And the final battles come to a close with a nice, lengthy chapter. Stay tuned for a not-so-lengthy epilogue.

Chapter 12: Escape

It was no surprise that Clockwerk attacked first. Sly ducked as talons sharp enough to chop down trees sailed over his head. He raised his cane to block a second strike of the talons and rolled underneath the owl as he flew overhead. Clockwerk turned himself around and narrowed his robotic eyes at the raccoon. No, not at Sly, at his cane. "I knew something was strange about you. That is not the cane of Slytunkhamen Cooper. Who are you?"

Sly sure as heck wasn't about to give him more information about the Cooper Clan and so he said nothing. "No matter. You are plainly a Cooper and so your fate is sealed. I do not need to know the name of every one of you vermin that I squash." From his position in the air, Clockwerk spread his wings and unleashed a swarm of purple fireballs from turrets along his body. Sly dodged around them as best he could, spinning his cane to deflect the last few.

I really wish I had Carmelita's jetpack right now. It hadn't occurred to him just how much harder this fight would be without any way of getting airborne. Clockwerk was no doubt aware of this as well and so remained where he was, shooting more and more fireballs at him and even a few of those floating electric rings he was so strangely fond of.

Sly grunted as one of those rings singed his tail a bit while he jumped through it. One thing was certain, he needed a plan, and fast!

"Now where did I put that blasted thing?" Le Paradox mumbled to himself as he searched around the top of the cliff. He thought he had memorized the location where he had hidden the time machine, but now he was drawing a blank. Overwhelmed by his own genius, of course. It happens to the best of us.

"Looking for something?" The skunk whirled around and saw Isis standing in front of him, smugly holding the device he sought in one paw. She tossed it up and down a bit, making him wince. "Valuable, isn't it? I see we made a wise choice in deciding to pocket it."

"You don't even know what 'it' is!"

"Who cares? Technology of this caliber will make us filthy rich no matter what it does. Besides, the divine one seems to be perfectly aware. He even told us he has a plan to pull off the ultimate heist using that device." His gaze shifted a bit to Clockwerk, just out of the corner of his eye.

That creepy bird wanted to travel through time? Probably to filch profits from the future. That's just like MY plan, but in reverse! How dare he!

Thoroughly pissed off at this other thief for stealing his plan (though technically the owl had came up with it first), Le Paradox drew his rapier and struck.

Isis swiftly dodged away and landed a few feet to his left. "Careful now. It took us long enough to repair this thing, even with the divine one's instruction." She placed the time machine on the ground and gingerly patted it. "We wouldn't want to break it all over again." Isis stood up to full height and withdrew her twin khopesh blades. "Right now, I'm only interested in breaking you."

She leapt forward and brought her blades down on Le Paradox, who parried the strike with his rapier. He went right on the offensive, striking swiftly with his lighter weapon. Isis used her twin blades to block his attacks, but couldn't find any opening to slash back at him. Instead, she used the hook of one khopesh to push the skunk's weapon to the side, then flipped the other one around in her paws and struck him across the face with the blunt end. The fact that Cooper had used a similar move on him just days before made it hurt all the worse.

Le Paradox was knocked hard to the ground. As Isis came in to strike again, he spied the time machine lying nearby, snatched it up, and held it in front of him like a shield. It was a risky move, but a risk he was willing to take.

As he had hoped, Isis froze mid-strike, not wanting to damage the machine she intended to make herself rich with. In that moment of hesitation, Le Paradox kicked her legs out from under her and rolled away as she tripped. One khopesh fell from her grasp and embedded itself into the ground a few feet away. The other was perfectly fine however, as she demonstrated by nicking the skunk's arm as he got back up. He hissed in pain, resisting the urge to grab his arm as Isis came at him again.

His injured arm slowed his movements enough for it to still be an even fight. With the shape of the feline's weapon and the tactical way she fought, Le Paradox couldn't help but be reminded of Cooper. That reminder was the last thing he needed right now. Hmm...or perhaps not.

