Hello, hello everyone! As you might or might not know, recently I've had a poll on which category you would like to see my next story published in and the winner by far was Ninja Turtles so here is the story that I felt was most ready to make its debut on this site. :)

Now, this story has been bouncing around in my head for close to a year now (actually, I thought of it AND the title just before I started seeing previews for that Safe Haven movie that came out last year) and I am really excited about this little tale.

For those of you who are eagerly awaiting the next installment in A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words I promise that I have been working on the next chapter. Though I am taking 18 credit hours (a full course load... very full) this semester and I have not had as much time to write or as much inspiration as of late. So sadly, this applies to all my current stories, updates will not be very frequent but I will try to get as many chapters out as I can.

Now, about the story itself, this story is set post-2k3 series when the turtles are in their early twenties and it takes into account the events in the Turtles Forever movie as well. Furthermore, while it is now rated T it seems very likely that it will be bumped up to an M rating... just to warn all of you.

Okay, I'm done rambling now :P So without further ado, I present the first chapter in my new story Safe Haven. I hope you all enjoy this as much as you have come to enjoy A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words!

Stumbling over an unseen object, she fell into the murky water below. Lifting her head, she sputtered the vile-tasting water that had managed to find its way into her mouth. The filthy water burned the cuts along her arms and legs, making her grit her teeth in pain as she forced herself to sit up and press herself against a cold, hard wall. Breathing slowly, she attempted to calm herself down as much as possible.

Every part of her body screamed at her in pain causing her to grit her teeth once more. The adrenaline rush from before had worn off already, leaving her to face the pain of the injuries she had accumulated from her recent adventure. She was also very cold… It did not help matters that she ventured into a sewer… in winter nonetheless. Closing her eyes, she attempted to concentrate on something else other than her present situation… Sadly, there was nothing for her to think about that was not unpleasant… Groaning, the woman opened her eyes again and tried to will her body to move once more. In response to the movement, her body screamed in protest at the usage of her muscles. Working through the sudden surge in pain, she slowly managed to stand up once more… Once upon her feet, she soon began to wish that she had just sat down a little longer…

The world was spinning all around her. She firmly pressed her hands against the cold wall beside her, hoping she would not fall down into the dirty water below again. Fortunately, she had managed to stay upright for several moments and soon decided that perhaps it was time to see if she could stay upright without the assistance of the wall.

Backing a single step away from the surface proved to be a mistake. Once more, she stumbled after only taking a handful of steps forward, landing in the cold water once more. Getting upon her hands and knees, she decided crawling might be a far better alternative to walking… She did not want to risk staying in one place for too long…

Stopping for a moment, she reached a hand up towards her forehead and wiped away the trail of blood that threated to make its way towards her eye. She needed some sort of bandage for her head… the several other wounds could wait until a later time since they were not leaking the red substance as profusely as it came from her head. Unfortunately, there was nothing for her to use… and she was unable to tear the shirt currently covering her body… she was far too weak to even attempt…

Looking forward, she once more continued to move forward, not knowing where she might end up but not caring at present. She just wanted to get away from him. That lone thought was the one thing that urged her onwards into the unknown, dark tunnel before her.

An undeterminable amount of time passed as she had traveled an unknown distance further into the darkness. All she knew was she was beginning to grow weary from the travels. With a small groan of discomfort, she backed up against a nearby wall. Her body recoiled from the sudden cold surface against her back, the chill easily making its way through the thin fabric of her shirt.

For the first time in what felt like several hours, she finally allowed herself to relax, confident that she was no longer in any danger. She had managed to slip away… though she was unable to figure out how she had managed such a task… it was still so hazy and unclear…

Shaking her head, the young woman allowed herself to shut her eyes for a moment. She knew it was still not wise for her to remain here for an extended period. Her breath halted as her ears took in the sound of splashes nearby… She cowered against the wall as the sounds drew closer and closer to her and she shut her eyes hoping whoever it was would not see her… would not take her back to him to face whatever punishment she more than likely earned herself…

She was a fool for thinking she had escaped…

Tears of fright began to stream down her face as the splashes came closer and closer to her. Pressing closer against the cold wall, she quickly pulled her legs closer towards her body in an attempt to make herself as small as possible, trying to avoid someone spotting her. She couldn't go back… she would rather die…

Suddenly the splashes stopped and she knew that whoever had made those noises had finally found her… She sniffled pathetically as she wrapped her arms tighter around herself.

"Please…" she managed to plead, her voice hoarse as it cracked. "Please ju-just kill me…" Her shoulders shook slightly with her quite sobs and the woman cursed herself silently for showing such weakness.

"I'm not going to hurt you."

She slowly opened her eyes to gaze upon the being that had uttered those words, tears still welling in her eyes. It was dark and she could just barely make out the man's outline. Whoever it was, he had large, sculpted muscles on his arms. Aside from that, the woman had no idea who the man standing before her was.

"Are you hurt?" he asked, crouching down in front of her.

Biting her lower lip, the woman nodded softly. She saw no reason in attempting to hide her predicament… She had nowhere to go, no one who cared about her on this planet… Maybe, just maybe, this stranger would be her salvation. She could only hope.

"Do you have anywhere to go?"

She shook her head. More splashes sounded through the sewer and the woman redirected her gaze to face the approaching figures. Her body tensed slightly in fear as she pulled her knees closer to herself. The figure crouched in front of her also redirected his gaze towards the noise.

"Guys…" he stated. "We have a situation over here…"

She soon heard the splashes draw closer and closer to her. Three more shapes soon appeared; each of them had a similar build to the first one. The woman cowered against the wall, still unsure if she was safe or not in their presence.

"What is it Leo?" one of them asked the first.

The first one, Leo, stood up so he was seemingly eye-level with the other one. "I just found her here."

The other one seemed to glance towards her before taking step closer. He saw her press closer against the sewer wall and raised his hands.

"Don't worry, I promise I won't hurt you. Can I look you over?"

Biting her lower lip, the woman nodded and allowed her muscles to relax slightly. She watched as the figure in front of her reached into a bag.

"I'm going to turn on a light," he said while grabbing what the woman assumed was a flashlight. She nodded and watched as the figure turned the light on and shone it upon her battered body, before shining it in her eyes, causing her to squint at the sudden change in brightness. The woman could still not make out more than the shape of the figure. He reached towards her bleeding forehead and the woman froze, pressing up against the wall once more.

She couldn't believe it…

He had three, green fingers.

She attempted to stand up and flee, but only managed to get a few steps away before stumbling. A large arm caught her and she felt someone pick her up bridal style. The woman froze and looked at the green-skinned figure.

"Easy there, we won't hurt you," he said. The woman could tell that he was not one of the first two but someone different. His voice seemed far brighter than the voices that belonged to the other two figures. As the sound washed over her, the women found herself relaxing and nodding.

"You promise?" she asked, feeling so small and vulnerable in his arms.

The figure nodded, "Cross my heart."

Despite herself, the woman found herself smiling softly before placing a hand upon her forehead. Everything began to spin around her, faster and faster until she felt as if she would vomit.

Darkness consumed her...