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a-table-of-fics · 4 years

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Cull to Adventure, Chapter 4, Draft 1

Marie returned from giving a battery-powered Zapfish plushie to the Octarians’ machine (a tradition started by her grandpa, though she had to admit it was cute) to find Agent 4 on the couch, with his gloves off, doodling on his hand with a marker. Concerned, Marie walked up to him, and saw that he was careful to draw within a tattoo of an abstract crab, arms crossed above its head, done in mostly outline except for two beady eyes. Marie couldn’t help but watch with interest as the boy sketched little ideas and interesting patterns.

Agent 4 looked up to see Marie staring, and jumped back. Marie was surprised at how quickly you could put a glove on.

“Ah, h-hi,” he said, smiling weakly. “So, uh… I’ll be up to looking for the n-next one in a sec…”

“Hey, no rush,” Marie said, calmly. She nodded at the Zapfish that was still swimming in the air around them. “Here, I’ll fix you up some milk tea.”

She disappeared into the small shack. The Zapfish looked at Cull for a moment, then swam to a plug to a nearby power strip, and something (presumably an electric stove) hummed to life in the cabin. Cull always found it amazing how all the Zapfish freely swam around and seemed happy to power things for everyone. Why would the Octarians just strap them to a machine like that? Cull wanted to pet her as he thought about this, but he knew it wasn’t nice to interrupt a working Zapfish.

It wasn’t long until he heard a kettle whistle, and Marie soon came back out, carrying a tray with a teapot, a carton of milk, some sugar, and two foam cups. Placing it on a small coffee table in front of the couch, she went to get a lawn chair and brought it to sit opposite Agent 4. She was silent as she poured and mixed the tea, gently placing a cup in front of him.

He picked up his cup, staring into it to try and avoid Marie’s gaze. He occasionally took a sip, but other than that and a quiet “thank you”, he wasn’t saying anything.

“Y’doin’ all right?” she eventually asked, carefully. “Seemed a lil’ rough out there...”

She smiled politely, but Agent 4 still didn’t want to talk. All the same, she saw the ink rush to his face as he stared even more intently into his tea.

With how much action most Inklings sought out for fun, Marie wasn’t sure what to say. He looked around 13, maybe 14, and he still didn’t seem comfortable with splatting or getting splatted, both of which were often near-daily things for most teens. Seeing him like this was just a sharp reminder of that. Why didn’t she pull him out of there sooner? Poor kid was not prepared for this kind of thing…

She calmly finished her tea as she thought of this, and got up to guide the Zapfish back home.

“Just take it easy for a bit, Agent Fou—”

“P-please,” he finally said, looking up but still avoiding eye contact. “My name is Cull.”

Marie was kicking herself. In her rush to find someone to help her, she didn’t even ask the guy’s name? Sure, it was better to keep his name hidden in enemy territory, but she didn’t even ask before or after? Outwardly, though, she simply nodded.

“All right, then, Cull” she said, carefully taking the Zapfish by her back. “You did…you did all right, kid. Chill out here; you deserve it.”

Cull could hear that tone in her voice again. That strained tone when someone struggled to avoid a certain topic; when Cull was concerned, that usually meant avoiding mention of his tentacles. He just wished someone would flat-out tell him he wasn’t half the Inkling others were; he was sick of being patronized. He watched Marie leave to return the Zapfish to Inkopolis, then turned back to his tea. By now, it was lukewarm at best, but it still tasted good. Well, whatever Marie thought, he did it. He got that Zapfish.

***

Marie walked through the back streets, stroking the Zapfish’s head as she went. There were a few things to consider when it came to where one should be returned. First, of course, there was being discreet (they were trying to prevent another Great Turf War, after all), but there was also the matter of what places needed power and where the Zapfish would be comfortable. Food was important, and luckily this fish seemed all right with the way they were going, so they headed off to Mako Mart, being careful not to be seen.

Marie watched as a couple of the employees cheerfully welcomed the fish back. It never got old, seeing squids, jellies, and various fish cheering on the little guys and welcoming them back.

As she walked back, however, her thoughts turned back to Agent 4. She had sent a kid who never even went into a Turf War headlong into danger! Yeah, Agent 3 didn’t seem like an ideal candidate either, but at least she knew how to hold her own…

Gramps sure knew how to pick ‘em…

Marie sighed. Yeah, Cull did manage to get the Zapfish, but he struggled to fight even the most basic Octotrooper. It made her worry about what would happen if he faced other Octarians, or, Cod forbid, an Octoweapon!

