Chapter 10: The Night's Watch II

Leo and Donnie:

They were surrounded. Wave after wave of foot soldiers had come at them. There were so many. Before they could clear them all out, Leo noticed some of the soldiers scurrying off to the crates. They were removing what seemed like collars of some sort and putting them randomly on the necks of the mutants they had made. Now, the brothers stood shell to shell. Both were bleeding about their arms and legs from various cuts and wounds. Thankfully none of the injuries were fatal, but how long could they keep this up? Leo looked around searching for Karai, and only caught a glimpse of her running around killing what police were in the area. He had no time to focus on her, he would deal with her later. Now, he had to keep himself and Donnie alive.

Leo looked around at their enemies. There were a few foot soldiers among the mutants they now faced. Some were bird-like, some were dog-like, but for the most part it had been random insects or rodents that had undergone a change and they were the most stable. The humans who transformed had mostly died or been killed by other mutants. Leo was most concerned with two mutants in particular. One was a very large mosquito-type mutant. It was capable of flight, so far not capable of speech due to its large proboscis, but Leo could see intelligence in its large round eyes. He had seen it kill any in its path, as it demonstrated strength and an unsettling skill for stealth maneuvers. The second was a spider-like mutant that was built like a centaur. It was all giant spider body, complete with web spinners that it was currently using to spin a web between light poles above them, but where the head should have been was a female human torso, arms, and head. Her mouth was full of fangs so far as Leo could tell. At the thought of both, Leo's eyes brightened a little. Maybe it would work.

"Donnie?"

"Yeah Leo."

"Spiders hunt bugs right?"

"Yeah." Donnie said, confused on why this was relevant.

"They eat mosquitos?"

"Yeah all the time. They capture flies, mosqui….." Comprehending fully now.

"Ok, I see where you're going with this, but how do we get those two to kill each other? It's not like he's gonna fly up there and offer himself as a trophy dinner." Donnie said, nervously watching the various mutants decide finally that they would attack. So far, they had been hanging back considering how the foot soldiers were killed right in front of them.

"Yes, I know he won't," Leo said, licking his lips and tasting his own blood. Somehow, that made him angry. "But we gotta draw her attention to him somehow. I believe she'll take it from there."

"Whatever you do Donnie, don't let that mosquito touch you. I've seen what he does, he sucks you completely dry." Donnie let out a disgusted whimper at the thought. The crowd was advancing a little more now, becoming bolder because the turtles hadn't taken the offensive.

"What do we do about these other guys in the meantime Leo?" Donnie asked starting to slowly spin his staff.

"Kill them all." With that Leo charged the nearest mutant. The mutants hesitated for the slightest moment, but it was enough to give the turtles the advantage quickly. Leo's katanas glinted and gleamed as they reflected the street lights above him. With precision he struck, intending not to need more than 2-3 strikes to fell his opponent. He needed to preserve his strength. When he faced her he would do well not to be overly exhausted.

Donnie's staff was a blur. Tonight, he was not concerned with limiting his strength, or not killing the enemy before him. In his hands the staff was a deadly weapon. Each blow calculated to deal the most damage on impact. His style was beautiful to watch. Perfectly timed sweeps coupled with his long limbs, was enough to dispatch at least two foes at once. He tried to attack the pressure points, although that was tricky business given that the bodies weren't normal anymore. He put down two more mutants, then heard Leo scream out behind him. He turned to see a horrifying sight. Leo had been caught from behind by the mosquito thing. It hadn't yet realized that it couldn't get through the shell, but it was only a matter of time before it figured that out. It held him in a firm grasp with two of its legs. Another mutant was advancing on Leo as well. There was no way he could fight them both off.

"Hold on! I'm coming Leo!" Donnie made a move towards his brother, and suddenly he felt two strong arms grab him and lift him off his feet. It was the spider. She had lowered her huge body on a strand of web, and grabbed him the moment he paused. He reluctantly turned towards his captor. She was hideous. All Donnie saw was her mouth full of large fangs dripping with some type of poison or venom. As far as he could tell, she couldn't close her mouth around them. Her jaw was larger and longer than a human, making her mouth much bigger than a normal person.

