Chapter Twelve:
Broken Promises
Darkness was slowly fading into the light of a new day as Raphael approached what he knew had to be the rendevous point the General had spoke of the day before. He had listen to radio calls among various troops all night, trying to locate this place. He also wondered who else had heard them.
He pushed his body against the wall, feeling a slight autumn breeze brush his face and whip his red bandanna around. Looking around cautiously as he moved, he slid along the cool concrete wall until he had reached a door. It was dark in the alleyway, and trying to find a handle was going to take a little longer then he liked. He grunted with impatience as his hand hit against the wall. He growling became louder with each hit; then each hit turned into slamming. As he raised his hand for another slam, the door suddenly flung open, and Raph found himself falling to the ground as the power of his fist brought him down. The door then slammed shut, leaving him in a deeper darkness than had been in the alley. He climbed to his feet and brushed the dust of his uniform.
"Who in the hell- AHHHHHH!!!!" The lights were quickly turned on and Raph found himself at the mercy of a sharp blade.
"Raph?" Leo asked, his katana still held tightly. Raph placed his finger on the side of the blade and slowly pushed it away from him.
"Geesh, Leo! What are ya tryin to do? Give me a freakin heart attack?!!" Raph sneered and walked away from Leo. Looking around, he only noticed a few crates scattered around and the air reeked of gunpowder. " Man, couldn't they pick a better place to meet? Like the Hilton or somethin?" He entered another room, first noticing Leslie standing over a table with other MM troops. He watched the twitching movement of her tail for a few seconds, then silently moved behind her, coming within inches of her ears.
"Miss me?" He asked in a whispered, making her jump. She turned to face him.
"No, not at all- solider." Her words trying to cover up the obvious concern that covered her face. She then gave him a small smile, and turned back to the table. Raph chuckled to himself, but then felt someone's arms wrapped around his waist.
"Bro! You're back!" Mike squealed, tightening his embrace and squeezing the breathe out of Raph.
"Mikey! Let go!" Raph pushed Mike away and regained himself. He then noticed Don standing behind Mike.
""Raph? Where have you been? We've been worried sick!" He grabbed Raph in a hug. Raph had never felt this kind of concern from his brothers before. It was beginning to make him feel uncomfortable.
Raph then pulled away. " Worried, huh? Yeah, right." A hand rested on his shoulder and Raph turned to see Leo behind him.
"We have been Raph. Really worried." Leo tried to offer Raph a smile but could see something troubling in his brother's eyes that made him stop.
"How did you get past all of them aliens?" Mike asked.
"I flew." Raph crossed his arms, not breaking his gaze with Leo. "I'm beginnin to think those guys aren't on anyone side anymore." Unlocking his eyes, he turned to his other brothers. " I saw them take down everyone out there, human and mutant."
"Yeah, so did we." Don lowered his head. "They obliterated the troops that had taken the east side. We heard it all over the radio."
"What?!" Raph's arms dropped down quickly as he looked at Leo. Leo nodded sadly in response as Mike felt the tears coming back. Raph felt his temper beginning to boil inside of him. He turned away, hiding the hurt in his eyes.
"They were just kids......just kids...." Raph squeezed his eyelids together tightly, not wanting the tears to spill out.
"Donatello," Leslie tapped him on the shoulder, breaking the stillness in the air . " I'm sorry to bother you but, do you know anything about Madira computer systems?"
Don thought for a second. " Well, just basic things. I never really had the time to-"
"That's good enough." Leslie stopped him. " We need to borrow you for a second." She grabbed his arm and dragged him to another room.
Raph suddenly turned to Leo. " I need to talk to you about somethin," He looked over at Mike, who was wide eyed and ready to listen. " Alone, if you don't mind- Mikey."
"Yeah, sure," Mike kicked at the floor with his combat boot. "I'll, uh, I'll just go see if I can help Donnie." With his head staring at the ground, he slowly made his way into the next room.
Raph pulled Leo back into the first room he had entered, looking behind him to make sure no one followed them, for he knew, things were going from bad to worse.
"Raph, what is going on?" Leo pulled his arm away, folding them across his chest.
"Leo, now I just need you to listen to me." Raph held up his hands and took a deep breath. " I found Linda-"
Leo's stern expression turned into a smile. " You did? That's great! Is she okay? Is she back with Splinter?"
"Leo!" Raph yelled, making Leo snap back into reality. " Calm down. You wouldn't be so happy if you knew what I knew."
"What are you talking about?"
