Fara was sleeping quietly on Hun's bed. Hun was watching her carefully, with a visible worried feeling all over him. Grina was looking at the wall, covering her face with her left hand while sitting on a chair.
Bars was playing with a handheld console, seemingly famous. Mirii was navigating through the Inknet with her smartphone, with eyes a bit burned out.
"… mmmmmm…" Fara was waking up.
"F-Fara?!" Hun shouted.
Fara opened her eyes looking at Hun first.
"… b-big bro…?"
"Thank turfness you're ok!"
"… w-what just happened…?"
"Oh…! Eeeehhhmm… you… you actually felt reeeally tired aaand… uuuh, you got in my room and took a nap! That's all." Hun lied.
"… Hun… I did an awful nightmare…"
Hun didn't say anything about that… and starts listening very carefully.
"I was there with ya… we were playin' Seahorse together… and then, all the sudden… you stop."
"R-really?"
"Yep. But I didn't know why… I couldn't see anythin' in front of me."
"Uh… w-weird dream… don't you say?"
"I didn't finish, bud…"
"N-no?!"
"Nope. Well… ya then said something… a bit queer. I don't feel really good… my stomach is hurting a lot."
"Th-the stomach?!"
"And then… ya did a loud breath and… lied down! Like that!"
Hun was getting really worried…
"I tried to woke you up… but ya didn't move an inch! I started cryin', because I knew it was allers easy wakin' you up…"
Hun didn't know what to say… he was feeling a huge pain into the stomach, right now.
"Then dad got me… and he was shoutin' We have to go, Fara! We can't save Hun now! So we ran away from you… and everythin' become so dark… like a monster was chasin' us! It was laughin' a lot too… … and that's all I can remember."
"Y-yikes, Fara! That wasn't a good dream at all…" Hun said.
"… this isn't one neither…"
Hun got surprised by that phrase.
"… Hun… please tell me, it was one of your bad jokes… a really bad joke…"
Hun sighs loudly… then looks back to Fara.
"… I'm sorry Fara… that was the truth."
Suddenly Fara screamed jumping back.
"N-NOOOOO!" Fara starts to cry.
"Wait Fara, wait! E-everything is going to be all right, ok?! Sssh, sssh…"
Fara didn't say anything… she was crying a lot.
"B-but… i-in a month, you… y-you…"
"No, it'll not happen! Trust me on this, please! I didn't come here as my last wish."
"… t-that's why d-dad was so sad each day…"
"Huh?!"
"S-since ya left home… m-mom and dad never smiled… not even once! T-they cried a lot, though… a-and they never said anythin' t-to me! Only lies… but why doin' that…? W-we knew at the end the real reason… all the farm knew it."
Hun lowers his head, powerless…
"… and that's why I ran away from home."
"YOU DID WHAT?!" Hun shouts.
"I-I couldn't live another d-day with ya gone, big bro! I wanted to fetch you back…"
"Oh no…! I have to write them a letter, now!"
Hun quickly gets a piece of paper and a pen: he starts writing very fast, doing many grammar errors in the process…
"I finished my analyze…" Mirii said, while looking at her smartphone. "It appears that this disease is rare. It acts similar to a bomb, just like Hunley told us. A bomb that apparently comes out of nowhere, meaning that a certain cause is not yet found… pretty much random, I'd say."
Everyone didn't comment on it…
"The bomb in question is actually just Hunley's body fighting itself, in a medical way of speaking. It creates a small bubble, which may seem harmless at first… but with each passing day, it'll grow more and more causing some… consequences."
Hun looks at Mirii, while she was talking.
"Despite the fact, he has a lot of time… a medical operation is required as fast as possible. In other words, the faster the disease is cured, the better for him. However… the same operation is labeled as special, which means specific medics and tools are required."
Mirii didn't talk for a while, since she was searching for something.
"In this case, the disease is cured thanks to an unique machine. And with unique, I mean that there's only one of its kind."
"W-whoa, Mirii… they weren't able to reproduce it?!" Bars asked.
"… it seems that this machine is a very complicated one. No one figured out, how this machine was made in the first place… actually, no one knows its creator either. The only things known are its functions and its motive: no one shall fall victim of those diseases ever again."
"Dude, I don't understand… why can't we go to the hospital and ask this operation? They aren't that cold-hearted to not let Hunter use it…"
"Bars, as Hunley stated before, this operation is very expansive. According to Squidpedia, it was found that the machine can sustain only one successful operation: after that, it needs a tempestive and complicated repair. In order to achieve this, the hospital has to pay 1/3 of all its net assets."
"Uuuuh… is that a lot, Mirii?"
"Pretty much. For this operation, they ask… 10.000.000 coins."
A very heavy silence fell in the room. Hun didn't continue writing the letter, after hearing that…
"… eeeeeh eh eh eh eh eh…"
Suddenly… Grina was laughing, increasing each time her voice volume.
"… I've to go now…" Grina said while getting up from the chair.
"G-Grina?!" Bars got up too, standing in front of her. "What are you"
Grina gave Bars a big push to her left, making him silent and scared. Mirii quickly jumped in front of Grina, standing in front of the door.
