Hey guys, my lovely readers. I hope you like/liked this chapter it took me a while to write because I've got so much going on at the moment so I hope you'll forgive me. I'll try to get the next chapter (if you're still liking it) up as soon as I can. It's quite angsty at the moment I think? I feel so bad for the characters, but isn't that what fanfiction is all about? Please drop me a review I love hearing from you- on that note thank you for all the reviews of my last chapter, made me very happy. Keep it real guys,
Everdream24
Chapter 4: The Consequences Of Our Actions
Mikey's POV
Another hacking cough racked his body, his eyes watered, streaming tears snaking the way down his face. He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head to try to clear his vision. The smoke bomb that Karai had thrown maliciously to the rooftop had spread further and quicker than any other he had ever witnessed, almost immediately blinding the young turtle and rendering him incapable of movement. As he used his three fingered hands to wipe away the remaining salty liquid from his face, Michelangelo first turned his attention to Donatello, who was now fading in and out of consciousness, his eyelids fluttering intermittently.
'I need to get him back to the Lair, fast. He needs medical attention, but he's the medic! What do I do, what do I do?' Panic started to swell inside him as blood continued to seep from Donnie's wound. His eyes darted around the rooftop until they alighted on Donnie's bag. 'Of course!' he face palmed 'We brought First Aid supplies with us. Duh!'. Opening the duffel bag he quickly rummaged through, chucking out anything he deemed useless over his shoulder. 'Bandages and gauze, bandages and gauze, bandages and..AHAH. Mine!' Snatching up the two items he set to work patching up his older brother as best he could. 'That looks ok…I wonder if it's enough to hold him until we get home. Maybe he needs more gauze…' he pondered. Just then, something clicked in his mind, and the make-shift medical session was quickly forgotten. His head snapped up to gaze across to the adjacent rooftop- the now completely empty adjacent rooftop. After checking to see if Donnie was conscious yet- which he wasn't- he gingerly began to make his way over. 'Donnie will be fine, I'll only be gone a few minutes'. Judging the distance, Mikey took a few steps back, ran full pelt at the ledge and launched himself over the alleyway gap, landing gracefully into a forward roll onto the scene of Leo's recent fight. It was eerie, like the fight had never happened. All the fallen foot ninja had been removed, faint cracks and the occasional puddle of blood the only indication anyone had been there. Apart from a patch over near the middle.
Looking at it now, Mikey felt all the blood drain from his face, his stomach dropped to the floor, his heart moved house to his throat and all the power disappeared from his legs. He dropped to his knees and fresh tears that had nothing to do with smoke fell from his eyes. The pool of blood near the centre of the building was terrifyingly large, too much for a mere flesh wound. That's where Leo was, where he was kneeling when…when Karai…..
"Leo…." One word, muttered to himself, and yet it seemed like such a struggle, an epic fight just to give it utterance. He placed his head in his hands, covering his eyes, and took in a deep breath releasing it slowly just as Master Splinter had taught them to do. He felt his heartbeat calm and some of the overwhelming panic that had consumed him only moments ago started to melt away. 'I've got to get back to the lair, I've got to get back to the lair… I've gotta get Donnie!' he realised with a gasp. There was nothing else that could be done for Leo right at this moment, he had to get Donnie home for medical attention and tell the others of what had happened…by himself…in the daytime. 'Well, I'd be a poor ninja if I shied away from a challenge' he reasoned humorlessly.
He placed a hand on the floor and paused briefly to summon the strength in his weary muscles. Then he saw it and his blood ran cold. Soaked in blood, half buried in the pool of deep red liquid was half of Leo's blue mask. 'It must have been cut off when Karai attacked him with that horrid gauntlet. A cut like that…at that angle…' He didn't even want to think about what that meant. Right now his focus had to be Donnie. Gathering the material in his hand, he shoved it into a pouch on his belt alongside his nunchucks and turned, wanting to put as much distance between him and this building as possible. He returned to the still unconscious Donatello.
