Chapter 12: Finding Truths
I watched as Soral easily lifted and dropped the unconscious octoling onto a chair before starting to tie her down. Being careful to tie it tight but not too much so that she would lose circulation in her hands.
Even as she did so I could sense her overall irritation, whether it was directed at me or the Octoling I wasn't sure though.
Once she was done she wiped her hands with a look of satisfaction before turning to me, "How's your chest?"
"Better," the fact we lack bones allowed my body to heal at a far more rapid pace than most other creatures, making the once flaming inferno I felt in my chest become a mild burning sensation as my body reknitted my cartilage back together.
"Good...you're lucky she didn't puncture anything."
"Yeah...I guess so..." I didn't guess so, I knew she could have. The only reason she hadn't was because she had been toying with me. Wanting to have some fun torturing me before she had to do who knows what to me. For all I knew her mission was to kill me like I had killed so many of her kind.
I dropped my gaze as I noticed Soral walking over to sit next to me, "I'm kinda surprised she didn't..." I finally admitted out loud.
"Kinda hard to get information out of a corpse Marin..."
Immediately I looked up at her in disbelief. Briefly I wasn't sure if I heard her correctly.
"What? My dad is ex military..." she seemed to get slightly sheepish as she said it. The first time I had ever seen her like it which only seemed to make me feel even more nervous around her.
"Really?"
"Yes and you don't need to sound so innocent when it comes to having secrets 'Mr. I'm gonna become a secret agent and save the Great Zapfish'," she snapped sharply, causing me to wince.
"Wait...how did you...?"
"I guessed based on the clues I had; suddenly getting better at turf wars, the fact your captain has been ranting and the fact Noi was getting worried about your constant disappearing acts, and half the time you smell like-"
"Noi talks to you?"
She stopped, confused at the sudden comment for a second, "what?"
"Noi...you talk to her?"
"Yeah."
"I thought you two don't get along."
"Who says?"
"Uhh..." it finally dawned on me I wasn't sure Noi had ever said they didn't speak to each other anymore, all she had said was they used to be part of a team but weren't now. Which only seemed to raise more questions instead of answering the ones I had.
"Besides she's my cousin," she added, dragging me out of my thoughts only for me to freeze in shock once what she had said had sunk in.
"Wait...what?!"
"You heard me hotshot," she smirked at little, most likely at my stunned expression.
"S-she never told me that."
"That's because we agreed to not tell you...the first truce we've had in a while..." she sighed, gaining a depressed look.
I stared at her dumbfounded, "w-why?!"
"I think she was concerned you would run or butt heads with me as soon as you found out and she didn't want my reputation to influence your opinion on her because let's be honest...I'm a big jerk," she gave me a wry smile.
I didn't know whether to smile or wince more as I look up at her, "you...are the reason she knows about the color blindness in one of your teammates..."
"Actually...it's me that's colorblind..."
"You're colorblind?"
"Yeah...it runs in my family."
"O-oh..."
Before she can elaborate a soft groan causes us both to jump a little before turning towards the Octoling as she started to stir.
"Guess she's starting come to after the whack I gave her..." slowly she got up, "if you want her to tell you anything you gotta make her think you won't take no for an answer...which you've done a fantastic job so far," sarcasm seemed to ooze from her words as she said it with a deadpanned expression.
"Thanks for the bode of confidence..." I muttered behind me as I get up and walk over to the waking Octoling.
She groaned again as she lifted up her head only to growl as she saw my face showing sharp teeth that looked ready to bite my head off, "You!"
"Of course it's me..." I shrugged as the masked girl struggled with her bonds, "and don't bother...my friend made them pretty tight."
"You are so dead when I get out of these Agent thr-ack!" She yelled as her struggles caused her chair to fall backwards, causing her to look like a turtle stuck on its shell and unable to right itself.
I covered my face with my hands as a snort tried to escape past them.
She hissed, "it's not funny Inkling!"
"I-it kinda is..." I barely got out before trying to fight back more laughter.
"No...it's not...you ten-limbed...thief!" She shouted between each attempt to right the chair.
"Okay that's enough Octoling..." getting up Soral fixed the chair for her as she sat there fuming.
"Hmph...well...at least your females are chivalrous..." she told me.
Rolling my eyes I shook my head, "We need information octoling..."
"Go walk into a lake Agent 3," she said in the sweetest voice she could muster though I was pretty sure she was glaring at me through her mask.
"I'm serious."
"So am I."
"You can't be hate us that much."
"Wanna bet fish breath?"
"My breath doesn't stink."
"You're right...it's your whole body that smells like rotting fish."
I made a move to punch the table next to me only to stop myself halfway and lay it flat on the table, "This is useless...she won't talk."
"Then what do we do?" Soral asked as a smug look crossed the Octoling's face as she watched us.
"I...don't know..." pacing the room I tried to think of something.
