Splatoon: The Brothers and the Others
The Future is in the Past! Part 2
Splin opened his eyes. Inkopolis appearance was...surprisingly similar to present day. Streets and buildings remained like any other urban settings, with normal sidewalks and buildings. Except, for a few minor details. Obvious being that some Inklings were standing on colorful platforms floating in the sky, and the fact that different colors of ink flowed freely and smoothly through the streets like a flat, almost stagnant river, Inklings running through and near the ink as if this was a normal thing, causing the smooth stream to splash onto the streets, decorating it in various colors. A few buildings also floated above the city like jellyfish, squids jumping in and out of the buildings with ease, hovering down onto the floors with shoes that appeared to absorb the shock of their falls.
"...Oh my gosh, Sharq, you sent us to the future." Splin sighed, face-palming.
"Really? Cool!" Sharq said, popping up behind Splin.
"No it's not 'cool'!" Splin exclaimed, taking another look around. "Eh, well, maybe a little. But that doesn't change the fact that we're stranded in the future."
"I mean, we don't KNOW it's the future." Sharq said. "We might've popped up in a new place outside of Inkopolis."
"Really?" Splin said, with an unamused look.
Splin walked up to an Inkling girl humbly walking by, and cleared his throat, getting her attention.
"Excuse me miss, what's the date?" Splin asked.
"Um, I believe it's January 16th, why?" She asked.
"Of what year?" Splin asked.
The Inkling girl put her hands on her hips, frowning. "The year of-"
A group of Inklings nearby jumped into the stream of ink, shouting "Cannonball!" as they jumped in, ink splashing onto the sidewalk, then hopped back out, shaking the ink off their tentacles.
"-of course." She finished.
"...Alright, thank you." Splin said, the Inkling girl nodding and walking off, ignoring the peculiarities of his question.
Splin then walked over to Sharq, taking a deep breath.
"We're about a hundred years or so in the future." Splin said.
"Really? I expected much more flashy lights and hovercrafts." Sharq said, looking around.
"That only happens in sci-fi movies." Splin said with a hmph.
The two took one last glance at the city, then Sharq yawned, stretching his arms.
"Well, this is nice and all, but I think I'm going to go for a walk, look around." Sharq said.
"I...don't think we should do that." Splin said.
"Why not?"
"Sharq, we don't belong here. Our very presence could begin to unravel the fabric of the universe. Remember when we visited 'Splat X'?" Splin said.
"Yeah, what about it?" Sharq asked.
"We could very well begin to disappear, or explode, or something! And whose to say we won't get killed by some sort of futuristic weapon?" Splin asked.
Sharq scoffed. "Bro, you worry too much. Do you see any killer robots?"
Splin looked among the skyscrapers and the floating platforms, then spotted something that might've made his several hearts stop. In the sky, a battalion of robot sea creatures hovered over Inkopolis. Sharq followed his gaze, then visibly paled.
"Oh." He muttered.
"How's the Tele-Cube doing?" Splin asked.
Sharq stared down at the cube in his hands. The sides were all dim, and the cube itself was unresponsive. Sharq gave it an experimental tap, but to no avail.
"...Sleeping?" Sharq said with a shrug.
Unfortunately for Sharq, the simple act of shrugging caused him to drop the Tele-Cube, where it fell into the streets of ink, swept away by the river. Sharq gulped, and Splin glared at him.
"Are you serious." Splin said, less of a question and more of a disappointed statement.
"Um… L-Let's go after it!" Sharq declared, hopping into the stream of ink.
Splin sighed, then did the same. The two swam through the stream in squid form, rapidly traveling through the colorful substance, until they finally caught up with the cube. Latching onto it using their tentacles, they switched back to Inkling form, and attempted to head out of the stream. With a hop, they jumped out of the river, but were pushed to the left.
"Huh?" Sharq said.
The two realized the "street" they were swimming in curved, turning around a corner. The two raised an eyebrow at this, or at least as close as raising an eyebrow they could get in squid form. Poking their heads out of the ink, their eyes nearly popped out of their heads, noticing that the stream was beginning to pour out at what appeared to be nothing, the stream falling like a waterfall into the abyss. Frantically, the brothers began swimming against the current of the river, stalling their seemingly inevitable demise, only to be finally pushed back off the side of the city by the stream. The two screamed as they fell, flailing their arms.
Then they were saved by a robot.
"Eh?!" Splin gasped, his tentacles grappled by a metallic arm.
"Whoa." Sharq said, looking up at their mechanical savior.
A large, gray jellyfish shaped robot carried the two to safety in its tentacle grip. The jellyfish hovered over to the sidewalk the brothers had previously traveled by, and laid them down gently.
