Chapter 9
April awoke with a slight sound in the distance, something familiar, the whoosh of weapons, the cadence of practice, and for a moment she thought she might have spent the night in the Turtle's lair. But she wasn't on the couch. She opened her eyes and saw the flowing fountain and the cold walls of the Temple and it all came back in stages, as fantastic as it seemed. She sat up off the hard, stone floor, aching and stretched her bound hands out in front of her, looking through the arched Temple doorway to the green grass and sunlight beyond. In and out of the frame of the doorway she saw Oroku Saki pass on the grass, shirt off, sweat glistening off his skin. He wielded the golden arrow and spun in and out of view, a bizarrely graceful, and ultimately terrifying, dance.
She heard him approach the doorway, and she lay back down, not wanting to deal with him, or reality.
She could hear his steps across the stone floor and she tensed when they came near. Audibly he disappeared, and she couldn't track where he was.
She started when a voice sounded in her ear. "You're awake, Miss O'Neil. And not very good at concealing it."
She sat up and saw he knelt right beside her. He was still a terrifying sight, dark hair swept over his eyes, dark and inscrutable, and his muscles bulging as he breathed hard after the work out.
She glared at him and held out her bound hands. "Is this really necessary? I'm not going anywhere."
"How do I know you don't have any of your whoring potions hidden away?" He gazed calmly at her.
April blinked. Was he trying to be funny? "Look, what are we going to do? I think we've figured out what those women's plans are, both with you and turtles. But the fact remains you can't get out of here without them."
"That's not precisely true," he growled. "There is something I need, yes. But it is hardly your vile little friends."
"But you need the position of the portal from Don. You can't find it...or is there something you're not telling me?" April paused, thinking fast. "Even so...you obviously still need them, or you wouldn't have bothered getting so angry last night or keeping me around. So, there only seems to be one course of action."
"And what would that be?" he said. Was that amusement in his voice?
"It's rather obvious. We have to go back to the palace. I have to appear to have you prisoner, and that I'm bargaining for the turtles. And, when they release them, we all get out."
"A likely plan," Saki snorted. "As it involves you holding a knife to my throat. Do you really think I'll trust myself to your acting abilities and the good will of those wretched turtles? You must think I'm a fool."
"Fine," April said, exasperated. "Tell me a better plan. I guess you could scour this entire jungle to find the invisible portal. But, I think it's more likely that you'll be caught pretty quickly by a bunch of ladies hiding in the bushes with poison arrows. At this moment, you've got an entire civilization out to get you."
Saki glared at her and reared up from the floor. He paced around for a second or two, and April understood that he began to see that her option was the only one.
Suddenly, he turned and came at her with the golden arrow. She flinched as he grabbed her wrists roughly. But her merely cut through the bonds. She rubbed her wrists as he tossed the arrow at her feet. "And how would you do this? How would you convince them?"
April rose to the challenge resolutely. She stood, hefting the arrow and walked fearlessly up to Shredder. She stood a moment before him, inches from where her eyes came level to his neck, and glanced up into his dark eyes. Then, she stepped around behind him. Her eyes were now level with his upper back muscles. He continued to look forward. Slowly, she came to his side, and slid a shaking left hand onto his abdomen, feeling along the hard muscles and also brought the tip of the arrow against his neck, just where the skin pulsed faintly. She stood for a moment, feeling confident.
But, Saki suddenly spun, and in a flash, he had disarmed her, painfully pulled her arms behind her back and now pressed the arrow to her neck. They were face to face, and April gasped with anger and terror. His eyes glared into hers. "Not very convincing Miss O'Neil. Now, allow me to ask you a question. There was a sai, that abominable night in the bedroom. You struck me with it. May I ask where it is?"
A sai? What the hell was he talking about? Her mind raced to the scene in the bedroom. She had struck him with Raph's sai. And later, it had skittered under the bed after an archer had hit in from her hand. It could very well still be there. "Why?"
