I remembered hearing... footsteps. They were soft, moving careful and slow, but amidst the ruin, too many things betrayed their weight.
Anger, barely restrained.
"Raph?" I called, struggling to shake off the lethargy. But I could not lift a finger, or get my eyes to focus. The hands that dragged me upwards were not gentle. Fingers... there were five! They were not furred, like Splinter. They were-- Foot!
I'm in danger!
But I was falling back to the ground. I heard voices that made no sense; a rumbling vibration that intertwined with them. Softness brushed against my face. I hovered between, aware enough to sense my peril, unable to do anything about it.
Then the rumbling stopped. And he was there, full of worry, concern. Love. "Splinter...."
He came!
I am safe now....
The next hours were confused perceptions. Of a journey in darkness. Of darker emotions drowning the few bright ones. Of pain and sickness. Of swords and words. Meet again. Kappa. Kenshin... Challi.
I was tangled in memories of things left hanging, of things from the past coming back around. Keno. My missing brothers. Donato? The Foot. The Scrolls with "ancient us"-- Japan.... we could have been happy there....
The worst was Splinter. His fear would drag me from dreaming, to that painful, half-aware state where I struggled- until dizziness overwhelmed me again. Splinter had never been scared! He never cried! It was for me! I'd failed him. How could I have messed up so badly?
But through it was something I kept returning to: the kitten that ate my mask-- my kitten-- the evidence I had obtained at the cost of my health. It was my promise. I will stop those scientists! I must save the kittens!
And promises are not made to be broken.
It was when we got to April's that I first broke free of the mental fog. I was leaning against the wall, and it seemed like Splinter had been knocking forever. His face showed worry again. Then he did something to the door, and we were in.
Now I understood why no one had answered our knocking; April was on the floor! I reached out to her, and nearly fell as she spun sideways in my vision.
"Uh...." was the best I could manage to say as Splinter grabbed me by my arm and got me to the couch. "April?" I asked worriedly as a kitten was unceremoniously dumped on my chest.
Ignoring the feeling I was still laying in the back of a moving truck, I tried to roll my head to see. April was sitting up with Splinter's help. She's all right. She's just confused...
Little by little, I started feeling better. And I did want pizza something fierce, but I was scared I'd lose control of my stomach. April didn't need me hurling... Then what I saw outside her window shocked me to full awareness. Foot!
They are still around!
No! Not again! April lost her home because of us and the Foot once before. Raph got pounded into an inch of his life by them. Tokka and Rahzar! Shredder, mutated into that hulking thing!
What terrible surprise did they have for us this time? Was the Foot responsible for my missing brothers?
I was in no condition to fight them. And April wasn't in any better shape. I was all too ready to follow Splinter. Letting him guide April, I had to keep my mind focused on stealth. Splinter did not need two hardships, he needed me at my best. A mistake meant they would have us, and I had had enough of being a captive for the night. All I really wanted was my bed.... sleep. But I pushed that from my mind as we made the twisted, torturous trek to the Lair.
I remember Perry. Of all people unexpected to visit, he was the one I needed the most. Handing over my precious evidence, I stayed near them, because Perry would know what to do. He could whip something up and I'd be fine. A case of Bad scientist/Good scientist.
Then I could rescue the kittens and Perry'd heal them too.
But as I lay there, trying to keep up with the conversation, sure that Splinter would forget some piece of information Perry would need, I started fogging out again.
Saw some pretty strange things.
Enough to decide I never want to do acid. Splinter with fur that waved like a purple sea of anemones, and fangs that would have made a vampire envious. Perry with spaghetti fingers and nasty buckteeth....
I knew it wasn't real, that I was sick. But I wasn't going to tell them what I was seeing. I'd had more than enough of being a damned experiment, and didn't want Perry poking and prodding me anymore than absolutely necessary. Not while looking like Beaker from the Muppet Show anyway. And if a needle so much as came within arm's reach, he was going to experience acupuncture, ninja style....
Chewbacca was trying to soothe me, but I wished he'd leave me alone. I was on fire, my nerves sending sharp, painful tingles from where his fingers touched me.
And all the while, the room had been changing into old Japan -- the room with the wooden statues. I heard them chanting, howling --laughing -- to pounding drumbeats that grew louder and louder.
