He layed her body down gently on the cold, hard floor and studied her silent, unmoving face for a moment. So much had happened to him in the past few days, and so much had changed. God, how he wished Splinter was here! He longed for the rat's wisdom, his reassuring embrace. The thought of having to go on alone scared him. But Splinter's not here. Robyn's unconscious, and Mike and Leo... The thought burned into his heart like hot coals. How could I have left them there? The guilt was overwhelming as he lifted his moist eyes to stare back in the direction from which he had come.
I can't do this! The self doubt crept into Don's soul as he struggled with the choices before him. If he took Robyn and went back, he might get himself hurt or killed, and therefore would be of no help to the others (if they were even still alive), or even worse, he would put Robyn in danger, and she was in no condition to defend herself right now. On the other hand, he could leave her here and return...No. She's too vulnerable. What if the Foot found her? He shook the thought from his mind and considered his final option. I can do as Leo asked me to do. He lowered his head in despair. I can save us and try to find the others. Get the hell out of this death trap.
But leave Mike and Leo? The thought haunted his every breath as he turned his attention toward the unconscious woman who lay at his knees. He brushed the hair back from her eyes and noticed that some of the color was returning to her face. Just hang on. He wiped at his eyes with the back of his good hand and swept her up carefully into his arms again. Looks like there's a light down at the end of this corridor...
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"M...mikey...please!", Leo pleaded, the urgency in his voice almost heartbreaking as he stared into his unaknowledging brother's eyes. "Please Mikey! Look into yourself! You've got to remember who I am!"
But the turtle continued to advance without a hint of recognition. He spun the chucks wildly, in a style that Leo had never seen before. It was rough, almost chaotic. On instinct, he reached behind him, and to his surprise, found that one of his katana was still sheathed on his back. Leo held the sword ready, a sinking feeling resting in the pit of his stomach at the thought of hurting or killing his brother. It's not his fault! He can't control his emotions!
Michaelangelo advanced, his body seeming to fly into the air in slow motion. Leo watched in terror as the turtle came down on top of him, crashing him to the floor. The katana flew out of his hand, and skidded to a stop, just out of reach. Mike still clutched a pair of the nunchucks in his right hand, the other clawing at Leo's eyes.
Fearful that Mike might rip his eyes right out of their sockets, Leo squinted them shut and was forced to use his other senses to block his brothers unmerciful attacks.
An agonizing growl rumbled from deep within Michaelangelo's soul. Oh god, he's pissed! Leo knew he would have to act fast if he would ever be able to escape him, let alone overpower him.
Mike balled his left hand into a fist and delivered a powerful blow to Leonardo's plastron. The turtle cried out in pain, and, opening his eyes, attempted to throw his attacker off of him. He's gonna rip me to shreds! He shoved Michaelangelo as hard as he could, tears coming to his eyes as he fought back the pain that spread down his chest and arms.
Michaelangelo staggered back a little, just enough for Leo to squirm free. "Mike...", his eyes were filled with sorrow as he attempted to penetrate into the turtle's mind again. "Mike, you don't know what you're doing!"
The turtle ignored Leo's pleading and advanced again, this time grabbing him up by the shell and hurdling him across the room. Leo let out a surprised cry as his body slammed to the ground, tearing open the stitches on his side once again.
He was in agony. He laid on the floor as the blood began to pour out of the open wound, his chest burning from the punch, his legs aching from the fall, his heart breaking at the decision he was being forced to make.
"M...mi...mike...", he stammered through gritted teeth, "P...please..."
Michaelangelo's stare was that of complete hate. "You killed my brothers!"
Then the realization hit Leo head on. He thinks we're dead! He doesn't know who I am! He thinks I killed us!
"M...mike...l...lis...listen...to...me...", tears began to stream down Leo's face as he searched the hard black eyes that continued to stare back at him. "It's...m...me....Leo...don't...you....remember?"
There was still no trace of recognition in the turtle's eyes, but he had stopped his advancement, almost as if he was listening to what Leo had to say.
