Missing Kittens and Missing Sense, A Wings Of Freedom Story

[Bobbie]

Miguel and Simon looked at Annika as she replied with more information. Simon grinned, quite proud of himself and also feeling good about how being kind and always lending an ear to a friend could lead to some very useful places. Miguel, on the other hand, had the tendency to shut off whenever she started talking about PipsiCo. He did, however, at least try to hide that wasn’t very interested.

“Right! Now who would be interested in buying a half-completed project that was previously used as a PipsiCo retail branch and was stopped half way through renovations?” At this point, the detective turned to his co-worker, Mickey, as the gondola started to move in the desired direction following Annika's request.

Staring right back at Simon with a somewhat clueless expression, Miguel hoped that there would be more to that question before he gave up on waiting and replied.

“I don’t know… who?”

There was silence between the two men for a few seconds.

“I don’t know either - but whoever it is might be less interested in the building and more interested in its contents.” Simon went on, his proud but goofy grin returning.

Miguel could feel his temperature rising, his blood boiling at the sight of that stupid smile.

“Right…” he uttered through his teeth. “So you’re saying that whatever insider knowledge Annika heard, it’s all just a front to hide the real item that’s for sale. Not the building, but the tiger.”

Simon nodded. “Exactly, we just need to show up when they do, and - boom, arrest!"

"Never say 'boom' and 'arrest' in the same sentence again."

"Think about it… nobody would question a building being purchased, especially one that holds so much value. They could easily sell that tiger for a hefty price under this disguise and nobody would bat an eye… It's the perfect way to sell illegal black-market goods without going through the usual predictable channels.” The man sat back with a smug posture, perhaps one he learnt from Miguel, but his attempt was instantly thwarted when he leant back a bit too far and nearly fell over into the water.

---

Simon: #d2ce2f

Miguel: #ffdfb2 

[Kami-Gaz]

Annika sat back and listened to the pair have their chat, as she did her elbow was resting on the side railing of the gondola and her chin on her palm. Her growing smile was hidden behind her fingers but her cold eyes betrayed her as a strange warmth filled them. The detectives were doing their work now, discussing possible theories and eventualities. Simon had a really good one.

“And once they finish their dodgy dealings, they can do it up, and use it as a front business for money laundering or something.” Annika chimed in, giving the pair another possible use for the building. As she did the vigilante shifted her position again and tried to visualise what could be happening there. “But… what if PipsiCo don’t sell the building?" She vocalised her thoughts. "They are leaving it as a half-finished shell just to do something like this without bringing attention to it… Then after a few more months they restart the project as if nothing ever happened.” The mirth that was in her eyes had vanished as new possibilities arose, the police force on Water 7 was terribly corrupt but the fact that Annika had idolised the company that created her favourite fictional universe blinded her to the fact that.

The more she thought on it the more inconsistencies became apparent in the past dealings her favourite company had. Decisions that made no real sense worked far better with the context that shady things were being done. “Once we get Mittens back… I think we need to do some more digging on PipsiCo.”

---

Post: 9
Annika: acd1fc
Mrs Andry Litnovo: a6a6a6
Fonzie: ce5a3d

[Bobbie]

Simon and Miguel both turned to Annika as she spoke and gave her two cents - and bother were in agreement as they nodded along to her suggestion. As she vocalised her thoughts, however, both fell silent as it was easy to see the signs of somebody losing respect and hope for their idol.

“Well, in that case…” Simon was the first one to reply with a gentle sigh. “We’ll do some digging, and hopefully rule out anything dodgy going on within PipsiCo.” His smile returned, although the worry lingered in his brow.

“You realise that Annika is right, don’t you? PipsiCo is a pretty big company, the possibilities of-” an elbow jab to his gut from the former police officer that was seated beside him silenced Miguel and prevented him from finishing his comment.

“Our goal is not to prove guilt, but to find evidence of the contrary. As your superior on this case, that is my final word and you will take it.”

Miguel’s jaw dropped, a look of pure disbelief and rage in his eyes. It was odd to be bossed around by Simon, and he knew that the scrawny detective knew it as well. “You’re-”

“Oh, look! We’re here!” Simon suddenly stood up, causing the gondola to rock so heavily with his quick movement that his partner flailed and grabbed onto the railing so as not to fall over. Despite living on Water 7 for so long, he wasn’t quite used to flimsiness of some gondolas, as his previous job took him on larger vessels that were far more stable, and a lot of his work was done in the office or on land at the port.

