This has been on my mind for a very long time. I spent a lot of time planning it all out, conversing with fellow authors on the subject and here it is, a new story that combines Gargoyles and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Both are personal favorites of mine as both pertain to two groups of non-human outsiders defending New York City from the forces that dare to threaten it. One group becomes stone by day and the others are heroes in a half shell. I did a lot of re-watching to re-familiarize myself with Gargoyles as that show was way ahead of its time. As for TMNT, I won't be using a specific universe, so the TMNT portion of this crossover will use elements from various manner of Ninja Turtle media. 2003 cartoon, 2012 cartoon, games, movies, Mirage, and maybe even Rise, my fellow turtle fans. I found it way easier as I was torn between which iteration to choose. Gargoyles will also include cartoons and comics, which reminds me of the exciting news that Gargoyles will be getting a new comic series continuation, so that's pretty cool.
On the Gargoyles side of things, this first chapter takes place after Awakening, part 2.
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Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Gargoyles nor the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise.
Change was something that was always inevitable.
No matter how much things tended to stay the same, everything had the potential to undergo change. Dealing with that change was a dilemma in itself and many beings of several species are forced to endure such a thing. The humans of the bustling metropolis that was New York City understood this quite well, and the ones charged with adapting to change for the sake of this fair city were the police officers. "Captain Chavez, I'm gonna have to say again. I really think there's something off about that place. Last night more than proves it." Detective Elisa Maza implored to her superior, Police Captain Maria Chavez. The precinct was in a buzz like usual, and all the New York born cop wanted was for Chavez to see things her way.
The captain pinched the bridge of her nose. Elisa was one of the best cops under her command with not only a stellar clean record, but also part of a legacy in the department and her intuition was hardly ever wrong. "Look, Maza. Anything could've happened last night and we already got word from Xanatos' people on what went on up at that new castle of his."
"I was there as it happened." Eliza retorted, not letting up. "What I heard was definitely not thunder and do I need to remind you about the stone debris etched with claw marks? I know I may sound like I'm grasping at straws, but what I'm really doing is being a detective."
Chavez gave her this much, she certainly had a lot of conviction. "Look. I get what you're saying, and if you're so sure, I suppose I could try and pull enough strings to get you to search the place up. You know who you're dealing with."
Elisa snorted. "If I was scared of rich guys like David Xanatos, then I'd be in the wrong job. Appreciate it captain." She walked for the door out of the captain's office. She bumped into a red-haired trench clad man. "Excuse me."
The red haired man looked inside the office. "Was Maza bringing up that whole castle thing, again?"
"For the umpteenth time." Chavez drank her cup of coffee. "Eliza Maza is a good cop. She's definitely her father's daughter. But, darn it, does she have a penchant for sticking her nose in what could be trouble. It wouldn't kill her to finally accept a partner to watch her back."
"Good luck. From what I hear, she prefers to work strictly solo. Though, I can respect that."
"So, is there something you have for me, Detective Bluestone?"
Detective Bluestone entered and handed a folder to the captain's desk. "Crime scene photos from that shipyard robbery from last night. From the looks of it, it seems like the Purple Dragons struck again."
Chavez groaned, going for another drink. "Fifth time this week. Scum like Tony Dracon and Vizioso are bad enough, now these...these kids are starting to get bold. To think they were only a minor problem not too long ago. How could they've possibly pulled off a score like this?"
"Change in leadership maybe?" Bluestone suggested. "Even the smallest of groups can end up evolving into something way bigger if it has the right kind of main head in charge. Pulling the strings, keeping up charades when necessary."
She rolled her eyes, like with Maza, Bluestone was another detective that had his own habits. "What? You're telling me this all knowing all powerful Illuminati is accepting delinquents into their ranks?"
"Anything's possible, captain?" Bluestone shrugged.
"You know, most police captains would be pretty wary of accepting former spooks into their fold. Lucky for you, I'm not one to be so paranoid." Maria remarked. "That talk, though. Listen to my words, Matthew Bluestone, talk like that almost makes me wish I reconsidered."
"Yet, I'm still here, aren't I? And please, just call me Matt. Everyone else does." Matt made his own exit and passed by several police desks. "Catch you later, Morgan." he waved to an African-American beat cop.
"Hey, Matt. Wait." Morgan ran up to him. "Just saw Detective Maza and she seemed like she was on the warpath. Everything good?"
"Nothing to worry about. She's just focused on what went on last night at Xanatos' tower. You were there, right?"
"That I was. Can't say I blame her for being all curious." Morgan said. "Though, if I were, I'd bring along some help."
Matt smirked. "You know, you could always take the detective exam. You'd be able to get into pretty big cases, might even be partnered with Maza. Who knows? You two could be the finest of New York's finest."
Morgan flushed and cleared his throat. "I-I'm just saying. Having someone to watch your back isn't a bad thing, and I love working as a beat cop. No role is too small when you're protecting the city's streets. It's just not a job you have to do alone. In a city this big, it needs as much protection from any number of folks as it can get. Like those folks I used to roll with in Brooklyn at the 99th precinct before transferring here." Morgan laughed fondly at those wild memories. "You'd love them."
Elisa strolled through the sidewalk silently.
It just occurred that the sun was beginning to set. All that time trying to get through to Chavez took longer than she thought. "Good thing I hired a sitter to take care of Cagney." She said, walking past a pizza shop called Antonio's. She thought about stopping by her parents' place to maybe get her dad's input, even a retired cop could have some good input. Some noise got her attention and she speed walked, following the sound. Around the corner was a hooded figure holding a metal wrench and it looked like they were about to use it on a door.
"Hey! You!" Minor or not, a crime was still a crime and Elisa was committed to her job. The hoodie-clad person gasped and tried to make a break for it, but Elisa grabbed them just in time and took off the hood. "You?" Elisa gasped.
The would-be vandal was a teenage brown haired boy and he looked very embarrassed. "Heh. Hi, Elisa." he greeted sheepishly, trying to save face.
She wasn't angry. Being disappointed wasn't off the table, though. "Again, Danny?"
"Uh, I, Uh, I was just..." Elisa's piercing frown made it hard to come up with a good excuse. "I wanted to buy something?"
"In a store that's currently closed?"
Help did come for the kid. "Yo, Danny!" Two more teens arrived. One was of Fillipino-descent dressed in a red and white jacket and blue jeans. He was accompanied by a glasses wearing brunette female in a light blue turtle neck sweater and purple pants. "There you are, dude! Irma and I have been looking all over for you!" The jacket kid then spotted the bottle. "Oh, hey! You found my cousin's wrench! She's been looking everywhere for it! Good thing she told us where to find it, even more that no one took it off the ground. What a lucky break." Elisa raised a brow at the guy's very poor performance, even more so at his feigned shock at seeing her. "Oh, hey. Elisa! Something wrong?"
Elisa gave credit to these two in their attempt to look out for Danny and technically, she came across him before he even had a chance to use the bottle. "Nothing, apparently." She wryly said. "It's getting a little late and last I checked, it'll be a school night."
"We were just going to hang out a little, that's all." Irma promised. "Our parents gave us the okay, Elisa. You can check if you want."
"Nah, I got my own stuff to worry about. Just make sure to be careful, alright? And Danny. Stay out of trouble. Last time Mr. Pennington had to pick you up from the station, I swear he was about to go off like a volcano."
