Author's Notes (A/N): A new story by me! Yeah, sadly, my writers block finally cleared, and this is what replaced it. I plan on writing my other stories again soon, the next chapter of the Final Fantasy one is almost ready to go.
A bit of background on this story. It takes place in an AU version of the movies. I was originally going to have this story take place after the '07 CGI movie, but with what I have in the plotline, it would have been impossible. I couldn't put it before the movie, because then I'd be without Leo, unless I made it WAY before the movie, which I didn't want to do. As such, this story takes place two years after the end of the second movie, and will reference it heavily. It ignores the CGI movie completely, hence the AU. I also screwed with the time line a bit, moving the second movie up to having taken place in 2008/2009 rather than 1990/1991. As such, this story takes place in the present time, though, whether I'll mention things that have happened in New York since the original movies came out, I haven't decided yet. This story is designed to be both a stand alone one, and also the start of a series, should I decide to do a sequel. I will have plenty of references to the second movie, as well as both cartoon series, and even probably the comics a little bit.
Ugh, that was a mouthful... All that said, I hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I don't own TMNT, only the original characters (OC's) that are featured within.
Chapter 1 – The Mystery Man
Night time in New York, specifically somewhere in Manhattan. In the shadows of the city's buildings four figures walked down a dark alley. In the distance, a siren could be heard, though nobody seemed to pay any attention to it.
"This is going to be so much fun!" One of the four was quite eager to get to wherever they were going.
"Yeah, Mikey, we know. You've been excited all week about coming here," the one next to him responded.
"Hey, Raph, so have you. We all have," the one in the back commented to the one in front.
"Guys, knock it off. We're going out tonight to have a good time, not argue amongst ourselves. Besides, it'll be nice to be able to mingle freely with people who aren't April and Casey." The fourth one was the most rational of the set.
As the last one finished speaking, the four stepped out of the shadows of the alleyway and into the light of the street corner. Once under the light, it was obvious that they didn't appear human, rather they were four humanoid turtles. They were missing their weapons, they'd stashed them in the alley after coming up to street level, but they were still in their pads and bandannas. As they looked around, they spotted the location they sought, about a block's walk away. The blue bandanna-wearing turtle decided to take the lead.
Their destination was a club that had recently opened, called Safe Haven. The ads and fliers posted all over Manhattan promoted the club as a place where those who were different from the norm could come and hang out freely, mentioning cosplayers, goths, and various other alternative lifestyle groups, as well as a few of the gangs that had popped up around the city in the last two years. It had been open a couple weeks, though tonight was its official grand opening celebration. Nobody seemed to know who the owner was, though the building the club was in had been one that was raided by police a little over a year ago in one of their gang crackdowns. It had changed hands a few times since then.
As expected, there was already a line outside the club once the turtles arrived, and those in line were dressed in a variety of ways, including at least one who was dressed up as a ninja turtle. The red bandanna, seeing this, simply shook his head, trying not to laugh as he and the others made their way to the back of the line. It wasn't long before someone came up to the group though. "Hey, you four, come with me." They looked and noticed it was the rather large man who had been standing at the door when they arrived.
"Us?" The red one spoke up. "What for?"
"You're supposed to go on inside. Manager's orders." The bouncer shrugged, it seemed he didn't know what was going on any more than the turtles did. Curious, and a bit nervous, they did as they'd been asked, and followed the man to the door, where he opened it to let them in, getting them many groans and complaints from the various people in line.
The four turtles looked around as they entered, taking note of everything they could. The door they entered led to a landing with steps leading down to the floor below. The main area of the building was two stories tall, with a large dance floor in the middle. Around the dance floor was a slightly raised area with several tables and booths. This area covered the edge of the room most of the way around. In a corner on the far side was a DJ booth, with a large man behind computers, speakers, and a turnstile, playing various dance beats. Along the left wall was the bar itself. The club did sell alcohol, though how it was able to do so and allow minors in was anyone's guess. Directly across the entryway was another set of stairs that led up to a second floor area, though what was up there could only be guessed at as the hallway beyond rounded a corner and was hidden by the wall. Along the ceiling were several sets of multicolored lights flashing in various patterns, adding to the mood of the club, and, the turtles noticed, several security cameras were up there as well.
