Splatoon Afterworld

by drz1990

Explained in the intro

12. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

So, everyone it's been a while, but I needed a break and I had to redo this chapter multiple times. I was near ready to put down a hiatus message but no. I'm gonna keep going, elements from Splatoon 3 will blend over into this story but later. I've gotten frustrated and was ready to throw my hands up like I said. I've even thought about doing a side story while working on this one but I'm not sure yet. Gonna stay focused on this for the time being. Again sorry you guys I haven't given up and needed time away from it. Enjoy the chapter.

Inside a dark room, only illuminated by a cluster of screens which were displaying the camera feed of the mysterious facility the two squidbeak agents had entered which were being monitored by a figure having their eyes glued to the monitors, baffled by the sight of the two inklings. After watching the inklings traverse through the hallways and finally into the room where the large metal doors were, the same doors that were opened, revealing four more figures dressed in military gear and carrying weapons with their faces covered by their NV goggles. The figure watched the room but then remembered their mission at the facility and redirected their attention to a computer terminal behind them. They placed what looked like a flash drive into the modem and started moving the mouse around. "I gotta work fast but this encrypted data isn't making things easier for me. Just gotta keep my eye on the security monitors. I'll activate the security system if I have to...surprised it's still operable," they said, continuing to scroll through data in attempts to decode it.

Back in the room where the inklings and salmonid had hidden themselves, an hour had passed since Sam, Flash and Lil' Buddy left the police station back at the octarian shantytown. Ash and Jet, the two other squidbeak agents stayed behind to watch the three octolings in which one of them, the young private informed the squidbeak agents about a signal that was attracting the salmonids, causing them to cross into their territory and attack them without no apparent reason. The unknown signal originated from a mysterious location; a concrete structure that had been covered up with foliage with a large satellite array towering over it.

The two agents along with the little salmonid stepped inside seeing that someone had already breached the building. Following the path of the culprits, the trail vanished in a room. After some snooping, Flash accidently opened the metal entry doors, and the two inklings hid out of sight seeing they weren't alone as a team of individuals in military gear entered into the room and looked around once they had removed their night-vision goggles. They weren't octarian but human. Sam noticed something was very wrong though, the human's complexion was a sickly pale color and their eyes...were black with glowing green irises putting off a ghastly appearance. Once they talked the inklings didn't understand them with their static-like dialect.

Out of sight, the inklings did their best to not draw attention. The creepy-looking humans in tactical gear were packing weapons, rifles very much like the one Seth had carried around. Using their weapon lights mounted on the rifles, they scanned the room. They knew they weren't alone and the pilot from the V-22 parked outside informed the humans about intruders entering the building prior. "Look around...see what you find," commanded one of them in a static-like dialect.

They spread out and looked behind desks and other obstacles. Sam was getting nervous; she wasn't sure where Flash had went off to but lil' buddy was sitting beside her under the desk where the computer terminal was. Then one of the soldier's attention was gotten, he heard a noise, looking around they spotted a tipped over box that was moving. Inside was a green squid that was shaking in fear, causing the box to shake with him. Getting closer and aiming their rifle, the soldier picked the box up and spotted Flash in his squid form. Freaking out and inking himself to get away, Flash was stopped by a boot hindering his path of escape and was then picked up. The soldier lifted up his NV googles and stared at Flash, confused but the inkling on the other hand was deathly frightened by the human.

"Oh, no, Flash!... I gotta do something," she exclaimed, seeing her partner caught by the humans.

The humans gathered around, one poking their rifle on the green squid but before anything would happen to Flash, Sam felt she had no choice but to draw their attention. She popped out of her cover and shouted at the humans. As they looked she shot her ink weapon at them, hitting the soldier holding Flash by his tentacle in the face, causing him to drop the squid. Taking the opportunity to get away while Sam got their attention. The ink that hit the soldier was jeering in pain, cursing and trying to wipe the ink off his face as it had a corrosive effect on him.

The soldiers were startled by how the ink reacted with their teammate and instantly felt Sam was a direct threat. They opened fire on the inkling before she could shoot again and squid formed out of sight. "Stay sharp and watch for that creature!" one of the soldiers ordered. Flash who ran for the exit was hunkered on the other side of the doorway. He peered out and saw that Sam was in trouble. She risked her tentacles to ensure he got away so he gave a deep breath and clutched his hero shot before he retaliated and struck a soldier as their back was turned. The soldiers now turning their attention back at Flash and shot at him as he got behind the doorway again.

Then Sam popped out and covered one soldier with ink, he growled in pain and soon fell to the floor, dropping his weapon and dissolving into a green goo puddle. Stunned by what happened, the soldiers froze in fear before Flash shot and pelted another soldier before he melted like the other. The two remaining soldiers felt they had no choice but to retreat as one of them shouted "Fall back!" as he and the other dashed back to where they first entered the large room. Sam shot the soldier that she hit in the face, striking him in the shoulder as he fled. Pulling out a flashbang to deter the inklings and ensure an clean getaway from the squid-like beings. He threw it, blinding the two inklings. Sam and Flash were covering their eyes, seeing nothing but spots until their sight cleared and saw the two humans were gone.

Sam shook her head and looked back at Flash who was still disoriented from the flashbang. Seeing the humans had vanished, she walked over to one of the goo puddles and examined it.

"Ugh, my eyes... Sam! What were those things!? They didn't look like any octarians," exclaimed Flash, seeing Sam squatting down looking at the puddle the human was reduced to.

"That's because they were humans," she replied, looking up at him.

"Humans!... There's no way those could've been humans. They're extinct...aren't they?"

"What else could they be?"

"I um..." Flash started. "Hold on...how would you know?"

"This...doesn't make any since...Seth didn't react to ink like this" she muttered as she stood up and placed her hand under her chin. Baffled as to why the human dissolved like it did from the ink.

"Seth?... Whose Seth? You're boyfriend or something?"

"What! No!... and mind your own business,"

"You're hiding something aren't you,"

"Just drop it Flash!" She told him before walking away.

"Hey! Get back here! You haven't answered my questions," he shouted as he went after her. The corridor bended and went into another room. Once he did catch up, he confronted her again, but his mouth was cuffed. "Quiet! I hear something up ahead," she told him before letting go of him. Then she saw what looked like a trail of greenish-blue blood, the same color as the goo going further down the corridor and into an opening up ahead. The three of them cautiously walked toward the doorway and saw the hall led into an atrium, above, the inklings spotted more soldiers but as they turned toward the floor below, Sam quickly got behind the doorway.

"Did they see you?" Flash asked.

"I don't think so...I think we can get the drop on them. I'm gonna ink the wall and get up on the balcony while you stay down here and watch my back,"

"Do what!"

"Shush! Before they figure out we're here. How else do you expect us to get past them?"

"(deep sigh) If I get splatted, I'm coming back to haunt you,"

Sam squid formed and swam behind a barrier, waiting for the humans to move, once they did, she hopped over it and headed for the wall on her right. Inking it and swimming up until she made it to the balcony. Out of sight, she waited for her chance while below, Flash anticipated for the humans to react and eventually spot Sam. Not wanting to stay back as Sam wanted him to do, he ran toward the barrier but tripped and caught the attention of the humans on the balcony. "What was that?" said one of them. Looking down they saw Flash, who looked and started to panic.

"Contact! Engage!" the soldier ordered as he and the soldier near him shot at Flash. The inkling scrambled behind the barrier as he got pinned by gunfire. Sam saw Flash was yet again in trouble and she needed to rescue him. "Idiot," she muttered under her breath before she aimed her hero shot and shot the first soldier. The second soldier next to him reacted and shot back at Sam but she dove into the ink trail she made and jumped out once she got close enough to him and splatted him at close range, not expecting the sneaky move from the inkling.

Down on the lower level another soldier popped out from another door and tried shooting Flash, almost getting hit himself. The soldier tried to rush toward Flash as he kept the inkling behind cover with a barrage of bullets. Taking a deep breath and closing his eyes he shot at the direction of the soldier and struck him. The human fell back and dissolved out of sheer luck for the agent. Opening his eye and realizing he had slain the assailant with a deep breath of relief. Flash looked up and saw Sam looking down at him, shaking her head with a fake smile.

As Flash gave a displeased look at Sam he spotted another soldier coming from a doorway above on the right and ran at the female agent. "Sam! Look out behind you!" screamed Flash but it was too late. The soldier grabbed Sam and threw her to the floor. Her hero shot slid away and the soldier, which was the one that she struck in the face that had a hold of Flash from before, bared his teeth and lunged at the inkling with a knife. Intent on killing the her.

"Oh shrimp, oh shrimp," panicked Flash. He aimed his hero shot up at the two. Taking a breath for concentration and aiming it at the head of the human. The knife was down on Sam as she screamed. "Gah! Flash! Don't just stand there! Shot this...SPLAT!" the ink struck the soldier, again eating at his face as Sam quickly got up and kicked the soldier off the balcony as he fell to the door and splattered into green goo, leaving only his gear behind.

Flash saw Sam was ok and inked the wall to his right and swam up it to meet her. "Thanks," she told him.

"Hey, what can I say, I'm a natural," he gloated as he twirled his hero shot.

"A natural inkhead is more like it," she said as she picked her weapon off the floor while Flash just gave a scowl feeling unappreciated.

"You mind telling me what's going on? I mean, you knowing these guys are humans...Why so secretive about it?" he asked her.

"It would be hard for you to understand," she replied, as she turned away from him.

"How hard?"

"Can this just wait... let's focus on the mission,"

"Not until you tell me..." He said as he got in front of her but before he could finish, she squid formed and swam ahead as lil' buddy scurried after her. Stomping his foot and clinching his fist, annoyed of her avoidance of the issue, he swam after her, but she managed to get away from him.

After swimming through a collection of rooms and losing sight of Sam, Flash changed back and lost the squidbeak agent. "Sam!... Sam! Where the shell did she go," he said.

He was standing in the middle of a hallway. There were multiple doorways leading into separate rooms. The corridor was ill-lit, and the flickering lights were putting off a spooky atmosphere. "Sam..." he called out again as he walked up toward what looked like a damaged elevator ahead of him. Inside was a skeleton, sitting against the elevator wall. Startled he jerked back. Then something, a shape moved behind him into another room. "Yipe, S... Sam this isn't funny," he muttered as he was getting more nervous.

He turned around and looked into the room the shape went into. "S...S... Sam... is that you?" he stammered. The room was dark with no lighting, barely seeing the tipped over desk and shelves inside but as he looked a shape rose up, hovering over the floor as two lights appeared, scarring Flash as he yelped, watching the object coreen toward him. He dove to the floor and ducked with his hands over his head. The object crashing into the wall beside him and falling to floor before it shook and hovered again. Flash opened one eye and turned to see that it was Sheldon's drone.

"S... Sheldon?" he said, surprised to see the drone again as he got up.

"Salutations agent Flash. I thought that was you and Sam going inside this building. Speaking of which were is the other agent?" he asked him.

"Sheldon! I nearly inked myself! What's the idea of scaring me like that!"

"My apologizes, I'm having issues with the controls. Those ruffians must've damaged it when they swiped my drone,"

"Ruffians?"

"I assumed they were octarians at first but upon closer examination they couldn't have been. Their language was nothing I've ever heard of and those weapons they were carrying didn't appear to be octo shots. I'm not sure what they are?"

"You must be referring to the humans,"

"Humans!? Don't be absurd agent...humans are extinct. I should know because there's a fossil of one at the Shellendorf Institute that was dug up by my grandpappy,"

"I know that but...Sam said they were human and I kinda believe her in some weird way. How could she know that...humans haven't been around for like, what a thousand years or something,"

"Precisely 2,000, give or take. If they are human, this would be the discovery of the century!"

"Don't get too excited, they haven't been friendly. If anything, they've been trying to splat me and Sam ever since they discovered us. Thankfully our ink is pretty effective on them, but Sam thinks that's strange and mentioned someone by the name of Seth,"

"Hmm, that is peculiar...where is agent Sam?"

"She ditched me. I don't know what her problem is, but I want answers,"

"So do I... she couldn't have gotten far. Oh, and another thing. I managed to bring you two another ink weapon before those humans as you claim them to be got a hold of it. It's somewhere deep in this place. I can't quite remember where,"

"What kind of weapon?"

"I just recently put it together. It was gonna be reserved for the salmon run but I felt this was the best time to have it field tested since you two are having to deal with those salmonids. I call it the whizbang sploosher,"

"A sploosher! You come all this way to bring us a stupid sploosher!"

"Not just any sploosher. I'll explain what it does once we locate it but for now, let's hunt for agent Sam,"

The two of them traversed down the corridor, passing up the skeleton and elevator, eventually catching up with Sam and her little salmonid. She was studying the doorway to another area when Flash came up behind and grabbed Sam, pinning her to the metal doors that were blocking their path. "What's the idea of running off like that and leaving me!?" he told her angrily.

"If you kept up that wouldn't have been a problem," she shot back, trying to break from his hold.

"You're hiding something and this time I'm not letting go until I get some answers," he demanded.

"I don't know what you're talking about,"

"Agent Flash please relinquish agent Sam," Sheldon said as he hovered behind Flash.

"Huh, Sheldon?" said Sam as she leaned her head to see the drone floating behind the inkling boy.

"Oh yeah, we stumbled across each other after you squided off like you did," Flash said as he released Sam.

Sam brushed herself and looked back at the drone. "Agent Flash told me those creatures you two encountered and the ones that took my drone captive are humans...is this true?"

"Yeah," she hesitantly answered.

"Astonishing... but how would you know this?" Sheldon asked curiously.

"Yeah, Sam... how would you?" Flash followed up, looking suspiciously at Sam as he crossed his arms.

She looked at the two nervously and knew she couldn't keep it a secret anymore. "Alright...let's just say humans aren't extinct as everyone believes," she told them which earned her a bewildered look from Flash as he raised his eyebrow. "I met a human before I "joined" the squidbeak. His name's Seth and I guess you can say we became friends. He even tried to help me find Izzy, but Seth isn't like these humans. He's friendly and he doesn't have glowing green eyes and melts from our ink. That's why I thought it was odd...and he's not the only human I've came across...there's more like him at this place he said he woke up from," she explained to them.

"A likely story. You honestly believe this human would help you find my girlfriend. What's the real reason and you said there's more like him,"

"I'm not making this up you inkhead. Why would I?"

"I guess she makes a valid point," Sheldon intervened.

"What! You're not buying into this, are you Sheldon?"

"I guess I have no reason to be but then again they don't appear or sound like octarians. If these are humans, then we can't be sure what we're dealing with. To know that humans exist would bring utter confusion if not panic to everyone back at Inkopolis. I wonder if the octarians know of their existence? I must notify agents 1, 2, and 3 about this,"

"Please Sheldon, I wanna keep Seth a secret...he's nothing like these humans and all he wants to do is find his family," She tried reasoning with him.

"I know he's your friend but also we can't endanger the inklings knowing that a bigger threat than the octarians are around. I'm sorry agent Sam,"

"Me and my big mouth," Sam uttered depressingly to herself.

"I'm with Sheldon on this. Humans and even this Seth dude...we need to warn everyone about this," he said to Sam as he placed his hand on her shoulder, only for her to turn away from him. Crossing her arms and conflicted with herself about revealing Seth. "Let's just find the source of the signal," she told them before refocusing on the metal doors.

The doors weren't fully closed but jammed, leaving a small space between them, enough to get a hand through. On them were logos of some kind. Two waves and the word Kamabo below. A sign was beside the entry that had the shape of a camera and the words: warning high security area. "What's behind these doors anyway?" asked Flash.

"How should I know? Just help me get them open," Sam told him as she grabbed the space between the doors and started pulling. Flash grabbed the other side and then soon they slid the doors over enough to squeeze through, even Sheldon's drone barely got between them. As they got on the other side, they didn't notice the camera mounted on the ceiling was watching them. Someone or something was definitely monitoring the inklings.

What stood out was this area looked intact and preserved compared to the other rooms and corridors the two agents travelled through. The walls and even the floor was comprised of clean stainless-steel panels, clean enough you could see your reflection through them. A wide metal-lined hallway led to a large, secured steel door in front of them. Toward the right though was a large room with multiple workstations and to the left was large room, full of computers. On each side of the secured metal door were two smaller metal doors.

As Sam, Flash, and lil' buddy moved up. The security system was put on alert, siren lights flashed as they reflected off the walls. "What the shell is going on!?" shouted Flash as the alarms blared, causing him and Sam to cover their sensitive ears.

Then the two of them watched a hatch open in the ceiling beside the centered metal door, revealing a gun turret that had aimed its laser at Sam. Panicking the inkling squid formed and dove for the room on the right while Flash dove for the room on the left as the gun turret fired at them. Sheldon's drone panicked and stayed out of sight while Lil' Buddy scampered away.

"Sam! You didn't get turned into sushi did you!"

"If I did I wouldn't be talking, would I!"

"What do we do now!"

"I got an idea, see if you can draw it's attention while I shoot at that inking thing,"

"Why do I have to always be the ink fodder,"

"Just do it!"

Flash picked up his hero shot and started shooting at the turret, garnering its attention before it fired back at him. Taking cover as Sam lined her weapon at the turret before it locked on to her. She covered it as it rotated back to her but instead of laying down a barrage of bullets back at the inkling it hung up and started sparking as the mechanisms inside were jamming from the ink. The turret exploded from malfunction but soon a second turret popped out from the hatch on the other side of the door. It shot at Sam and struck her in the shoulder as she yelled and fell back.

"Sam!" shouted Flash. He jumped out of the room and started firing wildly at the second turret. As it rotated to aim at Flash he ran under it, where it couldn't hit him as he blasted away at the bottom of it. Like the first turret it was immobilized and started to short circuit. Flash dove for the floor to get away from it before it exploded too. He ran up to Sam, as Lil Buddy was beside her.

"Hey, you alright?" he asked as helped her up. Sheldon's drone came out of hiding and saw that the agent got injured.

"What's it look like?" she jeered, clutching her shoulder.

"Agent Sam, you've been hit!" shouted Sheldon.

"Relax, I'll be alright," she told him.

"It seems like some kind of defense system was activated," said Sheldon.

"Wonder why?" asked Flash.

"Someone doesn't want us here," said Sam as she struggled to get on her feet with the help of Flash.

"A good enough reason for us to leave," he said.

"We've done come this far and I'm not leaving until we find out what's causing the salmonids to come down here," Sam told him as she held her shoulder.

While the agents were bickering amongst each other. The metal door slid open and a round object was thrown out as it rolled toward the two inklings. Hearing something and then spotting the grenade in front of their feet. "What's that?" asked Flash, not knowing what it was.

"Oh, squid...GET DOWN!" yelled Sam as she grabbed Flash and the two of them hit the floor before the grenade went off. The blast launched Sheldon's drone against the wall, damaging it while Sam and Flash were lying on the floor. Flash coughed and waved his hands around to clear the air, he looked over and saw that Sam was unresponsive with her arm across his chest. "Sam... SAM!" he responded as he sat up and tried to access the inkling, shaking her but it was no use. He saw that shrapnel from the grenade had damaged her legs, lacerations causing them to bleed. "Oh no...Sam," he said thinking she might have been dead, but she gave a short gasp of air, realizing she was still alive.

"Sam, you're alive,"

"Mmmm..." she groaned in pain.

"Sheldon!" Flash called out but he spotted the drone in pieces on the floor from the grenade blast. Lil Buddy scurried over to where the two inklings were and whimpered to Sam. Not paying attention, the inklings and buddy didn't realize that a figure had stepped out of the room and had their pistol drawn on the three of them as they cautiously approached them. Hearing footsteps from behind, Flash was startled by an armed figure pointing their pistol at him and an unconscious Sam.

The agent's hero shot was lying beside him, but would he have enough time to grab it before the figure would shoot him. Seeing the creatures up close, the mysterious figure lowered their weapon. Their guard faltered a bit and feeling guilt for throwing the frag grenade at them thinking they were a threat.

Flash saw that they hesitated, giving him the chance to grab his hero shot and aim it at the figure. Pulling the trigger and not noticing his ink tank was busted from the blast. He had no ink and turned to the figure who held their hand out. Flash bared his fangs and blocked Sam's body with his in a desperate attempt to fend off the attacker.

"I don't mean you any harm," the figure said as they holstered their weapon. Flash noticed the figure wasn't like the soldiers, but had blue eyes instead and his skin was a fair normal complexion and not a sickly pale color. His hair was short and brunette instead of tentacles. He was wearing casual clothes except the Kevlar vest over his blue button up shirt and a holster strapped to the side of his khaki cargo pants. he was indeed human but not like the soldiers the inklings had battled. The human was perplexed by the two creatures and then noticed that the one with the long yellow hair if that was hair was badly injured from the frag grenade.

