Prologue: The Paris Heist

Paris was a large city and anyone not familiar with it could become lost rather easily, but that wasn't true for people such as Sly Cooper, his gang, and his sisters, as they had a talent for finding their way around a city and locating exactly what they were searching for. Sly was a male raccoon with gray fur and brown eyes, with his tail having the signature black rings on it, though he usually wore the same colored shoes, jacket, gloves, and hat, as they were all dark blue, but to complete his look he had the raccoon mask around his eyes and carried his family's cane with him. In addition to all of that he also wore a small red backpack, a common one so he couldn't be identified easily in a public setting, that he usually stuffed his stolen goods into before leaving his calling card... the same that his family used all the time.

Sly came from a long line of master thieves, the legendary Cooper Clan, who had thieves stretching back all the way to Ancient Egypt, or at least that was what he remembered from the large number of times he was allowed to read the Thievius Raccoonus, the ancient tome that was passed down throughout his family line. Ten years ago, when he was only eight years old, he was supposed to have inherited the book from his father, but then five strangers arrived unannounced at their door. His father hid him inside a closest while he went to investigate what had happened, only for Sly to see the shadowy outline of his father being attacked by someone and, ultimately, falling to the ground in defeat, before the strangers ransacked the house and found the tome... which they separated among themselves before disappearing to different parts of the world to commit crimes with the knowledge they had just stolen.

All Sly could remember from that night, including the attack, was that someone found him sometime later and dropped him off at the Happy Camper Orphanage, where he met the people that would not only become his friends, but also his family as well. The two guys that he met went on to become his most trusted friends and part of the new Cooper Gang; Bentley, techno-genius and strategist supreme, and Murray, part-time driver and full-time burden, though that second part was something that Murray was trying to get rid of. The two girls he met, who became his sisters, were Gilda and Derpy Hooves, or, as they were more commonly known as these days, Gilda Cooper and Derpy Cooper... though the reality was that neither of them were raccoons like Sly was.

Gilda was a griffin, meaning a mix between a lion and an eagle, and she had white feathers on her head that were supposed to be her hair, while at the same time she had a beak that was actually her mouth, her fingers had the shape of an eagle's talons, and she had a pair of wings, eagle wings to be exact, that grew out of her back. Those were the parts of her that belonged to the eagle side of her DNA, though for her lion side she had lion paws for feet, along with the leg structure to match, and had a lion's tail where Sly had a raccoon's tail. What Sly though was funny was that many people, those that had met Gilda, said she was intimidating because of how she looked, while others said it was because of her amber colored eyes... though he, personally, wasn't too intimidated by his sister.

Derpy, on the other hand, had bluish gray colored fur, her hair was light grayish apple green colored, which her tail had as well, and her eyes happened to have the same coloration as her hair, though what sent her apart from everyone else was the fact that she had crossed eyes. Derpy's left eye was almost always looking ahead of her while the right one was either looking at the ceiling or the floor, but never the same thing as her left eye, which had caused some of the other children to tease her while they were in the orphanage. She, like Gilda, was a different species, as while Sly was a raccoon and Gildra was a griffin, Derpy was a pegasus, though instead of walking on four legs like her species' namesake, the one that a hero rode into battle, she walked on two legs like everyone else... though her legs ended in hooves, while she had a pair of wings that grew out of her back, and had pony ears and a pony tail.

Sly sighed for a moment as he briefly recalled meeting the two of them in the orphanage, as that had been the start of something great for all of them, before they met Bentley and Murray... which eventually gave way for the new Cooper Gang, and his new family, to form.

"Here you go," a voice said, to which he glanced to his side for a moment and found Gilda, dressed up in tourist clothing, standing near him with a baked good from one of the nearby bakeries, though he had to resist the urge to chuckle when he stared at the muffin that he ended up taking as Gilda sat beside him, "So, did you find the building?"

"Yeah, it was easier to find than I thought it would be." Sly commented, though at the same time he lowered his voice so that only Gilda could hear him, because he didn't want anyone else to hear what they were talking about, before noticing who was missing, "Say, where's Derpy?"

"Believe it or not, she's inside Police Headquarters at the moment," Gilda replied, though as she spoke she lifted the muffin she was holding up to her face and took a bite out of it, where she smiled for a few seconds after she swallowed the bit she had taken off, "Oh, now that's a good muffin... Derpy is really going to enjoy these."

"WHAT?!" Sly nearly shouted, though he caught himself before he shouted the word out and composed himself, since he and Gilda, along with Derpy for that matter, were supposed to be acting like tourists at the moment, "Why is she inside the Police Headquarters?"

"Getting information!" another voice said, to which Derpy, also dressed up in the same tourist clothing that both Sly and Gilda were wearing at the moment, landed near them and took a seat to Sly's left, though as she took a muffin from Gilda she dropped something into Sly's lap and ignored it, "Yummy muffin!"

Sly glanced down at the small packet of papers that Derpy had 'accidentally' dropped into his lap, though he carefully looked around the area and found that no one was staring at them, to which he picked the packet up and nearly let a big smile appear on his face. This was a notice to all of the officers inside the Police Headquarters detailing the days that the building would be completely empty for the night and the hours of when each officer would be available, but what caught his attention was that in two days the building would be vacant without anyone working that night. The only concerning aspect about it was that there wasn't anything special going on that day, but he decided to shelve that thought as he decided to get the information to Bentley.

Derpy, after acting like a lost innocent searching for the park they were sitting in, swiped the schedule for all of the employees that worked inside Police Headquarters... and, in the process, just got them one massive step closer to completing their mission.

Two days later, or more like three since it was four twenty in the morning, Sly carefully moved across the rooftops of Paris as he made his way towards the Police Headquarters, all while mentally sighing as he realized that, in his eagerness to get this operation over with, he had forgotten about the custodians that worked inside the building. As a result he nearly missed his window to get inside the building before someone showed up for work, but since Derpy and Gilda were near the building, and could fly away at a moment's notice, they opted to recon the building until the custodians had left. Sure, he could have gotten one of them to come and give him a lift to the building, but he didn't want to do that since none of his ancestors had wings like his sisters did... and it made good practice for him, if he did this all the time, to which he mentally chuckled as he remembered that Gilda and Derpy did this from time to time as well.

Still, it didn't take him long to reach the part of the Police Headquarters he had been aiming for the entire time, one of the light poles that rested near a water container, though as he landed on it both Gilda and Derpy, now dressed in their thief attire that matched his own, and came complete with their own Cooper canes, landed nearby... only for them to falter for a moment as a loud screech erupted from all three of their binocucoms, which they all pulled from their pouches and held up in front of their faces.

"Sly! Gilda! Derpy! Come in!" Bentley exclaimed, sounding desperate to reach them at this point in time, though they knew that he was still making sure that their communications couldn't be intercepted by the police or anyone else, "Do you read me?"

"Yeah. We read you." Sly replied, though at the same time he shook his head for a moment, which his sisters did as well, before he focused on the binocucom and Bentley, "Loud and... very loud."

"Sorry, I'm a little nervous." Bentley stated, though at the same time the image in all three of their binocucoms rubbed the back of his head for a moment, showing they exactly what Bentley was doing in his chair at that moment, "Trying to break into Police Headquarters does that."

"Bentley, not to sound rude or anything, but can you please get over it?" Gilda commented, to which she sighed for a moment, because despite the fact that Bentley was a genius he still got frightened easily, even if he wasn't in the field like she, Sly, and Derpy were, "You're safe in the van. We're the thieves here... We've got to steal that file from Inspector Carmelita Fox's office, before she gets back."

"Well, the three of you can count on me to be your eyes and ears." Bentley said, where Gilda noticed that he sounded more confident, though that was only because he was in his element and was letting them do their thing, "I've got their security system totally scoped. To get inside, you're gonna have to go through that air vent."

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy found their binocucums zooming in on the large air vent that was on the other side of the roof, the one that appeared large enough for all three of them to walk through, before the three of them smiled, as it appeared that things would go their way this time around.

"Alright, we're going in." Derpy stated, echoing what was going through both Sly and Gilda's heads at the moment, though before they moved there was a switch in who they were talking to.

"And don't forget you've got me at the wheel, Sly." Murray spoke up, though for the most part he usually spoke to Sly first before remembering that Gilda and Derpy were there, which was followed by him correcting himself, "All the three of you gotta do is grab the file and get back to the van. We'll do the rest."

"Just keep that engine running, Murray." Sly said, to which his sisters put their binocucoms back in their pouches, as they both knew what was coming next, "We'll be down in no time."

Sly remained standing on the light pole he had landed on for a few seconds, using this as a small test of recollection for both Gilda and Derpy, as he had taught them everything he could remember from what his father taught him before the night he was supposed to inherit the family tome. His family, which was made up of master thieves, could tell when there were opportunities to sneak around, something that Bentley called 'thieving opportunities', and he was seeing if they could remember what he taught them. Sure enough Derpy found a path around the water tower's exterior that allowed her to jump on some antennas to get at the vent, to which he and Gilda smiled and followed after her, while at the same time he knew that Gilda had let Derpy impress him first.

Sly knew that Derpy learned things slightly slower than her sister did, but she was still smart and often used her appearance as a disabled person to fool people they were trying to steal from... though he quickly shelved the thought as they entered the air vent and discovered a series of alarm beams waiting for them, with the alarm horn resting at the bottom of the elevator shaft.

Gilda looked at the alarm beams and tucked her wings in close to her back, where she jumped to the right and landed on a small platform that happened to be attached to the wall, before finding one on the opposite side of the shaft they were in and jumped towards that one. Sly and Derpy followed after her, as Sly made his way towards the first one his sister landed on, which prompted her to move onto the third platform that was further below the one he was standing on and made him jump towards the second one. That, in turn, allowed Derpy to jump to the first one as Gilda reached the bottom of the elevator shaft, where she watched her siblings descend down to where she was standing and landed around her, to which she grinned as she broke the alarm horn and unlocked the door to the main hallway.

From there the three of them quietly made their way through the hallway, where Sly once again marveled at how his sisters had adapted to using his family's techniques, as he could barely hear the sound of them touching the floor, before they came to the door that would allow them to enter Carmelita's office. The problem was that it was locked, but for Sly and his sisters they knew there there was always a second way into every location, which happened to involve walking through the open window on their right and carefully sneaking their way across the exterior of the building. At the end of it was another open window that allowed them to enter Carmelita's office, where the siblings noticed that there was a fair amount of pictures and notes about their heists that happened to be attached to a map... which made since considering that Sly had helped Carmelita bust another thief some time ago, helping her out and giving her a 'relationship' with Sly.

Of course by relationship they meant that Carmelita was constantly hunting their gang, generally showing up late every time they stole something from their targets, though Sly chuckled as he approached the large vault near the corner of the room and knelt before it as Bentley told him the combination. A few seconds later the vault door opened and found the file they were here for, detailing everything about Sly and the attack on his family ten years ago, to which Sly grinned as he carefully pocketed the document and left their calling card.

As the siblings exited Carmelita's office, however, they all heard the sound of a shock pistol being primed as the Inspector jumped out from where she was hiding and landed on the top of a sign. Inspector Carmelita Fox happened to be wearing some tight fitting blue jeans, with a blue shoulderless top that was combined with an open jacket for equal parts warmth and freedom of movement. She also had long blue hair that moved in the morning breeze, same with Derpy's hair, though Carmelita had orange fur, as was common among foxes in this world, though Sly knew it was Carmelita because of the intensity in her brown eyes.

Sure enough Carmelita had her pistol pointed at the fire escape that Sly and his sisters were standing on, though he knew that she was actually aiming at the three of them and suspected that his sisters knew what the Inspector was aiming at as well.

"Criminals!" Carmelita declared, though at the same time a small smile appeared on her face for a few seconds, which disappeared a few seconds later as she focused on the trio in front of her, "You foolish raccoon! I've caught you, and your sisters, red-handed!"

"Ahh... Carmelita." Sly said, to which he smiled when he noticed her standing up there and changed his tone to a more friendly one, as he was sure that there might be something between them and was constantly seeing if he could bring that to life in her, "I haven't seen you since my sisters and I gave you the slip in Bombay."

"Which reminds me, you need to return the Fire Stone of India to its rightful owners." Carmelita stated, referring to the stone the trio had stolen earlier, something that they weren't planning on returning, despite the fact that Sly was already planning on mentioning it during their conversation.

"Aw, and I was going to give it to you as a little token of my..." Sly stated to say, though he played it off by noticing Carmelita's weapon, something that his sisters had been staring at since Carmelita appeared, "hey, you know that bazooka really brings out the color of your eyes. Very fetching!"

"You think?" Carmelita asked, though she barely moved as she stared down at the trio, indicating that this time around Sly wouldn't be able to talk his way out of this situation, "This pistol packs a paralyzing punch. You and your sisters ought to try it. Might snap the three of you out of your crime spree."

"And give up our little rendezvous?" Sly countered, though he knew that a suggestion like that meant that this conversation was going south and that they had better get out of here, where he noticed that Derpy and Gilda were ready for his signal.

"Plenty of time for that once the three of you are safely behind bars." Carmelita calmly stated, to which she flipped a small switch and turned the safety off, as she knew that the three Coopers were getting ready to move out of the area and she wanted to be ready to catch them.

"I'd love to stick around and chat, but we just dropped by to pick up this case file." Sly replied, though at the same time he prepared himself for the first shot to be fired, as he knew that Carmelita would be aiming for him first in order to make his sisters surrender to her, "I think you've had it long enough."

Carmelita pressed the trigger and loosed a blast at the fire escape, shaking the entire thing in the process, to which both Gilda and Derpy opened their wings and took flight, where Carmelita surprised Sly by firing at his sisters, who were better at maneuvering in the air than she was. Sly smiled as he made his way to the bottom of the fire escape and raced across the terribly arranged parking lot, indicating that Carmelita had done this to trap them on purpose, but Bentley had prepared for such an event as Murray backed up to the exit of the parking lot. As Carmelita realized what was going on, and turned to fire at him, Sly jumped into the van and Murray got them moving, though as they started moving Gilda and Derpy changed their course and flew into the back of the van... though Gilda let Derpy do it first before doing the same thing.

Within the next few minutes they were racing down the streets of Paris and Sly glanced into the mirror to his right, just in time to see Carmelita disappear into the distance behind them, before pulling out the file they had stolen and smiling... because now it was time for them to find the Fiendish Five, defeat all of them, and recover the pieces of his family's most sacred artifact. He only hoped that all three of them were ready to tackle the Fiendish Five, otherwise his family name was going to bite the dust after so many years of enduring hardships and other rival thieves... and he hoped that he, Gilda, and Derpy could make all of his ancestors proud by the end of this.

Thievius: Isle of Wrath

No one talked for the first few minutes as Murray drove the van away from Police Headquarters, as they were all reflecting over what they had just had and how well their plan had worked, save for Carmelita's arrival near the end, before they started talking. While Murray drove the van, Bentley tinkered on his computer, and both Gilda and Derpy stared at the scenery that was passing them, Sly spent a few moments staring down at the case file they had stolen, the very one that he had been waiting to get his hands on. Part of him wondered if he was dreaming, where in reality he and his sisters hadn't gone after the case file yet, but after a few moments he determined that he wasn't dreaming, because if he had been dreaming he was sure that he would have awoken the moment he and his sisters got away from Carmelita.

"Sly, that was a nice heist that you, Gilda, and Derpy pulled off at Police Headquarters," Bentley commented, snapping Sly back to reality, because he knew that his friend was likely lost in his head over the fact that they finally got the case file he had been searching for.

"Yeah, and it was nice to see Carmelita again," Sly said, knowing that his friends and his sisters knew about his feelings for the Inspector, though then again he really never tried to hide those feelings, "especially when she was the one who had the case file we needed."

"Speaking of Carmelita, we had better get moving," Gilda added, knowing that sooner or later the Inspector will have gained permission to chase after them, meaning that it was a matter of time until she found the evidence to arrest the members of the Fiendish Five, which would make it harder for them to gather the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus, "She's likely preparing to chase us to whoever the first member of the Fiendish Five is, so we had better get there before she does, otherwise she might find some of the pages herself."

"Right." Sly said, knowing that Gilda was right, to which he opened the case file and skipped past the part that was about the attack on his family home, as he knew all about that part already, before coming to the first target that he and his sisters would be taking out, "Let's see here, our first target is Sir Raleigh the frog. According to this he was born into a life of wealth and privilege, but he eventually grew bored of his life and turned to piracy, which he found to his liking after attempting it with one of his boats. He also has a fascination with building machines, which is why he was recruited into the Fiendish Five as the chief machinist, though the last known sightings of Raleigh suggest that he's got a stronghold on the Isle of Wrath, which is situated in the middle of the perilous Welsh Triangle."

"I see," Bentley commented, though he could see that all three of the Cooper siblings were annoyed by Raleigh's actions, both from taking some pages from the Thievius Raccoonus and what he had done when he turned his life towards crime, "Well then, I'll set our course for the Isle of Wrath... and made sure that it's the fastest one so we can beat Inspector Fox there."

"Awesome!" Murray said, though that was when he shifted the van into a different gear, allowing them to go faster while Bentley started forming the route they needed to take to reach their destination, "Next stop, the Isle of Wrath."

Gilda, Derpy, and Sly smiled at each other for a moment, because this would be the first step towards them recovering the Cooper Clan's most valuable treasure, while at the same time taking out one of the villains that had taken out Sly's father ten years ago. They had been training themselves, to the best of their abilities, for this day to arrive, though now that they had the information they were after it was time to act upon their plan and take out the Fiendish Five... starting with heading to the Welsh Triangle and see what Raleigh was up to.

It took them some time to reach the Isle of Wrath, though when they finally reached it Murray spun the van around so that the back would be facing the path that would head right to Raleigh's hideout, though when he came to a stop the back door opened. That was when Sly, Derpy, and Gilda climbed out of the van and jumped onto the ground in front of them, where they noticed that it was definitely raining all around them, while at the same time spotting a wrecked ship not too far away from the path that Murray used to get the van here. Bentley quickly wished them well before he closed the back door of the van, to prevent the inside from getting drenched, though at the same time the trio walked forward and began their operation, which started with them passing through a small tunnel in the rock wall ahead of them.

When they arrived at the back end of the tunnel a few seconds later, however, the three of them stopped as they took in their surroundings for a moment, finding a deck fragment of a ship to their left while the path they needed to take was locked at the moment... and it was unlikely that they could find the key to unlock it anytime soon.

"It seems that Raleigh knows his locks as well as we do," Sly commented, identifying the type of lock almost instantly, though as he did so he started looking for alternate paths they could take to reach the other side, "I know you two know this already, but please bare with me for a moment; that type of lock is hooked to an alarm that will sound if we try to put anything that's the wrong shape or size, like a lockpick, into it."

"That means we're going over the gate," Gilda said, understanding why Sly was reminding her and Derpy of this information, since they were slightly less experienced than he was in this sort of thing, before she noticed something interesting to the immediate left of the gate, "Hey, do you think we could use that ladder, and the tower it's attached to, to get over the gate?"

"It sure looks like it." Sly replied, though that was when Derpy emerged from the area they were hiding in and headed over to the deck fragment that they had noticed, which was currently being guarded by a walrus guard that was wielding a mallet as he hit the deck with it... while collecting two bottles in the process.

Derpy carefully approached the guard, using the stealth techniques that Sly had taught her and Gilda over the years, before she whacked the guard with her cane, hard enough to knock him out completely while also being light enough to avoid leaving behind any bruises. They were supposed to be thieves, so leaving a mark on someone was generally a bad idea for them, though as she did that, and made sure that the guard was out cold, she looked up at the mast she was standing under and found another pair of green bottles, with what appeared to be a sheet of paper in each of them, resting above her head. Instead of hitting the mast, and potentially causing it to fall on the guard's head, she opened her wings and flew up to where the bottles were resting, where she grabbed them and brought them to the ground... where she smashed all four of the bottles inside the tunnel and took pictures of what she found for Bentley to look at.

"Now this is very interesting." Bentley told all three of them, causing the trio to listen carefully, as this might help them uncover some of the pages of the Cooper Clan's tome, "The messages you just sent me appear to be some sort of clue! I'll decipher them here in the van. In the meantime, the three of you should see if you can find any more clues. The more I have the easier it'll be to crack the code."

Fortunately it appeared that there was one more clue in front of the ladder that they were planning on using to get over the gate and another four to the right of the actual gate, though the set of four included climbing on a rope to reach them since two were resting on a pillar of stone and the other two were on top of two young trees. From there the trio took turns climbing up the ladder that was in front of them and carefully jumped down into the area below them, where they stopped when Sly spotted a searchlight shining on the path in front of them. That meant they had to be careful, as stepping into the light would set off the alarm that was being guarded by another guard, though since the guard was facing their direction they were going to be spotted the moment they emerged from where they were hiding.

Gilda, however, used her wings to moved herself into the air before she headed over to where the van was located, to which Sly and Derpy watched as she eventually landed behind the guard, who had a large throwing star of some kind as his weapon, and knocked him out as well, before turning off the alarm system so her siblings could follow her. As Sly and Derpy headed to where Gilda was standing they collected another pair of clue bottles, their name for the strange bottles, before they all headed though what would have been a gate if they tripped the alarm. Once they were on the other side, however, all three of them stared at the large boat that was Raleigh's base of operations... as well as the large blimp like machine that was hovering in the air above the boat, which appeared to be producing the storm itself.

"So, who wants to bet that the blimp is where Raleigh is hiding?" Sly asked, because that was the first thought that came to mind when he stared at the machine, though he was sure that his sisters were thinking something completely different than he was.

"Well, according to my Amphibio-Positioning System," Bentley said, his tone indicating that he must have spotted the machine when they arrived and he had been studying it the entire time, though Sly was happy to hear that tone, "that big blimp is exactly where Raleigh is hiding out."

"I'm just going to say this, but that blimp looks more like a machine than a hide-out." Gilda commented, as the entire blimp seemed to be made out of nothing more than metal and glass, at least from where they were standing anyway, which meant that it had to be a machine of some kind.

"You're right, Gilda." Bentley replied, though for a few seconds he went silent as he pulled up whatever his findings where, but the siblings took the moment to study what they could see of the boat before they moved on, "That is a storm machine! It's the reason why it never stops raining around here."

"That explains all the wrecked ships." Sly stated, looking at all of the wrecked ships that rested all over the area between them and the boat, which made sense considering that Raleigh must have been at this for a long time before they arrived to take him out.

"But why would Raleigh want bad weather at his own hide-out all the time?" Bentley asked, as he knew that none of his friends could answer the question, not unless they asked Raleigh that same thing when they finally reached him, and even then their foe might not give them an answer.

"Well, it seems to be both making the storm that's alive at the moment and is being suspended in the air by that very same storm," Derpy said, as she had been staring that the storm the entire time, though that was when she glanced down at the wrecked ships for a moment, "and he's likely keeping the storm alive to sink ships that he can salvage whenever he wants to recover their treasure."

"You might be right Derpy," Bentley replied, though this time his tone suggested that he wasn't used to saying that she might be right about something, but no one really paid any attention to that, "Well, he's likely got his portion of the Thievius Raccoonus with him, so you'll need to get aboard the storm machine to get at it."

Sly nodded and beckoned for his sisters to follow after him, where the three of them silently headed up the hill that was in front of them and found a guard, this time with a welder in his hand, blocking the way, though they were more than enough to take the guard down and progress onward, after gently turning his welder off anyway. As they turned to their left they noticed that there was a low powered waterfall that they had to cross, where Derpy found two more clue bottles off to their right and collected them as they moved through the water. As they crossed the second part of the waterfall they all noticed another pair of bottles resting on some rocks, which they collected so Bentley could decipher them and possibly crack the code, before the trio reached a gate that they couldn't open with what they had at the moment. It was at that point that Bentley contacted them and informed them that they were making good progress, before reminding them of the fact that they could jump towards a circular hook and latch onto it with their canes, allowing them to swing over the gate... and any other obstacles that they might encounter in the future.

Sly was the first to react after lowering his binocucom, as he ran towards the gate and jumped into the air, letting the top of his cane latch onto the hook and swung for a few seconds, before he let go of the hook and jumped over the top of the gate. The instant he landed on the ground he turned around and looked at his sisters, where Gilda stepped forward first and repeated what he had done before Derpy had done the same thing, though once they were together again the three of them continued down the path in front of them. They carefully jumped across the four rotating wheels that were at the end of the path and stopped at the small patch of land that had a mallet guard working on something, though they quickly took him down before crossing over the second set of four rotating wheels that were in their way, as well as carefully waiting for an opening to reveal itself since these ones had circular rings that prevented them from moving forward too quickly.

As they walked into the new area they discovered a throwing star guard standing near the end of the larger patch of land that the three of them had found, which had two searchlights looking for intruders, but as they started moving this guard immediately noticed them and started throwing stars at them. Fortunately he couldn't target a flying target that well, as Derpy followed what her sister had done earlier and flew behind the guard, where she made sure to knock him out before Gilda and Sly caught up with her. Sly smiled as he deactivated the alarm that the guard had been protecting and knocked out the searchlights at the same time, though their situation improved when they spotted a large vault, like the one in Carmelita's office, but since they didn't have all the clues in the area they couldn't exactly open it. Sly was surprised when Derpy opened her wings and took to the skies, where she moved up to the tops of the two searchlights and found two pairs of clue bottles resting on the top of both towers. Gilda smiled as she opened her wings as well and headed to the second tower and collected the bottles that were up there, to which she and Derpy smashed the bottles and sent Bentley a copy of everything they found... along with one more, as it had been resting next to the vault, giving them a grand total of twenty clue bottles in this one area.

The trio waited for a moment, to see what Bentley said about the fact that they had found twenty clue bottles in this one area, before he contacted them and asked that they find the vault, where he discovered that they were already standing in front of the vault. Once he understood that the trio was standing in front of the vault he gave Sly the combination, 7-9-2, and let Sly open it, to which Sly carefully moved the tumblers into the correct positions and moved the lever. A few seconds later the vault door opened and the trio discovered a piece of paper resting inside it, which was actually a page from the Thievius Raccoonus, one that detailed the specifics of Drake Cooper's Fast Attack Dive move, which the trio committed to memory before Sly carefully placed it inside the ancient bindings of the family tome, which he carried with him at all times. While he did that Gilda pulled out the gang's calling card, the infamous blue raccoon mask, and placed it where the page had been located, to which the trio moved forward and crossed over the trio of rotating wheels... where they came to a stop once more as they spotted a interesting looking case that contained a decent sized key, one that had to go to the gate in front of them.

"This seems too easy," Gilda commented, to which she glanced from the key to the gate and back, as she knew that there had to be some sort of trick associated with the fact that the first key they discovered, the first Treasure Key as it were, while at the same time Sly studied the key without touching the case while Derpy stared at the gate.

"The key's genuine," Sly said, though he was at a loss for words as well, because based on what he was seeing there should be a trap or something, yet all he found was nothing save for the key and the case, "and there aren't any traps on the case. Derpy, do you see anything on the gate?"

"Save for the lock that the key goes to? Not really," Derpy replied, to which she turned back and stared at her siblings, as she had seen nothing that would be triggered if the key was inserted into the lock and already shared the unease that both Gilda and Sly were feeling, "If we put that key into the lock we won't have to worry about traps or alarms... which is by far the stupidest way Raleigh could have protected the entrance of his hide-out."

"I don't mind it if Raleigh makes this easy for us," Sly stated, though at the same time he removed the case and claimed the key, to which he and his sisters approached the gate that was in front of them, something that he unlocked and revealed the way into the hide-out.

The trio entered the tunnel that was in front of them and carefully made their way through it, since they had no idea if there were any traps inside the passage, but fortunately for the three of them they were able to make their way through the tunnel without anything happening to them... before they stopped at a small cliff that gave them a good view of the boat that served as Raleigh's base of operations, along with a better view of the blimp itself.

"That blimp looks like the most secured location on this boat." Sly commented, looking at the blimp in question with his binocucom, which Gilda and Derpy were doing as well, though they were also taking note of everything else the boat had to offer, "If Raleigh's really as smart as his police file suggests then that's where we'll find him."

"Wonderful idea, but your plan is flawed." Bentley told him, cutting him off before he even had the chance to mention what his plan had been, which caused the siblings to raise an eyebrow as they waited for him to explain himself.

"Okay, then explain why my 'plan' is flawed," Sly replied, because he had been thinking about having Gilda and Derpy carry him up to the blimp so they could take out Raleigh first, which was flawed since the storm might produce more than rain and would make them targets because of their canes.

"Because it's impossible get near him." Bentley informed them, to which he shifted their gaze towards a power tube that had bits of electricity lashing to and from throughout the tube, one that also happened to have a generator resting next to it, which was protected by a circular gate, "To access Raleigh's blimp, the three of you would have to sneak through that high-voltage power tube. To do that, without getting electrocuted, you'd have to destroy that power generator. And to do that, you need to find two more of Raleigh's treasure keys, which are heavily guarded."

"Interesting." Gilda said, though she was smiling as she listened to what Bentley was telling them, as this sounded like a good place for them all to practice their skills and tackle the objectives on their own, something that she felt they were all ready for, "So when are you going to get to the impossible part?"

"Fine! But I warned you!" Bentley replied, indicating that he had given them all the information he could at the moment, before he shifted their gazes towards one of the few doors that were open at the moment, which now had some glowing markers resting in front of them, "I've marked the areas you need to hit with holographic markers, which all three of your masks have been calibrated to see whenever I project something. Follow them to your objectives."

"Thanks Bentley!" Derpy said, knowing that it would have taken her, Gilda, and Sly some time to figure out their objectives on their own, but with Bentley showing them the way they could tackle anything that Raleigh and the other members of the Fiendish Five threw at them, "We owe you one."

"Don't mention it." Bentley stated, though that was followed by the connection being terminated, allowing the trio to lower their binocucoms and prepare themselves for the next part of the operation.

They had four targets to choose from, if they were seeing Bentley's markers correctly, which meant they had four potential Treasure Keys to acquire and four potential pages of the Thievius Raccoonus to reclaim, before any of them even considered heading through the power tube and seeing what rested on the other side of it. All three of them knew that this was going to be dangerous for all of them, since they were going up against one of the Fiendish Five and the guards that he commanded, but they had all sworn to make them pay for what they did to Sly's father... and not one of them was going to back down now. Together the three siblings looked at the blimp and knew that they would face Raleigh in time, they only had to take back what was their's and take his Treasure Keys, and then they could deal with him at last.

Thievius: Prowling the Grounds

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy took turns latching onto the hook that was in front of them and rode it down to the small platform that had been built on top of a small rock formation, though once they were together they crossed over the floating barrels and bits of metal that were between them and the main ship. Directly across from the small platform rested a small boat, a rowboat to be exact, that was simply resting in the water and had a rope hanging above it, one that would allow the siblings to climb up onto the main deck of Raleigh's base of operations. Sly was the first to race across the floating pathway and started climbing the rope the instant he reached the rowboat, though as he reached the rowboat Gilda followed after him and jumped across the pathway as well, despite the fact that she could have flown to the deck of the main ship. As Sly reached the second rope, that would get him to the deck, and Gilda reached the top of the first rope Derpy followed after them and crossed over to the rowboat.

In a few minutes the three of them were standing on the main deck of the boat, to which they discovered that there were small trees scattered everywhere, in addition to more of the thorns they had encountered earlier when they made their way through the first part of Raleigh's hideout, and a fountain that had actual running water... though before any of them could move they heard an intercom start up, indicating that Raleigh was going to speak to his crew.

I say chaps, my heartiest congratulations to you all! The storm machine has sunk its fiftieth ship last night and the loot has already been unloaded. Raleigh said, to which the siblings looked at each other for a moment, as they had no idea that the storm machine had sunk that many ships, but they paid attention to the announcement before they started their recovery operation, Our operation is moving along splendidly, with the possible exception being the gross negligence displayed below decks! I demand the boilers stay at full pressure at all times! If you lazy, low-brow, technically incompetent pack of guttersnipes did your jobs right, we could have sunk a hundred ships by now! But of course, fifty boats is a fine, fine achievement. Carry on, my boys, carry on.

"Why that little..." Gilda said, though that was followed by her taking a deep breath as she calmed her nerves, as she couldn't believe what she and the others had heard, "So all he does is sink ships and salvage the 'loot', though the way he said that makes me think he's just as lazy as he was when he delved into crime the first time... I am going to enjoy breaking his machines, stealing all of his Treasure Keys, and taking back his pages of the Thievius Raccoonus... and maybe beat Raleigh up in the process."

"That's why we're here," Sly stated, as while he shared Gilda's opinion on Raleigh, he also had his own opinions on the frog that had help take out his father all those years ago, before he sighed and looked at his sisters, who turned their attention to him for a moment, "Well, since there are four objectives and three of us, I suggest that we split into teams of two, meaning that two of us head into the same area and whoever is left over goes into an area on their own. Then, when we regroup, we switch the paring up and take out the other two objectives that are left... unless the two of you would rather tackle them all together?"

"No, time is of the essence since Carmelita is on her way with her police buddies," Derpy spoke up, to which she glanced at the opening that a walking squid guard, carrying a flashlight, happened to be patrolling while the three of them were talking, "so, since they're on their way here, we should separate into three groups and tackle three of the four objectives on our own. That would leave the last area for whoever finished their area first, though we should meet up near the generator once we have collected our own Treasure Keys... and, if I'm being honest, I'd like to take that area."

Sly was a little surprised that Derpy was actually suggesting that they split up in such a manner, but at the same time he knew that she spoke the truth, since they had no idea when Carmelita was supposed to arrive with her police force, to which he sighed and simply nodded his head. Gilda thought about it for a moment and silently repeated the gesture, revealing that she was okay with the separation as well, to which Derpy gripped them in a hug for a few seconds before pulling away from them. The two siblings watched as their sister sneaked up the ramp that would take her to the large opening she had been staring at, bypassing the guard in the process, and headed inside, before they sighed and thought about the remaining three locations they had to go through. That was quickly followed by Gilda walking to the left of where they were standing and grinned as she looked at the marker that was near them, indicating that another key was located at the end of the area that she wanted to tackle.

Sly chuckled as Gilda wordlessly entered the area of the boat that she wanted to take out, as he had to hazard a guess that it was the engine room or something similar, to which he headed over to the tower that was near the generator and listened to Bentley explain the specifics of the device in front of him... while at the same time wishing his sisters luck in getting their Treasure Keys and acquiring the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus that Raleigh had hidden in those areas.

Gilda approached the strange shaped door that was in front of her and opened it, where she walked into a hallway that had a furnace door that needed to be closed, though her decision to whack it with her cane was more justified when she spotted a clue bottle resting on it. With that in hand she continued forward and knocked out the hammer wielding guard that was blocking her path, before jumping onto a metal walkway as she delved deeper into the area that she had chosen for herself and collected a second bottle. While she followed the path Gilda noticed that this room seemed important to Raleigh's operation in some manner, though she only stopped in her tracks, after taking out a torch guard, when she noticed that Bentley wanted to tell her something.

Gilda, you're in the engine room! Bentley said, though at the same time Gilda smiled as she cracked her knuckles, as this was the room that she had been hoping to find when she picked her own path to take, My analysis tells me that if you trace the spinning crankshaft all the way back to its source, you'll find Raleigh's treasure key and sabotage his machine while you're at it.

When Bentley terminated the connection Gilda continued moving forward, to which she knocked out the guards that were in front of her, crossed over the rising and lowering pistons, and walked around a circular shaft, which allowed her to access a rope that brought her to the top of the shaft. From there she had to walk around the top, collected the bottle that was hiding there, and moved over to the moving metallic shaft that would point her in the right direction, where she smashed two more bottles and a glass hatch before entering a small hallway. Fortunately the torch guard was completely ignoring the path she was coming from, as she was able to knock him out within seconds, before she reached the top of the hallway and found some furnace doors resting on the sides of the room and made a path of sorts to some pipes that rested on the other side of the room.

Gilda smiled as she caused the six bottles that rested on the six furnace doors to fall to the floor beneath her, before collecting the three that were hanging in the air and made sure to smash all of them, where she counted that she had already collected fourteen of them before making her way to the other hatch and continued forward.

It was then that she spotted that the next area she had to go through had spinning blades that seemed to have electricity racing along the edges, though as she observed the area she realized that, if she were to stop when the blades moved through the path in front of her and go when they weren't there, she'd waste precious time on nothing. She knew that Sly would have gone along with the flow, since he didn't have wings, but since she had been born with them it seemed like a shame to not use her wings to her advantage. As such as opened her wings and flapped them for a few moments, to be sure that they were ready to go, before picking herself off the walkway she was on and started following the path that she had to follow... before she reached the end of the path and entered the hallway that was in front of her, where she knocked the guard out and found herself in an identical room to the one that had all of the bottles earlier.

Despite the fact that this room had some alarm beams in place, much like they encountered back in Paris, Gilda managed to collect all the bottles in the area, including the one that rested on the pipes near the end, before knocking out the guard and turning off the alarm... to which she made sure Bentley had the pictures of the clues before she headed towards the exit.

That was when she smiled again, as the new area she had discovered was the actual room that she had been looking for, as all of the rotating pieces of machinery and the heat she was feeling made her realize that this was where the engine was located. She quickly knocked out the guards that were in front of her before she started to collect the bottles in the area, as two rested near the entrance and one rested on the left side of the room, though she sighed as she walked behind the large piece of machinery and found a vault taunting her. Based on what she knew, by the number of bottles she had recovered, that Bentley likely didn't have the code to her vault, but her mood improved slightly as she looked at the other side of the area she was in and spotted a miniature safe that, when she opened it after taking out the nearby guard, contained two bottles.

"I was not expecting that." Gilda said, though as she sent the new clues to Bentley she had something to tell him, as she was sure that Derpy and Sly would be able to use this information as well, if they hadn't found the safes in their own areas anyway, "Hey Bentley, can you tell the others to be on the lookout for small safes that our half our height? They contain two clue bottles and might help them figure out where the other clues are hidden."

"Of course." Bentley replied, though it sounded like he was busy, which made sense considering that the siblings were taking three areas on at the same time and were sending him the clues that they discovered.

Gilda paused as she glanced at the vault once more, as she was sore that she hadn't found all of them yet, before she returned to the other side of the machinery it was hiding behind and used a piston and a hook to reach the top of the large piece of machinery. It was then that her mood improved, as she spotted what had to be the final clue, which was confirmed by Bentley when he told her that he had the combination to the vault in her area, but before she opened it up she latched her cane onto the hook in front of her, causing the part she was hanging onto to surge forward and break several pipes in the process. As the engine stopped spinning, and revealed a path to the core, Gilda pulled her cane back and headed down to the vault, where Bentley told her that the code was 2-2-7 and she input it into the tumblers that were in front of her... where she smiled as she pulled out the page for Old Sally Cooper's Fast Getaway Raccoon Roll technique, to which she gently stored the page in her pack before leaving her family's calling card.

From there she flared her wings and returned to the entrance of the engine's core, where she slammed the furnace doors down and found the case that contained the Treasure Key, to which she collected her second prize and stashed it inside her pack as well... before sighing as she made her way back to the entrance of the area as she wondered if Sly and Derpy had the same luck that she had.

"Jackpot." Derpy said, as the moment she entered the area that she had chosen she discovered that both sides of the hallway contained pieces of treasure that had been stolen from the various ships that Raleigh had sunk, some of which could easily pay for all their current operations if they were to sell them off.

One of the things that Sly had taught her and Gilda over the years, in order for them to become master thieves in the future, was to recognize the value in the pieces that he and the others had provided for the sisters to learn the skills necessary for their profession. Fortunately all three of them came equipped with a secondary pack that they could stash treasure, actual treasure and not the Treasure Keys or the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus that they recovered, so Bentley could help sell off what they acquired. As such she carefully walked down the hallway and studied the various pieces that Raleigh had salvaged, not taking anything since the security for this section was still online, before she smiled as she found the alarm system and silenced it... to which she headed back to the entrance and walked down the path again, though this time around she carefully studied the pieces and removed the pieces that had the best value.

Along the way she recovered two clue bottles and found a third near the exit for the hallway, though when she finished gathering treasure her secondary pack was filled to the maximum without weighing her down, to which she focused on the area in front of her... after receiving a message from Bentley, revealing that smaller safes existed and that they held two clue bottles in them.

Fortunately for Derpy the area she chose had a large open area between the floor and the ceiling, to which she chuckled as she opened her wings and floated off the floor, where she explored the area in front of the hallway's exit and noticed that the vault for this area was close to the entrance of Raleigh's treasure trove. She actually found three clues hiding off to the left side of the statue filled area she was flying over and another three to the right side, all of which she collected, along with the two that were in the first safe she discovered. She then discovered four more bottles resting above where the safe was located before she bothered to move forward, where she had to knock out two guards before opening the two additional safes that were on the pathway in front of her. As she did that Derpy noticed that, if she had been a normal thief instead of thief that possessed a pair of wings, she would have to jump over the large lily pads that formed a path to the pipe, which would allow someone to climb up to the area above them.

For her, on the other hand, she simply opened her wings and took to the air once more, though she still followed the path and collected the bottle that was down there, before spotting the alarm that powered the searchlights on the upper area and turned it off... allowing her to collect the remaining clue bottles, only for her to discover that she had twenty-nine of them and Bentley hadn't told her the combination yet.

"Where could the last one be?" Derpy asked herself, though instead of taking the Treasure Key she started flying around the chamber she was in and did her best to discover where the final bottle was resting, which happened to be right behind the area where she found the first safe, "Oh, there you are!"

With the final bottle acquired, and the clue sent off to Bentley for analysis, Derpy flew back to the case that the Treasure Key was resting in and claimed the key for family, before she headed over to where the vault was located and landed near it. A few more seconds ticked by before Bentley informed her that he had the combination, to which he revealed that the code was 4-3-6 and she input it immediately, where she discovered the blueprints for Raleigh's entire operation, where Bentley explained that he could now show her and the others where breakable objects and clues were if they used their binocucoms in the future, at least in Raleigh's area anyway. With that recovered, and she was a little saddened that she didn't acquire a page of the Thievius Raccoonus on her own, she stashed the pages away and replaced it with the calling card like she was supposed to... before heading back towards the entrance, though she paused a few more times to pick a few more pieces up, just to be sure she recovered enough to make this worth it.

Sly found that the area of the boat that rested below the tower he had entered, after running on a wheel like it was an exercise machine of some sort, happened to be the power source of the storm machine, while at the same time he found that the main vault was resting near the entrance. He discovered a bottle resting on the top of a furnace and a safe that contained two more bottles off to his left, near the vault, which he collected before having to jump off the second furnace to get the clue that was hanging above it. From there he carefully knocked out the guard that was in front of him and closed the furnace doors that were blocking his path, while collecting two more bottles, before coming to another wheel that he would have to run on. Before he did anything he knocked out the guard that was near the wheel and collected the four bottles that he could see, to which he empowered the wheel and made sure it was going at full speed before latching onto one of the hooks... which took him over to the other side of the room that he was in.

When he reached the other side of the room he knocked out the guard that was standing there, collected a clue bottle, and climbed up the pipe that was in front of him, which allowed him to cross over the gears in front of him and gathered three more bottles that happened to be in his way... before he reached another passage that required him closing some furnace doors so he could reach the next room that this area had.

As he came out the other side of the passage Sly knocked out the two guards that were in front of him, as well as took a moment to collect the four bottles that he could see at the moment, before discovering that a third guard was in the area and was too engrossed in his work to notice that he was even there. Just to be sure that the guard didn't raise an alarm Sly took him out before opening the safe and collecting the bottles inside it, as well as the four bottles that were hiding near some large pieces of coal. Once he had the bottles he turned to the wheel that was in front of him and started running on it, where he had to occasionally jump off it since a searchlight moved on it every now and then, before he eventually caused a large coal boulder to smash through the glass near him, allowing him to access the pathway that would bring him to the Treasure Key. Along the way he collected the last six clues that this area had, or at least that was his hope, before he reached the case that the key was in, which he took with some eagerness before he made his way back to the entrance of this area.

When Sly returned to the vault Bentley informed him that the code was 5-7-9, though as he input the code, and carefully opened the vault, he smiled as he pulled out the page of the Thievius Raccoonus that contained Dev Cooperinda's Slow Motion Jump technique... to which he stashed it away inside his pack and left the calling card, before heading out of the area so he could join his siblings.

Gilda waited outside the entrance of the fourth objective, as she wanted to see if her siblings were going to join her for the final area, before she eventually sighed and decided to take care of it herself, because she was sure that there was something inside Derpy's area that was keeping her busy while Sly had some searching to do. When she entered the fourth area she found that there were stacks of books in front of her, meaning that this had to be a library of some kind, along with two clues to her immediate right. As she rounded the corner she spotted that the flooring changed from wood to having an area with a rug over it, though as she walked forward a few rats spotted her and ran forward, only for them to be killed by darts. Those darts had been fired from what she had originally thought had been world globes, which had a dart gun of some kind in the center of them, before they closed once more and assumed their innocent appearance... but, as she considered things, her wings twitched as she discovered something interesting.

Since the dart guns couldn't hit her while she was in the air above them, as that was what she was resting, she landed behind them and smashed them with her cane, before collecting the bottles they had been guarding, knocked out the guard in front of her, and rode the lift down to the area below her... revealing that the area she was walking through was a large library of some kind.

When the lift came to a stop she flapped her wings and flew over the next rugged area and smashed the globes, before she carefully knocked out the guard that was patrolling the area in front of her and collected the bottles from the safe on her right. As she flew around she found a bottle hanging in the air and claimed it, as well as a trio of them that rested on top of a bookcase, before she knocked out the guard and approached the area that had a pair of furnaces, which seemed out of place considering that this was a library. She found six bottles resting around the furnaces, where two happened to be inside a safe, before she flew over the rug and smashed the globes that were there, though Gilda followed that up by collecting three more bottles and rode the lift up to the area above her. As she reached the top she discovered where the vault was located, though instead of following the path by walking she opened her wings and flew along the path.

That involved her smashing the various globes, disabling the alarms, knocking out the lone guard, and collecting the remaining clue bottles that were in this area, as she realized that her binocucom how revealed the location of every clue bottle in an area. She knew that it had to be because either Derpy or Sly had found something that gave them the information, though she wasn't complaining as she collected the remaining clues and let Bentley make the calculations needed to crack the code. A few moments later he informed her that the code was 2-4-2, to which she input the code and unlocked the vault, where she discovered the page containing Chris Cooper's Dive Collection, which was an extension of the Dive technique they recovered earlier. With the page in hand, and the calling card put in place, she returned to where the Treasure Key was located and claimed what she was after, before heading towards the entrance so she could meet back up with her siblings.

Sly and Derpy smiled as Gilda emerged from the area that the fourth objective was in, revealing that she must have finished much faster than they had done, before she handed Sly the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus that she had recovered so far. She also noticed that Derpy's secondary pack was missing, where her sister swiftly informed them that she had flown back to the van so she could give Bentley her treasure filled pack, while also telling them of what she found inside the area she had picked. Sly chuckled as they pooled their five keys together and used three of them to unlock the generator, before the three of them smashed the machine and powered down the power tube, allowing them to access the other side of Raleigh's boat. They all knew that the way to the storm machine was located somewhere on the other side of the power tube, to which the three of them moved forward and prepared themselves for whatever else they needed to do to reach Raleigh.

Soon they would be aboard his storm machine and claim his section of the Thievius Raccoonus, and then they could plan out which of his cohorts they wanted to go after next... after they bypassed Carmelita's team and departed from the Isle of Wrath first.

Thievius: Eye of the Storm

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy emerged from the power tube and observed their surroundings, as it appeared that they were now on the back side of Raleigh's boat and there didn't appear to be any direct way up to the storm machine, though before they thought about it too much all three of them pulled out their binocucoms and connected back up with Bentley, as he likely had some news for them.

"Astonishing!" Bentley said, though he actually sounded impressed over something, which made the siblings happy to hear that he might have been impressed by something they did, "All of my calculations led me to believe that it would have taken the three of you an hour to clear out all four of those areas, and you did it in forty minutes."

"We aim to please." Sly replied, though that didn't stop the three of them from grinning, as they had been planning on doing things fast and collecting what they came from, so this only proved that they were quite skilled with their current set of skills, "So what's next?"

"I've found a way up to Raleigh's hideout," Bentley told them, which was great news considering that the storm was still present, though it was dying down now that the engine had been stalled by Gilda's earlier work, while at the same time all three of them sensed there was something else they weren't being told, "but..."

"Let me guess," Gilda said, turning her binocucom over to the cannon that was resting near where they were standing, one that happened to be locked down with seven locks, just like the generator had three locks before she and her siblings broke them and smashed the generator, "we have to shoot ourselves out of that cannon?"

"Unfortunately that's the only way up there, short of waiting an hour or two for the storm to die down so you and Derpy can fly once more," Bentley replied, once more bringing up why the sisters couldn't actually use their wings while they were on the boat's deck, despite the fact that they used them inside the boat, "and you're going to need all seven of Raleigh's Treasure Keys in order to access the cannon."

"Well, it's a good thing we already have five of them," Derpy spoke up, to which Sly and Gilda nodded their agreement, as they only needed a few more Treasure Keys and they would be able to access Raleigh's storm machine, "just show us where the last two holographic markers are and we'll get the keys... and any pages of the Thievius Racconus as well."

With their mission clear Sly, Gilda, and Derpy put their binocucoms away and headed towards the cannon, though instead of stopping near it they walked up the nearby tower and only came to a stop when they reached the top, as it gave them a good view of the back half of Raleigh's ship... along with the remaining two areas that the three of them needed to claim the Treasure Keys from.

"It appears that we have two options available at the moment," Sly said, taking stock of the two areas that needed to be cleared, where one had to have a page from the family tome and the other did not, "the first involves using that submersible to go underwater and do something to collect the Treasure Key, while the second objective appears to be heading into that tube and entering another important part of Raleigh's operation. So, whose up for using the submersible while the others tackle the area beyond the tube?"

"One, two, three," Derpy replied, though while appeared that Sly was more focused on what was in front of them, and was waiting for a proper response, Gilda knew exactly what her sister was doing, "not it!"

"Not it!" Gilda added, already knowing that by the time Sly realized what was going on he wouldn't actually be able to complain, as Derpy occasionally pulled this on their brother and he fell for it all the time, though sooner or later he'd surprise her and do it before she even thought about it.

"Not again..." Sly commented, to which he brought a palm up to his face and sighed for a moment, before he stared out at the two objectives and decided that he might as well roll with it, like he usually did, "Very well, since you two would rather explore whatever is on the other side of the tube I'll take the submersible and see what awaits me under the water... besides a Treasure Key anyway."

"Sounds like a plan." Gilda said, though as Derpy started moving towards the tube in question, and the guard that was patrolling the entrance, she rested a hand on her brother's shoulder, "Don't worry, I'll take care of Derpy and make sure nothing bad happens to her."

Sly knew that, after successfully navigating an area of Raleigh's boat, claiming some of the more expensive treasure that they could sell later on, and getting both the contents of the vault and the Treasure Key, all on her own he mentally added, Derpy didn't need someone watching over her all the time. Still, despite that fact, there wasn't much else they could do at the moment, so having Gilda follow after Derpy while she explored seemed like the best thing to do, so he simply nodded his head and Gilda followed after their sister, who had already knocked out the guard and was heading inside the tube. Sly chuckled at that as he made his way down to the walkway below the tower and crossed over to where the submersible was being guarded, because he was sure that his sisters would be able to complete their task without encountering anything too dangerous... to which he knocked out the guard and climbed into the submersible.

He also knew that, when they got back together after these last two objectives, they would tackle Raleigh and get back his section of the family tome... and then they would figure out who to go after next, once the first member of the Fiendish Five had been taken out.

When Derpy and Gilda emerged from the tube they discovered that the area of the boat they were in was like a ship graveyard of some kind, as the water level seemed to be the exact same was what was outside the boat and there were a large number of crashed ships all around the place. Before they could actually move one and investigate the area, while gathering all the clues and getting what they came for, the intercom turned on for a moment, meaning that Raleigh was going to speak to his crew and caused the sisters to remain silent for the next few seconds.

Ahoy, dock hands! Raleigh said, sounding pleased about something, while at the same time making the sisters wonder what information he was going to give them, even if he didn't intend for them to hear his words, Capital job unloading that cargo last night. You're the crown jewel of my operation. Do me the service of proving your worth yet again by protecting the Treasure Key that I have stored down there. It appears there is a prowler on the premises. And if any of you let him get his hands on that key, I'll personally flog the lot of you for an entire fortnight!

"So Raleigh thinks that there's only one thief instead of three." Gilda commented, though that made things interesting for them, since it appeared that their foe's goons or machines weren't telling him the entire story, "Well, he's going to be in for quite the surprise when we reach him."

"Yeah, and I can't wait to get to him," Derpy said, though as she looked around the area she thought about what they just heard and lingered on the last word their target had said, "Hey Gilda, what does 'fortnight' mean anyway?"

"I think it means a period of two weeks," Gilda replied, as she actually surprised that her sister even cared about the word, since it didn't really mean anything to the two of them, especially not when they were here for two specific items that likely were at the other end of the area.

"So if we took the Treasure Key, but didn't take Raleigh down, he'd flog his crew for two weeks straight?" Derpy asked, as that was what she was gathering from what they heard Raleigh say over the intercom, which only made her want to take the frog down even more.

Gilda nodded her head, as she guessed that Raleigh had said something to that effect, before Derpy sighed and decided that it was time for them to get started on their part of the operation, to which she turned to her immediate right and gathered the two clues inside the safe. While she did that Gilda collected the two bottles that were in the lower area in front of this ship's wheel, before helping Derpy ambush and knock out the guard that was standing at the edge of the ruined deck they were standing on. Once that was taken care of they noticed that there were two more clue bottles resting on some broken bits of ship between them and where the mast part rested, though instead of wasting time jumping around the sisters opened their wings and flew across the gap, though while Gilda knocked out the guard and turned off the alarm Derpy gathered the bottles... along with the two that were in the safe that the guard had been protecting.

Before they moved forward Gilda also spotted another bottle resting behind the bottom part of the mast, which she smashed and sent the information to Bentley, though that was followed by her and Derpy heading to the wrecked airplane that happened to be hanging above their heads... where they found a pair of bottles being completely covered by a searchlight, meaning they couldn't be taken at the moment.

Instead of bothering with the searchlights, and potentially setting one off in the process, Gilda flew around the moving beams and switched off the alarm, though as the beams faded away Derpy smashed the two bottles she had been staring at and sent their contents to Bentley. With those in hand she returned to where Gilda was standing and they moved around the circular tube that was in their way, like actual thieves, before they walked along some bits of an airplane's wing while spotting a pair of bottles ahead of them. Behind the bottles rested another guard, someone that Gilda knocked out while Derpy collected the contents of the bottles, though after that they discovered that the normal way for them to progress would have been to jump and grab onto a rope so they could pass over a guard's head. Instead of doing that Gilda and Derpy flew over to the next part of the area and knocked out the guard that happened to be patrolling the area, before collecting two more bottles that were at the end of the submarine that Raleigh's men had captured.

With that taken care of Derpy flew across the debris that were in front of them and collected the two bottles that were scattered around the area, while at the same time Gilda knocked out the guards that happened to be in the area, before landing and collecting the remaining three clues that were near her, as two were in a safe and the other was sitting around for anyone to claim. After that they followed the rope that was in front of them and found the area that the Treasure Key was located in, as well as the vault that rested in this area, though instead of opening it herself Gilda moved out of the way and let Derpy listen to Bentley, since she knew that Derpy wanted to claim at least one page of the Thievius Raccoonus before they finished off the Fiendish Five. Derpy waited beside the vault for a few seconds, letting Bentley finish up his calculations, before he had the combination, where Derpy turned to the tumblers and input 7-1-9, to which she discovered a page from the family tome... or, more specifically, Karin Coopergiwa's Coin Magnet technique, which meant that she, Gilda, and Sly would automatically collect any coins they came near.

The moment Derpy had the page in her hand, and had a smile on her face, Gilda snatched the Treasure Key from the case as the calling card was placed where it was supposed to go, before the two of them opened their wings and headed back towards the entrance of the area... while at the same time wondering how Sly was doing on his end of things.

Sly sighed as he descended into the depths with the submersible that he had liberated from the guard that had been protecting it, where he came to a stop in what appeared to be a circular shaped chamber with tubes scattered around the edge of the area. There were rocks and what could have been seaweed all around him, though as he rotated the submersible around, and observed the area that he would be going through, he found that the Treasure Key he was after happened to be floating in the middle of the area. He guessed that there was something specific he had to do in order to release the key from whatever was holding it in place, if his thoughts were correct, though as he familiarized himself with the controls he found that it came equipped with some guns, meaning that he likely needed to shoot something before he claimed the Treasure Key.

His thoughts were proven right as Bentley informed him that he had to grab all of the chests before Raleigh's crabs took even one of the chests into the tubes around him, while also informing him that the information was coming from the blueprints that Derpy had found earlier... to which Sly decided not to question why Raleigh thought this was a good idea and started firing at the crabs the moment they emerged from the tubes.

As it turned out it was rather easy to collect the contents of each chest while making sure that the crabs never took a single one towards their tubes, despite the fact that some of the crabs were lucky enough for a chest to land on their heads at random. Sly knew that Bentley would be able to sell the treasure they were collecting, and maybe hide some of it somewhere for later use in the future, so he collected everything he could and made sure that the crabs never dragged one of the chests away. From what he had been told he needed to get forty chests before he could claim the Treasure Key and head back to the surface, so while he worked Bentley cheered him on and made small comments about what was going on around him... before he claimed the last of the forty chests and claimed the Treasure Key, to which he headed back up to the surface and left the depths behind.

When he returned to the surface, and brought the submersible to a stop, he climbed out of it and walked across the platform that was in front of him, to which he walked over to where the cannon rested and found both of his sisters standing near it with a smile on their faces.

"I take it you found something in the other area?" Sly asked, though at the same time Gilda handed over the Treasure Key that she and Derpy had acquired, bringing their grand total to seven for Raleigh's base, meaning that it was time for them to reclaim the first portion of the Thievius Raccoonus.

"Karin Coopergiwa's Coin Magnet technique." Derpy replied, to which she happily handed him the page that she had been holding onto since she found it, where Sly smiled as well as he carefully stored it inside the binding that contained all of the other pages they had rescued so far, "All we have to do is stand near coins and let them come towards us."

"Nice." Sly said, as it was nice to have another part of the family tome to look over when they had some spare time, but before he got distracted he decided that it was time for them to get serious and looked up at the storm machine that was above their heads, "Well, since we've got all seven Treasure Keys now, shall we reveal ourselves to our unknowing host and claim what belongs to the Cooper Clan?"

Gilda and Derpy nodded their heads and let Sly use the seven Treasure Keys to unlock the locks that resting around the cannon, to which they came undone and the lid opened, meaning that they could now use the cannon to shoot themselves up to the storm machine. Since the cannon was too small for all three of them to fit inside it, and they couldn't sit two of them without hurting each other in the process, it was decided that Gilda and Derpy would test their luck and fly after Sly once the cannon had been fired. It was a risk since the storm machine was still operational, but with the size of the cannon, and not knowing if Raleigh had something installed that would seal a breach in the machine's exterior, they were going to have to put their faith in they wouldn't be shocked by lightning on the way to Raleigh's hideout. The moment the three of them were in agreement, and Bentley wished them all luck with the first member of the Fiendish Five, Sly climbed into the cannon and the lid closed behind him.

The sisters opened their wings as they watched the cannon turn towards the storm machine and point up until it was aiming right at it, though the moment Sly was launched from the cannon both Gilda and Derpy followed after him as he headed towards Raleigh's hideout.

After a few seconds of flying through the air Sly smashed through one of the glass windows that allowed Raleigh to see outside his storm machine, to which he landed on a platform that was floating on some water, along with a few more identical platforms that formed a circle around a central pedestal. A few moments later Gilda and Derpy flew through the hole he had created and landed on either side of him, where all three of them quickly looked around the area they were in and found that the open chamber was filled with machinery, which made sense considering what they were inside. That was before they spotted the frog they had been searching for, sitting on a red velvet throne and wearing a metallic hat that was taller than his entire body, staring down at them. At the moment Raleigh seemed uninterested in what was going on, but at the same time they knew that his interests could change and readied themselves accordingly, since they knew a fight was going to break out soon enough.

"How delightful. We have guests." Raleigh said, his tone suggesting that he was bored at the moment, though that was before they detected a hint of anger in his voice as he glared down at them all, while also waving a hand in the air for a few seconds, "The only thing is... I hate unexpected guests!"

"Listen, Raleigh." Sly stated, as he was happy to have finally caught up with a member of the Fiendish Five, to which he raised his cane and pointed the hook right at Raleigh for a few seconds, "Wipe out our family and steal what's ours, you had better expect company."

"Oh, I'm ever so sorry." Raleigh replied, though his tone indicated that he didn't care about the fact that Sly was threatening him, while at the same time he seemed to be thinking about something, "How sloppy of me not to finish the job. Obviously we should have snuffed you all out as well. So, without further ado, let me make amends by, what... squashing the lot of you like the insignificant pests that you are!"

"And how are you going to do that?" Derpy inquired, as she, along with her siblings, were interested in what sort of tricks their opponent had for them, especially since Raleigh was the chief machinist for the Fiendish Five, meaning that he had to have something interesting for them to face, "Did you create a weapon that channels the power of the storm machine so you can fire bolts of lightning, gusts of wind, or shower us with frigid rain? Or maybe some sort of fighting robot that expands from your throne and requires us to go through a certain process to weaken it's defenses?"

"Actually, I was going to bloat to a gargantuan size and squash you." Raleigh stated, though as he said that the siblings noticed that the wheels in his head were spinning, meaning that he was considering some new machines for when he bested them, "Oh well, I can still handle you with my own strength."

"Bring it on." Gilda challenged, to which she, Sly, and Derpy prepared themselves and readied their canes, as they knew that Raleigh would be coming after them with the intent of killing them, even though the three of them were simply going to knock him out before they left with his pages.

Raleigh glared at them as he opened his mouth and snatched one of the bugs out of the air that happened to be flying near his throne, to which his body did expand to an immense size and he jumped down onto the platform that was right in front of him, before coming to a stop on the central pedestal. When Raleigh descended to the platform that the siblings were standing on both Gilda and Derpy moved into the air and moved around as they searched for a weakness they could exploit. Sly, on the other hand, grinned as he moved away from the large frog that was trying to squash him, though after four or five more jumps Raleigh reverted back to his original size and Sly missed his chance to hit him, but his sisters slammed their canes into Raleigh while he was in the air, knocking him into the water for a moment... while at the same time Sly was thankful that his sisters had wings, as it actually made some things easier for them all.

A few seconds following his receiving of two canes to the face, and being knocked into the water, Raleigh jumped back up to the central pedestal and snatched another bug out of the air, though this time around the other platforms, save the one Sly was on, sunk and forced Sly to remain in a single spot. This time around Sly was ready for Raleigh, as he carefully moved around the platform when Raleigh landed on it and counted the number of times the frog jumped from place to place, as the moment he reached the five count Raleigh deflated and that was when he moved in. The instant Raleigh returned to his original size Sly smacked him with his cane and knocked him into the water, to which the frog growled as he returned to the pedestal and enlarged his body once more. This time around Sly was forced to move faster, as the platforms that Raleigh landed on as he chased him were designed to sink until he deflated, but he, once again, failed to account for Gilda and Derpy flying around the area... a fact he was reminded about when two canes struck him in the face as he headed towards the pedestal again.

The siblings could tell that Raleigh was in pain, as they could have sworn that he huffed for a moment as he got another bug and expanded his body, before he landed on Sly's platform and sunk the other ones, though this time around he spun around and used his tongue in an attempt to hit his target... to which Sly simply jumped over the tongue a few times before Raleigh stopped, where he smacked Raleigh and knocked him into the water. This time around, however, the siblings noticed that Raleigh had enough of the fight, as he went still as he floated in the water, though Gilda was quick to pull him out and verify that he was just knocked out. With that confirmed she also found a key on Raleigh's body, which happened to go to the safe that rested at the bottom of Raleigh's throne, though with that in hand the siblings moved over to the throne and did two things; disable the storm machine in it's entirety, to the best of their ability and what Bentley told them to do, and claimed the contents of the safe.

They soon discovered that Raleigh's section of the Thievius Raccoonus held detailed instructions on how to perform Rioichi Cooper's Ninja Spire Jump technique, which he developed while sneaking into the thickly fortified castles of Feudal Japan, along with some documentation on where Muggshot, the next member of the Fiendish Five, was located, which was Mesa City. With those two items in hand Sly let Gilda and Derpy carry him out of the storm machine, after leaving the calling card behind, where they spotted Carmelita and her squad moving in to arrest Raleigh's men... and they knew that, in a few days while they rested from this venture, they would see a picture of her, with a captured Raleigh, in the newspaper.

Thievius: Mesa City

The first thing that Sly, Bentley, Murray, Gilda, and Derpy did, after departing from the Isle of Wrath, was head to a small abandoned factory that was a few hours away and set up a few obstacles so Sly, Gilda, and Derpy could practice the new moves they had picked up from the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus they had recovered so far. The technique that they devoted the majority of their time to learning, and all three of them agreed on this decision, was Rioichi Cooper's Ninja Spire Jump. The reasoning was because if Raleigh decided to put it inside his personal safe, that he was near at all times, it had to be important for them getting through some of the security measures that were waiting for them in Mesa City, where the second member of the Fiendish Five, Muggshot, was waiting for them. At the same time they spent an hour or two more on practicing the other techniques that they had picked up, making sure that they at least committed them to memory, before they returned the factory to how it looked and departed.

Once they were gone practicing for the morning Sly remained true to his word and the gang headed to England for a few days, where they took in the sights, visited a few landmarks, took a couple of pictures to show that they had been there, and made off with Her Majesties Crown Jewels... which Sly had been carrying in a bag while Bentley took a picture when he was right above a guard's head while Murray distracted him, before they all left. Sure enough Gilda found a newspaper with Carmelita on the front, with Raleigh behind held by one of the local police officers, with a headline that said 'Hot chick with gun busts amphibious yuckmouth', along with an article about 'mysterious figures eluding the authorities' that had a shadowy picture of sorts that represent all three of them. Bentley, of course, wasn't too happy about the article, as he was sure that it would only mean bad things for them in the future, but the siblings mostly ignored it as they enjoyed the rest of their short vacation... and learned that boats were making their way back onto the ocean now that the storm machine was offline, which made them all happy.

After a few days had gone by the gang gathered their stuff and set a course for Mesa City, giving Sly, Gilda, and Derpy a chance to study the part of the case file that pertained to Muggshot, especially since they had to travel over to another continent before they could get close to their target. The file said that whatever Muggshot lacked in brains he certainly made up for in brawn, making him the ruthless muscle of the Fiendish Five, before stating that he wasn't always the way he was these days. As it turned out Muggshot had actually been the neighborhood weakling when he was younger and was always getting picked on by everyone, though his only friends were those he found in the theater, which included his very first gangster. That, in turn, fueled his dreams of great power and respect, something that he eventually achieved due to his dedication, though once he reached the level he dreamed of the first report of him beating someone up was the trio of bullies that had picked on him when he was younger... and continued in a number of reports that detailed his various crimes over the years, until stopping when it said that he was in charge of Mesa City now.

None of them were exactly sure how Muggshot was able to take over the entirety of Mesa City, and the police file didn't go into details since Interpol didn't have all the information on what happened, but the gang was sure that they would figure out what happened when they arrived at their destination.

Despite the fact that Muggshot had been a member of the attack on Sly's house, before he wound up in the very orphanage where he met the rest of his family and gang, Sly, Gilda, and Derpy felt a little sorry for who Muggshot had been when he was younger. The older Muggshot, who was their target at the moment, they didn't feel sorry for since he had taken out Sly's father, and they were sure that he wasn't going to be happy to see them when they finally caught up with him. Their first task was reaching Mesa City, that 'thriving American boomtown' as Sly decided to call it at one point, before they started their hunt for Muggshot's Treasure Keys and pages of the Thievius Raccoonus... and then, eventually, take the fight to their main target.

When Murray finally reached the beginning of Muggshot's territory, as provided on the information that Raleigh had locked up in his safe, Sly, Gilda, and Derpy climbed out of the back of the van and smiled as they took in the sunlight, as it was a nice change of pace from the previous place they took on. If they so desired Gilda and Derpy could make short work of the entire approach area of Muggshot's base of operations, but at the same time both of them advised against it, since they had no idea where the guards were located and didn't want to set of the alarms just yet. As such the siblings moved forward and claimed the two clue bottles that were on their immediate left, surprising them for a moment, before they took turns climbing the pipe that was on the right side of the gate and came to a stop when they reached the platform that was on the very top of the gate.

The moment they came to a stop at the top of the gate, when they could see more of the area that rested in front of them, the trio discovered that Mesa City wasn't like what Sly remembered and it appeared that there weren't any people, save for Muggshot's guards, in the city at the moment.

"Sly, I thought you said that Mesa City was going to be loud and busy." Bentley said over the binocucom, while at the same time voicing the thoughts that were going through all of their minds at that very moment, because they were expecting people and found only guards patrolling the area.

"That's what all of the papers said," Sly replied, remembering what he had read from all of the various papers that had articles about Mesa City, though it was clear that none of them had said anything about the state that Muggshot had inflicted upon the city after he claimed everything, "At the very least this will make sneaking into the main part of Muggshot's base all that much easier."

"You know what, this place looks more like a ghost town than an actual city." Derpy commented, as she was taking in the ruined parts of the buildings, signs that appeared to be offline, and the occasional tumbleweed that moved across the road that they would be following.

"Well, since ghosts don't actually exist, we won't have to worry about them here," Gilda stated, to which she glanced down at the various poles and points where they could use their old skills and the new Ninja Spire Jump to get through the area that was in front of them, "Come on, let's get moving before one of the guards notices us standing here."

Sly was the first one to use the new technique to cross the points that were in front of them, allowing him to move over the guard that was standing guard in the area below them, though at the same time he noticed three clue bottles and a safe down there. Gilda and Derpy followed after him, mostly to get some additional practice with Rioichi's move, before jumping behind the guard and knocked him out, allowing them to collect all five of the bottles that were in the area around them before they rejoined their brother. From there they dropped down into the area that was in front of them and spotted a dog that was tied to a post, who happened to be chewing on a bone and seemed to be ignoring them the entire time they were there. Since it didn't seem to care about them, especially when it eventually noticed them and turned away after seeing Gilda, the siblings collected the pair of bottles to their right before climbing the pipe that the dog was 'guarding'.

Before they moved on both Gilda and Derpy flew out over the lake area, or more like an area that was almost overflowing with water, and collected the four bottles that were standing on ruined pieces of wooden carts, before returning to Sly and sent the contents over to Bentley. After that they crossed the gap that was in front of them and ignored the terrified dog that was in front of them, making Sly realize that the more domesticated dogs understood that, from a glance, that Gilda was a predator of sorts and that it wasn't wise to provoke her. That was his assumption as to why the dogs weren't trying to charge at them and bite their legs or something, and he couldn't think of another reason as to why that would be the case, but he decided that now wasn't the time to be questioning something like that. Of course while he was thinking about that his sisters knocked out the plank wielding guard that was in front of them, allowing them to claim three more bottles before they climbed onto the nearby car and crossed the next gap... where they encountered a new type of alarm system, one that none of them had seen before today.

The siblings glanced at each other for a moment, as they were at a loss for words at the moment, before they pulled out their binocucoms and let Bentley see what they were looking at, as all of them were hoping that he had some information on the new obstacle.

"Hey Bentley, what's with those flashing lights?" Derpy asked, as the floor alarms flashed and changed to a new area that they were looking over, which happened to be a part of the floor that was connected to the one they had been over a few seconds ago.

"The latest in high-tech security; electronic floor sensors." Bentley told them, though while he had known that these were in development, and might have been bought by people once they were ready, he honestly wasn't expecting to see some of them here, "Step on them and you're a goner."

"Nice touch." Sly said, though he liked the additional challenge that Muggshot was offering them, as this meant that they had to be careful before they reached the alarm that was connected to the floor beams, since he was sure that all of the security beams were attached to the same alarm.

"They're safe to walk on while flashing, but it also means they're about to switch to a different sector." Bentley added, revealing the exact method for them to deal with the new obstacle, something that he likely uncovered in his readings of how this particular device worked, which they were thankful for.

As Sly started to make his way through the ruined structure that the floor beams were in, so he could see how they worked for himself, Gilda flew to the top of a nearby downed power pole and collected the bottle at the very end as Derpy opened the safe and gathered it's pair of bottles. With those three in hand the sisters returned to the end of the structure that Sly had entered and watched him move to the end, where the alarm was sitting, and he beckoned for them to follow him once they were ready. Both of them discovered that walking in the unguarded area was a good thing to do and that it was okay if they switched to the flashing area when the lights started to change, allowing them to bypass the floor beams and let Sly turn it off before they moved on. When they emerged from the structure they noticed a guard holding onto a ball that was attached to a chain, which he would spin if they decided to get close, but what he wasn't expecting was either Gilda or Derpy flying around to his blind spot and knocked him out before he could react... to which the siblings collected the pair of bottles to their left before heading up to the stone formation that was in front of them.

At the end of the stone formation was a dog that was currently messing with a deck of cards, meaning that he would throw them at whoever was coming his way, though Derpy appeared behind him and knocked him out, allowing her siblings to catch up with her... while they collected the pair of bottles to their right, the one that was hidden beneath them, and the trio that was near a cliff off on the far right.

From there they returned to the main road and walked towards the oddly placed compressor and carefully moved through the machine, though they made sure to grab the bottle off to the entrance's right before they made their way to the other side. Luck was on their side, as none of them got smashed in the process, though when the siblings noticed the wooden fences that were blocking their way both Gilda and Derpy flew forward and knocked out the three plank wielding guards that patrolled this area. That allowed Sly to open the safe and collect it's pair of bottles, before climbing onto a pipe that brought him to three more bottles that weren't on the path they were following, though they paused for a moment and stared out at the vault that they were going to have to leave behind until Bentley told them that he had cracked the code that the bottles contained.

After tearing their attention away from the vault they headed through the compressor machine that was in front of them and knocked out the chain wielding guard that was on the other side, as well as collecting the bottle that was on the other side of the machine, before heading inside the slightly shifting ruined train cars that were in front of them. As they avoided the moving beams and the floor beams, one at a time like usual, they also made sure to collect the bottle that happened to have been placed in this area, before turning off the alarm and swinging across the gap that was in front of them. In the third car they did the same thing as the first car, without the oddly placed clue bottle anyway, and reached the end in no time, where they turned off the alarm and climbed the pole up to the area where the first of Muggshot's Treasure Keys happened to be resting. There happened to be a card throwing guard waiting near the case the key was inside, to which the siblings knocked him out before they collected the three bottles that were out in the open and the two that were inside the nearby safe... which was followed by Bentley informing them that he had the cracked the code, to which Sly nodded to his sisters for a moment.

Derpy smiled for a moment, as Gilda hadn't opened her wings, and took to the skies as she raced back to where the vault was located, though when she reached her destination she input the code that Bentley told her, 3-1-4, and her smile widened as she pulled out the page containing Rob McCooper's Explosive Hat technique. With that in hand, and the calling card in place, she flew back to where her siblings were waiting for her, where Sly collected the Treasure Key and used it to open the lock on the tunnel that was in front of them. The moment the path was opened, and they were still surprised that the first key in the various hideouts was placed in such a way, the siblings moved forward and ventured into the main area of Muggshot's operations... where they walked out onto an overlook that allowed them to observe the area that was in front of them, including the building that contained Muggshot's name, a blown up version of the person, and a wooden barricade that was blocking off the main entrance.

"Well... Muggshot's certainly not shy about revealing that this is his turf," Gilda commented, as while she, Derpy, and Sly took in the area, by using their binocucoms like usual, they were also making observations on what was in front of them at the very moment.

"How are we supposed to find him?" Bentley asked, though at the same time the trio heard the sounds of some papers being moved, revealing that he likely had the plans for the city in front of him, or at least the plans that had been inside Raleigh's safe, "Mesa City is a big place."

"Obviously, since he's a bulldog and dogs like to mark their territory," Derpy said, to which her siblings followed her gaze towards the very top of the building that she had been staring at, or more accurately the object that was on the very top of the building, "this building has to be where he's hold up at the moment, since his name and likeness is everywhere. If we're right about this being where Muggshot is hiding, and I'm certain that we're right, maybe he's up at the top of the building, inside that giant fire hydrant."

"That's sound some logic." Bentley replied, though his tone said that he wasn't about to admit that he hadn't even considered that train of thought before now, while at the same he noticed the obstacle that was blocking their way at that very moment, "Now the three of you just need to find a way to break into the building's base."

"Oh, I think we'll be able to come up with a way to get inside the building." Sly commented, as he turned his gaze towards the red convertible that was in front of the building, which appeared to be in the process of being worked on and needed three Treasure Keys to unlock it.

Sly, Derpy, and Gilda smiled as they noticed three markers telling them the first set of objectives that they needed to complete before they could break into the base of the building and take on whatever else was inside the structure, before they could take on Muggshot and recover his section of the Thievius Raccoonus.

Thievius: Muggshot's Turf

"Okay, so how are we going to do this?" Derpy asked, as she, Gilda, and Sly could see three areas that they could take on and search for Treasure Keys, as well as any pages of the Thievius Raccoonus that they might have, and she was interested in what her siblings were thinking about.

"Well, considering that Muggshot's guard are using actual guns instead of throwing stars," Sly said, to which he gestured to the gangster dog that was walking on the other side of the small bridge that they needed to cross, as well as the other one that was patrolling near the convertible he had spotted, "we might be better served to split into two teams, even if that means that someone has to tackle an area alone. As such I would suggest that you and I take on the Boneyard Casino, which is actually lined up with where we're standing, while Gilda takes on one of the other areas at the same time."

"That sounds fair," Gilda commented, though after what they had done in Raleigh's base, and she had been in three different areas and collected three different safes, along with the items they contained, she guessed that taking one area, and potentially even a second one, was enough at the moment, "Well, while you take the casino on, I'll see what's at the marker to our right... and then maybe the other one, if I have time before you two return."

As Sly and Derpy nodded, as they were all in agreement about what they were going to do next, Gilda flew over to the backside of the gangster dog that was in front of them and knocked him out, letting the duo walk forward and approach the entrance of the casino... only to stop when the intercom came on and Muggshot started speaking, which they listened to since he might reveal something to them.

Yo, yo, yo! It's the boss! Muggshot said, causing the siblings to wonder why he was speaking in such a manner, as they were sure that gangsters didn't do that, but since none of them had seen the movie that gave Muggshot the desire for this lifestyle they really couldn't judge him too harshly for he had said, You know, I've been forced to admit that maybe driving everyone out of town, while necessary to set up shop, might have taken a hit out of their business. So now, I hope you mugs would be a pleasure to admit any visitors that come here to lose their money in my casino. But, I got a reliable tip that a cop might be snooping around the operation. So from now on, greet any visitors you see with a hail of lead! Capiche?

"Okay, so Muggshot is definitely the less intelligent member of the Fiendish Five," Gilda said, while at the same time she moaned as she considered what their foe had said, as she was sure that her siblings had thought the same thing, "So he tells his guards to admit people so they can lose their money, only to turn around and tell them to greet said visitors with a hail of bullets because a cop might be in the area. He basically told his guards to shoot anyone that shows up, regardless of why they came to Mesa City in the first place... I'm glad we're going to be knocking this guy down a peg."

"His current crimes might not be as bad as Raleigh's crimes, but his past crime is the same," Sly stated, referring to the reason they were here in the first place, to which his sisters nodded their heads for a moment, before sighing and turning towards the area he and Derpy had been heading towards, "and, since she's been following us since Paris, I'm fairly certain that this 'cop' that Muggshot heard about is Carmelita, which means we need to move fast before she catches us and stops us from completing our mission."

"Then let's get started." Derpy commented, to which she ran over to the entrance of the Boneyard Casino and headed inside, leaving Sly and Gilda to chuckle for a few seconds before splitting up and heading to the areas that they had picked out a few minutes ago.

When Sly caught up with Derpy he found that she was standing in front of the true casino entrance, as the one outside was just the sign pointing to where people would go to lose their money, though he noticed that a car had been driven into the area and was now parked near the door. The entrance itself was made of glass and appeared to be locked at the moment, though the reason Derpy hadn't smashed through it was because the sound of the glass breaking would alert the nearby guards as to the fact that someone was there. Fortunately there happened to be a switch nearby that opened the door for them and turned off the lights that were around them, allowing them to enter the casino under the cover of darkness, or in the shadows at least. As they walked out into the open area they discovered a gangster dog guarding the path in front of them, as well as two more of them patrolling the slot machines behind it, meaning that they were going to have to be careful in this area.

Of course that had been Sly's plan when he noticed what was arrayed against them, though Derpy simply opened her wings and flew over the first gangster dog, knocking him out before he had a chance to even know that someone was there, before slipping behind the other two and repeating the process. Sly had to admit that sometimes it was a good thing that Derpy and Gilda had wings, as it allowed them to overcome certain obstacles that he had to face on the ground, though at the same time they always returned to the ground so they didn't alert the guards to their presence. Besides, having the gangster dogs taken out for the moment was a blessing, as he was sure that they could have come running if one of their friends set off an alarm, something that Bentley would likely agree with, so he said nothing as he and Derpy explored the area that they were in.

They found two clue bottles along the route that the patrolling gangster dogs had been following, though as Sly collected them they spotted another guard waiting ahead of them, to which Derpy knocked him out as well before the two of them moved towards a pair of slot machines.

"I'll never understand why people like playing these machines and losing money on them all the time," Derpy said, though as she said that she noticed that the machine she approached happened to have a few loose coins resting on the floor in front of it, to which she picked them up and shrugged as she slipped a few of them into the slots, just to see what it was like to play one of the machines.

"Everyone has their own interests, and gambling is one of them," Sly replied, though he watched as Derpy pulled the lever and stared at the tumblers for a few seconds, to which they were both amazed when they came to a stop and coins started spilling out because she got the jackpot prize, while noticing that the sound on the machine was busted, "and you just put a lot of gamblers to shame by scoring a jackpot on your first attempt."

"Oops?" Derpy offered, as she had no idea if that was a good thing or a bad thing, especially since she didn't care about this at all, though she took a few of the coins and tried the next machine out, just for kicks, only to sigh as she scored yet another jackpot, "Okay, I'm so not doing this anymore. Once was fine, because I didn't care, but two jackpots in a row is creepy, especially when I like being a thief and don't want to become the ultimate gambler that always wins."

Sly chuckled as he and Derpy collected the coins, all of which possessing Muggshot's likeness of them, as he intended to hand them over to Bentley the first chance he got, as he was sure that they could make some money off of the lot, which they could add to what Derpy earned them from the treasure she took from Raleigh. If he didn't know better he would have sworn on the Thievius Raccoonus that Derpy was a member of the Cooper Clan with how she acted towards thieving, as it was almost like it was in her blood before he found her and Gilda at the orphanage. Sure, he had seen their original talent when the three of them, along with Murray and Bentley, stole the cookies from the headmistress of the orphanage, the reasoning behind why that was their first heist was sort of lost at this point in time, but it had spurred him to teach the girls the finer points that his father had taught him before his tragic end... and they took to it like they had been born just to be thieves, quickly earning the right to be called Coopers, in his opinion anyway.

He was also sure that his father, and the rest of their ancestors, were more than happy to have three young and successful heirs to the Cooper legacy, especially when they were in the process of restoring the family's most precious treasure and heirloom... before he pushed the thoughts back where they belonged and followed after Derpy as they delved deeper into what the casino had to offer.

The first thing they came across was another section of the new floor beams, though since there appeared to be three strips of it instead of two, like the last time they encountered this obstacle, they were able to run down the sides that didn't have any beams and switched to the middle one when it was time. It didn't take them long to reach the end of that obstacle and reach the end of where they rested, to which the duo collected the two clue bottles in front of them and bypassed the searchlights that were in the hallway. A few seconds later Sly and Derpy stopped near the alarm and switched it off, disabling both the floor beams and the searchlights, before they climbed up on top of a walkway that would allow them to sneak above a pair of gangster dogs. Derpy, of course, took a few moments to study how the guards were standing and noticed that there was enough room between them and the walkway that she could drop down behind them and surprise them, to which she did just that and knocked the two guards out... before she collected the three bottles they had been guarding while Sly did the same with the two that had been at the end of his walkway.

From there the duo started climbing up the rope that was in front of them, where Derpy grabbed the bottle at the bottom of it and smashed all of the ones she had collected so Bentley could have a large pool of clues to work from, before she followed after them... to which they crossed over the cash sign shaped chandeliers, grabbed another bottle, and knocked out the guard that was directly below them in the new area they had found.

Instead of moving forward immediately, like anyone else would do, the duo carefully explored the area around them and found seven more bottles in the area, where a few had been hidden up where some plants were located and needed a few seconds for them to find them. Once they had all the bottles in the area, and Derpy ignored the trio of slot machines that were on their right, the duo headed down the laser infested floor and made sure to jump when the lights were changing so they didn't set off the alarm. When they reached the end of the area, where Derpy took out the gangster dog before he could spot Sly, they took a few seconds to silence the alarm before they doubled back to collect the four hanging bottles that they had ignored in favor of turning off the systems. With those in hand they returned to the path in front of them and walked under a wooden effigy of Muggshot, complete with swinging legs for some reason, though as they moved forward they had to take out a card throwing dog while his back was turned.

They also collected the two bottles that were leading up to him, also ignored in favor of knocking him out first, before they walked down the ramp he had been guarding and found that a good part of the casino was flooded, meaning that Muggshot either didn't know about this or he didn't care about the place he forcefully acquired from it's original owners.

Fortunately it appeared that there were some gambling tables that were large enough for them to walk on without having to wade through the water, to which the duo carefully moved over the tables, to avoid making them sink, and collected a pair of bottles that were in front of them. After that they had to jump on three spinning tables and wait till they were near the next one in line before they could move forward, though their patience was rewarded with two more bottles once they jumped off the third spinning table. They then climbed up the nearby stairs and removed the pair of bottles that were in the safe they discovered, before they jumped up onto the next table in front of them and moved along the path it provided them, along with yet another pair of bottles. As they jumped across another trio of spinning tables Derpy realized that they had to be getting close to the end, as this many bottles in a row meant they had to be close to where the vault was located, and that was generally in the same area that the Treasure Key was resting in.

When they reached the end of the line, however, they turned off the alarm and jumped down onto a pair of tables below them, where they walked along the tables that rested in front of them and climbed up to a set of cash sign shaped chandeliers, before they came to a stop at the last one... where Derpy flew down and knocked out the gangster dog that was blocking the path, allowing Sly to claim the clue bottle before they moved on.

The next obstacle happened to be another trio of spinning tables, this time going in the reverse direction of what they were used to, and they also had another set of laser beams that would go off if they simply touched them, to which both Sly and Derpy carefully waited for the time to jump and did so when it showed up. From there it was a simple matter for them to reach the other table that the spinning ones were bringing them to, as well as disabling the alarm in the process, before collecting two more bottles and had to contend with yet another trio of spinning tables that had everything the last one had. The only difference was this new set of spinning tables was moving slower than the third set they came across, though that worked to their advantage as they were able to use a few smaller jumps to access the next table before they reached the end of the line. Sure enough three bottles, as well as the alarm to the beams, rested in front of them, as well as the vault they had been searching for, but since they didn't have all the clues they couldn't open it... where Sly and Derpy smiled as they climbed up on the chandeliers above them, as the last clue was up there, waiting for someone to claim it.

With all forty clue bottles claimed, and their contents shipped off to Bentley, the duo stood beside the vault and waited for the combination to be given to them, though when Bentley finally contacted them, and informed them that the code was 3-3-8. It was then that they recovered a page from the Thievius Raccoonus, or more accurately B.F. Cooper's technique on how to speed up the clock, which Bentley commented would be good for long stakeouts and other events that were similar to that. With the calling card in position the duo climbed up the rope again and dropped down onto the large spinning roulette wheel that was below them, where they had to jump in the opposite direction of how it was spinning and land on the green sections three times... before claiming the Treasure Key that had been stored in this area.

"Hey Sly," Derpy said, though at the same time she grabbed onto her bother and started flying towards the entrance, since it would be hard for him to make it all the way out on his own, "How do you think Gilda's doing on her own?"

"She's fine." Sly replied, as he had absolute faith in Gilda's abilities as a thief, just like he had faith in Derpy's skills, though at the same time he wondered what she was facing on her end, "Don't worry, I'm sure she's got one of the other two Treasure Keys by this point."

Derpy nodded her head and flew towards the entrance of the casino, because she was interested in hearing what her sister had gone through and what sort of challenges she needed to overcome before she could claim the Treasure Key that she had gone after.

Gilda had, once Sly and Derpy headed into the casino, flown around the area just to see where the other guards were located, which she knocked out immediately so she could have free reign of the entire area, before she landed in front of a tunnel that forced her to climb down a passage for a few moments. When she finally came to a stop, however, she landed beside what appeared to be a gun that someone could operate, though as she looked out at the area in front of her, and noticed that it was further away than what she would have expected, she found Murray standing near a locked gate. Since she had no idea what was going on at the moment, and had no idea why Murray was here, she pulled out her binocucom and connected it to Bentley, as she was sure that he had the answers to her questions.

"Bentley, what am I looking at?" Gilda asked, though she was slightly concerned for Murray's safety, especially since he's actually never been out in the field in a manner like this, save for being the driver for all of their various adventures that they had been on over the years.

"I scanned the area for more of Muggshot's Treasure Keys and Murray volunteered to get this one," Bentley replied, to which Gilda zeroed in on where Murray was standing, who turned and waved in the direction of the gun, which happened to be where she was standing, "He's in position to make a run for this key. What he needs is for someone to provide cover fire for him while he's doing that, and that's where you come in."

"I should be able to do this easily," Gilda said, as she studied the controls for a moment and found out that they were oddly simple, so she put away her binocucom, accessed the blasting station, and fired a test shot at the gate, opening it so Murray could get started.

The moment Murray started moving through the section of town that he was going to be running through, and Gilda followed after him while focusing on the area around him, he immediately stopped when one of the garage doors opened and a plank wielding guard emerged from the building. Before Murray even had a chance to cower in fear Gilda fired upon the guard and let him continue moving, to which she carefully watched for more plank wielding guards, especially since they appeared to be in control of this area. As Murray moved Gilda spotted some barrels, with what appeared to be the radioactive symbol on the side, that exploded when she fired at one of them, so when she cleared the next group of guards she quickly diverged from the path and blew the barrels, that would be blocking her path in the future, apart and got back to Murray in time to take out another guard.

It wasn't long before Murray made his way through the wrecked train that was along his path and safely reached the other side, though while he ran through the town Gilda made sure to fire at the guards that were showing up and held her fire when some barrels were revealed near Murray. From there Murray used a crane to reach the top of the buildings that would allow him to grab the Treasure Key, though that was when the opponents turned to gangster dogs, which were faster than the plank wielding dogs. Gilda, however, was still faster than those dogs and shot them the moment they made their appearance and let Murray move on once more, though as he did so Gilda noticed that he seemed slightly braver than he had been when he started this venture. A few moments later Murray reached the Treasure Key and grabbed it, to which Gilda made sure that he made a clean getaway with their prize before climbing off the blasting station and told Murray to hold onto the key so he could hand it to her when she arrived at the van.

Bentley, however, told her that there was another key that only Murray could get, to which Gilda sighed and headed back to the main area in front of the building, though since neither of her siblings were back yet she flew over to the third and final marker before finding herself on an overlook that allowed her to stare down at a race track.

As it turned out Murray had come here earlier for a snack and had been challenged to a race by some gangster dogs, who were actually willing to wait for a few minutes so he could prepare for this, which in reality was just his way of wanting someone to watch his back and cheer him on. Since Gilda was reduced to having a supporting role this time around, not that she was annoyed with such a thing, she cheered Murray on as he rode the van, which Bentley was still sitting in, onto the track and lined up behind the four dogs he would be racing against. Gilda knew that Murray liked to work on his van and what not, but when the race started he bumped into the racers that were trying to do the same to him and slowly made his way from fifth place to fourth place, using the nitro boosts that were along the track to his advantage. If Bentley was inside the van he made no noise as Murray raced to his hearts content, surprising Gilda with the fact that he didn't flip over in the process.

Gilda smiled and cheered Murray on the entire time, watching him make his way all the way up to the first place position and then got ahead of the dog that had been hogging that position the entire time, until he finished the third and final lap, claiming a second Treasure Key for Gilda and her siblings.

"Did I do good Gilda?" Murray asked, though while he claimed the second Treasure Key he also claimed the snack that he had been denied when he came out here the first time, something that he was going to eat after Gilda and the keys were gone and he was on his way back to where the van was supposed to be resting.

"You did excellent Murray." Gilda replied, and she meant it, because while Murray might not have any field experience, like her and her siblings, he had the makings of overcoming his fears and becoming something greater, "Go ahead and relax, you've definitely earned it this time around."

Murray smiled as he climbed back into the van, with his snack in hand, and drove off back to the entrance of Muggshot's territory, leaving Gilda with the two Treasure Keys that he had collected, who opened her wings and flew back to the entrance of the building, where she found her siblings waiting for her.

"Gilda!" Derpy said, throwing her arms around her sister when she landed, though at the same time Sly smiled and approached his sisters, holding the page of the Thievius Raccoonus that he and Derpy had acquired, "What did you do while we were inside the casino?"

"Oh, I helped Murray make a run for a Treasure Key," Gilda replied, though as she got out from her sister's hold she handed the keys over to Sly, who knew exactly what they were going to do with it, "and then I watched him race some gangster dogs, where he claimed the second Treasure Key."

"Wow, he's been a busy friend." Sly said, though at the same time he used three of the four keys they possessed to unlock the locks on the convertible, to which they stood back as he pulled the lever and let the car slam into the wooden barrier that was blocking their way.

Once that was removed the siblings walked inside the building, because now they were officially one step closer to taking on Muggshot and recovering what he had taken from them, though they knew that they would need to acquire a few more Treasure Keys before they could do that... which they were more than happy to collect, especially since they were bound to have more pages of the Thievius Raccoonus near them.

Thievius: Last Call

With the way into the main building opened, and no additional guards came out to check out the noise they made in doing so, Sly and his sisters carefully walked into the building and followed the path that was in front of them, where they entered the lobby of the building and looked at what was around them. From what they could tell Bentley had already determined where the remainder of Muggshot's Treasure Keys were located and had already projected their locations to them, to which they made their way up the stairs that were in front of them. Of course they had to take out two plank wielding guards to reach the top of the stairs, but it made sense for Muggshot to want someone guarding this area, especially since there were two gangster dogs standing guard near some of the places they needed to go. The three of them then stopped at the construct that was in front of them, as it appeared to be a mug in the likeness of Muggshot's head, though all of them frowned for a few seconds.

"Would you look at that ugly mug?" Sly commented, as he was sure that someone had purposely created this construct in such a manner, though at the same time whoever had made it likely did so to get at Muggshot, no doubt for what happened to Mesa City.

"I am, and I find it infinitely fascinating." Bentley said, though him speaking up caused all three of the siblings to pull out their binocucoms, so they could see him while he talked to them, especially when his words confused them.

"Huh?" Sly, Gilda, and Derpy said, as they weren't incredibly fascinated by the ugly representation of Muggshot's head, though they were interested in why Bentley was so interested in it and knew that he would tell them why that happened to be the case.

"My x-ray detection devices reveal that a secret elevator is contained within that giant head." Bentley stated, to which the siblings glanced at it for a few seconds, as now their interests had been raised as they wondered what else their friend had to tell them, "One that's designed to go right up to Muggshot's penthouse."

"So how do we get in?" Derpy asked, though even as she said that she assumed that they needed the other Treasure Keys, as that was what they had to do back in Raleigh's place and figured that the same would be true here, but she wanted to see what Bentley had to say.

"Behind this locked wall, there's a level that summons the elevator." Bentley replied, to which their attention was directed to the area in question, which happened to rest behind a help desk that people would have approached had Muggshot not take the city, "But I don't need to tell you what you need to do so you can unlock it."

"We need the other three Treasure Keys." Gilda stated, though at the same time Bentley acknowledged that she was correct and the connection between them was cut off, to which they all put away their binocucoms and looked at the areas they had to go through this time, "Let's see here, knowing our luck Carmelita is already in one of these areas, since she's supposed to be somewhere nearby, and I have to hazard a guess that she's in the path to the left. Sly, since your the one interested in her, why don't you investigate that area and see what you can find?"

"That's fine with me." Sly said, as he would have volunteered for the area that Carmelita was in if they had spotted her in an area, though he wasn't going to question Gilda's thoughts on the matter, because she was generally right about these sorts of things.

"Derpy, you should take that entrance over there," Gilda continued, pointing to one that appeared to have an elevator nearby, one that would take her up to somewhere that was above where they were standing, "It seems that a Treasure Key is resting somewhere on the roof, so you should be able to get at it before Sly and I come close to grabbing our keys or the vaults in our area."

"Awesome!" Derpy said, though that was followed by her opening her wings before departing from their company, where they watched as she landed in front of the entrance Gilda had pointed out, completely bypassing the guard below her, before she headed into the area she was to explore.

Sly and Gilda chuckled as they separated from each other as well, though before they got too far Gilda turned around and knocked out the gangster dog that was blocking Sly's path, that way he wouldn't have to deal with it, before heading to her objective and headed to the area that it was connected to.

Derpy smiled as she rode the elevator to the roof of the building, where the large sign baring Muggshot's name happened to reside, as while she enjoyed exploring an area with her siblings she also enjoyed tackling an area on her own, as it proved that she was as skilled as her brother and sister. When the elevator arrived at it's destination she spotted a domesticated dog resting between her and the large glass container that was in front of her, to which she simply walked out of the way and let the dog chew on it's bone, as it wasn't interested in her at all. Instead of striking the glass with her cane, that either of her siblings might have done in her shoes, she studied the glass and listened to Bentley as he told her that the glass was too hard for a cane to smash through. That was, however, before she looked up towards the sky and spotted a wrecking ball that was located near where she and the case were standing, though when she voiced her opinion Bentley agreed with her plan to use it to get at the imprisoned Treasure Key.

With that decided Derpy explored the area and found a bottle that was resting on a car that happened to be suspended in the air, to which she jumped onto the car, grabbed the bottle, and returned to the roof, where she heard the sound of something detaching and noticed that the suspended car was gone now. She shrugged as she collected the clue in the bottle and continued her exploration, where she collected the two bottles that were on the wall to her right before heading to the back part of this area. Fortunately she found a card throwing guard standing guard over two safes, to which she flew behind him and knocked the guard out, allowing her to open the safes and claim the four clues that were waiting for her, before moving over to the neon sign that she could apparently climb on. She latched onto the tube and used it to climb to the part of the building that was above her, which she could have easily done with her wings, before she collected the bottle that was in front of her and then started climbing on the tubes that spelled out Muggshot's name.

The moment she reached the 's' in Muggshot's name she dropped down into the area below her, as she spotted some clue bottles from above, and gathered the pair that were right under the sign, to which she smiled as she sent the contents over to Bentley as she continued exploring. She then discovered two more suspended cars that happened to have some bottles on them, one a piece, and she carefully collected them and listened as they detached, removing them from her sight and the area as a whole. From there she approached the plank wielding guard from behind and knocked him out, allowing her to grab the pair of bottles that he was guarding, before heading towards a stack of tired and located another clue that was all alone. She then approached a water tower and stared at the hook that was off to the side, where she latched onto it and pulled with all her might, causing eight bottles to pour out into the area in front of her, which were collected immediately... along with the two in the safe that was off to the left of the tower and the other trio that rested on a ledge that she could have used to jump back down into the area she had been in a few minutes ago.

Once Derpy was sure that she got everything from this part of the area, and there weren't any clue bottles on the lower area, she latched onto the sign and continued jumping until she reached the structure that was behind the 't' in Muggshot's name... where she found two more clues off to the side and latched onto the pole at the very top of the structure, which eventually caused it to tip over and smash into a wall, destroying it and opening the way forward.

On the section of the roof that she had discovered she found a chain wielding guard and a plank wielding guard waiting for something to happen, so she knocked them out and claimed the bottle that was between them, before exploring the rest of the area that she was in. She then found a safe being guarding by a card throwing guard, who quickly hit the floor like all the others, and she gathered the pair of clues inside the safe, as well as the one that happened to be resting on another suspended car, though this time she ignored the sound as she moved away from the car. After that she returned to where the front of the one structure had crashed into and climbed the neon tube that she found, which allowed her to access a safe with another pair of clues, before she landed on the walkway that was in front of her. As she started walking forward, and collected the bottle that was in front of her, she heard an intercom come on and knew that Muggshot had a message for someone.

I got a personal message for the two-bit thief who's making off with all my Treasure Keys: you're dead, pally. Muggshot angrily said, revealing that, unlike Raleigh, he knew that someone was already stealing his things and had likely told his guards to be extra careful, or at least those that were guarding the keys and vaults that her siblings were currently going after at the moment, If I get my hands on you, I'm going to fit you with your own pair of cement bunny slippers. You hear me? You're lunchmeat, jerk!

The part about the message that interested Derpy was that Muggshot, like Raleigh, believed that there was one thief in his area, instead of three, to which she chuckled for a moment as she reached the end of the path, though the last part she jumped onto moved forward and smashed through the wall that was in front of her. That, in turn, allowed her to jump down into the area where the controls for the crane were located, as well as take out the card throwing guard that was nearby and claim two more clues, one that was inside the ruined building and one that was on a suspended car. When she realized that she had claimed thirty-nine clues, and still didn't have the code, she climbed up onto the glass tunnel and started to make her way towards her objective... only for her to turn around the moment she got the final clue bottle, as the vault was right behind her.

Once she reached the vault she dialed in the code, 4-6-8, and revealed a sight that annoyed her a tiny bit, as instead of getting a page from the Thievius Raccoonus she found the blueprints for Muggshot's additions to Mesa City... to which she sighed as she left the calling card behind, used the crane to smash into the glass case below her, as well as some other objects in the process, and claimed the Treasure Key. From there she sighed as she climbed back onto the elevator and descended back into the main building, hoping that Sly and Gilda had better luck than she did with their vaults.

Gilda walked out of the passage that she had been in and carefully smashed the window that was in front of her, as there was no way to safely remove it without the entire thing breaking, before she walked outside and found herself in what appeared to be the back alley for the area of the city that she and her siblings were in. She noticed that the path to the Treasure Key was basically a loop around the area, and that she could have easily spread her wings, claim the key, and gotten out of there if she was only interested in the one thing, but she wanted the clues as well. As such she turned to the left and followed the path that was in front of her, which included scaring a domesticated dog with just her eyes before claiming two clues that were behind the ladder that she had to climb up. At the top of the ladder she found that she could jump on the awning that was there, allowing her to get over the sign that Muggshot had set up there and collect the pair of clues from the safe, before using another one to move forward.

Using the awnings allowed her to reach an area with two more of the signs that she would have smashed, if she wasn't a thief, and found a trio of bottles waiting to be collected, though after claiming those she maneuvered herself behind a chain wielding guard and knocked him out, to which she moved forward with ease.

From there it appeared that she would have to jump on an air conditioning unit, destroying it in the process, to get at the clue that was hanging in front of her, but instead of doing that she opened her wings and easily claimed it, though she went a little further and flew up to another chain wielding guard. She knocked the guard out and claimed the pair of bottles that he was guarding, before she climbed back down the ladder and used an awning to bypass a searchlight that was in her way. Fortunately that allowed her to jump up to a walkway that was above a couple of gangster dogs and she turned off the alarm that was up there, though instead of heading back down she climbed the ladder that was in front of her and carefully made her way over the giant dog statues that were up there. Before she actually jumped over the statues, however, she did find a pair of bottles behind her, though as she crossed the path the statues created she found and recovered three more clues before she reached the end of the statues.

After that she encountered a small obstacles course with moving searchlights, to which she moved when the lights weren't near her and paused when they got close to her, before dropping down to the next level until she was on the third level and used the awnings to get over the searchlight and bypass the alarm at the end of the course.

Once she had gotten by the alarm she paused at a pair of awnings that had some rotating clue bottles that appeared to be attached to something, though she took a few seconds and carefully removed the five bottles that were in front of her, before she landed on the other side of a sign and sent the contents to Bentley. Gilda then noticed that there were three bottles resting between jumps in front of her, once more using air conditioners to move forward, so she simply used her wings and did things the easy way. She then landed on the walkway beneath her and moved into the area that a chain wielding guard was in and knocked him out, before collecting the two clues inside the safe and the one that was resting near a wall. After that she jumped up to the floor above her and knocked out the plank wielding guard that actually turned towards the hole she came out of, before grabbing the clue bottle and heading up to the final level of the building she was moving through, where the vault was located.

