Juu-shi...
The confusion they felt for a few minutes now only belonged to Raphael. Something happened… a feeling of comfort from an unknown, almost reverend source. He opened his eyes to look at Leo's. His expression held a forlorn look as well, but it was soon washed over some acceptance. Leo always had been the one to undestand the mental elements. This time he even looked a bit perplexed. Raphael gazed down at their footprints in the muddy snow, becoming more aware of Don's sobs. He turned to face Ryutaro in need of proof. That kid had more up his sleeve than he ever imagined.
Don wavered in his step, catching Leo's attention. Leo brought his hands up to steady his plaintive brother. He wasn't sure what the issue was, but decided most of it could be sympathy pains for Mike.
Ryutaro remained silent, his face calm, but his eyes locked on Raph's. That transmitted an unspoken language to stand off. He waited for a few seconds while the turtle, in the midst of his confusion, sorted out his thoughts… until Raph looked to be more rational. Ryutaro turned his eyes down to the dead branch he dropped earlier, and bent down to gather it up.
"Wha… c-can you also?" Raph started in a small, broken voice.
Ryutaro stood up, cocking his head with some misunderstanding.
"Meditate… can you?" Raph clarified himself more, dispute his weak voice. "Did you do that?"
"Do what?"
"The… the--that strange presence." Raph looked him in the eye, but felt uncomfortable with that. He looked away to check on Don and Leo instead. Don sat in the snow now, with Leo kneeling in front, softly comforting him.
Ryutaro shook his head no, also glancing in their direction. "But I also meditate… I don't call it that."
Raph turned his gaze back on Ryuu, and crossed his arms. "Pray? Aww, no… you're Christian?"
"Who said they are all perfect and innocent?" he sensed his attitude.
Raph snorted and turned away. He studied the rider they held hostage. The man lay still, but he noticed the eyes blink once.
Ryutaro furrowed his brow from this turtle's overall reaction, but still pursued the conversation. He also felt a little more trust building between them. "She was my mother…"
Raph looked over his shoulder, then fixed his gaze back on the rider. That guy was fully awake now, he was just hiding it. "That… feeling was?"
Ryutaro walked over next to him. "Yeah."
They exchanged glances.
"And being a horse whisperer has nothing to do with my telepathy." Ryutaro had to add his last thoughts.
Raph looked at him and blinked, like he could care less about that fact. "We gotta get goin', Christian Horse Whisperah…" he nodded toward the bound rider.
The turtle knelt down to grab the front of the man's coat and lifted him up. He stared hard into the man's alarmed eyes. "Where… are they?" Raph hissed.
The man remained silent, only keeping fearful eye contact with the demon's dark ones.
"Where?" Raph socked the guy in the face, when another hand grabbed his arm. He turned on his foot to glare at Ryutaro.
"Beating him up," Ryutaro started out strong, only to end with a whisper, "is not gonna get it out of him any faster."
The turtle dropped the guy to the ground and stood up to the kid.
"What? He's a threat!" Raph pointed down to the rider, his voice barely an angry whisper. "Can't just invite 'em to tea and ask if he'd like to talk! Not with these guys--they'll hurt us whenever they can!"
"True…" Ryutaro kept his calm, taking one step back from Raph. He looked at the man on the ground behind the sulking turtle. "But what he really is now, is a tied up man in lots of pain. Confused… harmless."
"Until he gets his senses back--"
Leo silently stepped between the two, "Excuse me, Ryan… Raph, shut up!" He left them to kneel down to the man. His eyes were shut again. Leo noticed them quiver when he rested a hand on his shoulder. After drawing in a breath, the turtle spoke in his best Japanese. "English, hana-simasu ka?"
Forming dark slits, the man's eyes opened with what seemed like astonishment. Surprise that a creature like this could also speak his tongue. He slowly shook his head no.
Leo glanced over his shoulder to the two and Don, with an I thought so look. Raph just scowled in return. Ignoring that, he settled his expectations on Ryutaro. "Can you speak Japanese with him?"
"Zitsu wa, chotto wakaru, kedo…" a slight smile came across Ryutaro's lips. "Yeah… I can."
"Ask him how to get to where they run their operations. Where they took the stallion and Mike." Leo stood up.
"I also wondered... I could switch his coat and such, and take that mare, and go in his place."
"Yeah. That'll work too. We'll follow up, then." Leo nodded, turning to his brothers. "C'mon Raph… gotta get that mare ready."
