DISCLAIMER: I do not own the right to Sly Cooper, the Sly Cooper Franchise belongs to Sony Computer Entertainment America and Sucker Punch Productions.


Chapter 1: The Beginning

It was a beautiful night at 4:20am in the city of romance. The city of Paris, France. Well renowned for its beautiful landmarks and great foods. But it was also a great place for thieves to be on the prowl. A lone figure ran across the rooftop and leapt to another as he ran past steam vents, he jumped to another rooftop as his whole body was silhouetted by the moon. He ran towards a chimney as he held out a weapon that was in the shape of a golden hook and struck the chimney with one strike. He leapt down from the roof and saw someone along the wall he was heading to.

The second figure reached out to him and caught his hand, pulling him up as the two nodded to each other and shimmied along the wall and stepped into the light, revealing themselves to be a raccoon wearing a blue and yellow shirt, a blue hat, and a pair of blue and yellow gloves. He even wore a yellow belt with a raccoon emblem for a belt buckle, and had blue boots. The other figure was a tiger that wore a deep red ninja gi, black hood and pants, wearing armbands around his forearms as he and his racoon partner shimmied to the corner of the building and checked around it. They saw the Paris Police Headquarters, the tiger smirked as he helped his partner by tossing him towards the sign as the raccoon flipped forward and landed on top of it.

He saw his tiger partner leap as he sent a roped kunai towards him, allowing the raccoon to catch it and swing him to a water tower as he double jumped to it and landed beside him. He looked around and smirked seeing the coast was clear. He pulled out a set of binoculars and looked into it as he looked around the rooftops, only to hear an ear piercing scream from one of his colleagues. "Sly, Tai, come in! GUYS! DO YOU READ ME?!" Asked a turtle as he was on the binocucom screen.

Tai the Tiger, rubbed his ear from his screaming. "Wow, can't he be any louder?" He asked sarcastically.

Sly rubbed his ear as well for how loud their friend was. "Yeah. We read you. Loud and… very loud." He answered him.

"Sorry. I'm a little nervous. Trying to break into Police Headquarters does that." The turtle replied to him.

"Not to sound rude Bentley, but get over it." Tai told him.

"Besides, you're safe in the van. Tai and I are the thieves here. We've got to steal that file from Inspector Carmelita Fox." Sly told him.

"Well, you two can count on me to be your eyes and ears guys. Got their security system totally scoped. To get inside, you're both gonna have to go through that air vent." Bentley informed them of their path to get inside.

"Alright. We're going in." Tai responded.

It was then a new voice and face appeared. "And don't forget, you guys got me at the wheel. All you guys gotta do is grab the file and get back to the van. We'll do the rest." Said the hippo in Sly's binoculars.

"Keep that engine running, Murray. We'll be down in no time." Sly told him as he put the binocucom away. "So, did you still catch the combination for the vault in her office?" He asked Tai as he looked towards him.

"I did. I even had to put myself in the most humiliating position in the building." Tai explained as he thought back to when he met with her.

(Flashback, 7 Hours ago)

The police building was lit like a Christmas tree around 9:20pm, the police officers, constables, and detectives were running notes on case files outside the Commander's office. That was until. "WHAT?!" Called out the voice of an angel that had her wings clipped, it even caused the whole building to shake from her outburst as everyone looked towards the commander's office.

"You heard me, Inspector Fox. Your obsession with this Cooper Gang is clouding your judgment." Said an old badger that sat at his desk, smoking a cuban cigar as he was pudgy to boot, this was Director James Barkley. The commander and chief of Paris's police force, and so full of rage he could be a newspaper editor.

"Clouding my judgment?! The Cooper Gang has stolen countless items that belonged to the people of the world, and you expect me to let it go?! Forget it! I'm not going to rest till I get them behind bars!" The vixen yelled as she was curvy as hell, she could be more like a model than an inspector. This was Inspector Carmelita Montoya Fox, the most honest cop you'd ever meet.

"And yet you haven't been able to catch them since they pulled that first heist in Monico. You need to face it Fox, no one is ever going to catch them. Least of all you." Barkley told her.

"It's because they're always a step ahead of me! Sly Cooper always finds a way out, no matter how intense the situation is!" Carmelita argued as she slammed her hands on the desk. "Which is why I need to think smarter so I can be one step ahead of them." She told him.

"And how quickly do you think that's going to fail? Hm? Faster than you can sneak up on Cooper and slap the handcuffs on him!" Barkley told her as he stood up out of his chair. "Until you can prove you can catch this Cooper, you need to put this case to rest. Got it? Now get out! OOOOOUUUUUT!" He roared out as Carmelita glared at him and stepped out of his office, slamming the door as the glass frame broke from the impact.

All her coworkers grimaced as they noticed just how pissed she looked. She stormed towards her office to try and cool off. But when she grabbed the doorknob to open the door, she found that it was already open. Growing nervous, she reached for her shock pistol and slowly opened the door to look around inside. But to her surprise, it was only the janitor. Tai was dressed as a janitor to clean the office and change the trash bags. Carmelita sighed and holstered her shock pistol and walked in. "Just what do you think you're doing in here?!" She asked him.

Tai looked towards her as he kept his gaze away from hers and acted nervous. "O-Oh, sorry… I was almost finished. I just need to change out the trash bags, then I'll be out of your hair." He told her.

Carmelita rolled her eyes in response and walked towards the vault. "Just make it quick." She told him as she approached her vault and kneeled down to it. Tai focused on changing out the garbage bag, but he secretly glanced over to see Carmelita put in the combination. She put in 9-3-7 for the combo, he put in a new bag as he took the old one and was about to leave the office. Carmelita glanced towards him and aimed her shock pistol at him. "Get your hands in the air, now." She ordered as Tai held his hands up.

He didn't look towards her as he felt her getting closer to him. "Is there something wrong, Inspector?" He asked her.

"What's wrong here is that they already changed out the bags, Tai Liang." She told him as he looked up, showing a scar over his right eye. "The scar wasn't easy to hide." She told him as she held her shock pistol close to him. "Now tell me where Sly Cooper is." She demanded.

"I'd tell you, but nothing comes cheap. Neither did the pants you ordered. Which is a nice look by the way." Tai admitted.

