Bounding off a building side, Michelangelo landed atop a small scaffolding. He hunkered down and surveyed things that had caught his eye. Sun streaks through window curtains cast faint light on his face, and over his eyes. He glanced back without moving his head and motioned to his brothers who had stood frozen in shadow. They started moving again, keeping stooped low as if running under a low ceiling. Quickened steps landed softer then ever, and bandandas blew behind them in their own breeze of momentum.
Once more Mike leapt, forgetful of the jarring pain in his abdomen, till he landed again. A sour expression crossed his face, which was swallowed down as he checked over his shoulder again. His brothers came up from behind in silence, looking down on the gateway before them. A rectangular panel was inlet to the ground, flat and plain in appearance. This, as opposed to the half dozen others they had found was marked with a gilded fringe, eroding away into the stone adjacent to it.
Unspoken words transpassed between them and the panel was somehow hefted up, with nimble fingers that had grown accustomed to prying metal sheets off of streets. The unassumingly thick piece was set down quietly, and more footsteps carried them down below. Hands pushed the panel up from below and drew it back into it's place, settling in without commotion.
The small platform groaned beneath the weight, and tossed its dust off its open edge. A stale stench lingered in the air, and clung to the cold walls. With the gate again shut the room was shrouded in darkness. Donatello bumped into a few arms as he descended onto his knees, searching with his hands for the perimeter of the confines. He crawled about for a time, until his fingers clasped over an open edge. Giving a small grunt for attention he turned himself around and ventured a foot over the side. It hit another shorter platform that seemed to indicate the first step of a staircase. He reached back and tapped someones foot, aiming them in his direction. Once he heard mumblings of his information being passed he began his adventuring down the steps.
A short train began tailing downwards, feet falling tentatively on cold steps. Down deeper and deeper they descended, for many long minutes that made the front of their shins ache. Donatello led the way, till he hit floor, taking an akward lunge forward where he expected another step to be. As he turned around to warn his brothers Raphael fell into him with an angered grunt. He was pushed forward and stumbled to keep step.
Raphael held his hand out and produced a flame on his older brothers command. It illuminated them into a large room, where the stairs had finally led them to. The floor was baren, as well as the walls. Exempt for torches left unlit, hitched up with metal braces. As his brothers joined him on solid ground Raphael made a gun with his forefinger and thumb, shooting bursts of fire to the torches and lighting them in sucession. This gave the giant room it full appearance. Although there was nothing particularly full about the room. The tall hall was a clammy light yellow color all over. Barren of all life. A few narrow hallways led off into more darkness.
"That's good." Leonardo walked out in front and was followed by brothers. "Don, get the first aid kit out." Michelangelo and Erika hurriedly took the blankets out and made a nest out of them while Don set up the medical supplies, Raph looking over his shoulder from a distance. Stale air stuck to their skin, and prompted their throats to cough, but stuck their vocal cords.
Leonardo kneeled down and laid Lita in the blankets. She moaned faintly in response, her legs laying themselves straight. Leonardo waited by her side a few moments to see if any other noises would surface. He brushed her hair out of her face and stood back up. "Here Mike." Michealangelo sat beside the little station his brother had set up and laid back as Don began removing the tape from his bandages. "Erika, would you check up Lita. And Raph, you're after Mike." Raphael grunted in response and left to wander around the hallways. "And don't go too far."
"Sweet jesus, Mike." Don whispered, blotting up blood. A pair of big brown eyes looked up at him upon hearing this.
"What is it?" He asked. Don swiped his plastron with a soggy piece of guaze and rummaged through his tin of things.
"Nothing. Don't worry about it." He mumbled.
"No, what"
"Nothing, ok?" Don squirted some gel on his fingers and dotted it on the crack beginning again to bleed, that had grown on Mikes' stomach. "Everything's fine." Mike pursed his lips and laid his head back again. Don gelled over the crack and sutured it shut best be could before redressing the bandage. Mike had fallen asleep, so he tucked the backpack under his head and laid a blanket over him.
Leo turned from examining the walls as Don tapped his shoulder. His face reflected the same concern as Donatellos after only glancing at him. "What."
"Mike. I... he's bleeding pretty bad. I think part of a rib broke off from the inside of his carapace. It's look like he's shredding up inside." Leonardo frowned. "I could try to take it out, but I don't know where it is, or how deep. And after that there's nothing I could really do about the bleeding."
