Bentley's Lab, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 3:14pm 27 July 2013
The mood is all centred around Otto, it's like the world is forcing him to admit what he has done but he is trying to hide it from everyone. The sheer loss dignity and honour that he has cast on his family is wrenching him back into his own mind. Almost wishing he was separated from this situation so that he doesn't need to face them, They seem like a motley crew to Otto who is used to having everything in order and precise. They seem nice enough, they all take their turns to try to coax him out of his spell but nothing works. He is dreaming of home, home is where he belongs; the dominance of the skies in his bi-plane is undisputed. Even with war threatening to spill over in his time, he will be ready for two sides fighting from the air. War will also bring him most of the treasures that he 'collects' as museums get raided and galleries pilfered, he will take his share and fly it away to the Cooper vault. Not by plane though, his plane can't reach the island in the pacific. He thinks it's a poor choice to store all the treasures halfway around the world. It takes weeks for Otto to get there.
Sly is also having trouble, finding anything in the Thievius Raccoonus for any sign of how Penelope could get away. There is no doubt she got it from here, but Sly can't find anything. Despite all of his knowledge of his own line, nothing coalesces in his mind. He puts back the book on the special pedestal and looks back at Otto. He still won't snap out of it. Sly thinks back to his own breakdowns, the two that brought him crashing to the ground like a demolished building. While Sly doesn't like to think about them, he is better for the experience. He learns as much about the things around him as much as himself. Knowing one's limits really help when it comes to being a thief, it helps with not being overambitious, cocky or complacent.
Another person who doesn't know what they are doing is Dimitri, he just sits in the corner, wanting to smoke but not doing so. No disco music is playing, no re-watching his own episodes of 'Disco Diver'; just the sitting is what he is doing. He thinks he is not being used to the maximum, sure he is good at scuba diving but he is no one trick pony. He wants to get an opportunity that will prove himself to them. Bentley gathers some new information as he analyses the tapes from the hidden bugs.
"I've got something. When Otto van Cooper was brought to the present, his plane was brought back as well. From the intelligence from the bug, It seems to be held in a separate room." Bentley states he hears it through his headphones.
"That's not the full story." Otto says, it is the first thing that has come out of his mouth in over an hour. His OCD like detailing courses through him, he is ready to correct the error of Bentley's story. "I can't just fly it out of there, its broken."
"But you've never crashed." Sly says.
"Not until now, I was flying along to my next heist when I saw a light, a light so bright my goggles were of no use. Then I was so close to the ground I couldn't pull up fast enough. I crash-landed onto the runway at that airfield. The entire bottom of the plane was destroyed. But almost like they knew what was happening, they came out and took me out of the plane. Then they showed me the most beautiful machine I had ever seen, a plane so big and so fast with so many guns and weapons. I was in love. But then I saw her. Her tools, so finely machined and when she told me that she made the plane, I was in love. My heart leapt through my chest." Otto says, almost like he is falling in love as he even mentions Penelope.
"Get back on track." Bentley says but Otto is in too deep in his thoughts.
"Just knowing that the throttle was connected to those engines was so empowering. Then the noise, oh the noise. And those weapons, if I had those… I would be unstoppable." Otto exclaims happily as he paces around the room, talking to anyone who will listen.
"Otto, snap out of it." Sly says as he snaps his fingers. This momentarily captures the raccoon's attention.
"Right, right. But those engines!" Otto exclaims again, momentarily catching his attention then continuing his rambling ways.
"Remember your were brought here to take down your great great grandson, not for any other reason okay." Bentley says to readjust Otto out of his world but it isn't working as he gets sucked into the whirlpool of his mind.
"She was so perfect, I could be with her forever!" Otto shouts like he wants the whole world to hear. This doesn't impress anyone, Especially Bentley, Sly is uncomfortable with it but he can see the similarities between them.
"She's a backstabbing, no good traitor who has no morals or wants other than money and greed." Says a very angry Bentley.
