The Ranger Wing swooped downward toward the roof of the museum.

  "I think they will try to steal the gold doubloons that are on display here." declared Chip.

  "Yeah. Ol’ Rat Capone always did have a thing for gold, mate." agreed Monty from the back seat. "This time he seems to be targeting coins."

  "We need to figure out where they’ll come out." said Gadget.

  "No, we need t’ get IN there, Gadget-luv." corrected Monty.

  "But how?" asked Dale.

Gadget spotted an open window. [How convenient J ] "That’s how." she replied before banking the Ranger Wing towards, and then through, the window. As the R-Wing sped through the museum, Chip noticed a rope hanging down from an air vent.
  "Uh, oh! We have company!" exclaimed Chip.
  Monty saw the rope and commented, "Looks like the blighters got ‘ere first."

Gadget put the Ranger Wing in "hover" mode. They soon saw Sugar Ray Lizard and Arnold Mousenegger carry a large sack into the room. Rat Capone followed them. Sugar Ray paused.
  "What ‘re youse waitin’ for? Get movin’ wit’ dat!" scolded the gang’s sleazy, butt-ugly leader.
  "Um, boss. Didya hear somethin’?" inquired the green lizard.
  "Hear what?" asked the huge, dopey mouse.
  "A buzzing noise -- like a toy plane or a really big bug." described Sugar Ray as he removed his hat and scratched his head.

Suddenly, a good-sized plunger whizzed through the air and scored a direct hit on Capone’s ugly mug. "Grmf isf orf urm mf!" Rat Capone tried to shout while attempting to remove the plunger from his face.

    "Rescue Rangers, away!" all the Rangers shouted in unison as the R-Wing buzzed Sugar Ray, who barely ducked in time to avoid a major headache. Gadget leveled the R-Wing and slowed it long enough for the boys to disembark. Gadget shot out a line, snagged the large sack, and towed it back toward the display case. Sugar Ray and Arnold managed to remove the plunger. [Darn! He looks soooo much better wearing the plunger! JJ ]

  "What took youse so long? Da coins! Stop dem!!" roared the rat in the (tacky) hat.

Chip, Dale, Monterey, and Zipper stood their ground, and glared at the trio defiantly as they advanced. A siren wailed in the distance. (There must have been a silent alarm on the case…)

  "Da police! Cheese it!" snarled Rat Fink--er, um, Capone. The trio reversed their direction, and ran toward the air vent. The siren got louder.

  "Leaving so soon?" teased Gadget, who had returned in the Ranger Wing. The R-Wing flew low enough for the boys to board and hovered briefly. Once all the Rangers belted themselves in, the Ranger Wing gained altitude as Gadget flew it toward the vent. Zipper aimed the R-Wing’s rear gun and fired into the vent. Muffled cursing indicated that Sugar Ray had been hit.
  "After those blighters!" yelled Monty.
  "Sorry; the Ranger Wing won’t fit in there." replied Gadget. The siren became very loud and then stopped. Zipper zoomed into the vent in hot pursuit.
  "Wait, Zipper!" Monterey shouted in an effort to stop his little pal from doing anything rash.
  "The police! Gadget, get us out of here!" ordered Chip.

Gadget banked the R-Wing toward the window and poured on the thrust. Seconds later, Kirby and Muldoon entered the museum. "Freeze!" they shouted as they looked around the display area.
"Huh?" puzzled Muldoon.
"I guess we scared the perp off. We’d better secure the coins." said Kirby, confused.

Outside the museum..

The Ranger Wing circled around the museum. It paused briefly over the main air conditioning unit.
  "No sign of ‘em, mates." declared Monterey.
  "*Sigh* There’s no telling where those vents lead." commented Gadget.
  "Looks like they got away – again!" griped Dale.
  "We might as well leave. We’ll just have to get him when he strikes again." suggested Chip.
 
 

  The terrible trio emerged from the sewer. Sugar Ray stopped and said, "Gee, boss. That was very clever – the way you had us dig a tunnel to the vent system from da sewer. I bet those Rangers are still searchin’ duh outside vents."

  "Dat’s why I’m da boss, see? Heh, heh. " Rat Capone’s grin turned into a frown. "Doze Ranger-pests are gettin’ on my nerves! Whenever dey shows up, my plans go ta pieces! I’d like ta fix THEM!"

