Warriors Spirit.
Chapter 7:
"So what's the plan?" April asked as she brought all of Donnie's tech online in the battleshell.
"We get in, find the boys and get out." Mai answered simply.
"I hate to point this out but that is not much of a plan." April scowled her the Chinese woman. "How exactly are you going to get past all the security in there? And you are going to need Casey to help you get the guys out. If they're hurt you'll never get them all out alone. I doubt they are going to just let you walk in there and get them."
"Getting in should be relatively easy provided Casey does exactly what I say and keeps close." Mai replied.
She turned and pulled the bag she had gathered from her apartment. Without a second thought she stripped off and pulled out her black fighting gear. She ignored the small argument she had caused when Casey had stared a little too long. She pulled on a pair of black skin tight pants and a top that was a Chinese style complete with the collar and string buttoning. She pulled on her knee high boots that had been designed to protect her knees and shins as she fought. Next were her gauntlets that protected her elbows and forearms. Lastly was a short black coat with three quarter length baggy sleeves. The coat wrapped around her body and tied around her waist and a hood hung down her back. She pulled her hair into her usual twin buns and pinned two ornate hair clips around them. On closer inspection Aril could see that the clips were silver dragons with ruby eyes. Mai finally pulled the hood up to reveal a silver dragon embroidered into the back of the coat. The dragon was curled up sitting between her shoulder blades whilst its tail weaved up the remainder of her back and to the base of the hood. From there the tail seemed to burst into a silver flame whose tendrils extended to the very edges of the hood. April stared at it in awe it was a work of art and she was sure it should never be taken into battle as the girl before her intended to do. Mai turned and looked at them and April had to supress a shudder. The way the girl held herself, the way the outfit made her look. April couldn't help but think that Mai was more intimidating in that moment than any of her mutant friends had been in all the time she had known them. There was something different about Mai this night and April was very glad that she was not one of Mai's enemies right now.
"What about getting' out?" Casey asked after she was clearly done.
"That's where it gets interesting," Mai told him with a smirk then turned to April, "Can you hack into their systems to give us a rough idea of where they are?"
"I can do better than that." April replied typing at the computer. "Donnie created special chips which he implanted into his brothers' shells as well as his own. Provided we're in range of the chips I can locate them to within a few feet." She continued to type, "There! Looks like Donnie and Mikey are still together but Leo's been separated from them." April frowned, "Casey, what if. . ." The couple looked at each other but neither offered Mai any kind of explanation for their cryptic looks.
"What?!" Mai scowled.
"Huh?" The couple replied in unison.
"You know something I obviously don't!" Lin Mai pointed out, "If we are going in there then you need to let me know everything. There are too few of us to go in without all the information. I need to have some idea of how my enemy is going to react." Mai glared at them as they looked at each other as if unsure of how to tell her something, or even whether they should. "Listen, when you said Leonardo had been separated from his brothers I just assumed that was because he was their leader. It makes sense for the foot to want to keep the leader of their enemies separated from his team. It demoralises both the leader and his subordinates." Mai sighed, "If the leader of the foot has separated Leonardo for a different reason then her reactions to an attack will differ. I am not like the turtles, I am small and not particularly strong. I use skill and speed to compensate for my weaknesses. But I was also taught to anticipate my opponent's moves. In a fight I will study my opponent watching for their weaknesses until I can defeat them. We are essentially going in blind, so please tell me what you know!"
"All right." April raised her hands in defeat, "Casey, Raph told you so maybe you should tell her what you told me."
"Well, it's gotta be seven or eight years ago now," Casey told Mai as he rubbed the back of his head clearly uncomfortable that he was telling this story at all, "Raph had had an argument with Leo. Can't remember what it was about but it had Raphie so steamed. We spent most of the night busting heads but then we came back the apartment and we had a few beers. Raph couldn't hold his liquor back then and he got drunk pretty quickly and he started talking. He bitched about Leo as he usually did when he'd had a fight, then he started telling me how Leo wasn't as perfect as he made himself out to be. That he had a big dark secret that only Raph knew about."
"And this secret is?" Mai pushed obviously wanting him to get to the point.
"Do you know what happened when they fought shredder as he was trying to leave the planet?" April asked.
"All of the turtles were badly injured and nearly didn't survive. Raphael hasn't really told me a lot about it, he doesn't seem to like talking about it much." Mai told them.
"He wouldn't." Casey nodded his head as if agreeing with her.
"If the Utroms hadn't arrived when they did then we wouldn't even be here having this conversation." April told her with a bitter smile, "During that battle, Karai almost pierced Leo's heart with his own katana."
