The Zapfish Dilemma

To this point, Agent 3′s missions had all gone surprisingly well. Better than he had originally anticipated, at any rate. He had successfully rescued 4 Zapfish from military domes, including one from what was called an “Octoweapon.” It nearly scared every ounce of ink right out of his body, but he managed to take it down with each tentacle still in tact. 

The teen was starting to gain some confidence in his work. It was starting to feel good, too. He was keeping the precious little Zapfish safe, and he was preventing another war from breaking out by dismantling the weaponry that the Octarians were building. He hardly had a reason to think twice about his missions… Until the fifth. 

From the second he jumped in, 3 could tell there was something a bit different about this particular dome. It wasn’t like the factories or armories that he had de-powered before. Beneath the floating platforms and rocks, he could easily make out the shape of buildings that looked like homes, their windows gently illuminated amidst the underground’s darkness. 

Scratching the side of his head, 3 pulled out his radio and inquired, “Hey, Cap’n?” he didn’t wait for a confirmation, “Do you know what this dome is for?”

“Hm?” came the captain’s reply, “Well, I can’t say I do! But there’s a Zapfish there, so you’d best procure it!”

3 continued to stare at the buildings below, his arm slowly lowering to his side. He wondered… Was this a residential dome? Would it be right to just take a Zapfish from a place like this? Even if it was stolen from Inkopolis? He chewed on his cheek, now contemplating going to a different dome. This place was dark enough as is, they wouldn’t be able to function without light down there…

“You alright, 3?” Cuttlefish’s voice came through again, “The Zapfish ain’t gonna rescue itself, you know!”

Grunting in reply, 3 eventually pocketed the radio and stepped deeper inside. The security here was just about as tight as a weaponized dome, however as he dodged bullets and Octarians, he couldn’t help but think that maybe neutralizing these guys, instead of outright splatting them, was better. Where this line of thought came from, he wasn’t sure. Maybe it was the uneasy feeling he got when he entered.

Of course, getting caught up in his own thoughts and trying a new strategy only got himself splatted a good few times. This netted him a few comments from the other agents; concern from 1 and the captain, and dry wit from 2.

Eventually, he did reach the end, and the battery that held the Zapfish. Without skipping a beat he broke the barrier and cradled the fish in his arms, smiling at it sweetly. This was always his favorite part of a mission: being able to hold the rescued Zapfish. They always seemed so delighted to have a bit of attention! However, he couldn’t really enjoy the moment.

Eyes drifting to the area below, 3′s hearts sank when he saw the lights from the windows dim in succession, with a number even outright turning dark. He had seen this  happen in the military domes, and always left with a spring in his step knowing that he had slowed the progress of the Octarian’s eventual assault. But this time… He couldn’t help but feel like what he was doing was wrong. There was a sudden pit in his stomach that he hadn’t felt with his previous missions.

The Zapfish squeaked in confusion and looked up to him with its round, watery eyes. 3 returned the gaze with one of pity, a frown etching itself into his features. It was one thing to take the power away from weaponry. It was another thing to take power away from potentially innocent people. Did they deserve this? He didn’t know. Right now, he didn’t really think so. The uncertainty made his ink feel chill.

Reaching into his safety vest, 3 pulled out a hand-made treat, to which the Zapfish began to wiggle eagerly at the sight of. With a gentle smile he fed it to the little creature, and carefully placed it back inside of the battery. There was a confused look on the Zapfish’s face, but after a few seconds, it had settled back in and remade its barrier.

“Huh?!” Cuttlefish’s voice came bursting through the radio, “3, what are you doing? Tha–”

Agent 3 turned off his radio. 

—–

There had to be an answer to his dilemma. The Octarians weren’t entirely innocent, through their thievery and all that weapon crafting… But all the same, they were still people. Until now, the agent had thought that the Octarians were stealing Zapfish just to power their weaponry. They didn’t want to tap into what they had to power their residential areas… But now he had reason to believe they were also stealing Zapfish to power their homes.

The pit in 3′s stomach hadn’t gone away. It had only gotten worse as he carefully made his way into the base of the dome, sliding over screens, rocks, and muddy earth. After removing his safety vest, he had found a large strip of grey fabric and crudely wrapped it around his head and shoulders, hiding his tentacles and face from scrutinizing eyes. 

Taking in a deep breath, he stepped into what appeared to be a town nearly in shambles. 

Cracked mortar, hazy windows, dim lighting… 3′s shoulders tensed up at the thought of having to live in a place like this. Dirt roads, broken pavement, water damage… Succulents were growing out of window sills and the roofs of many homes, trying to catch what light they could. But no sunlight would touch their leaves. 

