Y/n L/n's Deep Space Log: Entry 42
Few things had become as dull for you as the feeling of weightless drifting through space. You had everything you'd ever need at your fingertips, and the Neptune still had a few months estimated before arrival on earth. This was going to suck.
In order to pass the time, after finishing the songs you had written, you simply read up the PDA. You taught yourself whatever the humans had to learn, but even then, it was beginning to grow old.
Old, just like everything else, you supposed.
By the time you stirred awake, Marina was gone, as always. The blanket fort was still up, and light was starting to shine through, waking you up.
Strange... once again, your sleep had been undisturbed. No nightmares had plagued your brain. It didn't take you long to figure out why.
Marina. Marina was that reason why. Any time you sat down and slept beside her, with you in her embrace or vice versa, you felt safe. Nothing could get you out there. Not when you were safe in your own peace of mind.
You had just enough room to sit up, looking around. You blinked your eyes a few times, yawning. You heard shuffling as a smaller shape, probably 3, crawled out of the large fort. You paused for a bit, deciding to crawl out in time to see her enter the kitchen.
In the kitchen, Pearl was sitting at the countertop, using a high stool to face Marina. Her expression was blank, her face a bit pale.
"Hey, Marinaaaa?" Pearl waved a hand in front of her best friend's face, failing to get her attention. This was how it had been for the last few minutes, since Pearl first walked into the kitchen for a cup of heavily sweetened coffee. How you took the stuff black, once again, she would never understand.
"Reeeeenaaaa." Pearl poked Marina's hand, snapping her into reality with a jolt of her head.
"Oh, Pearl. Morning." She greeted. Pearl rolled her eyes, sipping her coffee.
"Don't you 'morning' me. You had me thinking you'd gone catatonic." Pearl told Marina with a laugh. Marina nervously laughed as well, which definitely started to raise some flags.
"Hey Marina, did something happen last night?" Pearl asked. Marina thought back to the question, before an almost scared look covered her face, and she swallowed.
"No... it's got something to do with Y/n." Marina admitted. Pearl's expression started to harden up, before the door to the kitchen opened, and 3 walked through, yawning quietly to herself, before seeing Pearl and Marina talking.
"Morning, ladies." She greeted, grabbing herself a cup of coffee.
"I'm not interrupting something, am I?" She asked.
"Ye-"
"No, you're fine." Marina told her, giving her a warm smile. 3 gave her a you sure? kind of look, before looking down at Marina's hands.
"You're shaking, Marina." 3 noticed. Marina looked down at her hands. True to 3's words, Marina's hands were quivering.
"Did something happen between you and Y/n?" 3 asked. Marina shook her head.
"Don't worry about it, 3, okay?" Marina told her. 3 sighed, her eyes growing serious.
"Seriously, if something's wrong, you can tell me." 3 offered.
"Yeah, because you've definitely proven yourself mature in the past." Pearl remarked sarcastically. 3 decided to ignore that.
"Listen, I may be... less than partial to Y/n, due to his status as Agent 4, but I promise, my suspicion is not misplaced." 3 assured the two.
"Really, and how would that be?" Pearl asked.
"Glad you asked."
He simply appeared on the street, and you happened to find him? Likely story
You really expect him to just be a normal person on the streets? He's homeless, you know. You never know if that's for a reason
You insist he's a good person, but what do you have to back that up? Him not immediately stabbing you and Pearl?
Your hand was frozen over the kitchen doorknob, an inch away from grabbing it.
"3, there's no need to be so aggressive about that." Marina scolded from the other side of the door.
"If there's no need for that, then please, explain to me how if he's actually homeless and so helpless that you just have to help him, then how come you didn't find him out on the streets until that one night." 3 insisted. You lowered your hand from the doorknob, listening to the dreadful silence from the kitchen.
"That's what Pearl and I are trying to find out." Marina explained.
"Okay, that's cool and all, but please tell me why you refuse to accept the possibility that the answer isn't what you think it is." 3's voice seemed to echo in your ears for a moment. It was silent for far too long in the kitchen after that. A minute passed, and you were still stuck in place, behind the kitchen door.
