Chapter Text
“Where am I…”
Sylpha woke up in a dark room. She was laying in… a bed? Not her bed, not any bed she recognizes. And the room… it’s dark, but judging by the few things she can see (an old poster of an inkling band, a dirty rug rolled up on the corner, a bunch of important looking papers pinned to a board) she can tell she definitely not in Alterna.
If she’s not in Alterna, where has she been taken to?
Without getting out of the bed, she tries to reach for a light switch just besides the bed frame, but accidentally knocks a cheap alarm clock to the ground, making a “clank” noise her ears really didn’t appreciate at this early hour.
It almost felt like the sound was hitting her head over and over and over again in a really unpleasant way. Like if she had a hangover… possibly because of the effects of blood loss... maybe? She isn’t sure, human biology was never her thing.
“Agh.”
The sound kept going, it seemed to stop for a second but then it kept going. Getting louder and louder… or… closer? It’s not the same sound as before?
The door opens and a familiar inkling quickly rushes to hug her with a face that only shows relief, like if a weight had been taken off her shoulders. Makes sense, since that was the case. Zuri had to deal with the aftermath of what happened in Alterna, Sylpha’s wound and also her identity going public.
They have so much to discuss and so much to plan out, but at the moment… they’re just going to enjoy this hug for a little while longer. After all that happened, they needed it more than they wanted to admit.
…
The freshness of the air, the view of the Octo Canyon below, a shooting range, an old shack, a broken oversized glass ball. All those combined gave the place a very unique feel, not completely rural but not urban either. It’s nice place to be in.
“This is one of the platoon’s bases of operations. It’s their way of compensating us for what happened.” Said Zuri. “They apparently lived here while investigating 2nd theft of the great zapfish.”
Sylpha stood near the edge furthest from the Canyon, looking at the city.
“This view…” Said Sylpha.
She had only seen Inkopolis from afar in two occasions. When she arrived with Zuri and when they left on the train. It looks so different depending on where you are when you look at it, and this particular view feels familiar.
“This place is not that far away from the exit we used when I found you.” Said Zuri. “It brings back memories, doesn’t it?”
“Feels likke ages ago.” Said Sylpha.
“Well, it has been quite a few months.” Said Zuri. “But it does feel like way longer.”
“…” Sylpha stayed quiet.
“What’s on your mind?” Asked Zuri.
“What’s going on there.” Said Sylpha, still looking at Inkopolis.
“According to what Marie said, it’s not chaos but close.” Said Zuri. “There’s so much uncertainty and no one is really sure about what to do or think. And social media is flooded with just stuff about you. You’re the most famous person in the world.”
“What do they say?” Asked Sylpha.
“Well, they’re just wondering if there are more humans, what your intentions are, how will this affect them and… if you’re dangerous or not. Among other stuff.” Said Zuri.
Zuri turns on her phone and shows her a video thumbnail, the video being titled: “They’re back!”
“They are just making a lot of theories about you, there’s no clear opinion yet.” Said Zuri.
Sylpha sighed.
Things are out of her control. She can’t do anything but wait and that bothers her a lot.
“We’ll have to waitt and see.” Said Sylpha.
“On the meanwhile… how about I show you something that’ll really cheer you up?” Said Zuri with a smile on her face.
She closes the video and opens inkstagram, she writes a couple words on the searcher until an image pops up. A couple inklings posing with the splatana they had designed together.
“Sheldon finished building his own prototype of our design this morning, and had a couple volunteers test it. If all goes well, the splatana will be on the market by next week.” Said Zuri.
Beautifully designed, clean, sleek, elegant. With the inkfinity logo on the handle, a curved blade with hundreds of tiny bristles drenched in ink.
Seeing that picture, it feels good. The feeling of people enjoying something she made. It fills her with pride.
“Looks good, doesn’t it?” Said Zuri.
“Yeah, it does…” Said Sylpha.
“I’m pretty sure that Sheldon will ask us to make another design.” Said Zuri, smirking. “We don’t have our tools, but we can do some sketches. What do you think?”
Sylpha smirked back.
The rest of the day felt like any other they had before. Like if nothing had ever happened. They sketched many many different weapon designs (or rather, Sylpha had to guide Zuri to sketch for her, since she is left handed and her left shoulder is nowhere near fully healed), some completely new, others just tiny modifications of existing ones. And after that, they watched some turf wars together, like always.
Tonight was the last quarter finals of the regional season. Team Aurora who was fifth on the classifiers vs this season’s rank 3, Team Megalo.
It was a match between two teams that at first glance would look dull, or boring. They’re not the worst but they’re not the best, and they aren’t too flashy either. But it’s in matches like these where even the most unassuming teams can make the most fun and intense battles.
It was so exciting, so fierce. Team Aurora was extremely good at defending their turf using calculated moves and teamwork, and Team Megalo is well known for being extremely unpredictable on the offense.
In the end, Team Aurora won with a turf difference of just 1.7% allowing them to go into the semifinals to fight an even harder opponent, Team Pacifis.
The other semifinals also consist of a mid-level team against a behemoth, since its Team Torrent versus Team Illiquid…
Basil, Bella, Cass, Vance.
“You know… they’re probably worried about you…” Said Zuri.
“… worried? Or mad?” Said Sylpha.
Imagine one of your closest friends turns out to be from a different species, one believed to be a myth. Wouldn’t you feel betrayed? Or at least angry?
“They’re not going to be mad at you, why would they? They knew you kept your identity secret for a reason.” Said Zuri. “It’s a bit too late at night to call now, but you should call them tomorrow morning. They’ll be really happy to know you’re ok.”
“F-fine…” Said Sylpha, a bit nervous.
“Tomorrow m-morninng.”