It was early in the afternoon....Clover sat in the middle of a large circular table. Her hands were tied up behind a chair, and her ankles were cuffed to the legs of the chair. She saw Inklings and Octolings all sitting at the circulatory table, feeling their gaze and disappointed stares towards her.

???: Clover.....

Clover's eyes shifted over towards an Inkling girl with dark red tentacles and yellow eyes who sat down at a more royal chair at the circular table, looking at a folder of papers.

???: you were sadly the victim of an attack from the ArchAngel queen, but from that alone, you are the reason why one of our clan members lost their live that day.

Clover:....

???: this action has broken a rule within the Stream's code of conduct. You have been charged with Homicidal murder due to being a stream and not assisting within the fight against the common enemy.

Clover's eyes widened in shock....being lost for words due to confusion and fear. She heard the chains around her ankles rustle and shake.....she saw the girl glare straight at her, folding her hands and leaning over the table.

???: you shall be punished with a Clan transfer contract. From now on...you are considered a fake member so you can atone for your sins.

???: fuck that, Ruby...

Ruby, the Inkling girl with the red hair and yellow eyes, looked over and saw an Inkling girl with black tentacles that faded into a cyan blue. The girl wore black and yellow jeans with a black and yellow jacket, covered by her matching cloak as well. The girl had her shoes on the table and was leaning back in her chair as she played games on her phone.

Ruby: Shadow....do you want to add something?

Shadow, the Inkling girl that Clover remembered as the girl she saw last night when she woke up. Clover saw the girl look up from her phone and stare at Clover in a non-caring manner.

Shadow: kill her...simple. Why the hell would we keep her?

Ruby: she is a stream user....the more, the better for our clan.

Clover:.....I-I'm not......

Everyone looked straight at Clover and saw her looking down at the ground, opening her mouth slowly to speak once more.

Clover:....I'm not.....a stream....like you guys....

Just then, Clover looked to her side and saw a weird portal of Ink right next to her, then she saw a hand reach out from it and grab her face, turning it a little to the side.

Ruby:...Wyatt...stop with the warp gates.

Wyatt, an Octoling boy with purple tentacles, sticking his arm into another portal of Ink, which is what he used to grab Clover, looking at her face.

Wyatt:.....looks like a stream user to me.

Just then, another Inkling girl with default tentacles stood up next to Wyatt, looking at Clover, slightly confused. The girl had silver tentacles and black eyes, along with piercings through her ears and tentacles as well. The Inkling let out a "hmph" and raised her hand up before slamming it down on the table, pointing at Clover.

Ruby: Tone?...

Tone: what you just said was a bunch of baloney! Stop lying! What type of clan are you even from!? You have a Kilu!

???:.....you don't have to be so...loud...

Tone looked next to her and saw a blindfolded Octoling girl who was laying down on the table, sleeping a little bit before she was shot awake from her loud voice.

Tone: Selena! Does her Kilu look familiar!?

Selena didn't even bother, then simply shrugged as she pointed at her blindfold to her obnoxious friend.

Selena: *yawn*.....blind....remember? can't see....but I can sense her inky aura....it's weak...

Tone: weak aura!? You definitely were a member of a weak clan then, squiddy girl!

Clover: I already said I'm not a stream!!!

The whole room went silent and Clover began to pant a little while looking at all of them one by one.

Clover: I don't even know what a Kilu is! If you're referring to the mark on my face, it's my birthmark! I don't have any powers!  I'm not a part of any clan!! I'm just a normal inkling that likes to play turf war with her friends!!

Wyatt: if that's a birthmark then it's definitely out of the ordinary....

Ruby: indeed....it's in the perfect spot to be shown as a Kilu...

Clover: what is a kilu? Please...I'm so confused....the first moment I'm with my friends....then the next...I'm here...

Selena: a Kilu is a symbol of a clan that appears around your eye when you dedicate yourself to them. It shows your loyalty and pride....yet you say you aren't a stream user....*yawn*..

Shadow: like I said, kill her and get this shit over with....

Ruby: I still sense a lie within you Clover....and we're not going to kill her...we must train her so she can at least stand up for herself when she gets thrown into battle....

Shadow: she's literally a normal Inkling girl, Ruby. She'll get slaughtered in less than 2 seconds.

