"Wake up Mikey" Leo whispers softly, nudging my only little brother carefully. Mikey blinked warily, face scrunching up before he closes his eyes again.
"Listen to your brother Michelangelo" Dad's soft voice cut in, and Mikey blinks again in confusion. His dull blue eyes travel to the other side of the bars, landing on dad's face. It took a few seconds before recognition seems to dawn on Mikey's face, but he doesn't visibly react to anything.
Leo nudges Mikey again, putting one of the two water bottles against his lips. Mikey closes his eyes again but allows Leo to pour the last bit of water into his mouth. I turn my head away from the sight, burying it in Raph's hold. I didn't want to see this, I didn't want my last memory of my little brother being this.
I didn't want to remember him being too weak to move, too exhausted to keep himself awake for more than minutes at the time, and being too weak to survive for much longer.
Raph silently wraps his arm around me again, but neither of us say anything. There was nothing left to say really. We could only hope that something happened, a rescue, Shredder making a mistake, anything. And much to my horror I found myself thinking the same thing more and more.
I wish Mikey wouldn't have to suffer long.
I could feel pain run down my spine with every move I made, my bruises throbbing relentlessly with every heartbeat. And I had only been taken one time. It hurt, but I knew Mikey was hurting more.
"Donatello how are you doing?" I've always loved that voice, dad always sounded so caring, voice calm. But right now, I hated it. There was so much hurt underneath that tone. I knew dad was hurting by seeing us like this. I knew he was heartbroken by seeing Mikey's condition, and knowing he couldn't do anything.
I sniffle, turning my face towards dad almost reluctantly.
"I'm fine dad" I try to convince him, but dad obviously doesn't believe me for one second. A tremor runs through my body, and I stiffen a hiss that tries to escape my mouth.
"How is your wrist?" He asks, glancing at my wrist. But the arm still rests comfortably in my lap, still swollen slightly.
"It's healing" And throbbing relentlessly. I didn't like lying to dad, but right now, I didn't want him to worry so I didn't care about lying. Even if it didn't matter, because I knew dad didn't believe me on this either.
He understood that we were all on borrowed time, and neither of us would be alright for a long time.
TMNT
Without hesitation, Shredder walked into the room, confident, unrelenting.
"Saki!" Dad cried out, demanding, but also desperate as he tried to look at the figure of the man that was once his brother. But was now the man that had hurt us, had hurt his only family that he had left. There was no love in dad's voice, just anger for the man who did this to us.
Shredder didn't respond, didn't glance at the footbots following him into the room. He quickly walked over to dad, pulling out a knife.
"NO!" I cry out in panic, eyes going wide. But Shredder only placed the knife against dad's throat, forcing him to look up.
"You listen to me now" Shredder demanded, putting the knife a bit higher to prove his point. I tense significantly, looking dad into the eyes.
"Do not listen to him Leonardo" He spoke, but his voice shook ever so slightly. He was afraid, he was scared. But he wasn't afraid of losing his own life, he wouldn't be afraid of that. No, he was terrified of the thought that he could hurt us… kill us.
"You will if you want the rat to live" Shredder growled, stomping on Dad's ankle. Dad let out a shout of pain, gritting his teeth.
"Okay!" I shout, quickly walking up to the bars. "What do you want? Just… just don't hurt him" I whisper, feeling my hands tremble ever so slightly as they grabbed the bars in front of me. There was so little distance between me and dad, but yet too much. I couldn't reach dad, or help him.
Right now, I was the oldest, I had to act as the leader of the team.
"Hand over the youngest"
I could feel my blood run cold, and my head immediately snapped towards Mikey. He wanted Mikey. Mikey, my youngest brother, the same brother that was now barely awake. Mikey, who had already endured way too much, and was way too weak right now to survive much more torture.
I couldn't let Shredder take him.
"Please take me" I whisper, but my eyes fixed themselves firmly on Shredder. I wasn't afraid of the man, I was afraid of his power over my three little brothers. "You can do whatever you want with me.. please don't take any of my little brothers" I beg. I don't care that I'm begging right now, I don't care that this is the Shredder.
I don't care about my dignity. I would do anything to keep my little brothers safe, even if it means begging Shredder to let them alone, even if it meant taking the torture for myself. I would do everything for them.
"Hand over the youngest-" Shredder hisses, and suddenly dad was convulsing. An animalistic cry leaves dad's mouth as electricity crackles through him.
"NO!" I could hear Raph's shout, speaking up for the first time. I could only cry out in desperation, body numb as electricity continues to travel through Dad's body. And then, within seconds, and yet not soon enough, it stops.
"Hand over the youngest!" Shredder booms, glaring at me. I could feel tears stream down my face.
