Salmon Run: Last Stand (A Splatoon 3 story)

Chapter 4: My First Hunt

I woke this morning to the smell of bacon and eggs. Saunni must have woken up before me. I got off my sofa and walked over to the kitchen. Once again, something about the way she cooked her meals just pulled me closer.

She looked over at me and wished me a good morning. "How did you sleep?" she asked.

My eyes were still groggy from staring at the pages yesterday. "Good, thanks," I said. At that moment, Small Fry ran up to her. Seems he took a liking to her, too.

"So, you're ready to do the thing?"

"Like I had a choice." I did my best to keep my eyes open. "You don't mind getting me a cup of coffee?"

"Certainly. Coming up. Breakfast should be ready too." She still made that happy-going smile from yesterday.

Her smile brightened my day a bit. I wanted to do this job more than ever. Not just for me, but for her, too. I don't know what it was, but I didn't want to let her down. She brought my breakfast and my coffee. "Enjoy, Klammy."

"Stop it already. I don't like that name."

"Cheer up. I wanted you out there with a smile."

"If you wanted to be my wife, you could've just asked me," I said teasingly.

"Maybe I will. Our honeymoon will overlook the entire view from the metal pyramid over there."

"Maybe I'll like it."

"Maybe it will be a good thing for us."

"I'll splat you for suggesting that."

"I'll roll over you if you tried."

Silence. We burst into laughter at our banter. "Yeah, right? Like you'll squash your idol."

"Like you'll try to splat me. I'll be too fast for you."

"Yeah, right. I've splatted people faster than you."

"You want to bet?"

"For another time. Right now, I better get going."

"Good luck." She leaned in and kissed my cheek. "I'll be waiting here for you."

I got flustered by her action as I rubbed my right cheek. "What was that?"

She smiled. "Think of it as a good luck charm. That my kiss will protect you from any bad luck."

I stepped towards the door. "I'll be fine. Trust me." I got out of my apartment and went off to my new work job. Perhaps this won't be so bad.

I arrived at Grizzco and walked down to the main lobby. There, I found Platypus Bait and two other people with him. "Glad you could join us, Small Fry," he said.

"Yeah, yeah, I came. So, who are your friends here?" I asked him.

"Just a few colleagues of mine. That's Squid Surf and Sting Ray. They agreed to accompany us as we run this mission together."

"Glad to have you with us," Squid Surf said as he shook my hand.

"We heard big things about you," Sting Ray said with a big smile on her face.

"Really now?" I said. I frowned my eyebrows at Platypus Bait. Surely, he told them about my situation.

"Well, that everyone is here, let's suit up," Platypus Bait said. He directed me to my locker. Inside was an orange suit, a green helmet, yellow boots, an inflatable, and an egg pouch and launcher.

"You should find everything inside," Platypus Bait said. "Get dressed and meet us inside the training area in five minutes." He walked back to his locker.