Chapter 7 He who tames the Iron horse
(Sly's P.O.V)
"Following the trail of spice, me and the gang were lead up to Nunavut Bay, Canada, the secret hub of Jean Bison's shipping empire, as a young man, he tread across Canada during the gold rush of 1852 and as a prospector, he took some chances and ended up being buried alive in an avalanche, miraculously, the quick freeze kept him alive and a hundred and twenty years later, thanks to global warming, he thawed out, a product of his time, he dreams of one day taming "The wild North" damming every river and chopping down all the trees, with progress delivered at the sharp end of an axe, shipping spice for the Klaww gang, the cash from his trading allows him to bankroll his one man war against nature and yet, I have to feel a little sorry for him, he's just a normal guy from the eighteen fifties, back in his day, he would be a hero but today, he's a villain, either way, that man's got more than his fair share of the Clockwerk parts, what a low-tech guy like Jean Bison is doing with robot parts is a mystery, I always don't WANNA know…but as always, it's only a matter of time before I find out"
The gang set up shop in a small town's abandoned warehouse and Sly was sent out to locate the whereabouts of the Clockwerk parts, held by Jean Bison, after venturing out into the wilderness, Sly came across a cabin, where Bentley called him
"That cabin may seem rustic, but don't be fooled, it's the control center for Jean Bison's train empire, sneak inside and ransack his filed to learn where he keeps his Clockwerk parts" Bentley told Sly
"No problem, I'll just get to the cabin and sneak in, with a little luck, Bison won't be there" Sly told Bentley as he hung up and scaled a nearby wall until he got to the cabin and entered and, unfortunately, Bison was there, Bentley then contacted him
"That's him, Sly, that's Bison" Bentley told him before Sly quickly got to the higher ground in the support beams of the cabin before Bison spotted Sly
"This could make things interesting" Sly stated
"Just stay out of sight and take photos of each of his train routes, they should tell us where he keeps his Clockwerk parts" Bentley told Sly before he hung up and Sly got to work with the recon photos, as he did that Bison was talking to Arpeggio over his speaker phone and found out that Bison has the blueprints to each iron horse in trophy basses, spread in three cabins, after grabbing the first, he moved to the next, which were guarded but he got that one and then the third one, after getting the third, Bentley contacted him again
"Armed with all three blueprints, we should be able to isolate and track the Iron horse trains through the satellite dish on top of the mountain not too far from your current position" Bentley told Sly
"Top of the mountain, huh, I'm on it" Sly replied as he hung up and made his way up the maintain, using his climbing skills and a few climbing hooks left by mountain climbers before Bison took over, there, he typed in the cods from the blueprints he took, and the satellite did its job
"ALRIGHT SLY, we've got total access to the iron horse train routs, head back to the safehouse, I'll crunch some numbers and I'll give you and Murray the rundown" Bentley told Sly, after getting back to the safehouse and about half an hour later, Bentley gave the boys the rundown
(Slide show)
"Thanks to Sly's efforts, we now know the location of the three Clockwerk parts that Bison has, two lungs and the stomach, Bison has grafted each piece to the engines of one of his three iron horse trains, with this improvement, they can run all night and all day, so we won't have the luxury to steal them while they're stopped, while in motion, the only way into the trains is through a hatch on the roof of the caboose, which unfortunately is locked down tight, these need to go, first I need Sly to gather the spice from the balloons floating above town then land on the back of the caboose to blow off the lock, once unlocked, I'll suit up and jump into Iron horse number one while it passes near town, with any luck, we'll have the first Clockwerk part in a few hours"
(Slide show ends)
Sly headed out and was about to head to his first wave point but then Bentley contacted him
"SLY, it's, it's unbelievable, it's awful, it's HORRIBLE" Bentley stated like he was in trouble or something was wrong
"Whoa, whoa, slow down buddy, what happened" Sly asked him
"IT, it's Murray, he went out to search for a snake and was captured, BY INSPECTOR FOX" Bentley answered
"Carmelita, she's here, is Neyla here to" Sly asked him
"I don't know but what about Murray, I don't know where she's locked him up, I'm used to having all the facts, it's like Prague all over again" Bentley replied
"Calm down Bentley, Carmelita's not cruel, like the Contessa, I'll follow her without being seen, she's bound to check up on Murray sooner or later" Sly told him
"Okay that's…that's a good plan, just…don't get caught to…I don't wanna be alone again" Bentley replied
