. She splatted just before she could super-jump. As her ghost floated away, she spotted Callie flying towards the grapplink above the E-liter boy, swinging the Flingza Roller down and splatting him.

When Alexis respawned, she went with her original plan—super-jump to Yuri. She landed on a perch similar to the one the boy with the E-liter had, though obviously it was on her team's side of the map. The girl with pigtails had pushed into her base, dodging the yellow-eyed inkling's shots with grace. She shot at the grapplink above them, flying up towards the two. She fired two shots at Yuri on the way down, splatting him and leaving green ink at Alexis's feet. The bronze-skinned girl rolled to the side and fired at the Bamboozler-wielder, splatting her with a few quick bullets from her dualies.

"Booyah," she muttered in an attempt to sound cool. She covered up the turf left behind by the girl with pigtails and returned to the middle, where she saw Perry slosh enemies from the bridge. Callie covered the other side of him, having activated her Splat Bomb Launcher. Though the bombs were efficient in covering up turf quickly, Alexis froze as they fell towards her side of the bridge.

In an instant, she was back in DJ Octavio's lair, paralyzed as huge bombs surrounded her. The remix of Bomb Rush Blush echoed in her head as they started to expand. They exploded, and she thought she was splatted. ...Except, she wasn't. As quickly as they came, the bombs were gone, and she was back in the Shifty Station.

She backed up, perplexed. What was that? she thought in horror. Alexis shook her head, dispelling the negative thoughts. No, I have to focus on now! She rushed up the bridge and jumped towards the enemy's side, only to be pierced with a beam almost immediately. Once again, she was back at spawn. She super-jumped back to Perry to try a different method. When she arrived, Perry had just splatted, his clothes disappearing around her. Standing at the other end of the bridge was the boy with the New Squiffer once more. A Baller suddenly surrounded him, and he rushed towards the short-haired girl. She submerged into the ink and swam away as fast as she could.

She heard the Baller explode, so she emerged from the ink and looked over at him. The dark-skinned inkling struck a pose, satisfied at the turf he had inked from the explosion. However, his celebration came a little too early, as globs of ink started to rain down on him. Standing on a small box was Yuri, firing his Heavy Splatling Deco. The team then met up where the Squiffer-wielder had splatted, hoping to discuss their next plans.

"We're winning," the spiky-haired boy mused. "We're doing great!"

"The battle's not over yet," Alexis noted. "We still have over a minute to go."

"So we'll have to do our best to win!" Callie exclaimed. "Right, right?"

"Yeah," Perry agreed. "But remember—it's the fun that counts, aight?"

"Anywho, my plan was to surround the chargers with ink and catch them off-guard," the black-haired inkling continued. "It's how I beat Mar-" She paused, and then corrected herself, "My cousin."

"Sounds like it could work," the pale-skinned boy admitted.

"Let's try it!" the dark-skinned inkling chirped.

"Alrighty!" She lifted her Flingza Roller up, swinging it vertically towards the grapplink above the bridge. She flew up to the top and stuck a tongue out. "Last one here's a rotten egg!"

"Hey, no fair!" Alexis started running up the ramp, seeing as she could not reach the grapplink from where she stood. The other boys were easily able to get to the top. When they arrived, Perry pulled out his Sting Ray, firing it at the perch from earlier, where the boy with the Custom E-liter 4K had reassumed his position. In response, he pulled out a Bubble Blower and swung the wand as fast as he could, creating a shield around him. The boy aimed it slightly upwards, causing the giant laser to connect with the grapplink above. He flew over to the perch and threw an autobomb at his feet. The bomb exploded on impact with the bubble, splatting the E-liter boy.

"Booyah!" everyone cheered. Yuri pulled out his own Bubble Blower, swinging the bubbles in such a way that they floated down to the canyon below. Callie began swinging at the bubbles, eventually making them pop. Coating the area with red-orange ink, she dove into it, ripples marking her movement. Alexis jumped down as well, inking whatever turf was uncovered by her team's ink. Thanks to their efforts, the Sniper's Creed was pushed back drastically.

The girl with the Splatterscope stood on a small tower, her charger lowered. "I'm impressed!" she shouted down at them. "You pushed us back a lot. But we're not done yet!" The girl with pigtails landed next to her, a smile on her face. "Gracie, it's Tenta Missile time!"

"Got it," the Bamboozler-wielder complied, her name presumably Gracie. She pulled out her special weapon and locked it onto the group below. She pressed the trigger, firing a dozen missiles down on them. Alexis and Callie found themselves unable to escape the tight area, splatting both of them.

With now less than a minute left on the clock, there was now the chance that the Sniper's Creed could push through and win. Yet, the two girls decided to continue their strategy. They super-jumped to Yuri, only to be splatted on the spot.

"Barnacles!" Callie pouted. "What now?"

"Like Yuri would say, we just have to keep pushing forward," Alexis encouraged. "So, let's do it!"

The idol gave a nod of affirmation. "Yeah!"

They swam towards the middle, emerging when they met enemy ink. While earlier it was clear that their team was winning, the winner was now unclear. Both sides had rather equal control of the map. The only thing to do now was keep pushing forward. It wasn't long before Alexis's special was fully charged again, and she took the opportunity to use it. She didn't even look at who she was targeting before pressing the trigger, and before she knew it, she watched as red-orange missiles rained down on the enemy team.

Trails of green ink fell to the ground in an attempt to splat the other team, but thankfully, they were unsuccessful. Callie covered the bridge, crushing the girl with the Splatterscope with her roller, and activated her special once more. She started to hurl bombs left and right, but the panic from earlier started to settle in again. Echoing in Alexis's head were DJ Octavio's insults, calling her naïve. She had brushed it off then, but it haunted her now.

