Chapter 5: One Case And One Case Is One Case

The Rescue Rangers were glad to be out of the MSS Headquarters. They didn't mind paying the squirrels in green a visit, but they preferred different circumstances than that day. Now they were flying back to their own Headquarters, Zipper and Foxglove using their own wings, and the others riding the Rangerwing. Soon, the oak tree they called home was in sight, and Gadget steered the craft into an approach.

"Why can't they live nearer to the ground?" The short rat in the brown coat had just made it up the tree. It had been somehow difficult to find it as only a few insiders knew where the Rescue Rangers Headquarters was, but a couple of police dogs had been able to tell him the way. They were probably right, there was a decal above the door which he figured might be that of the Rescue Rangers. After all, the letter R was in it twice.

Often had he heard of the Rangers and the miracles they did in their never-ending fight against crime and injustice among both humans and animals. He had never seen them personally, he hardly even knew how many they were, let alone who and what species exactly, as only few of those whom he had met and whose tales he had listened to had gone into details. But judging by what everyone had told him, he decided that if someone could provide him with the help he required, it was them. At least, the location and size of their place told him he would most probably not have to deal with predators.

He stood on the platform, tried to regain his breath after the exhausting ascent, and took knocking on the door into consideration when he was suddenly pounced upon from behind. As he lay flat on the wooden floor, he turned his head which was the only part of his body he could still move. To his right, he saw a chipmunk in a loud red Hawaiian shirt holding down his right arm and pressing an elbow into his back. Barely visible was also a rotund mouse who was hardly smaller than himself and who made sure he couldn't move his feet. Turning his head to the other side, he discovered a second chipmunk in an aviator jacket and a fedora hat who secured his left arm.

Then into his field of view stepped a beautiful female mouse with long blond hair wearing a pair of lavender overalls. Indeed, she was beautiful, the sort of a beauty that could take an old rat's heart and mind away with the least effort, for so she did. But she was not as pleased to see him as he was to see her. For a moment, he wondered why the Rangers, assuming these were the Rangers, treated him this way, and if they did it with everyone who was in need of their help. But soon it came to his mind that they might have had to deal with one or even both of his two wicked brothers in the past.

The words coming from the blond mouse confirmed his suspicion. "Nice outfit you're wearing there, Capone, but not enough to trick us! What are you doing here?"

"Yeah," the red-nosed chipmunk in the Hawaiian shirt added, "an' where've ya left your gang?"

"Excuse me," the rat apologized for his siblings, "but you must confuse me with someone else. May I ask who that someone is?"

"Nice, nice, Rat Capone," the blond mouse commented, "you haven't only changed clothes, but now you're trying to hide your Brooklyn gangster slang. Still not enough to convince me."

"Wait, Gadget," the chipmunk in the hat interrupted his female companion. "Maybe he's really not Rat Capone." He pressed harder. "Okay, Francis, who sent you, and why?"

"Hey Chipper, does that mean Double-O Dale has finally defeated his archenemy?" Dale asked with a cheer in his voice.

"Seems so, my friend."

"Will you please listen to me now?" the rat demanded. "I'm neither of these two. I'm their brother."

"Brother?" the chipmunk in the hat wondered. "You mean they are brothers? This explains why Francis has that resemblance to Rat Capone. Interesting."

"One 'appy family o' crooks, right?" came from behind him. "An' what does that make you then, pally?"

"For a start, the only honest one of the bunch. Now if you were so kind and allowed me to get up, I'd explain everything to you. Including why I'm here."

The chipmunk to his left let loose and motioned his fellows to do the same. "Alright, get up and tell us."

"But do one false move, mate," the burly mouse threatened and made his knuckles crack loudly, "an' it could easily be yer last move fer quite a while."

"Calm down, everybody," the rat said, "I'm not here to cause trouble. First, may I ask if you happen to be the famous Rescue Rangers?"

"Yes, that's right." The chipmunk in the hat seemed to trust him enough to offer him a handshake. "We are the Rescue Rangers. Well, a part of them. I'm Chip Maplewood."

One by one, the four Rangers on the main platform introduced themselves to him. The rat shook hands with all of them. "I'm glad I found you guys. My name is Allan Capone. I take it you've come across my brothers Francis and Rupert in the past."

