Chapter Seven: Inside is where you'll find the monster
Something wasn't right. Leonardo couldn't put his finger on it but something was definitely up.
He'd got out of bed early to train as usual but instead of feeling full of energy as he entered the Dojo he felt zapped and that was not like him at all. Donatello had been true to his word and his tests revealed that whatever it was which was affecting the eldest the teleport was not to blame though he promised to take daily readings on himself and his brother and keep a secretive eye on Michelangelo. Although with Mikey being much happier now he had been granted a day pass to see what his geeky brother got up to in the police labs there was no way of measuring a marked change. He also insisted that Leo continued to keep it quiet for now.
"Now that eveything has mellowed let's just leave it at that" he reasonned, his big brown eyes focused on Leo in a silent plea "Raph isn't beating down on Mikes anymore, no-one is yelling, hey, it's nice. Peace-ful"
As much as Leonardo didn't want to admit it, Donatello did have a point. Mike had been so moody recently that it had put a strain on the whole family dynamic and then all the drama with the teleport had led to a lot of blame and shame - mainly Raph doing the blaming and the shaming of Michelangelo. A bit of peace was nice.
But then there was her...who on earth was she and why was she appearing in his mind like this and so darn frequent. He'd never seen her before. He wasn't a regular television watcher and only knew April so this whole thing had him confused.
Taking a deep breath he took a stance and attempted some basic moves but all too soon felt light headed. Vocalising his frustration he launched the katana at the wall. It hit hard and bounced onto the floor with a clatter.
"Are you okay my son?" Splinter was suddenly standing at the entrance to the dojo, arms folded up and inside his robe.
Leonardo firstly felt embarrassment. He skulked over to the wall and bent to collect his sword.
"It is not like you to behave in such a manner"
The eldest rubbed the back of his neck: "Sorry" he mumbled. Though, in truth, he didn't know whether he was or not. He felt frustrated. Irritable even.
"What is troubling you?" Leonardo re-hung the weapons he was going to use on the wall. There would be no point now. He couldn't train. "Because if you want to talk you know I am always here to listen. Especially when you act so out of character, now if it was Raphael..."
"What? He's allowed to have a temper and I'm not?!" He pushed past Splinter to go towards somewhere else, anywhere where he could be on his own.
"Leonardo! Come back here!"
Splinter's calls fell on deaf ears as Leonardo was already out of the lair and on his way to that escape. Where it was he didn't know. Just had to get away..
Michelangelo popped his head out of his room: "Something up sensei?"
The old rat wavered a paw in his direction as if dismissing the concern "Nothing that won't be sorted with a little time" he mused before returning to his room
"Leo sounded a bit off...that's all" Michelangelo's voice trailed off and he found himself musing to himself, which is not something he did a lot of, that perhaps Leo was finally having sugar cravings. His brother was far too strict with his diet.
"Are you talking to yourself? You know what that means don't cha?" Raphael chuckled to himself as he eyed up his weights.
"The time is right. Madness has come" replied Michelangelo theatrically "Leo just got all huffy with Splinter and walked out"
Raphael turned and locked eyes with his younger brother "Seriously? And I missed it!" He blew out a breath "Dammit. What did Sensei say..? Was it all 'into the hashi with you!'.."
Michelangelo smiled but shook his head. He felt so conflicted, Raphael's impression of their father was lacking and then some but to see his large brother behave this way did hold it's amusements.
"You know, I always miss the best bits"
"And what bits are those?" Donatello appeared out of his lab, glasses and mask off, rubbing his eyes. Michelangelo regarded him with awe and concern - Donnie looked exhausted.
"You need to go to bed" announced the orange banded turtle "Cause those bags under your eyes could pack for a round the world trip and still have room"
"Ha" answered Donatello "What did I miss?"
"Leo having a temper tantrum" announced Raphael simply "Apparently he's gone AWOL"
Donatello tied his mask and placed the glasses on his nose.
"Very un-Leo like" continued Raphael, grinning "I bet it was knockout"
"Do we know where he went?"
"Nope. And do we care? Nope" Raphael waited for a fist bump with Michelangelo. It didn't come.
Donatello shot his larger brother a look "We do care Raph and so would you if he didn't come back"
Raphael folded his arms across his chest "Try me"
She waited for the punchline.
It didn't come.