"Use caution when using Forge's FastTravel Inkstreets™." It said, waving to the brothers, then hovered off.
"Okay, so maybe the future isn't SO bad. It's much better than getting chased by a dinosaur I suppose." Splin said, getting up to his feet.
"Yep!" Sharq said, then looked at the cube, allowing his grip to grow soft.
The cube, despite now looking like a bucket of assorted paints fell on it, looked okay, though it still remained inactive. Sharq gave it another tap, frowning when it amounted to nothing. Splin walked over to the edge of the city, and looked down. Apparently, this city was merely a chunk of land floating, as he noticed an even large city beneath them. Spotting a familiar green tower with a familiar electric catfish, Splin realized they weren't inside Inkopolis.
"We're ABOVE Inkopolis." Splin said.
Sharq strolled over to the ledge, and looked down as well. "That's awesome! Hey wait, I was right! We aren't technically INSIDE Inkopolis, now are we dear brother?"
"Oh my Cod shut your face." Splin said, giving Sharq a playful push away from the ledge.
The actual Inkopolis looked much more developed and larger than the city they were hovering on. Large streets of ink and sea creatures dominated the city, with the plaza looking as lively as ever, though with a few different changes in Inkling fashion as per the time.
Splin bit his lip. "Weird… Wait, at this altitude wouldn't we start to lose oxygen?"
"Splin…" Sharq said.
"What?"
Sharq shifted from squid to humanoid multiple times in five seconds, then switched to Inkling form finally, grinning.
"Right, I forgot that logic isn't exactly a requirement anymore." Splin said with a sigh. "Guess we'll just have to wait until the Tele-Cube charges."
"Well, hey, now that we know a bit about this place, how about we explore?" Sharq asked.
Splin looked around, then gave up, sighing, then nodded. "I suppose it couldn't hurt...much."
The two then began their journey through the floating city, making sure to keep to the sidewalk. Unbeknownst to them, the jellyfish bot from earlier was staring at them. Menacingly.
After a bit of sightseeing, the two came to learn quite a bit about the city. "A bit" being that it was called "Heaven's Reef", and that it was in the future. Riveting, isn't it?
"Hey, no one here seems to really care much about the history, too absorbed with hopping everywhere." Splin said. "Though I will admit it's amazing how they incorporate ink into their technology. Who would've thought a squid substance would have the ability to solidify into platforms?"
Speaking of which, Splin and Sharq were walking upon floating platforms, Sharq having the time of his life hopping from platform to platform, ink sticking to the bottom of his shoes, while Splin watched indifferently. After a while, Sharq had finally calmed down, lounging on one of the platforms.
"How's the Tele-Cube, Sharq?" Splin asked.
"Hmm? Oh, right!" Sharq said, taking the Tele-Cube out of his shorts pockets.
The cube was now beginning to glow brightly, much to Splin's relief.
"Great, all we have to do now is go back home. Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm already tired of all this advanced stuff, sort of just wish to go home and take a nap." Splin said with a yawn.
"Looks like you finally agree with me on something." Sharq said with a grin. "Alright, all I have to do now is tap the Tele-Cube and-"
Splin and Sharq were just then tackled off the platforms by the robotic jellyfish at a high speed. They yelped, quickly closing in on the ground below. Switching into squid form, they swerved to their lefts, and dropped into the stream of ink yet again.
Spitting out ink, Sharq glared at the jellyfish. "Hey!"
"Unrecognized Inklings. Preparing scan of Inklings." The jellyfish spoke in a monotone voice, then raised its tentacles menacingly. "Unknown and unauthorized personnel. Where are your IDs?"
Splin and Sharq gulped.
"And just when I began to think that the future would be safe." Splin said.
"Unauthorized personnel will be escorted out of the city by force if needed." The jellyfish said, then raised its tentacles, which opened up to reveal miniature stun guns.
"Aw, ship." Splin "cursed". "Wait a minute, if having no IDs would mean we would be attacked...then why didn't it just drop us off the ledge to our deaths earlier?"
The jellyfish bot hovered in silence, briefly computing its actions.
"...Your executions will be swift." It said, almost angrily.
The two brothers then began to swim away, letting the stream carry them to freedom. Unfortunately for them, the jellyfish was in hot pursuit, lashing out at the two of them, attempting to sting them each time, barely scratching them.
"Hey, look ahead!" Sharq said.
The brothers were almost outside of the city, about to fall off the side.
"We're almost there- GAH!" Sharq yelled out, getting shocked by one of the stingers.
"Sharq!" Splin yelled. "Are you okay?!"
"Blergh…" He responded, face down in the ink.
