Chapter 9
Island of Time
A pair of plane engines roared, pulling an old four propeller plane up off an airstrip in Japan. Murray and Penelope sat at the plains controls, flipping switches and checking flight plans while Bentley plotted a course across the ocean. In the back of the plane Carmelita and Keith were strapped into there seats. Keith was busy, flipping through ten different notebooks as he chewed on the end of a pen and typed on Bentley's laptop.
After their escape from Cairo, Bentley had gotten the entire gang to china, where they hid out in Panda King's house for a few days. Then, it was a quick hop over to Japan where Bentley rented an old WWII paratrooper plane. Guru, Panda King, and Dimitri stayed behind, waiting to hijack there old pirate ship before heading out to the island.
Bentley had insisted in flying out earlier because of how quickly Interpol was coming in. He feared that, if they waited for everyone to get on the old pirate ship, they would be arrested before they reached the island. At the very least, Keith and Carmelita had to get to the island. That was the whole reason they had stolen the dagger and staff, and fled to Japan.
Carmelita sat anxiously in her seat, her hands gently folding and unfolding as she tried to relieve some of her pent up energy. Keith was also just as anxious, but he had his research to keep his mind and hands busy. Keith still needed to answer many questions about the Kronosians, and they would reach the island in an hour. Carmelita was about to shout, just to do something when she heard the cockpit door open, and Bentley came rolling back.
Bentley rolled over to Keith, saying something to him. Carmelita tried to hear, but the roar of the propeller engines drowned everything out. Eventually, Bentley finished talking to Keith and rolled over to Carmelita. He forced a smile, tapping his watch as he said, "We'll be in position in thirty minutes. Get your parachute ready and anything else you need."
Carmelita nodded, but was surprised when Bentley reached into the pack on his wheelchair and pulled out a set of headphones and a MP3 player, "Carmelita, this is a recording of one night when Murray, Sly, and I went out to a Karaoke club. I don't know if it means anything to you, but I think Sly would like to have you listen to this."
Carmelita stared at the small music device with a confused look, but nodded her head as she took it from Bentley. Carmelita watched the Cooper Gang's brains return to the cockpit before gently sleeping the headphones over her ears and pressing play on the MP3 player.
Carmelita heard silence for a few moments, then laughter and applause. The applause died, and the sound of someone messing with a microphone before a deep male voice said, "That was The Murray with, "We Will Rock You". Now, the calming sea night club is proud to present our next singer for open mike night. Now, please welcome Sly Cooper with "Drink, Swear, Steal, and Lie."
More applause filled the room as the microphone changed hands. Silence soon returned, and Sly took a deep breath before saying, "I would like to dedicate this song to someone special to me, someone who would probably have me arrested if she ever found out about this."
The crowd laughed, but quieted down as the Karaoke machine began to roll into the music. Sly waited, listening to the beat before taking a final deep breath.
I was eight when
daddy said to me
Don't take to
drinking boy
That road don't
lead no where
And don't ever let
me hear you swear
Don't you dare?
He told me stealing
was our family way
Still, be careful of
the law, it won't see it that way
And don't lie,
Then you can look
the whole world in eye
Honey I tried
But since I met you
Girl I'm breaking
every rule
I must confess that
I'm just a backsliding fool
I want to Drink from
your loving cup
Swear to never give
you up
Steal all your
kisses underneath the moon
I want to lie there
close to you
Look at what you
make me do
Darling you're the
reason why
I Drink, Swear,
Steal and Lie
Last I threw away my
twelve step book
I finally face the
fact that I am hooked on you
There is nothing
more I can do
Ain't no use
Because every time I
see your angle face
My halo disappears
without a trace
I swear, girl I
admit I haven't got a prayer
But I don't care
I know this ain't
exactly how I was raised
But Heaven help me
honey
I'm not changing
my ways
I want to Drink from
your loving cup
Swear to never give
you up
Steal all your
kisses underneath the moon
I want to lie there
close to you
Look at what you
make me do
Darling you're the
reason why
I Drink, Swear,
Steal, and Lie
I want to Drink from
your loving cup
Swear to never give
you up
Steal all your
kisses underneath the moon
I want to lie there
close to you
Look at what you
make me do
Darling you're the
reason why
I Drink, Swear,
Steal, and Lie
Drink, Swear, Steal, and Lie
A huge round of applause filled the recording for a few seconds before it ended, and the MP3 player fell silent. Carmelita lowered her head, brushing tears from her eyes. Did Sly really mean that? That he stole because he liked seeing her. Sure, it was a family tradition, but Carmelita had learned from the others that Sly only enjoyed the heist when she showed up, shock pistol blazing.
