NOTE: There will probably be granmar mistakes which I will fix later.

"...eo. Leo."

He came back to reality when he felt someone lightly slap him on the cheek, and Karai was kneeling in front of him, her eyes red and puffy and her mascara running. He was still in the warehouse and chained to the support beam, and the lights of the patrol cars flashed red and blue outside the windows. With a trembling hand, she caressed his face.

"Leo," she whispered in a trembling voice, "I'm so sorry."

It took him a moment to remember what had just happened. He must've blacked out after Raph...

Oh, god.

"I love you, Brother."

He shut his eyes tight as tears leaked out and bowed his head. "He's gone," he moaned. "Raph is gone."

Karai unsheathed her sword and sliced the chains, and as soon as he was freed, he fell forward and would've landed on his face had Karai not caught him. She pulled him close in a comforting embrace and let him rest his face on her shoulder. He was now sobbing miserably and his wails echoed in the empty warehouse.


Shadow pedaled like she never pedaled before toward the warehouse and jumped off her bike as soon as she arrived, leaving it in the middle of the street. A crowd of curious citizens gathered around the building but were being pushed back by the NYPD, and reporters from every news network in New York were denied access beyond the barricades.

But no one could stop her from getting to her uncle and she pushed her way through the crowd. When she started to climb over the barricades, an officer tried to stop her, but she used her powers to push him away. The cop landed on his bum and frantically looked around him, confused and frightened. A couple more moved in to detain her and an unseen force shoved them away from her.

She froze and her heart dropped when she saw the body on the ground. A white bloody sheet covered it but a green three-digit hand was visible. Very slowly, she approached the body and dropped to her knees next to it. With a trembling hand, she grabbed a hold of the sheet and pulled it off.

"...no...!"

Raph's eye was open and lifeless, staring blankly at the night sky. His entire body was covered in bullet holes, but his plastron got hit the most, all of the blood washing away the painted snake.

A cry of anguish escaped Shadow's throat as she touched his now very cold face. "Uncle Raph...!" she whimpered, her tears coming down on his cheeks, which made it look like he was weeping too. "Don't go!" she said louder as she sobbed. "Don't go away!" She laid herself down on his chest and buried her face in his neck.

This couldn't be happening. This had to be a nightmare. She was probably sleeping in her bed, and in the morning, she would wake up and go see her uncle. He would be there to greet her with a grin, his eye full of life and not a single bullet hole in his body. He would be alive and well, and everything would be all right.

But she could not bring herself to deny the reality of the situation, no matter how bad she wanted to.

Her sobs were muffled by Raph's neck. "You can't go! I don't want you to go! I want you to stay with me! Please stay! Please, please stay! Uncle Raph!"

Everyone else in the crowd stared, wondering why this girl was weeping over the death of a criminal, unless she knew him personally. Then they screamed and dispersed as Slash came out of nowhere and made his way toward Shadow. The cops were too stunned by Shadow's telekinetic attack to even do anything and just watched.

Slash gasped at the sight of his closest friend lying dead on the ground. "Raphael?" he croaked. He moved in closer and got down on his knees next to Shadow. His yellow green eyes filled with tears and he almost broke down into a sobbing mess, but he needed to be strong for Shadow and get Raph home.

He gently touched Shadow's shoulder. "Kid," he said softly, his voice cracked, "I'm sorry but...you need to head on home and tell your parents. I'll take Raphael back to his family."

Shadow mourned her uncle for one more minute before she pulled away, with great reluctance, and slowly got back on her feet. She was still unable to control her tears but she calmed down enough to wobble back to her bike and pedal away. Slash was right: her Mom and Dad needed to know what happened. Breaking it to them was going to be the hardest thing to do, though.

Slash closed his friend's eye and picked him up, gingerly holding him in his arms. No one, not even the cops stopped him as he started to walk away. He stopped for a moment to growl at the cameramen, who immediately lowered their cameras and backed away, giving the two mutants a little privacy.

"I'll take you home, buddy," he whispered to his friend, a single tear falling down his cheek and landing on Raph's.

...

Thirty-eight years ago...

His first owner was a cruel and sadistic teenager who took pleasure in torturing and even killing small, defenseless animals. He was only a baby, newly hatched, when he was purchased by that boy at the pet store, and from the day forward, it was a living hell for him.

