Ch44: Coopers and Martins
After we made our way into the vault (with Murray and Bentley in tow... they had the van boomed up there via fireworks from Panda King...) the first thing we noticed was that the first obstacle to enter it was a single rope that led to the door of it. "It looks like we're going to be on our own after this, guys," I frowned, holding onto Sly's hand and winking at the two. "Do it guys. This place was built for you. We'll hold down the fort here."
I smiled and winked, giving him a secret message in my Binocucom. It was a single message I made in case he was still having doubts (if any) about Sly. Once he got the message, I leaped onto the rope and did the rail walk, making my way into the vault with Cooper by my side.
The moment we entered, however, I was met with something I DID NOT EXPECT! The vault looked surprisingly different than what I remembered it to. Sure, the giant piles of gold and loot were there, but the VERY first challenge offered up was NOT from Slytunkhamun Cooper the First. It wasn't even a Cooper! It was... a single room with a small light and a single door on the inside of it.
"I don't understand this..." Sly said, noticing that the picture frame wasn't of Slytunkhamun. It was... one of... MY ancestors. It was... my great grandpa Regis Martin. "T-T-That's... That's MY ancestor!" I exclaimed, both Neyla and Sly gasping when they heard me.
"B-But I thought you were from a different world!" Sly exclaimed. "I am! Just look at the photo! Doesn't look like anything in this world, now does it?" I said, pointing out the fact that he WASN'T a cat. He was a human. "I-Um... What are you again?" Neyla asked. "I'm a human in my world," I sighed. "What's a human?" Sly asked. "A human in our world is the superior being... and the animals don't talk or have any kind of story to them but their instincts..." I frowned. "As you can clearly imagine, no animals in my world look like the animals in THIS world."
"But... how is your HUMAN ancestor in the COOPER vault?" Sly asked. "I-I don't know... but I think I know a way to find out..." I said, walking us over into the small, dimly lit room. When I entered, I noticed the door that led here close tightly and the light turning a different color. "Martin origin verified," said a slightly more robotic voice than Neyla and Clockwerk. "Commence message."
Just then, a large hologram was projected in the center of the room. What I saw was something that brought tears to my eye. It was my... family... "Hello there, Sylvia," said my mom, her voice just as sweet and kind as I remembered. "If you are hearing this, then we... didn't make it... we always knew that there was something off about our family but I never would have guessed that you would make it here... to our original place..."
'Our original place? What the heck is she talking about?!' I thought to myself. "You must be very confused so I'll explain it in full..." Mom continued. "You see, our family, the Martins, began our lives in this world... as master thieves just like the Cooper family. And... if you're wondering why the Martins are in the Cooper Vault, it is because we made a partnership with the Coopers back during Tennessee's time of the 1880's. Your great grandpa was the first one to set foot in this vault... but we knew the risks of being a partner with the Coopers."
Then Billy began to talk, his expression somewhat serious, something I never expected to see from him. "If you've made it this far, then you know what we're talking about, Sylvia," he sighed. "Being an ally with the Cooper family meant that we'd eventually be a target for Clockwerk. If we didn't make it with you, then that means that we were killed before we could join you... and for that we're sorry. We didn't want you to find out this way..."
'Too late now...' I thought, a sob escaping my lips. "But now that you've made it this far, you can be assured that you can continue the Martin line. For we have learned all the moves that the Cooper family has, as only a Master Thief can. And... Sylvia? We love you, with all our heart. Protect the Cooper line and protect your own. Make us proud sis!"
The message then ended, the door behind us opening up from some kind of force. "Leave me alone, M..." I sobbed, knowing by the electricity sounds that it was indeed the mad monkey. "Get out of my way, Martin! I'm getting that treasure whether you like it or not!" he growled as I turned around. I frowned and looked at him, cane in hand. "If you didn't look at that picture, I'll tell you myself," I hissed, "My family is a part of this vault as well. So now I'm not only going to defend it for Sly... I'm defending it FOR MY HONOR!"
The last bit I yelled and sent a sonic blast at him, breaking the glass off of his device that he WOULD have used against Sly in the inner sanctum. "I'm getting that treasure!" he yelled, coming at me with his fists. "No you ain't!" I growled, smacking him across the face with my pink cane. I made sure to hit him right in the jawbone and with as much force as I could. I actually knocked at least five teeth out of his mouth when I did that, making him dazed and weakened. "What the...?" said a familiar female voice from outside. It was Carmelita Fox.
"You may want to come in here, Carmelita," I sobbed, simply falling to the ground on my knees and beginning to cry. I didn't get attacked again as Carmelita immediately took her cuffs out and placed them on M's wrists. "I'm... I'm sorry..." she sighed, having to put his ankles in cuffs as well. "You couldn't have... told me this... before?" I cried, the water from my eyes collecting on the ground.
"I... I didn't know about this..." Carmelita sighed. Neyla's eye didn't beep. She was being truthful. "Can you just... leave me and Sly... alone for a while? I... I need some time to... think..." I sobbed, laying down on the ground and going into a curled position. "Okay... I'll... I see you later, Sylvia..." Carmelita sighed, a tear escaping her left eye. "Until next time..." I lay there until Sly helped me up and out of the vault. "Together no matter what?" Sly asked. "Y-Yeah... no matter what... Sly..." I then drifted off to a deep sleep.