  The trio resumed walking back to their current headquarters as Rat Capone mumbled to himself. Zipper followed them at a safe distance. On their way back to their hideout, they saw a couple of mice walk by. One was a big, brown fella with short, blonde hair. He wore a white muscle-shirt and red trunks. The other looked exactly like Gadget, except she wore a blue dress with a white, floral print. (Come on, don’t get ahead of me here…) The trashy trio stared at her in disbelief as they overheard her conversation with her boyfriend.

The insipid islanders stepped away.
  "I don't like them. I don't think we can trust them." whispered Shake'a Bake'a.
  "I know we can't trust them. But we could get something out of humoring them." Lawhiney whispered back.
  "But what if we don't?" asked her bewildered boyfriend.
  "There's bound to be a bounty out on a guy like him, right?"she grined evily.
They returned to the trashy trio. "Will you let my *ahem* brother join, too?" inquired Lawhiney.
  Rat Capone considered that request and replied, "Sure, doll-face."

  Zipper was watching the whole exchange from a nearby pipe. He wondered if he should return to Ranger headquarters or continue following Capone in hope of finding his latest hideout. A few seconds later, Zipper followed Capone's gang as they headed toward the docks.

Sometime later...

  "It's getting late." observed Monterey. "I wonder what's keepin' Zipper..."

  "Yeah. The sun will be setting soon. It's not like Zipper to be out this long."

  "You don't suppose there's been another garbage strike, do ya?" asked Dale, in a semi-serious manner.

  "I doubt it Dale. News like that would 'ave been in today's paper." replied Monterey, in a worried tone. "Any sign of 'im, Gadget?"

  Gadget was perched on a branch and was scanning the sky with a pair of binoculars she had built. She looked down at Monterey and answered, "Not yet!" She resumed her search. "Wait! I see something!" Gadget adjusted her binoculars. "It's Zipper!"

  Zipper saw the boys assembled on the landing pad and swooped toward them, buzzing rapidly. He landed on Monterey Jack's shoulder and tried to catch his breath.
  "We were startin' t get worried aboutcha, pally! What kept ya?"
  Zipper buzzed, squeaked profusely, and gestured wildly.
  Gadget climbed down and listened. "Slow down, Zipper! I can't understand what you're trying to say." admonished the mouse inventor. Zipper slowed down and gestured less wildly.
  "You found Rat Capone's latest hideout?" asked Monty.
  Zipper nodded and squeaked a "yes". He resumed his tale.
  "WHAT?!?" shrieked Gadget. "But why would Lawhiney be in the city?!"
  Zipper shrugged and squeaked.
  "He WHAT?!?" Monty asked in disbelief.
  Dale shrugged. "He's a sucker for a pretty face, I guess."
  Chip scratched his chin. "Are you SURE??"
  Zipper crossed his arms and squeaked a "Uh, huh!"
  "And Lawhiney ACCEPTED?!?" asked Chip, who did not like the picture this information was painting.
  "I figured she was crazy--but not THAT crazy!" commented Monterey.
  "Golly! The situation this implies could have catastrophic results!" gasped Gadget.
  "Definitely NOT good news." declared Chip.
  "For who?" asked Dale, without a clue. "Rat Capone or Lawhiney?"
  "Most likely for US, mate." grumbled Monty.
  Zipper resumed his report.
  "He's planning to rob a pawn shop? Which one?" inquired Gadget.
  Zipper buzzed and gestured.
  "Crikey! He sure has gold coins on his mind! Or rather, what passes for a mind." quipped the Australian mouse.
  "When will he strike?" asked Chip.
  Zipper buzzed briefly.
  "Tonight?!" they declared in unison, surprised. Zipper nodded.
  "Zowie! He tried to rob the museum just this morning!" proclaimed the red-nosed chipmunk.
  "Get the Ranger Wing ready, Gadget! Monty! Dale! Get our gear!" ordered the chipmunk detective. "This is our chance to stop him! Rescue Rangers, away!"
  * Rat Capone sure didn't waste any time planning another caper! * thought Chip as he raced into the hangar. * Hmm. I wonder. Could this be a test for Lawhiney and Shake'a Bake'a -- or a trap for us? *
 
 

Near a warehouse...