Grumbling beneath his breath, Miguel knew not to argue about Simon’s point. It was easy to see why he was pushing for PipsiCo’s innocence rather than a corrupt company, and, truth be told, he didn’t want to crush Annika’s perception of them either… but being realistic was always better than Simon’s nauseating optimism, in his opinion.

“Please stop rocking the boat before you make me throw up…” he muttered, and gestured for Annika to step onto land first, then followed after. Simon was off the gondola last, gave a kind smile to the person steering the bull, and then turned to face the alleyway.

“Alright… let’s get to it!” With a determined nod, Simon made his way through the shabby streets to get to the relatively abandoned retail store. The large sign with the PipsiCo logo was still hanging, but had clearly been collecting dust for quite a while. The building itself was clearly not in frequent use and the windows were dusty, the shutters pulled down to conceal the inner workings of the shop. Oddly enough, however, the padlock on the shutters seemed to have been left open, which was made clear when Miguel crouched down to inspect it, gave it a tug, and it came right off in his hand.

---

Simon: #d2ce2f

Miguel: #ffdfb2 

[Kami-Gaz]

Annika

---

The boys were having their argument in the Gondola, and Annika heard every word of it. As much as it probably pained Miguel to admit it, he knew she was most likely right. Though hearing the elbow make contact and Miguel sharply cut off as Simon asserted himself brought a small smile to her face. She had known the weed of a man for a few months now and this was a big moment for him, while he didn’t need to, his interjection and shut down of the more assertive Miguel spoke volumes of how much he cared for her.

“We’re here!” Simon called as he stood up made their small vessel wobble like crazy. In response to this Annika held on for dear life while chuckling to herself, if she were to fall in the boys would have to jump in to save her. Being a devil fruit eater was amazing but it had some real big downsides when you lived in a world that was predominantly covered in water. When Miguel offered for the lady to go first she shot him a frozen look that radiated fear and hate.

In a quick motion she jumped up with all her might and landed with a nice roll on the land. The gondola rocked even more for a moment as she stood up and let out a calming sigh. Once the others had joined them she made her way towards the alleyway.

“Right,” she spoke before pulling her mask up and concealing her identity. "I’ll enter from the roof, you two be more conventional. If there’s trouble just shout for me." Annika spoke, nodding to the two in confidence. She was sure their abilities were more than enough to deal with goons… calming Mittens down was going to be another trial all together.

Her hand was raised as a hook formed in her palm. With a soft grunt of exertion, she fired it up and caught a lip that was secure. In a moment she started to reel it in, and it lifted her off of the ground at quite the speed. Her strength training had paid off as she was on the roof in seconds. The strength of her ascent was enough to propel her over the ledge in a clean practiced motion. There was a flash of her blue hair and she was gone to investigate the skylights, which were cracked open.

---

Post: 10
Annika: acd1fc
Mrs Andry Litnovo: a6a6a6
Fonzie: ce5a3d

[Bobbie]

“Isn’t it cool how fast she learnt to do that?” Simon asked with a proud smile, looking up as his friend disappeared out of sight shortly after. After making sure his sunglasses were on properly, his hands were placed on his hips and for a moment, it looked like he might shed a tear.

“When you’re finished with whatever this is, we can go back to being detectives.” Miguel had lost all patience and stood up as he threw the detached padlock at Simon.

Flinching at the assault, Simon frowned at Miguel. “Well alright, you don’t need to be so hostile about it… and it wouldn’t kill you to throw in a kind word every now and then, you know?” The lecture came as the lead private eye on this investigation walked past his subordinate to the shutter that was open.

“Strange… there’s no padlock on this.”

“I just threw it at you!”

“Miguel, you can’t just-”

“I swear, if you tell me I can’t just break open a locked entryway while we are here being detectives to shut down a massive and corrupt organisation, I’m leaving!”

Simon fell silent and rubbed the back of his neck as he chewed his lip. “You don’t know what I was going to say…” he muttered in a small voice. “Anyway, are you ready? It’s about time we stop fooling around and do some actual detective work, don’t you think?”

