Afternoon, almost evening. Somewhere up into the sky, a suspicious and menacing airship was flying around: occasionally, it drops a big amount of greenish goo which falls on the roads, buildings and small parks.
Inkling war airplanes fly at high speed, with the intention to take down the big dirigible. It wasn't as easy as it might sound: the flying machine possess a big variety of weapons, ranging from Homing Missiles to Explosive Bombs.
Not only its defenses were high, but the airship happens to be pretty agile for its size, avoiding a good amount of Ink projectiles and missiles. To top it off, giant flying stingrays ambush frequently the airplanes, making the situation even harder than before.
Down on the roads, members of the Inkopolis Security Team were fighting humanoid stingrays and small pet-like versions of the same species. The fallen soldiers were brought back to their respective portable panels, where they'd get back to shape in a jiffy.
However, those panels weren't invincible: an enemy ambush successfully destroyed an Inkling panel, being carelessly put in the front lines. The stingrays are proving to be superior, thanks to a massive amount of the area already covered in goo and some occasional help from the flying stingrays, stopping any aggressive pushes.
Meanwhile, a bit far away from the war area, there was an open below-average size hummer driving at high speed on the lonely road. Aboard, not only there were Grina, Mirii and Bars… but also all the members of Temanga! Their respective weapons were also present, in the hummer's trunk.
"Wheeeee!" Zira sticks her head out of the running vehicle, while having tons of fun.
Nobody seems to be worried about her antics and keep talking to each other.
"I have to be honest, Grina: I knew how unpredictable you could be… but I'd never expect this!" Enrick exclaimed.
"Yeah, how did you even get a hummer in the first place?" Ana asked curiously.
"Eh eh, let's just say the wonderful fruits of my impeccable talk skills." Grina explains. "You don't have any idea where you'll get in this world, by just speaking fancy and creative!"
"Whoooaa, can you be my master?! I could be super famous with the girls!" Nick begs Grina.
"I can already tell, you're going to be super hated even after years of practice." Ana said with a disappointed face.
"But of course I could teach you!" Grina replied to Nick. "In no time, you'll talk so good and fresh that even your female childhood friends, will be at your feets!"
Ana blushes a bit.
"Y-you must be kidding, right?!" Ana complained.
"She's not kidding: I do have some… well… ehm, memorial evidence." Enrick said shyly.
"Hey hey, it looks like good ol' Enrick didn't forget that cute day…" Grina winks at him, making the boy blush a bit.
"What she did to you, Enrick?!" Ana asked worried.
"Well, I guess… being just Grina?" Enrick laughs a bit embarrassed.
"Ooooh, Enri: I thought you'd remember that moment, when I took your glasses off…" Grina giggles a bit.
Enrick's nose inked a bit.
"Eh eh eh eh, yeeaaahh…" Enrick smiled blushing a lot.
Ana couldn't believe what she witnessed right now.
"I-I'd never imagine that you"
Suddenly, the hummer took the turn too roughly to the left, getting everyone to their right side: they were rolled a bit, but not one got out of the vehicle.
"Whoo-hoo! That was tight!" Nick cheered, lying down with his belly up.
"Say that with your face on the road, moron!" Ana shouts on him.
Grina got up and took a look at the driver: it was Bars.
"Hello there, crazy taxi! Do you think you're playing Formula Squid with a bunch of dummies as the cargo?" She said, with a sarcastic voice.
"Sorry Grina… but that curve was demanding a slick slide!" Bars replied with proud.
"My hands are demanding an urgent need to slap the idiotic driver…" Mirii menaces, while recomposing herself.
"Yikes! Worse than a salty fine!" Bars gulped.
"Ehm, Grina… does he know how to drive, right?" Enrick asked worried.
"Ha ha, this joker might be as stupid as a palm tree, but he gets his toes on a steering wheel"
"I become Cars: the legendary driver!" Bars did a pose, leaving his hands from the wheel.
"THE HANDS, YOU IMBECILE!" Mirii shouts, getting scared.
Bars quickly grabs the steering wheel and passed a turn safely.
"Oops…!" Bars laughs in deep embarrassment. "No worries! It was all part of the trick…!"
"Ooooh, that was so cool! Can you do it again?! Mmh? Mmh?!" Zira begs Bars, while getting really close to him.
"Whoa there, dudette! Y-you're getting a bit too close, ya know…" Bars replied blushing a bit.
"No wait, even better: can I drive the car?! It seems so fun!" Zira leans on Bars's head, making him more red than before.
"Zira, get back here! He's too busy driving!" Enrick ordered to Zira, which she obeys almost immediately.
"Oh man…" Bars said in a low and disappointed voice.
"It looks like she can't wait to play some serious wars, uh?!" Grina jokes a bit.
"Well, honestly… this is not really the time to have fun." Enrick said seriously.
"Ehm… why not Enrick?" Nick asked clueless.
"Did you already forget those creeps?!" Ana shouts some sense to her friend.
"I can't believe the other day, we were fighting to save Hundrick… and now we're doing that again!"
"No, this time is different: his sister got kidnapped!" Grina explained.
"Huh?! Hunbert has a sister?!" Nick asked surprised.
"Yep! Right from the farms, to assist her older brother! Kind of a long story, but it's better to not mention that in the details…"
"And that's because…?" Enrick asked.
"Trust me on this one: you do not want to know. Or at least, not now. Too many tears were sacrificed today."
The boy follows the advice, but he felt that certainly it was not good news.
"Now that I think about it… how do you know that Hunsel is right in that mess of a battle?" Ana wonders.
"Good question!" Grina took Bars's smartphone from his pocket and touches it around for a while. "Good answer!"
She passed the smartphone to Ana: the screen shows an article about the kidnapped little girl.
