Afterword
I normally don't do this for my stories, and this might be the only time I ever will. But the road that led me to the finished product you now know as Operation: The Third Day was a long, windy, rocky one, full of obstacles, from mere speed bumps to all-out roadblocks. I feel that the documentation behind the making of this story is long enough and worthy enough to be written out in full detail in its own chapter. But this is nothing more than a simple Afterword, and does not affect the storyline in any way. So if you don't want to read this, then you don't have to.
I might as well start from the beginning. That is generally where people start, isn't it?
I was always fascinated with the art of fanfiction. I always had multiple ideas for fanfiction stories floating around in my head, and I knew that I had to release them sooner or later before I either forget about them or deemed it too hard or unbelievable to do. When I finally started my account on , it was the very first Internet account I ever had, predating my Total Drama Wiki account (.com/wiki/User:Fedora_Kid) by just short of a year, and my YouTube account by over two years. It was started on December 22, 2008.
Since then, I have written 9 other stories, spanning across three different fandoms. The second one I wrote for was the Total Drama fandom, which, to this day, still easily remains my most successful fandom, with four stories up. Two are completed, and both have over 100 reviews each, and the third one, already at 40 reviews, is still currently in production. The fourth is a oneshot. All four of these stories have received entirely positive reviews; not a single negative one in sight. Upon my completion of the third story, which will be the conclusion of what I call the Second Season trilogy, I will permanently retire from the Total Drama fandom. My third fandom was the fandom for Avatar: The Last Airbender. I have written three stories for that one, all of which are also oneshots, put together in a little oneshot trilogy. The trilogy was initially well-received, with the only exception being the second one, which, I'll admit, featured out-of-character moments for the two main characters. At this juncture, I have no plans to write any other story for that fandom, although that could possibly change depending on the success of Avatar: Legend of Korra.
But, before Total Drama and before Avatar, it all started with Sly Cooper. Before Total Drama first premiered in 2007 (which I wasn't even interested in until late 2008), and before Avatar premiered (which I also wasn't interested in until about halfway through the second season), I was first interested in Sly Cooper. Once again, I wasn't interested in it from the start, 10 years ago in 2002. But once I discovered the second game in 2004, I was hooked instantly, buying the other two games and becoming a die-hard fan. Early on, I still kept that one special word, fanfiction, alive in my mind. In the back of my mind, I always had that desire to just get out and release my imagination in fanfiction, and a good majority of those ideas (most of which were, to put it delicately, pathetic pieces of crap) were for Sly Cooper stories.
Just four short days after I became an author on , I published two oneshots back to back, each centering around my top two favorite characters of the series: Captain LeFwee and Arpeggio. Both are, coincidentally, two of only a few characters in the series who have died, which upset me greatly. Thus, both are basically the same thing: Presenting a scenario in which both survived. The first one was Untitled for a long time, up until I finally came up with a name on August 8, 2011: An Arpeggio of Misery. The second was LeFwee's Story. I look back at these now; my first two stories ever written and published on . And, in all complete honesty, I cringe. Despite both receiving several reviews (all of which were positive), I personally considered them hastily-written, sloppy, overly-biased failures.
As a result, I turned my back on the Sly Cooper fandom for over three years as I went to work on the Total Drama and Avatar fandoms. But, for all those years, and despite facing much more critical success and more reviews, I always felt a tinge of guilt for completely shunning the Sly Cooper fandom like I had. After all, Sly Cooper was what got me started on my love for fanfiction, and was the fandom where my first two stories ever were published. Thus, I felt a need to return to that fandom with a real bang, as a way of returning the favor for getting me started. Because, truth be told, I only really got connected with things such as Total Drama (again, my biggest success) through my account. Had it not been for Sly Cooper getting me started, I wouldn't be nearly as big of a success on the Internet as I am now.
Thus, I turned to one of my old ideas for help with that amazing comeback.
