Author's Note: Here we go with the conclusion of the Triceraton invasion! Donatello finds himself not alive, but not dead, either, and he has to make a choice whether he lives or dies. Thus, he's going to have a little help to convince him to make the right choice. Not only that, but our dear Shredder will be active again, and we're introduced to a new villain with her own motives. Who is this villain? Well you need to read and find out, of course!

Chapter 36: Out of Body

Light.

All that stared him in the face was bright light.

The light felt warm…safe…welcoming.

Was this the light at the end of the tunnel people talked about experiencing? Why would they want to get away from it? It wasn't so bad…he felt himself wanting to go.

What stopped him?

Donatello opened his eyes and found himself staring into the light, right in front of him. Behind him wasn't a light…for some reason, it resembled a vast forest, and he himself had his shell against a tree. He looked down at himself, and he was, in his eyes, naked. No belt, no bandages, no knee and shoulder pads, no mask…he was totally bare from head to toe. He couldn't shake this weird pressure hitting his chest over and over again, at least until he took another look at the hypnotizing light. Pushing himself to his feet, the genius turtle slowly walked towards the light, wanting it to consume him and take him from this place; how did he get here? The last thing he remembered was rushing between Cheyloe and Mozar, but the rest was a blank.

As his fingers were about to caress the warm light and allow it to consume his body, something stopped him.

"Wait!"

Donnie flinched at the loud command, recognizing the voice. It prompted him to turn around and locate source; he wanted to ask why he would be denied the comfort of the light. But in a way, he knew the answer...he just needed it confirmed, like he always did. Once he fully turned, he found himself staring at a familiar face, slowly bringing a smile to his lips.

"…Embry."

Embry, the child he met thanks to the Time Scepter; the child that helped him during his Spirit Quest…here he was, looking unchanged. Still with that messy dark hair with a mini-ponytail on top, still with that ruddy face, and still with the missing teeth and bright brown eyes. The boy didn't seem surprised to see him, and he wondered why, but that would be answered later. Right now, he had to know why Embry didn't want him to go into the light. But that would also wait when the boy grinned up at him.

"We haven't talked to each other in a while!" Embry beamed, energy abundant. "Not since you were on the mountain fighting that Tiger Claw guy!"

Donnie chuckled, in spite of his confusion. The humor soon stopped and the genius turtle looked down at Embry with sad auburn eyes, making the child cease in his reminiscing. "Embry…where ARE we? This isn't New York, is it?"

"No…I dunno what it's called. I just call it the place in-between." Embry replied simply.

"In-between?" Donnie inquired. "In-between what?"

"In-between life and death."

That was when it hit him. Donnie began remembering everything…he remembered seeing Mozar about to kill Cheyloe with that large blade. He remembered running to protect her from him. He remembered being cut down, hearing her scream, hearing his family scream…remembering his own heartbeat and breathing ceasing. "…I'm dead, aren't I?"

"Not really." Embry assured, glancing at the light. "But you will be if you go into the light. I know you think it's nice, and it is…but you're not ready to go yet, Donnie."

"What? But…" The genius turtle bit his lip, unsure of what to think. If it was so nice, why wouldn't he be ready to go? Why couldn't it be his time to go; he made a warrior's sacrifice, for crying out loud! Couldn't he have peace and warmth as a reward? "Then…why won't you go into the light, too?"

"It's cuz…" Embry stared down and rocked on the heels of his feet, keeping his gaze on the grass beneath them and not really wanting to reveal his reason. But he had to, and he had more to tell the turtle. "I still have more stuff to do…that means I have to convince you to go back. There's so much you have to do, and I don't want you to give up!"

"But…"

"No buts, Donnie! That's what Chey always says!"

