Hi! Hyena king here! This is the next mission in the game titled "A starry eyed encounter." So, without further ado, here's chapter 8!"

(Sly's POV)

Another Clockwerk part had surfaced in India, so the gang and I loaded up the van and narrowed in on our next target, A mysterious spice lord known as Rajan. A self-made man who grew up poor on the streets of Calcutta, he started his life of crime by selling illegal spices on the black market, eventually growing from small outfit to sizable operation and earning himself a seat in the prestigious Klaww gang.

He's since crowned himself "Lord of the hills" and while he goes to great length to convince others of his royalty, it's mostly to convince himself. True to form, he's throwing a lavish ball in his newly purchased "Ancestral palace." The reason, to show off his latest acquisition, the Clockwerk wings, a symbol of my enemy. If you saw the wings silhouetted against the night sky, it was already too late for you, especially, if your name was Cooper.

Rajan believes displaying the wings will bring him prestige and maybe they will. But they're also bringing me.

Sly, Thunder, Lightning, Rarity and Fluttershy quickly crossed the bridge that connected their current safe house with the rest of the jungle.

"Guys, stake out the palace, and find a way to get into the ballroom. Find out who's going to this party." Bentley instructed. The current group proceeded to do just that, leaving the rest behind to hang out at the Safe-house. Rarity was wearing some inappropriate attire for the job, a fashionable ninja suit that was sparkling with gems all over it.

"Rarity, you do know this is a stealth mission, right?" Sly asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No matter what we're doing, one must always look fashionable." Rarity answered with a proud smile. Sly just let it drop without further argument. The group quickly crossed the bridge that lead to Rajan's palace, with Thunder and Lightning having to carry the mares the whole way. (Fluttershy on account that she was jumpy and was spooked by the slightest sound, Rarity because she didn't want to get her suit ruined.) They somehow made good progress, with Sly wondering the whole time if bringing these particular mares was a good idea. In fact, he only agreed to this because Thunder had assured them that they would be helpful in the coming mission. He prayed Thunder was right.

They entered the town that led to the palace, dodging guards left in right. During one of these dodges, Fluttershy ended up talking to one of the elephants that were keeping watch without it's rider noticing. After a few minutes, the elephant agreed to turn a blind eye to their escapade and told his fellows to do the same, earning Fluttershy Sly's respect.

After some more crawling around, (Rarity shocked the whole group by knocking out on of the guards with her bare hooves.) They ended up on a rise leading to a balcony of the palace.

"We figured out a way for you guys to get in without being detected." Bentley said as he observed the place.

"The problem is, there doesn't seem to be a way to reach the balcony door." Twilight put in.

"Not a problem," Sly said confidently. "There are plenty of branches for me to walk on, and Thunder and Lightning can fly over there with the mares. We'll figure it out."

As Sly went to climb the branches, Lightning decided to have a little pep talk with Fluttershy.

"You should fly as well."

But I can't." Fluttershy said nervously, "What if I'm spotted and..."

"Hey, you didn't hesitate when you convinced those elephants to ignore us, right?" Fluttershy nodded in agreement. "Then this will be a cakewalk. Trust me."

After that, Sly went onto the balcony from the branches while Thunder flew in holding Rarity, who was holding onto him so hard she choked the pegasi. Meanwhile, Lightning flew in while reassuring Fluttershy, who also flew in. They quickly peeked around the corner to see inside the central ballroom.

"Just don't leave that balcony and you should be fine." Bentley said, as Sly took pictures of the Clockwerk Wings, which were currently attached to a golden statue.

"Looks like the Wings have been welded to that statue." Bentley observed. "and they look heavy. Getting the wings out of here will be a real challenge."

At that moment, Sly took a picture of an electronic winch that was suspended above the statue. "An electronic winch! That could be useful"

Then, Sly took a picture of the Lord of the Hills himself, Rajan. "That's him. Rajan's really pulled out all the stops to impress people with this party. Maybe you should get some shots of the guests."

"While Sly did that, Rarity continued to admire the ballroom. "While I may not approve of his behavior, I must say this Rajan has exquisite taste."

"Yeah, taking out the fact he's a criminal." Thunder pointed out.

"I'm just saying that if it wasn't for the whole spice thing or whatever, I'd understand where this guy is coming from."

Sly interrupted the heated debate they were about to have. "Come on, guys. We're heading back to come up with a game plan."

When they got back to the safe house, Rarity was delighted in the fact that it was a gameplan where her expertise was going to be put to good use.

There you go. Sorry for taking so long in updating, but I've been having a hectic couple of days. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the next part in The mission, but you already knew that. So, without further ado, here's chapter 9!

Rarity turned out to be a huge help in this endeavor. The plan was to infiltrate the ballroom and see what they could do about stealing the Clockwerk wings. The white unicorn ended up fashioning a tuxedo with some things she got from a nearby store for Sly, and even made identical tuxedos for Thunder and Lightning. She also ended up making dresses for herself and the rest of the mane six.

Their cover story was that Sly, Thunder and Lightning were rich entrepreneurs, gratefully accepting their invitations to the ball Rajan was throwing. Twilight and Rainbow would play Thunder and Lightning's dates, (This was arranged by Sly with a wink at the stallions that they didn't get at all.) Applejack would be a apple company mogul from Texas, Rarity a huge fashion designer from Paris, Pinkie a holder of several nightclubs, and Fluttershy...She was a tough one, but they finally settled on the head of an animal rights charity group.

Sly had explained to them before hand that two other members of the Klaww gang, Jean Bison and Appriego, had made an appearance, as well as the warden, head of the biggest prison Interpol had, Carmelita Fox, and her partner Constable Neyla. Sly then told them that he had a plan to deal with all these guys and get the Clockwerk wings; they just had to keep their different personas up until they could execute it.

As of now, they walked through the door leading into the ballroom, Sly in the lead, the ponies following.

"Those disguises are working perfectly! Nobody's going to recognize you in those outfits." Bentley commented.

"We still seem to be drawing a lot of attention, though." Thunder pointed out, looking at the stares the ponies were getting.

"That's because they're not used to seeing guys like you on four legs." Bentley told him, before moving back to the topic at hand. "Sly, you'll need to dance with Carmelita to keep both her, and the crowd, distracted. Trouble is, she's picky about dance partners, so you'll have to impress her first."

"Alright, I know just the girl for the job." Sly said, taking note of Neyla on the dance floor. He left his pony friends where they were, which left Bentley to send them on their assignments.

"As for the rest of you...Mingle. Enjoy the party, but keep a close eye on everybody we mentioned to be on watch for."

"Right. Like that's supposed to be easy." Applejack commented after Bentley signed off.

"C'mon girls," Twilight said. "Let's just try to look normal."

"Yeah, let's do this!" Pinkie said, wandering off to the other side of the room. "Let's party!"

While Pinkie was raising hell over there, Rarity and Applejack left, taking Fluttershy with them, to another part of the ballroom, leaving Thunder, Lightning, Twilight and Rainbow alone together. Lightning wasn't happy in the least, let me tell you, and neither was Thunder. Twilight and Rainbow just gave each other awkward looks.

You see, while Sly had been kind enough to pick up on Thunder and Lightning's little crushes, he had gotten the whole thing backwards. Instead of Twilight being with Thunder and Lightning being with Rainbow, Sly made it so Lightning was with Twilight and Rainbow was with Thunder. Sly was going to pay for this, each of the brothers vowed silently.

Speaking of the raccoon thief, he was currently dancing with Neyla, saying on the dance floor. While this was obviously a ploy to get at Carmelita, it did nothing to help the intense rage the brothers felt for him at that moment. Rainbow suddenly went over to Lightning and dragged him towards the dance floor.

"C'mon, let's dance!" she said as they hit the dance floor beside Sly and Neyla. Lightning didn't have time to stammer a response as they faced each other. While their style of dance looked a lot more awkward then they way the people in this world did it, they still danced with a fiery passion. Unlike Sly and Neyla, who were dancing like elegant rich folk, Lightning and Rainbow were dancing like they were having a competition, swaying to the beat in a fiery passion, especially once Lightning got the hang of it.

Twilight and Thunder watched this with awe as the dancers continued to do their thing. Thunder suddenly held out his hoof to Twilight. "Care to dance?" Twilight simply blushed and nodded, then they made their way out onto the dance floor. They danced the traditional dance they had back in Canterlot, swaying with a type of elegance only ponies can have. Sly, who had been surprised by the ponies sudden appearance, smiled to himself as he remained committed to his ploy and continued to dance despite the other two couples present.

When the dance was over, Twilight and Thunder looked deeply in each other's eyes, smiles lighting their faces. Lightning and Rainbow simply laughed as they collapsed exhausted to the floor. Sly simply had a few words with Carmelita before he slipped away to carry on with the heist. Twilight looked deeply into the eyes of Thunder.

"Thunder..."

"Yeah?"

Before Twilight could say anything, the room exploded with a sudden burst of light. When the light cleared, and everybody got their vision back, it was to the sight of Sasha, who was accompanied by what looked to be a beautiful Mexican tango dancer, and a Japanese shrine maiden. Twilight was the first to say something.

"Sasha! What are you doing here?! And who are those girls behind you!?"

"That's not important." Sasha replied, being serious. "Where's Thunder and Lightning?"

Said ponies walked up to the goddess. "What's going on?" Lightning asked, not taking Sasha's sudden seriousness as a good thing.

"You guys are in grave danger."

"They're in danger, alright."

They all turned to see the owner of the unknown voice, which was a black unicorn with violet eyes.

"Hello." Shade said.

"Goodbye" Devitra, who was right next to her sister, said.

Their horns suddenly glowed as they blasted rays of energy straight at Thunder and Lightning.

There you go. How do you feel for cliffhangers? If you don't like them, you'll have to wait like everybody else. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena king here! This is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't bore you with the details. So, without further ado, here's chapter 10!

The blasts of energy would have disintegrated Thunder and Lightning right then and there had Sasha not stepped in front of them and created a shield at the last minute. As it was, they bounced off and disintegrated the clothes off of two of the patrons, causing them to flee in shame and the rest of the patrons to start panicking. Carmelita and Neyla, however, drew their weapons and trained them on the new comers.

"Freeze! You're all under arrest." Carmelita cried, just as Rajan came forward.

"Don't worry!" He said, motioning with his hands as he did so. "This people are a crew I hired to perform a spectacular light show for you all. Please, sit back and enjoy." The crowd somehow believed this and waited, eagerly this time, for the show to continue.

Devitra snarled at the tango dancer next to Sasha. "I thought we dealt with you, you sorry excuse for a goddess."

"Well, you didn't, and now you're going to pay you..." The dancer proceeded to rant a bit in Spanish, none of which will be translated for this story. Shade simply growled at the shrine maiden, who did a pretty good impression of Fluttershy.

"What the buck is going on here!?" Thunder all but yelled. Sasha turned to him.

"I believe that Sly needs your assistance outside, right?" Thunder hesitated a few moments, and then nodded, taking the hint. He turned and grabbed Lightning and began to drag him off. "Well, we better hurry on, then."

"Hey, what's going on? I'm not leaving!" Lightning's words of protest were unheard as they left off the balcony. Sasha turned to Rainbow and Twilight." I think you should rejoin your friends."

"What!?" Rainbow cried. "I'm not going anywhere-" She was silenced by Twilight, who nodded and went into the crowd to find the other ponies. Rajan smiled and clapped his hands. "Resume the performance!"

Sasha turned and looked directly at the unicorns in front of her. The tango dancer, Maria, stood next to her sister on her left, while the shrine maiden, Yukie, stood on the right. The unicorn witches just looked at them with cynical smiles. Then it was on.

Calling it a light show was an understatement. There was fire, lightning, ice, and a whole mess load of different things shot across the ballroom. The crowd, still thinking this was some fancy light show, applauded even as their clothes were disintegrated, skin was burned, and many other things besides. Sasha and her sisters were surprisingly defensive throughout this whole exchange, preferring to block the unicorns' magic, then counter attack as soon as an opening revealed itself. The unicorns simply blasted at them with everything they had, giving not a care at who they hit their blasts with.

At the end of the battle, the unicorns combined their magic and hit the three goddesses head on. They then smiled and began to teleport away, but not before they looked over at Applejack and Rarity.

"Hey girls, how're your sisters?" Devitra asked. The two witches laughed as they disappeared in a flash of purple light, leaving Rarity and Applejack confused.

"What the hay were they talking about?" AJ asked, before Sasha came up to them.

"Where are you staying right now?"

Rarity quickly gave her the location to their current hideout. "Why do you ask?"

"Me and my sisters are cursed. No time to explain. Bye." With that, Sasha and her two sisters teleported away, while the crowd applauded the supposed performance.

There you go. I know you have questions, but Maria and Yukie will be explained in time. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't bore you with the details. So, without further ado, here's chapter 11!

Thunder and Lightning met up with Sly just as the fight inside took place.

"What the heck is going on?" Sly asked, eyeing the glowing lights coming from the ball room.

"A light show." Thunder replied honestly, more or less. Sly stared at him, then shrugged it off.

"Alright, just help me with this." He said.

And so they scaled the roofs of the city with the skills they learned from the last time they were in that world. Somehow, Fluttershy had rejoined them, (Actually, Sly took her with them to help out with the Elephant guards.) And was currently being carried by Lightning, who groaned his disapproval. When they reached a tower, Bentley contacted them.

"Guys, Murray and I can't get inside the palace unless you lower the drawbridge."

"Love to, pal, but the winch is all locked out. Know where we can find the keys?" Sly responded.

"The key guards have recently taken position around the palace. Sneak in, pick all their pockets, and sneak back here to the locked down winch."

Sly then turned to Thunder and Lightning. "Thunder, you take the left. Lightning, the right." The brothers nodded, and then Sly turned to Fluttershy. "Fluttershy...Stay here." Fluttershy nodded weakly, and then stayed where she was.

It was all too easy really. Sly just used his old fashioned Cooper moves to pick the guards pockets, Thunder knocked them out using his hooves, and Lightning was flashing the keys away faster than the guards could blink. They soon made it back, holding their stolen keys, to the winch. As soon as they did so, Murray came in.

He quickly made his way over to an absent turret, Where Bentley spoke up again. "That copper," He began, mentioning towards a helicopter flying over them. "Is a menace to all our future aerial operations while on this job."

"Yeah, it's covered in missiles and guns and stuff." Murray responded.

"Now be a team player and take it out with that rusty Pre-war turret."

"OK." Murray gasped suddenly. "Why don't we let Fluttershy handle this?"

"OK." Said the yellow Pegasus, who happened to be right next to him.

"Hang on Murray-"

Bentley didn't get a chance to argue as Murray helped Fluttershy into the turret. "Don't worry. I had a potatoe gun once, this should work the same!"

"So long as I,m helping."

As Fluttershy settled in, Bentley instructed her in how to use it. Sly, Thunder and Lightning watched this with barely concealed worry. Fluttershy began shooting, a little tentatively at first, then began to shoot like a pony possessed.

It was rather short. Even when the copper began to fire missiles, Fluttershy shot them all down like a pro. She had also begun to laugh like a maniac, shooting like there was no tomorrow. In no time at all, the copper went down. But she still continued to fire regardless. Eventual, Murray pulled her out, the pony putting up a fierce fight as he did so, even giving him a black eye. Fluttershy seemed to regain her sanity when she was off the turret, looking into her stunned friends faces.

"What?" She asked in genuine confusion.

There you go. The big finale's coming up, don't you worry. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena king here! This is the big heist, the moment you've all been waiting for. So, without further ado, here's chapter 12!

