The door slammed open behind Michelangelo as he finished digging through shelves some time later, having added gauze and duct tape to his bag and managing to shove in some water bottles where they would fit. He spun around, slinging the bag over his shoulder, expecting walkers but instead he was faced by none other than Leonardo.

"What was that, Michelangelo?" The eldest turtle closed the door behind him. "You don't go out like that and not tell anyone! You could have gotten hurt, you could have been bitten! We don't know what else is out there!" Despite his obvious frustration, there was concern lacing his words. "And where's April? She could have turned any minute last night, she could have bitten you and then where would you be?"

"Dude, calm down! I brought April to the substation bathroom. She can't hurt anyone there, and she'll be safe! I locked the door behind me, she's not gonna be biting anyone."

Leonardo blinked, raising a finger as his jaw dropped a bit. "You... you brought her back underground?"

Mikey couldn't comprehend the fear and concern in his brother's eyes. "Yeah? What's so wrong about that? Would you rather we just... tow her around or something? Do you think any of us need to look at her like that and be constantly reminded how we couldn't save her? Do we all have to risk getting bit just because we figured it would be a good idea to keep her with us?" His voice was rising. "It killed me to do it, Leo! She's as much of a sister to me as she is to you and Raph! I'm doing what's best for our family. Remember that day you told me to grow up? I'm finally doing it."

"You could've told us, Mikey." Leo crossed his arms, though traces of a gentle look still remained in his eyes. "Did she... you know. Did she turn while you were bringing her out?"

"I dunno, bro. She was totally out of it when I brought her into the bathroom, but when I was locking her in she was gurgling and growling and stuff." He cocked his head, looked right past his brother, and straight through the glass doors. "Hey, Leo? You might wanna turn around..."

"...Yeah, that's what I was coming to warn you about..."

A group of zombies, horrendously disfigured to a degree no walker had been seen at, had congregated outside the door. The most notable, a massive one with one tiny dangling arm and another veiny, calloused arm, was banging on the door with its engorged arm as if trying to break through it. It was accompanied by one whose jaw appeared lengthened and distended, hanging agape and leaking discolored saliva. The third resembled the second, though it appeared more alert, its hot breath fogging up the glass.

Michelangelo stumbled back as the first zombie cracked the glass. "What the heck are those things?!"

It was now that Leonardo seemed panicked. "I'll tell you while we're running. You got everything you came here for?" Mikey nodded. "Good. RUN!"

They bolted towards a door behind the desk, and Leonardo fumbled with the knob as Michelangelo hurriedly picked up a water bottle that had fallen from his bag, flinching as he heard the glass crack once more. "Leo, c'mon! They're gonna get through!"

"I'm working on it!" With a click, the door opened, and it was a mad dash for the two to get through, and lock it behind them as the lead zombie finally broke a hole through the glass. They found themselves outside again, and they took off running.

Between breaths, Leonardo began to explain the massive undead beings to his younger brother. "Those guys popped up after you left," he started. "The four of us managed to drive 'em out, but they're... I don't even know! The big one's incredibly strong, and he and the other two... Oh, Mikey... I dunno how to say it, but you're not going to like this..."

"What happened...?"


The two brothers ran for what seemed like forever, skidding around corners and dodging walkers. It was after a while that they stopped at a familiar place, making Michelangelo's eyes widen. "...Leo, I dunno if you know, but this is Dexter Spackman's lab. What're we doing here?"

Leonardo looked around, before sighing and placing his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Mikey, the alleys aren't safe anymore. After those zombies attacked and before I came out here looking for you, well... It turns out we're not the only survivors. We met Fishface again, and he offered a temporary truce. Said Dogpound was too busy trying to choke down his pride, otherwise he'd have been there too. It was... quite the discussion. But it was for the best. This is our base, for now."

"Okay, that I can handle, but what happened that I'm not gonna like, Leo?"

The oldest turtle closed his eyes shut for a moment, taking a deep breath before speaking. "When they attacked us, we..." Michelangelo noticed his brother was looking away, his eyes shiny and his nostrils flared slightly. This was definitely a sight he didn't see often, and so he braced himself for it. "We lost Splinter, Mikey. Raph's badly injured, he got too close to the big one and i-it threw him into the wall."

Michelangelo was silent.

He was silent for what felt like forever.

He uttered one small word before collapsing into his brother's chest, wrapping his arms around Leo's neck for leverage. After April, this was too much.

"...No."