CWC: Hey guys and gals! Sorry it's been a while, just had to get my head on straight. Anywho, enjoy the chappie-ter!
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Chapter 7: Fights, flights, and plans
Hannah's POV
I watch and listen to the exchange between the turtle, who I had heard the person on the phone call 'Leo,' and Bethany.
"You won't live to see another sunrise," Beth vows. The turtle simply tilts his head with a strange smile.
"You remind me of one of my brothers," he comments randomly. Bethany snorts with disbelief.
"Why would I remind you of a boy turtle," she scoffs, rolling her eyes.
"Strong, loyal to a fault, a Foot ninja's worst nightmare, and can't take a joke," the turtle says simply. Ruby smiles.
"That sounds like Bet-bet all right," she says, ducking a swipe from Beth.
"Her and my brother Raph," Leo replies, grinning even though he looks surprised by her fangs. This guy isn't so bad; he's not tried to escape or fight, and he isn't concerned by our appearance, though I guess he's had practice.
Glancing at a watch taken when we got our clothes, I see that it's quarter to six. Standing from my position leaning against a warm pipe, I catch Arianna's eye and nod. She nods in reply and begins to gather our belongings as I turn to the others. Satomi is hanging back, merely observing as Ruby chats with Leo and Bethany keeps an eye on all three of them.
"Okay," I say, getting their attention. "Ruby, Satomi, each of you take one of Leo's arms. Bethany, guard them, Arianna, guard the rear, I'll take point."
My clan responds expertly, years of training to obey without question taking over. Leo, who looks surprised that I know his name, doesn't resist as Ruby on his right and Satomi on his left each drape one of his arms around their shoulders.
They haul him to stand between them and move, me out in front, Bethany in front of the trio, and Arianna behind them. We emerge from the sewers as the sun begins to sink in the sky, a chill in the air.
Winter is moving in on the city, and I'll have to find a different place for my clan when the cold really sets in. Getting onto the rooftops is difficult with the turtle's leg, but we manage, and arrive at the antique store a little after six.
Satomi and Ruby put him near the center of the roof, next to an air vent that he can use to hide behind if anyone comes onto the roof. After making sure he's comfortable, we spread out in a star formation around the building, hidden, but close enough to keep watch.
As it grows darker and time draws nearer to when Leo's brothers should arrive, my clan settles down to wait.
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Ruby's POV
I yawned, lounging on the raised edge of a building across the street from the antique store, glancing over at my new friend ever now and then. After a while I just lay on my back on the rough stone of the building with legs crossed and arms behind my head and stared up, trying to see a star in the light-polluted sky. My tail (it's so weird that I have a tail!) dangles down the side of the building, flicking lazily.
Wait, is that… Can it be?! IT IS!
"Whoo hoo," I yell, pumping my fists in the air and sitting up. "I see a star!"
Unfortunately, my movement startles the three turtle-boys who have been sneaking up on me. Catching sight of them, I give a yelp before scrambling to my feet and hurriedly drawing my kusarigama, making them back up.
I launch the bladed ends at the closest turtle, one in a red mask. In one smooth movement he dodges the blades and, drawing his Sais, stabs them through a single link in the chain and pulls, yanking the weighted ends out of my hands. Realizing I'm unarmed, I take up a defensive stance.
"Where's our brother," the red-masked turtle questions me as his two friends in orange and purple draw nunchucks and a Bo staff. I'm in huge trouble, so I do the only thing that makes sense.
Taking a deep breath, I yell, "Hannah!"
The three turtles freeze, and it's possible to hear rhythmic thumps of pounding feet coming closer. Hannah appears like an avenging angel, leaping onto the building and, landing in a defensive crouch on all fours between me and the turtles, lets loose a growl worthy of a hunting panther.
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Hannah's POV
I hear Ruby's plea from my position on an apartment building's fire escape two buildings away, and feel a fury I've never known. It's a righteous anger, against those who would threaten my friend or someone more important to me than a friend. Pushing those thoughts aside, I launch myself across the rooftops to land between my clan-mate and those who threaten her, snarling like half of my DNA's ancestors.
