Disclaimer: I don't own the Ninja Turtles, and I'm not making any money off of this fic. I do own the Demon world, it's residents, the Reapers, and their respective identities.
----
"Wait a sec...that doesn't make sense..." Don shook his head, wondering why he bothered arguing anymore.
"It doesn't matter if it makes sense....that's just the way it is."
"But, why on earth would Reapers be able to kill each other if they can't kill regular demons? Why would Reapers -want- to kill each other?"
Shayl sighed. Donatello never stopped asking questions, and after four days she was at her wit's end. If only he would learn -faster-...at the rate they were going, she'd be training him for MONTHS.
"Look, who cares? Let's just get back to the lesson." Shayl pictured her fist smashing into Don's face, for all the good it would do.
"No...why can't you just answer my questions when I ask them? What reason would the Reapers have to kill each other?"
Shayl shook her head. "I don't -know,- ok? Just drop it."
Don sighed and rested his chin on his fist. He was -trying- to learn, but every time he had a question, Shayl either didn't know, or didn't think he needed to know.
**How am I supposed to learn anything if I can't ask questions?** he thought angrily.
[I'm sorry you're so frustrated, Donatello. Most people aren't as curious as you are.]
Donatello frowned. Gaia wasn't much help either, despite the good feeling he got every time he spoke to her.
"Are you even listening?" Shayl's voice broke through Don's thoughts. He was beginning to rather dislike the bitter tone she used with him all the time.
"Sorry," Don said, "What were you saying?"
Shayl sighed and repeated the lesson. Don did his best to focus, knowing that the sooner he learned this stuff, the sooner he could get away from Shayl.
----
"I...can't...take....it....any....more!" Raphael was yelling, punctuating each word with a blow to a dilapidated sandbag.
"Raph..." Mike said, watching Raphael's tirade from the other side of the room.
"Shut UP Mike. I don't want to hear it." Raph continued to pummel the sandbag, oblivious to its imminent destruction.
"I'm just trying to help, Raph. I know it's only been four days since....y'know...but maybe if you talked about it with me or Master Splinter."
Raphael ceased punching and whirled around. "You don't know what I need to do, Mike, so forget it!" Raph turned back to the punching bag and appeared to realize that it was in a sorry state. He sneered at it and marched toward the door. Mike tried to get in his way, but Raph barreled right past him.
"Wait! Raph! Where are you going?"
"None of your damn business!" Raph snarled and stormed out of the training room, past Leo and Splinter and out of the lair. Mike sighed and walked into the living room. Leonardo was sitting on the couch watching the news, and Splinter was sitting in the corner reading a magazine. Mike sighed and plopped down in an easy chair.
"That wasn't good," Leo said, his voice flat. Mike shook his head.
"No...I was just trying to help him!" Mike said dejectedly, "I know we all have to deal with this our own way, but he's...Raph's just...."
"A hothead," Leo finished. "I know. He's been nothing but furious ever since..." Leo sighed. They all had a hard time talking about it. Leo stood up. "I'll go after him. He needs to blow off some steam, but I'd rather he did it here."
Mike put up a hand to forestall Leo, but he had turned his back and was out of the lair before Mike could protest. Frowning, he picked up the TV remote.
"I don't think that's why Leo wanted to go after him," Mike said, changing the channel.
"Nor do I," Splinter said, "He feels guilty about what happened to Donatello."
Mike shook his head, "I thought so. I hope they don't get into any trouble out there."
----
Raphael bounded from rooftop to rooftop with very little care for where he landed. He still made sure he wasn't seen; he was angry, but he would never stop being a ninja. He'd noticed about an hour earlier that Leo was following him, and he had taken pains to give him the slip. He wasn't positive he'd lost him, but he hadn't seen or heard anything in a while, so that was a good sign.
He continued to bound recklessly along, his mind awash with frustrations and anger. WHY couldn't he figure out who killed Don? If only he could get some revenge, maybe he would feel better!
Raph suppressed a growl and leapt to the roof of a very large warehouse. He was about to bound across it when a dark figure stepped from the shadow of an air vent. Raph skidded to a stop; he was really angry now, but mostly at himself. He really thought he'd lost Leo back there.
Suddenly, the figure stepped closer and Raph realized that it was NOT Leo. Raph pulled out his sais. "Hold it pal," he said, "Don't come any closer."
The figure stopped and Raph frowned. Usually telling them to stop didn't work, and Raph was itching for a fight. Still, he wasn't going to provoke one.