"We can just sit here and twiddle our thumbs nor can we probably convince her to talk."
A thought suddenly came to mind, causing me to pause, "well...we could take her to the police? I'm sure they could do something..."
"Hm, that's true..." she slowly nodded as the Octoling's ears pricked forward.
"Probably should do that ASAP then...we have better things to do then interrogating stupid Octoling girls."
"Wait...what?" the smug smile went away only to be replaced by clear fury.
A small smile crossed my face, "you heard me Octoling..."
"I'm not stupid, stupid!" She hissed again like an angry cat.
"Then prove it. Tell us what your leader is planning."
"Ha, like kelp I would!" she shouted in my ears which caused me to wince a little, "nice try but a princess would never fall for such an obvious trick."
"A princess?" raising an eyebrow I couldn't help but stare at her skeptically, "now who's telling lies now?"
"I'm telling the truth Inkling..." she said, more than likely rolling her eyes as she did, "not that you care..."
"Oh I care...I care about you being a liar."
"Am not!"
"Nothing you can say will make me believe that."
"Oh yeah? How about the fact I know where that stupid old inkling got taken off?"
"Oh really...where?"
"The place can only be found by passing one of the rooms for one of the octoweapons you haven't destroyed yet. Which is by far one of the most terrible weapons our people has created and thousands have fallen into its jaws!" She took a pause to catch her breath, "How's that for information?" She gained a proud look.
"Actually...that's perfect, princess..." I told her snidely with a grin as Soral snorted when a look of horror started to cross the girl's face.
"Wait, no! I wasn't supposed to tell you that!" She renewed her struggles to escape, "Stupid inkling...you tricked me!"
"Yeah...I know..." tossing a headset at Soral I headed for the door.
"Wait...where are you going?!" The two girls asked.
"To find Cuttlefish."
"You truly are nuts..." the octoling muttered.
"Is that safe?"
"Probably not but I gotta find him."
"You're gonna die Inkling."
"Tell it to someone who cares!" I shouted back before heading for the kettles.
It wasn't long before I heard a crackle from my headset as I arrived in the valley, "So uh...what's the plan uhh...Agent 3?"
"Take out the octoweapon and get the captain back."
"Uh right...plain and simple...but how do we defeat it...?"
Biting my lip I didn't answer.
"Marlin...please an-"
"I'll figure it out along the way!" I shouted before diving down into the kettle I had noticed some time ago but ignored it, until now.
It wasn't until I was dropping down into the dark pipework that it dawned on me it shouldn't have been open yet, especially if it was a boss kettle.
Coming out and landing in a large platform I shook my head as my headset flared to life again and a freaked out Coral started screaming into my ear, "Marlin get out! I think the Octoling sent you to a tra-" just has quickly as the feed had come on it was instantly cut off, seconds an intercom came to life.
"Well, well...at least someone did something right in this pathetic excuse of an army..." the male voice droned on.
"Where's Cuttlefish!?" I shouted into the air only for it to bounce around against the metal walls before eventually dying away into the silence.
"Someone is being overdramatic..."
"Tell me!"
"Oh don't worry...my master is taking good care of your captain. You on the other hand won't be so lucky..."
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Seconds after the words had left my lips a hatch above opened before something huge crashed down into the purple sewage surrounding the arena. It had only been visible for a few seconds but from what I had been able to see it was huge and largely metallic.
"You'll see soon enough Inkling..." a oddly loud gurgle came from behind me as I turned to look over the edge and saw bubbles coming from the sewage, "Besides...it's dinner time for a good old friend of mine...enjoy being digested Inkling. Octomaw! Consume him!" The voice shouted before with a brief crackle there was silence.
"Now who's calling who overdramat-"
The bubbles ceased only seconds later as the large object emerged with a large spray of cascading purple rain. Forcing me to have to jump to the side as the object flew overhead and landed on the arena with a loud thunk.
Wincing from the sting from the spray I looked up at my latest opponent, "what the...?"
I blinked back tears as it screamed into my face with a mechanical shriek. Once it had stopped I was able to finally look at it, "a...fish...?"
The robotic fish glared at me with glowing beady eyes before with a gnashing of it's metallic teeth it started to charge me.
"Wait, how do I deal with this thing?!" Getting up I dodged to the side with a side roll just as a barreled through where I had been only a second before, "Captain what is its-" I froze for a second as the situation suddenly sunk in "o-oh ship..."
A circle of sharp, several feet high metal-like objects suddenly surrounded me as I stared up at them in horror, only to realize seconds later they were teeth. The sight caused me to whimper as they started to tremble violently.
"Captain! Help me!" I screamed out in terror before the teeth snapped shut around me. Enclosing me in both darkness and intense pain as seconds later I felt myself begin to pass out. Last thing I heard before succumbing to it being the sound of someone screaming and the faint sound of something charging up to fire.