The boy would tie him to a toy car and push him down a steep hill. He would torture him for hours by poking his skin with a needle even after he pulled into his shell. Sometimes he would even dangle the poor creature over his hungry snake in its habitat, laughing at his torment.

Finally, the human decided one day that he was bored with the turtle and dropped him in a toilet. As he was being flushed, the last thing he saw before being sucked in was the word "SLASH" in big white letters on the boy's black T-shirt.

He would never forget that boy nor all the pain he caused, and he would never be hurt like that again without a fight.

He survived, and for two days he floated on the waters of the sewers, alone and hungry. The tunnels were dark and smelled foul, and he would puke out the filthy water after desperately drinking it to quench his thirst. He was becoming exhausted and sick.

Then on the second night, a flash of light suddenly blinded him and he heard something jump into the water. He was then picked up and the light was turned off. A even bigger turtle looked down at him with large green eyes and smiled.

"Hey, little guy," he said. "Where'd you come from?" When the reptilian boy started to stroke his shell with his green finger, the turtle snapped and nearly bit him in self-defense. "Whoa! It's okay! I'm not gonna hurt you."

As the boy continued to stroke him, the turtle slowly became more relaxed. More relaxed than he had ever been since he was taken from the pet store. He could sense that this one was different and meant no harm.

"There ya go," the boy gently said. "See? I'm a friend. My name's Raphael, and I'm taking you home with me."

Because he was so tired, the turtle fell asleep in Raph's hands as they went down the tunnel. When he woke up several hours later, he was lying on a soft, warm blanket and a couple of fresh leaves were laid out front of him.

He immediately knew that he was home and smiled.


Chompy immediately sensed something was wrong as a forlon Slash carried Raph into the lair and put him down on the couch. He sniffed his master's hand and nudged it with his nose, but it just swayed back and forth, completely limp. When he got no response, Chompy began to whimper and groan loud enough to wake Mona Lisa up.

The Salamandrian rushed into the living room to see what all the commotion was about, and when saw Raph on the couch, she gasped and ran to his side. "Raphael?!" she grabbed the sides of his face and shook him. "Raphael!" she yelled again. Then she turned to Slash. "He needs a doctor! HURRY!"

But Slash somberly shook his head. "He doesn't need a doctor, Mona. He's-"

"NO!" Mona would hear none of it, though. "No!" she yelled angrily. "He is not dead! He needs medical attention! And you are wasting time!" She try to run past him but he grabbed her arm. "Let me go!" she screamed as she struggled to pry herself free, but he was too strong. "LET ME GO!"

"Mona, shhh," Slash softly shushed her and pulled her close to his plastron. She struggled and fought him even more, but he would not budge. "Mona, I'm so sorry," he said in a gentle, sad voice. "I'm so sorry."

She gradually stopped fighting as she became exhausted, and once she had finally calmed down, he let go of her. She stared at her lover's body with tears in her golden eyes. "Is he really...?"

"Yes," Slash whispered, giving her shoulder a comforting squeeze, which was all he could do for her.

Mona began to weep as she knelt down in front of the couch and touched Raph's face. "Raphael," she cried softly and pressed her cheek against his, "my brave, noble warrior. How can I live without you?" She nuzzled his beak with her nose.

"You truly are a noble creature."

"My name's, uh, Raphael."

"I am called Y'Gythgba."

"You are called...uh...I got an idea. Back on Earth, there's this painting of, like, the most beautiful woman in art and stuff? Um, so how about if I call you...Mona Lisa?"

She cried even harder as she embraced him. First she lost her homeworld, then she lost her innocence to that traitor K'Vathrak, and now she has lost the only man she ever loved. Why was fate so cruel to her?

Chompy groaned in worry, confused about what was going on, and all Slash could do was soothingly rub the space turtle's head.


"...R-Raph...is...is..."

Donnie got up from his chair and stumbled over to the wall, leaning against it and supporting himself with his forearms. His breathing became heavy and uneasy as his eyes brimmed with tears.

Gaia had just come into the interrogation room and told him what happened at the warehouse. Like her, he had a vision of the Serpent dying at the hands of the police, and both assumed that it was Leo. But after the shooting, Gaia was told by a crying Karai over the phone that it was Raph dressed up as the Serpent.

