So, here it is, the next instalment of the Balance of Brothers. Firstly, thank you so much for the reviews on the last chapter, it always makes me so excited when I see I have a new review. As it's been such a long time since my last update, I've included a little recap to hopefully get you back into the story. My only excuses for the huge no-update gap is that I've started a new job (which has been mental busy) and I haven't really known how to advance the story, until this morning that is. I really hope that you all like it, and as always, please feel free to leave a review, I really value them. Anyway, on with the show!

Everdream 24

Disclaimer: Thank you Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird for enriching our lives with their creation, but damn you for owning them instead of me.

Previously, in the Balance of Brothers:

"My name is Thomas" the blonde ninja said. This is Jaron, my second in command" He indicated to a much older, gruff looking man standing perfectly still and straight at Thomas' side. "We work…worked for the Shredder and Mistress Karai…. We will tell you all we know." Thomas said. As I already said, I joined the foot clan out of desperation, but soon discovered it was not all it was cracked up to be.

"A few weeks ago, Shredder ordered us to track you all down, to capture you one by one, starting with Leonardo. We were too late for him, as Karai and her team got to him first. They knew that after his capture, it was unlikely that any of you would be out by yourselves- you'd be too vulnerable- so they sent out teams like ours to search for you, to watch and to wait for one of you to become separated, at which point we were to call in the big guns.

"This is a map of Shredder's building" Thomas spread the blueprints out across the table, "This is where your brother is being held. It is heavily guarded, not just by foot ninja, but by the elite as well. It is often frequented by Karai, and sometimes the Shredder himself. There are cameras everywhere and a fingerprint security system that will set off alarms throughout the building if you attempt to make an unauthorised access through the door." He glanced around the faces surrounding him, which bore a mixture of expressions; determined, dejected, fearful, thoughtful, worried, furious and eerily calm. "We wish you luck turtles, Splinter and friends." And with that they turned and left the lair, on the way to making new lives for themselves whilst the turtles were still trying to piece theirs back together.

Somewhere in New York

He had given Karai his word, but to shell with honour where she was concerned. Once upon a time he had believed there was good in her, buried deep within, but now he knew there was only evil in her heart. She was her father's daughter. He wanted to be free, to see his family. Shell, he even missed arguing with Raphael. When they came for him, and he was sure they would, he would be ready. He would lead them to freedom, just like he should.


Chapter 9: Michelangelo's New Perspective

The Lair

Raphael's gaze bore into the blueprints spread out in front of him on the old rickety wooden table, pinned down at each corner with whatever items they'd first managed to grab: an obscenely old and stained plate; one of Raph's dumbbells; one of Mikey's Justice Force action figures; and the TV remote control. A kaleidoscope of colours danced across his vision as he closed his tired eyes and rubbed them with the palms of his hands. He'd been staring at the map they had obtained of Shredder's tower for hours and he still wasn't any closer to coming up with some semblance of a plan. Or at least it felt like it had been hours. The lair was unnervingly silent apart from the intrusive 'tick-tock' of the wall clock, which seemed to hammer into his skull and reverberate around the inside. It felt like time itself was taunting him, passing all too slowly and too quickly simultaneously. It really did seem like mission impossible, and whichever way he theorised their plan of attack, it ended badly…really badly, for all of them.

First off they had to get into Saki towers without being detected, because if they were, Shredder or Karai would surely kill Leonardo before they even got close to his cell, and their rescue mission would become one of recovery, and Raph would never let that come to pass. If they did manage to get into the building undetected, they would then need to navigate their way through the endless corridors, twists and turns of the maze that was Shredder's lair, and all this without radio contact with April, Casey or Splinter on the outside, for fear of being discovered. Just accomplishing that much would take all of their skill and stealth training, and then they had to tackle the herculean task of rescuing Leo from his holding cell. Fingerprint scanners, elite ninja, Shredder, Karai…so many obstacles to get past, and to do it without being detected by anyone…? That wasn't even including Bishop, and whatever his involvement was in this. Raph didn't know how Bishop felt concerning Shredder and the Foot, but his animosity towards the turtles had been made perfectly clear on several occasions.

