Gangrin stared hard at the loading wheel on the computer screen as he waited for a response from the website to grant his request. His whole body still ached from the events of yesterday and the subsequent punishments since. Priestess Gallora had handed out standard punishments of chore work and removing various privileges while she prayed to the gods to see if they had more specific punishments in mind for them.
Part of today's punishment involved cleaning the library, which had computers in it, computers with access to the internet. And so, there he was, postponing his chore until he received the information he was looking for.
"Gangrin," a voice hissed.
Startled, he twisted in his seat to see Miazama walking into the room with a carpet cleaner and Marsh carrying a mop with an extending handle for cleaning the walls.
"Relax," he whispered back at them. "I'm doing my work, but there's something I need to check out."
"What's worth checking out that you might get in trouble all over again?" Marsh grumbled. Yesterday really seemed to have taken the wind out of his bluster and he'd been unusually quiet and submissive. Even the other kids had taken notice. They didn't exactly miss his harsh attitude though.
"Aren't you curious about how Tani was able to fight those crabs so well? You saw the way she moved, the way she broke those crab's legs without even flinching. That's not normal." He looked pointedly at Miazama. "Especially if even you were surprised."
Miazama frowned, her mantle paling to a more humble tone before she set down her cleaning supplies and walked up next to him. "So? What'cha seein'?"
"I'm looking her up in the official Turf War database. Public stats and stuff are shown here. It's pretty much guaranteed that she's played in turf war at least a few times. I'm wondering if her stats will show us anything."
"Maybe one of her parents is an enforcer," Marsh offered, coming to stand beside him. "It would make sense."
"It would," Gangrin agreed. "But do you think she could get that good without experience?"
"No," Marsh replied instantly. "I can tell. She's fought a lot, maybe even more than me. But it would have to be against people as good as her."
Gangrin frowned. "What makes you say that?"
"Because if they were easy, she wouldn't be as fast as she is. The way she moved all the time, that's the only thing you can do when you're outnumbered. If you give them time to think and work together, they'll beat you." Gangrin didn't have to ask to know Marsh knew that from firsthand experience. He turned to Miazama instead.
"Did you ever see anyone fight the crab gangs before?"
She flashed green. "Aye, but scraps never got like that. It was more posin' 'an flexin' than real fightin'. In the uglier ones ya'd see some missin' limbs an' tentacles but you wouldn'a see anyone gettin' caught by Heaven's hook unless an accident happened."
"Caught by Heaven's Hook" was a slang term sometimes used by fishers and sailors for dying. Xapheerell Ward had once been host to many fisher families and people working in the fishing industry or down by the docks.
"She ripped out that crab's eye stalk and then threw it at another one," Marsh said, his face turning just a bit green from the memory. Certainly it was a sight none of them would ever forget. There was no doubt that Tani fought brutally – too brutal to have learned purely from Turf War.
The computer screen finally changed, the search query completed. Gangrin navigated through it until he found Tani's ID picture and clicked on it, bringing up her profile, and read it aloud.
"Tani Highwater, age fourteen. Hmmm, looks like she started playing turf war just this past summer…." his voice trailed off as he started looking over her statistics, barely able to comprehend what he was seeing.
"Her stats were pretty average for a new player when she started, but then her stats started taking a huge swing upwards." He pointed to a graph showing her average numbers of splats, rising while the number of times she had been splatted herself fell. "And she's already an S+ rank."
"How long does it usually take?" Marsh asked.
"Usually a year, for the average S+ ranker, but those are the most dedicated players. players. For the especially good players, it's about the same amount of time, but she doesn't have even close to the same number of matches most of them will have by the time they reach S+."
"So she's a shootin' star. Still don' tell us why she's so good at fightin' an' breakin' legs."
"Hang on," Gangrin said. "It looks like she's part of a team." He clicked on the link for the team and after a few seconds, a new page appeared, showing the team members, whom he recognized. Oddly, the team consisted only of three players instead of four. Had they lost one member or had they yet to gain a fourth?
"This Maiya girl was with Callie when she…" he trailed off and shivered at the memory of the large crab being eviscerated and partially eaten alive. It wasn't something he expected the seemingly kindly Squid Sister to be capable of. "And this octoling girl, that's the one who picked up Tani and Vella."
"Aye, the maid," Miazama agreed. "Click on 'em too. I wanna' see."
Gangrin opened the octoling's profile in a new tab. The only name given was "Eight" but aliases were common for turf players. "She hasn't done many matches but she's obviously very good. Makes sense though. Basically all the octolings are former soldiers. At least, that's what I heard from some of the others."
"I heard that too," Marsh said. "That's why Vella's so good at fighting…" His voice trailed off and went very quiet. Gangrin let it slide.
"She's sixteen though, so she's probably even better than Vella. Hard to imagine someone like that being a maid."
"Must be ta' someone deep in plankton with a big, shiny boat. She'd be pricey."
"Someone rich?" Gangrin's mantle rippled. "Yeah, could be. But let's check out this Maiya girl before we–." Gangrin cut himself off. The profiles of the other two girls had been fairly sparse with impressive statistics but little else attached to their name; Maiya's however, threatened to overwhelm the screen with the sheer number of attached images, lists of accolades, and statistics that seemed mythical.
"Krakens," Miazama oathed, "Me head's got almost nuttin' of turf war games but even 'ah know that's a foot into a shark's mouth."
Gangrin had no idea what that phrase was supposed to mean but he couldn't process all the information on screen either. This Maiya girl had played thousands of matches, had more accolades than he had ever seen attached to just one person at that age, and she had her name associated with a number of pro teams as well. In fact, the first picture on her profile page other than her profile picture, was one of her and three other currently X-ranked players whom he already recognized as pros in turf war, very good ones.
"Why haven't I heard of her?" He mumbled to himself. "She's one of the top ranked youth players in the world, but I've never seen her on the front page or in any of the magazines that I've seen."
"Lots of pictures with her and the Squid Sisters on her page though," Marsh pointed out. "Maybe she works for 'em now."
"I don't know," Gangrin mumbled, his chest tightening and bitterness rising in him like fizz. Maiya was sixteen-years-old, like him, but she was already a better turf ware player than he ever would be, no matter how hard or long he practiced. "What's she doing with a girl like Tani?"
"I don't know either."
Everyone jumped at the new voice and they turned to see Tephilla standing right behind them, garbed not in her tunic but a plain grey shirt and skirt. It was a clear indication she'd fallen out of favour with the priestesses. If her choice in clothing didn't show it enough, her expression and the display in her mantle was one of bitterness and regret, with a dash of anger and resentment, probably aimed at him. Normally, Tephilla would be standing there rebuking them and telling them to get to work, assuming there was a priestess nearby to hear, but it seemed she had become disenchanted with her perfect girl persona.
"All I know is that she's Callie's bodyguard."
"Bodyguard?" Marsh asked. "You don't become a bodyguard through turf war. You have to be trained and certified for that."
