Chapter 1.- From Agents to Thieves.

Sly Cooper was doing some undercover work with his partner and wife, Carmelita Montoya Fox-Cooper. They both were trying to catch their old enemy, Muggshot when he was going to meet with some criminal called "the Chameleon".
They were undercover as a couple that was celebrating their anniversary, (which was real), while they waited for Muggshot and that Chameleon guy.
- Where the heck is Muggshot? He should've been here since an hour ago. - Sly complained.
- He'll come, just calm down, ringtail, they can discover us. - Carmelita said while she sipped at her coffee.
Just then, before Sly could reply, a lizard-like guy in a black electronic suit, with a long coat and a hat covering him, got inside the coffee shop where Sly and Carmelita were.
- Looks like we got lucky, that should be the Cham-a-leeon, or Chameleon, or however it goes. - Sly said.
- Looks like he's not alone either, he's got some company. - Carmelita added while she pointed a dog and a cat entering just after the Chameleon.
- I don't think they're with him, I don't sense any disturbance in the Force around them, but that lizard guy, he's the one we're after.
- Ok, shut up and try to hide your face, Muggshot's coming in.
And our favorite vixen was right, Muggshot had just entered the coffee shop. He was wearing a long coat, which was strange because of his enormous arms. Sly and Carmelita thought that it was funny that Muggshot actually wore almost the same outfit that the Chameleon was wearing.
Meanwhile, Dudley Puppy and his partner Kitty Kastwell had taken a seat to watch over the Chameleon and an uknown villain to them, some big, muscled, purple-furred dog called Muggshot.
- Kitty, I have the strange feeling that we're being watched. - Dudley said to her partner quietly.
- Well, this time you're right, it seems that that raccoon and that vixen had been staring and saying some things about us. - Kitty replied as she glaced at the vixen. - Still, we have to concentrate in this mission, we have never seen nor we know what this Muggshot guy can do.
- No worries Kitty, I'm sure I can handle him. - Dudley said confidently.
- Dudley, this Muggshot is almost thrice your weight, strenght and height.
- Ow, then I'll leave him to you.
- We'll handle both the Chameleon and Muggshot, don't you worry about it.
- I'm more worried about the ringtail and the vixen over there.
- We also should keep an eye on them, I don't know why, but I think I've seen that raccoon somewhere.
- I think the same, I'm not sure.
Dudley and Kitty kept talking about why they thought they have seen the raccoon for a couple more minutes, while Sly and Carmelita were talking about how they were going to catch the new criminal and Muggshot.
All of a sudden, Muggshot stood up and slammed his fist hard on the table, breaking it immediately, while he yelled "I ain't gonna follow any orders anymore!".
- Guess it's showtime, Carm/Kitty. - Sly and Dudley said while they stood up to face Muggshot and the Chameleon.
Dudley and Sly walked in silence to where the criminals were, until the Chameleon recognized both of them. He turned into some kind of weapon and shot two shiny round discs to Sly and Carmelita's chests. They tried to dodge them, but to no avail, the discs embedded into the Interpol officers' flesh, making them groan and cringe in pain.
Dudley and Kitty saw this, so they tried to catch the Chameleon, only to be punched hardly on the chest by Muggshot. Then, the Interpol and the T.U.F.F. agents were thrown against each other, and Muggshot took Sly by his shirt, put him in front of his face and said:
- You really thought I'd forget about ya, Cooper? - Muggshot said to Sly.
- No, but you really need to carry some mints, your breath is awful. - Sly replied.
- Oh ya don't know how much I'm gonna enjoy killing you with my bare hands, Cooper.
- Muggshot we must leave, we can't handle both T.U.F.F. and the Interpol at the same time. - The Chameleon said while he was tugging in Muggshot's coat.
- Yer safe by now, but remember that I'm gonna rip ya into a million pieces. - Muggshot said to Sly.
Muggshot grunted and threw Sly hardly against a wall. Sly hit the wall and he broke it down, falling unconcious a second later.
Several minutes later, Sly was regaining his conciousness, when he heard that someone was calling his name.
- Sly... Sly? Are you alive? Please ringtail, respond. - The voice said.
- Come on ringtail, wake up. - A man voice said.
Sly opened his eyes and he saw a white dog in front of him, he startled and tried to punch him in the face.
- Whoa! Calm down! - The dog asked.
Sly made the dog trip and he cuffed him with great ability. Then, Carmelita grabbed him by his shoulders and made him face her.
- Ringtail stop! He's not a bad guy!
- Huh? What are you talking about now Carm?
- He's the one that helped me get you out of the rubble.
Sly glanced at the dog and raised an eyebrow.
- Are you serious? He looks like he's even more stupid than Naruto.
