The polished nozzle gleams and shines.

Unblemished gun reflects the sun.

A good day's match; victory's mine. - Agent 8

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You'd think it'd be easy to learn how to do a simple backflip, but...

THUD

I rubbed the back of my head, getting up from the soft mat beneath me.

"You're hesitating," said Nem, crossing her arms with a judging face. "I've given you the know-how. I've spotted you, too. You've even got the right form, but you're afraid."

We were in TentaTek's training room, and Nem had pulled out all the stops for this lesson. The entire floor had been covered in a very soft mat, so it was safe to practice backflips, yet... whenever I'd try, I'd hesitate, the instinct of preservation often taking over.

Nem-Nem had not been wearing her usual attire, which would usually consist of a plain t-shirt and sweatpants. Instead, she was wearing a blue tracksuit and sports sneakers. She'd been teaching me the basics of doing backflips, and while I could remember everything, I just couldn't get it right.

"I'm trying," I replied. "I keep thinking about what might happen if I mess up."

"In a Turf War, sometimes we have to discard our fears," Nem said to me. "You and I both know this. You've already done some pretty impressive things. You can leap across large gaps and easily perform rolls, but sometimes backflips are essential. They help you gain strength and mobility over time, and they can even save you in a pinch. It's good exercise for us."

Looking over at the other side of the room, I could see Safaia performing both backflips and frontflips with ease, making me jealous. I aspired to get better, but I wondered if I was even capable of reaching that goal. "Nem, what do you do when you've hesitating?"

"I literally don't think about it," said Nem. "I focus on my goals. I know I can do it, and so I do it. You need to get into that mindset. Maybe think about what you're doing this for...?"

Think about humanity?

I mean... Nem was right. I wanted to help humanity so badly, so... I just needed to keep that in my mind. "O-Okay," I said. "Here I go..."

Okay, so... think about humanity.

I got into position, bending my knees. Don't bend too far. I swung my arms up and over my head as I jumped. As Nem taught me, I pulled my knees up to my chest and gripped onto them, performing the tuck. I needed that movement, that ability to take down Ana.

I stuck the landing!

Then...

THUD.

As my feet hit a mat, I lost my balance, falling and landing on my back. I looked up at Nem with a nervous smile. "I-I'm sorry..."

"At least it was a full flip," she said. "You need to keep your knees aligned with your ankles. You were really crooked on that landing. This is only your first day, so don't sweat it too much."

"Is a backflip really easier than a frontflip?" I questioned as I stood up.

Nem nodded in confirmation. "The muscles in your back are usually stronger than the ones in front, so yeah, it is. Don't worry about frontflips yet. Oh, also, I'm eventually going to pit you against Safaia. She's been getting rusty, too."

"M-Me, against Safaia?" I stuttered in dread.

"Yep," Nem affirmed. "Anyways... I think that's enough for today."

As we all went outside and walked towards the car, I saw a familiar vehicle driving by, alarming me. "N-Nem..."

Nem looked at me curiously. "Hm?"

"C-Callie," I said, motioning my head towards the vehicle. "That's her limo."

"That's... too convenient," said Nem with suspicion, walking quickly towards her car. "Get in, buckle up, and hope we don't lose her."

The moment Nem started up the vehicle and began pursuing, the limo sped up. It seemed they already noticed. "Th-They're getting away!" I alerted.

"No, they're not," said Nem as she floored the pedal. This was now a high-speed chase, and I was gripping the sides of my seat. "You think you're so clever, trying to bribe my daughter with food... I've a right mind to–"

The limo quickly turned right, heading out of the city limits, forcing Nem to make a hard steer and making me nauseous from the sudden movement. "O-Oh cod... I'm gonna–"

"You're gonna hold it in!" Nem instructed. "Look out the window. It'll help you."

I nodded, keeping my eyes directed towards the side window and keeping a steady breath. I was nervous, too. What would happen if or when Nem caught up with Callie? The excitement was becoming a little too much.

I felt Safaia's hand grab mine, trying to comfort me. This actually did help, and I appreciated it. "Th-Thank you."

It was almost thirty minutes when the limo suddenly swerved off the road and onto the dirt, heading in the direction of the mountains. Nem didn't sound too pleased. "This had better not ruin my wheels. I just had these replaced."

"What are you going to do?" I asked.

"I just wanna talk to her," said Nem, worrying me even more. What was Nem's idea of talking in this context?

