Chapter Six:

Tiger Claw was not one to feel remorse. It was his job to feel nothing. It was his calling, to kill. Admittedly, it was hard for him at the beginning, though he wouldn't tell his secret to another soul. Taking a life was no easy task. It took guts. It took nerves of steel. And as he stood before the remainder of the Hamato Clan's burning and crumbling lair, he did feel something. But, it was not sadness. It was not regret.

It was victory.

It permeated the air.

Made him drunk with power.

They were finished, the lot of them.

Done.

"Come, Tiger Claw. We must leave this place," Saki said, stalking away with his head held high. His nose twitched and his ear flicked back. Did he hear something? There was no way they could've survived a blast of that caliber. Yet, they always had. They'd always come back.

"I feel I should stay, Master. Make sure that the turtles and the girl have perished."

He stopped, and turned his head.

"I am certain they are gone."

Tiger Claw glanced back one final time, before following the Shredder into the dark tunnels of the sewers for what he hoped was the very last time.

Leonardo had watched as the rocket soared past his head. It was so fast. One minute, they had him cornered. They were winning. The next, he felt the boom of the blast, before the roof inevitably caved in on him. He saw it all happen before his eyes, and yet, he stood there frozen. He tried to say it was because he couldn't have foreseen Tiger Claw emerging from the shadows with a huge rocket launcher. But he should have. Oroku Saki never completely fought his own battles. He always sought out deception to gain the upper hand. He tried to tell himself that even if he'd warned them, their home still would have burst into flames. But he still should have. Leonardo felt pain as his awareness flared up in the back of his skull. There was so much pain. Everywhere. When his eyes finally opened, he could see only rubble before him. But he could smell smoke, feel the heat from the fire on his face. When he tried to cry out, his throat was raw and his lungs were tight. He coughed and sputtered and with the movement, realized his legs were trapped. His right leg slipped free with enough effort, but his left wouldn't budge.

"Donnie!" he shouted. "Raph! Mikey! Ap-April?! Kirby?! Karai, anyone-"

"L-Leo?! Where are you?!"

"Mikey! I'm outside the turnstiles! My leg. My leg- it's trapped. I can't-I can't get out."

"I'm coming bro!"

Leonardo heard his youngest brother approach, watching as pebbles rolled along the rubble before him. A pang zipped through his chest when he realized that the stone was from the wall of the dojo. How did it get all the way over here? He pushed the thought out of his head.

You must find your family, Leonardo.

The unmistakable authority in his father's voice made him shiver.

Do whatever it takes.

The orange clad turtle could finally see his eldest brother, trapped beneath a heap of rubble, and he tried not to focus on the crushed limb beneath it. He could feel himself getting overwhelmed, but he knew it wasn't the time. They needed to get out. And they needed to find the others.

"Mikey? Have you found anyone else?"

"N-no." Leo clenched his jaw, cursing into the dirt.

He took a deep breath, and walked to his brother's side.

"On three, I'm gonna try to lift this. Ready?"

"Yeah, yeah…"

Michelangelo dug his fingers beneath the stone slab and counted. With a loud grunt, he attempted to heave it upward, but failed. He tried to ignore the searing pain in his shoulder, the blood running down his forearm. Just get him out. Just get him out.

Leonardo winced as the weight settled back onto his injured ankle.

"I'm gonna try again. One, two, three!"

Again, he strained to lift the rock, and the turtle in blue carefully shimmied out from underneath it. He hissed as his leg dragged against the cement; and when he glanced back to inspect the damage, nausea creeped it's way up his throat. His foot faced his other, toes pointing inward. It swelled large and purple. A minor setback. Your family comes first. Find them.

"We have to find the others-"

He paused.

Clean through Mikey's shoulder, just under his collarbone, a small piece of a pipe jutted out. Blood stained his arm and plastron, and his face looked ashen and pale. His stomach dropped.

"Your-"

"I know. Come on." With a slippery hand, he helped Leonardo to his good foot, and wrapped his arm around his shoulders. He hissed when his finger accidentally brushed the metal rod. "We have to splint that."

"No time. We have to find them."

"I know, but it'll be no use if your foot is… backwards."

Whatever it takes, Leonardo.

Limping a few feet away, they found a sturdy wall to lean against, and gathered the straightest pieces of wood they could find. Michelangelo ripped a portion of the wrappings from his hands and kneeled beside Leo, placing the makeshift splint next to his busted ankle.

