Splatoon: The Parents and the Forgotten
The Island of Forgotten Joys
Phish breathed out a sigh. Truth be told, he was feeling rather old. Really, really old.
The sand beneath his feet felt like gritty, shaved pebbles. Uncomfortable for a man like him to stand on barefoot, much less lay across. No matter how many times Phish shifted, the sand under his body never felt right. Phish shifted into a blue squid, rolled around in the sand, and quickly reverted, feeling quite foolish for thinking that it might feel less awkward. Now he just felt like an old mutt on the beach.
"Phiiiiiiiish! Are you sure you don't want to join meeeee?~"
The sudden, rather loud request snapped Phish out of his doldrums. He sat up in the sand-angel he had created and gazed out at the ocean. The wind was a perfect breeze, something that helped cool Phish down without robbing him of the warmth of the day. It blew against his shirt, pushing his tie up into the air where it flapped like a flag attached to him. The waves were astoundingly calm, like the ocean itself was on vacation. A lovely, deep blue, like his tentacles. Perfect for a swim.
Phish breathed in deeply, then exhaled sharply. He began to walk across the shore, the sand still feeling gritty underneath his feet. Approaching the brine, Phish lowered his hand to the water, articulating his fingers as he reached. He dipped his entire hand into the water, then flinched. Phish quickly withdrew his hand from the surf, gazing at the appendage.
It had melted clean off.
Phish's face flushed a dark-blue. "I think I'll just stay on the beach."
Suddenly, there were eyes. A pair of hazel eyes stared back at Phish. They glanced at his face, lit up, then noticed his missing hand.
The eyes started tearing up almost immediately, gushing big blue crocodile tears into the already blue ocean. "Oh my gosh! Phish, I'm so sorry, I forgot!"
"It's fine, Pirah," Phish reassured her.
Phish lowered his hand. Ink spilled from where his hand once was, dripping into a puddle on the sand. Without hesitation, Phish plunged his arm into the puddle, sinking it up to the elbow. Not a second later he pulled it out, and he sighed, wiggling his fingers to make sure they were on right.
"No!" Pirah shouted, rising from the ocean in a full set of clothes, "You can't just tell me that! I saw your hand! Well, before it- You know what I mean!"
Phish sighed internally, trying not to upset his wife any further. Pirah, dressed in plain clothes from head-to-toe looked like any other young Inkling adult. Beat-up sneakers submerged in the surf, a dainty orange t-shirt and those cute little glasses he'd come to love, still perfectly affixed upon her face. Each article of clothing somehow completely dry.
"How do I keep forgetting?" Pirah wondered aloud, frantically shaking her head as she clutched Phish's arm, "Let me look at it!"
"What do you mean?" Phish cocked his head with a half-smile.
Pirah's face puffed up indignantly. "Quiet you!"
Phish sighed, looking away slightly. Face scrunched up, Pirah scrutinized Phish's arm, raising it over her face and twisting it around and around. Alas, it was a perfectly normal Inkling hand.
Pirah dropped the arm, cross look on her face, then walked up and smothered Phish in a hug. Phish practically choked as he gasped desperately for air. His newly reformed hand clawed at his wife's back.
"Don't ever scare me like that again," Pirah growled, shutting her eyes and resting her head on Phish's shoulder.
Pirah's grip around Phish's body grew tighter. Though Phish knew it was ridiculous to think so, he thought then and there he would die. Fortunately for him, there was a sudden rustling sound. Pirah and he both stopped their lover's charade and spun around.
Behind the beach was a brush of jungle, stretching in a disc around the island. A volcano loomed overhead, dormant but proud. The couple stared at the brush, waiting in silence as bushes and vines shook restlessly, almost like a small piece of the jungle was trying to burst free. Eventually, however, the rustling stopped, and a curious head poked through.
