I've figured something out.

I've figured something out.
I actually am learning.  I am currently cognitively rewiring my brain to think on a deeper psychological spectrum.  All because of one phrase.  "Have a weekend."  First uttered to me by my AP language teacher, I took about six hours out of my day excluding math class which I still was subliminally questioning how the phrase meant when I finally stepped back into my AP language classroom today.  It is well known to most teenagers my age have a cognitive sense that the weekend means a number of good things happening for them.  Firstly, they are not required on any standpoint to wake up early.  Secondly, the weekend is amazingly unpredictable to the point where anything can happen and anything else becomes possible.  Thirdly, the only possible way to have a bad weekend is if there is a drastic change in activity that leaves someone in the family either deceased or heartbroken in some way shape or form.  Even so, the event is still disregarded for the fact that any troubles that  may or may not have occurred over the weekend can be disregarded in lieu of attempting even in some minuscule scale to improve your weekend.  This is where the "bright side" comes into play.  A relative you were very close to passed away?  Fine, at least you get to visit all of the relatives you may or may not have known you have.  Your boyfriend/girlfriend/partner broke up with you?  No problem, that just means you're free from them.  You're single again, go out to dinner with your friends and have fun.  All of this effort in order to come back to school on Monday after the weekend is through and say to all of your friends that you 'had a good weekend'.  That's another thing, the fact that my AP language teacher only said "have a weekend" and left out the adjective that acted as a sentence modifier simply suggested an arbitrary meaning to the subject of the sentence.  The subject being the student's weekend.  The arbitrary meaning that goes along with the signifier of the student when it comes to the subliminal meaning that accompanies the term "weekend" can be counted alongside the basic of pleasure that assist the inherent goodness that comes along with the arbitrary meaning of the word "weekend."  It's a metaphoric arbitrary meaning passed along into one simple phrase that saves a lot of air.  Simply by leaving out the word "good".  Your weekend doesn't need to be good, it just turns out that way...
What the hell just happened?
P.S. If you're wondering what neuroplasticity is.  It is basically the brain's ability to rewire itself for different cognitive function.  The brain has a limited amount of neurons to connect to.  And after extended disuse, the neurons in that disused section begins to fade, those neurons left with nothing better to do find something else that is enduring extended use in order to better lengthen the function of the section of the brain with the most use, making it stronger and therefore; more powerful.  Video Games, for instance, strengthen the brain's attention to subtle details, decrypting stories inside stories in order to manipulate false narratives or at least narratives some of us would believe to be true, or solving puzzles, as well as building basic motor reflex.

Thief meet Thief

Thief, meet Thief

Prologue

            "Okay, this is a small, localized bank.  But be careful of that woman sitting in her cruiser across from you.  She's a real hot-shot Interpol agent.  Don't wake the baby, okay kids?  Now get this done."  Bain said in his usually irritated tone.  I sat calmly in the back of our van, dusting off my tie and jacket. 

            "Check your cases, make sure you boys have everything.  All right?"  My team obeyed.  I starred at my mask.  White, lined with the American flag on the front.  This was what separated one life from another.  Life from work.  Freedom from safety.  Between church and state.  I'm good at what I do, and I like doing it.  We strolled casually across the street, appearing as average businessmen.  We ducked into an alleyway and hid behind the bank near the back window. 

            "All right boys."  I said as I opened my briefcase.  "Let's break bad."  I placed on my mask, and the heist was on.  Smashing through the back, I fired my gun in the air, alerting everyone of our presence.  We were getting everyone quite.  Then, the pretty lady working as a teller asked me a question.  

            "Why are you doing this?"  I knelt down next to her ear behind her.

            "WE'RE ROBBING YOU!"

Chapter I- Average day until now

            It was an average day on the streets of Paris.  Midday, warm, and sunny.  Overall, tranquil is how I'd describe it.  But these streets never stay peaceful for long.  I was parked outside of a bank in my cruiser, waiting patiently for any sign of trouble.  Usually I'd be on top of things today, but I've been unusually forgetful.  First my coffee, then my keys, then my badge.  I don't know why.  Winston, a friend of mine, suggested that I take today off.  I appeared tired, and in the best of honesty.  I was tired.  But there's another thing I don't believe in.  Taking a day off.  The way I see it, crime doesn't take a day off.  Bored, I began to drift asleep.  But I was awakened from a scream.  A terrible scream from a woman across the street from the bank.  It was indistinct but I swore I heard her yell: "There are people in there!  Oh my God!  They're gonna die!"  This set off my alarm.  I picked up my shock pistol and shoved my way out of my cruiser.  I aimed my shock pistol at the tall puma standing near the glass door with padding and a machine gun in his arms.  Then, a loud cracking sounded.  One of my cruiser's windows was smashed.  I looked up at the roof.  A coyote with a pink clown mask held a sniper rifle in my direction. 

            "This is Inspector Carmelita Fox.  I'm at East Savings and Trust bank.  I am under fire and I need backup immediately."  The rifle again exploded in my direction.  I knelt up and fired at the man on the roof, but he was out of range for my shock pistol.  I then heard engines roaring down the road and sirens wailing down the highway.  Gracias Dios, my backup came on time for once.  I thought to myself.  Two more police cars parked in front of the bank in attempt to barricade it.  Winston dashed between cars and took cover next to me.

            "You alright Inspector?"  I glanced up at him.

            "I've been better."  Another rifle round snapped against the side of my cruiser.  Other officers began to open fire on the bank, but whoever these criminals were, they were tough.  It seemed as if nothing we fired at them worked.  Bullets and shock rounds littered the ground as glass shattered and metal sparked.  Loud pops were heard all down the street.  Still, my main concern was for the civilians inside the bank.  Looking at the SWAT van across from us, I saw one officer with a shield climb out of the back. 

            "Guys!  It's a fucking shield!"  I heard one of the criminals say.  I guess that was their weakness.  But I had completely forgotten about the sniper.  Before I could yell 'watch out!'  the officer with the shield was dead on the ground, a 7.62 lodged straight through the helmet and slicing through the soft tissues in his head.  The men broke out around the street, firing madly, killing anyone that moved.  I only had one option.  I had to make a call.

            "Mason?  Where in the hell are you?"  His deep, German voice replied rather calmly. 

            "Relax, we're almost there.  Besides, they don't kill civvies anyway.  It costs too much."

            "Just get here quick, we've lost too many men."  I glanced up at Winston, who was engaging the four killers all by himself.  Shock filled my gaze as a bullet had found him, striking him in the stomach.  He flumped to the ground with a loud thud. 

            "Winston!  Are you okay?"  The poor possum coughed. 

            "Yeah, he got me... I don't know if I'll make it.  If you see Cooper again.  Tell him that Interpol's been boring without him."  I looked at my friend in despair.  "I'll try to make it.  But just make sure that he knows that if I don't."  I placed my hand on his shoulder and nodded to him nervously.  I turned around to see the coyote with a fox hooking up the bag of money on the roof of the bank.  I gazed in shock as a bi-plane flew by, hooking up the bag and soaring off with it.  My shock changed to anger.  There's got to be at least 10k in there!  Those bastards!  I was about to reengage when I notice they had already reached the street across from me at the intersection.  Stepping away from the cruiser, I ducked behind a wall, shock pistol set to kill and ready for anything.  I glanced around the corner.  All four robbers, a fox, a coyote, a puma, and a lion just standing there, guns in hand.  Staring straight ahead.  In front of them.  That bastard.  That murderer.  That... Degenerate piece of war-scarred husky.  But he was our only chance of catching these guys. 

            "Haven't seen you bastards since my Merc days."  He smirked, probably remembering his days of guns blazing, firing in the same line they once stood together.  I felt the tension of the moment crush my chest and make my breathing feel like a day's work.  The criminals spread out a bit, to match each man eye to eye.  Gun to gun.  They all raised their weapons.  Come on, Mason... It's now or never.  I thought to myself nervously.  Mason cocked his rifle.  The rest of his team did the same.  I guess it's now.  Gunfire exploded across the street, the people ran in terror from the shop across from the bank.  Out of the dozen or so officers they killed, Mason was the first one to make them flinch.  Blood spurted out from Mason's shoulder.  Ace took a 7.62 to the side, dropping him down.  Mason glanced to the side, he gritted his teeth.  Another bullet struck him in the leg, forcing him to limp his way forward.  Erik then took two 9mms into his shoulder and chest, dropping him to his knees.  Henry and Mason were the only two left.  Shimmering blood ran from Colt's barred teeth.  Henry's fur was matted and his bloody nose had stained his mouth and neck.  I watched as the last two were met by more bullets.  Henry couldn't take any more abuse.  He dropped to the ground, coughing and bleeding.  One more bullet met Colt's stomach.  He dropped down, blood trickling from both corners of his barred teeth, rage and hatred gleaming in his scarred eye.  His left hand supporting him on his knees.  But there was hope.  His right arm reached over to his hip.  And from his hip pulled... a handgun.  It was more beautiful than my own trusty shock pistol.  Slick and steel the gun shimmered in the light of day.  That weapon said one thing... It rang out like the bells on Manchester Cathedral.  It said... Hero.  The handgun is a Colt, isn't it?  A Colt 1911.  It's Colt's handgun.  I saw the puma smile from behind the mask.  The puma raised his machine gun, but no reply came.  It was then they both realized they were out of bullets.  Colt pulled the trigger,  the gun fired a loud reply.  And the puma went down.  His sternum was powder.  His chest was bleeding.  And Mason still secured his victory.  His crazed buddies carried their injured friend away.  They escaped with a black, unlicensed van.  I wasn't sure if I felt angry about not being able to catch them, or relieved that this firefight was finally over.  I looked over to Mason's bloody body.  He rolled over slowly.  I looked up, thinking he was dead. 

            "Christ, I feel worse than when I decided that using medicinal marijuana to cure hypnosis was a good idea.  It did not end well.  And Cooper was hilarious high."  He groaned once more before hacking up more blood.  "Sound off if you're alive."  His team all responded, despite their condition.

            "I'm up."

            "I'm up."

            "I'm fucked up... but I'm up."  Colt sighed once more before attempting to sit up.  Pain shot through him as he grasped his bleeding stomach.  I grasped his strong left arm, pulling him to his feet. 

            "Danke schörn.  Alright boys, time to wake up."  His men obeyed as they slowly stood up, trying to plug their wounds.  Just as they recovered a herd of cruisers rounded the corner. 

            "Imagine how I'm gonna explain this one to Chief Barkley."  Colt grasped his shoulder as he limped next to me. 

            "Don't worry yourself with him.  I'll cover it for you.  You've had enough day, go home, get some rest.  If Barkley wants to get his blood pressure spike for today, he'll have it yelling at me.  Besides, you've still got more than one issue on your hands.  Don't forget you're still dealing with Cooper's case."  With that, he limped off to an ambulance with the rest of his team.  I stood and thought for a minute.  Mason was right.  I am tired, and even he knew that.  I need some rest from today. 

My deviantart page

Unknown to some of my pageviewers.  I also have a deviantart.
http://reo-c-ray-racheal.deviantart.com/
I'm pretty sure there's a few things on there that aren't here.

Are you a health freak?

Are you a health freak?
If you answered yes to any of these questions.  You should not a have children or force them to eat the same things you do.