"She was Dutch, I was Dutch, she flew planes, I flew planes, she built machines, I built machines." Otto lists their shared qualities; they match so well together in his eyes. Sly steps in and tries to cut him a deal.
"Otto, Bentley is the smartest guy I know, I'm sure he could get you some advanced technology." Sly offers.
"That's a bad idea; any changes in the past could affect the future in untold ways." Bentley whispers to Sly, but Otto is convinced and snaps out of his mood.
"I would be delighted; if I help you get back my plane can you give me some." Otto thankfully states back to them.
"Bentley would be honoured." Sly says. Bentley doesn't want to go through with this but he has to anyway, the wheels have been set in motion.
"Wunderbar! Okay what's the plan." Otto asks, wanting to get into it straight away.
"The plan is that we need to enter through the drainage system underneath the hangar is the key, so Dimitri will have to enter into the drain and place this RC car into the hangar, where we can find the plane and figure out how to get it out of there." Bentley says, planning to do more recon but Otto is focused on something else.
"That car is pitiful, I'll make a better one." Otto challenges Bentley and sets off to work.
"But it's…" Bentley starts, trying to defend his brilliance but Otto has already got a new one made. It's a hovercraft with two tiny guns mounted on the front.
"Use this." Otto commands, handing over the hovercraft.
"It's a bit…" Bentley says, trying to make himself feel superior.
"Better? Yes it is." Otto says, pleased with his own work. It isn't his best but then again, he had only 5 seconds to make something up.
"Okay, Dimitri you're up." Bentley says as he relinquishes the RC vehicle superiority to Otto.
"Time to get my Scuba on." Dimitri exclaims, he hopes that this is the opportunity that he needs to take.
Kinderdijk Airfield, The Netherlands. 4:00pm 27 July 2013
The gang are now parked at the edge of the canal that separates the two sides from each other. Crossing over directly like last time has become an impossibility, with security being tightened up to near paranoia levels. It is once again up to their frogman to me the person to the job on the other side. Dimitri is ready with the hovercraft in hand to get to the other side.
"I just put this baby into the hangar, and your German friend will take over." Dimitri says as he tries to explain the plan in his words.
"I'm not German! I'm Dutch." Otto corrects him. Despite his accent, he is not German, he is Dutch. He moved to Germany as there were more spoils of war in Germany to take, also Germany is renowned for it's technology and efficiency even to this day. Two qualities that Otto would no doubt want in choosing a place of residence. That's not to say he neglected his roots. He tried to stay but business takes him to other places.
"You sound German man." Dimitri says before he puts the mask on and enters the water. Otto wants to get at him for that unfortunate mistake he made.
"If I could swim I would go out there and… uh never mind." Otto says as he senses his defeat. Coopers are not renowned for being able to swim, and this one is no different. Meanwhile the gang member that can swim is making his way across the canal but has forgotten to turn off his binocucom and so can hear the conversation taking place back on land.
"Sly I need to talk to you." Bentley asks, the sound is faint but he can still hear it on the binocucom.
"Sure Bentley." Sly says.
"Are you sure you know what you are promising Otto?" Still worried about what Sly may be doing.
"Relax, I'm not giving him anything new, just what he'll invent in a months time." Sly replies back, it turns out he has thought it through more than Bentley has realised.
"Using the blueprints from the Thievius Raccoonus, that's a great idea Sly." Bentley says, realising that Sly's plan was right all along.
"I may not be as smart as you, but I'm definitely not stupid." Sly replies back.
"Hey, who are you calling Stupid?" Otto asks in the distance, overhearing the conversation.
"Not you." Sly shouts back.
"As long as it's not me." Otto warns.
"Is it me?" Dimitri asks, the swimming is not what he is focused on now, swimming is so easy it's become second nature and can do it without thinking.
"Dimitri? Oh sorry, I left this thing on." Bentley says, initially surprised that Dimitri has heard the conversation and feels embarrassed to have forgotten to turn off his binocucom. By this time Dimitri is out of the canal and wandering the drains in order to reach the one that leads to the correct hangar that contains what are the destroyed remains of Otto's plane. The musky odours of mould and grime that inhabit these drains are no matter for him; he just uses the oxygen tasks to get around that. Dimitri sees the faint streaking of light that leads to the inside of the hangar.