"Ok, now turn around and leave," he said.
"No, I need to talk to you," the figure said, his voice raspy.
"Whatever. Get outta here!" Maybe Raph would get his fight after all.
"Please," the figure said, "It's important. It's about your deceased brother."
Raphael felt his pulse quicken. He gripped his sais tighter and lowered his crouch. This guy was SO dead....
The dark figure put up two hands defensively. Raph could see that his hands were strange....black. "Wait," the figure said, "I know you're alarmed, but I'm here to help. I didn't kill your brother, but I know who did."
Raph prepared himself to spring, but hesistated. Common sense told him to attack this guy, gut him, obliterate him for killing Donatello...but...what if he didn't do it, and Raph lost his only lead? Muttering obscenities, Raph lowered his sais, but he kept his crouch defensive.
"Explain yourself," Raph growled. He could see the figure's head bob from underneath a hood.
"I will. I'm glad you didn't attack me, because I really want to help you. As I said, I know who murdered your brother, and I can help you exact your revenge."
Raph didn't appear satisfied. "Go on," he said irritably. The head bobbed again.
"First of all, I must warn you that the things I am going to show and explain to you are rather weird." the figure pulled down his hood, revealing a black, serpentine face, eyes glowing a sickly green and large spines coming up from his neck. Raphael backed up involuntarily.
"You're a freak!" he exclaimed, lifting his sais once again. The snake man bowed his head.
"I know I look strange, but surely not that strange to someone like you," he guestured a scaly hand toward Raph, "But how I look is only part of the story. You see, I look this way because I'm a Demon...a creature from the world of the dead."
Raphael stared at the snake man for a moment, and then made a face. "Whatever. You're full of crap."
The snake man shook his head, "Please, I beg you to listen. I can take you to my world and show you that it exists. I can also take you to your lost brother, though I'm afraid you won't like what you see."
Raph blinked, "You can take me to Don? Well, not that I believe any of this junk, but let's go anyway, eh?" **And then, when I find out first hand that you're full of crap, I can kill you,** Raph thought. He couldn't bring himself to kill the guy until he was convinced that he'd been the one to kill Don.
The snake man smiled, his tongue flickering in and out. "My name is Ssylvar," he said, "I must know your name before I take you to my world. It's part of the spell I must cast."
Raph frowned, "Raphael," he said, snorting at the word 'spell.' Ssylvar grinned again and waved his hand about, drawing a shape in the air. Raph watched with limited interest until the air began to glow a bright blue. He gaped as a shape appeared in the air, burning with blue fire. It flew toward him, and before he could leap out of the way, it smacked into his right arm. He called out angrily, but the mark didn't burn, and the light extinguished a moment later. Raph noticed that he had a scar on his upper arm that matched the shape.
"What the HELL was that?!" he hollered, glaring at Ssylvar.
"Don't worry, it's just something I needed to do to get you into the Demon world. It doesn't hurt, does it?"
"No," Raph said sullenly.
"Good, now, if you'll just wait one moment." Ssylvar waved his hand in the air, and to Raph's amazement, Reality ripped in half. Ssylvar guestured for Raph to walk through. He hesitated for a moment, and then, with his fists clenched, he walked through the portal.
----
Leo was mad at himself. He'd only been tracking Raph for thirty minutes before he'd lost him. He thought he'd been quiet enough to escape his brother's notice, but Raph was an excellent ninja, and Leo hadn't been careful enough.
Cursing, he stopped on the roof of a movie theater to think. He had a few guesses as to where Raph was headed, but he couldn't be sure. Raph was so angry, he might just careen all over the city for the rest of the night.
Leo sighed and started to leave the roof when something suddenly blocked his path. He stumbled backward in surprise, but immediately had his katanas out and ready. The black shape didn't move, and Leo began to think he'd just run into a wall or something. Then, several moments later, the rustle of fabric could be heard, and the dark shape took a step back from Leo.
"Who's there?" Leo asked, his voice tense.
"Don't be afraid," a low voice said. It rattled like dry parchment.
"Who's there?" Leo repeated, raising his katanas. He could see two pale white hands move up to a hood covering the figure's face. Slowly, they pulled the hood down, revealing the face of a very old, bald and wrinkled man.
"My name is Orgo," the man said, "I mean you no harm. I want to help you."
Leo shook his head, "I don't need any help. If you'll excuse me, I have to go." Leo turned to leave, but before he could, the old man spoke.
