Splatoon: The Brothers and the Others

Greeting the Soul Stealer

For the past minute or so, Ann-Gel had not said a word since the bizarre feline creature hopped out of its hiding place. She was so stunned, so inconceivably shocked by its words.

Also, apparently, very fond of its tail.

She continued to pet the tail even after the animal expressed its distaste in her actions. It was hardly a matter of infatuation with the cat. She was just glad she finally managed to catch the appendage. Of course, the only suitable way to flaunt her success would be to continually caress the tail, which only really served in annoying the odd creature. After a minute of being pet however, the tail wrapped around Ann-Gel's arms, preventing her from making another move.

Turning around, the cat started glaring straight at Ann-Gel. "Are you finished?"

Ann-Gel blinked, smiling sheepishly at the other trophy. "Oh, right…I'm sorry." She cleared her throat, the tail untying itself from around her arms. "You were saying?"

The cat just shook its head with another mentally delivered sigh. "Inklings. I cannot understand why they decided that creating a race made from humanoid squids would be a good marketing idea." Then the feline hesitated, glancing at itself. "Then again, I suppose I wouldn't be here if bizarre design choices were not the case."

Tilting her head, Ann-Gel bit her lip. "...I don't follow."

"Nevermind." The strange cat replied with a shake of its head. "You've already sent the boy to his doom. So, I suppose there really isn't anything to say or do here."

With all that said, both the amiibo and its trophy stand connecting its feet began to lift off of the ground, much to Ann-Gel's surprise. As it rose into the stratosphere, the other amiibo desperately leaped up, gripping the base of the trophy stand. Her added weight seemed to prevent him from flying any farther upwards, although the irritated glaze in the feline's eye may have proven otherwise.

"Hold on! You can't just leave yet!" Ann-Gel spoke up, attempting to pull downwards.

With a flick of its tail, it smacked away Ann-Gel's hands. Letting go instantly, she dropped down onto the floor. Rubbing her plastic hands, she scowled up at the bizarre creature, who lowered itself to the ground with an air of arrogance.

Gulping nervously, Ann-Gel quickly cleared her throat and spoke up again. "I mean, what do you mean by, 'doomed'? You've said it twice now."

"Ah, yes." The other amiibo 'spoke' to her. "Let me get straight to the point. Seamond abducts people."

"...What?!" Ann-Gel shouted, eyes growing wide.

An iron spawn-pad, the dish filled with blue ink, rotated multiple times in circles like a whirlpool, long steel platforms floating to and fro in the nearby air. Rocky mountain formations surrounded the old steel walkways that hovered in the air. Emerging from the spawn-point's blue ink, Takoroka Mesh first, was Sharq. A jolly smile plain on his face as he hefted a roller of sorts over his shoulders. The roller frame was completely black and adorned with several glowing blue spots, with the roller cover sharing the same design as the frame that held it aloft. Stuck to the side of the roller frame was a small black box displaying a set of zeros.

An odometer, ready to record.

"Alright!" Sharq smirked, "What now, Seamond?"

"I'm glad you decided to participate, Sharq." Seamond's voice spoke, permeating the air around him, a tinge of optimism added to his previously robotic speech. "The missions are simple, run ahead and retrieve the Zapfish at the very end. Simple, right?"

Staring at the odd cat creature incredulously, Ann-Gel shook her head and gawked at him. "Are you-"

"Yes. And, for any other questions in your mind relating to him floating about in your plastic head, yes." It spoke, the voice ringing about in her head.

Ignoring the jab, Ann-Gel glared at the other statuette. "So he KIDNAPPED Sharq?"

"In layman's terms, yes." The cat standing on two legs spoke.

Furrowing her brow while her eyes began glaring straight down at her pedestal, Ann-Gel huffed. "I knew it." Suddenly, something flashed in her eyes as she switched her glare towards the other amiibo. "Wait a minute, YOU didn't say anything!"

The purple tail on the amiibo twitched. The cat's mouth curled downwards, the other amiibo walking off towards the large plastic box with "amiibo" plastered on it. "I'm powerless here. It doesn't help that he's practically got my life on a leash."

Shuffling forward, dragging her pedestal across the hard cement, Ann-Gel bit her lip, barely preventing her from shouting. "What do you mean?"