It wasn't long until we reached that familiar old shack. The limo had been parked, and Callie immediately stepped out the back with a knowing grin on her face. From out of the shack came Marie and the familiar agent with the captain's hat, making my blood run cold.

"N-Nem, it's a trap!" I warned, my eyes wide in fear.

Nem didn't listen, simply stopping the car and getting out, with Safaia and I quickly following closely. We didn't want her to get hurt, but... we were also extremely worried. We were a fair distance away from them, but I was afraid of Nem closing that distance.

"Good job, Callie," said Marie. "Hook, line, and sinker."

"What is the meaning of this?!" shouted Nem, her eyes glaring intensely, her tendrils glowing a brighter purple.

"You weren't hard to trick," said Marie. "The moment we let the human go, we interrogated her brother further and after he told us your name, we did a little digging of our own to learn everything about you. We found something interesting. You're Nem Nemone, and not only were you a champion, but you were also an–"

"Don't say it," Nem cut off, now making me curious.

"N-Nem, how much more are you going to hide from me?" I asked in disbelief.

"Let's just accept that there's always going to be something I'm hiding," she responded, now looking wrathful. "Okay, popstars. You've dug a little too far and now I'm going to have to take back Henry while also putting you three down like salmonid."

"Ooh, she's a real one," said Callie with a smirk.

"Sorry," said Marie, looking calm as can be. "Captain Three disagrees with your demands."

Nem shook her head with a chuckle, seeming to find the entire situation humorous. "Oh, there's no room for debate," she said, her tendrils switching from a gentle purple glow to a fiery red color that depicted her emotions accurately. As she raised her arm, a cane made from bamboo shoots manifested, the T-handle grasped tightly in her fingers.

I stepped back with wide eyes. "Th-That's a bamboozler!"

"Grandpa Nema's," she said with a smirk. "Kept it nice and safe until I actually needed it, and for this situation, I actually need it!"

Nem-Nem and Captain Three exchanged glances as the Squid Sisters walked back, staying out of the way. Captain Three had manifested a weapon that looked strange to me. It was sleek and futuristic-looking with its curving handles. Holding it with two hands, Captain Three smirked and dashed at Nem with speed much like in my first battle with her.

I was scared for Nem, especially when the Captain threw a splatbomb as her opening move. Nem went right for it, and as it reached her, she ducked down low, sliding beneath it as it went right past her face and missed. Before her sliding showed down, she got up and jumped over Captain Three with a frontflip, aiming her bamboozler.

The bamboozler was a simple weapon, a weapon with the fastest charge rate. Operating much like a sniper, it was essential to soldiers back during the Great Turf War. While they were the fastest chargers, they were also considered weak compared to all the others. You could never do a one-shot with one, so to see Nem with this weapon puzzled me.

Nem fired off a full charge, hitting Agent Three and causing a bit of damage. Just seeing Nem get the first hit was exciting and I felt like I was watching her in her younger days! Captain Three definitely didn't just stand there. She dashed out of the way as Nem fired another shot, narrowly missing the captain.

"This is already getting good," said Callie. "Wish I'd brought snacks."

"I could make seaweed stew when we get back home," Marie responded.

As Nem landed, Captain Three was already dashing towards her with her weapon firing. It seemed to have the same rate of fire as the average splattershot, but that didn't seem right. It looked too advanced to just work like one, right?

Then Captain Three surprised me, sending out three autobombs at once.

This squid had multiple subweapons!

"H-Hey, that's not fair!" I shouted.

"I'm sorry, did you think there were rules outside of a normal Turf War?" Marie replied.

Nem smirked, and for what reason, I could only imagine. To avoid the autobombs, she jumped up onto the shack with ease, climbing up within just two seconds. Standing proudly and turning around to face Captain Three as the bombs below detonated without a target.

"It's pretty funny," she said. "I almost thought you were the real deal. That first shot I delivered was to test your reflexes. You acted the same way I'd expect an inkling would. That means I know exactly how to handle you."

"Don't underestimate Captain Three!" Callie shouted, looking peeved.

Nem didn't say a word. She jumped off the shack, pushing her legs powerfully against the edge of the roof to propel her towards Captain Three. As she landed, she performed a roll before lining up her shot and firing, hitting the inkling yet again. Captain Three didn't dodge this time, instead opting to rush right in.

Nem seemed to anticipate this, jumping out of the way as... wait, what?!

