A/N: - Hello everybody! I just want to say thank you to all my reviewers especially Spootycup and LionessGoddess who have religiously reviewed every chapter, and for that I am very grateful! I hope everyone enjoys my next chapter and I will update as soon as possible…………
They found their brother being held up by his bandanna by Hun. Mikey himself was limp in the grip of the giant-fisted man and Hun was getting ready to kill the orange clad turtle.
"Put him down, Hun," Leo requested, voice trembling slightly from anger and fear for his brother.
"Are you offering yourself as a sacrifice?"
"If that's what it takes," Leo replied softly. Raph flung himself between Leo and Hun.
"NO! I'm of no use to my brothers…all I ever do is cause trouble. Please, take me you giant lump of a man."
"I feel that the lives of your brothers are worth more than you. No, I do not want any of you for the lives of the others. My master wants the ultimate prize…your furry friend."
"You'll never take Master Splinter," snarled Leo stepping forward.
"One step closer," Hun drew a sword and held it to Mikey's throat, "and your precious brother dies."
"Put him down, Hun," a new, milder voice joined the pleas for Mikey's life.
"Sensei," Leo exclaimed, stepping in front of Splinter, "you can't give yourself up – it's you they want."
"No, my son," Splinter sighed, "it is you and your brothers…they just want me for baiting you to where you will be outnumbered and easily defeated." Hun roared, furious for having the plan figured out when it was going so well. He threw Mikey into Donnie and the two turtles tumbled over each other, stopping only when they hit the wall. Donnie immediately set about moving his brother into the recovery position and trying to revive him. Splinter, meanwhile, flanked by Raphael and Leonardo, advanced on Hun. The fight that followed was a vicious one. Leo was first to pass out after landing painfully on his bad ankle. Donnie watched, wincing. Leo was going to be limping for a while. Next was Raph, passing out after he skidded into the stair banister and received a nasty knock to the head. Splinter finally managed to force Hun into a retreat. Badly wounded and absolutely livid, Hun stomped out of the house and ran down the street, his heavy footfalls sending small tremors through the ground as he went.
"Donatello, go upstairs and fetch some of the medical supplies we brought with us. Then clean up Michelangelo while I deal with Leonardo and Raphael. I will check Michelangelo over after you have finished and, after I have revived them, you can give your other brothers a quick checking over. You, also, are looking worse than you should. And may I inquire as to why two of my sons seem to be covered in foul-smelling sludge?"
"Ah, yeah, that…we were fighting the Foot Tech ninjas and Mikey threw sewage on them to make them visible so we could fight them easier. But it kind of hit Raph and Leo as well."
"Then they will need to wash – but it will have to wait until tomorrow. For now, the main priority must be their healing."
The next morning, Donnie sat on the floor in the main living room drinking a cup of tea. It was three o'clock in the morning and he had not slept well. He heard a short intake of breath behind him and saw Leo leaning on the doorframe and smiling at him. Donnie got up slowly, his muscles aching with exhaustion and walked over to his brother.
"Need help?" he offered.
"I'm fine," Leo responded, limping past him but stumbling. Donnie promptly grabbed his arm to steady him. The two of them slowly made their way back into the centre of the room and Donnie helped his older brother sit down, with his leg stretched out in front of him. Leo began massaging his bad ankle slowly to keep the blood flowing and take away a little of the pain. Donnie got him a cup of tea and then joined him.
"How are you feeling?" he asked, sitting down next to Leo and picking up his own cup to drink.
"Not great but probably better than Mikey will feel when he wakes up."
"Aren't him and Raph awake yet then?"
"No – Raph was up for a bit earlier. He woke me up saying he had to check that I was still alive! Who knows what that's about?! Mikey's been out cold ever since we moved him upstairs."
"You still stink of sewage; you know that, don't you?"
"Yeah, but there aren't really any showers here are there. You have to go to the communal ones and I don't think a giant, walking, talking turtle would go down very well!" Leo joked grimly. Donnie snickered but his face turned solemn when he realised that there had to be a reason for Leo being up so early. Otherwise, if he was feeling that bad, he would've gone back to sleep and rested up his ankle.
"Why are you up so early – you should be resting?"
"You know me, Don, I love early mornings," Leo shrugged but he wasn't convincing Donnie.
"Why are you really up?"
"We have to go after Shredder today or he'll have time to gather his troops and re-assess his position. Then we'll once again be at a disadvantage."
"Leo," Don said, exasperated at his brother, "stop over-taxing yourself. You always take on too much and then can never cope when the final showdown comes. You hide it well but you're not fooling anyone, least of all Master Splinter."
"It was worth a try," Leo was being unusually sarcastic just as Mikey had been unusually quiet the night before. They were all acting a little out of character recently – Donnie guessed that it was because of all the pressure being put on them. But he was sure they'd all be back to normal once the pressure was taken off them and they could relax…in other words, when the Shredder was dead.
