Disclaimers
All characters appearing in D.C Comics & Time Warner, Marvel Comics, Gargoyles/Gargoyles: the Goliath Chronicles, cartoons created by Murakami Wolf Swenson Inc. & IDW comics, media created by Joss Whedon and DIC Entertainment. Are property of their respective owners. No infringements of these copyrights are intended, and are not authorized by the copyright holder.
All original characters and concepts are the property of Celgress.
Miwa The Fifth Turtle Season Three – Episode One: Enter the Street Sharks Part III of III
By
Celgress
The Streets of NYC mid-June 2015, night
"Driver, why are we stopping?" Mona Lisa asked from the backseat of the limousine. While traffic in Manhattan was notoriously bad they had seemingly been immobile for an awfully long time by her reckoning. She knocked sharply on the partition of tinted glass that separated the passenger compartment from the driver seat. "I want to show my friends Rockefeller Center before it closes for the evening."
The two passenger doors flew open. "Oy I'm afraid there has been a change in plans little bird." A heavyset man wearing a black balaclava said in a thick cockney accent. He brandished a Kalashnikov as did five other men who followed him who likewise wore balaclavas. Three came through the right hand door three through the left cutting off any means of escape.
Hamato Yoshi reached for his walking stick, which lay on the floor in front of him, but was clubbed into unconsciousness before he could do anything with it. Over the past decade or so Yoshi came to rely upon his enhanced mutant reflexes and senses. Now that those were gone he realized too late his actual Ninjutsu had become terribly rusty.
"Father," Miwa shrieked.
"Splinter," Miwa followed suit using Yoshi's alias from force of habit.
The heavyset goon, who appeared to be the leader, roughly shoved Yoshi out of the vehicle. He along with three of the others piled inside sandwiching the frightened Mona Lisa and Miwa between them. The heavyset goon then ordered the two goons who were by this time in the driver compartment to, in his words, "get the hell outta there".
"Who are you? Where are you taking us?" Mona Lisa asked as the girls quaked with fear.
"Put a quirk it in ya squawky birds or I'll forget my manners." The heavyset goon grunted. The commandeered limousine sped away leaving behind a battered Yoshi beside a dead driver who had been shot through his head.
The Turtles' Secret Lair
"We should let father and the girls know before we leave dudes," Michelangelo said as the quartet arrived home after their aborted library rumbled with Shredder and his minions.
"Why bother," Raphael said. Leonardo frowned disapprovingly at his brother but chose not to voice his unhappiness.
"Hey dudes I got an epic idea." Michelangelo said excitedly. "We should take Hobgoblin's battle van on our road trip. We can rename it the 'Turtle Van'."
"Not a bad idea Mikey." Leonardo said.
"I've been repurposing the tech Hobgoblin used these past weeks for our less lethal needs. The van is almost ready for a test run. I can't think of a better first use." Donatello said.
A loud explosion sounded startling the turtles. "Sounded like it came from Don's lab," Leonardo said leading the charge.
They rushed into the lab where they found a scorched mess in one corner covered by scattered shards of glass and fragments of wood. These represented the table on which Donatello's retromutagen once sat. Leonardo knelt down to examine the devastation more closely. Eyeing a blackened piece of glass He reached out.
"Don't, there could be retromutagen residue on that." Donatello loudly warned his brother.
"What happened Donnie?" Michelangelo asked.
"I'm not sure. Far as I can tell the retromutagen must have become unstable. I knew I should have run more tests." Donatello answered.
At those words, Raphael slammed his brainy brother into the nearest wall. His forearm pushed across Donatello's neck. "And yet you used that stuff on our father, sister and my girlfriend without knowing it was safe! Smooth move geek!" Raphael snarled.
"Raph let Don go," Leonardo said.
"No way Leo! Because of his harebrained scheme, our family members are in danger!" Raphael grounded out.
"They're my family too Raph." Donatello managed.
"Why did you put them in danger then? Answer me that, huh. You can't, can you?" Raphael said.
