#🧁————CERRIN

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

The pink Octoling laughed softly at Vio's remark. "Well, I think you are. Enough to earn you a nice meal, at the very least."

He enjoyed spoiling the other, especially when it came to making him food. Cerrin loved to cook for people, and being able to give his boyfriend a nice meal when he had the time to come all the way to Inkopolis made him even happier to have the taller Octoling visit.

"I wouldn't mind cooking for you more often, y'know." he continued after another few bites of the stew. "All you have to do is give me a call and I'll gladly come by and make something."

"Special? I'm not that special."

You're just spoiling him, Cerrin. And well... Good. The guy works too hard and he deserves it. Managing like three jobs at once, the guy can never find anytime to relax. So, make him feel special! Even if Vio doesn't think he deserves such treatment.

Anyways, he digs into the stew. Letting the warmth envelop his body... Oh, yes, this is what he definitely needed after traveling to a much colder climate.

[orbitaldeathwoomy-a]

@ourple-octoling​ (from here)

“Well...”

Cerrin fell silent, unsure of how to explain exactly how much he remembered. It really wasn’t much, hell he didn’t even remember being a soldier -- But his inexplicable skills with various weaponry had to come from somewhere, and since most Octolings under Octavio’s rule wind up in some part in that army, he just kind of assumed that was the case.

Part of him didn’t even want to explain anything. He was afraid of how Vio would react, but since the other Octoling seemd to want to help...

“The only thing I remember from before I entered the Metro,” he began quietly. “Is the Squid Sisters’ performance while Koa and Octavio fought. That song did... something... and that’s when I decided to leave.” 

Cue a sigh. “Everything else before that is a blur at absolute best. And, I’m not even entirely sure how I got into the Metro in the first place -- I just woke up and Cuttlefish was talking about how Koa and I had been fighting before someone else attacked us, and he and I somehow ended up there...”

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

"Fun fact! No amount of funny buffs will ever make me touch an Octobrush agai—"

[SCREECHES]

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

"Can't say I have..."

Beyond the few places he knew in Inkopolis, and the underground domes he once lived in (but those were a whole other can of worms...), Cerrin didn't really know much about the surface himself. Hell, he was still getting lost in Inkopolis' many crowded streets and alleyways sometimes.

But, he did know that humans weren't exactly a thing here. Or anywhere in the world, for that matter. Clearly, something weird had happened to bring this stranger here, and the last thing the Octoling wanted to do was scare the poor guy by telling him humans didn't exactly exist anymore...

So instead he smiled, holding out his right hand for a friendly shake.

"But where are my manners? My name's Cerrin. What's yours?"

"Yeah, heard of 'em?"

He wasn't naive enough to assume everyone naturally knew about Japan, the world was a big place after all and he couldn't claim to know all of the places in it. Although, if there was one place that could stir up some memories, it was usually Tokyo - the most popular spot for tourists and foreigners alike, packed with all sorts of shops and restaurants.

Still, from this guy's reaction it still didn't seem to ring any bells - unfortunate but it was something he would just have to work with. Maybe he could still find his way home somehow, maybe this guy might be able to at least answer his questions. He'd be satisfied with that much.

Inkopolis nor Inkadia didn't exactly ring any bells but there was this one thing this guy said that piqued his curiosity above all else.

"Human...? Yeah, I'm a human," He shrugs, gesturing to himself with a confused look. "Do you...not see many around here?"

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

[Ruby leads Cerrin back to the front door. After a few seconds of silence, she looks over to him.]

"You ready?"

"As I'll ever be..."

[She sighs, before opening the door and gesturing for Tsukuyo and Susano to enter.]

「Please, come in.」

[The two soldiers do so, their gazes focused on Cerrin as they turn to him.]

「You've grown, Cyren.」

「Yeah. No thanks to you.」

[Susano glares at Cerrin, anger beginning to burn in his deep blue eyes.]

「I see living on the surface has taught you nothing but disrespect.」

[Cerrin falls silent. This only pisses his father off further, but before he can lash out Tsukuyo puts her arm in front of him to stop him. She then closes the space between her and Cerrin a bit and moves to touch him, but he immediately takes a step back.]

「Keep your hands off of me.」

[Tsukuyo slaps Cerrin hard across the face.]

「Hey, there's no need for—」

「You've forgotten when to hold your tongue, Cyren.」

[Cerrin glares at her, but remains silent.]

「Now, to the matter at hand... Why did you never return? We thought you were dead.」

「Don't act like you care.」

「You disgrace our family, disgrace the army, then have the nerve to speak to us like that? Your treachery knows no bounds.」

[Cerrin sighs softly.]