"I know about your dead brother. I know who killed him." The man wheezed after he had finished speaking, his cough rattling worse than his voice had.
Leo stared at the old man. How could he have known about Don? "What is this?" Leo asked, louder than he had meant to.
"I'm sorry. I know this is alarming to you. I only assume that he was your brother. You see, I knew that he had been killed, and since he was a giant turtle, and you are as well..." the man shrugged.
Leo shook his head, disbelief evident on his face, "You're correct, he was my brother...but how am I supposed to know that -you- didn't kill him?"
The old man smiled ironically, "Yes, that possibility occured to me. Honestly, it will be hard for me to convince you that I am telling the truth. Though, if you're willing to listen, I'll explain everything to you. Be warned, it's rather strange."
Leo frowned, but nodded.
"Great," the man said, "Now, you must understand that what I am going to tell you will make little sense until I actually show it to you," he hesitated, appearing to collect his thoughts, "First of all...I may look human to you, but I'm not. I'm actually a Demon."
Leo made a face, but said nothing, so Orgo continued.
"I'm from another world. A place where people go when they die, including your brother. I can take you to him, but you won't like what you see."
"What?" Leo said, angry, "I said I'd listen, but this is nonsense."
The old man put up his hands. "I know it's weird, but if you'll allow me to show you, I think you'll be convinced."
Leo shook his head. Nonsense. Still, it couldn't hurt to humor the old guy. "Whatever," he said, putting his swords away.
The old man smiled, "I'll need to know your name to make this work. Mine's Orgo."
Leo shrugged, "My name is Leonardo."
Orgo nodded and waved his hand, drawing a shape in the air. To Leo's amazement, the air began to glow blue, the shape appearing to burn in mid air. Then, it flew at him and smacked into his shoulder, leaving a scar behind.
"Woah!" Leo yelled, "What was THAT?"
"Nothing much...just something I needed to do in order to take you to the Demon world. Now, off we go." Orgo waved his hand and tore open a portal in Reality. Leo gaped at it...he wasn't so skeptical anymore.
"Go on," Orgo said, smiling. Leo hesitated, and then, head high, he walked through, hoping to god he wasn't walking into some kind of trap.
**It's for Don,** he thought, **You -owe- him.**
----
"Ok Shayl, I've had it with this stuff. Can we please do something else?" Don rubbed his face tiredly.
"No. You're -going- to learn this."
[Tell her that I said you need to do something else. More escorts, I think.]
Don sighed with relief. "Gaia says that I need to do more escorts."
Shayl frowned and appeared as though she was going to protest. Then, muttering, she stood up.
"Fine," she said, "After all, -I- don't know what you need to learn. There's no reason at all for me to be training you!"
Don chose not to honor that with a response.
"Come on then," Shayl said after a long pause, "Make a portal."
Don nodded and waved his arm, effortlessly creating a portal to Earth and stepping through. Shayl shook her head and followed. Don had only managed to create one portal in the demon world after four days of practice, but he could go anywhere on Earth without a problem.
They stepped out into a downpour. Don stared about in fascination; every raindrop was frozen in place, and as he walked they seemed to spread apart to allow him passage, like a great, shimmering curtain.
"Neat," Don said and earned a glare from Shayl.
"Our guy's over there," he said and walked away from her. She glowered and followed after him. Don ignored her as he came upon the scene. On the ground was a body, riddled with bullet holes. Standing over the body was a very angry old woman, holding a sawed-off shotgun. Don grimaced and looked around. He didn't see the soul he was supposed to escort anywhere. Scratching his head, Don closed his eyes and was bombarded with images; images of rape, murder, lies, hatred...everything Don had ever come to disagree with in life. He stepped back a few paces involuntarily, opening his eyes with a shudder. He hadn't seen -anything- good.
"This is...really bad," Don said. He hadn't been looking forward to something like this.
"You'll probably have to force him to go...are you gonna take him to the pits?"
Don shuddered. He didn't want to go back there. Shayl had warned him, but the sound of moaning from so many millions of voices had kept him up all night. The heat had had been unbearable as well...Don wasn't certain he could take anyone to that place, no matter how bad they are.
[You don't have to, Donatello, but do you really want someone who is truly awful wandering around killing Demons, collecting power from their souls?]
Don shuddered again. No, he did not want that to happen. He turned to Shayl.
"Ok, I want to really scare this guy. What should I do?"
Shayl smirked. "Well, pull up your hood, first of all, and I would suggest giving yourself a big scary weapon...and make your cloak all tattered."