"With a resumé like she's got I'd bet it wouldn'be hard for her to get that trainin," Miazama pointed out. "But what are you doin' 'ere, Tephy? Don't think I've forgotten how you left us for dead. I heard how you didn't tell Tani where we were and she had to force it outta' yah."
Gangrin expected Tephilla to start babbling, trying to form some excuse, but instead, she just stood there, eyes staring at the floor, silent.
Priestess Gallora had dressed all of them down individually and Tephilla's session with her had been more than twice as long as theirs. As far as all the orphans were concerned, however, it was long overdue. None of them were particularly popular among the other orphans at the moment, but Tephilla's name had become practically synonymous with reef rot, an awful disease that turned coral into a gross, toxic, dark-brown paste that would eventually float to the surface and expel a terrible stench as the air and sun decomposed it. Not that Tephilla had ever been popular in the first place, of course.
"Did they give your divine punishment yet?" Gangrin asked.
"Priestess Gallora wants me and Miazama to meet her in two hours in her office. I guess we're getting the same one. I have to wash windows in the meantime."
"We'd better get swabbin' too," Miazama said, going back to the cleaning equipment she'd left on the floor. "I think we've pushed our luck enough."
Gangrin flashed green and stared back at the screen one more time, the bitterness from before ebbing somewhat but it lingered, like simmering embers. Now that he had been punished with the removal of his turf war privileges, his own dream of a professional career in turf war may have ended before it even began, and Maiya had, in the same amount of time, already accomplished everything he had dreamed of and more. And Tani was good enough to actually be associated with her.
He closed the browser and turned off the monitor, grabbing the bag of cleaning supplies he'd left on the floor.
"Yeah, let's get this over with."
As he got to work, he couldn't help but wonder why Tani had risked her life to try and save them with no guarantees she'd be able to beat the crabs. It made no logical sense to him, especially with what they'd done to her. He just didn't get it.
"What do you mean they've pulled out?"
Minister Madrelle rubbed her brow, her mantle darkening to a mustard yellow. "The Council of Crab Peoples met and universally decided that, for the time being, they would not participate in the project to turn Inkopolis Plaza into a multicultural centre. I'm sure you don't have to think very hard to understand the reason.
Callie's hands balled into fists under the table. She couldn't hide the dark red rippling through her black mantle roiling lava flows. "Those crabs were attacking, brutally attacking, a group of children whose only crime was walking through a ward in an inkling city – Calachora's capital city."
The minister's mantle changed to reflect white spots. "I'm on your side in this, Callie. I have children of my own and, believe me, I wouldn't hesitate to rip a crab's arms clean off if they threatened one of them either, but eating him alive is going a bit far, don't you think?"
Callie scowled. "I didn't eat him alive, really. I'm pretty sure he was already dead before I started eating the meat out of his arms. I was hungry." Callie found herself blinking, surprised she had said that so casually. Stupid. That was going to set all kinds of alarm bells off in the minister's head.
"In the end, it's the story of the inklings versus the story from the crabs. We know which side will win in our country and you know which side will win in all of theirs. Their countries may be at war all the time but crimes against crabs in general is something that can actually manage to cooperate on, to some degree. It goes without saying that our ambassadors are not happy with you."
Callie forced the scowl off her face and sat up straight, trying to maintain an air of calm even as hurricanes battled for dominance within her. "So why are you telling me this instead of all the other departments of government?"
"Because the people agree with what you did, ultimately, and none of them wants to seem like the 'bad guys' so they won't go after you directly. They'll use the usual passive-aggressive nonsense and political euphemisms to get to you. It probably won't help your mother and Matriarch Sansea either, at least on the political front."
"Either of them would have done the same. In any case, the intimidation seemed to work and Inkopolis Security probably won't be having as many crab-related issues in Xapheerell Ward any time soon."
"I would imagine not. Certainly crabs should know better than to challenge an inkling female's protective instincts. Regardless, that's the situation. I imagine we'll both be feeling the rippling effects from this for years to come." She looked Callie over and gave her a sympathetic smile.
"Callie, you're young. These things happen. There isn't an inkyora in all the world who wouldn't understand what you were feeling. We've all been through yun'brennen the same as you, we understand how overwhelming it can be and none would criticize you for going to the children's defense. I've seen the reports of their injuries. I demanded it in exchange for being the one to have to break the news to you."
Callie pursed her lips. "I wouldn't think an issue like this would be worth the attention of entire governments."
"It isn't every day someone is deliberately killed in Inkopolis, Callie." The minister affixed her with a firm stare. "Even in the crab countries, this sort of thing doesn't happen everyday. And you are an important ambassador for inkling culture the world over, so of course you doing something like this will end up getting my attention." She told her through tuk'yan to leave the issue. "Let's move onto more positive things. Like the effects Work Detail's efforts have been having."
Callie forced the previous issue to the back of her mind and switched focus.
"Work Detail has been working pretty hard. They're mostly dealing with smaller jobs, accepting temporary work to try and help companies get by, mostly doing odd jobs and providing some specialized expertise. The work with the orphans, despite the… incident, is going well too. The priestesses want to continue the program, Work Detail is happy with most of the orphans and are confident they will be able to start paid work soon, once they're better able to understand their individual skills and talents."
"I'm glad to hear it. How have the orphans responded?"
"Well. They feel happy, positive, and they're eager to learn. The priestesses have said they've noticed a dramatic improvement in their general behavior already. The only real issue is the fact that the orphans require supervision by, at the moment, several priestesses. It's not really practical. I'm hoping that, in future, they will prove themselves responsible enough to come on their own, like most kids that age."
"Most kids that age aren't orphans; the situation is different with them. Orphans have always had a higher mortality rate and… well, it's harder for them to get the attention they need." Regret rippled in Madrelle's mantle. "Kids like that are less likely to become parents themselves too."
"Maybe, or maybe they'll be more willing because they'll think they can do better."
"That might be nice," Madrelle said. "Unfortunately, I don't see it being the norm if things stay as they are."
Callie compressed her lips, holding in the words on the tip of her tongue and swallowing them back and asked a question. "Why did you become a mother, Minister?"
Madrelle blinked, her mantle rippling with surprise. "Huh…, I suppose I never really thought about it myself." She turned her head and looked out the window, her eyes becoming unfocused and distant.
"I suppose it just seemed natural. I loved my husband and our children are the embodiment of our love. Plus, I just wanted kids." She sighed audibly. "But most of the reasons are things I can only say looking back on it. Looking forward, the view is very different."
"I see," Callie's mantle rippled blue, thoughtfully. "Why did you want kids?"
Madrelle looked at her for a long moment, meeting her eyes. Maybe she thought the question redundant, or perhaps, Callie thought, she was searching for something in her, perhaps some kind of secret motive. After the drawn out silence had passed however, she settled back into her seat.
"When I was a teenager, I would see young mothers, pushing strollers around and having fun with their children. Even though times were tough, their children seemed to bring them so much joy. Seeing happy couples enjoying time with their kids… I guess I couldn't help but want that for myself."
