Sly Cooper and the Gang In: A Long Lost Love

CHAPTER 17

Image Credit: https://variety.com/2013/film/news/ratchet-clank-games-get-film-treatment-exclusive-1200409274/

As Ratchet and Clank went to work fixing the Cooper Van, Carmelita caught Sly up on how she'd spent the past five years. When she'd investigated FarFlight Tower's connection to Clockwerk, one of the workers turned on the portal and she'd fallen through into her companion, Ratchet's, world. They'd spent the last few years assembling the parts they needed to build a transportation gate of their own and sync it to the one in the Tower to send her home. But, while they were searching, they stumbled across a darker secret.

"When Clank started researching the Gate, lots of worlds showed up on his monitor," Ratchet told Sly as he leaned over the hood of the van, examining the damage to determine if they could use it to fly back to the Safe House. "Lots more than we thought were out there."

"While we traveled gathering parts, each world started disappearing, one by one," the tiny robot explained, handing Ratchet a wrench. "I didn't want to risk sending Miss Carmelita back to this one until we were certain it wouldn't disappear next–"

"–no matter how much I protested," Carmelita added, crossing her arms. Clank grinned sheepishly as she started tapping her foot and raised his arms as if to say, What else could we do?

Ratchet took the wrench without looking, finished screwing a bolt into place, and straightened, stretching his back, before moving under the vehicle to fix the front rotor that kept the van aloft. "So we did some digging and found out something's been going from planet to planet, eating them."

"Eating them?" Murray choked, still dabbing blood from his busted nose.

Clank nodded.

"One place we visited referred to each planet as a Fandom," Ratchet shouted from where he tinkered. "And something's visiting them, learning about them, and then–" his voice cut off as he twisted a bolt.

Hopping onto the hood of the van, Clank's green eyes flickered sadly. "Killing them."

"We spent four of the five years investigating," Carmelita told Sly as she slid an arm around his waist and tucked in close, at home against his heart. "But couldn't find a reason for why whatever that thing is was destroying those places."

"And with no answers, we ran out of leads." Sly could practically hear Ratchet shrug beneath the aerial vehicle. "Carmelita said Bentley could help Clank figure it out."

She smiled at Sly and fluffed a soft dark curl out of her eyes. "So I came home." Her gaze flicked to Ratchet and she added in a growl, "Though I'd been trying to convince them to send me back the entire time."

Clank walked across the van's hood to Sly and looked up at him, his antenna flashing. He opened his hands in a gesture of kindness. "I hope you understand. We wanted her to be safe. Evidence suggests the energy from this Gate may have gotten this . . . being's . . . attention. From my studies, it goes wherever the life force is strongest. We have reason to believe it's headed here, next. Carmelita told us you were waiting for her but we didn't want to–"

"–show up empty-handed," Ratchet finished as he slid out from under the van and got to his feet, dusting off his palms. "Before we came here, we sent word to a friend in another dimension. They're headed to a city with enough technology they can join us, once they gather enough fuel. There's not so much juice on their planet these days."

Sly pressed a kiss to Carmelita's forehead, a little angry they'd taken so long to get her back to him, but overwhelmingly happy she'd been safe. "While we wait for your buddy to join us, we need to figure out where Clockwerk backed himself up to and knock out that threat before a bigger one shows up."

Bentley radioed in. "If you can bring me the receiver, I can run the code and have a location by morning."

Murray huddled next to his van, watching Ratchet tinker like a father watching a nurse with his newborn baby. "You think she'll run again?"

Ratchet grinned and spun his wrench in his hand. "Do I think she'll run again . . ." He gave a spark plug one more push and signaled for Murray to turn the engine on. It turned over with the familiar roar of belts and pistons. "See? Good as new."

A little smoke coughed from the machinery as soon as he said it.

Ratchet's grin turned sheepish. He used the wrench to scratch his back under his collar. "Well, almost good as new. We should probably get that receiver and get somewhere safe so I can finish it up."

"I think that's a good idea," Sly said as he held the door open for Carmelita. "I don't particularly fancy the idea of falling out of the sky."

They stopped by Clockwerk's mangled corpse in the street far, far below to retrieve the receiver, then swung by Sly's apartment to invite Sylas to the Safe House. The old wolf had been on the roof–77 stories up–watching the sky like he was trying to see the stars past the city lights. He seemed surprised at the invitation, but he'd known Sly long enough to understand the Master Thief was involved in underhanded dealings. And as much as Sly disliked debts, he owed him one. So, after a little convincing, Sylas joined them. They spent the night on the roof of the squat building that made up their Safe House on the outskirts of the cybernetic city, watching the twinkling lights of Paris that had changed so much since their story started.

Sly climbed the stairs to join the others, two steaming cups of black coffee in his hands. He offered one to Sylas as Bentley typed away behind them on his laptop, Penelope helping him parse out the code. "I wanted to thank you," he told his wise, graying neighbor. "For what you said before this all started." He remembered the old wolf's words to him on the Eiffel Tower the night the rain had been the only sound other than his shattering heart, and added, "And what you said during."

"Legacy isn't given," the wolf smiled. "It's earned." He raised his cup, gesturing at the people around them–Sly's friends who'd been with him since the beginning, never leaving his side. His wife finally returned to him. And the new comrades they'd found, heralds of some threat he didn't want to bother thinking about just yet. At least, not for tonight–not 'til he'd polished up his cane so much it shone. Sylas nudged his shoulder, as if sensing the direction of his thoughts, and winked. "Seems like you made the right decision."

"Seems like it," Sly agreed as he dug a slice of pizza out of the pile of boxes Murray had dumped on a foldable table. Carmelita snuggled under his arm in the lounge chairs they'd brought up, and Ratchet and Clank turned on the lights they'd just finished affixing to the myriad of antennae Bentley had attached to the Safe House roof. The strings of tiny glowing bulbs lit up the roof like hundreds of tiny stars, and Sly smiled. Stars. How long had it been since he'd seen them?

It had been a long time since he'd felt at home.

And something was coming to destroy it.

His smile faltered for a heartbeat, but he rested his chin on top of Carmelita's dark hair and held onto the happiness that had returned to him.

Sly looked around at his friends–his family–and their two new additions. At least this time, they wouldn't have to face it alone.

***

Somewhere, far above them, a light twinkled.