*hides in shame* Soooo i wrote another one-shot. Heh. The minute I tell myself "I'm going to write" I end up writing everything EXCEPT the story I should be working on.
Uuuuugh.
Anyways, this was spawned when I became curious on how high a person could fall without dying, and what I found surprised me. Apparently some guy jumped off a plane and survived because he fell onto a glass roof! So then this happened. As for what the heck is going on...weeelp I'm not entirely sure, but you'll get the jist of it. Mission to kill Shredder, crash a plane, etc etc. Well, in any case, I hope you enjoy my little one-shot.
I don't own TMNT.
Donatello pressed the phone up against his ear as he stood on the rooftop. There was the sound of alarmed shouts, and then a crack that made the purple-masked turtle flinch. He swallowed, trying to untighten his constricting throat. From the other end, things grew quiet, until a sudden rustling ensued and a chipper voice broke through the line.
"I'm just gonna flip all the switches and pound some buttons, okay?" his younger brother said, a forced bounce in his voice. "I think that'll be enough to bring this thing down."
"Yeah, just hurry up," Donnie urged, biting his lip. He could feel Leonardo lingering behind him.
"What's going on?" Leo asked, trying to lean in to hear the conversation.
"Not helping Leo!" Donnie hissed under his breath, clutching his head with his free hand. The lanky turtle scooted away from them to the other side of the rooftop, his eyes darting furiously across the sky, painted orange from the sunset. From the phone, there was the sound of button-mashing, and then a familiar blaring alarm.
"Aaaand down goes the ship!" Mikey replied, the connection staticy.
"You remember what I told you? The parachute-" Donnie began frantically, his heart pounding.
"-is in the main area, near the emergency exit doors," Mikey reassured him. Donatello could hear his footsteps pattering lightly in the background. "Everything is going smooth as silk over here." Donnie bit his tongue until he could taste salt and iron. Raphael was pacing near the water tower, a scowl marring his lips.
"This was stupid!" Raphael suddenly burst out, turning to glare at Donatello. "Something's gonna go wrong."
"It's going fine," Donatello growled, his eyes somewhat frenzied. "Mikey's getting the parachute right now." Raphael grunted and his scowl deepened. Donatello could tell from the look on his face that he was thinking it should have been anyone but Mikey up there, hijacking the Foot jet. He was the baby brother, and none of them had ever considered that Mikey would be the stowaway on the mission. Donnie turned his attention from Raphael and glanced over at his blue-masked brother. Leonardo's deep blue eyes were closed and his mouth set in a thin line. For a moment, Leo opened his eyes and looked at Donnie. Leonardo had been the one who was supposed to be on the plane right now. Donnie could see the guilt that was gnawing away at him.
For everyone's sake, Mikey had better be alright when this was all over.
There was a loud creaking noise from the other end of the line. Mikey was entering the main room. Any second he'd be strapping on the parachute. Donatello's heart leaped up into his throat at the sudden sound of metal screeching on metal.
"Shi-" Mikey's voice was cut off and the phone crackled at the sound of it hitting the wall. Donnie's stomach dropped as he heard Michelangelo's nunchucks twirling.
"Mikey? Mikey!" Donnie was nearly screeching into the phone. His cheek hit the speakerphone button and the sounds of a fight came pouring through. Leo and Raph were on him in an instant, Raphael screaming something about him being 'right all along' and that 'he knew something would happen'. Donnie whirled around, his eyes filled with fire.
"SHUT UP!" he yelled. Before anyone could respond, a deep, accented voice cut in, booming out of the speakers, sending chills up Donatello's spine.
"You were unwise to send the young one," the Japanese man stated, in his impassive and gravelly voice. "He will die for your mistake."
"Well, I don't plan on dying anytime soon, thanks very much!" Mikey's nerve-wracked laugh came through, loud and clear.
"Get the hell outta there!" Raphael snatched Donatello's phone and screamed into it. Donatello had never seen his eyes filled with so much fear. Donatello grabbed back the phone just in time to hear a frantic shout:
"No-!"
An onslaught of crackling noise came through. Donatello sucked in a breath. The crackling continued.
"Mikey?" Donatello's voice cracked at the tentative question. "Mikey? Mikey, talk to me."
"Guys," Mikey's voice was hardly discernible among the crackling. "It's not your fault." Everybody was suddenly deathly silent, only the loud crackling coming from Donatello's T-phone filling the air. Donatello's mind, for the first time in his life, was slow to react.
"...what?" Donnie finally choked out. Raphael's hand came up and grabbed Donatello's shoulder, clutching onto him like a lifeline.
"The Shredder...he took the parachute. And he jumped," Mikey said. His voice was starting to crack with the threat of tears. "It's not your fault."
"No," Leonardo said, shaking his head. "No, there's gotta be a catch. There's gotta be another parachute or something. Right Donnie?"
Donnie could only hear the pounding of his blood in his ears.
"I don't know what to do," Mikey cried into the phone. "Don, I don't wanna die!"
"Do something!" Raphael grabbed onto both Donnie's shoulders and shook him. "Donnie, tell him what to do! There has to be something!"
"I don't wanna die!" Mikey screamed into the phone, his choked sobs crackling through the speakers. "Don't let me die!" Donnie looked up to see a black jet rapidly descending on the city. His hands were shaking and his thoughts were a mess. But despite all the calculations running through his head, he knew there was only one option. He brought the phone up to his mouth.
"Mikey, can you hear me?" Donnie asked.
"Yes," His younger brother's voice trembled on the other end. Donatello took in a deep breath.
"You have to jump," Donatello said quietly into the phone.
"What?! Are you insane?" Leonardo screeched.
"Mikey, if you hit the ground in that plane you will not survive," Donatello said, his voice strangely calm as he turned away from his older two brothers. "Your best chance is to jump. Look out the door. Can you see the ground?" There was a slight pause from the phone.
"Y-yeah," Mikey stuttered, the crackling of the wind still in the background.
"Look ahead. Find a building with a glass roof. When you jump, aim for it. The glass will break your fall better than concrete," Donatello stated, closing his eyes.
"Dude, I'm gonna die, aren't I?" Mikey managed to squeak out.
"Splay out your limbs like a flying squirrel. That will give you more drag and air resistance. Are you getting all this Mikey? You have to hit a glass roof, or you'll never survive the fall," Donatello said firmly into the phone. "We'll find you, okay? You aren't going to die."
"I really, really love you guys," Mikey's voice was high-strung and raspy.
"This won't be the last time you'll say it," Donatello replied firmly. Behind him, his older two brothers were in hysterics, but he tuned them out, all his attention on the voice coming from the other end of the line.
"Ok, I found my building," Mikey said, his breathing hitching.
"Good." It was all Donatello could manage to force out of his throat.
"Here it comes," Mikey whispered, a slight whimper in his voice.
Donatello tilted back his head to look up at the black dot soaring across the sky.
"Jump," he commanded. There was a moment of hesitation.
On a black jet plummeting towards the city harbor, an orange masked turtle took a deep breath, spreading out his arms. Closing his eyes, he imagined Donatello's face, reassuring him.
"I trust you," he whispered.
And then he fell.