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A small group of Inklings were marching on the left sidewalk, some of them were holding a sign: the Turf War Tower was drawn in the middle, with words on the high and low edge saying "OPEN THE STATION!". Almost all their faces were frowning. An Inkling boy holding a megaphone on his right hand moved the item near his mouth.
Open the station! Open the station!
"Open the station! Open the station!" Everyone repeated loudly.
Remove the barrier! Remove the barrier!
"Remove the barrier! Remove the barrier!" Everyone repeated loudly once again.
Turning her head to her left, Mirii's eyebrows lowered a bit while her mouth downturned slightly.
"… hmpf." Her head rose. "Those Inklings shall be the first to learn the dark secrets of the Turf War Station… their little manifestation would immediately cease." Her eyes closed. "Although, if I don't do something about Project Neo in the meantime… they will probably think another way to gain access inside the station."
The Inkinators were walking on the sidewalk: Mirii, Bars and Grina were holding their respective cases which were rolling along on their small wheels. Hun was carrying his bag on his back.
"It's too bad that the station is still closed…" Grina's mouth downturned, as her face pointed at the crowd of Inklings. "Turf War matches are still fun to play, after all… every match can really give you some nice adrenaline to go through."
"You know the situation, Grina…" Mirii's head turned forward, her eyes blinked. "Let's hope those manifestations are still those peaceful… dealing with a more violent one, considering an unexpected arrival of those Stingrays, would mean a disaster for the city."
"Let's walk rapidly, then!" Hun bends forward, while frowning a bit. "So we can start working against the project!"
"There is no need to hurry, Hunley…" Mirii's head turned to her right, as she smiles. "Acting fast might get some unwanted attention from the other Agents…" Her eyes closed. "Besides, we still have plenty of time to utilize in our favor."
"Yeah!" Grina shrugged. "Don't you want to enjoy the nice breath of fresh air going on around you?" She inhales loudly. "Aaaah! It really sends me some fresh energy to use!"
"Like, we are getting close to the castle there…" Bars' head tilted slightly to his right, facing a building. "It's kind of useless rushin' and bashin': walking just does fine."
Hun's mouth sealed: his head turned to his left.
"Mirii… sigh, I can't really stop fearing those people might try attacking the city while affected by rage…" He swallows silently. "It really makes me want to start up already."
"I can't hide that fact, since it's true…" Mirii's head rose. "However, if those fears receive even more attention, they will keep tormenting your mind…" She frowns a bit. "So, please stop thinking about it: we are about to deal with said problem…" Her eyes squeezed a bit. "And I promise to make sure the project goes extinct… and no more innocents will suffer from it."
Hun smiles a bit. Mirii smiles too, while raising her eyebrows and eyelids: she turns forward.
"For now, though…" Mirii snorted lowly. "I'm forced to repair a tool… the operations will have to wait for a while: I can't take the risk of ignoring my duty and be faced with a punishment who will completely halt our progress…"
"I want to come with you, Mirii!" Hun nodded, with his eyebrows down. "I'll make sure everything will go nicely!"
Mirii giggles, as she nodded and smiled.
"Thank you for the support, Hunley…" She blushes a bit. "It'll surely come in handy."
Mirii's left hand grabbed her plastic card, tilting her head towards a large door. She walks past Grina, swiping her card through a horizontal, line hole.
Click.
Mirii walks in front of the door, stopping in the middle: turning behind, she faces Grina swiping her card, Hun standing on her right and Bars standing behind her.
Tic.
Tic.
Tic.
Mirii's left hand was resting on the door's left side, after nodding at the three Inklings. Her hands pushed the door, as she starts walking through…
"Mirii Kelpshell?" An Inkling man wearing sunglasses had his arms folded, staring at the girl.
Mirii's mouth opened a bit, as her irises tilted down and up: the man was wearing a complete black suit. Her face got a little paler.
"… yes?" She swallows silently.
"Please, follow me." He nodded. "Bring your case with you as"
"Hey, what's going on?!" Hun frowned, as he jumped on Mirii's left side. "Who are you?!"
"… Hun Squidson?" His head rose a bit.
"Y-yes?!" Sweat formed on his forehead.