After Elisa left them, Danny was quick to breathe heavily. "Now that was a close one. But, Keno, your cousin's tool?" he critiqued his friend's cover story. "Your cousin doesn't even live here and he doesn't even work with tools."
"Hey, excuse me for trying to make sure you didn't get pinched again, man." Keno argued, smacking his friend's chest. "And I have you know, my acting skills can be great. I just don't do well under pressure."
"Must be why you got kicked out of the drama club."
"Hey, those guys were jerks and everyone in school knew it!"
"Leave Keno alone, Danny. There wouldn't have to be any kind of acting if my doofus brother resisted the urge to get into trouble for once." Irma pointed out, her expression showing she at least wasn't leaving him off the hook.
"Then maybe my friends and my dweeb of a sister should just get out of my business." Danny retorted, irritated.
"You know I can't, because then, dad would get in my case about not watching out for you and I for one don't want to break my perfect no-grounding record. That in turn will complicate my performance in school which then in turns, affect my grade point average considerably."
"Just say GPA."
"But, you get my point, don't you?"
Keno prevented a sibling argument. "Okay, Okay. You've both said your peace. April should be about done at her internship, so let's roll!"
"Just one sec, guys." Irma took a picture by using her phone. "Blast! It's still not close enough to get a clear image!"
"Are you still obsessing over that dusty castle up at that rich guy's tower?" Danny asked. "You seriously need better hobbies, sis."
"What you call a dusty old castle, brother dear, I call a genuine historical artifact of epic proportions." Irma looked through her photos. "We're talking about a castle that's been around since the tenth century. Just imagine the history behind it all, especially those cool gargoyle statues that David Xanatos , CEO of Xanatos Enterprises brought along, too. I can only imagine the amount of effort craftsman of that age put into making them."
"Newsflash, this is the twenty first century, so I don't still don't see what the big deal is."
"And that's why people refer to me as the smart twin."
"Guys!" Keno pushed them along. "Come on! I don't wanna waste the one night off that Mr. Murakami gave me."
At the aforementioned tower, the only person inside was an adult male of Greek features accompanied by a bespectacled suit wearing blond haired man. "Mr. Xanatos. Here is the latest request from one of our many...associates who wishes to bring you in to a new business venture." the blond man told his employer and owner of this tower. "His representative on the phone sounded quite adamant that you consider it at the very least."
"Consider." David Xanatos repeated, amused. "Translation, Owen, they're not willing to take no for an answer. Although, I can respect them for still trying to convince me that I should accept the offer. But, if they want to make any sort of stride, they must learn patience. Then again, that's funny coming from the likes of me. Alas, I'm afraid you'll have to tell them I have other priorities that require my attention. You don't get to be the richest man in the world by not at the very least focusing on the now." He sat up from his desk just as he saw the sun beginning to come down. "Why don't we go ahead and say good evening to our special new friends?"
The duo left the rich man's office and walked into the elevator leading up to the top of the tower which had an entire castle included as part of it.
"Not to bore you, sir, but the board also sent another complaint about the questionable choice in investing so much in transporting an aged rotting old castle from Scotland. Their words, not mine."
Xanatos chuckled. "The board will always find something to wine about. If they knew what made this rotting castle so important that I had to collect it, I can promise you that they'd change their tune."
They walked along the castle floor until stopping near the ledges where six gargoyle statues stood in various poses, four of them had similar pants-like material, only one had something that covered its entire batter and wielded a sword, while the last one was a four-legged beast-like gargoyle. To anyone else, these would look like average gargoyles sculpted to strike fear into the superstitious, but to Xanatos and Owen, they were so much more. The sun finally went down and night had taken over New York City, and they stood there waiting.
Then, they heard cracking noises.
Crack marks began to form on all six of the statues, as if they were about to break, but instead of break, an entirely different event occurred. The stone on the main statue that stood above the rest fell of until it actually began to move and in one move, the rocks exploded away as the gargoyle underneath rose up and unleashed an animal-like roar that echoed. His skin was colored purple and his long dark brown hair flowed with his large leathery wing and tail. The other gargoyles joined him, the next to wake up was the sword bearer who was a much older looking being, clad in armor. The next three awoken at the same time, one was beak-nosed, red, and had long white hair, a green bald shorter one's wings were under his arms like a flying squirrel's, and the last blue one was more hefty and also bald, but had more pronounced ears. The final Gargoyle was a dark blue bod-like beast that howled at the moon upon awakening.
"That never ceases to amaze." Xanatos mused and bravely moved forward, not frightened in the slightest. "Goliath! I trust you and your friends had a nice nap." he said to the creature up top.
He stared back Xanatos evenly and extending his large wings, glided down slowly. "Xanatos. It was decent. Can I trust that there won't be more uninvited guests tonight?"
"If you mean more squads of armed gunmen, I can assure you, I had Owen beef up security here. You'd have to be as silent as the night which awakens you in order to get in." Xanatos assured the one called Goliath. "I realize you're still hesitant to trust the word of a human, but bear in mind, I could've let you all still be sleeping as mere statues until the end of time. But, I didn't."
Goliath grumbled, he silently admitted that Xanatos was somewhat right. "Is there something you need?"
"Presently, no. I just wanted to check up on you guys." Xanatos turned to the other gargoyles. "The fridge has been stocked with whatever may catch your fancy, uh, big guy. So, help yourself."
The blue gargoyle grinned. "Alright, but I'm not that big." He left with the red and green one.
"I know you and your kind have your own customs and ways, but you really should think about giving names to your friends." Xanatos told Goliath. "I for one don't know why the humans you knew from a thousand years ago didn't think to give them the same courtesy that they gave you."
"The humans who named me didn't do so out of kindness." Goliath grimly corrected. "They gave me the name of 'Goliath' after a figure in their stories that was viewed as a monster, they saw fit to name me after that figure. I would not allow them to do the same to the rest of my clan."
"Right, of course. Silly me. I suppose the prejudice you faced even from humans you were committing to protecting is enough to make a selfless act like mine not enough. But, rest assured, I understand perfectly. Irrational fear of the unknown has been one of my species' greatest weaknesses. You'll see, though, I'm the type who looks at the bigger picture and who knows? Maybe when humanity sees the benefit of you gargoyles the way I do, you might end up changing your tune." Xanatos coyly said. "For now, I must be off. The work of a successful entrepreneur is never done." He and Owen left the gargoyles to their own devices.
"That man certainly has quite the way with words." The sword bearing and bearded gargoyle said, his clawed hand resting atop the beast's head. "He reminds me of the silver tongued advisors that served many a king. Not the type to trust lightly, lad."
"Agreed, old friend." Goliath replied. "Nevertheless, we do owe our curse being broken to Xanatos. Yet, a part of me does feel if it was truly the right decision." Goliath walked to the edge to gaze at the tall skyscrapers of New York City, this place was much more different than the human civilization that from his perspective existed only days ago.
"It is still a sight to behold, isn't it?" the old gargoyle stood at Goliath's side, knowing what the leader was thinking. "A thousand years and humanity has truly progressed in a way I never thought imaginable. Even the humans of Castle Wyvern would be astonished by these sights."
