A/N: I added a note to the beginning of Chapter one, so I had to reload the entire chapter. Anyways, here is the second chapter. Please R&R. I appreciate any comments and/or critiques. Let me know what you think! Thank you!
"Where are my manners? I should have introduced myself earlier. My name is Mona."
Each brother quickly shook the hand Mona offered.
"Now that the pleasantries are over, how do we get out of this place?" Raph grumbled.
"There's an exit on the other side of the facility. At least, I think it's an exit. It's where the Kraang brought me in," Mona answered. She walked over to the door to the room and opened it, "But I can't leave this place without my weapons. They should be in a storage room at the end of this hallway."
"Then let's grab your weapons and get out of here before the Kraang notice you're gone," Leo ordered.
Mona ended up taking the lead with the Turtles closely behind her. The hallway was longer than they expected but it seemed like Mona knew where she was going. It was empty and did not seem like the Kraang sounded any alarms. Leo thought this would be a perfect time to ask a few questions that sat in his mind.
"The Kraang referred to you as 'Mutant L,' and earlier we saw them moving a container that they called 'Mutagen L' and labeled as 'ML.' Do you know what it means?"
Mona shook her head, "Unfortunately, no. Ever since I've been here, it's all they've ever called me. I can only guess what the 'L' stands for."
"Probably 'lizard,'" Raph smirked.
Leo and Donnie turned to him with a death glare. First he compliments her then turns around and ridicules her.
Mikey obliviously ignored the previous comment and strolled up alongside Mona, "Maybe there's another meaning to 'ML.' Perhaps it stands for 'Mona Lisa.' You know, like your name!"
"My middle name isn't L…" Mona started to say when Raph smacked Mikey on the head.
Mikey grabbed his head in pain and moaned, "What was that for?"
"For being an idiot," Raph bluntly replied.
"I'm actually surprised you even know what the Mona Lisa is, Mikey," Donnie added.
"Well, I do. Plus, she looks like the Mona Lisa and it fits with the initials. I thought it was a good name for her."
Leo sighed, "She already has a name, Mikey. You don't need to give her a new one."
"I'm just adding more style to it, that's all."
"Don't worry. The name is fine, but you can just call me Mona."
Suddenly, she stopped in front of an iron door, "This is it."
Instinctively, Donnie started working on the lock. He cracked so many of these codes that it was now child's play to him. Moments later it beeped and the door opened. Mona walked into the room first followed by Donnie and Mikey. Leo and Raph checked both ways down the hallway to make sure no one was around before entering themselves.
When Mona said the place was a storage room, she really meant it. It was a giant room filled from floor to ceiling with shelves and every space occupied with some sort of gadget. Donnie turned googley-eyed with so much tech surrounding him. If only he could take it all back to his lab. Mikey, on the other hand, wanted to touch everything in sight but could not with Raph constantly smacking his hands down.
"Ah! Here they are!" Mona yelled. Everyone caught up to her just as she strapped a belt around her waist. The belt had a gun holster on each side as well as a few pouches around the front and back. She checked the ammo in each gun before placing it back into the holster.
"Guns, huh?" Leo pondered aloud. He didn't mean for Mona to hear.
"Yeah, I learned how to shoot from my mother. She was quite the marksmen. Actually, all of my fighting skills came from her. She studied different self-defense tactics growing up. She eventually taught me and my brother, but I'm the one who stuck to the training."
"You have a brother?" Mikey asked.
"I do. He's the reason I'm in this mess in the first place. The Kraang are holding him hostage and I've been trying to save him. I've completely failed so far," Mona stared at the ground solemnly.
"Why would the Kraang want him?" Donnie questioned.
"I'm guessing it's because of his intellect. My brother, Jeremy, is only seventeen but he's a genius. He received his PhD a few years ago in both physics and astronomy. His research involved terraforming planets."
"That would explain why the Kraang want him then," Donnie continued.
"Great. That's exactly what we needed; more terraforming experiments. The last time we stopped them Leo nearly died!" Raph exclaimed with his arms in the air.
Mikey wrapped his arm around Raph's neck, "Calm down, bro. Leo's alive, see? Nothing to worry about."
"That's not the point, Mikey," he countered.
"Sorry to break up the conversation, guys, but we need to get going," Mona interrupted.
With that, they exited the storage room and continued to follow Mona to the end of the hallway and around the corner. Suddenly, two Kraangbot guards turned the corner on the other side and spotted the intruders.
"Kraang, it is the ones called the Turtles with the one called Mutant L in the place that they shouldn't be in."
Seconds later, an alarm sounded and they were quickly surrounded by Kraangbots on both sides.
Raph grinned as he pulled out his sais, "Finally, time for some action!"
"Raph, you and I will take on the Kraang down there," Leo ordered, "Donnie, Mikey, and Mona, focus on the ones right behind us."