Callie smiled, her eyes turning introspective. "I see. I never thought about that. Most of my time as a teenager was spent working."
Madrelle flashed green. "Mine too. The aftermath of the war, even more than fifty years later, left its mark and kids were strongly encouraged to start working as soon as they hit fourteen to prop up the labour force. That kind of pressure on someone so young is difficult to deal with. Not everyone was able to handle it and things… well, there was a lot of unpleasantness.
She met Callie's eyes again. "And now, most parents, understanding what that feels like, want their kids to enjoy being kids while they can. Certainly I can't fault that, I even encourage it, but the strength of families is much weaker for this generation than it was for us because parents were always working or dealing with stress in… ill-advised ways. I guess kids just don't understand the joy that comes from making a family, they only know the pain."
Callie's mantle slowly pulsed green under the surface once and then she grabbed her papers. "Well, thank you for that, Minister. If it's alright with you, I'll get out of your tentacles and let you get back to work. If the crabs are pulling out then I need to adjust some things."
"It's no trouble; I enjoy our talks. Sorry this one had to be so brief and unproductive. I'm sure the Ministry of Welfare appreciates your work with the orphans."
Outside the meeting room, Three waited for her. They said not a word to each other as they left the government offices but Callie's mind was whirring with all kinds of thoughts.
She and Three reached the car and then the younger girl asked where they were going.
"Home, for now. I need to eat and talk to Marie about changing our plans a little." She grunted. "The crabs pulled out from the multicultural centre deal. Them pulling out could mean more will too."
"They support the crab gangs?" Three asked.
"Not so much that as much as they feel I'm getting away with murder just because I'm a famous inkling and it happened on inkling turf."
Three's mantle turned dark-red. "Stupid. You defended them. It would have been a bigger crime if you did nothing. It's…"
"It's what's expected of an inkling female," Callie finished. "We do not leave children to die when we have the power to do something about it." She scowled. "I didn't have to kill any of them to get them away from you, but I wasn't exactly in the best state of mind."
"Yun'brennen affects everyone differently and the judge acquitted you. Did the crabs want a trial?"
"Probably, but it would just be our word against the crabs in the end anyway. Unfortunately, it still leaves us with a problem. We need a foundation of multiculturalism in Inkopolis for the Octarians to be truly welcome here. The more notoriety they get, the more resistance is going to start showing up. Apparently some veterans have been making their complaints about Octarians in Inkopolis known to the Assembly."
Three winced. "That's not good. What are we going to do?"
"We need to make the octolings in inkopolis more valuable to Inkopolis. Helping the orphans is nice but it's not enough on its own. We need them to be a force for positive change in our society, but they won't be able to do that as long as they're stuck just doing odd jobs behind the scenes. They need to be seen doing things, great things."
"Like Marina."
Callie couldn't help but smile. "Yes, like Marina. She's pretty much the only high-profile one. She's definitely popular and a good example, but we need more examples, to increase their exposure without forcing it." She crossed her arms and shut her eyes, thinking hard. "Where are Octolings seen by the public more than anywhere else?"
"Inkopolis Square, Inkopolis Plaza, and the car meet."
Callie's eyes snapped open. "What?"
Three blinked. "Um, most octolings are seen at the plaza, the square, or at the car meets that happen almost every night."
"That's right…" Callie's lips curved into a grin, an idea forming in her mind. "And your auntie is a matron that interacts with them all the time, as does her community."
Three paled noticeably. "You want me to… talk to them about it?"
Callie giggled and reached over her tentacle to pat Three on the head. "No, baby, I know talking isn't your strong suit." Relief washed over Three's mantle as she flashed a green of thanks. "So I'll go there with you tonight and do it myself."
Three's mantle suddenly lit up neon orange, bright-red waves of alarm washing over it.
"Don't give me that, Three. I know we usually try to avoid such public gatherings, for obvious reasons, but this is something I need to do myself and even I can't just summon a matron to me. No, this is going to take a direct Callie touch."
Three looked apprehensive and reluctant but she soon relented. "I'll call auntie Silvia and let her know ahead of time."
"Good. Now, let's get home before I start eating this car from the inside out."
Three always knew the possibility existed that one of her charges would want to come to the car meet. Marie liked cars but she seemed unlikely to spontaneously come to such an event. She wasn't fond of being swarmed by the public, no matter how much she adored her fans. Callie, however, was much more a people person and nothing if not spontaneous. Honestly, part of Three considered it inevitable that Callie would do it someday.
She glanced to the passenger seat where a bright and smiling Callie sat, wearing her usual stylish winter clothing, not even bothering with a disguise, despite the fact that it was probably easiest to conceal herself this time of year when everyone was wearing layers. Ideally, she would have arrived, escorted Callie directly to the RV and had the octolings run security outside while she watched inside. Unfortunately, Callie insisted it was important she be seen among regular people from time to time and it had been a while since she'd been seen in public, so Three was left with little choice. She would do her job but, from this point on, she would never be simply Cortina Scarletteri, daughter of the former Mountain Queen, Fulvia Scarletteri; she would also be known as bodyguard to the Squid Sisters. That was going to make her future attendance less pleasant for a while.
"Is Eight going to be there?" Callie asked.
"No," Three replied, her disappointment clear in her voice. She really could have used Eight's backup. Marie had also declared Four to be out of action as she would be dealing with family matters.
The restaurant sign appeared up ahead and Three began to slow, flipping on the turn signal.
"Park over there." Callie indicated the more crowded portion of the parking lot, opposite the side the octarians normally parked their vehicles.
Three looked at her pleadingly, asking for just a small concession, but Callie flashed red. "Might as well peel the bandage off right away, hm? Awww, come on, don't pout."
Three wasn't pouting, she wasn't, she was just… annoyed. Still, she did as she was told and parked the fairly unremarkable seeming sedan in a spot between a pair of mid-engined sports cars.
"Any last minute things I need to know?" Callie asked as she slipped her hands into her gloves.
Three pulsed dark-grey. "Just don't do anything to make auntie Silvia mad."
Callie laughed. "I'll keep that in mind." She gave Three a playful pinch on the cheek and then carefully opened the door.
The night was cool but not nearly as frigid as it had been the last few days, thanks to a calm wind. Three flipped up her high collar to hide her face and neck anyway. It helped her look a little more intimidating too.
Three lead the way, taking Callie between another pair of cars. Nobody recognized Callie at first, naturally, but as she drew closer to the larger crowd, mantles lit up brightly as people started to take notice of the celebrity in their midst.
Callie greeted the oncoming crowd with a cheerful smile and a sunny 'hello' that could have lit up the nighttime scene as if it were day.
"Loved your last album."
"Is Marie here too?"
"How's yun'brennen for you? Are you suffering too badly?"
"Do you like cars?"
Another advantage Three had was that she had been coming to the Gyari car meet long enough that she had a good grasp of the general attitude of the community, so she wasn't too concerned about anyone getting too excited, but she still had to remain on guard, and people took offense when she got in the way of them getting too close from one of Callie's blind sides, probably wondering what right she had to be doing that, not able to piece together the truth.
