SLY COOPER

OPERATION: RESSURECTION

Chapter 10

The Cooper van…

Minutes later…

Bentley and Murray had established themselves in the dried up ash landscape of the pinnacle of the volcano. It was in the same area Sly had engaged Clockwerk in that one on one competition. As much as they detested it, Clockwerk was still alive. They suspected Sly was unable to finish him in hand to hand, so they began preparing for the third and final round.

The ramp and slingshot firing mechanism of the van was opened up. All the contraptions were pulled out with a new, Cooper gang bi-plane set up on the sling. Bentley, rolling around in his wheelchair, was busy making the plane battle ready. Murray helped him by carrying the extra ammunition and loading it into the magazine chamber. It was hard work, but they were still able to do this under the terrible conditions of battle. Shells continued dropping around them with gunfire continuously going off. On top of that, they were fearful of being captured by either the French Foreign Legion or the SS Gestapo Legion.

After finally getting the plane set up, the two of them gathered beside the plane. They were startled however when they saw Sly and Carmelita come sprinting over the hill to their left, both of them in a rush. Bentley and Murray were pleased to see them.

"Sly! Carmelita! You made it! We thought you both went sausage side!" Murray exclaimed, throwing his arms out. The sprinting pair slowed to a walking pace before stopping in front of the hippo and the crippled turtle. Bentley nodded to the raccoon and the fox cop, sharing his relief at seeing his friend alive. He still wasn't too fond of Carmelita though.

"Nice to see you two still in one piece. I am presuming you were unable to beat Clockwerk," Bentley stated. Sly nodded, his expression very disappointed.

"Yeah, I just don't get it," the raccoon replied, closely followed by Carmelita cutting into the conversation.

"Sly gave that bird such a thrashing, and even after I stepped in the thing is still flying. He's unstoppable!" Carmelita shouted. Murray fisted his hands and growled in frustration.

"More like unbeatable! No matter how many times we beat him he always finds a way to come back! And now he wants more" the hippo continued, his voice booming over their's. Bentley turned to Sly, his hands on his hips.

"Look Sly, it appears Kennel has done a big number on Clockwerk! He's juiced him up so much and jam-packed him with double the amount he's supposed to be carrying! As a result Clockwerk has become the ultimate killing machine. He's no longer the enemy we have faced in the past!" Bentley informed. Sly nodded, crossing his arms. As much as he hated to admit it, Clockwerk was unstoppable. Some day he was having. This was turning out to be harder then anything else he has been pulled through.

"So it seems Bentley. But I managed to disable most of his weaponry. It was incredible though. Clockwerk could turn invisible, shoot these weird ninja star things and had a huge supply of Katyusha rockets," Sly said, listing a couple of the weapons he had seen Clockwerk use. Bentley nodded but rubbed his chin, his expression becoming more negative.

"That's not all Sly. Now that he's still flying around again, he's now activated a new weapon system. He's put himself into attack mode, speeding him up and making him more agile in advance. He now has the capability to fly as fast as a Messerschmitt fighter," Bentley said. Murray, Sly and Carmelita were watching and listening in astonishment. Bentley looked back up at them and then thumbed over to the bi-plane set up on the sling behind him. "However, with the damage he has sustained, he just might be weak enough to be brought down in a dogfight. She may not be as good as last time Sly, but I have fixed up the plane as best as I can. I installed the extra boosters, including a pair of Vickers guns and a Hotchkiss machine gun on top with plenty of ammunition. Unfortunately I could only pack 20 rounds of Katyusha rockets for you. I'm sorry about this but I was only able to restore her to 85 percent of what she once was."

Sly nodded, walking around Bentley and towards the plane. "That's good enough Bentley. Thanks man," the raccoon said, patting his friend on the shoulder as he went by. Bentley wheeled around, followed by Murray. Carmelita stepped forward, shocked at Sly's boldness.

The ring-tailed master thief, clambered up the steps and slipped into the newly restored bi-plane. As soon as he had sat himself in, he began testing the console. Flicking on the engines and starting up the motor, the bi-plane roared into life. The propeller immediately began spinning. Bentley rolled forward in his wheelchair, coming up beside the giant crossbow like slingshot.

