*A few chapters in to Mantle, I realized the family's "complex" needed a name, and settled on Yousai. It's the Japanese equivalent of "stronghold". Sounded a lot better to me than calling it their "building".

Oh yeah. And I don't own Google. Or the Turtles. But you knew that. I hope.

Nathaniel stared at the cirrocumulus clouds lining the early morning sky, reminding him of fish scales covering the light blue expanse. Mornings in New York City were very different from waking up in the Blue Ridge Mountains, but from the sky deck of Yousai, it was beautiful in its own way.

The length of silence, however, was unusual given the company he kept. Nate peered at his dad out of the corner of his eye. "You're quiet this morning."

The older orange-masked turtle shook his head. "Just thinking, Nate. That's very dangerous for me."

"It does usually involve someone getting pranked…"

Michelangelo chuckled. "That kinda thought isn't hard. It flows like magic."

"Then what are you thinking about?"

Mike's smile eased. "You guys. Master Splinter. Time." He broke eye contact with Nate and stared at the skyline across from them. "I remember when you were born, Nate. You were the major bright spot during one of the worst periods of my life. I loved Reina and Olivia from the moment they were born, and I woulda done anything for them. But having a kid of my own when I shouldn't even be alive? It's…there aren't words for that."

"You are supposed to be here," Nate insisted.

"I don't mean it like that, bud. I'm saying that I beat some massive odds thanks to our docs. The deck was really stacked against me. But I'm here, and now I get to see and feel everything our Master must have gone through when he was training us." Mike sighed. "It's not easy to let you guys go, Nate, and it's not because we don't trust you. You in particular…You've got a good head on your shoulders, kid. You didn't get that from me. Fortunately you favor your mom in that department."

"You're not stupid, dad."

"What I'm trying to say is things can and do go wrong out there. We all make mistakes, misunderstand a situation, or get caught unaware. It's gonna happen to you and your cousins too, no matter how hard we try to prevent it. Even if we keep you locked up underground your entire lives, trouble would still find you."

Nate snickered. "Liv, imprisoned underground for a long time? That in itself is an invitation for disaster. Jay wouldn't be much better."

Michelangelo simulated the sound of an explosion. "And that's just you guys. Forget about me and Raph."

Nathaniel cleared his throat suddenly. "He's not gonna give Liv a hard time about the beacon, is he? It was an accident. It could have happened to any of us."

The older turtle groaned. "She played into our worst fear last night."

"But we were fine. And she answered her phone right away."

"You don't have to convince me, buddy. I'm cool now…but she might be getting some extra reminders from her dad and Leo." Michelangelo stretched his shoulders and then rose to his feet. "It's getting late. You need some breakfast and shut eye, because school comes this afternoon."

Nate nodded. Reina was probably on her way to school now. I hope she's given some more thought to telling her dad everything. The longer she's bottled up, the more it's going to weigh on her. He jumped up to follow his father through the door into the Lounge, and Mike's arm thumped his shell.

"You're lucky you've got so much of your mom in you, Nate. You're handling the responsibility of helping your cousins well."

"I'm not doing much, dad. Liv is the one keeping everybody on track."

"You do more than you think," Mike countered. "But you'll probably figure it out yourself, given a little time."

Nate shrugged. "If you say so."

Michelangelo winked. "I do say so. I'm utterly famished, so I know you're hungry too. Let's get our shells downstairs."

They headed for the elevator, and the older turtle pressed his thumb against the keypad to unlock the doors. Inside, Mike ran his fingers over the multi-toned buttons to create a sound similar to a symphony, and then punched the ground level to transport them under the street.

Nate watched the glass side of the elevator, drinking in the light of day until it disappeared from sight, then turned to wait for the doors to reopen. He allowed his father off the elevator first before following, and was struck by the oddly springy texture under his feet about a millisecond too late. "Dad—"

An avalanche of pink foam blotted out his vision and forced him to shut his mouth. He attempted to escape, only to crash into an unforgiving surface that felt vaguely like his father's shell. The rapid spin of the older turtle made Nate lose his balance and fall in a jumble to the floor.