The odd feline raised its oddly spherical shaped fingers into the air for a second. The atmosphere surrounding them grew tense, as if a thick layer of static electricity buzzed around them. It might have been intimidating. Except for the fact that it lasted for about a full minute. If Ann-Gel did not know better…

Blinking as if she had drifted off to sleep, Ann-Gel just glared back at the other amiibo questioningly. "What did you do?"

"Well," The other trophy began, "I was going to lift you up using the power of the mind."

Ann-Gel wanted to scoff and call his bluff, for the sole purpose of feeling right. But one, she needed to know more, and two, she had just prevented him from levitating a few moments prior. Silently, she glanced at the other amiibo and gave it a curt nod, waiting patiently.

Eyes closing, the other amiibo began speaking in its own, mental way. "But never mind my prowess of the mental arts. If we are to stop this menace from claiming any further victims, we must act fast."

"...Yeah, well it would help if I knew what he did wrong first." Ann-Gel spoke with a scowl. "Like, you keep saying he abducts people. And…?"

Furrowing his brow, the hairless cat made a mental sneer, which Ann-Gel found extremely confusing. "He steals souls for his own amusement, of course."

"Whoa!" Sharq exclaimed as he rose out of the spawn-point.

Squinting his eyes, raising his hand flat over his optics, Sharq gazed across several leagues of violet ink, dirt and weeds, and several other generic, rusting platforms. Gazing across the mess, there laid a single prison of sorts, a golden barrier of energy resembling a light-bulb sat across the expanse of flat, slick with purple platforms, where some form of a stuffed animal sat, electricity buzzing around the sphere it was encased in.

Of course, to Sharq peering curiously in the other direction, it closely resembled a yellow speck. "Alright, well, I guess that makes sense."

As he took one step forward, the male amiibo's voice popped in again. "Oh, and there is one more thing that I would like to add."

"What?" Ann-Gel poked at the motionless amiibo standing across from her.

"You heard me." It spoke in a cold tone.

"Well, you technically didn't speak." She thought to herself.

At least, so she thought, but the frown that was shot at her immediately indicated that it was not the case. "You're lucky I'm speaking at all. Honestly, as if your kind releasing late into the Wii U's lifespan wasn't destructive enough."

Despite her best efforts, Ann-Gel found herself unable to wonder what he was saying. As par the course, the amiibo glared at her once more. As irritating as it was getting, she wanted to know what was happening, right down to each and every detail.

Clearing her throat, which seemed redundant considering the other entity's form of communication, she continued. "Okay, so kidnapping. Souls. Yeah, alright, how do we stop that?"

"Hmm. Uncertain." The feline murmured through her mind.

Ann-Gel cocked an eyebrow at it as it pondered. "Uncertain…?"

"Uncertain if you have what it takes." It spoke in her mind.

"Hmm?" Sharq hummed curiously, glancing towards the sky.

"These sets of obstacles are one of a kind. Randomly generated, as they put it." His voice echoed.

A curious frown crossed the Inkling's face. As if he wanted to test fate, he stepped forward, humming. Stepping over onto the platform adjacent to his spawn-point, he continued to walk. Up until the point when the ground began to shake. Sharq started ripping his roller for balance as the earth underneath him vibrated dangerously, glancing around cautiously. Then, as quickly as it happened, it stopped, prompting Sharq to stand up straight.

Taking another careful glance around, Sharq just smiled. "Oh. Well, that wasn't so-"

The platform he stood on began shaking rapidly, until it rocketed up into the air. Sharq yelled as he was flung into the air, with the ground under him showing no signs of stopping. Making sure to keep a good hold onto his cap, his weapon, and hopefully his lunch, he continued on skywards.

Ann-Gel gave the other amiibo another scowl, moving closer and closer. "Look, just this morning I was doing absolutely nothing. Up until Sharq decided to take me outside. And now YOU are telling me that he's practically calamari?"

"That's affirmative." The other amiibo spoke again, the feline's violet eyes boring holes in her, and despite her best efforts, could not help but feel somewhat intimidated. "Unless you plan on leaving."

She shot back a glare of her own. "Heck no. Tell me what I need to do."

With another sigh that seemed to persevere throughout her mind for quite a while, the other amiibo floated over towards the much larger plastic amiibo box, its eyes shut in thought. "It's not as simple as you may think. First, you would need to find a suitable method of travelling. Some form of technology-"

"There's the Gamepad Sharq left behind." Ann-Gel commented.

