Chapter Text
“H-hey! Give ‘em back!”
A blonde kid wearing a red t-shirt and shorts frantically tried to grab a sketchbook back from some older kids, who were using their height against him.
“Ha! Look at these lame drawings!” One laughed as he tossed the sketchbook to the other kid.
“Please, give ‘em back!” The young kid pleaded.
“What are you gonna do about it- ACK!”
One of the bullies was hit in the face with what looked like a ball of mud. The two bullies spun around to see another young kid with a slingshot aimed right at them, loading another ball of mud into it. She wore a (currently muddy) hoodie and jeans, had messy brown hair, and blue and green mismatched eyes.
“Leave him alone, criminals!” she yelled, “Or face the muddy wrath of justice!”
She launched another mudball at the bully holding the sketchbook, causing him to drop it as he and his buddy fled.
“Dumb kid! You’re gonna pay for that!”
“Man, my mom’s gonna kill me for getting this shirt dirty…”
“Just shut up and run!”
The girl gave a smug grin towards the fleeing bullies before trotting up to the kid who had picked up and dusted off his sketchbook.
“Thanks, pal! I owe ya one!” He grinned brightly.
“All in a day's work,” The girl smiled proudly, “Why were they trying to steal your book?”
“They were just making fun of my drawings,” he shrugged, opening his book to reveal pages of sketches and comic panels.
“Whoa! They look so cool!” The girl’s eyes lit up at the drawings.
“Really? Gee, thanks!” The boy smiled, “I wanna be a comic book artist when I grow up, and write about cool adventures!”
“Awesome!” The girl replied as she wiped her muddy hand on her hoodie before holding it out to the boy, “I’m Artemis. And I’m gonna be a special agent when I’m older!”
“Cool! I’m Buddy,” Buddy replied, happily shaking Artemis’ hand, “Wanna be pals?”
“Sure!” Artemis beamed, “I can keep you and your comics safe from bad guys like those bullies.”
“And I can draw you beating them up!” Buddy laughed.
“Deal!”
10 Years Later…
Buddy took another bite of his pizza slice before going back to drawing in his sketchbook. He was wearing a red t-shirt over a white long-sleeved shirt, jeans, and red sneakers along with a red backwards cap. A green satchel was hanging from his shoulder, full of spare sketchbooks and art supplies.
Buddy was still starting out as an artist, helping out Artemis however he could. Artemis had become a local detective in their neighbourhood. They didn’t have their own office, but Chef Gino - the local pizzeria owner - let them use a table in his restaurant. As long as they bought something anyway.
“It’s gonna happen, Buddy!”
Buddy looked up to see Artemis enter the pizzeria. She was wearing a brown zip-up hoodie over a pink shirt, grey jeans, and pink sneakers, and her messy brown hair had pink highlights.
“Any day now, we’re gonna get that big case!” Artemis continued with a determined smile on her face.
“Yeah!” Buddy cheered as he stood up from his chair, “But what’s wrong with the cases we take now?”
“Nothing!” Artemis replied, “I just know we could do more. If I could just prove myself on one really big case, maybe I’d even make special agent one day.”
“Ooh, that would be so cool! I’m going to draw you as a special agent!” Buddy immediately sat back down and began to sketch a drawing of Artemis.
Artemis sat across from Buddy as the two excitedly chatted and daydreamed about being agents.
“Solving mysteries around the neighbourhood is great, but if I were a special agent, we could go anywhere!” Artemis continued, “Think of it!”
“Yeah! Now I’m drawing you as a special agent on the moon!” Buddy grinned as he began to draw a moon landscape behind his sketch of Artemis.
“That would be so sick!”
“Hey guys. What’s going on?”
Artemis looked up to see Travis - a recent high-school graduate - approaching them.
“Not much, Trav. Just waiting for the next big case.” Artemis replied before looking over at Buddy’s drawing, “Hah! That’s pretty good, Buddy!”
Buddy’s sketch was of Artemis wearing a shirt and tie, smart-looking trousers and shoes, and a long trench coat.
“Someday, my friend,” Artemis sighed, “Someday…”
“ARTEMIIIIIIIIIS!!”
Artemis and Buddy jumped as a familiar voice rang out, followed by frantic footsteps entering the pizzeria, “ARTEMIS!! HELLLLP!!”
Entering the restaurant was a young girl with black pigtails who wore a dungaree dress over a yellow t-shirt. The poor girl looked both panicked and on the verge of tears.
“What’s the matter, Poppy?” Artemis asked, immediately getting up to check on her.
