Finding the way to the Welsh Triangle and rigging up a site was not part of Xander's plans to deal with the Cooper gang, but it was part of finding out WHAT Sly was after from the arrogant machinist of a frog, the heavy downpour a pain that he remedied with some cover as he started to write once more, dating the entry as usual. 'A few days have passed and I have arrived to the stronghold or hideout of Sir Raleigh, it was not simple to find as I had to trek through downpour on downpour of stormy weather, curious as I am sure that, in recent years, Raleigh has been nothing less of a threat to national security, his business tears through the patrolling naval ships of arms and cargo if they get too close and only trust the nearby lighthouse that must be under the frog's control.' Xander hummed as the roar of a engine close by came to tone and he finished the entry quick. 'But that can be debated later on, now is the time to watch and see what Cooper will do later. With a firm standing, Xander Fangmeen.' He shelved the journal and laid down, watching as the van arrived and parked as Xander mused. "Now then... let's see where you're heading, just be warned, you do anything vile and a shock round will be waiting for you." He tampered with the round and nodded as the settings were reset to non-lethal, he was not going to play the idiot to a bunch of bureaucrats...

Sly jumped out as the van came to a stop, pausing a moment as he felt... like he was being watched from somewhere, but between the rain and storm, there was no telling where the vision was coming from. He didn't pay too much mind to it as he headed into the compound of Raleigh's hideout, walrus workers and bodyguards protecting the way and place as he worked to get through, gasping as he nearly touched a spotlight that would cause 'acute combustion', but something slammed into the light, causing it to shut down, it looking like a shock blast, but he didn't hear a single fire of a weapon or the shuffle of someone chasing him down as he lifted his Binocucom to his face and spoke. "Bentley, I think I know why I had this feeling of someone watching me, someone else is here and they are keeping an eye on me."

"Do we need to call it off?"

"No, I just need you to monitor, see where this person is and where they are coming from, I nearly just combusted and they just hit the light with a silent round of shock, I am getting the feeling that we have another agent on us than Carmelita."

"Got it, so with Raleigh, we ALSO have to deal with a unknown Interpol agent?" Sly would like to admit, that sounded likely, but who else could be assigned to the Cooper case, was there anyone else after him on the job? He didn't want to know as he got out and listened to Bentley again as he paused by the first checkpoint to mark his place. "According to my Amphibio-Positioning System, that big blimp is where Raleigh is hiding out." Sly looked up to the blimp and hummed as he questioned it.

"You know, that blimp looks more like a machine than a hide-out." He heard some fast typing before Bentley answered with surprise.

"You're right, Sly. That is a storm machine! It's the reason why it never stops raining around here."

"That explains all the wrecked ships." Actually, it was true, if the ships passing by were subjected to this storm and forced into the rocks, then Raleigh clearly didn't have a clear heart, he was just greedy and power hungry as Bentley questioned it.

"But why would Raleigh want bad weather at his own hide-out, 24/7?"

"Beats me, but rain or shine, I'm going to steal my family's book back, and if Raleigh gets in my way... it's on." He remembered, he remembered well that Raleigh took the first of the book with him with some of the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus. If he was going to get the book back together, Raleigh HAD to go as Sly pressed on, fighting the guards that attacked, but also keeping an eye out for his unknown observer, picking up clue bottles and taking them back to a safe that actually contained a page for the book, one depicting the 'Fast Attack Dive Move' by Drake Cooper, stashing it before leaving a calling card and getting into the main compound, pausing once more as he commented. "That blimp looks like the most secured location on this boat. If Raleigh's really as smart as his police file suggests, then that's where I'll find him."

"Wonderful idea, but your plan is flawed."

Sly asked into the binocucom as to the reasons. "Why?"

"Because it's impossible get near him." He directed his gaze to where Bentley would be pointing out. "To access Raleigh's blimp, you would have to sneak through that high-voltage power tube. To do that without getting electrocuted, you'd have to destroy that power generator, and to do that, you need two more of Raleigh's treasure keys, which are heavily guarded." Sly liked the challenge of it as he already had one treasure key, though the others could be more troubling, but he was confidant in his abilities.

"Interesting. So when are you going to get to the impossible part?"

"Fine! But I warned you!" Sly rolled his eyes as Bentley marked the places to hit up and continued. "I've marked the areas you need to hit with holographic markers. Follow them to your objectives."

"Thanks!"

"Don't mention it — it's your funeral." That was over-the-top, but Sly still needed all the help he could get, they were the family he had grew up with. He nodded before pausing, briefly looking back to see the gaze's location, but they were hiding with ease, far more tricky than he or they were even expecting as he dashed for the first place, a library or study from the looks of it...

