Chapter 01: Something Ninja This Way Comes
Four young boys sat before their father as he prepared to tell them the story of their pasts. They stared at him with hopeful eyes, bright with anticipation and yearning. This situation would seem normal enough, but those involved were far from it - the boys were turtles, and the father was a rat.
"You boys are becoming very smart," said the rat father, his voice thick with a Japanese accent. He was rather short, covered in grayish brown fur, and dressed in a light brown robe, a kimono. He leaned upon his staff as he continued. "You have barely reached the age of seven and already so curious as to your past?"
"Yes, Master Splinter," said Donatello, "We are all very curious to know how it is we have the shape of the humans yet look so different."
"Yeah, you know, I'm all excited and all," said Michelangelo, "but can we make this fast? I kinda wanna get back to my video game."
"Be quiet, Mikey!" whispered Leonardo, "Let Master Splinter finish." He turned and glared as Raphael snorted, then stuck his tongue out at him. Raph then leaned forward and poked Leo hard in the arm.
"Master Splinter, Raph poked me!" cried the young Leo, pointing at his brother.
"You tattletale!" spat Raph, pointing back.
"Well, you're a poopyface!" retorted Leo.
"Takes one to know one, loser!" yelled back Raph.
"Hey, hey, you know what?" cried Mikey, jumping to his feet. "You're BOTH poopyfaces! Hahahaha!" he fell back onto his shell laughing.
Donatello sighed to himself as Master Splinter scolded the others. I can't believe these guys are my brothers...
Once everyone was silent, Splinter continued. "The truth is... Well, you used to be normal turtles, and I used to be a normal rat. I was a pet of my master, Hamato Yoshi, who was a great Ninja Master. I mimicked his movements when he trained, and thus learned the basics of Ninjutsu. Then, following a series of events I'd rather not discuss, I ended up homeless here in the sewers of New York. It was then that I happened across you four, and together we ended up soaked in a green sticky ooze."
Splinter paused to take a sip of tea, then continued. "Whatever that ooze was, it changed all of us. Made us bigger, stronger, and smarter. By the time I was intelligent enough to know what was happening to us, a rainstorm had washed the ooze away, and I had no way of investigating further. That is how we came to be. I discovered a broken sewer wall leading to this sealed off basement, and turned it into our home."
"No, that can't be it!" exclaimed Donny. "There has to be more to it than that! I can't believe we are merely products of a freak accident! I won't!"
"I am sorry, my son," said Splinter, patting the boy on the head, "but that is all there is to tell. The past is but a memory - it does not define who we are. Our actions and the future we create for ourselves determine that."
Don sighed and then nodded. "Yes, Sensei."
"The last time we went to the junkyard, you seemed quite interested in that old computer. Why not focus your attention on that? It will help you keep your mind off the past." Splinter suggested as the other boys went off to do their own things.
"Well, I was able to get it up and running with a little help from those old computer books, but there are no cool games on it. I've heard about the local library, and they have computers for public use there, but since I can't go topside alone..."
"Hmm..." Splinter thought for a moment. "You are very smart for your age, Donatello. Only seven, yet you speak sometimes as if you were an adult. I suppose I can grant you a little more freedom. A few days a week I will walk with you to the library and let you stay there by yourself for a few hours. But you are not to leave until I return for you each day. Understood?"
Donny's eyes lit up. "Oh, yes Master Splinter! Thank you, thank you!" He jumped up and hugged his father, then ran to go play with his brothers.
If they knew the whole truth, the real secret behind their mutation, they would be horrified. They must never learn the reasons for their creation.Splinter thought to himself, sighing and shaking his head.
~EIGHT YEARS LATER~
It was a clear summer night in New York City. Along one of the busy streets, there stood a man in baggy clothes at a phone booth. He looked like a large man and had a thick beard, sunglasses, and the hood of his sweater pulled up over his head.
"Okay, so you got that? Three large pizzas with the works, and no anchovies, dude. What? The total is what? Your prices are getting crazy, man." Mikey said into the phone, then hung it up. He skateboarded around the area for a half hour until the pizza dude showed up at the small hotel down the street.
"Is that for room 201?" Mikey asked the pizza dude.
"Uh, yes, yes it is."
"I'm in that room, I'll just take it out here."
"And, um, what was the name on the order?" the pizza guy asked, slightly nervous.
"Angelo. Michael Angelo. That's me, dude."
"Oh, okay, yes, the name does match."
Mikey paid the dude, waited until he was out of sight, then skateboarded down an alley and hopped down a sewer entrance. Careful not the drop the pizzas, he made his way through several sewer pipes and pulled open the wooden door that was placed over the hole in the wall leading to their basement home. At some point in the past, the basement had been sealed off from the building above it, which was now a storage facility. Luckily, it was still equipped with electricity.