'Oh no' he thought. It's either figure out a way down, or die here in Time's Square.

At the Lair:

Asha was rubbing her eyes. There was no way she was seeing, or hearing what was apparently being shown on the television. The video was only about 10 seconds and it was hazy at best. However, she couldn't have been clearer on what she saw on that clip. It was the turtles, and they were on top of some trucks in plain view of everyone in the middle of the street. The large screen gave away the location, Time Square. The news channels were going crazy, the clip was on loop, but no one seemed to be sure about what they saw. Couldn't have been some type of monster? Or could it? Were the stories about mutant men living in the sewers to be proved true tonight? Asha didn't care. Whatever was happening she needed to be there cracked ribs or not. For now, people were questionable on what was on the video. It could very well be a hoax. You could log onto YouTube and see hundreds of videos with ghosts, monsters, etc. Nowadays a video of something supernatural had to be proven true. You just couldn't accept a video of turtle monsters without concrete proof. For the public's general skepticism Asha was very grateful. She was also thankful the footage was crappy and short.

April was sleeping on the floor next to the couch. Asha eased herself off the couch, pushing the blanket off and getting to her feet as best she could. When she finally got up she was somewhat surprised to see master Splinter standing behind the couch. His eyes were wet as though he had been crying and he was staring at the T.V with a look of mingled concern and fear. His eyes caught hers, and she could see clearly his fatherly emotions about his sons. His worst fears had crept from his nightmares and greeted him in the harsh light of reality, and there was nothing he could do to keep it at bay.

Asha didn't share the same level of concern about the brothers that Splinter had. She didn't want anything bad to happen to them, which was part of the reason she decided to get out there. The overwhelming issue was revenge. Who would take vengeance for the death of five innocent children if not her? Surely not their parents who had been so cowardly. No one else would be so bold as to cause a commotion big enough that the turtles felt that exposing themselves was the only way to stop it, except this Foot Clan. Rocksteady was part of this so called clan, and that was enough to make every one of them complicit in her mind.

Without saying anything Asha was making her way to where she had seen Donnie's first aid kit. She looked around for anything that could act as a padding or shield. There was nothing but old pizza boxes. They were better than nothing. She ripped them into pieces that would fit over her ribs in her lion state. She had gotten some gauze and began to place the cardboard pieces on her ribcage, and use the gauze to hold it in place. Splinter watched her do all this intently.

"You are hurt, yet you prepare for battle. Why?" He asked. He believed he knew the answer.

Asha paused her wrapping without looking up, considered the question but did not reply. She simply resumed her preparations.

"Why?" He asked again.

"They have to pay."

"And you can make them, in your state?"

"Maybe, maybe not, but your sons have risked exposure and I can't help but feel it was absolutely necessary…" There was more to say, but she didn't know how to say it.

Splinter thought about that, had been thinking about it since the news first aired that grainy footage. What would make them take such a risk? He shook his head. He wasn't one to run from reality and truth, but these were his children. They could be killed, they could be captured, or tortured. He tried not to think about all the ways his boys could suffer. He walked over to the weapons wall and chose a sword. He hadn't fought anyone since Shredder in the lair two years ago. He had taken the mutagen and it had saved his life, but there were side effects. He wouldn't have called it a secondary mutation, but it was something. For a while he felt younger and more vibrant, even going so far as to participate in some of the morning sparring with his sons. After a few months though, it was like a huge adrenaline or sugar crash. It had aged him, or at least that's how he thought of it. That's how it felt. The mild arthritis he occasionally suffered from was worsening week to week. But what of it? These were his children. No one could know or understand the bonds that held them together. He would die, and kill, for his boys.

When he returned to where Asha was he saw that she had already transformed. He also saw that she had removed every single piece of clothing except her jewels, which were brilliant even in the dim candlelight of the sewer. She stood to her full height, staff in hand, seeming to wait for him. She was regal and she was deadly, and Splinter's heart raced a little at the sight. Not from a sexual excitement, he was long past that, but his kind was ever prey for her kind whether in the wild or domesticated. He was thankful for years of ninjitsu training that did not betray him even in the presence of a natural predator. He was not cowed by her as he stood to his height as well.