"I...I'm your...b...brother...", he continued.
Mike's voice came out like a demon's, low and menacing. "No! You lie! My brothers are dead! Dead because of you!"
"Wait!", Leo tried one last attempt to snap his brother out of his illusion. "Y...you...know me...Mike. And...you know...h...how much...honor means to me...", he pointed a shaky finger toward the floor where his katana lay. "I...I can't...kill...my...br...brother..."
Mike stared at him silently for a moment, a sort of internal struggle seeming to grip him now.
"T...take...my...sword. Kill me...if you....must.", he sank to the ground as the pain overpowered him. "B...but I...won't...f...fight you. I...won't...hurt you."
__________________________________________________________________________
"C'mon, grampa! Hurry!", Shadow called lightly as she peered back into the hole.
Splinter was having a hard time getting his body through the opening with his broken leg. He couldn't put pressure on it of any kind, and the hole was slightly too small to walk through. He would have to crawl, and that would take some doing.
Splinter stuck his head through the hole, nearly startling Shadow. "I...can not make it.", he said softly. "Go. Go find the others and bring them here."
Shadow didn't like the idea of leaving anymore than Splinter wanted her to. She knew that if she left the rat behind, she might never see him again.
"I can't.", she called into the hole. "Mommy said to never go places by myself."
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"What the hell do you think you're doin'?", Casey whispered angrily as Megan left them to walk a few feet ahead beside April.
"What are they doing back there?", April asked her. Megan glanced back at the two of them, their voices hushed as frowns spread across their faces.
"Looks like another argument.", she groaned.
"God, not again! What babies!", April's frustration clearly showed on her face. "Look at all we've been through in the past few hours, and they've gotta fight!?"
Megan put her finger to her lips, instructing April to be quiet, and strained her ears to listen to the conversation. April got the hint and focused on their voices as well..
"I thought you said you were okay with this!", Raphael whispered angrily.
"What!?", Casey's voice grew a little louder, "When the hell did I say I was okay with that, Raph? Huh? I thought you said you were gonna lay off!"
Megan frowned at April, confused. "What are they talking about?"
April shrugged. "I dunno. I think Casey just said something about laying down or something..."
"Grrrahhh! Casey!", Raph's voice grew a little louder as he had trouble containing his anger. "Why can't you just mind your own business?", he brought his fist up toward Casey's face to reinforce his point.
"Mind my own business!?", he was furious now, his voice rising, "You're trying to poke my cousin, a human I might add, and YOU'RE telling ME to mind my own business!?"
Megan and April stopped walking and turned to face them, flashing eachother bewildered looks as the conversation came within ear range.
"Yeah, I am telling you to mind your own business, Casey! What's it to you anyways, huh? Megan's not your puppet! She's her own person!"
"You're right, she's not my puppet, and she sure as hell ain't yours either!"
Megan frowned curiously at April as Raph and Casey's voices rose to shouts. "What the heck...?"
Casey shoved Raph's fist out of his face and glared at him. "You're a TURTLE for crissakes!"
Raphael let out a growl."So that's what this is about then, huh? I'm not allowed to like your cousin", his voice rose to a holler, "CUZ I'M A TURTLE!"
He shoved Casey hard, watching as he staggered backward. "AND I'M NOT TRYIN' TO POKE HER!"
Casey and Raphael stopped arguing for a moment as their voices echoed down the hall. They looked up quickly toward a wide-eyed April and Megan.
Damn!Raphael cursed himself. God...I'll never forgive Casey for humiliating me like this!
______________________________________________________________________________
He set her body back down as a dull pain coursed down his left arm. Stupid hand! He stared at the wounded appendage in disgust, wondering if it would ever be the same again. Nothing will ever be the same... He forced the bad thoughts from his mind and concentrated once again on his task. Gotta find the others. Then I'm going back for Leo.
As he picked the silent body up again and rose to his feet, an angry cry echoed down the halls. What the...
"Cuz I'm a turtle!", the words rang in Don's ears as a new hope flooded his thoughts. Raphael? "And I'm not trying to poke her!"
