Chapter 20
Chapter 20
The whole building heard about the surprise attack on the four turtles, rat and crazed human. More guards were called out while the scientists laid low and waited for further instructions. Donatello was correct on the theory that all these men and women were obviously brainwashed by this ONE man. But how? He had to figure it out to discover a cure for them. If there was a cure. Mind over matter might help them realize who the real criminal was in this place.

The Turtles stood silently, Casey stared to each of them, gripping his hands in the delight of a war brewing up fast. Splinter's eyes were closed at the moment when Leonardo guided his sensei over a large amount of trauma and voices shrilling out to-

"Get them!" "Attack!"

The feeling of smashed bodies, good and bad, took a matter of seconds. Casey was out the door first. He pushed, shoved, pounded, kicked, and even screamed his way into the hall where he met the end of a gun barrel. The owner of the weapon grinned evilly and shot off a seemingly perfect aim, only to have it bounce off the nearest wall. Oops. Casey glanced to the small hole in the wall, then to the man who just shot off the weapon. A smile couldn't budge any forgiveness and he sadly paid the price by getting punched deeply in the face, blood spurting out from his now broken nose. Shocked and a little stunned, the attacker fell back and landed on his arm where Casey happily heard a soft crunch from the elbow bone hitting the concrete floor. Well, that was one down and nearly three dozen more to go.

Raphael rattled his swimming head to shake off the last of the dizzy sensation and was soon at Casey's side to take part in the grueling action. The first one he felt himself slam into was their old pal, Harris, whom grabbed and pulled at what he could on him. Raph didn't like being this close to such a person and showed him just how he felt by pelting a good one right in the stomach, causing Harris to shout and stagger backwards into an almost Domino effect on his line of men. Raph wasn't interested in child's play but he liked to watch the pieces fall right before his eyes. His eyes that he was glad to say were starting to focus normally again, just in time to witness such a humorous sight.

Michaelangelo, though still weak like Donatello and Raphael, also jumped in for the kill and made his way out of the room into a mass of shrieking, and perhaps a few, cowering men. Mike liked the cowardly men especially and took to them first with not just one right hook, but with both of his strong, eager hands. Hitting the highs and ducking the lows was as far as he got with a dance-like movement of dodging bullets. Those old episodes of American Bandstand sure as hell paid off for him! And who ever said Dick Clark wasn't popular anymore? When Leo wanted him to practice dodging blows, he'd click it on to the VH1 channel and fire away! He was very good at blocking their swipes of fast, unprepared, punches but in return, received powerful kicks from the six inch-heeled army boots booting him in the posterior end. If the footwear these guy wore wasn't bad enough, Mike, with his distinct sense of smell, could detect a nauseating aroma in the air. From the tight area, he knew that some of the men smelt of cologne while others wore an essence of sweat and b.o. mixed in together. If he wasn't sick before the medicine treatments, he was definitely very sick now!

"Aren't you glad you use Dial?" Michaelangelo quietly mumbled to Don through the brawl. "Don't you wish everyone did?!"

"Not now, Mike, huh?" Donatello also got in some powerful hits by finding a large rod and using it like his familiar oak bo which, to his dismay, rested somewhere out of his reach. Although his full sight returned faster than Mike's and Raph's, he relied on the pleasure of hearing his foes fall, not just watching them go down for the count. He listened carefully to the sounds he produced of kicking by turning heel inward then upward to cause a fatal knock-out. He'd then wait to hear the body drop before proceeding onward to the next available person standing close by. Punching was a less useful attack with the steel rod clenched in his tight grip. Grinning like the Cheshire Cat, he used the weapon quite a bit, very glad to have found such a marvelous toy. He was also beginning to like the 'clang' sounds over the 'bang' ones and was considering switching to steel instead of wood permanently. Splinter wouldn't approve of that; a steel rod is not the ninja weapon of choice for him or any martial arts fighter for that matter. It was a dirty and dishonorable tool. Even Leonardo didn't looked pleased.

"Don, that's not your style." Leo elbowed a guy approaching him and Splinter, giving Don a second glare.

"Hey, whatever works." He shrugged to his brother through the shouts and fighting.

"You're right, Don. Maybe you should pick up one of the fallen guns while you're at it!"

Raphael glanced over. "Hey, now that you suggested it-"

"Don't even think about it!" Leo pointed, continuing to walk, more like shuffle, through the halls. Guns went off at them from behind. "Get down!"

It would have given Leonardo all the more pleasure of removing a single katana from behind his shell and attacking head-on with the large group of men. However, with the passage being inches thick and putting his brothers, Casey, and Splinter in jeopardy, the swords had to remain out of sight and the classic style of using bodily parts for bodily harm was his best bet against the odds. Glancing down, his hands were still covered in blue mittens he had been wearing since roaming the outdoors. The idiot mittens, as Bill Cosby once said in a stand-up show, ruined what precise punches he had originally planned to throw at the awaiting men. Leo paused to stare at them, confusing one man in front of him whom wasn't too smart to think otherwise.