Saki tightened his grip. "You will not ask me questions! Where is it!"
April glared at him. "Tell me, and I'll tell you where it is."
He pressed the arrow harder against her neck, and April yelped when it pierced her skin. And then, as if by a miracle, his body jerked and his eyes widened. He released her and stumbled a few steps back, dropping the arrow, and sat down clumsily on the ground.
April stared dumbly for a moment. And then Ancha stepped through the doorway, lowering her bow. "I was afraid the Paelo would be up to trickery once the potion had worn off."
Saki sat on the ground gasping. He stared dumbly up at the tall warrior who approached him and plucked a small dart from his shoulder. "What witchery is this?" he cried.
"Merely a stillness dart. You will not move until we tell you, as it should be between men and women." Ancha said angrily. "Are you all right April? He did not harm you?"
"No, Ancha. Thank you so much...but, what are you doing here?"
"I come bearing a message from the Queen, and I think it worth your while to listen." She sat down next to the seething Shredder who clearly was struggling to move, but could only sit dumbly. April sat down as well. They made an odd little council.
Ancha began. "She has attempted to gain union with one of your friends..." At this April gasped, but Ancha held her hand up. "But it did not work. I am still not privy as to how this union is achieved, although I now know it has little to do with the pleasures we are promised in the holy songs." With this statement, she cast a rueful and lingering glance at Saki's shirt-less body. "All of this aside, the Queen now believes your interests lie more with your tawdi than the Paelo, and that you would truly be willing to trade him for your friends."
April glanced at Saki's angry face but looked back at Ancha. "Of course. He is our enemy, we merely want to leave. Of course she can have him." At this, Shredder muttered "bitch" under his breath.
Ancha sighed. "I thought this would be the case. As such, you will be given free passage tonight to have audience with the Queen. The Paelo can then be formally relinquished for the lives of your friends...April, I would not have come here unless I believed her. I told you I suspect many foul things...but I still must accept that however it is utilized, the Paelo is still the life-source of my people. It is shameful that it is not renewed through an act of love, but, however it must pass, my people must have this creature to survive."
April nodded, her mind racing. "I will bring him tonight."
Ancha nodded. "As such, I leave you with a potion. He will be made as weak as a child, although his wits will still be about him. Thus, the hatred between you will remain apparent, and none shall suspect you of deception. You can walk him to the Palace, and there you will receive your friends." Ancha handed April a small dart and then she rose. "I must leave and not return to the Palace for hours yet. I must, of course, make it appear as if it was difficult to find you." She smiled slightly.
"Thank you for everything, Ancha."
Ancha smiled briefly, but threw a quick sad glance at Saki before departing.
"You treacherous bitch!" Saki growled.
April stood, glaring down at him, filled with a sudden power. She walked toward him, and thrust him to the ground with a push. He fell helplessly and she knelt over him, a hand on each shoulder.
"You will tell me about the sai now."
"Ha!" he said, his head rolling to side the pathetically. April sighed and took his face in her hands, turning it back to face her. His eyes were watering with frustration. "Listen to me, Shredder. My offer still stands. We will take you with us. If you tell me about what the sai has to do with getting us home. If you tell me this, we will go through with the plan I suggested this morning. I will appear to hand you over, but we will all leave together. If you do not, I will turn you over for real, the turtles will be released, and we will take our chances. Your fate, however, will be quite sealed." She paused for a moment. "Besides, I think with just the hint about the sai, Don could probably figure out how to get home."
Saki stared up at her aghast. It was dawning on him that she had complete power in this situation. "Miss O'Neil...April....if I do tell you, will you swear an oath of honor not to abandon me to those demons?"
April understood the depth of a such an oath, an oath which even Saki was known to keep. "Yes," she said, and meant it.
He glared at her for another moment before speaking. "I knew it when you hit me with that sai. I could taste in the metal that it had been electrified at some point. I knew it had been the sai that hit the dimensional transporter that sent us here. It is the key to opening the portal. The energy that coursed through it made it capable of cutting through dimensions. It will, once the place of the portal is discovered, cut right through the air and open a path home."
