Ami stood by nervously as plane set down on Heiya Island with some degree of concern. Like the other Animalian colonies, Heiya Island did a lot of work with tourism, and much of that had been shut down as a result of the pandemic. And as tests began to raise fears that Animalians might not be as "immune" to it as originally thought, the white wolf Animalia looked nervously to the dark blue plane as it came to a stop on the runway that ran down the center of the island. On its side was a dark blue and white icon that showed the Earth with a wreathed pennant around it and the word "Interpol" written below the globe. Above and behind the globe was a sword that a pair of scales hung from. On either side of the sword was a pennant that read "OIPC" and "ICPO."
"Their call did say something about tracking a case," one of Ami's councilors said to her from behind as a pair of men, both in suits disembarked from the plane and wearing medical masks.
"But we do not have policemen that could track these things," Ami answered with some concern and straightening her own mask, "sure our sense of smell could do that... and with the Five Element's martial arts skills they could probably deal with most criminal organizations in a physical confrontation without major risk of injury... but the policemen we have here for Heiya Island are good for local law enforcement only... We've hardly had to deal with anything that would attract attention from Interpol."
"Perhaps it is in relation to some of the people that have converted and joined us on Heiya Island... l mean... the Five Elements and others all came from slave rings and other groups through the region," her councilor commented, "perhaps the scope and scale of the issue was larger than they originally figured... or someone has picked up the torch, as it were, and is functioning in much the same way."
Ami sighed and nodded as the man approached and bowed politely. Ami and her councilors returned the man's bow.
"I am sorry to intrude on you, but it would appear that not even a global pandemic will stop crime," the man spoke, "and Interpol as sent me here to see if you may be of help to us in some way."
"We will certainly do what we can," Ami offered, "though it might be best to discuss things inside..."
The man nodded and gave a wave of his and to let Ami and her councilors lead the way. They eventually made their way into the "palace" that had been set up for who would hold the executive position on Heiya Island, and while it was among the larger individual buildings there, the Interpol agent gave an almost depressed sigh at learning that the palace's size gave Ami only a modest set of living quarters and much of the rest was set aside for the business of running the colony, including the legislative areas as well as the courtrooms for any and all legal proceedings. To the councilors this gave them the worry that this Interpol agent was ultimately going to ask for something that Heiya Island cannot provide, but he didn't divulge anything while they were walking. Eventually they settled into a conference room with Ami and her present councilors taking a seat on one side of the table while the Interpol agent was on the other side.
"So... what is this case you're working on at present?" Ami asked, "as that did seem to be part of your request to come here..."
"It is one that I am afraid is a sort of copycat kidnapping and trafficking operation to things that have already involved residents of this island," the Interpol officer spoke, "We've been alerted to such actions occurring throughout China, Mongolia, and even into the Central Asian states... and much of it seemed to coincide with when Covid 19 entered those countries or began to shut them down. The kidnapping victims have all appeared to be female and between the ages of sixteen and eighteen."
"More people kidnapping children?!" one of the councilors asked nervously.
"It gets worse," the Interpol officer answered, "the kidnapping part of the operation mirrors that of the operations that your "Five Elements" fell into. However, this ring has added in an additional element to it that is far more violent and risky to all involved. In this we've also found evidence that if the people were kidnapped from their homes... any family members were killed. In this, many of the victims have no family to go back to... and may be quite afraid to go back to where they were originally from."
Ami gave a pained whine and lowered her ears for a moment, as hearing such things still happened hurt. The fact that some criminal group would use a global pandemic to make it worse hurt even more.
"What can we do?" Ami asked, "I mean... if you need additional officers, I'm sure Heiya Island's finest would be happy to help you... but their jurisdiction is here. Not to mention that there would be concerns in some of those countries you mention that the governments may wish to take the Animalians as a sort of prize..."