"What is it freak? Is your pretty mittens ruined? Did you mess up your pretty-" The man's face flew upward then down to the ground as Leo's nylon-knuckle-sandwich slammed into his left cheekbone. "Aaah, fuck...in...ay!"

Onward and outward. If that was possible to do so. It was a mess in that one hallway. The guns backfired on some of the soldiers themselves and many fell over with severe and fatal wounds. These guys weren't prepared to fight in an extremely small spot that consisted of six weirdoes and a few dozen of their own kind. Casey soon felt outnumbered when one man went down but another came up and threw a right hook from out of nowhere at him. Raph and Mike got shell to shell to watch each other's behinds while throwing fists and kicking feet. As the guns went off again, everyone almost hit the ground at the same exact moment. Don looked up left to right, noticing someone was missing.

"Hey! Where'd Harris go?!" He knew he was at the very front when they encountered him the doorway. When the fight broke out, he suddenly vanished before their eyes. "I'm going after him!" Don broke through the men toward the opposite way, still using the rod as his weapon.

"Never mind him, Don! We've got to get out with our lives!" Mike cried from under a pile of men.

"Head for the entrance!" Casey pointed forward while pushing through the halls.

"No, Casey. Not that way-" Leo felt a hard kick, sending him to the ground. Splinter rolled to the side, out of his grasp. With a groan, Leo got back up and, like a maniac, fist pounded the attacker with no mercy. He turned back around to get Splinter onto his feet, looking into his face. "Come on, sensei. You gotta wake up!" Splinter slowly opened his tired eyes and looked into Leo's worried ones.

"I...I will...be all right, Leonardo..."

"Are you sure?" Leo placed his hands to his shoulders, eyeing someone coming from the side. "Look out!" He quickly turned to stop two men whom charged at them. Splinter flinched and attacked two more at a time with his back against the wall. He may have been weak, but he could still pack a hard punch. Leo sent one into the opposite wall with a powerful kick and took the second one by surprise of giving him to his partner, body and all. Leo glanced around, seeing all the soldiers sprawled on the ground everywhere. "That seems like the last of them in this area. But once we get outside, more will attack us. We can't go out through the front, it's impossible!"

Casey was already on his way and broke through more obstacles, heading for the front as he intended. In the main hall he spotted a lot of the scientists hiding, on the ground cowering, holding up the arms in a 'I give up' act, and others were just staring wide-eyed. If he saw someone holding up a white flag, he would have bust a seam from laughing too hard. Raphael followed, also looking to them and shaking his head.

"Pathetic sight, isn't it?" Raph thumbed to them, glancing to Casey whom nodded.

"Very. Wish I had a camera to capture this moment." Casey joked, then looked to the doors. They were closed and locked by a secret code. "Aw, shit!" He started to smack it frantically but it did nothing to open the door. He turned and glared to the scientists. "Hey, any of you wusses brave enough to do as you're told?" No answer. Fine. Casey went on. "Open that door and we may spare your life!" A few still cowered while some ran over to open the main double doors by pressing in a numerical code. A green light went off and soft click was heard. Casey smirked to the man. "Smart, very smart." The door was opened with no one lurking around outside. Casey ran out with open arms. "We're outta here!"

"Casey, wait!" Raph followed with Mike behind him. The scientists did nothing but stand back, watching them leave. "Casey, don't! There might be a-" Something triggered as soon as he was outside. A large net lifted up from the ground, sending Casey, Raph and Mike upwards into the trees. All three shouted and cursed obscenities but it did no good. "....trap."

Donatello ran throughout the long halls, feeling himself not wanting to do this all by himself. If his brothers knew what he was up to, they would be incredibly pissed off at him for going after a mad man alone. Leonardo always said the four of them worked together as a team. And as a team, they fight as one until the bitter end. Don sighed to what his brother told him, overhearing it play like a broken record in his mind. He knew those were important words to stick by, but they tended to fall on deaf ears, and the foursome has dropped down to a solo battle many times. Donatello looked behind him as he ran along. They would find out sooner or later when they discover that he's missing.

Big mistake, am very weak, why can't he hold still? Would be too easy...

"Give up already, turtle!" Harris called back. He could see his guards jumping out to attack but Don was knocking them down left and right with the handy dandy steel rod gadget. Complete with it's own 'clang' sound included. "Damn it, fire at him!" One misfired, almost hitting Harris instead of Don. "Watch it!" Another fired at Don this time, causing him to duck his head within the safety of his shell.

"Stop, Harris!" Harris turned and ran into a small room. Dead end. He looked all around and saw he was trapped. Don stopped at the entryway, staring down at him. "End of the line for you."