Raph took another deep breath. " First off, Shredder is alive," he shook his head in disgust as he thought back to his time in the warehouse. " Or somethin close to it. But, Leo. Linda is-" He hesitated his words.
"Is what? Come on Raph! What is going on?" Leo's voice raised an octave.
"Linda is workin for the Foot and has been this whole time."
Raph's words flew out of his mouth so fast Leo had a hard time letting them seep into his brain. " What..... did you..... did you just say Linda is working for the Foot?"
"Yeah, bro, I did. Look, I'm sorry. I didn't want to tell you. But I just-"
Leo suddenly laughed. " You're crazy Raph! Why would she do something like that?"
He turned to leave when Raph once again grabbed his arm.
"Leo, I was there." Raph glared into Leo's eyes. "I saw her."
Leo's smile fell into a frown and he viciously pulled free. " Stop it Raph. It's not funny."
"I'm not freakin' jokin around with you, Leo!" Raph raised his voice, causing it to echo around the high ceilings. "Linda's a damn traitor and I told you that we never should have trusted her!"
Leo opened his mouth, but no words came out. He just held his eyes into Raph's stare. Raph broke away and moved closer to Leo.
"Leo, I-"
Raph's words were cut short as Leo's eyes became frozen in anger. Raph stepped back in a sudden fear, realizing he had never in his life seen that look on his brother's face. He could see Leo's body begin to shudder from the rage inside and he knew that nothing good was about to come out. Behind them, Mike stood in the doorway, his eyes wide again. He had heard everything and was feeling the tension build between his older brothers.
"How dare you say something like that." Leo said softly, his eyes narrowing. He was trying his best to hold back the fury within him. " How dare you call-" He caught his words, then turned his back to Raph.
"Bro, come on-" Raph reached his hand out to Leo. He dropped as Leo turned back around to face him, the fire of anger burning out of control.
" You know, it's just like you to do this. Anytime any of us start to find some actual happiness, you have be the jealous dick head and screw it up!"
"What? I'm not jealous-"
"Why do you have to be such a heartless asshole?" Leo tapped his temples with his fingers. " What is so messed up in your mind that makes you like this?"
"Hey, now wait a second!" Raph moved closer to Leo and felt his own anger raising up. "I'm tryin to help you and all you can do is insult me?!"
"Help me? HELP ME??!!!" Leo screamed. " How is this helping me? All it's doing is giving me another reason to HATE YOU!"
Raph's jaw dropped. " What?"
" You heard me!" Leo's rage screamed through. "Every day for the past eighteen years of my life, you have done nothing but given me hell, given me nothing but hatred! And you know what, this is it! I'm tired of it! I'm tired of YOU!!"
Raph's emotions boiled over as he screamed in defense. " Well, what do you expect when we have to live in your fuckin shadow?! Someone has to be the asshole and put you in your place!! And you know what else, you ain't perfect, you ain't that great. The only thing you know how to do is be a glory hog and suck up to Splinter!!" Raph turned to leave, then smirked. "You don't know how to do anythin 'cept bein a KISS ASS!!"
Raph opened he mouth to say more but was cut short as he suddenly felt his body being thrown to the ground. Leo pinned him down, holding Raph's uniform collar in one hand and had the other in a tight fist. Raph started to laugh.
"Whatya goin do?! Hit me?! I ain't scared of you!!"
Leo breathing was in rapid pulses; his anger burning his body faster as he heard Raph's laughing. He held his position, trying to get his thoughts under control, but found it impossible.
"Aw!" Raph began to taunt. "Has Mister Cool and Calm lost control? It's a damn shame! Face it, Leo! You know its true! That whore ain't nothin but a traitor!"
Leo's eyes widen and he tighten his grasp on Raph's collar. " DON"T YOU DARE CALL HER THAT!!" Then, with great force, he threw Raph's head down and stood up. He walked five feet away from Raph, his back turned.
Raph pulled himself up and rubbed the back of his head. "Oh now what! Did you chicken out?!" Silence hung in the warehouse for a moment before Leo spoke.
"Get out." He said in quite voice.
"What?!"
"I SAID GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!" Leo turned back and shoved Raph, causing him to almost lose his balance. " I don't ever want to see you again! GET OUT!"
Raph stood in shock, part of him not wanting to believe his brother. " You can't kick me out! I'm part of this thing!"
Leo narrowed his eyes. " Not anymore. Now leave."
Raph walked backwards, feeling his heart sink to the floor. " You know what?! That's fine! That's PERFECTLY FINE WITH ME! I can get along fine with you, or anyone else!"