   Rat Capone finished explaining his plan, again, in a hushed voice as he led his gang past a warehouse. Lawhiney looked at him, skeptically. "Um, honey, that should work, but what if someone shows up and tries to 'crash the party' ?"
Capone gave her an insulted look, but then his expression became thoughtful. "Youse gotta point, dollface. Hmm. Wease just haveta arrange a 'surprise' for any unwanted 'guests'."
    Shake'a Bake'a looked over his shoulder and got the feeling that they were being watched. He walked a little closer to Lawhiney.
    "A party? Oh, boy!" Arnold shouted stupidly. "Will there be cake?"

    A sinister voice replied, "Yeah. POUND cake!" A hulking, gray mouse stepped out of the shadows. He was wearing a purple hood and loincloth. He waved a large, metal can-opener with ease. Five smaller mice, dressed in red hoods and ninja-style costumes, landed behind him.

    "Hand over the girl, rat! I have a score ta settle with her!" demanded huge mouse.

    Rat Capone scowled. "She's MY moll, youse mugs! I ain't handin' her over -- no way, no how!" Sugar Ray and Arnold moved to flank Capone. They crossed their arms and scowled. Lawhiney slinked behind the rat in the (tacky) hat and wondered what 'score' the big jerk was talking about. "Gadget, you sure lead an interesting life, girl." she thought, hatefully. Shake'a Bake'a put his hand on her shoulder. She turned toward him and grinned. "Hmm. I wonder. Just maybe..."

    She stepped beside Capone and growled, "I don't know who you think I am, but THIS, " she jerked her thumb at Capone for emphasis, "is Rat Capone! His boys can tear what passes for a brain out of your stinking head! "

    The hooded mouse was caught off guard; he wasn't expecting a threat combined with an insult. He then glared at her--and laughed.

    "Such a big boast coming from such a small girl!" sneered the muscular mouse.

    "Boast? Why, I was merely pointing out a fact. Do you really think your skinny, little ninjas can take THEM?" Arnold, Sugar Ray, and Capone gave evil, threatening smiles. Shake'a Bake'a ground his fist in his paw and gave Bubbles a sinister grin, as if he were mentally telling him, "Lay a claw on her and I'll pulverize you, dude." Of course, Bubbles stupidly signaled the attack.

    Two ninja mice charged Sugar Ray. He grabbed one out of the air and smacked the other one with his long tail. One went for Lawhiney, but Shake'a Bake'a tackled him. Arnold tried to grab one, but the ninja kept jumping around and dodging Arnold's arms. Rat Capone exchanged blows with the fifth ninja. Lawhiney looked around and wondered where the big, gray guy went. She found out the hard way when she was lifted off of the ground by her tail (ouch!).

"Not so tough now, are you?" sneered Bubbles, holding her in his left paw while brandishing the can opener in his right.

Lawhiney opened her make-up bag. "Some powder might make him sneeze and drop me." she thought.

    Her hand closed around a small, glass vial instead. "This is better. Adds insult to injury." she smirked as that thought passed through her head. Suddenly, she jerked around and tossed the vial. The glass broke upon contact with his head, and perfume ran into his eyes. He growled and dropped both Lawhiney and his weapon in his desperate attempt to wipe the painfully stinging perfume out of his eyes. By that time, all of the ninjas had been defeated and were lying in a pile of trash.

Desiree DeLure climbed on top of a glass display case. She stuck a plunger onto the glass and used a glass-cutter to cut a hole around it. Carefully, she pulled on the plunger and slid the circle of glass silently out of the way. She was in the process of lifting a pearl necklace out of the case when she heard a noise. The noise in question sounded like flesh on flesh contact--as if someone had been slapped. "Amateurs!" She thought with disgust. "They'll get me caught if I stay long enough to swipe the necklace!" Desiree climbed off of the display case and dashed into the shadows.

Shake'a Bake'a glared at Capone. Arnold looked surprised.

"Why youse…"

Lawhiney put her paw over his mouth and sternly whispered, "Shh! Why'd you go and do THAT? Someone might HEAR us!"

