Sly Cooper: Timeout Turnabout

[Sleight Of Hand]

AN: Hi there! It's me, Sleight Of Hand on QQ, Lone Courier on SB. I figured bringing this here would draw some more voters, and maybe bring up some alternate paths. So I hope you can come in, sit down, and enjoy this crazy story.

...

It's nearly been one year since Sly disappeared on Le Paradox's blimp, and none of us have been taking it well. Murray's been taking out his frustration, his pain, his sadness out on those who challenged him in the wrestling ring, having a world record breaking fifty two undefeated streak. But we can all see it's not working, after every match, I see a little bit of sadness in his eyes that Sly isn't among the crowd. As for me, I've been focusing my efforts on finding Penelope's location. I've tracked her from Quebec to Saint Petersburg, with the trail going cold once it reached the wild desert of Egypt.

I remember throwing my hands up in frustration at losing her, but none of us could prepare for Carmelita's response. The Inspector had gone on a thief hunting rampage, out of frustration like us, or the miniscule probability she could find him among the thieves. No one else could find him, and just as we were about to give up hope, something happened. A strange package was sent to our hideout in Paris, France.

The letter attached to it was no doubt one of Penelope's, but it was simply confusing why she'd send another package after disappearing. But what really caught our attention, was a picture of a small rock inside the package, having Sly's calling card carved into it, along with his initials.

After doing some research, we learned of a 'Cooper Clan' exhibit opening in Egypt. Artifacts or replicas of the Cooper Clan's gear, put on display for the public. We were befuddled, especially Carmelita, who would've known about this. But it was probably our only chance of getting Sly back, and no matter how slim, no matter how astronomically slim our chances were of finding him in the sands of time, we're going to find him.

...

Bentley sat down at his computer, linking up to a communications server he set up specifically for this meeting, no matter how much it went against his instincts. A few moments later, a familiar blue haired fox appeared on the screen, cleaning her Shock Pistol.

"Ms. Fox, I take it you've heard of the Cooper Exhibit opening this weekend?" He began, making sure that the rumors were true.

"How couldn't I? It's been the talk of the Interpol Break Room...and my own 'personal' investigation." A pause came as the Inspector put her Shock Pistol back together, having spent a few minutes cleaning it. "And might I ask you, what does this have to do with me?" Bentley took a deep breath, before unveiling his plan.

"Ms. Fox, you've probably been tasked to watch out for the Cooper Gang, correct?" Nodding, Carmelita was still not following what he said. "That means you have unrestricted access to all wings within the museum, and our ticket to finding Sly." The Inspector's eyes widened for a few moments, and silence fell over the two for a while, until it was broken by Murray stepping inside the workshop Bentley was using to set up the message.

Time seemed to stop once Carmelita gave her answer, nearly stopping both Bentley and Murray's hearts. "I'm in." Thanking the stars above, it was time to get Sly back.

...

Somehow, Carmelita actually joined us on the heist. Whether she was that desperate to find Sly just as we were, or some other reason. The only thing we knew for real was that she had little reason to oust us to the cops, considering that Sly was just within our grasp. With our mission clear, Murray and I were off to Egypt, with Carmelita on the scene, she had invaluable knowledge on how to break in.

When we got to Egypt, Carmelita met us at our makeshift hideout at the edge of town, a rundown hut we used for the Clockwerk Job. It wasn't much, but it was much better than hiding within the long arm of the law.

Inspector Fox managed to get her hands on the floor plan of the museum, but there was one problem. There were three copies of the floor plan, each of them with varying locations on where the Cooper Clan Exhibit was being unveiled. The three copies were ranging from the East Wing, the West Wing, and the North Wing. Carmelita explained that the curator only allowed the guards to monitor the areas outside of the three possible locations, making our plan somewhat more complicated.

But no matter what, we aren't giving up, not when Sly is this close.

...

Bentley, And the Gang in...

Timeout Turnabout

...

The museum was dark, only the necessary security lights were online. Bentley tapped a few keys on his keyboard, doing another check of the security while the field team did their work. It took a bit of convincing bringing some old friends back together, but necessary for this job.

"Alright, this is our only chance to find Sly, if we fail this job, then we can kiss our hopes of seeing him goodbye." Bentley began, somewhat pessimistic at the fact that security was so tight tonight. The only time that they could get here was Friday, the night before opening day of the Cooper Clan Exhibit. After a day or two of looking over the museum, the Gang had narrowed down the possibility of the Exhibit's location.

The first was the East Wing, which had been under construction for a while, alongside the West Wing. It was through the World War I exhibit, leading directly to the end of the East Wing, making it perfect for a Cooper Gang Heist.

The second was the West Wing, which lead through the Victorian Age Exhibit. At the end of the West Wing, there was a large amount of security and technology, similar to those of the East Wing. With that settled, there was only two choices, and with those two choices it was only a matter of time until they have Sly back in Paris...Hopefully. With a few more keystrokes, Bentley was ready to start the operation.

"I can't believe you've roped me into this Bentley." Carmelita called in through the comms, before taking her place on the intersection central to the museum.

Bentley let out a light chuckle, before getting to work directing Carmelita. "Well Inspector Fox, with your sleight of hand, you're our best bet for this mission's success." Murray was meant for more brute force operations, while Bentley was a technological wonder, more of a scalpel. "Now, there are two options, East and West...Which one are we hitting first." Carmelita thought it over for a few moments, before choosing...

"...East Wing, I remember seeing some of Cooper's artifacts being sent there." Carmelita decided, making her way through the World War I Exhibits, seeing some of the most notable planes and equipment of the era. Diagrams of tanks, country flags, and the outcome of the war was surprisingly well documented. But since Sly's return was at hand, the Inspector really didn't have time to sightsee.