“A mean man took my dog, and he won’t give him back!” Poppy cried.
“Omigosh!” Buddy exclaimed excitedly, “Pal! This is it! Our big case!”
“Well, I’m not sure that it’s quite the career-maker I was talking about,” Artemis replied. Then again, Buddy's intuition could be scarily accurate sometimes. Either way, there was no way she could turn down Poppy.
“Don’t worry, Poppy. We’ll take the case,” Artemis smiled, “Where’s your dog now?”
“He’s over in the park with that meanie man,” Poppy sniffled, “Please come as soon as you can.”
“Alright, Buddy, I’m heading over to the park.” Artemis turned to Buddy as Poppy hurried out of the restaurant.
“I’m here if you need me, pal!” Buddy replied with his signature salute.
“Let me know if I can help,” Travis added, “I’ll work for pizza!”
It wasn’t a long walk to the park. It was quite literally next to the pizzeria. Sometimes, Artemis and Buddy would get Gino’s pizza to go and have a picnic there. There was a forest towards the back that you could access through a tunnel, or through the trees if you’re brave enough.
Sure enough, Poppy was anxiously standing there while her dog - a black and white puppy named Dogwood - stood near a strange man. He had spiked, greying black hair and dark eyes with grey bags under them. He wore a red suit with a spiderweb pattern on his coat and a pair of black gloves. He was tapping his foot impatiently, like he’d rather be anywhere else but here.
“Alright, Poppy. So explain this dog situation to me,” Artemis asked as she approached the two sims.
“Well, I was minding my own business here pruning flowers…” Poppy began before pouting at the strange man, “...and then, when my back was turned, this bad man stole Dogwood!”
“Hmph! What nonsense,” The man huffed, “The name’s Morcubus, and the little girl is quite simply a sore loser.”
“Hello,” Artemis greeted politely, “I’m-”
“While she spins an interesting tale, the dog is mine!” Morcubus interrupted, not seeming to care much for Artemis and her formalities, “And his name isn’t Dogwood…it’s Killfang, dog-disciple of shadow and flame!”
Dogwood just sat there happily, wagging his tail with a dopey yet innocent expression on his face, completely oblivious as to what was going on.
“No! That name is sad and bad!” Poppy countered, “He’s my Dogwood! He’s always with me, and was with me right up until this bad man stole him!”
Dogwood began to plod over towards the wall near the pizzeria, but was cut off as Morcubus walked alongside him, “Ah, Killfang. See how he flocks to me? Obviously, he is mine! He has been mine since the dawn of time!”
“No, he’s not!!!” Poppy exclaimed.
“Well then, prove it, little girl!” Morcubus fired back.
‘What fifty-something-year-old argues with a 16-year-old girl…?’ Artemis thought to herself.
“Um…ok…well, I know Dogwood best…” Poppy stuttered, “...and he loves his pink squishy ball!”
“Can I see this ball you’re speaking about?” Artemis asked, “Perhaps I can…”
“...I lost it…” Poppy muttered sheepishly.
“Okay, you two. Let me get to the bottom of this,” Artemis spoke, writing down a few notes on her notepad, “I’ll determine who’s telling the truth here.”
‘Alright, let’s see if I can find this ball…’ Artemis thought to herself as she began to look around the bushes.
“Hmm…aha!” Artemis dug around in a bush and pulled out a pink ball. She walked up to Dogwood, who seemed to be sniffing about the wall.
“Here, boy. Do you like the bouncy ball?” Artemis asked, waving the ball about.
“Woof!” Dogwood barked excitedly, happily taking the ball from Artemis and squeaking it in his mouth.
“So you do like the ball. That’s one hint in Poppy’s favour,” Artemis muttered to herself, “But I’ll need more evidence to make a conclusion. Are there any prints around, I wonder…?”
Artemis pulled out her magnifying glass and noticed pawprints going from Poppy’s flowerstand towards Morcubus.
“Odd…” Artemis muttered, “The dog walked over to Morcubus willingly. Is Morcubus innocent? Wait a second…”
Artemis noticed a set of sim footprints leaving Poppy’s flowerstand heading towards the exit. She carefully followed them out of the park, noticing they went into the pizzeria.
“Are these…Poppy’s footprints? Did she have lunch at some point during all this? I wonder…”
Artemis entered the pizzeria and approached Gino, who was preparing a fresh batch of pizza dough.
“Ah, Artemis! What can I get for my favourite customer?” Gino asked.
“No pizza at the moment, Gino,” Artemis replied, “I was wondering if you’ve seen Poppy and her dog recently?”