Fortunately two of the last three clues were near the second hole she jumped through and the final one, what she hoped was the final one, was right in front of the Treasure Key, so she collected it and headed back to the vault that was right behind her. That was followed by Bentley telling her that the code was 5-6-5 and her entering it, where she found the page of the Thievius Raccoonus that talked about Suzanne Cooper's notes on Water Safety, something that might come in handy in the future. With the page in hand, and the calling card left behind, Gilda removed the Treasure Key from the case it was resting in and headed back down to the entrance of this area, though as she did so she had to wonder if Sly had actually run into Carmelita or if they had beaten her to the punch and she never showed up.

Carmelita sighed as she carefully hid herself on the rooftop that she was standing on, as it had taken her some time and effort to actually get around all of the guards that were patrolling Mesa City and get up here, though the only reason she hadn't moved further into Muggshot's territory was because she had seen a key that was trapped in a case. She was sure that Sly Cooper, or either of his sisters, would show up at some point and would likely head towards the key, so she was biding her time until that happened. At the same time she took stock of what had happened back at the Isle of Wrath, as the guards leading up to Raleigh's fortress had been knocked out, bits of his treasure hoard were missing, according to the frog anyway, and all seven of his Treasure Keys were missing, as well as the contents of the safes that he had hidden away throughout the entirety of his fortress.

It had taken her and her fellow police officers a couple of days, and the entirety of their forces, to catalogue what Raleigh had while she filled out the paperwork to ensure he landed in jail, and yet she found no traces of the Cooper Gang being there, save for the calling cards... though her thoughts were interrupted when she heard the sound of some bottles breaking, where she mentally smiled as she revealed herself and found Sly Cooper standing on the building across from where she was standing.

"Well, well, well..." Carmelita said, though at the same time she locked onto her target and held her shock pistol at the ready, because she knew that Sly would take the first opening and flee when he had the chance, "look who just walked into my crosshairs... Sly Cooper!"

"About time you showed up, Ms. Fox." Sly replied, again with the same smile that was always on his face whenever he talked with her, regardless of whether or not his sisters were around to witness what he was doing, "I was getting worried about you. Thought you took a wrong turn somewhere back in Paris."

"The only one making wrong turns is you, Sly." Carmelita stated, though at the same time she made sure that the safety on her weapon was off, as she sensed that the chase was going to start soon, "I'd suggest you surrender before I paralyze you with my good friend, the shock pistol."

"Now see, a girl whose best friend's a firearm's got issues." Sly said, as he knew that Carmelita liked her shock pistol more than the other cops he had encountered over the years, though he was pleased to find that she wasn't getting terribly annoyed at him yet, "A little dinner, a little dancing, I think I can help you out."

"Mmm. Sounds romantic." Carmelita replied, though at the same time she was only stalling, as she had no interests in even dating someone like Sly, while she started to move her shock pistol into position so she could end this before her target moved from where he was standing, "As long as you don't mind dining... in jail!"

"Nah, I hear the service is lousy." Sly commented, as if he was actually planning the 'romantic' encounter that he had been talking about, though out of the corner of his eye he noticed Carmelita's arms moving and knew what was coming his way in the next few seconds.

"Once I catch you, you'll know for yourself!" Carmelita declared, though even as she said that she fired at Sly, who instantly moved out of the way and jumped towards the roof that was near the one he had been standing on the entire time, causing her to move as well.

As Carmelita jumped to the next roof she spotted Sly quickly gathering some sort of green bottle, three that were out in the open and two from a blue safe, though as she fired at him he used some really bouncy mattresses to get him high enough to use the water tower that was near him, while avoiding her shock blasts. Carmelita knew that Sly was hard to hit, as she could perfectly score when she was in the training area, but Sly was faster than what most people gave him credit for and proved to be one step ahead of where she loosed a shock blast to. She aimed at one of the spires that were on the sign that Sly was heading towards, though her blast simply missed because Sly seemed to know that it was the obvious choice and backed off, causing her to shift her gaze as he moved forward.

She then followed Sly as he crossed over a trio of roofs and landed on one that had a clothesline, though as she fired at him he simply jumped up onto the walkway that was above him and headed over the pole that connected the building he was on to the one in front of him. Unfortunately she lost him for a moment, when he slipped into the building that was along whatever path he was following, though since she couldn't go in there, because if she did she knew that she would lose him entirely, Carmelita carefully jumped along the buildings that were around her and made her way to the ruined back of the same building that Sly headed into. A few moments went by before she found Sly dropping down onto a part of the ruined area she was staring at, where she opened fire at him and broke part of the area in the process, though despite that fact Sly kept moving along the path in front of him and she continued to miss.

The two of them made their way across the ruined section of the building, with bits and pieces falling either because of Carmelita's shock blasts or because Sly touched something, before Carmelita landed on a blown up version of Muggshot and aimed at Sly, only for the connection between her ground and the buildings to break, causing her to drift higher than the buildings as she growled. She would get Sly soon enough, she knew that much, though she had the feeling that he and his sisters wouldn't be in Mesa City when she and her fellow cops came to bust them later... though Sly did smile and wave at her as he claimed the key, before he left the area.

Sly quickly made his way back to the entrance of the area that he was in, where he was fortunate to find an actual pathway that wasn't ruined, before he entered the main building and found his sisters standing near the secret elevator, who were holding the Treasure Keys they had grabbed. He smiled as he headed down to the area that his sisters were standing in and watched as they smiled as well, though they were all focused on the task at hand and the person they would be fighting soon enough.

"I see you found the other keys," Sly commented, though at the same time Gilda and Derpy gave him the keys they had acquired, given them enough to open the lever for the secret elevator, "what pages did you two find?"

"I picked up the notes of Water Safety," Gilda replied, also handing over the page in question, before patting an unhappy Derpy for a few seconds, which let Sly know what happened, "unfortunately Derpy ended up finding Muggshot's blueprints for his additions, and she's not happy about that."

"Well, I picked up the Thief Replica technique," Sly stated, though once he said that he moved down to where the locks were located and unlocked them, before pulling the lever and revealing the elevator that Bentley had pointed out to them earlier, where all of them smiled for a moment, "It's time we paid Muggshot a visit and improve our moods."

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy walked into the elevator that was in front of them and let it carry them up to the penthouse, where they were sure Muggshot was resting at that very moment, though at the same time they prepared themselves for a fight, especially since he wasn't going to be happy to see them. When the elevator came to a stop the siblings emerged from the shaft and headed down the stairs that were in front of them, where they found a number of mirrors resting in the area between them and the throne that Muggshot happened to be sitting on.

"What? My boys have been yapping about some mysterious group running around cracking skulls and, and this is it?!" Muggshot said, though his tone indicated that he couldn't believed that the trio was what his guards, ones they must have missed in the various areas, had told him about, "You three are the monkey wrench in my operation? Some scrawny rats with some sticks... wait a second... I've seen that stick before."

"Maybe when our father knocked your block off with it." Sly replied in kind, as he was sure that their father had hit the big dog with the cane that later became Sly's, as well as the inspiration for Gilda and Derpy's canes.

"Your father? Wow, you're all Coopers?" Muggshot inquired, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing, though at the same time the trio knew that something was coming and prepared for whatever that something happened to be, "You know, that Thingus Raccamagoocus had a lot of nice pictures but way too many big words."

"So you don't mind just handing it over." Derpy said, as she was hoping that Muggshot, who didn't seem to care about the pages he had taken at all, would simply hand them over and they could figure out where the next member of the Fiendish Five was located.

"What are you kidding?" Muggshot angrily said, though his tone indicated that he was annoyed with them, confirming that they would be in for a fight, just like with Raleigh earlier, "You break into my place, steal my stuff, trash the joint, I feel transgressed and violated. Let's rock!"

Muggshot walked down from the throne he was sitting on and raised his pair of guns, the ones they had read about in his file, before he fired into the air as nine crystals erupted from the floor around them, oddly enough eight of them were in front of the eight mirrors. Gilda and Derpy, knowing that Muggshot would start firing soon enough, opened their wings and took to the skies, where they found that Muggshot was actually aiming at them and not Sly, deeming them the more dangerous targets instead of their brother. At first they ignored the mirrors, thinking that the obvious choice was be a trap of some kind, but as they smacked their foe with both of their canes they discovered that Muggshot wasn't bothered by their attacks, causing Sly to nod his head as he realized what they needed to do. While Gilda and Derpy flew through the air, narrowly avoiding the bullets that Muggshot was firing at them, Sly moved around the area and rotated the mirrors into place... where the focused light caused his pair of guns to overheat, to which he angrily marched over to the elevator behind him and went to the floor above him.

When the siblings reached the next floor they found that Muggshot was now aiming at Sly, no doubt figuring that he was the real opponent he needed to take care of, though in the end that was the wrong thing to think about, as while his attention was on Sly both Gilda and Derpy flew around the area and rotated the mirrors into position. From there Muggshot moved to the chandelier and picked up his third, and last, pair of guns as the siblings used the elevator to catch up with him. This time around he tried to fire at all three of them, but with only two guns and the sisters flying around the air, while Sly used the Ninja Spire Jump to move around the chandelier, he found that he couldn't effectively target any of them... allowing the siblings to rotate the final set of mirrors into position and overheat his guns, while at the same time causing him to collapse on the chandelier.

"This is impossible!" Muggshot declared, though at the same time he stared up at the trio as they gathered around him, as they knew he would say something about their next target, "A group of pipsqueaks like you beating a big strong bruiser like me? It ain't right! You want all of that stupid picture book, you're gonna to have to go down to Haiti and cross paths with Mz. Ruby. And then believe you me, you don't want to be you!"

Gilda and Derpy carried Sly down to the first floor of the penthouse and found Muggshot's safe behind the throne that he had been sitting on, where the group smiled as they found the pages detailing Tennessee Kid Cooper's Rail Walk and Rail Slide techniques... though with the location of Mz. Ruby's base in mind the trio departed from Mesa City, where their smiles remained as they noticed Carmelita and her forces heading into the city, meaning that soon the city would be freed from what Muggshot did to it and it's people.

Thievius: Haiti

After defeating Muggshot, and claiming his portion of the Thievius Raccoonus, Gilda and Derpy carried Sly through the air as they searched for where Murray parked the van, as there was a chance he could have moved it since he went racing and claimed a Treasure Key earlier, but fortunately he happened to be in the same place. Once they joined back up with their friends Murray turned the engine on and moved them away from Mesa City, allowing Carmelita the time to lock up Muggshot and his goons and begin the necessary paperwork. Sly, Gilda, and Derpy spent a few hours memorizing the new pages of the Thievius Raccoonus, though when Bentley and Murray found a good place for them to practice their skills in peace they took the chance. The techniques they really committed to memory was Tennessee Kid Cooper's Rail Walk and Rail Slide, as when they picked up Rioichi's Ninja Spire Jump technique from Raleigh's safe it proved to be the one they needed for Muggshot's base... so, by that logic, Tennessee Kid Cooper's techniques would be the key to getting inside Mz. Ruby's base in Haiti.

Once they had a decent grasp of the Rail Walk and Rail Slide techniques, as well as the other ones that they had acquired from Mesa City, the siblings returned to the van and Murray drove off into the distance, making sure to put some distance between them and where Carmelita's forces were located.

The five of them decided to relax for a few days and made their way to Hollywood, where they did some sightseeing as normal tourists, and even dressed up in such a manner so no one would be able to figure out that they were members of the Cooper Gang. During their time in that area Sly decided to make off with the golden stars from the Walk of Fame, which would end up being sold at some point in the future, before they went somewhere else in the city and relaxed, since their next target was going to be tougher than Muggshot. Gilda and Derpy, on the other hand, decided that the beach was the best place for them to really unwind before they went to Haiti and began the search for Mz. Ruby, as there had to be some truth to Muggshot's parting words. During their stay in Hollywood they found a newspaper that detailed Carmelita busting Muggshot, saving Mesa City in the process, and mentioning that she had missed a mysterious group of figures in the process, which had to be the three of them... though they simply chuckled as they folded the newspaper away and returned to what they had been doing a few seconds ago.

When the three of them were well rested, and so were both Bentley and Murray, the group headed back to the van and began the trip to Haiti, though while they did that Sly pulled out the police file they had grabbed and turned the page to the information on Mz. Ruby. According to what he and his sisters read Mz. Ruby had been born into a family of mystics, something they really didn't have experience with at the moment, and that the other children shunned her because they found her to be scary, though it didn't help that she apparently showed the kids dead creatures when she first met them. Of course their opinions on Mz. Ruby instantly changed when they discovered that she had taught herself how to summon the undead, providing her with the new friends she had when she was a young kid, which meant they really had to be careful around her. From that point it was a collection of what was known about the adult Mz. Ruby's actions, revealing that she was the chief mystic for the Fiendish Five and that her powers allowed them to break the laws of man and nature at the same time... and that, despite her success, she managed to slip into obscurity as she vanished into the Haitian jungle.

Sly and his sisters glanced at each other as Murray drove them to the area that Bentley was directing him to, because it appeared that Mz. Ruby was going to be even stranger and tougher than either Raleigh and Muggshot, in her own way, and that they needed to be careful when they entered her base... because there was no telling what sort of dangers awaited them this time around.

A few days later Murray finally arrived at the outskirts of Mz. Ruby's base of operations, where he spun the van around and pointed the back at the path, allowing Sly, Gilda, and Derpy to climb out and touch the ground that was in front of them, though this time they closed the back of the van the instant they were outside.

"So, considering that Mz. Ruby had problems with people in the past, what sort of enemies do you think we'll be facing this time around?" Derpy asked, as she recalled that Raleigh's guards had been mostly sea based and Muggshot's had all been gangsters or criminals, making her wonder what they were up against.

"I guess the undead... and potentially the creatures of the swamp itself," Gilda replied, though at the same time she knew that all three of them didn't know what to think about the fact that their next target could summon the undead and break the laws of both man and nature, as they didn't have something to counter that.

"Bentley, surely you don't believe what's in Mz. Ruby's file?" Sly asked, as before they moved forward, and left the van behind, he wanted one more opinion on what they would be facing, because he was sure that this was going to be a tough adventure for all of them, even if Bentley and Murray were safe in the van.

"Sure I do. My scanners have picked up verifiable paranormal activity." Bentley stated, revealing that there was more out there than what they originally knew, something that they would be encountering in the near future apparently, to which Sly sighed for a moment, "Sly, just be careful while you three explore Mz. Ruby's base... I have the uneasy feeling that your target already knows we're here."

Sly seriously hoped that Mz. Ruby had no idea that he, Gilda, and Derpy were here, but based on what they had read about in her file, and the supposed feats that her 'magic' had done, he had the feeling that Bentley might be right, which made him turn away as he joined his sisters. Of course, before they actually moved forward, all three of them noticed a rather large mosquito patrolling the area in front of them, though instead of saying anything they knew that Mz. Ruby was either behind this mutation, or it was natural and never before documented. The siblings crossed over the lily pad that was in front of them, collecting the clue bottle that was resting on it, before they reached the area the mosquito was in, to which they slammed their canes into it and knocked it into the water around them. At the end of the area that the mosquito had been in they found a vine that was perfect for using the Rail Walk technique, to which they took turns walking across it and jumped to the next platform that had a large mystical statue... as well as two more clue bottles and a vine that allowed them to use the Rail Slide to move forward.

At the end of the vine they jumped off and landed on a large branch of a tree, with a large enough area for them to land on and a bottle resting to their left, before jumping off of that and landed on the second branch in front of them, where they fought off the large black spider that wanted to block their way. From there they used a trio of vines, separated and yet headed to the same location, to reach another branch that was closer to the water, though Derpy, who brought up the rear, jumped off earlier and claimed two more bottles before joining her siblings, who had fought off two spiders so they could access the area in front of them. After that they found a trio of mosquitoes that were patrolling the area between them and the bounce pad that was behind them, to which the siblings rushed forward and fought off all of the mosquitoes before they accessed the vine that was above them... and claimed the bottle that happened to be attached to it with a rope.

From there they used the vines to slide through the area, accessing some bounce pads along the way, before they reached a wooden vine that they had to walk along, where they smashed their way through the spiders that were in front of them before they reached a tunnel that headed towards the area above them.

That was when they learned that there were more creatures than spiders and mosquitoes they had to worry about, as when they collected the two bottles that were in the tunnel the creature at the end of the tunnel came to life, revealing a wooden creature that angrily stared at them and it rushed them. Despite the fact that they were caught off guard the trio discovered something interesting, the wooden creature appeared to be extremely brittle, as a swing from each of their canes was enough to shatter it into a thousand pieces, opening the way forward. At the end of the tunnel they found another clue bottle, which they collected, before they jumped onto the vines and walked around the path that they had formed. That brought them to the top of the structure that the tunnel was built under, where they found two more of the wooden creatures that wanted them dead, to which the trio carefully smashed their way through the wooden creatures and cleared the area... allowing them to claim the bottle that was resting in a dead tree and a trio of them that rested off to their left.

Once they had the bottles in the area they jumped onto the branch that was at the end of the area and discovered a gate like structure in front of them, one that had some actually people patrolling the area, to which they carefully jumped down into the area that was below where they were standing... where they spotted an actual person, a skinny rat that was wearing a voodoo mask and carried a voodoo staff, guarding the gate. Fortunately there appeared to be a way around the voodoo guard, as they had to climb up onto the walkway and silently inch their way across the path, though as Sly and Gilda did that Derpy claimed the clue bottle to her right before joining her siblings, who knocked out the guard before they stared at the actual entrance to Mz. Ruby's lair... after claiming the clue that the guard had been protecting.

"It would appear that Mz. Ruby is more clever about where she's stored her Treasure Keys," Bentley commented, to which the siblings used their binocucoms and stared at the same in front of them, while at the same time listening to what their friend had to tell them, "more than Raleigh and Muggshot were. From the looks of things it appears that the key you need, in order to open the main gate to her base, is being protected by a mad mojo force field, which is being powered by five candles. Fortunately, according to my research, these are hard to make at range and the candles will be close by, meaning that you should be able to get the key if you smash the candles and disrupt the magical energies that they are channeling at the moment."

"One Treasure Key coming right up." Gilda said, though this time around she turned towards Derpy and shook her head, indicating that flying should only be used if the guards noticed them at some point, before the three of them walked down into the area before them.

Sly carefully maneuvered himself around the area, like Gilda and Derpy were doing, and ignored the bottles that were around him, because he was sure that the noise might alert the voodoo guards, though he knocked out the guards that he came across. While he did that he noticed his sisters doing the same thing, as their guards fell to the floor as well, before he smashed the candles that were near him and gathered the clue bottles that were near him, where he noticed that the remaining four bottles for this area, according to what Bentley said anyway, were all around them. Once they had all of the clue bottles the three of them gathered near the Treasure Key and grabbed it, before carefully making their way towards the vault that was off on the right side of this area. Sly then approached the tumblers and listened as Bentley informed him that the code was 5-8-8, which allowed him to open the vault and recovered Kelle McCooper's notes on how to harnessing the electromagnetic field to create a barrier of sorts around them when they rolled, though that turned the Raccoon Roll into an offensive technique if they used it in such a matter.

From there they approached the main gate and unlocked it, allowing them to enter the main hub of Mz. Ruby's base of operations, though as they walked into the area, and took in the sights around them, what drew their attention was the massive skull shaped structure, made out of twisted wood, off in the distance... though as they stared at the are that Mz. Ruby was in both Gilda and Derpy shuddered for a moment, but they had no idea why they did that.

"It looks like we're going to have to go through that Skull Temple to get to Mz. Ruby," Sly commented, to which he made sure that they were connected to Bentley for a moment, whose readings no doubt confirmed that their target was in the massive structure, "Bentley, have you found the areas that the other Treasure Keys are resting in?"

"Yes, and I have projected the markers for all three of you." Bentley replied, letting them know that it was time for them to get their operation underway, especially since they were going to have to split up to get all the keys in this part of the base, before they were allowed to move forward.

Sly nodded as he lowered his binocucom, as he and his sisters were more than ready to deal with everything that Mz. Ruby had built into the area that was her base, so she could keep the Treasure Keys safe, and they all knew that this was going to be an interesting experience... especially since they never encountered someone like Mz. Ruby before today.

Thievius: Swamp's Dark Center

The first thing that the siblings did, before walking out into the open area that was sure to trigger Mz. Ruby's message to her guards, was carefully study the areas that they needed to progress through, for the Treasure Keys and any vaults that might have been hidden away inside those areas. From what Gilda could see they had three places to pick from, which made sense considering that each of the Fiendish Five seemed to have seven Treasure Keys on hand, though from what she could determine at a glance one area lead to a lake or river, the second seemed to go off into an area the locked gate was attached to, and the third only had some stones around it, so it was hard to tell what that one was. She then wondered how best they could divide the labor in this area, as she knew it was best to split up and tackle them at the same time, but with their limited experience in dealing with magical enemies, which was going to be normal in this area, it was hard to say what they should do and what they shouldn't do.

"This is going to be interesting and difficult at the same time," Gilda commented, causing Sly and Derpy to glance over at her, as they were trying to figure out a good way to divide the tasks between them, especially since they had no idea what each of the areas actually contained, "So, do either of you have an idea of how we should tackle this area?"

"Well, I think you should take on the area to our right," Derpy replied, beckoning to the area in question, which meant that Gilda was likely going to come into contact with whatever was on the other side of the locked gate, "Personally, I'd like to take the area that the one voodoo guard in guarding, the one with the wooden fence near him..."

"...and that leaves me to take on whatever the bone pipe leads to," Sly finished, though at the same time he shuddered, because so far Mz. Ruby wasn't presenting herself as a likeable person, not when all of her guards were voodoo practitioners and she had things made out of bone.

Before they dispersed, however, Gilda looked at Derpy and knew what her sister was thinking about, that the area she was going to go through was likely going to have the blueprints for Mz. Ruby's base and it was going to annoy her a little that she was always finding them... to which she sighed and rested her hand on Derpy's shoulder, knowing that if she was right her sister would be happy and if she was wrong Derpy would be more annoyed.

"Actually, why don't I take on the area you were looking at and you can have the one I was planning on tackling?" Gilda asked, as she knew that it didn't matter as long as they got all the Treasure Keys, though if the blueprints were in the area Derpy wanted to tackle she was doing her a favor by heading there instead.

"It's fine, I can tackle whatever is waiting in that area," Derpy replied, as she knew that Gilda wanted to prevent her from finding the blueprints for the third base of operations, but at this point in time she honestly didn't care, as she was a thief and she would take whatever was inside the vault.

Gilda was a little surprised by Derpy's decision, but she knew that her sister must have guessed why she was offering to change targets, to which she chuckled for a moment before the three of them used the Rail Slide technique to make their way over to the strange fountain that was in the middle of the first area... though as they arrived, however, the intercom came on and Mz. Ruby started talking, causing them to remain silent as they listened to her plans.

Wake up, you lazy bags of swamp gas! Mz. Ruby declared, revealing that she had seen some of her guards sleeping and was waking them up, meaning that part of their mission here had become slightly more difficult, before they listened to the rest of her message, The voodoo vibe is thick tonight. Let's take advantage of this powerful mojo and step up production. Keep piling those shiny bones into the soup. We'll have an army of ghosts by morning and take over Mexico by the end of the week. Hear that voodoo, children? Our family is about to grow, grow, grow!

"Okay, she's gone off the deep end." Sly commented, as it was one thing to set up a storm machine and sink ships or take over a city with an army of gangsters, but conquering an entire country was another thing all on it's own, which meant they needed to work fast, "We need to move fast and efficiently from this point forward, because we cannot allow Mz. Ruby to succeed with her plans of conquering Mexico."

Gilda and Derpy nodded, as it appeared that their new target had come unglued and was now using her powers for something truly devastating, to which the siblings separated from each other and headed to the areas that they would be working their way through. Gilda easily made her way to the gated area that Derpy had picked out for her, ignoring the bounce pad on the lower level and used her wings to reach her destination, though as she landed she turned around and observed her siblings for a few seconds. Sly carefully made his way along the bone pole that would take him to the area he was left to explore, where she saw him knock out the guard that was guarding the entrance, before he disappeared into the area and started exploring whatever was on the other side. Derpy, on the other hand, followed Gilda's example and used her wings to get up to the area she wanted to explore, where she knocked out the guard that was guarding the fence and waved at Gilda for a few seconds... before she turned around and headed into the area she wanted to explore.

Gilda waited a few seconds, to see if either of her siblings said anything to her over the binocucom, before she sighed and headed into the area that was behind her, though as she delved into the tunnel that was before her she could only wonder what sort of horrors she was going to find on the other side.

As Gilda emerged from the other side of the tunnel, however, she gazed up at the metal gate that was in front of her and noticed that it was attached to some walls like an enclosure of some kind, almost as if Mz. Ruby had actually gone out of her way to move something that was native to this swamp and trap in inside a holding cell. The only reason she even considered that fact was that she could see some sort of seal on the door in front of her, one that almost seemed magical in nature, that was directing the power inward. Even though she wondered how she could see the magical seal on the gate, as neither she, Sly, or Derpy had any powers like Mz. Ruby did, she still pulled out her binocucom and studied the area that she could see at the moment, as it would be better than going in blind and she could get a second opinion from Bentley, since he knew more about this than the siblings did.

"What's with this industrial-strength voodoo gate?" Bentley asked, though his tone indicated that he might not know anything about the situation, meaning that Gilda was on her own this time around, "Mz. Ruby must really be trying to keep something out."

"No, it's designed to keep something in." Gilda replied, though even as she said that she knew that Bentley was going to question her on how she knew that, something that she wasn't completely sure about since she had no idea what the rules of magic even were.

"How can you be sure?" Bentley inquired, indicating that he was interested in what Gilda had to say, even if she didn't have a good explanation for why she was able to be so sure in her thoughts.

"Well, this is going to sound strange, but I can see the seal on the gate," Gilda said, as she stared up at the glowing seal and wondered how she could even see it, but at the same time she decided that she would think about it after she got the vault and the Treasure Key, "and I can tell that the magic is being directed inward. This is a cell... and I'm going to have to head in there for the vault and the Treasure Key."

As Gilda lowered her binocucom she knew that the easiest and safest route to take was to open her wings, fly over the top of the gate, and search for the clue bottles and the location of the Treasure Key, though while she knew that Sly would frown at her for taking the easy way out she would rather risk him being upset than dealing with whatever was inside this cage. Still, since she needed all the clue bottles to unlock the vault, she guessed that she could follow the path to the best of her ability, collecting bottles as she went, so she would be able to open the vault at the very end, to which she smashed the trio of bottles on her left and sent Bentley the contents before she really got moving. She followed the path that the vines created and soon came to a side area that contained seven clue bottles, rivaling what Derpy found in one area of that roof area she explored on her own, and made sure she sent Bentley everything that was in front of her. She then carefully flew along the path and smashed through three more bottles as she came to a tree that several spiders dropped down from... which she simply avoided by flying to the backside of the small island that the large tree was growing on.

She soon found the path heading upward and took the bottle that was hanging on a rope, before she flew over the hook points that were in front of her and neared the water for a few seconds, where she watched the reeds move as she reached a second small island with another large tree. That confirmed that there was something inside the cage, making her wonder what that something was as she moved around the the other side of the island and collected the trio of bottles that were there. From that point she headed up the side of the tree and collected the bottle that was along the path, though when she reached the branch at the top she found another trio of bottles and made sure Bentley had all the new clues she had found. After that she followed the vine and gathered another pair of bottles, before she landed in front of the root system for a large overturned tree, where two bottles were resting, though as she hovered over the path that she would have to fly along, however, she heard a roar behind her and turned around... where she found a rather large snake, looking like it wanted to eat her whole, coming her way, to which she turned in the opposite direction and flew away from the large serpent.

Gilda had known that there was something inside this cage, and Bentley had even confirmed it, but she was not interested in becoming a snack and flew away from the serpent as it tried to eat her... before she reached the area the Treasure Key was in, where the snake gave up and returned to the water. From there she found the vault and got the code from Bentley, which happened to be 4-4-4, and discovered Bruce O'Coop's Computer Hacking technique, meaning that Bentley could hack into the roster of each hideout and give them data on each guard. She wasn't sure how useful that was going to be in the long run, but it was a good thing to have, so she put the calling card in place and grabbed the Treasure Key, before flying out of the area and leaving the large serpent to it's business.

"I hope Sly and Derpy are having better luck than I did." Gilda commented, though at the same time she made sure that the Treasure Key and the page from the Thievius Raccoonus were tucked away safely inside her pack, though once she confirmed that they were she landed in front of the cage and headed out to where her siblings would be waiting for her once they finished their areas.

Derpy found herself in the truck of a fallen tree, which appeared to have been turned into smaller pieces by the looks of things, and carefully removed the roots that were in front of her, revealing a vine she could Rail Slide down to reach the area below her. As she thought about that, however, a ghostly panther materialized in the air before she and rushed at her, to which she swung her cane and knocked the ghost to the side where it promptly disappeared, but she had the feeling that it would be back soon enough. That didn't stop her from shivering for a moment, because it was one thing to know that Mz. Ruby called the dead back to this world and another thing to see the ghosts with her own eyes, but she braced herself and put on a brave face, because if she and the others could overcome things together, like Muggshot, then surely she could get through an area that might be infested by ghosts and other things.

After she steeled herself Derpy jumped onto the vine and started to slide along it, where she paused halfway through it to grab a clue, before she reached the bottom area and engaged one of those wooden creatures that she and her siblings had encountered when they were approaching Mz. Ruby's base. Fortunately the ones inside the base seemed to be just as brittle and as easy to destroy as the ones outside the base, as a few wacks of her cane was enough to dismantle the creature and reduce it to a pile of wooden parts. From there she made her way through some more roots and fought off the trio of ghosts that were in front of her, until she eventually smashed a headstone that happened to be in front of her, silencing the ghosts in the process. She then realized that the ghosts in the area had to be tied to these headstones, like a ghost generator of some kind, and knew what she had to do next, she had to smash all of the generators she came across and free the spirits that were no doubt trapped in this state against their will... as she was sure that none of them had willingly joined Mz. Ruby's plan to conquer Mexico, and whatever else she had planned after that.

Once she reached that decision she moved forward and engaged a second wooden creature that was guarding a trio of clues, which she collected and sent to Bentley as she use the hook in front of her to cross the gap and bypassed the roots that were blocking her way. She then had to contend with a mosquito that was guarding a safe, and grabbed the two bottles inside it, before having to deal with yet another wooden creature in front of what appeared to be an entrance to a large area. Along the way she smashed two more bottles and approached the structure, though as she smashed her way through the two root walls in front of her she happened to find one more clue before she smashed the headstone generator that was in front of her... before she laid eyes on the structure that was apparently the heart of this entire area, though what it was used for she had absolutely no idea, especially since magic was a foreign thing to her.

She noticed the spires that she could use the Ninja Spire Jump on, to get down into the area below her, and knew that her wings could do the same thing in a quicker manner since she wouldn't have to worry about flames, but she simply used the technique she had learned and soon enough she was on the platform that would allow her to move onward.

Had she noticed the three headstone generators ahead of time she would have spread her wings and smashed them from the skies, like Gilda might have done, but since she was already on the ground she braced herself as waves of ghosts started to emerge from the headstones and came at her. Derpy, of course, decided to ignore any possible clues in the immediate area and focused solely on demolishing the cursed headstones, though as one fell the other two seemed to be empowered a little, increasing the number of ghosts they churned out. She then smashed through the second headstone and turned towards the third one, where she outmaneuvered the ghosts and demolished the stone, allowing the ghosts to depart for whatever realm they had been snatched from. Once that was done she carefully collected the trio of clues she had ignored and then broke the candles that were powering the force field in front of her, allowing her to explore the rest of the structure as she made her way to the top of the area.

On the left of where the force field had been located she found that she had to crawl around the edge of a spire to reach the four clues and the two in a safe that were hiding over there, though that was when she decided to change things up and used her wings to move around the area. Once those six clues were collected, and their contents sent to Bentley, Derpy returned to the middle of the structure and headed in the other direction, carefully avoiding the alarm lasers that had been installed in the area before heading to the upper area and disabling the alarm itself. After that she landed on the wooden chandelier that was hanging above the area and gathered two more clues before heading towards the hole in the wall that a wooden creature was guarding, before she smashed through it and appeared on the area above the entrance to the structure she had finished off.

To the right of the end of the short tunnel she found a mosquito guarding a clue bottle, which she recovered after beating the insect over the head, before she carefully crossed the three spires in front of her and collected two more clues on the other walkway. She then spotted a headstone generator in the area between her and the route she needed to take so she could reach the Treasure Key, so she opened her wings and bypassed the ghosts entirely, freeing them from Mz. Ruby's control. After that she smashed three more clues that were near the headstone and spotted three resting above the entrance she had walked through earlier, before landing on an area where three mosquitoes were patrolling, which she easily removed before collecting the pair of bottles in the nearby safe. As she used the Rail Walk to get to the next walkway, however, she spotted a clue hanging near the routes behind her, though she focused on smashing the headstone in front of her before heading back and collecting the bottle.

After that she continued the path up to a mosquito, also guarding a clue bottle, and Derpy took care of it with ease as she grabbed the bottle, before turning towards the vine in front of her and carefully grabbed the two bottles to her right before she crossed over the vine, where she had to smash her way through some ghosts to get at the pair of headstones at the other end of the vine. Once she was on the other side of the vine she spotted a bottle behind where the Treasure Key was located and noticed two more safes behind a root wall, where she collected all of them and made sure Bentley had a few moments to decipher the clues she had sent him. After a few minutes had passed she knelt in front of the tumblers and input the code, this time being 1-2-8, and discovered the blueprints for Mz. Ruby's base, though instead of being upset Derpy simply stashed the page away, left the calling card, and collected the Treasure Key from where it was resting.

Once she had the Treasure Key she headed for the exit and silently hoped that her siblings had managed to get their keys without too much effort, or having to do anything like fight their way through an army of ghosts to get anywhere near the end of their area.

Sly sighed as he walked through the end of the tunnel he had gone through, because it appeared that he had gotten what was likely the simplest task this time around, as all he had to do was light some torches and claim the key, or at least he thought that was what he needed to do here. Since he had no idea what he was looking at, as this was the first time lighting something to get at the prize had even come up, he decided to lift his binocucoms and see if Bentley had anything to say before he got to work. Besides, that gave him the opportunity to stare at the voodoo gate that was blocking his way to the Treasure Key for a few seconds before he connected to Bentley once more.

"Sly, the only way to open up that voodoo gate is by lighting all twenty-ive tiki torches in the area," Bently told him, to which he glanced down at the device that was in front of him, which appeared to be the tool he needed to use this time around, "I managed to put this skiff together and outfitted it with a flamethrower, though since I was unable to get an actual fuel source you'll have to run over the piranha you see swimming around to get the fuel. And, not to add some additional pressure to the situation, but since you're close to the cage that Gilda found a large serpent in I would guess that you have only two minutes to get all the torches lit!"

Sly sighed as she jumped onto the skiff and moved out into the open water that was around him, where he carefully selected groups of piranha that hadn't started moving and ran over the fish that he could, though when his systems indicated that he had a full tank he approached the torches and used the flamethrower to light them. Once the tanks were empty he started the process all over again, carefully making sure that he was efficient with his time since the noise from his skiff was likely to draw that large serpent to this area. While he raced through the area he had to wonder if Gilda would be willing to share the story of her encounter with the serpent, though at the same time he made sure to continue lighting all of the torches that he could. As he worked he could hear the sound of the water moving, and not from the piranha, so he gathered the last of the fish that he needed, lit the remaining torches, and shattered the seal on the gate, allowing him to claim the Treasure Key before he vacated the area... though while he was inside the tunnel he had come from he caught a glimpse of the serpent moving under the water and knew how close he had come to being eaten.

He gulped and headed back through the tunnel, returning to the part of the base he had last seen his sisters in and returned to the fountain, where he was joined by Gilda a few seconds later, though she didn't seem too bothered by the giant serpent she had seen earlier.

"So, what did you find?" Sly asked, though at the same time he held out his Treasure Key, indicating that he had completed his task, before he thought of something else to say, "And I mean besides the large serpent that Bentley warned me about when I was in my area."

"Bruce O'Coop's Computer Hacking technique." Gilda replied, to which she handed over the page in question, which Sly added to the others, before adding her Treasure Key to the collection Sly was holding onto, "now we can get guard information when we use our binocucoms and look at a guard."

Sly was sure that such a technique would come in handy in the future, where they were planning operations that didn't revolve around the Fiendish Five, though he also said nothing about the serpent, because he didn't want to bother his sister about it. Fortunately the two of them didn't have to wait too long, as Derpy soon returned to where they were standing and revealed the blueprints of Mz. Ruby's base, along with the fact that she wasn't annoyed about the fact that she found another set for another member of their targets. With the four keys in hand, however, they approached the locked gate and unlocked the locks, where the large serpent from Gilda's area surged out of the opening, smashed through a gate that would have prevented them from moving forward, and circled back to the gate, where it closed the gate behind it and apparently didn't care for any of them.

"Well, I'm happy I didn't take your area," Derpy said, as she was extremely happy with her decision to stick to the area that had been infested by ghosts and not a giant snake that could have eaten her whole, "because that thing freaked me out the moment I laid eyes on it."

"Well, it opened a new area of the swamp for us to explore," Sly commented, though at the same time he and Gilda rested a hand on Derpy's shoulders, letting her know that there was nothing for her to be afraid of, if she was even afraid of the serpent anyway, "Watch out Mz. Ruby, the Cooper Clan is coming for you."

Gilda and Derpy nodded, because soon they would have all of Mz. Ruby's Treasure Keys and the path to her would be open for them, so they could knock her out so Carmelita could arrest her when she arrived, and they knew she was coming after them, before recovering her section of the Thievius Raccoonus... and then see if she knew where the fourth member of the Fiendish Five had his base of operations.

Thievius: A Deadly Dance

With the way open to the other part of Mz. Ruby's base of operations Sly, Gilda, and Derpy headed through the ruined gate and carefully approached the area that was right in front of them, which happened to look like a massive cauldron, the majority sunk into the depths of the swamp with part of the top sticking out. The siblings took a few moments to take in what they were seeing, since there were voodoo guards standing on the walkway that had been built on the top of the cauldron and they were either looking for intruders or were tossing in more bones into the mix. This reflected what they had heard Mz. Ruby tell her guards earlier, about stepping up production and the like, but even as they stared at the sight in front of them the trio noticed that there were large voodoo masks that helped stir the mixture around the cauldron, which also cast large shadows.

The siblings looked at each other for a few seconds, not really knowing what to make of what was in front of them, before they sighed and pulled out their binocucoms, as Bentley would have something to tell them before they determined what to do next.

"This looks like some sort of giant voodoo egg beater," Bentley commented, though at the same time the binocucoms zeroed in on the Treasure Key locks that were attached to the lid above where the guards were standing, revealing what they needed to do next, "and, at best guess, it looks like the entire thing runs on steam."

"If we can get the other Treasure Keys, we can unlock that lid," Derpy said, her gaze locked on the locks that were above the guards, indicating that she was thinking of something that might help them all our, "besides thrashing their production, we might be able to build enough pressure to launch Sly up to Mz. Ruby's Skull Temple."

"That sounds like an excellent plan." Sly stated, though he was surprised that it was Derpy that came up with the plan this time around, as that was usually Bentley's job when he had enough information, but he said nothing as he focused on what was in front of them, "Well then, we should move in the shadows of those voodoo masks and search the other parts of Mz. Ruby's base for the remaining Treasure Keys."

Gilda and Derpy nodded as all three of them put their binocucoms away and jumped onto the vine that was in front of them, one at a time anyway, and carefully moved in the shadows of the large masks as they approached the first area they could pick from. That appeared to be the entrance of a smaller temple or something, designed to mimic a turtle based on what they were seeing, before they jumped back onto the vine and headed towards the other marker that Bentley had set up for them. That marker happened to have some sort of blasting device, that floated just off the ground by the looks of things, and had a jump pad near it, which brought them up to an entrance where some chickens could be heard clucking from where they were standing. The siblings immediately decided what to do, as Sly determined that the smaller temple was his to claim this time around, since his sisters had picked their areas before he did in the other half of the base, and Derpy stated that she wanted to see what the floating device was, leaving Gilda with the building in front of them... who sighed and simply nodded her head, indicating that she was fine with this happening, especially after what they did to Sly earlier.

With that determined Sly was grabbed by Derpy and was dropped off at the entrance of his marker before she headed towards the device, though he noticed Gilda smashing a voodoo force field before turning around and headed into the depths of his area.

A few moments later, when he arrived in his chosen area, he immediately moved through the root wall that was in front of him and collected three clues that were off to his right, before using the short vine in front of him to jump onto the platform that was floating on the water in front of him. At the same time Bentley seemed to notice the waterfall on his left, the green waterfall that appeared to be overflowing with bone and body parts, though instead of gagging he turned away from it and put the waterfall out of his mind. From there he latched onto the bone pole that was in front of him and moved under the platform one of the voodoo guards was walking on, though he had to wait for a few seconds before jumping to the second bone pole and continuing onward. When he reached the end of the second pole he jumped onto the small patch of land in front of him and then jumped onto the walkway that he had been crawling under, where he knocked out the guard and claimed the clue that was behind him.

With that clue in hand he turned around and returned to the small patch of land and grabbed the clues inside the safe that he discovered, before he started jumping over the floating platforms that were in front of him, which required that he avoid the flaming skulls that the large skeletal creature in the distance was throwing at him. As it turned out there was a candle he had to smash so the walkway to the large skeletal turtle could open, though once that was done he headed towards his opponent and noticed that it cowered when he neared it. Since it was basically a reanimated corpse, the mere thought of that freaking him out more than he was willing to admit, Sly struck the skeletal creature with all his might and let it fall apart, allowing him to grab two more clues before using the bone poles to get around the statue in front of him and climbed up to the level above him.

The bone poles brought him to the outstretched arm of the statue, where he had to remove a spider that was blocking his path, before using the hook points to descend towards the stone pathway in front of him, which also had planks between each section. He walked over the planks on his immediate right and found a clue waiting for him, along with the fact that the wooden walkway fell into the water below him, meaning that he had to be careful and would have to jump over the gaps that existed between the stone sections. As such Sly headed over to the left side of the area that he had landed on and smashed three more clues before heading forward, where he found two more clues near the very end of the pathway he was navigating. After that he carefully made his way over to the alarm and turned it off, removing the searchlights he had avoided the entire time, before he noticed that the area in front of him had two voodoo guards patrolling the area in front of him... and there just happened to be a rope that allowed him to climb up to a chandelier and bypass the first guard for a moment.

He jumped down into the area below him and knocked out the voodoo guard that was pointing the direction he had come from, before jumping up to the area next to him and took out the guard that had ignored his friend being knocked out, though once that was done he collected the five clues from the two safes next to him, along with the one clue besides the safes, and backtracked for the two clues that the first guard had been staring at. Instead of moving forward he noticed the first guard he had spotted in this area happened to be guarding four clues, two hanging outside and two inside a safe, so he jumped down onto the platform the guard was patrolling and knocked him out, before sending Bentley the new clues he had collected. After that he sighed for a moment, because he realized that he would have to backtrack through the area he had cleared, and carefully made his way back up to the area that he had just jumped off of. When Sly reached the upper area again he jumped onto the rope that was in front of him and climbed up to the chandelier that was above him, though at the same time he heard an intercom come on in his area.

Hey there, Sly Cooper! Mz. Ruby said, stopping Sly in his tracks for a moment, as this was the first time someone he and his sisters were targeting had actually called them out in such a manner, once more revealing that they might be underestimating Mz. Ruby's powers, That's right, I know you're here. I've seen you in the stars, and you're all over my tea leaves. There's a power that dances around you, one that is not your own, that comes from a place I've never felt before. I know those sisters of your's have a power all their own, and I intend to find out what that power is!

"Great. So she thinks Gilda and Derpy have powers like she does," Sly commented, to which he shook his head for a moment, because not only was Mz. Ruby evil, she was also going insane at the same time, though that only meant he and his sisters had to be careful when they encountered their foe.

As Sly jumped down into the middle section of the waterfall, where some serpent statues were resting, he couldn't help but ponder some of Mz. Ruby's words as he collected the four bottles in the area and made his way back to the area he had jumped down from, for the second time so far. The reason he was thinking about what their foe had said was because the legends of pegasi and griffins usually went hand in hand with them possessing powers, but even after seeing what Mz. Ruby was capable of, indirectly speaking, there was no real reason for him to believe that his sisters had magical powers. Sure, some of the Cooper Clan techniques they had acquired seemed to be that way, but they were master thieves and had developed a technique for every occasion, and yet the thought of either Gilda or Derpy doing magic like Mz. Ruby unnerved him a little.

He shook that thought from his mind as he returned to the area he had been in moments ago, though he carefully sneaked his way around the laser defenses and gathered the three bottles that were off on the side once he was past the barrier, before he headed into the large chamber in front of him. He found seven floating platforms in front of him, four having candles that clearly powered something and another having an alarm, to which he rushed over the vine and turned off the alarm, before avoiding the flaming skull that was coming his way. After that he started smashing the candles that were around him, though once the path was open he continued forward and knocked out the cowardly skeletal turtle that was blocking he way before using the Ninja Spire Jump to carefully move over the spires in front of him. Sly then found two more clues on his left before jumping over the next set of spires, where he arrived at a walkway where a guard was protecting another voodoo candle, so which he took out the guard and smashed the candle, revealing a vine the should take him to the Treasure Key, before recovering the four clues behind him, two in the open and two in a safe.

Once that was done he jumped onto the vine and started sliding down it, only to stop when he found the last two clues and the safe, where he input the code, 5-7-1, and found the page that detailed Matthew de la Coopeur's Perpetual Slow Motion technique, the upgrade to the original Slow Motion Jump technique... to which he placed the calling card, rode the vine to the end of it's path, and collected the Treasure Key from it's container. As he made his way back to the entrance of this area he had to wonder what sort of obstacles his sisters had to overcome for their keys, and knew that he'd find out soon enough.

Derpy stared at the floating device for a few seconds, seeing that she could apparently move and fire at the same time if she so desired, along with a slot for her to put her cane in, where she carefully jumped onto the device and headed into the tunnel that was in front of her. A few moments later she appeared near some sort of boat, one that started moving the moment she was floating above it, though as she headed down the river she spotted large headstone generators further down the river. Since her vehicle, as Bentley called it, came equipped with a high energy cannon she started firing at the headstone, finding that Mz. Ruby was smart enough to put up some fortifications in front of her target, meaning she had to smash through the stone, and the ghosts, before the headstone was destroyed. As she moved down the river she spotted a large skeletal turtle that threw it's flaming skull at her, so while she crushed the next headstone she dodged the skulls until she could finish off the poor skeleton. A few moments later she reached the end of the river, or at least the part she could travel on, and smashed through the two headstones that were sending ghosts at her, before moving the vehicle forward and blasted the fortifications apart so she could move forward.

Once she entered the next area and fired at the fortifications that were blocking her way, though she was mindful of the skeleton that was in front of her before she smashed through the barrier that was in front of her, where she spotted two headstones this time around. She maneuvered around the area and blasted her way through the defenses that were arrayed against her, though as the headstones crumbled she rushed forward and continued blasting at the next area that was blocking the ramp she needed to head up. It took her a few moments to blast apart the fortifications and let the dead return to their slumber, before she rode up the ramp and followed the path that would take her right to the Treasure Key that was contained in this area. That, of course, involved her blasting down the fortifications that had been placed in her way and destroyed the headstone generator that had been set up, while also knocking out another skeletal turtle as she moved through the area.

The next part of the area had two more skeletal turtles, working like a team, throwing their flaming skulls at her, but she was able to outmaneuver them easily and blasted them down, allowing her to ride down into what appeared to be the final part of this area. She found three more headstone generators in this area, along with the Treasure Key that was her main target, and opened fire on the constructs that the ghosts were coming from, while at the same time carefully avoiding the ghosts that wanted to hurt her. When the first headstone fell apart the ghosts started increasing from the other two, as was common she noticed, but that didn't stop her from firing the cannon at her targets and caused the second headstone to crumble before her eyes... before she finished off the last of the ghosts and destroyed the final headstone generator, freeing the spirits that Mz. Ruby had called upon.

With her task complete Derpy moved over to where the Treasure Key was located and picked it up, though once she realized that this area didn't have a vault she opened her wings and took to the skies, where she headed back to the area that the cauldron was resting in. She briefly wondered how her siblings were doing with their respective tasks, and the areas that they had picked, and knew that she'd know the answer soon enough, once she got out of the area she happened to be in anyway.

Gilda looked at the inside of the building that the seventh, and final, Treasure Key was supposed to housed in, though she wasn't sure if Bentley was serious about this or if he was trying to pull her leg, but then she sighed as she realized that he would never joke about something like this. The inside of the building looked like a granary of some kind, complete with chickens walking around the area in front of her, along with hay and feathers everywhere, though what held her interest was the panther ghost that was floating in the middle of the ceiling with the Treasure Key.

"Bentley, what am I looking at here?" Gilda asked, because the interesting part about this area was that she was sure that she could fly around it if she needed to, it was that open, but she wanted to see what Bentley's plan was before she started using her own.

"That ghost over there contacted me on specter-wave radio and we've cut a deal." Bentley replied, revealing why the ghost was being oddly passive at the moment, if what Derpy had told her was anything to go by anyway, but Gilda kept silent as she studied the area, "He's promised us a key if you can whack fifty chickens. I guess he needs them to make a big pot of gumbo but he's scared of the bomb-toting roosters."

"A ghost that's scared of some roosters," Gilda said, to which she simply shook her head and stepped forward, while at the same time preparing to put away her binocucom so she could get her task started, "Oh well, might as well help him out and get some chickens for him."

Gilda opened her wings and floated into the air, where she hovered over the chickens and grabbed onto them with her cane, though when she had a few of them she took them over to the pot that the ghost wanted them stored in before she continued gathering chickens. The bomb-toting roosters, when they finally emerged, came in pairs and stared at her as she flew over their heads, indicating that they had never encountered a flying opponent like her and had no idea what to do in this situation. Since the roosters were ignoring her, since they couldn't hit her and it appeared that their explosion was small and didn't reach her if she moved higher in the air, Gilda was able to effectively gather the necessary number of chickens that the ghost required for his exchange and stored all of them inside the pot. A few moments later, when she was sure that she had fifty chickens, Gilda moved out of the way and let the ghost study the pot for a few seconds, to which the Treasure Key floated over to her as the panther ghost focused on his gumbo.

Gilda said nothing as she headed outside the building and landed in front of the platform they could use to unlock the lid of the cauldron, though it was some time before Derpy joined her and revealed that she had claimed her Treasure Key as well. A few minutes later Sly, the only one of them without wings, jumped up to the area they were standing in and revealed the Treasure Key that he had claimed before collecting the rest of them, while also revealing the page of the Thievius Raccoonus he had picked up earlier. Once the three of them were ready Sly unlocked the lid of the cauldron and let it fall into position, knocking the guards into the mixture that they had been working on, before Sly jumped down onto the lid and forced it to be still for a few seconds... before it launched him into the air and sent him flying towards the Skull Temple, while at the same time Gilda and Derpy flew after him before they all entered Mz. Ruby's temple.

When the siblings landed inside the Skull Temple they found that the only way over to the interior of the temple was along a pathway that was made from what appeared to be incisors and molars, where the incisors appeared to be spires and the molars were flat places they could jump on. At the very end of the path, staring at the three of them, was none other than Mz. Ruby herself, which meant that they had to be careful for this point forward, especially since she was focused more on Gilda and Derpy.

"So, they possess the power that is not of this world." Mz. Ruby stated, causing Derpy and Gilda to look at each other in confusion for a moment, as they had no idea what was going on, before turning their focus back to their main target and readied their canes, "I don't know how you two went this long without awakening your inner powers, but I look forward to seeing what you can do."

"Okay, what is she talking about?" Gilda asked, as none of this was making sense to her, where Derpy nodded her head in agreement, indicating that the two of them were lost at the moment.

"She thinks you two have some sort of power that's not of this world," Sly replied, to which he sighed as he stared at the member of the Fiendish Five they had come here to defeat, while at the same time wondering what was going to happen next, "she made a comment about it in the area I tackled to get the Treasure Key. I wouldn't worry about it, since she's likely lying to keep you distracted from defeating her."

"Oh Sly, I would never lie about this," Mz. Ruby said, where the siblings looked back in her direction, to which they noticed that she had a light smile on her face at the moment, though that didn't fill Sly with any good feelings, "Tell you what; if you beat me I'll tell you what I know about your sisters."

Sly had no idea what game Mz. Ruby was playing, or if he wanted to play it, but at the moment he was more interested in beating her and claiming the section of the Thievius Raccoonus that she had taken, to which he started jumping over the path that was in front of him. Gilda and Derpy, however, flew after him and avoided the fact that the ceiling was moving down and then back up, as Sly had to worry about the same thing, though the three of them were able to reach the area Mz. Ruby was in without delay. As they arrived the three of them had to avoid the shockwave that Mz. Rubby created by slamming her tail on the ground, where they jumped over the shockwave and struck their target in the chest, causing her to vanish and reappear further in the back of the chamber they were in.

"You can't run away forever!" Sly shouted, knowing that was the only way for their opponent to hear them at the moment, even though he knew that his sisters could traverse the swamp area between them and Mz. Ruby.

"Oh, I don't intend to." Mz. Ruby replied, to which she beckoned to something that was in front of where the three of them were standing, where the siblings looked down and noticed a turtle, large enough for one of them to stand on it's back, resting in front of them, "My servant Chumley will escort one of you over here. While that's happening, well, we're going to play a memory game and I'll see if you can handle a little bit of my magic... if not, you'll get zapped!"

Sly didn't like the sound of that, and Gilda seemed to dislike the thought of being shocked by something that they didn't understand, but before they could come to an opinion on what to do Derpy smiled and jumped onto the turtle's back, where she started moving forward before her siblings could stop her. Mz. Ruby smiled, as if she had been hoping for either of the sisters to come at her, before she started gathering her magic and started throwing spheres of energy, in four different locations and possessing four different colors, through the air. Derpy knew that these were designed so that whoever Mz. Ruby was facing would be able to see them, and maybe even avoid them entirely, but as the magical spheres came towards her something clicked inside her mind and she let her instincts take over for a moment... where Sly, Gilda, and even Mz. Ruby stared at her in shock for a few seconds. Derpy moved her hands as the spheres came at her, where she brushed them off like they were nothing and sent them flying into the walls and the water, allowing them to disperse without harming anything or anyone.

Before she even reached the halfway point Derpy reached forward and grabbed one of the spheres that were coming her way, with her bare hand no less, and jumped over the rest of the spheres that were coming her way... where she landed in front of Mz. Ruby and swung her cane, striking her in the chest and causing her to teleport to the next platform.

"What in the..." Mz. Ruby started to say, as she had never seen anyone knock her magical spheres out of the air in such a manner, much less with the accuracy that Derpy had showed, but as she thought about that she failed to account for the fact that she was still in the middle of a fight... as Derpy had flown towards her and struck her with the sphere she had grabbed, blasting her into the wall behind her.

Mz. Ruby coughed as she fell back to the platform that she was currently on, the fact that her own attack being used against her confused her teleport spell and prevented it from going off when she needed it, but she was thankful that she hadn't coughed up blood or anything. The reasoning behind that was because the sphere that Derpy had hit her with had been empowered by a very small fragment of her her latent magical power, and if that was enough to knock her into the wall, and cancel out her own spell, she could only wonder what sort of true power the pegasus possessed. Even that thought made her glance over at Gilda, the first griffin anyone had seen in who knew how long, and formed the same type of thought... though even as her mind considered the possibilities she knew one conclusion that they could eventually come to, one that made her chuckle for a few seconds.

Gilda and Sly, who landed nearby after Gilda flew them to where Derpy and Mz. Ruby had stopped, wondered what was going on at the moment, but at the same time Derpy seemed to calm down and looked confused, which was understandable since none of them had any idea what had happened to her.

"I was right, you're magic is strong... and that means hers is as well," Mz. Ruby commented, her eyes locked on both Derpy and Gilda, who were staring at her with some interest in their eyes, while at the same time she knew exactly what Sly was looking for, "but at the moment you haven't felt the catalyst that will awaken your powers... and part of me is actually praying that you never experience such an event. You know, I wish I had found you two when we were all younger, maybe then I wouldn't have turned my own powers towards evil, but that's a thought for another time. All I know is that the power you two possess is much stronger than my own, so much so that we could have had a proper magic duel if you had been trained before coming here... and that you will need some guidance in the future, to ensure you don't do anything you'll regret. In my vault rests some of the first spellbooks I acquired when I started learning about my gift..."

"And you want us to take them?" Gilda asked, because she wasn't sure if they could trust a member of the Fiendish Five, even if most of them, based on what they had read and what they had seen, had done some horrible things since they stole the Thievius Raccoonus.

"Yes. They'll provide the basics, should you decide to read them," Mz. Ruby replied, to which she leaned back and stayed there for a moment, where she simply looked at them with a strange light in her eye that Sly didn't know whether to trust or not, "Though you should get going in the next few minutes, because that cop friend of yours is closing in and she would love to lock us all away... and you'll have to avoid letting that happen, if you want to reach the true monster of our little group."

Sly immediately knew that Mz. Ruby meant Carmelita, as she was the only 'cop friend' that was female that he knew about, to which Gilda grabbed onto him as she and Derpy headed towards the location of the vault that Mz. Ruby had pointed out to them. Inside they found the promised spellbooks that the priestess had told them about, in almost pristine condition by the looks of things, and carefully stored them away in their own packs, so they could decide what to do with them when they were out of Haiti. After that Sly collected what they had really came for, the page of the Thievius Raccoonus that was from Slytunkhamen Cooper, the creator of the family tome, and detailing his Invisibility technique, though instead of focusing on it he stashed it away and left the calling card behind... before Gilda and Derpy carried him off into the distance, leaving Mz. Ruby behind so she could face Carmelita and the consequences for her actions.

Unbeknownst to them Mz. Ruby coughed and pulled herself from where she had been resting, to which she walked over to a nearby crystal ball and waved a hand, revealing a scene she had seen many times in the last few days, but never found out what the conclusion was; three figures, being Sly, Derpy, and Gilda Cooper, flying through the air as they faced off against a shadowy owl like figure, one she recognized all too well.

"They're strong, that's no lie." Mz. Ruby told herself, still rubbing the bruised area that Derpy had struck, as that was going to hurt for the next few days at the very least, while she focused on the crystal ball, "Hopefully they're strong enough to get rid of a true menace."

Soon the Coopers would find out who the true monster of the Fiendish Five was and face off against him, though she silently prayed that they had the power to overcome what he threw at them... though she remained standing there until the police finally came to arrest her, where she simply gave in and followed them outside, knowing she had bought some time for the siblings to escape and silently sent them her best wishes for their success against their true foe.

Thievius: Kunlun Mountains

The first thing the siblings did, after landing by the van and letting Murray take off with all of them sitting in their proper places, was find a nice area, that was far away from Mz. Ruby's lair, so Sly and his sisters could practice the Invisibility technique they had picked up. That, in itself, required that they head back to civilization so they could find an abandoned building of some kind to do their practicing in, which gave Sly and his sisters time to study Slytunkahmen's page of the Thievius Raccoonus, so they could understand how to use the technique. They discovered that if one of them were to stand completely still they would be rendered invisible, but if a guard was searching for them, for instance, they wouldn't be able to do that. Bentley was actually pretty interested in this technique, the application of how they could turn invisible being his main focus, and was already trying to come up with some sort of training method for them to use while they practicing the new techniques they had picked up.

When they finally got back to civilization Bentley found them a nice abandoned building that they could use for a few hours, which Sly, Derpy, and Gilda did since they were all eager to test out Slytunkahmen's technique, causing Bentley and Murray to watch as the siblings faded in and out of sight at will. Since the other two techniques they had picked up were modifications to techniques they already knew, and had practiced a little since they acquired them, the siblings made sure they remembered the other skills they had unlocked as well. Once a few hours had ticked by the group left the building and set up camp near the city, as all of them had earned a few days off to relax from the strangeness of Mz. Ruby's base of operations and what she had been attempting to do. As such the group spent some time in the sunshine, working on their tans in the process, while Sly eventually found the newspaper headline that detailed Carmelita's 'capture' of Mz. Ruby and the fact that she needed 'help' in catching the 'mysterious thieves' that she couldn't catch.

One thing the gang discovered as that the production of zombies, apparently made illegal in the World Peace Accord of '71, earned Mz. Ruby a life sentence behind bars, meaning that she was likely to spent the rest of her life in jail, unless she suddenly allied with the law and worked out a deal with them... but the changes of that happening were slim to none, since she had been willing to build an army to take over Mexico, which the gang was happy to stop in it's tracks.

During their time on the beach both Gilda and Derpy pulled out the spellbooks that Mz. Ruby had given them, mainly because they were interested in what the priestess wanted them to have, though for the most part it was focused on voodoo magic, which made sense considering who they came from. In addition to what they had seen, the twisted and dark nature of the swamp being the prime example, Mz. Ruby had also apparently learned abilities for self-defense, healing, protection, and other things. The sisters weren't too sure that they should even bother learning the magical arts that Mz. Ruby had given them the tools to start learning, as they had been expecting a more general field than what they were given, but that didn't stop them from reading the spells with some interest. Eventually the sisters put the spellbooks back in the van and enjoyed the few days off that they were spending on the beach, though after a few days Sly said it was time for them to get moving to the base of operations for the fourth member of the Fiendish Five.

The resulting road trip gave Sly and his sisters the time they needed to study up on the Panda King, who, according to the information the file contained, had been born penniless and had been fascinated by the fireworks rich noblemen set off every New Years. He then spent a decade learning the art, similar to what Derpy and Gilda went through to learn everything Sly knew about thieving, but when the Panda King tried to offer his fireworks to the noblemen they couldn't see past his shabby clothes and chased him away. Humiliated, the Panda King took revenge on those who shunned him by using the very tools of his art for crime. The Fiendish Five recruited him sometime later as their demolitions expert, and from then on his explosive touch became feared worldwide, identical to what happened to the other members of the group they were taking out. The last thing the police file contained was that the Panda King was rumored to be perfecting some new firework technique high in the unstable Kunlun Mountains of western China... which was where they were heading at that very moment.

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy had no idea what sort of evil the Panda King was committing in the area he had claimed, but at the same time they prepared themselves for whatever was coming up next, especially after everything they witnessed during their travels through Mz. Ruby's swamp.

Eventually Murray arrived at the edge of the Panda King's territory, in the area that Bentley told him to stop in, and allowed Sly, Gilda, and Derpy to climb out the back of the van, though once they were outside they closed the doors and let Murray drive off to a safe location for when they were done. Once Bentley, Murray, and the van were gone the siblings turned their attention to what was in front of them and crossed over the short stone bridge that was in front of them, which allowed them to see that their first foe was a purple mandrill that was wielding a wooden staff. What they immediately discovered was that they had to be wary here, as these guards were more attentive than the guards they had encountered in the other bases, as the mandrill spotted them and came at them immediately. Since it was clear that stealth would be hard in this area, if the guards were going to see them before they did anything, Gilda dodged the attack that was coming her way and struck the mandrill in the chest... where he fell to the ground and remained there, where they noticed that he was still breathing before moving forward.

After the guard was taken out they turned to their right and removed the pair of clue bottles from the safe that was near the entrance, before heading towards the next bridge, where Sly spotted two bottles off on the left side of the area and Derpy located another behind a tree. After that they knocked out the mandrill that was blocking the way, causing Gilda to double back for another pair of clues, behind another tree, before they walked over the stone bridge and stared at the next guard that was in front of them. The siblings then climbed up the slope that was in front of them, where they noticed the their next opponent was a large ape guard that was accompanied by a smaller monkey, one that jumped onto the small catapult beside it as the larger ape slammed his fists onto the end of the device. That resulted in the smaller monkey being flung into the air and created a snowball that was designed to hurt them, though since it was one ape and one small monkey it was easy to avoid the incoming snowball and knock out the ape... before backing up and making sure that the ape's partner was knocked out as well.

From there the three of them followed the path around a corner until they noticed a large panda statue off in the distance, which they all agreed had to be the home of the Panda King, but before they moved forward Derpy noticed something that interested her.

"Would you look at that?" Derpy commented, causing her siblings to turn and look at what she was looking at, which was a firework being launched into the air, from the Panda King's statue no less, "A fireworks show!"

The siblings watched as the firework struck the top of a nearby peak and caused an avalanche in the process, though as that happened the three of them noticed a village that was at the base of the peak, one that was instantly crushed by the incoming force of snow that the firework had caused.

"Oh my gosh, that's awful!" Bentley exclaimed, as Sly had been watching the entire event with his binocucom and Bentley had been watching all of this happen with some interest, only for that interest to turn to horror, "That poor village just got buried in freezing snow!"

"That rocket came from that giant statue, and you can bet the Panda King lit the fuse." Sly said, to which all three of them turned their attention to the statue in question, as now they had another reason to stop the Panda King, "We've got to find my way up there and fast before that lunatic squashes another town."

"From here I could see some tracks near the village," Gilda commented, while at the same time Sly put his binocucom away and turned towards her, as he wanted to hear what she had to say before they moved forward, "but I would have needed to be standing near them to determine if they were fresh or if they were old. It's possible that the inhabitants of that village were able to escape before the Panda King crushed their homes, but without any additional information it's hard to say what the fate of the villagers really is."

As the siblings turned towards the hook that was in front of them, which would allow them to get up to the area in front of them, Gilda smashed a clue bottle and sent it to Bentley as Sly was the first to latch his cane to the hook and swing up to the upper area. Derpy and Gilda followed after him, where they used the hook to follow after him before they headed through the carved out passage that was in front of them, one that happened to be guarded by an ape and monkey pair. Fortunately the three of them didn't get spotted immediately, so Gilda and Derpy saved them some effort by flying over to the backside of the pair and knocked them out, allowing Sly to catch up with them before they moved out onto the wooden bridge, which happened to be in three separate sections. Along the way they collected three more clue bottles and used a hook to get to the last part of the bridge, where they found a gate that happened to be locked and that the only way over it, save for flying, was to sneak along the path on their right.

As it turned out there were a few falling icicles that were falling along the way, which all of them were able to avoid, and they sneaked around a second path that was identical to the first one, though that brought them to an area with two more of the ape guards, who were already launching snowball containing monkeys at them. Gilda and Derpy flew through the air and knocked out the guards as Sly avoided the pair of snowballs coming at him, though as they got back together, and walked through the gate in front of them, they noticed that the way forward was blocked by an iron gate. Fortunately there happened to be a red firework nearby that Derpy struck, which flew through the air and struck the object that was blocking their way, causing it to fall into place between them and the path it had been blocking. That allowed them to walk over the fallen gate and used the bounce pad to access the area above them, one that revealed the entrance of the Panda King's fortress... and the fact that it happened to be locked at the moment, along with the siblings discovering a building off on their immediate left that had to contain the key to opening the gate.

Patrolling the area between them and the two areas they needed to go through was a gorilla guard with a flashlight and a rather deadly sword, though as the three of them headed down into the area near the guard they each engaged their invisibility and disappeared for a few moments... only to reengage when the guard's back was turned, allowing them to knock him out before moving forward.

They quickly discovered that the only way to progress was to sneak around the exterior of the building on their left, though since it appeared that the three guards on the upper level were constantly moving the three of them agreed that only one of them should tackle the obstacles. Derpy and Gilda stayed back as Sly carefully made his way around the exterior of the building, staying in the shadows of the various widows that were along his path, before reaching the end that happened to be at the base of a ramp. That ramp allowed him to reach a cluster of firework rockets that, when he fired them with swing of his cane, raced through the air and took out all three of the gorilla guards, allowing Gilda and Derpy to catch up with him once more. From there they collected three clue bottles before unleashing another pair of fireworks, one that slammed into the gate and opened it while the second one slammed into one of the iron grates in the floor they were standing on... which revealed the location of the safe, though that meant they needed a few more clues before they could get the page that was inside it.

From there they dropped down into the room below them and walked outside, where they walked over the downed gate and took out the mandrill that was standing near the gate that had a lock on it, before collecting the pair of clues from the safe off on their left... before noticing that the Treasure Key was off on the right, which required them going through a series of gorilla guards before they could claim the key.

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy smiled as they took three separate routes through the area between them and the location of the Treasure Key, where they used the invisibility technique to avoid being seen and knocked out the guards that walked by them. Along the way they ignored the clues for the moment, choosing to focus on their foes and the obstacles that were in front of them, before they managed to reach the Treasure Key and claimed it, putting a real smile on their faces since they were now one step closer to the Panda King. From there the three of them carefully made their way back to the locked gate and collected the fourteen clues that happened to be scattered throughout this one area, which happened to be the amount of clues necessary to break the vault and claim the page inside it. The siblings got back together and returned to where the vault was located, where Sly carefully put in the code, 5-7-8, and unlocked the door, where the three of them discovered a page from the Thievius Raccoonus... Huckleberry Cooper's modifications to the invisibility technique, which allowed them to slowly move while using Slytunkahmen's technique.

With the calling card in place the siblings headed back to the locked gate and used the Treasure Key to enter the stronghold that the Panda King had built, where they all knew that they would eventually find their foe... after they claimed the remaining six Treasure Keys, whatever was in the other vaults, and unlocked the path to his statue.

Thievius: Into the Stronghold

The moment that Sly, Gilda, and Derpy were through the first locked gate of the Panda King's stronghold they walked out of the tunnel they had been in and noticed that, in order to get a good view of their foe's base, that they needed to use the hook in front of them and bypass the gorilla guard that was patrolling the area. As such the three of them carefully made their way to the location that the guard was standing in and used their new improved invisibility to sneak up beside him, though once his back was turned they revealed themselves and knocked him out. That, in turn, allowed them to climb up to the upper area that was above them, where they noticed three immediate paths, all bearing one of Bentley's markers, a cluster of fireworks that had three Treasure Key locks attached to it, and an iron grate that blocked the way forward. The siblings glanced at each other for a few seconds, as they already knew what they needed to do here, but at the same time they figured they might as well see if Bentley had anything to say to them.

As such the three of them withdrew their binocucoms and stared at the area around them, allowing them to hook back up with Bentley, who was currently smiling at the moment, which had to be a good sign considering that Mz. Ruby's base had really freaked him out.

"Nice job breaking into the Panda King's compound." Bentley told them, confirming what they were thinking at the moment, before they locked onto the grate that was nearby, revealing that he was thinking the same thing that had been going through their minds, "I think I've figured out a way to get to the top of that giant statue, but unfortunately, it's obstructed by this reinforced ceiling hatch."

"That's not much of a problem." Sly said, to which his sisters nodded their heads in agreement as they all looked at the three objectives that were around them, as they already knew what they needed to do next, "They seem to have plenty of firepower around here. We'll just have to find a few more Treasure Keys to get at it."

"Well I'll leave the three of you to do what you do best," Bentley replied, revealing that he had faith in their abilities, since they had overcome a lot of odds to reach this point in time, and smiled at them before he switched off his side of the binocucom for the moment.

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy did the same thing, though as they started to take in the various areas around them, and thought about what they might face in the near future, the three of them were interrupted when they heard an intercom come on, the sign that the Panda King was going to relay a message to his guards... those that were paying attention, as Sly saw one that seemed like he was dozing off.

Attention, valued employee. the Panda King said, sounding like he actually respected his guards and that they must have been treated better than those in the other bases they had visited so far, Suddenly, Hinkau village elect not to pay for avalanche protection service, and so I am forced to bury alive under many ton of snow. Please be on guard for any surviving villager that come looking for revenge. Thank you, that is all.

"Well, at least the Panda King is more respectful than the others were," Gilda commented, even though the Panda King had buried an entire village earlier, which only made all three of them even more annoyed with him, "Well, I'm taking the path to the right of where we came from, if that's fine with the two of you."

"Sure, I'm fine with you tackling that area," Sly said, to which he turned and pointed over at the path that required that he jump over some lights of some description, before he turned towards his sisters, "I'm feeling that this particular path is more for me... which means that Derpy gets the path on the left side of the stronghold."

That seemed to make Derpy happy, meaning that it had likely been what she was going to go for if she had a chance to speak up, but instead of saying anything the three of them decided to get to work and started moving towards the areas that they had agreed to take... where Sly paused for a moment to see Gilda and Derpy use the modified invisibility to sneak up to the guards in front of their areas, knowing them out in the process, before they disappeared. Sly chuckled as he headed into the path that was in front of him, knowing that soon enough all three of them would be back together and they would be able to progress into the second half of the Panda King's stronghold.

As Derpy emerged from the path that she had chosen, and discovered that it was a either a set of buildings the Panda King had taken over or a temple of some kind, she listened to Bentley as he said that this might be a good place for her to get some additional practice with the invisibility technique. She followed the walkway that was in front of her and found two clue bottles off to the left of the first building's entrance, which she collected, before finding out that the front door was barred with a piece of wood. Since the windows seemed to be open, with no glass planes to worry about, Derpy jumped into the window frame that she was near and entered the building, where she discovered a conveyor belt that would allow her to get behind the gorilla guard in front of her, provided she use the invisibility technique. As such she focused her mind for a moment and turned invisible as she hid in the side area of the room, where she slowly walked onto the conveyor belt and let it carry her to the end of it's track... where she revealed herself and knocked out the guard, before gathering two clues from the safe behind the wall and headed out into the open area in front of her.

She then found another gorilla guard standing in front of her, his light moving over the two clue bottles between them, to which she faded out of sight once more and started slowly walking over to her target's blind spot, where she knocked him out and gathered the clues before moving forward.

After doing that she discovered that the next area in front of her was blocked by several crates and there was a gorilla guard staring at the path that she needed to walk up, so she used the invisibility to walk over the walkway that she needed to cross over, allowing the new technique to keep her hidden. Of course she had to wait for a few seconds, since the light was shining over the crates she needed to jump over, when she wasn't invisible, before she could jump over the crates and entered the next building. From there she moved onto the path that some moving lasers were moving down, along with some searchlights, so she used the invisibility when the lights and the lasers were close to her, finding that none of them could see her, before she eventually reached the top of the path and turned off the alarm that was up there. She found a clue near the alarm and smashed it open, before moving out to the opening that was in front of where she was standing and found that she could use the spires in front of her to reach the building the gorilla guard was stationed in.

She made her way across the pair of spires, found an opening that allowed her to drop down into the area the gorilla guard was in, knocked him out before he even realized that she was there, before collecting the two clues beside her and then climbed back up to the roof so she could access the second story of the first building she had entered.

Derpy found another conveyor belt in the room in front of her, one moving in her direction with a guard at the very end, so she went invisible once more and carefully moved towards the guard when the light was on her, before she eventually reached the end and knocked the surprised guard out. From there she turned to the left of where the guard was stationed and found three more clues waiting for her, though after she grabbed those ones she investigated the right side as well and found two more hiding over there. With all of the clues gathered and sent to Bentley she headed over to the rail that happened to be located near where the guard was laying and found that it would take her right to the structure that was in front of her, which had to be where the Treasure Key was located. She jumped onto the rail and headed down to the area that was below her, where she discovered that the Treasure Key was definitely in the structure in front of her... which meant all she needed to do was find the entrance to the structure and the key was as good as hers.

She headed to the right and followed the path in front of her, where she had to deal with a mandrill guard and a female chimpanzee that dropped down from the tree that she was approaching, though once the two of them were knocked out she continued searching for the clues and the path to the key.

As Derpy opened a safe, and collected the pair of clues inside it, she was assaulted by another mandrill that she was forced to knock out, before she jumped up the branches of the tree next to her and gathered the pair of clues that were resting above the safe. From there she climbed up another set of branches and reached the first ring of the structure, which was the beginning of the path, and carefully knocked out the chimpanzee that tried to attack her, before using her invisibility to bypass the gorilla guard around the corner and collected the pair of clues behind him once she knocked him out. After that she climbed up the pole that she had ignored for a few seconds, jumped over the gap in the floor that was in front of her, and then carefully climbed up a second pole before using the rail to head over to the third story of the first building that rested in this area. A few seconds later, when she arrived at the other end of the rail, she found that the area in front of her had some lasers that were moving above the floor, though instead of gathering the four hanging clues she headed over to the other side of the floor and turned off the alarm.

Once the alarm was taken care of Derpy gathered the four hanging clues that she had ignored, before heading back to the alarm and four three more clues, two resting inside a safe and one more resting outside it, though once all of the clues had been collected she latched onto one of the hooks that were moving between her and the main structure and let it carry her to her destination. The moment she reached the structure she let go of the hook and moved around the corner, where she knocked out the chimpanzee that was waiting and gathered the two clues that she was guarding, before using the nearby pole to climb up to the next level. She then found the entrance of the area that the Treasure Key was located in and ignored it for now, since she was more interested in the vault, and climbed up to the next level, which happened to be the final level of the structure. It was then that she found that the final clue of the area was on the top spire of the structure she had been ascending, where she opened her wings and took to the skies... though after she claimed the clue, and sent it to Bentley, she landed beside the vault and waited.

A few seconds ticked by before Bentley informed her that he had the combination, to which Derpy turned to the tumblers and input the code, which was 6-6-7, before opening the door and found a page from the Thievius Raccoonus, or more accurately Sir Augestine of Cooper's technique to Briefly Defy Gravity. She read over the page for a few seconds and determined that this was more suit for Sly than for her and Gilda, though she memorized the technique, in the off chance that she couldn't use her wings to save herself, and replaced the page with a calling card. Once that was done she headed back down to the entrance of the path that would take her down to the Treasure Key, where she carefully made her way down the various platforms that lined the walls, before she reached the area that the key was located in and turned off the alarm... before she removed the Treasure Key and smiled as she pocketed it.

"Sly's going to want to see this technique," Derpy commented, to which she opened her wings and carefully flew back up to the entrance of the structure, before heading back to the entrance of this entire area while she wondered what sort of challenges her siblings had to overcome.

Gilda couldn't resist smiling as she looked at the temple that was in front of her, as this seemed like an interesting place to explore since the Panda King was supposed to have explosives somewhere, but instead of staying in one place she started moving down the bridge that was in front of her. As she moved she had to take out the mandrill guard that was in front of her, which she approached from behind and knocked out before he could spot her, before she climbed up the pole that was on her left and rode the rail down to the area in front of her. When she reached the lower level she knocked out the mandrill guard off on her left and used the hook in that was right in front of her to bypass the lasers that were blocking the path, where she landed behind an alarm and turned it off. Instead of using the group of hooks to reach the area in front of her, and continue along the proper path, Gilda walked down the slope in front of her and found a trio of clues that she immediately collected, before heading back up and using the hooks to move forward.

When she reached the area that a bounce pad was in, and used it to ambush a gorilla guard that had his back turned towards him, Gilda noticed that she had to carefully sneak over the metallic walkway and avoid the lasers that were moving around certain sections.

Fortunately Gilda was able to overcome that trial without anything happening and found another hook section, but instead of using it she descended the slope in front of her and found a path she could sneak around, which brought her to a pair of clues. With those clues in hand she returned to the area the hooks were in and used them to bypass the lasers that were in front of her, where she turned off the alarm and started moving forward, though that required that she knock out a gorilla guard before she could claim two more clues off on her right. After that she continued down the path in front of her and knocked out the chimpanzee that tried to kick her, before sneaking along a cliff face to reach the underground entrance of the temple. That, in itself, required that she knock out another chimpanzee before she could actually move into the temple, where she discovered that this was actually the training ground for some more guards, along with a safe with a pair of clues hidden nearby.

With the clues acquired Gilda moved over to the large statue that was at the back of the room and noticed that she could walk along the ledge that had been built into the sides of the statue, making her realize that this entire place seemed to have been built to test Cooper techniques... making her wonder if the Panda King knew more about their family, which actually worried her a bit.

Since she was worried by what the Panda King might know, and the fact that he was likely waiting for their arrival, Gilda jumped over the chandelier that was in front of her and sneaked around one of the sides of the gong that she had touched down in front of. On the other side she found a trio of clue bottles waiting for her, which she quickly collected before she climbed up to the top of the structure that the gong was attached to, though as she reached the top she spotted an area that four more clues rested in, one that was designed to force someone to fall to the ground and climb back up if they were able. Since she had wings, however, Gilda simply flew over to where the clues were located and grabbed them, before she smashed the bottles, sent the information to Bentley, and used the nearby rail to leave the building she was in. A few seconds later, when she was on the exterior of the temple again, she found a lower area that contained two more clues, which she eagerly collected, before she found a shield of some kind that had fireworks attached to it, which acted like an elevator that took her back up to the level above her.

From there Gilda used the next to her rail to reach an area above a gorilla guard, which she dropped down and knocked out, before she had to knock out a chimpanzee that was nearby... though after that she found that she could enter a covered area that was being guarded by another gorilla guard.

Instead of going through with using the invisibility technique again, as that seemed to be the case with this area, she used her wings to get behind the guard and knocked him out, before collecting the two bottles the gorilla was guarding and another pair of clues that were inside a safe as well. Once she had done that she used the shield in front of her, which the gorilla guard had been watching over, and rode it up to the level that was above her, though when she reached the roof she found another path that brought her to another elevator shield. She was happy to have chosen to take the second shield, as it brought her to three more clues, before she dropped back down to the roof, climbed up a pair of poles, and approached the hook area that was in front of her, which also required taking out a pair of chimpanzee guards before crossing the distance. When she reached the end of the hook area she found a cliff face that she needed to sneak around, but instead of doing that Gilda opened her wings and flew up to the back entrance of the structure that was above her, where she found some lasers moving above the floor... and, at the other side of the chamber, she found the vault and the Treasure Key.

With the prize in sight Gilda flew over the floor and landed in front of the vault, where she entered 9-3-2 and discovered the blueprints for the Panda King's domain, where she chuckled at the thought that she had saved Derpy from taking this area, before she left the calling card behind. Once all of that was in place she headed over to the Treasure Key and retrieved it, where she smiled and flew out of the area entirely, as she was sure that her siblings were either waiting for her or would soon be finishing up the areas they had headed into.

Sly stared down at the blasting station that was in front of him for a few seconds, as he had found it after moving along the carved out path that he had picked out, before he stared out at the part of the stronghold that was further away from the rest of the grounds that he and his sisters had access to. The reason he was staring out at the other part of the stronghold was because he could see Murray standing in an open area as he waited for someone to be the gunner for this mission, to which he said nothing as he pulled out his binocucom and zeroed in on his friend.

"Murray's all fired up to make the run for the key." Bentley said, revealing the reason why Murray was out here, which reminded Sly of what Gilda had mentioned after they had taken out Muggshot, about taking control of a turret and kept Murray safe, "He needs someone to provide cover fire while he does so."

"Don't worry Bentley, I'll keep him covered." Sly replied, though at the same time he put down his binocucom and climbed onto the blasting station, where it zeroed in on the area that Murray was standing in and he nodded his head for a few seconds, hoping Murray got the message.

Fortunately Murray did get the message and started moving immediately, to which Sly followed after him and opened fire on the Panda King's guards that got in his friend's way, which included all the types of guards he and his sisters had encountered and a few new ones at the same time. One thing he had to watch out for was the fact that he had to fire at some of the fireworks that were in the immediate area, which opened the way for Murray to move forward, though he simply stared at the path Murray was following and continued firing at the guards. It didn't appear that there were any real hazardous materials in the area, like the ones that Gilda had to deal with when she protected Murray back in Mesa City, and the only real danger his friend was in happened to be when he reached the end point and an alarm went off. The encouraged a number of gorilla guards to emerge from the sides of the building that the Treasure Key was housed in, where they started aiming at Murray with their weapons, indicating that they were going to throw their swords in an attempt to kill his friend.

Sly, acting fast, zeroed in on the gorilla guards as they emerged and took them out before they could lock onto where Murray was standing, though it took him some time to clear out all of the enemies, since there was a fair number of them, but once that was done, and the alarm silenced itself, Murray claimed the Treasure Key and headed back to the path he took to reach this area.

Since there wasn't anything else to do here Sly made his way back to the main entrance of the stronghold, where he found that neither of his sisters had returned yet, so he headed back down the main path and headed to a meet up point where Murray handed him the Treasure Key. With that in hand he returned to the stronghold and stood beside the cluster of fireworks that they had been staring at when they reached this area, though a few minutes ticked by before both of his sisters returned to him. He then found out that while Gilda had found the blueprints for the Panda King's area, which he thought was interesting since Derpy was the one that usually found them, Derpy had recovered another page from the Thievius Raccoonus, one that he was eager to memorize. Once the three of them were together they used three of the four keys they possessed and unlocked the fireworks, where Derpy hit them and stood back as the cluster flew through the air... slamming into the grate in front of them and opened the way to the second half of the Panda King's base.

The siblings smiled at each other as they descended into the opening in front of them, because soon the fourth member of the Fiendish Five would feel their wrath, and then they could focus on the last member of the group... and not only complete the Thievius Raccoonus, but avenge Sly's father as well.

Thievius: Flame Fu

When Sly, Derpy, and Gilda walked through the part of the building that the hatch had been blocking, after having collected the Treasure Keys in the first part of the Panda King's stronghold, they discovered three more areas for them to explore, which wasn't a surprise, and another set of fireworks that were locked down by seven locks. The three paths that were open to them included a tunnel that a gorilla guard happened to be standing in front of, a small building that seemed to lead to another section of the stronghold that they hadn't been in yet, and the third contained another blasting vehicle that was identical to the one that Derpy had used in Mz. Ruby's lair. Gilda didn't have to be told how this was going through Derpy and Sly's minds at the moment, as she already knew that Derpy was eager to use the vehicle and tackle whatever was on the other side of the iron door that was in front of it, while she knew that same was true for Sly and the other part of the stronghold. Before she could say anything, however, the three of them pulled out their binocucoms and looked at the fireworks that were locked down, knowing that Bentley would have something to tell them.

"So Bentley," Sly said, remembering how he and his sisters had to get into the various areas that the members of the Fiendish Five had been located in, as in shooting himself out of a cannon or riding a cauldron lid to a temple, "am I correct in assuming that those fireworks will take us to the top of the Panda King's statue?"

"That's correct." Bentley told them, though there was something in his voice that made all three of them wonder if there was something he was concerned about, in regards to that plan, "In fact it's labeled that way on the blueprints that you discovered earlier... and, from what I've read so far, there's just enough information here to reveal the general location of the Treasure Keys."

"You know, that makes me think the Panda King intended for this to happen," Gilda commented, thinking back to what she had thought about in the previous part of the stronghold that she had taken on her own, as this seemed to match her earlier observations, "Call me crazy, but what if the Panda King built this stronghold to test us, for our eventual confrontation with the final member of the Fiendish Five? I ask this because the area I went through seemed to test certain techniques we had picked up during our training, making me worry that he knew more about us than what we knew about him."

"You mean he's waiting to meet us in battle?" Derpy asked, as that was the one thing she knew her sister wasn't saying, because they were fine with Raleigh and Muggshot not being prepared for them and with Mz. Ruby being ready for their arrival, but this time it appeared to be different.

"Well, regardless of what he's waiting for, we had best get underway," Sly said, to which he put away his binocucom and turned towards his siblings, where he noticed that the two of them did the same thing, "Derpy, you should take the vehicle and blast your way through whatever obstacles that are between you and the Treasure Key, and Gilda, I think you can tackle whatever is on the other side of that tunnel. I'll scout out the other part of the stronghold and see where the seventh and final Treasure Key for this area is located, before we get back together and take on our target."

The sisters nodded as the three of them separated from each other, as while Derpy sneaked through the shadows and took out the gorilla guard that was blocking the path in front of her she noticed that Gilda did the same thing with her opponent and Sly bypassed another mandrill guard. Derpy smiled as her siblings headed into their areas and disappeared, to which she climbed onto the blasting vehicle and set her cane into the area she had put it into when they were in Mz. Ruby's lair. A few moments later she turned the blaster on the iron door and blasted her way through it, before she rode the vehicle through the wrecked doorway and started to follow the path that was in front of her as she began the search for her Treasure Key. It didn't take her long to discover a path that belonged on the inside of a building and rode over it, where she fired at the door that was blocking her way, iron like the last one, and smiled when she tore through it as well.

That was when Derpy noticed that the area she was in seemed to be the firework production facility, though she shelved that thought for the moment as she blasted her way through the barricades that were in front of her, took out the monkeys that were climbing out of the openings in the floor along her path, and then closed said openings so she could move forward. She then turned around the corner that was in front of her and opened fire on the group of monkey guards that were climbing out of the second opening, where she blasted her way through the obstacles and found another iron door, this one larger than the last two, blocking her way. Derpy stared at the door for a few seconds before blasting through the door, though as she entered the building, and tore her way through the barricades that were laying in her path, the intercom came on for a few seconds.

Attention, valued employee. the Panda King said, confirming Derpy's suspicions on who was going to be talking, to which she paused the vehicle for a moment to listen to what their foe had to say, It has come to my attention that a thief is loose somewhere inside the firework production facility. Please do your part to pitch in by capturing this intruder on sight. Thank you, that is all.

That confirmed many things for Derpy, more specifically the fact that the Panda King was interested in them, as he said 'capture' and not 'kill' or anything like that, though as she came to that realization she continued along the path that was in front of her and continued blasting her way through the barricades and the monkey guards that were coming towards her. Soon she reached an area where there were two openings and pairs of guards emerged from the area below her, revealing that they were trying to take her out in mass, but she focused her fire on her targets and carefully closed the pair of openings that were blocking the way. As she descended to the lowest level of the facility she noticed that there was a third opening, meaning that she had to weave back and forth from the left side of the conveyor belt to the right side of the conveyor belt, allowing the blasts to take out the guards in a calculated manner as she moved closer and closer to where the openings were located.

Eventually she was able to take out the openings and close them so more monkey guards didn't come at her, to which she breathed a sigh of relief as she headed up to the iron door in front of her, blasted her way through it, and exited the facility at long last. From there she found that she had to follow a snowy area, with the large ape guards positioned along the way, and that she had to use the vehicle to tear through the mounds that were in front of her, so that way she could get through the path and avoid the large snowballs that were being rolled in her direction, as they would be extremely painful if she got hit by one of them. After the first group of enemies she descended into a lower area and had to repeat that same thing twice more, heading up an area with the ape guards, blasting through the mounds that had been set up to slow down her progress, and blasted her way through the guards themselves before moving onward.

In no time at all she finished off the last of the ape guards and rode the vehicle to the pillar the Treasure Key was resting on the top of, where she blasted the pillar to bits until the key was hers... though once she had the key she grabbed her cane, opened her wings, and departed from the area, all while curious as to what Sly and Gilda were doing.

Gilda sighed as she stared down at the obvious race track that was resting around a building that specialized in selling snow cones, where she found Murray and the van lined up with some monkeys that were likely trying to pressure him into racing them. She didn't mind getting missions where she had to do nothing, as it allowed her to relax and unwind a little, but at the moment all she could do was think about what she had seen her sister do back in Mz. Ruby's temple, as she and Sly had never seen anything like that. Mz. Ruby claimed that she and Derpy had magical powers, ones that weren't of this world based on what she said, and that they needed a catalyst to harness the powers that they had, which she feared happening for some reason. The voodoo priestess was a strange one, as it appeared that she had originally been hoping to see their power for herself, though when they reached the end of their fight she said she hoped they never experienced a catalyst for their 'powers'.

Gilda paused in her train of thought as the race started and Murray started his battle against the monkeys, though she paid him no mind as she lifted her left hand and stared at it, wondering what sort of catalyst they needed to unlock the powers that Mz. Ruby had seen inside them... if she and Derpy were willing to listen to what she had said.

Sly, from what she had seen, was convinced that Mz. Ruby had been pulling their legs, but even then she couldn't fault what she had seen and knew that Derpy had never moved that fast in her life before that point, as even Derpy had been confused when she snapped out of whatever state she had been in. Despite her thoughts she knew that there had to be some truth to what Mz. Ruby had told them, as Derpy had held one of the magical spheres in her hand and used it against the person that had thrown it, and that included her increased speed to keep up with Mz. Ruby's teleporting spell. That only made her wonder what power Mz. Ruby had seen in them and what it would take to unlock the abilities that she didn't want them to discover, but before she could actually get too deep into her thoughts her binocucom went off and she discovered that Murray was done with the race, and he had won them the key that was being offered.

Gilda sighed as she opened her wings and flew down to where Murray was standing, where she congratulated him on winning the race and told him that he did a good job, before heading back to the area that the second cluster of fireworks were located, so she could wait for Sly and Derpy to arrive... and hoped that they were having a blast with their areas.

Carmelita shivered as she carefully stood on the nose of the dragon statue that she had discovered, because she had been following the Coopers and the last member of the Fiendish Five they had taken out, the voodoo priestess Mz. Ruby, had told her exactly where they were going, after remaining silent for a few days. She had no idea why one of the Fiendish Five, the sworn enemies of the Cooper Gang, would willingly withhold information on them, but there wasn't much she could do to Mz. Ruby, since her actions had earned her a life sentence behind bars. Fortunately on the third day, when she actually realized where Sly and his sisters were going on her own, Mz. Ruby had confirmed her suspicions by revealing that they were heading after the Panda King. As such she set out to cut them off and capture them, and the Panda King, so she could finally put her main targets behind bars, though at the same time she hadn't seen hide or hair of Sly and his sisters since she arrived in the stronghold, which required her sneaking up from another direction to avoid detection by the Panda King's guards... a lesson she learned after Mesa City, as the guards there had discovered her presence quickly and she adapted accordingly this time around.

The sound of some bottles breaking and the sound of a firework being used caught her attention, to which she smiled as she pointed at the nearby rooftop as the Cooper sibling she was after, Sly himself, walked out of the area that was being covered by the building and walked right out into her crosshairs once more.

"Freeze, raccoon!" Carmelita declared, where she immediately pointed her shock pistol at the rooftop that Sly was standing on, where she was pleased to find that he had paused the moment he spotted her, even if it was more because of her presence and less because she ordered him to stop.

"How can I freeze when my heart warms at the very sight of you?" Sly asked, once more falling into his flirting nature, which was what he did each and every time they crossed paths, though even as he spoke he crossed his arms and stared at her for a few seconds.

"Shut up, ringtail!" Carmelita said, as she knew what Sly was up to, and this time around her mind was focused on him and him alone at the moment, because if she took Sly down she could force his siblings to surrender, "I know why you came here; you came to take out the Panda King, just like you and your sisters did with the other members of the Fiendish Five that you've encountered so far."

"I'd love to stick around and chat, but we've got a meeting with the Panda King soon," Sly replied, knowing that since Carmelita knew why he and his sisters were here there was no reason for him to beat around the bush and explain things to her, as she could likely figure everything else out at this point.

Carmelita opened fire the moment Sly spoke, causing him to latch onto the hook that was near him and rode the line down to the area that was to the left of the dragon statue, to which she jumped to a more appropriate angle and carefully aimed at her target. As Sly moved along the path that was in front of him, smashing bottles along the way, Carmelita fired at him with the intent to knock him out, though she noticed that she was missing more than she would have liked, until she noticed something that would even the odds. She turned towards the stone path that Sly was heading towards and loosed a shock blast that broke the structure apart, effectively trapping Sly, but then he surprised her by using the same move he had displayed back in Mesa City, the one where he jumped on spires, and soon enough he had gotten over her attempt to keep him in one place... to which she growled as she moved into the next area that would allow her a better shot and continued to fire at Sly as he moved around.

She noticed Sly climb up some icicles and struck a firework, one that struck a nearby gate and caused it to fall over, creating a path for him to take in the process, though the act of the gate falling caused Carmelita to stop firing for a moment, as she was shocked by the sheer power of a single firework... though that only gave her more fuel to capture and imprison the Panda King, as she was sure these fireworks were illegal.

After that they arrived in an area where Sly had to hit three fireworks to take out the next gate, where one part of it fell backwards and the other fell forwards, creating a path for him to take as Carmelita tired, still in vain, to strike him down and capture him. As Sly moved into the ruined building that was along the path, and became slightly obscured from her sight, Carmelita focused on where she could see him and fired at the weak windows that were in her way, effectively making him reveal himself in the process, before doing the same thing on the second area that was identical to that one. When the two of them reached the end of the area that Sly had been heading towards, however, he used one of the shield like elevators to get to the roofs he had walked under, to which Carmelita growled as she continued to open fire on him while he made his way back across the roofs. She eventually caught him at an area where he used two more fireworks that struck the ceiling of the area he would have to pass through, where he forced some icicles to drop and created a path that he could take, though as he did so Carmelita opened fire on him and eventually moved further up the dragon statue until she was back where she started.

What she didn't expect, however, was for the tail end of the statue to have multiple fireworks attached to it, as when Sly arrived he whacked them all and they struck the neck of the statue, causing the head to snap off and bury itself in the snow below it... and unfortunately Carmelita soon found herself buried in the freezing snow, and she knew that, by the time she got herself out of the snow, Sly and his sisters would be long gone.

Sly felt bad for Carmelita, he really did, but he was sure that she would forgive him the next time they saw each other, which was why he happily carried his Treasure Key back to where the cluster of fireworks were resting, where he found both Gila and Derpy waiting for him.

"It seems that we have all seven of the Panda King's Treasure Keys," Sly said, where he collected the keys from his sisters and unlocked the locks that were on the cluster in front of them, while at the same time he knew that he would be the only one to ride this thing to their destination, "So, whose up for facing the Panda King?"

"That sounds like a plan," Gilda replied, though as she spoke she noticed something odd, something that needed to be addressed before they moved onto their foe and recovered his section of the Thievius Raccoonus, "Didn't the area you explore have a page of the family tome?"

"I would think it did... if we could have opened the safe," Sly admitted, causing his sisters to look at him for a few seconds, as they were curious as to what he meant by that, and he was going to explain it to them anyway, "According to Bentley, after he looked at the clues, the final page of the Thievius Raccoonus is secured by a number of clues that were written in owl dialect... meaning that, in order to complete the family tome, we'll have to defeat the final member of the Fiendish Five and then come back before the entire thing is complete."

"That's... odd." Derpy said, as it sounded weird for them to have to backtrack in such a way, especially since they had no idea where the final member of the Fiendish Five was located, but at the same time they all knew that the Panda King likely held that information.

"Yeah, you're telling me," Sly said, to which he shook his head and stared at the fireworks for a moment, as he could tell that his sisters were getting anxious for their battle with the Panda King, "Come on, we've got an hour or two before Carmelita climbs out of the snow she was buried in and comes searching for us, so we might as well make the most of our time... and yes, I'll tell you the details when we're back in the van."

Gilda and Derpy nodded as they opened their wings once more, to which Sly prepared himself as he ignited the cluster and latched onto it, where not a few seconds later he flew through the air and headed towards the Panda King's statue, with his sisters flying nearby so they could be sure nothing happened to him. Fortunately nothing happened along the way and he was able to reach his destination swiftly, though as he jumped off the cluster and landed on the ground, along with his sisters joining him, he found that the Panda King seemed to be meditating. Or at least that was what he had been doing, as the moment they all stood up and faced the middle of the area something changed, the Panda King opened his eyes and stopped meditating. He stared down at them for a few seconds, while they stared up at him, and the siblings could see that there was some sorrow that lingered in his eyes for a few seconds, before it disappeared, but they knew what they had seen and realized that, despite his earlier attitude towards the village, he might not be as bad as the three of them originally believed.

"Greetings Sly Cooper, Derpy Cooper, and Gilda Cooper." the Panda King said, to which he carefully picked himself up and stretched for a few seconds, revealing that he must have spent quite some time in his meditation before they had arrived, making them wonder if the messages they had heard were recordings or the real thing.

"Panda King." Sly replied, though as he said the name both he and his sisters readied themselves, as they suspected a trap of some kind, especially since none of the other members they had taken out seemed to have acted like the Panda King, save for Mz. Ruby and her interest in his sisters.

"You are here for the pages of your family tome, and for revenge." the Panda Kind stated, already guessing why they had come here, to which he gestured to the wall behind him, where he had stored his personal vault and the pages he had taken from the book, "They are there."

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy stared at the wall in question and found that the vault was there, though they were shocked to find out that the vault was open and that the pages were definitely there, which caused them to worry that this might be a trap that their foe had cooked up during his time before their arrival.

"That's oddly convenient." Derpy observed, though at the same time she began to think about the village again, and wondered if the people had actually gotten away before the firework had been launched at the mountain, causing the avalanche that they had seen.

"They are yours to take, regardless of how our fight goes," the Panda King said, to which he settled into the first stance of his newly perfected technique, which he called Flame Fu, and flames danced around his hands and his feet, causing Sly's eyes to widen in surprise as both Gilda and Derpy seemed interested, "You have questions regarding what happened all those years ago, and I possess the answers. Show me how much you have grown! Show me your strength, and the power of your hearts! Children cannot stand against the monster you hunt, so show me that you have grown into adults with the will to do what is necessary!"

Sly, Derpy, and Gilda separated from each other the moment the Panda King tossed a flame up from his hands and kicked it towards them, where it struck the wall that they had been standing in front of, though as they did that it appeared that their foe was more prepared for them than they originally thought. At first it seemed to be that he was focusing on Sly, counting Gilda and Derpy as unworthy of his attention, though they were proved wrong as he rapidly changed towards one of them and loosed another fireball, if that was what it was, in their direction. Despite his size it was clear that the Panda King had specifically trained himself to fight multiple people at the same time, because at first it appeared that he was testing their reflects with the one type of attack, though at the same time Derpy felt something stir inside her mind once more... and this time around she wasn't the only one, as Gilda was beginning to see something as well, something that felt strange and familiar to her at the same time.

The Panda King, noticing that the two of them had stalled for a moment, used that opportunity to hurl a ball of flames at them, opening himself to Sly's attacks as he managed to reach the center of the pagoda while he was distracted, but that mattered little to the Panda King as he switched from ranged attacks to melee attacks. As such he started off with his 'Fiery Wheel' technique, which involved flames gathering around one of his hands before he spun on his head like a wheel, in an attempt to knock Sly off his feet. Sly, on the other hand, was much smarter and jumped over the attack as it came his way, though as he descended back towards the floor he used his cane to smack the Panda King several times, where he discovered that a few hits only lightly damaged their foe, as he barely seemed affected by the attack. Once the Panda King was back on his feet he gathered more flames, this time around the hand that was opposite the one he used for 'Fiery Wheel', before raising his hand and declaring 'Booming Chop' as he struck the end of his hand on the ground in front of him, intending to hit Sly in the process.

Sly was unharmed, indicating that he had dodged the attack, though standing in his place was none other than Gilda, though to the Panda King's surprise she had caught his hand with her own hands, where his eyes widened as her eyes revealed an inner power that he had heard about, before Gilda pushed his arm back and spun around. Her kick, aided by the innate energies that she had unlocked for the moment, knocked him backwards and pushed him to the edge of the area he was fighting in, though as he straightened himself he gathered his flames and loosed another fireball, this one twice as big as before, towards his opponents. That was when Derpy, who he had forgotten about for a moment, moved herself between him and Gilda, where she held her hand out and the fireball seemed to stop in it's tracks, though just as surprise flashed on the Panda King's face she forced the attack backwards. The Panda King barely had time to move as his own attack struck him in the chest and threw him into one of the support pillars for the pagoda, breaking it with his weight being thrown against it, before he landed on the floor and coughed... and that was followed by him staring up at the Coopers for a moment, where Sly seemed a tad bit bothered by what his sisters had done, but was pleased with what they were able to do.

The Panda King mentally chuckled for a moment as he rubbed the short part of his chest, as he was going to be feeling that one for the next week at least, before he came to the conclusion that a drawn out battle with these three was not in his best interests... and, despite Sly's lack of powers, he saw a powerful light of hope inside the young raccoon, one that caused him to chuckle.

"So this is what Mz. Ruby meant," the Panda King commented, though at the same time he picked himself up and walked over to the middle of the pagoda, where he sat down and stared at the Cooper siblings for a few seconds, "the three of you are strong, each in your own unique way. Perhaps... perhaps you are strong enough to face Him."

"The last member of the Fiendish Five," Sly said, knowing exactly who the Panda King was referring to, even if they hadn't looked at the part of the police file that pertained to the last member, "Who is he? All Mz. Ruby said was that we'd be facing the true monster of your gang."

"...Clockwerk..." the Panda King replied, though there was something about the way he said the name that caused all three of the siblings to know that the last member was truly evil, and that was all from saying his name.

"C... Clockwerk?" Derpy asked, as while she wasn't afraid of a name, as they had nothing to go on just yet, she couldn't help but feel that they shouldn't underestimate this foe, as he seemed to be the leader of the Fiendish Five, if what they had seen so far was anything to go by.

"An ancient owl, who has replaced nearly his entire body with soulless machinery," the Panda King explained, giving them what he knew about their true enemy, the one he knew that they were prepared to face, even if their battle had been short and sweet, "He has lived for centuries, maybe even thousands of years, with a burning hated for the Cooper Clan, a hatred that has allowed him to live for so long. All those years ago, when we attacked your father, the four of us realized that we had been used as pawns in Clockwerk's game, though he was the only one that truly laid a talon on your father that night. Raleigh and Muggshot buried most of that evening in the depths of their minds, trying to forget what they say, while Mz. Ruby and I knew that one day we would all pay for what Clockwerk had done, and here you three are, standing with the power that might finally destroy him."

"A mechanical owl... that runs on his hatred for a single family," Gilda said, though she sounded disgusted, as she couldn't imagine someone willingly doing such a thing to their body, with the express purpose of wiping out a rival family, or whatever his plans entailed, "I didn't think such a thing was possible."

