A/N: Prompts used for this chapter:

No 5. Failed Escape/Rescue

No 19. Grief

No 31. Left for dead

This got longer than it was supposed to despite me running out of time with these... also, don't blame me, blame the prompts xD If they don't sound great, maybe skip this one.

The Harry Turtle, thank you so much for the nice reviews! I don't mind you suggesting prompts, they're all so good and I'd love to write about them! :) Unfortunately there's only one chapter left after this one since I've already used the 31 prompts in some way. There are some prompts I really like but didn't get to explore this time, and as I said, I really like your suggestions! I'd like to write something about them in the future, but I kinda feel like I've spammed enough short hurt fics for a while and will be focusing on longer-chapter stories again. I think I might be taking some requests once I have the time, but right now I don't know when that'll be. :/

(Spoilers for my story "Turning the blade:" you suggested the prompt "mind control & being forced to hurt loved ones," if you'd like to read something with this theme, you could check out that story if you haven't already :D In case you don't mind a long fic!)

Nothing hurt. His wrists weren't aching from the metal rubbing against them, there was no nauseating hunger filling his stomach. Had he, too, succumbed to his exhaustion? Was it over?

The thought was both relieving and startling- had he left Michelangelo behind? Had he left their baby brother alone in that forsaken cell?

That fear was enough to make Raphael snap his eyes open. With wakefulness the aches of his body returned to him, momentarily stealing his breath. He felt heavy, sore, weak. Wanted to just close his eyes again and escape reality- but it didn't really matter whether he was awake or asleep; even in his dreams, he was here in this cell.

Raphael pushed himself to lift his head so that he could see Michelangelo, but before he could turn his head to him, he was forced to see Leonardo.

His brother was still prone on the floor, just left there. Raphael's stomach turned, this was really real, not some fucked up dream, and once he'd turn his head he'd see Donatello, just as unmoving and still-

Leonardo shifted. No, he was dead, the dead didn't move- but Leonardo did. His shell was turned to him, so he could only see the way his hands moved. He could see a small item in his hands, so tightly clenched in Leonardo's fist that he hadn't seen it before. Not like he had even looked, too distraught by- by everything.

It was a small butterfly knife. Leo was slowly turning it, trying to unlock the restraints around his wrists. They had seen his fingers bleed before, torn by something, small splinters stuck in his skin sometimes. But now, even in the dim light, Raph could see more dark liquid than before, lazily flowing down Leo's fingers. He must've cut his hand while trying to free himself. Leo's fingers moved slowly, stiffly; there was a dull, distant worry that the blood would make him lose his grip on the small weapon.

The realization that Leo was still alive, hadn't left them to rot in here, crawled into his brain slowly. He was alive, moving, trying to free himself. At this point Raph didn't even know what he was feeling- whatever it was, it hurt his chest, made his head dizzy. Was he relieved? No, there was nothing but the hurt in his heart, for Don was still so quiet next to him. Raph didn't want to look, if he didn't, he could pretend that Don was just- just resting, like before. But he knew how sick he had been-

The chains next to him clinked against the wall, making Raph's heart jump. He moved his head, wary hope ignited in his heart, hope of seeing Don make even the smallest of movements, but it hadn't been Don who had made the chains make noise. Mikey was the one who had moved, and their eyes met. The hope on Mikey's face told Raph he had seen Leo move as well. But it only made his heart ache again- he didn't want to see that hope get crushed, he couldn't see it again. Yet... he found himself drawing in some of the hope he saw in his brother's eyes. Leo wasn't gone, and if he could get free, maybe he could still help Don- maybe he wasn't gone, maybe, maybe-

With a small clink Leo's restraints opened, both Raph and Mikey looking back at him. The metal around Leo's wrists still remained on his skin, but the chain keeping his hands together was loose now, making his hands free. They watched in stunned silence as Leo took a moment before moving his hands, rolling over onto his shell. Shaking, their brother managed to push himself up into a sitting position. He rubbed his wrists, clearly trying to get the feeling back in them, and then started to remove the hood that had stolen his senses.

