Huh, I got this chapter out faster than I expected to 0.0 SWEET! :D
Hey Reader, what's up? When was the last time we all had a heart to heart, just all of you and me?
A while?
Yeah, it has definitely felt like a while.
So, right now, I'm watching a mutant Monkey being strapped down to a metal table by my sons while some other weird guy, named Dr. Falco, gets this stuff that is suppose to calm him down.
Yeah, tonight has been weird.
So weird in fact that I might have to go home and take an ice bath. Yeah, and ice bath sounds nice.
Oh but, anyway, after we had found Rockwell, we brought him back to his lab. We even called Falco and let him now, and he was over as soon as he was able.
April said that Falco was a close college to Rockwell and could help.
Screeching wildly, Rockwell flung himself around within the metal chair, struggling against the restraints.
It was sort of… painful, to see him like this. I mean, this was a living creature. Someone who was once human and had been forced into becoming a monkey!
It was awful. I couldn't even imagine what he was going through.
Lifting my hand, I gently gripped the locket around my neck.
I jumped in surprise when Rockwell suddenly looked at me. His body was still thrashing around, but his eyes had locked with mine.
It was like he wanted to tell me something, but I didn't know what.
What… are you trying to tell me Rockwell? I don't understand.
Re-appearing, Dr. Falco ran to Rockwell, injecting him with some sort of serum to calm him down. After a few seconds it seemed to take affect and Rockwell closed his eyes, falling into a small sleep.
I hadn't even realized I had been holding my breath and slowly let out a shaky sigh.
"Are you alright?" Donatello whispered to me, looking worried.
"…Yeah." I nodded slowly, looking back at Falco and Rockwell. Something wasn't right.
"There." Falco sighed. "That should calm him down." With a heavy sigh, he placed his hand on Rockwell's shoulder. "Poor Rockwell."
No duh Falco.
Anyone else find this guy annoying?
"Is there anyway to get him back to normal?" April asked.
"I wouldn't even know where to begin." Falco frowned. "But I'll see if there is a way to give him some… semblance of a normal life." Falco assured us, gently caressing Rockwell's head.
Semblance? Semblance wasn't enough for this! How could you ever get this man a normal life? The only normal life for a monkey would be living in the wild or possibly in a zoo environment!
Was… Falco going to put Rockwell in a Zoo? That wouldn't be fair. Rockwell has been a human most of his life. To suddenly treat him like an animal… it just cruel.
Frowning, April and Donatello looked at all of us, slowly pushing pass us to the door.
I knew there was nothing else for us to do. The mutagen that changed Rockwell was of alien origin. No one understood what it could do, not even the Kraang themselves.
But… ugh, this was so frustrating!
"Thank you." Leonardo nodded to Falco, who nodded back. "Keep a watch out for the Kraang. They might return for the remaining mutagen they left with Rockwell."
Falco nodded in understandement. "I thank you again."
Smiling weakly, the boys moved towards the door with April.
It was hard for me to leave. I couldn't help but look back at Rockwell.
Something wasn't right.
Glancing at Falco, I found that he was staring right back at me. There was something… about Falco that didn't feel right. Maybe it was his voice?
I know that sounds weird, but I can usually tell a persons intentions through their voice. It is just something I've always been able to do.
And this Falco guy… he didn't exactly seem like a trust worthy guy to me.
I don't know why.
"Mom?" Leo turned back to call to me. "You coming?"
Narrowing my eyes at Falco, who didn't even blink in response, I nodded. "Yeah." I slowly moved to the door.
"Good day Mrs. Arinna." Falco called to me.
"Ms." I grumbled, pushing through the door.
We returned home after that. I know we should have felt relived that Rockwell would be okay, or at least close to it. We should have felt happy that we were able to capture Rockwell before he could hurt anyone else but… I didn't. I didn't feel any of those.
There was something that was missing. Some piece of the puzzle we just hadn't noticed. Something we over looked.
I think Donatello felt that same. When we got home, he pulled out the laptop and started to go through Rockwell's old files.
Leaning against the cabinet, I ran my fingers through my hair with a heavy sigh.
Towards the table, I think I heard Mikey mumbling something about some video game he was playing. I didn't really pay much attention though.
"Pizza's here." Raphael announced, stepping into the Kitchen.
…Didn't we already have Dinner?
Ah, oh well. I'm not really in the mood to yell at the boys for their eating habits. If they were hungry then they were hungry.