Don regained his composure, but his psychological grief pained him enough to still make Leo wary of him. He decided to stay with Ryutaro, just in case that guy goes ballistic on him. That, and to avoid any further babying from Leo and Raph. He leaned against a tree and watched as the kid knelt down. It quietly amazed Don how gentle in tone and action he was to that man, their enemy. Reminded him of those brave negotiators for hostage situations.
Ryutaro briefly looked in Don's direction. This one isn't all bad… if he were a trained killer…a true ninja, we wouldn't have survived the attack.
"Leo, this whole thing was arranged!" Raph strained his voice as he pointed to the kid. "Ryuu knew… he was goin' ta give 'em Danza!"
Leo stepped away from the tall mare's head. "I knew there was something up, that he seemed so sure about what was going on. But… does he really know them?"
Raph held his hard gaze.
"Give him a chance." Leo laid a hand on Raph's shoulder, and leaned in close. "The fact Ryan knows something about them is helping us for the better. And he knows what he did was wrong… I think he did this so the family wouldn't get anymore hurt."
"He got us involved… knew it was for him, not us."
Leo looked at him, trying to figure out what Raph was whispering. "Yeah… that note was confusing. But this actually was better, safety in numbers. We'll get Mike back…" Leo turned away from Raph.
"[Please tell me, where is… barn? Where you keep the horses?]" He faced the man as he spoke in stilted Japanese. The rider still held an apprehensive look on his face, one that meant he wasn't going to say anything.
"[If you tell, we will not leave you. Here, cold and hungry you will be.]"
The irritated rider closed his eyes, and inhaled a long breath. The cold ground and melting snow numbed his left side. The tongue this kid spoke still was far from perfect to his ears.
Ryutaro pursued. He thought he recognized this face from a time before. "[Please.. please tell me where the big horses are. Please. I made deal, now… I want something from you.]"
Even though his hands were bound behind him and feet tied, the man rolled all the way over on his back and sat up. More silence as he studied the young face of this kid. His coat's hood that sat halfway on his head ruffled up his short, black hair, thus making him look all the less threatening.
Ryutaro knew better, however. He rose to his feet and stepped back.
"[Why must I tell you?]" His voice came deep and demanding.
Ryutaro looked to the ground, "[To save their brother… that's all. I understand your honor to barn, but…]"
The rider squinted his eyes as he looked over to the accompanying turtle. "Anoo," he started out in a soft mocking tone, "[Why don't you just follow our tracks in the snow?]"
"Of course." Don whispered. He could recognize Japanese enough to follow what they were saying. The turtle pushed off from the tree, all the more eager to get started.
"Hai…" Ryutaro looked once to Don, then back to the rider. "[You will come with us.]"
A loud rumble from an engine awakened his consciousness. Mike pushed away from the wall with a start, when something creaked. All he could see now were stars sparkling through the dark, but the lighter shade of a square caught his attention. Then something rolled into that square. It looked to be a manure spreader backed in with a tractor. More noises now. Clanking and whirring as the spreader started to push out its contents.
The turtle's breathing grew shallow as the realization hit him.
There's the way out!
He started to feel cool waves of fresh air seep in, and thus did his best to crawl toward the dim square of light. A shower of pungent sawdust and manure rained down on him as he approached the spreader. Mike paused to see how close to the door he was.
The tractor driver had kicked back in the seat, to eat and drink something. He seemed totally unaware of anything more. Mike saw that it was dark enough outside the doors. He had a chance yet. Gathering up the rest of his strength, the turtle stuck close to wall and crawled out on hands and knees through the door.
Into the fresh cool air! It hit him like when he had plunged into that cool lake on hot summer days at Casey's farm. His eyes and nostrils still stung like something fierce though. Totally exhausted, and convinced he was safe in the darkness at the end of the aisle, Mike collapsed on the gritty floor. The roar of the tractor leaving was the last he heard before going into another deep sleep.
The three turtles stood back, hiding in the brush, as Ryutaro rode to a crevice in the side of the hill. They had bound the rider to a tree some distance back, as well as tied their mounts there. Ryutaro told them he'll go in first, opening the way for them. They decided they'd look for Mike, while Ryutaro located his horses.
Leo studied the hillside with his sharp eyes. They got something about where a creek flowed from the man. After further discussion, Ryutaro assumed he meant looking for the mouth of a cave. Again, the turtle's eyes settled on the big crack in the earth, being as tall as a one story house but only wide enough for two people on horseback to enter. From the cave, flowed a creek that meandered further down the way to join with the river. A passerby wouldn't even know that this entrance lead to something top secret.