"They would be out of place, just as we are." Goliath's mood became somber. "As Xanatos said, we are the last of our kind. The last gargoyles in existence. Do we truly have a place in such a world?" He gazed at a spot where one of his closest comrades would usually place herself during the day. "My angel of the night. My rookery brother. My rookery sister. All of them. Gone. No other clan is even left." he sorrowfully lamented, how he wished she had survived the tragedy that happened so long ago. "I asked the Magus to cast that spell on me, because I did not wish to be alone. But now that the spell is broken, we are all alone."
It pained the old gargoyle to see his Goliath in such a way, he was always seen as the strongest and mightiest of their clan, but even the strong have their vulnerabilities. "When I made the pact with the humans during my time as clan leader before appointing you, it was a change that the rest needed to become accustomed to if there was to be some semblance of peace our two races. If we are to live in this new age, knowing more about it may be necessary to decide if we gargoyles truly belong here or not. This may not be Scotland, but it is where our castle is."
Goliath hummed after listening. "As always, you still give wise counsel, be it as mentor or leader."
"I am what I need to be. But, a leader is not one of them, for you are our leader, Goliath." the old gargoyle was not in any mood to take over his old position once more. "I merely made that option, because I was the leader at the time. Whatever you decide, make sure it is one of your own volition. If it helps, the trio seem quite taken by this century."
"Oh, wow! Check it out, Owen said that this food is called a doughnut!" The blue gargoyle munched one from the box where there were multiple others."I wished we had these kinds of snacks before!"
"At least save some." the beak nosed gargoyle remarked. "Pretty sure the kitchen's for all of us."
"Can I help it? We've been asleep for centuries, that's bound to make anyone work up an appetite."
The bald gargoyle chuckled. "You get an appetite even when you're awake." he was at the table where one of the marvels of the modern era had his attention. "If I'm being honest, I find modern technology to be what's truly interesting. Like this thing the humans call a laptop. It's one of many devices that store information through something called the world wide web."
"So, they have spiders storing their secrets? Sounds gross." the blue gargoyle said while his mouth was stuffed.
"Not literally, it's just something they refer to it as. Not only that, but carriages that don't require horses, mechanisms capable of flight, voices that can speak from those box like things everyone seems to carry. No magic involved, but pure technology." The green one sighed. "It makes me want to learn exactly how it all works."
"Yeah? Well, while you're engaging with machines and he's stuffing himself more than usual. I say we should think about maybe doing some exploring in this place called New York City." The red one boldly declared, staring out the window.
Both of the others stopped to look at him. "I'm not so sure that's wise. Goliath said that it's best for us to stay within the castle." The green one said. "Xanatos said it himself that most of the humans now believe gargoyles to be nothing but myths and legends. Those that do believe are treated like children with wild imaginations. At least back then, humans knew what they were in for when the sun came down. Now, I'm not so sure what may happen. They'd probably be more scared of us compared to before."
"The ones that attacked last night weren't that scared." Red retorted. "Who knows? We might get lucky and run into them again, pay them back for trespassing on our home, it would serve as a clear message about trying it again."
"Uh, I think if it's all the same to you, I think I'm content staying right where I am." Blue grabbed another box. "Besides, you're not the leader. Goliath is. We can't go out even if we wanted to. Not with his permission."
"Very true." Their prattle ceased once their leader, mentor, and guard dog entered.
Red did not wish to overstep, but he voiced his opinions to Goliath. "I know whatever's out there is completely unknown to us and could be dangerous. But, Goliath, we're not asleep anymore. We're alive. Are we to act as statues even during the night now?"
Goliath understood their curiosity, not that such things mattered more than the duty of a gargoyle. Even so, if they were to live, then he considered that maybe it was the best option. "This is a time not of our own. The world has changed a great deal. To deny that could very well be our own undoing. We shall explore this New York City together." The trio shared excited smiles. "But, we must stick together and not wander off. As stated, there are many unknown dangers to this city and if one thing about humanity has remained unchanged, it is fear of what they perceive to be abnormal. Is that understood!"
"Perfectly." Red nodded. "Should we tell Xanatos?"
"Xanatos may have freed us and may be the new master of the castle, but he is no master of us." Goliath clarified sternly. "Come. If it is your wish to explore, then let us go."
The trio followed and noticed that the old one and the guard dog hadn't moved. "Not coming, mentor?" Blue asked.
"Someone must stay to guard the castle. Best of luck to you lads." He patted the dog's head who barked. "Come, boy. I wish to see what this television has to offer."
Goliath and his nameless followers stood atop the castle and he was the first to jump off, gliding across the sky using his large wings. The trio tailed him, and they prepared themselves for whatever this city would throw at them.
Underneath New York, was its intricate sewer system that spanned across all five boroughs. It was like any other sewer, nothing but garbage, people that had no place to call home, and small animals filled it. Deep within these sewers besides the horrible smell was a darkly lit space where the most strange of creatures was sat clad in a brownish red martial arts gi. What made him stand out was that he was a tall furry rat-like humanoid being with a long white braided beard and a tail, his arms were wrapped in bandages. He sat in a meditative position holding a green cane and his only light source was a single candle.
"Non-detection. Avoidance. Misdirection." The rat humanoid spoke. "These are among the true essences of shinobi. Of ninja. To truly master one, one must first become one with the shadows. Darkness, gives a ninja their true power. whereas light reveals the ninja's presence." the rat used his cane to pick up the candle. "Now, my sons, is there one among you capable of extinguishing this light?" he flipped it over to his free hand. "Hajime!"
Three beings hidden within the shadows crept up closer to the rat and whatever light showed some colored masks around their eyes. One was purple, the second was orange, and the third was red.
Purple held a single wooden staff and was the first to make his move, he leapt for the candle, only for the rat to merely raise his arm up and trip the attacker up with his elongated tail, making Purple crash to the wall. "Ow!"
"Too noisy, Donatello." The rat chided playfully.
Orange tried his hand, spinning one nunchaku and jumped straight at the rat, but his weapon was caught easily, and was flung into the other downed one. "Look out below, Donnie!" he shouted, but his warning came too late.
"Hey! Watch where you're falling next time, Mikey!"
The rat inwardly chuckled. "Too clumsy, Michelangelo." the last of them took silent steps, and had two sais in his hands as his weapons of choice. Upon being close enough, he tried to take the candle through a sneak attack, but the rat ducked as soon as the sai one jumped. The rat raised an amused brow at this one's choice to dive in for a fight. The third attacker spun the sais before pushing his weapons forward for the candle, and it was evaded by the rat's fast dodging reflexes. The rat's tail slapped his face and then, the rat crouched down and spun, sweeping his cane under the attacker's foot to make him join the other two rather painfully.
"Ow! Seriously, Raph?! You, too?!" The purple mask wearing one was getting tired of being the target for crashes.
"Poor choice, Raphael." The rat shook his head, then swung his hand up to catch a throwing star that came from the shadows. To his left, a kunai was thrown next that his tail blocked. The rat's eyes and ears looked and listened in for anything. He suddenly heard the sound of two sharp items being brandished and he dodged a double strike from twin katana swords. They were owned by a fourth shadow figure, having a blue colored mask. The rat's final opponent made a dash for him, his katana blades swinging in tandem followed by double jumping kicks that the rat blocked and jumped away when the rat waited for the opponent to continue his attack, the katana warrior merely stood and raised his right sword to reveal the candle on the blade that he managed to swipe during the attack.
