"You said you'd give me answers?" Sly asked Panda King. "Here's my first one. What did you think was going to happen when you went after my father that night?"
"Clockwerk told us the plan was to break both legs and his dominant arm as a message to stay out of our business. It seemed logical at the time. The five of us would be able to overpower him, a Master Thief would never go to the police, and no matter how well the limbs healed he would be out of action for years, if not forever." Panda King began with a sigh. "The Cooper Techniques only work if you have full command of your body, after all. Badly healed old injuries, or fresh ones, would make most of them quite difficult...or so Clockwerk told us."
"Clockwerk?" Sly asked intently.
"The one who gathered us to do it," The Panda King explained. "It was only when we arrived that we discovered his true plan. When he went for Conner with beak and talons rather than other weapons...we knew we had been used. And then I made the only choice I could accept...when I saw Conner shove the son we didn't know he had into a closet, a son the same age as my own daughter, Jing. I moved to the closet...and closed it all the way, standing in front of it as I watched what Clockwerk did..."
Sly blinked in shock. He remembered being pushed into the closet, staring out at the shadowy figures that had attacked his father until the door slammed shut on him. He had long thought the shifting of furniture had saved and protected him...
"He did not come to wound, but to kill," The Panda King continued. "Clockwerk is an ancient owl, who has replaced nearly his entire body with metal, keeping himself alive on pure hate," The Panda King continued. "Hate...for the Cooper Clan. Your father was not his enemy...but his prey. And that is how he will see you when he learns of your existence."
"He'll find this prey isn't so helpless," Sly growled, clutching his father's cane tightly.
"Which is why I fought you; to be sure that, now that you've entered this world, you will be strong enough to face him." Panda King said as he put one hand over his face wearily and groaned.
"You….you okay?" Sly asked, being unsure how to react to all this: Yes, this bear did help destroy his family and stole from the Theivus Racconus, but he also seemed genuine in his regret.
"A part of me prayed you'd live a normal life." The Panda King said. "When I took you to that orphanage, I had hoped I could protect you from this world, as I protected Jing by keeping her out of it."
"Wait….You took me to the orphanage?" Sly gasped in shock. He could just barely remember the shadowy figure that had picked him up and packed his things when he'd been found crying in the closet, carrying him to the orphanage in silence.
"Yes. And I chose it very carefully. Prosperous enough you'd get three squares each day while isolated enough that it never entered any news...and close enough to your father's destroyed home that it would be the last place Clockwerk would look for you if he suspected a Cooper Heir had been hidden from him." Panda King said. "When I reached there, I saw two other children being dropped off there in your age group...a turtle and a hippo. I placed you with them in the hopes you would also find friends, and in that way seek normality, fading into the shadows."
The Panda King couldn't help but give a chuckle as he looked back at the irony of the situation.
"Imagine my surprise when years later I learned that not only had you instead brought them into this world...but that you were able to meet us in battle without the skills of your legacy. Truly, you have grown strong."
While that did rise Sly's spirits and answered many of his questions, he still had one.
"Before we fought? Izuku somehow saw his parents being murdered by Clockwerk. The old bird said something about…'no more aid?'"
The Panda King's eyes widened, his form tensed before he sighed, poured himself a hearty drink to steady his nerves
"The Cooper gang is not something of your creation. From as early as the pryamids, there has been some great band of allies accompanying the Coopers, not always overt. The Midoriya family, or as the public knew them, the Akatani clan, had been allies of your family since the times of Ryoichi Cooper."
Interesting peaked, Sly listened intently.
"From what I gathered, the Akatani were sushi chefs whenever not aiding your ancestors, always ready to aid…until WW2 came and they were decimated and scattered until only one remained: Inko Akatani."
"Izuku's mother?" Sly asked.
"Indeed. And funnily enough? She was to your father as Izuku is to you; an starving, orphaned child Connor found trying to pickpocket him. The Gang took her in and she served as the heart of his crew….from what I hear, even that hypocrite Dr. M adored her."
"Who?" Sly asked.
"No one important." The Panda King noted.
"Speaking of dads, what do you know about Izuku's father?" Slu inquired, making a mental note to look into this 'Dr. M' at a later time.
"Hisashi Midoriya was a good soul; an entertainer by trade and passion. And loving enough for Inko to leave the Gang to start a life with him. Connor's only request before allowing that was that she help you when you came of age."
Hearing this, Sly was awestruck.
"We heard something like that in the vision. Did you…?"
The Panda King shook his head.
"By the time I hear of them, it was too little too late. Hisashi had actually reached out to be for permission to use some of my firework techniques in her shows."
"Really?" Sly asked. "…Was kind of hoping you gave them all those explosives."
"Expolsives?" The Panda King asked.
"Inko blew an entire apartment building up." Sly smirked. Hearing that shocked but also made the older criminal proud for a brief moment.
"I don't know how Clockwerk found out about them; I only learnt you were travelling with a child through the word of my employees. Still….I am happy to know they went to such lengths."
"So that's everything then?" Sly asked quickly, trying to get past the embarrassing situation.