- He is stupid, but he's also the best agent we got in T.U.F.F. - A cat behind Carmelita said.
- Who are you? You look somewhat familiar. - Sly asked the cat.
- My name is Kitty Katswell, and he is my partner, Dudley Puppy.
- Who are you anyway? And why were you going to face the Chameleon and that Muggshot guy? - The dog now known a Dudley asked.
- We're from the Interpol, I'm Detective Carmelita Montoya Fox and he's my partner and husband, Inspector Sly Cooper. - Carmelita answered.
Sly and Kitty's eyes went wide open when they realized something.
- YOU! - Sly and Kitty yelled while pointing at each other.
Dudley and Carmelita raised and eyebrow and glanced at the raccoon and the cat.
- You're that thief that Jack and I could never caught! - Kitty yelled at Sly while she pointed him with a threatening finger.
- And you're one of those agents that almost ruined the recovery of my cane! - Sly replied while he imitated Kitty.
- You should be at jail!
- Guess what, I'm not!
- Can anyone explain what are you twon talking about? - Carmelita asked.
Sly and Kitty sighed and glanced at their respective partners.
- You see. - Sly began. - Many years ago, before I went in my crusade to recover the Thievius Racconus, some lousy criminals caught me and stole my cane.
- But before that, this dirty criminal stole a valuable painting from the Petropolis Museum. - Kitty added.
- I'm not a "dirty criminal", I'm a master thief. - Sly said. - Anyway, when I recovered it, this kitten and his idiotic and smug partner tried to catch me.
- But somehow, we couldn't, he and his gang of thieves got away.
- It was because you and your old partner were too stupid to let your guard down when you caught me.
- Don't call me stupid!
- I'll do whatever I want!
- Can anyone uncuff me? - Dudley asked.
While Sly and Kitty growled at each other, Carmelita went with Dudley and uncuffed him.
- Ringtail, we don't have any time to fight, we must go after Muggshot. - Carmelita said.
- No, because he's under arrest for robbing the museum and for interfering in a T.U.F.F. mission. - Kitty said while she took her cuffs.
- I don't think so, if you couldn't catch me on the past, what makes you think you can do it now? - Sly asked with a smirk.
- Because I now know mastered all the forms of martial arts.
- (Yawn) And? I also know some about martial arts.
- Inspector Cooper! - A badger with a cigar in his mouth yelled as he entered the coffee shop.
- Agent Katswell! - A flea in a monitor yelled as he imitated the badger.
Sly and Kitty's eyes went wide open and they immediately saluted as their bosses entered the rests of the coffee shop.
- Wait a minute, Barton? - The flea said.
- Herbert? - The badger said in unison.
- It's been a really long time isn't it?
- Yeah, what have you done in all this years?
- Uh, can you tell me what's happening here? - Dudley asked quietly to Carmelita.
- I think your boss knows mine. - Carmelita responded.
- Well, that's right Detective Fox. - The badger said.
- I'm Sly's wife, remember Chief Barkley?
- Still, Detective Fox suits you better, anyway, I want you both to meet my old partner from college, Herbert Dumbrowski.
- Agents, I want you to meet my old partner, Barton Barkley. - Herbert said.
- I still don't get it, how is it that you two were partners? - Dudley asked.
- You'll see... - Barton tried to say before six agents broke into the remains of the coffe shop.
- Freeze! All of you are under arrest for enter into a military base of the United States of America and for stealing a secret weapon! - Said the leader of the agents.
- Are they really humans? - The T.U.F.F. agents asked in unison.
- I'm sorry, you must be confusing us with someone else. - Sly said as a matter-of-factly.
- No, we are not, you are the T.U.F.F. agents Dudley Puppy, Kitty Katswell and Herbert Dumbrowski, and the Interpol oficers Carmelita MOntoya Fox, Barton Barkley and Sly Cooper. - The lead agent said again.
- I'm sorry, but I have to say this... I'm not going to prison, at least not for a crime that I didn't commit. - Sly said with a determined frown.
Sly looked at Carmelita and the latter nodded in understandment.
- Carmelita NOW! - Sly yelled while he threw two smoke bombs at the floor.
Carmelita and Sly shocked all six agents with their shock pistols, and when the smoke had cleared out, the T.U.F.F. members and Chief Barkley could see it.
Sly and Carmelita then rushed with them and took Dudley and Kitty by their wrists, confusing them a little.
- What do you think you're doing?! - Kitty asked very startled.
- Chief! You and your friend must come with us! - Carmelita shouted as she and her husband ignored Kitty's question.
Chief Barkley hesitated a moment but he grabbed Chief Dumbrowski in his hands and ran after the former officers.
Sly and Carmelita ran through the back door and then they headed to their car, but many agents were taking it away.
