[A/N: This is a lengthy chapter, just a heads up. I debated on making it two parts but I couldn't find a place to separate the chapter, so you are stuck with a long chapter til the next update; super sorry! If you don't feel like reading it, I'll recap the main idea of it in the next chapter. Hopefully you enjoy it!]
The next time Karai bumped into Leo, April and Casey during their nightly patrol, the encounter of Shredder popped into her mind. She shook her head aggressively as she struggled to get into her right state of mind, taking a moment to recognize the terrapin and the two teenagers. Before any of them could speak, she jut her face close to Leo's, her eyes wide and full of worry.
Leo noticed this, lifting his hand and letting it cup a side of her face. "What's wrong?"
"Shredder knows about the possible escape pursuit we have planned."
The three drew in a breath. "How did he find out?"
"I am not sure; he confronted me yesterday with Tiger Claw."
April immediately stepped forward, alarmed. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you?"
She shook her head. "No, Tiger Claw only grabbed my arms and face roughly."
Casey growled under his breath. "If I see that stupid cat again, I'm gonna-"
Karai shook her head. "It won't help. I'm not sure if the plan will work, no matter what we do."
"We'll find a way, Karai," Leo replied, looking at her intently. "We will do anything to-"
"He said he would bring harm upon you all, and Splinter as well," Karai interrupted. She looked away, leaving Leo's hand to fall to his side. "I cannot ask you to risk your lives just for me; I won't."
Leo chuckled. "You don't have to, because we're going to, anyways."
"Leo's right. We're not going to leave you behind," April replied, making Karai look at her.
"You're family," Casey added. "We'll take 'em down."
Running back to the lair after their patrol, Leo, April and Casey reported the new information to Splinter and the rest of the turtles. At first, their faces fell or contorted into an angry expression. Raph suddenly raised up from the couch, going into his room and coming back out with his sais. He then fell to the ground, starting to do push ups with his sais in his hands.
"Raph? What are you doing?" Donnie was the first to ask.
"Can't just sit around and do laps anymore. Gotta train up to kick them to the curb," Raph replied, letting out a loud grunt as he pushed up. "So, what are we gonna do about this?"
"Well, we know how tough the Foot are, especially when they're determined and angry," Leo replied. "It won't be an easy escape if they do follow us. We need to amp it up somehow."
Mikey, Donnie and Raph suddenly exchanged looks, then looked to Leo.
"Well, that could be possible," Donnie replied.
Leo looked up to Donnie. "Got an idea?"
"Not exactly, but- -"
"We had a major breakthrough!" Mikey interrupted. "We think we can make Karai's retromutagen now!"
Leo, April, Casey and Splinter's eyes widened.
"What? Really?!" April asked, a wide smile on her face.
"We're not certain, but we have high hopes that this could be the batch to- -" Donnie started, stopping when April engulfed him in a sudden hug.
"I knew you guys could do it!" April chirped, tugging on Mikey's arm and pulling him into the hug. "What'd I tell you!"
Raph stood up and chuckled a bit at the display, as was everyone else. "Okay, so we just gotta retro mutate her and she won't even have to worry about escapin' and bein' caught," Raph said, wiping at his brow. His stomach wasn't feeling so great at the moment, but he assumed he couldn't afford to lay around and wait to get better anymore; he had to start actually training again to prepare for a potential fight.
Donnie's smile slowly faded at Raph's words. "Well, it's not that simple. This batch could retro mutate any mutant. It's complex, but its elements have the ability to return any mutant to its original form."
"So those scum will try to get their hands on it, then," Casey said, a not-so-pleased look on his face. "But do they know about it?"
"No, but when they see us carrying around a batch of retromutagen, they're going to try to take it for themselves."
"Like the time at that creepy amusement park," Mikey added.
"We cannot afford to let this possibility occur," Splinter spoke. "This could be Miwa's only chance at regaining her normal self."
"Master Splinter is right. We can't mess this up," Leo replied.
"Why don't we just get her to come down here?" Mikey asked.
"Because they might follow her down here and find our lair," Donnie answered. "That's too high a risk."
"We're going to have to try our best to hide it or keep it away from them while we're on a patrol, then," Leo declared. "This is probably our only chance."
"Give me and Mikey time to do another trial on the batch?" Donnie asked. "We have to make sure."
Leo was about to reply when Raph interrupted him. "I should start going on patrols then."
Splinter's head turned sharply towards Raph. "My son, you are not healed enough to return to the surface, especially to go into combat."
"Then I need to train in the morning like the guys do," Raph replied stubbornly. "I'm not just gonna sit on the sideline."
