Chapter 2: One Glimpse
A Few Days Later
Marie was drinking her usual latte as she made her way through the Shifty Station toward the Splatoon HQ. At this point, she was definitely feeling a bit anxious to learn about where these earthquakes were coming from and what they could do about it, which was the precise reason why she was going to check up with Marina once again. Making her way up the HQ's main entrance, which was a large metal sliding door, she quickly entered in the code to open it, and walked inside. The lights inside flipped on automatically as she walked in, revealing… nobody inside.
"…Hm…" She walked back out, locked up the HQ, and instead went over to Marina's nearby lab, entering in the different code this time. She hated coming in here- something about it had given her very bad vibes ever since she first came here- but this room was empty as well. "…Hmmm…" She aggressively finished her drink as she locked the lab back up, and headed over to another part of the dome. Typing in one last code and opening one last door, she headed into the small hangar room, the last place she suspected Marina could be if she was around here. Sure enough, there were some visible sparks flying out from the plane-like ship at the center of the room, which was partially covered by a tarp.
She walked up. "Marina…"
The sparks stopped as Sheldon unearthed himself from under the tarp. He took off his protective goggles, which he somehow wore over his usual goggles that he never took off. "Oh. Good morning, Agent 2."
"Sheldon, what are you doing?"
"Working on the spaceship."
"Were you given permission to keep working on the spaceship?"
"Marina gave me the all-clear, don't you worry! I'm helping her with her weapon systems!"
"Ok, was Marina given permission to keep working on the spaceship?"
At that moment, Marina stepped out from inside the ship, wearing her own protective goggles as she walked down the ramp. "Please, Marie, it's called the Ray. And it's almost finished."
She sighed. "Marina, what the hell are you doing?"
She took them off as she walked over. "I'm getting this project finished before it's time to start following the Octarians into space to halt their mission." She then took off her gloves. "Now, care to explain why I need permission to work on my own ship?"
"Marina… nobody's going to space. Are you kidding me? That's a suicide mission. Gramps would never give something like that the go-ahead. I get that you like to show off your smarts, and I respect you for it, but this… is wasting time."
"This is not wasting time, if anything, we're wasting time by just waiting to see what happens. If the Octarians get what they want out there and they return to Earth more powerful than ever, we lose."
She sighed, still unconvinced. "…Marina… if the Octarians return to Earth with whatever mystical energy source you think they've found, we'll use our normal tactics to figure it out. Like we always do. You forget, Gramps has dealt with the Octarians a long time, he knows how to deal with them."
Now Marina was just offended. "I am an Octarian, I was raised by them and helped give them new technologies, I know what they're capable of."
She took a breath. "…I'm sorry… but right now, we should be focused on the earthquakes. On doing our investigations that we are best at from our home turf. I need you focused on that. We all need to focus on that. Ok? Now, please, both of you, save the, uh… Ray, for later. And come back to HQ so we can continue our discussions." She turned around to leave.
"...Party pooper." Sheldon leapt down from the Ray's wing.
Marina watched her leave before she angrily threw her glove against the ground.
Octo Valley
A locker-type compartment in the wall, its sliding door marked SHADOW, opened up as the Elite Octoling reached inside, revealing a small closet that was lit up by a red light, lined with weapons, armor, and other equipment. She stared at it all before she pulled out a slick, black mask, which expanded outward by disassembling itself. She fit it over her head and it reassembled, sealing and hiding her entire head inside.
She stepped out of the room, where by the doorway, two other Octolings with similar types of masks were waiting; as she passed, they joined her side, walking down the hall with her. As they walked through the dome, going through multiple doors, they came across other Octolings, wearing more of the same mask, who were ominously standing on either side of the hallway, staring at her. She ignored their presence, her breathing slow.
She made the journey all the way toward where the scientist typically dwelled in his office, the same Octoling who had the gray, puffy afro. As the sliding door opened, she walked in, guarded by even more masked Octolings. She didn't bother standing politely as she walked in to greet the old man, leaning her weight on one leg. "Dr. Tecca."
