Donnie swam with the current, desperately trying to catch up to Raph and Leo. He'd only been a second behind them but, with his shoulder, that second was enough to give them a substantial head start. He broke the surface to catch his breath before ducking below again.
Donnie swam, desperately trying to avoid rocks and sunken tree trunks. Bark and stone scarped against his skin and shell, drawing blood on his unprotected flesh. Donnie reached out into the murky, debris clouded water, hoping to land a finger on one of his brothers.
He swam for what felt like hours, his body sore and weak. His arms slowed and the current did more of the work, beating Donnie against its unforgiving edges. His lungs burned with each passing minute, the current now too strong to allow him air.
Eventually, he hit a calm spot. Pulling himself up towards air, Donnie broke the surface, gasping, and scanned the edges of the river. No sign of them. Taking a deep breath, Donnie dove back into the muddy water. Hopefully, Raph and Leo had swam this far. And hadn't drowned. Donnie felt air catch in his throat. Through the cloudy water he was able to catch the silhouette of his brothers.
He swam to them and tucked his arm underneath Raph, steadying him. Raph's eye were closed and he wasn't breathing. Leo looked the same. He wasn't going to be able to carry both with an injured arm. He'd have to swim one to the banks first. It only took a moment's calculation before he cut Leo lose and grimly dragged his oldest brother towards the banks. He grunted with the effort it took to haul Leo out of the water, one hand hooked around his brother's belt and his injured arm there to steady him. Raph was right, Leo was heavy.
Once Leo's torso was out of the water Donnie set him down and checked his pulse. Still there. Faint but there.
Certain Leo was out of danger, Donnie dove back in for Raph. He held Raph in the same way he had Leo, kicking towards the surface with his brother in his arms. He lugged Raph next to Leo, again checking for a heartbeat. Nothing.
Donnie's whole world froze.
No no no. Come on, Raph. Donnie turned to Raph, praying he hadn't chosen wrong. He started CPR, putting the last of his strength into the presses. Moments spread into what felt like hours. Raph wasn't responding. Wasn't responding. Each repetition became more desperate. Donnie shut his eyes and mumbled "I swear to god Raph, if you don't.." As if his brother heard him, Raph sputtered to life. He coughed out the water in his lungs before looking at Donnie clear eyed. Donnie let out the breath he'd been holding in.
Leo was next. Donnie could feel Raph anxiously watching over his should as he worked. Come on, Leo. Come on. Somehow Leo had avoided the worst of the river. His eyes fluttered open. Donnie and Raph let their body relax. Leo turned over and coughed up what little water was in his lungs before lying lay back down asleep.
Donnie checking on Leo's vitals. His heartbeat was weak but still pumped out a solid rhythm. The rest of his symptoms hadn't gone down much. The fever remained and Leo had begun whimpering again. Not for the first time, Donnie desperately wished that he knew more about herbal medicine.
"Anything you need me to do?" Donnie looked up and saw the reservation in Raph's face. He could see the thinly veiled worry that had stuck inside of Raph since they'd found Leo.
"Well," He looked around. "We're going to have to boil water somehow." He paused. "If you could gather a bunch of dry sticks and any sort of small, burnable underbrush that'd be helpful." Raph nodded.
As Donnie began weaving his wraps into a tight pouch, he thought about the peculiarity of their situation. With a downpour that was able to cause such a strong current, a forest fire that big or rapid shouldn't have been possible. That and the amount of rain in the past few days was surprisingly heavy for the end of fall. Donnie puzzled over possible explanations for a long time, silent and focused.
Half an Hour later, Raph had come up with a spectacular pile of wet leaves and damp twigs. Donnie looked at the pile unimpressed as Raph tried to look at anything else.
"Well—" Donnie started.
"Well what? This stuff's useless." Raph kick the sad pile, angrily crossing his arms. Donnie focused on the problem at hand. Leo really needed clean water. Not to mention, his throat was dry as the sun. He assumed Raph wasn't better off. It'd been several days since any of them had drunk any substantial amount of water but the river was teaming with bacteria. But maybe there was a way to get at clean water another way.
"Raph, lend me your sais." Raph grabbed at his sais defensively.
"Nuh huh. What ever you need to do with them, I can do." Donnie did a slight eye roll but he got it. Their weapons were important and more so they were theirs. He gestured to Raph to kneel next to him. He began clearing debris from a small area near the river.
"Dig here." He commanded. For once, Raph complied.
At about five inches water began seeping up from the damp ground beneath. It wasn't much but it was the best they had. After a few more inches, Donnie stopped Raph's furious, mud-covered hands. Gently, careful not to disturb any sediment, Donnie used his impromptu pouch to scoop up some of the water. He was delighted to see that only a little water drizzled out. He made a move to pass the water sack to Raph but the look in his brothers eyes made him change his mind.
He went over to Leo and sat him up at a slight angle. Leo groaned but showed no others signs of resistance. Gently, Donnie tipped some water into Leo's half opened mouth.
"Come on, Leo. Take the water." Donnie urged. After a stagnant moment, Leo swallowed, almost imperceptibly. Donnie, relieved, gave him a few more sips before laying his brother back down to rest. He handed it off to Raph before taking a gulp himself. The liquid that slide down his throat felt like magic.
I'm super sorry about the lack of updates this month! I got swamped with work and kinda lost some motivation. But I'm back! And I should be able to keep to my old schedule (Wednesdays and Saturdays). Thanks to every for sticking with me! We're nearing the end and I can't wait to see what you guys think! Special thanks to yukio87, Tigerluv, leggo lover 99, and Cat girl for your comments! I really appreciate the encouragement and am so thrilled that you guys are enjoying it! Who knows? Might get me to update a little sooner. ;)