"The jumpsuit does nothing for you though." Carmelita replied.

Tai shrugged, knowing she had a point. "Eh. Guess not." He answered.

"Turn around." Carmelita ordered him as he complied, but he kicked a broom up as it swatted her hand to redirect her shock pistol as she misfired and Tai quickly knocked it out of her hand as he took the broom and pushed the pistol out of the room. Carmelita glared as she threw a roundhouse kick at his head, only to knock his hat off as Tai ducked from it. He backed away as he avoided her fast jabs towards him. He avoided her attacks as he evaded and smacked her in the back with the broom. She growled from it as she threw another kick as Tai backed away from it and struck at her with the broom. She blocked it and held a stern look towards him. "Tell me what you're doing here." She demanded.

"I might tell you, but if you give me something in return, I might tell you where Sly is." He offered as Carmelita growled and struck at him as Tai blocked her attacks. She elbowed him and went for a backhand strike as Tai kept blocking each of her attacks and struck her in the stomach with the broom as their fight led out into the hallway. Carmelita felt it as she saw him coming at her, she avoided his strikes with the broom as she ducked from it trying to hit her head. Tai swung it around his body as he held it behind him. "You're no average cop, you must have served in the army." He theorized.

"Special Forces, but that's none of your business." Carmelita replied to him.

"When it comes to the people we're trying to steal from, their business is ours." Tai replied as he avoided a kick from her and struck at her with the broom head. She blocked and tried to strike him as he evaded each of her punches and went to strike her once again with the broom. She caught it and went for a kick as Tai blocked it. She eventually used her free hand to break the broom in half. He swung the broken end at her and saw her back up, he smirked but saw the guards approaching. Carmelita noticed it too as she saw Tai use the broom head like a sword. "Engarde!" He yelled as he forced her to back up. But the guards were getting closer, so he dropped the broom and ran off.

Carmelita growled when she saw it. "After him!" She ordered as the guards chased after him, she followed while grabbing her shock pistol and pursued him. Tai ran as fast as he could as he grabbed a nearby fire extinguisher and turned sharp, firing the extinguishing foam at the guards to blind them. He chuckled as he ran while Carmelita was hot on his tail, she aimed her shock pistol at him. "Alright, freeze!" She yelled as Tai saw a cart get in the way, he parkoured over the cart while a receptionist yelped and he winked at her and ran off.

She was surprised with a blush as Carmelita continued her pursuit of him. Tai made his way towards a window and looked outside, seeing the place was being surrounded. He looked back seeing Carmelita getting closer as he smirked and leapt out. He bounced off a sunshade and threw a roped kunai into a wall as he swung hard and cleared out of sight as Carmelita fired at him with her shock pistol. "Better luck next time, Inspector!" He called out to her.

She growled angrily as she slammed her fist on the windowsill. "I know that you'll be back, Liang! You and Cooper better expect me when you return!" She declared as she walked back to her office.

(Flashback End)

Sly let out a chuckle from hearing about what he did. "Wow, you are unbelievable Tai." He told him.

"At least I managed to get the combination." He replied as he headed towards the water tower and shimmied along the side as Sly followed him. "Still. We best be on our guard in case Carmelita is around the vicinity." He warned his partner.

"Knowing her, I wouldn't doubt it." Sly replied as he shimmied along the wall and reached the platform with Tai. He leapt towards the antenna towers and made his way towards the air vent. Once they reached it, Sly smashed the vent open with his cane and walked inside.

As they made their way through the air vent, they reached an opening and looked down, seeing a high tech laser grid. "Be extra careful here guys. Break one of those laser beams and you'll set off the alarm. Not to mention you'll be fried to a crisp." Bentley contacted them with a worried tone.

"Keep your shell on Bentley. We've been through plenty of grids like this before, and walked away without a scratch." Tai reminded him as he and Sly leapt to the platforms while avoiding each laser beam that was through the shaft.

"Turtle joke, seriously?" Bentley asked him through the earpiece as Tai shrugged and pulled out his rope kunai and swung it carefully as he looked towards the source of the laser grid. With careful precision, he threw the kunai at the alarm and smashed it to turn off the laser security system and open the gates. "Nice job. You're both in. Inspector Carmelita Fox's office is behind the red door. But you should know that the door is super reinforced. There may be a way to get around it though." Bentley reminded them.

"I know Bentley. I've combed through this entire building for weeks, trying to learn the ins and outs of what we're dealing with." Tai informed him as he and Sly walked through the corridor's to find Carmelita's office. Once they turned the corner, they found her office and approached it as Sly touched the doorknob and tried to open it.

"Hmm, guess she didn't want to risk you trying to break into her office like last time with that jumpsuit." He commented as he also meant to jab a joke towards Tai.

Much to Tai's dismay as he was unamused of what he had to wear. "Moving on." He said as he walked towards a window. He pushed the window doors open and looked around the area. He gestured to Sly to go first as the raccoon climbed up and started shimmying across the wall as Tai followed. As they crossed the wall, pieces of brick were crumbling beneath them as they fell to the street. Sly exhaled knowing that if they didn't have the skills required to pull this stunt, they would be street pizza in an instant.

Once reaching the main office, Sly walked in and found the vault. "Alright, we're in. Tai, the combination please." He asked for it as Tai pulled it out as he had it written down on a small piece of paper that Carmelita didn't see.

"Here, this should get you in. From what Bentley and I learned, this is where Inspector Fox stashes all her important files. Especially about us. While Bentley was hacking into the police security mainframe, I chose the more direct approach." He explained.

"Which meant disguising yourself as a janitor and prowling the entire complex?" Sly asked him as Tai wanted to slap the silly smirk on his face. But there wasn't any time for it, they had a job to do. Sly turned to the vault and started dialing in the combination. Once the numbers were locked in, Sly heard a clicking sound within the vault which meant it was unlocked. He used his cane to pull the knob and open the door, finding his file inside as he reached in and pulled it out.

"Nice job, you got it! If you both come down through the fire escape and head through the parking lot, we'll be waiting in the getaway van." Murray informed them through the earpiece.

"Get that engine running Murray. I have a feeling we'll need that quick escape." Tai told him as Sly put his calling card inside the vault. "Alright, let's move." He told his partner as they made their way to the fire escape.