"… let me pass, Mirii…"
"Stop this, Grina! Calm down!"
"… let me pass, Mirii…"
"First, tell me your plans!"
"… none of your business…"
"They are! Come on, tell me!"
"…nothing special, Mirii... just visiting the bank…"
"… WAIT, ARE YOU CRAZY?!"
"No, I'm not… I mean, they sure have a lot of money… they'll not mind if I take some…"
"YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS! DO YOU WANT TO GET YOURSELF ARRESTED?!"
"… Mirii, can you hear this…?"
"Hear what?"
"Tick, tock, tick, tock…"
"You mean… the bomb?"
"Exactly. It doesn't like to wait… it needs money now… lots of money..."
Mirii was sweating a bit.
"G-Grina, be reasonable! There are other ways to get money!"
"Gee, let me guess… a job?"
Mirii nods.
"… a job that can pay THAT OUTRAGEOUS PRICE?!"
"T-there might be another way… I-I know it!"
"Mirii… remember the bomb: it's still tickling…"
"W-we could talk about it, with a doctor or something. T-they might be willing to close an eye on us!"
"… please, don't give me awesome ideas…"
"W-what ideas?"
"Like, how can I convince them do this simple operation to Hunry?"
"N-no, wait! G-Grina, don't forget that we have one month! Let's not be too hasty about this!"
"Oh no… we need to be lazy and slow about it. I mean, who cares about Hunry… right?"
Mirii got shocked about that phrase… but soon that shock becomes quickly an explosive sense of anger: her fist were trembling from it.
"YOU…! YOU BETTER STOP ACTING LIKE A STUPID CHILD, RIGHT IN THIS ISTANT!"
Grina got all the sudden a little scared.
"Wh-whoa, there! Chill out Mi-"
Mirii stomped the floor with her right foot with unexpected force, scaring Grina even more.
"LISTEN NOW, GRINA! ANOTHER IDIOTIC WORD FROM YOU AND I'LL REALLY SEND YOU TO THE JAIL!"
Grina felt a bit smaller, suddenly…
"W-wait a sec, Mirii… i-if you c-could calm down now..."
"ME, CALMING DOWN?! AFTER ALL THOSE MORONIC THINGS YOU SAID?!"
Mirii stomped the floor another time, making Grina feel even smaller.
"S-stop that, please! Y-you're scaring me!"
"THEN SIT ON THAT CHAIR AND ACT LIKE A NORMAL INKLING! UNDERSTAND?!" Mirii shouts.
Grina felt even smaller once again and starts running, toward the chair she was sitting on before. Mirii was taking big breathes after all that shouting, giving her a chance to look around: Bars was hiding under Hun's bed. Fara was holding a scared Hun, without any visible struggle.
"… ahem, I think we can discuss this in a more peaceful way now…" Mirii said.
"Then!" Grina starts talking, not feeling smaller anymore. "Maybe we can consider this tubular plan I"
A cold and menacing look from Mirii, made Grina feel smaller again making her lose any courage she got.
"Eep! S-sorry! I-I'm sorry!"
"Sigh… I can already tell it was illegal Turf Wars: probably the last thing you'd resort at this point."
Grina nods, while doing a little laugh.
"We can't afford such risk: Inkopolis is well watched all around, so the police would quickly notice anything against the law."
"Boss… do you have a plan, then? Something that give us the amount of money required in a jiffy?" Grina asked.
"… you called me Boss?" Mirii asked.
"Yikes! S-sorry! I-I didn't want to offend you o-or anything!"
"Well, it wasn't really inappropriate… but I thought you were our leader."
"W-what?! Nonsense! How can a Giant Squid being ruled by a very small, insignificant one?! Y-you command the ship, now!"
"… I refuse the offer."
"N-no! Y-you deserve"
"However, what I really want from you… is to behave like a normal being: no more of those pathetic games coming out all the sudden. Understand?"
Grina gulped, nodding quickly.
"All right. Although, it wouldn't be too bad if I get to command this ship… maybe things could have been done"
Suddenly, Mirii realized something.
"Wait a minute… but of course! I got it!" Mirii said while clapping her hands once.
"W-what's it Mirii?" Bars said while coming out from under the bed.
"Bars! Do you remember our last investigation…? Specifically, the one from Urchin Underpass?"
"Uuuh, yeah? We found those agents there…"
"Not only that! We also found something very important about those gruesome beings!"
"Really? I don't remember that…"
"… why I'm not surprised? I'm going to tell you that right now: they were searching for something."
"Oooh… OH! B-but of course!"
"Wait wait wait! What were they searching?!" Grina asked.
"Don't you remember, Grina? Their leader seems to be also a pirate. Also, in the scene of the crime we discovered a map device… now, can you see where I'm going with this?"
"… y-you don't mean…"
"Yes: they are searching for a treasure!" Mirii pointed to her.
"WWHHAAAAATTT?!" Grina jumped out of her chair.