Fluttershy and Rarity had gotten the jewels needed to make the saw that would slice through the wings welded into the statue from the chandelier. How this was accomplished was simple. Sly and Lightning tried to beat the jewels off of Rajan's prized elephant's heads with cane and hoof, but after some initial struggling, Fluttershy simply calmed them down and asked to take the jewels from them, which they gladly gave the nice yellow Pegasus.

Some sneaking, fighting and explosions later, Sly, Thunder, Lightning, Fluttershy and Rarity were back in the ballroom, waiting for everybody else to be in position. Rajan suddenly spoke up, loud enough to be heard by Sly, Thunder and Lightning from where they stood.

"The bridge is destroyed. Take your men and see what's going on." The rhino guard who was listening bowed, then went to carry out the order. Sly grinned.

"You in position, Murray?"

"Check."

The Hippo was now positioned above the statue, hanging by a rope. Frankly, it was a wonder nobody saw him yet.

"Looks like Bentley's distraction did the trick. Initiate phase two, I'll take care of Carmelita and the crowd. You handle the heavy lifting." Sly then turned to Thunder and Lightning. "You guys make sure everything's going to plan." The pegasi nodded and Sly went to do his job. Not a few seconds later, Sasha appeared right next to the boys.

"I need to talk to you."

"Same here." Thunder replied. "What the hay was with the light show?"

"Granted, it was fun to watch, but what were those two unicorns going to do to us?' Lightning asked.

"Kill you." Sasha answered almost nonchalantly. Thunder and Lightning looked at her.

"Nice of you to show concern." Lightning said finally.

"They're Devitra and Shade." Sasha explained, ignoring Lightning entirely. "They were imprisoned in Tartarus back on your world."

"For what?" Thunder asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

"When they were younger, they cursed blank flanks to wet their beds."

Thunder considered this for a moment. Then he said, rather skeptically. "That doesn't sound like something they'd go to Tartarus for."

Sasha continued. "Then after they grew up, they terrorized what is today Manehatten and Cloudsdale, causing eternal darkness, burning down houses, and cursing adult ponies who got in their way with bed-wetting problems."

"OK, that sounds a lot more reasonable." Thunder admitted.

"What's with them and bed-wetting?"Lightning couldn't help but ask.

"They were finally caught in Manehatten. My sisters were on vacation in your world and saw them trying to burn down an Orphanage. They got in the way, and the unicorns cursed them."

"Wait, those other girls are your sisters!?" Lightning all but screamed.

"Cursed with what?" Thunder asked, getting back on track. Sasha gave him a glare. "What do you think?"

Thunder thought for a moment, and then nodded. Lightning looked up just in time to see Murray almost drop the wings, which he had succeeded in dislodging from the statue. Lightning flew up, miraculously without being seen, and grabbed onto the wings, putting them back in Murray's firm grip.

As Lightning continued to help Murray, Thunder kept talking to Sasha.

"OK, one, how did they escape, two, why do they want to kill me and Lightning?"

"The reason is simple enough." Sasha replied. "That weird demon thing you fought the first time you were here? His name's lord Malice. He released them and given them a thousand years off their sentence, providing that they kill you."

"What did we ever do to that guy?" Thunder asked, curiosity clear on his face.

"Think about it. Remember the story of the Guardian?"

Before Thunder could reply, Rajan suddenly shouted. "The wings! Where are the Clockwerk wings!?"

"What, how? But..." Carmelita stammered, and then noticed the rose in her hand, which bore the insignia of the raccoon thief himself.

"Cooper!"

Thunder didn't say anything else to Sasha. Just shot out of there like a bat out of hell and went to collect the mares.

There you go. This might have been short again, but I hope you enjoyed this chapter nevertheless. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the scene explaining what's next. So, without further ado, here's chapter 13!

(Sly's POV.)

After the gang and I got away with the Clockwerk wings, Carmelita blew her cover, and started to make arrests left and right. With his reputation in shambles, Rajan was forced to flee from his own party. He's currently in hiding, somewhere deep in the jungle.

The gang and I took a break and headed to "Bollywood." It took some doing, but we managed to sneak Murray and Pinkie Pie onto the set of a full Blown Indian musical. I was happy the guys got a chance to unwind, but Rajan was still out there, and, somehow, I knew things were about to get tough.

Sasha was Talking to Twilight behind the set of the Indian musical that Murray and Pinkie were currently performing in. Twilight was not happy with what Sasha was saying.

"What do you mean, 'We need to fit in better!?' We fit in just fine!"

"Well, egghead, let me just point out two things that everybody on this world has noticed." Sasha countered. "One, you walk on four legs, while everybody else walks on two legs. And two, you're naked, and that's a big deal here, if you haven't noticed."

Twilight blushed in embarrassment as he realized that the goddess was right. Then she spoke up. "What do propose we do about it?"

Sasha grinned mischievously. "Get the others."

Soon, the rest of the ponies (Minus Pinkie, who was still performing.) And Sasha stood right in front of them; her hands ready to cast magic.

"Everypony ready?" She asked.

"Are you sure we need to do this?" Rarity began, "I mean, do we know this is safe-"

Sasha blasted the whole group with her magic, giving one cause to wonder why she even bothered asking if they were ready in the first place. As the resultant explosion cleared, Twilight looked at the others to see what chaos Sasha had wrecked. The sight was to shocking to behold at first.

They were now all anthromorphic ponies. They had the same pony looks, sure, and the wings and horns stayed on the respective unicorns and pegasi, but they now had only two legs and where their fore-hooves once were, hands had replaced them. On the mares, new assets had been added, ones that were making Sasha laugh uncontrollably.

"Who's naked now, Twi?" The goddess said between breathes. Twilight looked around and noticed that fact on all the ponies.

"Guys! Cover yourselves!" Twilight cried, doing just that. The other mares did so as well. As for Thunder and Lightning, the former slapped Lightning upside the head when he noticed the white Pegasus was staring at Rainbow a little too intently, then the two began tearing of curtains and handing them to the mares. Rarity was surprisingly happy about all this.

"I can finally put my skills to the ultimate test! Thank you for giving me this great opportunity, Sasha!"

"No problem." Sasha said, ignoring the glare that Twilight was throwing her.

Meanwhile, in Rajan's jungle fortress.

Rajan was mad as all get out, made apparent as he ranted at the three figures in his private quarters.

"They ruined me and my reputation almost beyond repair! They must be eliminated!"

"Patience Rajan, patience." Said on of the figures, a strange black pony anthro in a business suit. "They will pay, but we must not act in haste. We must wait, and let them come to us."

"I hope you know what you're doing, Malice." Rajan all but spat. "Just as I hope you fulfill your end of the bargain when this is over."

"You wound me, Rajan. Of course, I will honor the deal that the Klaww gang and I have made. Just wait until our raccoon thief and his friends arrive, and we'll take care of them."

Rajan growled, and then waved a dismissive hand at him. Once outside, Malice turned to his other cohorts. Devitra and Shade, also anthro and dressed in matching suits except theirs were tailor made to fit their bodies and they had skirts, looked down when the demon faced them. They had told him about Maria and Yukie, Sasha's sisters, and the tussle that they had with the goddesses.

"Devitra, Shade." Malice began. "I have a question for you. How do you kill a goddess?"

"I...Don't know." Devitra admitted after thinking a bit.

"Devitra, you can't kill a goddess!" Shade snapped at her sister. "They're immortal!"

"Bingo!" Malice suddenly said. "They're immortal." Malice then pulled out a black suitcase and opened it, revealing its contents, which happened to be a bright glowing gem. Devitra and Shade looked at it in wonder as Malice kept talking.

"So, first you're going to turn our little girl scouts...Mortal."

There you go. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I did. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena king here! This is the next part of the game, titled "The predator awakes." And before you say anything, yes I made a "Disney's Hercules." reference in the last chapter. Kudos to those who noticed it! So, without further ado, here's chapter 14!

(Sly POV)

It took some detective work, but the gang and I managed to track down where Rajan had gone into hiding. Somehow, he managed to turn a long forgotten temple into the thriving center of his spice operation. And it's there that we'll find him. The jungle, too thick to drive through, forced us to walk the long distance to our target. We ran into a few problems along the way, but pushed on. For the temple was more than Rajan's hideout. It was also home to the Clockwerk heart. A pump so strong and tireless, it could increase the spice production tenfold. Good for Rajan, but awful for the rest of the world.

Hope he's not counting on the heart too much, cause tonight it comes home with me.

"Sneak into the temple and take some recon photos so I can assess the situation." Bentley said. Currently, he was talking to Sly, Thunder and Lightning. Of course Twilight was with them, along with Applejack. The newly made anthros were now dressed in jungle explorer gear, with a few minor exceptions, such as Lightning had a lightning bolt adorning his hat, Thunder a cloud, Twilight a star, and Applejack was wearing her Stetson hat instead of the jungle one. Their suits were also color coded to match each pony's personality and traits.

The group was currently located outside the temple, the central spice-making plant in Rajan's control. Bentley continued to talk as they surveyed the place.

"Just be careful, if you get hurt, the nearest hospital is 106 miles from here. According to my map of the area, there should be a hidden passage into the temple behind that waterfall."

"Nice work, Bentley. I'll take a hidden passage over the front door any day." Sly responded.

As they made their way towards the waterfall, Twilight spoke up. "I was surprised when Sasha actually agreed to stay behind."

"Probably decided it was for the best this time." Sly responded as he scanned the area. Lightning spoke up then.

"Yeah, but Sasha normally would have just come with us. I haven't known her long, but I think she's scared of something."

"What makes you say that?" Sly asked with a raised eyebrow. "She's a goddess, what could she be afraid of?"

"Beggin' your pardon, but can we focus on the important thing here?" Applejack asked, somewhat impatient.

"AJ's right, let's get back to the mission at hand." Thunder agreed, moving to Sly's side. They quickly made their way into the Spice making Facility. Once inside, they made their way through the facility. This was easier said than done, but it was manageable. Whenever they were caught by guards, they took them out quickly. A favored tactic was for Applejack to lasso the guards and drag them to a secluded spot, where Sly, Thunder, or Lightning would knock them unconscious. Another strategy was for Twilight to simply blast them with her magic.

Thunder and Lightning soon learned that the moves taught to them by the Thievius Raccoonus were much easier to do now that they were anthros, and they demonstrated this as they moved along the area with Sly. Even AJ and Twilight were using the moves, they having been taught by Thunder and Lightning as soon as they got used to their new bodies. AJ did the moves gracefully, thanks to her natural athleticism that was rivaled only by Rainbow Dash, While Twilight did them a lot more clumsily, even at one point falling flat on her face during a maneuver, but other than that she was fine.

They soon made it to their destination, where they made some surprising discoveries as they took recon photos.

"Looks like half of the heart is being used to super irrigate the spice plants." Bentley observed. Said heart was being suspended on the ceiling of the spice room, blowing out spice at a superhuman rate. Sly then looked over and took a picture of Rajan, who was looking over his handiwork.

"Check it out! Rajan's carrying half the heart on that stick!" Bentley cried. The stick in question was in Rajan's hand, being held like a king's scepter.

"And just when I thought it was going to be easy." Thunder sighed.

"What's that?" Twilight asked, pointing to something in the corner. The thing happened to be the controls for the crane the held up the half of the heart that was pumping spice.

"That crane is keeping half of the heart suspended." Bentley said, stating the obvious. Finally, Sly took notice off the entrance to the spice room, near the very back.

"There's the entrance to this level, only I don't know how to get in here from the temples exterior!" Bentley said some distress in his voice. "Bring those photos back to the safe house. We really need to think about this one."

As the gang turned to go, Lightning spoke up. "What exactly is wrong with this spice anyway? I don't see how it's harmful." Instead of answering, Sly turned to Twilight. "Once we get back, want to do some experimenting?"

"Oh, OK." Twilight said, not seeing where Sly was going with this.

"Good, cause we got a volunteer here, all we need is some spice."

And there you go. You'll find out what happens with the experiment in the next chapter. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the another part of "The predator awakes." So, without further ado, here's chapter 15!

At the gang's current hideout, Bentley explained the situation regarding Rajan. "The Clockwerk heart is under some steep security. Heck, Rajan is carrying half of it at all times. To get in the goods, I'll need to gather some more information. Sly Thunder and Lightning will plant a bug in Rajan's office, while me and Twilight swipe the spice operation blueprints off the spice ward while he makes his rounds. Unfortunately, while we're collecting intelligence on him, He'll be gathering data on us using an elephant powered satellite array. Take it out, or he'll be able to intercept all our communications!"

As Bentley concluded, Sasha dragged Lightning by the tail, the pegasus protesting the whole way. When they reached the bathroom, Sasha turned Lightning around to face her. "You're not going on the mission."

"Wait, what!?" Lightning was shocked by Sasha's pronouncement. The goddess sighed.

"Look, my sister Maria sometimes gets these images, premonitions, if you will. I used to tease her about it sometimes, but that's beside the point. When she gets these premonitions, whatever she sees usually comes true. Except for that one about 2012, but that's again beside the point."

"What are you getting at!?" Lightning snarled, getting impatient with Sasha's explanation. "What, am I going to lose some feathers, or do Parasprites eat my clothes?"

"You're going to die."

That shut the white Pegasus up for a few moments. Then, "What do you mean?"

Sasha sighed. "Maria saw you flying towards a tiger, one from this world, and said tiger pulls out something. There's a single gunshot, then you fall to the earth, then it's blank after that."

"And you're sure this is accurate?"

"Absolutely."

They stared at each other for a bit, and then Lightning nodded. "I'm still going on this mission."

"Lightning-"

"And don't tell the others about this. They already have enough to worry about."

"Lightning-"

"Don't argue with me, just do it!"

"Not that, I was trying to say Yukie and Maria are in the bathroom and we might want to-"

A few minutes later, the entire hideout was overflowing with yellow water, (Do I really need to tell you what it is?) And the rest of the gang was making "ewww" sounds, and Murray even dropped an F bomb as they were covered in the toilet water while it ran down the entire tree turning it and the ground below yellow in the process.

There you go. Sorry for making this so short, but I'm pressed for time. Hope yu enjoyed nevertheless. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena king here! This is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't bore you with the details. So, without further ado, here's chapter 16!

Sly, Twilight, Applejack, Thunder and Lightning made their way across the temple grounds, being as stealthy as possible, (Which was a lot easier on the ponies since they were anthros.) Taking out any guards they saw. Meanwhile, back in the van, Bentley observed the whole thing from the central computer, While Pinkie, Rarity and Rainbow Dash sat in front Of Sasha, Maria and Yukie. Fluttershy was asleep in the back; she had been up all night, the poor thing.

Sasha finally spoke up. "I think you're wondering why I called you here, today."

"Sasha, you didn't call us, you just told us to sit and listen." Rarity pointed out.

"That's beside the point, Rarity." Sasha responded. "Anyways, you're all here because we're to have a hand in deciding a crucial decision...What to do to Devitra and Shade when we catch up to those jerks!"

Sasha let that hang for a moment before continuing. "We'll now be discussing the types of punishment to be unleashed on those heartless witches now."

Maria, not surprisingly, spoke up first. "I say we toss those brujas right back into Tartarus and suffer for eternity!"

Rainbow spoke up. "If what I heard from Sasha is true, they were already doing that. No, we should make what they get in Tartarus pale in comparison to what we do to them!"

Sasha smiled at Rainbow's enthusiasm. She was sad that she couldn't warn her about Lightning's demise, but Lightning made her promise not to tell anyone, and she wasn't about to go back on that word. Anyways back to the business at hand...

"I say we make them wear the tackiest dresses we can find." Rarity said, to the surprise of nobody.

"That's to good for them!" Pinkie cried, taking her party cannon out of nowhere. "We should launch them straight to the moon!"