Rustling from the fort caught your attention, and you looked back at it. Someone was starting to get up. You looked from the fort to the kitchen door, before backing away from the door, turning away to take an alternate exit from the room.
You took the familiar route up the stairs, into your room. Words swirled around your head, like fish caught in a whirlpool while you sat down on your bed, making sure the door was shut behind you. No matter how you looked at it, 3 held a point. You couldn't allow yourself to present everyone with the PDA, to try and tell them 'hey, I actually spent the last 5 years stranded on an alien planet, and got home in time for you to find me.' They'd call you insane. They'd pass off the stuff on the PDA as... as CGI. There's no way they'd believe it. No way...
You curled up, grabbing your head in your hands.
No way, right? They wouldn't believe a word of it. Living humans? Space travel? Abduction by humans? Alien planets? The evidence you had could be passed off as fake. Nobody would believe you if you wanted to tell them.
The rising sun cast its rays over your bed, and you finally decided to take a few deep breaths, thinking about what you needed.
"Coffee... yeah, coffee will help me." You told yourself, letting yourself smile. The warm, caffeinated drink would bring you peace like it always did, right?
Your steps felt unusually light as you stepped down the stairs, towards the kitchen. You made no noise, just in case...
"Listen, 3, we've been-"
"Please don't interrupt me Marina. I know that I'm lacking in proof, but so are you. Y/n could be guilty of anything, and you wouldn't even know."
"Pearl and I have been doing our best to gather what we can. Y/n's past is a mystery we want to solve. We're already working on it." Marina's voice was wavering.
"And you're obviously scared, Marina. What is it? What's got you shaking like that?" 3 asked. You began to freeze up at the words.
"It's.... nothing." Marina promised.
"Well clearly not! What, did you go through Y/n's phone and find something you shouldn't have?" 3 asked. You slowly backed away from the door, your hand at your side. Marina did see something she shouldn't have...
Shit
You stepped back up the stairs, a few at a time, before breaking into a sprint, getting into your room.
Shitshitshit...
You looked around the room, grabbing whatever you could remember that belonged to you.
Shitshitshitshit
You got a survival knife into a side pocket, keeping a scanner in another pocket, and your phone in the last available. That should be all... right?
"Doesn't matter." You whispered to yourself. The consternation was growing in your heart as you stepped out of the room, sneaking your way down the stairs. The three in the kitchen had quieted down, but you heard more speaking there instead.
Am I really doing this? You stopped for a moment, looking at the kitchen. They were speaking with each other, all happy and unconcerned, like nothing happened. Yeah...
You almost instinctively stepped towards the kitchen, before stopping yourself.
This is for good reason. It's not because of 3. No, it's not me being petty...
You stepped back, through a hallway and into the foyer.
It's because Marina got too close to the sun. Yeah... that's why...
You unlocked the front door, stepping outside, before bursting away as fast as you could.
Y/n L/n's Deep Space Log: Entry 60
The days seemed to pass in a blur. You could close your eyes on what was supposed to be Monday, take a quick nap and wake up on Wednesday. But even if the days passed like that, it could never pass fast enough for you to get home soon, to be rid of your isolation.
A lot can happen in five years. What if the people regard you as an alien, and shoot you down? What if you cause an extinction event by drowning the city in the wake of your landing? Your mind was filled with these kind of questions often, and every time, you'd push them aside, and find something to work on, to busy yourself.
It rarely worked.
"Well, it seems most of everyone is up." Pearl looked from Marina to the squid sisters, to the two survivors of the Deep Sea Metro.
"Well, Y/n's still not here." Marina pointed out.
"Of course you'd be the one to notice." Callie remarked.
"Hey, give them space. They probably don't even realize that they're dating." Marie replied.
"You right, you right. Hold on Marina, I'll get your prince up." Callie told Marina.
"He's not- I give up." Marina really couldn't bring herself to think too hard about you, due to what she had found last night. Just thinking about it sent chills down her spine.