"Magic and monsters exist in this world," the Panda King commented, referring to the power that Mz. Ruby used all the time, the flames that he had tamed through meditation, the mysterious powers that Gilda and Derpy used against him, and the ancient evil that they stood against, "There isn't much more about Clockwerk that I can tell you, other than the fact that his base is in the Krack-Karov Volcano, which is located in Russia... and, should you go after him, I wish you the best of luck in purge him from this world."

"What did you think would happen when you went after my father?" Sly asked, as that was the one thing that didn't make sense to him, especially since it appeared that four members of the Fiendish Five weren't out to actually kill his father, as only the ancient owl wanted that, and it was the last thing he wanted to ask before they left.

"A few broken bones and the inability to interfere with our plans," the Panda King replied, though he sounded unhappy, which made sense considering what happened next, something that Sly knew all too well, "Like I said, Clockwerk only wanted to kill your father and we were his pawns. Before the police arrived I made sure that you were asleep before gathering a few of your things, including your father's cane, and took you to that orphanage... one where I hoped that you would be able to hide from your family's ancient foe. You found your way to your friends, Murray and Bentley, as well as your sisters, Gilda and Derpy, and learned the skills necessary to assist you on the final leg of your journey, by defeating four members of our group in battle. Perhaps the key to finally beating Clockwerk is inside the three of you."

Sly had the feeling that there was a lot more about what Clockwerk had done to his father that the Panda King didn't want him to know about, but just knowing that this one person, this ancient owl, had hated his family line for so long and turned his body into a soulless machine told him enough. Gilda and Derpy, on the other hand, moved over to the Panda King's vault and claimed the pages stored within, which belonged to their technically minded ancestor Otto van Cooper, who relied on vehicles to aid him in his endeavors. It also came with his plans for some upgrades that they could add to the van, once Bentley went over them anyway, so Sly left the calling card before turning to leave, though ad Derpy and Gilda took to the air he glanced at the Panda King for a few seconds, to see if there was anything else he wanted to tell them before they left. When he remained silent Sly let Gilda lift him up and soon enough the three of them were heading back to the van so they could leave the stronghold before Carmelita showed up.

They all knew that this Clockwerk was going to be the toughest opponent they had ever faced, especially since he had been alive for such a long period of time, though whether they were truly ready to face such a hateful enemy remained to be seen.

Thievius: Krack-Karov Volcano

After defeating the Panda King, and learning what he knew about the mysterious Clockwerk, Sly and his sisters landed by the van and climbed into the back, allowing Murray to drive off while Sly let Bentley look at the plans that Otto van Cooper had created, so they could modify the van in the future. Fortunately it appeared that the modifications were easy to make, provided they had the necessary components to make the battering ram and turret that were the focus of the pages, but Bentley informed them that they could make the items in no time. Of course that meant they had to go somewhere to find the pieces, though oddly enough Hong Kong, where Sly had been planning on visiting for their time to relax after they dealt with the Panda King's forces, was the exact place where they could gather the components necessary for them to make the new battering ram and the turret.

Upon arriving in Hong Kong, and parking the van in yet another abandoned building they happened to find, complete with some decent tools for their needs, Bentley gave Sly a list of components and sent him out to get them, while at the same time offering nothing to Gilda and Derpy. There was a reason for that, as when he heard the tale of their fight with the Panda King, and how they had managed to do something to turn the tide of battle against him, he remembered Derpy's fight with Mz. Ruby. Despite the fact that his mind told him that neither of the sisters had powers, regardless of what the last two members of the Fiendish Five said, he wanted to see if either of them could do anything that proved him wrong, even if he had to rethink his understanding of the world to do so. Unfortunately both of the sisters discovered that whatever power they had used to defeat Mz. Ruby and the Panda King either didn't want to come out, despite the various tests that Bentley wanted to do, or it was simply triggered on demand... like if their lives were being threatened or something, and since Bentley was their friend none of his small tests worked.

Eventually Sly returned with the components and they all got to work building the new battering ram, which they carefully installed when it was completed, and hooked in the turret, which would replace the dish on the roof of the van when they wanted to use the turret.

In order to test these new toys out Murray had to drive the van further away from civilization, allowing him the chance to use the battering ram to smash boulders and the stray bits of metal apart, while at the same time Sly climbed onto the turret and used it on some larger rocks nearby, breaking one apart before he determined that the weapon worked as it was supposed to. As they practiced with the new items Sly realized that the Panda King must have known something about Clockwerk's base, specifically why he had taken the part of the Thievius Raccoonus containing Otto van Cooper's plans and deeds. It still seemed odd that each member of the Fiendish Five had the pages that would help them with the next member in the group, but right now he wasn't about to complain about the situation, not when it had worked in their favor and would do so again. Sly also let Gilda and Derpy practice with the turret for a few minutes, just so they got a feeling for the new toy they had acquired, before they decided that it was time for them to leave, where he converted the turret back to the dish that was usually in it's place... though once that was done they headed out on the road and started the long journey to their final destination; the Krack-Karov Volcano.

Of course they had to stop multiple times over their journey, but during one of their stops Sly claimed a newspaper that revealed that Carmelita had captured the Panda King, which wasn't a surprise considering what happened between them, and that she had an idea where the final member of the Fiendish Five was located. That wasn't good news, because if Clockwerk was as smart as the Panda King said he was, and had done his homework, Carmelita was the perfect bait to lure Sly into a trap when they reached his lair. There was one other thing that Sly determined along the way to the Krack-Karov Volcano, as he had looked at the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus, to see if his ancestors had written anything about the ancient owl, and found that several of the pictures had the silhouette of a large owl in the background. He quickly determined that the silhouettes had to be Clockwerk, confirming the Panda King's story that the leader of the Fiendish Five was an ancient owl who had been hunting his family throughout the entirety of their existence, or at least since the days of Slytunkhamen Cooper I.

This confirmation did nothing for Sly, his sisters, Bentley, or even Murray, as they all knew that they were going to be facing a creature of unspeakable evil, a being that survived for thousands of years on nothing but hatred... to which they prepared themselves for their arrival at his base, and whatever he had in store for them.

It took them some time to reach the front part of Clockwerk's base of operations, just like it did with the last four members of the Fiendish Five, but this time around things were different, as they were able to approach the large gate that served as the entrance without having to fight through anything or collect any keys. It would have been a nice change of pace had they been up against someone like Muggshot or Mz. Ruby, but with their foe being the mysterious Clockwerk, who had a vendetta against the Cooper Clan, it was like he was challenging them. Sly, knowing that they had to get by the gate, pressed the button that switched the dish for the turret and let the turret move into position, though once that was done he climbed up to it and took his place in the seat that would allow him to move and fire at whatever was waiting for them on the other side of the gate. While he did that Murray made sure that they were well prepared for the trek ahead, Bentley prepared his computer in case he needed to hack into something, and both Gilda and Derpy stood beside him as he prepared himself.

"One more member and we're done." Gilda commented, causing everyone to look at her for a moment, though Derpy was the first one to understand what she was talking about, as she nodded her head in agreement, "One more member and we will have defeated the Fiendish Five, claimed nearly all the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus, and avenged the life that Clockwerk took all those years ago."

"Yeah..." Sly said, where he let out a sigh as he remembered why they, why he, was going through all of this for a few seconds, before he steeled himself and tapped the turret, "Murray, is the van ready to go?"

"We're all set Sly," Murray replied, though while the fact that they were going up against an ancient owl, who lived off a diet of hatred, was running through his mind he knew that Sly and his sisters would be more than enough to take out their target, just like the other members of the Fiendish Five.

"Okay, then let's get this show on the road," Sly stated, to which his sisters nodded their heads and headed into the van, as if they flew around the area they would be moving targets and might get hit in the process, though they were sure that they would be able to assist Sly in some manner in the future.

Once everyone was in place, and Sly was absolutely sure about that, he fired up the turret and aimed at the lock on the large gate that was in front of them, where he loosed a bullet at it and tore the lock apart, which opened the entire gate and allowed Murray to start driving forward. As the gate fully opened Murray found an alarming number of mines lining the path in front of them, to which Sly directed his turret fire on the mines and caused them all to detonate before the van reached any of them. As they rounded the corner a few seconds later Gilda and Derpy, as well as Sly, Murray, and Bentley, got a good view of an owl-shaped tower, one that Bentley claimed that Clockwerk happened to be waiting on, meaning they knew where their target was. That was followed by Murray moving the van onto a narrow path that put them above a large pool of lava, meaning that if they fell off the edge they would all die before they were able to react, and, as if that wasn't enough, hostile robo-falcons flew through the air and demanded their attention. Sly, seeing them coming, turned the turret on the flying robots and shot them out of the sky, making sure that they did nothing to the van while Murray carefully drove along the path.

The instant that Sly was done with the group of robotic falcons the tower powered up and revealed that it wasn't just a tower, rather it was a death ray that tore into the nearby hill and loosed a group of boulders that were threatening to knock the van off the path and into the lava... where Sly fired at all of them and tore them apart as fast as he could, preserving the safety of his friends and family in the process.

Once the boulders were taken care of Murray turned to the left and more robotic falcons swooped in to attack them, where Sly opened fire and tore them to pieces, letting the fragments fall into the lava around them while he made sure that none of them reached the van. After that came two smaller areas of mines, with a little separation between them, though as Sly tore the first group apart he noticed that Clockwerk had fired the death beam at the boulders that were behind the second set of mines. Murray, seeing them coming, stopped the van and let Sly tear both the mines and the boulders to pieces, making sure that the van was safe, before he started moving forward again, though that was when Sly had to target yet another group of robotic falcons. Fortunately Sly was a great shot and tore the third group of robotic falcons to pieces, all of them, and soon enough the group was taken care of, though as he noticed that they were heading towards a cave, which the turret wouldn't fit in, he jumped back into the van and lowered the turret back into the place where it was kept... though he waited for them to get to an area with a higher roof before allowing the dish to take it's rightful place once more.

When they entered the next area, one that appeared to be some sort of pit that had lava around the exterior of the central part and didn't touch the ramp in front of them, or the path leading towards the doorway on the other side of the cavern they were in, but Sly smiled as he noticed the computers that were hanging from the ceiling.

"We need to get through that security door," Bentley told them, beckoning to the gate that everyone was interested in, though at the same time Gilda and Derpy glanced up at the computers and wondered what they were going to do about those, "and the only way to unlock it is to analyze at least sixty of those hanging computers."

"Then let's use the turret and blast them to pieces," Derpy said, as she knew that they could overcome the challenge that was in front of them with the tool they gained from Otto van Cooper, thus allowing them to ignore the lava slug creatures that happened to be in the chamber around them.

"I'm afraid that we can't do that," Bentley stated, to which he pointed at the icon that used the battering ram that was installed in the front of the van, or more accurately the Cooper sign that was on the very front of the grill, "the computers are designed to yield their data to someone that either runs them over, like we'll have to, or be consumed by the slugs that happen to be guarding this area."

"Which means that this is up Murray's alley," Gilda commented, as she understood what they needed to do, where Sly nodded his understanding, before she turned towards Murray, who was staring at the computers and the slugs that were crawling along the ground, "Murry, let loose and show those slugs whose boss."

Murray grinned as he put the van in the necessary gear and surged forward, descending into the circular area of the chamber that the slugs were patrolling, though as Bentley hacked into the computers and made them fall he used the battering ram to smash the slugs away and ran into the computers that were in his way. While that happened both Gilda and Derpy wondered if there was anything for them to do other than watch their friend get them closer to Clockwerk, but at the very least Murray proved that he was great behind the wheel and made sure that he scored more of the computers than the slugs could consume. Sly and his sisters watched as Murray smashed the slugs into the lava, knocking them unconscious for a few moments at best, with the battering ram and made sure to grab what Bentley needed, who was keeping track of the number of computers that he was collecting... until the point where Murray claimed the last computer that Bentley needed so he could open the security door that was blocking their path.

The moment that Murray heard that news, and that it was now time for Sly, Gilda, and Derpy to enter the control room for the death ray tower, he headed through the now opened door and found a spot where he could let the siblings off, though while they did that he was determined to find his way to another area so he could be of assistance to them in the near future. Sly and his sisters, however, moved forward and headed into the control room, where they found a few searchlights moving around the area, metallic turrets that would shoot at them the instant they touched the metal floor in front of them, and a number of areas that appeared to involve some of their techniques... and, in the far chamber from where they were standing, was a chamber that contained a captive Carmelita Fox.

"Carmelita!" Sly gasped, as while he and his sisters knew that the Inspector had been closely following them, all the way from Paris and tracked them to each of the hideouts for the four members of the Fiendish Five they had taken out earlier, it was strange for her to beat them to their next target like this.

"She's trapped!" Derpy said, realizing that Carmelita was locked inside some sort of sturdy casing that kept her trapped in the middle of the chamber she was in, though she knew that all three of them realized what they were staring at before they even took a step forward.

"And this is, without a doubt, a trap." Gilda added, as the walls of the chamber looked like video screens of some kind, one that Clockwerk was likely going to use to gloat at whoever triggered the trap, and yet at the same time she knew exactly what was coming next.

"It looks like there's a barrel nearby that one of us can use to get..." Sly started to say, though that was when Gilda and Derpy opened their wings and maneuvered themselves to the other side of the chamber, where Derpy turned off the alarm and Gilda smashed the dart machines, allowing him to walk over to them with ease, "...right... I forgot you two had wings for a moment, and that this sort of thing is easy for you to take care of."

Gilda and Derpy grinned for a moment as the three of them entered the chamber that Carmelita was in, though as they did so the part of the chamber they had walked through raised into place and trapped them all in the same chamber, confirming that this was a trap... and green gas was starting to pour into the chamber.

"Sentimental fools!" a voice said, to which the siblings watched as a shadowy image appeared on all of the screens around them, confirming that Clockwerk was coming to gloat like they thought he would, "Empathy has always been the downfall of the Cooper Clan. Had your father been willing to focus more on his own safety, than be concerned for your well-being, he could have beaten all five of us all those years ago, but he chose his fate. Had you been willing to leave this woman to her fate, you and your siblings might have been able to stand a chance against me, but now the three of you will... be..."

The only reason Clockwerk was stalling in his gloating was because there was something strange happening inside the gas chamber, as it appeared that the griffin's eyes were glowing for some reason, though as he watched he noticed that a spherical field of some kind was being generated by the griffin. It was as if the wind or the air had been bent to her will, as it was somehow keeping the gas from reaching her and her siblings, causing him to growl as he realized that Mz. Ruby must have done something to the griffin. It ruined his chances to defeat the current Coopers, at least at the moment, though before he could even say anything about his targets having something akin to the Devil's own luck, as all of the members of the Cooper Clan were that way, the vents shut off and the gas stopped pouring into the chamber. As that happened the glow in the griffin's eyes faded and she huffed for a few moments, indicating that she might be weakened from he efforts, but instead of saying anything he disconnected from the screens and vanished.

Sly, on the other hand, turned his cane towards the base of Carmelita's case and smashed it, which caused the entire thing to crack and break, freeing her from her prison and caused her to look at the three of them for a moment, before she turned around and blasted the door to pieces... to which the four of them headed through the opening and headed through the tunnel that was in front of them, where they came out in a large power station of some kind.

"I don't get it, Cooper." Carmelita said, causing all three of the siblings to turn towards her, despite the fact that they knew she was actually talking to Sly and not either Gilda or Derpy, "I've hunted you and your sisters for years, tried to throw the lot of you behind bars... but when you get a chance to leave me in a cage, you set me free... why?"

"Carmelita, we may be on opposite sides of the law but you're not our enemy." Sly replied, though at the same time he pointed at the death ray that was staring down at them, the very one that they were interested in destroying, and the entire group stared at it for a moment, "Now the homicidal robotic owl that built this death ray and tried to gas us to death... that guy's been on our list since we left Paris!

"I see your point." Carmelita commented, as she had read the file and knew the details involving the death of Sly's father, and more importantly who had caused such a terrible event to occur, "Alright, until Clockwerk and his evil schemes are destroyed, I suggest we work together."

"Together at last!" Sly cheered, though before anyone else could say anything he spotted a robotic falcon coming their way and and jumped into the air so he could smack it, but as he did so he found that his cane did absolutely nothing, only for the robotic falcon to snatch his cane and fly off with it, where Carmelita blasted it the moment she locked onto it, "That cane's been in our family for generations!"

"Calm down ringtail, you've got two people that'll help you recover it in seconds," Carmelita said, where she pointed at Gilda and Derpy, who smiled as they spread their wings again, indicating that they could bypass everything and get Sly up to his cane in moments, "While you're doing that I'm going to tear apart some of these machines and see if I can't destroy Clockwerk's death ray from down here. However, once we take out Clockwerk I'm going to be coming after all three of you... though maybe I'll give you a ten second head start. And, if you reach the top of the death ray, be sure to pick up my jetpack that I left behind when I got grabbed earlier... it might help you against your foe."

Sly grinned as he considered what he could do with those ten seconds, though instead of saying anything he let Gilda and Derpy grab onto him before carrying him through the air, where he heard the sounds of Carmelita firing at the various power sources that were in front of her. It didn't take them long to reach the area that his cane had fallen to, though once it was back in his hands, and his sisters were ready, the three of them drew closer to the heart of the volcano, where they would figure out what to do with the death ray, claim Carmelita's jetpack, and then face off with the leader of the Fiendish Five... and then avenge all the people that Clockwerk had killed over the course of his existence, including Sly's father.

Thievius: A Strange Reunion

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy stared at the large death ray the moment they finished walking up the path that had been near the area the robotic falcon had dropped Sly's cane, after Carmelita shot it, and knew that this thing had to be destroyed, but based on what they were seeing it didn't appear that they could break it from where they were standing. Fortunately Sly was able to find the exact location of Carmelita's jetpack, which was where she said it would be, though the route he needed to take involved climbing up the side of the death ray. He knew that Gilda and Derpy could easily fly up there, and take him with them if he so desired, but at the moment he felt like climbing, especially after his sisters had carried him up to his cane and prevented him from being covered by Carmelita. They also had no idea how much damage destroying the power area, which by the sounds of it Carmelita was still tearing to pieces with her shock pistol, would cause to the tower, but he was hoping that nothing disastrous happened.

"I'm going to make a break for the jetpack," Sly said, causing his sisters to look at him for a moment, though while Derpy looked concerned for his safety Gilda seemed shocked that he wanted to take the hard way this time, "I know, it's the hard way, but constantly taking the easy way is going to make me a lazy thief."

"Then we'll follow close behind you and make sure you don't fall into the lava," Gilda replied, because she knew that when her brother wanted to run and stretch his legs, and not fly with her and Derpy, it was safer to let him have his way and simply watch over him.

"You'd better hurry Sly," Bentley spoke up, causing the siblings to raise their binocucoms for a moment, as this sounded important based on their friend's tone, while at the same time they were thankful he had quickly hacked into Clockwerk's defenses and shut off the gas chamber, "Carmelita's shots have destroyed the magnatronic support field for the death ray, which means that it's going to start falling apart soon."

"Right." Sly said, though that was when he put away his binocucom and used the power line that was in front of him, which was no longer powered thanks to what Carmelita had been doing, and slide down to the next one in line, while at the same time Gilda and Derpy took to the air.

Gilda and Derpy watched as Sly made his way down the second power line, jumped onto the rock that it brought him to, and then transferred himself to a third power line that connected to the base of the death ray, though as he touched the rock the entire structure shook and the two of them moved close so they could keep a better eye on their brother. Sly, instead of being worried about the lava that the death ray was sinking into, hopped onto the power line that was nearby and started walking along it, though he had to pause when he reached a device that channeled electricity between two points and created a wall that blocked his path. Fortunately that only happened for a few seconds and he was able to move on without much of a delay, though the next obstacle he had to overcome was jumping onto a small platform and then using the trio of hooks that were in front of him to cross over to the other side of the death ray... where his luck continued, as a section of the death ray broke off and fell in front of him, creating a small platform for him to walk on as he found the next power line that would allow him to move forward.

After bypassing a second power conduit, where he waited for the electric wall to go away, he continued over the open area and smashed his way through the gears that fell in his way, surprising him by the fact that they were so brittle when he considered what machine they were in. From there he had to jump onto a moving gear, using the Ninja Spire Jump, and rode the point to his next destination, which happened to be a short power line that brought him to a platform with a power conduit. He waited for a few seconds before the wall was down and then jumped onto the power line that was in front of him, where he had to jump and use his momentum a few times to reach the other side of the death ray again, where he found it odd that he was constantly going back and forth between the two sides, but he wasn't about to complain at the moment. At the other end of the power line another piece of the death ray snapped off and fell into place, creating another platform for him, though as he used that to latch onto the metal pipe that was in front of him, and bypassed the power conduit that was in his way, he wondered if Clockwerk purposely designed the death ray to be like this, or if this was just random chance.

The thought of Clockwerk building a death ray, so that when it started to fall apart the pieces would form a number of platforms for him to take so he could continue forward, seemed strange and unlikely, but then he had to remember what he had seen in Mz. Ruby's place and the Panda King's stronghold... to which he sighed as he continued forward, as there would be a time and a place for such thoughts after he and his sisters completed their mission.

The next part of his obstacle course involved him using the Ninja Spire Jump to cross over some spires that were spinning in front of him, and happened to be attached to some electrical circuit of some kind, but he managed to get over them quickly and started climbing the pipe on the other side. After bypassing the power conduit that was in his way another part of the death ray came undone and revealed another platform he could stand on, one that allowed him to patiently wait for a second or two before jumping towards the device that was in front of him. He had to do that three more times, as he had to wait for the two heads of each device to connect, and pass electricity between them, before he could make his jump to the next one in line, though he was pleased when he came to another fallen metal platform. From there he latched onto the pipe that was in front of him and carefully bypassed the three power conduits that were in his way, reaching the top of the death ray as Gilda and Derpy circled overhead... to which he rushed over to the jetpack, strapped himself into it, and took to the skies, while at the same time noticing that Carmelita's toy came equipped with some guns that he could fire.

As Sly rose up to where his sisters were waiting, and watched as the death ray was nearly fully consumed by the lava around them, something else rose up with him, as a large mechanical owl, riding the thermal vents in the area, appeared before them in all his sinister glory... allowing the three of them to see that the Panda King's tale was true, every part of Clockwerk's body appeared to have been replaced by metal.

Sly Cooper, Clockwerk said, his voice echoing from the metallic frame that was his body, while at the same time his golden eyes flashed red as he talked, which had to represent his hate, you have escaped my gas chamber and destroyed my death ray. Remarkable. You Coopers always find a way to beat me!

"So I was right, that was you in all those pictures of the Thievius Raccoonus," Sly replied, though at the same time he prepared himself as both of his sisters flew up beside him, their canes at the ready, even though they knew that such weapons would have no effect on their opponent's body, if the robotic falcon Sly attacked earlier was any indication, "How old are you?"

Perfection has no age. Clockwerk answered immediately, almost as if he had been asked the question many times in the past and knew the answer by heart, or rather had it programmed into whatever was left of his brain, My hatred for your entire clan has allowed me to transcend the ravages of time, and has put me firmly beyond death's grasp. Revenge is the prime ingredient in the fountain of youth. I've kept myself alive for hundreds of years with a steady diet of jealousy and hate, awaiting the day when I would finally eclipse your family's thieving reputation.

"And then what?" Derpy asked, as she was curious was to what sort of diabolical plans the robotic owl could have for after he destroyed the Cooper Clan, which meant he was going to try and kill all three of them, "What will you do after you have defeated us?"

I shall ravage this world and leave behind a legacy that will never be forgotten. Clockwerk stated, indicating that, once he had beaten them and had no more Coopers to hate, he'd lose what was powering his body and likely attack the world as a whole, which only made the siblings want to defeat him even more than they already did.

"Sly!" Carmelita called out over their communications, where Gilda and Derpy spotted her standing near the edge of the heart of the volcano, where she was aiming at Clockwerk and not at them, "The guns on the jetpack aren't strong enough to do anything to his armor, and the blasts from my shock pistol can't damage his insides... but they do create small holes in his armor."

Sly nodded his head, as he understood what Carmelita was saying, and he moved away from Clockwerk, who gave chase and started firing purple energy balls from certain points of his body, which were no doubt fueled by the hate that coursed through his metallic body. Since he had to wait for Carmelita to line up a shot, and reveal a weak point, he kept his fingers off the triggers and simply dodged the incoming balls that Clockwerk was firing at him, while at the same time Gilda and Derpy attempted to scratch his back and wings with their canes. As they were able to determine, with just a glance at the metallic body, their canes were useless in this situation and, since they hadn't actually unlocked any of the powers that Mz. Ruby had told them about, they were next to worthless in this fight. Still, they did the best that they could and tried to distract Clockwerk, which wasn't hard considering that they were Coopers as well and he wanted all of them to be destroyed, even if they weren't raccoons like Sly was. Eventually Carmelita lined up her shot and blasted Clockwerk in the face, allowing Sly to open fire on his target and dealt some damage to him, though even then it was hard to tell how much he had done.

Naturally since they assumed that Clockwerk was only interested in firing purple balls at them, which all of them knew to avoid since they looked like they would hurt a lot if they were hit, but they failed to account for the other weapons that owls were naturally born with and had been upgraded when Clockwerk forged this new body. They were given a reminder of that fact when Derpy, who flew a little too close to their foe at one point while she was looking for a weakness she and Gilda could take advantage of, was attacked by Clockwerk, who reached out with his talons as she started to pull herself away from him. Unfortunately she wasn't fast enough, as Clockwerk's talons managed to make contact with her face, or more accurately her right eye, as she felt three sharp talons cut into her skin as one of her eyes went dark, while at the same time she screamed. Fortunately the feeling of the talons didn't last too long, as Carmelita and Sly blasted Clockwerk backwards with another opening they had exploited, though as she started to fall Gilda flew over to her and caught her, before touching down near where Carmelita was standing... which also happened to be where Murray had parked the van, while keeping him and Bentley out of Clockwerk's sight.

Gilda looked at her wounded and crying sister for a moment, seeing the three perfectly straight slashes that ran from above her right eye to below her right eye, and knew what had to have happened, Clockwerk had taken one of Derpy's eyes from her... and the fact that Clockwerk had wounded two of her siblings, one mentally and one physically, made something inside her snap, to which little strands of red energy started to gather around her as her inner power finally found an outlet.

"Gilda, you should sit this out," Bentley said, though he had carefully walked over to where Derpy was resting, but he tried not to puke when he saw what happened to her face, and used what little tools they had to cover up the right side of her head and stop the bleeding, "Sly's got this... and then we'll need to take Derpy to a hospital or something."

That was followed by the sound of Sly blasting Clockwerk out of the air, as the fourth attack Carmelita lined up tore of the plating off of one of his wings and caused him to crash into the magma, though before anyone could celebrate the ancient owl surged back out into the open and focused on his target.

"I don't get it. You're so familiar with my family, you must have known my father had a son." Sly commented, directing his statement to his opponent, while at the same time everyone else, those that were paying attention, merely listened in for a few seconds, "If you hated the Coopers so much, why did you let me live when you killed my father? You must have known that I was somewhere inside the house when you and your 'gang' attacked."

I knew you were there. Clockwerk stated, revealing that he knew about Sly's existence, despite what the Panda King thought when the events of that night played out, I intentionally left you alive, because I wanted to show the world that without your precious book, the Cooper line was nothing.

"And that's the mistake that the vast majority of our foes have made," Sly said, as he, Derpy, and Gilda knew the truth of the matter, and he was sure that, if Clockwerk was as smart as he was supposed to be, he had likely figured that out by now and was still trying to reject the reality of the situation, "The Thievius Raccoonus doesn't create great thieves, rather the great thieves of the Cooper Clan made the book what it is."

Enough, Sly Cooper! Clockwerk stated, indicating that he was growing tired of this conversation, as he happened to be preparing some new attacks to use against him when the next round of combat started, It ends here. I'll finish you, and your siblings, like I finished your father. Then the Cooper line will be erased...

Before Clockwerk could finish his statement, and proclaim that he would be the only surviving master thief once the Coopers were destroyed, he noticed something odd, the entire area around the heart of the volcano was starting to shake, but that was impossible since he had determined an earthquake wouldn't happen here for many years. A few seconds ticked by before he turned his gaze over towards the griffin that had grabbed the wounded pegasus, where bits of rock seemed to be floating in the air around her as a faint red aura surrounded her body. What was even stranger was that the pegasus was now sporting a similar aura as well, though her's appeared to be a faint light blue color that seemed to dance about like electricity or lightning, while the griffin's moved like the wind itself. Based on what he had seen in the gas chamber he knew that these two had powers, even if they were untapped by their lack of familiarity with them, but that didn't mean he should underestimate them.

The was, of course, until the griffin turned around and swung her wing in Clockwerk's direction, though since she was so far away he didn't even consider moving, but that turned out to be a bad idea as the wind itself turned against him and cut several small gashes into his plating, surprising him and everyone that was watching.

"CLOCKWERK!" Gilda shouted, her voice full of rage and anger at the moment, while at the same time Sly and the others flinched when they heard her, as they had never seen Gilda like this before, though she was focusing on one individual at the moment, "I WON'T FORGIVE YOU FOR HURTING MY SISTER!"

The red aura around Gilda intensified as she burst into the air and raced towards where Clockwerk was flapping his wings, to which Sly and Carmelita's eyes widened as Gilda slammed her right fist into the side of the mechanical owl's head, staggering him in the process while leaving a small imprint of her fist in the side of his head. Before Clockwerk even had a chance to recover Gilda went on the offensive, slamming her fists, which Sly could see were covered in the same strange aura that was wrapped around the rest of her body, into Clockwerk's body with the intent to hurt him. After that it became a contest of sorts, as Gilda flew around the heart of the volcano, chasing down Clockwerk, who fired at her every now and then, only to watch as she avoided the attacks he sent at her before Gilda crossed the distance and struck her target again. While all of that was happening Carmelita tried to get another blast off, so she might open a weakness that would severely damage the mechanical owl, but for the most part it appeared that Gilda either got in the way or moved her target, making it impossible to hit Clockwerk again.

Of course as she tried that she noticed that the clouds above them seemed to be darkening, as if a storm was coming, but that was before she noticed that Derpy was standing once more and her lone eye was fixed on Clockwerk, though even she had to back up when she saw the intense anger that was inside Derpy's eye, as it wasn't something that anyone had ever seen before today. Lightning danced around her right hand, which she raised into the air, and Carmelita watched as the clouds responded by rumbling a few times while she noticed flashes of lightning appear inside the darkened clouds, but Derpy's eye was focused on the ancient owl. A few moments later, when Gilda was pushed away from Clockwerk at long last, Derpy swung her hand towards Clockwerk and a bolt of lightning, easily the width of one of the owl's plating on his wings, tore out of the sky before barreling into Clockwerk's body... where all of the weaknesses Carmelita had seen earlier, when she was captured, appeared in all their glory as the lightning stunned the owl.

"Sly! Tear him apart!" Derpy shouted, though she remained in the position she was in, indicating that she had to be channeling the power of the storm into Clockwerk's body, keeping him stunned.

Sly, seeing this happen, nodded his head as he started to open fire on Clockwerk, allowing the rockets from the jetpacks guns to punch new holes in Clockwerk's plating and dealt an incredible amount of damage to the owl's insides, as he was sure that parts were flying off of him. While he did that Gilda came to a stop near him and started loosing balls, much like the ones Mz. Ruby and the Panda King used against them, that raced through the air and slammed into Clockwerk's body. A few moments later their combined attacks tore the robotic owl apart, as the pieces of his body went flying as they dropped into the magma around them, though before Sly left he and Gilda, accompanied by an angry Derpy who flew in once her lightning wasn't needed, found Clockwerk's head and smashed it as well, to stop him from regenerating his body. As that happened Clockwerk promised them that they hadn't seen the last of him, which was followed by them breaking him apart until his eyes stopped glowing, indicating that he was either dead... and no one wanted to think about there being a second possibility.

Sly opened his mouth to say something, but before he could do so he noticed that the auras that Gilda and Derpy had faded as quickly as they had arrived, though as they started to stagger Gilda caught herself and grabbed onto her sister, who weakly smiled at her as the three of them returned to the van... though as they landed, and Bentley tended to Derpy's wound as best he could, Derpy spotted a small computer chip, about the size of her pointer finger, resting nearby. Oddly enough it had a glowing blue light in it, though she smiled as she picked it up and slipped it into her pocket, knowing that Clockwerk didn't need it anymore. At the same time Sly found the page that Clockwerk had stolen, taken from the fragment of the owl's body that hadn't landed in the magma, but this time he didn't bother to read it, not where there were more pressing matters on his mind... the final missing page, back in the Panda King's stronghold, and his sister's wound, which he was more interested in tending to at the moment.

Of course as his friends helped Derpy into the van, so they could get ready for their departure, there was someone else he needed to finish his business with, to which he turned away from Clockwerk's body, which didn't appear to be in the process of melting, and turned towards Carmelita... who looked unsure of what to do at the moment.

"Something wrong Inspector?" Sly asked, though at the same time he slipped Clockwerk's section of the Thievius Raccoonus into the binding, keeping them with the other pages they had recovered, before focusing his entire attention on Carmelita, who had her shock pistol pointed his way.

"I'm conflicted between duty and what is right," Carmelita said, where she glanced at the van for a moment, recalling the wound that Clockwerk had inflicted on Derpy before both she and Gilda snapped, before she turned her attention back towards Sly, "Duty says that I should try and attempt to capture you, since you and the rest of your gang are criminals... and yet doing the right thing would mean letting you leave without doing that, since one of you is injured."

"I think I can help with that decision," Sly commented, though as he said that he stepped forward and caused Carmelita to really focus on him, but that didn't stop him from approaching her anyway, where he eventually pulled her into a passionate kiss that caused Carmelita to melt for a few seconds.

Sly would have loved to stay longer, though the moment Carmelita was more focused on what she was feeling he disengaged from her, ran over to the van and climbed in, before they departed from the area, where the sound of the tires caused Carmelita to snap out of her confusion for a moment and realized what he had meant... though by the time she turned around Murray was already taking them away from the volcano and back to civilization, where they would disappear like they did after every heist.

"I'll get you next time, ringtail." Carmelita said, though at the same time she noticed that Sly had never even once considered using her own cuffs against her, as they were still in her back pocket, because he was so worried about his sister and the fact that her right eye was gone.

Maybe there might actually be something between her and Sly, a relationship that the raccoon had been trying to coax into existence since they first encountered each other, though Carmelita sighed as she figured out what to write in her report... and then it was back to hunting the Coopers once more.

Interlude: Aftermath

After defeating Clockwerk, and securing his fragment of the Thievius Raccoonus, Sly insisted on taking Derpy to a hospital, one that catered to both sides of the law, as the doctors didn't tend to care which side their patients were on and he couldn't take his sister to a hospital that would turn them over to Carmelita and her buddies. There wasn't much he could do in this situation, as no one in the van really had any medical experience, save for the little that Bentley had used to help Derpy when she was wounded, so they needed an actual doctor to see what the extent of Clockwerk's final act was. As he thought about that he turned towards the back of the van, where Gilda was sitting next to Derpy and was carefully tending to the cuts that had been carved into her face, as one thing that Clockwerk took was their sister's right eye. Derpy, on the other hand, was resting as Murray drove the van away from the volcano that they had fought the terrible leader of the Fiendish Five at, putting as much distance as they could between them and that place.

It also gave him the chance to think about what Mz. Ruby had told his sisters back when they fought her in Haiti, as the voodoo priestess had said that both Gilda and Derpy had powers of their own and that they needed to experience some sort of event to trigger the awakening of their abilities. Sly had no idea that Clockwerk would have been the key to his sisters gaining their abilities, nor did he have any idea that Gilda's power was over the wind itself and Derpy appeared to channel the power of the storm itself. After fighting the Panda King, who appeared to use something that was akin to the magic that Mz. Ruby, Gilda, and even Derpy used, he had to admit that there was definitely magic in this world and that his sisters were bearers of that power. This was a lot to take in and he could tell that he wasn't the only one thinking about it, as Murray occasionally glanced back at Gilda and Derpy while he was driving and Bentley was making notes on how Sly's sisters might have acquired the power they now commanded... and Sly was sure that Carmelita was likely thinking about what she had seen earlier, which was what he was doing.

Gilda had slammed her fist into Clockwerk's metal face and left a dent in it, despite the fact that they had no idea what sort of metal his body had been made out of, and Derpy had summoned a bolt of lightning that stalled Clockwerk where he was flying, giving him the time to destroy the enemy of the Cooper Clan... but he was fortunate that he hadn't lost either of his sisters in the process, otherwise he would have vented so much more anger out on the metallic body they had torn to pieces.

"The bleeding's stopped," Gilda said, to which she sighed as she leaned back in her seat, as she insisted on sitting near Derpy for a few hours before she switched with either Bentley or Sly, before she collected the bloody tissues and similar items and stuffed them into an empty trash can, "and I put a small towel over her eye, just in case one of those cuts decides to open while we're heading back to civilization. At least Derpy's sleeping at the moment... I can't imagine the pain she's in, of having one of her eyes damaged in such a manner, but at least the awakening of her powers has drained her so she can peacefully slumber for a few hours."

"And what about you?" Sly asked, causing his sister to turn towards him for a moment, where he could still see the anger in her eyes, the anger that had been directed at Clockwerk earlier, but he was relieved to see that her anger was starting to cool off, "You awakened your inner power as well, just like Mz. Ruby said that you and Derpy would do at some point in time... so what will you do?"

"I... I don't know." Gilda admitted, though as she answered the question she glanced over at her sister and ran a hand through her hair, allowing herself some time to actually think about what she wanted to do before they reached civilization and headed to the hospital that Murray was heading towards, "Maybe... maybe I'll fly to the Panda King's stronghold and see if I can't find the vault that we didn't get while we were there. It'll give me some time to clear my head and stop thinking about the anger that I feel inside my heart."

Sly knew how Gilda felt, since he had been angry with the Fiendish Five for the loss of his father and everything that happened after that fateful night, but it had allowed him to meet Gilda, Derpy, Bentley, and Murray in the first place, where they had formed a bond that wasn't easily broken. He was sure that heading back to China could wait until Derpy was stable and ready to move again, but he wasn't about to stop Gilda from doing what she wanted, not when she needed to come to terms with the fact that she now had magical abilities. As such he remained silent for the part of the trip that they were on, where he sat beside his sisters and stared at Derpy while she slept, while Gilda eventually moved away and started talking with Bentley about the combination for the vault and any supplies she could take with her for the journey to the stronghold. He then simply listened to the two as they talked about what his sister wanted to do and where they would meet up once they had taken Derpy to the hospital in question, just so Gilda knew where to find them once she had the missing page of the Thievius Raccoonus.

When Murray stopped the van, to refuel their gas, Gilda parted from their company and took off, heading in the direction of the Panda King's stronghold, though Sly simply sighed and returned to watching Derpy... and he remained that way as they traveled back towards Paris.

Finding the hospital that treated both sides of the law was easy, especially with their contacts, though getting in proved to be quite simple when Bentley informed the staff that a member of their gang had been wounded by Clockwerk, where Sly discovered how infamous that name really was. Despite the fact that it was only a few scratches to the eye, including the loss of the eye and the fact that the three cuts would forever remain embedded on her face, the staff insisted on not only checking Derpy for any other injuries, but also insisted on checking out the entire gang. Of course they weren't happy when they were told that the final member of their gang, Gilda, was somewhere else, but they reserved a spot for her in case she decided to show up later on. The only good thing about this situation was that there weren't a lot of people around when they checked themselves into the hospital, otherwise Sly was sure that they would have been swarmed with people, from both sides of the law, asking questions about what happened... though this allowed them to have some peace while the staff did their jobs.

The main doctor that checked up on them was a male donkey that seemed to walk with a limp, which was combated by his walking cane, and he seemed to be in a grumpy mood, or something similar, though if he was impressed by what they had done he didn't show it... not like the rest of the staff, who seemed happy when they learned that the Cooper Gang not only fought Clockwerk, but had bested him as well.

"Well, it appears that the majority of you are just fine," the doctor said, which was followed by him walking into the room that the others were in, while at the same time Sly carefully helped Derpy into a sitting position so she could see the doctor as well, "physically anyway. Sly Cooper, it seems that whatever pain you were feeling for the last ten years has been replaced by a new one, though maybe this time you'll succeed in getting rid of it, instead of finding a new source of pain to latch onto. It seems that, while he didn't actually participate in the battle with Clockwerk, your friend Murray still hurt himself on the way here... apparently he got so angry at seeing his friend hurt that he punched one of the brick walls near an area where you stopped for the night. Instead of breaking his bones, like he should have, he only bruised himself and took the wall down."

"That sounds like Murray." Sly commented, though at the same time Derpy nodded her head in agreement, as their friend did have a slight anger problem at times, but now he was likely thinking of a way to prevent the same thing from happening in the future.

"He also insists that he's going to become 'The Murray' and help you in the future." the doctor continued, his tone suggesting that Murray shouldn't even attempt something like that, but since he had no control over what his patients did before coming here he was going to let Murray do whatever he wanted, "Your friend Bentley managed to survive this conflict without being hurt, both physically and mentally, so he's good to go, though now he's also thinking of lending you another helping hand... increasing the number of active Cooper Clan members to five, instead of three."

"Hey, it'll help in future heists." Derpy said, knowing that it was only a matter of time until Murray and Bentley joined them in actually stealing things, even if they focused on other criminals that stole things they shouldn't have.

"And then we come to you, the main reason why the Cooper Gang came here," the doctor said, turning to actually face Derpy this time around, while at the same time he set down the clipboard that had been in his spare hand since he wanted into the room, "you are fortunate that all Clockwerk took was one of your eyes, as that bird has been known to seriously wound and cripple those that get in his way. That brings us to what we can offer you; we can get you a glass eye to replace what you've lost, we can try to get an eye like the bird you took out, or you can take the easy way out and just wear a protective eyepatch over your eye."

"I think I'll stick with an eyepatch for now... at least until the pain goes away." Derpy replied, as the thought of a glass eye or some sort of eye that resembled Clockwerk's eyes didn't sit well with her, especially after everything they had been through to best the Fiendish Five.

"As you wish." the doctor stated, though at the same time he picked up his clipboard and started to head for the door, but as he did so he turned and looked at the siblings, "You aren't the only ones that checked in recently, nor are you the only ones claiming to have fought Clockwerk... I believe it was Ms. Fox that showed up shortly after you did."

To Sly's surprise not only did Carmelita beat them to the hospital, how he didn't even want to think about, but she came in without her weapon and badge, the weapon having been turned over to the staff to make sure that the two sides didn't attack each other, while her police badge not being present meant she wanted to meet them as equals.

"I see all of you are doing well." Carmelita commented, though at the same time the look on her face said that she was nervous about being here, especially since this was likely going to appear on her record, that she visited this particular hospital, and that some of her superiors would be asking her about this visit in the future, "Especially Gilda. I saw her when I walked into the building and the staff said that she was in good health... despite the fact that she flew all the way to China, grabbed the last page of your family tome, and came back here while suffering from some muscle cramps, which is because she was flying so fast for a long period of time."

"Sounds like her," Sly said, though he knew that it would be some time before the staff let Gilda in to see them, if they thought there was more they needed to observe and study before they concluded that Clockwerk had done nothing to her... and he suspected that they wanted to study an actual griffin before the chance slipped away from them.

"Sly, there's another reason why I came here so quickly," Carmelita said, to which she pointed at Derpy for a moment, where occasionally one could see the flicker of lightning over her fingers, the sign that her power was real and that she could unleash it whenever she desired, even if it had destructive consequences, "I talked with one of my superiors on the way here and told them what happened to Clockwerk, so they could rest assured that he was taken care of, and they know that both Derpy and Gilda have powers. Now, before either of you shout at me for giving away your secrets, let me inform you that the powers you have awakened make you both a greater threat than most of the villains Interpol has been hunting down, and you've only used them once. Secretary Sen, one of the highest members of Interpol's governing body, learned of what I told my superiors and has asked me to tell you something... he wants Gilda and Derpy to train with Mz. Ruby so they can understand their powers and not become monsters like the voodoo priestess did."

Sly stiffened for a moment, because if one of the Secretaries of Interpol's governing body wanted his sisters to train and understand their abilities, learning from one of the Fiendish Five in the process, he knew that the answer had to be yes, otherwise they could easily be placed at the highest point of their list, where Clockwerk used to be, and they'd be arrested at some point in the future.

"There's more to this than what he told me, that much I know," Carmelita continued, to which she glanced over at Sly for a moment, remembering what had happened after Clockwerk's defeat, before sighing as she spoke again, "Sly, he wants to meet you and your sisters here, in two days, to personally explain everything to your gang... and I'm supposed to stay here and make sure you go nowhere, even though you wouldn't leave without making sure Derpy is fine and checked out by the staff."

Sly nodded and sat back in his chair, as it appeared that their lives were about to get all the more complicated than he had originally thought, as all he had been planning was taking out the Fiendish Five and collecting the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus. Even as he thought about the family tome Gilda walked into the room and joined them, happy to see that Derpy was okay and that there wasn't any additional harm to her from their fight with Clockwerk, before she turned over the page that she had found in the last vault, which had contained Colonel Reid Cooper's Time Stopper technique. Sly let a smile appear on his face as he stared at the completed tome once more, as the last time he had held it was when he was eight years old, and he knew that he, Gilda, and Derpy were truly master thieves for being able to take out the Fiendish Five and recover what they had stolen... and now it was their turn to write their adventures in the great book, once they were discharged from the hospital in a few days.

Interlude: Interesting Meeting

Sly, Gilda, Derpy, Murray, and Bentley were able to get together again once the doctors and the nurses were done checking them all out, giving them their thoughts on what had happened to them since their fight with Clockwerk or the guards of the other members of the Fiendish Five. Sly was, suffice to say, surprised when he learned that not only did Murray and Bentley want to do more for him than what they currently did, but that they also wanted to become active members of the team and assist the siblings in their future heists. What that meant was that he and his sisters would have to share with them the vital techniques that a Cooper, and the members of their gang, needed to know in order to avoid detection, though based on what he had see so far neither Murray or Bentley had been spotted on the various cameras in the bases they had taken out, but that could have been because of Bentley's hacking skills. It wasn't long before Sly actually agreed to formally include them as active members of the Cooper Gang, which after everything they had done for him and his sisters, by hunting down the Fiendish Five and helping them acquire the Treasure Keys, he felt that they had earned.

While Gilda and Derpy agreed with his decision, as they were thinking the same thing, Sly knew that they were more focused on what Carmelita had told them when she arrived at the hospital as well, that one of Interpol's Secretaries wanted to speak with them and, to top it off, he knew all about their new powers... and, according to Carmelita, he wanted them to train with Mz. Ruby so they could master their skills.

Bentley was able to conclude that the reason behind the decision had to be because of the elemental powers they had awoken during their fight with Clockwerk, as Gilda now controlled the wind at will and Derpy seemed to have an affinity for calling down lightning from the sky. Secretary Sen likely wanted them to master their abilities, which had reacted so strongly to their anger when the ancient owl had wounded Derpy, so that when the time came and they were angry again they didn't set off a devastating chain reaction of some kind. What that meant was that Secretary Sen was trying to prevent them from accidentally calling down a twister and wrecking dozens of homes, and potentially killing innocent people, or summoning a thunderstorm that does the same thing. He knew that the sisters would never intentionally hurt someone with the desire to kill them, save for Clockwerk since he was asking for it, but he wanted to make sure that they understood their powers and that they could control them, instead of them being ruled by the very gifts they had unlocked.

The realization that their powers could hurt people, or even kill them if they weren't careful, made Gilda and Derpy shy away from their new abilities and not access them at all, which was mostly to protect everyone in the hospital and those that were outside the building every day.

Carmelita, on the other hand, remained true to her word and stayed near them at all times, or at the very least stayed near Sly, and kept her eyes on them, though she only moved out of the room when she had business to take care of or when a certain someone moved out of the room. Sure, she had been ordered to keep an eye on the Cooper Gang, which now had five members thanks to Murray and Bentley deciding to step up, but the one she was interested in keeping an eye on the most was Sly. She was still trying to decide whether or not there would actually be anything between them, especially since the first time Sly had actually gotten close enough to kiss her had been back at the Krack-Karov Volcano, and she couldn't even bring herself to hate what had happened. It was a rush that she hadn't been expecting, not to mention that the whole reason she was even considering this was because Sly wasn't a child, like a lot of people that knew his father seemed to think of him, rather he was a mature adult and had put the safety of his own sisters above whatever he desired... especially when the one thing he desired most, out of everything in the entire world, was standing right in front of him.

She knew that Sly was a criminal, and she had taken down a lot of criminals over the years since she joined Interpol, but she had to admit that he was one of the more honest criminals that she had ever come across and always told her exactly what was on his mind... once again making her wonder if there was a possibility that the two of them might actually form some sort of relationship at some point in time.

"Something on your mind, Ms. Fox?" Sly asked, as he knew that Carmelita had decided to follow him outside the room that Derpy had been assigned to, but he never once tried to shake her once he was outside the room and knew that she would have said something by now, meaning whatever she was thinking about had to be serious.

Carmelita snapped back to reality and found that she had followed Sly to a commons area of the hospital, one of the more private ones anyway, and wondered how she could have done such a thing when she had never been here before, but then realized that she must have been keeping her focus on Sly for so long that she just followed in his steps. That was a downside of chasing him for so long, she knew his methods better than anyone in Interpol and sometimes could follow him with her eyes closed, but he always took off whenever she tried to do that. Right now he was sitting at a table and she happened to be leaning on a wall near him, as if that was something she would normally do, before she sighed and decided that she might as well answer the question.

"Yes... I've been thinking about you and your gang." Carmelita replied, as that was the honest answer, even if she had been more focused on Sly than anyone else, but she wasn't about to tell him the truth, especially when she didn't know the whole truth for herself.

"Hopefully it's all the good we did by taking out the Fiendish Five," Sly said, though while he had the feeling that Carmelita was really thinking about something else, or rather someone else, he wasn't about to ask at the moment, not when he was worried about the meeting with the Secretary, "Raleigh's no longer sinking boats, Muggshot's not running people out of Mesa City anymore, Mz. Ruby's army and plans have been destroyed, the Panda King's no longer trying to bury villages in freezing snow, and Clockwerk... well, he's no longer around to terrorize anyone."

"You know that no one's going to believe that your gang did all of those things," Carmelita stated, though the only one that people might believe, if they were told, would be the battle with Clockwerk, and right now Sly didn't need to be thinking about that ancient owl, "but you did the right thing in knocking them all out... even though you did so by breaking and entering their bases, while stealing a number of items in the process."

"You can't prove that," Sly replied, as he knew several techniques that he had learned from his father, the stealthy ones anyway, that prevented modern equipment from seeing him, not that he planned on letting that happen, and had taught his sisters the same thing, "but, in the end, all that matters is that I got back what they stole and that they all go to jail for their various crimes... we get our family heirloom back and Interpol gets to cross the Fiendish Five off their list. Though one question still remains; what exactly were you thinking about earlier?"

Carmelita opened her mouth, to say that she had told him exactly what she was thinking about, but then she saw the all too familiar look in his eyes that revealed that he already guessed at the information, though while he likely knew the answer he was letting her tell him instead of dropping it on her.

"You... I was thinking about you." Carmelita said, though at the same time she sighed and took a seat at the table, as this was more appropriate than her standing by the wall, especially because of what she was going to say, "I guess I should be more honest. I was thinking about the possibility of there being an 'us' in the future, but..."

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it now." Sly commented, causing Carmelita to look up for a moment, because he could see that she was having some trouble deciding on whether or not she wanted to go through with what she was thinking, "Just know that, when you do want to sit down and talk about it, I'll be ready to sit and listen."

Carmelita stared at Sly for a moment, who smiled at her, like she was a friend and not someone that was trying to put him, his family, and his friends behind bars, before he climbed out of his seat and started to walk back towards the hallway he used to reach this point. He only paused once, to place a hand on her shoulder to prove his point, before heading back towards the room that his sisters were waiting in, leaving her to think about what he was implying and what her reaction should be... though all she could do right now was stay there and wipe a few tears from her eyes, all while considering how she was going to go about this while she sat at the table.

Two days later, on the day that Secretary Sen was supposed to arrive at the hospital, Sly, Gilda, Derpy, Murray, Bentley, and Carmelita stood on the roof of the hospital, in a shaded area that had been rapidly constructed by the staff when they learned who was coming to visit them. Each of them were wearing their normal clothing, as there was no reason for them to be wearing hospital gowns since they had been declared as healthy, and Derpy was actually wearing the eyepatch that had been given to her, even though she missed her eye. Out of all of them Carmelita was the only one worried about what Secretary Sen might do to Sly and his gang, not only because they were criminals that were taking out the true villains, but also because she decided that the possibility between her and Sly might have a chance at succeeding. The only thing that stood in the way of that was what happened next, as while this was neutral ground, and the fact that the police couldn't arrest people like the Cooper Gang inside the building, but there was nothing to stop them from doing so once they were outside the building.

There was rush of wind for a moment, causing Carmelita to wonder if Gilda was messing with the wind, but before she could say anything she spotted a figure flying towards the roof of the hospital, to which her eyes widened as a phoenix, wearing the attire of an Interpol officer, and came complete with the proper decorations, landed in front of their group... allowing her to see that the Secretary was like Gilda and Derpy, with his wings separate from his arms and hands, and that there was a serious look in his eyes.

"Secretary Sen," Carmelita nervously said, though at the same time she saluted the Secretary, while Sly and the others seemed to follow her gesture, mostly because they had never met someone like him before, on good terms anyway, and had no idea had to properly stand before such a person, "it's an honor that you took time out of your busy schedule to come and see us."

"At ease Inspector Fox," Secretary Sen said, to which Carmelita relaxed for a moment, causing the others to follow her lead, though as they did that they felt the eyes of Sen upon them, or more specifically upon Gilda and Derpy, "I heard that you were a witness to the awakening of two people that commanded frightening power, and that the duo in question were members of the Cooper Gang... Gilda and Derpy Cooper, am I right?"

"Y... Yes, you are correct." Carmelita replied, though she was still amazed by the fact that he had heard about the fact the sisters had power so quickly, especially since she had gone to the office first, to write the report, before heading to the hospital, where she learned of this visit before she even reached the building, "From what I could see Gilda's supposed to have some control over the wind and Derpy can command the lightning."

"Is that so?" Secretary Sen inquired, to which he turned his attention towards the Cooper Gang, or rather the sisters in question, and studied them for a few seconds, where he found that one of them had lost an eye, just like in the report that he had read earlier, "Tell me, can either of you bring your power to the surface for a few seconds? I would like to see if the reports are true for myself."

Gilda and Derpy glanced at each other for a few seconds, as they hadn't tried calling on their powers since the battle with Clockwerk, but they decided that there was nothing to lose and nodded their heads, to which they stepped forward a little bit and separated themselves from the others. Gilda was the first to react as she closed her eyes and focused her mind on the feeling of the wind that was all around them, as she could feel it move through her hair and pass by the rest of their group. It was beginning to make sense why they had been asked to gather on the roof, where they had better access to the elements they had unlocked during the fight, to which she grasped what she had been feeling before. As she did that she felt the wind around them kick up, to which she opened her eyes and found that there was a small cyclone that was forming near them, but it wasn't powerful enough to do anything besides spin in place for a few seconds. Secretary Sen stared at the small cyclone for a few seconds, with a look of interest in his eyes, before he nodded his head, to which Gilda let out the breath she had been holding and the cyclone collapsed on itself.

As that happened Derpy focused her mind on what she had felt when she had accessed her own power, the intensity of her anger after Clockwerk took away her eye, and she felt the connection to the sky awaken again, though this time around several bits of lightning wrapped around her wrists and moved around in the shape of a pair of gauntlets. Once Secretary Sen nodded his head towards her, just like he did with Gilda, she released what she was feeling and the lightning disappeared as quickly as it came.

"Wind and lightning... such an interesting combination of powers." Secretary Sen commented, though at the same time a smile appeared on his face for a moment, but as that happened he seemed to pat someone on the shoulder, as if someone had been standing to his right the entire time, "Come on Diz, there's no need to hide yourself."

The group watched as someone phased into existence next to the Secretary, as if he had been wearing some sort of invisibility trinket and had dispelled it when the Secretary had asked him to, though they were surprised to find that the person in question was a male hyena, who was a year or two younger than the sisters... and, what really shocked them, was the pair of wings that were growing out of his back, which were half the size of Gilda and Derpy's wings.

"Allow me to introduce Diz S. Cordious," Secretary Sen said, to which he tapped the young man on the shoulder for a moment, where the youngster folded his wings in, though that was before he turned towards the group and noticed that they were shocked, "I found him yesterday, using his own unique abilities to pull pranks on people in a nearby park, and decided that being around people like him will be good for him, along with assisting him in adapting to a more normal life. I've already spoken with Mz. Ruby and she's interesting in taking him on as well, meaning that you'll have a fellow student if you decide to take up her lessons so you can control your powers. Before either of you say anything, just remember what happened at the Krack-Karov Volcano; you both activated your powers, for the first time, in a fit of anger towards a single individual... so I want you to think about what might happen if you went without training and had an event like that happen again."

"Another person with actual power in this world." Sly commented, as the moment Diz had revealed himself he didn't know what to think, as it couldn't have been a coincidence that the Secretary, who was going to be meeting his sisters, found another magic wielder a day before this visit.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Diz. My name is Derpy Cooper." Derpy said, to which she held her hand out towards the younger boy, who stared at her for a few seconds, as if he was mentally debating what to do next, before he raised his hand and shook Derpy's outstretched hand, before she used her other hand to wave towards her sister, "And this is my sister, Gilda Cooper."

"Sir, you did run this by his parents, right?" Carmelita asked, as while she shouldn't be questioning one of the Secretaries, as that might very well get her fired, she also noticed that he hadn't mentioned Diz's parents at all and that worried her for a moment.

"I checked the records and this guy's an orphan," Secretary Sen replied, which caught the attention of the Cooper Gang, as all of them had been orphans until Sly arrived at the orphanage that Gilda, Derpy, Bentley, and Murray had been left at, "and, despite not having gone anywhere for school, he's very knowledgeable for someone of his age. I want to help him turn his life around, though to do that he needs a greater command of his own powers, which is why he'll be joining Gilda and Derpy in their lessons with Mz. Ruby... unless they'd rather not do that and accidentally hurt someone further down the line."

"No, we'll learn from Mz. Ruby." Gilda replied, as she knew what might happen if they refused the Secretary, and her family knew what she was thinking, so it was best to accept the help and go along with it, especially since she'd rather not hurt someone that was innocent with her new power.

"Good, then I shall inform Mz. Ruby of your decision," Secretary Sen said, as that was the answer that he was expecting, because the Coopers were always protecting people and never put them in harms way, "though knowing her she already knows what happened here and will find me telling her the information to be funny. There is one last thing I would like to talk about before we take our leave, and it not only involves the entire Cooper Gang, but also Inspector Fox as well."

Carmelita froze for a moment, as this wasn't something she had been expecting, though she knew that Secretary Sen was known to have several different conversations with a group, usually because there were two or three different groups present at the time... to which she gulped for a moment and waited to see what the Secretary had to say.

"There are only two types of people that are on the criminal side of the law," Secretary Sen continued, after noticing that all of them had stopped in their tracks once they heard that he still wanted to speak with them, where he also took a second to notice that Sly was worried about something, or for someone, "There are criminals, like your gang, that local law can deal with, provided they have the means to catch you, and then there are villains, or 'baddies' as some of my fellow Secretaries call them. Sly Cooper, I want to make use of your talents in bringing justice to the more terrible members of your side of the law, just like you did when you went after the Fiendish Five, which means that Inspector Fox will still be the one 'chasing' you. So long as you inform us of which villains you and your gang are going after, and just how bad they really are, we'll be there at the end of the day to lock them up, just like Inspector Fox did to the Fiendish Five... though I'll let you two make sense of the details."

Secretary Sen could see the light in both Carmelita and Sly's eyes as he said that, as he had been expecting the two of them to form some sort of bond over what happened at the end of the battle with Clockwerk, if the report he had read was anything to go by, and it seemed that he might be right. With Carmelita as the gang's handler, in a sense, Sly would truthfully tell them who they were going after and what their criminal deeds were, not even leaving a single detail out so they could see the whole picture. That would allow them to prepare for the arrests once the Cooper Gang was done with their operations, just like Carmelita did earlier, but he was sure that the two of them would be able to come to a number of agreements over the situation that they now found themselves in. It didn't even take Sly, much less the rest of his gang, even three minutes to decide that this was better than what they were hoping, as it was essentially the game that he had played with Carmelita, only now they would be working together, in a sense, to bring justice to those that were more dangerous to society and the world.

Though as he took off, and young Diz followed after him, he knew that the other reason behind him setting this up was because of the reports that came back from the Krack-Karov Volcano, where the pieces of Clockwerk rested and were in the slow process of being pulled to the surface... because he feared that the ancient owl wasn't dead yet and, if his worst fears came to life, only the Coopers would be able to silence him again, and he knew that it would take them around the world to stop such a vile thing from happening.

Interlude: Training

After meeting with Secretary Sen, and coming to terms with the fact that he not only wanted Gilda and Derpy to train with Mz. Ruby, along with a new kid called Diz, but also wanted to use the Cooper Gang to flush out criminals that were far worse than they could ever be, their daily routines became a little strange. Shortly after they were discharged from the hospital, and before the first day his sisters had to visit Mz. Ruby, Sly spent some of his time coming up with a training programs for both Bentley and Murray. The reason behind there being two different styles was because they both had their own strengths and their own weaknesses, though even as he started creating those programs both Gilda and Derpy assisted him for an hour, pointing out the various courses he could use when he trained their friends to be full fledged members of the Cooper Gang. The sisters were eager to see what they could do when Bentley and Murray started doing jobs with them and Sly, especially the division of the various tasks they had to do, but they would figure that out in time, one Sly was sure that they were ready for a heist.

"So, are the two of you excited for your first lesson with Mz. Ruby?" Sly asked, though he still felt that it was weird that the voodoo priestess had even agreed to do something like this, but he suspected that Secretary Sen must have offered her something she couldn't resist to make this arrangement.

"It's going to be weird seeing her as a teacher and not the enemy," Gilda admitted, as for a while there all three of them had seen her as someone they needed to take out, though now she was locked up and had the opportunity to teach the two of them more about their powers, and how they might control them, "but I think we'll adapt to the change in no time and get over our feelings for the Fiendish Five."

Sly knew that the three of them, along with Bentley and Murray, had a grudge against the Fiendish Five for taking out his father all those years ago, something that he must have imparted on both his sisters and his friends, but he was also sure that they could overcome it in time. He also wasn't kidding when he asked the question about their first lesson, as it was actually scheduled for this afternoon and both Gilda and Derpy were required to show up as civilians, meaning that they were wearing normal clothing instead of their thief attire. They were even leaving their canes in their rooms, to complete the image, but Sly suspected that once they were done with their training, and they didn't need Mz. Ruby's help anymore, they wouldn't need their canes to protect themselves, though they'd likely carry them around anyway, since they had been doing that for the last ten years anyway. Sly felt that it was strange seeing his sisters like this, getting ready to visit a prison, but from what he knew about Secretary Sen he was always true to his word, meaning he wasn't going to trap them inside the same prison they were visiting.

A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts, to which he headed over to it and opened it, where he found Carmelita standing on the other side, and he quickly moved out of the way as she accepted his invitation to enter the part of the warehouse that they were in.

One thing they had done, a few months before they stole the information that Carmelita had on the Fiendish Five, was purchase an old warehouse and modified it so that the majority of it actually served as a training grounds for him and his sisters, and that now included Bentley and Murray. Their residence, on the other hand, was actually inside the warehouse, as Bentley had helped get them everything they needed, privacy and security wise, to avoid them being spotted by the city or the officials, though thanks to their arrangement with Secretary Sen Interpol knew where to find them now. The main reason that Carmelita was the one showing up was because she was the only one that Secretary Sen trusted with the information that Gilda and Derpy had powers, meaning she was also the one that would be taking them to their sessions with Mz. Ruby, which was twice a week, on Monday and Friday, for an hour each day. It was the best he could do without raising suspicion, though right now the sisters were happy with what they were being given, especially since their only other option would have been to learn the techniques from the books that Mz. Ruby had gifted them after her defeat.

Sly was also fine with the arrangement, as that meant that it might give him and Carmelita some time to talk when she brought the sisters home, after their sessions were complete, and he was eager to see if they might actually form some sort of relationship at last.

"Well, I can see that you two are ready to go." Carmelita said, as it was easy to tell that both Gilda and Derpy were ready, though it still felt weird for her to be taking criminals, who were dressed as civilians, to prison so they could learn to control their magic from another inmate, who also had powers of her very own.

"As ready as we'll ever be." Gilda replied, as both she and Derpy were nervous about the fact that Mz. Ruby would be teaching them, mostly because she was so interested in them when they were assaulting her base of operations to claim the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus she had taken.

Carmelita nodded and informed Sly that she would have the sisters back soon enough, to which the three of them headed outside and climbed into her car, where they found Diz sitting in the front next to where Carmelita would be sitting, though that only made the sisters take the back seats before they drove off. Neither Gilda or Derpy were upset that Diz apparently got to ride shotgun, as it appeared that Secretary Sen only trusted Carmelita with making sure the young boy got to the sessions and didn't prank anyone instead of seeing Mz. Ruby. It was a silent trip, mostly because the sisters could tell that this might have been one of the times that Diz was exposed to people for a long period of time, but they said nothing as they drove towards their destination. When they arrived Carmelita parked her car and ushered the three of them into the prison, where she got them through the checkpoints and made sure they were wearing their visitor tags the entire time while they were walking.

Fortunately this wasn't one of the prisons where they had to worry about prisoners trying to make an escape, allowing them to walk by the guards as they entered the courtyard... where they spotted Mz. Ruby, wearing a prison uniform made for her body, meditating near a pond, though as they approached her she seemed to awaken from her trance and turned her gaze towards them with a smile on her face.

"Gilda and Derpy Cooper, it is a pleasure to see you two again," Mz. Ruby said, taking a moment to look over the sisters, as if she was seeing their powers for herself, before she nodded her head and looked over at the other person she would be training, "And you must be Diz. It is good to meet another person that has some inner power like we do. If you don't mind me asking, how did you get your name?"

"It... it was what my mother left on my basket when she dropped me off at the orphanage," Diz replied, though since this was the first time the sisters had heard him talk they were surprised, because he sounded like a teenage boy that was saddened by his own past, "All I know is that neither of my parents cared much to take care of me after I was born, as they abandoned me the first chance they got... and I have no idea who either of them were. The staff at the orphanage were nice to me, though the other kids picked on me because of my wings and said I was a freak, so I played some harmless pranks on them over the years."

"Until you eventually ran away and started living on the streets," Gilda guessed, as that made the most logical sense, because that was sort of what she, Derpy, Sly, Bentley, and Murray did sometime after they first met each other and formed a small group.

"Yeah..." Diz said, though he didn't sound surprised that someone had guessed what he had done, rather he felt happy that someone at least knew what he was talking about, before he rubbed the back of his head, indicating that he didn't want to talk about his past, "Hey, can we not talk about my past? I don't like thinking about it."

"Of course," Mz. Ruby replied, as she should have known that the young boy wouldn't want to talk about his past, as most children that were in his position preferred not to talk about the past, save for Gilda, Derpy, and Sly since their clan's history was important to them, before she addressed the three youngsters, "The first thing I want the three of you to do is take a seat and breathe deeply for a few seconds, as we'll be starting with some simple meditation to help you feel the flow of your own magic. When I feel that all three of you are ready, and not a moment before that, I'll start actually teaching you new ways to manipulate your own individual powers... once I figure out what your powers are."

Gilda and Derpy, not expecting simple meditation for their first lesson, stared at each other for a few seconds before they sat on the ground and listened to Mz. Ruby's instructions, to which Diz followed their movements and sat beside them, though at the same time Carmelita stood nearby and kept track of the time.

As Carmelita watched the four magic users do their meditation, as Mz. Ruby joined them in closing her eyes and offered suggestions to those that needed assistance, without even looking at them, she noticed that the wind seemed to pick up a tiny bit as Gilda meditated. She could have sworn that she heard the sound of some thunder nearby, where she spotted some black clouds off in the distance, and knew that Derpy had to be responsible for what she was seeing, though at the same time she noticed that nothing seemed to happen when Mz. Ruby delved into her meditation. The interesting part was that Diz, of all people, didn't seem to have any sort of effect on the area around them, though Carmelita had to guess that was because he had somehow unlocked his own powers when he was younger and had gotten the control over them that he did. She also remembered that he seemed to have an invisibility spell or trinket, something that would likely allow him to steal from places, but from what she could tell he was a simple prankster and not a thief, making her wonder how he had survived all these years.

From what she could tell the three magical novices were trying their hardest to obtain the level that Mz. Ruby wanted, though the voodoo priestess didn't appear to be in the mood for giving up and she was constantly offering them tips to improve their chances or their bodies so they could master the meditation faster... though soon the hour was up, surprising the three of them in the process, but at the same time Carmelita was sure that they had learned something and would continue to do so as time moved on.

"Derpy, I sensed something odd on your person during my meditation." Mz. Ruby commented, though while she knew that the hour was over she wanted to get this out of the way now, so that way when they came back to her in a few days she could begin the next session immediately, "What is it that you are carrying?"

"Oh, this?" Derpy said, to which she tugged on the necklace that she was wearing and revealed the strange computer chip she had found after they defeated Clockwerk, and had lost her eye in the process, "It's just a strange chip I found at the Krack-Karov Volcano... it seems to radiate some sort of blue glow that fills me with hope."

"Is that so?" Mz. Ruby inquired, to which she stared at the chip in question, though since she now knew where it had come from she was tempted to tell her to destroy it, but then she decided that it wasn't her place to do something like that, not when it filled the young pegasus with hope, "Well then, take good care of it... you might figure out what to do with it at some point in the future."

Carmelita watched as Derpy nodded and then escorted the three novices out of the prison, so she could take them back to the warehouse that was the main base of operations for the Cooper Gang when they were in Paris, though as they headed home the three novices discussed what they had felt, indicating that they were taking up Mz. Ruby's suggestion of sharing notes to improve themselves. She simply let them talk, as she had no idea what they were talking about, while at the same time she noticed that Diz seemed more open with the sisters than he did when he was spending some time with her and the Secretary. She thought back to something Secretary Sen asked her to observe while she was with Diz, as he was curious if the Coopers would actually take in someone that was like Gilda and Derpy, that way they'd know what was going on with him without having an official watch over him all the time... and keeping him with the Coopers would take out two birds with one stone, at least according to the Secretary.

It didn't take them long to reach the warehouse, using the same path she used when she reached it the first time to make sure no one could follow her, though when the four of them entered the building she found Murray running a course that Sly must have created... and that both Sly and Bentley were observing him while manipulating the controls to modify the course as they desired. As they walked into the building the group headed up to where Sly and Bentley were standing, which in turn brought an end to the training session as Murray actually finished his course, though Sly turned towards them and smiled.

"So, how was your training session?" Sly asked, though at the same time he headed over to the refrigerator and pulled out some sodas, to which he tossed one to Gilda and Derpy before handing one to Diz, who actually accepted it and sat beside the sisters as they all opened their drinks.

"Well, we meditated and tried to tap into our powers," Gilda replied, though while she did that she looked down at her hand as she remembered what she had felt earlier, before glancing at Sly and the others, "Mz. Ruby made it sound like it'll take some time before we actually learn any powers and add to our arsenals, so I'd hazard a guess that it will be a few weeks before we get anything."

"I suspected as much," Sly said, as he had been sure that learning this sort of thing was like any other skill, it required time and practice before someone became a master, especially since Mz. Ruby's file had said that she had spent years practicing before becoming the voodoo priestess that she was, "Hey Diz, how does it feel to be with people that are like you for a change?"

"It... it feels good." Diz admitted, though at the same time he took a drink from his soda and smiled at them, indicating that he was happy to be with fellow magic users, before he sighed as he sat back in his seat, "But if I'm being honest, I kind of wish that it was for more than a few hours at most, on the same two days every week... it would be nice to have a place where I belonged."

Carmelita could see the look in Sly's eyes the moment Diz said that, as the young boy had been living on his own for so long and likely had no idea what it was like to have a family, though Sly was likely thinking about seeing what could be done for him and was likely going to ask her about it in the future. She wondered what Sly was going to think when she told him of Secretary Sen's plan to see if he would take Diz into the family at some point, though she knew that only time would tell in this situation.

Sly relaxed as he, Bentley, Murray, and Diz settled into the side of the hot springs that the Cooper Gang had stopped at after their latest heist, though this was the side reserved for males, as Gilda and Derpy were doing the same thing in the other side of the hot springs. It had been some time since his sisters and Diz started training with Mz. Ruby, or more like two months since the first meeting, and they had gotten some skill in calling their powers to the surface, but they needed time before they could fully master their abilities. The reason that Diz was with them was because the Cooper Gang felt a connection to him, since he had been in an orphanage for some time until he ran away, which was their story all over again, and they had accepted him into the gang, like he was one of the family. Diz had been very emotional during that time, as that had been the first time he had anything that resembled a family, and he devoted himself to picking up the techniques that Gilda and Derpy practiced in addition to their magical skills.

This heist wasn't one of the ones that they needed to tell Secretary Sen about, even though Carmelita was likely going to tell him about it, because it had been a test of the skills that Diz had picked up so far, proving that he had the skill to be one of the gang as well. As such Sly had figured that they could take a break, in a place where they would have some privacy for some time, and relax in an area like this before all of them headed back to Paris to continue their various training until it was time to plan their next heist. Diz, who happened to be enjoying himself more than he had been when he was alone, dove under the water for some reason, to which Sly decided to let him have his fun and leaned back against the rock that he was sitting near. A few seconds later Diz surfaced and started to get the water out of his hair, though as Sly focused on him he found that Diz's body had changed rather suddenly, as it was more feminine than it had been a few seconds ago and his hair was much longer... and his, or rather her, chest had enlarged as well, reminding Sly of Carmelita for a few seconds.

"Um, Diz?" Sly commented, causing the newest member of the Cooper Gang to turn towards him, to which he made a quick gesture down towards his own chest, so Diz would get the hint, "You might want to look down for a moment."

"What do you... mean?" Diz asked, where Sly heard that Diz's voice had changed as well, but even as that happened she glanced down and her eyes widened as she sank back into the water, submerging herself so she could hide everything below her neck, "Why in the world am I suddenly a girl? None of this is making any sense."

Sly, after seeing several of Diz's powers and tricks since he first welcomed the hyena into the gang, had come to the conclusion that Diz's powers were chaotic, maybe even random, though this was the first time that he had seen something as drastic as this. He was also sure that Diz wasn't doing this intentionally, as the look on her face told him that she was embarrassed over what had happened, to which he sighed as he picked up a towel and moved over to Diz, where he helped her out of the water and diverted his gaze as she covered herself up. For a few seconds he was grateful that Bentley and Murray were enjoying themselves in a different part of their side of the hot springs, as that meant that he was the only one that will have seen Diz like this and might be able to get her somewhere so they could figure out what happened to her, and if they could reverse it before the others noticed. That proved to be incorrect not a few seconds later, because the sound of Diz's new voice had caused the others to stop what they were doing and investigate, because Sly could see both Murray and Bentley staring at them from the area they had taken earlier.

Suffice to say that both of his friends were shocked by Diz's sudden transformation, exactly like Sly was, and Bentley didn't even try to figure out why this was possible, since he had already given up trying to analyze the chaotic properties of Diz's powers... though when Gilda and Derpy found out about the change, as Diz hadn't changed back by the time they were supposed to regroup a few minutes later, they were both shocked and surprised by the sudden change. Diz was still embarrassed over her change, further making Sly believe that this wasn't intentional, but at the same time the sisters tried their best to help Diz out in adjusting to her new body. A few minutes later the gang headed out of the hot springs, fully dressed in their attire, and they climbed back into the van so they could head back to Paris, to continue their training and preparations for their future heists. Since it was the middle of the week, and the next magic session with Mz. Ruby wasn't for a few more days, that gave Gilda and Derpy some time to practice with Diz, so they could all master their control over their energies and hopefully get their teacher to actually teach them some spells.

Friday morning, before Carmelita was supposed to arrive to take them to the prison that Mz. Ruby held their sessions in, the gang was shocked when Diz woke up and walked out in his normal body, meaning he must have reverted in his sleep, though that only annoyed him... as there were several items he had to take off before Carmelita arrived.

As time went by the gang went on a number of additional heists, the majority of them being minor ones, though one of them involved them trying to steal a painting called the Mona Lizard, though while Sly was doing that he had came across an invitation to a wedding in Monaco. According to the invitation the wedding was between an iguana named Dimitri Lousteau and a pig called Madam D'Oinkeau, who was an art aficionado that happened to possess the Venus de Whalo, a statue that Sly had been after for some time. As such the gang headed to Monaco and set up a few plans on how they could acquire the statue, though as they did so Gilda, doing some air recon of the place without being detected, was able to report that Carmelita had been brought in by Madam D'Oinkeau for additional protection. Of course that presented a challenge for them, one that Sly was eager to get around, and eventually he opted to enter the mansion via a skylight in the roof.

Bentley, Murray, and Diz were supposed to get the getaway vehicle, which they had planned to be the last ferry out of Monaco for that day, and the operation went into effect, though while the three of them prepared themselves Sly and his sisters headed for the roof. What they found was some of Dimitri's goons forging pieces of art in the attic space, though they knocked them out and a new idea came to them, as Gilda and Derpy swiped the clothing from a few of the guards and used the radio to reveal that they 'apprehended' Sly Cooper. That had the desired effect that they wanted, as Carmelita made it possible for the path to the statue to be open as she charged towards the attic, though as she, and Madam D'Oinkeau, discovered that Dimitri was a criminal, Sly and his sisters made their way down to the statue and found Murray waiting outside. Since the escape was ready, and Bentley had sent him to assist in moving the statue, the four of them removed the statue, left the calling card, and hauled the statue into the van, before they headed away from the mansion and headed towards the ferry... though Sly got off at one point so Carmelita could chase him, as he didn't want her to catch the gang with the statue.

When Carmelita caught up with him the two of them had a brief conversation on the bridge that they were standing on, though after he jumped off the bridge a few minutes later, and safely landed on the ferry as it moved under the bridge, Gilda and Derpy could see the look in their brother's eyes and knew that he and Carmelita had kissed again, which was becoming more common these days.

After that heist things seemed to return to some normalcy, or what could be normal now that the gang had someone whose power seemed to be more chaotic than what Gilda and Derpy had, until at least two years had passed since they had defeated Clockwerk. It was then that they discovered that someone had managed to collect the pieces of the ancient owl that hated the Cooper Clan and was storing them inside a museum in Cairo, though it was none other than Carmelita who gave them that information. The reason was that she was being assigned as security for the pieces of Clockwerk, in the off chance that the gang came looking to take them, but even so she planned on making sure they walked out of the museum with the pieces in their possession, as both she and Secretary Sen trusted that the Cooper Gang would know what to do with the Clockwerk parts... to which the gang headed for Cairo, as it was time to make sure the ancient owl stayed dead, just in case his soul still resided inside the metallic body and was waiting to be awoken from his slumber.

Band: Cairo Museum

Their plan was bare bones, which was thanks to the fact that they didn't have much time to really survey the situation, obtain information on the routes that the guards took, or figure out exactly where the Clockwerk parts were located, but fortunately that last part was supplied by Carmelita. Bentley went over the various blueprints he could get his hands on, before they arrived at the museum, and was able to create a basic plan for them to follow when they reached their destination. Sly, Gilda, and Derpy would run over the rooftops until they reached the dinosaur exhibit, where they should be able to lower themselves into the room the ancient bones were in and make their way up to a walkway that was above the floor of the area. From there, according to what Bentley could see, they could activate an elevator and raise him up to their level, as he intended to enter the museum through the basement and met up with them, before finding the main terminal to give them total access to the systems throughout the buildings. Murray and Diz, on the other hand, were supposed to meet the siblings halfway, dropping into an area that was along the way to where the Clockwerk parts were located... once Bentley was able to give them the best place for them to drop into the building.

At the same time they all knew that Carmelita, along with someone that was supposed to be her new partner, would be near the Clockwerk parts and that they would likely be guarding them in some manner, which meant they had to be careful when they reached the target destination... and by then Bentley was sure that he would figure out how to draw Carmelita and her partner away from the parts so the others could take them.

When Murray stopped the van near the museum, in a location where he would be able to quickly access it if they needed to run and where they could easily carry the Clockwerk parts to, the gang got out of their seats, gathered the various pieces of their gear, and climbed out of the van. From there the six of them split up and headed towards their destinations, so that when they were all in position they could begin the operation, to which Bentley headed into the basement, Murray slowly climbed up a different building with Diz following him, and the siblings made their way over to the building with the dinosaur exhibit. Sure enough the three of them were able to quickly make their way over to the building in question, though as they did so they found that hatch that would allow them to enter the part of the building they needed to drop into. Sly, upon reaching the hatch, pulled out some rope and attached it to something nearby, allowing him to climb down into the exhibit room below them, though Derpy and Gilda followed after him the moment he reached the floor... though Gilda made sure to undo the rope and collect it so they wouldn't leave a clue that might trace back to them.

Once the three of them were together again, and took a moment to actually stare at the large T-Rex skeleton that was nearby, they focused on the task at hand and pulled out their binocucoms, so they could let the others know that they were in position and that they were ready to begin the operation.

"Breaker Alpha Foxtrot this is the Wizard," Bentley said, seeing their icons appear on his own binocucom, as he knew what that meant, while at the same time Murray and Diz continued heading towards their own destination so they could be ready for when the siblings arrived, "do you read me Sitting Duck?"

"This is Peking Duck. I hear you, Blizzard." Sly replied, though while part of him was intentionally saying the wrong words, to calm his nerves considering that they were going after the parts of his ancient enemy, the other part didn't think they really needed codenames at the moment.

"No Sly, I'm 'the Wizard' and you're 'Sitting Duck'." Bentley replied, though his tone indicated that he couldn't believe that Sly was even doing this at the moment, but at the same time Gilda and Derpy knew that Bentley was only using these new codenames to calm himself down as well.

"I read you loud and clear, Lizard." Diz commented, as he had decided to have a little fun and speak up from where he and Murray were, while at the same time Sly and his sisters had to resist the urge to chuckle, because at the very least they weren't completely nervous about the situation they were in.

"No I'm... forget it, none of you are taking this seriously." Bentley stated, where his tone revealed that he was slightly annoyed with all of them, but since they were all in position he knew that he'd have to talk with them later and focus on the task at hand.

"Look, Bentley, I know this is your first time out in the field but you've got to loosen up." Gilda commented, as she knew that this was going to be hard for their friend, but he needed to remember the training that Sly put him and Murray through during the last two years, "If we're going to get to those Clockwerk parts I need you on your toes. So in plain talk, what's your status?"

"Well, I've established myself in the basement," Bentley replied, revealing that he had accomplished the task that he had given himself when he was creating the plan they were following, which was great news for their operation, "and I'm pretty sure I can rewire the service elevator if one of you can power it up from that security station."

"Sure thing." Sly said, as their binocucoms shifted to the switch in question, which was on the wall of the walkway that rested above them, though at the same time Bentley sighed as the connection was terminated, allowing them to put their binocucoms away and focus on the task at hand.

Fortunately it didn't take them long to figure out a way up to the walkway above them, as that required jumping on a bounce pad that was just in front of the T-Rex and landing on the dinosaur's head, to which they carefully walked across the bones, to make sure they didn't topple the skeleton, and jumped over to the walkway. Sure, Gilda and Derpy could have used their wings for something like that, but there were times where they wanted to do things like normal thieves, which meant they refrained from using their wings all the time... though they said nothing as they reached the service elevator and flipped the switch.

"Okay, I've spliced the wires... ouch!" Bentley said, where the siblings heard him hurt himself a little in the process of rewiring the elevator, though they stood there as they waited for him to come up to their level, "Hold on. There it is."

When the elevator arrived Sly, Gilda, and Derpy greeted Bentley as the elevator came to a stop and he walked out of the container, though at the same time they could see that he was wearing a bulletproof vest with some pads on his knees and elbows. He was also wearing what many would assume was a hunter's hat, which went well with the crossbow that he was carrying with him at all time, one that he outfitted with a number of darts that he could use if he was forced to actually fight someone. Bentley had also managed to figure out how to craft a few explosives over the last two years, though since they were trying to sneak through the museum, and not let the guards find them before they reached their objective, he had decided to leave them in the van, especially since he could ask either Gilda or Derpy to get them if he actually needed one of them in the near future.

The moment Bentley was up on the platform with them, and left the elevator behind, he headed over towards the security computer that he had pointed out a few moments ago, to which the siblings walked over to the locked door and waited near him as he worked his magic.

"Spotlights are offline... there goes the laser security system... I'm working on the security gate." Bentley commented, speaking up every time he disabled one of the systems that were resting along the path that Sly, Gilda, and Derpy needed to take so they could reach the Clockwerk parts, "Presto, all clear."

"Thanks, pal." Sly said, though at the same time the gate in front of them moved out of their way, allowing them to move into the museum and really begin the search for their target, "For your first time out, you did pretty well."

"Oh, this operation is far from complete." Bentley stated, though he stared at the security computer and the codes he had put in, as there was more that he needed to do before he could leave the area, "Now that the lasers and spotlights are offline, Murray and Diz should be moving into position for your rendezvous. I'll stay here and provide computer support while you go on ahead."

With that said Sly and his sisters walked into the corridor that was in front of them, where they ignored the locked paths that were in front of them and carefully followed the path that Bentley had created for them, while at the same time the intercom came online,

Uh, attention all guards. This is the network administrator. Bentley said, though while his tone revealed that he was nervous he was actually doing quite well for his first time out in the field, as both Gilda and Derpy agreed with their brother's statement, We're installing some new software into the security mainframe, so don't be alarmed if the systems get turned off for a while. Uh, thank you. You're all doing a great job.

Thanks to the path that Bentley had created for them, allowing the three of them to bypass the security guards that were walking around the museum, Sly, Gilda, and Derpy were able to exit the building and looked out at all the other buildings that were around them... and pulled out their binocucoms, as there was something else Bentley needed to tell them before they moved forwards.

"According to the information Carmelita gave us, the Clockwerk parts are being stored up there." Bentley stated, to which their binocucoms moved towards the building that he was talking about, the one that had a large glass window, large enough for Clockwerk's body to fit through, "Now, to get access, you're going to have to meet up with Murray and Dix at the rendezvous point. Unfortunately, the route through the garden is filled with guards."

"No problem, we'll just take the long way around." Derpy said, staring at the nearby rope that happened to be off on their right, one that seemed to form a path that would require them to leave the museum for a moment, until they reached the other end and returned to a new building.

Sly was the first one to move as they put their binocucoms away, as he jumped and spun around as he landed on the rope, allowing him to walk above the street that was below them, which had a number of cars still moving, before Gilda and Derpy followed his lead. Together the three of them made their way over to the buildings that were across the street, making sure to avoid drawing attention to themselves, and snuck around the alley that they discovered, before they reached another balcony that had a snake statue resting on the right of where the rope ended. As the three of them neared the balcony, however, Bentley commented that Murray must have gotten himself and Diz lost, since they weren't in front of the trio, but none of them moved. The reason behind that decision was because of what was coming next, as they could see the shadow that Murray made was beginning to appear on one of the walls, to which they prepared themselves as Murray jumped into the air.

"Thunder Flop!" Murray said, to which he smashed through the glass dome that was attached to the ceiling, raining glass down on the area that was in front of the siblings, before he smashed into the table and crushed it, where he picked himself up and dusted himself off, "Greetings, citizens. I hope none of you were harmed by my meteoropic entrance."

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy found that Murray was now wearing a maroon wrestling mask, fighting gloves, and a large belt, which accompanied his usual attire, making him look like a fighter and not a thief, but he was definitely the gang's muscle and none of them questioned his choice of clothing.

"Murray, I'm pretty sure they kept at a safe distance." Diz stated, to which he jumped down into the area and landed beside his friend, who smiled at him for a moment, though they were both glad that none of the others had been in the way of the entrance.

Diz's attire was slightly different from the rest of the gang, as since there had been multiple times where his power had changed his form, shocking those around him when it happened since he still had no control over that, he decided to wear clothing that fit both of his forms and wouldn't require a change. As such he was wearing a brown pair of shorts and a brown shirt, both of which worked for either of his forms, and he carried a cane that revealed that he was a member of the Cooper Gang, since they were the only ones that carried this type of weapon, though he only used it when he needed to knock someone out.

"Good, good... the Thunder Flop knows neither friend nor foe, only destruction." Murray said, though he looked rather pleased with himself, which was understandable since he was fully adapted to his new persona and responsibilities, which actually worried Bentley a little, though he said nothing about it.

"Yeah, could you maybe channel some of that 'raw energy' into this security gate?" Gilda commented, getting them back to the task at hand as she beckoned to the gate that was right behind Murray and Diz, as they needed Murray to open it so they could move forward.

"Of course, it is nothing before 'The Murray'." Murray stated, to which he grinned as he turned towards the gate and slipped his fingers under the bottom of it, where he braced himself and carefully pulled it up, moving it to a position where everyone could slip under the halfway opened gate.

As the group walked out to the balcony, and Murray joined them, both Gilda and Derpy noticed something that they hadn't seen earlier, when they were staring at the building that the Clockwerk parts were supposed to be housed in, there was already an opening resting in the barred window. That automatically told them that something was wrong, so when they noticed it resting there, and Sly spotted it a moment later, all three of them pulled the plug on the operation and had Murray, Derpy, and Diz head back to the van, so they could pick Bentley up. At the same time Sly and Gilda, deciding to see if any information was left behind, carefully crossed over the rope that was in front of them and made their way into the building. As they did that, and found an area that had definitely been made ready for the Clockwerk parts, they not only found that all of the parts had been taken, maybe before they even knew that they were being brought to this museum, but they also discovered that Carmelita and her partner were present... to which the two siblings hid behind some crates and observed the duo for a moment.

Carmelita's partner happened to be a bengal tiger with pink and purple colored fur, though the sisters knew that her name was Neyla, based on what Carmelita told them, and she happened to be wearing brown shorts, a blue tank top, a red and gold hooded cape, and flat shoes. Despite the fact that neither of the sisters actually played video games, as they mostly watched Murray, Bentley, and Sly do that, they could tell that the overall look that Neyla was going for resembling a video game archaeologist. It was rather strange, since she was supposed to be an Interpol detective, and her weapon of choice was odd as well, since it happened to be a heavy whip, one that looked like it could hurt if she lashed out at someone, which told the sisters that they had better stay out of her way. What really caught Sly and Gilda's attention was the fact that neither Carmelita or Neyla were bothering to hide themselves at the moment, which made sense considering that the parts had been stolen recently... and that they seemed to be talking about something important, something that Sly knew they needed to know before they left the museum.

Gilda, knowing what was going through Sly's mind at the moment, decided that it was okay for her to use a little bit of her wind magic to brush Carmelita's leg, letting her know she was standing near the window without revealing herself or causing Carmelita to turn towards her... which could, in turn, give them the information they needed on who might have stolen the Clockwerk parts, so they could steal them back.

"So, Carmelita, do you think it was the Cooper Gang that made off with the Clockwerk parts?" Neyla asked, though her tone indicated that she was disgusted about something, but Sly and Gilda had the feeling that it was either directed towards the gang or towards Carmelita herself.

"No, it isn't the Coopers." Carmelita replied, as there were a number of things that had happened when the Clockwerk parts had been hauled off that didn't match what the gang did, and even then none of them had said anything about striking the day that they did, "The entrance was messy and there were guard casualties... if this had been a Cooper Gang operation they would have knocked them out."

"Of course you would know that, given your history with them." Neyla said, her tone indicating that she might know something that she shouldn't, though at the same time she glanced at Carmelita and noticed that she was deep in thought about something, "Based on what we saw, I would have to guess that we're dealing with the Klaww Gang."

"And how much do we know about them?" Carmelita inquired, mostly because she was curious as to what they knew about the gang, as she had been focused on the Coopers since her first run in with Sly, but also because this could be what a certain someone was looking for, "I only ask because I have been focusing my attention on Sly and his sisters."

"Unfortunately, we don't know much about them, save for the fact that they deal in illegal spice," Neyla replied, though her tone told anyone that was listening that she was disgusted with the fact that Carmelita was focused solely on the Cooper Gang, "and that they prefer violence over all other methods they could have used. So far we've been able to guess at two suspected members of their gang; Rajan, who might be located somewhere in India, and Dimitri Lousteau, who apparently has a completely legitimate nightclub in Paris."

"Well, it's a good start." Carmelita commented, though at the same time she felt Gilda's wind disappear rather suddenly, indicating that she had heard everything Neyla had said and was going to relay it to the others, meaning that she'd be following after them soon enough.

Gilda didn't say a word as she and Sly left the building, to which she unfurled her wings and carried Sly back towards the area that the van was in, where they would be able to meet up with Derpy, Bentley, Murray, and Diz, who were going to be interested in hearing what happened to the Clockwerk parts. She found it odd that the parts were already in the hands of another evil gang, one that that struck the museum before anyone had known that the pieces of the ancient owl were going to be put on display there. That told Gilda that there had to be a mole in Interpol, one that had to be working for his Klaww Gang, but even if that was true it didn't chance the fact that the gang knew who they needed to go after so they could get the pieces of Clockwerk back, as there was no telling what the individual members of the gang had planned for the parts they had taken. No one said anything as Murray turned on the van and they headed for Paris, the area that Dimitri was supposed to be operating in, as they were a little sore over missing their chance to get all the parts, but that only motivated them to do their best to take down the Klaww Gang.

None of them were sure what they were going to find when they eventually tracked down Dimitri, in terms of what he was using whatever parts of Clockwerk he had taken, but they planned on being ready for anything and everything he might throw at them... as they would be taking his pieces away from him in due time.

Band: Paris

It took Sly a few days to figure out where Dimitri was operating, and he had to call in a few favors that he wasn't willing to tell the rest of the gang about, but in the end he was able to determine that it was time well spent, because at the end of the day he had found where Dimitri's nightclub was located; the westside of Paris. He was also able to get some new information on their first target, who happened to be some sort of underworld celebrity that was equally at home in high-class art circles as he was in shady back-alley crimes. According to the information Sly was given they were able to figure out that Dimitri was once a passionate young art student, one that had worked hard to develop his own visionary style, but the art world wasn't quite ready for his 'Kinetic Aesthetic'. After a particular performance he started giving them what they wanted and started by forging old masterpieces, which was apparently his way of punishing those with bad taste, before eventually reaching the point that he was at now; operating a nightclub that had thumping music, colorful light shows, and a hint of danger that was meant to lure in chic young patrons from far and wide.

It was there, somewhere in his base of operations, that the Clockwerk Tail Feathers were located, as one of Sly's favors had actually revealed what Dimitri had taken from the ancient bird and what Rajan, their next target, had walked away with, but they put that in a file and placed it to the side, so they could focus on Dimitri.

Bentley, now armed with the information on Dimitri's whereabouts, was able to find an abandoned building that was literally right across the street from the entrance of the nightclub, one that had enough room for all of them and had a garage for Murray to park the van in. Sure, the garage was large enough for a few more vehicles, but since they only had the one they decided to let Murray have the rest of the space so he could work on the van or do whatever he wanted when he wasn't off doing his tasks to help them take out Dimitri. While he and Bentley were moving the van, and most of the gear, into position, Sly, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz used the rooftops to explore the part of Paris that they were in a little, to understand the sized of the nightclub itself, before they headed back to the building that they were taking over for the duration of this operation. When they arrived they found that a large table had been set up, with some chairs and some other essentials resting around the room, but for the most part it was all stuff that could be packed away in a hurry if they needed to flee quickly, which would happen once they had the Tail Feathers.

Upon their return Bentley had an interesting and completely unexpected surprise waiting for them, as the moment Sly opened the door he found Carmelita standing near Bentley, discussing what she knew about Dimitri and the nightclub with him... but instead of her usual attire, which Sly was used to seeing, she was wearing what appeared to be the attire of a Cooper thief, complete with the same coloration of his own clothing, while also showing off her stomach like her usual clothing. Resting off to the side was a mask, the same that Gilda and Derpy wore when they were on the job, and a pair of canes that looked like his, only they were half the size and had smaller hooks on the top. Carmelita, for whatever reason, was dressed up as a thief from Sly's gang, confusing Sly at the moment, since this hadn't been mentioned to him and he had no idea how to take it without questioning everything.

"Carmelita?" Sly asked, deciding that they could spend a few minutes talking so he could figure out what was going on, though at the same time Bentley and Carmelita stopped discussing whatever they were talking about and turned towards the door as Sly's group entered the building, "What's going on?"

"Well, Bentley informed me that you guys were going after the Clockwerk parts and I told Secretary Sen the news," Carmelita replied, though at the same time she took a seat and stared out the window, where Sly realized she was staring at the nightclub and was likely thinking about it's owner, "he also told me when you guys were planning on arriving here and when, in his estimates, you might be making your move on Dimitri. Secretary Sen told me that it would take a few hours for our forces to be ready for any sort of action on the nightclub, giving us plenty of time to pull off whatever plan you guys come up with. And, since being a cop would draw too much attention and the Secretary gave me permission, I decided to change my attire for this part of the operation... I figured that, with Diz being a new addition to the team, no one would think twice if the Cooper Gang suddenly had another member added to their ranks."

"Let me get this straight," Derpy said, as while she understood what was going on she was having a hard time believing that Carmelita, who was a cop, would willing switch sides like that, even though she understood the reasoning behind the decision, "Are you telling us that this is an Interpol operation? And that Secretary Sen is allowing you to take such an active role in hunting down the Clockwerk parts?"

"Yes, because Secretary Sen had a thought about the Clockwerk parts," Carmelita answered, to which she turned her attention back towards Sly, as when she heard this piece of information she wondered if she should have called the Secretary insane, but had decided not to, especially since she knew a fair number of magic users, "He's worried that the Klaww Gang might accidentally put Clockwerk's body back together, one way or another, and resurrect the ancient owl, since he's sure that Clockwerk's soul is still attached to his body."

"The possible resurrection of Clockwerk... that's not a nice thought to have." Sly said, to which he sighed as the rest of his group took a seat around the table, before he smiled and looked at the assembled gang that rested in front of him, as he felt it was fair to add Carmelita to that count, "Okay, then we had best get to work. Now, since there's seven of us, that means we'll have to split up into teams to tackle every mission that we take on before we figure out how to get at the Clockwerk Tail Feathers."

"Speaking of missions, I already have one ready to go," Bentley commented, causing the group to turn towards him for a moment, as he was the brains of the operation and had a good idea of what they needed to do before they could create any real plans, "I've installed a special antenna on the top of this building, one that will allow us to hack into Dimitri's satellite array... and I've already loaded the coordinates to the mission start point into your binocucom. Once you're there I'll tell you the rest of my plan, and then you can do what you do best."

"Well then, let's get the party started." Sly said, to which he turned to head towards the door, though before he even took a step he made sure to stop when he was facing Carmelita, who looked up at him for a moment, "Carmelita, would you like to join me on your first official Cooper Gang mission?"

"Sly, of course I would like to join you." Carmelita replied, though before she slipped on the mask, and truly took on the new persona she and Secretary Sen had created for such an occasion, she kissed Sly on the cheek for a moment, before she donned the mask, picked up her miniature canes, and walked through the door.

Sly stood there for a moment, thinking about how thankful he was that something had brought him and Carmelita together in such a manner, before swinging his cane as he headed out the door as well, to which the two of them climbed the pipe that was next to the door and climbed up to the roof of the building. The short climb up to the roof gave Sly the chance to see that Carmelita's movements mimicked his own, which made sense considering that she had been chasing him and his gang over the years, but then he decided to test her out a little bit. As such he jumped over the gap between the building they had taken and the one near them, as well as walking over a rope to a third building, Carmelita surprised him by showing that she could follow his movements. Sure, he was surprised by the fact that Carmelita was moving like a Cooper could, one that was still training anyway, but at the same time he didn't mind her abilities, as he had considered teaching her some of them at some point, just so she could make the chases they did after every heist even funner for the two of them... but instead of focusing on that he turned his mind to the task at hand, as there would be time to applaud her skills later.

It didn't take the two of them long to reach the area that Bentley had marked as the area where he would tell them the rest of the mission that he wanted them to undertake, though as Sly pulled out his binocucom he noticed that Carmelita had one, no doubt created by Bentley, that she pulled out as well... though they stood in an area where Dimitri's guards wouldn't see them until they had moved from the area.

"Sly, I need you and Carmelita to hack into Dimitri's communication array so that we'll have access to his database." Bentley said, though part of his voice revealed that he found it odd to be telling a cop, even one that was technically undercover at the moment, to break the law, while Sly found that Carmelita didn't even show any annoyance towards the task they were being told to do.

"And how are we supposed to do that?" Carmelita asked, surprising Sly by the fact that she was the one to ask the question on what they needed to do, but he said nothing as Bentley started to reply to the question.

"To start, you'll need to get to the top of that tower." Bentley replied, to which their binocucoms zeroed in on the water tower that was near their current location, one where a rat guard was occasionally seen walking around the base of the structure, "Then reposition the satellite dish to point at my safe house antenna. Once you have done that I'll send you two the positions of the remaining two satellites, and then we'll have access to his entire database."

"We'll get to work right away." Sly said, though even as he put his binocucom down, and glanced around for Carmelita, he found that she was already heading over to the water tower and slipped in behind the rat guard the moment he passed by the pipe that would let them climb up to the top of the structure, "...she's faster than I remember..."

Carmelita put her miniature canes away and latched onto the pipe that was attached to the water tower, where she climbed up to the top of the structure and walked over to the satellite dish that happened to be up there, to which she tapped a few of the controls and watched as the dish turned until it was pointing at the safe house... though once that was done she jumped down to the street and walked back over to where Sly was standing.

"So, how'd I do?" Carmelita asked, though at the same time she smiled, as she could tell that Sly was shocked by the fact that she had taken part of their mission head on and completed it the way a Cooper would, once more proving Neyla right that she knew the Cooper Gang better than anyone else did.

"You doing well, for this being your first time in the field with us." Sly replied, to which he thought back to the times where he wasn't at the warehouse, and the rest of his gang was, and wondered if his sisters had a hand in helping Carmelita get to this point, "Maybe by the time we've gathered all the Clockwerk parts, and figured out what we're going to do with them, you'll choose to go by Carmelita 'Cooper', instead of Carmelita Fox."

"Don't push it Sly." Carmelita said, though where one would assume that she would have been annoyed by that statement, since she was a cop first most days, she didn't show any signs of annoyance, rather she actually seemed to like the idea of being part of his family, "This is only temporary... and besides, we still have two more satellites to reposition so Bentley can figure out what the gang needs to do next."

Sly nodded and the two of them headed up to the roof of the building that they had used to reach this part of the city, where they carefully followed the path that they had taken to reach the water tower and headed back towards the safe house, before they ran off to the building behind the safe house. The reason behind that decision was because of the satellite that was near it, to which Sly tapped the controls this time around and soon enough the dish was pointed at Bentley's antenna. With that done the two of them continued towards the third beacon that they was near them, though as they walked across the roofs, and enjoyed being alone for a few moments, Sly briefly noticed that there were some clue bottles scattered all over the place. This time around he paid them no mind, as there really was no reason for them to gather the clues, but at the same time he reflected to tell his sisters about it, because he was sure that they were going to get bored of waiting around and doing nothing... though a few moments later he and Carmelita approached the third satellite and made sure that the dish was pointed at the antenna.

With their task complete Sly and Carmelita stood there for a few seconds, as they knew that Bentley was working on seeing what Dimitri had for them to use against him, or at the very least where the gang might be able to strike so they could open a way to wherever the Tail Feathers were located.

"Nice work you two." Bentley said, though this time his tone revealed that he was pleased with their progress, where both Sly and Carmelita could hear him tapping on some keys while he stared at his computer, "I'm downloading from Dimitri's mainframe as we speak!"

"All in a night's work." Sly replied, though as he spoke he noticed that Carmelita was standing close to him, where he smiled and stood close to her as well, just in case they had nothing to do and could spend a few moments together on the roof, even though his instincts told him otherwise, "So, where do we go from here?"

"Your next job is to break into the nightclub and take some reconnaissance photos of the Clockwerk Tail Feathers." Bentley informed them, as he already knew that they were eager to spend a few more minutes with each other and see what it would have been like if they were on the same time of the law for a change, "To get inside, you'll have to sneak in through an old wine cellar beneath town."

"Okay, we're heading over to the location of the wine cellar." Carmelita said, once more surprising Sly, as he was expecting her to have a problem or two with breaking into the nightclub in such a way, but it seemed that since this was an Interpol operation, and she had been given permission by a Secretary to do what needed to be done to stop Clockwerk from coming back to life, she was able to look passed the laws she was breaking.

