Warning: some readers may find this chapter gory… It is a war after all. This chapter's quite long, but I wanted to include a lot of things. This is the second to last chapter of Part 1, depending on if I decide to divide the next chapter up.
Chapter 24: Manipulation.
The sun rose over the village of Ikhaya Labantu for what could possibly be the last time for some of the inhabitants. Well rested, Raifu rounded up all of the mutants in the town that could fight; young children and expectant mothers being excluded. After every piece of weaponry was checked, the army of mutants left Ikhaya and headed for the hills to confront Shere Khan for what was hopefully going to be the last time.
Michael's heart thudded with every step he took, as his mind raced with worried thoughts. No one knew how the event would end up, which made it all the more foreboding. The late morning air was quite chilly, but they figured the atmosphere would quickly heat up with hatred.
It seemed to take forever to find Shere Khan's army, but when they got there, they wished that the time took longer. The opposition spotted them in no time at all, and stood in a line, ready for anything. The two sides glared at each other, neither armies budging. All that was standing in-between them, was a large open field filled with rocks, grass and shrubbery. If there was such a thing as being a perfect spot for a war, this was the place. The only area that was of concern, was the raging waterfall and steep ravine that lay to the left of the open field.
There was a brief moment of silence before a tremendous war cry was emitted from both sides. A low rumbling sound flowed through the earth as the two armies stampeded towards each other; the cheetahs, the two leopards and Zareb leading the way with their weapons poised. There was a deafening clash of pain and triumph as some of the antelopes skewered the carnivorous mutants with their horns, while some of the lions pounced and snapped the necks of the opposition.
There was no time to think. Leonardo ducked a blow to the head and retaliated with his swords, decapitating his tiger enemy. He stood stunned at what he had just committed. Shocked, he wiped the splattered blood off his face, but was swiftly snapped out of his frozen state when a lion lunged towards him.
Donatello felt like he was going to throw up. A mutant tiger and an evil lion encircled him, both wary of the bo he held in his paws. The cheetah's heart beat a mile a minute causing him to grip the wooden weapon even tighter. The two mutants attacked Donatello at the same time. The cheetah swung the bo around connecting with the lion's jaw with the front of the weapon, while the back hit the oncoming tiger in the neck. He cringed when he heard a sharp crack in both of his opponent's heads. Don began to breathe more rapidly as the realisation of the gruesome act finally hit him.
With fearful eyes, he scanned the battle, not wanting to be a part of it. He didn't notice the tigress that was sneaking up behind him. The unknown enemy kicked the distracted cheetah in the back of the ribs. A searing pain stretched around Donatello's torso as the bone inside was snapped. He cried out in pain and was about to retaliate in defense when Venus came along and finished the tigress off with a surprisingly powerful chi blast. Venus looked at her hands in astonishment, amazed that she was able to pull that particular spell off.
Raphael twirled his sais and growled at the four prowling mutants that surrounded him. Impatient, he stabbed one in the stomach before swiftly withdrawing his weapon in order to avoid an oncoming kick to the head. Using his speed to his advantage, Raphael hurriedly rolled forward causing two of his opponents to mistakenly kick each other. With a quick twist of the waist, he spun around to stab another enemy, before quickly recovering his weapon in order to jump and powerfully flick kick another in the jaw, knocking him undoubtedly unconscious. The remaining mutant unsheathed his katana and tried to decapitate Raphael, yet it was blocked by the cheetah's sai. The tiger tried to launch another attack but was too slow and received the same fate as two of Raphael's previous enemies.
Panting, Raphael dodged to right, avoiding a fight in-between a mutant gazelle and lioness. Without thinking, he offered a helping hand by slaying the offending mutant. The gazelle nodded quickly as a thank you before finding another opponent to fight.
Saringai and Michael fought side by side, only attacking when they had no choice as they were conserving their energy for a particular being. The two of them locked eyes on Shere Khan as the tiger murdered a mutant monkey with a simple strike to the temple. Gathering up his courage, Saringai approached Shere Khan, determined to set things straight. A lioness moved in to attack Michael, holding the cheetah up.
Saringai and Shere Khan glared daggers at each other. "So, we finally meet again," Shere Khan sneered. "Too bad I can't say that to Zaila," Shere Khan said, knowing how to get Saringai angry. The leopard growled, but managed to control his emotions quite well.
"Too bad that after today, I won't be able to say that to you. You'll die on this field," Saringai responded, paws gripping the bo with anticipation. Michael looked on from the corner of his eye, still dealing with the lioness. A glint of evil was seen in Shere Khan's eyes. With no warning, the Siberian tiger lashed out towards Saringai. Scared, Michael departed from his battle with the lioness in order to tackle Shere Khan heavily into the ground, saving his master from what could have been a fatal blow.
