A/N: Once again. Sorry Raphael. Hang in there big guy. Only one more chapter left and the epilogue.
Please read and enjoy!:D
Disclaimer: I only own my oc's, no tmnt characters of any kind :(
Chapter 28
Once again, Raphael found himself shackled to the wall. He looked around at his new surroundings and saw other cages that also contained animals. There was a proboscis monkey hiding in the corner of it's cage. It looked absurd with it's over sized nose and belly.
In a cage beside the monkey was a calf. On closer inspection, there were two extra legs that dangled from her shoulder. Beside Raph was a large cat. Not a lion, not a tiger. It was a liger. And instead of looking magnificent, his fur was dull, and his sides were sunken in from starvation. The big cat stared blankly out through its bars. Farther down, he heard the loud snorts of a horse. Frantically it paced back and forth in it's stall, driven mad from being penned up. There was also a bear with odd fur and an orange patch on his chest, a tapir, and a two headed cat.
Raphael sighed, as he struggled to sit up. "Where is this place?" he muttered aloud.
"Welcome, turtle. You are now part of Vincent's animals of wonder!"
Raphael rolled his eyes in the direction the voice came from. Standing in front of his cage was a plump stout man. He had thinning black hair and a mustache that curled comically under his large nose.
"Wonderful," Raph muttered.
Vincent frowned as he looked upon him. "I was hoping you would be able to show off your human like skills." He spoke morosely. "But no matter. Just having your presence here is more than enough to draw the public's attention. I already have your debut show booked for tomorrow night."
Raph was disinterested. Nothing from here on in would surprise him. He had no fight left. If he was going to be a show piece then so be it.
Vincent didn't notice that Raphael wasn't listening. His excitement over having a new specimen kept him babbling like a school girl.
"Of course you will have to be washed up. Can't let you be looking too dirty." He changed his voice to a more serious tone. " And I want you to be in performance tomorrow. Don't be scared to rouse the crowd, if you know what I mean. People like to be scared. It's weird. But it's what puts food on my plate."
Rouse the people? Why would I want to scare them? I spent half my life protecting the people of New York? It this how their defender should be portrayed? thought Raph.
Before Vincent turned and walked away, banging on the other cages as he passed them..
Raphael closed his eyes. His only wish was to be let alone.
Not put on display among the list of nature's mistakes.
***
"Ottawa?" Leonardo gasped. "They took Raphael to Canada?"
Donatello nodded. "That's where his show is held. Apparently this guy travels to the United States and buys his animals there. "
Raine felt the color drain from her face. "But... but how far away is that?
"710 kilometers to be exact," Donatello informed her.
"How many hours away, though?" Casey asked.
"About seven hours," Don answered.
"Well, I guess we are in for a long drive," Leo stated, flatly. "Casey are you coming with us?"
"You bet, Leo!" Casey replied. He slammed his right fist into his left palm. "This Vincent character is going to be sorry."
"I will stay here," Raine said. As much as she wanted to be there when they found Raph, she knew her sister needed her too.
Leo nodded.
"It would be advisable for you to rest, my sons, before taking on such a journey."
Leonardo shot Splinter an impatient look. Splinter matched it with a firm stare. Leo lowered his eyes to the floor, surrendering.
"Very well," he spoke. "We rest first. Then we leave."
"Very good," Splinter praised.
Leonardo said nothing more. He bowed to Splinter before he excused himself from the room. He went to his bed room and lay on his bed.
However, he could not sleep.
***
Vincent practically danced with excitement as his trainers brought the animals one by one to their designated show display. Raphael crinkled his nose in disgust as he was led into the new part of the building. It was cleaner than the former and the air smelled fresher. These cages were decorated accordingly to the animal displayed inside. Raphael was led to the last cage adorned with jungle leaves.
The Great Turtle Man! Was scrolled across the top of the door. Inside was a small bed of straw in the far corner. In the middle of the floor was a chair and a table with a bowl of apples and bananas. A newspaper was rolled up beside the blue bowl. Raphael eyed it quizzically.
"It's for the fans," Vincent explained, as the handler secured Raphael's shackles. "I expect you to sit, read the paper...you know…act as normally as you can."
Yeah, right! Raph thought.
Raphael curled up in the far corner of the cage. He kept his back in the direction of the spectators.. Even when he heard the sounds of the crowd, he didn't give them a single glance.
"Get up," Todd, his handler, demanded.
Raph yawned and kept his horizontal position. He could hear the disappointed sighs and mumbles.
Good! Get angry. Just be glad you ain't in here!
"I said get up!" Todd stood up and using a speared prod, he poked Raphael's body repeatedly. "You stubborn beast!" He drew back and rammed the spear into a fresh wound on his leg.
Raph's head shot up and he glared at Todd.
