"Master Splinter!" Raph whispered urgently into the darkness. "Master Splinter, are you alright?"
There was no reply for several seconds, but then there was the sound of a match being struck and suddenly light flooded into the room. Raph had to shield his eyes for a second to let them adjust to the light, but as his vision cleared he suddenly wished it would fog back up. Master Splinter was there kneeing on the floor, the match that he used to light the small candle was still in his hand. But it wasn't his left hand that worried Raph… it was the sword in his right. It looked to be very old, millions of years Raph guessed at a glance, with its rusted blade and dusty, torn handle. Raph recognized the model as a katana sword, one that probably was used by many Japanese ninjas a long time ago. Splinter held the handle tightly, his knuckles turning white from the effort, and it didn't look as if he would ever be willing to let go of it. But what scared Raph the most was what was on the blade. Sticky, scarlet-colored blood dripped from the sword onto the carpeted floor, staining it, and Raph noticed the drops of the same color that was dried on his master's brown robe. A large gash was carved into his right leg and the blood stuck to his grey fur like maggots did to garbage. Master Splinter's eyes were bloodshot, as if he hadn't slept for weeks and his gaze was locked on Raph's face.
Raph stopped breathing at the sight. He couldn't speak for several minutes as his brain tried to make sense of what he was seeing. The feeling from before had resided, as if his instincts were whispering an 'I told you so', but it was quickly replaced with horror.
"Master Splinter?" Raph finally gasped. "What- What happened?"
Tears started to soak the corners of his sensei's eyes, and Raph could tell he was having difficulty breathing as he replied breathlessly, "I… I cannot tell you, my son. Go back to bed."
"Back to bed?" Raph repeated in disbelief. "Master Splinter, you're bleeding! Where did you get that sword? Who attacked you? How-" Raph stopped himself as he realized he wasn't going to help his father babbling on like this. He shook his head to clear it.
"I'm sorry, Sensei." He breathed. "We should take care of you first and answers will come later." He turned to leave. "Wait here, I'll go grab Don and he'll fix ya."
"No, Raphael!" Splinter screamed. "No, you mustn't!"
Raph's instincts suddenly shouted a warning down his spine, and he instantly dropped to the ground, just as the katana sliced right where his head had been. He quickly rolled into a crouch and turned to face his master in shock.
"Master Splinter!" He said in a panic. "You almost took my head off! What's going on?"
The ninja master was in full tears now, and he was staring angrily at the sword in his hands. "Why?" He cried. "Why my son? Why can't you let him go?"
"Master Splinter?" Raph took a cautious step towards his master, completely confused. "Who are you talking to? Why'd you attack me? Please Master, talk to me."
Splinter turned to him with tears flowing down his face but his usual determination lighting up his eyes. "You must go now, Raphael! You must go far away from me! It's your life the katana seeks!"
"The katana?" Raph couldn't believe what he was hearing. "The sword's making you do this? Sensei, I don't understand."
Fifteen years of ninja training yet again alerted Raph to the swing seconds before Splinter gave it. But this time as he slid sideways out of the way of the blade, the katana just barely snipped the edge of his mask, causing the already bloodied blade to cut out a small piece of the red fabric and slightly scratch the skin just barely at the edge of his vision. Raph quickly regained his balance and backed towards the door, panic overcoming his very being, forcing only one thought through his brain: One more inch and he would have lost an eye.
"Run, my son!" Master Splinter shouted to him. "Please, for your own sake, run!"
"No, Sensei! I won't run!" Raph shot back, trying hard to ignore the powerful urge to do just that. "I'm not going to leave you!"
His father sighed in sadness and disgust as he swung the sword to point right at Raph's throat. "Why can't you ever listen to me, Raphael? Why won't you just do as you're told? You never obey me! You're always the reckless one, always putting yourself and your brothers in danger! I've tried everything I can to make you see that I just want you safe, but you continually ignore and disobey me! It would so much easier for me and your brothers if you were never born! I should have just left you there and taken only the other three. You think you're brave, Raphael, but you are really a coward to your own family!"
Raph felt tears of his own start to prick at his eyes. His master's words had hurt, they really had, but Raph could tell that they were provoked by the katana. He knew Master Splinter and even if the words did belong to him, it was the sword that was making him say them.
"I'm sorry I made you feel that way, Master Splinter." He said quietly. "And I promise things are going to change. But you know that sword is bad news." He reached out his hand and locked his glaze to his father's. "Drop the katana, Sensei. No matter what you feel, you are my father. Nothing can change that, and nothing ever will. I am here to learn from and protect you. Nothing can hurt you as long as I am here, and my love will never leave your side. Okay?"
Fresh tears poured from Splinter's eyes and he lowered the sword. "Okay." He choked, and the katana fell to the ground.