I guess someone must have stopped the party, because the next thing -- the intruder bell was going off. The one rigged to the door. The clock showed it was morning. Snatching the nearest weapon at hand, a bo, I woke Master Splinter.
But it was a most auspicious re-uniting with my brothers! I was overjoyed, sure everything would be fine again....
Until it appeared as though Donnie and Mikey had been smoking some strange stuff. Or finally confirmed what I'd said all along about too many hours playing those nutty games.
Crystal Boxes? Jaggar Tharns? Sounded like Mik Jaggar doing a Crystal Light commercial to me.
Lords, Ladies and Prince? I visualized stamping a Symbol on Mike's head as they played Renaissance Fair with us.
Nothing explained this Ria, though. Even the sixties couldn't have produced her. If she was from this planet I'd have eaten every towel in the bathroom, including the ones Raph leaves on the floor all the time.
My diet was in no jeopardy of too much fiber.
With Keno there, it was like old home days. But my brain started to hurt from all the insane talk, trying to set up a mental score card on everyone. All this because Donatello had gone to pick up the pizza... When I find out who ordered all this Crazy Bread, I'm going to pound them into a Thin Crust Supreme.
I did get one hot tip about Vance that made the chaos worth it. Vance Le Gault. The bastard I fully intended a re-match with, and after freeing the kittens, I now knew where to wait for him....
Then Don let loose the hounds of hell. Gave me a real headache -- with "Donato" written all over it. But he wasn't finished playing games yet. The Fruitcake started attacking us, no holds, and no bos barred!
And Ria proved she wasn't... normal. With one word, she took Don out. I didn't see that, right? Someone tell me that she didn't just do... magic?
Whatever it was, the fight was over. Relieved, I stepped back to catch my breath. I was feeling much better, but apparently the crap Vance'd stuck me with wasn't totally out of my system.
"You mean I'm not a prince?"
I almost lost it on that one, I bit my hand to stop from laughing out loud. I couldn't help it! The whole thing was so... insane. It wasn't helping me recover from the morning's exertion, and Raph joined me in sitting weakly against the wall.
At least he looked like I felt -- like shit. We needed time to talk. He'd tangled with the Foot in a very bad way. But there were too many of us with way too many problems. And others we'd never met before as deeply in it as us.
A logistical nightmare.
I still intended to keep my promise... But when Perry said the magic word: Vance. I listened closely. "...most of the test subjects in the RK90 series... well, ended up dying."
No!
I looked to Splinter, but read confirmation in him.
I hadn't considered that the serum was staying there, floating around in me.... killing me...
I always hated chemistry.
But Splinter said to be strong. Remember our training. There are others who need me....
And so it was back to the lab, in the light of day. Need forced it, and it was unlikely they'd expect us back so soon.
I had restocked myself with back-up gear. The older, more worn-out pads, the other set of swords; of poorer quality. I was going to have to be careful if I faced anyone with good steel.
I had suffered through Splinter changing the bandage on my shoulder, but it wasn't too bad. Re-masked, re-armed, I was combat ready.
The plan to infiltrate started smoothly. April faked car trouble, asked the guard if she could use the phone... and took him down in a move that was pure Raph!
So what have those two been up to?
My job already done for me, I made sure the guy was well tied-up. Giggling, April donned the guard's coat and hat while Perry drove through the gate.
I wasn't amused.
I had more than enough reason not to be....
But once inside, we met no further guards, and when Perry rang the buzzer, no one answered. Trying the door, it wasn't even locked!
So what's wrong with this scenario? Is the ambush inside?
Perry opened the door, I rolled in and to the right, sword out and ready, light controls right above my head....
What we had was disturbing silence. What we saw....
The kittens.!
Only two empty cages remained, and the pen I'd been locked in. The little innocent fluffs of fur were gone. Strike one!
I eyed the cabinets and tables, but the stuff had been cleared out. Strike two!
While Perry rummaged through, looking for anything that might have been forgotten, I headed for the office. The door was ajar, "Over here," I called to Perry.
He followed me in. Strike three!
Open desk drawers, nothing but paper clips and broken pencils. A pair of VCRs and video monitors that told me I'd made somebody's home videos... the tapes were gone.
Perry headed for a computer, and turned it on. I wandered, discovering my gear laying in the corner. Pads and sword harness. No swords...
Son of a bitch! What did that scum do with my swords?