Don nodded. He pulled up his hood, the easy part, and then closed his eyes. He thought about what he wanted his robe to look like, and he thought about having a giant sword, curved and notched, strapped to his back. When he opened his eyes, he was amazed to find that all had come true.
"Wow! Do I look scary?"
Shayl rolled her eyes, "Sure. Now, go find your soul before he gets away. You may have to physically drag him through the portal, but there's nothing wrong with that."
Don nodded and trotted away. He wasn't sure how he was going to find his guy, but something seemed to be directing him. After only a few minutes of running he nearly barreled into a man, the very man who'd been laying dead on the ground.
"No! Stay away!" the man yelled. He tried to run, but now that he had seen Don, he appeared frozen in place.
"It's time to go," Don said, trying to sound scary. He felt stupid.
"NO! Leave me alone!" The man's last words came out as a shriek. Don lunged forward and grabbed the man's upper arm. Don was reminded of Ssylvar, and it irritated him. He shook his head and began to drag the man along. Shortly a portal opened in front of him, provided by Shayl, and he dragged the hapless man through.
They stepped out into the Plains of Ur'lon. The man gasped in alarm, but Don ignored him. He dragged him for about 100 yards, until they came to a bubbling pit. A small, rabbit-like Demon greeted them.
"Ah...one for the pits..." he said, rubbing his paws together.
Don frowned. He really REALLY hated doing this. "Yes, take him." Don thrust the poor man toward the rabbit, who grabbed onto him, gave a heave, and threw the man into the bubbling pit. The man screamed in agony, and Don balled his fists.
"Out of here, NOW!" he commanded to Shayl, who complied instantly.
Don dove through the portal, fell to his knees, and began to vomit. Shayl cursed; she'd brought them back right in the middle of her living room. She ran into the kitchen, grabbed a bowl, ran back in and tossed it to Don. He took it thankfully, and Shayl left the room, barely resisting the urge to pull out her hair.
----
A/N: I would like to thank all of you who have reviewed this story. It's been great to hear from people. Writing isn't really my primary form of expression, but you've all made it very, very enjoyable. Thank you!
Also, this is the second update of this chapter. I noticed a minor error regarding Leo and ORgo, and went ahead and fixed it. Not a big deal, but it would have made me nuts.
----
"Wait a sec...that doesn't make sense..." Don shook his head, wondering why he bothered arguing anymore.
"It doesn't matter if it makes sense....that's just the way it is."
"But, why on earth would Reapers be able to kill each other if they can't kill regular demons? Why would Reapers -want- to kill each other?"
Shayl sighed. Donatello never stopped asking questions, and after four days she was at her wit's end. If only he would learn -faster-...at the rate they were going, she'd be training him for MONTHS.
"Look, who cares? Let's just get back to the lesson." Shayl pictured her fist smashing into Don's face, for all the good it would do.
"No...why can't you just answer my questions when I ask them? What reason would the Reapers have to kill each other?"
Shayl shook her head. "I don't -know,- ok? Just drop it."
Don sighed and rested his chin on his fist. He was -trying- to learn, but every time he had a question, Shayl either didn't know, or didn't think he needed to know.
**How am I supposed to learn anything if I can't ask questions?** he thought angrily.
[I'm sorry you're so frustrated, Donatello. Most people aren't as curious as you are.]
Donatello frowned. Gaia wasn't much help either, despite the good feeling he got every time he spoke to her.
"Are you even listening?" Shayl's voice broke through Don's thoughts. He was beginning to rather dislike the bitter tone she used with him all the time.
"Sorry," Don said, "What were you saying?"
Shayl sighed and repeated the lesson. Don did his best to focus, knowing that the sooner he learned this stuff, the sooner he could get away from Shayl.
----
"I...can't...take....it....any....more!" Raphael was yelling, punctuating each word with a blow to a dilapidated sandbag.
"Raph..." Mike said, watching Raphael's tirade from the other side of the room.
"Shut UP Mike. I don't want to hear it." Raph continued to pummel the sandbag, oblivious to its imminent destruction.
"I'm just trying to help, Raph. I know it's only been four days since....y'know...but maybe if you talked about it with me or Master Splinter."
Raphael ceased punching and whirled around. "You don't know what I need to do, Mike, so forget it!" Raph turned back to the punching bag and appeared to realize that it was in a sorry state. He sneered at it and marched toward the door. Mike tried to get in his way, but Raph barreled right past him.