"I'm here." He states into the binocucom.
"Get ready." Bentley says, preparing Otto for his job. Dimitri slips in the RC hovercraft and closes the drain cover. He waits for the job to be done, he might be of use later.
"It's ready." Dimitri says, waiting for the whirring of the fans to tell him it works.
"Okay let's show Penelope how it's done." Otto says, more as to challenge her mechanical ability and not her directly, he still has feelings for her. The skirt inflates underneath the hovercraft to give it the lift it needs to move, the fans start spinning and the vehicle skates along the smooth floor. The onboard camera shows him the inside which tells him something wonderful.
"She repaired it for me. How thoughtful." Otto says, still being in love with her.
"It might not stay like that for long." Bentley adds. Sure enough, two guards come in wielding sledgehammers to bust up the plane.
"You predict the future do you?" Otto asks, not knowing what technology the future holds.
"Coincidence." Bentley rebuffs.
"Either way they will not touch my plane." Otto says, strengthening his resolve even further to keep his prized plane safe. He moves the hovercraft silently through the darkness of the hangar and takes them out with short blasts of gunfire to their ankles, rendering them immobile.
"Okay, Does anyone know how to fly but me?" Otto asks, thinking ahead to an extraction.
"I do!" Murray states. Thinking of how good he did before.
"You won't fit." Stating the obvious challenge.
"I will, just you watch." Murray insists.
"But how will you get across the channel?" Otto asks, being unable to do so himself.
"I'm a hippopotamus, I'll swim." Murray explains. As Murray runs into the water to swim across. It isn't the most graceful thing to watch but he does it and makes his way out of the canal rushing to get to the hangar. Inside, alarms ring loud as more guards fall to their knees with no ankles to support them. There are hammer blows being struck to the ground in a desperate effort to rid them of the terror towards their ankles. Murray comes in through the small door through the main doors of the hangar and is about to take on the guards when he hears a voice from below.
"Murray, let me out." Ask Dimitri through the grate.
"Dimitri?" Murray asks himself, unsure of where he is.
"Down here." Dimitri says until Murray sees it for himself He tears the grate right off and throws it across the hangar, which inadvertently takes out a guard. This makes the other guards notice his presence. He grabs Dimitri out of the drain and he goes to work on the guard with all of his strength and fighting being put to the test of onrushing guards who are either desperate or forced to fight in order to do their job.
"Now how do we get out?" Dimitri asks, he is taking out some guards but Murray is doing 90% of the work.
"In the plane of course." Murray points out.
"I can't fly that." Dimitri defends himself.
"You're the first passenger of Murrays Airways." Murray states ready to make a dash for the bi-plane parked in the corner of the hangar. He jumps in and tries to squeeze in the seat to take off but there is a small problem.
"I forgot to open the door." Murray says. Murray tries to get out to force the door open but Dimitri has already gone.
"I'll do it." He states as he rushes to the button on the side of the hangar to open the door, avoiding all of the guards that rush at him. For a big guy he is very agile and quick. Murray starts the engine and this sound sets off alarms in the plane where Penelope is situated, working on the plane and hears the primitive engine start up.
"Attention guards, I don't need this the day before the boss arrives so I'm paying double if you get rid that oversized Hippo." Penelope says over an intercom that rings out through the hangar. As the door is being opened the guards try to reach the plane to destroy it. Murray, sensing the danger has gotten out to defend the plane from yet more guards. It's like she has an entire army at her disposal. The sheer numbers are tremendous but Murray is too much for them, disposing them like trash into the bin. While Murray lays a smack down on the guards Dimitri realises something.
