Prologue

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Detective Amelia Watson pursed her lips. Cold sweat formed on her brow and time seemed to slow down around her. It was already bad enough that the Queenpin of the Shrimps herself, Gawr Gura, was ordering her and Kiara to do something questionable and strange. However, what really ground her gears was the fact that she had to keep her mouth shut.

Must… monologue…

"I'm waiting, Amelon." Gura smirked, reminding the disguised detective of her ordeal, "Your feet. Show em' to me."

Hovering near the limits of her Noir-obsessed psychosis, Ame followed Gura's orders. She untied her shoes and slipped them off. Kiara, noticeably as nervous as Ame, followed her lead and did the same.

Gawr Gura watched the two ladies closely and her face grew more and more flushed. The Queenpin started huffing and puffing and breathing through her nose while 'Amelon' and 'Erika' peeled off their socks. Once they did, Gura craned her head back - satisfied.

All of a sudden, Gura burst out into laughter.

"I didn't think you'd actually do it! Goodness me!" The Queenpin guffawed, losing it over her obedient new pawns.

Ame and Kiara, on the other hand, felt like they lost a shred of dignity that they would never ever see again. Defeated, the two disguised detectives tried to put their socks and shoes back on - but Gura stopped them.

"Hold on, hold on!" Gura halted, "Since we're already here, I might as well take a look at your feet for real." She pointed to some chairs by her desk, "Sit down and let me see em!"

Gura's shark's tail was wagging happily behind her while she spoke. Ame and Kiara were too deep in their investigation now to refuse. They followed their orders yet again.

The shark-girl squatted down and took a long hard look at Ame's and Kiara's feet.

"My folks made shoes in Atlantis." Gura explained while she studied their feet.

"Concrete shoes?" Ame tested.

"I can make concrete shoes your size, Amelon. One size fits all!" Gura grinned smugly, "But no, we made real shoes." The shark-girl paused and spoke reminiscently, "Mamashark and Papashark told me you can tell a lot about someone from their feet."

Kiara's curiosity peaked and she very nearly spoke in English. Gura chuckled.

"You think I'm crazy, huh?" Gura snickered, "Well - tell you what. I know that you, Amelon, were in the Army and Miss Erika was in the Navy during the war!"

Ame's and Kiara's faces went pale.

How the hell did this foot-obsessed shark figure that out!? And I didn't know Kiara fought in the war too.

Ame stole a glance at Kiara. The rookie frowned and confirmed Gura's guess with a nod.

"Did I get it right?" Gura asked confidently.

"Right on the mark." Ame finally revealed, "Erika and I fought in Pekoland till 45'…but how did you guess?"

"Mamashark and Papashark made shoes for the military. Army and Navy used specific kinds." Gura explained, "But that's not the only reason why I can tell you two served overseas." She folded her arms and tested again, "What other things give it away?"

Ame rubbed her chin while Kiara looked on. The senior detective then faced Gura and answered the test.

"Army folks marching on the ground use different muscles on their feet versus what Navy folks would try to keep their balance on the boats."

"Hehe, correct." Gura nodded, "I was right about you, Amelon. You're just as smart as I thought!"

Hmm… this is bad. Gawr Gura claims to be dumb, but she's surprisingly sharp about some things. Not the most useful things, of course. Still, I can't underestimate this shorty for even a moment. She's craftier than she says she is.

"Alrighty, gals" Gura started. She sat down behind her desk and spoke, "Put on your shoes again. As pretty as your feet are, we've got work to do."

Ame and Kiara obliged and faced Gura across the desk.

"You kids have heard of the shootout at the Nephilim club, yeah?" Gura asked.

Ame nodded. The mention of the shootout stoked Ame's pent-up urge to monologue again, but she clung on to whatever willpower she had left. That was Gura's sign to continue her spiel.

"Well, ever since that shooting, City PD's been tightening their grip around Central." Gura grumbled menacingly, "That slimy detective Kronii Ouro's been making it tough for my boys and girls to go into Central. They've been giving some of our suppliers a hard time too - a real shakedown!"