"What does this have to do with a secret?" Mai urged.
"Well, Leo went crazy after that happened," Casey told her, "Me and April wondered what had him so crazy and the night Raphie got drunk I got the answer." Casey took a deep breath, "Raph told me that before everything went down with the Shredder, Leo had been sneakin off every now and then. Well one night Raph followed Leo and watched as he met up with Karai in a derelict building on the outskirts of town. Raph said he waited for a while to make sure it wasn't an ambush then snuck in to check on his brother. He told me he found the two sleeping together."
"When we found that out it explained a lot," April continued, "Leo would always stick up for Karai and claiming that she could be so much more. Then when she nearly killed him with his own weapon he became so angry. I guess it was because of the feeling of betrayal. He loved her."
"Has there ever been any inclination that his feelings were returned?" Mai asked contemplating the information just given to her.
"The guys mentioned once or twice that she let them go or helped them out here and there." April shrugged.
"But no obvious care for him?"
"Nope." Casey replied.
"I see." Mai said taping her lips with her right index finger. "All right, I have a plan you may approve of April."
"Oh really?" April raised an eyebrow.
"Really. The guys have communication equipment we can use right?" April got up and walked to the back of the vehicle where she reached into an upper compartment. She pulled out three headsets and handed one each to Casey and Mai.
"Will these do?" April smirked.
"Perfect."
"So what's this plan?" Casey asked.
"April, I need you to hack the foot systems and mess with them. Create blind spots. At the same time I want you to direct Casey to where they're holding Michelangelo and Donatello. Casey, you are going to get the two of them to safety."
"You goin after Leo?" Casey asked looking ready for the fight.
"I want you to avoid fighting as much as possible. Get in and get out." Mai ordered, "I will get to Leonardo and set him loose. When I give the signal I need April to do as much damage to their systems as possible. I can use the confusion to get Leo and myself out of there."
"And then we can get the hell outta here!" Casey cheered.
"This isn't going to be easy, so get ready!" Mai growled.
Mai despised sneaking around, while she dated a ninja she was far more at home out in the open. She vaguely listened to the noise caused by April guiding Casey to Don and Mikey. She had ordered him not to tell them that Raphael was alive until they were out of foot headquarters. For now the foot believed Raphael to be dead. He didn't need the foot targeting him when he was recovering. She was well aware of the limits of healing magic and knew it would take a few months for him to be completely healed.
"Stop!" Mai rolled her eyes.
"I am no good at this ninja stuff!" She muttered before spinning and taking out the ones closest to her then she turned and sprinted down the hall. After a few turns she looked up and smirked. With a leap she grabbed onto one of the pipes crossing the hallway and spun herself up until she was doing a handstand. A she suspected the foot ninja following her ran straight past her makeshift hiding spot. Once she was sure they were gone she quietly swung back down and continued on to find her quarry. "April, am I on the right track?"
"Oh, um yeah. You're on the right floor now." April told her over the com link. "Uh, carry on down the corridor and take the third corridor to the right."
"Got it," Mai replied, "And the other's?"
"Casey found them a few minutes ago. He's trying to get them down and he'll lead them back out of the building."
"Good. I won't be long." Maid told her as she quickly made her way down the corridor.
"OK. Are you sure you'll be all right on your own?" April asked.
"Yes just be sure you're ready to leave."
"Got it."
Mai stopped in front of an ornate door. Behind the door she could hear muffled whimpering and was sure that this must be where Leonardo was being held. She nearly jumped out of her skin as the alarms suddenly sounded. She rolled her eyes and slipped into an air vent before anyone could catch her. Mai watched as a group of ninja rushed past where she had just been standing and a woman she only recognised from description burst through the door and began angrily shouting in Japanese at her men.
"What happened?" Mai asked April over the com.
"Well when you said it would be harder to get out, you were right" She heard Casey reply to her grunting from some sort of force. Mai could hear the unmistakable sounds of Mikey and Donatello fighting in the background.
"Try to avoid any fights!" Mai ordered, "Take out anyone who gets in your way but do not seek a fight out. Get out of the building as fast as you can. I will get Leo and be out in fifteen minutes tops. Be ready to leave!" She heard him yell a battle cry and frowned. "Why am I even bothering?"
"I ask myself a lot!" April told her.
