Agent 38: In The Making

Chapter 11: Escape To The Surface

Eight had been sitting in the back of the train car for a long time, thinking. C.Q. Cumber had directed the train towards the fourth and final Thang, and they were going there now. But, since she'd been doing tests near the first Thang, she was quite a ways away from the last one.
     She'd just finished the last test in the Metro, the Can't Touch This Station. That one had been pretty fun overall, and the Mem Cake for it was adorable. However, Eight had refrained from eating the Sardinium Mem Cake because she wanted to click the last piece of the puzzle together once she was on the surface. But now, Cuttlefish was extremely worried about Agent 3, and so was she, even though her memory of him wasn't exactly viewable. She wondered from time to time if those screams she'd heard about a week before had been from his voice, that would explain why it sounded familiar. But then again, it could've been a hallucination, or she had been hearing things, so she really didn't know.
     It scared her that she would be leaving the place she'd called home for a while if she got the last Thang. Iso Padre kept saying things about how it would be a shame when he couldn't see her anymore, and that she had to visit, and to "Take care out there, young squire.". She'd also recieved all the clothing that Iso had to offer her for the Mem Cakes, and she couldn't wait to try them on when she got to the surface.
     Cuttlefish tapped his stick on the side of a bench, grabbing her attention. Eight looked up to see him beckoning for her to sit down next to him. She stood up and quietly walked over, taking a seat on the bench in front of him. "What's up, Cuttlefish?"
     "Well, I've just been worried about Agent 3." He answered. "If we don't find him before we get to the surface... I fear he might not last in this crumbling subway."
     "I'm worried about him, too." She said reassuringly. "But you yourself said he was the best fighter you've ever known, so a couple Sanitized Octarians can't do that much damage to him, can they?"
     "He's alone, though," the Cap'n worried. "No food, no ink, not even the occasional squid ring or crabby cake that we get. I don't know, maybe I'm being paranoid?"
     "Not at all." She said. "And did you say ink?"
     "Yes..." He mumbled. "Why?"
     "Inklings drink ink?" Eight asked, astonished. Since her memories of some events in the underground had returned, she remembered drinking water all the time. Not ink. "You guys are weird."
     "What do Octolings drink?" He asked. "Water?"
     "Yes!" She said. "We were always told that it strengthens the stomach and throat. It's a burning sensation when you drink it, but it's still good! And it mostly prevents the common cold, but I don't know why."
     He laughed. "I would say I should try drinking water, but I'm far too old for new changes in my life."
     "Now approaching the resting place of the sealing Thang! Test Subject 10,008, please exit the train and collect the Thang, then make your way to the Central Station!" Said C.Q. over the coms. Cuttlefish stared at her, wide eyed with a smile. She beamed back at him and practically jumped off the seat and skipped off the train as she grabbed the cart to carry the Thang in.
     Eight jumped onto the Equipper for what she hoped would be the last time, clicked on the Splattershot, and ran towards the fourth and final Thang. M, P, and C (Marina, Pearl, and Cuttlefish) chatted in the background, like little voices in her head. Though, it would be strange to have an old man's voice, a somewhat high pitched voice, and a deep feminine voice talking in her head.
     "This room seems a little small..." Pearl muttered.
     "Maybe you're room is too big!" Marina cried.
     "You both make fair points." Cuttlefish said.
     Eight rolled her eyes with a smile. These three people who'd supported her so far, who she called friends. She loved them.
     She aimed the Splattershot at the electric bubble and fired at it. It exploded in a flurry of pink ink, leaving the Thang exposed and vulnerable.
     "Go get 'em, Agent 8!" Cuttlefish cried excitedly. Eight reached out and grabbed it, yanking it off the levitator, and gently placed it on the cart as to not damage it. She pushed it back to the train with ease, which wasn't too surprising, given the fact she'd carried three other of these things. The word three drifted into her head and she immediately started worrying about Agent 3. The picture that Cuttlefish drew of the Inkling seemed so familiar, so familiar, but she couldn't quite pull the needle out of the haystack yet, though she had a firm picture of it.
     As she pushed it onto the train, she caught herself wondering what these things were a part of. Teleportation device? Possible, given all the things she'd seen down here, but unlikely. Transporter? Some sort of ultra-fast machine that could take them to the surface in just a few minutes? Somewhat likely.
     Eight pondered and worried about these likely and unlikely events until she wheeled the final Thang into the Central Station and the telephone turned on.
     "WHOOMP-THERE IT IS!" The telephone yelled. "You have found the final Thang! I am, like, totes impressed. I was not sure you had the [ERROR] to pull it off! I will now guide you to the promised land. Let us bounce to the ounce." Eight glanced at Cuttlefish with a smile, and he looked as though he had electricity running through his veins.
     The telephone stared at her. "Are you ready to visit the promised land?" It asked.