Are you allergic to pretty much everything?
Do you not let your kids drink soda no matter what?
Are certain foods 'free' of anything?
If you do drink soda, is the only soda you buy 'diet'?
Are you American?
Are you worried about your children's health before they were ever born, let alone know what's good and bad for them?
Do you force your child to eat the things they love without the things they love?
Are you constantly looking at new diets?
Is everything you hate bad for you?
Do you want to live to be 100?
Are you vegetarian? (Hitler was a vegetarian)

If you answered yes to any of these questions, save your children the turmoil of having to live with your stupid, self-conscious ass and don't have children.  You're a disgusting, disgrace of an American.  We wouldn't be the kind of consumerist, capitalists we are today with our nearly unlimited amount of food if the dumbasses like you are running it.  Remember, every time a morbidly obese person goes on a diet, thousands of snack cakes factory workers are laid off.  Don't let these poor families go hungry.  Get fat my fellow Americans.  It's how you're supposed to be.  Fat.  I love fat people.  Where would our great world be without fat people.  I mean, so many famous TV stars are fat.  Rodney Dangerfield, Homer Simpson, Peter Griffin, Sam Kinison, John Pinette, Gabriel Iglesias, Danny DeVito, and Alec Baldwin.  Maybe you could join these wonderful jolly people.

Mason's memorable quotes planning sheet

"Killing one person may save the lives of several others."
"Wishing that your enemy was dead just proves that you don't have the drive to do so yourself."
"If your enemy wants you to take them down 'like a man'.  Say screw manhood, being a child was more fun anyway.  Then shoot the bastard and walk away."
"If someone loves you enough but denies it, remember that they will always love you on the inside."
"There is a very fine line between tough, brave, and stupid.  That line differs depending on how headstrong you are."
"Physical strength can never match the raw power of mental dissection."
"In the words of Lieutenant General George S. Patton Jr.  'If we're all thinking alike, then someone isn't thinking'."
"No one hurts my friends and live to brag about it.  Dare kill my friends, and I will burn you alive and piss on your ashes."
"Going public with someone's illegal affairs is the same as spitting inside a helmet."
"I'd smack you if you weren't so damn good at everything."
"I'm not drunk enough yet.  But trust me, I'm working on it."
"I drink to heal wounds left by painful memories."
"I can tell you're not afraid of me, but you will be when you're headfirst in a cesspool."
"Being drunk is not the same thing as being happy."
"I enjoy advocating drinking, drug abuse, shooting your guns in the air, and even lighting things on fire."
"Burning a book does not save a tree, it waists paper."
"Optimist says the glass is half full, pessimist says it's half empty, an engineer will say the glass is twice the size it needs to be."
"I feel like I'd be good friends with Tennessee.  We both like the same things.  Guns, explosives, and women."
"Not saying your out of ammo is the same as telling your foe you're out of ammo."
"God damn it..."
"Tennessee.  Give my best regards to Alfred Nobel."
"Go to bed listening to punk rock, and you may wake up with a Mohawk."
"Woo hoo!  More partying!"
"Hold up my feet while I bulldog the keg."
"I don't seem to have nearly enough ammunition."
"I don't care how mean you wimps think it is, that was still pretty damn funny!"
"Dead yet?  No?  Well, you will be."
"So make sure you only listen to me when I decided to listen back.  And don't listen to me when I'm drunk, either."
"You cocky son of a bitch."
"I fear no man.  A man can bleed, and for that same reason, they can be killed." 
"A man's prolonged focus can only allow him to focus with tired eyes."
"You're abundant Eden is the same as my vast wasteland."
"You know, if you were on fire and I had a glass of water, I'd drink the water."
"Don't talk to strangers, shoot them."
"The reason you don't know as much about firearms as I do is that: one, you don't play enough violent video games, two you don't spend nearly enough time on the Internet, and three, you don't have any friends to tell you these things."
"Next time I need a friend like you, maybe I should take a shit and fish one out of my toilet."
"Aw, Quit your bitchin' lad!"
"You ask me why we do these things, and my answer will always be the same: Because it's good for you!"
"The reason you're here is because you're just as crazy as the rest of us."
"If you think I'm a nut-job, you obviously haven't met my father."
"A head of idle ideas is simply God's way of saying you need to stay up later."
"If you respect your woman, you respect your future.  Do you respect your future?"
"It's four very simple steps: Kiss, Snuggle, Make-out, Sex.  That's it."
"I'm not trying to double my money, fuck that shit."
"You call it social media.  I prefer the term 'antisocial media'."
"Revenge is like ice cream.  It's sweet, it's kind of a bitch, and it's best served cold." 
"You say I'm going to hell?  That's fine with me, It's only half full and there's plenty of room when you get there."
"Never wear religion or ethnicity on your sleeve, before anything else, you a human first."

Liberty and mindf for all...

As you know, the DLC for Bioshock: Infinite Burial at Sea part 2 debuted a few days ago.  Now, with this, I'm wondering how I could F up Cooper's mindset.  Two Coopers.  Maybe if he wanted to see all the different eventualities.  Maybe he wanted to know everything, like Colt does.  Maybe he wanted another chance at something.  Maybe there's a universe out there where I'm Cooper and I'm watching Colt's creator write this blog post.  Maybe you're Cooper watching me write about what Colt could do to you.  Maybe I'm Booker.  Maybe I'm Bentley.  Maybe I'm Neyla.  Maybe I'm Mason.  Maybe I'm nothing.  Maybe...  Maybe my nose is bleeding.  Which one of me died this time?  Good story?  What do you think?

Sly Cooper: Global Offensive

Sly Cooper: Global Offensive

            It was a late night in Paris and a new museum had been opened downtown.  I've been inside as a guest, but with the kinds of paintings found in this place, something had to be up.  After extensive research on the curator of the museum, we thought that it was time to roll out the welcome wagon.  This guy, according to Bentley, was a real fan of postmodern art and already had been imprisoned and charged twice.  Once for forgery, another for counterfeiting.  This guy definitely deserved what was coming to him.  Reliable sources tell us that they're delivering a new shipment of stolen modern art masterpieces to his private collection next week.  This had been what I was looking for since I returned to Paris a few months back.  I was tired of petty crimes, and this was exactly what I needed to get in some real action. 

Chapter I- Exploded into fame

            About 1:00 AM, I was on the roof of the new museum making my descent into the room where they said the recently arrived shipment was.  It was a room with no windows except for the ones lining the dome-shaped roof which were just wide enough for me to slip through.  As I carefully lowered down into the storage room.  I was told the money from the curator's transaction should be located in a safe in the corner of the room, hidden behind a Van Gough.  Once again, Bentley's expert research and blueprint schematics left us with tons of cash.  After clearing out his rather cluttered safe, I looked for an exit.  Unfortunately for me, my rope had fallen through the roof, leaving me to have to exit through the foyer door in the front of the small storage room.  Creaking the door open, I peered around, seeing no guards.  This must be my lucky day, but really?  No guards?  Something's off. I walked around, looking for an exit that didn't telegraph my presence here to any authorities watching.  Near the back of the building, I was crouched down behind a wooden display case when I finally found out why all of the guards were missing.  When I looked over the top of the display case, I saw a gentleman wearing a ski mask and a white button-down top; shoot the head off of one of the security guards.  I winced as the trigger was pulled.  I almost got sick at the sight of the deceased guards.  I raised my bionic-u-com to contact Bentley. 

            "Bentley, we have a problem."

            "I can see that, Sly.  I'm pretty sure these guys weren't here for the portraiture."

            "What clued you in?"  I joked.

            "Well, the dead guards and the fact that all of them are heavily armed."  There were six of them.  I noticed that most of them were carrying AK-47s.  One carried a sniper rifle of some sort.  He seemed to be trained on the back yard of the museum.  And the other held a submachine gun.  Maybe a P90 or something.  I don't know.  I'm sure Bentley would have known.  But anyway, I saw that one of the guys was handing a small, square box with wires coming out of it.  I called Bentley again to see if he knew what it was.

            "Bentley, do you see that thing they're messing with?"

            "I do Sly!  This is more of a problem than I thought before!"

            "Got any idea what that thing is?"

            "Indeed I do.  That is a 5.68 gram block of C4 explosives.  Sly, you need to get out of there right away!  If that thing goes off, then it will blow up the entire museum and anything within a half-mile radius of the explosion!"

            "Well in that case, I can't just let that bomb go off.  Look up some instructions on bomb defusing.  We're going to defuse a bomb."

            "I'm not sure about this, but okay Sly.  Bear in mind that if you let that thing go off, you'll be a pile of ash in seconds!"

            "Right, I'll keep that in mind."  The call ended and I was getting ready to move, when all of the sudden, I was knocked to the ground by some guy with a ski mask and a huge handgun.  The next thing I knew, I awoke tied to a chair and the C4 on the ground in front of me.  Blood welling up on my forehead above my left eye from where I was knocked out.  The gentleman with the large handgun took off his mask, revealing a strong, battle scarred snow leopard. 

            "Tell me sir, are you working alone?  I heard you conversing on that little device of yours.  Where are your friends?"  I studied my captor for a moment.

            "In a van a half mile from here.  But you'll have to guess which direction they're at."  The terrorist was surprisingly good natured to me.  He chuckled mildly before continuing.

            "Allow me to introduce myself.  I am Yemin Mayokova.  Leader of the IUA unit eagle 1.  We have come to tell world governments that their ways have become futile, and that their empires will fall in due time.  We basically destroy things and make the people lose their faith in their governments.  Then, they do the rest of the work."

            "So you're blowing up a museum?"

            "And all of this wonderful stolen artwork.  Such beautiful works that will be destroyed by flames within minutes."  This guy had a silver tongue on him.  He knew how to talk.  But unfortunately for me, I had to listen to his soliloquy.  "When things of beauty are destroyed.  People lose a little bit more of their faith in the civilized world.  If the government can barely keep safe their priceless paintings, then how good of a job will they do to keep their people safe?  So yes, we are destroying this museum.  And you will be able to witness this beauty be destroyed firsthand."  The snow leopard wafted his hand, signaling his soldier to plant the bomb.  He did as he was commanded.  I thought that my journey was over.  All of my heists were done, and so was I.  But then.  The sniper, who had been so carefully studying the vast backyard, had been killed.  Another terrorist ran over to take his place, and a barrage of bullets tore him to pieces.  The rest of the terrorists stood their ground.  One terrorist reached over and pressed a button on the bomb, and the time had extended about another five minutes.  Two other terrorists gathered by the door.  The one on the left nodded to the one on the right.  He then rounded the corner, but was then blown back into the room by a powerful shotgun blast.  A Flash bang rolled into the room and I immediately shut my eyes.  My ears rang for a minute and when my vision came back to me, the snow leopard lay bleeding on the floor.  His hand reaching for the bomb.  But then, a boot stepped on his arm, trapping him. 

            "Not today."  The deep, German-hinted voice rang out.  The soldier's gun rang loud and clear.  The battle aged snow leopard was dead.  A figure appeared behind me, cutting me loose from my bindings to the chair.  Then in front of me, appeared the unmistakable figure of Colt Mason.  Full armor, Kevlar vest and helmet.  AUG dangling from his back and a CZ-75 in his side holster.  He chuckled as I looked up at him.

            "You cocky son of a bitch."  He said before helping me up.  "Stolen portraiture I presume?"  I shrugged nonchalantly.

            "I wouldn't be here for anything else."  He laughed again.  Sirens began flashing in the distance.  Interpol would be in the dark museum soon.  Within moments, the museum was filled with Interpol officers, medics, and news reporters.  A medic was patching up a wound left bleeding on my forehead over my left eye.  While Colt's team was debriefed, I saw the curator being carried out by police.  Apparently, my little intrusion was supposed to be a "secret" room in the museum.  A kind, young tan and white coyote was helping bandage the wound on my forehead when a lovely Interpol inspector came strutting my way.  And who else could it be besides Inspector Carmelita Montoya Fox. 

            "Now then, what were you trying to steal this time, ringtail?"  I looked up at her from the ambulance I was sitting in. 

