Here we are! Last chapter! Keep in mind that this is a "what if" story.
WARNING: Disturbing content included in this chapter.
NOTE: There will probably be grammar mistakes which I will fix later.
Mikey,
I know you depended on me to bring our family back together, but I can't.
Please understand. After the Shredder killed you in my timeline (yes, I lied to you and I'm sorry), I became so bitter and angry that I left Raph and Donnie behind to avenge your death. In doing so, I let our family fall apart, even though it was my job to keep it together. I figured that without you, it just wouldn't work. There was no point in me staying.
I now see that I was wrong.
"Come on, man! Hurry up!"
A couple of rookie robbers, none of them older than twenty and wearing ski masks, hastily gathered up as many jewels as they could before they rushed out of the recently broken-in store. One of them, the driver of their van, stepped on the gas pedal as soon as they hopped in. The vehicle screeched as it sped away, zooming past two figures that hid in an alley and watch the whole event from the shadows. They both stepped out, revealing themselves to be Leo and Leonardo.
Leo scratched his head and looked up at Leonardo confused. "This is your idea of a hunt? Chasing after jewelry thieves?"
Leonardo glanced over his shoulder at his younger counterpart and smirked teasingly. "What's the matter? Not exciting enough for you?"
"Well, I mean," Leo shrugged his shoulders, "I don't mind going after ordinary criminals, but I think we should just leave this one to the cops. My brothers and I mainly handle mutants and more dangers enemies."
Leonardo seemed displeased and the smirk dropped into a frown. "No criminal should be allowed to wander the streets, no matter how 'ordinary' they may be," he said in a serious tone before he sprinted down the street at an incredible speed.
"H-Hey, wait up!" Leo ran after the future Turtle, though it was difficult for him to catch up with him. The entire time they ran and jumped across rooftops, Leo thought about how serious Leonardo was about this job. In fact, he was a little too serious.
But it's far too late to fix things between us. And even if there was a chance, I'm not the person to do it.
Mikey, I've done terrible things the last thirty years. My hands are dirty with the blood of criminals that I killed in honor of my dead little brother. Yes, as horrible and sick as that sounds, I did it all for you.
I'm sorry.
I know that it's wrong to kill, and I know that I need to stop, but I've dug myself a hole that I cannot get out of. I'm in too deep, and no one can pull me out. Not even you.
"Can't believe we pulled this off!" the driver laughed along with his pals as they continued to tear through the streets.
One of the robbers pulled his mask off, revealing his spiky blonde hair. "I know, right? And those Purple Dragon losers said we couldn't!"
"Yeah, well," another young man with shoulder-length brown hair chuckled, "the Skull Bros are the new rulers of New York!"
They all cheered and high-fived each other when all of a sudden a loud explosion was heard and the van started to bounce and swerve a bit. They all yelled in surprise and the driver quickly pulled the vehicle over to the sidewalk.
"Dude, what the f**k?!" a guy with a crew cut shouted to the driver.
"We must've had a blowout," the driver said as he opened his door. "I'll go out and have a look." He walked around the vehicle, inspecting it, when he noticed that his front right tire had something sharp embedded in it. He leaned in closer and realized that the object was one of those shurikens that ninjas use in battle. "What the heck...?" he tapped one of the sharp edges lightly with his fingertip.
Then he heard someone clear his throat from behind him.
He swiftly turned his head and saw two mutant Turtles standing in the street, both of them carrying twin katanas. The shorter of the two wore a blue ninja mask, and the other one wore black. The young driver had heard stories about a group of Ninja Turtles that fought crime and defeated even the deadliest of gangs in all of New York. He immediately knew that he and his pals were in trouble and began to bang loudly on side of the van.
"Yo! Get outta the van! We got company!"
The backdoors of the van swung open and the other robbers all gasped at the sight of the Turtles. They grabbed their bags of jewelry, hopped out of the vehicle and all five of them scattered, including the driver.
"Oh, so that's how you want to do it?" Leonardo chuckled rather maliciously, drawing out his swords.
Leo instantly got a bad vibe but drew out his own swords as well. "You...you won't hurt them, right?" he nervously asked the future Turtle.
But Leonardo ignored him and charged after three of the robbers. Leo hesitated before he went after the other two. He chased them into an alley and had them cornered to a wall. The blonde robber pulled a handgun from out of the pocket of his leather coat and aimed it at the Turtle. His partner, the crew cut guy, looked at him as though he was nuts.