Once the hood was off, Leo spat out something that had been clearly used as a gag. It came with blood; it must've cut his mouth while he had struggled on the floor.

There were raspy whispers, Mikey trying to speak, but his voice was gone. Leo heard it and turned his head to them, his eyes glassy. Still drugged, taking a moment just to stare at them before moving. At least he tried to- his balance failed him immediately, and he fell back onto the prison floor, mouth slightly open, taking in pained breaths. When he pushed himself up again, he had realized that his ankles were still chained. Leo leaned forward to reach the chains, slowly freeing his legs as well, still using the bloodied knife to open the locks of his restraints.

"Don," Raph whispered, finally finding his voice. He hadn't lost it the way Mikey had- he'd simply felt too much at once. Hope, despair, relief, fear, and was able to speak only now. "Leo… y...you gotta help him..."

Leo turned his head towards him again, then looked at Don, some focus returning into his eyes. Once more Leo got up from the floor, only to crumple back down- he was weak and in pain, hadn't used his legs properly in a long time. Seeming to realize that he had to crawl like all the times before, Leo did just that, dragging himself towards Don.

When Leo neared him, Raph's eyes were back on the knife. And suddenly he wasn't sure if Leo was here to help Don- suddenly he knew what exactly the knife was for, and even though he should've felt relieved that it was all finally coming to an end, that Leo was really fulfilling his promise to get them out one way or the other, he felt a rush of protective anger. He'd been numb for so long that the sudden feeling overwhelmed him. He couldn't let Leo do what he was about to, couldn't let him do something so terrible to him, no, it was Don, their little brother, how could Leo even have suggested ending it like this? He'd never said it out loud properly, had just said he'd- that he'd do it for them. And here he was now, a knife in hand.

Leo had said he was the worst when he had asked them to keep holding on, but he was here now, finally going to free them. But this time Raph was the terrible and selfish one, for rather letting their suffering go on than letting go. He knew Leo was doing the right thing, finally putting an end to this, but it was still so hard to accept, no, impossible to accept, it couldn't go like this, not like this, not like this-

"Don't hurt him," Raph managed to gasp, unsure if Don was even here anymore, but he simply couldn't bear the thought of that knife touching him. "Pl… please, Leo, don't…"

He didn't even know what the alternative was. He wanted the suffering to end, but this was just too cruel. He was cruel for making this even harder for Leo. He wanted to look away and just finally let go and break down, but decided to be stubborn for the last time, keeping his eyes on his brothers.

Leo's hand was already on Don's neck, but his eyes flew over to Raph again. Devastated was the way Leo looked at him. They both knew there wasn't anything worse he could've said to Leo than the accusation that he was going to hurt them, but it wasn't like Leo could deny it. He had hurt them so much already, had hurt them by not being able to get them out sooner. But this time, tonight, he was here to put an end to that hurt. The hand touching Don's neck wasn't wielding the knife.

"I'm not going to," Leo answered, managing to sound soft despite his hoarse voice, despite the fact that Raph had just begged him to not hurt Don. He'd been scared to place his hand on Don, afraid to find nothing- but his pulse was there, only barely, but it was there. Don's breaths weren't audible for they were so weak, and in the near darkness it had been difficult to see the slight rise and fall of his chest. No wonder his brothers had gotten so scared for him. No wonder they seemed so broken and given up. They had been in here with Don limp and unresponsive, with no knowledge if he was even alive. Leo had been here for just a moment, yet he'd felt sick with the fear of finding his brother's pulse gone. Now he was simply weak with relief. So weak, actually, that he had to lean against the wall behind them, letting his forehead rest against Don's shoulder for a moment.

"He's still here," Leo mumbled to let Raph and Mikey know Don was still with them. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Mikey slump against his restraints, while Raph let out a short, choked noise of relief. Knowing he had no time to waste Leo pulled away from Don, forced his body to obey, and moved over to Raph. Using the knife he started to work on his shackles. Raph could feel the wetness from Leo's fingers, his blood.

"How'd ya… how'd ya get that thing?" Raph asked weakly. It was something that didn't matter at all at the moment, but it was all he managed to get out. Everything else was too heavy to talk about.

