Agent 38: I Never Forgot You

Chapter 26: Mistake

     Sarai realized, perhaps far too late, that bringing Marie along with her on a suicide mission was a terrible idea.
     It was around 5 in the morning when a trio of structures came into view, dimly silhouetted by the moonlight overhead, and she knew almost instantly that this was where her brother and his team would be.
     This was also the moment when a chill ran through her veins and it suddenly sunk in that this mission was, possibly, one of the most dangerous she'd ever gone on. Defeating the Metro, the NILS statue, and bombing the Metro was one thing, since only one had ended poorly for her. But the difference was that they all almost completely depended on ink-based weaponry, if you disregarded the bombs she used in the Metro. Her brother and his team, however, were completely fine with using blades as their only form of offense. That was the dangerous part.
     Sarai stepped out of the car, fastening a strap around each of her legs that would hold the daggers. Marie stood beside her, a pair of sunglasses over her eyes, loading cartridges of oddly colored ink into her charger.
     "What are the sunglasses for?" Sarai asked quietly, pulling the scarf up a bit so it covered her nose and mouth.
     "They detect heat." Marie responded, looking a bit nervous. "Cal and Sheldon gave 'em to me a while ago. Pretty cool, right? I basically have heat vision when I put them on."
     "Wow. They're pretty good with tech, huh?"
     Marie nodded.
     "And... what's up with the ink cartridges?"
     "Hm? Ah." She pulled one from her pocket, about the size of her palm, and shook it a bit. Oddly enough, it glowed, just a little. "It's my low-tide ink. I don't think splatting them would be efficient, since they'd probably just respawn, so this knocks them out. Just to avoid any unnecessary violence." She seemed to emphasize the word "unnecessary", glancing at her blades.
     "Oh, come now." Sarai said, putting her hands on her hips. "You don't think I'd actually kill someone with these, do you? They're just for self defense. I won't hurt anyone unless I'm absolutely forced to."
     "Well, yeah, duh," She scoffed, pausing for a second. "But Cal and I saw Alex's bodycam footage from the Metro bombing, and, I dunno, you seemed pretty... this sounds rude, but, feral."
     Sarai raised her brows, incredulous. "Ok, but it was either go 'feral'-" she made quotation marks with her hands. "-or die. I don't know about you, but I choose life, thanks."
     Marie shrugged. "Alright. I was just saying."
     Sarai turned and started towards the buildings. The biggest one which sat in the centre, in front of the other two structures, seemed to be the most decorative one. The fence that surrounded the perimeter of the buildings had a wide door, but she soon found out it was locked. They'd have to climb over it.
     Marie jumped down from the fence and landed beside her with a grunt. Sarai spotted a few cargo trucks and motorcycles parked in front of one of the smaller buildings as they approached and wondered how many members Gabriel had obtained over the past few years. The first time they had found her brother, she had seen around 20 Octolings accompanying him. And, assuming that he was smart enough to keep most of his team here, then what she had seen was only a fraction of the total.
     Sarai stopped at the doors of the centre building and heard a light whirring noise as Marie charged up a shot beside her. Her fingers hovered over the hilt of her blade as she slowly pushed them open, her breath quickening.
     A ramp sat ahead of them, leading downwards into near darkness. She took a step forward, and then Marie put a hand on her shoulder and stopped her.
     "Let me go first." She said. "I've got the heat vision here."
     Sarai nodded and the Inkling continued ahead of her.
     She pulled a blade out of its holster as they walked, her eyes slowly adjusting to the light. The first room was pretty big although it seemed to have nothing in it. Along the walls were windows covered with old and ragged curtains, which let a small amount of moonlight filter inside. Sarai glanced around once more before continuing.
     They went down 2 more hallways and crossed through 1 more room when Marie suddenly came to a halt at the threshold of another room and held out an arm to tell her to stop.
     "Holy," She whispered, worry leaking into her voice. "I'm picking up at least 15 heat signatures." She seemed to pause for a moment. "There's more in the next few rooms. Should we go in?"
