I don't own TMNT or UY

Xxxxx

Man, this was no good. None of these passages were going the direction Mikey was in. I managed to find one U turn which took me close, but just as I got excited thinking I was gonna be able to meet up with him again, I was faced by another damn fire door! I can't even describe how frustrating it was to turn around and head all the way back I'd come, once again moving in the opposite direction from Mikey. I hadn't been able to find one single other hallway that could lead me where I wanted to go. Even if I did find one it would probably just be blocked off too! I'd never been so irritated in all my life!

I slammed my fist against one of the walls as hard as I could, gritting my teeth to myself as I marched aimlessly forward in the wrong direction. Dammit! I'd promised him I wouldn't be long! It's been almost an hour now and I still had no way of even getting in the same area as him! I had no idea what I could do. No idea at all. I felt so powerless and lost. I hated it! I hated it!

I slammed my fist against the wall again with a loud snarl. Why?! What was the point in splitting us up?! Who exactly thought that that would be a good joke to pull on us?! Mikey needed me! He needed me! He was screwed up enough as it was without this whole mess falling in our laps!

I shook my hand, flexing my fingers to try and ease the pain I'd inflicted on myself. I was angry as all hell, but in truth I was more scared than anything else. Usually when I was scared it morphed its way into anger in me. I dunno why, probably so I could stay functional and not freeze up. Of course it didn't work all the time. I have memories, even if its just a handful of them, where I'd needed a sharp word from one of my bros to snap me back to my senses when I freaked out too badly. Of course, every time I'd hit that level it'd been 'cause I was afraid for some-one in my family. I dunno... family getting hurt just... really got to me. More than anything in this world, the one thing that could render me to a quivering mess was the idea of some-one in my family getting messed up.

And now here I was, heading in the complete opposite direction from Mikey who had only a short while before been standing in front of me, bawling his heart out. Man I hope he was ok. I mean normally I wouldn't even bother worrying about him. He knows how to look after himself when he puts his mind to it. But he had been so shaky and he sounded so terrified when I left. I was going out of my mind with worry.

This wasn't fair. None of this was any fair.

Something snapped me outta my brooding and I looked around the hallway I was busy marching down, pulling my sai free. I wasn't sure what it'd been that'd caught my attention. There didn't seem to be any-one around and I couldn't spot anything that I would subconsciously register as a threat. I frowned to myself.

It took a few moments before I realised that the thing which'd caught my attention was the sudden lack of the alarm and electronic voice. It'd been blaring non-stop for ages now. When it went dead so abruptly it'd shaken me from my thoughts.

Relieved that that was all it was I put my weapons away and kept walking, going back to my grumbling as I desperately hoped for this passage to make a turn somewhere ahead.

One thing that made me feel better though was the fact that Mikey had said he'd found the hallway leading to the containment cells, and not just on a hunch, there's been a damn sign pointing the way we needed to go. There was no mistaking the fact that the cells weren't that far away. I was a little paranoid though, worrying that maybe, for some reason or other, they might've moved Jotaro again and we'd come all this way for nothing. Or maybe Mikey wouldn't be able to get into the cell and was sitting there, waiting for me to show up so I could help him break it open. Or maybe even worse, Bishop might've decided that, after we broke into the last base, it was too risky to keep the boy and had...

I shuddered, killing that line of thought as I kept walking, trying to find something else to focus my attention on. It was too late though, the mental image was already stuck in my head, and of course trying not to think about it only got me thinking about it even more.

I shook my head lightly, trying to think of something else.

I wonder if Leo and Don and Usagi were maybe heading towards where Mikey was. I was more than sure this alarm that'd started to blare had something to with the portal, and if they'd managed to shut it down already maybe they were heading to where Jotaro was, which is where Mikey was at the moment too. That made me feel a little better. I didn't mind running around by myself if Mikey had Leo to look after him. Donny or Usagi would be fine too but, as much as I hate to admit it, Leo would be the best person for him right now. Nothing like level-headed, calm cool collected Leonardo to make you feel better and forget how bad things really were. Not that I'd ever tell him that.