Raph took Leo's punishment for him so that he would live and have a second chance, but...still...

"Donnie," Gaia whispered chokingly, her cheeks wet with shedded tears. She reached to touch him. "Honey, look at-"

He raised an arm and silently told her to back off. His wife understood and stood back to give him a moment of privacy, but her heart broke for him. A whine escaped his throat just as the commissioner stepped in.

"I'm, uh, so sorry for your loss," he said uneasily. Twenty years on the job and it was still extremely hard to face the relative of a gunned down criminal.

The second he heard the man's voice, Donnie's eyes popped open and became clouded with rage. He spun around and grabbed his chair, and with a roar, he threw it at the commissioner. The human couldn't dodge it in time and he got hit in the side, falling to the floor with a pained grunt.

"F**K YOU!" he screamed and grabbed another chair.

"DONNIE!" Gaia grabbed him from behind as he lifted the chair over his head. "Calm!" she commanded, releasing her soothing and calming aura into his body and mind.

Donnie froze and slowly lowered the chair. He began to breathe normal but the tears were coming down like waterfalls. He collasped to his knees with Gaia still hugging him, and he broke down in front of the officers, covering his face with his hands.

"Raph...Raph...!"


April and Casey were both waiting for their daughter in the living room after they received a text from her. All it said was:

I'm coming home

Something really bad happened

Her worried mother tried calling her, but she wouldn't answer. So when the front door opened and Shadow walked in, April jumped up from her chair and ran to her. "Honey, are you okay?"

"What happened, kiddo?" Casey asked from the couch.

Their daughter said nothing but her eyes were red from crying and she was a complete mess.

"Shadow, talk to me," April gently but urgently told her as she touched her face.

Shadow brushed her hand away. "Mom, m-maybe you need to sit down," she croaked.

April looked at her confused but sat back down in her chair. Shadow stood before her parents and took a deep breath, but the image of Raph lying dead on the street brought back the tears and she started to cry.

"Baby, what's wrong?" April softly asked her, remaining where she sat even though she wanted to hug her daughter.

Shadow quickly dried her eyes but the tears kept on coming. "U-Uncle Raph...Uncle Raph is gone...!" She buried her face in her hands and leaned against the wall.

Both April and Casey stared at her shocked.

"W-Wait," Casey leaned forward. "What do you mean, Raph's gone? What happened?"

"The cops shot him," Shadow said without lifting her face. "He dressed up as the Serpent and-and they thought he was Leo, so...they...they killed him!" She slid down to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.

At first, her parents were too stunned to speak or even move, then Casey slowly got up and stepped outside without saying a word.

April remained where she was, frozen and absolutely shocked, but she silently cried as the tears came flowing down her cheeks.

...

31 years ago...

A high-pitched scream caused both April and Donnie to jump nearly five feet off the couch.

"What was that?" April gasped.

"Oh, boy," Donnie sighed. "I'd recognize that girly scream anywhere."

As if on cue, Raph came running into the living room. "WHAT THE HECK IS THIS?!" he boomed, holding out a green sucker.

"Uh, candy?" Donnie shrugged.

"No, genius! I mean what's this bug doing inside my candy?!"

Donnie and April took a closer look and saw that there was a cricket inside the sucker.

"Oh, I know what these are," April said as she took the candy from Raph. "It's okay, Raph. They're manufactured this way; you're supposed to eat the bugs."

"What?!" Raph's face became pale. "That's crazy! Why would anyone eat a freaking bug?! That's totally gross!"

"Some people do eat bugs. But these are safe to eat. I've actually tried one these before."

"Well, what I wanna know is, how the heck did it end up in my room?"

"Probably Mikey playing another prank on you," Donnie suggested.

Raph's eyes narrowed angrily. "Mikey...I should've known. He is so gonna..." He trailed off when he saw April licking the sucker. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"You should try one of these, Raph," April said with a grin. "They're good."

"You're INSANE! There's no way I'm eating a bug, ever!"

Donnie leaned in to whisper in April's ear. "Raph has this irrational fear of bugs."