I'm not naïve, she told herself. Far from it. Perhaps she was a little naïve before she set off of on her journey to save the Great Zapfish and Callie. But now? Becoming Agent 4 had changed her in more ways in one. She was stronger, but at what cost...? No matter what, her resolve to do the right thing persisted.

"Alexis!" Perry called, snapping her out of her thoughts. "What're ya doing?!"

She blinked, realizing the bombs were gone. With a sigh of relief, she called back, "Sorry! I was just thinking!"

The short-haired inkling tried a different route this time. She swam past the ramp to find a grapplink that would lead her over to the enemy side. She threw a burst bomb at it, causing her to fly over. It was where the boy with the Custom E-liter 4K was located, catching him by surprise.

"How?!" he exclaimed, backing up as he fired the charger as fast as he could. Unfortunately, he was no match for Alexis, being splatted by her rather swiftly. Now that she had infiltrated the other side, she could work to regain some turf here. She painted the canyon, sneaking up on the boy with the New Squiffer while he worked to combat it. He threw an autobomb to the ground before he was splatted, causing the bomb to waddle towards Alexis. She let out a curse as she realized its presence and swam away, though she did not escape unscathed. She emerged with her back up against a tower, green ink dripping off of her from the bomb.

Another Sting Ray appeared, targeted towards Alexis once more. She dodge-rolled out of the way, but it still persisted, slowly drawing near. She continued to dodge, and soon, the beam was gone. However, much thinner beams were now targeting her, charged shots just barely missing her. Looking around, she took note of the positions the other team took. The girl with the Splatterscope stood on the ramp, trying to hit the bronze-skinned girl. Gracie had also appeared, charging up a curling bomb. It slid towards her, disrupting her step. In a risky move, she rolled backwards, but nothing happened to her. She was safe.

She looked over her shoulder to see Callie standing where she was. The black-haired inkling jumped from the ramp, her Flingza Roller held up high as she barreled towards the girl with the Bamboozler.

"Mini special attack!" she exclaimed. "One!" She glanced towards Alexis and mouthed 'four'.

Her hair began to glow as she rolled towards the girl, pressure building up in her dualies. "Four!"

They unleashed their attacks, ink raining down on the girl with pigtails. She let out a scream as the two ink waves collided with her, splatting immediately. They looked at each other, smiling, and walked over for a high-five. After that, the whistle blew, ending the match.

Yuri and Perry arrived at the top of the bridge, the latter pumping a fist. "Booyah!" he cheered.

"We won!" exclaimed the former. "I can see how much turf we've inked from here."

"It's not official 'til Judd says it," Alexis noted. "But for sure, it's a win!"

"Hmph," huffed a voice from above them. The girl with the Splatterscope was standing on the tower, her charger at her feet. She had her arms crossed. "You just got lucky!"

The boy with the New Squiffer popped out from behind her. "Yeah, we'll beat you next time!"

"Then how 'bout we leave the lobby and never talk to ya again," Perry scoffed, walking over to Callie and Alexis. "You're just a bunch of stuck-up squids anyways."

"Stuck-up?!" the Splatterscope-wielder fumed. "You little maggot!"

"Maggot?! Well, you're a dogfish!" he snapped. The girl was noticeably taken aback at the insult.

"Wah! Don't fight!" the idol tried to pacify them.

"Yeah, can't we all get along?" Yuri added, rushing over to them.

She paused, and then, pointing a finger at Perry, she accused, "Slosher guy started it!"

"Nah, you did, so ya got it," the purple-eyed inkling defended, crossing his arms.

It was then Judd and Li'l Judd arrived on a box behind them, much to the group's surprise. They turned towards the cats and watched as they danced. The larger cat struck out a red-orange flag, marking Team Baseball's win this match.

"OK, it's judged," the boy with the New Squiffer started. "Let's get out of here."

The Sniper's Creed super-jumped out of the Shifty Station, leaving the Rainbow Squids plus Callie alone. They super-jumped back to the tower themselves shortly thereafter to find that the team of chargers really had left. Now, the group was alone, waiting for another group of inklings to walk in and challenge them to a battle.

"Hey, One?" Alexis called the black-haired inkling to attention, looking up at her. "Thanks for coming with us." She pumped a fist. "We couldn't have done it without you."

She smiled. "You really think so?"

"Yeah, it was your plan that helped us win the match!" Yuri agreed.

Perry remained silent for a few moments, and then he sighed. "Yeah, yeah, they're right."

"Thanks a bunch!" Callie pumped a fist, her mouth wide open. "Who knew Alexis had such great friends?"

The purple-eyed inkling shuffled his feet. "...Will we see you again?"

"If she asks, then yeah," she confirmed. "I'm always up for a battle."

He rolled his eyes. "Great..."

"I still don't get why you've been acting weird around her," Yuri noted. "She never did anything."

"W-Well..." It was then another team of inklings walked it, all wearing identical outfits. "Later," he dismissed.

Alexis nodded. "Looks like our next match is now."

"Onward!" Callie cheered. "And may the best sport win!"

A/N: Well, that's the first Splatfest chapter for Season 3. And I assure you, some things in this chapter will be brought up again in the future. How story mode has affected each of the agents is something that especially intrigues me, since I like to explore that kind of stuff. Actions and their consequences, if you get what I mean. It'll only get worse for poor Alexis from here. What about Agents 3 and 8? We'll talk about them when we get there. The next chapter is a type of chapter I haven't done in a while, so I think you'll enjoy its return. Branchwing, out!