Undeviginti 87th, 20XX -
Are you okay, Agent 4? You look like you've seen a ghost.
Uh, yeah, I- I'm... wait, what am I doing. Why am I interacting with an illusion?
Stop it, you know I'm as real as it comes.
This is all in my head; none of this is real. You argue slapping yourself repeatedly.
Callie grasps your hand. Don't hurt yourself like that! I promise it'll be okay; just relax and breathe with me.
No, get away from me. You're the girl—the one Marie warned me about. I can't trust you; I can't even trust myself. Holy crap, I'm really going insane. I'm actually losing my goddamn mind, and it's all thanks to this stupid device. Argghh, why did I ever? You spout lifting the VR helmet above your head, preparing to smash the machine.
NO STOP, if you break that, I'll be gone! You'll never see Callie again!
Argh, she's right, this is the only way I can save her. I need to complete my mission and uncover her phone password. Got any ideas for inputs, fake Chloe.
I'm Callie!
That's what I said.
Oh geez, he's already losing his marbles... Look, if you're so hard-pressed on finishing your objective, why don't you delve into the simulation one final time. I'm sure you're pretty lonely in this underground waste bucket, why don't you hop in and spend some time with Callie in Rainmaker mode.
No
Okay, we'll just go Turf War then.
No... at least not here.
Oh yeah, you're kinda in the direct line of collision. We should definitely find somewhere safer to engage in Callie raillery.
Uh, before I leave, I should help him first.
Why would you help Fang, he's done nothing but try to kill you.
I know, and I would love to beat the dude's ass, but I'm not a monster, and I'm not going to stoop to his level.
Ugh, why do you always have to be Mr. Nice guy? It gets boring after a while.
That's not what the real Callie would say.
Yeah, but you know she's thinking about it.
Shut up. You're just filling my head with lies.
I'm just a manifestation of your thoughts, taking the form of your deceased girlfriend.
She isn't dead.
I don't know about that. With Grizzco headquarters under new ferocious management, it's only a matter of time before Mrs. Pink stripes bites the bullet.
Wow, that really got you moving, hold up, I'm not done belittling you.
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Two hours later -
"Urgh, bloody hell, That blow to my noggin really hurt," Fang laments, massaging his forehead.
"I'm pretty zonked out about this whole ordeal. I'd really fancy a drink and a sit by the telly right about now, but sigh* I gotta finish what I set out to do. And that's terminate those annoying leeches from existence."
"Come in, tackle box, come in," The walkie-talkie rings.
"This is tackle box to fish bait, what can I help you with," Fang responds.
"We secured Maire and her allies, and are planning to load the dynamite into Grizzco. We're ready when you are."
"Good work fish bait, I'll be over there in a jiffy, sit tight for right now. This is tackle box over and out." Beep
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February 14th, 2020 -
As the sun glare fades, the world comes into view. Press ZL ZR
"Y'all know what time it is!"
"It's Off the Hook, coming at you LIVE from Inkopolis Square!"
"Check it! Here are the current Regular Battle stages!" Arowana Mall and Port Mackerel flash by on the TV.
"Marina! What's the appeal of using a brella on this stage?"
"Protecting my pearlie at all costs! And I mean at all costs. Arrghhh, the frickin Agent 4."
"And these are the current Ranked Battle stages!" Camp Triggerfish and StarFish Mainstage accompany the LED illuminated screen.
"Whenever I battle here, I get cooked right away by some random chump."
"That's because your strategy is to rush to the stage and look fresh..."
"Here are the League Battle stages!" Humpback Pump Track fitted with Walleye Warehouse.
"For all the cardboard boxes here, there's a weird lack of people working..."
"Didn't you hear? Robots took their jobs! Welcome to the future!"
"And now a word from our sponsor: Grizzco Industries is hiring. Apply now!"
"As much as I adore the current news broadcast, it couldn't hurt to add a little Sandy Shoal into the mix. He'd really make the program come alive and say something like: Greetings love birds, I hope you're all enjoying this beautiful morning of romance. And for all of you single folk out there. What are you waiting for? Love is in the air, get out there, and start to mingle."
Now, this was the Cate I knew, sweet, innocent, and always taking every opportunity she can to crack one-liners.
"And that's all the time we've got!"
"Oh, wait, we have one more thing we forgot to mention!"
"Oh yeah, that totally slipped my mind."
"We're hosting a Ranked Battle competition today, whoever places first gets this magnificent looking Rainmaker trophy," Marina prattles, displaying the golden ornament for everyone to see.
"You better enter now. The brawl starts at noon, and if you're not there, you're a square!" Pearl adds condescendingly.
"Until next time...
"Don't get cooked... stay off the hook!"
"Don't get cooked... stay off the hook!"