Carmelita held the MP3 player tightly in her hand, pressing a button that made the recording play again. Carmelita listened to Sly's song two more times before the plane reached the island. The home of Kronosians, Tempest City on the Island of Time, everything looked like ancient runes, but it was in that crumbling stone that the hourglass of time lay hidden, the alters were waiting.
Keith packed up his notebooks, leaving Bentley's laptop on the seat as he got ready to parachute out of the plane. Carmelita, who had been wearing her parachute for a while, grabbed hold of the planes door. She released the latch, the door opening on its own as it slid out and back. A powerful wind filled the plane, fluttering around loose papers as Keith and Carmelita looked out.
Thousands of feet below, hidden in a mass of mist, the island of time sat in silence. Even the turning of the ocean seemed to stop around the island. No wind, no birds, nothing moved in the mist. Keith and Carmelita glanced at each other one last time, both forcing down a growing anxiety as the plane banked to one side. Keith jumped first, spreading his arms out as air rushed by him. Carmelita soon followed, releasing her parachute as the plane turned back towards Japan.
Carmelita and Keith landed on the sandy shore of the island a few minutes later, quickly stripping of their parachutes and moving up towards the island. It was like a lost world, the building runes mixing with the tropical plants and moss. It was like the buildings had once grown out of the forest that covered the island.
Keith was in awe, quickly reaching into his pack and pulling out a blank notebook and pen. Keith's hand quickly began to fly over the page as he and Carmelita walked towards the center of the island. Carmelita could only smile, shaking her head as Keith acted like a kid in a toy store. He was running about, making sketches of different buildings and designs on the walls.
At one moment, when Keith was scribbling down notes about a column design, Carmelita walked up behind him and asked, "Keith, can you answer something for me?'
Keith nodded his head as his eyes flew back and forth between his notebook and the column, "What is it Carmelita?"
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but we're here to turn back time."
"Yeah…"
Carmelita shook her head, "Then won't all the notes you're taking be worthless, being unwritten as we rewind time."
Keith stopped, and then smacked his palm against his head, "I am such a ding bat."
Carmelita chuckled, "Yeah, but what do expect. You have dreamed of visiting this place since you started your work on the Kronosian Culture. Now, come on. We need to find the hourglass."
Keith nodded, tossing his notebook to one side as he and Carmelita moved further into the island's interior. As the pair continued further towards the center of the island, the jungle was replaced by ancient walls, columns, and stone sculptures. Even though centuries had passed, the hallways had remained unblocked. Carmelita and Keith were able to pass farther and farther into the island without difficulty.
Then, Carmelita and Keith reached the Temple of Kronos. The Kronosians believe in the ancient Grecian titan of time, and said that he taught the first Kronosians how to forge the sands of time. Keith stared up at the temple, its architecture resembling Persian palaces with Greek wall paintings and the Egyptian style of using a few very large blocks instead of several smaller bricks.
There was one thing that didn't seem right about the temple. All the buildings around it were warn, there roofs having collapsed under the weight of time and the weather. The temple, however, looked like a single day hadn't passed since its construction. The cuts on the bricks were still fresh, the markings on the walls untouched. Even the iron on the temple's main door, an image of an hourglass inside a circle, showed no sign of rust or decay.