Placing the pizza on the table, the boys each took their own slice. Even Splinter seemed to appear after a while to get his own slice.
"Must eat Pizza! But I can't stop playing! WAHH!" Mikey suddenly flew his head back in despair, torn between ending his game and eating his favorite meal.
I chuckled when he ended up slamming his face into the box and grabbing a slice with his mouth. Without using his hands he managed to stuff the pizza in his mouth while continuing his game.
Blinking at him, Leo decided to change the subject and turn to April. "Sorry we couldn't find any more information on your Dad April." He apologized.
Oh yeah, that's right. The whole reason April was interested in Dr. Rockwell's disappearance was because she thought it might help her find her Father.
Hope she didn't feel to down about it.
"It is okay." She smiled. "Everything we learn about the Kraang is another piece of the puzzle."
"Yeah but… physic research?" Leo rubbed his chin. "This is one weird puzzle."
No joke. Exactly what were the Kraang up to? What was their objective? I mean, surely causing random mutations wasn't the only thing they here for, right?
"I am curious April." Splinter suddenly spoke up. "How did you know the Monkey, was really a human?"
Oh hey, yeah. I want to know that too!
"I don't know." She admitted. "Sometimes I just… get a feeling about these things."
"A feeling?' Splinter inquired. With a small huff, he glanced at me. "Interesting." He smiled, moving back towards the dojo.
Oh no, I know that look. That little 'I have a secret plan to train someone' look. He was thinking about training April, wasn't he?
I admit that I think it is a good idea since she will most likely be thrown into more dangerous positions, but still.
"Hey Donnie?" Leo pulled me out of my thoughts. "How come you're not eating?" he asked, surprised that Donatello wouldn't have his face stuffed with Pizza by now.
"Huh?" Donnie didn't even look away from the screen, too caught up in his thoughts. "I'm not hungry."
Not hungry? Strange? Out of all my sons I think Donnie should eat more. He is really scrawny compared to his brothers. Not saying that is a bad thing or anything, but I mean… he is REALLY skinny. I'm sure being tall helps, but still.
"Why not?" I moved towards him, looking over his shoulder. What was he looking at anyway? We already look through Rockwell's research.
Glancing at me, he frowned. "Something has been bothering me." He admitted.
"What?" I sat next to him.
"Well… Falco said Rockwell had been experimenting on a Monkey." He started.
Yeah, what about it?
Confused, Leo tilted his head. "And?"
"Well according to these notes, he never had a Monkey in his lab. He was just using samples of Monkey DNA."
"We're still not following you." Leo frowned.
Pausing from his typing, Donnie whipped his head around to glare at his brother. "If he never had a Monkey, what broke out of that cage?"
Oh hey, I remember seeing that cage when we were at the lab. Something had… broken out of it.
...Oh! Oh! I see where Donnie is going with this!
"It must have been Rockwell!" Raphael's eyes widened.
"Which means Falco put him there." Donnie growled. "And he has been lying this whole time!"
Furious, Raphael narrowed his eyes. Raphael never did like being lied too.
Glancing at Leo, I could see the same look in his eyes. Rising to his feet, he reached for his Katanas.
Oh! I knew it! There was something definitely wrong with this whole thing!
"I knew there was something fishy about that scientist!" I grumbled. "His voice just gave him that evil feeling!"
"His voice?" Leo paused.
"Yeah, his voice." I nodded. "Didn't you get that eerie feeling every time he spoke?"
"Um… no." Leo ran for the entrance.
"Oh, well then." I huffed, rushing after the boys. "We'll be back April!"
"Wha- I can't come?!" she gasped.
I paused, turning on my heels to point at her. "…No."
"Why not?!"
I shrugged. "Because?"
"That isn't enough of a reason."
"Well, it could be dangerous and you don't have any proper training and well… frankly, I'm still mad about earlier." I narrowed my eyes at her.
Blinking wildly, April gulped and stepped back towards the table. "Well um… right, you better get going then.
"Yeah." I grumbled, rushing after the boys and leaving her within the safety of the lair. Honestly, I had forgiven her long ago for the whole, "Splinter and me are married' thing. It was an honest mistake and I might have thought the same thing if I was in her shoes.
We ran straight back to Rockwell's lab after that.
Falco was gonna pay. Just like Raph, I hate to be lied to. Plus, if it was Falco that put Rockwell in that cage, it was probably him that mutated him too!
He mutated his own college! Who would do something like that?
It was cruel!