I kept walking, my mind wandering as I started to calm down. I was still feeling frustrated and worried but focusing on other things was helping me not have a complete freak out.

The hallway stretched on endlessly in front of me, the walls of it broken up by arches leading into different passages or doors leading to who knows where. My footsteps echoed in the silence as I walked, my thumbs tucked into my belt.

I dunno how long it was before another sound caught my attention. I froze, frowning to myself as I listened.

Somewhere ahead of me I could hear approaching footsteps, along with voices. I made a low noise to myself, pulling my sai free but remaining where I was. I hadn't seen any guards at all since the ones who attacked us made a break for it, but that didn't have to mean that they were all gone. Just because the ones who'd attacked me and Mikey turned chicken and ran didn't mean whoever was approaching would do the same thing.

There was also the chance that it could be Bishop, or this other bastard Tibalt. Heh. Strange how the thought of Tibalt makes me angrier than Bishop does right now. Didn't even think that was possible.

I waited, glaring at the approaching noise. It was coming from my left, probably from one of the side passages. I tightened my grip on my weapons as the noise grew louder.

When the owners of the footsteps entered the hallway, from a side passage I was so dumb-struck to see who it was that all I could do was gape at them as they crossed the hall, not seeing me, before they carried down a different archway to my right.

I blinked, snapping out of it when I heard their voices grow fainter as they walked away. I tucked my sai back in my belt before taking off after them.

"Hey guys!" I called, running to catch up.

The voices and footsteps went silent as I turned the corner and into the hallway they'd gone. They were standing a few paces ahead of me, all three of them turned to look back over their shoulders at me with wide eyes.

Leo frowned to himself, squinting at me. "Raph?!"

I gave a wicked laugh, coming over to them and giving Donny a hard smack on the back of his shell playfully.

"Man is it good ta see you guys!" I said, giving Usagi a broad grin as I wrapped an arm around Donny's neck.

"Get off me you oaf!" Donny complained, wriggling against me.

Usagi gave me a heartfelt smile in return, chuckling lightly at Don's struggles. "It is good to see you are unharmed Raphael-san! The lack of communication had it so that we were... quite concerned about you."

I didn't miss the sideways glance he gave Leo. I felt my grin widen at this but decided to use it for ammo later instead of teasing my big brother about it right now.

I waved a hand dismissively at the rabbit, letting Donny go. "Aw, piece of cake! Besides its kinda hard ta get roughed up when every nut in the joint suddenly decides ta hoof it!"

"You won't here me complaining about that" Donny said, taking a step back from me so I couldn't grab hold of him again. "I dunno about you but I was getting kinda sick of trying to accomplish things while sneaking around."

I grinned at him and nodded. "Likewise. Besides, I've had my fill of head clobberin' today."

"Raphael." Leo interrupted, his voice having that distinct 'no nonsense' tone to it which told me something was up. I turned to him, a little unnerved to see him facing me with a stone-hard stare, his expression dead-serious.

"Raph. Where's Mikey?" He asked bluntly.

I saw the smile on Donny's face crash and his eyes widen as he suddenly looked around, also noticing our hyper brother wasn't with me. Usagi merely frowned at me with concern.

I gave a short, aggravated sigh, crossing my arms. "Probably on the other side of the base by now! We got separated when this damn steel door came crashing down between us! I've been tryin' ta find another way back to him but..." I grit my teeth, feeling my eyes narrow. "...but this whole damn place is just one giant maze! I've been walkin' for hours in the wrong direction 'cause none of these passages go the way I want them to! And the ones that do all end with me facin' a friggen' metal door!!"

Leo blinked at me. He looked surprised at how angry I was. It only took him a moment to frown at me again, but this time in concern.

"Was he ok when you left him?" He asked.

