Leo's POV
We're finally out on the rooftops, doing something other than sitting and waiting around in the lair. The coil of dread still sits like a tight knot in my stomach, but a glimmer of a hope that's been missing finally comes back now that we're out and doing something about all of this.
We're heading for Casey and April's signals on the trackers on our T-phones; doing our best to catch up and help them as soon as possible in their road chase. Who knows what's happened by now? I just know as soon as we catch those two idiots we'll have to get whatever information we can out of them.
"I see the van! We're almost there!" Donnie yells to us as the wind whips past. I look down at the street below and spot the van too. As well as Casey still skating behind it at a distance and dodging to defend himself as Rahzar fires a laser at him, hanging outside of the back of the van. April isn't far behind, running after them as she uses her powers to just barely help the other cars on the street avoid the van before any accidents could happen.
"Hey, that street up ahead's blocked off, they're gonna make a left! We can–"
"Whoa!" Raph's cut off when Mikey's the first to land on the building that was just ahead of us. We were all so focused on the street fight below, we hadn't even noticed the number of foot bots that were growing amongst those already standing on the rooftop. We halted on the opposite end of the building as soon as we landed there, not daring to move any further. More and more bots seemed to climb up endlessly from below and populate their end of the roof. There were beginning to be so many, where were they coming from? They appeared one by one until there were about thirty of them standing on the opposite end; a full fleet. Some of the first to reach the top notice my brothers and me, but make no move to attack. The rest remained clueless while watching the last remaining robots finish their ascent up onto the building. But they all stood there idly as if waiting for something to happen.
Just before I was about to arm myself, one last figure appeared from below the rooftop. A stalky, male, human figure dressed in all black protruded from the top floor of the building to join the fleet.
"Wha– who is that?" Raph tightens his hold on his weapons, ready to pounce. It's not everyday we see a random guy just running around with a legion of Foot soldiers.
The blond figure notices us immediately, and his brows knit together in what I'd want to say was probably confusion, but the way he reacted led me to believe it could've been otherwise. And his new stark expression didn't change much from the old stark one upon seeing us. It for sure isn't a face that looks like it goes through many different expressions.
"The turtles..." I barely catch him mumbling decisively.
"Foot bots?" Donnie wonders aloud.
"If he's with Foot bots, that means he's working with the Shredder." Raph jabs his sai towards him accusingly, even if we are greatly outnumbered.
The guy responds by crossing his arms and setting his feet apart, as if confirming our suspicions with his body language. He stood in front of the Foot soldiers instead of amongst them, directly across from me to separate himself from the crowd. Hiding his intent by coming off casual, but still physically ready for any attack. Or to attack. "Returning back to your lair I see?" His eyes momentarily shift down to the building beneath our feet.
"... Our lair? This dump? Gross!" Mikey almost glares at him for suggesting such a thing. "Why would we ever pick this place?"
I quickly hold out my arm and fist to signal Mikey and everyone else to remain quiet.
"Who's asking?"
I'll never know whether he intended to answer that question or not, cause as soon as I finished the question, there was only time to register his smirk before I heard the sound of a car skid followed by a loud crash right after.
Both sides of ninjas look away from the stare down to look at the commotion from below, only to see each of their people fighting down on the street. April and Casey managed to stop the van, and it now lay on its side motionless with a busted tire. We could all see the two teens nearing the van, disregarding the on lookers whose cars were forced to stop nearby. Suddenly, leaving no reaction time from them, Fishface busted through the side window and came out all knives blazing, throwing one after the other at our two friends. They counter in different directions and start to counterattack in their own ways, but it's not going to be enough for long.
"Raph, go help April and Casey."
"You got it, chief." His sais gleam in the light of the night as he takes out one and sends it flying towards another knife Fishface was gripping and was ready to throw before he even jumps down to help our friends.
"What's our game plan?" Donnie narrows his eyes at the group across from us and arms himself with his staff.
"Same as them down there: find out what he knows."
And so the fight on the rooftop begins, towering about 40 feet above the other. The black-clad stranger seemed more than happy to engage in hand to hand combat with me. It only took a span of a few seconds to meet each other in the middle of the rooftop as the battle exploded around us. He was strong, probably not as strong as Raph, but he knows how to use it well. I can tell when we make contact in the force of his attacks.
"So I take it the Foot's hiring?" I grunt out in between blows.
"Not exactly."
The answer was vague and curt, followed right after by a swift roundhouse kick that I avoid just in time. No time is wasted between his last and next attack, fighting aggressively in the stylized way that focuses primarily on wearing down your opponent first before taking them down. Already there's something familiar about his fighting style.
But I can't let that distract me, I can't let him gain any advantage.
He lunges at me strangely, making it easy for me to dodge and slipping past me. When I turn to face him, he's holding a sword. Not a sword– my sword. My eyes widen. I lift my arms above my head towards my backside, closing my fists only to grip one of my swords, and feel my left katana blade missing. He's fast too...
Without meaning to, I growl as my teeth grit, jaw sets, and I take out my remaining weapon. I set myself in a sparring position, showing that I'm ready to take him on, all will blazing.
We both lunge at each other, weapons clashing with a strident screech. I land a kick on his chest and aim for between his eyes. The swords lock in a t position, and I glare at him past my sword that's splitting perfectly down his face.
"What then? Cause they've never seemed too eager to let new people in before." He struggles to keep my grip from letting the sword come any closer to his face.
As if I've insulted him by asking this, his expression darkens and he harnesses enough strength to push our swords towards the ground so mine slides off of his and hits the ground instead of him. He sweeps my sword he's holding under my legs, but I jump and dodge, striking my sword down again to lock the swords again in an X. He offers that infernal smirk, not struggling as much before to hold his own. "Trying to find out about your girlfriend, are we?"