"Raph, are you sure?" Leo asked. "Your stomach- -"
"I'll be fine," Raph replied quickly. "I'm doing more laps around the lair with no sweat and with no help from Donnie and Mikey."
Splinter pondered for a moment, eyeing his hotheaded son. He then exhaled softly. "Raphael, you are sure you can handle training so soon?"
Raph immediately nodded. "I do."
"Then be ready for training in the morning. You all should get some rest if you are going to prepare for this."
They all nodded as Splinter left to go to his room. The teenagers all huddled in the pit and began to make a plan; what to bring, where to meet, alternative plans if a certain situation happened- - they covered as much as they could and planned to the brink of midnight. Wary of the time, Leo concluded the planning and said they could keep planning later on, hurrying Casey and April out of the lair. He urged his brothers to go to sleep so that they and himself wouldn't be so tired for training in he morning.
For the next couple of days, they added onto their plan. Leo informed Karai that they could finally have the retromutagen for her, but he was careful not to get her hopes up too high just in case. He also told her that the batch could retro mutate any mutant, which made her a bit worried. April managed to reassure her, telling her that they would do everything in their power to get her back to the way she's desired.
Raph was granted permission to join in on patrols in some matter of time, as his training and his healing had made Splinter's worry waver enough to let him go back to the surface. Leo, Raph and Casey were the main ones to go on patrols, and April helped Mikey and Donnie with the trials of the potential retromutagen for Karai. Sometimes on patrols, one of them would spot the Foot trailing close by or watching them intently. There were some encounters and some fights, which worried everyone since Raph was still in the process of healing. The tension was heavy in the air; it was like humidity. Sometimes, they would spot Shredder watching them, his eyes narrow and cold.
When Donnie eventually felt that the retromutagen would work, he told Leo, and the plan went into action. Little did they know that the night they planned to give Karai her retromutagen, the Foot had decided to ambush them. Karai was informed that all she had to do was stay away from the Foot as best as she could and to meet them where they asked her to.
Before the patrol began, the turtles, April and Casey huddled around Splinter at the entrance to the lair.
"No matter the outcome of tonight, know that you did everything you could possibly do and that you did your best. This is a night you will likely never forget. Try your best to make it a good memorable night. I am proud of you all. Now go."
The teens nodded and rushed off, all with hope swelling in their chests. Leo, Mikey and Casey were a team with Raph, April and Donnie being the other team. Once they emerged from the sewers, they all made their separate ways, climbing rooftops and hopping around the city. Team Awesome (Leo, Mikey and Casey) headed west of the city while Team Bodacious (Raph, Donnie and April) went east. Mikey was proud of the names he gave each team. Team Bodacious's goal was to get as near in range of the docks as they possibly could without giving the Foot any suspicion. Team Awesome's goal was to distract and detour the Foot away from the docks as best as they could. The main goal was to get to Karai with minimal obstacles.
On patrol for the Foot were all the henchmen; Bebop and Rocksteady were near the perimeter of the Shredder's lair while Fishface and Rahzar were instructed to cover as much ground of the city as they could to spot the turtles and their two friends. Shredder and Tiger Claw were awaiting a signal of either the sighting of the turtles and their friends or of the capture of Karai. They had no idea that the turtles were carrying around retromutagen. Shredder had Stockmanfly working furiously on a way to either mutate the turtles to a specimen that ate rats or a way to make them fall under his rule and kill Master Splinter. Regarding April and Casey, he would most likely dispose of them.
Leo, Mikey and Casey were on a building in close range of Shredder's lair, looking over the city and looking for any sign of the Foot. They saw some movement in the distance, waiting for it to get near to determine what it was. It couldn't be Karai; if it was her, the plan could backtrack; but they had planned for that situation. Casey narrowed his eyes and recognized Fishface and Rahzar. He smirked, pounding his fist into his hand.
"Eheh, time to punch some scum."
"Not yet," Leo whispered. "Wait for it."
As the two henchmen drew closer, they looked up and spotted three figures on a rooftop.
"I have long awaited for turtle soup," Fishface declared suddenly, stopping in his tracks. Rahzar turned and looked in the direction Fishface was. He snarled.
"I hope Michelangelo is up there; I would like to give him a special 'thanks' for what he did to me."
"NOW!" Leo yelled, jumping off the rooftop. He landed with no harm and waited to hear Mikey land behind him. As soon as he did, Leo fluidly unsheathed his katanas as Mikey swiftly grabbed his nunchucks spinning, its blades out of its handles. Before Fishface could make a snide remark, photon pucks rained down from the roof and exploded around the two henchmen.