"Alright, that's what I'm talking about! The perfect way to spice up our monotonous schedule of Turf War and Ranked Battles."
Callie leaps down from the food truck and quickly scarfs down her crusty seanwich. She then performs various calisthenics to ease her tightened muscles, "And I know my cute boyfriend will definitely attend this ink-flinging competition with me."
You had me at alright.
"Yesss, this is so exciting. A contest based entirely off of Ranked Battles, it looks like they're really listening to the fans. I'm also super stoked to pwn some noobs too," Callie remarks, not realizing she's a noob as well.
Don't we need four people, I'm not sure they'll let us join with only two.
"Don't worry, babe, that's what my splat phone is for," Callie notifies, whipping out her cellular device from her bleached jeans.
You attempt to steal a glance at the small rectangular box buried within her fingers. Callie blocks the first set of symbols with her bulky case but finishes her code off with a 4-8-7 to enter into the virtual domain.
Huh, it's numbered, not lettered. Did she ever change it, or is it still the same in the future? Knowing she is alive now, I wonder if she was conscious at any point after today.
She brings the transceiver to her ear with a quirky smirk, "Hey Marie, yeah, yeah, I did my chores already, shut up, of course, we're on a date right now don't tease me, ...oh, you already heard, okay, let's go then, I'll see you soon, bye and stay fresh."
Even if we recruit Marie, we're still short one player.
"Don't worry, Marie's going to bring a friend of ours. Don't worry. You're definitely going to like her."
As you're standing in the glass chamber before the selection screen, you begin to ponder the digits of 487. Hmmm, there's no way Callie was born in 1987. Maybe it's an alphabet code, 4 = D, 8 = H, 7 = F. HOF, FOH, OFH. Now I'm just guessing. I need to be more vigilant to uncover the other three.
"Hey, Agent 4," Marie sounds from behind.
You turn around and witness a pack of girls approaching you.
There's Callie, decked out in all pink and also equipped with a fashionable pair of ray bands.
There's Marie, sporting her classic green and rocking a stylish hoodie.
And then there's a mysterious yellow-haired girl with neon-plated armor following behind them.
"Agent 4, meet Agent 3." Callie recites.
You deliver a warm welcome: Hello, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Agent 4!
The long-haired girl refrains from speaking; instead, she hurls sharp daggers at you through her stern gaze. She also leaves your hand awkwardly suspended in the air, waiting to be shaken. Uh... was it something I said.
"No, she's just like this around new people. She'll warm up to you eventually. You just got to give her some time to get to know you."
After that embarrassing blunder, the four of you visit Sheldon's shop to suit up for the event. After careful consideration, you opt for a kensa splattershot pro vs. your standard tenaktek, sacrificing speed for more accuracy. Callie wields to her tried and true dapple dualies with a fresh coat of paint to complement her nails. Marie takes her primary weapon of choice, the slosher and Agent 3 cops an undercover brella at a low price.
Suddenly all the monitors in the plaza cut out and are replaced with a gruesome shark logo. A massive creature with a crooked smile approaches the video camera. A veil of darkness obscures the nefarious evildoer's face from the bustling crowd. The freakish abomination speaks with slobber trickling out of his mouth, "Hello, Inklings. I have a special treat for all of you. Unfortunately, I can't reveal the contents of my package just yet. But I assure you, it's an explosive event you won't want to miss—Ta ta for now, my little ink babies."
The audio system returns to presenting the stage rotations and advertising ink brand weapons.
The mob of squid kids begins to panic from the latest intercom, rushing around sporadically. Marie gets on top of the metal girder and tries to calm the masses. "We can't let them scare us guys. Come on; It's time to take a stand against those ruffians, once and for all. The show must go on, let's begin this ink slinging trial to show those punks."
"Now, who's with me?"
The group chants with insatiable furry to impress the pop idol. They even raise their plastic weaponry in the air for added effect. The Ranked Battle competition begins with a fire in the hearts of many. An assembly of exuberant squidlings floods the waiting platform, preparing for all-out paint warfare.
The first match sends you to Shellendorf Institute for a heated game of tower control. You and your team immediately head for the payload, leaping over ramps and plastic bumpers along the way. Agent 3 climbs the glass partition, as you, Callie, and Marie attack from head-on. You swing around the large floating column and splat some of the inklings riding on the side of it. Agent 3 uses her umbrella to glide down from the glass window onto the massive tower. Your team is currently in the lead, with Agent 3 holding control of the moving pillar. You continually hurl blobs of ink at the other side and stealthily take out the opposition.
The other team intends to push back with an ink storm and baller added into the fray. Agent 3 opens the brella above her head to block any ink from the threatening ink storm. Callie piles on shots towards the baller, but is not fast in time before the bomb explodes.
