OK Folks this chapter is probably going to be the last one for a while, a while ago I borrowed the book Doctor Rat from the library with the intention of adding a chapter before last year was over but due to Christmas chaos that ended up not happening and even after certain relatives went away I still didn't read the book and actually had to renew it. Should give you an idea of what a Mother$*^()# pain this book is actually read the parts actually narrated by Doctor Rat are pretty nauseating describing the grotesque experiments the animals are subjected to while the parts described by the animals in the wild are such nauseatingly ham handed sentimental gurgle it's enough to make you want to eat a cheeseburger out of spite what is clearly animal rights propaganda, the thing is, I get what Mr. Kotzwinkle was trying to say with this work I believe he was more sincere about his message than the average member of PETA (I do question what he might have been smoking at the time he wrote this) Which is why I felt compelled to write this Fan-Sequel in the first place, remember I read this book so you don't have to (But if you still feel compelled to read the original book for yourself, I recommend don't read it while eating meat (Or anything for that matter) and have a puke pail nearby just in case)

That night they camped out in the desert, Stone City's bright light could be seen not far away. Eartha squinted at the city lights, so harsh, so gaudy so unlike the soft twinkling light of her beloved stars.

She gazed up at those twinkling heavenly lights, she held up her hands to them. "So close…" She sighed "..And yet so far."

The Mole-Girl sat flat on her rear with her legs out in front of her

"Hey." Came Donatello's voice as the Mutant Turtle came to where she was "You really shouldn't stray so far from the camp, especially after what happened…"

"I know…" Eartha said "…Just…Since I'm naturally nocturnal it takes a while for me to settle down, didn't want to disturb anyone."

Don smiled, he couldn't help but feel Eartha was like a female mammalian version of himself more so than April who he had done many experiments with, Don really was beginning to think of the Mole-Girl as a little sister figure, someone who could mentor in the ways of science.

"I'm having trouble sleeping too." Came a voice both child-like and yet having a knowing unlike any child at that age.

"Hey Zeb." Don said softly as the Mutant Zebra Filly trotted up to them "You're not still scared of that stupid Demon Rat are you?"
Zeb's lower lip quivered "Aren't demons something you should me scared of?" She squeaked

Don sighed he realized his choosing to refer to the Mutant Cyborg Rodent as 'Demon Rat' as a means of not giving him the honor of the title of 'Doctor' probably wasn't helping things for the cubs…He still hated that Rat for what he did to Zeb, and he still intended to kill that insult to decent scientists everywhere himself, no matter what

It took."

"Zeb." Don said "If it's all right with you…Do you want to talk with me about your fear? If there's one thing I've learned over the course of this adventure is that you really shouldn't hide your fears from your friends and loved ones if I hadn't tried to hide my fears from everyone before my wedding the disaster that happened that nearly killed me would never have happened at all."

Zeb smiled and stood on her hind legs reaching out her arms; Don took the dainty Zebra Filly in his arms, sat down on a rock and sat her down in his lap.

"So…Zeb…" Don said "…Remember when said you needed to know whether or not you had a soul, well I kind of just realized the evidence is right in front of you…" He gestured to Eartha

"Me?" Eartha said

Sure." Don said "Remember the story you told me and Mikey about what happened after you died as a regular Mole?"

"Oh yeah!" Eartha said realizing what Don was getting at "My soul and the souls of all the other Animals flew up into the sky, till we were between the Earth and the Moon! And then we just stood there…For a really long time, don't know how long exactly since after we died we didn't feel hungry or thirsty or tired so without eating, drinking or even sleeping we kind of lost all sense of time but I did get a chance to get a great view of the stars and Earth from above! Then Great Father started calling us back, I remember the feeling of falling back down to Earth after spending quite a while in what felt like the same place…I fell through clouds, seeing the ground get closer and closer until…BANG! I was back in my body…What was left of it at least…Even though all that was left was a skeleton that was all Great Father needed to be able to call my soul back."