Miguel was furious, having to close his eyes and pinch the bridge of his nose in meditation as he let out a long sigh.

“You’re unbelievable. Anyway, we’d better circle round the building first and look for other entrances and exits.”

Whether everybody cared to credit him for it or not, Miguel made a solid detective. He picked up on details that were easy to miss and had the street-smarts to allow him to get around difficult situations or avoid them altogether. Unfortunately, however, his advice went unheard, as Simon grabbed the shutter and pulled it up as if he hadn’t said anything at all.

The metal shutter creaked at first, getting jammed in something. With a harder pull and a hard lurch, the mechanisms soon started working and the gear system that allowed the shutter to roll up and down began to turn. While the shutter went up, it made the most horrendous sound of loose nuts and bolts passing through an old mill, until the shutter was up all the way and hit the top edge of the door frame with a loud bang.

Standing right in the middle of the new opening were Miguel, his eyes once more wide open as the man was ready to defend himself against whatever was inside, and Simon, whose teeth were the only thing visible in his silhouette, shining like a beacon within a wide smile, his hands on his hips.

---

Simon: #d2ce2f

Miguel: #ffdfb2 

[Kami-Gaz]

Annika

---

Annika had landed on the roof of the building on one knee, her other leg stretched out to the side and a fist planted onto the stone below. It was her patented superhero landing, something that she designed to flare out the costumes for Pipsi-man during the theatrical performances that were done. Being one of the lead costume designers on some of the previous works she had to find a cool looking way to make the capes or longer coats flutter with little to no wind. It was, however, hell on the knees!

With a soft sigh she stood up and started a soft jog over to the first set of skylights and carefully peered over. There was nothing there except a messy floor, this one was closed but just a few steps away that was open. With a confident smirk on her tired face she donned her facemask and formed a hook on the other hand. She then wretched the window open as far as it could go and secured her hook on the lip.

She could hear the detectives softly bickering from the ground floor outside, so this was going to be ahead of them to take care of any possible dangers they could face. Shaking her head softly she descended into the building, as her feet touched the floor, she let the hook disappear and felt a twinge of pain as it went. Forcing the hooks to dissipate whilst stretched out so much felt like trimming a nail too close to the bed.

It was dark, but darkness she was used too as she often operated at night in some of the shadier areas of the city. She moved away from the light and began inspecting the mess that was on the floor. It should be clean, the place was a storage facility mainly, there was no bottling going on here… She picked up a slip of paper before realising it was damp in a slightly viscous liquid.

Then the boys opened the door and the glinting light off of Simon’s teeth made the Vigilante jump, forming a hook in the free hand and flinging it toward the pair in a heartbeat. Then her eyes recognised the pair of silhouettes, and she stopped it, making it reel back in. The speed and power of this action caused her to spin on the spot from the recoil. ”You two really know how to make a girl jump!”

---

Post: 11
Annika: acd1fc
Mrs Andry Litnovo: a6a6a6
Fonzie: ce5a3d

[Bobbie]

Simon didn’t flinch as Annika initially made a move to attack them, but simply kept up his smile that only appeared to shine brighter with the pride he felt in the woman Annika had become. Miguel, on the other hand, was less impressed and in his perpetual state of annoyance. Shaking his head, he gently nudged Simon and urged him to follow as he approached Annika.

“You made it in here very quickly, I wasn’t expecting you to be inside here before us… We ran into a slight dilemma with the lock. We weren’t sure-” Although he was wearing sunglasses in such a dark environment, Simon could still see Miguel glaring at him. Perhaps the ability to feel it was more accurate.

Clearing his throat, Simon didn’t continue that thought. “Anyway, what have you go there?” he asked, gesturing toward the wet slip of paper that looked glossy with whatever liquid coated the paper. “That’s not blood, is it? May I?” In a concerned tone, he reached out to carefully take the paper from her that had been soaked through and had gone soft. Handling it delicately, he turned it toward the opening to get some moonlight so he could see it better.

“Try take your sunglasses off, it might help…” Miguel advised in a monotone that was not the least bit amused.

Humming thoughtfully, Simon raised his sunglasses onto his forehead with his clean hand that hadn’t yet touched the paper, but refused to take them off, as they were far too precious and expensive to risk losing them.