"Why must you freaks hound me?! I had a job to do! I had a well thought-out plan to save you all!"

"Save us? From what? There's nothing to be saved from-"

"The animals out there! You've seen them yourself! The werewolf creatures are growing in numbers. Their bite has infected the other animals including dogs, cats and even humans! All have been cursed! All must be stopped before it's too late!"

"You're the one that has to be stopped Harris!" Don pointed. "This is not your place to be making the decisions. Werewolves have been around for centuries and to stop them all of a sudden has been impossible by any man, sane or not. If you think you're doing good, you are sadly mistaken! You're only doing what you do best and that's harming others!"

"I am a scientist, damn it!"

"You're a complete psycho!"

"And what have you done to help make this area a better place? Huh?" Harris backed into a stack of something, glancing down to it. "No one will stop these creatures unless I make the first move!"

"That's not true. There are people already out there involved in organizations with the unknown occurrences. They don't dissect innocent living creatures or just assume that every animal out there is infected with a curse. There's no point in fighting it, Harris. Your men have been defeated. And so have you."

Harris looked down to the box, pulling out a very large stick of dynamite. "Then, I'll just blow the whole fucking place to bits!"

Don rolled his eyes. "Aw, jeez....Harris-"

"Shut up, freak! You tried to stop me once, now you're all going to pay!"

Don crossed him arms. "And how do you propose to do it? You'd need a match to even light the damn thing."

Harris dug into his pocket, holding up a lighter. A rather familiar-looking one. "Your brother was kind enough to loan me this. All it takes is one strike-"

"Ah, damn it, no!" Don leapt on him, sending the firecracker to the ground and the two started to roll and hit one another with petty slaps and whacks. Harris in turn finally punched him hard, making him drop his precious rod weapon in a spin to the other side of the room. This called for fist and feet work once again. Don glanced to him with gritted teeth. "I'll kill you first before you decide to kill anyone!"

"You've made a very big mistake, turtle." Harris whispered in his ear through the struggle. After hours of feeling so weak, Don was starting to believe him.

Leonardo rushed into the main hall to see the scientists staring and looking to one another. A net calmly swayed in the trees near the entrance. He knew all along they set a trap and seeing this happen only made him roar with anger, causing the scientists in the background to flinch.

"Oh, great! Just great! I told Casey there was a trap but he never listens!" Leo paused to see Splinter approach him, looking around. "Master, they sprung a trap...just give me two minutes, I'll have them down." Leo pushed his way out past the scientists, stopping to look at the men and women and wondering why they weren't attacking him or Splinter. "Hey, why are you just standing there? Aren't you going to stop us?"

One man shrugged. "How?"

Leonardo frowned, looking to each of their faces. They were scared, confused, and definitely not a threat to him or his family anymore. From what Don mentioned about the brainwashing scheme, Leo knew they were ordinary town folk controlled by some leader that gave them orders. A leader, yes, something Leo could relate to. Deep down, he admitted that he was self-put in charge and called the unofficial leader. Harris was also an unofficial leader. An illegal one at that. Leo figured it out quickly. If he wasn't around for some reason, his brothers had a hard time getting things done right or they were sometimes unsure of what to do. Now that Harris had disappeared somewhere within the building, these people seemed very lost in the same matter.

Leo bowed his head, glancing up to them. They still hadn't moved. "You people were never ones to serve him. Get out while you still can and if you are wise, you will not breathe a word of this to anyone. Not to family, friends, no one. Forget all that you've seen here and you can live your lives peacefully and not have the police forever on your trail."

"Why?" A woman came up. "I can see you as clear as day. You were part of the experimentation's. The class of unknown creatures."

"No." Leo shook his head. "If the police discover this operation was run by an escaped convict, the creatures, living or dead here will be considered byproducts of Harris's real scheme."

"So, you're a byproduct of Harris?" The woman challenged.

Leonardo squinted. "I'm a byproduct of unknown reasons, woman. Harris is the problem, and we were only trying to stop him-"

"He was only trying to save our world-"

"He's trying to destroy it!" Leo spat out.

"That's impossible! One man?" Someone from the back exclaimed. The group started to talk all at once. "Not what I heard-"

"It doesn't make sense-"

"That's not what I was told when brought here-"

"He had no scheme. Only a purpose to rescue endangered animals."

"He said to help the injured animals-"

"No, to seek and destroy the unknown creatures of the forest is what I was told-"

"No, I heard to to experiment the unknown and then destroy-"

A person closest to Leo spoke out to him. "We thought this whole scheme was for a good cause. Harris can't be the same man you've told us, right?"

"Wrong!" Splinter finally exclaimed, his voice booming in the large room. "You have all been tricked by this one person. This man wants all forest creatures, known or unknown....dead. But, now that his plans have been foiled, I fear that he wants all of us dead." The person that asked the question gazed down to the rat, then to the turtle, getting similar expressions. "It is the thoughts in his mind that has clouded everyone of yours." He sighed and looked to Leo. "I came to alert you that Donatello is missing."