April stirred on the floor. She rubbed her eyes and saw Splinter. He had a weird look on his face that she didn't understand. Then she looked over to see Asha and screamed. Asha did not move to console or explain, she simply regarded April coolly. It was Splinter who explained it.

"April please calm down. It's only Asha. She isn't going to harm you." He said this as he gently stroked April's face calming her instantly. April wiped her eyes again, and really took a good look. She noticed the sword slung across Splinter's back.

"Oh no," she groaned "they're in danger aren't they?" She asked getting up quickly to leave with Splinter and Asha. Splinter placed a claw gently but firmly on her shoulder, pushing her to the couch instead.

"No, I have to go to them, I have to help them. I have to save Mikey." She said plaintively. Master Splinter had that certain look in his eyes, and she knew whatever he had decided should be done would be done.

"No, April I'm sorry. Your presence will only complicate matters. You could be killed or used as bait or a hostage, and they have enough to do. They can't worry over your safety." He said patting her. Asha shifted impatiently. This was taking too long.

"What you can do to help though," he continued "is see what you can do about the cameras. They don't need to air whatever footage they have. Is there anything you can do about that?"

April thought for a moment, then brightened.

"Yes, I can call Vern. We can do something about the news cast. Most likely something very illegal, but I think I have an idea about that." She began gathering herself together and fumbling for her phone.

"Good. Don't follow us, don't come to Time Square."

With that he sped off with a speed Asha didn't expect at all. She herself had to struggle to keep up with him in his haste.

It wasn't all that far from the lair. Asha's ribs burned already but she ignored it. She grit her teeth and kept pace with the rat who was bounding ahead of her in the dark, his eyes and nose keen on the turtles location. As they neared the war zone, the sounds of chaos were unmistakable above them. Splinter stood underneath a manhole and paused sniffing the air. He got a confused or disgusted look on his face and moved a few blocks to another manhole. Asha wondered what the difference was. He did this two more times until deciding upon a manhole to come through. When they got topside Asha understood. If they had come up through the other manhole covers they would have been on the other side of the now defunct police line, which was held now by a line of mutants.

Splinter and Asha looked around slack-jawed. There were mutants everywhere. What the hell had the foot done here? The streets were literally crawling with all kinds of creatures, and there were not many humans left. They were either dead, dying, or mutated. It was like something out of a horror film. Body parts were strewn all over the street, blood was splattered everywhere, cars and other property utterly destroyed. Then they heard familiar cries.

"Leonardo! I'm coming my son!" Splinter jetted off and Asha followed, adrenaline pumping and pain temporarily forgotten. They ran for a little until they came upon Raphael and Michelangelo fighting a gang of mutants. As Asha observed, the mutants didn't seem to be fighting them so much as detaining them. She took a look above and found the rooftops occupied by a few raven and pigeon human hybrids. They were simply sitting, watching, perhaps waiting. It was extremely unsettling.

"Raphael! Michelangelo! I'm coming!" Splinter yelled his voice cracking with fear but relief also. Unsheathing his sword he attacked the nearest mutant. It was holding Raphael's legs with what appeared to be a tentacle-like appendage. Every time Raph cut it, it grew back reattaching itself to his leg. Mikey wasn't being held by anything but he was obviously exhausted. He was fighting mutants who were busy dodging his attacks, they were faster than he was but most likely due to his fatigue. He turned when he heard his father's voice.

"Dad?! What are you doing here?! Get out of here dad!" Mikey said, hitting at one of the mutants who deftly moved just out of his reach. Raph turned just enough to see Splinter and tears began to fall. He didn't want his father in this place trying to save them.

Immediately, Splinter attacked the mutant holding Raph. He didn't understand how, but it was almost like an octopus. A few of its tentacles wrapped around a light pole, the others held Raph. Its head was attached to what was going to be shoulders but it was incomplete. Splinter killed it with a strike to its head. Raph was freed and ran over to his sensei.