"Snatched it from one of the men," Leo said shortly, talking like he was slightly out of breath. What he held was one of those folding knives; had it been anything else, Leo probably wouldn't have been able to keep it hidden from their captors.

Raph was still feeling heavy, not quite sure what would happen now. Was Leo getting them out of the cell? It would mean that he'd have to move and walk, and he wasn't sure if he could do that. When was the last time he had stood on his own legs? They'd have to carry Don, too, and maybe he would have to carry Leo as well, for he wasn't doing so good either-

His hands came free, and immediately Raph dropped forward. But Leo was still there, catching his fall… but unable to hold him up. They both went down, the chains rattling loudly as they were left to hang on the wall with nobody to hold prisoner.

Leo breathed heavily under him, not even bothering to try to lift him up, knowing he didn't possess the strength to do so. Raph took a moment to collect himself, and rolled off of his brother. God it felt good to be free, to finally take the weight off of his hands- they felt numb, and Raph was content to just lie there. He felt Leo's arm pressed against his, his brother seemingly gathering himself as well before even attempting to get up.

His head lolled to the side so that he could look at him. Leo was once again on the floor, but this time he could clearly see his eyes open, his chest moving. Leo was here, and so was Don, and it had all been too much for so long, Raph didn't know how he was still holding it together, especially now. He felt vile for the thoughts he'd had, how sure he had been that Leo had left them here.

"Sorry," he choked out. He wanted to reach for his brother, but his body felt numb and unresponsive. "I thought… I thought you left us-"

His voice gave out under the weight of the emotion. Leo rolled onto his side, his hands suddenly on his face, hushing him, wiping away the tears he hadn't allowed to appear, the tears he was too weak to stop.

"I'm here, Raph, I'm here," Leo told him, over and over again. "I'm going to free Mikey and Don, you can rest here while I do that. I'll be right back, okay?"

Raph nodded, and stayed there, too exhausted to feel shame for being so broken, for wasting time like this. When his eyes closed, he felt like he was sinking into the cold floor, finally swallowed by the darkness they were always left in.

"Raph, come on! Hurry up!"

Mikey yanked on the tails of his mask playfully before running past him. Raph only made a half-hearted attempt at grabbing his shell, too focused on the night air flowing past his face. It had been a while since they had been out patrolling, and the chilly night air felt better than ever.

"If I'd have to guess, I'd say that Mikey wants to race you," Don commented with amusement, watching Raph with some curiosity. Raph was usually quick to respond to Mikey's taunts, would usually already be running after the goofball. "What's up?"

"Nothin'," Raph answered, his eyes on the city below them. "Just missed this."

"Me too. It's been way too long."

"Guuuuys!" Mikey called from the nearby rooftop. "Did you forget how to jump during our time away?"

"Guess we have to catch up with him or he's going to wake up the whole neighborhood with all that yelling," Don chuckled before running to the edge of the roof and jumping to the next to join Mikey there.

Leo stepped up next to Raph.

"C'mon Raph, how about that race?" Leo asked with a smile.

"Only if ya won't be mad if ya lose," Raph said, turning to grin at his brother.

"Glad to see a smile on your face," Leo said. "You've been such a grump the whole time we had to stay at the lair."

Leo's joking tone was easy to answer. "Don't even start, ya were losing it as well."

"I guess we were all going a bit stir crazy," Leo chuckled, then looked towards the darkened sky. "Being up here makes you feel so… free."

One moment, they had felt so invincible. Full of energy. Free to go where they wanted.

The next, hit by the darts, waking up in this hellhole-

Tapping Leo's shoulder, Raph broke out into a run. "Yer it!"

"Raph!"

The wind brushed against his face, made the tails of his mask flutter behind his head. Jumping over the alley below him was effortless. His brother was still yelling behind him, geez, so noisy tonight, kept on calling after him-

"Raph! Come on, Raph, open your eyes-!"

That- that wasn't a part of this memory. That was-

Leo's voice dragged him back from the dark. Instead of the wind and the city around him he could feel the cold floor again, the way Leo was weakly shaking him. He had blacked out again. Groggily he opened his eyes, Leo's blurry form staring down at him, tugging at his arm.