Isis took a slash across her chest, surprised by a sudden surge of aggression from her opponent. She couldn't understand why he was suddenly fighting her so viciously when his style had been so much more refined before. It wasn't just anger, it was a torrent of resentfulness so overpowering that she was completely unable to keep up. There was no chance of him letting up either. Le Paradox had now envisioned his opponent as Sly Cooper and he wasn't about to leave the raccoon any opening to strike back.

He jabbed her in the gut with his sword's handle, then slashed her arm, making her scream and drop her own weapon. "Damn! Where's my other sword?!" she yelled, backing away from Le Paradox as she searched around frantically.

"Right here!"

The second khopesh came out of nowhere and struck Isis in the face with the blunt end. The feline was knocked clear over the edge of the cliff, her screams echoing up as she fell.

"Guess I picked a bad hiding spot, huh?" Neema asked innocently, holding the bloodstained blade behind her back with a wide grin.

Yikes, this girl is scarier than Isis.

Sly panted as another stream of fire came at him, and he dodged to the side. His reflexes were definitely starting to slow as this blast caught fire to a piece of his Shendyt and he had to quickly stop to pat it out. He still had no idea how he was supposed to fight back here. He knew his cane was capable of hurting Clockwerk, but that meant nothing if he couldn't get close enough to use it.

A loud screech came from his right and he turned to see Isis tumbling down the side of the cliff head over heels. She bounced off of a rock near the bottom, flipped around in mid-air, and landed with a soft thud right at his feet.

"Are you okay?" Sly asked. He was being genuine, but she clearly didn't take it that way as she snarled and took a swing at him, making him jump back.

"That is it!" she screamed, swinging her blades at him in blind rage. Sly continued to back away slowly from her frenzied attacks. "You imbeciles have humiliated me for the last time! I'm going to rip you apart, raccoon! You're mine!"

"No!"

Isis didn't have enough time to so much as turn her head before the massive form of Clockwerk came down on top of her. Sly shielded his eyes as this kicked up another cloud of sand into his face. When it cleared, he saw Clockwerk standing right in front of him. The owl swept a giant wing and, unprepared, he took it full force, tumbling back a few more feet.

"I am the only one who gets to kill you," said Clockwerk, stepping out of the small crater his impact had created. In the middle of that crater he saw the motionless form of Isis. Her neck had been broken on impact.

Sly hadn't exactly been a fan of the sand cat leader, but he was disgusted nonetheless. "What kind of god murders his own followers, Clockwerk?"

"I have no interest in being a god. My only desire is your demise." He took to the skies once more and glared down at him. "Why do you think I recruited these fools in the first place? I knew that if I built up a powerful band of thieves, Slytunkhamen Cooper would take notice and come out of hiding. Even if I didn't get the correct Cooper, I still lured one of you into my grasp. You Coopers are so predictable."

"I'm getting really sick of hearing that," Sly growled. Right on cue, he spotted Le Paradox and Neema on top of the cliff. The skunk held the time machine in one paw and used the others to make a series of signals. He pointed to the time machine, gave a thumbs-up, pointed to Sly, and then the ground he was standing on. The message was silent, but abundantly clear: "The time machine is ready, so get your butt up here now!"

Sly signaled him back, pointing to himself, then Clockwerk, then the cliff, and dragged a finger across his throat. "How do you expect me to climb up there without getting killed by this lunatic?" his message asked. Le Paradox rolled his eyes and disappeared from view, not exactly a reassuring answer. Neema just shrugged.

Sly gave a yelp as a fireball just missed his foot. "I have lived for hundreds of years, and I will live for hundreds more to see your clan wiped out, Cooper. I will not be ignored."

"Then come down and fight me, you coward!" Sly hissed.

"I see no need," Clockwerk replied, completely unphased by his taunt. "Soon you will tire, and then I will take my vengeance. You cannot dodge me forever. I will-AGGH!"