"Yes, it's great to be out and about after being stuck inside so much. It's been months since I've come up to the mountains. I've heard so much about your community so I thought it would be nice to check out. Hey, that scarf is gorgeous, where'd you get it?"
Callie played the crowd with practiced ease, and everyone seemed to settle down a bit now that the initial shock was passing. Three had been somewhat concerned that someone like her might be treated like an intruder since she had heard more than a few comments deriding the rich and famous, but so far, there didn't seem to be any–.
"I knew you'd show up someday."
A bright flash, like lightning, went through Callie's mantle at the sound of the voice, and her head snapped to the right, eyes wide and full of urgency. Three snapped up, hand going to the ink pistol at her hip and she tried to see through the crowd to whom she was looking at. The crowd too noticed that something was up and parted, as if by Callie's gaze alone. And there, on the other side, standing just over ten metres away was…
"Murl." The name emerged from Callie's lips as a disbelieving murmur. Her expression was that of a person seeing a ghost.
Murl's blue mantle was so dark it was almost black, with no other colour visible. Even his eyes seemed darker as he glared stilettos at Callie.
"I thought you were told to stay away," he said, his tone low and harsh.
Callie's eyes narrowed as her expression became guarded and she turned her whole body to face him. "The restraining order doesn't apply to me."
Soft gasps came from the crowd and Three knew he could only be referring to one thing. The restraining order against Marie, that ugly mark from her past that interviews occasionally brought up in hopes of discerning some new tidbit of information about the circumstances surrounding it. Specifics about the incident were not publicly known and Three had never asked for details, but now she had at least one name to add to those involved.
"How's the arm," Callie asked, her tone casual, but Three knew her well enough to detect the tiny undercurrent of hostility and could see from her body language that she was subtly primed, ready to fight.
Murl lightly grasped his left arm, the one that held the huge scar. "It's still in one piece," he said, bitterly. "I saw your handiwork on the news this morning. Can't stop trying to rip people apart, can you?"
Callie's mantle darkened, the magenta vanishing from it entirely, and the crowd took several steps back, leaving Three as the only one near her.
"It was defense. I was protecting a group of kids about to be ripped apart by crabs. Pretty sure that's something any inkling would do." Callie's tone remained calm but that subtle hostility had turned into a hard edge. "You disagree?"
"Any inkling wouldn't have torn them apart and made them suffer as they killed them. That's something only you freaks would do."
The incident with the crabs was public knowledge and rumours had spread like wildfire about the precise details, but Three couldn't imagine any inkling believing the bad ones about Callie.
Three felt rage bubble up within her. Callie and Marie had been called many unflattering things throughout their careers but she'd never heard them derided as freaks! She moved to put herself in front of Callie, only for her charge to grab her by the collar and yank her back, keeping her protectively behind her.
"I see you haven't changed." Any courtesy was gone from Callie's voice now, replaced with raw contempt, and her tone became harsh. "Still calling people freaks at your age?"
"It's what you are," he hissed. "You know Admus and Drang can barely walk, even after all this time, and they still have to eat through a straw?"
"No," Callie's voice softened ever so slightly. "But they haven't exactly sent me postcards. I don't know why you're getting all uppity with me. In case you forgot, I was the victim."
"You? All you were the victim of was a simple prank!"
"A simple prank?" Callie's voice rose to a shout, and she bared her beak as the corners of her mouth pulled back. "Marie thought you'd murdered me! After hearing me scream and rushing in to find me lying in a pool of my own blood with freaky guys standing around me and one of you with a huge knife, how would you expect an eight-year-old to react?"
"I would expect her to run! Not turn into some kind of freakish monster and try to kill us."
"Oh, so it's her fault she reacted to a life or death situation in a way you didn't expect? I feel I'm talking to the same person I knew back then."
Callie reached up to her bow and let it unravel, the tentacles flopping onto the ground before they inflated with blood and ink.
Murl crossed his arms, unafraid. "I see you grew your tentacles back."
"I did, and I won't have to worry about you ripping them off now."
"I'm not some kid being kept away from the cookie jar, Callabria." He scoffed and looked at Three, barely peeking out from behind Callie.
"And you were with her all along…"
Callie pushed her out of sight, a light hiss passing through her beak. "Stay away from her."
"Me? You're the one who should stay away. Does she even know what you are? Does anyone know that you and your cousin are monsters in inkling skin? That literally everyone here is one wrong word away from you killing them all?"
"She's my bodyguard and my anu-elvi. She knows what we are, far better than you ever will."
Murl scoffed. "Pretty lousy bodyguard if she's hiding behind you. Not exactly hard for anyone to want to become true family to someone rich and famous."
Callie's pupils narrowed into paper-thin slits, her tentacles rising from the ground and coiling like angry, black vipers.
"Alright, that's enough," a gentle voice interrupted.
From the crowd emerged a familiar face: Acolyte Kelpgarden. Her white-speckled, orange mantle switched to a soothing green and blue, the two colours rolling gently through her mantle in a way meant to project calm.
"Floa!" Callie exclaimed.
Kelpgarden smiled at her and then at Murl. "I think you've both gotten what you needed out of your funnels. Let's let the past remain the past, hm?"
Murl glared at her. "Don't think that just because you're an acolyte now means I don't remember which side you were on, Floa."
"I'm on the side of resolving this situation. The fact is that both of you consider yourselves the victims so you'll never see eye to eye on that. Forgive each other and move on."
"Forgive?" Murl spat. "That restraining order runs out the second she turns twenty. As soon as that happens the first thing she's going to do is come and finish the job so we don't ruin her precious reputation as the most popular idol in the world and expose what a freak she is."
"She has been very open about the incident throughout her career, Murl, and this isn't a discussion. You've grown a lot and become a respectable person since that time. Don't let old anger throw that away."
Red rippled through Murl's mantle as the crowd held its breath to see what happened next.
"Fine," he grumbled, and turned away.
Callie let her tentacles fall as she gradually relaxed and set about tying them back in her signature bow.
"Three, which way to the matron?"
"This way," Three hastily moved ahead of her, in the direction of the RV. Callie started to follow and then stopped.
"One last thing, Murl. Not a day's gone by that Marie hadn't regretted what she did. Even though she has no reason to be sorry, she still has nightmares about that night, and dreams of being able to undo what was done. I just thought I should let you know that."
Another tense pause followed before Murl responded.
"Just stay out of my life – all our lives."
"Fine."
And with that, the argument was over.
Three signaled the octolings who had been watching from the back of the crowd and shouted orders in Octese.
[Security perimeter around the ar-vee, now! Keep the public at bay.]
The octolings moved, their armour already on and a mixed collection of ink weapons in hand, surrounding the RV in a protective ring of armed guards.
"Three," Callie said, her voice suddenly sounding tired, "we're trying not to impose on the matron or her community."
"It's a perfectly reasonable security precaution."
"It's excessive."