"My sons, our meditation session has begun so stop fiddling around and reflect on the events of today." Splinter was beginning to get impatient. It was now four o'clock…and they had begun their meditation session and three. It had never taken this long to settle down before, but today the four reptilian brothers' minds were pre-occupied, each with their different thoughts and worries about the recent events.
"Sorry, Sensei," Raph mumbled, once again trying and failing to settle down to his reflection. Donnie and Leo had frowns creasing their faces while Mikey seemed to be struggling to find a position that wasn't too painful. Eventually Splinter gave up and sent Mikey off to get an early night.
"Michelangelo, you must go and rest – I can see you are struggling."
"Thank you, Master Splinter – I am sure I'll be fine tomorrow."
"Do not over-estimate the speed of healing, Michelangelo. You will return to your training when you are ready and no sooner."
"Yes, Master Splinter," Mikey stood slowly and swayed for a second before leaving the room. Donnie made a move to get up and help his brother but Splinter sent him a warning glance saying for him not to move, but to leave his brother be.
Mikey reached the bedroom and collapsed on to his bed.
"Oh, man," he muttered to himself and massaged his temples, attempting to ease the pounding headache that was attacking him. Why can't I just get a decent night's sleep for once, instead of a headache or bluddy nightmares!? He thought to himself, shutting his eyes and turning over so he was led flat on his back. He wished he could be of more use to his brothers. He felt guilty for having rushed into the house without thinking – he should've known it was likely to be unsafe! He'd failed his brothers again but if he told them how he felt then all they'd say is that it wasn't his fault, or that they were all to blame in their own individual ways. But it was at that moment that Mikey felt more helpless than ever; usually he could come up with a barrelful of optimistic comments, and bad jokes, for a tense situation or whenever they were going through a rough patch but right now he couldn't even do that. What use was he?
Meanwhile, in deep meditation, Donatello felt a sense of foreboding – something telling him that the danger was not yet over. He heard a voice inside his head…the Shredder.
You think you will be able to defeat me?
Yes.
Then you are mistaken – your family is going to die one by one. Your precious rat will be first.
You will never defeat us and you will NOT kill my father.
Then what about one of your brothers? Which one first? Leonardo? Michelangelo? Or perhaps Raphael would be the best bet?
LEAVE ME ALONE!
No…
"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Donnie screamed, clutching at his head. Raphael's eyes snapped open but Leonardo remained still, not even flinching at his brother's piercing yell.
"Donnie! Man, are you alright?" Raph asked, laying a hand on Donnie's shell.
"He's going to kill us! He's going to kill us one by one. He was asking me which one of you he should kill first…it could be anyone! We have to get out of here!" Donnie's voice was abnormally high pitched and frantic as he tried to explain what had passed between him and the Shredder inside his own head; but things that happen in your head are always so much harder to explain to other people, even if they are your brothers and even if you are all mutant turtles with a mutant rat as a father that practice the art of Ninjitsu. Raphael stood and helped his brother up to the bedroom and stayed by his brother's side until he was sleeping soundly.
"Leo? Leo, snap out of it – come on, bro – just say something or move – wiggle your fingers – yell at me – or anything!" Raph shook his brother in blue and tried to make him open his eyes or say something. Even a mumble would've been better than nothing, or some sort of mental fit. Anything except the motionless silence that had come over the leader. What really worried Raphael, however, was the fact that Splinter didn't seem worried about his eldest son. He was simply drinking tea and clearing up the mess from the night before that had been so impolitely left by Hun.
"Raphael, please leave your brother. He is finally meditating peacefully and he has many dilemmas in his mind that he must sort out."
"Yes, Master Splinter. I was just worried that maybe the Shred-head was controlling Leo or speaking to him in his head, you know, telling him how each and every one of us is gonna die a slow and painful death…"
"I know, my son. But you too must rest; Donatello is resting, I presume?"
"Sleeping like a baby."
"That, at least, is good news," Splinter sighed, weary with the recent battle, "I, too, must turn in for I am weary and need to get rest if we are to go seeking out the Shredder. I will not leave you and your brothers to face him on your own again so this time you will have back-up."
"Ok…sleep well, Sensei. I'll stay with Leo until he snaps out of it."
"Very well, my son, although I feel it is not absolutely necessary I am sure Leonardo will be grateful for your concern." Splinter smiled warmly at his son and walked out of the room. Raph stood and stared after him, waiting until he heard the door to Splinter's room click shut before he knelt back down and watched his brother…but he was soon slumped over, head on his chest, asleep…he'd been watching Leo for two hours.
"Raph? Raph? Wake up – it's morning," Raph heard the voice of his elder brother coming through to him and invading his dreams.
"What?" Raph's voice slurred as he yawned and opened his eyes reluctantly. Leo was stood over him smiling, looking exhausted, but smiling at his brother in amusement but with a little sympathy.
"You didn't have to stay down here all night."
"Why didn't you snap out of it when I shook you? Could you or couldn't you hear me? I was worried sick!" Raph staggered tiredly to his feet and Leo stepped in with a helping hand.
