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A couple more weeks had passed since Leo last wrote to his family. He still performed his day-to-day rounds, but there had been no sign of militia in or around any of the villages. The lack of danger brought no comfort though, and instead put Leo on edge. With every passing day he expected trouble more and more. But it never seemed to come.

One day had been particularly hot in the jungle. Most of the townsfolk had left to enjoy a cool swim in various nearby pools. Leo raced around the forest to keep constant vigil on everyone, but as the sun hit the highest point in the sky, any movement caused a painful flash of heat through his body. He had become familiar with the heat that that part of the world existed in, but this was something else. The trees in which he climbed were hot to the touch and on a couple occasions burned his hands on some rocks.

While sitting in some shade (which really did nothing, the heat was so thick and humid it reached even the darkest corners of the forest), Leo decided that it would be in his best interest to go for a swim too. The heat and everyone's attitudes reassured him that there would be no efforts made by the slimy gunmen on that day. As such, he took off in the direction of his cave, so that he was nowhere near anyone else and could relax.

While looking for a nice place to bathe, Leo couldn't help but notice the calm that was washing over him. The heat clouded his mind and he just wanted to let go and bask. It was an odd sensation in the subconscious of his mind. Like all higher thinking had seized and all that remained was his animalistic instincts. Turtles liked to sunbathe, he and his brothers were no different.

Finally he came across a beautiful, crystal clear pond. The light shone through the blue water and painted the rock bottom with a plethora of color. A lazy, almost drunken, smile crept onto his face as he meandered over to the bank. The pool was a lot longer than it was wide and it sat in the shape of a crescent moon, and at the lowest points could be no deeper than five feet. Slowly he started un-strapping his equipment and carefully laid it to the side. It felt like a dream, one unlike the nightmares he was now so used to. The bright gleam of the water, the soft sounds of the jungle, and of course the numbing heat that enveloped him.

Dropping down to his hands and knees, Leo continued into the cool water. Once he was in, he just floated there, shell facing the sky, eyes and nose just above the water's surface. It just felt so right. A while later, he dipped his head under the water and his body followed. He swam calmly in circles and figure-eights at varying depths of the pond. For once the worries of life seemed to melt away, allowing his head to clear. After being submerged for a period of time that would have drowned a human, Leo made his way to the surface. Just as his beak breached the water, he let out the breath in his lungs and took in some new air. He blinked his eyes a couple times to clear the water from them, but was shocked at what he saw. Not three feet in front of him, sat a log above the water. On the log sat four turtles.

They were all staring at him, just as he did them. Everyone just watching. Oddly, only one though came to the great Leonardo's mind.

What should I say?

It was odd; here, within arm's reach, were four of his kind, but in the wild, and lacking any sort of mutation. Despite the obvious difference between himself and his wild cousins, Leo felt the urge to relate to them. He took a second to think of something to do, and ended up sticking his beak back under the water. Where he proceeded to blow bubbles. It wasn't all too surprising when the four terrapins did nothing in response. Wait, that was a lie; one blinked. Despite the lack of communication, their presence brought him a mild tinge of happiness. It was like his brothers, but not. Again they were just staring.

All four were different sizes, the largest sat the farthest away from the bank, and the smallest was the closest.

This is so cool!

Leo moved a foot closer but stopped when the turtles flinched and prepared to flee.

"It's ok guys, I'm not going to hurt you" he reassured. Instead of moving closer, Leo decided to just sit and watch them. They calmed eventually, when they figured that the stranger was not a threat. They weren't overly active, but Leo still enjoyed looking at them. At what he could have been. At one point, for no reason at all, the smallest one pivoted and frantically started climbing over the other turtles. He stopped when he had perched himself on the shell of the biggest, where he held his head high with pride and accomplishment. Leo stifled a laugh; it reminded him of his baby brother to an insane degree. He let out an amused noise when the largest turtle retaliated and knocked the smallest into the water. The second smallest got frightened by the sudden calamity and jumped into the water and promptly swam away, followed by the smallest. The larger turtle and the one remaining got into a little scuffle of short kicks and head butts, but eventually the biggest won and the other followed the actions of the smaller turtles and was soon out of sight.