Extremely angered, Shere Khan pushed Michael off of himself and picked up the rather light feline, carrying him over to the edge of the gorge. "I'll finish you off first," Shere Khan said with a dark tone as Michael struggled in Shere Khan's grip. The tiger threw Michael over the edge but not before the cheetah wrapped a nunchuck around Shere Khan's wrist, causing the giant feline to fall with him.
Michael's family looked at each other in panic and ran over to the edge of the gorge. Both Shere Khan and Michelangelo survived the fall, yet the strong current from the nearby waterfall quickly became a challenge. Shere Khan seemed to have quickly recovered and was already trying to swim out of the fast flowing river, while the cheetah bobbed around helplessly in the water. "Shit! Michael's weaker in water because of his power!" Venus said worriedly, saying what the others were already thinking.
"Don't worry about Michael. I'll get him. The locals need your help in fighting Shere Khan's army," Saringai ordered them, before carefully trying to find a way to get down to the riverbank. The leopard dug his claws into the earthy ground and slowly made his decent.
The four remaining cheetahs remained where they were, somewhat unable to continue on fighting now that their brother was playing with his life. Donatello clutched his painful ribcage and tried to ignore the throbbing injury. Raphael sighed and took over the role of leader. "Donatello, you stay here and watch over Saringai and Michael. If anything happens to either of them, call us immediately," Raphael commanded.
Their attention was disrupted when they heard a loud cry. They turned in time to see Vasha brutally slaughter a mutant warthog; her claws mercilessly ripping into the screaming animal. Venus growled at the sight and looked towards Leonardo and Raphael for help in bringing this immoral foe down. The two male cheetahs extended their weapons while Venus prepared a chi energy ball in her hands. She fired, hitting Vasha in the arm. The tigress gave a surprised yelp before giving her three new opponents a hard glare.
Not wasting any time, Raphael rushed forward, trying to injure her with his two sais. Vasha defended herself with an unexpected chi energy blast, knocking the pursuing cheetah onto his back. It seemed that Shere Khan wasn't the only one who had trained themselves in the internal arts.
Vasha tried to follow up her strike with a punch to Raphael's head, but Leonardo intervened with his katanas, causing the tigress to divert her attack in order to avoid the sharp blades. Leo ran two steps forward and attempted a flying kick to the lower abdomen, but Vasha effortlessly caught his leg and slammed him into the ground. This fight was going to be harder than expected. Quick to recover, Raph, Leo and Venus all regrouped. Now was the time to use Plan B.
As they had discovered from many sparring lessons, their newly developed powers used a lot of their energy, and therefore had to conserve them until it was necessary. It was now obvious to the cheetahs that if they were to succeed, they would need to call upon them.
Vasha's jaw dropped when Raphael suddenly burrowed himself into the ground. She snarled in frustration, not knowing how he had managed to do that, as it wasn't any type of magic she had ever seen. Vasha stood in a ready stance, yet she wasn't prepared for the blast of water she received from Leonardo. The tigress was drenched from head to toe; her mouth was agape with shock.
Vasha mentally shook herself and recovered by sending a forward flying kick towards Leonardo. The cheetah dodged it expertly at the last millisecond, causing Vasha to lose her balance when she landed, exposing her back for Venus' second Shinobi chi blast. Raphael resurfaced from the ground underneath the tigress in a matter of seconds, skillfully knocking Vasha into the ground. She swiftly rolled to the side, avoiding a downward kick from Leonardo. Vasha stood up and took a ready stance once again as though nothing had happened in the last couple of minutes.
*****
Saringai had finally made it down the rock wall and was now desperately searching for Michelangelo in the raging waters. He spotted his eldest student clinging to a large rock in the center of the river. Shere Khan was nowhere to be seen. With no time to spare, Saringai jumped into the river and started to swim towards Michelangelo. The current was stronger than Saringai had anticipated. The water pulled firmly on his fur, limbs and tail, making his swim quite tiring. Michelangelo struggled to keep his head above the surface knowing that it wasn't long until he was rescued.
Michael closed his eyes, wishing that the constant bombardment of water would halt. All of a sudden, a familiar furry arm wrapped itself protectively around his waist. "It's okay. You can let go of the rock now," Saringai said softly. Michael obliged and hung onto the leopard's back as he made the tiring swim back to the back. Saringai grunted in effort, his breath became quick and rapid. The water was freezing as the rushing current was due to the melting of the winter's snow. Saringai coughed and struggled to keep swimming with the extra weight on his body. Michelangelo clung on like a zombie due to the cold.