He brought the candle up closer to reveal himself through the light. He was in fact an upright physically fit three fingered two-toed turtle clad in training equipment that included brown knee and elbow pads and a brown belt around his carapace's shell waist. On the back of the shell were two scabbards on the right side that were held by a strap across his body. The turtle blew out the candle only once and the rat's cane pulled a lever up to illuminate the room with light. "Well done, Leonardo." the rat congratulated.
The five abnormal creatures were in a training dojo room adorned with Japanese sliding doors, melee weapons, and murals on the walls. Like the sword turtle, the other three were also walking talking turtles wearing brown training gear that had places for holding their weapons. "Lucky break, Leo." The red masked turtle grumbled in New York accent, angry at the loss. He was slightly more muscular than the other turtles. "I almost had it."
"But, you didn't." Leo cracked, not being intimidated by the other turtle being only somewhat taller than him.
"Yeah? Face me in a spar anytime, big brother."
"No one likes a sore loser, Raph." the Bo staff turtle said like a scholar, getting up and didn't bother picking up his weapon. He possessed a slim lanky build, making him look taller. "I'm the third oldest, AKA the 'middle child', and even I have more grace than that."
"Donnie's right as always, dude. I've seen online gamers handle their rage quits way more professionally." the last orange masked turtle said. He was the shortest among them, sounding a bit more immature and childish. "Which reminds me, anyone up for one-on-one in the game room?"
"Yame!" All four turtles stood in a row at the rat's order. "Take note, you three. Your brother excelled at the three tenets I mentioned. Stealth is the ninja's greatest asset and Leonardo, you have showcased it remarkably."
Leo bowed. "Thank you, Master Splinter."
Raph scoffed in envy. "Teacher's pet."
"Ninja dropout." Leo remarked back.
Donnie and Mikey made wincing noises as Raph gritted his teeth at Leo. He stomped forward where Leo put his fists up. Splinter halted any fight between brothers by pressing his fingers against pressure points at both of their necks, making them freeze up. "That is enough! Your training is meant for self-improvement and polishing your skills as ninja. Not a means for petty sibling rivalry."
"Hai, Sensei!" Leo and Raph hastily replied and he let them go.
"Now then, with training done, I am left quite famished. Michelangelo, if you would be so kind."
"Copy that, pop!" Mikey ran for the kitchen. "One special Michelangelo pizza coming right up!"
"Would it be too much to ask for a normal pizza this time, Mikey?" Donnie asked, wary.
"Who doesn't like sauerkraut, tuna fish, pretzels, and jelly beans on their pizza?"
"Literally every other living sentient being on the planet."
The turtles and their rat master exited the dojo and to their underground lair, the home of which they were raised and trained in. It was very spacious and had multiple bedrooms for each turtle and a living area that had numerous televisions and sound systems. A skateboard ramp was in the middle and there was one room that had various arcade games inside and an outlet that had a body of water in it. Near the entrance was a punching bag hung on a chain. "Come and get it, familia!" Mikey shouted from the kitchen. "Chef Mikey is in the house!"
"He says that is if we should be excited." Raph cracked to his family when they entered. "Alright, Mikey. What gross thing have you cooked up this time?"
"Since my craft is unappreciated in its time, I think if you guys want normal pizza, then normal pizza you shall have. But, mark my words. Someday, there'll be someone who'll appreciate my visionary culinary mastery." Mikey stirred a pot.
"Well, Mikey, it's okay to dream." Leo carefully said, taking a plate.
"Hey, we all have those dreams that may seem beyond our reach." Donnie placed utensils in an orderly fashion. "I mean, I certainly wouldn't mind getting a tour of Xanatos Enterprises."
"Xana-wha?" Mikey scratched his confused green head.
"You're seriously telling me you never heard of the biggest corporations in the world owning various subsidiaries that are into everything? Technology. Pharmaceuticals. Hair gel."
"But, we don't have hair."
"My point still stands."
Leo remembered something about that company. "I did see a news coverage about them installing a genuine ancient castle imported from Scotland at their main HQ at the Eyrie Building."
"Castle Wyvern, Leo." Donnie nodded, also having knowledge about that subject. "It's amazing both it and the gargoyle statues that guarded it managed to last for so long. From what I've seen through images, those images show no sign of decay."
"Oh, wow. Leo, Donnie, you two have certainly made me see what's so special a dusty place that has butt ugly decorations." Raph bit his slice too forceful.
"Raphael, it is not wrong to preserve the past." Splinter rationalized. "Without knowing the past, it is doomed to be repeated."
"Yeah? Well, I don't see why the shell we should give a sewer apple about it. Everything up top barely has anything to do with us."
"Except for pizza!"
"Shut up, Mikey."
Leo saw this as an opportunity to address an important matter to their teacher. "You know, sensei. Raph, Donnie, Mikey and I have actually been talking about that, and well, we've been wondering that after all these years of training, practicing, we think it's about time to finally go up and explore the surface?" he weakly smiled and they waited for Splinter's answer.
The rat closed his eyes in deep contemplation and gave his answer. "...Yes..."
The turtles celebrated.
"Alright!"
"Finally!"
"Sweetness, brah!"
"I didn't think the odds were even in our favor!"
"...And no."
Then, they groaned after Splinter finished his thought. "I hate it when he does that." Raph said.
"You have all been trained well. But, you do remember why I decided to train you all in the ancient art of ninjutsu as I was trained since my youth in the days when I was still human. When I was once Hamato Yoshi." Splinter gazed down at his claws, there were times where he forgot that they used to be normal. "The world above us is not one known for its mercy. Even those who would be our allies could never understand us. The rest would treat us as a pestilence, something to be feared, hated, and if they saw fit, exterminated. Your training was in the name as a means to defend yourselves against such dangers and as your teacher, as your father, I cannot in good conscience put all of you at risk."
"Oh, come on, sensei! The four of us can handle anything!" Raph punched his exposed palm roughly. "Why even bother teaching us how to fight if we don't put it to good use? More importantly, why shouldn't we get a peek at the real world. The only times we've ever walked among humans is only once a year on Halloween, and even though, you only took us through just one route."
"Dude, Raph!" Mikey comically reached over the counter and fell on the floor. "Cool it, he might stop letting us go trick or treating."
"I did not teach you to court war, my son." Splinter told his impulsive student. "What's more, you four are still only teenagers. The allure of the unknown would draw in your young minds. You lack the maturity do use your skills wisely."
"But, sensei. Isn't that just no?" Donnie asked.
"Yes...and no." Splinter answered the same as before. "Wisdom always comes from experience and experience comes from making mistakes in life."
"Aha!" Donnie found a potential loophole. "So, in order for us to gain that wisdom, we first need to make mistakes which can only happen if we go up...right?"
"No."
"...and yes?"
"No!" Splinter was more stern now and Donnie grimaced.
Leo, though, continued to implore. "Sensei. Father, we know you're just trying to protect us just as you've always had and we couldn't ask for a better teacher or parent, but you can't expect us to spend our whole lives hiding down here. If not now, then when?"
Splinter walked away from the table to deeply think. Leonardo had shown a great deal of his own wisdom for one of his age and Splinter knew what he said was hard to dispute, and as much as he was hesitant, the rat knew keeping them underground wouldn't last forever. He then looked to see all four of his sons on their knees, looking up at him with pleading eyes. "Very well." Splinter ultimately relented through a sigh. "You may go. But, you must remain in the shadows and under no circumstances do any harm...unless someone intends harm for you then do lots of harm."