The mare splashed through the creek at a steady walk. Ryutaro had managed to obtain a key from the rider… a brush of luck actually. He found it in one of the pockets of the rider's coat, after he got him to switch coats. Within the crevice, Ryutaro halted the mare and jumped down into the shallow water. The stream headed off to the left in a smaller cavern, while dry ground banked out of the wall to the right. Ryutaro led the horse further in.
Waiting for his eyes to adjust, he stared into the dimness until vertical bars from floor to ceiling appeared before him. They looked to be rusty, old steel bars spaced a few inches apart. Beyond these bars, he saw a concrete wall with an overhead door a few yards back. The door had a big exhaust fan over it too. Dim light fixtures shone from each side of the door. Ryutaro started to reach out and touch the bars in thought.
"Wait… I smell something… coming from it." Don whispered from behind.
Ryutaro jumped back in alarm from the turtle's sudden presence. He looked over to where the voice came from, now mystified. Only the trickling of the underground stream reached his ears.
Don crept away from the cave wall more, slowly, paying close attention to something. "And there's a hum… an electrical surge." He stopped before the bars, looking them over from top to bottom, side to side for the source.
"So it's got electricity flowing through it?" Ryutaro looked at the barrier in a new light.
"Thought I warn, before it shocked you." Don slipped back into the shadows again.
"Hmm… probably to keep out wild animals too…" Ryutaro approached a door, like the sort in a jail cell, but stall-door sized for horses. It had a peculiar looking lock, he noticed. Perhaps it was designed to trip the electrical flow when unlocked. A hunch he had to take... and probably explained why the key bases had heavy rubber grips on them. Ryutaro went through a couple keys, until he found the one that worked. After a click and a soft buzz as the barrier powered down, the door could be slid open.
He led the horse through, and left the door open for the others. Even though he couldn't see or hear them, he knew those turtles were behind him somewhere. An almost silent sound of the door locking told him they were in. Ryutaro looked over the next door for anything that might give them away. Alarms, security cameras, laser beams, anything suspicious… but he didn't see none. It felt strange to him there was nothing like that here. Probably have guards on the other side.
Ryutaro located a pull chain for the door to one side. Lightly touching it first, to make sure it wasn't electrified or rigged, he pulled down on it to raise the door. He held the mare back and peered around the edge. No one was to be seen right away, just the continuation of a well-lit cave tunnel.
"Looks clear, go on." Another whisper from behind urged him.
The kid tugged at the hood on his head, and boldly led the mare into the isle-like tunnel. Warm, humid waves of air came around him as he ventured further. To the right, he saw what looked like dug out tunnels, similar to mining shafts in appearance. The nicker of a jaded horse echoed from one of them.
Someone in black, insulated overalls walked from the first one. He noticed the short rider with the mare, and gave a worried looked. "[What happened? Where are the others?]" The taller man asked in Japanese. He looked back to notice the overhead door still open.
"Uhh--anoo, [they are coming. We had trouble.]" Ryutaro kept on walking, wishing to lead this guy away so the turtles could get in. He noticed an area ahead of him that resembled an arena. Hoping for the better, he turned down the second tunnel. The man followed him, asking more that he couldn't fully understand. At least the man took him for one of them.
The three soundlessly ran into the first tunnel. On both sides, stalls lined the length of the tunnel. At the end of it, however, darkness loomed… as if it led on to something more, like another cavern. They set their sights on that, feeling exposed in the lighted aisle way. Deep down, Leo hoped they wouldn't have any further confrontations. He could feel that Mike was near, somewhere.
In the dark, hung a thick, pungent odor as well. Don gasped, holding a hand over his beak. He started to wonder if this place was even ventilated. Raph cussed under his breath about what could be causing it. They all felt suspicious if they came to a dead-end. A few long seconds passed before their eyes adjusted to the darkness again.
Don felt along the wall until he came to the wooden door, where the smell was stronger. "Manure… probably where they dump it." He whispered, when a wave of panic came over him. His eyes focused on Mike lying by the wall in front of him. "Leo…"
"Let's… wait here and--" Leo froze in his tracts, also recognizing what Don saw.
"Shit!" Raph stumbled over to Mike, falling onto his hands and knees to check his condition. Leo joined him at the same time, grabbing Mike's wrist. He felt a pulse.
"Damn, not breathing! No!" Raph pulled his own coat off to keep his little brother warm with it. "What's this shit all over him?!"