- Damn! Now how do we escape from those agents! - Sly cursed.
- If you let me go, I can go search the T.U.F.F. Mobile. - Dudley said.
Sly looked at him and then he released the former agent.
Dudley ran to the T.U.F.F. Mobile, he ignited the motor and then sped off to where his partner, his boss and the others were. - Hop aboard! - Dudley yelled.
- Are you insane?! - Sly yelled back.
- Just do it ringtail! - Carmelita ordered.
Dudley drifted and everybody jumped into the T.U.F.F. Mobile. After everyone was aboard, Dudley sped off again, this time being followed by the agents that tried to catch them.
Sly and Carmelita saw the vehicles and they bared their teeth, while they tried to think of a way to lose them.
- Sly, do you still have the hyper-cube? - Carmelita asked.
- Yes, I think Jack put some weapons in it. - Sly said.
- You're working with Jack! You traitor! - Kitty shouted.
- I'm working with Jack SKELLINGTON, not your stupid former partner! - Sly shouted back.
- Cooper! Just shut up and start shooting already! - Barkley ordered.
Sly searched in his backpack and pulled out a small and bluish cube with a opening in the top. The former master thief pressed a button in the side and two weapons were spitted by the cube. Carmelita and Sly took the weapons and they turned them to their stunning mode.
- Are you freaking insane?! You're about to kill government agents! - Kitty yelled.
- We're not going to kill them, we'll just stun them, but I can't say the same of their vehicles! - Sly responded while he began shooting.
Sly and Carmelita began shooting their rifles and the military vehicles tried in vain to avoid the shoots, but they couldn't.
- What do we do now!? - Dudley asked.
- We'll have to recruit my old gang and solve this! - Sly responded while he reloaded his rifle.
- Not that! I say what do we do now because there's a block ahead! - Dudley yelled again.
Everyone glanced at the front of the TUFF Mobile and there was a block.
Sly thought a few seconds and said:
- Turn to the left and gimme some more time to think of something!
Sly kept shooting as he thought of a way to escape from the agents and he remembered the time he was in Venice while he was trying to convince Murray to rejoin the gang. He remembered that Murray and he escaped from Carmelita by using a manhole.
- Can this thing go thorugh the sewers? - Sly asked.
- I guess so. - Kitty replied.
- Take my rifle and keep shooting, I have to do something! - Sly said.
- What are you doing, ringtail?! - Carmelita asked.
- Saving our butts!
Sly jumped to the front of the TUFF Mobile and then he pulled out his family cane, which he used to climb to a nearby building.
- Is he abandoning us?! - Dudley asked.
- No, we have to trust him, I know ringtail can be anoying and a former thief, but I know he would never let his friends, let alone his wife, get caught without a fight. - Carmelita replied.
- I hope you're right, because if he abandon us I'll personally find him and use my lethal ten claws on him. - Kitty warned.
- Better use your breath, it's just as bad as Muggshot's. - Carmelita said with a smirk.
Kitty growled and she took Sly's rifle to keep the agents as far as possible from them.
All the while, Sly was using his Rocket Boots gadget and all his master thief abilities to keep up with the TUFF Mobile, while he was trying to find a way to get a way to save his boss, his wife, Dudley and the latter's chief, he really didin't cared about Kitty, but he was going to save her anyway.
Sly watched every inch in the street below, trying to find a way to lose the agents. After five minutes Sly saw a really big manhole, which was big enough to let the TUFF Mobile get in without any problem. Sly smirked and took his communicator.
- Carm! I've found a manhole, I'm gonna open it but first you got to throw the smoke bombs that you have left to blind the agents so they won't follow us. - Sly said through his earpiece.
- Got it, you do that, I'll throw the smoke bombs once you've opened the manhole, over. - Carmelita's voice replied.
- You don't have to say over, you know?
Sly jumped and used the remaining combustible for his Rocket Boots to have an extra boost, so he could arrive to the manhole before the TUFF Mobile. Sly somehow managed to lift the heavy manhole cover and he used his communicator again.
- I'm all done! Hurry up and get here!
- Roger that. - Carmelita said.
Back with our friends in the TUFF Mobile.
- Dudley! Keep going straight till you see an open manhole, then get inside it! - Carmelita said. - Kitty, stop shooting, I'll deal with them right NOW! - She added as she threw a bunch of smoke bombs.
The smoke bombs exploded and they covered the area, so the military vehicles had to stop or risk to crash against something. Carmelita smirked and sighed in relief.
- I CAN'T SEE A THING! - Dudley yelled.
- Lemme drive, I'll get us outta this smoke clud. - Kitty asked.
Dudley got out of the driver's seat and Kitty took the wheel.