"I only did what they wanted," Donatello reasoned weakly. He then added much to the chagrin of his brothers. "Scientific advancement often involves risk."
"For science, we can write that on their tombstones. It'll make a nice tidy epitaph." Raphael said releasing Donatello.
"Good one Don," Leonardo said.
"What did I say?" Donatello coughed.
"Not cool dude," Michelangelo said shaking his head.
"Guys it wasn't my fault. I made a mistake, granted a huge one. But I would never harm anyone of us on purpose. You know that, right?" Donatello said realizing to late the harsh implications of his words. The others departed leaving Donatello alone with his regrets.
George Washington Bridge, sometime later
"Here's our stop birds, get out." The heavyset man said. The kidnappers forced Mona Lisa and Miwa from the limo at gun point. "Up we go." The heavyset man said gesturing with his rifle barrel at a maintenance access ladder. Miwa started up the ladder following Mona Lisa's lead who was in turn following two of the masked men only for the heavyset man to wave her off. "Not you China Doll."
"Excuse me," Miwa said blinking in confusion at her captors many of whom chuckled finding perverse amusement in her uncertainty.
"You're staying down below." The heavyset man said to Miwa. "Ms. Bocelli meanwhile is coming on a journey with me and a few of the boys, aren't ya little bird?" Mona Lisa cringed when his free hand slapped her bottom from below. "Up ya go little bird." He headed up the ladder while glancing back at his buddies. "If I don't come back down in say ten minutes, kill China Doll. I'm sure that'll keep little bird here from pulling a fast one."
Miwa weighed her options carefully. Under normal circumstances, she would mop the floor with these third rate clowns even without her usual weapons. At present, however, she was not sure she could win if she picked a fight with them. She felt weak and somewhat sluggish, far weaker and more sluggish than she ever had before. She had felt that way since her change.
Miwa watched helplessly as her friend was forced upwards out of sight to an unknown fate. She could not let these scumbags harm her best friend. Scratch that, April was her friend, Alopex was her friend, Mona Lisa was far more. Mona Lisa was like the sister she never had but always wanted. Miwa knew she had to act fast but what could she possibly do that would help in her current state? She was at a lost.
Out of the blue, an intense headache struck Miwa followed by a bout of equally painful cramps. Miwa clutched her midsection. She cried out bending almost in two from pain.
"Hey ya alright?" One of the remaining three masked men asked.
"I'm, I'm, I'm, not sure." Miwa moaned stumbling back several steps. "Ahhhhhhhhhhh," She wailed falling on her hands and knees. Was she dying she wondered? If not, then what was happening?
In front of the startled goons, Miwa underwent a profound metamorphosis. Her skin turned green. Her torso became a shell. A minute later she stood restored to her old form of a mutant female turtle. The tattered remains of her shiny blue dress clung to her greatly altered frame.
"I'm back." Miwa said staring down at her once again three digit hands with a mixture of relief and sadness. Her gaze then turned to her stunned assailants. "We've been bad boys guys. Picking on weak defenseless teenage girls. I'm going to have to teach you a lesson in manners." She said grinning while she assumed a battle ready stance.
Atop the George Washington Bridge Tower
"A pleasure doing business with ya." the heavyset man said after he caught a briefcase full of cash throw by the Hobgoblin who hovered on his glider.
"I assure you the pleasure is all mine," Hobgoblin said hopping off his glider which landed in front of the group. One of the other masked men roughly shoved Mona Lisa at him. He caught her right arm in his iron grip.
"Release me this instant." Mona Lisa demanded struggling valiantly but futilely against Hobgoblin's vastly superior strength.
"Without showing you my legendary hospitality first, perish the thought," Hobgoblin said.
"We'll leave ya alone to become better acquainted with your new little bird." The heavyset man said. His comment elicited raucous laughter from the other masked men. All three proceeded to shuffle out of sight away down the ladder.
"You and your turtle friends had caused me a great deal of trouble Ms. Mona Lisa Bocelli," Hobgoblin said pulling Mona Lisa back to his waiting glider. "I have no idea how you're human again, but why look a gift horse in the mouth as they say."