"You and your friends are called by chief Tonna: don't make her wait, otherwise she'll not hesitate taking points away from your rank." His head turned towards Mirii. "As I was saying"
"What do you want from Mirii?!" Hun frowned a bit more.
"Hunley, please…" Mirii turned her head towards him, as her eyebrows rose and her mouth downturned. "Don't worry… everything will be fine." She nodded. "Trust me, as you always did."
Hun turned over Mirii, raising his eyebrows.
"Mirii…"
"I suggest you to listen your friends' words: she will surely return before lunch." The man nodded. "You three go meet the chief and listen well: Mirii will need to know what the chief's request is… don't make Tonna repeat the orders twice! Do you understand that?"
Hun stared at the man, while frowning.
"… before lunch, huh…" He slowly nods, as he starts walking past the two.
His shoulders turned to his right, facing Mirii while his eyebrows rose and his mouth downturned: the girl smiled, blushing a bit. Bars and Grina passed the two Inklings as well, both waving their left hands towards Mirii: her left hand waved a bit over her friends.
"Mirii Kelpshell, please follow me…" The man bowed for one second, before turning behind and walking forward.
The girl's head rose, as her face frowned slightly.
"I can't say to not focus deeply in the situation…" She starts walking too, behind the man. "I was kind of expecting this moment… unfortunately." Her head lowered. "I knew my battle for defeating Project Neo wasn't going to be easy… nevertheless, I'm ready."
Her eyebrows lowered a lot.
"I'm perfectly prepared for this event… and I intend to give everything I have in my arsenal, so I can keep my perfect position I achieved some days ago."
Mirii kept walking towards a wooden door, next to the metallic one on the left: the three Inklings were near the door, tilting forward with their faces pointed to their left and watching the wooden door closing normally.
The room had a wooden desk on the middle, a plant growing from a stripped white and blue vase and a light wooden cabinet with each side having a squared glass: it was sitting on the top-left corner, as files were almost completely covered by the glass.
A large, dark blue office chair was pointing towards the wall, as paper noises were coming from it. The Inkling man leaned his back on the door, with his hands behind his back.
"Mirii Kelpshell… please, put your case to the left wall and take your seat." A female voice was coming from the seat.
The chair span in front of the girl: an Inkling woman was shuffling and mixing card with a blue cover. Her eyebrows were down, her smile was large: she was wearing a black outfit complete with a jacket and a medium-sized skirt. She was wearing round, orange glasses as her irises were colored magenta and her tentacles green.
Mirii's head rose, as she walks towards the left wall, leaving her case against it: she turns to her right and walks, stopping in front of a white, square armchair which both the backrest and seat cushion colored black. The woman leaned a bit forward, keeping shuffling and mixing the cards.
"… am I supposed to play a card game?" Mirii's face frowned a bit. "If that's the case… I'm out: certainly I have more important matters to attend"
"Needless to say… I was waiting for you." The woman's eyelids lowered to the middle. "Finally, all those voices going on around you might finally be solved, once and for all…"
"Who are you?" Mirii's arms folded. "And why are you shuffling cards in front of me?"
"You can call me Sena." The woman nodded. "And I'm going to interrogate you…"
"I knew it!" A sweat slides down from Mirii's right side of her head. "The Headquarters couldn't just watch my progress… they are trying to get in my way." She sighed silently. "I must make her believe I have nothing to hide… so I can keep on investigating about Project Neo rather easily!"
Mirii's eyes rested on the cards being shuffled rapidly by the woman's hands.
"… Sena, you still didn't answer the reason why you are shuffling cards…" Her eyes squeezed.
Sena's hands stopped, holding her cards gently.
"That's because… I need them for the interrogation." Her eyes closed. "Yes, this is exactly what you are thinking…" Her eyes opened. "We are going to play a known game… while I'm interrogating you." She nodded. "It's a known procedure in the Headquarters… a strategy which I always followed loyally."
Her left hand starts throwing cards facing down, between her and Mirii. The girl's mouth opened a bit.
"… is this a joke?!" Mirii frowned a lot, as she stands up while her hands were pressing on the desk. "An interrogation leaded like this would be useless, since not only the focus on my testimony would be easily ignored… but playing a card game right now has no use in any way, shape or form for such matter!"