"Yep.", he sighed happily, "Raphael."
Cradling Robyn in his arms, he ran toward the end of the hall, the source of the light, as tingles of energy coursed through his body. Raphael!
____________________________________________________________________________
Michaelangelo picked up the sword and lumbered over to Leonardo, who lay weak with pain on the floor.
Leo didn't dare move as the tip of the blade was brought down toward his throat. He's gonna do it. He's really gonna kill me!
He thought about closing his eyes, but decided that was the coward's way out. A true ninja faces death head on.
Michaelangelo held the sword there for a moment, unmoving as a wave of memory washed through his mind. He saw something - was that a rat? He remembered his sensei, vaguely. He remembered his teachings. He remembered their workouts. He remembered his brothers.
He struggled with himself as two conflicting emotions went to war with eachother in his mind. He knew it was wrong to kill unnecessarily. Hadn't Master Splinter taught them that? But this creature had murdered his family. Or had he...?
"M...mike...if killing...me is...gonna make...it...better...go...ahead...and do it. But...I won't...stop you. I...won't kill you...because...", he looked into his brother's eyes, the emotion pouring freely down his cheeks in salty tears. "Because...I love you."
A sparkle seemed to light up in Michaelangelo's eyes as some of his memory and vision returned. "Leonardo!?", he gasped, letting go of the katana as it clanked to the floor.
Leo stared up at him wide-eyed. "M...Mikey!?" A wave of joy rushed over him as a look of recognition returned to his brother's eyes.
Mike stooped down on one knee, bringing his face close to his brother's. "I can't see very well.", he admitted as he studied the green blob.
Leo took his hand and lifted it to his face. "Here.", he said softly, running it over his features. "It's me. See?"
As Michaelangelo gapsed, a wave of relief washed over Leonardo. He let out a breath as the pain crawled up his torn side.
Mike cringed, realizing for the first time what he might have done. "I...I didn't hurt you, did I?"
Leo tried to conceal his pain, but it was too great. "N...no, Mikey...I'll be...fine."
Another wave of excruciating agony ripped through Mike's skull and he let out an ear curdling scream. Leo watched in cold horror as his brother's face twisted into a tight grimmace, his eyes shut so tight, he thought the veins would pop out of his forehead at any moment.
"Michaelangelo!?", he forced himself to stand as a wave of pain and nausea flooded through him.
Mike gripped the sides of his head with his hands as he thrashed his body around. "Gaaaahhhh!"
Oh god, this is bad! Leo cringed, helpless as he watched his brother's suffering. I gotta do something!
"Make it stop, Leo! Please! Make it stop!"
Leo wrapped his arms around his brother in a tight embrace, ignoring his own pain. "You're gonna be okay Mike. Just hold on. Come on, we gotta get out of here."
But Mike stayed put. "No Leo! I'm...dying!"
"Stop talking like that Mikey!", the fear and grief tugged at him as he watched his brother slowly deteriorate.
Mike slumped as some of the pain subsided. Leo caught him and tried to help him stand, but Mike was too weak. He sank to his knees, gripping his chest and stomach as tears of pain rolled down his cheeks.
"No Mike! Come on! We've got to go find Raph and Don! And Splinter!", He gazed into Mike's fading eyes. "Do it for Splinter.", he said softly.
Mike opened his mouth to speak, but before he had the chance, he slumped unconscious into Leo's arms.
_______________________________________________________________________________
"Finally free.", Splinter said quietly, taking stock of his surroundings. It had been a tough fight climbing through the hole, and in the end, he had been forced to sit in the opening and pull himself through backwards.
But now they were free from the cell, and creeping down the dimly lit halls. Their pace was slow as Splinter leaned heavily on the substitute crutch, Shadow at his other arm, helping as much as she could. Up ahead, the rat could make out a light, some kind of room perhaps? He decided that maybe it would lead to a way out of here. But first we must find our family.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Raph stared at her uncomfortably, and then at the wall. Nervous ants seemed to crawl under his skin, the heat of anger bubbling through his veins and evaporating through his pores into sheer embarrassment. She could almost see his skin darkening with a slight tint of red. Under normal circumstances she may have found this comical, but here under the eyes of April and Casey, she felt akward. She didn't quite know what to say.
