I have to say that this was a very difficult chapter to write- I honestly do struggle with filler-chapters. Good news though, things do start to go to shell here, so I hope you enjoy. Thanks again to all those who reviewed, followed and faved :D
Disclaimer- I'm part of the fandom, but I own nothing, just this storyline.
Chapter 11- Enter the Storm
Hamato Splinter one again pulled himself out of his meditative state, having once again failed to reach his eldest son.
It had been a while since he had managed to contact Donatello, and he had been thankful that nobody had sensed that he had done so. If they had then he knew without a doubt that he would be dead by now.
Leonardo was just as unresponsive as he had been when his mind had first shut down, completely unaware of his father holding him or the times when he tried to reach him through meditation. Splinter had tried to feed him some food that had been brought up to them by one of the monster's thralls, but his son would not swallow anything, which could have led to the danger of choking. The elderly rat did not want to provoke any discomfort for Leonardo.
The ninjutsu master was once again trying to make a fruitless attempt at contacting his son when he heard footsteps thunder towards the chamber and the portly man stalked over the threshold. He was steaming with pure rage.
"You foolish imbecile!" he growled in an animalistic manner. "Our master has waited for too long to have your pathetic brood stop us from carrying out our orders. You will suffer for your insolence! You will die with the knowledge that your precious Leonardo will soon be the sacrifice that will allow our master to walk the Earth once again."
"I have faith in my sons," Splinter retorted, in a calm and removed manner. "Leonardo would never willingly allow himself to be used as a means to hurt anyone. And you underestimate his brothers. They will find us and then you will see your plans come to nothing."
"Yet you forget that we have powers beyond what you and your allies have."
"I have faced far worse than the likes of you, and I have faith that you will meet your downfall before you can kill my son. And your master is not as all powerful as he would like to think if he has only just sensed me contacting the others."
The portly man's demonic eyes glistened with a fury beyond anything that the rodent had ever seen before. "No matter. We will merely begin preparation earlier. We only have to wait for the moon to rise before the ritual can start, which is not too long now."
"We are underground. The moon cannot reach us here."
The man sneered at him. "That is for us to know and for you to never find out."
At his words, Splinter leapt forwards in an attempt to overpower the tormentor, but was impeded when he was once again suspended in mid-air. Six more figures appeared from the shadows behind him and silently moved forwards. The elderly rat was then manhandled away from his son's prone body, snarling and hissing as he attempted to be rid of them.
"You will die now, rodent," one of his captors said, their eyes sparking. "And you will only ever see your children in death. You will leave this world knowing that we will carve out your son's heart so that our master will spread his power over this world and any other he desires. If they are foolish enough to come here, then your other sons will meet the same fate as yourself. But no matter what happens, our master will make sure they receive a slow and painful end."
Splinter was then forced back down the tunnel and soon lost sight of his child's body, the portly man staring after him as they left.
What none of them saw Leo's right hand twitch slightly.
Usagi was sat in the main area of the Lair, surrounded by the other turtles. They had all decided that it would be best if the samurai meditated in a place that was special to Leo, the brothers forming a triangle around him to help concentrate the spiritual energy.
They were alone as Noriyuki's men and Genn were taking refuge in April's basement, much to their friend's initial shock. She had been stunned to find thirty anthropomorphic animals underneath her store, but did not mind once the situation had been explained to her. Indeed, she insisted that she come along to save Leo when the brothers and Usagi had a location and had gone to let Casey and Leatherhead know what was happening.
Now, the four of them had allowed their minds to reach out in the hope of finding Leo, which would also let them find the turtle's father. However, after a long while, they had still come up with nothing, which greatly disheartened them.
"Maybe we can't sense him because of the coma the creature put him in," Don finally said, clearly disheartened.
"Nah, we'd still be able to feel him. His mind may 'ave bin shut off, but 'is soul is still there. That's what tha thing needs."
"Then what are we doing wrong, Raph, because I don't know what else we can try."