"The owner's apparently relying on technology more than bodies for his security." It would be the blue bandanna that would make that sort of comment.
"Well, Leo, to some extent it stands to reason. I mean, when you're dealing with various groups like this place would, how do you get bodies you can trust?" The purple bandanna countered the comment skillfully.
"Who cares? I need a drink." The red bandanna left the four and headed straight for the bar.
"Wait, Raph. Ugh." The orange bandanna sighed and followed the red one, leaving the blue one, Leo, and the purple one alone at the base of the stairs.
"Well, Don, I guess we should go find a table?" Leo commented to the other.
"Yeah, sure. I'm not much of a dancer anyway." Don couldn't help but smirk a bit at his comment. Of the four, only the orange one, Mikey, was any good at dancing, and all of them knew it. The two made their way to an empty seat, and were soon joined by the others, who'd gotten all four of them sodas. They were all four still looking around, taking note of the various groups and gangs inside, and remarking about how everyone seemed to be getting along quite well, when the DJ started to speak.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen! I am your DJ tonight, DJ Smooth, and I'll be keeping this party going all night long!" His comments gained cheers from virtually everyone in the club. "Thank you! Now, as was advertised, tonight is the grand opening celebration for the Safe Haven, and normally the owner or manager would make some sort of speech welcoming everyone here. However, our host has told me repeatedly that he wishes to remain anonymous, though I do guarantee you he is here tonight. So please, enjoy yourselves, and party hard, but party safe!" And with that the music was cranked back up.
"Party hard but party safe? What kind of catchphrase is THAT?" Raph remarked out loud.
"Hey, it's fitting, isn't it?" Leo's comment was almost immediate.
"Well, I don't know about you dudes, but I see a spot on the dance floor that's calling my name. See you!" And with that Mikey headed out to mingle with the crowd.
As they sat there, looking around, the group was occasionally approached by others, telling them how good their costumes looked, and congratulating them on their creativity. It seemed like they were a big hit, though for the most part, other than Mikey when he was dancing, they were left alone.
It had been two years since their encounter with Shredder and the Foot, which had led to their battle in a nightclub similar to this one. That encounter had led to Shredder's death out on the dock behind the nightclub. Well, that was the unofficial story anyway, since there was never a body recovered on the docks, and the police weren't even aware there was one to be recovered. Since that time, there had been many turtle sightings, though every one of them had eventually been proven to be a person dressed up as a turtle.
The real turtles had become a bit of an urban legend because of this, and many were under the belief that they themselves had only been humans in a costume putting on a show. In fact, this belief is what took so long for the police to be called to the nightclub to begin with, nobody realized that their appearance and the ensuing fight weren't a part of the show.
Since that time, the city had become quite peaceful. The Foot had left, returned to Japan, according to most sources. The street gangs that were left behind were all to weak to pose much of a threat, and most of them were taken out by police when they cracked down on the gangs. Even so, it seemed that the city was on the verge of something big, and nobody was sure what or when it was coming.
As ten o'clock rolled around, Leo took another look around the club. He spotted several people he'd seen before, most of the people here had been in the building since they showed up a couple hours earlier. Two in particular seemed to stand out to him, however. One was a young Caucasian man with shoulder length hair wearing a dark blue shirt and jeans, he stood out because Leo swore he'd seen the man looking at them several times. The other was an Oriental woman in a tight leather outfit with black hair, though why she stood out, he wasn't sure, but for some reason her presence bothered him. By this time, Mikey had gotten tired of dancing and rejoined the others. "Wow, this place is fun, but exhausting."
"I'm going to get us all another round, then we should head out on patrol." Leo stood up and headed to the bar, receiving no complaints from the others. Once he arrived, he was somewhat surprised when the bartender didn't even ask, but simply put four sodas down in front of him. "Uh..."
"Manager said to get you and your brothers a round on him." This statement shocked Leo a bit. How did the manager know they were brothers? Was it just a guess or was he aware of who and what they really are?
"Who is he? I'd like to thank him."
"He said he doesn't want to reveal himself right now." Before Leo could ask anything else, the bartender had moved on to wait on other customers. A bit disturbed by the short conversation, the blue turtle took the drinks back to his brothers and sat down, relaying what had been said.