"I miss space," Casey said, beginning to descend from the roof. He stood tall, lowering his mask and narrowing his eyes, smiling behind his mask. "But I missed watching you two dancing for me even more."
"Oh, talking garbage! He would make do for the freakish fly Stockman when we're done with him," Fishface replied, nudging Rahzar.
"Michelangelo. I owe you a proper thanks for what you've done to me. After all, I didn't get to experience how it was to feel like lowlife scum before you came around," Rahzar growled, bucking towards a bit.
"Now, now, you two; haven't you learned?" Leo gave the two henchmen a twisted looking smirk, his eyes hard. "You really shouldn't mess with my family."
Raph, Donnie and April were growing near the docks with no hassle so far. They hadn't been spotted and they hadn't seen any sign of the Foot yet. This was a good sign, as it could mean that Team Awesome were distracting them or that the Foot weren't out. While they used stealth to near the docks, Bebop and Rocksteady were instructed to look for the teens from the lair and not to let them infiltrate it. Bebop noticed some movement on a building from afar and saw a bow staff, letting out a loud "ooh-ooh!"
"What is it, Comrade?" Rocksteady asked. "It better be good; you know I do not like you 'ooh-ooh'ing for no reason."
"I see the brainy turtle," Bebop replied. "Over there! Let's go."
"Nyet; Shredder ordered us to stay and protect the lair."
"Ugh, fiiiiine," Bebop whined. He pulled out a device and spoke into it. "Shredder, we see the turtles. We're gonna go bop 'em."
A 'go' was the only word uttered from the other side. Bebop squealed excitedly as he made his way, with Rocksteady rolling his eyes as he ran soon after.
Raph, April and Donnie were very close to the docks, almost home free, when suddenly they heard a squeal and an excited yell. April turned around, her tessen in hand.
"We've been spotted!" April hissed. Donnie and Raph quickly pulled out their weapons. Donnie shoved the bottle of the retromutagen into his belt, making sure it was secure. "We were so close."
"Don't worry, we can still get there in time," Donnie replied. "We covered this."
"Besides, who doesn't like a good beat down?" Raph smiled, waving his sais in his hands.
April and Donnie glanced at each other before they looked at Raph. "Are you sure you're okay, Raph?" April asked.
Raph's smile faltered. "I'm fine. I've trained enough and I'm feeling okay."
"Just making sure."
"Don't worry about it, all right?" Donnie shot Raph a look, to which Raph sighed at. "Sorry, I didn't mean to sound rude. But I'm okay. Honest."
April smiled a bit. "Okay. Let's get Karai back."
A sudden beam of light burst before them, and Bebop was sliding from the roof across from them to their roof. Rocksteady appeared out of nowhere, joining his side. He huffed hard as he clenched his fists. Bebop had his arms crossed over his chest, and he was laughing.
"Stop giggling like an idiot; it's annoying enough to hear you talk," Raph spat.
"My laughter is a treasure!" Bebop yelled defensively. "If anything's wrong here, it's y'all!"
"You meet fated doom tonight, turtle scum," Rocksteady butt in. "I have long awaited to hear you scream as I pound you into ground."
"And for the lady here," Bebop said, approaching April. "We'll go easy on you, but you're still gonna have your butt kicked!"
"Why did you bring little girl, turtles? She only makes you more weak," Rocksteady laughed.
A sudden swish of movement glided towards them, then a random jolt of pain ran across a part of their faces. The henchmen winced and immediately raised their hands to cover the sudden wound. When they looked down at their hands, they saw some little smudges of red on their hands. They looked up as they heard April chuckle lowly, waving her tessen in her hand.
"Weak, huh?" April smirked.
Rocksteady and Bebop glared at her, taking a step forwards.
"Aw, come on, you know what they say," Raph said, stepping forwards and twirling his sais in his hands. "Talk shit, get hit."
A sound of frustration came from Mikey as he pushed against Rahzar's hands. Rahzar was hovering over him and pushing down on him to try to get him to fall, to which he would slam on the turtle if successful. Mikey kept his arms as straight as he could so that there was no way Rahzar would get the advantage, focusing his strength into his arms. He used one of his feet to push himself up, grunting as he started pushing back more than Rahzar was. Rahzar growled and started pushing back, using his strength in his arms. Mikey glanced down for a second and saw that Rahzar had poor footing on the ground. He quickly looked back at Rahzar, then dropped to the ground and spun his legs under Rahzar, watching as he fell. Mikey quickly jumped back up, managing to grab his nunchucks from the ground before Rahzar got back up.
