Disclaimer: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is the property of Viacom, Nickelodeon, Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird and all organizations associated with said names. This is non-profit

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Exile
by BrownEyedBirdie

Author's Note: Wow, pretty good response; 7 followers, 6 favorites and 3 reviews in such a short amount of time. I didn't think I could get more excited about this story. Thanks to the reviews I had and the ideas shared. Sounds like I'm on the same page as a lot of you. Weiterlesen!

Chapter 2 – Arrival

Most of the ride from New York City was a blur of wailing traffic and running pedestrians that were also escaping. Casey did his best to avoid everyone, including a state patrol officer. The Turtles stayed on the floor of the van until they were well and truly out of the city and sight of large populations. After that, driving mostly fell to Casey. April had no license and, though Donnie was capable of driving, knew his attention should stay on Leo. Raph offered but wasn't able to figure out how to handle the manual gear. Eventually, he had to be content with staying in the back with a sleeping Mikey. They drove all night and most of the morning. Around noon, they drove through the small town and April said it would be only a few more miles, which turned into about another 30 miles. Finally, after about half an hour, April saw a mailbox with the peeling letters "O Neil."

"There it is!" April shouted, feeling excitement wash over her. In an instant, she was 6 years old again and stepping into her summer vacation. But soon her face lost its cheerfulness. Despite the 10 year absence, the 100 year old farmhouse still stood firm. April's eyes misted at the sight of the sun-bleached paint, the missing shutters and the missing roof tiles. In the midwinter afternoon, the bleakness of the bare trees and the mounds of snow only served to reinforce the idea of isolation. They rolled to a stop next to the porch.

"Be as gentle as you can when you carry him inside," Donnie said, opening the door, "Lay him down on any flat surface you can find."

Mikey and Raph carried Leo's limp body up the steps as Donnie hurriedly collected all his equipment. April hurried on ahead to open the door. Thankfully, the key was still hidden in its usual spot. But the door was stuck, warped by years in the shifting temperatures.

"Let me, Red," Casey said and put his shoulder to the door hard. He bounced back as though he'd hit rubber.

"Jones, get over here and hold onto Leo," Raph growled. Casey took hold of Leo's other arm while Raph stomped up to the door. He pulled out his sai and jammed it between the door and frame. With a twist of his wrist, the door opened. Everyone peered in as dust motes danced in the thready winter sunbeams.

"Whoa," Mikey breathed, "I think I saw a house like this in one of my comics!"

"Didn't they use this place in The Grapes of Wrath?" Casey asked. April gave him a sharp look.

"Funny," she said, but she did smile, "I told you before, I haven't been here since I was 6. The house has been in the family for a long time, I don't know how many generations. Do you think it will be okay, Donnie?"

Donnie climbed up the steps, carrying his first aid box and a bag of equipment. He gave the room a hasty glance.

"Well, to start with, let's see what our power and water situation is like," Donnie said.

Setting down his box, he looked at the others. Raph was glaring at him and Mikey looked confused.

"Um, isn't Leo supposed to come first?" Raph asked. Donnie held his older brother's gaze and did not flinch.

"Not yet," Donnie replied, "We'll make his comfortable for now."

"He's injured, Donatello," Casey said, siding with Raph, "He needs to get taken care of first."

"And how do you purpose he get taken care of without heat, clean water or any power?"

No one answered. Raph grunted and slouched away to lean against the wall.

"Right," Donnie said, "Mikey, go check every faucet in the house. Turn them on and let them run until the water is clear. If it's not clear after running 10 minutes, we count those pipes out."

Mikey gave his brother a worried look. "Donnie, you know I have a short attention span."

"Go Mikey," Donnie said, giving his brother a warm look, "You can do this.

Mikey smiled weakly and hurried up the steps.

"Raph," Donnie said, "I'm going to need some supplies. April, where would you keep farm supplies here?"

"There was a tack closet in the barn outside," she said, "It had a lot of tools and building supplies. Dad was always working on keeping the place fixed up."

"Good. Raph I'll need waterproof glue, fiberglass strips and epoxy," Donnie said, "Check out the barn."

Raph nodded and left.

"I'm going to have to check the fuse and breaker boxes," Donnie said, "Where is it April?"

"It's on the back of the house," she said, "Right through the kitchen. I'll show you."

"No, I need you to stay here," he said, "Start cleaning Leo's cuts. I've got a few bottles of water that should get us through that much."

"Okay," April said.

"Casey, you come with me," Donnie said, "You and I have some rewiring to do."

They went out the kitchen door, barely paying attention to the remains of a dinner. Donnie briefly wondered if they'd have squatters to deal with later. Outside, the scent of cold and snow was on the wind. Donnie pulled off the cover of the breaker box and gave a groan.

"This wiring must be 30 years old," Donnie grumbled, "But I'll work on updates later."

"As long as the television and microwave works," Casey said. His attempt at light humor got no response.

"You got your taser with you?" Donnie asked.

"Yeah," Casey said, "But the pack won't power this. It's barely got more than half power now."

"It'll work for now," Donnie said, "I'm going to get these fuses in place and then you'll need to give the pack to me. I can rework it in the fuse box as a generator for now."

Casey removed the pack and before he could blink, Donnie had it installed. For about 30 minutes, Donnie was connecting wires and twisting cables while Casey watched, occasionally glancing behind into the forest for signs of other house. The isolation was a little unnerving for Casey, having lived all his life in the old brownstone townhouses with his family.

"How are we gonna stay off the grid?" Casey asked, "Power companies are gonna see us using their stuff."

"Same way we did at the Lair," Donnie said, "You piggyback on multiples power sources."