Usagi sighed and opened his eyes as he tried to think of an alternative solution. Suddenly, in a moment of inspiration, he stood and briskly walked away. The three brothers stared after him as he headed for Leo's bedroom.
"Usagi? Dude, whatcha doing?" Mike called, turning to Raph, who shrugged.
Meanwhile, Don's mouth had fallen open as if he had just realised something. "I'm such a shell-head!"
"Huh?"
"Leo's room would make more sense than where we practice. I don't think Leo spent most of his time being happy out here, despite enjoying practice for the most part."
"Then why his room?"
"Think about it. What do two people do in a bedroom?"
"Oh, dude! Dude! No! I did not want that picture in my head! The sewer monsters were bad enough." This earned him yet another rap on the head from his red-banded brother.
"But the emotions Leo would have felt would have been positive. Yes that's where Splinter made Leo choose between us and Usagi, but there must be a lot of positive energy in there if they… you know. And if Usagi's going in there then he must think so to."
Indeed, Usagi had entered his lover's room with that exact idea in mind, though he was slightly stunned at the amount of paper that lay around the room- Leonardo was notoriously tidy. The ronin assumed that the turtle had been in the process of sorting through it all right before he had been taken.
A certain piece of paper caught his attention and he bent down to pick it up from its pile on the cold floor. It was a coloured sketch of Usagi, who was lounging on a bed with his ears out of their tie and flopped against the pillow. He appeared to be peacefully slumbering and the rabbit wondered when Leo had drawn this. He then noticed that something was clipped to the back, and removed the extra square of paper.
This one was smaller than the other and it turned out to be a photograph that the pair had secretly taken on one of Usagi's visits. Though their bodies were not in view, he remembered that Leo had been spooning against his back on the bed whilst nuzzling his cheek. The photo showed the turtle's peaceful expression as he concentrated mostly on his lover whilst taking the picture. Usagi himself had closed his eyes and he remembered how his partner's affection had soothed him. He was surprised that Leo had managed to get the photo off of the camera without his family finding out about it.
Clasping both bits of paper in his hands, Usagi went to seat himself on the bed and once again began to meditate, reaching out to search for Leonardo, this time determined to find him. As it was, time was running short.
After a few minutes of delving through the spiritual plain, Usagi felt something that made his heart leap in his chest. Squashing the excitement before he lost control, the samurai continued to focus on the presence which was lit like a beacon meant to draw him in. Soon, the manifestation became clear and Usagi knew that it was Leo. It could not be anyone else for Usagi knew that his lover's soul was unique. Expanding his senses, the rabbit got a feel for the turtle' surroundings.
Opening his eyes, he immediately left the room to meet the hopeful faces of the three younger brothers.
"I know where they are."
"A graveyard," Mikey groaned. "It just had to be in a graveyard."
Raph glared at him briefly, but he too was nervous about being in this place.
Upon Usagi's discovery of where Leo and Master Splinter were being held prisoner, they had immediately left for April's to ready Noriyuki's troops and their human friends. It had been a tight squeeze, but they had managed to fit the men into the Battle Shell and a removal van that Casey had borrowed on the spur of the moment. This had allowed them to slip through New York without causing a ruckus.
Usagi had sat in the prisoner seat of the Battle Shell and given Raphael directions. By the time they had reached where Usagi knew they had to leave the road, they had arrived outside of the graveyard. The sun was gradually sinking behind the few trees, showing them that they were running out of time.
"Are graveyards feared in your world?" the samurai asked, slightly confused by the brothers' reactions.
"It's not the graveyard that's tha problem. Last time we went up against this thing, it brought summof the dead back ta scare us off. Dead people don't go down easy. Only we don't know if it'll happen this time 'cause it ain't got a body."
"We should still be careful," Don muttered. "We can't get distracted with dealing with corpses."
"So what's the plan?" Genn asked, gruffly.
"Which way are you being pointed, Usagi?" Don asked.
"Towards that taller building in the middle there."
"Oh great!" Mikey moaned. "The crypt! Don't any of you guys know that nothing good happens in them?"
"Mikey," Raph warned with a growl.