With a frown, the floating amiibo gawked downwards. Sitting at the base of the plastic box was the single-screened controller with several buttons and control sticks built in it. Ann-Gel stood at the side, barely concealing a smirk.

"...That will work fine." Ann-Gel was not sure how, but he answered in a mental snarl. Was that bitterness she detected?

A quick peek at the screen on the Gamepad just made her feel worse. As she leaned over, she noticed several of the missions normally labeled on the pad. Something within her memory clicked; multiple amiibo challenges were already finished, with checkmarks stuck to the sides of the pictures of Octarian troops and weapons. However, underneath all of the colorful menaces, there were several other boxes with mission content. At least, at a first glance, but as she viewed the missions, she realized most of them were blank or pitch black. They continually expanded the list, one new "mission" after the other.

"This isn't normal." She thought, crossing her arms.

"Do you understand now?" The other amiibo chimed in. "This is how he traps them. They will never be able to finish. They try until they die, basically"

She was speechless. Mission after mission popped up, all of them completely bare of any picture indicating its true intentions. But considering the fact that they multiplied like flies, Ann-Gel knew something was definitely amiss.

"How do I help." Ann-Gel muttered, eyes scanning each and every mission that popped up.

"Hm?" The cat hummed in curiosity.

Spinning around on her trophy pedestal, Ann-Gel glared up at the feline. "You heard me. I think. How do I help?"

Its eyes narrowed curiously. "Really? You realize you could most likely die. Or...whatever equivalent you beings have to dying."

With a scowl, Ann-Gel piped up again. "I don't care! Look, my life isn't exactly glamorous. But that doesn't mean I'll leave Sharq behind to get splatted!"

"I never asked for your life story." The other amiibo shut its eyes impatiently.

"I'm going to ask you one last time. How. Do. I. Help?" Ann-Gel asked, arms straightening firmly at her sides.

The trophy stared down at the Inkling Girl amiibo standing on the pavement. She was glaring, but something in her eyes betrayed her glare. Something more was driving this girl. Narrowing its eyes, it surfed through her mind, searching through her plastic head. Memories, though scarce and few, numbered among the many. Images blinked back through his mind. Black cement. A face of another Inkling wearing headphones. A smile or two. Grimacing, it attempted to look through more memories. All of a sudden, the images stopped flashing in its mind.

With a frown, he stared at the orange tentacled Inkling on the ground below him. "...How intriguing," He pondered to himself. "Not a history to be seen."

As Ann-Gel stood by the Gamepad, she began to grow impatient, until finally, "Alright. You know what? I don't need your help. I'm saving Sharq."

Reaching out to the screen, hesitation growing in the pits of her plastic as she glanced down at the several replicating missions popping up. Shaking her head, she reached forward, sliding her trophy pedestal towards the glowing screen, beads of orange sweat dripping down her face.

"Don't."

Eyes lighting up, Ann-Gel glanced up at the other trophy as it hovered down from its spot adjacent to the walls of the plaza.

Stamping her foot on the floor in irritation, she raised a finger to point at the other statuette. She may not have had psychic powers, but for what it was worth, she was angry. "Okay, you know what?!"

As if amused by the declaration, it descended a short distance off towards the walls of the plaza, where a doodle was graffitied onto the dark canvas. "What?"

"You've done almost nothing this entire day. You didn't warn Sharq, the closest you've ever come to help me is by telling me that Seamond is a psychopath- I mean, I already kinda guessed-" She began to ramble.

The other amiibo rolled its eyes. "Shame, I was hoping to add a positive accomplishment by telling you not to touch the screen."

"Wha-" She began, small fingers gracing the top of the screen.

A buzzing noise began the emanate from the controller. Eyes widening in an instant, she pulled her hand away. The controller buzzed, and the screen began swirling. It was not unlike a black hole, as the screen warped in an unpleasant fashion rapidly, the colors of the multiple mystery challenges appearing as they wanted to swallow her hand. Staring at the bizarre spectacle, she turned towards the cat standing upright.

"Well?" It spoke up in her head, the smirk practically taking up space in her head.

Dumbfounded, Ann-Gel stood next to the swirling vortex currently attempting to absorb her soul.