***

Cull was back to sketching on his hand, over a tattoo he had designed himself. While it did help him relax to draw within the outline, and he was quite proud of how it turned out, that didn’t matter when he had gloves covering it up most of the time. He just wasn’t ready to show it off. Right now, he was sketching a red salamander crawling across one of the crab’s abstract claws. Patterns swirled all over its skin as it was curling up to sleep. He was eventually satisfied with it, and his nerves had been soothed for now, so he waved his hand a bit so it could dry, then carefully put his glove back on.

Just in time, too; Marie had come back to the Outpost.

Cull gently placed the headset back on his ears, picking the gun back up with his other hand. That was enough downtime; there were Zapfish to save.

“R-ready for the next one,” he said, voice still wavering a little. He started to move forward, but was stopped by Marie’s green parasol.

“Yeah,” Marie sighed. “About that…”

She had never had a talk like this, and it showed, from how she was avoiding eye contact (impressive, as Cull was doing the same), to the way she paused between each sentence.

“…Look, you did well… But let’s face it, you’re inexperienced. I don’t want to see you getting killed out there. They know to look for another Agent now, and, well…”

She took a deep breath, lifting a finger to halt Cull’s interjection.

“Look, kid, I don’t know if I should thank you or apologize, but I think it’d be best if you got a few Turf Wars under your belt before diving headlong into danger.”

The ex-Agent 4’s view looked from the Splattershot, to Marie, to the kettle site, and finally to the manhole to Inkopolis.

“…L-lemme get changed then…” he said quietly, before heading into the shack. He came out minutes later in his civilian clothes, bereft of a weapon.

“Thank you, though,” Marie said, giving him a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “Don’t go bragging about this, but the Zapfish you rescued? Should power Mako Mart just fine!”

She smiled slightly, giving his back a quick pat and stepping back a little.

�� “But, seriously, this is a secret operation. Don’t go blabbing.”

She wasn’t too worried about it, him being both nice and meek, but she figured she’d remind him to be sure.

Cull nodded absently, and walked to the manhole back to Inkopolis. He gave a small wave before vanishing from the Outpost.

Coming out from the surface, it suddenly occurred to Cull that the sun was setting. It was certainly darker out, but he could have sworn he wasn’t away from Inkopolis for that long. Those underground Octarian places must have messed with his internal clock; those artificial skies were surprisingly immersive.

Well, it might be a good idea to stock up; there was no telling how long another agent might take to rescue the other Zapfish. Hopefully, Mako Mart had some non-perishables…

As always, Jelfonzo’s was the last shop to close. Cull had emerged just in time to meet with Flage, who was just leaving for the day. Her long green tentacles were shifted into one long piece that flowed behind her, and she wore a pair of large spectacles over purple eyes.

“Oh, hell-oh-ho, Cull!” she waved, with that somewhat sing-song voice of hers. It would be grating on anyone else, but she had an uncanny way of keeping people relaxed around her.

Cull shuffled forward, absently waving to her.

“Long day?”

“Y-yeah,” he nodded, keeping pace with her. “You could say that.”

“Iiii get that,” Flage said. “Just hope the Zapfish allll come back soon…”

She gestured vaguely and slowly as she talked. Cull could already feel himself get less tense. Which made it all the more startling when she suddenly perked up, clapping her hands once.

“Hey! You hear? Mako-oh Mart got one just a half hour ago-oh!”

Cull couldn’t help but smile at that, satisfied at a job well…. Well, a job done, anyway. He tried to be subtle about it, though, and adjusted his beanie to hide that. If someone found out he had anything to do with it, he had no clue what Marie would do…

“Y-ye-nice,” he said, finally, hoping he sounded like he didn’t know.

Flage didn’t seem to notice anything odd, though.

“Yep! Everyone’s movin’ to get to someplace cool right now, you know how hot it is.”

Cull nodded. He wasn’t really thinking of the heat, but yeah, the heat wave was rolling in sooner than he thought it would. To be fair, he was already sweating from the adventure he just had.

“Hmm…Like moths to a la-amp…” Flage mused. “That could be a good piece, don’t you think?”