It wasn't long until Carmelita came across a heavy security gate, blocking her entrance to the Cooper Clan Exhibit. "Bentley, we've got a problem." Activating the binocucom the Turtle genius gave her, Carmelita managed to show him what the problem was. "There's a big iron gate in the way, any plan on getting me through that?"

"The security isn't anything I've seen before, but I know a way to get through." It took a few moments, before Murray was on the line, excited and ready to get their old friend back from wherever he was. "Murray's brute strength is going to be necessary for this, but there's the possibility of the alarm going off...No, we need this, just wait for him, he'll be here in a moment." Bentley explained, tapping away at the keyboard while keeping in the van.

Murray was quick to hop onto the rooftops, having parked the van in one of the small alleyways near the museum. "Just like old times, eh Bentley?" For the first time in months, the Murray was ready, back in action, and not afraid to clobber some skulls for his friends...

...Or lift up a massive iron security gate.

Dropping in from the skylight above the WWI Exhibit, Murray landed a scant few feet to Carmelita's left, surprising her with how quiet he can be. After a few moments of him observing the security gate, he let out a small chuckle before calling Bentley.

"Hey buddy, you seeing what I'm seeing?"

"Ah, the classic Ironside Model 51X Security gate, definitely like old times." With that little trip down memory lane done, Murray motioned for Carmelita to stand back, before slipping his fingers underneath the gate. A few moments later, the gate's hydraulics gave out as Murray lifted it from the ground. Inspector Fox slipped underneath while Murray held it up, dropping it once she got through.

Once the gate hit the ground though, the alarm went off. "Drat! Mission compromised, Carmelita, grab that rock and let's get out of here!" Making for the rock, Carmelita managed to grab it before leaving the eastern wing with Murray.

Their mad dash out of the museum took them to one of the back alleys, where the van was parked. Handing off the rock with Sly's calling card to Bentley, Carmelita joined the hippo and turtle as they got out of dodge. Once the timeframe was set, it was off to Egypt to find Sly. The van peeled out of the alleyway, driving down the road until it disappeared in a flash of light, leaving only a trail of flames in its wake.

...

Once we had the rock with Sly's calling card, we made our way to Ancient Egypt. Our landing however was a bit....Rough, so to speak. However we were fine, just a little shaken by the sudden stop.

We found Le Paradox's blimp not too long after that...Or what was left of it anyway, but no sign of Sly. The only sign that he was here, near the Great Pyramids was his Binocucom, which he must've lost during the crash landing. But that was only the beginnings of our worries, as looking for Sly ended up being much more difficult than we first expected.

We were in the time of Slytunkhamen's reign as Pharaoh, or at least the end of his reign.

From what our intel could find in the nearest town, Slytunkhamen the First had passed away peacefully in his sleep just days before we arrived. His son, Slytunkhamen the Second was to take the throne...But something else happened, as evidenced by the guards patrolling the streets and random shakedowns of passing travelers. But the most peculiar addition was the modern security system, meaning that our troubles were only beginning.

With the addition of modern technology, it's time to find out who else has access to the time travel we wielded and put a stop to them. Not only for the Cooper Clan's sake, but the people's as well.

...

Bentley and the Gang in...

A Dance With Black Serpents

...

A few days passed, and the gang made their hideout just on the edge of town, using the van as their safehouse for the time being. They managed to obscure it from the guards, the tall, imposing black dog guards carrying large lanterns and wielding a heavy khopesh to compliment it. It took only a short time for Bentley to compile some cursory data from mild obervations, but perfect enough for some operations to get started.

First and foremost, they needed to get some photos taken of the surrounding area. Behind every successful mission, there was a veritable mountain of information that went behind them.

In order to do so, Murray would be the one to take the photos, disguised as one of the many merchants who made their way through the city. However, explaining it aloud was...surprising.

"Wait, what does a merchant disguise have to do with anything?" Murray thought out while cleaning some sand out of the van. "I thought Carmelita was doing the recon, she's about as nimble as Sly." Bentley pulled up a diagram about the social hierarchy of 1300 BC, showing merchants as a type of noble class. At this point, Bentley began to explain his plan in full detail in front of Carmelita and Murray.

"First off Murray, from what cursory data I've gathered, merchants are allowed to pass in and out of the City of Pharaohs with ease, provided they pay the fee." He pulled up a picture of a merchant handing off tribute to one of the imposing guards, a handful of golden coins in his hands. "Gold greases hands, and we get inside the city to take all the reconnaissance pictures we can." Murray seemed to follow along, and was out of the van with haste, having grabbed the merchant disguise to keep him from being suspected.

It was a large purple robe, big enough to conceal Murray's bulk and disguise him from anyone who might recognize him. Besides the robe, Murray carried around a heavy merchant's bag, filled with some pilfered jewels courtesy of Octavio's mafia.

As Murray approached the golden gates of the City of Pharaohs, he was met by two tall and imposing black dogs, looking very similar to the statues of Anubis. "Halt traveler, what brings you to the City of Pharaohs?" Murray thought of a good excuse, coming up with something that could possibly get him into the city without spending money at all...

[] Say...
-[] Why, I'm here to do business if it's not a problem...Stranger. (Merchant Class Intimidation)
-[] Perhaps I can interest you strangers in a...'Golden' Opportunity? (Bribe, -50 Gold Coins)
-[] I am here to pay tribute to the ruling regent of this city, if their grace has no problem with it? (Head Directly to the Boss)

[] Write In...

Gold Count: 500