Chapter Text
“Another Clockwerk part had surfaced in India, so the boys and I loaded up the van and zeroed in on our next target: a mysterious spice lord known as Rajan. A self-made man who grew up poor on the streets of Calcutta, he started his life of crime selling illegal spices in the black market, eventually growing his small outfit into a sizable operation and earning himself a seat in the prestigious Klaww Gang. He's since crowned himself "Lord of the Hills", and while he goes to great lengths to convince others of his royalty, it's mostly to convince himself. True to form, he's holding a lavish ball in his newly-purchased "ancestral palace". The reason? To show off his latest acquisition: the Clockwerk Wings. The symbol of my enemy. If you saw the wings silhouetted against the night sky, it was already too late for you, especially if your name was Cooper. Rajan believes displaying the wings will bring him prestige, and maybe they will, but they're also bringing me.”
The Cooper Gang holed up in a large cave just on the outskirts of the city where Rajan was residing. They were accompanied by Sophia, an artificial intelligence inhabiting an android white mouse body, and Feitan Pohtoh, a vampire bat man.
“I rarely get to do field work like this,” Sophia said excitedly. “So I’m quite excited to be able to join you all!”
“So, what’s new on the ThiefNet, Bentley?” Murray asked.
“Hold on, lemme see…” Bentley said. “ Well, first is the Combat Dodge, which lets Sly sidestep enemies in combat. For me, it’s the Size Destabilizer, which upgrades my crossbow to shrink enemies I strike. And Murray, you’ll like this one. The Turnbuckle Launch, which can vastly increase your jump height.”
“Sounds awesome!” Murray said.
“Remember that we need coins to buy these moves, so make sure to grab some good loot while we’re here,” Feitan suggested.
“Sly, scope out the palace, and then find a way to break into the ballroom. Let's find out who's at this party.” Bentley said.
Sly nodded as he carefully used the Ninja Spire Jump to cross the river via the rocks and then get into the city.
Once among the guards, Sly was able to snag a Bronze Ring, Silver Ring, Gold Ring, Bronze Pen, Silver Pen, Gold Pen, Bronze Medal, Silver Medal, Gold Medal, Ancestral Kit, Burial Urn, and a Ming Vase. Combined with the leftover money from the last job, they had plenty to buy the new moves. Sly and Martin then popped up to a small turret on the palace.
“I figured out how to sneak in above the ballroom without being detected. The only problem is there's no way to climb up to that balcony door.” Bentley said.
“Not a problem. There seem to be plenty of branches for us to walk on.” Sly smirked.
The two leapt across the branches to a small balcony leading inside the palace.
“Easy does it. Just don't go out onto the balcony, and you should remain undetected.”
Sly nodded and took a photograph of the Indian Tiger man, Rajan.
“That's him. Rajan's really pulled out all the stops to impress people with this party.”
Sly then took a picture of the Clockwerk Wings.
“Looks like the wings have been welded onto that statue. They look heavy. Getting the wings out of here will be a real challenge.”
Sly looked up and then snapped a picture of a large electronic winch up above.
“An electronic winch. That could be useful.” Bentley noted. “Maybe you should get some shots of the guests.”
One of the guests was a white cat woman with a large mane of blue hair.
“Oh, hey,” Martin said. “My girlfriend Felicia is here.”
“The famous pop idol?” Sly asked.
“Yeah, we met when I was donating extra cash from my last adventure to an orphanage. Kinda connected after that.”
Sly took a picture of a red-furred bison man walking with a large stick.
“Jean Bison,” Martin noted, “A member of the Klaww Gang and Canadian shipping baron. He owns half the trains in Canada.”
Sly then noticed a small parrot man piloting a birdcage spider walker.
“And Arpeggio himself. He specializes in exotic technology.”
Sly then took a picture of a black widow spider woman.
“That's the Contessa, a high-ranking prison warden for Interpol. She must be working undercover to expose Rajan's spice ring.”
“Funny, the last spider lady I met was a lot more attractive,” Martin quipped. “Contessa must be getting on in years.”
Sly then smirked as he found Carmelita, snapping a picture of her in her dress.
“Carmelita's here too. She must be working undercover with the Contessa to help bust Rajan.”