"Leonardo don't" Dad heaves, looking at me.
"I can't!" I cry out, looking at the Shredder with desperate eyes. Please don't take him, please don't take him.
"Hand him over or I will hurt him!" Shredder rages.
"N-no" I can hear Mikey stutter behind me, and I whirl my head around.
"No way Mike" Raph hisses, pulling Mikey close to his chest.
"Lemme go Raph" Mikey whispers, voice hoarse. He tried to struggle, but stood no chance against Raph. "N-no dad… I c-can't" Mikey croaked, continuing to struggle. I tear my gaze away from them, looking at the two figures outside the cage again.
"I'm sorry dad" I whisper, and before I knew it electricity crackled through dad's body again. This time longer, the scream more agonising. I wince, not bothering to stop the tears from rolling down my cheeks. It was one of the worst sounds… a sound I never wanted to hear in my life.
Dad's body slumped to the ground, panting harshly.
"I have run out of patience" Shredder growled, putting the knife against dad's throat again. "Hand over the youngest or I will kill him" He threatened. I can only gape at dad's hopeless yet furious expression.
"Your threats are futile brother" Dad says, the last word mockingly. It's been too long since dad thought of Saki as his brother. "You will not kill me, as that would end my sufferings. Do not listen to him Leonardo. Keep your brothers safe"
Shredder narrowed his eyes behind the mask, suddenly releasing the knife from dad's throat.
"I would not kill you" Shredder stated blankly. "But I am done asking nicely" He states, glancing at his footbots. That seemed to be enough to activate them, and one of them got some sort of gun before pointing it straight at us. My eyes go wide, but before I can do anything at all, they fired.
I cry out loudly as electricity suddenly coursed through my entire body. My thoughts scrambled, and I faintly felt my body hitting the floor.
The next thing I know is blinking heavily up at the ceiling, Mikey's terrified screams ringing through the room.
"NO!" I could hear Don cry out, and Raph curse. But the moment my vision cleared enough, I could see bars separate us from Mikey.
"Saki do not do this!" Dad cried out, desperately tugging at his chains. I could see him wince in pain, but he didn't stop once. Chains pulled against his wrists, against his neck, against his ankles, but he didn't stop.
"P-Please" Mikey hiccupped, struggling weakly in the grasp of one of the footbots. He seemed to be more awake, stronger than he had been for the past few days, but it was still futile. The footbots were stronger than him even when Mikey wasn't injured.
"MIKEY" Raph raged, throwing himself into the bars with his full weight. "Don't ya dare take him shredder!"
BANG.
My head whipped around immediately at the sound, eyes going wide.
"RAPH" I felt myself crying out, diving towards my immediate younger brother and catching him. Raph gasps in pain and shock, green eyes going wide as they stared at the bullet hole in his shoulder. "Shit" I curse, immediately lowering him to the ground and pressing my hand tightly on top of the wound.
"My son!" Dad cries out, jerking in his chains again. Raph hisses through his teeth, hands trembling as they tried to reach the wound. I quickly snatch his hand.
"Keep pressure on it" I order, quickly ripping off my knee guards the moment my hands were free. I could hear Mikey sobbing from outside the cage, door opening and I could see something being wheeled in. But I knew I couldn't help Mikey, and I knew I had to help Raph.
I didn't hesitate right now, I didn't warn Raph first. I just took away his hands from the wound, pressing the bandages that used to be around my ankles against the wound.
"F-fuck" Raph mutters, tensing in my hold. Don was staring at Raph with wide terrified eyes, limbs trembling as he tried to keep standing. Right now he wasn't the doctor, he had nothing to focus on. Right now, he was Raph's younger brother, and he could do nothing but pray Raph was gonna be okay.
I could just place my knee guard against his wound when Mikey cried out.
"N-No! No you can't do t-" The sentence suddenly stopped when Mikey was thrown to the ground. He landed with a hiss of pain, trying to scramble upwards but one of the bots put his foot in Mikey's shell.
It was only then that I truly realised what was happening.
"SAKI!" Dad screamed out of anger and desperation, trying to rip himself free from the chains. I was frozen as I looked at the glass cage in front of me, the same glass cage that they used in circuses, or with magicians. The pipe was ready positioned at the top, ready to pour water.
Mikey was frozen in fear as the bots roughly picked him up. I could do nothing but stare in fear as they pushed him over the edge. A loud yell echoed through the glass chamber and Mikey hit the ground hard. He cries out, sound muffled ever so slightly before the lid above him closed.