     "Let's go!" Eight said enthusiastically.
     "This is it." It warned. "Are you [ERROR] ready to ascend to a higher plane?"
     "For sure."
     "The promised land awaits." It said with a somewhat cautious tone in it's distorted voice. "Are you ready to join something bigger than yourself?"
     Eight looked down and thought for a moment. "Bigger than yourself"? What did that mean? The surface wouldn't be considered a bigger, higher society that would take so much work to get to. Maybe the Inklings knew about this place and sent people down here, knowing there was almost no way to survive. Maybe this was there way of getting rid of people. Maybe they really were as awful as her teachers underground suggested.
     The thought sent chills trickling through her veins. But then, her desperation broke through, and she nodded at the telephone.
     "Congratulations, number 10,008!" It yelled. "The door to the promised land will now open!"
     Suddenly, the little crank on its back started spinning, faster and faster and faster, until purple sparks started shooting out of it. Eight took a startled step back, a sudden sinking feeling in her chest that this wasn't what was going to take her to the surface. But her hope was strong. She'd done her part. Now the telephone had to do his.
     It started screaming, flew off its post, and then the Thangs started floating until it was one on top of the other, and they settled together with a satisfying click.
     "Please, step right inside!" The telephone said enthusiastically. "Here we go! Do not be shy!"
     Cuttlefish pointed his Bamboozler to the sky as she stared at the device, wide-eyed. "Home sweet home, here we come!" The Cap'n said.
      Once they stepped inside, the small circular platform lifted up to the glass casing part, and she didn't notice, but the blades above started spinning.
     "W-wait a second!" Marina suddenly cried. "Is it just me or...Uh... Does that kinda look exactly like a blender!?"
     The realization might as well have smacked her in the face. Panicked, she started desperately banging on the glass, hoping for an escape from this death trap. Cuttlefish, too, started smacking the glass with his cane.
     "WOAH WOAH WOAH YEAH HOLD UP!" Pearl yelled, panic slipping into her voice. "This just got seriously sketchy!"
     "INGREDIENT ACQUISITION COMPLETE..." Said the telephone. "REFORMATTING MATTER..."
     Her eyes went wide in horror. She punched the glass furiously. This wasn't how she was going down, after all that! She'd made her own death trap!
     "What did that thing just say!?" Cuttlefish yelled. "Let us out, you stupid telephone!"
     "Marina!" Pearl cried. "They're gonna get smoothied! YOU GOTTA DO SOMETHING!"
     The spinning blades started lowering towards them, slowly but surely. Eight punched the glass in panic, on the verge of tears.
     "I'm... trying... None of my hacks are working! I can't get in!" Marina yelled. She, too, sounded on the verge of tears. "I'm going to activate the distress call on Agent 8's CQ-80...!"
     The death blades got closer and closer to her head, and she heard her CQ-80 start beeping very loudly.
     Wait...
     It wasn't hers.
     Suddenly, there was a crash, and she looked up to see Agent 3 hurtling through the cieling, arms up in an "X" shape to block the flying shards of glass. But the blades were just above her head. Agent 3 smashed into the giant blender, causing it to break entirely. The glass casing flew into broken little shards from the impact, the blender tipped over and completely shattered, leaving her and Cuttlefish laying on the shards of glass.
     She sat there, stunned.
     "Holy mackerel-we made it!?" Cuttlefish whispered.
     Eight shook her head, to dazed to speak. She swallowed the lump in her throat and spotted Agent 3, on the floor, eyes closed. Her eyes went wide. She scrambled over to him and quickly checked his pulse - still there. She would've never lived it down if Cuttlefish's best Agent had died saving them.
     "BOOYAH!" Pearl cried. "Man, that was way too close..."
     "Sweet!" Marina said. "The distress signal worked!"
     Then, the old squid saw the Inkling laying limply on the floor.
     "Agent 3?!" He yelled, astonished. "Is that really you? Where have you been?!"
     "No way!" Marina cried. "This is who you've been looking for?!"
     "Ah, fish sticks!" Cuttlefish whined. "This ain't good. Agent 3 is out cold... Hey, what's that!"
     "Oh, wow... I think that might be an employee-model CQ-80." Marina whispered.
     "Woah!" Pearl said.
     "Gimme a second here." Marina said. "I'll see if I can access it... Jackpot! I think these are blueprints to the entire Kamabo Co.'s test facility! Agent 8! Cap'n Cuttlefish! I think we can use these to get you guys outta there!"
     "Are you squiddin' me?!" Cuttlefish said, pleased. "I knew you'd come through for us, Agent 3!"
     Nevermind the fact that he almost DIED, I guess... Eight thought.
     "For starters, it looks like you'll want to head up through that hole Agent 3 made." Marina suggested.
     She turned to leave, but Cuttlefish didn't move. "I should wait here until Agent 3 wakes up. No squids left behind! You go on ahead."
     Eight nodded, turned, and super jumped through the hole in the ceiling, off to do even more things to get her, Cuttlefish, AND Agent 3 out of the stupid Deepsea Metro.
     Booyah.

Can I get an F in the chat for Eight? She's been put through too much.
Hope you enjoyed Chapter 11! The 12th is being written already!
Word count: 1910