"You won't pal, I promise" Sly replied as he slowly and quietly trailed Carmelita, she took care of a few guards that tried to take her and Sly remained unseen the whole time, eventually, she led Sly to Murray, who was in a small cell
"Hey criminal, you doing okay in there, I know it's tight but, you won't get shocked if you hold still" Carmelita asked Murray
"I'm okay, and thanks for that bag of jelly beans, I was starving" Murray replied
"Won't be long now, as soon as I get the other members of your crew, we'll get out of here" Carmelita told him
"I'm grateful for the jelly beans and all but, aren't you on the outs with Interpol right now" Murray asked her
"Me and Neyla are honest cops, bust the Cooper gang will clear our names and prove that Jarrod set us up" She told him
"You mean CAPTAIN Jarrod…I heard he got promoted" Murray replied
"Promotion or not, he'll fry in hell for what's he's done to us" Carmelita told him
"By the way, where is Neyla anyway" Murray asked her
"What do you care" She asked him
"Well, seeing as how Sly and her are…a thing…I just wanted to get to know my best pal's girlfriend, you know" He asked her
"PSST, whatever, look, just seat tight, I'm going to go look for your friends" She replied before she walked off, Sly then showed up
"Murray, I've come to bust you out" Sly told Murray
"Fat chance, this thing if triple padlocked and Inspector Fox is carrying all the keys" He told Sly
"Murray, you should know by now that no pocket remains unpicked while I'm around" Sly told him
"She's tough Sly, if you manage to get a key, you better run for it, she's sure to notice and chase after you" he told Sly
"Leave her to me" Sly replied as he took off after Carmelita, like Murray said, with every key he got, she chased after him, so he had to lose her three times before returning to Murray and freeing him
"Thanks buddy, I was getting a Charlie horse standing in that box" Murray told him
"No problem, you know I would do anything for my buddies" Sly replied
"See ya back at the safehouse" Murray told Sly as he took off, Sly then headed out for his wave point, which was near a plane, Bentley and Mario then contacted him
"Okay, Sly, we need to break into the Iron horse train, but the only way in, through the caboose, is locked down tight, to blow the locks off you'll need to collect the ultra-unstable denatured spice gas from the balloons floating above town" Bentley told him
"How am I supposed to get up to that height to collect the spice" Sly asked him
"We've got that covered, nephew, Murray's already commandeered this ice plane, jump on it's strut and he'll fly you up to a good paragliding altitude" Mario told Sly
"Oh, and strap on a special vacuum backpack, it will automatically collect the spice gas after you popped a balloon" Bentley told him
"Sounds like fun" Sly stated
"Not as fun as you would think, nephew, once you've collected enough gas you'll have to land directly on the train's caboose" Mario told him
"Why directly on the caboose" Sly asked
"Denatured spice gas is VERY unstable in lower altitudes, unless you land on the trains caboose, you won't have time to get the device to the train before it goes boom" Bentley told him
"So, your saying I either have to land directly on the caboose or…get blow into pieces" Sly asked
"I'm afraid so, nephew, so be careful" Mario told him
"Oh man" Sly muttered before he took off with Murray into the sky, Mario held his breath for this one, Sly's been in danger before but this one, probably the most dangerous situation that he's been in yet, but with the backpack and the paraglider, he popped enough balloons for all three caboose hatches and his work was done, now, it was Bentley's turn, after gearing up and Sly got back to the safehouse, Bentley headed to his wave point and Sly contacted him
"Alright Bentley, according to this time table, Iron horse number one should be passing by anytime now" Sly told him
"I, I, I see it, it's moving awfully fast" Bentley stated
"Just jump on the caboose and go in through the hatch, piece of cake" Sly replied before they hung up, Bentley swallowed hard before he jumped on the train and got to the caboose and went in through the hatch, now he had to make his way up to the front of the train, he had to get past a bunch of security guards and laser grids to get at it but he got to the first piece of Clockwerk that Bison had, one of the lungs, when the train got back into town, he jumped off and went back to the safehouse and prepared the next step in their assault on the iron horses
(Slide show)
"Things are going great, we've already got one of Jean Bison's three Clockwerk parts, however, Iron horses two and three are gonna be a little bit tougher to crack, first I'll have to jump on Iron horse two and do a little, preemptive, RC-chopper aerial strike, to clear out the air defenses, after that, it'll be up to Sly to get at Clockwerk's second lung, Murray, you'll need to trap some of the local bear cubs to unlock a nearby hand car, we'll need it to catch up with Iron horse number three but, don't worry the cubs won't be hurt, but I can't say the same for the guards"
(Slide show ends)