As I claimed my stuff, Perry cursed softly in front of the screen.
"It's been formatted. There's nothing left."
Too late. Too damned late!
Rage swept me, and I blanked....
"Leonardo? Are you ok?"
... I was on my knees. Blinking rapidly, my eyes finally focused on Perry. He was beside me, one hand on my shoulder, the other with fingers wrapped around my wrist, supporting a hand that--
"Perry? What...?"
A mangled desk was before me. It looked like it'd been dropped from a roof. The sides were buckled in, two of the legs bent.
Perry helped me up and I saw the top. A crater radiated from the impact of --
My fist?
I rubbed my hand, amazed it wasn't broken. The surface may have been cheap laminated processed wood; but the deepness of the impact....
"My God, what have my colleagues wrought?" Perry said, hand still on my shoulder.
Even Raph and Mike at their worst had never destroyed anything to this extent. "How did I...?"
I hadn't realized I'd spoken out loud until Perry answered me. "It's like nothing I've seen! Even Tokka and Rahzar... Somehow the serum is stimulating physiological changes, augmenting your speed and strength, making you... superhu- supermutant."
I'd heard enough. I was feeling unsteady. Sick to my stomach.
"We need to go. There's nothing for us here," I said.
"I think I'll take a few things," Perry said, an odd gleam to his eye. "Like the computer. Normally I'd never steal anything, but in this case I feel completely justified."
Dang, he's gotten into this whole blasted excursion!
I almost hated him for it. But that was an ill-deserved thought and I stamped it out.
Perry shut it down and unplugged the cords. "Another one wouldn't hurt. Donatello's is so full of games."
I nodded woodenly and picked up the monitor. This trip had been a failure as far as I was concerned. Worse, it had me scared.
What is this serum doing to me? I don't want to be the Incredible Hulk. I don't want to be Vance's -- or Perry's -- prize subject. I don't want to lose control to this...
The monitor went into the trunk and I went back for the rest. Perry decided to help himself to the video equipment too. We almost didn't get the trunk shut.
We need a new plan. We need to get Vance. And Vance just happens to live near April. Time to go pay a little visit to my doctor and tell him I'm not happy with the results.
April came up with a message for Raph -- worded well enough to not reveal anything to outsiders -- and three minutes later, Perry drove us out the front gate. April had the kittens and a newspaper. She waved at the bottom of the front page.
"Guys! Look at this! They think I've been kidnaped!"
Hell on a deep dish! Just what we need. More problems! The police are gonna be looking....
But I wasn't going to pass up my chance at Vance.
"What should we do?" April asked as Perry drove away from the lab.
I debated on April surfacing with some pre-set story, or keeping her hidden. If the Foot were looking for her, we needed to know why. She was probably safer with us, for now. Sterns hadn't wanted to believe his city was crawling with ninja or mutant monsters, until it was almost too late. And if the Foot were suddenly becoming so public again, actively seeking us, and going so far as to attack April's place; there had to be a reason.
"Stay away from the fuzz. Call Casey's, maybe we can catch Raph and Keno there. We're going to Vance's apartment."
The call from the phone booth went unanswered. Which didn't improve my mood. Admit it, this serum has you scared, and out of sorts. Better get a grip!
Tired of playing losing games, with April and Perry as look-outs, I kicked Vance's door in. It splintered along the side as parts went flying across the room. The metal locking mechanism lay in three chunks.
It was very satisfying.
Perry had warmed me there might be some high tech alarm devices, but by this point, I didn't care. The police had already been here very early this morning, and I knew six ways to slip out of this place.
Inside was a minor mess; Vance hadn't bothered to do dishes recently. Or finish making his bed. But not a hint of scientific equipment anywhere.
Like you expected he'd bring a ton of kittens to his apartment. Neighbors'd be calling the landlord in no time. That short guy gave her enough trouble because of us....
April managed to get the door to stay closed with a book at the base. She gave me a Splinter Look.
I shrugged and grinned.
"His computer is on," Perry said, gloved fingers making the mouse dance. "Windows 95," he added distastefully. Watching him go through the files, I kept scanning the place for trouble.
The only problem was Vance didn't keep any of his "work files" on his home PC. April's search through address books and Rolodex were all normal routine things.
"He definitely keeps a lid on his secrets," she noted.
"Then this was a waste of time."