"Yes, Master Splinter!"
"I suggest you take the time to prepare yourselves, my sons." Splinter left the kitchen.
When he was out of earshot, the turtles once again celebrated over their good fortune. "Not bad, Leo." Raph hit his brother's shoulder. "Guess you had to make one good idea every once in a while."
"You were awesome, bro!" Mikey cheered, jumping atop the table. "We get to explore NYC on our own! My dudes, this calls for one big giant cowabung-"
Raph pulled him down and slapped his mouth shut. "We talked about that, and don't think about pulling a Booyakasha. No one uses the first word anymore and the second one is just something you made up."
"But, both sound so cool." Mikey whined. His older brothers moved to retreat to their respective rooms, but Mikey still had things to say. "Dudes, wait up. Before we get ready, I'm pretty sure we can still squeeze in some TV time. Leo, what do you say? The sci-fi's channel's gonna be swarming with reruns."
"We're kinda on a schedule, Mikey."
"What? Come on, you love watching all those space adventures."
"As a kid, yes." Leo rubbed his head a little. "But, I'm starting to get a little too old for that kind of stuff."
"Then how come you still got posters in your room?" Raph teased, laughing at Leo's annoyed expression as the brothers went to the living area.
"Don't play coy with me, guys. As if you've outgrown all the stuff we loved to do when we were all small and adorable. Me most of all." Mikey flipped over to the couch. "Not too late to try your hand at pwning me at gaming. Raph, big bro, I know you can never resist showing me up at what I love."
Raph smirked, almost accepting. "Nice try, little brother."
"Oh? I guess that means big tough Raphael is scared of getting his shell handed to him."
Raph stopped in his tracks and turned back, clenching his fist. "Scared, huh?! Why you little-"
"Easy, Raph." Leo's katana blocked Raph's way. "He's just trying to goad you." Sounds got their attention and they looked to where Donnie's room was which also worked as his own personal laboratory. "Uh, Donnie? Everything good?"
"Yeah, don't worry! I'm just looking for my bo!"
"Hey, genius! You left your stick in the dojo!" Raph's thumb pointed to the training room's entrance.
"I'm not gonna talking about that one, brothers!" Donnie came out of his lab in a giddy mess. He spun around a small metallic rod in his hands before pressing a button on it two ends extended out before his brothers' eyes. "Behold! The future of the ninja's arsenal! My completed new collapsible bo-staff!" He spun his personally made new weapon rapidly before slamming an end down on the ground.
"Whoa." Mikey marveled, inspecting his inventive brother's new weapon closely. "You finally finished it?"
"That I have." Donnie placed it on his shell's back. "I mean, we're going to the surface, as if I was going to take just a wooden stick as my main weapon. I might as well expect it to get broken over and over."
"Master Splinter always told us that it's not the weapon, but the ninja." Leo sagely said.
"Ninjas are also masters of adapting." Donnie countered. "This is me adapting to this age of smart devices and hover vehicles. I can't wait to test out all the new functions it has. A taser. Built in drive. Holder for the phone."
"If you're so antsy about showing your epic nerdage off to the world, Donnie, I'm surprised you're not bringing your other fancy toys like that floating shell pack or your computer wrist gizmo." Raph cracked jokingly. "Of course, probably a good thing. Odds are, they'll explode."
"For the record, they are still in beta. I just haven't worked out the bugs yet." Donnie bashfully said.
The brothers gathered as many tools as needed for their venture, only taking the necessities and Leo made sure to spell it out to Mikey that bringing a slice of pizza wasn't included on that list. The four ninjas stood once Splinter walked out to give them more words of warning. "You are venturing into a strange and hostile world. It is imperative to maintain your awareness at all times."
"Hai, sensei!" They ran, until Spilnter spoke aagain.
"Stay in the shadows."
"Hai, Sensei!"
"Do not talk to strangers!" Splinter ordered.
His sons were getting a little tired. "Hai, sensei."
"Everyone is a stranger!"
"Hai, sensei..." Nothing else was said, so they ran for the exit, but Splinter still wasn't finished.
"At least make sure you go before you leave! The restrooms up there are filthy beyond comprehension!"
"Sensei..." The turtles groaned in embarrassment.
Master Splinter sighed. "Be safe."
"Last one through the manhole's cleaning up Mikey's room!" Raph left first.
"Hey, what's wrong with my room?!"
Splinter was now alone in the lair and rubbed his temple in exhaustion. It wasn't always easy watching over those boys, but he liked to think he's trained them well enough, the rat master retreated to the dojo and he looked to a shelf which held a framed picture. It was of a Japanese man and woman, dressed in traditional wedding garb and in the woman's hands was an infant girl. Splinter took the photo and gazed sadly at it, the main reason he was so hesitant was because he just did not wish to lose another family. "Watch over them, Shen."
In a dark alleyway, a manhole cover was lifted up and Leo's eyes looked around. "Okay. The coast looks clear to me. One at a time, guys." Leo hopped out and his brothers followed suit, they awed at the unique sights before them. Master Splinter would take them to covers leading to sidewalks or the middle of the streets, but this alleyway was a new sight to them. "It's so beautiful." Mikey smiled in admiration. "Everything's so outside!"
"Alright, we should head up to the roofs for better cover. Can't risk being seen by humans." Leo ordered.
"And who decided that you ought to be the one calling the shots up here?" Raph demanded.
"If Master Splinter trusted me enough to lead us in the sewers, then I think that also applies up here as well." Leo wasn't going to let Raph get to him. "Unless you wanna go back to the lair and take it up with him? I just can't promise we won't go on without you?"
Raph growled, he hated it even more when Leo made sense. "Just a sec, guys. First, let's sync up our Shell Phones." Donnie took a device out of his belt, it was colored green and the case had a shell design, at the center was a touch screen. Leo, Raph, and Mikey had similar devices and Mikey's screen was cracked. "Please tell me you didn't use your Shell Phone for nunchuck practice, again, Mikey."
"Would you be less mad if I said no?"
"You know hard it was finding enough parts to make one for each of us? I had to scrounge up whatever was thrown out of that electronics store in Canal Street."
"That place in Chinatown?" Raph recalled. "Last I checked, the old guy that ran that shop had zero customers. It's not like that other place, you know, where people actually go."
"Which made it the perfect place for parts." Donnie explained. "The fewer customers there were, the more sweet tech I could pick from the garbage after his grandson tossed them away."
After syncing their phones, Leo jumped atop a garbage can and then climbed up a pipe leading to the roof. He looked down and did a series of hand signs to his brothers and sprinted forward. "Pfft, show-off." Despite his big size, Raph was agile enough to jump and flip up the ladders.
Donnie used a more practical means by aiming a grappling hook at a ledge and once the cable was shot out, he was automatically lifted up. Mikey was still on the ground, looking at a slumbering homeless person. He reached in a trash can to give him a broken thrown out stuffed bear that he snuggled. "Pleasant dreams, dude."
"Mikey!"
Most teenagers would be at home studying or breaking curfew right about now. For this one, she was more the type to spend her nights at her own internship under the most brilliant mind in the world, in her mind at least. "Professor Stockman, take a look at this." the young red-haired ponytail woman in a lab coat called over a similarly dressed balding African-American glasses man. "I think the core processing module is starting to work perfectly now."