Due to my youthful enthusiasm, I actually wrote many of my original ideas long before I even had an account, since I wanted a bit of a head start before actually getting to work. Most of those ideas have since been destroyed, since they truly were legitimate pieces of crap. But one idea still lingered through all the months…
I started writing Operation: The Third Day sometime in early 2008. That's right, 2008. I spent over 3 and a half years writing this monster. I finally typed those two glorious, three-lettered, bolded words at the very end of the 23rd chapter at about 2:15 P.M. on Thursday, December 15, 2011. This day may better known as the day that the nine-year-long Iraq War was declared officially over.
Let me tell you, this story went through a lot, and the finished product could not be more distant from what it originally started out as. The initial setting and basic idea was still the same: Clockwerk being resurrected at a new facility set up at the Krak-Karov Volcano, and so on. The idea that all other members of the gang (as well as Carmelita) were going to be mysteriously and brutally killed off one at a time was also part of the story early on. After all, it is pretty much what sets all of the story's events in motion; at least Carmelita's death. But really, beyond that, everything else has changed.
It was started under the original working title of Villains United. That was because my original idea for this story had absolutely no new villains; no original characters of my own. It was going to consist entirely of returning villains: Sir Raleigh, Muggshot, Mz. Ruby, Rajan, the Contessa, Jean Bison, Octavio, General Tsao, and Dr. M. It was they who were going to be in charge of the whole operation, with, naturally, Dr. M as their leader. In addition, it would be various members of the league of villains who would carry out the actual murders of the former gang members, not one individual. For example, Octavio was going to be behind the death of the Panda King, and so on.
However, I felt that it wouldn't have enough originality to it if I piggybacked off of pre-existing characters. Plus, if I created my own, I could do whatever the hell I wanted to with them, such as their behavior, their character, and with absolutely no limit to what they can do. Vlotho, in particular, was fun to write because he's a very different kind of insane. He's not all-out, giggling, scary-happy Joker insane, he's not brutal, disgusting, demented Charles Manson insane. Rather, he's a very subtle, contained, and quiet insane. Occasionally, that insanity bursts out randomly and often in short bursts (in manners similar to the two aforementioned examples), then vanishes into his cool, calm, sophisticated, and collected persona. He's extremely intelligent, but has trouble controlling his frustration with many others believing that he's psycho. He believes so firmly in his idea of being the next in a great line of conquerors that he is convinced that it's not insanity, but rather, destiny. This motif was inspired by one of Vlotho's so-called "past selves:" Adolf Hitler, who also shared a passionate belief that he was next in line, even citing his own inspiration Napoleon Bonaparte (who, coincidentally, is also mentioned by Vlotho. See the pattern?). Additional minor villain characters, such as Colonel Grant and Hans, were added in as typical henchmen, with some of their own character, but ultimately serving as simple second-in-commands or right-hand men to the real villain, Vlotho.
In addition, the decision to kill off Penelope was one I debated for a while, and didn't exist at all in the original draft. However, I felt that she had to go for two reasons: 1. It wouldn't make much sense for her to survive, since she rarely does anything of true use. I felt that, being the ultimate dangerous adventure, someone else had to go. And 2: Sly's character arc in the story, starting with Carmelita's death, had to culminate in a very meaningful way. He is very bitter, and often harsh to his friends, due to being blinded by anger, sorrow, and the lust for revenge. The death of Penelope is, more or less, set up by the scene in Chapter 7: A New Resolve, during the conversation between Sly and Bentley. Once Bentley goes through the same horrible, painful feeling that Sly went through, it would allow Sly to finally get slapped by reality, and realize that he's not the only person suffering in the world. This, along with his underlying guilt for feeling that he could've helped save Penelope, but didn't, humbles him and helps him to return back to normal, realizing that, while Carmelita was still very important to him, his friends were with him for almost his entire life, much longer than Carmelita, and, in the end, were truly the most important people in his life. Thus, he had to be there for them when they both suffered horrible, painful losses just like he did.