"Dinner is served!" yelled Mikey, setting the pizzas on the dining room table and taking a piece to eat on the way to his room.
The basement had been part of the storage facility, and had several units. There were enough for Splinter and each turtle to have their own room, and they had knocked out a wall between two units to make it the training hall. The central lobby area of the basement had been turned into their living area, including a den, kitchen, and dining room. By donning disguises, they had made frequent trips to the junkyards on the surface and over the years found everything they could possibly need. They also fixed up what they didn't need and sold them to get a little cash.
Mikey walked into his room and stripped down out of his clothes, fake beard, and mask, glad to be free of them. His walls were covered with rock band and video game posters, and he finally had his own TV after finding it at the junk yard a few months back. He managed to sell enough other junk to buy some new video games from a local pawn shop, which he played constantly in his room.
The video game loving turtle went and knocked on Raph's door, letting him know dinner was ready. His room had mostly rap and hip hop posters on the walls, save for a few images of nature scenes.
Next was Leo's room, which had Japanese ornaments and artifacts all over the walls, much like Splinter's. He generally played meditative music in his room.
Donny's room was more decorated than any of the others. His walls were covered with posters from movies, video games, heavy metal bands, anime, etc. He had tons of shelves with all kinds of collectible action figures, some still in their packaging and some in dramatic poses. On some shelves he had models of spaceships from various science fiction movies and shows, as well as hanging high from the ceiling. One corner was covered with several stacks of comic books and manga, and there were several bookcases filled with novels, books on various subjects, and old textbooks he had salvaged from school dumpsters.
Don also had a desk set up with several computers and three different LCD monitors. Next to it was a rack with all kinds of DVDs, games, and various software programs. Next to the desk he had a powerful server, on which he hosted his own series of websites.
After Master Splinter had allowed Don to study at the library alone, he began spending every moment he could reading books or surfing the net. His knowledge expanded quickly, and he eventually sneaked into classrooms at all the local colleges and planted bugs, sending audio and video feed to his computer back in his room. Through this method, he learned much, and eventually built his current computer station.
Donny learned how to create fake IDs and thus became Donald Atello. He used his new identity to rent several of the storage units in the building above, having internet set up there as well. His server was connected to that line, and he made money by doing online tech support and web design, and having the profits sent to a prepaid card via .
Donny locked his door behind him as he always did, then headed out to the dining room for dinner. They all sat down and began stuffing their faces with the deliciously warm pizza. After they were done and Mikey burped so loud it startled Raph, Splinter crossed his fingers and smiled.
"My sons. In a few months, you will be sixteen years old. Nearly men. Since the time you were but infants, I taught you the principles of pride and honor. I instructed you in the ways of Ninjutsu, and you each chose your weapons and your bandanas to distinguish yourselves. You have grown into mighty warriors, and while you will always require training - all smart warriors realize they do - I feel you are ready to take a step further into the adult world."
The four turtles looked up at Master Splinter, slightly confused. "Tonight, you will go topside without me. Previously, I have only trusted you to do so for short periods of time, but from now on, you are free to come and go as you please, so long as you behave and attend lessons as usual. Do not betray my trust, my sons."
The turtles thanked their sensei, and prepared to go topside. Little did they know the dangers they would run into that night, or the life changing events that would alter their entire existence in the days and weeks to come.
The turtles loved going out at night, because as long as they stayed out of sight, they did not have to don their disguises. They hopped along the rooftops, armed with their weapons for a fun night of training. They had been forbidden to interfere with the affairs of humans, but longed to jump to the streets below and crush some gangster skulls. Raphael hated this the most, often arguing with Leonardo every time they heard a police siren or witnessed a mugging in an alley below.
"Okay, for our first training exercise, we'll race from here to the east junkyard," instructed Leo. Raph sighed and crossed him arms, then nodded. "Stay in the shadows, don't let anyone see you. Ready, set, go!"
All four turtles leaped in different directions, hopping and flipping over rooftops, all making their own route to the junkyard. Leo took a straight course, swinging on power lines when needed. He thought he was in the lead, but a few blocks down he thought he saw a glimpse of green up on some taller buildings. He smirked and pushed himself to run faster.
As the junkyard came into view, Leo jumped down from a roof, flipped in midair, and landed in the vast parking lot that separated the dump from the old abandoned recycling plant. As his feet touched the asphalt, Leo noticed Raph landing several yards away. They glared at each other, and both made a mad dash for the junkyard. They pushed themselves to the limit, and there was a blur of green, blue, and red as they entered the dump.