"Now!" Todd demanded, raising the spear again. Raph sighed heavily, knowing he would get no peace until he obeyed the command. Slowly he stood and lumbered to the middle of the cage.
"He's hideous," one girl shrieked, before huddling into her boyfriend's protective arms.
"He's awesome," breathed a young boy in total awe.
"He's fake," another said, unimpressed. "It's just a costume."
"Go ahead. Do something," Todd whispered.
Raphael glanced at Todd. His eyes were void of any feeling.
"Is he vicious?" a man asked Todd.
"Oh sir, yes. I broke him myself. But rest assured, he can't hurt you."
"He looks wild," another agreed.
Todd leapt into another tall tale about how they captured Raphael and that he was one of four.
"There are three others?"
"Yup. We are still on the look out for them." He glared at Raph.
"Don't talk about them," Raph warned in a whisper.
"It...talks?" an older lady blurted.
OHH shell!
"Did you teach it to talk to?"
"Why, yes we did."
"Liar," Raph mumbled.
"Again! It talked again!"
"It's just like a parrot," Todd scrambled for explanations. He glared at Raph. "Or a monkey."
"I am not a monkey," Raph defended himself weakly.
"Shut up freak," Todd seethed.
"He is a freak!" another spectator shouted. He threw a half eaten donut. It slipped through the bars and hit Raphael in the face.
Huh? Are they that stupid and blind to see what is going on?
Before he knew it, he was standing in front of a raging crowd. They saw him as a monster. They loved to hate him.
Raphael shook his head and retreated to the back of the cage.
"No, you don't. We got paying customers to see you," Todd growled. Bravely, and armed with the prod, he entered the cage to retrieve Raph. He walked up to him and started pulling on his chains.
"Leave me be," Raph half begged.
"You get out there," Todd ordered. He got in beside Raph and shoved He dragged Raphael out and shackled him in place. He made him sit in the chair, on display.
Humiliated, Raph hung his head. He refused to look up or talk any more.
For once, he found himself wishing his brothers wouldn't find him. He wanted to spare them the humiliation.
"Leo!" his mind yelled out beyond the cosmos. "If you knew what is good for you, you will stay home!"
***
"Mikey? Mikey? Wake up. We are finally across the border," Casey called out, shaking the sleeping turtle's shoulders.
"We are?" he asked tiredly as he rubbed his eyes. He sat up and stretched his muscled arms above his head and yawned.
"Yes," Don replied. "Leo, what is the address again?"
"Take the Veteran's Memorial highway. You can turn off to Fallow Field road. It's right there," Leonardo answered from the passenger's seat. Mikey leaned into the space between his brothers over the console.
"Dudes, so you really think Raph is there?" he asked.
"He better be," Don answered.
Leo nodded. While the others were resting, he had tried to contact Raphael one more time. The vision was hazy and didn't last very long. It was almost as though Raphael was trying to push him out of his mind. Why that was, he was not sure.
Donatello drove according to Leo's instructions. He paced the van down a road and watched the signs on the left hand side. For most of the drive, all they saw was trees. On the left hand side was an animal farm.
"Stop the van!" Leo's sharp tone startled Don, causing him to slam his foot on the brake. The van came to a dead stop.
"Ouch!" Mikey whined as slammed forward. .
"Sorry guys," Don apologized, sheepishly. He turned to Leo. "What did you see?"
"There," Leo replied. Don followed his gaze.
"This is it," Don beamed, as he read Vincent's sign.
"Finally. I am ready for a work out after that drive," Casey said. He leaned his head side to side, cracking his cervical bones.
"Ah, Case. Why don't you stay here with the van?" Leo asked. "We will go in and get Raph out."
"Awww, " Casey whined, placing his hands on his hips.. "Why can't I come?"
"Because we need somebody to stay with the van and be ready,"Leo replied, trying to maintain his patience.
"Besides, dude," Mikey added. "This is a job for highly trained ninjas only." He issued Casey a teasing wink.
"What do you mean highly trained? I am just as capable as any of you guys, " Casey scowled.
"Please, Casey. Can you co-operate just this once?" Leo asked, anxiously.
"Okay, Leo. Fine. Just get in there and get Raph out," Casey sighed, giving in. He took Don's spot behind the wheel. He leaned back against the seat.
"We will call you on the turtle cell when we are ready," Leo instructed.
"Gotch'ya," Casey replied. "Good luck guys."
In a flash, they disappeared into the darkness.
"He probably has surveillance cameras," Leo whispered. "Be on guard." Stealthily, they ran around the perimeter. . On the property was a bungalow styled house and garage. Next to that was a large barn style structure.
"That's where they must hold the shows," Donatello guessed.
"Then where are the animals?" Mikey asked.
"There," Leo replied, as he pointed to the back of the lot. Tucked in amongst the trees was another barn, though not as large or as inviting as the first. They could hear the faint muffled sounds from the animals inside.
