"Th-this is t-ten different l-levels of b-bogus, d-dude…" Michelangelo managed to stutter out through chattering teeth, his breath forming another puff of cool fog with each word spoken. He kept his arms wrapped tightly around his torso, trying to prevent what little body heat he had left from escaping into the frigid January air. It was times like these he really wished he wore clothes… At the very least, he could take comfort in the fact that he wasn't the only one stuck out here on the rooftops of Manhattan in the middle of the night. All three of his brothers were lined up next to him, shoulder to shoulder, looking a bit more blue than green each passing minute. Even Venus stood up there with them, though no amount of her mind over matter meditation techniques could trick her body into feeling any warmer than an icicle at the moment.
"I do not care how 'bogus' you think this is, Michelangelo. This is necessary." Splinter shot back almost immediately, his voice stern and full of authority. The old rat paced back and forth in front of the five teenaged turtles, eyes scanning over each and every one of them as he lectured, a single spindly finger adding emphasis to his words. "You have been caught unawares by your enemies far too often of late. You lack focus! A ninja must be aware of his surroundings at all times, no matter what distractions he may encounter. If you cannot even push past environmental distractions such as the cold air of winter, then I fear it may be time to re-train all of you!"
"E-easy fer you ta say, w-wearin' that fur coat…" Raphael grumbled under his breath, though his comment earned a sharp glare from his master. "Whether you realize it now or not, this is for your own good! We mutants are constantly surrounded by danger! If you do not properly utilize the skills I have taught you, I fear one day one of you will not come home alive! I…"
Splinter paused abruptly, brows knit in concentration. His ears swiveled around like little satellite dishes, analyzing the smallest of sounds. He turned around to walk along the edge of the roof, eyes scanning the vast cityscape for signs of the danger he sensed. "Something is not right…" he announced after a long moment, his grip tightening visibly on his walking stick. The five teens all glanced between one another, slightly confused at their master's sudden change in tone. Donatello was the first of them to finally speak up. "L-let me guess… This is some sort of test, right? Y'know… You give us a lecture on focus and knowing your surroundings, then have some bogus threat out there for us to find?"
"No, Master Splinter is correct." All attention shifted slightly to the petite female standing at the end of the line. Venus had her eyes closed tightly in concentration, trying to block out all visual distraction from her mind's eye. "There is an odd disturbance in the chi flow around this area. I have never sensed anything quite like it before…"
"Yeah, sorry 'bout that. It always happens when I eat Mexican food." Mikey chimed in with a light chuckle, giving her a lopsided grin that didn't exactly scream apologetic. Venus heaved a small sigh, rolling her eyes a bit. "That is not what I meant and you know it…"
"I think it is best that we cut this lesson short for the time being. Quickly, let us return home." Splinter stated, quickly making his way towards the door leading to the building's interior. "Hey, ya don't gotta tell me twice." Raph commented as he followed suit, the other four hot on his heels, all eager to get out of the cold. Leonardo ended up second to last in the line, huddling up close to Donny's back to keep as warm as possible as he waited for the others to hurry inside. He was quick to dart inside when his turn came, giving one last good shiver as most of the wind gave way. Ah, nice and warm. Of course, it would be much warmer if Mikey would close the damn door.
Curious to see what was taking his brother so long, Leo glanced back up towards the top of the staircase. He spotted Michelangelo still out on the roof just outside the open door, just… standing there. Leo arched a brow, confused at the younger turtle's lack of movement.
"Hey, c'mon! You trying to become a turtle-cicle or something?" he called up to him, hoping to snap him out of whatever daze he was in. Oh, he moved after that alright. Unfortunately, not in the way Leonardo had hoped. Michelangelo swayed dangerously to one side, catching himself on the frame of the door before slumping down to his knees. Leo immediately darted back up the stairs, concern for his brother completely overriding his instinct to stay warm. "Mikey!"
By the time Leonardo reached him, he'd already lost consciousness. The older of the two just barely managed to catch his younger brother as he fell forward against his chest. The others had also grown concerned by this point and were rushing up the stairs towards the two. Leo was about to try and shake Mikey awake when he looked up and saw it. Sticking out of the back of Michelangelo's shell was the tail end of an arrow. Someone had shot his brother. "N-no…"
The mood was more somber than it had ever been down in the turtle's sewer base. They'd managed to get Michelangelo down there as quickly as they could, and Donatello had done everything in his power to mend his brother's wound. None of them really knew how bad it was until Donny finally extracted the arrow and found out how deep it actually was. It terrified him to think of how close the bladed tip had gotten to Mikey's heart. He'd been mere centimeters from death.
