Thank you all for your positive comments. Sorry I didn't update sooner, but with school, and Thanksgiving etc, I haven't had the time.
The guard's hand flew towards his gun, but Sly was faster. He leapt forward and tackled the man, knocking him off his feet. The guard wasn't so easily dispatched however, and grabbed Sly's throat and cane and began trying to choke him while keeping Sly from hitting him with the cane. Meanwhile, Murray charged the other guard, who had reached for his baton. He brought it up just as Murray reached him, but was unable to get out of the way of a fierce punch. The guard didn't go down though, and lashed out, catching Murray on the side of the head. The hippo shook himself, them grabbed the guard and headbutted him twice, then dropped him to the ground. Sly was slowly overpowering his opponent, when suddenly the guard's grip went limp. Bentley pulled the dart he'd just jabbed into the guard out.
"Sly, check around the corner and see if anyone heard the commotion. Murray, drag these guys into the alcove we came in through." Bentley began examining one guard as Murray moved the other. He was a wiry pika, wearing a pistol and a metal baton. His clothes seemed to be a uniform, with a light green shirt and pants and a darker green bandolier and beret. Bentley also noticed a patch of a coiled serpent on his shoulder.
"Nobody's there," said Sly, as Murray disposed of the other guard. "We seem to be in an empty base. What surprises me though, is this building. It was supposed to be an abandoned mine until those bikers moved in, but this can't have been part of the mine. It reminds me of a hospital or a government facility."
"True," said Bentley. "I think this has gone beyond bikers. We may have discovered something big here."
"We've encountered big things before," declared Murray. "Mugg-Shot was big, and we handled him no problem. We can take on whatever these guys can throw at us. The only thing that that could be a rock in our road of success is how tough these guys seem to be. I punched one right in the face, and he seemed to be barely fazed. The bikers I fought back at the seemed to recover quickly too, but we should be fine as long as we combine our strengths."
"Atta boy Murray" said Sly. He then slunk up to the corner and peered around, then quickly drew back. "There's a security camera just around the corner. I could probably get by, but I don't know about you two."
"Don't worry Sly; I have an appropriate piece of technology right here." Bentley rummaged around in his wheelchair for a moment, and then pulled out what looked to be a thick laser pointer. "This is a looper. Now, this stylus only the targeting pointer. The actual device is in my wheelchair. You point it at a camera, and activate it. It reads what the camera is recording, and loops it. The only drawback is that the power supply is limited. I set up a battery pack, but if it runs out of juice for even a second, we're busted. I suggest we look for some sort of computer or information center so we can learn more about this place."
"Great, lets go," said Sly. They made their way quickly through the complex, stopping at every corner to check for guards or cameras. They narrowly avoiding several more patrols of two, until they made their way to a set of double doors. Bentley held up his hand as Murray stepped forward to open them.
"Allow me to use another technological trick I've come up with. I actually first saw this in a video game. It's called a fiber optic camera, and this one is rigged to show its image on my binocucom. Bentley pulled out a small metal cord and tried to put it under the door. It barely fit be squeezing it, and Bentley worried that it might break. But then he pulled out his binocucom and saw the black and white image perfectly. Beyond the doors was a medium sized room with banks of computers and TV screens lining the walls. A desk with a guard sitting at it faced the door, and several more people in uniform were working at the computers. Bentley pulled out his camera. "There are four guards on the other side of the door. Judging from its composition, we won't be able to just force it, but I think I can blow it open with a few bombs. Sly, once I've blown the door, take out the guard behind the desk. Murray, you rush the two on the left, and I'll deal with the one on the right." Bentley then set three bombs on the door and wheeled back, just before the door crumpled under the explosions.
Carmelita and Grey hopped a flight to America, where Carmelita talked with a few friends in the American Interpol branch. They were able to trace the flight Cooper came in on, and her contacts directed the two towards L.A. During their investigations, Grey acted the perfect gentleman, never calling her anything but Inspector Fox. Carmelita also noticed that beneath his genteel exterior was a driven man, who was bringing what appeared to be a wide range of talents to bear in the hunt for Xavius and his cohorts. Using a combination of smooth-talking and credential-waving they managed to follow the Cooper gang towards Montana, where the trail seemed to end. A musing about their search caught the attention of a toll booth attendant, who told them that she saw some people fitting the description heading towards a town called Little Albedo. Following this lead, they pulled into the parking lot of the town's only hotel in a stylish car that Grey had seemed to materialize at the airport. They strode into the lobby and up to the clerk.
