THOUGHTS OF THIEVES3:
KITTY CAT:
A heavily guarded fortress in the middle of Russia lay upon the mountainside; guarded with everything from lasers, to blue security beams, to trip wires, to security cameras, to gun turrets, to spotlights, to long jumps over huge gaps, to guards; a mad scientist be perched at the top, laughing hysterically at whatever immoral invention he may be working on at the moment. Over by the base of the fortress, several moose guards are taken out by being grappled by a whip of some sort around their necks, and cut off from breathing. A tall, skinny tigress, more or less leopard holding the whip, and female, and lands down on top of the last guard she killed. She has black hair, green eyes, and purple-ish pink skin, with darker purple stripes loading up her body, and a flame red-orange hood over her head, with a sash around herself to hold her whip when it's not in use. Her eyes are intent with evil, but also shame, letting pity for herself take her over. She clutches her whip harder, and makes a vast dash for the front gate, and quickly flips a switch on her whip making it electrified. She takes one fowl swoop at the front door, completely destroying that, at first sight, 1,000 foot tall door, killing probably 30 guards behind it in the same hit. She grins very pleased with herself, and then heads in through the fortress. Before you know it, she's at the top of that 5,000 foot fortress, and takes out the mad scientist with one hit, knocking him into a pool of acid, killing him, kicking and screaming, much to her further enjoyment. She then jumps out a window, and lands acrobatically on the ground, on her tip toes, and the stylishly swings her whip around her whole body, kissing her hand in satisfaction, and then jumps into the camera, and begins speaking.
"Oh hey, my name is Neyla. I used to work at Interpol, the police agency. I was the best detective they had. But, I betrayed them for ultimate power. I also worked for the Cooper Gang, who I also betrayed. Uh, and the KLAWW Gang, who I also betrayed. Uh, and my old Interpol partner, Carmelita, who I also betrayed. Wow, I've really betrayed a lot of people, haven't I? Well anyways, to what you came here for. About me."
FLASHBACK: NEYLA IS 8 YEARS OLD:
Neyla is in a Russian temple in her giant room locked in with barred cage, and is crying because of being trapped by her own family, her tears tasting distinctively bitter, showing her displeasure.
"I was born to an unscrupulous ruler from Russia, named Maxim, and his wife Agata. They were both heartless bastards who insisted in keeping me a prisoner in my own home. I was not allowed to go out to do anything; date, create friends, have fun, WALK; nothing. I was always isolated in my room, shuddered out from the world, unable to interact with the things that I've heard people treasured in the world; life. Finally, by the time I was 8 years old, I decided enough was enough."
Neyla's carefully carving out her famous whip, and plastering it to look shinny. She then nits together a sash to hold it on and her hoody to hold put on her to mask her face. She uses her strongly made whip to carve out the bars to the window in her heavily fortified room. Guards are town below to make sure that she cannot escape. She jumps down, and strangles all 10 of the heavily armored guards, killing them in a matter of seconds, millimeters a second of scarlet pouring from their mouths. Neyla then made a break for the city, and made it out perfectly. She took one good look back at the city that she once called home…or prison, to be more precise…..the wind blowing her hoody off, and the steady breeze blowing her air rapidly, and slowly, and then she turns around, to never return.
FLASHBACK OVER:
Neyla is perched on top of a jewelry store in a local town, not too far from the island that she was previously at. She jumps off her perch, and breaks through the window at the very top, dropping smoke bombs everywhere to mask her theft. As quickly as she entered, she exits through a different window, with a whole bag of jewels. She hides in some bushes, and then speaks.
"Of course, I didn't escape just to be free….I escaped to have some fun…..to live life on the edge…to do whatever in the hell I wanted…..and so, I immediately had my first ever heist….."