"How you gonna piggyback out here?" Casey said skeptically.

"Simple," Donnie said, "Niagara Falls is the closest power source that would connect most of these outlaying farms and towns. They'll all be connected underground."

"So?"

"So, once we tap into that land line, the rest is just a matter of distributing the connection over multiple waves. 5% here, 10% there, no one notices an extra couple of bucks on the bill."

"D, you are a genius," Casey said. Donnie grimaced as he twisted the wires of the power pack into the breakers. A faint buzzing sound erupted from the box.

"Casey," Donnie said, "Go flip the lights on inside."

Casey went into the kitchen. Donnie knew he'd been successful as a light flicked on above him.

"Way to go D!" Mikey called from the upstairs window. Donnie grinned up at him.

"Any luck?" he asked.

"One bathroom up here runs clear so far," Mikey answered, "I'm checking the tub right now. And there's a boiler up here too."

"I'll be up in a minute," Donnie said.

Casey came back. "I'm gonna go check on Raphael to see if he needs help."

Donnie nodded and Casey took off. Back in to the house, April was filling a bowl with a bottle of water.

"Two bottles left Donnie," April said, "I've got Leo's arms

Donnie nodded and went upstairs. Mikey was splashing the clear water in the tub.

"It's clear but not hot," Mikey said.

"No, I didn't think it would be," Donnie said. He glanced at the boiler and his heart sank.

"That's gotta be from the turn of the 20th century."

"Bad news?" Mikey asked.

"It's not good news," Donnie said with a sigh, "But it might not be so bad. Let me take a look at it. Go down and check the kitchen. April will need clean water. Well have to boil it for now."

Mikey left and Donnie started examining the rusty 7 foot cylinder. The pipes were corroded and dripping. There was a huge dent on the back of the boiler and it felt stone cold.

"Maybe not as bad as I thought," Donnie thought, "But it's a two or three day job."

"Priorities," Donnie said aloud. He turned the water in the tub off. He opened some doors on the upstairs floor until he found some towels. As he came downstairs, he saw Raph waiting for him, holding an armful of the supplies Donnie had asked for. Casey carried an army cot.

"That all of it?" Raph asked hopefully. Donnie smiled.

"All of it exactly," he replied, "Let's put it in the kitchen. Give me the stuff and then I'll help you carry Leo in."

"I got it, Donnie," Raph said, "Just tell me where to put him."

"Kitchen table," Donnie replied. Raph nodded and Donnie carried everything into the kitchen. Mikey was helping April fill bowls with clear water as April filled a kettle.

"Water is clear," Mikey said, "And look at this." He pointed to a black stumpy metal stove.

"A potbelly stove!" Donnie exclaimed, "If it still works, we are gold!" He checked over pipes, removed at least a pound and a half of ash and snow and checked the exhaust outside. Raph carried Leo in and laid him on the table. April was reminded of a traditional Irish wake

"The kitchen will be the hot spot for now," Donnie said, "At least until I get the power source going from something other than 4 AA batteries."

"6, thank you very much," Casey grumbled.

"Point is, we have power for the moment," Donnie said, ignoring the interruption, "Not enough to heat things instantly, but enough for lights and television."

"Now Leo?" Mikey and Raph asked together.

"Now Leo," Donnie replied.

Mikey left the room as Donnie removed Leo's mask. Raph was not far behind and neither was Casey.

"Donnie, do you need some help?" April asked.

"I can do this," Donnie said without looking up, "Go relax."

"I can set up the cot in the family room, if you want."

"No, it would be best if everyone were in the kitchen tonight. Tomorrow I have a power grid to pirate and a boiler to start repairs on. Just go relax.

April watched as Donnie rolled Leo over and felt a sharp pinch in the pulse points at her wrists at the sight of the jagged crack in his shell.

"I'll go find some blankets," she said and quickly left Donnie to his work. In the family room, Casey was channel surfing through daytime crap TV, soap operas and an occasional newsflash of the invasion in New York, which set everyone's teeth on edge.

Donnie was in the kitchen for several hours. It occurred to April that the kitchen table would probably not be used for meals after this, unless Donnie was able to clean it really well. April caught a whiff of acetone coming from the kitchen. Raph paced the floor anxiously while Mikey curled pulled his legs up to his chest on the couch. Casey continued to stare at the TV. Some Spanish soap opera played but he wasn't seeing it. Eventually, he gave a faint snore. April put a blanket over him. Exhaustion was going to catch up with all of them soon enough. The sun was setting behind the mountains, painting the sky a rosy red. April could only stare at it, thinking back to how flat and gray things had been only yesterday.

"'Red sky at night,'" Donnie said as he came in the room, "'Sailors' delight.'"

Donnie sat down beside Mikey and stretched his long legs. His eyes were bloodshot with his hours of work.

"How's Leo?" Mikey asked.

"The crack in his shell is sealed," Donnie said, "He's on the army cot for now. I want to eventually try and get him wiped down to keep him hydrated. But for now, he should stay dry until the crack is healed."

"Once the boiler is fixed, we can do a more thorough cleaning of the cuts," Donnie continued, "But for now, we still shouldn't move him."

"Did he wake up at all?" Raph asked. Donnie said nothing for a moment before finally shaking his head.

Everyone was silent as the answer settled on their exhausted brains.

"Anyone hungry?" Mikey asked, not sounding terribly enthusiastic.

"I think we're all just better off sleeping tonight," April said.

They put away the food, and Ice Cream Kitty, in the freezer and April brought down some more blankets. In the warmth of the kitchen, everyone drifted off to sleep.

*()()()*

Thank you for reading. Please review, even if you have just a word or two to share. It really helps and encourages me. See you in the next chapter!