Note: I do not own any of, or anyone related to the Turtles. They're
Mirage Studio's property, not mine. I am getting no money whatsoever for
writing this story, so please don't sue me! Kapeesh?
Chapter 3
Chad slumped down onto the barstool with an irritated sigh. The rest of the gang was in no better mood ever since the fight. He fiddled with the small gun in his hand while the barman poured him another drink. The man crossed his arms as he watched the boy chug the beer down in a few gulps.
"No luck, huh?"
Chad tossed the silver gun in the air once, then placed it back into his pocket. "S'all I found; those damned bastards made me lose it." Leaning against the counter, the man grunted in response. He didn't mind the boy carrying a gun; no one on this side of town went without one. Besides, he'd known the Eclipse for years. "Police probably got her."
After the retreat, they had all regrouped at the usual meeting point: a small rundown bar about six blocks away from the battle where the Eclipse did most of their business with the owner, Parker. It wasn't until the group had dressed their wounds and settled down that they noticed Jasmine's presence lacking. When a small party returned to the site, the police had already been, taking most of the evidence with them. While searching under piles of debris that had been overturned during the incident, Chad had recovered his gun. The rest of the search was futile. Traces of blood on the pavement were the only indications of the struggle. "Damn," he muttered under his breath, kicking the trash across the alley. "No point in staying around. Lets head back." They would check around in the morning. For now, Parker had offered them the place to stay.
Parker was getting anxious to hear the whole story; from what he had heard so far, he could only guess at who these attackers might have been. He pulled away from the counter, taking a seat next to Chad. There were no other customers to assist; with the current dilemma, he had closed shop for the night. The rest of the gang either slept or were recounting their side of the events. "So what the hell happened back there?" Chad looked up from his fifth beer to Parker who was lighting a cigarette.
"Give me a shot." He inhaled deeply and handed the joint back, shaking his head. "I don't know; they just appeared. Just fuckin' appeared, outta nowhere!" He threw the bottle down, watching it shatter on the hard floor, somehow letting it calm his nerves. "They started beating the crap out of us until they suddenly started going against these freaks who, from what I saw, beat the crap out of them." He sat, studying the broken glass intently, replaying the strange events in his head. Parker regarded him slowly, the short account had not given him much to go by, but it was enough.
"Foot."
Chad gave him a confused expression at the odd statement. Parker jogged his memory by going into a small vault under the counter and pulling out a vial. "The stuff was for them." It was more of a statement than a question. "Shit! I should've known." With nothing breakable within reach, he slammed his fist onto the countertop. "We'll check the police tomorrow." With that, Chad got up and took post near the door for first watch, leaving the others to settle in for the night.
It was nearly four hours later when it happened. Chad had just left his watch and was asleep on the floor, not far from the entrance. The new guard stayed beside him, straddling a chair and trying hard not to doze off. He kept his eyes on the door until sleep finally claimed him.
The ninjas were silent as they crept into the musky barroom. Carefully and effortlessly slipping over the ignorant bodies, they made their way from the window over to Chad's resting form. Depositing a roll of paper where it was sure to be found they, slid back into the shadows of the night, just as quickly as they had come.
****
Jazz didn't know how long she had been lying there, staring up at the concrete ceiling. No matter how hard she tried, she could not get to sleep. The events of that day had been too strange; that or the fact that she had already been out of it about six hours since the turtles had found her. Hell, for all she knew, it was already broad daylight outside; it was impossible to tell from down here. She wondered how much longer the others would sleep. The plan had been that she would stay until it was dark enough for them to lead her back to the Eclipse. It wasn't that she couldn't find her way alone; these parts were quite familiar to her, almost as much as the back or her hand. She figured they felt better knowing she was back safely and that the story of her temporary disappearance didn't include them. The threat in their voices let her know better than to do so.
Sighing, she rolled over again, stuffing her face into a pillow and covering her head with the blankets. The one thing she hated most about silence was the fact that it made her think. It was something she found herself doing more and more these days: thinking about everything and nothing. First her parents: killed before she was even four years old. Then her sister's sudden disappearance, and now, how she found herself being rescued by a team of turtles. God, if anyone's life was as messed up as hers, she wondered at how they could keep from putting a bullet to their head. But she had to admit, from what she knew of these turtles, they were pretty amazing creatures. Never once had she imagined that something like this could exist; they each seemed so unique and yet so human.