But before they could make their way down, Carmelita was waiting for them outside. "Criminals! You fools, I've caught you both red-handed!" She declared as she had her shock pistol aiming at them.

"Ahh… Carmelita… I haven't seen you since we gave you the slip in Bombay." Sly said to her as he tried to flirt with her.

"Which reminds me. You need to return the Firestone of India to its rightful owners." She informed him.

"Aw. And I was going to give it to you as a little token of my-"

"For your information Carmelita. Those "Rightful Owners" as you call them, were Class Criminals with forged documents that they claimed were authentic." Tai interrupted Sly as he crossed his arms. "If you were truly a good cop like you claim to be, you would see that they were frauds from the start." He told her.

"Yeah, he does have a point. But hey, you know, that bazooka really brings out the color of your eyes. Very fetching!" Sly complimented her weapon.

But Carmelita had a smirk on her face as she held it up. "You think? This pistol packs a paralyzing punch. You ought to try it. Might snap you both out of your crime spree." She told them.

"And give up our little rendezvous?" Sly asked her.

"Plenty of time for that once you're both safely behind bars." She replied.

Tai turned towards Sly with a deadpan look. "You sure know how to pick them, Sly. Carmelita is just like that crazy lead cheerleader, Tanya." He reminded him of their days back in high school.

"Tanya?!" Sly turned to him with a disapproving look. "Tai, you went out with her after I did." He reminded him.

"Well I couldn't let her go to waste." Tai replied.

"Are you both willing to comply, or are you going to answer to the shock pistol?" Carmelita asked as her pistol started charging.

"We'd love to stick around and chat, but we just dropped by to pick up this case file. I think you've had it long enough." Sly told her as Carmelita narrowed her eyes and shot at them. The duo dodged the shot and made their way down the fire escape.

Carmelita pursued them as she shot at them, Tai pulled out a pair of twin hook swords and deflected one of the shots that was aiming towards him. He dodged the next shot as he and Sly made it into the parking lot, seeing the Team Van on the other side. They made a mad dash for the van. But Carmelita shot at them as her shots caused the cars around them to explode. Tai shielded himself from the debris and shrapnel that flew from the explosions. "She's serious!" He exclaimed.

"Murray, get the back doors open! Quick!" Sly called him over the mics as he ducked from Carmelita's shots.

The back doors of the van burst open as Murray was in view. "Come on guys, hurry!" He called out to them as he avoided a shot from Carmelita and took cover inside the van.

Sly and Tai jumped out of their hiding places and ran for the van, Carmelita noticed it as she directed her pistol at them and prepared to fire. Tai took a shuriken and threw it at her pistol. It lodged itself into the barrel of her shock pistol that stunned her beyond belief as both Sly and Tai made it into the van, and Murray hit the gas pedal and drove off. Leaving a frustrated Carmelita as she growled angrily. "You can't escape me forever!" She declared angrily as she panted heavily.

"FOX!" Barkley called from his office as Carmelita looked towards him surprised. "OFFICE. NOW!" He called out as Carmelita groaned in annoyance, knowing the damages were coming out of her pay. Sly watched through the rearview mirror and chuckled and looked at the file in his hand.

"Once again, my gang and I have given Inspector Carmelita Fox the slip. I was surprised to see how well she took it. Finally, the police file I've been searching for all these years. With this, I can avenge my family and regain possession of our most valued treasure. It all began when I was just a kid, bouncing on my fathers knee. You see, I come from a long line of master thieves who kept all their secrets of sneaking and stealing in an ancient book. The Thievius Raccoonus. Anyone who read it, learned to be especially sneaky. Which is why we specialize in stealing from criminals. Afterall, there's no honor, no challenge, no fun, stealing from ordinary people. You rip off a master criminal, then you know you're a master thief.

Well on the night I was supposed to inherit the book, five visitors came unannounced to our door. My father fought to protect us. But the gang of villains known as the Fiendish Five overpowered him and ransacked our house till they found the Thievius Raccoonus. My family's manual of thieving greatness fell into their filthy hands. They tore the book into five pieces and splitted up. Each villain disappearing to the farthest corners of the world to commit dastardly crimes.

Broke and alone, I was dumped at an orphanage. There were three guys who became my lifelong buddies and trusted crew. Tai Liang: Ninja Warrior with the skills to match my own. Bentley: Techno Genius and Strategist Supreme. And Murray: Part Time Driver and Full Time Burden. Together we pledged to track down the Fiendish Five, avenge my father, and steal back the Thievius Raccoonus. I knew I was about to face the toughest test of my life. On this mission, I will either become a master thief like my father or my ancestors before me, or fail and allow my family name to bite the dust."


(Cooper Gang Safe House)

Once they returned safely to the Safe House, Sly sighed as he rested on the couch knowing it was a rough night. "Boy, we really should have learned how powerful that shock pistol was." He commented as he dusted his fur. "I think most of my fur got singed."

"Think you got it bad? I still have a ringing in my ear. Not to mention a bit of shrapnel." Tai pointed out as he used a brush to clean out the shrapnel from his fur.

"Nevertheless. That was a nice piece of work back there at Police Headquarters, you two. Come see me if you want to check out your old movies. I've got them all here on my computer. Also, I've already plotted a route to our first target." Bentley informed them.

"That's great Bentley, but before we go, we'll need to get supplies for Murray." Tai gestured towards Murray as he looked at him. "Because this may be a long ride, even for him." He commented, knowing how hungry he'll get.

Despite the fact he had a bag of peanuts to gorge himself on, Sly chuckled and looked towards Tai. "Try not to draw too much attention. We need you on this team more than anything." He told him.

"Gladly, I'll be back in an hour or so." Tai said as he walked out of the hideout to get the supplies needed.


(Police Headquarters)

Back at Police Headquarters, Carmelita was getting a scolding of a lifetime from Director Barkley. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH DAMAGE YOU'VE CAUSED?!" He yelled at her for the property damage she caused.

Carmelita was holding her breath from her superior's bad breath and cigar smoke. She backed away and scowled as she crossed her arms. "I was doing my job, sir. I almost had the Cooper Gang if Tai Liang didn't use this on my pistol." She held up his shuriken and threw it onto Barkley's desk as it pierced into the wood.