Leo looked towards the halls. "Oh, damn it. He said something about going after Harris. Leave it to him to go it alone."

Splinter put a hand to his arm. "Go help your brothers. I will go find Donatello."

"But, master, by yourself? He could be in trouble! What if you get-"

"Please, Leonardo. We do not have time to argue. Now, go!" Leo bowed and took off outside. Splinter nodded and turned to look to the scientists still standing there. "And as for the rest of you, go home. There is nothing more to see or do here."

The three swung silently in the large net within the trees, mostly glaring to the one responsible for this happening.

"Well, this is another fine mess you gotten us into." Raph said to Casey.

"Fuck you."

"No, fuck you!"

"Fuck you back!"

"Both of you! Shut the fuck up!" Michaelangelo shouted. Then, cleared his throat, grinning embarrassingly. "Ahem. Any ideas?" Low shouts were heard and the three looked to see what appeared to be a parade of officers riding, charging, and rushing up towards them. "Ah! The fuzz! Who invited them?!"

"Guys!" Leo ran out and looked up to them.

"Leo! Get us down from here!" Casey shouted.

"I'm coming up, give me a minute!" Damn Casey, shouldn't have gotten up there in the first place, Leo thought as he started to climb the tree.

"Damn! There's officers right below us!" Raphael yelped. "We're sitting ducks up here! If they think we're the enemy, they're going to shoot at-" A gun shot of a rifle was heard in their direction, missing the rope and bouncing of the tree. Leo jolted to the flying bullet and slipped off the tree with a thud.

"Ack! Leo!" Michaelangelo shouted, moving over to the other side to see where he fell. "Hey! You okay?"

"Someone's shooting at us!" Casey exclaimed while ducking for cover. Leonardo looked around and heard a second gun fire at them. The net rope snapped from above, causing the three to shout simultaneously and hit the ground near Leo's trembling body. Casey looked over to him. "Leo, you all right?!"

Leonardo looked around in a daze. "Ow, yeah. I'm all right. Who the hell was shooting-"

"Casey!" The four looked to see Jack waving to them. He ran up to Leo whom was giving him a look as he got closer. "Leo! Hey, sorry about the shooting thing but it was faster than cutting them down." Leo said nothing. "Uh, look, ah, those officers. I didn't call them. Honestly. I wouldn't do that-"

"I wasn't hoping that you would."

"Leo, the officers came after some shoot up in town! They know that Harris is in there and will stop at nothing to get a hold of him. You all need to clear out as soon as possible before you get caught as well! Since the officers came on their own, maybe we can borrow one of their vehicles to take you home!"

"Uh, borrow a police van? You think they'll just let us do that?" Jack nodded slowly. "Yeah, sure, Jack! I don't have time for this right now. We have to go check on the others. Wait here for us." Leo rose and ran off over to Mike, Raph and Casey. "You guys all right?"

"I need a vacation. Oh, wait, I'm already on vacation...yuk yuk!" Casey laughed then stood up, feeling his knees were slightly hurting. Was no laughing matter anymore. "Ouch! Damn. Shoot us down. Real good thinking, Jack." He looked to see the officers starting a war of their own with the remaining guards and surrendering scientists. "Looks like the officers are in charge now. We're all here, right?"

Leo shook his head. "Splinter went to find Don. He probably went after that damn Harris guy-"

"Oh, shit!" Casey started to go with Leo running up to his side. Mike and Raph followed in tow. "We gotta go back in and get him!"

Leo looked up to him, not pleased. "We'll do that, Casey. But, next time, take my advice and you may live longer!"

"Whut?"

He pointed to him next. "You heard me. You never go through or out the front entrance! I warned you about a trap and you didn't listen to me!"

"But, Leo! The trap's already been sprung, so we can go out that way now!"

"Yes! After it's been sprung! It was only a net. You're lucky it wasn't a more deadlier trap."

"Aw, stop yer worrying." Casey glanced to the scientists as they ran by. "What are you starin' at?"

Leo groaned. "You know, Casey, I sometimes wonder how you make it through each day without getting yourself killed!"

"Hey, Mike." Casey glanced to him. "He's your brother. You tell him to shut up!" Leo pursed his lips at him.

Jack watched them leave, then turned to smack into Bob's face whom smiled. "So, how many aliens are there total?"

"Not now, Robert..."

"They're with him, aren't they? They work for Harris?"

"Not that I know of."

Bob assumed yes. "Tell you what, Jack. I can pay you handsomely if you allow my men to capture them and take them in."

"Robert, I couldn't do that. They're my friends! It's wrong!"