It was like someone had closed a bear trap around your side, and ripped it out. Sure, it had healed, but you could easily fit a closed fist in the hole that was left. Marina's eyes dulled as she thought over what she had seen.
The bite on your arm was tame compared to what else you bore. The gap in your side, several bite marks and slashes covering your legs and torso. Well, there were muscles, but Marina couldn't bother to notice them at the time. She had thought she could get answers from this plan of hers, but it only brought more questions, one of which bothered her the most.
What kind of creature can cause that kind of wound?
Even with the stamina to swim around the crater of 4546B in a day, your legs wanted to give out by the time you arrived at the Square. You wasted no time in immediately making your way to the subway, hopping onto a seat. After a minute, the door closed, and with a shaky rattle, the train started, heading for the next stop. You kept your hands in your pockets, suddenly feeling super self conscious. As the train began to speed away from the square, your phone started to buzz violently.
You took the device from your pocket and turned the screen towards you. It was Marina, calling you. After a moment of careful consideration, you pressed the power button, declining the call.
"Had a falling out?" You looked up to see who spoke, spotting an older inkling.
"Not quite. I just need... some time for myself." You told him.
"Ah, I see. I see. Make sure whoever's trying to get to you knows that, so you're not worrying them." He responded.
"Oh, she's the type to always be concerned." You responded, quiet. That seemed to draw a chuckle.
"One of those gals, eh? Well then, I'd say take all the time you need, but you gotta be sure that she's alright sometime, you know?" He asked. You nodded, averting your gaze as the train stopped.
"Well, this is my stop. You have a good day." He bade you farewell. You stayed silent, watching him gobble off of the train. Your phone started to buzz again, and you immediately pressed the power button, not bothering to check the caller ID.
"Declined." Callie sounded defeated, sighing.
"Really?" Marina groaned, clenching her teeth.
"Can you track him?" Pearl asked. Marina's eyes lit up at the idea, before the look quickly faded.
"I should've put a tracker on his phone...." she sighed, slumping in her seat.
"So he just-" 3 started to speak before Marina snapped her fingers, pointing at 3.
"Not another word." She told the neon green inkling. That alone brought about a stunned silence.
"Wow, you're really serious about this." Pearl noted.
"Um... me and Callie can head to the square, you know, ask around?" Callie offered. Marina shook her head, before resting it on the counter she sat at.
"No, this is my fault. I messed up, and he's gone and run off because of it." Marina whispered.
"Your fault, why would it be your fault?" Marie asked. Marina swallowed nervously, looking at Pearl. Her face softened as she spoke.
"Is it because..." Pearl trailed off as Marina nodded.
"Wait, because what?" Callie asked.
"Are you guys doing some secret thing with Y/n?" Marie asked.
"Yeah. We want to try and figure out where he came from, and how he got the way he is." Pearl answered.
"The problem is, Y/n's SUPER secretive, and getting him to speak up is difficult. So unless he just so happens to leave us a trail of breadcrumbs, figuring stuff out is going to be impossible." Marina explained.
"..." 3 had been completely silent from the moment Marina told her to be, but she seemed to be actually contemplating something.
"Well, how about we trade info, try and theorize?" Marie offered.
"Well, I guess that might work..." Pearl answered.
"Hey, 3? I'm sorry to ask this, but could you take 8 and... I dunno, go play with her?" Marie asked.
"... yeah. Come on, 8." 3 grabbed the Octolings hand, guiding her out of the kitchen.
"Okay, how will we do this?" Callie asked, resting her elbows on the counter.
"Well, he gave me three hints to some secrets, and I already figured out one of them." Pearl offered.
"Sounds good. What were the other two?" Marie questioned.
"Well..." Pearl cleated her throat, quoting what you said a few days prior.
"Hint one: What did I do for a living five years ago? Hint two: How did I end up on the streets, despite personally knowing the Squid Sisters?" Pearl stated.
"So, he had some secret job, other than that coffee shop he told me about, and something about him getting onto the streets..." Marie muttered.
"Um, I know I'm sounding like 3 here, but may I make a suggestion?" Callie asked.
