A/N- So I thought I'd put up a new chapter a little earlier as the previous one was so short. A little dramatic this one :) Enjoy, and thanks for the reviews so far, but KEEP THEM COMING! Please xxx

Chapter 10

Leonardo awoke to the smell of salty water. He cracked his eyes open and found himself at the docks, exactly where they had tried to intercept the shipment the previous night. He tried to turn his head but seethed as a sharp pain erupted through his head. He remembered the staff hitting his skull, and as he tried to get up he found his wrists chained to a shipment container. He cursed himself for getting himself captured by the Foot, trying to formulate an escape plan in his head until he saw another green form across from him. He gasped when he saw Venus out cold, lying limp with her arms too bound, her wrists tactfully chained together tightly to isolate her chi within her body. A mark on her head indicated that she too had been struck across the skull, the sight of the injury making him pull at his bindings even more, but the chains were too thick.

He tried to figure out a way of getting them out of this mess when Venus suddenly began twitching and then thrashing around a little. She kept murmuring as her legs kicked out at random moments, and by her increasingly distressed looking facial expression, Leo could tell she was frightened. She's having a nightmare Leo realised. And if it was the same as the one she had experienced earlier, he needed to wake her up ASAP. But he didn't know how. From the lack of weight on his back he guessed he had been stripped of his weapons, as had Venus, and with her hands bound there wasn't much she could do at the moment anyway. He looked around for anything he could use as a weapon when he felt a small lump on the back of his shell as he pushed back against the container. He twisted slightly and could see his shell cell slightly sticking out of his belt. The Foot must have missed it. He shook his back until the device fell out and landed on the floor. Then folding his leg back on the floor as far as he could he caught the phone under his foot and brought it in front of him. He placed it central and aiming carefully, kicked it as hard as he could towards Venus, pitching a toe underneath it so that it lifted into the air. It hit Venus squarely in the chest and she jolted awake. Her eyes were wide with panic as she tried to gage where they were but Leo coughed at her, making her to focus on him. He motioned for her to be quiet and when she noticed the shell cell at her feet she quickly pushed it behind her.

A group of Foot ninjas suddenly jumped down in between them before Hun slammed his weight into the ground. The ninjas stepped back and lined the containers while Hun leered in front of Leonardo.

"Well well, you and sleeping beauty are finally awake. Have a nice nap?"

Leo just stared at the man in front of him, not raising to the bait like his brother would have done.

"What? No insults? No 'last words'?" He crouched down in front of Leo and spat in his face. "Too honourable to fight back?"

"Leave him alone!" Venus cried, hating Hun with her whole being. He was nothing but a brute and she wouldn't let him start bullying Leo. Hun swung round and stormed towards her before slapping her hard on the cheek. Her head jerked to the side before a Foot soldier stepped between them.

"Hun, remember the Master's plan-"

"I KNOW! But I refuse to stand by idly while that she-freak tries to get on my bad side." He pushed the ninja aside and crouched inches from her stinging face. The slap had caused the throbbing in her head from the hit she'd received earlier that evening to explode across her skull but she met his black eyes with her blue and refused to relent her stare. "Now you listen to me, turtle. You will remain quiet and obedient until the Master gets here otherwise things will get a lot worse for your boyfriend over there." Venus frowned as Hun stood up and returned to the centre, catching Leo's confused stare. "You know, the way you two held hands like that, it was kinda sweet. Which will make this even more fun." Hun suddenly ran towards Leo and punched him full on in the stomach. Leonardo gasped as surprised pain ran through his abdomen. He'd forgotten how solid a hit from Hun could be.

"Leo!" Venus cried, earning a grin of malice from Hun.

"I told you to be quiet, freak." He swung his fist and punched Leo again, who tried not to wince.

"Leave him alone!"

"Sir!" Another ninja interrupted. "The Shredder wants to deal with them both himself. If Karai were to find out-"

"Do not mention her name!" Hun roared, rounding on the Foot soldier. Leo frowned at his reaction while trying to get his breath back. He took in a couple of long drawn breaths, ignoring the pain in his stomach. He had to be calm and assess the situation. He had to get them out before they both got hurt. He lifted his head to see Venus' chest rise and fall in panic. Her eyes were wide and although she was looking at him, Leo could tell she was really listening to Hun.