"Of course," April breathed. And they had had it all along! And she had lost it! How simple it was! She released his face, and his head lolled to the side. He was gasping with anger, frustration and effort, completely unable to move.
"I can't move!" he stuttered in a panic.
It dawned on April how utterly helpless he was, at the mercy of his enemies, subject to strange potions. As a ninja, his greatest sense of control came from his finely tuned body, his razor sharp coordination, and now he had lost it all. She reached down and steadied his head again, so he could see her. "It will wear off soon, don't worry," she said in a quiet voice. His eyes were wild with panic. She found herself stroking his forehead, running her fingers over his cheek. "Calm down...it's ok...you know I meant what I said. No matter what happens, we will take you with us. And then, hey, we can be enemies all over again...no more potions. Just good old fighting again on an even playing field."
His eyes were fluttering, the potion taking a stronger hold on his being, forcing him to sleep. She placed his head gently on his side and let him sleep, letting her finger rest lightly on his lips for just a moment. Geez, she thought to herself. The sooner I get away from him, the better. I'm getting a genuine soft spot for this big brute. She stepped out of the temple into the sunlight so she could plan better for that evening when she would have to save the turtles, herself, and Shredder, for better or worse.
************************************************
"You have got to be joking!" cried Mike. "That is, like, so weird! She tried to suck your soul out or something?"
"Not quite," Don said mulling over Leo's story of his encounter with the Queen. "It sounds more like they feed off the energy of male creatures to remain young...although it is now clear they can only feed off human men."
"Sounds like Shred-head will be the Monday night special then" Raph said sourly.
"That's exactly right," Leonardo said. "And we're going to make sure he is. According to the Queen, Ancha has been sent out to convey the offer to April. She should be bringing him back to the Palace tonight. He'll probably try to pull something, but I've agreed, in good faith, to make sure they capture him. And then we can leave. As long as April made Shred-head talk about how to get home, we're golden."
They were sitting in the same round chamber as before, but they had been released from their fetters. Striking the deal with the Queen had improved their situation greatly. While still locked up, they were now feasting on a decent spread of food given as a sign of good will. And they were told that in the evening their weapons would be returned to them so they could subdue Shredder in front of the crowd, appeasing them, and reaffirming the Queen's power.
Don munched silently for a moment. "How can we trust her?"
Leo shrugged. "I don't think we have much choice. But to be honest, they don't have any use for us now. This whole thing is going to go down in front of the entire court. Apparently there has been rumors flying around about their religion, about how it's not all what it's cracked up to be. By doing this formal trade in front of the court, and letting us go, they'll be reaffirming their cover story about their "honorable" acquisition of men, and everyone's happy."
Don blinked. "But for one person...I mean, can we really turn Saki over to these women?"
Raph reached out and knocked Don on the head. "Ouch!"
"Well, you asked a stupid question." Raph said, reaching for another piece of cheese.
Leo sighed. "I made a promise. It's simply come down to us or him. And if that's the case, I don't feel a bit bad about turning Can-Head over to these women." As Leo said this, he had a moment where the demonic laughter of the Queen rang out in his head, promising Shredder pain worse than any had ever experienced, but he dampened the thought and put it away deep in his heart. It was us or him, he repeated to himself, and he almost believed it.
******************************
Author's Note: Thanks so much for all the reviews! I read them closely and try to pay attention to the suggestions...after all, I don't write this crazy stuff for myself! The last couple chapters had to be a little slow to set up what, I'm sure you'll gather, will be quite a scene in the Palace. The hope was to get the angst up to the proper pitch and test everyone's loyalties and morals to the limit...let me know what you think so I can get myself together to write the next bit. Peace out!
(P.S: and I'm sure loyal readers might catch a shameless reference to another wonderful series of books in this chapter.)