Sunlight poured in as Raph opened the door. He began to walk out when he heard a slight sniffling noise in the back of the room. He and Leo both turned to see Mike standing in the doorway. His face twisted in confusion and sadness.
"Now explain to our little brother why you chose a girl over family." Raph pointed at Mike as he and Leo made eye contact again. Then, the door slammed shut, and Raph was gone.
Leo took a deep breath, not wanting to face another sibling in his state of mind. The silence was broken when Don and Leslie came rushing in from the other room.
"What's going on in here?" Don asked Leo. " We heard you and Raph shouting from the other side of the building." He waited for Leo to answer, but Leo refused to turn around.
"Tell him, Leo." Mike spoke up between his tears. " Tell Donnie how you made Raph leave and how you broke Splinter's promise!" Mike then took off running past them, flinging the door open and rushing outside, screaming Raphael's name. Don stood in his place, staring at the back of Leo's head as Leslie ran after Mike, catching him before he got too far.
"Mike!" She yelled as she pulled him back. " Control yourself! You'll have Madira all over this place in two seconds!"
"I don't care!" Mike sobbed. " I want Raph back!" He stopped in front of Leo. " How could you do this to us, bro?! Splinter told us to watch out for one another. All you care about is Linda! You don't give a crap about us anymore!"
"Mikey," Leo said as calmly as he could. " That's not true."
"Yeah it is!" Mike pulled away from Leslie and wiped at his tears. " Sure Raph was an ass, but he's still your brother. And if you hate him, what stops you from feeling that way about me and Donnie?"
"Mike! Stop it!" Leo yelled. " Just leave me alone!!"
Mike shrunk back, his body trembling and the tears coming down faster. Leo blinked, realizing his anger still had a hold of him.
"Mikey, I'm sorry-" He reached out to him, but Mike turned away, running back through the doorway.
Leo's hand dropped slowly, feeling his own eyes water. Turning sharply, he slammed his fist against the wall. He opened the door to the outside and disappeared.
Don and Leslie stood in stunned silence with their eyes fixed on the back of the metal door. Don sighed heavily as he shook his head.
"I'm sorry you had to see that," He turned back to the doorway. " I better go find Mikey."
"I'll show him. I'll prove him wrong." Raph grumbled to himself for the millionth time as he cautiously made his way through the sewers. He stopped for a moment, resting in a drain pipe, and tried to get his anger under control. He then had another thought.
"Screw him. I don't need him. I don't need anyone." Raph said out loud, but deep inside, he couldn't believe his own words. Tears welled up, and he couldn't tell if they were from anger or from the hurt. Realizing what he was doing, Raph wiped furiously at his eyes and continued deeper into the dark sewers, and into a deeper danger.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Man, not again. Why do I always get myself into this?
Raphael knew he was in trouble. He had stumbled into the wrong room, and was now surrounded by hundreds of Foot members. His sais were drawn, and his eyes darted around, but he knew he was no much for so many.
Maybe I should have listen to Splinter......
"Weellll, what do we have here?" Jonas Riley hissed as he stepped closer to Raph. "Eww, it's a mutant." Jonas laughed loudly, motioning for the Foot to grab Raph.
"Ewww, it's a flippin' human!" Raph responded back, pulling against his captures. He laughed louder than Jonas, but was silenced as Jonas spat in his face.
"Shut up." Jonas grabbed Raph's sais from his grasp and tossed them to the ground. " The Master told me about you. You've been in the position before, haven't you?" He looked Raph up and down, as if studying him. " You're not too bright are you?"
Raph growled. " I may not be smart, but I can make up for it." He tighten his fists, feeling his rage creep over his body once again.
Jonas laughed again, his voice sounding deep and demonic. " You mutants! Is violence the only thing you know?" Suddenly Jonas threw his hand into Raph's side, sending volts of electricity into the turtle's body from a taser gun he had kept hidden in his hand. Raph screamed out in pain, then dropped to the ground. Smoke rose up from the burnt spot on his skin. Jonas took a deep breath, inhaling the fumes from Raph's body.
"Ahhh! I love the smell of cooked mutant in the morning!" Jonas's laughter again ripped through the warehouse. "Take him downstairs. I want to have some more fun with him before we turn him over to the Master." The ninjas obeyed, grabbing Raph's limp body and dragged it across the floor.
