Moonlight Mutation (A TMNT Fanfic)

Chapter 53: Journey's End

His jaw clenches and he jerks his head to the Hamatos and their friends. "Get out of here."

Two four-armed Foot bots leap through the broken window, wielding tantōs and clubs. Casey grits his teeth and rushes at them with a shout, tackling both to the ground as a third and a fourth sneak in. Two arrows skewer them through the head and Diaval readies another fluidly.

Raphael tugs Leonardo onto his shell, piggybacking him as best he can.

"This way!" April shouts, grabbing her dad's wrist as they head for the hallway.

Another bot appears, causing April to scream. Donatello reacts instantly, spinning around and throwing his bō staff like a javelin. It hits the bot between the eyes, pinning its head to the wall.

With the assailant down, April snatches up Destiny's backpack and heads out, her dad, Raphael, and Donatello following. They reach the bottom floor and Donatello kicks the door open, bō staff at the ready, and Rahzar drops down directly in front of them. The skeletal dog snarls and rears back, towering over Donatello, but his ears perk as a scream from above distracts him.

"This is for my brother!" Michelangelo hollers.

A couch sails out the broken window and flattens Rahzar, who makes the dog equivalent to a cry of pain. Casey and Michelangelo drop down from the above balcony, joining the others.

Diaval climbs onto the fire escape as Tiger Claw opens fire on the group with his pistol, causing them to run. Diaval aims his arrow and shoots, hitting the tiger mutant's gun out of his paw with a cry of shock. The teenagers below keep sprinting away.

"You," Tiger Claw growls upon seeing the archer. "Traitor!"

A pair of Foot bots appear on the ledge, glaring down at him with emotionless eyes. Diaval steps back, aiming his bow at them, and they make a robotic screeching noise and lunge. He fires, skewering both of them through the head with one arrow, but more take their place. He nears the edge of the fire escape and casts a fleeting glance over his shoulder towards the ground. His back presses against the railing, the bots still advancing.

He lets another arrow fly, taking out its target, but it does little to halt their advance. Two bots rush him, his eyes widening, and he stumbles back only to tip off the edge. He gasps and shuts his eyes as he soars towards the concrete, his gut lurching as he musters every bit of his levitation magic.

He lands on what feels like a cushion. He bounces once, flipping over as he wobbles in midair. Twice; he pinwheels his arms and tries to regain control as his cloak covers his eyes. He lands a third time, his magic "cushion" pops, and he face-plants against the concrete. He groans and stumbles to his feet, dazed, and starts fighting with the cloak obscuring his vision.

"Brace yourself, dude!"

A solid hand snags the back of his cloak and he's flung off his feet, going weightless for a second. The second ends and he hits solid ground, the sound of a door slamming ringing in his ears. He finally gets his cloak out of his eyes to find himself in a van with all four turtles, Casey and April in the front seat, and no sign of Mr. O'Neil.

He looks out the back window as the van careens around corners, finally noticing a gargantuan Kraang brain in a robotic suit towering above them; Kraang Prime. Mutagen hits the ground directly behind their vehicle, purple crystals erupting wherever the ooze touches.