Everyone moved into action. Leo and Raph rushed towards the bots at the other end of the hallway. There were five of them, but nothing the two of them couldn't handle. One Kraangbot began shooting at Leo but he was able to deflect the rounds with his katanas. They ricocheted and hit the Kraang squarely in the head as well as the one next to it. Meanwhile, Raph slid underneath the row of bots and lunged one of his sais in the back of its head, causing it to explode.
On the other side, Mikey, Donnie, and Mona had eight Kraangbots to deal with. Donnie and Mikey began smacking two of them around with their weapons, causing them to be disoriented. That was the perfect time for Mona to slide in, both guns in hand, and take them out with head shots. After they went down, another bot lunged at Mona, causing her to jump back and nearly loose her footing. The displacement gave another Kraangbot the opportunity to shoot at Mona. She dodged the shots easily enough but quickly realized they started to surround her. Luckily for her, Mikey wrapped his nunchucks around two of them and threw them away from her, smacking them against the wall. Donnie pole-vaulted himself up and took out another two with a swift kick. Mona took the chance to take out the last two with inferno rounds.
With the hallway littered with Kraangbot bodies, the group took the opportunity to dash towards the exit. Mona took the lead again and luckily no more Kraang appeared.
"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Raph asked as they ran.
"I do. I have a really good memory, so I remembered the path the Kraang took me on. The exit should be just around this corner."
She was right. A platform with a lever appeared before them. They rushed onto it while Donnie pulled the lever. The platform shook and suddenly launched them upwards. The ceiling split away, revealing the moonlight. As the platform approached the surface, it kept the same speed. It stopped the moment it became flush with the floor, hurling everyone into the air. Unfortunately, they were thrown into another concrete room and their landing was in no way soft.
"Ugh, I think I broke my shell," Mikey moaned.
"Can everyone walk?" Leo asked.
Everyone muttered some sort of affirmative answer. They made their way outside and Donnie realized they were not too far from where they first entered. The hobbled their way back to the Shellraiser and made sure they were not followed. Everyone took their place while Mona found a hand grip to hold onto in the back.
Leo plopped himself in his seat and started the vehicle. "We're going to have to bring her back to the lair, you guys realize this right?"
"What do you think Splinter will say?" Donnie asked as his head popped around the corner of his station.
Leo took in a deep breath, "We'll just have to explain everything to him. I'm sure he'll understand."
Raph turned to him and pointed his finger at him, "You mean you're going to explain it to Splinter. You're the one to mention the idea."
"Fine, I'll do the talking."
"I'm perfectly capable of speaking for myself, thank you," Mona chimed in.
"I know you are, but Splinter is wary of outsiders. He has accepted a couple of humans and other mutants into the lair, but it took a lot of convincing on our part." Leo remembered the times when April, Casey, and Leatherhead first came into the lair; especially Leatherhead. Luckily Mona did not seem like the kind to go crazy at the drop of a pin.
The rest of the drive was silent. It was awkward but no one could find anything meaningful to say as they made their way back home. Once there everyone filed out, with Mona taking up the rear. Mikey turned to Mona and assured her everything would work out. She could only hope that would be the case.
"You were out later than usual."
The tone in their father's voice was a bit concerning, but nothing they had not heard before.
Leo lowered his head slightly as he spoke to Splinter, "Sorry, Sensei. We ran into a bit of a predicament." He turned his head around to look at Mona as she entered the lair.
"And who is this?"
"Th…"
"My name is Mona, sir. I'm sorry to impose on you and your home so abruptly," she interrupted. She lowered her head slightly, mimicking what Leo did just moments ago.
Splinter methodically stroked his beard, "I see. And what exactly is your story?"
Between Mona and Leo, and eventually Mikey, Raph, and Donnie, they retold their story to Splinter. Through its entirety, he remained silent with an occasional grunt and hum here and there. Even after the retelling, he did not say a word. The brothers knew Splinter was meditating on the matter but anxiety shot through Mona's body.
Then Splinter broke his meditation.
"She can stay."
"Really?" all four brothers said in unison. The tones were different, however. Leo and Mikey's tone was enthusiastic while Donnie and Raph's were filled with shock.
"Yes, she can. This is a difficult transition in her life, so it's best if she had a safe haven to call home. There is a spare room across from the dojo she can use."
Mona bowed her head again, this time in appreciation than reverence, "Thank you, Splinter. This means a lot to me."
"It's nothing," Splinter smiled, "Since it seems like you're a skilled fighter, I invite you to train with me and my sons in the dojo."
"I'd be honored to."
"Good. We'll have a training session tomorrow. Now, I believe it's time to retire. I suggest you all get rest. I will not go easy on any of you tomorrow." Splinter turned and slipped away into the dojo.
Mikey came up to Mona and grabbed her arm, "I'll show you where your room is."
The others decided to follow suit and made their way to their own quarters.
Tomorrow would be a new and fresh day.
