Chpt. 10 The Silver Foot

"Leo, slow down will ya?" I shout from the back of our group. Damn Leo, making us train when we could be finding Liz. It was his fault she got hurt, his fault she lost her memory of us, and was stolen in the dead-of night. And yet he acts as if he doesn't care, avoiding anything that has to do with Liz. I hope he's doing that because he feels guilty, and not out of stubbornness thinking that he's right.

"No. We got another 30 minutes to go, now keep up." Leo shouts from the head of the group. I follow my brothers as we leap to the next roof, keeping my head up. In the split second we were in mid air, I caught a glimpse of Donnie looking down. Something that caught his attention.

"Hey Leo! Come back." Don shouts in a low whisper, doing a big U-turn. I had to skid to keep from falling into Mikey, who still managed to knock into me. Anger bubbles in me as I push off Mikey, getting ready to punch him when Leo whispers in shock.

"No way." I look up, looking at my Fearless Leader's shocked face. I barked a laugh, walking over to see what's got him so paralysed. Wish I didn't.

I look over the edge of the building were on, and see the Shredder. He wasn't wearing his body armor, just a white Kimono with a foot symbol on his left shoulder. And he wasn't alone. In front of him, a foot ninja bowed.

"Rise, my Light Ninja." Shredder's deep voice states. A shiver rolls down my spine and I share a glance with Don. What the shell is going on here?

The foot ninja was wearing silver that seemed to glimmer in the light, surely making her presence obvious. But it didn't. She blended in with the surroundings, but instead of hiding in the shadows, she hid in the light. And I know it's a she because of the large chest, thin waist, and wide hips. I feel a memory tugging at the back of my brain, but I push it back, examining this "Light Ninja" more.

On her back was a single Katana, the red handle shimmering, but not sticking out like a neon sign. Instead, the single katana made her appearance complete. A true ninja. She is one with Light and Dark.

"I smell trouble." Mikey states. You can say that again little bro.

"Quiet."

"My Light Ninja. You have served me well. As you do not remember because of your amnesia, you came to me a year ago, seeking ability to fight. You rose in my ranks quickly, becoming Third Commander in little less than 8 months."

"8 months… Holy shell! If she could rise to Shredder's Elite guard in 8 months, imagine how good she must be." Donnie mentions. Shredder's Elite guard is Third commanding? So who's Second and First commanding? Those element Freaks? Karai?

"I knew I smelled trouble. She must be as good as Shredder. Yikes!" Mikey swallows thickly, feigning scared. Leo rolls his eyes, and squints at the silver foot.

"Something isn't right. He said she has amnesia. From what? And if she's as good as he said she is, why didn't he help her get her memory back, instead of training her all over again?" I blink. Leo's right.

"I am sorry for making you train with the Foot soldiers all over again, but it has made you better. Which leads us to why I brought you here. My Light Ninja, you are now Third Ranking again."

"Thank you Master." A strong, female voice answers. That's odd, she sounds familiar. Then again, we've been fight Shredder since we were what, 13? We gotta learn some voices don't we?

"You're welcome. And now, I must leave to get something important. I will be back in 10 minutes, do not leave here." Shredder turns, leaving the alleyway. The foot stays still for another minute, and then she sighs deeply. She leans against the wall behind her, resting her head on it.

"Stupid mask." My brothers and I watch as she pulling the mask over her head, showing pale skin, brunette hair that reaches her chin, naturally red lips, thin cheeks, green eyes. A scar on her left eye.

"Liz!" Leo whispers a bit loudly. Liz looks up, suddenly standing straight, in a defensive position.

"Way to go Leo. Ya blew our cover." I whisper at him harshly. Leo turns to me, glaring. I almost flinch.

"Not now Raph. Look, we found Liz, and your eyes are on me."

"Who are you?" We all look over the edge, catching Liz's eyes. They widen slightly, and she blinks. "Okay… Whatever you are, get down here. Or I'll come up. Either way, we'll be meeting."

"We no speak English." Mikey shouts in a fake, heavy Japanese accent. And, let's just say he got 3 whacks in the head. I did one of them.

"Koko de oriru." Liz shouts up in Japanese. I look at Leo, silently asking what she said.

"She said 'Get down here'."

"Well, then let's obey her wishes." Mikey laughs, jumping over the edge.

"Mikey, no!" Donnie goes next, after our suicidal brother. Leo and I follow. I jump from balcony to the next, slowing my fall. When I finally reached the bottom, Liz had her hand on her Katana, and and Donnie was holding Mikey back.