"...How long."
"I don't know. What I'm pretty sure of is the more he moves around the shorter he has." Leo looked over at the torch, his iris's shrinking. "I think the bleeding's slowed. He's sleeping now."
"...Alright. Let him rest. We'll stay down here till night." Leo ran his hand over his head. "What do we have left."
"A few more bandages, some tape, disinfectant, cold pack, a box of band aids, and masters salve."
"Do what you can for Raph with that. I'll go see if there's some water around here."
"Alright. Just send Raph out if you find him." Leonardo looked around the room, without finding his brother. "I think he wandered off that way awhile ago." He nodded and started off down one of the hallways. Don looked back at camp, then walked back to it.
"Go back to camp, Don's getting ready for you." Raph slanted his eyes to the sides of their sockets, as if he could see behind him this way. After a few silent moments he looked forward again. "...Raph. Camp." He felt no need to respond. When Leo placed a hand on his shoulder though he felt obligated to put him in his place. Grabbing the wrist as an axis, he pulled it forward and down as he spun out of his sitting position, through a low spin kick, tripping him at the shins. Leonardo fell forward as his brother turned out of the spin. He jutted his foot back and hit Raphaels shell, knocking him to the ground. They both grunted as they hit the ground, and flipped back to their feet.
"I'll go back when I want." Raph jutted his hands out and fired off balls of flame in his brothers general direction. They burst in flashes and licks of fire as they missed Leonardos swift feet, hitting the floor and back wall of the bedroom. He leapt onto the bed and hunkered down in preparation to make another leap if need be.
"That's enough Raph." Raphael snarled, his fists powering up.
"Fuck you!" Leonardo snatched the blanket off the bed and threw it at the fire ball Raph shot at him. The blanket caught aflame and fell to the ground. Leonardo jumped through the disguising smoke, reaching out to grab his brother. He was dodged and knocked away, rolling back onto his feet.
"Raphael..." He said in warning. He raised back into a defensive position as Raphael bared his hands as claws. Bits of flame would jump from his fingernails here and there. The two circled each other in some infernal game of ninja chess. Raphael snarled.
"This is your fault you know..."
"What. This isn't my fault"
"If you weren't always out to strangle that wizard fuck he woulda left us alone!" Raphael gave the flaming blanket a kick at him. It flew onto Leonardos chest and legs, wrapping around like a wet tissue. "You're always chasing Lita's tail, got pissed off someone else looked at her and dragged us in with you, mother-fucker!"
"That's enough! Stop!" Leonardo threw the blanket off and flipped from standing to the other side of the room, landing shell to shell with Raphael. He hooked his elbow to elbow even before he had landed. With a grunt he lifted a writhing Raphael off the ground and flipped him over his head onto the floor. Ironic, since Raph was the WCW fan. "I said," Leonardo dropped onto the floor, his knees on either shoulder to hold him down. "Stop it." Raphael sneered, still thrashing around best he could.
"Admit it you shit head! We're always being dragged along for your vendettas, ass licker! Just like when you couldn't finish off Shredder!" Leonardo gnarled and slammed Raphs shoulders down.
"Fine, you want me to say it?"
"Yeah!"
"Fine. I fucked this one! Anything else?!"
"....no."
"Good! 'Cause I'm still calling the shots around here, snot, and I'm telling you to go back to camp." He snarled. Raphael's dark eyes looked back up at him with a disquieting blankness. Leonardo rolled back up on his heels and stood up. "Go." He commanded. The burning blanket behind him made long shadows. Raphael stood up to be head to head with him, but found them not to be measured on the same scale. His eyes gave another display flare of anger and he stalked off. The blanket began simmering down, the mass of fabric burnt out. Leonardo turned his head a few degrees behind him toward the door. He waited several minutes. Then walked out after Raphael.
As day set, the light of the torches began dimming. As if they could feel the movements of heavenly bodies in their light. The air became cleaner with new breath. And the homestyle scent of bushes baked beans cleared out the past mothballs smell.
Donatello worked rigging up a stretcher out of materials he snatched from the surface, tying bars together with leather straps he had torn from his belt as a long frame. Raphael helped him by turning the rest of the belts into strips, sitting across from him on the other side of the frame.