Leo and Casey were double-team attacking Fishface, meanwhile, avoiding his knife. They also knew to not get near Fishface's face, as he could bite them and poison them like he had done with Raph. Casey wanted to get near enough to the live, talking sushi so that he could shock him, which would- - hopefully- - give enough of a jolt to make his gear dysfunctional and take him out of the battle. When Fishface thrust toward them, trying to jab them with his knife, Casey pushed his arms out and placed them on Fishface, pressing down hard as the electricity from his gloves started to surge throughout the fish. Casey and Leo were a bit disturbed by the noises that Fishface made as the jolts went through his body, but the job was done. Fishface flopped to the ground.
Rahzar's attention turned towards the flopping fish and he went over to check on him. Fishface tried using his robotic legs to get up, but it seemed that the circuits were fried. Fishface started shallowly gasping, as the jolt had managed to cut off the flow of his water supply. Fishface growled lowly, ready to fight some more. But when he looked up, he saw a cloud of smoke. When the smoke subsided, the two turtles and the vigilante were nowhere to be seen. Rahzar snarled a bit and turned his attention back to Fishface. He had to get him back to Shredder's lair, even if it wasn't what he wanted to do.
As he grabbed hold of Fishface, Rahzar spoke as if he were talking to himself. "Master, Xever is down, and they have escaped."
On the other side of the line, Rahzar heard an abrupt pound. "See to it that Xever returns alive. Then join the pig and the rhino; they are battling with some of the turtles. Tiger Claw and I shall set out to join the battle soon."
Raph and Donnie had their attention focused on Rocksteady, avoiding his charges as best they could. When they were able to, they landed an attack on him, but it was proving difficult with the rhino's dexterity and speed. Rocksteady noticed a container in Donnie's belt, eyeing it a while before he registered it as retromutagen. He was about to launch for it when Donnie leaped up and smacked his bow staff on the rhino's head.
April was doing well on her own against Bebop, avoiding his punches and his technological advances. April felt a buzz from her pocket, groaning as she struggled to answer it.
"Kind of busy right now!" She yelled as Bebop tried to strike another blow on her.
"Red, we're comin' for ya!" Casey replied from the other side of the line. "Don't think we'll be alone, though!"
"Okay sounds good bye!"
"Awh, can't handle me?" Bebop asked, smiling smugly. "Don't blame you; I'm a package, after all, ooh-ooh!"
"Yeah, right!" April growled as she landed a kick on Bebop's torso. He snorted, stopping for a moment before he ran for her again. The two stopped as they heard a yell from the distance. Rocksteady stopped as well, so Raph and Donnie landed some punches on him as he was distracted. Leo, Mikey and Casey suddenly jumped into view, their weapons already in their hands.
"Aw, great, more of these fools?!" Bebop whined, turning his attention back to April. "More of ya to beat down; sounds good to m-eeeee!"
One of Casey's photon pucks landed right by Bebop's foot, making him lose his footing and fall down. "Suckah!"
A sudden burst surprised Casey, causing him to fall as well. Bebop chuckled as he got back on his feet. He had a small white disk in between his fingers. "You ain't the only one with explosive devices, suckah!" Bebop started to dance suddenly, moonwalking and thrusting his hips as shots of a purple substance burst from his belt and towards April. One brushed by her and landed near her. Casey narrowed his eyes and jumped up, landing onto Bebop's back. "Get off me, fool!"
"Try me, pig!" Casey laughed, pulling on Bebop's backpack. Bebop growled and let himself fall backwards, chuckling hysterically as Casey groaned and rubbed the back of his head.
"Nice try, punk, but I got more moves that oughta knock ya out!" Bebop turned his attention back to April, who was eyeing him with a cold look. He raised his hand to brush his mohawk, smiling as April's eyes widened. A laser burst from his mohawk, beaming in her direction. She couldn't move to avoid it, so she raised her tessen and had the beam bounce back to Bebop. He laughed a bit. "Ya got spunk, girl; I like you!"
"Leave her alone!" Casey yelled, swinging one of his hockey sticks at Bebop. It smashed on Bebop's back, making the pig writhe a bit before he straightened back up. He turned to look at the teenage boy. "Come get me."
Meanwhile, all four of the turtles were dealing with Rocksteady. With all of them working together, they were managing to tire out the rhino. It seemed that they were going to be able to defeat him, help out with Bebop, and get away. Rocksteady dropped to the ground on his hands and knees, breathing hard. The turtles ceased their attacks, turning their attention to Bebop. Rocksteady smiled to himself, putting on his brass knuckles and getting up. His eyes landed on Raph as he stood, so he immediately charged for him. Leo heard the rushing steps before the other three, and his eyes went small. He turned and jumped in front of the charging rhino, ready for the surge of pain to come.