Ruby: indeed, so that's why I'm putting you in charge of her for this mission I'll be throwing you two on.

Shadow dropped her phone and her face froze up completely. Her eyes shifted towards Ruby, and Clover could already feel the hatred emitting from the Inkling.

Shadow: excuse me?....

Ruby: you shall be in charge of Clover for the time being. I wish for you to take the girl to the Gear Clan and request a weapon forging for her.

Shadow: hell no!!

Ruby: Shadow.

Shadow: like hell I'd waste my time helping out this weak little freak!!

Ruby: Shadow.....

Shadow: we've been on bad terms with the gear clan for a while! The second they see me, they'll instantly tell me to fuck off!!

Ruby: SHADOW!! THAT IS ENOUGH!!

Ruby slammed her hand on the table, startling everyone in the room, and made Shadow stop completely, and she saw Ruby staring deep into her eyes.

Ruby: I told you that you're in charge of the girl.....I didn't ASK you, I TOLD you, so don't disobey me.

Shadow:.....

Ruby:.....Clover....you have been branded with a traitor contract that will last a year. You are lucky that I'm in a good mood, or else I would've agreed with Shadow and execute you.....

Clover sat in complete fear, seeing the inkling walk through a little lifting entrance for the circular table, grabbing her chains and unlocking them, then grabbed her hand cuffs and unlocked them as well. Clover rubbed her sore wrists and saw Ruby glaring directly at her as she did so.

Ruby: you have no idea how big of a mistake you made.....Scars! You are all dismissed!

Clover saw all of the scars stand and walk out of the counseling room, then she looked over at Shadow, seeing her get up and start to walk away as well, which Ruby gestured her to go along.

Ruby: go. She'll teach you what you need to know....

Clover quickly ran to catch up with Shadow, hearing her let out a sigh as she stuffed her hands in her pockets.

Shadow:.....as you already heard, my name is Shadow....and I already know I'm not gonna like you one bit, so let me put down some ground rules.

Clover:.....

Shadow: do not touch me, do not look at me, do not say my name...hell, don't even think about me....

Clover:....I....

Shadow: *sigh*.......I really don't want to....but let's make this fucking tour quick.....

Clover closed her mouth completely and simply just walked behind Shadow, passing by many weird rooms that were around her. This was all happening so fast.....her brain was still trying to wrap her head around her situation at the moment....remembering all of the strong and unique cephalopods within that counseling room.

The two passed by a giant metal door, and Shadow pointed to it while rolling her eyes in annoyance.

Shadow: training room. This is obviously where we train "wow, crazy". Let's go.

Clover wanted to speak up and ask a question, but she already knew she'd get shot down basically immediately. This girl already gave off a hateful and annoyed sense to her, a sense that made her skin crawl. The two walked even more until they reached an elevator, and Shadow walked inside while Clover walked in with her. On the side, Clover saw 5 buttons, and Shadow pressed the 3rd button, watching the doors close in front of them and drag each other up.....

Clover:....Shad-

Shadow: what did I say about saying my name?....shut it.

Clover saw the Inkling pay her no mind whatsoever as she crossed her arms. Does she really hate her for being a criminal?......Clover thought deeper to herself, trying to put the pieces together on who she exactly killed.....she now knew that her hands were stained with the blood of someone she didn't even know...which only made her let out a tiny internal sigh.

The doors opened up and Shadow walked out, with Clover following behind her, looking at the amazing interior of the base.

Shadow: *points* vending machines and food. Don't buy the squid swirls, they are mine and mine only.

Clover:.....

Shadow: *points* there's the lunch room. A lounge where most of us would hang and, you guessed it "eat".

Clover:....O-Ok....

Shadow: I hope you're paying attention, because I'm not telling you this information twice.

Clover looked inside of the cafeteria and saw an Octoling boy sitting all by himself at a table, looking....upset about something, and not even touching his food one bit. Clover felt a bit of concern for the boy, but before she could do anything, Shadow began to walk away once more, forcing her to run and catch up to her.....wondering more about the boy....

Shadow:.....I still can't believe that you were face to face with Yufine herself....and you survived....

Walking into the elevator once more and pressing the 4th button, the door closed as Clover looked down a little as Shadow began to text on her phone a bit, completely ignoring her until the doors opened once more and the two were met with a long hallway that was full of doors that spread from left to right.

