NOTE: After a two year hiatus, I have returned to continue this series. However, from here on, each chapter will be shorter than the first two, ranging from 2,000 to 3,000 words each, but I hope to try and update at least once or twice a week. That schedule is not written in stone and will not always happen, but that is what I am shooting for. Thank you for those that have read my story and continue to do so, and please, if you like what I write, spread the word and tell your friends. :).
Thank you.
Chapter 03: Ooze on the Street
As the wooden bat came slamming down again, Raphael managed to roll out of the way, then pushed off the roof with his hands and jumped to his feet. As the man wearing the hockey mask came at him again, he was able to get a better look – the man was tall and muscular, the hood of his black sweater pulled up over his head. He wore dark blue jeans, black shoes and gloves designed for extra grip, and a single-strap backpack, probably filled with more baseballs and other objects for throwing. Along the chest strap Raph could also make out several sheathed knives.
The turtle dodged Hockeyman again, spinning around and kicking him in the side. He noticed the man had a holster on the back of the bag for holding two bats, one of which he was currently using to try and smash Raph's skull. He tried to reach for the bat, but Hockeyman spun around faster than he should have been able to and kicked the turtle in the gut, which he felt quite well despite his shell.
How the hell can he move so fast? Raph thought to himself as he dodged a second kick. He tried to explain to the guy that the Turtle Gang wasn't actually a gang, but this freak would not ease up enough for the turtle to finish his sentence.
"Newsflash, Bonehead!" Raph yelled out after he knocked Hockeyman down and found an opening to speak. "I ain't no gangbanger! Don't believe them liars! We were trying to help at that party!"
"Save it for your maker, pal!" yelled Hockeyman as he got back up and came at Raph again. The turtle sighed.
"We're on the same side, ya idiot!" he yelled as he dodged the bat again.
"Doubt it!" He would not let up.
After a few more dodges, Raph had his sais pressed up against Hockeyman's bat, when suddenly a thundering crack filled the air, followed by several others. Right next to Raph's head on the roof access door he was backed up against were several gunshot holes, and a piece of his headband strap fell to the floor. Raph and Hockeyman turned and saw several Purple Dragons on the building across the street, then saw more coming up the fire escape of the building they were on. More thugs popped up on other roofs, some Purple Dragons, some from allied gangs such as the Jackrabbits and the Black Dawn, which was more of a devil-worshiping cult than a gang.
"Do not harm the turtle!" yelled a large man as he came up the fire escape and walked towards Raph and Hockeyman. He must have been at least seven feet tall and ripped like a bodybuilder. He had a Purple Dragon tattoo swirling up his left arm, and kept his blonde hair in a long braid. "We are to bring him in alive. The hockey man here, however, you may kill."
"We're gonna have to work together if we wanna get out of this," Raph whispered to Hockeyman. "I ain't a criminal. Trust me."
Just then, several of the Purple Dragons on the other roof began firing at Hockeyman, and Raph moved to rescue him, but he managed to dodge the bullets on his own. What the hell? How is he able to move like that? The turtle thought to himself. Then he felt himself being grabbed by a giant set of arms. He kicked away, spun around, and faced the apparent leader of the Purple Dragons.
Hockeyman took a running leap and landed on the roof with the guys that had shot at him, and within a few seconds they were knocked out cold by his baseball bat. Then he hopped over to the roof that had a group of Black Dawn and a few Jackrabbits and started busting skulls. Meanwhile, Raphael was fighting off the Dragons that were trying to capture him, then jumped and spin-kicked the leader in the head as he came forward again. The hilts of Raph's sais met several heads, knocking his attackers out left and right, followed by frequent kicks.
"Hun, we may need to knock him out!" one of the Dragons said to the leader.
"I'm trying!" growled Hun back.
After a few minutes, the remaining attackers were all on one roof, with Raph and Hockeyman back-to-back fighting them off. Then suddenly, they heard sirens coming and a police helicopter headed in their direction.
"Dammit! Let's get out of here!" yelled Hun, and the gang members that were still conscious took off in all directions. Raph and Hockeyman followed suit, hopped a few roofs over, then hid in the bushes of a rooftop penthouse garden.