And just like that, something snaps inside of me. The next key of information. This new guy knows about Y/n.
He knows.
And with that infernal smirk that sends uneasiness down my spine, my simmering anger bubbles up and doubles in amount at the surface.
But I was sloppy, and I let the change in emotion out on display too long. The stranger quit resisting against my sword and rolled toward his front out of the way, letting my force make me stumble slightly past him. I correct myself quickly and turn back to face him, but not quick enough as he's throwing my sword aside like it were plastic, and connecting his foot with my chest.
My shell hits the edge of the rooftop, almost half of it hanging dangerously off the side over the street below. Pushing past the momentary dizziness of his force, I regain my head and relocate the monster. My teeth grit at the sight of his amused expression as he makes his way over. But it doesn't last for long when Mikey gets in his way while the guy tries to run towards me, Mikey throwing a blinding smoke bomb at a robot and causing the new recruit to abruptly stop in his sprint before he could've run through blindly and stumbled over the edge. Instead, he stumbles backwards, coughing and buying me more time. I don't waste another moment before turning myself over to get a quick glimpse of the skirmish below. April and Casey hold up just fine, especially now that Raph's there to back them up, but the battle could still swing either way. Not to mention the dozens of people running away in terror or standing stiffly from yards away and still watching the bizarre scene go down. It's...
"Too conspicuous..."
"You seem to be getting distracted." He reaches behind his back to pull out a couple of throwing blades in between his fingers. "That's how you lost her in the first place."
As much as I'd enjoy staying here and pounding this guy into submission, I needed to do something about the situation below. And quick.
"Keep fighting!" I shout to my brothers before jumping off of the building, just missing his knives. A scream comes from behind my right, where I've landed right next to a man holding a camera phone towards all the action, but who's gaping at me. I can't help but roll my eyes. Those who stay and watch in situations like these just to take pictures are a fine example of survival of the fittest.
I leave him to run off in the opposite direction while I run across the street, ducking and rolling to where April's perched behind an overturned vehicle and levitating Rahzar.
"Ninjas! Come on!"
"Aw, just when it was getting good!"
"We're running?!" Raph yells as Casey and him catch up to us.
"No, we're taking this to the rooftops."
I turn to lead them into the alley, but the new kid's already down here, staring us down. If he wants me, he can come and get me. He reaches to retrieve a weapon from his belt, but we didn't stick around to find out his intentions. Raph throws down a smoke bomb just in time before whatever he threw can get to us. And as soon as the smoke clears and the four of us are transported somewhere else, we hit the ground running. Heading for the back of a closed off alley, we get to climbing as soon as soon as the fire escape is in our reach. Only a split second later do I hear an explosion, and stop while hanging from the building to turn my head out towards the street. I can just barely see him from here: standing before a giant hole he's created in the road; bits of ashes and ember coming from it, smoldering where we had just been standing seconds before. An oncoming car attempts to swerve and miss the small explosion, but skids and crashes into the hole.
Looks like it's not just new soldiers the Foot's been recruiting. I've never seen that kind of weapon before.
The criminal looks for us on the street, but doesn't see us until after he's heard us already climbing halfway up the side of the old warehouse and its noisy, metal fire escapes. By the time we're close to the top, he's ordered a fleet of Foot to follow him already almost halfway up the side of the building opposite of us. Not surprising for them, but I wasn't expecting him to be just as fast of a climber as trained robots with no physical boundaries.
Almost back to the top, I look over at Raph as he's clearly annoyed that he's not fighting this persistent guy himself, then gives me a look. "Remind me why we're running again?"
I return the same unamused look at the question. Donnie and Mikey appear at the edge of the roof to give us a hand, but when they reach down to help us up, something catches Donnie's eye from the other building. "Uh oh..."
Quickly following their distraught expressions, I turn to look for the new soldier, but before I could realize it, he was jumping over straight towards me from the opposite building. He came at me, using both of his feet and his weight to hit the back of my shell and send the both of us crashing through the window I was passing over.
It reminds me of something Karai would do.
"Leo!"
I growl and move quickly, kicking him off hard enough to send him back into the wooden floor. The room is mostly dark with all the holed up windows. But from behind him, my brothers and friends fill the window pane as they file in and prepare to fight. I know he can hear them right behind him, but he pays no attention to them.
"Leo, who is this guy?" April speaks up, eyes squinted with confusion.
"Need some help with this one?"
"Not even for a second," I answer Raph, balling my fists as I get up. "Besides," my eyes shift slightly as all the empty window panes occupy with the remaining Foot soldiers, bug eyes pushing their way through the panes like death through a graveyard. "You've got other company."
Gripping his stick, Casey adopts a mischievous smirk, and I know it's on. "Great, you guys saved some for us!"
And so the fight ensued.
Our John Doe went for me and I met his roundhouse kick with a hard, resonating dodge and punch straight to his chest. Raphael and the others scattered all around us to pursue the black androids with volatile intention. Blares of discordant altercations and derisive quips, closely layered with weapon on weapon and the grunts of wrangling. While he's knocked off balance, I tackle him, but he anticipates and switches our positions so I land the rickety floors. He started landing solid punches onto my chest to no avail thanks to my hard shelled plastron.
As much as I'd love to mop the floor with this smug creep, I don't have the time for an all out brawl when our time could be used for something much more important.
I use all the force of my knee to kick him off as a counterattack. I moved swiftly, getting up and punching and kicking. He fought back just as hard. But within mere seconds I throw him against it and press my forearm to pin him against the wall, a knife against his throat for good measure. "Tell me where she is! You have her don't you?!"