Figures…there'd be no convincing Embry otherwise; the kid was dead-set in making him listen. He wouldn't disrespect Embry, especially since his own life hung in the balance. Maybe another approach would be successful, and that approach would involve changing the subject ever-so-slightly. Kids did that a lot to begin with. "Hey, Embry…I'm pretty sure you remember meeting me…right before you died. I-I'm sorry…I feel like I basically talked you into sacrificing yourself to save Cheyloe. I never intended for you to die young…so please, PLEASE forgive me, kiddo…"

"Huh?" Embry looked genuinely confused at the apology. "Donnie, I'm not mad at you over that! You didn't talk me into it…well, you did make me brave, but I wanted to protect Chey. That Si-zee-gee guy was gonna hurt her, and I had to help her! And then…" The boy suddenly cast his head down again, only this time to hide the fat tears welling up in his eyes. "…I made her sad. Cuz I did that, she's always sad; she forces herself to be happy when she's really sad. I-I don't wanna make her sad, Donnie…I-I should be sorry, n-not you."

Seeing the child actually crying broke Donnie's heart, prompting him to kneel forward and embrace the boy in his strong arms. "Shh, shh…Embry, you have no reason to be sorry. You followed your heart…you loved Chey so much you gave your life for her…she just hated it that you died so young and died the way you did. She…it's a little something grown-ups call survivor's guilt."

"But…why does she want so bad to be punished for it?" Embry questioned further. "Is it cuz of me?"

The genius turtle shook his head. "No, it's not your fault, Embry. Chey just has to learn to grieve over you differently."

"Do not cry, Embry…you are too adorable to have a face stained with tears."

Donnie halted in place; he knew this voice, too. Turning back towards the trees, he could see a small river and a bridge over it, and he could make out the figure of what resembled a woman on the bridge. As she got closer, he could see it was the very person he suspected.

Tang Shen.

Instead of the white dress shirt and blue jeans she wore in the past, Shen was adorned in a yellow kimono patterned with white cherry blossoms, held together with a sash bearing the Hamato Clan symbol. While her hair was certainly long in the past, it seemed much longer now, and was beautifully decorated with a lotus flower comb. Seeing her like this made the turtle's jaw hang open; he never saw beauty like this. Embry immediately stopped crying and ran to Shen before clinging to her leg. The woman simply smiled and petted the boy's head…almost as if he were her own. Since Embry no longer had his parents, it seemed fitting that he would take up with her.

"T-Tang Shen…" Donnie sputtered, falling to his knees and lowering his head. "I-I can't believe it's you. Shen, I'm…I'm so sorry we couldn't save you. We would've if we could, but if we did…"

He froze mid-speech when he felt a hand lift his chin up, showing his bleary eyes. Shen offered a smile for him and gazed into his eyes. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Donatello. I understand now that you were from the future, and you were not allowed to save me…lest you not exist."

"That doesn't mean it was right to let you die…or let Miwa be taken by Shredder." The turtle argued weakly.

Shen rose up, her smile disappearing, and held Embry closer. "I fear that is my fault, my child. You and your brothers warned me of the evil in Saki's heart, but I foolishly believed there was only good in him. Once I realized the truth…it was too late. If I had just listened to you, then perhaps Yoshi would not have the suffering of my demise still in his heart, and perhaps Miwa would not have been mutated against her will. But I don't regret saving Yoshi's life, and I am glad now that Miwa is back with him."

"No, no, Shen, don't blame yourself!" Donnie insisted, shaking his head. "You only did what you thought was right! You and Splinter both thought you could bring him back to his senses! But some people are just too far gone...that's what happened to my friend, Timothy. I can empathize with you on that, Shen."

That brought a smile back to the woman's face, and she carefully helped Donatello up onto his feet. "There is one thing I can do to make amends for what happened that day…and that is to ensure you live a long and prosperous life. With help from my little friend, of course."

Shen and Embry both walked to the river, beckoning Donnie to follow and watch. The two of them parted as to allow the turtle to take a look at the water. Donnie instantly leaned down, looking at the both of them for reassurance, before touching the surface and watching it ripple. Just like that, it became like a mirror, only it didn't reflect his image…it showed him what was going on in Central Park. Right there, he stared at his own lifeless body as Cheyloe frantically did more chest compressions; that explained the weird feeling in his chest this whole time. He could see his family and friends gathered around, already mourning over him. He could see the brunette lean over and cry over him, begging him not to leave. He could feel how much he wanted to wake up, just to touch them and speak to them.