Fortunately the entrance of the wine cellar was near the building that they were standing on, to which the two of them jumped down to the street level once more, crossed the street itself, and opened the door to the wine cellar, though as they did that they found that Murray was standing nearby... meaning that Bentley had known this was coming and sent him as backup for part of this mission, even if they didn't need any assistance.

"Sly, Carmelita, it's good to see that you two are alright." Murray said, his tone saying that he half expected them to be fighting with each other over something or have been hurt by one of the guards, but he smiled as she glanced at the path that was in front of them, "I guess the way through the wine cellar is guarded by those rats. Bentley thought you two might like some help clearing them out."

"That's thoughtful of him," Carmelita replied, though this time around she readied her miniature canes, indicating that she was ready for a fight and surprised Murray for a moment, who ended up chuckling as the three of them walked forward and ambushed the guards.

The rat guards, despite their numbers, clearly weren't expecting anyone to come down here and try anything, as the first few went down without even offering a fight, though the ones that followed them, now alert to the presence of the trio, were ready for some action. While Sly swung his cane, and knocked out his targets with some precise attacks, he noticed that Carmelita used her miniature canes in the same manner, hitting her opponents where Sly did and knocked them out as well. It was impressive, he had to admit that, but it also meant that she had really been learning how he and his family moved through the various areas and how they fought those that they came across, save for specific people like the members of the Fiendish Five or Dimitri. Murray, of course, slammed his fists into his opponents, hitting them with enough force to knock them out, until eventually all of the guards had been dealt with, to which he ran over to the barred wall that the guards had been protecting and grabbed a nearby lever... one that, when he pulled it up, created an opening that Sly could easily jump through with the double jump skill he had, which Carmelita did as well.

Once the two of them were on the other side of the gate, and Murray said he'd be back at the safe house, they carefully continued along the tunnel that was in front of them, as they had to avoid the moving laser walls that lined the tunnel and even crawled under some tables to move forward. The tables not only gave them the ability to move through the laser walls, but it also gave them the ability to stealthy move pass by the warthog guards that stood guard over the second half of the tunnel, who were also carrying flashlights. Despite the fact that Sly knew he and Carmelita could take them, if such a thing were to happen, he also knew that the sound of a fight would draw the attention of the guards further down the hallway and they'd be caught. As such they carefully moved around the warthog guards as they made their way down the remainder of the hallway, where they eventually reached a vent that the two of them climbed through, until they came out in a dressing room that was part of the nightclub... and, at the entrance of this room, was another warthog guard standing in front of a stable laser wall, one that Sly recognized immediately.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Carmelita quietly asked, as this wasn't something she had come across when she was chasing Sly and the rest of the gang, but at the same time she knew the look in Sly's eyes well enough to know that he must have an idea on how to move forward.

"We knock him out." Sly quietly replied, to which he gestured to the warthog's hands for a moment, where Carmelita saw that the guard was holding a flashlight in one hand and a device that seemed to be linked to the laser wall, "If we knock him out we can use the device he's holding to take out the laser wall, where he'll report it as him falling asleep on the job and accidentally pressing the button, or making up some lie to protect himself."

Carmelita was surprised to hear that the method in question was the same thing that the Cooper Gang did to the majority of the guards they came across, which made sense when she thought about it, to which she nodded and the two of them silently approached the warthog. The guard barely had a second to register what was going on as both Sly and Carmelita struck him at the same time, knocking him out cold in the process, to which Sly tapped the button with the guard's finger, leaving behind no evidence that he was even here, before they entered the actual nightclub. Fortunately the part of the nightclub they were in appeared to be closed for the night, meaning they might have a clear shot at the area that the Tail Feathers were stored in, though to move forward they had to take out a second warthog in the same manner as the first one. From there they found a foyer area with two rat guards carefully patrolling the area, to which the two of them smiled for a moment as they separated from each other and knocked out the guards that were in their way, before approaching the stage and crawled into the vent that was by the piano.

Luck was definitely on their side this time around, because that vent in question happened to drown them down into a metallic observation area that allowed them to stare at the heart of Dimitri's operation, where they could see the iguana walking around the upper walkway as they located the Tail Feathers... which were being used as printing plates, based on the machinery that was around them.

"I must say, that's some smart thinking," Carmelita commented, her voice loud enough for Sly to hear her while also being soft enough so that it didn't tell Dimitri that someone had found out his dirty secret, though at the same time she pulled out her binocucom and started taking some pictures of their target, the Clockwerk part he took, and the generator that rested in the middle of the room, "From what the experts can tell Clockwerk's body is made out of some sort of rare alloy, one they can't even begin to figure out what it's made out of, so using the Tail Feathers like this means that they'll never wear out... and Dimitri will have unlimited forged money for as long as they're in his possession."

"I say it's time we put a quick end to his plans." Sly said, to which Carmelita nodded her agreement, as this was the sort of thing she was trying to stop from her side of the law, before she finished taking all the pictures that Bentley needed for his studies.

The instant Carmelita took the last picture she put her binocucom away and the two of them started to retrace their steps back to the wine cellar they had come from, allowing them to slip out of the nightclub and make their way back to the safe house without Dimitri knowing they were even there.

Despite the fact that their first pair of missions for this operation, which happened to be Carmelita's first pair of missions as a member of the Cooper Gang, all Bentley was able to come up with, from the photos and what he had learned when Gilda and Derpy flew around town to collect the thirty clue bottles that Dimitri had scattered around the place, was that a direct assault was impossible. He concluded that they needed additional information so they could understand Dimitri's operation better, which would then allow them to properly plan a real operation to get at the Tail Feathers and escape before Interpol showed up. His current plan was for one group to take a bugged painting and switch it with the one that was inside Dimitri's office, meaning they would be able to listen in on some of his conversations and figure out where to hit next, though a secondary objective was for someone to tail the iguana if anyone saw him, as that might reveal another weakness for them to exploit.

Bentley and the others also congratulated Carmelita on a job well done, meaning that, if she ever decided that being a cop was no longer to her liking, they would be more than happy to let her permanently join the gang, though while she blushed at that comment she focused on the task at hand... figuring out the weaknesses of the operation so they could bust Dimitri and steal the Tail Feathers from him.

Band: Moonlight Rendezvous

The instant Bentley informed them of what they needed to do, which was only two missions at the moment, Gilda decided to tackle handling the bugged painting that Bentley had pointed out while Derpy, on the other hand, would fly around the area and see if she couldn't find Dimitri anywhere. That gave Sly and Carmelita the chance to relax as they waited to see what happened next, though while Diz clearly felt left out, since everyone seemed to be doing something, Bentley was quick to assure him that he'd have a chance to do something soon enough. As such the sisters walked out of the safe house and took to the skies, though while Gilda quickly returned to the ground when she spotted the area that the bugged painting was in she noticed that Derpy was still flying around the nightclub, hunting for Dimitri. As Gilda landed on the street, and made absolutely sure that there weren't any guards around, she took a moment to stare at the painting that was supposed to be a 'Dimitri Original', though at the same time Bentley had quickly explained that it was definitely a forgery.

She glared at the painting for a few seconds, as she didn't understand why people would like the picture of the screaming person that had been painted onto the canvas, but she said nothing about that as she silently pulled out her binocucom and readied herself for the rest of Bentley's briefing on the mission.

"Gilda, while Sly and Carmelita were busy earlier I managed to outfit this forged painting with a bug." Bentley explained, revealing that he feared that they might need more information and had prepared himself ahead of time, which was paying off right now, "I need you to sneak into Dimitri's office and swap it with the original."

"And then we'll be able to listen in on his communications?" Gilda inquired, as she understood what the plan was supposed to be, but she figured that letting Bentley repeat himself sometimes would reveal any additional information about a mission and calm his nerves down more than they already were.

"Yes, I thought things might go more smoothly with an ear on the inside." Bentley said, though before Gilda made a move she heard something on the other end, but while she didn't catch what was said she stopped anyway, as she figured there might be even more for her to learn, "Sly also reminded me to tell you to be a little careful with the fine art, because if you can get it back here in one piece I might be able to sell it on Thief-Net and get some cash for the future."

Gilda nodded and carefully slipped her cane into the holder on her back, where she generally stored it when she was flying and wanted both of her hands free, before she gently lifted the painting from it's resting place and turned towards the street that was in front of her. Fortunately she had one advantage that Dimitri never compensated for, as she opened her wings and carefully flew over to the window that would allow her to enter the part of the nightclub that held Dimitri's office, and likely his vault as well. After opening the window, and climbing inside the building, she found that there were a number of janitor rats in front of the door that led to Dimitri's office, though since Bentley was sure that it was locked from the other side, and told her that when she entered the building, she could always use the indirect approach and make her way across the floor, up a railing, around the wall of the room, and then reach the vent so she could get into the office and place the painting. With the number of guards in the way she was sure that one of them could score a lucky hit on her and destroy the painting, as there was a few more than one person could take without using magic, and made would also cause damage to what she was carrying... so her best bet was to do what she always did when a situation like this presented itself to her, causing her to smile for a moment.

She opened her wings and carefully made her way over to the area that the vent was in, making as little noise as possible when she beat her wings, but fortunately the guards seemed to be more interested in their portable music players than to keep an eye out for intruders. That allowed her to slip into the vent without even being detected, to which she carefully made her way through the small vent and dropped into Dimitri's office, exactly where the vault was located, but before she looted the vault she switched her bugged painting for the real deal. With the bugged painting in place, and the real one now in her possession, Gilda stopped by the vault and input the code that Bentley told her, which happened to be 2-3-1, to which she discovered a piece of equipment that allowed someone, who was using a dive attack, to render a target unconscious. She wasn't sure if that was useful or not, but since it was in Dimitri's vault she seized it, replaced it with the calling card, and closed the door so Dimitri wouldn't know it was missing unless he checked the safe out for himself, before she carefully made her way back to the window she used to enter the building... though as she did so she marveled at how loud the janitor rats had their music, as there was no way they could have heard her with as loud as their music was, no doubt trying to combat the music of the nightclub itself.

Once she was back outside, and away from the building, the first thing she did was fly back to the safe house and offload the painting she had taken from Dimitri's office, before she flew out again and tracked down the three remaining 'treasure' items that she had seen earlier. A few minutes later she returned to the safe house with a crystal chalice, an ivory jewel box, and a jade vase, all of which Bentley could sell later on, to fund their future operations against the remaining members of the Klaww Gang. Once she returned the treasures to Bentley, however, the group heard some guards talking about a recent email that was sent to their boss, where Bentley quickly dug through the data he had and found the email. It revealed that Dimitri, after visiting the area that the Clockwerk Tail Feathers were located in, had moved to a boat and was waiting there for some time, to which Bentley told Gilda to find Derpy and inform her of where her target was located while he finished reading the email. As such Gilda headed outside the safe house and flew around the area, hunting for her sister, though she found Derpy sitting near the water tower, observing a few guards that happened to be talking to each other.

From what she could tell Derpy wasn't even interested in what the guards were talking about, making her wonder why she was staring at them, before she landed behind her and tapped her on the shoulder, pulling her away from where she was sitting and beckoned her to the only boat in the area.

"What's so special about that boat?" Derpy asked, as she was staring at it while she and Gilda approached it, while at the same time they were connected to Bentley and the others in the safe house, "I stared at it a few times while I was looking for Dimitri and determined that he wasn't in this area."

"Actually, he's aboard that boat at this very moment," Bentley replied, to which an annoyed look appeared on Derpy's face for a moment, which only Gilda could see since she was the only one out here, before he got to the interesting point he had found in the email, "He's ordered his guards to ring the boat's bell when the coast is clear. Whatever that's supposed to mean is unclear to me, but you should ring the bell and follow him... he might reveal something to us that we can use against him."

Gilda and Derpy looked at each other as they started beating their wings, though while Gilda took to the air Derpy swung her cane and struck the bell in question, before flying up to where her sister was waiting and turned to look down at the boat once more. Not even a few seconds later Dimitri, in all his glory, emerged from the boat and started to walk into the area around his nightclub, in a route that he must have created to confuse any pursuers that might have been following him on the ground level. Clearly he must not have been expecting there to be anyone that could fly when he created this route, as Gilda and Derpy stared down at him and made sure Dimitri couldn't see them at all, even though he stopped every now and then so he could look around the area for anything out of the ordinary. The guards that he passed by saluted him, where he didn't question which one of them rang the bell like a smart boss would have, before they continued with whatever task they were supposed to be doing.

As Dimitri moved down some stairs, and reached a door that neither of the sisters had seen before, he started inputting a code that caused Derpy to raise her binocucom so they could record what was going on, where the code she captured was sent to Bentley... though she made sure to note which was the successful one, as that was the one that unlocked the door and allowed Dimitri to enter what appeared to be the club's aquifer.

"This might be useful for the heist!" Bentley said, seeing exactly what the sisters were staring at, before he said something to someone that was near him for a few seconds, to which Gilda and Derpy remained by the door as they waited for him to finish speaking, "I'm sending Murray and Diz to take care of the aquifer."

Gilda and Derpy waited for a few minutes, making sure the area was secure for the moment, before Murray and Diz came running up to where they were standing, to which they moved out of the way as Diz entered the code that Bentley had given them and opened the door... allowing him and Murray to enter the aquifer while Gilda and Derpy retreated to the safe house to relax until they were needed again.

Diz and Murray followed the path that was in front of them until they were forced to stop, as there was a laser wall in front of them and it was currently blocking the way forward, even though Diz could see a power box of some kind on the other side of the wall. Since he knew that if he fired a magical charge at the laser wall, even if it struck his target, it would set off the alarm for a moment and, even if the charge was able to slip through the lasers without the alarm going off, Interpol would be able to figure out that he was here. His magic always left some sort of impact behind, which was one reason why he liked to team up with Murray since their attacks usually left an impact, but he was also a Cooper and they didn't leave traces behind, save for people like Murray. It was confusing for him, as he was trying to merge the two into a successful unit that gave him the best of both worlds, but for now he was stuck with seeing what they might be able to do... which involved them both raising their binocucoms so they could talk with Bentley.

"Murray, I need you and Diz to make your way back to the aqua pump room and sabotage it." Bentley stated, seeing the connection between him and their binocucoms, allowing him to brief them on their mission as he continued to sift through the information that was in front of him.

"Geez, I don't know." Murray said, staring at the laser wall that was in their way, as he knew that he couldn't punch his way through something like that and Diz had his reasons for not wanting to use his magic, "How am we supposed to get past these lasers?"

"Maybe you could pick something up and hurl it at that power box?" Diz offered, to which he lowered his binocucom and glanced at the ice dispenser that was resting to their left, which already had a block of ice waiting to be used in whatever manner someone had planned, "The force of the impact might be enough to damage it, maybe even destroy it, before the alarm goes off."

Murray looked at Diz for a moment, clearly thinking about what he said, before putting his binocucom away and walked over to the machine in question, where he lifted the ice block out of the dispenser, turned around so he could face his target, and hurled the block through the laser wall, where it slammed into the power box and shattered into pieces. For a moment Murray thought he had done nothing to the machine, that his efforts were pointless, before he noticed that the power box had several dents in it, indicating that his attack had worked. Once that happened Diz encouraged him to take another swing at it, to which he lifted a heavy chair, one that happened to be resting nearby, and hurled it at the power box, damaging it even further, before he hurled a barrel and it and smashed the power box to pieces. With that out of the way the laser wall powered off and they were free to move forward, to which Diz and Murray smiled at each other as they stopped at the next laser wall... which didn't last very long this time around, though that was because Murray was ready for the challenge and quickly smashed the power box with three more items, allowing them to advance again.

When they rounded the corner they found one of the warthog guards standing on a ledge, blocking the way forward, but Murray grabbed an ice block and hurled it at the guard, knocking him out in the process while at the same time allowing the two of them to jump up to the ledge he was on, bypass the moving lasers that were behind him, and enter a room that happened to have the very pump they were looking for. Diz studied the pump for a moment, looking for any weaknesses they might be able to exploit, while Murray knocked out the rat guard that hadn't been paying attention to the entrance they walked through, before he found what he was looking for. He accurately pinpointed the various areas of the pump that Murray needed to destroy, to which moved out of the way and let Murray go to town on the machine, smashing the various parts of the pump until they were no longer operational, though while he did that Diz used his cane to surprise and knock out any guards that tried to investigate what was going on in the area. Fortunately Murray was a fast worker and the pump was beat up until it was no longer operational, to which they retreated from the pump room while hearing Bentley comment about how the guards would be forced to pump water from the old water tower.

They both knew that the guards were going to be rather upset with the destruction of the water pump, and that Dimitri was likely going to be furious, but at least this was getting them one step closer to assembling a plan to take back what the forger had stolen.

A few minutes later, when Murray and Diz got back to the safe house and noticed that everyone was present, Bentley informed them that they were now ready to begin setting things up for the heist, where they would need to complete a few more jobs before they could walk away with the Tail Feathers. From what they were told someone was going to have to pick a few pockets in the theater so that they would have access to the spotlight control center, so that way they would be able to turn off all the security around the printing press. Murray's next job involved taking out all the exterior alarm horns that were in the area, as they didn't want anything to alert the guards when they decided to put the operation into effect later on. In addition to those two things they also needed to break into the discothèque to drop the mirror ball, where Bentley explained that it was all part of the plan and that, when all three of those tasks were completed, they would be ready for the heist.

While they were figuring out who would be taking which mission, however, Sly headed outside so he could see if there was anything else that could be done to improve their chances, as getting the key to the area that the mirror ball was in would be a huge help, and Carmelita followed after him... though when they were halfway there, taking the long way around, an unexpected arrival stopped them in their tracks.

"Hold it, Cooper!" a voice said, to which Sly and Carmelita stopped in their tracks as Neyla, with her whip at the ready, landed in front of them, though while she stood up she glared at Carmelita, where she didn't seem to recognize her, but Carmelita decided to take no chances and kept her mouth shut.

"Constable Neyla," Sly commented, knowing that if Neyla figured out that Carmelita was standing next to him bad things could happen, as Neyla struck him as the type of person that would use whatever advantage she had to tear others down and move through the ranks of Interpol, "another policewoman that happens to be hot on my tail."

Carmelita knew what Sly meant the instant he said those words, as they didn't have the usual flirtiness that he used when he found someone attractive, though that was mostly because she had responded well to his advances this time around and his edge around other ladies had gone away... meaning that this was him saying that there was another Interpol officer that happened to be following his every move.

"Please, I led you and your little gang here." Nelya said, her tone revealing that she found it funny that Sly though he knew everything, even though Carmelita knew that the two of them had given the Coopers everything they needed to come to this area in the first place, "When Carmelita and I were investigating the area the Clockwerk parts had been stored in I smelled you when you and one of your sisters entered through the opening in the window, and I only know you were there because of my predator senses, and they never lie. Besides, I see that you've found another orphan to add to your ever growing 'family' of thieves... one that instantly reminds me of Carmelita."

"Neyla, this is Kate Cooper." Sly said, to which he waved a hand towards Carmelita for a moment, knowing that he had to act fast before Neyla asked Carmelita to say something, which would ruin everything, before an idea came to her, "She's had problems speaking since she was a kid and she rarely says anything, though she's got talent to be a member of the Cooper Gang once she's done with her training."

"First you pick up two girls, who happened to be two of the rarest species in the world, to be your sisters, where one of them had messed up eyes until two years ago," Neyla commented, though her tone revealed that she couldn't believe what she was hearing, but the laughter that came from her, based on what she was saying, only annoyed Sly, which he hid since there had to be a reason she was bothering them, "then you take in one of Interpol's most troublesome pranksters, who has absolutely no idea who his parents are and doesn't care about responsibility, and now you've taken in a girl that not only can't speak, but also has the same last name as you and looks a lot like Carmelita? Sly Cooper, you are definitely one strange thief."

"Look, we don't have all day to talk about my gang," Sly stated, as right now he wasn't in the mood, as Neyla was ruining the operation with her mere presence, but he really didn't want her to figure out that Carmelita was standing beside him at the moment, "so let's get back to the point; why did you 'lead' us here?"

"I'm not as black-and-white as Carmelita." Neyla replied, once more glancing at Carmelita, who she was mentally labeling as 'Kate', before turning to look Sly in the eyes, indicating that she only cared for him and no one else at the moment, which annoyed Carmelita a little, "I know what a menace those Clockwerk parts are, and while I don't want the likes of the Klaww Gang putting them to use, for whatever schemes they've made up, I also don't trust Carmelita's faith that you can be trusted with them either. Personally, I think Interpol should have all the parts, but I'm not the superior officer at the moment, so I'll go with Carmelita's faith... for now. Besides, you and your gang can go places where we can't... not officially anyway."

"I'm sensing that you're challenging me to a race over the rooftops," Sly commented, as he wasn't as dumb as Neyla apparently thought he was, though her statements only made him wonder what she was trying to gain from making him, and by extension Carmerlita, angry.

"Do try to keep up." Neyla said, to which she started running over the rooftops and down into the streets around them, causing Sly and Carmelita to run after her, especially since the might have something they need for their own heist in the near future.

Sly and Carmelita followed Neyla as she ran a predetermined course through the area around Dimitri's nightclub, but along the way she had the habit of swinging her whip and striking at anything that was near her, breaking objects as they ran through an area or outright killing guards in the process. Sly made a mental note of each guard Neyla took down, so he and the others could remove them from the area and maybe even bury them, or send them home or do something so Interpol didn't find the dead bodies and assume the Cooper Gang was a bunch of killers now. Secretary Sen would be on their tails if he found out about that, no doubt to ask questions before either ripping the deal to pieces or just throw them in jail forever without any hope of getting out. That thought made Carmelita wonder if Neyla even knew that the Cooper Gang had such a powerful ally, one that could easily turn his gaze towards Neyla and ruin her career in an instant, but she said nothing as they moved around the nightclub... until they eventually reached the entrance to the area that the mirror ball was located in, where Neyla tossed Sly the key and left without a word.

As they headed back to the safe house, with the key in hand, Sly knew that something was fishy, as the majority of Neyla's moves were identical to the ones that were in the Thievius Raccoonus, but he couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to her than what they were seeing... and when they walked into the safe house, to hand Bentley the key Neyla had given them, he found that everyone was annoyed about something, indicating that they must have heard the conversation between them and Neyla.

"I don't trust her at all." Diz commented, though as he spoke he picked up a drink and handed it to Carmelita, who removed her mask and set down her miniature canes before taking a drink, "I know I've only met a few officers from Interpol, but I've never came across one that's all to ready to say she doesn't trust her superior officer or the decisions she's making on a matter."

"Her tone suggested that she doesn't trust us all that much," Gilda added, as when Neyla started mentioning the various members of their family, as that was what six of them were at the moment since Carmelita and Sly weren't actually dating yet, her anger towards Nelya grew a little, "and, based on what she said, Neyla seems to think that we're just a band of misfits that aren't worth her time... and yet she's assisting us for some reason."

"She's different than what she was at Interpol," Carmelita said, recalling how Neyla had acted before she left the building to how she had acted in front of Sly, while at the same time knowing that there was something wrong with her 'partner' at the moment, "We had better keep our eyes on Neyla, just in case we're right about her."

Sly didn't want to think that Neyla might actually have a plan for the gang, one that would put them in danger or something, but he agreed with Carmelita on the fact that they needed to keep an eye on her... and he knew that they would talk about this more, after they recovered the Clockwerk Tail Feathers and sent Dimitri to jail.

Band: Thunder Beak

Since Carmelita was slightly annoyed by the fact that Neyla was nearby, and was likely either watching the Cooper Gang or waiting for them to make a move, she opted to remain in the safe house for now so she could prepare for the heist, as she'd be able to help with part of it before she needed to get back to the Interpol force that was coming this way. As such Bentley repeated the missions they needed to accomplish before they attempted the heist, where Murray and Diz would tackle the exterior air horns, Sly and either Gilda or Derpy would tackle the theater, and whichever sister didn't accompany Sly would come with him to drop the mirror ball. Once everyone knew what they were doing, and that Carmelita was fine with sitting a round out for now, Murray and Diz immediately headed out for the first of the exterior air horns, while at the same time Sly and Derpy moved out for the theater, leaving Gilda to wait for Bentley to be ready to leave. Bentley was remaining behind for now so he could tell the two groups what he needed them to do when they arrived at their mission areas, though when they were done he would have Gilda carry him to the door Neyla gave them the key to.

As such Murray and Diz carefully made their way through the streets outside the nightclub and avoided the guards that were all around them, as they didn't want to draw attention at the moment, before they arrived at the side of the building that allowed Gilda to enter where Dimitri's office was located... as that was the area that the first alarm horn was located in, where Diz noticed that it wasn't even guarded at all, but that didn't stop him from looking around for any guards that might be patrolling the area.

"Okay, Murray, that alarm horn will tip off Dimitri during our heist." Bentley said, speaking through their binocucoms, though while Diz was using his to look out for guards Murray was using his to stare at the alarm horn, just so he would know what they looked like before he started smashing them to pieces, "There are three of them out here, and I need you and Diz to take them out."

"Check!" Murray replied, as he was more than ready to start lifting things up and hurl them at his targets, because that seemed to be the best way to break things like the alarm horns and the power boxes he had broken earlier, and he was happy that Bentley was letting him smash things like this.

"This is going to take some serious muscle, Murray." Bentley stated, as while he knew that thieves preferred to leave nothing behind, or at least Sly was like that, he also knew that these alarm horns were sturdy and could take a decent amount of punishment before they broke, "You're the only guy on the team who can pull this off. You're going to need to pick some of the chairs and tables up to use them as ammunition for taking out those alarm horns, though Diz should be able to keep the guards off of you until you're ready to move onto the next target."

Murray nodded and carefully picked up the table that was near him, where he spotted Diz preparing himself for what he was about to do, before he hurled the table through the air and let it slam into the alarm horn, shattering the wood on the device while dealing damage at the same time. As he sought out the next projectile he could use to break the alarm horn, however, he noticed that some of the rat guards were already moving into position so they could investigate what was going on. Diz, on the other hand, was more than ready for them as he used his magic to get behind them and whack them with his cane, knocking them out in a matter of seconds, to which he smiled as he found some glowing pockets and took the loot that they were carrying with them, before turning back to the matter at hand. Murray chuckled for a moment as he hurled a chair at the alarm horn, as sometimes Diz was purely focused on whatever mission he was on and sometimes his attention became scattered when he found something interesting, like loot in someone's pocket... which he would have to ask him about later, once they were gone beating up the guards and had smashed the alarm horns.

When Murray destroyed the first alarm horn he joined Diz in beating up the rest of the guards, as they would make leaving the area harder than it needed to be, though once they were taken out the two of them headed towards the waypoint Bentley had programmed into their binocucoms. The moment they arrived at the second alarm horn, where Murray used some heavy duty news papers and some other items laying around the area, Diz found that there weren't any guards waiting for them this time around, as when Murray smashed the device he expected guards to come running to check out the noise. Since there weren't any guards he stood watch over the area, from the rooftop above them, and watched over Murray as he worked, though the instant the second alarm horn was taken out the third one appeared on their radars and they moved out immediately. The final alarm horn happened to be outside the gated area that the entrance to the mirror ball's location was in, though when Murray started smashing the device, using a briefcase full of counterfeit money as his first projectile, the guards moved in immediately, seeking to stop them from completing their mission... even if they had no idea what the mission was in the first place.

Fortunately between the two of them they were able to knock the guards unconscious and destroy the alarm horn in a matter of seconds, though as Bentley congratulated them on a job well done, since that would allow them to cut off Dimitri's way of figuring out what was happening when the heist happened... though as they headed back towards the safe house the two of them spotted Sly and Derpy heading into the theater so they could complete their mission.

Sly and Derpy used the door that was on the second story of the nightclub building to get into the theater, though before they did that they both spotted Murray and Diz taking out the last of the air horns for their mission, allowing them to head back to the safe house so they could prepare themselves for the heist. The theater itself appeared to be a nice place, with a stage that someone or a group could perform on and a number of tables resting around the area, though what surprised them was that there weren't a lot of guards patrolling the area. That told Sly that Dimitri either thought that the number he had stationed in this area was more than enough, or he had no idea how many guards were really needed here and this was his guess on what was necessary to guard the area. Either way the two of them were more than enough to take out the guards, though before they did anything they pulled out their binocucoms and let Bentley inform them of what they needed to do... before he and Gilda headed out for the area that the mirror ball was located in.

"Okay, Sly, there's the power boxes which route to the printing press area." Bentley said, causing their binocucoms to zero in on the devices that he was talking about, though at the same time they both knew that he had something else to tell them before they got started, "To take care of them, I need one of you to put a splice clip in those spotlights."

"There's a flaw in your plan Bentley," Derpy commented, seeing something that was going to complicate the mission, even though she could use her wings to get over the fans and put the splice clip in herself, but that would only annoy Bentley in the process, "those fans are spinning way to fast for us to walk on."

"They can be slowed down from this control panel..." Bentley replied, changing their view until they were staring at the panel in question, which was across from where they were standing at the moment, where both of them noticed some locks on the front of it, "but you'll have to do a lot of pickpocketing to get at it. The guards are carrying special fragile keys that will be destroyed if you attack, so make sure you pickpocket their keys before you knock them out."

Once Bentley had given them their objectives, and the duo heard the sounds of him preparing for his mission with Gilda, the connection between them and the safe house was disconnected and they got started on their task, though while Sly focused on using his cane to swipe the coins and key from the warthog guard in front of him Derpy descended to the floor below the entrance. On the lower level Derpy found two more guards walking around the area, though what she found interesting was that they were walking around the circular area that was in front of the stage and that they happened to be in line with each other, as when one stopped the other did as well. Despite that fact Derpy landed behind one of the guards and waited until he stopped, which was the moment she used her cane to swipe the coins and key from the guard's pocket before she knocked the guard out, to which she headed over to the second guard and repeated the process she used on the first one.

Sly, apparently seeing her work on the guards, dropped down into the area that she was standing in and headed behind the stage curtains, to which Derpy followed after him and watched as he made his way over to a switchboard and climbed up the pipe that was near him. From there he climbed up to the rafters that were above her, where she followed his movements as he silently reached a guard that happened to be watching television, so he had no idea that Sly was even there and had no idea that his key had been taken from him. Once that was done Sly dropped down to the area that Derpy was standing in and they headed to the right side of the stage, to where the makeup area was located, where the last two warthog guards were patrolling the area. Derpy, being able to get around the one that was walking up and down the stairs, opened her wings and moved towards the ceiling, where she flew over her target's head, landed behind him, and pickpocketed the key before knocking her guard out. At the same time Sly approached the guard that was on the lower level that he was on and waited until his target was showing him his back, where he picked the key from his pocket and knocked him out... before the two of them headed up to the control terminal that Bentley had pointed out and used the keys to turn the locks, allowing them to turn off the fans completely.

From there it was a simple matter for them, or more like Sly, to cross over to the central spotlights and slip the splice clip into position, where Bentley seized control over the machine to destroy the power boxes... though once that was done the two of them headed out of the theater and headed back to the safe house, but as they did so they spotted Gilda flying overhead with Bentley, indicating that they were now on their way to tackle the final mission before the heist.

Gilda and Bentley moved the moment Sly and Derpy were done seizing control of the spotlights in the theater, allowing Bentley to carry out the last part of that mission, though as Gilda flew over the area outside the nightclub, with Bentley holding tight to her, she spotted her siblings making their way back to the safe house. She made sure to move them over areas that the guards wouldn't be able to see them until they were already too far away to be seen, though when she reached the area that Bentley's mission was in she dropped down behind a guard, let Bentley down, and then knocked out the guard. The moment the guard was taken care of, and the golden watch he had been carrying was now in Gilda's pack, so that she could add it to the loot pile they were gathering back in the safe house, she turned towards Bentley and nodded her head, to which Bentley pulled out the key that Neyla had given them and paused as he wondered if they might be walking into a trap of some kind.

"Here goes nothing." Bentley said, to which he slipped the key into the lock and turned it, where his expression lightened as the locked turned, allowing them to unlock the door and head into the area of the nightclub that the mirror ball was located in.

The two of them walked through the door and found that their path was immediately blocked by something they should have been expecting, a laser wall that had a power terminal that was attached to the left side of the path, though the look on Bentley's face told Gilda that she didn't need to worry about the blockage.

"Okay, Bentley, to get past the laser fence, you'll need to blow it up." Sly said, speaking from the binocucom, which Bentley was now looking through as he stared at the obstruction, indicating that he was repeating what he had been doing to the others the entire time, "Since I know you made some explosives, and some of them are missing from the container you keep your gear in, I think you know what your doing, but I'll repeat the information anyway; just pull out a bomb, attach it to the side of the fence, and then get out of the way before it explodes."

Bentley didn't say anything as he pulled out one of the bombs in question, primed the timer, and attached it to the side of the fence, and backed away before the bomb detonated, tearing the structure apart so the two of them could move forward once more... where they found a warthog guard protecting the next fence.

"Bentley, maybe you should use one of your sleep darts on that guard." Gilda commented, to which Bentley nodded his head and lifted his crossbow up, to which he loosed one of the darts in question and let it fly through the air, hitting the guard in the chest a few seconds later.

The two of them watched as the guard started to stagger for a moment, taking a few steps away from the fence that he had been guarding, before he fell onto his side and stopped moving, to which Gilda stepped forward and made sure that he was still breathing... though once she had determined that he was out cold, and wouldn't be up for some time, she dragged him out of the bomb's radius and let Bentley blow the fence up, while also collecting the dart as well.

"Hey, Bentley, how're you holding up out there in the field?" Sly asked, though at the same time Bentley and Gilda continued to follow the path that was in front of them, allowing them to enter the part of the nightclub that their target was in, which wasn't had to spot at all.

"Fine, fine. I'm just fine." Bentley replied, though his tone indicated that, despite the fact that Gilda was wait him, he was still nervous about the situation he was in, almost as if Gilda wasn't even there, "I just need to bomb all the pillars supporting that disco ball and I can get out of here."

"You know, I've been meaning to ask about that." Gilda said, as Bentley hadn't actually revealed why dropping the mirror ball was so important, but at the same time she knew that it had to be important in some manner, "What's with you and wanting to drop the disco ball?"

"Its impact will shake the Nightclub's front peacock sign loose from its moorings..." Bentley started to say, though even though he decided to cut himself off, once more revealing that he was still nervous, Gilda understood enough to figure out what he was talking about, "Look, we can't talk now. We've got to keep moving, keep safe!"

Gilda wondered if Bentley forgot the part where he could dart anyone to sleep and the fact that she could summon the wind to defend them, but instead of saying anything she followed him as he moved into the area that the mirror ball was hanging in. As she followed him down the ramp that was in front of them Bentley moved to the left and placed one of his bombs against the support pillar he had been staring at a few moments ago, though when it detonated the structure broke and the support had weakened. After that they advanced up the ramp that was in front of them and Gilda ambushed the guard that was watching over the next support pillar and laser fence, though as she hauled him out of the way Bentley blew the two structures to pieces. The noise from the destruction of the laser fence forced a guard to come over to where they were, which Bentley knocked out with a sleep dart, though as he moved towards the third and fourth support pillars Gilda grabbed the dart and followed after him once more.

Fortunately there was only one more guard protecting the remaining two support pillars, so while Bentley placed bombs on the support pillars, and blew them to pieces, Gilda knocked out the guard that was patrolling the area... to which the two of them watched as the mirror ball dropped from it's perch and shattered on the floor, generating whatever Bentley was hoping for.

"Wow, Bentley, we felt that all the way back here at the safe house!" Sly immediately spoke up, revealing that they weren't the only ones that had felt the impact of the mirror ball, though at the same time Bentley and Gilda headed towards the entrance so they could begin the heist at last, "And you were right: the peacock sign had half of its bolts pop off on impact!"

Bentley smiled, as he was pleased that dropping the mirror ball had the desired effect he had been going for, before he and Gilda left this part of the nightclub and headed back to the safe house, as they had a heist to pull off and some Clockwerk parts to grab before Interpol showed up.

Bentley's plan was simple, so much so that the gang was a little surprised when they heard it, but it involved them using the now weakened peacock sign to smash their way into the area that the printing press was located in, allowing them to grab the Tail Feathers. Carmelita, of course, noted that this plan didn't involve a confrontation with Dimitri, though Sly assured her that the iguana was likely guarding the parts they were after, meaning that he, Gilda, and Derpy, maybe even Diz if he wanted to join them, were going to have to fight Dimitri before they could walk away with their prize. Since the forces from Interpol were getting closer to the nightclub, exactly like they had been expecting them to do, Bentley suggested that they get the operation underway so they didn't have a lot of people seeing them in action and breaking the rules that Secretary Sen put on them when they made the deal two years ago. As such he, Bentley, and Murray headed out to the water tower, where Murray would toss Bentley up into the entrance so he could shutdown the water in the fountain outside the nightclub, while at the same time Diz would be on the lookout for approaching guards.

Fortunately the three of them were able to complete that task without anything out of the ordinary happening, as no guards came running to check up on things, though at the same time Sly and Carmelita ambushed the guard that was carrying the keys to the repair truck, who was being called to fix the problem. With the keys in hand Carmelita got into the truck and started it up, to which she drove over to the area that Bentley wanted the truck in so that someone could catch the hook that was attached to the back of the vehicle. Once she was in position she climbed out of the truck and let Murray take over, not because she couldn't be a part of the operation more, but because her squad would be arriving soon and she needed to arrive with them, as an Interpol agent and not a thief. She also patted Sly on his arm, saying nothing before she turned tail and departed from the area, as she had no idea if Neyla was still watching and didn't want to give her 'partner' anything that she might be able to use against her at some point. Even as she walked away, however, she stopped for a moment and watched as Gilda and Derpy attached the hook to the top of the peacock sign, allowing them to bring it down and smash through what was apparently the roof of the printing press area.

Sly, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz headed right for the opening that was in front of them and dropped down into the area that the Clockwerk Tail Feathers were in, though sure enough they found Dimitri standing nearby, looking annoyed that they were even here and that they were wrecking his operation.

"Gah!" Dimitri said, sounding a little surprised by their sudden arrival, as if he wasn't expecting them until later or something, before he calmed himself down and stared at them, "So... Raccoonus Doodus, you and your little group are like totally bumming my house up and bringing me down. So very uncool. Why can't you let birds and bees be free, bro?"

"Because you're playing with something you know nothing about," Gilda replied, though at the same time she and the others readied their weapons, as they knew that this was going to break out into a fight, regardless of what any of them said in the next few seconds.

"And there's a certain bird that needs to stay dead." Derpy stated, her right hand moving up to her eyepatch for a moment, remembering the day Clockwerk stole her eye from her, before she growled and faced Dimitri, who had no idea what she had been doing.

"Look, bro. I see that you are a tough cowboy... a man with taste... style... vision... a connoisseur of finer things." Dimitri said, once more speaking to Sly while ignoring the others, but the look in his eye told them that he had heard them speak and that he was only interested in speaking with the leader of the Cooper Gang, "Like me. Look, I'm sure that two cats in a bag like us can work something out, yeah? We smoove, yeah? Look... see the money? You like the money? You can take all you want. I can..."

"No deal!" Sly answered, as he wasn't about to let himself be bribed by a counterfeiter, especially when they came to Dimitri's nighclub with a specific target in mind, and he wasn't going to leave without what they came for, "You and the rest of the Klaww Gang have to be stopped. Clockwerk will never again see the light of day. Just hand over the Tail Feathers and we can..."

"What is this with clocks, bro?" Dimitri asked, sounding annoyed about something, though at the same time that only confirmed that he had no idea what he and his gang had stolen from the museum, "Have you no vision? Are you hearing what I beam to you? You think you have juice? Don't show me a little mind when talking about such big things... you think you can swing the bat? Show your bling and let me shine you!"

"You know, none of us have any idea what you're saying." Diz said, as that was the honest truth, because it appeared that Dimitri had fallen to using phrases he had created since he created the nightclub, though at the same time he stared at the suit and one thought came to mind, "And personally, I think your suit sucks."

"Let's dance!" Dimitri screamed, though that was followed by him dashing backwards as he moved down to the area directly below the printing press, to which the four of them dropped down into the area and prepared for the fight they had been expecting since they put they came to the nightclub.

Dimitri's main method of ranged attacks was to fire blasts of energy from something on his wrist, though fortunately it could only fire three in a row and the fourth knocked it out of commission for a few seconds, allowing the four of them to make their way towards him before they hid behind the canisters that were around the area. When Dimitri's weapon failed to hit anyone the second time around he switched to trying to punch those that were near him and also tried to use his tail to hit them when he spun around. In response Sly, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz used their canes to attack him while they avoided his attacks, but a few seconds later he had enough of them and dashed over to the other side of the room so he could start firing at them again. From there it was a matter of repeating the same movements, as they could separate from each other and force Dimitri to pick one of them to fire at, but since he could only fire three shots, and missed every since time, it was easy for them to reach him again and continue their assault.

Fortunately Dimitri was only able to do that three times in a row, as after they dealt a good amount of damage to their opponent he dashed up to the machine and tried to stop it so he could take the Tail Feathers and run, but the group surprised him and knocked him into the machine. From there he was thrown into the waste barrel that was near the machine and complained about how they were taking the Clockwerk Tail Feathers, though all Sly did was tell him that there was no honor in printing money and that he didn't understand why he had chosen to do that with his portion of the ancient owl. Once Dimitri was out cold, or at least extremely dazed from the fight, the four of them gathered the Tail Feathers and made their way up to the opening they had created, allowing Murray to pull them up and get them to the van, so they could leave before Interpol arrived.

The following morning, when they were back in their warehouse awaiting the news on what happened, Carmelita arrived with a smile on her face, to which the gang welcomed her with open arms and she started to explain what had happened after she left them to finish up their heist. She had timed the arrival of her, her forces, and Neyla so that they would miss the Cooper Gang as they were making their exit, where they found Dimitri at the heart of his counterfeiting operation and arrested him immediately. Her superiors were happy with the news and she assisted Neyla in filling out all the paperwork necessary to make sure Dimitri went to jail for his actions, though once that was done, and she had another criminal name to add to the list of criminals she had taken out while following the gang over the years, she had gone home to get some sleep before coming here. Once she was done explaining her story, regardless of how short it was, Sly showed her the Clockwerk Tail Feathers and noticed that she was happy to have been of assistance in acquiring them, before he revealed his plans for a well deserved break for the gang, a reward for completing the first of many heists to steal back the various parts of his family's ancient enemy.

As such the gang, all seven of them to be exact, headed out for Monaco, where they would spend a week relaxing and enjoying themselves before they even attempted to figure out where Rajan and his parts were located... but they would find him in time and steal back whatever parts he had taken from the museum.

Band: India

Once the gang was done with their break in Monaco, and were refreshed enough to return to their search for the stolen Clockwerk parts, they started hunting down any and all information on Rajan, who happened to be a mysterious spice lord that was operating out in India. Rajan, as it turned out, was a self-made man who actually grew up poor on the streets of Calcutta, where he started his life of crime by selling illegal spices in the black market and eventually grew his small outfit into a sizable operation. In the end that helped him earn himself a seat in the prestigious Klaww Gang, which was followed by him crowning himself 'Lord of the Hills', and it appeared that he went to great lengths to convince others of his royalty, though the gang knew he was mostly trying to convince himself of that fact. As it turned out he was actually holding a lavish ball in his newly purchased ancestral palace, though the reason behind that was to show off one of his latest acquisitions, the Clockwerk Wings... the symbol of the Cooper Clan's ancient enemy.

They had the feeling that Rajan assumed that the ancient symbol of such a powerful creature, and an infamous one at that, would bring him prestige as he displayed it to those that came to his lavish ball, but at the same time it was bringing Sly and the rest of the gang as well.

Once they knew where their next target was located, and the exact date of the ball, Carmelita informed Secretary Sen about who they were moving against and, much to their surprise, he actually had invitations ready for her, Neyla, their boss Contessa, and even Sly to enter the ball undercover. While one of the ladies was happy to hear that Sly was coming with them, especially since they were trying to bring Rajan to justice and reacquire the stolen Clockwerk parts, the other two were annoyed that they were working with a thief. Since Sly was personally being invited to the ball as Carmelita's partner, which meant that he would have to stay at the party until his gang was ready for the heist and to make off with the Wings, he was entrusting the rest of the operation to his gang, who would contact him if they needed either his or Carmelita's assistance with something. Fortunately Secretary Sen also sent a tuxedo for Sly to wear while he was at the party, further revealing that he was on their side and wanted them to succeed, which Sly packed into his belongings before he followed Carmelita aboard the plane that she and the others would be taking to India.

The rest of the gang found their own mode of transportation and went to India ahead of Sly, giving them time to scout out the area near Rajan's 'ancestral' palace and found an ruined tower that was slightly obscured at the top, allowing them to stare out at the palace without having to worry about guards finding them... unless they bothered to look at the top of the tower while the large feral elephant patrolled the area in front of the raised gate that was in front of them. They had a good view of the last people to arrive for the part, which included Sly and Carmelita, before they were escorted to the area that guests were allowed to reside in for the duration of the party, but at the same time they were mostly required to be at the party until it was over. Gilda and Derpy, knowing that they needed to scout out the area and see if there was anyone at Rajan's ball they needed to be aware of before they started to plan out their operation, walked out of the hideout and approached the gate... though they avoided the elephant that was walking around the are, and were also surprised when Diz followed after them, to understand the beginning mission of every operation a little better.

As they quickly discovered the way forward was to use the Ninja Spire Jump technique to cross the spiked rocks that were resting in the river, since they didn't want to alarm the guards to their presence by using their wings, and watched as Diz repeated the movements as well. From there the three of them carefully made their way into the palace grounds and investigated the area around them, carefully watching the flashlight wielding rhino guards that were patrolling the area while also avoiding the ibex and baboon guards that were on the various roofs around them. While they made their way to the actual palace, where the ball was being held, Gilda spotted a helicopter that was flying over the guest quarters and knew that it was an obstacle that needed to be taken out in the future, but she put it out of her mind as they reached the side of the palace that Bentley wanted them to investigate. It appeared that, when they stopped moving for a moment, they discovered an opening on what was the upper level of the palace... though as the three of them climbed up to that area, and entered the palace, they looked out at the fully booked ball that was in progress at that very moment.

The first thing Gilda took a picture of was both of the Clockwerk Wings, which appeared to have been welded to the statue that was in the center of the ballroom, before snapping a picture of the motorized winch that was above the room and another one of Rajan himself. From what she could tell Rajan was also a bengal tiger, with the normal coloration that came with his species, though while he wasn't wearing a shirt he was wearing some royal like leggings, sandals, and a turban on his head, but he also carried a wooden staff. After that Bentley quietly whispered that they also needed pictures of any important quests, where Diz took point and used his binocucom to snap a picture of the Contessa, the black widow spider that was normally Carmelita's superior, unless Carmelita was under Secretary Sen's orders, which she was at the moment. After taking the Contessa's picture Diz was able to snap a picture of Jean Bison and Arpeggio, who they had discovered were members of the Klaww Gang before Carmelita and Sly headed to the party, and a picture of Neyla as well, who was wearing a dress that came in two pieces while showing off her midriff and was meant to entice others to come and talk to her during the party.

The last picture Diz took was of a certain pair of people, as he was able to nab a photo of Sly, in his tuxedo, walking alongside Carmelita, who was wearing a nice looking black dress, though while they appeared to be enjoying themselves, and the gang knew they were, they also knew that the duo was keeping their eyes on Rajan and the Wings... but since they couldn't do much at the moment Bentley called the three of them back so he could create a proper plan of attack for this operation, especially since they actually couldn't get to the Wings just yet.

When the trio got back to the hideout, and handed over the pictures that they had taken inside the ballroom, Bentley stared at them for a few moments and occasionally glanced at the palace grounds, as if he was studying them for something that would allow them to move forward with the operation. In the end he determined that their first order of business would be to take out the chopper that was flying over the area, though in order for them to do that, without relying on Derpy's lightning or Gilda's wind, since there weren't supposed to be any storms for the next few days, they had to rely on something more traditional. That turned out to be a turret that was resting on the palace grounds, but since Murray was the only one of them that could flip the switch and turn it on, since the model had a heavy switch that went with it, the first mission would be dropping the drawbridge that was near their hideout. The group immediately knew what he was talking about, as both Gilda and Derpy promised Bentley that they would get the bridge lowered so they could all begin the real work that Bentley had planned.

Fortunately the path to the mission start area was right inside the palace, as all they had to do was use the Ninja Spire Jump, pull themselves up the vine to reach the rampart, and then use a bounce pad to reach the the small tower that the beacon was attached to, where they pulled their binocucoms up and readied themselves.

"Gilda, Derpy, as you know Murray and I can't get inside the palace unless you lower the drawbridge for us." Bentley said, to which their binocucoms zeroed in on the winch that controlled the drawbridge, which was currently locked down by five locks.

"Well, the winch is locked down at the moment." Derpy commented, staring at the locks for a moment, before she remembered what she and Sly had done back in the theater of Dimitri's nightclub, "I take it you already know where we can find the keys?"

"Keyguards have recently taken up position around the palace." Bentley told them, to which they turned their gaze towards one of the rhino guards that was currently patrolling the area that he was assigned to watch over, where his pocket had a bluish glow to it, "We just need the two of you to sneak in, pick all of their pockets, and bring the keys back to the locked-down winch."

Since one of the keyguards was right outside the gate, patrolling the area with the large elephant that was outside their hideout, Derpy and Gilda decided to focus on the other four keyguards that were scattered throughout the palace and the guest area. Derpy immediately headed towards the part of the palace that the ball was being held in, leaving Gilda to head over to the other building over the bridge, though as she did that she found one of the keyguards standing near some railing with his flashlight shining at the entire area in front of him. As she observed her target for a moment she came to the conclusion that she would have to lure this particular keyguard away from his post, meaning that she was going to have to use noise to do so. Fortunately there was a gong nearby that, when she slammed her cane against it, let off a noise that caused the keyguard to walk over to the gong so he could investigate the noise, allowing Derpy to move behind him and claim the key that he was holding.

Her second target was nearby as well, as he was near the trees they had used to get into the upper level of the ballroom earlier, but from what she discovered he was like the first one and there was no obvious way to get at him immediately. That was, however, until she spotted a vine connecting the rampart to where he was standing, to which she smiled and headed down into the street, making sure to avoid the guards that were patrolling the area while also stealing the treasures in their pockets, before she jumped onto the vine. From there she carefully walked over the vine and silently approached the keyguard that she was going after, where she quickly looted his pocket, claimed his key, and departed from the area before he realized what was going on. After that she returned to where the winch was located and jumped down to the area that was in front of the hideout, where she approached the other keyguard she and Gilda had noticed earlier and looted his key as well... before heading back up to the winch as she waited for Gilda to return.

Gilda, on the other hand, found that she was fortunate in where her keyguards were located, as the first one was patrolling the bridge between the palace and the guest quarters, so she followed after him and stayed in the shadows as she picked his pocket. In the end she walked away with his key and headed into the grounds of the guest quarters, to which she carefully walked around the area, picked the pockets of the various guards she passed by, and eventually found the second keyguard on the backside of the building. Getting to him was easy, as she only had to drop down behind him while he was patrolling the balcony he was on and swipe his key while he was distracted by constantly moving, to which she smiled as she took the key and headed back down to the area below her. With both of the keys in her possession Gilda headed back towards the winch with the intent of claiming the key from the guard that was near the hideout, but as she arrived at the winch she found Derpy standing next to it... and three of the locks had keys waiting inside them, revealing that her sister had beaten her to the punch and had taken the fifth key while she was busy.

"Well, that makes things much easier." Gilda said, as she wasn't annoyed that Derpy had finished gathering her keys before she could, as she must have been extremely lucky in terms of where her keyguards were located, though at the same time she slipped her keys into the remaining locks.

The two of them then turned the keys and let the locks come undone, allowing them to pull the lever on the winch and watch as the drawbridge lowered before their eyes, creating an open passage for Bentley and Murray to come into the palace grounds so they could complete some missions as well.

"Thanks you two," Bentley said, his voice revealing that he was extremely pleased with this outcome, even though he knew that they would have completed the mission and opened the drawbridge the moment he told them what they needed to do, "now Murray and I can access the palace grounds."

Gilda and Derpy smiled as they headed back towards the hideout, using the drawbridge this time around, as now they were one step closer to the heist that would allow them to make off with the Clockwerk Wings... and either end in Rajan being arrested or him being forced to flee, with them chasing him to put him in jail anyway.

Band: Brawls and Dancing

The moment Gilda and Derpy returned to the hideout, so they could see what else they needed to do in order to help Bentley prepare for the heist he had planned, they discovered that Murray and Diz would be heading out for the turret so they could take out the chopper as soon as possible. The reasoning behind that decision was because Bentley needed it to be removed before they could do any of the other major missions he had planned, as he feared that some of them might draw the attention of the chopper if it was around during those missions, meaning Rajan would know that someone was doing something in the grounds of his new palace. If such a thing happened Carmelita and the others would be forced to leave without arresting anyone and the operation would be a bust, and Bentley was sure that Neyla would use that as an excuse to get rid of them. As such the chopper needed to be taken out immediately, that much he knew for sure, so both Murray and Diz agreed with what he told them and headed out of the hideout the moment the sisters returned, where they and Bentley watched as the duo headed into the palace grounds.

Diz made sure to knock out the guards that were patrolling the grounds while Murray carefully made his way towards the mission beacon, where he also looted them of anything and everything that Bentley might be able to sell upon their return, before they reached the top of the building that the turret was located on.

"Murray, that chopper is a menace to all future aerial operations while we're on this job." Bentley said, telling them what they already knew, mostly because he found that sometimes he needed to remind one of them what their current mission was.

"Yeah, it's all covered in missiles and guns and stuff." Murray stated, though his eyes were locked on the turret that was resting in front of him and Diz, as he knew that this was they key to taking out the chopper, while at the same time noticing that Diz was prepared for anything.

"Now, be a team player and take it out with that rusty, pre-war turret." Bentley replied, to which their binocucoms locked onto the turret in question, even though Murray had been staring at it already, though instead of saying anything else he waited for one of them to speak before the line was disconnected.

"Okay, I had a potato gun once; I bet it works just the same." Murray happily said, as he liked the thought of smashing that chopper, even if he couldn't do it with his fists, to which he put away his binocucom and approached the lever that was right in front of them.

"You had a potato gun?" Diz commented, as that was something that he hadn't known before this point in time, despite the time he had spent with Sly, his sisters, and their friends, who were his new family, before he chuckled as he stood guard over Murray, "For the longest time all I had was a slingshot, that I eventually lost... but that doesn't matter at the moment. I'll watch your back while you get that turret operational."

Murray nodded as he stopped in front of the lever, grabbed onto it, and started pulling on it, though as he did that Diz found something interesting while he stood guard and watched Murray's back, there weren't any guards that wanted to mess with them. He could have sworn that someone would have noticed that someone was messing with the power to the turret and was planning on operating it, but all he did was stand there and found that none of the guards even came up to where they were standing. It was strange, mostly because of what he knew from the previous operations that the gang had been on in the past two years since he joined them and the fact that the guards of those areas always came after them when they did something like this, but he guessed there was a reason behind the guards not wanting to come and mess with the turret. Fortunately Murray was able to flip the switch and restored power to the turret, to which he climbed onto the structure the turret was resting on and took control of the turret itself, where he raised into the air a little and zeroed in on where the chopper was located.

The instant he was in place Murray started firing at the chopper, pausing every now and then to make sure they didn't overheat, while at the same time the chopper, realizing that it was under attack, turned towards the turret and starting firing missiles at them. Murray, noticing the missiles coming, used the turret to take them out before returning his focus to the chopper, while Diz stood there and remained silent as he watched the chopper take damage while Murray and the turret took no damage at all. Even when the chopper started firing more missiles at Murray and the turret, in an attempt to take them all out, Murray proved that he was skilled on a turret and blew all of the missiles up before they could even reach him, before loosing another burst from the turret and caused the chopper to explode. That was instantly followed by Murray proclaiming that he was triumphant while the turret returned to the position it had been in before he activated it a few seconds ago.

When Murray started to head back towards the hideout, since that was the only thing that Bentley needed him to do, Diz said that he'd take a moment to do something else, as Bentley had asked him to slip something to Sly and Carmelita, as there was something he needed to do when it was time for the heist to begin. It was a pair of small communicators, ones that would beep once when it was time for them to assist them in the actual operation, though while Murray headed back to the hideout Diz noticed that Gilda and Derpy, now free to fly around the palace, flew out to gather the various clues and treasures that were scattered throughout the palace. Diz chuckled as he saw them moving around the area, as they enjoyed flying as much as being thieves, before he jumped down to the street below him and made his way towards the guest quarters. The reasoning was because, thanks to seeing Sly and Carmelita head into the ballroom with their tuxedo and dress on, he knew that he needed a tuxedo to get by the doorman that was letting people into Rajan's party, though finding one would be easy if he looked through the guest quarters.

As such he avoided the guards, making sure to rob them of their loot in the process, before heading towards the main door of the guest quarters, where he carefully opened it and slipped inside the building as fast as he could, as he didn't want anyone to see him. When Diz entered the building, and closed the door behind him, Bentley informed him that the specific building he had entered happened to have five rooms he could search, none of which were the ones that Sly, Carmelita, or the other Interpol officers had been given, meaning that it was fine to ransack all of them until he had what he was searching for.

Attention guards, this is Lord Rajan. an intercom said, causing Diz to pause for a moment, as he had to wonder if there was anything special he could learn from hearing the gang's target speak for a few seconds, The party here is in full swing and all visitors are now in the ballroom. Now, while this ball may be on the up-and-up, not all of the guests are, so be careful to look out for prowlers. I don't want any bad press on this event.

Diz, finding that Rajan wanted this to be a successful party, also discovered that the tiger didn't have anything interesting to reveal to him, so he moved up the left hallway and entered the two rooms that were on that side of the building, where he found guards patrolling the entire area. Since there were more guards in all the rooms, at least four to five and knocking one out would draw the attention of the others, Diz activated the spell he had used when Secretary Sen brought him to see the Cooper Gang two years ago, where he faded out of existence. Before he became a thief, and had been spending his years as a prankster, he had spent some time pretending to be a poltergeist and freaked out some families with his various antics, only leaving when they brought someone in to 'exorcise' him. It had been fun, especially since it was hard for people to figure out what was going on, but eventually he was caught by Secretary Sen, which was what prompted him to bring him to the meeting with the gang.

Now that he had been trained to be a thief, however, his invisibility spell came in handy for areas like this, as he could walk in front of the guards and they would have no idea he was there, though the flashlight guards he ended up sneaking around, just to be on the safe side. The downside to the situation was that he found that it was easy for him to slip back into his old ways, as while he was looking for the pieces of a tuxedo he moved things around and watched as the guards that didn't have any flashlights were getting freaked out as they watched something move on it's own. He had no idea if they believed in ghosts, poltergeists, and everything else, but he found it amusing to watch them shake in fear as they watched what he was doing, only to relax when he eventually stopped moving things and walked out of the room when he found a piece of the tuxedo he was after. It was far too tempting to do that in all five rooms, as the guards were so easy to mess with in such a manner, and he spent a few minutes in each room, doing identical things to all the people that were guarding this area, before he gained what he was looking for.

When he had the pieces of a tuxedo, and was done messing with the guards, he returned to the main entrance of the building and let his invisibility fade, to which he headed outside the building and headed towards the ballroom door the moment he was outside... where the doorman allowed him to enter the ball, as Diz had shown up wearing the tuxedo he had taken from the guest quarters.

Sly and Carmelita, despite the fact that they were both undercover at the moment, spent their time making it seem like they were enjoying the party, which they actually were enjoying despite the fact that it was one of their target's parties, while at the same time keeping their eyes on Jean Bison, Arpeggio, and Rajan. From what they could see the three members of the Klaww Gang did visit each other a few times during the party, acting like business partners that would immediately make guests think twice about interrupting them. What they overheard, however, revealed that Rajan not only made off with Clockwerk's Wings, but also the powerful pump that was his Heart, which only Rajan knew the location of by the sound of things. Jean Bison happened to have the Lungs, Stomach, and the Talons of the ancient owl, though the mention of the last ones made Sly remember what happened to Derpy when they fought Clockwerk two years ago, but Carmelita was able to negate any anger rising to the surface with her mere presence. Oddly enough Arpeggio seemed to have possession of Clockwerk's Brain, though that left out the hypnotizing Eyes that Sly had read about in the Thievius Raccoonus, making him wonder if there was a fifth member of the Klaww Gang that hadn't shown up to the party... though if that was the case Rajan didn't appear to be upset over the fact.

While the two of them were gathering any information they could use in the future, once they had Rajan's Clockwerk parts, they stopped at a snack bar and grabbed some fruit drinks, as they needed to be thinking straight the entire time they were here... though as they did that they spotted a familiar hyena, now dressed in a tuxedo, move into a small room and remain there for a few seconds, but the bound wings that they could see through the back of the tuxedo drew their attention and cased them to follow after him.

"Diz, what are you doing here?" Sly asked, though he meant the ball, since none of the other members of his family or gang had been invited to actually attend the ball, and he expected them all to be working to get the Clockwerk Wings before Rajan figured out that cops were at his party.

"Bentley wanted me to give you guys these." Diz replied, to which he pulled out two earpieces, one for both Sly and Carmelita to wear, and let them take the items from him, before he hid his hands again, "He's got a plan to get the prize, but he said that to make sure no one sees whats happening there needs to be a distraction... like the two of you dancing or something like that."

"He wants us to dance, to distract Rajan and the others?" Carmelita inquired, as she had always imagined that her first actual dance with Sly would be somewhere of their own choosing, but at the same time she had to admit that Bentley's plan already sounded good, "When does he want us to start our 'distraction'?"

"Those are designed to go off when he's ready for you to make a move," Diz explained, remembering what Bentley had told him before he left the hideout, before coming to the second part of the statement, as this was his role when the operation went into effect, "and, in case he forgets to activate the sensor to give you the news, I'll be back when the heist begins, to let you two know when to move."

"Bentley, he's always got a backup plan for everything." Sly said, to which he and Carmelita fitted their earpieces into their ears, where they seemed to disappear entirely, before he turned back towards Diz, "You should get out of here before someone asks you to dance... especially since Neyla's been dancing with a few partners and stopping whenever they make the wrong move."

Diz nodded and excused himself, making it seem like the conversation was just some friends meeting in the strangest place, before he headed towards the entrance he used to get inside the building, telling the doorman that he only needed some air and that he'd be back in a few minutes... before heading back to the hideout to give Bentley the good news and see if he had figured out what to do next.

Upon Diz's return to the hideout, and he had changed back into his thief attire, they all sat around the table as Bentley explained that they were going to have to use the electronic winch above the ballroom to get at the Clockwerk Wings, but that meant they needed to gain control over it. Bentley already had the location of the control room, meaning that they didn't have to waste time getting it, though at the same time he also explained that they would need a really good saw to cut through whatever was holding the Wings to the statue they were attached to. Fortunately he had an idea for that as well, as Rajan's prized elephants had some headdresses that contained three gemstones a piece, which he concluded would be perfect for cutting the Wings free. In addition to all that Gilda and Derpy discovered the existence of a surface-to-air defense system that needed to be taken out as well, something that Bentley was going to do with his RC-chopper that he had brought with him, thus allowing them to put the heist into action... which all of them happened to be looking forwards to, especially when Bentley said they were close to retrieving the Wings.

Gilda and Derpy headed out the moment Bentley was ready to go, as hacking into the control room for the winch was going to take all of them since guards were likely going to swarm them once they knew what was going on, so while Murray, Diz, and Bentley headed for one entrance the sisters headed for the drain that would let them enter the back way. Even with the surface-to-air defenses patrolling the area it didn't take them long to reach the back side of the building and enter through the drain that they discovered, which brought them to what appeared to be a pool or a hot spring of some sort. The two of them noticed some rhino guards patrolling the area and, in accordance to what they usually did, went to work knocking them out as they went, though at the same time Bentley informed them, via the earpieces he insisted they wear for this part of the operation, that the code they were looking for, to get to the switch that would open the doors on the upper level, was under one of the tables near them.

What they discovered was that there were four tables for them to crawl under, which Derpy did without hesitation, and that the code happened to be at the far end of the room, on the opposite side of the drain they entered through, but once she found the code she headed towards the laser door in the middle of the room and opened it. After that she and Gilda made their way over the lasers that were on the floor, smacked the snakes that rose from their vases, and reached the switch in question. Before pulling it Derpy turned towards the vault that was beside them and input the code Bentley had gotten from the clue bottles they had recovered, which was 8-5-7, and opened the vault, allowing her to swipe the blueprints for a melee weapon that forced enemies into berserker state, where they'd become confused and attack their former allies instead of their real enemies. Once they had the vault's treasure the two of them flipped the switch and the door above them opened, to which they headed up there and regrouped with Bentley, Murray, and Diz.

"Thanks for breaking us in guys," Murray said, though he definitely looked ready for a fight, which made sense considering what they were able to attempt with Bentley's assistance, but whether Murray remembered that or not was the real question, "'The Murray' approves."

"Let's get down to brass tacks." Bentley stated, drawing attention to himself, though this time around he was serious and showed no sign of his earlier nervousness, back when they were in Paris or hitting the Cairo Museum, "I need to hack both the vault room computers to get control of the electronic winch above the ballroom."

"And we're here to guard you while you work." Diz replied, as he remembered the briefing that Bentley had given them before they left the hideout, though he said it so Murray would remember that they were going to be fighting some of Rajan's guards soon enough.

"Precisely." Bentley said, as he was happy that someone, besides Sly and his sisters, seemed to understand what he was trying to say, even when he did so slowly for Murray's sake, "The second I enter their servers they'll be onto us. You guys need to work together to keep the thugs off my back."

"Leave the guards to us Bentley." Gilda stated, though at the same time she, Derpy, and Diz held their canes at the ready as they prepared themselves for what was ahead of them, to which Murray joined them by pounding his fists together as he stood behind them, while at the same time Bentley moved towards the first computer.

"Okay, I'm in." Bentley said, to which he put his crossbow down and started hacking into the terminal that was right in front of him, allowing his full concentration to be on it and nothing else, as he was sure that the others could protect him from the guards, "Hacking the level six barrier."

Sure enough the instant Bentley started talking the door he and the others had walked through opened and the guards started to move into the area, where Derpy, Gilda, Diz, and Murray engaged them immediately, knocking them out so they wouldn't be able to harm their friend. It was pure madness as the four of them used their canes, or in the case of Murray his fists, and beat up the guards that were coming at them, where they fell down on top of their allies and created some nice piles that they'd be waking up in later on. While all of this was happening Bentley moved to the second computer as he moved to the level five access, though the group focused on the guards and simply fought them as they entered the chamber that they were standing in. Murray was having the most fun out of all of them, as he enjoyed bashing his enemies together and even threw some of them at groups of approaching guards, leaving Gilda, Derpy, and Diz to deal with the stragglers. Bentley, not having to deal with the guards, continued to call out which levels he was breaching as he moved between the two computers, going from the level six barrier and descending towards the lowest barrier that was in his way... until eventually he succeeded in his mission and claimed total control of the winch.

Fortunately once he had control of the winch the guards stopped coming, meaning that the fight was officially over, to which he thanked everyone for assisting him and they immediately headed out, as they had more missions to take care of before the heist and knew that both Sly and Carmelita were waiting for the order to begin the distraction... and then they would take the Clockwerk Wings from Rajan and celebrate their victory over the second member of the Klaww Gang.

Band: Hippo Drop

As Gilda, Derpy, Murray, and Diz headed back to the hideout, to rest for a few moments before the next stage of their operation, Bentley followed after them for a few minutes and left a minute later, carrying the RC-chopper that he had carefully stored away for this operation. With his device in hand Bentley carefully made his way into the palace grounds and used his sleep darts on the guards that were in his way, thus allowing him to reach the bridge that connected the guest quarters to the palace itself. From there he used some of the containers to jump his way up to the roof of the building that he had set his mission beacon to, before using a jump pad to reach the top of the tower that was next to him, which allowed him to get away from the guards that were patrolling the area. He noted that the guards that were now below him didn't have any golden pockets, as when he asked Diz where he kept getting all the loot he brought to him, to sell on Thief-Net, he said he got them from the pockets of the guards in the area, from the golden pockets anyway.

Bentley sighed for a moment as he tinkered with the RC-chopper and made sure that it was fully operational, as now wasn't the time for something to go wrong, because that surface-to-air defense needed to be taken care of quickly, just like he had asked Murray to take out the chopper quickly... though before long he opened the communication channel and established connection to the hideout, indicating that he was getting ready.

"Bentley, what's your status?" Gilda asked, as she had seen the communication light come on and had come over to make sure someone talked with Bentley before he started his mission, just like he did with everyone else that were off to complete the missions he assigned them.

"I'm in position with the RC-chopper," Bentley replied, to which he smiled for a moment as he flipped a switch and the propeller blades of the device started spinning, indicating that it was ready for takeoff, where he stood back and let the RC-chopper fly into the air as he began his search for his target, "all systems are go to neutralize their surface to air defenses. We're going to need free reign of the sky during the heist."

"Well, good luck and be careful." Gilda said, as she knew that Bentley needed some encouragement from time to time when he was in the field, though at the same time she said nothing about the fact that parts for an RC-chopper weren't cheap, because she knew that Bentley would take care of his toy.

"Hostile has been sighted." Bentley stated, seeing his target through the camera that was attached to the RC-chopper, where he primed the weapon system and chased after the car that was Rajan's surface-to-air defense system, which was already preparing it's first missile, "I'll let you know when I've taken out the target."

The moment the RC-chopper was near the surface-to-air defense vehicle Bentley carefully timed when he needed to drop a small bomb on his target and when he needed to rapidly turn to avoid the missiles that were coming after his device, which in turn caused them to detonate without harming the device. As he suspected the vehicle drove all over the entire palace grounds, the area around the hideout, and even one around the guest quarters, though the driver seemed to think twice about that when Bentley rained a good number of bombs down upon his target. From there it was a simply matter to carefully avoid the missiles, destroying them in the same manner as the first one, while carefully dropping a number of bombs on his target, which eventually caused the vehicle to catch on fire as it continued to move through the palace grounds... until eventually the driver got out of it and rolled off to the side as the vehicle exploded, though the look on the driver's face revealed that this was the only vehicle of it's kind that Rajan had ordered.

Bentley smiled as he switched the controls and the RC-chopper came back to the tower that he was standing on, where he waited for it to land before he stored the device in the container that it had been stored in, before he carefully descended the tower and started to head back towards the hideout... where Gilda, Derpy, Murray, and Dix were waiting for him with smiled on their faces.

"Nice flying Bentley." Derpy said, as she and the others had seen the RC-chopper flying through the air and that it hadn't taken a single hit while it was destroying Bentley's target, which meant that he had succeeded in his mission, as the smile on his face revealed his mood, "That jeep's out of commission and now we have clear skies for the heist!"

"Thank you." Bentley replied, to which he set the container down and returned to his seat, as there was more they needed to do before the operation could get underway, where he turned towards the rest of the gang, "With that jeep taken out the three of you will be able to fly without having to worry about being shot down... and it might make the final missions easier for all of us."

Diz, being the first one to react, nodded his head and headed out of the hideout, where he flapped his medium sized wings and took off as he headed over towards the area that the beacon was resting in, though as he did that he heard the sound of Gilda and Derpy taking to the skies as well. From what he could tell they were planning on helping him get the gems they needed for Bentley's saw, which was a good idea since they had no idea how much longer Rajan's ball was going to go on. With the ability to fly around the palace grounds now restored to them, as the guards wouldn't be able to do anything about them even if one of them were spotted, it didn't take them long to find the area that the mission beacon was bringing them to, which appeared to be a room that was guarded by a large heavy door. As Diz landed in front of the door, so he could get the mission briefing, both Gilda and Derpy landed on the roofs of the buildings around him, knocking out the guards while they waited for him to get started.

"Diz, we need to find a way to get Rajan's prize elephants out of their pen." Bentley said, reminding Diz of the fact that the gems he needed were actually attached to the headdresses of the very beasts that were behind this door, to which he rubbed the back of his head as he studied the door for a few more seconds.

"Well, I can already tell that I'm not going in through the front door, as that's not something any of us can open without some serious assistance." Diz replied, though as he started walking around the exterior of the building he spotted something beneath the steps, something that made him grin, "However, this hole beneath the steps can provide me with a way inside the building so I can get the elephants outside."

Bentley said nothing as Diz put his binocucom away, slipped his cane into the holder on his back, and crawled into the hole that he had spotted, where he carefully made his way into the area beneath the building and spotted some rats making themselves at home... though as he approached the rat, however, they scurried off and the elephants, apparently seeing them somehow, made some noise as they barreled through the door and left the building.

"Diz, I don't know what you just did, but whatever it was sure freaked out Rajan's prize elephants." Gilda spoke up, though at the same time Diz carefully turned around and started to make his way towards the hole he used to get into the area he was in, "They're now outside rampaging around the palace."

Diz removed himself from the area below the building that he had been in, dusted himself off for a few seconds, and then pulled out his cane, though as he did that he spotted the first of the two elephants standing nearby, though there was a look in his face that revealed that he had done what he set out to do.

"Wow, he sure looks spooked." Diz commented, looking into the crazed eyes of the elephant for a few seconds, as it looked terrified of the rats that had freaked it and it's companion out, forcing them to run through the door and start their rampage through the streets.

"A job well done, Diz." Bentley stated, as while he wasn't expecting rats to be the key to drawing the prized elephants out of their building, because he had several other ideas on how to draw them out, this made things much simpler for all of them, "Now comes what would generally be the hard part. I need you, Gilda, and Derpy to snatch the headdress jewels worn by both elephants. The jewels are firmly embedded, so keep whacking at them with your cane to knock one loose."

"Or we can fly up to them and simply steal the headdress as a whole," Derpy spoke up, as she didn't see a reason why they needed to use their canes to smash apart solid gold, because they could definitely sell them on Thief-Net when the operation was over and make off with a decent profit.

Bentley, clearly at a loss for words since he wasn't expecting one of the girls to come up with such an idea, said nothing as the connection between them and the hideout was disconnected, to which Diz smiled as he took to the skies and headed to the nearby elephant. When he arrived he already found Derpy hard at work removing the bindings that were keeping the headdress attached to the elephant's head, though he didn't bother to question how she was able to work on it without the elephant trying to knock them off. As such he headed to the other side of the headdress and started to undo the bindings on his side as well, to which the two of them carefully moved away from the elephant when it moved through areas that were too small for them to remain near it's head. Fortunately it didn't take them too long to undo the bindings and claim the headdress, along with the gems that were on top of it, before they headed over to where Gilda was working on her elephant.

Diz, holding the first headdress, watched as Gilda and Derpy fiddled with the bindings that kept the headdress on the elephant's head for a few moments, before eventually they knocked it loose and they carried it over to the hideout... where Diz did the same thing so Bentley had all six gems that were on them, but he then watched the rampaging elephants for a few minutes before the guards finally got them under control and escorted them back to their pen.

Bentley took some time to create the saw they needed for the heist, allowing the others to take a break while he was doing that, before he set the saw on the table and smiled, as it had been easier to create the item they needed than his original thoughts had led him to believe. Once the saw was ready he started up the projector and explained how the operation was going to begin, by him demolishing the palace's main bridge, which would cut off reinforcements from the guesthouse and hopefully distract the ballroom guards that were standing watch over the Clockwerk Wings. It was at that point that they would contact Sly, so he and Carmelita could understand that the heist was in motion and that it was time for them to dance, and hopefully the crowd would be transfixed by their tango. While that happened Murray, who would return to the control room for the winch, would lower himself into the ballroom by using the electronic winch and then start cutting the Wings free, before using the winch to make his exit. Once the Wings were being carried out of the palace by Murray, as he was the only one strong enough to carry them, Bentley stated that he would cover his exit with the RC-chopper... and once Murray crossed the drawbridge, thus securing the Wings, the gang would get back together, with Sly with them, and they'd leave Rajan to his fate.

Gilda, Derpy, and Diz were a little annoyed that there wasn't anything they could really help out with, but Bentley explained that someone needed to help him control the winch, just in case he lost control, and Diz jumped at the chance to help out. At the same time Bentley told the sisters that he would appreciate their assistance in destroying the bridge, as that would make things go much faster, to which Gilda and Derpy nodded their heads in agreement, as it was better than doing absolutely nothing during the heist. Once everyone knew what they were doing, and they were all ready to go, Gilda and Derpy carried Bentley over to the bridge that he wanted to destroy while Murray and Diz headed towards the building that the controls of the electronic winch was in. It didn't take them long to reach the bridge in question, while at the same time seeing that the guards were fully alert for anything and everything, to which they walked down the path that would allow them to reach the support structure of the bridge.

"Okay Bentley, Murray and I are moving into position." Diz spoke up, allowing the trio to hear him with their earpieces the moment he spoke up, while at the same time hearing Murray punch someone in the background, "How are you, Gilda, and Derpy going to demolish the bridge?"

"It doesn't take an engineer to figure out how to blow up a bridge." Bentley stated, though at the same time he pulled out one of his bombs and looked down at the bridge once more, as he knew what their targets were and didn't mind explaining it a little more, "We'll start by placing charges on all of the lower cleats. Once the structure destabilizes, those retainer rings on the upper cleats should pop right off, that will enable us to bomb all of the upper cleats... which will bring it all crashing down."

"Don't worry Diz, we'll be careful," Gilda said, to which she grabbed a few bombs from Bentley, a motion that Derpy copied, before the three of them jumped down into the lowest area of the bridge and started attaching bombs to the cleats that Bentley wanted to destroy.

It wasn't hard to destroy the lowest level of the bridge, as the nine cleats only required one bomb a piece before they were torn apart, but even as the second cleat was blown apart the trio noticed bits of the bridge were starting to shake themselves loose and rain on them. Not even a minute later the three of them headed up to the upper level of the bridge and watched as the lowest level shattered, the pieces raining down into the area below the bridge, before the three of them turned their attention to the level they were on. Interestingly enough the level they were now on required that they place two bombs on each cleat before one of them was destroyed, though between the three of them they were able to take out the eight cleats that were their targets. Once the final cleat was broken, and they were sure there wasn't anything else stopping the bridge from falling, the group moved out of the way and watched as the bridge shattered before their eyes, the fragments dropping into the abyss... while also preventing any reinforcements from coming to their master's aid, exactly like Bentley had planned.

"Okay Diz, the bridge is down." Bentley said, though at the same time he let Gilda pick him up, because at this point he had no other way of getting back to the hideout on his own, which was another reason why he had incorporated this into his plans, "We're heading back to the hideout so we can warm up the van, and so I can get ready to use the RC-chopper to protect Murray... now it's all up to Sly and Carmelita."

Even as Bentley said that Gilda and Derpy noticed that he had tapped the button on the side of his binocucom that was attached to the alarm that would tell Sly and Carmelita that it was time for them to dance and cause a distraction so Murray could get at the Wings.

Sly and Carmelita stood off to the side and observed the rest of the guests that had taken to the dance floor and found that Rajan either didn't care or he wasn't interested, like he only cared for a specific dance to be held at his party and he wasn't getting it. The only time his eyes had lit up was when Neyla's last partner tried the tango with her, but ended up failing within the first few steps and she stopped it, as it wasn't enjoyable for her, before heading to the refreshment table to calm her nerves. Sly was surprised that Neyla was annoyed because of her dance partners, but he simply stood near Carmelita as they waited for Bentley and the others to inform them that it was time for the dance to happen, so they could take the Wings from under Rajan's nose. In fact the two of them slightly paused what they were doing when they spotted some of Rajan's guards walking over to the 'Lord' of the palace, who glared at them for a moment and said nothing as they approached him.

The duo stood there as the guards spoke to Rajan, though as they did so Sly glanced up at the ceiling ever so slightly and spotted a familiar pink hippo preparing himself for the next stage of the heist, with a familiar hyena standing near him, to which he turned back towards Carmelita and pretended that he didn't see them yet.

"What!? The bridge is destroyed?" Rajan exclaimed, his anger and annoyance evident to anyone that was listening, which was mostly Sly and Carmelita at this point, to which he stared at his guards and tapped his staff on the floor, "Take all the manpower you need and look into it."

Sure enough the guards started to head out of the ballroom, so they could see what had happened to the bridge near the guest quarters, though at the same time both Sly and Carmelita heard the signal in their ears, thanks to the earpieces Diz had delivered to them earlier, and a smile appeared on their faces.

"It looks like Murray is in position." Sly commented, though he made sure to keep his voice low so that only Carmelita could hear him, while at the same time he came to the conclusion that whatever plan Bentley had come up with was doing exactly what he intended to do.

"And it looks like Bentley's little distraction did what he wanted." Carmelita said, as she was used to how the Cooper Gang operated and knew that this had Bentley written all over it, to which she turned towards Sly for a moment, "Sly Cooper, I believe its time that the two of us had that dance.

Sly's smile widened as Carmelita said that, as he had been waiting for this the moment Diz had given them the idea to use a dance to distract Rajan and his guests, to which he took Carmelita's hand and the two of them stepped out onto the floor in front of everyone, causing Rajan, the Contessa, Neyla, and the other Klaww Gang members to look at them. Once they were sure that they had the attention of everyone in the ballroom, and no one was looking at the ceiling, the two of them took up the proper stances for the tango and started dancing to the tune that the musicians were playing. As they danced back and forth on the floor, hearing some of the guests clap for them while Neyla crushed the glass she was holding onto in sheer anger at being showed up in a simple dance, both of them noticed two things happen; Murray had begun his descent towards the Clockwerk Wings and Rajan was deeply interested in them, indicating that he already liked what they were doing.

For the most part the two of them made it seem like they were simply enjoying their dance and weren't focusing on anything else at the moment, though as they danced Rajan's anger faded as he leaned forward to observe them and Murray disappeared behind the statue for a moment. Not a few seconds later the Wings moved and Murray started to head back towards the ceiling, holding tight onto the Wings, to which Sly and Carmelita continued their dance and made sure that everyone was focused on them and nothing else. Fortunately it didn't take Murray long to reach the ceiling and disappear with the Wings, indicating that he and Diz were making sure they reached the van with their prize, but both Sly and Carmelita decided to take a few moments and finish their dance, mostly because this was the first time they had done something like this and the actual dance they were doing was nearly finished.

"Sly, you dance quite well." Carmelita said, though at the same time the two of them moved into the final steps of the dance and stood in front of each other, so they could say goodbye for the moment, as she and the other cops had something to do once Rajan started freaking out.

"As do you, Carmelita." Sly replied, to which he raised Carmelita's hand and kissed it, making it look like he was the same gentleman that he had been attempting to be the entire time they had been here, before the two of them parted ways for the moment, after they got off the floor anyway.

Sure enough Rajan, no longer distracted by the dance the two of them had put on, noticed that the Clockwerk Wings were no longer attached to the statue and reacted in a vocal manner, before naming both Neyla and Carmelita as cops, to which the two of them started making arrests... while at the same time Sly grinned as he walked up the stairs and watched as Rajan fled his own party, as both his guards and the guards of the other Klaww Gang members were getting arrested. It was a shame that Rajan was going to get away, just like Jean Bison and Arpeggio were getting away, but at the same thing it was a good thing, especially since he was the only one that knew where the Clockwerk Heart was located. He followed the footsteps that the lord of the palace had left behind for a few seconds and noticed that they went into the jungle that was near the structure, giving him an idea where to find the tiger in the near future. Once he had that in mind he slipped into the crowd and disappeared as the guests ran from the ballroom, though he eventually slipped away from those people and walked into an area where Gilda and Derpy were waiting for him... to which the two of them grabbed onto him and spirited him away to the area the van was resting in, where they left the palace behind with the Wings resting in the back of the van.

With the heist over, and Carmelita freed from the majority of her duties, since she was supposed to book people like Dimitri and Rajan, the entire gang took a break and headed for Bollywood, where they planned on celebrating their success before heading after their target again. It took some doing, from both Sly and Carmelita, but they managed to sneak Murray onto the set of a full-blown Indian musical, giving him a moment to unwind as the rest of the group relaxed as well. They all knew that Rajan was still out there, and even Secretary Sen sent Bentley a message asking if they would be tracking the tiger again, though they all knew that things were going to get harder when they caught up with Rajan in the near future.

Band: Into the Jungle

Once the gang was done relaxing in Bollywood, and were ready to track down Rajan, the real detective work began for them as they attempted to figure out where in the jungle their target had fled to and where he might have hidden the second Clockwerk part he had taken, the ever beating pump that was the ancient owl's Heart. Such a thing in the hands of Rajan, who seemed to only be interested in his reputation, which was now shattered due to the events at the palace, and the spice that he grew all the time, was a bad thing for the rest of the world. As Bentley said the pump, if his calculations were correct, and even going so far to remind them that he always did his math right, would increase the spice production tenfold, which revealed how he was getting all the spice for the various shipments that Jean Bison made. None of them were happy with that particular thought, especially when they had no idea why the spice was so important to the Klaww Gang, which only made them double their efforts to figure out where Rajan had wandered off to.

It was Carmelita, of all people, that found the information that Rajan had spoken of some ruins deep in the jungle, oddly enough near the palace that he had bought to serve as his 'ancestral' home, which seemed to be the perfect place for the tiger to hide out in until the heat was off him.

With that information in hand, and they made sure that Secretary Sen was aware of the fact that they were heading after Rajan, the gang gathered their gear, purchased a few things from the various stores around where they were handing out, and headed towards the jungle. Carmelita, of course, had received instant permission from the Secretary to assist the Cooper Gang in the same manner she had done back in Paris, which was why she had brought along her Cooper attire as well, because she had the feeling she was going to play the thief more this time around. Sly still found it strange that she was so willing to live this dual life, where sometimes she was a cop and other times she was a thief that was pretty good, despite the fact that she had no real training in their field. Her mimicry of the Cooper techniques he had shown off, when she was nearby, was astonishing, but that only made him proud, because since she appeared to be a quick study he was sure that, if she chose to fully adapt to being a Cooper thief and left being an Interpol cop behind, Carmelita would learn the other techniques she didn't know in a short period of time.

It took them some time to reach Rajan's palace, taking a side road so they didn't get spotted by the officials that were still there, before they started to drive into the jungle that was in front of them, though after an hour or two Murray stated that they wouldn't be able to go forward in the van, since the jungle was too thick to drive through. As such the gang got out of the van and gathered all the gear that they needed for the next operation, though Carmelita was the last one to emerge from the vehicle, as she had chosen to change into her thief attire and had packed her cop attire into her pack, along with her pistol, so she'd have her other clothing on hand in case she needed to change. They had to use the machetes they had purchased in the city to cut their way through some of the thicker parts of their path, which was the sole reason Bentley had gotten them, and they made sure to ration their water as well, as there were few opportunities for them to drink some water... but eventually the gang reached the ruins that Rajan had built the heart of his operations in, while also locating a proper base camp for them to use.

The area they picked for their hideout happened to be a large stone, which had been crafted into the shape of a skull for some sort of creature, that also happened to have a wooden door with hinges and some drapes over the holes in the structure, indicating that someone must have used this place before Rajan moved into the area, but for now it proved to be the best place for their hideout. Once everyone had put their things in an area where they wouldn't be affected by any rain, in case a storm came through while they were here, Bentley laid out the basics of his plan. Sly and Carmelita, since they had done so well in gathering the information they needed on Dimitri's operation, were tasked with making their way to an area where they could infiltrate Rajan's operation and get some pictures of what was in there. At the same time he was asking Gilda, Derpy, and Diz to stretch their wings and find the clue bottles that were scattered throughout the area, as he was sure that Rajan had another vault somewhere in the ruins and potentially had another item they could add to their growing arsenal... and, as an added bonus, they could take the treasures that were scattered throughout the ruins and whatever the guards were carrying, to add some cash to their account.

As such Sly and Carmelita walked out of the hideout and descended towards the ruins that were below them, before jumping down to the ground level, though as they did that they spotted an elephant that was apparently moving in a complete circle over and over again, powering what appeared to be a satellite array of some kind. The duo shared a glance before Carmelita snagged a photo of it, since she was sure that Bentley was going to want them to do something with it in the near future, before they headed over to the truck that resting near a path. Neither one of them were going to question how Rajan had managed to get some vehicles to this area, especially since he had spent some time setting this entire place up for his operations, before they approached the mission beacon and raised their binocucoms.

"Sly, Carmelita, I need the two of you to sneak into the temple and take some recon photos so I can assess the situation." Bentley informed them, though the nervousness of him ordering Carmelita around, since he had found it odd that he could order a cop around, was gone now and a new confidence had taken it's place, "Just be careful, if you either of you get hurt the nearest hospital is one hundred and six miles from here. According to my map of the area, there should be a hidden passage into the temple behind that waterfall."

"That's some great detective work Bentley," Carmelita replied, as she was impressed by the fact that Bentley was able to figure out where a hidden passage was within a few days or hours of looking at a map of a certain area that he and the gang would be heading to, "and besides, right now I kind of prefer a side entrance to the front door."

Sly chuckled as he heard that, as he had been right in his thinking that Carmelita would fit in as a thief if she decided to change professions, but instead of saying anything the two of them lowered their binocucoms and headed toward the path that was right in front of them. There just so happened to be one guard patrolling the area in front of the hidden passage that Bentley had shown them, which was actually a terrible thing to do if you were trying to keep something a secret, but neither of them were complaining as they approached the baboon guard. Carmelita was the first to reach him and knocked the guard out, allowing Sly to jump the small gap in front of them first and pull on the lever that was attached to the 'hidden' passage, to which the grate opened. A few seconds later Carmelita joined him and the two of them crawled into the pipe that would allow them to see what Rajan was hiding, where they eventually walked out of the pipe and entered the spice growing facility... where Sly spotted an access tube that might allowed them to reach the top of the room, which Bentley claimed was where all the expensive stuff was located.

Once they knew their next destination the two of them headed to their left and carefully walked across the wooden planks that were connecting their walkway to the one in front of them, where they discovered that they had to knock out four baboon guards before they could progress forward. Fortunately Carmelita, having mimicked how a Cooper thief knocked out the various guards that were in their way, which Sly guessed came from a combination of studying him and her practicing on dummies, knew exactly what to do and they were able to knock the guards out quickly. From there they walked around a curved wooden walkway and spotted a rhino guard patrolling the area in front of them, who received the same treatment as his friends did, before Sly jumped onto one of the barrels that Rajan was using to water the plants and rode it to the level above them. Carmelita smiled as she saw that, as she followed his movements and caught up with him a few seconds later, before the two of them started to walk down the wooden walkway that was in front of them... until they came to a stop in front of a vine, which was when Sly determined that he might have reached an obstacle that Carmelita might not know how to get around.

"Carmelita, this vine is going to be slippery, which is great for us," Sly said, to which he noticed that Carmelita was looking at him, as she was interested in what he was talking about, especially since he hadn't actually taught her the moves that she already knew, "I'm referring to a pair of techniques developed by Tennessee Kid Cooper, one of my ancestors, back in the Old West; the Rail Walk and the Rail Slide. Since we're pressed for time I'll just show you how to pull off the move and see where you need help... and then, when we have more time after taking out the Klaww Gang, I'll take some time off from thieving to properly teach you our techniques. If you want to learn them anyway."

Carmelita raised an eyebrow as Sly jumped into the air, with a small jump that wasn't like some of the larger jumps she had seen earlier, and landed on the vine that was in front of them, to which she stared at his posture as he started to ride on the vine and headed towards the broken pillar it stopped at. She had to admit that she didn't recall having seen this particular technique in the past, since the days of Sly and the others taking on the Fiendish Five two years ago, but she knew that she could figure this out for herself. What she did was focus on how Sly had been standing when he landed on the vine and jumped onto it herself, where she positioned her legs like Sly did and quickly found herself riding down the vine as she headed towards Sly's position. Sly, of course, was surprised by her being able to mimic the Cooper techniques like this, even if Carmelita needed a few pointers to perfect the Rail Walk and Rail Slide techniques, but at the same time he smiled as she came to a stop in front of him... to which the two of them took turns on the much shorter vine that was behind Sly, which brought them to the access tube that had a ladder at the end of it.

When they reached the top of the ladder, however, they found the part of the operations that Bentley wanted them to take some pictures of, complete with Rajan actually patrolling the area at the moment, to which they decided to stay inside their hidden area and use their binocucoms to see what else they could take some pictures of. The first thing they took a picture of was the Clockwerk Heart that was hanging above the spice, in the middle of the room, though both of them noticed that the Heart had been separated into two halves. After that Sly snapped a picture of Rajan, where both he and Carmelita noted that the tiger was now carrying the second half of the Heart on the top of his staff, why they had no idea, and he looked pissed off, which was understandable since the gang ruined his party earlier. Once those two pictures had been taken the duo took a picture of the crane controls that one half of the Heart was connected to, which would be the key to lowering the part down to the floor, before snapping a picture of the entrance that Rajan had clearly used to reach this area... where Bentley commented that he had no idea where on the exterior it was supposed to be.

With those pictures taken, and Bentley informed them that he'd have to think about this, the two of them retreated back down the ladder and made their way back towards the hidden passage that allowed them to get into this area, before heading back to the hideout.

When Sly and Carmelita returned to the hideout they discovered that Gilda, Derpy, and Diz had acquired all the clue bottles that were in this area and had taken Rajan's treasures, meaning that any of them could open the vault whenever they found where Rajan had hidden it. Bentley, of course, spent a few minutes going over the pictures of the operation that they had taken, the map of the overall area, and a few other notes that he had made from the information that the trio had brought to him while they were exploring the ruins. In the end Bentley came up with the same plan as when they were tackling Dimitri, he needed a bit more information before they did anything else, to which he revealed a slide of a very special bug that someone would use to bug Rajan's office, which he knew the location of, while he went out into the field and took the spice operation blueprints from the tiger when he made his rounds around the ruins. However, before they did any of that, there was another thing that Bentley said they needed to take care of first, destroying the elephant-driven satellite array that was right outside their hideout.

Gilda and Derpy, deciding to take to the field for one of the missions, headed out immediately and descended into the area where the satellite array was located, though they landed on a nearby building and stared at their target, while also knocking out the nearby guard before he could bother them.

"Rajan is able to monitor all of our communications out here with that elephant-driven satellite array." Bentley stated, to which the sisters stared at the array as he talked, though at the same time they were already thinking of a plan to take care of it on their own.

"You got to admit, Rajan's smarter than what we thought he was," Derpy commented, though at the same time she flexed her fingers and felt the lightning flicker between them, as she was eager to show Rajan who he was dealing with, especially since a storm was coming, "I take it you already have a plan for shutting it down?"

"Of course I have a plan," Bentley replied, to which their binocucoms changed direction and locked onto a large tree that was nearby, one that had some spice plants growing at the top of it, "Now, the local spice plants are illegal for a very good reason. Eat too many of them and you'll go into a fit of uncontrolled rage."

"We should keep that stuff away from Murray, but I see that you mean." Gilda said, as she had pieced Bentley's plan together rather easily, as she could figure out exactly what would happen if they followed his plan, "We gather some of the spice plants and put them inside the elephant's feed bag, so when he takes a break, and gets something to eat, he'll go crazy and finish the job for us."

"That's an accurate interpretation of my plan." Bentley stated, though instead of closing the binocucom he knew that one of them was going to have a question for him, especially since they were the ones that channeled elemental energies all the time.

"Why don't we just blast it to pieces with some lightning?" Derpy asked, to which she noticed that Gilda was looking at her and she was sure that everyone in the hideout was likely doing the same thing, though at the moment she focused on what she was talking about, "Bentley, I don't know if you noticed the change in the weather since Sly and Carmelita came back, but it's started to rain and there's the possibility it might evolve into a storm... why don't we use that to our advantage and just send all the lightning into the satellite array? We can blow the thing to pieces and free the elephant at the same time, and in a much faster manner."

"If you think you can do something like that, then be my guest," Bentley said, his tone indicating that while he believed in the powers that she, Gilda, and Diz possessed, as he had seen them in action beforehand, he also knew that their training with Mz. Ruby wasn't complete and thought that she might be overstating herself, "regardless of the outcome, this should be interesting to observe."

Gilda chuckled as she moved to a high place and watched Derpy as she started to channel her power into the storm that was above their heads, where she noticed that lightning was already starting to jump from one cloud to another one, indicating that her sister had been right about the storm. While this happened she noticed that the others had left the hideout and were standing in front of the door, where they watched Derpy manipulate the clouds above the ruins and drew the power of the storm out from where it was resting. The other good part about this was that she was drawing all of the power that she could muster at the moment, indicating that she was trying to prevent a storm from happening when Bentley decided to go after the Heart, before she rose into the air and let the lightning course around her body for a few seconds as she locked onto her target. What really surprised the gang was that none of the guards in the nearby area were concerned by the fact that lightning was gathering in the sky above their base of operations, as if they didn't even know it was happening, but the gang remained silent as Derpy worked her magic.

A few seconds later Derpy snapped her eye open, raised her hand towards the sky, and the clouds flashed for a second, indicating that her attack was ready, before she swung down her hand and made sure it was level with the satellite array, where a large bolt of lightning burst out of the sky and barreled into her target. That was followed by the array being blown to pieces and scattering fragments of wood and metal everywhere, while at the same time surprising the elephant and caused it to pull itself from the completely ruined structure that it was attached to, allowing it to rampage as it fled from the ruins. Gilda and the others smiled, because even if the guards and Rajan calmed the elephant down, and bothered to attach him back to the array's post, they wouldn't be able to restore the satellite array anytime soon, not when the entire thing had been blown to pieces. Gilda then flew down to where Derpy was standing and helped her back up to where the hideout was located, as using that much power for such a simple thing had to be tiring, but it was well worth the effort... especially since this made it impossible for Rajan to intercept any of their future communications and figure out what they were doing.

She was sure that Bentley liked that news, if the look on his face was any indication, and she knew that it was only a matter of time until the gang found a way to smash the spice production facility that Rajan had set up, defeat the tiger in battle, and then claim the Clockwerk Heart... and then they could focus their efforts on finding and taking out the next member of the Klaww Gang.

Band: Half of a Heart

The moment Derpy was sitting in the hideout once more, and Gilda stayed behind with her so she could use Bentley's computer to provide information to the others, Sly and Carmelita headed out for the slightly unstable looking structure that Bentley had pointed out to them all when he was making his earlier presentation. At the same time Bentley, Murray, and Diz headed in the opposite direction, so they could hunt down Rajan while he was making his rounds, as he was sure to be carrying the blueprints of his entire operation with him. Gilda didn't mind sitting out for a while, as she had some fun back when they were going after the Clockwerk Wings, and this gave her a chance to relax a little before the others returned with news of their success. She was sure that the two groups would be able to pull off the missions that Bentley had set for them, so they could better understand what they were up against this time around, before they started to dismantle the entire operation, knock out Rajan, and take off with the Heart before the authorities arrived.

As such Sly and Carmelita noticed that there were actually two paths they could take to reach their destination, one involved climbing up the area near the now destroyed satellite array and the other was climbing up to the top of a tall tree and using a vine to cross to the top of the structure. Since some of the guards were now investigating the lightning strike that Derpy used a few minutes ago, meaning Rajan had heard it and noticed the array was offline, they immediately decided not to take the path beneath where the beacon was located. Instead Sly grabbed onto a vine and climbed up to the top of the rock wall that was in front of him, moving so Carmelita had more than enough room to join him, before they took turns climbing up to the top of the tall tree. From there they both jumped onto the vine that was in front of them and carefully made their way over to the top of the structure, where Carmelita knocked out the guard that was up there before they reached the point that Bentley wanted them to stand at... and stare at the small pool that happened to have the same bug from Bentley's slide resting inside it.

The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds, as they were surprised to find that a bug was even up here, to which they sighed and pulled out their binocucoms, because Bentley likely had some additional information to give them before he let them begin the mission.

"Sly, Carmelita, the insect in that pool is a rare Indian water bug." Bentley informed them, though based on the sounds around him Sly could tell that he was somewhere else in the ruins, which made sense considering that his group was going after Rajan at that moment, "If the two of you can carry it into Rajan's office its wings will transmit local sound waves at a frequency I can monitor."

"Let me get this straight." Carmelita said, as she had seen and heard some crazy things during her time hunting down the Coopers, and even more so once she started assisting them in this manner, but this sounded like one of the more strange things for Bentley to come up with, "We're going to bug Rajan's office... with an actual bug?"

"It is an elegant plan, I agree." Bentley replied, as if he was proud of himself for thinking of such a thing, though Sly and Carmelita glanced at each other before focusing on Bentley again, as they were just going to let him have his way so they could get on with their mission, "Now there's something the two of you need to know before you start moving, that water bug can only survive in stagnant pools... if kept out of water too long it'll become unhappy and likely draw the attention of local guards."

"Well, it looks like there are a few pools along the way to Rajan's office." Sly commented, as he had taken in how the first pool looked and found another one that was some distance from where they were standing, and then a third one even further away, no doubt creating a trail right to the entrance of their destination, "A short swim every now and then should keep our little friend quiet."

Once they knew what they were doing, and both of them had put away their binocucoms, Sly picked up the water bug and started moving, to which the two of them jumped down to the area of the structure were the knocked out guard was resting, carefully descended to the area behind the guards that were looking into the ruined satellite array, and then climbed up the side of the building across from the structure so he could put the bug in the pond that was up there. While he did that Carmelita surprised the guard that was patrolling the area in front of the building Sly was standing on and knocked him out, before spotting the next pool. The moment Sly felt that the water bug was ready to be moved he picked it up and jumped down to where Carmelita was standing, to which they crossed over the vine that was in front of them, jumped down behind a rhino guard, and headed to the left at the top of the small wooden bridge that the guard had been protecting. From there it was a simple matter to bring the water bug to the next pond, though Carmelita did smack the snake that emerged from one of the bushes, keeping both her and Sly safe while they spent a few seconds waiting for the water bug to calm down.

A few moments later Carmelita let Sly move up the vines that were in front of him while she grabbed the water bug this time around, before she followed after him as he carefully cleared a path towards the next pond that happened to be sitting near a ruined tower of some kind. After letting the water bug swim in that pond for a few moments the duo headed down the path that was in front of them, passing by the truck that Bentley, Murray, and Diz seemed to be sitting on while they waited for this particular mission to be over so Bentley could focus on his task, before they reached the pond that rested near a large stone archway. From there they headed into the actual ruins that was near Rajan's office and climbed the steps that were in front of them, to which Sly knocked out the guard that was in their way while Carmelita set the water bug down for another quick swim. She then moved forward and sought out the next pond, which she discovered was in an area that had two rhino guards patrolling it, to which she smiled as she stealthily took them both out, allowing Sly to carry the water bug up here without any incidents. The moment the water bug was ready Sly found a spot on the wall behind them where he could sneak his way over to a balcony, which both he and Carmelita did without delay, before they used a large mushroom as a jump spot to reach the top of the path above them... which brought them to the final pond and the entrance of Rajan's office, an entrance that they entered without delay.

The moment they were through the entrance they found a nice looking office, with a table or two with a number of spices and some throw pillows resting in front of the windows, before they walked over to the desk and let the water bug down inside the pond that was near it, where the bug floated for a few seconds.

"Excellent! I've already tuned into the bug's wing vibrations!" Bentley declared, though while they were happy at the mission being completed, as it meant they could grab the vault and leave, both Sly and Carmelita heard the sound of Diz and Murray being happy as well, "I'm a genius!"

Sly chuckled as he approached the vault, but as he did so he decided to try something, as he stepped to the side and let Carmelita stare at it, because while he knew that she could adapt to the Cooper techniques like he and the others could, and he had seen that with his own eyes, there was one thing that would be a problem for her. Carmelita, however, seemed to understand what he was doing and stared at the vault for a few seconds, clearly weighing her options at the moment, before she sighed and stepped forward. Sly then watched as Bentley gave them the combination, which was 3-8-6, and watched as Carmelita actually entered the code into the vault, where she opened it and revealed some blueprints on adding something to weapons to release an electric discharge. With that in hand the two of them left the Cooper Gang calling card in it's rightful place, knowing that Rajan wouldn't be back here for some time since Bentley was going to be hunting him down for the blueprints, before they departed from the office and started to make their way back towards the hideout... using a path that wouldn't put them in Bentley's way.

"I can't believe I actually did that," Carmelita commented, as she honestly couldn't believe that she had opened the vault in such a manner and took the blueprints that had been inside it, but she also knew that if she really wanted to be part of the gang, if such a thing were to ever happen, she'd have to get used to the feeling.

"Carmelita, there's nothing for you to be ashamed of," Sly said, to which he stopped her and rested a hand on her shoulder, so he could look her in the eyes and let her know that he was there for her, if she wanted to talk about what was bothering her, "Rajan was likely going to sell that to someone and get a lot of people hurt in the process, so it's better we take it and use it against those that would harm innocent people... or not use it at all, if that's your preference. It's better for everyone, regardless of how you look at it."

Carmelita hadn't thought of it like that, and she wasn't sure that Rajan was into selling weapons or weapon alterations like this, but she didn't say anything as they headed back to the hideout, giving her time to think about what it meant to actually be a member of the Cooper Gang... and, more importantly, what it meant to be a Cooper Thief like Sly.