            "Cash that was acquired through stolen famous portraits.  But I'm sure that it's still stealing, even though it's stealing from a ruthless pirate of famous works of art."  I'm sure she didn't have time to hear me explain everything, but I felt sorry for me having to wake her at one in the morning.  "Listen, in all honesty, I'm sorry for having to wake you.  This isn't usually the night you work late, I mean."  She tilted her head at me.

            "How do you know that I don't work late on Fridays?"  Well, I guess all the time I took admiring her is finally coming to light.

            "Let's just say when I'm not feeling at my best.  I come watch my favorite inspector hard at work.  You put so much taxing effort into that poor head of yours.  I'd hate to imagine all the stress you go through."  I was just trying to be sweet with her.  But I could tell she wasn't exactly in the mood for sweet.  Or maybe she was.  Either way, it would have been nice to have an evening together with her.

            "Listen raccoon, I know what you're trying to do, but I'm not in any sort of mood for it.  Now if you'll excuse me, I have some work to attend to."  I nodded towards her as she turned and left, pacing towards Mason.   I actually haven't seen Carmelita in quite a while.  Since I escaped from the desert in Egypt, I've been playing on the down low.  I sighed heavily.

            "I feel bad for you, Mr. Cooper.  You've been in some sort of unsatisfying relationship, haven't you?"  Judging by her voice, the coyote was English. 

            "It's just been difficult.  You remember the arrest of Le Paradox on the news a few months back, right?"

            "Yes, it was a Thursday, I only had half a day of work and I was folding towels to be put in my bathroom.  Oh yeah, and I had a sesame bagel with cream cheese that morning for breakfast."  I squinted for a moment.

            "How do you remember all of that?" I quizzed.  There was a long pause until she spoke again.

            "I had to deal with a patient with a shattered wrist and three broken ribs that day.  It was hard to forget."

            "I'd bet.  Must have been a nightmare."

            "It was. I had nightmares about it when I got home.  So anyway, the Le Paradox arrests?"

            "Yeah, that was the handy work of Carmelita and me.  Le Paradox was using a time machine to try and erase my family's history.  That guy was a loose cannon.  He had some kind of problem with my family.  But after we destroyed his time machine, it sent me off to Egypt, for no apparent reason."

            "Sounds like a wild adventure."

            "It was quite the adventure."  At that point, I spotted Murray and Bentley among the crowd of people. 

            "Man Sly!  Taking on terrorists?  That's something I wouldn't do in a million years for a million dollars!"  Murray said worriedly. 

            "That was way too close for comfort Sly!  If we were to lose you, we would have lost everything we worked for!"  At that moment, the nurse who had been patching me up handed me the briefcase that I had deposited the money in.

            "You might want to leave another slip, just in case your girlfriend comes back.  I'll tell her you left it as an 'I love you' present."

            "Sounds like a plan.  Can I have your name, perhaps?"

            "Michelle.  Michelle Walker."  I raised an eyebrow.

            "Any relation to Inspector Johan Walker?"

            "You mean my bastard of a cousin?"  Her voice darkened.

            "You mean the one I killed to save my friends?"

            "Don't feel bad about it, Mr. Cooper; I would have liked to do the same thing."  Her voice perked up again.

            "It's been nice."  We said our goodbyes before returning to the van.  The ride to the hideout seemed longer that I'd have previously expected, but that's probably just telling me how tired I really was.  After returning to the hideout, I stripped myself down to my boxers and opened the broad window in my room, which overlooked a long, bright section of Paris.  I drank in the warm spring air before closing the window.  My head fell against the window as I wished Carmelita was there to be in bed with me.  I looked back at my plain blue bed.  I longed for the warmth that we had when we snuggled next to each other on colder nights.  But that was a past delicacy for now.  But I knew that I'd get back to her.  I knew that she may come back for me. 

Chapter II- How to disappear

            I woke up around eleven in the morning.  Absolutely bushed from last night, I yawned drowsily.  Rubbing my eyes I walked into the kitchen.  The smell of Murray's famous bacon drifted into my nose.  I sighed happily, knowing that it may just be another easy day.  And then I saw Colt conversing with Bentley.  My hand fell to my side, knowing that something was up. 

            "Guten Morgen, mein Freund.  (Good morning, my friend)” He said sipping his tea.  Barely glancing up from the laptop that sat in front of him.  Bentley glanced up from his computer.  He straightened his glasses before scolding me for waking up so late again.  I sat down at the table as Murray placed a plate full of bacon in front of us. 

            "Extra crispy for you and Colt, medium rare for Bentley and nice and juicy for me!"  Murray said cheerfully. 

            "Thanks Murray."  I said munching on a piece of bacon.  "So Mason, what brings you to our place?"  He finished his strip of bacon before proceeding.

            "Well Sly, I'm here to talk about the events that had occurred last night at the museum.  You're getting involved with an organization bigger than Interpol, or even I.E.S. as a whole."

            "So what's the big deal, I got caught by anarchists while doing a job, they tied me up, and you saved my ass again.  That's all that happened right?"  Colt looked down at the floor and laughed a little.

            "No mein Freund.  These people don't take prisoners.  Why do you think they were trying to blow you up with C4?  They were making an example of you.  They thought you were trying to stop them."

            "Well, I was going to try to at least." 

            "That's the problem, they know you now.  They have all of their attacks live streamed back to their head of operations.  They have your face, Cooper.  If you want my advice, you go into hiding.  You put on dark glasses, shaded windows, whatever you can do.  Only go out at night.  Stay on street level, blend in, it's too much of a risk to stand out.  If they see any of you, they will kill you without hesitation.  Carmelita is coming over later tonight to debrief you as well."  Mason then closed his laptop and sat up from his seat.  "Thank you for breakfast Murray.  And best of luck to all of you."  With that, he stepped out of the door.  I stopped and thought to myself.  I'm a possible murder victim at any point in the next few days.  My stomach began churning with nervousness.  Bentley and Murray went down to the parking garage where our van was to tint the windows.  I've been nervous in the past, but never like this.  I walked into my room and locked the door.  I closed the blinds on my windows and turned on the dim lamp on my nightstand.  I sat there on the bed, hands on my stomach.  I gulped down my fear, as if I was trying to suppress it.  A wave of exhaustion crashed over me, even though it was only noon.  I guess I just got worked up over the threats.  I guess that's why they're called terrorists then.  But I've never in my life been this scarred.  Maybe I've just lost sleep.  With that, I curled up on top of my blankets in my white undershirt and went to sleep.  I had a strange dream.  I remember it being dark and almost cold.  I saw a light shining out from a door, revealing the state of my aching body.  I had multiple lacerations on my face and stomach.  A bullet wound left my right leg bleeding and aching from the pain.  I was in terrible condition.  I tried to move toward the light.  The effort was taxing on my beat up body, but I pressed on.  But not before I was stopped by a knife to my neck.  Immediately, a familiar looking tiger appeared behind me, holding a gun to my throat. 

            "El Jefe."  I growled.  He smirked as a Colt 1911 appeared in my peripheral vision. 

            "Good Cooper, you remember me."  I breathed heavier, wondering what he was plotting next.  "It seems that your friends are hard pressed to save you and your little girlfriend."  My angered demeanor turned to one of worry and concern.  Jefe whistled and two guards moved a certain fox into my vision.  I kind of threw up in my mouth when I saw that it was none other than Inspector Carmelita Fox.  She had several more lacerations on her stomach and chest.  I almost cried when I saw her, but crying wouldn't do me any good right now. 

            "You...sick bastard."  I stammered.  I've never felt so enraged in my life.  I wanted to take the knife off of my throat and plunge it into his chest.  I wanted to take the very firearm that he was holding and shove it down his throat.  But just then, a team of four burst into the room.  Gunfire exploded out taking the two guards holding Carmelita.  The dim outline of a grey furred husky appeared, holding a chromed CZ-75 that gleamed in the dark. 

            "El Jefe.  Damn good to see you again you bastard.  Still smoke those delicious Cuban cigars?"  The witty husky jested. 

            "Mason, you troublesome asshole.  Here to foil another one of my wonderful schemes.  I'm telling you as a fellow anarchist to stand down soldier.  I've hurt your friends enough, don't you think?"  The tiger held the knife tighter to my throat, allowing a small stream of blood to escape.  I gulped down hard.  Anarchist?  Mason?  You've got to be kidding me.  I wondered why El Jefe believed that Mason was an anarchist.  Of course I've overheard Eric and him talking about their political beliefs numerous times.  Yes, in the past he's spoken of anarchy being a possible type of government with the right kind of moral backing. He motioned with his head to have Eric cover Carmelita and take her outside. 

            "Our political views on proper anarchy are much different, mein Douche bag.  Now put the knife and gun on the ground, and we won't kill you."  The tiger smirked even wider.

            "Ah Mason.  Quite the dedicated soldier you have become.  You never did take heed in what you really spoke with your friend about.  Anarchy is a very new form of government.  But it is stronger than most, where the strong are the leaders.  Where the winners make the history books.  Where might will always make right.  Where we will truly be free.  And is your life and friend really worth keeping another futile government from collapsing?"

            "You’re damn straight it is."  I felt the tension rising to bone-crushing levels.  Just before the final move of the chess piece was made, I heard a knock on my bedroom door.  I gasped as the sudden knock had startled me.  I heard Carmelita's voice.

            "Sly, it's Carmelita.  Are you okay in there?"  I realized that my lamp was still on.  Not seeing any other option, I got up and unlocked the little slide on my door.  I opened the door, and there stood the beautiful Inspector Fox.  My heart was still pounding from my dream, and the vision of her cut up and bleeding flashed back in my mind.  I must have zoned out, because she was squinted hard at me, confusion filling her face.  "Sly?  Are you okay?"  I shook my head, coming back to reality. 

            "Sorry."  There was a long pause.  "Carmelita, we need to talk.  Badly."  I rubbed my shoulder nervously as my eyes darted back and forth.  We stepped into my room.  We sat on my bed.  I stared at the ground in uncertainty.  She rubbed my back comfortingly as I explained my crazy dream about El Jefe.  About the vision of her in unimaginable pain. 

            "You've really taken a hard hit from what Mason's said to you." 

            "Yeah.  When he told me about this, my stomach was doing flips.  I've never been so nervous in all my life."  I looked up in her.  Tears began filling my eyes.  "But more than anything, I was worried about you Carmelita."  Her jaw hit the floor when she heard me say this.  But it was the truth.  I didn't want to lose her.  I've crawled through the Egyptian desert to get back to her.  I wanted this talk.  I wanted to tell her how much she really wants to me.  "I was.  I didn't want to lose you.  We've done too much together for me to lose you.  You're the most beautiful girl that I've ever seen in my life.  And more than that, you're the strongest, confident, and fun loving woman that I've ever met.  There's no one else that I'd rather have besides you.  I want you, Carmelita.  I need you, more than you'll ever know."  She smiled warmly at me, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.  She wrapped her arms around me and kissed me.  It was deep, long, and passionate.  She showed me more love than I've ever felt before.  My heart was thudding a mile a minute.  But this was no nervous beating of my newly mended heart.  The kiss grew wider, allowing curious tongues to explore each other's mouths.  The room became warm with the love we made.  Our mouths broke away.  I looked deeply into her eyes.  A gorgeous chocolate-brown color.  The same color as mine.  Maybe why she made me fall in love with her whenever I spoke to her.  And why she became so mesmerized by me.  She seemed to melt into me as we continued to gaze wordless into each other's eyes. 

            "Sly... I... I love you."  A smile grew wide on my face as I heard these words enter my ears and repeat in my mind.  She finally said what I've been edging her to say since I first met her in the opera house. 