April awoke with a slight sound in the distance, something familiar, the whoosh of weapons, the cadence of practice, and for a moment she thought she might have spent the night in the Turtle's lair. But she wasn't on the couch. She opened her eyes and saw the flowing fountain and the cold walls of the Temple and it all came back in stages, as fantastic as it seemed. She sat up off the hard, stone floor, aching and stretched her bound hands out in front of her, looking through the arched Temple doorway to the green grass and sunlight beyond. In and out of the frame of the doorway she saw Oroku Saki pass on the grass, shirt off, sweat glistening off his skin. He wielded the golden arrow and spun in and out of view, a bizarrely graceful, and ultimately terrifying, dance.
She heard him approach the doorway, and she lay back down, not wanting to deal with him, or reality.
She could hear his steps across the stone floor and she tensed when they came near. Audibly he disappeared, and she couldn't track where he was.
She started when a voice sounded in her ear. "You're awake, Miss O'Neil. And not very good at concealing it."
She sat up and saw he knelt right beside her. He was still a terrifying sight, dark hair swept over his eyes, dark and inscrutable, and his muscles bulging as he breathed hard after the work out.
She glared at him and held out her bound hands. "Is this really necessary? I'm not going anywhere."
"How do I know you don't have any of your whoring potions hidden away?" He gazed calmly at her.
April blinked. Was he trying to be funny? "Look, what are we going to do? I think we've figured out what those women's plans are, both with you and turtles. But the fact remains you can't get out of here without them."
"That's not precisely true," he growled. "There is something I need, yes. But it is hardly your vile little friends."
"But you need the position of the portal from Don. You can't find it...or is there something you're not telling me?" April paused, thinking fast. "Even so...you obviously still need them, or you wouldn't have bothered getting so angry last night or keeping me around. So, there only seems to be one course of action."
"And what would that be?" he said. Was that amusement in his voice?
"It's rather obvious. We have to go back to the palace. I have to appear to have you prisoner, and that I'm bargaining for the turtles. And, when they release them, we all get out."
"A likely plan," Saki snorted. "As it involves you holding a knife to my throat. Do you really think I'll trust myself to your acting abilities and the good will of those wretched turtles? You must think I'm a fool."
"Fine," April said, exasperated. "Tell me a better plan. I guess you could scour this entire jungle to find the invisible portal. But, I think it's more likely that you'll be caught pretty quickly by a bunch of ladies hiding in the bushes with poison arrows. At this moment, you've got an entire civilization out to get you."
Saki glared at her and reared up from the floor. He paced around for a second or two, and April understood that he began to see that her option was the only one.
Suddenly, he turned and came at her with the golden arrow. She flinched as he grabbed her wrists roughly. But her merely cut through the bonds. She rubbed her wrists as he tossed the arrow at her feet. "And how would you do this? How would you convince them?"
April rose to the challenge resolutely. She stood, hefting the arrow and walked fearlessly up to Shredder. She stood a moment before him, inches from where her eyes came level to his neck, and glanced up into his dark eyes. Then, she stepped around behind him. Her eyes were now level with his upper back muscles. He continued to look forward. Slowly, she came to his side, and slid a shaking left hand onto his abdomen, feeling along the hard muscles and also brought the tip of the arrow against his neck, just where the skin pulsed faintly. She stood for a moment, feeling confident.
But, Saki suddenly spun, and in a flash, he had disarmed her, painfully pulled her arms behind her back and now pressed the arrow to her neck. They were face to face, and April gasped with anger and terror. His eyes glared into hers. "Not very convincing Miss O'Neil. Now, allow me to ask you a question. There was a sai, that abominable night in the bedroom. You struck me with it. May I ask where it is?"
A sai? What the hell was he talking about? Her mind raced to the scene in the bedroom. She had struck him with Raph's sai. And later, it had skittered under the bed after an archer had hit in from her hand. It could very well still be there. "Why?"