This caught April by surprise. Raphael, the toughest of the Turtles, afraid of little tiny bugs. She started to giggle despite herself. "Oh, come on, Raph, don't tell me you're afraid of this harmless little cricket?" She held out the sucker to Raph, who shuddered and took a step back. "It's dead, anyway."

"It doesn't matter!" Raph snapped. "Bugs give me the creeps! Even if they're...ulp...dead."

"Raph, billions of bugs are everywhere in this city," April told him, feeling genuinely concerned for the Turtle. "If you let this phobia drive you crazy every time you see one, you'll be miserable the rest of your life."

Raph sighed heavily and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, I know. I just can't help it. It's stupid, I know."

April smiled and shook her head. "It's not stupid. We all have phobias. You want to know what scares me? Clowns."

Raph raised an eye ridge and chuckled. "Seriously?"

"Yeah," April nodded. "I've been afraid of them ever since my Dad took me to this..." She stopped talking as she remembered her father, who was still missing, and she looked down at the floor with sad eyes.

Donnie noticed this and placed a comforting hand on her back. "We'll get your father back, April," he softly told her.

"Yeah," Raph said. "No matter what. We swear it." He held his fist out for her to bump.

April smiled up at him gratefully and pressed her knuckles against his. "Thanks, guys."

...

She suddenly snapped out of her grief and saw her daughter crying on the floor. Wiping her tears away, she got out of her chair and walked over to Shadow. She knelt down and embraced her, rubbing her back soothingly.

"I know, sweetie," she whispered. "I'll miss him, too."

...

Outside, Casey sat down on the curb and stared blankly ahead, still trying to process this. His best friend was dead. Executed like a criminal. How could this have happened?

"You're a pretty good fighter, Jones. Sure, you're raw, unfocused, dangerous, crazy! But not bad."

"Thanks. You're not so bad yourself. For an amphibian."

Before he even realized it, he had turned on the waterworks and they dropped to the concrete. But he didn't care if it made him look weak. He cradled his head in his hands and mourned his former fighting partner out in the open.


"You got a cigarette?"

Gaia looked at her husband surprised. They were back in their apartment, sitting on the patio and trying to recover from the shock of Raph's death. "What? Honey, you don't smoke, and neither do I."

"I don't care," Donnie mumbled, staring at the city lights which reflected off his wet eyes. "I need one."

She reached over and touched his hand. "No, Donnie. You don't."

He closed his eyes and sighed softly. "Yeah, I know. I just...can't believe that this is really happening."

Gaia nodded somberly. "Yeah."

"I mean, things were starting to get good, and then it just...went downhill."

"That's life, baby."

"...Yeah, I guess so."

Just then, Celeste stepped outside and jumped into Donnie's lap. She purred as she curled up on him, which was actually pretty soothing. Donnie slowly ran his normal fingers down the cat's back.

"Raph didn't deserve this," he said in a quiet, pained tone. "He was the one who brought us back together. I-I'm not saying that I wish it were Leo instead of Raph. I wanted them both to stay. But...and I hate to say it...Leo had it coming. Why did Raph have to pay for his crimes? It's not fair." He bit his lower lip and covered his face with his hand. "It's all so messed up."

A gentle hand pulled his away from his face and Gaia looked at him with sad eyes. "Donnie, Raph did what he had to do to save his family, and that includes Leo. If you were in his place, you would've done the same thing. You guys fight and live for each other. That's what brothers do. And if you don't want his sacrifice to be in vain, you'll be there for Leo and help each other get through this."

Donnie nodded, knowing that she was right, but then his hand started to tremble. As though sensing his emotions, Celeste jumped off his lap and gave him some privacy. "I know, but...it hurts, baby." He slumped out of his chair and rested his head in her lap, sobbing into her skirt. "It hurts so much...!"

Gaia brushed her hand over the dome of his head, shedding tears as well. "I know it does, my love. Let me share that pain with you."

He lost track of how long he knelt there, crying in his wife's lap, but all he could think about were the fond memories that he shared with Raph.

...

Seven-year-old Donnie gulped nervously as his immediate older brother tied a piece of string to his loose tooth. "Raph, I-I'm starting to have second thoughts about this."

"Don't be such a wuss, Donnie," Raph gruffed as he tied the other end of the string to the knob of his bedroom door.