"Raph-"

"Yeah, yeah, heard ya the first time," Raph mumbled, trying to hide how crushed he was to be back here.

"Raph…"

Only now Raph realized how shaky Leo's voice was, and he blinked his eyes to get his vision to focus. Once it did, he saw the full scale of Leo's worry, how worn out and tired to his soul he looked. Leo was holding his hand.

"You can't..." Leo closed his mouth, just shook his head. His eyes seemed glassy again, and Raph remembered that he was still affected by the drugs. "You can't give up now, alright, Raph? You just- can't-"

This was familiar- Leo had begged Don to hold on like this before his sickness had gotten worse. Raph realized that Leo must've been trying to wake him up for a while; he must've thought he wouldn't wake up. It was clear that Leo was near his breaking point, and if Raph didn't do something, he'd crash right into it. And it was pretty clear that they needed Leo as clear-headed as he could be, so Raph pulled on the hand holding his, holding it tightly to gain Leo's attention.

"I won't," Raph grunted. Taking a deep breath Raph forced himself to gather whatever strength remained in him, trying to push himself up with his other hand. "I won't; I'm here, Leo. What's the- the plan?"

Hearing him talking seemed to take the edge off of Leo's crushing worry. The eldest said nothing, just focused on helping him sit up. The room tilted, but as he waited and focused on breathing, everything came back to focus. He saw Mikey kneeling nearby, holding Don's head in his lap, gently petting the side of his face. His eyes were on them, watching them with intense worry.

"Can you stand?" Leo asked. Urgency had replaced the broken tone. The emotions that had almost broken the dam just a moment ago had been repressed and pushed away; this was a familiar look on their leader. One Raph would usually hate, but now he had to count on it. This forced calm and control was what Raph trusted to lead them out of here.

"Dunno," Raph said, honestly unsure, "think I'll have to, though."

How else would they get out? Would Leo just jump up and give him a biggy-back ride? Hah, he must've been losing it because he was able to make jokes. He was still feeling weak and light-headed; maybe he had a fever as well.

"You'll have to," Leo agreed quietly. Nodding, Raph focused, pushed himself up- and was rewarded with black spots filling his vision. He blinked them away and simply focused on staying up. He had lost some muscle during their capture, but not enough to make him unable to stand or walk. It was just the exhaustion and starvation, the misuse of his muscles that made this difficult.

Leo had stood up with him, offering him some balance. Raph held onto him when he took his first step. He swayed slightly, but managed to take another step, then another. Leo had let go of him; he was walking on his own. He could do this.

"Raph, can you help us carry Don?" Leo asked, his tone careful. Wary. Raph knew Leo was counting on him to carry their brother; knew there was no other choice. So he nodded and walked towards their brothers. Kneeling next to them, Mikey immediately grabbed his arm.

"Raph, we're getting out," Mikey said, his voice still barely above a whisper, but at least he could talk again. There was a wavering smile on his face. "W-we're gonna get out."

"Yeah, lil' bro, this bus is leavin'." Raph looked at Don, his chest aching again. Just to bring himself some comfort, he took Don's hand and squeezed it lightly. Kept his thumb over his pulse point. He'd been so scared for him- first thinking the sickness had taken him, then fearing the knife in Leo's hand-

They were in a hurry, so he did what Leo had done; repressed the emotions. Letting go of his brother all too soon, he turned slightly. "Mikey, can ya help me get Donnie on my back?"

Mikey blinked. "You sure you can carry him like that?"

"I gotta," Raph grunted. "Just help me."

Nodding, Mikey stood up from the floor while supporting Don's limp body. Carefully he moved him over Raph's shell, and when Don weakly moaned, they both froze. It was a pained sound, tugging at their hearts, but it was also good to hear him. Even though it meant that their brother was in pain, it was still far better than the deathly silence.

Leo had dragged himself over to the door of the cell, and holding onto the bars, he held himself up. His shaky hands worked to pick the lock of the door; he was tense, clearly having some trouble with the lock. If he couldn't get it open, it really was over. Don's voiced pain had made him glance over his shoulder, had him staring at his brothers… but he forced himself to turn back to the lock.