Saringai couldn't resist the tug of the water and finally allowed it to take them further down the river. He continued to swim, yet he used less strength than what he was previously. Donatello continued to watch the two at the top of the gorge. He too had lost sight of Shere Khan, though he was more worried about his twin and teacher. Donatello's heart skipped a beat as he watched Saringai and Michael get pushed further down the river and out of his sight. Deep down, he knew that they'd be alright.
Donatello's focus moved to the battle where his other siblings were fighting Vasha. The three cheetahs repeatedly landed hits on the tigress, yet they were all too weak to cause much damage to her built up muscular body. Even though Venus, Raphael and Leonardo dodged most of her attacks, Donatello could see that they were tiring quickly.
Raphael held his paws in front of his face for a guard as he continued to pant, desperate for air. His heart thudded a mile a minute as his body was overheating slowly with exhaustion. Cheetahs were never famous for their stamina. If Vasha was tired, then she hid it well in front of her enemies. Her fur was soaked from repeated water blasts from Leonardo. A few cuts lined her torso from where Raphael had landed some kicks. Raph growled, wanting to finish the agonising fight.
Vasha threw an advanced chi blast in his direction, which he quickly evaded by performing a no-handed cartwheel to the right. The tigress closed in, wanting to strike Raphael with her fist. Using the momentum of the cartwheel, the cheetah continued to spin around, bringing his right foot to smash across her face, followed quickly by the left leg, before spinning another revolution to use his tail to crack into her ribs. Vasha hissed in pain, but remained strong and managed to block Raph's next attack, which was a punch to the head. She grabbed onto his arm and swung him around into the air, but Raphael softened the blow by burrowing into the ground once again as soon as he touched the earth.
Vasha was knocked over backwards with one of Leonardo's more powerful watery blasts. He ran forward and tried to slash across Vasha's chest with his katanas. The tigress responded by hitting the sword on side, successfully deflecting the attack. A quick chi blast to the stomach sent Leonardo into the air, causing him to land heavily on the ground. Venus tried to sneak up on Vasha from behind, but failed when the tigress turned around.
Venus swiftly built up a chi energy ball, getting faster every time she tried. She fired and missed, as Vasha successfully ducked down low to avoid the shot. The tigress closed in and tried to kick Venus in the knees, but the female cheetah dodged it while retaliating with a palm strike to the chin. Vasha swung her arm tightly across her own face, powerfully blocking Venus' strike. The force she used was so strong that Venus' arm continued on it's path, making the cheetah noticeably off-balance. A spinning low kick slammed Venus into the ground. Furious, Vasha grabbed Venus' shoulders and forced her to stand up, twisting her right arm behind her back. Venus cried out in surprise and pain as her shoulder burned with discomfort. Vasha spun Venus around so that her right shoulder was facing her. With little effort, the tigress picked the female off the ground and slammed her back into her raised knee. Venus groaned in pain as the ache traveled up her spine. Luckily, she hadn't broken anything.
Quick to think, Venus rolled to left, successfully dodging a low spin kick. Raphael resurfaced from the ground just as Leonardo decided to advance once again. Raph prepared to strike Vasha's back while Leo targeted her front. With a growl, Vasha performed a professional split kick, hitting both Leo and Raph simultaneously.
Scrambling to stand up, the three cheetahs regrouped once again. Their bodies were exhausted and sore. They simply didn't have enough fire power. Raphael's ground ability was more defensive than offensive, Leo's watery skill wasn't effective enough while Venus's Shinobi tricks were considered novice compared to Vasha's capability. "Where's Michael when you need him," Raphael grunted, really wishing that his brother was there to just set fire to the tiger and get the battle over and done with.
All of a sudden, two strong leafy vines wrapped around Vasha, pinning her arms down in the process. Don winced in pain from his ribs, as he tightened his hold on the mighty tigress. She howled in frustration, yet the vines didn't loosen, instead they contracted further every time she took a breath in, much like how a boa constrictor would hold it's prey. A sly grin came across Raphael's face. "Let's bring this bitch down," he said, voice low with determination and finality.
Leonardo doused her once again with water, mainly just for torture reasons, as she stood there unable to run. Raphael growled and walked straight up to the soggy feline, staring at her directly in the eyes. As quick as lightning, he performed an ax kick. Vasha's shoulder exploded with pain as the clavicle was snapped. She took in a sharp breath, trying to control the tremendous ache. Raphael watched her in disgust and delight for a few seconds as Donatello slowly tightened the vines further. The cheetah spun his sai almost casually before strongly piercing Vasha's gut. The tigress shuddered and breathed out, causing Donatello to squeeze harder, slowly choking her to death. Raphael withdrew the weapon, yet Vasha still seemed to be fighting for her life.