Rocksteady was fine with this; harming any of the turtles was a step in the right direction. As he watched Leo's body propel towards a building he was bound to smash against, he equipped grenades in his hands. Raph felt a sudden draft of air beside him and watched, along with the others, as he crashed into the side of a small structure on the roof.
"Leo!" Raph yelled, running to Leo immediately. Leo didn't respond for a moment, worrying Raph, but then he coughed, bringing his hand to touch the back of his shell. "Leo, are you okay?"
"I-I'll be fine," Leo replied slowly, getting on his feet. "Come on, we can't stop now."
"Leo, you're hurt real bad," Raph said, halting him.
"Gotta keep trying," Leo replied, his voice tight. "Gotta give it my all."
Raph sighed, nodding and charging at the rhino alongside his brother. Rocksteady landed his brass knuckled punches on the two terrapins' torsos, then pulled out the grenades he had ready. "Comrade!" Rocksteady yelled to Bebop. Bebop met his glance, and they both nodded.
"Get rekt, suckahs!" Bebop squealed as he and Rocksteady dropped their explosive devices to the ground. The turtles and the two teens managed to respond in time, jumping away from where they threw down the explosives and sprinting to another roof. They all waited for some sign of the two henchmen as black smoke rose up. Lasers burst from within the smoke, almost hitting Mikey and Casey. "We ain't done with y'all yet! And we brought some friends!" From the smoke, the two emerged along with Rahzar, Tiger Claw, and Shredder.
The six teens tensed immediately, frozen to their spots.
"Awh, sewer apples," Mikey muttered.
"Come on, guys," Leo said slowly. "We planned for this."
"Zed?" Donnie asked quietly.
Leo nodded. "Zed. Go."
Donnie nodded, slowly stepping back as Leo and Mikey shifted in front of Donnie. Donnie ducked his head down and gave a nod towards April and Leo as he slowly managed to get away from the battle.
"Okay, so being cornered or worn down is something that will most likely happen," Donnie had pointed out. "We can't leave that out."
"Donnie's right; if they see us, they're going to put up a fight," Leo agreed.
"So, we do a backup plan if we're worn out or surrounded," Raph said, trying to clarify. "What happens if its both?"
The six teens pondered on this.
"Oooh oooh!" Mikey raised his hand enthusiastically.
Leo chuckled. "Yes, Mikey?"
"We could call it plan Zed; the last resort." Mikey had his arms together in front of him, then he slowly expanded them out. "If some or all of us are too worn out or hurt, and they surround us, we get some of us to leave one by one without letting them notice."
April nodded understandingly. "So since Donnie has the retromutagen, he would go first."
"Who else would go?" Mikey asked. They all turned to Leo.
Leo had been deep in thought; his finger tapping his chin as he tapped his foot. His brow was creased and his eyes were squinted. It took a moment before he finally registered the stares he could feel on him. He looked up slightly, dropping his hand and stopping his foot tapping. "...what?"
"Who'll go during plan Zed?" Raph asked. "Don is a definite."
"Okay, Donnie would go first. Following him could be April, just in case Karai can't snap back into her right mind by herself, then Raph could go afterwards."
"Sounds like a good deal. So then you, Mikey and Casey would be left distracting them?"
"Dudes, what if Shredder is there?" Mikey asked suddenly.
They all turned to look at Mikey. "Why would Shredder be there when he hasn't come out for any other fights?" Casey asked.
"We do need to prepare for anything," April replied. "And it is Karai. He wants to get her back too. He might come out just to get her."
"If that's the case, then we'd need to re-prioritize. Shredder isn't honor bound, and he's tough. We could stick to trying to take down the rest before we fight him, or we could fight and land a few blows on him along the way," Leo responded. "Though, if we take them all down, we could be worn out to the point where he could take us down easily, or there's the chance that they defeat us and he... gets his way."
"So what do we do?" Raph asked.
"We'll fight and try to avoid him. Most likely, he'll wait and watch until he can make the final move. It's how he is. He wants the last strike."
As Donnie slipped away, he was silently thanking that none of the Foot had noticed. He waited until he was far away enough to start running, focused on making it to the docks.
"You should back down, Shredder," Leo announced loudly. "She doesn't want to go back with you. If you loved her, you- -"
"You dare try to separate me from my daughter?" Shredder bellowed. Even under his kabuto could he feel his glare.
"Man, if looks could kill..." Mikey muttered.