Professor Stockman adjusted his glasses to see closer at the beeping red device hooked up through cables. "I dare say, you're Ms. O'Neil."
"With this, your mouser project should progress way faster now."
"Should you really be so surprised, my dear? Anything made by Baxter Stockman is always a success." Stockman proudly declared and inside, he hoped this would please others. "Unfortunately, I think that's enough for today. Go ahead and be off now, April."
"Yes, sir." April took off the coat, revealing a yellow t-shirt, a number five plastered on it over black sleeves, blue denim shorts on black pants and dark boots. "See you tomorrow!"
Stockman ignored April's farewell, he had his attention solely on the technological advancement. "Yes, this will do quite nicely and no doubt meet his standards..."
Working for a brilliant mind like Baxter Stockman not only looked well on her school record, but it also gave her the opportunity to work under such a mind as well, and as she took the elevator down, April hoped she wasn't keeping her friends waiting that long even though it was night. Arriving at the bottom floor, April left the complex and she heard her name. "April!" She saw Danny, Irma, and Keno coming by to meet her.
"Hey, guys. Didn't think you'd come to me for once."
"Thought we'd switch it up a little." Keno nodded up at the complex. "That, and the egghead you work for always keeps you around way late. We didn't mind waiting."
"Keno, Professor Stockman is a very brilliant man." April defended. "The kind this friend of mine from Queens would love to have an internship. You should see the cool stuff he thinks of."
"Shame he only accepts one internship." Irma said, a little envious. "What I'd give to pick at his brain."
"I'm sure he might give you a chance next time, Irma." April comforted her best friend. "He always keeps work very private, so it's a miracle he actually started accepting students. Anyway, let's hurry up and have some fun while we can/ My dad has me on a timer. Literally." Her phone was set to one the minute she started her rounds at Stockman's lab.
"What has your dad so spooked all the time?" Danny asked the redhead after they began trekking. "It's like he expects something bad to happen. Can someone spell paranoid?"
"P-A-R-"
"It was a joke, Irma."
"Hey, the city can be pretty dangerous. Why do you think I started taking martial arts classes?" Keno punched the empty space around him. "You gotta keep on your toes when you have guys like those Purple Dragons running around."
"Then it's a good thing we go to places where almost nothing happens. Just a regular outing between friends." Irma had no idea how wrong she was.
On the roofs, the ninja turtles dashed across each building in an impromptu race. Mikey skidded along a clothesline before hand flipping across a pigeon pen, Raph bent down and held his hands for Donnie to jump up from and utilized his grappling hook to swing ahead. Leo barrel rolled to an edge and somersaulted remarkably for a perfect landing, scaling up house and saw the night sky. "Breathtaking."
"Yup." Raph showed a rare calm smile, breathing it in. "Nothing like the cool breeze of New York night to calm nerves?"
"Ha!" Mikey hopped onto his big brother's shoulders. "You calm? As if."
"Hey, get off me, shell head!" Raph flailed his arms to grab the retreating Mikey. "Get back here so I can hit ya, Mikey!"
"Can we please not ruin the moment by fighting? Just look at it all. All of this was over our heads for so long and we're the first to see." Leo's eyes caught many places of business. "You can find so many things in the city."
"Like that!" Mikey pointed childishly at a pizza parlor. "It's open 24 hours a day, dude! I've dreamed about eating where the pizza magic happens for so long! What's stopping me from living that dream?!"
"Besides Master Planter's number one rule?" Leo reigned Mikey in. "We're ninjas, remember? We stick to the shadows at all times."
"Leo's right, Mikey. After all, we wouldn't want to ruin these humans' fine evening just by showing them that we're alive." Raph said through a condescending tone.
"That's not what I meant, Raph."
"But it is true, though. We're finally free to explore the topside and all we can do is just go on rooftop runs. We can't go down and walk like average Joes, because fact is, we're not!" Raph piercingly spat out. "All they'll see are nothing but freaks and monsters, as if they know us. Makes me think we should actually act out the monster part."
"Raphael, you can't blame people for being scared of something they don't understand. You don't see any other group of walking talking turtles, do you?" Leo wouldn't mind walking about, either, he just thought more carefully of the consequences. "The world has its rules of understanding of what's supposed be and like it or not, now isn't the right time to be in that world. I like to hope that one day, we can roam freely. For now, we have to live with it and the best way to do that is by not scaring the locals. They may not show it to us, but that doesn't mean we can't at least show them kindness, this is an important tenet to Bushido."
"Lovely speech, Leo, but uh, and I know you hate this, but I really do have to correct you by saying that Bushido was primarily a samurai thing and we're ninjas. I get that following ancient Japanese codes of honor is pretty much your whole thing and all, bro. But, I just find it important to be accurate." Donnie shrugged.
"Yeah, dude. I even knew that." Mikey flinched at the skeptical looks. "Okay, okay. I didn't."
"My point is that we won't help our case if we start acting like the monsters they'd fear us to be."
"Now that part is accurate." Donnie said in approval and his eyes wandered down. "Hey, check it out." He ushered them to follow his eyes to April, Keno, Irma, and Danny walking around a nearby corner. The brainy turtle used another gadget of his, a pair of metal goggles. The lenses displayed a green visage that displayed a HUD display that scanned any and all things like the group of friends. "Let's see. Two males. Two females. All of the adolescent age from the looks of it. Those two brunettes have characteristics that suggest a possible biological connection."
"Right, because we have no clue what teenage humans look like." Raph sarcastically rolled his eyes at Donnie's needless analysis.
"My point still stands. From the route they're taking, I can surmise that they're nearing Lexington Avenue. Huh."
"What is it?" Leo asked.
"Scanners are picking up approaching beings from the sky and they're too big to be birds..."
In the night sky, the Gargoyles spent the duration of the night gliding all over the city and for some, they were quite amazed. "I still can't believe all these humans live in this one city." the blue one said to his fellow stone creatures come to life. "How do you think they know where to go?"
"I've seen large things that had just as big maps on them." the red one answered him. "Other than that, they speak into those, um...phones for directions. I know that it's not magic, but I don't know. Humans from our time would probably think so."
"That's what I was saying. Modern human technology is so fascinating. Don't you agree, Goliath?" The green one asked their silent leader.
Goliath kept his feelings to himself and even he had to see the unique qualities of New York City. Humans of various backgrounds were seen, as were all those vehicles and the loud strange sounds that they emitted. It was strange and oddly compelling. Even so, Goliath reminded himself that such things were of human origin and though he did not wish to hold prejudice, his personal track record of human-gargoyle interaction spoke for itself. It didn't help to see human carved gargoyle statues that the real ones glided by, it reminded of how long they've been asleep. "Hey, look there." The blue one directed them to view the streets where a white van was driving at fast speeds, almost causing a crash. "That was dangerous! He could've hurt somebody!"
Goliath narrowed his eyes, he had this unsettling feeling that he felt required attention. "All of you, follow me."
They followed the van until it stopped right in front of April and her friends. The Gargoyles observed from a roof as an unkempt man kicked the door and got out of the driver's seat alongside a group of men who looked exactly like each other dressed in identical suits and they armed themselves with firearms of unknown origin and design. "Is anyone else being reminded of those weapons wielded by those humans who attacked the castle?"