After what Vasha had put Venus through, the female cheetah wanted to finish it once and for all. A surge of power, filled with anger and angst gathered in her palms. When Venus couldn't hold the energy ball any longer, she released it. The blue chi that Venus had created flew through the air and hit Vasha straight in the eyes. It continued to travel, flowing through her neural pathways and backbone. There was too much chi energy in Vasha's body, and it gave a negative effect, slowly over using and cooking the tigresses nerve endings.
It all happened in a matter of seconds. When Donatello finally released his leafy hold on the feline, she was gone; her ribs and one shoulder was cracked, blood oozed from Raphael's sai wound, while her neural messages had ceased thanks to Venus' Shinobi magic. It was a gruesome and torturous way to die, but yet it was well worth it in the cheetahs' eyes.
"I didn't know that you could do that," Leonardo said to Venus, referring to her last chi blast.
"Me neither," she answered simply, shrugging in the process.
Donatello sat back down on the ground and cradled his side, willing the pain away. The others approached him. "I thought I told you to keep watch on Michael and Saringai?" Raphael asked, slightly out of breath. Don looked toward the ravine.
"I lost sight of them, but they looked okay. Besides, you needed my help," Donatello answered with a cheeky tone to his voice. Raphael nodded and looked around at their surroundings. They may have won the fight with Vasha, yet it didn't look like they were winning the war. Shere Khan's army was quickly outnumbering the alliance of the locals. Bodies from both sides were strewn across the countryside, though there seemed to be more casualties from Raifu's soldiers. Yet the battle and war was still raging on. The cheetahs could see Zareb and Raifu fighting bravely and tirelessly in the distance.
Two lions had spotted the resting cheetahs and decided to approach. Leonardo helped Donatello to stand, and handed him his bo that was lying on the ground. "I'm not stopping until we either win or die," Raphael growled, determined to succeed in the war against dictatorship. His other siblings nodded in agreement. They all withdrew their weapons once again, and charged towards the opposition with hope in their eyes.
*****
Sarinagi continued to swim alongside the weakened Michael. Because they had traveled so far downstream, a flat and easy bank was no longer available. Rows of algae-covered rocks lined the river. With one last ounce of strength, Saringai pulled Michael on to the bank, carefully stepping on the slippery large pebbles. He gently rolled and pushed the somewhat lifeless cheetah ahead of him so he could concentrate on getting completely out of the water himself.
Disaster struck. The leopard misplaced one of his paws while climbing out, causing him to tumble in the raging river once again. Low on energy, Saringai wearily started to swim once again, yet his trip was cut short when his whole body slammed into a large boulder that protruded through the water currents. His mind was a whirl of lights. Then everything went black. Unconscious, Saringai's head was submerged in the river; his lungs went into automatic and started to breathe in water instead of air. A sharp meander in the river was up ahead. Unable to carry Saringai's weight around the turn, the river swiftly deposited the leopard on the rather shallow bank. Yet it was already too late.
Saringai had breathed in too much water in the last couple of minutes. An extremely slow pulse was still radiating from his body. His brain was fighting to live; yet it didn't know how to function.
Minutes past. Michael gave a weary groan from where he had been placed by his master. His fur was matted with wet soil. He hadn't lost consciousness, yet he had been very weak because his power of fire didn't mix too well with the bombardment of water he endured. He clumsily stood up and stumbled around to maintain his balance. When his mind had cleared, he began to wonder what had happened to his beloved master.
Michael exhaustedly followed the river, knowing from common sense that that was where Saringai was going to be. He stopped abruptly in shock when he found the leopard lying motionlessly on the ground, his body only halfway anchored onto the muddy bank. The cheetah rushed forwards to be by his side. He didn't know what to do. His mind didn't want to accept what had happened. Thinking rapidly, he searched for a pulse, though he never found one. Michael was determined not to give up. The cheetah furiously tried to resuscitate the leopard, pounding hard on his chest to try and get the circulatory system back in order. Michael breathed into Saringai's mouth, tears forming in his eyes as he did so. He knew he was too late, yet he didn't want to accept the inevitable.
Michael shook Saringai's shoulder, as though the leopard was only sleeping. "C'mon master. We have to go… The others are waiting for us…" Michael whispered, tears flowing fluently down his face. Saringai didn't respond. Michael shook him again. "Master…" Michael managed to say before he broke down into sobs. He never got to say goodbye, or was able to thank him for saving his life. Michael rested Saringai's head on his lap and began to stroke his moist fur as though it would change the situation. An enemy lurked nearby.