He stuck his hands into his pockets and pressed on, passing by confused Octarians and Octolings who had been affected by the sudden brownout. He didn’t know a lick of Octarian, but he could pick out a few words here and there… “Light,” “Scared,” “Worry…” So-on and so-forth. It reminded him of Inkopolis, whenever there was a power outage. People would leave their homes and chat with the others on their block. He felt a connection with these people in that moment, but it felt wrong of him to think that he could relate to the plight these poor octopuses had to endure.

Stomach now doing backflips and tying itself into knots, 3 could only look at the dirt path before him. Maybe what he was doing wasn’t so righteous after all. Head hanging low, he bumped right into a large Octobomber and stumbled backwards. The Octarian turned with a concerned look and started speaking in a concerned way, however 3 could only make out, “sorry,” and “okay?”

Grunting in reply, 3 threw his hands up in a submissive way and nodded briskly, wanting to shrug it off as quickly as possible. It was his fault, after all. Hearts thumping in his ears, he sputtered out a quick apology and ran off, vanishing into a narrow alleyway.

3 had seen enough. It was time to get out of this dome. Maybe figure out what on earth he was going to do from here…

—–

After losing contact with 3, Cuttlefish was in a bit of a tizzy. What exactly happened in that dome? Where had he gone? Was he safe? Did the Octarians capture him?! He wasted no time in calling Agents 1 and 2 to help find the teen, and then sprung into action himself. 

He scoured the base from top to bottom while the other two searched around the kettles. Finally, after an hour, Agent 3 was located.

“Oh, 3! There you are!” Cuttlefish called, slightly out of breath, “I’ve been scrambling all over the Valley looking for you! Girls, I found him!” he puffed into his radio. He hobbled over and was about to give the Inkling an earful until he noticed the rather somber aura the lad was giving off.

Oliver was sitting at the end of a platform, with his legs dangling over the ledge. His uniform was folded neatly and sitting on his lap. His hands were propping him up as he stared into the distance. He heaved a sigh that made his head droop even further than it had already sunk. 

“Cap’n…” he whispered, “What are we even doing here?”

Taken aback, Cuttlefish didn’t reply at first. He leaned against his Bamboozler and furrowed his brow in confusion. Didn’t 3 know by now? He certainly should have!

He tapped his cane against the ground, “Stopping the Octarian menace, of course!” he spoke with vigor, shaking his fist in the air. However he too seemed to deflate when Oliver looked over his shoulder.

What a somber look it was. 

“The dome I went to today,” Oliver started, turning away, “Was a residential dome.” there was a brief pause of deafening silence, broken by the agent’s shaky breath, “If I took that Zapfish… Hundreds, maybe thousands of people would be left in the dark.”

Cuttlefish didn’t seem to know what to say.

“I might just be a custodian,” Oliver continued, “But I know we don’t need every single Zapfish to power Inkopolis. We could just have the Great and a hundred or so little ones, and we’d be fine.” he bit his lower lip, “I wanted to help because I thought the Zapfish were in danger,” he drew in a breath, “Because they were being used for evil.”

“Well,” Cap’n’s voice was low, “They… They are.”

Oliver turned so quickly that his tentacles slapped the side of his face, “But not all of them!” he cried, “I don’t care what you think about the Octarians, they’re people, too! And they need light just like the rest of us!” 

Cuttlefish stepped back in shock.

“Haven’t you seen the places they live in?” Oliver demanded, “They’re in shambles, worse off than the shack you call home!” he threw his arm in the direction of the Squidbeak Splatoon base.

“Well, no… I haven’t…” Cuttlefish shrank back a bit, “But they can’t all be like that, the Octarians are smarter than you think! They’re cunning, and–”

“Oh, come off it!” Bunching up his safety vest in his fist, Oliver rose to his feet and drew his arm back, readying himself to throw the uniform into the pit below, “I’m not going to be a part of this if it means I’m hurting innocent people!”

A firm hand grabbed his wrist, crashing Oliver’s mind back to reality. He turned back to Cuttlefish, whose face had turned quite stern. The two stared long and hard at each other, before Oliver’s arm finally relaxed, his shoulder and head falling. When it was released, his arm fell to his side with a flop.

“Now, then…” Cuttlefish sighed, “Let’s talk this out.” he attempted a smile, which creased his cheeks, “How about we grab some crabby cakes and tea?”

Weary look in his eye, Oliver slowly turned his head back to Cuttlefish and soon gave in with a nod.

“Good, good!” Cuttlefish hummed. He tapped Oliver’s legs with the end of his Bamboozler, “We’ll get this sorted out, young’n, don’t you worry.”

Having shuffled back to the shack, Oliver’s mind was starting to feel a bit clearer. He ducked his head as he stepped inside the makeshift home, and plopped rather roughly into the stool set up beside a low table. Cuttlefish scurried around, gathering the cakes and the supplies to make tea. Once the kettle was on the stove, he took a seat as well. 