"She's not your daughter! You kidnapped her, you killed her mother, and you've done nothing but hurt her!"
"You fool; you shall meet your fate." With that said, his henchmen started to advance towards the teens, yelling battle cries. Luckily, before they charged, April had managed to leave.
Rocksteady advanced towards Raph, Tiger Claw attacked Leo, Rahzar made a beeline for Mikey, and Bebop started dancing towards Casey. None of them were aware that two of the six teens were not present, as they were completely focused on eliminating these pesky children.
"Donnie, wait up!" April whisper-yelled, running towards him. Donnie stopped in his tracks, looking back.
"April? You're here already?" Donnie asked. He felt a bit anxious.
"Yeah, what's wrong?"
"It feels like you slipped away too soon," Donnie replied, twiddling his fingers. "Never mind that. You're here now. Let's go before someone notices."
The two ran to the docks, both taking turns on looking back to see if they were being followed. April suddenly felt an ominous presence, slowing down for a moment but then quickening her pace. "Donnie, we're being followed, and it's someone dangerous."
"Misdirect," Donnie replied hastily, taking a sudden turn.
"Donnie!" April yelped, following him.
"How many?" Donnie asked.
"Just one."
Something suddenly dropped in front of them, stopping them in their tracks. When the face was revealed, April and Donnie groaned.
"You have something Shredder wants. Time to give it up," Hun said, smiling. "Let's not waste time; just hand it o-" Donnie swung his staff under Hun's feet, watching as he fell to the hard ground. Hun laughed once, standing back up. "Man, kids these days. They just don't learn." Hun did a series of ridiculous poses before making an advance towards April.
"Why does everyone come for me?" April groaned. She rolled her eyes as she dodged Hun's punch and struck him with her tessen, hearing him hiss. "Thinks I'm an easy target, serves him right."
Donnie chuckled as April grumbled to herself, starting to assist her. "You should get out of here while you can. April doesn't play nice." Donnie suddenly fell back, and he gripped his stomach. "Jeez, neither should I."
Hun showed several more poses, which made it easy to land some blows on him. He was skilled, but he liked to show it in an... odd way.
"Where are the rest of you?" April wondered.
Hun laughed. "I'm the only one that's got skills and can actually fight. Those losers ca-"
"We don't have time for this!" Donnie groaned, throwing down a smoke bomb. He grabbed April's arm and started to run as the cloud of smoke started to fade away. They managed to take a turn that was out of Hun's viewing range. The two took a quick breather before starting to run for the docks again. Karai should be waiting there, and having her wait wasn't something they wanted. The longer the wait, the more of the chance of her going away was.
Watching all the fighting going on, Shredder noticed that two of the six teens were not battling. Shredder glared, suddenly yelling, halting the fight.
He glared down at the teens. "Where are your other two."
The henchmen looked at the four, then noticed that two of them were missing.
"The brainy turtle has retromutagen," Rocksteady said, turning to Shredder.
"Those fools had retromutagen and you didn't grab it?!" Bebop yelled.
"Stop. You; look around the city and look for heat signatures of the terrapin and the girl."
"Finally; been wantin' to get back to my old self-"
"You fool; they know where Karai is," Shredder interrupted with a harsh tone. "Find them and we get my daughter back."
"What about the four we currently have, Master Shredder?" Tiger Claw asked. The four turned to look, instantly groaning as the four were gone and a cloud of smoke arose.
"Get Karai by any means possible!" Shredder yelled, watching as the four immediately started running.
Donnie raised his vibrating T-Phone to his face, answering the call.
"Shredder and the Foot are following us; they figured it out. How close are you?" Leo asked.
"We're almost there; are you going to be able to hold them off?"
"They're looking for you two. We'll try our best."
"Okay, w-" Donnie bumped into something, but he couldn't see what. April joined his side, making sure he was okay. "What the-?"
"Donnie? Is everything okay?" Leo asked from his side of the line. "Donnie? What's going on?"
"Oohohohohoo, y'all thought you could get away!" A high pitched laugh followed the comment. Bebop turned off his cloaking mechanism, eyeing Donnie. "And with retromutagen, too! I could go back to my old beautiful self, and you tried to take it away from me!"
Donnie grumbled. "Bebop."
"Why don't I make ya a deal? Hand it over, and I'll let y'all go! Easy, right?"
"This isn't for you," April spat. "You don't know what this batch could do to you."
"I know if y'all tried so hard to sneak away with it, it's gotta work on any mutant, amirite?" Bebop laughed, already starting to dance.