Casey stared at the floor for a moment, obviously uneasy himself. April studied Raph and Megan who were avoiding eye contact. The hall was silent as they each stood there, struggling with their thoughts.
God...I can't believe this... Raphael rubbed his forehead as he continued to stare at the ground.
Megan was a mixture of emotions. She was angry at Casey for getting into her business, for discussing something this personal with Raphael, for deciding who she could or could not be with. She was embarrassed for Raphael and for herself, and she could feel April's eyes burning into her, waiting for her to say something. She was also slightly...giddy? It was a feeling she couldn't quite place, for reasons she wasn't quite sure, but somehow she felt kind of good inside.
April stood there for a moment, looking each of them over in turn before bursting out laughing.
They all looked at her simultaneously. "What?", Casey snapped.
"N...nothing.", April cleared her throat and tried to regain her composure. "Just...well, when you think about it...this really is just...so FUNNY!", her laughter rose again as she thought about the humor of the situation.
"Funny!?", Casey was irritated. "You think this is funny?"
Raphael opened his mouth to speak when he heard a familiar voice call to him from down the hall.
"Raphael?"
Raph's eyes widened with surprise. "Donnie!?" Forgetting his embarrassment for the moment, he rushed toward his brother, his arms outstretched. They embraced eachother in a hug for a moment, each attempting to conceal their tears of joy.
"Donatello!" the others joined in, patting him on the shell and exchanging hugs.
"Don...you're okay!", the last time Raph had seen his brother, he was lying unconscious on a bed in April's hotel room.
"I'm...hanging in there...", his voice trailed off as his thoughts returned to Leo and Mike. "I need your help.", he said softly. He turned to April. "Robyn's with me. She's just down the hall."
"Robyn!?", April's excitement faded to despair as Don continued. "She's sick, April. She's unconscious. We've got to get her out of here."
"Where is she?", Raph asked.
"Follow me."
_____________________________________________________________________________
"NOOOOOOO!", a desperate wail wafted through the cold vault as Leo rocked his brother in his arms. He layed his hand over his heart, waiting nervously for signs of life. Yes, he could feel the beating, barely. Damn them! Damn the Foot!
"Well...what do we have here?", a familiar voice came from above. Leo turned his head to gaze into familiar eyes. Eyes from his past.
"Karai!?", he gasped.
"Very good turtle boy!", the evil grimmace on the woman's face covered up all traces of beauty. Leo stared at her coldly, unwilling to break free from her hateful gaze.
"S...so it's you?", Leonardo was almost shocked beyond words as he stared at the ninja, the head of the Foot, the one he and his brothers had made a treaty of peace with almost six years ago.
A swarm of Foot rushed through the door, and she threw her hand up, causing them to stop and gather behind her. She said nothing as her eyes continued to penetrate into Leo's soul. She was like a statue, unmoving, unfeeling and uncaring.
"But why?", Leo was confused. Was Karai under some strange spell? Was she drugged? Was some outside force making her do this?
The look in her eyes told Leo that it wasn't any of these things. She was doing this of her own free will.
Still keeping her eyes locked onto Leo's, Karai drew her sword, and pointed it toward Leo's throat. The turtle glanced down at his brother, his emotions almost getting the best of him for a moment before he laid him gently on the floor.
"What have you done to him?", he asked coldly as he picked his katana up and stood to face her.
"I wouldn't worry about him if I were you.", she said wickedly. "His pain is almost over. But yours is just beginning!"
________________________________________________________________________________________
April knelt down next to her fallen sister, sobs of sorrow replacing what had so recently been giggles of joy. She laid her palm on Robyn's forehead as the fear stabbed through her. What if she doesn't make it?