"I won!" exclaimed Raph, pumping his fist into the air. "How do ya like that!"
"No you didn't!" retorted Leo. They were both out of breath. "I was clearly an inch ahead of you!"
"That's bullshit!" spat Raph, pointing. "You just ain't capable of acceptin' defeat!"
"I will accept defeat once I am actually defeated!" snarled Leo. "Now quit acting like a little child and let's find the others."
Raph turned and stared intensely at his brother, hating him at that moment. He pushed his face very close to Leo's, pointed a finger at him, and growled, "Screw you!"
"Actually," said Don as he walked up, "it was a tie. But it doesn't really matter, you both lost."
"What?" Leo and Raph said together. Don smiled and pointed up. They followed his gaze to see Mikey sitting on the top of the fence that enclosed most of the junkyard.
"It's about time you dudes got here," he said with a chuckle. "I guess I'm just too awesome for you guys!" Mikey threw his head back and laughed out loud, causing Raph to spin around and kick the fence. Mikey yelped out and flapped his arms as he lost his balance and fell back onto the ground. Raph smirked.
Leo and Raph began to argue again, when suddenly they heard an earth-shattering scream from somewhere nearby. All four turtles ran and hopped atop the nearest building, jumped across rooftops until they came to the source of the scream - several gang members had a young woman backed into a wall in an alley. By the tattoos on their bodies, it was apparent they were Purple Dragons. As they looked closer at the woman, they realized she was just a teenager, probably still in high school.
"You got a real purty mouth, little girl," said one of the gangbangers.
"And a nice ass to go with it," chimed in another. "We're gonna have some fun with you tonight." The girl screamed again. Raph took a step forward, ready to leap down to her rescue, when Leo grabbed his arm, hard.
"Raph, we can't," Leo said, though it obviously pained him to do so. "Master Splinter said we are not to interfere."
"Are you gonna stand here and let those filthy punks rape and possibly kill that poor girl?" Raph stared at Leo, his eyes starting to water up. She was such a beautiful young woman, long red hair and sparkling green eyes. The very thought of her being violated was unbearable to Raph. "I ain't gonna stand by and let this happen. I'm tired of hidin' like a buncha cowards."
"Raph, don't!" said Leo, but it was too late - he had leaped from the roof, bounced off a fire escape and landed in the alley, standing between the girl and the gang. The girl screamed again and passed out.
"Haha, thanks pal, you just made our night easier," chuckled one of the thugs. "Now she won't put up a fight! I owe you one, buddy. Say, uh, is there a reason you're dressed up like a giant turtle? Are you parta some new gang?"
"You guys disgust me," spat Raph in a harsh whisper. "If you want her, you gotta go through me first!" The five thugs smiled, pulled out brass knuckles and knives, and closed in around Raph.
"And us, too," came the voice of Don as the other three turtles jumped into the alley to aid their brother. The two groups stared at each other.
"You're going down, dudes," promised Mikey, and the battle began. The gangsters were amazed how quick their opponents moved and how easily their weapons deflected the knives. They tried their best to fight the green freaks, but the turtles just kept jumping and flipping around, matching every blow with their own weapons. As one gangster came at Leo, he spun around and stabbed his katana into the man's shoulder, grabbing the hand that held the knife and squeezed hard. There was a loud crunch, and the man screamed and dropped the knife as his wrist was shattered. Leo brought both katanas into a scissor shape in front of the thug's throat, but after seeing the fear in the man's eyes, spun around and clocked him hard in the forehead with the hilt of one of the swords, knocking him unconscious.
One of the other gangsters tried to kick Raph, resulting in him falling to the ground screaming, his calf impaled on a sai. The turtle ripped his sai out and then dropped his elbow onto the man's nose, breaking it and knocking him out as well. Mikey gave a thumbs up as another thug fell out cold, his face bruised from the turtle's nunchaku. Don was spinning his bo staff above his head, and made quick work of the remaining two gangsters.
"Told ya you guys were going down," said Mikey. "So, uh, what do we do now?"
"Use their clothes to tie their hands together," said Leo. "Then we'll call the cops from a payphone and vanish." They rushed to do so, ending up with the five men in a circle, their backs to each other and their hands all tied together.
"What about the girl?" asked Don.
"The cops will take care of her," replied Leo.
"But it'll take 'em at least a half-hour to get here!" exclaimed Raph. "She's unconscious and vulnerable. What if more of them come around?"
"What else can we do, Raph?" demanded Leo harshly. "We can't take her to the hospital, we don't have our disguises with us."
"I'm bringin' her back to the lair," said Raph, matter-of-factly. He stepped toward her. Leo grabbed his arm.
"No, you're not." he said coldly.