A loud crash from the direction of the turtles' departure startled Jasmine from her thoughts. Curiosity and boredom got the better of her and she got up to investigate.
****
Michaelangelo quickly pulled himself away from the table Donatello had sent him flying into and instantly blocked another attack coming towards his head, causing his brother to momentarily lose his balance and making it easy for him to send an attack of his own. They all noticed Jazz enter the large makeshift gym but did not show it, keeping their concentration to stay on guard.
The girl watched in awe as the brothers exchanged blows that rarely hit their targets. From what she saw, it was hard to believe that anyone had a chance against them other than each other. An unexpected sidekick knocked Raphael down, but it only made him push back harder and she could tell Leo was having a hard time blocking the lightning quick attacks. Mikey was trying hard to keep up with his brother while showing off for the new audience. Splinter supervised from the sidelines; making certain the sparring did not get overly rough. It was rare for them to train together these days, but with the reappearance of the Foot, it was a necessity. The two younger brothers would have to re-polish some of their moves, but altogether, he was pleased that they had kept in shape since the battles became less and less frequent. He saw Jasmine and smiled at her obvious admiration. Although you couldn't tell by looking around, the wise rat had learned to tell time according to his senses and it was getting late. Knowing the girl would want to return home, he called an end to the spar.
"Rokuni!" The turtles stopped in their tracks and bowed to their master.
Michaelangelo turned to the figure in the doorway, grinning, while the others made their way to the toppled table, grabbing towels from the floor. "Look who's up!"
Jasmine smirked sarcastically. "You actually think I'd been sleeping through this racket? I never knew 'resting up' meant working yourself to a sweat." The turtle looked at her apologetically before turning to join his brothers.
"Besides," Raphael added, throwing a towel over his shoulder, "we don't usually sleep at five in the afternoon."
Jazz put her hands on her hips, then lowered her right arm at the pain. "And you think I do?" Raphael just smiled and started towards the entranceway.
"What, it's not your bedtime yet?" The mocking tone in his voice made her throw a sharp look at him, also earning him a harsh glare from his master.
The rat apologized for his son's actions once he had left the room. "I'm sorry we awakened you; we meant to leave you, thinking you might need the rest after your injury."
"That's fine, I never got to sleep anyhow; I'm not used to sleeping over six hours and, well, I guess that's about how long I was out for." The old rat smiled and excused himself to his meditation chamber, leaving her with the three others. She looked the space over again, noting the pile of wooden weapons in a corner along with the table and a worn punching bag on the opposite side. "So what is this place?"
"This room is our dojo. It's used for training and sparring."
Jazz walked past the turtles and over to the stash of weapons on the floor, picking up a bo. "This stuff sure comes in handy; I wouldn't have lasted as long yesterday without one of these." Twirling the staff with her good arm, she tried a few moves, imitating those she had seen Donatello do against Mike.
"Left handed?" He watched her carefully from under his purple mask. Leonardo did the same; she definitely had some potential. Swinging the stick into the air one last time, Jasmine set it down with the rest of its kind and shook her head.
"Nah; just can't use this one much right now." Looking down to her bandaged shoulder, she was relieved to see that it wasn't bleeding. As long as it healed soon, she wasn't worried about it; she had gotten more serious damage in the past. Blades were hardly a problem when you had come face to face with bullets. She shrugged off the thought. "I'm gonna have to get one of those."
"Don't you have a weapon? I mean, most gang members I've met are armed." Michaelangelo asked in between gulps of water from a bottle.
"Yeah, I got one. Not with me, but somewhere back with the others… I guess. I don't use it much; I hate guns."
"Good thing you don't have it now; Leo'd have a fit." Leonardo shrugged off the comment and started walking towards the passageway.
"I'm going to go wash up."
Jazz stopped him before he went too far. "Hey, when are we heading back?"