"I have an idea..." Yukie said, doing a good impression of Fluttershy. But, like Fluttershy, she was ignored as the others continued their verbal debate on Devitra and Shade's punishment. Finally, Yukie would be ignored no longer.

"I have an Idea!"

The shriek, for there was nothing else to describe it as, nearly took out the windows of the van, woke Fluttershy up, and caused everybody to look at the goddess. Satisfied that she had their attention, she said her idea.

"Maybe we should make them experience everything they ever did to anybody else. You know, make them know what it's like?"

Everybody else looked at her for a moment, and then began to rain praise on her.

"That's a great idea!" Sasha said, hugging her sister, along with Maria.

"An excellent suggestion, darling." Rarity added.

"That's awesome!" Rainbow cried.

"Yay!" Take a wild guess.

The happy moment ended when Sasha looked up at the computer screen. It was showing how the guys were close to confronting Rajan. Sasha suddenly gasped and grabbed onto her sisters hands. Without another word, they teleported away, leaving everybody else staring in confusion.

There you go. This chapter was to help you, the reader, get used to the three goddesses that are in my story. I know you still have a lot of questions about them, but all will be explained soon enough. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the final confrontation with Rajan, with a huge shocker at the end. So, without further ado, here's chapter 17!

Sly, Murray, (Who had joined them some time ago,) Thunder and Lightning quickly ran from the bomb they had set in the elephants mouth. A few tense seconds later, the explosion occurred, immediately flooding the entire temple. Rajan came out just in time to witness this and jumped higher onto the temple to avoid the flash flood.

"Black clouds and thunderbolts! My spice temple...ruined!" Rajan cried, anger in his voice. "I will no longer hide while you villains destroy my hard won empire! This place is mine! Here, I am king! Come, face me Cooper! With Clockwerk's black heart, I'll so you true power! You are nothing! Come face the might of Rajan, lord of these hills!"

Sly, who had been watching this whole tirade, finally said. "Boy, when we try to tick someone off, we really do the job."

Lightning grinned at this. "Well, why don't we-"

Constable Neyla appeared suddenly, jumping down from some incredible height. "Yes, you seem to have quite a talent for it."

"Constable Neyla, slumming it with the thieves again?"

"That man is an illegal spice trader...He should be brought to justice."

"And he will be." Thunder said, a determined look on his face. Lightning was looking like he was in deep thought. (Which is a big deal when it comes to Lightning.) Something about what Sasha said earlier, about that prophecy of a purple tiger...

"I,m only after the Clockwerk heart." Sly assured. "You help me take him down, and the bust is all yours."

"Just try to keep up."

Sly and Neyla went to get Rajan, who was shooting lightning at them. Lightning suddenly stopped Thunder from taking of. "Thunder, somethings wrong, I can feel it."

"Lightning, when do you worry? Look, can you just go see to Applejack and Twilight?" They're probably bored out their minds."

Thunder flew off before Lightning could argue further. Lightning just sighed. Maybe he was being paranoid. At any rate, he went towards the spot where they had left AJ and Twilight when they went to lay the bomb.

Thunder and Sly went right to the edge to where Rajan was perched to se Neyla...Just standing there. "Neyla, now!" Sly cried, giving her the signal to strike.

"Sorry." Was all she said in response, beore she jumped away.

"What are you doing?" Sly asked, just as Thunder noticed Rajan about to strike.

"Sly, look out!" But it was too late. Rajan's lightning struck Sly and sent him falling to the ground. Murray, having noticed this, went to help the raccoon thief, Thunder flying down to grab him in desperation. However, it was in vain. When Murray fell into a pit in the temple that was only covered in enough water to soak his feet, an electric field powered to life, trapping the hippo. Thunder, meanwhile, was grabbed by Rajan, who had swung down from his perch and thrown in along with Murray. Murray helped Thunder up and they tuned to face the lord of the hills.

"This is it? This is the cooper gang I,ve heard so much about and feared these long hours?" Rajan said, obvious disdain in his voice.

"The Murray will renew your fear." Murray stated, stepping forward in a boxer's stance.

"Who's 'The Murray?' all I see is a at, pathetic, weakling!" Rajan responded.

"I might be big and not as smart as the other guys..." Murray began, sadness in his voice for a second. Then he looked at Rajan in anger. "But one thing I,m not is weak!"

Thunder stepped forward. "Don't worry, Murray. I got your back."

The two then lunged forward and the fight was on.

Meanwhile, Applejack and Twilight, who had defeated the fast majority of the guard with their respective majic and kicks, were waithing for the others to arrive when Sasha and her sisters suddenly poofed into assistance beside them.

"Hey Sasha." Twilight said, getting used to the goddesses sudden appearances. "We got it all handled, but-"

"No time, where's Lightning?" Sasha demanded, an unusually urgent tone in her voice.

"I,m sure he's with the others-"

"Hello ladies."

The five of them looked behind them to see Neyla and...Devitra and Shade!?

"Howdy, there, Neyla." Applejack said, having heard about the constable from Sly. "Mind tellin' us what you're doing here with those two?"

Neyla ofered her a sweet smile. "You're all under arrest for ading a fugitive."

That got all their attention. Twilight looked confused.* "What do you mean."

"Exactly what I said." Neyla still kept up that sweet smile. Sasha went forward, along with Maria and Yukie.

"Or you'll what?" Sasha asked, a mischievous smile on her face.

"Just this." Neyla nodded at Devitra, who held up a suit case and opened it to revel a glowing green stone.

Sasha looked at it in confusion, while Maria and Yukie knew exactly what it was. The sisters nodded to each other, then put themselves in front of their eldest sibling. No sooner had this happened that the green rock began to glow brighter. A golden essence began to leak of of Maria and yukie and began being absorbed by the rock. A few more minutes of this, and the rock had changed color from a bright green to a dull gold. Maria and Yukie were collapsed on the ground, groaning.

"What..?" Sasha managed, before her sisters were dragged forward by ethereal chains that had been spawned for nowhere to Shade.

"Awww, isn't that sweet?" Shade taunted, lifting them both to their feet. "They sacrificed their immortality to save yours. How pathetic."

"Sasha, they have a god stone!" Maria cried. "The only thing that can take away a god's powers!"

"Get out of here, Sasha! You can come back to fight another day!" Yukie added, tars forming in the shrine maiden's eyes.

Tears were also forming in Sasha's eyes, but she nodded. Twilight and Applejack, however, weren't about to give up so easily.

"Let them go!" Twilight cried, her horn glowing in anticipation to cast a spell. Applajack was going to attack too, but Sasha grabbed their hands before they could do anything.

"They're right, we have to go." Twilight looked at Sasha in sorrow. Th normally happy goddess's current face was heartbreaking, to say the least.

"Don't worry, Sasha. We'll take good care of them." Devitra said, a malicious smile on her face to match Shade's Before Shasa could teleport them to safety, she saw someone come up behind the horible trio.

Lightning.

"Let them go!" Lightning cried. He then charged straight at the three rhymes with witches. Ney looked back at him with a casual glance.

"Does lord Malice need both of them?" She asked Shade.

"Nope. Just one." Shade said with a vicious smile.

"Good." With that, Neyla pulled out a gun. Not a shock blaster. A real, bullet-using gun.

"Lightning!" Sasha cried. Too little, too late. Neyla pulled the trigger.

The resounding bang echoed through the jungle. Lightning put his hands up to his chest, shock on his face, then collapsed to the ground.

"Lightning!" Twilight and Applejack cried, as Sasha teleported them out of there.

Meanwhile, back at the fight, Thunder and Murray were doing well. Rajan had proved to be no pushover, fighting with his staff with a skill unmatched by any other. But Murray was a determined bugger, fighting with his fists and taking whatever Rajan threw at him. Thunder helped by taking out the legions of guards that Rajan would summon at regular intervals with his Thunder blasts and fists. The pegasus thought he heard a gunshot, but concentrated on the fight.

The battle was finally won by Murray punching Rajan through the electric field, knocking him out. "Victory belongs to the Murray." Murray cried in triumph. He then took the Clockwerk heart of the staff.* "Sly's going to want this half of the Clockwerk heart safe and sound."

Thunder nodded at Murray's logic, then heard someone say. "Happy day!" They looked up to see Neyla perched on the edge of the pit.

"Whuh? Neyla!? Throw down a ladder, Sly's hurt real bad! Can you hear me!? Sly's hurt!""

Murray, she's betrayed us!" Thunder cried, preparing to fly up and meet her, only to get zapped by black lightning and collapse to the ground. Murray huried over to the black pegasus. "You OK, Thunder!?" Thunder didn't reply, just groaned.

up on the edge, Neyla was joined by Devitra, Shade, Carmelita and the Contessa.

"There they are, Contessa. Just as I promised. The Cooper gang and Rajan, all incapacitated."

"Excellent police work, Constable Neyla, ." The contessa said. "Carmelita's never been able to capture the Cooper gang, yet you and your assistants managed to capture them in a few short weeks."

"Well, I never.." Carmelita began, only to be cut short by the Contessa.

"Really, Carmelita, accept your defeat gracefully."

"Actually, Contessa, there's a good reason Carmelita's never caught the Cooper gang." Neyla said suspiciously. "She's ben in league with them the whole time."

"Liar!" Carmelita all but screamed. "Prove it!"

"This is a photo of Carmelita dancing with Cooper on the night the Clockwerk wings were stolen." Neyla said, showing said picture to the Contessa.

"But I didn't know I was dancing with Cooper!" Carmelita insisted.

"You two seem very...familiar in this picture." The Contessa said, then turned to some officers who were hanging back. "Men, place Inspector Fox under arrest."

"I'll get you, Neyla, don't think I won't!" Carmelita snarled as she was arrested.

"Such a pity when an oficer falls from grace." The contessa said with a sigh.

"Yes...it is." Neyla said with a sad look on her face.

Bentley, who'd been watching this whole thing, stammered. "The that no good...cockeyed...Liar!

There you go. How do you feel about cliff-hangers? You probably have a lot of questions. Don't worry, they'll be answered...In the next couple of chapters. R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't go into details. So, without further ado, here's chapter 18!

(Bentley's point of view.)

Though statistically improbable, I had to face the facts; Neyla had betrayed us, my teammates and Thunder were captured, and I was all alone. Except for the ponies and that weird girl, that is. While intellectually inferior, Sly and Murray have always been a good source of sociological interest, while Thunder was always an interesting specimen to study, him being a pegasus and all that.

The long walk out of the jungle gave me time to reflect. And with each passing step, my sense of isolation grew. Shockingly, my comrades' absence had a profound emotional effect on me. This was it. This was the true test of friendship. Upon reaching the van, my resolve was hardened. I had to save my friends!

But first things first, I had to learn how to drive a stick shift.

That wasn't the only thing he had to do.

"What happened!?"

"Where's Sly and the others!?"

"Was the jungle fun!?"

"What in tarnation is going on!?"
Bentley looked queasy as he was assaulted by the mares questions. They had all been extremely worried when Twilight, Applejack and Sasha had come back unexpectedly with tears in their eyes. Something had happened, that was for sure.

Twilight said something about Lightning, but she had refused to elaborate, causing the others, especially Rainbow, for some odd reason, to get increasingly agitated. When Bentley had returned, they went to him for answers, to the dismay of the turtle.

So, Bentley took a deep breath and explained everything that had happened that he saw. The girls couldn't believe it.

"Sly, Murray and Thunder have been captured?" Rarity said, giving an over-dramatic sigh.

"And Neyla's a traitor?" Fluttershy added, looking shocked herself.

"Wait, where's Lightning?" Rainbow asked genuine concern in her voice.

It was then Twilight spoke up. "He's-" She began, before being cut off by Sasha.

"He had something to do. He said he'd meet us there." She said, giving Twilight a look. Twilight just nodded, and then looked back at the others.

"The important thing is that we must save Sly, Murray, Thunder, and Sasha's sisters."

The others nodded their agreement. Then Bentley spoke up. "None of you would happen to know how to drive a stick shift, would you?"

Sasha moved forward. "I do."

A few moments later, the van was peeling down the road like a race car, most of the occupants screaming in terror.

There you go. Hope that wet your appetite till the next chapter! R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the first part of "Jailbreak", the next part of our adventure.* "So, without further ado, here's chapter 19!

(Bentley's POV.)

It took a sleepless week of data crunching, but I eventually tracked down the location of our friends. Locked away in the mysterious towers of Prague. At the moment, they're the unwilling guests of Interpol's most renowned prison warden, The Contessa. While still a criminal psychology student, she entered into a whirlwind romance and married a wealthy aristocrat.

Sadly, the union was short lived, as, the general suspiciously died a few weeks after the ceremony. The widowed Contessa put her education and newly acquired estate to work, by opening a criminal rehabilitation center. Her pioneering into Hypnotherapy as [produced some good results, and subsequently earned her a prominent position in Interpol.

Our friends are locked up somewhere in that clinic, and are slated for the Contessa's "Good Samaritan." brainwashing. If we don't bust them out soon, They'll be working a nine to five job selling shoes! And I'll be out two best friends.

The gang, minus Sly, Murray, Thunder and Lightning, were outside of their current Prague hideout, going over the game plan.

"Alright, we'll split up into teams of two." Bentley began. "Twilight and I will look for clues regarding the whereabouts of Sly and Murray. When we do, We'll go for Sly. Applejack and Rainbow will free Murray. Pinkie and Sasha will go and look for Sasha's sisters. Fluttershy and Rarity will look for Thunder. Any questions?"

"Nope!" They all cried at once. Twilight walked up front and center and looked to her friends. "Good luck everybody. Remember, the fate of our friends is riding on this. We can't and won't fail!"

Everybody cheered, and then went off to their appointed tasks.

Meanwhile, Thunder was being chained up by a pair of vulture guards.

"What, I'm not getting a good Samaritan brainwash?"

The guard's response was to hit him across the face with his crossbow.

So, Thunder stayed silent until they had secured him to the wall and left him there. After what seemed like an eternity, another figure entered. This was a pure black stallion humanoid with flaming red hair, looking like some big business mogul.

"Nice to see you again, Thunder." Malice said, smiling as if he were going to bite someone's head off. "I'm so glad my associates have brought you here." He came to a stop a foot away from Thunder. The black Pegasus immediately recognized the insidious alicorn demon.

"You're that guy who tried to kill me and Lightning the first time we were here!"

"Yes. I also tried to strike a deal with Lightning, but he's a stubborn one." Malice's smile never wavered. "I'm Lord Malice, by the way."

"I don't care." Thunder snarled. "That doesn't mean anything here."

Malice gave a sigh. "And you're supposed to be the smart one." He gestured to the room around him. "My dear friend, the Contessa, whom I helped arrange an 'unfortunate' accident for her late husband, has lent me this room for the evening. We have much to talk about, you and I."

"Talk about what?" Thunder asked with a raised eyebrow.

"About you and me, of course. Let me tell you a story." Malice sat on a stool, looking like an old storyteller as he began to speak.

"A long time ago, there were two princes, not unlike the princesses. They ruled their kingdom with fairness and dignity, you know, that whole clichéd thing. Then, the Elements of Harmony fell from the sky and the elder prince became obsessed with their power. You know where this goes from there, but you don't know the brothers story, or even that there was a brother.

This brother became resentful. How dare his brother hoard the power he had taken from the Elements? How dare he take power that he stole and not share it with his brother? This couldn't go unpunished, you see. When the Elder brother came back from his defeat, the younger used his weakened state to his advantage, imprisoning his brother inside mount Tartarus.

Of course, Celestia found out about this, and do you know how she repaid him? By making him the warden of Tartarus for all of time. The younger brother was resentful, at first. But then he began to absorb the dark powers from those evil creatures that were imprisoned in Tartarus by him. He soon grew so powerful, that he dared to challenge the Sisters, emerging and, with a little planning, take back what was rightfully his."

