Chapters Four months had passed since Angelo had recovered from his injuries. He and Lizzie had flown unseen over the Salmonlings' territory to spy on them and figure out their attack plan. They spotted several jets that looked similar to the SI-9, but the engines were not fitted with the coolant systems. The Salmonlings had also created several new weapons for their battles, which worried the two siblings.
Upon returning to the Squidbeak Base, Angelo shared the findings with the Captain, along with Callie, Marie, Andrew, Michael, Taylor, Takara, and the Agents. Takara had aced her college classes for the semester, and had been told by her professors that she needed to be at her family's side when the Salmonlings came to strike.
The Captain held a meeting with the Squidbeak Splatoon one evening to determine whether they needed reinforcements. The vote was unanimous, and everyone agreed to contact Equus for assistance with stopping the Salmonlings from defeating them and to hopefully spell out peace.
The next day, Callie and Marie opened a communications channel and sent a call. They established a connection just seconds later.
"This is Smolder. Go ahead Squidbeak Base.", said Smolder when she and the crew came into focus on the screen.
"During these past 4 months; Lizzie and Angelo have spied on the Salmonlings to see how close they are to attacking. They have built new weapons along with the jets from their documentations on the SI-9.", said Marie.
"We'd appreciate it if you provided extra hands to help us stop them.", explained Callie.
"Consider it done.", said Flurry Heart as she walked up next to Smolder.
"Great! We'll see you when you get here.", said Agent 3 before ending the call.
**
One morning in Canterlot, Twilight was signing off on some royal documents when Spike rushed in.
"Flurry Heart and the Young Six are here to see you, Twilight. They have gotten a call from Earth. It sounds like our help is needed with battling against the Salmonlings. They are the race that Flurry told us about recently.", he said.
"Bring them in.", said Twilight.
Spike nodded and opened the door to let everyone inside. The seven friends were clad in their battle armor and had snarls on their faces. Twilight spoke to them at once.
"The newest ship is finally ready. It will allow you to bring all of the troops you need.", she said.
"Thank you, Aunt Twilight. We will make sure that the races come to peace, no matter what it takes.", said Flurry in a firm tone.
Everyone decided to strike at night in order to minimize the amount of resistance from the Salmonlings. At 7:30 PM, they boarded warships and jets to fly to the Salmonlings' homeland. They reached the island at 9:00 PM in order to strike in the dark. They had also cloaked the ships to keep from being seen, and the jets used their coolant systems to avoid the infrared sensors. Upon arrival, the ships split up from formation and bore down hard on the island.
"OPEN FIRE!", shouted Flurry.
All of the ships erupted with lasers and ink blasters, startling the Salmonlings awake. In only a matter of minutes, the Salmonling base was splattered in ink to the point of being inoperative. After looking through binoculars and seeing the Salmonling King raise a white flag; Flurry radioed everyone that they were clear to land.
"Please, don't kill us. We only seek peaceful terms with the other inhabitants. We don't want any trouble.", said the king nervously after he saw that Javen was held hostage.
Callie and Marie forgave the King for all of the trouble that he and his troops had caused. Then the king revealed the true reason for seeking peace. The giant bear, Mr. Grizz, had been forcing Inklings to steal golden eggs from the Salmonlings, which resulted in panic.
"Your Majesty, we have defeated Mr. Grizz. He was trying to bring back the mammals that roamed the Earth before the oceans rose.", said Michael.
The king was overjoyed to hear this. He thanked the Squidbeak Splatoon for defeating the evil bear. Then, the Captain pulled out a document and placed it on the King's table. After everyone had read the terms; several specific individuals proceeded to sign the document at the bottom. The document said the following.
**
OFFICIAL PEACE TREATY
We the undersigned hereby declare peace between the Inklings, the Octarians, and the Salmonlings. There shall be no more wars between the races, and all shall be friends. The Salmonlings are given full privileges to integrate into society and not be treated as outcasts.
Signed,
Callie and Marie Cuttlefish, Squidbeak Captain, DJ Octavio, Salmonling King Raymond, Squidbeak Agents 3, 4, and 8.
**
The peace treaty was stamped with 3 wax seals, one from each race, and King Raymond arranged to be taken to the mainland to announce the declaration along with everyone else.
Six months ago...
Flurry Heart and the Young Six received an urgent call for help from the Squid Sisters and their kids. Marie's son Angelo had been injured when having to bail out of an experimental jet. The team answered the call, rescued Angelo, and destroyed the jet's wreckage, but an enemy race on Earth has documented enough about the jet to build their own.