            "I love you too, Carmelita."  It was like a picturesque moment from a romantic comedy.  The two of us sitting peacefully together.  Once again, our lips collided and we continued our passionate kiss.  A feeling of lust that I've never felt so strongly had rushed through my veins.  I wanted her.  Badly.  I began to feel as if I couldn't live without her.  I felt her nimble and feather-soft hands pull my shirt up over my head.  Her hands wrapped around my firm stomach.  Looking down, I noticed that her slim fitting jacket was still fully on.  Between kisses, I spoke to her.

            "This is...kind of.... kinky of me.... But we're having a little fun here.  So I thought it was okay."  We stopped.  A naughty grin appeared on her face. She looked down at her zipper.  She had the exact same thought as I.  I winked at her.  I placed my mouth on her jacket and unzipped her coat with my teeth, revealing that attractive tube top. 

            "That was actually kind of nice, ringtail."  I raised my eyebrows at her as we continued our love making.  For every part of her I slid down to and planted a soft kiss.  Moving my head down and gently rasping my tongue over her stomach before once again planting yet another kiss.  I repeated this process moving up and down her body, trying to give her as much pleasure as I possibly could.  She then proceeded to unbuckle my belt and slide my pants down.  I kicked them away from me as I began to undo her skirt.  As her skirt fell to the ground, our kiss became more and more heated.  My love for her became very insatiable as we moaned in pleasure.  We fell onto my bed as Carmelita crawled on top of me.  She wrapped her arms around me as we continued to kiss.  I placed my hands on her back, studying her beautiful figure.  My hands slid down and gripped her wonderfully curved waist.  We broke away, panting.  I gazed into her beautiful eyes.

            "It's been too long, Carmelita."  I breathed.  "I really missed you."  She sat up on my lap as she undid her silky bra, smiling naughtily.  My jaw was wide open, as if to say something, but nothing exited my mouth.  She then laid down on me and whispered in my ear. 

            "I want you too, Cooper.  More than you'll ever know."  I grinned devilishly as my hand made its way toward my lamp.  When the room was dark, wonderful things began to happen.  Things that have once upon a time been dreams in the back of my mind. 

            I have never in my life uncovered such euphoria.  Not even stealing the largest diamond in the world in the biggest museum could ever top the things I was experiencing on this night.  The two of us lay in my bed in pure ecstasy.  She repeatedly thrust into me as I rhythmically thrust back, holding her soft, beautiful legs under my hands.  Tongues lapped around each other, curiously searching through each other's moist mouths.  We moaned together in pleasure.  I knew the kind of things Carmelita dealt with at work, and she deserved none of it.  But the things we were doing in my room, she deserved to have.  Her hard work and taxing efforts gave her nothing but harsh nicknames and sexual harassment.  I could tell somehow, she needed this.  She needed someone like me to treat her for who she truly was.  A woman.  Not a toy, not some porn star fantasy girl.  No, a woman.  Arms still wrapped around my back, she held me closer and tighter to her soft, well filled bosom.  Feeling her natural beauty overwhelm me, I slid her forward slightly and buried my muzzle into her chest.  Kissing her breasts as I felt over her luscious curves once more.  I heard a loud moan escape from her lips.  I realized that she was feeling as intense a pleasure as I was.  It felt so good to have fantasy become reality.  I then decided to begin my climax.  Rolling over on top of her, I began to thrust faster and faster into her.  Harder and harder, faster and faster.  Her moans of pleasure grew louder as I felt my hard mate begin to throb.  I lifted her left leg up to caress her thigh once more.  I felt my pre begin to exit my body and enter hers.  I growled softly as warm cum leaked from my body.  My climax had come and I knew that I had done well to pleasure Carmelita in the way she deserved.  Carmelita lay back on my bed with her arms out as I began to embrace her.  Wrapping my arms around her back, I planted feather-soft kisses on her neck and cheek.  It seems that I had exhausted my stamina after extensive love making.  I chuckled at the thought of her waking up with a hickey on her neck from me sucking on her for so long.  Rolling off of her onto my back, she snuggled up next to my chest and began to lightly scratch it.  We sighed happily as I saw my lamp click on once more.  Carmelita's hair had frizzled out and obviously had the 'just had sex' look.  Wrapping my left arm around her shoulder and pulling her a little closer, I decided to ask her a question.

            "So Carmelita, what do we do now?  It's not like we can go back to the way it was, not after tonight at least."  I saw her study my bedroom door for a few short seconds. 

            "I'm sure your pals will figure it out and I doubt that they would tell anyone about this.  But to anyone else besides us and your friends do not figure out, this night never happened.  You swear you won't tell anyone, right Ringtail?"  I heard some of her law-abiding harshness return to her voice.  I winced as she dug her claw into my chest slightly. 

            "You have my word as a Cooper."  She sighed once more.  It had been quite the eventful evening, though I slept though the day, the night was filled with excitement.  Closing my eyes once again, I began to drift to sleep.

            "Good night, Inspector Fox."  She chuckled.

            "Good night, Ringtail."  She turned to her side as I placed my hand on her.  I guess dreams do come true.  I thought to myself.

Chapter III- Fighting the boredom

            I woke the next morning, the beautiful vixen in my arms.  She was so beautiful when she slept.  She was like an angel resting upon a cloud in heaven.  I nuzzled into her hair, drinking in her intoxicating aroma.  A slight chill came in through the covers.  She snuggled closer to me, comfortable warmth of the best kind radiating between us.  I raised my hand to allow her to get closer to me.  My mouth opened as I yawned and snuggled up again to Carmelita.  It was about another hour and Carmelita was still sound asleep.  I took this as an opportunity to make her breakfast in bed.  Within short minutes, breakfast was ready for her.  I placed them on a tray and strutted over to my room.  I saw her rub her eyes and I knew that was my cue.  She noticed the tray in my hand as I stepped toward her. 

            "Good morning, sleepyhead."  I chuckled. 

            "Good morning to you too, ringtail."  She breathed in hard.  "You made me breakfast?"

            "It's the gentleman thing to do."  I said confidently.  I set the tray on her lap as she began to eat the eggs.  I laid back on the bed and breathed deeply through my nose, feeling pretty good about last night.  I then heard Carmelita's voice complement my good cooking.

            "Sly, these eggs are delicious.  You are a really good cook."  My eyes opened slightly.

            "Well, you can thank Murray.  It's because of him I learned form the best."  I snuggled on my pillow, my hands resting on my chest.  As I look over, I see Carmelita finishing her breakfast. 

            "That was absolutely delicious, Sly."  I nodded approvingly.

            "I'm glad you enjoy my cooking."  I leaned over and kissed her tenderly on the cheek.  We got dressed in casual clothes.  She placed on her tube top and long, tight pants.  I put on my brown slacks and comfy black leisure suit.  It was a slow day and I knew we'd be in hiding a while.  I sat down on the couch and flicked on the TV.  Carmelita joining me shortly after.  I put my arm around her shoulder as she snuggled close to me.  It was good to have her in my arms again, just like when I pretended that I had amnesia.  I looked at her, sitting comfortably on my couch.  We were just relaxing.  Nowhere to go, not running or hiding.  Just us, relaxing. 

            "Maybe, with all of this relaxation, hiding isn't a bad idea."  I said finally.  She glanced up at me.

            "I'm sure it will be a well-deserved rest on your part."  I gently kissed her forehead.

            "It's going to be nice to just kick back."  I placed my feet on the coffee table, still watching TV.  Bentley then wheeled his way into the living room.

            "Sly, you're up early.  What's the occasion?"  I looked at him, and then back at Carmelita.

            "Can't you see we have company?"  Carmelita looked at him.  Bentley's mouth hit the floor as his carefully balanced pen dropped from his hat.  At that moment, Murray awoke and stepped into the room.

            "Wait, what's going on Sly?"  Murray asked confused.  We were all silent for the moment as Murray and Bentley scratched their heads.  Carmelita and I just smiled in amusement.  Murray finally said.

            "You mean that you two..."  There was a long pause.  Bentley finished his sentence.

            "...kind of, settled your differences."  Murray and Bentley looked at each other.  We were greeted then with happy cheers and a lot of hugs.  "We're so proud of you two." The four of us rejoiced and bonded over breakfast.  Carmelita left later that morning.  My heart felt much lighter that day.  I knew that we'd be alright.  The day dragged on, as there wasn't much to do.  Murray spent most of the day napping.  Bentley was fiddling with some of his new gizmos.  I walked back into my room and realized that Carmelita left her coat here.  Picking it up, I notice that there is a small paperback book inside.  I took it out of her coat pocket and studied the title.  Memoirs in the life of...  I looked down and in neat cursive was Carmelita's name written on the bottom.  I wonder.  Curiosity struck my mind like a bolt of lightning.  I opened the book and opened up to a random page.

April 21st, 2002

It has been quite the day for me.  Cooper has just been spotted in Haiti.  Dios, it is like he never gives up.  It's because of my slips that I keep losing my promotions.  It is tiring chasing around so much.  I've busted tougher crooks before, but there's something about Cooper that has always made me lose him.  Maybe it's the fact that he's slicker, or maybe I like him.  I never wanted to admit it, but I do actually kind of like him.  His cocky strut, his strong, athletic body, his beautiful brown eyes.  Brother, I wouldn't mind having him locked up in a cell in my room.  I've always loved the way he talked to me, his natural flirty tone and playful nature.  I love everything about him.  It makes me wonder why I joined Interpol.  If a guy like that would come up to me and tell me he loves me, then I'd have no trouble losing my virginity.  Man, I can't believe I'm attracted to a thief.  I know our love is forbidden with me being a cop and him a thief, but I don't know how much longer I can resist his loving allure.  I have to stay strong.

Carmelita Montoya Fox

I smiled plainly at her entry.  So she did love me before this.  I have to admit, I was surprised by what she wrote.  I knew she liked me, but never as much as now.  She genuinely wanted me to be with her.  More curiosity than ever flooding my mind, I continued to flip though pages of her book.

June 7th, 2006

Sly has been gone for almost two months now.  I can't believe that after all of the trouble he's caused me, I miss him this much.  Every morning I wake up and I see the picture of the two of us standing together.  I try not to cry when I see that picture.  I try not to even mention him around Interpol.  I kept my longing to have him back hidden in the shadows.  It sounds horrible to do this to him, but at the time; I don't even know if he's alive right now.  But all I want is... I was unable to figure out what was on the rest of the page had as the rest of it was splattered in teardrops.  I was shocked to see how upset she was about me being stuck in Ancient Egypt with Slytunkhamen Cooper II.  I missed her too; I don't remember crying over it though.  She never mentioned these things to me.  It would have made more sense.  I skimmed over a few more pages.  Something must have been going on because she didn't even write a date.

I don't know if I'm going crazy or anything, but I was in my cruiser driving back to my apartment and I heard a great trumpeting music on the radio.  I looked down and my radio was turned off.  I then checked my dispatch radio and that was turned off as well.  I drove closer towards an alleyway and the music was growing louder as I approached.  Parking my cruiser next to the curb.  I pulled out my shock pistol and stepped into the alleyway.  I then saw a husky holding a rifle on his chest.  He seemed heavily armored.  I pointed my shock pistol at him.  He whipped out his rifle but lowered it shortly after.  He told me everything about him and what the noise was.  He then asked me if I missed Sly.  I wasn't going to say anything, but I must have been desperate.  He told me exactly where he was, what his condition was, who he was with, and everything he had done.  I asked him what he knew about Sly.  His one word reply still sends shivers down my back.  Everything.  I didn't know whether to think that he was telling the truth and that I should keep talking or if he was absolutely loco.  I was scarred by him.  I ran back to the car and locked the doors.  But he was already sitting on my hood, holstering his rifle.  There is still something about him that is eating away at me.  I've decided to open an investigation on him the next morning I went in. 