"This is a joke right?" She looked at Sacks. She waited. He stared. No dancing clown, no audience clapping, no over-the-top host in a glitzy suit telling her she'd been 'duped' but not to 'mind because she'd won a million dollars'...!
"No Leeanne, this is not a joke. I do not joke about this sort of thing. Would be far too cruel don't you think?"
"You just told me I am an experiment. It's not exactly a nice thing is it?" Her body was fighting between fear and anger, tears were threatening to spring to her eyes but she pushed the wave back down and swallowed.
"Leeanne. I have been bought up in science, my father was a scientist, my uncle was a scientist, I was a scientist - still am, even if I been replaced by younger, smarter minds. In all that time I never once understood the true meaning until I made contact with an alien species who have showed me that science can not only lead armies, it can make them"
She didn't like the sound of this.
"I am sure you remember..." He hit a couple of keys on the flat board and spun a large screen round so she could it: It was pictures of the alien invasion; the ship that built itself in the sky and then abruptly disappeared. "Before this,I had long since worked with chemicals and technology that they supplied us with. Some were successful" His brain flashed to the turtles "And some were not" He moved the screen around and touched one more button "You have come straight into work with such loyalty and determination and left behind such devastation" He smiled and swivelled the screen back round "See what you did"
The pit in her stomach dropped even further, on the screen was her building, her home and then there bodies. Blood and dozens of bodies. They were everywhere. The hallway, the hallway she had walked a thousand times. Children. Two little girls, they lived below her...she thought she remembered... Bile rose and burnt her throat, the hand over her mouth barely containing it: "No. Never. Ridiculous" She realised she had legs and attempted to use them. An image flashed in her mind. The power. The feeling of control. That raw need to have it.
"Please Leeanne sit, let me explain"
He looked blurry. She felt for the chair "No" Her voice sounded far away "No". Her last thought were of the silent figure who watched her that night and the realisation that all she had liked, he had liked too.
He had been there, in the darkness. He was big. Imposing. Muscular. But it was his eyes that struck her most - piercing blue irises surrounded by dark rims - and it was these that she remembered as the world came into focus once more.
Sacks was leaning over her now 'horizontal' position. She'd been moved. Her wrists, and ankles, now bound she lay on some sort of metal table in a room that was not Sack's office. The expressionless man in a suit was also there.
"Welcome back. Apologies for the binding but we cannot risk you running around and hurting yourself so for now it is necessary"
"Why?" Her throat felt dry "Why are you doing this? I'm nothing to you..you people...I'm just...me"
He bent closed "And that is precisely why we bought you in. Do you think that the job here just popped into your lap because you are just so talented? Oh Lee, we head hunted you and your little friends because we wanted to see if we could get your minds to connect to theirs"
Leeanne twitched against the restraints, her fingers brushing against the cold metal beneath, so cold, it almost felt wet.
"They're reinforced steel so I wouldn't bother" Lifting himself back to full height he placed a hand on his colleague's shoulder, the man didn't even blink "You see the Kraang are unlike any other alien race. They have superiority of mind. You." He pointed a finger at her "Are intelligent. A perfect fit shall we say. I had hopes for all of you. And the group before and the group before them...Not meant to be though and then there is you. It was like a jigsaw being built right before our eyes - the connections - the desire to fit. Your brain is beautiful. Perfect. They chose you Leeanne, you should be grateful, it hurts not to be chosen and I mean really hurts.."
Then she heard the shouts, the ones she had heard the other evening, from that other room..? Surely to God..?
"My building. How.."
"I know" He almost looked pained "Sad isn't it, all those people. But you disappeared and as long as you're here then you have nothing to fear. The cops think you are in the grip of some mad-man. They don't believe you did it, all those bad things"
"Neither do I" she replied firmly "I know me. I am not. I would not"
"Yes. Before you were just a plain jane weren't you, disappearing into every room you entered. They would never think that the quiet girl on the top floor would do all this. And they have no evidence, we made sure of that" He patted the man again "Show her. Show her who you are"
The silent man in the suit opened his jacket, shirt buttons were next, she wanted to turn away but Sacks held her head "Look and see" And she saw. It was just like one of those samples - alien - pink, like a small brain packed tightly into the chest cavity "With the Kraang already here the authorities will not know what has hit them and with you and others like you, this City will once again fall to it's knees and beg for mercy"