Malice stood up then, throwing the stool aside. "Those Elements belong to me! Don't you understand? Mine!? And no one, not some mediocre pegasi from a Podunk town, is going to keep me from taking what's mine!"

Thunder laughed all of a sudden. "So, you're the younger brother, huh? Makes sense, now. You throwing a temper tantrum over you older brother not sharing his toys?"

Malice gave him a blank stare. "You're just as annoying as your brother. Good thing he's dead." This caught Thunder by surprise, but Malice continued. "And soon, you'll be too. But first, we have some delicate work to do."

With that, Malice reached behind him and took out a large knife, which he removed from its sheath. He held it up to his face, a wicked smile on his face.

"Let's begin." He said, advancing on the shocked pegasi.

There you go. Ended with a cliff-hanger. I hope this has been eye opening. If you wish to see what story Malice is talking about, read "Guardians of the Elements." R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't go into details. So, without further ado, here's chapter 20!

Everything went great, actually. It was surprisingly easy. Perhaps, too easy. At any rate, it couldn't last.

It started out simple. After some sneaking around and knocking out certain guards here and there, the group split of into their assigned groups. This done, Bentley and Twilight managed to tag the Contessa with his sleep darts' allowing them, once they got the whole frequency thing going, to listen in on her. What they learned was shocking.

Not only was the Contessa a member of the Klaaw Gang, she was using the spice from Rajan to hypnotize criminals and force them to reveal were they hid there fortunes, making her rich. They also learned where everybody else was imprisoned. Sly was in "The Hole" Where the guards were equipped with motion detectors, while Murray was kept in a common cell. Thunder was apparently being kept in a separate cell for an "important associate." Yukie and Maria were also kept in a separate holding cell, on the left side of the prison. And so, the guys went forward with their plan and broke in, planning to get the guys out of there before the worst happened.

Sasha and Pinkie went to the left side of the prison, where, after some "persuasion" The guards let them in. In there, Sasha practically cried when she saw her sisters chained up on the wall. They were a little dirty, but otherwise, they were alright. She went to embrace them, as Pinkie stood by the doorway, tears in her eyes.

That's when it all went downhill.

No sooner had Sasha hugged her sisters then the door suddenly slammed shut, revealing Shade and Devitra. "Oh how sweet." Devitra said snidely. "Makes me want to puke!"

"I agree." Shade said, holding up the brief case holding the god stone. "Let's change that, shall we?"

Before they could bring the stone to bear, however, they were blown back wards by a blast of confetti, slamming them into the wall. In front of them stood Pinkie, her party cannon which she grabbed out of nowhere, in her possession.

"Quick, get them out of the chains!" Pinkie cried, blasting the witches again before they could recover. Sasha nodded and quickly undid the chains that hel Maria and Yukie. Pinkie was about to fire a third time, but was hit by a red blast of magic that lifted her up into the air, the origin of which was a peeved Devitra.

"Oh, you are going to suffer for that!" Devitra snarled, about to make good on her threat, but before she could do so, Sasha suddenly threw a chain at her, hitting the unicorn across the face. She cried out, falling over and blasted the magic that was meant for Pinkie right at her recovering sister, Shade.

Shade held up the brief case, which opened to reveal the God stone,which took the blast of magic directly. The stone cackled for a bit, then exploded. Green energy swirled around the room, then went straight into Maria and Yukie. The weakened goddesses were suddenly rejuvenated, standing straight up, staring at the recovering Unicorns with fury.

"Round two?" Maria asked, her blood boiling.

An explosion suddenly occured, a mushroom cloud forming. Bentley, who was going to turn a magnetic exprees train into a battering ram, turned towards the explosion.

"Is that...?"

"Yeah, it is." Twilight said with a frown. "You might want to hurry with that."

"Yeah, right." Bentley said, getting back to work.

Cliffhanger! Ain't I a stinker? R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't bore you. So, without further ado, here's chapter 21!

The explosions continued, making it look like a world war was going on in the jail. Sly, who had escaped a few moments ago thanks to Twilight and Bentley, ducked as a fireball went over his head. Looking in the direction the fireball came from, he saw Sasha, Maria and Yukie, all in pink sun dresses, (Don't ask.) Trading magical blows with Devitra and Shade. He wisely decided to stay out of this and went to join Applejack and Rainbow, who where freeing Murray at that moment.

Meanwhile, the guards struggled to get out of the way of the fierce battle happening in the rehabilitation center. The Contessa quickly got onto the roof, a snarl on her face. "What is going on here!?" No sooner had she said that, a ball of magical force sailed over her head, striking a tower next to her and causing it to dissolve into a liquid. The Contesa stared at this in new found horror, then ran towards the building that held Thunder and Malice.

Meanwhile, Sly helped AJ and Rainbow get Murray out of his cell. "The Murray thanks you for coming for him." Murray said as he stepped out.

"Same here." Sly said, flinching a bit as a peice of rock fell on him from the ceiling.

'

"Thanks, guys." AJ replied. "Now we just need to deal with one thing."

"What?" Sly asked, genuinely confused.

"That." AJ pointed behind him.

Sly did, and immediately regretted it. For behind him, dozens of guards had appeared, having been drawn by the sounds of battle outside. This guards now got ready to fight, their weapons lowered towards the group. Sly sighed, then jumped into the fray, the rest of the group joining him.

Outside, things were heating up as Devitra sent a pillar of fire at Sasha, (No pun intended.) Who responded by spraying water at it, putting out the flames. Devitra laughed maniacally.

"What, is that all the daughter of Loki and Aphrodite can do?" She asked tauntingly. Sasha smiled, surprising the red witch.

"What are you smiling about!?" Devitra demanded.

"This." Without warning, Sasha trapped Devitra's legs in stone, stunning the unicorn.

"What did you-" The rest of what she was about to say was lost as she was encased in stone up to her lower jaw, leaving her muzzled. She cursed incoherently as Sasha left her to check up on her sisters.

Yukie and Maria were busy fighting Shade at the moment. The black unicorn was holding them back quite well, sending blasts of shadow at the two while they ducked and dodged to the sides. Sasha appeared behind her, a grin, then poked Shade on the shoulder.

"Boo."

Shade turned in time to see Sasha launch a fist at her.

Shade awoke a minute later beside Devitra, who was still encased in stone. She looked up to see Sasha and her sisters over her, smirking at the sisters position.

"So, now what?" Shade demanded. "You gonna send us back to Tartarus? We'll just get out again-"

"No, you won't." Sasha interrupted. "You failed Malice, so he won't bail your tails out again any time soon. Heck, he may even increase your sentence after this monumental failure."

Shade and Devitra looked at her in absolute horror at Sasha's words. She was right. Malice wasn't the forgiving type. Shade sighed.

"What do you want?"

Shasa's grin got wider. "You're perceptive. I want you to get rid of the curse you put on my sisters." "You mean the same one we put on those blank flanks?" Shade asked. Sasha nodded her head in confirmation.

Shade sighed, then channeled black magic through her horn. Devitra, while still encased in stone, had her horn uncovered, and she channeled red magic through her horn. Yukie was covered in a black aura suddenly, while Maria was shrouded in a red aura. This lasted for a few minutes, then the auras disappeared.

"There, it's done, are we free to go?" Shade demanded, while Devitra glared at them.

"No." Sasha flatly said, shocking the sisters. "You're going back to Tartarus. Not only that, but you're going to have the same curse you gave them in return for what you did to them and everybody else who's life you ruined."

"You can't do this!" Shade cried. Devitra mumbled in agreement.

"I can, and I will." With that, Sasha opened a portal and spartan kicked them into it, sending to their destination. Sasha then turned to her sisters. Without a word, they came together in a group hug. It would have lasted more then a few second had not Sasha said.

"What was I doing again?"

Sorry for the long delay! I hope this was worth it though! R&r please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This chapter about wraps up this chapter of the Sly 2 game, so hold onto your seats and enjoy. So, without further ado, here's chapter 22!

Lord Malice smiled as he beheld what was in his hands currently. Several light threads, each one a different color, were grasped in his hands, whose source was the center of Thunder's chest. releasing the thread tell there was only two in his hands, He raised the knife in his left hand and held it underneath the threads, a blue and pink colored one.

"These first." Malice said, looking like the only thing he was missing was a big tub of popcorn as he slowly drew the knife across the threads slowly severing them in half. Thunder howled in pain as Malice did this, thrashing about like a fish on land, his chains rattling.

Malice had almost cut all the way through the threads when the Contessa suddenly appeared.

"What is it now?" Malice growled, clearly annoyed at the interruption.

"Our friends have arrived, and I don't think your little helpers are up to snuff." The Contessa replied, just as the sounds of approaching footsteps reached them both. Malice hissed in anger, then released the threads. Without any warning, they shot back into Thunder's chest. The vicious alicorn demon went up to the now unconscious Thunder and patted him on the cheek.

"To be continued." Was all he said before he and the Contessa went out through a side exit. A moment later, Rarity, along with a tentative Fluttershy, entered the room.

"This "Contessa" has really horrid taste in decor." Rarity, ever the fashion critic, said.

"Shouldn't we be focused on finding-?"

"Thunder!" Rarity cried, interrupting Fluttershy.

"Yeah, that's what I mean-"

"No, he's right there!"

Fluttershy looked to where Rarity was pointing and gasped as he saw Thunder's unconscious form. "What's happened to him?"

"I,m not sure, but I think we should get him down and bring him back to the others." The two mares quickly unlocked the chains from Thunder, (Courtesy of Rarity finding the keys on the wall.) and together they carried him outside.

Outside, Sly, Murray, Bentley, and everybody else was in the fight of their lives. Sasha, Maria, and Yukie's fight with Devitra and shade had attracted the attention of most, if not all, the guards in the faciluty, and they made it their primary mission to capture the cooper gang.

The way things were going, their mission might be successful. Murray, Rainbow, and Applejack kept the guards back with punches, kicks and bad-flankery. Twilight helped them by blasting away at the guards with her magic, while Pinkie blew away whole battalions with her party cannon. Bentley took shots at the guards every now and then with his sleep darts, while Sly took out multiple enemies with his cane.

But they were outnumbered by a large margin. They were slowly getting pushed back against the wall, surrounded. It looks like this is the end for...

With a series of honks, the van suddenly appeared from behind the guards. The van didn't slow down a notch, running down any one who didn't get out of the way in time. The van came to a screeching halt in front of the group, (It was parked on several guards.) And Sasha poked her head out the window.

"Get in!" As soon as she said that, Maria and Yukie opened the back doors of the van, knocking over two other guards in the process. Without argument, the gang quickly entered the van, which shut closed, then raced off, running over more guards as it did so. They found Rarity and Fluttershy with Thunder and loaded them in.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, they sped out of there as fast as they could.

There you go! The good part's coming up next! R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the part that wraps up this chapter. This will introduce a new character, so get ready for some more enjoyment. So, without further ado, here's chapter 23!

(Bentley POV.)

It was great. The gang had been reunited and it was all because of me. Well, because of me, six ponies from another world and apparently a goddess, but still it was mostly me. Even the van ride out of town was like a party. Well, like a party that was on a runaway train the way Sasha drove.

But despite all the jokes, I think something had changed. Since childhood, the three of us, Sly Murray and me, had never been apart, and our recent isolation had given us all pause for thought. Needless to say, we took a few weeks off before we went back to work. And for the first time in my life, Murray let me drive.

If only because he didn't want Sasha getting us all killed.

Meanwhile, back in Equestria.

Spike was looking through several books, a panicked expression on his face. He was looking for one book in particular. Twilight's copy of the Thevius Raccoonus. He wanted to teleport to the other world to help out in any way possible. He was Twilight's number one assistant, after all. He had just found the darn thing when an explosion of light lit up the room.

When the smoke cleared, spike was stunned to find a dragon, though not one like him.

For one thing, it was female. For another, she had the look of a Chinese lung dragon then the traditional ones found in Equestria. She was covered in black scales, with blood Red markings on her tail, her claws, and her tendrils. She couldn't have been older then Spike was.

The dragon snorted and shook her head, then looked at Spike.

"Hey there, native." She said, speaking a little formally. "You wouldn't happen to have seen a female primate with golden hair and pinkish skin, tends to wear provocative clothing, and tends to make pranks that go way too far."

Spike stared at her for a moment, and then got a hold of himself.

"Sasha? Yeah, hate to break this to you, but she left with all my friends and Lightning days ago."

The dragon gasped. "Do you know where she may have gone?"

"Yeah, but here's a quick question. Why do you want Sasha?"

The dragon sighed. "I'm her guardian, assigned by the goddess Aphrodite to watch over her."

Spike gave her a deadpan look. "Why would Sasha need a guardian? And who's Aphrodite?"

"The Greek goddess of love and beauty."

"That doesn't exactly answer my question." Before the dragon could respond, Spike continued. "You and Sasha just come here from wherever you come from and expect everybody you meet to understand what you're talking about. It's just plain rude."

The dragon sighed. "I'll tell you everything you want to know when I have the time, but for now, I need to find Sasha. To answer your question, little dragon, I,m not her guardian moreover then I,m her...baby-sitter, for lack of a better term."

Spike raised an eyebrow, but otherwise stayed silent.

"And I need to bring Sasha home to mount Olympus, as soon as possible, or her mother is going to turn me into stone."

Spike stared, and then shrugged. "Fair enough." He then told her how Discord banished His friends and Lightning to the Sly Cooper world, (which he knows they're there because where else would they be?) and how Sasha went after them. The dragon listened to his story, and then got up.

"I know the world you're talking about. I'll be off."

The dragon turned to leave, but Spike went in front of her.

"Oh no you don't! I'm going with you!" The dragon was about to argue, but Spike continued. "My friends and Lighting are in trouble, and I'm going to help them, and save Lightning so I can prove what a loser he is."

The dragon stared at him, and then sighed. "C'mon, then."

With that, the dragon waved a claw. A vortex appeared in front of them a few seconds later. The dragons where about to enter when Spike spoke up.

"By the way, I,m Spike."

Fiona looked at the assistant, then smiled. "I,m Fiona."

And with that, they entered the vortex and disappeared from sight.

There you go. what'cha think? Getting interesting? I'll let you be the judge of that. R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This chapter is the beginning of the Sly 2 chapter "A tangled web." So, without further ado, here's chapter 24!

(Sly POV.)

Time for a little payback. The Contessa, having escaped us in the prison, is now hiding out in her castle estate. It's a well-fortified, Gothic nightmare that would make any thief run in terror. Terrible of not, that's where we're headed. To sweeten the deal, we learned that the Contessa, who until recently was a secret member of the Klaww Gang, is in possession of the Clockwerk eyes. The Thievius Raccoonus describes the eyes stopping an opponent dead in their tracks, transfixed in there gaze.

It doesn't take a genius to tell what an accomplished hypnotist could do with such powerful artifacts. News of the Contessa's corruption has reached Interpol. Constable Neyla, being close to the case, was granted a case allowance to hire an army of local mercenaries. Most likely, we're walking right into a full scale war.

But we have to act now, before things go from being bad, to worse.

You could cut the tension in Prague with a knife. Tanks and boats from both armies patrolled the streets and waterways, everybody was inside their homes with locked doors, and soldiers roamed the street, one word away from battling each other.

Needless to say, the gang was just as tense. The only one not affected, not surprisingly, was Sasha and her sisters, who had commented that this felt like visiting her uncle, the god of war Ares. No one took her comment seriously; frankly, she was taken even less seriously then Pinkie, which was saying something.