So Carmelita knew Mason before I did.  But how does he know everything?  Questions still buzzed though my head, but I shook them away as a knock sounded on the apartment door.  I hope it's not Carmelita.  I thought as I put her book back in her coat pocket. I approached the door and straightened out my shirt.  Looking though the peep hole in the door, I saw that Mason had returned.  I opened the door.  He cheerfully said hello.

            "Hey.  So how's hiding?"  I rubbed my shoulder.

            "Well, boring to say the least."  Colt looked to the side.

            "Yeah, hiding can be like that.  So I have good news and better news."  My ears perked up.

            "What might that be?"

            "Well, good news is that I'll be able to come visit and update you on anything that occurs with the terrorist group and that I was informed to keep a close eye on you by Interpol.  Better news is that we recently busted a hacker circle with a bunch of high powered computers.  I took the liberty of hacking your Steam accounts and buying you a bunch of games.  And tell Bentley his password was a pain in my ass to crack."  At that moment, Bentley's head popped out from the side of the room.

            "Did you say MY password?"  Murray then looked over at us.

            "Is this why I couldn't play my games today?"  Murray questioned.

            "Yeah sorry, that was my fault."  Colt said.  "But now you have every game on your wish-list."  Colt replied reassuringly.

            "Really?  That's awesome!"  Murray yelled.  We set up the computers in the kitchen.  Fueled on beer, pizza, and cookies, we were ready for some gaming. 

            "So you bought us all of these games?"  Bentley scrolled through his game inventory. 

            "What do you boys want to play first?"  I looked at Bentley, then at Murray. 

            "I'm thinking Cry of Fear.  I was always too afraid to play it.  But now that you guys are all here, I think we'll be fine."  I said finally.

            "Okay, we have one for Cry of Fear.  All in favor?"  We all raised our hands.  "We are crazy sons of bitches."

            "That would be a modest assumption, since we're playing a survival horror game we know nothing about."

            "All you guys need to keep in mind is that ammunition is severely limited in this game, so try to use melee weapons a lot."  Colt made a server on the LAN and we all jumped on.  Murray was having a little trouble though. 

            "I'm on the LAN server, but the server password is not letting me on!" 

            "How can you not type the word 'douche bag'?" 

            "I'm trying to type douche bag, it's not working."

            "How are you spelling that Murray?"

            "D-O-O-C-H-E B-A-G."

            "That's d-o-U-c-h-e."

            "Dumbass."

            "Hey!"  We all laughed as Murray typed in the password sulking.

            "Okay, so what exactly are we looking for here?" 

            "We're just walking; it's like any other FPS campaign you just keep moving."

            "Man, this is already freaking me out."

            "Well, at least we have a means of defense."

            "Dude, check out my gun!  It's friggin' huge!"

            "Nice.  That's a pretty nice rifle.  It's like an AK or an AR or something."

            "Alright guys let's do this."  We continued walking when we heard a horrible scream in the game.

            "Dude!  What the hell is that?  What is that?"

            "I don't know, just shoot it!"  We fired at the beast repeatedly until it lies dead in the street.

            "My gun recoils so far, how am I supposed to aim?"  We continued on, battling monster after monster.  One waved its arms around with chainsaws attached to it.  One monster appeared to be a floating bed.  We approached a long main road.

            "My god!  What is that thing?"

            "Do we have any ammunition left?"

            "We have to punch it guys!"

            "Murray's right, use whatever ammunition we have left and then punch the crap out of it."  It was a valiant effort on our part, but we couldn't revive each other fast enough.  We all went down as we sat laughing hysterically.

            "I don't think we're going to keep going with this game."

            "Yeah.  Let's play something lighter like BF4."

            "Yeah, I like Battlefield."

            "I guess that's next."

            "Alright, let's kill some guys."  We fired up BF4 and surprisingly enough, Carmelita was playing.  I never found her to be the gamer type, but I guess looks can be deceiving. 

            "Dude, she's on the Russian team."

            "Hang on, I'll join her team."  I looked at Colt skeptically.

            "Why?  We'd kill you man."

            "Trust me on this."  Colt left our team and joined Carmelita.  He activated his teamspeak client.

            "Carmelita?  I didn't know you gamed."

            "Well, my brother left his laptop at my apartment last time he visited and I was wondering why he always talked about his games."

            "So what do you think?"

            "Not bad.  Kind of nice to think that it's not real."

            "Let me spot for you.  I'm recon too."  Colt turned to me and nodded as he placed C4 behind her.

            "There's an enemy about two hundred meters north."

            "Where are you looking I...?”  She was cut off by my MAV destroying Colt's explosives.  "What?  What just happened?"  Colt turned on his microphone again.

            "Hey Carmelita, nice to see you."  I said laughing.

            "COOPER!  When I see you, I'm going to rip you in two!"

            "You know, you could always join the winning team." 

            "I don't know why I'd ever join your team even in a video game."

            "Suit yourself, inspector."  It was trolling time for us.  I spotted Carmelita in a tank.  Believe it or not, she was actually pretty good at this game. 

            "Murray, get in my jeep."

            "There are explosives all over it."

            "I know, just trust me on this, I've done this before.  Now when I tell you to jump out, you jump out."

            "Right."  They drove right behind Carmelita's tank.

            "Jump now!  Jump now!"  An explosion shook the ground as Carmelita's tank was destroyed.

            "What the hell Mason?"  Colt typed in the text box. 'U mad Carm?'

I studied the text box closely.  'Fine!  I'll join your damn squad.' 

            "See what trolling can do?"  We all laughed. 

            "Nice to have you on the same side, Carm."

            "Shut up, ringtail."

            "Relax, now you can troll with us.  Get on top of this building, and make sure you're support class."

            "Jeez, who died and made you king?"

            "The master of all trolling."

            "Just get on the roof."  Bentley said finally.  We stood on the roof until the five of us were all there.  Colt threw down an ammo crate.

            "Okay guys, put down as many claymores as possible."  It seemed as if a spider had woven thick black webs all across the elevator door.  We sat waiting patiently.  Waiting for an explosion.  We spoke causally, not caring for the moment.  Thankfully, a lone T-UGS motion tracker caught my attention. 

            "Guys, guys, someone's coming up."  We paid very close attention to the elevator.  All of the sudden, the building shook as the kill scrolled down my screen.

            "Everyone is just gone."

            "That was pretty cool."

            "Are you kidding me?  That was awesome!"  We all rejoiced for the moment, until we heard a ground shaking crack.

            "Levolution!  The building's coming down!  Run!"  We sprinted off of the building.  I remember free falling off of a crumbling building.  Dirt and debris flying past us as we flew down.  In the distance, I spotted an enemy tank.  Colt pointed at it.  I pulled my parachute as I sailed toward it.  Pulling out an M226 airburst, I let an entire magazine loose.  The tank was disabled.  Colt landed first and sprinted toward the tank.  Picking up the mechanic gear of a dead soldier, I saw him hoist up a SMAW.  The missile streaked toward the tank.  In moments, the tank was in flames.

            "There it is!  There's the victory!  There's the victory!"  The screen turned dark as the Russian tickets dropped to zero.  We all celebrated.  We had fun that night.  It's been a while since I played video games, but it was nice to get back to them.  I occasionally played with Murray or Bentley, but we played together as a team.  It was fun to say the least.  We said goodbye to Colt and he let us keep the laptops for future gaming.  Maybe with Colt watching our backs, we weren't going to be so bored.

Chapter IV- Can't take this!

            It's been about a week since we were stuck at the hideout.  I've been taking walks at night in the crowds of people, trying to keep my face out of view.  I hated being at ground level for so long.  The fact that I was always on the same ground as everyone else made me feel somewhat powerless, and even a little vulnerable.  There were times when I felt nervous walking around the street near dark.  Sure the crowds of tourists were out walking around at this time, but I still felt like my backside felt bare all the time.  Back at the hideout, Colt has been visiting us more and more often.  Every time, we did something different.  He brought over a bunch of different liquors.  He even got his team to play music for us one night.  But I was just tired of being stuck in the hideout.  Tonight, I was going to change that.  Bentley and Murray had thought I'd gone to bed, unknown to them that I had snuck out.  I kept my cane and leg pouch with me.  I didn't even try to conceal my identity.  I was taking a risk, but I had been cooped up in the hideout for too long.  It felt great leaping over rooftops and getting great views from the high poles again.  It was almost as if I had just gotten out of prison.  Unknown to me that there was trouble afoot.  About two blocks from the waterfront, a group of terrorists sat in waiting.  Two sat on their raggedy couch.  Three more sat at the table, playing cards or modifying their weapons.  Near the window, sat a thin looking mouse wearing thin glasses.  Behind her, walked a certain tiger, bent on the elimination of some troublesome people. 

            "So, Penelope.  Do you see anything?"  The mouse said nothing for a few short seconds.

            "No.  Wait, I see someone on the roof of that building about two blocks away."

            "Who is it?"  She zoomed in on me.

            "Cooper..."  She growled.  The tiger picked up a pair of binoculars.

            "Who is that in that police cruiser?"  The mouse studied the police cruiser before smirking menacingly.

            "If it isn't Cooper's little girlfriend."  Cigar smoke filled the room.

            "Just wound him.  We may be able to get two with one stone."  The mouse smirked as her grip tightened on the trigger.  Meanwhile, I continued to leap through rooftops.  Bounding happily.  I heard three short snaps.  Not necessarily gunshots, but maybe suppressed.  I felt an unbearable sting on my side and my right leg.  I screamed in pain.  Praying that I wouldn't die here and that Mason was right all along.  I just hoped that my screams of pain weren't cries on deaf ears.

***

            I don't know exactly how long I was dosed off in my car for.  But all I knew was that I was awakened by a terrible cry for help.  I thought I was having dreams, but as I awoke and my vision cleared, the yells persisted.  Picking up my police radio, I called in to Interpol headquarters.

            "Interpol HQ, this is inspector Carmelita Fox.  I've had a 415 in the area.  Mainly screaming and calls for help.  Permission to investigate?"  Chief Barkley's rough voice sounded on the dispatch. 

            "Roger that Inspector, you are clear to investigate.  Over."

            "I'm investigating now.  Out."  Taking my shock pistol out of the glove box, I slid a shock battery into the cartridge and turned the weapon on 'stun'.  Opening the door of the police cruiser, I heard another scream.  It sounded close to me.  I leaped on the cloth overhanging a door, propelling myself towards the roof.  There was no alleyway, just one building and another a slight bit taller.  Peering over the edge, I gasped in horror.  It was Sly!  But he was curled up on the center of the roof and appeared to be covered in blood.  His eyes met mine.  I saw that pain and agony had flooded his usually calm face. 

            "Carmelita!  Get down!"  He yelled.  At that moment, I saw powder fly from the edge of the building.  I was being sniped.  I stayed in cover for about a minute until the firing stopped.  Carefully peering up, I saw that my attacker was reloading.  I aimed carefully, and fired a stun round.  I saw that the sniper was knocked back from the window.  Taking the opportunity, I went to save Sly.  Picking him up, I saw blood had covered the right side of his shirt.  He looked weakly up at me.  "It's not safe... Carmelita...  Go, get out of here!"  He pleaded.