"But-But why can't I wait until it's loose enough to pull it out, myself?"

"You want to get this over with, don't ya?"

"Um, yeah?"

"Okay, here we go!"

"Huh?! W-Wait-!"

Raph slammed his door shut and the baby tooth came flying out of Donnie's mouth within a split second. The stunned little genius stood there for a moment, licking the hole where the tooth used to be.

"See?" Raph grinned. "That wasn't so bad, huh?"

The corners of Donnie's mouth slowly lifted into a smile. "No, it wasn't. Thanks, Raph."

...

Fifteen-year-old Raph grunted in pain as Leo and Mikey helped him onto the couch. Their battle with Fishface and Tiger Claw was intense and Raph ended up with a dislocated shoulder.

Donnie came running into the living room with the First Aid kit and sat down next to him. "Okay, Raph," he calmly said, "just stay still. I'm about to pop your shoulder back into place."

"O-Okay," Raph panted, wanting the pain to go away as soon as possible.

"Here we go." Donnie reached to grab his arm.

But Raph flinched away, feeling nervous. "W-Wait. I'm not ready yet."

"Raph, we need to get this done," Leo said. "Might as well get it over with."

"Yeah, dude. If you're nervous, you can hold my hand," Mikey teased.

Raph shot his youngest brother a dirty look. "Shut it," he hissed.

"Come on, Raph," Donnie said with a grin. "Don't be a wuss."

Raph looked at him offended and tried to act tough. "Who you callin' a wuss? Go ahead. Just do it already."

Without giving his brother a warning, Donnie repositioned his shoulder. Raph cried out in both pain and surprise, but he quickly felt much better and moved his arm up and down.

"There," Donnie nodded with a smile. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"Heh heh, nah," Raph chuckled. "Thanks, Donnie."


The sun started to rise and peeked over the skyscrapers, but its warm glow did little to comfort Shadow, who sat on the ledge of a building.

Right now all she wanted was to be alone. She wanted to deal with the grief in her own way. Yet as she stared at the horizon, she was reminded of her first heart-to-heart chat with Raph, right after she witnessed that Foot ninja's demise nearly a year ago. In fact, this was the very same building that they stood on during that conservation.

"It won't be an easy life, kid. You'll make more enemies than you will friends. And you're gonna have to make difficult decisions. And I mean really difficult decisions. But I will promise you this: You won't be alone in this, Shadow. I'll be there to guide you every step of the way. And as long as you stick with me, I won't let anybody hurt you. Not even the Shredder, himself."

"You...you really think I can do it?"

"I do. And not just because you're April and Casey's kid."

She choked back a sob and swallowed away the oncoming tears. Raph was her mentor and best friend. No one understood her as well nor had as much faith in her abilities and strength as he did. She only became so strong and confident because of his teachings and patience, and without him to guide her, she was lost.

"I can't do this without you, Uncle Raph," she whispered, not sure if he could even hear her.

Of course he couldn't. He was dead.

"Um, Raph? Who were you talking to?"

"I was just having a chat with Mikey and Father."

"Huh? But aren't they-?"

"It's something that I'll have to teach you some other time, kid."

Raph did say that he'd have occasional chats with the spirits of his brother and father. But he never got to teach her how to communicate with the dead, and she may never get the chance to learn now that he was dead, himself.

But maybe...it wasn't as hard as she thought. Maybe if she just emptied her mind like she would during meditation, she'd be able to see and talk to him. It probably wouldn't work, but it was certainly worth a shot.

So she took a deep breath, crossed her legs, and closed her eyes, clearing all thoughts and opening her heart. She just sat there and waited for a sign or response in any shape or form. It felt like an eternity, though, and so far all she could hear were the honking of cars and all she could feel was the gentle breeze that hit her face.

Then she suddenly heard someone coming toward her from behind and sit down next to her. She kept her eyes closed, but her heart started to pound. She didn't want to get her hopes up as much as she wanted to believe that it was...

"Hey, kid."

"Ah...!" Shadow let out a cry of joyous surprise before she covered her mouth with her hand. The sound of that wonderful, familiar voice made her break down into tears once again and she opened her eyes to look at her uncle.