"A little, but those look way different." The green one noted. "Almost advanced."
"What do you think they want with those young humans?" The blue one asked.
The humans in question were surprised by the men that were surrounding them. "Uh, can we help you?" Keno asked.
"Yeah. The redhead can come along, and the rest of you can just beat it and forget what you saw." the driver rudely ordered.
Danny glared at the attitude. "Hey, you can't just tell our friend to-" he grabbed one of the suit guy's shoulder and the teen's wrist is grabbed tight. Before he knew it, Danny was lifted up and flipped over to garbage cans.
"Danny!" Irma was held back by April as she tried to help her brother.
A second suit advanced stoically until Keno spun in the air to kick him across the face, then elbowed two in the chest to force them to back off away from his friends. "You guys probably shouldn't have done that!"
"Huh. Kid's not that bad." Raph gruffly praised. "Not on our level, but he's not bad. Alright, now it's our turn!"
"Wait a second, Raph. We don't know what we're jumping into!" Leo cautioned.
"There are a bunch of jerks picking on a bunch of kids! What more do you want, fearless leader?! Ain't helping out others also part of your precious Bushido code?!"
"Last I checked, you were the one that wanted to scare humans!"
"Humans that would've tried to hurt us for being turtles, not kids!"
"I can't say I'm liking their odds." Donnie gravely added. "Something tells me those weapons aren't toys."
"Kraang, this human male is interfering with that which is known as the plan to acquire April O'Neil." One of the suits said to his cohort stoically. "Shall Kraang proceed to terminate said human male?"
"Negative, Kraang." Kraang replied to the request. "That which can be called as a systematic termination of three human children may garner unwanted attention to Kraang's plan. Set blasters to that which is called the stun setting for instant incapacitation."
The suits raised their blasters and pink colored plasma is shot out and struck Keno, making him undergo a shock that left him unconscious. The twins were the next to be shocked and April was the only one left standing. "You guys!" April tried to wake her friends up, but they were out cold. "What do you want from me?! Who are you?!" They didn't answer, they threateningly went forward, one brandishing a pair of cuffs.
"They're gonna hurt her!" the blue gargoyle said, alarmed. "Shouldn't we do something, Goliath?!"
Despite the fact that Goliath still had his reservations about humans, that did not make him so blind that he could not see that an innocent life was being threatened and for a gargoyle, no duty was more sacred than protecting the innocent. "Go! Now!" His wings shot open and his eyes glowed, actions his followers did as well.
On the roof where his brothers were, Leo came to a similar decision. "Let's rock and roll, boys!" he un-sheathed his katanas.
"Aw, shell yeah, dudes!" Mikey spun his chucks. "Cowabunga!" he and his brothers jumped from the ledge, the wind making the strands at the back of their ninja masks flow.
Both the turtles and the gargoyles descended down at the same time, in all the excitement, Mikey and the blue gargoyle accidentally crashed into each other in mid-air and they tumbled together as a ball. "Oh, my head. Sorry about that."
"No worries, dude. Got a little too pumped for action." Mikey flicked his ninja mask stands out of his face and the two odd creatures got a good look at each other. Silence ensued and they screamed at high pitch.
"What are you?! What am I?! What are you?!" they asked in tandem.
"Mikey stay with the-what the shell?!" Leo shouted after he, Raph, and Donnie landed and their eyes bugged out in shock.
Goliath and his clan were equally flummoxed when they saw the sight of four giant green creatures.
April merely sat beside her passed out friends blinking only twice before shrieking out. "AHHHHH!"
"Can we stop it with all the screaming?!" Raph's ears could barely handle Mikey's little girl screaming.
"Kraang, this is what is known as an unforeseen turn of events? How may we proceed?" A third suit asked the fourth suit.
"The answer is obvious, Kraang. That which is known as termination is required. Kraang recommends that Kraang set blasters out of stun mode."
"Kraang seconds that motion."
The suits that referred to each other as Kraang fired once again, this time firing off more fatal blaster fire. The turtles scattered to avoid getting hit, Raph held his sais within his knuckles and yelled out a battle cry. The red turtle jabbed his fist-sais forward at one who moved side to side, Raph tried some jump-kicks that the suit caught and tossed the muscular turtle in a surprising display of strength abnormal for a human being. "A tough guy, huh? Then, come and get me, pal!" That suit launched for a punch, and Raph let it pass through the space between both of his sai prongs to catch his entire arm and pulled hard to hoist him above. However, the suit remained in place, confusing Raph. "How...?" More confusion came when the suit actually managed to headbutt him hard enough to move back and then grabbed his legs to spin Raph around to let go.
The red white haired gargoyle roared once he disarmed a suit and grabbed him tightly until Raph crashed into him. "Hey, what was that for?!" He demanded as the turtle got up, and another suit got in-between them. The stone by day creature tried a tail swipe at him, but the man dodged and Raph was the one who ended up getting hit.
"Gah!" Raph fell down on his shell and he got a real fire in his eye. He got back on his two-toed feet. "Oh, so it's like that, is it?! Say your prayers, Beak-Nose, 'cause I'm about to kick you all the way to the Brooklyn Bridge!" Raph wasted no time in tacking the red gargoyle and tried jabbing his sais at him.
"I don't know what you are, but making a gargoyle angry is a big mistake!" Using the incredible strength natural to his kind, the red gargoyle pushed Raph off him and the turtle skidded along the ground. Though in pain, Raph still got back up.
"I ain't done with ya!"
Donnie spun his compact staff to block the laser shots that he managed to keep track thanks to his trusty hi-tech goggles. "If it weren't for the fact that you're shooting at us, I'd ask if I could borrow your guns!" Ducking, Donnie thwacked his staff across to knock those advanced guns out of their hands leaving him to throw disks at their chests that magnetized them together as one. "Now those babies are not in beta!" The green gargoyle suddenly perched on Donnie's shell. "Hey! May I ask why you're trying to claw away at my shell?!"
"Tell your friend there to leave mine alone!" The gargoyle demanded, gesturing to Raph still attacking.
"Order Raph to stop fighting? Listen, I apologize for my brother's rudeness, but as much I like to think of myself as brave, I'm afraid being suicidal isn't really my area of expertise. Point me to a computer, though, and I'll perform miracles." Donnie gasped. "Watch out!" His slimmer build gave him a lot of agility and flipped upwards to repeatedly smack his staff weapon against the multiple suits that were just about to shoot the green gargoyle. "Way too close! You good?"
The green gargoyle numbly nodded. "Y-Yeah, thanks."
"No problem." Donnie smiled. "Not every turtle in New York is a hotheaded battle maniac."
Mikey moved as wild as the wind for multiple strikes from angles that most wouldn't expect kicks to come from. "Eat this hot nunchuck fury, suckers!" His weapons moved like mini-twisters and the shortest of the turtles spun his form around in a break-dancing manner and his chucks hit hard against them. "Don't want none of this, son!"
"Wow. He's pretty good." The hefty gargoyle breathed and got in the fight. He lifted two suits up and bumped their heads together, affecting their senses so that they failed to see the beast claw swipe them away. Blaster fire hit his shoulder making him scream, even if it wasn't life threatening, it didn't make it sting any less. Surprisingly, Mikey came to aid him by grabbing one's head with his legs and throwing him at his buddies.
"Best day ever!" Mikey looked back at the gargoyle. "Isn't this awesome?!"