"Master we can't get to Leo and Donnie. They blocked all the manholes, and when we try to go on the tops of the cars or the roof…" Raph pointed up at the bird creatures. "They swoop and attack us.

"And we can't get past these guys either sensei, they just keep blocking us." Mikey said. He was tired but seeing his father had given him a renewed resolve, as it did for Raph as well. Splinter looked over at Asha.

"You get to my other two sons. Watch out for them." Splinter said glancing upwards. He turned and began clearing the way. For a brief moment Asha admired his mastery. He was aging, but it wasn't showing tonight. He was nimble and agile, attacking the mutants nearest at hand first. Raph and Mikey found reserves of strength to fight alongside their master. His presence alone was enough to urge them on beyond their physical limits.

Asha turned her attention upwards. The bird mutants were indeed watching her closely, daring her to try to find a way around the mangled heaps of bodies and cars on the ground. She leaped onto the top of one of the delivery trucks, staff at the ready. A raven swooped lazily down attempting only to frighten her, but she stood her ground. On the second pass over her, it tried to actually grab her with its talons and drop her back to the ground, but Asha swung her staff at its legs as it passed, breaking it at the joint. It let out a cry that was half bird shrieking and half human screaming. It was pathetic. It fell to the ground writhing in pain and looking at her with a shocked expression. The other creatures watching made no move to rescue their comrade nor attack her. They turned their attention instead back to the turtles and their master. Asha took that as her cue and took off in the direction of Leo and Donnie's voices.

It was horrific to say the least. When she got to where Leo and Donnie were she hesitated, trying to make sense of what she was seeing. Donnie was struggling in what appeared to be a very large web. A hideous spider creature that Asha couldn't help but think of as spider-woman, was wrapping his still struggling body. Leonardo was in the worst shape. He was being attacked by a mosquito type creature. It was trying to bite him, suck his blood, but Leo was fighting it with everything he had. The mosquito was patient. It simply held Leo, occasionally trying to bite him but content to allow him to struggle until he was too tired. Then he would be able to eat him without a fight. Neither the turtles nor the mutants seemed to have noticed an almost seven foot tall lioness watching them. Only one way to make her presence known. It was her favorite thing to do and it always got such a good reaction. Asha took a deep painful breath and let out a vicious roar. It reverberated against the buildings around her, echoing slightly and increasing its volume and effect.

It was the spider-woman that attacked first. It was terrifyingly fast. It didn't waste time letting itself down to the ground. Asha noticed too late that the web spanned almost the entire block, connected at the light poles and sides of buildings. The spider woman had her. She had grabbed Asha up in the same fashion as she had Donnie, and she was amazingly strong. She tried to bite Asha, but found a staff in her mouth instead. Angry, the spider used two more legs to take hold of Asha, but exposed its underbelly in the process. She was also squeezing Asha's tender ribs. Asha grabbed the spider by the neck, surprising her. With her feet she began to scratch furiously, digging into the soft underbelly of the spider. She felt a hot liquid pour over her feet, as the spider howled in pain and let her go. She looked down at her feet relieved that it was only blood and not something else. The spider screeched and scrambled aimlessly from one end of her web to another. At first Asha attempted to crawl along the web strands to get to Donnie faster, but they were too sticky, and the spider was crawling around it. Asha was trying to avoid it at all costs.