The man turned from his desk as he looked at her. "Hm… you know… you can call me Gideon, if you really want."
"Well, Gideon." She stared at him. "I want to take this moment to insist on my opinion that this mission you want me on… is a waste of time. And resources."
"Resources?" He chuckled. "I'm not concerned about resources. It's funny, though, the Splatoon currently believes us to be much weaker than we actually are. But we're doing… pretty much everything that Octavio couldn't." He put his hands together. "…Would you like to see it again?"
She didn't respond.
He reached into a drawer and again pulled out the glowing, beautiful, green crystal, holding it up for her to see. "Ah… I never get tired of looking at this beauty. It's amazing what the cosmos hold." He stared at it before he looked back at her. "See, Octavio was obsessed with all the Zapfish energy and whatnot, because to his singular point of view, the Great Zapfish was the only source of power in the universe. But instead of just looking both ways before crossing the street, I had decided to look both up and down to find what we really need. Because the answer, quite literally… fell out of the sky." He laughed. "What a funny world. I love it."
"Is the power in these crystals not enough for you? You have to risk my tentacles just to get more?"
He waved it around a bit. "Sweetheart, you don't understand. This gives us a lot, but we've yet to maximize its potential. It's why I formulated this plan. We need to go to its homeworld for the source. Everything will line up from there. I decided to call it- brace for it, I love this, too- Axcia." He pressed a button on his desk to pull up a small holographic image, which showed information on the crystals and a space map of Axcia's estimated location. "A beautiful world… the ultimate source of power."
She walked over, looking it all over before she looked back at him.
"We don't know how this world came to be, but Axcia channels energy from other dimensions, and brings it into ours. A beautiful and true act of nature that is begging for us to tap into it." Gideon continued. "This is everything my life's work has been leading up to."
Shadow stared at him. "…What if this world doesn't give you the results you want? What if all of this backfires on us?"
"I'll admit, we've tried to harness these crystal's energy for a while and it's had some, admittedly, mixed results. But I firmly believe that Axcia itself holds the final piece of the puzzle, and once the whole picture is assembled, we will be able to rewrite our own history, to whatever we want. The Octarians will finally get to reign supreme like we were always meant to! Doesn't that sound… spectacular? Exciting? Am I getting somewhere yet?"
Shadow kept staring at him, unsure of what to say.
He sighed and nodded a bit, disappointed. "…I see… I see… Well…" He set the crystal down. "What else do I need to do to convince you?"
"...Let me do things my own way. Let me take the Splatoon on like I've trained to do."
"...I can't let you do that yet." He put an arm on her shoulder, which she looked at. "The Splatoon still has their part to play, and so do we. Please… just let things go forward the way I've planned."
She just stared at him at this point, wondering what she should she do.
It was another fairly cold day in Inkopolis as Bridgett knocked on Agent 4's door, while Jessica stood back, hands in her pockets. The Splatoon all had their duties today in relation to their new investigation, and today was the first day that the three of them were supposed to go out on recon together. As they quickly noticed, however, Dylan wasn't responding.
The two of them looked at each other, wondering what they were supposed to do if they couldn't reach him, and Bridgett knocked again, sighing.
Jessica checked her watch. "…Looks like your boyfriend is playing the laziest agent again."
"Shut up, Jess, he's probably… getting ready."
She sighed. "You know, I've gotten the feeling a lot lately that he hasn't really been… invested in this whole agent gig?"
"He…" Bridgett thought about that, before coming up without a responding argument, sighing. "…Yeah, sometimes, he does… seem like he's in his own little world."
Jessica stuffed her hands back in her pockets. "Well, frankly, he's your boyfriend, so this is yours to figure out."
Bridgett turned back to her, ready to say something to that, but they were interrupted as they heard a van car honking. "Bridge!" They heard Dylan's voice.
