Sly didn't know if they would encounter that bat again, but it was clear where to go next, for the Panda King was one of sound and power, the demolitions expert of the Five and he learned how to harness the power of his firework art to the next degree, their division left him in the Kunlun Mountains in western China and it was clear that he was not welcomed there, but it was still trouble in that the Panda King was still blasting mountains with refined aim and burying villages and titanic mounds of snow, but a scope in yield relief as the villagers from the village were safely out of range of the falling avalanche as Sly scoped on where the firework rocket came from. "The rocket came from that giant statue, and you can bet the Panda King lit the fuse. I've got to find my way up there and fast before that lunatic squashes another town."

He headed in to thwart the Panda King and get the pages back from the firework artist, though the monkeys trying to take him out with bamboo staffs, snowball chimps launched by catapult, and jagged swords were hardly a fun time to have as he collected the clues and the key and got back a page that enabled him to use Slytuckhamen's ability while moving, so that was good news as he continued on...

Xander tapped his jaw in adding more to the journal. 'The fourth member of the Fiendish Five has launched another avalanche on yet another town that didn't pay for his firework growth. It is a wonder yet they stopped, he offers a stable position of safety under his command, as long as you don't just stop and refuse, he is of honor, so you just stopping would mean you know nothing of honor and just don't understand that such actions have problems that follow.' He breathed in the cold, bundled up right as he continued.

'Even spoke to the King himself, he admits that 'slaying the Coopers was a goal, it was one that poisons his mind' as he spoke on the behalf of Slyvester Cooper, opting to save him rather than kill him. I don't protest to protect him from his life of crime, having been born a man without treasure and was in awe of the fireworks, but I understand his pain, his guilt for such actions and knowing that his defeat will come, Ruby having seen it in the Cooper heir against a technique to mold fire and flames into the hands of those most skilled in firework crafting.' Xander nodded as he signed off. 'Until then, I wait for an answer from Barkley, that metal taken form the swamp skiff is too much to ignore, this is Xander Fangmeen, signing off.' He closed his book and lifted his Zaptron Rifle for action, growling as there was no non-lethal action to it, but he couldn't call it in without breaking radio silence, only when Barkley contacted him did he know it was safe.

Still, he scoped in and found that the stronghold had a new client. "Hello, Cooper..." He followed the Raccoon in and trailed him to going to the Flaming Temple of Flames first...

"Despite its temple-like façade, this place is really some sort of training ground. Stay on your toes."

"That explains the kung fu monkeys." Sly mused, having knocked out one such figure, but she was cute, nothing like Carmelita, but still it was good to know that the Panda King didn't just toss them out, it sounded like a number of people were still in on that 'male-only' position in China as he pushed on, into a nunchaku-training session of monkeys before continuing on his path in sneaking through the temple and picking up the page was that locked in a vault bound to... chaos theory.

Of course, defying gravity is something else, so it probably made sense that any 'abyss drops' didn't kill Sly at all so that was a bit crazy as they went further in and grabbed the key before returning back to handle another key on the prowl, despite the Panda King making an announcement to keep an eye out for any unruly villager looking to take vengeance...

As carefully as Xander could, he made sure that Cooper was in sight, but with that new move of his ancestor, keeping a firm eye on him was next to impossible, but Xander was not turned as he trained his sights and found him just as easily, an acknowledge to his increasing skills as it seemed that lasers and searchlights just couldn't do the trick as Sly just slipped right through them before he soon entered a pagoda at the upper limits to Bentley suddenly exclaiming.

"Sly! This pagoda is some kind of huge gunpowder production plant. Judging by the scale, the Panda King must be making tons of explosives." Xander could imagine why if he was correct, the Panda King practices his new technique via the fireworks, practice makes prefect and his growing skill of this new power was proving to be a boon to him as Xander called it good and backtracked as the vault had the layout of the Panda king's stronghold, nothing really new yet...