Shere Khan had managed to swim out of the river quickly, unlike Michael and Saringai. Forgetting about the battle held on the top of the gorge, the tiger decided to keep an eye on the leopard and cheetah, making sure that he avoided Donatello's watchful gaze in the process. From the safety of the rocks, Shere Khan saw the whole incident. He looked on with despair when he found Saringai's body. Just like him, the leopard was a ninja, and the tiger knew that he shouldn't have died in the river, but rather have passed away more respectfully through battling. Yet, Saringai was his enemy and Shere Khan couldn't help but sigh in relief that he wouldn't have to face him ever again.
Meanwhile, Michael was completely distracted by his thoughts of despair. Shere Khan fingered his sai, knowing that he had a clear shot of the cheetah. But something stopped him. Maybe it was his conscious, or it could have been the fact that he had thought of a crueler plan. Deciding what action to take quickly, Shere Khan walked silently towards Michael. The cheetah didn't notice him until he was standing directly behind. Michael swiftly moved out of the way, his vision blurry because of the tears in his eyes. He looked lost, fearful and confused, constantly glancing at the leopard's body on the ground.
"What have you done?" Shere Khan asked softly. Michael's face showed a depressed sense of confusion.
"What do you mean? It's not my fault," the cheetah replied weakly, too grief stricken and fearful to attack the enormous tiger. Shere Khan paused for a moment to look at Saringai. He knew Michael's body and mind was weak and could be easily manipulated.
"But, in a way, it is," Shere Khan said slowly, pausing to allow the words to sink in. Michael continued to shed tears, not caring about how he looked in front of his enemy. A part deep down knew that what Shere Khan was telling was wrong.
"No it's not," Michael said softly, shuddering in sadness. He didn't want to hear anymore words, yet his legs remained still as stone. "If you didn't attack…" the cheetah started.
"That attack was intended for Saringai. But you intervened. We wouldn't have fallen into the water in the first place if it weren't for your meddling. If we did end up in the river, without you, Saringai would have escaped easily. So, in a way, it is your fault. Your fault because you interfered. Your fault because you couldn't swim. Your fault that you weren't able to revive him. It's all your fault," Shere Khan said cruelly, driving the words into Michael's susceptible brain. The cheetah covered his ears, not wanting to hear the convicting words. With tears continuing to roll down his cheeks, Michael began to believe what the tiger was telling him. It was his fault.
Shere Khan smiled inwardly when he saw the cheetah at a loss for words. It was time to finish his plan. "What will your family think?" Shere Khan asked, hoping to enjoy watching Michael's reaction. The cheetah stared wide-eyed at the tiger as the realisation finally hit him. What would he say?
"What do I do?" Michael asked, yet he said it more to himself. Shere Khan still heard the question.
"You need to let go of your past. You need to get out of Lesotho… and never return. You are a disgrace. You killed your own Master. If the locals ever found out, you'll be exiled. So it's better to leave as soon as possible," Shere Khan said, manipulating the young cheetah to do what he wanted. The tiger could have easily killed him, but Shere Khan thought that it would be more of a punishment if he let Michael live.
The cheetah wiped his swollen red eyes and quickly ran from Shere Khan's sight, wanting to escape from the enormity of it all. The tiger smiled to himself. 'Goodbye, State Mutants'.
*****
The final three soldiers of Shere Khan's army huddled together as Raphael, Leonardo, Venus, Donatello, Raifu, Zareb and the remaining locals surrounded them. The army had been defeated, thanks to the advanced and speedy fighting skills of Saringai's students. After a number of grueling hours, the small war was finally coming to an end. Only two mutant tigers and a lion remained.
The fearful three enemies cowered in surrender. Tired, yet still strong, Raifu stepped forward to end the battle. "You lose. Get out of Lesotho. Gather the survivors of your clan and leave. If you ever return, I'll kill you," Raifu threatened dangerously. The three mutants nodded fearfully in agreement before turning to leave, feeling the hatred being emitted from Ikhaya Labantu's locals.
Leonardo looked around at what was left. About half of the locals had disappeared; their remains were scattered amongst the bodies on the battlefield. Zareb exhaustedly observed his surroundings. "Let's clean up," Zareb announced sadly to the remaining mutants. "We don't want any humans to find out what had happened here today," he continued to speak with a soft sadness in his tone. A lot of people had died, though it wasn't in vain. Ikhaya Labantu's freedom had been won.
The cheetahs all looked to each other before hugging in victory and sadness. As Venus started to tend to Donatello's broken rib, Raphael and Leonardo started thinking about the same question.
"Where's Michael?"