Three whirled around and grabbed Callie's coat, stopping the girl in place. She glared up into Callie's surprised golden eyes with her own furious red orbs.
"No, that was excessive; that was imposing." She pointed back in the direction they had just come. "I know you're dealing with yun'brennen, and I know he was someone from your past, but that is not how you make a good first impression on a community or its matron. You and Marie always taught me to rise above situations like that. You think I wasn't angry? I was. Things meant to hurt you hurt me too, because I'm your sister, because I love you.
"You stopped me from doing my job, and I thought you had a good reason, but the truth is you just didn't want me in the way, did you?"
Callie looked hurt, but the way she averted her gaze told Three she'd hit the mark near enough.
"Sorry, Three," she said with barely a murmur. "I just –."
Callie was cut off as Three slapped her across the face, causing everyone around them to jump in surprise, their mantles flashing and mouths gaping with shock.
Three slowly lowered her hand and her gaze fell, unable to bear seeing the stunned expression on Callie's face. "Don't ever put me in a situation where I have to do that again."
Had Three not had her head down, she would have seen Callie gingerly touch her slapped cheek with the tips of her fingers, the print of Three's hand turning blueish.
Callie put a hand on Three's head, the smaller inkling flinching slightly at her touch.
"Sorry, baby," she whispered. "I'll try to do better."
Three reached up and gently took Callie's hand, leading her to the RV.
"Sorry for making a scene," Callie whispered to Floa.
Callie couldn't hide her smile, finally able to talk to her precious friend again, the first person she had called true family, even if her cheek was still throbbing.
"It's not how I wanted us to meet each other again," Floa admitted. "I'd hoped that once I was given a break, we could meet up at some point."
"Is the temple shorthanded?"
"The whole ecclesiarchy is short handed these days, but it's the same for everyone. I take it you didn't come here to look at cars though."
Callie pulsed blue. "Nope. I'm here to talk to Matron Trailmaker. We have something to discuss."
"Then let me join you. I can help you smooth things over a bit." She smiled. "An' don' worry, arguments like that are not foriegn to this lot."
"That makes me feel a little better, I guess." And she smiled. Floa had a knack for helping to smooth situations over and she was happy to have her old friend by her side again.
Three knocked on the RV door and Katrina's voice bid them enter. Three opened it and went inside first, having to blink as her eyes were forced to adjust to the fully lit interior.
Katrina sat in the passenger seat next to the stairs. Gyari Trailmaker was there as well, sitting on a pull-out seat in the middle of the aisle. Silvia, wearing a worn jacket with her purple scarf wrapped around the collar and draped over one shoulder, sat at the dining table booth opposite them, tapping her finger on the tabletop.
"Acolyte," she said, as Floa came into her view, "when you asked me to let you handle the situation, I expected it to be done a little faster."
Floa gave her an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Matron, but it was important that they unburden their feelings as much as possible. I stopped it before things got out of control."
"I saw."
Silvia looked Callie and then eyed Three, who fell to her knees, her mantle white with apology and submission. "I'm sorry, auntie. I failed to prevent things from escalating. It's my fault."
Callie felt a fresh wave of shame and embarrassment. She was the one who had escalated things out of control. The real threat behind their argument were things between the lines and what might have happened. To anyone but her, Murl, and Floa, it probably just seemed like an intense argument with a lot of baggage, but it was more than that. Had things not deescalated, Callie was almost sure she would have spilled blood again tonight.
Silvia's mantle flashed red. "Don't be stupid, Cortina. You're still a kid and the other two are almost adults." She affixed Callie with a hard stare. "I assume there won't be any more problems?"
"No, Matron," Callie said, bowing and also turning her mantle white. "As soon as we're done our discussion, we'll leave."
"Good. Next time we need to talk, we'll make different arrangements."
"Sorry."
"Just sit down." Silvia gestured to the bench seat across from her. "And, Cortina, get up off that cursed floor. It's filthy."
Three hopped to her feet and stepped aside to let Callie and Floa into the booth, then sat in the RV's driver's seat next to Katrina.
"So?" Silvia asked. "What do you actually want to talk to me about?"
Callie took in a breath and steadied herself. "Well, basically, we're trying to improve the situation for the octolings that have come into inkopolis, trying to undo all the baggage from the war. We want them to be seen for who they are now, not what Octarians were a century ago."
Silvia's mantle rippled. "Yeah, I can see why you'd want to do that. I know some people in the Assembly aren't happy about so many of them showing up out of nowhere. Not like we're in a position to complain about the shot in the arm to our labour force. Matriarch Denasta's being pestered about trying to get all our kids up into the workforce as soon as possible." She let out a frustrated sigh, her mantle turning maroon. "So many idiots in the government and the Assembly assume that we have no excuse for our unemployment rates when there is a labour shortage, failing to understand that it's a skilled labour shortage that we're most short of, and not everyone can travel to other parts of the city where the jobs they are qualified for might be."
"I understand. Well, the octolings might not have official qualifications, most of them, but many of them are skilled in many ways. We're trying to give them some positive public exposure. Right now, Marina's the only octoling most people directly know about. The rest are just known to exist. I had expected a few to shine more in turf war but the competition's been stiff this year."
Silvie eyed her. "I thought their main concern would be getting them jobs and places to live in Inkopolis."
"Of course, but that's not really an issue anymore. They might not have permanent jobs but Work Detail has a long backlog of work lined up so they won't have to worry about that. No, what they need is a positive public image to act as a bulwark against all the flak they're going to get once certain factions in the Assembly see fit to divert more attention to the issue, especially if more octolings show up."
Silvia crossed her arms, her brows knitted thoughtfully. "Well, eventually, I suppose, but even you can't automatically make an octoling popular. That's a talent and a skill."
"Of course. I figure Marina's got the idol side of things pretty well covered, but we need to find other places where octolings might be able to get out there and show what they can do."
Floa smiled nostalgically. "Well, that sounds familiar."
Callie grinned shamelessly. "I guess it does. Our first time in a real spotlight didn't exactly set the world on fire but it opened a door for us. We need to give octolings the same chance, otherwise, they'll end up treated like second-class citizens."
"You'd know more about that kind of stuff than us," Silvia said, pulsing grey.
"Typically, but I'm an entertainer. There are other ways of getting into the limelight. Besides that, I want them to be an inspiration for the emerging generations. I figure they need it. I know you are familiar with some of the matrons of shoals that used to be in Xapheerell Ward. It seems there aren't many inklings left there."
Silvia frowned. "No, there aren't. They were spread so thin over the past year they've migrated into pretty much a single neighbourhood. Now they can protect their turf and actually don't have to worry about their kids getting snapped up."
The magenta in Callie's mantle darkened. "I didn't realize things were as bad as that."
Silvie pulsed grey. "Well, the kids are rarely home. After all, who wants to spend all their time in Xapheerell when you could be in Inkopolis Square. That affects things somewhat. And they mostly move out of the area once they've become independent and there isn't a lot of interest in revitalizing the area since the inkling population is so small. Last I heard, some of the kids moved back and started trying to help shore the walls, but I think it's a losing battle."
