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

Chapter 6: Savage Seized

"If you're wondering, guys, yes, I took the bus," Jack said as he joined the other animals on one of the benches at Forest Hills Marina, a dossier in hand.

"No wonder it took you so long to get here," Nick commented. "You were moving about as slow as that tugboat out there in the Sound," pointing to a large, tugboat in the waters beyond the Marina, chugging along lazily like it was floating in a sea of molasses.

"Back on subject," Jack said, "Bogo and I combed through dozens of files on the ZPD's database. What we found took this case and spun it in a new direction."

"Please elaborate, good sir," Nick said in a mock British accent.

Jack stood up in front of the animals, handing Judy the dossier. She quickly and eagerly opened the folder and was immediately confronted with a dozen and a half legal files and confidential photos.

"The Krakens first started showing up in the late '70s," Jack began. "They kept themselves low-profile as they hit the usual suspects all over the Free Lands: you know, cargo ships with reefers full of food, military transports carrying guns and ammunition, and so forth. They got everything they needed to pull off a long-term pirating operation. At first, no one really knew who they were, but, as you've seen, they kept on leaving calling cards to scare away the victims. They also seem to have liked stealing pleasure cruisers and boats, especially from Capital City and Zootopia. But they've always been an independent group—no collaborations whatsoever. Until now, that is."

"What do you mean?" Nick asked. "Since you ended your sentence with that really intense voice."

Jack hadn't realized he'd dropped his voice lower than usual. But then, it wasn't really relevant.

"Over the past year or so," Jack went on, "several of the Krakens' boats were spotted off the coast of Kleinwald, apparently waiting for passing freighters. Seems like a normal target for them, right?"

The others nodded.

"Well, our many, many sources at the AIA have told us that they weren't there on a job hunt. That freighter was property of Polaris Shipping, a subsidiary of StrypeCorp, which, as you probably know, is the company owned by Regis Strype out of Capital City."

Nick's eyes suddenly lit up with recognition.

"I know StrypeCorp," he said. "I thought that that conglomerate finally ran out of companies to buy out. And, he's been in the news so much lately, I bet he hasn't had time to find any more businesses to take over anyway."

"Why has he been in the news?" Judy asked.

"He's going to 'change the world with the power of Strype engineering'," Nick replied. "Or, at least, that's what he says in his commercials."

"Has he said anything about his hostile takeovers?" Jack asked. "Or his intimidation of small companies he sees as a threat?"

Nick blinked, and for a second, no one said anything.

"He would naturally leave that kind of stuff out of it," Nick said.

"Strype's been accused of many things," Jack explained, "a lot of which have been found to be true in the eyes of the state. Extortion, intimidation, embezzling—mostly smaller stuff. But reports of other crimes far more serious have been trickling through the grapevine. Corporate espionage is one of them."