Bursting into the lab, we paused to see Falco turned towards the window, a triumphant smirk plastered on his face.
…Why was he smirking? Did he think he had gotten away with this? News flash, you didn't Falco.
"Alright Falco." Leo called out, catching his attention. "We have had enough of your-"
"Do not say Monkeying around." Raphael narrowed his eyes.
"…I wasn't going to." Leonardo pouted.
"Yes." Falco interrupted him. "You were."
"It is over Falco, we know it was you who mutated Rockwell." Donnie narrowed his eyes.
My eyes travelled to Rockwell, who was unmoving on the table. Oh no.
Was… Was he okay?
"Used him as a guinea pig." Falco chuckled. "And do not worry Mrs. Arinna." He chuckled. "Rockwell is still alive and well… for now."
Surprised, I blinked at Falco.
Again with the Mrs, it is Ms, ya weirdo.
I swear for a second I thought I saw Falco give me an insulted look, but his attention went towards Mikey.
"Well it didn't work." Mikey folded his arms. "You turned him into a monkey!"
Mikey… honey, please stop talking.
"The physic neuro chemical I extracted from Rockwell's mutant brain is changing me." Falco suddenly cackled, staring at his hand.
He… he did what? What did he mean by that?
"Your minds are opening up to me." He added.
Uh… weird. What does he mean by that? Like, they are opening up like the Kraang's head does? Cause that would be disturbing.
"So this was your plan all along." Donnie narrowed his eyes.
"Of course. No man can defeat you when you know his every thought." Falco smirked.
Well, I admit it definitely gives you an advantage. A very unfair advantage may I add.
"Oh really?" Raphael smirked coyly. "Then you must know I'm about to smac-"
"Smack the white off my lab coat?" Falco chuckled. "Hah, how humorous."
Okay… creepy. And you know, Falco's eyes look really blood shot. It was like he had some really bad case of pink eye in both of his eyes. Gross.
Surprised, Raphael growled. "Lucky guess!" he yelled, charging forward. Smirking, Falco stepped back just as Raphael tried to round house kick him in the face.
Expecting Falco to be un-experienced in fighting, Raphael gawked at him. "What?"
Looking amused, Falco motioned for him to strike again. Furious, Raphael ran forward again.
Hmmm, I'm getting a feeling, that might not end well. Raphael, don't attack!
"Perhaps you should listen to your Mother Raphael." Falco suggested as he once again avoided Raphael's strikes.
Wow wait, what? How did he- oh wait, did I say that out loud? I don't think I did.
"She didn't even… say anything!" Raph growled, whipping around to smack Falco. Stepping behind him, Falco shook his head and maneuvered himself to grab Raph's Sais. Once he had them, he flipped it, using the hilt of the Sai to slam it into the side of his face.
Barely able to even see the attack coming, Raphael let out a cry as he was smacked in the side of the head and thrown to the ground.
Raphael!
Struggling to get up, Raphael barely had the chance to catch his breath before Falco kicked him in the gut, making him bounce straight into Mikey and Donatello.
Rushing to them, I rolled Raphael over to find him unconscious. "Raphael!" I reached down to gently touch the small bump on the side of his skull. Moving towards me, Donnie did the same, sighing in relief.
"It is okay. It knocked him out, but that is all." He assured me.
Nodding, I glanced back towards Falco, who was currently going against Leonardo who had charged forward as soon as Raphael had been knocked away.
Was this… what Falco meant through being able to read our minds. He had really managed to do that? I would say that was wickedly cool if I wasn't completely boiling with rage.
"Whoa!" Mikey gawked next to me. "It is like he is psychic!" he gasped.
"He is psychic shell brain! That's what he just said!" Donnie grumbled at his baby brother.
"Oh, yeah." He giggled sheepishly. "I kinda tuned out when he started doing his whole 'I'm evil' blah, blah, blah thing. Heh."
Donnie rolled his eyes at him, not sure how to even comment on his brother's short attention span.
Couldn't really blame him honestly. I mean, I know it is definitely hard to stay in tune when I hear evil villains talk. I've heard the same spiel over and over again and it never really changes. The only difference is that the person changes.
Though the story might differ from wanting to rule the world to only wanting revenge on one certain person- AH! SWORDS!
I ducked down with a shriek when Leonardo's swords suddenly came flying at us. Falco had apparently disarmed Leonardo some how and- Did he just hit him unconscious too!?
I growled when Leonardo fell to the ground when Falco hit him on the head.