"Whoa, easy there Sly: 'Don't toggle on the throttle'; it's not used to instant action yet!" Bentley shouted.

Slipping on his goggles, Sly turned to Bentley and smiled. He gave his friends the thumbs up. "Don't worry Bentley, I'll be fine. I'll see you guys in a few minutes. This won't take long…"

Carmelita was more concerned then before. She had never felt this scared for Sly in her life. She rushed forward with Sly's eyes falling on her. "Sly, don't do this! You've been through enough! You don't have to risk your life! Anymore strain and you'll be killed!"

The cunning, bruised raccoon smiled down at her and shook her head. "I have to do this, Carm. This is the only way I'll be able to end it. Clockwerk has caused us enough trouble for one lifetime. I'll make sure he never comes back" Carmelita gritted her teeth nervously, her limbs trembling at the thought of her losing Sly.

"B-But Sly…I-I don't want to…"Sly flashed her one of his grins.

"I know Carmelita. Listen, I promise I'll come back for you. You hear? I will come back. You don't have to worry about me, I'll be fine," Sly stated. Carmelita knew she could trust him. But could she really count on Sly's promise. He winked at her. "I always come back…"

With a final salute and one final look at his friends, Sly turned round and reached for the lever. Throttling the engines and pulling on the lever, Sly felt a forceful jerk and a rush of wind as he was hurled into the air by the crossbow. Within seconds, he was airborne and he was able to take control. Taking matters into his own hands, Sly swiveled the plane about and tore through the air, gaining altitude. Looking back, he could see his friends and the team van shrinking into the distance as he continued to climb. His eyes twinkled as they focused on Carmelita.

Seeing her look of hope and concern gave him more confidence. He was confirmed that she believed that he could do it. It was this look that gave him strength. Looking back, after everything they have been through, Sly could see Carmelita never doubted him or his abilities. He knew he could do it, he had to.

Turning round, Sly forced himself to look away and look back to the fight ahead of him. The hot atmosphere he was forced to endure didn't faze him but made him sweat. The pain he felt was swept away and replaced by a sort of relief. He didn't allow any negative thoughts to bring him down. It wouldn't stop him, because only one is being grounded after this fight.

Giving the stirring handles a quick pull to the right; he turned his plane and began circling the skies. The bi plane zoomed over the hellish terrain dwindling far below. From above, Sly got a clear bird's eye view of the war raging on below. He could see French Foreign Legion soldiers clambering over the German defenses, as well as witness the destruction of several tanks on either side. Screams and more explosions rang out, making Sly cringed. He turned away.

His eyes looked around him for any sign of Clockwerk. The ash that rushed at him through the air dirtied his fur. It was really hot, and the soot was dry. That giant, mechanical bird had to be around here somewhere. It didn't take Sly long to find him…

Sly took one look to his left and, through the bellowing mists of clouds, he saw him. Clockwerk was flying the same path as he was, circling the sky with his body turned so that his full wingspan could be seen. The raccoon glared at him, the noise made by his plane's engine being drowned out, just like every other sound made. It was the lock of glares between the two arch enemies that made up this scene. Clockwerk was glaring in Sly's direction too, his yellow eyes, though cracked, were narrowed in comparison. His displaced face, all smashed and bruised showed his ugly fury.

Just as they continued circling, Clockwerk's eyes shone dark red, flaring. "Give it up Cooper, you cannot beat me. This is my element! You are way out of your league!" the owl shouted. Sly growled and wiped his goggles over, getting rid of the dirt smudges and ash.

"I know my limits Clockwerk. Apparently you don't," Sly replied. Clockwerk roared, his wings flapping angrily. They creaked and grinded loudly, showing their disapproval of being so roughly used by their owner.

"No Cooper, it is you who doesn't know his limits. Prepare to die!" With a loud screech, Clockwerk sharply changed course and flew straight for Sly, who was continuing to fly in a circular path. Sly didn't wait long in the open.