"You see Zeb?" Don said "If Eartha had no soul as an ordinary animal, then what could have possibly be called back? If the soul is the part that lives after death then how could Eartha have experienced anything after death? That should be proof beyond the shadow of a doubt, you don't have to worry! You do have a soul…"

Zeb smiled and wiped away a tear, she realized Don was right! This Mole had died and experienced life after death so you couldn't refute that!

"I was just so scared…" Zeb said "…When Doctor Rat said it, he sounded so sure."

"He sounds like a raving looney." Don said dismissively "Anyone can say anything, doesn't make it true, some people still claim the Earth is flat and we never landed on the moon though deep down I think these kinds of people are just jerks who say stupid stuff to get attention…Anyway…When I was very young…I was…Skeptical about the existence of any form of afterlife…I know Splinter taught us about karma and reincarnation, but deep down I thought there wasn't anything after death, but during our final fight with the Tengu Shredder and it was the spirit of Splinter's Master Hamato Yoshi who saved by finally defeating the Tengu Shredder, well with the irrefutable proof right before my eyes I could no longer deny there was SOMETHING after death, though what that something is might be different for everyone."

"Just…" Zeb began to say "…After hearing about what happens to Humanimals after they die…I realized something that caused me to begin worrying for me and my Herd Siblings…They told us what happens specifically to Humanimals after they die, which I am not and I know something Humanimals have that I do not."

"What's that?" Don asked

"Humanimals can give Humans babies."Zeb said "Whether it's Humanimal Woman marrying Human Men or Humanimal Men Marrying Human Women, Humanimals can give Humans children…Give…Anyone children…Mutants can't give children to Mutants of other species. I remember when Ichabod read to us The Little Mermaid, the original story not the Disney version and in that story, it says Mermaids don't have souls and they can only get souls by marrying human men and by doing that the Human Man transfers a little of his own soul into the Mermaid…So I thought…It was a similar thing with Humanimals…Because they can give humans babies Humanimals get souls as 'honorary humans'"

Don leaned back and frowned deeply, he didn't like that train of logic at all. For one thing it made the relations between males and females sound too much like a business transaction, because Don was such a believer in logic and enlightenment, he deeply believed the in the Age of Enlightenment people should only marry because they deeply love and care about each other as individuals, marriage as any form of bargaining chip seemed like a relic of the dark ages that's what disgusted him so much about Belladonna's parents that really the only reason they had Belladonna was so she could be a means to get into a royal family, but Belladonna's Batten Disease and thus the need to relocate her mind to a Humanimal Body put a crimp in their plans…And for a child to make those kinds of connections deeply disturbed him."

"That story isn't suitable for children." Don said darkly "To shell with tradition, it teaches abhorrent morals…That is one story where I'd say the bowdlerized version is actually an improvement."

Don decided to take Zeb back to camp, Eartha said she'd catch up with them, she simply lingered a little while longer, first gazing at the stars, then turn her head toward the city.

'Things aren't like they were before.' She thought to herself 'this time, I can face the Humans because I have become a woman myself, a Mole-Woman, but I have bled like a human woman so I feel I can call myself a woman…So Doctor Rat if you think you can just mow us down like you did last time you got another think coming!'

Aw! Nothing like an ending line that sounds like it came straight out of Shonen Jump ! Recently I had discovered an awesome but unfortunately ended Tumbler Blog Ask the Scarecrow which is basically one of several 'Ask DC Villain' Blogs with this one being the Scarecrow specifically from Batman the Animated Series, take the basic concept of Strong Bad Emails and substitute Strong Bad for BTAS Scarecrow and while I did check out other Batman Villain Ask Blogs I really liked this one on account of how well the author was able to answer in Character and how awesome the artwork was it was like it could have come from the actual show! It did end October of last year but I seriously recommend you check it out, unfortunately it had gotten me in such a BTAS Mood that I hadn't been in a very TMNT mood