Disclaimer: TMNT is owned by Mirage and so do any other companies that have legal rights to the franchise. I do not own TMNT, however, or any rights thereto, because I am poor. Dirt poor. I don't even own a McDonald's toy. (I do have the movies on original VHS though!)

Please enjoy. Reviews and thoughtful criticisms welcome.

"Ugh.. anyone get the plate of that time truck that just hit me?"

Leonardo stood up, slightly wobbly. Shaking his head, he muttered, "Remind me to tell Renee that we're no longer available to help her with her tests."

"Didn't know we even had to," growled Raphael. Man, if she wasn't a girl…

"Neither did I."

Finally getting their bearings (and balance), the pair took notice of their surroundings.

"So. Where the HELL are we? Or maybe, when? This sure as hell don't look like any past New York I've ever seen in any history books." Since when were the glowing skyscrapers that sinister? An acrid smell drifted across their senses and Raphael suppressed a shudder. It's downright creepy.

Even the clouds seemed to agree with him. Overshadowing everything, grey and red shone back from above, reflecting… what? What light could make such a hellish combination? Feels like I've come off the on wrong side of a deal with the devil.. and I'm not even the one who made the deal! He cracked his knuckles, glancing around. He felt an unquenchable need to double check his back every second.

"Raph…" Leonardo pursed his lips. "I don't know. It looks.. almost like.. Central Park. But… abandoned. Though it looks like someone might be trying to build it up," he pointed to construction equipment in the distance. Clearly something was wrong, but.. there was something else, too. I can feel it, but I can't put my finger on it…

"Yeah, construction, sure. Looks just like that, except for the minor detail of rampant destruction everywhere… What.. what's happened?" Raphael ran up atop a broken cat machine. He took a minute to verify that this was indeed, the Park by looking for familiar structures. He grimaced.

"See anything?" called up his brother.

"No. It's all the same! I don't get it, Leo. When in time did this place ever look this trashed?"

Leo pursed his lips, and stared down the street. A few humans in tattered clothes were beginning to eye them warily. "I don't know. But I have a hunch…

"Raph, let's go!" he called suddenly. "We can't stay out here like this. I have a bad feeling." And it's only getting heavier..

His brother hopped down off the equipment.

As they ran for cover, Leonardo couldn't help but think, It feels like rain over our heads, but at the same time, like it hasn't rained for years.

---
---

Eventually, they returned above ground. While some of the sewers were intact, there were not enough for safe travel. Bricks were dislodged and the supports had seemed to disintegrate with a glance. It only took three near misses with chunks of concrete to convince them that above ground would better serve their health than the shadows under the streets. Unexpectedly, the sour smells were almost worse above ground than they were below.

All around them, every hour, Karai's voice filtered through the air:

"The Shredder is your Lord and Master! Obey him and live."

"Remember, the Shredder is always watching. He is watching you, always watching."

"Mind your Lord and Master. Praise his mercy in letting you live."

"I swear, Leo," whispered Raphael. "I swear, I ain't seen so much misery even in those CNN news specials. What kind of future is this? How the shell could Shredder have ever won with us around? I thought everything turned out fine. This looks like nothin' we saw with Cody!" Even without Donatello's scientific mind around, Raphael was desperate for an explanation. "Maybe.. maybe this is like one of those other world places we got sent to. Y'know, remember?"

Dirt, grime, and unhappiness clung to every corner of the city. With every new perch, every new block, more humans in tattered clothes appeared. "'Bout the only thing I'm seein' that matches up are those humongous tv screens everywhere—like the one in Times Square, just.. everywhere!" Even some of those were cracked though, near the outskirts of the city, and mostly from bullet holes. One had an entire, angled sheet missing. It had stared at the turtles, like a half-blind thing. One screen still had a faded picture of the Shredder, staring for all eternity. 'Burned in'--right, Donnie? thought Leonardo as they slunk by.

"Leo, where are we? This can't be our city," scowled Raphael. He grabbed his sai, tossing them from hand to hand, as they stood to rest for a second. He needed to flex his muscles—even with all the running they were doing, he could not keep from feeling antsy. He wanted to kick something, but the need to hide had never been so grave. "Donnie told us that in his world the Shredder won.. but then he said they beat him while he was here. Leo, the Shredder's still alive! Unless someone took his place, but.."

Leonardo stared out over the streets. One hand fingered the hilt of a katana. He understood how Raphael felt. He answered with an quiet edge in his voice, "I don't know. But we're going to find out."

Raphael was not surprised when he realized where they were going. It was as good as any other idea, after all. Where better to start than the old treatment plant? Upon arrival though, the place was completely unlived in. Well, save for a few hobos—one of whom had died sometime the previous night. He was stiff.

There was no sign the turtles had ever resided there.

They searched for a few minutes, making sure, but eventually Raphael sighed and stood up. He crossed his arms and gave the place one last glance.