"That would explain why they were in that arena, in the first place…"
"STOP RIGHT THERE!" Grina shouts, getting all the attention. "That's stupid, Mirii! No way there's anything valuable there!"
"H-huh?! D-do you have any proof of that?!" Mirii asked.
"… that arena was made recently, remember? After one year, to be exact. If THIS is true… then, how can a treasure can exist there?" Grina asked seriously.
"ACK! Y-you're right!" Mirii got shocked from that reply. "That arena is built on an elevate surface… no one was that ridiculous to hide stuff in it, like a pirate would! … but… yes! There's another possibility!"
"W-what's it?"
"And what if those creatures were there to drill the ground all the way, until they would reach the normal grounds?!"
"… oh… t-that's a good point."
"There's a treasure in this city! We got to find it before"
"STOP RIGHT THERE!" Grina shouts again. "Very well, Mirii… could you tell us what treasure are you talking about, again?"
"… uh… a… valuable one…?" Mirii replied, while giggling a bit.
"More like a fictional one, Mirii!"
Now it's Mirii feeling a bit smaller…
"We can't lose time searching something that will not exist! Mirii, we only have one month before the"
"I REMEMBER NOW!"
Everyone looks at the only Inkling shouting that: Hun!
"I finally remember! Yes! I… I know what they were looking after!" Hun said standing still on the floor.
No one said anything: they were waiting Hun do all the talking.
"When they got me and running away, that big monster was really upset about not finding a treasure in there!"
"No… i-it's not true…" Grina said in shock. "IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!"
"I remember asking him W-what's a treasure? What do you want to do with it? … and that's why they throw me out."
A loud wind was heard in the room…
"… really? You got away… just because of your ignorance…?" Mirii asked while sweating a lot.
"WAY TO GO, BUD!" Fara shouts, while hugging Hun.
"Oh?!"
"Ya see?! I told you that there wasn't anythin' wrong, not knowin' heap things!" Fara explained.
"Ehm… when the little sister knows more than the older brother, it doesn't really sound right." Hun said, while grinning embarrassed.
"But ya don't need acknowledge to be my big bro! All you need is to be yourself…"
Hun didn't reply that… but he smiled sincerely.
"Har har har!"
Hun got scared by that laugh.
"Aaaar, buckos! It looks like we have a treasure to dig up!" Grina said in a pirate fashion.
"Uuuh, Grina…?" Bars asked, but he got ignored.
"'tis be a huge change in th' plans! Inkinators gunna change into a scurvy pirate crew 'n only interested in lovely booty!" Grina said proudly.
"You can talk like a pirate?!" Bars asked, getting attention this time.
"Yarr! I happen to like them a lot, since I was a wee Squid!" Grina explained. "But now, let's create our freshly new crew! I gunna be th' cap'n! Ye, Bars... gunna be th' bumblin' cabin laddie! Mirii be goin' to be th' Charger Quartermaster! Wee Fara be our adorable musician!"
"Oh goody! I actually happen to play the banjo quite often!" Fara said enthusiastic.
"... that'll do! Last but not th' least, our bucko Hunry... be goin' to be our faithful pet!" Grina explained.
"A pet?! B-but I'm an Inkling…!" Hun complained.
"Nonsense! Ye're too cute as a Squid! Ye need to be our mascot!" Grina said, with a big smile.
Hun and Mirii blushed a bit.
"So, be honest wit' me: didn't I have th' best idea ever? Isn't 'tis amazin'?!" Grina laughs, while dreaming her pirate crew.
"Actually… I do have an objection…" Mirii said.
Grina looks at Mirii: she wasn't sure happy about all this.
"… I hate pirates."
"W-what-a?!" Grina shouts, after doing a jumpscare.
"Now… WHO'S LOSING TIME WITH NON EXISTENTIAL MATTERS?!" Mirii was snorting from her nose.
Grina felt smaller and runs behind Bars.
"An useless, worthless, insignificant and tiny little squid…?"
"I've enough of this. Let's get out of here and search any information regarding the treasure." Mirii ordered.
"Aye aye, Cap'n!" Grina said with a salute and a wink. "Let's get to work, crew!"
"Grina, stop treating me as your leader…" Mirii said, but she was easily ignored.
"Yeah! I can't wait to please mistress Mirii!" Bars said, excited.
"BARS…!" Mirii was losing her patience again.
"Yep! Gotta serve the hog at the Trough!" Fara salutes too.
"I-I finish the letter in time, too! I'm ready to follow orders, my lo"
Hun clothes his mouth roughly with both his hands, blushing violently. Mirii blushes in the same way as he does.
"… I-I mean… l-leader! Y-yes, f-follow leaders, my order! NO! I-I mean leader f-follows, my order! ACK! I-I mean"
"Ya mean follow orders, my leader?" Fara said while giggling a lot.
"Yeah! That! I wanted to say this! N-not you know… eeehhmmm… well… a-anything about s-squids dancing t-together…" Hun said while sweating a lot and twiddle his fingers.
Ink come out from Mirii's nose and she barely made in time to cover it with her hand.
"… l-let's g-go a-already…" Mirii said in a very low voice…