I must have been a lot more bitter than I thought I'd said it, April put a hand on my shoulder, meeting my eyes with a glance of support.
Strange music came from the computer. "Hmm... isn't this a fascinating coincidence? Arena..."
I spun, "No Perry! Don't!"
"What's the matter, Leonardo?" Perry asked, an eyebrow arched. "It seems to me that we should investigate this, see what kind of character Vance has for himself. It could give us insight into him and maybe a clue where to find him," he waved a finger. "Or defeat him!"
Great. He's becoming Spock Holmes.
I made another circuit of the place, listening as April and Perry discussed options on the game. And then the book door stop moved!
Instantly under cover, I was mad that nothing could be done about Perry or April. Damn sloppy work! I yelled at myself.
But I jumped right back out when I saw who it was.
He froze, staring at two sharp swords and one hostile turtle. Raph would have been proud.
Vance's eyes went wide, "Oh fuck!"
"Knew it. Knew the kid'd screw things up for us again."
Raph had that "I'm ready to beat someone's ass" look on again, and I had a bad feeling who'd get the thrashing.
"You really think Dan could've made such a mess? He's so . . . well . . . small."
"Lesson One, kid. Never underestimate the Foot. An' Vegas odds says he didn't do this on his own."
"You're saying he brought them down here?? Raph, I think you'd better tell me about this guy, and now."
So he did. In great detail. As we navigated the sewers to get back to Casey's apartment building, Raph told me about how he and his brothers had met April, then Casey; about their first meeting with the Shredder and the rooftop battle (more power to ya, Splinter!); and he told me everything he knew personally and had gathered from other about Dan.
Danny Pennington was the sorest spot next to the Foot itself, as far as Raph was concerned. It had been Danny who had brought the Foot to April's apartment, burning down the building along with her father's old business; it was he who had run away from home and hidden in their old den ("So it had to be him that led them there to kidnap Splinter in th' first place," Raph concluded), then ran out on them to go back to the warehouses on the Lairdman Islands. After being reunited with his old man, the guys hadn't really heard anything about him until last night, when he showed up with Casey.
With all the damage this guy had caused, it was no wonder everyone wanted a piece of him.
I picked my head up when I heard the distinct wailing of an ambulance; when you live in my neighborhood, you get use to the sound.
"Shit!" Raph took off running at breakneck speed, so fast I couldn't keep up. When I finally got up to the street, I saw the EMI's loading bodies. I recognized the distinctive uniforms of Soldiers and caught my breath, then looked to see where Casey was giving his statement.
"He's already gone."
I caught Raph's eyes in the flashing lights and immediately noticed that they were empty. I waited for him to finish.
"They rode off with him first. That's what they said. `He's gone.' Then they drove off with him."
I contemplated this, and an idea took root.
"You get going to TGRI. I'm going with the next one to the hospital."
"But_ They said_"
"We thought Leo was dead, too, and that turned out alright, didn't it?"
I remembered too late about what the Prof said about RK90 subjects.
"So far," I corrected hastily. "And if Perry could do that job with the mutagen and change Tokka and Rahzar back to normal, I'm sure he can cure Leo in no time."
"But he had Donnie to help him mix that glop up. You didn't see him. I'm just glad April wasn't here," he noted softly.
I could guess why.
"Look," I sighed, "go to meet the others. I'm gonna miss my ride in a minute if we don't hurry. Okay?"
"Yeah." He got himself together, then more certainly, "Yeah. Get goin' kid. I'll tell `em where ya went off to."
He took off again, and I ran up to the last ambulance as it was about to close its doors.
I was told that they'd found Casey with the downed Foot once the cops got on the scene. They'd had to do CPR on him, but they told me he'd pull through it alright, he just needed some time. As for the members of the Foot, all but one were in Ziplocs, and the one that hadn't ended up in one would most likely live the rest of his life on machines.
Right now Casey was in the emergency room, taking care of broken bones and stuff. The nurse on duty said she couldn't give me any real details because they didn't know the extent of the damage or some kinda crap. Main point: it was about an hour before I was allowed into his room briefly to see him, during which I told him what went down with the rest of us. Then he asked where "that little son of a bitch" had gone to. I confessed to not knowing, and promised to kick his ass for Casey next time I saw him.
As fate would have it, it didn't take long to catch up with Pennington.
