Chapter 23: Escape Attempt #13
Cami
Cami was very aware that she was lying face-up on a metal floor with multiple people in the room. Her wrists were bound behind her and she was lying facedown. Cami struggled to remember what had happened. She remembered the blimp, the files, and the betrayal. She understood why the Cooper Gang did it, but she didn't like it. She heard someone talking. The voice was cold and metallic, almost, like metal scraping metal.
"I want him dead. He's getting too powerful. Get the weaker brother in power." The metallic voice ordered.
"Yes, sir." Two robotic voices said in unison. Cami heard footsteps and a door as the two left.
"You're awake, Cooper. I know." The metallic voice said.
Cami didn't respond and kept very still. She fought to keep her breathing normal.
"That won't work." The metallic voice said.
Curiosity got the better of Cami and she opened her eyes. A huge metal robotic penguin with orange eyes looked down at her. The orange eyes were empty of all emotion except hate.
"Who are you?" Cami asked. She couldn't keep the fear out of her voice. Something about that thing, it made her instincts scream 'run' and 'get away at all costs'. She had never felt such a strong urge to get away. Fear had replaced the blood in her veins.
"I am Tijd, Cooper." Tijd turned around and walked to a control panel.
Cami looked around and sincerely regretted it. She shut her eyes and concentrated on breathing. She was inside the blimp's main control area and the blimp's main control area was a platform with a huge window that showed Cami how high up she really was.
"Where exactly am I?" Cami asked, keeping her eyes shut.
"You never left the blimp." Tijd tonelessly.
"Where is everyone else?"
"Probably attempting to escape, but with you here they'll have to come here to get you." Tijd remarked. He did not seem the least bit concerned that Cami's family and friends were going to try to escape and stop him.
"Why me?" Cami was still trying to control her breathing.
"Your brother regained consciousness before you. It was easier to bring the unconscious acrophobic than the conscious careful one." Tijd seemed preoccupied by something, but Cami kept her eyes shut.
"How did you know I was acrophobic?" Cami asked. Slowly, she started trying to get the restraints off her wrists. They were handcuffs, so Cami tried to pick the lock with the wire she kept in her pocket.
"I engineered it, Cooper."
"What?" The surprise made Cami open her eyes and look at Tijd.
Tijd looked at her and raised an eyebrow. He turned back to the screen he was working on. "You're acrophobic because you nearly fell out off of a eighth-floor balcony when you were seven."
"My father caught me before I fell." Cami murmured to herself. She shut her eyes again.
"Yes, he did. You nearly fell because someone jostled you and you lost your balance." Tijd said. He was typing on the keyboard while he talked.
"I doubt the acrophobia was your intention." Cami murmured to herself. She was very close to unlocking her handcuffs.
"No, I wanted you dead, but your father was much faster than I anticipated. Apparently the sight of you in trouble made him move much faster." Tijd was still typing on his computer. "Have you finished unlocking the cuffs yet?"
Cami swallowed. She had just felt the lock shift in the cuffs.
Cami heard the sound of metal scrapping against metal and she deduced that Tijd had turned around. "It seems you have. I must to say, you are very slow in comparison to the other Coopers I have known."
Cami opened her eyes and saw Tijd looking down at her. "In my defense, I only started doing this and knowing about the Cooper line when my father went missing."
"Yes, he did keep it from you." Tijd walked over to another control panel and started typing in a string of commands.
"What? You didn't engineer that too?" Cami asked as she sat up and took the cuffs off.
"No. That was not my doing."
Cami was careful to only look at Tijd and nothing else. "You're not worried about me being free?"
"No." Tijd said. He was staring intently at the screen. "In fact, I believe your family has just staged a break-out."
Just as Tijd said that, blaring alarms sounded and a robotic intercom voice screamed. "ESCAPE IN PROGRESS! ESCAPEES ON LEVEL 6, AREA 5!"
Sam
While Cami was having a conversation with Tijd, Sam was getting a fast explanation from his father. Basically, after Bentley knocked him and Cami out, they got captured, offered a choice, threatened, and now they were figuring out another escape route.