Sly couldn't tell what had happened at first. He saw a black blur out of the corner of his eye and then Clockwerk just seemed to suddenly veer to the right as sparks flew from his wing. As his erratic flight turned him around, he saw the cause: Le Paradox had just stabbed his rapier into the owl's wing.

Under normal circumstances, such a blade couldn't hope to pierce that metal plating, but the skunk gaining momentum from leaping off of the cliff combined with the relatively weaker protection on Clockwerk's wings allowed it to penetrate. Having already made a hole, Le Paradox pulled his rapier back out and stabbed it in again, deeper. Clockwerk let out another scream as he started to lose altitude, his right wing failing to function. Sly dove to the ground and the owl soared right over top of him, crashing a short distance away. Le Paradox jumped off at the last second and landed right next to him, looking more than a little smug. "Okay, I'll admit it. That was pretty badass."

"You bet it was," he smirked.

"Hey, guys!" They both looked up to see Neema yelling to them from the top of the cliff, holding the time machine under one arm. "This doohickey started getting all loud and flashy. That's good, right?"

"You bet it's good!" Sly answered. "Get down here as quick as you can. We've just got a little something to take care of first." He looked to Le Paradox, who nodded back at him as they both turned to face off with Clockwerk. The owl was back on his feet, though his right wing was still sparking.

"You will not escape me, Cooper. Not you, nor your little friend."

"Just to be clear, we are not friends!" Le Paradox insisted. "It just happens to be my best interest not to kill him. Yet."

"I love you too, buddy," Sly said sarcastically. "Now let's take this guy down."

Clockwerk let out a cry befitting of a bird of prey and unleashed more projectiles at the duo. Eerily in sync, the two thieves charged forward, ducking and weaving the shots as they closed in. Clockwerk raised one taloned foot and brought it down on Sly as he drew near. His cane proved as formidable a shield as ever as he held it above his head and blocked the razor-sharp talons. But Clockwerk was nothing if not persistent and he continued to press down on him, making him grunt in exertion. Strong as he was, Sly couldn't hope to hold him back for long.

Luckily, he didn't have to. Le Paradox ducked under the owl's wing and dug his rapier into the joint of his other leg. The injury he created was minor, but it was enough to make Clockwerk reel back in surprise. Sly pushed up on his cane as he hard as he could and the bird was toppled onto his back. Sly wasted no time in leaping on top of him and went straight for his head. He swung his cane once, twice, three times, the third blow shattering one of his glass eyes. Clockwerk screamed in rage and pushed himself up with his other wing, knocking Sly off. That left him wide open for Le Paradox to stab his unharmed wing, this time aiming for the spot where the wing connected to his torso.

The strike worked even better than expected. The left wing was damaged much like the right and Clockwerk swayed back and forth, having a good deal of trouble maintaining his balance now. "Le Paradox, throw me up!" Sly shouted, rushing for the skunk. Surprised but not unprepared, Le Paradox cupped his paws together and threw Sly upwards. He flew right above Clockwerk's head and held up his cane. "Now stay out of my future!" As he descended, he thrust the cane straight down...right into Clockwerk's skull.

"Cooper!" Clockwerk fell once more, but he wouldn't be getting up very quickly this time. Both of his wings were malfunctioning, one of his eyes was gone, and Sly's cane was still jutting out of his forehead. His body twitched and spasmed, letting out sparks every which way. His brain was left a bit scrambled as well. "You will...not escape...my...hamsters..."

One master thief was able to defeat Clockwerk. Two master thieves had completely kicked the crap out of him.

"Is it over?" Le Paradox asked warily.

"No. His auto-repair functions will kick in and fully restore him. That's why we've got to get out here."

"I want your...tamagotchi..."

Neema finally made it down to them. "Okay you two, here's your...whatever this is."