"Dude, we can't exactly do much if we're served up as turtle soup."
Raph moaned. "Knucklehead has a point, much as I hate ta say it."
"Hey!"
Don couldn't help but grin slightly. "What do you reckon Leatherhead?"
"It may be best if a couple of us remain on the surface to ensure that the dead do not prevent the rest from stopping the creature."
"I'll stay up 'ere," Casey offered. "If anyone walks by and sees me standing 'round, they're less likely ta see anything."
"Not by yourself you won't," April said, raising an eyebrow at her husband and folding her arms. "We'll keep an eye out and make sure nothing from up here disturbs you guys."
"We will stay with the humans," a giselle, Gādo, stated, motioning at three of his other companions as he spoke.
The small army made their way down the winding staircase that led into the depths of the earth, flinching whenever the sound of the draft that rose from below was heard or whenever there was a small rustling noise or the chink of metal on metal. After what felt like an age, they finally reached the bottom and found a single tunnel stretching out before them and leading to who knows where.
They were about to start making their way into the unknown when something caught Don's ear and he motioned for the group to back. Admittedly, nobody could hide, but they might be able to jump whoever it was before they raised the alarm.
The three turtles, Usagi, Genn and Leatherhead stationed themselves just out of sight by the entrance to the tunnel whilst Noriyuki's warriors lingered in a row by the stairs, their weapons raised as they waited for the oncoming threat. They all listened.
"How does it feel being useless to save your family, rodent?" a woman's voice asked. The group knew that she had Splinter with her. "That's your worst fear, is it not? Our master always knows and he will feed off of your fear as we kill you?"
"You have been threatening that for a long while now and you have failed to deliver as of yet. Such threats becoming tiring after a while."
Someone let out a hiss of irritation. "For your information, vermin, we are currently leading you to your demise. Your sons told you of how our master could bend the dead to his will. Well, we shall see how defiant you are when they are feasting on your flesh."
Nothing else was said because, at that moment, Raph jumped into the tunnel and tackled the three people that were leading his father to his death. Using the butt of one of his sai, he sent them crumpling to the floor in unconscious heaps.
"Nobody threatens ma dad like that and gets away with it," he growled, glaring at his downed victims.
"My sons," Splinter breathed. Turning away from his previous quarry, the red banded turtle joined his two younger brothers as they rushed at their sensei.
"You okay, Master Splinter?" Mikey asked, a feeling of sheer relief at finding their father washing over him.
"I am fine for the most part, Michelangelo. For now though, your brother's safety is what concerns me most. I fear they may be preparing to bring the creature back even as we speak. They plan to cut out his heart."
At this, Usagi turned to two of the warriors.
"Wani-san, Inu-san, could you please watch over these people? Make sure they do not escape you, but no harm is to come to them. They are innocent as they have no control over their actions."
"Of course, Usagi-san."
The ronin then turned back to the family, who had finally broken apart. He met Splinter's gaze and, despite the awkwardness that was suddenly choking the air, bowed. "Watashi wa, anata ga anzendearu ureshī, Splinter-san."
The elderly rat inclined his head and let a sad smile cross his lips. "Thank you for aiding my family, Usagi-san. We owe you a great debt."
The rabbit shook his head. "There is no debt, Splinter-san. My only concern is the welfare of Leonardo and his family."
At this, Usagi began to make his way down the tunnel towards where could feel his lover's presence, the others following after him. However, the ground suddenly shook, causing them all to stumble into the walls or else collapse to their knees.
"I believe that means that they are starting the ritual," Leatherhead surmised.
With this in mind, the group suddenly picked up the ace, determined to get to their destination before Leo was killed. Though the ground continued to shake, they made their way through the network of tunnels, guided only by Splinter's knowledge and Usagi's bond with the blue-banded turtle. What surprised them was that they met nobody on their journey, which put every one of them on edge.
Soon, they began to hear soft murmuring chants that gradually became louder as they advanced towards the source. It was in a language none of them understood. Splinter then beckoned for silence, which could only mean that they had arrived at the place where they were holding Leo.