"Mirii, please… sit down." Sena put a pile of cards on the center of the desk, then she picks up her 7 cards. "After the interrogation is done, I promise to talk about this whole process in greater detail… there is no time to waste, now."
Her eyes rested on her cards.
"Besides, I'm feeling this match wouldn't be that long anyway... although, in the end, it really depends on how much you have to say." Her right hand picked the second card from her left, putting it above her third one from her right.
Mirii's mouth flattened: slowly, she sits down as her hands picked up the cards sitting in front of her. Her hands tilted the cards: each card had a different drawing on it. In order, from the leftmost card: a Green Squid, an Orange Squid, a Splat Charger, a Splattershot, another Splattershot, a Blue Squid and a Splat Roller.
Mirii's irises shrunk.
"Is this… Go Squid?!" Her jaw dropped.
"Yes… what's the matter?" Sena leaned with her back on the backrest. "You don't know how to play Go Squid…?"
"Wh-why?!" Her face frowned a lot. "I-I can't play this game! It-it's supposed to be for little kids!"
"Aaawww, it's not that childish…" Sena's head was shaking. "I'm playing the game too, considering my 35 years I'm carrying on my back. You start first… but from here on out, before telling me which card you want, you must answer the questions I'm asking."
She chuckles a bit.
"Quite simple, isn't it…?"
"Hmpf, this still sounds ridiculous… making all those unnecessary steps for this unknown goal you still refuse to reveal…" Mirii cleared her voice, as her right hand picked up the third card from her right, putting it above the Splattershot one. "Alright, I'm ready."
"Good! Good…" Sena nodded. "Now, can you talk me about the mission you happened to accept three days ago…?"
"Yes…" Mirii's irises were watching her cards left and right. "Me and my friends were tasked of finding a certain Squid King, which identity is still a mystery to us… in fact, before we could move on with the mission, I happened to faint down… at least accordingly to my friends' testimony. Do you have any Splat Chargers?" Her irises looked up.
"Go Squid." Sena nodded.
Mirii snorted, as her right arm stretched and her right hand grabbed a card. Her eyes quickly tracked down an Inkbrush drawn on it, as her right hand immediately puts said card on the Splat Roller card's left side. The woman lowered her posture a bit, as her eyelids lowered to the middle.
"Let's see… and you don't know or remember the reason why you fainted…? Also, do you have any Green Squids?"
Mirii's right hand picked up the card which was showing a Green Squid looking up, moving the card towards the woman as her right hand picked it up, putting the card above the third card from the left. Mirii's eyes squeezed.
"Wait… wasn't I supposed to answer your question while it's my turn?"
"Yes… in fact, while I'm calling more cards, you can think the answer to say in regard of my previous question." Sena nodded. "Do you have any Splat Bombs?"
"Go Squid." Mirii's eyes closed.
Sena bended forward, as her right hand picked a card and puts it in the middle.
"I remember inspecting the smartphone…" Mirii's right leg went above her left one. "… following the clue said by a young boy which name I cannot remember…"
"Uh-huh…" Sena's right fingers were resting on her head's right side, while she was smiling.
"That's when I pronounced a phrase mentioned by the boy… and that's also the moment when I really don't remember anything else." Mirii's head shakes slowly. "Do you have any Inkbrushes?"
Sena's right hand picked a card from the middle of the ones on her left hand, stretching her right arm: Mirii's right hand grabbed the card which was showing an Inkbrush, as she quickly puts it above the other one.
"Do you have any… Splat Rollers?" Mirii's head rose.
"Go out." Sena chuckles a bit.
"… already..." Mirii's eyes squeezed. "In all honesty, I find this interrogation session really pointless considering the short amount of time and the poor amount of information I told you…"
"Actually, the interrogation isn't really over… just suspended until you will receive news about it." Sena's left hand puts her cards on her desk, as she pushes her office chair a bit backwards and stands up.
Mirii's left hand puts her cards down, standing up and stretching her right arm as her right hand grabbed Sena's one and making a brief handshake.