Captain Three had suddenly swapped weapons, her custom splattershot vanishing and now replaced with some kind of advanced-looking octobrush! She had just barely missed Nem when she swung it!

Nem ducked to avoid another swing, then got in close, jamming the bamboozler right into the inkling's stomach, making Captain Three's eyes dilate in horror. I honestly expected her to scream, but she did the exact opposite. Instead, she weakly smiled. Nem fired, causing the inkling to explode into red ink.

I was... scared. Nem was able to take down an inkling who was able to fight an entire army. Behind me, Safaia said, "Not surprising..."

Callie and Marie were shaking at this point, both of them manifesting their weapons. "CAPTAIN THREE!"

Nem stood up straight, then looked at both the Squid Sisters with a calm expression. "Do you really want to fight after what I did to her? She wasn't even a warm-up."

"N-Nem, we need to leave," I said with anxiety, running over to her and gently tugging on her tracksuit. "W-We don't need to hurt anyone else!"

"Don't worry," said Nem. "She isn't dead. If I know anything about special forces, I'd know that there's a spawn point not far from here."

"Regardless," said Marie, holding up a green-painted charger that looked very similar to the E-liter 4K, "You're now a threat. This isn't why we lured you here."

"Why else would you?" questioned Nem. "I doubt it was to recruit me."

"Actually, it was," Callie confirmed, wielding a pink dynamo roller.

Nem shook her head, then sped towards them, leaving me in the dust. I could only watch breathlessly as Callie was the first to go down. Nem didn't even give her time to react, her knee slamming into Callie's stomach, followed by Nem's leg rising even further to kick Callie right in the face and send the squid flying.

Marie had already charged up her E-liter by the time Nem had closed in, firing and just barely missing as Nem weaved out of the way and continued her quick advancement. Marie definitely had this planned out, however...

Once Nem got close enough, Marie giggled as the ground beneath Nem glowed a bright green. It was an ink mine. Nem suddenly jumped up and over Marie, avoiding the imminent burst of ink that would've damaged her had she stayed still. As Nem landed on the other side, Marie quickly turned to face her, firing off half-charged shots multiple times to build up damage.

Nem side-stepped, ink flying right past her before she moved in and swung her bamboozler like a baseball bat! Marie hit the shack and fell to the ground with a weak groan. Nem sighed, looking disgusted by the performance of her opponents.

Just as I'd thought it was over, Callie had come running back, jumping and flinging ink from her roller and catching Nem off-guard. The ink hit her, but it wasn't quite enough to take her out. Looking both irritated and amused, Nem turned around and chuckled.

"Wow, I'm getting rusty, aren't I?~" she commented. "I can't believe I let my guard down!"

"You're getting on my nerves now!" Callie screamed as she raced towards Nem, her roller swinging down.

As the roller was just about to land onto Nem, she raised her bamboozler and held both ends, using it to hold up the dynamo roller, the ink from the roller cover trickling down onto Nem. I could hear her old weapon creaking under the heavy weight and now I was getting very uneasy.

"Th-There's no way that flimsy bamboo piece could counter my swing like that!" Callie called out.

"Maybe not modern-age bamboozlers," said Nem. "You're forgetting that the ones produced during the war were built to last!"

Nem didn't give Callie any time to respond. It was yet another kick to her stomach to send her back, then two quick shots from the bamboozler to the face to finish her off, making her explode in red ink just like Captain Three.

Nem wiped off some of the pink ink from Callie's roller, groaning as she walked over to Marie. "So, you are going to tell me what I want to know. I don't want to join your little club. Where is Henry?"

Marie weakly lifted her head up to look at Nem with a furious glare. Her breaths, shallow and quick, told me this was definitely not what she was expecting. "It's n-not over..."

Nem's eyes widened in frustration as she suddenly picked up Marie by the coat, an old walkie-talkie dropping from Marie's hand. "Who did you call?!" Nem interrogated.

"Our best agent," Marie replied with a hoarse voice.

Their best agent...?

Who was their best agent?!

Who could've been more dangerous than all of them?!

The answer was in the form of a high-pitched whistling from above, and as I looked up, I could see the small shape of a humanoid figure falling fast, ink covering their entire body as they prepared a surprise splashdown. Nem quickly threw Marie aside and jumped out of the way, a large explosion of ink expanding from the point of impact on the barren earth.

As the explosion of amaranth-colored ink expanded and dissipated, I didn't expect an octoling with elite armor of all people to dive out of it with a precise shot from her charger as she sprinted towards Nem with a calm expression.