"That's no excuse to go blasting every one of our police cars, and causing property damage! I'm telling you Fox, I have had it up to here!" He gestured to how high his temper has gone up because of her. "From now on, you will be working with someone to catch these thieves once and for all!" He declared.

Much to Carmelita's shock as she slammed her hands on the desk. "You can't be serious! I don't need a partner to help me catch these criminals!" She protested.

"Sorry Fox, but it's already been done. Say hello to your new partner." Barkley gestured towards the door. Carmelita turned around and saw a female panther leaning against the door. She had slick white hair going down to her shoulders, a skin tight top and wearing short shorts. She even wore knee high boots and a pair of fingerless gloves. "As of today. You'll be working alongside Agent Aisha Bast." He informed her.

Aisha smiled as she held out her hand to Carmelita. "It will be a pleasure working with you, Inspector." She told her.

But Carmelita was not pleased as she turned towards Barkley. "Director Barkley, I am against this decision for obvious reasons. Therefore, I will not have a partner. I don't want a partner, nor will I ever accept one who is as revealing as she is." She made her statement quite clear.

"Oh, this coming from the fox in a zip up tube top?" Aisha asked her as she smirked at her. She glared at the panther for it and grabbed her shock pistol and holstered it as she stormed out while Aisha smirked and followed her. But as she followed, most of the officers and employees were staring at Aisha. Who wouldn't, she is drop dead gorgeous. She smirked when she noticed all the boys staring as she flipped her hair at them and turned to face them. "Put your tongues and your eyes back in your heads boys. This girl is a free agent." She informed them as she followed Carmelita into her office.

She was in the middle of replacing the damaged barrel in her shock pistol with a new one as she heard Aisha walk in. "Let's get something clear, agent." She addressed her as she finished putting in the new barrel and turned towards her. "I didn't ask for this partnership, and I didn't need it till Barkley decided to go behind my back and bring you here. So I'll cut to the chase. You stay out of my way, and I'll stay out of yours. Are we clear?" She asked her.

But Aisha smirked as she sat down and crossed her legs. "Crystal. But let me tell you something, Inspector. Unlike most others you've probably worked with, I am the best in my field of expertise. I'm a Behavior Analyst. With a three year winning streak in martial arts of course. I study a criminal's background, and why they do what they do. Sly Cooper for instance… he was orphaned at a young age, losing his family and all his wealth in the process. He and his friends, Tai Liang, Bentley, and Murray have stuck together like a new family. Tai Liang of course had a run in with the leader of the so-called Fiendish Five. How else do you think he got that scar?" She asked Carmelita.

Who of course widened her eyes as she looked towards her. "What else do you know about him?" She asked her.

"The trauma that Tai went through not only scarred his face, but his mind as well. His parents were murdered by the same one who killed Sly's. Sly from what I've been able to put together was able to push past the trauma with the help of Bentley and Murray. But Tai?" She brought him up and walked towards the window looking out to the city. "I've seen his skills. He's even holding back the rage that he's felt for so many years. A rage that would put even the fires of hell to shame." She explained.

Carmelita was surprised by her skill as she was equally stunned by Tai's backstory. She could even bring herself to sympathize with him, even admit that she was wrong about Aisha for various reasons. She sighed in defeat, knowing she could be very useful after all. "Alright. You made your point. But remember, I'm only doing this because of Barkley." She told her.

Aisha smiled when she heard it, but she eventually noticed Tai on the street with some grocery bags. This made her smirk as she opened the window. "Looking forward to working with you Inspector." She told her as she fell through the window. Carmelita was stunned as she rushed to the window and looked around, seeing she was gone in an instant. She exhaled as she rubbed her head and closed the window to prevent the cold air from coming in.


(Paris Cemetery)

At the cemetery, Tai had to take a quick detour to the cemetery before he returned to the safe house. He walked past tombstone after tombstone, till he reached what he was searching for. The grave marker of his family. He looked at it as he set the grocery bags down and approached it, kneeling down to it as he looked at the names upon it.

Lau Liang

1944 -1980

Devoted Husband and Loving Father

Seong Liang

1942 - 1980

Devoted Wife and Loving Mother

He looked at the gravestone as he could recall all the good times he spent with his parents. But his memories shifted to the night his parents were murdered by a mechanical owl. He closed his eyes as he tried to fight back his tears as he reached into one of the bags and pulled out a pair of incense and lit a match as he lit the tips of the incense. He held them up as he silently prayed and set the incense between the two gravestones as he bows to them. But as he prayed, he could sense someone hiding nearby. "You are not the first Interpol Officer who tried to get the drop on me, and you will not be the last." He said as he stood up.

Aisha stepped out of hiding and smirked as she looked at him. "You're even more impressive up close, Mister Liang. I am Aisha Bast: Behavioral Analyst. But don't be fooled by this pretty face." She warned him.

Tai turned towards her and noticed how gorgeous she was, but he took her warning to heart as he used his tail to push his groceries to the side. "Come to arrest me?" He asked her.

"Are you planning to resist?" She asked as she placed her hand on her hip and grinned. Tai could tell she was serious, so he needed to be ready for anything. She dashed towards him to catch him off guard. But Tai managed to catch her strike as he flipped her over, she smirked as she flipped onto her feet and threw a slide kick towards him.

Tai flipped backwards from it as he landed on his feet. He saw her coming at him again as he dodged her attacks and deflected each jab she threw at him. He felt her next strike graze past his face, he also smelt her perfume as he glanced towards her surprised by how beautifully fragrant it was. She grinned as she swung a leg and wrapped it around his neck as she pulled him down and pinned him down. She felt him struggle as she held him down. "Like it…? It's my own brand." She informed him.

He tried to get out of her hold as he tried to catch his breath. "I'll admit, it's fragrant. But that's a dirty tactic." He told her as he used his tail to flick her nose as she yelped and loosened her grip. He broke free as he flipped onto one of the gravestones.

Aisha rubbed her nose from Tai's attack and smirked at him. "I'm not the only one who's dirty." She told him as she leapt at him and thrust a kick towards him, he leaned back and flipped down to the ground as he threw his rope kunai and snared her around her arms and chest as he pulled her down and slammed her to the ground. She let out a grunt as she looked at him as he held the rope tightly as she grinned. "Didn't know you were also kinky." She teased him.