Saki tightened his grip. "You will not ask me questions! Where is it!"
April glared at him. "Tell me, and I'll tell you where it is."
He pressed the arrow harder against her neck, and April yelped when it pierced her skin. And then, as if by a miracle, his body jerked and his eyes widened. He released her and stumbled a few steps back, dropping the arrow, and sat down clumsily on the ground.
April stared dumbly for a moment. And then Ancha stepped through the doorway, lowering her bow. "I was afraid the Paelo would be up to trickery once the potion had worn off."
Saki sat on the ground gasping. He stared dumbly up at the tall warrior who approached him and plucked a small dart from his shoulder. "What witchery is this?" he cried.
"Merely a stillness dart. You will not move until we tell you, as it should be between men and women." Ancha said angrily. "Are you all right April? He did not harm you?"
"No, Ancha. Thank you so much...but, what are you doing here?"
"I come bearing a message from the Queen, and I think it worth your while to listen." She sat down next to the seething Shredder who clearly was struggling to move, but could only sit dumbly. April sat down as well. They made an odd little council.
Ancha began. "She has attempted to gain union with one of your friends..." At this April gasped, but Ancha held her hand up. "But it did not work. I am still not privy as to how this union is achieved, although I now know it has little to do with the pleasures we are promised in the holy songs." With this statement, she cast a rueful and lingering glance at Saki's shirt-less body. "All of this aside, the Queen now believes your interests lie more with your tawdi than the Paelo, and that you would truly be willing to trade him for your friends."
April glanced at Saki's angry face but looked back at Ancha. "Of course. He is our enemy, we merely want to leave. Of course she can have him." At this, Shredder muttered "bitch" under his breath.
Ancha sighed. "I thought this would be the case. As such, you will be given free passage tonight to have audience with the Queen. The Paelo can then be formally relinquished for the lives of your friends...April, I would not have come here unless I believed her. I told you I suspect many foul things...but I still must accept that however it is utilized, the Paelo is still the life-source of my people. It is shameful that it is not renewed through an act of love, but, however it must pass, my people must have this creature to survive."
April nodded, her mind racing. "I will bring him tonight."
Ancha nodded. "As such, I leave you with a potion. He will be made as weak as a child, although his wits will still be about him. Thus, the hatred between you will remain apparent, and none shall suspect you of deception. You can walk him to the Palace, and there you will receive your friends." Ancha handed April a small dart and then she rose. "I must leave and not return to the Palace for hours yet. I must, of course, make it appear as if it was difficult to find you." She smiled slightly.
"Thank you for everything, Ancha."
Ancha smiled briefly, but threw a quick sad glance at Saki before departing.
"You treacherous bitch!" Saki growled.
April stood, glaring down at him, filled with a sudden power. She walked toward him, and thrust him to the ground with a push. He fell helplessly and she knelt over him, a hand on each shoulder.
"You will tell me about the sai now."
"Ha!" he said, his head rolling to side the pathetically. April sighed and took his face in her hands, turning it back to face her. His eyes were watering with frustration. "Listen to me, Shredder. My offer still stands. We will take you with us. If you tell me about what the sai has to do with getting us home. If you tell me this, we will go through with the plan I suggested this morning. I will appear to hand you over, but we will all leave together. If you do not, I will turn you over for real, the turtles will be released, and we will take our chances. Your fate, however, will be quite sealed." She paused for a moment. "Besides, I think with just the hint about the sai, Don could probably figure out how to get home."
Saki stared up at her aghast. It was dawning on him that she had complete power in this situation. "Miss O'Neil...April....if I do tell you, will you swear an oath of honor not to abandon me to those demons?"
April understood the depth of a such an oath, an oath which even Saki was known to keep. "Yes," she said, and meant it.
He glared at her for another moment before speaking. "I knew it when you hit me with that sai. I could taste in the metal that it had been electrified at some point. I knew it had been the sai that hit the dimensional transporter that sent us here. It is the key to opening the portal. The energy that coursed through it made it capable of cutting through dimensions. It will, once the place of the portal is discovered, cut right through the air and open a path home."