"If you really want to save the boy, I recommend not touching the whirlpool." It pointed with its right hand, its three sphere-shaped fingers gesturing towards the controller. "On the left side of the Gamepad, there is a pair of gray rectangles imprinted on it. Step on it using your trophy pedestal."

"...My pedestal?" She gulped, glancing down at the orange ink that stayed in a constant splash form.

Narrowing its eyes yet again, the feline made a hissing noise in her mind. Maybe it was meant to be a scolding. "We are not confined to these weights without reason. Go on. If you wish."

She blinked once and rubbed her eyes as she briefly wondered if this was some sort of trick. However, the look the other amiibo was giving her was definitely not one of a prankster's grin. It was a cold, yet somewhat eager stare, as if it was saying, "I don't care if you die, but you'd better get moving." Ann-Gel had decided quite a long time ago that her life was pretty boring. But hey, a death deadly journey into who knows where to try and find Sharq? Perhaps it was just the vacation she needed.

Hopping up over to the left side of the controller, she wobbled slightly, though managed to keep from plummeting into the abyss by tipping over into the screen. Gazing backwards, she waved towards the other amiibo.

"Thanks...you...?" She thought as she stared.

"Some refer to me as Frieza." It spoke simply, blinking with a nostalgic sigh following. "Though, if it's simpler, you can just refer to me as Mewtwo."

She was not sure how that would be easier. Both names sounded foreign, to say the least. Regardless, she shuffled over towards the spot on the Wii U Gamepad where the rectangles of sorts were painted on. Looking over towards the Mewtwo, she felt as though the world were fading around her. Color and details were soon replaced with a bright light, up until the point where she could not see nor hear anything but white and buzzing as she was spirited away.

As Ann-Gel's vision cleared, she had somewhat hoped that everything would be much more comfortable than she suspected it to be. Of course, that would just be thoughtful thinking. Feeling the familiar weight of a floor materialize beneath her shoes, she blinked, looking straight ahead. The room was dim, a cubic interior surrounding her. Despite the dim lighting, Ann-Gel could make out something just ahead of her. A figure, two short tentacles wrapped in a band, blue in color, stood in front of a set of television screens stuck to the side of the wall, fixated on the action.

"...Fascinating." He muttered, watching the screens intently.

From behind, Ann-Gel could just barely make out the point of interest on one of the screens. Squinting her eyes, she noticed a familiar Takoroka Mesh cap running about in the middle of them all, rolling around with a Splat Roller of sorts, a thick trail of blue following behind him. On the other screens however, there was little of substance happening. One was a disconcerting picture of a splotch of ink. At least, Ann-Gel thought so, until a shirt floated to the top of the sludge. A few of the other screens showed similar other scenes, all ending with the remains of Inklings. If you can count thin, colored stains remains. With a bead of sweat dripping down the side of her face down one of her tentacles, Ann-Gel attempted to advance on the other Inkling amiibo as he took in the sights.

"Wouldn't you agree, Ann-Gel?" Seamond spoke aloud to the room.

She hesitated, pausing behind him. "Huh?"

Turning around slowly, Seamond blinked once, a wicked grin stuck to his face.

"...I knew there was something wrong with you from the start." Ann-Gel muttered as she glared at him.

With a frown, Seamond crossed his arms. "Really? I thought I did a decent job of masking my intentions."

Briefly, Ann-Gel thought back to the many, many blank stares she received throughout the day. "...No. Not really."

"Well, it's not like it matters much." He shook his head, turning back towards the screen, grinning at Sharq, blissfully unaware of the amiibos as he forged forwards. "But I am glad that you arrived."

"Oh yeah?" Ann-Gel scoffed for a brief moment. "Wait...huh?"

With an innocent smile, Seamond nodded, walking away from the screens. "Of course. You and I have something in common."

"Yeah, we're both made of like plastic. I already know. She spoke up, gesturing towards the ceiling.

A frown etched onto his face, he glanced up at the ceiling of the room. As he did, suddenly Ann-Gel charged forward, or shuffled considering her pedestal, and raised her fist. The unsuspecting male Inkling suddenly looked down just as her fist shot out towards him. Unfortunately for Ann-Gel, he caught her punch as it flew towards him.

"Goodness." He murmured, arching an eyebrow at her. "Did you really think I would fall for that?"