The shot had just scarcely grazed the side of Nem's head, forcing her to jump to the side. As the octoling agent hit the ground and rolled, she swapped out her charger for an octobrush, just like Captain Three had before her.

Nem looked like she'd seen a ghost, her eyes wide as the agent zoomed in with radical speed, swinging the brush diagonally. Nem quickly raised her bamboozler to parry, then jumped back as the agent moved in closer.

This wasn't good! Nem looked like she was actually having trouble!

"You're more aggressive than the others!" Nem noted as she side-stepped a downward swing of the agent's brush. "Finally, a real challenge!"

Nem's tendrils glowed a much brighter red than before, flashing periodically as she zipped forward with a sudden side swing from her bamboozler, parried by the brush. I noticed a difference in demeanor between these two. The agent was calm while Nem had an attitude of unrelenting perseverance.

With each attack, with each parry, the excitement grew! The tension increased! Their movements were almost blindingly quick and I was having trouble keeping up! Nem, a person with muscle and bone, was keeping up with an octoling, a person with great strength, speed, and maneuverability!

My heart was jumping against my ribcage as I grew more and more worried. Safaia, seeming to notice, grabbed my hand and, just as last time, I became a little calmer, now trying to keep a slow and steady breath. "Y-You can do it, Nem-Nem!" I cheered.

Nem sped up her movements, taking a step back to avoid a swing before going in for the kill. Lining up her bamboozler's front end under the agent's chin, she fired two times. The first shot caused serious damage, but before she fired the second time, the octoling's body enveloped itself in its own ink, making a split-second Ink Armor to deflect the second shot, the armor breaking and saving the octoling.

Nem was surprised enough for the agent to materialize a sudden splatbomb in her hand and hold it in between them, and the moment Nem realized it, she did a quick backflip away from the agent, the explosive detonated, the octoling showered in her own ink. Nem panted, eyes wide and full of irritation.

"Very impressive," Nem remarked. "I haven't fought like this since..."

The octoling agent was trembling, looking at Marie. There was a long silence and I was anticipating the next move, but just as I thought the agent was about to attack again, she almost collapsed, holding onto her octobrush to keep steady. I could only hear a few words from her, a weak frown on her face.

"She's too fast..."

"We can call this a tie," said Nem. "Just tell me where Henry is. We're taking back Ophelia too."

The agent looked at Marie with a worried glance, and Marie sighed out, "You did your best, Agent Eight."

"Agent Eight?" I mumbled under my breath, shaking a little.

Nem walked over to Marie, looking down on her with crossed arms. "Where is he?"

Marie stood up on her own, leaning on her charger. "I'll take you to him. Just need Callie and Captain Three to get back here. The spawn point is a little further than I'd like it to be."

"Good," said Nem, looking annoyed.

"I don't understand why you don't do it anymore," Marie commented. "We could really use your help. Octavio's been–"

Nem interrupted, clearly not in the mood. "Shush. I don't do that anymore. I don't even want to talk about it. I have kids who need me more than you do. All of that is hush-hush and you've pushed your boundaries."

Marie then looked at me and Safaia, a smirk on her face. "Alright. We won't ask you, then," she said to Nem, eyes on me. I didn't like that smile. I didn't like that smile at all.

There were some things about Nem I'd probably never learn about. I could only guess, and in my opinion, it was a pretty good guess. Maybe Nem had done work as an agent when she was younger and was just never allowed to talk about it. Of course, I felt like she'd never say that outright. But that begged the question: Exactly how much was she going to keep hiding from me? This anemone had many secrets, and I felt that I had probably only scratched the surface so far.

Once Marie had explained everything to Callie and Captain Three, they led us even further into the mountains, specifically up near the top of Mount Nantai. While there was no snow, it was still chilling weather. Up there was another shack, one much larger than the one at the base of the mountains. Seeing my brother made me cry a little as I reunited with him, and even Nem almost seemed to tear up, but she stayed calm and professional.

On the drive back home, Ophelia rode in the front passenger seat and Henry sat in the middle of the back seat, right in between me and Safaia. I couldn't keep myself from leaning against him for comfort, tired just from all the excitement of Nem's fight with the Squid Sisters. None of us said a word. This was a silence best left alone for now.

After we got home, Henry and Ophelia were offered the chance to stay over that night. Nem wanted to make sure they were treated well after the events that had occurred, and they both accepted. During that day, I noticed an entirely different side to Ophelia. She seemed... grateful. Like, really grateful.