"Where's Cami?" Sam asked once the short version of what happened was done.
"With Tijd." Carmelita said venomously.
"And Tijd is?" Sam asked looking around at everyone.
"Clockwerk's ally." Sly said with a look of disgust.
"If we get out of this alive, someone is going to have to explain in this in much greater detail." Sam said.
"Yeah." Sly agreed. "Bentley, have you thought of how to get out of here?"
"No. All my tech, my wheelchair, my bombs, everything is gone." Bentley was sitting and leaning against the wall.
"My fireworks are gone as well." Panda King said sadly.
"My tech is gone." Penelope sighed. She was looking around trying to figure a way out.
My staff and moonstone are gone. I dislike that greatly. Guru was sitting cross-legged and meditating.
"I didn't have a weapon when they napped me." Sly shrugged.
"Neither did I." Carmelita hit her fist against the wall.
Sam touched the empty holsters on his sides. "My shock pistols are gone."
"I still have my FISTS!" Murray roared.
"Maybe if we…. Penelope? Could we?" Bentley looked to her.
"Maybe, we could… if we-" Penelope said as a smile started to appear on her face.
"We can! Yes! Yes! Penelope, you're a genius!" Bentley said, happily.
"No, you're a genius, Bentley!" Penelope said, laughing.
"YOU'RE BOTH GENIUSES! Now what's the plan?" Murray said finally.
"Anyone want to inform us of this plan you seem to have come up with?" Sly asked.
"Sam, you used a shock pistol?" Carmelita said disapprovingly.
"Uh, maybe?" Sam shrugged. "Cam used the cane!"
"You gave Cami the cane?" Sly looked at Bentley and Murray.
"Bentley made it into two smaller canes and gave it to both of them, but they switched so Cami had two canes and Sam had two guns." Murray shrugged.
"Sam, you used two shock pistols?" Carmelita said even more disapprovingly.
"Uh, no?" Sam shrugged.
"Can we return to the matter at hand?" Panda King asked.
Truly, I understand you two want to know about that, but this is not the time. Bentley, Penelope, you have a plan? Guru said, still in his mediation position.
"Yes. Murray, Panda King, with your strength combined, you might be able to break or at the very least bend the bars." Penelope said. "Try it."
Murray and Panda King, luckily, were in cells right next to each other. Murray grabbed the bars on Panda King's cell and so did the Panda King. They nodded at each other and started pulling. The bars bent wide enough for Panda King to step out. Next, they bent the bars on Murray's cell. Then Penelope's, Guru's, Sly's, Carmelita's, Sam's, and Bentley's. Murray picked Bentley up and carried him.
"Let's go get Cami." Sam said, smiling.
"No, you're not coming." Carmelita said, firmly.
"Mom, Cami's my sister. I have to come." Sam said firmly.
"Carmelita, we don't have time to argue, as much as I don't want Sam coming into battle, do you think leaving him here will any better?" Sly said. "It's best we bring him."
"Thanks, Dad." Sam said, happily.
"If we get into a fight, you stay out of it. Got it?" Sly said firmly.
"Yes, Dad. Can we go?" Sam said gesturing forward.
"Yeah, let's go." Sly said as everyone took off running.
The others were suppressing laughter.
"What?" Sly asked.
"It's weird seeing you act like a father." Bentley said from Murray's arms.
Just then alarms sounded. "ESCAPE IN PROGRESS! ESCAPEES ON LEVEL 6 AREA 5!" The intercom yelled.
"We need to get our stuff back!" Bentley yelled over the alarm.
"We need to find Cami!" Sly, Carmelita, and Sam all said in unison.
"Yes, but right now she needs to take care of herself. We have to find our gear if we want to stand a chance!" Penelope said over the alarm. "Will that alarm shut up?"
"On it!" Murray said as he punched one of the alarm switches. The alarm shut off.
"Thank-you, Murray." Penelope said. "Does anyone know any place where our stuff could be?"
I sense my moonstone in this direction. Guru took off to the right. Everyone followed him.
"It is likely that all of our stuff is together." Bentley said. "Just follow the Guru!"