She jumped down from the web landing on the ground not far from where Leo was losing his struggle. He would have to wait a little while longer. The spider was now hovering close to Donnie, intending no doubt to either eat or simply kill him as a last act. Asha climbed a nearby pole. As she made her way to the web, the spider rushed towards her. The staff was still in the spiders' mouth, now not having the sense or wherewithal to remove it. She was simply trying and failing to bite it in half or break it. Asha crouched and waited. As the spider passed she extended her claws and let momentum do the rest. Spider-woman actually ran past her allowing Asha's claws to rake the entire side of her body. More blood and other fluids gushed forth as the spider collapsed on her web, her weight making it sag. She was dying, and looking for anything to kill before she expired. Underneath the sagging spider, Leonardo was still fighting, the mosquito still holding on. Blood from the spider began to drip on the insect as it looked for the source of all that screeching and scrambling above it. The spider was hanging lower about to drop out of its web altogether when the insect tried to take flight, Leo still in its grip. Asha, seeing what was about to happen made her way towards the spider as fast as she could. The arachnids legs were flailing and Asha had to watch out not to get hit by one of them as she eased around to the spiders head. She retrieved her staff from its mouth, then used it to rip the web from underneath them. All three fell, Asha, Donnie, and the spider. Donnie landed on his shell, Asha on her feet, and the spider on top of the now frightened insect. With her last bit of strength and instincts, the spider quickly reacted to struggling prey. The insect, although not injured, was still at a disadvantage as it was tired from its struggle with Leo as well. Even on her death bed the spider was too quick. Spinnerets already working she was securing her final meal. The mosquito squirmed but it was no use. He tried to bite, but that also failed. Wasting no more time, the spider began to devour her catch. It was gruesome, and Asha, Donnie, and Leo turned their heads away listening to gurgled cries and crunching bones. Then all went quiet. When they turned back around both the spider and her prey were dead. The mosquito half eaten and the spider succumbing to her injuries.

Asha went over to Donnie who wasn't moving very much. She was clearing the remaining webbing from his body. His eyes were closed but he was breathing…shallowly. Asha noticed a nasty bite mark on his neck, and figured the spider must have bitten him. She became worried. It was a mutated spider, so who knew the nature or the effect of its venom. A few seconds later Leo was by her side, a worried expression on his face as he saw the condition of his brother.

"Is he…is he dead?" Leo swallowed hard waiting for the answer.

"No, but he was bitten and it doesn't look very good." Asha turned Donnie's head to show his brother the bite.

"Oh no." Leo whispered. Donnie was the de facto doctor of the group. They all knew some basic first aid for survival but they didn't know as much as Donnie.

"Donnie, wake up. Can you hear me Donnie? Please wake up." Leo pleaded with his brother whose only response was a groan and fluttering eyelids.

Smack! Smack!

Asha's hand was raised ready to deliver another good smack across Donnie's face, until his eyes snapped open.

"Please don't hit me again. It hurts like hell." Donnie said rubbing the side of his face.

"Good. Can you move, can you feel anything else?" She asked worriedly. She owed him for her life.

Donnie did a quick check over his body. He was weak but he could move his limbs and he could feel everything. The bite on his neck throbbed and was hot, but otherwise he felt okay all things considered. They helped him to his feet.

"How did you know where to find us? Why are you here?" Leo asked with genuine curiosity.

"It was sorta kinda on the news." Asha said. Leo hung his head. He didn't know how they were gonna fix it this time, but he couldn't worry over it now.

"Your master is here also." She knew that would boost their morale whether they wanted him there or not.

"Master Splinter is here!" Donnie and Leo said in chorus.

"Why did you bring him here?!" Leo exclaimed getting in Asha's face.

"I didn't bring him anywhere. He came because he loves you. He's defending his children!" Asha said, eyes tearing a little. She willed the emotions away. Leo felt bad just a little. He knew master would give his life, and if their little scuffle was nightly news, he would have definitely done just what he was doing.

"Where is he Asha?" He asked a little less accusatory.

"He is with Raph and Mikey. They were being held up by some lame ass mutants, but it was a bunch of them. I also spied a very large, dead, warthog that I assume was their handiwork."

Leo smiled a bit. They had killed that warthog. He would have paid a pretty penny to have seen that fight.

"Let's go get our dad and brothers. Donnie can you walk? Can you still fight?" Leo said turning towards his brother.

"Yeah I can walk, as for fighting there is only one way to find that out isn't there?" Donnie said, adjusting his equipment. He was looking at Asha curiously when he mentioned fighting. Asha smiled, immediately understanding the look. She walked over to Donnie and whispered to him.

"When all this is over, we shall decide whose staff is the mightiest, yes?" She asked playfully nudging him. He nodded, a smile touching the corner of his mouth.

"We shall also decideth upon permanent raiment for thine body." She smiled broadly, then a wicked grin.