Sly then noticed Neyla as well and figured he’d snap a picture for Ben.
“That's all the photos I need. Bring them back to the safe house, and we'll start building a game plan.” Bentley said.
After Sly and Martin returned to the safehouse, Bentley began to detail the plan.
“Stealing the Clockwerk wings in the middle of a crowded ballroom is going to take some serious misdirection, and the squad of undercover cops only makes things more complicated. Although we might be able to use them to our advantage. But no matter what we do in the ballroom, sooner or later, we'll need to deal with Rajan's security chopper.”
“And how will we do that?” Sophia asked.
“Murray can take it out with some of the local armaments, but he won't be able to get inside the palace until Sly lowers the drawbridge for him.”
“Then we’ll make that a priority,” Sly decided. “The sooner we can let the entire team have free rein of the palace, the better.”
Ben and Feitan headed out to find a way to lower the drawbridge. They decided to try to snag some keys from the patrolling guards.
“Pickpocketing shouldn’t be too hard,” Ben said. “Just try to keep up.”
Feitan used his wings to glide from turret to turret, landing behind the guards and using his blade to carefully remove their coin purses to retrieve the keys.
“Now’s not the time to start dropping guards. If Rajan gets alerted, it could ruin the setup.”
He and Ben used the keys to unlock the winch to the drawbridge and lower it.
“Thanks, guys. Now the rest of us can access the palace grounds.” Bentley said.
Sly, Martin, and Ben, using the techniques of Thaddeus Winslow Cooper III, dressed up in stylish tuxes.
“Good thing Feitan suggested formal wear for this heist,” Sly said.
“Sorry, we have to have him bring it up,” Bentley said. “I was so engrossed with the rest of the plan I didn’t consider the possibility of needing it.”
“Relax, Bentley, even monkeys fall from trees,” Martin said as he knocked on the door.
A bouncer opened the slit.
“Can I help you?”
“Hello, we’re here for the dance,” Sly said.
“Very well, you fit the dress code. Enjoy yourselves.” The bouncer said.
The three headed inside while Bentley, Murray, Sophia, and Feitan headed out to deal with the security chopper.
“That chopper is a menace to all future aerial operations while on this job,” Bentley said.
“Yeah, it's all covered in missiles and guns and stuff,” Murray noted.
“With the four of us working together, we can take it out easily.”
Murray and Sophia worked together in manning the turret. Before long, they had the chopper gunned down.
“Good work, the sky's all clear!” Bentley said.
“Let’s hope Sly, Martin, and Ben are handling things on their end,” Feitan said.
Felicia’s eyes lit up when she saw Martin.
“No way! What are you doing in India? Searching for the treasure of Hanuman, maybe?”
“Nah, I’m after something bigger this time,” Martin said.
“Constable Neyla, you look lovely this evening,” Ben smirked.
“I'm sorry, do I know you?” Nyela asked.
“I used to chase after you back in Paris.”
“Paris...? Ben?!” Neyla asked in surprise before smirking. “You aren't by any chance here to turn yourself in? Or maybe give over the Clockwerk Tail Feathers.”
Carmelita noticed and realized who the dapper-looking raccoon in the tux was.
“Sly Cooper. If I weren’t undercover, I’d slap the cuffs on you here and now.”
“As good as that sounds, how about a dance first?” Sly offered.
“Only because I think you might be able to keep up. After that kiss you stole back in Russia, it’s clear romance is in your character.”
“You actually kissed Old Ironsides?” Neyla said with a coy smile.
Soon enough, the three couples were on the dance floor in an amazingly choreographed tango.
“Those fellows are very graceful,” Rajan noted.
“If only you moved spice shipments as well.” Jean Bison snarked.
“Silence!”
By the end of the dance, it was clear the entire ballroom was transfixed.
“Thank you, that was delightful.” Neyla smiled.
“Thank you, Constable Neyla. After all, it takes two to tango.” Ben said.
“So, Sly, are you planning on doing something similar later?” Carmelita asked.
She tilted her head towards the Clockwerk Wing.
“And if I am?” Sly asked.
“I suppose I can play along, but only because I know how dangerous Clockwerk really is,” Carmelita decided.
Felicia looked confused.
“I’ll explain everything where there are fewer eyes and ears,” Martin assured her.