She'd even offered to cook.

While I was a little uneasy about it at first, I saw Ophelia and Nem giggling as they exchanged tips on cooking and baking. Was Ophelia always like this? Getting a little closer, I wanted to see what they were making.

There was a big pot on the stove. Ophelia took a small sip from the ladle before making a disapproving face. "Nem, do you have any pepper?" she asked.

Nem, working on something else with her rolling pin, reached up into a cabinet in front of her to take out the pepper shaker. She then handed it over to Ophelia, who immediately began adding some with quick taps of her index finger against the shaker. I was intrigued. I'd never seen her like this before. Why was she acting like this?

"What are you making...?" I asked with suspicion, wondering if she was planning to poison us.

"Clam chowder," she replied, mixing the pot. Soon after, she put the ladle up to her lips yet again, taking another small sip. "A little better, I suppose..."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because it tastes good?" Ophelia replied. "Nem, is she always this picky?"

"I-I'm not being picky!" I responded. "I just don't understand why you'd offer to cook..."

"Unlike you, I'm not holding a grudge," she replied with a smug smirk. "Henry and I have been talking a lot these past three months and I'm doing my best for him. Love makes you do all kinds of things you wouldn't normally do. Sure, I still have a small bit of anger towards you, but I'm willing to put aside that for him."

I narrowed my gaze a bit, going back into the living room and sitting on the couch next to Henry. "O-Ophelia's being... weird."

Henry chuckled as he flipped through the channels on TV. "You have a lot to learn about her. We had to talk things out, you know. She really is trying her best."

I immediately tried to counter. "But she made you into–"

"I know," Henry interrupted. "While I can't remember being human, I could never hate her. She's always had my back. When I found out, I was obviously angry with her at first. We even spent two weeks apart and did some thinking. I just... couldn't stay away. After all, she did save my life, Amelia..."

I shook my head in denial. "But she tried to turn me into an octoling too!"

"She panicked," Henry replied. "She didn't think you'd ever leave your cryopod and come looking for me. She didn't think either of us would take the news well, either."

Speak of the devil... She walked into the living room and sat next to me. "I have ears, you two."

"Just trying to explain things to her," Henry replied with a soft smile.

Ophelia shook her head. Her eyes looked at me with warmth instead of their usual icy stare. "Look, Amelia... You don't have to like me. I know you hate what I did, but you need to understand that what I did to Mark was necessary. It's not like I didn't love him. I truly did..."

I didn't want to hear it. "You could've tried somethi–"

But she made me hear it. "No, I couldn't have."

"J-Just leave me alone," I said, trying to ignore her.

"I know we've had our differences," she said. "I know I've had anger issues towards you, but I'm tired of making enemies with you. Every time I interact with you, I feel guiltier and guiltier because I broke a promise to Mark. I was just... so angry..."

I scooted away from her as she reached into her pocket, my eyes watching carefully. As she took out her phone, she said, "The Squid Sisters really wanted something from my phone, it seems. I'm glad Nem came by. They'd almost cracked the security on it. Now, then... Amelia. I want to show you something, okay?"

"Why should I look?" I asked.

"Because he was happy and safe," she said, holding her phone up. I could see Mark on the screen as he adjusted the camera, a smile on his face.

"This is Video Log number eighty-seven. My research has gotten pretty far and–"

Ophelia walked into the room on-screen, looking at the camera from behind him. "What's this, Mark?"

Mark looked at her and chuckled. "Just video logs. I make them quite often. I like to think future generations might watch these one day."

"I see," said Ophelia, smiling genuinely. She gave him a quick kiss, arms wrapped around him. As her lips pulled away from his, she giggled. "You know, maybe you should leave a few video logs for your sister. I bet she'd like to catch up if we can convince Octavio to let us retrieve her."

I blinked in surprise, watching with bated breath. Mark looked happy, happier than he'd ever been back home. I felt pain in my chest as I tried to keep in my emotions, continuing to watch with great interest.

Mark rubbed the back of his neck as he pulled away from her. "Yeah, maybe. I'm just wondering what she'd think of it all. I'm afraid she'll get scared of how much life has changed."

"Well, whatever happens, I'll do my best to support her," Ophelia replied, her smile turning softer.

The present-day Ophelia looked away from the screen, a look of guilt on her face. "I didn't keep that promise..."