The turtle kept walking as he responded, "As soon as we're all cleaned up and ready."
Chapter 3
Chad slumped down onto the barstool with an irritated sigh. The rest of the gang was in no better mood ever since the fight. He fiddled with the small gun in his hand while the barman poured him another drink. The man crossed his arms as he watched the boy chug the beer down in a few gulps.
"No luck, huh?"
Chad tossed the silver gun in the air once, then placed it back into his pocket. "S'all I found; those damned bastards made me lose it." Leaning against the counter, the man grunted in response. He didn't mind the boy carrying a gun; no one on this side of town went without one. Besides, he'd known the Eclipse for years. "Police probably got her."
After the retreat, they had all regrouped at the usual meeting point: a small rundown bar about six blocks away from the battle where the Eclipse did most of their business with the owner, Parker. It wasn't until the group had dressed their wounds and settled down that they noticed Jasmine's presence lacking. When a small party returned to the site, the police had already been, taking most of the evidence with them. While searching under piles of debris that had been overturned during the incident, Chad had recovered his gun. The rest of the search was futile. Traces of blood on the pavement were the only indications of the struggle. "Damn," he muttered under his breath, kicking the trash across the alley. "No point in staying around. Lets head back." They would check around in the morning. For now, Parker had offered them the place to stay.
Parker was getting anxious to hear the whole story; from what he had heard so far, he could only guess at who these attackers might have been. He pulled away from the counter, taking a seat next to Chad. There were no other customers to assist; with the current dilemma, he had closed shop for the night. The rest of the gang either slept or were recounting their side of the events. "So what the hell happened back there?" Chad looked up from his fifth beer to Parker who was lighting a cigarette.
"Give me a shot." He inhaled deeply and handed the joint back, shaking his head. "I don't know; they just appeared. Just fuckin' appeared, outta nowhere!" He threw the bottle down, watching it shatter on the hard floor, somehow letting it calm his nerves. "They started beating the crap out of us until they suddenly started going against these freaks who, from what I saw, beat the crap out of them." He sat, studying the broken glass intently, replaying the strange events in his head. Parker regarded him slowly, the short account had not given him much to go by, but it was enough.
"Foot."
Chad gave him a confused expression at the odd statement. Parker jogged his memory by going into a small vault under the counter and pulling out a vial. "The stuff was for them." It was more of a statement than a question. "Shit! I should've known." With nothing breakable within reach, he slammed his fist onto the countertop. "We'll check the police tomorrow." With that, Chad got up and took post near the door for first watch, leaving the others to settle in for the night.
It was nearly four hours later when it happened. Chad had just left his watch and was asleep on the floor, not far from the entrance. The new guard stayed beside him, straddling a chair and trying hard not to doze off. He kept his eyes on the door until sleep finally claimed him.
The ninjas were silent as they crept into the musky barroom. Carefully and effortlessly slipping over the ignorant bodies, they made their way from the window over to Chad's resting form. Depositing a roll of paper where it was sure to be found they, slid back into the shadows of the night, just as quickly as they had come.
****
Jazz didn't know how long she had been lying there, staring up at the concrete ceiling. No matter how hard she tried, she could not get to sleep. The events of that day had been too strange; that or the fact that she had already been out of it about six hours since the turtles had found her. Hell, for all she knew, it was already broad daylight outside; it was impossible to tell from down here. She wondered how much longer the others would sleep. The plan had been that she would stay until it was dark enough for them to lead her back to the Eclipse. It wasn't that she couldn't find her way alone; these parts were quite familiar to her, almost as much as the back or her hand. She figured they felt better knowing she was back safely and that the story of her temporary disappearance didn't include them. The threat in their voices let her know better than to do so.
Sighing, she rolled over again, stuffing her face into a pillow and covering her head with the blankets. The one thing she hated most about silence was the fact that it made her think. It was something she found herself doing more and more these days: thinking about everything and nothing. First her parents: killed before she was even four years old. Then her sister's sudden disappearance, and now, how she found herself being rescued by a team of turtles. God, if anyone's life was as messed up as hers, she wondered at how they could keep from putting a bullet to their head. But she had to admit, from what she knew of these turtles, they were pretty amazing creatures. Never once had she imagined that something like this could exist; they each seemed so unique and yet so human.