He grins cynically, completely unfazed. "So desperate," he chuckles. With a quick flash, white claims my vision and powder infiltrates my eyes with enormous pressure. I stumble back rapidly, instantly filling distance between us now that I can't see any oncoming attack. The powder coats my throat faster than I can inhale first, which causes me to hack dryly. Weirdly enough, I never sense any attack coming, and I could tell him presence was gone; no longer near enough to me to make a move.
All there is, is blur and a thick tint of white, only somewhat transparent over my eyes. I was practically blind, but that won't keep my from fighting.
A red blob does enter my field of vision amongst the tall black figures fighting my brothers, and the coinciding Brazilian accent cuts through the rest of the chaos. "We've got unfinished business, tartaruga!"
"No!" I hear a throaty voice responding. "Go! We'll handle them. Finish the job."
Squinting harder than I've ever had to before, a familiar metal ball with red glowing all over it makes obvious Fishface's intentions. "Fine, but before we go, let me help you out."
"Raph! Look out!" I bark out into the open. I had no idea where he was at the moment, but was certain Fishface wouldn't be aiming that mini explosive at anyone other than him. Especially when he's preoccupied with several foot bots at once.
A sound of metal panging against wood and a deep laugh before that blur starts back through the window slot again. Before I can say anything else, I hear the crash of an explosion. Fear grips my insides, pulling mercilessly. The crash of an explosion goes off, followed by the impact of what I think was robot parts, fortunately. I hear the celebration of Raph and Casey's cheers, then grab my swords before trying to see which direction Fishface and Rahzar are going.
"Move it, flea bag!" Fishface yells and the van skids off, nearly colliding with a taxi that was forced to skid to a halt as it passed.
"April and Casey! Forget what I said! Don't let that van get away! Find out what they're getting!"
"On it, Leo! Let's go, Red!"
"I don't think so." The same throaty voice threatens from a whole other part of the room. More metal clanks against the wooden floor. Intentional clanks moving across the room. When it stops, it ends around the same direction it seemed Casey had been talking. What felt like a split second of silence before the storm was followed by a horrible soprano squeal. A noise that wasn't human, but machine; mechanical. Cries of anguish ring out and I'm forced to my knees from disorientation, clasping my hands over my ears to void off the tenderness and pressure that screech causes in my ears. It's muffled sufficiently enough that it doesn't affect me, but when I look up and squint, I can make out how Donnie's eyes widen as he stops to stare at the redhead he's been nobly fighting alongside. "April?"
"Casey! What's wrong?!" Mikey does the same, looking upon the two in fear as they writhe and yelp on the floor, hands over their ears, same as us, but squirming about in pain.
"Get that away from him!" Mikey shouts before getting cut off by his own grunt.
"Grab them!"
"Guys... what's going on?!" I shout helplessly. My hands ease on my ears slightly, but it's no use when the sharp pain comes through again.
Again, I spot two black figures, still writhing on the floor. But it's like trying to see through foggy glasses after you've taken a shower. And when more black figures appear and begin to overwhelm and drag the first ones, I finally get the idea.
"Help!" April screams in pain.
"You're coming with us."
"No!" I jump up and stumble as best I can through the hazy vision and dizzying ringing, but the foot bots have already got a struggling April and Casey at the window now. And with my shoddy eyesight it was only a matter of when I'd trip over something with all the debris from our skirmish. And it was soon.
I connect to the floor with a hard thud several feet from the window, where I can tell my friends are very still now. A bright pinkish, purple glow appears behind the threat, and before I can do anything, the remaining Foot bots are rushing out the window into oblivion. Into that glowing presence hovering in the air. I can't get up because that horrible screech is still sounding, rendering me too weak to move quickly enough. More and more bodies disappear from the room faster than I can count, then the distorted glow suddenly vanishes in a blink.
"No!"
"Guys– guys, what was that?!"
Finally, the room goes completely silent. When I look behind my shoulder, Donnie stands over a piece of technology, the blade of his staff impaled through it. Slowly, my hands relax away from my ears.
"It was a Kraang portal..."
I feel a hand on my arm that starts to help me up, and a mix of red and green answers me next. "They're gone. They got away."
"And they took April and Casey with them."
Karai's POV
The more blood that seeps out, the more screams I hear. These added in, sharpened, artificial nails at the end of my metallic gloves do a nice job of cutting into her skin the way I need it to. I can guide my finger as slowly and smoothly as I want while dealing with minimal struggling and maximum pain reaction.
Just the way I like it.
She starts heaving again as I take the nail of my index finger out of her skin and pick up where I left off with the shape I'm carving underneath her right collar bone.
I guess it didn't help that most of it was over a bruise. It's the details between being cruel and pushing to the breaking point.
I finish connecting the line to where I had first started carving, completing the shape. Then comes the lines: stabbing, cutting, each line longer than the others to portray the toes of the Foot symbol I've just carved into her chest. I thought the reminder would be nice.
Her head thrashed left and right, her torso trying to condense into a space away from my nails. But there was nowhere to go.
"Don't worry. It won't leave a scar... probably, anyway."
It's been about twenty-three minutes since I sent Scott out to search the abandoned building grounds and I haven't heard any word back yet. So I've been spending more time with our victim, teaching her a lesson in respect and how to know her place.
"What's the matter? Can't take much more? Maybe some more alone time in the tanning bed will do you some good."
Her breath hitches, body tensing even more than it already was.
"It's been a while that you've been here. Isn't your knight in shining armor going to come save you?" She takes another deep breath but flares up at me at those words, and a faint trace of green mist clouds her eyes around the pupils like before. I smirk, pleased with this reaction, but then give her another punch to the stomach. Hard enough to make her start coughing up blood.