I'm gonna- ah, no. Arinna, don't. Remember what Splinter said. Stay calm, don't let your anger take control. We all know how you get when you let your emotions get the best of you. Death and blood Arinna, that is what happens. And no one really likes that… except for evil villains.
"How are we gonna defeat him if he can read out minds?" Donatello questioned.
Well, most would think it is impossible to beat him. I mean, I know a few years ago I definitely would think something like that. However now… hehe, pretty butterfly. Rainbows. Lolipops. Warm Bread. Don't question me, I know what I am doing Readers.
"No prob, I'm good at this. I just gotta fight without thinking." Mikey said with a smile, but paused. "Wait a minute… how do I fight without thinking?" he gasped, holding his head. "Oh no! Now I'm thinking about not thinking!"
Oh dear. Mikey honey, stay calm. Or chill. Like a freezer. Or the North Pole. Or the South Pole. It would be cool if there was a West Pole. Haha, get it? Cool?
Before Mikey could get out another word, Falco appeared behind him, hitting him on the back of the head and knocking him out.
Hey! You little- Strawberries. Cherries. I love Cherries. Well actually, no I don't. I mean, I like them, but I don't exactly love them.
Chuckling, Falco looked up to us. "A man who can read minds is unstoppable. Once I dispose of you two no one will be able to stand in my way."
"Well see about that." Donnie growled, pulling out his Bo staff.
Oh, great. Bo is going to save the day, yippie.
If you couldn't sense the sarcasm in that Mr. Falco then you have terrible social skills.
Rushing forward, I watched quietly as Donnie attacked Falco, unable to get a single hit on him. Tossing Raphael's Sais towards him, Donatello quickly blocked it, knocking it aside. With a yell, Donnie lunged forward, gasping when Falco grabbed the end of his Bo.
With surprising strength, Falco managed to twirl Donnie around, slamming him against the wall.
Oh. For a scientist he is surprisingly strong. And- oh wait, I'm distracting myself. I have to think of cherries. Cherries are awesome… sort of.
"I really must compliment that complex brain of yours." Falco hummed. "You come up with so many ideas! Too bad I see all of them coming."
Oh what a jerk.
Falco must have heard me because he turned towards me.
You really think you are all that, don't you? You can read peoples minds, so what? That doesn't mean you are the better fighter, nor are you smarter than anyone else in this room.
Honestly you are a coward.
Falco frowned. "Coward?" he inquired.
Yeah, a coward. You know, C, O, W, A, R, E, D, oh wait, no. Sorry, spelling that wrong. Coward isn't spelled with an E, not sure what I was thinking there. But hey, you are putting me under a lot of pressure here Falco. I'm use to only the Reader's hearing my thoughts. Oh and don't bother asking who those people are, because you wouldn't understand anyway.
I mean, I don't even fully understand who they are. They just appear at random, usually when something interesting is about to happen.
That is also how I prepare myself for stuff. Cause you now, as a mother of four mutant turtles, you have to be prepared for almost anything. I'm not even joking when I say this. I've seen aliens, mutants, robots, I'm surprised I haven't seen some sort of talking car yet.
Oh, wouldn't that be so cool? If there were talking cars? What if they could transform into giant robots! That would be wicked! They could be called, Transformers! Or something cool like that.
Blinking wildly, Falco reached up to rub his temple. "…You… seem like a very calm women on the outside Ms. Arinna. However, your mind is most certainly a maze of mystery."
"…Thank you." I smiled. "Oh wait… I think." I looked away with a frown, unsure if I should take that as a compliment or not. Shrugging, I turned back to Falco, smirking when I saw Donatello rise to his feet. I could see that look in his eyes. He was mumbling to himself about not thinking.
Oh and hey, you wanna know something?
"What is that?" Falco smirked a bit.
"Do you know if you think enough thoughts at one time, you can distract yourself from what you see around you? Such as I can completely stop thinking about you or my sons, who by the way, I think you should really keep an eye on right now.
Jumping in surprise, Falco whirled around just in time to see Donatello running towards him. Judging by Donatello's smirk, I had this feeling that he had figured out what Splinter and me were tying to tell him about fighting without thinking.
Haha. Yeah, I knew Donnie would eventually realize he has to fight without thinking. If I thought that though then Falco would know, and that would just ruin everything.
I mean, I thought of Cherries
Thinking he was prepared for Donatello attacks, Falco's eyes widened when he realized he couldn't predict what Donatello was going to do.