"Come on genius, we need to get home." He muttered as he gently scooped up Donnie's form and carried him down the fire escape. His arms ached, his legs ached, his head ached. But all those paled into insignificance compared to the pain in his heart. His oldest brother was gone, badly wounded or possibly dead. In a horrible twisted way he hoped for the latter. At least then the Shredder and Karai couldn't torment and torture him for days or months on end. The negative thoughts crammed themselves into his head, they demanded his attention and he was too weary to deny them. Any way he looked at it, Leo was gone. One brother gone and another lying limp in his arms. Donnie had been unconscious for a worryingly long time now.
With a soft 'whoosh' the lair doors opened. He hadn't even noticed the journey back home, too wrapped up in his own thoughts and fears. But now he was back in the lair. Home. Everything came into focus then and his mind once again found clarity. Sprinting to the lab he yelled for help. "Sensei! Raph! Help me! It's Donnie he's hurt, he's hurt bad." Gently laying Donnie down on the cot that had been placed in the lab for such medical emergencies, he heard heavy rapid footsteps behind him as Raph came skidding in, closely followed by master Splinter. Looking at Splinter he could see, fear, shock, disbelief but also…age. He stepped aside to allow Splinter access to the wounded turtle. 'After all, he's got far more medical knowledge then me or Raph. Speaking of which..' He turned to fix Raph with a hard stare. Raphael seemed to have frozen in place, his limbs locked at his side his face an image of confusion and anger. However, guilt and worry were also showing in Raph's eyes which were just visible from behind his slightly skewed bandanna. 'So while we've been out fighting for our lives, he's been sleeping?! If he'd come with us, shell if he hadn't fought with Leo in the first place, we might not be in this situation.'
"Mike…wha'…wha' happened? Who did dis to Donnie? And you? Wait….where's fearless?" Raph fired off questions, wanting to be filled in on the day's events. Raphael's ignorance only served to fuel a fire inside of Michelangelo.
"What happened? What happened? Well, you would know what happened to us if you'd bothered to come with us when that alarm went off. You'd know that we were set upon by a horde, and I mean a very very large horde, of foot ninja. You'd know that Donnie and I were both overwhelmed by the sheer number of ninja who were there under the command of Karai, who was holding our leader at knife point. If you'd stopped being your selfish, hot-headed, impulsive, ignorant, stupid self for just a few hours, you wouldn't have argued with Leo, we wouldn't have gone out to look for him, and I'd still have THREE BROTHERS!" He exploded at Raph, the pain, despair and anger from the day coursing through him.
"MICHELANGELO. That is enough. Calm yourself and tell us what happened." Splinter calmly reasoned, placing a comforting, furry paw on Mikey's shoulder before returning to caring for Donatello.
Raph had been taken aback by the sudden uncharacteristic outburst. "Mikey…Wha- wha- what are you talking about? We still have three brothers. I'm right here, Donnie will be ok, I promise. And Leo…Leo..wait a minute you said…you said…"
"I said Karai had a KNIFE to Leo's throat! He was on his knees begging- begging Raph!- for our lives. She had the Shredder's gauntlet on and she…she…SHE SLASHED HIM RAPH! By the time I'd recovered from the smoke bomb and finished patching Donnie up..all that was left..was this" All the fire and gusto that had been present just a few moments ago at the start of his speech was gone. His voice was barely above a whisper as he slowly withdrew the ragged blood soaked cloth from the pouch on his belt. He handed it to Splinter who held it delicately in his paws, gently stroking the soft fabric. Tears appeared in his eyes and he did nothing to stop them, forgoing his normally strong and stoic appearance, allowing himself a moment of weakness to grieve for his lost son. Raphael had fallen silent, frozen in place by shock and disbelief.
With his eyes closed, Michelangelo allowed the day's events to take their toll, a sob escaping his mouth as tears streamed down his face and he fell to his knees beside Donnie's cot. Then the lab was silent, all except the smallest, agonizing whisper of a question.
"Leo…?