Don had already explained about the freezer. He had told them how she'd gone into shock and fallen unconscious. The cold had gotten to be too much for her. He had told them everything, except...
"Where's Leo?", Raph looked down at Don, concern and aprehension spreading across his face.
Donatello found it hard to meet Raphael's gaze. "He's...with Mikey." He let out a breath and lowered his eyes to stare at Robyn again. God, what can I say to him to make this easier? It's my fault! I left them! I should have never...
"Don?", he rose his head to find his brother standing beside him.
"Raph, I--"
"What is it?", he could sense the fear and self blame emanating from the nervous turtle.
Don gazed into his eyes, afraid of the words he was about to speak, terrified of what Raphael might do. "Something's wrong with Mike.", his voice came out shaky and unstable. Megan thought he was going to cry. "He's...he's insane or something! From what I can gather, there's some kind of foreign substance in his body. It's made him strong; strong beyond belief! And his eyes...", Don gasped, a cold shiver running down his spine. "His eyes, Raph! They're full of hate!"
The others stared at him in amazement as he searched for the words to explain all of this. "He...Leo made me leave! I...I didn't want to!" The tears began to flow, warming his cold cheeks.
Raphael stared at him silently for a moment, unmoving. His emotions were unreadable as he went over Don's words over and over again in his mind. Mikey on a rampage? Leo...Leo instructing Don to leave. Taking all the glory for himself.
"Sounds like him.", Raph mumbled under his breath, but then he reconsidered. No, Leo knows this is dangerous. Robyn was hurt, and Don's still in no condition to fight. He gazed sympathetically at his grieved brother.
"Donnie?" The turtle looked up at him, the hurt showing clearly in his pain clouded brown eyes. "Can you take me there?"
____________________________________________________________________________________
"Why...why are you doing this?", Leo's katana hit Karai's with a loud clang.
"Did you honestly think the Foot would ever become allies with the likes of you?"
Leo stared at her for a moment. "We had an agreement, Karai, we made and oath. Do you have no honor?"
"Honor? Bah!", she grinned evilly at him. "What need do I have of honor? I am the Shredder now! The Foot bows to my every command."
Karai went in for another attack, the tremendous pain that rushed down Leo's side almost doubling him over as he rose the sword to block it. I'm in too much pain. I can't fight her like this!
"You see", she grinned proudly, "I knew that once I had this power, no one would be able to stop me." The look in her eyes grew menacing as she brought her face close to his. "Not even you."
Leonardo gritted his teeth, trying to control the rage that was building up inside of him. She betrayed us! I don't believe this! And look what she's done to Michaelangelo! He raised the katana, gripping the handle so hard, his knuckles began to turn white, and held it in front of her face.
"You lied to us.", he accused coldly. "You never had any intentions of keeping your word."
Karai pretended to be offended for a moment. "How can you say such cruel things?", she mocked. Then her voice grew serious, matter-of-fact. "I have been part of the Foot for most of my life. I had heard of you freaks, even seen pictures of you and your brothers many times before. I grew to know you as my blood enemies, just as you were to Saki."
Karai pushed Leo's sword away with her own and continued. "You speak of honor. Well in the clan, our honor is to one another. When I heard that Saki had been killed by one of you freaks, by your own hand, I had to avenge his death."
The anger built up in Leo as he readied his katana again. "So that whole speech was a lie! You said you wanted to bring order to the Foot, to stop all this senseless killing! You said you wanted there to be peace between us!"
"Oh, come now!", Karai grinned satisfactorily. "Do you really mean to tell me that you believed all of that? How naive! Oh, you were right about one thing. I did want to bring order to the Foot, but my reasonings for that temporary moment of peace were far from your own." She too readied her sword as she continued. "Don't you see? You helped me to become what you see before you. You killed the Elite, the only ones who could have usurped my leadership. With them dead, there is no one left to overthrow me. I am the Foot Clan now!"
Their swords crashed together over and over again in a battle of skill. The Foot remained in place, watching quietly as Karai and Leo dodged and parried in a sort of ritualistic dance.