"Does $1000 each for the three of them sound wrong to you?" Jack turned away with a groan. There were four of them but Bob only counted Leo, Mike and Raph. Including the fourth brother Leo mentioned, that's $4000 right there! And if he counted Splinter, that would equal a full 5 grand. He glanced to him, shrugging a bit. "Look, Jack. Whether you do or you don't participate with us, we've got them right where we want them. But I think it's an offer you can't refuse."

"Fine Robert. Fine. What is it you want me to do? What do you want me to do exactly?"

"Stall them. And let my men take care of the rest."

Jack nodded, gripping his rifle tighter. They'll never forgive me for this.

"I...won't....let you....do this!"

"Get off me! Get back!"

The two continue to roll around, punching, kicking and knocking down more stacks of boxes all over the room. The floor was now littered of fire crackers, big or small. All the same, very deadly. Donatello had to get that damn lighter away from him in anyway possible. Killing him came to mind very fast.

"Harris, don't do this!" Don pulled and grabbed with both hands at the one hand clenching the little fire starter. Finally throwing a big punch, the lighter was dropped and slid under a large cabinet. Harris went to go for it but Don grabbed him and threw him back against the wall with a hard smash, almost leaving a huge imprint. "Grrrraaah!!!"

"How dare you attack me!" Harris shouted to him, spit flying out from his mouth. "You thought I was insane because of what I had in mind, didn't you?! Just some typical guy wanting to save this planet from the destruction of freaks such as you! You're the ones that cause the pain and misery in the world. If every unknown creature died, we'd all be a lot better off!"

"Bullshit, Harris!" Don started to walk over. "Wars will go on forever! People will continue to fight one another for any stupid reason! It's a dog eats dog world out there! It will never stop!"

"Then I'll just genocide the whole world! One square inch at a time!" Donatello paused and stiffened, staring at him with a roll to the eyes. "What?"

"That is the most stupidest idea I have ever heard in my life." Don looked down, shaking his head. "Of all the schemes, that's what you can only think to do here? In this small town..." Harris glanced to the floor, spying the fallen rod. He slowly crouched down, keeping an eye on Don whom wasn't watching.

"Donatello!" Splinter entered the room. Don turned to him.

"Sensei-"

"Look out!"

Donatello turned back to Harris just as he swung the steel rod at him. Hey! That was Don's toy! He had forgotten he dropped it on the ground and was now feeling just how painful steel can be to skin. Don raised his left arm, the infected one, to block the blow to his face and felt exploding pain as the rod skipped the protective leather pad and smashed into his exposed elbow bone. Damn, not what he intended.

"Aaaah, shit! Damn you!" Don threw a right hook with his good arm as Harris was still swinging down from his strike. Splinter went to grab him from behind and hold his arms down. He ended up on top of his back while Don tangled with the front end. Fire was in the man's eyes, fear shot through Don's.

"Out of my way!" Harris shoved him aside, slowly getting over to the cabinet. With tremendous force, he pushed the cabinet out of the way. Splinter couldn't figure out what was going on but continued to hang on. The hiding lighter came into view and he stared at it with wide, gleeful, eyes.

"Kelvin..." Splinter grunted from behind. "What are you do-"

"Off of me rat!" Harris took one of Splinter's hands and flung him to the side next to Don who's fast reflexes was able to catch him before hitting the ground.

"Donatello...." He heaved a big sigh, glancing to Harris. "What is he do...doing-"

"Sensei...he got a hold of Kate's lighter." Don moaned and pointed. "And look around you....the fire....crackers...."

Splinter's ears twitched back. "Oh, dear! No, Kelvin. If you value your life, you will cease this act at once!"

"Shut up, you disgusting rat! You or your freakish turtle can't order me around!"

Splinter swallowed and glared back. A disgusting rat? Even Don took offense to that insult. Splinter inched closer, looking up to him.

"No, it is true. we cannot order you around." Harris started to turn away toward the boxes. "But, as a disgusting rat, I can do this-" Before Harris could speak, Splinter lunged forward and sunk his teeth deep into his arm, making him drop the lighter once more. Donatello's mouth dropped a few notches from seeing this action of his sensei. He quickly came to his senses to grab the lighter and get it back into safe hands.

"Aaaargh! Damn you!" Splinter didn't stop there. With claws out and a low hissing between his two rodent teeth, he began to attack with fierce blows and open punches to get a fist and swipe at the same time. Don was ready to applaud with the ringside view but the fun ended abruptly when Harris finally took care of him. "I'll teach you to mess with me!"

"Don! Master!"

Don looked to see Leonardo rush in and pause at the door entrance, catching Harris throw Splinter violently against the wall with a hard smack. Another small imprint on that poor, defenseless wall. Splinter groaned and slumped down with his head rolling to the side onto one of his shoulders. Leo gasped and stared at Harris with seething anger and rage.

"How dare you filthy rat attack me!" Harris shrilled out to the unconscious rodent. "You're going to pay for it now!"