The assassin. I added him in later on because I felt that, if one person alone was responsible for all of the murders and pursued the Gang relentlessly, it'd be more terrifying, more intimidating, and more entertaining than just one person per murder, and no one actually chasing them across the world, which is what the original version was. I've always been particularly proud of this character, because he's not so much a character as he is a personification of evil, persistence, and strength. Almost like a primeval instinct, combined with extraordinary intellect. He does what he's told not because he wants money, not because he wants to be known as the world's best assassin, and not because his father was also in the business. He kills just to kill, and nothing can stop him. Not fatigue or morals or ethics. It's that simple. He never speaks. He never falters. He is barely fazed in the face of death itself. Another thing that adds to his level of mystery is that not once, in the entire story, do I even remotely hint at what kind of animal he is. I simply describe him as "him," or "the man," or "he." Because, to be completely honest, I can't imagine any one animal that fits this ultimate, deadly warrior. If I did pin any one species to him, it would make him less intimidating than he would be if he was a mystery. That's another bit of involvement on your part. You decide what kind of animal he is…if you want to, that is.
The characters of Eugene Braskel and Glen Whitman were also fairly last-minute ("minute" probably meaning more like "month") decisions. The one scene where they confront Sly in Chapter 4: Discovery was originally the scene that introduced them, and that was in there for quite a while. However, that was going to be the only scene featuring either of them. They were intended as one-time appearing characters. However, I felt obligated to expand more with them for two reasons. 1. I felt that I had to include a bit more of the law enforcement aspect of this story. After all, Sly is technically still employed by Interpol, and secretly working on the other side of the law throughout the story. I felt that there had to be some kind of secondary police involvement on some way. I definitely wanted this to be done through original characters, and not through already existing characters such as Winthorp (whom I instead decided to have killed off as well, presumably due to his direct involvement with Carmelita for so long), Barkley (whom I find amusing at times, but not good enough to be a recurring character), and Lieutenant Gronk (whom I find slightly overused due to his very brief appearance in Sly 3, and severely lacking in substance). Originally, Braskel and Whitman were going to just be the one-time voice of the police department, but I felt that, after introducing them and setting them up as such promising, almost antagonistic characters so early on, it would be a waste to completely drop them. Thus, I added in the scene where they indirectly spy on Sly in Chapter 2: Mourning, and added in the additional scene with them talking to Barkley in Chapter 4: Discovery. From there, I pretty much just clipped in additional scenes featuring them following Sly and the Gang, such as Chapter 9: Nightmare and Chapter 11: Preparations. The only time that I had their subplot already set in stone when I wrote a new chapter was with Chapter 13: The Chase. Ironically, their final chapter.
A really minor detail that also changed about halfway through was the introduction of Karovanine. In Sly 1, Bentley mentions that the kind of metal used in the blasting vehicles found in both Mz. Ruby's lair and the Panda King's lair could be found in only one place: The Krak-Karov Volcano. AKA, Clockwerk's hideout. I always had that slight notion itching in the back of my mind that perhaps this metal is one of the major components in Clockwerk's immortality and durability. A unique metal, not found on the Periodic Table, that never rusts, never wears out, never corrodes, and, in a sense, lasts forever. That this metal is the ultimate weapon in making Clockwerk immune to so many attacks and gunfire and so on. To me, it helped increase the story's credibility by quite a bit. The bit with it releasing a deadly gas when dissolved in lava was also thrown in there, so as to provide a better excuse for why Interpol left the Volcano so quickly after discovering Clockwerk, and why the place remained deserted, unvisited, and isolated for so many years.