"Nanidesu anata wa?" She asked us in disbelief, looking at all of us. I felt smug that her eyes lingered on me a moment longer than my brothers. Leo ruined it by speaking, making her eyes snap to him.

"We actually speak English. Mikey was joking. And we're 4 teenage mutant ninja turtles, to answer your question." Her eyes widened more, and her Katana sings as she pulls it from its sheath. Wait a second…

"You hate swords." I state. She looks at me, raising an eyebrow.

"And, pray tell, how did you come to that conclusion?" She asked, swinging her weapon in a small circle. "My Master said it was the first weapon I picked up when I went to him."

"Before ya got amnesia 3 months ago, ya knew us. Leo kinda... kicked ya out of our house 2 months before that. We've been tryin' ta-" I stop when Liz looks at me sharply, swinging her sword into the Earth. A crack resounds around the alley, a hole in the concrete now. How many times was that thing sharpened?

"3 months ago?" She growls angrily, glaring murderously at me. "3 months ago I was on a mission. Someone snuck up on me and sliced my back. The police found me out cold, in a pool of my blood, barely alive. I was convicted of being SS, and was put in prison for killings I don't remember doing. Hun came and got me out before a proper judgment was placed."

"So it was Hun who made that huge hole in the wall?" Mikey asked. Liz nods.

"I'm still thanking him for doing that. Now, explain to me, how was I living with you 4, when I was working for The Shredder?"

"Ya weren't workin' for the Shredder. Ever. Ya came from Oregon after yer family died in a homicidal train crash. It took ya 3 years ta get here. Ya became SS, puttin' yer name after a girl whose family helped ya. Susan. When ya got here, ya put it upon yerself to help the weak, killin' the criminals. After 3 months, I ran into ya stoppin' a robbery. I brought ya home, and Donnie here helped the bullet that was lodged into you right forearm. That's how ya got the scar there," Liz looks at her covered arm, rubbing a spot. She looks back up, glaring at me.

"How dare you-"

"Ya lived with us for a month before Leo here kicked ya out. Don, Mikey, and I spent the next 3 months tryin' ta find ya. Then yer found by the police. The long scar on yer back, a foot ninja gave to ya, or so we think. We think you had been helpin' us silently by gettin' rid of as many foot as ya can, and it nearly cost ya yer life. We had made a plan ta get ya out of prison, but then… yer gone."

The atmosphere was tense as Liz looked ready to attack us and believe me at the same time. Instead, she swallowed thickly, and turned to Don.

"You're Donatello, or Donnie?" She asked him. He smiles brightly, nodding. Liz pulls her sword out of the ground, and points it at Mikey. She wasn't making friendly, she was trying to figure out who's who. So she could do something. But what?

"Michel… Angelo? Or Mikey?" Mikey nods once, twitching where he stood. Liz turns to Leo, and smiles.

"That would make you Leonardo. Or Leo, as your brothers call you." Leo nods, crouching into a stiff stance. Liz faces me, and starts waving her sword around.

"A red bandana. Dark green skin. If I have my history correct." She grabs the hilt of her sword, extending her arm out all the way. The tip of her blade lay an inch from my chest. "Each of you were named after a famous Renaissance artist. Michelangelo, Donatello, Leonardo, which means your Raphael. Am I correct?" I look up, nodding. "Well Karai's lessons don't go in vain I guess."

"Will you give us another-" Liz cuts Leo off, looking over my shoulder.

"No. But, I will give you this. Master Shredder. You're back." I couldn't turn around fast enough. Shredder stood 3 meters behind me, block the alley exit from us. He had a speculative look in his eyes.

"Yes, Liz. What have you gotten so far?"

"Their names. And the history of how I got here." She answers, sheathing her sword again, dropping to her knees. I turn my body so I can look at both of them.

"Is it the same as mine?" He asked. Liz looks up at me, staring at me.

"No."

"Why is your mask off?"

"I was taking a breather. I didn't have time to put it back on." Shredder hums, and takes a step back.

"Do you think that you can take them?" Shredder asked. I blink. Take them. As in fight us?

"What do you want me to bring back Master?" No, not fight us, kill us. I gulp, sharing a look with my brothers. We need to get out of here, but with Liz back on our side. How?

"Their masks, with their blood on it." Aw shell. We're gonna get boxed in. How are we going to convince her, when she wants our blood?

Liz stands up straight, bowing to Shredder. "Yes Master. I will not fail you."

"Gulp." Mikey whispers. Shredder's laugh comes as he leaves, and Liz looks up.

"Okay, no more play time." I watch as her stance immediately changes, and her sword is singing with lightning speed. She turns to Leo, and he pulls his weapons out, getting into a balanced position.