"So, do you believe me now?" said Raph, out of breath. Hockeyman looked at him for a minute, then lifted up his mask and extended a hand.
"The name's Casey Jones," he replied. His face was that of a young man in his late teens.
"Raphael," the turtle shook Casey's hand.
"What, you ain't got a last name?"
"It's a little hard to explain.." said Raph. Casey was silent for a moment.
"So, if you ain't a gang member, why you sippin' on Ooze?"
"Excuse me?"
"You know, Ooze," said Casey. "The green slimy stuff that makes you stronger and faster? I know you got some, otherwise you wouldn't be able to move the way you did."
"I don't sip no damn Ooze," replied Raph, then raised an eyebrow ridge. "I'm guessing you do, though."
"Hey, whatever buddy," he laughed, "I know you're sippin'. As for me, I have no choice. It's the only way I stand a chance against these thugs. I stole a batch from the Dragons a few weeks ago."
"What exactly is this Ooze?" asked Raph. Casey shrugged.
"I dunno. Some new drug that recently came out. Being passed around the gangs. When you drink it, you feel full of energy. Stronger, faster, more aware. You basically become a total bad-ass until the shit wears off. But you know all this."
"Hey, pal, I ain't no druggie," said Raph. Casey scoffed.
"Look man, I think I get it," he said with a sigh. "You wanna dress up like a turtle and do the whole superhero thing. Kind of like what I'm doin' with the hockey mask. You don't want it to be known you're sippin' Ooze. But listen, pal – sooner or later someone will find out, because you can't be movin' that fast any other way. Get it?"
"So you justify doin' drugs for yourself?"
"Hey, I do what I gotta do," said Casey quietly. "A few years back, my family lived in a bad neighborhood. It was all we could afford. My old man was workin' three jobs to keep the lights on and food on the table. I wanted to drop out of school and get a job to help out, but he insisted on me stayin' and eventually goin' to college, so I didn't end up like him. But I was never any good at school."
"And what does this have to do with the Ooze?"
"I'm gettin' there," explained Casey, looking into the distance with sad eyes. "One day, a Skull came bustin' into our home and held me and Mom hostage. He was hidin' from a group of Dragons that were chasin' him or somethin'. Anyway, my old man came home from his night job and the Skull freaked. Shot my old man right in front of me. The Dragons heard the shot, and lit my house up. Windows crashin', bullets flyin'. Woke up three days later in the hospital. I got shot five times, but they were able to save me. But not my mom. It was then that I became determined to fight these fuckers that took my family away from me. All gang members. Any gang members. I didn't want this to happen to anyone else."
"Damn..." said Raph, shaking his head. "I'm sorry to hear that, man."
"That was about three years ago now," he went on. "Once I got out of the hospital, I started workin' out and takin' martial arts and stuff. Dropped out of school so I could train more. A few weeks back, Ooze hit the streets, I jacked some, and it was time to strike."
"If all these damn gangbangers are on the Ooze too, how come you tore them apart so easily?" asked Raph.
"Cuz," explained Casey, "Word on the street is you take too much, you end up dead. But I got nothing to live for cept revenge, so I tripled the dose."
"So against us, a single dose of Ooze doesn't really help these guys in a fight." said Raph.
"Yeah," agreed Casey, "but I thought I was the only one crazy enough to down that much Ooze."Raph frowned.
"Look, I ain't on the Ooze." Casey scoffed again.
"Yeah, you got bit by a radioactive turtle, right? And now you dress up like one to fight crime?"
"No," said Raph, staring out over the city. "I'm a mutant. Fifteen years ago, my brothers and I were just normal turtles. We got covered in a green slime that sounds kinda like this Ooze you're talkin' about, and we changed forever."
"So instead of sippin' Ooze, you bathed in Ooze. Still Ooze, man." laughed Casey. Raph shook his head.
"Listen, idiot," he said. "You said Ooze came out a few weeks ago. I'm talkin' fifteen years ago. Maybe they are related, but I ain't sippin' none of what you're talkin' about."
"Whatever, man," Casey waved his hand. "I think the coast is clear. See ya later, gackface!"