Well, Detective Ouro does tend to shake things up in her investigations. A simple parking ticket case can end up with a city-wide car chase when she's on the case. That's why all her investigations are on the news. The flashier, the better!

That damn snake.

"Then, there's that darn loudmouthed duck-faced officer who's flagged down a lot of my supply trucks going through Central too!" Gura waved her arms, clearly unhappy with her situation.

Duck-face? Is she talking about Officer Oozora? Well - she is one of City PD's most gung-ho Uniforms.

Either way, Gura opened the drawer of her desk. She then brought out a suspicious paper-wrapped package.

"Think of this as a trial run. Or your initiation." Gura explained with a grin, "Things are gonna start changing around this City, so I need to see who I can trust." She passed the package over to Ame and Kiara and gave them their instructions, "I want you to deliver this to our supplier - the Mother Nature Cafe - on Green Park Crescent. Our supplier there will give you something in return. Some of her specialized Grade-A product !"

Product, huh? This might be what we need to frame Gura and get her arrested. Then, there's this package that we've got to deliver.

Ame stole a glance of Kiara and she agreed with a nod.

The new kid seems to think so too.

Ame took the package and reassured, "We'll get this to the Mother Nature Cafe right away."

"Good." Gura grinned. Her tail wagged happily behind her for a moment. But then, she paused and gave the two the coldest death glare that Ame and Kiara had ever seen, "And don't even think about opening that package - or bringing it to the cops. Cause I'll know. I have my ways."

The disguised detectives quaked in their boots. Terrified, they took the package and sheepishly walked out of the Lemon Shark Fruit Cannery. As soon as they were out of earshot from the Shrimps gang members, they quickened their pace to their convertible parked in the corner of Ocean Street.

Ame and Kiara hopped back into their car and exhaled all of the air that they had been holding in.

"Holy cow!" Kiara spoke, gasping for air, "That Gura girl is intense!"

"Yeah… and she's got us wrapped up around her thick little tail." Ame grumbled.

"But we're one step closer to getting one of the Queenpins' trust!" Kiara happily reminded her, "That's a lot of progress for one day, yeah?"

"I guess so." Ame heaved a sigh. She unbuttoned the collar of her shirt and sank back into the driver's seat.

The senior detective looked at the afternoon sun through her shades and felt the sharp urge to monologue yet again. However, Kiara's presence made her self-conscious yet again.

This time, Kiara smiled at Ame and reassured her, "Don't worry, senpai . We're safe now. You can monologue as much as you want!"

She knew I was struggling all this time!?

Ame's cheeks flushed red. She turned away from her overeager partner's face and grumbled, "F-fine… if you don't mind me talking to myself for a little bit."

"I don't mind at all." Kiara reassured, "I actually quite like your monologues, hehe~!"

"Finally, someone in City PD who appreciates real art." Ame tipped her hat to Kiara, "Well, ready your ears, navy girl. I'm gonna be monologuing all the way back to Central!"

"Roger that, senpai !" Kiara beamed, giving her a sharp naval salute.

With that, Ame started the car and began the internal monologue that she had been suppressing all that time. Kiara, on the other hand, listened intently and held Gura's secret package firmly in her arms.

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The new kid and I drove away from Ocean Street, leaving the fruity aroma of the Lemon Shark Fruit Cannery behind us. However, that aroma never truly went away. The package that the Queenpin of the Shrimps gave us still carries the faint trace of fruits and seafood.

We managed to survive and not get turned into seafood. We even learned something new about each other. I never saw Kiara as an ex-military type, but first impressions are deceptive and feet are apparently more eloquent than we think.

But what sort of sinister plot is waiting for us in the Mother Nature Cafe? How well did Gura know Officer Oozora? And how in the world would Gura find out if her package went into City PD's hands?

Is there a spy among us?

The noose gets tighter with every minute and the clock just keeps ticking on.

Merciless, just like this City we live in.

At the very least, with Kiara beside me, I don't have to face this harsh case - or this harsh city alone.

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"Feeling better, senpai ?" Kiara asked with a bright smile.

"Much better." Ame smiled back, "Now, let's go deliver that package!"

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Queenpins

Flat Footed

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To Be Continued