"Yes and no. I didn't think you'd be distracted so easily." She grunted, attempting to wrench her hand free from his grasp.

Shaking his head plainly, Seamond smiled back at her, gripping her other hand as well. "Now now. You didn't even get to hear what I've had to say first."

"Like which method I'd prefer my soul to get sucked out with?" She glared. If her legs were not glued to her pedestal, she would no doubt try and kick the other statuette.

He laughed, a smirk stuck on his face. "I see that Mewtwo individual has already told you. I will admit, I have done some rather unsavory things in the past. I offered missions to many different Inklings. I offered amazing rewards, entertaining challenges, so much."

Seamond spun both of them around as if it were a waltz. Trophies may not normally feel nausea, but Ann-Gel definitely was not enjoying the small dance.

"However, there was a pattern between them all." Seamond spoke, his smirk shrinking. "After I had gone out of my way to offer them challenges, they discarded me. They left me behind. I was done and over with, with nothing else to do. They all left me."

Grimacing, Ann-Gel tugged at his hands once more, which somehow did not budge. "Well, Sharq's different. Not everyone-"

Seamond's face hardened. "'Not everyone is like them'. That's what they all said. And in the end…"

The two of them glanced at the screens revealing the several Inkling remnants. Ann-Gel could feel the palms of his hands grow cold. But that could most likely be because none of them could generate body heat.

Turning Ann-Gel back towards him, he smiled in the warmest way a serial killer could. "But you're different. You know the feeling. Your challenges…they're finished, aren't they? If you stay here, you will never have to worry about anyone abandoning you. There will always be someone foolish enough to try. The challenges will never end."

A wave of discomfort began swamping her. Staring over towards the set of monitors, she noticed Sharq slowing his roll somewhat. He began to stare around in confusion as he stood on a segment of a platform covered in dirt. As she glanced at the various different switches and buttons underneath the screens, Ann-Gel noticed a rather large boom microphone sticking out underneath Sharq's screen with a shiny button positioned right by its side.

Feigning a sweet smile, Ann-Gel took up the dance and spun one extra time. For a brief moment, Seamond smiled as well.

Until she spun him again and said, "No thanks."

The sudden spin managed to loosen his grip. As he let go, Ann-Gel kicked at him with her pedestal. Knocked off balance, Seamond fell backwards towards the back wall, his teeth grit as he scrambled to regain balance. Sprinting (again, hard to do with a trophy base stuck to the soles of your shoes) over towards the microphone, Ann-Gel slammed her palm down on the button and let her voice flow.

Sharq was not exactly having fun. He did not want to admit it for fear of insulting Seamond, but the whole, "randomly generated" thing was really not cutting it out for him. In the past hour, Octarians popped out of absolutely nowhere, platforms moved erratically, and the goal seemed to get farther away. Rolling past several Octocopters stacked on top of each other, dodging the spheres of violet ink, he began slowing down, panting with exhaustion.

"Bleh." He sighed, coughing out a bubble of violet ink. "This is getting really repetitive."

Looking straight ahead, he noticed something. The goal was still well ahead of him. With a gulp, he glanced back, expecting the Octocopters to probably blast him in the face as soon as he did. Instead, he was greeted with the spawn-point. Turning back around, he noticed that the distance he traveled looked awfully similar- Oh you get the point.

Sharq realized he had practically been walking in place.

"Aw, what?!" Sharq complained, glaring up at the sky.

Hey man, I'm just the narrator.

Crossing his arms, Sharq had his roller held between the his right elbow, shaking his head in disbelief. "Well...oh. I'm sure if I just...walk forward a bit more I...ugh."

Don't sweat it, squid kid. Just push forward.

"We don't say that anymore though." Sharq spoke up plainly.

Well then, what do you say?

"Uh…" Sharq pursed his lips, walking forward. "Actually, maybe- GAH!"

"Ow!"

Falling over onto his face with a groan, immediately, Sharq regained his footing and scowled, dusting himself off. He glanced around, wondering what form of obstacle had tripped him this time.

"Dude, I'm trying to sleep. Go trip over someone else."

Sharq's eyes grew in surprise. He knew that voice. Staring straight at the ground beneath him, lying in the dirt was a familiar looking octopus. The octopus yawned, stretching its tentacles, humanoid limbs stretching out where the tentacles were until an Octoling appeared in its place.