Satomi, Arianna, and Bethany join me in front of Ruby in less than a minute while the three turtle's stand frozen with surprise. When they don't move, I stop growling, leaving the other three to make the threatening noise. Slowly, I straighten to stand stiffly on two feet. I make a quick 'cut' motion with my hand and the growling stops immediately.
We stand in silence for a minute before I break it, saying, "Why are you here?"
My voice is deadly calm and cold as ice, cutting through the tense air like a blade.
"We came to get our brother," the one in a purple mask speaks up, and my ears prick slightly; I recognize his voice from the phone.
"So you're the one Leo called Don," I say, curious in spite of myself. The turtle looks surprised, but nods an affirmative. Keeping one eye on them, I turn my head until I can see my clan, still in a defensive position behind me.
"Clan, stand down," I order, still watching my team.
"But," Bethany begins to protest.
"Stand. Down," I order.
They straighten out of their defensive positions and move to stand beside me in our now normal formation, Bethany to my right, Arianna to my left, Ruby to the far right, and Satomi to the far left. I gesture with my arm to the building across the street.
"Your… brother is on the roof of that building. We patched him up the best we could, but, as we explained to him, we do not have the supplies to tend to him. We allowed him to call you so that you could retrieve him," I explain calmly.
"We know," Don replies awkwardly. "Thanks for that."
I simply nod, and silence falls again. This time Ruby is the one to break it.
"So," she says, drawing the word out. "What now?"
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm hungry," the turtle in orange says. "Who's up for pizza?"
Don groans while the turtle in red smacks the orange one in the back of the head.
"Mikey, I swear," he says in a thick Brooklyn accent.
"What? We can go get Leo first," Mikey says pleadingly. Satomi's eyes widen.
"Wait," she says suddenly. "If that's Don, and he's Mikey, then you must be Raph," she continues, eyes widening with this new realization. Red-mask gives her a confused look.
"Yeah," he says slowly. "What's it to you?"
Ruby giggles. "Oh man, Leo was right, Bet-bet," she says. "This guy is a lot like you!"
"I said don't call me that," Bethany growls, smacking Ruby lightly. I clear my throat to get their attention as the turtles just stand there, confused. Rolling my eyes, I turn back to the turtles.
"Your brother mentioned that he had a brother named Raph who was like Bethany," I explain. The red-masked turtle scowls slightly before shrugging. An awkward silence falls. Finally I clear my throat.
"Well, if that's all, I'm sure your brother is getting cold on that rooftop," I say, glancing over to where we put Leo, only to see a ten-person squad of Foot ninjas approaching the turtle, who is leaning against an air vet for support while drawing his katanas. I snarl.
"Clan, defend," I order, crouching to all fours before launching myself over the heads of the startled brothers and across the narrow street to land on the roof behind the Foot ninjas, my team flanking me. We spring into action as the ninjas turn from Leo to face us, each of my clan taking at least one ninja.
I've struck down my opponent by a quick strike to the back of the neck with the hilt of my ninjato when a thud behind me draws my attention. Turning, I see Don holding a Bo staff and standing over a ninja who had been sneaking up on me. He nods, and I nod back before moving to assist Ruby, who has gotten herself cornered by a pair on ninjas.
Grinning, I walk up behind one ninja, who is oblivious to anything but the younger cat, and tap him on the shoulder with one clawed finger. He turns around, right into my left hook as Ruby launches a kicking attack at his friend, who soon joins his buddy out cold on the roof.
I catch a glimpse of Raph and Bethany fighting back to back as more ninjas appear out of nowhere before jumping back into the fray.
The fight is a blur of punching and kicking, my ninjato a silver and black blur in the night air as I battle the endless waves of ninjas. At one point I'm backed against the wall, Don at my side, as the ninjas try desperately to take us out before they're completely defeated. They fail, and after an eternity of fighting I stand beside Leo, the rest of the turtles and my clan spread out over the roof watching as the last of the Foot ninjas escape into the night, none of them unscathed.