"Look I'm terribly sorry about your friend. I watched you enter the building and fight those soldiers through the camera screens. I thought you guys were a threat, so I decided to activate the security measures. Once you disabled the turrets I only cared about one thing and that was my survival," said the human. It was clear how Flash reacted, he didn't understand what the human was saying to him but kept his guard up, keeping his eyes on the human.

"Let me look at your friend," he said to Flash, slowly approaching him.

"Oy! Yami No Maki Hu man," Flash told him in inklish. By his behavior he didn't want the human touching Sam and kept baring his fangs at the human, as if he was ready to bite him.

"You probably don't understand me, but if I really wanted to hurt you two, I would've just shot you. Trust me," he told the inkling who was still holding their hero shot at him, even if he couldn't shoot the human.

As the human got even closer, Flash held the hero shot at his face. "Hoyt!" Flash warned him.

"I can help her, she's bleeding profusely," he told Flash. The inkling turning his eyes to Sam and then back to the human. Flash knew something needed to be done and Sam had to be rendered care for her wounds soon. The human didn't seem to pose a threat but then again this might be a trap, the inkling boy thought.

Flash lowered his hero shot but kept a firm grip. Letting the human treat her was a gamble but if nothing was done, she could die. The human kneeled over Sam as Flash kept a close eye on him. He picked Sam in bridal style and started to carry her off as the human waved his head to signal Flash to follow. "The name's Levi by the way," he told Flash as the inkling looked at him and was weary about following him, but it seemed he had no choice. The three walked through the door as Lil' Buddy watched and whimpered seeing Sam was hurt and tailed behind them before the door shut and locked itself.

Sheldon's drone was lying on the floor. Before it finally shut down, Sheldon caught a glimpse of the human that carried Sam away. He couldn't believe his eyes that humans were in fact still around. Amazed, but at the same time troubled. "I gotta tell the agents about this, Sam and Flash could be in serious danger," Sheldon said before the drone feed finally went black and powered down.

Back at the facility...

Seth and octoling squad had just finished fortifying the surface of the facility and the only entry underground. "This is going to be our last line of defense. We can't let the octarians take this facility and give them a victory," said Mirage. Luna got into her position with the FN Evolys LMG, Seth gave her while Star grabbed the Victrix Sniper rifle off the ground and laid prone, in front of the overlook down toward the view of the housing below the small valley. She could see the octarians below congregating and getting ready to push up the hill to their location. Above them were two octozeppelins casting a shadow over the area as their acting command post.

As the squad got ready for the octarians to charge up the hill, there was a moment of stillness and anxiety. Luna gripped the LMG and kept it aimed toward the road coming up. Then they started hearing the humming of the trooper's scooters. "Here they come, get ready!" shouted Mirage. She, Vee, and Seth were hunkered down behind cover, getting ready for the octarian army to advance toward their position. Ink charges had been placed outside the entry to hinder the troopers' movement.

With what was left of the ink charges detonated, the octarians pushed up. Both troopers and octocopters pushed through. The octarian squad along with Seth began shooting, blasting and splatting the octarians as they were making their way through the entrance. Luna and her LMG unloaded on flocks of troopers as Star shot the octocopters out of the air with her sniper rifle. The octarians were proving how persistent they were in an attempt to break through the octolings squad's line of defense.

Luna was getting overwhelmed and had nearly burned through half of her ammo. An octocopter tries to lob a splat bomb at her, but it was shot as the bomb detonated once it fell to the ground.

Luna looked back and saw Star holding up the rifle. "I got your back, Luna," she told the elite.

As the battle progressed, shielded troopers proceeded to push up. Luna and the others shot at them, but the bullets were just ricocheting off their metal protection. "Got an idea," said Seth as Mirage looked at him. He pulled out a frag grenade and lobbed it behind the shielded troopers. The octarians were soon expelled in a blast of ink and metal, thinking they had done a huge blow to their assault. An octostriker appeared as the group watched, suddenly it flailed its arms and launched an ink missile toward Seth, Vee, and Mirage. They dispersed as the missile hit, narrowly dodging the attack and then Star set her sights on the flying blubbering octarian and shot at it. It dodged the bullet and then Luna fired at it, evading her gunfire and Star shot again and hit her mark. The octostriker fell and exploded on the ground into another group of advancing troopers, splatting them.

Mirage, moaned as she got off the ground from trying to avoid the octostriker's ink missile but during the may lay, a few octarians managed to get past their lines. She looked up and saw a twintacle smiling at her as it aimed it's blaster at her. Unarmed, Mirage thought this was her undoing but a burst of gunfire incapacitated the twintacle. As soon as it splatted when it fell off the scooter, Seth rushed over and helped Mirage on her feet.

"Seth you..."

"Don't worry lieutenant. I got your six,"

"What did I say about..."

"Calling you by rank, yeah I know. I owe you some push-ups after we win this battle,"

"Oh, it won't be push-ups you'll be answering with," she said before pulling Seth into kiss.

"Alright you lovebirds, save the romance for after the fighting," said Luna as she depleted what was left of her ammo on incoming troopers. Star sniped the last remaining octocopter and the octarian forces went into a full retreat, one straggler that was knocked off its damaged scooter even screamed and ran as fast as it could behind the rest of them. Once the battle was over, the five of them got together. Vee who had been laying down on the ground was helped up by Star. "You good, private?" Star asked her.

"I'm just a little banged up but I'm fine," she said.

"Yeah! We did it!" cheered Luna.

"Woo yoo, we kicked some tentacle butt!" shouted Star as she waved the sniper rifle.

"I don't think it's over with yet. They're too determined to give up knowing what's inside this place," said Mirage.

"Surely they wouldn't waste any more effort to attack us again," said Vee.

"I wouldn't hold my breath. I think it's just a matter of time until..." Mirage started to say but then she and the rest of her squad turned and saw the octozepplin had floated closer, nearly overhead of the facility yard as it casted a shadow over them. Then Mirage spotted two ink cannons underneath the airship, aiming straight at them. "Oh shrimp! Find cover!" she shouted before the ink cannons laid a barrage on Mirage and her squad's position. Ink coated the ground of the yard, just as the squad rushed for the nearest cover. Once the smoke had cleared from the ink barrage, there were no signs of the octolings or the human anywhere.

Down below, the inklings were stirring, coming out of the room they slept in along with Flow. As they stepped in the atrium they saw Sigma, carrying his sergeant Maxine from the elevator. "I got you sarge, I'm going to put you down over here against the wall," he told her. The octoling's face was full of despair, witnessing her sister, Melody get splatted by the enemy octarians back at the housing area.

Placing her against the wall, she was injured physically and emotionally. "Sarge, snap out of it, please," he told her as he placed his hands on her shoulders. With her face darkened, he got no response as if she was devoid of any life at all. "Sarge! C'mon... I know how tragic it is for you to see a love one die in front of you, but this doesn't mean you should give up," he told with still no reaction as he let go and shook his fist.

"Hey, what's going on!?" shouted Jazz.

"Huh," Sigma replied, startled by the inklings who just came into the atrium.

"Yeah, where's everyone else at?" asked Bill.

"...fighting," he replied plainly.

"Fighting?" the two inklings said.

"No one panic but the octarian army is outside. The octoling squad and the human are doing their best from keeping the octarians from taking this place. I wish we were out there aiding them. Our platoon was wiped out and the sergeant...had to witness her sister getting splatted in front of her," said Sigma.

"I'm so sorry...if the octarians are up on the surface then what can we do?" asked Jazz.

"There's nothing you can do,"

"What of those octocreeps make it in here!" fretted Lily.

"Don't worry Lily, they're gonna have to get through me first. If they think they can just storm in here they gotta nother thing coming," said Dexter.

"Now someone's acting like a hero," popped of Bill.

"Hey at least I can hold my own squid, what about you?"

"You two enough, don't fight amongst each other," argued Jazz. "We don't even have any ink weapons and there's only the four of us, not counting Flow,"

"I'm not sure what's going on?" Flow replied. Then Craymond swam out from beneath the sea hare's hat. "I'll tell you what you inklings should do, zip your beaks for once. I was trying to sleep; I've been up all night because I find out that Flow was that human's mate...or something like that. I couldn't begin to even think how that could be and after that human took Flow down to those rickety piles of metal down the hill, she just fainted. She wasn't the Flow I knew until she finally woke up, it seemed she was back to her normal self. I'm tired of being here and just want me and Flow to go back to Cooler heads where we belong," said the little shrimp.

"Why don't you cram it you piece of sushi, you and that crazy talk..." insulted Dexter.

"Wait, did you say Flow and that human were... mates!?" exclaimed Lily, stricken in disbelief.

"That's what she said,"

"I'm...not sure what Craymond's talking about? What human?" said a confused Flow, as she scratched her head.

"Flow, you don't remember Seth? We met him when we came down here?" said Jazz.

"She's probably just having another one of her spells," Dexter told them.

"Dexter! Don't be so rude," said Lily as she smacked his shoulder.

"He may be right though. Flow tends to get spacy at times. She often can't remember where she puts stuff in her shop even when it could be laying in front of her," said Bill.

"Yeah, I remember the time I asked for a knitted hat in her store and she brought me a bike helmet instead. Still, we shouldn't belittle her," said Jazz.

"I'm sensing a lot of negative aura. I think I need to sit down for moment,"

"Flow, you ok?" asked Craymond. "I'm not sure... it's as if I feel like all the energy has been taken out of me all of a sudden," she answered to her shrimp buddy.

"She isn't feeling good. Maybe I should take her to the medical bay," said Jazz. "I'll go with you," Lily replied.

"I appreciate it,"

"That's what friends do,"

The two inklings smiled at each other and escorted Flow toward the medical bay. "I'm suprised she didn't remember that human, what was his name...I think it was...Seth?" said Dexter. The name Seth caused Flow to pause. She wasn't sure why but it was if she could recall Seth for a moment as if a remanence of Sarah might have been still left inside of her, giving the sea hare a memory about him. "Seth..." muttered Flow.

"You remember?" asked Jazz.

"I...don't know. It's hard to explain, it's as if a mysterious force, an entity cried out. That name for some reason... you said he's a human?" asked Flow as she livened up all of a sudden.

"Yeah...the only living human we know of as crazy as that sounds,"

"Where is he?"

"The octoling dude said he was up top, battling the octarians with the other octolings. The friendly ones or kinda friendly. They're keeping them from taking over this place. I wish there was a way we could help them..." said Bill.

"Seth... you must keep him safe, please,"

"Flow, why are so concerned all of a sudden," said Jazz.

"Yeah, besides I'm sure that human can hold his own," replied Lily.

"No...please I don't wanna see him..." Flow started to say before she fainted.

"Flow!" shouted Jazz as she went to sit her up. The sea hare moaned as Craymond floated in front of her face, concerned about his partner. "Oh my, I blacked out. I'm not sure what came over me," Flow weakly said as she looked up at Craymond and the inklings that gathered around.

"I think we better hurry up and get you to a bed or something," said Jazz as she helped her up.

Flow felt stupefied after she had been overcome by what trace of Sarah's spirit was left in her at the mere mention of Seth. Both Lily and Jazz helped her to the examination room so she could lie down and build her energy back up. Dexter and Bill were both stumped at what had happened and turned to Sigma who was consoling Maxine. "So...what do we do? Wait out the inevitable," said Bill.

"I'm not gonna get captured again if that's what you're incinuating. I'll stomp every one of those octopi into ink puddles before I get thrown back in a cage," said Dexter.

"I think it's time we put our petty differences aside and start acting a team,"

"I agree with you... for once but after this... you do what you want once we get back to Inkopolis. I might go ahead and check out the splatlands, see what I can get into," said Dexter.

"Splatlands...sounds interesting enough,"

"Whatever... I guess I'll go see what the girls are doing,"

"Hey, wait up,"

Sigma watched the inklings leave the atrium before looking back down at Maxine as she looked back at him. "Specialist..."

"Yeah, sergeant,"

"You're right. This is no time to give up... Melody wouldn't have given up. Sitting here and sulking won't bring her back and undo what has happened. Mirage and her squad are still up there, having to defend this facility from those bastards and we should be out there helping them," she told him as she got up.

"Sarge let me help..." he said as she scooted his hand away from her. She opened her eyes and turned to Sigma who looked at her with question. Then in an instant, she grabbed him by the collar of his uniform and pulled him into a kiss. Dropping his octoshot with his eyes widened not expecting of all people to kiss him. She pulled away and grabbed her weapon off the floor and then his and handed it to him. Sigma was in complete astonishment, not being able to get a word out of his mouth to his commander before shaking his head and blushing.

"I uh..."

"Just grab the damn octo shot so we can help Mirage and her team,"

"S...sure, sarge,"

"Oh...and another thing, don't think this means I won't be on your ass. Just see it as a thank you for filling in for my sister ya ink for brains. Now let's go out there and splat some ass,"

"You got it sergeant," said Sigma but as they left, something ran through the octoling's mind.

"Hey, whatever happened to those stupid tentacles?" asked Maxine.

Deep in the supply bay. the defective octarians were climbing onboard the KF41 Lynx. "C'mon, c'mon, get in already!" demanded the twintacle.

"Keep your boots on, this hatch door isn't exactly light," said the trooper.

"Yeah, you want us to sprain a tentacle," said the other as they finally opened the hatch into the tank. The hopped inside with the twintacle and octoball jumping in behind them. "So... what now," asked the octoball.

"Start this thing up so we can go show those octolings that we're not some useless tentacles, can you imagine the look on their faces when they see us taking their thunder and the octarian army inking themselves while they run away," said the twintacle.

"That's if we can get out of here that is, did you ever think about that?"

"Oh, right. There's gotta be an exit or shute or something. Let's look around,"

"Hey, I wonder if this will start it," said one of the octotroopers in the driver's seat as spotted a switch. he turned it and the tank fired up, amazingly enough. Grabbing the levers that controlled the tracks it reminded him of the driving controls of a octostamp DX tank. He drove the tank around the warehouse smashing crates and drums along the way. "Hey, watch it," scolded the twintacle.

"I know what I'm doing," he said before smacking into the wall.

"Yeah, you know what you're doing alright... turn this heap of metal around. I spotted a large door. That might be the exit," said the twintacle as he spotted a large garage door through the camera screen that was mounted on the MG turret. Directing the tank toward the exit, they stopped. "OK, so how do we get out?" asked the octoball.

"Um, I don't know," the twintacle said before his tentacle bumped into a switch which fired the main gun, blasting a hole through the steel door. "Oh, like that," he said, taking credit for firing the main gun. "Let's roll out,"

The KF41 Lynx travelled down a tunnel until it reached what looked like a large elevator. Once it got on, the elevator activated, and the tank ascended upward. "Alright, get ready you tentacles," said the twintacle as it grabbed the handles of the weapon systems module and looked at the camera screen as the tank went up.

Up top, after the octozeppelin had fired its ink cannons down on the yard of the facility, the octolings onboard so no signs of life and assumed that the defectors were finally dealt with. Octolings shot down in their octopus forms and looked around. It seemed no one survived not even the human was seen. "Scan the area, make sure those traitors didn't survive...which I doubt anyone could have," said one of the regulars. Then another figure jumped down from on top of the zeppelin and landed behind them, shaking the ground as they did as his body casted a shadow over the octolings.

"Octo-samarui, seems your troops couldn't handle a team of defectors, how pitiful," scoffed one of the regulars.

"It would best if you kept quiet, I won't tolerate some octoling disrespecting my troops especially as hard and valiant as they fought and died to leave those turncoats vulnerable to the octozeppelin's attack. I fight with honor...something you lack..."

"yeah, yeah...honor and all that other junk, blah, blah, blah..."

Before the octo-samurai could counter her insolence, Mirage and her team came out of hiding, they managed to avoid the ink fire and hid under the junked cars parked around the yard in front of the elevator. Before the enemy octolings could react, the defectors engaged and splatted the squad of octolings, not even having time to raise their octoshots. Now all that was left was the towering octo-samurai who just watched the octolings get creamed by his Mirage's squad.

"Hmpf...impressive...you survived the ink barrage...," the octarian said as the squad turned their attention to him. "It doesn't matter...it ends here," he continued.

"Octo-samurai!" called out Mirage.

"Hmm...that voice," he responded, turning his gaze to the elite. "Mirage...is that you? I would've never expected you to turn your back against us. You were a proud octarian soldier...and my mentor. How could you do this..."

"Octo-Samurai, listen to me... you can't trust Scarlet. She's using you and the rest of her brainwashed lackeys. What did they promise you for your freedom?... honor?... you won't get it from her, I can assure you. I'm sure they also told you that we were their enemies... a threat to the octarian empire. As your mentor and once trusted friend... I urge you to rethink your stance. Scarlet's intentions don't only pose a threat to the inklings but us as well, the octarians. She's crazy and delusional, she wants to recreate this so-called promised land that Tartar was determined to do if it meant the extermination of our races?"

"Why should I believe you? You left octo valley and betrayed us... I assumed you were killed by the squidbeak agent before she defeated Octavio. You never returned when Octavio was freed and now I see you standing before me, willing to oppose us,"

"That's because my eyes finally opened. Octavio was nothing but a arrogant old despot who sought power and now, Scarlet has taken his place and his carrying a more diabolical plan for us and the inklings on the surface, She wants to wipe a clean slate of our world because she has become obsessed with bringing back the old one much like Tartar. I know she took Tartar's mangled body out of the NILS statue. She wants the knowledge he's had stored up away from us and is eager to bring back the humans and use them,"

"Enough talk!... It's time to end this," said octo-samurai as he swung his roller down and gave a bellow.

"Octo-Samurai! Please, I don't wanna fight you,"

"You are my enemy Mirage, and I must do what is best for the octarian empire. I'm sorry it's come to this," he told her before swinging his roller at her.

"Mirage!" shouted both Luna and Star. The elite managed to dodge the attack and jump away from the large octarian. "Don't make me do this," the elite told him.

"You're giving me no choice, prepare for defeat," said the octo-samurai as he swung at her again. Not wanting to attack him, the elite stayed on the defensive and just evaded his attacks. When he swung his roller down again. She jumped on the handle and bashed him in the face with the SIG Rattler she was wielding.

Dazing him momentarily as he shook it off. He growled and narrowed his eyes back at Mirage as she threw the weapon down. Luna and Star aimed their weapons on the octarian but Mirage waved at them to stand down. "This is between me and him! Just keep the octarians away from the elevator. Sure, enough more octolinsg sprang into action as they shot down from the octozeppelin and landed around the yard. Out of ammo, both Luna and Star threw their firearms down and pulled out their octoshots.

As the enemy octarians shot at the two, they dove into the ink puddles they made and exchanged fire with their adversaries at every given chance. Meanwhile, Seth was a little battered from the ink cannon attack, unable to take cover like the octolings he was sitting against a rusted-out cargo truck away from the battle. Vee in her octopus rushed over to ceck up on him. "Seth, you alright?" she asked him.

"Y... Yeah (cough)mmm... I'll make it, just a little beat up. I didn't move out of the way in time (cough)," he told her.

"I'm going to get you to the elevator. You're too hurt to fight," Vee told him. She picked him up and guided him over to elevator but when Seth looked up her heard something. She spotted a figure jumping down over them as he pushed Vee away to get kicked and launched back by Donovan.

"We still have unfinished business to take care of," said Donovan has he loomed over Seth. Grabbing him by the neck and holding him up as he strangled Seth. Before Donovan could squeeze the life out of him, Seth pulled out his knife and attempted to stab Donovan only for the blade to get swatted out of his hand, then Vee shot her octo shot at him, right into the chest as he quickly let go of Seth, jeering in pain from the ink effects. He bared his fangs and glared at Vee.

"Vee (gasp) get of here!" shouted Seth as he rubbed his neck.

Before she could do anything, Donovan kicked the octo shot out of her hands and then followed it up with another kick to her breastplate, repelling her back. "Vee! You bastard!" shouted Seth as he got up and pulled out his pistol.

Donovan turned around and saw the pistol pointed towards him as Seth shot at the mutated human. With quick reflexes he was able to dodge the first couple of rounds but get struck by one before he grabbed and squeezed Seth's hand before headbutting him and tossing him away. Before Seth could recover, Donovan stomped on him and pinned him to the ground as he laid on his stomach. Getting grabbed by the head punched in the face. Seth spat blood at him, making Donovan irritated as he picked Seth up and punched him in the face again and knocking him back on the ground.

"You still got some fight left in you, I'll say that," said Donovan.

Wiping the blood from his mouth Seth reached for the pistol on the ground but Donovan kicked it away. He stepped on his arm and took another jab at Seth's face, intending to do Seth in and finish looking for his girlfriend inside the facility. As Seth laid on the ground, weakened and nearly unconscious by Donovan's attacks. The octo-human was ready to finish him off by stomping his head into the dirt but before he did, Vee jumped on his back and bit down on Donovan's neck. He screamed and cursed trying to pry the octoling private off his back which gave Seth time to recuperate what energy he had left in him and launched a haymaker into Donovan's jaw before Vee let go.