Raphael
'Thump thump, thump thump, thump thump' The rhythm of fists hitting canvas was almost relaxing. Raphael's own form of meditation. However, the guilt he felt was stopping any peace of mind he was hoping to achieve with his workout. Donnie and Mikey had just left the lair- thankfully after having switched off that God awful klaxon. Why did the alarm need to be so loud anyway? Weren't they supposed to be hiding their location from the Foot clan not broadcasting it with sirens and flashing lights?
'I'm sorry Donnie…' Those three words just kept spinning round and round inside his head. He had not missed the hurt and disappointment on Don's face when he had refused to come in search of Leo. Why had he done that anyway? Perhaps it was just another act of defiance. But if Leo really was in serious trouble, Raph had done nothing but put his other two brothers in danger. Why could he never win, why could he never seem to get anything right?! The rate of punches increased until, with one final kick, the old punching bag broke free of its chains and flew across the dojo to smack against the far wall, falling to the floor with a heavy thud. Sweat dripped down his body, some mingling with fresh blood from the splits in his knuckles. Wandering out to the kitchen, he marveled at the quiet in the lair. It was hardly ever quiet- Donnie would be causing explosions in his lab, Mikey would be skateboarding or watching TV and Leo…well Leo would probably be training or meditating. The leader did train a lot. 'What does that guy do for fun? He's either training, patrolling, meditating, helping Donnie, laughing with Mikey or arguing with me. Does he ever do anything just for himself?' he thought to himself but quickly backtracked 'no. I am not feeling sorry for him. He wants to be teacher's pet? Fine, his choice.'
The clock in the kitchen shocked him back to reality. They'd been gone an hour already! His mind conjured up images of bodies of broken brothers, lying defeated across the rooftops of New York. Perhaps he should go look for them…? 'No. No I can't appear weak. Technically I'm doing Leo a favour. One less turtle he has to protect'. He decided, his pride overwhelming his ever growing worry. As a compromise, he decided to wait up for them on the couch. He collapsed onto the worn old fabric, exhausted and weary. Resting his head on the back of the couch, Raph let his eyes drift closed. 'Just a moment of rest…A few minutes'
"Sensei! Raph! Help me! It's Donnie he's hurt, he's hurt bad!" The high-pitched panic stricken shriek reverberated throughout the lair, sharply waking Raph from his slumber. Intent on closing his eyes only for a moment, he had fallen into a deep sleep, his form slumped on the couch, a cushion pushing his mask askew. He jumped up and sprinted into the lab, now feeling extremely awake. Splinter was close behind him, his hurried footsteps reflective of his worry. As he entered the lab, Mikey side-stepped to reveal the prone form of Donatello lying on the medical cot. His left side was haphazardly wrapped in bandages, dark red patches slowly appearing on the surface as precious blood seeped through. Splinter pushed past Raphael in the doorway and raced to his son's bedside, slowly unwrapping the bandages and starting to patch Don up as best he knew how. Raph's gaze shifted from Donnie to lock eyes with Mikey, who was glaring at him with an extremely uncharacteristic emotion present in his eyes: rage.
"Mike…wha'…wha' happened? Who did dis to Donnie? And you? Wait….where's fearless?" The use of Leonardo's nickname sent spikes of guilt coursing around his body. To say he was confused would be an understatement. How had this happened? About a day ago (he wasn't exactly sure) the four brothers had set off with hope in their hearts and an unbreakable spirit to deliver a heavy blow to the Foot clan and the Purple Dragons by destroying their warehouse. Now, one of his younger brothers lay unconscious and pale in his very own lab, Mikey-though driven by adrenaline and anger- was exhausted and battered and Leo was nowhere to be seen. What exactly had he missed?
"What happened? What happened? Well, you would know what happened to us if you'd bothered to come with us when that alarm went off. You'd know that we were set upon by a horde, and I mean a very very large horde, of foot ninja. You'd know that Donnie and I were both overwhelmed by the sheer number of ninja who were there under the command of Karai, who was holding our leader at knife point. If you'd stopped being your selfish, hot-headed, impulsive, ignorant, stupid self for just a few hours, you wouldn't have argued with Leo, we wouldn't have gone out to look for him, and I'd still have THREE BROTHERS!" Michelangelo's words exploded out of him in a flurry, hysteria setting in raising the volume of his voice until he was screaming the words at Raph. He'd never seen Mikey so angry before, and the words stung him right to the core.