"Whoa, sorry, bud!"

Strong arms were lifting him before he could see what was happening, but the sound of snickering caused the younger turtle to fiercely rub his eyes. He didn't need to see the culprits to recognize the deeper chuckle as belonging to his Uncle Raphael, but the other had to be either Jayden or—

"Tim!" Mike proclaimed sternly. "Since when are you teaming up with him?" He jerked a thumb toward the burly red-masked turtle.

The young blue-masked turtle covered his mouth with both hands, but it didn't hide the amusement in his dark eyes.

"Kid's got some good ideas," Raph said smugly. "Welcome home, Pipsqueak."

Nate wiped watered-down shaving cream from his forehead and sighed plaintively. "Isn't it kind of early for this sort of thing?"

Raphael snorted. "Never stopped your dad. But now that you mention it, how's it make you feel, Nate?"

The young orange-masked turtle didn't understand the question. The only thing he knew was that in addition to being hungry and tired, he'd have to address the fluffy dyed foam before he could step foot in the kitchen. "I think your timing was off," he replied evenly.

Raphael shook his head. "You may be right about him, Tim. Have to go back to your drawing board."

"Right about what?" Nate's voice took on an edge.

"Nothin', kid." The red-masked turtle grinned so disarmingly that Nate almost believed it. "You guys are free to go."

"Thanks for permission, Raphy," Mike retorted. "Don't forget to live in fear."

Michelangelo's parting comment produced more chuckles from the pair, but the older turtle ignored them. He casually walked away from the culprits and raised an eye ridge toward Nate instead. "Geez…you'd think my own brother would know better than to start with me by now. Guess a refresher course in retaliation is in order. You with me on this, Nate?"

He extended a fist to meet his father's outstretched one. "Name the time and place, dad."

"…so we're picking it up right where we left off, on day three of the Battle of Gettysburg."

Nate snapped to attention from his empty notebook paper and the daydream he'd been having about Reina. I wonder when she'll be home? She said the workload from classes is intense. I hope she doesn't end up doing homework all night.

"Robert. E. Lee's style of aggressive warfare served him extremely well in many of the battles of the Civil War, but even a great leader isn't immune to making mistakes," Luke continued, and the orange-masked turtle poised his pen for notes this time. "Lee was strongly advised against striking the Union Center on Cemetery Ridge, but he trusted his own gut and sent about 15,000 of his men across a large, open area to attack the higher ground.

"The Union only had about 6500 men on the slope, but there were reinforcements nearby. The advance of the Confederate army was hindered by the terrain and enemy fire as it neared the Union's line. Despite heavy artillery and a completely exposed right flank, the Confederates initially fought their way through, until Union reinforcements drove them back."

The doctor paused for a moment. "Most historians see Gettysburg as a turning point in the Civil War. Up until then, Lee's battle strategy was largely successful. So what went wrong for the Confederate troops in this case?"

"He did what he wanted," Liv suggested. "It didn't matter what anyone else said or thought. It was his plan, and he was gonna make it work."

"They tried to take the high ground," Charlotte added. "Made themselves extremely vulnerable in the process."

"Both of these statements are probably true. Nate, what do you think was Lee's biggest mistake at Gettysburg?" Luke asked pointedly.

The orange-masked turtle sat up straighter. "He sounded impatient. No strategy works the same way all the time, no matter how good it is. Lee should have listened to his guys like Olivia said, and not exposed himself prematurely as Charlotte pointed out. A lot of mistakes could have been avoided if he wasn't in such a hurry to defeat the Union troops."