"We've actually gotten some cooperation with the governments and gotten some satellite imagery... we think we've found them in a spot in Western China," the Interpol officer spoke, "and think it was even coming from some group that had its hand in all sorts of government contracts through the region to fund the construction of a compound and auction center... in that we're quite confident we can catch them. However, we'd need a place for them to stay... one relatively free of Covid 19 and safe from retaliation while the trials are ongoing. America has been something of a closed door on this sort of thing... some of the other Animalian colonies are not equipped for it. Many of the other countries are too riddled by the present pandemic too help. Your island... is the only place where they may have space to live and be with those that may be more culturally familiar to them."
"And how long would this be?" one of the councilors asked nervously, "Heiya Island is relatively small. We're big enough for a decent sized airstrip and some good farming land... but as we've gotten started... many of predatory Animalians are heavily dependent on imports or fish for meat. And while we're growing plenty of our own crops... any surplus that we have isn't super high... and with so much of the world shutting down or only just opening up..."
"We cannot say..." the Interpol officer sighed, "for given that some of cases include possible corruption issues within the countries in question, our investigators may find themselves in an uphill battle just to be able to bring charges... In this, we can rescue them... but we need a place that is safe for them... and generally a place that they would feel at home."
"Are there any other options you have?" Ami asked carefully.
"We'd thought on New Zealand... but the screening process would be about the same as yours, based on our earlier emails," the Interpol officer answered, "and they would be further away and in a situation where they might not be as culturally welcome as they would be here. Thus complicating things when we finally get to trial."
"And most of the people there wouldn't understand the languages your supposed victims speak, I take it?" Ami asked.
"Not with any degree of credibility," the Interpol officer spoke.
"And how many of these victims would we expected to take in?" the first of Ami's councilors asked.
"No more than a hundred," the Interpol officer answered, "based on the case files and missing persons reports that the local police units have sent us."
"What about those that are not Chinese or Japanese?" Ami asked, "we have the facilities and translators here to work with both languages... but the languages of the former Soviet Central Asian Republics are not ones that we are familiar with."
"We might be able to offer you a translator... but the critical point is getting the clearance to bring them here," the Interpol officer spoke, "for China is opening up again... and the guys that have succeeded in this because of the lockdowns may catch on to the fact that they're being observed. We'll have official Chinese cooperation... but we must provide some means to keep them safe. And in some cases, particularly in the Central Asian states, we might be able to send some home to surviving families... a lot of that will depend on specific case files... but if these smugglers catch on to this..."
"They'd leave," Ami said slowly and sighed, "very well... we shall help and provide shelter. Everyone will need to buckle down to help them... and we may well need help from the outside to help supply the island..."
"But with the pandemic..." one her councilors warned.
"They will go through proper screening, tests, and isolation in the hospital... to be released after the waiting period by which we can be sure that they are not carrying the virus," Ami answered, "by that point... host families will be ready to look after them until the trial can be held and Interpol can coordinate things with local authorities to allow us to send them home... if they even have one. Things are scary... but we cannot give up on kindness."
"You've given us profound help in taking them down..." the Interpol officer spoke, "Just by giving them a safe haven..."
"Thank you," Ami answered, "though my councilors' concerns on supply and other needs will still stand... We may get some help with trade from Japan and China... but if we're to be a sanctuary island for an additional hundred people, at most, we will need some way to feed and care for them."
"And we will do what we can to help," the Interpol officer answered, "times have been tough... and we've had to make some tough changes... but justice is still critical, and we've tried our best to see that the world respects that and helps those that need justice."
Beneath her mask, Ami smiled at that...
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The days that then followed were quite newsworthy. Chinese state police and Interpol officers stormed the compound and arrested cartel that was holding their captives prisoner there. Similar raids were later conducted against the agents of the crime ring in other countries, which ensured that the wring was caught. All one hundred of the teen girls that had been held prisoner by this group were freed and brought to Heiya Island, while Interpol began getting full names and addresses of all family members that they knew of. The same agent that had come to Heiya Island to get the island's promise of assistance came with them and gave a press statement that Ami and her councilors were the ones responsible for the salvation of the victims... not by being some kind of super-hero, but to provide the compassion to offer their help to those in need. By that time as well, the Chinese government through their embassy on Heiya Island and the Japanese government, the legal owner of the island , through their embassy had also allocated funds and supplies to help feed the new arrivals until their health could be determined and if surviving family could be reached.