Leo stared out towards the ocean. It had been more than ten years since he and his brother had saved the baby sea turtle on the beach, and even though Leo couldn't remember the exact details of that day, he still felt the same strong desires to be near the water as he had back then. If anything, the desire was even stronger.
Leo wasn't just a little kid who liked the look and feel of the ocean anymore. It didn't satisfy him to sit at the shore. He wanted to take a boat and sail off towards the horizon. He wanted to explore the world beyond his little island. He wanted to put his trust entirely in the wind and the waves and just see where they would take him.
He knew he couldn't though. Leo understood the difference between want and need, and even though he wanted to leave, he knew that he needed to stay with his people. His father and mentor was seen as an example and pillar by everybody on the island, and Leo knew that the people were beginning to look at him the same way.
He didn't resent them for this, far from it. Leo loved his island home, and everybody on it. Ever since he was a child he had chosen to follow in Splinter's footsteps. Leo wanted to serve and help his people. He just also wanted to be out on the ocean.
Leo sighed and turned his back on the ocean as he headed back to the village. He knew that if he stayed out there then he would be there all day, losing himself to the ocean. Sometimes Leo came out to this cliff that overlooked the ocean to do just that. He would sit at the cliff's edge, underneath the shade of a nearby tree, and just feel the ocean breeze and listen to the sounds of the waves against the cliffside. To him, it was the perfect place to meditate and reflect. While he knew that it was good to clear his head every once and awhile and relax, Splinter had even taught him how to meditate properly, Leo had also been taught that there was a time and a place for such reflection, and this just wasn't one of those times.
Leo walked back to the village and greeted everybody that he passed. He didn't stop to chat with anybody as he went though, because he had work that he had to do. Leo didn't know why, nobody did, but things had been going wrong on their island lately. It wasn't happening all at once, but little by little over the course of the last few years.
The island had always been extremely fertile, but every few years or so their fields would suddenly stop producing good crops for no apparent reason. They always just started up a new field, which worked out alright until the same thing would happen a few years later.
More and more of their houses were also falling apart, though Leo knew that this wasn't for no reason. After a storm or typhoon there was always some damage, and they would make repairs on the older buildings with newer trees. They always tried to use the healthiest looking trees, but despite how sturdy they looked, the wood was flimsy and weak. Leo wouldn't even have known this at all if Mikey, who knew a lot more about nature and growth than he ever would, hadn't shown him a few years before. With the houses being built and repaired by weaker materials, it was no wonder that things fell apart.
What Leo was most concerned about though was the fish. For as long as anybody could remember, there had always been plenty of fish around their island. Considering how important the meat of the fish was to their everyday diet, this was a very good thing. For the past few weeks though, the fishers had been bringing in less and less fish, and they reported that their regular gathering spots weren't as populated as they had been in the past. This issue hadn't gotten so bad that it was affecting the village as a whole yet, but Leo knew that if whatever had made the fish decide to leave didn't change, then it would only get worse before it got better.
Leo didn't know how to fix any of these larger incidents, but there had also been numerous smaller incidents that he could do something about. Illnesses. Injuries. Disagreements and disputes between the villagers. None of these necessarily had something to do with the fish and plant life incidents, but there were problems that Leo could handle.
When Leo got back to the main area of the village he felt a tension and worry in the air. Something had happened. Something big. Leo made his way through the slowly gathering crowd and joined Splinter, who was talking to some of the farmers.
"What's going on?" Leo asked.
One of the farmers turned to him. "We went to harvest the wheat this morning, but...well, come see for yourselves." The farmers led Splinter and Leo to the fields. At first glance everything looked perfectly fine. The stalks of wheat and rows of vegetables looked healthy enough, but Leo knew that there had to be something seriously wrong, or else the farmers wouldn't have gone to Splinter about it.
Leo bent down to pick one of the stalks of wheat, and his eyes widened when he felt how brittle and weak the crop was. It was dead in all but appearance. And, from how concerned and confused the farmers and villagers looked, Leo thought that it was safe to guess that all of their crops were like this.