Raphael had considered the possibility that it might not matter so much if they were seen after they had rescued Leo, but then quickly scrapped this idea. They would be trapped in the belly of Saki towers by that point, facing overwhelming odds, enemies that outmatched them both in skill and numbers, and they'd be supporting their brother as well, who would more than likely be unable to walk on his own, let alone fight. Even Raphael, the infamously hot headed, battle born, fight-thirsty member of the family knew that running would be their only option. He hadn't even begun to think about escape plans yet.

Thomas had said that their best bet was to attempt to rescue Leo whilst he was being transferred for another 'test'. Raph felt the anger boiling in his blood at such a description of the torture that was undoubtedly being inflicted upon his elder brother. That was no test; they didn't want to find anything out for the advancement of anyone or anything. It was sick, purely for their twisted entertainment and thirst for revenge against the turtles. Pushing aside the rage and indignation that threatened to cloud his judgement, he returned to his previous train of thought. If Leo was always escorted by a Foot elite or Karai or Shredder themselves, it would be extremely dangerous to attempt to rescue him whilst they were present. Not to mention the fact that they didn't know when these 'tests'- Raph wrinkled his beak at the thought of the word- were scheduled for, or even where Leo's cell or 'test' room was.

On top of all this was Raphael's gut feeling. Everything about this situation screamed of a trap. It had all seemed far too easy up to this point; the Foot ninja helping them out and then producing these blueprints that they happened to have obtained before they managed to escape and just coincidentally had on them. They had been fools to let them into the lair, to give them knowledge of the location of their home. Then again, he supposed, if they had run back to Shredder and informed him of their base, the lair would most likely not be standing anymore and he probably wouldn't be alive to contemplate these thoughts right now. If they somehow managed to infiltrate the tower and get to Leo's cell and free him without being detected, they could spring a trap that could put them all in mortal danger. On the other hand, if they didn't at least try, they would lose their brother forever and Shredder would have won. Raphael's stomach turned at the thought that Leo might perish all alone at Shredder's hands, believing that his brothers had forsaken him. Either way it went, Raphael was scared. Either way, he could lose part, or all of his family in this mission, and he knew that if the cost of rescuing Leo was his younger siblings, the leader would never forgive himself, or Raph.

He sighed deeply, feeling the fear, trepidation and uncertainty twisting inside him, causing a wave of nausea to sweep over him, bile rising in his throat. He quickly swallowed the feelings and sickness down and tried his best to quell them. If the tables were turned and their places reversed, Leo would've come up with a plan by now, and one that didn't involve so much danger. Leo didn't feel like this before a mission… or did he? Maybe this is how he always felt, but he'd just grown too good at concealing it. Or perhaps Raph never really looked. Had he ever even asked Leo how he was, or had he always been quick to berate him for his overprotective tendencies? Raph was beginning to understand them now; that deep seated terror that he could be responsible for injuries or worse being inflicted upon any of his family, and the guilt he knew he would carry afterwards. All because they had followed his lead. It made him want to keep his brothers forever hidden underground, away from the dangers of the human dominated top-side world. He knew, though, that could never be an option. His brothers would never agree to that and there was absolutely no way that Raph would be able to rescue Leo on his lonesome.

He closed his eyes again, and tilted his head back, breathing in deeply through his nose, and releasing it slowly through his mouth. It was a common breathing relaxation technique, and one that they frequently used when calming their minds during Splinter's meditation sessions.

"Oh Leo, I wish you were here. How do I get through this? How do I protect everyone? Donnie…Mike…how do I protect them from the danger I know dis mission is just bound ta' bring?" He asked the ceiling, voicing his fears out loud, though his voice was quiet, heavy with the burden of his responsibility.

"You don't"

He'd been so deep in thought that the voice made him jump, whirling round to see an approaching Michelangelo, who had apparently overheard his lamenting. Mikey's face was full of determination and courage, his eyes shining brightly. Once he reached Raphael, he placed a comforting three fingered green hand on his shoulder, and Raph felt himself relax slightly. He glanced down at the floor, and then raised his gaze so he locked eyes with his baby brother, fighting hard to conceal the emotions that were in danger of surfacing and presenting themselves on his features.