"Don't get yourself killed, hosebrain!" said Raph as Casey jumped down a fire escape and out of sight. He then made his way down to the alley and hopped inside a sewer opening. A few moments later, a second person slipped in...
"I''m kind of worried, Master Splinter," said Leo. "Raph's been gone a while. Should we go and look for him?"
"No," replied Splinter. "If all four of you are up there, it increases the chances of someone seeing you." Leo sighed quietly.
"Yes, Sensei." He walked back towards his bedroom, stopping for a brief moment to look towards the kitchen. Mikey had headphones on and was dancing while he mixed something in a large bowl. "What're you making?"
"Huh?" asked Mikey as he pulled the headphones to the side. Leo asked again. "Oh, dude, you're gonna love these. I call 'em Ninja Brownies!"
"Is something burning?" asked Leo as he sniffed. Mikey's eyes widened.
"Oh no, my first batch!" he cried as he ran over and opened the oven. Smoke poured out, the fire alarm went off, and Donnie yelped out from the couch, having been so engrossed in a scary movie that the loud beeping nearly gave him a heart attack.
"Shut up," said Donnie as Leo and Mikey busted up laughing at him. He crossed his arms and focused his attention on the movie again. After helping to clear the smoke, Leo walked to his bedroom and laid down to read the latest issue of MMA Monthly, a magazine about martial arts.
A few minutes later, Raphael dashed in the door, slamming it behind him. Everyone came running into the entry way.
"What is the matter, my son?" asked Splinter. Raph was out of breath.
"I was followed," he began, "but I think I lost him in the sewers." After catching his breath, he explained about the fight with Casey, the gang attack, the Ooze that was on the streets, and the Dragon that had followed him into the sewers.
"I can't help but wonder if this new drug has anything to do with the ooze that transformed us," said Donnie. Splinter sighed. The story he had told them about their creation was a lie, but he couldn't bring himself to tell them the truth. Not yet, anyway. For now, they would go on believing they were created by mutagen in the sewers.
"What bothers me," began Leo, "is that the Dragons had orders to capture Raph alive. Who gave that order? Some gang leader who wants revenge for the fight the other day at the party?"
"This concerns me, as well," agreed Splinter. "A dark cloud hangs over our family. We must be cautious."
The next day, April called the turtles and warned them that when she tried to come over, she noticed the sewers were crawling with Purple Dragons, Jackrabbits, and Black Dawn. The turtles knew right away what they were looking for and were forced to hide in their lair...
"I am growing impatient, Hun," said Baxter Stockman, his voice ringing out from a computer monitor during a video chat.
"Look Stockman," replied the large man, pacing in front of the desk, "we've been combing the sewers for days. There's no sign of the turtles. We need a new plan."
"And what exactly do you suggest?" he snapped. "You and I both are as good as dead if we don't deliver. The Shredder commands an army of ninja assassins, and I'm told he is closely linked with several Yakuza groups. Incentive enough?"
"That doesn't change the fact that we can't find the turtles!" Hun snapped back. Stockman sighed loudly, rubbing his forehead with his thumb and index finger. "The best I can give you is a piece of a turtle's headband."
"What?" Stockman's head shot up. "You have a piece of material that the turtle wore?" Hun nodded. The scientist smiled.
"What are you thinking?" asked Hun.
"I'll reactivate the Mouser Project..." said Stockman with a bit of excitement. "I invented them to purge the city of the plague of rats, but those damn activists said my creations were inhumane, and they cried and bitched loud enough that my father shut my project down and slapped me with this damn desk job. I'm meant to be in the lab, not in charge of finances. I really can not wait for the old man to croak so I can inherit the company."
"How will the mousers help?"
"Use your brain, you idiot," he said. "I'll use the headband to retrieve microscopic traces of DNA – most likely sweat – and program the mousers to follow the scent. I'll release them into the sewers to track down the turtles. We'll have them in no time."
"Ah, I see," said Hun.
"Soon the Shredder will have what he seeks, and in return he will provide a plethora of contracts with Japanese corporations..." Stockman smiled ear to ear.
To be continued...