Leo raised his hand and motioned for the other two turtles to follow him. They took the long way around to the second barn to avoid getting caught. Don tapped Leo on the shoulder to get his attention. He pointed to the corner of the barn. Up on the roof was a camera, just as Leo had predicted. It was Mikey who spotted the security guard.
"They got a wannabe cop sitting outside the door," he whispered.
"It's just one, Mikey. I am sure we can take him," Don replied.
"We will just have to be more careful," Leo said, as they continued around the back of the building. They noticed the window in the back.
"I will try to pry it open," Leo offered. He unsheathed his katanas and wedged the blade between the pane and the sill. It took him a few tries before it finally loosened. Slowly he raised the window.
"Let's go."
Quickly, the trio slipped inside and paused and allowed their eyes to adjust. At the right, they heard a cat mewing pitifully. To the left they heard the weak belting of the calf. They heard the angry snorts and pawing from the stallion.
"Wow," Mikey exclaimed. "I wonder were Raph could be."
They split up and pressed on through the barn.
It was Mikey who found him.
"Guys," he called out. He walked forward and leaned his head against the bars. He stared at the still figure hunched in the corner. He found it hard to believe the seemingly lifeless creature was his wild brother.
Within seconds Don and Leo were at his side.
"Yes, Mikey?" Don panted.
"It's him."
At first the cage appeared empty to the other two turtles. They too, pressed their faces against the bars.
"Raphael!" Leo gasped.
"Hey," Don called out. "Get up buddy."
Raph didn't respond.
"What's wrong with him, Donnie?" Mikey asked, his blue eyes echoed his concern
"We got to get him out," he replied. He spotted the lock on the door. "I wonder where they keys are?"
"I saw an office while I was looking," Leo piped up. "I bet they are in there." Immediately he turned and headed in that direction. When he tried the doorknob, he found that it was locked. He cursed it in his mind as he slammed his shoulder into the door. Finally he stepped back and raised his right leg. He snapped his leg at the knee, driving his flexed foot forwards. The door instantly fell open. He stepped inside and after a few minutes of desperate searching, he spotted the key rack . He grabbed the set that was tagged MASTER and headed back to the others.
"Way to be stealthy, Leo," Mikey complained. "Why didn't you set the fire alarm off too? I am sure the guards heard that."
"Michelangelo, not now," Leo shot back. Frantically, he tried key after key in the lock. Finally the lock fell loosely into Leo's palm. "Yes!" he breathed with relief.
"What do you think your doing?"
All three turtles looked up into the beam of a flashlight.
"It's the security dude," Mikey gasped.
"We are getting our brother," Leo replied,
"We are getting our brother, ty? "s eyes as a final jab at .boldly.
"I'm sorry. I can't let you do that," the guard stated. He reached for the gun that was holstered on his belt.
Leo let out an angry growl. He sprang towards the guard and held him at bay with both katanas drawn. The guard kept his hand frozen on his gun, ready to pull it if he had to defend himself.
"I wouldn't touch that if I were you," he snarled.
The guard stared at the sharp blades and gulped.
"The boss is going to be furious," he groaned.
"Would you rather face your boss? Or three ninja turtles?" Mikey asked, getting in on the fun.
"Uh," the man faltered.
"Mikey, help Don get Raph out of there," Leo ordered.
"Aye, aye, captain." Mikey saluted, as he spun on his heels and ran into the cage with Don.
"Careful, Mikey," Donatello warned. Luckily the keys to the shackles were on the master ring as well. He used the key to unlock the metal cuffs.
Slowly, Raphael's eyelids narrowed into slits. "Huh?" he managed, weakly.
"We're here bro!" Mikey cried as he cradled Raph's head between his hands. "We are taking you home!"
"Home?" Raph croaked.
"Yes!"
The tips of Raph's lips twitched slightly. They had come, he thought to himself. He was felt a surge of adrenaline suddenly fill his veins with the anticipation of escaping. He floundered like a fish out of water, as he tried to get to his feet.
Mikey and Don helped Raphael up. They staggered under his weight.
"Okay, Leo. We're ready!" Mikey announced.
Leo gave the guard one last look. "Get your handcuffs," Leo ordered.
As one last ditch effort to save his job, the guard pulled the gun and pointed the barrel at Leo. The blue banded turtle was in the air as he shot off three rounds. Within seconds, Leo was at the man's side and had him disarmed.
"Hey!" he protested. "How did you do that?"
Leo didn't answer. Instead, he shoved the guard into the cage that had homed Raphael. With a twist of his wrist, he locked the barred door. He joined his brothers.
"Mikey, call Casey, "he commanded "Tell him to have the van ready."
Mikey retrieved his cell and contacted their waiting friend.
"Did you get him?" Casey asked, the moment the connection was made.
"We sure did," Mikey informed him. "Get the van ready. We are bringing our brother home."