"Shredder I beg you" I whimper, but the man doesn't seem to listen. "I will do anything you want, anything if you just let him go. Please" I didn't care about looking weak, I didn't care about begging in front of the enemy. I only cared about doing everything I possibly could to prevent shredder from hurting my little brothers.
"Begin" Shredder merely said, and the footbots took that as a que to allow the water to flow through the pipe, and into the glass cage. No….
"Saki you cannot do this! I cannot let my son die Saki, please" Dad started to beg as well, but Shredder turned around without any emotion on his face.
Water fell down on Mikey's head, and he whimpered loudly, ducking out of the way of the stream. The sound of Mikey's whimper so torturously clear, so audible.
"I have waited until you were here to kill your pathetic sons as I wanted you to watch them die. Don't be fooled rat, you are to blame for Michelangelo's demise in a moment. I would have not killed him yet if it weren't for your surrender"
The room seems to freeze, and I can see pure horror spread across dad's face. I could hear Don gasp for air, the sound panicked and obviously strained. Mikey was going to die. Shredder was allowing him to die right now.
Tears were now streaming down Mikey's face, but I could barely see them because of the water splashing everywhere.
Shredder seems to gloat at dad's horror for a moment before walking to the exit.
"SHREDDER" Raph raged, scrambling upwards despite the bullet wound. "You coward! You'll pay for this, asshole!"
Shredder narrowed his eyes, but not out of annoyance, out of glee it seemed like. "I have already won Raphael. And I will enjoy my victory by watching you four perish" It was then that I dared myself to glance upwards, blood freezing at the red dot of the camera staring back at me.
Of course he was recording this, he wanted to savour this moment forever.
Water continues to roar, the sound so soft and yet so deafening.
"Michelangelo!" Dad roared before the door even shut and we were left alone with just the five of us.
"Dad" Mikey sobbed, leaning against the glass wall. The water was now reaching his knees already, and Mikey's eyes were filled with panic. It seemed like the exhaustion that had been there mere moments ago was gone, replaced by what must be adrenaline coursing through his body.
"Mikey stay calm, save your energy" Don shouted, scrambling upwards. Mikey's gaze snapped to Donnie at the order.
"I-I'm scared D" Mikey whimpers, shaking on his feet before steadying himself on the remaining good leg. Donnie choked on a sob, but I couldn't get the energy to move or say anything. What could I possibly say to any of my brothers right now?
It will be alright? We all knew it wouldn't be alright.
Mikey will be okay? None of us would believe that lie.
Mikey took a shuddering breath, eyes travelling to dad's face.
"I-..." He stops himself, a panicky hiccup escaping his throat. "I love you dad. You've given us the world when no one else would. I- I love you" A tear was now evidently rolling down his cheek, and I could feel similar tears rolling down mine.
Mikey was saying his goodbye.
The water had reached the midst of his thighs, but it seemed like Mikey was purposely not looking at the liquid that would soon…. end his life.
"Leo.." God no. I didn't want to hear this. "Leo I love you too… all of you guys. Don't doubt yourself t-too much Leo. You're the best leader… but you need to relax some more. It's okay to relax" A wry smile was wrenched from my lips.
A panicked whimper escaped Mikey's throat as he looked down. The water was now reaching his middle, and steadily rising. There wasn't a lot of room above him to swim, once it would reach his head…. I shook my head furiously.
"Raph-"
"Don't ya dare say it Mike" Raph hissed, tears burning in his eyes.
"Raph…" Mikey whispered, but Raph shook his head.
"I don't wanna hear it" Tears were now streaming down Raph's face.
"Lemme say this Raph, please" Mikey hiccups, hands clawing at the glass at a futile attempt to clear the view. "I… you've always been the strong one, even when we were young I always went to you after a nightmare" Mikey's voice was oddly calm, but I could clearly see the fear in his eyes even through the foggy glass.
"Talk to someone…. so much anger isn't good for anyone." Mikey continues, glancing down at the water, now reaching just above his middle. He looks up again. "I love you too big bro"
There was a jolt of panic running through his body as the water now seemingly started to rise even faster. So close, too fast. it was now almost reaching his neck, and Mikey snapped his gaze towards Don.
"Donnie.. you were my best friend, always has been. I could always come to you to hang out, I could talk to you and you would listen, or we would hide from Leo and Raph fighting" He takes a quick shuddering breath. "Try to relax more as well, just…-" He stops again, flinching as the water reached his chin.
"I love you all so much guys" He whispered, and neither of us could say anything.
We could do nothing but stare in horror as the water engulfed Mikey's face.
TMNT
I am sorry...? *Hides in a corner* Reviews will increase Mikey's chance of surviving :3 (Eh heck, you know he's surviving anyways... Reviews will be used to write fluff?...)