For a few moments I wasn't sure what to say to him. Was I suppose to lie and say Mikey was fine? That wasn't the truth. In fact it couldn't be further from the truth! But what point would there be in telling him Mike was on the verge of a nervous breakdown? All it would do was get Leo worked up and freak Donny out. I made a small noise to myself.

"He ain't hurt." I said.

Leo's frown deepened a little as he stared at me. I could tell he was seeing through my double-talk.

"I am sure Mikey-kun will be able to look after himself until we can reunite with him." Usagi suddenly interrupted, giving me a quiet, thoughtful stare. "I know he is of a strong character, and with the guards no longer around he will be in little danger."

I softened my glare slightly at the rabbit in gratitude. Man, never expected for the guy to have my back against Leo.

Leo turned to give Usagi a worried look before he sighed and gave a nod. "I guess you're right."

A thought occurred to me and I felt myself break out into a grin again. "It ain't all bad news though!"

Leo turned back to me with a confused expression.

"What d'you mean Raph?" Donny asked, blinking at me.

I gave them a very wide smile. "Just before we got split up, Mikey found a directory with a veeeeery interestin' sign pointin' the way which he's now headin'!"

Leo frowned at me again. "And what exactly is that suppose to mean?"

I rolled my eyes, a little disappointed that he hadn't caught the hint. "It means that Once we meet up with him again we can high-tail it outta here, 'cause right now Mikey's pulling one heck of a jail-break!"

Leo blinked at me for a moment before his eyes widened, his mouth dropping open.

"You are not serious!" Usagi blurted out before he could say anything, rounding on me with wide-eyes. "You have found where they are keeping Jotaro-kun?!"

I didn't think it was possible but my smile grew wider. "I got stuck on the wrong side of the door, but Mikey's probably already sprung the kid free."

"Are you sure Raph?" Leo said, raising his hands slightly as he spoke, trying to keep his tone calm and business like, but he wasn't able to completely mask the growing excitement in his voice.

I pulled a face at him, sticking my tongue out slightly. "Why would I lie huh?! We saw a sign clearly marked 'Containment Area', Mike got excited and ran ahead which is why we were on opposite sides of the steel door when it came down. I told 'im I was gonna try find another way to where he was but that he needed ta go on ahead and find the kid on his own!" I snapped my fingers. "Easy as pie!"

"That's Great Raph!!" Donny said, practically beaming at me. "I can't believe you guys found him!! We wanted to tell you we were going after the portal and you should go after Jotaro but the shell cells aren't working!! I can't believe you guys found him anyway!!"

"And he's probably gonna take the boy back to the shell sub and wait for us there!" Leo said, breaking into a glowing smile himself. "Man we couldn't have planned this better!"

I felt my chest rise slightly in pride as I put on a dismissive air. "We were just lucky is all. Anybody coulda found it, we just happened ta-"

"Usagi. Hey are you ok?" Donny's voice interrupted me.

I cut off my sentence to look at the rabbit, my smile melting away in a single split second.

He was standing rooted to the spot, one arm wrapped around his own middle while he bit down on a finger of the other. He was shaking, rather badly I might add.

"Hey." Leo moved closer, putting a hand on his shoulder. I was confused to see that Leo looked more than just concerned, he almost looked scared. I didn't like that at all. Why the overly worried response? Did something happen?

"Easy, easy." Leo said to Usagi gently, squeezing his shoulder and keeping his eyes locked on him. "It's ok Usagi."

Usagi released his finger to take a deep, shaking breath. He gave a rather erratic nod, closing his eyes.

"I.. I know I..." He opened them again, turning to Leo with a warm smile. "...I am alright I just..." He bit down on his lip as his brow furrowed into a pained expression. "Mikey-kun's found him Leonardo...."

Leo was looking almost horror-struck at his friend's expression as he nodded. "Yeah. Yeah it's ok now. Mikey'll look after him. He's a bit of an air-head but he'll guard the boy with his life."