A sea turtle's head, thick and armored with scales, warily turned towards the Inklings. His face was grizzled and worn in spite of its youthful appearance. The sea turtle opened his mouth as if to say something, then frowned, looking back into the brush. He raised one flipper out from the bush, frowning at it, then turned back to the Inklings and waved.
"We might've found somethin' new you'll wanna check out."
With that simple message, the turtle retreated back into the dense forest. Phish and Pirah shared a tentative glance. With a silent nod, the two began to trot back, leaving light footprints in the sand as they went. The two entered the forest, rushing past the large plants and tall, thin trees. The sky began to vanish as the foliage and tree canopies started to blot it out. They were two blue spots amidst the green and brown, scurrying past large tree roots in a seemingly random pattern and path.
Soon enough, however, Phish and Pirah slowed to a brisk jog as they reached what appeared to be a clearing. A light smoke rose from the center of the dusty, circular opening in the forest and spiraled up into the sky. A strange, multicolored pyramid sat in the middle, displaying multiple videos of campfires at night, all burning out of sync.
Three individuals were gathered around the pyramid. The turtle, for one, sat down with its humanoid legs crossed. The bottom of his carapace had a large, thin "K" engraved in it. Sitting to his right was a large, tall...bird of some description with white plumes and a long beak. As for what bird it was? Well…
Sitting to the left of the turtle was a strange small creature wearing a mask, a tunic, and a small backpack. The mask looked much like a wall outlet; two long eyes and a small frown. His body was small, and his arms and legs were even smaller. If anything, both his hands and feet were essentially also his arms and legs respectively given his lack of fingers or toes. Finally, sitting next to the masked creature was what appeared to be an electronic box with an LED on the front. A ruined cord not much longer than a finger ran out from behind the box, sparks flying out occasionally.
"How was the swim?" The turtle asked, covering his mouth with his flipper as he yawned.
"Well, I hate to brag…" Pirah started, rubbing her middle finger and thumb together smugly.
Phish arched an eyebrow up. Pirah stopped, turned to Phish, noticed his facial expression, and felt her face flush.
Pirah exhaled sharply. "Oooh...right. Phish's hand melted off in the surf again."
"Again?" The turtle scoffed. "What, you just like sittin' and starin' at her all day?"
"S-U-R-F. SURF."
The electronic box whirred to life. The LED screen on its front buzzed, flashing two thin rectangles that blinked in and out like they were eyes. The three others present started to roll their eyes.
"Surf is a noun used to describe the waves upon a beach as they hit the shoreline," the box described, "It is also a popular sport among coastal cities."
The tall bird, perched on its thin legs, shook his head. "Thanks, G.O.R., I was really fishing for that one."
The box known as G.O.R. jittered. "'Scrawk! Skyaw's my name, speed's my game!" Squawk!'" It then shut off, LEDs going dark.
"Still can't believe he managed to keep his imitation chip," the small masked thing muttered, "Of all the chips!"
"Have you tried shockin' it?" The turtle asked, nudging the masked thing.
"Ha ha ha," the masked thing replied dryly, "Y'know Koone, maybe it works like a computer. Maybe you just haven't hit it hard enough yet."
Koone snarled, trying in vain to ball his flipper into a fist. "If I still had my old arms back-"
"If you had your old arms back," the masked thing corrected.
"Don't patronize me, Hye."
"Big words coming from you dude."
"Guys, c'mon," Phish sighed, glaring at them, "You said you had something to show us? Or are you just wasting our time?"
Pirah frowned at him. Phish gave her a look that said "I'm just saying", prompting her to shoot a look back that said, "You're saying it wrong though". The group ahead of them murmured in agreement, cutting off the couple's quiet argument.
"All we've got is time, dude," Koone grunted, lounging back on the soft dirt, "But you've got a point. Tele-mid?"
The small pyramid in the center flashed, and all the campfires faded as the screens flashed black. Immediately, the screens all flashed to the same exact image. The images flashed to a planet, then zoomed in on a continent. It continued to zoom, further and further, until the only thing on the screens was-
"Splin…" Pirah gasped, holding her hand over her mouth.