"Don't start." He told her as he untied the rope and pulled it off of her. "I'm not so easy to arrest." He told her as he walked past her. Aisha watched him go as she attempted to pull out her taser. "That taser won't do you any good." He told her.

She was actually filled with genuine surprise as she looked at him, but she continued reaching for the taser. But as she went to grab it, she found that it was missing as she looked back, finding the holder it was originally in was empty. Tai pulled it out and showed it was still active, and this got her more intrigued by him. "You continue to surprise me more and more." She told him.

"You didn't come here for flattery. You even failed in trying to capture me, so it would be wise for you to stand down." He advised her.

"Aww, but where's the fun in that?" Aisha asked him as she got up and walked towards him. "After all, I wanted to see what you could do. And you did not disappoint." She told him as she walked in front of him and wrapped her arms around him, raising her right leg as she rubbed it against his left in a seductive manner. "That is enough to earn my respect and attention." She said as she grinned at him.

"As flattered as I am that you've taken interest in me, I'm afraid I must get going." He told her as she pushed her off gently and walked away. Aisha watched him leave as she smirked at the fact she secretly put a tracker on him without him noticing. "By the way…" He caught her attention as he looked at her. "If Barkley assigned you to be Carmelita's partner, I suggest you be careful." He advised her as he walked away.

Aisha watched him go as she smirked with a shrug and looked towards the gravestones. "I'd be more worried about your friends." She muttered as she grinned and walked the other direction to meet with Carmelita.


(Cooper Gang Safe House)

Sly and the others waited for Tai to return with groceries. It was then that he entered the room with the bags and walked towards the van stuffing them inside. "Tai, what's the hurry? We were just going over the files." Bentley told him.

"There isn't much time, Bentley. We need to get moving." He told him as he tossed his bags into the van.

"That's rather sudden. But I already have our first destination marked on the map, so we might as well." Bentley replied.

But Sly grew worried when he saw how quick he was to get moving. "Hold on, what's going on Tai?" He asked him to find out what happened in recent events.

Tai reached behind him and pulled the tracker off of his collar and showed it to the gang. "Apparently Carmelita's new partner thought she could pull the stripes over my eyes." He informed them.

Murray's eyes widened when he saw it as he turned towards Sly. "Carmelita got a new partner?!" He asked in shock.

"Believe me, it's a surprise to me too Murray. If she was able to sneak a tracker on Tai, then we need to get moving before the police-" Before he could finish, red and blue lights shined through the windows that shocked the team. "Show up…" He said as Tai rushed to the window and looked through it.

Outside was an entire squad of police officers awaiting orders. Among them were Carmelita and Aisha, to which the panther woman grinned as she winked at him. Tai narrowed his eyes as he pulled away from the window and looked towards Murray. "How fast can you get that van moving?" He asked him.

"I'll make it a jiffy." He replied as he rushed to the van to get it started.

"We don't have a jiffy!" Tai exclaimed.

Meanwhile outside, the officers were awaiting orders as Carmelita looked at the safe house. "All these years, and we finally tracked them down to their hideout." She commented as she turned towards Aisha. "You must've had some amazing luck growing up." She told her.

"I'm more than lucky, Inspector. I'm blessed." She told her as she looked towards the building. "So. Do you want to knock, or should I?" She asked her.

"Let's give them a chance to surrender, then we'll see what happens." She replied as she looked towards the building. One of the officers gave her a microphone as she took it and held it up, pressing the button to make her voice known. "Sly Cooper! This is Inspector Fox of Interpol. We know you're in there, we know your friends are with you. So don't be stupid, and surrender peacefully. I swear that we will make this easy on you if you cooperate." She told him.

Sly smirked as he crossed his arms and looked towards Tai. "She's really good at negotiating." He commented.

"Are you really gonna buy it?" Tai asked him.

"Nah, knowing her, she'd try and blast me with that shock pistol of hers." Sly replied and looked towards the van. "How's it coming guys?" He asked.

Just before they could reply, Murray managed to get the van started up as it roared like a lion. "Ohh yeah! Let's get this show on the road!" He exclaimed.

"We'll have to move quickly if we are to evade capture, and I have just the plan." Bentley told them as he hopped into the van.

Carmelita meanwhile was growing impatient outside as she held up the microphone. "THIS ISN'T UP FOR NEGOTIATION RINGTAIL! GET OUT HERE NOW, OR WE'RE COMING IN TO GET YOU!" She yelled to get his attention.

Aisha rubbed the inside of her ear knowing just how loud it was as she looked at her. "I think he got the message the first time, inspector." She told her, but it was at that moment she heard an engine from inside the safe house. Her eyes widened as the sound of tires were screeching inside as the engine grew closer, she saw the garage doors burst open as the Cooper Van crashed through it and slammed against a few police cars as they drove away from the safe house. "Guess he found out." Aisha commented.

Carmelita meanwhile was growling in frustration as she rushed to her car and hopped in. "They're not getting away, get in agent!" She ordered as Aisha hopped in. Carmelita hit it into high gear and drove off to catch up to the Cooper Van. The Cooper Gang drove through the city as Carmelita pursued them through Paris. She drove fast to catch up as her hair blew in the wind, she drove up to the driver's side of the car, seeing Murray at the wheel as she focused her sights on Sly who was in the passenger seat. "Cooper, get out of that van and surrender!" She demanded.

"Wish I could, Carmelita. But I'm afraid we have a mission. Murray, punch it!" He told him as Murray saluted him and stepped on the gas and sped off to leave Carmelita in the dust. The inspector growled angrily as she stepped on the gas to keep up with them.

Aisha whipped out her pistole and aimed at the tires and fired at them, but her shots missed as the road was a bit bumpy. She growled a bit and looked towards Carmelita for her crazy driving. "Can't you hold still?!" She asked her.

"Do you want to drive?!" Carmelita replied as she kept her focus on the road. "Just focus on your aim and take out those tires!" She ordered as Aisha rolled her eyes and focused her aim and tried to shoot out the tires.