「Just tell me why you came here, or leave.」

「Then I'll make this simple, for your sake – Leave this frivolous life and come back underground, or face the consequences of your actions.」

「Like I'd ever let that happen.」

[Tsukuyo and Susano shift their gazes to Ruby.]

「What makes you think you have any say in this, Inktoling?」

[Ruby folds her arms.]

「Oh, I don't know. Maybe it's the fact that you tried to kill him when he decided to get away from your abuse, assumed he was dead when he never came back, and didn't bother to confirm that "death" until now?」

「Cyren is our son. You have no right to dictate—」

「And you have no right to make him leave! He may have been a kid when he came to the surface, but now he's over eighteen and you have no legal control over him anymore! I won't let you take him away!」

[A cruel smile then covers Tsukuyo's face as she moves aside, just enough for Susano to lunge toward Ruby.]

「Know your place, insolent half-breed!」

[Ruby flinches, bracing herself for the inevitable pain of the blue-ringed Octoling's assault... But it never comes. When she opens her eyes, she sees Cerrin standing between them, his father's claws deep in his left shoulder.]

"CERRIN—!"

[Susano rips his fingers out of Cerrin, causing him to stumble back. He's already bleeding badly, blue venom oozing out of his wounds.]

「We look forward to bringing you home, Cyren... So don't die, alright?」

[The two soldiers take their leave, satisfied with the conversation and the damage they'd done. Ruby immediately begins to panic, standing next to him and letting him use her as a crutch.]

"Oh cod, Cerrin, your shoulder...!"

[Cerrin's breathing is labored, his vision blurred slightly as he looks to her.]

"Ruby, you..." [Cue a strained breath.] 「...Are you okay...?」

"Why are you worried about me?? I’m—Oh, never mind, we have to get you to a hospital!"

[She quickly leads him outside to her car, being careful as she helps him into the front passenger seat before hurriedly taking the driver's seat. After a few panicked turns of the key in the ignition the car starts, and she doesn't even acknowledge his parents walking up the street as she speeds past them.]

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

Anonymous asked: Hey, Cerrin - where'd you get those marks on your shoulder?

He falls silent for a moment, his right hand instinctively moving to loosely grip his left shoulder, where those faded blue marks are.

"...My father tried to kill me."

His grip on his shoulder tightens.

"He's a blue-ringed Octoling. My memory is kind of... fuzzy... But I was trying to escape, I think, and he just. Grabbed me. Dug his claws into my shoulder and tried to kill me with his venom. Ursula told me later that he would have rather had me dead than 'disgracing' our family by defecting from the army. I... Honestly don't know how I survived, but I did, and I hope I never see him again."

"They still hurt sometimes, but it's not much. Just a dull ache that passes after a few seconds..."

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

spoilers for side order under the cut i guess

“No, we can’t—We have to go back! We have to bring her back!”

Cerrin’s cries echoed through the Memverse floor as Marina and Acht pulled him back into the elevator, its doors closing the second Pearlbot had entered behind them. None of them had seen him so desperate before, regardless of the struggles he’d faced. Even Acht, who had only known him for a short while, could tell just by the shocked look on Marina’s face and the way Pearl was hovering close to him that their own concern for the normally pink Octoling was more than warranted.

Tears streamed down Cerrin’s cheeks as he knelt on the ground, repeatedly slamming his tightly curled fist against the floor. His entire body was shaking, and he could barely breathe through his sobs. Why did they have to leave her behind? Surely they could have…

“Hey, Eight, are you—”

“Why didn’t you let me save her?!” he shouted, tears leaving his eyes feeling like they were on fire as his attention snapped to Acht. “We could have brought her back, and—” Cue a sob. “And we could have done something to help!”

“I don’t think it works like that.” the partially sanitized Octoling calmly replied, their gaze momentarily shifting to Marina before returning to Cerrin. “It looked like your friend was completely under Order’s control. Something bad could have happened if we brought her back with us.”

“How the hell would you know?!” he snapped as another sob escaped his throat, a moment passing before his voice fell to a mumble.

“Marina, she… Sh-She could have…”

“I’m so sorry, Cerrin…” Marina apologized, guilt evident in her eyes as she looked downward. “Order’s control over Ruby is too strong. Trying to brute force my will over its in this situation could have had a lot of unforeseen consequences, and I might have hurt her in the process…”

He fell silent again, gaze focused on the floor of the elevator the four of them were in. Was there really no way to save Ruby from Order’s control? What if he made it all the way up the spire, defeated Order, and he still couldn’t help her?

He didn’t want to think about it.

“Hey, c’mon, Cer! Don’t worry!” came Pearl’s voice, her drone body giving an enthusiastic mid-air twirl as she spoke. “We’ll kick that Order’s butt and save everyone it trapped in here! You’ll see!”