He could not believe his eyes. "Tai?"

Tai yawned and waved, rubbing her eyes. "Huh. Sharq appearing in my dreams. That's a first." Getting up to her feet, she stretched her arms. "Though with what's been happening lately, I guess anything can happen."

"Tai, where have you been?!" He spoke up incredulously. "We haven't seen you in days!"

"Hmm?" She muttered, wiping her eyes. "Aw. Well, I appreciate your concern, Dream Sharq. Hey, wait, shouldn't you understand, you know, being a figment of my imagination or something?"

Flabbergasted, Sharq just stared up at the sky.

Long story.

"Oh." He shrugged, turning back to Tai. "Well, you've gotta help me Tai! I gotta get over to that Zapfish on the other side!"

Arching an eyebrow, Tai glanced forward. Squinting her eyes, she could barely make out the sight of a yellow force field. Reaching at her neck for something, she grasped nothing but air, much to her irritation.

"Why don't my goggles follow me into dreams but Sharq- Nevermind." She glanced over each and every one of the platforms curiously. "I feel like you could've just...you know, won by now. Doesn't look that hard."

"I don't know how, but I just kept being pushed back! I can't move forward." He commented, patting the dirt with his foot.

"What about Super Jumping?" She murmured, still rubbing her eyes tiredly as if attempting to stay awake.

Sharq opened his mouth for a brief second, raising a finger in the air. "...Okay you got me."

Switching into a blue squid instantaneously, he pointed his head towards the sky. Tai grinned, doing the same, a violet octopus sitting at the other cephalopod's side. Pointing into the sky, the both of them rocketed off in the air with a stream of ink following them. As they flew, Sharq noticed the platforms below. Each and every one of them started moving towards the spawn-point rapidly, like a conveyor belt, swapping sizes and shapes. With a sigh, Sharq shook his head and pressed on through the air.

Eventually, the two of them landed on the other platform, where the Zapfish Plushie sat in its electrical cage, Sharq stretching his arms in the sky. "Finally! Thanks Tai."

With a frown, Tai eyed the Zapfish substitute sitting on top of its metallic perch. "...You're welcome. But Sharq, I have a question."

"Mm?" Sharq hummed with glee.

"Why did you take an hour just to get to a cardboard cut-out?" Tai muttered, eyeing the small stuffed doll suspiciously.

Sharq paused mid-stretch and stared at her. "...Huh?"

With a frown, Tai walked up to the Zapfish plushie. Taking her right hand, she immediately smacked the barrier with the back of her palm. A creaking noise emanated from the Zapfish as it fell back onto the ground flat.

"...Uh?" Sharq blinked as he stared at the mural flat on the ground.

"You guys are seriously gullible." Tai shook her head with a smirk. "Lucky I'm here. Well, now what?"

"SHARQ!" A voice shouted, the two cephalopod teenagers jolting in shock.

Tai glanced around the area with a frown. "Voice? I don't remember you sounding so feminine."

"Ann-Gel?" Sharq cocked an eyebrow in curiosity. "Where are you?"

A hesitant noise followed soon after. "I- A room somewhere! I don't have a lot of time! But you have to know something! Seamond's actually-"

Silence. Both Sharq and Tai frowned, looking around. Gasping, Sharq pointed over towards the platforms they had sailed over. The Octoling followed his line of sight. Each and every one of the platforms shook uncontrollably for a short while, until they all up and fell into the abyss of this Octo Valley lookalike. Following the other platforms, the spawn-point also dropped down into the abyss of the valley. The two of them gulped, staring down at the floor holding them aloft. They wondered how long it would take until they were next.

"...Alright, what's the explanation?" Tai requested, shooting a cautious look at Sharq.

Sharq bit his lip. "Uh…" He cleared his throat. "Ann-Gel and I found a new amiibo, his name is Seamond, I found a little cat-"

"Mm-hm." Tai muttered, walking over towards the fallen cardboard piece.

"And then we went to eat at Oahu." Sharq stated, tapping fingers on his right hand as he counted off each and everything he did. "Seamond suggested that we should go to the plaza to try out some missions-"

"Ooh." She hummed, eyeing the Zapfish. As if she had something in mind, Tai gripped the side of the cardboard and lifted upwards.