Leo's body cried out in pain, but he forced himself to keep going. This woman had lied to them, betrayed their trust, and now she was going to pay.
___________________________________________________________________________
Don and Raph rushed down the hall, the others trailing slightly behind them. Casey carried Robyn in his arms, and April stayed at his side, keeping constant watch over her unconscious sister. Megan stayed in the middle, anxious for action, while attempting not to loose April and Casey.
"Not much farther.", Don called over his shoulder. "Just down a couple more halls."
Raphael was uptight. What if something had happened to Leo and Mike? The reality of it was something he wasn't sure he could bare. These creeps are gonna pay if Leo and Mike are... He pushed the thought aside and followed Don down the hall.
_______________________________________________________________________________
"Why did you let me go?", Leo asked, "You had me captured. You could have just killed me right then."
Karai studied him for a moment, as if in deep thought. "Because then I couldn't have carried out my plans. With you dead, your brothers would have never agreed to help me slaughter the Elite. I had to let you go then. And our illusion of peace enabled us to carry out our greatest work."
Leo ducked her katana swipe and twirled around to kick her in the stomach. She doubled over for a moment, realizing that the turtle's strength was weakening somewhat.
"And what might that be?", he really didn't think he wanted to know the answer.
Karai paused for a moment and raised her hand. Two of the Foot came forward carrying a vile of green liquid. "Mutagen."
The word echoed in Leo's ears, haunting him, devouring his entire being. Mutagen? But how could that be?
As if Karai could read his thoughts, she continued. "Foolish turtle! Do you not remember your wounds? How the darts peirced your skin and the blood flowed?"
Leo remembered back to that day as he and his brothers were fighting her and the Foot, how they had gotten some good shots in, knocked him unconsious with their darts. How bad it had stung. He remembered the wounds he'd sustained, minimal, but deep.
Karai continued. "Your blood is swimming with mutagen! All of those DNA cells...", she looked at him greedily. "We knew someday that we would get ahold of it!" Her grin turned to a frown as she spoke next. "But something went terribly wrong. We were unable to duplicate it exactly. Oh, don't get me wrong, the mutagen works, maybe even better than we first expected, but...", she paused for effect, watching as Leo clung on every word. "It attacks its host from the inside. It mutates its organs, sending them into overdrive. The rush fills the host with intense energy and strength, although it also tends to make him a little cranky." She laughed now at her joke, seeing the pain reflected in the turtle's eyes.
A crushing realization rushed through Leonardo, and he stood there bewildered for a moment. Mutagen...from my blood! He glanced down at his unconscious brother, a feeling of guilt tearing through him like a jagged knife.
"Yes.", Karai said, "That mutagen is in him now."
___________________________________________________________________________
Donatello and Raphael were the first to round the bend.
"Oh my god!", Don whispered in surprise as the turtles stopped dead in their tracks. The Foot were before them, crowding the doorway to the frozen chamber. Something was going on inside. The clang of metal and angry voices wafted through the air.
"What is it?" Casey was behind them now, along with April and Megan. "What's going on...?" Now he saw. The crowd of Foot soldiers was just before them. Silently, he set Robyn down at his feet and rubbed his tired arm muscles as he studied the ninjas.
"What are they doing?", Megan whispered, peering around Raph's shoulder.
"Shhh!", Don put his finger to his lips and strained his ears to listen.
"It's only a matter of time now.", he could barely make out a female voice coming from the direction of the freezer. The voice was familiar somehow, yet he couldn't place it. He glanced back at the others with a shrug.
"Who is that?", he asked in a low voice.
Raphael returned the shrug. "I dunno, but if they've got Leo and Mike, they're gonna pay.", the fire in his eyes burned into Don's soul. He looked away, unable to meet his brother's gaze.
"So what do we do now?", April wrapped her hand around Casey's arm and stared nervously at the ninjas who seemed to be intensely focused on whatever was going on inside the vault.
Raph's lips curled up into a grimmace. "I say...let's do this!"