I like to make sure to knock her back down to size whenever she's feeling any kind of residual strength.
Like I said: details.
I look down at her and force her chin back up, holding it tightly so she doesn't move. That green mist has disappeared, replaced with fear and despair in her e/c eyes as she wheezes.
I have to say, life is enjoyable when things go your way.
"Answer me, Princess."
"I-I don't know..." she answers weakly, voice chilled and dried.
"Don't worry. He'll show up eventually. And when he does, I'll have my revenge." I say casually, thinking about all the lies I've heard both of them tell now. I shrug. "Or whenever my team of footbots find the lair location you so graciously told us about." Her expression doesn't change like I expected it to. She had looked ashamed before, but right now she's obviously frightened, and looks to be on the verge of tears again. Which is satisfactory enough for me. For now. "But until then, I have plenty more I want to do with you."
I hear the door opening– finally. I turn to see Scott leaning in the doorway, ready to report.
"Nothing." He shakes his head. "Nothing down there to report. We looked everywhere. All it is, is an abandoned warehouse. That nearly collapsed on us."
My previous smile was gone. I look at her, her expression as weak and pathetic as before, then turn back to him. "You're sure?"
"We searched every inch."
My jaw sets out of offense as I turn to her again. "You've got some nerve thinking you could ever sneak something past me like this, Y/n. I guess you enjoy being hurt."
"Nevertheless, your enemies did still show up there and we were forced to confront them. But there's no secret lair down there."
"Y-you're n-not looking hard en-nough." She lies unconvincingly. Of course that's my doing, she had the energy and strength to tell a convincing enough story before. But if she thinks she can lie to me, I still have work to do.
"They seemed to be coming from farther away, not just below ground."
I look back over to Scott, ignoring her. "Are you certain they weren't hiding out there?"
"The dumb one seemed to be insulted I thought they would ever live there. I don't think their lair is anywhere near that warehouse... But, I do have some good news. We got two of her friends."
In the corner of my eye, Y/n snaps her head up. This brings a grin to my face.
"Really. Who?"
"The redhead and hockey mask guys you were telling me about."
I laugh out of pure sense of humor. This is rich. Not only do I have the turtles' little pet, but now I have their much less adequate friends. "My luck just got better."
"We encountered them interfering with Bradford and Xever's mission on the way back here. The Turtles caught up with them too, but I kept them from moving any further with some blinding powder and the portal before they could retrieve their friends."
"Good work, Scott. Make sure they're secured and leave 'em upstairs, don't let them out of your sights. The turtles still might not be far behind."
Scott nods and leaves as quickly as he came. When I look back at the dreadful mess in the chair, I notice the change in her eyes. I practically see the wheels turning in her head.
"Don't even bother getting your hopes up. Those two have no chance of saving you. You'll only be out of this once I say you are."
"W-what are you going to d-do t-to them?"
"That's none of your business."
Her fists clench on the chair arms and she almost starts to look mad again. "Actually–" She starts, but then something snaps and she cuts herself off, her angry expression swapped for a scared one. She stopped herself from talking back. Just when I thought she was too dumb to teach anything.
"What was that?"
She closes her mouth, possibly almost learning what I've spent the last half hour trying to "teach" her.
"Answer me."
"N-nothing..."
I grab the long stick I've been using from the Kraang to electrocute her with and activate it with a loud crackle, just for the sake of terrifying her. And it works better than I expected it to when she flinches hard.
"Nothing! I'm sorry! I'm sorry..." She nearly whimpers out from the menacing sound, closing her eyes tight and turning her head away.
"That's better." I put the stick back down on the small table a few feet from her, then get to thinking about what all of this means.
If Jones and O'Neil are here, and the turtles had been with them trying to get here, they'll still be showing up to save her a day sooner than I thought. Which means I better get cracking on more of the teaching I plan to do.
I step forward and reach for her, ready to make some more red marks on her. Until she flinches and begins to whimper while shaking, and I stop. A smirk creeps onto my face. It seems she's finally learning her place.
"... I suppose you've had enough," I recoil my hand and set my chin on it in thought. I can see bags starting to form under eyes from being here so long. It reminds me of an old idea. "I'll allow you some more sleep while I go prepare things for your friends. If you can..." She stares up at me in silence, looking like she doesn't know what to say. I can imagine she's not convinced I'll actually be kind to her and let her sleep at all. Especially a sleep that's not induced by someone knocking her out. And she's right.
I walk towards door, grabbing the light switch, but then stopping to look at her and add on, "That is, if you don't mind noise while you sleep." With that, I turn off the lights so it's pitch black, and leave her in there with zero visibility. I hear a gasp just before the door closes. There was no way I was gonna forget about her third listed fear. I already appealed to her anxiety over claustrophobia and drowning, now it's time to play with her fear of the dark. I tap some settings on the screen next to the metal door, pulling up a six-and-a-half hour recording and leaving it to play. Just before I walk off, I hear the sounds of blood-curling screams reverberating through the basement room. That combination of real life screams and pleads from victims of my father's previous torture incidents, and the taunting pitch dark will mess with her mind plenty after over six hours.
Sleep tight, Princess.
Leo's POV
How can this have happened?
How can this have happened?!
We're back in the sewers again, and for what? For anything but to be out there saving my girl right now from the clutches of that gothic psycho.
I can't see anything but a maddening white blur that mutes any color of the shapes and figures before me. Even with my training of enhancing other senses, the panic of voices around me and rapid movements behind my vision create a slur of thoughts in my reeling head.
The smell of the sewers hit me quick, and soon enough the smell of the chemicals in Donnie's lab reached me next. Even as they forced me down on the lab table to be treated on all I can think is,
They have her
They have her...