"What are you going to do to me?" Mona Lisa asked nervously unsure she wanted to hear his answer.
"Why kill you of course," Hobgoblin said nonchalantly. "Once you're gone there will be nothing standing between me and your later father's fortune."
Hobgoblin then knocked out the wide-eyed Mona Lisa with a powerful jolt of energy from his weapon gauntlets. He scooped up her limp body up in his arms. He was about to get on his glider and take off into the night when a series of screams caught his attention. He turned around to see Miwa scramble up the ladder.
"Put my friend down goblin! I won't ask a second time!" Miwa said,
"What do we have here?" Hobgoblin said. "A turtle girl all by her lonesome. I'm so scared."
"You should be," Miwa said.
Hobgoblin stared at Miwa in silence for a moment. He then slowly, deliberately sat Mona Lisa down to the side of his glider. "Shall we dance?"
"Only if I can pick the tune," Miwa said.
"Go right ahead," Hobgoblin said.
Miwa aimed a flying dropkick at Hobgoblin's head which he sidestepped at the last instant. Hobgoblin retaliated with a spinning backhand that tagged Miwa's head. Miwa bounced back with a reverse elbow strike to the small of Hobgoblin's back.
"Touché," Hobgoblin conceded. "Enough of the waltz let us tango."
The pace of battle quickened dramatically. Fists, knees, elbows, and feet all flew with abandon. After many minutes Miwa began to gain the upper hand. Hobgoblin retaliated by using his projectile weapons: pumpkin bombs and razor bat boomerangs flew in every direction. Miwa gracefully somersaulted around these deadly implements. Hobgoblin countered with the use of his gauntlet energy bolts. He rapidly fired these at the youthful mutant until she was overwhelmed. Falling victim to three bolts of orange light in a row Miwa crumpled into a heap.
"It was a jolly good chase. Alas, all things must end." Hobgoblin said.
Hobgoblin strolled towards Miwa at a leisurely pace. He placed one foot upon the back of Miwa's shell the order upon the back of her skull. He grinned her body into the hard stone floor with his weight. Miwa cried out in distress. Her face was painfully scraped across the coarse surface.
Consumed by his ghastly glory Hobgoblin failed to notice the whirring jet engine that rapidly approached. Unbeknownst to him, a freshly re-mutated Mona Lisa had regained consciousness and subsequently aimed his unmanned glider straight at his position. Hobgoblin turned around just in time to be struck by the speeding glider which carried him right off the tower top. A sicking crunch sound as several bones broke. With a howl of rage mixed with pain, Hobgoblin along with his glider plunged into the dark, murky waters below.
"You okay Mi?" Mona Lisa said walking shakily towards her best friend. Like Miwa her body was clad with the tattered remains of her shiny dress. The only difference being Mona Lisa's rages were pink in coloration whereas Miwa's were blue.
"I'm extremely sore, but I'll live," Miwa said struggling to her feet. "By the way, thanks for the save Mona."
"Hey, you saved me first. I was only returning the favor." Mona Lisa said with a lopsided smile. "What are friends for, I'm i right?"
"Exactly," Miwa said throwing her arm over Mona Lisa's shoulders who did likewise. Both limped away battered but unbowed.
"Do you think he's really gone this time?" Mona Lisa said when they reached the edge of the tower where the ladder was located. They peered down at the eerily calm water far below.
"I sure hope so," Miwa said.
"I don't know. He survived drowning before." Mona Lisa reminded her friend.
"I recall," Miwa said. "We better go."
"Good idea," Miwa seconded. "The sooner we're away from this place the better."
"Amen sister," Miwa said.
"Sister, I like that." Mona Lisa said. "After you sis." Miwa started down the long ladder Mona Lisa not far behind. "The boys are going to be jealous when they hear we defeated Hobgoblin without their help." Mona Lisa added.
"Wait, where's father?" Miwa said a fresh wave of fear gripped her heart.
"I totally forgot about Splinter!" Mona Lisa exclaimed. "Mi do you suppose he reverted back to his mutant form like we have?"