     "Yeah." Sarai sheathed her blade. "Follow my lead, stay behind me."
     Sarai started forward, her hearts thumping fast. She spotted roughly 18 Octolings at first glance, in the midst of conversation. They were all male, with the same white leather jacket and cherry colored boots and piercing gray-maroon eyes. Except, these guys looked more scuffed, more badly treated, as if they were lower on whatever the social pyramid here was.
     One of them turned at their footsteps, and his eyes flared wide when he spotted her. The Octoling elbowed the one next to him, which stopped the conversation entirely and the whole group turned to look.
     They all stood at once. "What are you-"
     Sarai put her hands up, speaking fast. "I just want to talk. I just want to talk."
     "Who are you?" One of them asked. He had pale skin with an off orange hue, an uneven buzz cut, and a distinguished scar stretching diagonally from his forehead to his jawline. A weak air of authority surrounded him, but clearly all the others looked to him as the leader type. "We don't take too kindly to trespassers, and I'm pretty damn sure the boss don't either."
     "That's who I need to talk to," She said, analyzing the rest of them. They looked scrawny for the most part, easy to defeat if things went wrong. However, she hadn't thought about the fact that Marie wasn't exactly the best at combat. Unless she could stay at a good distance for sniping, a fight would be a challenge since Sarai would have to protect her as well. "Can you take us to him?"
     "Pfft, no." He scoffed. Only then did she notice holsters on the right side of each Octolings' hip, a short hilt sticking out. "For all we know, you're the fuzz."
     "Man, I bet you they are." Piped up a small one in the back. "Those Splatsville people just can't take a hint and back off. What a bunch of sore damned losers."
     "Pearl probably sent 'em again." Sighed another with a twisted mohawk, cracking his knuckles. Sarai rolled her eyes. "We haven't even let out the last four you sent. Why're you two here? Get lost."
     "We haven't even let out the last four." She shivered. How many people have they kidnapped?
     "We're not leaving until we talk to him," Sarai said, her hands poised towards her daggers. "Please. I'm Gabriel's sister, I'm sure he'd be fine with it. Just tell us where he is and we'll be on our way.
     There was a short silence, and then the first Octoling burst out into laughter. "How stupid do you think we are? Boss ain't got no sibs. Sure, he don't tell us cleaners too much, but that's one of those things you oughta know. Besides, you two look nothin' alike."
      "Hold on-" She tried.
     "No." A tall one stepped forward, drawing the blade from his hip. It wasn't a dagger; it looked more like a kitchen knife, but he wielded it like it wasn't. "Don't think we didn't see those cute little daggers the moment you walked in." He shifted his gaze to Marie, who lowered her brows and raised her charger. "I'll bet if we tell you where the boss is, you two'll kill him. Or ransom him. Whichever comes first."
     Sarai hesitated, thinking of something to say. An immediate response to an accusation like that just isn't something one has. The group seemed to take this as a "yes" to the last remark and she heard a repeating shink as the rest of them pulled out their weapons.
     "Get out." Yelled the one with the scar. "Don't make me tell you again."
     Sarai drew her daggers. "We're not leaving. Tell me where my brother is and we'll be on our way."
     "No. You heard him. Get out." Said the tall one. "Either you scram or we kill."
     Sarai stared at him, narrowing her eyes, and heard the whir of Marie's charger beside her. "We are not leaving until you tell me where my brother is."
     There was a long, tense pause.
     With a final, foreshadowing shink, a blade came hurtling at them from the back of the group, aimed straight for Marie's neck.
     Sarai's eyes flared wide.
     She whipped around and threw herself in front of the knife, the daggers dropping from her hands.
     The blade hit her hard in the side, slashing across her skin and digging deep into her hip.
     She heard a loud crack as Marie fired a shot, swiftly accompanied by a scream from the back of the room as it made contact.