"They're all really sad over you, Donnie. Cheyloe hadn't cried that much since I died. I don't ever wanna see her cry like that again." Embry murmured, hiding his face in Shen's kimono.

"I-I can't…believe I'm staring at my own body…" Donnie whispered, hands shaking. "W-What happened to Mozar? The Triceratons?"

Shen stared at the reflection of Central Park, particularly the grieving image of Splinter, somberly as she answered, "Cheyloe killed him. The rest of these Triceratons fled in fear, taking his body with them. She did it in retaliation for your sacrifice."

Just like Syzygy. Donnie swallowed a lump in his throat, chest tightening at the tear-stained faces of his loved ones; even Casey and Karai were crying. He paid close attention to Chey begging for him to return, watching her press her forehead to his in agony. Hands tightly gripping the grass beneath him, he took a deep breath and declared, "…I have to go back to them. I'm not ready to go yet! They need me…a-and I need them! How do I get back to them!? To her!?"

Shen and Embry both smiled, staring towards the bridge leading away from the hypnotizing light of the afterlife. "Go on that bridge…run as fast as you can." Shen replied calmly. "Once you step onto the bridge, do not look back."

With a nod, the turtle started for the bridge before stopping himself a few steps ahead. He turned towards the woman and boy to ask, "Will I ever see you two again?'

"Uh-huh!" Embry nodded feverishly. "We'll always be with you, Donnie! Tell Chey I said hi!"

"We will be with all of you." Shen reassured, smiling in a way only a mother would. "Take care, my son."

Donatello smiled as well, eyes once again bleary, before confidently turning to the bridge and bolting for it. The boards underneath his feet and the sound of the river flowing began fading, and he found himself slowly entering a blanket of mist. While he didn't dare look back, he could feel the forest disappearing, and found himself encased in sudden darkness. It proved to be deathly quiet, making him fear that he would be trapped in it for eternity. A moment later, though, he could hear garbled sobs and cries of his name…

"Cheyloe, that's enough…" Leonardo choked out bitterly. "H-He's not coming back."

"I don't believe you!" Cheyloe argued, her voice hoarse from crying as she tried one more time to press on Donatello's bloody plastron. "H-He can't be gone! He can't…"

"Please…just stop." Leo begged hoarsely, voice rising. "It's…no use."

The Mutanimals had their heads bowed, paying their respects to the genius turtle, and Splinter didn't dare look at anyone in order to hide his grief. April kept holding tightly to Raphael and kept sobbing into his shoulder, and Michelangelo gathered among Casey and Karai to let out heartfelt wails for their brother. As Cheyloe weakly pressed on Donnie's plastron for the final time, she finally collapsed over him and sobbed into his neck. It was a few seconds later, everyone halted in their mourning when they heard a loud, sharp gasp. When they all looked down…

"D-Donnie!?" April shrieked from beside Raph.

Donatello's eyes were wide opened, albeit glazed-over, and he took several deep breaths. He now felt the impact of the blow from Mozar's blade; the pain flooded through his upper body and made him grunt in misery. He ignored his agony when he saw his loved ones hovering over him and expressing disbelief of his survival. Of course, they all started smiling and shedding tears of relief that he came back to them; to them, his survival was a miracle. That moment was when he locked eyes with Cheyloe, and mustered up enough strength to reach a shaky hand up to cup her wet cheek. His breathing went from labored to calm, despite his pain, and his eyes relaxed at the sight of her. While Tang Shen and Embry were to thank to convince him to come back, he could also say the young woman staring at him helped him come back to life. Because of what happened, he had the courage to say what came across his mind the moment he saw her.

"…I love you."

Hearing him say that in a weak, croaky voice made Chey's lips quiver and more tears flood out. She reached her hand up to rest over Donnie's as she gave a weak nod; she didn't have to say anything for him to know it was the same on her part. The brunette moved herself out of the way in order to give the others a moment with him…at least until he had to be transported and his injuries tended to. True, she was over the moon that Donnie survived such a fatal blow…but he wouldn't have died for those few moments if it hadn't been for her.

"D-Donnie!" Mikey sobbed as he enveloped his brother in a hug. "W-We almost lost you forever, dude!"