"I do not want her down here, do you understand me?" He growled, grabbing the soldier's tunic. "This is my mission, do you understand? I was given the task to grab as many turtle-freaks as I could, and I hit the jackpot. Did you hear that? Me. And so if I get a whiff of Karai snooping about down here to see how exactly I carry out the rest of my task, then I'm gonna hold you responsible. Understand?"

Hun shook the soldier roughly before dropping him to the ground. The ninja nodded shakily and took his place back in line, afraid of making Hun angry again.

Leo began writhing a little, trying to loosen the chains around his wrists, but it was no use; he was just irritating them , causing them to bleed. Hun stormed up to him.

"Stay down, freak." He stated simply, before launching a fist into Leo's face. Stars danced in front of his eyes and roaring filled his ears until a piercing scream of anger made him look up. Venus was violently tugging at her chains, desperately trying to break them.

"Leave him alone Hun! He hasn't done anything wrong!"

Leo appreciated the defence, until Hun laughed and kicked him this time in the chest. This caused another outcry from Venus, in turn earning another kick. The more and more Venus protested and struggled to get free, the more Hun hit Leo. It kept going for five minutes or five hours; Leo couldn't tell as more and more pain lanced through his body. He couldn't move or defend himself, the chains being so tight round his limbs. But he knew that he couldn't handle much more. He didn't want to end up in the same sort of state the Foot had left him in all those years ago. He would never let that happen again. But how could he stop it? At least that time, he had a pair of legs and a pair arms free to fight back. Heck, he even had a pair of swords. It was his lack of stamina that had done it for him. But this time he had nothing, not even a chance to defend himself.

Or did he? He looked up with pained eyes to see tears glistening in Venus' eyes. She wasn't crying; she'd never allow herself to do such a thing in front of their enemy. But she kept yelling out, telling Hun to leave Leo alone, even threatening him. Leo realised that the only way to stop this and give the pair a chance to escape was for him to stop her. He didn't want to, knowing the guilt Venus would feel when she discovered that she had delayed their departure by trying to defend him, only making his beatings worse. But he had to try.

"Venus."

Her tears were close to spilling when Leo whispered her name, the pain in his body now never leaving. Both she and Hun froze at his weak voice and he was surprised by it himself. But he needed Venus to be quiet, even though he appreciated her protests.

Leo sighed a little in relief when Venus finally stopped talking, her eyes wide. He didn't know how many more hits he could take. He could taste blood in his mouth, his body ached from the bruising, and his head was swimming, making his vision blur slightly. He had to stay awake but needed to sleep too.

Hun took a step back towards Venus and pulled out a knife. It glittered menacingly in the moonlight. Leo gained control of his erratic breathing and spat out some blood onto the floor, acute awareness spiking through him.

"What does he want Hun?"

Hun turned, eyebrows raised. Leo could see Venus' focused gaze on the knife. If Hun was just a little closer to her she could swing her leg out, either hitting his chest or arm, but the man had turned away too soon. Hun looked at her pensive form before grinning at Leonardo, jerking his head towards Venus. Her eyes widened as Leo frowned, instantly confused.

"But why? What does the Shredder want with Venus?"

"It seems your Shinobi friend here has a gift he is able to cultivate."

He stepped towards Venus and held the knife against her cheek, blood beading against the blade. She held her breath and focused on the now struggling Leo, battered and broken. Because of me she thought. Guilt raged through her but Hun raised his arm, the knife looming above her, sharp and deadly. She saw it in her peripheral as she stared at Leonardo's facial expression. Fear and terror flooded through it and she hated to watch but what was the alternative? The knife came down as Leo's cry of 'no' rang through the night but she didn't feel a puncture, just a burning pain above her chest.

Hun stepped back to reveal the gash he had made along her collar bone. The wound stung but the relief on Leo's face calmed her down. Then he growled in anger.

"HUN! What have you done?!"

"Relax freak, I just wanted to give her a taste of what's coming. Shredder wants her alive you'll be pleased to know." He wiped the knife before sheathing it again. "Well, until he's got what he wants at least."

"And what does he want?" Venus asked, trying to ignoring the blood dripping down onto her chest and her stinging cheek. She struggled against her bindings again but they were too tight, keeping her magic isolated in her body. Hun turned with lightning speed and punched her in the stomach, winding her.

"You'll find out soon enough."

She struggled to breath, closing her eyes. She heard Leo struggling against his own bindings again, the rattling of the chains ringing violently. She heard Hun telling him to calm down before the sound of blows rang through the night. Venus' eyes snapped open.