"Of course," April breathed. And they had had it all along! And she had lost it! How simple it was! She released his face, and his head lolled to the side. He was gasping with anger, frustration and effort, completely unable to move.
"I can't move!" he stuttered in a panic.
It dawned on April how utterly helpless he was, at the mercy of his enemies, subject to strange potions. As a ninja, his greatest sense of control came from his finely tuned body, his razor sharp coordination, and now he had lost it all. She reached down and steadied his head again, so he could see her. "It will wear off soon, don't worry," she said in a quiet voice. His eyes were wild with panic. She found herself stroking his forehead, running her fingers over his cheek. "Calm down...it's ok...you know I meant what I said. No matter what happens, we will take you with us. And then, hey, we can be enemies all over again...no more potions. Just good old fighting again on an even playing field."
His eyes were fluttering, the potion taking a stronger hold on his being, forcing him to sleep. She placed his head gently on his side and let him sleep, letting her finger rest lightly on his lips for just a moment. Geez, she thought to herself. The sooner I get away from him, the better. I'm getting a genuine soft spot for this big brute. She stepped out of the temple into the sunlight so she could plan better for that evening when she would have to save the turtles, herself, and Shredder, for better or worse.
************************************************
"You have got to be joking!" cried Mike. "That is, like, so weird! She tried to suck your soul out or something?"
"Not quite," Don said mulling over Leo's story of his encounter with the Queen. "It sounds more like they feed off the energy of male creatures to remain young...although it is now clear they can only feed off human men."
"Sounds like Shred-head will be the Monday night special then" Raph said sourly.
"That's exactly right," Leonardo said. "And we're going to make sure he is. According to the Queen, Ancha has been sent out to convey the offer to April. She should be bringing him back to the Palace tonight. He'll probably try to pull something, but I've agreed, in good faith, to make sure they capture him. And then we can leave. As long as April made Shred-head talk about how to get home, we're golden."
They were sitting in the same round chamber as before, but they had been released from their fetters. Striking the deal with the Queen had improved their situation greatly. While still locked up, they were now feasting on a decent spread of food given as a sign of good will. And they were told that in the evening their weapons would be returned to them so they could subdue Shredder in front of the crowd, appeasing them, and reaffirming the Queen's power.
Don munched silently for a moment. "How can we trust her?"
Leo shrugged. "I don't think we have much choice. But to be honest, they don't have any use for us now. This whole thing is going to go down in front of the entire court. Apparently there has been rumors flying around about their religion, about how it's not all what it's cracked up to be. By doing this formal trade in front of the court, and letting us go, they'll be reaffirming their cover story about their "honorable" acquisition of men, and everyone's happy."
Don blinked. "But for one person...I mean, can we really turn Saki over to these women?"
Raph reached out and knocked Don on the head. "Ouch!"
"Well, you asked a stupid question." Raph said, reaching for another piece of cheese.
Leo sighed. "I made a promise. It's simply come down to us or him. And if that's the case, I don't feel a bit bad about turning Can-Head over to these women." As Leo said this, he had a moment where the demonic laughter of the Queen rang out in his head, promising Shredder pain worse than any had ever experienced, but he dampened the thought and put it away deep in his heart. It was us or him, he repeated to himself, and he almost believed it.
******************************
Author's Note: Thanks so much for all the reviews! I read them closely and try to pay attention to the suggestions...after all, I don't write this crazy stuff for myself! The last couple chapters had to be a little slow to set up what, I'm sure you'll gather, will be quite a scene in the Palace. The hope was to get the angst up to the proper pitch and test everyone's loyalties and morals to the limit...let me know what you think so I can get myself together to write the next bit. Peace out!
(P.S: and I'm sure loyal readers might catch a shameless reference to another wonderful series of books in this chapter.)