Even with a few unfortunate setbacks, the team's progression is mostly unchanged, and after a few good pushes, you eventually take the gold.
There's another frantic battle at Blackbelly Skatepark, with both teams struggling to hold the middle ground. Four members of the unit suddenly ambush you. Agent 3 is quick with assistance and pulls you close to her shield to keep you from taking any damage. Both of you annihilate the opposite group by using the umbrella's guard for protection.
It's a close match, with many failures and triumphs along the ink coated way. But you ultimately win the battle with a sixty-four percent victory.
Even with your team's lack of professional training and, at times, uncoordinated chemistry, you're still able to hold our own in a good set of 4v4 games. Within these starting fights, Callie utters a few noteworthy quotes that aid in your password snatching journey.
"Dang it, I missed it again. If I only had my seeker babies back, then I'd be able to obliterate the opposition with my wave of tiny boats. I'm sorry, but curling bombs and torpedos are just not the same."
Ooooh, it's Bruno M's latest single playing in the background. I love his music so much. Considering how much of a pop buff I am, this enchanting melody is sure to give our team the upper hand.
Oh no, I got a glob of ink on my meticulously tailored zebra print shirt. That's really unfortunate. I feel like zebras are my spirit animals.
Why is Zebras your spirit animal?
I don't know why, but it's kind of like my good luck charm. It's like keeping a four-leaf clover or a lucky rabbit's foot in your pockets. Since I do fit the jinx profile, I need to balance my unfortunate tendencies with some lucky ones. I like to think the stripes have a specific meaning to them too. It's like light and darkness, black vs. white, Chaos and order.
Callie's jinx tendencies seemed like they were wearing thin as of late, but she would still get mauled by a lion every now and again.
Okay, that's three different passcodes to try out. I don't know how they relate to 487, but they're still relevant.
Seeker - It wouldn't seem like a plausible option, especially for a girl's iPhone password. However, she did refer to them as her babies, so maybe it isn't so far fetched.
BrunoM - This one would definitely be a strong candidate, but Bruno M has kind of started on a downward spiral in his career. With the latest dirt on the pop star revealing he's been cheating, stealing, and using aggressive behavior. I doubt Callie would want to honor such a tragic memory on her iPhone screen.
Zebras - The speech she gave to quell my confusion really dived into her emotional insecurities. I can clearly imagine her inputting this code. Every time Callie is down on her luck or experiencing a miserable day at work, she can always look to this simple string of letters and feel the slightest bit of joy from it.
After a swarm of high octane battles, including wins and losses for splat zones and tower control, you sit with the girls on Manta Maria staring out to sea. The sun barely dips into the velvet blue ocean illuminating the sky in a fluorescent hue of orange and pink.
"Wow, what a rush. Those were some of the most intense battles I've ever taken part in."
Agent 3 overhear's Callie's comment and whispers in Marie's ear.
"She says you suck, Agent 4," Marie reports, after listening to Agent 3's muffled speech.
Okay, okay, at least I'm not a brella main.
"WOOOOAAAHHHH"
"OHHHHHHH SHIT, do you need some ointment for that burn."
Agent 3 engages in a glare off with you, folding her arms and excessively biting her lips. She was definitely not pleased by your remark and tried to display that feeling through her poor attitude. In all honesty, the brella proved more useful than other armaments through today's matches, so you were just lying with Agent 3 to see how snarky she would get. And it was pretty snarky!
You remove the pragmatic headpiece.
Wow, I really miss Clara.
Arthur, you're losing your memories.
I KNOW... I know, honestly, I've always kind of... wanted to lose my memories. After all of the pain and torture I've endured over these ten long years, I realized that I needed an escape. I just want someone to replace me. I don't care who it is; anything is better than living like this. I'll let them move for me, speak for me, and I hope they can be a better man than me.
Can they love for you?
...
No... They can't.
Now, what was it again? Was it Zebras or Tigers, sorry, my head is a little fuzzy.
It was zebras, so try that one.
What are we doing again? Where am I? Is this the Bowling Alley or the Pet Shop.
Arthur, I'm Callie. Don't you remember?
Who? I'm sick and tired of hearing that name and hearing about this stupid phone too. I don't care anymore. I don't know who I am or what's going on anymore. What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? Camila? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? Caroline? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name? Cora? What's her name? What's her name? What's her name! What's her name? What's her name! What's her name? What's her name?! What's her name? What's her name!? What's her name! What's her name? WHAT'S HER NAME???
Arthur starts inputting random passwords into the cellular device.
fxibek - Enter
Wrong password X, two attempts remaining.
gyajhd - Enter
Wrong password X, one attempt remaining.
sdhshx - He hovers his finger over the enter button
...
...
...
...
...
You can't press it
Something prevents you from doing it...
You don't know what, but it's there.