"This is my time to shine, Boogie time." The opportunity has presented itself and he takes it with both hands. Rushing into the plane and into the pilot's seat he goes. He tries to find the control to get it out of idle and get it to move from the spot it is now. Somehow he does it but he doesn't know how. The plane accelerates slowly forward, he takes the yoke and tries to steer it like a steering wheel but it doesn't work. The wall is impending so he tries to slam on the foot pedals like in a car but this turns the plane as he has adjusted the rudder. Murray sees the plane is moving and runs into the passenger seat as he beats up another guard.
"How do you fly this thing?" Dimitri asks, panicking about having to fly a plane.
"Foot pedals control the rudder, the yoke controls the flaps and the small lever controls power." Otto says quickly.
"I don't understand what you said but ok." Dimitri says confused but knows that he must push on. He keeps it moving down a lane next to the runway, They see a figure emerge from the main hangar, it must be Penelope. Dimitri approaches her and turns around to the runway as the back wheel strains under the weight of Murray. Penelope stands and watches, she can't do anything about it. She only wonders how those two had done it. They are such an odd combination to be flying a plan to her. She waits to see if they crash and burn from not being able to take off. Dimitri pushes the level to maximum as they exit onto the runway. The plane picks up speed but not very quickly.
"Judging from the extra weight it will be touch and go whether they take off or not." Bentley says to Otto as he watches them try to take off through his binocucom. The plane is still accelerating as they near the end of the runway where Dimitri pulls back on the yoke with all his force to lift the plane, only just, into the air. Lucky for them, only fields are at the end of the runway and not buildings or roads.
"You're a hero." Murray exclaims over the sound of rushing wind.
"We are not finished yet." Dimitri says, noting the precarious situation they are in. They are climbing but not very fast. He barely has enough altitude to turn the plane around and do a flyover for the gang. He wants to soak in this moment. This is what he wants them to remember.
"Is that Dimitri?" Sly asks, looking into his binocucom with disbelief.
"Yep." Bentley confirms as the planes engine grows louder as they approach them and zoom over into the distance.
"I don't believe it, he really is." Sly says, more to confirm to himself what he is seeing. The planes smoke trail is visible from their vantage point. Bentley is already rushing into the van to pack up his gear. Sadly for obvious reason he can't drive it, he knows how to but can't. Otto can't drive either; he can fly in the air but not drive on the ground. That leaves Sly, Carmelita and Joey. The last two are just sitting the van, keeping tabs on the lab. Joey keep looking back at Carmelita, wondering how those two got together in the first place. Such a coming together of polar opposites is beyond him, especially when it comes to both sides of the law. His staring is broken by the opening of doors and an onrushing raccoon.
"Joey, drive." Sly commands. Joey springs into action to get to the drivers seat and drives away, but not having seen the event outside, he goes in the opposite direction.
"The other way." Bentley says. Joey just handbrake turns and slams on the gas to follow the low flying plane that they are chasing from the ground. Dimitri is trying to look for a place to land, He has gotten used to flying the plane although he is not comfortable with himself yet. He thinks that if he pulls the same lever, something different might happen. Somehow he lands the plane on a road in the countryside, with the van tailing him. As the plane comes to a complete halt, Dimitri wonders how he has done it all, it all went so fast. The gang, who are in the van, rush to congratulate the two of them for getting out in the circumstances, especially Dimitri who has been waiting for the opportunity to prove himself. He really did step up when it came down to it. He wasn't going to fade away into a life of girls, drugs and TV. Or just be the guy who can Scuba and nothing else. It only showed that no one should be under estimated when their back is against the wall, that they can produce what's needed when the time arises.
Now they had the plane back, Otto is excited and joyous at having his plane restored to its former glory. It more than just got him out of his mood. He couldn't wait to fly it again. But he still wanted that tech that Sly promised. So after taking Sly's advice, Bentley gave it to him. What he didn't know is that he himself would invent these pieces in a few months anyway. So now he wasn't inventing, he was discovering. But they couldn't send Otto back in their time machine; the plane was too big to send back in our time machine. Besides, how do you get a plane into the middle of Amsterdam? They had to break into Penelope's plane again to send him back. However, Murray mentioned that he heard the boss was coming tomorrow. They might still need his plane.