"Hey, man, what are you doing?!" he whispered harshly to him.
The blonde guy ignored him. "St-Stay back!" he nervously ordered Leo, the weapon shaking in his hands.
The leader in blue looked at the gun for a moment before he smiled crookedly, shaking his head. "That's not even a real gun, is it?"
The blonde robber's blue eyes widened in shock, but he refused to lower the weapon nor answer the Turtle's question.
The crew cut robber, however, nodded and snatched the gun out of his partner's hands. "Y-Yeah, man, look! See? It's just a squirt gun!" He pulled the trigger and water squirted from out of the hole. "We-We would never shoot anyone!"
"Oh, nice going, Roy," the blonde guy growled.
"Shut up, Jayce!" Roy spat, tossing the toy gun aside. "We're already in enough trouble!"
Leo sighed and walked toward the duo, who immediately began to back up in fear. "Look," he softly said, "just go home, alright? Clearly, this isn't the life you guys want to lead."
The robbers stared at the Turtle in surprise. They expected him to beat them up or at least turn them in to the authorities instead of calmly telling them to go home.
Roy, the crew cut robber, sighed heavily and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, you're right," he mumbled. "I dunno what we were thinking. Come on, Jayce, let's go." The two walked out of the alley and down the street. Leo watched them leave and hoped that they would change their ways before he went to go look for his future self.
It would be better for everyone in both worlds if I were to disappear. I hope you can forgive me one day, Mikey.
Please don't ever stop smiling. Continue to shine brighter than even the sun. Live a long, happy life.
I love you. Always.
-Leo
"Leonardo!" He somehow felt the other Turtle closeby, another possible side effect of them being brought together in the same dimension. He was eventually led to the docks and saw Leonardo in the distance, staring at the ocean.
"Hey, Leonardo!" Leo started to run toward him. "I took care of the other two robbers! How's it going on your-"
He slowed down when he noticed that Leonardo was standing over what appeared to be a body and was holding something in his hand. His stomach churned when he saw the blood splatters all over the floor. It looked like a massacre took place here.
Oh, god...don't tell me... "Le...Leonardo...?"
The Turtle from the future slowly turned and looked at him with dull blue eyes. The corners of his mouth slightly lifted into a small smile. "You got 'em?" he quietly said. "Good. I'm finished with these guys." He lifted his arm and showed Leo what he was holding.
Leo's mouth opened into a silent scream as he realized that Leonardo was holding the head of one of the robbers by his long brown hair. He clamped a hand over his mouth and held his stomach as he forced himself not to puke.
He looked over Leonardo's shoulder and to his horror, the driver and the other robber were lying face down on the ground, dead.
It felt like an eternity before Leo finally found the courage to speak. "Wh...What you done...?" he whispered.
Leonardo raised an eye ridge and even tilted his head a bit. "What does it look like? I just rid the world of three more scumbags." He carelessly tossed the head into the waters like it was garbage. He turned back to Leo, an eerily calm look on his face. "This is how justice is done."
Stunned and utterly horrified, Leo nearly stumbled backwards. "Justice?" he asked incredulously. "You call this justice? Those guys you just killed...they were just scared and confused kids! I-I mean, they used toy guns, for god's sake! They weren't even real!"
Leonardo merely scoffed. "Toy guns for now. But had I let them live, they probably would've used real guns next time, and someone could've gotten hurt or worse."
"You're...you're crazy!" Leo pointed a finger at him. "How can you be so cruel? This isn't the path Master Splinter wanted us to-"
"TO HELL WITH SPLINTER!" Leonardo yelled furiously, glaring at Leo with angry white eyes.
Leo was taken back by Leonardo's sudden outburst and instantly shut up. Leonardo regained his composure and sucked in a deep breath, the midnight blue irises returning.
"You remember that nightmare you had last night?" he calmly asked the younger Turtle, who only nodded in response. "Well, you were right, it was a memory. MY memory. In my world, Splinter sacrificed Mikey so that his daughter would live."
At that moment, Leo's worst fears were proven to be true. "So your Mikey really is dead?"