If the whole army situation wasn't bad enough, Malice's influence could be felt here along with the Contessa's. Strange anthros, which looked like a cross between horses and lizards who were then dipped in lava, patrolled the streets along with the Contessa's soldiers, adding to the unsettling air in the city. This, combined with Lightning's continued absence, made everybody ready to snap.

That was what Sly was thinking about Thunder as he and the pegasus were scoping out the place. He had been unusually quite since they rescued him from Malice's clutches, and he refused to tell why. The answer to that was what Sly was about to find out as they looked down upon the city.

"Thunder, we need to talk."

"About what."

"You know."

"I told you and everypo...everybody else that I wouldn't talk about that."

"Well, you're going to talk now."

Thunder snorted, and then continued to watch the tank they were observing. But Sly wasn't going to let him off that easy.

"Thunder, you remember when I told you about how the fiendish five killed my dad when I was a kid? Did you think that was easy for me to tell you? So, why can't you tell me? I thought you were the brave one-"

"That was Lightning, and he's dead now, so there's no 'brave one' OK?!"

Sly was silent for a minute. Then Thunder recalled what Malice had told him. Every truth there was to know. When he finished, he looked close to tears. Sly then said.

"Was he lying."

"I don't know, why?"

"He probably just told you that to get to you. I'm sure Lightning's fine." Sly sighed. "When this is over, I'll help you look for him. It's the least I can do."

Thunder sighed himself and nodded. "Alright. Thanks Sly. This is the first time that someone's reassured me."

Sly patted the pegasus on the shoulder. "No prob."

Just then, an explosion of light burst from the hideout where everybody else was at. At first, as the two blocked the light from their eyes, they thought they were under attack. Then the light cleared, and there were surprised yelps, along with a joyful squeal from Sasha. Surprisingly, no guard saw the light.

Sly sighed. "That's the same light that happened when you came, isn't it?"

"Yup." Thunder replied, doing an impression of Big Mac.

Sly shook his head. "Let's turn in the photos and greet our new guests, shall we?"

"Yup"

With that, they headed back to the Hideout.

I bet you know where this is going. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't take up your time. So, without further ado, here's chapter 25!

Well, Fiona and Spike arrived. Bentley was taking careful analysis of the situation. After a certain amount of time, he threw up the papers he was writing and said.

"First, ponies, then goddesses, now dragons! Nothing makes sense anymore!"

"You're just now realizing this?" Sly had responded.

Anyways, As Bentley had a mental breakdown, the rest of the gang got back to work. After an episode with ghosts and the like, the gang ended up capturing the head of the Contessa's security. Easier said than done. If making sure their captive wasn't killed by fire during the capture, Applejack and Murray, (The two who did the job.) Had to deal with the guy's mumbling attracting unwanted attention during the return trip.

After a bit of fighting on their part, they finally managed to get him back to the base. In order to get the head guard to talk, Bentley tickled him with a feather while Sasha played a violin, (Which sounded like someone stepping on a legion of cats.) The combination of pain and pleasure forced the head honcho into submission, and he told them of the security codes to get into the mansion.

After learning this, the goddesses, without any prompting, stole some tanks and laid waste to the mercenary army. The carnage down there is still talked about today. As this was going on, Sly Murray, Bentley, Twilight and Thunder took the opportunity to sneak into the mansion, with the codes they had learned from the guard.

The group then made their way to the top spotlight, where Bentley explained the plan from then on.

"The Contessa plans to take control of Neyla's mercenary army by fooling them with a prototype voice modulation device. To get the thing working, she'll have to jack it into the satellite connection beneath Neyla's headquarters."

"So, I'm guessing you'd like me to steal the device and hook it up for our side." Sly concluded with a smile. "Giving us control over Neyla's mercenaries. Sounds great!"

"You'll have to steal some keys to get around the mansion."

"If there's a pocket to pick, I'm your man."
"First, steal a wiretap, then the voice modulator, the head beneath the sewers beneath Neyla's HQ."

"We're on it.

"Thunder, give Sly some backup, Twilight come with me."

"Right" Twilight said. Thunder just nodded. Before they could do anything, a shadow suddenly caught Twilight and Thunder, dragging them away into the night, with a shocked Sly and Bentley staring on.

Cliffhanger! Ain't I a stinker? R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This chapter is the wrap up to this chapter in the Sly 2 universe, and it's going to be a blast! So, without further ado, here's chapter 26!

The blimp floated towards the mansion at top speed. The voice imitation was successful, the mercenary army was attacking. It was pure chaos. Sly turned to Bentley and yelled to be heard over the noise.

"What do you think happened to Thunder and Twilight?"

"How should I know?"

"Shouldn't we be worried?"

"Not really. Whoever's working with the Contessa has made it clear that he wants them alive. So they're probably being held with Carmelita. Which means we'll be able to spring them as soon as we spring Carmelita."

Sly nodded, not denying the turtle's logic. "So, what do we do in the meantime?"

"Not die, that's a start!"

Meanwhile, while this was going on, Malice and the Contessa were arguing. Beside them, Twilight, Thunder, and Carmelita were strapped down on three tables in front of The Contessa's hypnotism device. By which I mean the Clockwerk eyes. The three were doing their best to resist the eye's influence, but it was a losing battle, evidenced by the way their eyes were glowing orange. The two villains didn't seem to notice.

"Why did you bring them here, Malice? I already have enough trouble with Carmelita without you bringing those little twerps here!"

"You should remember who you're dealing with here, Contessa. The only reason those mercenaries aren't in here is because of my warriors, so watch your tone."

"And the only reason you're here is because of the deal we made. We could dispose of you in a heartbeat. You would do well to remember that."

"Oh really? Well then, I guess I should just cancel the deal I have with your little social group, shouldn't I?"

The Contessa paused for a minute, then sighed.* 'Alright, fine, but I,m not going to like this."

"You don't have too. I should let you know that you will be having guests shortly, so I suggest getting ready for that."

The Contessa nodded and went towards the tables, suddenly tasking the eyes off their station and began to walk away, saying, "Would you mind watching them for me?"

"Not at all." Malice said as she walked out. He turned and grinned at a recovering Thunder, Twilight and Carmelita. "Glad to see you awake. We have so much to talk about..."

The blimp crashed into the side of the manor, Sly having jumped off at the last moment. As he took a moment to compose himself, the Contessa appeared above him with a snarl.

"That eye belongs to me...and I want it back." The eye of Clockwerk, which she just had not a minute ago, was on Sly's back. He had snagged it when the Contessa had dropped it trying to avoid getting crushed.

"No way! You think I'm crazy? Actually, on second thought, don't answer that. I really don't want your professional opinion."

"No crazy, just stupid." The Contessa replied with a sneer. "You are an ignorant child playing dress-up in his father's legacy. Oh, I know all about you and your cooper clan."

"Then you understand why this eye needs to be destroyed." Sly Countered.

"Short sighted fool." The Contessa growled. "I have no interest in your narrow-minded interpretation of morality. I'm above all that, above good and evil."

"And you think I'd give the Eye to someone that's 'Above morality'?" Sly asked in all seriousness.

"Enough talk, insect!" The Contessa cried. "It will be just as easy-and more fun-to pry it from your cold dead hand." With that, she leaped down and the fight was on.

Meanwhile, Malice was sitting between Twilight and Thunder, a strange, cord made of purple energy entwined in his fingers. It was coming out of Twilight and Thunder's chest. He gave it a tug, causing a yelp of pain from both Twilight and Thunder.

"What is that?!" Twilight demanded. Malice ignored her for a moment as he looked at the cord.

"Finally, the one thing standing in my way...Magic, the most powerful element, and the guardian who's bound to it. Finally, I can begin reclaiming that which is mine." He drew out a small knife and placed the edge against the cord, and would have sliced it, if a flash of pink energy hadn't burst into the room.

After the blinding light passed, Sasha strolled up to Malice, not a single trace of fear in her eyes.

"Leave, demon. You have no place here."

"I could say the same for you, goddess." Malice retorted, but got up nevertheless.

"Yeah, but I'm not threatening two worlds, unlike you." Sasha all but snarled. "Leave."

Malice growled, but left in a flash of blackish fire. Sasha turned to the captive ponies.

"What are you guys doing? We need to get out of here, not lay like a lump all day!"

Meanwhile, Sly was just finishing the fight of his life. The ninth one in a row. The Contessa was a fierce fighter, lashing with her legs, climbing back up when she was knocked off the roof, so on. The fighting spread all across the rooftops. At the end of it, the Contessa had snagged back The Eye and tried to hypnotize the Raccoon with it. But he was immune to it, somehow. He eventual knocked her flat on her back with one last blow.

"You have a strong mind, Cooper." The Contessa conceded. "More then I realized!" Then she fainted. With a smile, Sly picked up the Eye and turned to the scene before him.

It was absolute chaos.

The tanks of the mercenary army had turned into oranges. The weapons of the troops backfired horribly, leaving their faces burned and black. Random explosions happened everywhere, with no predictable pattern. And at the center of it all was the goddesses Maria and Yukie, waving their hands about to weave their fun.

Sly stared, looked ready to say something, then shrugged and moved to find the others.

There you are. I know, it doesn't follow the game exactly, but it's good. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the chapter that will explain the upcoming mission. So, without further ado, here's chapter 27!

(Sly POV.)

Things hadn't gone exactly to plan, but the Contessa was beaten, and the Clockwerk eyes were finally mine. The Contessa was arrested and brought to trial for the crimes she committed while working for Interpol. Their PR damage control went one step further by promoting Neyla, the 'Hero of Prague' to the rank of captain. Carmelita, still on the outs with Interpol, had to run with the rest of us.

To my surprise and eternal delight, I got to help my favorite policewoman escape from the cops.

I tried to put it all together. This Klaww business was spiraling out of control, and my gang was at the center of it. We'd be back in action soon enough, but for now, well, we just laid low for a while.

Yukon, Canada.

Jean Bison roared in anger. "First, Rajan, now the Contessa, what's next? This is going badly."

"Calm your temper, maybe I can cook you...something to...drink, to help calm your nerves!"

"Whatever."

The voice that spoke before, a feminine yet slightly masculine voice went down into a kitchen. She looked like a white horse, wearing a beautiful white gown. Only difference was everybody else would have seen her and thought she was ugly as sin.

And, in reality, she was actually a he.

The maid smiled. He was in. Now, time to get to work.

Dramatic drumbeat please! Read one to find out more! R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This is the beginning of the next mission, titled, "He who Tames the Iron Horse." So, without further ado, here's chapter 28!

(Sly POV.)

Following the trail of spice shipments, we made our way to Nanavut Bay, Canada, the secret hub of Jean Bison's shipping empire. As a young man, he trekked across Canada to strike it rich during the Gold rush of 1852. An advent prospector, he took some chances, and ended up buried alive in an avalanche. Miraculously, the deep freeze kept him alive, and one hundred and twenty years later, thanks to Global Warming, he thawed out.

The product of his time, he dreams of taming the "Wild North", damming every river, and chopping down all the trees, with progress delivered on the sharp end of an axe. Shipping Spice for the Klaww gang, proved a lucrative way to bankroll his one man war against nature. And yet, I have to feel a little sorry for him. He's just a normal guy from the eighteen fifties. Back in his day, he'd be a hero, but today, he's a villain. Either way, that man's got more than his fair share of the Clockwerk parts.

What a low tech guy like Jean Bison is doing with robot parts is a mystery. I almost don't want to know, but as always, it's only a matter of time before I find out.

Sly and the others went through the town, as silently as possible. Sasha was kind enough to conjure winter clothes for them. The group this time was made up of Sly, Thunder, and Sasha. Why the black Pegasus was still insisting on coming along was a mystery to all of them, but nobody argued. They in fact where starting to get a little concerned.

The pegasus was starting to become withdrawn, more serious then optimistic the way he was before. Twilight tried to talk to him about it, but he wouldn't open up to her or anyone else really. Sly made the suggestion that maybe, given enough time, he would be more talkative.

So, the others took his advice and went on their merry way. The rest of the crew was having cocoa and keeping warm, while they had to sneak across town and freeze their tails off. Oh, well, it was for the best. Besides, they would have the best time dealing with what came next.

As they slipped through the town, they suddenly heard the sounds of battle. Sly turned just in time to avoid getting hit by a flying moose. Said moose crashed into a barrel a few feet away. The gang, awed by this, turned to the source of his flight.

A group of moose were surrounding a lone figure, snarling as they beat their fists at it and kicked with their hooves, not to mention try to impale it on their antlers.

None of them landed a hit.

The figure sent several flying with lightning quick jabs and long, sweeping kicks. It was a good thing the figure wasn't armed, because then the snow would be all red with blood. The gang watched this sight, for the moment too mesmerized to remember their mission. Strangely enough, Sasha had her eyes squinted onto the figure.

"...I know that punch."

"Wha?" Twilight asked, snapping out of it.

"I know that punch! I know that person!"

"You recognize someone by their punches?" Twilight asked. Sasha wasn't paying attention though, a childish smile on her face as the moose thinned out.

"It's Karen!"

"Who?" Sly asked as he too snapped out of it.

"Oh no..." Twilight groaned, already knowing what was coming.

The final moose was defeated, leaving only the figure in plain view. She, for it was undoubtedly a she, wiped the sweat of her brow and breathed out. It was another human, look wise, that was dressed in armor worn by the ancient Vikings of legend. Except, hers was a little more revealing.

The red-head looked up and suddenly jumped forward, I'm not kidding, jumped forward, and landed next to Sasha.

"Sasha!"

"Karen!"

They both hugged each other and talked extremely fast, too fast to be comprehended, fast enough to put Pinkie to shame. Sly, after staring at this for a moment, finally said.

"So...She's a friend of hers?"

"If I had to hazard a guess," Thunder began watching them with a critical eye. "I'd say she's another one of her sisters-"

"How many of you are there!" Twilight demanded the goddesses, making Sly and Thunder jump and a miniature avalanche to occur a few miles away.

There you go. Yep. Another goddess. And that's just the beginning of the surprises. R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't waste your time explaining this. So, without further ado, here's chapter 29!

Back at the van, the sisters were chatting wildly as they proceeded to have their reunion, something that lasted for...quite a bit. Eventually, Sly coughed once, halting any further conversation they were having, and said.

"If we could get back on the subject, you just cost us valuable time having created that scene out there." Sly normally wouldn't hold something like that against them, but this was kinda important.

"What?" Karen asked honestly. "What could have possibly been so important that-"

"You ruined a reconnaissance mission." Sly broke in before she could finish. Karen stared at him in understanding, and then laughed.

"You don't need to do that. I already have the info you guys need."

This brought surprise from the entire crew. "How?" Bentley asked skeptically

"I have a spy." Before anyone could add anything, a figure opened the van and stepped in, almost as if on cue. It was...the ugliest horse woman one ever saw. She was wearing a white dress, something that could be found in Jean Bison's time. Three things stood out on this girl. One was her Golden mane. The other, her wings. The third...She, was actually a he.

And he was...

"Lightning!" Everybody, the goddesses included, cried. They surrounded the white pegasus, giving him a group hug that nearly crushed him.

"OK, knock it off." Lightning mumbled, but he was drowned out by their questions.

"What happened to you, sugarcube?"

"Where have you been, darling?"

"Why didn't you tell me where you were? Aren't we brothers?"

"Why are you wearing a dress?"

A few minutes later.

Lightning stood next to Bentley's Projector, pointing out the significance of each picture as it came.

"He's got the lion's share of the Clockwerk parts, particularly, the lungs, which he uses to power his trains, which he calls the iron horses. These were, until recently, shipping spice across all of North America. Wherever that is. I came into Jean Bison's confidence by wearing a disguise. He thinks I'm a maid from his own time. I've been showing mad survival skills."

"And no small amount of leg." Karen cracked a snicker on her face. Lightning growled and chose to ignore her.