Just as he had disappeared, the sun was lost behind a thick cloud that had formed out of the humidity of the day. The jungle became noticeably darker, but a fair amount of heat remained.

The remaining terrapin sat and stared at Leo, occasionally bobbing his head. Leo remembered Donnie explaining to him and his brothers that turtles can be very territorial and figured this turtle was sizing him up. Leo snorted, half from amusement, half (oddly enough) to intimidate. To his surprise, the wild turtle turned tail and made his way to the bank, and was lost in the never-ending foliage.

Leo adopted a boastful smile, and put his hands on his hips.

"I'M the top turtle of THIS pond" he shouted after the retreating terrapin. But that's when he noticed the light of the sun had disappeared and the forest had grown quiet. It was eerie and his mood went from happy and careless to serious and aware. His eyes scanned the forest, and his ears strained to pick up a sound. He knew that his instincts were always right, and at that moment he knew that something was wrong.

He pivoted to a sound behind him, but was too late. Just as he turned, the sight of a pair of huge jaws became the center of his attention. They clamped down on him like nothing he had ever felt before. Though the beast's grip hadn't made it to the center of his shell, the crushing force had still managed to squeeze the air from his lungs, and forced out a yelp of surprise. With his head still above the water, Leo pushed off against the bottom with all the force his legs could manage. The creature's jaws slid off of his shell and audibly clamped shut. What happened next was a blur.

Must get out of the water, must get out, must escape!

Leo waded his way to the bank as fast as he could. He knew that if the beast got a better hold of him, he would be a goner. A spike of fear and adrenaline shot up his spine as he felt teeth scrape simultaneously up and down his shell. It was too wide for the predator's jaws to get a hold on, but it probably wouldn't go for his shell again.

Leo's hand shot for the bank as he lunged forward, successfully grabbing a root and pulling himself onward. Behind him the crash of water and a horrifying bellow rang through the air. Leo pulled his foot away from the mouth of the pool just as the monster made a lunge for it. The turtle hastily picked up his stuff and turned to look at his attacker. A crocodile twice the size of him was floating just at the water's edge, hissing at him.

It was now starting to rain, and a clash of thunder sounded in the distance.

Just as Leo let out a sigh of relief, the crocodile shot forward and out of the bank. Leo let out another yelp and turned tail and ran, being eaten was not on his list of to do's for the day.

He stopped about half way to his cave to catch his breath. The sudden scare and depletion of adrenaline hit his lungs like a bolt of lightning. They burned as if he had been sprinting for hours. He put on the rest of his equipment and looked up to the sky. His eyelids twitched from the raindrops that would land in or around his eyes. He must have spent more time in the pool than he thought, because it was already getting dark. It amazed him how often and how easily the jungle and its inhabitants caused him to lose track of time. As much as he hated being there, he loved it. Not so much the troubles that he was faced with, but the jungle itself. There was something endearing about it. It was like a drug that meant to hurt him but it kept drawing him back for more.

Once he had caught his breath, Leo carried on towards his shelter.

When he got there, he was soaked. If it had been sunny, the pond water would have evaporated some, but the rain only got heavier and heavier as time went on. As he entered the cave a light lit up the cave and was followed by a bang that shook the very stone. He grunted and got out of the radius of rain that was being blown into his home.

To his displeasure, he found his cloak was sitting within reach of the wetness. With no other form of a towel, and no intention of going to bed soaking wet, he began sliding his hands over his body. Every swipe of his hand removed more water and eventually he was dried off to his liking. Like so many times before, he made his way to his makeshift bed and lay down. He watched the forest through the mouth of the cave. Every now and then it would light up, revealing the hurricane winds that now threatened to break the tops of trees.

The night was nowhere near quiet, and it was nights like this that used to keep him awake all night. Now however, he was getting used to the ruckus and simply compared it to the subway train that would act as a lullaby back in the sewers. Leo closed his eyes and drifted to sleep.