So…
Reincarnation.
Not what he expected, but then he hadn't been expecting anything.
What really tripped him up was reincarnating in a fictional universe.
(Was it a different universe? Or did Nintendo have someone who could see the future on their payroll?
Never mind.)
Point is, he died as a man, and now here he is as a baby squid.
You're a kid, you're a squid, etc., etc.
As far as post-apocalyptic settings went, this was pretty good.
No tragedies to prevent (or none that he's in a position to prevent, hello Deep Sea Metro!).
His meta knowledge was redundant; the good guys would take care of everything.
He died as a useless mooch before, and everything seemed to be on track for this life to be the same.
All was right with the world.
And with these thoughts, the newborn inkling went to sleep satisfied.
/
"So do you wanna join us or what?"
"Is there gonna be food and booze?"
Cue a flat look.
"It's a party."
"In that case, yeah I'm going."
"Fresh! See you at eleven then."
A negligent wave was the answer.
Cal stretched back on the stair he was on, even now noticing the lack of pops as Ray walked away to get more guests for tonight's soon-to-be mess.
Honestly, you'd think the whole being indifferent to everything and muttering apparent nonsense under his breath would leave him friendless.
It would've been easier.
Oh well.
He stood up from the step, pointlessly stretching again, and double-timed it back home. He needed to bring something to the party, and Ma sure as hell wouldn't let him raid her liquor cabinet.
Snacks it was.
/
What woke him wasn't the dryness in his throat (though he felt like he could chug a gallon of water).
It wasn't the headache either (though it was annoying).
No, it was the heat.
The humid, muggy heat led him to open his eyes and realize two concerning facts:
One, both the AC and fans were off.
Two, he was on the floor.
Cal slowly stood up, putting aside the blanket that had been haphazardly draped over him in the process.
Quick check.
Still at Ray's place, living room.
Still has his clothes.
No vomit or liquor stains, but they're soaked through with sweat.
Joy.
He slowly walked to where he knew Ray's bedroom was, knowing the blonde wouldn't mind lending him a set of clothes.
(Did the word blonde apply to tentacles? Yellowette didn't sound right.
Whatever.)
As he was about to twist the door handle, he felt a hand on his shoulder.
Speak of the devil.
"Slept well?"
Cal turned.
"Peachy."
The blonde snorted, his matching eyes closing for a bit.
"Yeah, the blackout must've woken up basically everyone."
Huh.
"It was a blackout?"
Now Ray looked confused.
"Well yeah! It only lasted like three seconds before power came back on, but yeah."
"Then why's everything off?"
As he asked this, Cal motioned vaguely to the roof, trying to encompass both the AC and fans.
Realization. And sheepishness.
"My house has this… thing were you have to turn everything back on manually. Doesn't matter if it was on when the power went out, you still gotta redo it."
It was Cal's turn to snort, this time in irritation.
"Hell of a thing to have…"
"Heyyy, stop speaking in tongues or whatever!"
Ray sounded hostile, but he was smiling.
"It's English."
"Holy crap you actually have a name for it!"
/
Some banter and questions later, and Cal was on the streets of Inkopolis again.
In his old clothes, because the few partygoers that hadn't already left Ray's were worse off than him and needed the clothes more.
Which was fair enough, you could go around in sweaty clothes but not puke-ridden ones.
Taking a swig of his water bottle, Cal detoured over to a restaurant to get breakfast; his Ma knew he was alright. He didn't need to go home immediately.
Then he heard that catchy little news jingle and suddenly the blackout made sense.
The only reason he didn't see it coming before is he doesn't keep up with the news, otherwise his heckles would've been raised since the "UFO sighting".
Goddamn canon.
Thankfully not his problem, he's native to Inkopolis unlike whoever Agent 3's going to be.
He still made to enter the restaurant with extra impetus.
/
It was later in the day, with a full stomach and having dropped by home to reassure his Ma, that he passed by that alleyway.
He thought nothing of it, assuming that Agent 3 had already been recruited.
Only…
The hell?
Cap'n Cuttlefish had been there.
He'd retreated down the tunnel as soon as Cal saw him, but still. That shouldn't have happened.
Was he wrong?
It's supposed to be that Agent 3 arrives in inkopolis and almost immediately gets recruited after following Cuttlefish to Octo Valley.
Then again, they could've easily decided to go straight to Turf Wars, default gear be damned.
Or they just went somewhere that didn't pass by Cuttlefish's little spot. Or they went straight to their new home like most people that have just moved to a new city. Or they never even arrived.
Countless reasons flashed through Cal's mind the more he thought about it.
This wasn't a game anymore; things weren't on rails.
He knew that, and not just intellectually.
He was just determined to not care.
It's not my problem and never has been.
But the one whose problem it should've been hasn't shown up.
I'm just some asshole with extra knowledge; I'm not Agent 3 levels of good.
But then I'd just need to be good enough.
It may not matter if Cuttlefish decides I don't have potential.
But I'd still need to be there for him to judge me.
The inkling stood there lost in thought, his green tentacles occasionally twitching, his half-lidded black eyes and slouched posture combining
with the state of his clothing to make him look disquieting to anyone that may have been watching.
Suddenly he lunged, transforming into a squid as he did. The manic burst of motion put him straight through the grating, and just like that Cal made his choice.
/
He jumped out the tunnel, not minding the fuzziness his entrance had caused him.
Cal looked at his new surroundings, his expectations being vaguely high.
The cabin was a cabin, he guessed. Not exactly disappointing, but not memorable.
The area around the cabin—
"The Octarians are coming! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Cal needed to work on his awareness.
(Because he seriously hadn't noticed Cuttlefish despite the guy being right there.)
From there it was just introductions.
And Cal being quiet.
Nice to see that bit of comedy was intact.
Anyway.
Either the old man was desperate or he saw genuinely saw something in Cal.
Honestly, he felt bummed. He'd have preferred that the vet tell him that he wasn't cut out for this; that way he could've gone on with his life without guilt knowing he'd at least tried and it was out of his hands now.
Shit.