Sponge Noir

Chapter 6 - Sunday

I tried to sleep in and start my solo shift later but I woke up before my alarm in a panic from my reoccurring nightmare. Since my heart was racing and I was filled with unsettling energy, I decided to walk to the Krusty Krab early while contemplating how I could improve my sleep. It was raining so I grabbed my umbrella but it wasn't a downpour. The tapping of rain on my umbrella relaxed my beating heart. I got to the Krusty Krab at roughly the same time as starting a typical shift bright and early in the morning. I stumbled across another note as I unlocked the glass double doors. It read, 'If you touch Rex, I will boil you in hot oil. I will rip out your heart and serve it to your mother, Mrs. SquarePants, on a platter for dinner' [40]. This note struck a nerve. Not because it was more vulgar and more threatening but because it involved my deceased mother. I don't like to bring it up but my mom was an unfortunate casualty of a drive by shooting in downtown Bikini Bottom. I wasn't a cop yet but I was in the process of becoming one and that furthered my motivation. My old man was extra proud on my first day serving justice but didn't want to lose me to crooks as well. I will never forget his advice: 'Keep one in the chamber and the safety off when equipped'. I've stayed true to my dad's words to this day and it has saved my life at least once when I needed to kill an assailant who caught me by surprise. Come to think of it, the shootout that killed my mother likely involved Mrs. Puff's gang getting rid of outsiders working the corners.

I disabled the burglar alarm and walked inside. I called the Chief while putting the umbrella in my office. When he picked up I immediately said, "Hey Chief, I received another note and this time it was a death threat. The good news is it looks like Mrs. Puff wasn't informed which will give Nancy and Tony the upper hand when busting her. The bad news is Rex's gang must know that we're coming which is gonna make our job much harder. Chief, I'm not calling on just SOME squads. I need you to round up every squad from every police station in Bikini Bottom. As for the Rock Bottom squads, I'll call them and..." I was cut off by an air raid siren.

I could hear the Chief sigh over the phone and then say, "Furk. Do you hear that Joe?".

"Oh I hear that Chief. We've never had two Alaskan Bull Worm attacks in the same month [67]. Never mind just over a week apart".

"Listen Joe I'm gonna do what you said and round up all the squads in Bikini Bottom to help you bust Rex when the time is right. But you gotta do what I say. Obviously, we have to deal with this first but once we get everyone off the streets and safely in their homes, you are to follow your God damn orders and seek shelter in the central station with the others. I don't want this to end up like the last time where you risked your FURKING life on the front lines with the military".

"The military needs our help. They suffer too many casualties from each attack. We know how to fire guns just as well as those jarheads".

"You're my best detective and I can't afford to lose you nor any cop in that matter. Plus nothing has made it past our defense system and, for your information, zero casualties were reported last time".

"Maybe it's because I was there backing them up", I said half-jokingly half seriously.

"No smart ass. It's because the air strike you witnessed was a new addition to our defense system which used to rely on just tanks and a rocket launcher team. Either way, the basic handgun you fire is useless".

"You're forgetting that the system includes a firing squad of infantry who fire bullets similar to mine and every bullet counts when bringing down a worm".

"Why don't you be a good officer and listen to your orders like the rest of 'em. This shit is far too dangerous for an officer with no military training".