     Sarai hit the ground with a gasp of pain, gripping her side. Why was it always her torso taking the knife? She felt ink spilling through her fingers and curled up on the ground, her breath hitched in her throat.
     The adrenaline would deal with the pain for now, but they'd have to get out before things got any worse.
     "Stay back!" She heard Marie yell. "You bastards stay the hell away or I'll shoot another one!" Someone touched her shoulder and gently pushed her on her back. "Are you okay?" The Inkling asked.
     "Yeah, I'm-" She inhaled shakily. "I'm fine." Sarai looked for the blade, expecting it to be stuck in her side, but instead saw it a few feet away from where she sat. "Get my daggers, we're leaving."
     Marie nodded and, after readying a shot, went to get the daggers. Sarai pushed herself to standing, breathing heavy. There was ink dripping from her hands.
     She looked up. Marie was coming back with the blades when someone came from behind Sarai and, instantly, there was a knife to her throat. The rest of the group blocked the entrance, and two others flanked Marie.
     "Drop your weapon or I'll kill her." Hissed the man holding her. It was the one with the scar.
     The two others flanking Marie drew their weapons as she dropped the daggers and raised her charger.
     A pause ensued.
     Sarai locked eyes with the Inkling, and they stared at each other for a minute.
     "You heard me!" He yelled, digging the knife into her neck a bit. She gasped, choking, as a drop of ink snaked down her chest. "Drop your weapon!"
     Sarai shook her head, just a little.
     "Move your left arm," Marie mouthed.
     She inched her elbow away.
     Crack!
     Sarai ducked and lunged forward as the man fell, earning a stab of agony from the cut. She grabbed her daggers, rolled, and caught herself just before she slit one of the Octolings' throats. He was small, scraggly, unfit, but judging by the gasps that resounded around the group, he was valued.
     She held the knife to his chest, hooking an arm around his throat. "You let us go or I kill him."
     Marie ran to her side. "I have one more shot before I need to reload," She whispered. "Hurry."
     Sarai realized that, with the exit blocked, they'd have to retreat into the base. However, what comes in must come out, therefore there had to be another exit.
     They backed up, maintaining eye contact, until they stood at the threshold of the next room. The group seemed to be at the start of a marathon; they looked as though they were waiting for the gunshot to signify the start of a race.
     She looked at Marie. "Run."
     Sarai kicked the bony Octoling away and turned, breaking into a dead run. Marie sprinted beside her, slinging her charger over her shoulder. She heard pounding footsteps and disgruntled shouts yelling instructions, but simply focused on keeping her breath in check and not bleeding out and running until she couldn't anymore.
     The halls seemed endless, the rooms neverending. Finally, they stopped in a small area with no windows and a sole light hanging from the ceiling. Marie came to a halt beside her, already trying to reload her charger. Sarai held her side, feeling faint. Her hands stained were with ink, and she felt that at that moment, she could've vomited on the spot.
     Six Octolings came running in, their knives already drawn. There was no negotiation now, no "put the weapon down" or warning. They didn't stop running, kept their momentum and charged at her.
     "Give me two minutes!" Marie cried. "This thing is being stubborn!"
     Sarai ducked away from the first one, avoiding the blades. She rammed her shoulder into his side and he crashed into the second. She whirled around and punched the third in the stomach, grabbed his shoulders, and bashed his face into her knee.
     The first came running again. Sarai kicked him back, swung on his arm, and flipped him over. The Octoling landed hard on the ground with a grunt.
     Sarai drew her blades and turned to Marie, who was attempting to fend off the other three and, to her dismay, failing miserably. The Inkling was on the ground, shielding her face as they kicked her. She ran over and tackled the fourth one; a significantly bigger guy than she was. There was no way she'd would be able to take him down.
     Sarai elbowed him in the face and returned to Marie, who had shot one of them and was struggling to keep the last one away. She realized that Marie's nose was bleeding and her right eye was beginning to swell, not to mention that her lower lip had cracked and there were multiple cuts on her left shoulder and hands.