“Mhm. Topical,” Cull replied.

“I’m thinking lots of yellows to contrast with the cool blues and greys…”

Flage kept musing about her idea for her latest art installment that would prove to be her big break. Cull didn’t mind; it helped keep his mind off things, it was a friendly common interest (sometimes they even gave each other ideas), and he could feel his troubles melt away with her melodic voice.

Still, his mind kept drifting to the Zapfish, and how happy she was to be able to move again. To Flow, and how Miffens’ absence affected her. To the heat wave, and the lack of air conditioning so many Inklings would have to suffer through. He gave little acknowledgements and comments as Flage talked, but his heart clearly wasn’t in it.

“…Aaanyway, I guess I better head off. It’s not gonna paint itse-helf!”

They waved their goodbyes and parted ways. Flage was heading straight home (“Must strike while the iron is hot hot hot!”), but Cull still needed to stock up. Who knew if the heroic Inkling Marie picked would get them all anytime soon?

Flage wasn’t kidding; Cull found he was struggling to even get through the door to Mako Mart. Although, it was less a sardine pack than it was his reluctance to really talk or make eye contact with anyone. A few mumbled utterances of “hi” and “’scuse me”, however, and he could get in without too much issue. Wearing a beanie might not have been the best idea in this weather, and he could see several Inklings taking their own hats off to beat the heat, but Cull wasn’t about to risk what others would say if they saw his haircut.

Not like anyone was really paying any attention to him anyway, thankfully. Most were trying to get a good spot by the vents or in the freezer aisle. The rest were crowding around something, but the throng was so dense Cull couldn’t tell what.

He grabbed a basket (a cart would be impossible in the crowd) and tried to maneuver his way through the aisles. Some even had Inklings lying down on top of them, in the hopes of getting some open air. Cull instinctively grimaced, imagining the guys who worked here wouldn’t be too happy.

After getting some chips, granola bars, and cereals, Cull decided he had enough for a few days. His fridge still had plenty of vegetables and fish, but those wouldn’t last too long…

He was on his way to checkout, keeping his eyes to the ground as he emerged from the aisle, when he saw a mass of feet around him. He looked up and started; he had walked right into the middle of the crowd. He started to tug his beanie down, reflexively, but he saw they weren’t even looking at him. They were all reaching up, jumping, and even trying to climb on top of each other to reach, as it turned out, the very same Zapfish Cull had saved that day. Everyone was making kissy noises, beckoning, and trying to pet and welcome the Zapfish back.

The Zapfish, on the other hand, was mostly just swimming around above, as if she didn’t notice all the Inklings who saw her as their friend and current hero.

Cull wasn’t sure how to feel when she glanced right over him. On one hand, he really didn’t want any attention. On the other, he busted his butt trying to get the girl here; it would be nice if she recognized him outside his outfit when he was still “Agent 4.”

Oh, well. He was just glad they had a place to cool off.

* * *

In his rush to get himself prepared for home, he had completely forgotten that the train there wasn’t powered, either. Not knowing the bus schedule, he had to call a cab. At least he could charge his phone while he was there, even if it was an awkward ride.

It was getting quite dark, and Cull stumbled a bit as he got back into his house. His phone’s light soon revealed a room that was messier than most. Bunched-up balls of paper were littered around every so often, and the remnants of half-cleaned paint splotches and piles of graphite remained on several surfaces. The walls were once white, but they were painted over (by brush and spray can) with half-finished murals, covered in experimental designs and vibrant colors. In some places, one could see faded parts of previous murals.

No place like home.

He sighed, checking the fridge. It was thankfully still colder than room temperature, but he realized he had no way to cook anything. Cull groaned; he really didn’t want snack foods for dinner, but it would have to do.

* * *

Sleep was light for Cull, and not just because of the heat, or the unfulfilling meal. He couldn’t stop thinking about the power outage. The Inklings at Mako Mart. Marie. Flow. The Zapfish.

All these things swam through his head all night. He got up in the early morning, far earlier than usual, but to his shock, he wasn’t feeling groggy at all. Normally, he’d spend his time playing video games and trying some more sketches or colors, but he had something else in mind this weekend.

#cull goes to octo canyon #draft 1 #Chapter 4 #fic #Splatoon #splatoon 2 #cull to adventure full chapter

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