I looked down as the video ended, trying not to cry. "Is... is there more...?"

Ophelia looked at me with pity, then raised an arm, offering for me to sit next to her. I was a little skeptical, but seeing her face... I could tell she had mixed emotions. I looked at Henry and he nodded towards her, a smile on his face as he looked at me.

I scooted in close, leaning against Ophelia as she wrapped an arm around me while her free hand held up the phone in front of us. Even though I had thought she was a cold scientist, she was really warm, and that made me feel really guilty...

We looked at more videos of Mark, his face almost always smiling as he talked about progress on machines and research into genetics. Every once in a while, Ophelia would be in the videos, and they'd exchanged smiling faces, a look of love on each.

The more I looked, the more at ease I felt. I felt like... this was my closure with Mark. These were not tears of sadness dripping down my cheeks. These were tears of relief. I leaned further against Ophelia, feeling guilty.

"I'm sorry," Ophelia whispered, her fingers brushing through my hair. "I should've acted more rationally. You were his sister and I hurt you..."

"I miss him..." I said with an empty hole in my heart.

Henry scooted in close, pulling me into a hug. "I'm right here. Don't forget that I may not remember anything, but I'm still your brother."

I kept remembering what Ophelia had said before those agents had attacked the base.

"The transition from a human brain to an octoling brain is... messy. It will almost always involve some form of memory loss and is typically irreversible."

I returned the hug, silently wondering if I should really accept that Mark was gone for good. Maybe he was and I was just delaying the inevitable pain. And if Mark were to come back, what would happen to Henry? How would they both be affected as a whole? Who would they be? Was it even fair to try and make Henry into Mark again?

It wasn't fair and I knew this.

And so I let go. If Henry remembered, then he remembered. But if he can't, I can't force him. I shouldn't force him. He was still my brother, regardless of who he wanted to be. "I'm okay with this... It's okay if you never remember. I don't want you to change for me. I just want you to be here for me."

Henry chuckled, hugging a little tighter. "And I am."

The rest of that night felt calmer. Eating together at the table, I noticed a small smile on Ophelia's face almost the entire time. It seemed contagious because I couldn't help but smile either. I felt like I had moved past an obstacle that had been holding me back almost forever.

After my brother and Ophelia headed home in the morning, Nem resumed her training with me. It had taken me all day, but I was eventually able to do full backflips and frontflips. While my moves weren't as polished as Nem's, I could use them in combat, but... there were still times when I'd mess up.

THUD!

Safaia was not one to hold back. Even when she saw that I'd failed a flip to avoid her, she moved in anyway with a splattershot, willing to take me down with no qualms. To avoid her ink, I rolled back onto my feet, dashing as fast as I could. My dualies were low on ink and were refueling themselves slowly, but Safaia wasn't willing to let me take a breather.

The goal of my current exercise was to take down Safaia without taking a single hit from her ink, and every time I'd fail, Nem would blow the whistle and have me try again. I wasn't allowed to take any breaks and while I was allowed to drink water whilst running, it was almost impossible to do so at the rate I was moving.

Safaia would always back me into a corner, and each time her ink hit me, I'd feel the burning sensation, the feeling becoming more and more intense each time. I'd feel like I was about to burst open from the inside, an odd sensation of pressure being felt within me. While I definitely didn't look different, I felt different, and it was worrying me.

We'd been at this all day, and even though I had the option to rest, I knew Nem would disapprove and stop training me altogether. On the eighth hour of my training with Safaia, I noticed she was pushing me back yet again, backing me up against the wall as she'd done plenty of other times. I opted to move, stepping onto the spawn point when I suddenly heard a beep of confirmation from my phone.

That... wasn't what I'd normally hear.

As I ran to avoid more of Safaia's ink, I took out my phone from my pocket and looked at the screen. The notification chilling me to my very core.

DNA has been successfully registered! Enjoy your match!

"H-Hold up, Safaia," I said. "I need to talk to Nem-Nem."

Safaia stared with curiosity. "Fear?" she queried, noting my expression.

Looking back at her, I nodded, showing her my phone.

"I don't understand," she stated.

"Well," I said, "I'm a human, and human DNA isn't typically registered. Remember what I told you about the serum and my DNA changing?"

"You're close enough to an inkling that it recognizes you," she put together.

I nodded with worry, then ran over to Nem, Safaia following me closely behind. "Nem!" I called out. "Look at my phone!"

Nem, raising a brow, looked carefully at the screen, eyes widening. "WHAT?!"