Gadget couldn't believe what she heard, neither could she suppress a slight giggle. "Rupert? You mean this wannabe mafioso Rat Capone has a normal name, too? Well, at least Capone is real."

"Yes," Allan told the Rangers, "we've got Italian ancestors in our past."

"So the rumor isn't true, huh?" Dale asked.

"Which rumor?"

"That all rats from Brooklyn are crooks."

"I wish I could confirm or deny that. But actually, we grew up in Newark, and I've never been to Brooklyn. Rupert's accent is as real as the name he's using, namely not at all."

"Wait, where are our good manners?" Chip opened the front door and invited Allan to enter. "Come on in, meet the others, and tell us why you're here. Foxy, Zipper, LaWahini," he continued by shouting, "you can go inside, the danger is over!"

Allan accepted the invitation and stepped inside, followed by Dale, Monty and Gadget, the latter being watched closely by Chip as she walked past him.

"So there are more than four Rescue Rangers?"

"We used to be five," Chip explained, "you're gonna meet Zipper, the fifth original Ranger, in a minute. Since last year, we've got four new members. It's still a bit difficult to get a team of nine to work properly, especially after all those years of being a tight-knit team of five. So, what brought you here?"

Allan sat down in the teacup armchair. "It's my brother Francis. Like Rupert, he's been on the wrong side of justice as long as I can think. But while Rupert took his last name to try and start a career as a large-scale, 30s-style gangster boss, Francis chose to work for a human. He did so without revealing much of his sentience to him, but that certain human was on the wrong side of law. And that's still the case."

"Case?" Chip said. "That reminds me we're already on a case, but it'll soon be over, and we'll be able to take care of your case then. What is it about?"

"Francis and his two henchrats, I think their names are Louie and Moe, have joined that same human again. I haven't seen the guy, but I know they're working for him."

Dale began to bounce with eagerness. "Oh boy oh boy, the Greatest Spy in the World is back?" He sensed a chance to impress his Foxy who just came in from the hangar, together with Zipper.

After giving his old buddy another bonk on the head, Chip told him, "Dale, in case you haven't noticed yet, the Cold War's over! For whom shall he spy here?"

Allan continued his explanations. "No, as far as I've found out so far, he must have changed his business to jewel thievery. Francis and his rat friends have stolen a set of 13 gems for him, and now they're looking for the missing 14th stone."

"A missing gem in a set of 14?" Chip asked. "Do you happen to know where they're from?"

"Sure. I've watched them for a while. The gems are from a gallery not far from here. One of them has been exhibited, as far as I've been told."

"Gallery?" LaWahini stepped in. When she saw that the rat hadn't left and was in the main room now, she quickly hid the diamond which she was still carrying behind her back. "Uh... I just wanted..."

Chip introduced her to Allan. "LaWahini, this is Allan Capone. Allan, this is LaWahini Hackwrench, Gadget's twin sister. And I'm pretty sure what you said was her cue."

"Why?"

"Because it would be a bigger coincidence if she hadn't got the missing diamond than if she had. She took it from a gallery this morning to keep Fat Cat from stealing it. Come on, LaWahini, show it to us."

The formerly Hawaiian mouse hesitated for a moment, then got the walnut-sized and masterly crafted piece of compressed carbon out from behind herself and handed it to Chip.

"Thanks, LaWahini. Allan, can this one be the missing diamond?"

"I don't know, Mr. Maplewood..."

"Oh, please call me Chip."

"...Chip. I haven't seen the other gems. But as far as you've described its origin, I suppose it's what they're looking for."

Chip sat down on the semi-circular couch. "And again, two cases merge into one. The legal owner of these stones is not missing one, but all 14. If Chief Chesnutt knew that..."

The very moment he said that, Tammy came in. "Chief Chesnutt? Chip, you've met Dad today?"

"Yes, Tammy. Under quite unpleasant circumstances, that is."

"Oh, now I'm curious."

Chip was about to tell the squirrel about the last few hours, but Sparky interrupted him, his blond hair even untidier than usually, and smoke coming out of his ears. "Um, Gadget, where've you stored the fuses? I believe I've blown one."

"Not only one," Dale commented, "an' not for the first time". He received another bonk from Chip before the latter got up and went over to Tammy.

