Black Rose

Ch.23 Flying High

"I'm sorry, you need me to do what now?" Rae asked once her and Sly had returned to the hideout.

"I need you to collect the spice gas trapped within the large balloons in the sky then land directly on each caboose to blow open the hatches."

"So you want me to gather up spice gases, which are unstable at low altitudes might I add, to use as a make-shift explosion on the cabooses, possibly killing myself in the process?"

"Look, I know it sounds bad, but it's the only way I could think of to blow open those hatches, and the spice gas in those balloons has enough power to do so, whereas my bombs don't." Bentley explained.

Rae sighed. "Fine, I'll do it. Where do I go?"

"To the ice plane Murray is piloting near the edge of the mountain."

"Then I'll go get ready."

"When you're finished, I have a special vacuum backpack for you to wear so you can gather up the spice gas."

"Fine, whatever. I'll be out in a few minutes." She said as she went into her room, the fox seating herself on her bed. Rae ran her hands through her hair, sighing heavily.

"I'm just going to assume you're not a big fan of heights." A voice called, Rae glancing up to see Sly had entered her bedroom.

"Yeah... I guess I should've mentioned that I'm not overly fond of high places."

"And yet, you run along rooftops as if it's nothing."

"That's different. With this, I have to paraglide down, popping those balloons to gather up spice gas, which I then have to use to blow open all three caboose hatches, but spice in its gaseous form is very unstable, so if I screw up..." She buried her face in her hands.

"I don't think it's you're afraid of heights as you are of unstable, exploding gas."

"Yes... I'm afraid I'll miscalculate the landing and...blow myself up. I'm scared I'll screw everything up and get myself killed..."

"You're doubting yourself." Sly said, crouching down in front of her as he took her hands in his. "You're over thinking the situation, causing doubt. I used to have that feeling to, thinking I couldn't take down the Fiendish Five, but I realized that if I stopped doubting myself and believe in my abilities and the people I trust, then I could do anything I wanted, and that's how I defeated Clockwerk."

"Yet, we're still in this situation..." Rae spoke up.

"Look, I know you have a history with the Klaww Gang -- a bad one -- but you can't let that hold you back. I've noticed that it's not so much the Klaww Gang that bothers you as it is Mira. She's the reason why you're having a hard time trusting other people and yourself, but you need to let it go sooner or later, otherwise you'll never be able to move on with your life. So, stop doubting yourself and believe that you can do this."

Rae stared into Sly's hazel eyes for a long moment before nodding. "Yeah, you're right... I'm letting her control me and cloud my judgement. I've gotta stop thinking I can change the past and move on."

Sly grinned. "That's my girl."

She stood up, the raccoon doing the same. "Thanks, Sly. I'll be back soon."

"Oh wait, can I ask you something first?"

"What is it?"

"It's about you and Mira. Are you ever gonna tell us what went down between the two of you?"

Rae lowered her gaze, thinking it over for a moment before lifting her head again. "Not yet. Sooner or later I will tell you guys, but now's just...not the time."