Bentley waited until he found the frequency of the water bug on his radar once more, gave the duo the combination and heard the vault being opened, and waited until he saw Sly and Carmelita heading back towards the hideout before he, Murray, and Diz jumped off the truck they were on top of. The reason he had asked Murray and Diz to come along was because of something that was going to happen when he started hunting for Rajan, because he was going to need their assistance during this mission and he knew that Murray would have been disappointed to miss an opportunity to beat some of the guards up. The instant they touched the ground Bentley headed up the pathway that Sly and Carmelita had used to reach Rajan's office, as the path to their mission and the path to his mission was the same one, which meant he was able to reach his destination without having to engage anyone. Once he reached the area he had selected for himself, and raised his binocucom to look around the area, Murray and Diz stood guard over him as he worked, as they knew that he would move soon enough for the real reason they were out here.

He stood there for a few moments, watching the door that Sly and Carmelita had passed by as he waited to see if he was right in his earlier suspicions, though when the door handle moved he focused his mind as Rajan walked out and closed the door behind him.

"As I expected, Rajan is out for his daily tour of the operation." Bentley commented, to which Murray and Diz hid themselves, in the off chance that their target looked up at the walkway that they were standing on, which would ruin the mission before it even started, "I have a reliable source that claims Rajan always carries three blueprints on him, which when read together, tell you everything about his spice operation."

"It's too bad he's not carrying the section of the Clockwerk Heart Sly and Carmelita saw during their recon." Diz said, as he noticed that the wooden staff Rajan carried was missing the half of the metallic pump that had been the ancient owl's Heart, "You could just pump him full of sleep darts and we could all go home."

"Unfortunately, my sleep darts aren't powerful enough to affect Rajan." Bentley stated, as he had done some thinking and research before they came here, because he had thought about trying that as well, but quickly came to the conclusion that his darts weren't going to work.

"What?" Murray asked, his voice sounding surprised, not that Bentley could blame him for thinking that way, since he could see Diz was a little shocked as well, but Bentley was also happy to see that Murray wasn't shouting his words this time around, "Then how are we supposed going to get at him?"

"I found out something interesting while I was doing my research," Bentley said, to which he beckoned for Murray and Diz to use their binocucoms, where he seized control of them when they did and zeroed in on a watermelon that was resting nearby, "Rajan has an insatiable appetite for Indian watermelons, which, if eaten whole, will force even him to nod off for a while. Once he's asleep, I'll creep in and lift the blueprints."

"How are we going to lure him over to the various watermelons that rest around the ruins?" Diz asked, as he was curious as to how they were going to force Rajan to explore the ruins and eat the watermelons until Bentley had all of the blueprints that the tiger was carrying.

"I've equipped my sleep darts with a sonic disrupter," Bentley explained, referring to something he had done before they had come into the jungle, just in the off chance that such a thing was necessary to get some additional information on the spice operation, "the strange sounds they make should be enough to lead the ever curious Rajan from place to place."

Murray and Diz glanced at each other and shrugged their shoulders, as they didn't do the research and knew that Bentley likely had everything figured out, to which they put their binocucoms away and watched as Bentley fired the first dart at a wall that was near Rajan. At first they thought nothing was going to happen, but then Rajan, hearing the noise of the dart hitting the wall, started to move up the stairs as he followed the sound, to which the duo grinned as Bentley fired a second one. At that point the three of them watched as Rajan moved up to a watermelon and feasted on it, where he went to sleep, exactly like Bentley said he would, before the trio moved in and dropped down to where Rajan was curled up around his staff. Murray and Diz quickly removed the curious guards that were in the area, hauling them away to a place where Rajan wouldn't find them until later, where he could punish them for sleeping on the job, before they stood at a safe distance while Bentley lifted the first blueprints from Rajan's pocket... where he ran away before the effects of the watermelons wore off.

A few seconds later Rajan snapped out of his slumber and continued walking again, as if nothing had happened, though that only prompted Bentley to locate the next watermelon so he could repeat the process and get the second blueprint from their target. The fortunate part about having to find the next watermelon was that it was right next to the truck they had been standing on, to which Bentley picked another good vantage point and carefully led Rajan over to the watermelon's location, where the tiger devoured it and fell asleep again. As Bentley moved in to grab the blueprints Murray and Diz repeated their task and knocked out the guards that were in the area, allowing him to get what they came for and retreat the moment the second one was in his hands. Rajan, upon waking, seemed to know that something was going on, but that didn't stop him from following the sounds that Bentley's darts were making, especially as he led the way to a building with a watermill... where Rajan put himself to sleep upon devouring the third watermelon, allowing the trio to swoop in and repeat the motions until Bentley had what he came for.

With the third and final blueprint acquired, giving them the full scope of Rajan's operations, the trio moved to a safe spot and watched as Rajan freaked out when he realized that the blueprints had been stolen from his person, to which he fled to the safety of his temple... leaving Bentley to hope that he hadn't just scared their target into hiding or something.

After spending a few minutes pouring over the blueprints, and listening to whatever was said inside Rajan's office, Bentley quickly came to the conclusion that his theft of the blueprints, combined with the destruction of the satellite array, had driven Rajan into hiding. Fortunately for the rest of the gang he already had an idea on how to force the tiger out of hiding and drive him out into the open, though one of the things that he had planned was the destruction of the spice grinder, putting the hurt on his operation. Bentley also considered the destruction of the nearby dam to try and flood Rajan out, though he also asked that Murray acquire one of the rubies from the temple, as he planned on trading that stone for some extra firepower that might be able to get their target out in the open. Bentley confirmed that the plan was to make Rajan angry and then drive him to collect the Clockwerk Heart, bringing all of it to them, allowing them to take him out before Interpol showed up to arrest him.

Despite the fact that Sly said that he could take on the spice grinder all by himself, and he felt that he could when he noticed that the blueprints showed there were only a few guards down there, Carmelita insisted on going with him, to watch his back, and Gilda came along for the journey as well, mostly because she hadn't done much so far. Fortunately the entrance to the area that the spice grinder was located in was near the truck that Bentley had stood on earlier, only it required a little bit of sneaking around a corner so they could open the door and drop down into the area below them. When they reached the floor and stood up, however, the three of them noticed that there were some laser fences blocking their path, but at the same time they knew that such a thing had never stopped one of them in the past, which meant they only needed to find the way to get ride of them.

"According to Rajan's blueprints the three of you are near the Spice Grinding Facility," Bentley stated, speaking into their ears at the moment, as none of them were interested in lifting their binocucoms for a few seconds before they put them away, "however, as you all know, the passage is blocked by those laser fences."

"It looks like they're using TNT to create these catacombs... maybe we can 'borrow' some to destroy the fences." Gilda commented, looking at the side of the tunnel they were in, as there happened to be a TNT barrel dispenser near them, which was another poor design decision in her mind, "Do we just move the barrel over and let it explode, or is there some sort of method we're supposed to use?"

"Oh, it's actually quite simple." Bentley said, knowing that none of the gang had the opportunity to work with this type of explosive before, despite the fact that he had some knowledge of what they needed to do, "You just need one of you to jump into the barrel, walk it over to whatever your targeting, and then jump out and get clear of the blast radius. But do be careful around floor lasers, as the TNT barrels won't work on them."

Sly, being the closest to the dispenser, jumped into the first barrel that was in the area they were in, to which he carefully walked it over to where the laser fence was located and jumped out the moment he reached it, before running to where Carmelita and Gilda were standing. A few seconds later the three of them watched as the barrel detonated and took out the fence, allowing them to move forward once more, where they discovered that the next obstacle was a moving laser wall that only had three points. Another thing they discovered was that the dispenser had a limit as to how many barrels it could spit out at a time, as it seemed to be just the one, though Carmelita made sure that Sly was safe since he was being the stubborn one at the moment. Sly was able to move the barrel into the second fence and destroy it, though that was when they spotted the floor lasers that would prevent the dispenser from being any use to them, so they headed down the tunnel on their right and avoided the spotlights that were moving from wall to wall... before they made a left turn at the end of the tunnel and turned towards their left, where they ducked under the horizontal moving lasers and found their target.

It wasn't hard to locate the spice grinder, since it was the only circular device that was grinding the spice at the moment, but at the same time they discovered that there were two guards watching over the grinder and at least two more on the level below them, where the next dispenser was located.

Sly and Carmelita nodded as they jumped down into the area below them and immediately knocked out the guards that were down there, leaving Gilda to knock out the two rhino guards that were around the spice grinder and move them so they weren't hurt when the explosive barrel went off. Once the coast was clear Sly jumped into the TNT barrel and moved it to the laser fence that was blocking the way out of this area, where he jumped out of it and tore the fence apart, opening the way back to the tunnel they had been in moments ago. Carmelita surprised him by being the one to grab the barrel next, as she carefully walked over to where he was standing and went by him, to which he carefully followed after her and watched as she made her way through the spotlight infested hallway, passed under the horizontal lasers, and walked around the wooden walkway that brought her to the spice grinder. Fortunately Carmelita timed it right, as the moment she got the TNT barrel to the grinder the wheel was nearly upon it, where she jumped out and leapt over to where Sly and Gilda were standing... before the grinder was destroyed by the barrel's explosion, causing a message from Rajan to sound out throughout the area, where they discovered that the production of spice had been stopped.

With the mission complete the three of them retraced their steps towards the entrance, headed back outside, and started the walk towards the hideout, though as they did that Carmelita spotted the familiar movement of Neyla off in the distance, where she tapped on Sly's shoulder for a moment.

"What's wrong?" Sly asked, because while he knew there were guards around the area, and some of them were going to be annoyed when they heard the spice grinder had been destroyed, he had no idea what Carmelita had seen or what she might have heard.

"Neyla." Carmelita replied, keeping her voice low, as she didn't know if Neyla had placed listening devices nearby or something else, but she didn't want to give the constable any information to use against her, even though she was still in good graces with Secretary Sen, "She's here."

Sly nodded and had Gilda head back to the hideout, as he had the feeling that this might be like what happened in Paris and he wanted the others to know that he and Carmelita would be a little late getting back, and that they might want to move on with the missions while they were dealing with Neyla. Once Gilda was underway Sly and Carmelita headed over to where she had seen Neyla's movements, which ended up in an area by a few trees and a rather large mushroom, where Neyla dropped down behind them and caused them to turn around.

"Cooper, we meet again." Neyla said, though at the same time she stared at Carmelita, who hoped that the constable believed Sly's story that she was 'Kate Cooper' and not a cop in disguise, "And I see that you brought your new protege along for the journey again."

"Like I said back in Paris, she's learning how to be a Cooper Thief," Sly replied, knowing that it was at least half true at the very least, as he was only teaching Carmelita the techniques she needed to know so she could keep up with him, unless she already knew them ahead of time, before he focused on Neyla, "but we should focus on the matter at hand. I'm surprised you managed to get here so quickly, without the rest of your detail or your commanding officers."

"Please, the Contessa and I are more than enough to bring in anyone," Neyla stated, revealing to the duo that she felt that she was better than a large majority of the people that worked for Interpol, especially Carmelita herself if Sly was reading her words right, "Besides, I haven't seen Old Ironsides since we busted half of Rajan's guards at his ball, as she just up and disappeared the moment I started the paperwork, just like what happened when we busted Dimitri a few weeks ago. You know, Director Barkley was rather upset when he heard that, because he's actually getting tired of Carmelita acting like she owns the place and skipping some of her work every time we bring someone in, all because she's got a powerful ally in one of the Secretaries."

Sly knew who Director Barkley was, as that was Carmelita's mentor when he had been attempting to rob an opera house because the stage manager was one of his targets, though in the end he actually helped Carmelita, who Barkley was screaming and shouting at because she couldn't catch him, by finding the stage manager, tied him up, and delivered him right to the group with the Diva Diamond he was attempting to steal. That was the event that signaled the start of their relationship, as after that night Carmelita made it her mission to hunt down Sly, his family, and his gang so she could put them all behind bars, or at least that had been her plan at the time. He could only imagine how many times Barkley had shouted at Carmelita over the years, for her failure to stop him and his gang, and he already knew the lengths she'd go through to prove that she was a valued member of the law, to earn the respect of those around her. Hearing that Barkley was upset, more than he usually was when he dealt with Carmelita, was actually a really bad sign, as one false move and he could fire her in an instant... which would shatter Carmelita's world if such a thing came to pass, as she was still a cop at heart and he knew that he might not be able to change that part of her.

He could feel Carmelita tense up for a moment, as she was thinking the same thing that he was thinking, to which he decided to see what was going on with Neyla before something told her that Carmelita was standing beside him, as he didn't want them to fight it out.

"Neyla, as much as we like to converse with you, can we get to the matter at hand?" Sly asked, causing Neyla to turn towards him for a moment, as she happened to be staring at Carmelita when they were thinking about Barkley, "What are you doing out here?"

"I've learned of a secret entrance leading to half of the Clockwerk Heart." Neyla stated, to which a light smile appeared on her face as she noticed the look that appeared in Sly's eyes, and potentially the same look that also graced Carmelita's eyes as well, "Legally I can't enter the premises without a warrant, but now a pair of thieves like you two..."

"A pair of thieves like us can go wherever they please." Sly replied, as he remembered what Neyla had said back in Paris, though at the same time both he and Carmelita prepared themselves for a run through the ruins, as that was what had to be coming next.

"Don't fall behind while I lead you to the entrance." Neyla said, to which she turned her back to the duo, indicating that she was getting ready to leave the area, before she glanced back at them for a few seconds, "This place is thick with guards and standing still could be lethal."

Sly and Carmelita followed after Neyla as she led the way through the ruins, killing or crippling the guards that she came across, while at the same time surprising Sly by the fact that she was able to use the Rail Walk technique on the vines that they had to walk across. That worried him, as he could understand some of the cops, like Carmelita and Neyla, knowing his family's techniques, but when someone like Neyla showed a mastery over them, something that someone like Carmelita should have thanks to the years studying him, it made him wonder if there was more to Neyla than what they knew. Despite that fact he and Carmelita carefully followed after Neyla as they moved through the ruins, passing over the obstacles that were in their way and jumping over the pond that was in front of the area that the ruby Bentley wanted the gang to grab was located in... before eventually coming to a stop at part of the ruins, where both of them noticed that part of the rock wall was different colored than the rock around it, just like Rajan's office entrance was.

Neyla jerked her head towards the door she had brought them to, where they nodded their heads to acknowledge what she was showing them, before she disappeared as quickly as she had appeared earlier, to which Sly and Carmelita pushed the stone button and headed into the tunnel that was in front of them... where they came out in the very area they had been taking pictures of earlier, with part of the Clockwerk Heart hanging in the air, where they had last seen it.

"Well, Neyla was right about the entrance," Carmelita commented, though while she hated to admit that Neyla was right, especially since she had discovered that Neyla actually didn't like her at all, based on what she had near a few minutes ago and two weeks ago in Paris, "and the control panel appears to be locked down tight... but that's never stopped you and the others before."

"Agreed." Sly said, though at the same time he spotted a glint of a key in the pocket of one of the guards, which made him grin as he realized what they were going to have to do to get the half of the Heart that was in front of them, "Here's another lesson for a Cooper Thief, how to pick a pocket... and I'm sure that the guards won't mind if we 'borrow' their keys for a few minutes."

Fortunately the rhino guard that was actually moving proved to be the perfect target for Sly, as he and Carmelita moved to an area that would allow the guard to walk by without noticing them, before he emerged from his hiding spot and approached the guard. Carmelita watched as Sly used the head of his cane and pulled out the coins that were tucked away in his back pocket, collecting them before they even touched the ground, before he gave one final tug on the pocket, where the key came free and he grabbed it. Carmelita had to admit that she was impressed by Sly's skills, something that she had constantly thought about over the years she had chased him, before he beckoned her to follow him over the various grow beds for Rajan's spice, where she did so and found them standing near the back of the second guard. It wasn't hard for her to guess what Sly wanted her to do, as she had seen him do it and knew what he had said a few seconds ago... though she mentally sighed as she snuck up on the guard, braced herself for what she was about to do, and used one of her miniature canes to yank out the coins that were in the guard's pocket.

A few tense seconds later, however, the second key came out of her target's pocket and she grabbed it before it could hit the ground and alert the guards to their presence, to which she and Sly approached the control panel and inserted the keys into their locks... before they pulled the switch and let the half of the Heart drop to the ground, where a miniature shockwave knocked the guards onto their backs and put them in an unconscious state for now.

"Looks like spice won't be growing around here anytime soon." Carmelita commented, though even as she spoke Sly picked up the half of the Heart that was in front of them with a smile on his face, to which she smiled as well, because this put them one step closer to stopping Rajan and his cohorts.

With half of the Clockwerk Heart in hand the two of them left the area of Rajan's operation that they were in and made their way back to the hideout to give the others the good news, and then they could focus on the final missions they needed to complete before they shut Rajan down for good... and then they could begin the hunt for the next Clockwerk part and the Klaww Gang member that stole it.

Band: Wet Tiger

When Sly and Carmelita returned to the hideout with half of Clockwerk's Heart, which hadn't been in Bentley's original plans, the gang rejoiced their success, because this still put them one step closer to stopping what the Klaww Gang was doing and, hopefully, stop the ancient owl from returning. Of course Carmelita was still shocked by what she had done so far, especially when she could easily imagine herself doing it again and again in the future like an actual member of the Cooper Gang. Sly knew that she was conflicted over what she had done, even if it was to gather the stolen Clockwerk parts from those that had taken them, but he also knew that sooner or later she would have to comes to terms with the fact that she had a choice to make, one that wasn't going to be easy. He honestly couldn't see her giving up her position as an Inspector of Interpol, which she worked hard to earn in the first place, and yet he saw the makings of a thief beneath the shell that Carmelita had constructed around her.

After a few minutes of celebrating what the duo had done, and their recovery of half of Clockwerk's Heart, Bentley stated that it was time for them to get to work in finishing their preparations for the heist, as they had a ruby to recover and a dam to blow up before they were ready to move forward. As such Bentley determined that the first one they should go for is the ruby, as it would provide them with an additional tool to use again Rajan, and he stated that since he was sure that there would be extra guards on patrol when they attempted to remove the ruby, based on radio chatter, that the entire gang should participate in the mission. Once they were in agreement the gang headed out of the hideout and made their way to the area that the ruby was being held in, where Gilda, Derpy, and Carmelita knocked out the guards that were in the area to make things much easier in the beginning.

The moment Sly was in position, in front of the ruby, he pulled out his binocucom to get the full briefing as to why they were so interested in acquiring the ruby, as that was the part of the mission he didn't understand, unless they were going to rob Rajan blind as well, because he could get behind that logic.

"So Bentley, why are we stealing this ruby anyway?" Sly asked, to which he could see the others turning to look at Bentley for a moment, as they were all curious as to why they were doing this particular mission and had remained silent in the hopes that he would explain himself.

"We've been contracted to acquire that huge ruby of Rajan's for a local crime ring." Bentely explained, as while most of the others had been busy earlier he had discovered a message from the ring he was referring to, who preferred not to reveal who they were, and he quickly set up a deal with them when he learned of what they wanted, "In exchange for the goods, they'll set us up with a Cherry Bomb 500 for the heist."

"A Cherry Bomb 500!?" Carmelita asked, as she knew all about that type of explosive, because there had been several reports of a specific group, based in India of all places, that sold this type of explosives to whoever could buy them, though part of the reason Interpol didn't go after them was because the bombs were usually used for demolition and actually never hurt anyone, "Those bombs have a lot of kick."

"Trust me, we'll need it." Bentely said, though he refrained from saying Carmelita's name, especially since Neyla had to be around the area someplace and knew that the undercover Inspector might get in trouble in she was spotted here, hanging out with them, but it was hard to know since the Secretary could easily wipe the record clean, "Now Sly, to get that ruby free from its moorings you might have to whack it a few times with your cane."

"Is that all?" Sly inquired, as he was expecting that he'd have to haul up some explosives or something to get rid of the moorings that were surrounding the gemstone, but at the same time he was fortunate that there was an easy way to get the prize, "I'm on it."

Sly put away his binocucom and readied his cane, to which he swung it a few times and made sure to hit the moorings and not the gemstone, as he was afraid of shattering the stone on accident, though luck was with them as the stone came loose and fell to the ground... where it happened to land without taking any damage at all, as the rest of the stone that was attached to it acted like a protective coating and came off when it touched the ground.

"Murray, you're on." Bentley stated, as the moment the gemstone came loose he knew that they had to move quickly, because it was only a matter of time until Rajan's guards came out to bother them, "Now that Sly's knocked the ruby loose we need your muscle to get it to the buyers."

"Right!" Murray said, to which he headed over to the side of the path that would allow someone to get to where the ruby was now resting and used the large mushroom that was there to bounce to the roof of the structure, before he jumped down and headed for the ruby.

"Murray, you can pick up the ruby with that stomp move you used back in Paris." Sly spoke up, only doing so as his friend approached the ruby, to which he nodded as he remembered what he had done and did so to lift the ruby up off the ground, "You'll also need to be careful with the ruby, because despite it's size its likely fragile now. It looks like Bentley will run ahead and inflate cushions that are safe for you to throw the ruby onto, while the rest of the gang and I keep you guys safe from the guards. Now, head out to our rendezvous near the waterfall."

Murray nodded his understanding as he turned around, just in time to watch Bentley set down the first cushion that Sly had told him about, to which he threw it over to the cushion and watched as it landed at his target location without damaging the stone. From there Murray jumped over the stone obstacle that had been in his way, picked up the ruby, and followed after Bentley as he led him towards the locked gate that was in front of them, where Bentley pulled out a bomb and destroyed the gate. With the way open the two of them continued towards the right of where the ruby had been resting, though as they did so Murray saw that Sly and Carmelita, for the most part, would be collecting the cushions that Bentley used so they didn't leave evidence behind, and also to reuse them since Sly gave the first cushion back to Bentely a few seconds later. Of course Murray had to throw the gemstone three more times so they could get it over the ruined path in front of them, though so far he wasn't seeing any of the guards that Bentley had been so worried about... until he came to a stop by the waterfall and set the ruby down on the cushion that had been placed on the ground.

That was immediately followed by a purple robed figure, one that was either a member of the crime ring or a third party that was involved in the exchange, appeared behind the ruby and picked it up with little to no effort, though it was clear that they were studying the stone.

"This ruby is near flawless." the robed figure said, to which they gently returned the ruby to the cushion and took a step back from it, before they pointed off in the distance, silently referring to a place that they had told Bentley about when they were setting up this entire exchange, "I'll recommend to my superiors that we purchase it... take it to our buyer and complete the contract."

The instant following the command the robed figure disappeared in a flash, to which Bentley started to move again and Murray picked up the gemstone as he followed after his friend, while the others followed behind them so they could be on the lookout for any additional enemies. Along the way one of the baboon guards spotted them and started to raise the alarm, so while Gilda knocked him out the others defended Murray as the alerted guards came running towards the source of the disturbance, making sure to knock them all out so they could prevent them from calling more guards to their location. Murray, on the other hand, was able to follow Bentley to the next area he had to throw the ruby to, though as he crossed over to where the gemstone was the others caught up him, to which they watched as he moved the stone over the gap that was in front of them and then settled it in front of a tree, where the gang gathered behind him and Bentley as they waited to see what happened.

For a moment nothing happened, making them wonder if they were being played, before a second robed figure appeared from the shadows between the tree and the gemstone, to which it also picked up the ruby and studied it, just to make sure that it was what the person had been told about.

"I must say, the Cooper Gang certainly lives up to its reputation." the robed figure said, though it's voice sounded impressed, indicating that it's group had heard the stories about the gang and now knew that they were true, "This is a true Indian treasure. We will honor the bargain and provide a Cherry Bomb 500 at the time the turtle requested."

Once that was said and done the robed figure slipped the ruby into it's robe and disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, leaving the group to wonder what they were going to do next, which was when Bentley stated that he was going to take care of the final mission before the heist began. Before some of them headed back to the hideout, as Bentley said he needed Gilda and Derpy to assist him for a moment, Bentley also explained that the extra guards must have been a request that Rajan had put in, though that did nothing to them, as the guards weren't supposed to arrive for another day or two, after he double checked the blueprints anyway. While the others headed back to the hideout, to rest up for the main event and so Carmelita could have a chance to change back into her cop attire for Rajan's arrest, Bentley, Gilda, and Derpy headed towards the final mission beacon... which happened to be near the truck that they he, Murray, and Diz had stood on when he was hunting Rajan for the blueprints.

"Rajan's holed up in his temple still." Gilda commented, as she figured that the moment Bentley stood beside the truck they were in the mission area that he had set for himself, to which she and Derpy turned and looked at him for a few seconds as she tried to figure out how he was going to destroy the dam, "Since you're plan involves blowing up the dam that presents an interesting problem, as your bombs aren't strong enough to blow a hole in the structure."

"You're correct in the fact that my bombs aren't strong enough for such a thing." Bentley stated, though at the same time he tapped the side of the truck for a moment, revealing that he knew something that the two of them didn't know, but was going to tell them what he knew anyway, "Fortunately while monitoring the bug in Rajan's office I overheard that an auto-pilot attack helicopter had just arrived. It's sitting inside this truck."

"Really?" Derpy asked, as that was an interesting object for someone like Rajan to purchase, though she guessed that it was a replacement for the chopper that they destroyed above the palace earlier, "Okay, I'm sure that you can complete a mission like this on your own... so why did you insist on Gilda and I coming along with you?"

"Because I want to utilize your elemental abilities in this mission," Bentley explained, though while he did that he attached a bomb to the side of the truck and tore the container apart, revealing the helicopter that was under it, before he turned back to the sisters, "Since Rajan is sure to call on more of his forces to shoot me down, and I'm one hundred percent convinced that he'll do that, the two of you can make use of the wind and what remains of the storm to force the enemy choppers to collide with each other or with the dam itself."

Gilda and Derpy glanced at each other for a moment, as they were surprised that Bentley was asking them for help in this manner, before they decided that they might as well see if either of them could be of any help to him, where Bentley smiled as he climbed into the chopper and turned it on. As the chopper ascended towards the air, and Bentley pointed the guns at the dam, both Gilda and Derpy moved up to the tusks that were near the location of the ruby Sly had freed a few minutes ago, giving them a good view of the dam and the enemy helicopters that were already moving out. Fortunately Bentley was right that they could manipulate what was left of the storm to his advantage, as Gilda started moving the wind around the enemy choppers and forced some of them to either collide with each other or use the blades to damage one of their allies, enough to send them flying into the side of the dam and damaged it. Derpy, on the other hand, had to pick and choose her targets, as there really wasn't a lot of lightning energy left in the clouds, not after she used the majority of it to blow the satellite array to pieces... but even so the few bits of lightning she could muster, without using her own energy to create lightning, she damaged the choppers she picked and did the same thing that Gilda did.

Bentley focused all of his efforts on the dam, as the enemy helicopters were too focused on trying not to hurt each other as they fought Gilda's wind pushing them around, or were forced to abandon ship when Derpy hit a critical part of their chopper... and, in the end, he did enough damage to the dam and blew it open, while at the same time taking some damage from a fragment of the dam that struck the chopper. Fortunately Bentley was able to prevent the chopper from hitting the ground or something else that would have killed him, though as he slammed into the ruined tower that was near the truck it replaced the top of it, giving it a permanent position that they might be able to use to their advantage in the near future. Once the chopper had come to a stop Gilda and Derpy flew over to it and made sure that Bentley was okay, though once that was done they grabbed onto him so they could get him back to the hideout... where he could tell them what they needed to do next, if the destruction of the dam didn't do what he wanted it to do.

They spent thirty minutes studying the effects of the dam's destruction and found that, despite the spice grinder's destruction and everything else they had done so far, Rajan didn't seem interested in leaving the ruins, causing Bentley to determine that the partial flooding of the ruins had failed. As such he stated that it was time for them to go the distance, as his plan involved blowing up the temple's elephant mouth, which should turn this grotto into a swimming pool, though he intended to cover Murray from the chopper's gun turret while he pried the mouth open. Of course Diz, Gilda, and Derpy were tasked with being his bodyguards while he did that, to protect him from any guards that revealed themselves, before they all fled the scene. Once the mouth was open Sly would need to walk the Cherry Bomb 500 into the throat, while avoiding the guards that were in his way, before he joined the others and fled to high ground before the flooding of the ruins happened. Bentley was sure that Rajan was sure to show up and be extra angry, where they would jump him the moment he showed himself, take his half of the Clockwerk Heart, and then they'd get out of the area before Neyla and her friends showed up.

Carmelita, now dressed in her cop attire once more, would have no part in this operation, as she had to leave the area and pretend to 'catch up' with Neyla's group so they could bust Rajan when they arrived, giving Bentley an idea of where they were and how much time they had left to make their escape... to which she told them that she hoped the operation went well and departed with the pack that she had brought with her.

Once Carmelita was gone, and the gang was actually sad to see her go since she was such a valuable member of the team when she assisted them, Bentley had everyone get ready immediately, as the sooner they get this done the sooner they could get out of here and start the hunt for their next target. As such he had Murray and the others move out immediately, though while they did that Sly headed out for the area that the Cherry Bomb was being stored in, and he also had Diz drop him off at the chopper, so he'd be in place as well. The moment Bentley was in position he called a role check to be sure that everyone was in position, where he heard that Murray's group was near the mission beacon and that Sly was in position as well, indicating that everyone was in position for the heist, to which he called operation 'Wet Tiger' was a go and that Murray's group was ready to depart.

As such Diz led the way towards the location of the lever Bentley wanted Murray to pull, as he had seen it when he and Murray were guarding Bentley when he grabbed Rajan's blueprints earlier, though when they arrived at their destination the trio stood at the ready around Murray as he started to pull the lever up. At the same time the trio glanced up at the sky once or twice and found that Rajan's remaining chopper was raining hunter seeker bombs on the area, so while Bentley fired at them, blowing them to pieces before they could reach the ground, Derpy braced herself as she waited for the chopper to stop raining bombs on them. The moment the hunter seeker bombs were taken care of, and Bentley reported that no more were raining down towards the ground, Derpy called the lightning one more time and blasted the helicopter, damaging it so the pilot had to abandon it as it crashed into the hillside... which was followed by Murray's cry of triumph as he lowered the mouth and revealed the area that Sly was supposed to deliver the Cherry Bomb 500 to in the next few minutes.

As Dix flew up to where Bentley was hiding, since he wasn't needed for the rest of the heist at the moment, Murray headed up to the area that the ruby had been located in so he could jump Rajan with Sly and the others, though while they did that Gilda and Derpy flew over to Sly's location and kept beating their wings so they could keep watch for guards that might find him. Between the two of them the guards didn't stand a chance, as either Gilda or Derpy would knock out the guards that were in the path that Sly decided to use, before he reached the area that the target was located in, where he quickly jumped out of the barrel and let his sisters carry him up to Murray before they headed to the chopper to watch what happened next. Not a few seconds later the Cherry Bomb 500 exploded and the majority of the ruins was flooded by the water that surged out of the opening they had created, while at the same time the water in front of the area Rajan was supposed to emerge from emptied and wooden spires erupted from the walkway leading to the door. Bentley, Diz, Derpy, and Gilda were surprised by the spires, as they hadn't been in any of the plans they had seen and had no reason to plan around something like this happening... but they said nothing as the door opened and Rajan, carrying the second half of the Clockwerk Heart, emerged from where he had been hiding.

Rajan took a look around his now flooded ruins and growled in annoyance, to which he jumped up to the top of the building he had emerged from and stood above where the ruby had been located, though whether or not he noticed it's absence didn't matter as he turned to face the flooded area.

"Black Clouds and Thunderbolts!" Rajan loudly declared, to which he spread his arms out, as if he was giving a speech to someone, where the gang knew that he was likely preparing to address them all, or maybe one specific person as Sly found Rajan's eyes on him, "My spice temple... ruined! 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 will show you true power. You are nothing. Come, face the might of Rajan, lord of these hills."

"Boy, when we try to tick someone off we really do the job." Sly commented, as when Bentley said make Rajan angry he wasn't expecting this, meaning that he should really change his ideas of what making someone angry meant, so that he wouldn't be caught off guard again.

"Yes... you do seem to have quite a talent for it." a voice said, to which Neyla appeared nearby, though when Sly glanced over to her he found that neither the Contessa or Carmelita were present yet, which meant that part of Bentley's plan wasn't working the way it was supposed to.

"Constable Neyla, I wasn't expecting you and your band to arrive until later." Sly stated, as this changed part of their plan entirely, as letting someone like Neyla observe them taking out Rajan wasn't something they usually did, and knowing her he figured that there was something else at play here.

"That man is an illegal spice trader," Neyla replied, deciding to ignore Sly's comment and focus on the tiger that was staring at them, as he appeared to be her target at the moment, and her next words seemed to confirm what she was here to do, "he should be brought to justice."

"All we're after is the Clockwerk part he has." Sly said, though at the same time he gripped his cane and prepared himself for what he was about to do next, especially since he was sure that his next words were going to annoy Neyla a tiny bit, "Try to keep up with me."

The moment Sly said that he used the large mushroom that was nearby and jumped up to the top of the first spire that was in front of him, using the Ninja Spire Jump to land safely on the point that was in front of him before he jumped to the second one and avoided the lightning that Rajan was calling down to smite him. Neyla, apparently annoyed with Sly, followed after him and mimicked his movements, but she stayed behind him and watched where he was going while keeping an eye on Rajan. Neyla then grinned as she noticed Rajan getting ready to smite the spire that Sly was standing on, to which she used her whip and caught his leg from behind and caused him to stagger for a moment, where the lightning struck Sly and blasted him off the spires that he had been moving through. Murray and the others watched as Sly fell into the empty pond, where Rajan gave a wild grin as he jumped into the area and kicked the wounded Sly in the chest, knocking him against the edge of the area they were in.

"Wha?" Murray said, as it had all happened so fast that he must have missed something, though hearing Sly getting kicked put his senses into overdrive as he prepared to jump down and beat Rajan up, as that appeared to be the only way they were going to get away with the Heart now, "Sly! I'm coming, buddy!"

"This is it?" Rajan demanded, annoyance flashing on his face as he stared at Sly, while at the same time mostly ignoring Murray as he jumped down into the area, though he did turn on the laser barrier to prevent the two from being together for a few seconds, "This is the Cooper Gang I've heard so much about and feared these long hours?"

"Oh, there is more to the Cooper Gang than this," Murray said, to which he raised his fists and prepared himself, as he knew that a fight was coming up and he was ready to put Rajan in his place, especially since he seemed to think that he was going to win before the battle even started, "besides, 'The Murray' will renew your fear."

"Who's 'The Murray?" Rajan asked, to which he glared at Murray for a moment, because the names of the most feared members of the gang were Sly himself, his sisters Gilda and Derpy, and the latest addition Diz, while the rest of them were still nobodies to him, "All I see is a fat, pathetic weakling."

Murray roared in anger at being called a 'weakling', because he had prepared himself for being the gang's muscle and he never once considered himself to be weak, and immediately lashed out at Rajan, noticing that his opponent was definitely resilient to his punches. Rajan, on the other hand, used the staff that he was holding and tried to either swipe out Murray's feet or crush him with the length of the staff, which Murray had to avoid before he could respond with his own punches. Not even a minute into the fight Rajan called on the remaining guards that had survived the flooding and ordered them to join him, to overpower Murray, while also using the power of the Heart to shock the water around him, though when he did that he stood on a lily pad to negate being hurt and Murray did the same thing. Once the shock was over, and he escaped without damage, Murray grabbed onto one of the guards and slammed him into Rajan, staggering the tiger for a moment, before unleashing a storm of powerful blows that knocked him into the laser wall that was behind him, shocking him and lowering his defenses.

Despite the constant damage he was dealing to Rajan, with his fists and the laser walls, and constantly avoiding the attacks to the best of his ability, it took Murray a few minutes to actually deal enough damage to Rajan to knock him out, proving that he was one of the more challenging opponents he had fought since he started training to reach this point in time... though with his victory assured he took Rajan's half of the Clockwerk Heart from his staff and stashed it away, while at the same time the laser wall faded and allowed him to tend to Sly.

"Happy day!" Neyla said, to which Murray turned around and looked up at the area that was above them, as he found the Constable staring down at him, a wounded Sly, and a knocked out Rajan with a smile on her face that was unlike the usual expressions she had showed them earlier.

"Neyla? Throw down a ladder, Sly's hurt real bad..." Murray called out, hoping that Neyla might be like Carmelita and actually be on their side, but even as he said that he noticed that she seemed to be ignoring his cries for assistance, "can you hear me? I said Sly's hurt!"

"There they are Contessa, just as I promised." Neyla said, to which both the Contessa and Carmelita appeared behind her, though while one of them was looking at the group with an uncaring look in her eyes, which was the Contessa, one of them was worried the moment she spotted Sly, which was Carmelita, "The Cooper Gang and Rajan all incapacitated."

"Excellent police work Constable Neyla." Contessa replied, her voice sounding like she was actually praising Neyla for her actions, even though they all knew she had done absolutely nothing to reach this point, "Carmelita's never been able to catch the Cooper Gang, yet you captured them in just a few short weeks."

Carmelita tensed for a few seconds as she walked over to the edge and found that Murray was tended to a wounded Sly, who looked a little fazed from what happened to him but would be alright within a few days, but she couldn't say nothing, especially when both of her fellow cops were doing something wrong.

"Really Neyla? You 'captured' the Cooper Gang?" Carmelita asked, to which she turned around and stared at Neyla for a moment, while at the same time noticing that the Contessa raised an eyebrow for a moment, "Please, right now you are breaking an agreement that Secretary Sen has with the Cooper Gang... what do you think he'll do when he finds out that you broke the arrangement and arrested the Cooper Gang? Your career as a cop might be over when he hears the news and Contessa, you might end up losing a rank for allowing such a thing to happen on your watch."

"Really Carmelita, that's the best you could come up with?" Contessa asked, surprising Carmelita by her disregard for the fact that Secretary Sen could do so much to her and Neyla for breaking this agreement, one that Interpol had stayed true to for the last two years, "By the time Secretary Sen learns of what has happened it will be too late to undo the damage you have caused to your own reputation... so you should just accept your defeat gracefully."

"Actually, Contessa, there's a good reason Inspector Fox never caught the Cooper Gang," Neyla said, though Carmelita didn't like the smile that was on Neyla's face, as that only spelled disaster for her and the others, even those that were in hiding at the moment, "she's been in league with them since the beginning of her career."

"That's a lie and you know it!" Carmelita snapped, as she couldn't believe that Neyla was trying to do this right now, but it appeared that she was finally playing the hand that both she and Sly had been worried about when they saw her attitude back at Rajan's ball.

"The first time Sly helped you further your career was when you 'caught' the person who stole the Diva Diamond all those years ago," Neyla stated, revealing that she had read all of the cases that Carmelita had been on since she first became a cop, and that she was starting with the first one that Sly had been involved in, "and since then you have followed him and his gang as they committed countless heists across the world, purposely using them to bust villains like the Fiendish Five and increase your reputation as a whole. Then, after defeating Clockwerk, you started assisting them in all of their heists, giving them the location of several objects they could steal from several criminals, including the Venus de Whalo and several other important pieces. Sometime after Diz joined the Cooper Gang you learned that the Clockwerk parts were being transported to the Cairo Museum, where you gave them the information on where the parts were located so they could steal them... and, to prove my point even more, here's some photos I took earlier."

Carmelita watched as Neyla pulled out a bundle of photos and handed them over to the Contessa, who took them and started looking them over with a look of interest in her eyes, though Carmelita knew that there was only one thing that would make such a thing happen... which didn't bode well for her, especially when the two cops were completely disregarding Secretary Sen's orders.

"Those photos show Sly Cooper running around with a thief he called 'Kate Cooper'," Neyla said, to which Carmelita's fears came to life, as Neyla had something that would convince the Contessa to disregard the arrangement the Cooper Gang had with the Secretary, "I've actually come into contact with them twice since the Clockwerk parts were stolen from the Cairo Museum, once outside Dimitri's nightclub and right out here as well, and I know who the mysterious new thief really is. 'Kate Cooper' is none other than Carmelita Fox, which you can tell just by looking at the pictures I have prepared for you... and, like I told Sly back in Paris, my predator senses never lie and I made sure to familiarize myself to Carmelita's personal scent, which was coming from 'Kate' both times I encountered her."

"I must say, the evidence is pretty convincing." Contessa commented, glancing between the photos that she had been given, while at the same time not even bothering to show Carmelita what Neyla had given her, not that she needed to see a scene that she had been apart of, "Inspector Fox, do you have anything to say?"

"Secretary Sen approved of me doing what was necessary to stop the Klaww Gang and recover the Clockwerk parts, even if it meant becoming a thief for a few hours." Carmelita stated, though at the same time Neyla approached her and tore open the pack that she was carrying at the moment, revealing the thief attire she had been carrying since she left the hideout before the operation began.

"And the final piece of evidence, the attire from her double life." Neyla said, to which she stepped to the side and looked at Carmelita again, while at the same time some of the Contessa's guards approached the group, as they were eager to do their mistress' bidding, "Oh, and don't worry Carmelita, I dropped a packet containing some new information on all the cases you worked where Sly Cooper was involved, on Director Barkley's desk, highlighting everything that you did to let them get away and how you busted all those villains. I think it's safe to say that you're reputation will be shattered in due time... and it's all because you were corrupted by the Cooper Gang's influence."

"Carmelita, do you have anything else to say, in light of all the evidence that's been presented?" Contessa asked, but this time around she found that Carmelita was only glaring at the two of them, as she had determined that they were out to end her career and had set up their own plan to get rid of her, "Very well then. Men, place Inspector Fox under arrest."

"I'll get you for this Neyla." Carmelita promised, though at the same time she struggled against the guards that had appeared behind her and grabbed onto her arms, where she felt the metallic cuffs lock around her wrists as they treated her like a common criminal, while also taking her pack and her pistol from her, "Don't think I won't."

"Such a pity when an officer falls from the light." Contessa commented, though while she said that one of her guards shot Murray with a sleep dart and knocked him out, so that way the others could drop in and cuff him, the wounded Sly, and the unconscious Rajan, so she could arrest all of them.

"Yes... indeed." Neyla said, where her tone made it sound like she had no choice but to reveal Carmelita's 'corruption', before she and the Contessa led the guards and their prisoners out of the area, so they could fulfill the paperwork and put their prisoners in jail, where they all belonged.

Bentley, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz watched as Sly, Murray, and Carmelita were cuffed before their eyes and escorted from the ruins that they had been in, now prisoners of the Contessa thanks to Neyla betraying whatever trust Sly had tried to give her, since the gang had a deal with Secretary Sen at the moment. Bentley was sure that the Secretary would want to hear the recording of the conversation that he had gotten from Carmelita's binocucom, which had been inside her pack the entire time, though he hoped the guards didn't do anything to it. The others, however, were angry that their brother, one of their friends, and Sly's love interest were being treated in such a way, where Bentley noticed that the storm seemed to come back to life in response to their power, while the tower itself seemed to stop swaying, in response to the chaotic power that was coursing through Diz's veins. Bentley knew that the three of them could easily destroy something, based on what he had seen when two of them awakened their powers in the battle with Clockwerk, though Diz seemed to be the most emotional of them... which made sense, considering that they were the first family he had known since his days in the orphanage he had been dropped at.

Having some of his family members taken from him in such a manner had awakened a similar anger that reminded Bentley of when the sisters fought Clockwerk, but fortunately Gilda and Derpy were able to calm Diz down before he did something that he might regret.

Once they were all calmed down they returned to the hideout and gathered everything that they had left behind, all of them thinking about what had happened to the others and what they were going to do to in response to this outrage, even if Secretary Sen did nothing. They all wanted to go after Neyla, since it was her fault this was even happening, but in the end Bentley stated that their first priority had to be figuring out where the others were being sent for their prison sentence and where it was located. From there they would work a plan to rescue them from their containment areas and prevent them from being harmed, and then hopefully find some evidence that would damage either the Contessa or Neyla's reputations in a way to counter what they did to Carmelita. When they managed to reach the van, exactly where they had left it, their resolve had hardened and their minds were set on saving the rest of their gang... but there was one thing they had to do before they could leave the jungle, they had to learn how to drive a stick shift.

Band: Prague

It took Bentley and Diz some time to learn how to properly learn how to drive a stick shift, using the information that was on the internet and what they remembered Murray doing whenever he was driving the van around, before they were able to get the van out of the jungle. Once they were able to do that they headed back towards civilization and found a nice quiet place for them to wait in while Bentley sent Secretary Sen what he knew on the situation and started searching for whatever information he could find on the Contessa. While he was doing that he asked the others to try and help him out, since he didn't want them to become angry to the point where they were willing to unleash their magical energies at a moment's notice and damage something. Fortunately Gilda and Derpy attempted to help him out by using the spare computer that was in the van, but since they weren't as skilled with a computer as he was, since they had spent their time practicing their magic and thieving skills, it eventually came down to them making sure Diz didn't do something he would regret with his more potent magical powers.

After a week of searching for information, and getting some pieces from Secretary Sen as well, Bentley was able to determine that Sly and Murray were currently locked away in the mysterious towers of Prague, as the unwilling guests of the Contessa at the moment. From what Bentley was able to determine the Contessa, when she was still a criminal psychology student, entered into a whirlwind romance and married a wealthy aristocrat, though the union was short-lived, as the reports said that the general 'suspiciously' died a few weeks after the ceremony. The widowed Contessa then put her education and newly acquired estate to work by opening a criminal rehabilitation center, where, according to some of the other reports, her pioneering use of hypnotherapy had produced some good results and subsequently earned her a prominent position within Interpol. Based on the reports that Bentely found, and those that were sent over from Secretary Sen, it was easy to determine that if Sly and Murray weren't rescued sometime before the end of the week they would be lost to the gang forever... and then it was only a matter of time until the Contessa moved onto breaking Carmelita, who was likely going to be turned into a scapegoat for everything that's happened so far.

Bentley was also pleased to find that the Secretary was on their side, as he told them to move forward with whatever they had planned, because the fact that the Contessa was willing to ignore the deal that he had with the Cooper Gang, and arrest what was essentially three members of their group, had caused him to dig up some information that might actually damage the Contessa's reputation... though he stated at it would be a few days before he could announce anything, giving the four of them time to get Sly and Murray back. As such Bentley set a course for the part of Prague that the prison was located in, where the Contessa lived as it turned out, while at the same time Gilda, Derpy, and Diz flew ahead to scout out the path ahead of them, so they didn't drive into a trap. Since the Contessa had gone out of her way to go behind the orders of a Secretary, damaging her reputation if anyone was paying attention to her and Neyla at this point, they had to wonder what if the rest of Carmelita's coworkers were as corrupt as Neyla and the Contessa were, or if they didn't care about their missing coworkers and were continuing their lives as if nothing was wrong.

One other thing that Bentley and the others had noticed was that, in the brief messages that Secretary Sen had sent them, there was what appeared to be some anger in his words, indicating that he was pissed at what was happening to all of them and to Carmelita... and, based on the contents of the messages, he was digging into Interpol to see if there was anyone else that needed to be looked at more carefully.

The group put those thoughts at the back of their minds when they arrived outside the prison, where Bentley immediately found an abandoned building that they could set up shop in with an area for the van to rest while they didn't need it, though the boarded up windows would allow them to look out through the gaps and observe what was around them without revealing themselves on accident.

"So, what's our first objective?" Gilda asked, as they were all sitting around the round table that had been inside the building when they arrived, one that was large enough to sit the four of them with some room for a fifth and a sixth person, but she had the feeling that they'd be gone once Sly and Murray were free.

"One of you will join me as I make my way over to the Contessa's house," Bentley explained, to which he noticed that all three of them were raising their eyebrows at him, but it was a look of curiosity and interest, which was what he was hoping for when he revealed what the first steps of their operation was, "I'm hoping to pick up some information on where the Contessa has locked away Sly and Murray, so I can plan a proper course of action for us to take."

Gilda, Derpy, and Diz stared at each other for a few seconds, to see what the others were thinking at the moment, before they came to the decision that Derpy would be the one to follow Bentley for now, leaving Gilda and Diz to remain at the hideout. It was better in the long run, because Gilda was the one that was able to calm Diz down when he was angry and prevent him from using his powers to exact his revenge against the guards in the area, but the moment the decision was reached Bentley started to head out to begin his mission. As he and Derpy walked out onto the street that was outside their hideout, however, they noticed that the Contessa's guards consisted of bats guards, whose wings replaced most of their arms and hands while making it impossible for them to fly through the air, wolf guards, and vulture guards, which didn't have hands and were larger than the other two types of guards in the area. Derpy guarded Bentley as he made his way over to where the Contessa's house was located, knocking out the guards that happened to be around them so they wouldn't be spotted, while at the same time making note of where several clue bottles were located so they could rob the Contessa's vault before they left the area.

When they reached the Contessa's house, with was two stories and an attic, they used the exterior ramp to reach the top and then climbed up the other side of the ramp to get to the very top of the building, allowing them to use a bouncy spider web to reach a satellite dish that was above the house... though when they reached the top of the building Bentley nodded for a few seconds, indicating that they were in the correct area, where Derpy spotted the Contessa moving up the exterior of the prison.

"Aha! The Contessa is out making her rounds." Bentley commented, though at the same time he fiddled with his darts for a few seconds, where he seemed to remember something as he touched the feathers and heard a sound from the dish they were standing above, "Wait a second... the feathers on my sleep darts vibrate near sounds!"

"That's interesting," Derpy said, as she had no idea that Bentley's darts even did something like that, because he had actually never explained any potential side effects of the feathers that were attached to his darts, "but how is that going to help us figure out where Sly and Murray are located?"

"If we maintain our position on top of this parabolic dish, we should be able to hear that frequency at a distance." Bentley explained, gesturing to the dish that they were standing on, to which Derpy glanced down at it for a moment, before he raised his crossbow and aimed at the prison, "This is good news! If I tag the Contessa with my darts we should be able to listen in on whatever she says... and we might even learn where she's locked up Sly and Murray!"

Derpy's eyes lit up as she heard that fact, as that was the reason they had come out here in the first place, to which she nodded her head and stood to the side, where Bentley readied himself as he waited for the Contessa to settle down somewhere on the top of the wall she was walking on. When the Contessa finally came to a stop, however, Bentley aimed at a location near the warden and loosed a dart through the air, where they struck the walls around his target without alerting her to their presence, even though she should have been able to see them from where she was standing.

"The Klaww Gang is falling apart." Contessa said, apparently not caring about what she said at the moment, as if she believed that she was actually alone at the moment, while at the same time Bentley made sure to record everything that she said before he decided he had enough information, "Spice shipments have all but stopped... argh! I never would have joined if I'd know it would be this easy to disrupt the plan. At least the Cooper Gang is under lock and key... their lopsided morality flies in the face of man's inherent selfishness. Ah well... they'll see it my way soon enough."

Derpy knew that this was an interesting piece of information, as the Contessa confessed to being a member of the Klaww Gang, giving them another reason to take her out since she likely had a piece of Clockwerk somewhere, before Bentley nocked another dart and prepared himself... to which he fired the dart through the air and struck another part of the prison when his target stopped moving.

"Those fools at Interpol. They keep sending me criminals and I keep making money." Contessa commented, her tone shifting to a mocking one, indicating that she believed everyone at Interpol was either ignorant or outright foolish, while also revealing something to the duo, "How come no one ever thought of this before? Hypnotize criminals and force them to reveal where they've hidden their fortune... I'm a genius! If only I had more spice to help me with the hypnosis!"

This time around Derpy growled, as now that they knew that the Contessa was actually a member of the Klaww Gang, and had been tricking everyone around her, the revelation of what she was doing made her angry, though she had to take a few deep breaths and calm herself down, so she didn't call the lightning to the area... but when she was ready she nodded to Bentley and he loosed another dart through the air, allowing them to hear more of what the Contessa was saying at the moment.

"That blasted Cooper Gang." Contessa exclaimed, her tone once again shifting from what it had been a few seconds ago, becoming a little angry when she thought about the gang that was stopping the Klaww Gang, or more like the members she had caught so far, "The fat one... what's his name? Murray, yes, Murray, he'll be the first to break. I should spend a few sessions probing that feeble mind, I can only imagine the wealth that gang has accumulated over the years."

Derpy and Bentley had to resist the urge to chuckle at that, because while it was true that they had a decent fortune to their names it wasn't something that would easily be revealed to someone like the Contessa, especially after all the techniques that they read from the Thievius Racoonus... though when Bentley was ready he loosed another dart and hoped that the next bit of information was on Sly.

"That Sly Cooper... such a complex and rebellious mind." Contessa commented, her tone shifting to one that revealed that she had an interest in the leader of the Cooper Gang, or more like his mind and not the person that it belonged to, which annoyed them a little more, "A month or two in "the hole" should break his spirit. Let him squat there... week after week... he's already seen the guards along the wall all have motion detectors,... there is no escape. Slowly the reality of his captivity will set in... and I'll get to work on his mind. And then, once I've broken Sly, I'll head back to the castle and take my time breaking Carmelita until she's nothing more than a shell of her former self... and maybe make Neyla's claims true while I'm at it."

"I... I don't believe it!" Bentley said, his voice filled with anger, as he couldn't believe what he had heard the Contessa say, though at the same time he was happy to have recorded everything so he could send it to Secretary Sen so he would know that Carmelita had been set up, "She's no health care professional. Why, that's the most heinous crime I've ever heard of! Putting inmates into hypnosis so they'll tell her where they've stashed their loot."

"It dishonors both law enforcement and thieves at the same time!" Gilda growled, her voice echoing over their binocucoms for a few seconds, revealing that she and Diz had likely been listening in to what the Contessa had said while Bentley was gaining the information they received, "Bentley, can you figure out a way to break Sly out of 'The Hole'?"

"Yeah, I think I have a few ideas to get Sly free," Bentley replied, to which he glanced down at the train tracks that were nearby and spotted the single car train as it moved through the area, before focusing on the terminal that was at the end of the line, "Derpy, I'm fairly sure that the computer that is near us is the last in the line for the train, so do you mind following the track for a few minutes and count how many of them there actually are?"

Derpy raised an eyebrow for a moment before nodding her head, to which she flapped her wings and took off, leaving Bentley to pull out the small computer that he carried with him and tapped it a few times, studying the tracks that were around the area as he thought about what he could do to save Sly. At the same time he accessed the information on the area that Secretary Sen had sent him, to assist him and the gang in their mission, and discovered that the guards the Contessa had been talking about, the motion sensor ones, had only seven members, though they appeared to be standing in areas where he could use his RC-Chopper to take care of them. Based on what he was seeing at the moment, and what he could figure out by staring at the train and it's tracks, he knew what the next step they needed to do was, though he patiently waited for Derpy to get back before he started moving... and, at the same thing, he noticed a tank patrolling the area and made a note of it for later.

"I spotted six terminals." Derpy said, to which she landed beside Bentley and folded her wings back into where she kept them when she was just sneaking around the area, before she turned towards her friend, "So, what's the plan or freeing Sly and Murray?"

Bentley, instead of saying anything, beckoned for Derpy to follow as he packed his stuff up and started moving, to which they retraced their steps back towards the hideout, where Derpy spotted what was apparently the first computer terminal in the sequence that he needed to fiddle with... and, as they arrived at the terminal, the two of them found Gilda and Diz waiting for them by the computer.

"That computer is part of a control system for the electromagnetic train." Bentley stated, deciding to answer Derpy's question while also explaining the next task to the others, before pointing at the train as it moved by where the four of them were standing, "By hacking all the terminals around the train tracks I should be able to reverse their polarity, thereby turning the train into a giant projectile. Without question, its impact on the prison walls should create a hole large enough for Sly to escape through."

"And you want the three of us to take out any guards that might get near you?" Diz asked, as he was sure that once Bentley started hacking into the terminal it was going to set off an alarm, if the ones they had spotted in Rajan's palace were anything to go by.

"I would appreciate not being interrupted." Bentley said, confirming what he wanted the three of them to do, despite the fact that he originally thought that only one of them would be here to assist him, but he felt better with everyone assisting him on this mission.

Gilda, Derpy, and Diz found that the Contessa was smarter than Rajan and Dimitri, as the moment Bentley started hacking into the first computer terminal a few guards charged at them, in an attempt to shut them down, but fortunately the three of them were ready for an attack and knocked out the guards that decided to come their way. The unfortunate thing about this scenario was that their enemy was going to know that they were present and likely plan something to take them all out, so she could lock the entire gang up. The good news was that the first terminal was easy, meant to lure him into a false sense of security, though once he had finished hacking into it the group followed the train tracks as they started to head back to the Contessa's house, before Bentley stopped and crossed the tracks as he spotted the second of the six terminals. Like the last time several guards started moving towards the area that the four of them were in, to which Gilda, Derpy, and Diz engaged them and prevented them from hurting Bentley, who was engrossed with his hacking session at the moment.

Once the second terminal was taken down the group headed towards the tunnel that was nearby and found the third computer waiting for them, where the larger group of enemies engaged them when he accessed the controls, which the trio was than willing to take on, especially since all of them were annoyed in one form or another. The instant Bentley was finished with the terminal they waited for the train, which was moving faster than it had originally been when they started this mission, to pass by before heading down the tracks, where they arrived at the next terminal. Gilda, Derpy, and Diz used their wings to fly up to the area above the terminal, to which all three of them kept watch for enemies that might come for Bentley, though this time they found that the guards didn't want to bother with stopping him this time, allowing them to rest for a minute or two before Bentley started to move. The fifth and sixth terminals were right outside the Contessa's house, which happened to be guarded by the same tank Bentley had spotted earlier, though Diz surprised them by applying the invisibility trick he pulled back when Secretary Sen first revealed his existence to them... shielding them from the tank's searchlights while Bentley hacked into the fifth terminal, and then into the sixth one.

When the final terminal had been hacked into, and Bentley proclaimed his victory, the train was derailed and was launched into the air, where Derpy, Gilda, and Diz flew up into the air once Bentley was safe and discovered that the train had slammed into the side of the area that Sly was supposed to be house in.

"Yes!" Diz exclaimed, making sure to keep his voice loud enough so Gilda and Derpy could hear him, while also keeping it low enough to avoid the guards from hearing him, while at the same time he glanced at the hole in the wall that would allow Sly to escape his cell, "Hey Bentley, there's a hole in the prison wall. Do you have any ideas on how we're going to get rid of the guards so Sly can make his escape?"

"Yes, I'm going to take them out with my RC-Chopper." Bentley replied, revealing that he had created the plan he needed to use to get Sly out of the prison, though at the same time he addressed one of the magic users, "Gilda, while I'm moving through the air those guards are going to start firing at my RC-Chopper, so maybe you can lend me your power over the air for a few seconds and force the guards to constantly move. It'll help prevent them from destroying my RC-Chopper and allow us to get Sly out of his cell all that much faster."

The trio nodded and followed Bentley over the bridge, where he set up shop on the other side of the bridge and prepared himself, while at the same time Diz flew back to the hideout and returned to him with the RC-Chopper, as it was a requirement for this mission. Once the small device was ready to go Bentley engaged the controls and took to the skies, though as he did that Gilda wove her power through the air and focused on moving the guards so they wouldn't be able to focus on Bentley's vehicle. She did, however, stop the guards for a split second two times, as the vulture guards required two powerful hits to be knocked out, and Bentley bombed them, knocking them onto their backs and destroyed the motion tracking devices that the Contessa had mentioned in her rambling earlier. It took them a few minutes to take out the guards that Bentley wanted to take out, as some of them had been hiding under cover and didn't notice what was going on until they moved out... right into the waiting arms of Gilda's wind and Bentley's bombs, where Bentley kept track of how many of them he had knocked out and how many of the motion tracking devices were destroyed.

After another moment or two he knocked out the last guard and smashed the device it was carrying, to which he recalled the RC-Chopper to their location and tapped his binocucom for a moment, as he was eager to see if Sly still had his and if he was paying attention to it.

"Sly! Can you read me!?" Bentley asked, because if Sly didn't respond immediately he knew that the guards would have heard his message and would come running, meaning he'd have to have Gilda or Derpy fly into the prison and free Sly that way.

"Bentley?!" Sly replied, to which Gilda, Derpy, and Diz breathed a sigh of relief, because despite how long the week had been, since he, Murray, and Carmelita had been taken from them, it was nice to hear his voice again, "How I've missed that sensuous voice of yours. How are the others?

"We're fine Sly," Gilda said, though at the same time all of them were smiling, as now that Sly was free they could figure out what they needed to do to save Murray, and then they could leave this area and find out where the Contessa's castle was located to save Carmelita.

"You can save the catching up for later." Bentley stated, knowing that he wanted to do the same thing, but since Sly was still in a dangerous area, and that guards were likely on their way to where the train had struck the prison, he wanted to get things moving before something happened, "Sly, according to the pictures I've seen there should be a hook above your position. Do you it?"

"Yeah, I see it." came Sly's reply, which made things simple for them, as now that Sly knew of it's existence and could simply use one of the earlier techniques he, Gilda, and Derpy had learned when they were tackling the Fiendish Five and recovering the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus.

"Right now, save for sending one of the others in to pick you up, it's your only means of escape." Bentley explained, revealing that he wasn't going to put the others at risk, especially when they didn't know if there were any additional guards coming to investigate the noise, "Just latch onto it with your cane, swing onto the back of the train, and make your way outside the prison. We've already established a safe house and I have downloaded its GPS coordinates into your binocucom... we'll rendezvous there."

Sly said nothing as the connection between them was cut off for a moment, to which Bentley, Derpy, Gilda, and Diz headed back to the hideout, though as they walked through the streets that were in front of them they all spotted Sly as he ran over the back of the train and left the prison behind. From there Sly dropped down to the road that was beneath him and ran over to where they were walking, to which everyone embraced him the moment he caught up with them, as it was good for all of them to be together again. Bentley opened the door to the hideout and ushered everyone inside, just in case the guards decided to investigate the streets outside the prison for Sly, which he assumed the Contessa would order them to do, but for now they got something for Sly to eat, as they were sure that whatever the warden had been giving him was barely enough to keep him going in an attempt to tear his defenses down. Of course when Sly was done Bentley would explain the next stage of their plan, to save Murray from the same fate that the other criminals suffered, once he finished studying the information Secretary Sen had sent them.

Band: Destructive Rage

When Sly was ready to go, and the others had calmed down from the excitement of having him back, Bentley started to explain the situation to them, revealing that he had done some deep database crunching and studied the information their powerful ally had given them. From those two sources he was able to determine that Murray was doing time in Cell Block D, though getting him out of that area was going to be tough, especially since he wasn't very light on his feet. Of course he had a plan to save him, where they needed Sly to head back into the prison, by an access pipe, to convince Murray to get himself into an isolation cell and away from the other inmates. The second task he had for them was for Sly and the others to get a sample of the Contessa's encryption algorithm, while at the same time stating that he'd explain what he was talking about later. The third task was for someone to pickpocket a few keys from the Contessa when she was making her rounds around the prison and her house, why he'd explain later as well, while also warning them to watch out for her pack of bodyguards.

The fourth, and final, task he had planned was for Gilda and Derpy to channel their powers into the brewing storm and call down their wrath to destroy the giant attack robot that's inside the prison... and then he went out of his way to say that he wasn't kidding, as some of the reports he had browsed through earlier claimed that the Contessa definitely had something like that in the prison.

With their missions revealed to them, however, the first thing that Sly, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz did was explore the streets and the prison for the clue bottles that rested around the area, so they could use whatever was in the Contessa's vault against her and her forces. Since three of them could fly, and reach some areas faster, Sly divided the area around the prison up and said that they should meet by the bridge outside the Contessa's house, so when they had all the bottles Bentley could tell them where the vault was located. Bentley, who was staying behind at the hideout for the moment, stated that Sly's plan was a good one, as with all four of them moving they'd be able to grab every bottle in record time and not cut into the time they had for the operation. What surprised Sly, however, was that Bentley was able to determine that the vault in question was hidden somewhere inside the Contessa's house, so while he finished his area he studied the house and found a small passage that would allow someone to head under the wall and enter the hidden area that the vault had to be inside.

When all the bottles had been recovered, and the others regrouped with him, Sly slipped into the opening for a moment, found the room that the vault was located inside, and input the code that Bentley had sent him, 2-4-8 as it turned out, and soon he was walking away with some notes on how to increase one's ability to throw things... meaning that he and Bentley, and maybe the others, could throw things further than normal.

With the treasure of the vault in hand, and he returned to the others, the four of them headed back towards the hideout, though as they headed down the street they all picked the pockets of the guards, adding whatever coins and loot they had on them at the moment. Of course Derpy and Gilda revealed that, during their hunt for the clue bottles, they had also stolen all of the more expensive treasures that the Contessa had scattered around her base of operations, adding to their stash of treasures and the coins that they had, to which Sly grinned the moment he heard that. He was impressed that they had been able to do that, while searching for the clue bottles, and he was amazed that Diz had gotten the twenty pieces of loot he had gotten. Once he got over his amazement he focused on the mission at hand, to which they walked over to a boat that was near the pipe, which would allow one of them to enter the prison, before all of them pulled out their binocucoms so they could hear the instructions, even though Sly was the one that was going to be infiltrating the prison in the next few moments.

"Okay Sly, in order to get Murray out we'll need him to get thrown into solitary confinement." Bentley explained, though while he knew that the others were listening in to the conversation, to hear what Sly would be doing, he focused on who he needed to talk to at the moment, "That pipe will lead you to his cell block. Try to locate him and relate the plan... after that, it's all up to Murray."

"You know, it's strange to be sneaking into prison to tell someone to get themselves thrown into solitary confinement, only to bust them out later," Sly commented, to which he could tell that the others were nodding their heads, as it was a strange plan alright, but then he focused on what he was going to do, "but I'll head inside and tell Murray the plan."

Sly glanced at the others for a moment, seeing that they were okay with him heading into the pipe, and watched as they dispersed to several locations so they could view the area he was in, that way when he made his exit they would be waiting for him. As such he used the hooks that were in front of him and jumped on some debris to reach the pipe that Bentley wanted him to enter, to which he found that the lever to open the grate was already in the open position and smiled as he crawled inside so he could begin the search for Murray. It took him a few moments of crawling to reach the first end of the vent he had found his way into, though once he was in position he braced himself, because if this was someone else and not Murray he might set of an alarm or something and ruin this part of the plan.

"Psst! Murray!" Sly called out, keeping his voice low so that only the person that was inside the cell could hear him, though if it wasn't who he was looking for he was planning on moving along and trying out one of the other ends of the vents, "Hey Murray!"

"Huh?" a voice said, to which Murray got up off the bed he slept on and walked into the middle of the cell, where he started looking around for the source of Sly's voice, indicating that he was both curious and confused at the same time, which Sly was planning on fixing, "Sly? Where are you?"

"Over here, in the back wall!" Sly answered, keeping his voice low still, even though he was glad to see that his friend was alright, as he needed to tell him the plan and he was sure that Murray would be able to come up with an idea on how to get to the area of the prison that Bentley needed him to be inside.

"Sly! I'm so glad to see you." Murray said, moving to the vent for a moment so he could see Sly, even though it wasn't the best view in the world, but it was still better than not knowing if Sly was okay or not, "They've been forcing me to eat meals covered in spice... and I'm feeling kind of strange. You and the others gotta get me outta here!"

"No problem. Bentley seems to have found a weakness in the solitary confinement cell." Sly replied, where he was thankful that Secretary Sen seemed to believe whatever Bentley had sent him after he, Murray, and Carmelita had been captured with Rajan, which reminded him to ask Bentley something when they were together again, "If you can get in a big enough fight the guards will throw you in there... trust me, I'm speaking from experience."

"Well if you say so." Murray said, to which he raised a hand to his head and appeared to think about something for a moment, as if he was actually determining the number of guards he needed to fight, "I suppose a powerful force like 'The Murray' can take down fifty foes... if I had to."

"That's an excellent idea!" Sly stated, as he had done something similar and had been thrown into the area that the Contessa trapped him inside, though he still wasn't sure if that was because he forced her hand or if she had been planning that from the beginning, "You beat the snot out of fifty of those guys and get thrown into solitary confinement... and Bentley, the others, and I will take care of the rest."

Murray smiled as he beat his fists together and walked outside the cell that he was staying in, where the door just so happened to be wide open, and threw a fist through the air as he approached the first guard, knocking him to the side and causing him to call for backup. Wolf guards started to drop down into the area that Murray was in and charged at him, where he smashed guards against the ground, hurled them at the walls until they crumbled into heaps, used one of them as a weapon to beat up several others before knocking his weapon out, and even used the exercise equipment to hurt his opponents. Sly, who was watching from the wall still, had his binocucom out and was transmitting the fight to the others, who were silently watching Murray beat the stuffing out of the guards with nothing more than his fists, proving that numbers meant nothing to 'The Murray', especially when he eagerly fought the crowd of enemies that were all around him with a smile on his face and a look of joy in his eyes as he got to fight something again.

Eventually the fight came to an end as Murray lifted the final guard, the fiftieth guard as it turned out, and hurled him into the pile of guards that were resting near him, though the force of the throw knocked the pile apart and the guards crumpled to the ground, revealing that they couldn't take Murray's beating at all.

"50! Eat that you incarcerating suckas! Is that anti-social enough for ya?" Murray declared, beating his fists together, as if he was challenging them to sent out more guards to take care of him, to which he turned towards the ramp that was above him and spotted a vulture guard, who just so happened to lower a cage on top of him, "Oh, what? You gonna throw me in solitary?! Bring it on!"

Sly chuckled as he cut the binocucom connection off and retreated through the path he had taken to reach the cell that Murray had been forced into, as now that Murray was in solitary confinement they could really begin their work on getting everything ready to spring him. Once he was back outside the prison he regrouped with the others and inquired as to which mission they should do next, while at the same time noting that the storm that Bentley had told them about hadn't arrived yet.

"Sly, you and Diz should head to the bridge near the Contessa's house," Gilda replied, to which she jerked her thumb towards their sister, who was now staring up at the clouds, as if she was trying to summon the storm earlier than what Bentley wanted them to, "It'll give Derpy and I some time to channel our power into the storm, though once we're almost ready I'll let you know, so that way you can hear the mission briefing from Bentley."

Sly knew that they were planning on loosing a powerful lightning bolt from the sky, if what he had seen at Rajan's ruins was anything to go by, and nodded his head, to which his sisters opened their wings and took off, leaving him and Diz to start moving to the underside of the bridge, which was where the mission beacon was located. He wasn't sure why they needed to head to the bridge, as that wasn't one of the missions Bentley had told them about earlier, which told him that Bentley must have discovered something and added an additional mission to their list. Fortunately it didn't take them long to reach the beacon for the new mission, to which both Sly and Diz pulled out their binocucoms and prepared to hear what sort of mission Bentley had in mind for them.

"Sly, Diz, those giant pipes under the bridge feed power to the prison security systems." Bentley said, changing their view so they could look up at the pipes in question, which were right above their heads, before continuing what he needed to tell them, "I'll need to cut the connection to free Murray."

"Sounds like a plan, what do you need the two of us for?" Sly asked, as he could see why Bentley would need someone to watch his back, since guards were patrolling the area, he didn't see why he needed two of them for this particular mission, other than the fact that he didn't want to leave anyone out.

"You guys may not be aware of his, but the bridge is heavily guarded." Bentley replied, as if expecting that question to come up during the briefing, meaning that he already had a response to give them before the mission started, "I need the two of you to watch my back and stop any guards that they might send out to stop me."

"How about we smash some of those statues and take their place?" Sly inquired, as he could see that there were some statues of the wolf guards, lifelike yet made of solid stone, resting on both sides of the bridge, "We could pose as a statue, let the guards walk on by us, and then hit them from behind."

"Actually, there's something I want to try before we do that." Diz said, though as he spoke he flew up to the bridge and knelt in the middle of it, where he placed his hands on the stone beneath his feet and started to channel his power into the bridge as he reached for the statues.

Sly and Bentley, who had come out to do the job with his bombs, stood in the middle of the bridge and watched Diz for a few seconds, where they noticed that there appeared to be cracks forming on all of the statues that were on both sides of the bridge. Together they watched as the eyes of the statues actually snapped open, like they were alive, and slowly pulled themselves off of the pedestals they had been standing on, causing their jaws to drop as the now living statues touched the ground and walked up to Diz, where they stood and watched him. Diz silently stared at them and divided their numbers in half, where the ones that had been positioned near the Contessa's house stood guard over the entrance of that area while the others stood on the other side of the bridge. Once the living statues were in the positions he had ordered them to stand in, however, Diz also gave them a final order for when the mission was over, where the statues nodded their heads for a few seconds before he finally stopped touching the ground and swayed for a moment... causing Sly to rush forward and catch him before he hit the ground.

"Diz... what did you do?" Sly asked, as this wasn't something that he had seen Diz or his sisters do, though at the same time his sisters only seemed to have one elemental power while Diz had a more chaotic power, which was why he was curious as to what just happened.

"He gave the statues some sort of life," Bentley stated, as he realized that the energies that Diz possessed had turned ordinary statues into living constructs, ones that were no doubt fueled by his anger towards his family being taken from him, but they were also under his control, "he... he created golems!"

"And I won't be able to keep them all active for too long," Diz replied, to which she moaned for a moment, as the energy required for such a thing had been more than she was expecting and had allowed her chaotic power to flip her gender while she wasn't paying attention, though instead of getting annoyed she on the fact that there were five guarding each entrance to the bridge, meaning Bentley could work without being interrupted.

Bentley, now realizing that they were wasting time talking, jumped back down to the lower level with Sly for a few moments, where he attached a few bombs to the proper positions that they needed to be in, before they both used the bouncy spider web pad to get back to the top. When he and Sly got to the top of the bridge again they found that the Contessa's guards were already coming out to stop the assault, though at the same time they found that they were fighting the statues and were knocked out in the process. Sly, seeing that he had next to nothing to do, made himself useful by carrying the bombs that Bentley needed to plant and handed them over when he needed them, all while asking the question that had been bothering him since he escaped from his own cell.

"Hey Bentley, there's a plan for rescuing Carmelita as well, right?" Sly asked, because so far it seemed that Bentley was focused on him and Murray, which was understandable considering that they were life long friends, but Carmelita was special to him and he hadn't heard a single thing about rescuing her at all.

"Of course there's a plan to rescue Carmelita," Bentley replied, not even bothering to call her an Inspector at the moment, not when he had some unpleasant news to tell Sly in regards to what Barkley had done since they had been captured with Rajan, but decided to tell him later, when they freed Carmelita as well, "unfortunately she's not being held in this prison. According to my information she's supposed to have been shipped out to the Contessa's castle, sent out at the same time you and Murray were sent here, though I have no idea why the Contessa decided to do things this way. Once we free Murray, and we've outrun the guards, we're packing our things up and heading out for the castle, so don't you worry about her."

Of course that only made Sly worry that the Contessa had something sinister in mind for Carmelita, because since Bentley explained that the Contessa was going to try and turn both him and Murray into ordinary citizens, after stealing all the wealth the gang had collected over the years, it only made him wonder what she could do to the person he loved. Bentley seemed to sense this and said nothing else while he worked, planting the charges at the areas they needed to be in for later, while at the same time Diz's statues beat up the guards that there trying to investigate the bridge, even if one of them lost an arm in the process. When Bentley placed the final charge, and made sure that it was set up right, he called for everyone to get away from the bridge, which was followed by Diz snatching him and Sly the moment he said that and dropped them off on the area Bentley had used his RC-Chopper to help Sly escape... to which they watched as the explosives went off and damaged the bridge, destroying the object that Bentley had sought to destroy, while also taking care of Diz's statues as well, reducing them to broken piles of stone as he regained some of his energy.

"That takes care of the power to the security system." Bentley commented, though he was happy with what they had accomplished so far, even though the storm that was above their heads was really coming together, indicating that Derpy was getting closer to being ready for the mission he wanted her to take on.

"I guess it's time we head inside the prison for the next mission?" Sly asked, though at the same time he knew that Diz needed some rest from what she had done, especially since she had used a good portion of his magical energy to control ten statues like that.

"No. It appears the commotion from the fighting near the bridge has drawn the Contessa out of her house," Bentley stated, to which he pointed over to the other side of the bridge, where they spotted the warden in question investigating what had caused the noise, before he turned toward Sly for a moment, "Sly, this is a good opportunity for you to steal two tank keys and the tank control schedule, before she disappears to a location we can't get to."

"Just pickpocketing this time around?" Sly inquired, though the smile that graced his face told Bentley that he was happy for something normal, especially after they witnessed Diz give life to the statues and since it was only a matter of time until Derpy was ready to call upon the power of the storm above them, "Sure, I can get that done in no time... and Diz, if you feel up to it you can assist me if you want to."

Diz, deciding that she had spent a little too much energy, and had to get over the gender switch once more, shook her head and declined, indicating that she wanted to have some energy for the final part of the operation, to which Sly nodded and headed off towards the area that the Contessa was walking in, while Bentley helped Diz back to the hideout. What Sly quickly determined what that, since his target happened to have bodyguards with her, that he needed noise to pull the vulture guards away from the Contessa, which was all too easy for him to do. He was very careful about making any sort of noise, as he only wanted to draw the last guard in the line away from the Contessa, who was talking about things like the stormy weather, like it was actually normal and not caused by someone else, and his escape. Fortunately the first pair of guards didn't even attempt to check out the noise he made in a pair, as the first one came around and he knocked it out, before repeating that with the second bodyguard... which allowed him to sneak up on the Contessa and pick the first tank key from her pouch.

The downside to removing an item from her pouch was that she seemed to sense it and moved to a new area around the prison, though Bentley and Gilda, who was flying around the area, sent him the exact coordinates of his target and her new set of guards. Once he came upon his target again, who happened to be on the other side of the walls of the prison, he repeated the process from before, using noise to draw the guards away from the Contessa, before knocking them out and approaching the warden, allowing him to walk away with the second tank key. With the key removed the Contessa moved once more, traveling to an area right outside the hideout, though that didn't stop Sly from carefully pulling her guards away, one by one like usual, knocking them out when he got them alone, and then continuing until it was only him and her left... though when he got the third item Bentley needed, the tank patrol schedule, which prompted the Contessa to leave once she noticed it was missing, and declared that her guards were going to be fired soon enough.

With those items dropped off at the hideout, so Bentley could keep track of them for the operation, Sly carefully made his way back into the prison, using the same path he had used earlier when he was following after the Contessa, before he reached the mission beacon and pulled out his bonocucom... where Bentley had him stare at the water tower that was at the heart of this particular mission and was the reason that Derpy was gathering a storm above their heads.

"Okay Sly, that's it!" Bentley stated, indicating that the water tower was what he should be looking at, which Sly was doing while he wondered what sort of plan he had to accomplish, though he also knew that Bentley was going to explain the entire thing to him, "The Contessa's giant attack robot!"

"Look, Bentley, I know that we occasionally deal with people like Gilda and Derpy," Sly said, to which his focus remained on the water tower, while both of his sisters were focusing their efforts on manipulating the storm, "but with all due respect it looks an awful lot like a water tower."

"That's what the Contessa wants you, and everyone else, to think." Bentley replied, though his tone didn't say that he was mad at Sly, rather he understood what he was thinking about and had thought about it himself at one point, "If we try to free Murray while that thing's operational... well, it would interfere with our plans."

"I'll take your word for it." Sly said, to which he looked up at Gilda and Derpy for a moment, as he was curious as to what he could do to assist them in dealing with the 'attack robot' that Bentley wanted them to destroy, "So, what can I do to help Gilda and Derpy out?"

"The lightning rods around the prison are designed to draw lightning strikes away from the target." Bentley answered, where Sly noticed that Bentley didn't say either water tower or giant attack robot, indicating that he didn't want to spend time determining what it was, "By turning the wheels on the rod you should be able to redirect the electrical current away from its ground wire, thus rendering it useless. Diz will get the ones outside the prison, allowing you to focus on the ones around Gilda and Derpy... and then, once they're all turned, you'll have to tell Derpy that it's time."

Sly found that of the five lightning rods, as Bentley stated that there were five of them as he and Diz started moving towards their target, three of them were located around the prison and that one was near his immediate area, allowing him to turn the wheels and cause a stray red bolt of lightning to damage the rod once he was clear. As he moved over the walls of the prison he spotted Diz carefully moving through the air, where Derpy seemed to be keeping the lightning under control until it was needed, before he damaged the second lightning rod. Sly then made his way to the next rod he needed to take care of and a few moments later he was walking away from it, where the lightning damaged it as well and would increase the overall damage Derpy could cause to the target. Diz and Sly then turned the wheels on the fourth and fifth lightning rods at the same time, moving away from them and let the lightning damage them to the point where they wouldn't be able to work anymore... to which Sly headed back to where Gilda and Derpy were floating, near the very first lightning rod that he had taken out.

"Gilda! Derpy!" Sly called out, not knowing if they were even listening to him or anyone else that might come and speak with them, but he continued anyway and waited to see what happened, especially since the lightning was the only thing that would destroy their target, "The lightning rods are down!"

Derpy turned towards him for a moment, indicating that she had heard his statement, before she lifted her hand towards the sky and the storm responded, as the lightning flashed several times in the course of a few seconds and seemed to be gathering in a single point, readying itself for what Derpy wanted to do. A few seconds later Derpy swung her hand towards the target and the red bolt of lightning, whether it was red from her anger or from the storm itself Sly had no idea, surged towards the ground and barreled into the disguised robot. The lightning coursed over the metallic body and the robot revealed itself, as it's eyes opened as it shuddered for a few moments, though that was before it crumbled into a heap and stopped moving, indicating that the damage it suffered meant it wasn't going to be of any use to the Contessa in the near future.

Once the lightning had done it's job, and the attack robot was out of commission, Derpy and Gilda released their grip on the storm that was above them and let the sky slowly return to normal, while at the same time they landed beside Sly, as there was one last mission they had to do and then they could save Murray... and then they could leave this area and head to the Contessa's castle, so they could rescue Carmelita from whatever foul torment she was facing.

Band: Trojan Tank

Sly, Gilda, and Derpy quickly made their way down to the building that was in front of where the first lightning rod was located, as the last mission beacon was on the lower section of the roof that was below them, but fortunately the guards didn't seem to mind the fact that a powerful looking bolt of lightning struck someplace in the prison. That was something that always surprised Sly, that the guards assumed that anything that was associated with lightning came from the storms and not from something, or rather someone, else. Even the Contessa knew that both Gilda and Derpy had elemental powers, especially since Carmelita had told her superiors about their powers, but right now it appeared that she had completely forgotten that fact and was blaming the actual weather, which was perfectly fine with them at the moment. If their foe wanted to be ignorant and ignore what was going on in the area around her prison, then Sly was sure that Bentley would use that to their advantage.

Thinking of Bentley caused Sly to chuckle and pull out his binocucom, to which both he and his sisters stared at the area around them, though a few seconds later they zeroed in one a rectangular screen that was across the road and the lock that was attached to it.

"Sly, before you, Gilda, and Derpy return to the hideout I need your help getting a handle on the Contessa's encryption algorithm." Bentley stated, reminding them of the one mission he very briefly talked about and said that he would explain it to them when it came time for them to do this one.

"We'd love to Bentley," Sly said, where he pulled down his binocucom for a moment and noticed that both Gilda and Derpy were as confused as he was, to which he sighed before he glanced back at the rectangular screen, "but we have no idea what you're talking about."

"Alright, I'll explain it to you one piece at a time. See that security station?" Bentley inquired, making sure that all three of them were staring at the screen in question, meaning it was important and that they should know about it for this particular mission, "The guard nearby is responsible for its upkeep."

"Okay, that sounds reasonable." Derpy spoke up, to which she glanced over at the guard in question, who happened to have his back turned towards the security station and he happened to have a blue glowing pocket, the same one that they would pickpocket key items from.

"First, I'll need one of you to pickpocket his key to the terminal." Bentley stated, where he changed their binocucoms to look over at the guard, in the off chance that some of them weren't actually looking at the guard that Derpy had her eye on at the moment.

"That shouldn't be a problem." Gilda replied, because she knew that, as thieves, the three of them had the skills to pick pockets without getting caught, so being told that they needed to take a key that the nearby guard was carrying was something they could easily do.

"Then I need you to use it on the security station to set off the alarm." Bentley said, though he knew that this particular statement would cause them to think he was mad or something, but at the same time he would explain himself so that they would understand why he wanted them to do this.

"Hold up, you want us to set off the alarm?" Sly asked, because while he knew that there had to be a reason for them doing this, and he was sure that Bentley would explain everything, he still found the act of setting off an alarm on purpose to be against what thieves were supposed to do.

"Yeah, set it off then clear out as the guard's sure to come running." Bentley answered, which made sense to the siblings when they thought about it, but this time they said nothing as they waited to see what else Bentley had to tell them about this mission, "Once he sees that it's a false alarm, he'll input the code to turn it off."

"So you want us to take a picture of the code?" Derpy asked, because now she was starting to see the bigger picture of the mission, though part of her wondered why Bentley didn't just spend a few minutes explaining this before they left the hideout earlier.

"One of you should stay in a safe place, so you can get a clean shot of that digital readout." Bentley said, revealing that two of them were going to have to deal with the guards, or at least pick their pockets for the keys, while the other watched over the security station so they got the code the moment it was entered.

"Should we hit all the security stations out here?" Sly asked, because if Bentley wanted only one then they would be able to do this mission in record time, especially since Derpy was more tired than Gilda was, but at the same time he knew what Bentley's response was going to be.

"That's right," Bentley said, confirming Sly's thoughts on what they needed to do, even though he had been about to say the same thing himself, which made him happy that they were learning what needed to be done on the missions that he was sending them on, "once I've got a large enough sample of the Contessa's codes I should be able to crack her encryption algorithm."

Sly, deciding not to annoy Bentley by asking about the encryption algorithm again, simply lowered his binocucom and had both Gilda and Derpy stay on the roof that they were all standing on, since it had the best view of the first security station, before he jumped down to the road below them. Fortunately it only took him a few seconds to approach the vulture guard and pick his pocket, as the key was the only thing he had been carrying on him, before Sly headed back towards the security station. The moment he reached his target, and had avoided the spotlights at the same time, he slipped the key into the lock and got rid of it, before he tapped a button and the alarm started to sound, to which e retreated to the roof that his sisters were on and watched as the guard he had taken the key from started to make his way over to the security station. A few seconds later the guard input the code and the alarm was silenced, though that was when Derpy, who had her binocucom resting on the security station, snapped a picture of the first code and smiled as they pocketed the information Bentley needed.

Once that was done Gilda grabbed into Sly and took off into the sky, heading towards a beacon that was near the bridge they had damaged earlier, with Derpy following after them, where they found another vulture guard patrolling the area near the security station he was supposed to be tending to. Derpy, of course, landed somewhere that gave her a good view of the screen the code would be shown on, allowing Sly and Gilda to carefully pick the key from the guard's pocket before setting off the alarm. Just like the last time the guard made his way to the security station and seemed annoyed when he noticed that it was a false alarm, to which he input the code and turned the alarm off, allowing Derpy to snap a picture of the second code. The third security station was located on the backside of the Contessa's house, where Sly and Gilda hunted down the guard that had the key while Derpy set herself up where she could take the best picture of the code... though not a minute later they were heading away from the house with the code in hand, with an annoyed guard left to patrol the building.

The final security station happened to be located near the hideout, though this time around the three of them had to distract the guard that was standing right in front of the terminal they needed to use, which in turn allowed Sly to pick the key from his pocket before activating the alarm... though that allowed Derpy to take the picture of the final code, before the three of them headed back to the hideout to see what Bentley had planned for their operation.

Once Sly, Gilda, and Derpy returned to the hideout, and head rested a little, Bentley stated that they were ready to rescue Murray from the area of the prison that Sly had told him he needed to be thrown into, which he did with some joy as he knocked out the guards around him. Bentley informed them that the first step of the plan was simple, that they use the Contessa's keys to steal one of her tanks, at which point he would jump in and drive it towards the gate while Sly kept out of sight by crawling underneath it, leaving Gilda, Derpy, and Diz to wait for the signal. He was hoping that the guards won't notice anything out of the ordinary and open the prison gates for him, which would allow him to casually roll into the prison and blast open the security doors to Murray's cell block. Once that was done they would all head inside the cell block, where Sly and the others would need to improvise their way up to the guard control center and open the doors leading down to solitary confinement. Bentley was also hoping that Murray hadn't cracked under the Contessa's hypnosis, even though he had faith in Murray's abilities, but he did have something in mind for when they reached that part of the prison... which he planned on revealing once they reached that part of the prison.

The moment he was finished explaining the operation, and the group was ready to move forward, Bentley headed out with Diz as his backup, even if he knew that the guards wouldn't be able to get at him until he was already in the tank and they were moving towards the prison's front door.

"Okay Sly, Diz and I are heading out for the tank." Bentley said, letting Sly know that they were moving out, so that way he, Gilda, and Derpy could get into position for when they had to move as well, before nodding to Diz and started the short journey towards the tank.

Sure enough Bentley's prediction that there were guards in their way came true, as Diz moved forward and knocked out the vulture guard that was in Bentley's way, before finding the tank in question and carefully did the same thing to the wolf guards that were in front of it... allowing Bentley to climb into the tank, where he immediately started to fiddle with the controls for a few moments.

"I'm inside the tank..." Bentley commented, to which Diz and the others, who were standing on a nearby roof, watched as the tank shifted a little and raised up a little, creating an area for someone to crawl under the vehicle, "increasing the ride height on the treads. There, that should give you enough room Sly. Crawl underneath this thing and let's get moving."

Sly nodded his head, even though Bentley couldn't see him do so, and left his sisters behind on the roof of the building they were standing on, to which he headed over to where the tank was located and crawled underneath it, where he tapped his communicator to let Bentley know that he was ready. A few seconds later Bentley started moving the tank towards the ramp that would take him right to the entrance of the prison, though at the same time Sly moved at the same time and keep up with the tank's movements. It didn't take them long to reach the main entrance, where the guards simply opened the gate for them and let them head inside the prison, causing Bentley to chuckle a little as he maneuvered the vehicle into position in front of the door to Murray's cell block. Once the tank was positioned in the right spot, and he was sure that it was, Bentley had Sly move out from under the tank and move to a safe distance, where he loosed a shot at the door the moment Sly indicated that he was clear... blowing open the door and allowing them to enter the part of the prison that Murray was in.

The moment the door was open Gilda, Derpy, and Diz quickly flew over to where they were standing and followed Sly inside the cell block, as Bentley insisted on remaining behind to sabotage the tank, that way no one would be able to use it against them when they made their escape... to which they entered the hallway that would take them right to an elevator, one that brought them down into the area that Murray had been sentenced to before he got into the massive fight earlier.

"Okay Bentley, we're inside," Sly commented, though as the four of them gathered in front of the elevator door, after having rode it down to the level they were on, he wondered what they were going to do next, as that part of the operation hadn't been explained, "what's next?"

"Well, that should be the guards' control center," Bentley said, to which he stepped out of the elevator and stopped when he was behind them, while at the same time he was staring up at their target, "but to be honest I'm not sure how you're going to get up there... not without flying anyway."

"Then that's what we'll do." Diz said, to which she flapped her wings for a moment, though even as she did so she was a little annoyed that the chaotic energies hadn't let her revert back to her original form yet, where she simply sighed and focused on the mission.

Despite the fact that there were a few spotlights that were still operational, something that hadn't been in all of the blueprints that they had received from Secretary Sen, indicating that the Contessa also withheld information from those she was pretending to work with, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz flew up to the top of the control center and dropped Sly off. From there it was a simple matter for Sly to drop down into the room and knock out the lone guard before he could do anything to him, allowing him to input Bentley's algorithmic code decryptor. At the same time, however, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz flew around the area of the prison that they had access to and knocked out all of the guards that were in the area, as the last thing they wanted was for someone to discover their plans and ruin them before they could free Murray or even make their escape... especially since there was no telling when the Contessa would arrive to check up on their friend, or the other inmates that were in the other cell blocks.

"Hey Bentley, do you see anything happening down there?" Sly asked, because while it was a good thing that the others were knocking the guards out, thus making the departure easier for them, he wanted to get the show on the road before the Contessa arrived, as he wanted to scare her into fleeing to where Carmelita was being held against her will.

"Success!" Bentley declared, to which the gate that he was standing in front of opened before his eyes, causing him to smile as he ran up the stairs and took a new position on the other side, where he could wait for the others to join him before they made a move for Murray, "We've got access to solitary confinement!"

"Hot stuff, I'm heading down." Sly said, though as he made his way down to the floor he spotted the others knocking out the rest of the guards, before they joined him and headed through the raised gate that Bentley had been standing near, who was happy to see all of them.

When the five of them entered the area that Murray was supposed to be located in they discovered a strange sight, Murray was standing in the middle of an unusual chamber and seemed to be twitching and swatting at the air for some reason, causing them all to worry about their friend for a few moments.

"Hmm, that looks bad. I've never seen Murray like this." Bentley commented, though this wasn't a good thing for them, as now they had to find a way to get their friend out of this state and fast, before the Contessa arrived and ruined everything they had planned.

"He's all twitchy and bug-eyed." Diz said, as it hurt to see their friend acting so weird, especially since there was no telling whether or not the Contessa had started her hypnosis sessions with him, but it only made her want to beat the stuffing out of the spider for what she had done so far.

"Sly, you said that Murray was being forced to eat spice right?" Bentley asked, recalling something that had been said when Murray spoke to Sly when he was inside the prison vents earlier, which could prove to be useful in the situation that they found themselves in.

"Yeah, he said he was feeling 'weird'." Sly answered, though he wasn't sure where Bentley was going with his question, but something told him that his friend had already figured out a way to get Murray out of the state that he was in and also get him out of the cell that he was trapped inside.

"Well, he's weirded out alright. I doubt he even knows we're here." Bentley stated, as the opening of the gate didn't cause Murray to turn towards them, like he usually would have, and their voices didn't seem to have any effect either, which left them with one choice, "Clearly, we're going to have to lure out of that cell the hard way. Those hypno-boxes are designed to heighten the effects of spice... and he's already in an agitated state. So if we were to turn them all on at the same time Murray's sure to become wildly hostile and probably break down the door."

"It looks like the power switches for the hypno-boxes are all defended by laser barriers." Gilda pointed out, though at the same time she smiled for a moment, because when she counted them she spotted three of them, but her smile was more for the fact that Bentley could likely get through the protection with ease, "Bentley, when we get close you'll have to hack the laser system from that terminal... that should give us access to the switches."

Bentley nodded as Sly stood beside him, mostly in case some guards opened the gate they had walked through, leaving Gilda, Derpy, and Diz to fly over to the three guarded power switches and wait for the laser barriers to go down, which was all up to Bentley's hacking. Sly watched as the laser barriers went down in a timely fashion, allowing the others to turn on the hypno-boxes and increase the rage and anger that Murray was feeling at the moment, causing him to shout at the anger in an attempt to drive it away. When the second hypno-box was activated Murray started to sing a very short version of the 'Little Teapot', but that quickly changed as parts of the verse were changed as his rage took over again, making it sound like an angry teapot this time around. When the third was activated Murray went crazy with rage and charged out of the cell he had been kept inside since Sly convinced him to beat up those guards, though as that happened Sly knew exactly what to do... he needed to break the hypno-boxes, which he was sure that his cane couldn't handle, so he used the other weapon at his disposal, Murray's charge attacks.

As such Sly carefully maneuvered himself around the chamber that they were in, making sure that one of the four hypno-boxes were in between him and Murray at all times, where he smiled whenever Murray charged forward and smashed one of the devices to pieces... though when all of the hypno-boxes had been destroyed Murray staggered to the middle of the chamber and the others gathered around him.

"Uhh, my head." Murray complained, indicating that ramming into the hypno-boxes had hurt more than Sly was originally expecting, but he was happy to see that Murray was coming to, and he wasn't the only one that was happy to be reunited with him, "Who? What? Is this heaven?"

"Sorry pal... you're no angel." Sly said, though at the same time he patted Murray on the shoulder, as it was good to have him back, especially now that there was only one member of the gang that they needed to rescue, one who was likely in a more dangerous situation than what he and Murray had been in.

"Murray, just take a few deep breathes and try to center your thoughts." Bentley instructed, remembering what Gilda, Derpy, and Diz had learned how to do back when they were learning magic from Mz. Ruby, back during the first couple of days of their training.

"Okay." Murray said, though as he tried to do that, and found all of his friends standing beside him once more, he noticed something odd that wasn't what he remembered, especially when he considered who the person was and what had happened the first time this happened, "Diz, how did you..."

"Chaos energy." Diz replied, as that was her excuse for when this sort of thing happened to her, because while she could easily snap her fingers and revert back to her male form, which she preferred to be in most the time, her powers tended to make her return to the opposite form a few minutes later... meaning that if she let her powers run their course she'd be back to normal in no time.

"What's with all the racket!? My conscious mind is a wreck. I ...ought to..." a voice said, to which Gilda, Derpy, and Diz turned and looked at the other entrance to the chamber they were in, where they spotted the Contessa standing on the other side of the gate, staring at them with some shock in her eyes, "the weak-minded Hippo is free, and he's got friends! Perhaps it's time to reevaluate some life choices."

"I don't know how I managed it, but I was able to keep this half of the Clockwerk Heart safe." Murray said, to which he carefully extracted the half of the Clockwerk Heart from his own pack, which he couldn't believe the guards didn't search when he and the others were captured, "It was hard to hide from the Con... the Contessa! She's getting away!"

Sly didn't even need to say anything as Murray handed him the half of the Clockwerk Heart that he had been holding onto and charged at the gate in front of them, where he latched onto the crank bar that was in front of him, to which he heaved with all of his might and moved the bar until it was all the way at the top. He then moved to the other side of the gate and did the same thing to the second crank bar, lifting it into position and opening the way for them to move forward, allowing them to charge through the pathway that the Contessa had used. A few moments later they pushed their way out onto the upper walkway of the prison and stood there for a moment, as the Contessa was standing near them, apparently having waited just long enough to see them come outside the cell block.

"You lousy no good head shrinker!" Murray declared, to which he pointed a finger at the Contessa, because right now he wanted nothing more than to hurt her for all the pain she had caused him and Sly, and not to mention Carmelita, wherever she was located, since they were captured earlier.

"Oh come now Murray, we were making such progress during our sessions." Contessa said, as if she was trying to play him or something, which only made the rest of the gang angry, because she should have known that she was losing and should have surrendered because of their sheer numbers.

"The only mental help I need is to forget about you," Murray stated, as he really wanted to put everything that happened lately in the past, where he would never have to remember it, and he was sure that some of the others felt the same way at the moment, "and I'll start by throwing you in jail!"

"Such displaced hostility." Contessa replied, though the way she spoke so far made the gang think that she was talking to a child, which was something that Murray wasn't, "If you insist on getting angry why not be psychologically productive and channel it at your so-called friends?"

"I'm done talking with my mouth!" Murray shouted, because now the Contessa was asking for it, because he wasn't about to turn his back on his friends and beat them up, not after everything they had been through since they met each other all those years ago, "Now I talk with my fists!!"

"Sorry, but our time is up." Contessa stated, to which she turned around and started to flee before their eyes, causing the gang to growl as they gave chase, while at the same time being careful to take out the smaller spiders that their target used against them.

The Contessa attempted to use spiders that were also explosives to stop them in their tracks, but with the six of them following after her it didn't take them long to take out the obstacles that were in front of them, forcing the Contessa to run away from them... before leaping onto the blimp that was near the end of the walkway, out of range for everyone save for Gilda, Derpy, and Diz, who Sly stopped from blasting the blimp since they were still missing a member.

"She's getting away!" Murray said, anger filling his voice for a moment, as he had been hoping to take the Contessa out before she could leave the area, while at the same time they watched as the blimp ascended towards the sky and headed towards her other base of operations.

"Don't worry pal, Bentley has an idea where she might be going next." Sly stated, to which he stared at the blimp and thought about Carmelita, who was likely wondering when they were coming to rescue her from her prison, "With the majority of the gang back together she doesn't stand a chance."

With Murray rescued from the cell block he had been imprisoned inside, and the Clockwerk Heart restored once the two halves were reunited, the gang returned to their hideout and quickly gathered everything they had brought with them, before starting the drive out of town. Murray was glad to be back in the driver seat of his van, even though he knew that the others had been forced to learn how to drive the van thanks to his absence, but he also promised that, when they had the time, he'd give them a proper lesson in case they needed to drive a stick shift vehicle while he wasn't present. While most of them were happy to be back together, and were trying to have a good time while they drove out of the town, only Sly seemed to be lost in thought. The others knew what he was thinking about, he was worried about Carmelita and the fact that they had no idea what the Contessa might be doing to her, which is why Bentley had the route Murray needed to take to get to the castle that was the other property that the Contessa owned.

Gilda and Derpy were sure that they would be able to find Carmelita and rescue her as well, because they weren't about to leave her in the clutches of someone that was as evil as the Contessa... and something told them that if they didn't act fast, and rescue her quickly, they'd never find her again.

Band: Contessa's Castle

Sly and the gang were quick to decide that the time for payback was now, before something happened to the Contessa and caused her to disappear, because there was one thing he was interested in recovering from her, regardless of whether or not she had a Clockwerk part in her possession. Carmelita was missing, the gang knew that the moment Bentley overheard their target speaking when he was looking for information on Sly and Murray, back at the prison, and the only place she could be is somewhere inside the Contessa's castle. Secretary Sen, who Bentley sent a message to so he could be aware of their movements, even confirmed that the Contessa had retreated to her castle, the well-fortified gothic nightmare that would make any lesser thief run in terror, while also informing them that Interpol had figured out that the Contessa had the Clockwerk Eyes in her possession. Sly knew those eyes well, as the Thievius Raccoonus described the eyes as stopping the ancient owl's opponents dead in their tracks, transfixed in their gaze, though it doesn't take a genius to figure out what an accomplished hypnotist could do with such powerful and dangerous artifacts.

The unfortunate news was that someone had spread the news of the Contessa's corruption throughout Interpol, where Secretary Sen assured them that he had no part in revealing that news to anyone, but at the same time they knew it had to be Neyla's doing, as she seemed to know more than she was revealing. Constable Neyla, being closest to the case since Carmelita was missing, was actually granted a cash allowance to hire an army of local mercenaries, no doubt on the orders of Director Barkley. That told them that they were walking into a full-scale war, between Neyla and the Contessa, but they all knew that they had to act now before things went from bad to worse. As such Bentley managed to find them a decent building that was large enough for them to use as their base of operations, though at the same time they had to be careful because Neyla had tanks patrolling the area around the bank and the part of the city that was right outside the Contessa's castle. Despite the fact that Gilda, Derpy, and Diz could easily find the clue bottles and the treasures in the area, they opted not to do that and simply bought some paragliders for the future.

Once they were ready Sly headed outside with Gilda and Derpy, letting Diz spend some time with Bentley and Murray while they did some research on the area, before the three of them jumped over to the building that was across from the bank and stopped when they reached the mission beacon that Bentley had left for them.

"Okay guys, here's the plan." Bentley said, to which their binocucoms stared at the castle that was in front of them while he spoke, though Sly noticed a tower that seemed important since it was all alone, "First, I need you to take some recon photos around the area, then you should make your way up to the Re-education Tower."

"Looks... pleasant enough." Sly commented, though at the same time that sounded like the place where the Contessa would lock up someone like Carmelita, and if that was true he hoped that he could find some way to get her out of there before the Contessa succeeded in hurting her more than she already has.

"Oh, and I know that you don't need to be told this, but stay clear of tanks." Bentley informed them, knowing that if it came to it both Gilda and Derpy could smash the tanks with their magic, something that even Diz could do, "You know, so you don't get blown up into little sticky pieces."

The first thing that they took a picture of was of the bank itself, where Bentley informed all three of them that Secretary Sen had been given information on Neyla's operation and that the bank was Neyla's headquarters, meaning that it might become one of their targets in the near future. From there they descended to a walkway that was near the water and found a boat patrolling the water, one that happened to belong to the Contessa from what Bentley said when they snapped a picture of it, while also determining that it might be a useful way to get across the gap without crossing over the bridge that was above them. After getting those two pictures the three of them used the boat to cross over into the Contessa's territory, where they made their way to the Contessa's tanks were patrolling and snapped a picture of them as well, to make sure they had a sense of their target's armory. At the same time Derpy took a picture of the blimp that their target had used to escape them back at the prison, just so Bentley had a picture of it in case he came up with a way for them to use the blimp against the Contessa.

When they had those four photos taken, and had a good idea of what they were up against, Bentley reminded them to take a look at the re-education tower, though to get up there they had to use some well placed walkways that were incorporated into the designs of the castle and some spider silk jump pads to reach the front door... only for them to discover that the front door of the tower was actually locked, which made sense if the Clockwerk Eyes were located inside the tower itself. Fortunately there happened to be an alternate route to reach the top of the tower, as there was a hook they could latch onto that was to the right of the door and a pipe that went all the way to the only window that was attached to the tower. The moment they reached the area around the window Sly carefully opened it up and they slipped inside the top of the structure, though after taking a few steps they came to a stop as they took in the situation that was playing out right in front of their eyes. As they suspected the Contessa was hiding away at the top of the tower, with the Clockwerk Eyes attached to some sort of machine, while she was being guarded by some vulture guards with pointed helmets for some reason... and capturing Sly's attention was Carmelita, who was strapped to a wooden table with the power of the Eyes being directed at her and her mind.