Sweat accumulated on Phish's forehead. "What's he doing?"
"Turns out that guy's a lot busier than we gave him credit for! You guys really made a keeper!" Skyaw proclaimed, lightly pounding his crest.
Phish made another face at Skyaw, who shrunk slightly under his gaze.
"He's going to get himself hurt." Pirah briskly shook Phish's arm, eyes glued to the screens, "We need to do something!"
Phish bit his lip. "We'll...we'll figure something out, Pirah. I promise."
"For once, Phish's half-hearted attempt at comfort actually has some merit to it," Hye proclaimed, adjusting his mask.
"Hey."
Pirah gasped, practically scaling Phish in squid form. Atop his crown, she cried out, "Really? How! Can we- Are we finally-"
"I thought you said we weren't goin' to tell them that," Koone grumbled a little louder than he intended to.
The Inklings stared at the group of four. Upon realizing his folly, Koone's head attempted to retract into his shell, but to no avail.
Koone snarled. "Screw this thematically appropriate body."
"Wait, I don't understand. Why wouldn't you tell us that?" Pirah asked, somewhat in earnest and somewhat accusingly.
Pirah had switched back into Inkling form, unfortunately squishing Phish underneath her. Phish grunted as he switched into a squid to slide out as the others began to huddle together. They whispered to themselves, occasionally breaking formation to check if the Inklings were still there. Each time they were, they would whisper much more urgently.
Eventually, the group of other curious creatures turned, and as Koone was about to speak, G.O.R. robotically replied, "The Tele-mid's gathered enough residual energy to support one (1) mandatory round-trip entry to another universe. *Note, in the event where another plane of existence is defined as a dimension or a universe interchangeably, the closest thing to-"
Koone clamped his flippers around G.O.R.'s LED, somehow muffling his very long-winded explanation. Everyone spent quite a while staring at each other, each about as nervous as the other.
Pirah broke the silence, surprising the others. "...I'm so sorry."
"Huh?" Was everyone else's response.
Pirah smiled sadly. "We've been selfish, haven't we Phish?" While Phish remained silent, he turned to look at Pirah in the eyes. "We've spent all this time here worrying over the boys that we've never considered the others."
"The others" looked as though they were shot through the hearts. Each one (including the disembodied robot head) had guilt written on their face, plain as day.
Koone cleared his throat. "No, no. We have our own problems too."
"That you could use to solve with this," Pirah stated firmly, "You've been away from your friends and family for a long time."
"We don't even know if they're alive anymore, to be honest," Skyaw answered morosely, "This is your guys' chance to see your kids again, even if it is for just a little while."
"But TFA! The alliance, the adventures! Your super cool powers! Everything. For us?" Pirah asked, holding her hands close to her heart.
"Pirah's right," Phish said, taking one of Pirah's hands and holding it in his own.
Pirah blushed at the prospect. Phish, stumbling over his own actions already, made a noise like he was swallowing a golf ball before continuing.
"We've been...pretty selfish," Phish acknowledged both reluctant and sheepish, "And I don't know if we can take this favor from you."
The others all gasped in a synchronized act of disbelief. Phish, naturally, took some offense but continued.
"I- We've been wanting to go back home for a long time." Phish stated, staring at the sky, "But you've wanted to do it much longer than we have. If you want to go and try and find everyone you've lost, then by all means. Pirah and I would be...more than…"
Phish hesitated again for a moment. "We would be glad to see you back where you need to be."
"Did Phish just own up to his feelings?" Hye whispered a little too loudly.
Skyaw, teary-eyed, wiped away a tear with his feathers. G.O.R.'s screen simulated a frown, and Koone scowled in response. Without saying a word, Koone stood up, walked over to the Tele-mid, and stooped down to pick it up.