Mai couldn't suppress a chuckle and made her way through the vents in the general direction of the room she had seen Karai leave from. It didn't take long to find her way to the room's vent opening and when she did she felt her anger flare. She had found Leonardo but he had clearly been tortured. He was shackled to the floor and there were angry burns all over his body and cuts in between those. He had also been blind folded meaning he couldn't even see what was coming. There was a single guard left in the room and her eyes narrowed assessing him as best she could. The man was well built but he was tense and stared at the turtle nervously. She could tell he was just a simple guard and his skill level was probably not overly high. Mai removed the grate as quietly as she could and jumped down into the room. As quick as lightening the guard was unconscious on the floor. Mai ran over to Leonardo who flinched away from her.
"It's okay," she soothed as she gently removed the black blindfold, "It's just me."
"Mai?" Leonardo asked as if unsure if he could trust what he saw. Then tears began to fall, "Oh god, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry!"
"Shh, it's okay. Let's get you out of here." Mai said looking at the shackles. She was pretty sure there wouldn't be enough time for her to pick all of the locks. Raphael might have been able to but her skills were lacking. She looked around the room and saw a katana hung on the wall. Mai turned back to Leo and cupped his cheek, "Stay as still as you can." She told him before grabbing the sword and drawing it. She swung it a few times to assess its feel and how much force would be required. Mai hadn't really trained with Japanese swords and Chinese swords were generally heavier so the sword felt a little clumsy in her hand. She smiled at Leo reassuringly before swinging the sword in a deadly pattern. Leonardo closed his eyes but heard the sword literally sing as she cut through the chains binding him to the floor. When he opened his eyes she had replaced the sword and was pulling his left arm over her shoulders.
"I didn't know you could use a sword." Leo said as she helped him out of the room and they began making their way out of the building.
"I can use many weapons." She replied with a small smirk. "We need to get down to the basement level as quickly as possible. We can get to the van from there without being seen by unwanted eyes." She told him as she approached a doorway.
"And where do you think you are going?!" Mai turned her head to see Karai flanked by at least ten foot soldiers.
"Away from here and you are not going to stop me." Mai answered dangerously.
"Oh really?" Karai spat.
"Mai, the others are back at the van. They're safe!" April called over the com. "You're still in the upper levels though. Do you need help?"
"I'm fine." Mai replied gently helping Leo to the floor and leaning him against a wall. She turned to Karai and her men. "You on the other hand are going to back off if you all know what's good for you."
"Mai. . . please, just go." Leo pleaded.
"Not without you." She stated not taking her eyes off of the foot ninja before her.
"Teach this Chinese peasant a lesson." Karai snapped.
Mai's eyes narrowed and she dodged a few of their blows before downing three in one move the fourth she made sure he wouldn't be able to speak for at least a week. After four more she was left with the most skilled wearing some interesting hats. The first was easy to dodge but her backwards kick only unbalanced him and the second managed to knocker her off her feet. Mai rolled and leapt back to her feet. She ran and dodged a few hits before jumping and wrapping her legs around the neck of one of the ninja. She twisted her body as hard as she could and the ninja was down. She flipped back so that there was some room between her and the remaining ninja. She took a deep breath and drew on her own chi.
Leonardo watched closely as Lin Mai took down her opponents with surprising ease. He blinked as he recognised the utilisation of chi magic. Her chi surrounded her and made her look like blue electricity covered her body like waves. When she attacked using the chi magic the elite fell quickly. Only Karai was left standing.
"No stop!" Leo yelled as Mai went in for the kill. "Don't hurt her!" Lin Mai stopped with centimetres to spare and glanced over her shoulder. Mai ignored Karai's laughter and gave him a quizzical look. "Please."
"After all these years and all I have done and he is still wrapped around my little finger!" Karai smirked in Leo's direction who simply look away. "You truly are pathetic Leonardo!" Mai had heard enough and used an attack that would simply knock out the ninja leader. Mai turned once more and helped Leo to his feet. They stayed quiet as Mai found an elevator and set it to take them down to the basement level where there were likely to be less people. He heard her ask April to make sure the elevator didn't stop for anyone and that they didn't have anything untoward waiting for them in the basement.
"April, I need you to create as much chaos as possible." Mai said through the com as she pulled Leo towards a doorway that led to the sewers. Seconds later the pair could hear explosions and shouting from the upper levels and moments after that she had kicked the door shut behind them and was pulling him towards a manhole. As they got to the bottom of the ladder the cover was removed and Casey was reaching down to help Leo to the top. And then they were speeding away in the battleshell to safety. Leo spent the whole trip home in silence.
"Grandpa Splinter?" Shadow looked up at the old rat.
"Yes child?"
"Is uncle Raphie gonna be okay?" The girl asked stroking her uncle's hand.
"I truly hope so my child." Splinter pulled her closer to embrace her and she cuddled in to his soft warm fur.