"Y-You don't think it..." I muttered, too scared to complete the sentence.

"Hold on," said Nem. "There has to be a mistake, right? I mean... you've still got your human hair. You're still unable to change into a secondary form!"

"I-I need to go see Liv," I said with urgency.

Nem nodded in understanding. "Want me to drive you there?"

I didn't need it. I knew where Liv would be. Hector's club wasn't too far from the Tentatek building. "No, thank you! She's not too far away!" I shouted as I ran out of the training room.

As I ran down a few sidewalks, I began to worry about the possibility of me being splatted and reformed painfully by the spawn point. I had bones and muscle, and the spawn point thought I was an inkling! What would've happened if it tried to recreate me into one?!

I was so close to Hector's club when someone grabbed my hand from behind me, the speed at which I was running making me yank painfully against my arm. "O-Ow!" I shouted, looking back to see a familiar face.

"M-Marina?!" I stuttered. "Why are you way out here?"

"There's no time," she said to me, guiding me away from the club. "We need to talk elsewhere. This is a matter of great importance."

"Where are you taking me?" I asked. "I'm already in the middle of something really important!"

She turned her head at me and said, "I know. That's why I'm here."

?!

"H-Have you been spying on me?!" I questioned.

"Not exactly..." she said. "Just keep calm. It'll be okay, I promise."

I sighed, not sure what she was talking about. We walked quite a ways out from the edge of Inkopolis, now on a road out in the middle of a grassy field. Didn't Marina have a car? Why would we walk all the way out here? While I had questions, I felt like she'd just deflect them.

After two hours of walking, we arrived at what looked like some kind of... moat, and across it, there was an abnormally tall hedge wall surrounding a tall and proud mansion with white and pink patterns all over it. After we crossed a small bridge and approached a tall, steel gate, Marina pressed a button on the side, speaking into what looked like a small microphone.

"Pearl, it's me. Could you let me in? I've got a guest."

A loud buzzing noise assaulted my ears briefly before the gate opened on its own, and as we entered, I was stunned by the sheer size of the building itself. Judging by the windows, I was about to count three floors, and it was extraordinarily wide as well. There were so many elaborate designs that it felt like the building had been redesigned multiple times in certain places, making it seem like the owner couldn't make up their mind on how they wanted it to be.

As Marina opened the door, I saw a large foyer with the most beautiful large staircase I'd ever seen. A fancy pink rug with gold edges laid upon the steps up to the second floor and I was amazed by how flawless it looked.

As we walked inside, Marina shouted with a smile on her face, "Pearl, I'm home!"

Both of us flinched as we heard a loud noise I couldn't recognize at all. "What on Earth?!" I yelled.

Pearl came running down the steps, or rather, hopping across multiple steps, taking great leaps until she reached the bottom. "Ay, yo, Marina! Guess what I bought today!"

Marina looked down at Pearl with a worried expression. "Uh, what did you buy?"

"I bought an elephant!" Pearl answered with pride. "I'm gonna teach it to play the drums!"

Marina blinked, her eyes wide. "P-Pearl, that is an extinct mammal! How did you manage to find and purchase an elephant?!"

"Don't worry about it," said Pearl. "I know a guy.~"

Marina facepalmed, then told her, "I'm going to my lab. Just need to talk with our guest."

"Alright," Pearl replied. "I'm gonna see how far I can get with teachin' it."

I was completely flabbergasted, my mind wandering as Marina led me up the stairs. How exactly was Pearl this rich? I mean, yeah, she's famous, but... she managed to buy an extinct mammal??? What else was she able to buy?

I wasn't even paying attention until I noticed the lighting around me was a little brighter. The room looked very different compared to the rest of the mansion's interior, looking very sterile and professional, with clean counters, a sink, some test tubes, and an odd-looking circular tank filled with green fluid in the corner of the room.

As Marina closed the door, she pinched the bridge of her nose, eyes closed as she sighed heavily. "The utter inconsistency..."

I tilted my head in confusion. "Inconsistency?"

"Sorry," said Marina, eyes still closed. "It's nothing. Just a stressful outburst. It'll never come up again. Anyways... I've made progress on making a body for your friend, but that progress has halted, at least for now."

"H-Halted?" I repeated with concern.

"At least for now," she assured. "I promise, it'll resume. I just need time..."

"How much time?" I asked.

Marina avoided eye contact, looking stressed.