“Alright, boys and one girl, we're ready for the next phase. My plan to get at the Clockwerk Wings requires the use of the electric winch above the ballroom. To get control over the device, I'll need to hack the computers in Rajan's boardroom. Plus, we'll need an extra-strong saw blade to cut the wings off the statue. To make a saw blade that durable, I'll need Sly to steal the gems off the headdresses on Rajan's prize elephants. And finally, I'll take to the field with my remote control helicopter and nullify the palace's surface-to-air defenses. That should clear things up for the heist.”
“I think I know which people are good for which jobs,” Feitan smirked.
“Murray's rotund features prevent him from fitting through the drain pipe, so we'll need you to unlock the vault room from the inside. I've heard through a reliable source that the guards keep the vault combination written beneath one of their break tables.”
“So, you want me to crawl under each till I find it?” Sly asked.
“That's the idea.”
As Sly checked out each table, he overheard Rajan on the intercom.
“Attention, vault room guards, allow no guest entry to the inner workings of the palace. This party is supposed to be legitimate, and I don't want my flawless reputation being spoiled by some flunky who doesn't know how to lock a door! The spice trade is dangerous work, particularly for those who anger me!”
Eventually, Sly found the table with the code.
“This is it!”
“Fantastic. Now, type the code into the vault's laser door entrance.” Bentley said.
Sly made his way to the boardroom and typed in the code on the keypad.
“Nice work. Make your way to the security lockdown switch and let in the rest of us.” Ben said.
Sly then noticed the vault in the room.
“I'd love to see the look on Rajan's face when he finds this vault empty. The code should be... 8-5-7.”
Sly punched in the numbers and swung open the safe, finding a set of blueprints inside.
“You've gotten the Insanity Strike move!” Bentley said. “Using special hypnotic waves, you can convince guards to fight each other on our behalf with just a tap of your cane.
Sly nodded as he let the rest of the gang in.
“Thanks for breaking us in, pal, "The Murray" approves,” Murray said.
“Let's get down to brass tacks. Me and Sophia need to hack both the vault room computers to get control of the electronic winch above the ballroom.” Bentley said.
“A pleasure to be of assistance,” Sophia said. “I am animality’s companion.”
“So, what are the rest of us here for?” Murray asked.
“The second we enter their servers, they'll be onto us,” Bentley explained. “You guys need to work together to keep the thugs off our backs.”
“Easy enough,” Feitan said, “With five of us, the guards will be tough but manageable.”
With the combined efforts of Sly, Murray, Martin, Ben, and Feitan, plus Sly’s use of his new Insanity Strike, all the guards were cleared out.
“I'm unstoppable!” Bentley cheered as he finished hacking. “I've got control of the winch. Thanks for the backup, guys.”
“Hey, what are friends for?” Ben pointed out.
“Murray, let's hook up the direct feed and get out of here while the coast is clear,” Bentley said.
Sly and Feitan were observing the missile launchers as Sly contacted Bentley.
“Bentley, what's your status?”
“I'm in position with the RC chopper, 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, be careful. Chopper parts aren't cheap.” Feitan said.
Using some expert RC piloting, Bentley had his chopper dodge missiles and bomb the launchers until all of them were taken out.
“Nice flying, partner. That jeep's out of commission, and we'll have clear skies for the heist!” Sly said.
“We’ll be free to deal with the ground defenses once the heist commences,” Feitan noted.
Sophia was outside the elephant pen of the palace.
“Sophia, we need to find a way to get Rajan's prize elephants out of their pen.”
“I’m not exactly a powerhouse. But it looks like I can squeeze under the stairs leading up to the door.” Sophia noted.
As soon as she poked her head into the pen, one elephant looked at her.
“Uh… Squeak?”
Outside, Martin and Ben heard the sound of crashing and elephants trumpeting.
“Wow,” Martin said, “Sophia got them to rampage out into the streets.”
“Now comes the hard part. I need you to snatch the headdress jewels worn by both elephants.” Bentley said. “The jewels are firmly embedded, so find a way to knock one loose.”
“That will be the easy part,” Sophia said. “I am equipped with a diamond circular saw for just such extractions.”
“How do robots keep so much crazy stuff inside them?” Martin wondered.
