Just hang on, Sly... I'll figure out a way to get us out of here, I swear on my life...
Rai drew in a breath before she got moving again, recalling the directions Sakura had given her. After taking a quick left, Rai began to follow the passageway until came to the second right then taking the first left. With that, Rai was now met with a large wall around a small area. She frowned, beginning to walk around the wall, but found that there was no means of getting around, which meant Rai would have to go over. The fox sighed, quickly strapping her cane to her back before reaching for her belt as she grabbed her grappling hook. She then aimed and fired, the grapple latching onto the edge of the wall. Rai smirked as she pulled the trigger, the gun reeling her in as she quickly flipped up onto the wall, giving a smug chuckle.
"They made the mistake of not taking away all my little toys. Heh... The Contessa may be a hypno-genius, but she seems to lack in giving her enemy no means of escaping. Well, that will end up being her undoing." Rai chuckled as she strapped her grappling hook back onto her belt before leaping down from the top of the wall. Once she was back on the ground, Rai was met with a small metal container latched onto the ground along with spotlights shining around the metal casing. The fox frowned, but easily managed to avoid the spotlights as she approached the door on the front, peering in through the metal bars.
"Sly?" She called.
The raccoon suddenly perked up, turning toward who had been calling his name, until his eyes widened. Sly practically pounced to his feet as he ran over to the metal door. "Rai!" He exclaimed joyfully. "What are you doing? How did you even get here?"
"I had a little help." Rai replied. "Look, Sly, I don't have much time, but I just wanted to make sure that you were alright." She said. "How are you holdin' up?"
"I'm managing, but what about you?" He asked.
"I'll be alright." Rai waved it off before glancing back, taking note of the guards beginning to patrol the wall. She then glanced down at her the tracker around her ankle, which began to quietly beep. "Hey, I've gotta go, but don't worry, I'll figure out how to get you out of here. Just hold on until then, okay?"
Sly nodded. "Yeah, just watch your back, alright."
Rai grinned, nodding. "Always... I'll see you soon." And with that, Rai took off.
She fired her grappling hook up at the wall, and once on top, she hastily leapt down before dashing off, heading back the way she came. Hold on, Sly... I'll figure out how to get you out of here, I promise...
Meanwhile, once Rai was gone, Sly let out a sigh, flopping back down onto the ground as he leaned against one of the metal walls. Watch your back, Rai, because I don't trust anyone here, especially Kisara... Just take care of yourself...
When Rai had returned back to her cell block, the beeping on her tracker finally stopped, the fox sighing in relief. Good, it stopped...
"So, did ya do the deed?" A voice asked.
"Hm?" Rai turned to see Brianna approaching her, the fox giving a small nod. "Yeah, and he's doing alright, for now at least. Now if only I could figure out how to get this damn tracker off my ankle without setting it off..."
Brianna pondered for a moment before snapping her fingers. "I actually might know someone that can help with that."
Rai perked up. "Really?"
"Yeah, just follow me." Brianna motioned, Rai eagerly following after the bunny.
The two made their way through the corridors of the prison, passing by various cells, until Brianna finally stopped at one in particular. She then turned to the fox, gesturing toward the cell. "She's in here."
Rai peered into the cell, only to see a blue bird sat at a table, goggles over her eyes with some tools in both hands as she was making various sparks on whatever device she was working on. "'Ey, Ro! I got someone I want you to meet." Brianna called.
The blue bird stopped what she was doing, setting her tools down before she pushed her goggles up, revealing her bright, golden yellow eyes as she turned to the two. "Yeah, what's up? Did you break something else, Bri?" The bird joked.
Brianna chuckled. "Actually, we're gonna need you to break something rather than fix it."
The bird perked up. "Oh? And what did you have in mind?"
Brianna gestured to Rai, who cleared her throat. "I was wondering if you could help me out with this." She held her foot up, indicating toward the tracker around her ankle.
The bird examined the anklet before leaning back in her chair. "That's gonna be a tricky one, because the Contessa is no fool. If you even try to tamper with that device, it'll just set the alarm off."
"Is there really no way to remove it without setting off the alarm?" Rai asked.
The blue bird chuckled. "The Contessa may be smart, but I'm fairly certain that I'm smarter. I mean, come on, you're talking to someone who tampers with electronic devices on a daily basis. Given enough time, I'll figure out how to get that thing off without triggering the alarm."
Brianna then smirked. "If that's true, then why haven't you done that already?"
The bird shrugged. "You never asked." She replied. "By the way, name's Robin Bluejay, professional hacker and technological specialist, but what do they call you, eh, Foxy?"
"Oh, sorry." Rai apologized. "I'm Raiko Vulpes, but I usually just go by Rai." She introduced herself. "I also kinda delve in a little hacking myself, but I'm sure I'm nothing compared to your skills."
"Well, Rai, give me at least..." Robin paused for a moment. "...56 hours. I should be able to figure out all the bells and whistles of these trackers."