"If he has we've got to find him Mona. He's alone in a city full of people who hate any sort super beings, including mutants." Miwa said. The pair hurried downward spurred on by a sense of urgency.
When they reached their destination, however, they found a surprise. An exhausted looking Splinter was already waiting for them. First Miwa then Mona Lisa hugged the humanoid rodent tightly.
"Father you're alive!" Miwa said.
"We were really worried!" Mona Lisa said.
"And I for both of you." Splinter said. "I am sorry our cure did not last."
"I'm not," Miwa said pulling away. Mona Lisa did the same. "This is who I am. I shouldn't be ashamed of my true self. No one should."
"I shouldn't be either. This is the real me now." Mona Lisa said. "Rather than search out a different 'cure', I'm going to devote myself to super being rights. Just because many of us look different than average humans doesn't mean we should tolerate being mistreated by society."
"Indeed, children," Splinter pontificated. "As a wise man once said a person should be judged by the contents of their hard, not their outward appearance. If we strive for tolerance, perhaps together with others similarly minded we can help create a better world for all."
"Someday, I know we will." Mona Lisa said her voice full of conviction.
Down River, an hour later
An orange gloved hand burst from the water followed by another. Gripping a large piece of flotsam, which had once been the tire of an unidentified automobile, the haggard form of Hobgoblin pulled itself to the surface. Spitting up brackish water Hobgoblin cursed his foes.
"If it's the last thing I ever do, I'll see those miserable mutants pay dearly!" He vowed leaning his upper body over the improvised innertube. The swift current carried away him away.
Coastal Texas, near dawn
The high tide carried the bodies of the four Bolton Brothers and Lena Mack miles down the coast from where they had been unceremoniously dumped by the mutants Slash and Slobster. When they washed ashore hours later dawn was fast approaching. Another hot day awaited the Gulf Coast of Texas. Temperatures were already sultry.
"My aching head." Bobby Bolton said being the first to recover from the reactive coma induced by the viral mutagen they were pumped full of.
"Ugh, I feel like crap." Clint Bolton said.
"Anyone get the number of the truck that hit us?" Cooper Bolton asked.
"Yuck," Lena said tossing seaweed off her soaking wet body.
"Anyone remember how we got here? Wherever here is?" John Bolton said surveying his unfamiliar surroundings.
"We're on a beach, I think?" Clint reasoned by way of their surroundings.
"Good deductive thinking there Sherlock," Lena said snarkily.
"Hey, we were in the old deserted power plant when creepy Dr. Paradigm showed up," Bobby said.
"Yeah, we were there searching for dad," Cooper said.
"Two mondo ugly beasties were with the Doc," Clint said.
"They attacked us," Lena said more angry than upset.
"I remember. Then they strapped us down on gurneys or something similar and Dr. Paradigm experimented on us," John said. "That slimeball."
"We should call the fuzz," Bobby offered.
"I agree," Lena said. "Have that unethical bastard asserted."
"People, I don't feel good," Cooper said doubling over in pain.
"Me either," Flint said doubling over.
"Worse gut busting pain ever," Bobby said doubling over.
"Damn Dr. Paradigm," Lena said doubling over.
"What did he do to us," John said finishing his fiancée's train of though being the last to double over in agony.
The five fell on the damp, sandy ground. Their bodies shook uncontrollably as they rolled around. Every muscle they possessed seemed to spasm at once. Over the next half hour, the five young adults mutated into large humanoid sharks. Their clothing was mainly destroyed by the process. Flint became a dark brown skinned Hammerhead Shark mutant. Bobby became a light blue skinned Tiger Shark mutant with prominent purple stripes. Cooper keeping with his previous existence, became the largest of the group mutating into an orange skinned Whale Shark. John became a mutant Great White Shark with dark blue almost black skin. Least but not least Lena became a teal green skinned Greenland Shark mutant. They promptly passed out from the stress of their change on their bodies and minds as the sun rose over the watery horizon. The world welcomed its newest future heroes who would soon take the moniker the Street Sharks!
To Be Continued