"Donnie, if ya EVER do something like that again, I will RIP YOUR HEAD OFF!" Raph roared, but quickly collapsed on his knees and held his brother up. "Y-Ya died on us, bro…don't do that ever again…"

April and Casey soon swooped in to give their hugs to the injured turtle, and Karai stood away from the group. It wasn't out of apathy for Donnie coming back…but she didn't want them to see her crying again, thankful that he survived. Splinter stumbled forward, awestruck at what just happened, before hugging his son gently. "Donatello…my precious son…you are alive…"

"S-Sensei…" Donnie suddenly cried out in pain as his nerves burned. His hands immediately went to claw at his plastron and attempt to smother the sensation.

"Donnie, no! You'll get it infected!" Raph grabbed onto his brother's arms and pulled them away, lest he contaminate his open wounds. "We gotta get 'im back to the lair NOW!"

Slash immediately stepped forward and volunteered to carry the injured turtle back home; it was the least he could do to make up for hurting him in the past. With Donnie still oozing blood, the entire group rushed to get him treated. They didn't care at the moment if any civilians saw them, or if they were caught on camera. They would deal with that later. All that mattered now was that the Triceratons were gone, Fugitoid remained secured, and Donatello was alive, though not well. Whatever could possibly happen next stayed in the furthest recesses of their minds.

If they only knew what was about to come.

"Master Shredder."

The Shredder didn't avert his gaze or change his posture when the voice of Tiger Claw addressed him. For the duration of going on two weeks, his mind went over every possible location his beloved 'daughter' could be. He gave Stockman the severest punishment possible over her disappearance; the bug assured this batch of mind-control worms was unbeatable! But he knew who was truly to blame for: Hamato Yoshi. It was because of Yoshi that Shen perished, not because he was blinded by obsession. It was because of Yoshi that Karai was nowhere to be found, not because she fled from his grip. So what did Tiger Claw want that was more important than his rampant thoughts?

"What is it, Tiger Claw?" The armored ninja spoke irritably.

The tiger mutant knelt down and bowed his head. "I bring news, Master Shredder."

"If it involves these invading creatures, then do not bother." Shredder cut in, glancing towards the windows and noticing a few clouds of smoke around the city. "I could care less if the world is indeed ending."

"On the contrary, Master." Tiger Claw assured, rising up. "The alien invaders have fled. But that is not all…Karai fought them, alongside the Turtles and their allies."

Shredder's eyes widened as he shot up from his stone throne, fists clenched tightly at the mention of Karai's name. "Karai is with the Turtles!? Where are they now!?"

"I do not know." The tiger mutant admitted, bracing himself for punishment for that confession. "The influx of civilians prevented me from tracking them. I do bring additional news, however…one of the Turtles has been gravely injured by these invaders. They are weakened, thus they will be easier to strike. The citizens of New York are beginning to panic over these invasions and mutant sightings-"

"Stop." The armored ninja halted as he walked to the large windows and stared down at the city. He could see groups of people beginning to flock to local law enforcement areas, some even going towards city hall. He knew what they were doing: they were demanding something be done about the aliens and 'monsters'. They were panicked, paranoid…and easy to sway to his will.

"…Let us use this to our advantage, Tiger Claw." Shredder smirked behind his mask, his good eye narrowed at the scared people below. "We will give Karai a reason to come back…lest she lose her 'friends' to the New York citizens."

Yorkshire, England

"The alien threat seems to be over with!" Carlos Chiang O'Brien Gambe reported, ignoring the small cluster of people behind him shouting into the cameras. "While the Triceratons seem to have left this planet in a hurry, the panic flooding our city has only intensified. No one knows why these aliens suddenly fled after declaring Earth's destruction, but footage has come in of what looks like a group of monsters fighting these reptilian menaces! The question is, are they fighting to protect us, or just fighting for their territory?"

While the footage of the different creatures fighting each other aired, the figure watching the broadcast casually uncorked a bottle of wine and poured herself a generous glass. Her fingernails clacked on the surface of the end table next to her, trying to cure her boredom. She didn't know why she changed to a news broadcast coming from New York; the matters of 'normal' people didn't enthuse her. However, she almost spat out her wine when she caught sight of a brunette hovering over one of the injured creatures. But she quickly regained her composure and took a calm sip from her drink.