"But Mikey I-" he began, but was interrupted before he could finish.

"Raph, we're not kids anymore. Donnie and I, we're not helpless, we're fully trained ninjas. Yes, each of us has different skill sets, but we're all very capable of taking care of ourselves in dangerous situations. In fact, we're all very capable of watching out for each other, it doesn't have to be one person's responsibility. We're more than just a family Raph, we're a team, and it's about time we started acting like it, not just one responsible leader and three naïve followers who think themselves invincible. I wish it hadn't taken this series of events to make me realise it, but perhaps it's time we all matured a bit, especially me. When we're all together, I truly believe we can accomplish anything, face any enemy and come out victorious, because we'd have harmony, we'd have a team, we'd have balance." Mikey's blue eyes shone with hope and spirit, imploring Raph to take heart, not to concede so easily. Raph's fears, however, were not so easily allayed.

"Mikey, I don't know what we're going to face inside that building. I don't know what's going to happen. What if you get hurt? What if I…what if I lose you? Or Don? Or Leo?" He queried.

Mikey removed his hand from Raphael's shoulder, and took a step backwards, folding his arms over his chest in a very Leo-like gesture, contemplating the questions put to him for a few moments.

"We all know what we're heading into here. We all know what the price could be, the toll it might take on us. Yet we're going to go all the same. I'm not going to say that I'm not scared Raph, because I am. I'm scared of what we'll face, I'm scared of the pain from the injuries we may get. But most of all, Raph, I'm scared of seeing what they've done to Leo. He could be scarred for life, he could be prevented from fighting or going on patrol with us ever again. He could be fighting for his life in that cell. So as long as there is breath in my body and I have the capability to fight, I will do so, because I know that he would do the same for any one of us." He paused for a brief moment, and a small smile graced his otherwise serious expression "besides, we can't let ol' tin can Shred-head have the last laugh now can we?"

Raph was staring at Mikey, his mouth slightly agape. When he finally found his voice, there was only one question he had left to ask.

"Mikey…when did you get so wise?"

The youngest turtle gave a non-committal shrug and scuffed his feet on the ground shyly as he answered.

"From listening to Leo I guess. I may be the jokester and source of all funniness in this family, but I do listen…sometimes. God knows he's lectured us enough times about how 'we're a family unit' and we need to 'work together as a team', guess some of it actually sunk in, whether I wanted it to or not."

Raph was astounded. He'd never expected to ever hear such seriousness from his prankster of a baby brother, and he was saddened that the life they lead had caused Mikey to grow up so fast in such a short period of time. Maybe when all this was done, if they survived through the next few days, things would return to normal. Deep down though, he knew that this was perhaps a forlorn hope, and that their lives, attitudes and viewpoints were irreparably changed forever. Without warning, Raph found himself wrapping Mikey in an embrace, with uncharacteristic warmth and intensity. He felt Mikey wrapping his arms round his shell, returning the hug with gusto and squeezing Raph tightly to show his support and comfort. Raph could feel excess moisture in his eyes, tears that increasingly threatened to fall with every passing moment.

"Oh Mikey" he whispered "don't ever grow up, ya hear?"

Mikey chuckled in response, treasuring the intimate moment he got to spend with his normally so distant brother "I'll try my best bro, though you might come to regret that request in the not too distant future".

"I'll take my chances" Raph replied, breaking free from the embrace and taking a step backwards. He glanced ruefully back towards the blueprints "I still don' know how we're gunna get to Leo though" he sighed, and was taken aback when Mikey leapt forwards as if for another hug, only this time he wrapped his arms round Raphs midriff and started repeatedly heaving upwards, straining as he did so.

"Urghhh…Raph what do you eat, pure protein?! You're too damn heavy" he complained

"What exactly is that supposed ta mean, huh? What exactly are you tryin' ta do that I'm too heavy for?" Raph queried, growing ever more irate as Mikey's arms repeatedly squeezed his plastron and moved the contents of his stomach on an increasingly upwards trajectory.

"Ah to shell with this" Mikey suddenly exclaimed, and released his grip on the red banded turtle, causing him to stumble slightly. Michelangelo dropped into a crouch with one leg extended, and spun in a quick circle, taking out Raphael's legs from underneath him. Raph felt the sudden loss of solid ground beneath his feet and was airborne for a few seconds before he came crashing down to Earth again, his shell taking the brunt of the impact.