“Poppy? Why yes! She came in here just recently to eat lunch.”
“I see. And did you see her dog with her?”
“Her dog? No, I didn’t see a dog with her.”
“Thanks, Gino,” Artemis replied before thinking to herself, ‘Poppy lied? Why? Is she covering for something?’
Artemis left the pizzeria and hurried back to the park, approaching Poppy, who was pacing back and forth by her cart.
“Hey, Poppy?” Artemis asked, “Earlier on you said that the dog was always with you. But Gino claims that you went to the pizzeria for lunch and that he didn’t see a dog with you.”
“Oooohh…” Poppy groaned, sheepish that she’d been caught, “Yes, it’s true… I left Dogwood by himself, but it was just for a moment! I promise! My big sister Violet said I’m too young to take care of a dog, and I didn’t want to disappoint her…that’s why I lied…”
“That’s okay, Poppy,” Artemis reassured, “But remember, I’m trying to help you. I need to know the truth.”
“Okay. Sorry, Artie…”
“Right…I spoke to Poppy…” Artemis mused, “Maybe I should ask Morcubus about ‘Killfang’.”
Artemis approached Morcubus, who…seemed to be practising an evil laugh?
“So…Morcubus,” Artemis asked, trying to ignore the clearly suspicious laughter from Morcubus, “What do you know about the dog’s habits?”
“First off, the dog is named Killfang.” Morcubus rolled his eyes, seemingly annoyed that Artemis had interrupted him, “Secondly, he loves destroying bones!”
“Is this what you, the owner, normally let him do?”
“Hahaha! Why, yes! My work provides me with many leftover bones to give my stalwart mutt!”
‘Do I wanna know what his job is…? I should see if I can find a bone to test this theory.’
Artemis glanced at Dogwood, who had seemed to lose interest in the ball and was back to sniffing the wall.
“Hey, boy. I have some questions for you…” Athena began.
“Yip?” Dogwood cocked his head to the side.
“Why are you freaking out over here? Is it because you love Morcubus?”
“Grr…yipyip!!!”
“Oh…? You don’t seem to like him. What is it then?”
“Yip yip yip!” Dogwood began drooling as he looked back over at the wall.
“Huh…something must be over there that you want…” Artemis muttered as she climbed over the wall, ending up behind the pizzeria. Sticking out of one of the dumpsters was a big bone.
“If a dog were to like any bone, it would be this one,” Artemis said to herself as she pulled out the bone. Her attention was then drawn to some crates by the back door of the pizzeria. Searching inside them, Artemis found a packet of jerky, which she put in her pocket.
“If I were a dog, I’d be itching to get at this, too. I wonder which one was Dogwood after.”
Artemis climbed back over the wall and approached Dogwood, holding out the bone, “Want a big ol’ bone, boy?”
“Grrrrrrrrrrr…” Dogwood growled, turning his head away from the bone before sniffing the air curiously. He trotted up to Artemis and went on his hind legs, trying to get at her pocket.
“Ohhh, so it was this you were after!” Artemis pulled out the jerky and gave Dogwood a piece, which he downed happily. And sure enough, once he finished munching on the jerky, Dogwood happily plodded back over to Poppy.
“Well, I think that says it all!” Artemis smiled, “You two? Come here, please.”
Poppy approached Artemis, looking worried about what the result would be. Meanwhile, Morcubus just looked smug.
“I can confidently say Dogwood definitely belongs to Poppy!” Artemis announced.
“Hooray! Come here, Dogwood! Here, boy!” Poppy cheered as Dogwood jumped into her arms.
“This is an outrage!” Morcubus exclaimed angrily, “I demand an explanation!”
“You told me that Dogwood loved chewing on bones,” Artemis explained, “But clearly he does not.”
“What?! Who doesn’t love chewing on bones?!”
“It was Poppy who identified Dogwood’s favourite toy: this pink ball,” Artemis continued as she handed Poppy Dogwood’s pink ball, which she happily used to play fetch with Dogwood.
“But that little girl lied about me taking the dog! He just walked up to me!” Morcubus argued.
“He was just hungry for the jerky over the wall,” Artemis shrugged as she watched Poppy happily skip off with Dogwood.
Morcubus angrily stomped up to Artemis, “Feel pretty clever, don’t you, detective? Well, don’t! You’ve made a very powerful enemy today.”
“It’s just a dog,” Artemis raised an eyebrow, confused as to why this strange man was making such a big deal about this.
“I don’t care about the dog! That was just entertainment. But you…you tried to make me look like a fool.”