Quickly setting up his aircraft for attack mode, Sly turned the joysticks and directed his plane towards his enemy. The engines roared loudly with the turn as Sly punched it. The boosters applied to the rear tail shot him directly for the giant bird. Making sure he had Clockwerk directly in his sights, Sly reached over and loaded the twin Vickers machine guns on his plane. The Hotchkiss machine gun on top loaded as well, the first bullet sitting in the firing chamber. At the same time Sly loaded with weapons, Clockwerk revealed his own. On either side of his neck, two MG 42 turrets appeared, their muzzles sticking out of the slots with loud clicks. Seeing as this was Clockwerk's last working weapon system online, he was going to start this with a blast.

With a final glare from both sides of the chess board, the battle was on. Both Sly and Clockwerk opened fire. The Vickers guns of Sly's aircraft lit up, the high-speed automatic weapon's gunfire filling the skies with the loud and rapid chatter-chatter of heavy machine guns. The bolt at the side of both the Vickers guns chugged tirelessly, as if pumping iron into something. Clockwerk's weapons were twice as lethal. The buzz saw like guns with their high rate of fire tore through the air, unleashing orange bolts of projectiles directly for their target. Both combatants however had their aiming thrown off, as they were continuously moving through the air to avoid incoming enemy fire. And still they kept flying towards each other.

Clockwerk's keen eye and tracking circuits kept up with Sly's movements and projectile fire. His expertise at flying allowed him to dodge through the air as well as keep firing at his foe. Because he basically felt no exterior pain, he could not feel the rush of bullets passing him, nor the heat that burned at his armor. Sly on the other hand was having the hardest time. His teeth gritted with the effort of keeping his plane in control as well as attack his opponent. He made sure not to overheat his weapons otherwise they would jam, or the barrels would melt. Time was of the essence.

Maneuvering his plane so that Clockwerk passed through his crosshairs, Sly unleashed a burst of fire, but stopped almost instantaneously. A second swoop over his enemy allowed him to fire another, longer burst, but Clockwerk once against spun out of view. This frustrated Sly so much, since he couldn't get a proper fix under all the shit flying at him. The gunfire was deafening, and the MG 42 rounds Clockwerk was using on him made him worry.

Just as the two were coming up on each other, they both let out a cry of rage. Sly quickly pulled his plane out while Clockwerk moved in another direction. They swooped by each other, barely scarping the other with their undercarriages. The gunfire and noise of the fight stopped abruptly, leaving the pair in shocked silence as they flew on. But the knowledge that their enemy was still alive kept them awake and the two of them changed course. As if thinking the exact same thing, both of them pulled up and began flying straight up through the clouds. Clockwerk looked above him, seeing Sly performing the same aerial movement as he was. His beak clenched, while Sly's eyes flinched at the sight of the owl.

"If you want to play games Clockwerk, then lets play games…" With a thrust of the joystick, Sly pulled himself up so that now he was flying upside-down and straight towards Clockwerk. Hanging by a limb, Sly gripped the stirring handles and pulled the triggers. Instantaneously his Vickers guns lit up, orange bolts shooting out of the muzzles straight at their target. Sly hit on home.

Clockwerk screeched as his back and neck was bombarded by aircraft fire. The pings of metal sounded as holes were punched into him. You could see the bullets strike his backward armor, lit up like sparks. Suddenly, there was an onboard explosion underneath Clockwerk's left shoulder as another one of his altitude drivers lost pressure and exploded after being struck by a barrage of shots. Shot up yet keeping his flying mode in action, Clockwerk twirled through the air before reestablishing his targeting systems onto their new flight path. Now both of them were flying at each other, upside-down. The winds rushed faster as they picked up speed, Sly's guns continuing to pepper away at their target.

Feeling the need for extra firepower, Sly loaded the Hotchkiss gun above him, or in this case below him. The medium, French weapon loaded with a loud click and with a brief connection, Sly continued firing. Now with the combined strength of three guns, Sly shot at his target with an even greater desire to bring him down. Clockwerk acted in kind, his feet kicking up the rocket propelled system that sent him hurling at the raccoon and his aircraft. A green visor appeared in Clockwerk's eyes, followed shortly by a computer run targeting system. Yellow crosshairs beeped into life and marked Sly and his aircraft in a bright green glow. Through Clockwerk's eyes, you could see his precision.