A loud crash from the direction of the turtles' departure startled Jasmine from her thoughts. Curiosity and boredom got the better of her and she got up to investigate.
****
Michaelangelo quickly pulled himself away from the table Donatello had sent him flying into and instantly blocked another attack coming towards his head, causing his brother to momentarily lose his balance and making it easy for him to send an attack of his own. They all noticed Jazz enter the large makeshift gym but did not show it, keeping their concentration to stay on guard.
The girl watched in awe as the brothers exchanged blows that rarely hit their targets. From what she saw, it was hard to believe that anyone had a chance against them other than each other. An unexpected sidekick knocked Raphael down, but it only made him push back harder and she could tell Leo was having a hard time blocking the lightning quick attacks. Mikey was trying hard to keep up with his brother while showing off for the new audience. Splinter supervised from the sidelines; making certain the sparring did not get overly rough. It was rare for them to train together these days, but with the reappearance of the Foot, it was a necessity. The two younger brothers would have to re-polish some of their moves, but altogether, he was pleased that they had kept in shape since the battles became less and less frequent. He saw Jasmine and smiled at her obvious admiration. Although you couldn't tell by looking around, the wise rat had learned to tell time according to his senses and it was getting late. Knowing the girl would want to return home, he called an end to the spar.
"Rokuni!" The turtles stopped in their tracks and bowed to their master.
Michaelangelo turned to the figure in the doorway, grinning, while the others made their way to the toppled table, grabbing towels from the floor. "Look who's up!"
Jasmine smirked sarcastically. "You actually think I'd been sleeping through this racket? I never knew 'resting up' meant working yourself to a sweat." The turtle looked at her apologetically before turning to join his brothers.
"Besides," Raphael added, throwing a towel over his shoulder, "we don't usually sleep at five in the afternoon."
Jazz put her hands on her hips, then lowered her right arm at the pain. "And you think I do?" Raphael just smiled and started towards the entranceway.
"What, it's not your bedtime yet?" The mocking tone in his voice made her throw a sharp look at him, also earning him a harsh glare from his master.
The rat apologized for his son's actions once he had left the room. "I'm sorry we awakened you; we meant to leave you, thinking you might need the rest after your injury."
"That's fine, I never got to sleep anyhow; I'm not used to sleeping over six hours and, well, I guess that's about how long I was out for." The old rat smiled and excused himself to his meditation chamber, leaving her with the three others. She looked the space over again, noting the pile of wooden weapons in a corner along with the table and a worn punching bag on the opposite side. "So what is this place?"
"This room is our dojo. It's used for training and sparring."
Jazz walked past the turtles and over to the stash of weapons on the floor, picking up a bo. "This stuff sure comes in handy; I wouldn't have lasted as long yesterday without one of these." Twirling the staff with her good arm, she tried a few moves, imitating those she had seen Donatello do against Mike.
"Left handed?" He watched her carefully from under his purple mask. Leonardo did the same; she definitely had some potential. Swinging the stick into the air one last time, Jasmine set it down with the rest of its kind and shook her head.
"Nah; just can't use this one much right now." Looking down to her bandaged shoulder, she was relieved to see that it wasn't bleeding. As long as it healed soon, she wasn't worried about it; she had gotten more serious damage in the past. Blades were hardly a problem when you had come face to face with bullets. She shrugged off the thought. "I'm gonna have to get one of those."
"Don't you have a weapon? I mean, most gang members I've met are armed." Michaelangelo asked in between gulps of water from a bottle.
"Yeah, I got one. Not with me, but somewhere back with the others… I guess. I don't use it much; I hate guns."
"Good thing you don't have it now; Leo'd have a fit." Leonardo shrugged off the comment and started walking towards the passageway.
"I'm going to go wash up."
Jazz stopped him before he went too far. "Hey, when are we heading back?"
The turtle kept walking as he responded, "As soon as we're all cleaned up and ready."