Leo curled his lip in disgust upon further inspection. He gently cradled Mike's head and rolled him over on his back. He remained unconscious, his body limp, his face placid… sullen, like hibernation gone wrong. Blood looked to be everywhere, and also noticed some maggots in the wound on Mike's shoulder.
Don remained by the door, silent and taken aback.
"What the hell did they do…?" Raph continued.
Leo looked at him, then at Mike with a shudder. Mike needed oxygen. Leo carefully tilted his head back and started respiratory breathing. After two breaths, Leo looked up to his brothers. "He's gonna need a blood transfusion…"
"How?" Raph stopped checking over for wounds, and waited for Leo to continue after another couple breaths.
Leo came back up again, and quickly spilled out his words. "This place must have medical stuff for the horses. Find a lab, and look for IV tubes and needles
Raph looked back down the lit aisle as Leo breathed. "Gimme the gun."
"No. Just go, okay."
With a groan, Raph stood up. Though, it might be better Leo kept it, to protect himself and Mike from any attackers while he was gone. In a breath's moment, he darted back down the aisle to pursue his mission.
Don hoped Raph could get the supplies, and make it back in one piece. He decided to keep watch on the aisle way, to be ready for intruders.
Raph spied someone coming around the corner into the tunnel. He grabbed him from behind and stepped back through the door of an empty, dark stall. "Look, you can't--" the turtle struggled to hold his captive still. The guy's small frame made it hard for him to fight Raph's size.
"No! Kaiho suru!"
Raph instinctively loosened his grip upon hearing his captive's feminine voice. Damn, he's a she!
"Minikui no baka! Kaiho suru…" she gasped, still pushing against the turtle's green arms.
Great. Another one of them "Japanese only" types…and she better not had just called me an ugly fool. He had no choice but to keep her his hostage as to not stir up alarm through the place. "Listen, will ya? I need help." He muttered.
"No!"
Raph turned her around to make eye contact with this difficult woman, even if she got freaked from his appearance. "The lab, where is it? Doko desu ka? I have to get--"
She shook her head, her eyes hidden under the bill of her ball cap. Her short hair and unrefined features made it easy for him to mistaken her.
Raph groaned, and strained his voice to be more discernible. "The lab, medical supplies… the lab, doko desu ka? Tell me, um… hana-simasu, onegai-simasu. "
She held a hard stare past his eyes. "Sore-kara, let go."
"Helping me then? Watasi wa, daizyobu desu…I promise." Raph still held her arms, and hoping that she did understand English to some extent.
The woman still looked like she wasn't going to give in, but her words said something else. "Ima wa, let go! I help…" She started to struggle once more.
Raph loosened his grip, and released one of her arms to see what she would do. She didn't try to run away yet. "Okay… just show me, the lab, wher-- lab ga, doko desu ka?" He asked her again.
The girl looked at him strangely.
"The lab… aagh. Medical stuff! Needles? First aid?" Raph hoped she understand those references better. "Like, hospital stuff. Byooin! My brother's dying!"
"Byooin?"
"Yeah, byooin, hospital stuff, for horses. Doko desu ka?" The turtle could feel his patience get short. If she wasn't going to come up with an answer, he'd soon as lock her up in this stall and look for it the hard way.
The girl made a face, then pointed in the direction that went further into the cave. "There."
"Show me," Raph stepped from the stall, still hanging onto her arm.
Michaelangelo gazed at the forest, with it's various pines and maple trees. In front of him, he saw the neck and ears of a gray horse that he rode. They paused to study the land's features. Everything shone a soft white with snow. All but a few trails if dirty tracks. He looked over to his right. The tracks led to a mouth of a cave in the hill. The sound of a babbling creek reached his ears.
Are we going there?
A gentle airy voice of a male touched Michaelangelo's thoughts. He motioned the gray to head in that direction.
Yeah… I'm not sure why though…
That is where the others are. Now Splinter's voice, slightly thick with his Japanese accent, responded like an echo. It came like a blessing to Michaelangelo.
He lifted his eyes, hoping to also see his Master. But he saw nothing more, other than the gray gelding he rode and snowy trees.
Splinter... what--
The voice trailed some distance behind him murmuring something. The turtle looked over his shoulder, then back around to stare at the cave entrance. He still felt like he was missing something… something really important. An increasing wariness enveloped him. He lifted up his hands, which clutched a set of roughly braided leather reins, but he couldn't feel them. The turtle also sat bareback on the horse's back, with no clothes on. His legs did not feel any warmth from the horse's body like he would expect. Nor could he smell anything blowing in the wind, or feel its cold bite against his skin.