Usagi gave a nod, smiling again. He took a very deep, more stable breath, fighting down his emotions.

He opened his eyes again, a serious, hard-set expression on his face. "We must go and destroy this portal." He broke into a smile again, but this time there was a razor sharp edge to it. "I have nothing dividing my concerns now."

Leo blinked at him before he broke into a determined smile himself, giving a single nod as he let Usagi go. "Let's go."

he turned and we started to lead the way.

"Waittaminute!" I snapped as I followed. "You're tellin' me that alarm wasn't 'cause you guys had broken the thing?!"

Donny gave a drawn out, tired sigh. "It's a long story Raph..."

---

I marched angrily through the pitch black hallway, my fury practically sparking off of me. I couldn't believe the long sordid story Donny, Leo and Usagi had just told me! As if I didn't wanna rip Tibalt's guts out bad enough! Now this!! I couldn't believe it!! I just couldn't believe it!! The man slanders Mikey and nearly kills both Leo and Usagi while bringing some Godforsaken monster here to terrorise our city while at the same time keeping a little boy under lock and key?! What the hell kind of sicko is this?!

I was storming through the passage, following Donny's trail since I couldn't see him, but I was perfectly aware he was there. Ninjas don't need their eyes to manoeuvre around.

"Raph, for goodness' sake try to calm down." I heard Leo say behind me.

"I ain't gonna calm down till I've ripped that man's throat out!" I growled vengefully.

We'd made our way back to where they'd told me this portal was. They took the time to fill me in on everything that'd happened on their side. They'd told me of the shell cells being blocked by the base itself. About how they'd found the portal was closer to them than the containment cells were. About how they'd gone to sabotage it. About how Bishop had appeared and how Usagi and Leo had gone to distract him while Donny tried to destroy the gate. About how Tibalt had shown up and double crossed our "friend" in black. About how Tibalt revealed his boss was something from another dimension trying to get here. About how the portal had exploded, knocking Leo out and very nearly killing the rabbit. About how Donny deactivated the Fire-doors. About how Bishop had reappeared and given them the fail safe device and lastly, about how they were now gonna do everything they can to destroy this thing once and for all.

Donny had been right; it was a long story. By the time they'd finished we'd found ourselves in the hallway nearing the portal room. I could already feel the slight vibration in the floor and hear the far off rush of wind and crackle of lightning. I could smell the faint hint of smoke in the air, but it seemed stagnant, like it had been there for a while. It didn't smell like the smoke from a fire that was still burning. With Donny having turned off the alarm the passage had nothing to light it and we'd had to make our way down it in complete darkness.

As we walked the rushing wind and sound of a roaring machine grew louder and louder until it was almost deafening. A sharp, blue light started to fill the passage from an open archway, its doors ripped from their hinges.

I took a deep breath, catching up to keep pace with Donny, waiting for Leo and Usagi to do the same before he walked through the doorway and into the rubble that was once the portal room.

Inside there stood the machine they had described to me. More than two storeys tall, its centre ablaze with swirling, cyan light so bright you couldn't look at it directly. Wind was whipping around us, sucked into the vortex as destroyed machinery and torn electronics lay smashed all around. The centre of the portal was spinning dizzyingly fast. Every few moments a jagged, forked blast of blue light would lash out from the portal's centre, slicing into whatever it struck, cutting deep gashes into the already decimated room. There was no fire, only dark scorch marks of where they were, but the wind had been too much for them and they'd burnt themselves out. The noise was almost unbearable, it was like being inside a hurricane.

My bandanna tails were ripped forward where they flapped, whipping the side of my face painfully.

"Lord have mercy..." I said to myself.

Xxxxx

I Can't believe I finished the chapter after this, this very night. I only got home at 8pm.I suppose its for the best since the chapter is short. I might only upload the next chapter on Saturday though since the chapter after that is a big one.