Well I got myself into a fine mess while searching for RPG PDFs I got attacked by adware which apparently my normal antivirus software can't detect fortunately my friends on Discord gave me some helpful advice and while I'm waiting for this different scanner to finish I'll write this chapter
Jonathan's POV
Jonathan and Yuki had a moment where neither could think of anything to say, Jonathan took a moment to just look at Yuki sitting on the edge of the sofa bed, her posture, her mannerisms, they were so human but all done with a Cat's body…It was so strange and yet…He was starting to feel it was natural in a way, the two humans, April and Casey apparently were long time friends of these strange Mutants and they treated them more or less like they would another human being…Perhaps it was true and this…Rising of the Animals was something that was meant to happen…That it was part of the natural growth of the world that the 'lesser animals' would grow to become closer to the humans.
"It's strange…" Jonathan said "…If only you were human Yuki, you could be a student in my class and you would be a student I could be proud of…" After a moment of thinking he said "…And that lady April, she could be someone I would be proud to have as a student…Why she married that lummox I have no idea but then…There's no accounting for taste…"
Yuki was flattered at the praise but she wasn't sure neither she nor April would be proud to be part of Jonathan's psychology class she had heard the stories of the experiments he had done on his students that helped him develop his fear gas.
"Does that fear gas wear off on its own?" Yuki asked "Or do you need an antidote?"
"Earlier versions did wear off on their own…" Jonathan said "…But I improved the formula to require an antidote last I checked the only antidote available makes one sleep for two days…" Then he realized something
"Indeed…You don't seem to drifting in and out of hallucinations like the victims of my fear gas normally do…"
"But I've been having nightmares…" Yuki said
"But you said earlier those dreams were also prophetic…" Jonathan said "…My fear toxin has no mystical properties they can only show you what you already fear not the future…My fear toxin was designed primarily for humans…Your Mutant Metabolism after the initial gassing might have found a way to process it and eliminate it in a very short amount of time."
"You really think so?" Yuki asked
"You are an entirely new life form that is not completely natural…" Jonathan said "…So really anything's possible…I wouldn't be surprised if the Turtles and their Rodent Master having lived all their lives in these filthy toxic sewers have developed some level of toxin immunity if not as complete as my colleague Poison Ivy at least greater than normal humans…"
Then Jonathan asked "You might not remember…But when I gassed you…I distinctly heard you yell…Bone demon…"
"Oh that." Yuki said "That's one of the Yokai from Papa's stories."
"You'll have to clarify further." Jonathan said "I don't exactly know what a Yo…Kai…Is…"
"In English Translations of Japanese Media it's often translated as 'Demon' however a closer is comparison would be to the various 'fairy' creatures of European Folklore and by that I mean the 'Old School' Fairies before the Victorian Era and later Disney made them all Cutsey-Wootsy just as the European Fairies had the Good 'Seelie' and the Evil 'Unseelie' Yokai could good or evil or somewhere in between."
"The fact you know about the original 'Fair Folk' impresses me." Jonathan said "Not many Americans know the original tales of the Fairies."
"I read a lot as a Kitten." Yuki said "I had to I couldn't go out and play with the normal human children, so reading about faraway times and places helped me from going stir-crazy."
"When…If…We get out of this alive…" Jonathan said "…I'll have to find a book of East Asian Mythology and Folklore as I'm simply not as familiar with the lore of the East as I am with the Folklore of the West."
Mikey's POV
Exhausted falling on his hands and knees, Mikey panted and stared up at the terrifying Demon Bird
"What do you want?" Mikey finally asked
"The answer is up to the Turtle." Desolation said "Does the Turtle want life or death?"
It wasn't a trick question but Desolation banks on you thinking it is, it is deceptive in its simplicity
"LIFE!" Mikey shouted
Desolation dived through Mikey's chest again, and Mikey woke up in his own bed! After he got back his bearings Mikey realized what happened he was free
So in the original Soul's Winter Trilogy I read in the comments section that Shredder gave the wounded Turtle a piece of his soul to give the Turtle a way to life, that Desolation represented death and that piece of soul represented life explaining the choice…So in this story Mikey already has his own soul so a bit of the symbolism doesn't exist anymore instead Desolation is simply banking on intimidation and confusion to get his victim to despair and fall victim to his tricks