Chapter Text
Rantaro Amami steps aboard the subway-- specifically one of the trains in the Deep Sea Metro, a strange series of rail lines he's come across in his search for his sister. It seems like these trains are barred from the surface of Inkopolis, which explains the lack of Inkling passengers.
This train is... strange. The stops are sporadic and make no sense, with exits bunched up together or strung along for miles; one would assume that these are high traffic areas, but Rantaro only ever sees them pass by during the many times he's ridden this train. In fact, from what he's seen, his fellow passengers only get off at two to three different stops! It's all very unnerving, the way things seemingly end and begin with no rhyme or reason, the way the passing scenery is... brutally industrial or mystically foggy and green; almost like the lush plants grown in the Kelp Dome greenhouse. At times when he looks out the windows, it even looks like there's no track beneath them at all.
Despite this, Rantaro wouldn't even dream of chickening out. His sources say that the last seen location of Mina, his sister, was around the pipe that led to this place and by god, he's going to search every inch of it, every stop he can until he finds her.
(It's only fair after all, he lost her.)
...There's a problem with his plan though. All the weird stops he mentioned? Every time he's tried to request a stop at one he's denied it. Apparently he counts as a "civilian" and doesn't have access, but that seems highly suspicious to him. Aren’t trains public transport? The conductor, a small, blue sea cucumber named C.Q, also isn’t very inclined to the public. He barely even speaks to Rantaro. So... how is Rantaro to get higher access? As much as he'd love to just jump off a train at blinding speeds to reach one- he really wouldn't.
Rantaro will just need to gather more info from around here. The passengers aren't too talkative, but that won't stop him. Someone has to know something .
It leaves a miserable feeling in the pit of his stomach- inaction- but there's not much else he can do for now.