Keith and Carmelita walked closer to the temple's door. Keith moved a few steps ahead, setting his hand on the iron insignia of the temple, "I had thought to find the hourglass and altars of time intact. I never imagined that the temple itself would survive. There must be thousands of pipes that flow through these walls, passing the sands of time and using it to create a temporal vortex. Not a single minute has passed since the temple's construction was completed. The Sands of Time have protected it, and at the same time the temple has contained the havoc of the sands."
Carmelita raised an eyebrow, "Havoc, you have never mentioned havoc."
"It is an old Kronosian legend about the sand, that they have a mind of their own. That if left unchecked, they would consume the world and turn every living creature into a sand minion, a thing that is nothing more then a living, breathing, sand bag. Still, all my research leads me to believe that it is nothing more then a legend. Now, let's get this door open."
Carmelita nodded, moving up beside Keith as they pushed on the door. The temple doors lurched, and the slowly opened as the hinges groaned under the weight of the doors. Light broke through into the darkened temple, a great hall coming out of darkness for the first time in a millennia.
Keith and Carmelita took a few steps forward, there eyes adjusting to the light as they entered the hall. A straight path connected the hall's entrance to a far door, through which the Hourglass of Time glimmered in the sunlight. Carmelita smiled, the sight of the hourglass like a lighthouse in a terrible storm.
Then, something moved in the shadows. The temple's main gate swung shut suddenly, slamming loudly and plunging the hall into darkness. Carmelita and Keith quickly moved together. Carmelita reached for her shock pistol out of instinct, but instead felt her fingers wrap around the dagger of time. Keith clenched his teeth, quickly taking his backpack off. He reached inside, and found a small black cube. It was something Bentley had developed, a storage cube that shrunk its contents to 1/100 of its size. Keith pressed a button on the cube, and instantly the sword and staff of time appeared.
Keith took hold of the staff, and held the sword out to Carmelita as he said, "Here, you need something with a bit more reach then that dagger."
Carmelita nodded, taking hold of the sword. The gentle glow coming from the sword and dagger of time was enough to light a part of the hall. Keith and Carmelita listened carefully, there ears picking up movement all around. Then, something came into view. A gray, decayed, hand followed by an entire body. It was a zombie like creature, dressed in armor and carrying a spear.
Carmelita quickly snapped, "I thought you said these guys were nothing more then legend."
Keith grumbled, "Can't a guy make a mistake."
"About stuff like this, not if he wants to stay alive. How are we supposed to fight them, there made of sand?"
"Calm down," Keith said as his grip tightened on the staff of time, "we have the perfect weapons. The staff, sword, dagger, and medallion of time are designed to take control of the sands. We strike them with the weapons enough they will just break apart. Still, who knows how many are in here. We need to try and reach the hourglass. Then, we can shut the room off using the ancient water works."
Carmelita nodded, bending down into a battle stance. For a moment, nobody did anything. Then, a sand servant lunged forward. Carmelita dodged, and drove the sword of time forward. The sword dove into the zombie's stomach, and lingered there for a second before sucking the zombie in. A sand chamber in the sword filled up, and the glow from the sword brightened.
Keith was also fighting, using the four spikes at one end of the staff of time to spear the sand zombie's. The staff of time, however, had no sand chambers. All sand that was brought under its influence circled it like a storm. Keith found he could use the sand like a cannon. He was soon blasting through the zombies as Carmelita continued to slice through the creature of sand like tissue paper.
The pair made there way down the hall, fighting with all their strength as the hourglass of time drew closer and closer. Carmelita forced a smile, they were almost there. Then, the doors to the next chamber began to close. The sand zombie's were trying to stop them. Carmelita growled, her anger starting to flare up. She had not come this far to be stopped by some stupid bag of sand and skin.
At that moment Keith felt something strange, a surge in the sands of time he had never felt before. He turned in time to see the sand chambers in the sword, dagger, and medallion of time empty. The sands encircled Carmelita, fusing their energy into her body. Carmelita then yelled, the sand zombies taking a step back in fear. Carmelita then disappeared. Keith looked around, trying to figure out where his sister had gone when he heard the sound of a sword.