"C'mon, Leo. There's nothin' here for us."

"Where else can we go then? We have to find someone! There must be someone in this world…"

"So you don't think it's ours? Glad I'm not the only one. This place is worse than any Hell I can think of."

"I don't know… I just.. I can't explain it. I just feel like we need to keep looking. This is clearly somebody's future.. The dates on all the newspapers we saw made that pretty obvious."

Silence.

"Well, how 'bout the old lair? The one Karai busted up while you were gone to find Nirvana. Just 'cause we moved out doesn't mean anyone else had to."

---
---

"Holy…"

The breath left Raphael before he could finish. Gaping at the space, his throat closed up; his mouth turned dry. Even if they had left… if they had eventually moved on… Age couldn't have done this much damage alone. Someone had been here once upon a time—and the scorch marks were all Raphael needed to prove it. Everything in the place was molded or burnt.

How.. why? It was almost a replay of what had happened when Leo left but.. but somehow this was so much worse… Everything piled in the center with ashes still smudged into the floor.. He even thought he could still see the remains of an old photograph, or at least a part of one. Raphael's jaw tightened, and his fingernails dug into his palm. Why? Why indeed? He knew why. He damn well knew why.

Leonardo was just as shaken. Haltingly, he sweeped away thick cobwebs. His room was here.. The door had fallen years ago though, if the mold on the rusted hinges was any indication. Standing in the doorway, his hand on the doorjam, he was almost sure he could smell smoke. The fire was probably lit afterwards.. They had tried to round them up, but then--

Crackle…

A trap! "Ra--!" Turning quickly, his brother's name on his mouth, Leonardo only saw what he should have expected—Raphael with his fists clenched at his sides. It had been in his mind.

Yet…

He looked beyond his brother.

"Raph. What's that room behind you? Donnie's room?" Leonardo's eye ridges creased together as he turned away slowly from the broken remains of his bedroom.

Turning, Raphael glanced at Leonardo, then behind himself. He forced his muscles to relax before replying. "Uh. .yeah.. Looks like it.." Narrowing one eye though, he edged closer. "But.. it looks almost like someone was here after…"

"Salvage?" Raphael heard Leonardo land on the moist floor behind him.

"Maybe.. but then why leave all the other rooms? There's a lot less mold here, Leo. Fewer cobwebs, too. Someone was here recently." Who'd be crazy enough to salvage through this mess?

"Hmm." Leonardo thought for a second, "Do you remember when Do—"

CRASH! Without more warning than that, the high ceiling of the old lair began to collapse, filling the air with dust, mold, and chunks of cement.

"Raph!" "Watch out!"

Coughing, they tried to dodge away from the debris.

"Citizen," came a commanding male voice, "lower your weapons and put your hands up."

Like hell, growled Raphael, tightening his hold on his sai. His attitude was ruined slightly by the hacking cough that followed.

"Citizen," repeated the voice, "lower your weapons and put your hands up."

Black forms jumped from above, each of them armed with heavy automatic weaponry.

"Raph, it's a recording!"

"Gee, ya think so?"

The forms began to fire.

---
---

"Think we lost'em?" Raphael crossed his arms as he leaned back against a support beam from a blown down building. God, it had taken them forever to escape from those goons.. Raphael wiped more sweat from his forehead. Lasers. They had laser guns! Damn the future, bullets were bad enough. They didn't need fucking phasers, too! Somehow I doubt they were set to 'stun'.

"Yeah.. Yeah, I think so." Leonardo flopped down on a cement block and rubbed his face with his hands. This was so messed up.. He should have known better than to go back to the lair… Of COURSE it would have been monitored! "I'm sorry, Raph.."

Raphael pursed his lips and looked away. "Naw, don't. I didn't think of it either. Bastards. I hope whoever got there to use Donnie's stuff got what they wanted the last time they went 'cause they sure ain't gettin' anything now." The entire space had been blown away with missiles—missiles!

On their run away from the spotlighting helicopters, the turtles had passed three barracks on their way back to safety. After sewer dipping a few times, the finally returned to Central Park. They had taken the long way around this time, and no one seemed to be around. Of course, who would want to be in a park as gloomy as this one? Half the trees were dead.

Raphael shook his head. Barracks! In NYC! What the Shell?! And that was only the ones they saw.

"You think anyone's still around?" One hand twirled a sai idly—or he tried to make it appear idle. He was far too tense for that though.

"Remember, the Shredder is always watching. He is watching you, always watching."

Raphael fidgeted again after Leonardo failed to answer. Wake-up, Fearless Leader. We don't have time for your obsessive-compulsive meditating right now. He scowled, "Hey, wake up! You listenin' to me?"

Leonardo stared at the ground, thinking. Raphael's question had meant, do you think anyone of us is still alive? Ignoring his brother's anger, he was silent for another two minutes. Clearly, the possibility that they might be dead skirted around both their thoughts.