They have her...
They have her!
They can't have her!
Because if they do, and they've been keeping her this whole time, it means she's been in the Shredder's clutches for seventeen hours with no one by her side. She's probably scared out of her mind, wondering if I'm ever going to rescue her.
The thought made my muscles twitch, and almost convulsed to get up into an upright position. But a pair of hands grip down forcefully at my arms to keep them laid on the table like the rest of me.
"Don't. Let him finish."
"This is a waste of time."
"You can't even see, dude. You were way spaced out back there."
"I'm fine, there are more important things!"
After months and months of research and quarrels, it's safe to say we know the Foot's moves. Their intentions and how they play their games. Kidnapping the most harmless of the bunch, recruiting new members, that's not a usual for the Shredder.
When they held April hostage before, or went after Casey, or Splinter, or any one of us, they made sure that we knew.
They always send a message, to get us into their clutches. So why wait almost a day to let us know at a chance encounter?
Was he waiting for us to notice?
But that still doesn't make sense. They want us to come for them, that's for sure. That's always what they want. To finish this feud once and for all, no doubt...
I can't help my impatient wriggling while Donnie flushes my eyes out, adding another sensory distraction to the list of things occupying my focus right now.
Maybe this isn't all about Y/n. Maybe they only started with taking her. Their plan could only be in the first phase after all. They could've taken her and April and Casey too to get at us and force us out of hiding.
"Leo...? What are you thinking?"
I don't know why he had to ask that question. When what I'm thinking is the last thing I'd ever want to speak into existence. When cold liquid is still assaulting my eyes and not allowing me to blink.
Nevertheless, I force my voice to sound calm. I can't let them know of all the noise in my head; can't let my worse-case-scenario thoughts become real...
"So... to recap: the Foot's got some new crazy soldier, he's practically blinded Leo. April and Casey are gone with them, and probably captured in his lair by now."
"Where they'll be expecting us." Donnie finishes, and I grunt in agreement since I can't nod while he's still working on me.
"I'm thinking Shredder's found a new way to get us into his trap... But also that, if they've got a newly recruited member when they can always make as many bots as they want, something else must be happening."
"Maybe they're planning another mutation?" Donnie tries. "But that wouldn't explain why they'd need that blond guy here."
"I'm starting to think we should've followed them and gotten April and Casey back when we had the chance." Mikey's voice sounded dejected as he spoke aloud his thoughts.
"And fall right into their trap? They were expecting us, it wouldn't have been a logical fight on our part."
"Either way, we're not doin' so hot."
"Maybe we weren't before, but we're so close right now. We know where she is, we know who has her." A couple dabs to the face with a towel before two taps on my shoulder let me know Donnie's finally done. I sit up and blink rapidly. It wasn't what I expected... I guess I shouldn't have expected my vision to be restored. But I figured all the trouble we just went through would get my eyesight back better than this. Everything's still murky and distorted. Though, masks and weapons and knee pads stick out more easily, so I can see outlines and colors more clearly.
"How's that?"
"It's fine." I rub my eyes and blink away the irritation. I immediately face the three, flat and to the point. "Look, it's important that we get Y/n out of Shredder's clutches as soon as possible. Too much could have happened by now. They'll be expecting us no matter what. The best we can do is gear up and prepare for battle. Plus, as soon as we free April and Casey they can help us get everyone out of there. Rescue and retreat only." I get to my feet, but notice the three of them looking between each other. Probably wondering if I can actually after all.
"Uh, are you sure you wanna do this right now? Cause... you weren't really much help out there after you lost your eyesight."
"We don't rest until the mission's complete." I answer. "Let's go." A hand sets on my shoulder and I can recognize it has Donnie's again, stopping me.
"I really hate to say this, but we can't go back out yet."
I spin on him. "Why not? What could be so important?"
"You can barely see, our friends just got captured." Donnie crosses his arms and his voice is as serious as I've ever heard it. "We can't go rushing into this with half of a leader. You're barely thinking straight, Leo."
"Harsh..." I hear mumbled under Mikey's breath.
"Donnie–"
"Look, the blinding powder he hit you with is effective, but weak. You should take the time to let it wear off enough in about an hour–"
"An hour?!"
"And even then it won't be completely gone. But you'll have most of your vision back. And in the meantime, you can go train. Release some tension, fall apart. Do whatever it is you need to do. But we need our leader back..." He approaches me slowly while never breaking eye contact. His face has the seriousness of a mortician. And, aside from the main situation, the last thing I wanted to face right now is said straight to my face; the undeniable fact that I've been a horrible leader ever since I agreed to let her come along to that patrol with us. "She needs the real you to come back. For her sake."
My mouth opens to protest, prove him otherwise or say anything that would've helped us to get moving back to topside. But as my throat goes dry, I sense any kind of groundless argument I could've mustered up fleeting away.
"Please, Leo."
My lips clamp shut even though I don't want them to, and I sigh slowly through the frustration. My knees sink, and I collapse defeatedly in the middle of my brother's science lab. It's taking everything in me to not run out right now and intrude The Foot headquarters myself.
"Good... Just an hour. I promise, it'll fly by like that."
It didn't.
In fact, every minute felt like one.
Every tick of the clock in my room reminded me of every horrible thing that could be going on with our friends right now.
And I couldn't even think about eating.
So, I somehow found myself in the dojo. The others haven't bothered trying to talk to me. I don't blame them. Maybe I could use some alone time to reflect on my thoughts. At the very least I know that.
For what felt like hours, I spent on the punching dummy. Either punching the bag hard enough to turn my knuckles red, or missing the dummy completely.