From the balcony above, Linda gasped in horror, then silently backed away to an open door.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Splinter watched as April gathered her things together, and her camera crew re-packed their equipment. They were no longer safe down in the lair. The Madira and the Foot were on the move, and they were scouring every inch on the city, and he knew the Foot were looking for him and his children. He had decided to sneak with April back to Casey's grandmother's house, the only safe place they could think of. Splinter thought of his sons, and hoped they were safe. He sighed heavily and gathered his own belongings, then took April and her crew out into the sewers.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Raph slowly opened his eyes and tried to focus his vision in the darkness. He didn't know how much time had passed, or exactly where he was in the warehouse. The last thing he could remember before he passed out was the burning pain that ripped through his side, and that horrible laugh Jonas had let out. He closed his eyes, and opened them once more. He could make out a small hint of light shining through a barred window inside the door that was in front of him. He focused on the light, then felt his eyes beginning to adjust in the darkness.
"Why do I do this to myself?" He whispered into the air, then laugh at himself. " Ya think I would have learned my lesson by now?"
As he shifted his weight around, a sharp sting shot up through his back and hit every nerve and bone in his body. He clenched his fists, trying to hold the pain back, but it only brought on more. When he could no longer bare it, Raph collapsed back down to the floor and curled into a fetal position.
"What the hell did that guy do to me?" Raph whispered, tears descending down his cheeks. He looked down and noticed the hundreds of cuts, scraps and brusies covered his body. Blood dripped out of some places, causing Raph's stomach to turn.
A noise from the hallway made Raph freeze in place. His back was turned to the door now, which put him on edge. He then heard footsteps approach his cell door. He laid still, and quieted his breathing.
"Raphael?" A soft, female voice whispered through the barred window.
Raph recognized the voice immediately and he narrowed his eyes. It was Linda. He attempted to turn his head to face the door, but the pain once again shot up his spine. Gritting his teeth, he decided to just lay still.
"Raphael, are you awake? Answer me, please." Linda's voice seemed panicked this time.
"What do you want?" Raph finally answered after a long pause of silence, his own voice flushed with anger.
"I've come to help you." Raph could hear the jingle of a set of keys as Linda fumbled with them.
"Help me?" Raph laughed slightly. " Where were you when I was getting shock therapy? Partyin with Saki in the ballroom?" Raph managed to turn his body over so he could see the door. He could see Linda's face, and the hurt expression on her face.
Linda sighed. " I don't have time to explain." Linda looked away and glanced around for any sign of the Foot. She found the right key on the chain and unlocked the cell door. " Come on! Hurry!"
By this time, Raph pushed himself to a sitting position, then slowly stood up, holding his body with his hands. He staggered to the cell door, placed his face to the window, and glared at Linda.
"I don't need you help, you damn traitor."
Raph's words stung Linda like a slap in the face. " Raphael, please don't say-"
"Say what?" Raph raised his voice, not caring if he was heard. "Say that you're a cold hearted bitch who's about to break my brother's heart by helping Shredder and those stupid aliens take over and destroy everyone? Is that what you want me to say?"
Linda felt the tears well up and she turned her face away. " You don't understand. There is a reason I'm doing this."
"So tell me."
"I'm trying to help my father by-"
"Helping your dad?" Raph yelled, then laughed. "Your dad is a damn traitor too!" Raph then turned away. "Like father, like daughter. And you know what else?"
"What?" Linda sobbed in response.
"I told Leo all about your little deed." Raph sat back down on the floor, the pain taking over his body again.
Linda's eyes widen with fear. Panic ensued through her mind, and hate burn in her soul. She then thought for a second. " Did Leonardo believe you?"
No answer was heard from behind the door.
"Did he believe you, Raphael?"
"No, he didn't" Raph whispered back.
Linda smiled and shook her head. " Raphael, I'm sorry." She replaced the key into the hole and re-locked the door. " You should have known he wouldn't. He loves me too much, and you know he never believed you from the start."
"Yeah, rub it in. Now go away."
Linda turned to leave, but then returned back to the door. " I always thought you and me could became friends. I tried so hard to get you to like me. If you had given me the chance, I would have shown you that I was a good person."
"Yeah, well, it's a little late for that." Raph whispered back, then a sudden bang on the door startled Linda, causing her to jump back. "Now get the hell away from me."
Linda, feeling hurt and confused once again, threw the keys down against the back wall and headed back up the stairs to main warehouse floor.
After a long fight with writers block, I have finally written two more chapters! Yeah!! Thank you to the people who read my story! Now go out and get more people to read it! I'm really happy how it is coming along and I just hope that others can see it too. The story is slowly drawing to a close. I have at least five more chapters to go, and it should all be finished by the end of the year. Once again, if you have gotten this far, thank you very much for taking the time to read my fic!