Murray tried to avoid her shots by swerving away from the shots as they drove downhill to avoid getting hit. Suddenly a curve was coming up as he grabbed the steering wheel and turned hard as he could as the van started drifting along the curved street. The gang held onto something as Murray made that strong turn, while also trying to hold onto their lunch in the process. Carmelita also drifted with her car to keep up with them, Aisha meanwhile went for another shot as the bullet shot through the wall of the van and ricocheted off the walls inside of the van and went for Tai.

He quickly pulled out his hook swords and caught the bullet between his blades as it was a mere inches away from his face. He exhaled as he dropped it and opened the back door seeing Aisha in Carmelita's car. "ARE YOU CRAZY?! YOU COULD HAVE KILLED ME!" He yelled.

"SORRY!" She replied as she grimaced at the thought of almost shooting him.

The Cooper Van drove down the street and made its way towards the bridge. Sly noticed it and smirked as he turned towards Bentley. "We're nearing the bridge, Bentley. Are you ready with that switch?" He asked him.

"It's ready, now get us near that bridge!" He ordered as Murray stepped on the gas and went turbo speed. Bentley saw that they were getting closer and closer to the bridge, he raised the switch and pressed the button as the bridge controls lit up and caused the bridge to raise up.

Aisha noticed it from Carmelita's car as she began to panic. "Carmelita, the bridge!" She exclaimed as her partner's eyes widened when it happened. She tried to catch up to the van, but Murray was going much faster than she was as he drove his van towards the rising bridge. Aisha was stunned by their actions as she held onto the car. "They have got to be the craziest thieves alive!" She exclaimed.

"Punch it Murray!" Sly cried out as the van ran up the bridge, the whole team held onto the van as they screamed when they felt the van launch over the river. Murray was the loudest of the group as he screamed at the top of his lungs, feeling the team van fall down and land on the other half of the bridge and swerve a bit. But once he got his balance, he drove down the street as the Cooper Gang got away.

While Carmelita stopped her car before she and Aisha could fly off of the bridge and slammed her fist on the car in frustration. "COOPER!" She cried out and leaned back in her seat. "Damn it! He's always one step ahead of me!" She yelled angrily.

Her partner meanwhile had her fur puffed up as she clinged to the car a bit, she exhaled as she slumped into the car with her hair all messed up from the wind. "I… am never getting into another car with you, as long as I live." She commented.

Meanwhile, Sly was looking through the rearview mirror and chuckled humorously as he leaned back in his seat. "That was amazing!" He cheered as he looked into the back of the van. "You guys okay back there?" He asked only to see Bentley tucked into his shell and Tai clinging to the roof of the van with his fur puffed up.

He retracted his claws as he landed on his feet as he exhaled, looking towards Bentley as he shuddered. "Bentley, the next time you come up with a plan like that, don't." He told him.

"Yeah, I'm already starting to regret suggesting it." Bentley admitted as he popped out of his shell. "Still, we managed to get away. And we left that tracker back at the safe house." He told them.

"But that means we gotta find a new safe house once we return to Paris." Murray told them as he moaned in sadness. "We even had a lot of good food there." He complained.

"Don't worry Murray, Tai still has the food he bought for us before we moved out." Sly reminded him.

This made Murray beam with joy as he looked towards Tai. "Did you get peanut butter ice cream?!" He asked him.

"Yes, two cartons full. Now eyes on the road Murray!" Tai yelled as Murray turned around quickly as he nearly crashed into another car that was parked near the curve. Tai heard a small scratch and felt the van knock the rearview mirror of the other car get knocked off, it caused him to exhale as he sat in his seat. "Now that we're back on track, we can focus on our mission." He told them.

"Tai's right. The road trip will give us all the time we need to study up on Sir Raleigh the frog." Sly told them as he pulled out his file, finding a picture of a frog with a hat made out of metal, wearing gentlemanly gloves and shoes, but no tie or anything else.

"As a young man, this hot tempered frog grew bored of his life of luxury and privilege. On a whim, he tried his hand at a bit of piracy. Found it to his liking. Raleigh, who quickly became addicted to crime, was brought into the Fiendish Five as Chief Machinist. Where his evil tinkering genius rose to new heights.

The last reported sighting of this mad machinist was off the southern coast of the Isle of Wrath. A small island uncomfortably situated in the middle of the perilous Welsh Triangle."

Tai looked at the file of Raleigh and looked towards Sly as he handed it back to him. "Hard to believe someone born in a noble family would take to becoming a pirate and join the Fiendish Five as a mechanic." He commented.

"Believe me, I'm just as surprised. But he already made his choice when he came after me and my family with the rest of the Five." Sly replied as he looked out the window seeing strong storms ahead. "Whatever we face, we'll face it head on." He said with pure confidence. Tai could only smile at his optimism and looked outside, knowing that they would be in for a big adventure.


(Tide of Terror: Isle of Wrath)

Upon arriving at their destination, the Cooper Van slowly but stealthily drove down a path and reached a stopping point and went into reverse across a bridge. Sly felt the van stop as he and Tai opened the doors to the back and stepped out. Tai quickly took notice of the storm as he looked around. "Little early for the rainy season." He pointed out.

"Yeah, that caught me off guard too. Bentley can look into it while we head inland." Sly suggested as he headed to a tunnel. Tai followed after him as they passed by a Keep Out sign, he knew that Raleigh didn't like trespassers. Much to the fact they didn't care what he liked. They proceeded down the tunnel as they looked around and saw a courtyard up ahead with a large gate directly in their path. "Bet you that gate wasn't there before." He said to his partner.

"Most likely. Guess Raleigh really doesn't want visitors." Tai suggested.

"Hey, guys!" Bentley contacted them as they pulled out their binocucoms to see what he wanted. "I just spotted something that's going to complicate the mission. Surely you saw that nasty looking gate. It blocks the only road leading into Raleigh's hideout." He informed them.

"No problem. We'll just climb over." Sly replied to him.

"Okay, but remember. You and Tai both have your own ways of getting over that gate." Bentley informed him.

"He's got his ninja skills, while I have the skills of my forefathers." Sly reminded him.

"That is correct. But do not forget, Sly, you have few skills that can match Tai's and-"

"He's had more years to train since he went to China to learn from great kung fu masters. Yeah, yeah, yeah, relax Bentley. I live for this stuff and I can learn from him." Sly interrupted him to try and put his worries to rest.

