Chapter 2:

Mikey opened his eyes slowly. A harsh light flooded his vision. He shut them again. Where was he? Was he dead? He didn't feel dead. Opening his eyes even slower this time, he blinked and looked around him. He was in what looked to be a small and rather crudely built cabin. He was lying in a cot with a blanket covering his body. His head throbbed.

Groaning, he tried to sit up. It was pure agony. Every muscle in his body burned. He closed his eyes, clenched his teeth, and forced himself into a sitting position. Gently, a hand pushed on his plastron, forcing him back downwards.

"Try not to move," a low voice growled. "Or you'll hurt yourself further." Mikey opened his eyes to see who had spoken. It was a person dressed in the traditional black ninja outfit. He stared at the person. The person stared back with a cold glare. Mikey turned his gaze to the ceiling. He tried to remember what had happened. Where was he? Who was this person?

The fight! The Shredder! His brothers! Where were his big brothers? Hurt as he was, he again struggled to sit up.

"I told you not to move!" snarled the stranger.

"Wh-where are my b-brothers?" Mikey tried to say. His throat burned. "Leo and Raph and Donnie." The stranger just stared at him. "Where are my brothers?!" Mikey's voice returned and he screamed the words.

"Look, I don't know," the stranger said in his cold sneering voice, "But you got away and you're alive. The past is in the past. Just get over it"

Mikey whimpered. His baby blue eyes filled with tears. Get over it? He could never get over it! He would find them! Or at least find out what happened to them. But how? He didn't even know where he was!

"Where am I?" he asked. "Who are you?" The stranger just sighed.

"Try to get some sleep," he said.

"Where am I? Who are you," Mikey repeated. "Where are my brothers? I want my brothers! Where are they? Where am I? Who are you?" he repeated these words over and over. The stranger knew it was a sign of shock and hysterics.

"Calm down," he said, trying to soften his voice. Mikey started to sob softly. Were his brothers okay? He had to know. The stranger said again, "Try to sleep." Mikey couldn't. He just kept crying. He was so scared. The stranger reached over and laid a hand on Mikey's neck. He pressed down on the pressure points and Mikey was out.

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Shredder paced back and forth in his throne room. Bradford had called and informed him that they had the turtles. He was bringing them to Shredder's lair at that very moment. Shredder was thrilled. Finally, his enemies that had evaded capture for so long! They would be helpless at his feet! He would enjoy torturing them. He would enjoy hearing their screams, their pleads, begging him to stop.

And Karai had killed one. This was most excellent news. Shredder had been having doubts about her ever since Leonardo had shouted that Hamato Yoshi was her father. Then he and Yoshi had escaped him. Killing one of the turtles proved that Karai was on his side for good. Unwavering loyalty was what Shredder had wanted, and he was glad it had not been shaken by the turtle's cry.

Shredder sat down on his throne and put his helmet, the Kuro Kabuto, onto his head. He started thinking about exactly how he would torture these turtles. He needed at last one of them alive for bait, because even when he got the location of Yoshi's hiding place there was no guarantee that they could capture him. So bait was the back-up plan.

Suddenly, the Shredder had an idea. An evil idea. He was the master of deception. He decided it wouldn't be hard to use this skill against his enemies. Karai had told him a lot about Leonardo from the earlier days when they had been shady 'friends'. He had spirit, and he always fought for what he thought was right. But right or wrong, he would fight for his family, his brothers.

So why didn't Shredder twist Leonardo's vision of right and wrong? There was a clear right, and a clear wrong, but in between was a shady gray area that Shredder was sure could confuse a teenager who was scared for the safety of his family. Leonardo had too much to lose. Far too much.

He heard a van pull up in front of the building. Within minutes, the turtles had been set at his feet, bound so tightly they had begun to bleed. His goons surrounded him, eager to see the violence that was sure to occur. Instaed, the Shredder smiled.

"Welcome," he said. The turtles stared back at him. Although they were gagged, he could see the fury in their eyes. The insults they would love to throw at him right now. He continued.

"Tigerclaw, please escort our guests to the spare bedroom. Make sure they get food and water." Tigerclaw looked shocked. The turtles looked shocked as well. "Except for Leonardo," Shredder said. Leo narrowed his eyes. His brother's looked at him, terrified for his life. "Please bring him to the Dojo. I would like to speak with him." Then Shredder walked out of the throne room.

His henchmen looked at each other and at the turtles. Then after a few seconds they moved to follow his orders. The three turtles clung to each other, but Tigerclaw separated them. They brought Donnie and Raph to the spare room. They brought Leo to the Dojo. Then Tigerclaw went to Shredder. To his surprise, Shredder had changed out of his armor and instead wore a simple outfit sporting the foot emblem.

"Make sure they have extremely high security," Shredder instructed him. "They shall not escape me again. Now I must go and destroy the innocent mind of a teenage turtle." He walked away.

Leo was tied to a chair in the Dojo. Shredder entered and shut the door behind him. He turned the lock and slid the key underneath the door, where one of his foot soldiers was waiting. Neither of them would leave this room unless Shredder allowed it to be so. He walked over to Leonardo. The blue masked turtle scowled.

Let's get down to business," Shredder said.