"This is going to hurt. A lot. You'll want to bite down on something-"

"Just g-get it over with- AGH!"

With a yank, he adjusted the ankle, trying to ignore the sounds of the bones setting and cracking against each other. Leo screamed in pain, before falling limp against the wall. He knew he'd probably pass out. It was basically inevitable. He'd almost hoped he would; his brother was starting to lose his shit, and that isn't what they needed. What they needed was focus, and to locate the others. Making sure the area was secure, he began scoping what was their home in search of his family. He tried to think back to before the explosion. What rooms had been occupied by whom. Mikey tried to remember how it used to look, with the roof still intact. Their used-to-be lair was now nothing but a heap of burning memories- ones that were too painful without Splinter anyway. The pain in his shoulder was getting distracting. He was losing his strength, losing too much blood. He stumbled to the last place he'd been; the dojo, which had completely caved in, minus one thing.

The tree.

There wasn't a scratch on it.

He swayed before it, stung by grief. It was almost enough to send him over the edge; to let it overwhelm and engulf him, but he paused.

"Focus, Mikey," he said to himself.

Under every scrap of metal, every chunk of wood, he searched, aware of the fire getting hotter against his skin and the very real damage that was done to their beloved home.

"Don?! April?! Raph?! Casey?! Kirby?!"

Nothing.

With his good arm, he continued moving chunks of rubble piece after piece, calling for them- for anyone. It was minutes before he finally saw a glimpse of something; a flash of green. Erratically, he began to dig away at the mess, not caring that his fingers were splitting open or that his shoulder was stinging. He's fine. They're fine. It's gonna be okay. A soft groan came from under the concrete, and the arm twitched.

"M-Mikey?"

"Raph!" Disregarding his injury, he pulled back a large slab of cement, to see his brother face down against the floor, minor burns inflicting his arms, and his shell cracked down the center. A large gash above his eye bled profusely down his face and into the dirt.

"I'm gonna get you out! Just-"

Behind them, a wire sparked and popped, starting a flame against the wall, where a pipe had busted open. Michelangelo's head whipped to the direction of the sound, following the trail of the leak all the way to- no. Not even feeling the pain through his shoulder anymore, he began furiously tossing rubble off of his brother, though it seemed that every time he took one, another replaced it. All the while, the flame slithered it's way closer to them- to the gas pipes above them. He'd been called stupid his whole life, but even he knew that wasn't good.

"Mikey, the others."

"I haven't- I mean, Leo, but-"

With another crack, the fire began to spread around them. He reached underneath the rubble and took his brother's arm, attempting to heave his brother out, only to find more cement fall, nearly crushing him again. Glancing up, he saw the source of the death trap; the ceiling had caved in, pinning Raphael beneath an immense block. No matter what, even if he could move him, they would just get stuck again. No. There's a way to fix this. I know there is.

"You have to get out! You hear me? Find the others!"

"Raph! Shut up! I'm trying to think-"

"I'm not getting out of here, and you know it," he said, calmly.

Michelangelo blinked.

He smiled up at him, tears filling his eyes.

I'm not losing you too, he thought.

"No. I can do this. I can get you out!"

The turtle in red was suddenly racked with a cough, spitting up blood against the already stained pavement. He squeezed his eyes shut, before looking back up to the youngest brother, and reaching out his hand. Mikey did not take it. There was no point in giving up- he was going to save him.

"I'm not gettin' out."

With a shaking hand, Michelangelo reached for more concrete, throwing it to the side, blinking back tears. He shook his head. He's gonna be fine. I'm gonna fix this.

"No! Mikey! Damnitt! Listen to me! Listen!"

Raphael's hand came down on his brother's arm, and he dug his fingers into his blood-stained flesh. He could feel his consciousness slipping, knew it was only a matter of time before the flames reached them. He knew he wasn't going to make it out.

Michelangelo peered down, feeling his brother shake against him.

"I'm not gettin' out... I'm not gettin' out, and I need you to do this. For me, alright? Find the others. Get-get them to safety."

"Raph-"

"Take care of them. You got me?"

"Stop talking like that you're gonna be-"

Behind them, the fire rose again, getting hotter. Another wire sparked and hissed, sending a blaze toward the entrance.