"I've spent the majority of my time trying to figure out a way to get the lungs off his person."

"And have you?" Twilight asked, leaning forward. Lightning stared at her for a moment, and then said. "You think I'd still be wearing this if I knew that?"

"Maybe. It suits you." 8Karen once again said, then Sly said.* "How are you still alive?"

"Oh, that's easy. Sasha revived me."

At that, everyone in the group stared at Sasha, who was beet red at the moment. "I...had some free time and...well, I couldn't just leave him out there, right?" So I did a little magic and..."

"You didn't bother to tell us this!?" Rainbow suddenly snarled.* 'Why not!?"

"We had other things to worry about!" Sasha countered, sounding actually sorry for tricking Rainbow. "Besides, the last time I saw him, I put him in a hospital in Bali! I thought he'd just catch up with us, I didn't know he was doing some undercover work!"

"That's where I came in." Karen suddenly said. "When he got out, I intercepted him. I was tracking my sisters trails, trying to find them, because I knew they somehow got themselves into trouble, when I saw this guy. He told me his story, and, figuring you guys were in good hands, decided to go up here and kill two birds with one stone."

"All you've done is get me this dress and get into fights all the time!"

"It's not my fault they try to cop a feel!"

"Can we please get back on subject?" Sly suddenly said. "We can all talk about this later. For now, let's just think of a plan to get the lungs. Alright?"

Everybody nodded in agreement. Then the spent the next hour working out the finer details of the plan to get the Clockwerk lungs.

There you go? Aren't you happy to have Lightning back? And bringing another goddess in tow? I do. But that's just me. R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This is the beginning of the actual operation, so no more waiting. So, without further ado, here's chapter 30!

The plan was simple. While Lightning continued to distract Jean Bison in his disguise, the gang would sneak onto the trains that were transporting the spice and attempt to get the Clockwerk lungs out. What they couldn't foresee was the several problems that would arise.

First thing, the crew, which consisted of Sly, Murray, Thunder, AJ, Karen and Maria, flew over on Fiona over to on of the iron horses, where they would sneak on the train and take the lungs from inside. That's were things went a little downhill.

First, Sly, along with Thunder, blew off the locks on each train. That done, They were about to proceed to steal the lung when they learned Murray had been kidnapped! By none other then Carmelita Fox.

"I,m surprised that she followed me this far north." Sly admitted. "I didn't know she liked me that much."

"Very funny," Thunder said dryly. "But we have a situation here, in case you missed it."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." The raccoon thief thought to himself for a moment. "We'll save Murray, everybody else, stay her."

As Sly and Thunder went off, AJ took charge of the goddesses. Or tried to. But it was, in the end, an impossible task. Maria was as vicious as a junkyard dog, Karen as vicious as a saber tooth cat, and they both had the attention spans of four-year olds. They soon wandered off, leaving poor AJ to try to get them back on track.

Meanwhile, Thunder and Sly worked their magic on Carmelita. They took turns trying to get three keys off of her. The strategy to get them was this: Thunder would first distract her by showing his presence to her and having the inspector chase him. Then Sly would quickly rush up behind her and snag a key before she could notice. Then Thunder would fly up and disappear before she could grab him.

This went on for a few minutes with Sly and thunder taking turns on who's the runner and who's the grabber. Soon, they had all three keys and were busy freeing Murry when AJ came up to them panting.

"We told you we could handle it."

"Well, yeah, just thought to let you know, Maria and Karen decided to do the robbery without you guys."

Thunder, Murray, and Sly stared for a moment, then said collectively. "What!?"

As if on cue, an explosion rocked the entire area. Karen and Maria appeared right in front of them the next minute.

"Got the lung!" Karen said, holding up said object.

Thunder turned to Sly, who said. "After you guys, I kinda stopped caring about physics a long time ago."

There you have it! Sorry, it's a little slow, but it's good, right? R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the next chapter. What, did you expect me to say something grand? Sorry to disappoint. So, without further ado, here's chapter 31!

The next part of the job went like this. The gang worked made quick progress throughout the base with ease, the guards not being able to stand up to the might of Sly, and the gang, because I'm too lazy to write the rest of our heroes down.

There was a huge incident with Neyla, who had returned and attacked from a helicopter. After a brief battle in which Thunder and Bentley teamed up to fight her, they ended up driving her away, with only a few burns to show for it.

They proceed to get the other Clockwerk Lung, the the stomach, from the next couple of raids, then Jean Bison retreated to his lumberjack camp further into Canada, where he was using the Clockwerk Talons, (He has an awful lot of Clockwerk parts.) to clear away large tracks of forest land. All in the name of Jean Bison's idea of "progress."

This was not good, as you can imagine. So the team continued on with their crusade. They dealt with bears, well, Karen dealt with them, but that's beside the point. They also competed in the Lumberjack games. The problem here was, they didn't stand a snowballs chance against Jean Bison at his own game. So they had to cheat.

Bentley, along with Sly, Murray, Thunder, Lightning, Sasha and Karen marched straight up to Jean Bison.(With Sly in the back, so the bison wouldn't recognize him.) As the bison turned to them, Bentley, in a horrible accent, said.

"Excuse me sir. We humble lumberjacks would like to participate in your lumberjack games."

"Think you got what it takes to win the Clockwerk talons, eh?" Jean Asked with a raised eyebrow. "Well, I'm sure enough gonna let you play...so long as you pay the entrance fee."

"Entrance fee?!" Karen was about to get into Jean's face before Lightning tackled her to the ground.
"Much obliged, partner...We'll, uh, just take our positions for the competition."

"Enjoy the moment while you still got a chance." Jean responded. "It's the closest thing to winning that you're gonna get."

They walked away, gently tugging on Sasha's pant leg and whispering. "'Did you sign up the guys for the competitions I asked for?"

"Not a problem." Sasha held out a piece of paper. "Got it."

"Where's Twilight, by the way."

"Oh, that..."

Sasha had sent Twilight and Applejack, who had been with them, back to the van when they started this part of the mission. Her only explanation was that something didn't feel right. Twilight and Applejack where not happy. Niether were the rest of the mares when Sasha locked them all in the van. Sasha had assigned Maria and Yukie as a security force, which the younger sisters agreed to with eager salutes, despite Sasha's failure to explain herself.

Which she failed at more when she just turned around and walked away, leaving Bentley more confused than before.

The first event was a power chopping contest. Murray tried his hand first, doing a pretty dang good job, but ultimately falling short of beating Jean's record. Then Thunder had a turn. He was told by Sasha earlier to use his thunder booms to give his swings even more power, but he had refused.

"What do you mean you won't do it?"

"I,m a hero. Cheating is dishonorable. I'll not do it."

"You won't win if you don't! Besides, it's your natural talent, you wouldn't be cheating...Technically."

But Thunder's mind was made up. He did just as well, but was unable to beat the record.

Then it was Jean's turn. Just as he was preparing to swing, Bentley and Sasha poofed right behind him and planted and eagle egg right in his pants, then poofed away. No sooner had they done that an angry eagle mother swooped down and attacked Jean. After that passed, the judges gave him zeroes...that was, until Jean 'Persuaded' them to give him tens.

"Alright, so your pink and black friends know how to handle and axe." Jean said, looking up the ice wall that was part of the next event. "Let's see how you handle a vertical wall of ice!"

Sly went first in this event, climbing the wall and, thanks to his cane and natural climbing ability, made it to the top within the time limit. Lightning went next. The white Pegasus was actually encouraged not to use his wings, as that kind of cheating was a lot more obvious. He made it to the top in only half the time Sly had, but he made it nonetheless.

Jean came next. As he climbed the wall, several outhouses, (They looked like out houses.) exploded, leaving three grappling hooks in their wake. Sasha, Karen, and Murray, fired their grappling hooks at the same time, hooking Bison and pulling him off the wall. The judges gave him another set of zeroes, only to be 'persuaded' once again to give him tens.

"Looks like we're tied with only one event to go. Unfortunately for you, I,ve saved my best event for last-the spinning log competition."

"Looks easy enough, I just need to stay out of the water." Bentley said, climbing onto the spinning logs. Despite the logs constant spinning and dunking, Bentley made it out OK. As Jean was about to compete, Murray stated an obvious fact.

"This is crazy, Jean Bison's got those judges so intimidated, there's no way he can lose!"

"You're right Murray." Sly agreed. "Those guys need to go...Ok, I'm just making this up on the fly, but...what if I were to lure the judges one by one, into that cave." 8He pointed to the cave next to them. "Once inside, you two will knock them out and take their clothes."

"Ingenious!" Bentley agreed. "When all three judges have been restrained, we'll be able to don our disguises, and take their place at the judges table! Sly, you can-"

"Guys?" Thunder said. "I think Lightning, Sasha and Karen are already on it."

The above mentioned trio did indeed have it. Only difference between the two plans was that they knocked out the guards and three them behind a boulder before anyone could blink. They also slipped on the disguises at the same speed, taking their places at the judges table.

Jean Bison had just finished his event when they did this. The trio smiled at one another, then presented zeroes for him to see.

"What!?" Jean said in confusion. "I thought I warned you judges about the consequences of 'Incorrect' scores!" Jean then did a double take. "Wait a second...you're not the judges I hired! It's the scrawny raccoon's annoying friends! Well if you want the talons, why don't you just take em!?"

He then threw the staff that had the talons attached to them. The staff was about to hit them, but Sasha blasted it with magic. It went flying backwards...and struck Sly on the head, Murray after that, Bentley, Thunder, then somehow boomeranged back and struck Lightning on the head. All the victims were knocked out cold.

"Oops." Sasha said, looking guilty.

There you go. Sorry for taking so long! R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This is the big moment. The final boss fight before we reach the final couple of chapters. I hope you,ve enjoyed this, the best part's coming up! So, without further ado, here's chapter 32!

Maria and Yukie stood outside the van, looking for all the world like prison guards, except for the fact that they were dressed like a flamingo dancer and a shrine maiden. Their "Prisoners" were the main six. When Sasha gave orders that they be kept here, The younger goddesses took the order to heart, locking the mares in the van and quite literally throwing away the key.

They didn't take kindly to this treatment, mind you. Applejack tried kicking their way out. Sadly, the steel in the door was a lot stronger then it looked. Twilight tried to use magic, but the goddesses had secretly rubbed poison joke on her and her horn was back to being a useless blob. Rainbow then tried to break down the door several times, but again to no avail.

At length, they gave up. Rainbow was still yelling at one time or another, but that was it. As for the dragons, they were goofing off somewhere in the Yukon. Fiona and Spike had really hit it off, both being dragons and all, and decided to go exploring.

The problem was, they didn't come back when they said they were. In fact, they were an hour late. Maria and Yukie didn't worry about this a lot. They thought that the two dragons were getting to "Know" each other better. (This was accompanied by several giggles.)

So it came to no surprise that, as they were discussing how old Spike actually was, they didn't notice the strange figure coming right up to them. Smiling, the figure drew a green glowing stone, (You guessed it, a God Stone.) And pointed it in the direction of the still chatting goddesses.

An instant later, the goddesses collapsed on the ground powerless, as Lord malice cackled and signaled the goons behind him to drag away the van, saying.* "Thank you, you have made this so much easier. Now, where are the rest of your friends?"

Meanwhile, Bentley,Thunder and Lightning awoke in a cell in what was undoubtedly Jean's main base. The bonk on the head they all received was starting to recede, but it was still hurting all of them. Sasha and Karen where nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, my aching head." Bentley groaned.

"I,m right there with you." Lightning agreed, holding his head in his hands.

"Those talons really pack a punch." Bentley continued, not acknowledging Lightning's statement. " Bentley turned to Sly and Murray beside them, who were still unconscious. "Sly! Murray! Wake up!"

"Yeah, I,m awake, but not so loud." Responded Sly. "I have a splitting headache."

"Whuh...Who...?" Murray said, standing and clearing his head. "Where are we? What's going on?"

"This looks like the saw-mill control room." Bentley explained. "Bison must have thrown us in for interrogation later. I for one, would like to escape before he returns."

"Yeah, especially if he finds out I,m not a chambermaid." Lightning seconded. Or male."

Sly took a quick look around. "It looks like we're pretty well sealed in here. Unless..." He was looking at Bentley with a smile.

"Unless what?" Bentley asked, a little suspicious.

"Unless you can fit through that hole." He indicated what looked like a sort of ventilation shaft.

Bentley hesitated for a moment. "I...I think I could squeeze through there. I'll drop down and try to free you guys from the outside. If there's any trouble, I'll call with this walkie talkie," He held up the walkie talkie for emphasis. "You might be able to help me with these Sawmill controls."

"While you guys do that," Murray broke in. "I'll try prying open that steel door. Given enough time, I might be able to make some progress."

Thunder came up To Murray. "I'll see if I can help with my thunder Blasts. That could at least weaken the support."

"Sounds like a plan." Sly said with a smile. "Good luck Bentley, and remember to shout if we can help from up here."

As Thunder helped Murray try to lift the door, and Lightning and Sly came up to the controls, Bentley quickly jumped into the shaft and went down into it. He eventually came into a large room, with several wood cutting instruments.

"Bentley you OK?" Sly asked on the walkie talkie. "I can't see you from in here, but I heard the fall."

"I,ll be fine, just give me a moment to catch my...breath."

There, in front of the turtle mastermind, was Jean Bison himself.

"Well now, candy britches." He said meanly. "I shoulda figured a puny turtle like you would find a rat-hole to squirm through."

"Well...uh...I just dropped my glasses and I had to pick'em up." Bentley explained, the lamest excuse he could think of.

"I ain't like you boy," Jean Bison stated, starting to get angry. "I ain't Stew-pid. When y'all where unconscious, Me and my boys paid a visit to your hideout and found all them clockwerk parts. Lucky thing, too; Arpeggio was willing to plunk down a king's ransom for the whole lot! Even threw in the talons."

"You sold all the Clockwerk parts!?" Bentley asked shocked. "Arpeggio has them all!?

"I wouldn't expect one of your kind to understand the finer points of commerce." Jean said disdainfully. "You turtles are too stupid to know a wood cutter from a wood chuck."

"Alright, that's it! Time to show you how 'Stew-pid.' we turtles really are!" Bentley cried in anger. He held up the walkie talkie and said.* 'On my command, Sly!"

"I hear ya." S ly confirmed.

"Prepare yourself, Bison." Bentley said, getting a determined look on his face. "En garde!"

"OK, walnut." Jean replied, lowering his head. "Get ready for a smushing."

Before they clashed, Bentlety had a thought. "What happened to the girls?"

"Oh, you mean your little lady friends? They were captured too. Sold them to that wierd horse fella. He paid nearly as much as Arpeggio for them! It was kinda a shame, I,d wanted too have more chambermaids around here-"

A loud bang, and a "Lightning, wait!" from the walkie talkie was the only warning as Lightning suddenly shot out from the vent and rammed into Jean at full speed, wailing his fists into him.

"You jerk!" Lightning howled as he pounded. Before Bentley could recover from that, Karen suddenly appeared beside the turtle and said. "We have a probl-" Karen stared as Lightning continued to attack. "I guess you guys already know."

"Yeah." The turtle said frantically. "Arpeggio has all the clockwerk parts! And that malice guy as our friends."

"My sisters too." Karen said grimely. Just then Lightning was sent flying back to them. Karen came up and grabbed him before he crashed into the wall, then turned to see Jean charging right at them.

"Alright, it's party time!" Karne dropped Lightning then slugged Jean right as he was nearly on them. Contrary to what you might think, the punch sent him across the room. Bentley and Lightning stared in disbelieve, then said.* 'You guys wouldn't mind helping with him, would you?"