"Maybe. I hope so. If we're going to be here as long as we were with the dinosaurs, we're going to need help."

"But Don said the Shredder was defeated. They took'im down, Leo!" He punched a fist into the other hand. "Him, Karai, they all went belly up! So what's all this? Did some idiot take his place or somethin'? I wouldn't think we'd stand for that, y'know. Just 'cause Don returned home is no reason to sit on their shells and let some new bastard tear our city a new one!"

Looking up at his brother, Leonardo's expression was grim. "I don't know. .. I really don't know…" He sighed in frustration. "I don't like to admit it, but I think we're out of our league here with just the two of us."

For once, Raphael had to agree with him. Leaning back, he stared up at the grey sky through a hole in the ceiling.

---
---

For four days they stayed hidden, helping when they could, finding food where available. They had stopped a rape the day they arrived and three murders since. Some petty robberies, a mugging… but no sign or word of their brothers or, and it was strange to think of it, themselves.

Then again, they had not gone around asking.

On the evening of the second night, a troop of foot ninja nearly tripped over their hiding place. At least, they supposed it had been foot ninja. They wore no previously recognizable uniform but their symbol had been that of The Shredder. They had been quiet, stealthy—Leo did not see them until it was almost too late. The brothers found a new spot to hide.

On the third day, they had seen another troop—but this one had been sloppier. Their uniforms not so neat and the man barking orders ("That's no ninja, that's a fucking dog--doesn't know how to shut up.") had seemed more overbearing than inspiring. They figured them to be the ordinary street power.

Around three AM the fourth day, the turtles awoke to a commotion above their heads. Tense, with weapons at the ready, they peeked above ground. If they were cornered, they were at least going to go down fighting; no one noticed them, however. The noise had been a large group of street thugs—almost a rally, really: chanting and grinning, laughing and spitting. Something about getting respect and telling the ninja to shove it.

The brothers returned to the sewers. Five minutes later though, they heard a large noise again—louder this time.

Suddenly, the ground rippled beneath them, explosions rang above them, and they fell sideways to the wet ground. Grappling with the walls, they struggled to stay standing as the sewer began collapsing. Rumbles echoed in their ears. Leonardo dodged a waterfall of debris, but winced as a brick fell on his ankle. Damn it…

From above them came the now familiar echoes, "Mind your Lord and Master. Praise his mercy in letting you live," "Citizens, lower your weapons and raise your hands."

"This way!" yelled Raphael. "I saw a manhole!" Shielding his head, he started for their way out

Leonardo struggled to follow through the thickening gloom, gritting his teeth.

"C'mon!" Turning around, Raphael jerked his brothers arm and wrapped it around his neck to help Leonardo walk. "Gotta move faster than that, Fearless!"

---
---

Raphael busted a bag of someone's dirty laundry sitting forgotten on a street corner. "Raph!" hissed his brother. "Quiet!"

His brother punched his hand, steaming. "Damn it! But if I get my hands on Renee again, I'm never lettin' go until that stupid stick of hers is broken over her head!"

Leo, grouchy by this time, agreed. "I'll hold her down for you, as long as I get a swing, too."

A grim smile spread over Raphael's face. "Of course. Wouldn't want to hog all the fun."

From a distance, a shadow watched them, then disappeared.

The brothers were sitting amid trash, trying to make as little noise as possible. (Except when Raph decided to destroy something. Leonardo was very thankful that laundry does not scream.)

Leonardo handed Raphael some of the bread they found. Half of it was moldy, but separate that part out and it was edible. Well, nearly.

"If I don't get something decent soon, I'm gonna be wastin' away to nuthin'." Grumble, grumble.

It was Leonardo's turn to scowl. "It's all we have, Raph. Be thankful for it."

"Thankful, he says! God, is this one of those stupid lessons from—shit!" Quickly, Raphael was standing on the other side of the alley, crouched low.

Leonardo perched atop an old fire escape. With narrowed eyes, they swung their heads around, searching for their attacker.

Where Raphael had been standing, a short sword was sunk into the ground.

"Ugh!" Raphael flew forward, kicked from behind. "What the--!" He spun around, only to get punched before he could so much as catch a glimpse of his attacker.

Shooting down, Leonardo swung hard with his katana. "Hya!" Swish! They whistled in the air, but only the air. Looking about, he saw no one. "Raph, stay alert! This guy's good.."

"Like I need to be told twice?" came his brother's gravelled voice.

Ching! Klang!

"Raph!"

"Wha-"

Ching, whistle, klink. A sai flew out of the dark.

Leonardo could not see their enemy through the darkness, but he heard Raphael's cut-off grunt and rushed forward with a yell, "I'm coming, Raph!"

There was a snort. "Heh, you sure about that?" The voice was familiar. A red-masked figure stepped half way into the dim light. In each green hand, a sai twirled. One eye of his bandanna was sewn shut.

Leonardo stopped dead.

He grinned. "Thought so."