First up was Murray, who went to a nearby bear cave and Bentley contacted him
"We'll need this hand car to chase down Iron horse number three…but, for the time being it's all fenced up" Bentley started
"No problem, I'll tear that fence apart" Murray told Bentley
"The metal's too resilient for my bombs or your muscle, no, to get at the car, we're going to have to rely on a stronger force…the love of a mother for her child" Bentley told him
"UH…you got something to tell me" Murray asked, confused
"Yes, I've had the good fortune of locating two, juvenile bear cubs, if you put them both into the pin with each other, they'll surely start fighting, bears at that age are particularly antisocial, noise from the squabble should bring the mother bear running and free the angry youths" Bentley explained
"I get it, that momma bear will tear that fence apart no problem to free her cubs" Murray stated
"Correct" Bentley answered
"Beware cubs…for you are hunted by "The Murray" Murray stated with confidence, it was dangerous, messing around with a pair of bear cubs, especially when Murray had to go INSIDE of a bear cave to get at the second one but Murray got them both and put them into the fence, they started fighting
"That didn't take long, here comes the mother now" Bentley called through the earpieces before the mother bear smashed the fence apart, freeing the cubs and they went off
"That was beautiful, it was like national geographic but more violent" Bentley stated before Murray and the turtle switched places and Bentley was off for his mission, Sly then contacted him
"Heads up Bentley, here comes Iron horse number two, you and that RC-chopper ready for action" Sly asked
"We're both ready to go and we'll get the job done…provided I can catch up with that train" Bentley replied before he took off, he managed to get on top of Iron horse 2 and in it through the hatch, he then prepared the RC-chopper
"This had better work, Sly won't stand a chance unless I neutralize the aerial defenses to the train, good thing I outfitted the chopper with a new cannon" Bentley stated before he launched the chopper, the aerial defenses tried to stop him but Bentley was an expert at handling his RC-chopper and took care of them
"SUCCESS, the aerial defensive systems are history, now, it's all up to Sly to finish the job" Bentley stated before the train swung back by town and he jumped off, he then headed back to the safehouse, where Sly took over from there, at the wave point, Sly was contacted by Bentley
"Sly, the second Iron horse train is coming too fast, you might not have time to jump on and get through the hatch" Bentley told him
"Then why am I standing around here for, I got a train to catch" Sly replied before he hung up and acted quickly before he got on the train and went through the hatch, once inside, Sly made his way through guards and laser grids and without the aerial defensive systems, thanks to Bentley, it was easy as pie to get to the second Clockwerk lung, once he got back to town, he headed back to the safehouse, where Bentley spun his yarn about the finale step
(Slide show)
"Okay guys, this is it, time to break into Iron horse number three and take home the Clockwerk stomach, now, Iron horse number three is moving too fast to jump on while it passes through town, so, we'll have to catch up to it while on Murray's new hand car, once we catch up, Sly will hope aboard and make his way to the engine of the train, while he makes his way through the train, I'll provide aerial support with my RC-chopper, once Sly has the stomach, we'll meet up with Mario in the van, I planned this as a textbox train robbery, if we all do our parts right, what can possibly go wrong"
(Slide show ends)
The trio of thieves geared up and Mario warmed up the van to make a quick getaway as the three prepared to rob Iron horse train number three, once it came around, it was time
"Hop aboard guys, we've got a train to catch" Murray stated as the three hopped on the hand car and thanks to Murray's strength, they managed to catch up to the train
"GOT IT, strong work Murray" Sly told him
"Yeah…sure…thanks…the Murray's…strength…knows no…limits" Murry huffed as he continued to pump the hand car's crank
"Alright, Sly, your on, make your way to the engine of the train and snatch the last of Bison's Clockwerk parts" Bentley told Sly
"You know, that Jean Bison is one strange character, out of all the Clockwerk parts divided among the Klaww gang, he walks away with both lungs and a stomach, it still creeps me out" Sly stated
"Get creeped out later, when we're NOT ridding an antic hand car, traveling at breakneck speeds" Bentley told him
"Right, time for a good, old fashion, train robbery" Sly stated as he used his rope launcher to hook onto the train and he started making his way into the train, where he passed guards, a new laser grid and even Bison, himself who was guarding the Clockwerk stomach, but when he was about to get to the front of the train, he heard something incoming, which started shooting at him, Sly used his agile body to dodge the gunfire and took cover in-between two, individual carts, it was Jarrod on a high-tech, flying machine (Like the one Neyla used in the Sly 2 game)
