Missing in Venice
Detective Beatrice 'Tris' Prior walks out of a restaurant after having lunch with her colleague, Lieutenant Tobias 'Four' Eaton. She bids him farewell and walks to the edge of the canal to catch a gondola back to the VDA or Venice Detective Agency. Once she arrives there, however, she is met with an extraordinary sight. A 60-foot long ocean liner that appears to be trying to back out of the canal. But even with her mighty engines in reverse, the ocean liner is pulled further and further into the canal, toppling buildings and destroying unoccupied gondolas in the process. It looks as though some transparent force is dragging the ocean liner thorough the canal, despite its struggles. Then, all of the sudden, it vanishes into thin air.
Everyone around Tris was looking around, searching for a boat that is nowhere to be found. Tris was just staring ahead, shocked. Anything that can drag a 60-foot ocean liner through a canal that was too small for it and then suddenly make it vanish is a force to be reckoned with. And it couldn't be natural or human, I need to investigate. Tris thinks to herself. And I know just where to start the investigation, the docks.
-la de da, I'm just a little time skip-
"So, Mr. Courtney, what was on that ship? And why was that ocean liner anywhere near Venice in the first place?" Tris asks the man in charge of everything going in and out of Venice through the docks. He knows what time a ship is scheduled to arrive, whether or not it will be late, what's on it, its name, and when it's supposed to leave the docks.
"This particular ocean liner, the S.S. Vision, was supposed to arrive at the docks at 1:00 in the afternoon. Its cargo was silver, gold, coal, copper, and ivory, all of which is very valuable. Though I can't tell you how it disappeared, I suggest you use infrared or ultraviolet cameras to see if you can't find the source of this mechanical anomaly." He replies.
"Thanks Jai, you've been a real help. I'd better get back to the office so I can relay this information to them, not to mention the situation that required this info in the first place." Tris tells him. She runs to the nearest canal to catch a gondola to the office. I have a lot to talk about. She thinks as the gondola races toward the VDA.
-know the power of the time skip-
Tris arrives at the VDA and walks inside to find Private Paige Hoover in deep conversation with Director Autumn Hardin and Agent Audrey Thacker. She watches them for a moment before they realize that she was back at the office.
"Tris! Thank God you're back! We've been getting calls nonstop about a vanishing 60-foot ocean liner. Our reception department is calling for a pay raise because they say they're being overworked." Autumn tells her.
"And half the callers swear they saw you at the scene of the crime." Paige adds.
"So what happened?" Audrey asks.
Tris tells them the entire story of what she witnessed including her visit to the docks and her lunch with Tobias. When she finishes her tale, Paige opens her mouth to speak when she is interrupted by Christina, "Tris and Four had lunch together? O.M.G. You need to tell me all about it Tris!" she squeals. Leave it to Christina to have her priorities straight. Tris thinks to herself, smiling.
"Tris, what are we supposed to do?" Paige asks looking slightly annoyed at being interrupted.
"Paige, I want you to find Private Carns, Lieutenant Riley, and Agent Chase and meet me at my office. Autumn, you get, Sargent Guyer and Lieutenant Ruffra, go grab our files on the people who have access to the technology to pull this off and meet me in my office. Audrey, you go find Agent Krank, Private Nihaus, Nicholas, and Lieutenant Preston and meet the rest of us in my office. Any questions, comments, or complaints?" Tris tells them. Though Paige is smiling, Autumn staring at Audrey, and Audrey looking as though she just tasted something sour, no one replies.
"Excellent. I'll see you all in my office. We have much to investigate."