            "I'm not leaving you, Ringtail!"  I yelled.  I holstered my shock pistol and picked up Sly.  "Keep the pressure on the wound."  We limped down and made our way back to my cruiser.  Placing Sly in the passenger seat and reclining it so he could lie down, I sped off.  I yelled into my radio.  "Interpol HQ, this is inspector Carmelita Fox.  I have confirmed a 245 in the area with suspected terrorists.  I have one victim by the name of 'Sly Cooper'.  Raccoon.  Age of twenty seven.  Six foot three and two bullet wounds in his right side."

            "Inspector Fox, this is chief Barkley.  Stay calm inspector.  The nearest hospital should be about two and a half miles from your current location.  I'll dispatch backup as soon as possible."

            "Roger that, out."  I hung up the radio.  Looking over at Cooper, he had his hands wrapped around his leg and hip.  He lay moaning in pain.  I placed my hand on his forehead.  He's feverish. I hope the wound isn't infected.  I thought worriedly.  "Hang on, Sly."  I said softly.  He grunted.

            "Don't worry about me...  This was my fault in the first place."

            "Just stay alive, Cooper."  At that moment, a white van swerved in front of us.  The back doors opened, revealing a man in a ski mask holding a machine gun.  I barely had time to think.  As soon as the doors opened, he tore my cruiser to pieces.  My left tire popped out and we swerved into a lamp post.  I came to a moment later.  A terrorist walked up to the window holding an AK-47.  My heart was pounding.  I leaned back in the seat as a shock blast flew from the car.  I looked behind me to the passenger seat and saw Cooper holding my shock pistol. 

            "You may want to take that guy's AK."  I opened the door and helped Cooper into the street.  He sat in front of the tire taking cover.  At that moment, a huge group of terrorists parked on the opposite side of the street.  I knew I was going to have to hold out.  Picking up the rifle like Cooper instructed, I placed the man's armor on my chest.  It was bulky and uncomfortable, but it was better than getting killed.  I saw the first wave of terrorists take cover behind the cars.  Lifting up the AK and placing it on the trunk of the car, I opened fire.  With the amount of recoil, it was rather difficult to aim, but I got used to it. Every time I defeated a wave, another would appear after them.  Occasionally, a terrorist would charge at me, and get me more ammunition, but I couldn't hold out forever.  I saw Sly pick up my police radio.

            "Interpol HQ...  This is... Sly Cooper.  I'm badly injured and Carmelita is running low on ammo.  We can't hold out here much longer.  We're on the road between waterfront and 3rd.  Please, send back up."  He grunted again.

            "Cooper.  Back up is almost there, we will patch you up as soon as we can."

            "Thank you chief."  He put down the radio as I reengaged.  The sniper who had caused me trouble before hand was now on the roof of the building across the street giving me a lot of problems.  I aimed high and managed to at least incapacitate the sniper.  I took cover as bullets pierced my car.  "Carmelita."  I leaned close to him.  "If I don't make it...  I want you to know...  I've always loved you."  I nodded.

            "I love you too, Sly."  At that moment, an armored truck appeared.  "Back up just arrived."  Soldiers piled out of the back, assault rifles flashing down the street.  I picked up Sly from the ground.  "On my count, we make for the truck."  I began to count down when Cooper's hand pulled me down on top of him.  I heard a deafening explosion.  I looked up and I saw why Sly had pulled me down.  Many of the soldiers were wounded or KIA.  The armored truck had burst into flames.  The ski masked terrorists walked toward the wounded soldiers and executed them publically.  A mixture of fear and anger welled up inside of me.  Have I failed as a police officer?  We may as well be dead.  That anger turned to action as I picked up my shock pistol and attempted to fight back again.  I felt a sting in my shoulder as one terrorist turned to me and put a bullet in my shoulder.  She unmasked herself and shock flowed through my body. 

            "Penelope?  I knew you escaped but I didn't think you'd work with terrorists."  Sly questioned.  "What happened to you?"

            "Many terrible and wonderful things, Sly."  All I could do was stare in shock at her and Cooper.  "You see, after I escaped.  I tried designing weapons.  Many of them were so deadly that no such weapons manufacturer would ever take them.  Then I met El Jefe.  With his level of brutality, my ingenious designs found a home.  Now, I get to reach my full potential, and exact revenge on you in the process.  I'll get to finish the job I promised to Le Paradox."  Sly shook his head at her. 

            "Man, that max security prison must have done some wired shit to your head."  She just looked at him with the G3SG1 pointed in his direction.  At that moment, a very familiar looking tiger grabbed Penelope's shoulder. 

            "Please Penelope; we need these two to open the passage to the king on the board."  The king?  Who is he talking about? 

            "You're right; our plan won't be any good without a pawn."  He smiled at her.

            "You've learned much my apprentice."  He patted her on the shoulder as two other terrorists walked up to us.  The next thing I know the rough butt of a gun smacked me over the head as we were tied up and thrown in the back of a van.  I was worried about what would happen to us, but more worried about what they were planning to do after they killed us.

Chapter V- Apprehension

It was dark when I woke up.  The room was dark and standing before me was none other than El Jefe.  He didn't look much different.  His smoking had certainly aged him quite a bit, but other than that, he still wore the tacky general jacket and kept an IMI Desert Eagle on his side.  It was gold and seemed to radiate a yellow glow in the dimly lit conference room. 

            "So we meet again, Sly Cooper."  Of course, every single enemy says my first and last name before continuing.  "Remember our last quarrel in Japan?  Such an embarrassing defeat, but now; the tides have changed and I have stronger and far more competent men than I ever had in my life."  I realized then that my arms, legs, and tail were tightly banded to the chair I sat on. 

            "Where is Carmelita?"  I said finally.

            "Oh, your cute little Interpol girlfriend?  I gave her to Penelope.  I'm only here to twist you, Cooper.  I need you as an extra piece on the board to change the rules of the game.  My goal was never to destroy you, Sly.  This was just a pleasant coincidence.  The man who I'm really looking to destroy is your husky friend, Colt Mason."  I felt my lip curl into a snarl.  How dare he take me and Carmelita with the intent of hurting more of my friends!  "From day one, since I've been the leader of this organization, Mason and his wretched team have been foiling my near perfect plans with blind cowboy luck."  He spat out the word wretched like one spits out rotten vegetables. 

            "He's going to kill you, El Jefe.  And I want to be there when he does."  He grinned between smoking his cigar. 

            "Oh!  So the gentleman thief has a dark side.  This is fascinating.  Let's see what else I can do."  Pulling a knife from his back pocket, he took a step closer to me.  "Penelope, can you let Carmelita know that I need her over here for a moment.  Her little boyfriend is misbehaving himself."  At that moment, a door opened behind El Jefe.  And Penelope, covered in blood wheeled out Carmelita on a swivel chair.  She held Carmelita firmly by the hair as she ripped the duct tape from her lips.  Blood instantly welled up from her mouth as she spit it up on the ground.  El Jefe stepped toward Carmelita.  "Quite a shame to harm such a pretty face."  He cooed.  "But if it brings you pain, Cooper.  You'll be willing to accept, that you will die here.  Your friends will not save you, and Mason's head will be nailed to my office door."  His voice growing more and more grim as he stepped away from Carmelita, still gripping the knife firmly in his left hand.  Fear struck my eyes as he raised the knife up, ready to strike.  I braced for the impact.  The knife landed on my shoulder.  I yelled and cursed in pain.  Blood began to well up from under my tongue.  I was shaking, not in fear but in pain and rage.

            "You... you're gonna die... you lousy... wretched... ugly... son of a bitch..."  I'd never curse in front of Carmelita, but you'd probably be swearing someone out too if they just put a knife in your shoulder. 

            "You're a slow learner, Sly.  You never did know when to stop.  You're done, and you need to accept that."  He came in perfect range of my saliva.  I hacked blood onto his face.  He winced in disgust as he fore-fisted me in the nose.  Instantly, my nose began bleeding.  "Penelope, make sure to keep these two company while I'm gone.  I have some work to attend to."  She smirked devilishly.  He handed her his knife.  "Go crazy."  He winked at her before turning and heading out of the dark meeting room. 

            "This is going to hurt, Sly.  I'd love to just kill you and jam this knife in your throat, but that would be too quick.  Let's make you suffer!"  Her voice raised to a tone that could only signify pure evil.  I then noticed something that I have never noticed before.  But how?  I saw on her left shoulder, the Clockwerk eye marking. 

            "Wait!  Penelope, that's an interesting tattoo you've got there."  I inquired. 

            "Like it? I was able to salvage some blueprints of Clockwerk from the theifnet.  But something went wrong while El Jefe was testing it on me.  It broke my brain all to pieces, but now; the only thing I care about... Is breaking you!"  She laughed manically.  Taking her knife in hand, she put it a half-inch into my chest and slowly dragged it across.  I saw Carmelita crying in sorrow and pain behind Penelope.  I was able to focus on how much pain I had caused all because I didn't listen to Mason and ran away from the hideout.  But then, my focus was broken by my yells of pain, as I felt Penelope's knife drag across my sternum and scratching around on it, nearly breaking it.  I must have gone into shock, because the next thing I knew, I was passed out.  I somewhat heard Penelope's voice in the background.  Really Sly?  That's it?  I thought you were tougher than that.  You are really no fun, Cooper.  I'm done with you two.  Screw this!  I then heard her knife clink on the ground as she stormed out.  I awoke about an hour later, I seem to have stopped bleeding as badly, but my strength had faded. 

            "Sly?  Are you awake?"  I heard Carmelita's soft voice call my name.

            "Yeah.  Are they gone?"  She nodded.

            "They're all asleep, we should be safe."  I sighed and starred at the ground. 

            "Carmelita, if it means anything now.  I'm sorry I dragged you into this.  I never should have left the hideout that night.  If I hadn't been so reckless, so selfish, so stupid.  Maybe we wouldn't be here right now."  She grunted.

            "Don't worry about it, Ringtail.  We've been though worse, I'm sure.  We'll get out of here.  I promise."  I smiled lightly.

            "I love you, Carmelita."  Tears welled up in our eyes.

            "I love you too, Sly."  We sat in silence before we both dozed off.  We were hurting, cold, and tired.  I was just wondering if Bentley and Murray had figured out that I was gone. 

Chapter VI- Brothers in Arms

            We sat in front of the TV, Murray and I were worried sick.  Sly had snuck out to do other reckless things, but they never were this serious.  The news broadcasters were making quite the scene that morning. 

...what we have here in our normally peaceful city is what seems to be a major underground terrorist organization that is suspected to have already kidnapped one Interpol agent, Carmelita Fox, and an Ex-Interpol agent turned Master Thief, Sly Cooper.  Many details have been supplied from Interpol police chief, chief Barkley and I.E.S. operative Lt. Col. Colt Mason.  We will now revert to our field reporter Mrs. Janice Melina, Janice? 

Yes, Thomas, we are here at Waterfront and 3rd where the attack occurred.  I am currently here with Chief Barkley who has agreed to notify us on the details of the shooting. 

Well, Mrs. Melina, what we have gathered from both street cameras and bystanders inside the homes here was that Mr. Cooper was shot on the roof of the building about a half mile down the road where Carmelita was parked.  She called dispatch back about a recent disturbance a minute or so later and they reverted her to me.  She was looking for the nearest hospital at the time and I got another call on dispatch from Mr. Cooper.  About a minute later, I got word that their backup had arrived but they were destroyed by a short range missile that we have identified about a hundred meters away.  After that, her radio went silent. 

Thank you, Chief Barkley.  Back to you Thomas.

Thank you Janice, we will now play the recordings of the police dispatch from last night.  My heart jumped up to my throat when I listened to the dispatch.

Interpol HQ, this is Inspector Carmelita Fox, I've had a 451 in the area, permission to investigate?

Roger that, you are clear to investigate.