We're all startled by Mikey's loud laugh.
"Dude," he says, turning to look at Ruby. "You are absolutely killer! Those were some awesome moves!" Ruby cracks a fanged grin.
"Thanks, dude, you weren't so bad yourself," she replies, twirling one kusarigama happily before reattaching it to her belt. I look to my right and see Bethany, who gives me a shaky smile and clutches her trench coat closer to her.
I'm confused and about to say something when she lets out a pained moan and begins to crumple to the ground before Raph, appearing beside her, lends his support.
"Bethany!"
In an instant all of my clan has surrounded the warrior cat and the turtle holding her. The red-masked turtle appears slightly freaked out, but stands still. I'm grateful for that, and, regaining my composure, order, "Clan, back off. Satomi, analysis."
My yellow-masked friend steps forward and, after a nervous glance at Raph, ignores him in favor of her patient. A flap of trench coat falls open to reveal a dark patch among the black of Bethany's ninja outfit. Removing her own coat, Satomi spreads it on the roof before taking Beth from Raph and laying her on the coat. Lifting the edge of Bethany's shirt, I wince as I catch sight of a deep gash in my clan-mates side.
"Looks like a stab wound," Satomi says, almost to herself. She pulls a wad of fabric strips from her pocket and, after placing some strips on the wound, applies pressure to stop the bleeding. Reaching out behind her she grabs a shocked Raph's wrists and pulls them down to apply pressure on the bandages.
"Hold," she orders, nearly as bossy as me, and begins to rummage in her coat pockets. I notice that the red masked turtle has turned a lighter shade of green as he stares down at his three fingered hands, which are soon stained with Bethany's blood.
I leave Satomi to her work, standing and turning to look at the others. Arianna is still comforting a pale and shocked Ruby, and the other three turtles have come closer, near enough to see what's going on but far enough away to not be threatening. Leo is being supported on one side by Don.
I nod to the turtles and walk over to Ruby, who stares at me with wide crimson eyes through her bright green mask. Arianna looks at me, hazel eyes clear of all emotion. I open my arms, and Ruby instantly runs to me, grabbing me in a desperate hug. I hug her back, making comforting sounds as Arianna moves to stand just behind Satomi.
"What can I do," she asks. Satomi looks up at her from her crouched position.
"Take over for Raph," she says simply, gesturing to the now positively pastel turtle. Nodding, Arianna walks across to stand beside him. Her rapidly twitching tail is the only thing that betrays her emotions as she taps Raph on the shoulder.
When he looks up, she says, "Move." He nods shakily and steps away, Arianna smoothly taking his place as the red masked turtle stands and makes his way to his brothers. I watch, holding a shaking Ruby, as Satomi and Arianna work to place a strong bandage on Bethany's stomach. The wound looks much more manageable covered by the relatively clean cloth bandage. Satomi pulls Beth's shirt back down and stands, looking at me.
"Will she be okay," Ruby asks before I can say anything. Satomi looks down at the youngest cat and manages a small smile.
"I think so," she answers. "The cut looks like it was made by a ninjato. Beth was lucky; it missed all her internal organs, slicing only muscle and fat. If we're careful, she should be better soon."
"But," I prompt. Satomi sighs.
"But," she continues. "She will need stitches and a lot of rest, which she can't get while we're moving around hiding from the Foot. We need to find a place to hide and rest. Not sleeping in trees, not moving to hide in the sewers during the day, an actual shelter."
I sigh and run a hand through the short fur on my head. What am I going to do?
"We might have a solution," a male voice breaks into my thoughts. Looking over my shoulder I see Leo, supported by a recovered and angry Raph. I cock an eyebrow at the injured turtle.
"You could come with us," he continues, using the arm not wrapped around Raph's shoulders to gesture to the other two turtles. I bite back the instant refusal that springs to my throat and look at Satomi.
"Odds of survival given current living conditions, severity of wound, and change of seasons," I ask her. She frowns for a moment, calculating our odds, and pales under her fur.
