April hurriedly supplied herself with weapons, stuffing them into the hidden pockets on her jumpsuit. Her heart raced and her hands shook as she pinned her fiery red hair up in a sleek ponytail. There was no time to waste looking in the mirror, so she instinctively ran a hand over the top of her head, willing the baby hairs to stay flat. But she already knew they wouldn't obey.
Her room was dark except for the dim lamp on the end table beside her bed. But it was very dim, only illuminating a few inches out. Her eyes had adjusted to the dark at this point. She quickly stored the last of her essentials and headed out the window.
The Shellraiser waited for her on the street below. She shimmied down the fire escape and dashed to the vehicle, hopping inside just as the side door opened. The turtles greeted her, and they were off.
Everyone was silent during the ride that seemed to last for hours, when in reality it was rather short. They were all lost in their own thoughts. There was nothing to be said. Nothing to go over. Mental preparation was an unspoken priority, for they didn't know what they might find.
After they pulled up, they filed inside. It was routine. They did it at least once a month. Leo didn't need to tell them what to do; every step was already memorized. They knew the basic layout of the building, and few rooms were unknown to them.
But on this night, tension was heavy, and the air was thick. No one knew what to expect. They might find something wonderful, or something tragically disappointing. The way they reacted would depend on their mindset. Either they could be prepared to accept whatever they found, or take it hard and live with those thoughts for the rest of their lives. They were all working on making the right decision.
Once inside, Donnie took the lead, frequently glancing at his phone for direction. Casey was close. He could practically feel the hockey player vibes. But then again, maybe it was just his imagination. He couldn't know for sure if it was reality, or simply his hopes rising to consume him.
"Spread out," Leo ordered when Donnie finally announced they were at the right place. While his brothers and April fell back, disappearing into the shadows, Leo gently pushed the door open. When he looked inside, he realized it was Shredder's personal dojo. One could tell by the traditional, yet elaborate designs of the tatami mats and room dividers.
He slipped through, eyes darting every which way. One by one, his team members followed, placing themselves in different areas of the dojo. They wouldn't want to all be be cornered in one place should an attack arise.
As far as they could tell, no one was around. Perhaps Donnie's tracker had led them to the wrong room. All was silent, as it should be when a room was unused. Which reminded Mikey . . .
"I think it's time," he whispered. His brothers' heads snapped up to where he was hiding, annoyed. "It's quiet. Too quiet."
There. He'd said it. Finally, after all those years waiting for the perfect moment, he'd gotten his chance, and he took it. Leo wasn't the only one who could pull it off, he'd reminded himself time and time again.
"So glad you could come." Karai emerged from the darkness, arms at her sides. Leo's team, though hidden, could feel her eyes on them. She knew where each of them crouched.
"Cut the crap, Karai," Raph snarled, stepping out on the opposite end of the room from Leo.
"No need to get impatient."
"Yes need to get impatient." He squared his shoulders. "After all these years you still haven't figured out that we don't like standing around throwing dialogue back and forth."
Her left eyebrow arched upwards. "I thought you enjoyed it, since you're always the one making the snarky comments, Raphael."
"Just shut up. Your voice gives me a headache."
She chuckled, unfazed by his extreme rudeness. "Oh, you're just so full of insults, aren't you?"
Donnie rolled his eyes. "So much for cutting the crap."
"Yeah." Leo took a step toward her, pointing a katana at her threateningly. He backed up Donatello's statement and asked, "where's Casey?"
Karai clicked her tongue. "Tsk, tsk. So impatient."
"Stop playing around. You wanted us here, so what do you want?"
"You already know what we want."
"Then get on with it," he taunted as she drew her sword.
As was the custom in regular battles with Karai, her ninjas poured in through every entrance, keeping each member of the Hamato clan on their feet. This was unfortunate because all they really wanted to do was find Casey and take him home. Every minute was going to waste as they used their energy to fend off the Foot.
"He's in here somewhere, Leo! I can feel it!" Donnie shouted above the clashing of weapons and the beating of his own heart drumming in his ears.
Leo braced himself against a heavy blow from a Foot soldier. The force sent him skidding across the floor. He quickly chanced a glance around the room at his companions, who were also engaged in heated battles. "April! Mikey! Scour the place for Casey! We'll cover you!" He called out the orders authoritatively, his role as leader coming into play.
Trusting the remaining three to take over their individual duels, April and Mikey removed themselves from the fight and ran back and forth throughout the dojo, eyes peeled. It was a larger dojo than they were used to, with different areas separated by dividers and hidden places for practicing surprise attacks. Overall very impressive. But also rather frustrating.
Donnie was right. They knew Casey was around. It was almost as if they could reach out and touch him. But only the version of him they'd each seen last. At first they told themselves it was merely their foolish hopes that made them feel it so strongly. But when Mikey raised an excited shout, hope became overjoyed reality.
The number of ninjas left was slowly dwindling down to about twenty. Leo held off Karai, who seemed to be trying to reach the corner where Mikey crouched. Raph and Don formed a two-turtle wall against the rest of the ninjas, working together to keep them herded in one spot.
April scurried around a divider, bumping into it on her way to Michaelangelo. The fighting faded into the background as she looked down. Beside him, propped up against the wall, sat an almost unrecognizable boy. His cheeks were smeared with dirt and grime, and his hair was unruly. He looked exhausted. Beaten.
He leaned heavily to one side, tight ropes digging into the flesh on his bony arms. Dark, purple lines circled his under eyes. What little clothing he had was old and torn. Mikey worked to release him from his bonds as April rushed to his side.
"Casey!" She cried, falling before him. "Casey, it's me! April!" Something in her nose tingled uncomfortably. Her vision blurred as her eyes struggled to hold the flood of tears threatening to pour forth. But they came anyway, and fat tears rolled down her cheeks.
Casey's eyes fluttered. It was a struggle, but he managed to lift them open. When he looked down and noticed the girl sobbing into his shoulder, heard the desperate murmuring of her voice begging him to wake up, warmth spread through him. "Hey, Red," he whispered hoarsely.
Her head snapped up. A smile, tired and missing at least one more tooth, greeted her. His dull eyes searched her's, which shined from the tears she continued to shed. She started to speak, but the words got trapped in her throat. Only her lips moved.
The ropes fell from around Casey's frail body. Mikey scooped him up, causing April to scoot back in surprise. She jumped up and followed the mutant back out to the fight scene, sticking close to the dark-haired boy, afraid he would suddenly disappear again before they made it out.
"Leo! Let's go!" Mikey called, already running past the few ninjas left standing.
His brothers looked up, saw the body in their youngest sibling's arms, and returned to the fight with renewed vigor, finishing off the last of the Foot. Casey had been found. They could go home.
"We'll finish this later." Leo sent Karai a mock salute, ducked out of the way of her swinging blade, and rushed to catch up with his team.
They headed out of the dojo, flying back through the halls they'd come. The brothers didn't look back, only around to make sure they weren't being followed. If Karai had decided to pursue them, she wasn't being quick about it. April glanced worriedly at Casey every five seconds.
The night air had never felt so inviting as it did when they burst out the door moments later. Straight to the Shellraiser they ran to load their friend up. Donnie sat with him on the ride back, checking him for injuries. April stayed as close as she possibly could. Leo drove. Raph and Mikey sat jiggling their knees, tangling and retangling their fingers.
Silence was the only sound loud enough to recognize.