Everything little thing set me off. Every miss. Every lame hit. The fact that the dummy was still hanging on the stand, tempting me to punch it again. The quietness of the lair as if everything were going right.
For once I knew what Raph must feel like all the time. Wanting to do now and think later. Forgetting any else but the objective. Act on impulse when there's nothing else that should be done beforehand.
Punch after punch, I wouldn't let up. I wanted every ounce of this anger and frustration to be released into the blows. But when it didn't work it only created more rage and anxiety within me. The screws rattled loudly and I noticed the fabric starting to wear with every strike. But I couldn't stop, and kept up with every resistant punch, each one harder than the last as I couldn't control myself any longer.
The emotions built up to a breaking point, and I jumped up into a spin kick. I sent all of my force into the dummy, and sent it rattling and swinging back and forth.
Out of breath, I nearly collapsed onto the post that was holding it up, taking a moment to get enough air back into my lungs.
"Not bad for a blind guy."
There's no response. I'm too preoccupied trying to catch my breath. I hear a sigh.
"Uh... how are you holding up?"
My eyes close, and I press my forehead to my arms, slowing my breathing. "She's my..." I sigh. "She's my weakness, Raph..." I pull my head out of my arms, staring at the wall. "I can't stand here without feeling like... exploding... All this anger raging inside of me, I can't contain it." I turn to him, letting my thoughts pour out. "They've had her since yesterday, and they haven't even sent out a message to mess with us about it? Why would they do this of all things so differently? What does it mean? And– why is he here?!"
"I don't know, big brother. But I do know, that we're gonna go out there soon, and we're gonna get her back no matter what the cost. That's what we do."
"I'm not even in the right head space right now, Raph. I can't lead the team like this. I've been making mistakes all day– ever since I was dumb enough to leave her in the lair in the first place."
"Hey, who says leaders aren't allowed to make mistakes?"
"I do." My expression darkens as I glance at him. "When it hurts the people I love; the ones I care about. You can't downplay this." I shake my head helplessly, thinking back to Y/n. "She's innocent. She's not even a part of this and I've dragged her into it by–"
"By what?" I look at Raph whose eye ridge is raised in question. "Giving her a home? Taking care of her?"
"The reason she needed a place to stay was because of me in the first place."
"Leo, right now is not the time to blame yourself. First, it was never your fault. It's not good people's faults if other people are bad. Second, this is the exact kind of insecure leader we've been following around like idiots for the past day. And it's gotten us nowhere. You're being impulsive; acting too much like me." A noticeable shudder from me makes Raphael nod. "Yeah, exactly. And now's not the best time for that is it?"
"I know... I know, but..." I rub a hand over my head, anger subsiding and dread taking over. "I just couldn't forgive myself if they've brain wormed or mutated her or something."
Raph's expression becomes softer as he walks over to me, and he places his hand on my shoulder, looking me in the eyes. "Sometimes you just gotta hope for the best." It feels like my face sinks even deeper. It's not really what I wanted to hear. "Look, things always work out for the best. You would never let anything happen to her."
I couldn't help the negative response. "I've already failed at that."
"You still think there's some good in Karai, right?" I don't have the strength to hide the facial give away, that I was surprised by his remark. But I was also thinking about what I haven't told any of them yet, but that Splinter's told me about Karai. But– it is the truth, so... I know there has to some good in her despite everything. I nod weakly. "Then it can't be as bad as you think. However she's mixed up in this... we're just gonna have to hope you were right. I believe Y/n will be okay. And by the end of the day, I promise this nightmare will be over." He smiled at me genuinely, with no trace of sarcasm or attitude. And I all could do in that moment was step forward and cling to my brother like that was the only thing I could do to fix this situation. Throwing my arms around him as if it would undo everything.
"You've never tried to be nice like this before." I mumble into his shoulder.
"Eh, don't get used to it. I'm sure it'll be gone after we've gotten her back." Raph pats my shell roughly, slight amusement in his voice. He never hesitated to return the embrace. "Like I said before, we're gonna go in there, and we're gonna save her, okay?"
I stare at the floor, and think about what he's telling me. I know what I need to do when we go back out. "No matter what the cost."
A moment later, he pulls away and looks up at me. "I think maybe you need to have some more time with yourself."
"Agreed." Our heads turn to the sliding doors on the other side of the room. A distant, tall, brown figure stood there, who I couldn't mistake as anyone but Master Splinter. I'm sure neither of us could say how long he was standing there, or listening. "I could not have said it better myself, Raphael." But it didn't really matter as he walked over to us with his hands behind his back. "However, I would still like to speak to Leonardo alone."
"Sure, Sensei." With one last glance and slap on the back, Raph leaves the two of us alone. Splinter looks to me.
"Share your troubles with me, my son."
"They..." I start, then force myself to tell him. "She has Y/n, Sensei..." A pang of sorrow flashes through his eyes. His head bows slightly as his eyes close.
"I feared this day would come. The day when a line would be crossed. Miwa remains confused, but it was not one of us this time that she chose to go after for her revenge. As long as she is under the influence of Saki's lies, she will be a threat to those we care about."
"Exactly. Y/n is the only one of us that can't defend herself. And you know happened on that patrol. I don't know if Shredder made her help with this or... I just have this horrible feeling that they might've been planning something special this whole time. Now that she knew Y/n and I were a thing. But then they took April and Casey–"
"April and Casey have been compromised as well?"
I exhale, remembering he hasn't known. "Yes. So maybe she wasn't just after her like I thought? I just– i-it's so confusing and, she's been there for too long." I groan and let my head fall into my hands. "Master, I don't know what to do."
"Do not fret, my son. Instead, you must think about how you will help her once your vision is restored."