They looked at each other once again, Bridgett rolling her eyes and Jessica shrugging slightly before they both walked back down the steps and toward the Splatoon's 'inconspicuous' white van.
"...I'm getting so sick of this van…" Jessica muttered as she stared at it.
Dylan closed the driver's door as he walked up to Bridgett, giving her a quick kiss. "Got the van. And got all the equipment we'll need inside. Should fit all of our Octarian-hunting needs for the time being. No need to thank me."
"Thanks, Dyl." Bridgett smiled as she gave him another slightly longer kiss, prompting Jessica to look away and sigh. "Just, uh… did we have to use the suspicious white van again?"
"Marie has used this van on several mission to good results, we'll be fine." Dylan replied as they all looked at it.
At that moment, another pink-haired Inkling suddenly came out from the open doors at the back of the van. She leaned on the vehicle as she faced them. "You know, I can help give the thing a makeover if you want. Or, well, I can help hire someone to give it a makeover."
Bridgett and Jessica both stared at her before they looked back at Dylan. "Seriously, Four?" Jessica said. "You need to get your sister wrapped up in this shit?"
"Half-sister." The Inkling replied. "Just'll… keep reminding you…"
Bridgett sighed. "No offense to your sister, Dylan, but her sneaking into Octo Canyon, like, one time and taking pictures of you doesn't mean she's prepared for all… this."
Dylan held an arm out. "Samantha has already known about the Splatoon for a while, and I'm not putting her in any danger. Once she found out I was heading back out on recon, she insisted on helping, so I let her help with stocking up."
"Yeah, totally, I can help." Samantha patted the vehicle. "Any Splatoon missions you need help on, I'm your gal." She smiled, excitedly. "Like, really, I've got this secret agent stuff totally in the bag."
Jessica sighed as she walked over, entering the van from behind. "Sorry, kid, but your secret agent career is over. Go inside."
Samantha stared at her, before looking back at the other two.
Dylan and Bridgett glanced at each other before they followed. Dylan just headed inside, while Bridgett stopped by Samantha, who was silently staring at the van. "…Hey."
Samantha looked at her.
"...Sorry about Jessica. It's, uh… not that we don't appreciate your help, it's just…"
"None of you like me and even though you could use more agents because of whatever these earthquakes are, the truth is, you just don't want me in particular. That sum it up?"
She sighed. "It's just that it's not our decision… if you're… ever needed… I'm sure that someone'll let you know."
She sighed as well, letting go of the van and going over to the apartment. "I guess I'll just go inside for now. Thanks, I guess."
Bridgett watched her a moment before she followed the other two inside, shutting the van doors. She turned to Dylan. "Alright, so what's the plan?"
Dylan was setting up some of his Agent 4 gear. "Sheldon and Marina have been trying to track some suspicious Octarian figures in the city, it's our job to investigate into them. Better get comfortable, looks like we might be in this van for a while."
"No getting too comfortable, Four." Jessica responded as she went to prep some of her own Agent 3 gear. "This is work, not a home."
"Why did we have to get paired with you?"
Bridgett patted his shoulder. "Well, for what it's worth… I'm glad you're here. It's nice to do something together."
He stood up, facing her. "Just wish it wasn't under Splatoon work…"
"I don't mind the Splatoon work…"
"Well… still… the two of us, should… find more things to do. You could… put your nightly outings aside for a bit and we could spend more nights together."
Bridgett wasn't sure what to say, while Jessica got the laptop open. "Alright, we're linked to HQ." She told them. "Enough with the goo-goo eyes, Four, get us on the road."
Dylan rolled his eyes, going over to the driver's seat.
Bridgett looked at her. "You know, this isn't the time to be at each other's throats."
"This is something that everyone in the Splatoon needs to be focused on, Eight." Jessica responded, putting earbuds in. Bridgett looked back at Dylan, watching him as the three of them drove off.