Rai nodded. "Sounds good, and thanks, Robin."
She gave a small nod in return. "Anything for a fellow hacker." Robin smirked.
Brianna then motioned for Rai. "Well, now that that's settled, we'd best get back because free timed is nearly over."
Rai nodded in agreement. "Yeah, and we can't have the guards flipping their shit when they find us missing."
"Come on, let's get going." Brianna gestured. "See ya later, Ro."
"See ya, Bri, Rai, and I'll have the details on the tracker in about 56 hours, so come back and see me in a couple days."
Both nodded before making their leave, heading back to their own cell.
"Well, well, it seems like the Scarlet Rose is making herself some friends. Hmph, never thought I'd see the day." A voice chirped, Rai instantly stopping dead in her tracks.
Without a second thought, Rai whipped around, and her eyes narrowed upon who she saw. "You've made a big mistake coming to see me while I'm not behind a jail cell, Kisara." Rai hissed.
"Hey, you know her?" Brianna asked.
"Unfortunately..." Rai replied. "This is—"
"Kisara Bombay, pleasure." She cut in.
Rai flipped her cane in her hand. "Oh, how I've longed to ram my cane straight into your bitch face."
"Well, I'm right here." Kisara gestured. "Come at me!"
Rai smirked. "You'll regret saying that!"
"Rai, stop!" Brianna quickly stepped in, wrapping her arms around Rai, holding her in a full nelson before she could start anything.
"Let go, Bri! I'm gonna put this skank in her place!" Rai struggled.
"I know how you feel, but look!" Brianna then gestured upward, Rai quickly glancing over where she saw a nearby security camera, causing her to pause. "She wants you to start something so you get moved to solitary. Trust me, don't do this, it's not worth it."
Rai's eyes flicked over to Kisara for a moment, only to snarl as she tugged away from Brianna. "Fine..." She begrudgingly agreed. "Be grateful, Kisara, because next time, I won't be holding myself back."
Kisara shrugged. "Whatever you say, Rai-Rai."
"Come on, let's go, Rai." Brianna ushered as the two turned to make their leave.
Once Rai was gone however, Kisara frowned, turning as she stomped away. "Damn it... And I was so close to throwing that annoying vixen into solitary..." She cursed. "Sooner or later, I'll get what I want, surely, but with Rai getting in my way, my goal could very well be in jeopardy. I'll have to deal with her as quickly as possible, but there's only so much that I can do from the outside. I'll just have to rely on the Contessa and hope she doesn't botch this all to hell..."
"God, I hate that damn cat!" Rai cursed once her and Brianna were back in their cell room, Rai pacing back and forth in a fit.
"I assume you've got a history with her then, yeah? You said her name was what again?" Brianna asked.
"Kisara Bombay, and she's a member of Interpol, but she also used to work on the other side of the law, alongside me." Rai said in a bitter tone.
"And I can only assume by that tone in your voice, you and her don't get along very well, am I right?"
Rai scoffed. "Tch... Yeah, well, she wasn't exactly the easiest person to work with, especially when she has a tendency to stab you right in the back at the drop of a dime. So no, I don't get along Kisara, not anymore at least..."
"And what're ya gonna do once you get outta this joint?" Brianna then asked.
"I've...got a friend." The fox replied.
Brianna chuckled. "And here I thought you didn't have any of those."
"Well, for a long time, I didn't, and that was mostly because of Kisara. She was the last friend I had, but after what she's done to me, that bridge has been burned to the ground."
"So, what changed then?"
Rai exhaled through her nose. "Funny enough, Sly..."
Brianna chuckled again. "I should've figured as much."
"Come on, it's really not what it looks like." Rai defended herself. "Look, the truth is that we both have a common threat, which is the Klaww Gang, so I've just been working with him to try and collect all of the Clockwerk Parts so we can finally put the old bird to rest, for good this time..."
"Now the questions is, what are you gonna do after it's all said and done with?" Brianna pointed out.
"Honestly, I'm not really sure... I don't fully know if I should continue to work with Sly and his gang or not just because I've been on my own for so long, so working with others has just been outta the cards for me."
Brianna sighed. "Well, I can't really tell ya how to run your life, because ultimately, the choice comes down to you. Whether or not you stay with him is your decision, but consider that no one was brought into this world to be alone, that's just a choice some of us make."
"I know, but after being betrayed time and time again, how do I know it won't just happen again?" Rai asked.
"Well, that's the thing, you don't, but you ain't gonna get anywhere if ya just stay locked in your own little bubble. Like I said, the choice is yours, I'm not gonna try to convince you. At the very least though, consider that Cooper ain't Kisara, so he could very well be different. But hey, I'm just voicin' my opinion, so take it as you may."
Rai's eyes flicked over to Brianna for a moment before sighing, reaching up to grip onto her arm. Well, he's stuck with me this long, so he can't be all that bad, and we did make a promise together too... I guess for now, I'll just keep my sights set on our promise and hope that this time will finally be different...