I look up at him, taken aback. "Wait, how did you know?"
"... You look very stoned."
"What...? Oh– I see..."
"Pardon the frankness, but there was something that told me that your latest mission would not go well. And seeing as I was correct, I have thought over what ways I could best help you. And while doing so, I remembered a very ancient method of meditation that might be of help." I stare at my Sensei, waiting for him to explain. "It will allow you to see what you need to see."
"Meditation?" I look up at him as he turns around and starts walking. I follow unsurely. "I'll try anything at this point, Sensei, but I'm not sure I could get into a good meditation right now if I tried. I'm not anywhere near the right head space right now to even tell my brothers what to do."
"Trust me, my son. Even in the worst of times, just silence and reflection can be all you need to reach a breakthrough. Do not doubt yourself. It will only make this more difficult." He stops, so I do the same, and when he turns around and nods, I understand why he's walked me this far. So I could do this in the place I always meditate with him. Only this time our friends' lives might depend on it.
Rigidly, I comply and lower myself to the ground, straightening my back more and allowing my shell to rest on the trunk some.
Master Splinter sits himself across from me, setting his green staff down and looking at me to commence. Nevertheless all my doubts, I slow my breathing down to a moderate pace, relax and untense my muscles, and focus on everything but why I'm doing this.
"Good. Harness your energy and attention on Y/n. Focus your thoughts only on her and do not stop." Images of her flash through my mind. Her smile, her hair, her head resting on my chest. Memories of going to Murakami's and laughing at cheesy cartoon shows. The memories lock in my head, continuing to play while Splinter's voice breaks through. "Now think of where she is right now, and what is at stake. Nothing else matters. Focus on your suspicions. And repeat after me." My shoulders tense at the first command, but I bear through the fear and do mas told; recalling her figure walking through the streets. Lost without even knowing it; her free will taken from her by malice. Ignoring people and cars on the street and disappearing into strange alleys. And then I imagine her intercepted by a particular white van, and being pulled in. Or a thinly cloaked Foot bot knocking her out to carry her to headquarters.
Different scenarios play out in my head, almost right in front of me as if they were real; taunting and making me tenser by the second. Master Splinter mutters single syllable words. Pauses in between each utters each with clear diction. He's reciting an incantation I'm not familiar with; a sequence we haven't learned. But I still know the hand motions paired with each and every word, and follow along with him as he chants, and I repeat, design my hands accordingly, and keep the fabricated premonitions in my head. I don't know how long it goes on like this, but as seconds or minutes go by, Sensei's chanting fades and it's just me reciting the old texts from quick memory. At first it's more like a prayer, with no immediate action or reaction. But after several times of repeating it over and over, it hits me all at once. My body jolts, and I gasp to catch my breath. It's like a burst of greater power and energy rushing through my veins; goosebumps spreading over my skin. I could feel everything, the being of everything around me. Like my brain is tuned into a hundred different stations. My heart speeds up tremendously and it concerns me enough that I snap my eyes open without meaning to, but it didn't matter. Everything has turned white. My breathing accelerates, and I'm about to call out to Master Splinter until the bright light disappears and a different picture appears.
First, shackles. Wait– not shackles. Belt restraints with someone's limbs bound down to a chair. Suddenly they lurch in struggle, wriggling greatly. At first I thought it had only been a dormant image or something made up in my head, but otherwise was quickly proven when these visions kept flashing through my mind. Seeing syringes being pressed into what was clearly Y/n's skin. And not just one. So many sights were passing through that I only had a couple seconds to process each one, but I could see injections pushing into her neck, other needles that were glowing a dangerous orange penetrating her skin. As that sight flashed to a different one, I could hear a fading scream. One that was so uncannily sounding like Y/n's that it jolted my body. And then... I felt prickles break out up my arms, stinging intensely in sharp pain.
Next came Karai's Wakizashi sword cutting into flesh, causing an unreal shock to my nerves just below my skin, of where she was hurting Y/n. And while I couldn't see much, it was easy enough to notice the other bruises and injuries covering her skin. There was even a flash of blond, a pale but dark clad figure swinging a fist right down towards–
"NO!"
I scream and jump upright so hard I'm snapped back to reality. I'm back in the dojo, but my body still was burning and my ears still hear screams fading away in the distance. My heart was pounding against my chest more rapidly before, sweat beads hung from my forehead and I couldn't catch my breath fast enough.
Splinter tries to calm me down, speaking quickly even though I can't hear a single thing right now other than faint cries.
"What was that?" I sputter out, looking around in confusion of seeing nothing but the dojo again. "Was it... was it all in my head?"
"The spiritual realm is tricky to navigate. It is 100% real, and very overwhelming. But usually only when you are successful in reaching what you are searching for." My eyes aimlessly as I'm still attempting to calm myself and slow my heart rate down, which isn't an easy thing to do while also trying to process everything he's saying. "Leonardo, what did you see?"
"I... I don't know. There were needles, and screams, and– some dark room. I couldn't see much but, it was definitely Karai." I sigh heavily and look up at him, regretting all of what I'm saying. "And it was definitely Y/n..."
"Did you see any indication of what is happening, or where they are?"
"Just a dark room. I-it was too much to..."
"I see..." He nods and slowly sits with his drained son, mimicking my position. "You must go back to that place."
"I can't–"
"You must. It is the only–"
"What was that?! I– it was... I-I could feel her peril... her terror."
"There are ways to channel someone else's energy and use it to your advantage, with a strong enough connection and intuition, you will find what you seek. But at times it can be a scary place, especially if... if Miwa is causing her pain. It takes all of your energy and will power– and then some, to successfully reach this spiritual point.