For now, Michelangelo lay on his stomach on the couch, a patch of gauze taped over the hole in the middle of his shell, his breath slow and shallow. Most everyone else was gathered around, waiting for him to wake up. Splinter sat next to the couch with one of Mikey's hands in his own, his ears turned down in a look of remorse. Leonardo had taken to pacing nervously though the living room area, muttering something about never making fun of his brother's bad jokes again if he lived through all this. Donatello kept himself busy cleaning up the medical supplies he'd gone through while trying to sew Mikey back together, trying not to think of what would have happened had he screwed up somehow. Venus sat cross-legged on the floor, that accursed arrow resting in her open palms as she examined it with her mind's eye. The only one not present was Raphael, though everyone knew exactly where he was. He was scouring the rooftops, trying to hunt down whoever could have done something like this to his little brother.
"Gaah, it shoulda been me!" Leo growled suddenly. "This wouldn't have happened if he wasn't last in line! If I'd have just let him get in front of me…"
"Then it would still have been you lying here instead Michelangelo. It would have been no different." Splinter retorted, though he couldn't hide the small pang of guilt he felt. He should have ushered them all inside the instant he'd sensed danger… Leo let out another frustrated growl, shaking his head. "It would have been different! It wouldn't have been Mikey!"
Splinter let out a sigh, but didn't try to argue with him any more than that. He knew how the other three boys felt about their youngest brother. They gave him a hard time a lot, but when it came to Michelangelo getting hurt they were all fiercely protective of him.
"So, uhhh… How's the voodoo, hocus-pocus thing going, Venus?" Donatello asked, if only to break the awkward silence. Venus didn't move from her spot on the floor, eyes still tightly closed. "This arrow has a strong chi attached to it, but I do not know what sort of magic this is. Whatever sort of spell has been cast on it should have been activated when the arrow hit Michelangelo, or even when you attempted to remove it from his back. I do not know why it has not done anything yet…"
"Unless it'll tell ya exactly where ta find the bastard that shot it, I don't give a shit why it ain't gone off yet…" Venus looked up just as Raphael made his way down the stairs towards the rest of them. Leonardo stopped his pacing once Raph passed by him, though he seemed to deflate a bit when he saw his brother's face. "I take it you didn't have any luck…"
"Nah, ain't found hide nor hair of 'im. Fucker didn't leave a trace." Raph grumbled, throwing one of his sais to the ground in anger. The sound of the weapon clattering to the ground was followed shortly by a light groan. "W… Wuz Raph throwin' a fit 'bout now..?"
"Mikey!"
All four of them immediately clamored over to where Michelangelo lay, pushing against each other to see how their brother was doing. It was all Splinter could do to keep them at bay. "Michelangelo, how do you feel?" "How do ya think, babe? He got shot in th' back! Prolly feels like shit." "C'mon, Raph! Quit crowding him, would ya?" "Uhh, Mikey? Do me a favor… Please don't try to sit up!"
Michelangelo gave another pained groan, muffled slightly as he buried his face against the couch cushion. "Owww… Y-yeah, n-no kiddin', Donny… F-feels like I went ten rounds with Vlad the Impailer… The hell happened?"
"Long story short; some Robin Hood wannabe decided yer shell needed some extra ventilation." Raph stated rather bluntly. Leo shook his head, kneeling down next to Mikey and holding out the arrow for him to see. "Someone tried to ice you, bro. They almost succeeded, too. We don't know who did it or why…"
"Honestly, does anyone really need a reason anymore?" Donatello interjected as he checked Mikey's wound, cringing and replacing his bandages carefully. Michelangelo flinched slightly before taking the arrow from Leo. He ran his fingers over the shaft, cringing a bit when he got to the dried blood that covered about the third of the arrow. That didn't seem to concern him quite as much as what else he saw covering the arrow.
"Hey, what's with all the glowy squiggles?" he asked, holding the arrow up for the others to see. The others glanced between each other. "What're ya talkin' 'bout? What squiggles? Yer seein' things, dude…"
"Hate to say it, but Raph's right, Mikey. I don't see anything on that arrow but your own blood." Leo added, not that he really liked having to agree with Raphael. The younger turtle shook his head. "Are you guys serious? The thing's lit up like a Christmas tree! How can you not see it?"
By this point Venus had stepped forward and taken the arrow from Michelangelo. She held it up to the light, squinting her eyes to try to see the mysterious markings. "I… I can sort of see something… The chi tied to this arrow is following along certain paths… Marking out symbols… But I do not recognize any of them. This spell is not of Chinese origin, of that much I am certain."