“So…” he started, “What exactly did you find out there?” the elder listened carefully as Oliver retold his experience. Cuttlefish’s expression turned all the more grim with each word, his hand slowly picking at his beard, “I see…”

Oliver was hunched over the table, feeling sick to his stomach. Too sick to eat the crabby cakes that had been set in front of him. He wasn’t even sure that Cap’n would even listen, much less take those words to heart. He understood why the old cuttlefish had such a vendetta against the Octarians, but wasn’t it about time for something to… Change? It had been 100 years since the Great Turf War, after all.

By the time Oliver’s story was finished, the kettle had started to whistle. Scurrying about again, Cuttlefish filled two mugs, one of which had a very broken handle, with hot tea and served them. Oliver wrapped his hands around the mug and stared blankly into the liquid, finding the silence more agonizing than anything Cap’n Cuttlefish could have possibly said. His eyes drifted up when the old Inkfish sat back down.

“I don’t think it’s right,” Oliver stated firmly, before Cuttlefish could speak, “Taking the Zapfish from places Octarians live in.” his eyes fell, and his grip around the mug tightened, “They’re probably just trying to survive.”

“Making and powering weapons isn’t survival,” Cuttlefish interjected, “Defense at best, but…” he trailed off when Oliver’s expression darkened.

There was a long pause. Cuttlefish closed his eyes thoughtfully, “You feel very strongly about this, don’t you, young’n?” 

“Yeah,” Oliver affirmed, “When I went deeper into that dome, I saw… Us. But in a different form.” his brow creased, his head hung low, and he was now staring at a knot in the table, “Why would they so willingly live in a place like that? As smart as they are, I don’t think they’d consider trying to trick us by thinking their situation is bad…” he removed one hand from his mug and pressed it against his face, the warmth flowing over his right eye.

Cuttlefish scratched at his chin in a pensive manner. He picked up a crabby cake and nibbled at it, clearly trying to think his words through. Oliver was surprised. He honestly expected the old man to come up with one dozen arguments for why they should take any and all Zapfish out of the domes, but he really seemed to be taking this seriously. Did he value Oliver’s opinion that much?

Having finished off the snack, Cuttlefish took a drink of his tea, and finally spoke up again, “I would like to remind you that the Octarians are planning an attack.” he set his mug back onto the table rather loudly, “That UFO was no fluke! It may not have been an all-out attack, but mark my words, it is a start!” he shook a finger in Oliver’s direction.

There was a brief pause, where the two Inkfish locked eyes. Oliver’s were full of worry, and Cuttlefish’s were full of determination. However his old, wide eyes softened a touch when he stamped his cane on the ground.

“However!” he proclaimed loudly, “I think you’re right.”

Oliver sat up slightly, “You think so…?”

The Cap’n nodded, “Yes. It may be wrong for them to steal the Zapfish, but it’d be wrong to deprive their homes of power.” his gaze turned stern again, his brow heavy, “But. That doesn’t mean we can just leave the Zapfish powering weapons and armories. And we certainly can’t leave the Zapfish in the tentas of Octavio!”

The teen nodded slowly, “R-right.”

“3, you have my word; as long as I’m the captain of the Squidbeak Splatoon,” he stood and held up a peace sign as if it were a salute, “We will not take Zapfish from residential domes.” he looked to the Inkling expectantly, “Do I have your word that you’ll stick with us?”

Hesitating briefly, Oliver’s hand fell back onto the table, and he swallowed the lump in his throat. He considered it carefully, and weighed the options in his head. 

Rising to his feet, the agent smiled weakly and returned the peace sign. “Y-yeah. You have my word, Cap’n.” 

With a skip of delight, Cuttlefish shuffled to 3′s side and clamped a hand onto his shoulder, giving him a light shake, “Good to hear, 3. Good to hear.” he was grinning enough that the corners of his mouth were visible under his mustache, “Frankly, you’re the best thing that’s happened to the Splatoon in 100 years, and I’d hate to see you go, young’n.”

3 chuckled softly, his eyes darting away, “Uh… Thanks, Cap’n… I’ll keep doing my best.” meeting the captain’s eyes again he added, “And… Thanks for listening to me. It means a lot.”

Satisfied, Cap’n Cuttlefish patted the Inkling’s shoulder firmly, and hobbled back to his seat to eat another crabby cake and finish off his tea. By now, Agents 1 and 2 had returned to the base, and were ready to hear what exactly happened to 3.

While he was willing to stay on board, there was still a seed of uncertainty that had planted itself between his hearts. While the uncertainty didn’t germinate, it did slowly grow into a strong desire to help the Octarians. To at least ease their plight slightly. How he was going to do that, he wasn’t so sure yet… But the desire only grew with each mission he completed.