Donovan reeled and gained his footing as he rubbed his jaw and stared back Seth. "Not giving up, even though you've lost this battle. I guess you didn't get enough ass kicking. It's time to do the finishing blow. I got someone waitin' on me in that damn place and if you're willing to stop me then so be it...Prepare to die!" growled Donovan as he charged to Seth.

The two of them got locked into battle again. Both Seth and Donovan launching punches and kicks to one another, but Seth was on the defeating end of the battle, worn out and struggling to keep up surviving the onslaught by the enraged octo-human. Vee stood by and grabbed her octo shot, waiting for the opportunity to shoot Donovan before he would batter Seth anymore. She shot but Donovan missed causing his concentration to break and allowing Seth to launch a punch into his eye, rocking Donovan back. As Seth tried to launch a second punch, Donovan grabbed his arm and swung his arm on down on it, breaking it. Seth screamed in pain and was thrown back, falling to the ground again.

"This battle is over," sneered Donovan as he covered his eye and walked over toward Seth, who was crawling away only to be grabbed by the leg and flipped over. Donovan kneeled on his stomach and held his fist back, grabbing Seth by the collar of his uniform, holding his head toward him as he glared down at Seth as blood came out of his mouth.

"Any last words?" uttered Donovan. "No?... Very well then," he continued, ready to finish off Seth with the final blow. Before he would knock out Seth once and for all a stream of ink struck him into the face. Blinded as he veered back, before he could wipe the corrosive ink off his face which growled in pain, he was kicked and repelled off Seth.

"Seth! Stay with me," shouted a voice, Seth opened his eyes and could only make out a figure standing over him. As his eyesight cleared he saw Vee looking over him, her hand around his head. "I couldn't let him kill you...I love you too much to lose you," she told him.

Before Seth could reply she turned her head with a determined look, eyeing Donovan as he got up with the ink wiped off his face. "You're gonna pay for that you little ink shitter. I'll squash you like...(SPLAT!) Gah...grrrrr," before Donovan could finish, he was shot by Vee again and then again before he could attack and then again. Then ink's corrosive properties caused Donovan to lose his motor skills he had no choice but to retreat but this time, he spotted the elevator going down and rushed for it.

"V...Vee! Stop him!" shouted Seth. She repeatedly started shooting at Donovan to prevent him from reaching the elevator and was struck in the leg, though he managed to dive for it and started descending before he could activate the console.

"Shit! gah, my freakin' arm," jeered Seth, seeing Donovan had made it into the elevator.

"Seth! You're hurt bad," said Vee as she sat him up.

"We gotta go after him...help me up,"

"Seth you're not fighting him in your condition,"

"What happened to Seth!?" shouted a figure that appeared behind them, the two turning around to see an unexpected sight.

Moments ago, Mirage was embroiled in battle with an old friend, the octo-samurai. Doing her best, to avoid his attacks. She couldn't battle her old trainee, not in a fight to keep the octarians from taking the facility and reaching the other humans. "Fight me octoling, you're only delaying the inevitable," the samurai told her.

"I already told you, I'm not battling you,"

"You know as well as I do, I take no honor in fighting an adversary that's not willing to fight back. I suggest you hold your ground and come at me,"

"No,"

"(Bellowing) Honor or not... I have a request to fulfil, and if that means splatting you so be it,"

"I'm not gonna make myself an easy target but I will tucker you out to the point you won't have the energy to fight me,"

"Is that your strategy...wear me down. I would say that is poor strategy, especially coming from you. I know you better than that Mirage what are really up to...attack me and give me a proper fight so I obtain back my honor,"

"Honor...is that it. What honor is there fighting for Octavio or Scarlet. There is none... I found that out years ago but yet here you are chasing after something you'll never get back,"

"(growl) Enough of your useless rhetoric...Fight me!" he roared as he executed another swift swing at Mirage. At the last second, she leapt in the air to dodge him but the octo-samuari smirked and saw through Mirage's tactics, or so he thought. Dodging the elite's own move and picking up his roller to swat at her, she saw through his tactics and misdirected him, instead, she octo formed and dove back to the ground, which in turn he pummeled himself in the head with his own roller and shook it off. Looking down and glaring at the elite which turned back to her bipedal form. "You done yet?" she asked.

"Far from it, I bet you find this amusing,"

"No...I find it a waste of my time,"

"Insolate little octopus...I'll smash you into an ink puddle!"

"Go for it,"

"Grrr...ahhh!" the octo-samurai growled as he held up his octo roller, turning into the octo cycler. He rolled toward Mirage who octo formed and swam out of his path. "You won't get away that easily!" he sneered. Quickly turning the octo-cycler so hard he almost flipped it. Gaining on Mirage to where she was nearly under his wheels so to speak, she turned back and quickly jumped out of his way but yet again he sharply turned to run over Mirage who was worn out and unable to move out of the path. Reaching into the vest she was still wearing, she grabbed a frag grenade and rolled it toward the octo-cycler, it detonated just behind the octo-samurai which caused him to get launched off the vehicle, destroying the octo-cycler and the hulking octarian laying on the ground.

The explosion got the attention of Luna, Star and the enemy octolings who were fighting one another. At the given chance, Luna and Star finished off the octolings while their minds was focused on the source of the blast from the grenade and rushed over to check up on their commander, who they saw was laying on her stomach.

"Lieutenant!" they shouted, rushing over to her side. The elite moaned and got up as she held her head. "Mirage, what the shell happened?" asked Luna.

"All I remember is seeing octo-samurai rolling towards me. I grabbed one of the grenades out of my pocket and lobbed it at him. I couldn't let him take me down, not with everyone at stake," she told as she got up.

"So the octo-samurai is done," said Star. Mirage looked over and spotted the samurai laying on the ground, his roller in pieces. She and her team cautiously walked over to check up on him. Then he gave a breath and coughed before he started moving. "Uuuuugh... I've...been defeated again. Well done my," said the octo-samurai as looked wearily at the octoling squad. "Go ahead and kill me," he told her. She picked up the SIG Rattler, only a few shots left in the mag and aimed it at his head. He nodded for her to shoot him but she refused and aimed the weapon away to empty the magazine before throwing the weapon back on the ground.

"You're... sparing him? After he tried to run you over?" asked Luna with astonishment.

"I am... I want him to see we're not his enemy,"

"You'd rather let me live with disgrace...I'd rather get splatted. This isn't ove..."

"Yes, it is Octo-Samurai... you're just as stubborn as Octavio...but you're not Octavio. You can still redeem yourself,"

"How?"

"By joining me and doing what's right...not for me and my team but for everyone, including all the octarians,"

"Join you? So I may be a traitor too... I'd soon as rather..."

"Listen here you bloated ink bag...(sigh) I was willing to spare your life and give you chance to gain some true honor. I remember someone telling me that true honor comes from within one's own self. I learned that from you and it contributed to my perception of octarian society and how there's always a better life out there somewhere than being some obedient grunt under Octavio. If honor is what you truly look for...then look inside yourself and be the judge of who's on the wrong side and right side,"

"I find myself yet again learning from you... How could I have been so blinded to make myself a pawn for those dishonorable octarians and their leader. I think it's time we turned the tides...I would be honored to join you,"

"I'm glad to hear it old friend," she said as she gave him a hug.

"Aww...there friends again," said Star.

"Heart-warming" said Luna sarcastically. "Hey! Where's Seth and Vee, I haven't seen them since the ink barrage,"

Mirage pulled away from octo-samurai and looked around. She heard a commotion at the far side of the yard and spotted Seth laying on the ground holding his arm. Just as the tall octoling-like figure was about to attack him, Vee shot some ink at him before he fled to the elevator.

Mirage ran over as well as the others followed suit. As Vee sat Seth up, Mirage approached them and saw Seth was badly injured. "What happened to Seth!?" exclaimed the elite as the octo-samurai came up from behind her. Vee and Seth turned toward their direction and saw a large hulking figure behind Mirage, they were stunned by the sight expecting the large octarian to be hostile.

"Seth's arm is broke? I'm not sure what that means," Vee told her.

"It means just that... the bone in my arm is broke. If I don't get it sterilized and stinted then an infection could build up," he explained as he winced in pain.

"We gotta get Seth some help, quick let's..." Mirage started but then her shoulder was grabbed from behind.

"I got him, stop that wretched creature before he hurts anyone else," said the octo-samurai.

"You must be referring to that other human that attacked me and Seth,"

"Human? That couldn't have been a human,"

"It was (cough) Mmm... his name's Donovan, the same one that woke up out of cryostasis a few days ago that was taken by the octo commandos,"

"I didn't recognize him with all the tentacles. What's he doing back here and why would he attack you?"

"After someone...his girlfriend. He made a deal with the octarians but right now, he's determined to find her and if he does. He'll redirect his efforts to try and defeat us if necessary,"

"Don't worry. We'll hunt him down and deal with that human or whatever he is,"

Octo-Samurai grabbed Seth and packed him on his shoulder as he jeered in pain from his arm being broke.

"What about the octarians, they still pose a present threat," said Luna.

"Seth said he didn't want the battle to continue inside the facility. Vee... you're the one that's gonna have to lead octo-samurai to the medical bay. Just make sure to keep your eyes peeled for that other human. Me, Luna and Star will stay behind and keep them from getting in. I'm sure they're contemplating a retaliatory strike any moment now,"

Vee nodded and guided Octo-Samurai toward the elevator while the other three stayed top side to repel any counter offensive the octarian army plotted against them. Explosions could be heard down in the valley below where the housing was. "Huh, what's going on now?" asked Mirage as she and the two other octolings scrambled toward the overlook. They watched the remaining octarians that were about to charge up the hill retreat across the bridge but what they were running away from was something that really caught the attention of the octoling squad.

Back at the mysterious array station...

Flash was chowing down on a chocolate bar that was given to him by Levi, the human that took Sam away to get treated from the fragmentation wounds she sustained in the hallway. Feeling bad for hurting the inkling girl, he decided to take care of her and Flash inside the secured saferoom he was hiding in. Sam was lying on a cot he set up for the injured inkling. Treating and wrapping her legs but upon examination she wasn't bleeding blood, but a yellow inky substance and he also noticed she had no bones. The girl couldn't have been human but then what was she and the other creature, Levi thought to himself.

After a few minutes had passed, Sam had started to stir, she moved her head around and started mumbling which caught Flash's attention. He was done eating the chocolate bar and quickly went over beside the cot to see that Sam had come around. Blinking her eyes, she saw Flash looking over her as a smile appeared on his face seeing she had woken up. "Mmm...Flash? Where are we?" she asked him, holding her head and looking around.

"Sam, I thought you were dead," he said as he hugged her.

"What happened...how'd I get here?" she asked Flash as he pulled away and the little salmonid hopped on the cot and started licking Sam's face, seeing she had recovered. Flash pointed toward Levi who was working on a computer terminal. Once he heard the inklings talking, he turned around to see that the female creature had woken up and smiled at the two. Giving a wave of his hand as Sam was stunned, another human unlike the soldiers she and Flash had battled. On his arm she noticed a large wristband with a screen on it. He seemed to put off a friendly aura as he looked at her and Flash similar to Seth. Deciding to try and get off the cot, once her legs hit the floor she yelped and sat back down.

"Hold on, I wouldn't get up if I were you. Your legs are still lacerated from the shrapnel I had to pull out. I told your friend I was sorry for what had happened. I didn't expect creatures like you to come down here. The security system was tripped when the doors were blown open by those soldiers. I watched them breach the building from the cameras in the front lobby and so I armed the defense systems. Surprised they're still operational as old as everything is in this place. My name's Levi by the way," he told the inkling with a smile.

"Yurp?" she said with a gurgle, obviously confused by her facial expression on what the human said.

"I'm guessing you don't understand me. You're obviously not human and that wasn't blood coming out of your legs neither...not to mention your hair which looks more like tentacles to me. What exactly are you?" Levi asked in wonderment.

"Squee? Ku mi mi..." said Sam in inklish.

Levi was clueless what she said. Sam turned to Flash. "U wa vyee yuu?" she said, looking at Flash as he gave her a baffled response.

"You hungry?" he asked Sam, pointing his finger at his mouth, acting as if he was chewing something and rubbing his belly. Sam was still confused, seeing this Levi just grabbed another candy bar and handed it to her. Unsure whether to take it though Flash was wanting to. She slowly grabbed and sniffed it. It smelled good and then she unwrapped it and bit into it. Her eyes widened and the chocolate, which was something she had never eaten before was indescribably tasty to her and she ate it up like a piranha.

Levi chuckled, amused by how fast she ate it. "Guess that's a yes," he said. "Glad you're better...as I said, my name's Levi...Lee-Vy," he told her as he pointed to himself.

"Yee...Vye,"

"No, Le...Vi..."

"Lee...Vyi,"

"Close enough...that's a strange language through all that gargling. I wonder where you two came from," he asked them.

"Yomi Sqeevi," muttered the male creature.

"Kee ow Myee Myee," the female replied. Then looking at her legs she started undressing the bandaging.

"Hey, those lacerations were deep, I suggest you keep laying in that bed so they can... heal?" he told Sam but once the bandaging was off it looked as if the lacerations weren't even there. The wounds had already closed up, leaving marks instead. "Holy shit...your legs, they've healed up. That's incredible...you must have an extremely high metabolism but then again, you're not human either," Levi said.

Sam was on her feet. She approached Levi who was nervous a bit, unsure what the creature was about to do next, after all, it was him that nearly killed her in the first place and wasn't sure if the strange humanoid held a grudge or not but instead something unexpected happened. As she got next to him she kissed him on the cheek and said, "Tank yu," with a smile.

Dumbfounded, he rubbed his cheek and stared at her bewildered. "You're...welcome?" Levi was at a loss of words, he understood that, but was still left confused.

"Oy! Me ah Kami yu nee hu man?" asked Flash in inklish. Apparently disgusted with Sam for her gesture.

"Yeh chu me nah kee namu Lee Vy," replied Sam as she looked back at the inkling boy.

"Lee Vy?"

"Kee ow Myee Myee,"

"Ngyes...Nu mah yah me,"

Levi again, wasn't sure what the two were conversating about. Was it something do with the female kissing him and telling him thank you. Then, he just thought about the device around his wrist which was a personal digital assistant. Not knowing if it had some kind of translating program or if could even translate the language of the strange creatures. He tapped on it and discovered a translation program and activated it. He held his arm and let the device record the creatures' conversation as a small blue light came on, beaming onto the two inklings which caught their attention. The device was done but it would take a while before it could even process the sounds and gargling noises they were making.

Levi was dumbfounded by their conversation. He was questioning if it was language or sounds of communication to one another. He wasn't sure if the translator in the device would be any help. The female then hollered at the male. "Ufffmmm! Yeeeehhh..." she cried out.

The male didn't look happy as she turned to the human and looked at him. "Umm, is there a problem?" he told them as Flash crossed his arms and glared at Levi making him feel uncomfortable. "Yeeeaaap," he said to Levi.

"Umm, I don't what you just said," he responded.

Then Sam gave a bow which stunned Flash as he gave Sam a look of displeasure, baring his beak at her. Sam was feeling indebted to the human and was thankful that he treated her even though he caused the injuries. "Sam, I can't believe you would trust this human; it threw that bomb thing at us and nearly splatted you!" said Flash.

"Yeah, but I think he's sorry. He could've killed us but instead he helped us," shot back Sam.

"I still don't trust him...how do you know it's a him?"

"Um, you should tell by looking at him you inkhead,"

"I honestly wouldn't know. I haven't been around humans other than the ones that tried splatting us!"

Letting the two inklings conversate, especially with Flash having his guard up. Levi decided to finish up searching through data on the computer terminal. Sam and Flash were yelling at each until the inkling girl just turned away from Flash, almost slapping him with her tentacle. Seeing the human working on the computer, she walked over and was curious what he was doing. Sam looked over and feeling a hand on his shoulder, he stopped and looked at the inkling.

"Chuuuu," she said.

"I don't mean to be rude but I'm trying to decipher some of these files. I'm looking for incriminating evidence on Kamabo," he told Sam. She backed away as he turned and looked at her. "I think I got an idea what you creatures are and where you came from as strange as it may seem. You're human-based but you share characteristics with cephalopods, unfortunately I haven't obtained enough data to completely support the claim of your origins and how Kamabo is involved,"

Then a beeping noise came from toward the console below the camera monitors. Levi walked over to the screens as Sam did, He spotted another V-22 Osprey hovering over in front of the station as more soldiers rappelled down a rope. "Great, reinforcements. Blackwell really wants this drive back...too bad he's not getting it back. I'm sorry you two but I can't stay. They'll discover us eventually and you two took down the security system for this room. I would suggest you two do the same," said Levi as he walked over and grabbed the drive he stole out of the computer terminal.

"I'm not sure if I have time to escape. Maybe there's something here I can use to slow them down," Levi said as he used his PDA to hack into in the station's security systems. He soon came across an assault drone tank, the only one that was operable. He tapped in and activated it, then the small metal door beside the saferoom opened and out came the unmanned tank drone. It was armed with a belt-fed LMG and a laser targeting system. He and the inklings came out of the room and inspected it. The small tracked unmanned tank seemed efficient enough to stop the enemy soldiers from progressing further into the facility.

Sam and Flash were awestruck by the drone tank, then using his wristband PDA, he controlled the tank, moving it and testing the MG turret. Everything seemed to work, so he directed the vehicle ahead to deal with the soldiers.

"Eh how we ow," Sam said, getting Levi's attention.

"Huh, what is it,"

"Uh wee wee," pointing her hero shot toward the direction of the tank.

"Man I wish this thing would hurry up and finish processing your language. Are you...insisting on fighting off the soldiers too?"

"Yee yeah,"

"I don't want you guys or kids or whatever you are getting killed over me. This is between me and the Kamabo corporation. They would do anything to get this drive back," Levi told her.

"Yee app!" Flash protested.

Sam gave him a critical look and placed her hand on her hips. "Eeep," he cried, followed by a displeased gurgle. Sam looked back at Levi and nodded as she followed the tank along with lil' buddy beside and Flash dragging behind. The three of them stayed behind the tank as it navigated down the corridors, driven by Levi using the PDA on his wrist. It lit up the dark metal-lined hallways with its light and scanned the perimeters for any hostile movements.

At the end of the corridor appeared to be an entry into another atrium, bigger than the atrium the two agents fought the soldiers in before they ran into Levi. They looked around but didn't see anything. It had gotten quiet until they heard something coming from behind the metal doors across the large room. On the other side a squad size element of soldiers lined up against the doorway. One of them placing a charge on the door before detonating it. The blast startled the inklings as debris went flying. Sam, Flash, and lil' buddy hugged the back of tank.

The soldiers started to storm in but the drone opened fire on them, killing the first two as they dissolved and the remaining two taking cover at the entry. The drone kept them pinned but then another team of soldiers appeared up above on the balcony and started shooting at the drone tank.

Flash panicked and squid formed behind a tipped over table. Sam rushed over beside him as well as lil' buddy as the inklings hunkered down and let the drone tank neutralize the enemy soldiers. Sam peered up and watched the tank kill another soldier above, splatting him with a hail of gunfire.

The soldiers were persistent even when dealing with the armed robotic tank. Levi navigated the tank through the atrium, trying to keep the soldiers back as much as he could but the tank was taking damage from the gunfire. Sam aimed her hero shot at the soldiers, though not having any success in hitting to try and defend the tank, their only asset with firepower.

"Flash! Get up and starting inking!" She shouted at him.

"And risk getting my head splatted off!"

"You'll get splatted if you don't protect that tank thing. It's the only thing keeping those humans back!"

Flash growled and stood up. Helping Sam fend of the humans but it was soon inevitably futile. After 5 minutes of battling, the tank was starting to malfunction and get hard to control. The camera even took damage and the feed was scrambling on Levi's PDA screen. "Shit," he jeered seeing he was having a hard time operating the vehicle and seeing what he was doing.

"Sam! I think that tank thing is done for," said Flash as he saw the tank smoking and sparking.

"I'm afraid you're right. Let's head back to Levi," she said but as the two got out of cover, one soldier dropped down from the balcony near them and aimed his rifle at the two but lil' buddy ran at him, opening his mouth and swallowing the soldier's head. The soldier tried to pull the salmonid off his head as he shot his rifle, nearly hitting the inklings before the soldier was shot himself by the tank and lil' buddy let go.

"Way to save us," she told the fish as it swam back over to her. Levi directed the tank to fall back as the inklings rushed down the corridor followed by the tank instead as it shot the soldiers that pursued them. After killing more soldiers, the three along with the tank were nearing where Levi was but as they got close to the entry into the security area a soldier shot his grenade launcher at the tank destroying it, causing the explosion to repel the inklings back.