"Yeah, and that's what worries me." Bentley told him as Sly turned off his binocucom and put it in his backpack.

"He worries too much." Tai commented.

"Yeah, but that's Bentley for ya. Let's keep moving." Sly suggested as he and Tai ran for the gate. Sly made his way towards a ladder and leapt onto it as he climbed up as fast as he could. While Tai used his rope kunai to pull himself over the fence as he flipped forward to avoid the spikes along the fence.

He landed on the ground as Sly leapt from the platform that he climbed up to and leapt down beside him. The two were about to make their way through the garden, but before they could reach it, Bentley had to chime in one more time through their earpieces. "Hold on, guys. See those searchlights? One careless step and you'll be subjected to acute combustion!" He warned them.

"You done whining? Let's go!" Tai told him.

"I'm just trying to keep you alive, 'partner'. Just watch out for the guard ahead. Walrus nowadays can be lethal." He warned them.

"So can tigers." Tai replied as he looked towards the guard ahead, but between them and the guard was the alarm system that powered the searchlights. He and Sly needed to be careful as Tai pulled out one of his hook swords and tied his rope kunai around it as he looked at the alarm system. He exhaled a couple times as he raised the sword and waited for the lights to pass. Once the lights were out of the way, Tai threw his hook sword at the alarm and sliced it in half as the lights powered down and he pulled the hook sword back to him and caught it.

Sly whistled at his ingenuity and looked at him. "You really need to teach me how you come up with these ideas." He told him.

"Later Sly, we got company." Tai pointed out towards the guard that approached the broken alarm system.

Sly saw it as he narrowed his eyes and snuck towards him without him noticing. The guard examined the damaged alarm as he saw how clean the cut was through it. He pulled out his radio to contact the other guards. "Guys, I think we have a problem. Someone may be on the premises. Keep a sharp lo-" Before he could finish his sentence, Sly snuck up behind him as he knocked him into the air with his cane and snagged him by his jacket in mid air. He pulled him down hard as he slammed him against the ground, knocking him unconscious.

"Nap time buddy." He told him as Tai walked up. "Not bad for a thief, right?" He asked him.

"Not bad. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Look." He pointed out seeing the source of the storm. Sly was stunned to see a machine floating in the air as it was conducting a storm of unimaginable fury. All around it were shipwrecks that were caught in the storm, Tai could only imagine the lives that were lost in the process. "Seems Raleigh has been busy." He commented.

Sly nodded as he pulled out his binocucom and showed Bentley the scene. "Bentley, are you seeing this?" He asked him.

"Indeed. In fact, according to my Amphibio-Positioning system, that big blimp is where Raleigh is hiding out." Bentley informed them.

"You know, that blimp looks more like a machine than a hideout." Sly pointed out as he observed the massive weather maker.

"You're right, Sly. That is a storm machine! It's the reason why it never stops raining around here." Bentley stated the obvious.

Tai narrowed his eyes as he turned towards the shipwrecks. "That explains all the wrecked ships. At this moment, I can only imagine how many lives were lost because of that monstrosity." He said as he was feeling upset at the situation.

"But why would Raleigh want bad weather at his own hideout, 24-7?" Bentley asked as he felt curious.

"Beats us, but rain or shine, I'm going to steal my family's book back. And if Raleigh gets in our way… it's on." Sly told him as he put his binocucom away and looked towards Tai. "Are you feeling alright? Because you look like you've seen a ghost." He told him.

"Let's just say I've seen plenty of lives lost during my training in China." Tai told him as he walked ahead. But then out of nowhere, a walrus guard with a welding torch jumped out and went to burn him. Sly quickly knocked the torch away as the walrus blew the flames onto a metal fence, causing it to heat up as Tai threw a roundhouse kick and slammed it against the walrus guard's head and slammed it against the heated fence. It not only knocked him out, but left a couple of burn marks on his face in the process.

Sly winced from seeing it as he looked at Tai. "Nice work, but I'd hate to be that guy." He commented.

"So would I." Tai replied as they made their way down the path through the island. They came across the waterfalls that were running rapidly as it would be too fast for them to walk through. "We could make use of the rocks and roots that are nearby to get across the falls." He suggested.

"Didn't your masters teach you to walk on water or something? Cause I could use something like that right now." Sly said to him.

"Even if I did, you would have fallen asleep during the first lesson." Tai answered as Sly gave him a look, which the tiger immediately ignored as he thought of something he remembered. "But I do recall something that can help." He said as he closed his eyes. Sly was curious to what he was doing, till Tai snapped his eyes open and ran towards the falls and leapt as he spread his arms out like a crane and floated across with ease.

Sly was stunned as he watched him land on the other side and shook his head. "That was… amazing! How'd you do that?!" He asked.

"I'm wondering the same thing!" Bentley exclaimed through the earpiece.

"A little something I learned from Fei Liu, the Crane Master. She taught me the Crane's Flight, on how to levitate. Using the flow of chi to help me float in the air." He explained.

"Sounds like a bunch of mumbo jumbo to me." Bentley commented.

"After what I just saw Bentley, I'm starting to become a believer." Sly told him as he backed up. "Let's see if I can…" He ran and attempted to jump the great distance, but he only managed to get half way as he panicked at nearly falling into the water. But Tai threw his rope kunai and managed to snare him and pull him across the remaining yard of water before he could get swept away by the current. Sly was panting as he was sure he was going to fail that jump. "Thanks Tai, that was way too close." He said to him as he tried to catch his breath.

"Don't mention it. Next time, look before you leap." He advised him as he took off and made it across the second waterfall by leaping from the rocks. Sly followed in the same path he took as he and Tai made their way towards a gate.

"Nice job so far, guys. To get over the next gate, you'll need to grab onto that hook using your can and hook sword." Bentley informed them.

"Got it." Sly replied as he ran for the hook and leapt as he used his cane to grab on to it, using his momentum to swing off as his cane released from the hook and he made it over the gate. While Tai ran across the wall and leapt to the hook as he used his hook sword to latch onto the hook and swing from it as he made it over the gate and landed beside Sly. The two walked towards what seemed to be a modern day water wheel.