"H-How much time?" I asked again.

"Under normal circumstances, if I wasn't being rushed, I'd say a little over a year...?" she answered. "Maybe?"

"N-Not enough time," said Ezra, appearing next to me. "I'm getting weaker every day and I don't think I can even last a month. Remember when I held you back from attacking Weaver? That took a lot out of me..."

"Sh-She doesn't think she can last that long," I said, relaying Ezra's message.

Marina nodded and put a hand on my shoulder. "That's another reason why I've brought you here."

"S-So you have a solution?" I assumed with frail hope.

"I do, but... I don't think you'll like it," she said to me, opening a counter drawer. "I made my own serum after doing some research on the one you've been subjected to."

"How did you know about Ezra in the first place...?" I asked. "How did you know about the serum?"

"If I told you that, you wouldn't believe me," she said, taking out a syringe from the drawer. "I haven't even been able to tell Pearl everything, no matter how badly I want to. It's better if the secrets stayed with me. You just need to trust me when I say I want the best for you and for everyone."

I wanted to trust her, but could I really? There was this odd aura of sensibility around Marina, an aura that told me she was being sincere. I eventually gave up and nodded. "Okay... Let's get this over with."

After I was sat down on a chair, Marina dabbed my upper arm with a cotton wool ball soaked with a disinfectant. She held up the syringe and looked at me with hesitation. "Before I inject this, I need to warn you. This will allow the other serum to accelerate its progress, but also give it a better fighting chance."

"Wh-What...?" I stammered. "Y-You're making it worse?"

"Only by a very teensy bit," she explained. "Think of it like a booster shot. It's going to give Ezra a chance to stick around just a little longer while I try to speed up the progress on her body. I know what I have to do in order to grow her a new body in time, but it's very risky and will involve me meeting with an old friend who I've had to leave behind. If anyone would know how to speed up the process, it'd be her."

Marina had left someone behind...?

"Who?" I asked.

She shook her head. "You wouldn't know her. She used to work on cloning technology. If anyone would have the know-how I need, it's her."

I slowly nodded. "And you're sure about this?"

"I'm absolutely positive," said Marina. "Amelia, I would never put you in danger if I didn't calculate the risks."

We exchanged glances, and I quickly nodded. "Just... hurry up with it."

She didn't hesitate the moment I gave my consent. The needle plunged into my arm and she injected the serum. Once she pulled the needle out, I shivered, suddenly feeling cold. She stood up and sighed as she put the syringe back into the counter drawer, her eyes looking down at me with what I could only interpret as pity.

As Marina leaned against the counter, she asked, "Remember what your phone said about the spawn point?"

I could barely answer, my body feeling extremely cold as if I were in a tundra. "DNA r-registered."

"Your body reached a major checkpoint at that moment," she explained. "Your blood is no longer blood. It's ink. "

"B-But that's n-n-not possible!" I replied, standing up and looking at her, hugging myself as I tried to ward off the cold to no avail. "D-D-Don't I need blood to survive?!"

"Not anymore," she replied. "Not with what that serum's doing to you. You're undergoing a very slow adaptation."

"Wh-What'll happen if I'm splatted?!" I asked.

"Well, your body is within the machine's limits now," said Marina, avoiding all eye contact. "You might not feel different, but your insides are almost entirely foreign to that of any other human. You likely have a few human organs left, but..."

"B-But?" I questioned.

"It's best not to think about it. It shouldn't get much worse," she replied. "The serum should be unable to make any further changes unless you've... well, given Ezra permission. Just... be careful. Being splatted is okay but revival might hurt a little."

"Again, h-h-how do you know about the serum and Ezra?" I asked once more, rubbing my arms. Was being cold one of the side effects of this serum?

"I wish I could tell you," she said. "I really do wish I could tell you, but if that information falls into the wrong hands, we could be looking at devastation across the world."

That was... extremely distressing.

"One of these days, Marina," I said, looking up at her. "I'll find out what you're hiding."

"Nope," she replied. "None of these days. Go back home, please."

With suspicion and a heavy sigh, I did, walking back to Inkopolis in silence. The sun seemed to warm me back up easily, making me wonder if my body was having trouble with regulating temperature. Either way, it didn't matter. As for Marina, I could only come to the conclusion that she was hiding something big, but I didn't think I'd ever find out what it was. She seemed very tight-lipped about it.

But what she said was worrying. Devastation across the world?

I guessed some things weren't meant to be learned.