Xander flapped back down as he positioned himself in more cover, hid away from the rain as he scoped out Cooper and trailed him through the windows of the study, finger itching to fire, but he resigned the notion, flipping the safety on as he just observed, Raleigh was not playing around, he had rigged up traps and dangers in the study, fit to stop a reckless fool, but Cooper was not reckless, nor was his aide as a barrel was employed and walked right past with darts in the wooden defense before Cooper smashed the traps, less work for the cops and more work for the goons and master of this domain. He also scoped in the next page of something that Cooper snatched from a vault inside, the details missing in the distance, but he did get a name from the page, one of the many Coopers. 'A trick to preforming a slow motion jumps, clearly the Cooper line succeed in death-defying things, but to briefly deny gravity to extend a jump, they must also be magicians somehow.' He hummed as he kept an eye out as Cooper grabbed the treasure key and headed on out again, this time going into a vault of some kind, likely with the gains of lost ships and aircraft that Raleigh destroyed and captured. Sly returned with a sheet of paper and Xander got a quick look to see it was the entire blueprints of Raleigh's operations, meaning that they would be easier to deal with finding anything breakable, like those clue bottles that he had seen Cooper collecting.

He turned his gaze to the next place that Cooper was heading, it venting steam on the regular, making it seem like an engine was mounted inside and he couldn't compromise his position by going after Cooper, that would be unwise... but it wouldn't be if he had an ear in the heated place. The safety switched off, he dialed it in and lined the shot, waiting for a moment before he fired, getting a micro-transmitter and listening device on the collar of Sly's outfit, remaining low before he tampered with the weapon again and smiled as he listened in. It would appear that it was indeed an engine for the whole thing, powering the place with energy and surge as they found another page, one that develops a 'roll' move for Cooper, likely as a method of dodging quickly before he jammed the gear shaft and snatched the treasure key, returning back as Xander just kept watch, just did so as Sly headed into the next chamber...

Sly felt the heat boil over him as he briefly heard Bentley say it was the power source, his sense of obtaining the treasure keys in the area before going further toward Raleigh being tough on him, but he had to admit that it was not too bad, he got some practice in and some training on how the moves and skills worked, he was earning his place in the legacy and he needed all of it to both face Raleigh, his villainous allies, and anyone that tries to steal from the innocent and the hurt. Still, it also helped to think in the sweating coal and flames of the place, who else was part of the Cooper Case, who else other than Carmelita would be chasing him down, getting ahead of the foxy inspector just to keep a sight on him?

The answer was complex, there was no real reason for it and, while he welcomed the challenge, to know that he could be sniped just like the light was a notion he didn't like, still he headed in and snatched the key before heading back out, debating the next site before he realized that he could just move on to the next area as he approached the gate and unlocked the safety gate, destroying the power generator and getting to the next section as Bentley exclaimed. "Astonishing! All my calculations led me to believe you would fail to knock out that generator!"

"Never was good at math." Sly joked.

"Well, here's a real test for you..." Bentley typed it out as he continued. "I've found a way up to Raleigh's hideout, but unfortunately, it is doomed to failure."

"You're not going to tell me I have to shoot myself out of that cannon?"

"I'm afraid that's the only way."

"Now you're talking!"

"You're really scaring me, man." Bentley stated before he pressed on. "Anyway, to get inside that thing, you have to steal all seven of Raleigh's treasure keys."

"So what are we waiting for?" Sly rolled a hand as he continued. "You show me those 'holo-whats-its'..."

"You mean my holographic markers?"

"Yeah, yeah — and I'll swipe whatever it takes to get shot out of that cannon and steal back my family's Thievius Raccoonus." The line was cut and Sly took notice of two more sites, but he didn't go any further when coming close to a sub before he spun around, the gaze peering at him again, he wasn't sure if it was being paranoid or just that the agent is being EXTRA sneaky around him before he turned back and headed down under the water to face off with some crabs stealing chests...

"What's next, he actually following through with the cannon plan?" Xander asked himself before he hummed before continuing. "Guy is sure determined to get this Thievius Raccoonus thing back, even risking his own life for it." Xander hummed before he took flight, heading for the last area and stepping in, he didn't have much need for a treasure key, nor did he have a firm interest in the operations as his 'superiors' commanded, he was only there for Cooper, but he could kill some time by getting the last key and the page hidden in the place. He paused as Raleigh spoke up.

"Ahoy, dock hands!" Xander paused as he just listened. "Capital job unloading that cargo last night. You're the crown jewel of my operation. Do me the service of proving your worth yet again by protecting the treasure key that I have stored down there. It appears there is a prowler on the premises." Clearly not Xander, but Cooper, but he could be the second prowler about the place for the fun of it. "And if any of you let him get his hands on that key, I'll personally flog the lot of you for an entire fortnight!"