"Witnesses also claim that an Orange Squid was chasing after the kidnappers. What's even more interesting, is how an orange ink trail was left behind the follower. No, we're not crazy! A Squid that can leave ink! What more crazy things we'll see today?!" She reads out loud.
"What-a?! Someone can do that?!" Nick got surprised.
"That someone has a name, Nick." Ana replied.
"… oh right, Hunbert!" Nick remembers.
"How did Hundrick and his sister got there, anyway? Weren't they with you?" Enrick asked, getting more curious by the minute.
"Let's just say that Hunry's brotherly sense told him, to have some fun with his little sister, by visiting our big forest." Grina explained.
"Forest…? You mean, our city?"
"Bingo! You did it again, Squidlock!" Grina claps.
"Oooh, the best thing I ever heard! We definitively should do this thing, brother!" Zira said to Enrick.
"We'll see sis- W-W-WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?!" Enrick got in panic.
No one said anything for a while: only the hummer's motor was heard, echoing through the road.
"… y-you two are… SIBLINGS?!" Ana shouts in shock.
"Oopsie…!" Zira giggles a bit embarrassed.
"G-great… with all the moments…" Enrick lowers his head, wishing to disappear.
"Hey… that's AWESOME! We have two siblings in our squad!" Nick said with enthusiasm.
"I know right?! I'm so happy to stay with my adorable brother!" Zira hugs Enrick. "He would boo-hoo every day without me!"
"C-come on, Zira…" Enrick pats her right hand, smiling.
"But why you kept it as a secret? I don't understand!" Ana inquires.
"Weeell… eeehhmmm…" He seems to not have the courage to say it.
"Zira my pal! What it feels to have Enrick as a brother? I hope it doesn't bore you too much, with hours of maths!" Grina jokes a bit.
"Tee hee hee! My lil' bro loves my surprise hugs!" Zira opens her arms wide.
"Lil' bro?! Pfffff, ha ha ha ha ha!" Grina laughs loudly. "Enrick, I didn't thought you act like a child with your sister!"
"I really don't! Because…" Enrick sighs. "… she's older than me."
"She's the oldest?!" Ana shouts incredulous. "B-but that would mean…"
"She's our senpai now?" Nick asked.
"Aside from that! She is actually our TRUE leader!" Ana said, still incredulous.
"Really?! Awesome! That means more candies between the fights!" Nick got excited.
"And more caries for your teeths…" Ana shakes her head. "Enrick if I remember correctly, the Turf War Squad rules say how the leader of a squad must also be the oldest member. So, why are you pretending to be our leader?"
"I didn't choose this: my sister doesn't like to be the leader…" Enrick said.
"That's not true, silly! I wanted to give you some self-esteem…" Zira opens her eyes?!
"EH?! Y-you didn't told me this!"
"If I said that, you'd never get your chance lil' bro…" Zira speaks with a much calmer tone, than usual.
"Uuuuh, Ana? Is it me or Zira seems different?!" Nick gets worried.
"Sssh!" Ana shuts him up.
"My chance? I-I don't understand, sis…" Enrick tilts his head.
"Seeing you in that lonely room… with no friends… no motivations… closed in that mind of yours… ignoring me and all our relatives… it wasn't happy days in the family."
"But that was long ago, sister! I'm way different now! However…" Enrick thinks about something. "… if it wasn't for you and Grina, I don't think I'd get any of this! So…"
Enrick smiles.
"Thank you Zira!"
Zira's eyes were getting a bit wet, but she closed them right away and returns to be her old self.
"Tee hee, it was nothing!" Zira said, while a single tear drops from her right eye.
No one said anything for a while…
"Hey Enrick…" Grina said.
"Yes?"
Grina grabbed Enrick around his neck with her right arm, while with her left fist rubs the top of his head.
"And you don't say anything to the very me?! The one that taught you the deep secrets of that brush you use?!" Grina asks.
"Ooow, o-of course! I -ACK!- I d-didn't forget! T-thank you, -UGH!- G-Grina!"
"Now that's more like it!" Grina leaves him alone. "But the road is still long, soldier! So much to learn, so much to see…"
"Actually, the road is short."
Grina turns back: Mirii was looking at her.
"We're almost there, Grina. I suggest preparing your state of mind, for the incoming battle."
"My mind is ready, your Honor!"
Mirii did an annoyed expression.
"Hey, the prosecution is ready too you know!" Nick said while grinning.
"Nick, this is not a court session!" Ana replied seriously.
"Can I be the judge? Pretty pleeeeaasseee?!" Zira was jumping on the hummer.
"And I could be the detective! Yeah, the smart role!" Bars said.
"Ehm, guys…?" Enrick tried to bring back the situation.
"And you are going to be the Bailiff, lil' bro!" Zira points at her brother.
"The what?! Not even the lawyer assistant?!" Enrick felt a bit bad about this.
"Ana is going to be my lovely assistant!" Nick said with proud.
SLAP!
"IN YOUR DREAMS, PERVERT!" Ana shouts, after giving a big slap to Nick, while blushing.
"Ooooh!" Grina giggles while thinking about something. "Mirii is going to be the defense attorney and Hunry, her Squid client!"
Mirii blushes a bit.
"W-would you stop playing around?! We have creatures to fight!"
"Problem?" Grina does… a familiar expression?
"Grina!" Mirii was getting impatient.
"Come on, long face! Laugh with us for once!" Grina cheers her up.
Mirii turns her back, looking at the road ahead: she didn't take that phrase very well.
"Sheesh… how she even lives like that, every day?" Grina shakes her head in disappointment.
Her friend wasn't in any mood to take things lightly: ever since she heard the news, Mirii becomes even more silent and serious than usual. What thoughts are running on her head, in this very moment?