"What could have done this?" Splinter's muttered in a concerned and very serious tone, which made Leo feel even more nervous about what was going on. If it was bothering Splinter this much, then it had to be something very serious. Leo had no idea what was wrong with the crops, but he did know somebody who might.
"Does anybody know where Mikey is?" Leo turned back towards the villagers who had come to see what had happened for themselves. He had asked a broad question, but he was looking at one person specifically, April O'Neil. She was Leo and Mikey's best friend, and probably the only person in the entire village who seemed to know exactly where Mikey was at all times.
"I saw him playing by the bay earlier." April glanced quickly at Splinter as she answered, almost cautiously. She knew that Splinter didn't approve of Mikey and Leo being near the ocean, and she usually did her best to keep the two of them from getting in trouble with their father. However, they had more important things to worry about than Mikey getting scolded, and they all know it.
Leo sighed, half in annoyance and half in fondness. He should have known that that was where Mikey was. Just as the cliff that overlooked the ocean was Leo's sanctuary on the island, the bay with the gentle surf on the beach and the foliage just feet away from the shore was Mikey's.
Leo glanced unsurely towards his master, who just nodded at him. Splinter knew as well as Leo did that Mikey was probably the one person on the island who understood plants the most. He spoke about all plants and any other living creature as though it had a soul, and respected it as such. If anybody could figure out what was going on, it was Mikey.
Leo left his sensei to deal with the villagers as he went to find his brother. As he moved past the village Leo looked at all the trees and plants that he passed, and he couldn't help but worry about just how healthy their island really was. First the trees, now their crops. So many of their plants weren't as healthy as they should be, and Leo didn't understand why. He just hoped that Mikey had an idea. For all Leo knew, this was a completely normal thing to happen to plants.
It took some time for Leo to get to his brother's favorite bay. Leo's cliffside was fairly close to the village, because he knew that he should remain as close to the others as possible, just in case he was needed. Mikey's bay though was all the way on the other side of the island. If Mikey was anybody else other than, well, Mikey, Leo would think that he liked the location because it gave him solitude.
There was a very simple reason why Mikey liked the far bay, because it was just brimming with life. People rarely came out here, so the plants and foliage were practically undisturbed. It was the most natural place on the island, and that was what drew Mikey in, just like how the ocean drew in Leo.
Even though he was in a hurry, Leo was careful to watch where he went. He didn't care for plants the way that Mikey did, but it still felt wrong to disturb the natural beauty of the island. Their people did their best to respect nature and keep their island the way that it was meant to be, but they still had to live somewhere, so they had to use and change the land as the needs came up.
Leo didn't explore this part of the island very often, but he knew exactly where he was going. Leo had made a point to memorize any paths he had taken, just in case he needed to travel through again. He didn't necessarily know this area, but he was still familiar with it. It was still part of the island that had been his home for his entire life. Everything felt familiar to him, and while the sense of stability was certainly comforting, it was also a little boring sometimes. Leo wanted adventure, to experience change...just, not the kind of change that was starting to sweep through their island.
Leo wondered if it was possible to have change and adventure, and yet keep the traditions and stability that they'd had on their island for generations...probably not.
Leo reached the bay and was confused when he didn't immediately see Mikey. He had been sure that he would find his brother. Where else would he be? Leo looked around, wondering if his brother had climbed up a tree or something. He did that sometimes...actually, he did that all the time. Leo often thought that Mikey's spirit guide mark should have been that of a frog, or even a cat, like April's. Or, really, any animal that could climb trees.
"Hey Leo." The dark haired boy jumped in surprise and quickly turned towards his brother's voice. He had forgotten for a moment though that he wasn't in the village or on a cliff, he was in the middle of untamed wildlife, and there were plants everywhere. In his haste Leo tripped over a root that was sticking out from a nearby tree and fell flat on his face.
He didn't get all that hurt from the fall. Leo was actually fairly certain that his pride hurt more than anything, and the fact that Mikey was laughing at him certainly wasn't helping matters.
"Have a nice trip, bro?" Mikey snickered.