The door moved with a small creak. Leo pushed it open and stepped out of the cell, almost losing his balance- but managed to stay on his feet. He looked back over his shoulder, a sign for his brothers to follow. With Mikey's aid, Raph started to walk.

Don's weight on his shell definitely didn't make things easy. His legs had seemingly remembered how to walk again, but it didn't mean that the unused muscles weren't still weak. But with every step walking became easier, Mikey's aid helping greatly. Even still, Raph knew they had to hurry. He didn't know how long he could keep this up. His vision was blurring dangerously every now and then.

Stepping out of the room with the cell they came into a short corridor. The lights here were dim, their glow having been the only source of light in the cell. Raph had no idea where they were, what kind of a building they were in, where that building even was. How much security was there in here? How far from home were they, how were they going to get there? He had asked Leo about his plan, but hadn't received any answer. Now he feared there wasn't any.

Yet all he could do was to just follow Leo. He was the only one that had seen the outside of the cell. He'd have to trust him, having enough to do with just focusing on putting one foot in front of the other. He didn't dare to think about the fact that they were on their way out, for he feared that even a tiny bit of hope would ruin this. Everything had been so hopeless for so long. What would happen if they failed here? Would they be killed, or just brought back into the cell to suffer? Raph couldn't bear the thought, so he went back to focusing on his feet. One step forward, then another. Every step would bring them closer to freedom. No, don't think about freedom, you're just going to jinx it- just focus on walking. Just focus. Focus. Focus.

Everything felt heavy, yet light, somehow. His unused muscles protested every movement, his exhaustion hindered every step, but even if he didn't dare to hope of freedom for himself, he was determined to get his brothers out of here. He had to get them out. That would be good enough for him. God, that would be more than enough. Staying here wouldn't be so bad if his brothers got out. But they wouldn't be able to get out without him; both Mikey and Leo were too weak to carry Don. He had to be strong now. He had to make up for all this time he had spent being weak.

Leo stumbled, and Raph lifted his gaze to look at him. The eldest had managed to steady himself by grabbing the wall, leaving bloody fingerprints on it. He wasn't continuing, was looking back over his shoulder. Raph could see that his eyes were wide, a hint of fear in them- but quickly Leo shook it away, taking a shaky breath, turning his face back forward. Raph wanted to ask him if he was alright, but didn't. They didn't talk, trying to be as silent as possible. Just following Leo without a question, trusting that he knew the way out. But with him stumbling like that, holding onto the wall while his whole body trembled, with that look in his eyes...

Raph didn't want to doubt him, but it seemed that the drugs were affecting their leader even now. No wonder, for he had been heavily drugged the whole time they had been here. How could he know the way out? He was still somewhat delirious, was probably still seeing things that weren't real.

Yet… nobody had come after them. No alarm had been set off. No guard was in sight. Despite everything, Leo seemed to know what he was doing.

Leo turned his head again, and their eyes met. Leo's whole appearance radiated agony and exhaustion, yet he smiled at him encouragingly. Not far now, his eyes said. Just hold on.

They kept going, and the next time Leo glanced back over his shoulder Raph's vision was too blurry to see if Leo was smiling at him anymore. Maybe he wasn't? Maybe he was starting to realize how weak they were, that there was no escape after all. Maybe he knew that Raph's strength wouldn't be enough. For he sure felt like it, feeling like his legs were growing heavier, like the floor was coming closer…

"Easy, Raph, easy," Leo whispered to him, holding onto his arm. When had that happened? When had he stopped moving? He knew he was still standing up, knew he hadn't dropped Don for he felt his weight on his shell. He took a moment to just breathe, and then they continued, this time Leo was walking right in front of him, his hand on his arm. Nothing was said again, Leo only tugged at his arm whenever they needed to make a turn. The way out felt endless, like they were walking in circles. Maybe they were. No, he wouldn't doubt Leo, he-

Leo's grip on him left. The eldest fell down almost without a sound, and Raph stopped immediately, but was unable to help him. Crouching down would surely mean losing his balance, would mean dropping Don.