A heavy sigh passed Cerrin’s lips, before he wiped the remainder of his tears away with his forearm and moved to stand up. His body was still shaking, his breaths uneven as he took a few moments to calm down and collect his thoughts.

He wasn’t confident he could even reach the top, not with the Palettes he currently had access to — All the weapons were far too light for him to adjust to as quickly as he needed. Unless he managed to find a Palette with something heavier, he knew his chances of reaching Order were slim. Even a Palette with a charger would be better than anything he had right now.

Especially the one with those Dualies…

“Speaking of "kicking butt",” Acht said as they leaned back against the elevator wall. “Didn’t you find a key when you defeated your friend? Maybe the locker it opens will have a Palette you can work with better than the ones you already have.”

“Yeah!” Pearl exclaimed. “It’s hard to see you struggle, but if we find something you’re more used to, it’ll be smooth sailing!” Cue another mid-air twirl. “So, we just gotta keep pushing! The faster we get to Order, the faster we can save your friend and everyone else!”

Cerrin sighed again, but gave the others a nod. Everyone — Ruby, the others who had been sucked into the Memverse, and even the world as a whole — was counting on him, just like how it had been back when he escaped Kamabo Corp...

And if he hadn’t given up then, he wasn’t about to now.

“…Alright.” he said, finally looking up at the others. There was a small, determined glint in his blue eyes. “Let’s show that thing what happens when it messes with us.”

[orbitaldeathwoomy-a]

"Don't worry. I can handle a weapon like this." Vio's wack morals aside, Cerrin wasn't known as a "weapons ace" for nothing. He may not have used lighter weapons very often, but he had no doubt that he could adapt pretty quickly -- As long as he wasn't made to use something like an Inkbrush, it should be fine.

He then followed Vio without hesitation, landing in the final area shortly after him. The place seemed familiar, but his memory was still coming up pretty blank.

"Almost there..." he mused aloud, looking upward in hopes of spotting an easy way to ascend to the highest possible point. Everything seemed so surreal, with floating platforms and the vague feeling that he had been here before.

Still, he continued to look around, eventually finding a tall floating platform that was close and low enough for his Splattershot to reach. Then, pulling the trigger on the gun, he covered the platform with Ink before he simply jumped up to swim up the side. When he reached the top he returned to his Octoling form, and gave Vio a smile.

"Let's go."

"I know it ain't your style-- But I grabbed the first thing in my locker. Who knows, if you find some baddies you can just yank their weapon outta their hands. Or find a weapon lying around and use it."

Basically, beat the ink outta possible hypnotized enemy (if there were anymore of them) and steal. While it was usually the first part of the whole heroing gig-- The strealing part wasn't usually in the job description. In Vio's case... stealing from Alterna and Grizzco was the norm. Because fuck that noise! It wouldn't be a Vio suggestion if it didn't mention sort of crime...

BUT ENOUGH about Vio's wack moral code. Vio walks up to a launch pad and then superjumps his way to the final area. Off he goes... reckless as always...

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

"TH-THAT... PERSON??? THAT PERSON LOOKED LIKE RUBY??? WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK IS GOING ON IN THIS PLACE???"

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

"Wait, you guys' birthday is on Squidmas? That's gotta suck."

"...It was always just another day for us."

"So you didn't celebrate it? Not at all?"

"We didn't celebrate anything."

"What? Your parents must have been miserable..."

"You have no idea."

"So that means we gotta throw you guys a killer party to make up for it!"

"I mean... Celebrating Squidmas with everyone is more than enough."

"Nonsense! We can celebrate your birthday a day early, then have Squidmas on the 25th! It'll be fun!"

"Yeah! And you'll get twice the presents!"

"It isn't a big deal. We don't want to impose on your holiday."

"Don't be like that, Urs! Your and Cerrin's birthday is just as important as Squidmas, so just let your auntie Ruby take care of everything!"

"I don't get a say in this, do I?"

"It's best to just let Ruby do her thing... Besides, it'll be nice to celebrate our birthday together."

"...Well, if that's what you want, Cerrin, I suppose I'll go along with it."

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

@inkantation said: "What, why are you looking at me like that?" i think you know. || Catch my muse staring!

"Huh?"

Cerrin was suddenly snapped from his thoughts by Eden's voice, his affectionate, dreamy smile replaced by a sheepish one as her question registered in his mind.

"Oh, uh... Was I staring?" he asked. "Sorry, it's just..." 'You're beautiful, Eden. More than the sun on a warm summer day and the moon and stars on the clearest of nights.' was what he wanted to say...

But the words were caught in his throat, a moment passing before a soft "I was just thinking about some stuff." came out instead.