 I'm beginning the investigation, out.

Interpol HQ, this is inspector Carmelita Fox.  I have confirmed a 245 in the area with suspected terrorists.  I have one victim by the name of 'Sly Cooper'.  Raccoon.  Age of twenty seven.  Six foot three and two bullet wounds in his right side.

Inspector Fox, this is chief Barkley.  Stay calm inspector.  The nearest hospital should be about two and a half miles from your current location.  I'll dispatch backup as soon as possible.

Roger that, out.

Interpol HQ...  This is... Sly Cooper.  I'm badly injured and Carmelita is running low on ammo.  We can't hold out here much longer.  We're on the road between waterfront and 3rd.  Please, send back up.

Cooper.  Back up is almost there, we will patch you up as soon as we can.

Thank you, Chief.  Murray flicked off the TV.  I saw worry flood his face. 

            "Are you okay big guy?"  I asked.

            "I'm just worried about what they're doing to Sly.  What if he's dead now?  What would we do then?"

            "I don't know buddy.  But I'm sure Sly is still alive, he's much more resilient than he appears  Murray sighed as he held up the picture of the three of us when we were kids.  We sat in silence for a few minutes until we heard a knock on the door.  I wheeled myself over to the door and adjusted the height of my seat.  Staring through the peep hole, I saw Colt and his entire team in full armor.  I opened the door.  "Bentley, grab your gear and any sort of conventional weapons you need, you're coming with us."  He didn't even give me time to greet him, and that's when I knew it was serious. 

***

            Bentley and Murray were ready to take over the world to save Sly.  Never before have I seen such dedication to one man.  It is obvious that they are more than just partners in crime, they were brothers.  There was a difference to them and my comrades.  We were brothers in arms, they were brothers in crime.  I had the building layout and who was behind everything.  I wanted to tell Bentley right away that Penelope was working with El Jefe, but I was worried by what he'd say.  I'm sure that it won't be a problem, but there is more of a chance that he'll help us when he's already on a plane to the great lakes to the office that they've established their base at.  But Penelope won't be the problem on this mission; it will be my concern for Cooper that may keep me from completing my job.  I don't want my friend hurt more than he already is, but I'm aiming to make sure that we save Sly and Carmelita.  We boarded a private plane to Wisconsin where there base was photographed from Satellite. It was then that I decided to tell Bentley.

            "Hey, Bentley?  We have to talk."  He wheeled his way over to where I sat on the plane.

            "Sure Colt, what is it?"  I sighed.  He's been betrayed once already, can he be double crossed again?

            "In the operation, I want to let you know that... Penelope has joined the terrorists."  He looked up at me through his glasses. 

            "It's okay Colt, I already know."  Surprise came across me with a hint of relief. 

            "Really?  How did you know?"  He looked at me with a somewhat smugness.

            "Thanks to my talent in breaking and entering code bases and Interpol database files, I easily uncovered nearly everything about this organization.  Even before you told me that El Jefe was in charge of them.  I know what their deal is, Colt.  I know how many times you foiled their plans.  Have you considered that this may be El Jefe's strategy from the start?  He doesn't want Sly or Carmelita; he wants to kill you and your team.  You were the only effective squad that stood a chance against him, and if you die saving Sly and Carmelita, think of what else you lose."  I wasn't going to just sit there and let Bentley demoralize me.  He knows that I want to destroy El Jefe and that he has equal intent.  I looked up at Bentley, defiance flowing though my eyes.

            "And if I am to die while saving someone I care about, I die with honor and not in vain.  I die knowing that my friends will be safe.  I die knowing that there will always be a competent enough team aside from mine to take on El Jefe.  Sooner or later, El Jefe will see the wrong end of the gun, and he will burn in hell for eternity.  Maybe if my death is not to be in vain, but in being the savior of my friend, then I may make it to heaven just yet."  My soliloquy seemed to reassure Bentley.  He studied the ground for a little bit before turning around.

            "Good night, Colt."  He said finally.  I smirked casually,

            "Guten Nicht (Good night) Bentley."  I starred at my flask as I shook it in slow circles.  I hope we get there in time to save Cooper.  He's too valuable of an asset in this universe.  If he is to die in this universe, I risk starting a third world war.  Taking a final swig of my flask, I returned to my quarters.  I lay on my bed as I see the tears opening up in my mind.  What do I see, I see Cooper, bleeding, but not dead.  I see Carmelita, weeping, but not dead.  I see Penelope, with the Clockwerk eye marking.  Well, at least her reconstruction of Clockwerk was unsuccessful.  I don't think this will be a problem.  I'll see if I can connect with Cooper, he's still asleep.

Chapter VII- Operation: cs_office

            We arrived at the airport at about eight in the morning.  It felt earlier as we were not yet adjusted to the time.  Linking up with the I.E.S. base in downtown Green Bay, I brushed the cold off of me as we stepped into the building.  Checking us all in, we debriefed on the situation once more.  I knew with our guns, bravery, and determination, we were going to save Cooper.  We rode in the armored truck together, preparing weapons and getting everything fully loaded.  I looked at Murray.  I have never before seen the normally proud hippo so nervous. 

            "Hey Murray."

            "Yeah?  What is it?"

            "Remember when you guys went to the range with me and I gave you a 12G you completely fell in love with?"  He nodded.  I handed him a long, white box.  I look on his face was priceless.  His grin reached from ear to ear.

            "The XM1014!  Mason you're the best!"  He almost cried in happiness.  The rest of us sat smiling.  We arrived at the abandoned office complex outside of Green Bay.  It looked like a simple office complex.  A lot of the doors were locked however.  It was obvious that someone didn't want us getting in.  Gathering up the team, we headed for the north entrance.  Ace took a vantage point in the security outpost near the door. 

            "Murray, Henrich; get by the door."  The two took their positions and prepared to breach.  They nodded to me that they were ready.  "Fertig.  Breach!"  Shotguns blew the door off of its hinges, flying back and taking down one hostile; Erik and I crouched down and opened fire on the two guards standing in the connector.  Hang on, Mein Freund, we're coming.

***

            "Sir, you need to see this."  El Jefe walked over to one of the guards who was busy dealing with his computer.  El Jefe's cigar almost dropped from his open mouth.  I saw him growl in frustration as he picked up a coffee mug and chucked it across the room.  It shattered on the wall in a thousand pieces and brown stains covered the wall. 

            "Get as many men as we have down there.  I want all six of them dead.  You got that soldier? D-E-A-D, dead!"  I smugness landed on my face as a wave of triumph became imminent.  Carmelita still sat glaring at El Jefe.  We're almost out of here.  Just a little longer.

***

            We were taking cover on the corner of the stairwell and terrorists were pinning us down from across the hallway.  I was called down by Mason to go in through a secondary window entrance.  Stomping though the snow and over to the window, I peered up from the ladder.  Pulling out my secondary MP9 I opened fire on terrorists in a nearby office room.  To their dismay, they never knew what hit them.  Feeling successful, I climbed through the broken window.  Pulling out my AWP, I slowly trotted toward the hallway.  At that moment, my rifle was kicked away from me as the butt of a large DMR smacked me in the mouth.  The mouse who hit me raised her rifle again, but I eluded it and swung it away from us.  I attempted to swing out my Deagle and make this confrontation a short one.  But a firm kick smacked the gun away from me.  I rough boot crossed over my face.  The mouse began taunting me.

            "Is that it?  You obviously aren't top predator here, stripes."  I raised up, pulling out my knife I sliced upwards, the mouse backed up as I swung again in the opposite direction.  She snatched my arm and slammed my face against the flimsy wall, leaving a small dent.  She then turned me around and slammed my head against a slick, metal trashcan.  I turned back to attempt to retaliate, but the only thing I saw was the mouse forcing her knife closer and closer to my eye.  I tried to force back, but this girl had to be taking some kind of roids or something.  She was stronger than I expected.  I put all my strength into the knife trying to retaliate, but to no avail.  Just then, a nasally voice called the name of the mouse.

            "Hey!  Penelope!"  She turned her head to Bentley, giving me just enough time to reverse the position and smack her head on the edge of the trashcan.  She fell to the floor, blood beginning to well up over her forehead.  She grunted a few times, grabbing the trashcan for support.

            "Bentley?"  The turtle looked at me and I nodded.  I picked up my rifle and smacked her over the head with it.  I saw the mark on her shoulder fade.  She began snoring softly.

            "You picked a winner Bent.  She's strong.  And a pain in the ass at that."  With that, we proceeded to the edge of the hall.  Crouching down with the rifle in hand, I steadied my aim and spotted the foot of the terrorists that were pinning down the rest of the squad.  Breathing in, I tightened on the trigger.  The gun rang with a loud reply and the terrorist was lying on the ground.  Pulling my MP9, I approached the terrorists and eliminated the two of them.  Colt walked out with the rest of the squad and we proceeded on. 

            "Where are we at Bentley?"  Colt asked the turtle. 

            "According to schematics, Sly and Carmelita should be right down that hallway."  Just then, we heard a bunch of footsteps approaching through the stairwell.  Colt picked up an M249 that one of the terrorists dropped. 

            "Alright, you all save the hostages, I'll hold back the enemy forces."

            "Colt, if you get KIA, we've lost everything.  There's not a single squad leader in the rest of I.E.S. that could match you."

            "I don't care Ace.  If these people want to hurt my friends, then they'll all bleed the blood they deserve."  I was speechless.  Colt was ruthless a lot of time in the field, but this time, he was bloodthirsty.  If he ever reaches that level of rage, it's a wise decision for staying the hell out of his way. 

            "Yes sir."  I turned to Bentley and Murray.  "Let's save your friends."  I led on, not knowing what Colt was planning, but I knew there'd be a tough night for the janitors when we were finished. 

***

            "Time to die du Sohne auf Hündinnen.  (Sons of bitches)"  I smelt them coming.  Three terrorists rounded the corner.  Letting loose only a few rounds, all three of them were in pieces.  It has been too long since I've held an LMG and just tore through with it.  I laughed manically.  It was fun actually, as this was something I could only do in the army.  Terrorists all met an end at the barrel of my LMG.  I heard my trademark Van Halen song play in my head.  Everybody wants some!  I want some too!  Bullets and blood littered the floor.  I laughed like the heavy from Team Fortress and I felt like I was twenty again.  The noise of the gun, the yelling, the laughing, the blood, the vibration of the recoil made me feel like the man I was ten years ago.  The flimsy walls and pitiful armor couldn't stand up to my endless machine gun.  Throwing down the weapon as soon as it emptied, a terrorists approached the cross section between the break room and the offices.  I whipped out my CZ-75 and mowed down a terrorist holding a very familiar looking AK.  It was my old Jungle-spray AK-47.  I had it custom painted after I stole it from a rising dictator in Russia.  I don't know how it ended up here, but I remember keeping it well cleaned and well taken care of before losing it in a firefight in the Arctic circle.  I missed it and wished to reminisce further, but I had friends to save.  I continued on to the break room.  Crouching low, I unclipped a flash bang grenade and lobbed it in the room.  Covering my eyes I heard the pop and proceeded to ruin the enemy soldiers' poker game.  Staring at what one terrorist had in their hand, I chuckled.

            "I think he folded."  I continued on to the meeting room.  There, I saw Carmelita tied up to a swivel chair with a bandana around her mouth.  She spat it out.