Laying on the floor. Flash weakly got up and helped Sam on her feet and carried her toward the room Levi was at. Levi saw them outside and darted to their assistance. He and Flash carried Sam toward the room in a last effort to hold back the soldiers only to get shot in the back. Levi yelled from getting shot and fell to the floor as Flash dragged Sam to the nearest cover. Levi got up and held his stomach as he was bleeding and stumbled toward the bend on the far side of the wide hallway.

The soldiers hugged the entry and aimed their rifles at the inklings and human. Shooting at them before they could react. Levi saw the female creature was hurt again and directed Flash to head into the saferoom when he covered fire for the two. Flash nodded before Levi turned the corner and pulled out his sidearm and started shooting to get the soldiers attention focused on him while Sam and Flash made it back to the room.

Taking cover again and reloading. Levi was pinned down at the expense of aiding the inklings and little salmonid. Flash dragged Sam beside the cot and tried waking her up as lil' buddy whimpered seeing Sam hurt again. She finally woke up and rubbed her head. "Mmm...where's Levi?" she asked not seeing him in the room, then gunfire caught her attention.

"That human's actually sticking his neck out for us...maybe I was wrong about him," Flash admitted.

"We got to do something, we can't leave him out there like that," Sam said as she tried to get up.

"No, I'll go out there, you're hurt again," he told her.

"I'm fine,"

Flash shook his head at Sam's stubbornness as he stepped toward the entry of the saferoom, leaving Sam and the salmonid behind. Levi was still trying to keep the soldiers back but was grazed in the arm by a bullet and he was running low on ammo. "I gotta keep those bastards back. They can't take the hard drive. Enough people has gotten killed making sure I got away," he said to himself as he loaded another mag.

He had managed to kill one soldier and wound another. One of them rushed in and laid down suppressive fire on Levi to get closer but he was hit in the face by green ink and fell back before the soldier could kill Levi. The soldier dissolved and Levi turned to see Flash standing in front of the entry of the saferoom. Flash gave Levi a confident expression before the inkling grinned and clutched his hero shot as more soldiers stormed the hall. They shot at Flash, but he evaded their gunfire by turning into a squid and swimming close enough to them to change back and shoot another soldier, splatting him and then another as they pointed their rifle at him.

Flash squid formed again as the soldier shot and then Flash changed back and delivered a haymaker to his assailant, knocking him back before the agent twirled his hero shot and shot the soldier, watching him dissolve as he laid on the floor. Getting cocky, the inkling didn't react fast enough to the last soldier who lunged at him, in attempt to club the inkling who dodged the attack, narrowly as he aimed his hero shot, only for it to get knocked out of his hand by the soldier and was now on the floor, starring at the end of the barrel but as Flash closed his eyes, fearing this was his end, he heard a gunshot and watched the soldier fall sideways and drop his weapon. Levi managed to shoot the aggressor in the head with his pistol and kill the soldier before he could kill Flash. Levi holstered the weapon as he got up but fell to the floor, succumbing to his injuries.

Flash rushed over and helped him up, thankful for the save the human gave him. Helped inside like Sam, Levi sat on the cot, holding his stomach as he was bleeding. Sam saw he was hurt and was deeply concerned over the human. Levi pointed at a first aid kit at the back wall, which Sam spotted it and grabbed it for Levi, handing it to him. Pulling his Kevlar vest off before unbuttoning his shirt to dress the bullet wound. Sam stared at the wound and then at Levi's bare chest, she blushed a little and rubbed the back of her head as she turned and looked away.

"I see someone has a crush, after all you did kiss him," Flash teased.

"I do not!" she shouted with red cheeks.

"Afraid to admit it,"

"You wanna keep your beak?"

"Alright, alright, geez,"

Sam turned back to Levi who was wrapping himself with the bandaging. Once he got done, he put his shirt back on but left his vest off for the time being. He looked back at Sam and gave a deep breath. "I should thank you two for your bravery and perseverance. I'd be dead if you two hadn't come along like you did," said Levi.

"Woomy," replied Sam as gave him a smile. Flash walked over and held out his hand. Surprised for a moment. Levi took it has a sign of trust and shook it. "Ngyes," said Flash as he gave his own smile. "You two really are something," said Levi but then his PDA beeped. Levi looked over and saw that the translation process was complete, but an error had been detected. The bio scanner detected both human and cephalopod based DNA. So were these creatures' human after all or was that an error.

Levi looked at Sam strangely which she tilted her head. "Huh? What's wrong?" she asked.

"I...can understand you...the translator worked?" said Levi in shock.

"Woah, I can understand you," she exclaimed, shocked herself.

"That's what I just said," Levi replied.

"Cool! We can talk to each other now, wait. How come we couldn't understand each other before?"

"The device on my wrist had to process your strange language. I scanned your bodies while you two were discussing things... I wasn't sure if the PDA would even be able to translate all that gargling," explained Levi.

"That's so neat... so um, my name's Sam and this is Flash,"

"Sup dude,"

"Um...sup...you have normal human names?... and human lingo?" questioned Levi as he stood up off the cot.

"What do you mean normal human names? and what's lingo?" Flash asked.

"Never mind... the real question is what exactly are you? My bio scanner picked up human DNA but you're clearly not human,"

"Of course we're not human, we're inklings," said Flash.

"Inklings?"

"We're squid-based life forms...I mean we kind a do look human but we're not. Our ancestors were squid or so that's what the sunken sea scrolls say," explained Sam.

"Aren't humans supposed to be extinct," said Flash.

"Extinct? What like the dinosaurs...no but...we're on the verge,"

"What do you mean?" asked Sam.

"What I mean is back on the mainland, what used to be the United States or what's left of it, there are remnants of humanity, survivors that emerged from cryostasis that tried to reestablish civilization. We dwelled in domes similar to this one but bigger and more sophisticated. Some left to try and survive the surface while others stayed down in those underground cities,"

"Hold up...there's more humans beside you and those green-eyed freaks?" replied Flash.

"Those green-eyed freaks aren't exactly human...not anymore after succumbing to that serum. They might as well be obedient zombies. Taking orders from Kamabo and Blackwell, that bastard and that goes for that abomination of a company, Kamabo,"

"Kamabo? What's that?" asked Flash.

"They were a global corporation involved in designing the domes and cryopod project. An attempt to preserve mankind during the resource wars over 2,000 years ago...but, things took a turn for the worse once we came out. It wasn't salvation for humanity but condemnation, people died off from becoming test subjects, being ruled over tyrannical despots like Blackwell and sending death squads after people he deemed a threat. It's horrific no matter how pretty the surface may seem. Not everyone has opened their eyes and seen the truth. It's hard to explain until you see it yourself," Levi told them.

"I'm so sorry that you've went through all this trouble. I guess you left that place and that's why those other humans came here. To catch you," said Sam.

"Or preferably kill me after they got the drive back. This drive contains evidence of Kamabo's atrocities and then everyone will see what's being going on. People died, close friends to ensure I left but that hasn't stopped Blackwell and the chairmen. They'll hunt me at every end of the earth to locate me and get this back," said Levi as he pulled and showed the inklings the small drive.

"That thing is that valuable?" asked Flash.

"It is...and I don't want you two getting in the middle of my problems," he told them as he put the drive away.

"Understood, um what was it...Levi? We'll be leaving then. So c'mon Sam," the inkling boy said as he started to walk out of the room.

"Where are you going?" she said.

"Uh, leaving as the human suggested,"

"Get back here," Pulling Flash back in the room as he yelped.

"But,"

"We owe it to him, plus we need to locate the radio signal that's been attracting the salmonids,"

"Signal? Wonder if that's the same signal I picked up. My armlink as it's called picked up a radio signal. It was nothing but high-pitched sound waves. It has to be somewhere deeper in the station," mentioned Levi as he pointed at the device around his arm.

"We first assumed those humans were after the source of the signal. Me and Flash thought that was why they were here,"

"This signal might have drawn their attention. I know the armlink did. We could go investigate," he said. Grabbing the vest off the cot, he then grabbed his stomach, jeering in pain from the gunshot wound.

"Are you gonna be able to move around?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, I'll be alright. Wish I could heal as fast as you could, unfortunately humans can't," he said before slide the vest over his body.

"Those other humans... the ones that attacked us. Why did our ink react to them like that?" asked Sam.

"That's...a good question. Like you, those infected humans can regenerate bullet wounds and cuts too but, seeing what your ink did...could there be some kind of connection? I'm sure the answer will surface eventually," he told them. Then looking at Flash, "I wanna say thank you for saving my ass back there. I'm impressed with how you dispatched those soldiers," commented Levi.

"Hey, what can I say...I'm one of the best, working my way to rank S," he said in a prideful manner.

"You gotta go through ranks B and A first," said Sam as she walked out of the room behind Levi and the little salmonid behind her.

"That's not funny Sam. I'm a rank A, well almost and could've been if my team won the last splatfest,"

"In your dreams...you fight more like a noob fresh out of the county to me,"

"I handled those creeps while you were laid up in that room, so don't give me that,"

"With what, that mouth of yours,"

"With my mad moves...remember what my name is,"

Levi stepped out of the room, not wanting to get in the menial debate amongst the two inklings. Sam followed behind along with Lil' Buddy and Flash.

The four of them were walking through a collection of rooms, labs, what they appeared. Then they stumbled across a pair of large metal doors. On them said: Authorized Personnel Only. Levi placed his hands between the doors and tried prying them open but had no luck. "Damn...there's gotta be a way to open them," Levi uttered to himself. Sam looked at the doors and much like the two that they had to open before, she directed Flash to help her pull them apart in which they succeeded. Levi was absolutely shocked by their strength but somewhat terrified at the same time. "After you," Sam told him.

"Um, sure I guess," he said awkwardly as he slipped in between the doors. The two inklings and lil' buddy followed behind him. On the other side was a dark hall, Levi pulled out a light and the group headed toward what appeared to be some kind of silo. The corridor led to a metal balcony and in front of them was what appeared to be a rocket of some kind. Levi shined his flashlight to what appeared to be a Kamabo logo on the fuselage. "Kamabo...wonder what this was for and what it's doing down here," said Levi.

He looked down and saw the balcony went dropped toward a staircase and below was what appeared to an elevator. Levi headed down and the other three followed. Once they reached the bottom, Levi noticed no power was being fed to the elevator. "There's gotta be a power source here," he said. Then Levi turned and saw a pair of metals doors with the words maintenance above them. He ran over and went through them with the inklings and lil' buddy in tow. Down a corridor and inside a room appeared to be a workshop for repairing equipment in the facility. Then he spotted something laying on the table. It looked like some kind of toy that was cobbled together. "What on earth is this supposed to be?" asked Levi as he examined it.

Sam looked and so did Flash. They noticed it had inkling language on it. The device looked like some kind of ink weapon. "Levi, that looks like a turf war weapon, can I see it?" she asked.

"Oh, sure," he replied as he handed it to her.

The weapon consisted of what look like some kind of motor with tubes running behind an orange mop bucket mounted to the front of it. Inside the bucket appeared to look like little nozzles or jets. On top of the motor was a metal canister, perhaps a built-on ink tank and below that was a bicycle-like handle and trigger. "That's gotta be the ink weapon Sheldon said he brought with him. I think he called it the whizbang Sploosher. It looks like a sploosher but he said it was unique and it did something differently than a normal sploosher," Flash said.

"Whizbang Sploosher? Huh, I wonder what it does?" she asked as she pulled the trigger. As she did, it sucked up a nearby object, a crate and spun it inside the bucket where the little nozzles coated it with ink and shot it back at the wall as it burst into ink like a projectile. "Woah! So this thing sucks up objects and hurls them out, that's pretty fresh," said Sam.

"Hey, let me give it a whirl! Sheldon's the one that told me about it," said Flash as he tried to grab the sploosher from Sam.

"No inking way! You'll probably get one of us hurt playing around with it. I better hold on to this," said Sam.

"(groan) That's not fair!"

"Hey, where did Levi go?" asked Sam, then little smallfry sniffed the floor and scurried into the next room. Inside the inklings followed and saw Levi tinkering with the generators that powered the silo. He flipped them on as the generator sparked and bellowed but it appeared to be creating electricity as the lights in the room slowly came on. "Looks like we got power you two. Let's head back to the elevator," he told them.

Sam nodded but then Flash swiped the Whizbang Sploosher out of her hands. "Hey! Be careful..." she snapped at him.

"Careful is my middle name," he said as he accidently pulled the trigger. Unfortunately Levi was right in front of the ink weapon and got sucked in as he shouted. "Oh, my cod! Flash! You inkhead!" she yelled at the male inkling. He panicked and let go of the trigger, shooting Levi who was covered in ink and landing on the floor and nearly into the wall.

Levi groaned as he tried sitting up, but he was so covered in ink that could hardly move. "Levi!" shouted Sam as she came to his aid. She wiped the ink off his face as he coughed. "You alright, say something," she told him.

"I think I'm gonna hurl," he said as he turned over and hacked up ink.

"Flash! How about I suck you up and shoot you out like you did poor Levi!" she shouted at him angrily.

"My bad, I didn't mean it. Please don't ink me into the wall. You can have that sploosher back," he told her nervously as he threw the weapon on the floor. Sam helped Levi up as the ink effects were dwindling. The human was mind blown that the contraption just sucked him up like it did as small as it was and how big he was like something out of a cartoon. He shook his head and held his stomach as he stumbled away. Sam gave Flash a disproving look and grabbed the whizbang sploosher. "I'm sorry OK!" Flash exclaimed as dragged behind the group.

Back inside the silo, Levi and the rest of them headed toward the elevator but then they heard a loud humming, sort of a jet about to take off. They turned and looked and saw the rocket's boosters were warming up. "Supply rocket, preparing for launch. Countdown begins in 30 seconds. All personnel clear the launch pad immediately," said an intercom.

"Oh shit...quick get inside the elevator!" shouted Levi. He and the inklings and salmonid rushed to the elevator doors. Mashing the button for the elevator to lower. "C'mon c'mon, hurry up!"

"Take off in 20 seconds," the intercom said as the boosters started to ignite. "Dammit! Hurry up will you!"

"15 seconds...10 seconds..."

The elevator finally made it down and the doors slid open. "Quick! Get inside!" Levi commanded. The inklings got in, but the small fry was leery. "Lil' Buddy get in or you'll get cooked!" Sam warned it.

"5...4...3..."

Levi grabbed the fish and rushed back to elevator. "2...1...Take off!" The boosters roared as smoke and fire filled the bottom of the silo just in time as the elevator doors closed before the gang got roasted by the rocket. "Shit, that was close!" said Levi out of breath as Lil' Buddy licked his face as he laid on the floor. He sat up as the inklings stared, then the elevator shook and opened up. They were now inside the control center for the silo. As they walked in, they saw the rocket take off through the observation windows, ascending upward and out of the silo slowly.

Across the large room, Levi spotted another doorway that said exit. As he and team walked over toward it, his armlink started beeping. "What's wrong?" Sam asked him. "It's that strange transmission. It's coming from inside this room," He held is arm out and once he tracked the source, he spotted something hooked up to the rocket control console just under the observation deck. Walking over he saw a device with a little array on it. It was wired into the console as a green light was lit on it. "It looks like some kind of transmitter but who hooked it up?" wondered Levi as he studied it. On the side of the device was an emblem, it looked like a bear with a fish in its mouth but the print was unreadable. Sam and Flash looked at it and Flash instantly recognized the logo. "That's Grizzco," he pointed out.

"Grizzco?" Levi questioned.

"They're a company that hires inklings to catch salmonid eggs called salmon runs. I've worked with them before. It's sort of like turf wars but you're fighting swarms of salmonids instead. It's ran by Mr. Grizz, no one has ever seen him, he talks through a bear shaped radio back at his office," explained Flash.

"If Grizzco is back at Inkopolis then what's it doing down here if its his property?" asked Sam.

"Beats me,"

As Levi looked at it, he accidently turned it on which caused Lil' Buddy to freeze, its eyes constricted, and it stared up at Levi. "Lil' Buddy, what's wrong?" asked Sam.

Suddenly the fish growled and leapt off the floor and bit Levi in the arm, hard enough he drew blood. Levi jeered and tried prying the little fish off of him. "Lil' Buddy, what's gotten into you! Let go of Levi!" she shouted. Through all the struggling and shaking to get the small fry off, Levi dropped the transmitter with the grizzco logo on it and it busted on the floor, reverting the little salmonid back to its normal self, letting go of the human's arm.

"Gah, that hurt," Levi winced as he held his arm.

"Levi, I don't know what came over him," she said as the little salmonid swam over to Sam. It didn't remember attacking Levi and wasn't sure why it's inkling master scolded it.

"I think we can agree that trans-mito-mobob was the causing the salmonids to come down here and attack the octolings. So, what are we gonna do now that it's broke," said Flash as picked up a piece of the transmitter and threw it aside.

"We'll think of something," said Sam as she walked over to Levi. He shook his arm and focused back on the exit. "The sound waves it projected might have caused that pet fish of yours to go bonkers...which I still can't get over seeing a fish out of water but then again I've made friends with squid kids. What a day it's been," said Levi.

"Yeah, but what we don't understand is why grizzco tech is doing down here. As Flash mentioned Grizzco is stationed at Inkopolis. The inkling city back on the surface,"

"Inkling city? So that's where you guys came from... there's still some what a civilization still left from the flood waters?"

"As far as I can remember, but I'm from the splatlands. It's further away and you have to take a plane to get there,"

"So, you inklings are inhabiting the earth? That's... intriguing, though it's a wonder no one else and I mean other humans have discovered you but then again, we assumed most of the landmasses became submerged," said Levi.

"We've always thought humans were long extinct, it's fascinating that we got to meet you. Our race has only come across fossils of your kind and we've also dug up your technology,"

"I like to know about you and your race but for now, let's get out of here. I can only assume this is the exit," he told them as they followed Levi to the exit on the other side of the room.

Meantime, Outside the station a squad of octolings watched the rocket take off from the facility. They were perplexed if not troubled by what they saw. They were huddled behind some rocks as they watched the rocket but then the boosters shut off on it and the rocket plummeted down below into the chasm of the dome and crashed with a fiery explosion. "What the shell was that?" asked one of the octolings.

"Don't know but we're getting to the bottom of this," said the elite leader.

"You mean where the rocket landed?"

"No, you ink for brains...I mean the station where that thing shot from. Octo command reported strange activity in this dome and the sighting of a flying machine in the area,"

"You mean that thing?" pointed out a regular. They spotted the V-22 parked in front of the station and stared at it. It reminded them of the octoseekers but much bigger.

"That's gotta be it. C'mon, let's move up and keep your eyes peeled,"

The octoling squad octo formed and swam up toward the V-22 Osprey. They got beside it as they saw the bay door was open and cautiously stepped inside. With the octo shots drawn they slowly stepped in stealthy, but the pilot heard footsteps and saw it wasn't the soldiers coming back. He slowly drew his sidearm and quickly turned to shoot at the octolings, hitting one as the others scrambled but the elite kneeled down and shot the pilot, coating him before he busted into green goo.

"W...what was that thing?" screamed one of the regulars.

"Private, you alright," asked the elite.

"Ow, that stings," she replied, holding her arm to stop the bleeding.

"That wasn't an ink weapon,"

The elite walked over and studied the goo, she knew instantly what the substance was and was startled by this finding. She grabbed the sidearm and looked at it. "This is alarming, get a hold of octo command and report to them what we've come across," the elite ordered before tucking the pistol into her shorts.

"Get her patched up so we can go investigate. Someone had to have launched that thing from inside that place. I say we sneak in through the back and catch them by surprise. Let's head out," the elite ordered her team.

The octoling squad left out of the V-22 and made their way around the facility but as they were, Levi and the agents came out of the station and found themselves in a back lot. There were trailer containers scattered around with the Kamabo logo on them. Curious, Levi wanted to know what the contents of containers, so he rushed over to one of them and opened it. The first container was empty. "There might have been supplies in here at one time but who knows with kamabo," he said. He turned around as Flash, Sam and lil' buddy were looking at him.

"Just seeing if anything was left behind but I doubt it. So where does that leave us since we're out?" He asked them.

"You could always come back with us," Sam put in.

"Huh, how are we gonna explain Levi to Ash and Jet. I mean, we've never seen a human before until now. How are they gonna react?" said Flash.

"We just introduce him that's all,"

"Yeah, I'm sure that'll go over well,"

"What else should we do just leave him,"

"He seems like he's made it on his own this whole time,"

"I'll have to agree. I don't wanna cause alarm especially if your people think humans have been extinct this whole time. Besides I got my own mission to do, and I don't wanna drag you guys in the middle of it. Enough people have put their lives on the line to ensure I got away from kamabo and Blackwell," said Levi.