Mikey left his side, leaving him alone with Don's weight again. His legs shook, but he stayed still. Watched how Mikey kneeled next to Leo, whispered his name softly, but urgently.

"Leo, come on. Let's get up." Mikey held onto Leo's arm. "We must be close, right?"

He saw, almost felt the struggle Leo went through. His muscles spasmed, he gasped for breath. Suffered just from existing. Raph wanted to let him take a break, wanted all of them to take a break – but it probably wouldn't be long until their absence would be noticed.

"'m tired, Leo," Raph said slowly, quietly. "Can't do this for much longer."

He saw the guilt hitting Leo, and felt his own share of it. Guilt had always worked against Leo, either breaking him further or making him work harder to better himself. And right now Raph needed him to keep fighting, even if the only way to make him do that was to guilt him.

But instead of pushing himself back up Leo's struggles ceased, like the words had been the last straw, making him give up. Raph knew his own guilt should've spiked, but it didn't come. If Leo gave up here, nothing would matter anymore. If Mikey was too weak to pull him up, they would stay here until their captors found them. If Leo couldn't continue, they wouldn't leave him behind. They'd stay. They'd die. Before, it had sounded like a relief- now it was a bitter thought, for they were so close.

Leo hadn't stopped to struggle because he had given up- he had stopped to gather his strength, and now, with Mikey's aid, he pushed himself up. Another wave of exhaustion washed over Raph, for this meant that he'd need to keep walking. It'd… it'd be so much easier to give up. To crash here and wait for he invediable.

There was a distant voice in the back of his head, raging and cursing at him for even thinking about giving up. Giving up wasn't him, had never been him. Especially at a moment like this, when they were getting away, when they were almost there. Again, he should've felt something, should've felt ashamed, but it felt like there was nothing left of him. He'd been torn bare, but not broken. From the beginning he had refused to let them do that to them, to break them- but he couldn't deny that this wasn't far from that.

After the pause, it was hard to start walking again. It took Raph a moment, but he got his legs working. Mikey took his place on his side, helping him with Don's weight.

Leo seemed to be pushing himself harder, for he walked more steadily now, leading them again. They didn't walk for long before the corridor they were in split into two.

"The last corridors we have to go through have cameras. The camera room is that way," Leo whispered, nodding to the right. "I'm going there, you keep walking. Next turn, go right, then right again. There's a panel you have to go through, but you should be able to get Don through. I'll catch up."

Immediately a bad feeling jolted through Raph. Splitting up here, now?

"I'm coming with you." Mikey seemed to have had the same feeling, for he wasn't ready to split up either. The youngest left Raph's side to join Leo, but as soon as he did, Raph almost lost his balance, and he had to rush back to support him and Don again. Raph no longer had the strength to carry Don alone. Slowly Mikey turned to look back at Leo, realizing he would have to let Leo go alone.

"No." Mikey shook his head. "No, we're going together-"

"I can't make Raph walk any extra with Don's weight," Leo said tiredly. "And with all of us there, the risk of being seen is higher."

Leonardo was staring at the corridor where he was supposed to leave, and when he continued, he returned his gaze to his brothers. "All of this will be for nothing if we don't move now." His tone was even, but worn. Not asking them for anything, simply stating a fact.

Raph stared at him. The bad feeling grew. It was a heavy weight in the bottom of his stomach, it was an instinct screaming at him to not let his brother walk away. But there was also the desperate need to get their younger brothers out of here, to walk them towards the way out.

And he knew that if he followed Leo, if he had to walk the extra, there was no guarantee that he could carry Don back out. And hadn't he suffered enough? He was so limp against Raph's shell, not having made any sound since Raph had picked him up.

"And if they see you? If you get into trouble?" Raph still asked, his eyes on Leo. He didn't know why he was asking. Leo had to go anyway in order for them to get out. But he wanted to hear the things Leo usually said in these kinds of situations; that he'd be fine, that he'd be right behind them.

But they didn't come. Leo gave him an even stare. The look he gave when he couldn't make promises.

"It won't take long. I'll try to meet you outside."

Try.

"See ya there," Raph said, like it was that easy, and turned away from his brother.