"MICHELANGELO. That is enough. Calm yourself and tell us what happened." Ever the voice of reason, Splinter brought Mikey back down to Earth, before continuing to care for the patient. 'Without Splinter, we probably would've broken years ago' Raph pondered.
"Mikey…Wha- wha- what are you talking about? We still have three brothers. I'm right here, Donnie will be ok, I promise. And Leo…Leo..wait a minute you said…you said…" sudden realization dawned on Raph like an electric shock to the system. His heart raced. Leo, their oldest brother, their leader and his best friend had been put in terrible danger. 'And it's all my fault…if he's hurt or..worse…it's all my fault'
"I said Karai had a KNIFE to Leo's throat! He was on his knees begging- begging Raph!- for our lives. She had the Shredder's gauntlet on and she…she…SHE SLASHED HIM RAPH! By the time I'd recovered from the smoke bomb and finished patching Donnie up..all that was left..was this" Mikey's voice quivered and broke as he pulled out a piece of dirty old rag from his belt pouch. Then Raph's heart hit the floor, for it wasn't a rag but a tattered shard of Leo's blue bandanna, torn straight across the middle. Raph's entire body froze up. He couldn't speak or move, he just watched Master Splinter gently take the cloth from a sobbing Mikey, who promptly fell to his knees in hysteria. Eventually his chocking sobs quietened and all fell eerily silent once more in the lair. That is, until it was broken by a weak whisper from the cot
"Leo…?" Donnie questioned
That one word broke Raphael's heart.
Leonardo
Somewhere In New York
The room was dark. So dark. He couldn't make out anything, not even the dimensions of the room. His cell. The stench, however, was perfectly clear. Wherever he was, it quite obviously had a history of being used for containment, though human or animal he wasn't sure. There was a strong, tangy aroma of recently spilled blood. 'This luxury room only just became available obviously' He thought dryly. It stank of blood, fear, disease and death. 'Maybe the next occupant will have the same observations. Well, that's a negative start, gotta stay positive, gotta fight. Okay, what else have we got?' he thought to himself. Well, he was chained to the wall at both wrists and ankles, that much was obvious. Suspended off the ground, his arms ached and previous wounds stung from where the chains had pulled them open again. The manacles around his ankles were too tight and rubbed against his skin.
Most dominant, however, was the deep slash across his face. Just missing his eye, Karai had skillfully cut his mask in two, robbing him of his identity. Two diagonal slashes were carved from the right side of his forehead to the left side of his beak. The pain radiating from his face was almost unbearable, he needed to focus on something else. 'Family. Focus on your family. The last thing I remember…DONNIE! Donnie was injured and Mikey…was being held by the Foot. I hope they are alright. If Karai hurt them after she knocked me out I will kill her. Where was Raph? Do his brothers mean so little to him? Do I…do I mean nothing to him..?' Blood loss and confusion were making it hard to concentrate, and soon he found his mind drifting to memories of family- their adventures, fights and victory celebrations. Moments they'd shared, times he'd comforted each of his brothers when they needed him most.
'No one needs you Leo…' Raph's heated words floated into his mind. When he was angry, he always said stuff he didn't mean. Of course, that didn't stop it hurting.
"Well, maybe they don't need me, but I sure as shell need them. I've got to get back to them, I've got to get home. I got myself into this situation, it's time to get myself out of it again" He muttered to himself, then decided that thinking aloud was just too painful. 'Problem is, I'm not sure where I am.'
Just then a door on the far side was flung open and a bright white spotlight shone in his face. "Argh" Leo groaned as he shut his eyes and turned his head away from the light source, his eyes burning from the sudden change from complete darkness to blinding light. Looking down at the floor, his eyes slowly adjusted to the raised light level, enough to see a set of heavily booted feet enter the cell and stop just in front of his beaten, hanging form. Looking up, the white light obscured their face, but he recognized the voice when they spoke.
"Hello Leonardo." Karai purred "Welcome to Hell"