"But we just met you. We fought those other humans together and we helped each other. We might as well call each other friends and besides all that the octarians are after humans as well," said Sam.

"Octarians, what are they?" Levi asked the inkling.

"Like us but octopus based...you see, you're not the first human I've come in contact with. I met a human named Seth. He woke up out of this place, said something about being asleep this whole time and mentioned about finding his family, like me trying to locate my sister,"

"Another human? Where is this place?"

"It's farther out in another dome,"

"That must be a hypocenter, a cryo facility meant to hold humans in a suspended state until emergence. I know because I came from one in a dome like this but much newer. This is a mark 1 dome, crude and small compared to the one I've stayed in. I didn't think the mark 1s were suitable for habitation. I heard they were heavily flawed, and their power systems were unreliable,"

"So humans built these domes?" asked Flash.

"Yes...even before the resource wars, ocean levels were rising. This contributed to the wars starting because over time, islands were vanishing and so were coastal areas. Humanity feared resources would be depleted and with the masses screaming for something to be done, political upheavals were ignited and everyone placed the blame at each other and the governments that ruled over them so...the resource wars started and instead of finding a solution they worsened the situation. In the end...humanity was finished by the nukes and the oceans that followed but all was not lost. As a last resort, scientists and corporations like Kamabo came together to build the underground domes to house the remnants of humanity and preserved them as the seawaters would lower back down and we would repopulate the earth but things... didn't quite go as planned," Levi explained.

"So what happened?" asked Flash.

"Humans died out during cryostasis due to unplanned upbringings, power outages, system failures and other factors... one of them being ruled by despots that terminate anyone that falls out of line...that being the Kamabo Corporation," he answered to the inkling agent.

"Is there anything the humans can do?" asked Sam.

"Nothing...for now. I plan on going back as soon as I can, once I've deciphered the data on the drive and find more humans like me to help me put an end to the Kamabo oppressors. There's already a resistance movement but we're outgunned and outmanned so we end up going into hiding out on the surface away from Blackwell's forces,"

"Maybe...my people or at least the squidbeak squad could help you,"

"No...you've done enough saving me and the drive from those soldiers," said Levi as started walking away. Unknown to the agents and Levi they were being monitored by the octoling squad that wandered into the backlot. In their octo forms to avoid detection, they waited for the opportunity to ambush them. As Levi and the inklings were nearing the exit gate, on top of a container a figure loomed over and aimed their weapon at them. "Halt!" they shouted. When Levi and the agents looked up, they saw an elite octoling staring down at them.

"Drop those weapons inkstains! You're surrounded!" the elite commanded as more octolings appearing from behind the containers or on top of them, aiming their octo shots and smiling at them. "Please tell me these are friends of yours," said Levi as he put his arms up.

"They wouldn't be our friends if they were pointing their weapons at us, those are the octarians we told you about and they're far from being our friends," said Sam.

"You make a good point,"

"Silence!" snapped the elite. She hopped down and approached Levi, studying him. "You're not an inkling," she told him.

"Thanks captain obvious," scoffed Flash.

"Can it squid," she growled at him. Then turning back to Levi as she lifted up her goggles to study him some more. Levi saw her eyes were green with purple irises with marks around them. Her tentacles were reminiscent of an octopuses unlike the inklings with a black coloration and kelp stalks protruding out of them. She grabbed his face as she smelled him before pulling away. "It can't be...you're a... human!" she exclaimed with surprise.

The regulars looked at each other, stunned like their commander. "What a find... I'll get promoted for this. Unit! Deal with the inkstains and apprehend the human!" she commanded as she slid the goggles back over her face with a chuckle.

(Octoling rendezvous music playing*)

Before the octolings started shooting, Flash and Sam raised their hero shots and began shooting at the octolings as they octo formed away. "Levi! Get out of here!" shouted Sam. Levi attempted to rush for the exit but was grabbed by the arm and slung aside. "Where do you think you're going human! Stick around and watch those squids get splatted!" she sneered. He sat up and unholstered his pistol but the elite swatted the gun out of his hand as slid away out of reach.

"Splat em!" shouted a regular as the octolings converged on the two agents. Sam pulled out the whizbang sploosher and aimed it at a nearby crate, sucking it up and shooting it directly back at the octoling like a missile, resulting in an inky splatter. Another octoling started shooting at Sam before the inkling dove into the ink puddle she made from splatting the octoling. The second octoling pursuing her and diving into her own ink.

Flash just splatted one octoling that tried to rush him with her octo brush but behind him another popped out of the ink and lobbed a splat bomb at him, only for him to strike it with his hero shot and throw it back at the octoling. She gurgles as she was repelled back and splattered once she landed on the ground, watching her ghost float away.

Sam was dealing with the last regular. In an attempt to corner the inkling she shot the ground around Sam and dove back into the ink. Sam stayed vigilant, she watched the ink and waited for her to pop out. Losing sight of the octopus, the octoling jumped out behind Sam and tried to shoot her but Sam kicked her and launched her into the air. The octoling landed on her feet and quickly recovered as she smiled but didn't bank on the agent to suck her up with the whizbang sploosher. The octoling screamed as she got swallowed by the weapon and shot out, this time getting splattered against one of the metal shiping containers.

She put the whizbang sploosher away and met back up with Flash once they got done dealing with the regulars. The only remaining octoling was the elite who had her octo shot aimed against Levi's head. She had her boot pressed against Levi's chest which was aggravating his gunshot wound. The octoling was strong enough that Levi couldn't pull her off. "Lower your weapons! Or I splat the human!" roared the elite as she had a hold of Levi.

"Let him go octopus!" demanded Sam as she aimed her hero shot at the octoling.

"Ha! You let go of your weapons or else!" she shouted at them as she pressed her octo shot against Levi's face.

"Sam, tell me you got a plan,"

"I'm thinking,"

"You got one last chance to disarm, or I'll reduce the human to a puddle like you did my team inkstains!"

Sam didn't want any harm coming to Levi so she tossed aside her weapon. "Sam! What are you doing!?"

"Saving Levi,"

"What...she's just gonna," Flash started to say but Lil' Buddy jumped out of Sam's pack and scurried over toward Levi and the elite. She just laughed at the sight of the brave little salmonid. Lil' Buddy growled and jumped in the air, opening its mouth in an attempt to attack the octoling. Stunned at first but then shooting her octo shot at it in the last second. The little smallfry cried out and was launched back and landed on the ground incapacitated. "No! Lil' Buddy!" Sam cried.

Sam hurried over to the dazed smallfry and picked him up. "Lil' Buddy are you ok?" The fish slowly opened its eyes. She saw he was weak from getting struck by the ink and shot a glare over at the octoling.

"Hmph...You too boy!" she demanded, wanting Flash to relinquish his weapon as well.

Flash squeezed the grip of his weapon but gave a deep sigh as he dropped it in defeat. "We did as you asked, now let Levi go," she told the octoling.

"How about you get splatted instead squid!" she yelled, aiming the octo shot at her before pulling the trigger. With the salmonid in her hands, she wouldn't be able to evade the ink shot and closed her eyes but through quick reacting, Flash ran toward Sam and shielded her from the octarian ink with his body. The hit disabled his ink armor as his jacket burst and the agent fell to the ground. Sam dove for her hero shot before the octoling could shoot again with lil' buddy hugged up against her in one arm and retrieving the weapon with the other, pulling the trigger and launching the elite back as she burst into ink, joining the rest of her unit.

Levi sat up and grabbed his pistol off the ground before he ran over to see if Flash was alright. "Flash! Flash!" cried out Sam once she recovered and got beside him. Dropping her weapon and turning over Flash as he moaned.

"Ugh... am I dead," he said.

"If it weren't for the ink armor you would be," she replied.

"I shouldn't be surprised. Seems you two can get through anything... and thanks for saving me...again," said Levi then he noticed Lil' Buddy was hurt.

"Lil' Buddy got hit. We gotta get back to the police station so I can treat him," said Sam as she held the little salmonid.

"Sam, I'm sure that little guppy will be fine. Probably just a bad case of indigestion from eating that ink," said Flash as he sat up and rubbed his head.

"You're not helping matters Flash,"

"Don't worry Sam. We'll get back and see if we can tend to your...fish," said Levi.

"Um, how the kraken are we gonna do that. That's a pretty long walk from here and what if more of those octopi show up?" said Flash.

Levi spotted the V-22 and had an idea. He had piloting skills since he commandeered a chopper to escape but crashed somewhere on the surface of octo canyon. He wasn't sure how he got underground since he blacked out from the crash, but it seemed like their best option and Levi would put his piloting skills to the test. "Hey, you two, this may sound crazy if not risky but...I can try and commandeer that V-22 over there,"

"That big flying machine we saw, can you really operate that thing?" replied Flash.

"I can try,"

"Why am I not hearing reassurance in your voice,"

"Just c'mon,"

"Hang on lil' buddy, we're getting out of here," said Sam as the salmonid gave a weak whimper.

The four of them headed over to the V-22 and slowly stepped inside as Levi pulled his pistol out and looked around to make sure no one else was in it. At the cockpit he saw green goo had covered some of the seat and controls, apparently someone had already dealt with the pilot. He holstered his pistol and got into the pilot's seat. "You sure you know what you're doing," Flash said with skepticism.

"Yeah, of course I do so just find a seat already,"

Flipping toggle switches and finally cutting on the rotors to the V-22. The two inklings looked out and saw the aircraft was slowly raising up from the ground. Levi closed the bay door and after the V-22 gained enough altitude he directed the rotors to turn, and he started navigating the V-22 away from the station. Levi caught a glance of smoke coming from the bottom of the dome and saw the rocket had crashed below instead of veering into the fake sky above. "Fuel must've been stale, Guess we'll never find out why that rocket was down here in the first place," Levi said himself.

Just then, Sam got up from her seat as she held Lil' Buddy. "Hey Levi?"

"Yeah,"

"Thank you for getting us back to town,"

"Don't mention it. Thank you for getting me out of that jam. Those octarians as you called them. Why were they after me?"

"It's a long story...you remember that other human I told you about, Seth,"

"Yeah I remember which reminds me. I need to ask you where that place is at. The hypocenter, but first I'll get you back to this town. Which way is it?"

Sam pointed to the far end of the dome but Levi was confused as to how the soldiers got the V-22 down there and how they navigated underground. As he got closer, the screens opened up, revealing a large access tunnel. The aircraft traversed through the tunnel until they entered the dome with the shantytown inside it. Levi was amazed that there was even signs of a civilization down inside the domes, thinking they were uninhabitable. He spotted the police station and landed down on the roof as the back hatch opened. They stepped out and started heading for the stairwell that went inside. "I can't believe there's actually a city down here. This is truly remarkable," Levi said as he looked around.

"Levi," called out Sam.

"Yeah, what is it?"

"There's two more inklings like us. They're probably gonna be shocked to see a human since we've never seen one, alive that is. I'm gonna introduce you, there names are Ash and Jet. They're agents like us, unfortunately they got tangled up this mess like Flash here and now I'm down here making sure they don't end up on somebody's menu,"

"We could've handled ourselves just fine before you came along," butted in Flash.

"Sure you guys did. Guess that's why I came to your rescue,"

"Hold on...agents? Agents for what?" asked Levi.

"The squidbeak... we were sent down here to spy on the octarians but no one brought up that we'd be dealing with those ugly overgrown guppies," said Flash.

"Salmonids...like Lil' Buddy here but bigger and meaner. Salmonids belong on the surface, out in the contaminated waters where they migrate and where Grizzco sends us out to snatch power eggs," said Sam.

"Um...I'm having a hard time processing this. Big fish like your pet, contaminated waters, Grizzco... power eggs? Where exactly did I end up?"

"This is probably a lot to take in, Seth had a hard time coping with his new surroundings and the fact that humans went extinct and inklings and octarians now dominating your world too. We'll try and explain things better inside. I wanna hurry up and help Lil' Buddy since he took that ink shot in the mouth. Flash will introduce you to the others," she told him.

"Huh, why do I have to do it?" said Flash.

"Because I got a sick salmonid to tend to, that's why,"

"I like how you're always volunteering me stuff. You're getting as bad as agent 3,"

"Don't make me have to smack again...and don't compare me to that squid. She's the one that got me in the mess in first place. I didn't even wanna be an agent and I put part of the blame on you,"

"Me! I had nothing to do with..." he exclaimed before Sam headed down and closed the door behind her with Lil' Buddy on her shoulder.

"Chicks...I'll never understand them. She's nothing like Izzy (sigh). So, I guess we better go introduce you to Ash and Jet. I wonder how this is gonna go,"

"Sam seems pretty aggravated. Sounds like she got pulled into something she wanted no part of but why is blaming you and whose this agent 3?" asked Levi.

"Because she's always on my case, only because I'm dating her sister. She can be a real squid bagger...as for agent 3. She's supposed to be the new leader of the squidbeak. So you coming or are you just gonna stand there," he told Levi as he walked away toward the roof access.

"Yeah, sure,"

"Are human chicks like this?"

"What do you mean? Moody? Um...sometimes,"

"You know she likes you dude,"

"What, we just met and she's a squid girl and I'm a human,"

"Soooo...trust me, squid chicks are, how do I put this..."

"Complicated,"

"Not the word I would've used but I guess that's putting it mildly,"

"Um, trust me, picking up a girl is least on my mind,"

The two of them headed through the stairwell entry and made their way down. I wonder how the other agents will react to seeing a real human and with the transmitter in pieces, how would the inklings and octolings escape the shantytown? Sam would tend to Lil' Buddy while Flash would introduce Levi to the rest of the team.

Inside Octo base at the command center, the octoling staff were monitoring the battle, listening in on the radio traffic of the major's battalion that was deployed to dome 13. The dome where the cryo facility was located. For nearly the past hour the octarians seemed to have the defectors on the ropes with a reporting of the major's forces pushing all the way through the defector's defenses and reaching the outer perimeter of the facility but things took a turn for the worse. The octarians were badly decimated at the entrance of the facility yard as radio traffic confirmed. "Command Octozeppelin, push toward the facility and level the area with an ink barrage," commanded the major over the comms network.

Can you confirm defectors have been neutralized," asked the comms officer to the major after a moment, waiting for the ink cannons to fire upon the defectors' positions.

"I'm not tracking movement; I can confirm that the defectors have been dealt with. Dispatching octoling units to secure the area,"

"Looks as if victory is assured major,"

"Seems like it. Once the site has been secured, we will begin a sweep and infiltrate the inner..." the major started to say but then she heard screaming followed by a splatting noise. "What the...get me eyes on," said the major. She looked down and saw the defectors were still alive. "How the shell did they..."

"Major what is it?" asked the comms officer over the radio.

"That's a negative on the defectors. I'm requesting another squad of octolings to dispatch to the site at once..." she said as she saw a large object drop down off the octozeppelin, seeing it was the octo-samurai. "Oh, now he feels like intervening... fat blob of ink. It's hard to believe he was a proud warrior of the octarian army. Guess, Spectra or the general were gullible enough to utilize him, even though he went through sanitization. What's he going to do, sit on the defectors," scoffed the major.

"Um, Major you do realize you're hot keying," the comms officer pointed out as the major paused with a blush.

"Disregard what I said...not a word to Spectra what I just..."

"Too late major, once you've returned to base I want a word with you and don't think I'll be so gullible as you put it," said the colonel as the major smacked herself in the face with the microphone.

As Spectra stepped away from the comms controls, the staff felt a little awkward and kept quiet. "Keep monitoring your stations and another thing. I want an update on the flying object from Dome 7A. I want a recon team deployed in that area pronto and I also haven't heard chatter from the battalion at the shantytown,"

"Something's been jamming the signal from that area, and we also picked up high frequency radio waves that our equipment could barely catch. The source can't be from any octarian forces and it's emitting somewhere near Dome 7A where the unidentified flying object was spotted,"

"This UFO as we're calling it, I'm predicting is headed for source of these radio waves. It's a strange coincidence that after our altercations with the salmonids, they have been acting strangely, their sightings and activity in their territory has reduced, dealings with them has also came to a grinding halt," pointed out Spectra.

"What are deducting colonel?"

"I think they are planning something and may pose a threat to us,"

"Salmonids usually never leave their habitat. I don't know what would cause them to alter their behavior patterns, those ugly fish aren't exactly bright,"

"No...but they are numerous. We can't have them jeopardize are plans to take the surface. I wanna investigation underway starting with everything that's been going on in dome 7A. Somethings not right. There's too many anomalies going on at once," said Spectra before she left the command center.

"OK, she's gone...so what were talking about again," asked a private.

"Those fresh clothes the inklings wear. Why don't we ever wear stuff like that when we're off duty,"

"What about the food, the rations they issue us suck. I think they just scrap together whatever they find down here. I swear the canned seaweed is getting nastier and nastier. Not even a good bottle of kelp ale will kill that taste,"

"I could care less about the flashy clothes and the mediocre food they probably serve up there. What about those inkling males...d...don't get me wrong, I know there squids, but I think they're kinda cute compared to our males which there isn't a lot of,"

"Squid-lover!"

"What! I wouldn't think of...I was just giving an opinion, oh shut your beak!"

"Enough of the bull shrimpin'. Get back to your stations. All of you," the comms officer got on to them as they grumbled and muttered under their breath. "Moan and groan all you want but things aren't gonna get done themselves. Talk like that will get thrown in the stockades,"

As the comms officer sat down in front of her station. Two octolings were whispering to each other before one of them giggled. The comms officer threw her fist down on the counter and sharply turned to the two octolings. "Is there something you need to share?" she asked them.

"N...no...ma'am,"

"Didn't think so. Just keep your minds on your stations and stow that talk about the surface life. Let me remind you the squids are our enemies and anything of theirs including their lifestyle poses a threat to octarian society and our way of life. Turf wars, being fresh... all useless garbage..."

"I'll tell you the way of living down here is garbage," one of the regulars muttered under her breath.

"What was that,"

"Nothing, we'll keep our ears on the comms network,"

She growled for a moment and turned her attention back to the console. "If you don't stop, you're gonna get us in trouble," said one of the regulars.

"Relax...they don't suspect a thing and the less conspicuous we make ourselves the better. If acting like a pair of half-witted grunts helps us hide our identities then so be it,"

The comms officer caught wind of what they said but decided to act as if she had heard noting and let the two walk into their own trap, seeing what they might have been planning as she kept an eye on her station, assuming they could've been defector spies.

Deep inside the octarian prison, A splatter of ink could be seen covering the wall of a cell. An N-Zap was lying on the floor and what was sitting on the bed, propped on the wall was an octoling...lieutenant Nova. She was supposed to shoot herself out of dignity as per the request of Spectra for failing her goal to catch the human, Seth and instead had retreated, gotten her squad killed and had to live with the dishonor that Mirage left on her.

The elite's face was absent of any sense of guilt, anger or sadness. Very much blank like it was before she pulled the trigger and missed at the last second, pulling her arm away and striking the wall beside her with the ink. As the octoling stared lifelessly at the door a figure appeared and sat beside her on the bed. The figure looked just like her, waving her hand in front of Nova's face to get her attention.

"I guess we're more broken than I thought," said the hallucination. Then Nova's eyes slightly widened, she slowly turned her head to a figure, looking much like her sitting beside the bed, giving a smirk to the dumbfounded elite. "Like looking into a mirror isn't it, except your reflection is talking to you," the hallucination told her.

Nova screamed and stumbled back off the bed. "W...w...who are you? W...why do you look like me?" she asked still in bewilderment.

"Hm, how to explain this...you've developed a split personality disorder. Before you pulled the trigger your brain shut off. You couldn't cope with the duress of the situation but that command Spectra gave you was still being programmed. You saw it as a way out but thankfully I moved your arm and saved us both. Now that you've came to your senses you can see me or should I say a manifestation of your former self,"

"Huh, t...that makes no sense! You can't be me or should I say the former me. I'm me and you're nothing but a hallucination caused by this overwhelmed stress and why didn't you let me die. I had nothing left to live for! Everything I stood for, my honor my dignity was stripped away from me!" she yelled, covering her face to hide her anguish.

Gritting her teeth and narrowing her eyes at Nova. The hallucination got up and approached the elite starkly. "You should be thanking me! but no...you would rather woller in your failures. You gave me no choice but to break away from your conscious and now I'm here, maybe not physically but mentally...so get your ass together!" she snapped at Nova, slapping her in the face.

"I thought you were in my head! Why did that hurt me?" asked Nova who rubbed her face.

"I'm a part of you. Physical stimuli...so it would be like slapping yourself,"

"I get it...but why are you here? To help me... I'm still sitting in this damn cell with no hope of being out. Why do you think I pointed that gun at my head!"

The hallucination slapped her again. "You better quit hitting me!" Nova growled at her.

"Or what...you gonna slap me too. Good luck...like slapping air,"

"octo winch,"

"I'm you...so you calling yourself that,"

"Shut up!"