“It’s a handwritten receipt,” turning the paper over, he scanned it all over for any kind of information that would reveal more information about the seller or buyer.

“Simon, you should stop touching it, that is obviously blood.” Miguel sounded more like a protective older brother now than a frustrated co-worker.

“Look.” Less concerned with the sludge that coated said receipt and ignoring Miguel's warning, or perhaps refusing to believe something as morbid as what his colleague was suggesting, he pointed at some text that was scribbled on the paper, but the ink was smudged and difficult to make out. Trying to wipe some of the liquid off with his thumb only caused it to smear even more, however, so he stopped. “I think it's an address. Do you think it could be of the buyer?” He glanced at Annika to make sure she was following, then at Miguel, moving the paper toward him so he could see.

“Well don’t get it on me!” With cat-like reflexes, Miguel moved away from his partner to avoid getting his suit dirty, while Simon continued.

“I wonder why it would be left behind with incriminating details written on it.”

"Shouldn't we be asking why it's covered in what looks a lot like blood?”

---

Simon: #d2ce2f

Miguel: #ffdfb2 

[Kami-Gaz]

Annika

---

Annika watched as the pair looked over the paper she had found and nodded as they deduced more details. Despite their butting heads and different styles, they were a good pair of detectives that only brought the best out in each other. It made the tired vigilante smile as she took a step back to start examining the floor some more to see if more details could be gleamed.

“It could be a code; it would be too easy if they actually left a receipt with an address on it.” She spoke, her ice-cold eyes scanning the pattern of loose tiger fur and scratch marks that were on the floor. “But looking at the chaos it looks like Mittens woke up from her nap just as they sold her.” Anarchy Blue voiced as she kneeled down to examine some of the large scratch marks.

Now her eyes had adjusted to the dim light properly she could see exactly what had happened. The scuffs on the floor on the loading bay where Simon and Miguel had entered to show the pallet that they had brought the tiger in on. The claw marks, tufts of fur and blood from where the tiger woke up in a strange place and attacked… The Tranquilizer round that was discarded after it had been shot into the tiger to knock it out again.

“I say we follow it.” She said, now looking up with the spent dart in hand. Her cold, tired eyes locking on to Simon. They sparkled in the dim light as if to tell him this was his job, he should take the lead and decide on what they do next. Annika after all was just lending them a hand.

---

Post: 12
Annika: acd1fc
Mrs Andry Litnovo: a6a6a6
Fonzie: ce5a3d

[Bobbie]

Simon looked at the paper again, and then watched Annika, waiting for her theory on what happened. “Is that a tranquiliser round?” He asked, nodding his head in the direction of the empty round on the floor by her feet.

As his eyes followed the different pieces of evidence, the man pivoted to examine his surroundings once more, his train of thought following a similar pattern to Annika's as his gaze moved from the scrapes on the floor from the pallet, the claw marks and fur, the splatter patterns of the blood, and then the tranquiliser once more. "Looks like Mittens wasn't particularly fond of her new accommodation..."

Seeing the large scratch marks, Miguel grew silent. He couldn’t believe that Simon was actually going to be right about this - it actually was a tiger… Mittens was an actual tiger.

“Yeah!” Simon nodded in agreement as Annika suggested following it, his hands on his hips as he looked around in some kind of show of surveying the environment and considering their options, but in reality, the smiling man just looked lost. “Good idea. Let’s follow it.”

With a sigh, his sidekick shook his head and walked past Simon, patting his shoulder encouragingly as if to say he’ll be calling the shots someday, but today it was clearly not him.

Somewhat deflated, he watched Miguel pass him, then turned to look at Annika again, adjusting his sunglasses as his smile returned. It didn’t matter to Simon who was in charge - what mattered was that Mittens was found and returned to her owner. What also mattered was the fun of the chase… good old detective work, and that, in Simon’s eyes, was always best as a team effort!

“They lead this way!” Eager to move forward in the investigation and unravel more to the mystery, he hurried along to follow the drag marks of the pallet, the occasional tuft of fur left behind along the way as it was snagged on the ground.