"Sure." Karen pulled a sword out, while Lightning cracked his knuckles. "Let's go!"

The battle went like this. Bentley ran around the room, getting Bison to chase him. He lured him onto fire pads and automatic sawblades, then told Sly to activate them when necessary, either burning or cutting the bison. Karen and Lightning took no further physical action against Jean, knowing the turtle's determination to beat him himself. They mostly just beat the tar out of Bison's minions when they came to try to help their boss in the middle of the fight, and dodged the dynamite the bison occasionally threw out.

Eventually, it was too much for Bison, and he crashed to the floor, battered and bruised.

"Tarnation! I,ve been dun in by some four-eyed turtle?" Jean asked in shock. "Times have changed..." Jean then passed out, defeated.

"Once again, Brains triumph over Brawns." Bentley said, proud of himself.

"That's usually the other way around, right?" Karen asked, to the blank stares of Lightning and Bentley. Just then, the door holding the others were blown off their hinges, accompanied by a sound of thunder, then Thunder, Sly and Murray dashed out to meet the friends.

"Good job little buddy, that was some fast thinking." Sly congratulated Bentley.

"Don't forget about me!" Murray demanded.

"You...did a great job opening that door, Murray."

"Thanks."

"I helped." Thunder growled.

"So did we." Karen and Lightning echoed.

Suddenly a voice on the intercom said. "Attention, Jean Bison. Arpeggio's Carrier Blimp will arrive to pick up the northern light battery in exactly one minute."

"OK, enough patting each other on the back." Bentley declared. "If we're going to get the clockwerk parts and our friends back, we need to get onto that blimp."

"The silo battery isn't far. If we run, we can make it!" Sly declared.

"Or we can just teleport." *Karen said with smirk. Before they could respond, Sasha appeared and grabbed Murray and Sly's shoulders, while Karen grabbed Bentley, and disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving Thunder and lightning by themselves.

"Alright, let's go." Thunder turned to fly out of there, but Lightning was up to Jean's unconcious form, saying in a girlie voice. "Oh, Jean? I quit!" HE kicked him in the stomach, then flew off with Thunder. Jean, awake for a few minutes, groaned and said.

"You're a man? ...Well that explains a lot..."

There you are. Start the countdown, we're almost done! R&R please!

Hi! Hyena King here! This is the next chapter, were we'll do a quick overview of what comes next before we move on. Sorry for not updating for so long, but enjoy this next segment! And so, without further ado, here's chapter 33!

(Sly POV.)

After shutting ourselves inside the Northern Light battery, it became black. we just sat there in darkness for a few long minutes. No one talked for fear that Bison's men might discover where we were hiding. Time seemed to have stopped; then we felt it. We were being lifted up to Arpeggio's blimp. All of our hard earned Clockwerk parts were gone. Looking around the inside of the battery, I knew we've failed. I was all twitchy and ready for action, any action. Bentley tried to make sense of the situation by drawing up meaningless plans, while Murray took it the worst when he saw the team van float over the horizon on a block of ice. That van was his life. I knew he had to find a way to make it up to him.

This was not even bringing the fact of Thunder and Lightning's captured friends. They had gone this far to help me, the first time and this time, and I felt like I owed it to them to get them back.

In Arpeggio's blimp, the aforementioned parrot and malice, in his anthro form, were talking while making a toast.

"To the beginning of a beautiful business relationship." Arpeggio said, taking a drink of his champagne with his wing.

"And to a new body." Malice added, sipping his champagne.

"Well, I'd like to thank you personally for all your help in this Malice." Arpeggio continued. "You have been ever so helpful."

"It was nothing, so long as we have a common goal."

"If I may be so rude, what are you planning to do with those girls we captured when we retrieved the clockwerk parts?"

"That's my business, Arpeggio, but I'll let you know that I plan to take back what is rightfully mine, from them."

"I see."

"And, of course, I must thank Neyla for her part in killing that loathsome Lightning for me. His brother should follow suit soon."

Arpeggio raised an eyebrow at this. "They don't seem like a threat to you. Why are you after them, anyway?"

"Well, they are more then they seem. And I want to settle old business with an old friend of mine."

"Really?"

"Yes, but that's a story for another time my friend, for now, let us enjoy this moment of victory."

"Yes, of course."

They stared at from where they were sitting to a large room that held a large metal frame being held up by magnetic wires. And on that frame, the Clockwerk parts were being assembled.

Cliffhanger! Ain't I a stinker? R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! This is the beginning of the end. The final chapter of this story, where, The ponies and two of the goddesses have been captured, The clockwerk parts are in enemy hands, and only Sly, Murray, Bentley, Thunder, Lightning, Karen and Sasha are the only ones left to turn this truckload of bad luck around. Will they be able to save the day? Are we forgetting a pair of dragon wilds cards in the mix? Just what is it Arpeggio and Malice are planning!? Read on and find out!

Sly POV

There we were, heading east across the Atlantic ocean, Stowaways on a giant, airborne fortress. Though time was short, we made sure to study up on our unknowing host; Arpeggio. While attending a prestigious boarding school, the young Arpeggio excelled in all subjects, but he never managed to keep up with the other boys physically. Sadly his wings, due to their small size, were useless for flight.

Furious at his feeble body, he focused his powerful mind to search for a cure, in the works of the powerful, Renaissance masters. Their notebooks provided the springboard for the sinister, young genius. And it wasn't long before the Klaaw Gang took him on as chief inventor.

His talents must have been at work re-purposing all the Clockwerk parts for their criminal schemes. And now, thi9s mastermind is in possession of all the parts, it's only a matter of time before he puts them all back together, and if that happens...well, I,m not going to let that happen.

As for this Malice guy...Thunder and Lightning told me all about him, from some story they were told, how they were "Protectors" or something. The only conclusion I can come up with is that the guy's a head case, especially if he's that demon that worked with Clockwerk the first time. I shudder to think what he and Arpeggio have in mind...

Sly, Thunder and Lightning quickly got out of the room they were staying in and found themselves on the ledge of the top of the flying fortress they were on. Sly nodded to the boys, who nodded back, and the brothers spread their wings and silently took of into the dark, cloudy night sky, Thunder all but disappearing, except for his neon blue hair.

Sasha poked her blond hair out and looked to Sly, who motioned her to come out as well. Sly wanted her to stay with Bentley and Murray, but he knew by now that telling her to do something she didn't like was like trying to walk on water; all but impossible. So she crept out onto the ledge with him, followed by Karen, who naturally wouldn't be left behind. Oddly enough, they were dressed in winter coats to combat the cold, Sasha's being a really bright shade of pink, (Which none of the guards in this chapter noticed for some reason.) And Karen in a steel grey one. (Like she needed a coat, she hung out in this cold normally with only a t-shirt and jeans.)

The plan this time was this. Sly, Karen, and Sasha would sneak across the roof towards the destination Bentley pointed out while Thunder and Lightning provided air support. This would prove to be a valuable asset as they quickly mad there way across the roof of the blimp.

Any guards they came across were toucans, who were equipped with packs that allowed them to quickly boost themselves back up if they were knocked down. They didn't, however, make it possible to fly. So, when a guard came up to apprehend the trio, Thunder or Lightning who swoop down on top of them from behind, lift them up, and drop them off the ledge before the guards knew what hit them. If Thunder and Lightning weren't quick enough to stop a guard, Sly would knock them of the ledge with a few strokes of his cane, Sasha would do it with kicks, and Karen got the job done by ripping a piece of metal from the blimp and using it like a baseball bat. You could hear the guards scream for miles after Karen got through with them.

They made quick progress across the roof to a high ledge that gave them a great view of the sky, including a view of a blimp on the opposite side of the blimp they were currently on. Bentley talked on the Comm a moment later.

"My instruments have picked up large magnetic fields radiating from inside that blimp. If Arpeggio's already stared reassembling Clockwerk, that's where you'll find him."

"Sounds good, we're on our way." *Sly said, grinning.

"Don't waste any time here, Sly." Bentley warned. "Get to the blimp and take some recon photos. To build a plan, we need to know how Close they are to reviving Clockwerk."

"Relax Bentley." Sly reassured "I've got it under control."

With that, he shut off the comm link and whistled. Thunder and Lightning flew up to him as he said.* "You guys think you can give me a lift?"

"Not a problem." Thunder replied with a grin. As he reached down to grab Sly under his arms, Sasha screamed out.

"Hey, what about us!?" She and Karen were giving death glares to all three of the guys. Lightning spoke up.

"You're goddesses. just fly over on your own."

"We can't fly." Karen said. "It's against the rules for deities to fly when under a mortal guise."

There was stone dead silence, then Sly said. "Let me get this straight. You can cause random stuff to rain down from above, and have super strength. But the ability to fly is not allowed, cause it's against the rules?"

The two goddesses hesitated for a minute, then nodded, Sasha giving a "Yeah."

Sly stared, then said to the brothers. "Wherever they came from, they make less sense then you guys do."

They shrugged. "Don't look at us, they're supposed to be divine." Lightning said.

They flew Sly and the goddesses over to the blimp, (They had to make two trips.) And Sly broke open a ventilation shaft for them to crawl into to get into the blimp. When they finally crawled out of it, what they saw shocked them. They were in a large, open room, where, smack dab in the middle of it, A nearly completed Clockwerk was hanging from racks.

"I...I had no idea they could reassemble Clockwerk so fast!" Bentley cried from the comm link.

"Calm down, Bentley," Sly said. "He may be in one piece, but he doesn't appear to be, you know, 'alive' Let's stick to the format here. How about some recon photos?"

"You're right." Bentley agreed. "we need to be informed to create a plan of action. Try to get a shot of Clockwerk's head, a mech egg, and one of those spinning magnetic inducers. They seem important to the procedure. But stay away from the guards...If you get detected, we won't have time for a second chance."

Sly turned off the comm link, then passed Lightning a spare camera he got from his pocket. "Me and Lightning will take the pictures, the rest of you stay here." Thunder nodded, but he was shocked by the fact that The goddesses agreed to it.

As Sly and Lightning went off to take the photos, Sasha grabbed Thunder and whispered. "C'mon, it's rescue time." She started to drag him away, Karen following behind, When Thunder said. "Wait, we need to think up of a plan!"

"Plans smlans, we can do this." They started down a hallway adjacent to the room as Sasha said, "Don't you want top save the girls?"

"How do you even know where they are?"

"We have a spy."

"Really? Who?"

"Remember Fiona?"

Thunder struggled with his mind for a second, then said. "The big black dragon you had with you?"

"Yeah, she and Spike managed to escape, and said they overheard the guards saying they're keeping them in this wing of the blimp! C'mon, we can do this!"

"And where is the dynamic Dragon duo?" Thunder asked, still a little skeptical.

"They're hiding downstairs!"

"...Isn't that the cargo hold?"

Meanwhile, in the cargo hold, Spike and Fiona were cramped up inside a box, both of them groaning from the claustrophobic space.

"There's no room in here!" Spike cried out, trying to open the box and let themselves out.

"No, Sasha said to wait for further instructions."

"How long will that take!?"

The Chinese dragon thought on that for a second, then said. "I have no idea."

Spike screamed in frustration at that.

Back at the main plot, Sly and Lightning returned from taking Recon Photo's to revel that Sasha, Karen, and Thunder were gone.

"Where'd they go now!" Lightning growled, clearly angry. Sly was about to respond, when Bentley came on the line.

"Sly, I,m detecting voices coming from the front of the blimp. I think it's Arpeggio."

Sly sighed and grabbed Lightning. "We'll deal with that later. Let's move." They quickly made their way to the front of the blimp, coming up to a glass door that allowed them to make out general shapes of the things inside, one which was of a familiar Interpol agent.
"Neyla!? Neyla's here too!" Bentley cried out in surprise. Sly and Lightning looked at each other, then back at the door. Sly quickly took a picture of her, and Bentley came to a startling conclusion.

"I can't believe it! She must have been working with Arpeggio all along!"

"I,m not surprised." Lightning growled, looking like he was about to charge in there. Sly stared at him, and he said. "That witch shot me!"

Sly sighrd, then got closure and took a picture of the Renaissance menace himself, Arpeggio.

"There he is. The master mind behind this blimp, and the source of all our problems."

Bentley continued. "I don't need to study those photos to see the writing on the wall. Clearly, Neyla,and Arpeggio have conspired together to rebuild Clockwerk, and it looks like they're dangerously close to realizing their goal..."

"Look, Bentley," Sly began "I know it's not your style, but we need a quick plan of attack. Try to think of a way, any way, any way, to stop Clockwerk from getting reassembled."

"The quicker the better." Lightning said, looking ready for action.

"Well..." Bentley said. "those Magnetic inducers seem to be holding the parts together. If you reversed their polarity, it should pull Clockwerk apart. Unfortunately the inducer speed control station is locked down tight. Pickpocket keys from the four patrolling guards to get at it."

"Then, you'll need to manually reverse the polarity of each inducer deck at the top of their rotation."

"Consider it done." Sly said with a smirk.

Sly turned to Lightning. "Guess it's just you and me, now. Ready, partner?"

"All the way." Lightning and Sly clapped hands before they went to work.

They made quick progress, Sly taking the keys with his cane, Lightning hovering noiselessly and pickpocketing with the skills the raccoon had taught him. They then made their way to the speed control station. Sly quickly worked the station to make the inducers slower, then Lightning went to work reversing each ones polarity.

Soon, it was all complete, The whole assemble of Clockwerk crashing to the ground in a heap. Lightning almost gave a whoop of joy, but Sly grabbed him and dragged him into a corner. Soon, Neyla and Arppegio came out and inspected the wreckage.

"What's all this then?" Arpeggio demanded. "The magnets have been reversed! But...by Jove, it seems to have locked the Clockwerk parts into place! Excellent!"

It was true. The whole thing was now ready for takeoff. Lightning and Sly stared, and then Lightning let out a silent.

"Oh, crap."

Nelya, sadly, heard that, and turned to see the duo.

"Sly Cooper! And the white one I thought I'd taken care of! Of course, this would be your doing."

Arpeggio turned and smiled. "Ah, MR. Cooper, and MR. white winged horse friend, no doubt you believed a reversal would pull the old bird apart, eh?" He chuckled a bit before he continued. "But it seems to have had quite the opposite effect. I,m truly grateful...When fully powered up, I'll join myself with it's circuits and be born anew!"

Sly and Lightning looked disgusted. All this...because you can't fly." Cooper said, shaking his head. "You're pathetic."

Arpeggio shook his own head. "Immortality! Immortality is what I seek. The other Klaaw gang members were much too short-sighted. They were satisfied using the Clockwerk parts to drive their various, trivial schemes. But not me, no, I saw them for what they really were, the keys to life eternal!"

Sly stared, then asked. "So...what!? You had Neyla but me on the scent back in Cairo, and then waited while we stole the parts from all the other Klaaw gang members...All the while, not arousing any suspicion that you were behind it all?"

"Seems that way to me." Lightning said with a shrug.

Neyla cut in there. "You make it sound easy, boys. I had to carry your pathetic gang through that first set of heists. I was overjoyed when Arpeggio let me toss you in jail! I could finally go after the parts myself."

Arpeggio continued from there. "Ah! But acquiring all the parts was only half of the equation. Think Cooper...What kept Clockwerk alive for thousands of years?"

"He was fueled by hatred for my family." Sly responded.

"Splendid! That's right! Hatred! Putting his gears and wires together was child's play, compared to accumilating that much hatred."

"You can't make people hate."

"Oh, my poor naive boy...my meticulous mind has found a way. As your hippopotamus friend will attest, Spice consumption makes you both angry and susceptible to hypnosis. The Contessa, Hypnotist extraordinaire, devised a way to command people through flashing lights. I,ve created this blimp, to be a massive transmitter of those precise, light frequencies. The only problem I faced was finding a suitable source of light waves."