"Seems you've become your more irrational and emotional persona. While that makes me the calculated and malicious persona. So that means you better listen to what I say,"

"Why should I?"

"Because I'm gonna get us out of here that's why. I'm not staying couped up another minute in this cod forsaken place to be kept company by my lesser self,"

"Lesser! I'm just as smart and coordinated as you are,"

"How about less bickering and more focusing... now here's what we do," she told her as she whispered in Nova's ear.

During this, inside Scarlet's office, she had requested Silas to be brought in. He was sitting down in front of the general's desk as she turned around in her seat and gazed at him. The room was large, her desk facing away from the octarian sigil mounted on the wall. Two of her royal guards each beside her with octo shots in their hands. Males wearing a dark red one piece with neo-octarian armor and goggles. He gulped trying hard to not look at the general so nervously, wondering why he had been brought in to see her. Was it something to do with Donovan's outburst back at the meeting or the fact that he was released from confinement to make a proposition with her and the colonel without consorting them about the issue prior. It couldn't have been good whatever it was.

"Silas...you're head of research. Is there anything you can tell about human biology," she asked him which caught him unexpectedly. Somewhat relived, but at the same time curious about the topic that Scarlet would bring it up.

"Well they have a skeletal system unlike us. Other than that we have similarities though humans can't change their biological make up like us. Why are you bringing this up my general?"

"Thousands of years as we all know, humans were the dominating species of the planet. They were revered as highly intelligent and adaptive but unfortunately they went extinct. They left what knowledge they could pass on through the AI Tartar, that thing that turned our troops into sanitized submissive subjects. Tartar, from the reports, denied our race as well as the inklings this vast knowledge because it said we were...unworthy, seeing us an inferior lifeform. Tartar was created by humans, specifically this professor it mentioned before it shut down...but like Tartar, I believe both octarians and inklings are products that was unintentionally created by humans if not predecessors of humans themselves,"

"My general, I know what you're thinking and I have to say there's nothing supporting your claim...humans are well, different to put in the simplest of terms. We have nothing in common with them. I can't see a connection between our species and them,"

"I assume you've collected DNA from that human or what was human that was taken from the facility the defectors have turned into a base,"

"Of course, we've stored samples in this case," said Silas as he pulled out a metal briefcase before opening it, revealing a vial of a blood sample from Donovan. Scarlet grabbed it and examined as she looked at the blood. "Humans don't produce ink, am I correct," she told Silas as she held the sample.

"Humans don't derive from cephalopods so it would only be logical they wouldn't but like our ink they must produce fluid vital to their bodies. Humans do have muscular systems and organs like us. Though the viscosity of this red fluid is much thinner than our ink, upon testing when mixed with an ink sample at first, the two keep separated like oil and water but over time the ink consumed this red fluid from the human. Our data from the computer shows the cells in this red fluid and that of the octarian ink have merged, the cells assimilating into one another conjoining which has baffled me. No one on the research team can explain this, not even me," said Silas.

"Keep running tests... I know there's a link between us and the humans, I'm sure of it Silas," she told him as she placed the sample back on the desk and stood up. "One more thing before I send you away...what about the goggles. Spectra informed me that commandos were successful of implimenting a human with the octo goggles,"

"A video feed, showed the subject had successfully been under the influence of the octo goggles giving little resistance at first but eventually submitting to the effects of the hypnowaves. I would say the set frequency waves to effect the brain is where it needs to be but unfortunately upon further observation, an inkling, possibly a squidbeak agent interfered and with coaxing, she managed to break the human's influence so there is still a drawback,"

"Squidbeak agent? What did she look like?"

"Green long tentacles, a female with..."

"It was agent 3, wasn't it... the same one that defeated my grandfather over 2 years ago," squeezing her fist and continuing her rambling. "She has been nothing but a blight to our goals of conquering the surface and restoring power to the octarian race. I wanna see that she's dealt with and that I put an end to her, unlike Octavio. As for these drawbacks...see that there are fixed!... you're dismissed Silas," she told him as she waved her hand for him to leave and turn away.

"Yes...my general," he told her as he grabbed the blood sample off of her desk and placed it back in the case. He got up out of his chair and made his way out of her large office. "Silas...I want results...favorable results...The human the commandos controlled for a momentarily amount of time has peaked my interest. A suitable candidate for something else," she said as he was walking out with her back turned.

He turned and looked raising an eyebrow. "Suitable canidate? For?" he responded.

"For now...it's disclosed until his capture. That's all you need to now," giving him a quick look before turning away again.

Silas wasn't sure what the general had in store for Seth and why she would be hiding it. He didn't dare pry but headed back to the lab where he instructed the research team to work on collecting more data from the human sample. Once he had returned back to the labs, he was approached by Eve, one of his assistants, she had a stunned look on her face. "S...Silas! Come quick! We've discovered something you're gonna one to look at," she said to him as she grabbed his hand.

"Woah, why the urgency?" he asked before he was pulled toward her workstation. She guided him in front of her computer terminal as other researchers were standing around, staring at the screen. "Look, Silas... the DNA codes..."

"They're...similar, how could this be? Did you check for errors," he asked the female researcher.

"Multiple times, Silas... I even reset it. You know what this means?"

"It means... Scarlet was right," said Silas as he saw the diagrams of two DNA codes. One human and the other an octarian's. They were similar but some of the genetic makeup was different, this was in contrast of what the scientists were expecting. They were astounded by this finding but what would this bring about, the sunken sea scrolls as well as the octarian historic archives say that both octarians and inklings derived from their primitive ancestors, squid and octopi that altered and adapted to inhabit the emerged dry land from out of the ocean. "Scarlet wasn't the only one who thought octarians and inklings came from humans. Marina Ida did as well," said Silas.

"She was a protege, one of the smartest octolings in the army. She was an engineer and she spent time researching human fossils. Like Scarlet she grew a fascination with humans but I didn't think she of all people would've thought we came from humans," said Eve.

"She did...and kept it a secret, fearing Octavio and others would expel her from the human research program because of her obsession with the human race. Unfortunately though, as intelligent as she was she was influenced by the calamari inkantation and left the valley for the surface like many others. It's a shame she never finished her research on humans, we would've already had a breakthrough by now," said Silas.

"So we can conclude that octarians and possibly inklings derived from humans. This would mean all of our historic records are wrong about our origins," said Eve.

"Let's not jump ahead of ourselves. There are still pieces missing in this puzzle and I bet we'll get more answers from that facility the defectors are occupying or possibly the data that Marina took with her to the surface,"

"Well, the octarian army is supposed to seize that facility. I say once they do we make arrangements to go there once the defectors have been defeated if Scarlet will allow it,"

"I'll see if I can talk it over with her, in the meantime, we'll continue our research to satisfy her but no mention of the DNA,"

"Why? Isn't that what she's expecting,"

"We'll bide time and come up with something else. Something to keep her contended and off our backs,"

"I miss Marcus...I hope he's doing well and not going crazy in some dark cell," said Eve sadly.

"I miss him too...I would hand over everything to see his release but for now, we need to keep this a secret for the time being. Marcus will just have to hold on," said Silas as he hugged Eve.

After Silas had left her office. She had asked her guards to step out for the moment and guard the outside of the door. Following her orders, they left as she sat back down and pulled out what appeared to be a journal with the Kamabo logo on it. The book was recovered from the NILS statue after Tartar was defeated. The octarians took it upon themselves to recover their people who were under the influence of sanitization and salvage the technology left behind. As she opened it, the writing inside of it wasn't in octarian but English, some of it faded or unreadable. They were logs, detailing experimentations on human subjects with some kind of serum. Much of it didn't make sense until Tartar's name was brought up. Tartar was an AI, an entity that sanitized the octarian army and nearly brought an end to their world. Tartar, or what was left of it was recovered and brought back to octo base for study. She knew the humans created Tartar but for what purpose...until she kept reading.

Tartar was initially supposed to ensure the reemergence of humanity and to pass on knowledge to the generation that would be resettling the Earth to start civilization all over again, but something had happened as the writer pointed out. Turning the page, much of the print was unreadable and parts of the pages were torn out. Flipping to another page it appeared this professor as the writer referred to themselves, saw the dangers Tartar posed to humanity. The writer goes on to say they're health is diminishing and regrets everything they've done with the creation of the X-25 serum, Tartar and the cryostasis project. It is unclear whatever happened to this professor, but it can be assumed he passed away years ago.

Scarlet sees a small photo behind the last page, revealing the professor and a large cat giving a peace sign in front of the camera. "Wonder if this is the human that wrote everything down in this book. So... he created Tartar to ensure that the humans would reemerge and why he regretted creating that hunk of junk," said Scarlet. Unknown to many people, she can read and write in human English and even knows how to speak human language.

A knock was heard at the door before Scarlet quickly put the photo back inside the book and threw it in her draw. "Come in," she commanded. In walked Spectra, her second-in-command. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything," she told Scarlet.

"You didn't, what brings you to my office?"

"I wish to inform you that as of now, the octarian assault troops are engaging with the defectors. Victory will be assured my general,"

"Good...once those degenerates are crushed, they are to occupy the area and ensure none of the human subjects are harmed,"

"Of course,"

"You don't seem concerned,"

"Because I'm not... using those humans to take over the surface. I'll be dipped in ink before I even consider fighting alongside those...fossils. My only goal is to deal with those traitors once and for all, preferably captured because I know there are more defector cells out there that we haven't caught yet and I wouldn't put it past them to have spies among us,"

"Yes, I'm well aware of the threat those defectors pose but I want accountability for the humans. We cannot afford collateral damage and I would prefer the combat to stay out of the facility and away from it if possible,"

"General, I wanna remind you that the squidbeak have gotten involved, the commandos are MIA and the defectors have a human fighting alongside them. We have to use discression available to ensure a win... if we don't, we won't be able to capture the facility. Things have now gotten...complicated,"

"Do what you must but remember... I want no harm to come to the humans, meaning the one fighting with the defectors,"

"Do what... if he poses a threat to..."

"I didn't say not to subdue him... I want this human kept alive, understand,"

"Yes, general," said Spectra as she started to walk out. "Tell the guards to come back in," she told Spectra as she gave a nod. Disgruntled with Scarlet, the elite stormed off and headed back to octo command to check on the progress of the battle as the guards reentered the office.

The sound of footsteps echoed down the corridor leading to Nova's cell. A group of guards were sent to check on Nova and see if she had shot herself as intended by Spectra. One of guards opened the small window and looked inside, he saw the lieutenant's body was missing, leaving an ink splatter on the wall made by the N-Zap laying on the floor. The octoling unlocked the door and the guards stormed in wondering where Nova was.

Nova hid against the wall in her octopus form and jumped one of the guards, knocking them to ground and then grabbing the other and throwing her to the wall. With both guards incapacitated, she retrieved one of their octo shots and made her way out of the cell. "Now to make my escape," she muttered to herself. "We'll see how far you go," said her other self.

"Shut up," Nova remarked as she rushed down the corridor but then two more guards walked through the exit and saw her.

"Halt!" they shouted as one held up their octoshot. Nova octo formed as the other guard tried to swing her octobrush down her. Nova narrowly avoided it and changed forms, kicking the octobrush guard down and then turning her attention to the other guard, shooting her with the octoshot she grabbed knocking her back.

Outside of the prison, an octosniper spotted her and raised the alarm. Now scrambling to hide, Nova octo formed and swam out of sight, desperate for a way out of the prison. On the far side was a depot where the octarian saucers were parked and worked on. Making it the fastest escape away from the prison, given she didn't get caught, being it was on the other side of the complex.

"Find that octopus!" An octoling barked at a group of octarians. Being compliant, they dispersed to hunt down for the runaway prisoner as Nova watched in hiding. She waited for the octotrooper to get closer and stuck to his scooter as he rode past her. Once it made it closer to the depot, Nova hoped off and scurried toward the gate, seeing octotrooper guards. "Dopey tentacles, now what?" Nova said to herself.

"It wouldn't be hard dealing with those stupid troopers," said her other self.

"What do you suppose I do then?"

"Use your imagination, you've made it this far,"

Nova growled and gave a deep sigh. She changed form and swam toward the troopers. As she got closer, the troopers covered the ground with their ink to slow her down but being octarian ink she swam in it and hoped out relinquishing one trooper, taking its body and throwing it at the other. Now was her chance to hijack a saucer and vacate the area before more guards showed up.

Heading to the nearest operable craft, she hopped in it and started it up. "Hey you! Get out of there!" ordered an octoling who aimed her weapon at Nova. Ignoring her, a second octoling guard jumped on the saucer and tried to subdue the elite but she punched her and threw her off the saucer. The guard with the octoshot tried shooting at Nova but the saucer ascended, and Nova got out of her range and propelled away, not knowing the saucer she was operating was being worked on and wasn't fixed. As 5 minutes passed, the UFO started to fluctuate and jerk about as the boosters were cutting out.

"No, no, no! Stay up you piece of crap!" she shouted as she banged on the console. Soon the saucer descended as Nova panicked and screamed before the craft crashed to the ground and Nova was thrown off the UFO. Laying on her stomach, she attempted to get up but collapsed and laid there to get her bearings, only for a figure to appear before her as she looked up and saw herself yet again.

"I see you made it in one piece," said the hallucination that looked like her.

"What do you want now?" Laying there, giving her other self a look of disgust.

"Still ungrateful I see," the persona said as she walked away.

"Where are you going?"

"I can't really go anywhere can I, if I'm you,"

"Smart ass,"

"I am the smart one aren't I,"

"Hold up...it was you wasn't it,"

"What are talking about now?" The hallucination turning her head and looking back at Nova.

"Before I nearly shot myself back in that prison cell...it was you wasn't it. That hallucination of Mirage...It was you!"

"You've finally figured that out all this time. You caught on quicker than I expected,"

"Why did you do that to me? You humiliated me in front of Spectra!"

"I needed to get your attention. I couldn't stand seeing you or should I say me, in such a pathetic shape...So I might have teased you a bit. Get you so fired up I could finally come out of this shell," she said to the disgruntled elite as she crossed her arms and gave Nova a smug look.

"How did you come to be...why haven't I seen you before now,"

"Like I said, it's sort of like a split personality disorder. It's got something to do with the subliminal programming from the octo goggles. If we fight the influence of the hypnowaves this could happen. You're submissive reasoning versus free will. This is the repercussions of it. A lot of it depends on the state of the person's mind. You became unstable so your brain shut off but divided our personality to try and balance ourselves but instead... one is trying to dominate over the other... you're broken in other words," The hallucination tried to explain but left Nova confused if not dumbfounded.

"Broken," she replied in a perplexed expression.

"You admitted it to Spectra that Mirage broke you...maybe if she were out of the picture, we would be fixed but then again there's no guarantee. We could be stuck like this for the rest of our lives,"

"Then we find Mirage and make her suffer,"

"How do you suppose we get to her?"

"I... we...umm..." Nova couldn't contemplate an answer to that.

"(deep sigh) Yet again I guess it's up to me find a solution,"

"I'm not an idiot! I just can't think right now,"

"You've had that problem for a while...guess that's why Mirage is still alive, and you ended up in prison,"

"How about you just ink off,"

"That would be impossible. I'm you remember...like telling your shadow to take a hike,"

"Fine then, what's the plan,"

"Oh you're not gonna even try to think of one,"

"Me or not, you're starting to get under my tentacles. Almost as much as Mirage,"

"Oh, you're gonna make me ink myself,"

"That's it!" shouted Nova angrily as she tried to tackle the hallucination only to hit the ground instead.

"Yeah, I'm definitely the smart one here,"

"(coughing) Alright, that was dumb of me. Just tell me the plan already," she said as she got up.

"It's simple," answered the persona as she pointed toward a tea kettle just ahead of them.

"Huh...why didn't you just say so!"

"Because I think your IQ keeps declining every minute so I felt that I should just direct you instead. Well, good luck," said the hallcination as she faded away.

"I'll be so glad when you vanish for good,"

"Aw, you're not gonna miss me,"

"As much as I would miss Mirage,"

Nova looked in the kettle. She gave a deep breath and octo formed before hopping in it. The kettle boiled and shot the black octopus into the next dome or wherever the tube ended up at.

Back at the police station...

Ash and Jet's eyes were locked on to a figure standing beside Flash. Their mouths were open as they were speechless to see a human, a living human among them. Amazed, confused and a little fearful as Flash explained Levi's presence and all the events that took place back at the rocket site where they fought the human soldiers and escaped the octoling squad that tried to capture Levi.

"A HUMAN!" the two agents shouted in unison.

"Cool, right...his name's Levi," said Flash.

"Nice to um, meet you two," Levi said awkwardly.

"You can speak our language!" Ash and Jet exclaimed in unison.

"Well, my armlink deciphered your language. When I met Sam and Flash, I didn't. Guess you can say we got lost in translation. They explained to me what they were, it's so unreal that you creatures exist, no one back home would ever believe this,"

"Home? So, where'd you come from? We've never seen a human before besides the fossil back at the Shellendorf Institute," asked Ash.

"Yeah, your friend said that humans died out years ago. Well, I hate to break it to you, but we haven't or at least not yet," Levi told her.

"So there's more humans...and what do you mean not yet? Is your species in danger?" asked Jet.

"It's hard to explain, you see, before the seawaters flooded the continents, humanity was embroiled in the resource wars because of the rising oceans. We were battling over what resources were left and territory. With no end of the wars in sight, coalitions formed, and the ending result was nuclear annihilation. No one came out a winner and it only escalated the flooding process. Mankind would've went extinct if it weren't for Kamabo," he explained to the inklings.

"How you talked, I thought you despised Kamabo," said Flash.

"I do... Kamabo may have helped preserve humanity but at a cost. Our freedom. Kamabo corrupted the minds of the remaining population. Establishing a hierarchy and creating a despotic militarized system to keep everyone in line. As time grew on, generation after generation were assimilated to be loyal to kamabo and it's so-called government. A man named Blackwell and what's left of the defense front from before the climax of the wars turned some of the humans into mindless obedient subjects and soldiers, the ones we fought back at that station,"

"Yeah, you said you escaped because of that thing you had," said Flash.

"You mean the hard drive, yes. Kamabo and the rest of the leadership had succeeded in turning the remnants of humanity into devoted uninformed subjects. No one knows what they are truly doing to them, using the facade of an orderly society and making people believe that people like me and the resistance are nothing, but terrorists bent on tearing apart their so-called fascist utopia and accusing us of what they are doing to my race. They are nothing but evil tyrants bent on establishing a one world rule and disposing those who refuse to go along with the program. Many of us escaped while others weren't so lucky, only to see that what's left of our world is nothing but barren waste and ruins that mankind created in the first place,"

"You mean to tell us humans... made themselves go extinct and contributed to the great flood from years ago, it was because of the rising tides that inklings and octarians fought in the great turf war. We didn't know exactly how humans died off like they did but hearing this. I'm not so sure if it's a good things humans are still around," criticized Jet.

"Jet, don't say that. Just because his species nearly wiped itself off the face of planet doesn't mean Levi's a bad person. It sounds like he's been through enough as it is," defended Ash.

"You're not gonna sympathize with this guy are you. You heard what he said and now there's more. What's to say this kamabo whatever doesn't come here. He brought those zombified soldiers here when he escaped, and Sam and Flash had to deal with them. They sound like a bigger threat than the octarians Ash,"

"Lay off Jet... yeah he's a human but he wouldn't deliberately put us danger like this. He said so himself and he even tried to persuade me and Sam from sticking around to battle those creeps. I honestly can't believe this is coming out of my mouth but... I trust the dude," said Flash.

"Trust huh, I saw where that got us. Which is how we ended up in this dilemma," said Jet.

"You two, quit it!" Ash shouted at them.

"Don't pin this on me," Flash snapped at Jet.

"Why shouldn't I. You're nothing but a blow hard. An ingrate. If I had to choose someone on my team between you and some fresh newbie who couldn't shoot the broadside of an octobomber, I'd pick the newbie," shouted down Jet as Flash didn't retaliate but downed his head and sulked, hurt by what Jet actually thought about him.

"That's enough Jet!" scolded Ash who pulled him away. "We're agents...is this how we should be treating each other. Agent 3 is counting on us,"

"Agent 3 isn't here and she's certainly not dealing with the salmonids and a arrogant, hot shot squid is she. We should've never become agents and now we're stranded here. We'll probably never gonna get home or see our families again and you need to quit defending Flash,"

"We're not stranded. Me, Sam and Flash flew here... if you guys are trying to leave this place then I have the means to do so," said Levi.

"Flew here?"

"A human aircraft called a V-22. We commandeered it. It's what transported those soldiers down here,"

"So, you can get us back to Inkopolis or at least out of octarian territory,"

"I can, depending on the fuel level. I don't know how far Inkopolis is. I'm guessing that's the city you inklings come from,"

"It's our home, yes... if you would please," said Ash.