Growing concerned, Michaelangelo looked into the forest. What happened, Master? Am I…
The voice floated around his head now. You are in a spiritual plane...
His master's voice drifted off like he held something back. But, why can't I see you? A long silence came before a reply.
It is different from the Astral Plane.
Mike looked down at his hands holding the reins. Further understanding set in.
Then softly, almost soothingly, the voice whispered by his ear. You can still help them. They need you.
I see… Michaelangelo's graven face looked back toward the dark crack in the hillside. Can you stay with me?
In a blink, he and the gelding were inside, and standing by a stall. The front was covered with a thick, blanket-like material. Three Japanese people stood by the doorway. Michaelangelo slid off the back of the gray and approached.
What... why am I here?
A horse is giving birth, Splinter's voice echoed.
He suddenly recognized the oldest man standing there. The shaven head and gruff voice… Tatsu. A blurred memory from when he first was brought here flashed in his memory. Michaelangelo took a step back in shock. He became aware that it was the men's thoughts he heard echoing in his head, many of which in a language he didn't understand. Then a couple groans came from the stall.
A mare was having a special baby in there. More wonder came over Michaelangelo, and he stepped up to peer through a separation in the blanket covering the front of the stall. A moment later, he found himself kneeling in straw by the white mare's head. Another person stood inside to monitor the mare's progress. His title stood out in Michaelangelo's mind as Dr. Itoda.
The dark colored baby came out; all but it's hind feet. The big mare, growing restless with the process, struggled back onto her feet. Michaelangelo stepped back, even though she couldn't do any harm running into his spiritual form. He watched as her baby slid out the rest of the way and landed in the straw. It struggled slightly, disoriented of what had just happened to itself. A thin layer of membrane still clung to the baby's head and nostrils.
Concerned of this, Itoda carefully knelt down to the foal to tear it away. The foal continued to look around, seemingly alert but unsure of its surroundings. His mother remained restless, walking over to it just for a moment to give a welcoming nicker. But her contractions continued to push her placenta out, thus distracting her with more pain. Itoda left the stall, to retrieve the things needed to check and treat the foal while she was distracted.
"No." Leonardo gasped in between breaths, repeating the denial later when he stopped to get a better feel of Mike's pulse. If he could find the pulse. "No, Mike! Don't…" a small cry of despair slipped out. Leo looked over to Don, then down to Mike's body. No pulse. He could try giving CPR to Mike, but their shells don't give like a human ribcage does. No heartbeat…colder, no.
"What… he didn't…?" Don whispered. He could see Leo starting to panic.
Leo gave Mike two more breaths before replying. "His heart stopped."
Don twisted his face. He knelt down to the other side and reached out to lay a hand on Mike's cheek. "Mikey… you're not… not yet," What I do for some shocker panels or something… Don looked over to Leo in hopes he had an idea. At least Raph didn't get this bad that time when he got beat up.
"Take my wrist." Leo held out his hand.
Don did so, without understanding why.
"Push your fingers in where the pressure point is on the inside. Then do the same to Mike's wrist."
"Accupressure?" Don sounded dubious, but did as Leo instructed. How's that gonna help in this situation…? It's not gonna work…
"It's something…" Leo went down to breathe two breaths into Mike. "This is an energy chain. I'm hoping our life energy will give his heart more energy. Hoping…"
Don turned his eyes away from Leo to look over Mike's body. He let his left arm gripping Leo's wrist rest across Mike's plastron. His throat tightened with regret as he leaned near his brother's head. "Mikey, Mike… don't give up. I know you can hear us… don't--" his voice wavered as he tried to hold back his anguish.
Leo kept going through his motions. He wasn't going to give up yet… he didn't want to let Mike down any further.
Michaelangelo approached the little one, and knelt down in front of it. The foal's hair looked dark and wet from the amniotic fluid. Hi, baby horsey, welcome to the world. Well... welcome to life. Hell only knows what they want to do with you when you get older. He glanced over to those peering in through the bars at the foal. The turtle stopped for a moment, realizing what his own words meant for him as well.
But why am I here, with you…?
The foal seemed to look at him for a time now. Long enough for the turtle to realize the baby knew he was there. Michaelangelo reached out to 'touch' the wet hair on the baby's neck. It wasn't that of sensual touch, but an acknowledgement of meeting energy shields. Coming in contact with the colt's embodied spirit… a tingling union of energy. The turtle grinned nonetheless when it rooted its nose against his hand. He then tried to run a hand across the colt's face; but when he struggled to get up, he knocked Mike into the straw.