"…The little boy's former guardian." She murmured, her voice carrying a heavy English accent. "So, she's now palling around with monsters. Strange…that one resembles the creature Heat described two years ago."

Someone came up beside the woman; a young man with slicked-back hair straightening the cuffs on his shirt. "The people there are going mad over these aliens." He spoke with a slight French accent. "It won't be long before they all become stupid with fear. They'll just end up destroying each other."

"Maybe so." The woman mused, finishing off her wine and turning off the television. "Sang…we're taking a little trip to New York City."

The young man's eyes widened, and he pulled away from his sleeve cuff. "Êtes-vous sûr, Farrah?"

"I am sure. We should pay our dear little girl a surprise visit." The woman, Farrah, stared down at her pristine silver fingernails and flashed a cold smirk. "Let us also goad the real monsters into destroying each other…one, by one, by one."

Fugitoid spent the past few hours fretting and fidgeting over the fate of those fighting to protect him. No phone calls came his way after his conversation with Donatello, and he shook the TV so much during the live news feed that it shorted out. As a result, he found himself in the dark over what possibly happened. What if Mozar and his troops captured them? Imprisoned them aboard the mothership? Or worse…what if they killed them? They could be dead, and it was all his fault. He should've just told them where to find the Black Hole Generator, but the less they knew now, the better.

As the android paced inside the lab, he picked up a noise that could only be hurried footsteps. He bolted out of the lab and went to see who could be entering the lair, and found everyone entering one-by-one through the turnstiles. "My friends, you're all right! This must mean you defeated the Triceratons and stopped the bomb!" His cheer disappeared when he noticed the solemn faces of the mutants and humans. "…What's wrong? What happened on the surface?"

The answer hit him square in the metal face when he witnessed Slash carrying in the injured Donatello. Whatever was the equivalent of his heart sank at the genius turtle groaning and crying out in agony. He recognized the injury; only a Triceraton war blade would've done that. "D-Donatello! Oh my goodness, who did this to him!?"

"…Mozar." Leo answered bitterly, not looking at the android. "He's not a problem anymore."

Fugitoid's fiber-optic eyes changed to express his shock. In all his years, Mozar was virtually unbeatable, so hearing that would've knocked him off his fee if he were still a humanoid. "Did you…"

"No…Cheyloe did." The blue-masked turtle turned to see the brunette hanging in the background, staring pitifully at Donnie writing in the giant turtle's arms. "Cheyloe, help us get him patched up. We need to clean his wound right away."

No answer. As the genius turtle groaned more on the way to the lab, Cheyloe's expression shattered, and she fought to keep herself from crying for him. The pain-filled groans, combined with the brunette not heeding his command, finally wore on Leo's nerves and he spat out, "Cheyloe, don't just stand there! Help him!"

Chey jumped, and forced herself to head into the lab so she could get Donnie bandaged up and sedated; he would be needing a nice dose of morphine just to sleep. If he didn't have some stored in his lab, then she would have to sneak some from the hospital…unless she decided to come clean to Dr. Yeoh. But as she saw Donnie crying out from being jolted on the lab table, she dropped the first aid kit she picked up and broke down. Just listening to him be in such pain proved too much for her to handle. The others noticed this, and April went on to get the purple-masked turtle bandaged while she knelt on the floor uttering low wails.

This was all her fault.

Donnie was in agony because of her.

She was too dangerous to be near anyone.

She was a coward.

Donnie would be safer…if she was no longer around.

Pretty intense still, eh? Well, at least we know Donnie's alive, though he won't be fighting for a while. I will warn you that Chey's going to be acting in a way that you guys might want to slap her over, but this last little bit gives a clue as to why. Now that the citizens of New York are fully aware of aliens and mutants, what will be the fate of our heroes? And what does this Farrah woman have to do with Chey? What are Shredder's new plans to get Karai back and hurt her family? Well, stay tuned and find out!