Coral Shores (A Splatoon Story)

Chapter 2 - Regret

As soon as the group entered the orphanage, they were met with a somber sight: There were multiple Inklings and Octolings either loitering in the lobby or laying on either seats or sleeping mats on the floor. Some seemed to be by themselves, but there were many others that stayed in groups, some that were even families, trying to tend to their children. Many of the employees that worked for the orphanage were waiting on standby to see if they could help anyone who would ask, but even they didn't look too well. Some of them had a few wounds, and even baggy eyes for how tired they were.

"Jeez... This place looks sad...", Eight commented silently.
"It is what we got..", Murdoch replied. Some of the employees noticed the new faces and almost immediately offered some help. As Undine and Rainey began to get settled in, Murdoch noticed an Inkling man with a suit approach him.
"How was your search, Murdoch?", the man asked as he sighed.
"A bit more than what I'd hoped for, Mayor Conway. I did bring new faces with me, though. They will need our help.", Murdoch replied, feeling tired himself.
"Please, Conway is fine. And I appreciate all the help you have been giving to Coral Shores as of late.", Conway replied with a proud smile.

However, Murdoch did not return the smile. Instead, he simply crossed his arms. "I'm hoping you're also doing your part.", Murdoch pointed out, catching Conway slightly off guard as he fiddled with his long, brown Inkling tentacles nervously.
"Me and a few extra hands have been doing our best to figure out a way to...take care of this situation. I promise we are doing our best.", he muttered as Murdoch sighed. Then heard footsteps behind him to see Eight and Undine approaching.
"Mayor Conway? You're here too?", Undine asked as Conway simply smiled at them.
"Indeed I am. This situation has taken a toll not just on me, but on the entirety of Coral Shores. But I am sure that if we combine our power, we can combat and repel this evil.", Conway announced triumphantly, but no one really reacted too highly.
"どうなったらこいつが市長になるんだ?", Eight muttered under his breath.
"What did you say?", Conway asked him, making Eight react slightly.
"Oh, uh... That I agree." he answered hesitantly, but even Murdoch could tell he was lying.

"Well, if you find anything new, please let me know.", Murdoch replied as he was just about to walk away, until an old Octoling woman stopped him.
"Murdoch, you're back. Perfect timing", the woman greeted him. She wore a pretty white robe, adorned with blue patterns and a cross dangling from her neck in a necklace. Murdoch smiled at the woman.
"Is there something you needed, Ariel?", Murdoch asked, but Ariel seemed to be slightly hesitant.
"It's... It's Maria.", she answered, making Murdoch's smile disappear immediately.
"Wh-What happened?", Murdoch asked.
"She sneaked into the salvage crew again. It seems they were attacked. If you wish to see her, she is currently in her room.", Ariel explained to Murdoch, and Undine watched as he immediately ran deeper into the building, with Ariel calmly walking to where he was going.
"Did something happen?", Alex asked his sister, but with so much going on, she did not know how to answer.

As soon as he made it to Maria's door, Murdoch barged in to check on Maria, only to see that, for the most part, she was still alive and perfectly healthy. The only difference he managed to notice was the large, white cloth wrapped around her head, with yellow ink staining the area over her left eye. Immediately after Murdoch barged in, Maria took notice.
"Murdoch!", she exclaimed as they both quickly embraced in a tight hug.
"Maria, what were you thinking?", Murdoch asked as he parted from the hug to look at her.
"I'm sorry, I just wanted to help..!", Maria told him, desperate for him to forgive him.

"What happened to your eye?", Murdoch asked again.
"The group was attacked by soldiers... A lot were taken away.. One was about to grab me, but ended up scratching my eye instead. The doctors said I might go blind from it...", Maria babbled, but was pulled back into Murdoch's hug.
"Please... Don't do that again...", Murdoch mumbled to her. He really was concerned for her. Since their parents suddenly dropped them off into the orphanage, Maria was now the only one he truly considered family.
"I won't...", Maria responded, but then parted from the hug. "I... I managed to bring this back with me. For you.", she added, handing over a small and red toy car. "This was made by..Auto, was it?", Maria asked as Murdoch looked at the toy car.
"An Auto Sculpin, yeah.", he corrected as he took the toy car from her hands. "Thank you.", she told her, making her give him a tiny smile.