- I really hate this kinds of situations. - Chief Barkley let out.
- You'll get used to them, trust me, I'm speaking from experience. - The Chief said.
Kitty drove through the smoke and when they were out of the cloud, the manhole was at just a few meters. Sly made some gestures to tell Kitty and the others to hurry up. Kitty accelerated and she managed to get into the manhole followed by Sly.
Once Sly closed the manhole, the military vehicles came back and they passed over them without noticing them. Everyone sighed in relief, but Kitty went to Sly and she slapped him hard. Sly grunted and glared at Kitty.
- Why the Hell did you slap me?! - Sly asked while rubbing his cheek.
- It's all your fault, Cooper! - Kitty yelled.
- It's not my freaking fault! I don't even know what the Hell is going on here!
- Kitty, calm down, I'm sure ringtail is saying the truth. - Carmelita said.
- Don't tell me what to do, you lousy, no-good cop! - Kitty replied.
- Don't you dare to insult my wife or you'll regret it! - Sly warned.
- Agent Katswell, stop this right now! - The Chief ordered.
- You're not my boss anymore! You can't give me orders! - Kitty replied.
- Everyone shut up! - Dudley yelled. - We're in this together, we're supposed to be helping each other, not trying kill each other!
- Dudley is right, you two must stop blaming and threatening each other. - Barkley said.
- I will never work with Sly Cooper. - Kitty said while folding her arms.
- I would accept Clockwerk before agreed to accept Kitty Katswell in my gang. - Sly said while imitating Kitty.
- Both of you should look at what you're alike, like the fact that both of you are really headstrong. - The Chief said.
- I AM NOT LIKE HIM/HER! - Sly and Kitty yelled.
- He's just a dirty, low life, stupid thief! - Kitty said.
- And she's just a spinster agent! - Sly replied.
- What did you call me, Cooper?!
- You heard me, Katswell!
- This is gonna get us nowhere. - Dudley sighed.
- If you two don't shut up and begin getting along, I will personally shoot you with a MAC gun! - Carmelita warned.
- I don't care about what you're gonna do, but I'm up for recruit my gang to solve this and clean my name, my wife's name, my boss' name and probably Dudley and the Chief's name too. - Sly let out. - Who's coming with me?
- I will. - Carmelita said.
- I have no other choice. - Barkley let out. - Count me in.
- This could be fun! I'm in too! - Dudley said exitedly.
- It looks like the only way to end this crazyness, so I will go too. - The Chief said.
- You can't be serious! He's a criminal! We're supposed to fight them not join them! - Kitty snapped.
- This wouldn't be the first time we worked with villains, you worked with Jack, and then there's the time that Snaptrap worked at TUFF with us. - Dudley said.
- Besides, what are you gonna do to clean your name? - Sly asked. - Those guys were going to kill us, if it wasn't because of me and your partner, we would be dead by now.
- I'm going to explain everything, I've never done anything bad in my entire life, and I won't ruin my record by working with a gang of thieves. - Kitty replied.
- It's that or you get either killed or thrown into jail. - Sly said.
- I will tell them that I'm not guilty.
- (Sarcastic chuckle) You really think that they'd send those Spec-Ops if they didn't had the enough evidence to throw everyone of us into jail?
- Besides, it's not that we're going to steal whatever museum, bank or anything that crosses our path. - Carmelita let out.
- We'll just steal what we need and when we need it. - Sly said.
- I won't. - Kitty said firmly.
- C'mon Kitty, it's not like we'll join his gang forever. - Dudley said.
- It's your choice, join us and you might get a chance to clean your record, or do this by yourself and risk getting caught or killed. - Sly said.
- Argh! Fine then! - Kitty let out in defeat. - But don't get me wrong Cooper, I'm doing this to restore my name and TUFF's status as a crime-fighting organization.
- Very well. - Sly smirked.
- What do we do now? - Barkley asked.
- We have to go and rescue Keswick, he stayed at the headquarter. - The Chief said.
- No, we can't risk us doing that, we'll save him but first we need my old pals and the rest of my gang, maybe also some help from 7 Heroes. - Sly said. - Also we need equipment, without it we can't do anything.
- We got the TUFF Mobile and 6 people here, we don't need anything else to get into TUFF headquarters. - Kitty replied.
- If you want to die, then let's go. - Sly responded defiantly.
- Have it your way then, Cooper.
- Thanks, now, can this thing fly or something? - Sly asked while pointing at the TUFF Mobile.
- It can fly. - Dudley said excitedly.
- Ok, let's go to Holland, Penelope and Bentley should be at the old Black Baron's castle.
The new and improvised gang hopped aboard the TUFF Mobile and Dudley sped off to Holland.
"I just hope they haven't got to the before us." Sly thought worriedly.