"Leave him alone Hun!" she gasped between breaths. "I'm warning you, when I get free, I will-"

"You're not getting free, freak. And your boyfriend here needs a little master class in pain." He went to strike again when a ninja grabbed his arm.

"Hun, I have already told you, the Master wants to dispatch the turtle leader himself."

"And he shall. I know about their history together, and Shredder will get his revenge for being refused by a freak and having his head cut off," Hun glared at Leo before smiling maliciously at Venus again. "But after I've roughed him up a bit. I think little miss turtle here needs to learn when to keep her mouth shut."

Leo looked at the monster in front of him with defying eyes, focusing on them. Of course the Shredder wanted his revenge, having failed to destroy him completely on that fateful night. He'd tried a few times since then, but his brothers had always been there to step in and help. But not this time. He was determined to show his courage and lack of fear in his face, but he also wanted to avoid Venus' gaze. He didn't want her to see this, and he didn't want to see her reaction. Hun took a step closer, brought his fist back and struck Leo in the head again before encouraging others to do the same. Six soldiers, ignoring the protests of the one who had argued against the brute, grinned and eagerly surrounded the turtle, each taking their turn to pummel him.

Venus felt helpless as she saw Leo growing more and more limp as he was pounded by fists and feet. Pain racked his body and he could feel his eyelids drooping. He wasn't going to be able to stay conscious for much longer, he knew, but he had to get Venus out of here. He tried twisting his head slightly so that he could focus his eyes on her but found it too painful to do so.

Venus erratically struggled again against her own bindings, her wrists now covered in bleeding welts and blisters. As she went to crouch to give her more grip on the ground, she felt her foot brush against something small and solid. She twisted her neck round to find Leo's Shell-cell behind her. She bent her leg slightly and caught it with her toes, bringing it in front of her. Using her toes, she pressed Donny's contact photo and she saw it begin to ring.

"Leo? Where the heck are you bro? Did you find Venus?"

Leo snapped his head up at the sound of his brother's voice, admiration and instant fear coursing through him. Venus sighed in relief until she saw the group in front of her freeze. Hun turned and growled before storming towards her.

"Leo? What's going on? Where are you-?"

Donny's voice was cut off as Hun crushed the phone beneath his right foot, roaring. He grabbed Venus by the neck and lifted her off the ground. His huge hand gripped her throat, constricting her windpipe. Her breathing became ragged as her eyes bulged slightly, a sharp pressure growing in her chest.

"Lucky for me, Shredder said he wanted you alive, not conscious."

Leo looked on in horror as he watched Venus's struggling lessen as her face took on a slight blue tinge.

"No," he whispered, his own pain forgotten. Her eyes began to close and she went limp. Hun threw her to the ground and Leo saw the colour instantly return to her cheeks upon release. She was alive. He moved his vision to Hun who was pacing between the two terrapins. He seemed nervous for some reason.

"Made a mistake there Hun?" Leo chided, throat raw, but he wanted to see the fear in his enemy's face. He got his wish as a pale pallor came over him. "I doubt Shredder's going to be happy that you nearly killed his apparent prize."

The fear in Hun's eyes changed to swift anger as he grabbed Leo by the throat, mimicking his previous attack. "Careful what you say freak. You don't know what he wants with her yet. Maybe the Master will make you watch just before he tears you to pieces. One last torture that you will never forget, even in death. Can you imagine watching her die? Seeing the pain she will suffer when the Shredder gets a hold of her. And don't think your brothers will be forgotten. All four of you will watch the only chance of your pathetic species' future be extinguished after your rat master is dealt with accordingly. Your human friends will also be found and destroyed before the Master turns to you four. Maybe your brothers will be made to see their proud and honourable leader be tortured and killed, in turn killing off any hope they previously had. Or perhaps you will watch them die, hear their cries of pain and betrayal while you fail to save them." He released the turtle's neck, smirking at the sound of him smacking heavily to the ground. "Either way, your family's end is coming."

Hun's warning made Leo involuntarily shiver. They needed to escape before the Shredder arrived but before he could formulate a plan the beatings began again.

Venus cracked her eyes open a little, breathing deeply. She had feigned blacking out before she really did and became truly useless. Now she could at least try and help them escape. She heard grunts coming from Leo and knew they were hurting him again. She desperately tried to loosen her bindings but only ended up irritating the blisters on her wrist. They were helpless.