---

Simon: #d2ce2f

Miguel: #ffdfb2 

[Kami-Gaz]

Annika

---

The tired young vigilante watched Simon come to his conclusion and nodded with his order of following the markings made by Mittens, the sturdy tiger who could shrug off some heavy sedation. As he found the path and announced which way, they were going Annika summon a hook and casually let it slide a few inches so there was some rope.

She casually started to spin the hook on the wire to her side, a mindless action that helped her focus in the quiet times. She had come to spin it so fast that it made a warbling whir sound beside her. It was something Anarchy Blue had come to ignore as if it were some form of comfort. The act was a sign of control, if she lost it at any moment, she could easily whack herself or any of her surroundings and cause some real damage.

The trio walked with the path of claw marks and tufts of fur as the beast in its cage was dragged across the floor into another room that had no windows and only one door. Which was strange as the trail vanished there. The walls were solid with only a place to hold lights and a few now decrepit pictures. The floor however was weird, it was not uniform with the rest of the warehouse, it had a strange seam in a large square in the centre and it was lazily covered with a blood-stained rug.

If it were to be raised there was no handle or method to raise this obvious trapdoor, but somewhere there maybe a lever or switch. Annika walked into the room behind the boys, at a safe distance away and absent mindedly looked around. “Secret tunnel?” She asked, looking down at the floor. “If it’s anything like Daddies then there should be a secret lever somewhere…” She spoke, her voice was full of poorly hidden fatigue and the mask hiding her eyes hid more than her identity… it hid the bags she carried.

---

Post: 13
Annika: acd1fc
Mrs Andry Litnovo: a6a6a6
Fonzie: ce5a3d

[Bobbie]

Simon and Miguel entered the dark room with no windows and their attention was instantly drawn to the unevenness of the floor. Miguel was the one who kicked the rug out of the way, doing so as if he were trying to kick dirt off his shoes that he wanted to keep clean.

Standing beside it, Simon frowned and crouched down to touch the obvious gap between the formerly hidden latch and he could feel a draught come from it.

“If we can’t find a lever, we might be able to find where it leads to. There’s a draught coming from it, which means it must eventually lead to an opening for airflow… not a bunker.”

“How do you propose we find its exit, genius? It could lead to literally anywhere, and we have no idea how long a tunnel could go on for.” Miguel quipped, but both men were instantly silenced and looked at Annika when she spoke. It was less about what she said and more about how she said it that attracted their attention. She was tired.

Simon felt guilty for her trying so hard to get him actively involved in a case, while Miguel simply admired her determination to keep pushing on. He was tempted to comment on their age difference yet he appeared to have greater stamina - he had his sport to thank for that - but decided now wouldn’t be the best time for that. The first one to break the awkward silence was Simon, of course, who spoke in a cheery and enthusiastic tone.

“Well then, let’s start looking! We need a light. Mickey, give me your lighter.” His hand was outstretched to his sidekick in demand.

“Don’t call me that, and why would I have a lighter? You know I don’t smoke.”

Again, silence followed as the two men stared at each other in darkness. With a scowl that seemed to thicken the air around him, Miguel dug into his pockets and took out a lighter, angrily pressing it into Simon’s palm seconds later. “Don’t break it.”

Then there was light! From a tiny flame from the handheld device creatively made with a flame dial, came a single tongue of flame that fed on the oxygen in the room to keep burning.

“Annika, what kind of lever should we be looking for? I don’t see anything like a bookshelf, so I suppose it should be out in the open…” Simon walked around the room along the walls, taking their only light source with him.

Miguel watched him, more concerned about the wellbeing of his little gadget than their actual mission for the time being.

---

Simon: #d2ce2f

Miguel: #ffdfb2 

[Kami-Gaz]

Annika

---

The vigilante noticed the silence that followed her comment, it was all to clear that she had slipped up just now. Her eyes closed for a bliss filled moment of darkness and respite for her tired eyes as the pair had their interaction about getting some light into this room, something to let the boys look for the lever. How many days had it been now since she had taken a proper night to sleep? Four? Five? All of these nights going out and dealing with criminals and corrupt cops, then going home to take a nap before going to family engagements to keep up appearances?