At the time Flash introduced Levi a couple of minutes ago, the octolings on the other side of the room couldn't believe their eyes either and heard what happened at the station Levi and inklings left from. They gazed at Levi and pondered how a human could be alive and a great asset he could be for Scarlet and their plans to take control of the surface. The octolings looked at each and gathered around. "Can you believe this, a real human. The general has been so anxious to bring them back, this may be our opportunity," said the sergeant.

"But what about the squids. They'll know we're up to something, you heard that squidbeak agent said about splatting a squad of octolings before they got back here," said the corporal.

"Relax... an opportunity will come along. It's just a matter of time until they let their guard down,"

"Does anyone else think that human is cute," said the private as the corporal and sergeant gave her an estranged look. "What? I'm just sayin'"

The sergeant facepalmed and shook her head with displeasure. "Um, did you forget we're unarmed. What good will it do to get the drop on those inklings," pointed out the corporal.

The sergeant thought about what she said. They didn't see any weapons inside the police station and the inklings warned them about getting out of sight. Then they overheard Levi talking about the V-22. The aircraft they got back in.

"Did you hear him. That human said they got here by some flying machine. I say we trick them into thinking we know a shortcut out of octo canyon and direct them deeper into our territory. There's a base not far from here, the training grounds and I bet they got an armory. Which means weapons," said the sergeant as she rubbed her hands together.

"What if that place is occupied. They'll shoot us down once they see us," the corporal put in.

"That's the chance I'm willing to take. If the training grounds isn't being manned, we'll give them a reason to land there,"

"I'm not so sure about this,"

"Well do you got any bright ideas?"

"Alright, I don't like taking risks but in the situation we're in. What do we got to lose,"

"It's settled then. We just gotta persuade that human to head in the direction of the training grounds without arousing suspicion,"

The trio of octolings looked over and saw Flash and Jet arguing, then the female agent with the purple tentacles got between them before she asked Levi to consider taking them back to Inkopolis. Afterward as he nodded to her, his armlink, the large wristband with the screen on it started beeping. He walked off, leaving the inklings wondering why Levi had to go but then started debating again.

"This may be our chance. We need to talk to the human before they decide to leave," said the sergeant.

"So, whose gonna talk to him?" asked the corporal.

"Oh, oh, me. I'll see if I can get us to the training grounds," volunteered the private.

"You? (sigh) Fine, but don't screw this up private," said the sergeant sternly.

"You're seriously sending her," replied the corporal as the private walked away.

"Why? Surely, she can't botch a simple job insisting the human get us to the training grounds,"

"After calling him a cutie," she told the sergeant as she crossed her arms and gave her a critizcizing expression.

"Oh squid, I might have been the one that screwed up,"

Levi was staring at the screen of his armlink. It seemed a message was sent to it. Opening it, he saw it was a video. On it was another human, a young female with long brunette hair staring at him. "Is this recording... Levi, if you're getting this message, I hope you're doing ok. I know you didn't wanna leave but it was for your own good. We've entrusted you with the hard drive but unfortunately much of the data we recovered on it has been encrypted by a security failsafe. Please find a way of decoding the data, we think the hypocenters or any other Kamabo facilities may be a way to bypass the system if not contain any other data on the company. If our sources are correct there are many other hypocenters containing cryopods with humans still being held inside. Blackwell and the rest of them are hunting down these hypocenters to assimilate more humans. We can't let him do that. I hope you managed to receive the coordinates we sent you for a underground dome network called Obscura. We believe a hypocenter that was once manned by the military before the resource wars is located there somewhere. Much of the files on these hypocenters had been discarded or relocated to a more secure database so best of luck and may God be with you," the woman said as the video ended.

Levi was standing in what looked like an office while he watched the video. After it had ended, he pulled out his pistol and unloaded the magazine. "I'm on my last mag...as dire as things are looking I gotta keep going. They're counting on me with the data. I didn't have a lot of luck at that station but maybe the hypocenter will...Gah," Levi started to say as the young private was standing at the doorway, surprising Levi.

"Um, can I help you?" he asked her as she stared at him nervously. Then he noticed she wasn't an inkling but an octoling, like the ones that tried to apprehend him when they came out of the rocket site.

"Oh, I uh...never seen a human before," she stammered. Though the girl didn't appear to be threatening he kept his guard up, wondering what she was doing here. He remembered noticing three octolings staying to themselves in the station lobby but didn't ask who they were.

"You're an octarian as the inklings called your species," Levi started the conversation.

"An octoling to be precise but yes...I...I came here to um...tell you something," Her body language confused Levi, the octoling unit at the backlot were more assertive but this octoling was acting skittish for some reason.

"Yeah, what is it? I seen you three staying to yourselves. You think you can try and capture me, you'll be sorely disappointed," he told her.

"We heard your conversation and my sergeant, well... she wanted me to tell you about a shortcut that'll get us back to the surface before we um...disembarked,"

"A shortcut? Why should I trust you?" he said, a little suspicious of her and the octoling could clearly sense it.

"I'm sorry it's just... I'm having a hard time containing my excitement right now. Let's just say your race is highly revered by my people and our leader would love to meet a real living human," she told him, trying to ease his guard on her.

"Should I be flattered? Those four octolings as you called yourself that tried apprehending me and shot at those two inklings didn't feel that way, especially when that one, shoved that ink shooter into my face,"

"I would never do that! I... uh... think you're... c... cute,"

"I beg your pardon," Levi responded as he saw the octoling's face turn beet red to match her short tentacles. The private was obviously embarrassed being in the human's presense and Levi could see this. She tapped her fingers together and tried not to make eye contact with the human. "I'm sorry for coming off like I did but I got a lot on my mind and problems of my own. I'll talk to Sam on what she wants to do once we leave and bring up this shortcut you mentioned," he said as she picked her head and looked at him.

"O...oh, ok," she said meekly.

Levi stepped over to the private, which made her unnerved as she quivered. He kneeled down as to look less intimidating being he was taller than her, though her frame was broader than his, not to mention more muscular compared to him. "You don't mind if I ask your name, since I'm feeling bad for the attitude. My name's Levi by the way," he told her.

"I...I...I'm...p...private..." she stuttered, losing the courage to finish what she wanted to say.

"Private? as in rank?... you guys part of a military?"

"T...The octarian army. I'm a recruit...I just started,"

"Well how about we skip the names then,"

("Oh, my cod, is this human... trying to ask me out. I've never dated anyone before. What should I say? He's being so nice to me all of a sudden, especially after what happened,") the young private was talking in her head.

"You...ok?" asked Levi who saw the octoling was staring into space.

"Huh, w...what?"

"I was asking if you were, ok? It looked like your brain quit working,"

"I um...this is so much to take in," she said as she covered her cheek with her hand and looked away.

"Look it's alright..." he said as he held his hand out. She turned and looked, as her hearts were beating... cautiously and slowly she grabbed his hand, feeling the urge to faint.

("He is asking me out! OK, ok, get it together,") the private told herself in her mind, but just as she was about to say something to Levi.

"Oh crap...are you bleeding?" Levi asked her, seeing ink run down her leg. Then wondering what he was looking at, she looked down before a shiver ran down her back in pure embarrassment. The private gave a yelp and turned red again before scrambling out of the room. Levi was dumbfounded. What was that all about?

Right after the private rushed out she bumped right into Sam. "Hey, watch it octopus!" the inkling girl told the octoling in annoyance. "S...sorry," the private replied nervously as she headed back to meet up with her two teammates.

"Wonder why she was in such a hurry. You'd swear she'd seen a ghost," said Sam before she entered the room where Levi was hanging around in. "There you are...what was the deal with the octoling?" she asked Levi.

"I honestly don't know. She turned red and panicked when I saw blood running down her leg,"

"Blood? Maybe you mean ink... that is odd. So, what are you doing in here? Flash was wondering where you'd gone,"

"I had a message sent to my armlink from some friends of mine,"

"Friends? You mean other humans,"

"Yeah... I think they're just trying to check up on me. I'm trying to come up with a message to send them back. Not sure how they'll respond when I tell them about you guys,"

"You mentioned about your homeland, somewhere across the ocean. What was it like?" she asked as she plopped on top of a desk.

"Shit," he muttered. Raising an eyebrow, not knowing what the word meant. "Excuse me?" she replied. "Sorry for the language...it's just what popped up in my mind when you asked me that. It's virtually a wasteland outside the underground city. It's not even worth describing," he said.

"I know humans went extinct and you told us how that happened... and I'm sorry for your people," she told him, feeling bad for the rest of the humans back where Levi came from.

"Don't be... we did it to ourselves. It's unrepairable and how I see it, waking up out of cryostasis was no blessing... but you guys, you inklings have now inhabited the earth and the way you mentioned about Inkopolis and your society it seems like your people want nothing more to live in peace and go about your daily lives...I envy it a little,"

"Levi, I think there's hope in your race...don't give up. You said you and the resistance as you named yourselves are trying to stop these bad dudes from hurting anymore of your people. They sent you a video, so they must care about you. You left for a reason and that was protecting that drive thingy and stopping Kamabo,"

"Thanks for the motivation... especially coming from you and we just met," he said as he looked over to her. Seeing her confident expression, he smiled.

"You're my friend...and that's what friends do," she told him.

"Friend's a strong word... it makes me think of my friends back home. If I stayed... I would've put everyone I cared about in danger. I don't just consider them friends but my brothers and sisters. They found me...alone...near death and took me in. They trained me and cared for me, and I became a part of the resistance against Kamabo and Blackwell. When you told me about you and Flash being agents if reminded me of the resistance...sort of. Fighting to defend your people from a common enemy... I guess that would be the octopus girls,"

"Yeah...they are our enemy but at times... I don't think they really wanna fight us. They're brainwashed, following orders thinking what they are doing what is right for them but... I think some of them would rather see freedom, what it's like on the surface. Then again... have they even been given a choice,"

"That's like the sanitized humans... they've lost all will... have no memories of who they were only complete submission to their orders... and that's to assimilate or destroy anyone who opposes their narrative,"

"That does sound like the octarians. Seems we have a lot in common, fighting for a cause, though... I really wanted to find my sister Izzy and now I'm here helping these guys, the other agents,"

"We're so worlds apart yet so similar...it's weird really, but I do hope you find your sister,"

"I hope so too...guess I'll let you get back to messaging your friends," she said as she jumped off the desk and made her way to the exit, even though she wanted to tell him how she felt about him.

"Hey...if I get a chance maybe I can see if I can video chat with them," Levi said, getting the inkling's attention before she stepped out.

"Video chat... as in, on a screen," she said as she turned around.

"Sure,"

"That would be neat...I'd love that, to see more humans and I think Flash and the others would too when they get used to you that is," said Sam before she left out of the room.

The inklings were still talking amongst each other in the lobby, discussing what to do next now they could leave without having to deal with the salmonids. Flash spotted Sam coming from one of the other rooms and approached her, grabbing her shoulder. "Hey...everything ok? You look like you got something on your mind," he told her.

"I guess you can say there is but I'm alright. How'd Ash and Jet act seeing Levi?" she asked him.

"Well overwhelmed, to say the least. Jet's suspicious though and Ash seemed to warm up to him. Did you talk to Levi? What's the plan?"

"I don't know yet. I'm guessing you guys are anxious to get out of here,"

"What do you think, I can't wait to get home,"

"I'm staying back and looking for Izzy,"

"At this point, I'm not sure if we'll ever be able to find her. I'd talk to agent..."

"Look, I'm not going back until I find my sister and know she's safe. If you guys wanna bail, then fine. I'm gonna go check on my salmonid. Talk it over with Levi when you squids decide to leave,"

"Sam, you're in over your head. You're not gonna find her," he said to her as she gave him the cold-shoulder.

On the other side of the room, the sergeant and corporal were wanting to know if their planned work. "Alright, what did you say to him?" asked the sergeant.

"I brought up the shortcut as you asked," the private answered.

"And?" the corporal waved.

"H...he said he would talk it over with the inklings,"

"Of course... a minor setback but we could always trick the squids as well, at least you did your part," the sergeant shook her head a little with slight annoyance.

"Why did you hurry back like you did?" asked the corporal curiously.

"I... had a bit of an accident," the private replied meekly.

"Huh?" replied the corporal before the private pointed at her crouch. "Good grief... you were that scared," seeing the ink trail down her leg.

"I wasn't scared... well maybe a little. I couldn't help it. He was so tall and... dreamy," she started to swoon as her cheeks turned red.

The two octolings facepalmed not understanding the private swooning over a human but she did manage to talk to him about getting them to the training grounds. The octolings turned and saw Levi walk past them, returning to the lobby as he approached the inkling agents. "You guys make a decision yet?" he asked them.

"Ash and Jet wanna head back to Inkopolis but...Sam wants to stick around, stubborn squid...but I don't blame her for wanting to find Izzy, so I'm gonna stay too," said Flash.

"Where did Sam go?"

"Went to go check up on the guppy. I swear I don't know what she's thinking keeping that little smallfry around,"

"I guess when she gets back, we'll make our way back to the roof but what about the octopus girls? One of them mentioned something about a shortcut back to the surface before things got awkward,"

"I could care less about them. As far as I'm concerned, they're fish food once we leave,"

"I heard that! You little inkstain!" shouted the octoling sergeant with discontent. She and the other two walked over and faced the inklings and Levi. "If you think I'm staying another minute here you got another coming. You squids wouldn't being able to navigate through octo canyon without our help," she continued on before looking up at Levi. "Human, take us with you. I can divert us away from any octarian army units that maybe around patrolling parts of the canyon. What do you say?"

"I wouldn't feel right leaving you three behind but then again, it'll be up to Sam... It's not my call and the name's Levi," he told them.

"Lil' Buddy is starting to come around. I'm ready to go when you guys are," said Sam as she was holding the little salmonid. Then she saw the octolings talking to Levi. "Hey, Sam. They wanna come too," said Levi.

"Yeah, squid. We're not sticking around to take our chances with the salmonids. Might I suggest we come along. I know the best route back to the surface unless you inklings wanna run into my kin trying to hunt for the exit,"

"(deep sigh) Alright, we'll take you with us but no funny business, got it,"

"You have my word," the sergeant said hold her hand up with the other arm behind her, crossing her fingers as sh gave a devious smile.

"So did you guys decide what to do?" asked Seth.

"Me and Jet wanna head back to Inkopolis," asnwered Ash.

"Yeah, I'm sick of this agent stuff. I'm not risking my tentacles staying down here any longer," said Jet.

"I'm not gonna force you guys to stick around. Levi can drop you off outside the city but I'm coming back to find my sister,"

"That goes double for me, if you're staying then I am. You're gonna need help tracking down my girlfriend,"

"Yeah, I'm really gonna enjoy your company...look just go back with Jet and Ash. I got this,"

"Listen here, lone squid who thinks she can take on the octarians by herself. You're gonna need someone to watch your tentacles. I care about Izzy as much as you do and you're not going anywhere without me,"

"What, so you can screw things up for the both of us,"

"You're so... shallow! I can't believe your Izzy's sister. What's your problem anyway?"

"My problem is that I had to come all the way here from Splatsville to visit my sister, only to find out she got squidnapped and if things couldn't get any better. I get sent down here to rescue some inklings and one with their persistent complaining who can't keep their big beak shut for a second. Yeah, my time here has been all but pleasant, now you know why I'm shallow as you put it,"

"I...didn't know you felt that way,"

"You asked and you got your answer,"

Ash and Jet felt a little hurt by Sam and walked away to the roof access as well as Flash following them, saddened by Sam's rhetoric. Levi stayed quiet, it wasn't an issue he wanted to get involved as the octolings paid no mind to it as indifferent as they were with the inklings and their internal issues. "We should go ahead and leave," Sam told Levi before she left herself.

"Inklings... they can be so dramatic," popped off the sergeant. Levi paid no mind to the octolings comment as she walked past him along with the corporal as she muttered to herself "Fossil,". Though the private paused for a moment and gave a glance at him as she rubbed her arm. "T...Thank you," she said with a shy voice before slipping behind her two squadmates.

Outside on the rooftop, the agents were waiting for Levi as they watch the octolings come out and soon Levi came out behind them. "Didn't wanna stay and become fish food for the salmonids?" said Sam once the octolings approached the aircraft.

"Smug little squid," the sergeant muttered.

"I guess we could let you come since you've been on your best behavior,"

"Hmpf, your tempting me squid...but that time will come,"

The octolings boarded the V-22 though they were astounded by it. It was sort of like their octoseekers but much bigger and roomier.

"We ready? Because I am," said Jet impatiently. Levi went inside as the rest of them followed inside the aircraft, but as they did, Flash turned around and spotted a small aerial object hovering over the edge of the roof, watching them. "Hey! Sheldon's back!" Flash shouted.

"Huh," replied Sam but as she ran over, she looked at the drone and knew it wasn't Sheldon. "Um, Levi...what's that?" she asked him. Before he got in the cockpit he saw it. "Oh, shit. That's a recon drone!" he shouted.

The drone moved in as Levi pulled out his pistol and started shooting at it. A direct hit and the quad-rotor descended and crashed on the ground below but then another appeared and used it's turret on the bottom of it to shoot back at Levi. The agents squid formed to evade the gunfire as Levi pressed the button to make the ramp close but was struck in the shoulder by a bullet.

"Levi! You're hit!" Sam fretted over Levi getting shot by the drone.

"Just grazed, I'll be alright. Just fasten yourselves and I'll get us out of here,"

"Drones? Who sent them?" asked Flash.

"Blackwell's task force, the soldiers we fought back at the station. That means there here,"

"Soldiers?" replied Jet.

"I'll explain later. Hold on!" Levi pulled up on the flight controls and flew the V-22 away in an attempt to vacate the area but below, the soldiers had already converged on the police but thankfully, just in the nick of time as it seemed Levi and his passengers escaped...or so they thought.

10 minutes ago, after the unit that was sent in to retrieve Levi and the flash drive, a call was made out about the whereabouts of Levi. One contingent was deployed to the location after not hearing back from the first team, once the second team had been dispatched and killed by the inklings and Levi, it was assumed once they had lost contact, drastic measures would be taken place. The V-22 that Levi took with the agents was tracked down to the shantytown where a platoon of the sanitized soldiers would assault the police station to capture Levi and deal with any other necessary threats. The soldiers were better trained and part of the shock troops of Kamabo. Wearing gear, camo and better equipped. These soldiers wore goggles on their faces called a combat HUD, which looks like VR googles but three sets of lens were built in the left side of the goggles, assuming these are cameras, probably for different modes, like NV and IR. Headsets covered their ears, ballistic helmets covered their heads and a skull mask covered their mouth along with a mic. (Think about the ghosts from the call of duty games)

Upon entering the town and using drones to recon the area, they spotted the stolen V-22 sitting on the roof of a building but didn't expect the sight of the salmonids. Seeing the fish as more of a pestilence they advanced and fought the salmonids, underestimating them with their numbers and endurance against their weaponry, making them a challenge to kill with firearms, though do-able. "Sir! The V-22 is leaving with the target onboard!" shouted one soldier.

"Bring them down!" the commander ordered.

"Affirmative," they replied as another soldier armed with a Carl Gustav M4 got into position and aimed the missile launcher at Levi's V-22. "Oh shit!" Levi shouted as he spotted the missile and banked the V-22 to not get struck by it, the missile nearly colliding with the tail of the V-22. The inklings and octolings were doing their best to not get knocked out of their seats.

Thinking they were home free, Levi spotted an enemy V-22 intercepting with him, flying past his craft and steering around to pursue him. "Dammit, we're not get away with that thing chasing us. This thing's gotta have a weapon system or something," said Levi as he looked around the console. Then the pursuing V-22's belly opened, revealing a minigun turret underneath it. They opened fire on Levi's V-22 as bullets flew through the fuselage, the inklings and octolings were panicking, some of them squid forming and octoforming underneath their seats in hopes of not getting it.

Flash ran for the cockpit. "Dude! Do something! I don't wanna end up being turned into sushi!"

"What do you think I'm doing!" Levi shouted back. He looked over to the co-pilot's seat and saw what looked like a screen and joystick. "Hey, that might be a targeting system for a weapon. Flash hop in that seat," he told him as the inkling sat down.

"I don't know how to use this thing," said Flash. Levi looked over and spotted the power button. When he told Flash to press it, the screen lit up and on it said: Weapon system activated. The screen turned to crosshairs and underneath their V-22 a minigun popped out. Flash could see the outside of the V-22 with the town below. "Woah, this is cool," he said.

"Use the joystick to control the turret," Levi told him.

"Oh, ok," the inkling said. Grabbing it and moving the turret around until he spotted the enemy V-22 behind them and getting closer. The enemy V-22 fired again and peppered the back end of their aircraft. "Don't just sit there! Shoot back!"