"Yeah, what is it?" Marie asked.
"Unless and until something directly relates to a clue, or was proven true, regard it as a lie." The air was silent, until Pearl nodded.
"I agree. I hate to throw distrust at our friend, but this is for his own good." She stated.
"We can't believe him without suspecting him, huh?" Marina asked. She let out another sigh, before sitting up.
"So, Marie, Y/n's Agent 4, right? Could his living have been as a professional turf war player?" She asked. Marie started to shrug, before Callie spoke up.
"Y/n told me he learned of human history and language. I think it's more likely that he's some kind of historian." She stated. Marina thought over it, before nodding,
"He did say that he knew a few stories, and had a few theories about humans..." Marina agreed.
"He even knows some of the language that human's spoke." Callie mentioned.
"Wait, really?" Pearl asked.
"Yup. The only example he gave me were numbers though. One, Two, Three, and Four translating to Ein, Zwei, Drei, and Vier." Callie explained.
"Huh, that's neat." Marie stated. She glanced at Pearl and Marina to see their reactions.
"Um... you okay?" She asked the two. They had both gone stiff, pale as ghosts.
"What... did you say 'four' translated to...?" Marina asked.
"Um... Vier?" Callie answered.
"Oh my cod..." Pearl let her head hit the counter.
"And he mentioned Winged Hussars during our date..." Marina stated.
"Wait, what's the matter?" Marie asked.
"...go ask 8 who Vier is." Pearl told her in response. Concerned, Marie nodded, standing up.
"Okay...?" She left the kitchen, leaving towards the living room. After a second, Marina stood up, grabbing a glass to fill with water.
"Hold on, I need a moment to think." Marina excused herself, first to the sink to get a glass, then to the dining room, which was currently isolated.
"Yeah, go ahead." Callie agreed, watching her leave.
You slammed the door to your house closed, before leaning against it, sliding down it to the ground. Your heart was racing as you took a few deep breaths, trying to calm yourself. Your phone hadn't gone off at all since the first two calls, something you weren't sure how to feel about.
Well... you were here. Now what? It's not like you could simply go back to living alone like nothing nothing. You needed to figure something out.
You stood up after a moment, walking to the living room. There, a large amount of scrap from your remote control project was sitting. You gathered the scrap pieces, taking them to a fabricator. For now, you'd break them down into their base components, then compress those for easy storage.
You watched the glitter of gold appear as you broke down a computer chip, before an idea crossed your mind. Maybe, when stuff calmed down for you, you could take some gold and sell it to a jeweler? That'd be a quick and easy way for you to score a buck.
That's when you realized that you had enough diamond and ruby to absolutely destroy the economy at least five times over.
...later
"So you're telling me that Y/n has an army called the Winged Hussars, what works underwater?" Callie's voice was so full of disbelief, but Marina really couldn't blame her.
"Heard it from 8, and Pearl and Marina were both there, apparently." Marie shrugged.
"Well then..." Callie fell silent, before Marina started thinking.
"Well, we obviously die when underwater, but... what if..." Marina then remembered something 8 told her.
"Wait. Pearl, remember what 8 said saved her from falling into the water during that battle?" Marina asked.
"You mean falling into that weird vehicle?" Pearl asked. Marina nodded.
"No pilot. It was remotely controlled. I'm willing to bet Y/n has a bunch of those, activated with voice commands." Marina theorized.
"Yeah... yeah." Pearl started to think over her options, before a look of realization covered her face.
"Wait... WAIT!" She shouted.
"Wait... what?" Marie asked. A wide grin covered Pearl's face as she grabbed a high chair, scooting it to a corner, where a ceiling vent lie in wait.
"You'll see. Or rather, I'll see in a moment." Pearl remarked. By stepping on her tippy toes and standing on the chair, Pearl could barely reach the vent, pulling the cover off to reveal not a vent, but a niche in the ceiling. From it, she pulled a thin wire down, which ended in a black dome. She faced it towards Marina with a smirk.
"Cameras."
~ASnazzyGuy
~3261 Words