Mikey protested. Refused to move, and Raph could feel how he wanted to yell after Leo. At least he had the common sense to not raise his voice. Mikey almost let go again to go back to arguing with Leo, but Raph yanked him forward, finally getting them moving again. He wasn't sure how he was able to drag Mikey while still holding Don's weight, but right now there was nothing than going forward and taking his brothers with him.

All three of them. He'd get Mikey and Don out and come back for Leo if he had to. But he wouldn't have to- the bad feeling he felt was the same he'd been carrying for so long, expecting everything to go wrong with their escape. He wouldn't have to come back for his brother; Leo had gotten them this far. They'd been through so much, and Leo had always made it back home. Why would it be different now? It wouldn't.

So when he glanced over his shoulder to take one more look at his brother, when their eyes met for the briefest moment, he couldn't explain the sorrow he felt in his soul.

Even in this drugged and exhausted state, Leonardo's body knew how to be silent. He was a shadow; a weak and slow one, but still one with the dark, moving without a sound.

The guard was seated in front of the screens showing all the camera activities. Leonardo had seen this room just once or twice, but had been able to memorize which corridors were monitored and which weren't. It had been unfortunate that he had been forced to take his brothers the long way without the cameras, but walking past the monitored areas had been out of question. The fact that the building had so many blind spots told Leonardo that their captors weren't that well suited for holding prisoners (or against intruders.)

Leonardo was holding the chain still stuck on his wrist, preventing it from moving and making noise. He stopped just behind the seat, lifted his hands above the man's head. The chain was pulled tight around the man's throat, and Leo threw his weight back. He had no strength to strangle the man, allowing gravity to do the work for him. His body weight kept the struggling man against his seat, the chains so tight that barely any sound escaped as he slowly choked.

Once he stilled, Leonardo let go, slumping against the back of the chair. He wasn't sure if he had killed the man or if he was just unconscious due to the lack of air, wasn't sure just how much pressure had been pressed on his throat. Leonardo found himself not really caring. He didn't kill if he had the choice, but after what these men did to his brothers-

He knew better than to let such vile darkness into his heart, yet found himself rather hoping the man was dead.

Leonardo walked around the chair, eyes on the many screens. On the far left, his brothers had just stepped into view. Leonardo lowered his eyes to the control panel. He didn't really need to disable the cameras since he'd taken care of the guard, but he might as well, just in case. He'd seen Donatello do this so many times that he knew how to turn just the right cameras off.

During the short times he had seen these cameras, he had always paid attention to the interiors of the building in order to figure the way out. Now he could watch the ones showing the outside- surprised to see that they were still almost in the middle of New York. That would make their getaway so much easier. Once they'd get out, getting into the sewer wouldn't be that difficult.

But the lair wasn't exactly close either. They were all weak and would need some help. Taking his eyes away from the screens he looked for a phone, and found the guard's lying on the floor. He must've dropped it during the attack. Leo bent down to pick it up, wincing softly when he got back up. His body was really trying to betray him, threatening to send him crashing down to the floor like so many times already. He leaned against the table when he pressed the buttons of the phone. He remembered April's number clearly, and she answered during the second ring.

"Hello?"

She sounded tired, didn't answer using her name like she usually did.

"April," Leo exhaled, taking a moment just to- just to take in the fact that he was able to hear her voice.

There was a shocked silence on the other side of the line. Words mixed with confusion, relief and worry followed.

"Leo? Oh, god, Leo- what- what happened, where have you guys been? Are you alright?!"

Street names were suddenly escaping his mind. Leo shut his eyes, chasing after them, but they just kept evading him. The outside of the building was so familiar, he knew where it was, but couldn't remember the street.

"The new casino- not far from it. On the eastern side," Leo answered, pushing past the emotions he felt, knowing there was no time to waste. "I'm sorry I have to ask you to do this, to put you and Casey in danger, but I… I don't know how else we're going to..."

Asking for help had always been difficult. Leo was so used to getting by on their own, of the fact that four mutant turtles really didn't have many places where they could ask for help. Of course this wouldn't be the first time their human friends helped them, but there was the sudden fear that if, for some reason, their friends couldn't help them, he'd be out of options.