He looked different, like he was about twenty or thirty years younger, not a single wrinkle on his face. His left eye was back and the scar that ran down his face was gone. And he seemed a bit...shorter than she last saw him. But one thing about him that hadn't changed was the soft, warm glow in his emerald eyes that made her feel safe.

He smiled sadly at her as he placed his hand over hers. He felt so warm and real, so any doubt of his existence was instantly erased and she knew that he was here with her. "Looks like you've learned the final lesson on your own. Sorry I didn't teach you before...you know."

Her tears continued to fall down her cheeks as she wrapped her fingers around his hand and squeezed. "Why'd you have to go and die on us?" she begged in a quiet voice.

The smile on Raph's face dropped and he sighed. "I had to save Leo, Shadow. Thirty years ago, I failed to save Mikey. I couldn't do anything to stop his death. But this time, I had the chance to save a brother, and I took that chance because I wouldn't be able to live with myself or face my family if I had failed again. You understand, don't you?"

Shadow sniffled and nodded. "Y-Yeah, I understand. But...I'm not ready."

"Ready for what?"

"Ready to, you know, take on the world without you."

He smiled at her once again and shook his head. "We're never truly ready, kid, no matter how old we get or how strong we are. The truth is, you could be a ninja master that has lived for ages and still be surprised or learn something new. And here's something that I don't ever want you to forget: you could beat every enemy that comes at you, but you could never beat life. If you let it, it will kick you down and keep you there. And you can't face the challenges of life alone, otherwise you'll never win. You need to trust in your friends and loved ones and let them help you."

Shadow opened her mouth to speak but Raph pressed a finger to lips.

"I know. Easier said than done. But you need to trust me on this one, okay? And you also need to trust that I'll always be with you." He then glanced at someone behind him. "We all will."

She turned around and saw Splinter and Mikey standing there, both smiling at her and the latter even waving at her. She chuckled tearfully and waved back, feeling honored to have finally met the youngest of the brothers and the most influential person in her uncle's life.

Raph winked at her. "And now you know how to contact us."

She looked back at her uncle and wiped away her tears. "I guess I feel a little bit better now. But I'm still scared, and I wish I could see you all the time and not just when I need you."

He nodded and wrapped an arm around her, holding her close in a warm embrace. "You need to be strong for the others, Shadow, and I'm counting on you to take care of my kids. There's no one I trust more to train and teach them than you. I know you'll be a great sensei. You're already a great kunoichi."

She laughed then started to sob again as she tightly wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you, Uncle Raph!" she cried. "I love you so much!"

She felt him rub her back in response. "I love you, too, kid," he said in such a soft voice, "like the daughter I never had. Thanks for being my Akari."

And then she suddenly found herself hugging air, nearly falling forward. She looked back to where Splinter and Mikey were and they were gone too.

Something soft and light landed in her hand and she looked down to find that she was holding a sakura petal. It rested in her palm for a moment before it was taken up by the wind and floated toward the rising sun.

Tomorrow had arrived, and she wasn't afraid anymore.

...

We're not indestructible

Baby, better get that straight

I think it's unbelievable

How you give into the hands of fate

Some things are worth fighting for

Some feelings never die

I'm not asking for another chance

I just wanna know why

...

There's no easy way out

There's no shortcut home

There's no easy way out

Giving in can't be wrong

...

I don't wanna pacify you

I don't wanna drag you down

But I'm feeling like a prisoner

Like a stranger in a no-name town

I see only angry faces

Afraid that could be you and me

Talking about what might have been

Thinking about what it used to be

...

There's no easy way out

There's no shortcut home

There's no easy way out

Giving in can't be wrong

...

Baby, baby, we can shed this skin

We can know how we feel inside

Instead of going down an endless road

Not knowing if we're dead or alive

Some things are worth fighting for

Some feelings never die

I'm not asking for another chance

I just wanna know why

...

There's no easy way out

There's no shortcut home

There's no easy way out

Giving in, giving in can't be wrong, no

...

There's no easy way out

(There's no easy way out)

There's no shortcut home

(There's no shortcut home)

There's no easy way out,

(There's no easy, no easy, no easy way out)

...

"No Easy Way Out" by Robert Tepper

There's one more chapter before the Epilogue! We're getting there!