Donnie let out a loud grunt of frustration, sweeping one leg behind Bebop's legs and one in front of them, twisting his body and watching the dancing idiot smack to the ground. Donnie jumped up and started running behind April. Before Bebop could get up, Donnie threw some ninja stars that surrounded Bebop, and one struck his belt, breaking the circuits of the belt and its abilities. Bebop growled as he looked down at his broken belt.
"Breaking my belt, might as well break them."
As they dashed away, Donnie raised his phone to his head again. "Leo, you still there?"
"Yeah, you okay?"
"Fine. Are they following you?"
"Yeah; we went with plan Fooled Ya."
"Try to meet us as soon as you can."
Donnie hung up, sliding his phone back into his belt. He drew in a breath, running more quickly than before. It took a moment for April to catch up with him, but she managed to. "What's going on?"
"They went with Fooled Ya."
"So it's just us right now?"
"Pretty much."
"And a pig who can see body signatures. Great."
"Guys, come on, we can't keep her waiting at the abandoned warehouse all night!" Mikey yelled, gasping and throwing his hand over his mouth quickly.
"MIKEY!" Casey, Leo and Raph yelled angrily.
As the four watched Rocksteady, Tiger Claw and Rahzar turn a bit in the direction of the abandoned warehouse, they smiled a bit before dashing behind the Foot. Mikey swung a nunchuck under Rahzar and watched him fall, smiling innocently as they passed him. Leo threw a ninja star at one of the tiny engines on Tiger Claw's jetpack and watched as he slowly descended to the ground. Raph and Casey jumped on top of Rocksteady, thrashing on him and hopping off as they tipped the rhino to the ground. They hurried in the direction of the warehouse, starting to take the plan into action.
Leo and Raph found an entrance and entered the warehouse, having Mikey and Casey follow. They sorted out the explosives they needed for this plan and planned a route in which to escape if the Foot caught up, which they probably would. They would have to work quickly. They had planted a bag in the warehouse with mannequin heads that they styled to have either Karai's haircut or styled to look like Karai's face in her snake form, the heads of April, Donnie and Raph. They went with the snake head along with taking out the heads of Donnie and April, getting rid of the bag with the other heads in it. They grabbed nearby sticks and jabbed it in the heads, giving it to Mikey and Casey, who would be shielding 'Karai' during the pursuit and have 'April and Donnie' running ahead. Just as they got rid of the bag, the Foot made their own entrance from above.
"If you want to live, sto-" Tiger Claw stopped talking as Leo and Raph threw the explosives at a wall and got away from the explosion. Black smoke clouded the inside of the warehouse for enough time for the teens to get a head start. When enough of the smoke subsided, the Foot went through the large hole and followed the teens. Spotting the 'head of Karai,' Tiger Claw started running faster, pulling out one of his guns and shooting at the teens. "Master Shredder, they have Karai. You should join us now."
"Okay, guys, you know what to do now," Leo said to the group. They all nodded, starting to take a route that would lead to the docks.
Mikey laughed to himself as he threw several smoke bombs to cover their tracks. "Fooled ya," he said in a sing-song tone.
Donnie and April reached the docks, looking around for any sign of Bebop. He couldn't use cloaking or anything on his belt, but he still had some tricks up his sleeve. April kept watch as Donnie looked around for Karai. He was silently hoping nothing else would happen to prolong the objective. He looked up as he heard a holler from above. He was hoping it wasn't Bebop, as he didn't want to deal with him. When his eyes landed on Mikey, he let out a sigh of relief. Mikey and Casey dropped their props, joining- - along with Raph and Leo- - Donnie and April.
Donnie, Raph and Leo began to search around for Karai while Casey, April and Mikey were the lookouts. Raph was the one who found Karai; she was huddled in a tight spot, hard to find except for the fact that her eyes shone through the dark.
"Karai, it's Raph. We got the retromutagen; come out."
Sensing that the figure was not a threat, Karai slithered out of her hiding place, squinting at the brightness of the moon.
"Leo, Donnie! I found her!" Raph yelled, turning his attention to her as they ran to him.
"Karai?" Leo said, looking at her intently. "Can you understand us?"
Karai blinked a few times before her eyes flashed with recognition. "You're all alive?" She asked.
Donnie stifled a laugh. "That's what I was thinking, too," Donnie mumbled to himself.
"Donnie," Raph chuckled, elbowing him.
Waiting until they were given the clear, April, Mikey and Casey were on high guard.
"Did they follow you guys?" April asked.
"They lost track of us," Mikey smiled. "Dudes, we actually got away with it!"
"Don't jinx it, bro," Casey replied.