"We're looking for a raccoon, a turtle and a hippo that may have passed through here," said Carmelita authoritatively as she pulled out her badge. "Have you seen anyone fitting the description in this picture?"
"Hey, you're that lady that caught Mugg-Shot down in Utah. Yeah, there were a couple a people who looked like that. They and the Cobras, they're our local biker gang, got in a tussle. Your people knocked 'em around and then drove off after them when the Cobras left. They're probably at the old mine the Cobras hang out at."
"Thank you sir," said Grey, and slipped him a twenty dollar bill. "Shall we be off to chase these miscreants further Inspector Fox."
"I've come close to catching Cooper before, and he always slips through my fingers. This time I feel something big is going to happen. This may be the time I finally catch that raccoon."
The door blew inwards and the Cooper Gang rushed in. Sly did a flying leap and landed feet first on the security desk. He immediately began thwacking the guard, hitting him several times with the cane. The guard attempted to block, but he never stood a chance. Murray rushed over and grabbed two security personnel and slammed their heads together. One of them, a kite, was made of sterner stuff than the other and slashed Murray with his claws. Murray danced back, but the talons cut the surface of his skin, leaving three bloody trails. Bentley calmly took aim and fired, catching the last guard in the back of the neck. Neither he, nor any of the gang noticed the small button under the console that the guard hit right before the tranquilizers overwhelmed him.
"Let's see what all this fancy computer stuff does" said Murray, seemingly unfazed by the three grazes along his belly.
"I should be able to hack their system from here. Sly, you see to patching up Murray a little. There are some bandages in the back of my chair." With these words Bentley wheeled over to one of the computers and began diligently working. After a few minutes, he looked up. "Whoever these guys are, their security is tight. I hacked this console, but it's an isolated server, meaning I can only access what's on these computers. There is scant data, with one of the most useful bits being a boot-up screen with the same picture as that patch and the acronym T.O.S. I have been able shut down a good chunk of the cameras. It also says there is a central control station. We should head there."
"This is beginning to feel worse and worse." Sly glanced behind him and continued. "This started by following a gang of bikers. We've found something that would be right at home in the X-Files or some conspiracy website. I mean, it's a secret base in America with guards and high tech security. Maybe we should back off and approach this with a little more caution." Murray stared at him incredulously for a minute, shocked that his daring friend was actually being cautious.
"We've already gone pretty far into this base-thingy, and we've got a great advantage here. I don't think anyone knows we're here. If we back off, they'll find the guards and this wonderful destruction we caused, and they'll get all uptight and have more guys and more guns and more cameras, and that just gets in the way of breaking stuff. We need to push on, continue forth, and discover uncharted territories deep within this place."
"Nice speech Murray. I feel very inspired," said Bentley, at the same time clapping.
"You're probably right Murray" said Sly. "Let's push on." The gang made their way through several more corridors. They were in high spirits which were made even higher by the lack of guard patrols they encountered. Finally they reached another set of double doors with a keypad to one side. Bentley produced a screwdriver, and after minute of tampering the doors opened. Beyond them lay a huge, abandoned room. It was filled with sleek computer stations, set up facing a large screen that took up almost an entire room. The screen was mostly taken up by a world map, with flickering dots of several colors. Memory banks lined one wall and the floor was a shiny white, like the rest of the facility. Bentley wheeled forward, followed by Sly and Murray, who scanned the room, looking for anyone.
"Seems unusual for a place like this to be abandoned," commented Sly.
"Maybe they ran from our ferocious might" Murray said as he began striking muscleman poses.
"Doubtful," said Bentley as he reached a computer station. "I want you two to be on your guard while I hack this station." Sly nodded and motioned to Murray. They fanned out and took up positions at each corner of the row of computers. After several minutes, Bentley began gesturing wildly and said in a gleeful tone "guys, you won't believe what I found." Murray and Sly moved towards their friend, only to be blown back as something flew over their heads and exploded right next to Bentley, sending him flying out of his chair.