"Mikey, what the shell?!" he shouted, moving to stand up and wondering just what had come over the youngster to make him attack like that.

Mikey put a heavy foot upon Raphael's plastron. "No Raph, stay there. Just trust me please." Mikey implored, and hurried over the table, snatching the map up in his hand whilst all the make-shift paperweights stayed in place without so much as a wobble.

"I saw this on a film I watched a few months ago." He explained, scurrying back over to where Raph lay on his shell "I was trying to turn you upside down like the big brother does in the film, but you were too damn heavy, so this will have to do." He held up the blueprints in front of Raph, and cleared his throat dramatically "ehem. Sometimes, Raphael you have to shake things up and look at them from another angle".

"Mike, what are ya talking about? You know you're holding those blueprints upside down right?... Wait...Upside…" Raph tilted his head slightly, studying the maps with intense focus and concentration, before a huge grin spread across his face and he felt his heart accelerate in his chest, joy and hope blooming from somewhere deep within him. He sprang to his feet, causing Mikey to take a step backwards in surprise. Raph grasped Mikey by both shoulders and gave him an affectionate gentle shake. "Mikey! You're a genius, knucklehead!" He exclaimed loudly, and watched in amusement as Mikey's facial expression became a mixture of confusion and pride.

"Isn't that an oxymoron?" Donatello asked as he entered the room. His arm was out of the sling now, as he wouldn't have been able to fight with it on, but purple and black bruises still mottled his skin where he had been injured, and Raph could tell from the way he held it that it was causing him some discomfort, no matter how much of a brave face Don put on. He had refused to take any painkillers of course, not wanting to risk ingesting anything that might slow down his reactions or dull his senses. Now as he entered the room, Donatello was placing his Bo staff in its place on his shell with his good arm, and had come to see what all the shouting was about.

The orange banded turtle turned round in indignation and stuck out his tongue at his purple banded brother. "You're an oxymoron!" he shot back, blissfully unaware of the irony.

"aaaannnddd Mikey's back to being Mikey again" Raph said, still unable to wipe the smile from his face. It was good to see his little brother back to his usual temperament.

"So….why is Mikey a genius?" Donnie asked with trepidation. Michelangelo's ideas were not renowned for being the best or most thought through, and Donnie was looking at Raph like he was delusional as a result of fatigue.

"He showed me a whole new way ta look at the situation, a whole new perspective. From on the floor and upside-down ta be specific. Come here I'll show ya" He said, taking the blueprints back from Mikey's hands and flattening it out once more on the table, replacing the weights on the corners as he did. "Instead of entering here and having to make our way down the entire tower undetected, we'll enter here" he gestured to the bottom of the map.

"Underground…? Dude, I hate to break it to you, but I'm not so good at the whole 'digging with my bare hands' thing. Maybe we could ask Leatherhead?" Mikey interjected.

"No not underground Mikey, well, not exactly. We'll enter through-" Raph started to reply with as much patience as he could muster. He was overlapped my Donnie, who's face lit up as the realisation of Raphael's plan dawned upon him.

"…through the sewers" Donnie stated. He looked up at Raph. "Bro, that's brilliant."

"They'll never expect us ta enter that way and we'll be closer to Leo than any other route in, which means we should be able ta get ta him much faster, so we'll have da upper hand. After all, we do have da home advantage…" Raph concluded, with the familiar glint of blood lust glimmering in his eyes. "What else, Mikey was right. We do all have different skill sets, and I think this is da perfect opportunity to show Shred-head exactly what we can do. Wit' all of us working together, he can't hope to stop us. Tonight we show Oroko Saki, Karai and all them Foot ninjas that if you mess wit' one of us, you mess wit' all of us. Tonight, we get our brother back. Tonight, we restore balance to our family, our home, and our team." Raph finished, his voice ringing loud and clear through the lair, whilst the other two brothers shouted their agreement and support.