"Then after I got launched up into the air, I tried to move forward," He rambled, walking over to where Tai stood, "Then I tripped over you and here we are."

Tai nodded in response. "Alright."

Sharq tilted his Takoroka Mesh, and with it, the shade that obscured his eyes followed. "Did...any of that make sense?"

Spinning her head towards Sharq, she shook it. "Nah. But check out this sweet box I found."

Underneath the cardboard cutout was a cardboard box. As redundant as that sounded, that was how it appeared.

"Man, I bet this would help back in that base. Somehow." She muttered, a hint of glee crossing her face.

"Hmm." Sharq muttered, his eyes narrowing.

Something was definitely up with the box. Under normal circumstances, Sharq would welcome the container with open arms, but this box was in no way a welcoming box.

Mostly because of the several wires running out from the bottom.

For whatever reason, a black plug, similar to a snake, ran along the ground, plugged into a socket sticking out of where the fake Zapfish was perched. Now, Sharq was no expert on boxes, but he did know that they did not run on electricity. Without hesitation, he reached at the sides of the box, Tai watching eagerly.

Lifting it above his head, Sharq's eyes grew wide at the scene unfolding on the floor. "Whoa! That's...what am I looking at?"

"Ooh." Tai murmured, turning away somewhat. "Not sure either of us are old enough to see that."

While the two's initial reactions may have been somewhat over the top, the amiibos were sprawled out on the ground, Ann-Gel laid underneath an equally shocked Seamond, whose arms were grasping at the others neck in a rather risque fashion. Which, again, was useless in retrospect considering her lack of lungs. By their side, a series of television screens now sprawled on the ground, miniature compared to the regular-sized cephalopods sparked uselessly.

However, as indecent as the scene looked, Ann-Gel was in no mean embarrassed as she was frightened. "Someone do something!"

Sharq glared at Seamond as he sat above Ann-Gel. "Hey!"

"...No." Seamond muttered to himself, shock prevalent on his face. "You...NO!"

That seemed to be the cue Tai was waiting for, as a smirk crossed her face, stepping forward. "I've waited a long time to get to do this to somebody. There's been a lack of annoying people I could punch...so many opportunities I left alone. You get to be the first joker in a while who probably won't look the same after this. Lucky you!"

Cracking her boneless knuckles, Tai swung her fist towards the blue-tentacled Inkling Boy amiibo, launching him off of Ann-Gel. Yelping, he desperately reached back at the remaining platform as the fist collided. Unfortunately for him, he Octoling's eager, built-up willingness to beat something up was finally released, Seamond flying over the edge of the platform.

"Ann-Gel! We could've made a difference! We could've stopped them from ever neglecting us! You...you…!" He screamed as he dropped, with an echo that followed shortly after his last words were lost.

Ann-Gel simply replied with a cough as she slowly got up to her feet with the assistance of Tai's much larger hand. The yell of the other Inkling amiibo went on for quite a while. At least, until they all heard a thud. The sentient sea life froze. For a while no one said a word.

"...You win." His voice seemed to sigh.

All of a sudden, the world around them appeared to crumble. The colors around them began to fade again, with everything seeming to decompose around them. Tai blinked, looking around as the world crumbled around them.

"Guess my time here is up or something." She shrugged, smiling over at Sharq. "Hey, I'll see you guys after I get out of this place. Thanks for letting me punch that guy. See you."

Finally, the world faded to black.

"...Hm." A voice rang out through Ann-Gel's head. "You actually survived. Interesting."

The female trophy opened her eyes slowly. The blue sky flooded back into her vision, with the buildings of Inkopolis filling in the empty space. The feeling of asphalt behind her head also grew prevalent. In the center of it all, a hairless feline stared back at her with mysterious violet eyes, now glowing with power.

"...Frei...Mew...whatever." She muttered as a drowsy feeling began to weigh on her eyelids.

The other creature's eyes closed. "Your time hasn't come yet. I suppose I should thank you for defeating that upstart."

Managing to keep herself awake, she turned her head to the side. Mewtwo's left hand was extended, its fingers poised to the side. Staring to the side, she noticed a distraught looking blue Inkling amiibo, seemingly stuck frozen in the air.

"Well?" It arched a spot where an eyebrow would be had it any hair on its face. "Satisfied? You won. Now I can leave in peace. So can the others."