"'Where we need to be'? You honor us," Koone chuckled, "But I don't think the world, or any world for that matter, need us anymore. If anything…"
Koone attempted to pick up the small pyramid with his flippers. Immediately as he tried, the Tele-mid slipped out of his grasp. He grunted, stooping down to try again. Again it slipped out. This went on for quite a while, with everyone watching intently as Koone attempted to keep up his heartwarming gesture until eventually he just got sick of it.
"IF ANYTHING, YOU NEED THIS MORE THAN WE NEED IT. Jeez," Koone screeched with a kick.
The Tele-mid spiraled and spun through the air much like a Splat Bomb might. It near-instantly collided with Phish's face, causing him to fall to the ground following a brief shriek. Pirah caught the Tele-mid, blue tears welling up in her eyes.
"Oh, guys!" She sniffled, rubbing her eyes, "I can't believe...Phish, do you know what this means?"
"It was probably for the best that Koone doesn't get to travel?" Phish grumbled, rubbing his nose.
Koone snorted, smoke blowing out through his nostrils. "That sarcasm ain't gonna be missed for the day you'll be gone."
"A day?" The Inklings shouted, rustling the forest around them.
"Unfortunately, with G.O.R.'s limited database on universe hopping and my lack of sophisticated tools, this was all we could manage right now," Hye explained, raising one finger up and gesturing as though he were giving a lecture, "Only under very specific conditions could we manage to get this to work, and that's including using both the Tele-mid and G.O.R.'s already weakened power supply."
Sparks began flying out of G.O.R.'s ruined cord. The little robot head simulated its eyes bobbing up and down in a makeshift nod.
"Admittedly, it's very experimental," Hye explained, "To be frank, your youngest having triggered so many shockwaves in the past managed to lead me to a solution by figuring out what wavelengths and other specifications I needed to work out, and we've never done any tests because of the whole 'one chance' prediction-"
"Then we'll be your first test subjects! C'mon Phish, let's go see our boys!" Pirah exclaimed, taking his hand in hers.
"Wait, Pirah! Hye, what else do we need to know?" Phish asked as Pirah began to jam her finger into the screen like a woman possessed.
"Well, for one, this is dependant on the Tele-Cube being active, which has been a little tricky. Secondly, we don't know how exactly time or space will warp or be warped as a result of this given its probably one of the most 'gung ho experiments' I've had to do. Thirdly, it's probably best if you don't make immediate contact with your kids, as it may negatively affect or irreparably damage both you and the entire universe." Hye explained.
"Wait, what?" Phish asked as Hye had explained that rather quickly.
"We'll see you guys soon," Hye ended, waving to them. For a split second. Phish could swear that he saw the face on his mask smile at them.
"Happy trails!" Skyaw joined in, flapping his wings. He hovered off the ground for a short while, then dropped back onto the grass, stretching his wings uncomfortably.
G.O.R. waved with the busted cord. Koone sighed and nodded briefly as he joined the others, standing in formation and giving the Inklings a send-off. More sparks began flying out, arranging themselves into an unreal beam directed toward the Tele-mid. The sparks began to spark a fire onto the Tele-mid, and the object itself began to smoke and shudder. Phish's heart rate kicked into high gear as the Tele-mid caught fire, but Pirah was not at all deterred. Her eyes, dry of tears, were now filled with hope.
"Good luck you two." Koone nodded, pointing a finger gun at them.
Phish managed to smile, but it didn't hold for very long. The Tele-mid's fire began to pick up when suddenly it was a blaze engulfing the grass floor. Panicked, Phish held onto Pirah for dear life, while Pirah just smiled and waved back to the others. Turning to Phish, she wrapped an arm around his body and gave him a look that said, "It'll be okay". Though the fire picked up around them and an unworldly wind began to whip around them, Phish gave her a curt nod of appreciation. He also held her tighter, also out of appreciation.