April and Casey, who had joined the group of turtles during Raphael's speech, cheered and shouted whilst Splinter and Leatherhead stood silent, though both were wearing looks of determination and readiness for battle. Whatever came their way that night, they would tackle it as a team, as a family, and they were sure to come out on top. Or so Raph was trying to convince himself. He only hoped they wouldn't be too late, and that their rescue efforts wouldn't be in vain. He knew it would shatter his family, which had already spent far too many occasions since this whole ordeal began, teetering on the precipice of destruction.


Saki Towers Basement (AKA The Shredders Lair)

A cold shiver ran up the foot ninja's spine, and he felt goosebumps rise on his skin underneath his black garb. He rubbed his arms to try to warm up, and turned to the other foot ninja that was standing guard outside the creatures cell. Momentarily, he wondered who was under the black and red mask they were all forced to wear when on duty, but quickly dismissed the thought. It's not like they needed to know each other, or would ever become friends. You learned not to make friends after a while in master Shredders service, the mortality rate was too high, so making friends lost its appeal.

"Jeez it's freezing down here, don't ya think?" He said to the other foot ninja, who ignored him and remained stoically still. "Ah I see, you must be a newbie. You're either too afraid of Master Shredder to speak with me, or you're too concerned with trying to suck up to him by being 'the perfect ninja'. Well even perfect ninjas get cold, you know." Once more the other ninja guard gave no response. "Dunno what I did to deserve this, I really don't" he muttered to himself. "Well, that was thrilling. Thanks for that, it really livened my day right up" the first ninja said, his voice dripping in sarcasm. After a few minutes silence, he spoke once again "You know, I could really use a cigarette, so how about you stay here and keep the prisoner guarded whilst I go out for a smoke? If you agree to these terms and to take full responsibility should anything go wrong, say nothing."

Silence.

"Excellent, see you in a bit." He said chirpily, striding off in search of the exit, whistling as he went.

So the young silent ninja stood guard and waited…and waited…and waited, until curiosity got the better of him. He'd never seen a mutant before and now he was the only one down here. He had access to the cell, because he was the new guard on rotation who had to bring the prisoner his food. If you could call it food.

'Master Shredder said he was an enemy though, so he's lucky he gets anything at all.'He thought to himself.

No matter how hard he tried though, his eyes kept straying to the thick cell door, and his imagination was running rampant thinking about what kind of creature might lay beyond it. Reaching a decision, he went and grabbed the food tray, which sported a plate of mouldy and half eaten food items and a glass of dirty water, and made his way back towards the cell. His heart rate increased the closer he got, and his fear made him doubt his decision. What if the creature was dangerous? What if it got loose and it would all be his fault? The penalty for such a mistake would surely be high.

Even as he thought these questions, he found he was removing his glove and placing his finger on the touch pad. It scanned and accepted him, and he opened the door and forged ahead into the dark gloom of the holding cell, the door slamming shut behind him. His eyes adjusted slowly, and when he could see better, he let out an astonished gasp, all the blood draining from his face, and dropped the tray on the floor with a clatter. They had been trained not to speak unless directly spoken to, but the young ninja could not help the stuttered question that escaped from his mouth.

"W..what are you?!"

"I'm a mutant turtle. I always thought that was pretty obvious." Came a weak voice from the gloom.

"You…you…you talk?" the foot ninja asked

"Well yeah. I thought you knew that since you asked me a question. Didn't they tell you anything about me?"

"No. Just that you were evil and our enemy" the ninja replied.

"Ha, that's rich coming from Shredder" the voice said, but there was no hint of mirth.

"You should not disrespect my master." The young ninja retaliated, his voice a nervous quiver.

"You're master is a sadistic pathological liar. He's evil, he's a scourge on this city, on this world. Just look what he's done to me! Think about what he does to you and your kind, your friends!" the voice spat, laced with venom and not attempting to try to hide the rage inside.

There was the distinctive clatter of chains as the creature tried to break free, and the foot ninja found himself quickly backing up, eager to get out. He placed his finger once again on the touch pad to release the door mechanism, and turned to regard the creature again, backing slowly out of the cell as the sound of chains and the screams of the creature did not abate. In that moment, he felt fear and regret like he never had before, they mixed in equal measure within him. Then all he knew was black oblivion.