"See guys? I'm not crazy!" Mikey cheered, though in his jubilance he'd managed to move just enough to send a sharp jolt of pain through his back. Donatello shook his head in disbelief. "Now, wait a minute… Are you trying to tell me that there's some mystic mumbo-jumbo written all over that arrow in "chi" or whatever it is, and of all the people in this room, Mikey's the only one that can see it?"
"Correctomundo! Oww…"
"That's what I thought… I'm gonna go grab some chow. You guys come get me when you decide to start making sense." And with that, Donatello stole away to the kitchen area, abandoning the now seemingly nonsensical conversation. Venus let out a sigh, mildly frustrated at the inventor's stubborn disbelief in anything of a spiritual nature. "Very well. Then I will go study these symbols." She replied before wandering back towards her usual meditation spot in a mild huff. Splinter followed after her, hoping to see the symbols for himself and help track down their origin.
"Y'know what, Donny? Grub's soundin' mighty good ta me right now." Raphael commented aloud before following after Donatello. Leo was about to get up and do the same when Michelangelo grabbed him by the arm. "H-hey, what about me? I can't move, remember?"
"O-oh, right… Uhh… I'll bring ya something. Just sit tight and try not to hurt yourself any more than you already are." Leonardo replied, tossing the TV remote on the edge of the couch before escaping to the kitchen. Mikey gave a small sigh and flipped on the Discovery Channel. He got the feeling he was going to be stuck like this for a while…
The next several weeks were relatively quiet, all things considered. Venus and Master Splinter eventually managed to track down the mysterious symbols covering the arrow that hit Michelangelo. They turned out to be Germanic Runes, though their meaning still remained a mystery. Raph and Leo were off on their continued quest to find their brother's assailant, while Donny was busy trying to figure out how they managed to piss off what he could only imagine was some crazy Viking with a bow and a grudge. Mikey was doing well, much to everyone's relief. His wound was healing up much faster than Donatello had anticipated. Of course, that didn't stop the younger turtle from freaking out once he saw just how much of his shell his brother had to remove in order to take out the arrow and stitch him back together. Donny spent more than an hour assuring him that he'd fill the hole in once he was fully healed.
After Venus had learned all she could from the arrow, she'd returned it to Michelangelo. He'd wanted to keep the arrowhead as sort of a lucky charm, much to his brothers' distaste. Leo had argued that it had nearly killed him, so it couldn't possibly be lucky. Mikey instantly retorted that since in hadn't taken his life, it must be lucky. The older of the two eventually gave in and let his brother keep the thing, and Mikey had been wearing it as a pendant ever since.
It wasn't long before curiosity got the better of him, however. He never really discussed it with the others, but as he was healing up he couldn't help but wonder who could have attacked him. Silver and his gang weren't exactly avid archers, nor did they practice any sort of magic. Venus had already stated it wasn't the kind of magic the Rank was known for using at all. And magic or no, Bonesteel would never have been able to make a shot like that.
Unable to stand just sitting around anymore, Michelangelo finally caved to his curiosity. He waited until Venus and his brothers were off on their usual Wednesday night romp around the local skate park, an activity he was apparently not well enough to partake in just yet, and used the opportunity to slip out of the sewer. He nearly blew his cover early on to Splinter, as he'd forgotten just how many muscles in ones back were used when climbing a ladder. He managed to bite his tongue for the time being and escaped up to the surface without making a sound.
Mikey's first destination was the building rooftop where he was initially shot. Hey, it seemed as good a place as any to start. Splinter had forbidden any of them from returning to that spot until the assassin was caught, but right now Michelangelo felt it was worth the risk. Making his way up the many flights of stairs took a bit longer than it would have normally, again because his wound wasn't fully healed yet. Eventually, he did make it out to the top.
Being a bit more cautious than usual, Michelangelo peeked around the corner of the roof-access door, looking to make sure he wasn't in any immediate danger by being there. He readied his tonfa in each hand before proceeding out further, checking every corner and crevice as they came into view. By now it was mid-February, and the air seemed even colder than it had been that fateful night. He felt his muscles lock up instinctively whenever a particularly chill breeze blew by, yet another source of discomfort for his wound.
He became increasingly nervous the further out he went. The rooftop was illuminated by the pale light of the moon. Master Splinter had always warned them not to go out during a full moon, as the light made them easier to spot at night. That fact was really starting to sink in right now. He felt like a sitting duck out there, a prime target for anyone savvy enough with a bow to pick him off once and for all.
"Ye look really silly, sneakin' 'round like that."
The voice whispered just next to his ear nearly made him jump right out of his shell. Michelangelo scrambled forward, heeding his first instinct to put some distance between himself and whoever it was that had managed to sneak up on him. He whipped around, raising his tonfa in a defensive stance… and froze.
"No way…"