Arowana Mall
A rotating shelf filled with sunglasses spun around, coming to a stop as the glasses reflected the face of the one Splatoon member who in fact wasn't focused on the mission: Callie. She grinned as she pulled out the first pair that caught her eye, trying it on; in fact, she went through almost every attractive-looking pair of shades in the entire shelf, along with many other head accessories in the store. She tried many them on and made off with several of them as she paid for her items and carried her bags out of the store. She was wearing a snazzy coat, a pretty scarf, and had cut her hair down significantly, giving her hairstyle an almost butch look.
She was whistling Bomb Rush Blush to herself as she headed back home, pulling out her keys as she walked up to her door. She grumbled to herself, having to sort through her keys as she set her bags down, looking through them.
While she was distracted with that, her eyes shot upward a bit as she heard footsteps approaching from behind her, and she slowly held one of her keys as if it was a knife or something, gripping it tightly. As the footsteps got closer, she suddenly turned around and grabbed Marina, throwing her down and holding her keys in a threatening manner. "HYAH!" She screamed as she did.
"C-Callie, it's me, it's me!" Marina held her arms up in surrender, eyes wide.
"M-Marina!" Her own eyes widened as she quickly dropped her guard, frantically helping her up. "Oh my god, I-I am so, so sorry!"
She panted as she got up, brushing herself off a bit. "No, I'm sorry… I should've known better than to sneak up on you like that…"
"What are you doing here? You trying to… put me back in the Subgrid again or something?"
"No, no, relax, I'm just here to talk." She kept brushing herself off until she was satisfied. "Can we… talk inside?"
"Oh, yeah, of course. Come in, come in." She motioned inside.
It wasn't long after that when Callie had steaming cups of hot chocolate for the both of them, setting them down on her dining table as she sat down. She sighed happily as she held hers. "I love some hot chocolate on a cold day…"
"Don't we all?" Marina sipped her own. "Though, while you've been out enjoying your cold day, the rest of us have kind of… been on a mission."
"A new mission? Oh, wow, finally. Feels like we haven't even had much to do since you built us that new HQ, which I loved." She sipped hers. "Sorry, I guess my head has been up in those clouds. But, uh, what's up? What's the mission? Did Octavio escape again?"
"Not yet, but it is the Octarians. It, uh… simply put, I think they've been behind those mysterious earthquakes. And… if things go as they're going, your head could be going far above even the clouds."
"What… do you mean?"
She looked down, putting her cocoa aside as she leaned forward. "…Callie, the Octarians have somehow gone into outer space. I think they're looking for a new energy source, something that will make the Zapfish obsolete. Marie doesn't really believe me, not yet, but she will. I've already tried to restart my work on the Ray."
"...The Octarians? In space?" She chuckled. "What's the mission really?"
Marina just stared back at her, her gaze remaining completely serious.
"...Wait, you're serious? Why… are you coming to me about this?"
"...Because this could turn out to be a very complicated situation, Callie. I think that… I might know what the Octarians might be going after… and if they get what they want… we could be in for a cataclysmic event. And the Octarians will win, and everything we've been working for will be for nothing."
Callie just stared at her, unsure of what to even say to that.
"...When you were in Octo Canyon… with those shades… did you ever happen to hear anything about something called 'Axcia'?" Marina continued.
"...No…" She shook her head. "Can't say I have…"
Marina put her hands together. "Well, I have… and it's why I need to know… Callie, if we need to put everything on the line to follow the Octarians into space, and stop whatever they're planning, would you be willing to come with me?"
"...I…" She thought about that. "I don't know…"
"This could be the our biggest threat we've ever faced, Callie. I need someone on my side before things get too bad."
"Well, have you talked to the rest of the Splatoon about this?"
"No, I haven't disclosed all the details yet…"
"Well, really, I don't even know how to respond to this…"
Marina leaned back. "…Out of anyone in the Splatoon, when it comes to the Octarians, you and I are the only ones who have been on the inside that can remember our experiences there. That's why I think I need you on this. Besides, you could help me convince Marie and your Gramps about what we're up against."