"The northern lights!" Both Lightning and Sly said at the same time. Sly continued on that thought. "You've been collecting Northern light energy so that you could hypnotize everyone beneath the blimp!"

Arpeggio nodded. 'Ah, hypnotize those who'd eaten food covered in illegal spice! Thank goodness for Demitri, Through his Nightclub, he got the whole city to consume the spice."

Sly got the big picture. "You're going to Paris to unleash a hypnotic light show of hate...That's outlandishly cruel."

"Cruel, perhaps." Arpeggio admitted. "But necessary to give Clockwerk his spark of immortality! Ah well, My new body awaits me, Be a dear, Neyla, and keep him covered. Ta-ta!"

He turned his birdcage around when Lightning suddenly cried. "Wait! What about Malice!? What's he got to do with this!?"

Arpegio chuckled. "That dark fellow. He simply offered his help in exchange for you, your brother, and your outlandish friends. They will be delivered to him as soon as I,m done here." He then turned and began to stroll towards Clockwerks body. When he got halfway there, Neyla suddenly knocked him over.

"Stupid Arpeggio...I double-crossed the Cooper Gang, Interpol, and Carmelita...What made you think I wouldn't do the same to you?"

With that, she jumped into Clockwerks body. The body powered up and began to move on it's one. Arpeggio said in anger.

"This is preposterous! You're my protege, not the next canidate for my immortality! I demand you leave the Clockwerk Frame at once or...or!..."

The Clockwerk framed pecked him, crushing him into the floor, leaving only his monocle to roll at Sly and Lightning's feet. The frame flew to hover in the air a bit as she proclaimed.

"Behold! Clock-La is born!"

She then rammed through the front of the blimp, leaving nothing but destruction in her wake. As she lew off into the night sky, Lightning said.

"Ah, crap."

There you go! Sorry for the long wait, everybody! Now, how is this going to work out? Will they be able to defeat Clock-La!? Find out next chapter! R&R please!

hyena king here! I know, it's been a while,and I'm sorry for that, but I will now make it up to you through this next chapter! I warn you, this goes a little off-script as far as the game goes, but it will be good, promise. So, without further ado, here's chapter 35!

thunder and the goddesses quickly made there way to the cargo hold, where they met up with spike and fFiona,who were just then struggling out of a wooden crate. Spike, who was stretching out his back, growled in anger.

"About time you showed up. We were waiting forever for you guys."

"Don't take that tone with me, lizard boy!" Karen all but roared, pulling a sword out of nowhere. Thunder growled and yelled just as fiercely.

"Enough! We don't have time for this!" In a quieter voice, he asked Fiona, who was shaking her dizzy head. "Where are the girls?"

Fiona shook her head a little more, then pointed with her snout down a corridor. The group headed down it, each wondering what lied ahead. They came out into a larger cargo hold, where a strange sight beheld them. It was the main six, tied up in a group in the middle of the room, gagged with white cloth. Thunder and sasha went to cut them loose, while twilight tried to tell them something frantically, the gag muffleing her attempts. When sasha removed her gag, she screamed.

"It's a trap!"

At that moment, a flow of lava appeared over the entrance they had came through, the magma gardening to rock almost instantaneously, blocking the entrance. In puffs of smoke, creatures that looked like a horried cross between a pony and a lizard colored red and black appeared, hissing at the assembled group,while demonic versions of diamond dogs, complete with horns, growled at them. In front of the blockade, malice came forth, his mane a long trail of fire, a snarl on his face.

"Well, ladies and gents, congratulations, you have all been even bigger pains in the neck then I ever thought possible. I consider myself, despite what you might think, an even tempered stallion. It takes a lot to get under my skin, but you have all one the gold medal in the annoy-me-olympics."

He turned to his minions snarling. "Kill all, but the mares. I need them for the ritual."

With that, the salamanders and hellhounds, for that was what they were, surged forth, carrying out their master's order.

A fierce fight ensued. Thunder punched out, sending shockwaves that sent the hellspawn flying backwards, while Karen went straight in, slashing with her sword. Maria and Julie provided support by blasting magical blasts at there attackers, who sent fireballs right back at them.

Sasha quickly undid the bindings on the main six, who joined the fray. Applejack and rainbow went straight in, slobbering with fists and kicks, while rarity and twilight provided cover fire with their magic. Fluttershy and pinkie stayed back, with pinkie occasionally throwing cupcakes at their attackers.

Even the dragons joined in. Fiona, in all her dragon might, fire balls of acid and attacked with her claws and teeth, while spike rode on her head, looking like Napoleon on his horse.

They fight ended with the beasts on the ground beaten senseless or out was about to say something, but a shriek came from behind, drawing his attention. Malice had her by the throat, saying to thunder. "Come to the top of this blimp, alone, or she dies." He then disappeared in a cloud of smoke, causing thunder to scream.

"Twilight!"

yep, another cliffhanger. I know, this looks rushed, but I've had a hectic schedule. Hope you enjoy. R&R please!

Hi, Hyena King here! I haven't made any actual progress in a while, and, for those of you still following the story, an explanation is needed. I have been really uninspired lately. My stories have gotten really chaotic, being inconsistent and introducing characters in a way that was confusing. I apologize for that. I will do better in the future. But enough of my drama! Without further ado, here's chapter 36!

Sly and lighting, having crawled up onto the roof of the blimp, beheld clock-la, in all her dreaded glory. At the same time, a helicopter flew over stopping right next to them, revealing the pilot to be non-other the inspector Carmelita Fox!

"Look, sly, For once, let's skip the flirty chit-chat and get down to business! I need an experience tail-gunner. Jump in and grab the gun. We got a bird to shoot down!"

"That's not flirty chit-chat?" Sly asked, unable to help himself. He quickly, jumped in the helicopter, taking the turret seat as it raced off to face clock-la. Lightning was about to join them in flight, but heard thunder cry out.

"Lightning!"

The white Pegasus flew towards the black streak heading his way. They almost crashed into each other as they skidded to a halt.

"Thunder, what's going on?!"

"Twilight's been captured. He got the others out, but malice has twilight."

"What!?"

"I know. Sasha and her sisters are with the girls, looking around the blimp for them, but so far, there's no sign of them."

Before lighting could respond, a deep, demonic invoice roared. "Thunder and lightning!"

They turned and saw, standing on the roof, Lord Malice himself. He was holding twilight's hands behind her back, holding her in front of him. The purple unicorn had a scared, but defiant look on her face, and the black eye, barely visible by way of his fur color, showed that it hadn't been easy taking her.

Malice cackled, shouting. "Now, shall we get on to business?"

Thunder and lightning made to fly forth, but, faster than an arrow loosed from a bow, malice's metal tipped, scorpion-like tail raced forward, placing the tip right at the base of her throat.

"Come any closer, I'll pierce her throat!"

Thunder's voice rang in the night with his rage. "Let her go, you coward!"

"Wait, I thought you needed her for her element!" Lightning pointed out, struggling not to race forward and deck the villain.

"She is but an insignificant wielder of the element, nothing more! However, she makes quite the bargaining chip for you glorified saps. Besides..." He leaned close, ranged maw right at her ear. "If I can't have the element of magic...I might just have to take this little morsel back with me as a consolation prize." He then stuck his forked, lizard-like tongue out to lick the top of her ear, causing twilight to flinch, which in turn, caused the tip of his tail to scrap her neck, drawing blood.

"I'll kill you, you bastard!" (Rated T, remember?) His eyes glowed blue, sparks trailing from his now glowing mane and tail, blue energy containing cannonballs of sonic blast formed in the palms of his hands, shaking uncontrollably. Lightning was no better off, his own mane and tail glowing bright gold, electricity forming in his hands.

Thunder continued his rant. "Why do you want the damn elements so badly anyway!? There the elements of harmony, of friendship! You try to cut my bonds to the elements, threaten us, Chase us, for what to use them for your-"

"They're mine!" Malice roared, tightening his grip on twilight. "I was the one who found them at the tree of harmony, not my brother Kronos! I locked that fool away so that they would be mine and only mine! They hold power untold! They gave me all I ever wanted! Then those prissy little pony princesses had to come in and take them! What's worse, they banished me to Tartarus for using them for my own ends! Me, a prince! And all my attempts to get it back were always thwarted by your damn family! No more! You will retrieve the elements for me, or-"

"Tree of harmony? Family?" Lightning asked, completely baffled. "Celestia told us the elements came from a meteor. And our mom was a weather pony. There's no way she could have thwarted you. And we found out about you a couple of months ago! How could we have thwarted you before we were born!?"

Lightning's rare bout of intelligence caught malice off guard. He stared at him, then he began to snicker. "You really don't know?" He then began to laugh, throwing his head back, the noise sounding like thunder. When he sobered, he said with a hiss. "I see Celestia has told you some things, but...She didn't tell you everything. I'll say only this on the subject. Sly Cooper's not the only one with a family legacy."

He then dug his tail closer to twilight's throat. "Now, retrieve the elements, or I'll-"

He never finished his sentence, for, as he spoke, a blast of confetti came from his right, striking him in the face. Roaring, he grabbed his face in his hands, letting go of twilight in the process. She quickly turned away from the tail, faced malice, and blasted him with a ray of magic. She must have been really ticked, cause the blast sent him flying over the edge, off the blimp and falling.

Thunder raced forward, stopping in front of twilight and inspecting the nick she got. "You alright?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine."

They bother turned to see Sasha and Pinkie running up. Pinkie was holding what appeared to be her signature party cannon, crossed with a grenade launcher. "Woo-hoo! The Party Blaster 2.0 is awesome! Thanks Sasha."

"We have a problem." The blonde haired goddess said, looking worried.

"What else could possibly go wrong!?" Lightning had to ask. As if on cue, clock-la appeared, her wings burning, in a dive-bombing crash. She flew right past them, tearing the blimp in two and knocking the battery that Murray and Bentley were in to fall towards the earth.

As the blimp started to fall apart, lightning said. "Oh. That."

There you have it! Hope I didn't make a mistake, making this chapter more pony related then sly related. There will be more sly action in the next chapter, I promise! R&R please!

Hi, hyena king here! Well, I did it again. I haven't posted anything in a long while. And I'm sorry for that. Time for the epic climax to this story, finishing off clock-la for good! Let's get this ball rolling. Without further ado, here's chapter 37!

To say Murray and Bentley were In a bad situation would be a severe understatement. The battery they were hiding in was being carried by a badly damaged, enraged clock-la, prepared to do who knew what to the trapped duo. What's worse, the blimp was now being torn apart, hunks of metal flying everywhere. Amidst this falling debris, sly ran, jumping from one hunk of metal to another, using his natural agility and handy parachute to close the distance on the fiendish cyborg.

With a final leap, he glided through the air on his parachute, landing squarely onto clock-la's wing. She turned her head to regard the raccoon thief, yellow eyes blazing.

"You want a piece of me!?" She sneered. "Don't worry, there's plenty to go around."

"You may have a new body neyla, but you're still the low-down, backstabbing coward we've beaten time and time again." Was sly's response. "This won't be any different."

"Be brave while you can Cooper." Neyla snarled back. "I might not have the immortality born of pure hate, but I feel something...some power growing within me!"

With that, the final battle began, which mostly consisted of sly beating the villainous cyborg over the head with his cane. Easier said then done as clock-la responded to the abuse with fireballs from her eyes, causing sly to have to duck and serve to avoid getting incinerated. He continued to deliver blows as he evaded the onslaught, finally managing to severely damage one of her eyes. This accomplished, he ran along her shoulder to the left of her head, where they repeated the deadly dance, sly bashing, she shooting fireballs, until, with one final blow, he smashed her other eye.

That did it. Clock-la, now smoking like a stove pipe, dove towards the ground at high speed. Only minutes later, clock-la was sprawled on the ground, defeated and broken, or so it seemed at the moment. Sly, having jumped off the cyborg terror at the last minute, Bentley and Murray, having been cushioned from the attack by the battery, stood before their defeated nemisis, a look of amazement on their faces.

"We...we did it!" Sly exclaimed, his joy skyrocketing

"Right on!" Murray all but shouted, giving a little fist pump.

"It's an emotional moment." Bentley said, getting...well, emotional.

Then, out of nowhere, a voice cried out.

"Die insects, die! My hate will smash you!" This voice belonged to Jane, other then clock-la

"Watch out! That thing's still kicking!" Sly cried out in warning. The trio ran back, just as a field of lasers was generated by the robot menace. Despite not being able to move, she was still quite deadly.

"Clock-la mentioned something about a hate chip...it sounded like the source of her power." Bentley said, when they were out of range of the lasers.

"If we destroy it, she might stop attacking." Sly analyzed quickly, a plan already forming in his mind.

"Then let's do a little open head surgery!" Murray exclaimed, way ahead of the raccoon thief. "I'll pry open that beak so that Bentley can go to town with his bombs."

With that, the hippo surged forward, jumping through the gaps that the later field generated by clock-la provided. He made quick progress to her head, where, seizing hold of her upper beak, he lifted, with great strain, her beak to open her mouth. Once fully open, a hologram in the exact shape of neyla's face appeared, looking furious at the violation.

"I hate you Cooper gang! I'll find you in your sleep and destroy you!" You could tell from the tone of her voice that she was perfectly serious. "You will never know peace for the rest of your short miserable lives! Clock-la will know revenge...I am revenge, I am the alpha and the omega! Clock-la!"

While she was busy ranting, Bentley quickly made his own way over, his passage being a little dodgy thanks to his shorter stature. Once to her head, Bentley planted two bombs, which both exploded, but did little to no damage to the head.

"I still have my hate chip! You will not defeat me! Ever!" Clock-la shouted, clearly taking pride in that fact. Then, suddenly, her hologram disappeared, replaced with an image of Bentley's head. The turtle had hacked into her while she had ranted and overrode her programming. Bentley quickly entered her mouth and removed the hate chip, scurrying out and crying out. "Let's get out of here, she's about to explode!"

The beak of clock-la Tom this inopportune time to suddenly slam shut, trapping the screaming turtle inside. "My glasses..."

Wha...Bentley! I'll save you!" Murray cried, grabbing the beak to force it back open. Bentley twitched inside the mouth, looking at Murray to say. "Pick me up! I can't walk!" Murray did just that, saying. "C'mon sly, let's get out of here!"

No sooner had they turned to run then clock-la exploded, becoming a flaming hulk as bits of flaming metal rained from the sky.

All of this was observed coldly by Lord malice, back in his demonic flaming alicorn form. He had known neyla would betray her mentor from the beginning, and had even encouraged it. Clockwerk had been quite a useful ally, when he was alive any way. He had felt the cyborg's pain. Having what was rightfully yours taken by usurpers, thieves. He had hoped clock-la would be clockwerk's successor, (never minding having himself betrayed arpeggio by not warning him of neyla's impending betrayal. ) but, as it turned out, she was quite a pathetic shadow of the former immortal crime Lord.

Sighing, he opened a portal that would lead him home, looking in the direction where thunder lightning, and the elements were. He had waited this long. He can wait a little longer.

"Another day boys." He said as he went through the portal. "Another day."

and there you have it. For those of you still following this story, I apologize for the delays. Mostly I have jotted this down to real life issues, but you deserve the truth of why I haven't worked on this until lately. This story is quite a bit of a train wreck, with OCs, (suggested by a friend who will remain anonymous.) That came out of nowhere, my sudden change to dirtier contents, the plot holes. The seasons of mlp just whooshing by and leaving me in the canonical dust, and of course...my lack of inspiration. I apologize to all of you for that.

Now, where almost to the end of this maddening story, don't worry about that. I promise to do better in the future. R&R please.