"Well, well, well. What sort of varmints we got running around in our halls," a thick western drawl that seemed to appear out of nowhere said. Sly and Murray got to their feet only to be greeted by the barrels of six assault rifles. Tex stood in the center of seven guards, handing a bulky grenade launcher back to one of the guards. He was still wearing his biker ensemble, and seemed out of place in the sterile room. "You aren't a biker gang. You fine gentlemen are the infamous Cooper gang. I suppose I should'a recognized you from our files, but I never was good at paying attention to what our allies told us. Now, you can come quietly, or I can fill you full of lead." The guards brandished their rifles, but only Tex noticed a small metal sphere rolling towards them. "GRENADE!" he shouted and leapt aside. The rest of the guards tried to do the same, but all but two failed and were thrown back by the explosive. Tex picked himself up and rolled his head. "He sent you, didn't he?" Sly and Murray looked quizzical, but ready to fight. "That blue-eyed monster, Xavius, you're working for him aren't ya? I bet you just thought he was a normal, everyday crook, right? You've let yourselves be drawn into something you don't understand. I underestimated you, and now I'm going to kill you all." With that he fell to his knees and howled, flipping his jacket off and revealing a cartridge belt with two revolvers on it. Sly noticed a serpent tattoo that coiled up his arm, but had little time to consider it as Tex seemed to blur, drawing his guns and opening fire. Sly leapt towards cover as the hound dog went for his guns, but still felt a bullet graze his back in mid jump. He saw Murray jerk twice, then fall.
"Don't worry Cooper, he's not dead. I just grazed his skull a couple times to put him out until I'm finished with you. You beat me once, but I wasn't really trying. Now, I'm really putting my all in."
"Doesn't matter," said Sly from behind a computer station. "I've beaten bigger threats than you, and will in the future. You're just some petty thug with enough money to build a fancy place. I've seen button men with more vision." Tex seemed oblivious to this and shouted to the crouching Sly.
"You and that cougar are in cahoots, but you may have doomed yourself to something worse than death. Xavius hid his history real good, but we know better. You've allied yourself with the devil himself, and he'll drag you down to hell." Neither of the combats noticed Bentley drag himself towards the computer he had been working on. Bentley had discovered only the beginning of an incredibly complex computer system before he had been so rudely interrupted. He now focused all of his will on crafting a program that could be used to broadcast a message to Xavius. He was so focused that he didn't even hear the conversation between Sly and Tex. All he knew was that Tex and his men had damaged his wheelchair and hurt Murray. With a few keystrokes, he finished his program and with a tap of the enter key, he sent it onto the web and blacked out again.
A state away, an airstrip that normally was abandoned was humming with activity. It was owned by a series of dummy corporations that, if traced by an extremely dedicated seeker, would lead back to a powerful crime organization. Xavius paced in the large hangar that had been converted to the command center. He'd followed the Cooper Gang, and was now awaiting results. He still wore a long black coat and mirrored sunglasses, and they didn't seem even a tad disheveled despite the 70 degree weather. A computer tech called him over, and he read the text that had appeared on the screen. A sinister, vicious smile slowly spread across his face. His pointy-toothed smile would have triggered the fight-or-flight instinct in most prey animals, and it seemed obvious what most would choose. He turned to a black and silver clad tomcat whose uniform obviously was military in purpose and spoke.
"Begin Operation Mongoose."
"Yes, SIR!" responded the cat in a southern accent. He spun and faced the ranks of black and silver clad soldiers standing at ease behind him. Them he cleared his throat and spoke in a voice any army or marine recruit would recognize. "YOU HEARD THE MAN GRUNTS! Operation Mongoose is GO. MOUNT UP AND MOVE OUT you miserable wretches you!" As he spoke, the soldiers snapped to attention, then as a unit turned and moved quickly towards the helicopters waiting on the field. The tomcat followed, and the quickly boarded the larger troop carrier choppers. The choppers took off and flew towards the east, with Xavius watching. He continued to smile as he watched the assault helicopters, festooned with weapons, fly in escort of the troop carriers.