"Bentley, there's more than just the Clockwerk Eyes up here." Gilda quietly said, as she didn't want to make a lot of unnecessary noise at the moment, not when they wanted to survey the situation, get some pictures, and then come up with a game plan to get rescue Carmelita and get the Clockwerk Eyes.

"Why are you doing this?!" Carmelita asked, where Sly, Gilda, and Derpy noticed that someone had taken the effort to change her back into her thief attire, where the pack containing the rest of her stuff was on a nearby table, just out of her reach, "Neyla, she set me up, I'm an honest cop!"

"Honest?" Contessa asked, as if she found something funny about the word, while at the same time her guards seemed to glance at each other for a moment, as if they were thinking whatever she was thinking, though at the same time the trio noticed there was a hint of anger in her voice, "Carmelita Fox, the moment you came into contact with Sly Cooper, and didn't arrest him like you should have, you stopped being an 'honest cop'. You had this coming to you the moment you failed your job."

"Why are you doing this to me?" Carmelita asked again, showing that, despite the fact that the Clockwerk Eyes were being used on her, she still had control over her mind and was fighting off the hypnosis that the Contessa was throwing at her, but they knew it was only a matter of time until she cracked.

"Because, despite your corruption, you are honest and there are those at Interpol that still believe in you." Contessa replied, to which she focused on the panel that was in front of her, showing that she would answer the question while she worked on whatever she was working on, "You see, by assisting the Cooper Gang you learned too much about the Klaww Gang and its spice operation. It was only a matter of time before one of you found out that I was a secret member... so when Neyla gave me the chance to put all of you in custody I took it. Besides, the members of your gang that weren't captured raided my prison, I've been ousted as a member of the Klaww Gang, and I couldn't break anyone with the time given to me... so, at the very least, I'll focus my efforts on you."

"You're a disgrace to Interpol!" Carmelita shouted, showing her disgust that one of her fellow officers of the law could actually be persuaded to join a gang of criminals, true villains that were seeking some goal that no one was aware of at the moment, "I swear that the moment I'm free from these bindings I'll take you out and make sure you suffer for what you have done to me and the Cooper Gang."

"Whatever you say my dear." Contessa said, also revealing that she honestly didn't care for Carmelita at all, as if all she saw was a corrupt cop and nothing else, which caused Sly to growl for a moment, "I'm afraid that your life, let alone what you called your 'life's work', isn't going to last much longer. Once I integrate the Clockwerk Eyes into this device your 'life's work' will be whatever I tell you."

"I won't be brainwashed that easily." Carmelita stated, where she continued her struggle against the bindings on her wrists and ankles, indicating that she wasn't about to give up on freeing herself, though at the same time Sly was sure that he saw a lone tear run down the side of her face.

"Quite right, it won't be easy... or painless." Contessa replied, though that was when a light smile graced her face for a moment, as if the notion of inflicting such a torment on someone was part of the process that she enjoyed the most, "But I will reprogram your mind and you will take the fall for me at Interpol. Now, just lay back and relax, go to your happy place and stay there... forever."

"I don't think they've seen you guys yet." Bentley commented, speaking into their ears the moment the Contessa and Carmelita stopped talking, though he was also quiet enough so that his voice didn't echo in the area that the siblings were standing in, "Take a few photos and get out of there."

"No... we can't leave now." Sly stated, as his eyes were fixed on Carmelita, because he could only imagine the pain that the Contessa was inflicting upon her in an attempt to break her mind and transform her into someone that she wasn't, while robbing him of the person he loved with all his heart, "We have to help Carmelita, she's in trouble!"

"Sly, there's nothing you, Gilda, and Derpy can do right now!" Bentley stated, though he knew that it had been a mistake to send Sly into the re-education tower, since there was always the chance that Carmelita would be located there as well, "Get the recon photos and come back to the safe house... I swear, we'll find a way to help her."

Sly stood there as Gilda and Derpy took the photos of everything that seemed of importance to them, though he simply stared at Carmelita and hoped that whatever plan they came up with would allow them to act quickly, because he hated seeing her like this. From the photos they took the trio was able to learn that the computer terminal on their side of the metallic grate was hotwired into the tower's systems, and that Bentley stated that they had to find a way to switch it's power back online. Carmelita herself was being tied down to an Irontech 2-50, even though it looked like a wooden table with some metallic cuffs attached to it, while she was being watched over by the Shadow Guard, the Contessa's elite soldiers based on the information Secretary Sen sent them when Bentley informed him that they were going after the Contessa once more. The real surprise came from what the Clockwerk Eyes were attached to, an evil and indestructible machine called a Mind Shuffler, something that Mz. Ruby had briefly mentioned when she spoke of dark magic, which meant that she might know a way to destroy it... or at the very least the books that she gave them might hold the key they were looking for.

With the pictures taken, and they were sure that they had everything they needed, the sisters started to move out of the re-education tower so they could head back to the safe house, though Sly cast one last look at Carmelita, for now anyway, before following his sisters outside so they could begin the trek back to Bentley, Murray, and Diz.

Upon their return to the safe house Bentley informed them that the moment he learned that there was a Mind Shuffler involved in this operation, and knew how dangerous it was, he sent an email to Secretary Sen and asked if he knew a method to get rid of such a thing. Unfortunately the Secretary didn't have that sort of information, but Mz. Ruby, who he went to speak to once he learned what the Contessa had in her arsenal, revealed the exact specifics on how to properly destroy such a device, and it didn't require needing the ability to channel magic to do so. Mz. Ruby informed them, via an emergency video conference that the Secretary set up for them, that the only way to destroy a Mind Shuffler, after confirming that it was the machine in question when she was shown the picture, was with something called a Bad Mojo Bomb. The only way to create such a powerful bomb was to drain bad mojo from several runoffs, using a semi-magical device called a Bad Mojo Collector, where Mz. Ruby said that in a castle like the one the Contessa owned, with as old as it had to be, there had to be several crypts that contained the necessary energy for the task... along with the collector they needed to create the bomb in question.

Once they had the information they needed and thanked Mz. Ruby for helping them, where she said it was a pleasure since she missed working with them every week, the conference call was disconnected and Bentley explained the rest of the first stages of their plan; where Murray would kidnap the head of security for the castle, while at the same time Sly would use some long dead ghosts to freak out Neyla and force her to purchase some additional firepower.

The moment they understood what they needed to do Murray, accompanied by Diz, headed out of the safe house and started the journey into the castle, though they used the boat that Sly, Gilda, and Derpy had spotted so they could get to their destination without being spotted so quickly. While they did that they spotted both Gilda and Derpy take off from the safe house as well, as they were heading out to collect all the clue bottles and treasures while the skies were still clear, as part of Bentley's plan, if it worked, would bring in some planes that would dominate the sky for Neyla's forces. Fortunately the guards didn't catch them as they found a ramp that would take them up to the upper levels of the castle, before allowing them to jump over to the roof area that had the mission beacon attached to it, where they pulled out their binocucoms and let Bentley brief them on the mission.

"Murray, Diz, can either of you see the General from where your standing?" Bentley asked, as his math indicated that they should be standing someplace that gave them a good view of the person he needed to talk to, provided that he was out on patrol like he was supposed to be.

"Nope." Murray replied, though even as he said that he spotted an older bat guard walking up the same ramp they had walked up a few moments ago, making him wonder if they had been spotted when they walked up it, "Just an old man coming up the ramp."

"Don't let his appearance fool you." Bentley said, his tone indicating that many people who met this eye were fooled by his appearance, or at least that was what all the reports said, "That's General Clawfoot, and he's one the toughest old soldiers you'll ever see... not to mention head of castle security."

"He's the head of security?" Diz asked, to which she put down her binocucom and stared at the elderly guard, as she was curious as to why they needed the information that he had, but she guessed that Bentley would tell her and Murray that when they brought General Clawfoot back to the safe house, "Well, we'll just have to be careful when we beat up him, otherwise this operation will be a bust."

"Oh, don't worry about that. He's only afraid of two things: fire and water." Bentley replied, revealing another bit of information that Secretary Sen must have given him, which in turn helped them out in the long run, "Other than that, neither of you could hurt him even if you wanted to. He might even come in handy along the way... as a projectile."

"Wow, that is handy." Murray commented, as he had several thoughts about using guards as weapons like that, and had done so a few times in the past, but this was the first time he was being allowed to actually do something like this with such an important guard.

With the mission fresh in their minds both Murray and Diz headed over to where General Clawfoot was patrolling and approached him from behind, where Diz used her cane and pulled his feel out from under him, allowing Murray to swoop in and grab the general. The moment he was holding the general, and the two of them started moving back towards the safe house, General Clawfoot started to struggle and made some noise, causing the guards to come and investigate what was going on. Diz, fully prepared for this situation since this was the reason she came along with Murray, used her cane to knock out the guards when they came running, sometimes even going invisible and attacking them from behind to make it seem like the ghosts in the area didn't care for them or the rest of the Contessa's forces. Fortunately the guards weren't expecting someone like her to be there, as sometimes some of them stared at her as she faded in and out of reality with her invisibility power... before she knocked them out and left them to tell the Contessa why they had fallen asleep on the job and let their general get kidnapped, if she even heard about this event.

When they reached the front of the castle, where the bridge between the Contessa's territory and Neyla's territory was located, Diz knocked out the guards that were advancing on Murray and opened the way for him to move forward, to which the two of them quickly crossed the bridge, avoided the spotlights, and bypassed the tanks... where they made their way to the safe house, where Bentley was waiting for them with a feather in his hand.

"Well, well... General Clawfoot, we've got a lot to talk about." Bentley said, though at the same time Murray tossed the General at the floor and stunned him, allowing Bentley to do whatever he had planned to get the information he needed for them to move forward, "You wouldn't by chance know the security codes to the castle gates? Hmmm? Don't feel like talking huh? How about a little of this?"

It was in that moment that Bentley used the feather and started tickling the General in multiple places all over his body, causing an immediate reaction from the General, one that neither Murray or Diz were expecting when their friend started asking for information.

"Ha ha ha... drack! Ho ho, ha ha ha!" General Clawfoot laughed, revealing that his one weakness was being tickled, which was an extremely strange weakness when the duo thought about it, but that didn't stop Bentley from continuing his 'interrogation'.

"Talk you scoundrel!" Bentley stated, to which Murray and Diz sat down nearby and watched, as they were sure that he would tell them when he had the information he needed, while at the same time giving Sly and the others a chance to do their mission.

"Ha Ha, Oooo Ha ha Fwah! Ho-Ho-ooooooo!" General Clawfoot chuckled, to which Murray and Diz sighed, as they both predicted that it was going to be some time before Bentley got what he wanted from the General, so he could move out and start forging the Bad Mojo Bomb Mz. Ruby had told them about.

They were sure that Mz. Ruby wouldn't steer them wrong, not after she had assisted three of them learn how to use magic over a two year period, though they would see how effective the bomb actually was... once they had completed the other missions that Bentley had planned for them.

Band: Paranormal Activity

Once Murray and Diz had returned to the safe house, with General Clawfoot in hand so Bentley could interrogate him for the information that he needed, Sly, Gilda, and Derpy headed out and carefully approached the area that the boat traveled in and used that to get to the area under the Contessa's castle. The reason neither Gilda or Derpy flew over there, and carried their brother with them, was because they were sure that the Contessa realized that they might already be outside her base of operations and had commanded her guards to keep an eye out for them. Even if she didn't give them that command, and they weren't looking towards the sky, both of the sisters agreed that this time around they might want to go about things as ordinary thieves and not the magic users they had become, even though they both tucked their wings in as well so they'd act like Sly the entire time they were on this mission. While they were riding the boat over to the underside of the castle, however, both of them noticed that Sly was staring up at the Re-education Tower, his mind focused on who was trapped up there.

"Sly, we'll save Carmelita." Gilda said, to which she placed her hand on her brother's shoulder, who stood there for a moment before sighing, where he nodded his head and tried to focus on what they were doing at the moment, but they knew that he was going to be distracted for some time.

"Yeah, we'll rescue her, get the Eyes, and beat the Contessa," Sly replied, though at the same time the boat came to the wooden walkway that was beneath the castle, where he jumped over to it and started walking towards the crypt area that Bentley wanted them to head to.

Gilda and Derpy followed after their brother, worried that he was going to be distracted because of the fact that Carmelita was trapped and was being tormented by the Contessa, but at the same time they knew that they were going to do everything in their power to save Sly's girlfriend. Even with that thought crossed their minds the three of them carefully walked into the area that was in front of them, where they found that the guards that were patrolling the area didn't seem to notice that they were walking towards the crypts, which made things better for them. Once they reached the area under the mission marker, and made absolutely sure that there weren't any guards that were turning to look at them, they jumped up onto the railing that would take them to the roof of the building and landed on the area that Bentley wanted to talk to them in. At the same time they knew that it was going to be some time before Bentley contacted them, since he was likely still interrogating General Clawfoot, to which the three of them hid themselves in some areas where they wouldn't be seen as they waited for Bentley to contact them.

A few minutes later Sly noticed that his binocucom was blinking, something that both of his sisters had noticed as well, before they pulled them out and raised them to their eyes, where they found that Bentley was ready to tell them what they needed to do to harass Neyla.

"Alright Sly, there's your new objective." Bentley said, to which they found that their view was brought to the crypt that they were standing near, which made sense that he would have them stand close to their next objective, "I need the three of you to sneak inside and smash the coffin of the Evil Wolf Priestess."

"That sounds pretty harsh." Sly replied, though at the same time he had to wonder why the people that had built this castle would have kept the crypt intact, since he was sure that, in the past, people like that ended up getting burned and buried in an unmarked grave, meaning this one was special, "Does the old girl really deserve that sort of treatment?"

"Weren't you listening? She was an Evil Wolf Priestess." Bentley stated, as he couldn't believe that Sly seemed to be missing the point he was trying to make, while at the same time both Gilda and Derpy knew that they would benefit from such a thing, and maybe purify some souls while they were at it, "Once you smash the coffin it'll free all the ghosts trapped in there with her."

"Okay," Sly slowly said, as he was still wondering why they were going to do this, but when he thought back to the slideshow Bentley had set up he guessed that the plan he had in mind might be able to work, "I don't know where you're going with all this but freeing trapped ghosts sounds vaguely heroic."

The moment the connection was down the three of them put away their binocucoms and headed for the door of the crypt, pausing when a guard walked near the door, where Derpy silently landed behind the wolf guard and stole both the coins and his golden watch from his pocket, before he moved forward. The instant that happened they waited until he was some distance away before Derpy opened the door, as silently as she could, before the three of them headed inside the crypt and began their search for the coffin that the priestess had been placed in. Of course as they walked down the hallway that was in front of them they came to a part of the area that had a few swinging blades, deadly looking ones that were designed to keep people from trespassing, but at the same time the three of them took turns navigating their way through the hazards as they kept their eyes open for the coffin they were after. Fortunately just beyond the trap was an area with a few coffins, though the one in the middle, raised above the others, looked like the one they were after, to which they carefully approached it and smashed the lid into pieces.

The result of the lid's destruction sent out a small wave of energy that tore the other coffins apart, apparently knocking out the wolf guards that had been sleeping inside them, before the ghosts that had been trapped inside surged out of the crypt... to which the three of them headed back through the trap they had walked through and walked outside, where they found that the ghosts were currently flying all over the place, only for them to see what the next stage of Bentley's plan was.

"Before you guys left for the crypt, I modified the imagers in your binocucoms, so now they can capture ghosts." Bentley informed them, while at the same time they seemed to be following one of the ghosts that was nearby, who seemed to be minding it's own business and wasn't even haunting anyone.

"Didn't we just set these guys free?" Sly inquired, as he was beginning to wonder if it would have been simpler, not to mention easier, to just have Gilda, Derpy, and Diz do something to get the point across and force Neyla's hand, all in preparation for the heist, "Why would we want to capture them again?"

"Don't worry Sly, it's only a short-term confinement this time." Bentley said, though he found it amusing that neither of the sisters had said anything yet, but at the very least they seemed to be listening as he explained everything about the mission to their brother, "I need the three of you to gather all the ghosts by taking pictures of them, then set them free down the chimney of Neyla's headquarters."

"If we know Neyla as well as we think we do, she'll think it's a sneak attack from the Contessa." Derpy stated, as she knew what Bentley was getting at, and so did Gilda, though not a few seconds later Sly nodded his head as well, meaning that he could see what Bentley was talking about now.

"Correct." Bentley confirmed, happy that the sisters had figured out what he was saying, while at the same time a little disappointed that Sly was so slow to figure it out, but then he realized why that would be the case and decided it was best if he said something else, "If I did my math right, and I always do my math right, Neyla should respond to the assault by purchasing more firepower."

"Anything bad for the Contessa is good for us," Gilda said, though at the same time she grinned, because after everything that their target had put her brother, Murray, and Carmelita through so far, it was good to be getting some payback at long last, "and we get to really freak out Neyla in the process."

From what Bentley could tell them there were nine ghosts in total, meaning that all of them could take three apiece, though at the same time Sly insisted that his sisters take the ones that were much harder for him to get to, since they were running out of time until the Contessa smashed through Carmelita's defenses. Sure, they hadn't given her a whole lot of time to do anything, but there was no telling when she had started the process and Sly was absolutely sure that she was in pain at the moment, if that tear earlier was anything to go by. As such he wanted them to make sure they could get the ghosts that would take too long for an ordinary thief to reach, such as himself, and watched as they flew off to find their targets, while at the same time heading over to the side that their safe house was on so he could catch the ghosts that were the closest to Neyla. While he tracked down his chosen ghosts, however, he did see both of his sisters flying through the air, in a manner that would make sure they weren't seen by the Contessa's guards, before snapping pictures of the ghosts they were chasing, causing him to chuckle as he turned his own attention to the ones he was chasing.

Between the three of them it honestly took four or five minutes for all nine of the ghosts to be rounded back up, and the pictures tied to a special lantern that would release them once they had dropped it into the bank, to which they moved into position and dropped it... where not a few moments later Neyla opened the doors and ran outside, though the look on her face was priceless as she stared at the castle.

"So, the Contessa wants war, eh?" Neyla commented, staring at the castle for a few moments, as she couldn't believe that the disgraced Interpol Agent would pull such a move on her, before a thought came to mind and brought a smile to her face when she remembered the funds she had left over, "Perhaps it's time I purchased a little air power; a few bombers should put that old charlatan in her place."

With their task complete the three of them waited until Neyla was back inside the bank that was her base of operations, where she was likely going to call in the bombers and get them started on their mission, before they headed back to the safe house and found that General Clawfoot was gone, though they didn't want to know what had happened to him. The moment they returned Bentley picked up his gear and walked outside with Diz walking behind him, as she was going to be helping him during his mission, even if part of it was flying around the castle and interpreting the information that was on his computer. As such Diz grabbed onto Bentley the moment they were outside the safe house, spread her wings, and took off towards the mission start area, once more surprising Bentley by the fact that she was able to fly with the size of her wings, while also being surprised by the fact that she hadn't shifted back into her male form yet. Generally when a switched happened it was only for a few hours, but he had to guess that the amount of energy Diz had poured into creating those golems had been more than the hyena had been expecting, because it had been some time since they left the prison and she was still in her current form... but Bentley pushed that thought aside, as Diz's chaotic energies made it impossible for him to understand anything about her and what she was able to do.

Fortunately the mission area was close to the one where Sly, Gilda, and Derpy had started their mission, to which Diz landed behind the building that was behind the crypt her family members had gone into and found the beacon that Bentley had placed for himself... to which Diz sent him down and input the code that General Clawfoot had given them, opening the door so they could enter the building, but once they were inside they came to a stop when they spotted a backpack like device on a pedestal.

"That's it!" Bentley said, though his tone indicated that he was extremely pleased with what was sitting in front of them, which told Diz that this had to be the very item that they were searching for, "It's just like Mz. Ruby said; the Contessa would have a Bad Mojo Collector to transport the overflow."

"So that's the semi-magical device that sucks up bad mojo." Diz commented, staring at the contraption for a moment, as she wasn't entirely sure that it was safe to carry around, but since Mz. Ruby had told them it was the only way to safely destroy the Mind Shuffler, and save Carmelita, she decided to roll with it.

"Yes, though I'll need it to gather the runoff from these spouts." Bentley stated, taking a moment to study the device as well, while at the same time recalling everything that he had read in the email that Sen had sent him with some additional information on what they would be doing with this, "It's also not going to be easy to do that, mostly because bad mojo is a powerfully dark force... and if someone takes any damage while carrying a collector, well, they're done for. It also presents an interesting tactical challenge... perhaps we can use the deathtraps native to these crypts against any foe that might attempt to thwart our collection of the ectoplasm."

"It definitely seems that these switches are linked to specific deathtraps," Diz said, staring that the deathtraps that were in front of them, what they could see anyway, and knew that this was going to be an interesting mission, while at the same time being glad that Bentley had asked him to come assist him.

"Once all four cylinders of the Black Mojo Collector are full we should have enough black magic to destroy the Mind Shuffler." Bentley stated, reminding Diz of why they were they, though he waited a moment for her to move into position in front of one of the switches, before slipping the collector onto his back.

The moment Bentley took the Bad Mojo Collector, and joined Diz near one of the switches, the doors on the other side of the room opened and wolf guards started to pile out one at a time, where the two of them discovered that the deathtrap that was in front of them was a simple smasher that crushed the guards when they walked onto it and one of them pressed one of the three switches in front of them. Diz moved between the switch on the left and the middle, letting Bentley stay by the right one, where they carefully timed using the switches, though at the same time the guards were relentless in their attempts to stop them from draining the spout that was above them. It took them a few minutes to deal with the guards that were coming at them, where they would pin all of this on the fact that the Contessa's guards seemed to have a death wish and kept charging at them without their own safety in mind, before the spout shattered and the guards decided to stop coming. Once that was done the two of them headed out through the door they had opened a few minutes ago, where Diz carefully picked Bentley up as she took to the skies, before he pointed out the location of the second spout... which was higher up on the castle than the first one, but easily found and entered without the guards even knowing that they were there.

The second crypt had four switches that they could use to activate the deathtraps, which included a throwing sword trap, two walls made up of blades type trap, a swinging axe trap, and a trap designed to spew fire in case the guards made it through the first three that were in front of them. As such Diz insisted that Bentley stay by the switch closest to the entrance, the fire spewing trap, so they could use it if any guards made it by her and the three traps that were in front of them, where Bentley agreed and Diz got to work stalling the guards that were charging at her. Fortunately the pattern was waiting until a guard was in front of the throwing sword trap, then use the blade walls, followed by the swinging axe, one that was so great that she was able to use to stop the guards without letting a single one reach her or Bentley, where the two of them were able to avoid taking damage until the spout was destroyed. From there they headed outside and Bentley figured out that the third crypt was located close to the crypt that Sly, Gilda, and Derpy went into to free the Evil Wolf Priestess, where Diz got them into the crypt and they found out what was in store for them.

The next crypt had two crusher traps, one fire trap near the entrance, and a gas trap that knocked out all the guards that were standing around the middle of the room, where Diz insisted that Bentley stay where the flames wouldn't get to him and went to town on smashing and burning the guards that were coming at her. Like the last two crypts Diz was able to break the guards and defeat them without letting them hit Bentley, along with the Bad Mojo Collector, to which they walked out of the third one and headed for the final one, which was in the under area of the castle, where Sly and the others had gone through earlier. Fortunately the same passage that the others used to get over to this area was the same one they could use to get to the final crypt, where Bentley input the code and opened the door... where they discovered an area that had two fire traps, a walkway that fell and drowned someone, and the final switch that Bentley was standing near, which he would use if guards got by Diz, where she would retreat and Bentley would shock the entire area and take out the guards.

Between the two of them, and the traps that were in front of them, Diz and Bentley were able to smash their way through the enemies that were coming at them until the final spout was destroyed... where they stood still for a moment as they made sure that the guards weren't coming anymore, before Bentley smiled as he looked at Diz.

"Alright, the deed is done." Bentley said, taking off the Bad Mojo Collector that was on his back and staring at it for a few moments, finding that all four of the chambers were filled, "With a mojo collector at full capacity, we'll be able to blow up the Mind Shuffler, force the Clockwerk Eyes off of it, and, more importantly, save Carmelita."

"That's good news." Diz replied, as she was sure that Sly was going to like the news that Bentley had for him, since they were more focused on rescuing Carmelita than they were retrieving the Eyes, but the Eyes happened to be another prize and they'd take them anyway.

Once they were sure that the Bad Mojo Bomb was ready, wiht the chambers full of the necessary energy, they headed outside and Diz flew them back to the safe house, so they could plan out the next stage of their plans as they waited to see what Neyla and the Contessa did.

When Bentley and Diz returned to the safe house, and carefully stored the Bad Mojo Bomb in an area where it could rest until it was time for the heist, Bentley took a few moments to study the comings and goings of the guards that the Contessa employed and the tanks that Neyla had. Eventually he gathered them together and showed them the next stage of their plan, where Sly, and whoever went with him, needed to steal a voice modulator from the castle and install it under Neyla's headquarters. If all went as planned, and he was sure that the group would succeed in their mission, such a thing would be give them the ability to give orders to Neyla's mercenaries without being detected, which would be useful in the heist, once the other objectives were finished. The unfortunate news was that Neyla's recent bomber purchase was making her army over-enthusiastic, meaning that they might strike before the gang was ready, which was where he said that Murray needed to hotwire one of the Contessa's tanks and go to town on the mercenaries. The last thing they needed to do was simple, as Bentley said that he would need to venture back into the crypts to power up the old computer in the Re-education Tower, which they needed since they were going to save Carmelita.

As the others agreed with the missions that were being given to them, and the fact that they needed to get them done fast before the Contessa managed to break Carmelita's mind spurred them into motion immediately, Bentley headed outside and was picked up by Derpy... to which she flew them over to the stone door that they needed to open, once more imputing the codes that General Clawfoot gave them, before entering the area in front of them, where they came to a stop when they saw what was in front of them.

"So, how are you going to hack the computers down there when they've got no power?" Derpy asked, because the terminal that was to their left clearly had no power to them, which meant that Bentley had to have a plan that would allow him to restore power to the computer.

"According to General Clawfoot, there's a mobile energy source that is being stored at the end of this hallway." Bentley replied, knowing that he hadn't explain everything to Sly and the others, rather they knew that he had a plan and were trusting that he could get it done without fail.

"'Hallway' is a pretty kind term," Derpy commented, staring at the obstacles that were in front of them, ones that she was sure that she could get over with the greatest of ease with her wings, "for what looks like a complex medieval gauntlet of death."

"Yes well, while the idea of jumping down a crypt filled with whirling, razor-sharp spikes might scare me," Bentley said, revealing that he was thinking about this in the sense that he was the only one tackling the situation, but Derpy knew that he was actually thinking about how she was going to get them through this, "in fact terrorize my every fiber, it's the only way to power up that old computer in the Re-education Tower. Without that thing online we'll never be able to free Carmelita from her bindings... much less get at the Clockwerk Eyes."

"You're a good man Bentley." Derpy stated, as she knew that the gang was lucky to have such a intelligent person as one of their friends, especially since he was actually putting Carmelita, Sly's girlfriend, over the dangerous Clockwerk Eyes that the Contessa had, before she turned towards the hallway and picked Bentley up, "Shall we get started?"

"The sooner we get the battery, the sooner I can turn the computer on," Bentley replied, to which he prepared himself as Derpy stared at the traps that were in front of them, as she was already determining the best course of action she could take to get them to their destination.

Derpy opened her wings once more and flew above the spinning roller trap that was in front of them, where she landed in front of the stairs down to the next level of the crypt, which had another set of spinning roller traps and two swinging axe traps near the other set of stairs. The next room, after bypassing those traps, had two roller traps that were also easy to get around, especially since Derpy could just fly over them with ease, before they headed into the next room, which happened to have more spinning roller traps on the floor. From there they found that the final room had a pool of water between them and their target, though as Derpy moved through the air some octopus tentacles rose up and tried to swat her out of the air, but she bypassed them with ease and landed on the other side of the room... where she set Bentley down and let him survey the area that they were in.

"A-ha! This acid battery should do the trick." Bentley stated, to which he put his weapon away and set the battery on his back, where he turned towards the terminal that was near them, though at the same time Derpy watched as it turned on when Bentley approached it, "I just need to walk close to the electrode and voila! Prepare to be hacked you knave."

Derpy stood there for a moment, watching Bentley carefully hack into the terminal that was in front of him, while at the same time noticing that he was smashing his way through the defenses that were inside the terminal as he also made several comments about his skills. Derpy had to admit that just watching him hack into the computer was interesting, since he was the only one that could do something like this in the first place, though eventually Bentley pulled his hands back and cheered for his success, while also stating that there were two more they needed to hack into. As such Derpy carefully picked Bentley up once more, this time making sure to take the battery into consideration, before she made her way back towards the second terminal that they had passed by on their way towards the area that the battery had been located in. Since she could bypass the traps that lined the crypt, made for enemies that couldn't fly as it turned out, it didn't take them long to get to where the second terminal was located, though when they arrived at their destination she set Bentley down and landed as he hacked into the computer.

It took Bentley a little longer to hack into this computer than it took him to hack into the first one, mostly because it had a few more defenses for him to deal with, but eventually he claimed the computer and activated it, further empowering the main computer in the Re-education Tower. Once that was done Derpy picked him up and continued to navigate her way through the traps that she could simply fly over, making her wonder what the castle's builders would have thought about the potential that a flying person was bypassing everything they had built. A few moments later the two of them were back at the entrance, where the first computer they had seen was located, to which Derpy set Bentley down at let him get to work as the terminal came back online, while at the same time she stretched a little as her friend restored power to the computer... until he stopped tapping the controls and turned towards her with a smile on his face.

"With that old computer powered up our work here is done." Bentley said, to which Derpy nodded, as that was good news in the long run, especially since they were trying to save Carmelita from the Contessa, before the two of them headed outside and flew back to the safe house.

It was only a matter of time until the gang was ready to assault the Contessa's Re-education Tower, so they could bust Carmelita out of the tower and make off with the Clockwerk Eyes at the same time, while also showing the Contessa what happens when someone messes with the Cooper Gang... and then, once they were sure that Carmelita was okay, they would deal with Neyla and the remaining members of the Klaww Gang.

Band: High Road

When Bentley and Derpy returned from powering up the computer in the Re-education Tower, which pleased Sly more than he was willing to admit since that meant that they were one step closer to saving Carmelita, Murray and Diz set out immediately, as Murray had another task to complete. The only reason that Diz was going along, to help assist Murray in dealing with the tanks, was because she had next to nothing to do and was hoping that she would find some excuse to use her powers, to maybe snap her back to her original form. Murray, of course, was glad to have Diz along for the ride, mostly because they worked well together, though as they walked outside the two of them carefully avoided the tanks that were moving around the area as they headed towards the location of the mission start. That meant making their way through the area that Neyla controlled, carefully crossing over the bridge between the two areas, and walk to the right of the entrance they had walked through, where an entrance to the Contessa's tanks was located.

Once they were in position, and Diz knocked out the guards that were in the immediate area, the two of them pulled out their binocucoms and prepared themselves to receive their instructions from Bentley, as while they knew that the mission was taking out Neyla's tanks they had no idea how many he wanted them to destroy.

"Murray, the tank uses two analog sticks to steer it." Bentley said, informing Murray of the controls that were inside the tanks, because of the fact that Murray had been in the solitary area of the prison he had no idea what the controls of a tank were, which he knew thanks to the information he gained from the book that Sly stole, "You'll need to push both of them in the upwards direction to move forward, both towards you in order to go in reverse, and in opposite directions to rotate. You'll also find that there is a button that allows you to fire your turret. You'll need to take out six tanks to get the job done."

Murray nodded as Diz opened the window that was near where they were standing, allowing Murray to slip into the area that the tank was located in, though as he slipped into the tank he was forced to move the seat so he had enough room to actually sit down and actually use the controls that were in front of him. Diz watched all of this as it happened and, when Murray was ready, she opened the door that was in their way and watched as Murray drove the tank outside the garage area it had been resting in until they came to claim it, before jumping on top of it and riding it outside. Once Murray had the tank outside it's storage area he moved forward immediately, happily charging into battle as he loosed several blasts at the enemy tank that was patrolling the area, destroying it before it even had a chance to fire back. The moment that tank was finished Murray continued moving forward, heading around some buildings and made his way towards the safe house, though while he did that Diz surprised him by using her chaotic power to snap the tread of the closest tank, allowing him to blast it apart as well.

When one of the other tanks spotted them, and started to turn towards them, Diz wove her magic through the air and disappeared from the area that she was in, merely turning invisible so Neyla wouldn't be able to identify who her tank commanders had seen, before using another spell that made the tank miss it's shot, which barreled into another enemy tank and knocked it backwards. That moment allowed Murry to fire at the first tank, knocking it apart, before turning his attention to the second one and blew it up as well, though as he moved forward he found that it was rather easy for him to disassemble Neyla's tanks, making both him and Diz wonder what sort of mercenaries Neyla had enlisted to help her with this assault. The last two were a little tougher, as they were the ones actually patrolling the bank that Neyla had claimed as her headquarters, though at the same time Murray and Diz used their combined abilities to dismantle and trash the tanks, even causing one of them to damage the other again, before Murray dealt the finishing blow and reduced them to a pile of scrap.

"Aw yeah!" Murray said, to which he turned the tank around and headed back towards the storage area he had gotten it from, that way when the guards came around they would find that it was still where they had left it, even though the gas would be a little lower than it would normally be, "Eat that you mercenary scum!"

"Nice work you two." Bentley spoke up, as he had heard the sounds of the battle from inside the safe house, but his sensors told him that they had done exactly what he needed them to do, which made him smile a bit, "That should cool down those mercenaries for a while."

Once Murray and Diz returned to the storage area, and put the tank where they had gotten it from, they headed out through the same window, closed it to avoid raising the alarm, and made their way back across the bridge, where they headed back towards the safe house so they could rest up. Along the way Murray caught Diz looking down at herself, as he knew that she was hoping that the use of her magic would have snapped her back to being a guy again, but then she sighed and simply continued on her way, putting that thought behind her, especially since they were here for one specific reason. When the two of them got back, and the rest of the gang congratulated them on a job well done, Sly and Gilda moved out for the final mission they needed to complete before the heist began, even though Sly's mind was only focused on one thing at the moment. Gilda, knowing that time was of the essence, grabbed her brother and took to the skies, carefully avoiding being seen by the pilots that were bombing the area around the castle, before dropping down in the area that the mission beacon was located in.

Sly chuckled, as once upon a time he had considered using his sisters' wings to be cheating, and had restricted them to use them only when it was necessary, but right now he was thankful for it, as it made things that much easier for all of them, since they could get to places much faster... though he pushed that thought to the back of his mind as he pulled out his binocucom, so he and Gilda could hear what Bentley needed to tell them about their objective.

"The Contessa plans on taking control of Neyla's army by fooling them with a prototype voice modulation device." Bentley told them, to which their view shifted until they were looking at the bank that Neyla was no doubt resting inside, before he continued to speak as they looked down at a pair of guards that were nearby, "To get the thing working she'll have to jack it into the satellite connection beneath Neyla's headquarters."

"So, based on what you said earlier, you'd like us to steal the device and hook it up for our side," Sly said, recalling the briefing that Bentley had given them some time ago, even though his mind was more focused on who the Contessa was currently tormenting at the moment, "giving us control over Neyla's mercenaries. Sounds great!"

"You and Gilda will have to steal a few keys here and there to get access to the more secure areas of the castle." Bentley stated, though at the same time he knew that this wouldn't be a problem for the pair, as they were both master thieves and would be able to get the job done without fail.

"If there are pockets to be picked, I'm your man." Sly replied, as he was going to enjoy this a little, because he really wanted to screw over both Neyla and the Contessa, mostly for different reasons, but at the same time this was another step towards saving the one person he loved.

"First, I need you two to steal a wire tap and the voice modulator," Bentley continued, knowing that Sly might be getting distracted and that he needed to get the mission underway before something else happened, "then head for the sewers beneath Neyla's headquarters."

"We're on it." Gilda stated, to which both she and Sly put their binocucoms away and stared down at the guards that were standing near each other, noticing how they moved so that stealing the keys would take precision and timing that only master thieves could pull off.

What they ended up doing, since the guards were so close together, was that Gilda took the guard who was standing in the middle of the area in front of them, taking his key before he even knew what had hit him, before returning to the area the mission beacon had been placed in, where Sly dropped down and stole the key from the guard who was walking around in a circle. The moment the two keys were in their possession Sly let Gilda pull him into the sky as they headed into the actual castle area, where Bentley informed them that the area the first item was located in was right across from where the Re-education Tower was located. When they entered the room that the keys unlocked they found a number of wolf guards patrolling the room, but as they watched them the siblings found that the guards were more tired that what they would have thought, as all of them fell asleep not even a minute after they had opened the door. Since they weren't about to press their luck, as this was a blessing that they weren't expecting, Sly and Gilda crossed the room as quietly as possible and headed towards the location of the wire tap... though as Sly claimed that, however, Gilda carefully entered the three number combination, 9-6-9, and found the blueprints for a bomb that induced rage, something that Bentley would want to have a look at later.

Once the two of them were outside the first room Bentley contacted them and informed them that the next set of guards were up and ready for them to steal the keys from, to which Gilda discovered that the first key holder was right in front of them, as it was guarding the Re-education Tower's front door. Fortunately that was rather easy for her to get at, because all she had to do was fly into the area behind the guard and take his key, and then fly out before he even had a chance to realize that she had been there to begin with, where she gabbed Sly and carried him off to the other key holder that they were after. The second key holder was literally on the other side of the castle from the first one, standing guard over a little walkway of sorts on the backside of the main part of the castle, but Gilda dropped Sly off behind the guard, letting him take the key before he threw himself off the edge, where she caught him and carried him towards their next destination... the door that was at the very front of the castle, which also happened to be near where Murray and Diz claimed the tank a few minutes ago.

Fortunately, by another stroke of luck, the guards that Diz and Murray had knocked out were still knocked out, almost like their fellow guards thought they were drunk on the job or something, but, once again, they weren't about to complain and used the keys to slip into the area where the real prize was located. This time around, when they entered the next area and saw what was in front of them, they knew that it wasn't going to be as simple as they thought it would be, as a vulture guard stood in front of the stairs they needed to take to move forward. Despite the fact that Gilda could fly over the area, she couldn't avoid the light from the torch the guard was carrying, but Sly had another idea as he looked at the burning torch that was near them, as the moment he whacked it the guard moved from where he was standing, allowing Sly and Gilda to patiently wait a few seconds before knocking him out. The room beyond that one required that they do the same thing, as there was another vulture guard in their way, but he was rather easy to knock out and the duo moved towards the back of the room... where they claimed the voice modulator and made their way back outside, so they could get the show on the road, especially since there was one more set of keys that needed to be stolen.

From what they discovered the next two key holders were patrolling the area around the guillotine, near the area of the second key holder that they had just stolen the key from, though at the same time they found that they were walking in a circle while going in separate directions. Normally this would present a problem, but for master thieves like the Cooper Gang there was always a way, as Gilda landed somewhere safe and let Sly down, before using her wind power to gently encourage one of the guards to come over and investigate, while making the other continue his patrol. Once Sly had the first key, and the guard was knocked out, Gilda made sure to take the second key while the other guard wasn't looking, before carrying them over to the area that they needed to crawl through to reach the door that would allow them to enter the area beneath Neyla's headquarters. When they entered the sewer area they found that all they had to do was ride on some electric wire, which weren't turned on at the moment, swing across a hook, and then knock out the two wolf guards that were down there... before approaching the wall and finding that the Contessa's men had already done the rest of the work for them, which made the two of them smile as Sly opened a link to Bentley.

"Hey Bentely, we got lucky, because it looks like the Contessa's men have already excavated Neyla's satellite cable." Sly said, to which Gilda nodded her head, indicating that she was seeing the same thing, before he decided to ask the question that he thought he knew the answer to, "How should we proceed?"

"Splice in the wire tap then attach the voice modulator." Bentley told them, indicating that there had to be a specific order for this sort of thing to be able to work, which meant that it was a good thing that they asked him before they did anything to the cable, "Once that's done I'll broadcast from the safe house to make sure it works like it's supposed to... this is going to be so cool!"

Sly and Gilda pulled out the wire tap and voice modulator from their bags and carefully connected them to the cable in front of them, where Sly made sure that the wire tap was in position before Gilda attached the voice modulator, though once that was done the two of them headed to the surface and looked out over Neyla's forces... before giving Bentley the go ahead to try whatever he was thinking of doing.

"Uhh, hello mercenary tank forces... would you mind spinning your turrets for me?" Bentley said, though as Sly and Gilda listened they heard Bentley's voice being replaced by Neyla's at the end of his statement, which meant that the device was working like it was supposed to, "Gads, this is cool! I mean... you are all... really cool. Carry on."

Once they were done with their mission they returned to the safe house with haste, where Bentley had them all gather and told them it was time for them to wage war on the castle and, in the confusion they would create along the way, pull off a heist that he called 'Operation: High Road'. The first thing that needed to happen was quite simple, Murray needed to use the codes, provided by General Clawfoot, to take down the spotlights on the main gate, though Bentley would follow that up with him ordering Neyla's forces to attack, thanks to the voice modulator. Sly would then paraglide both himself and Bentley over to the Contessa's getaway blimp, which they would then use to get inside Re-education Tower. Bentley was sure that the assault on the castle will undoubtedly draw the Shadow Guards from their post, exposing the Contessa in the process, who Carmelita was bound to chase after before she even considered leaving with them, which would give them the opportunity to destroy the Mind Shuffler and claim the Clockwerk Eyes before they made their escape with the blimp.

Gilda, Derpy, and Diz inquired what they were supposed to do, as this seemed more like a three person operation instead of a six person operation, and for the most part it seemed like they were supposed to catch Sly and Bentley if they overshot the blimp. Once the blimp was secure they were supposed to do whatever it took to keep the battle going, between Neyla's forces and the Contessa's forces, to which they simply sighed and decided to go with it... because, at the very least, they would be walking out of here with Carmelita.

The moment the gang was ready, and they were done sitting around, Gilda and Derpy helped Sly and Bentley get up to the area that they were supposed to jump off of, while at the same time Diz and Murray headed out for the terminal that controlled the spotlights. Fortunately the two of them were able to make their way over the bridge, avoid the tanks, and not be seen by the spotlights that they were supposed to power off, though they waited for a few moments to be sure that the others were in position before either of them touched anything. A few seconds later Bentley contacted them and told them that it was time to begin the operation, to which the duo nodded as they set down their communicators and turned towards the terminal in question.

"I hope that General guy told the truth or this going to get ugly." Murray said, though while he knew that the codes that the General had given them so far had worked, thanks to the others using them to get their other tasks completed, he was also weary of the fact that this one might be a lie.

Not a few seconds after he pressed the enter key, and let the code surge through the spotlights, both he and Diz watched as the lights went down and the bridge became exposed, which was exactly what Bentley was planning from the very beginning when he got the codes from General Clawfoot.

"The lights are down Bentley, time to call in the cavalry." Diz said, though at the same time she and Murray quickly made their way across the bridge before the other tanks started moving towards the bridge, as they needed to get the van ready for their departure, "We're heading to the van and getting ready to leave before the cops arrive."

"Attention bloodthirsty mercenary forces: the castle defenses are down!" Bentley stated, speaking in Neyla's voice once more, only this time he was ready for the mercenaries to get to work and distract the guards that were around their main objectives, "Seize this opportunity for aggressive military action by pressing an attack on the castle... uhh, Charge! For victory, for Glory!"

"That should be more than enough." Gilda commented, to which the four of them watched the mercenary tanks move over the bridge and start their assault on the Contessa's forces, though that was exactly what they were hoping for when they put this plan into action.

"Now that you're done being a warmonger feel like paragliding over to that blimp?" Sly asked, gesturing to the blimp in question, knowing that his sisters would be more than ready to assist them if anything went wrong, even though Derpy was the one carrying the Bad Mojo Bomb at the moment.

"Just make sure to grab the rope hanging off that thing... I don't want to drown." Bentley said, though the drowning part was also directed towards the sisters, just so they knew that he expected them to assist him and Sly in case they missed their target.

Sly nodded and let Bentley climb onto his back for a moment, keeping himself at the ready for when they got to the blimp, while at the same time keeping his eyes on their target for a few seconds before he jumped off the edge of the part of the castle they were on, where he opened his paraglider and glided down towards the blimp. When he landed on it, however, two wolf guards came out and stood at attention, clearly waiting to take them down, only for Gilda to use the wind and knock them off the blimp, dropping them into the water before Bentley climbed off of Sly so he could direct the blimp towards their destination. Gilda and Derpy landed on the blimp not a few seconds later and let Bentley take them to the Re-education Tower, though when they arrived they carefully entered the chamber that the Contessa was in and remained silent as they stared at the Contessa... who, at the moment, was no longer standing at the controls for the Mind Shuffler and happened to be staring at the guards as they reported what was happening at the moment.

"What! The mercenaries have breached the castle defenses!" the Contessa said, shocked by what she had just been told, because she had been so sure of her defenses, but at the same time she knew what to do next, "All of you go, defend this tower to the last man!"

The Shadow Guard nodded their heads to her command and marched out of the room that they were in, to which the Contessa sighed and turned around, where she headed back to the command terminal that controlled the Mind Shuffler and what she was trying to do to Carmelita.

"Don't worry my dear, I still have time to finish with your 'readjustment'." the Contessa commented, speaking to Carmelita once more, as was apparently her custom when she was working on those that she tried to break, while at the same time not aware of the fact that it was pissing a certain someone off.

"Let me out of here and I'll readjust your face!" Carmelita declared, where she struggled against her bindings once more, something that she had been attempting to do the entire time she had been trapped here, while no doubt wondering when she was going to be saved.

"Okay partner, looks like the Shadow Guard is out of the picture." Sly quietly said, though despite the fact that he was being as quiet as possible Bentley, Derpy, and Gilda could hear the sheer anger in his voice as he stared at the Contessa, all while imagining the pain Carmelita had to be in, "You ready to free our violent little princess?"

"Affirmative, that Irontech 2-50 is a fully integrated system," Bentley replied, knowing that Sly was deeply concerned for Carmelita, though at the same time he was focused on the task at hand, and the Clockwerk Eyes that were still attached to the Mind Shuffler, "access to Carmelita's restraints has to be in this old terminal somewhere."

Bentley turned towards the computer and immediately started hacking into it, though while he worked Sly, Gilda, and Derpy stared at the people in front of them, despising one of them while caring deeply about the other one, though it was only a few moments later when Bentley stepped away from the terminal... and, at the same time, the cuffs that were around Carmelita's arms and legs came undone. The moment that happened Carmelita, sensing that something had changed, rolled to the side and fell off the Irontech 2-50, though it appeared that the sound of her hitting the floor didn't tell the Contessa that something was wrong with the situation. For a few seconds nothing happened, as Carmelita just laid there and didn't appear to be moving at all, though Sly smiled when he saw her head shift and she looked up from where she was resting, before turning to the side and looked at the area that Sly and the others were standing in, where a light smile appeared on her face. That was swiftly followed by a look of rage appearing in place of the smile as she picked herself up and gripped the table where her weapons were located, though she picked up her miniature canes and slipped them into their empty containers... before lifting her pistol and primed it, where she turned around and leveled her weapon with the Contessa.

"Ah-ha! I've isolated the brain pattern," the Contessa said, sounding happy about something, though it was surprising that she hadn't considered the possibility that things weren't going exactly as she had planned, "you and I are about to become the best of friends."

"Okay, new 'best friend'." Carmelita growled, to which she powered up her pistol, intending to blast the Contessa here and now for everything she had done to her since she had been arrested when Rajan was being taken down, "Hands up, and I mean all of 'em."

"My dear you really..." the Contessa started to say, though as she turned around, to stare at Carmelita once more, she immediately noticed something that was wrong and managed to avoid the incoming blast that erupted from Carmelita's pistol, which blew a good sided hole in the wall behind her, before she ran away screaming her head off, "Shadow Guard! Shadow Guard!"

"Carmelita!" Sly said, hoping that she could see through her anger and not run off after the Contessa, to which he smiled as she turned towards them as the iron barred wall in front of them came down, allowing him to drop down into the room and embrace Carmelita when she ran into his arms.

"Sly! I knew you'd come and save me," Carmelita said, though as Derpy started to attach the Black Mojo Bomb to the Mind Shuffler, however, she couldn't help but embrace Sly as tears started to flow, as she was extremely happy to see him and the rest of the gang again, "That thought kept me from letting the Contessa break me, despite her best efforts to try and turn me into something that I wasn't."

"I couldn't let the love of my life suffer in such a way," Sly stated, to which he kissed Carmelita, letting her know that she was safe now, before he pulled back and led her to the other side of the room, the one that was opposite of the Mind Shuffler, "We're going to blow the Mind Shuffler to pieces, take the Clockwerk Eyes, and then get out of here... and we're sure that the cops will catch the Contessa without needing our assistance."

Bentley didn't give Carmelita time to say anything, as the timer was set and everyone cleared the area near the Mind Shuffler, to which the Black Mojo Bomb detonated and tore the entire machine apart, though while that happened Sly could see the two Eyes separate from each other before they were shrouded.

"Sly, I've located one of the Clockwerk Eyes." Bentley stated, speaking when the smoke cleared because the Eye in question happened to be in front of him, though as the rest of the smoke started to clear he looked for the other one, since it was the other item they had come for, "can you find the other?"

"No worries chaps, it's safely in hand." a voice said, to which they found Neyla standing nearby, how she had gotten in here a question that was on everyone's minds, though strapped to her back was the other Clockwerk Eye, "Thanks for clearing out the Contessa... nothing I did could pry her away from the Clockwerk Eyes. Hmm, one should be enough for the old bird. Ta-ta."

"Bentley! Take the Eye and escape on the blimp." Sly stated, because the moment Neyla had stopped talking she headed through the opening that the Contessa had escaped through, though at the same time he spun his cane as he prepared himself for what he was going to do, "I'm going after Neyla."

"No!" Carmelita said, to which she slipped her pistol into it's holder and withdrew her canes, before pulling out the Cooper Mask that had been placed on them by the Contessa when she was brought here, before slipping it over her face once more, "We'll take care Neyla, together!"

Sly stared at Carmelita for a moment, honestly surprised by the fact that she wanted to help him tackle Neyla, after all the torment that she had been through, but not a few seconds later he smiled and nodded his head, to which the two of them headed through the opening in front of them and followed after Neyla, though as they started to leave Gilda tossed Carmelita a paraglider that they had purchased for her earlier... before escorting Bentley to the blimp so they could get out of here before something else happened. As the two of them headed outside, however, they heard Neyla call out to her bombers and ordered them to focus their attacks on the Contessa's blimp, though at the same time it was clear that Bentley didn't need to worry, as the first bomber that came near the flying vehicle got blasted out of the air by a bolt of lightning that Derpy summoned. From that point forward Sly and Carmelita chased after Neyla, like they had done back in Paris and the jungle, though this time around it was because she had something that they wanted, to which they followed her throughout the castle, dodging her attempts to blow them up by hitting explosive barrels, and followed her whenever she used spider web jump pads... all while making sure to use their paragliders to keep up with her as she used her own to try and get away from them.

They chased her throughout the entirety of the castle, never letting her out of their sights, though when she decided to return to the Re-education Tower, however, she was ensnared in some spider webs and the Eye happened to fall from her back... to which Sly and Carmelita stood in front of her, while Sly claimed the artifact that was in front of them.

"You know, you should really watch where you're going," Sly commented, though at the same time he smiled, because with both Eyes they were one step closer to claiming all the Clockwerk parts that had been taken from the volcano his body had been dumped into, "this place is dangerous."

"Don't you dare!" Neyla shouted, staring at the Eye that Sly now held in his hand, the very one that she had stolen, with a look of rage on her face as her enemies claimed what she was trying to take from the Contessa, "That Eye is MINE! IT'S MINE!"

It was in that instant, where she proclaimed that the Eye belonged to her, that the Contessa, who must have been hiding nearby, revealed herself and smacked the trapped Neyla in the side of her head with one of her legs, knocking her off the area they were standing in, before touching down and staring at them.

"Actually Mr. Cooper, the Clockwerk Eyes belong to me." the Contessa stated, almost as if she believed that her statement would force Sly to willingly hand over the stolen artifact, which at the same time pissed Carmelita off, since it wasn't her item to begin with, "And I want both of them back."

"No way. Do you honestly think that I'm crazy enough to hand this back to you?" Sly asked, though once he said that he remembered all the information that he and the gang had received on the Contessa before they came here, and the bits that Secretary Sen was able to get for Bentley earlier, "Actually, on second thought don't answer that, I really don't want your professional opinion."

"I don't think your crazy, just stupid." the Contessa replied, though at the same time that statement made Carmelita growl as they stared at her, to which the Contessa ignored her even more, "You're an ignorant child playing dress-up in his father's legacy. Oh, I know all about you and the Cooper Clan."

"How dare you say that about the man I love!" Carmelita snapped, causing the Contessa to actually look at her once more, while at the same time she really wanted to beat the stuffing out of her and make sure she was locked up for the rest of her life, "Sly Cooper is one of the greatest thieves in the entire world, a Master Thief that honors and abides by the teachings of the Cooper Clan, who have always stolen from other criminals since the day their line was born, and he is the heir to the Cooper Legacy. Clockwerk has been the ancient enemy of his line for who knows how many years, decades, or even centuries, and they are powered by a soul whose hate is so great that he forced himself into a foul immortality... so when someone says that his parts need to be destroyed, then you listen and obey, or get out of the way!"

"Short-sighted fool!" the Contessa snapped in return, her tone indicating that she wasn't going to listen to what anyone else had to say, though that, in turn, caused both Sly and Carmelita to ready themselves accordingly, since they were sure a fight was going to start any moment now, "I've no interest in your narrow interpretation of morality. I'm above all that, above good and evil."

It was in the instant that followed that the Contessa attacked them, swinging her arms like they were going to cut and wound whoever she was fighting, to which both Sly and Carmelita avoided her arms at all costs and smacked her with their canes, while also smashing the small spiders that she called upon so they didn't get overwhelmed. It seemed that, while the Contessa was skilled enough to fight someone one on one, she had some difficulty going after two people, almost like she had a hard time keeping track of what they were doing at any given moment, but at the same time Sly and Carmelita weren't fooled by the act. The Contessa was smart and was likely trying to lure them into a false sense of security so she could smack them and take the Eye from Sly, though after everything she had been through, and all the torment she had suffered, Carmelita wasn't going to back down and let this witch have her way. Together the two of them hit the Contessa with all their strength, dodged her attacks to the best of their abilities, and, when the time came, they slammed their canes into her chest and knocked her backwards... where she fell back onto the ground and looked like she was defeated, though at the same time neither one of them lowered their guard, not around an opponent like this.

"Enough... you've shown me the error of my ways." the Contessa said, forcing herself to sound like someone who was actually defeated, though at the same time neither Sly nor Carmelita got close to her, since they were sure that this was a trap that was just waiting to be sprung.

"Sorry, but we're not falling for your tricks." Carmelita stated, to which she and Sly raised their canes and beckoned to the Contessa, as they knew that she was far from defeated, as she had gone down way to easily for someone that had stolen one of the Clockwerk parts.

The Contessa growled as she picked herself and started to run away again, though as she did so Sly took the Eye that he had picked up and tossed it into the air, where Derpy flew through the area and snatched it the moment it left Sly's hand, before taking it back to the blimp that was heading away from the town. The moment the Eye was secure, just like the other one, he glanced at Carmelita for a moment and nodded his head, to which the two of them chased after the Contessa, intending to take her down and make her pay for everything that she had done to the Cooper Gang. Fortunately she hadn't gotten far, as she was standing at the same place that Sly had used the paraglider to reach the blimp, though as they stepped onto the roof the Contessa growled at them and started the battle anew, though without one of the Eyes to aid her, or even both of them, both he and Carmelita knew that she didn't stand a chance against the two of them. Despite her best efforts the Contessa found that the two of them were simply too much for her to handle, though what was interesting was that Sly, at one point, backed off and let Carmelita fight alone... and yet, even with it being one on one, the unbridled anger that was in Carmelita's eyes, and was pushing her forward, made her a force to be reckoned with.

In the end Carmelita used both the tools of a thief, her own Cooper canes, and the tool of a cop, her own shock pistol, and knocked the Contessa out, though as she cooled off, and finally regained control of herself, she fell into Sly's arms as they waited for the others to arrive... though when they did Carmelita smiled at the gang that had gone through so many obstacles just to save her, even if it meant letting the Clockwerk Eyes be taken by the Contessa if necessary, but she was happy the gang had succeeded in saving her and claiming another piece of the ancient owl.

As they landed near where the van was located, however, Sly and Carmelita got as close as they dared so they could see the outcome of the 'Neyla vs Contessa' war, where they found that Neyla must have called some cops the moment the assault was underway. From what they could tell the Contessa was arrested right then and there, and would no doubt be brought to trial for the crimes she committed while working at Interpol, as well as the fact that she had gone against one of the Secretaries that governed Interpol. Unfortunately for them, though more so for Carmelita, Director Barkley was there and he actually promoted Neyla, who was called the 'Hero of Prague' by some, to the rank of Captain, giving her a shining badge to wear as well. Another bit of bad news was that Barkley had an order for Neyla, one that was the capture of both the Cooper Gang and Carmelita, meaning that he was either really stupid to disobey Secretary Sen, or he was bold enough to think that Neyla could capture them twice, though it was plainly clear that he no longer viewed Carmelita in the same light that he had in the time before the Clockwerk parts were stolen.

In the end the gang, now fully whole for the first time since they defeated Rajan in the jungle ruins, departed from Prague and headed for somewhere where they could hide and help Carmelita recover from her torment... and, as Murray drove away from the castle, Sly sat in the back with Carmelita, silently wondering what it was going to take to help her get her life back in order before Neyla shattered her career beyond repair.

Band: Nunavut Bay

The first thing that Sly and the others did was get into contact with Secretary Sen the moment they stopped for the night, where Bentley sent him an email explaining what had happened at the Contessa's castle and that they had managed to save Carmelita from a terrible fate. Fortunately, when morning arrived, there was a response email from Sen that told them of a safe house they could use for some time, to help Carmelita recover a little before they moved after Jean Bison, though at the same time he also informed them that he was sending in an expert, one that was going to check Carmelita's mind and make sure that the Contessa hadn't done anything to her. For the most part the only thing that Carmelita could tell them was that the Contessa forced her to eat foods that were covered in spice, the same illegal spice that she used on the inmates in her prison, though Sly was quick to tell her that, once she had a rage induced episode, which she had against the Contessa, the spice would be cleansed from her body on its own. Still, despite that fact, Carmelita spent the majority of the ride to the safe house cuddling with Sly, not wanting to let go of him since their separation, though at the same time Sly wasn't about to complain, since he had been hoping for this some day... though, in all honesty, he had hoped that it would have been under different circumstances.

Along the way to the safe house Carmelita heard the tale of how Bentley, Derpy, Gilda, and Diz broke Sly and Murray out of their own cells, which allowed her to understand why Diz was still in his female form, something that she was still trying to reverse and wasn't having any luck... though eventually they switched to a different topic, since speaking of what happened to them was a touchy subject still and it only reminded Carmelita of what she had been through.

When they arrived at the safe house they found that it was large enough to accommodate all of them and had an area where Murray could hide the van for some time, to which he parked it and they unloaded their gear, preparing themselves for the arrival of Sen and his expert. Thirty minutes after their arrival, however, they found that Secretary Sen's expert was none other than Mz. Ruby, who immediately told them that, after the time she spent with Derpy, Gilda, and Diz, training them in the art of wielding magic, she had decided to turn over a new leaf. Carmelita was a little nervous, since she was entrusting the safety of her mind to someone who had stolen the Thievius Raccoonus, but Secretary Sen said that Mz. Ruby's gesture was real and that she wasn't faking any of it, to which she nodded and headed into the room that the Voodoo Priestess wanted to work in. At the same time, however, Sen pulled Sly and the others aside and shared some additional news with them, that the Contessa would be receiving a life's sentence, with little chance of parole, and that all her assets were being claimed as they spoke... meaning that, by messing with the Cooper Gang, the life she had built for herself was gone, everything she owned was gone, and everything that she ever cared for was gone.

Sly didn't know if he should feel pleased or displeased with the outcome, since they had pretty much destroyed the Contessa's life for messing with their gang and she might even be trying to beg for something, anything, that would make everything better... but, since she had ignored a direct order from a Secretary, there was nothing he or his gang could do in this situation, as the Contessa had brought this upon herself, and this was the fate that was awaiting Neyla as well.

"Sly, would you spare me a moment?" Sen asked, surprising the group for a moment, though after a few seconds Sly nodded and followed him outside, leaving the others to discuss what was going to happen next, when they went after Jean Bison and his Clockwerk parts.

"Sir, is something wrong?" Sly inquired, though while he knew that there was already a number of things that were wrong at the moment, with the way that Carmelita was being treated being at the top of his list, he had to wonder if something else had happened.

"It's about Neyla," Sen replied, making sure that he was out of Carmelita's earshot, because he didn't want to cause her any unnecessary pain and was only telling Sly because he was the person that cared for Carmelita will all his heart, and who would do anything to cheer her up, "I'm afraid that, given all of the events that have transpired in the last week or two, that got something terrible planned for Carmelita, something worse than what the Contessa did to her, yet Barkley insists that she's unavailable and is currently in the field. I heard from one of Carmelita's co-workers that Neyla asked them a bunch of questions and recorded their answers... so be careful the next time you see her out in the field."

"We will sir," Sly said, though he wondered what Neyla was even attempting at the moment, and he was sure that the Secretary was thinking the same thing, before he turned towards Sen, "If we find out what Neyla was planning with those questions, we'll send the information to you immediately."

Secretary Sen nodded his head, pleased that Sly was going to do everything in his power to save Carmelita from being hurt by Neyla again, because Carmelita was, in his opinion, one of the greatest cops of her generation, especially with her talent to mimic and learn the Cooper techniques from simply watching them in action. Even if Carmelita never caught the Cooper Gang, which she'd never be able to do unless they broke the rules, she could use those techniques to help her catch other criminals, but right now that bright future was in jeopardy because of a corrupt Constable and another corrupt Inspector. He needed the Cooper Gang to get to the bottom of why the Klaww Gang wanted the Clockwerk parts and the purpose behind their spice operation, though something told him that there was something sinister going on here... and, if his feelings were correct, it had to do with the resurrection of Clockwerk, something that he hoped he was wrong about.

After his talk with Secretary Sen, and hearing what he had to say, Sly and the gang spent an entire week in the safe house, letting Mz. Ruby examine Carmelita and her mind, though at the same time he asked Sen if it was okay for them to leave the Clockwerk parts here, under the watchful eyes of people he trusted. Fortunately the Secretary agreed and even helped unload the various parts into a room of the safe house, where he would call in some backup once the gang had left for the next member of the Klaww Gang. When the seventh day arrived, however, Mz. Ruby had good news for all of them, Carmelita was perfectly fine, much to the joy of the entire gang, with Sly being the happiest of them all, while making Sen happy that nothing had happened to her as well. Whatever the Contessa had been trying to do to Carmelita hadn't taken a hold and there weren't any triggers that would cause her to change, which was good news for the gang when they heard it, though as the day moved on Carmelita remained in her room for some time while the others gathered their gear as they prepared to depart for Canada.

Sly wondered what was she thinking about, as there were a number of things that could be going through her mind at the moment, though when Bentley said that they were getting ready to leave the safe house Sly knocked on the door and found that it was open... though when he entered the room, however, he found that Carmelita wasn't wearing her Inspector attire anymore, rather she was wearing her thief attire and her mask.

"Carmelita, is something wrong?" Sly asked, as while he knew that Secretary Sen approved of Carmelita doing this, being a thief part of the time to assist with recovering the Clockwerk parts, he wondered why she was choosing this over her cop attire.

"No... I'm just eager to get back to work." Carmelita replied, to which she packed away her cop attire and her shock pistol, before she picked up her pack and walked out of the room, where she made sure that Sly was walking beside her the entire time, "Come on, let's go see what Jean Bison is up to and take his Clockwerk parts back."

Sly smiled a little, as it appeared that having an objective in mind was helping her improve, to which he walked alongside Carmelita and they climbed into the van without leaving anything behind, though once they were ready Murray got underway and they left the safe house behind as they headed towards where Jean Bison was located.

Based on the information that Secretary Sen had given them, and the trail of spice shipments themselves, the gang made their way to Nunavut Bay, Canada, which happened to be the secret hub of Jean Bison's shipping empire and, more importantly, their next target. Thanks to their information they knew that, as a young man, Jean Bison trekked across Canada to strike it rich during the Gold Rush of 1852, where he was an avid prospector and took some chances, though one ended with him being buried alive in an avalanche. Miraculously, the quick freeze kept him alive, and one hundred and twenty years later, thanks to global warming, he thawed out of his icy prison and returned to civilization, though he kept the mindset of his time, which included taming the 'Wild North', which Bentley described as damming every river and chopping down all the trees with progress delivered at the sharp end of an ax. Bentley was also able to determine that shipping spice for the Klaww Gang proved a lucrative way for the man to bankroll his one-man war against nature... and yet the gang actually felt a little sorry for him. Jean Bison, based on his appearance and habits, was just a normal guy from the 1850s, where back in his day he would have been a hero, but today, unfortunately, he was labeled as a villain.

Despite those facts, however, the gang knew that he had more than his fair share of the Clockwerk parts, though Bentley had no idea what a low tech guy like Jean Bison was doing with robot parts... and it was only a matter of time until the gang figured out what he was going with whatever parts he had taken.

When they arrived at their destination they found a building on the pier, the only one as it turned out, that had more than enough room for them to set up their base without Jean Bison's guards figuring out that they were there, but, at the same time, they needed some information on the area before they did any major objectives. As such Bentley had Gilda, Derpy, and Diz go out and survey the area for a few minutes, make notes of the major structures that were around them, and anything else of importance, while he, Sly, Carmelita, and Murray made sure the safe house was ready for their operation. After ten or twenty minutes the magical trio returned to the safe house and gave Bentley the pictures that served as his notes for the area, which he compared to the last map of the area that he had uncovered and, after setting everything up, he declared that they were now ready for the first mission against Jean Bison, to which he turned towards Sly and Carmelita for a moment.

"Despite not knowing much about this area, before this point, I did have a lead on the Clockwerk parts," Bentley said, where he focused on Sly and Carmelita, as this was the best time to let Carmelita get back into the action and remember what she had been doing before Neyla's betrayal, "Sly, Carmelita, are you two up for a small trek through the wilderness and the cabins around the area?"

"Sure, I'm eager to recover the other Clockwerk parts," Carmelita replied, as she wanted to put the torment she had been through behind her, and that meant that she needed to focus her mind on something else, to which she stood up and turned towards Sly, "Sly, are you ready to get moving?"

"Whenever you're ready to leave." Sly said, to which he picked up his cane and smiled at her, because he was happy to see that the love of his life was much better than when they had rescued her from the Contessa, and the gang was glad to have her back at long last.

Together Sly and Carmelita walked out of the safe house and headed into the small town that was almost right outside their base, to which they snuck into the town and noticed that the guards that were wandering around were mountain goats, gooses, moose, and some moles that hid beneath the ground. What was interesting was when Sly spotted a treasure pocket, from one of the moose guards, and picked his pocket, where he recovered a solid gold bar that surprised both of them for a moment, though instead of letting themselves be seen they disappeared into the shadows and continued towards their destination. Along the way Carmelita, in order to remember some of her moves that she had learned from watching Sly, used the environment to make sure she wasn't rusty with her skills and Sly made sure that she was as skilled as thought she was. At the same time she picked a few pockets, to be sure that she remembered that teaching as well, though she was surprised when she picked a ruby from one of the pockets that she picked, adding it to the treasure that she and Sly were already collecting, so Bentley could sell it when he decided to sell stuff off.

Once Carmelita was done practicing her skills, and remembered all the stuff that she had seen in the past, they headed over to the mission area and found that it was in the middle of a river, on a stone that was below a cabin, though when they came to a stop they both pulled out their binocucoms and let Bentley talk to them.

"That cabin may seem rustic, but don't be fooled, it's the control center for Jean Bison's train empire." Bentley told them, though at the same time they focused on the cabin in question, as it was one of the key locations that Gilda, Derpy, and Diz had taken a picture of during their survey of the area, "I need the two of you to sneak inside and raid his files, as you're sure to find out where he keeps his Clockwerk parts."

"Ransacking his files doesn't sound hard, now climbing up a sheer rock wall..." Carmelita said, staring at the rock wall that was in front of them, because she was sure that there was a way for them to climb it, but based on her incomplete knowledge of the Cooper Techniques she had no idea which skill they needed in this situation, "that'll be a challenge."

"The two of you are in luck." Bentley replied, as he had figured out something from the information he had been given, along with the pieces that he was able to gleam from the pictures from earlier, "Before Jean Bison took over this used to be a popular destination for rock climbers. Some of their old wall hooks are still around."

"You know, based on the other techniques, I'm guessing that we just need to jump and latch onto the hook." Sly said, as it seemed like common sense when he thought about it, though at the same time Carmelita seemed to be nodding her head, as she understood what he was talking about.

"That's correct." Bentley stated, as he was pleased that his simple explanation on the subject was more than enough to get Sly to understand what he was talking about, while also giving Carmelita a chance to see something new and put her mind on something that wasn't what happened to her, "And remember to lean back before you spring off the hook... you'll get more altitude."

"Thanks for the tip," Carmelita said, though hearing that there were hooks all over the place, and she could see a few from where she was standing, meant that things would be easier for them once they got moving and practiced this skill a few times while they were at it, "We'll be sure to give it a try."

Sly and Carmelita walked over to the rock wall that was in front of them, where they found no guards in their immediate vicinity, before Sly latched onto the hook with his cane as he jumped on the wall, where he leaned back a little and sprung himself forward. Fortunately he was able to grab the second hook that was above him and repeated the process, allowing him to reach the top of the rock wall in moments, much to his delight since he had figured out the technique rather easily, before he turned around and beckoned for Carmelita to join him. He then watched as Carmelita latched onto the hook and propelled herself forward, along with using the second hook to reach where he was standing, to which she smiled at him as she walked over to the cabin's entrance, where Sly smiled and followed her, so that way they could enter the building together. When they entered the cabin, however, they found the Klaww Gang member they were here to rob standing at the back of the cabin, staring at the flames of his fire for a moment, while at the same time a speakerphone was sitting nearby... though, to be sure that they weren't seen, they carefully hid themselves behind some stacked up spice barrels and waited to see if their target had any information for them.

"Jackpot!" Carmelita whispered, speaking softly while they stared at the person that was their target, because she knew that the proper course of action was to make sure that neither of them were caught, otherwise Jean Bison would likely raise the alarm and they'd have to come back later, "Sly, that's Jean Bison!"

"Yeah, it is." Sly said, agreeing with Carmelita, though at the same time he honestly wasn't expecting their target to be here, especially since he thought that he would have been somewhere else, overseeing his part of the operations that the Klaww Gang put him in charge of, "It looks like he didn't notice us come in."

"Let's just stay out of sight for now and take some pictures of his train routes," Carmelita stated, as she had shifted her gaze to the upper part of the cabin and found three picture frames up there, which had to be what Bentley wanted them to find at the moment, "they should help Bentley narrow our search for Jean Bison's share of the Clockwerk parts."

"Sounds like a plan." Sly said, not surprised that Carmelita, who had spent her time learning how to be a thief by simply watching how he and the others operated, had come up with a good idea for the beginning of their operation, but at the same time they remained silent as the speakerphone came online.

Hello, Arpeggio here. a voice said, though both Sly and Carmelita stiffened, because they weren't actually expecting Jean Bison to be speaking with the other remaining member of the Klaww Gang, though at the same time they remained silent as they listened to what was going on.

"Salutations, Mr. Arpeggio." Jean Bison said, though at the same time he started moving around the room, which meant that it was even more dangerous for them to move, especially since he was likely looking around the room while he walked a little, "Y'all got time to shoot the breeze?"

Of course, for you, Jean, always, Arpeggio replied, where they heard a slight bit of annoyance in his voice, indicating that something was bothering him, though it didn't seem like Jean Bison heard it, as he continued walking, though must we communicate through that dreadful speakerphone?

"Yeah, I can think better while my legs move," Jean Bison commented, where the duo believed that it was more because of his upbringing and not wanting to completely bow his head to the modern world that he had found himself in when the ice thawed, "pumps blood to your brain."

Yes, of course, one must keep blood in one's brain, Arpeggio said, agreeing with what Jean Bison was saying, though at the same time the way he said the word 'brain' told Sly and Carmelita exactly which part of Clockwerk the final member of the Klaww Gang had taken, but do tell. Is there some pressing matter you'd like to discuss?

"First off, are you still coming on schedule to get that Northern Light Battery?" Jean Bison asked, though as he continued to walk around the room Carmelita carefully slipped her canes into their holders and withdrew a pad that she could write on, something she had taken from the safe house Secretary Sen had set up for them, and carefully wrote down 'Northern Light Battery' with a question mark at the end.

Yes, we're well underway. Arpeggio replied, though now he sounded pleased about something, where the shift in his tone told the duo that they might discuss their plan together and that it would be wise for Carmelita to write everything down before they got the pictures they needed, My blimp should arrive at the end of the week.

"Bullseye." Jean Bison said, his tone revealing that he was extremely pleased about the situation that they found themselves in, while at the same time preparing himself for another part of the conversation, "For second, when are you going to give me a look-see at that Clockwerk Brain of yours? I'd sure like to buy it off ya."

Bison, you covetous troglodyte. Arpeggio replied, though where the duo thought he'd be upset by the statement it actually sounded like they had this type of conversation before and he found it amusing for some odd reason, You've already got the lion's share of the parts. Would you take my meager portion of the robotic bird for your own and strip me of all my earthly pleasures?

"Easy there, partner, you're all up in a lather." Jean Bison answered, once more confirming that this was something that they did whenever they spoke to each other, which only made Sly really worry about what the low-tech Jean Bison would have done if he had his hands on all of the Clockwerk parts, "It's just that I found some real use for the Clockwerk parts I got. Why, I put three of them in the engines of my best trains. With those robotic doohickeys feeding the fire them trains will run all night and all day. I call them my Iron Horses. Of course, I gotta keep the plans hidden... stuffed them in my three trophy bass."

Sounds like you're making capital use of your share of the robotic loot, Arpeggio said, though at the same time Sly was angry, because while he didn't like Clockwerk, for what he did to his family, he also didn't like how the Klaww Gang was treating the robotic owl's body, but for now, the Clockwerk Brain stays with me on the blimp. Although, when I arrive to pick up the Northern Light Battery I might be persuaded to give you a peek.

"That'll do fine." Jean Bison stated, clearly showing that all he wanted was to see the part once more, even though his real reason was because he wanted to take it and add it to his collection, "By the way, you ready to giddy-up into Pari for the final hoedown?"

Yes, the blimp's hypnotism wavelengths conform to the specs drawn up by the Contessa. Arpeggio said, to which the duo paid close attention to what was going on, as this was something they were going to be interested in sharing with the rest of the gang, not to mention Secretary Sen when, And Dimitri, before his unfashionable capture, did a bang-up job of distributing spice throughout his nightclub.

"Sounds like all you're missing is some northern light electricity." Jean Bison stated, though it was at that point that he came to a stop in front of the fireplace again and stared at the fire, showing that he had done enough walking around for the moment, but at the same time Sly and Carmelita took the change and climbed up into the ceiling area before their foe decided to turn around.

You're correct, sir. Arpeggio said, where his tone revealed that he enjoyed talking about the plant that their gang had set into motion, even if Sly and the others had disrupted it a bit along the way, Yours is the final piece to the puzzle. The missing link. Once the battery is aboard, nothing will stand in the Klaww Gang's way. Paris will be ours!

"Yeah, yeah, okay." Jean Bison replied, clearly pleased with the answer that he had been given, before he turned around and started heading for the door of the cabin, indicating that he was heading outside, "So, I guess I'll be seeing you at the end of the week?"

Right. Arpeggio said, his tone revealing that the conversation was at it's end, though there was one thing he needed to say before the connection was terminated, Farewell, Bison. Stiff upper lip. Ta-ta.

Sly and Carmelita remained in the ceiling for a few moments, watching Jean Bison open the door of the cabin and walk outside, though they stayed that way for a minute or two, to be sure that he wasn't coming back in immediately, before they dropped down and got back together.

"Well, this isn't good." Sly commented, as he still couldn't believe that the Klaww Gang was trying to take over Paris, but, at the same time, he had the feeling that there was more to the puzzle than what they had heard, because that didn't sound like an endgame goal.

"No, it's not." Carmelita said, though as she stared at the door she remembered what the Contessa had bragged to her about, when she was tormenting her, before her eyes lit up and she turned towards Sly, "What did Neyla say about the Clockwerk Eye she had tried to take? Something about one should be enough for the old bird?"

"Yeah, something like... that..." Sly replied, though at the same time he realized something, which he suspected that Carmelita had picked up on based on what she was saying, before he brought his palm to his face, "Oh my god, does that mean that..."

"If we're right, and I think we're right, then Neyla's been lying to everyone the entire time," Carmelita said, though even as she said that she really hoped that she was wrong, but her gut feeling hadn't been wrong before and she wasn't about to question it now, "She's been trying to recollect the Clockwerk parts, not to lock them away, like I would have done, but to put them back together and reforge the ancient owl's body, just like Secretary Sen feared that they would try to do when the parts were originally stolen. The way the Contessa spoke about Neyla at times makes me think that she's actually a secret member of the Klaww Gang, and my tormentor even said that it was possible to make people hate each other, given the right frequencies..."

"Arpeggio's going to try and resurrect Clockwerk." Sly commented, dread filling his voice for a moment, because now the entire plan that Jean Bison and Arpeggio had talked about was now covered in a sinister shroud, though at the same time he seriously hoped that they were wrong, "We have to tell Secretary Sen the news, because Arpeggio needs the pieces that we've taken from the other members of the Klaww Gang... we have been collecting everything that he requires to put Clockwerk back together. Neyla, she's been playing us the entire time... and yet, despite what they're planning, they don't seem to realize that Clockwerk's not gone, he's just been patiently waiting for the day when he's put back together."

"Sly, we'll have Secretary Sen send a convoy to pick up the parts from the safe house he let us stay in and move them to a more secure location," Carmelita said, as she wasn't about to let all of their hard work go to waste, before she waved a hand at the picture frames that were around them and the fish that was on the wall, "but right now we have to make sure that we get the parts that Jean Bison has... and then we can focus on stopping Arpeggio's plan."

Sly nodded and together they took some pictures of the routes that the various 'Iron Horses' traveled along, giving Bentley an idea of when they needed to strike each one of them and what they needed to do to get inside each train, before Sly claimed the blueprint from the bass' mouth. With that in hand the two of them headed outside, where they found that Jean Bison had left the area, to which they made their way over to the second cabin they had seen when they were walking through town, though when they arrived they found that the duck guards were bored out of their minds and most of them happened to be sleeping. While Sly went and grabbed the blueprints, however, Carmelita approached the safe and had Bentley give her the code, as Gilda, Derpy, and Diz had found the bottles around the base while they were flying around the area, and she input the code, 1-2-9, and took the blueprints for a music box gadget from the safe, before she and Sly headed outside once more. From there it was a simple matter to head to the final cabin, where a bunch of moose guards were stationed, but they were able to get a direct path to the bass and claimed the blueprints before they headed back to the safe house.

As they did that both Sly and Carmelita spotted Gilda flying over to the satellite dish that was at the top of the tallest peak in the area, where they knew that Bentley was likely getting the GPS of the trains as they spoke... to which they headed into town and made their way to the safe house.

When everyone was together again, and Bentley had a few minutes to look over the information they had given him, after sending an email to Secretary Sen detailing everything Sly and Carmelita heard in Jean Bison's cabin, he was able to figure out that their foe had both of Clockwerk's Lungs, his Stomach, and all six of his deadly Talons. Since three of those parts happened to be inside Jean Bison's trains, his Iron Horses, they needed to one of three things; the first being using the gas in the air, provided by their target's operations, to make bombs and blow the lids off the cabooses of the trains, the second being Derpy using the lightning to strike them, which would be odd for Jean Bison when he heard about it, or figure out some way to boost the power of Carmelita's pistol and use that to blow the locks off. As such Carmelita pulled out her pistol and handed it over, knowing that Bentley would be able to put it back to normal once it was no longer needed to blow the locks off the cabooses, while at the same time she used the downtime to think about what she and Sly had figured out... before deciding that Arpeggio needed to be stopped, something that the entire gang agreed on when they heard what they had found out.

About ten minutes later, with the pistol ungraded to a point where it could blow the locks off without overheating, even though it was recommended that she wait a minute or two between shots, Carmelita headed outside, alone since she needed quite to be accurate this time around, and climbed to the best vantage point where she could see all three of the train tracks and the trains that used them.

When she reached the peak that the satellite was sitting on, which Gilda had fiddled with a few minutes ago, she pulled out the pistol and focused on the tracks that were all around her, keeping her eyes on the trains as they moved through the town and the wilderness that was around them. A moment later she zeroed in on one of her targets and blew the lock off the caboose, though as she let the weapon cool down she kept her eyes on the other two trains, keeping their locks in her line of sight, and, when the pistol was ready, she fired again and blew the second lock to pieces. About two minutes later, after keeping her eyes on the third train, she blew the lock off that one as well, before she sighed and put her weapon away, though as she started to stand back up she heard the sound of someone stepping through the snow behind her... though, when she turned around, anger rushed to the surface as she spotted Neyla standing behind her.

"Carmelita Cooper, I should have known that you'd be here." Neyla commented, though while it was clear that she wasn't using her whip at the moment, as it was strapped to her side like it was when she wasn't using it, Carmelita didn't trust the people that handed her to the Contessa.

"It's Carmelita Fox!" Carmelita stated, but she wasn't going to give Neyla the satisfaction that she liked hearing Sly's last name after her name, as, now that they were boyfriend and girlfriend, she often imagined being back of both his gang and his family, before she pulled the pistol out again, "Now then, why don't you just stand still and let me take you out here and now? I'm sure that Secretary Sen would like to have a word with you."

"Please, you can't fire that thing for another minute or two, and I'll be long gone by then," Neyla replied, to which she reached into her pack and tossed something to Carmelita, which, when she caught it, was a computer disk that was being held in a protective container, "I just thought that you might want to see what's on that disk, that's all. I'll see you around, Carmelita Cooper."

Carmelita growled as Neyla disappeared, angry that she missed her chance to take her down, but once she discovered that Neyla was gone she collected her things and headed back to the safe house, where she told the others that she had done what she set out to do. She also informed them that they might need to be careful, since it appeared that Neyla might be here to collect Jean Bison's parts as well, before showing them the disk that Neyla had tossed her, which Bentley slipped into his computer and showed it's contents to her. What Carmelita, and the others, watched was Neyla when she was asking the rest of her co-workers their opinions on Carmelita, after the Contessa had captured her and her relationship with Sly was revealed to all of them, something that she immediately dreaded the moment she heard what Neyla was asking. What followed was a number of hurtful comments from those that she had considered her friends, as none of the people Neyla had asked had even considered the possibility that Carmelita was innocent of the charges that had been brought against her... and, when Neyla made the comment that someone thought there was the possibility that she might actually be innocent, they were quick to get angry and say that it wasn't possible for her to be innocent.

In the end Bentley couldn't let her see all of it, he honestly couldn't, and he ejected the disk from the computer, before Sly shattered it into a thousand pieces with his intense rage, as he couldn't believe that those cops could have been played by Neyla and the Contessa, before comforting Carmelita once more... and promising his crying girlfriend that they would find some way to clear her name, because she deserved better than what she was getting. When she was done the gang would continue the operation, but for now he needed to comfort her, and that was all that Sly could think about as he held Carmelita close to him.

Band: Theft on the Rails

It took a few moments for Carmelita to calm down, after hearing the recording of her co-workers telling Neyla that they all believed that she wasn't innocent and that she deserved what the Contessa had done to her, which revealed that it had been made before the Contessa's truth had been revealed, but in the end Carmelita pulled herself out of Sly's embrace and said that she was ready to continue the operation. Bentley then nodded and told them that the best way for them to get the Clockwerk Lungs and Stomach was to hit all three trains at the same time, meaning that the security on them, in terms of who was supposed to be on guard anyway, would be low enough so that they wouldn't have a lot of resistance in the way of their goals. The first thing Bentley wanted them to do, before they actually attacked the Iron Horses, was strange, as he needed Murray and Diz to find a pair of juvenile bear cubs and place them in a metal container that a hand car was trapped in, as that would help them catch up with the third and final Iron Horse, the one that Sly, Carmelita, Gilda, and Murray would be tackling when the time was right. He then revealed that he and Diz would, after the hand car was freed, tackle the first Iron Horse and claim it's Clockwerk part, then they would fly over to the second one and see if Derpy needed assistance in taking the second part... allowing the other four some time to tackle the third Iron Horse and take the last part.

"That's an impressive plan, Bentley," Carmelita commented, though she had a smile on her face, because she had to imagine the look on Jean Bison's face when they robbed him of all three of his Clockwerk parts at the same time, as he was going to be furious about it, before she thought of something else, "but what will we do if Neyla tries to interfere?"

"We'll knock her into the snow and leave her be, for now." Gilda said, flexing her claws for a moment, knowing that their focus should be on the Clockwerk parts, but at the same time she had to imagine what it would be like to beat Neyla up and let Secretary Sen throw her behind bars.

"We should be able to get aboard all three Iron Horses the next time they come by the town," Bentley stated, though as he looked at the timetable in front of him, which he had set up once he had all the information about the routes the trains took, he knew that they had an hour, maybe a little less, before that happened, "though we really should get started before we end up missing one of them."

The rest of the gang nodded and moved out, where Bentley headed over to a rock platform that would allow him to join down on Iron Horse number 1, while at the same time Murray and Diz separated from each other, each going after one of the two bear cubs that they needed to get the metallic cage open, allowing the others to stand on a nearby roof as they waited for that part of the operation to be complete. As it turned out the first bear cub, the one that Murray decided to go after, was located near the cabin on the right side of Jean Bison's base, one of the three that Sly and Carmelita had gone into earlier, though not a few minutes later Murray came running into town and carefully set the sub he was carrying in the cage. Diz, on the other hand, had to venture into the nearby lair that the bears called home, which was perfect for her since she had her invisibility spell, though not moments later she flew out of the cave with the bear cub in hand, which she dropped off in the cage and landed near the others so they could watch their handiwork. As Bentley predicted the two juvenile bear cubs attacked each other the moment they saw each other, leading to a fight inside the cage, one that caused the mother bear to come running... and, with one mighty swing of her incredibly powerful claws, she tore the cage apart and freed her cubs from their confinement.

The gang then watched as the mother bear huffed and shuffled back towards the cave that it called home, where the two cubs growled for a moment before they followed after their mother, who also crushed one of the guards on her way out of the town... though the gang was fortunate that they had chosen to remain on the roofs where it was safe, as none of them wanted to get in the way of that sort of power. With that done Diz flew over to where Bentley was standing and waited for their target to arrive, while at the same time Derpy positioned herself in another prime area that would allow her to jump onto the second Iron Horse, while leaving the others to get ready for when the third one arrived. It was a daring and dangerous plan, as they weren't taking the time to see what sort of defenses these trains had, but with the fact that Arpeggio wanted all of the parts for himself, to resurrect Clockwerk for some unknown reason, they had to act fast, take Jean Bison's parts, and then hide them somewhere safe, so that way they could tackle Arpeggio without worrying that he got his hands on the parts they had already stolen.

"Here comes Iron Horse number 1." Bentley said, seeing the train coming along the tracks, while at the same time snapping everyone out of their thoughts, as they had all been thinking about how well Neyla had played them and Interpol at the same time, "Diz and I will go in, bypass the guards, and get the Clockwerk Lung that's attached to the front of the train, though while we do that you guys will need to move in and attack your Iron Horses at the same time."

The rest of the gang announced their agreement to what Bentley said, as they were all ready for this heist to happen, before he and Diz jumped onto the top of the caboose for the first Iron Horse, where they opened the lid and jumped down into the car itself. Once they were inside the caboose both of them moved into the car ahead of them and noticed that there were three laser walls in front of them, each of them moving in a certain pattern, though at the same time they were able to carefully make their way through the walls when an opening revealed itself, allowing them to make their way through the car until they were on the other side. The next car they entered had some floor lasers, both still type and moving type, but at the same time that didn't pose a challenge for either of them, as while Diz was able to simply fly over the obstacle Bentley was able to figure out the pattern and jump through it before he met up with his companion again, where they moved forward and continued their mission. Fortunately they didn't have to go through the next car that was in front of them, rather they used a jump pad to get to the top of the car and walked over the top, where they dropped down into the next area, a cargo area, and finally found some guards patrolling the area.

Bentley considered himself lucky at the moment, because Diz could expand the shroud he created and turn them both invisible at the same time, to the eyes of those around them, allowing Bentley to silently and stealthily put each of the guards to sleep so they could pass them without hurting them. When they needed to jump up to the top of the car in front of them Diz removed the Shroud of Invisibility for a moment and let Bentely get to the area above them, where he caught up with him and covered them once more, allowing Bentley to knock their opponents asleep before they even knew what had hit them. From there they dropped down onto another cargo car and continued moving, using Diz's shroud as they climbed up some cargo boxes and moved themselves behind the guards that were in front of them, not even bothering to take them out, before entering another car with moving floor lasers. It didn't take them long to get through that obstacle, though once they were out of that car Diz found that the next one was yet another cargo car and that she could simply get them on top of the cargo containers to survey what was in front of them... which was two guards that he could get around with ease, and that's what she did as she grabbed onto Bentley and pulled him to the very front of the train.

The moment Diz brought them to the front of the train, and landed in front of the engine, Bentley stepped forward and examined the large robotic Lung that was sort of attached to the engine, which he was able to remove with ease and Diz, seeing that they were ready, grabbed Bentley before taking off, letting the Iron Horse slowly loose power as they sought out Derpy and the Iron Horse she was taking on.

Derpy's plan was simple, she waited for Iron Horse number 2 to come rolling into town, landed on top of it's caboose, and then waited for it to head out into the open area, where she could take to the sky and fly to the front, which sounded really simple when she thought about it. What she wasn't expecting, however, was that when she moved over the first car in front of the caboose that it deployed rocket launchers that were designed to take out intruders, be it walking on the roof or enemies that had the potential to fly, like an RC chopper or herself. As such her first course of action was to avoid the incoming attacks before she directed her power at one of the square rocket launchers, blowing the entire thing to pieces in the process, but that didn't mean that she was out of the woods just yet, especially with a second one still operational and ready to hurt her. The moment the two of them were taken care of she started to move up towards the next car in line, where she had to contend with a number of RC planes that were designed to bombard a target until they collapsed and some RC choppers, ones that were different looking than Bentley's device, though she discovered that however was using them was definitely a skilled pilot.

Despite the manner of skill that the enemy pilots had Derpy was better than them, because she could fly circles around the remote controlled toys and broke all of them before they could even hurt her, allowing her to move forward and see what the next car had to offer.

The next car, as she discovered, had four square rocket launchers that were deployed the moment she was above the car in question and they all fired at her, forcing her to dodge their attacks once more as she started blasting them to pieces, though she hoped this was the last car that had them since she didn't have time to waste on destroying the toys of the guards. Of course as she moved forward she had to contend with a number of planes and choppers that the pilots were sending at her, almost like they were using everything in their arsenal to stop her in her tracks, but she prepared her power and knocked them all out of the sky, blowing them to pieces in the process, before she flapped her wings and moved forward once more. She wasn't surprised when the next car sent a wave of planes and had two square rocket launchers deploy when she arrived, though she did take them out rather quickly since none of them were actually a threat to her, but as she attempted to move forward, and started to fly over the next car, she found an even larger amount of planes heading for her, trying to hit her, though she simply tore them apart like all the other toys she had broken so far since she started this mission. That was followed by what had to be the last of their aerial defenses, a few choppers and two more square rocket launchers on the last car before the engine, though she smashed them all with several blasts of her inner power and let out a sigh of relief when she found that she was no longer under attack.

"Derpy, do you acquire any assistance?" Bentley asked, indicating that he and Diz must have already finished with the first Iron Horse, which had to have been the most vulnerable of the three trains and meant that they were lucky, though that also meant that they must have the Clockwerk Lung they were after.

"No, I'm just finishing up here," Derpy replied, to which she landed between the engine and the car behind it, before she walked up to where the second Lung was resting and a smile appeared on her face, "We're extremely lucky that we're hitting all of these at once, otherwise I'm sure that Jean Bison would have welded them to the engines and forced us to bomb them or something to get them loose... but, since he didn't do that, this Lung is as good as ours."

Derpy pried the Lung from it's resting place and immediately felt the train shudder for a moment, though it would take it come time before it finally shut down completely, to which she took to the skies and flew back towards town, while at the same time she watched as Diz did the same thing, though she was carrying both Bentley and the first Lung. The three of them would return to the safe house and start loading up the van for when Sly and the others returned, as Jean Bison still had the Talons and Bentley already had an idea of where he might have hidden those parts.

Sly, Carmelita, Gilda, and Murray waited for a few minutes, watching as Bentley and Diz jumped onto the back of Iron Horse number 1 and started their part of the operation, while at the same time Derpy was able to do the same thing with Iron Horse number 2, leaving them to wait for the third one to arrive. When Iron Horse number 3 finally came through the town the gang got on the hand car and Murray got them underway, where they followed after the caboose of the train and picked up speed as they went. While they did that Sly decided to voice something he had been thinking about since they came to Canada, and it didn't have to do with Neyla this time, because he was still disturbed over the fact that Jean Bison walked away with both of Clockwerk's Lungs, his Stomach, and his Talons, though he was more disturbed by the fact that he got the Lungs and Stomach. Fortunately the conversation didn't last long, as Murray was able to get them to the caboose rather quickly and managed to prevent them from hitting the back of the train, though as he stabilized the hand car both Sly and Carmelita jumped forward and landed on the backside of the caboose, allowing them to climb up the ladder and drop into the actual car.

From there they entered the next car in the line and found some guards waiting for them, which had to be the ones that were normally stationed on this particular train, to which Sly pulled out a music box, one of the few that Bentley was able to craft from the blueprints in a short amount of time while waiting for him to comfort Carmelita, and hurled it towards the guards. Together he and Carmelita watched as the music box hit the ground, without falling apart in the process, and started to play a tune, one that lured the guards towards it and, instead of smashing it, they fell asleep and crumbled to the ground, totally knocked out from the music that was coming from the device. Both of them were shocked by the outcome, as neither of them were expecting it, but once the guards were down Sly and Carmelita moved forward and headed out through the door in front of them, though Carmelita, having learned some lessons from Sly, picked up the music box and slipped it into her pack, knowing that they could use it again later and that it was best not to leave evidence of their existence behind.

The next car, as it turned out, had a maze of moving lasers and, as Sly discovered, the only way forward was through one of the two paths through the luggage in front of them, meaning that they would have to crawl their way to the other side of the car, something that Carmelita was perfectly okay with since she was the first one of them to move once she understood what they needed to do. Since there were two entrances and one exit Sly quickly found himself stopping for a moment to let Carmelita use the exit first, before he followed her through the exit and picked himself up, which was followed by them heading through the opening and sneaking their way alongside a train car that looked like it would have had someone standing inside it at one point, if the worn floor was anything to go by. Sly was sure that if they had taken their time, and had gone for the first Iron Horse and then the second one, instead of attacking at the same time, that this was where Jean Bison would have been standing, but since they took a different route it was easy for them to get to the other side of the train car.

When they climbed up to the top of the next car in the line, however, they both heard a sound and moved out of the way as Neyla, in a hovercar of some kind, likely stolen from someone, flew over their heads and eventually came to a stop in front of them, indicating that they would need to fight her to move forward.

"Oi, Cooper! Thought I might find you here." Neyla commented, not even glancing back at them while she spoke, indicating that she didn't care about them and simply wanted them to leave her to her business, "You just can't stay away from these Clockwerk parts can you?"

"Of course we can't stay away from them," Carmelita stated, as she had enough of Neyla and wanted her out of her life, and she could tell that Sly was getting annoyed with Neyla was well, which was good news in her eyes, "Neyla, the Clockwerk parts must be collected and their evil destroyed... there's no other way for this to happen."

"Actually, I can just gun you down and take both the Lungs and the Stomach for myself," Neyla said, to which she tapped a few buttons and prepared herself, as she knew that she had the two criminals cornered at the moment and that Barkley, who she honestly didn't care about, would be happy regardless of what happened here, "There's nothing the two of you can do to stop me."

"But that's where you're wrong, Neyla." Sly replied, though at the same time Carmelita noticed the binocucom that he was holding onto and that it was transmitting, where she joined Sly and smiled as well as she looked at Neyla, who had no idea what was going to happen next, "We're not the only members of the Cooper Gang... there's seven of us, though there are three of us with the power to take you out without a moment's hesitation, and two of them were responsible for helping us beat Clockwerk all those years ago. GILDA!"

"With pleasure." a voice said, to which Carmelita looked and found that Gilda had flown up to the point that they were at, though at the same time she could feel the wind in the air shift as the griffin readied herself, with Neyla as her target at the moment, "Wind Blades!"

That was followed by Neyla shouting as the wind, shaped by Gilda's innate magic, became a dozen razor sharp blades that flew through the air and pierced the wings of Neyla's craft, six blades in each wing as it turned out, before they blew apart and severely damaged the vessel, causing a string of curses to erupt from Neyla as she lost control of her vehicle and crashed into the snow nearby. Without anything to use, like a jetpack or something, it was impossible for her to catch up with the speeding train and soon they lost sight of her, to which Gilda chuckled as Sly and Carmelita continued to move towards the train's engine. From that point forward any guards they came across were put to sleep by one of the remaining music boxes that they were carrying, and Carmelita picked up as they moved forward, or simply ignored as they used their environment to navigate their way around the area a group of guards was in. Even when using the wall hook technique that Bentley had informed them about, and Sly must have remembered from one of the pages in the family tome, they were able to make their way through the rest of the train cars and around the remaining guards... before arriving at their destination, where they took the Stomach from it's resting place and got out of there as they felt the train slowly starting to slow down.

On the way back to where they were supposed to meet up, so they could leave with the Lungs and Stomach before Jean Bison found out, Sly was happy to see that Carmelita was smiling, with a genuine smile no less, over the fact that they had shut down Jean Bison's shipping empire, and stopped the spice in the process. It was almost like she had put the last week or two behind her, all the terrible memories of her time trapped in the Contessa's tower, and was looking forward to a bright future, one that he believed that she deserved with all his heart, especially since Neyla was trying to tear her down to the best of her ability. At the same time, however, he knew that she was hurting on the inside, that her dream job at Interpol, where she must have been following in her family's footsteps, just like he was following his father's footsteps, was slowly disappearing before her eyes and that she'd never be able to face her family again if she was dismissed from Interpol because of this mess. He knew Carmelita well enough to know that she was acting, because while she enjoyed being a member of the team, and actually taking to being a thief like it was second nature, she also loved being a cop and helping them bust other criminals... and yet that future was disappearing before their very eyes.

Sly still had no idea what else he could do to help her, because they had given Secretary Sen every bit of information they could get their hands on to prove that Carmelita was innocent and that Neyla framed her, and yet it seemed like someone in Interpol, not Secretary Sen since he was on their side, wanted Carmelita expelled from the force... but he forced himself to put it at the back of his mind, as there were two more parts they needed to collect before the week was done and the possible resurrection of Clockwerk to stop.

Band: Bison's Lumber Camp

Once the gang got back together at the van, and stashed away the Clockwerk Lungs and Stomach, Murray got them underway as they followed the Northern Lights, as both Sly and Carmelita had overheard Jean Bison's conversation with Arpeggio when they entered his cabin. The man from the past was doing something to the Northern Lights, that was was certain considering the fact that sometimes the Lights were brighter than ever and other times they were just gone, and that meant that the gang needed to stop him before he did something that was irreversible. It actually didn't take them long to find an area where they might find Jean Bison, as they eventually came to an area where an immense lumber camp had been set up, though as they stopped at one point, to survey the damage, Derpy approached one of the cut down trees and ran her hand along the edge, while at the same time shivering as she touched where her eye had been. None of them, upon seeing that action, needed to be told what was happening around here, as Jean Bison was in possession of the Clockwerk Talons, which would allow him to clear an entire forest in mere hours while he had those powerful artifacts... and they were, of course, the very Talons that Clockwerk himself had used to wound Derpy and ruin her eye, to the point were she had to wear the eyepatch that she wore all the time.

Sure, the pain of losing her eye and having three permanent scars etched into her face were something she had come to live with and had mostly forgotten about, but the memory of that day, where Clockwerk wounded her in such a way, was forever burned into her memory... and Sly was sure that she'd never be able to forget that day.

When they arrived at their destination a few days later, however, they discovered that there weren't many places for them to set up their safe house, as there was only one circular building that was near the water, and the place where they hid the van was even closer to the water. None of them were happy with the arrangement, since that meant that they were a little exposed in some areas, but at the same time it was all they were able to do at the moment, though another thing none of them were happy with was the fact that the safe house had a large glass window that exposed themselves. Sly and Carmelita, on the other hand, were worried about the fact that the three Clockwerk parts that were in the van were also exposed, as there was the chance that Jean Bison's guards would discover the van and ransack it, but Bentley did his best to disguise the area that the van was in, to keep the parts safe. Once he and the others were done with that, and he was sure that they could keep their van hidden for some time, they gathered around the round table that was inside the safe house and Bentley went over the first steps of their plan.

"Okay, so here's what we know." Bentley said, to which he showed them a few pictures that he had, some of which were their own and some were pieces of information given to them by Secretary Sen, "One, we know that Arpeggio's blimp is on its way to pick up a battery from Jean Bison. And two, the only way we'll get a crack at Arpeggio's Clockwerk Brain is by finding a way to sneak aboard that very blimp."

"But, before we do that we'll need to snag the Clockwerk Talons off Jean Bison." Sly commented, thinking about what was going on and everything that the gang needed to accomplish, as now it felt like they were literally racing the clock this time around, "Time is short and we've got a lot to accomplish."

"True, true... but first things first, this lumber camp isn't on any of my maps." Bentley stated, showing them a large map of the areas they had driven through earlier, while at the same time pointing to the circled question mark, "Sly, I need you and Carmelita to poke around and take some recon photos, they'll help to get my sensors oriented."

"That shouldn't be a problem." Carmelita said, though while she wanted to get in on the action, and tackle the area around them, she knew that heading into the situation blind wasn't a good idea, which was why she was agreeing with Bentley's plan, "Sly and I can get you all the recon photos that you might need on the area."

"Sly, in anticipation of the icy climate, I took the liberty of modifying your cane." Bentley added, to which Sly glanced at his cane for a moment, remembering when Bentley asked to see it for a moment and that he had returned it some time later, which meant that he'd be finding out what his friend did to the cane, "It can now separate into two smaller canes... useful for ice climbing. It'll be useful for ascending to the top of the various sheets of ice around the area, just hit the button I've installed on the cane to separate it before you jump and you'll dig into the ice. This was also inspired by the fact that you, Carmelita, are carrying a pair of smaller canes, so you'll be able to do the same thing that Sly can and you won't fall behind when he starts to climb."

Carmelita nodded and headed outside the safe house, though when she and Sly were outside the building they walked towards the lighthouse a little and dropped down to the ledge that was below them, before Sly approached the ice sheet that was in front of them and tapped the button that Bentley had installed. Just like Bentley had said the cane separated into two smaller canes, which resembled the ones that Carmelita was carrying, and the tips dug into the ice as he started to climb, finding that this was working exactly like he had been told. When he reached the top of the ice sheet, and stopped climbing as he stood up, he turned back and found that Carmelita was following after him, to which he smiled and turned the two small canes into his original cane, before standing to the side as Carmelita reached the top as well, where she smiled at him as they headed towards the beacon that Bentley had set earlier.

"It seems that Bentley's upgrade worked well in the field," Carmelita commented, as she had seen how Sly had used them to climb up the wall that they had climbed, though as Sly nodded his agreement, however, they both glanced at the area in front of them, "So, where should we start?"

"I'm guessing that big house over there is where Jean Bison lives," Sly said, pointing at the large building that was resting by the cliff wall, where Carmelita stared at it for a few moments once he had shown her where it was, "and I think I see a bear off in the distance, so we might want to make our way to that building and go from there."

Carmelita nodded and together the two of them dropped down to the ground in front of them, where they carefully made their way through the lumber camp that was around them, while stealing the treasures that the guards were carrying in their pockets, before they found something to take a picture of. As it turned out the bear was the first thing that they took a picture of, where Bentley commented that this had to be bear country and that he was emitting an odd radio frequency, something he would look into later on, once they had some more information on the area. Carmelita branched off and headed over the river that was near them, where she spotted a boat and snapped a picture of it, where Bentley found that it had a wi-fi link on it, meaning that it had to be piloted by a computer, before she returned to Sly as they continued their search. From there they headed over to the building that was on the right of where the house, or what they assumed was a house, and snapped a picture of the sawmill that was located in that area, where they agreed with Bentley's assessment that this camp had to have been here for some time without being found on the map. After that it was a simple matter to snap a picture of Jean Bison's house, though once they did that Bentley had a new task for them to accomplish... making their way over to the lighthouse they had seen earlier and try to find a way to sneak into the structure, as Bentley was sure that there was something in there that they needed to see.