"You're hilarious." Leo grumbled. He pushed himself to his feet and turned towards his brother, and felt his breath get caught in his throat. "Mikey, what are you doing? We're not supposed to be in the ocean." Mikey was relaxing in the water and leaning against the rocks.
Mikey shrugged. "Dude, the water's, like, not even three feet deep here. There aren't any currents or anything. I seriously don't think that anything dangerous is going to happen."
Leo wasn't so sure about that, but he couldn't bring himself to scold Mikey about it because, well, he kinda wanted to join him. Mikey had found himself a loophole to being in the ocean, and Leo wanted in on it.
"Hey, you gotta come see this." Mikey waved him over. Leo rolled his eyes and shook his head, but eagerly moved closer to the water. "No, ya gotta come closer." Mikey reached out and grabbed Leo's arm and pulled him into the water with him. The water was warmer than Leo figured the ocean usually was, probably because of the way that the sun hit the shallow water and there wasn't a lot of movement in the water.
"Check this out." Mikey dragged Leo so close to the surface of the water that he practically pulled them underwater. "Do you see them?" Leo could only assume that Mikey was talking about the dozen or so starfishes that were under the water. And of course Leo saw them, they were kind of hard to miss. They were right there.
"Look at that one." Mikey pointed to one of the larger starfishes, and Leo immediately noticed that something was wrong with it.
"What happened to it?" Leo asked. The starfish only had four arms.
"I don't know, I found it like that a few weeks ago." Mikey carefully picked up the starfish and brought it closer to the surface so Leo could see it better. "Do you see what it's doing?"
Leo frowned slightly and looked closer at the starfish. He didn't know what he was supposed to be looking for. It just looked like a four tipped starfish...wait a second. "What's that?" Leo pointed to the place where the fifth arm should be, but there wasn't just empty space there. Leo hadn't noticed it at first, but there was a little stump where the fifth arm should be, almost like a baby arm.
"It's regrowing its arm." Mikey said. "There was nothing there when I found it six weeks ago, but it's already starting to grow back. In a year, it'll be like nothing had happened."
"That's incredible." Leo said in a quiet, awe filled voice.
"I know." Mikey grinned as he gently put the starfish back down. "Isn't it awesome? This is just one example of how nature can just jump back to its feet, even when it seems like the world is against it."
Leo didn't entirely understand how the world could be 'against' nature, but he kinda got what his brother was saying. It gave him hope for what was going on to their island. "Can plants do this kinda thing?" Leo asked.
"It depends." Mikey made his way to the shore. "There are a lot of things that plants need. We can have the fairest weather in the world, but if the soil isn't just right, the plants won't grow right, and vice versa."
"Is it possible for a plant to look alive and healthy, but it's not?" Leo asked.
Mikey's eyes flashed in concern. "Please don't tell me it's happening in the village too."
"Sorry, but it is." Leo said, and then he realized just what Mikey had said. "Wait, what do you mean by 'too'?"
Mikey sighed and looked at the foliage around the bay. "Everything on the island looks as healthy as it's always been, but...I don't know." Mikey shook his head. "Something's wrong."
"The villagers are really concerned." Leo joined his brother ashore. "Our crops looked fine, but they're all dead. Nobody knows what to do."
Mikey touched at his necklace that he'd had since he was a child. It was made of small shells stringed together with a small purple stone in the middle, which rested on his chest. Leo didn't know what it was about the necklace, but Mikey never took the thing off. It was like a charm or totem that he seemed to cling too when he wanted guidance.
"I want to see the crops." Mikey said, which was exactly what Leo had been hoping to hear. "Maybe there will be something to salvage." Leo didn't know about that, but he certainly hoped so. The brothers made their way back to their village as quickly as they could. It took less time for them to get back to the village than it did for Leo to get to the bay in the first place.
When they got back to the farming fields, Leo was surprised and relieved to see that most of the villagers had returned to their homes. Splinter must have somehow been able to convince everybody that wasn't a farmer to go back to the village. This was a relief, because Leo was concerned enough as it was, he didn't need to deal with the stress of hiding his emotions from already concerned villagers.