From what they could see, there was a throng of people circling something, all of them chanting intently inside of a large chamber. They could also hear a single voice chanting something different over the others.
Drawing their weapons, the small army charged inside, apparently taking the robed figures by surprise. Though they were initially shocked by the sudden invasion, they soon began to battle it out, though the creature apparently had difficulty splitting its power between so many people at a time- its concentration on creating magic limited to a few. This allowed Noriyuki's warriors to be evenly matched as they started to render the humans unconscious one at a time.
Whilst the others were preoccupied with the thralls, Don and Usagi pushed through until they caught sight of the portly man standing next to a stone table, on which lay a pale and limp Leonardo. The human was holding a curved knife that was poised over the turtle.
"You are too late," the man cackled. "Any second now, the moon will align and then our master will return and rule over this pathetic universe."
"You have yet to kill Leonardo, villain," Usagi yelled, "and that is something I will never allow!"
Both he and the purple-banded turtle then tried to rush him but a sudden blinding light flitted through the room that disorientated everybody. When they had gotten over the initial shock of, they saw the light of the moon bouncing between certain spots in the chamber until it was shone onto Leo's still form.
The man began to laugh as he pulled back to dagger. He was however horrified when a shuriken came out of nowhere and sent the dagger clattering across the floor. He looked around to find that the other two turtles and Splinter had joined the others.
"Release my son this instant," the latter shouted.
"Why is it so difficult to kill you, rodent? You should not interfere with this."
"Our bro isn't a sacrifice, dude!" Mike declared, his nunchucks twirling in readiness for a fight. "We'll interfere all we want."
"As you say, interfere all you want, but you will all die regardless."
"Cut da record, sunshine, we've 'eard the 'you will all die' speech before," Raph grunted, moving forwards and reaching out to grab the man before he could do anything else to his older brother.
Before he could, he felt a sudden, sharp pressure on his plastron that sent him careening backwards.
"Do not think you can hope to stop me," the man growled, though now it was as if more than one person was speaking at once.
He then held out his hands and a sudden shockwave spread throughout the chamber, ending with the three younger brothers, Splinter, Usagi, Leatherhead, Genn and Noriyuki's soldiers being frozen in place.
"Don, how'd he do that?" Raph asked, struggling to try and reach one of his sai to no effect.
"The creature's concentrating its energy only on him. It's realised that it doesn't have to split its power to stop us. Either that, or it was playing with us."
"Gee, ya think!"
"And it's about to get worse," Genn intoned.
The sounds of struggling were heard down the passageway and, to the dismay of the unpossessed, April, Casey and the five other warriors were dragged in by a small patrol of skeletons, all of them sporting bruises.
"You guys okay?" Don called, his expression one of pain at his friends' predicament.
"We're fine, Don," April replied, wincing slightly as she and the others were pushed to their knees.
"Enough talk," the portly man exclaimed as he walked towards the prisoners. "We will deal with these prisoners now so that there are no further interruptions. Our master grows impatient and we are running out of time. I think the rabbit should go first."
All breath seemed to be collectively stolen from the room at this. The man motioned his hand and Usagi was dragged before him, looking up at him with an expression of intense loathing. The ronin did his best to remove himself from the spell cast by the possessed human, baring his teeth as the human raised the dagger above his head.
Usagi's fate seemed to have been decided and he settled for defiantly glaring up at his soon-to-be vanquisher, blocking out the sounds that were coming from Leonardo's family as they yelled threats at their captors and protested on his upcoming death.
What nobody in the vicinity expected was a green hand to snap out of nowhere and clasp around the hand that held the weapon.
Watashi wa, anata ga anzendearu ureshī- I am glad you are safe
Dah-dah-dah, another cliffie :3 What do you guys think? Sorry to leave you hanging here, but cliffhangers are my weakness when I write- I hate them but I love using them.
Unfortunately, I won't be posting for two weeks now :L I'm visiting a friend next weekend and watching them perform in a concert. I'm really excited as well :D
Take care all of you :)
MerlinStar x