"Out of all the times I don't want to do this... I don't want to fight you Liz. Please don't make me." Leo murmurs, circling with Liz.

"Should we help?" Don asked. I shrug, watching as Liz gets a cocky air.

"You don't have to fight me Leeeo." She drawls his name out, and evil smile appearing. "Just let me kill you, and you won't have too."

"I will never give up a fight." He hisses, taking a step closer. Liz mimics him, stepping closer.

"Pity." She lunges, and I couldn't move fast enough to stop the collision.

"No!" I said I couldn't, but that doesn't mean someone else can't. Mikey jumps in front of Leo, using his Nut-chucks to stop Liz's blow. I see his body weight down from Liz's force, for only a second.

"No one will hurt my family. Not while I can help it." Mikey slowly lifts his body, the katana that's mere centimeters from his head becomes an inch. Which leads to two. Liz growls, and swings her leg sideways, into Mikey's side.

I hear a crack, and Mikey is sent flying with the dirty trick. Liz lands on both legs, not a single thing on her hurt. Which means it's Mikey who cracked something.

"Mikey!" Two different voices shout out. Don runs to Mikey, checking his body. Leo lunges at Liz, and things become a blur. It wasn't my blood pounding in my head, it was how fast Liz and Leo moved. My ninja sight couldn't even tell what was going on. All I saw was flashes of green and silver, all I heard was the constant clashing and singing of metal. And voices.

"You're good. It's sad I have to kill you. Wasting so much skill." Another clash, and they freeze. Neither looked hurt, but Leo looked slightly out of breath.

"I would say thank you, but I doubt that was a compliment." And they're moving again.

"Take it however you like. In the end it won't matter to me." She cackled cruelly, and a shiver goes down my spine.

"Raph." Don whispers. I tear my eyes from my brother and the girl I like, to Don. He was cradling Mikey's head, making sure air was getting into his system. Something tells me that crack I heard was a rib. Or two. Liz has gotten a lot better at fighting, and I don't think that's a good thing.

"What? Do ya need help?" I ask, taking a step towards him. He waves me off, making me pause.

"No. I have a plan. I need you to do something that will make her remember us. Whatever you can think of. Just do it. Mikey's out, and Leo might not last long enough for me to pitch in and fight. You'll have to something that doesn't involve fighting for once." My jaw drops, and I look at the blurs. They're slowing down, and they almost look closer together.

"Okay. I'll try not to fight. Just this once."

Leo and Liz stop suddenly. Leo has his knees bent so that they're holding his and extra weight. His arms are up, his twin katana forming an X to stop Liz's blow. Speaking of Liz.

Somewhere during the fight, Leo cut a bit of her shirt off. Just a bit in the shoulder, and blood was slowing seeping through the gap. I smile at that. So we can hurt her. Glad Shredder didn't make her a robot. Liz was curved inwards, her back curved out like a stretching cat. Her arms were holding the handle of her sword, pressing downwards.

"Give up. In the end, I'll beat you." Liz grits through her teeth. Leo lifts his swords up a bit, giving his head more space to move.

"Not while blood moves through these veins." He growls, pushing up. Liz glares, her left arm moving into a more comfortable place on her sword. It almost looked like she was going to split the sword in half with how she was grasping it. Wait a second… She couldn't.

"Then I'll stop your blood." Liz's left arm lifts, and her katana becomes twins.

"Leo, move back!" I shout, rushing forwards. Liz's arm flies in a downwards motion, catching Leo's shoulder deeply. He jerks back as if he had been burned, the sword slipping off his chest in a light scratch. He falls back and rolls over to Donnie, giving me room to knock out Liz's right hand katana. Liz moves sideways, tripping because of my blow. But she makes my push her momentum, swinging her arm around.

I moved just fast enough to grab her wrist, not allowing her to cut me. At least, not too deeply. Her sword still goes down even though I caught her wrist, slightly cutting the side of my arm. I hiss at the pain, and push Liz against the wall. She gasps as her back slams into the wall, the movement making her drop her last weapon.

I lift her higher than me, spreading her legs so I can get between them. Just as a precaution. I feel her legs hook around me, trying to push me off. Ah, so she would have kicked me off if I didn't do that. Smart Raph.

"What are you doing you overgrown reptile?" She hisses at me. I smirk, catching her other wrist as she tries to punch me. I bring my body closer to hers, lifting her arms straight up. She freezes, her legs squeezing my shell. Her breath stops as her eyes narrowed.