Over time, all through rewriting the stories, redoing drafts, writing completely new drafts, and so on, I mostly wrote this story out of order. The first chapter, Chapter 1: Target: Fox, was always pretty much the exact same. The only other two chapters that always remained the same, and were definitive landmarks in the writing process for me even during the days of writing and organizing hell, were Chapter 10: Los Angeles and Chapter 18: Revelation. I pretty much worked around those chapters, filling in the holes, and the story finally managed to come together and actually look like a story in early 2011. I was on a gold rush of writing from late June of 2011, all through July of 2011, to August of 2011, seeing more progress in those two and a half months than I had over the last 3 years. I was mainly inspired by the official announcement of Sly 4: Thieves in Time. I figured that, when this game came out, it would instantly spark a resurgence in energy all across the Sly Cooper fanbase, including the fandom. Thus, I wanted to get it done before the official release date of early to mid-2012, and found myself finishing it early ahead of time, mostly so that I could publish this as one of the last truly long, post-Sly 3 stories that I could write using the simple excuse that, in this parallel universe, Sly 4 hasn't happened yet or will never happen.
Lastly, I want to cite all of my inspirations for this story, from which I even drew various elements from and subtly inserted them into the story. When I mention these, you might consider going back and looking for the hints or homages to these sources of inspiration.
James Bond: Most prominently, You Only Live Twice (1967), for the idea of the Volcano base as well as the inspiration for the character of Hans, based on the bodyguard of the same name in the film, portrayed by Ronald Rich.
Duel: As inspiration for the second half – the semi-truck portion – of the chase scene in Chapter 10: Los Angeles, as well as the railroad crossing climax of the same chapter.
The Terminator: Most prominently, the original 1984 masterpiece, for the factory chase scene in Chapter 20: The Factory, for the character of the assassin, and for the entire chase scene in Chapter 10: Los Angeles. Additionally, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), with the demise of the T-1000 as inspiration for the death of the assassin, the truck chase scene as inspiration for the second half of the chase in Chapter 10: Los Angeles, the helicopter chase scene in the film as inspiration for the chase scene in Chapter 13: The Chase.
Die Hard: The original from 1988, with Alan Rickman's portrayal of Hans Gruber also serving as inspiration for the character of Hans, as well as his death being the inspiration for the death scenes of both Hans and the assassin. Also, Live Free or Die Hard (2007), also for the truck chase scene in Chapter 10: Los Angeles. The first (fake) death of the henchman Karl in the original movie was also the inspiration for Murray's "death" at the hands of the assassin in Chapter 22: The Factory: Part II. The second and final death of Karl was inspiration for the death of the assassin.
Batman: Most prominently, the 1989 film, mostly for the helicopter chase in Chapter 13: The Chase, based on the Batwing scene, as well as the death of Hans being partially inspired by the death of the Joker, portrayed by Jack Nicholson. Additionally, the scene where the Joker shoots up Carl Grissom (played by Jack Palance) was inspiration for the similar scene where Vlotho unceremoniously executes Sergeant Bolan.
Halloween: With Michael Myers (portrayed by Nick Castle) as inspiration for the character of the assassin.
The Thing: As inspiration for the scene where the facility is destroyed.
That's all for this Afterword. For all of you who took your time to read and review this story, and especially those who took extra time to read this Afterword, I sincerely thank you. It helps to know that my efforts over the last 3 years are appreciated. Ultimately, I consider this to be probably one of the top two best stories I've ever written here on , tied with Total Drama World Tour: Second Season. However, the previous two predecessors to the aforementioned story were at a considerably lower level than the third in so many ways that almost disgust me (as they were written in my earlier days), which, in their own way, hinder the success of this story. In addition, the story is still currently unfinished, with no end in sight due to extreme writer's block, hiatus, and school work slowing me down severely. This story, however, has no predecessors that harm it in the same manner, and I was not faced with as much writer's block with this one as I was the other. Thus, for those reasons, I ultimately consider this to be the better of the two, and my magnum opus (Latin phrase, translated: Largest, finest, and/or most popular work of an author). It ultimately succeeded in meeting my expectations, and is just as good as I originally envisioned it when I was a naïve, overly-enthusiastic 14-year-old who had a single idea, and began what would grow into a monster of a story all those years ago. It was long, stressful, and demanding. But it was worth it.