As it turned out getting to the lighthouse was rather simple, since there was a path carved in the ice between the land they were on and the area their destination was on, though they were fortunate when Sly spotted a hole that they could crawl through... though on the other side, once they both emerged from the hole, they found themselves in the interior of the structure, with Jean Bison walked around the area in front of them, unaware that they were even there. Once they were sure that their target hadn't seen them Sly and Carmelita snapped some pictures of the spinner that was in front of them, the battery charger that caused Bentley to comment on where the battery had to be located, and the chair that was blocking the door, including the door bar that wasn't in use at the moment. When they snapped another picture of Jean Bison, to add to the pictures they had taken so far, both of them heard the man mumbling to himself, to which they paused for a moment so they could hear whatever he was talking about, as it might give them some insight to where he was hiding the Talons.

"Come on Jean, ya got it in ya." Jean Bison commented, to which he tapped his staff on the floor for a moment when he stopped, indicating that he was thinking about something important to him, before he started walking around the area once more, "Those lumberjack games need some more competition. What would attract the participants, eh? Bullseye! I'll post the Clockwerk Talons as a trophy... that should bring in the competition. Although, who'm I kidding, eh? I'm-a-gonna win just like every other year. Ha! Oh, it's tough being this tough, it sure is, yeah."

Sly and Carmelita glanced at each other, as they weren't familiar with these lumberjack games that Jean Bison was talking about, but they were sure that Bentley would be able to figure out what the man was talking about, to which they headed back through the hole they had crawled through and headed back to the safe house... so they could get started on figuring out what they were going to do, especially since they were on the clock, as it was only a matter of time until Arpeggio arrived for the missing battery.

When the duo returned to the safe house they found that Bentley had sent out Derpy, Gilda, and Diz to scout out the rest of the area while they were busy, where all three of them had come back with more information, all the clue bottles that were scattered around the camp, all the random treasures that Jean Bison had on display, and some pocket treasure from the various guards. What they found out was that due to frequent avalanches, which this area had suffered for quite some time in the past, a log chopping guide had been preserved in the ice, something that Bentley wanted Sly to acquire, though when Carmelita said that she'd join him Bentley had another task in mind for her. Despite Jean Bison's mind he was keeping taps on the bears in the area, where Carmelita discovered that Bentley wanted her to head into the den that the bears called home, take their trackers, and put them up around the camp, to get some additional information. In addition to all that he needed Murray to infiltrate the moose guards' secret RC combat club, where all he needed to do was beat them in a battle and get the location of the Northern Light Battery that Jean Bison was preparing for Arpeggio... where they discovered that Bentley's plan was to use the battery as a Trojan Horse to get aboard the blimp, so they could take the last part of Clockwerk once they had the Talons.

Derpy, Gilda, and Diz found themselves, once again, without a specific mission to tie themselves to, as Bentley intentionally didn't give them anything since they would go where they felt their talents were the most useful, which was why they were able to do all these missions so successfully... though as they carefully decided what to do, however, Sly, Carmelita, and Murray headed out to their missions, though Carmelita was the first to arrive at her destination.

"Okay Bentley, I'm in position." Carmelita commented, as she had snuck up to the roof of a building that was literally outside the entrance of the bear cave, though at the same time she found that the opening was jammed, no doubt because of Jean Bison, and that there was a small hole for someone to crawl through.

"The wild bears in the area have been tagged with radio tracking devices." Bentley explained, knowing that Sly would kill him for sending Carmelita on a dangerous mission, if she got hurt anyway, but he had faith in her abilities, "If you can snag enough of them we should be able to set up a receiver array around Jean Bison's house."

"You know, I never thought that I would be intentionally bugging someone's home," Carmelita said, to which she sighed as she looked down at the canes she was carrying, as it had been ages since she had done what Bentley was suggesting, "at least without a warrant or permission from a superior."

"Carmelita, I know you're still new to all of this, but you have to understand that sometimes we do things that we're not exactly proud of, though we do it for the good of everyone around us." Bentley replied, as he had known that this might be a problem for her, since she was technically still a cop, despite being on the run from Neyla and Barkley, and he wanted her to see what this life was like for herself, which was why he purposely was making her do this mission on her own, "The first step is crawling into that bear cave and stealing the goods... and, if my sensors are right, the radio transmitters are inside the mouths of the bears that call that cave home."

"Great... sounds fun." Carmelita stated, though even as she set her binocucom down, however, she understood what Bentley was trying to tell her, there were some freedoms that came with being a thief, rule that they didn't have to follow when they were out in the field... and, at the same time, she found herself being a bit excited about all of this once more, just like she had been when she first followed Sly over the rooftops back in Paris.

Once she was ready to get moving she jumped down to the ground in front of her and crawled into the hole, though a few moments later she found herself inside the cave, where she spotted some thin ice that was sure to wake up all the sleeping bears if she stepped on them. As such she did her absolute best to avoid the ice, jumping over it and touching down in front of the first bear that was in the cave, where she waited until it was yawning and reached in with one of her canes, to which she pried the transmitter from the bear's mouth and pocked it before she headed to the left. The second bear had some ice surrounded it, though she was more than able to jump over the ice and picked the transmitter when her target yawned, before she jumped over to where the third bear was located and did the same thing, though she kept moving since the bears could potentially wake up on their own and see her. Getting to the fourth bear required her to use the Ninja Spire Jump technique a few times, as well as incorporate the use of her canes to make her way across the ice covered wall that was in her path, before she swiped the transmitter and reversed her direction since the fourth bear was at a dead end.

After that the fifth bear was even easier to get to, since it was up the path she was following, and with that transmitter in hand she jumped at the ice wall and made her way over to where the sixth and final bear, as she was back at the area she had crawled out into was located, was located... though when she had that transmitter she headed back to the hole and left the bears alone as she crawled back outside.

Once she was back outside Bentley informed her that he had the locations for her to place the transmitters down at, so they could form an array and listen to whatever Jean Bison was broadcasting, though the very first one happened to be at the top of the silo that was off on her right. To get at it she had to climb to the top of the sawmill that was in front of her and jump down to the top of the silo, which she was able to do without alerting the guards to her presence, though once that was done she continued moving towards the next point that Bentley had sent her. The second one, as it turned out, as to be placed on top of Jean Bison's house, so she climbed back up to the top of the building she had just climbed, jumped onto the claw of ice that was sticking out of the rock wall, and made her way over to the point that she placed the second transmitter down on. The third one was supposed to go on top of a second silo, which was near her location, and the fourth one happened to go on top of a roof that was close to the third one, which surprised her a little when she put them in the locations that Bentley wanted her to place them in, before she moved towards the last to. The last two, as she soon found out, needed to be placed near the sawmill, so she followed the coordinates that Bentley had sent her and placed the last two transmitters in the areas that Bentley wanted... though when her task was completed, however, she heard Jean Bison say something about his teams clearing a large amount of trees.

She sighed as she headed back to the safe house, as she didn't want to listen to Jean Bison talk about 'progress' all the time, and hoped that Sly and the others were having luck on their missions, since none of them had returned to the safe house by the time she got back.

Sly purposely entered the building that was close to Jean Bison's house alone, as he had both Gilda and Derpy standing outside in case someone came along or something else happened, mostly because Bentley had told him that his was going to be a quick mission and that he'd be outside the building in no time. He still had no idea how Bentley was able to find out that Jean Bison had an industrial strength laser, used to cut through petrified logs apparently, but from what he was able to gather it was something that Secretary Sen told him about in the last message they had received from him. The fact that the gang hadn't gotten anything else from the Secretary, since they stole the Clockwerk Lungs and Stomach, meant that he was either busy or something had happened that demanded his immediate attention, to which Sly turned his attention to the mission he was currently on. From what Bentley had told him and his sisters, as he gave them a rundown on their objectives after sending Carmelita on her solo mission, was that they needed to redirect the laser to a point where they could use the special ice crystals that he had inside the van to thaw out the log chopping guide... where Sly, once again, found it oddly convenient that Bentley had the tools for the job at the ready, but at least it saved them some time.

As such he entered the building that the laser saw was in alone, as the moment the laser was bounded outside both Gilda and Derpy would be on the move, though the moment he touched the floor he carefully made his way through the series of hazards that were in his way. That included lasers moving up and down a wall he needed to walk along, spotlights at he was sure were going to fire at him if he walked into the light, several moose guards that were either sleeping or patrolling the area around them, and some floor lasers. In addition to all that he paused by the safe and input the code that Bentley was able to fight out, thanks to Derpy, Gilda, and Diz finding all the bottles while he and Carmelita were taking pictures of the area for Bentley, though after putting in 5-8-3 he pulled out the some notes on a spinning attack that had 'lightning' attached to the user's weapon. Once the safe was open he finished his infiltration by reaching where the lever for the laser was, to which it moved and pointed the laser beam outside, where he crawled through the opening that allowed him to climb the ladder and head outside... though once he was outside he found both Gilda and Derpy already moving through the air as they followed the beam and continued to redirect it.

Since his sisters were able to fly through the air, and were making good time on redirecting the beam, Sly headed to where the log chopper guide was located and stood near it, as there was a mammoth trapped in the ice as well... though when the laser was finally hitting the ice wall, however, the mammoth also broke free and fled from the area, only to, as Bentley told them, to fall into the water and return to being a frozen creature. Sly then sighed, as it would have been nice to rescue the creature, before picking up the log chopping guide and made his way towards the safe house, where his sisters joined him with a triumphant look on both of their faces... and they were sure that Bentley was going to be able to come up with a plan once he took a look at the book they were bringing to him.

Murray found his way to the building that Bentley had pointed out, as there was a rumor of off duty guards having an RC combat club in that building, though at the same time Bentley reminded him that he needed to win a match and figure out where the Northern Light Battery was located. At the same time Diz was walking beside him, still trapped in her female state since she hadn't done anything that would warrant her magic allowing her to snap back to her male state, because Bentley was sure that Murray needed help to get the information he needed. When the two of them entered the building, however, they discovered that all of the members of the club were moose, meaning that Murray, who was a hippo, wouldn't be allowed to join the club or participate. Fortunately they didn't have to worry about anything, as Diz spotted a moose head, a costume one, in the upper area above them, though since Murray couldn't sneak around the area he stood beside the door and let Diz walked into the area in front of her.

Diz smiled as she wove her magic through the air and disappeared as the invisibility spell took affect, though since she was sure that flying would draw attention she headed to the other side of the room and climbed up the railing that allowed her to reach the upper floor. After she reached the area that a guard was standing guard in, and took everything that was in his pockets, she headed through an area that required her to use some hooks to swing her way across the gaps and reach the other side of the building, where the entrance was located. From there she carefully walked over the saw blades that were moving and reached the next side, where she had to crawl under the circular saw blades that were in front of her, before bypassing the sleepy guard that was in her way and used the hanging logs to get to the area that the head was located in... where she used the tables as cover as she reached her target, where she kicked the costume head off the floor and let it hit the area near Murray.

Once the head was in position, and she landed on the floor near the door, Murray claimed the head and slipped it over his own head, to which Diz watched as Murray readied himself and walked forward, as she was interested in figuring out what was going on and where the Northern Light Battery was located.

"Hey fellas, any of you think you can beat 'the Mur... 'the Moose'?" Murray said, where Diz noticed that he had to pause for a moment, since his normal name would likely tip off the guards and alert Jean Bison to what they were doing at the moment, "Maybe put a bet on it?"

"Oh I'm in, eh!" the moose Murray had chosen to talk to said, though at the same time Diz shook her head, grateful that no one could see her at the moment, as it appeared that the guards were too stupid to realize that Murray wasn't a new guard since Jean Bison would have told them about him before this point, "I ain't got a lot of money for this wager... but there's no way I'd lose to a new guy like you."

Diz watched as Murray took the controller that was offered to him and started controlling the vehicle that was attached to it, where he grinned as he stared at the vehicle that was his opponent while the rest of the guards that weren't participating in the battle gathered around to watch. Apparently these combat drones didn't have any ammunition in them at the moment, as bits were carefully dropped into the area as Murray and his opponent moved around the arena, though the moment Murray picked up some ammunition he targeted his opponent's drone and fired at it. Diz observed the match as Murray showed off the skills that he had used back in Istanbul, as that was the last time he had been able to do something like this, and slowly seized control of the situation that he had found himself in, much to the amazement of the guards that were watching the fight, as they weren't expecting a new guy to dominate what had to be one of their strongest fighters... and, after a few moments, his opponent's drone stopped moving, showing that Murray had won the match as he handed the controller back to the guard that had given it to him.

The guard that he had been battling against, however, stood there in shock for a few seconds, clearly surprised by the fact that he had been beaten so soundly, before setting down his controller and walked over to where Murray was standing, so he could hand over the prize.

"You won, but I ain't got no money." the guard said, though his tone suggested that he was hoping that the new guy would have mercy on him since he actually had nothing to offer him, even though this was one of the guards that Diz didn't steal from when she was moving through the area.

"That might be okay," Murray replied, though at the same time Diz knew what he was going to do, since they had come here for one specific reason and he was going to make sure that Bentley had the information that he needed for the plan he was thinking of, "it all depends."

"Depends on what?" the guard asked, where his tone revealed that he was worried, meaning that when people usually did this it didn't end well for people, which meant that he was fortunate that Murray and Diz were only after one thing and nothing else at the moment.

"On whether or not you know the location of the Northern Light Battery." Murray stated, knowing that, since the guards seemed to think that he was one of them, none of them would report this to Jean Bison, meaning that they would have an opening to exploit in the future.

"Oh... well I guess I owe yah..." the guard said, to which he started telling Murray exactly what he wanted to know, as that would allow him to get rid of the bet and put this shame behind him, while at the same time the defeat would drive him to improve for future matches.

A few moments later Murray and Diz walked out of the building with the location of the Northern Light Battery, just like Bentley requested, and headed back to the safe house, though Murray kept the costume head on and found that the guards paid no attention to him... though when they got back to the safe house he took it off and Diz undid her invisibility spell, where Bentley asked all of them to gather around him once more.

"I've gone over what's inside the log chopping guide," Bentley said, patting the tome that Sly, Gilda, and Derpy had freed from the ice, though the look on his face told the others that he didn't like what he had found, "and, after coming up with a few plans, I've decided on one that might work... we face Jean Bison in the Lumberjack Games and see if we can't convince him to turn against Arpeggio while we're competing against him. I considered cheating and trying our luck, but then I thought about our opponent and knew that trying that, even if he couldn't prove it, would only anger him and cause him to lash out at us... if we do this, and I think it's the most viable option, we'll have to play by the rules."

"Personally, Jean Bison looks like the type of person that gets angry easily," Carmelita commented, staring at the picture that she and Sly had taken, which showed how annoyed the man was that his trains had been stolen from and the parts he had taken had been stolen as well, "We'd have to give him something else to... be... angry at... I can't believe we didn't consider this earlier."

"Consider what?" Derpy asked, because right now they were wasting time, as Arpeggio was on his way here and there was no telling if he was going to arrive earlier, right on time, or a few minutes late, and she didn't like the fact that they were just sitting around doing nothing.

"Jean Bison is stuck in the old ways, that much we know for a fact," Carmelita said, as that seemed to hold true due to what they had seen back in the other camp, as his guards seemed to be old fashioned as well, and yet he was also abiding by old customs here as well, "which means that all he's interested in, if I'm right about this, is running those Iron Horses of his and nothing else. It's possible that Jean Bison has a dream of his own that he's been working towards, by whatever means that are available to him, and maybe Arpeggio is making sure he can't do that... we might be able to drive a wedge between the two of them in the process and get our way aboard the blimp."

"You know, maybe we can talk this out for once," Sly stated, as he was surprised that Carmelita would even think of something like that, but when he took into account what they had discovered back in Nunavut Bay and what they had found out while scouting the area, he knew that her plan had a great deal of success, "and, if that fails, we should be ready for a fight... though I seriously hope it doesn't come to that."

Derpy, Gilda, and Diz stared at each other for a moment as Bentley laid out the plan, or who would tackle each of the three challenges that were in the Lumberjack Games, because something told them that they were missing something important... and they knew that they weren't going to like what was coming next for them and the rest of the gang.

Band: Lumberjack Games

Since they had some time before the start of the Lumberjack Games, as they weren't supposed to start for an hour or two, Bentley insisted on making sure that Sly's ascension skills were ready to go, that Murray was ready to split a log like his life defended on it, and that Diz was ready to tackle the log rolling challenge. The reasoning behind that decision was that Jean Bison would likely get annoyed with someone entering the competition with wings, something that Diz could easily hide with his magic, since he had faked it many times before he joined them, though while Gilda and Derpy were experienced without using their wings, on Sly's insistence, if they opened them their opponent was likely to get mad. Bentley was sure that he could have done the third challenge himself, and would have done it as well, but something told him that he might be needed for when they walked with Jean Bison, so he refrained from entering the competition and decided to stay on the sidelines with Derpy, Gilda, and Carmelita. None of them were exactly pleased with that suggestion, but when Carmelita asked Bentley why they didn't sign up two teams, to keep someone by Jean Bison when he wasn't taking his turn at each of the challenges, Bentley stared at her for a moment and brought his palm to his face.

It appeared that the thought had never crossed his mind to do something like that, where he ensured that Gilda took up the axe swinging challenge, made sure Derpy was ready for the ascension challenge, and he was taking the log rolling challenge... leaving Carmelita as the odd one out, which slightly annoyed her, but in the end she guessed that, since it was her idea to talk things over with Jean Bison, that she'd be the one to stand on the sidelines.

As everyone got ready for the Lumberjack Games, however, Carmelita remained sitting at the table in the safe house for some time, though while she did that she pulled her pack over and sighed as she reached up and removed her collar, where she kept her Inspector badge, before putting both it and her pistol inside the pack. For the most part Jean Bison wouldn't be able to recognize her, not when he had barely given her a passing glance at Rajan's party and neither of them had spoken to each other during that same party, but at the same time she didn't want him to see that she was a cop, even one that was on the run. It would ruin the whole operation and destroy their chances of getting the Talons from the man, so she decided to go without them and hoped that the others could stall Jean Bison long enough for her to talk some sense into him, as well as those who weren't taking their turns on the challenge that they had been signed up for. The only other thing she did was check her own email, as Bentley's computer was designed to make sure no one could track any activity on it and he even assured her that she could do this without someone, like Neyla for instance, finding out where they were hiding... only when she opened her email she noticed that many of her recent incoming messages were from Barkley, who was just telling her that he would eventually find her and the gang she was running with.

It hurt to see that the Inspector that she had worked under, who had trained her to eventually be the one to take over for him when he decided to retire, was now so firmly against her and the people she was running with, especially since his choice of words were rather hurtful as well... and yet, at the same time, she logged out of her email and prepared herself for what she and the others were about to do, especially since Jean Bison was hoping for people to come and participate in the Lumberjack Games.

When the gang was ready to leave, as the games would be starting soon, they walked outside the safe house and headed down the walkway that was nearby, which gave them a good view of the area that Jean Bison had prepared for the Lumberjack Games. There was a judges table, where three duck guards were sitting and shuffling their score cards around, apparently discussing something that had to deal with the games, as well as a number of decent sized wooden logs that would be split apart in the first challenge, a large wall that had to be reserved for the second challenge, and three equal sized logs that were the final challenge. It was clear that Jean Bison was ready for the games to begin, though when the group looked around the area they knew that they were the only ones to show up, as it appeared that, since Jean Bison was competing once again, the other lumberjacks happened to have enough of him and weren't showing up, meaning that they would have considered coming if he was a judge or just a spectator. Fortunately that meant it was them against Jean Bison, but at the same time fewer competitors meant that they wouldn't have a lot of time to convince the man that his real enemy was Arpeggio... which told Carmelita that she was going to have to work her magic to see if she could get some results before the games were over and a winner was decided.

Eventually Bentley approached Jean Bison and told him that his group and a second group where there to enter his games, where the man told them to pay the entry fee so they could get started, as it appeared that no one else was going to bother to show up today... and yet, while all that was happening, Jean Bison walked over to where Carmelita was standing, as she had a front row seat to the Lumberjack Games.

"Miss Fox," Jean Bison said, immediately raising alarms in Carmelita's head, as this wasn't supposed to happen and she had removed the only identifiable items on her, ones that a man like Jean Bison would recognize, "I'm surprised to find someone like you all the way out here. Are you participating, or just watching?"

"I'm just here to watch," Carmelita replied, hoping that the man didn't put it together that the group she arrived with was the Cooper Gang, otherwise the operation was blown before they could even start, "I figured that, since I was already in the area, I might as well swing by and see what was so special about the Lumberjack Games."

"You should have signed up then!" Jean Bison stated, as if the idea of an additional opponent was something he would have humored, since he was literally taking whatever he could get since no one else showed up, "Or did you come running cause I posted the Clockwerk Talons as the prize?"

"The Talons were a good reason for me to come here as well," Carmelita said, not believing that she was having a small conversation with the man that had helped the Klaww Gang steal all the Clockwerk parts, though at the same time he seemed to be glancing at the games every now and then, observing the others as they tackled the challenges that Bentley had signed them up for, "though Interpol would lock me up the moment they laid eyes on me, so it wouldn't have done me any good to try and take them from you. Besides, you said they were the prize, and I doubt that you would go back on your word..."

"I would rather have my father beat some sense into me than to go back on my word," Jean Bison said, to which he nodded his head, as Murray had stepped up to the platform and had delivered some powerful attacks that split the wood in half, telling Carmelita that he was a tab bit excited about what was going on.

"And I also came because I was worried about the Northern Lights," Carmeltia started to say, though at the same time she found that Jean Bison had launched himself into a story about his past, when he did something wrong when he was a little kid and his father 'punished' him, which sounded like a more severe version of parents spanking their children, before he realized that it was his turn.

As such Jean Bison stepped up to the platform and attacked the log as well, though his attacks were so precise that he was able to split the log without damaging it at all, shocking everyone that was watching him and earning him the same perfect score as everyone else... before he returned to where Carmelita was standing, who was beginning to see how difficult this operation was going to be if the man was as skilled as he was.

"Now then, you said something about being worried about the Northern Lights?" Jean Bison asked, to which Carmelita nodded her head, knowing that it was better if the man continued to talk on his own and spilled the beans, as he seemed to be in a good mood at the moment, even though there was a frown on his face when he looked at the sky, "Yeah, right now they're flickering and fading, not like the usual show that they put on, though that's mostly because of my Northern Light Collector. I know you might not care, Miss Fox, but I've always loved the Northern Lights and the shows they put on, so when I found a way to combine my knowledge of Injun magic, my old settlers know-how, and some of the fancy machines you have, creating a way to safely harness their power. If I were to use the lowest draw setting the Lights would only dim and continue to put on their show, but when Arpeggio asked for that extra battery the only way to get it ready in time was the full draw, which results in what we're seeing at the moment."

"Wait, so your technique doesn't actually damage the Northern Lights?" Carmelita asked, as that was one of the reasons they had come here, despite the fact that getting the Talons and finding a way aboard Arpeggio's blimp were the real reason the gang had come all the way here.

"Nope." Jean Bison said, to which he raised a hand to his chin for a moment, as if he was trying to figure something out, before he noticed that he was being waved over for his turn at the wall, and noticed that he had missed the others in their attempts, to which he pulled a set of papers out and handed them to Carmelita, "I can't remember what I was going to say, but that explains it... and now it's my turn to climb the wall."

Carmelita stood there for a moment as Jean Bison walked away once more, as she was still surprised that he was so different when someone talked about something that he was passionate about, before she beckoned Bentley over and showed him what she had been given. Bentley, seeing the various math equations on the piece of paper, pulled out a calculator that he kept on hand and started to do the math, though at the same time Carmelita noticed that his eyebrows raised a bit while he was working, meaning that this meant something to him. In the end, as Jean Bison scored a perfect score in the second challenge, Bentley was able to figure out that the power of the Norther Lights, collected by the Collector that Jean Bison had set up, could easily power an entire continent if he was inclined to do so. Carmelita was surprised by what Bentley was able to figure out, though when Jean Bison came back he was surprised to see Bentley standing there, since he was supposed to be getting ready for the third challenge, but, at the same time, there was something that Bentley needed to ask before they went any further with this operation.

"Jean Bison, are these numbers correct?" Bentley asked, showing him the notes that he had handed Carmelita, though that only caused the man to raise an eyebrow at them while he stood there and looked at the page that was in front of him, while the others prepared themselves.

"Those are the numbers that Arpeggio came up with," Jean Bison replied, to which he shrugged his shoulders for a moment, once more showing that he had next to no information on the technology that was in this time period and the terms that people used, "He assured me that they were correct... not that I understand what they mean."

"You have a renewable source of energy, something that the world has been trying to find for some time now," Bentley stated, taking a look at the notes once more, finding that his math was definitely correct and that he would be correct in what he was going to say next, "Billions of dollars are being used to try and find renewable sources like this, and failing I might add, so if you made your Northern Light Collector public, and patented it, you'd be able to make more money than you could possibly dream of."

"I don't care about money," Jean Bison stated in return, though at the same time he was interested in what Bentley was saying, despite the fact that the judges were getting eager for them to step up and perform the final challenge of the Lumberjack Games, "all I care about is running my Iron Horses, which had their Clockwerk parts stolen recently."

"Well, if you switch the trains to electricity, you should be able to run them off the Northern Light energy." Bentley said, to which he caught Jean Bison's attention, because now that they knew what button to press he could see what he could do to persuade the man to turn against Arpeggio, "You know, if you showed Arpeggio some of these notes, I can see why he wasn't willing to help you achieve your dreams, because it would let you break away from him and stop doing his shipments for him."

Suffice to say that Jean Bison took a few moments to think about what was going on before his fury ignited, showing that he wasn't happy that Arpeggio had lied to him, tricked him into doing all his shipments for free, which confirmed what Bentley had been thinking, and immediately began thinking about ways to have his revenge on the little bird that had done all this to him since they first encountered each other. The moment that happened he called a close to the Lumberjack Games and huffed over to the judges, as he wanted to have a word with them, though at the same time Sly approached him and told him that, if he wanted to get back at Arpeggio for tricking him, he might as well help them out by handing over the Talons. That was further backed when Bentley said that, given some time, he could figure out a base form of what Jean Bison wanted to use the Northern Light Collector for, which seemed to be in their best interest, since a few moments later he set a bag down on the judges stand and let the Cooper Gang take the Talons... knowing that, by giving them to the gang, they would damage Arpeggio's plans further.

When Sly moved to collect the bag, however, it disappeared as Neyla, using a jetpack to fly through the air, snatched it and appeared in the air in front of them, though at the same time she stared down at them with a look of anger on her face, to which the entire Cooper Gang prepared themselves as they focused on her.

"It's like I said earlier, you Coopers can't stay away from these Clockwerk parts." Neyla said, though she smiled as she stashed the bag containing the Talons in the bag she was carrying, before she focused on the people below her, "Thanks for doing all the legwork for me, because these are the last pieces of the puzzle."

"You've failed Neyla," Carmelita declared, as she knew that it was impossible for the corrupt cop to have the other parts of Clockwerk that they had painstakingly collected, not when Secretary Sen had them safe and sound in a new hiding place that she won't be able to find, "Stand down and let us capture you... the worst that can happen is that you'll spend the rest of your life behind bars for disobeying Secretary Sen."

"It seems that you don't understand the situation that you're in." Neyla said, though the look on her face revealed that she knew something that the gang didn't, while at the same time she paid Jean Bison no attention at all, "I was hoping you would leave the Clockwerk parts with Secretary Sen, at a safe house some distance away from where the Contessa's castle was located, and when you left them there I waited for the transport to arrive. It was rather easy to knock out the officers that were sent to collect the parts you stole, allowing me and my companions to make off with all the parts that were inside the safe house... and now that I have the Lungs, Stomach, and the Talons, thanks to your efforts, Arpeggio has everything he needs for the final stage of his plan."

Derpy, Gilda, and Diz, hearing Neyla's words, opened their wings and flew over to where the van was located, though when they arrived they found that it had been ransacked while everyone was distracted by the Lumberjack Games, which pissed all three of them at the same time. While that happened Neyla smiled and took off, carrying the parts that they had taken from jean Bison, though she was out of range before any of the magical family members could have struck her down where she was floating, to which Sly and the others started talking things over with Jean Bison, as in what they needed to do to get his revenge on Arpeggio and what he could do to assist them. As it turned out their former target had an idea for them, they could drain the Northern Light Battery of all it's energy and transfer it into another silo that was nearby, so it wasn't wasted, and then use the empty shell to get aboard the blimp that was coming to collect the battery that Arpeggio was coming for.

During all that preparation, however, Bentley found an email from Secretary Sen, one that detailed that the security team he had chosen to transport the Clockwerk parts they had left at the safe house had been attacked and the parts had been stolen, verifying Neyla's claims. With that information confirmed Bentley told their ally what Neyla had done, that Jean Bison was actually the only innocent member of the Klaww Gang, and that they were going to try and stop the very real resurrection of Clockwerk, which had been one of the reasons they had sought the parts in the first place. Thankfully it didn't take Jean Bison long to transfer the energy to the spare silo, though Murray insisted that someone needed to take care of his van before they came back for it, though before any promises could be made one of the guards made the announcement that all of them were waiting for... Arpeggio's blimp was vastly approaching the lumber camp, meaning that they were coming for the battery that Jean Bison had prepared for the person that had played him.

The gang quickly climbed into the now void silo and let Jean Bison seal them in, though they patiently waited for the battery to move and made no noises as they were hauled into the air, heading towards the base of operations for the man responsible for everything the Klaww Gang had done... and who, as an unexpected side effect to their heists, was in possession of all the Clockwerk parts. They needed to stop him and fast, otherwise the monster that had hunted Sly's family was going to be reborn and complete whatever plan Arpeggio had in mind.

Band: Hatred Reborn

As all of them sat there, inside the Northern Light Battery, the gang couldn't believe that the focus of all their schemes and heists since Cairo, the Clockwerk parts, had been stolen from them in one form or another and were now gathered in a single place for a single sinister purpose. Bentley, daring to use his computer for a moment, found out that they were heading east across the Atlantic Ocean, as stowaways on the giant airborne fortress that Arpeggio had created, and made sure that Secretary Sen knew where they were going. Despite the fact that time was short the gang made sure to study up on their unknowing host, where they discovered that Arpeggio attended a prestigious boarding school, where he excelled in all subjects, but at the same time he never managed to keep up with the other boys physically. They found out that his wings, due to their small size, were useless for flight, which made him furious at his feeble body and caused him to focus his powerful mind to start searching for a cure, in the works of the Italian Renaissance masters as it turned out. Bentley was sure that the notebooks of those masters provided the springboard for this sinister young genius, and that it wasn't long before the Klaww Gang took him on as their chief inventor.

It was clear to them that Arpeggio's talents must have been at work repurposing all the Clockwerk parts for the various criminal schemes of his cohorts, and now this mastermind was in possession of all the parts, meaning that it was only a matter of time before he put them all back together... to which the gang decided that they weren't going to let that happen, as they were sure that the moment the parts were united Clockwerk would awaken from his slumber.

When the battery finally stopped moving, and they waited for a few moments to be sure that none of Arpeggio's guards were in the area, Sly carefully moved towards the top of the battery and opened the lid, where he glanced at the area around them and beckoned for the others to follow him. As they soon discovered the battery rested in the middle section of the large fortress that was Arpeggio's blimp, though once they were all outside the empty silo they headed towards the backside of the ship, where they might be able to find a place to hide and make their safe house. Bentley was able to find another Northern Light Battery, the one that Arpeggio must have been replacing with the one they had been riding in, and found that it was large enough for all of them, again with a round table of sorts for them, and they moved into it without delay, as they could see Arpeggio's guards patrolling the area near them. Once they got situated in their new safe house, which was even worse than the one they had in Jean Bison's lumber camp, Bentley set up some of his tools and instruments so he could get a good understanding of what was going on.

A few minutes later Bentley said that he had an idea of where the parts might be located, though as Sly turned to leave he found that Carmelita, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz were coming with him, because if he found where the parts were resting he'd need assistance in dealing with the security. This time around he didn't tell the others to stay back, rather the five of them moved out from their new safe house and headed into the area of the fortress that was around them, where they noticed that some of Arpeggio's guards were using stilts to stand taller than they had been without them. While both Sly and Carmelita ran over the walkways that happened to be in front of them, and snuck around the guards that they encountered, Derpy, Gilda, and Diz surveyed the entire flying fortress and collected the bottles that were scattered all over the place, not that they cared about the safe since they were more worried about what Arpeggio was doing. It took them some time to make their way around the flying fortress, since there were some spotlights, guards, and large fans that they had to avoid, but eventually the five of them gathered near what had to be one of the generators for the blimp, one of four if they were seeing things right... and, despite everything they had seen on the way here, they were staring at one of the actual blimps that were flying close to the fortress the battery had been placed on.

Once all five of them were in position, and they were sure that none of the guards had seen them as they made their way to this area, they reached into their packs and pulled out their binocucoms, as they were sure that Bentley had something to tell them before they started taking pictures of the area.

"My instruments have picked up large magnetic fields radiating from inside that blimp." Bentley said, having them zoom in on the same blimp that they had been looking at before they pulled out their binocucoms, meaning he had found something out, "If Arpeggio's already started re-assembling Clockwerk that's where you'll find him."

"Sounds good," Sly replied, though he knew that they were all nervous, because the last time that four of them had seen Clockwerk whole was when they fought him above the Krack-Karov Volcano, where Diz hadn't been since he joined the gang a few days later, "We're on our way."

"Don't waste any time here Sly, get to the blimp and take some recon photos." Bentley stated, indicating that he needed them to find out what was going on in there and not stay outside the blimp, even though they'd be able to give him information on the blimp if someone stayed outside the blimp, "To build a plan we need to know how close they are to reviving Clockwerk."

"Relax Bentley." Carmelita said, knowing that Bentley was as nervous as they were, and he wasn't even heading into the area that the magnetic fields were coming from, but she was eager to bring a close to this adventure so she could find and lock Neyla away for her crimes, "We've got it under control."

The moment the five of them put their binocucoms away both Sly and Carmelita climbed the nearby rope and used their paragliders to reach the wing of the blimp they were heading to, where Derpy, Gilda, and Diz flew over when the way was open, before they climbed up the pipe that was outside the blimp and used the grate to head inside... though when they emerged from the vent, however, all five of them stopped in their tracks when they noticed what was in front of them, even as Sly opened a link to Bentley.

"I... I had no idea they could re-assemble Clockwerk so fast!" Bentley exclaimed, as he took in the fact that Arpeggio was able to piece together the parts of the ancient owl that Neyla had stolen from the transport and added in the ones she had taken from their van, as Clockwerk was whole once more.

"Calm down Bentley... he might be in one piece but he doesn't appear to be, you know, 'alive'." Derpy said, though at the same time she touched the eye the owl had destroyed once more, remembering the battle with ease, before she lowered her hand and looked down at what was in front of them at the moment, "Let's stick to the format here, how about some recon photos?"

"You're right, we need to be informed to create a plan of action." Bentley replied, to which they heard him sigh as calmed himself down, though not a few seconds later he was ready to give them some targets to snap some pictures of before they got out of there, "Try to get a shot of Clockwerk's head, a mech egg and one of those spinning magnetic inducers... they seem important to the process. But stay away from the guards... if you get detected we won't have time for a second chance."

The five of them carefully dropped down into the area and separated from each other, as while Gilda, Derpy, and Diz stayed in the air, and got some pictures of the four magnetic inducers that were spinning around the chamber, Sly and Carmelita snapped a picture of the eggs, which were apparently radioactive in some manner, and Clockwerk's head, where Sly was able to determine that he was inanimate at the moment. That was followed by Gilda snapping a picture of both Arpeggio and Neyla, who were at the front of the blimp, to which the five of them, including Bentley, determined that they were definitely in league with each other.

"It seems that we were right in our earlier thoughts," Carmelita commented, making sure that she and the others were in an area where the guards wouldn't hear them talking, which was in the same area that they had entered through, but at the same time she locked her eyes on the metallic owl in front of them, "Neyla and Arpeggio are trying to put together Clockwerk, why we still have no idea, and they are dangerously close to realizing that goal... Bentley, is there anything we can do to stop this from happening?"

"Well... those magnetic inducers seem to be holding the parts together." Bentley stated, showing that, in the brief amount of time he had studied the pictures before Carmelita had spoken up, though right now Sly was happy to have his quick thinking on their side, "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 replied, because with five of them in the area they could easily get all of the keys and then reverse the control stations, to which the group got moving, because the more time they wasted the more in danger they were of Clockwerk waking up.

What happened next was that Sly, Carmelita, Gilda, and Derpy each stole a key from one of the four guards that were in the area, though once they had their key they moved into position and waited for one of the magnetic inducers to be in place so they could reverse the polarity. Diz, on the other hand, stayed near where Arpeggio and Neyla were standing, so she could tell them whether or not their enemies were coming out to see Clockwerk once more, but fortunately neither of them were interested in coming out here at the moment. Once the keys were used on the control terminal, and the polarity was reversed, the four magnets slowed down to the point where they could be jumped onto, to which Gilda and Derpy watched as both Sly and Carmelita jumped up to the magnetic inducers and tapped the controls that they found on each one of them to reverse the polarity. The moment that Sly tapped the controls on the last one, however, the various parts of Clockwerk actually snapped together, locking them into place before their eyes, and the ropes that were keeping the body hanging in the air snapped, causing the metallic owl to fall to the floor and smash everything around it.

Before the group could do anything, especially when they realized that they had screwed up majorly, the door opened and both Neyla and Arpeggio started to approach Clockwerk's body... though as the group touched down in front of them, hidden from sight and hearing by the quick magic that Diz had crafted, Sly could have sworn that one of the eyes opened for a brief moment before closing again.

"What's all this then?" Arpeggio exclaimed, where he expected to find his guards patrolling the area and keeping the Clockwerk parts safe, but then he noticed that the parts had been locked together and glanced up at the magnets that were moving around the chamber, "The magnets have been reversed?!? But? By Jove, it seems to have locked the Clockwerk parts into place! Excellent!"

"Not so fast Arpeggio." Sly stated, to which he and the others materialized in front of Arpeggio and Neyla, who were surprised by their sudden arrival, though even as that happened Sly could tell that Neyla had been expecting them to show up at some point.

"Of course this would be the doing of your gang." Neyla said, to which she crossed her arms for a moment, as this only confirmed something that she said time and time again when she was dealing with them, even if they were a little late to stop their plans, "You really can't stay away from Clockwerk, can't you?"

"Ah, Mr. Cooper. No doubt you and your companions believed a reversal would pull the old bird apart, eh?" Arpeggio spoke up, his voice revealing that he was beyond pleased that this had happened, as it meant that his ultimate plan could be put into action at long last, "But it seems to have the opposite effect. I'm truly grateful... when fully powered up I'll join myself to its circuits and be born anew."

"I thought you wanted to revive Clockwerk for some scheme to take over Paris." Diz stated, as that was the same conclusion that the gang had come up with, as Arpeggio could awaken Clockwerk and have him fulfill a dream of his before allowing the ancient owl to live once more, to do whatever he desired.

"Immortality! Immortality is what I seek." Arpeggio replied, though when he heard Diz's words he realized that some of them must have overheard his conversation with Bison, back when he was still in Nunavut Bay a few days ago, "The other Klaww Gang members were much too short-sighted. They were happy using the Clockwerk parts to drive their various trivial schemes. But not me. No, I saw them for what they truly were... the keys to life eternal!"

"So you had Neyla tell us about the Klaww Gang back in Cairo and then waited while we stole the parts from your cohorts," Carmelita said, her mind piecing together what they were learning and what they had thought about before they all came aboard this blimp, while at the same time understanding that Arpeggio had made a single mistake, "and, at the same time, you made sure not to arouse any suspicion with them that you were behind their parts being taken."

"You make it sound easy Cooper." Neyla said, once more calling Carmelita by the gang name, knowing full well that it annoyed her since she wasn't apart of Sly's family like everyone else was, not yet anyway, "I had to carry your pathetic gang through that first set of heists..."

"Excuse me?" Sly interrupted, feeling offended that Neyla thought that she had assisted them to the point where his gang's reputation would mean nothing, like they were novices that needed the help of experts, "Back when we were taking on Dimitri, when you handed us that key, Bentley was already figuring out a way inside, so we didn't actually need your help getting into the area that the disco ball was in. We also didn't need your help at the ball, despite the fact that you nearly blew your own cover in the process, and we would have recovered the half of Clockwerk's Heart that you led us to, as Rajan would have picked it up before leaving. You didn't carry us through anything, Neyla, you just offered a helping hand and we took it since the information was too good to pass up."

"Ah! But acquiring all the parts was only half the equation." Arpeggio said, returning them to the main topic of their conversation, as he was willing to indulge them for a few moments before he claimed what was his, "Think Cooper... what kept Clockwerk alive for thousands of years?"

"That's easy," Sly replied, to which he turned around for a moment and glanced at the head that was near him, as he knew that the soul inside the machinery was listening as he waited for his opportunity to strike, before he turned back towards Arpeggio and Neyla, "Clockwerk was fueled by his hatred for our family."

"Splendid, that's right! Hatred!" Arpeggio said, excitement appearing on his face, showing that he was pleased that they understood Clockwerk as well as he did, even though he was the one who wasn't aware of what was going on at the moment, "Putting his gears and wires together was child's play compared with accumulating that much hatred... especially when the only missing part is his Hate Chip. Fortunately I was able to build a replica of the actual chip and installed it after the parts were scattered among the other members of the Klaww Gang. And please, don't even bother saying that I can't make people hate, because my meticulous mind has already found a way to do just that. 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 the use of 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."

"Oh my god... the Northern Lights!" Carmelita said, as now everything that they had heard back in Jean Bison's cabin made so much more sense, while at the same time she was happy that one of their binocucoms was turned on so Bentley could record all this for Secretary Sen, "You've been collecting Northern Light Energy so you could hypnotize everyone beneath the blimp. You're not on your way to Paris to take it over... you're going to Paris to unleash a hypnotic light show of hate. That's... outlandishly cruel."

"Cruel, perhaps, but necessary to give Clockwerk his spark of immortality!" Arpeggio stated, his tone revealing that he was growing tired of talking and revealing his plans, not that there was anything the Cooper Gang could do to stop his plans at the moment, "Ah... well, my new body awaits me. Be a dear, Neyla, and keep them covered. Ta-ta!"

"And what do you think Clockwerk will do when he finds an intruder in his body?" Sly asked, as that seemed to be the one thing that Arpeggio never considered, the possibility that part of Clockwerk had survived the battle at the volcano and had been lying in wait the entire time.

"Do you honestly believe that the old bird is still around, after you broke him?" Neyla asked, to which both she and Arpeggio chuckled for a moment, showing that neither one of them seemed to care what the gang thought and that they were unaware of what they had just done.

"Why don't you ask him yourself." Sly said, though at the same time he started to move out of the way and the others, not sure what he was doing, did so as well, but that was when everyone watched as Clockwerk's mouth closed and his eyes snapped open.

That was followed by the familiar sound of Clockwerk's laughter as he regained control of his metallic body, to which he started to rise before their very eyes as he made sure that everything was as he remembered, save for the inadequate replacement for his Hate Chip, which meant he'd have to stick around this ship for some time to restore his body to what it had been before his defeat.

I LIVE! Clockwerk declared, where Sly and the others moved to one side, because where their opponent was concerned he would either attack the gang, since the majority of them were Coopers, or he might attack Arpeggio and Neyla, for trying to use his body for their own purposes, before he stared down at the people around him, Sly Cooper, even when trying to stop my resurrection, you and your family did the only thing I would expect from the Cooper Clan... you allowed my body to be reassembled and let my soul live once more.

"Clockwerk." Sly said, knowing how dangerous the ancient owl could be, even when he was weakened in the matter than he was, and he didn't like their chances at the moment, not when both Arpeggio and Neyla were staring at him like they were going to beat him and insert themselves into the body, "We were trying to stop them from taking possession of your body, even if it meant pulling your parts away from each other, though it seems we failed in that rega..."

"Mr. Clockwerk, may I say that I am a fan of your work." Arpeggio spoke up, causing the ancient owl to turn his head towards him, where Sly and the others noticed that Clockwerk was studying the bird for a moment, while at the same time Neyla seemed to be moving into position for something, "Surely you can tell me the secret behind how you forged this immortal body of yours?"

No. Clockwerk said, answering the question instantly, though Sly was expecting that sort of answer and thought that Arpeggio was stupid for even asking such a thing, especially since the ancient owl was likely going to be very angry at the small bird for trying to use his body in such a way, My body was designed for one thing and one thing only, and that's getting my revenge on the Cooper Clan, thus proving that I, Clockwerk, am the ONLY Master Thief in the world! Fools like you would never understand the complexity of what I had to go through to create a lasting body, one that would survive decades, centuries, even millennia, just so I could have my revenge... though you will pay the price for your plans and attempted defilement of my body.

Arpeggio, not realizing that there was the possibility that Clockwerk would strike at them, barely had time to move before Clockwerk grabbed onto the top of his mobile walking device with his beak, causing Sly and the others to rapidly get out of the way as he hurled the device at one of the support beams for the blimp, denting it while damaging the device in the process. Neyla, taking the opportunity that was presented to her, rushed behind the ancient owl and used the small circular pump that she found over there, launching herself into the air as she readied her whip, intending to attack Clockwerk before he did anything else and open a weakness so she could take the body for herself. Clockwerk, on the other hand, sensed the attack was coming and swung his left wing towards her, smacking her with the full force of his powerful wing and knocked her into another one of the support beams, before she crumbled to the floor and simply laid there for a few moments without moving at all. Once that was done Clockwerk glared at Sly and the others, as if challenging them for a moment, before he flapped his wings and took off, where he tore his way through the front of the blimp and escaped from the area that Arpeggio had put his parts in.

Carmelita, knowing that Sly and the others wanted to take out Clockwerk before he escaped, walked over to where Neyla was and pressed her fingers against her neck, finding that the person that had tried to destroy her life was only unconscious at the moment. As such she picked Neyla up and placed her near the walkway that she and Arpeggio had walked down when they heard the sounds of Clockwerk's body hitting the floor, where she pulled out the pair of handcuffs she had been keeping on her, in case something like this happened, and gladly cuffed Neyla to the structure on her left. As that happened the others made sure that Arpeggio was alright as well, though it appeared that he was unconscious as well and, just like Neyla, happened to be bleeding from where their bodies hit something, though in Arpeggio's case it was the device he used to walk around in. The moment the five of them were sure that neither of them were going anywhere, when they woke up anyway, they headed towards the opening that Clockwerk had flown through and headed outside the blimp, where Gilda and Derpy carried Sly and Carmelita while Diz kept an eye out for their enemy.

Things had gone from bad to worse, that much they all knew, and Secretary Sen was going to want to know what Arpeggio and Neyla had been planning... as well as the fact that they were going to do everything in their power to bring about Clockwerk's end once more, and maybe this time ensure that he stays dead.

Band: Magic Versus Metal

On their way back to their new safe house, at the end of Arpeggio's blimp, Sly and the others noticed that Clockwerk, despite being in control for the first time in two years, wasn't straying too far away from the blimp and seemed to be flying around it every now and then. It was like he was either surveying his new surroundings, since the last thing he should remember was the gang beating him at the Krack-Karov Volcano, leeching energy from the engines to make sure that his body was working as he remembered it, or maybe he was observing them as they headed back to where Bentley and Murray were waiting for them to return. When they returned to the battery that was their safe house they discovered that Bentley was already hard at work studying all the parts of the blimp that were around them, how the power seemed to flow between all the sections that Arpeggio had installed to make it fly, where he could find computer terminals, and anything else that caught his attention at the moment. He also told them, once they shut the 'door' behind them, that he had already sent work to Secretary Sen about the situation, so that he knew exactly what Arpeggio and Neyla had been planning, before they sat down and let him continue working.

Fortunately it didn't take Bentley long to figure out a plan of attack, so they could weaken Clockwerk to the point where Derpy, Gilda, and Diz could unleash their magic again and destroy the ancient owl, like they did when they fought him the first time around. In order to reach that point Bentley revealed that they needed to disable the four engines that were located around the blimp, as he had detected several power shifts coming from each one of them and already knew that they were what Clockwerk was drawing power from. At the same time he warned them that this was only going to be possible if they all worked together, something he knew that they could do given how well they had done all the previous jobs up to this point, and warned them to be weary of the sky, since Clockwerk was likely going to be watching them as they worked to disable the engines. There was even one engine that Bentley had gone over multiple times while they were making their way to the blimp, one that was heavily reinforced to the point where the only option was to blow it to pieces, and he had an idea in mind to get at that one as well.

The plan was simple, as Bentley would be starting off by having Diz carry him to the computer terminals that were around the flying fortress so he could hack the door and let Murray into the first engine room, though as they did that both Sly and Carmelita would pick the pockets of several guards and take their keys, so they could give them to Bentley and let him enter the area that the second engine was located in. After Diz did that, and dropped Bentley off at the second engine room, he would assist Gilda in breaking the wall mounted power stations that were scattered around the area, before one of them headed inside to take out the third engine before the guards responded to what the gang was doing. While all of this was going on Derpy would be waiting by the fourth and final engine, gathering power from the clouds so she could blow the engine apart with her lightning, but at the same time the rest of the gang would bring a TNT barrel, with three powerful magnetic chargers attached to it, up to her target, where Bentley said the combined power between the lightning and the explosives would be enough to ruin that engine beyond repair. Once all four of the engines were taken out, and Bentley was sure that they were no longer powering Clockwerk's body, he, Murray, Sly, and Carmelita would have to stand back and watch Gilda, Derpy, and Diz fight the ancient owl, as Bentley had discovered that magic was the only thing that Clockwerk's body had no defenses against.

After Bentley finished explaining what they needed to do, and noticed that Secretary Sen hadn't gotten back to them yet, the gang got underway as they moved into position, though since his starting point was nearby he waited for a few minutes to be sure that everyone was where they were supposed to be before they got this operation started.

"He's observing us." Diz commented, to which Bentley looked and saw that she was staring at the ancient owl at the moment, who was currently perched one of the nearby blimps and seemed to be staring down at them, though at the same time he was sure that Clockwerk was following Sly, "He really hates the Cooper Clan, doesn't he?"

"Yes, he does." Bentley said, though at the same time he thought about the tales that were in the Thievius Raccoonus and realized that not one of them, the ones he had read so far, seemed to detail what even caused the mortal owl to replace his entire body with soulless machinery, before infusing said machine with his hate filled soul, "And yet, when you think about the stories inside the family tome, not one of them mentions the owl that eventually became Clockwerk, so there's no way for us to figure out what drove him to hate the Cooper Clan as much as he does."

Bentley was also interested in the fact that Arpeggio had said something about a Hate Chip, something that the small bird had replicated, and found himself thinking about the chip that Derpy was wearing around her neck, something that she found after they bested Clockwerk two years ago. He had to wonder if the chip that Derpy had found was actually an important part of Clockwerk, one that Arpeggio must have been searching for in his spare time and couldn't find because it was in a place he couldn't access, since it was around Derpy's neck. If she was carrying the Hate Chip on her, like he was beginning to suspect that he was, then it was a good thing that she had picked it up when she did, otherwise he was sure that Clockwerk would have left the blimp and disappeared until he was ready to attack them again, as the situation forced him to remain close at hand. He also knew why the owl was interested in observing them like he was, because two years ago it had been Sly, Derpy, and Gilda, with the aid of Inspector Fox, that was arrayed against him, though now it was the Cooper Gang with seven members, one of which he was unfamiliar with.

The ancient owl was trying to prepare himself for the fight that he knew was coming, as he was attempting to learn all he could about the thieves that were arrayed against him, which was why he wasn't moving from his perch and was observing how they worked like a team.

A few moments later, after he shelved his thoughts, the rest of the gang checked in and revealed that they were all ready to get the operation underway, to which Bentley had them all get started on their various objectives the moment he tapped the command key on his console, revealing the locations of said objectives to the rest of the gang. From that moment forward Bentley and Diz moved towards the first of the three computers he needed to hack into, while Diz kept an eye on the guards and knocked them out if they got too close, thus allowing Bentley to work in peace while the others started gathering everything they needed to tackle three of the engines at the same time. The moment Bentley hacked into the first computer he beckoned Diz over, to which he was ferried over to where the second of the three computers rested and went to work the instant they arrived, making Diz happy that he was working so fast, as she was still worried about the fact that Clockwerk was staring at them all as they moved around the flying fortress. A minute later and Bentley had claimed the second computer, to which Diz moved him over to the third one, which was in front of the entrance to the engine room that Murray was supposed to take on, and rapidly hacked his way through the computer that was in front of them... to which he forced the door open and Murray, who was standing by, walked into the engine room, though as Diz readied himself, so he could take Bentley to where Sly and Carmelita were waiting, they heard the sound of metal breaking and Murray beating something up.

Instead of questioning it Diz took Bentley over to the second engine room, where they found both Sly and Carmelita waiting with the five keys that they had stolen from the guards that were supposed to be holding them, to which they opened the way and Bentley slipped inside to do his part of the operation. Once Bentley was inside the engine room both Sly and Carmelita headed out to get the TNT barrel and the three magnetic charges that they had been told about, so they could help Derpy blow the final engine to pieces, allowing Diz to head back down to an area near the safe house and meet up with Gilda. From there the two of them used their magical powers to blow the five wall mounted power stations to pieces, despite the fact that they were scattered all over the flying fortress, though it didn't take the two of them long to find their targets and break them. When they headed to the third engine, however, they discovered that Murray was standing nearby and had pried open the door the moment he found out the fifth power station had been taken out, allowing Gilda to head inside and get to work tearing the place apart. Murry stood by the door, to open it again when Gilda was ready to leave, to which Diz headed out and helped Carmelita out, as she was making sure Sly's path to the three magnetic charges was unobstructed, since he was the one crawling around in the TNT barrel at the moment... though while all that was going on Diz also noticed that Clockwerk seemed to be staring at the fourth engine now, where Derpy was gathering her power to damage the engine to the point where it wouldn't work for some time.

As she and the others started to gather near the fourth engine, and the ones that were inside the other two finished their tasks and came outside, lightning flashed through the clouds that were some distance above Arpeggio's blimp, all centered around Derpy. Diz smiled for a moment, as she loved watching the way Derpy was able to either call upon the power of an already existing storm and use it to their advantage, or even cause one to be created in a small area so she could use the power of the sky to destroy something. While her power might be chaotic and random by nature, which they couldn't figure out at all, both of her sisters possessed a natural affinity for the elemental forces that had shaped this world at one point in time and were incredibly powerful when they set their mind to something, and watching them use their power to break things was fun in it's own right. While she thought about all that Gilda, Murray, Bentley, and Carmelita stood near her as Sly delivered both the TNT barrel and the magnetic charges before clearing out to the safe spot they were standing on... though that was followed by Derpy, her single eye ablaze with magical power, summoned the power of the storm and hurled it down towards the engine room.

At first it seemed to pierce the center of the TNT barrel and go straight through the room itself, causing some confusion in the others as they stared at it, though that was before the true power of the storm raced down towards the room and struck it... where the entire structure exploded and parts flew everywhere as the blimp rocked, shaken by the suddenness of an entire engine room being destroyed in an instant.

"Derpy, I think you might have used a little too much power in that attack," Gilda commented, looking at the burning remains of what used to be an engine room with a look of surprise on her face, which was mirrored in the faces of the rest of the gang, before she glanced at her sister, "I mean, you were supposed to disable the engine room... and you ended up blowing it to pieces."

"I figured that, since our enemy is Clockwerk, that we might as well take the time to make sure he doesn't get the upper hand before we're ready." Derpy stated, to which she turned and looked at the ancient mechanical owl that was still sitting on it's perch, observing them and how they worked as a team, though she actually wondered if Clockwerk was doing something else at the moment.

"I guess there's not much else we can do at the moment," Carmelita said, as while she was hoping to get another crack at the ancient owl that had hunted Sly's family for years, and killed his father and took Derpy's eye, she knew that she needed to stay at Sly's side, as this was a battle between magic users and a seemingly immortal owl, "we'll be back at the safe house. Hopefully Secretary Sen knows where the blimp is located by now, otherwise we might need to come up with a way to tell him where we're located."

Diz knew that the rest of the gang wanted to help, especially since their opponent was one of the worst criminals that had ever walked the Earth, or flew he guessed since Clockwerk had wings, and there was no telling what he was going to do this time around, when he was beaten. Diz had been told the story of how Derpy lost her eye and how both she and Gilda had gained their powers in the first place, as it had been during their first fight with Clockwerk two years ago, and already understood that now was the time to be careful, especially since their foe's talons were sharp enough to cut their way through some of the toughest metal in the world. As Carmelita and the others headed back towards the safe house, so they could watch what was going to happen next, the three of them stood near each other and focused their minds for a moment, to which their individual auras appeared around them as they took to the skies and only came to a stop when they were near Clockwerk's perch... though the flapping of their wings was enough to cause the ancient owl to open his eyes, as he must have closed them to think about something after Derpy's display, and the trio readied themselves.

What none of them were expecting, however, was for Clockwerk to stare at them for a few seconds as one of his metallic eyebrows started to rise up, indicating that he was either shocked by something or he was simply confused as to what he was seeing.

Your aura is pink. Clockwerk stated, staring at the red aura that had gathered around Gilda Cooper and the blue aura that was doing the same to Derpy Cooper, though what was shocking to him was the female hyena, who had a small pair of feathered wings coming out of her back, that had a pink aura around her body.

"Look, I would have liked a green aura, or even a yellow aura, but I got stuck with pink." Diz replied, though she had to resist the urge to bring her palm to her face, as this was the one thing about her powers that she disliked, because when she was really focusing her energy, like Gilda and Derpy did, her aura surrounded her and this happened, and a number of people, not members of the gang, thought she was gay no matter what form she was in, "But we didn't come here to talk about my aura... we came here to fight you and put you back where you belong!"

Come, thieves of the Cooper Clan, Clockwerk declared, spreading his wings not a moment later, showing that he was ready for a fight, even if the group knew that he actually wasn't based on the fact that they had smashed through the engines before he was able to draw a good deal of energy from them, It's time I showed you the terrifying power of Clockwerk and claim my rightful place as the one who beat you.

Gilda flared her aura and burst forward, faking Clockwerk into taking to the sky, before she corrected her course and moved to the side as the wind bent to her will, where she formed a pair of blades from the wind itself, though if Clockwerk was surprised by that he got quite the shock when Derpy did something similar. What Derpy did was hold her hand towards the sky and bolts of lightning formed above her hand, which she hurled at their opponent, forcing him to dodge the attacks and come right into the direct path of Diz's magic, though that was essentially energy that allowed her to blast their opponent. Diz had to resist using the pure chaotic nature of her power against Clockwerk, since there was no telling what might happen to the ancient owl, but for the most part it seemed like simply dancing around the area and loosing blasts were fine for the moment, even though some of her blasts were used to blow up the small missiles that were fired in her direction, just like Gilda and Derpy did to the few missiles that were heading their way. At the same time, however, both Gilda and Derpy noticed that there was another blast from the past coming towards them, as Clockwerk launched several spinning rings that they could either dodge completely or knock open and fly through the center... though it appeared that such a tactic was so he could charge up the power in his eyes and loose a powerful blast at whoever he was aiming at.

Derpy, being the first target of that attack, only smiled as she blasted the energy shot with her own power, causing an explosion between the two of them, though at the same time that only gave her, Gilda, and Diz the opportunity to get around to a better position to attack Clockwerk, while also making sure to stay away from his talons. They knew how dangerous Clockwerk's body was, especially his talons, and flew around the area that was around them, looking for an opening that they could exploit while they blew up the missiles that were being fired at them at the same time. A few moments passed before Gilda grinned, as she spotted something that could be used to their advantage, because when both Derpy and Diz got close to their metallic foe and distracted him with their presence as they flew over the flying fortress. The moment Clockwerk was distracted Gilda gathered her power around her and flew towards the ancient owl, where she slammed her fist into the side of his face and knocked him to the side, though as Clockwerk regained himself he noticed something, his regeneration ability, as he suspected when he found that his Hate Chip had been replaced by an inferior chip, wasn't working. Derpy grinned as she saw that, as it meant that the battle had shifted to their side, before she sent a surge of lightning right into their opponent's chest, which pushed him backwards while causing him to growl in pain, like he had done during their first fight, before Diz sent a powerful chaotic blast into the exposed weakness she had created and blasted Clockwerk right into the heart of the fortress.

When Clockwerk emerged from the burning wreckage of the heart of Arpeggio's blimp, which was on fire from the collision of him hitting the area, he was missing sections of both his wings, some of his feathers, and part of his back, but instead of giving up Clockwerk turned towards the battery at the back of the fortress and flew towards it. The trio watched as he snatched the battery as the blimp started to shatter around them, carrying it off in the direction of Paris and forcing them to follow after him, though at the same time Diz channeled her power and snatched the pieces of Clockwerk that had broken off, just to make sure they had all of it for when they destroyed the ancient owl.

Because of the fact that the three of them could fly they were able to catch up with the large owl that was flying towards Paris, though when they caught up with him they discovered that the only thing he was capable of doing was trying to blast his targets with the power of his eyes. As they flew around Clockwerk, however, they discovered that they weren't the only ones fighting him, as Neyla, already conscious from her beating and still had the handcuff Carmelita put on her on one of her wrists, with part of the metal pole attached to it, appeared on a helicopter's gun and started firing at the ancient owl. From what they could tell she had managed to rouse Arpeggio enough so they could escape the blimp, but then they apparently decided to try and take advantage of the fact that Clockwerk was in the middle of a battle so they could attempt to fulfill their own goals regarding the owl's metallic body. Despite that fact the three siblings focused their attention on Clockwerk, as he was the more immediate threat, but as they soon discovered the owl seemed like he was getting weaker and weaker as the seconds ticked by, which had to be because of what Arpeggio did to him. That thought appeared to be proven correct a few moments later, as the ancient owl screeched in pain for a moment and dropped the battery, which Gilda caught with her wind magic and gently lowered it to the ground.

While she did that, and both Derpy and Diz followed after her, Clockwerk fell from the sky and crashed into the ground near where she was setting the battery down, though they noticed that they were out the outskirts of Paris at the moment, which meant that they had stopped their opponent from reaching the city... and, at the same time, it didn't appear that Clockwerk had any defenses that could be activated to protect his body, and there was some smoke coming from his open mouth.

"It almost feels like we're back at the Krack-Karov Volcano," Sly commented, standing on a platform as he and the rest of the gang stared at Clockwerk, trying to come up with some way of beating him, permanently, since smashing his head in didn't seem to work, "we beat him, smashed his head in, and seemed to have stopped him... and yet he survived. I'm not sure how we're supposed to permanently kill Clockwerk."

"Arpeggio mentioned a Hate Chip, remember?" Bentley asked, reminding the group of the one thing that the final member of the Klaww Gang had to create so Clockwerk's body could be used again, "This is a guess, but I have the feeling that it might be the reason he's still operational."

"I think we should stand back for the moment," Murray said, where he pointed at the smoke that was coming from the ancient owl's mouth, something that he didn't trust since this was the enemy of Sly's family line, "I think that chip is going to explode."

Clockwerk, as if hearing Murray's words, surprised the gang once more as he shuddered for a moment and forced himself back into a standing position, as if he was going to continue fighting despite the fact that his regeneration ability had been broken. What happened next, however, was Clockwerk letting out another screech of pain as the replica Hate Chip glowed brightly for a moment, as the entire thing looked like it was being cooked from the sheer amount of power that was required to fuel the body and all of it's systems, before the replica chip exploded. It was like a small scale bomb going off, as the explosion tore the majority of Clockwerk's body apart, as the wings crashed to the ground on either side of his body, which was vastly damaged by the explosion, and the other parts they had collected fell all over the area around them, while the only thing that seemed to remain intact was his head, where his eyes were closed. As the gang stood there, staring at the smouldering wreckage of the ancient owl, Bentley walked forward so he could finally start studying the ancient body for anything that they might be able to use to permanently destroy him and jumped up into the metallic mouth to get a better look... though before he could do anything a missile struck what was left of Clockwerk's back and loosened the upper part of his beak, which crushed Bentley in the process, much to the shock and terror of everyone that was gathered near the ancient owl.

Fortunately Murray was quick to react and rushed over to the ancient owl, to which he pried open the mouth, where he and the rest of the gang found that Bentley seemed to be okay, only to discover that the impact had crushed his legs and forced Murray to carefully pick him up before moving away from remains of the ancient owl... and, at the same time, the group turned and found Neyla standing next to the helicopter she had been riding in, complete with a rocket launcher in one of her hands.

"Serves the turtle right for trying to take what's mine." Neyla commented, to which she lowered the rocket launcher, as it appeared that she had used the only rocket she had to damage Clockwerk further and wound Bentley in the process, before she started to pull out her whip, "Now then, hand over the Hate Chip and we'll take care of Clockwerk."

"Neyla, you're an absolute idiot." Carmelita replied, to which she stepped in front of the gang and put herself between the people that were willing to assist her in trying to get her Interpol career back without asking for anything in return, which was something that her Interpol friends didn't want to do, "The replica Hate Chip that Arpeggio put in Clockwerk's body wasn't able to handle the stress of the power that's needed to operate the body... you'd never be able to fully use the body, even if you managed to force Clockwerk out. Besides, I can't give you the Hate Chip, and that's because no one knows where the real one is located, as it was lost after we beat Clockwerk the first time around, back at the Krack-Karov Volcano. Now then, let's get the show on the road; Captain Neyla, for your crimes against both Interpol and myself, and for being a member of the Klaww Gang, I hereby place you under arr..."

"Please, you don't have the authority to arrest anyone anymore." Neyla chuckled, to which she tapped her own badge for a moment, because while she was mad about the chip being destroyed in such a manner she also knew that she still had the upper hand, "Director Barkley should be here any minute now and he'll find that I have bested both the Cooper Gang and captured Arpeggio, meaning that he'll take my side over yours any day of the week. Face it, Carmelita, your days as a cop are over and you'll be sentenced to prison like the criminal that you rea..."

"I would suggest that you refrain from finishing that sentence." a voice said, to which the entire Cooper Gang, even Bentley, smiled as they found Secretary Sen standing behind Neyla, while at the same time the squad that he had brought with him were in the process of arresting Arpeggio and seizing the helicopter, though that was before a frown appeared on Neyla's face as she backed up and stared at the Secretary, who raised a hand and ripped her captain's badge from where it was resting, "The Cooper Gang told me everything that you did to them, and I've found out many things that Barkley seems to have ignored when you were being interviewed for joining Interpol, so I only have one thing I want to say to you at the moment. Neyla, for the crimes that Carmelita mentioned, and the ones I have discovered recently, I hereby place you under arrest and suggest that you say nothing... not that it matters, since you're looking at a life's sentence without any hope of getting parole."

Neyla growled and lashed out with her whip, where it wrapped around Secretary Sen's outstretched hand, the same one that was holding her captain's badge, though as everyone around them gasped, as they couldn't believe that she was actually attacking Secretary Sen, she used that to launch herself at him and swung her claws, cutting two gashes into the side of his face before she landed where she had been seconds ago.

"I'm not scared of you, Secretary Sen." Neyla stated, though that was when a look of confusion appeared on her face, as the gashes she had cut into her target's face started to seal themselves before her eyes, to the point where it looked like he hadn't been hurt at all.

"You're not scared of me?" Secretary Sen asked, though instead of chuckling or anything he sighed as he unbuttoned his jacket and shirt, which he handed to one of the officers that had followed him to this area, revealing that he was more muscular than what the gang thought he was, before both the gang and the officers moved out of the way, as it was clear that he had something planned, "Neyla, you should be scared of me. Of the five Secretaries that control the governing body of Interpol, who are both respected and feared by both cops and criminals alike, I am the strongest and the most feared of the five at the same time. Now, allow me to show you the terrifying power that I command."

The moment that Secretary Sen said that Gilda, Derpy, and Diz, all attuned to feeling magic thanks to their training with Mz. Ruby, felt an energy spike in the air that was centered around that man that Neyla had offended, though that was followed by the ground around him cracking as he released his power. That was swiftly followed by small bits of the ground lifting themselves from the ground for a few moments, though as the three of them figured out what was going on at the moment they understood the reason why he had removed the jacket and shirt he had been wearing as a fiery aura wrapped around him and pushed pressure on everyone that was around them, causing them to raise their hands as he was shrouded from their sight for the moment. The area around them cracked and broke as Secretary Sen's power was revealed to the Cooper Gang, along with a stunned Neyla that was still standing there, before his power surged outward and some of the area was set on fire... though not a few seconds later Secretary Sen emerged from the flames with his flaming aura surrounding him, while at the same time the siblings felt his intense power as he started to approach the person that was his target.

This very moment allowed the gang to understand why Carmelita had been so worried about all of them talking to Secretary Sen two years ago, and why Sly had been frightened before the first meeting, though no one said anything as the powerful man stopped in front of Neyla.

"The reason why I am the most feared and respected Secretary is because I can use magic as well." Secretary Sen said, to which he raised his right hand and gently rested it against Neyla's forehead, where her eyes widened as flames began to dance around his hand, indicating that she was terrified of what was happening at the moment, "I'm authorized by the other four Secretaries to use lethal force if necessary, and my flames could reduce someone to ashes in mere seconds, if I were to target someone. You have two options, Neyla, either resist arrest and try your luck, which I would recommend you avoid doing, or surrender to me and accept your fate, knowing that your life would be over in a different way."

Neyla stood there for a few seconds, where the gang noticed that she was clearly thinking about what was going on at the moment, before she fell to her knees and simply stared at the ground, showing that she didn't want to run from someone that could easily overpower her and defeat her in such a manner, to which Secretary Sen smiled a little and called his power back into his body. Once he was back to normal, or at least as normal as he had been before he revealed the power he commanded, he nodded his head and one of his officers walked forward and cuffed Neyla, while a second one, who was carrying the jacket and shirt, handed them back to him, which he put back on as they were handed to him. A few moments later a defeated Neyla was hauled off with an angry Arpeggio, who was shocked by the fact that they had pissed off such a powerful man thanks to what Neyla had done, and the helicopter was taken as well, though Secretary Sen had them leave the still broken body of Clockwerk where the pieces were resting. The gang waited for a few moments, letting the officers disperse as they hauled all the evidence out of the area, before it was only the seven of them and Secretary Sen, who was staring at the pieces of the ancient owl that were resting in front of him... before he sighed and turned towards the group, where he locked eye with Carmelita.

"Carmelita Fox," Secretary Sen said, to which Carmelita stepped forward, as she could either be praised for her efforts in trying to stop this from happening, despite Neyla's betrayal, or she could be punished for allowing Clockwerk to be brought back to life in such a manner, "thanks to the information that we have received from Bentley, in terms of all the things that Neyla has done and said against you, I have already issued an order that your name be cleared. Director Barkley might not like people telling him what to do, even if they are his superiors, but at the very least you'll find that your old job is still waiting for you... unless you've found a new calling as a Cooper Thief."

Carmelita looked down at herself, as she was still dressed in her thief attire and the bag containing her cop attire and weapon were nearby, and discovered that she really didn't have an answer for that statement, as part of her wanted to continue being a cop, while the other part wanted her to be closer to Sly... and yet, even as she thought about it, she found Sly's hand on her shoulder and a smile on his face, indicating that he would support her no matter what choice she decided to make, just like the rest of the gang.

"Secretary Sen, I'd be more than happy to return to my old job in a few days," Carmelita said, knowing that they all needed some time to unwind from their adventure, especially since it wasn't over since Clockwerk was still a threat to them, but she was sure that the Secretary had something planned for the ancient owl.

"Excellent. Now that leaves one more piece of business," Secretary Sen said, though the look on his face told them that he was pleased to see that Carmelita would go back to work as a cop, since he felt that she was one of their best agents at the moment, before he turned in Derpy's direction for a moment, "Derpy Cooper, two years ago you said that you found something after beating Clockwerk at the Krack-Karov Volcano, a computer chip that you had no idea why you had picked it up and were told to keep it safe by Mz. Ruby. Do you still have it?"

Derpy raised a hand to her neck for a moment and carefully removed the chip that she had turned into a necklace, one that only a select number of people even realized that she possessed, and stared at it for a moment, to which her eye widened as she realized that it looked identical to the replica Hate Chip that they had seen before it exploded.

"Everyone said that the Hate Chip was missing and might never be found," Derpy said, remembering what Arpeggio and everyone else, especially Carmelita, had said before this moment, before she turned towards the still open beak that was resting nearby and stared at the receptacle that the replica had been resting in, "now it all makes sense. The reason they were never able to find it wasn't because it was missing or lost to time, it's because I've been carrying it for the last two years. I've been carrying the key to permanently destroy Clockwerk the entire time... and yet, as I look at this chip, I don't feel anything that resembles hate."

Sly stared at the chip that Derpy was holding in her hands, still surprised that she could have kept something like that hidden from the Klaww Gang without them even noticing that she had it, but instead of doing anything Derpy nodded to Diz, whose magic wove through the air and started to pull the owl back together. The gang stood there as the pieces of Clockwerk slowly pulled themselves back together, forming the terrifying form that they all knew, before Diz lowered her hand and backed away. That was when Derpy walked towards Clockwerk's body and disconnected the chip from what she had been using to tie it around her neck, where she simply stared at the chip that was apparently the most important part of the ancient owl and knew they were fortunate to keep it from Arpeggio. The gang watched as she stopped beside the open beak, as it was clear that she was being cautious, as this could either awaken Clockwerk or it could do nothing, before she sighed and gently shoved the chip into the receptacle that she, Gilda, and Sly had knocked it out of when they beat the ancient owl the first time around. For a few seconds nothing happened, even as she drew her hand back, but eventually the body started to stir and the gang readied themselves once more as Derpy backed away from the head, to which they watched as the beak closed and the wings started to move, showing that life was flowing back into the ancient owl... before his wings moved more than they were expecting, as Clockwerk covered his head for a moment and made a pained sound, like he was having a headache or something.

When Clockwerk folded his wings back up, along with him standing up and staring down at them, Sly found that the usual red glow in his eyes was missing, as that had been a sign of his unending hate, and now he had a strange blue glow, like he was full of hope or something.

What... did you do to me? Clockwerk demanded, though the tone in his voice revealed that whatever Derpy had done to the Hate Chip, from just it being in her possession for the last two years, had changed the makeup of the chip and it was affecting the ancient owl, What... what is this strange sensation, one that I haven't felt in ages, that I'm feeling?

"Love, hope, happiness, and a few others that I'm not going to name at the moment," Derpy said, because while she had been confused as to why Mz. Ruby and Secretary Sen had wanted her to keep the chip close to her, when Mz. Ruby originally discovered that it was in her possession, now she understood, because the Voodoo Priestess had seen the potential for something to happen with the chip, "I guess the feelings I have for my family and friends rubbed off on the chip, transforming it into something else entirely... something that's allowing you to feel emotions that you haven't felt since the day you became what you are."

"I guess this means that he'll be staying with us?" Diz asked, though at the same time the gang turned towards him, because it seemed that, in the midst of everything that had happened, his use of magic had finally snapped him back to his original form, while at the same time they noticed that there was a confused look on the ancient owl's face, "Um, how are we going to hide him?"

Clockwerk, apparently not liking the idea of being anywhere near the gang, opened his wings like he was going to take off, but then he noticed the glance from Secretary Sen and recalled what he had done to Neyla, even if he was only knocked out for the moment, before folding his wings back in. A moment later his body glowed and he started to shrink before their eyes, becoming an ordinary sized owl that one would find in the woods or something, except for the fact that he was made of metal still. Sly guessed that this was some sort of defense or stealth mechanism that he had built into his body, as no one would even glance at an owl more than once and wouldn't notice what he was made of, which might have explained how he was able to find his father without his father noticing that Clockwerk was in the area. He could also tell that the ancient owl, who may or may not still hate the Cooper Clan, was unhappy with the idea of being added to the gang, and truth be told Sly wasn't too keen on it either, but he knew better than to argue with Secretary Sen, who hadn't even told them to do anything... he just knew that the Secretary was putting the metallic owl in their care and expected them to watch over him, and punish him if necessary.

As Secretary Sen turned to leave, however, Sly knew that one chapter of their lives had finally been brought to a close and that it was only a matter of time until another chapter opened... though at the moment he hoped that it was a long time before they needed to do anything like this again.

Interlude: Disastrous Outcome

The Cooper Gang, with the unexpected addition of Clockwerk, spent the next week trying to relax and put their worries behind them for the moment, though the first thing Sly did was take Bentley to the same hospital that had checked out Derpy two years ago. Unfortunately things weren't that pleasant for his friend, as the doctors told Bentley that he wouldn't be able to walk and that he would need a wheelchair, which made Sly sad and angry when he heard the news, but at the same time he was caught off guard when Bentley said that he wasn't going to have any of that. At first Sly thought he meant the fact that he was crippled, but in reality he was referring to Sly's emotions on the matter, like he thought that Sly might think of him as a burden, and immediately set out to make something that would allow him to continue being an active member of the team, despite his new paralysis. The gang felt that Bentley was being strong, despite what had Neyla had done to him before her arrest, even though that was sadly followed by Murray declaring that he blamed himself for what happened and actually left the team to get some enlightenment or understanding, shocking the entire gang in the process, since he had been with them since the beginning.

What also shocked Sly was that when Bentley started making modifications to the wheelchair that he was going to be confined to, despite the fact that he was still looking into treatments that might be able to cure him, there was someone else working with him. Clockwerk, somehow feeling guilty that it was because of his body that Bentley was hurt in such a manner, and forced one of his friends to leave for an unknown period of time, started to assist the crippled turtle and helped him piece together something that would serve him well. Sly didn't know if the ancient owl, who remained in his miniature owl state to avoid being detected, was actually trying to make amends for the thousands of years he had hunted the Cooper Clan or if he was actually feeling sorry for what happened to Bentley, but at the same time he still didn't trust him and kept his eyes on him. He refused to believe that the Hate Chip, after spending two years around Derpy's neck, would have allowed such a drastic change in the owl's behavior, which was why he continued to keep taps on what he was doing and who he was with... and yet, despite all that, he found that Clockwerk only cared to remain near Bentley, assisting him with his modifications to his wheelchair.

Carmelita spent most of the week they took off hanging with the gang, or more specifically Sly, and she also shared some of his thoughts in regards to the ancient owl that was now hiding out with them, since it appeared that magic was the only way to harm him in an extreme manner and the threat of Secretary Sen's fire being his opponent had done something to him. When she wasn't spending time with Sly, or checking in with the gang, she was making sure that her affairs were in order and that nothing had changed since she had been captured by the Contessa, who was also serving a life's sentence behind bars with Neyla, as punishment for ignoring a Secretary's orders and being one of the members of the Klaww Gang that had stolen the Clockwerk parts. She actually found out that Secretary Sen had told the other four Secretaries the truth about what happened on Arpeggio's blimp, about Clockwerk's revival, and where the ancient owl was located, but at the same time the five of them agreed that the world would be better off thinking that the parts had been destroyed and that Clockwerk was no more, even though his legacy was forever attached to that of the Cooper Clan, which actually pleased the owl when she told him the news.

Gilda, Derpy, and Diz also spent the majority of their time relaxing, though what time they didn't spend doing that was either spent on practicing the Cooper Techniques inside their training area or practicing their magic, while making sure Diz didn't go overboard and get trapped in his female form for a long time again. Diz just said that it was the chaotic nature of his powers and that he would just have to suffer through the changes when they happened, just like he had suffered through being a chick for the last few operations they had been on after he woke up a few statues to act as golems for a few minutes. Of the three of them the only one that actually trusted Clockwerk was Derpy, as she had been the one to carry the Hate Chip around with her for the last two years and felt that it was some of her emotions that had brought up the same emotions that Clockwerk had sealed away to become the hateful owl he had been. Gilda and Diz didn't trust him as much as their sister did, as they had their own various reasons for acting that way, but in the end they decided that Bentley would tell them if something happened, such as Clockwerk betraying them or something, and went on with their lives to the best of their abilities.

Of course the gang was happy to hear the punishments that the Contessa and Neyla would be getting, since they had fooled Interpol and had tried to destroy Carmelita's life, and even Clockwerk was pleased, even though they were going to jail for the rest of their lives... but it was when the week was over, when Carmelita decided that it was time that she got back to her job as a cop, and was dressed in her cop attire while carrying her shock pistol once more, that misfortune rained on them.

Carmelita sighed as she entered the Interpol building that Sly and his sisters had snuck into two years ago to get the police file she had prepared to use as bait to lure him out into the open, as she had been planning on arresting him that night and he managed to get away, and thought about what she had learned since she had last been here. From what Neyla's disk had said all of her co-workers, save for a very select few that she either didn't ask questions to or they weren't present the day she pestered them, believed that she wasn't innocent of the crimes that Neyla and the Contessa had blamed her for, meaning that they believed that she deserved what had happened to her. That fact hurt more than she was willing to admit, that none of them were willing to come and get the truth for themselves, and yet she kept a straight face as she walked by the front desk, ignoring the glare the clerk was giving her, and walked up the stairs to the floor that her office was located on. The only problem she had with using the stairs was that she could bump into a number of her co-workers and would likely be harassed by them, or even worse she could run into Barkley while she was heading towards her destination, but she needed to take some risks and hoped that her co-workers had cooled off.

Of course things couldn't be that easy for her as she reached the floor that she was heading to, as the moment she walked out into the open she could hear all the conversations that had been going on stop as she walked out of the area the stairs were in... and, as she headed towards her office, she could feel the eyes of her co-workers following her, silently judging her and accusing her at the same time.

"Hey Carmelita!" a friendly voice said, to which she turned towards the window and found the one of the few co-workers who hadn't been on the disk, as Bentley had created a list of faces for her to look at, to know who didn't trust her anymore, standing beside the window with a smile on her face.

Judy Hopps was shorter than most of the officers and staff that were in the Interpol building, which was because she was a rabbit, but at the same time she more than made up for her short stature by catching the criminals that she was sent to investigate and making sure that she had more than enough evidence to send them to jail. Unlike most of the staff she wore clothing that covered the majority of her body and didn't restrict her movements, allowing her to chase down her targets without falling behind, though at the same time she even claimed that she still didn't understand Carmelita's choice of attire, despite her explaining it several times. She had eventually picked up on the fact that Judy was only teasing her and that she meant no hard feelings towards her, since Carmelita was both her friend and one of her superiors, which was why she was glad that Judy hadn't been in the office the day that Neyla asked her questions, as it could have easily turned the entire building into a war zone, since she disliked it when people tried to throw someone under the bus.

"Hey Judy, how was Europe?" Carmelita asked, finding that she could smile, despite the glances the others were giving her, as she approached her cop friend, who she hadn't seen for some time since she had been busy in Europe before the Clockwerk parts were stolen by the Klaww Gang.

"It would have been nicer if I wasn't chasing a criminal down," Judy replied, which was what Carmelita was expecting to hear, since that was the reason she had gone down there in the first place, though at the same time she was happy to see that she was fine, before Judy glanced at some of their co-workers that were staring at them, "Say Carmelita, why are some of our co-workers staring at us like we committed some crime that we're getting away with?"

"Come on, I'll tell you back at my office," Carmelita said, knowing that it was the best place for them to talk, as it was away from the eyes of their co-workers, many of which she didn't trust at the moment since they freely told Neyla that they felt that she was guilty and deserved her punishment.

She had been hoping for a brief conversation in the safety of her office, where the others wouldn't bother her and Judy, though as they rounded the corner, and spotted the red door that belonged to her office, Carmelita nearly froze when she found the glass part of the door had been shattered... and, when they walked into her office, the entire place looked like it had been torn apart, and not in the manner that a thief would have used if they were looking for something, or if they were trying to mess with someone.

"I... I can't believe them," Carmelita said, looking at the damage that had been caused to her office, though at the same time she was thankful that she left anything meaningful back at her place, as she was sure that the pictures would have been smashed and any personal belongings would have been taken with no hope of getting them back.

"Carmelita, what's going on?" Judy asked again, because she could handle co-workers giving each other glares all the time, as she had a few since she was still young and was almost at Carmelita's level, earning her some glances as well, but this seemed different than that, "Why are our co-workers staring at you like they are? And why has your office been vandalized in such a manner? I bet it was Sly Cooper that..."

"Sly didn't do this... he wouldn't." Carmelita replied, causing a look of surprise to appear on Judy's face, though she knew that it was because she always called Sly 'Ringtail' when she was around others and almost never used his actual name, until now anyway, to which she sat on the couch that came with the office, "Judy, I'm sure you've heard the news that both the Contessa and Constable Neyla were actually secret members of the Klaww Gang, the same ones that broke into the Cairo Museum and made off with the Clockwerk parts, and were recently arrested for the crimes they committed in the last few weeks. Secretary Sen had us under orders to work with the Cooper Gang and recover the Clockwerk parts, or destroy the ancient bird if he was resurrected, and both the Contessa and Neyla disobeyed that order by capturing Sly, Murray, and myself when we were taking out Rajan. Neyla set everything up to make Barkley think that I've been a corrupt cop since the day Sly and I first met each other, back when someone tried to steal the Diva Diamond, giving him a packet containing lies about all the cases I've been on since that day... and Barkley bought all of it. Back in Prague, when the Contessa was first exposed, Neyla got all the credit for her capture, was promoted to the rank of Captain by Barkley himself, and I was officially wanted for crimes that I never committed."

"Wow... that's, well, harsh and unfair," Judy said, though at the same time she had to admire Carmelita's bravery, as she was willing to come back were, where Director Barkley worked, despite the fact that he had been trying to arrest her near the end of the Klaww Gang's life, "How did you convince him that your innocent?"

"Well, Sly and I gathered information on Neyla's true plans and told Secretary Sen everything." Carmelita explained, as there wasn't much to the tale, other than the fact that their superior had believed all the evidence that they had acquired and that was enough to make him side with her and the Cooper Gang, "In the end he believed us over what Barkley was saying and, once we finished off Clockwerk, Secretary Sen pardoned me and cleared my name... and, at the same time, it's left a sour taste in the mouths of our co-workers. You see, one of the things that Neyla did was record herself asking our co-workers questions about whether or not they believed that I was innocent, and all of them, save for you and a few others that had been out on missions, believe that I'm a corrupt cop that needs to be punished."

Judy opened her mouth, to say something about how horrible that was, but before she could actually say anything the intercom that Director Barkley used, when he wanted to call someone to his office, turned on and, as luck would have it, he was calling for Carmelita to come to his office... to which she sighed as she walked to his office, ignored the smug looks that some of her co-workers were giving her, before she entered her destination and closed the door behind her.

"You wanted to see me, Director Barkley?" Carmelita asked, though she did her best to hide her fear, because she had seen how angry the man had been when he was in Prague, when he was ordering Neyla to capture her and the Cooper Gang despite Secretary Sen's orders, and knew that something was going to happen.

"Yes, I did." Barkley replied, to which he closed the file that he had been staring at and turned to face her, where Carmelita saw that he was smoking one of his cigars again, "Do you have any idea what your actions have caused us recently? Fortunately most of the criminals you caught before the Fiendish Five have turned over a new leaf and are living new lives, though right now Muggshot is walking out of prison to become an ACES pilot, Mz. Ruby has been released under the orders of Secretary Sen, for what purpose I don't care about, and the Panda King is being let out to become a monk or something. Dimitri, from what I hear, is being let out early and might become a dance instructor for a cruise ship, Rajan has an interest in moving to North America to become a carpet salesman, while the Contessa, Arpeggio, and Neyla are being sentenced to life sentences with only Arpeggio having any hope of his being reduced, depending on whatever deal he makes with one of the Secretaries."

"Director, I fail to see how any of that is my fault," Carmelita said, though she was pleased to hear that the majority of the criminals that she had caught, whether or not it was because she was following the Cooper Gang, were returning to society as improved individuals, even though the Klaww Gang members shouldn't be leaving anyway, "Secretary Sen approved of me doing whatever I felt was necessary to stop the possible resurrection of Clockwerk and, if that failed, make sure we take him out before he becomes a menace to someone else. We stopped that ancient evil from coming back to life and put the Klaww Gang behind bars, while also stopping their shipments of illegal spice..."

"And got a Secretary to clear your corrupted name at the same time," Barkley stated, stopping Carmelita in her tracks, though she had been hoping that it wouldn't come to this, as she was trying to avoid letting him bring up anything that was related to her 'corruption'.

"Everything that Neyla and the Contessa told you were lies." Carmelita replied, not caring if she was interrupting the director, because at the rate his anger was rising, and she could see it, he was going to blow a fuse and fire someone, most likely her if she was unfortunate enough to be around him when it reached that level, "Up until two years ago, back when both Gilda and Derpy Cooper gained their magical abilities, I had been chasing them, Sly, Bentley, and Murray since the incident with the Diva Diamond, fully intending to arrest them and never once assisted them. When Secretary Sen learned of the sisters gaining magical powers, which they used to defeat Clockwerk, he arranged to meet with them and a deal was struck between Interpol and the Cooper Gang, with me being the one that was their handler so we'd know where to go and who we were going to arrest. Sure, I became a thief for a few hours during this operation, but it was in our best interests so we could get our hands on the Clockwerk parts... not that it mattered since Neyla attacked the convoy that Secretary Sen had sent for the parts we had collected, snatched the remaining ones from Jean Bison, and aided Arpeggio in resurrecting Clockwerk. I'm completely innocent of the crimes that Neyla has accused me of and even Secre..."

"It doesn't matter what Secretary Sen thinks of the situation, because I made my decision when Neyla arrested the Contessa nearly three weeks ago," Barkley said, once more interrupting Carmelita while she was talking, something that she was used to, but his tone made her pause for a moment, giving him time to open the file he had been looking at, one that she now noticed had her name on it, and moved a piece of paper towards her, "I'm sorry Carmelita, I truly am, but you brought this upon yourself."

Just the way he spoke and how he acted, both things she had come to understand from observing him over the years, Carmelita could tell exactly what was on the sheet of paper without even looking at it, as it was the one thing that she had been hoping would never happen... and yet, when she glanced down at the paper, tears formed in her eyes as she looked at the orders that Barkley had created, issuing her dismissal as a cop.

"No... please let this be a joke..." Carmelita said, her voice weak as she looked at the paper, as she could already visualize her world collapsing around her, especially when she told her parents about what happened, whenever she got around to actually telling them her undeserved fate.

"By the time Secretary Sen issued the order that your name be cleared it was too late to change my mind," Barkley replied, though his tone revealed that he didn't seem to care, as if all those years that he had been teaching her to be his replacement meant nothing to him now, besides utter disappointment anyway, "all he did was clear the name of a fired officer. Carmelita Montoya Fox, it is with a heavy heart that I ask that you return your shock pistol, hand in your Inspector badge, clear out your office, and vacate the building."

Carmelita stood there for a few seconds, her mind struggling to accept the fact that this was actually happening and that she had lost her dream job because her boss was stupid enough to believe the lies that had been spread from some people who infiltrated Interpol, instead of believing the word of an honest cop that had never lied to him, not even once in the time she knew him. And yet, despite the fact that Secretary Sen had cleared her name, her life as a cop was crumbling before her very eyes, though even as her anger flared, at the wrongness of this entire situation, she knew that if she tried anything Barkley would order her former co-workers to restrain her and she'd end up in jail until Secretary Sen found out about what was going on. She let out a sad sigh as she moved her hands and undid the holster that was attached to her belt, with the shock pistol still loaded inside it, before dropping it on Barkley's desk, earning a growl from him that she didn't even care about anymore, which was followed by her fingering the badge that was attached to the collar that she wore around her neck, a badge that she had taken great pride in achieving through hard work... and it was with a saddened heart, and accompanied by a stream of tears, that she unhooked the badge that she had proudly worn since she got it, before gently placing it on the desk in front of her.

Once the badge was on the desk, and one copy of the dismissal paper was in her hand, Carmelita said nothing as she pulled open the door to Barkley's office and walked out into the open area that her former co-workers were watching her with some large smiles on their faces... though when she returned to her former office, and couldn't bring herself to say much to a shocked Judy, other than 'thanks for being a good friend', and simply disassembled the map she had of the Cooper Gang's heists, as whoever replaced her would have to do all the hard work themselves. The moment she had all the information she had collected on the gang, from the moment she had met Sly during the Diva Diamond theft up to the first members of the Klaww Gang, in one container she sealed the box and carried it outside the office, where she began the walk back to the front of the building. It didn't take her long to get outside, especially when she didn't want to stick around her former co-workers in case they tried anything, though once she was outside she attached the box to the holder that was on the back of her motorcycle, making sure that it was secure, before she drove away from the building and headed off into the city... where she headed towards the gang's hideout, as she had some news to share with them when she arrived.

It didn't take her long to reach the Cooper Gang's hideout, where they lived and trained in the arts of the Cooper Clan, though she parked her motorcycle in a place where it wouldn't be found easily, before she used her key that she had been given to open the door... though a few moments later she walked up to the area that the gang was relaxing in, where they instantly stopped what they were doing when they noticed that she was there.

"Carmelita, what's wrong?" Sly asked, as the moment he noticed that she had entered the building he had turned to welcome her back, but when he noticed the tear marks on her face he knew something was wrong, which was why he was the first one to approach her.

Carmelita did say anything as she looked at Sly for a few seconds, though that was swiftly followed by her dropping the box she had been carrying and rushed forward, where she buried herself in Sly's arms, as he was the comfort that she was seeking at the moment, and she let the tears flow once more.

"Sly, you should see this." Bentley spoke up, where he picked up the lone piece of paper that had caught his attention, though as he showed Sly he noticed that the others were gathering around them and were trying to comfort Carmelita as well, even though they knew who she wanted to be with at the moment.

"She was fired?!" Sly exclaimed, to which a wave of shock and anger rolled throughout the entire gang, while at the same time he heard a screech of anger from another room, where he wasn't sure if that was because Clockwerk was angry about the modification that he and Bentley had been working on earlier or what he had overheard.

"I'll let Secretary Sen know what happened," Bentley stated, to which he rolled over to where his computer was located and started tapping some buttons, as while he couldn't believe what was going on he knew that Secretary Sen was going to have some choice words for Barkley.

"Sly... my days as a cop are over." Carmelita said, to which she pulled herself back for a moment and stared into the eyes of the person that she loved with all her heart, who she knew shared the same feelings towards her, "I... I guess now's a good time to officially start my training... I'm... I'm ready to truly become a Cooper Thief."

At any other time Sly would have been overjoyed to have Carmelita choose his lifestyle over her own, especially after seeing how skilled she was at using his family's techniques without any formal training, but having her choose his lifestyle because someone was forcing her to make the decision pissed him off to no end... though while he comforted Carmelita, and the others gave them space, he spotted Bentley sending a message and hoped there was something Secretary Sen could do for Carmelita.

Secretary Sen was generally a happy man, as Interpol ran exactly like he and the other four Secretaries envisioned that it would, but recently he was disappointed in the performance of several officers that Director Barkley had hired and their clear mistreatment of Carmelita Fox. She was one of the greatest law enforcement officers that he had the honor of meeting and working with over the years, so much so that he often wondered if she had the potential to replace one of the other Secretaries, as some of them were looking for officers that could replace them when they decided that it was time for them to retire. As a phoenix he could only actually retire from his position if the other four felt that he was no longer a viable fit for the position or when he decided that it was finally time for him to retire and pursue an entirely new career, something that he knew wasn't going to happen for some time, but for now his mind was focused on what he was doing as he walked into the Interpol building that Carmelita had been working at until that morning. His day had been going good until he received that email from Bentley a few minutes ago, where he flew over the entirety of Paris and landed in front of the building that he walked into, as he had a single destination in mind and wouldn't stop until he reached until the person that he needed to have a conversation with.

As he walked into the building he found that the staff were frightened the moment he entered the lobby, because there were a few stories going around about what he did when he was annoyed or pissed off, but he ignored the front desk clerk and headed to the floor that Carmelita's former office was on, where he marched up to the door of Barkley's office and found that the door was still open... though Barkley, who clearly wasn't expecting company at the moment, instantly paled as he entered the room and closed the door behind him, before staring at the Director.

"Director Barkley," Secretary Sen said, keeping his anger in check and not letting it be known that he was upset, as there were so many things he wanted to tell the man, especially after everything that happened since the Clockwerk parts were stolen, and he wanted to see what he had to work with first before he said anything.

"Secretary Sen." Barkley replied, though at the same time he picked up the shock pistol and badge that had been left on his desk and set them in a container, one that he would give to one of the staff later, so they could deal with the used pistol and erase Carmelita's name from the badge so they could give it to someone else in the future, "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company? I was under the assumption that you were supposed to be having an important meeting with the other four Secretaries today."

"You're right, I do have that meeting today," Secretary Sen stated, as there was something important that he and his fellow Secretaries needed to discuss, which was why the meeting had been called in the first place and all of Interpol knew that they would be unavailable for some time while they did that, "however, as I was preparing to leave for the meeting, I received an email from the Cooper Gang, or, more specifically, I received an email from Bentley. It seems that you just did something that could very well end your career in a single instant... you fired Inspector Carmelita Montoya Fox over the lies that both the Contessa and Neyla had told you."

"She was a corrupt cop that got what she deserved," Barkley said, though at the same time Secretary Sen noticed that Barkley didn't seem to care about what was going on at the moment, which annoyed him more than he was willing to admit, especially when he knew that Carmelita actually deserved better than this.

"No, you fired an innocent cop, ruined her reputation, and made it impossible for her to even apply for a law enforcement position in some other agency." Secretary Sen replied, though this time around he frowned as a faint red aura appeared around him, the type he used to intimidate people when he didn't want to release the seals on his real power, which would burn the entire building down in the process if he did that, while at the same time noticing Barkley flinch for a moment, "You effectively made sure that Carmelita could no longer become a cop, despite all the time she spent working her way up to the position she had earned, and have not only angered the Cooper Gang with your actions, but both of her parents and myself at the same time. Director Barkley, as of right now I am officially demoting you back to the rank of Inspector, the lowest ranking Inspector in all of Interpol I might add, and I'll be making some changes to the staff in this building, because you have let things go since the moment you became the Director of this agency."

"You don't have the autho..." Barkley started to say, but when he saw Secretary Sen glare at him, with a look of anger that caused him to shake and fall back into his chair, he knew that anything he said was going to be terrible, as when Secretary Sen was like this it was better to appease him and hope his anger cooled off quickly.

"You should consider yourself lucky that I didn't fire you immediately." Secretary Sen said, though at the same time he pulled out the folder that he had been carrying the entire time, which Barkley had only just now noticed, and placed a piece of paper on the desk, "There will be a new Director in charge of this agency effectively immediately, one that I selected from the potential list of candidates, and you will abide by his orders while he gives me progress reports on everything you do. If I find that you are doing a good enough job I'll back off and let you keep your job, but if I hear that you keep screwing up, and continue to make a fool of Interpol, I will fire you from your new position and make it impossible for you to get a job in law enforcement. There's also someone here I want to talk to, as she's the only person that Carmelita trusts enough to be the new handler for the Cooper Gang, and there's a few officers that I'll talk to before I leave... but remember this, if you do anything foolish, that might tarnish our name further, I will act swift and without any mercy to fulfill my promise."

He barely looked at the terrified Director, now Inspector, as he opened the door and walked out into the area where the other officers were hard at work, or they appeared to be doing that, and made his way to where Carmelita's office had been before she was fired. Judy Hopps was the only person that Carmelita trusted to take over her position as the head hunter of the Cooper Gang, or handler as the position was now known within the ranks, and he wanted to talk with her before he left the building. At the same time there were a few officers that were going to be fired immediately, as he had found problems with several of their applications and still wondered how they had gotten by Barkley and the HR Agent, but he aimed to correct that mistake and fix this agency before heading out to the meeting that he was going to be late for, though he knew that his fellow Secretaries would be fine once he told them why he was late. He also meant his promise to Barkley, as the moment the man screwed up again he was going to utterly ruin his life to the same point that he had put Carmelita in... only Barkley didn't have a second lifestyle that he could fall back to if something like that happened to him.

As he walked down the hallway, and headed towards Carmelita's former office, he knew that the Cooper Gang would have their own plan to get at Barkley, after he told them exactly what he had promised the Inspector... and he'd be able to enact his promise soon enough, he just had to make sure Judy Hopps was ready to take over Carmelita's old position and knew the rules of being the handler of the Cooper Gang.

Interlude: Goodbye My Sweet

Sly and the gang spent the next year away from any major heists, as they were still unwinding from their various missions against the Klaww Gang, though during that time Gilda, Derpy, and Diz spent their time training their magic, while at the same time Bentley continued to upgrade his wheelchair from time to time. While that happened Clockwerk spent the majority of his time away from Sly and his sisters, especially after learning that Diz was a new family member and didn't want the headache of having to deal with a chaotic being that couldn't understand his powers, though the one thing he did understand was that there were some times where he used a lot of power and his gender shifted at random. The gang had found a second computer expert in the ancient owl, which made sense considering what he was and what he had done to his body, but despite all that Sly still found that it was hard to trust the owl that had tried to kill him, wounded his sister, and had killed his father... and he also didn't say anything against him, not when Derpy insisted that he was changing because of the changes she had made to the chip that powered him, due to the magic that she and Gilda commanded.

Sly found that the majority of the last year was spent doing one thing and never deviated from what he was doing, though sometimes he stood in the lookout area of the hideout and observed the training area or headed out to specific areas where criminals were active and watched what happened from afar. The reason behind that was because there was someone he was teaching the various techniques of the Cooper Clan to, someone that was able to take to them like they were second nature, causing him to wonder if that was because she had been observing him and his sisters for years or if there was the possibility that one of her ancestors had been in contact with his clan. At the moment he was in the hideout, watching the training area as he observed what was going on, as Carmelita was helping Bentley test his new positioning software while also getting around the obstacles that Sly had put in her way, to make sure she knew the Cooper Techniques that he had been teaching her over the last year. Many of the techniques she had picked up from watching him, Derpy, Gilda, and even Diz out in the field, when she was chasing them, and a few of them she had gotten a small lesson on when they came across something she was unfamiliar with, while there were a number that she hadn't had the opportunity to see and required him to teach her what she didn't know.

Despite the techniques that she had little training in or didn't know, of which there were plenty of both, Carmelita continued to show that the talent Sly had seen during the Klaww Gang Heists, as the gang tended to call them, was very much real and that she was constantly improving... which made him happy, when he considered what he was planning on having them do in the near future and the surprise that he had for her.

She is quite skilled. a voice said, one that Sly had grown used to hearing since Derpy had returned the Harmony Chip, as it was much better than calling it a Hate Chip at this point, to the ancient mechanical owl, who remained in his miniature owl state as he flew into the room and landed on a perch that was near the window, You have done well in teaching her all the techniques from the Thievius Raccoonus. I'm sure your ancestors would be proud of you.

Sure, there were times where it sounded like Clockwerk was mocking his skills or something he was doing, it had happened a few times during the first month he had been spent with the gang and he directed his comments to nearly the entire gang, save for Bentley and Carmelita. By this point Sly was sure that the reason the owl didn't do anything to Bentley was because of the fact that it was his body that had been used to cripple his friend, while at the same time the owl did seem to enjoy tinkering with Bentley, who assured Sly that he wasn't building a death ray or something. Carmelita, whose emotions had been toyed with by Neyla, who had gotten almost all of Carmelita's old co-workers to say that she was a corrupt cop and managed to, in the end, have Berkley fire her, was also exempted from the owl's comments. Sly suspected that it was similar to his reasons towards Bentley, as his body had been the main reason behind Carmelita losing her dream job in such a manner... and there were times where he was sure that the ancient owl was trying to sooth things over with her, maybe because he might actually care or because it would help convince him that he had changed.

He still felt that three years with the loving power, and all the other emotions that Derpy had been feeling, weren't enough to suddenly change a few millennia old owl's hatred towards a rival's family clan, but for the most part it didn't seem like Clockwerk had any ulterior motive... though that worried Sly and kept him on his toes at all times.

"She's had time to pick up some of the basics from watching me and my siblings," Sly said, as that was part of the truth, as he still wasn't sure if this was purely because of her innate talent to observe and copy the Cooper Clan's many techniques, or if one of her own ancestors had been a thief at one point and that had stayed in her family, "though we're all thinking the same thing, while she may not be a raccoon she's definitely a Cooper at heart."

When do you plan of doing her trial? Clockwerk inquired, once more revealing his extensive knowledge on the Cooper Clan and what they did when they were training the next generation, which also worried Sly since he was willing to share what he knew and didn't trust parts of what he said, though the part about the trial was what he was focused on.

"Soon... I just haven't found the perfect target for her to steal from." Sly replied, as a trial usually involved a Cooper Thief stealing something from a location without being caught, generally by the target they were robbing, and at the moment he didn't have any wealthy people that wanted a professional thief to sneak through their defenses and test them, as that was how he, Derpy, Gilda, and Diz had done it, which left him searching for anything he could use.