This enemy race, known as the Salmonlings, has apparently been at war with both the Inklings and the Octarians for a while, and is preparing to attack with their new equipment.
Angelo's injuries were minor, and his recovery has gone smoothly with flying colors. Can Flurry and her friends bring enough soldiers to help the Squidbeak Splatoon hold back the attacks before it is too late?
Flurry Heart sent out a call to all of the soldiers on Equus to board the nearest shuttle in order to reach the space dock and board the largest and newest starship, the E S Harmony . Everyone began putting on their gear, packing their weapons, and saying goodbye to loved ones before boarding trains to the nearest launchpad. After boarding the shuttles, they got situated and fastened in their seats. The countdown began and the shuttles blasted off to rendezvous with the Harmony . Once all of the shuttles had docked and the troops had moved to their quarters, Flurry and the Young Six took their seats on the bridge.
"All troops, brace for warp speed.", said Flurry over the PA as Yona charged up the star-core engines.
Once the course to Earth was set, Yona hit the switch and the engines propelled the Harmony forth.
**
On Earth, the Squidbeak Splatoon joined forces with the Octarians to defend themselves from the Salmonlings. As Lizzie and Angelo finished lacing up their boots, two Inklings came rushing to wish them good luck. It was Lizzie's boyfriend Leo, and Angelo's girlfriend Elizabeth.
"Be safe out there, Lizzie.", said Leo.
"Angie, I pray that you will return safely.", said Elizabeth.
Lizzie and Angelo thanked their loves before giving them each a kiss on the cheek. Then they finished gearing up. After grabbing their main and special weapons, they headed to the Squidbeak Base to meet up with the Captain, their parents, the Agents, and DJ Octavio. Upon arriving at the Base, they met up with everyone in order to break up into squadrons. The radar had already spotted three groups of Salmonlings coming towards the mainland, so the army would fight them off before striking the Salmonlings' home.
Two hours later, the Harmony arrived in Earth's orbit. Flurry contacted the Squidbeak Base after they had landed softly on the ocean in a remote area to keep hidden.
"Squidbeak Base here. This is Callie."
"This is Flurry Heart. We are coming down to help you out.", said Flurry.
"Copy that. We have three Salmonling squadrons approaching from the air. If you can take them out from behind, we will have an easier time defending the mainland.", said Marie.
"Good plan. We're coming in hot.", said Smolder.
Flurry organized six trained pilots from each of the races to take off on jets and fly in a pattern to chase the Salmonlings and shoot them down. The pilots for the dragons, the griffins, and the changelings were female, and the ones for the ponies, the hippogriffs, and the yaks were male. The pilot for the dragons was named Tinder, the griffin pilot's name was Stella, the changeling pilot was named Larynx. The pony pilot was named Stefan, the hippogriff pilot was named Franklin, and the yak pilot was Prince Rutherford's son Jonathan. Once the jets were airborne; she led the rest of the army to various locations on both sides of the Squidbeak Base, equidistant from each other. After getting set up, they readied their armaments to defend the mainland.
Early the next morning, the soldiers got up and ate a quick breakfast to make sure they were ready when the Salmonlings came into view. The radar began pinging both the Salmonlings and the allies just thirty seconds later. The Salmonlings showed up as red dots and the allies were shown in blue, due to the radar having been programmed to differentiate enemies from allies. Everyone got ready for when the jets came into visual range, since they were currently over a mile out. Seizing an opportunity, Flurry called to the pilots.
"Air Force, this is Flurry Heart. You are clear to open fire.", she said over radio.
"Roger that, Flurry. The Salmonlings are coming into range.", said Tinder.
True to her word, they were gaining distance on the Salmonlings. However, the pilots noticed this and started trying to get away. Luckily, the Equestrian Air Force pilots were trained to chase with all of their might. They closed in fast and pulled the triggers after setting their crosshairs. Tinder and Franklin were trained on the lead pilot, Stella and Jonathan aimed for the left wingman, and Larynx and Stefan set their sights on the right wingman. These jets would not be easy to damage though, due to the shocking fact that the Salmonlings had built them with armored plates on the fuselages.
Minutes into the dogfight, they zeroed in with numerous hits. The leading pilot's jet had its fuel tank ruptured and both engines knocked out, resulting in the jet exploding after he ejected. The left wingman had his right wing destroyed and his tail fins jammed at an angle until he had to bail out and parachute into the ocean. Neither of these pilots were killed, they were only bruised and knocked unconscious. The right wingman was able to dodge most of the flak and sped up to strike the mainland as fast as he could.