Callie hummed. "I'm not sure if there's anything I can do about that. I do think that turf war sports have too big of a monopoly though."
A loud slap interrupted their conversation, as Gyari smacked his hand down on the back of Silvia's seat. "Finally, someone from the upper rung of society actually notices and cares."
Callie blinked. "Well, I don't know about 'upper rung.' I'm just rich and famous. Marie and I are new money."
"Money is still money," he said loudly. "And I've got a proposal for you that you might be interested in."
Silvia turned to him, her mantle display telling him to shut up in no uncertain terms, but he ignored her and stood to his feet, his mantle becoming very animated.
"We're trying to put together a pro racing team for the Calachora Touring Car Championship. Two cars, two pit crews, two drivers. We already know what cars we want to use, we know how to get them set up for racing, and we've got the drivers."
"But you need sponsors," Callie finished for him.
"Exactly!"
Silvia rubbed a hand over her face, her mantle showing spots of apology to Callie. Again, Gyari went on anyway.
"The championship isn't very big, all things considered, but it's growing and the fans it has are really dedicated and having cars perform well in racing does help sell cars, not to mention helping with research and development. Sponsoring the team would not only help get some kids out of the gutter, but there are also a bunch of octolings I plan on having on the team, including one of the drivers. They've proven themselves so this isn't any kind of political casting or anything. I had them picked almost a month ago."
Now Callie was interested. She'd never really watched car racing before but she knew Marie did on occasion. On paper it was something that should be exciting. Marie's car was certainly fast enough, but then, why wasn't it popular?
She turned around to look at Three. "Have you watched racing before?"
Three flashed green. "I once took Eight to Green Hills Raceway to watch rallycross. She really enjoyed it."
"Ah yeah, rallycross is pretty fun too. It's more grass roots so it's easier to get into but you won't see it televised like the CTCC, and the actual races are divided into heats so each race is pretty short. Plus, there isn't as much support from the manufacturers as in the… higher end racing leagues.
"Don't get me wrong, I love rallycross as much as anyone else, but it's mostly independents that run in it. It's very different."
Callie looked at Silvia who pulsed a pale red. "Well, you did ask if there were ways you could get the octolings more positive exposure and put them into the limelight. This is one way. Even if it's not super popular it does get televised."
"But why is it not popular?"
"No idea."
Gari pulsed grey. "I don't know either. We wouldn't be gathering here almost every night if cars and driving weren't fun."
"Uncle." All eyes turned to Three. Callie was a little surprised to hear her speak up. "I know it's cold out but maybe, before we leave, you could take Callie on a safe run up and down the mountain. Then you could show her how exciting it can be. Even a safe run should be enough for that."
Gyari smiled, his mantle rippling with consideration and possibilities. "Yeah, that might work. It's cold but the wind is pretty calm. If I stick to our lane it should be safe. What do you say, missy?"
Callie hesitated. She saw irritation from Silvia but Floa was giving her warm green spots, telling her it was okay, but there were ripples of amusement under her mantle, which made Callie just a bit suspicious. It may have been a long time but she knew her levi-anu too well. Still, Three's suggestion made sense.
"Alright," she said. "I guess there's no harm in it."
"Great! I'll go make sure the car is ready and you ladies can keep chatting."
"Wait." Callie held up a hand in a halting gesture. "Before that, there's something I need to ask all of you."
Everyone paused and Gyari sat back down in his chair. "Which is?"
Callie sighed and flashed a quick apology to Silvia, who had doubtlessly been asked a similar question countless times before.
"We're trying to help the government find ways to encourage our generation to have a lot of kids, when the time comes. Obviously, not having a lot of success."
"Small wonder," Gyari muttered. "Our generation protected its kids way too much or was too hands off. A lot of the kids I see coming in want to get into cars but they aren't willing to put in the work, either to get stuff done or to earn the money they need. It just feels like there's no passion anymore. No drive."
"No passion huh?"
"Nope. It used to be that being part of a shoal was to help keep a person's passion stoked. Ours is pretty good since even people who aren't sure about getting into driving will often dip their toes in at least and they never regret it when they do. The only real issue is the barrier of entry."
"And would you say that members of your community have more kids on average than most?"
Gyari and Silvia shared a look and then shrugged. "I guess so, and I'd bet our kids will have more than average too. But I couldn't give you a straight answer as to why."
Callie hummed thoughtfully. "Any thoughts, Floa?"
"Pretty much the same thoughts. Ultimately, children are imitative and big families haven't stopped being a sign of prosperity but it might have been the lack of large families for people to grow up with that makes the idea of them so intimidating. It's the same with epeso families."
Callie's mantle rippled thoughtfully. They were all good points, points that could all be overcome in theory, but how to inspire people to do it? Callie was hoping the octolings would rub off on the orphans in all the right ways, but that wouldn't be enough on its own.
"Someone has to lead the way, is what you're saying."
"It always boils down to that," Silvia said. Then she smiled. "And you've been trying to find other ways because you know one of those leaders is going to end up being you."
Callie grimaced, ripples of maroon washing over her mantle. "Yeah, I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about that. It's a lot of pressure."
"Your whole generation is under a lot of pressure," Gyari said. "Future might depend on you."
I'm all too aware. Callie thought. In fact, it might depend on us more than you realize.
Two hours later, Three was standing outside next to the car when Gyari returned with Callie. The girl simply went into squid form to exit the car and reformed on the other side, looking a little worn.
Three watched Callie approach and held the door open for her. Callie shot hre a mild glare before she went inside.
"How terrifying did you expect it to be when you made that suggestion."
Three pulsed grey. "It should have been a lot less terrifying than usual, since he had to drive safer."
Callie shook her head and sat inside. "Suddenly, it seems to make that much more sense that your mom laid your egg."
Three closed the door and couldn't help but smile big. She would take that remark as a compliment, for both of them.
Avrika had been to the Kraken's Den more than once of course, but she had never been to this part of it. Uncomfortably, the only time she had been around this many Octoling Elites had been during her incarceration period. Their presence made her young escorts even more anxious.
Aishi was responding much like Avrika would have expected. She carried her octoshot tightly, holding it close to her chest and keeping her head down to avoid any chance of eye contact with the elites and wondering why she was there. Kalisha, by contrast, had a bizarre grimace on her face, as if torn between excitement and terror. At least neither of them had their fingers near the triggers.
They reached a set of armoured doors guarded by two elites who halted them.
"Identify yourself."
Avrika held out her datapad, her official orders displayed on the screen and an accompanying number. The guard checked this number against a list of numbers on the screen mounted on the wall. Finding a match, she nodded and waved her through.
"You two stay here. I don't know how long I'll be but don't go wandering off and causing trouble."
"Yes, Honored Mother."
Avrika put her datacard away and then walked through the large doors. They were heavy but turned easily with nary a squeak. Behind them was a broader corridor built into the rock with wire mesh and supporting beams. The smell of corroded iron tickled her nostrils but she was used to that smell.
