Kinderdijk Airfield, The Netherlands. 27 July 2013
The two raccoons flying through the air see the long black strip of tarmac on the ground, indicating the airfield. But what they see also is a set of bright lights in the distance, the lights of the incoming jet. For all the zoom capabilities of the binocucom, Sly can't see what the plane exactly is but he knows it is small, a private jet perhaps. Sly can see the van parked below on the opposite side of the canal, somehow Murray's lead foot is faster than a plane going as the crow flies. The bi-plane is circling around the airfield, trying to get in position for the impending meeting. As they do this, Otto spots the plane for himself and can't see any propellers on it.
"How is that flying?" Otto asks.
"Jet engines, better than propellers." Sly says. This only gives a face of intense want on Otto.
"Oh I want them." Otto exclaims, another item to add to his wish-list of future technology. Sadly, for him, he's not getting his hands on them anytime soon. More waiting and watching is done until the smoke of tires hitting the ground displays the full extent of the plane. It is just a normal private jet, no markings, and no identifiers. Seems like someone else wants to keep in anonymity. From the sky they see the small drone Bentley has in the air take off, after that it assimilates itself with the backdrop of the sky behind it, making it effectively invisible. Sly tunes into the chatter on the ground.
"Can you hear anything?" Bentley asks to Dimitri, it seems he's really close to the plane which is on the runway with it's engines rumbling still.
"I can't hear you." Dimitri replies. The sound from above drowns him out. They see the plane's engines power down and the door opens up for someone to get in, no one comes out and no one comes in. They see no one approaching the plane from one of the hangars. Maybe Penelope is late but that's not something that would usually happen. Still the gang and their vehicles try to keep an eye out for anything, expecting something. But nothing happens.
"I hear footsteps." Dimitri announces. The gang seem sceptical; there is no one above him or near him.
"No one is out there." Bentley affirms. Dimitri thinks he's hearing things, he trusts Bentley's advice because he is the smart one. But still the small but sure footsteps approach the plane.
"They are getting closer." Dimitri says. Bentley changes the mode of the camera of the drone, fearing the worst. Sure enough, a red silhouette of Penelope's body heat shows up as she casually walks to the planes staircase.
"Oh god." Bentley says to himself. "Switch to thermovision." Bentley says to Sly on the radio. Sly does what he says and sees it with his own eyes. The radio connection between them is silent, telling Bentley that he is in as much surprise as he is.
"But that can't be?" Sly asks back.
"There was another reason she went to Egypt." Bentley alludes.
"But how could she learn that? The shadow power? I mean she's not a Cooper." Sly say as he tries to fight the reality that he saw. They see her walk up the stairs of the jet. She stops and looks around frantically, as if something has just happened.
"Do you notice the bug I put on her while she climbed up the plane?" Dimitri exclaims, almost expecting praise for what he has done. Bentley zooms in to get a closer look of the bug but he becomes uncomfortable zooming in that close to his ex-girlfriend.
"But you didn't carry a bug." Bentley wonders.
"I'm just that prepared." Dimitri says confidently, a new confidence is flowing through him. Now that they can get sound of the meet, they can hear the conversation from the outside. The thermovision reveals the interior layout, a table with 8 chairs around it, 7 of them are occupied. Only the one chair at the head facing the cockpit is vacant, one for a mouse. Bentley is running frantic cross checks on the silhouettes on the table as the conversation starts.
"I'm here." Penelope says over the bug. All the people sitting at the table are surprised at the sound, they jolt up in their seats, the adrenaline rush wanting them to fight or flee but the brain says to stay.
"I don't believe it." A voice says replies back from the head of the table. They all connect the dots now. It was only the beginning.
"Wonderful, isn't it?" She says back.
"How is your task going?" The director asks.
"6 of them are done, just the one left." Penelope says, giving the status report.
"The European target." He says with a hint of anger.
"Yes sir." Penelope affirms, she seems less involved with this plan than the director
"And what is taking so long? I just made the radio speech and now you gotta deliver me the results!" He shouts. Others in their comfy chairs start to sink back into the seat backs, trying to fade out of the environment, not wanting to participate in this conversation.
"It's just…" Penelope starts.
"It's just this, it's just that. What kind of fool do you take me for?! I want no excuses, I won't give you those defence contracts unless the entire job is completed! I want that Raccoon on this table when I arrive back here or you will be the one on the table!" He shouts angrily across the table.
"But you need to give me something upfront now." Penelope asks, knowing she has them on a string. No matter how much the situation looks against her
"No Sly, no money." He says. Furious that she even would even have the cheek to ask.