With a load of his weapons, Clockwerk opened fire with his MG 42's. The orange bullets zipped straight at Sly, chipping the forward section of his plane and his wings. Sly flinched, this being his biggest mistake. A slight throw off course sent Sly into the path of one of Clockwerk's bullets. It struck him in the left shoulder, making the raccoon scream and bring his right hand up to it so that it gripped it to ease the pain. Sly breathed in quickly and deeply, his eyes shut tightly. It was too intense for him to handle.

Opening his eyes, he looked down at his shoulder to see a scar cut cleanly into him. The pain was incredible, yet the wound added up to the other battle scars he had suffered. The sight and feeling made him well up with anger and frustration. NO! This is what he said to himself. He was not going to give in now after coming this far. He promised Carmelita.

Setting the pain aside, Sly tapped the control panel and then took the plane into a spin. Clockwerk and Sly's aircraft met in a spin before the two of them began plummeting straight towards the ground. Both of them opened fire, letting off bursts of lead as they spun in tornado like fashion round each other, both of them popping in and out of the other's sight. After what seemed like a five minute free fall, Clockwerk couldn't take it any more and pulled up and out, closely followed by Sly.

Now on Clockwerk's tail, Sly opened fire with his Vickers guns and Hotchkiss gun, the bullets flying straight for Clockwerk and striking his tail side and back. Clockwerk's feathers were now badly shot up and his back was dotted with even more bullet holes. The bird screeched the most painful of all screams he had. His eyes shut tightly and his beak grinded uncomfortably. After a moment, he opened them, seeing the open aired wilderness pass him by as he continued to flee. Sly was gaining on him. he looked back.

The raccoon then switched weapon systems. Checking the pressure build up on the gauges, Sly flipped open both joysticks and hammered at the yellow buttons. The instant he pressed those buttons, Sly heard a rush of wind and saw a bright shower of sparks as the Katyusha rockets were unleashed. It may have been too soon, but it was now or never. The barrage was short and precise, about six rockets fired. These projectiles shot at high speed directly for Clockwerk. They hit on home striking his back with a couple exploding around him and unleashing explosions of shrapnel combined with fire.

The barrage was intense and the pain for Clockwerk was unbearable. The bird cried and screeched out all the more with the incoming flashes of torture. His armor was blown away, exposing more of his interior mechanisms then he wished. Some of his parts were on fire and so damaged it seemed as though he would be unable to fly anymore. Smoke trailed from him after the damage he had sustained and Sly's barrage was over. The bird limped on.

Sly showed no pity for his rival. For years he has tormented his ancestors and family, and succeeded in killing his parents. He could not stand to see him. The accursed plague Clockwerk had set upon him and this world would end today, right here, right now. It was unanimous. Gripping the joysticks tightly, Sly prepared to deliver the finish blow. Silence dawned as his eyes locked onto Clockwerk through the crosshairs of his aircraft. His eyebrows narrowed, readying for the recoil and explosion that would occur. He pressed on the triggers.

Just as he did, Sly felt a massive jerk and a sudden feeling of turbulence as his plane was suddenly thrown off. His face got blasted by more suit and smoke, followed by a white hot smell of sulfur. The raccoon yelled and growled before he pulled his plane back on course, his eyes looking around to see what the hell had hit him. Clockwerk saw the predicament his enemy was suddenly put in and, with a unseen grin, pulled away to hide in the clouds to recover. Hopefully, after a couple of minutes of waiting, he would finally get the desired revenge he had sought for, for so long.

Sly's eyes were wide and his brow was moist with sweat. He couldn't believe it, he was so close. Clockwerk was out of sight, and now he was under fire from the ground. But by what!