"Indeed...you will pay..." Leo's eyes widened and his teeth gritted sharply. Donatello enjoyed another view of just desserts as Leo took in a deep breath and waltzed right over to him. "Hey, Harris!" Harris turned within less than a second to see a powerful fist punch him hard in the face, causing him to flinch back, followed by a spin-kick to knock him fully down. Leonardo gazed hatefully at him, teeth still gritted. "No one strikes our master and gets away with it." Shaking his head, he turned his attention over to Splinter whom hasn't moved an inch. "Master? You all right?" Splinter's eyes remained closed. "Ohhh, come on, please, wake up!"

Don reached Leo's side, helping their sensei up. "Come on, Leo. We've got to get him and everyone else out of here." The shouts brought in more guards, making them look around the room stupidly as if to say, 'duh, the boss is down. what do we do now?' "Ut oh, more company-"

"You!" Harris called out to one of them. "Fire at them now!" The guard nodded and pulled out his gun, aiming it at direct hit on Splinter and Leonardo.

"Noooo!" Don jumped up and kicked the guy in the side, making the gun shoot off elsewhere. Something started to sizzle in the background. The guard blinked and the room got quiet. Don looked behind him to the boxes. Dynamite. Gun fire. Not a good combination. Wonderful. At least he knew he prevented it while holding the lighter but now, some other jerk caused the show to start up. Sparks started to spit everywhere. Smaller fire crackers were already popping up, making everyone jolt. Don glared to the guard whom was backing away. "You fool! You idiot! Look what you've done!" He started to move forward, pushing him with anger. "What the hell were you thinking-"

"Don!" Leo rushed over with Splinter in his arms. "Forget about him! We have seconds to get out! Now!"

Donatello shook his head and ran for the exit, ushering the others to move out as fast as possible. The bright sparks continued to crackle and spit out onto other sticks around the floor. Harris jumped at it, stomping as best he could but too many were already lit. He looked to his men with a frown.

"This was for all mankind-"

They got as far as the hallway before large explosions echoed and broke through the adjoining walls. The group picked up speed but they could feel themselves getting hit with burning wreckage and bits of debris flying from everywhere. Casey ducked and shielded his face while running and keeping one eye out to look for the exit. The four turtles crouched low and kept their heads half-way down their shells, also blocking any oncoming thrown material. Any remaining scientists, guards or even officers, shouted to amscray and ran out as fast as their two or four legs could carry them.

"Head for the front door!" Leo shouted in a muffle.

"Hey, Leo! There could be a trap-"

"Shut up, Casey! You've sprung the damn thing already!"

"Rub it in why don't ya!"

Back outside, everyone was running the opposite way down the dirt hill. The Turtles and Casey slipped out from the confusion and made a sudden detour for the hidden woods. Even animals were running away from the smoking and explosive sounds the building was making. Windows shattered out, more pieces of the steel and wood kept shooting as far as the force would carry it.

The Turtles and Casey stopped to turn around and watch from a safe distance. Battered and torn up pretty badly, the five slumped down to the ground and stared out at the sight. Leo collapsed with Splinter on his lap as the rest fell all the way down flat. A loud explosion made them sit up to see if anyone from that back room made it out alive. No more people were coming out. The police would have to go back to see what's left and if anyone was still alive inside. The Turtles no longer had to deal with that place. Their job was over.

"Is everyone all right?" Leo asked, looking around. They all looked terrible. Each had a black tinge on their clothes, their eyes were slightly watery from all the smoke billowing around them. Scrapes, cuts, bruises, and gashes were upon parts of their skin from the battles.

"Perfect." Michaelangelo wheezed and waved a shaking hand. Smoke almost puffed out of his mouth from the 'p' in perfect.

"Couldn't be better." Raphael said quietly, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. They stung so bad, he couldn't help blinking repeatedly. "Casey?"

"Mm, I'm awake. I'm fine." Casey remained flat to the ground, his sides huffing and puffing. "Donny? You okay?"

Donatello lolled his head over to him, nodding it slowly. He was nursing his sore arm against his chest. "I........I'm fine. Leo, you okay?"

"Yes." Leo glanced down. "But I'm worried about Splinter. He hasn't woken up since we got out. We should get him home as soon as possible."

Don crawled over, placing an ear on his chest. "He's still breathing but it's shallow. We've all got to get back to the house. If we hurry we should get there before nightfall."

Leonardo sat still on the ground, looking to Splinter and feeling a dé jà vu hit him. It was only the night before that he was in the deep woods with his dying niece resting upon his lap. This time, it was his sensei that was fighting for his life.

"Then, we'd better get started now." Leonardo sat up and the others slowly started to rise, feeling and hearing bones crack to attention. The five started to began a long trek back but paused when a familiar voice called out.

"Guys! Casey! Hey!" Oh, yeah. Him. Jack shouted and ran over to them. "Hey, you guys all right?"