"Thank you for the time, Mirii…" Sena's eyes closed, while smiling and tilting her head to her left a bit. "If you want to play Go Squid, you know the opponent to look for!"
Mirii frowned a bit, snorting faintly.
"… goodbye." She turns behind, facing the man.
He walks to his left, still with his hands behind his back. Mirii walked towards her case, grabbing its handle with her right hand, then turning towards the door. Her irises tilted to her left, staring at the man which head was pointing slightly towards the ceiling.
"… no… I can't think this is an approved procedure…" Mirii squeezed her eyes a lot, walking towards the door.
She turned behind, facing Sena.
"Before I go, you promised to reveal the meaning of this childish game in the middle of the interrogation…" Mirii's head rose. "Please, speak: I'm rather curious about this procedure utilized during this phase."
"It's used for valuating if the person said the truth or not…" Sena nodded. "Can't say much more than that, since it's top secret… I hope you understand."
"… tsk, why I was expecting more…?" Mirii's head lowered, as her eyes closed. "Of course I should have seen such answer… you fear a way for breaking through this logical judgments towards any suspect, will be found and used in the shadows."
"So?" Sena's hands clasped together, resting on her desk. "Should I feel ashamed for a mistake I never did?"
Mirii's left hand pushed down the door handle, as her head rose and her eyebrows lowered.
"… goodbye." The girl pulled the door, turning behind and facing the hall.
She walks towards the hall, pulling the case with her.
"I'll gain more information about this… such procedure goes beyond any logical choice." She turns to her right, walking past an opened, metallic door. "My first move shall be visiting Tonna and ask her about this ridiculous interrogation session I held: considering her position against the Headquarters, she'll tell me everything relevant to the case… especially that message she wants to tell us."
Her sportive shoes were stepping on the stairs.
"I have to hear this message… it could be related to something important like Project Neo or even a mission which is related to the safety of this city." Mirii's eyes squeezed. "Hopefully nothing I must do now… I have that tile to repair, which I intend finishing it as soon as possible… so such task will not torment me in the future."
The girl stepped out from the stairs, landing her feet on a red, long carpet stretching sideways.
"Right now, my friends must be inside Tonna's office room… I'll put away my case inside my room, since its presence might be an obstacle for my movements." Her head rose. "As soon as I put my case against a wall, since it doesn't become an unsuspected object to trip on, thus preventing any sort of harms… I'll rush towards Tonna's office: the sooner I know everything needed, the more time I can spare for later uses."
Mirii's irises tilted to her right a bit.
"… speaking of time… if it wasn't for the tile reconstruction task, I would have used the sparring time to watch a movie with Hunley…" She sighed, as her eyebrows went up. "I wanted to share that moment with him… finding something to say to him!" Her head shakes. "Instead I fell asleep because of the tiredness too heavy to bear…"
The girl stops in front of a door: her left hand was holding a card which passed through a vertical hole line.
Click.
"In such time of the day I'm truly awake…" She starts walking. "Thus, I'll never fall asleep"
Tin, tin, tin, tin, tin…
Mirii's ears rose, as her eyes grew a bit and her mouth opened slightly.
"The Spy Alarm?!" Mirii's eyes blinked.
Her face frowned slightly.
"… off."
Silence covered the air. The girl pushed the door back: she bends down and looks directly at her case. Her hands were sliding all over it.
"Good thing I found some time to install that device…" Mirii's head rose. "I knew my attentive inspection wouldn't have been enough to make sure no one would ever try to spy on perfection… besides, if one of my friends was accidentally carrying one of those spying tools, I would immediately know its existence… followed by the immediate removal of such component."
Mirii's left hand kept on rubbing on her case's top left corner.
"Here it is… the camera covered by this cover colored as dark blue as my case." She snorted faintly.
Her left forefinger fell on the top-left side, as her nail kept scratching until both forefinger and thumb were pressing on the cover. Slowly, she pulled it off: a small camera popped out, with the lens looking directly at the girl.
"… I think at this point, it would be useless to guess why using such childish game to conduct your interrogation." Mirii's head rose. "You will not get away with this, Sena… no one dares to trick perfection."
Mirii stands up, as she turns behind and opens the door: she walks out of her room, pulling the door together.