Gadget informed Sparky, "They're in my parts storage in a box labeled, 'Fuses.' You can't miss them. Oh, and we've got a guest. Allan, this is Sparky, another one of the new Rangers."

"I'm pleased to meet you, Sparky." Allan got up and approached the lab rat in the white lab coat.

Gadget tried to warn him. "No, Allan, don't shake his—"

A few sparks and a bit of lightning later, Allan's hairdo resembled Sparky's in a certain way. "Wow, electricity..." he spoke. "I guess I needed a bit of extra energy anyway."

Chip had begun to tell Tammy how the Rangers met her father, but she didn't pay much attention. The incident with Sparky had distracted her, and she was giggling silently.

For Sparky, this was an embarrassing moment. "Oh, I'm sorry, Mr... what was your name?"

"Allan. Allan Capone."

"You must excuse 'im," Monty said, "ol' Sparky's got some problems with 'is memory at times. An' with the juice 'e's carryin' around. One gets used ta it after a while."

Gadget smiled. "He's a bit like a rodent capacitor."

"I'd rather refer to him as my walking, talking defibrillator," Tammy demonstrated her medical side.

"Tammy, remind me to invent a real defibrillator for you before we need one. Achally, I hope we won't need that one either."

Monty rubbed his hands against each other. "Y'know, Sparky's special attribute is perfect fer pullin' pranks." He stretched out his index fingers and stood up behind Dale who gave him an angry glare.

Chip tried to get a bit of order into the common chaos. "Um, folks, weren't we on a case?"

Gadget was the first to return to the topic. "Oh, right, the case. Sorry, we got a bit carried away. So what shall we do about these diamonds now?"

Chip motioned Allan and the other eight Rangers to gather around him. "What we shall do is find the other 13 diamonds and bring them back. Allan, you know where they are, don't you?"

"They're in the hands of that human. It won't be easy to take them from him."

Dale put a hand on one of Allan's shoulders. "Don't worry, we've been through tougher cases."

"I don't doubt that," Allan said, "but even if you got them, he'd have ways of getting them back."

"And he'd do anything to achieve that, right? Like he used to?"

"I suppose so, Chip. From what I've heard, he's far from being what I'd call a gentleman."

"That means getting the diamonds back will not be sufficient. If he tries to get them into his possession again, and I can't exclude that, we'll have to put him out of business, too."

"Which requires knowing his business," Gadget added.

"Exactly," Chip confirmed. "Allan?"

"Don't ask me, I've never seen him nor heard too much about him, I think even you know him better than I do. I can't tell you much more than where to find him. Guess he's not blabbing much about his plans as long as Francis is around. Or my dear brother doesn't bother talking about them."

"Then we need to find it out ourselves."

"And how will you accomplish that?"

Chip balanced the diamond on one finger. "Well, we've got the right bait. We'll give him what he wants."

LaWahini got upset about this plan. "Are you crazy, Chip? What was my effort of stealing the diamond good for when you're carelessly giving it away to a crook?"

"For bringing it into our possession, LaWahini," Chip explained. "Now we can do with it what we want. If you hadn't gotten it, he'd have all 14 gems now, and he'd probably be long gone without a trace. But now that it's in our hands, we're making the rules in this game."

"Rules? Game?" Allan didn't understand the way the Rangers treated something that serious.

"Why not? We've been Rescue Rangers too long to regard our cases as a chore. In fact, it can be fun at times."

Dale got it a bit more precise. "The difference between games and our cases is that we always win."

"That, Dale, and the bets tend to be much higher on our cases. Okay, the first step of our plan is to give this guy what he wants. Allan, you said you know where he is, right?"

"Right, but are you really going to give him the diamond?"

"No, Allan. You are."

"I am..."

The first who got Chip's idea was Monty. "Not as yerself, mate. This blighter won't be able ta tell ya from any o' yer crooked siblings. So the only difficult part will be trackin' Francis down."

"That's actually not difficult. Francis returns to this human every evening."

Zipper sighed and remarked how hard it will be to explain all this to Chief Derek Chesnutt.

"Thanks fer remindin' me, Zipper me lad," Monty said. "I need ta ask the squirrels if I can 'ave some o' that knockout stuff."