"Listen to me. Whatever you felt, she is experiencing in the real world. You have the strength to bear through this for a few minutes more for her sake."
My hesitance is sky rocketing right now, but then I think about how she sounded... so scared. So in pain, and for no good reason. "If you have received the vision, then you need to know what it is you must do," Master Splinter goes on, and I know that he's not wrong about this. So unsurely, I nod once and rest against the tree, and begin to mentally prepare myself for this again.
Dreadfully, I follow along again as Sensei talks me through it.
"This time you will need to go deeper into the trance. Stay in it longer until you know what needs to be done. It will be trying, but you must persist long enough. Again, repeat after me."
I listen closely as we go through the chants again. That same force hits me all at once, the energy rush combined with a real life nightmare. And what I see this time is completely different. I can see parts of the building that quite obviously show that it's Foot headquarters. I even see a spot of red and a glimpse of a black and white mask. But what's different this time is the perspective. It's almost like I'm in the room, as a fly on the wall. But the vision moves quickly away from the top levels and travels through the floor, descending level by level until it stops after passing several in a hardly lit room with... with a person strapped to a chair. A person wearing the same shoes, and the same looking jeans.
It was almost impossible to tell it was Y/n by facial recognition from the lack of lighting. But just like that, the sequences start again. The room disappears and visions of dastardly activities ensue. Knives and other tools being used. Glowing needles and sharp objects penetrating her skin. Lastly, an image of Karai and the blond from the rooftops looking and standing over her before a door closes over and it goes dark for a second. Next, her hands pounding frantically above. The screams are coming back, and it's impossible to not flinch when hearing the person I care about so much screaming like this.
"Let me go!"
"Please! Stop this!"
Just as quickly as it came, that premonition swept away and brought about a new one. One that made my chest feel tight, and made it harder to breathe as panicked seconds went on. It felt as if the blood in my veins was replaced with ice water.
Once the feeling passed I inhaled deeply. I saw another glimpse of the room, and noted the one person I noticed missing, hoping it would stay on my brain long enough to remember after coming out of this.
After that, there wasn't another transition. Afterwards, everything just sort of, shut off. There was nothing but black. Endless blackness in every direction until two katana blades appeared. Ones almost just like mine, but the handles a polished bright blue with shining golden quillons. They gleamed in the light proudly, reflecting confidence and persistence. In the clear reflection of the daggers, two circles rested on each sword, with a design laying in it. One had an orange metallic illustration of a lion, and the other a Japanese symbol any novice could recognize. The symbol translating to strength.
Suddenly my face appears on the surface of these weapons. I hadn't noticed my own presence in this vision sooner. I was looking between the two unsurely, looking as insecure as a teenager could look. But after moments of hindrance, the two swords float close towards each other until they crossed each other in the middle and met in a locked X position, and a bright glare shone so brightly from the point of contact it almost hurt.
It was clear this one wasn't a memory or a window to what's been happening just miles away. It was a message.
And it was all I got before being sent back to face the real demons.
I come out of it with a start. Panting and feeling the urgent need to pull on an oxygen mask. But it wasn't as bad as the first time that only left a feeling of doom. This time, is was actually... the opposite.
"It is alright." Splinter comforts me and I nod as calmly as I can to let him know I understand that this time. "What did you see this time?"
"It was the basement." I spill immediately, thinking back to the vision of the way to get to that room. "She's in the basement of The Foot's lair," I cough out.
"Good work, young pupil. I am very impressed with your abilities, to say the least."
"Thank you, Sensei." I finally catch my breath and lean away from the tree. "Now that we know exactly where she is, we can plan to attack the building. Y/n is down there but April and Casey are on the top level. If we think of a good enough plan we can definitely get to both but– Whoa... I can see again." Now that I think about it, I could see clearly just after the first time too. "But, Donnie said–"
"Yes, this method can remove impurities if it sees fit." He tells me briskly as I brush off and get myself up to fight. "... And in this case it seems some courage was in order as well."
At first I'm confused until I remember the difference between the end of that vision and the first one; what it did for me. "So that's what the lion was..."
"Pardon?"
"The lion... in my vision. There were these twin swords and... nothing but darkness before I came back." I explain it to him in whatever details I could muster up.
"Hm... and what else did you see?"
"I saw the new recruit from the rooftops, some floors of their base, April and Casey being brought in." Y/n being attacked. "Mostly the same stuff as before, but we'll have to hurry in case they start to get any ideas with April or Casey."
Somehow, it's like part of the weight I was bearing has lifted. All of the insuperable worry and doubt. I'm reminded that in situations like these, when our enemies threaten the ones we're closest to, that's why we train for these abilities. My brothers and I have the complete ability to go and save our friends, and I can't let this mission be any different and intimidate me into failure.
It's not going to keep me from being with the person that makes me happy or reuniting this family. I can't tolerate this wimpy, lousy excuse for a leader anymore that has to take directions from the team while important people are missing.
It's time to end this.
"Leonardo, you have done well. It is good to embrace what you have learned. Now, what do you need to do?"
I look up at my master and nod firmly, knowing an answer wasn't in order. I was already on the way out the door towards the lab, but stop and turn back for a moment.
"Sensei. We... we need you for this fight."
"I know. I am more than ready to get our family back."
I nod, grateful he's somehow able to put his pain for his daughter aside for this. I make it into the lab with much more ease this time and by the way the others straighten up from their casual activities.
"Hurry and gear up. We're moving out in five minutes."
"Whoa... you look like a new man." Raph says with a side grin.
"I am. Enough standing around, we have a mission to do."
Donnie grins, Mikey fanboys, and Raph smirks. "He's back. Let's do this."