Callie, at this point, was tearing up slightly. "That doesn't mean that I… well… What I think you should know is that when I was in the Octarians, I wasn't all… there… it was more like… that wasn't me… it was more like I was… something else had taken me over, and in hindsight, half the time, I wonder if the whole experience was just a dream… like in the Subgrid…"
Marina looked down, nodding slightly. "…That's right… That's right, I'm sorry for bringing that up…"
"No, no, I'm just saying that… if you're coming to me for some kind of dirt of the Octarians…" She shook her head, as the rest of her body started to shake slightly as well. "…I'm not your girl…"
"...I'm sorry, Callie… but whether we like it or not… this is going to happen… sooner or later, this is going to happen…" She folded her arms. "And I think when that time comes, it's going to come time for all of us to face this… to put everything on the line…"
Again, hearing her words, Callie just nervously and wordlessly stared at her.
A few more masked Octolings lined the hallways as Shadow and Gideon made their way past, watching them as they walked. Shadow just kept her own eyes forward, as Gideon soon led her into another part of the lab where Gideon did much of his work.
"Here we are." Gideon put his hand on her back as he led her over. "I don't know how else I'm supposed to convince you about this. Showing you some of the crystal's power is… all I can think of. Not that you'll ultimately have a choice in whether or not you'll go, but… I need you to be as dedicated to this mission as I am."
"You're wasting your time." Shadow replied.
"Am I?" He turned to a couple Octoling scientists that were in the room. "Afternoon, Octarians. Wonderful weather down here, am I right?" He laughed, before continuing to lead Shadow over to a small, battery-looking machine which had an open slot that was the size of the crystal. "Alright…"
He took the crystal over, plugging it in. He pressed some buttons, powering it on, as the machine made a whirring noise. After a moment, a couple sparks were launched out as the crystal began glowing more brightly, prompting some of the scientists to back off.
Gideon, however, was still standing directly next to it, smiling. "This… this is power."
Shadow stepped over, staring at it as the machine occasionally emitted more electric bolts and sparks.
Gideon stared back at her, motioning toward it. "…Touch it."
Shadow looked at him.
"Touch it. Go on." He got behind her, nudging her forward with a slight shove. "Let Axcia show you its power…"
She stared into it, almost feeling like it was staring back, daring her to touch it. "…Can it kill me?"
"Do you want it to?"
"...I don't know…"
"Touch it." He nudged her again. "See what happens…"
Curiosity brewing more and more, she hesitated only one more moment before she abruptly reached her hand forward. She didn't just touch it; she reached her entire hand in, grabbing it with all of her fingers.
What happened next only happened over a second, but from her point of view, it somehow felt longer. A painful zap ran through her arm before she felt a surge through her entire body, and she gasped as she was pushed back somewhat, her eyes widening all on their own as if they were forced open. Large, dramatic zaps of green electricity began erupting from the machine, disintegrating every other person in the room, and destroying the walls around them as all of their pieces fell backwards into the void behind them. This void was itself also green, and was consumed with large, gray clouds that emitted large, powerful bolts of lightning, and the clouds all turned toward her, as if they were living, breathing creatures.
She stared out into the void, as her mask was then burnt away by more zaps of electricity, revealing her stunned, terrified face. The whole experience felt surreal and real at the same time, but in that moment, in the void, she could see something. A world of Octarians, completely free of Inklings or anyone else who could oppose them, stood with a large, Octarian city in the place of Inkopolis, filled with large black buildings and lots of futuristic lights. And in the center of all of it was herself, the warlord, the ruler of this world. Her other self looked directly at her, and they briefly made eye-contact, before everything faded away.
From everyone else's point of view, none of this actually happened, and Shadow was promptly thrown from the machine as the zap struck her, and she screamed as she bounced off of the wall before collapsing to the ground. The machine itself sputtered a bit before powering down, and the crystal returned to its prior state.
