Zootopia: ZPD Mysteries: Case #4: The Curse of The Pirate's Eye

Chapter 2: On the Jealous Seas

Chief Bogo looked unusually nervous.

As Judy and Nick rode the elevator inside the ZPD precinct station, Judy took notice of the usually unflappable, tough, gruff police chief's strangely jittery actions.

It had been now about forty-five minutes since the huge grey battleship had appeared in the Zootopia Sound, and shortly after that, they had been called by Chief Bogo, urging them to return to the ZPD, amidst much apology, since it was technically their day off. All he had said was that the reason for this interruption was "a matter of state-level affairs."

Judy rocked back and forth on her feet, looking around the elevator. She and Nick had already popped to their apartments to change into their uniforms, and, though Nick looked a bit disheveled, Judy's Neoprene uniform rarely needed to be pressed.

Chief Bogo twitched and he ran his hooves through his grey-blue fur almost constantly, and buffing any wrinkles out of his own uniform that would be seen.

Judy knew that his nervousness could only mean one thing.

"We're heading to meet with Commissioner Blubbard, right, chief?" Judy asked, breaking the earsplitting silence in the elevator.

Chief Bogo nodded slightly, flinching at the mention of the large, loud commissioner.

"Yes, indeed, Officer Hopps," he said. "The Commissioner wants to see all three of us, knowing how we are so vital to the police force."

"Does this happen to relate to the battleship parked in the Sound?" Nick asked, straightening the cuff of his sleeve.

Bogo nodded.

"The SS Indivisible's presence isn't exactly a good thing," he explained. "It's a special kind of battleship, specifically designed to confront maritime threats--you know, hijackers, illegal shipping, and pirates--so it has all sorts of sonar, radar and other sensors aboard to help fight those kind of crooks. The only explanation for the Indivisible's presence in the Sound is that something shifty on the water is happening in town."

"Did you just use the word shifty, chief?" Nick asked, a little surprised.

"I have a teenage daughter, Wilde," he replied, "I'm not exactly ignorant of the lingo used by kids these days."

"Is there a reason you get so nervous around Commissioner Blubbard, sir?" Judy asked, thinking of her original observations.

Bogo shifted from one foot to the other uncomfortably.

"Well," he explained, "there are two reasons, I suppose. First, that Commissioner Blubbard only summons me up to his chambers for events that are important, such as benefit galas or meetings with Mayor Lionheart. I have to look my best."

"Oh," Judy said, beginning to see why Bogo always seemed jumpy. "What's the second reason?"

"Second," Bogo said, leaning over to whisper down to the other, smaller animals, "he's the only one on the force that can fire me."

Judy chuckled, knowing of the large commissioner's loud, edgy personality. It'd be enough to unnerve anyone.

As the doors slid open, Judy got a firsthand taste of Commissioner Blubbard's edgy personality.

"...I told you, Murray," he bellowed, "I don't need to hear the prisoner's whining. He's already stolen two cameras to put together his Vines. Keep those cameras away from him."