"You think he knows us?" Mikey's natural curiosity was showing through.
"I doubt it, the only one we'd know personally that would be into something like this is Keno, and he's in college upstate." Leo's quick answer kept the others from asking any more questions. "I don't like this guys, finish up and let's go."
"Yeah, sure, Junior." Raph's sarcastic remark didn't affect the apparent leader any, and that made him change his tune quickly. "Wow, you really are on edge, aren't you?"
"Something's not right, I've been feeling like we've been being watched all night, and I don't mean by the cameras."
"Yeah, now that you mention it, it does seem like we've been getting more attention paid to us than I thought we would." Don seemed to consider the possibilities quickly.
"I thought it was just some bad tacos that we had for lunch." Mikey's quick comment led to a bit of groaning from the others, particularly Raph.
"Come on, let's get going." Leo's request was taken as an order, one the others were somewhat quick to agree to. They left, and Leo couldn't help but feel like they were still being watched as they did.
They quickly made their way to the alley, retrieving their weapons and holsters, before keeping to the shadows and heading toward a tall building a few blocks down. Here, in another alley, they were suddenly stopped by the feeling of some sort of a presence nearby. "Who's there?" Leo's question was more of a demand, his edginess beginning to make him a bit jumpy.
"Eenie, Meanie, Miney, Moe..." The voice came from the shadows, singing the children's rhyme slowly as if counting the four brothers. "Catch a turtle by the toe." A laugh followed the second line, and the four all drew their weapons at once.
"Come out. Show yourself!"
"Sure thing, Raphael." The voice was coming from in front of them, and the fact that he'd addressed the red bandanna by name made them all wary. Without further words, the man stepped into the light that filled the center of the alley, causing Leo to gasp a bit. It was the long-haired man he'd seen repeatedly at the club. "Ah, you saw me, Leonardo?" The man laughed a bit again. "Guess I didn't quite hide myself as well as I thought I did. No matter." He shrugged and stood there, looking at the four. "You can go ahead and put your weapons away, I'm not here to fight you."
"Forgive us if we don't believe you." Raph got himself into a fighting stance, which seemed to only annoy their mystery guest.
"So impulsive, how did you ever beat Saki?" His words got the attention of all four turtles now, each of them getting into a stance, ready for a fight.
"What do you know of him? Who are you?" Leo's questions were demands, ones that the man obviously had no intention of answering tonight.
"Sorry, guys, but there's only one way I'm going to answer your questions." He smiled at them once again. "I want to meet your master face to face. Only then will I reveal my secrets."
"Like hell you're getting anywhere near him!" Raph's anger was nearing the boiling point now, and the man merely laughed at him once more.
"Oh, please, if I wanted to, I already would have gone to your home and met him there. Fact is, I do have a sense of honor, and would prefer to meet him on neutral turf. I'll even let you pick where and when. Once you are ready, you'll be able to find me in the Haven. Until then, aren't you late for your patrol?" The man smirked once more, stepping aside to allow the four to pass, which they did eventually, giving him a fairly wide berth in the process. The man made no move to attack them, or impede their passing, in fact, he just watched them go, and kept watching them as they faded into the shadows of the night.
"Do you think they'll do it?" A female voice rang out from behind him, and instantly the man's smile faded from his face as he turned to meet the source of the new voice. Out of the shadows stepped the leather-clad woman from the club.
"I don't know, Jade. But even if they don't do it willingly, there's more than one way to get their assistance. This is just simply the easiest and most honorable way of doing it."
"You know, you really sound like him when you talk like that."
"I know." The man scowled a bit. "As much as I hate to admit it, he is right about some things. Come on, we need to return to our jobs." And with that, the two faded back into the shadows themselves.
A/N: Well, let's see, what can I say? I hope you all enjoy this, I'm rating it Teen for now, though I may change it later, since I'm not sure how far I can push the violence before having to change it. Next chapter we'll deal with the meeting, because you KNOW it has to happen, otherwise there's no story! At the meeting, we'll get some information about the mystery man, and a few revelations that date back eighteen years. Also, the Foot will show up soon, maybe next chapter, depending on how much I get in it. (It's called Return of the Foot, so you had to know it was coming!)
Please feel free to leave a review or comment! I'd like to know what everyone thinks.