He squeezed his brother's arm again, and let go.

"Take care of them," he said.

The orange clad turtle glanced at him, tears streaming through the grime and blood on his face. Raphael smiled slightly, before his eyes finally drooped shut, and his hand fell limp against the ground.

"No! Raph, look at me, look at me-"

"Mikey?!" A voice shouted, to his right.

"Donnie?!"

Keeping an eye out for the flames, he made his way over to him.

"I've got April under here. She's-she's breathing. Barely."

Donatello sat against the wall, with a large piece of rubble against his plastron. With an effort, he lifted it up high enough for Mikey to drag her out. She felt cold, despite the flames encircling them, and he gulped. She needed to be somewhere safe, and fast. He heaved her over to the wall, where he sat her up, and went back to his genius brother.

"I-I'm gonna lift this. Ready-"

"No! Mikey, please. You have to get April out. Have-have you seen-"

"Leo passed out when I set his ankle. But he's fine. R-Raph- he's… but when I get you out, you can help me. We can get him out, we just have to-"

Donatello grievously dropped his head.

"Mikey. I-I can't… I can't feel my legs."

The orange clad turtle shook his head.

"One, two-"

"I'll be fine! Get April and Leo to the Shell Raiser. It's parked a few yards past-"

"But-"

"Just do it! Now! I promise, I'll be f-fine. Just- agh!" His hand flew to his side, between his shell and plastron, where a sharp piece of wood protruded. Behind his head, a splatter of blood smeared the concrete. "Go, Mikey! Now!"

"Donnie, please, let me-"

"GO!"

He blinked, bewildered at his gentle brother barking orders, before stumbling over to April.

"I'll be back!" He reassured his siblings. "I'll be back for you!" He tossed her over his shoulder again, smelling the potent scent of gas. His heart hammered in his chest as he watched the fire get even taller, making sweat form across his arms and neck. It didn't take long to find Leonardo, who was hobbling toward him. Another part of the ceiling fell, completely destroying the turnstiles.

"Donnie? Raph?"

"We have to come back. But we gotta get you guys to the Shell Raiser, c'mon!"

"Wait!" a voice shouted. They spun around to see Casey, holding himself up with a large pole, making his way over to them. His hairline was stained crimson and the bottom half of his shirt was singed, leaving his midriff bare. A large gash colored his abdomen, and his jeans stained red.

"Casey!"

He stumbled up to them, eyes searching their faces frantically.

"He's still in there. So's Don. And Kirby."

"Then what're we waiting for?! We have to-"

"April's in bad shape, alright? I need to get her to the van."

"But-"

"Just-just stay here. I'm coming back."

Luckily the vehicle was closer than expected, and they made it there quickly. He helped Leo in first, wary of his ankle, before climbing in and lying April down, buckling her in. She groaned softly, eyes fluttering.

"Go, Mikey! We'll be fine!"

With a nod, he sprinted back to the wreckage, where Casey was already climbing the rubble. Within the small chunk of time, the fire had doubled in size and the roof had caved in in two other places.

"Casey he's over-"

He stopped, watching as the flames licked at the pipes above.

Casey was blubbering something unintelligible.

He glanced over at Don, who was screaming, but he could not hear.

He looked back up to the gas pipes, and watched as a bright, white hot light blinded him.

And instantaneously, he was cast against the wall of the tunnels.

He woke to screaming.

And a ringing in his ears.

He watched as Casey fell to his knees before the inferno and wept, beside a forlorn Leonardo. His brother's shoulders shook and his mouth moved, but what was said, was lost to him. Michelangelo's eyes wandered to the blaze; an inordinate wave of grief came crashing through him, making him dizzy. He stumbled to them, his legs like jelly.

"Leo! We have to get out of here!"

The look his brother gave him sent a chill down his spine.

Mikey helped him up, and turned to their human friend. His eyes fixated on the carnage, glistening with fresh tears that silently made their paths down his dirt-stained cheeks.

"Casey-"

"I never told him."

"We gotta go-"

"I never told him. I never told him. I-"

With his other arm, he lifted Casey from the ground, stumbling to the van, his ears still ringing. When he looked back, his stomach dropped.

The tree was gone.

I am so sorry it took so long... :/ I've been agonizing over this chapter forever. Thanks for reading! Comments and suggestions welcome!