Looking over the sides, Sly identified the black, puffs of projectiles exploding as flak, and immediately knew he was being shelled at from the ground. He had to get out of this. So, with a quick punch of adrenalin, he applied more power to his boosters and dropped altitude sharply in a dive. He wheeled around and came in to a lower altitude above the volcano. Looking down, Sly saw to his dismay an entire division of SS gunnery crews far below, manning what looked to be Flak guns.

At ground level along the ash ridden soils of the volcano, Germans were rushing about with all haste, providing ammunition and sightings or their gunners. All around the area were mounted weaponry and piles of crates, all of which filled with ammo. It was an ammunition dump, and it was guarded by a hundreds of SS. There were a couple of tanks stationed here; Panzer IV's by the look of it, accompanied by a Tiger I. Other heavy armor and weapons stationed here were halftracks and Flak gun carriers. Set up on quad-stands were 88mm cannons, Flakvierling 22's, 22 quad guns and MG 42's. This combined force of weaponry was aimed directly for the skies where Sly was flying. The guns set off with enormous force, shaking the ground and deafening the area with their racket.

Sly scowled. He knew he had to do something. If he didn't get rid of them or that ammo dump, it could jeopardize his presence in the air. Making a risky maneuver turn to the right to throw them off, Sly then suddenly pulled his aircraft into a spinning dive. He dropped hundreds of meters from the altitude he had previously placed himself at before pulling up closer to the ground. He swooped over the ash landscapes, passing over ridges and hills. The entire area was occupied by warring Germans and French troops, gunfire still going off from small arms fire. Sly quickly ganged up on his next objective.

Achieving surprise, Sly unleashed barrage upon barrage of whatever Katyusha rockets he had left. At the same time he fired his Vickers and Hotchkiss guns, giving the enemy on the ground a taste of his might. The Germans at the tanks and anti-aircraft artillery quickly leapt off them and ran for cover. The first to suffer Sly's attack were the tanks, the two Panzers going up in flames, followed by the Tiger, which sustained a hit to its rear engines. A lone rocket struck the fuel canisters and drums hiding underneath a camouflaged bib-whack, the entire tent set up going up in flames. Creates and other drums within the blasts radius got caught up and reacted in kind. The entire ammunition dump was destroyed, killing anyone caught up in it. Followed by its destruction, a final barrage of rockets hit whatever anti-aircraft weaponry lying around. Two trucks were destroyed, with three gun carriers going up in flames just as quickly. As soon as Sly passed over the field, he pulled up, getting out of the way of the explosions to follow.

The skies shook with the force of the explosion, Sly managing to keep his distance and watch his handy work finish itself off. A grin got plastered over his lips when he saw a fiery mushroom cloud reach up into the skies, climbing and climbing before it stopped, black smoke replacing the fire. It was this sight that made Sly smile all the more. But his fun was over.

Suddenly shooting out from the cloud following the depot's destruction, a familiar shadow came flying full speed straight for him. Sly gasped in shock. It was Clockwerk, and he was back. Before he could even react, the bird let out a screech before opening fire on him, swooping past with incredible speed. Sly growled as he was jerked around, feeling the bullets punch their name into his plane with the force toss him around like a rag doll. His head ducked, just as a lone MG 42 round plant itself in his side. It struck across him, digging deep, but not close enough to punch a hole in him. It was a near miss.

Sly bit his lips in an effort to stop himself from yelling and looked up, eyes watery. He saw Clockwerk pull up and away, trailing smoke. He saw that both of them were injured and damaged, and it was obvious nether of them was giving up. It was a fight to the death, or in other words, both of their deaths. He couldn't win.

Looking down at his plane, he inspected the damage. He was wounded while the plane was smoking. The tail had sustained heavy hits, holes littering it as smoke poured out from underneath somewhere. It wouldn't be long till his plane would lose power and explode.

Murray, Bentley and Carmelita were watching from far below, their eyes to the skies and unable to tear away. Both Murray and Bentley were worried for their friend. After seeing what had just taken place, despite the awe inspiring displays Sly had shown them, it was clear he was beat. His plane was smoking, and so was Clockwerk. Carmelita's expression was of hurt and worry. Her hands were placed over her chest where her heart was as her eyes looked up and at Sly.