"Youse my moll, see?" explained the rat in a whisper. "I'm entitled ta kiss ya when it pleases me, see?"
“All too well.” she thought before answering in a low hiss, “There’s a time and place for that sort of thing--this is neither.” She slid her paw off his mouth and looked around. “Where’s that lizard with your ‘surprise’?”
As if on cue, Sugar Ray rode in on a motorized toy assault vehicle (it looked kinda like a G.I. Joe Snowcat)that was armed with plungers.
“So much for stealth.” Lawhiney groaned mentally.

Zipper heard and observed everything. He darted out of the room, to where the Rangers had there stakeout near the safe. Gadget checked her harpoon gun as Zipper reported. Chip looked at him, concerned.
“I doubt Lawhiney and Shake’a Bake’a are going to be much help to him. They’d probably desert at the first sign of trouble. Still, Rat Capone has us at a disadvantage with that vehicle.”
“So, what are we going to DO about it, mate?” asked Monty.
“You and Gadget try to catch Rat Capone and anyone nearby in the net. That will give us the diversion Dale and I need to jump Sugar Ray and take control of that thing.”

Rat Capone and his ‘goon squad’ approached the safe. Suddenly, they heard Gadget and Monty yell, “Rescue Rangers, away!” as a weighted net fell on and entangled everyone except Sugar Ray.
“Look what we caught! Ya always get the worst ones at low tide.” quipped Monterey Jack.
Rat Capone looked up and saw Monty, Gadget, and Zipper on top of the safe. Monty and Gadget slid down (on a rope) to them.
“Sugar Ray, get dem!” bellowed the rat boss.
As Sugar Ray aimed and prepared to fire the plungers, Chip entangled him with a whip and Dale knocked him out of the vehicle.
Arnold ripped strands of the net until he was free. By then, the ‘munks were riding toward him, and there were plenty of plungers with his name on them. Arnold was showered with a barrage of plungers. Several struck him on the head and he went down. Two grazed Lawhiney.
“Oh, great! So much for your ‘party favor’, Capone! I TOLD you it was a stupid idea!”
“Ahh, shaddap!” he growled as he tried to free himself from a tangled portion of the net.
“YOU shaddap!” barked Shake’a Bake’a, before he punched out Rat Capone.
Sugar Ray had removed the whip from his arms and looked around. A plunger hit him in the face. Then, Monty tackled him and tied him down.
Lawhiney and her boyfriend finally got out of the net. “C’mon, Lawhiney; let’s ditch these heinous dudes!” suggested Shake’a Bake’a.
“Agreed. This turned out...”
“Going somewhere?” a familiar voice inquired. Lawhiney turned and saw Gadget level a harpoon gun right at her.
“I don’t suppose you’d believe me if I told you that we were given an offer we couldn’t refuse.”
“Nope. You could have declined his ‘offer’.” replied Gadget, still aiming the harpoon gun at her look-alike.
“Honey, he doesn’t look like the type to take ‘no’ for an answer. Besides, we knocked him out for you; doesn’t that count for anything?”
Gadget glanced at Rat Capone, who was still out like a broken lightbulb. “Well, actually, Shake’a Bake’a knocked him out.”
“Yeah, and he’s with me! Do you actually think I’d let a rat like him tell me what to do?”
“I’d be more worried about what a judge would think if I were you.” retorted Gadget.
Lawhiney realized it would not be wise to remind Gadget that she actually -was- for a while. “Do you think they’d let us off if we testified against this jerk?” Lawhiney stalled as she evaluated her chances for escape. Those chances turned out to be slim to none as she saw the boys coming toward them.
“Hmm. I dunno. They might.” speculated Gadget. The other Rangers heard that last bit of conversation as they approached.
“Ha! Testify? Against Rat Capone?? You expect us to believe you’d do -that-?” snorted Monty.
“What makes you think I won’t?” sneered Lawhiney as she crossed her arms.
“She probably would.” declared Chip. “She’d do anything to save her tail--even if it meant crossing Capone.”
Lawhiney glared at Chip. "It's all I have left-- aside from Shake'a Bake'a.
Chip was tempted to reply, "And whose fault is THAT?" but he refused to be baited. Instead, he said, "Does this mean you'll come along quietly?"
Lawhiney snorted. "Yeah; as if I had any real options."