Protecting Murray was always part of the plan as he got a Treasure key and headed back before they unleashed the fireworks and busted the grate to the next area of the stronghold before Bentley piped in with an idea that could get Sly up to the lair. "I've calculated the trajectory of these rockets, and I'm ninety-nine percent sure you'll be able to ride them all the way to the top of that statue before they explode."

"Hmm, what about the other one percent?"

"Well, in that case, Sly, you will be blown to bits... but the experience will no doubt be spectacular."

"Nice."

"Now, to unlock these rockets, you're going to need all seven of the Panda King's treasure keys."

"Right on, I'll steal 'em in no time." Sly looked around for the first location to grab a key and spotted a nice distant path off the trail, Bentley keeping an eye out and, for a brief moment, he could have sworn that something was moving among the snow, tailing Sly, but it disappeared and Bentley was left confused on what just happened...

Xander followed Sly up the trail that led to a dragon statue, likely there prior to the Panda King setting up shop and kept an eye out before a voice shouted. "Freeze, raccoon!"

Sure enough, Carmelita Montoya Fox had caught up with Sly Cooper in China, Xander blinking before he called in. "Barkley, Fox is in China with Cooper..."

"...You're joking..."

"No, sir..." Xander answered as he enabled the device's wide-collection recording as Sly spoke to the whim of his own.

"How can I freeze when my heart warms at the very sight of you?"

"Shut up, ringtail! I don't know what you're doing here in China, but I'm sure it can't be good for whoever owns this place."

"You must only have eyes for me if you're too blind to see what's going on around here."

"All I see is a pathetic thief who's escaped justice for far too long."

"I'm proud to be a thief, especially when I'm stealing from a vicious extortionist like the Panda King. Open your eyes, 'Detective' — these quaint temples are a front for an illegal explosives factory."

"Don't try to confuse the issue. You criminals are all the same and none of you can escape justice."

"...Good gosh, she is right again!? She has the most luck out of any beginner to keep on running into Cooper, but thanks for recording that, now we have a location to the Panda King... given the fact that we get there before Cooper busts him."

"He's good, but do you think he would actually work with Interpol?" Xander questioned as the pair took off, Sly in evading and Carmelita with shooting.

"Given no other option on his roster, I would personally extend an invitation to him to join, but I can understand if he just wants to live a legacy, Selena herself loved the freedom and the self-pride the legacy carries."

"Orders?"

"Switch to your standard pistol, the Govs didn't modify that piece for the sake of their lives. Keep out of sight and keep pace with Cooper and Fox."

"Will do." Xander took off with pistol in hand as he followed the pair doing what they do and Sly unleashing a barrage of fireworks to dislodged the dragon's head as Carmelita cursed him with her riding it downwards.

"Watch your back, Cooper! When you least expect it, I'll be there!" He got the treasure key and headed off, but Xander took a look at the vault there and found the same thing that stopped Cooper, for some strange reason, the code was not standard, it was a dialect, one that he couldn't be too sure about, but what type of dialect is it that stopped Cooper from popping it open?

It was a type of avian so could it be eagle, sparrow, parrot...

...Owl?

The answers weren't going to come to him or them, so he eased up and followed the trail back into the stronghold, hoping that the Panda King wasn't going to miss a dragon statue's head...

Sly grabbed onto another skiff before he commented. "Hey, Bentley, did you grab the one from Ruby's place, this thing looks a lot like hers."

"That vehicle is identical to the one you found in Mz. Ruby's lair. Someone with some serious high-tech skills must be providing these guys with hardware... the fifth member of the Fiendish Five perhaps?" Sly didn't like it, but didn't want to go any further with the idea as he took off with blasting the place up and getting an intercom alert that he was loose to run through the firework facility freely before getting out and grabbing the key once more.

But the last key was going to be tricky as word from passing guards was that the 'Moo Goo' monkeys are at it again with racing in the frigid landscape and he moved to see if he could snatch the key form under their nose, but before he could, he spotted trouble as he call Murray on the Binoc-u-com. "Murray! What are you doing down there?"