"We will be as soon as we get back to the house." Leonardo said. "We're in desperate need of patching ourselves up."

"That's quite a long ways. Which reminds me. Guys, I came to tell you! Remember when I said those officers were called out here and brought their own vehicles from town?! Well, some of you were listening to me, hell, no one usually does half the time....okay, so while y'all were inside that building, I did some huntin' around and found an abandoned van one of the groups of officers must have drove over when they got the call to this spot. You know, after they arrived here, they left their van there...you know-"

Michaelangelo sighed. "Is there a point to this?"

"Yes! So, anyway, get this, Leo! Hey, Leo? You listenin' to me?"

How could he not? Leo slowly looked up when he heard his name as if listening to all of it for the first time. "Mm...yes, I'm listening, Jack-"

"Great! So, anyway, I went to check it out and boom! A van's still parked there and no one seems to have gone back to it. It's a lot faster than walking and that way you'll get home in no time! How does that sound?"

"Sounds too good to be true." Raphael crossed his arms, looking skeptical.

"You mean you got all that? Amazing." Michaelangelo smirked to him.

"Where is this van?" Donatello asked, also looking skeptical.

"Down that way." Jack pointed. "At the main road turn pike." He glanced to Leo. "Look, I know it sounds too good to be true but, you gotta believe me."

"I don't think so, Jack." Leo shook his head. "The idea of getting home faster does sound good but I don't feel comfortable stealing a vehicle, especially one that belongs to the officers. I didn't agree with it the first time you mentioned it to me. No, we'll walk it from here."

"But, it's too far!" Jack pressured while glancing around the forest.

"Far but better off, now quit arguing about it!" Leo growled, motioning his group to move. He heard the sound of a soft click of a rifle from behind him.

"I don't argue. I bargain." Jack held his gun out, pointing to them. Leo closed his eyes, then glanced over to see Don shaking his head.

"Jack!" Casey inched closer but the gun turned to him. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Don't blame this one on me, friend! I had no choice-"

"The fuck you did!" Raphael pounced and knocked him down from behind, snatching the gun up and pointing it at him. "Hands up, asshole!"

"No, you put your hands up!" Raph and others looked up to see the remaining officers emerge from their hiding spots and point with all rifles aimed at them. "Drop the weapon and put your hands on your head now!" He hated taking orders but knew his whole family was in danger. All four, including Jack on the ground, put their hands up. Leo, still holding Splinter, looked around to see they were completely surrounded. One of Splinter's whiskers twitched as he stirred in Leo's arms. Opening his eyes, he lifted and turned his head to also see the many officers pointing their rifles at them.

"Leonardo?" Leo gasped and looked down as Splinter stared at the sight, then up to him. "What is going on here?"

"The war's not over, sensei." Leo said as he gently put him down on the ground, returning his hands quickly up. "Not by a long shot."

"So, much for being home free." Raphael said with a huff. "A trick too good to be true."

"No, this was a trap." Casey muttered, glancing to Leo whom silently nodded. "A trap set by my own friend."

It was near dinner time. April had planned to fix something special the day before Thanksgiving. A large steak and mashed potatoes treat with a side of string bean vegetables in butter sauce. Instead, she was sitting in a huge hospital, making several trips to visit two unconscious people. Lark would sit mostly with Kate in one room to allow April to have more time with Shadow. Seeing both the way they were made her cry non-stop. After many hours, Lark found her sitting in her usual chair, holding Shadow's hand and quietly talking to her. April felt a presence and looked up to her in the doorway, smiling back.

"Hello. How's your head?"

"Hurts." Lark smiled. Duh! She landed on it. "They gave me some pills to make the headache stop so I'm waiting for that to take effect...and oh, I came to tell you they let me go. I can go home now."

"Maybe you should. Your parents must be worried about you."

Lark shook her head. "I don't live with my parents. I live with my boyfriend in an apartment."

"Then, he must be worried about you."

Lark shrugged. "Maybe. But, I'm worried about everyone else. I can't just leave without knowing everyone's all right."

"You're starting to sound like me." April giggled softly. "I should go home, change clothes, take a shower, and wait for news from them there, but, I don't want to leave my little girl nor Kate alone."

"Oh, Kate's not alone now. The last time I went in there, she had company visiting. Tom was his name. I think it's her brother."

"Her brother?" Lark nodded. "I should go introduce myself. I think he has a right to know who's to blame for everything."

"Oh, April." Lark sighed silently. "Don't blame yourself for it all. I'm carrying plenty of guilt as it is."

"Then, I'll join your guilt club. Come on." Lark smiled sadly as April got up and walked down the hall to Kate's room. The two walked in to see a man sitting by her bed, holding her hand. "Excuse me? You must be Kate's brother?"

"Yeah, hi. I'm Tom." Tom stood up and reached out to shake her hand. "And you are?"