"That scar of yers looks pretty hot. I told ya that 2 days after we met, when ya finally decided to wake up." I say cheeky. She puffs, twisting her head sideways, hiding the left side of her face.

"2 days before Leo kicked ya out, ya did the same move. We were even in this position. 'Cept it was on a couch. Ya turned yer head to the left ta hide it for some reason."

"What did you do after I did that?" She asked. I'm getting to her. Yes! I smirk, bringing my head to her neck. I breath on what skin was bare, and Liz shivers.

"I nibbled. Ya gasped. I found one of yer sensitive spots that day. But its covered by those damn foot clothes." Liz's head whips around, and she tries to kick me off again. Oops, said the wrong thing.

"I am your enemy." She hisses.

"Yer the girl I like." She straightens up, looking away.

"Even if you could get me to remember anything about my past, what good would it do?" She challenges, facing me again.

"Raph, hurry." Don tells me. Liz's eyes flicker over my shoulder, and her eyes soften a bit. She looks at me again, and frowns deeply. I take a gamble, twining our fingers together. She squeezes half-heartedly, and she sighs.

"It would do this much good." With that lingering sentence, and before I chicken out, I lean forwards, pressing our lips together.

Last time we did this, it was so that I didn't drink another beer. And that kiss was filled with passion, nothing pure, just want. I don't think I was thinking, and Liz did it to distract me. But this time, I was conscious, I had a reason to kiss her. To convey what I don't know how to say, to bring Liz back to the light, to make her understand that there is always a way.

Liz's body stiffens, her hands becoming tight on mine. Her legs squeeze impossibly tight, her back stiffening so that it's pen straight. There's a moment of silence, and then Liz moves. She relaxes her spine, pressing her chest and stomach against me more tightly. Her hands loosen, and her lips move. We both sigh in relief, smiling.

"Raph!" Leo shouts, making me pull back. I look at Liz, releasing her hands. They slide down the wall slowly. I feel her legs unhook themselves, and she's on her feet again.

"Thank you, Raph." She whispers, pushing past me. Wait, What? I turn around, watching her pick up her katanas. She puts them back together and puts them in the sheath.

"What do ya mean "Thank you"?" I ask her when she faces me. She looks me in the eyes, then at my brothers.

"I don't remember everything, but it's enough to not want to finish what I started. And, I told you even if I remembered something, it wouldn't do any good. I still have to go back to Shredder, because he'll start searching if I don't appear in an hour. When he finds me, he won't be too supportive. If I go back to him without your masks and blood, I'll be punished for failing him. If I go with your masks and blood, he'll probably won't let me go. We can't win." So that's what she meant.

She was already on our side when I had her against the wall, and she knew nothing would go in our direction even if she got some memory back. Aw shell…

"But what we can do is prolong your lives, just long enough to come up with a plan. Donnie, what are your blood types?" Liz asked Donnie, sinking to her knees next to Don. He looks up, then back to Leo.

"Leo and Mikey are A Positives. Raph and I are is A Negatives." Don answers.

"Good, take off your masks, all of you. Leo, Mikey doesn't have any wounds on the outside, his mask will have to have yours on it. And Don, since you were never hurt, your mask will have to have Raph's on it. Same blood types will help disguise your deaths."

"What about our bodies?" Leo asked. Liz looks down for a moment, before smiling.

"I'll say I burned them in an incinerator at a hospital. Which means there will be no real traces. Besides ashes, but there's no DNA in ashes. Hurry now." I take off my mask, feeling naked without it. I grab Donnie's when he hands it over, and press both to the cut on my arm. I feel a sting at the pressure, and the masks are soaked red instantly. So were Mikey's and Leo's. Liz takes our masks and stands, turning to leave.

"Wait. Liz, I'm sorry for kicking you out of the house." Leo says with sincerity. Liz pauses, and looks at our blood soaked masks. She sighs, and drops her head.

"I forgave you the day you kicked me out. I understood why you did, and no matter how angry I was at you for doing that, I know I would have done the same if you were a danger to my family. No harm."

"Will we see ya again?" I asked. Liz laughs, making her back straight.

"Of course. We have unfinished business to do."

Her ninja skills got good. I blinked once and she was gone.

"Come on Raph, we need to get Mikey and Leo medical attention." I sigh, turning around to pick up a limp Mikey while Donnie got Leo. I rest his bare head on my shoulder, being careful to avoid his ribs. Donnie opens the manhole, and he's is the first to drop. Then Mikey, myself, and Leo last. We walked through the sewers easily, but we could all feel the dread.

However this ends, may it be we die or Shredder dies, whatever or whoever is left won't have the last laugh. It's only just the beginning.