"I have to give Raleigh credit for being creative. But his machines are being used for evil, and it would be bad for business." Tai stated.

"Agreed. And the only way to shut it down is to take down Raleigh." Sly declared as he and Tai carefully made their way across the rotating wheels. Once reaching the other side, a chubby walrus with a giant mallet grunts as he swung the hammer at them. Tai balled up his fist and surrounded it with his chi as he threw it in an uppercut motion to smash through the mallet and destroy it completely. While Sly jumped over him and smacked his cane against the walrus' face. Once he was knocked out, Sly smiled as he soon became curious as he looked towards Tai. "I've been needing to ask, but is that perfume on you?" He asked him.

Tai mentally cursed himself for forgetting about Aisha's perfume, he sighed as he shrugged a bit. "Yeah… Carmelita's new partner said it was her own brand." He told him.

"Heh, looks like she didn't have you tagged with just that tracker you found. She's got you marked on her list." Sly chuckled.

"Don't start with me, Sly. After all, you got Carmelita to deal with." Tai reminded him as he ran across the second set of water wheels that spanned across the river, Sly followed while getting past blockades that were in the way. They noticed up ahead that there were more searchlights and a guard keeping watch. Tai smirked as he leapt to the light towers and snuck behind the guard without him noticing.

Sly ran towards the guard to catch his attention, which worked like a charm as the guard threw golden stars at him. Sly avoided them as he took his cane and snagged the guard by his ankle and pulled him over as Tai leapt down and kicked him in his head, knocking him out. "Another guard bites the dust." He commented and looked around the area and saw a vault nearby. "Hello." He walked over to it and examined it. "Bentley, got a vault here with your name on it. I need a code, think you can crack it?" He asked him.

"Oh trust me, this code was child's play compared to Carmelita's. Raleigh should have worked more on his numbers rather than his machines. The code for this vault is 7-9-2." Bentley informed them as Sly put in the code as Bentley had said it was and pulled the lever to open the door to find what immediately surprised him, as a page from the Thievius Raccoonus. He grabbed it and pulled it out to examine it. "Sly! You and Tai found a page from the Thievius Raccoonus! This page teaches old Drake Cooper's Fast Attack Dive move. That might come in handy." Bentley suggested.

"Better put that page in your family book to keep it safe." Tai told him as Sly nodded his head and put the page in the backpack where the book was held. He even pulled out a calling card and placed it in the vault. "Now, the only other way out of here is through that gate across the river." Tai pointed out as he threw his kunai at the alarm system to shut down the searchlights.

"And it looks like Raleigh left the key to the gate for the guards to make sure it's protected. Looks like he'll need to hire some new thugs." Sly joked at Raleigh's expense, knowing it would cost him a fortune for protection. He and Tai made their way across the water wheels to reach the key as Sly smashed open the case it was in and picked up the key that was inside. "Time to see Raleigh's base of operation." He said as he walked towards the gate with it. He took the key and pushed it into the lock as he turned it to unlock it, the gate fell as Sly put the key in his backpack for safe keeping. For it might come in handy later.

He and Tai made their way into the tunnel to get to the heart of Raleigh's operation. They moved through the darkness of the cave as they reached the exit and moved through a small canyon. The climbed up a ledge and walked towards what appears to be a town on a shipwreck. "I've seen plenty of pirate movies to know where this is going." Tai commented.

"That blimp though looks like the most secured location on this boat. If Raleigh's really smart as the police file suggests then that's where we'll find him." Sly replied.

"Wonderful idea, but your plan is flawed." Bentley told him through the earpiece.

"Why?" Sly asked him.

"Because it's impossible to get near him." Tai told him.

"Tai's right. To access Raleigh's blimp, you and Tai would have to sneak through that high-voltage power tube." Bentley informed him as Sly looked at the tube, seeing the currents of electricity flowing through it. Knowing just how painful it would be if he went through it. "To do that without getting electrocuted, you and Tai would have to destroy that power generator. And to do that, you'll need two more of Raleigh's treasure keys. Which are heavily guarded." He announced.

"Interesting. So when are you going to get to the impossible part?" Sly asked sarcastically.

"Fine! But I warned you!" Bentley replied as Tai smirked and rolled his eyes. "I've marked the areas you and Tai need to hit with holographic markers. Follow them to your objectives." He told them.

"Thanks." Sly said to him with a smile.

"Don't mention it, it's your funeral. Both of your funerals." Bentley told both Sly and Tai as he hung up.

Tai let out a chuckle as he looked ahead. "Oh yee of little faith, Bentley." He commented and looked towards Sly. "So, which one do you want to tackle first?" He asked him.

"Hmm, tackling one at a time would take too long. We should split up." Sly suggested as he pointed to the door on the right side of the ship. "You take the one on the right, and I'll take the one on the left." He pointed to which objective they should take.

"Sounds good, see you on the other side." Tai told him as he and Sly fistbumped each other and made their way towards the boat, knowing that this will not be an easy task for them to retrieve the treasure keys. Whatever awaited them on the other side of those doors, they needed to be prepared for what they were about to face.


(Author Notes: Hey guys, Leonidas1994 here. Now I know, am I coming up with just a whole number of ideas that no one ever thought of? Well maybe, I don't know. Anyways, this is sort of like a retelling of the Sly Cooper Franchise, which to this day is still my favorite since I first played it on the PS2. I just wish it wasn't downloadable on the PS5, because I'd like to play it without streaming, thank you! Anyways, in regards to two of the characters I included, Tai Liang and Aisha Bast. I had some help and found a few inspirational ideas for them to help you guys know who they were.)


Tai Liang

Animal Species: Tiger

Affiliation: Ninja

Weapons: Hook Swords (Think like the hook swords Kabal used in Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind.)

Inspirations: Kuai Liang (Scorpion MK1), T'ai Fu (T'ai Fu: Wrath of the Tiger), Kabal (Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind)


Aisha Bast

Animal Species: Panther

Affiliation: Interpol Agent

Weapons: Glock (Currently)

Inspirations: Catra (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power), Jataaka (Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match)


(More characters like them may appear in this story, and don't worry, I'll still work on the others when I get the chance. I'm just exhausted right now. But I hope you guys like the chapter.)