The half-lidded eyes of Sly were open and gazing down at where Carmelita and his friends stood watching. He could see them, the van and everything else. The clouds still distorted his vision, but he could still see them. When the thought of defeat passed him, he tore his eyes away from them and shook his head.

"Nothing is impossible. I will…not…LOSE!" His eyes shot open, showing his fury. There was no sign of anger or hate evident in his eyes now. He had to push all of it aside to beat Clockwerk. He had no choice. The key to evil vs. evil would never work. He had to remain calm and stay strong. If he was able to beat Clockwerk before with the same stride he had used in his later fight, then he could win.

Looking up, Sly pulled his plane up and straight up towards the skies where Clockwerk hovered. His battered wings were outstretched to their fullest, creating that silhouetted vision Sly had feared for so long. But no more, he's dug his own grave. The suffering of his parents would be avenged today. Nobody like Clockwerk gets a third chance.

Clockwerk saw Sly's plane flying straight up to him. The roaring of the engine, though distant, was clearly heard through his battered ears. The clouds that once blocked view of him slowly lifted, and when he saw Sly, he smirked.

"Accepting death at last…how thoughtful!" with a brief chuckle, Clockwerk spun through the air and shot straight down for Sly, his wings outstretched in glide like dive. Now was the time for Sly to die.

All of Sly's weapons were beat. The Katyusha rockets were used up and his Vickers guns and Hotchkiss guns were damaged from Clockwerk's surprise attack. The ammunition onboard was minimal, but Sly knew he still had a back-load of fuel for the thrusters and plenty of petrol for the forward engine. This, combined with the plane's backward force would be enough to end it. It was a kamikaze attack, a crash head-long into deaths waiting arms!

As they flew straight at each other, Clockwerk wondered why Sly hadn't opened fire yet. It didn't matter though. If the raccoon had run out of ammo, bad luck. If he wanted to finish it like this, then so be it. Clockwerk screeched and picked up the speed.

"What is he doing?!" Murray shouted, seeing Sly flying straight for Clockwerk, his guns not firing. Carmelita and Bentley could see it too and were unable to hear any of Sly's guns going off. This made them think. Carmelita was worried.

"I don't know Murray, but whatever it is, it can't be good…"

Carmelita's eyes wavered. She saw the battle, clear as day. Sly couldn't have run out of ammo. It was too soon. What was going on?

"Sly…?"

The thief sat firmly in his seat, his hands firmly gripping the handles. It was a risk he ha to take, if he had to move the plane at the last minute, then he'd be sitting in it all the way through, no matter how painful it was. Lifting his goggles away from his face, the raccoon smirked and nodded. He knew that Clockwerk could see him.

They were yards away from each other. The speed seemed to slow, but in fact it picked up. Sly prepared to push down on the thrusters.

Clockwerk growled. "I'll see you in hell, Sly Cooper…"

Sly grinned. "Save a place for me…"

Now! With a quick press down on the pedals, Sly hit the boosters. His plane rocketed thanks to the thrusters on the back. Flames burst out, propelling his plane straight for the owl. Clockwerk was bewildered. Suddenly the bi-plane had picked up tremendous speed and was only ten meters away. The time and distance between them didn't give Clockwerk a moment to gasp. Even if he did, it would be the last thing he would ever do.

Sly growled and quickly unfastened his belt. The second that passed slowed tremendously thanks to his reflexes. But when his propeller tip was within only a foot of his target, Sly felt it: a rush of wind and a flash of light. Both Clockwerk and Sly's bi-plane collided just as the pilot of the aircraft was bailing out. The skies were filled with a tremendous shock wave followed up by a fiery explosion, sending smoke and debris flying everywhere. In the background of the explosion, there was a loud, metallic screech, the sound of Clockwerk's life ending with the moment. But there was nothing else.

Carmelita saw Sly's plane disappear with the explosion and gasped. Rushing forward, she held her hand out and stretched it as far as she could, as if wanting to reach Sly. But it was too late.

"NO!!!"

TO BE CONTINUED…