"Hey!" Gideon and the other scientists ran to her side. He knelt down toward her. "Hey, you alright?"
Shadow gasped as she quickly sat back up, frantically looking around. The room had returned to normal, but she still felt the tingling feeling all of it gave her. She reached to pull off her mask, panting as she threw it aside.
Gideon rubbed her shoulder, holding her close. "Did you see it…?"
"...See what…?" She replied.
"Your future."
A deep fear rose in her hearts as she heard that. Was that… really her future? "…I saw… something…"
He smiled widely. "I know you did… your eyes speak a million words…"
Her eyes darted around the room as she kept trying to compose herself, up until Gideon pulled her into a hug.
"I'm glad you understand now…" He whispered to her. She leaned her head on his shoulder, not responding.
The other scientists were watching along with the masked Octolings that were standing guard. One of them in particular, his face hidden under his mask, stared at them in concern. Although he couldn't see her face directly, and although he didn't understand what she had seen, he knew deep down this wasn't good.
This wasn't good at all.
It was later into the day when Bridgett, Dylan, and Jessica were still following Marina's lead; Jessica had taken on the current driving shift, while Bridgett and Dylan were in the back, Bridgett's head leaned on Dylan's shoulder as she struggled to stay awake. Dylan just kept his arm around her while he glanced at Jessica, who kept her eyes forward.
Bridgett had indeed fallen into sleep's embrace just in time to be forcefully pulled right back out of it, and her eyes snapped awake as Jessica called to them. "Hey, I found something!"
The couple looked at each other before Dylan broke their cuddle and walked up, leaning against the back of the seats. "What? What happened?"
Jessica just pointed at a group of Octolings, who were transporting some crates into a warehouse. They clearly looked like they didn't want to be seen, as the last one inside looked around before shutting the door.
"...And the award for the most inconspicuous Octarians goes to…"
Bridgett joined them, staring out at them. "You sure these are our guys? That these guys are related with the earthquakes?"
"Most likely, but either way, we should shut them down." Jessica quickly found a place to park before she undid her seatbelt, standing up. "Come on."
"Woah, woah, Three." Dylan stood up straight. "Look at how suspicious they all looked. This is a trap."
"I know." She went to get her Agent 3 gear. Dylan couldn't help but grin a bit, a bit excited to see some Agent 3 action as he followed to grab his own gear.
There weren't a lot of Octolings inside, but all of them were armed with their own chargers, and stood in wait of their attackers, standing guard around the crate. The warehouse was already pretty silent, but after a few moments, they heard a clanging sound on one side of the building. The closest ones to the sound all turned and aimed their weapons, while everyone else remained alert. Of course, the sound was followed by another similar clanging sound on the opposite end of the building, and more Octolings turned toward that sound, looking everywhere. A third clang followed, more toward the entrance, prompting more Octolings to instead turn in that direction. They all stood like that in separate groups, looking in all directions as the building fell silent.
A few of them whispered among each other and sent each other hand signals, spreading apart more and more while just a few of them stood guard by the crate, pointing their guns in multiple directions. It wasn't long at all after that when an autobomb was suddenly thrown into the center of the room, blinking, and they turned to it before it erupted in a massive explosion of ink, splatting a few of them.
While everyone was distracted by that, Jessica flew in from the shadows, swinging off of her grapple hook before she spun into the air, kicking one of the Octolings in the head and instantly knocking him out. Landing on her feet, she wasted no time rushing to deal with the Octolings next to him, swiftly disarming them. There weren't even a lot of guards left in the room, and a few of them started unsuccessfully firing at Jessica before Bridgett and Dylan jumped in from the shadows as well, splatting some of them from behind. The three of them swiftly cleared out the room, taking out most of them. In the aftermath, they each took one guy and restrained them for interrogation.