"Eeeep," Flash replied before lining the crosshairs on the enemy V-22 and pulling the trigger on the joystick. He shot at the enemy aircraft but it maneuvered out of his fire. "I missed," said Flash.

"We're gonna need to work together on this one. I'll fly, you shoot,"

"Got it," as Flash griped the joystick.

Levi steered the V-22 as Flash watched the screen for a clear line of fire. Once the enemy V-22 was in the crosshairs, Flash pulled the trigger but again the enemy evaded it. Levi attempted to thwart the enemy V-22's evasiveness through maneuvering so Flash could hit the aircraft even if it did move. Successfully, Flash struck the enemy V-22 but it wasn't down.

On the ground, the soldiers were still battling the salmonids. They were getting swamped by the fish and had to hurry up and bring down Levi's aircraft before they got away. A chum charged at the unit commander. He pulled out his sidearm and shot the salmonid in the head before it would pounce on him. He turned to one of his guys, carrying a missile launcher. "Find a vantage point so we can fallback!" they ordered. The other soldier giving a blank-faced nod.

Looking for higher ground the missile launcher packing soldier entered one of the buildings in the plaza so they could shoot down Levi's osprey. Another soldier was knocked to the ground by a cohock with its big skillet. Before the hulking fish could slam it down on the soldier he rolled out of the way and shot the big salmonid before it fell down and burst into green sludge.

On the roof of what appeared to be some restaurant, the soldier carrying the missile launcher aimed it at the V-22 in a second attempt to bring down the aircraft. In the air, the two ospreys were exchanging fire. Levi banked the V-22 out of its line of fire as Flash shot down on the enemy craft with the mounted minigun, striking it in one of its rotors. It was enough to cause the enemy VTOL to lose control as the turbine exploded and the aircraft went careening toward the plaza below and right toward the restaurant where the soldier with the missile launcher, jumped off the building before he was smashed.

The enemy aircraft slammed into the ground and slid toward the soldiers and salmonids, chopping some of them up when they couldn't get out of its path before it bulldozed through a building, killing the pilots onboard. The soldiers dispersed and the salmonids retreated out of the town. After a moment the remaining soldiers regrouped and saw their mission was a failure as they watch Levi's V-22 fly away.

"Levi! That was amazing! How'd you learn to fly like that!?" shouted Sam with glee.

"Training...and to think I've never flown something like this before,"

"Do what!...You're just now telling us this!" exclaimed Flash.

"I didn't wanna discourage you guys. It's just...I wanted to earn your trust,"

"And you've earned it. You don't have to impress us. What you've done already and being a human of course. I'd say you're more than fresh,"

"Fresh? Is that a good thing?"

"Fresh means the top of your game, being the coolest squid in the square...or human by your standpoint," explained Jet.

"Speaking of trust...there's also something I want to confess. Those soldiers we just escaped from...I used to be one of them," revealed Levi, causing the Sam and Flash to pause.

"(gasp) But... you don't..." Sam tried to get out.

"Don't look like them...yeah, I was de-sanitized by the scientific team working with the resistance. They used to work for Kamabo...like I did, before my eyes were opened. Guess that's how they knew how to cure the effects of the X-25. For some time, I had no memories of my past and Piper, the women that sent me that video encouraged the resistance to take me under their wing even though I was their enemy. I had to gain trust with them before they could assign me missions. Me and Piper grew attached overtime and well... I guess you can say I've looked up to her as a sister but... maybe things will change and... I'm thinking too far ahead. I gotta focus on locating the hypocenter,"

As Levi explained to the two agents about who he really was. The octolings overhead and their curiosity was peaked. "Did, you hear him. He was soldier, sort of like us but how he talked he was under the influence of sanitation like our troops during the octo expansion incident. Apparently, the humans have a connection with whatever caused our troops to become sanitized and I'm sure the creation of Tartar. This human may be more valuable to us in more ways than one. We have to apprehend him when that time comes," said the sergeant to her squad, keeping her voice down as Ash and Jet looked over at them suspiciously. "What are you squids staring at?" The sergeant asked them gruffly.

"You octopi, don't think I'm not watching you three," said Jet as he looked hard at the octolings.

"It's not polite to stare inkling...look any harder and they might get poked,"

"That supposed to be threat?"

"Don't know why you're getting yourself in a tizzy. We're unarmed, remember,"

"What's your interest in the human? Like I didn't hear part of that conversation,"

"None of your inking business,"

"Ash, I don't trust those octolings. I know now they're planning something. Just keep your eyes on them and don't let them out of your sight,"

As the V-22 vanished, down below back at the shantytown plaza, the soldiers were assessing the wreck, The pilots were dead, and the aircraft was grounded. The salmonids had fled the town and the soldiers lost a few of their men from the crash not counting the pilots. Looking at the smoldering wreck and then back at his unit which congregated for further orders, the commander pulled up his combat HUD goggles and removed his helmet, grabbing it and placing it between his arm and torso. The commander had sickly pale skin and green glowing eyes with markings around them but something was even more ominous about him was his face. The soldier looked just like Seth but sanitized like the other humans under him.

"What now sir? Do we pursue them?" asked one soldier.

"Negative... report to HQ about our sitrep and inform them that harpy 1-1 is down and we need an exfil," the commander told them.

"Roger that sir,"

As the commander grabbed his helmet, a patch on the side of it read: Matthison, Seth's last name. Was this really Seth? A doppelganger or perhaps an imposter? He placed the helmet back on his head and flipped the goggles back over his eyes before they walked away.

Back onboard the V-22, the inklings were glad to have gotten away from the salmonids and the new threat they faced but the octolings on the other hand were leery, especially the sergeant who decided to get out of her seat and approach the cockpit. "Human... I want answers. What exactly was that back there? Those flying machines and the big one that chased us," she demanded Levi answer.

"Look, I can't explain right now... I just want to get you guys back to safety," he said.

"They were other humans octopus, but not like Levi here. They had sickly-colored skin and these glowing green eyes. It was the creepiest thing I ever saw," blurted Flash in the co-pilot's seat.

"Did you say... sickly-colored skin and glowing green eyes?"

"Yeah...why are you looking at me like that?"

"The octo expansion reports... sanitization?" she said to herself as she pondered on the description of the human soldiers.

"Why were they after us?" she asked Levi, turning his attention toward him.

"They were after me... I got something they desperately want. I'll go ahead and explain if you're that eager to know,"

Over the past 10 minutes, Levi told the inklings and octarians about what was left of human civilization, the underground domes they lived in, and he escaped from. The resistance against Kamabo and Blackwell. The drive containing classified encrypted data on it of Kamabo's atrocities and how he thinks them, the octarians and inklings and other sea life transformed because of humans. Both the inklings and octolings had mixed reactions upon these revelations. The word kamabo had already left the sergeant suspicious of Levi and the fact they were pursuing him because of the hard drive he was carrying.

"Great! Not only do have to worry about the octarians and the salmonids but now humans! Seems like this guy has done nothing but bring trouble with him," criticized Jet.

"Cool it...It's not Levi's fault. He didn't deliberately lure these other humans down here with him," said Flash, defending Levi, remembering he had the same judgement on him after they met.

"Not his fault... I don't care. This human has got to go back where it is he came from and those green-eyed goons with him,"

"Jet! Be civil about this... Levi didn't have to get us out of there and he did help Sam and Flash," pointed out Ash.

"So, you're gonna defend him too, fine... I just want back home and to forget about everything I've went through," said the inkling agent as she stormed away and sat back in his seat.

"You'll have to excuse him, he can be a little rough around the tentacles," apologized Ash.

"I'm sorry too... I didn't wanna drag anyone into this. As soon as I drop you guys off, I'm going my own separate way,"

"We just got to know each other. I don't wanna see anything happen to you," said Sam.

"Someone's got a crush, OWWW!" teased Flash as Sam punched him in the shoulder.

"No... this is how it has to be. You said your species thinks humans went extinct. Maybe its best they keep thinking that. After all it's out fault that humanity nearly went extinct. I or other humans don't need to ruin things again. We go our separate ways here on out though it was cool meeting you creatures and as fascinating as it is to discover that ink-lings and octopus-lings are inhabiting the world beyond our own,"

"That's octolings, get it right human,"

"Huh, sorry,"

"Don't be so hard on him sarge," said the private.

"Why are you so concerned, don't tell me you're in infatuated with that human," said the sergeant as she noticed the private was blushing a little and twiddling her thumbs.

"You gotta be squiddin' me. He's a human and you're an octoling. How sickening,"

"He's... nice and like that inkling said he didn't have to help us,"

"Cry me a river,"

Levi continued piloting the V-22 to their destination, the training grounds where the octoling sergeant suggested they go, tricking them into thinking it was safer route out of Octo Canyon.

Meanwhile...

As the battle raged on back at the cryo-facility where the octoling squad and Seth were doing their best to hold back the tide of octarians trying to defeat them and take the facility for their own. The defective octarian posse, lead by the wity twintacle and his gang composed of two troopers and the scatter-brained octoball, charged ahead inside the KF41 Lynx IFV. The large elevator lifted them up and outside as a secret hatch opened in the backside of the hill. The tank trekked through what appeared to be a forested area south of the housing area. Just when the octarian army was about to get ready to make another charge up the hill to where the facility was, the KF41 ran through a house and got the attention of the octarians as they stared in fear and confusion at the sight of the tank.

"Umm...what the ink is that," said one trooper.

"Is that a octostamp tank?" asked another one.

"It can't be...all tentacles, stand your ground and get ready to attack on my mark," said a leading twintacle. Then the KF41 rotated its turret at the contengent of enemy octarians. "Huh, what's it doing?" asked a little octostamp.

"It's pointing an ink cannon at us!" panicked a trooper, wanting to retreat at the sight of the tank.

"Get a grip, they wouldn't dare try and..." BOOM! the tank fired it's main gun and destroyed one of the octostamp tanks.

"Holy shrimp!" shouted the trooper inside the KF41.

"Fire again!" commanded the defective twintacle. The trooper pressed the trigger again and shot over the enemy octarians.

"I didn't sign up for this!" screamed an enemy trooper.

"Me neither...let's get the ink out of here!" shouted another as th eoctarians started to flee.

"You cowardly tentacles! Get back here and fight!" demanded the enemy twintacle.

The twintacle turned and watched the KF41 roll down the street towards it. "Come in, octozeppelin... we got a problem. There's this large...thing shooting at us. I want you to unload an ink barrage down on it!" the twintacle radioed in to the octozeppelin floating above.

Then soon, octozeppelin aimed it's cannons at the KF41 and fired at it. The ink didn't disable it ,but it did shake it around and blind the crew's view. "Carp! I can't see, I'm taking a peak," said the defective twintacle.

"Be careful,"

"I'm always careful,"

The enemy twintacle saw the tank was still operational but the ink appearently did slow it down. "Damn! Not even a dent... maybe the industrial squee-G will wipe that thing into pile of scrap," sneered the twintacle. Just at it stared at the tank, the twintacle saw another twintacle pop their head out of the hatch. "What the...YOU!" shouted the enemy twintacle with it's eyes looking like they were about to jump out of it's body, recognizing the octarian before.

"What's going on up there?" asked the trooper manning the weapons.

"Just keep shooting. I'll direct you where to point the gun,"

"You inking traitors! That's ok, that giant ink-sucking robot will deal with you," said the enemy twintacle. Just then, the industrial squee-G approached, absorbing the ink left by the ink barrage and was headed straight for the KF41.

"Do something you idiots!" shouted the defective twintacle. The trooper in the gunner's seat started using the mounted MG on top of the turret, though the camera was covered in ink. The MG fired away as the twintacle guided the trooper to point it toward the approaching giant fish-like robot. The bullets penetrated the machine but it was still coming. "Move up! ram that thing!" ordered the defective twintacle.

The trooper in the driver seat pressed the accelerator and the KF41 charged toward the robot. As soon as the two collided the robot's frontal body was crushed and the trooper fired the main cannon right into it. The industrial squee-G sparked and tremebled before blowing up, during minimal damage to the tank. Thankfully the twintacle hopped back inside the tank before he took any shrapnel and the tank slowly carried on.

"RETREAT!" yelled the enemy twintacle as it bolted away from KF41 and fell back at the edge of housing along with the other octarians. The tank indiscrimantly fired upon the direction of the octarian army, blasting some of them and even causing another house to collapse. "I can't see what I'm doing," said the trooper in the gunner seat.

"Let me get back up and look again," said the twintacle. Opening the hatch the octarian saw the enemy was retreating "Yeah, we got em turning tentacle now... oh shrimp," the twintacle but up ahead was the blown bridge. "Stop this thing!" it shouted but it was too late the KF41 fell into the river, the driver not seeing and realizing the bridge was blown apart previously. The tank was now immobilzed and half-way sunk into the water. The hatch opened and the defective octarians started coming out. They looked up and saw they were surrounded by octarians and octolings, aiming their weapons down at them.

Thinking they as good as splatted, all of a sudden a barrage ink rained down on some of the enemy octarians reducing them to ink puddles. The defective tentacles looked up and spotted a octoseeker flying overhead armed with splatlings on each side of it's fuselage. Inside the cockpit was an octoling and not just any octoling by the red scarf around her neck but the rebel sergeant along with her other two teammates, the medic and engineer were also inside. It was believed they were dead when the octarian army entered the dome and attacked the abandoned shop they were scouting out.

"I told you mounting those splatlings was a good idea," said the engineer octoling.

"OK, I'll give you credit. I was having my doubts about mounting those things on the octoseeker. Let's see if I make another pass,"

The octoseeker came back around as the octarians scrambled away. Once the octoseeker got in line with the retreating octarians, the rebel sergeant pulled the trigger and coated the ground with their ink and the last octostamp tank, knocking it out of commission. At this point it was evident the octarian army was on the losing end. "Octozeppelin, fire upon that octoseeker! We're getting inked down here!" commanded an elite on the ground as she and some regulars took cover.

The octozeppelin turned and aimed it's ink cannons at the rebel octoseeker. "Hang on, taking evasive action!" the rebel sergeant told the other two. The octozeppelin's cannons blasted at the octseeker, managing to dodge all the ink shots and turn its attention back to the large airship. The octoseeker locked on to the tentacle portruding from the top of it, coming out of a hatch. Once it burst the octozeppelin descended down, the octolings on the ground just froze and stared as it came crashing down on them. Once it did, a large large explosion of ink followed and leveled much of the housing, covering the whole area with ink and debris.

Onboard the command octozeppelin, a much large variant of the airship with a gondola and antennas portuding from it, was the major, who watch the othe zeppelin plummet and the ground forces get decimated below. The major gritted her teeth and punch the console of the ship. "I won't lose this battle! Not while I'm still alive and kicking!" she screamed but as she turned her sight back to the front window of the gondola. Something was hurled toward her, not having time to react, the object crashed into the observation deck and flung the major back as the console got destroyed causing the octozeppelin's flight to descend like the other one. As the command octozeppelin fell, the major screamed before it crashed below into an ink explosion.

It was few minutes earlier the octoling squad watched the dopey tentacles commendeer the KF41 and attack the octarian army down in the housing area. Star pulled out the sniper rifle and looked through the scope, seeing the twintacle stick out of the hatch of the heavily armed tank. "You won't believe this guys," Star told her team.

"What is it?" asked Luna.

"It's those octarians, the ones that came back with us from the octoweapons factory. The octarian army is falling back,"

"Are you squiddin' me. Those lame brained tentacles are actually kicking the octarians' butts," Luna having a hard time believing what Star told her.

"I gotta hand it to them... didn't think those little inkers would be good for anything. I say while the octarian army has got their hands full we get into the elevator. Seth needs medical attention and we got that octo-human to deal with," said Mirage.

"It's just... I'm shocked that we've managed to survive but Maxine's crew..."

"All that matters is that won... their deaths won't be meaning less Luna. We managed to give a big blow to the octarians and Scarlet. I'm hoping this victory will make octo command think twice about attacking us... or so I'm hoping,"

"As much as I love beating those inkbags... I'm ready for this end and head for the surface. I'm ready to hang up my octoshot,"said Luna.

"As am I... once this is over. I got my own plans,"

"What, not wanna hang around us anymore,"

"No it isn't that... I... wanna start over, leave the past behind, my service in the army, running away and dealing with Scarlet's forces,"

"Start over? I think we want a fresh start,"

"Yeah but... I wanna start over with someone else, someone whose been there for me and everyone on the team,"

"Oh, you mean Seth,"

"Well, it'll be up to him... this world is strange to him and I think he's gonna need someone to be by his side to try and adapt,"

"I see where this is going,"

"If I know what you're thinking then I suggest you keep it to yourself and get your mind out of the gutter for once, lieutenant,"

"Hey you said it, not me,"

KA-BOOM! This caught the attention of the octoling squad and the octo-samurai. Turning toward the direction of the valley. They spotted the octozeppelin crashing to the ground and then saw the octoseeker the rebel octolings were inside. "Huh..that can't be," said Luna.

"It is... seems those three survived. I'd say God's looking out for us... we can't stick around here much longer. Let's get back into the facility, our mission isn't done yet," said Mirage but before they hopped in the elevator, the command octozeppelin loomed over them and aimed their ink cannons down at the gang.

"I might have spoke too soon about surviving," said Mirage, forgetting about the other octozeppelin.

"Oh no you haven't octoling," said octo-samurai as he laid Seth down and grabbed what was left of his octo-roller and tossed it at the gondola of the octozeppelin. Watching the hunk of metal hit it before the giant airship crashed down to the yard. The elevator quickly descended for the defectors and octo-samurai beforte they were caught in the inky blast and met their demise like the major and her comrades.

"You saved us?" said Star.

"Consider it a pact, I'm...switching sides,"

"I'm glad to have you on my team old friend," said Mirage as she smiled at the hulking octarian, carrying Seth.

"Likewise,"

"Sucks that octo-roller transforming thing-a-majig you packed around was scraped, came in good use at the end though. Glad you joined the winning team big guy," complimented Luna.

"For an elite you seem pretty... undisciplined,"

"Yeah, maybe that's because we're not in the freakin' army anymore and we can cut loose whenever we want,"

"Don't expect me to degrade myself, octoling. I'm a proud octarian warrior and will act with dignity and honor,"

"You'll have to excuse her octo-samurai. She's a special case and I mean mental case," said Mirage.

"Hey! I'm just being me. You being you is so boring...except for that night at the bar,"

"Keep your beak shut about that!"

"Vee, you've awfully quiet? What's wrong?" asked Star, who walked over by the private.

"A lot...I guess with Seth and what Mirage said she wanted to do after we left the canyon,"

"Look Vee, you don't know what will happen between Seth and Mirage. If you really have feelings for Seth that much then you nedd to let him know, but do at the right time. Don't make it seem competitive between you and the lieutenant though,"

"But...Mirage loves him and so do I. I don't animosity between us... I'll let Seth choose,"

"That would be wise. Vee, no matter what you two can stay friends and you need to respect whatever choice he makes," Vee thought about waht she said and gave a smile, knowing that no matter what she could always be friends as the sergeant said.

"Thanks for talking to me about it Star," said Vee as she hugged Star.

"Not a problem, little sis,"

The gang finally made it down to the bottom level. The gate slid open as they stepped out. Donovan was nowhere to be seen and they could assume he was lurking about or made it further into the facility. As they headed toward the atrium, the running of boots approached, and they saw Maxine and Sigma running toward them. "Huh? What are doing back down here? What about the battle?" asked Maxine.

"Seth's hurt and did you see another human, one with tentacles on his head come down here?" asked Mirage.

"Uh, no... I haven't seen a...wait, human with tentacles on his head?" said a confused Maxine and then when she saw the octo-samurai with Seth on his shoulder, she and Sigma stared at him.

"We'll explain later. Let's split up. Octo-Samurai this is sergeant Maxine and specialist Sigma,"

"Wait, the octo-samurai. I thought he..." Sigma started to say.

"He decided to switch sides so he doesnt pose a threat. Vee, lead him to medical bay with Seth. Luna! Star! We're going hunting. Search every room and hole you can find for that thing," ordered the elite.

"Am I missing something here lieutenant? What about the octarian army?" asked Maxine.

"The retreating ones, you're not gonna believe this but those tentacles have them on the ropes,"

"Yeah, I don't believe it," replied Maxine.

"Another thing too, seems our new friends made it too. That octochick with the red scarf and her two friends. Seems they survived like we did. They shot down the octozeppelin over the valley," informed Mirage.

"Well...this is a turn of events but what about this human?" asked Maxine.

"I say head back to the atrium and keep a look out. He's hostile and was working alongside the octarian army. Seems he made a deal with Scarlet and agreed to help her take this place,"

"A human selling out his own?" said Sigma.

"Yeah... he tried to kill Seth too. He's gonna get beat down if I don't decide to kill him that is,"

To be continued...