"Well, well, well, Sly Cooper, I was wondering when you would show up, you just can't stay away from these Clockwerk parts, can you" Jarrod asked
"Nah, I do it to meet exciting people" Sly replied
"If you want some excitement, why not jump on top of the train, I'm sure I can get your heart pumping, even show you my new ride" Jarrod replied
"Love to play but I'm on a bit of a tight schedule" Sly replied
"You ain't got a choice boy, call on your little friends if you want, won't make a difference" Jarrod replied as he swooped down and fired a barrage of gunfire at Sly, who dodged a few but Sly was caught off guard and knocked off the train
"GAAAAAAAAAA, AH, AH" Sly yelled as he was about to hit the ground, but someone caught him, he then looked to see the masked man again, riding a hover bike of some-kind (Like the green and purple zoomer from "Jak 2")
"You again" Sly stated as he was pulled onto the vehicle
"You looked like you could use some help" The masked man told him as he moved up higher and Sly took out one of his arrows and fired at Jarrod, which scratched him on his right cheek, leaving a nice scar
"AAH, WHY YOU LITTLE…FINE, you wanna play Cooper, I'll play" Jarrod muttered as he started up his vehicles attack systems
"How good are you on this thing" Sly asked the masked man
"Just take care of this guy, I'll drive" The masked man replied
"Got it, let's take him" Sly stated as he fought against Jarred while the masked man dodged his attacks, surprisingly, the two worked extremely well together, thanks to their combined efforts, Jarred, was sent off with his tail on fire…literally
"WHY YOU, YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS COOPER AND YOUR MASKED BUDDY THERE TO" Jarrod yelled as he flew away, the masked man then dropped Sly off on the train
"Thanks…whoever you are under that mask" Sly told him, he nodded in response
"You nearly have all the parts Sly, keep pushing forward" The masked man told him before he flew away
*Who is that guy* Sly asked in his mind
"Sly, SLY, can you hear me" Bentley called through the earpiece
"Uh, yeah, yeah, I'm here…I'm almost to the engine" Sly replied as he continued onward
"And you better pick up the pace to, this old, hand car is starting to fall apart" Murray added, Sly met with little guard and laser grid resistance before he reached the engine
"Never thought I would see the day a stomach would be used as a tool for evil" Murray called from the earpiece but, there was a problem
"Bentley, we have a slight problem here, Jean Bison seems to have wised up and bolted down the Clockwerk stomach with titanium bolts" Sly stated, he then looked at a nearby table and saw a bottle, he picked it up and read what was on it
"Dame, he wised up a little more than I thought, he also laced the bolts with an anti-acid solution, my acid arrows are gonna be useless here, we'll have to crack the engine block to get it free" Sly added
"Then that's just what we'll do, a well-placed bomb down the smoke stack will knock it lose, just be sure to take some cover" Bentley stated as he moved his RC-Chopper into position to do the deed, but then
"Oh no you don't my little, RC friend, the Clockwerk part is mine, they will ALL BE MINE" Jarrod said as he moved back in, his vehicle on fire but still flying, the RC-Chopper went toe to toe with Jarrod, it took some skill, but Bentley beat him
"YOU WON'T STOP ME, NOT THE COOPER GANG, NOT INTERPOL, NOT ANYONE" Jarrod shouted in rage as he flew away again
"Stand back Sly, this might get messy" Bentley called, Sly took cover and Bentley did the deed with a bomb down the smoke stack, which knocked the stomach lose
"Sly, SLY, are you okay" Bentley called as Sly got the stomach
"I got an upset stomach on my hands, but other than that…I'm great" Sly replied as he headed back to Murray and Bentley, they met up with Mario and the four got the hell out of dodge
(Sly's P.O.V)
"My gang and I had pulled off the impossible, we successfully robbed all of Jean Bison's iron horse trains and we were walking away with three, count em, THREE Clockwerk parts and as a bonus, we shut down spice distribution in all of North America, needless to say we were pretty pleased with ourselves, thought, I can't say the same for Neyla and Carmelita, once again, the framed police women had to run from the cops, which was fun at first, but I can't help but worry, what if they replace them with new guys, I don't want anymore cops on my tail, besides, Carmelita's the only real challenge I have, all the other cops don't have what it takes to keep up with me…and poor Neyla…she's a big part of why this is all fun, I don't want her to lose her job, her losing something she's worked so hard to achieve being lost because of me, that's the LAST thing I would want for her, sooner or later, I was gonna have to figure out a way to clear their names, I would hope someway OTHER than turning myself in but…something tells me, it might come to that"