Suddenly, Shredder and his clan appeared, all surrounding the three. They had been searching from above, and they had spotted the three once they stepped on crates. Tiger Claw and Rocksteady positioned themselves in front of the teens while Rahzar and Bebop had been positioned behind. Shredder was in between his strongest, his figure threatening enough already.
Casey groaned. "You jinxed it!"
Hearing a loud groan from Casey, Leo was on high alert. "Shredder must have found us."
Karai's eyes widened. "Shredder?" She started to back into her hiding spot. "You must escape. Leave me here; you all shouldn't die for my sake."
"No one's dying, Karai," Leo tried to assure her. "Raph, Donnie, come on; we're not done yet. Karai, stay here, okay?"
"But Leo- -" Karai didn't get the chance to finish, as the three had already dashed away. "You could have given me the retromutagen."
As the three went to go see what was going on, the Foot were starting to close in on the other three.
"Stop!" Leo yelled, making sure he got their attention.
"Hand over Karai to me now, or you will surely suffer," Shredder said, stepping towards them.
"We'll take our chances. She's never going back with you; not on our watch."
"You fools will make nice trophies; it will be especially pleasant when the rat lays eyes on you."
Before another battle could begin, Karai slithered into view. "Ssstop!"
Everyone turned to look at her. Leo felt his heart stop and eyes go small. "Karai, no!"
"Karai," Shredder said, shoving aside Leo harshly. "My daughter..."
"Do not get near me," Karai hissed. When Shredder wouldn't cease his steps, she shut her eyes tightly. "Father. I am dangerous." Just saying that word to Shredder was like poison filling her lungs.
"I will assure vengeance for you, daughter. The Hamato clan will surely pay for what they have done to you," Shredder said, frozen in place. "Come with me."
"No." Karai raised her head to look at Donnie. "Donatello."
Donnie gulped quietly. "Yeah?"
"The retromutagen. Let's see if it works."
Donnie nodded, walking slowly towards Karai, being cautious as he passed Shredder. He locked eyes with Karai before he shut them, taking the container out from his belt. He raised his finger to the trigger, pushing on it and hearing the multiple spritzes. He opened his eyes slowly, watching as she abruptly fell to the ground, starting to writhe in pain. "K-Karai!"
They all watched as she slowly transitioned from her mutant form back to her original form. Her scales all fell off and her pale skin returned to its original tone. Her eyes were no longer green, and she no longer had snakes for hands or a tail. Donnie bent down and checked on her. She weakly draped an arm around his shoulders, using her other arm to grab onto his arm as he slowly got them both on their feet. She felt weak yet every muscle and joint in her body felt as if she had just done an intense workout. She weakly looked to the people staring at her, heavily relying on Donnie on keeping her standing.
Shredder took off his kabuto, taking just one step forward. "Karai- -"
"Just- leave me alone. I need time to recover."
"Recover at home," Shredder replied, about to make another step towards her.
"Stay back!" Karai yelled suddenly, pure strain and frustration in her voice. "Don't come near me. Don't touch me."
"You called me father."
"Being a kunoichi means you have to learn the art of deception," Karai spat. "I lied." She drew out a heavy breath, managing to stand up herself. "I'm not going with you or the turtles."
That caught everyone's attention. "You're not coming home with us?" Mikey asked, his voice filled with sadness.
"No. Shredder will probably try to follow. I don't want any more fights tonight. Everyone get lost."
They all shuffled awkwardly, parting their ways. The Foot followed Shredder as he somehow respected Karai's wishes and headed back to his lair. The turtles, April and Casey all stayed put, not sure on what they were supposed to do. Donnie was still supporting her.
"Uhm, Karai, do you need finding a place to stay tonight?" Donnie asked. "W-we don't want you sleeping on the streets, especially when you're in so much pain."
Karai had a coughing fit for a minute, her posture dropping towards the ground. Donnie lifted her up, not minding that all her weight was pressed into him. They all looked at her worriedly. They approached her, which she didn't seem to mind.
"Come stay at my place tonight," April said suddenly. "I'm sure my dad won't mind."
Karai laughed weakly. "You sure you're okay with me near your dad after that time I made him lie to you?"
April smile weakly. "You didn't have much of a choice."
Karai sighed. "If... if you don't mind. It's just one night."
"Not at all. I'll try to help you feel better."
"Th-thanks, April. Thank you all," Karai said, exchanging looks with them all. She looked at Leo a little longer than the rest. Leo was the one who knew she wasn't good at saying it, and his smile made her feel a little better despite her current position. "Could you help me to her place? I'm not really..."
Raph slung her other arm around him, looking at her. "That's what family is for."