Leonardo smiled when he saw the unconscious young man twitch, as though he were coming around. The blue-masked turtle rested a hand under the thug's chin, raising his head so that he would be eye to eye with him when he woke up. The human blinked rapidly, and didn't seem to actually see Leonardo at first. When his forehead furrowed and eyes widened, the turtle was fairly certain the man recognized him.
"Hey," Leonardo offered. "Long time no see. What is it that they call you? Emilio, right?"
The young man's breath caught in his chest, and he automatically tried to struggle against the leather strips that bound him upright to a hardback chair.
Leonardo chuckled. "You're not going anywhere just yet, though there is a field trip in order."
The human trembled severely before forcing a bold expression.
Leonardo was tempted to laugh at the youth's false bravado, but decided to maintain a serious note. "It's over you know," he told him casually. "Your other buddies have already been picked up."
Emilio sneered at him. "Over? What you busted up tonight ends nothing."
Leonardo remained calm as he patted his shoulder. "The police and the FBI are on to your gang...and if anything slips through their nets, we're still around to pick up the slack."
He motioned to his brothers, and saw the human go instantly paler as the other turtles stepped out of the shadows to join him.
Emilio was visibly struggling to uphold some kind of courage. "What business do you freaks have taking over our territory?"
Leonardo saw the flash of silver, but did nothing to stop Raphael from needling one of his sai directly under the young man's throat.
"Be careful, punk," the red-masked turtle hissed. "You're staring into the face of weeks of pent-up rage, and I'd love nothing more than to unload it on your sorry tail."
"So kill me," he replied defiantly. "It doesn't matter to me what you do."
"No one said anything about killing you," Leonardo corrected. "That would be too quick. You're not getting off that easy."
"Then what do you intend to do with me? Talk me to death?"
Leonardo lightly guided Raphael's weapon away from the Emilio's throat, and then brushed a finger under the human's ear to find the recess between his jaw and his skull. He didn't grasp the pressure point very long initially - hopefully just enough time to leave an impact on him.
"Do I have your attention yet?" Leonardo asked in a low voice.
The young man swore at him loudly, at which point the turtle reached for the pressure point a second time.
"That was a 'yes' or 'no' question." This time he didn't let go, waiting for the word from the youth.
"I...yes, I'm listening!"
The blue-masked turtle kept his face impassive. "Good, because I have another question for you, and you'd better have the right answer." Leonardo let go of his jaw-line and leaned closer to him so that he was inches from his face. "You have something that belongs to me, and I want it back. I have two reliable sources who assured me that you possess one of my katana."
"No-I didn't touch it! I don't have it!" The words dripped of dishonesty even as they left his mouth.
"I know you don't have it with you, but don't bother pretending you don't have anything to do with them."
"I don't have your blades, freak!"
Leonardo smiled grimly. "You know where both of them are, don't you?"
"That's not what I sai-Ah, no!" Emilio reacted severely as Leonardo depressed the pressure point harder than the times before.
"Tell me," he said warningly.
The young man tried to get his head out of Leonardo's hands, but couldn't break the turtle's grip.
"A deal!" he gasped. "I'll make a deal with you! I'll take you to the swords, but after that, you let me go. Your precious weapons, for my freedom."
The blue-masked turtle shook his head. "Sorry. This isn't a negotiation, and we're not letting you go. You're a wanted man, and the only other place you're going is to jail. The reward for returning my property is that we won't kick your tail before we turn you in. How does that sound?" Leonardo's tone flattened as he gave the young man a dangerous glare.
Emilio swallowed. "I will not agree to anything, unless you set me free. Besides, if you turn me in to the police, I will tell them all about you."
He appeared to be startled when all four turtles laughed.
"If you're gonna try and cop insanity, you'll want to start with something more believable." Raphael snorted. "Telling them you got held up by four giant talking turtles might sound a little too over the top."
"I'm not crazy! The others will tell them! They'll back up anything I say."
"Right, and the police and the FBI are supposed to take your word for it," Raphael said mockingly. "The offer's on the table, and if you're not taking it, say the word. We're dying to get a piece of you."
"If you touch me, you'll never find them!" he blurted out.
Donatello's palms came to rest on his shoulders that time. "I wouldn't say that. We found you, didn't we? We already know where you spend the majority of your time. We can go tear apart a few rooms. Would you like to think about this a little more?"
Emilio's dark eyes were bulging now as he gazed from one turtle to the next. "Do what you must. I will not help you unless I am promised my freedom in return."
The low growl that left Raphael's mouth made the young man stiffen, but Splinter stepped forward before the red-masked turtle could act.
"I wonder if I might have a word with our thief?"
Leonardo instantly stepped aside for his Master, and his brothers followed suite.
"I do not believe you are either as brave or fool-hardy as you pretend to be," Splinter told him.
The blue-masked turtle barely repressed a grin when the young man features lost more color upon seeing Splinter for the first time.
"Let me assure you, young man, I have lived many years, and I know a coward when I see one. You feel powerless in yourself. That is why you have to exercise so much force over other people, to prove your superiority. Even now, you are trying to hold on to some of that power. It is not going to work. My sons are more than capable of retrieving these weapons without your assistance, but it would not be wise for you to refuse them. You are not even worthy to bear the blades of a ninjutsu warrior."
"I know this isn't real, it can't be," Emilio murmured, as though finally overwhelmed. "Swords, and warriors, and...and animals that talk..."
"You are inviting unnecessary pain upon yourself, young man. Be silent and consider how much these katanas are worth to you. They will do you no good once you are behind bars, will they?"
Leonardo had to exercise extreme discipline to keep a straight face while Splinter's onyx eyes appeared to be boring a hole through Emilio's forehead. The young man trembled again as Splinter bent closer to him.
"You will tell us where they are. You will take us to them now. If you deviate, I swear you will live to regret it."