"Oh geez, alright, hang on! We're almost out of this!"
Splin and Sharq were then launched off of the city, falling to the ground. Splin looked at Sharq, who was still clutching the cube, but looked rather unconscious at the moment. Splin desperately moved closer, the city growing larger as they got closer and closer to the ground. Splin tapped the cube multiple times, getting more and more worried as they seconds passed by. All of a sudden, the cube flashed bright, Splin tapped it, hugging his brother tightly, and the two of them were enveloped in a flash of light, just as they were about to slam into Inkopolis below, vanishing.
"OH YEAH! Blast from the past!" Callie declared.
"Ugh…" Marie sighed.
The idols of Inkopolis, the Squid Sisters, were currently broadcasting the Splatfest results to Inkopolis live from their studio. Inklings expressed their pleasure and displeasure with the results rather simply, either by cheering or jeering at the results.
"We did it, my prehistoric peeps!" Callie declared proudly.
"I can't believe we lost…" Marie said with a sigh.
"Considering the last couple of Splatfests, that's surprising." Callie said with a smirk.
"Oh!" The crowd exclaimed.
Marie smirked as well. "Look at Ms. Naughty over here, no wonder you chose past, you're looking prehistoric with those clothes of yours."
"Oooooh!" The crowd became fired up.
Callie adopted an angry face, though a hint of a smile could be seen. "Yeah? Got it through hard work and determination, Ms. Money. Though you wouldn't know, being a rich couch potato and all!"
"OOOOOHHHHHH!" The crowd laughed.
The two brothers then reappeared in Inkopolis Plaza, slamming into the pavement below.
"Ooooohhhh…" The crowd cringed at the sight of two Inklings slamming into the ground face first.
The sound of pain alerted the two Squid Sisters, who immediately stared out from their studio at the two brothers.
"Um." The two pop stars said.
Callie cleared her throat. "I-If you participated in this Splatfest, don't forget…"
"Y-Your prizes are waiting in the plaza. We'll need you to return that Splatfest Tee, unfortunately." Marie said.
"Stay fresh." The two announced with their signature pose, posing on one leg with their hands aimed down at the ground, shaking somewhat.
As the broadcast ended, Splin and Sharq rose from the ground, shaking off the fall somewhat.
"Are they…are they okay?" A female Inkling asked hesitantly.
"Them? Oh, they fall from the sky all the time, trust me." Another Inkling said.
Splin turned over to Sharq, who stirred somewhat, still lifting himself off the ground.
"W-What time is it?" Sharq asked.
"It's uh...about eleven o' clock." One male Inkling from the crowd answered.
"Well, Maria's going to kill us. Sorry, krill us." Splin said, looking up at the sky.
Any pun is a good pun. Except when they're not.
"It's time to go home, I've had enough of time traveling for one day." Splin finished, helping Sharq up.
Sharq nodded. "Sorry about, you know…"
"It's fine. Just be a little more precise next time, right? I don't have to want to carry you out of the depths of shell next or something." Splin said, looking down at his older brother.
Sharq leapt up to his feet. "Gotcha!"
The two Inkling brothers walked away, switched into squid form, then Super Jumped back home, into the dark sky, leaving a baffled crowd behind.
"That was weird." An Inkling said.
"I concur." The jellyfish robot said.
The dinosaur standing next to it nodded in response. Then the two of them had a moment of clarity.
As the two brothers hurdled through the sky, they could hear sounds of destruction in the background. Splin groaned, Sharq remaining silent.
"...We're going to have to go back, won't we?" Splin said.
Sharq nodded. "Yep!"
Splin sighed, shaking his head. "Sorry Maria."
The two made their way to the ground, landed, then launched themselves back to the city, ready for whatever impossible obstacles they would have to face next.
AN: That's that ladies and gentlemen. gg again to all you past and future fanatics. I was on Team Past for once, because a certain someone's Splatfest advice persuaded me, and I suppose he was right. gg once more.
Reviews are like comments. ...That's it, they're like comments. Thanks Ultrapyre, Lean, and ERODE for reviewing! There's that advice I was talking about ladies and gentlemen, go to Ultrapyre for all your Splatfest needs. Having a sea snail as a pet is hard work though, you have to feed it, and take it for "walks", so it's good to keep responsibility in check. Lean, thanks for the review, and good work fellow past fan. As for you ERODE, sorry your team didn't win, hope you have better luck next time! I make sure to try and get to reviews separately in my stories, so you're welcome for being noticed, I suppose!
That's all for today folks, this is ThePizzaLovingTurtle, I really need to finish up these Tough Break contracts in TF2. Later alligators!