Keith turned in time to see a sand zombie break apart. Soon, another burst apart, and more continued to follow. It was like a domino affect, every time one burst apart another was just a few second behind. Soon, the entire hall had fallen deathly silent. Keith continued to strain his ears until he heard the clank of metal on the ground. Light returned to the room, and Keith turned to see Carmelita slumped over, her breathing coming in short, quick gasps.
Keith ran over to Carmelita, and asked, "What did you just do?"
Carmelita shook her head, "cough…I don't…cough…know. I just felt myself suddenly move fast, faster then I could ever imagine. I would slice one sand zombie, and the next thing I knew I was in front of another. It was like I leapt across the room, each leap putting me at just the right place to slice a zombie and reduce them to sand."
Keith nodded his head, "It must be a power revealed when someone is wielding the three true weapons of time. Still, we can worry about that later. Let's get into the hourglass chamber before more sand creature's show up." Keith moved over to Carmelita, lifting her up a little bit before slinging her arm over his shoulder. Keith then helped Carmelita move into the next room, in the center of which stood the hourglass of time.
Carmelita sat on the ground, regaining her strength in front of the hourglass. The room was circular in design with no roof, the bright sunlight shining down inside. Four doors lined the sides of the room. There was the one that lead to the entrance hall, and the other three connected to the three altars of time.
Carmelita waited patiently for Keith to return. He had taken all four of the weapons of time. The dagger, sword, and medallion were needed to activate the altars of time, and then the staff would work with the hourglass to do rewind time.
Carmelita heard the sound of sand and thought the zombies had returned. She then relaxed when a gentle stream of sand began to fall from somewhere high above her. The sand trickled down, like a miniature waterfall, and went into the hourglass of time. Carmelita slowly stood up, walking over to the hourglass.
She pressed her hand against the glass, looking as the sands of time filled more and more of the hourglass. Just a little longer, and then it would be like none of it had ever happened. Sly would be alive, and she would have another chance to tell Sly what was in her heart.
Carmelita hen looked back at Keith's bag. She walked over, reaching down before she pulled out the pen and a pad of paper. Carmelita took a seat on the ground again, supporting the notebook on her knee as she began to write. Carmelita took time, placing everything down exactly how she wanted it.
Carmelita finished the final part of her letter, pulling the note free and folding it just as Keith returned. The three altars of time were active. Carmelita stood up, holding the paper behind her back as Keith said, "Are you ready Carmelita?"
Carmelita nodded, moving forward as Keith handed her the dagger and medallion of time, "What is there to be ready for? We're going back in time." Carmelita then stepped forward, her eyes reflecting the swirling sands of time. Keith bent down at his bag, organizing its contents before he put it on.
Keith walked up beside Carmelita, the staff of time in his right hand and sword in his left. Carmelita had placed the dagger of time in her shock pistol holster and the medallion back around her neck. Keith and Carmelita glanced at each other one final time. Keith then held the staff of time out, letting Carmelita set her left hand around the metal.
Around the room, the doors to the hourglass hall slammed shut, sealed by some strange force. The sands inside the hourglass began to swirl more violently, and the sky above began to fill with dark storm clouds. Keith and Carmelita could both feel something happening, a strange energy flowing form the staff through their entire body.
Suddenly, a strange voice began to echo through the room. It was dark, deep, and shook Keith and Carmelita to the core. Carmelita had no idea what or who the voice belong to. Keith, however, knew who it was. IT was mentioned in the Kronosian writing. When ever the staff and hourglass were used in conjunction, it called forth the power of the titans. They were hearing the voice of Kronos, the master of time.
I gave the gift of time to mortals, and they treated it with respect
They used it to right wrongs, and to save lives.
Then, like always someone gained the power that would corrupt it
He used it to lead a war, and tried to take over the world with my sand
They brought forth my wrath, and in that moment I created the Dahaka
You may use the sands as you see fit, to right a wrong, to fix a mistake
Though, you must beware, the guardian is always watching
I am always watching
At that moment the hourglass of time seemed to burst apart, a tornado of sand consuming the room. Carmelita felt her body grow numb, and suddenly she was back in the strange chamber with five doors, the one she had seen back in Cairo, while Carlos had his knee in her back.