After Rat Capone and his equally unconscious henchmen were secured in the vehicle, Chip and Dale jumped into its seats. Gadget and Monty "escorted" Lawhiney and Shake'a Bake'a to the Ranger Wing. The Rescue Rangers left the pawn shop with the tied-up trio and their suspicious suspects in custody.
(The End--finally! ;)

Author's Note: As the revision number indicates, this story has gone through a lot of re-writes since I first jotted down the ideas behind it (and if I hadn't posted an incomplete version earlier, I might not have seen this thing through. That may or may not be a bad thing. ;)
Here is a list of reasons why I rejected some of the earlier versions:
Revision 1: Never was completed. Originally explained why Lawhiney and Shake'a Bake'a were "in town" in the first place. Also, Lawhiney seemed to get along TOO well with Capone. The 2nd target was a bank, not a pawn shop. It began with a partial parody of the poetry Jane Jensen used in "Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Father".
Revisions 2.X: It was supposed to be Rat Capone's really bad day, but Lawhiney seemed to be getting the worst of it. She got ticked and tried to kill Capone by lowering him into a vat he was using to melt the stolen gold. Naturally, the Rangers stopped this.
Revisions 3.X: Added the scene with Bubbles. Still no pawn shop.
Revision 4.0: Added the pawn shop scene, but Capone & his goon squad got away. The Rangers pursued them to their hideout.
Revision 5.0: I decided this was taking WAY too long and made it end with the villains captured in the pawn shop and made the 'party favor' an assault vehicle. The original "surprise" is too dopey to even mention.
Revision 5.1 (this version): I edited the heck out of it, but the formatting is STILL doing strange things in some places (probably a side-effect of all the cutting and pasting I did on this thing). Also changed all thoughts to quoted italics instead of using *'s to denote thoughts.

Now that I've gotten this out of the way, I can get on to better things. If you actually liked this story, please feel free to say so in an e-mail to me(1katkm@geocities.com)--just don't ask for a sequel, okay? :D ;)

A Scenario I Rejected: This is how the story *could* have gone, but Gadget would NOT have liked it...
“A Game of Rat and Mouse” Scenario 2: The Switch
“Youse my moll, see?” explained the rat in a whisper. “I’m entitled ta kiss ya when it pleases me, see?”
“All too well, creep!” she thought before answering in a low hiss, “There is a time and place for that--and this is neither!” Lawhiney looked around. “Where IS that lizard with your ‘surprise’, anyway?”
As if on cue, Sugar Ray rode in on a motorized toy assault vehicle (which resembles a G.I. Joe Snowcat) that was armed to the teeth with plungers.
“So much for stealth!” she groaned mentally.
Zipper had heard and seen everything. He darted out of the room and to where the Rangers had set up a stakeout near the safe. Gadget removed her goggles; she was dressed like Lawhiney. Zipper buzzed over and reported.
“It figures she’d be wearing eyeshadow.” complained Gadget. Dale applied some eyeshadow on Gadget while she fussed. “This had better work, Chip!”
“This part should. I just hope we can take control of that vehicle. They’d have us at a disadvantage even without that thing.”
Gadget sighed. Dale commented, “Well, at least Lawhiney doesn’t wear heels. They’re SO uncomfortable.” Gadget glared at Dale.

Rat Capone’s goon squad eventually arrived at the safe. “Let’s see...” Rat Capone mumbled as he examined the safe. “Sugar Ray, try to crack da safe. Arnold, stand by wit da saw in case he can’t.”
While they were occupied with Rat Capone’s instructions, a dark shape decends upon Lawhiney. She was knocked out and a brown paw grabbed her as she began to drop. Gadget took her place as Lawhiney was dragged behind the safe. {We have secretly replaced Rat Capone’s moll with ours. Let’s see if he can tell the difference.}
Chip snapped his whip and bound Sugar Ray’s arms to his side. Dale knocked Sugar Ray out of the vehicle. Chip quickly tied him up as Dale climbed into the assault vehicle.
“Wha? Stop dem!!” ordered Rat Capone.
Arnold charged, but the chipmunks were in control of the vehicle by then and Dale aimed some launchers at the dopey rat (I -think- he’s a rat--just look at his furless, ringed tail!). Arnold was showered with a barrage of plungers. ...
Well, you get the idea. I got a little silly with that one, eh? ;)