Erika started the fire and pot by Michelangelo while he slept. She hoped the smell of food would make him feel better. Instead he dreampt of being drowned in a sea of baked beans. Clutching a piece of ever soggy bread as a life preserver.
Leonardo had made repeated trips to the underground reservoir refilling the water flasks. He gave it to Erika to boil. And spent the rest of his time hovering over Mike to keep him from turning about in his sleep. There was little else he could do then. Michelangelo settled down enough to let him leave for a moment, he went to tend to Lita.
He knelt down beside her and folded his hands in his lap. Lita still lay where she had been set, her tee shirt twisted around some. Her mouth opened just so while she breathed in, and her bottom lip pouted just a little when she breathed out.
Leonardo reached out and brushed a shard of of spiked hair behind her ear. His hand drifted down along the apple of her cheek, down her cheek bone. Up to the bridge of her nose and down to the indentation below it. He pursed his lips, tilting his head to the side. His finger trailed down slowly and rested on her bottom lip. He left it there and watched her eyes, forgetting briefly his station.
"Leonardo..." Her lips moved under his finger. He looked at it, and up into her eyes with some expectation. Warm fingers moved over his hand and held onto it. Lita's eyes opened gradually and smiled without moving her mouth. Leonardo straightened his head. "Here you are..."
"Lita..." He found his fingers beginning to curl around hers. She blinked several times, and the moment vanished.
"Oh." Their hands slipped from each other and Lita rolled over, onto her stomach, then up on her knees. She folded her hands on her knees, her eyes cast downwards. "Um," Her face turned red and she laughed while scratching the back of her head. "Ha ha, Hi!" She cocked her head to him and laughed nervously a few times more. "Eh, heh heh heh..."
Stagnant water sat like concrete in the reservoir, a thin layer of dust laying atop the surface like a table cloth. Lita sat on the actual concrete, kicking her legs over the edge of the scaffold, hanging her head. Behind her she could hear the agitated paces of Leonardos feet cease for a second when he looked down at her, then begin again. She laid back on the floor and he stopped in front of her, looking authoritaritive. She wouldn't buy it though.
"...This is the second time you've had these flash backs." She nodded once. "When were you planning on telling me?"
"I thought the first one was a dream. I didn't know it was anything important." Leonardo scoffed and looked away, his discontent for her lack of prudence showing. Lita felt pain from his look, but was too sad this time to pout. She looked down and turned her head to rest on the floor.
"If you could only--... just..."
"Remember?" Leonardo refused to accept her finishing of his sentance. It was what he would've said, though. His manners forbade him to do so however. He looked down at her and let his rebelious eye soften. His manners always came first in his mind when he was around her. Why was he allowing them to come to his mouth only now. Especially when he had many retorts developing in reserve .
Yes, why did he allow her this respect. She was weak. She always was a weak crybaby. Pouting and posing and running crying to Splinter whenever he yelled at her. He never understood why he got stuck with such a silly crybaby of a girl. Girls. What silly little puffs of emotion. Desiring to be reflections of male fantasies. If they weren't prancing about with a cold shoulder they were draping themselves over the nearest source of all consuming attention. And if they weren't required for the survival of the world he might just swear them off all together. And she would be the first on his list...
Then why... what were those times when the clouds she veiled over her eyes drew back, and he could see the deep spirit she held hidden from everyone. Those times when he wanted to help her, at least befriend her, and she yelled and ran away. What was it that pushed him far away. What was the truth she held in her soul that he so despreately wanted to see. And why should he care?
Why should he care. She was a silly crybaby after all. He had no time to deal with her shenanigans. He looked down at her and his hard edge returned. "You're staying back by Mike from now on." Her head whipped up and he could see the shock, outrage, and almost indignation written all over her face.
"No way!" Her feet scraped against the floor as she scrambled to her feet. "You can't do that!" He straighened his back as she stood up in front of him.
"What would you expect we do if you had another black out. It would slow us down if I had to carry you around. That way we could just keep you on the stretcher with Mike and keep moving." She made an offended little noise and her eyes stretched wider.
"I'm not a dead body you know. You can't throw me around like a sack of grain!"
"If you act like one I'll have to." He watched as she began stomping and pacing around. It amused him and he continued to watch her for several moments while she contemplated his orders. Dust kicked up with all the activity and he went up near the water to watch the vibrations her liveliness made. Liveliness... or loveliness...? A deep voice suggested in his head. Leonardo jumped out of his shell. He pivoted around to catch who had given him the fright, remembering leaving his swords at camp. Just as he began to turn Lita shoved him over the edge with some vicious strength. "Fuck!" He swore as he toppled backwards.