Leonardo nodded. "And so is Hamato Leonardo. He died thirty years ago. I am the Serpent now." He traced his fingers over the snake tattoo on his plastron. "I hunt down those who break the law and persecute the innocent. All the codes and morals that Splinter taught us mean nothing to me now. Empty words. That's all they ever were."
Hearing him speak of Splinter so disrespectfully greatly angered Leo. "Don't you ever," he hissed, "ever talk about my father that way. I don't know what happened in your world, but my Splinter was an honorable man. And I will always hold his teachings dear to my heart."
Leonardo scoffed and looked back at the horizon. "You feel that way now, but sooner or later you'll realize the truth."
Leo raised an eye ridge. "What truth?"
The future Turtle glanced over at him with a look in his eyes that sent a shiver down Leo's spine. "That 'noble' heroes such as Splinter never get the job done. Think about it. Splinter always held back, even while he was facing his greatest adversary, the Shredder. And look where that got him. In the end, you had to kill Saki in order to ensure the safety of your family, correct?"
"I...yes," Leo hesitantly admitted.
"So you see? As long as there are scumbags in this world, no one is safe. Mikey died because we hesitated. But I'm never going to hesitate again. And if you want to protect your Mikey, then neither should you."
"So you're saying I should become a killer, too?" Leo glared at his future self, pointing an accusing finger at him. "That I should stoop to their level? No way. Never."
Leonardo had what appeared to be a look of disgust on his face and he crossed his arms. "Then one day you'll lose all of them, and there will be no one else to blame but yourself. You're too weak and naive to lead the team." A smirk formed on his lips. "Besides, you're already on the path to becoming like me. When you sliced Saki's head clean off his shoulders, you felt an exhilaration, didn't you? Something awakened inside of you, a whole other side that you've been trying to hold back."
He slowly approached Leo and stood omniously over him, his midnight blue eyes staring straight into the other's. "Face reality, Leo," he said in a chilling voice. "It's your destiny to become me."
Leo shook his head in denial and stepped away from the older Turtle. "No...NO! I won't become you!" He pulled his T-phone out and pushed the button to pull up Donnie's number. "And you're going back to your dimension right now," he growled.
He put the phone to his ear and Donnie's voice spoke on the other line.
Leo?
"Hey, I found him. We're at the-"
Suddenly the phone was snatched out of his hand and he turned to see Leonardo holding it. The future Turtle glared at him.
"I am never going back," he whispered venomously. "I'll die first." He dropped the phone and then completely shattered it with his foot.
Leo knew that he was in danger now.
"Leo? Leo?!" Donnie pulled the phone away from his ear and read the screen. The signal was lost, which wasn't a good sign.
"Guys," the conceren Turtle turned to Raph and Bishop, "I've lost him. He's not answering."
Raph grunted in frustration and punched the wall. "I knew we couldn't trust that guy! That's it! We gotta go look for them before Leo gets hurt!"
"It's not our Leo we should be worrying about."
They all turned to see Mikey walking into the living room. There were tears in his light blue eyes. "I just found this," he said in an unnaturally quiet voice. In his hand was the photograph of him and Leo covered in chocolate. He held it up for everyone to see and then flipped it over, revealing a note written on the back.
"Are you crazy?!" Leo shouted, staring at the remains of his phone.
"I'm not going back to that dimension," Leonardo reaffirmed.
"So you're going to stay in this one?!" Leo angrily shook his head. "You can't do that!"
"Apparently I have to," Leonardo retorted. "You obviously can't protect your family, so I will. I'll eliminate our enemies whenever you can't."
Leo's eyes turned white with determination and he reached behind his shell for his swords. "I won't let you," he growled. He drew out his weapons and pointed them at the older Turtle.
Leonardo snickered, amused by the younger Turtle's foolishness. "Oh, you're not actually thinking about fighting me, are you? Have you forgotten that I kicked your butt in the dojo?"
Leo refused to back down. "I won't lose this time."
The future Turtle smirked and drew out his swords, too. Although he wasn't going to kill his youngest counterpart, he was certainly going to put him in his place. "All right, then. I'll humor you." He gestured with a wave of his sword for Leo to come at him.
Leo roared as he charges at Leonardo and the two clashed swords. But even though Leo was giving his all, he couldn't help but feel that Leonardo was holding back. Even fact, judging by the smirk on the older Turtle's face, he was merely toying with him.