“Sophia’s a robot?” Murray asked.
The saw wasn’t strong enough to cut the jewels, but it could cut them loose from the surrounding bronze fittings.
“That's it. With these jewels, I can make an ultra-hard radial saw for the heist.” Bentley said.
Sophia beamed with pride as the guards managed to wrangle the elephants back into their pen.
Everyone met back up at the safehouse for the big heist.
“Okay, synchronize your watches. This heist, which I call Operation: Hippo Drop, is going to take extreme precision.”
“We’re all ears, Bentley,” Ben said. “Give us the skinny.”
“I'll start things off by demolishing the palace's main bridge. That should cut off reinforcements from the guest house and hopefully distract the ballroom guards standing watch over the Clockwerk Wings. Sly, Martin, and Ben will then take their lady friends up on another dance, and while the crowd is transfixed by their tango, Murray will lower into the ballroom on the electronic winch.”
“Oh! I just got why it’s called Operation: Hippo Drop!” Murray said.
Bentley chuckled and continued the presentation.
“Once down, he'll cut the wings free and then winch back up for an exit. Murray should then make his way out of the palace. Feitan, Sophia, and I will cover his exit with the RC Chopper. Once he's past the drawbridge, we're home free.”
“And hopefully Rajan will get arrested in the chaos afterward,” Martin said.
Bentley headed over to the bridge to begin the operation.
“Okay, Bentley, we’re all moving into position. You still think you can demolish something that large?” Sly asked.
“It doesn't take an engineer to figure out how to blow up a bridge. I'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 should enable me to bomb all of the upper cleats... which will bring it all crashing down.”
“Just watch your head when that thing becomes unstable.” Martin said. “We need that brain of yours in one piece."
Bentley carefully placed the bombs at the right positions and got clear as each support beam was destroyed. Soon, the entire thing collapsed, seconds after Bentley got into the palace.
“Okay, the bridge is down. I'll warm up the van and get ready with the RC Chopper... good luck, you guys.”
At the ballroom, Rajan’s rhino guards alerted him to what had happened.
“What, the bridge is destroyed? Take all the manpower you need and look into it.”
“Murray, you in position?” Sly called in.
“Check!”
“It looks like Bentley's little distraction did the trick. Initiate phase two: I'll take care of Carmelita and the crowd, you handle the heavy lifting.” Sly said.
“Don’t forget the rest of us,” Ben smirked.
The three men approached Carmelita, Neyla, and Felicia.
“Miss Fox, care for another dance?” Sly offered.
“About time. Neyla was fidgeting for hours. I think she’s starting to get sweet on your friend.”
“Funny, I was thinking the same thing,” Sly noted.
“So then, shall we give them a show?” Felicia asked Martin.
“Anytime, Kitty Cat,” Martin said.
As the crowd got transfixed by the dance, Murray was lowered down on the winch by remote, using the jewel saw to remove the Clockwerk Wings. He was glad it was designed to be silent, since a normal saw would have been heard even over the ballroom music. By the time the dance was done, he was already back on the roof with the wings in hand.
“Better get out of here before all hell breaks loose,” Carmelita said to Sly, “This time I’ll give you an hour’s head start.”
“Generous, but unfortunately, I haven’t got time for a kiss goodbye this time around,” Sly said.
He, Ben, and Martin slipped off just as Rajan turned around and gasped when he saw what was missing.
“The wings! What happened to the Clockwerk Wings?!”
Murray was carrying the Clockwerk Wings as Bentley, Sophia, and Feitan covered his escape.
“These things are heavy!” Murray grunted.
“Just keep placing one foot in front of the other, Murray,” Feitan noted. “We’ve got the ground forces tied up.
Eventually, Murray got the wings back to the van with everyone inside.
“Punch it!”
“Engaging afterburner functions!” Sophia said.
“After the gang and I got away with the Clockwerk Wings, Carmelita dropped the charade and started making arrests left and right. With his reputation in shambles, Rajan was forced to flee from his own party. He's now in hiding, somewhere deep in the jungle. The gang and I took a break and headed for Bollywood. It took some doing, but we eventually snuck Murray onto the set of a full-blown Indian musical. I was happy the guys got to unwind, but Rajan was still out there, and somehow, I knew things were about to get tough.”