'Whoa, tough manager...' But that manager didn't need to know that a member of Interpol was dropping by for the prize. The walruses and squids guarding the place were no match for him as he prowled across the husks of the lost planes and ships, mostly intact or fragmented as he shut off the systems from a distance and approached the vault and hummed as he looked over the clues. "Each piece of these clues seem to form a set of numbers, but what number could it be...?" He hummed before he started to piece it out and nodded as he reached out and switched the dials. 'Seven-One-Nine...' A click came and he spun the wheel and it opened to a page, he lifting it, turning it over and reading through it as he felt his brows raise. 'I dare accuse them again, but this sort of magnetic power over funds would be a grand scheme in magic... but what exactly is the Thievius Raccoonus?' He turned it several times before he spotted it, a small set of dates that meant that it was made that day and age as he spun the key on his finger. 'A collection of techniques passed down through the Cooper Line, skills for aspiring thieves, but more for the long generation of renowned Coopers, not many carry the same fame from the notion of it, but it must be a family thing.' He mused before he paused, looking at a guard, both eyeing each other before Xander quickdraw, ending the minion before he paused as the coin pouch started to shake and he snatched it as it came flying at him, clearly he had subconsciously learned the ability to attract coins and funds to him, his brow raised before he just smiled. "Well now, I guess Mr. Cooper should keep a close eye on his things, would hate for him to lose it all the sudden..."

Sly rolled his shoulders as he got out of the sub and groaned. "Bentley, those crabs were really annoying, I would rather not deal with such a thing again... if I can help it."

"Sorry, Sly, but that treasure key is needed if you want to fight Raleigh, no other way around it." Sly didn't deny, he just wasn't expecting the crabs to go snatching the chests that he needed to blast and trying to make the whole thing harder than it should have. He groaned as he headed to the next area to get the last key... only to stop, foot barely to the metal steps when he spotted the last key... resting in the cannon lock with a page of the Raccoonus rather tucked in the hole, preventing the storm from drowning it out, but also seemingly pointing out that someone or something decided to drop on by and do the course for him, a strange thing as the agent had to be Interpol and there was no way that an Interpol agent would just leave evidence alone just like that and to be picked up by Sly which he did with the key, unfurling it to Coopergiwa's page and stashing it in his book, the chance to go after Raleigh now in hand, but far from it as Sly called Bentley.

"Bentley, remember our mystery agent?"

"Yeah... why, did something happen?"

"Yeah, whoever this guy was, he just managed to get in, get out, take a page of the Thievius Raccoonus and one of the treasure keys and then, just leaves them here at the cannon, can you get any details on this guy or gal, please?"

"I'll see what I can turn up, but you deal with your problem, Raleigh is not likely to know that you have a unknown aid in some way." Sly nodded as he unlocked the way and got into the cannon, it turning before it aimed and fired, Sly flying high and smashing through the window of Raleigh's blimp, the toad croaking in anger.

"How delightful. We have a guest. The only thing is... I hate unexpected guests!"

Sly countered the angered toad. "Listen, Raleigh. Wipe out my family and steal what's mine, you better expect company."

"Ohhhhhh, I'm ever so sorry. How sloppy of me not to finish the job." The metal-hatted frog croaked in reply. "Obviously, we should have snuffed you out as well. So, without further ado, let me make amends by, what..." He started to yell again. "Bloating to gargantuan size, and squashing you like the insignificant bug that you are!"

"Bring it on." And so the battle started and Sly got it down pat as the toad ate a fly or something, bloating before bouncing to crush Sly, but he tired out and Sly landed a solid few strikes on the crazed frog before he smashed the machinist into the water and he cursed.

"Blast it all! You've beaten me!" Raleigh scoffed as he threatened. "Well, gloat all you want, Sly Cooper. You're no match for Muggshot, my villainous cohort in Utah." The frog gave the next place to be to both Sly and his unknown bug. "You will see, Mesa City is so well-guarded, a snake couldn't slither in without setting off alarms." He then floundered and drowned, knocking himself out as Sly jumped over to the seat and retrieved the pages of the Raccoonus, even one for Rioichi Cooper, learning the Ninja Spire Jump which was developed during the time of Feudal Japan. Sly quickly got out of there when Carmelita arrived, arresting Raleigh and his band of workers, the mystery of the Triangle solved, ships and boats returning to the sunny days that now filled in the once-stormy isle...

While the thought of keeping tabs on Cooper was a wise thing to do if Cooper stole something VERY valuable, Xander had other plans as he headed off to Mesa City to get some answers. Raleigh called Muggshot a 'cohort', but there was not any prior arrangements between the gangster dog and short-tempered frog that could make that connection, so it came down to what they had in common as he arrived in the States and drove on. 'Both of them are in a gang that is sure, but both also have pages of this Thievius Raccoonus... something is not lining up right here.' He came to stop, just outside a gas station and rested a bit in thought.

'Before this whole thing is over, I am going to figure out the connection, the EXACT connection to the Coopers and the criminals that Sly is after...' He headed up with searching, looking for details that were missing, not explained in any debriefing, rather kept quiet like no one wants to let the world know WHAT really went down...