Ann-Gel blinked. Gliding overhead, she could swear she saw multiple Inklings laugh as they spiralled towards the sky. For a brief moment, she frowned. Splin and Sharq were some of the only squids she knew could do that.

"I'll be sure to give him a stern 'talking-to'." Mewtwo spoke through her mind. "Regardless to say, I believe you may have earned a rest. Good afternoon, Ann-Gel."

Ann-Gel watched as he and the other amiibo ascended into the air. She did not really see much more after that, considering her eyelids were drooping quickly. With a sigh, she dropped her head back on the asphalt and let herself doze off. She earned it, after all.

All the while, Splin stared at himself in the mirror, a hand placed on his chin morosely. He stared at himself for quite a while, his elbow lying on a counter with a sink built in. For a brief moment, he glanced around for a moment, as if suspecting someone else would come barging in. Finding that he was indeed alone in the bathroom, he stooped down to the bottom of the counter. A drawer stuck out of the front, with an inviting knob. Gripping the knob, he pulled out the drawer, staring at the contents. A single tie, ruffled and aged with time sat inside. Reaching inside, he took the tie out, looking at his own shirt. A Black Anchor Tee was hardly the fanciest attire to accommodate. Despite that, he raised the tie towards his shirt collar, then stared back at himself.

"...Hm." He murmured as he stared at his reflection.

Then he heard the doors slam open. Thoroughly surprised and flustered, he jammed the tie back in the drawer, closed it shut, then reached for the door of the bathroom to his left. Opening the door immediately, he stared out from underneath the staircase of his home.

"Hi Splin!" Sharq waved, Ann-Gel sitting on his shoulder.

"Uh, hey Sharq!" His younger brother waved in response. "Where'd you…actually, scratch that, what are you wearing?"

If it was not for Sharq's face poking out, Splin could have sworn that this was another crossover chapter. Sharq stood there, Ann-Gel awake and perched on his shoulder with a smile, but his attire was different. Wearing a traditional attire that of a samurai, a golden set of tentacles emblazoned on the top of his helmet, Sharq stood at the side of the kitchen counter, a futuristic Splat Roller gripped in his hands like a noble weapon.

Splin stared at him, both thinking, "Did Sharq time travel again?" and "I can't believe I was worried about my attire."

"Well?" Sharq asked with a small flex and a grin.

Splin just blinked and shut the restroom door behind him. "I'm coming back out when you switch to your normal clothes."

A pout on his face, Sharq shook his head. "Aw man. I got these from those challenges too. Oh well."

Ann-Gel shrugged on Sharq's shoulder. "I think you look pretty heroic Sharq."

"Thanks." He muttered, taking his helmet off, revealing his Takorka Mesh underneath.

Lowering his shoulder to kitchen counter level, he allowed Ann-Gel to step off onto the tabletop, while he stripped down to his default appearance. Sighing slightly and sitting on her pedestal, Ann-Gel began staring out of the hole in the ceiling out at the blue sky. Just this morning she had been taken out for a walk, watched a phone get crushed, learn of Sharq's potential career in politics, had met a psychic cat, and stopped a murderer.

Perhaps it was not that bad that her life was uneventful.

As Ann-Gel reflected on the morning, Splin splashed cold, painful water into his face with a frown.

"If I'm still sleeping, then this better wake me up." He thought to himself as he doused himself with water.

AN: Long chapter, huh? Well, I'm coming up with another one today to celebrate The Bate Brothers' Adventures' one year anniversary, hopefully, so stay tuned.

Thank you Ultrapyre, sebastian G, write n wrong, and Rynowm for reviewing!

Ultrapyre, I appreciate that someone else shares the sentiment of workloads. That would probably explain why so many Splatoon authors here have taken quite a long break, at the least. By the by, I'm sure you may have already guessed by now, but the "cat" of sorts was the cameo for the miniature arc. Thanks for consistently reviewing, by the by.

Thanks for chiming in again sebastian G, nice to see that you still have interest left for this story!

write n wrong, unfortunately, as my finances are at a bit of an odd place as of late, I have not yet been able to purchase Monster Hunter Generations. But I heard the Lagiacrus from MH3 is in there, so I'm excited to play it.

Rynowm, I hope my advice helps you for your story.

Thanks for reading, this is ThePizzaLovingTurtle, see you soon.