"Yes, that is everything," The Panda King concluded. "You will find Clockwerk in the Krack-Karov Volcano in Russia. Now that I know how strong you have become, I can give you this knowledge freely. Good luck. You will need it to purge this monster from the world."
Sly smirked cheekily. "I think good luck is something I have in great supply."
"Pray it does not run out," The Panda King concluded as Sly left, sitting back to wait for Carmelita to come to arrest him.
COOPER
Carmelita groaned as she dropped her jacket over her chair and flopped into it. Processing The Panda King had been exhausting, physically and mentally. Not only had there been more legal loopholes to jump through than she'd thought even to get him locked up: Apparently, he was considered a hero by some communities for targeting corrupt noblemen, or had arranged to arrange fake receipt for his services that would render whatever damage he caused be ruled as 'an accident.'
On top of all that, doing as Izuku had recommended, placing Muggshot and Mz. Ruby in the same prison wing, was causing all sorts of chaos as the two adjusted to life without their wealth and power. Still, the two of them were at least moving towards redemption, unlike Rayleigh; how the worthless warty toad was not yet dead eluded Carmalita, who as the official 'mind' behind this, accepted responsibility for the two criminal's actions and the critisims that came from other Interpol agents. Critisum she knew would increase when the Panda King was behind bars.
Bentley and Murray had gone to buy some food for breakfast, giving the lovely agent the last of their rations in a sandwich and decent cup of coffee she was midway through. Once Sly returned and told her everything, she'd start up requesting a warrant on the final member of the Fiendish Five.
Sniffling awoke the Fox Beast-kin from her focus. Sniffling that brought her back to a few years ago; behind her laid Izuku sound asleep…or was he?
"Conjeto?" Carmalita cooed in worry; as the boy's brow furrowed and he tensed in his sleep. Abandoning her report and thoughts, she knelt down beside him as he began to whisper, whimper and sweat. Then he began to thrash and groan
"No! No! Stay! Leave us alone!"
Carmalita took the little boy into her arms and patted his back, gently waking him up.
When Izuku's eyes opened, he spied he was still in the Cooper van, in China, in familiar, warm arms.
"In…Inspect…" Izuku began, fear keeping the words back. The Fox Beastskin just hugged and shushed him.
"Calmase." She cooed. "Calmase. I'm right here."
Izuku's breathing slowed to normal and Carmalita gave him a look over; the poor boy was still trembling, tears fighting in his eyes.
"I'm right here." Caramliat promised. "…If you want, you can tell me. If not? I'm here all the same."
Izuku, despite the terror being clear in his eyes, began to recite his dream:
"He…He was chasing me! Saying Sly, Murray and Bentley are going to…!...Because of me! He was carrying mommy and daddy's skulls in his talons…wearing Mz. Ruby like a cape! I tried to run, but everywhere I went, he was there! Every corner, every pit! I thought I was safe when I saw Sly….But he was a skeleton! And Murray and Bentley were…! Were…!"
A sob escaped the poor boy
"And there he was about to swallow you and Sly's skeleton!"
The dam broke and the poor boy cried. If he had set off an avalanche, Caramlita did not care; he needed hr now.
"Its okay, sweetie." She cooed, drying his eyes and giving him some water. "Its okay. He's not here."
"B-but what if…?" the boy started.
"He'll have to get through me first." The Interpol agent promised. "And if not me? Sly, Murray and Bentley."
This didn't seem to convince Izuku, but the smiling face of the closest he'd had to a mother did soothe his heart. And with that, he need for sleep started to return.
And as Carmelita lulled Izuku to sleep, she began to recall a song from a movie she enjoyed as a child and began to sing it from memory:
"How very special are we
For just a moment to be
Part of life's eternal rhyme
How very special are we
To have on our fam'ly tree
Mother Earth and Father Time."
Around this time, Murray and Bentley returned and were lost in not only the song; but the image of Carmalita cradling Izuku in her arms as she sang.
"He turns the seasons around
And so she changes her gown
But they always look in their prime
They go on dancing their dance
Of everlasting romance
Mother Earth and Father Time"
Sly, his interest peaked by Murray and Bentley just standing outside the van, managed to behold a sight he'd often dreamt of: Carmalita singing to the little boy they both adored.
"The summer larks return to sing
Oh, what a gift they give!
Then autumn days grow short and cold
Oh, what a joy to live"
Carmalita returned Izuku to his cot as she sang the final chorus, an adoring smile on her face.
"How very special are we
For just a moment to be
Part of life's eternal rhyme
How very special are we
To have on our fam'ly tree
Mother Earth and Father Time."
She kissed the little boy good night and took a deep breath before she grabbed her things, ready to make her way to arrest the Panda King.
"Thank you." Sly managed.
All his constant chaser said was:
"Be careful on this one."
And with that, they parted ways.
TO BE CONTINUED….
Knightmare Lord A/N:
Just needed something wholesome before we got to the final leg of the Sly 1 Arc; THE COLD HEART OF HATE!
And yes, we just threw in Charlotte's Web, because why not?
Mrotax A/N:
It was beautiful.