"I'm April O'Neil Jones. You probably met my daughter, Shadow."

"Shadow....oh, yes! And Raphael, her uncle. I remember now. So, you're her mother?"

"Yes." April didn't want to get into the whole discussion of Shadow not biologically being her daughter. "It's a long story, Tom, but much has happened today and the other night and...I'm really sorry your family had to get pulled into my family's problems."

"All I care about is if she'll make it, April. And whatever your family's problems are is none of my business. But, any business that involves my sister, I think I have a right to know that."

"Of course." April said. She glanced to Lark, then Tom.

"If you ladies will excuse me I need to make a quick trip home. Looks as though I'll be staying in town for awhile."

"I understand." April looked away. "Uh, Tom, I know we just met but since you're heading out that way, would you mind giving me a ride home? My car's at the house and uh, I need to check to see if my family is there or not."

"Not a problem, April. I was fixing to leave as soon as the doctor came back to talk to me. Let me know whenever you're ready."

"All right, thank you, Tom." April turned to Lark. "Do you want to come with us? Or do you want to contact your boyfriend at home?"

"Well, my boyfriend probably isn't home right now and my parents won't be flying in until tomorrow morning. So, I really don't have anywhere to go."

"Oh. Well, I was just going to the house; you're more than welcome to come along. I am in desperate need of a shower and I can loan you some clean clothes, seeing as you've been wearing the same thing since last night."

"Okay-"

"And you can get something to eat while you're at it, I'm sure you're hungry as well as I am."

"Okay." Lark repeated with a smile to Tom. "I think she's trying to adopt me."

The three started to head out down the hallway when Lark looked to see a man in uniform rushing up to her. Tom and April paused as Lark lifted a small smile on her lips.

"Lark? Hey!"

"Jesse!" Lark ran over and gave him a kiss and hug. "Where on earth have you been?"

"Duty called. I was stuck on that damn assignment but they let me go early after they said you were at the hospital. Are you okay? You hurt?"

"No, no! I'm fine. Just a little bump on the head, nothing serious!" Lark turned as Tom and April came closer. "Oh, guys, this is my boyfriend, Jesse, but you figured that by now." They figured. "Jesse, this is my friend, April." April smirked to him and he shook her hand. "And that's Tom, another friend I just met not too long ago." Tom reached out to shake his hand next.

"So, you're Lark's boyfriend?" April wanted to make him sure. "You work with Bob Candis, then. I met you two out in the woods."

"That's right." Jesse nodded. "In fact, Bob was the one that told me she was here. We've been tracing that damn convict for months and just today, I got the report saying he was found and caught!"

"That's really great, Jesse. I'm glad he was caught." April said, hoping Casey and the others weren't caught as well out there. "We were just about to leave from here. Since I figured Lark would be going home alone, I was going to take her with me."

Jesse turned to Lark. "So, it's a good thing I caught you just in time, isn't it? You ready to go home?" Lark looked over to April with a smile.

"Yeah, I guess so." Lark turned to give April a hug. "I'll see you around, April. I hope your family gets home safe."

"Me too." April returned the hug.

Lark shook Tom's hand again. "It was nice meeting you, Tom. I hope your sister has a speedy recovery."

"So do I. Take care of yourself."

Lark smiled and turned to walk down the hall with Jesse at her side. She felt him take her arm and lock it around his own, followed by his pace slightly quickening. Lark laughed a little to him as they headed for the exit.

"Jesse, what's the big hurry?" The two stepped out and down onto the street where she saw two cop cars instead of one. Two officers stepped out and approached her. "Um, you didn't have to bring your friends, Jesse." Jesse said nothing as he got into the passenger's seat of the car. "Jesse-"

"Miss Lark Hanson." Lark turned to face another officer standing next to her. "You were reported to have been working illegally in an unauthorized facility, and with that, we are putting you under arrest for collaborating with wanted convict, Kelvin Harris- "

"What?! Jesse! What are you- ow!" Someone came up from behind and pushed her down on the hood, placing her arms behind her in applying hand cuffs while another quietly read her rights. "Hey! Damn it! No, Jesse! Please!"

"I'm sorry to have to do this, sweetie." Jesse watched as she was placed in the backseat. "But, I didn't have a choice."

The two squad cars drove off just as April and Tom walked out of the hospital exit, looking left to right, then heading down to the parked pick-up truck. The sun was slowly setting and a cool breeze was whipping up strongly with the temperatures decreasing to the forties. April stepped into the passenger seat and smiled warmly to Tom whom climbed in next beside her.

"It's so good to know Harris has been caught, Lark's going home with her boyfriend, and all I need to see is my family at home waiting for me to cook a big meal that I promised I'd make. Nothing can go wrong now, can it?"

"I certainly hope not, April." Tom grinned and put it in drive. "Certainly hope not."

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