Shadow: this is the living quarters...and luckily we have a room that's open at the moment for you, so you should honestly be thankful.

Shadow walked over to a door that had the name "Citrus" placed on it with a name plate. Shadow turned the knob and opened up the door, seeing an organized room that had a tiny desk and laptop on it.

Shadow: this is where you'll be staying.

Clover:.....but....this room is occupied by someone already......

Shadow: not anymore......Citrus died last week....she couldn't complete her mission.

Clover's eyes widened in shock, and even though she didn't even know who this girl was, she still felt something sharp shoot through her heart. Shadow looked on her phone to see the time, and looked over at Clover with a very controlling and demanding expression.

Shadow: we'll start our mission tomorrow and head to the Gear Clan....let's just hope they'll actually let us through the damn gates....

Shadow walked off while waving at her with no care in the world, opening up a door of her own, but before she walked inside, she looked back at Clover one last time.

Shadow: if you need anything, think before you speak, because if you waste my time with a stupid question or statement, I'll punch the hell out of you.....fucking murderer...

Clover saw Shadow walk into her room and close her door, then Clover slowly and sluggishly walked into her own room, closing her door behind her as well.

She looked around the room....seeing a squid sisters poster....a neatly made bed, and something laying on top of the pillow. She walked over to the object and noticed that it was a necklace that had a beautiful jewel inside of it....she picked it up and stared at it...noticing the shining appearance of the amethyst within it.

She didn't know how to feel......but...that's how the world works.....death is unavoidable.....it will catch up to you eventually.....this girl most likely laughed...cried.....comforted....and fought with these scars by her side...and she'll never get the chance to experience ever again.....

Clover looked over at the table to see the laptop, which made her hesitant, but she slowly walked over to it and sat down on a chair in front of it. She reached over and turned on the laptop, seeing that there was no password. She saw a video tab opened on the laptop, making her slightly curious. She saw a mouse next to the laptop and gently grabbed it......moving it and dragging the cursor across the screen until it hovered over the video....then she pressed on it....staying silent.

~~

Citrus: Heyo!! Citrus here!

The girl turned her camera towards an Inkling girl who was laying in a hospital bed. Clover sat completely still, shocked and confused.....it was her....in a deep sleep, with Citrus right beside her....

Citrus: day one of meeting the new scar recruit! It's kinda sad that nobody likes her, after me bringing her in after that massacre. I can't wait until she wakes up! Rose put me in charge of the girl!

Citrus let out a tiny giggle, then shifted the camera back to herself while smirking.

Citrus: I bought my friend, Sho a very beautiful necklace that I know she'll love greatly. She'll definitely love her when she meets her, I can already feel something strong in my gut about her!

The screen turned black and Clover sat in her chair, speechless....but then, the screen flashed back on to show Citrus outside in the dark. Clover could still see her face though, but it was mainly because of the beautiful shining stars from above, and a weird neon glow from below.

Citrus: day five! Still no signal that she's waking up, but Rosie assigned me a mission to investigate the Neon district, so don't worry, I'll be back soon with good intel!

The screen flicked off, then on...the video kept going.....Clover watched as Citrus began to....lose her smile.....her body seemed more stiff and she had noticeable scars that she's never seen in the previous videos.

Citrus: day twenty!....hm...I uh.....heh...just waiting for her to wake up any minute!....phew....these missions have been exhausting.....but I really, really, really wanna find out what clan she's a part of! It's only a matter of time!

Clover clenched her fists as they laid on her thighs....she didn't have anything to say....nothing to reapond with. She felt something wet fall onto her hand....she looked at her hand and saw a clear drop of liquid....she felt her face, feeling the tears run down from her eyes without her even noticing before.

Citrus:.....d-day twenty seven......the Neon region has been causing some conflict recently....and I really want Clover to investigate it with me! It'll be our first mission together as partners!

The screen flicked off and on once again, showing Citrus with a bandage across her head, throwing up a tiny piece sign while walking in a wasteland all by herself.

Citrus: day thirty!....Clover actually twitched in her sleep and it made me happy! She's fighting to wake up! My intel has been gathered for the clan! *pant*......Sho would be so proud of me right now.....And I finally know the person who left their clan and joined the Neon population! It wa-

Just then, a loud slice was heard....blood splattered on the screen and a gasp from Citrus was heard. The Camera spun and tumbled onto the ground, and when it landed, it showed nothing besides Citrus on the ground, clenching her arm and holding In her yelps of pain.