Her eyes snapped open with Simon’s question, it was a good ask, she was knowledgeable about super rich people and their secrets. “Uh… Look for the desk, it could be hidden in a bottom drawer or cupboard.” She spoke, slapping both of her cheeks quickly to give herself a jolt of energy to wake up. These people had seen her at her worst, hearing her call her father daddy was about on par with that.

If all failed there was always the brute force option could always work. She formed a hook in each hand and casually began to spin them from the rope that extended from her palms. It was a small passive tick she had picked up since eating her fruit and it helped her focus… especially when her mind was not all there.

“Hey… Weird question.” She said, passively watching the boys as they investigated the room. “How strong do you think I am?” She asked absently, the spinning of her hooks getting faster and faster as momentum was being put into them. The brute force idea getting more and more traction in her brain. Fonzie said she with a bit more time and training could rival him and his monstrous form…

The idea turned into action as she released her hooks, one into centre middle of each trapdoor as she jumped into the air and got the lines hooked on the ceiling fixture to help gain leverage. All it was going to take now was a great heave. “Did you find the lever?”

---

Post: 14
Annika: acd1fc
Mrs Andry Litnovo: a6a6a6
Fonzie: ce5a3d

[Bobbie]

Following her instruction, Simon looked for a desk or any piece of furniture in the room that had drawers or hidden compartments to contain a switch or lever somewhere within. Furniture was found, usually with a thud, and usually by the one of the two who did not have the light source, but it was no joy on the lever.

“Ugh, will you get that bloody light here before I shatter a knee cap? Why is the furniture so low, anyway?”

Simon went to the complaining Miguel to give him light and they both searched a low credenza’s drawers and underside.

With Annika’s question, Miguel just laughed.

Simon jabbed him with his elbow before speaking.

“Are you thinking of forcing the trapdoor open? You can probably do it, Annika, but what if it’s trapped? If it’s important enough to keep it hidden, then-”

Miguel interrupted, “No need, I found the switch!”

There was a click as Miguel flicked the switch, and the sound of gears turning filled the room, yet the hatch remained closed. The turning gears turned to grinding, and that turned to rumbling as the walls began to shake.

Suddenly, a pendulum axe that reflected the single flame from the lighter dropped from the ceiling just above the two men.

One of them screamed - Simon - and they both scrambled on top of each other as they climbed over the credenza and fell to the floor on the other side, half of Simon’s tie slowly floating downwards in the air on top of them.

“I think the switch was trapped…” Simon whispered as the metal blade continued to swing over the now shattered furniture.

“You don’t say!”

They both floundered to their feet, gripping onto each other as if each one of them was ready to throw the other in front of them as a shield, or perhaps desperately clutching on for dear life, as there was another rumbling sound.

“Break it, break it, break it!"
"Annika, break the bloody thing open!”

---

Simon: #d2ce2f

Miguel: #ffdfb2 

[Kami-Gaz]

Annika

---

So much happened in such a short time! Simon flicked the switch, which had led the superhero to pause in her attempt to brute force open the trapdoor. Only for a gigantic pendulum axe to swing down, the sound of it slicing the air as it passed by below going between the lines of her hooks. Now that was a cruel trap, the way the sounds played made it feel like the trap door was going to open, that would make people cluster nearby… just for the axe to get them.

“I got it!” Annika called as she watched the axe swing below again and with a heave, she let her lines slack and she fell. Now there was some momentum she stopped creating new line and pulled so her hooks would be pulled upward towards the ceiling. This in turn would rip the heavy wooden trapdoor up, breaking the locking mechanism as each door was pulled up. The axe had begun to swing back and it was going to hit Annika as she made contact with the floor. In a flash of movement, she let the hooks and line vanish and the doors fell backwards just intime to clap closed against the head of the axe and stopping its momentum.

“Okay… I think we are all good.” She spoke softly, standing tall and composing herself after her life saving feat. With a flick she pushed some hair back over her shoulder and in to a more natural look as she turned to look at the boys who had coward on the floor.

Then the pendulum axe fell free from its housing in the ceiling and toppled down the trapdoor and made numerous bangs and loud crashing sounds before coming to rest, kicking up a plume of dust that covered the trio and making Annika frown. “FRICK! That was meant to look cool!”

---

Post: 16
Annika: acd1fc
Mrs Andry Litnovo: a6a6a6
Fonzie: ce5a3d