On the right side of the room were a pair of desks which were also carved out of rock, probably the very rock the room had been carved out of, and their tops perfectly flat. Behind each was a secretary, sat on a cushioned chair, a genuine luxury. Between their desks was a door labeled as: "File Room." At the other end of the room was a large single door made of polished wood, guarded by another pair of elites.
Avrika approached the least busy-looking secretary. Her tentacles were slightly wrinkled, a sign of her advanced age. She was likely over seventy, an impressive age to achieve in their society, so she made sure to be as deferential as possible.
"Pardon me, I have a meeting with the Dicatrix. Ambassador Avrika Betanuss."
Without looking up, the secretary checked a small screen to her right and used one of her tentacles to wave her to one of the waiting benches on the opposite wall, getting quickly back into her work.
Avrika sat and began reviewing what she would be going over in her head. She had actually worked with Octavia before, having once served under her back when she'd been working in logistics as a Sept Altern. She remembered Octavia being a stern and pragmatic person, but having a charisma that made her subordinates want to work hard to get the job done and do so gladly. Avrika had sometimes wondered if she had left some kind of impression on Octavia that eventually led to her being accepted for breeding.
She absently rubbed the pendant hidden under the fabric of her crimson short cloak. She wondered how big her daughters had gotten since she last saw them. They both took longer to learn how to walk than the others but they had shown signs of good observational development, which she found encouraging. She wished she could have been given a report on them at least.
The door swung open and the guard had to stop it with her arm to keep it from hitting her in the face as Lord Glittermine stormed out of the room, his bodyguard following him with a clouded expression. Avrika supposed members of the Ravalda Imperium were allowed to bring their escorts into the office of the Dicatrix.
She stood respectfully as Lord Glittermine neared but he only glared at her before averting his gaze and storming out through the double doors. The secretaries didn't so much as bat an eye at his behavior. They'd probably seen worse.
"The Dictatrix will see you now," the old secretary told her casually.
"Oh, thank you."
Avrika thought Octavia would want a little time after that to collect herself, but she wasn't going to disobey, so she picked up her briefcase and headed into the office of the new head of the Octarian Empire.
The office was well lit with electric light and much fancier and larger than Executrix – rather, Lady of War Sever's office had been and with a greater number of artifacts on display, including another set of ancient octarian armour, paintings, and photographs that appeared to capture images from before the war.
There was a large desk covered with data cards and a few scattered papers, partnered by a large, high-backed wooden chair with a threadbare purple cushion. However, Octavia was not on it. Instead, the Dicatrix was sat on a smaller but very nicely made synth leather seat in an area off to the right directly under one of the electric lights. A pitcher and two cups sat on a small table between her seat and a twin on the other side.
"Ambassador," she greeted, sounding much too cheerful for someone who just had Lord Glittermine storm out of her office.
Although not apparent with her sitting down, Octavia was a tall octoling, probably one of the tallest she had ever met. Her sharp, green eyes watched Avrika carefully as she approached, her long mauve tentacles swaying gently.
"Dictatrix," she bowed. "It's nice to meet you again. I don't know if you remember me."
"A little. You were there for the Cetus dome project, yes?"
"Yes, Ma'am."
The Cetus dome project had been all about tearing down broken or collapsing structures within the dome and replacing it with space for agriculture. There had been a lot of resistance to it as the Cetus dome was one of the sturdiest of the outer domes so many had wanted to use it for manufacturing instead. Octavia had won in the end, and the increased food production had allowed the troops to have a meal more days than not, even if shortages still occurred.
At Octavia's direction, Avrika sat in the chair opposite her and opened her briefcase.
"I hope you are well, Ma'am. I imagine it hasn't been easy becoming our new leader."
Octavia sighed and shrugged her tentacles. "I should have expected it. As Octavio's daughter I'm the least radical choice, politically."
Avrika couldn't hide her smile. "Everyone in the army would disagree."
Octavia smiled back. "Oh they very much did, but it seems most of the senior staff were in favour of me becoming the new Dicatrix, so here I am."
Lord Glittermine, was clearly one of those who had been opposed to her appointment.
"So, you managed to contact the inklings. How did the conversation go?"
"Quite well, actually," Avrika took out a datapad and handed it to her. "This is a copy of the report I transmitted to Lord Hobber. Would you like me to give you the highlights?"
"Please." She poured water from the pitcher into one of the cups and handed it to Avrika.
"Well, the inklings gifted us a transmitter that will allow us to send them messages without having to physically go talk to them. That will make it easier to set up meetings. It's currently being installed at the outpost."
Octavia looked at her, somewhat surprised. "Good news? First I've heard all day."
"There's more. We've already arranged another meeting to take place. They are willingly letting me inside Inkopolis where I will be taken to a secret location and they will be serving traditional Octarian food."
Octavia looked at her stoically for a moment, then smiled. "Well, you certainly sound excited about it."
Avrika's cheeks warmed. "I-I'm sorry, Ma'am. I-."
"It's fine, Ambassador. The fact that you're excited means there's hope."
"I certainly think so, Ma'am."
"So you don't think that establishing contact with the inklings and reopening diplomatic relations is a waste of time?"
Avrika frowned. "Of course I don't. It's our best hope to come up from the ground and live on the surface again. That's been every Octarian's dream for over a century."
"Even if it means becoming subservient to the Inklings?"
Avrika paused and wondered if this was the discussion Octavia had with Lord Glittermine before her. She'd be lying if she hadn't considered the possibility.
"Subservient could mean a lot of different things, Ma'am. From a certain perspective, are we not already subservient to them? We're stuck living underground because we were beaten here. They haven't finished us off because they believe they can do so anytime they wish. Even now, this offer for peace isn't because they are afraid of us, it's because of their good graces. Even if it's only from a relative handful of inklings, it's the ones that have been fighting us."
Octavia looked at her in silence for several long moments, those green eyes analyzing her closely. Eventually she relaxed with a sigh and poured herself some water.
"I suppose you're right. That's probably why the opposition has been so stubborn. They don't want to acknowledge that we are basically at the inkling's mercy. Who can blame them though. They've been lied to for so long."
"Yes, Ma'am."
"So who is this handful of inklings that have been so gracious?"
"They are primarily members of the New Squidbeak Splatoon under Captain Cuttlefish; however, the captain himself seems to be… less than enthused about the notion of peace between our governments. Rather, he believes true peace to be unlikely. He doesn't trust us. At least, that's how it was explained to me."
"I see. And the rest?"
"They genuinely want to give us a chance at peace and prosperity. And yes, I believe that strongly. If they wanted us dead, they wouldn't have stopped attacking us. There's nothing stopping them from wiping out our outpost whenever it pleases them."
"The main issue is actually going to be on the inkling's – rather, Calachora's side. Convincing their government to allow us to regain our lost land and rebuild is not going to be a simple matter."