Clover watched the video in horror, hearing ferocious footsteps slowly get closer to Citrus. She saw a figure that she couldn't properly make out due to the blood of Citrus being on the lens of the camera that covered the upper half of their body.

???: ya know.....I really hate liars.....

Clover could tell by their voice that it was a boy....he lifted his shoe and stepped straight on top of Citrus's head, letting out a disgusting laugh that made Clover shiver. Citrus tried to raise her head, but the boy simply applied more pressure and slammed her back down.

???:.....they are so disgusting.....the smell they give off....the diseases they carry.....it traces from one squid to another.......once someone lies and gets away with it....it encourages others to lie......

Citrus:....*grunt*....g-get...off...

???: you remind me of a creature that I read deeply about within a book....they existed back in the human era.....what were they called......oh yeah! RACOONS!!

The boy took his shoe off of Citrus's head, kneeling down and grabbing her hair and aggressively pulling her up to look at him.

???: they were foul creatures....just reading about them made me want to rip that book to pieces.....they smelled horrible....sticked their noses where they didn't belong....would dig through trash just to find a meal for dinner....they carried so many diseases.....they are so disgusting....so do you see the resemblance, Citrus?

Citrus wanted to open her mouth and speak, even Clover wanted her to stand up for herself, but all she saw was a stream of blood flow from her mouth and hit the ground below just as the boy threw her head back down.

???:....you disgust me......you should be thankful that I'm taking the time out of my day to exterminate you myself.......horrendous animal.....

Clover saw the boy's hand glow, then saw a bat form within his hand, a bat covered in barb wire that gave off a cyan radiant glow. The boy raised his bat and let out nothing besides a mischievous laugh. Clover saw Citrus look at the camera......and saw her eyes pleading for help, but before Clover could even react properly, Citrus was hit directly on her head with the bat, then the video cut completely off....and it didn't turn back on.....leaving Clover there in silence.

Clover:..........I was......asleep for a month?......and.....

Clover looked down at her hand, slowly opening it to see the amethyst necklace that Citrus left behind.

Clover:....Citrus.......she.....

Just then, a knock was heard at Clover's door, startling her a bit. She looked over at her door and stayed silent, then the door opened to show an Inkling girl with black tentacles that faded into yellow. The girl had short tentacles and one cyan eye, yet her other eye was covered up by an eyepatch.

???: h-hello?.....

Clover:.....

???: I-I'm sorry...I was told to not associate with you.....but I couldn't help myself....

The Inkling walked over to Clover, and she looked down at her hand to see the girl holding onto a bag of some kind. The girl placed the bag down in front of Clover, then gave her a respectful nod.

???: I wanted to make you a little meal for your journey to the gear clan tomorrow.....

Clover:....thank you....

Adina:..o-oh! My apologies....I'm Adina by the way.....I'm a scar as well....even though I'm not a fighter........I hope my sudden appearance didn't rub you the wrong way or anything....

Clover:....*smiles* not at all. I really appreciate the meal, and I know I'll enjoy it!

Adina couldn't help but smile at Clover a little, seeing the innocent nature of the Inkling made her grasp her hands together and let out an adorable woomy of her own, which only embarrassed her and made her look away from Clover.

Adina: I'm sorry....that slips out sometimes.....

Clover: you're fine. I'm happy to know that at least someone here doesn't....ya know......not like me.....

Adina: I-It's not completely that.....it's mainly just.....they're a little hostile around you....that's all....please don't take anything they say to heart....I know that will probably be tough for you....

Clover: *shakes her head* you clearly are mistaken.....

Adina saw Clover gently put a hand on her own chest in pride, smiling at her and giving off so much....courage from her radiation.

Clover: I'm Clover....a simple Inkling who loves to play games and make new friends! Even though I'm in a tough spot at the moment...I'll avenge my friends and show these Scars how reliable I can be.

Clover looked once more at the amethyst necklace in her hand, letting out a tiny smile and placing it around her neck.

Clover: sitting here and crying about everything will get me nowhere......all of the ones who died for me.....I'll make sure their deaths did not have no purpose.........

—————-

*chapterly art*
*Shadow*