"Well, I'm minding my post when I notice this snow-cone stand, and I think to myself, 'Hey Murray, you've got to keep your energy up.' So I hurry over here and then all of a sudden, monkeys are everywhere, bugging me to race them three times around this track for a key." Sly facepalmed as he asked.

"We could use the key — think you can take 'em?"

"Come on Sly — they're a pack of monkeys! How can I lose?" Poor choice of words, but they would see it through, though the monkeys were at least noble in keeping anything from striking out at Murray.

"Alright, remember to steer into the corners and to use any nitro boosts you collect... keep clear of those icy patches!"

"Thanks for the advice, Sly — but trust me, I've got this under control."

"Nice driving, Murray! Now go get that key!" He quickly grabbed the key and traded it off to Sly who headed to the large bundle of fireworks to fly as Bentley spoke to where to hold on to for the flight.

"See that ring on the bundle of fireworks? Hook onto it with your cane to hitch a ride." Sly hooked it in and took flight, to fight the Panda King who resided on the statue where water flowed over its shoulders and down to the grounds below...

In readiness, he waited as Sly leapt from the rockets and landed in the large area, heated by both candles and torches and at the center was the Panda King as he looked up from sitting down with hands on the ground as the Panda King spoke. "I see you carry the cane of the notorious Cooper thief clan. Have you come here for revenge? To steal back the Thievius Raccoonus?"

"That was my plan at first, but now I'm more interested in putting an end to your avalanche extortion racket."

"Why should you care if I bury a few worthless villages in snow? You are a thief, just like me."

"No, that's only half right. I am a thief, from a long line of master thieves. While you... you're just a frustrated firework artist turned homicidal pyromaniac." The Panda King snarled as he shouted.

"Insolent child! You shall pay dearly for your disrespect." He breathed before standing up as he spoke. "Still, to honor your Cooper ancestry, I will send you to your doom with the beauty of my new firework technique..." He moved and his hands erupted into flames as he commanded the power of fire itself into his palms now. "Flame-Fu!" The two clashed as Panda king hurled balls of fire to Sly's dodges and struck with power and fury, but Sly proved better as the Panda King was struck down and he was defeated as he spoke. "Your skill with that cane is unparalleled." He coughed before letting out a defeated shout as Bentley came through on where the fifth member could be found.

"Sly! I did a cross-analysis of the metal used in that high tech blasting vehicle and it turns out it can only be found in one place — the Krakarov Volcano in Russia. That's got to be where we'll find the fifth member of the Fiendish Five. So get what you came for and let's get out here!" Sly nodded as he picked up the page on Otto van Cooper and left, leaving Carmelita to pick up the Panda King and head back home to find out where the Cooper Gang could strike next...

Xander returned from seeing his mother and puffed as Barkley approached him. "I'm sure that she is just recovering, she's been having those memory gaps ever since Selena perished, you don't need to worry."

"Hard not to, Director Barkley."

"Now, now, it's James, son, use it." Xander nodded as Barkley tapped off some ash and spoke. "The crime labs just came back with some details on the metal used in both machines, the ore is only found in the Krakarov Volcano area, so we have a general area as to where we can find the final member."

"Clockwerk..." Xander hummed as he pondered outside. "Hard to think that he is finally going to come to justice, but we have little detail on the being in question, the hidden face of the Fiendish Five, the leader of them, and said to have also been the reason why Conner and Selena died that day... for what? Death and some runty old book."

"Don't worry, son, we'll put him down for good." Barkley headed off as Xander continued to stare off before Barkley shouted. "WHO AUTHORIZED THIS!?" Xander booked it to him as he ranted. "Samuel, I want your badge on my desk right now, Inspector Fox should NOT have to rush out there at your request to catch Cooper, even with the brief results we have on the metal!"

"Oh... no..." Xander breathed as he rushed out as well, getting on his cycle and roaring through the streets and roads, Carmelita had gone off to find Cooper and was heading in the exact same place that Cooper was going to hit, the Krakarov Volcano, that only meant one thing right then and now...

...It's a freaking trap...