[orbitaldeathwoomy-a]

A content hum escaping him as Eden plays with his hair, Cerrin returns her kiss once more — This time, however, it’s deeper, more passionate, the hand that held her waist now gently cupping her cheek. Blue eyes gently flutter shut as he pulls her as close as he can, the feeling of her body against his filling him with a pleasant warmth.

He wants this moment to last forever, but alas, he eventually needs to pull back for air. His arm slowly finds its way back around her waist, before another hum passes his lips as he gently nuzzles her.

「I promise I’ll never stop loving you,」 he whispers, his lips curled into a sweet smile. 「In this life, and the next.」

Pressed against Cerrin, Eden feels a wave of comfort smooth her over. His reassurances, the gripping of her shoulders and holding her so tight, they leash back all the anxieties that bite at her heels. Eden finally wraps her arms around him, around the barrel of his chest, and one hand snaking up to play with his hair.

With a tone deeply nostalgic, Eden says, 「 If I'm the sun, then you're my diamond sky, bringing light even in the dark. 」

With that, she pushes her chin up, and captures his lips. Only for a moment, with a little, wide smile on her lips. 「 I love you too, Cerrin. 」

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

Anonymous said: 💝 Cerrin needs all the love! || Look into my muse's memories!

[It was Cerrin's first Squdmas season. He hadn't really known about the holiday until about two months prior, but the festive air was starting to get to him a little -- He found himself humming along with the few holiday songs that had managed to worm themselves into his head every now and then, and seeing snow for the first time had left him in awe...]

"Hey, Cerrin, whatcha doin'?"

[Cerrin was snapped form his thoughts by a light poke to his arm, and after he realized who it was that had poked him, he gave her a confused look.]

"Nothing, really? Just watching the snow..."

"Oh, right. You've never seen it before, huh?"

[He shook his head a little.]

"is there something you wanted to talk to me about?"

[Ruby gives him an excited grin, before pulling a gift out from behind her back.]

"For you!"

[Cerrin looked at the gift for a moment, then back at Ruby.]

"But, I thought--"

"I know, I know. 'Wait until it's actually Squidmas' and all that. But this is a special gift, so I decided you should have it early!"

"If you say so..."

[Cerrin gently took the gift, before carefully undoing the white bow on top of it and the shiny, bright red paper around it. Inside was a leather bound book, its pages lined but otherwise blank.]

"...An empty book?"

"It's a journal! I thought since you were having trouble remembering things from your past, It'd be easier to make new memories if you could write them down. That way, you'll always be able to look back and remember all the things you experiennce here in Inkopolis!"

[Cerrins eyes momentarily widen a little, before a smile forms on his face.]

"Thank you, Ruby. I'll be sure to use it."

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

@inkantation replied: Eden vc: But Smollusk is just a baby!

"But they tried to trap literally everyone's minds in a virtual world so the real world would be a colorless void of pure order??"

[orbitaldeathwoomy-a]

"The last 30 seconds of a Turf War match is the only time that actually matters."

That was an almost unspoken mentality among many Turf players, and Cerrin was no exception. Sure, these types of matches were largely considered to be casual for the pink Octoling, but he still took them pretty seriously. He had just taken out a member of the opposing team, and was pulling back a bit to charge another barrage of shots from his Heavy Splatling Deco, his gaze laser-focused on a certain opponent that was across the map...

...Until a loud scream sounded from above, pulling his and a few other players' attention away from the match and to the strange figure that seemed to be falling from the sky.

"Is... Is that a per--" Cerrin didn't get to finish his thought -- The mystery person plummeted straight onto him, causing him to let go of his weapon and hit the ground right as the final seconds ticked down and a whistle signaled the match's end.

He let out a small groan as his teammates cautiously surrounded him, the three of them both curious and a bit wary about the mystery girl who had nearly crushed their star player.

Squids and Androids

@orbitaldeathwoomy​

The Turf War was heating up in the middle of the Mahi-Mahi Resort, the spectators were absolutely going wild! The other team was attempting one last push to gain the center stage, trying to slather the map with as much ink as they could before the last minute was up! No one wanted to give the other team an inch, all eyes on the battleground…and all unaware of a strange portal opening up right above the stage. 

Fortunately this breach in the space-time continuum wouldn’t last long, as all it took was one small figure falling through before it closed up. But who was this newcomer? Was it an invader? An eldritch horror? No, it was….a certain android lass currently trying to think of a way to break her fall. All she needed to do was stay calm and-

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!” Nevermind, she’s just freaking out…fortunately for her, there was something below that was gonna break her fall. Just a certain unlucky octo-boy….Cerrin! Iiiiincoming~! 

[orbitaldeathwoomy]

‖ ♥︎ 》 Felt like I should clarify, just in case: the “C” in Cerrin is pronounced like an “S”! It’s like that because his birth name, Cyren, is derived from “siren”, the creature of Greek mythology.