The blond doctor nodded. "Well said, Nate. But even though the battle of Gettysburg was the largest fight to ever take place on North American soil, along with serving as the beginning of the end of the Confederate Army, the Civil War raged for another two years. We'll be covering some of the follow-up battles next week, so I want you guys to read ahead to chapter 22, and be ready to discuss them. Take good notes, because there will be a quiz."

The tortured moan that came from Jayden's direction made Nate snicker under his breath.

Luke didn't react to it. "That wraps up history for today, and it also means you guys are free to go."

Nate closed his notebook. I'll have to reread some things tonight to make up for not listening to most of the lecture…Eh, I'll squeeze it in after dinner.

"Are you all right, Nate?"

The orange-masked turtle was too ashamed to admit to being startled by the sudden nearness of Luke's voice. He looked up at the doctor guiltily. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You seemed to be…drifting, a little bit."

"Sorry," the turtle said swiftly. "I was distracted, but I'll go over the material again."

"It's probably not necessary since you grasp the underlying currents. But make sure you get enough rest tonight."

"Oh, sure. Our parents aren't going to let us patrol every evening, so that won't be a problem. Is, uh…Reina gonna be home soon?"

"She mentioned something about the library becoming her second home this semester," Luke told him. "I think she's under a lot of pressure, but Reina doesn't seem to want to talk about it."

Nate swallowed deeply. "Well…give her time, Doc. Maybe she needs to think things over. Either way, she's gotta talk to you at some point."

The man smiled. "Living under the same roof does make that difficult to avoid."

Edmundo Morais fingered his phone eagerly. The doctor had requested an update nearly three hours ago, and he was seriously testing the woman's patience by forcing her to wait. The information he wanted to deliver had yet to arrive, and he needed to give his men a little more time. We already have fragments, a positive identification…now if we can just figure out where to corner her, we'll be able to proceed.

Edmundo swiveled his desk chair to look out the expansive window. From this viewpoint he could only see part of the massive walls encasing the former "hospital". The water beyond them was sparkling and pristine. It was a perfect day outside; he simply needed another round of confirmation to make it exceptional.

A knock at the door caused him to return the chair to its regular position. "Come in!"

Robinson entered the room, nodding his head before presenting a folder. "The residence listed with the vehicle registration was a bust. We posted guys outside the place and they poked around when they found it quiet. Nobody lives there – probably haven't for years."

"Interesting. Clearly our mystery girl has something to hide. Please tell me you have something else."

"The investigators also uncovered her father's identity based on BMV records…and his additional registration led in a giant circle back to the same place."

"A family with something to hide. Even more interesting. Continue."

"Helms did an online search too, and she got a hit when she googled the kid's name." Robinson opened the folder and placed a copy of a news article on the desk in front of him.

Edmundo perused the headline. "The Manhattan Arts Academy?"

"Look at the picture, Boss."

The photo included with the piece featured several smiling teenagers, along with their names emblazoned in small print underneath. Reina Barrows. Well, I'll be.

"It was in the Post last Fall, after they received some national award or something," Robinson went on. "But it's definitely her. Matches the driver's license photo and the footage from the other night."

"It would seem you've located her. Do we know if she still attends the school?"

"Working on that part. A little compensation would go a long way to opening up some mouths."

"It's at your discretion," Edmundo said dismissively. "I want her found, and then the pressure needs to begin."

"Pressure, Boss? I figured you'd want us to pick her up."

"Not yet, Robinson. Not until she delivers."

"I don't get it, Sir. What's the play here? If she's friends with these…Phantoms, she's not gonna tell you where they are."

"No, she wouldn't tell me. But given the right amount of fear and pushing from another source could be enough to make her screw up. We'll need more of our own youth on this, different ones than we used for the set up. Can't have someone getting recognized. Get me the layout of the school, find out where she spends time off campus, and then the real games will begin. We won't have to chase her down. If this goes according to plan, she'll come on her own accord."

"Are you talking about threatening her, Boss?"

"I'm speaking of using any means necessary to get Doctor Ribeiro her subjects. Everything hinges on what we do next."