"I might be able to help with that." a new voice said, to which both Sly and Clockwerk turned towards the door and found Bentley moving towards them, though in his hand he held a newspaper that was already open to a specific section that he must have been reading earlier, where they discovered a picture of Barkley off to the side, "Before you had Carmelita start the final part of her training I showed her this news article and she told me a few things about how law enforcement tries to trick thieves into not attacking certain shipments. The article's headline says that the world's most expensive bar of Bavarian Chocolate is to be shipped to the Munich Museum, with Inspector Barkley being the head of security, but that is where things get interesting, as both Carmelita and Secretary Sen had some interesting things to say about this article. Interpol wasn't hired to escort the bar of chocolate to a museum, and Secretary Sen even checked with his fellow Secretaries to be sure they aren't doing anything, and we've come to the conclusion that Barkley is acting on his own at the moment... to try and ensnare the gang in robbing innocent people, to somehow break the deal that we have with his superior."

He's a broken man trying to raise himself back up to what he had been before my parts were taken and before he was punished for his own actions. Clockwerk commented, as they all knew why Barkley had been punished in such a manner, a fact that Sly was reminded of whenever he looked at Carmelita, before the owl focused on some of the words that there on the article, What did Carmelita have to say about this?

"That 'Bavarian Chocolate' was actually code for some precious gemstones and several other expensive items that stack up to a small fortune," Bentley said, revealing that this was either evidence that Barkley was escorting to a safe location, or he was purposely using another criminal's loot to lure in the Cooper Gang, "and, according to Secretary Sen, nothing has been removed from the evidence area, and he's checked with several of the guards to be absolutely sure that they were telling the truth. Inspector Barkley appears to be acting as the head of security for a criminal or a small group of criminals... which means that it's loot that we would normally take anyway."

Sly was a little surprised by what he was hearing, though at the same time he smiled for a moment, as the perfect way to test Carmelita's skills had revealed itself to him, because it appeared that Bentley had been thinking about hitting the train that Barkley was on anyway, and all he had to do was tell her what was going on in the near future.

Carmelita, upon hearing that it was time for her to prove that she was worthy of being a Cooper Thief, which meant that she had to go through the same type of test that the others had taken on after their training, did a number of things as they made their way to the train station that Barkley's train would be passing through. Since she was in charge of the operation, with Sly, Derpy, Gilda, and Diz being able to help her only once, she thought about what needed to be done and quickly came up with a plan of attack, especially now that she knew what they were trying to steal anyway. She had Derpy scout out the train as it stopped at another station that was far away from where the one she wanted to use was located, giving her, Bentley, and Clockwerk some time to study the train and allow her to make a good plan that they could execute when Barkley's train arrived. From what she could tell the last three train cars were where Barkley would place the goods, with a locked door that only had a single lock on it and a computer inside the first one, no doubt for security reasons for all three cars. When she was done studying those pictures she took a brief look at the Thievius Raccoonus once more, more specifically the chapter on disguises by Thaddeus Winslow Cooper, and several more ideas sprung to life in her mind, all of which she was sure would make Sly proud.

Since she needed to be the one to steal the key, and the loot that it went to, she needed a disguise that would fool Barkley into thinking she was someone else, which was when she came up with the idea for her and Sly to be some eager tourists that would walk by Barkley, where she could swipe the key while he wasn't looking and then she could go claim the loot with Sly watching her back. Bentley and Diz would also disguise themselves as tourists and knock out any guards that were near the last three train cars, giving her and Sly time to grab the key, before she let Bentley inside to disable the security that would be waiting for them further down the line. Gilda and Clockwerk would be watching the skies during the heist, in case Barkley had a helicopter or something in the area, so they could know when a change of plans was needed, but she was sure that they would be just fine. Sly, who was spending the majority of the time letting Carmelita take charge of the operation, since it was hers so she could prove herself, found that she was as talented as he thought she was and listened to what the others had to say, so she could shape her plan accordingly.

Sometime later, when all of them made sure they knew what parts they needed to play, the train they had been waiting for rolled into position and the gorilla mercenaries that Barkley was in charge of piled out and stood their ground for a few moments, which was when Barkley made his arrival, wearing what appeared to be the attire of a military officer for some odd reason, before he was welcomed aboard the train after showing the head guard his credentials. Fortunately there was a bathroom that none of the gorilla mercenaries were looking at, one that allowed Diz and Bentley to change into their Irish attire and gave Sly the chance to change into his American tourist disguise, while at the same time Carmelita emerged from the women's restroom looking completely different, as she knew that Barkley might recognize her and had taken steps to hide her identity for as long as she could. From there it was a simple matter for the two groups to enter the train, with Bentley and Diz close to the back while Carmelita and Sly moved into the train car that was ahead of Barkley's, though at the same time the others moved into position and waited for the train to move before following after it.

Sly and Carmelita sat near the door of the back of their car, observing a clearly nervous Barkley as he adjusted his attire and revealed the silver key that they were after, which he looked at for a few seconds before setting it down to his right as he thought about what he was doing. It was in the moment that he was distracted that the duo made their move, though as they walked down towards the other side of the train car it appeared that Carmelita was right, without a Cooper Mask over her face, any visible collars around her neck, clothing that revealed nothing about her body, and her hair done up in a manner that she never used until this point, Barkley didn't even pay attention to them. The only time he looked at them was when Sly asked if Barkley could get a picture of him and Carmelita, using actual cameras inside of a binocucom since they were part of the disguise, and Barkley only growled in annoyance as he 'assisted' them in taking their picture, though while he was setting up the camera, to spite the 'tourists' for annoying him, Carmelita removed the key without him noticing it... though once the picture was taken the two of them thanked Barkley and were on their way, and he had no idea the key was missing from where he left it.

Despite the fact that Carmelita couldn't believe how unobservant Barkley was, which made him a fool for even trying this in the first place, she and Sly arrived in time to see Diz and Bentley take care of the guard that was right outside the train car that the loot was in. With the mercenary knocked out, and placed against the wall of the train car they had just come from, Carmelita used the key and unlocked the door, where she let Bentley in and he hacked into the systems within seconds, disabling the lasers and allowing them to move forward. The first train car, as Carmelita discovered, mostly held some expensive looking statues, from all over the world if she was seeing things correctly, and the second train car held a number of large containers that had bars of gold, silver, and a significant number of jewelry pieces, some of which she recognized as having been stolen from a museum somewhere down the tracks a few days before Barkley's article appeared in the newspaper. The final train car held the crown jewel of the collection, as it was resting in a square case that had no lock on it, proving how foolish Barkley was for thinking this was enough to stop a Cooper Thief, though the item itself was an actual golden crown with some expensive chocolate brown diamonds set in the metal.

Once she surveyed the loot, and knew what they were looking at, Carmelita had Bentley find the command in the computer that would separate the three train cars carrying all the loot from the rest of the train, though when he found it she had him wait until they entered the tunnel... to which they used the cover of darkness to separate from the main train and let it, and Barkley, ride off into the distance without the stolen goods. Sly, feeling that this operation would have been a success, had a plan to get them on their way home, as Clockwerk flew outside and expanded into his true menacing form, before latching onto the top of the train car that they piled all of the loot into and carried them all the way back to Paris, another benefit of his immortal and untiring body. Sly knew the ancient owl would have preferred not to help in such a way, since this was supposed to be Carmelita's trial and she could have come up with an exit strategy, but in the end Clockwerk said nothing as he carried the gang back to the train yard that had been the gang's base of operations when they were going after the Fiendish Five. After Clockwerk set them down, and reverted back to his miniature owl form, the gang unloaded the loot into a delivery truck that was waiting nearby, another thing that Sly had set up ahead of time, and they got back to the safe house with all the loot that Barkley had been using to lure them out into the open... and, at the same time, the former Director of Interpol had only made a fool of himself in the process.

"I honestly can't believe we pulled that off without Barkley even recognizing me," Carmelita said, as the moment they got back to their safe house, which had become a home to all of them in one way or another, she and the others shed their disguises and returned to their normal attire, before looking down at the loot they had taken for a few seconds, "For a moment there I thought he was going to recognize us and arrest us before we could even get the key, since we have to be the only raccoon and fox couple in the area. But we made off with the loot and it's only a matter of time until Secretary Sen throws Barkley out of Interpol for good... or maybe he'll arrest him, for helping the criminal that stole all of this in the first place."

"Carmelita, your plan worked to perfection and Barkley won't know the loot is gone until he arrives at the destination he was taking it to," Sly spoke up, though that was when the gang noticed that he was carrying a rectangular box that was as long as his cane, even if it was slightly shorter, which caused all of them to quiet down as they observed what was going to happen, "Normally it takes someone years to master the techniques of the Cooper Clan, but the time you spent chasing after us, observing our every move, and even taking part in some of our heists, all of it proves one thing, and this heist only confirms it even more. Carmelita, you are, without a doubt, a Cooper Thief... and no thief of the Cooper Clan is complete without a cane to call their own."

Carmelita was happy that Sly was pleased with her process, and had completed her trial, but hearing that he had such a surprise for her was a shock that she wasn't expecting, though it did make her look at the canes that he and the others were carrying. Sly's cane was the same one that his father carried before him, which was a wooden handle with the initial of the Cooper Clan, no doubt created from solid gold, at the very top of it, and it was that same 'C' shaped design that rested at the top of Gilda, Derpy, and Diz's canes. The only difference was that, shortly after she was fired from Interpol, all three of the magic users had, as part of their lessons, embedded a small part of their power into their canes, causing the handles to change and set them apart from the one that Sly carried. Gilda's cane, for instance, now bared a handle that seemed to resemble flowing wind, while Derpy's possessed a lightning pattern on the handle and one the head of the cane itself, and Diz's handle had, somehow, changed to the point where it looked like it was made of two different pieces of wood, despite it being a single piece, and there was a tooth chained to the area between the handle and the head... which was something that Diz was surprised to see when he did this and Mz. Ruby didn't have an answer, so all he could do was accept it and roll with it.

Once she was done remembering what the other four canes looked like she gently removed the lid from the box and stared down at the cane that rested before her, as it appeared to be modeled after the one that Sly carried, and at first she thought that the only difference was the pure silver head that contained the familiar 'C' shape... though that was before her eyes were drawn to the end of the handle, to the part that might touch the ground, and found that the end of the handle had been shaped into a fox's tail, with the Cooper Clan and Interpol emblems etched into both sides of it.

"Sly... it's beautiful," Carmelita said, to which she gently pulled the cane out of the box and held it up, though she was happy to see the reminder of her past etched into the weapon of her future, as it actually represented her more than she was willing to admit, and this time the reminder of her losing her position at Interpol didn't hurt.

"I'm glad you like it, though that's not the only surprise that's in the box." Sly replied, as he had noticed that, without anything to put on the collar she used to wear all the time, Carmelita had stopped wearing her collar the day after she lost her dream job, which was why this next piece was important as well, to truly complete her.

Carmelita glanced into the box once more and found what, at first glance, appeared to be a Cooper Gang calling card, despite it looking about the size of her old Inspector's badge, but as she touched it she found that it was metallic like her old badge and, when she lifted it out of the box, she found that it could be attached to her old collar. That was before she noticed that the name engraved on one side of it was her name, though instead of it reading 'Carmelita Montoya Fox' it actually read 'Carmelita Montoya Cooper', to which she looked up at Sly for a moment before wrapping her arms around him and kissed him.

"Sly... words cannot express my gratitude towards you and the rest of the gang," Carmelita said, though at the same time, as she felt tears starting to flow once more, Sly brushed them away and pulled out the old collar that Carmelita had worn for the longest time, where she smiled as he slipped it around her neck and connected the symbol of her new life to it without delay, "but thanks for giving me a place where I could belong. I'm honored to be a member of the infamous Cooper Gang, at long last, and... and I'm honored to take your last name as well."

"Carmelita, we're all honored to have you as part of the gang and as part of the family," Sly replied, though at the same time he embraced Carmelita as the rest of the gang nodded their heads, even Clockwerk, who was only part of the group because of Secretary Sen's threats, did so as well, "Though there is one more thing we need to do."

"And what's that?" Carmelita asked, though right now she was eager for some rest, because despite how easy that heist had been she was still slightly tired from all the training she had done before it was time for her to take on her trial, which she was pleased to have passed with flying colors.

"We need to tell your parents about us," Sly said, knowing that the last thing Carmelita wanted was to confront her parents about losing her dream join and joining a gang that was on the opposite side of the law, but he was surprised when she nodded her head and said nothing about that.

Sly and the others relaxed as a small party of sorts was thrown to celebrate Carmelita's achievement, though at the same time both of them knew that their next venture wasn't going to be that easy, as talking with Carmelita's parents might be one of the hardest things they ever had to do... and yet all they could do was wait and see what happened when they decided to tell them the news that Carmelita had to tell them.

Author's Notes:

For anyone that's curious, Goodbye My Sweet is actually an unlockable video in Sly 3, one that, in the timeline, is set either before the game starts or after the first level of the third game, so I decided to use it here for my own purposes... with some alterations to what happened.

Interlude: Meeting the Parents

Carmelita thought it would have been hard to contact both of her parents, especially since both of them had to be busy with their own jobs and whatever duties that they had to perform recently, but what surprised her was when she made the first call she managed to reach her mother, Margret Fox, quite easily. Her mother was happy to hear from her again, as she had spent the last year focused solely on her training with Sly, and actually set in motion the time and place of where they could get together and share the news with each other. Carmelita knew that having her mother do that meant that she didn't have to call her father, Edward Fox, and talk to him just yet, because she knew that her father had likely heard the news that she had been fired from Interpol and would have a hundred questions to ask her, not to mention that he would be very disappointed in what happened to her, and that wasn't even taking her mother into consideration. The only thing that she wasn't expecting was for her mother to call her back an hour later and inform her that she, Sly, and the rest of the gang were being invited over to her grandfather's place to talk and have a meal together, much less the fact that it was in the next couple of days.

Sly felt that having the majority of the gang being called to one location, even if it was to meet Carmelita's side of the family, was weird and unusual, something that Carmelita agreed with since she had tried to only get herself and Sly to meet her parents, but, as it turned out, they knew something about her situation and were eager to meet them... but whether or not her parents knew that she was dating a criminal, and had become one herself while hanging out with the gang, Carmelita honestly didn't know.

Fortunately both she and Sly still had their dresses from when they went to Rajan's ball, which was more than enough for what they were going to, and they were able to find someone that could outfit Derpy, Gilda, Diz, and Bentley before the day of the dinner. The only member of the gang, and that was a term that still didn't quite fit with the being in question, that didn't have to actually wear anything was Clockwerk, who was sticking to his miniature form since he was sure that Carmelita's family would want to get at him if they realized who he was, but, at the same time, he refused to go without anything. What he came up with was a monocle, scaled to his body, a small top hat, and a bow tie, all of which he could have ignored, and he understood that, but at the same time he wanted to make sure that he made a good first impression and didn't annoy anyone by coming under dressed, even if he was a robot. The only thing that actually confused the gang was the part of the message that said they could bring their canes if they so desired, though out of habit Sly and his siblings decided to bring them along, in case something happened, and Carmelita only went along with it because she had the feeling that her parents knew more than she had told them.

After getting all of their appropriate clothing together, simple dresses and suits by the looks of it, the gang spent the remaining time relaxing, as they were sure that they would be busy with other things once they met Carmelita's family, before time was up and they had to leave... only for Sly and the others to find out that Carmelita's grandfather lived in a decent sized building outside Paris, three stories tall and had more than enough room for all of them.

When they arrived outside the house in question, using a limo that Carmelita's grandfather had sent to pick them up from a very specific destination so no one could see them, Sly was the first to emerge from the car and held out a hand as he helped Carmelita out of the back seat. All of them were dressed up and ready to go, with five of them carrying their canes while Clockwerk remained perched on the back part of Bentley's wheelchair, before they approached the front door and were welcomed inside, where Sly, his siblings, and Bentley stared at the area around them and found a few statues, pieces of art, and several items that seemed to be important to the Foxes in one form or another. Carmelita remembered many of these items from when she was younger, running around the place as she played cops and robbers, and smiled as she took in the familiar sights that she hadn't seen for years, mostly because her job at Interpol, chasing Sly, had kept her busy over the years. Thanks to all the training she went through, to become an Inspector at Interpol and to become a Cooper Thief, she now saw several of the items in a new light, as she knew that some of them could be pricey, but she'd never steal from her family... and she also knew that Sly wouldn't allow it either, as she knew that he and his siblings were looking at several of the pieces as well and were restraining themselves to the best of their abilities.

"Carmelita!" a voice happily said, to which Carmelita turned around and found her mother standing at the opening between the entrance hall and the room that was to the left of the entrance, a waiting area since the one to the right was where they'd be eating later, "It's so nice to see you again."

Sly found that Margret Fox definitely looked like an older version of Carmelita, something that Carmelita likely knew about, and discovered that she was wearing a fine red dress that seemed to fit her quite well, though as he prepared to say something he noticed another figure approach them. The newcomer was definitely male and was wearing what appeared to be a police uniform of some kind, though when Sly looked closer he found that Edward Fox, as that was who the person was, happened to be working for Interpol as well, or at the very least some section of Interpol. Just like both Carmelita and Margret, Edward Fox also had the same brownish-orange colored fur, though both he and Marget had slight signs of silver at the tips, showing their age, yet neither of them seemed to care much about the silver and were focused on what was happening at the moment.

"Mom! Dad!" Carmelita said, where she ran forward and embraced her parents, because regardless of what happened to her she knew that neither one of them would banish her from the family, and honestly she wasn't sure she could emotionally survive such a thing if it happened, even with Sly's support, before she pulled away from them, "Sorry I haven't called either of you lately... my life's been pretty chaotic since the heist the Klaww Gang pulled at the Cairo Museum a little over a year ago."

"We heard what happened." Edward stated, causing Carmelita to pause for a moment, as this was what she was afraid of, though at the same time she was happy to see that her father hadn't changed, as while his tone was firm it was also comforting, just like she remembered, before he glanced to the side and looked at the Cooper Gang, "Sly Cooper, allow me to offer my condolences for your loss. Conner was a good friend of mine, just as I was a good friend of his, and it pained me to hear that your house was broken into and that you ended up in that orphanage."

"Th... Thank you." Sly said, though he was surprised to hear that Carmelita's father knew his father, which told him that both families likely knew each other and the relationship likely went back several generations at the very least, which only made him wonder about his family line even more, before he focused on what Carmelita's father had said, "Wait, when you say that you've heard what happened, do you mean..."

"Yes, we learned, from our friend Secretary Sen, that Inspector Barkley fired Carmelita because he felt that she was a corrupt cop, when we both knew that it wasn't true." Margret replied, though at the same time she shook her head for a moment, as if shaking off her annoyance or something, but Sly and the rest of the gang were sure that she had cried a little when that news came to them, "For the first month or two I thought that the reason we weren't being contacted was because Carmelita was either still busy working a case, or she simply withdrew from the world until she was ready to talk to someone. Imagine my surprise when we later discovered that Edward was right, that you joined the Cooper Gang and helped them pull off a heist that exposed Barkley as the true corrupt cop."

"It turns out that, shortly after my father left the force, Barkley's standards seemed to go down while he trained his underlings in a very specific manner," Edward said, though this was all news to the gang, as Secretary Sen hadn't said anything about Barkley since they took all the loot that he was transporting to whatever his destination had been, though Sly was beginning to think that he hadn't told them because he knew that the Foxes would tell them eventually, "Some of the officers that you worked with were corrupt cops from the start, such as Neyla for instance, and some were corrupted along the way, just like the Contessa, though it appears that he also trained some of you to eventually catch your fellow officers in an act of breaking the law... though we're not sure what his motives were, not that it matters since he's going to be punished for his latest actions."

"You mean him attempting to traffic stolen goods into the city his employer worked in?" Carmelita inquired, as now that they had more information it made sense as to why Barkley was trying to get rid of her, once Neyla started to frame her as a 'corrupt cop', as he was afraid that she might find out the truth and bring most of the building down, though from the sounds of it that's what Secretary Sen was doing, "You know, that was actually my trial, stealing all that loot before Barkley even realized that I had done it, and I pulled off my plan with flying colors... and, from the sounds of it, it seems that Barkley is getting what he deserves. Though, if I'm being honest, I'm surprised that the both of you are so willing to accept the fact that I'm dating a criminal and that I've become one."

"It's like I said, Conner was a good friend of ours and we understood that there were good criminals in the world, with the Cooper Clan being one of them," Edward replied, though at the same time he sighed for a moment, no doubt thinking about the past and the time he had spent with Sly's father, before looking at the group once more, "It's not public knowledge, but both Margret and I actually helped Conner a few times over the years, and while we saw the appeal of his lifestyle we both agreed to stay on this side of the law, because without good cops no amount of good criminals could keep the civilians safe. If we were willing to accept the fact that one of our best friends was a criminal, one of the good ones, we should be willing to accept that our daughter had to change professions and become one herself... all because Barkley was an idiot and decided to believe someone that was lying to him."

"That he is." a new voice stated, one that Carmelita also recognized, which was when she and the Cooper Gang turned towards the top of the staircase that was nearby, where Carmelita found an older fox, wearing the attire of a respected Interpol agent that was literally a level below a Secretary, standing at the top step, though as he walked down towards them he smiled, "I told Secretary Sen a year ago that he should have just fired Barkley for his crimes against you, as well as our family, and then put him in prison for allowing such a dangerous agent to further damage the name of Interpol, but, like always, Sen had a plan and it was executed flawlessly. Not only that, but it seems that the person he brought in to clean up the building you used to work in has done his job quite well, though I expected that from Jim Gordon."

"Wait, Jim Gordon? As in the 'Hawk of Gotham City'?" Sly asked, because that was another name in law enforcement that was designed to inspire fear in criminals of all types in the city that he watched over, as there was a very specific ally of his that helped him clean up the streets and he was quite intimidating on his own, "That Jim Gordon?"

"That's correct." the older fox replied, though that was when a smile appeared on his face, showing that he was happy to hear that they knew who he was talking about, before he finally came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs and glanced over at Carmelita for a moment, "Carmelita, my beloved granddaughter, why don't you introduce me to the infamous Cooper Gang."

"Ah you wish, grandfather." Carmelita said, to which she turned towards the rest of the gang, her gang she mentally told herself, and smiled at them, as they were surprised by who was walking down towards them, "Allow me to introduce Sly, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz Cooper, all Cooper Thieves, as well as Bentley, the brains of the gang, and Cogs, his robotic owl companion. Guys, allow me to introduce my grandfather, Haytham James Fox, former candidate as a new Secretary and current head of the more secretive parts of Interpol."

Sly's eyes widened for a moment, as Carmelita's grandfather was someone who could have become a Secretary at one point in time and had been beaten by someone that was more worthy than he was, since the number had to be five Secretaries at any given time, and knew that he was one of the most influential people he was ever going to meet. The fact that he was in charge of the shadowy and unknown sector of Interpol, a rumored section that Bentley often thought about from time to time, meant that he likely knew more about the world than any of them, save for Clockwerk, did, and that he wasn't someone that they wanted to mess with. That made him wonder what sort of traps and challenges he and the gang would find in a building like this, since it was clear that he had a number of treasures that other thieves would come looking for if they knew he had them, but at the same time he pushed his thoughts away from stealing and focused on what was happening at the moment. He had known that the Foxes were tied to Interpol and law enforcement, as that was exactly what Carmelita was doing, and it amazed him that he was meeting powerful individuals like Secretary Sen and Haytham Fox, people he had only heard stories about... though when the man stepped down to where they were standing Sly was the first one to offer his hand, which Haytham Fox started to shake immediately.

He did the same thing for the rest of the gang, pausing to eye the miniature form that Clockwerk was in, before walking over to where Carmelita's parents were standing, where he smiled at all of them, causing them to relax as they waited for him to talk.

"Sen told me that you were being taken care of by the Cooper Gang, and I can see that he was correct," Haytham said, to which he surprised the gang by knowing more than they thought he did, though there was one thing in particular that he was interested in, besides his granddaughter anyway, "I hear that you passed your trial to become a Cooper Thief, Carmelita, and I am familiar with their customs when such a thing happens. Might we see your new cane?"

For a moment Carmelita was surprised that her family knew about the Cooper trials and that, when one succeeded, they were given a cane to celebrate their success, even though in the beginning she knew that the first Coopers crafted their own canes when they were ready, but when she got over her shock she nodded and held out her cane, which she had been holding onto the entire time since they arrived.

"This is such a beautiful cane," Margret said, staring at how polished parts of it were, the silver piece on top that went with all the canes that the Coopers carried, as history made several mentions of them, and how it all flowed into an easily recognizable fox's tail, complete with the two emblems that were important to her daughter, "Who crafted such a beautiful work of art?"

"Actually, I did," Sly spoke up, to which Carmelita looked over at him in surprise, as she was shocked that he had put time into making the cane, as she figured that there was some family friend that she didn't know about that knew how to make there sort of weapons, "The canes that Derpy, Gilda, and Diz carry started out as near perfect copies of my cane, the same one that my father carried, and they only recently modified their canes to fit themselves, but when Carmelita said that she wanted to join the gang, after being fired, I knew what I had to do. I spent the last year carefully working on that cane, in secret so no one else would find out about it before Carmelita did, and I learned everything I needed to learn so I could make something that rivals the others. I wanted her to have something personal, something that bridged her two worlds together, and I simply went with the flow as I molded this cane... and I felt that Carmelita deserved something special, not something that was created by a friend of the family."

"All that's missing is a ring." Edward stated, though that was when the Foxes started laughing, as Sly couldn't believe that one of them had brought up something like that, but as he thought about it he discovered that Edward was smiling as he handed back Carmelita's cane, happy that she had a place to call home after losing Interpol, and he suspected that Edward knew he was doing everything in his power to make Carmelita happy.

As the group headed into the dining room of the building, where Carmelita's parents asked her how she was doing now that she was on the other side of the law, opposite of what she had been earlier, all Sly could wonder at the moment, besides eventually marrying Carmelita one day, was what sort of fate Barkley had brought upon himself... and he knew that, regardless of the punishment, that the man deserved whatever he got.

Barkley knew, from the moment that he received the summons, that he was in deep water, because when someone got a letter, signed by all five Secretaries that governed Interpol, it meant that something serious was happening or the person that received the letter was in serious trouble. If he were to run, without attending the summons, the Secretaries would immediately blacklist his name, preventing him from working in law enforcement again, seize whatever assets that he didn't withdraw, depriving him of his funds, and make sure the other cops were on the lookout for him. He had already annoyed Secretary Sen by firing Carmelita Fox, who he still believed deserved what he had given her, and there was no telling how annoyed the other four were, as he hadn't had the chance to meet them, not that he wanted to, and quickly came to a decision on what he needed to do. Since he knew that his life was about to change, regardless of which route he took, he decided to appear before the five Secretaries and prayed that this was about something else that wasn't about him and the Cooper Gang, as he didn't want to hear about them anymore. It still hurt that Judy Hopps, Carmelita's best friend before she was fired, was immediately raised to the highest ranking Inspector, under Jim Gordon, the hawk that was the new Director of Interpol, and that she was in contact with them, as per the 'arrangement' that Secretary Sen had with the gang.

As he finished that thought he looked up at the building that was in front of him and sighed, as he had reached the location that the Secretaries wanted him to come to, though as he walked into the lobby area the desk clerk had him sign in and take a seat before did anything else. A few minutes later he found himself being called into a room that had a crescent shaped table some distance from the entrance, though as he walked inside the door closed behind him, where the lights came on and he found all five of the Secretaries sitting before him.

Secretary Sen sat in the middle of the group, looking like he was ready to say something important, though at the same time Barkley knew that he was looking for an excuse to fire him, and the folder that was in front of him didn't quell his fear. Sitting to his immediate left was a female cat, which species Barkley had no idea, whose fur was light black colored, with golden yellow markings that had to be Egyptian in origin, and happened to have green colored eyes, though he knew her as Secretary Bast, but because she usually dressed in Egyptian clothing, which he could see under her Secretary attire, some people confused her with the goddess Bastet, which Barkley knew couldn't exist in this world. To her left sat the third member of the five Secretaries, a green scaled snake with the upper body of a female and the lower body of an actual snake, who was wearing a specially made set of attire for her thanks to her unique body, though Barkley identified her as Secretary Kaji. To Secretary Sen's immediate right sat a white feathered owl that seemed to be like Arpeggio, in the sense that his arms and wings were one in the same, but while he was slightly shorter than the rest of the Secretaries he still carried the same power that they did, though he was Secretary Jaxie. Last, and certainly not least, was the man at the left end of the table, where a male jackal, with black fur, sat, though under his attire he was likely wearing some shorts and either no shirt or a gray colored shirt... but, like Secretary Bast before him, he wore some Egyptian inspired tattoos, while at the same time Barkley knew him as Secretary Anu.

These five were the most powerful people in the entirety of Interpol, capable of overturning any decision and changing how the agency ran at a moments notice if they so desired, though he was glad that he had fired Carmelita before they caught wind of what he was doing, otherwise they would have overturned his decision.

"Inspector Barkley, thank you for coming on such short notice," Secretary Kaji said, to which she looked at him like she was going to eat him, one of her scare tactics that worked on pretty much everyone that she used them on, though Barkley was already frightened by the way she said his title, "This is... something... we wanted to discuss with you."

"A... And that would be?" Barkley asked, though at the same time he knew he was doomed, because the way the five of them were looking at him meant that he was in serious trouble, but he hoped that it was just his imagination and that he'd be able to walk out of here without anything happening to him.

"We've learned, from a reliable source, that you knew of the location of the treasures that were stolen from a museum a week or two ago," Secretary Jaxie spoke up, to which some images appeared between where they were sitting and where Barkley was standing, images that showed him standing in front of the treasure in question, helping some goons haul it into the train that it was stolen from, and him making a deal with the person that was supposed to help him bring down the Cooper Gang, only for him to be arrested a day after the treasure went missing, "Not only did you help this man smuggle the treasure out of the city that it was stolen from, but you also used it as an excuse to call in the Cooper Gang, to frame them for the theft and catch them so you could break the deal they have with Secretary Sen."

"Of course, when one deals with the Cooper Gang, things don't always go as planned," Secretary Bast said, speaking like a cat that was toying around with something, or at least that was the vibes that Barkley got from her, even though he was already doomed anyway, "You planned on catching them red handed with the stolen treasure, never aware of the fact that Carmelita likely decoded your message, like the rest of the police officers that remained after Secretary Sen purged your office of the remaining would be traitors, and was on her way to deliver the finishing blow. Of course, as per the usual with the Cooper Gang, we have next to no evidence to suggest that they were the ones behind the train robbery, save for the Cooper calling card, and the missing train car was found some distance away with no treasure inside it. Instead of telling us where the treasure was, and earning some credit to your name, you did the one thing that you were told not to do, and further disgraced your name in the process."

"James Barkley, for your crimes against both Carmelita Montoya Fox, who you fired under false conditions and ruined the life of in the process," Secretary Anu stated, revealing that they must have planned this out, allowing the four of them to speak with Secretary Sen just watched, and that he was doomed, to which he hung his head in shame, "and for your crimes against Interpol, in hiring corrupted cops, corrupting cops in the process, and many other things, such as promoting Neyla while destroying Carmelita's name, you are hereby discharged from Interpol and sentenced to spend the rest of your life behind bars."

Barkley said nothing as the officers on the other side of the door opened the door, cuffed him, and dragged him out of the room, allowing the five Secretaries to either disperse or speak about the next subject that they needed to discuss, of which there would be plenty if they looked at what needed to be done to restore Interpol to what it had been before Barkley damaged it's reputation.

"You mortals are fun to play around with," Bast commented, as there was a closely guarded secret that only the Secretaries knew, one that many people wouldn't believe even if they went out and told them the truth, before she glanced over at one of her fellow Secretaries, "don't you agree, Anu?"

"If you say so, Bast," Anu said, to which he looked at the stack of papers that they still had to go through and knew that they wouldn't be doing anything fun for the next few days, before he stretched and opened the first folder, "At the very least the Cooper Gang should be happy when they hear the news about Barkley."

Secretary Sen nodded his head as he smiled, as right now, if the guards were doing exactly as the five of them had ordered them to do, they could be escorting a defeated Barkley outside, where the press would watch him be placed under arrest and that Interpol was cleaning up the rest of his mess... and then it was only a matter of time until the Cooper Gang, or more specifically Carmelita, learned of his fate.

The meal, to Sly's surprise, went better than what he was expecting, as Carmelita's family was nice once he discovered that they were fine with the two of them being together, though it was clear that they were expecting the two of them to get married at some point. Sly wanted that with all his heart, he really did, though the way that Haytham Fox glanced at them made him wonder if there was one member of the family that knew more than they were letting on, but that was soon followed by Edward Fox seeming to give him similar glances as well. There was something that the two of them knew that he didn't, that much he could tell from the glances that they were giving him, and the rest of the gang seemed to sense this as well, even Clockwerk, who was playing the part of 'Cogs' to the letter and didn't say anything since he had such a distinctive voice, seemed to have the same feelings that they were having. Sly wondered, for the briefest moment, if there was the possibility that Carmelita's grandfather knew that Clockwerk was in the same room as the rest of them, but at the same time he didn't seem to make a big deal out of it.

When the meal was over, and both of Carmelita's parents wanted to talk with her for a few minutes, Haytham Fox beckoned for Sly to follow him for a moment, to which the both of them walked down one of the halls until they came to a specific statue that he wanted to stare at... one that, when Sly looked closely, had a Cooper emblem etched into part of it, though why he had no idea.

"How much do you know of the Cooper Vault?" Haytham asked, surprising Sly for a moment, as the only time he had heard the term was when he read about it in several mentions in the Thievius Raccoonus, while at the same time wondering how he knew about such a secret.

"If I'm being honest, not much." Sly admitted, because if Carmelita's family was going to be open to the thought of Carmelita falling in love with a thief, and becoming one due to the fact that she couldn't be a cop anymore, he decided to be open with them, "Several of my ancestors make mentions of such a place, but they didn't write down where it's located and it's said that the Vault is where each of them hid a portion of the wealth they accumulated during their various heists, so its hard to say if such a place exists or not."

"Oh, the Cooper Vault definitely exists," Haytham replied, to which he stepped up to the statue and rested a hand against the emblem that was on it, which sunk in and revealed a slip of paper, one that he withdrew and handed over to Sly immediately, "Since the Foxes were good friends of the Coopers, something that the public didn't know about, your father and Jim McSweeney, the muscle of his gang, came by one day and dropped off this statue, knowing that we would keep it safe until the time you needed it. If everything went according to their plan, and I have the feeling that it did, then you'll be able to find McSweeney at Heathrow Penitentiary with something very special to give you... something that will lead you right to the location of the Cooper Vault, if what they said is correct."

Sly stared at the piece of paper, detailing the exact location of the prison in question, and knew what Haytham might be thinking, that what the gang needed was one more adventure before he and Carmelita tied themselves together as a family... and, even as Haytham walked away, he knew what they needed to do, to which he headed back to where the rest of the gang was resting, as they would be very interested in what he had to tell them.

Honor: Gathering Information

After meeting with Carmelita's side of the family, and getting to know them, Sly had Bentley send a message to Secretary Sen the moment they returned to the gang's base of operations in Paris, a message that asked him if it would be alright for him and one other member of the gang, Carmelita he knew, to meet with Jim McSweeney at Heathrow Penitentiary. He then revealed, both to the Secretary and to the rest of the gang, the existence of the Cooper Vault, something he originally thought to be a myth thanks to the Thievius Raccoonus, and that McSweeney had something for him that would either confirm or deny the existence of such a place. Derpy, Gilda, Diz, and Carmelita, all having read the book and learned the techniques that the other members of the Cooper Clan had created while reading their stories, knew the stories that he was referring to and seemed excited about the fact that they might confirm the existence of such a place. Even Clockwerk, who had been following the Cooper Clan for hundreds of years since he first turned his body to metal, had never seen the resting place of the Cooper Vault, which came as a surprise to Sly, but at the same time that only confirmed that his ancestors wanted to keep the place a secret.

Fortunately for them Secretary Sen got back to them rather quickly, where he said that it shouldn't be too hard for him to arrange an official visit for them, as he knew that they would rather not have to sneak into the prison to discover the information that McSweeney had for them.

Not even a few days later Sly and Carmelita, along with Secretary Sen as their personal escort for their visit to Heathrow Penitentiary, walked up some flights of stairs and followed their guide as he led the way to where McSweeney was staying, but at the same time they looked around at the well guarded cells that were around them. Each prisoner seemed to be well secured in their cells, all of which seemed to have been modified in some manner to make sure that their occupants couldn't escape or, in some cases, use certain skills they had gained becoming coming here to escape, making them wonder if this was where Mz. Ruby had been before being transferred to the prison she had trained Derpy, Gilda, and Diz in. It was rather interesting to think about this place, as it was located in the United States and not anywhere near Paris, but Interpol apparently had prisons everywhere and all of them seemed to be well staffed, with guards that seemed to know what they were doing, and ensured that prisoners didn't even consider attempting to escape. As they walked by some of the cells Sly found three members of the Klaww Gang, the ones that hadn't been freed because of the fact that they had annoyed, and in the case of two of them disobeyed, Secretary Sen; the Contessa, who simply sighed and looked away from the doorway as they went by, Arpeggio, who seemed to be calculating where his plans went wrong for this to happen, and Neyla... who simply sat on her bed with a look of defeat in her eyes, as she barely raised her head to acknowledge their passing and continued to stare at the floor.

Sly was shocked to see that, even a year after her plans came apart, that Neyla was still devastated by her near death experience, but in the end he knew that she deserved it for trying to tear his family apart and, at the very end of it all, had gotten Carmelita fired... but that was when Secretary Sen stopped at a cell that had a plexiglass wall with ventilation holes punched into the top, with an overweight walrus, who was wearing a pair of blue pants and no shirt, that happened to be sitting on the bed.

"Jim McSweeney," Secretary Sen said, causing the walrus' ears to perk for a moment, indicating that it must have been some time since he had been spoken to by someone that wasn't one of the guards that were assigned to the prison, before the man turned towards him as he beckoned to his companions, "you have some visitors."

"That so?" McSweeney asked, to which he stood up and walked over to the part of the wall that had a slot in it, so that he could get his meals when they were delivered or hand a guard a letter if he wanted to send one to someone, where he stared at Sly and Carmelita, or, more specifically, Sly, "You... you're Conner's son, aren't you?"

"Yes, my father was Conner Cooper." Sly replied, locking eyes with McSweeney for a moment, as he could tell, thanks to the time he spent with his sisters, that this person seemed to have great respect for his father and might have been his closest friend at one point in time, confirming Haytham Fox's earlier words, "I understand that you knew my father for quite some time, even helping him move a statue into a safe hiding place inside the home of Haytham James Fox."

"Aye, I remember that day well," McSweeney said, to which he reached into the folds of his body and pulled out an older Cooper Gang calling card, the ones that Sly's father had left on all the heists he had been on, before slipping it back into his hiding place, though when Sly glanced at Secretary Sen the powerful man shook his head, indicating that it wasn't worth asking about, where he glanced at Carmelita for a moment, "You must be Edward and Margret Fox's daughter... Carmelita Montoya Fox, if I'm remembering what Haytham told us while we were moving that statue into place."

"Actually, it's Carmelita Montoya Cooper these days," Carmelita replied, where she fingered the Cooper emblem that she now wore in place of her old Inspector badge, as sometimes it calmed her down and, in the case like this, let the man in front of them know that she could be trusted with whatever information he had, "Sly and I aren't married, not yet anyway, but we're already thinking about that in the future."

"Conner must be happy to have someone like you being his son's future wife." McSweeney commented, not even noticing the fact that both Sly and Carmelita rubbed their arms for a moment, a telltale sign that he had said something that brought up something, but since he was lost in thought he didn't seem to notice at all, "You know, Conner and I were good friends back in the day. We went on many heists together, went all over the world in the process, and gathered quite an impressive amount of loot in the process. I was his muscleman, doing all the heavy lifting when it was called for and my power was behind all the escapes that we needed to pull off."

"That sounds like Murray." Sly said, to which Carmelita nodded her head, as he was the only person in the gang that had the sort of strength that McSweeney was talking about, but at the same time that only made them wonder where Murray could have wandered off to, as they had expected him to have returned by now.

"It makes sense that you would have someone on your team that's like me, even if you didn't know about me until recently." McSweeney spoke up, hearing what Sly had said and connected it to the gang that he must be leading at the moment, reminding him of the days he ran with Conner, before he decided to ask a question to see if he was right in his thinking, "Let me guess, you have someone on your team that handles all the tech as well?"

"Yeah, Bentley and Cogs." Carmelita replied, as the gang agreed that, when dealing with people that knew more about the Cooper Clan than the average person did, such as McSweeney for instance, they would refer to Clockwerk as 'Cogs', to make sure that no one assumed they were working with the family's ancient enemy, "We've also got three magic users that double as Master Thieves as well, two of which grew up along Sly, Murray, and Bentley when they were younger. The entire gang has a good relationship going among all it's members."

"That's good to hear." McSweeney said, as he was happy to hear that Conner's son had a gang that seemed to have an even stronger relationship between their members than his own gang did, or at least between the two of them and the person that served as their tech expert, to which he turned towards Sly, "You should treasure those relationships, as I know that is what Conner did with our friendship. Though you should be on the lookout for a mandrill by the name of Dr. M, as he was our tech expect when we were still a gang... it's why Conner and I had to resort to such actions to hide the information for you to find later on. Dr. M wasn't too happy about the division of the loot, Conner's insistence that he follow the traditions of his family, his overall relationship with both Conner and myself, and, maybe more important than anything else, the fact that Conner stopped being a thief when his wife, Amanda, was pregnant."

Sly and Carmelita glanced at each other for a moment, as both of them, the rest of the gang, and only specific members of Interpol knew that the person that had killed Sly's parents was ultimately Clockwerk, but, at the same time, Sly was surprised to hear his mother's name, as this was the first time he was hearing it.

"Anyway, Conner, following the traditions of his ancestors, stored the lion's share of his loot inside the Cooper Vault before he stopped being a thief," McSweeney continued, not noticing that the duo had said nothing to his words, as he was lost in thought and was remembering things that would be useful for them in the near future, "just like each and every one of his ancestors did before him. The last time I saw him, which was before I landed myself in here, Conner handed me a map to the location of the Cooper Vault, intended for you at some point in the future as some sort of test I assume, and told me to tell you that 'Only a Cooper and open the Vault'. I knew that he wanted me to keep the map safe from those that sought to steal the entire Cooper fortune, and maybe claim they were better than the Coopers in the process, so I intentionally got myself thrown in here and got myself locked in this cell... though, as a side effect, I've got a rep that means the other inmates won't mess with me and the cell can only be opened by a very specific key that only a few members of the staff know the existence of."

"Only a Master Thief would be able to let you out." Secretary Sen said, meaning it in the sense that if someone wanted to get at the map, if they knew he had it, they would have to act like a Cooper Thief in order to get at McSweeney, even though he was thinking about testing this system against the Coopers one day to see if the prison was as great as the wardens claimed it was.

"And I'm sure that he'd fight us anyway, to stay here and protect the map dad gave him." Sly commented, knowing that McSweeney basically gave up everything in his entire life to safeguard the location of the Cooper Vault, and wouldn't let someone bust him out until he felt the time was right to hand over the map.

"Indeed." McSweeney said, agreeing with Sly the moment he started talking, as he reminded him of Conner, which only made him look around for a few moments, because when he thought about the day he'd meet the son of his best friend, like he was now, he always imagined that Conner would be here, "Say, since we've been talking about Conner for a bit, I've got a question. Where is he? I expected him to be here the day you came looking for the map."

"Dad... dad's dead..." Sly replied, to which he looked down at the floor for a moment, because despite the fact that he eventually got revenge on Clockwerk for taking away his parents, and landing him in the orphanage, it still hurt to think about the fact that he never got to truly know who his parents were, "S... So's mom..."

Carmelita, knowing that Sly usually got emotional when he talked about his parents, did the only thing that she could think of in a situation like this, she shifted her cane into her left hand and wrapped her right arm around Sly, who smiled at her for a moment, his way of silently thanking her for being there for him, just like he was there for her when they were dealing with Neyla's antics last year.

"I... I'm so sorry. I didn't know they were gone." McSweeney said, though it was in that moment that Carmelita noticed that he was genuinely upset over making Sly sad, meaning that he truly had no idea that both Conner and Amanda Cooper had been killed some time ago, but that was followed by a look of determination appearing on his face as he reached into a different fold and withdrew a well preserved map that he slipped into the slot between them, "Here... the last instructions Conner gave me, in the event that you came looking for me and he wasn't present, was for me to hand the map over to you, so you could visit the Vault, learn more about your ancestors, and, when the time is right, add in part of your loot to your family's fortune."

"Thanks McSweeney." Sly said, taking the map from the slot that was in front of them, though at the same time he looked at the walrus and smiled, knowing that his father had been a lucky man to have such a loyal friend, even one that had sacrificed his entire life to keep the map safe.

McSweeney nodded and shooed them off, indicating that it was time for them to get going so they could follow the map to where the Cooper Vault was located, to which Sly and Carmelita nodded as they followed Secretary Sen back through the route they had used to reach McSweeney's cell. As they did that Carmelita had to stop for a moment, as she felt the need to look around for a moment, and was surprised when she glanced to the other side of the holding area that they were in, as the cell that was right across from where Neyla's was located held the last person that she ever expected to see inside this prison; Barkley. The former Director of Interpol, disgraced and arrested for his crimes against both her and the crime he committed in going against Secretary Sen's orders while also allying himself with a criminal organization to take the Cooper Gang out, just sat in his cell and didn't even look up as she stared across the way at him. Part of her was angry with him, as she liked being an Inspector and keeping Sly in line from her side of the law, even if she felt that he and his gang was pretty tame already, while another part of her felt pity for him, as he had been a decorated officer and an inspiring Director that she had been planning on replacing one day, back when she was chasing Sly before she became the handler of the gang... but now, as she stared across at her former boss, who had ruined her life for a time, and thought about what happened she sighed, as now she felt no desire to speak with him and walked over to where Sly and Secretary Sen were standing.

From there the three of them made their way to a private airport, the same one they used to get to this area, and Secretary Sen had the pilot fly them out to an island that the rest of the gang was waiting on by the time they arrived, as Bentley already had an idea as to where the Vault was located. After that the gang took a boat out into the water and followed the clues that were provided on the map, finding that each one they discovered was right where the map said they would be and continued to draw closer and closer to the location of the Cooper Vault.

A day after the gang left the island that they got the boat from Secretary Sen had them come to a stop as they neared the island that the Cooper Vault was supposed to be located on, Kaine Island as it turned out, but as they came to a stop the gang noticed that Dr. M must have already set up shop. That was because there were fortress like walls surrounding the majority of the island, searchlights that would make it hard for any thief to get close to the inner parts of the fortress, and had actually exposed the entrance of the Vault, but couldn't seem to get inside. That was good news for them, as it meant that the Cooper Fortune was safe, but at the same time they knew next to nothing about the fortress and Bentley, always thinking about what they needed, had Gilda, Derpy, and Diz take some very specific photos of the area that they were in, while at the same time using Clockwerk's eyes to scan the entire structure so they could have a blueprint of everything that they saw while they were here. While all this happened Secretary Sen discovered something interesting when he reached out to another one of his fellow Secretaries, and that was the fact that the deed to the island, which appeared to be passed down through the Cooper Clan from one generation to the next, had been stolen a week after the death of Sly's father... which only made him suspect Dr. M, since he was the only one with the motive to do such a thing.

By the time Bentley was done, and the gang was back together, Secretary Sen pulled them out of the water near the island and had them headed back towards the island that they had come from, though at the same time he set the auto-pilot so they would have some time to see what needed to be done before they attempted to get at the Vault.

"So, what's the plan Bentley?" Sly asked, as he knew that, based on the familiar looks on Bentley's face, that he was in the middle of forming a plan that would allow them to get at the Cooper Vault and expel Dr. M, who Secretary Sen was already looking forward to locking away once they caught him.

"I'm sorry to say it, but even with our combined talents we won't be able to get anywhere near the Cooper Vault, and that's including all the magic we have at our disposal," Bentley said, shocking the magic users for a moment, as they had used their powers to great effect and were a little saddened that they wouldn't be able to use them in such a manner to get at the Vault, "We're going to need more members before we can take a crack at the Cooper Vault, a larger gang than what we have at the moment, and I have a list of what we need... and the first spot we need to fill is a familiar one. We need to find Murray and bring him back into the gang."

"You know, it's funny that you should mention Murray," Secretary Sen spoke up, causing the group to turn towards him for a moment, as they weren't actually expecting him to contribute anything to what they were about to do, "I've heard reports that Murray has been sighted in Venice recently, as in the last few days I might add, and it seems like he might be in the territory of the mob boss Octavio. We've been trying to rat him out for a while now... so, why don't we knock out two birds with one stone?"

Sly and the rest of the gang stared at each other for a few moments, as they were still surprised that Secretary Sen was willing to help them this much and wondered if he might have a deeper connection to the Cooper Clan than they originally thought, but in the end they agreed that it would be best if they lent Interpol a hand... and, as they headed off towards Venice, Sly had the feeling that things were about to get real exciting once they arrived.

Honor: Venice

The boat trip to Venice gave the gang time to read up on everything that Secretary Sen could provide them on Octavio, the local mob boss that commanded the Vincenetti Gang that controlled the area, and they made sure that they memorized everything that he offered them. From what they could tell Octavio, when he was still growing up, used to be a real celebrity in the neighborhood, as everyone loved to hear him sing opera and said he was destined to be the next great tenor, but, as with the other people they had take on over the years, things changed for him, because just as his career started to take off, everyone's musical tastes changed. Suddenly, from what all of the reports said, all the people cared about anymore was rock music, and that no one wanted to listen to opera anymore, but Octavio did hold onto a few fans, and it was these mobsters that took him into "the business". The gang knew that, from the various reports that were offered to them, that heading onto this guy's turf was going to be dangerous and require more stealth than what they usually used in their operations, but, at the same time, it was worth it for a chance to make things right with Murray.

Eventually they reached a point that made them come to a stop, as Secretary Sen had to get off and take the boat back to where they got it from, but there was another boat they could use to get close to Venice and, as an added bonus, he also promised them at Inspector Hopps was on her way with a task force to investigate the area... and help them in any manner that they needed, though he didn't have to tell them that as they went their separate ways once more.

It didn't take them long to reach the floating city that was Venice, where all of them found that the city was beautiful and had a number of canals, which they had known about long before they decided to come here to find Murray, but all of them agreed that the Ferris Wheel, the blimp with Octavio's likeness on it, the likeness of Octavio on the clock tower, and the black stains in the water seemed out of place in a city like this. Fortunately the various guards, which were pigeons, cats, and some dogs that reminded them of the goons from Muggshot's place, which they had told Diz about, didn't notice the gang as they road their small boat under the Rialto Bridge and made their way around the exterior of the city before finding a good place to stash it until they were ready to leave. Another thing that was in their favor was that Inspector Hopps had arrived before them and knew of a safe house that the gang could use, which was actually past a small bridge that was near where she and her task force would be operating, and she allowed them to take up residence in the clearly abandoned building, which served their purposes quite nicely. As they entered the building the group found that there was a window that allowed them too look out at the city that was in front of them and that Bentley was able to find a round table for them to use.

The moment they all entered the building the gang set down their bags and pulled some chairs over to where the table was located, indicating that they were ready for whatever Bentley had to tell them, as they were all sure that he already had an idea for them to begin their search for Murray.

"Given Murray's criminal past, it seems logical to start our search at the local police station." Bentley said, though at the same time the rest of the gang noticed that he had something else to tell them, which was why they were being silent at the moment, "It seems unlikely that he would already be in custody, otherwise we would have been told that ahead of time, so that means that Inspector Hopps and her task force have to have some information on all the crooks in Venice."

"Then we'll simply go over there and ask her if she has an idea where Murray might be located," Carmelita stated, as she knew that Judy, as her friend before she was fired, was one of the few people that had been on her side before she was forced to retire, and, as the handler of the Cooper Gang, she could either assist them or stay out of their way until they took out Octavio, which they were planning on doing, regardless if Murray was here or not.

Sly nodded and together he and Carmelita walked down to the first level of the building, walked outside the moment the pigeon guard walked by the door, and made their way over towards the entrance of the police station, where they found that the door was unlocked and they were able to slip in without anyone discovering that they were in there. As they stood in the corner, away from the guards and near the office that Judy likely took as her office for this operation, they came to a stop and listened to the presentation that the new Inspector had for her mercenary task force, where the two of them discovered that they were here to investigate the mysterious tar that has been seeping into the water for the last month. It appeared that Interpol believed that the person responsible for such an outrage was Don Octavio, the same man that was in control of the mob in the area and was going to be an obstacle between them and getting Murray back into the Cooper Gang, but, because they lacked enough evidence to actually get a warrant this time around, they were forced to do things the old-fashioned way... though the moment her presentation was over, and the goons seemed to stay in their seats as they discussed the operation, Judy walked towards her office and found both Sly and Carmelita waiting for her.

Instead of saying anything Judy opened the door and ushered the duo inside her office, where she locked the door and made sure that the mercenaries were preoccupied, before she sighed and turned towards the duo with a small smile on her face, indicating that she was happy to see one of them.

"Carmelita! It's good to see you again." Judy said, where she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her friend for a moment, something that Carmelita returned not a few seconds later, while at the same time Sly stood there and waited for them to separate, though he was happy to see that Carmelita had friends outside the gang, "So, what brings the two of you to my office? I'm sure that it's not about the building that I found for you, since Bentley seemed to find it appropriate, and I doubt you've done anything that would change the situation that I just briefed my team on."

"We were hoping that you might have some leads on where Murray might be," Sly replied, though at the same time both Judy and Carmelita pulled apart from each other, just in case one of the mercenaries came to the door while they were talking, "Or, at the very least, some clues for your investigation that we might be able to assist with."

Judy stared at him for a moment, as if thinking about something, before she walked over to her desk and pulled out a flash drive that appeared to have been given to her at some point in time before she came to this area, with a flaming wing mark that meant that it came from Secretary Sen. It appeared that this was his way of demonstrating that he trusted the gang and had some information to share with them, which meant that Judy was supposed to share it with the gang as well, though as she handed it over she did say that she had a brief sighting of Murray near the Rialto Bridge when they were setting up their base and that it would be the best place for them to find him. She didn't bother to remind them about the rules of the arrangement they had with Secretary Sen, as they remembered it since they had been the ones to agree to it when they first met the man, and quickly unlocked the door so the duo could leave the way they came, without any of the mercenaries noticing them at all. The moment they were outside the building, and were sure that no one was following them, both Sly and Carmelita headed back to the safe house so they could give Bentley the flash drive that they had been handed, so he could begin forming a plan of attack immediately... before heading out for the Rialto Bridge, where they remained true to their thieving ways and took the treasures from the pockets of the guards they walked by.

When they reached their destination they stood up on top of the structure that was located on the bridge, which they had spotted when they used the boat to go under it, and observed the area around them, keeping an eye out for Murray so they could speak with him before he disappeared again.

"Sly? Carmelita?" a voice asked, to which the duo moved over to the edge of the structure that they were on and found a familiar face staring up at them, where they smiled as they noticed that Murray was the one that had found them first, which was great news since they were looking for him.

"Murray!" Sly said, where he dropped down onto the bridge and approached his childhood friend, while at the same time Carmelita landed behind him and kept her eyes open for any enemies, just in case someone spotted them and came to investigate the area, "Boy am I glad to see you... even though you look a little different."

It was interesting because Murray looked almost identical to when Sly and the rest of the gang had seen last him, back before he left to go find inner peace despite Bentley's injuries not being his fault, as he was still wearing the same blue shirt that he had been wearing, despite it needing to either be washed or thrown out. In addition to all of that he was wearing some white Dreamtime make-up on the lower part of his body and on his face, complete with what appeared to be a crown made from grass resting on top of his head, a yellow cape that must mean something to him, and a necklace of teeth that he proudly wore around his neck.

"A different path in life calls for a different set of clothing," Murray replied, sounding much more relaxed and at peace with himself than he usually was, showing them the progress he had made with his Dreamtime training and revealing that he must have impressed whoever his instructor was, before a brief flash of nervousness came and went in a matter of a few seconds, "Is... is Bentley here?"

"Along with the rest of the gang," Carmelita said, though she smiled as Murray looked over at her with a peaceful smile on his face, because despite how he looked he was still a member of the gang and he knew that, by looking at her, that she had embraced the gang with ease, "Murray, I sort of understand what you're going through, having to change from being a cop and becoming a full time thief, and I don't blame you for what happened... neither does Derpy, Gilda, Diz, or even Sly and Bentley for that matter. Hell, even Clockwerk, whose body was the main reason Bentley ended up in this situation, doesn't blame you for what happened that day... in fact the ancient owl seems to be the most depressed out of all of us, despite Derpy's attempts to make him feel better."

"He continues to surprise me, he really does," Sly added, as while he still thought that it was unusual for Clockwerk to be so mellow and not spout anything like he did during their first fight, about how he was the superior thief and how he hated the Cooper Clan, he had to admit that the ancient owl might have made a friend in Bentley, though that didn't stop him from keeping his eyes open for trouble, "though Bentley didn't want to come with us in case things turned too emotional because of people bringing up his situation."

"That's okay," Murray said, causing the two of them to turn towards him, as they were interested in why he was here and why he was so close to where Octavio's base of operations was located, before he beckoned to the water that was near them, which had the black stains on it that they had seen earlier, "My Guru, in his wisdom, told me to lose myself and not return until the black water ran pure, so here I stay."

Sly and Carmelita glanced at each other for a moment, as it sounded like Murray was definitely on a Spirit Quest and wouldn't leave the area until the water problem was taken care of, to which they turned back towards Murray and told him that the gang was going to help him figure out what was going on... before the two of them headed back to the safe house while he continued what he had been doing until he found them standing on the bridge's structure.

As it turned out Bentley, with the assistance of Clockwerk, had come up with a plan of attack so they could dismantle Octavio's operation, show the people of Venice what he was doing, solve Murray's problem, and give Inspector Hopps a new criminal to arrest once the job was done. The first thing Bentley wanted them to do was send a few of them to break into Octavio's opera house and see if they could some information that they could use against him, while at the same time another group would be looking out for photographic evidence of their target contributing to what was going on. Thanks to their connection with Secretary Sen they would be able to send the evidence to him, so he could see what was going on for himself, and another set to Inspector Hopps, that way, in case there was a mole on the inside of the task force, Interpol would still know what was going on. Bentley also stated that he would be keeping an eye on the local communication frequencies, just in case something happened in the near future that would require them to make a change of plans, and the gang agreed that it was a wise move since they were unfamiliar with what their opponent was doing.

From what Bentley said it appeared that Sly and Carmelita were going to tackle the opera house break-in, Gilda and Derpy were going to keep an eye out for Don Octavio, which left Bentley and Diz to keep an ear on the communications and act accordingly, in case something happened. At first Sly wondered if Bentley was going to have the ancient owl stay with him and Diz, to assist them in whatever they discovered, but, as he and Carmelita headed out to do their mission, he discovered that Clockwerk was following after them, to assist them in whatever manner they needed. He knew that the ancient owl wasn't too keen on helping him, since he had been his target for many years, and he honestly wasn't happy with the situation either, but since Secretary Sen had entrusted them with Clockwerk a year ago, to watch over him and decide whether he deserved the change that Derpy had given him, there wasn't much they could do about the situation and simply accepted the owl's presence. As such the three of them made their way over to the opera house and headed over to the side yard, as that was the point of entry that Bentley suggested that they take to get inside the building, though when they arrived Sly opened the wooden door and let Carmelita, as well as Clockwerk, entered the canal area that ran beneath the opera house.

The first thing the group discovered was that there was a double button security door in front of them, to which Sly and Carmelita stood in front of one of the buttons and pressed them at the same time, allowing the door to open and head further into the canal area. At the bottom of the stairs that were behind the first door they found a second room that was identical to the first floor and that they needed to so the same thing to a second security door, something that they got around quite easily and continued moving to avoid whatever was down here with them. That was when the group reached the canal area, where Sly noticed that if Bentley had come along with them he would have had to stay behind for a few minutes before he and Carmelita dropped some sort of bridge for him to follow them, but, at the same time, they were able to maneuver their way through the obstacles and reach the other side with ease. Clockwerk, on the other hand, simply stared at them and flew over to the other side of the room that they were in, as he didn't feel the need to sneak along with them, where he raised a wing and loosed a sleep dart into the cat guard's neck... so when Sly and Carmelita caught up with him they wouldn't have to worry about the guard, who the ancient owl moved out of the way while also lowering some boats so the duo could get out of the area when they were finished here, instead of going through all the obstacles again.

"Nice work Clockwerk," Carmelita said, as she knew that the ancient owl was attempting to impress Sly and hopefully convince him that he might have changed for the better, and she was willing to give this side of the owl a chance until he changed on them, before she glanced at the door in front of them, which was reinforced and much stronger than anything they had found so far, "You wouldn't, by chance, happen to have something like Bentley's bombs on you... otherwise we won't be able to get to our objective."

I do. Clockwerk replied, because one of the things he and Bentley had worked on over the last year was adapting the turtle's bombs to become miniature versions of themselves and had stored quite a number inside his inner storage area, were part of his chest opened and he pulled one of the bombs out, though as it started to enlarge he stuck it on the center of the door, before beckoning for them to move.

That was followed by the bomb growing to the size that they normally were when Bentley used them before it finally detonated, blowing the door wide open and allowing the three of them to move up the stairs that were on the other side of it, while at the same time avoiding the laser defenses that were guarding the stairs. Since they didn't have to worry about leaving someone behind Sly and Carmelita entered the vent that was nearby, at the top of the stairs, and made their way towards the other side of the room that they had entered, though Clockwerk waited until they were at their destination before heading through the vents as well. On the other side of the vent they found a cat guard with a shining pocket, to which Sly smiled as he snatched the loot that was inside the pocket before Clockwerk knocked him out with another dart, which he recovered like the one before it, and the owl waited for them to move the guard out of the way before using a second bomb to destroy the security door that was in front of them. From there the group walked down the stairs that were in front of them, avoiding the lasers that were in their way, and the ancient owl used a few more darts to knock out the foes that were coming to investigate the noise of the door being destroyed... before Sly and Carmelita used the pair of buttons in front of them and opened the next door that was blocking their way, allowing them to move even closer to their destination.

Fortunately that was as far as they needed to go, because at the top of the stairs was a large room with a computer that had to be what Bentley told them to look for, to which Sly and Carmelita approached the device while Clockwerk flew over and landed on the side of it.

"You know, it's times like this that I wish I understood how to hack into something," Sly commented, though at the same time he knew that it was best if he remained as a thief of the gang and not another computer expert, even though his skills in such a field would be useless since he had no experience, before he turned towards the owl that was staring at the computer, "Clockwerk, you can hack into the computer... right?"

It is a Worlizter-700. I can easily splice into this and get the information we're after. the ancient owl replied, to which he jumped down onto the keyboard area, moved over to a nearby port, and revealed a connector, tied to a flash drive, that he only used whenever he was personally hacking into something, which was why he continued to have his systems upgraded so he could be current on the latest software, Give me a few minutes... I'll be done in no time.

Sly and Carmelita stood by, fully expecting guards to show up the moment that Clockwerk started his hacking session, but, as it turned out, the ancient owl was more skilled than they originally thought, because the first thing he did was disable the delay switch that he discovered, revealing that there wouldn't be any guards to pester them. The two of them entered up standing around for a few minutes, making sure the area was secure for their departure, before Clockwerk, as he promised, declared his victory and unplugged himself from the computer, where he disconnected the flash drive for now and stored it away. From there the three of them made their way back through the cleared obstacles that they had gone through to reach this area and made sure not to wake the guards that were napping on the floor, but when they finally reached the area they had entered the building through, and started to head back towards the safe house, Sly said that Clockwerk did a good job on their mission and Carmelita agreed with him... especially since they wouldn't have been able to succeed without the skills he had offered them.

As they headed back towards the safe house, however, Sly noticed that Clockwerk seemed to be lost in thought about something, likely his actions that had aided the gang, as the owl simply sat on his shoulder all the way back to their base of operations... and, at the same time, he also had to wonder how the others were doing at the moment.

Gilda and Derpy, sticking to the mission that Bentley had told them they would be doing while Sly and Carmelita headed into the opera house to gather information, with Clockwerk flying after them in his miniature owl form, carefully flew around the entirety of the Venice area that Octavio controlled and searched for their target. Every now and then one of them would spot a guard with a loot filled pocket and, true to the thieves that they were, they would swoop down, loot the pocket dry, and then flee back into the sky before the guard even realized they were there. It continued to amuse them that the guards that they had to go against couldn't hear the sounds of their wings when they flew through the air, though they weren't sure if that was because of the Cooper Clan techniques or because of their magic, but both of them weren't going to argue with the results. Eventually the two of them returned to one of the roofs that they had landed on earlier, so they could keep an eye out for any signs of Don Octavio, and paused when they heard their binocucoms go off, to which both of them pulled their device out and held it in front of their faces.

"Heads up girls, I've intercepted a radio message from one of Octavio's men." Bentley spoke up, though as the two of them looked around the area they spotted the lion in question moving up the ramp and approached one of the service stations that were in the area, one that had a valve behind the door, "The Don is moving towards your position!"

"Yeah, we see him," Gilda said, though it appeared that their target was preparing to do something, which was perfect considering that she and Derpy were preparing to use their camera functions to take come pictures, "Don't worry Bentley, we'll follow him and take some pictures of whatever he's doing, since it looks like he might be getting ready to provide us with some evidence that he's the one behind this city's tar epidemic. Hopefully these pictures will allow Inspector Hopps and the rest of Interpol to do something to Octavio, but at the very least we'll be able to either confirm or deny that he's the one we should be focusing on."

Not a few seconds later Octavio turned the valve that was in front of him and tar started to pour out into the fountain that was right behind him, to which the sisters snapped a few pictures of their target incriminating himself, but after a few moments he stopped turning the valve and closed the service station, before apparently moving towards the next location that he was going to be messing with. As such both Gilda and Derpy took to the skies and followed after him, making sure to keep him in their sights at all times and made sure that the guards didn't see them, as that would ruin the mission if one of the guards spotted them, before Octavio stopped at the other end of the bridge that connected to where their safe house was located. The sad part about the second valve was that Octavio turned a bird bath into a bird death trap, which both of the sisters got shots of without him even knowing they were there, before he moved into the location of the third valve, which was actually located near his opera house, hidden behind some buildings. That was where the sisters noticed Octavio clogging a water wheel with tar, which they snapped some pictures of from a safe distance, and soon enough their target was heading out to his destination without knowing that they were even following him.

When Octavio reached the fourth valve the sisters discovered something horrible as they snapped pictures of what he was doing, he was pumping tar into the nearby aquarium full of tar, killing all of the fish that was in there while he prepared Venice for whatever he was planning... and soon he made his way over to the Ferris Wheel and jumped onto one of the moving carts, where Derpy latched onto the side of the cart, without him noticing, and opened a link so everyone in the gang could hear what Octavio was talking about.

"Listen Giovanni, this Ferris Wheel was a good idea; she's a'pumping the tar fast, and nobody, but nobody suspects a thing!" Octavio said, revealing that the seemingly innocent ride that he was standing on actually served a sinister purpose, while at the same time enraging several of the gang members in the process, "But still... is it going to be enough to get things ready for my opera recital?... Bella! When the people come to see me sing, I want to make a'sure they keep a comin'... even if they don't feel like it. One way or the other, they'll be opera fans again. Ok, see you soon."

In the instant that Octavio's call was done, and he was still unaware that someone had been following him, he jumped off the cart he had been riding on and headed back into the streets around him, though as Derpy climbed off the cart Bentley informed them that both he and Clockwerk were on their way. That told the sisters that Sly and Carmelita had finished their mission already, which was good to hear, though as the pair came over to their area Clockwerk used his talons and tore open the control panel that was in front of them, before both he and Bentley started messing with the controls. Both of them were annoyed with Octavio killing a bunch of innocent fish, or rather Bentley was more annoyed about that than Clockwerk was, and soon enough they backed away from the now unstable Ferris Wheel, which tore itself from where it was being held and crashed into the water that was in front of where they were standing.

With the Ferris Wheel destroyed, and part of the operation crippled, the four of them returned to the safe house, so they could send the photos to who they needed to go to and see if there was anything else they needed to do before they started the second stage of Bentley's plan to take down Octavio... and then they could watch the water become clear and then bring Murray back into the team once that happened, where he belonged.

Honor: Breaking Stuff

When Bentley, Gilda, Derpy, and Clockwerk returned to the safe house, and joined Sly and Carmelita, the gang assumed that Bentley would inform them of what the next stage of their plan was, so they could dismantle Octavio's operations more than they already have. Before they could actually do that, and get the show on the road, the device that Bentley had set up to monitor the communication frequencies in the area revealed an alarming message that required some of the gang to take immediate action, especially since it involved Inspector Hopps. What they discovered was that, shortly before their official arrive in Venice, Octavio had hired the Blue Viper Gondola Gang to come in and take out Inspector Hopps, and they had just recently arrived and where getting ready to head out so they could fulfill their contract. Unfortunately there was some bad news as well, Judy was last seen a few minutes ago heading out into the canals on her own gondola, to perform her patrol while her task force readied themselves, and that meant that it was unlikely that she was going to hear them calling for her attention so they could save her. The side effect to that was that the Blue Vipers were likely already right behind her, ready to catch up with her and kill her, to which Bentley, Clockwerk, Sly, and Carmelita headed out to where the police station was located and found some spare police speedboats waiting in front of them.

Sly and Bentley took the first of the two speedboats, which Bentley had to hot-wire so they could use it, before Sly took the driver spot and they sped off to to chase down the first of the Blue Vipers, while Clockwerk did the same thing and Carmelita made sure to steer them towards their targets.

As it turned out the Blue Vipers decided to take different canals to hunt down Judy, who was completely unaware that someone was hunting her at the moment, so both Sly and Carmelita nodded as Bentley and Clockwerk pulled the two speedboats apart from each other and started the search for their targets. Clockwerk primed the guns that were in front of him and prepared himself for when they found their target, though when they found the Blue Vipers both he and Carmelita discovered that two of them were right in front of them, but that didn't stop him from firing the guns at the first of their two targets. At first the Blue Viper that he was firing at didn't seem to notice that someone was firing at him, as it almost looked like he was ignoring everything around him, but when Clockwerk busted open the back of his speedboat, and caused smoke to rise all over his vehicle, that was when the Blue Viper noticed that he was under attack. A few seconds later the speedboat was history, as the barrage of bullets that the ancient owl had sent out were more than enough to take the target out, especially when he paused every now and then to make sure he didn't jam the guns up before the mission was over. The second Blue Viper, on the other hand, was more than ready for battle, as the gunner pulled out what appeared to be a rocket launcher, indicating that Octavio intended to utterly destroy whoever was in his way, and started to prime it as he turned back to face Carmelita and Clockwerk.

What Carmelita wasn't expecting was for Clockwerk to disengage himself from the gun controls and fling himself into the air the moment the rocket was fired, where she watched as the ancient owl dug into the side of the rocket, without causing it to explode, and spun around before hurling the projectile back towards the person who fired it, causing the entire speedboat to detonate when it struck the pile of rockets that the Blue Viper was carrying... though Carmelita pulled the boat to a stop as Clockwerk landed on the front of it and stared at the burning wreckage in front of them.

With two of the Blue Vipers taken care of, Sly and Bentley should be able to take out the other with ease. Clockwerk commented, though his eyes were focused on the wreckage, as it had been a long time since he had taken someone's life, the last being Sly's father, and while it was necessary to save Judy he felt that maybe he had gone a little overboard near the end, At least Inspector Hopps will be safe from them.

"There's nothing you could have done to prevent that boat from blowing up like that," Carmelita said, knowing that Clockwerk was fixated on the flames, as he was used to killing whoever got in his way and had only recently taken up the Cooper Clan's style of knocking out enemies without killing them, though this was the only time she had seen him relapse into his old ways, "besides, you helped save Judy from an untimely death, and I'm positive that the rest of the gang will be happy with you helping them out."

Except Sly. Clockwerk replied, revealing that he knew that the leader of the gang, or family as he had come to personally call the gang of thieves he was stuck with, was observing him and keeping an eye on everything he did, while at the same time knowing that, regardless of what he did, he was unlikely to ever erase the sins he had committed by hunting down the Cooper Clan and, more importantly, killing Sly's parents.

Carmelita didn't have much to say to that, because she was shocked by how defeated and sad the ancient owl actually sounded when he made his comment, as it almost sounded like he was actually trying to prove to Sly that he was changing for the better and might not actually reach that point because of one person... even though Sly had improved his own personal opinion of the owl a little over the last year. She guessed that whatever magic Derpy had used on the Hate Chip, even if it wasn't intentional, had a clear and undeniable impact on the ancient owl and how he usually lived his life, for the better she mentally reflected, and knew that most of the gang was willing to give him another chance, the only problem was that Clockwerk was seeking one person's approval and might not get it at all. It was in that moment, as they turned and headed back towards the safe house as Bentley informed them that the other Blue Viper had been taken care of, that Carmelita decided to at least try and open Sly's mind to the possibility that Clockwerk had changed for the better, as she was the only one of the gang that might have a chance at doing that... especially since it was unlikely that Sly would argue with her over something like this.

When the four of them got back to the dock they had taken the speedboats from, and Sly saying that he would stash one somewhere safe in case they needed it in the future, they joined the rest of the gang in the safe house and Bentley went over the next stage of their plan. According to the decrypted files, that both he and Clockwerk had worked on, Octavio was pumping tar from underneath the foundations of the buildings around Venice, allowing him to sink them into the canals on a whim, and that he was planning on demonstrating this destructive ability to the people of the city during his opera recital on the first day of Carnivale. To counter this threat, Bentley informed them that they would first destroy the balloons and sign advertising the recital, as he was positive that if no one showed up for the event, Octavio would have no reason to sink a building. He then revealed that the blueprints to the main tar vacuum had been cleverly split into three parts and hidden in local coffee houses that were, as the gang suspected, owned by Octavio, and that they were under constant guard, so someone needed to use a disguise to get a small team inside each coffee house. There was also the fact that some big Vincinetti goons had been called in as 'insurance' for the recital, who Inspector Hopps and her task force were keen on taking them, even if the Inspector knew that they would be assisting the gang in the process. The last order of business, before the main operation, was that someone was going to have to convince Murray into taking to the field, because if he had been taught the Aboriginal Ball Form, like Bentley believed he did, it would be just the thing for destroying the local tar reservoirs.

Fortunately, as they soon discovered, their first task was actually taking care of the Vincinetti goons that had been called in by Octavio, and they also found out that they were eager for battle, as Diz flew through the air and attracted the attention of one of them. Once he had his target's attention he flew back towards the police station, where Carmelita was standing outside the door, ready to unleash the waiting mercenaries that were right behind the door, and when Diz moved into position she knocked on the door and headed towards the ramp that Diz was flying towards. The moment they were both there Diz covered them with his invisibility spell and they faded into the shadows as the first of Judy's guards came outside and engaged the Vincinetti goon that told him to go home, allowing the pair to move to a safe location and watch the fireworks. Not even a few seconds later Judy, hearing the noise of the fight, charged outside with the rest of her task force, who engaged the goon that was right outside the police station and took him out before dispersing throughout the entire city that they were supposed to be working in... all while the gang watched as an Interpol Inspector and her task force cleaned up the streets by taking out each and ever goon that they came across, before Judy congratulated her men as they headed back inside the police station.

Of course Judy also sent Bentley an email, from a secure address that she used to keep in touch with them, and thanked the gang for allowing them to clean up the streets, but even though she didn't say too much in the email the gang could tell that she was happy to be working with such an honorable gang... though after that message came in Bentley, accompanied by Gilda and Derpy, headed out to where Murray would be waiting for them, as Sly had run into him and had told him that someone wanted to see him.

"Sly said you were looking for me? Murray asked, though he patiently waited for both of the girls to land before he spoke up, as he already knew that they wanted his assistance in some manner and he was slightly interested in what that something was, even if he walked a different path in life now.

"That's correct," Bentley said, though at the same time he and the girls stared at Murray's new attire for a couple of seconds, as they hadn't seen it since this was the first time they had encountered their friend since coming to Venice, before Bentley got to the matter at hand, "We need your help to destroy some tar drums."

"I'm done with all that." Murray stated, where he beckoned to himself for a moment or two, before gesturing to the area that was around him, showing that there was a new connection of sorts between him and the environment, or at least that was what Gilda and Derpy assumed, "I've found a new path... it's full of peacefulness."

"Come on, what happened to 'The Murray'?" Gilda asked, as she had enjoyed the violent persona that Murray had created, as he had been very helpful in their previous missions and heists because of all the training he had gone through to reach that point, "The guy who'd get into a fist fight with ten thugs wearing nothing but a towel? The guy who used to punch first and not bother asking questions later? Where's that guy? Where's our old friend?"

"I... I'm sorry." Murray said, though at the same time he turned his full attention towards Bentley for a few seconds, as he was the person that he knew he needed to talk to and, hopefully, put some of this behind him, "Bentley... I... I tried to save you... But, I just wasn't strong enough."

"Murray, it's not your fault this happened to me... Neyla's the one that caused this to happen," Bentley replied, as he and the others knew that Murray, despite the fact that he wasn't to blame for what happened, still blamed himself and went on this spirit quest, "We don't blame you and never have. The only thing we feel bad about is losing our pal."

"Look... I want to help you." Murray stated, where he beckoned to the water that was near them, where the trio could find the black tar stain that they had chosen to stop, especially after they figured out what Octavio's true plan was and the consequences if he wasn't stopped in the near future, "It's just that I promised I'd stay here and 'peacefully' meditate till the black water ran pure."

"Well... what if you could help us peacefully?" Derpy asked, because it seemed like the problem wasn't just the fact that Murray had been sent here by his Guru, but also because he was trying to swear off violence to the best of his abilities, even if it was hard for him to do so, "You wouldn't have to punch anyone."

"I'm in!" Murray declared, to which he raised his fists into the air for a moment, in the style of when he was excited about something, and that brought a smile to the faces of the trio that was standing in front of him, as his tone had instantly reverted back to it's previous state, "Keep it peaceful and I'll smash up anything you'd like!"

"As a student of the Australian Dreamtime, I'm sure you've learned of 'the ball form'?" Bentley inquired, though he was going to have to thank the girls for coming out here with him once this operation was complete, as he was sure that their presence had helped Murray decide on what to do.

"Yeah, sure, like my first week." Murray replied, though at the same time both Gilda and Derpy smiled, as that fit perfectly into the plan that Bentley had created for that technique, as this meant that Murray was likely to have a decent amount of practice with the skill and would be able to use it wouldn't any problems.

"Excellent! Tuck into ball form and clog that vent pipe." Bentley said, to which he gestured to the nearby pipe in question, which they had been standing near for this very reason, before he turned towards Murray, "The pressure build up should shoot you skyward. Maintain your ball form and smash into the six tar drums around town... Gilda and Derpy will make sure you know where they're located."

Murray seemed happy to be of some help to them, even declaring that his Guru would be okay with him using his teachings in such a way, before he tucked into his ball form and rolled into the pipe, where it shot him into the air and the sisters flew around to make sure that he knew where each of the targets were located. As the two of them guided Murray to his targets, since he had left his binocucom with the rest of his gear when he left the gang, they both noticed that their friend went out of his way to avoid drawing attention to himself and avoided doing damage to the guards that were in the areas that the tar drums were located in. When the noise he was making drew too much attention he slipped out of his ball form and hid for a few moments, allowing the girls to observe their foes until it was safe for him to move again, and then he was on his way once more, bouncing off the ground and smashing the tar drums that Bentley wanted him to smash apart. It took about ten minutes for Murray and the girls to smash through the targets, even with hiding for a few seconds, but in the end he was able to fulfill the mission Bentley had asked of him and, sadly, he had to go back to his meditation while he waited for the water to be purified.

Once the two of them returned to the safe house, and informed the gang of Murray's success, Bentley had them follow him towards a store that sold fireworks, especially ones for Carnival, and revealed that it was his base of operations for the next mission, taking out all of Octavio's signs. Clockwerk flew along with them, just in case there was something that they needed help with, though both Derpy and Gilda knew that the ancient owl preferred to spend his time around Bentley, because he had to see him as a friend and not someone that was as smart as he was. When they arrived the girls found that the two geniuses had cobbled together some powerful explosives, one to take care of the nearby anchor and a second one to take care of one that was near the clock tower, and that all included a third explosive to take out the sign on the tower itself, in case neither of the girls wanted to expand their energy and smash it themselves. The instant they arrived at their destination Derpy was the first one to receive an explosive, where she opened her wings and carried it over to the anchor that was her target, which she destroyed seconds later and sent the balloon that was attached to it... to which she landed on a roof top to watch it sore into the air before tearing itself apart, though she didn't head back to the shop as Gilda flew out carrying the second charge.

Bentley's plan was to use the gases inside the balloon to burn down the sign on the clock tower, which was why he gave that one to Gilda, since she could control the wind and was able to make sure the breeze that Bentley wanted was still flowing when the balloon made contact, burning away the sign while not even harming the tower itself, which would have reflected poorly on them if Judy or the task force caught them burning a tower down. Of course that was followed by the sound of someone attacking the door of the stand that Bentley had taken over, though as the sisters flew back to help him out, however, they heard the sound of Clockwerk screeching and Octavio, apparently not liking the sound at all, was seen running away from the stand, where the sisters found that Bentley was safe and Clockwerk was staring at the door that their target had tried to break down.

"What happened here?" Gilda asked, as while she could guess what had happened here, based on the mess that was around them and the fact that Octavio had fled from the scene, she and Derpy were interested in hearing what actually occurred before they went back to the safe house.

Octavio tried to kidnap Bentley while you two were gone, as he thought it was only the three of you, Clockwerk replied, as it had been a long time since he had intentionally driven someone off like that, especially someone that had been his target, but he knew that they'd get Octavio soon enough, The screech you heard, and didn't run away from, is something I developed after watching one of Sly's ancestors, one that used an opera house as his base of operations, and intended to use to stun him during my plot to bring him down, though, as you no doubt know, his ancestor foiled me and I was sent back to the drawing board. For someone like Octavio the screech made him back off and run away, though he knows that we're here and he's waiting for us to do something... so we'll have to be extra careful when it comes time for us to pull off the operation.

Gilda and Derpy smiled, as saving one of Sly's friends from their foe was another step in the right direction, as they were definitely convinced that he was changing for the better, though at the same time they had to wonder what would have to happen for Sly to start trusting the owl... but they pushed that to the back of their minds as they headed back to the safe house, as there was one more thing they needed to do before they started the operation, and they were sure that everyone was eager to bring an end to Octavio's terrible schemes.

Honor: Tar-Be Gone

As Gilda, Derpy, Bentley, and Clockwerk returned to the safe house, so they could ready themselves for the final task that needed to be complete before they started the operation that Bentley was planning, Sly and Carmelita headed out and headed towards the mission point that was nearby. Gilda and Derpy found that Sly was carrying what appeared to be a disguise of some kind as he and Carmelita departed from the building, though the pair found that there happened to be no guards on their way to the area that Bentley wanted them to head to. Sly would have expected Octavio to have posted more of his guards around the city, since they had smashed the Ferris Wheel that he was using the pump the tar, took his picture while he was turning all those valves, and broke several parts of his operation that would have had other targets in the past call in additional reinforcements, which was why he was confused as they followed the streets. Carmelita, on the other hand, was more than happy with this situation, as this meant that they would be able to get to their destination rather easily and start the mission without being seen, but that didn't mean that she didn't keep her eyes open for anything and everything that might interrupt their mission.

Once the two of them reached the area that the final mission was located in, which happened to be situated above one of the three coffee houses that were scattered throughout the area of Venice they were in, they stopped and pulled out their binocucoms, as they wanted to double check what they were supposed to do before they got underway.

"Octavio keeps the blueprints to his main tar pumping station in three parts." Bentley informed them, referring to information that he had gained from the computer that Clockwerk had hacked into earlier, along with anything that he was able to gain on his own, "Each is cleverly hidden behind a painting inside one of his 'legit' coffee houses."

"He's not very subtle about where they're located," Carmelita commented, as she was staring down at the coffee house that was down below them, where she found one of the flashlight guards standing guard in front of the door, one that looked bored out of his mind, "especially since he's posted a full-time guard in front of a coffee house."

"Since we destroyed his Ferris Wheel, he's gone all out on the security." Bentley replied, confirming their thoughts on why Octavio had increased the security around the area, even though they hadn't seen anything since they left the safe house so the could reach this area, "In fact, he's got all his guards checking up on each other. If we're going to get inside and at the blueprints, we can't raise any suspicion."

"Based on the disguise you crafted earlier, I think we understand the plan." Sly said, where he looked down at the disguise that he had grabbed on their way out of the safe house, which resembled the attire that the flashlight guards were wearing, "I'll approach the guard while in disguise and pretend to take the next shift. When the coast is clear, Carmelita can head inside and swipe the blueprints from where Octavio hid them. With me standing out front, no one will know that something's up."

"When you're talking to the guards, while wearing that disguise, make sure to memorize their passwords and say them back in a timely fashion." Bentley told him, though at the same time both Sly and Carmelita heard him tapping some keys as he brought up the list of possible codes that Octavio could have used, no doubt taken from the same computer that Clockwerk had hacked into, "Take too long or mess it up, and he'll know you're a phony."

Sly nodded and put down his binocucom for a moment, though that was when Carmelita watched as he carefully pulled on the disguise that he had been given and made sure that it rested over his body, hiding his normal attire as he stashed both his hat and his cane in a safe spot that couldn't easily be spotted, before he looked like a skinny and not muscular version of the flashlight guards. Carmelita nodded and watched as Sly carefully dropped down onto the street near them and approached the guard that was standing in front of the coffee house that was their destination, purposely stepping into the light so he could get the guard's attention.

"Halt!" the guard said, shining his flashlight on Sly for a moment as he growled, indicating that he wasn't in the mood for games and wanted to make sure that Sly was who he appeared to be, not even bothering to take into account that Sly wasn't carrying a weapon or a flashlight, "Tell me the day time password."

"Alto, alto, base, base." Sly replied, as that was what Bentley whispered into his ear the moment he heard which code the guard was using, while at the same time he hoped that it was the correct code, otherwise this was going to get messy when the guard raised his weapon to attack him, while at the same time using his barely practiced Italian accent to help convince the man that he was who he claimed he was.

"Okay, I guess you're the relief shift." the guard said, his defenses lowering for a moment, which made sense thanks to the code that Sly had said and the attire that he was wearing, though at the same time both Sly and Carmelita noticed that he seemed very happen to see Sly, "Thanks for coming early, I've got a'big plans for tonight! Carnival! Good time, eh?"

It was in the following moment that the guard walked away from the door of the coffee house and headed to wherever he was planning on going, since it appeared that he had big plans for tonight, though at the same time Carmelita dropped down and approached the door... while at the same time Bentley, listening in on what had been said, had to say something before they moved forward.

"I honestly can't believe that worked!" Bentley exclaimed, shocked by either the fact that his plan had worked better than he thought it did, or the fact that the guards in this city were too stupid to sense that something was wrong about the situation, "Sly, you've got the worst Italian accent I've ever heard!... No offense."

"None taken." Sly replied, as he knew that his fake accent was terrible and was honestly surprised that it had worked as well as it had, though at the same time he approached the door and pulled it open, where Carmelita smiled and headed inside so she could find what they came for.

As Carmelita entered the building she found that this was, quite literally, the first coffee house she had ever seen with wall-to-wall laser security, but, as luck would have it, there happened to be enough tables within range of each other, ones that she used to cross over the lasers and reach the other side. As she landed on the other side of the coffee house she found that Octavio really was into old school tactics, especially since she was staring at a painting safe, though this was where her thief training came in handy once more as she carefully studied the painting. Sly had told her that one of the things he remembered about his father was that he used to crack these all the time and even tried to teach it to Sly, who had a hard time actually cracking these things, which was why he was surprised when she was able to do something that he had trouble with within the first few tries. The trick, as she quickly discovered, was that the combination to the safe was actually hidden somewhere inside the artwork, carefully hidden and generally someone needed to use a magnifying glass to see the small numbers, but even then it wasn't long before she spotted an area that looked slightly different from the others and spotted the combination.

Once she had the combination memorized she carefully moved the paining up on the hinge it was attached to and input 4-7-9 into the tumblers that were in front of her, where the safe opened and she retrieved the blueprints, before she turned around and headed outside.

The moment Carmelita was outside Sly smiled, as he was glad to see that she was able to use the training he had given her to get the information that they had come for, though as she moved out for the next coffee house, via the rooftops, Sly walked the old fashioned way and made sure not to run into any guards. The main reason he was doing this was because he didn't want to take the disguise off and on so many times in a row, so with Carmelita moving on ahead he knew that the area would be clear of enemies on the roofs and that he would have a clear path towards the front door of the coffee house. As it turned out his next destination was actually on the street close to the safe house, one that was slightly higher than the one the safe house was on, but that didn't distract him as he carefully made his way up the ramp in front of him and walked over to where the second flashlight guard was located, purposely stepping into the light to gain his attention for a few moments.

"Halt!" the second guard said, staring at Sly for a few moments, though while he seemed annoyed to have to go through the whole asking of a code and seeing if it was the right one, as Sly imagined many of the guards were annoyed with, he also seemed a little happy as well, "What's the cafe password?"

"Base, base, base, soprano." Sly replied, repeating the code that Bentley offered him, because he had the feeling that this guy must have drawn the short straw or something and just wanted to have fun when Carnival started, which meant that he was hoping that Sly was who he thought he was.

"Ah am I glad you're here." the guard exclaimed, showing how happy he was that Sly had come early, as if he was actually the relief shift that he had been waiting for, even if that wasn't the truth of the matter, "Mama's making spaghetti tonight and I'm starving. I'm gonna eat like three, no, four plates full!"

"Guess a'you really like her cooking." Sly commented, as he honestly didn't know what to say to a statement like that, because he never actually took the time to take to a guard and see what they were thinking of the time that he and his gang were pulling a heist or an operation, making him wonder if the other guards that worked for all the other targets would have been similar to this guy.

"Mama-mia! I want to be buried in her sauce, it's heaven!" the guard proclaimed, though that was followed by him happily heading down the street so he could head home, change out of his guard attire, and then enjoy what sounded like a nice dinner with his mother, and whoever else was there, before enjoying Carnival.

"Any problems with that guy?" Carmelita asked, as she had been concerned that the guard might have thought that something was strange about the situation, but after seeing the smile on his face, and how he walked for a few seconds, she knew that something had definitely happened.

"He said he wanted to buried in his mom's pasta sauce." Sly replied, as he really didn't understand the man's strange fascination behind liking his mother's pasta so much, but, after thinking about the dinner that the gang shared with Carmelita's family, he guessed that he might have a good idea of what the guard was thinking about.

"Yeah, that's, uh... that's strange." Carmelita said, though she pushed that thought out of her mind as Sly opened the door of the coffee house, to which she slipped inside and continued her search for the second blueprint as her boyfriend stood guard outside.

As she entered the coffee house she discovered that this one only had searchlights, where were even easier to deal with than the floor lasers in the first building she had entered, which was why she was able to get to the other side of the room and face the painting safe in a matter of seconds. While she started to study the picture of a swamp, and wondered why Octavio would choose such a thing for a coffee house, she overheard Sly making comments on the strange guard's fascination with pasta, making it look like he was a guard that was talking to himself about what a fellow guard had told him, so the other guards wouldn't bother him for some time. Despite the noise in her ear, which she was happy to hear since she was wondering some of the same things that Sly was talking about, she was able to find and enter the code, 9-6-8, which allowed her to withdraw the second blueprint and leave the coffee house. Even as Sly opened the door for her, and she walked outside, she knew that he was still thinking about something, and she had the feeling that it was annoying someone that was listening in to what they were doing.

"Carmelita, maybe there's a good Italian restaurant around here that we can..." Sly started to say, but before he could finish his statement he heard a buzzing in his ear, the same one that Carmelita heard not a few seconds later, though they both knew what that meant.

"Enough with the sauce!" Bentley exclaimed, as he couldn't believe how unfocused Sly had become after meeting the one guard that loved his mother's pasta sauce, while at the same time not believing that Carmelita was allowing him to act in such a manner, "Keep your focus, we're on a job here. Thugs everywhere, death around every corner!"

"You're right. We got one more coffee house to hit, then we're done." Sly replied, though at the same time he grinned, as he knew the look that had appeared on Carmelita's face and he knew that she was agreeing with what he had been about to say before Bentley cut him off.

"Yes, now you're talking sense." Bentley said, as it felt good to have Sly back on track, because some times he felt that it was hard to keep his mind on a certain task when he found something like that guard and his fascination with his mother's pasta sauce, which was why he was glad that Carmelita was with him to keep him focused.

"And then we eat." Carmelita said, though as she jumped onto the nearby roof, and headed out for the third coffee house, she heard some of the gang laugh while Bentley said nothing, indicating that he couldn't believe that she was taking Sly's side on the matter.

Sly knew that most of them had to be getting hungry, as they actually hadn't eaten anything since they arrived in Venice, and that was why most of them had laughed at what Carmelita said, even though Bentley eventually sighed and went along with the rest of the group. A few moments later he started his walk towards the third coffee house, which was actually across the shopping area that the police station was located in, surprising him for a moment since he expected the last one to be closer to where Octavio's opera house was located, but this was good for them. As he suspected there was a flashlight guard standing in front of the door to the coffee house, one that didn't look bored like the other two that he had encountered so far, so Sly carefully approached him as he stepped into the light, allowing the guard to turn towards him for a moment.

"Hey you!" the third guard stated, his tone revealing that he was annoyed with spotting one of his co-workers walking around the area, though the smirk that followed it told Sly that he enjoyed watching the others squirm as they struggled to remember the various codes that they had been forced to remember, "Tell me the day time password!"

"Alto, alto, base, base." Sly replied, though at the same time he wished that this mission was slightly different from the other ones, so he could smack the guard upside the head with his cane and knock him out, as there was something about this guy that he didn't like... and he had the feeling that he'd find out soon enough.

"Yeah, you know the code, but what's my nickname." the guard commented, showing that, despite the fact that Sly was able to give him the password that he had asked for, he wasn't about to move until a second, and more personal, question was answered, "There's only one Tony B. on the payroll, and I'm famous in the family."

"I'm a'new, just got called in from Rome." Sly answered, hoping that this would be able to convince the guard that he had better move on and not waste time with him, though at the same time he found that he would have preferred talking to the pasta guard again.

"They know me in Rome. I'm practically the mayor of organized crime in Rome." the guard, Tony B., said, acting like a big shot of some kind, like he was the biggest and baddest person around the area, before a big angry frown appeared on his face as he stared at Sly, "You telling me you never heard my nickname there?"

In was in that moment that Bentley, receiving a suggestion from Carmelita, had Sly's binocucom ring like it was an actual phone, allowing Sly to make up an excuse that couldn't be proven true unless the guard checked in with Octavio, which he may or may not do depending on what happened next.

"Uh, my cell phone's a'going off... I should take a'this call, could be the boss." Sly stated, knowing that the guard could easily call him out on this, but at the same time most of the guards seemed to have some sort of respect for their boss and might think it bad to interrupt someone that was receiving a call from him.

"Yeah, okay." Tony B. replied, though the look on his face told Sly that the next time they crossed paths, if he still didn't know his nickname, there would be consequences for his actions and that he would take immediate actions, to which Sly walked away and thought of a game plan.

Carmelita, knowing that Sly didn't want to take off his disguise until the mission was done, did the next best thing she could think of, she had Sly follow her towards the guards that were in the area, which was easy since there was a pigeon guard patrolling the area around the birdbath that the girls had seen Octavio pumping tar into... and, upon spotted Sly as he walked down the street, the pigeon guard was the first to react to the presence of another guard.

"You there," the pigeon guard said, stopping Sly in his tracks, who was thankful that he could hide the smile that was on his face before he turned around and faced the guard, otherwise this would have been ruined before he even had the chance to speak the code, "What was last night's password?"

"Alto, tenor, tenor, alto." Sly replied, showing that he had a knowledge of the codes, even though it was Bentley who was giving them to him, but he kept his mouth shut about that and only repeated the necessary words to the pigeon guard that had stopped him.

"Okay, you're legit." the pigeon guard stated, though a pleased look appeared on his face, showing that he was glad that he had found a friend and not someone that was pretending to be a guard, even though his thought process would have been severely wrong.

"Hey, you know Tony B's nickname?" Sly asked, because he was hoping that the first person he asked could give hi the information that he needed, otherwise he'd have to go out and have Carmelita find him another guard to ask, something that he honestly didn't want to do.

"Tony B!" the pigeon guard replied, though he did laugh for a few moments, indicating that there was something about the guard in question that a lot of people disliked or found funny, meaning that this might be harder than what Sly thought it would be when he started this mission, "That cannoli, he's a what's it called, an "ego maniac"... I don't know nothin' about him, don't wanna know."

Sly, despite not getting the information that he wanted, thanked the guard for his time and wished him well for Carnival, since every other guard seemed to care about the upcoming event, and, as he walked towards the next target that Carmelita had found, he could hear the guard thanking him... especially when he walked right up to where one of the cat guards was standing and gained his attention.

"Hey you!" the cat guard said, stopping Sly in his tracks, meaning that he wasn't paying attention to what was going on around him, otherwise he would have known that Sly had already answered a code question and shouldn't have to answer one again, "Give me the cafe password."

"Base, base, base, soprano." Sly said, though he was thankful that Bentley and Clockwerk were able to get this information out of the computer, otherwise he was sure that the plan would have been knock them out and get the blueprints before they came to.

"Yep, that's the password." the cat guard replied, though at the same time he glanced at the other guards that were across the area from where they were standing, where he watched them repeat the codes to each other before moving on with their lives, "Sometimes I forget 'em you know?"

"You and me a'both pal." Sly stated, this time acting like he had remembered the right code and that there were times where it took him some time to get the code out before he annoyed whoever was checking with him, "Hey, you know what Tony B's nickname is?"

"Yeah, that fathead likes to call himself Tony 'the Killer' B." the cat guard said, not even caring about his co-worker as he laughed for a few moments, showing that not a lot of people cared for Tony B. and that they felt that his choice of a nickname was terrible, "What a idiot."

"I couldn't agree more." Sly agreed, though at the same time he noticed that the guard appeared to be lost in thought about something and decided that now was as good a time to make his way back to the guard that he needed to get by, while at the same time Carmelita headed back there as well.

As they both expected Tony B. was still standing in front of the door to the third coffee house, looking like he was going to rip off someone's head or something, and Sly walked back into the light, allowing him to shine his light on him as he prepared himself once more.

"You there!" Tony B. said, though while he recognized the guard that was in front of him, since it was the only raccoon on the payroll apparently, he decided to see if he knew another password before he asked the second question once more, "What's the midnight password?"

"Alto, base, alto, alto." Sly replied, though this time he was ready for the second question, and Carmelita was hiding off in the shadows, waiting for him to get the guard out of the way before she went in and got the blueprints that they needed for the final operation.

"So bigshot, what's my nickname?" Tony B. asked, but he was fully prepared to punish Sly if he failed to give up the right nickname, as that was his way of ensuring that his name wasn't forgotten and that everyone feared him by the time he was done with each job he was given.

"Oh come on! Everyone's a'heard of Tony 'the Killer' B!" Sly stated, where he acted like he had known the nickname all along and that the call had been important enough to stop him from answering the question the first time, "You're a'the terror of every playground from here to Sicily."

"Ha, ha, ha, real funny. Least I'm not on guard duty during Carnival." Tony B. said, with what appeared to be the biggest smug look that Sly had ever seen, despite the mask hiding most of his face, while at the same time revealing that this guy didn't seem to care much for his co-workers either, "Who's got the last laugh now tough guy? Me! That's who."

As Tony B. wandered off, and left Sly in charge of the door to the coffee house, Carmelita emerged from where she had been hiding and slipped into the building as Sly held the door open for her, which he closed and made it look like no one had done inside. Carmelita found a combination of both floor lasers and searchlights in her path, but, once again, her thief training made such things simply too easy for her to take on and she was able to get to the painting safe within a decent amount of time, all without tripping an alarm. This time she discovered that the code was 1-1-3 and retrieved the blueprints that they had come for, though as she made her way outside she found that the third safe was tied to an alarm and both she and Sly hightailed it out of the area before any of the other guards came to investigate the noise, who also ended up fighting with each other over what happened, knocking a few of their fellow guards out in the process. It was amusing to watch, since they didn't seem to care about the coffee house at all, but after a few moments Sly and Carmelita headed back to the safe house to learn what they needed to do next.

When the entire gang was back in the safe house, and had cooled down from their various missions, Bentley explained that Sly would entered the opera house and use his disguise to get down to the tar pumps, where he would let both himself and Clockwerk into the area so they could bomb the pumps. Following that came Bentlet's insane idea, getting onstage with Octavio and doing and opera duel with him, merely as a distraction while someone cut the ropes of the chandelier that was hanging above the stage, allowing them to drop it right on his head and knock him out. In addition to that Carmelita would be making sure that Judy was in position so she and her task force could arrest Octavio, though while it would be assisting an injured person at first the gang knew what he meant, and hopefully they could dismantle or at least disconnect the connection between the demolition device and the actual devices that it was connected to. By the time all of that happened, and they waited a while, Murray would be able to come with them since the black waters were sure to be clear by that point in time, which made the gang happy when they thought about bringing Murray back into the gang at last.

It sounded like an insane plan that had a high risk of failure, since Octavio was slightly different than the targets they had taken out in the past, but Bentley was convinced that it could work and the team trusted him, despite the fact that many of them were just going to be spectators this time around. Despite that fact the group that wasn't doing anything this time around listened to Sly's binocucom as he made his way to the entrance of the opera house, convinced the guard that he was one of them, and made his way inside, where he began his journey to the pump room. As that happened Diz was able to find Murray and convince him to be present when they took down the man that had caused the water to turn black, especially when Sly encountered Octavio and revealed that he knew the 'Secret Soprano Password', where Octavio ordered him to tell the other guards that he wasn't to be disturbed during his comeback recital, completely thinking that Sly was actually one of his guards. Sly even managed to get their target to help him with the double button security door that was blocking his path, allowing him to enter the pump room and let both Bentley and Clockwerk in, where they rained pure destruction down upon the pumps once they were sure that no one would come running to investigate the noise.

Once that was done the three of them used the side path that Sly and Carmelita had used to get to the computer, the same one that Clockwerk had hacked into, and escaped the area long before Octavio came out, who simply stared at Bentley when he made the request to perform opera with him, despite how much he was shaking at the moment. Octavio, true to what Bentley said he would do, accepted him on the stage, even though no one else besides the gang, dressed up as civilians to sell the illusion to Octavio, had come to watch, and soon the two of them started to sing notes while Sly undid the ropes holding the chandelier that was hanging above them. Despite having next to no practice on the subject Bentley seemed to be doing quite fine, as it appeared that Octavio's eagerness to pin him down and hurt him was enough to make him not even suspect that someone was above him, while at the same time Clockwerk, who was sitting behind Derpy so the mobster didn't see him and flee, grew angry as he watched Octavio. The members of the gang that were nearby knew why the ancient owl was getting mad, because he had actually found a friend in Bentley and didn't want him to get hurt in some manner... but, fortunately for them, he didn't have to change forms, as Sly as able to drop the chandelier at the right moment and Octavio was taken out before he even knew what had hit him.

As all of that happened, and the stage was crushed, Murray's old destructive habits came back, much to everyone's joy when they saw him cheering, and the gang vacated from the area, allowing Judy and her team to come in and arrest Octavio for his crimes, though she did glance over to where Carmelita was watching and nodded her head once, before they left the area.

After that happened the gang spent the next few days hanging around the city, enjoying themselves and telling Murray about what he's missed since the day he left the gang and headed out to find peace, where he congratulated Carmelita on passing her trial with flying colors. In addition to that the gang made sure that Murray had a shower, a good one to get rid of the stink he had developed, and made sure he put on his old clothing and attire, announcing to the world that 'The Murray' had returned, putting a smile on everyone's faces at the same time. As Bentley predicted it took those couple of days for the tar to clear up and return the water to normal, much to Murray's joy, though once that happened Clockwerk had a surprise for them, or, more accurately, he had a surprise for both Sly and Carmelita. That surprise was a nice Italian dinner in one of the most popular Italian restaurants that was nearby, though none of the others complained, especially when he made sure they got a large order of pizza and other things to keep them away from the pair that were enjoying each other.

Gilda and Derpy were sure that it was a move on the ancient owl's part to show Sly that he cared about the gang and that he was sorry for what had happened, and they hoped that Sly was able to figure that out without being told, but at the very least Sly and Carmelita were enjoying themselves... that way they would be ready for whatever happened next.