Bridgett had tackled her guy and pulled out a ziptie, tying up his hands. She panted a bit as she rested her arm on her knee. "Well, that was easy…"
Dylan also restrained his own captive, sighing. "…Oh, hell no…"
"What?" She stood up. "You didn't think that was easy?"
"That was too easy."
"Agreed." Jessica interjected. "That was like they were trying to lose." She leaned down to search her own captive, and it wasn't long before she pulled down the man's sleeve, revealing that he was wearing the emblem of an organization she hadn't seen in quite a while: The Underdogs. She stared at it. "…Well, well, well… looks like they're not just any Octarians."
Dylan looked over, seeing the same symbol. "The Underdogs? I… thought you took down pretty much every one of those guys."
"I did, and most of them died when I collapsed that construction site. But I remember there's a lot of gutter rats who never joined up with Daniel's new vision for the organization, and, well… I guess someone has been reorganizing."
"They are Underdogs." Bridgett responded as she checked her own captive's wrist, seeing the same thing. "They… they can't have reorganized… not already."
"Who's leading you this time, gutter rat?" Jessica asked his captive.
"No one important…" He replied.
"Bullshit." She pulled his arm hard, causing him to scream, before she pulled him to prop him up against the boxes.
While Bridgett and Jessica handled their interrogations, Dylan meanwhile pulled his own captive over to the crate they were guarding before. "What's in here? What were you guarding?"
"I don't know…" He replied.
He looked over the crate, seeing it was locked with a keypad function. "Can you open it?"
"...You want me to…?"
Holding his gun on him, he moved to take off his ziptie. "Do it."
The Octoling paused a moment before he moved to enter the code in; the screen turned green as it was accepted, and the locks released, allowing Dylan to pull the lid off. A soft green glow reflected off his face as he set the lid aside, staring into the crate in amazement. "…Uh… guys…?"
Jessica didn't really take her attention away from her interrogation, but Bridgett stood up, walking over. "What?" She asked him, before she also looked inside. Her eyes widened a bit as she looked inside, seeing a small collection of those same, green, other-dimensional crystals. "…What… are… um… Jessica…?"
Jessica groaned a bit as she gave her captive a small kick in the groin just to release some anger, and she walked over as well, seeing the same thing the other two Agents were.
"...You're seeing the same thing I'm seeing, right…?"
Jessica took off her goggles as she looked inside, blinking a bit. "…I… think so…"
Dylan was too bewildered to speak at first, but eventually, he managed to move his mouth. "…Call Marina… call Marie… call… someone…"
Jessica and Bridgett looked at each other before they walked away. Dylan looked away from the crystals, rubbing the nervous sweat from his forehead, as his captive, who he had completely forgotten about in the confusion, had gotten up and pulled a crystal out of the box. Hearing the noises, Dylan turned again, immediately pulling his Hero Shot on him. "Drop it!"
The Underdog faced him, scoffing with a slight smirk on his face. "…Ok." He dropped it by his foot.
Dylan held his gun on him, but having a bad feeling he was about to do something dangerous, backed up slightly. "Now, don't move, asshole."
"Alright… alright." He slowly rose his hands in surrender, and then discreetly pressed a button on the small remote that was hiding in his hand. As they stared at each other, he then nodded at him. "…This one's for Ward."
He quickly pulled the trigger, but his gun didn't fire. He briefly looked at it, then at the Octoling's hand to notice the device; Jessica had described a similar one with a weapon-disabling ability before. He felt his hearts practically drop into his stomach as he turned to run. "Guys! Take cover now!"
Jessica and Bridgett both looked at the situation, seeing the Octoling, before Jessica abruptly grabbed her friend and pulled her behind cover just as the Octoling stomped on the crystal, successfully smashing it. A burst of energy exploded from under his foot, and the Octoling was partially disintegrated as Dylan, who couldn't get away fast enough, was sent hurling through the air. Along with everything else in the building, Jessica and Bridgett were also knocked back by the shockwave as it blew past them to shatter the windows, before everything fell calm again, leaving a silent, deathly aftermath.