"For now we are linked." Bella told him as she walked into the room carrying two cups of tea. She handed one to Splinter and sipped on the other, "I can feel his soul and it grows stronger by the minute." Bella gave Shadow a warm smile before adding, "He'll come back to us sweetie," Bella patted the small child's head and sat down on a nearby chair, "if he doesn't I will personally hunt him down and drag him back." She winked.
"Yay!" Shadow cheered but it turned into a yawn very quickly.
"Rest now my child." Splinter shifted Shadow so that she was more comfortable. "We will need our strength in order to take care of Raphael once he has awakened."
"Okay." She yawned once more and before long was softly snoring into Splinters shoulder.
"I will put her down in one of the other rooms." Splinter told Bella, "I do not want her woken should the others return. Especially if any of my sons are . . . any more of my sons are injured."
"I'll call you should anything change." Bella assured her.
Bella watched him leave with the small child held firmly in his arms and head in the direction of the bedrooms. He must have decided to stay with her for a time as he didn't return right away. Bella soon dozed off because when she awoke there were several people in the room with her. Upon looking up she realised the others had returned and were trying to treat and injured Leonardo without making too much noise. Mikey was sprawled over Raphael crying his eyes out and Donatello was checking Raph's vitals. Splinter was in the doorway looking worried but clearly wishing to stay out of the way of the people taking care of his sons.
"You're back!" She squeaked trying not to speak too loud but also unable to contain her relief, "And you're all alive! Thank Gaia!" It wasn't until that point that she noticed there was something off about how the brothers were reacting around each other. She looked at Leonardo and it was April and Mai who were tending to his wounds where his brothers were not even paying any attention to him at all. She realised that Leo was staring at Raphael with wide eyes and tears fell down his cheeks. She stood up and walked over to Leonardo and placed a soothing hand on his shoulder.
"He's all right, just sleeping it off." She assured him. He looked up at her with wide eyes. "He's okay, I promise." He began to shake and she realised he was sobbing. Bella looked helplessly at Mai and April, the latter of which was glaring at Donatello. It was then she realised there were shackles on his neck and wrists. Bella looked around for a moment and frowned.
"Hmn, we need to get those off." She told him well aware he was in no state to really answer her. Bella muttered a few words and hoped her magic had recovered enough to cast the spell before uttering the power words and the shackles dropped to the floor. "That's better." Bella smiled and gathered the shackles off the floor and moved to get rid of them.
"We need to finish treating your wounds Leo." April told him already dabbing at his arm.
"Let him bleed!" Donatello snapped clenching his fists.
"I beg your pardon." Bella spun around in shock.
"Don't start man." Casey warned the genius.
"Don, please." Mikey said quietly as he wiped away more tears, "Raph's alive. Just drop it."
"No, there was no need for him to be in this position in the first place if it wasn't for. . ." Don's eyes grew wide as the wind was knocked out of him with such force. He doubled over and hugged his belly.
"Now is not the time nor the place." Lin Mai growled angrily, "Either you help me treat your brother's wounds or you leave this room! Am I making myself clear?!"
Donatello finally managed to get his breath back and stood to his full height, a full head taller than Mai. He glared at her breathing heavily whilst he clenched and unclenched his fists. And then he simply stormed out of the room and headed to his bedroom. Moments later a door could be heard slamming.
"What on Earth was that all about?!" Bella demanded looking at the other occupants of the room. "Well?!"
"It's my fault." Leonardo said now staring at the floor, "I'm sorry. It's all my fault." Bella blinked and looked at her friends for an explanation then huffed before approaching Leonardo.
"Leo." She brushed a few tears from his face and he looked up at her, "What is your fault?"
"I can't." He shook his head free of her grasp but her soothing hands were soon holding his face gently.
"Yes you can." She looked at him with worry in her eyes.
"I thought she loved me." Leo replied shaking once more but no tears fell.
"That's enough." April declared. "I am going to finish treating your wounds and you are going to rest Leo. We can talk about this another time. Right now we are all tired and emotional. We all need to rest."
Mikey stood up and walked over to his brother. Leo looked at the youngest of the family with terrified eyes. Mikey for once didn't say anything and simply give his big brother a hug. Leo's eyes grew wide but soon his arms wrapped around his little brother's shell and he buried his head in his little brother's neck.
"Raph won't blame you for this and neither will I bro." He whispered loud enough for only Leonardo to hear him.
"Thank you Mikey." Leo whispered back.
Another chapter for you guys! I hope you like it. If you do please don't forget to leave a comment/review!