"Awesome?"
"Yeah, you know. Righteous. Epic. Super cool."
Leo didn't expect him and the brothers running into winged creatures and even though he had so many questions right now, fighting these suits was paramount. He leapt high at about five feet and guided his twin blades to slice through the firearms. By reverse gripping the weapons, Leo crossed his arms to let them waste ammo on his indestructible blades blocking it. A shadow loomed over him and Leo instinctively turned and swung them over right at Goliath and promptly stopped before he could strike at the gargoyle leader's face. "Oh, uh, sorry about that...hey!"
Goliath effortlessly grabbed Leo by the mask strands. "What manner of creature are you? Do you mean to threaten us and humans?!" He interrogated through an intimidating growl.
Leo suppressed a nervous gulp, reminding himself that a ninja showed no fear. "Uh, I-I was about to ask you the same question. My brothers and I aren't here to hurt anyone." Raph and the red gargoyle rolled over to both leaders, still fighting each other, his brother got the gargoyle on a choke hold that Beak-Nose managed to wrestle out of. "...Well, Raph is, but I think we got off on the wrong foot here."
Goliath quirked his eyebrow up in apt confusion. "Off on the wrong foot?"
"Yeah. You know. Messed up. Jumped the gun. Made a mistake."
"Then why not simply say that?" Goliath saw more of the suits preparing to shoot and cast Leo aside to bravely charge at them. He grabbed two blasters and yanked them away before crushing them like they were plastic. Three triplets managed to crawl up to his back and held back his arms while two more flailed out pink energy lashes that trapped Goliath's legs. This leader has fought many foes and none had the type of weaponry of these suits, that didn't mean they were strong enough to best a gargoyle. Goliath's wing sprang open, pushing them off him. Most humans would normally just stay down after that move, but the suits proved to be made of sturdier stuff as they recollected themselves and had no sign of injury.
Goliath still attacked, he ran on all fours once they fired at him and he scaled up a building high enough for him to glide down to deliver might clawed swipes that knocked them all across to the walls, forming cracks. "Whoa." Leo gaped, a little in awe at this gargoyle's skilled combat strength. He saw several suits having taken sniping spots on a roof, intent on taking him down from afar, it was unfortunate that didn't take account for shurikens thrown to jam their weapons. Goliath looked to see the weapons explode and saw that Leo was responsible. "You are an ally?"
"I'd like to hope so. We just want to save those kids from these guys."
"Then it would appear that we are on the same mission."
Unlike the rest, Raph and the red gargoyle still fought. "Hold still, so I can bend that beak!"
"Only if you let me take your shell as a trophy, troll!" The red gargoyle lunged and grabbed a suit instead and threw him backwards where Raph span kicked him off. He threw his sais that Beak Nose ducked to dodge and they lodged into a blaster. Raph took them back and elbowed its owner hard. Beak Nose's tail dove for Raph, and he rolled to the right for it to hit another. Each time the two tried to hit each other, they only succeeded in taking out the suits.
"Not what I expected, but the less there are of them, that means no one else can get in my way!" Leo's sword got in his way.
"Hold it, Raph. I don't think there's a need to fight."
Beak Nose nearly attacked, until Goliath grabbed his shoulder. "Indeed. It would seem not all present are our enemies."
April had no clue what was going on anymore, it almost felt like she was dreaming. She couldn't think of any other rational explanation for there being four reptiles and winged creatures dropping in moments after her friends got stunned by these men in suits. She backed away on the floor and bumped into Donnie's keg. "Oh, hello there." Donnie smiled cordially and the green gargoyle waved at April.
"WAGHH!" April shrieked and tried getting away.
"W-Wait, don't be scared! We're not here to hurt you!"
She was hyperventilating out of fear, but took a second to look into Donnie's eyes and found no hint of malice in them. The green gargoyle actually went to check up on Irma, as if he was checking for damage. "They don't look too hurt."
April had no clue why, but she had this inner feeling that these creatures had no ill intentions for her or her friends. "I-I have no idea what's going on anymore..."
"That's fair. Safe to say that it's been a weird night for all of us." Donnie's hand was offered to her and after some consideration, she took it. But, Donnie shouted after he and the green gargoyle were hit by a glowing baton held by the van's driver.
"No freaks are getting in the way of my payday!" He slapped the unique cuffs onto April's wrists.
"Hey, let me go, you jerk!" April was tossed into the back of the van where another occupant had also been inside. It was an adult bald male in with a red beard, his mouth was concealed by a metal object and gave muffled cries of concern once he saw April. The young woman knew him quite well. "Dad?!"
"Got what you wanted!" The driver shouted to the suits. "Let's go while we can!"
"Kraang promises the human called Snake will be compensated as per our agreement, and-"
"Just get in!"
Every suit, except for one on the ground, stopped fighting the gargoyles and the turtles. Their mission was complete, so there was no reason to stay anymore, they laid suppressing fire to keep the creatures back as a means to cover their escape and were gone. "Great! They got away!" Raph angrily turned to the red gargoyle. "No thanks to you!"
"You think this is our fault?! You trolls were the ones who got in our way!"
"Troll?! That's it!"
Sirens were heard approaching. "What's that?" The blue gargoyle asked.
"It's the fuzz, dudes!" Mikey exclaimed.
"Ninjas! Disappear!" Leo's order compelled the turtles to make a speedy exit.
Goliath wasn't sure why those sounds required much panic and he didn't want to risk being seen, so he led his clan to also make themselves scarce. A car customized with a siren arrived and Elisa Maza saw the still sleeping teenagers. "Oh, no!" she whispered, going to their sides and checking for pulses. "Still alive. Good." She inspected the street and noted the clear signs of some sort of fight. She was especially interested in all the scorch marks and cracks on the wall. "One weird night after another."
"First night up and it led to this." Leo shook his head. "Splinter won't be happy. It'll be a miracle if he doesn't stick us in the Hashi!"
"Worry about that, later! What are we gonna do about that girl?" Raph asked.
Leo sighed. "I hate to say it, but I think we should regroup back at the lair."
"Turn tail and run?! That's your brilliant plan?! Even Mikey could think of something better!" Raph expected his younger brother to indignantly shout only to hear nothing.
"Uh, guys?" Donnie was the first to note that they were short one turtle. "Where is Mikey?"
The youngest of the brothers and the blue gargoyle scoured from a shared hiding spot. "Nothing on my end. You?" Mikey asked.
"Nothing." The blue gargoyle addressed a rather important subject. "So, does this mean we're not fighting anymore?"
"I don't see why we should. I mean, you weren't there to hurt that girl, right?"
"Of course not."
"Sweet!" Mikey grinned, it looked like he found a new friend. "Then we're golden, dude! I'm Michelangelo, but my peeps call me Mikey...if I had any peeps. Mainly just my family. What do I call you?"
The big guy stuttered at the inquiry. "Oh, uh, besides my leader, I don't really have a name."
"No name? That is wild! Well, you're in luck, because I am great at naming stuff!" Mikey told the big guy.
Both were oblivious that the suit who was left behind observed them after it evaded Elisa's search. "That which seems to be a mutated turtle and a creature of unknown origin attempted to impede Kraang on Kraang's mission." He surmised, readying his laser and aimed it at them. "The suggested punishment is termination of the one called a turtle and the life form of unknown origin."