"I don't know. I woke up at about two o'clock this morning and found you asleep here. I assumed that maybe the same thing had happened to you as it did to me, but Master Splinter was up earlier and he told me you'd stayed to keep watch. I don't know what happened last night. One minute I heard Mikey leave the room and then I heard Donnie scream but I couldn't bring myself out of meditation…I was seeing something…Master Splinter was dead – everyone was dead. I was the killer but I wasn't me because my body was led alongside yours. I was Shredder…but I don't know why I saw that."
"Maybe you were inside Shredder's mind. Maybe you saw Shredder's dream and what he plans to do to us."
"That's what Master Splinter said…" Leo's voice had become quiet and concerned.
"Did you see anything else?"
"Yes…I looked down at my body and there was no armour on it. There was blood and tattered clothing but no armour. My hands were covered in the blood of us and I felt…I felt as if I was all powerful…"
"Do you know where it was set?"
"It was in a large room with white walls and a polished wooden floor. The Foot and Hun were stood around jeering at us. Then something came out of my mouth that I didn't understand…"
"What? What did you say?"
"I'm not exactly sure what it meant but I said 'Those who have tried to kill me will now suffer at my hand. The bait was thrown, bitten and we reeled in our fine catches. Now, let us celebrate the death of those who caused me strife.'" Leo finished and bit his lip, looking as though he had more to say.
"Why is that confusing – it seems straight forward to me."
"That's not all there is. It's the last bit that confused me. 'From here we lure you to us. Not in this room but a yard. The final battle is now approaching. While you see all your bodies so scarred. You're more foolish than you can see. The worst is yet to come. You don't seriously think that what you see is real. But you will still come hunting for me…'"
"Leo…I think the Shredder conjured up that illusion in your mind. He's trying to make us come looking for him. He will kill us when we go on the hunt for him. While we try to avoid finding the room in your dream he will get an ambush ready at a place he is sure we will pass through. But the part about the bait is still confusing…"
"I know – that's the part I was worried about. I know that what I saw was what Shredder wanted me to believe would happen to us. But the part about the bait is confusing but I just thought nothing of it - I thought nothing of it. I thought that maybe it was just a red herring but it now seems as if it was the only truth told in my dream. Oh shell, Raph, what do I do?" Leo frowned, pacing up and down the length of the room with Raph's watchful eyes following him. Suddenly, Leo froze and clutched his stomach.
"Leo?" Raph took one step towards his brother but Leo turned and swung his fist at Raph's face. Raph reached up and grabbed Leo's hand just before it reached his face.
"What d'ya think you're doing?!"
"You can't come near me! There's something coming – it's attacking me! Shredder's here, Raph! You have to help me!" Leo fell to the floor, breathing heavily. Raph backed off and called to Splinter, who came hurrying into the room a few moments later.
"What is going on here?"
"I don't know, Sensei. Leo was just telling me about his dream and then he tried to hit me but I caught his hand. And then I called for you…"
"Leonardo! Stand up immediately!" Splinter's eyes glinted as he gave orders to his son. Leo rose shakily and walked towards Splinter, eyes blank and cold. Splinter regarded his son without emotion and raised his hand. He rested his hand on Leo's forehead and closed his eyes. Raph had backed off so far that he was practically up against the wall. He did not see fit to interfere with whatever his Sensei was doing.
An hour later and Splinter let out a long sigh and withdrew his hand from Leo's head, his expression softening as he gazed upon his son once more. This time there was love in his eyes and he smiled at his son as Leo opened his eyes.
"Master Splinter, what happened?"
"The Shredder led you to believe that we were all to die and, inside, you believed that it was all your fault because you were the one seeing through Shredder's mind."
"Leo, is that true?" Raph asked, shocked that his brother would blame himself for the deaths of their family just because of some stupid dream. Leo didn't answer his brother, only blushing slightly and casting his eyes down to the floor. Raph shook his head in disbelief and strode out of the room. He'd expected Leo to be the strong one that would never give in to the Shred-head and his endless plans to annihilate them.
"My son, do not trouble yourself with Raphael. I will talk to him. He is suffering as much as anyone in this; he is just doing a better job of hiding it. If Shredder was to attack his mind then there is a very good chance that he would not tell anyone for fear of taking the attention off of your brothers' injuries and the attacks on them. He also fears for losing his aggressive reputation as the turtle of steel…what he does not realise is that even he is allowed to show fear and sadness. Now, you must rest. It is a quarter past eight and you can get a few more hours sleep before we join Marcie and her family for lunch."
"Yes, Sensei." Leo bowed quickly and hurried out of the room and up the stairs. Things were getting far too complicated for his liking.
A/N: - Not so much of a cliffhanger this time but still, hopefully, enough to keep everyone happy! I'll be back soon so please review so I know what I'm doing right and if there's anything that you want done better. See you soon! Luv ya – Dory's human replica. XxXxXxXxX