"Let go of my arm, Leo," said Raph warningly, then shrugged his brother's hand off and proceeded to pick up the girl. He was surprised how light she was. His elder brother sighed loudly, but Raph ignored him and vanished into the shadows. Leo followed him angrily.
"Can we keep her?" Mike asked Don, who just shook his head and vanished. "What?" said Mikey as he followed.
"I'm sorry, Sensei, I tried to stop him," said Leo as Splinter came out to find his four sons and a young woman unconscious on the couch. They explained to their father all about the screaming girl and the fight that followed. He listened quietly until they had finished, and then sighed.
"My sons, I ordered you to remain hidden for your own protection," explained Splinter. "The people of this world would not understand us. They would fear us because we are not human. This is why we mustremain in the shadows."
"But Master Splinter," persisted Raph, "we have the power to help these people. How can we just sit back and not do somethin'?"
"You know, in my comic books, there is this superhero named Spider-Man," added Donny. "His philosophy is that with great power there must also come great responsibility. If we have the power to help those weaker than ourselves, then by all means, we are obligated to."
Mikey jumped up and down, trembling with excitement. "Does that mean we get to dress up like superheroes? I call dibs on Turtle Titan for my name! Hahaha!" he began jumping around and striking Superman-like poses, every few minutes going, "Da da dada!"
"It doesn't matter whether we should or shouldn't help people," said Leo, "what matters is that Master Splinter gave us a direct order. He knows best, and if he thinks it's too risky to expose ourselves to help others, then we will abide by his wishes. Allof us."
Just as Raph turned to confront his brother, Splinter's voice rang out. "Enough. Although I gave you a direct order, I cannot punish you for following your hearts. There is no shame in being a protector of others. I still expect you to remain invisible when outside of these walls or without a disguise, but if fate calls upon you to aide someone in need, you have my permission."
Raph started to say something, but their attention was drawn to Mikey, who had just jumped on the back of the couch with a loud war cry. "Nanananananana Turtle Titan!" he sang, pretending to fly as he leaped from the back of the couch onto the recliner.
"Michelangelo!" hissed Splinter. "Quit jumping on the furniture!" Just then, the girl on the other couch began to stir. They all turned to look as she sat up and rubbed her head. She opened her eyes, and after a minute they focused.
"AAARRRGGGHHH!" she screamed as she saw the turtles. They were so startled they screamed as well. Mikey stumbled backwards and fell over the other couch.
"Miss, please remain calm," said Master Splinter, causing her to scream again.
"Okay okay okay okay okay," she said quickly, "I, uh, I must be dreaming. Yeah, that's it. I'm dreaming."
"This ain't no dream, lady," said Raph. She turned her head sharply to look at him, then squinted.
"Hey, wait a sec... You're the guy that jumped in front of me in that alley." She thought for a minute, and then started laughing. "Okay, I get it. You guys wear these suits to scare bad guys, right? Well, thank you, and a job well done, I assume?" she laughed again and clapped her hands.
"Ma'am, these are not suits. We really are turtles," explained Don. She just scoffed.
"Yeah, sure, okay." she waved a hand, disregarding his claim. "Where am I?"
"You are in our lair in the sewers beneath the city," Splinter said. She looked disgusted.
"Eeew!" she exclaimed. "That's gross. I'm going to have to take an extra long shower when I get home. When are you guys going to take off those stupid masks?"
"What is your name, miss?" asked Splinter.
"April O'Neil."
"Well, Miss O'Neil, you may believe as you wish. My sons will escort you home." She started to get up, tripped, and fell towards Splinter, her hand touching his wrist. She gasped, pulling her hand away - she had felt his pulse, and real, warm skin, not a suit. As April looked at them all in horror once again, Splinter slowly explained the origin story he had told the turtles, even if it was a lie.
"I find this very hard to believe," she said, sipping the green tea they had just given her. "I mean, I know there's all kinds of genetic advancements out there, but this? And by accident in a sewer, not in a controlled environment? I don't know... My instincts tell me this can't be real, but I see you and - and I felt you. I just don't know. I need to go home and get some rest."
"Would you like us to make sure you get home safely, April?" asked Leo. She started to say no, but remembered the gangsters in the alley and finally agreed.
"Thank you, guys," said April as they stopped in front of her building. "You know, for saving me and all. I'd invite you in, but my parents'd freak. I'm still not sure I believe this is real, but dream or not, I'm glad you guys came to my rescue."
They all said good night and April walked up to the door of her building. She turned around, but the turtles had already vanished. She smiled to herself and headed up to her apartment. None of them knew that the the dark stirrings among the criminal underworld of the city would soon haunt them, or the terrible evil at its source...
To be continued...