With a cry, Donatello jumped up and kicked Falco into the wall. Stunned, Falco gawked at Donnie for a second before letting out a cry of rage and rushing to attack him. As Falco ran to him, Donnie side stepped to the right and tripped him.
Mid fall, Donnie jumped back and punched Falco under the chin, before quickly stepping behind him and kicking him in the back.
Oh! Oh! Yeah! Get him Donnie! You got this! Haha, like there was ever a need for me to even be here, please.
Running straight into a table, Falco charged at Donatello from behind. Glancing over his shoulder, Donnie narrowed his eyes and back flipped over Falco.
OH! Back Flip! Mikey would be so proud!
Landing against the wall, Donnie pushed off and rammed into Falco, punching him several times in the gut, before finally sending him into the cell where he had previously kept Rockwell.
"Oh." I winced, watching Falco groan before falling unconscious.
Rising to their feet, Donatello's brothers gawked at the scene in shock.
"Wow Donnie." Raphael blinked. "Nice work!"
"Hah!" Mikey giggled, reappearing with Mutagen in his hands. "What did I tell you about those back flips? Huh? Pretty cool!" he giggled, watching Donnie roll his eyes.
Hmm… where did Mikey get that mutagen from? I guess that was the stuff Falco kept, but still, when did he grab it?
Eh, I can question it later.
"Now that we have the Ooze, lets see what Falco knows about the Kraang." Turning towards the cage he had thrown Falco into, his eyes widened to find Falco was gone.
What the- how in the world did he escape?! I suppose I underestimated him a little too much. I mean, an escape is probably easy with mind reading powers.
"Falco is… gone?" Donnie gasped.
Unsure of what to do, we all paused when Rockwell suddenly stirred. Looking towards him I was relieved that he seemed okay. Well, you know, as okay as he could be.
"What do we do about him?" Mikey asked?
Blinking, Donnie moved towards the table and unlocked Rockwell from his cuffs. Looking hesitant, Rockwell leapt out of the chair and towards the window. Opening it up, he paused to look back at us.
He had this… look in his eyes.
"I'm no psychic, but I think he is trying to thank us." Donnie smiled.
Aww.
With one last little noise, Rockwell leapt out of the window and towards the street.
Well, it would seem that all's well that ends well.
…Hey, wait a minute…
"Um… if he reacts to angry thoughts, is New York really the best place for him?" Raphael questioned.
Ah. He's right.
Suddenly below, a large crash was heard, as well as screaming.
"I'm sure… he'll be okay." Leo said, not sound to confident. There was another crash.
Yeah, no.
"We are not just letting him roam the streets." I folded my arms at the boys. Seeing my look, they sighed and rushed out the window after Rockwell.
I mean, come on! We weren't just going to let Rockwell run lose! The authorities would catch him after a while, probably, but then what?
When we caught Dr. Rockwell again, we all stared at him, not sure what to do.
"Well, we can't bring him home, but we can't let him run around the streets…" Donnie trailed off.
I rubbed my head in contemplation. "We need a safe place for him. Some place someone can watch over him, and wont freak him out with angry emotions or anything like that."
"The zoo?" Leo asked.
"That wouldn't be fair." I frowned. "I mean, he wasn't always a monkey. It would be like I tried to put you boys in a zoo."
They frowned, nodding in agreement.
"Well, we better figure it out soon." Raphael pointed to the rising sun.
"Ah." Leo jumped in surprise. "We have to get underground or we'll get spotted."
Panicked, I looked around wildly.
…Hey, wait a minute. I know where we are!
"Oh!" I snapped my fingers. "I have an idea!"
"An idea?" The boys questioned. Grabbing Rockwell's hand, he blinked at me confused.
"Come on." I coaxed. "This way." A little confused, Rockwell slowly followed me down the street. The boys followed as well, not sure what I intended to do.
I could only hope that she would go along with it for a little while. It isn't like she would be doing much but baking anyway.
Like I could just let Rockwell go, come on people! He is a monkey who reacts on emotions. I mean, I'm surprised the turtles actually didn't do more to help him, or at least find him some place to stay where he wouldn't cause trouble. The whole reason they went out to find him in the first place was to find Rockwell and make sure he didn't hurt anyone.
I find it strange that after all that they would just let him go off on his own. From the crashes you can already assume that it probably didn't end well. So while originally the boys let Rockwell go off, Arinna would not do such a thing.
So... heh, any guesses to where Arinna is gonna take him? ^_^