This infuriated Leo even further and he fought more viciously, growling as he swung his sword wildly at Leonardo. The older Turtle blocked every attack with ease, and he wasn't even breaking a sweat. Leo, on the other hand, was getting more tired by the minute.
Future Leonardo seemed unbeatable, but Leo absolutely refused to give up. The guy was not only dangerous, but insane as well, and there was no way that Leo was going to let him near his family.
But then all of a sudden Leonardo dashed right past Leo, who instantly felt a burning sensation on his shoulder. The younger Turtle yelled in pain, dropping a sword and gripping his wound. He looked down and saw a rather deep cut, the deepest one he ever had in fact. Blood was flowing out of it like a river, and if he didn't get treated soon, he could pass out.
"I could've easily sliced you right in half," he heard Leonardo cooly say. "That was a warning cut."
Leo hissed both in pain and anger, and his grip on the sword tightened. No, he wasn't going to give up now. He charged at the future Turtle again, roaring in defiance. Leonardo was shocked by the younger Turtle's determination and he almost dropped his guard. Just for a split second though. He could fight this kid all day if he wanted to, but he knew that Leo would soon be finished.
As Leo continued to swing his sword, the blood from his arm splattered everywhere. Some of it even landed on Leonardo's plastron. That was when he got an idea.
Leo flung his arm and a bit of blood landed in Leonardo's eyes. It was enough to temporary blind him, though, and he stopped to quickly wipe his eyes. Leo used this opportunity to attack the now defenseless Turtle, and he stabbed his katana right through Leonardo's shoulder.
A look of surprise was on Leonardo's face before he screamed in pain and dropped to his knees, the blade embedded deep in his shoulder and sticking right through his shell.
Leo chuckled weakly before he collapsed to the ground, extremely weakened from the blood loss. He didn't exactly win, but he didn't lose either.
Breathing heavily and shakily, Leonardo looked directly at Leo. "Wh-Why can't you see what I'm-I'm trying to do...?" he weakly asked the younger Turtle, blood spilling down his plastron and onto the ground. "I just...want to protect my brothers..." Tears started to form in his eyes. "To keep Mikey...from dying..."
Leo instantly felt sympathy for the other Turtle, remembering that this was himself from the future. They both wanted to protect their families, but Leonardo failed to protect his. All he wanted to do was to make sure that Leo wouldn't lose his own brothers, even if his methods were a bit extreme.
He coughed and lifted his head a bit to look at Leonardo. "I...I know. But you don't...have to worry about them. I'll protect them...I promise."
Leonardo wasn't convinced and shook his head. "You'll fail...because you're not willing...to kill for them."
Leo felt his eyelids growing heavy. "Maybe...but I know that...Mikey would rather die than...than to watch his brother...kill someone...to protect...him..." He finally closed his eyes and went into a world of darkness, the shocked look on Leonardo's face being the last thing he saw.
Beep...Beep...Beep...
He woke up to the sound of Donnie's machines beeping. He reached to touch his shoulder and felt bandages. He groaned as he felt a major headache coming on, which alerted Donnie.
The genius Turtle sat at his desk and turned from his laptop at the sound of Leo's groans. He ran to the operating table, checking his brother over. "Take it easy, Leo."
"What..." Leo lifted his head and groggily looked around him, "what happened to...?"
"The other Leo?" There was some sadness in Donnie's voice, which greatly worried Leo.
"Is...Is he okay?" he reluctantly asked Donnie.
Donnie said nothing and just continued to look down at him with sad auburn eyes, which said it all.
Leo closed his eyes and his chest rose as he took in a deep breath, then he let out a heavy sigh. "He's dead, isn't he?"
"Yeah," Donnie softly said.
"Was he dead when you...when you guys got there?"
"Yeah. He was lying on the ground next to you. He had one of your swords right through his chest."
Leo opened his eyes at this. "His chest? But I stabbed him in the sh-"
Then it hit him.
Oh, god...
He lifted an arm and covered his face with it. "He killed himself." he croaked.
Donnie sighed and gently patted Leo on his plastron. "I figured that was what happened. Besides, Mikey found a note."
Leo removed his arm and looked over at his brother. "A note?"
The gap-toothed Turtle held up the photo and flipped it over before handing it to him. "A goodbye note."
Leo took the photo and read the note that was written on the back.