"Especially since we've been at war for the past two years." Octavia stared down into her cup. "Their current generation has only known us through war. The rest have long since died."
Avrika bit her lip. "Actually, Ma'am, outside the NSS and the deserters, nobody in the outside world is aware we have been making war against them at all." Octavia gave her an incredulous look, leaning more on the side of disbelief, as if she were making some kind of jest. "Yes, I didn't believe it at first either, but Agent 2 assures me that they are completely unaware we are responsible for stealing the Great Zapfish. They want to leverage that in order to get us accepted diplomatically by their government officially."
Octavia once again spent several moments in silence before she rubbed her forehead and put down her cup. "Well, I should have known something was up with just a handful of them doing all the fighting. But why didn't she ever tell us?"
Avrika frowned. "Ma'am?"
Octavia looked at her then retrieved her cup. "You must have heard the rumors about my father recruiting an inkling into the army."
"Yes, Ma'am. Actually, during my testimony in the Shromacchi Imperium, they said she was appointed as a legate."
Octavia huffed. "Blabbermouths. Yes, she was immediately made a legate. I was there, in fact, when my father revealed her to us."
Avrika jerked. Hearing about it happening was one thing, but hearing about it from someone who was actually there somehow made it seem all the more real.
"I… can only imagine how everyone's reactions were."
"I think we were all too shocked to be angry. Especially those of us who suddenly found ourselves outranked by an inkling. I was high enough rank I didn't have that problem but plenty of others did and resented it strongly. That was probably as close to mutiny as the army's ever gotten." She sighed. "Fortunately for us, Callie was…"
Octavia's tone suddenly changed, her expression softening as her eyes became distant.
"She was special. She had an energy the rest of us lacked. Even under hypnosis she had a genuine drive and charisma. She went far out of her way to improve conditions for the line troops and to suggest specializing the domes instead of putting in mixed assets. She wanted more food for the troops so that they would be better fed and more motivated. The troops all came to love her so quickly they didn't have time to wonder why an inkling was giving them orders. That's not something most of the senior staff will admit though."
"I would imagine not," Avrika replied breathlessly. She'd heard Callie had done a splendid job but such praise from Octavia was meaningful indeed.
"Um, Agent 2 was the one I spoke to."
"That's Marie," Octavia said. "Unlike the other senior officers, I actually tried to get to know Callie, learn more about her. Gods, I have children older than her, and she's able to revitalize an army from its hands and knees to standing tall, even if it was only briefly." She paused. "Was Marie with anyone else?"
"Um, yes, Agent 4."
"And what is your opinion of her? She seems young."
"She's fourteen. She seems quite friendly and amicable; although, she seemed rather serious this time. Perhaps she was as anxious as my escorts."
"So they're all young then?"
Avrika paused to think. "Yes, Ma'am. At least, other than Captain Cuttlefish, I haven't seen anyone older than me, and I'm only twenty-eight."
Octavia sighed again. "Twenty-eight and you're our Ambassador? We certainly are expecting a lot from your generation, aren't we?" Avrika grimaced but Octavia waved dismissively. "It's not your fault, Betanuss. Don't worry about it. I'm thankful you're at least competent and you will have time to grow into your role."
"I… thank you, Ma'am."
"Don't thank me." Octavia's tone suddenly turned serious and she looked levelly at Avrika, causing the former officer to sit up very straight out of habit. "Because you probably have the worst job in the Empire right now."
Avrika's jaw tensed. She could see how some people might see it that way, but honestly she didn't think it was all too bad yet. The key word was 'yet' because she had a feeling her Dictatrix was about to drop a heavy burden on her.
"What do you need me to do, Ma'am?"
Octavia smiled sardonically. "You really do catch on quick, don't you?" She rubbed a hand along her front-left tentacle. "I'm not going to lie to you, Betanuss; if things keep going as they are, our people have only another handful of decades left, and that's being optimistic. Even the core domes are starting to fall apart and our infrastructure isn't going to last. Most members of the Ravalda don't see it because they never leave their damn hidey holes, but I've seen it all too clearly. That's one of the reasons my father pushed so hard to invade Inkopolis. He may not be the same as he was before but that doesn't mean he took leave of his senses entirely."
Avrika's throat became very dry and she felt like she had swallowed something heavy. Suddenly, Octavio's actions that day she tried to rescue him made so much more sense. His actions and orders had been out of a painful desperation, not just for himself, but for all of them. Maybe that stress and desperation was what had broken him mentally in the first place.
"I need to know," Octavia went on, "if these diplomatic talks will lead to something that will save us and allow us to maintain whatever pride and dignity we have left." Her expression became stone. "Or, will we need to surrender?"
Avrika's breath left her body, time seemed to stop, her mind echoed endlessly with that question.
"F-forced to surrender?"
Octavia shook her head. "No, not forced. Your standard education says we were forced underground, but that's not true. We chose to live underground because we refused to surrender. Now, we must choose between surrender anyway or the slow, painful death of our civilization." She leaned forward, her eyes boring into Avrika's. "So, tell me, Ambassador? Based on what you know now, based on the timetable I've given you, do you think we should just surrender now or see if this can work out well enough for us to survive?"
Avrika's mind blurred. She tried to think, to find some way of calculating an answer to Octavia's question, but there were just too many unknown, too many variables. She just didn't know for sure. So, if she couldn't rely on logic, she had only one thing left.
"I believe it's worth trying, Ma'am. Even if we only have a few decades, that's plenty of time to find out if this could work. We've only just begun. With time, I'm sure we can find some kind of solution."
Octavia hummed. "Well, in my experience, nothing happens fast in politics. That said, if Callie is on our side, I think we have a chance. From what she told me about Marie, she's cut from much the same cloth." She smiled. "So, I'd say you're right. We've got nothing to lose at this point from trying. After all, there's no guarantee that surrendering would actually solve anything either."
"That's true," Avrika said slowly. "But conversely, there's also no telling how high the cost of peace will be."
"I'm working on ways to hopefully lighten that load," she said. "But here's what I need from you: I need information about current politics around the world, what current issues Calachora is facing, and what are the hot button topics for politics. Think you can find that out?"
Avrika grabbed her personal datapad from her briefcase and began typing. "Um, I will certainly try, Ma'am. I don't think it would be too difficult to bring up the topic, but I don't know how forthcoming they will be."
"If Callie's there, I imagine your odds will be much greater." She looked at Avrika as she typed fiercely. "Hmmm, we should probably get you an assistant of some sort. I'll see what I can do about that. Until then, do the best you can on your own."
"I will, Ma'am."
"And let's hope we're both right about this," Octavia said gravely. "Because I don't want to imagine something worse than the alternative."
Author's Notes:
At last, I give more clues to Callie and Marie's past, alluding to the reasons Marie has a restraining order against her. Three wasn't exactly acting herself this time either. Normally, she would have waited until she was in a private location before reprimanding Callie that way (pretty unprofessional for a bodyguard to be slapping their own charge/boss in public like that), but she's young and she was angry. Even Agent 3 isn't flawless.