Mikey was usually a very social person who could spend hours just casually speaking to somebody without either person getting bored. He rarely ever passed somebody by without stopping to say hello and ask them how their day was doing. Mikey must have been very focused on the crops, because he barely even glanced at anybody he passed, not even Splinter.
Mikey gently took one of the stalks of wheat, and it fell apart in his hands just the same as it did for Leo. Mikey knelt on the ground, picked one of the carrots and broke it. The carrot looked healthy on the outside, just like the wheat had, but on the inside the carrot was dark, practically hollow, and extremely rotten. Leo had wondered for a moment if Mikey would check on the condition of every vegetable and crop, but he didn't. Mikey turned his full attention to the dirt. He was looking for something, but Leo had no idea what.
After a moment Mikey got to his feet and wiped the dirt off his hands. "I don't know what happened, but the soil isn't healthy anymore. We can't use it."
Leo grimaced. This was worse than he had thought it would be. Not only were the plants dead, but they couldn't even reuse the soil? Leo wondered if they even had any more fertile soil to farm on. "What should we do?"
"We need to burn these crops." Mikey said without hesitation. "The soot will fertilize the soil and make it even more healthy than it was before. In the meantime, we just need to start over and replant somewhere else."
"Replant?" One of the farmers voiced the uncertainty that they were all feeling. "Can we afford to do that?"
"We can't afford not to." Mikey said simply, and as much as they all hated it, they knew that they didn't have much of a choice. They had to replant.
Leo wasn't much of a farmer. He didn't understand plants the way that Mikey did, but he knew how to follow instructions. Mikey, Leo, and Splinter spent the next few hours helping the farmers plant new crops in one of their older fields that Mikey was confident would be good enough. Leo mostly just did what Mikey instructed, but even the smallest bit of help was still help.
Time really had a tendency to fly when one was hard at work. Before Leo even knew it, the sun was beginning to go down, and there was still a lot of work to do. They had done a lot though, so they decided to call it a day. Splinter and the farmers went back to the village. Leo planned on following them, but he stopped before he even went anywhere when he saw Mikey make his way to the beach.
Mikey had been quiet all afternoon, and Leo had been concerned. He had just been too focused on other things to talk to his brother. Now though, Leo had nothing else to worry about. It was time for him to talk to his brother.
Leo followed Mikey down to the beach. He didn't say anything for the first few minutes, and neither did Mikey. The two boys just sat on the sandy shore and watched the sun set over the horizon. Leo normally loved nothing more than to watch a sunset over the ocean, but he couldn't appreciate it as much as he normally would because he was too concerned about his brother.
After they sat in silence for a bit Mikey finally spoke about what was on his mind, and it wasn't quite what Leo had been expecting. "Do you remember that legend about the Heart of Miwa?" Mikey began to fiddle with his necklace again.
"Of course I remember it." Leo said. How could he forget the story they had grown up listening to?
Mikey was quiet for another moment before he continued. "Have you ever wondered if it was true?"
Leo raised an eyebrow at his brother. "You really think there's a goddess of life whose heart got stolen by two shape shifting demigod brothers?"
"Hey, you don't know that that stuff isn't true." Mikey said. "But, actually, that wasn't what I was talking about." Mikey clutched at his necklace. "...do you think the earth is really dying?"
Leo wanted to say no. He wanted to say that it was just something that the elders added to the story to make it more dramatic or something, but he couldn't because he didn't know that for sure. And Splinter did always say that even the most unbelievable legends stemmed from a branch of truth.
"I don't know." Leo said honestly. He didn't really believe in all the legends of their village, but they were hard to ignore. And when Leo thought about the unexplainable dying trees, and the fish leaving for no apparent reason, suddenly the earth dying felt like a much more real possibility. "I just don't know."
A/N: This chapter introduces a theme that my sister had seen hints of in Moana, but would have loved to see more of. It's the idea of the strength of nature, where even if something is destroyed that doesn't mean that it stays that way. Things like fire may kill plants, but the ash will fertilize the soil and make it even richer than before, which gives more strength to the plants that may grow there in the future. Trials lead to growth. This is something that my sister really wanted to have be prominent in this story.