Le Paradox eyed it readily. "Yes, it still works! Cooper, let's get going!"

"Hold on, I just gotta get my cane." Sly carefully approached the fallen Clockwerk and reached for the cane stuck in his head.

"...always haunt you..."

He froze. "...What?"

"...never...have peace..."

"Hurry up, already! Before I change my mind!"

But Sly didn't hear him. His focus was drawn to what Clockwerk had said, scarily accurate as it was. Indeed, Clockwerk would always haunt him. Even in his own time, when the owl had been destroyed for good, he still remembered him vividly. Still had the occasional nightmare about being that young kit all over again, forced to watch as Clockwerk killed his father in front of him. Would he ever be rid of him for good?

Sly caught sight of the owl again, struggling helplessly in front of him, and his grip tightened around his cane. Maybe...maybe I can be.

"Cooper, what is the hold up?!"

"I'm going to kill him."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm going to kill him," he repeated. Sly's demeanor had changed dramatically, taking on a low, dark tone. "This monster has stalked my ancestors for centuries, he killed my father, he's been nothing but a stain on the entire Cooper history! I can prevent all of that. All I have to do is kill him right here, right now."

"I killed your...library?"

That particular error only made Sly angrier as he raised his cane above the owl's head again, ready to drive it all the way through this time, to destroy the dreaded hate chip that kept him alive.

His arm was stopped mid-swing and he turned around, expecting to see Neema's worried eyes. What he actually saw was the calm gaze of Le Paradox. "Look, I understand your desire to change the past, but you know as well as I do that there are severe consequences to that. Why do you think you need to change it anyway? Look where you are now! You've beaten this birdbrain in the future, not to mention me. You've become an excellent thief just fine without your damned father around. Just leave him be, Sly."

It was a personal and heartfelt speech, one that Sly highly doubted would ever come out of the skunk's mouth again. In the face of such an anomaly, he was shocked back to his senses. "You're right...let's just go," he said softly.

Le Paradox led him back over to where Neema held the time machine, and he swiftly snatched it away from her. "Okay...can't believe I have to this again...there we go! It's ready!"

Neema shuffled her feet anxiously. "So...I guess this is goodbye?"

Sly nodded. "Yeah, I'm afraid so. I've got to get back to my t-er, my home."

"You don't have to hide it anymore," she smiled. "Time travel, I get it now. I have no idea how it's possible, but I get it. So you were never really Slythunkhamen Cooper, were you?"

Despite everything, he smiled back. "No. It's just Sly. Lot less of a mouthful, huh?"

She laughed. "It sure is. So nothing that happens between us right now really matters, right?"

"Uh...yeah, that's right," Sly said, a bit unsure where this was going. He found out quickly as Neema abruptly pulled him close and kissed him full on the lips.

Le Paradox raised an eyebrow. After a few seconds, Neema released a wide-eyed Sly and giggled. "Well, see you around." She turned around and ran off before he could say a word.

"Better not tell your future, sort-of girlfriend about this," Le Paradox grinned.

"Yeah...probably a good idea."

"Cooper!" Clockwerk rose to his feet again, his auto-repair process completed.

Le Paradox jumped. "Oh, you've gotta be-okay, start it up, start it up," he muttered rapidly as he activated the machine. Just like before, it started to release a blue glow and a hum that both gradually increased in intensity. "Hold on tight!"

Sly didn't need to be told twice and grabbed the machine with both paws. He had come too far to simply slip off.

Clockwerk took to the sky, stared down at the duo, and dove frighteningly fast towards them.

Sly felt the time machine began to vibrate and he had to shut his eyes as the glow became blinding. If only he could do the same for his poor ears right now. The hum was getting extremely loud now, but not loud enough to drown out the enraged voice of Clockwerk.

"You will not escape me, Cooper! You will never escape me! Clockwerk is superior! CLOCKWERK IS-!"

Sly felt himself being yanked off of his feet and they both vanished.