Carmelita looked around the room, and noticed that the door with the medallion of time had disappeared. At that same moment, the doors with the staff, dagger, and sword of time opened at once. Carmelita was trusted through one, and she was back in the open mountain scene.
Carmelita looked around for a bit, and saw the mansion again. This time she was much
Closer, and could see who was sitting on the porch. Carmelita rubbed her eyes, making sure here mind wasn't playing tricks. She saw herself sitting on the porch swing, a gentle smile on her face as she looked out over the mountain range. Carmelita then heard the mansion's door open. Her second self turned, looking at the person at the door's entrance with a wide smile spreading on her face.
Carmelita was almost able to see who the other person was, but caught only a glimpse of his tail before her eyes were surrounded in sand again. Like before, red images began to pass in front of her eyes. Carmelita saw a Paris alley, the Eiffel Tower standing in the background. Her vision then shifted again, a huge black figure with long black tentacles lashing out. Finally, she saw an image of Sly bent over someone's limp body, and a black figure with a blood stained blade standing nearby.
Carmelita blinked her eyes, and suddenly she was back in Paris, sitting in her office. Carmelita blinked a few times, looking down at her desk at the paperwork that was lying there. Then, a knock came at the door. Carmelita stood up, walking over to the door. She slowly opened it, and saw a zebra in a brown UPS uniform holding a package. Carmelita signed for the package, and then slipped back into her office. Carmelita stared at the box, her hand trembling as she opened it up.
Inside the box was a bouquet of blue roses and one of Sly's calling cards. Carmelita picked the card up, flipping it open to read, "
To Carmelita
This time I stole a diamond, but like always you have taken my breath away.
Better luck next time.
From: Sly Cooper
Carmelita felt tears pulling at her eyes. She picked the roses up, smelling the fragrant blooms before walking them over to a nearby shelf and putting them in an empty vase. At that point Carmelita couldn't stand it anymore. She slumped down onto the floor, tears of joy slipping down her face. They had done it, time had been reversed. Sly was alive. Everything was back to the way it was.
Carmelita then felt something hanging off her neck. She looked down, and saw the medallion of time was still around her neck. Out of curiosity, Carmelita felt down at her holster. Sitting right beside her shock pistol, the silver metal feeling cool to the touch, was the dagger of time.
Carmelita stood back up, reaching into her pocket. She smiled when her thumb and forefinger wrapped around a piece of paper. She pulled it out, rereading every word she had written. Carmelita looked back at the box, smiling as she slipped the medallion off her neck. Carmelita searched her office for a small shoe box. She emptied it of a pair of tennis shoes, and placed the medallion inside. She then set the piece of paper inside, placing the lid on the box. She then moved over to her desk, picking up the phone as her fingers danced over the buttons.
Carmelita waited a few moments, letting the phone ring before someone answered. Carmelita waited for the common greeting, and then said, "Yes, hello, I would like to arrange a package pick up." Across the ocean, Keith was relaxing back at his ranch house. He had given John, his horse jockey, a week off to go into the city. Keith was thinking, trying to figure out a way to bring all his new information about the Kronosians to the public eye.
Keith then felt the room grow cold, and a shadow appeared in the corner. For a moment, Keith thought he was dreaming. Then, in a burst of speed, a long black dagger raced through the air and cut him across the arm. Keith then heard a strange voice fill the room, but it was talking backwards.
Then, a few words rang through Keith's ears, and sent a chill straight to his heart.
Time has been
reversed, and I have been released. The time stream must be
preserved,
You have played a
dangerous game, and have forgotten
The Guardian of the
Timeline is always watching.
Author Note: Though it may seem so, this story isn't over. The trouble has only begun for Carmelita, Sly, Keith, and the others. More will be seen in part 2 of Sands of Time.