This is cool! He knows I'm here… Michaelangelo smiled as he told Splinter. The turtle stroked the colt one last time, before the doctor began the check.
A scattering of hooves coming from outside the stall caught Michaelangelo's attention. The following shriek from a stallion sounded awful familiar. Tatsu promptly barked orders to a couple of the people who were with them. They pursued after to alert the guards.
The turtle stood up in alarm. What's going on now?
Confusion.
Splinter…? Mike felt something deadly wrong in that tone.
Another voice, be it mental or real, also echoed in Michaelangelo's head. Shouting words, thoughts of despair, angry discord. He now stood out the main tunnel, watching a turtle in a ragged jersey and blue jeans square up against Tatsu.
Raphael… no!
Michaelangelo turned in search of Ryutaro. A message rang in his head. He just knew that Raph needed help. His brother couldn't face that man alone. He came up to Ryutaro fighting off two men, obviously not the ninja type - much to Michaelangelo's surprise. He looked the other way, to see guards join Tatsu. But they are ninja…
The turtle moved in time with Ryutaro, watching his back, long enough for Mike to grab his subconscious. Go back, gotta go back... Raph's in trouble. He could sense that Ryutaro understood somehow. After the two men gave up and remained down, the kid stuck Danza in an empty stall in the first tunnel and ran back
Michaelangelo was by Raph's side in a flash. Gave a new meaning to shadow boxing… giving his brother an added guidance to avoid the blows. But his adversaries became all the more overwhelming. One of the guards caught Raph's leg from his kick, and returned a kick to his standing leg before he could react. That move sent a renewed pain through that leg he twisted from falling off Trinity.
Raph remained in a heap on the floor while he caught his breath, and tried to pull together more of his fighting spirit. Michaelangelo knelt down to Raph, then glanced up at Tatsu… he could make out one of his thoughts as he paused. That man had intentions of killing Raph.
Hurry Ryutaro! He watched Tatsu take a gun from one of the guards.
Michaelangelo laid his arm across Raph's back, in wanting to comfort his brother though this desperate moment. History couldn't repeat itself now. You gotta keep moving, bro…he wants you dead.
The both of them looked up as Tatsu aimed. The turtle rolled to one side, barely avoiding the fire falling around his covered head.
Then a clang sounded. Ryutaro had grabbed a pitchfork and intervened Tatsu's further attempts by catching the gun in his pitchfork.
C'mon Mikey, please… I don't know what else to do… I can't… can't let you die. You can't die! Live.. please… live! Tears now rolled down his beak as Leo knelt over Mike. Tears of guilt mixed with grief. Salty water that dripped on his brothers pale face as he rhythmically breathed.
Don kept on looking down the aisles every few seconds in hopes of seeing Raph and not anyone else. He heard fighting, and thought he saw Ryutaro. No doubt they were stirring up the place now. Don tried to not give in to it, but he started believing Mike wasn't going to come back. He's been without blood flow for a long time now. Fighting through another bout of sobs, he gently rested his head on Mike's plastron and squeezed both Leo's and Mike's wrists. One warm and full of life, the other cold and…
wait, wait…is that… a pulse?
"I think… I feel a pulse." Don whispered to Leo.
He reached around with his free hand to feel for it under Mike's jaw. "It... is." Leo gasped. But it felt weak though. After a couple more breaths, he heard an audible wail escape from Mike's throat when he finally began to breathe on his own.
"M-mikey… just, hang on." Don knelt over to his face again. He still held onto their wrists, as if letting go would make him fade away again.
Mike's eyes squinted tight, moaning in pain all the more. Everything felt horrible. A strange feeling of heaviness and numbness overcame his body, soon accompanied with pins and needles all over. Like when an arm or a foot fell asleep, except this was both arms and legs as blood slowly restored circulation.
"I know it hurts… we're here now." Leo stroked Mike's forehead tenderly.
He became aware of a firm grip on his wrist. Comforting caresses on his forehead, soothing words. Then the terrible stomach ache and throbbing pains in his head and shoulder. Tears of suffering came to his eyes. He cried out softly as more fog masked his consciousness again.
Leo winced, seeing Mike grow limp again. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Mikey, I wish I can do something about it… please. Come on… stay with us."
"Keep breathing…" Don whispered, then sat up to look down the aisle.
Raph…
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