"Give me half now, the next half when you return." She says.
"That's preposterous, no deal. Did you even listen to what I said?" He shouts, it's more just building him up, inflating his balloon of anger and she's ready with the pin.
"Well, you can say goodbye to my technology." Penelope says as she half turns to leave but knows they will not let her go.
"No, please stop." He begs. The balloon has burst spectacularly.
"So the first half now." She says, expecting him to say yes.
"Get the transfer done." He agrees. She always gets her way with them. An assistant comes over to her with a laptop with a bank transfer prepared. All she does is input the codes and bam, the money is hers.
"Just one more thing before you go." The director asks. Penelope turns to hear what he has to say.
"I'm sure you are aware that one of our 'best agents' has escaped and is on the run. If you bring her as well, I'm sure we can make it worth your while." He says, making it painfully clear who he means, stressing every single identifier.
"Carmelita Fox? I'd be happy to do that. In fact, she is the key to the target." Penelope says.
"Just don't disappoint us when we return." He warns. But she has already walked out of the plane. She walks of by herself towards the canal as the doors of the plane retract and the plane moves off to take off again.
"They're going after Carmelita!" Sly shouts at the radio to Bentley who is transfixed on the mouse walking towards them, it doesn't seem like she's seen them though.
"Carmelita!" Bentley shouts towards the van but the van is not there. How could he miss something like that? Surely the engine would break that concentration but when one is completely concentrated on something, they tend to miss the other things going on around them.
"How did I miss that? Someone stole the van!" Bentley replies back to Sly.
"What?" Sly asks. He is confused at how the van could go missing as well.
"Can you see it?" Bentley asks. Sly has the height advantage here as he scans across the land to find any trace of it, to the south east he zooms in to see the van being driven away at high speed down narrow country roads.
"Follow that van." Sly commands to Otto, who breaks out of his holding pattern and revs up the engine for a high-speed pursuit in the air. While Murray could outrun the plane, this thief can't drive as fast, no one can drive that van as fast as 'The Murray'.
Meanwhile, on the ground, Bentley is left stranded by himself on the small grass patch on the other side of the canal. He tries to look around for any ambush but none comes, it's hard expecting something all the time and to have nothing happening.
"Hello Bentley." Penelope says, emphasising the B in Bentley. Bentley quickly turns around, half scared on the inside but he is putting on a brave face on the outside. Trying to prove once again that he is the superior one.
"You just want military contracts and money. Is that what it is all about?" Bentley asks in desperation, trying to find answer.
"It helps, but when you have as much money as I do." She says as she takes the bug that was fired into her earlier and holds it out for Bentley to see. "You can get away with certain things." Bentley tries to fire his bombs, arms and darts all at the same time to finish her now. But none of that is working. Only a small beeping coming from a small device clipped onto her long orange pants tells her what a feeble attempt this is. He should really know better.
"I knew you were smart, but then again you're cute when you're dumb." Penelope taunts as she walks around the stationary wheelchair. Slowly she edges the wheelchair towards the edge of the canal, is she going to do the unthinkable? Bentley's heart is pumping hard from the nervousness, but he's trying to prepare himself for an underwater date. All those things he'd want to tell them, so many secrets. In a twist of fate, she snatches Bentley from the chair and pushes it into the river, the electrical discharge going into the water makes the surrounding water turn electric blue. The fizzling and whizzing of the electric parts that have been crafted and finessed into a perfect tool for a discerned turtle with no use for his legs. But what he sees defies him. The chair rises from out of the river like it's rising to heaven. Penelope can't believe it either. For all her research, she never though that it should still fly after a dunk in the drink. But it all becomes clear as one Scuba crazed iguana lifts the chair out of the canal and plonks it on the side next to Bentley. Dimitri's eyes are locked onto Penelope's. Another chance for some desperate glory, the first taste has got him hooked
"You are so lucky. You know that right." Penelope says, venting her frustration, this wasn't going as planned.
"You won't get away with that." Bentley says as he heaves after his near death experience.
"Dimitri won't be around next time." Penelope warns to Bentley.
"Maybe you won't be either." Dimitri retorts.
Aug 10 2013: I have just completed Band of thieves and am onto the Honour among Thieves. Once that is done my full Sly Cooper education will be complete. Also i am getting near the point where i am not transferring my script over anymore. It means two things; that the story may take longer to write, and i don't know exactly what is going to happen next, this is where you guys come in. I would appreciate any ideas that you have for this story, i have a an idea of what is going to happen next but i would like some details from you guys to personalise it a bit. It's just my way to say thanks to all who have read the story this far and i hope you keep going.