The first thing that came to his mind was how Lita was not going to let him up. It scared him a bit as he thrashed around under the surface. He knew that he could stay under water for a good half an hour he reminded himself as he quickly ran through his own docket of the situation. Lita didn't appear to know this, for she let him come to the surface for breath.
Breaking through to air he shook his head to swipe the wet bandana tails away from his face. They landed on the top of his head and began to slide downwards in a most undignified manner. Lita stood at the edge of the platform to look down at him. She crossed her arms and frowned, showing she wished to have kept him under longer. He snarled at her for the first real time.
His better judgement warned him, but some stupid cockier side of him drove him to speak. "That all?" She gave another unintentional scoff and kicked dirt in his face. The puff hit his face and stuck to him like a pack of hungry misquitos. His skin itched like crazy and he wiped it with the side of his arm, ceding some relief. Giving the bandana tails a flick with his hand as he finished, he continued to glare.
"How does it feel."
"What, itchy and cold?" She knelt down by the water.
"No, being treated like a peice of meat." He grabbed her arm.
"Why don't you tell me." Giving a yank she was jerked forward alongside him. She screamed, and as he passed her the thought occured to him that it might not have been the best time to do that. Too late.
The water swallowed her as well, but much more amicabley. She disapeared under the surface without making a ripple of disturbance. Like a mermaid she disapeared into the cloudy water, as if wishing some escape.
Leonardo swam over to the platform and set his arm upon it for support. His legs were tiring from treading water with the bulky shell. He waited for her not too long, and she resurfaced.
Watery anger poured from her face and she seemed to be wishing him dead. His
legs felt heavier, and to sluggish to kick. "Mother fucker." Lita climbed up
ontop the waters surface as if it was solid land and knelt. She watched as Leonardo
took a sudden sluggish approach to swimming. The water around him turned to
a thicker consistancy, like that of mollases. As long as he was hanging in her
element she would not grant him the same liberties as others... she wouldn't
kill him either. The thought did enter her mind though.
But it wasn't him she even wanted to have done away with. It was those memories
he brought out in her, that made her stomach turn.
All those others that had hurt her. Every hand she had been passed through that had naried to give her a second glace. Every family. All those who had tired too quickly for caring of a homesick baby. Those who struck adventurous children that made to much noise. He who called young girls fat and ugly. And she who had done it all. Had literally chained her home. Had hit, and yelled, insulted, and ignored. Had made her so small.
He had rescued her from that, had he naught? Often she wondered, though. If not for his oh-so-imperitive task to complete, would he have come for her? Would he still be her 'knight in shining armor'. Or would he have turned away. Would he have left her. Like all the others.
Strange that these were the things that kept her awake at night. Was she afraid to think that someone cared about her. Or afraid that someone didn't.
All this he evoked in her everyday. And everyday she questioned her trust in him. When he demanded her trust. That was when she failed. And when he then became angry. And she became angry. They were both angry and they walked away from it all. Some relief at least from her troubled thoughts.
And what were these times now. When waking up she could feel his life force. Could feel his heart beat in her fingers. When every part of her knew how to trust, and knew soully trust in him. How she wanted to crawl up beside him and feel his pulse.
And as she woke from that state, she began to wish to feel it all again. She wished she could trust him, like nothing she'd ever wanted before. And then she was awake, and would like nothing more to go far away where no one could touch her... Where no one could touch her like he did.
But now all these thoughts were erased, for she knew the truth. Leonardo was just like all the rest. Just around to use her for his goal, and leave her when he was done. She was right all along. She was just a piece of collateral. A functional posession that talked back.
Well. She was ready to do a whole lot more than that right now. Her brow furrowed and her lower lip stuck out in a sort of angry face, too proud to quiver.
"Mother fucker." She muttered. Leonardo seemed unimpressed with her rebutal. "You're just like everyone else, you big stupid dickhead! I was stupid to think you were any different!"
"How true." She yelled with her mouth closed and clenched her fists.
"Go fuck yourself assbite!" He rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't even be helping you if it wasn't for Splinters sake. Dirtbag!" He actually glared at her. Apparently he considered this some disrespect.
