NPIA Headquarters; an Undisclosed Location in Neopia Central
AGENT_MAGNOLIA THE RED AISHA sat lazily in her office, staring out the window.
The rain fell heavily outside, and that only dampened her mood. Pets of all
species in Neopia Central scurried through the rain bearing umbrellas with all
sorts of patterns and designs. That added some colour to the dull Neopian weather,
but not enough.
The day at the agency was just as dull. Since
the 'Faerie Queen Incident' (as Magnolia called it,) Magnolia didn't have a
single case for weeks. The fact that Neopia Central had been caught up in a
hurricane didn't make things any better. Everyone was affected by the dull weather.
Everyone except--
"Magnolia!" Sys-op shrieked, sending the daydreaming
Aisha into a panic.
"WHAT?" Magnolia cried. "Can't you see I'm thinking
here?"
"What about?" Sys-op inquired, grinning widely.
"You weren't doing ANYTHING, Mag."
"So? What did you want to tell me, Sys-op?"
"We have another case! Isn't that great?" Magnolia
was surprised at Sys-op's sudden enthusiasm in their occupation.
"Why is that so great?" Magnolia asked quizzically.
"Because!" Sys-op replied. "What with the weather
and all--it's been so boring lately. I think it'll be a good change in plans."
"Um... right." The door swung open. Chief, Natalie
and a yellow Peophin came inside Magnolia's office. "Oh, and there they are
now. What a surprise."
"Good morning, Magnolia," said Chief. "This
is our newest client, Ambassador Natasha Zarepheid." The Peophin waved politely.
"Oh... um... nice to meet you, Ambassador...
of... erm... where are you from, exactly?" Magnolia replied nervously.
"I'm glad you asked. I'm the Ambassador of Iman,
a small country south of Sakhmet," Natasha replied.
"Never heard of it before," Sys-op stated.
"Well, it's small, anyway," said Natasha. "You
see, Iman and Ardea, a country to the south of us, have been waging war for
years due to a thievery committed by rogues in our country."
"What did they steal?" Natalie inquired.
"They stole water to irrigate their crops. You
see... water is very scarce in the Lost Desert. That's why this war is so severe.
The Imanese royal family has two princesses, the older, Yvania, and the younger,
Iyani."
"That's where you three come in," Chief continued.
"The queen of Iman, Sora, recently overheard three people outside the palace
talking about kidnapping Iyani."
"Why would they do that? Isn't this just about
water?" Sys-op asked.
"Yes, but apparently something else. You see,
the individuals stealing water were arrested, but Ardea claims that we haven't
stopped stealing their water," Natasha added.
"Odd," Magnolia said to herself. "Um... so,
what should I do about all of this?"
"Well, first of all, you'll go to Iman," Natalie
answered. "Then, you'll dress up as Iyani and th--"
"Wait, hold on a second. You want ME to go as Iyani? What if I get kidnapped?"
Magnolia asked, standing up.
"It's better than Iyani being kidnapped, isn't
it?" Chief inquired. Magnolia heaved a sigh.
"Okay, okay. I guess it is," Magnolia concluded.
"But it is odd. If this war's been raging for years, why is she being captured
just now? No--why is she being captured in the first place?"
"I don't know," Chief explained. "Natasha only
told me about this today. And as to why Iyani is a kidnapping subject, I just
don't know. Ardea might want her as a ransom."
"I've never heard of either of these countries
before," Sys-op said. "If they've been raging a war for years, why hasn't anyone
heard of it?"
Natasha, realising the question was directed
to her, looked up with a start. "Well... you must understand; the officials
of the country are too preoccupied with the war to boost the popularity of our
country. And as the war has progressed, people have left the country... you
see."
Now Magnolia was getting a bit sceptical. Shouldn't
an Ambassador try not to falter in speech? "Well, we'll save the princess, but
I don't think I'll be able to stop the Ardea/Iman war. I'll see what I can find
about the water thievery, though."
"Oh, thank you... um..."
"Magnolia."
"Magnolia! Your efforts will be greatly appreciated
by the--Imanese government," Natasha finished, faltering a bit. She quickly
left the office leaving Natalie, Chief, Sys-op, and Magnolia in a confused state.
"Um... that went well. See you around, Magnolia."
Chief finally left.
What was Natasha Zarepheid up to?
To be continued... | 