     Sarai drew her blades and slashed one across the Octoling's back. He shrieked in pain and turned, fury written across his face. She narrowed her eyes and put the blade to his throat. There was yet another crack and he dropped down not a second later.
     "Are you ok?" Sarai asked, struggling to catch her breath.
     Marie nodded, dropping her charger. The Inkling stared at her hands and forearms and her eyes went wide. "That's.. that's a lot of ink. Oh, god, that's a lot of ink. That's a lot of ink that I should not be seeing right now."
     She let out a bitter laugh, gripping her side in pain. "Yeah. Yeah, it is." She bent down, inhaling sharply, and picked up the charger. "You only shot two of them. There's bound to be more coming. We have to go."
     Sarai more felt than heard the footsteps pounding towards them. She met Marie's eyes.
     "Run. Jus- run. Run!" Sarai shoved her shoulder and the Inkling grabbed the charger from her hands, turned, and broke into a dash. She joined her, daring to look back, and saw a few Octolings racing into the room as well.
     "Cut them off on the other side!" She heard one of them yell.
     We're dead. Sarai thought, chills running through her veins. She caught up to Marie and, in between breaths, said, "We can't outrun them. We have to hide."
     The Inkling nodded and, after turning a corner, they ran into what appeared to be a storage room. Sarai didn't take the time to observe her surroundings; her first and only priority was to not die and find somewhere to hide. They had at least 10 seconds before the Octolings caught up.
     A pile of crates, covered in tarps, rugs, and debris from a caved in part of the wall, sat in a corner of the room. She grabbed Marie's arm and pulled her over, then pressed her hands to one of the boxes, which was nearly her height, and shoved it out of the way after a second of struggling. A small space was left in the middle of it all.
     "We're hiding in a dusty, dank hole?" The Inkling asked, her voice weak.
     "Yup." Sarai pushed her inside the opening it created, then she squished herself inside as well. Footsteps echoed loudly through the room as she tried to push the box back into place, and one of the Octolings came into view.
     He heard her struggle, saw them, and dashed over. A knife gleamed in his hand.
     Just as he was about to sink that knife into her chest, Sarai kicked him back and pulled the box back into place.
     She let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding, her eyes adjusting to the dark. There was a yell of anger outside.
     "No. Just leave it. They'll die of starvation or thirst, whichever comes first."
     "See, I would've respected that choice, but it rhymed so now it sounds lame."
     "Let's just go. That damned Octoling left Ry and Gear hurt. Not to mention the others that Inkling hit."
     "Y'know, I never did like those nicknames for them. Ry? Gear? What sorta names are those?"
     "Did I ask?"
     "Do I care?"
     The exchange seemed to end there.
     Sarai turned to Marie. "You ok?"
     "I don't feel good. My head is pounding." She responded softly.
     "That's just ink loss. You should be fine once we get those cuts covered up."
     "With what? I didn't bring anything. And you heard them; if we go out, we get killed, but if we stay here, we die. Either way, we're screwed."
     Sarai didn't respond, because she knew Marie was right. They would die here, unless a miracle somehow transpired.
     Her stomach gave a violent start, and she suddenly felt weak. Alex would wake up in the morning and she would be gone. Callie would go looking for Marie only to never find her beloved cousin. They'd be nothing but a memory in a few days.
     All because she missed her brother.
     Marie's head dropped onto her shoulder and she jumped. "Marie? Are you ok?"
     The Inkling didn't respond.
     Sarai moved her shoulder, just a little, and felt her head loll downward. For probably the millionth time today, she shivered. But this time, it wasn't a normal shiver, it was a vicious shudder that ran through her veins and down her back and all through her limbs, because suddenly, she was beginning to realize how much of a mistake she had made.

wow i wrote the chapter on time and i packed in over 3k words
hope you're having a great day and i hope you enjoyed this chapter!
Word count: 3171