"GET DOWN!", shrieked the Captain when she spotted the remaining jet come screaming out of the clouds.
Everyone dropped to the ground before the jet swooped over them. Angelo managed to throw a splash of ink into one of the jet's engines with his Slosher and Takara swooshed her Splat Brush to cover the pilot's window before they dropped for protection. Flurry's troops ended up splattered in ink and with two of their anti-aircraft turrets clogged before they could fire any shots. The pilot had to eject, because Angelo's slosh of ink had clogged up his right turbine, and Takara's swoosh had blinded him. Flying out of control, he bailed out before his jet crashed near a beach just 200 yards away from the Squidbeak Base. Nobody was hurt, and the pilot was unable to attack Inkopolis or Splatsville. He was not fast enough to pull his parachute, but he was only knocked out when he impacted.
"Capture that pilot for interrogation.", said the Captain when she saw him eject.
"Right away, Captain.", said Callie and Marie.
They had Taylor and Lizzie go with them while everyone else cleaned up the ink and repaired the disabled turrets. Upon reaching the pilot, Taylor quickly tied a gag in his mouth and Lizzie put him in handcuffs. Then, Callie helped them load him into the back of a prisoner van before Marie drove them back to the base. In the process, they saw that his name tag said "Javen".
When Javen woke up, he was bound in a chair and several soldiers from both Equus and the Squidbeak Splatoon were staring angrily at him. Angelo had his slosher ready to soak him, and Taylor was standing with his bow ready and pulled back. Once the gag was removed from Javen's mouth, he spoke up to explain why the war had started.
"We're only trying to integrate into society. War was declared when you and the Octarians refused us entry.", he said.
"Since you have attacked us, we are left with no choice but to return fire. We will try to negotiate for terms, but you need to show us where your homeland is.", said Marie in a livid voice.
Agent 3 slapped a world map on the table in front of Javen and handed him a pencil. With shaking hands in fear of being shot, Javen moved his hands to an area northwest of the base and drew a circle around an island.
"Our homeland and our main base are right here.", he said after he had set the pencil down.
"Thank you for complying. This doesn't mean you are getting off easy though. The negotiations will be harsh.", snapped Agent 8.
After noting the island's location, everyone got ready to ship out. They held Javen hostage in order to strike fear into the defending troops.
The next morning, Callie, Marie, Octavio, and King Raymond appeared on the news in both Inkopolis and Splatsville.
"Attention to all residents of Inkopolis and Splatsville. This is Callie Cuttlefish of the Squid Sisters. A peace treaty has been signed between the Inklings, the Octarians, and the Salmonlings.", said Callie.
The four speakers proceeded to read off the peace treaty and waited for the audience to respond. The crowd stood in stunned silence for a moment and then broke out cheering and clapping, which prompted the speakers to take a bow. After the broadcast was concluded, Flurry and her friends prepared to head home to Equus. As they were loading the last of their supplies onto the Harmony , they got a call from Callie and Marie. They were asking them to come and meet someone. Accepting the offer, Flurry and the Young Six headed to the middle of Splatsville where the Squid Sisters were waiting with Andrew and two other Inklings who were older than them.
"We are Aaron and Athena Grady. Andrew is our son.", said the two Inklings, who had hair in two different shades of blue.
"Pleased to meet you both.", said Flurry.
Just then, Lizzie and Angelo showed up holding hands with two Inklings around their age.
"This is my boyfriend, Leo.", said Lizzie as she showed them a handsome Inkling boy with grayish-green tentacles.
"This is my girlfriend, Elizabeth.", said Angelo as he showed them a sweet Inkling girl with dark blue tentacles.
"I think you have perfect matches.", said Smolder.
"Thank you.", said Leo and Elizabeth together.
After Callie and Marie told everyone the story of how they met Flurry and the Young Six, the two groups shook hands and the Equestrian Fleet finished loading up before heading home.
**
Three years later...
The Young Six took a trip to Earth to see how things were holding up after the peace treaty was signed. Flurry was not with them because Cadence was in the hospital with pneumonia. Upon landing near Splatsville, they were greeted by Lizzie.
"How is everything going?", asked Sandbar.
"Very well. Multiple Salmonling families have gotten integrated here. Also, Angelo and I have proposed to Leo and Elizabeth.", Lizzie replied.
"Hey, congratulations.", said Yona.
After Lizzie took everyone around the city to meet the Salmonlings who had come over, the Young Six headed home to Equus. The bonds between the Inklings, the Octarians, and the Salmonlings grew stronger and stronger as time went on and they remained constant friends and allies with Equus for years to come.