It also made him that much more aware that having to ask for their help meant he couldn't do anything more. He had given his all, and if this wasn't enough...

"The guys aren't doing too good. April, I know we've… we've always asked so much of you, but-"

Why was he talking like he was trying to convince April to help them, like he was expecting her answer to be no? He was just waiting for that one thing to go wrong, for that one thing that would screw everything up. The nagging feeling in the back of his head that he had forgotten or overlooked something was persistent, whispered to him that this might be the thing. That even if he got his brothers out, there was no way to get them home-

"Leo." April didn't sound as panicked as when she'd first spoken- if anything, she sounded firm. "You could never ask too much of me. Casey was here with me- he heard everything, he's already on his way with his bike, and I'm leaving now as well."

Leo closed his eyes, ran a shaky hand over his face. They'd get out, they'd get rescued.

It would be over.

It would be over.

"Thank you, April," Leo whispered, doing his best to not let the emotions spill over. "I don't know what we'd-"

Something in the room crackled to life. A buzzing sound, followed by a man's voice.

"I'll be there in a minute. I hope you got the goods, this time."

Whirling around Leo realized that the guard still unconscious (or dead) in his seat had a two-way radio in the front pocket of his coat. Glancing back at the screens, he could see a man in one of the corridors, nearing the room Leo was currently in. This wasn't part of the shifts, at least as far as he knew. But it had sounded like this was about some personal business between the two men, a meeting that didn't have anything to do with their jobs.

Shifting his eyes once more he looked at the camera he had deliberately left on. All the other cameras his brothers would appear on had been turned off, but this was the last one that should catch sight of them, the one where the hatch he'd told them about was. He'd left it on so he could see if his brothers had reached it- and they had. He could see only Mikey and Raph, meaning they had already gotten Don through. Mikey was getting in, too, even though hesitant. Raph was standing still, clearly waiting for something.

Waiting for him.

Leo wanted to scream at him both to get moving and to wait for him. But the man nearing the room was blocking his path- the corridors had nothing where he could hide in, and neither did the room he was in. He was trapped, unless he wanted to go back the way they had come, back towards the cell, back towards the room with the crate-

He grabbed the edge of the table, the simple thought of that prison making his heart hammer, his breathing shallower. He was trapped again. Without realizing, he had lowered the phone, could hear April's voice distantly calling for him. Could hear the man through the radio, calling for his colleague, expecting an answer from him. Trying to collect himself Leo lifted his gaze back up to see how close the man was now. He couldn't let the panic lingering from the drugs take over, he'd have to think of a plan, surely he could hide somewhere-

The man had a gun in his hand and was walking with purpose now. He knew something was wrong.

Leo lifted the phone again.

"-re you there? Leo? Leo?"

"April… listen." He shouldn't have split up from them. Should've just stayed together. No- no, this was better. To have them out. He'd promised it- one way or the other, he'd get them out. He truly hadn't expected it to go this way, but maybe he should've. Maybe he should've, the moment he decided to split up. "No matter what my brothers say or try to do, you- you have to get them out of here. Nothing else matters. I'll- I'll try to follow but if I can't- please, please take them home, make sure they're a-alright-"

He wasn't giving in or giving up, but he felt so weak all of a sudden, unable to stand without leaning against the table. The man was so close now, and he couldn't withstand the idea of getting captured again, of the possibility of being taken back to the crate, of going through all of that again and again and again-

If the man wouldn't use the gun on him, he still had the butterfly knife. He couldn't see his brothers on the camera anymore; either they were out or had decided to go against his orders and come back for him.

He wished they'd still be on the camera. Wished he'd actually see them take the step out so that he could have the knowledge that they had reached the exit. So that he could have peace instead of the grief swelling in his chest. All he had now was uncertainty. Only one thing was clear.

Leo faced the door, had the knife out now, clenched it in his hand. One way or the other, he would be leaving tonight.

A/N: The next chapter will be the last. It will be unrelated to the plot of this story, but if this chapter left you wanting an alternative ending, the next chapter can be viewed as one!