As fate would have it, he came to me.
"What are you doing here?" he'd asked, a fine mix of confusion, disbelief, and worry gracing his innocent eyes, and I found myself wondering if this dude has an evil clone somewhere. Especially when I saw his companion.
"Keno, man! Ain't seen you in ages! What are you doing here?" Jessie grabbed my hand and smiled.
"Visiting," I answered cautiously. "And you?"
"Same. Dan's got a friend in a room on this hall, and . . ."
"And Casey made me swear to kick your ass six ways to Sunday." I leaned forward to Dan's ear. "Maybe you better explain in painstaking detail just how you knew he's here."
Jessie Walker. What a gal, that one. She's got her business a little in everyone else's, and has helped me out in a scrap or two in our time. But it had been a while since I'd seen her last, when I'd set her up at Nanna Grisby's, and we'd lost track. So it came as a big shock when I found out she was seeing Dan on an intimate basis, and not so big of one when she said she'd set him up with this bit of info regarding the Foot break-in at C.J.'s place.
"So we came here to see just how bad off he is." Dan finished.
"He'll live. But it'll be a while before he's breaking heads again," I supplied. Dan looked away, and Jessie squeezed his hand reassuringly.
"You did what you could. Don't dump on yourself like this, baby."
"I know. It's just after all that's happened . . ." He trailed off helplessly, making an equally futile gesture with his hands. "I just wish I could redeem myself somehow."
"I'll tell you how. Come with me to meet up with the others."
He shook his head at me. "Ohh, no. You said Raphael would be there? Uhn-uh. He's bad enough, but I can't handle Psycho-Turtle and the Fantasy Land Following! Besides, someone needs to stay and watch over Casey."
Lame excuse, and we all knew it. Jess was the one to do something about it.
"Be back in a minute." She had "that look" in her eyes, and I knew she was going down to "talk" to the security personnel.
She came back and told us to come on, that things were "taken care of." Dan and I exchanged a look and followed. When Jessie said it was done, it was done well.
"Hot shit an' butter! You sure this is where you were supposed to meet up?"
I can see how that expression got on her face, really I can. The entire place seemed deserted. I'm talking tumbleweeds here. While the lab had been a mess before, it was completely clean now. The broken glass, the blood, the animals, everything was gone, with no sign of who had played house.
"Well?" Dan asked me.
"Uhh . . ." Yeah, what do we do now? As usual, Jess was already on it.
"Lookie what this Cat found!" she sing-songed, holding up a piece of paper covered in a handwriting that I didn't recognize. " `Keno and Raph, couldn't find anything in the lab that might help us, went back to my building to rummage around in the Doc's business. Meet us there. April.' Who's `the Doc?' "
"Vance Le Gault. He works here, according to Leo, and he drugged him up real nice with this stuff that supposedly killed all the other test subjects."
Jessie blinked at me rapidly a few times. "Who's Leo?"
"Leonardo_" Dan began.
"--Is my brother." Raph finished for him. He had emerged from the office with Jessie, who didn't seem at all concerned about the big green guy next to her with the foot-long daggers in his bell. "We're heading uptown now? Sweet. Wadja find out about Casey?"
"Hey can I call them or what?" I smiled, glad Raph was relieved. "They definitely kicked the shit out of him, and it'll take some time to heal, but he'll be okay."
"An' who's makin' sure it don't happen again?" he demanded. "If they decide to finish the job, they ain't gonna have much trouble with it."
"Hi. Jessie Walker." She held out her hand to Raph and shook. "Dan told me what happened and we went down to the hospital, met up with Keno, and made our way here. But not before I called in a whole heap of favors down there. Trust me, if these guys do decide to try anything, they'll get a run for their money before they get their asses kicked right out of the ballpark."
I caught Dan's impressed grin and wondered how long he'd known her to still be in awe of her abilities. Raph himself seemed a little reverent towards her, and I remembered my own first meeting with the gal. What can I say, she blows you right out of you boots.
"Alright, if Keno says you're cool, I'm down with that." He seemed to accept her immediately, and without question. Usually I'd be surprised, especially seeing as how she and Dan were an item together, but I supposed he was glad she wasn't a living video game character either. "Now, let's get over to April's."
Go back to Part Three, Chapter One
Continue onward to Part Three, Chapter Three, Good Sir/Lady
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