FLASHBACK: NEYLA IS STILL 8 YEARS OLD:
The purple skinned tigress remains perched on top of a building skylight, her hair frailly blowing in the steadily wind, the night sky gleaming behind her. She jumps off the building, and cleverly uses her whip to smash through the hard plexy glass window, and then falls in. It appears to be a large ruby, sapphire, gold, and just jewels of all sorts manufacturing plant, with many different layers and levels. Neyla is perched on top of one of the higher beams, in the shadows so nobody can spot her. She pulls out a bag from behind her hood, which has tones of smoke bombs in them. She quickly pours them all out of the bag, and it creates a cloud of smoke amongst the facility. Once everyone is blinded by the smoke, she quickly jumps in, and grabs all the loot that she can, her quick tiger speed giving her the ability to grab a whole lot, as well as two bags to put them in before the smoke clears, and she's spotted. Once both the bags are full to the brim and tied up with some string, she attempts to make her escape.
However, as soon as she makes her way to the top and tries to escape in the way she came in, the smoke clears and a guard sees her and shoots her leg incapacitating her. As another shot comes zooming through the brisk air aiming for her face, she gazes at it as her life flashes before her eyes. But, a missile fire comes from behind her canceling out the gun shot, and who rolls up but none other than a much younger looking Arpeggio. He has brown skin around his face and neck, a yellow beak, and red hat, (French style), turquoise eyes, and dark blue hair with shades of light blue in the under area of his hair, which waves down to his neck, and a dark green tail with shades of light green in the under area of his tail, and a brown body. He's wearing a red vest; with a red-orange spirally design on it, and a red bow tie keeping it on him at the top of it. He's perched on a brown log in a cage with wheels and obvious weapons on it, because he can't fly. He glares down at the injured Neyla and then smirks at her prone body.
While still in the flashback, the Neyla telling the story speaks. "And that's when I first laid eyes on him….Arpeggio."
"Who are you?" The young tigress questions in disbelief.
"My name is Arpeggio. Now stay back child, I'll take care of this mess, and then we can get out of here." He exclaims confidence and angst in his voice.
The guards beginning laughing hysterically at the tiny parrot, but then he shows them up by firing off tones of missiles from every which way, killing them all in an instant, and setting this building ablaze. He then slowly turns his machine around and turns to look at Neyla again, and his grin gets wider.
"Come child, this building is about to explode. We had better get a move on if we don't want to die with all of them." He says nodding his head. He presses a button in his chair with his wing, and rocket jets reveals out of the bottom of his cage, which he then uses to fly up to the nearest building where it's safe. He looks down at Neyla who is still starring at him in awe, and he frowns deeply at her not coming along.
"Are you coming child, or you gonna stay here to die? I don't care either way, but I sure in the hell wouldn't want to die at such a young age!"
"Huh? Uh yeah, I'm coming!" She shouts up to him as the flames bursts brightly behind her. She grabs the bags of jewels she stole earlier, and used her whip to safely guide her to the roof Arpeggio is standing on, stylishly landing on her tip toes, as the building explodes. She looks over to Arpeggio to speak with him.
"Hey you…Arpeggio is it? What are you doing here?"
"Oh dear child, where are my manners! I came here to rescue you of course. I was just coming on by when I saw the building have smoke going out the windows. That's likely how the smoke went away so fast. When I got to you, you were about to be killed by those fiends. So, I saved you. Now tell me, what is your name?"
"My name is Neyla. I'm from Russia."
"I see. You're a bit young to be running as a thief aren't you Neyla dear? Where's your actual home?"
"I don't have one. I've been running for a couple months now. I ran away from my home for a better life, and I love this life. So…..where's your home?"
"Like you, I don't have one either. I have my blimp high in the sky, which my thieving gang is currently resting on. We just pulled off a big heist, so they're resting up from it." He exclaims, as the blimp pulls closer, the shadow looming over the two of them, (like in Sly 2 Episode 7 at the end of it).
"Wah! NICE BLIMP!"
"Why thank you, I do take great pride in it. It took me years to build, and I was doing it alone, based on the work of the Italian Renascence Masters, and the old Da Vinchi flying machines. Although, it's much bigger, obviously." Both of them looks directly up and sees Contessa standing at the top, motioning for them to come on up. Arpeggio simply boosts up, and Neyla jumps to higher buildings and swings up with her whip.