“I didn’t do anything except find the truth,” Artemis replied as Morcubus went to storm off.
He paused by the exit and spun around to glare at the detective, “The ‘truth’ is you’ll rue the day you crossed…The Infernal Morcubus Blackfire!!”
With an evil laugh, Morcubus ran off.
“Yikes. What’s the deal with that guy?” Artemis muttered, “I better head back to Gino’s. Buddy will wanna hear about this one.”
As Artemis left, unbeknownst to her, a pair of fiery-coloured eyes with slit pupils watched her from the treeline before silently slinking off into the thicket.
As usual, Buddy was happily sketching at their usual table. A few feet away, a smartly dressed man with a stern expression and slicked back brown hair was finishing a slice of pizza.
“I’m back,” Artemis announced as she entered the restaurant.
“How’d it go, pal?” Buddy asked, standing up to greet his best friend.
“Good! Poppy got her dog back. But the other guy was weird. Acted like some sort of evil super villain or something.”
“Ooh, you gotta tell me what he looked like! I can use him as a comic book villain!”
“Well, you wouldn’t be far off your mark.”
Artemis and Buddy turned to see the well-dressed man approaching them.
“Very impressive, Artemis Sofos,” He smiled, “Most people wouldn’t stand up to Morcubus like that.”
“Who’s this Morcubus guy, anyway?” Artemis asked, “What’s the big deal?”
“He’s the CEO of MorcuCorp, which owns most of this city.” The man replied, “He’s one of the most powerful men in the world.”
“I was just helping a little girl get her dog back,” Artemis shrugged.
“That’s my pal!” Buddy grinned, giving Artemis a playful nudge, “Humble even when taking on a big bad evil guy!”
“Right, you’re a detective, aren’t you?” The man continued, “And a pretty good one, according to your application.”
Artemis was taken aback, “Wait, who are you? How do you know about my application to the Sim Protection Agency?”
The Sim Protection Agency - or S.P.A - are a large and powerful organisation of special agents who take on threats globally. They have HQs all over the world, with rumours saying they hold more power than the governments of the world. Only the best of the best pass the application stage.
The man just gave Artemis a knowing smirk in response to her question.
“You’re a special agent!” Artemis gasped in realisation, “You’re with the S.P.A!”
“Special Agent Walker. Pleased to meet you, Artemis.” Walker introduced himself, “I’m here to open a new branch of the S.P.A in this city.”
“Really?!” Artemis exclaimed excitedly, “Well, I’m happy to help in any way I can!”
“Well, that’s good news,” Walker smiled, “Since I’m approving your application. You are going to be this city’s special agent.”
“W-what?! Really? I got the job?!” Artemis’ job nearly hit the floor.
“Ha ha! I knew it!” Buddy cheered, giving his best friend a huge hug, “I told you this would be our big case, pal!!”
“Your intuition strikes again, Bud!” Artemis laughed.
“I’ll have to start you off as a junior agent,” Walker explained, “You’ll solve a few cases around the city while I observe. But I want to promote you fully to special agent as soon as you’re ready. The agency needs someone who is willing to take a stand against Morcubus.”
“Why? Is he stealing more dogs?” Buddy asked.
“To be honest, we’re not sure what he’s doing,” Walker replied, his voice becoming more serious, “He’s far too smart to get his own hands dirty, but he had associates all over the city. They’re looking for something; we just don’t know what. If Morcubus wants it that badly, though, it can’t be good.”
“Alright, sign me up!” Artemis nodded with a determined smile, “I’ll do everything I can.”
“I know you will, Agent Sofos,” Walker replied.
“So what should we do first?”
“For now, go get some rest. Come back here tomorrow and comb the city for new cases to work. And keep your eyes open for anything that might lead back to Morcubus.”
“Yessir. We won’t let you down.”
With an affirming nod, Walker paid Gino for his pizza and left without another word.
“Pal, you did it! You’re gonna be a special agent!” Buddy cheered.
“I know! I still can’t believe it…” Artemis replied in disbelief, “We should head home to rest up. If I can even get any sleep tonight after all this.”
“Right? I’m gonna be drawing so many sketches of your future missions!” Buddy replied as he and Artemis left the pizzeria, “Hey, which sounds cooler: you exploring a temple or fighting a sea monster?”
“Ooh, that’s a tough one…what about me fighting a sea monster IN a temple?”
“Aw yeah! That’s genius!”
The two friends headed towards the train station together, unaware of the mystery lying in wait for them…
To Be Continued…