"Your nobility is just wonderful." Something snapped in Lita and she screamed. Not particulaly in pain. Like intense frustration... and some pain. Leonardo felt the water behind him start to part. In front of him it began to push back....
Darkness briefly broken by moonlight through heavy clouds. Sponged light blotches reflected back off crawling shores... feelings of fear...
Leonardo shook his head out of the peculiar memory that forced its way to his memory. He was still being pressed against, kicking up a wake behind him as the water made way for him away from the platform. A wave of nausea came as he felt another memory coming.
Sand. Sand everywhere, and it seemed to get in the way. Hands searched over it in darkness, and he was calling out. Calling out to himself? There were surging feelings of trepidition, and sand stuck on his pants...
Swimming against the current was futile, but he still made some opposing strokes in the water with his arms so Lita wouldn't throw him around anywhere she liked. What was that bitch doing anyway. He struggled to turn around some to look back where she was.
Lita sat still on the waters surface, clenched up in agitation like he'd never seen. It was as if she was no longer in conrtol of what she was doing. Which only served to scare the shit out of Leo...
Clouds parted to cast faded light down upon the water. Empty. Almost listless. But something reached him. He could feel something that told him otherwise. Something scary, and new. He ran toward the water, tearing off his clothes. Something occured to him that if he swam nude he could reach his destination by disintigrating to a solution with the water, and rematerializing wherever he pleases....
Holy shit! Leonardo suddenly relized he was recieving Lita's memories. She seemed to be eminating them in such an excited energy state. He was living the memory of some point when she was looking for someone. Him? Before his mind could jump to the next conclusion another wave of nasuea came and he stopped. Not only that, but he stopped moving. The water finally let him be, and settled back into placid peace.
He looked up across the reservoir with caution, treading water slowly as he could. She appeared to be done, and only looked back at him. None of the anger had left her yet.
"I'm not coming to get you this time! You're on your own!" She called to him. He sent her a look and shrugged, shaking his head. This frustrated her, and he promptly recieved what felt like a punch between his legs. He grimaced and stifled a groan. If he didn't have a protective plastron she might've done some damage. "I don't care!!"
"What, should I?" What was he doing? Giving her more reason to drown him. Hmm... She was just boiling over with turbulence now.
"mm.... A-hm....?" A timid throat clearing broke through at last durring a quiet spot in time. It felt aknowledged after no one interuppted it and continued. "Mike's awake. Don said you wanted to know right away. He started packing up the things." Leonardo cleared his throat and at last averted his gaze from Lita.
"Thank you Erika." She smiled timidly to either of them and came to the edge of the platform as Lita began to pull herself up, taking her hand and pulling her up beside her. Leonardo swam towards the ground as dignified as possible. Fortunately Lita ran off instead of watching and making a mockery of him. "Go on." Erika bowed to him and followed, taking a left down the hall after Lita, in the opposite direction of camp. Leonardo gave a sigh of relief and climbed back up onto solid ground. His head and stomach throbbed, and he allowed himself to collapse over briefly. "Ug."
What a day. What a retched day. Fight with dragons, fight with Raph, fight with Lita. He wasn't too proud of that last one. And now he had go explain to Mike why he wouldn't be walking with them. Unless Don already had.har har. Don was all brains and no balls. He probably left the talk for him.
Raph was going to be even more non-responsive than before. Now that he had been put in his place. That was going to be a cake walk. Which left Erika. And she had been acting exceptionally fragile ever since Noriko was killed. He wondered if either of them were stable enough to fight.
Considering returning home to recuperate was varied inversely with Splinters well being. Returning now might also do more harm to them than good as well. And how would time pass here as opposed to back on Earth. Hadn't they crossed a dimensional barrier? He should ask Lita.
Don should ask Lita.
Just another day in the life of a superhero Leonardo quipped to himself. He climbed back to his feet. Movements in the water attracted his eye to the reflection cast by the platform. A black splotch of color passed, like a sparrow... 2 more sparrows...
A droning hiss echoed down the hall, and hushed softly. Leonardo jumped out into the hall, parring the swords he snatched up as he ran. A flash of black wings disapeared around the corner, and the hall was empty.
Lights blasted down the hall, like a series of yellow-orange fireworks were being set off back at camp. Reverberations soon followed, Leonardo took off toward camp.