The elements intensified. Out of the blue, lightning bolts began striking the Tele-mid, and dirt and rocks dislodged from the ground started to clamp on top of the two Inklings, encasing them in a ball of mud. Fire, wind, lightning, and earth all seemed to collaborate together in an effort, when all of a sudden, a hole opened up in the sky. Like a switch was flipped, the ball of mud floated into the sky. A trail of fire followed, with the wind pushing the sphere of dirt and muck up in an updraft. Lightning bolts blasted the mud ball like a deranged god was playing darts, spinning the sphere. Soon, the ball entered the hole in the sky, which promptly closed, and the switch was flicked again, turning nearly any and all signs that fantastic event had ever transpired.
A small ember landed on the ground, creating a miniature campfire for the four to lounge around. Bits and pieces of mud and dirt dotted around them, and the wind slowed down to a peaceful tropical breeze. Hye turned to G.O.R., lightly slamming the top of the robot with the bottom of his fist. G.O.R.'s top opened, revealing a whole host of circuitry and wires.
Hye removed his backpack and opened it, casually sorting out several tools. "You sure it was a good idea to lie to them about this? They may be Inklings, but they aren't entirely stupid."
Koone sighed and waved his hand dismissively. A wisp of fire curled up his flipper and dissipated into thin air. "It'll work out in the end."
"Did you SEE that? That was the best wind I've created in- In years!" Skyaw grinned, flapping his wings lightly, "It's really happening!"
"Count your blessings while you still can, I'm not sure how much luckier we'll be next time Splin decides to screw with a temperamental energy source." Hye stated, "It'll be a miracle if we can manage to get Phish and Pirah there in one piece let alone keep them there for twenty-four hours tops. Need a recharge G.O.R.?" Hye flicked his wrist. Miniature lightning flickered on the palm of his hand as he lowered it into G.O.R.'s circuits.
"There," G.O.R. repeated, "Where is there?"
The group paused.
"There. To the brothers…" Hye stated, pausing again. "And the others." The last sentence he said, slightly annoyed.
"Are you sure?" G.O.R. inquired, sparks flying out of the back of its cord.
"God damn it," Koone muttered angrily.
The others sat there in silence, now all very wary of their own decisions.
Koone then, out of nowhere, turned to the sky and yelled, "Narrator!" He thrust his flippers to the sky, "For the love of the gods—any of 'em—you better have a happy ending for 'em planned!"
The sky did not answer back. I'm sure if it could speak, it wouldn't tell him anything.
Koone sneered. "Yeah, yeah. Guess I'll see soon enough whether it was worth it."
AN: Sorry that this is interjected where the end of the Chi arc should be. Or is it the Tai and Ari one? I needed to get back in the groove of writing, and what better way to do that than to reintroduce old characters I had created when I was like six?
Aside from that, I'm going to be frank. I want to end this story.
The Brothers and the Others has had a good run, but soon I'm going to need to throw in the towel. I've already had a while to debate this. All those gods mentioned know how long I've taken to conclude the Chi + Tai + Ari arc that's going on here, and there's still a collaboration I have with Ultrapyre, Mr. One Missed Call himself that I have yet to do.
But I feel like this story has already done a lot of what it needed to do. Times have changed, and I want to end this story on a decent note. So after a few of these arcs end, including one big one I have planned that sorta involves a little bit of Splat X and sorta doesn't, I feel like finally pulling the plug.
Because after about 90 chapters, you tend to want to end a story before it gets too cluttered with like over a hundred. Boy, wouldn't THAT be a mistake, huh?
Let's take a look at some reviews using this time machine to go back to 2018.
Alright, that was simple. Thanks RealCoolDude and write n wrong for reviewing.
Probably not the best idea to slap any hypnotizing gear on everyone RealCoolDude, but you do you. Except if it involves making everyone everywhere think positive, which I cannot allow.
I'm sorry it took me this long to update "what's next" write n wrong, if you're still here. Thanks for sticking around though.
Thanks for reading, this is ThePizzaLovingTurtle. Wombo Combo's actually a pretty good pizza by the way. By the time you're reading this, I'll have already finished one. Aside from that, see ya.