Mikey,
I know you depended on me to bring our family back together, but I can't.
Please understand. After the Shredder killed you in my timeline (yes, I lied to you and I'm sorry), I became so bitter and angry that I left Raph and Donnie behind to avenge your death. In doing so, I let our family fall apart, even though it was my job to keep it together. I figured that without you, it just wouldn't work. There was no point in me staying.
I now see that I was wrong.
But it's far too late to fix things between us. And even if there was a chance, I'm not the person to do it.
Mikey, I've done terrible things the last thirty years. My hands are dirty with the blood of criminals that I killed in honor of my dead little brother. Yes, as horrible and sick as that sounds, I did it all for you.
I'm sorry.
I know that it's wrong to kill, and I know that I need to stop, but I've dug myself a hole that I cannot get out of. I'm in too deep, and no one can pull me out. Not even you.
It would be better for everyone in both worlds if I were to disappear. I hope you can forgive me one day, Mikey.
Please don't ever stop smiling. Continue to shine brighter than even the sun. Live a long, happy life.
I love you. Always.
-Leo
A choked sob escaped Leo's throat as soon as he finished reading the note. Leonardo was clearly a troubled spirit, and he prayed that the future Turtle finally found the peace he had longed for.
Then he remembered his youngest brother, who instantly bonded with Leonardo the moment he arrived in their dimension. "How's...how's Mikey taking it?"
"He's traumatized," Donnie sadly said. "Raph's doing his best to comfort him, but...he can't stop crying. Leo, I-I haven't seen him this upset since Splinter's funeral."
Leo should've known. His heart broke for his little brother. How horrible it must've been for him to find his brother's body, with the knowledge that his death wasn't an accident but was, in fact, a suicide.
"I should go to him," Leo started to get up but Donnie gently pushed him back down on the table.
"Raph and I will look after him," he softly said. "You need to rest for a while. You can go see Mikey later." He gave Leo one gentle pat on the plastron and fluffed his pillow before walking out of the lab.
Leo sighed and looked up numbly at the pipes on the ceiling. Leonardo's voice kept echoing in his head.
"Leo, are you willing to anything to protect your family? Even if you have to take someone's life?"
"You're too weak and naive to lead the team."
"Face reality, Leo. It's your destiny to become me."
Leo shut his eyes and shook his head on the pillow. "No," he mumbled to himself. "Never."
Leo groaned as he slowly lifted himself off the ground, using something solid to support himself. He opened his eyes and was absolutely horrified to see Mikey's body lying next him. The wound that Jei inflicted on him was bleeding heavily.
"No!" Leo gasped. He desperately placed his fingers on Mikey's neck, feeling for a pulse. But there was none.
"No!" He closed his eyes, willing himself to wake up from this horrible nightmare. But it felt too real to be a dream.
Leo lifted his head to the heavens and screamed at the top of his lungs.
"NOOOOO!"
The tattered ends of Raph's mask gently flowed in the wind as the mountains echoed back Leo's cry of anguish. The Warrior Turtle landed headfirst on a boulder, the impact fracturing his skull and instantly killing him. Donnie's bo staff lay on the ground snapped in half, much like the genius Turtle's spine.
Leo hugged Mikey close to him and sobbed into his little brother's limp neck.
He had failed, just as future Leonardo predicted.
Rain began to fall as he continued to weep, and he could hear Leonardo's voice in his head, taunting him.
"Then one day you'll lose all of them, and there will be no one else to blame but yourself."
Then heard another voice. A voice he had grown to despise with fiber of his being.
"I sense the evil inside of you, Leonardo."
Leo's eyes became white with rage and bloodlust as he slowly lifted his face from Mikey's neck. Standing behind him, the blind, immortal wolf sneered, his long black hair flowing in the wind.
"And I will purge it," Jei announced.
He gently laid down Mikey's body and stood up, his shell still facing the wolf. He unsheathed one of his swords and then slowly turned to face his prey.
The Serpent was preparing to strike.
Again! This does not actually happen in my Akari story, so Leonardo is still alive!
Also, we all know that Jei didn't actually kill the Turtles and it turned out to be a dream. (This happened in the episode Osoroshi No Tabi.)
So let's all take a deep breath, okay?
EDIT: I don't know what happened, but I fixed the chapter.