            "Colt behind you!"  An enemy snuck up behind me, knife poised to strike.  Using my AK, I smacked the knife away from him, but not before he landed a strong uppercut to my stomach and a right hook in my side.  His fatal error was his attempt to kick.  His knee extended outward and his leg was headed in the direction of my back.  With my right hand, I diverted the blow and grabbed firm hold.  Placing my hand higher up on his leg, I threw him into a window.  He weakly attempted to pick up his Glock.  I kicked it away from him and jabbed my rifle in his throat and pulled the trigger.  Looking over to Carmelita, I pulled out my knife and freed her from her bindings.  I handed her the shock pistol that was confiscated at her kidnapping. 

            "Try and hold onto this."  She chuckled. 

            "Sly should be nearby, let's go."  She started off ahead of me as she knew where they were holding Sly.  Another guard came running up to me, but I was able to tear him down before he could strike.  Carmelita was looking towards my direction as she stepped into the room they kept Sly in.  Just then, El Jefe appeared out of nowhere, Deagle in Carmelita's direction.  She turned to face El Jefe as he was about to pull the trigger.  I dropped the rifle and dashed to move Carmelita,  I was both successful and unsuccessful.  I moved Carmelita from El Jefe's bullet, but in doing so put myself on the wrong end of a Desert Eagle.  I attempted to draw my CZ-75, but as it left my holster, I discarded it as a .50 landed on my left shoulder.  I was backed against a wall, my shoulder was bleeding, and El Jefe was surrounded.  But as I told my comrades before: Not telling your enemy you're out of ammo is the same as telling him you're out of ammo.  I saw Erik shake his head, the two Berettas in his grip.  I frowned slightly, they forgot the rule I told them.  El Jefe stepped forward to me. 

            "So Mason.  You've killed my men, ruined my operations, disgraced my name, and for what?  To let your friends watch you die.  Very inefficient, Mason.  Very inefficient indeed."  His gaze traced left and right.  "You all can stop bluffing, I know you're out of ammo."  No one lowered their weapons, just as I expected.  "Now that I have the king in my grasp, any last words?"  I glanced to the side, smirking my last.

            "Just a compound word."  The tiger shrugged smugly.  The peace in my eyes soon turned to mischief.

            "Czechmate."  His smug grin turned to one of confusion.

            "What?.."  He was nearly cut off by the sound of a gunshot.  Blood welled up in the center of his torso.  Shock filled his gaze.  I knew his strength was quickly fading from him as his grip loosened ever so slightly on the gold Desert Eagle.  The gun fell to the floor as his blood began to slowly stream from under his tongue.  I saw his eyes go blank and he fell to the side in a crumpled heap of tiger.  Many of my comrades looked puzzled. 

            "Who fired the shot?"  Penelope asked.

            "Not me, I'm out."  Murray replied.  Their eyes congregated on Sly, who stood scared and bruised from his torture.  His hand shook with fear.  Glancing at my CZ-75, I almost felt his heart go cold and fill with ice.  His eyes closed and he gripped the handgun before throwing it to the side.  Carmelita holstered her shock pistol and ran up to Sly who seemed to almost fade away for a moment.  The two looked at each other before wrapping each other in a hug.  The mood seemed to lighten quickly.  Bentley and Penelope gave each other a hug and Murray gave Henrich and Erik a hug, nearly suffocating them as usual.  Ace picked up his radio. 

            "The hostages are coming out.  All hostiles eliminated, Counter Terrorists win."  The radio clicked off as Erik patched me up and Sly and Carmelita made their way out with the rest of us.  Indeed, this had to be one of my greatest victories. 

Chapter VIII- It all worked out...

            We limped tiredly out the front door where our backup was waiting.  I was more than certain people at the HQ were already breaking out the Champaign.  I led my team to where the ambulances had all medical equipment ready.  Before we could get to them, Sly stopped to talk to me.

            "Mason?"

            "Yes, what is it?"  He started off very quietly.  He seemed... Scarred.  Almost weak.  But I understood why he felt the way he did.  He killed a man.  Something a master thief should never do.  Something he believed would bring shame to his family.

            "Have you ever had your parents say to you... I'm not angry with you son, I'm just disappointed?"  I chuckled.

            "More times than I could count, Cooper."  He sighed.

            "Do you think my father would be disappointed with me right now?"  My demeanor drooped slightly, but I remained optimistic.

            "Sly, I know how you feel.  This is the first time you killed someone, is it not?"  I placed my hand on his shoulder.  "Do not worry, mein Freund.  As my father told me once, ending the life of one man, can save the lives of several others."  He looked up at me, eyes filled with curiosity.  "Little do you realize Sly, you may have just averted world war.  El Jefe was planning multiple nuclear strikes as soon as my team was out of his way.  I would have been dead along with millions of others, had it not been for you.  You saved the world, Sly.  You just didn't know it until now."  His playful smile perked up again, showing that my words were putting him back to be the man he was before.  I turned and headed toward the ambulance before he called after me again.

            "Yes?"

            "How do you forget?  The killing, I mean.  How do you move on?"  I looked at the snow-blanketed ground, looking back up at him as I had found my answer.

            "You never forget, Cooper.  You simply learn to live with the things you've done.  But your triumph bears no consequence, but reward.  You've saved millions from destruction, Cooper.  You are more than a hero.  Your name will go down in your family as one of the bravest.  For this day has your valiance rivaling that of even your knight ancestor Sir Galleth.  You, Sly; are a legend in your family."  He smiled at me, a single tear streaming down his eye.  It was then that he wrapped me in a hug, tears of joy streaming down his cheek.  I patted him on the back. "Your father would be proud of you, Sly."

            "Thanks... Mason." 

***

            we sat on the back of an ambulance as medics shifted through the snow between us.  Colt sat down in the ambulance next to me and Carmelita.

            "See?  It all worked out."  Carmelita replied optimistically.  Colt turned to her.

            "It seems that way."  He then looked at me.  "How's the knife wound?"  I looked at the bandage on my shoulder.

            "It actually feels great, they filled me up with like an entire syringe full of morphine."  Mason grunted as Eric wrapped a bandage around the bullet wound on his left shoulder. 

            "Yeah you're lucky you got here first.  Because of you we're out of morphine."  Carmelita and I laughed.

            "Quit complaining Mason, you're tough."  We laughed again until a couple approached us that I thought I would never see again.  Penelope, with a bandage wrapped lightly over her head in Bentley's lap.  Standing next to them was Ace with a napkin up his nose. 

            "Hey!  Since when did this happen?"  I chuckled.  Bentley smiled through his glasses as Penelope chuckled with us.

            "Just a quick change of heart."

            "Let's hear it for cognitive recalibration!"  Bentley yelled happily.  We looked confused until Ace clarified for Bentley.

            "I hit her really hard on the head."  Penelope gingerly rubbed her forehead.

            "That still hurts."  Ace rubbed his still bleeding nose.

            "Yeah, so does my nose.  Great shot by the way."  We all laughed happily.  Mason then seemed a tad... distracted.  A very familiar looking coyote walked out with several armored SWAT soldiers.  She did however, look quite a bit different.  She wore dark under armor and a black Kevlar vest.  A green utility vest hung open in the wind.  Overall, she looked pretty good in uniform.  She barked her orders like a true leader. 

            "Alright ladies!  I want every hard drive, body, and book bagged and tagged.  I want all security footage scanned and arranged in chronological order, anything that is still living you kill.  Am I understood?"  The soldiers yelled in unison. 

            "Ma'am, yes ma'am."

            "Get moving!"  Colt sat there on the ambulance dumbstruck.  His mouth was hanging open, but nothing was traveling out of it.  He then turned to Eric. 

            "You know what buddy, you're doing a great job.  How about you take a quick break from me and work on Murray and Henrich, okay?"  He rolled his eyes.

            "Have fun, Mason."  He said.  Eric turned away from him and walked towards Murray and Henrich, who were being looked over by a few other medics.  Mason stood up and limped his way over to Michelle. 

***

            To a woman like that, I'd have all the courage in the world to talk to.  Stepping over to the irritated looking coyote.  I gently spoke her name.

            "Captain Walker?"  She turned and her once irritated grimace turned to one of delight.

            "Your mission went without a hitch, I see."

            "Almost, if it weren't for Sly, I wouldn't be here talking to you right now."  She looked over my shoulder to see Sly sitting with Carmelita in his arms. 

            "Let the kiddies be, Mason.  I have a job to do here."

            "Thankfully enough, I don't."  She giggled.  I must say, her laugh is rather adorable. 

            "It takes a lot of courage to do what you did today, Lieutenant Colonel."

            "Please captain, the shape I'm in I could donate my body to science fiction."  We laughed together.  "So how long have you been undercover?"

            "That's classified."  Oh jeez, another one of these agents.  I shot a crooked look at her.

            "That's hilarious since I outrank you."  Her calm smile turned to one of smugness.

            "I meant I could tell you if we went somewhere private."  I smiled wider.  Great, privacy, and she knows how to break the rules.  We stepped into the parking garage and rounded the corner into a security room where several boxes blocked an entrance point.

            "Now then..."  I motioned with my hand.

            "Since before the night at the museum."

            "I know right.  Ben Stiller never looked better."  She laughed.

            "Come on Mason, you know what I mean." 

            "Alright, alright.  So you knew exactly when Cooper surfaced on the grid?"  She shook her head.

            "No Mason, I just knew your friendship with Cooper, and that you were recently rehired by I.E.S."  I gave her the 'I see what you did there' look. 

            "So your target was me the whole time."  She nodded at me. 

            "That's right.  After being in the military for so long, I.E.S. believed that you would go all bloodthirsty and ruthless like you did back then.  So they assigned me to keep you alive.  They knew what you were up against from the start."  I smiled warmly.

            "So your mission was a success?"  She winked casually at me.

            "You're still alive aren't you?"  We chuckled once more.  "Now that we're both done here, what do you think?"  I peered out the corner of the room, staring through a window.  I saw Sly and his friends, causally conversing.  I saw my team, opening up a bottle of Champaign that the base brought us. 

            "I think everything's going to be just fine around here."  She stepped a little closer to me, getting somewhat intimate.

            "I didn't mean them."  I raised my eyebrows at her and she chuckled.  We grew closer and closer together.  Finally, our lips met in a warm, moist kiss.  I knew something had been missing from the day.  I do believe that I have found it.  It had been so long since I felt the warm, light touch of a woman.  I must say, it felt better than sitting in the warm sun of the Nördenmeer.  I felt at peace with everything.  After what seemed to be hours, we broke apart.

            "You know, I am going back to Paris for vacation.  Care to join me?"  She raised her eyebrows in surprise.

            "Seems nice.  I'd love to join you.  Where are you staying?"  I looked to the side once before replying.

            "Well, I have a penthouse downtown I'm staying at."  She poked me in the chest and laughed charmingly.

            "That does sound like fun."  We decided to go back out and see what everyone else is doing.  Clomping back through the snow, we linked up with everyone else.  My hand resting on the waist of the beautiful coyote. 

            "Hey Michelle, so are you through spying on us?"  We chuckled.

            "Yes, don't worry about me anymore."  I turned to Sly and Carmelita.

            "So Cooper, we're thinking about heading back to Paris and doing a little partying.  You want to come with?"  Sly glanced at his team and then at Carmelita. 

            "I don't know, I'll check the weather.  Maybe detour to OC Maryland.  I hear that place is great this time of year.  Well, better than up here in Green Bay at least."  Carmelita giggled. 

            "Take your time you lovebirds."  With that, I turned away with Michelle and stepped away.  I knew for a fact that with Sly, his reunited team, and Carmelita, along with the rest of my team.  Everything was going to be just fine.  But still, the legendary words of my team never died.  Counter Terrorists Win.

Epilogue

I laid in my bed with Michelle curled up next to me.  I glanced at her as she slept peacefully at my side.  I once again opened the tears in my mind.  Now then... What do I see?  I see...  Cooper.