"Next to nothing," she responds quietly. My mouth a grim line, I'm about to turn back to the blue-masked turtle when my ears prick up slightly. Leo is holding a whispered conversation with Raph.
"…crazy? Splinter is already mad about April and Casey, let alone five girls," Raph asks angrily.
"We can trust them," Leo answers simply. "They're good people. I'll tell you the story later, but for now you'll have to trust me." Raph sighs, and then smiles slightly, supporting his brother a little more.
"You're in so much trouble when we get home," he says in his thick Brooklyn accent, still whispering. They both straighten when I turn around to face them.
"We accept your kinds offer," I say, forcing the words out. I will ask them about this 'Splinter,' character later. I'm distracted by a low moan as Bethany attempts to sit up and goes pale, gasping in pain. Satomi is by her side instantly, pushing her back down onto the coat.
"You have a large incision across your abdominal muscles; moving will be painful for some time so I suggest you restrict all unnecessary actions to a minimum," Satomi says rapidly. Everyone except for me and Don looks at her, confused.
"You have a big cut on your stomach and you shouldn't move," I translate for my wounded friend, allowing myself a small smile at her expression. Bethany's face turns thunderous and I manage to cover Ruby's ears just before Bethany explodes, cursing the Foot ninjas who did this to her to the Pit and back in more than one language and some very descriptive ways. She manages to go on for almost five minutes before she begins to repeat herself.
"Beth," I say, stopping her. "You already used that one." She scowls at me.
"Well they deserve it twice over," she responds, growling. I sigh and give her another small smile.
"You might be right about that," I concede. Arianna clears her throat to get my attention.
"I suggest we move," she says calmly. "We are exposed on this rooftop."
"How will we move Bethany," Ruby asks curiously, acting more like her normal perky self.
"Bethany can walk on her own," my injured friend interjects before I can answer, scowling, and tries to get up again. I frown and put one hand on her shoulder, pushing her down.
"Satomi just told you not to move," I say.
"If you do not use common sense and hold still, I will knock you out until we reach our destination," Arianna interjects, coming to crouch on the other side of Bethany, who simply growls slightly and fights to sit up, despite the fact that her face has gone pale, no doubt from the pain in her stomach.
Shrugging, Arianna says, "I warned you," before drawing a small dart from her bag of shakken. I wince as she jabs it into Bethany's arm. Shocked silence falls on the roof as Bethany's eyes roll up into her head and she blacks out. Standing, I purse my lips at Arianna.
"Not that I do not see the logic of your actions," I say. "But please, don't do that again."
Arianna shrugs. "I warned her," she says simply. "What are your orders?"
Sniffing slightly, I turn to Satomi. "Satomi, what would be the best way to transport her," I ask, pushing away the hurt I feel when the yellow-masked cat turns shocked and slightly frightened eyes on me.
"Pr-probably a stretcher to lessen the tension on her stomach muscles," she replies stuttering. I sigh. I will have to regain their trust later.
"Fine," I say. "Satomi, stay here with Beth. Arianna, you, Ruby, and I will go down to street level and gather materials. Let's go." I move to the edge of the roof, the others flanking me, and leap gracefully to the alley below.
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(CWC sits on a berth in the brig, typing furiously on her laptop.)
CWC: I'll be with you guys in just...a...second...
(With one last button the energy bars disappate, leaving the cell open. CWC leaps up)
CWC: Freedom! Finally!
(Walks out of the brig and smacks into Prowl's pede)
Prowl-muse: What are you doing out of the brig?
CWC: The flying monkeys are after me because the Wicked Witch of the West thinks I stole her red slippers. (points behind her dramatically) RUN TOTO, we aren't in Kansas anymore!
(Prowl looks confused for a second, and then glares down at her.)
Prowl-muse: I hate you (Sparks fly from helm as he glitches)
CWC (Giggling): Sorry, Prowler, but I don't like the Brig! Hope you guys like this new chapter in the lives of my five feline femme friends. New chapters will be posted as my insanity grows. Now do something for me. You see that little button down there that says 'Post Review'? Click it. Click it now. Until next chappie, folks! Bai!