When they get to the top, beside Contessa reveals to be Dimitri, Rajan, and Jean Bison. Contessa is the first to speak to the young tigress, after a brief moment of silence. Contessa is a Black Widow Spider, with her legs and body completely blue. Her upper body is a mix of red-orange, with a web pattern design on her chest. Her chest is a very light blue, possibly turquoise, and she has clawed hands, very long dark blue hair, and red spider-like eyes, as well as a pointed chin.
"Hello child, my name is Contessa. Who might you be?"
"I'm Neyla. Who are you guys?"
Dimitri is the next to speak. Dimitri is a purple Iguana with long blue hair, a red tank-top and green jacket with a turquoise kind of color on the inside of it. He's wearing green pants held up by a black belt with a yellow belt buckle. He has a long purple scaled tail, and a watch on his left wrist, with jewelry littered on all his fingers.
"Yo kit-kat chick! Name Dimitri dig? I got the haps with the laps, so hang tight yo, this gang be chillin'!"
Neyla looks reasonably confused and amused at the same time. "Do you guys have any idea what he just said?" She asks.
Jean Bison decides to answer her. "Naw little lady, we try not to listen to that no nothin' nomo."
"GAAAAA! YOU DO-DAT CRACKER BOX STEPPIN' ON ME SPOTLIGHT! LET'S DANCE, BRO!"
"Uh, no thanks. Anyways, my name is Jean Bison. I'm over 200 years old actually. I struck it rich in the gold rush of 182, but got barred alive in an avalanche, and thawed out. Go figure, huh?" He exclaims. Jean Bison is a red furred, very muscular bison, (hence his last name), wielding a long brown cane shaped cudgel. He has blue eyes, and two yellow horns in his head, and a brown sash making him look kinda like a caveman, and a gray bucket full of dynamite hooked to the bottom left side of his sash. Rajan speaks next.
"Hello, I am Lord Rajan, "Lord Of The Hills!" He exclaims with pride. Rajan is a tiger/lion mix, (liger?), with white eyes, a green hat, (the type from India), big claws, a long tail, a red ring on one of his fingers, and sunflower colored pants, and he's holding a huge staff.
"Uh, Ooooooooook?" Neyla answers.
Arpeggio shakes his tiny parrot head in amusement. "Don't take any mind to him my dear. He's just full of pride that's all, just leave him be. Anyway, you've met my cohorts. And together, we make the KLAWW Gang, with me as the leader of course. Obviously, I'm the main brains. Dimitri runs a nightclub in Paris, France, and he's used as our diver if we need any work done under the seas, because he's an excellent diver and swimmer. Contessa aids me in planning, and she's able to use the spice we collect to brainwash people to stall them, or get them to temporarily work for us. Jean Bison is our main muscle, although Rajan's pretty strong too at that." He finishes.
Neyla takes a few brief, completely silent moments to take in what her ears has just been delivered, and then nods her head. "So, why you telling me this? You want me to join or something?"
"Well, that was my plan originally." Arpeggio responds. "The simple fact that you were able to break into their means that you are very skilled, which is something that we could use. Plus you have a great deal of stealth, which is a member that we currently do not have….a stealth member. So, will you join us?"
Neyla thinks about the offer that has been laid before her for a moment, thinking hard on whether or not to make a huge time commitment like this at such a young age or not. After thinking, she nods her head in agreement. "OK, I'll join. I'll join the KLAWW Gang!"
FLASHBACK OVER:
Neyla's hiding in a bush as she continues to tell her story. "And well, that's basically how I joined the KLAWW Gang. Joined at the age of eight, but didn't get beaten until the age of 20, and our plans with Clockwerk actually went on for a very long time, pretty much since I joined….hell, they even did some of the work since BEFORE I joined. I wondered why studying up on Clockwerk was so important, but when I finally did, I finally realized….all the power, all the hatred….it could all be mine…..one thing though…Arpeggio had to go….that's why I betrayed him. Of course you all know the rest; I was bonded with the Clockwerk frame and became Clock-La. Then I was soon defeated by Sly Cooper, Bentley, Murray, and Carmelita Fox, sending both me and Clockwerk to hell once and for all."
"I don't know how I'm alive again all of a sudden, but I don't care either. I'm glad to be alive…..I'm glad to be free…..It's why I ran away in the first place!"