"Doth my naked form offendeth thee, Donatello?" She asked, striking a sexy stance and smirking at him. He chuckled but Leonardo was blushing badly. Asha didn't notice it.

"Nay milady. It does seem to exciteth Sir Leonardo, as he hath not removed his eyes from thine ample breasts and rear end." Donnie was near bursting with laughter that seemed too out of place for their surrounding and situation, but it sounded nice to hear it. It was Asha's turn to blush badly. She looked over at Leo who was trying not to look at her at all. When he mustered the courage to look her in the eyes, she saw his focus returning and a resurgence of his will power. There was also a look of lust there that was undeniable to anyone who saw it. Luckily that only included her, since Donnie was walking ahead of them, still chuckling to himself.

Asha was taken aback again by his assertion as an alpha male. Where she came from, when a male asserted himself it was as much a sexual advance as it was a show of dominance over a pride family. Although Leonardo was another species, he was also half human and so were the men of her tribe. He always asserted his leadership, whether in an overt or covert way. Just like the night they first met, and he had cowed her into not fighting and answering his questions, this small show of strength ignited her passion. She was suppressing her arousal with every ounce of willpower she had. This was neither the time nor place, and she chalked it up to adrenaline and the reaction based on her own natural instincts.

Asha turned her head and refocused on the task before her. They needed to make sure Splinter and the two other turtles were okay. They came upon them clearing the last of the mutants on the ground. All three were exhausted. Asha didn't know how much more they could take. She glanced up to the rooftops and to her amazement, the bird mutants were gone. She peered into the night sky, but she didn't see them or hear them. A disquiet stole over her. Where had they gone and why had they left? Asha didn't think they were gone, and by the look on Splinter's face neither did he. The two shared a knowing look. Asha should go find out where they are and scout the area for more mutants. She paused for a moment, taking in the sight of the small family reunion. Splinter was speaking to them in low tones, his face a mask of relief at seeing his sons alive and relatively unharmed. Like children, they were excited to see him in fighting mode. They were going to fight alongside their dad who was their hero and in their eyes the greatest ninja master alive.

Asha got going. That spider she killed wasn't enough. She had yet to find the people responsible for all this. She didn't know how this Karai character looked, but figured she would know when she saw her. Just look for a bitch who was busy shouting orders and you've got her, she thought. What she didn't know was that Karai was not only prepared for her arrival but counted on it. Karai waited, standing on top of an empty police car whose lights were still flashing. Then she saw her. A large lioness moving quickly over the obstacles in the street, coming straight for her. She was an impressive specimen. Karai had thought the children a sight, but the appearance of an adult was enough to make her suck in a little air through her teeth. The lion looked formidable, but Karai still couldn't understand how such a creature could have killed Rocksteady.

Asha saw who she assumed to be Karai standing on a car overlooking the carnage. Karai was small and just a human it seemed. Asha would have assumed her to be an easy target, but she had seen enough to know you never underestimate your enemies. If she was the second in command of a group that could do acts of terrorism and not be caught or killed, she was a force to be reckoned with indeed. Asha needed revenge or death, and as such could not afford the stupidity of arrogance. Not willing to be on the low ground, Asha took to a car roof herself. It was just across from Karai, and they could hear each other perfectly even over the din of sirens.

"So you're the bitch who likes to kill kids, yes?"

Silence.

"Fine. You don't have to talk, you just have to die." Asha said striking a stance with her staff.

Karai raised a brow and struck her own stance with her sword. Both of them waited on who would make the first move. Asha couldn't wait any longer. She leaped for Karai intending to land the first blow, but Karai was ready for that. She raised the 9mm from its holster and aimed it at Asha. This was too easy, Karai thought as she pulled the trigger.

A/N: The third part will be the last for this fight and possibly the story if I can wrap it up neatly in one more chapter. I get the feeling I won't be able to. I didn't intend to write a fight that spanned more than one chapter, but I also didn't want to cut it too short, or make it too easy for any character. I love LOTR, so blame Peter Jackson for my extending a story arc for three parts