"Wait! Raph! Where are you going?"
"None of your damn business!" Raph snarled and stormed out of the training room, past Leo and Splinter and out of the lair. Mike sighed and walked into the living room. Leonardo was sitting on the couch watching the news, and Splinter was sitting in the corner reading a magazine. Mike sighed and plopped down in an easy chair.
"That wasn't good," Leo said, his voice flat. Mike shook his head.
"No...I was just trying to help him!" Mike said dejectedly, "I know we all have to deal with this our own way, but he's...Raph's just...."
"A hothead," Leo finished. "I know. He's been nothing but furious ever since..." Leo sighed. They all had a hard time talking about it. Leo stood up. "I'll go after him. He needs to blow off some steam, but I'd rather he did it here."
Mike put up a hand to forestall Leo, but he had turned his back and was out of the lair before Mike could protest. Frowning, he picked up the TV remote.
"I don't think that's why Leo wanted to go after him," Mike said, changing the channel.
"Nor do I," Splinter said, "He feels guilty about what happened to Donatello."
Mike shook his head, "I thought so. I hope they don't get into any trouble out there."
----
Raphael bounded from rooftop to rooftop with very little care for where he landed. He still made sure he wasn't seen; he was angry, but he would never stop being a ninja. He'd noticed about an hour earlier that Leo was following him, and he had taken pains to give him the slip. He wasn't positive he'd lost him, but he hadn't seen or heard anything in a while, so that was a good sign.
He continued to bound recklessly along, his mind awash with frustrations and anger. WHY couldn't he figure out who killed Don? If only he could get some revenge, maybe he would feel better!
Raph suppressed a growl and leapt to the roof of a very large warehouse. He was about to bound across it when a dark figure stepped from the shadow of an air vent. Raph skidded to a stop; he was really angry now, but mostly at himself. He really thought he'd lost Leo back there.
Suddenly, the figure stepped closer and Raph realized that it was NOT Leo. Raph pulled out his sais. "Hold it pal," he said, "Don't come any closer."
The figure stopped and Raph frowned. Usually telling them to stop didn't work, and Raph was itching for a fight. Still, he wasn't going to provoke one.
"Ok, now turn around and leave," he said.
"No, I need to talk to you," the figure said, his voice raspy.
"Whatever. Get outta here!" Maybe Raph would get his fight after all.
"Please," the figure said, "It's important. It's about your deceased brother."
Raphael felt his pulse quicken. He gripped his sais tighter and lowered his crouch. This guy was SO dead....
The dark figure put up two hands defensively. Raph could see that his hands were strange....black. "Wait," the figure said, "I know you're alarmed, but I'm here to help. I didn't kill your brother, but I know who did."
Raph prepared himself to spring, but hesistated. Common sense told him to attack this guy, gut him, obliterate him for killing Donatello...but...what if he didn't do it, and Raph lost his only lead? Muttering obscenities, Raph lowered his sais, but he kept his crouch defensive.
"Explain yourself," Raph growled. He could see the figure's head bob from underneath a hood.
"I will. I'm glad you didn't attack me, because I really want to help you. As I said, I know who murdered your brother, and I can help you exact your revenge."
Raph didn't appear satisfied. "Go on," he said irritably. The head bobbed again.
"First of all, I must warn you that the things I am going to show and explain to you are rather weird." the figure pulled down his hood, revealing a black, serpentine face, eyes glowing a sickly green and large spines coming up from his neck. Raphael backed up involuntarily.
"You're a freak!" he exclaimed, lifting his sais once again. The snake man bowed his head.
"I know I look strange, but surely not that strange to someone like you," he guestured a scaly hand toward Raph, "But how I look is only part of the story. You see, I look this way because I'm a Demon...a creature from the world of the dead."
Raphael stared at the snake man for a moment, and then made a face. "Whatever. You're full of crap."
The snake man shook his head, "Please, I beg you to listen. I can take you to my world and show you that it exists. I can also take you to your lost brother, though I'm afraid you won't like what you see."
Raph blinked, "You can take me to Don? Well, not that I believe any of this junk, but let's go anyway, eh?" **And then, when I find out first hand that you're full of crap, I can kill you,** Raph thought. He couldn't bring himself to kill the guy until he was convinced that he'd been the one to kill Don.
The snake man smiled, his tongue flickering in and out. "My name is Ssylvar," he said, "I must know your name before I take you to my world. It's part of the spell I must cast."
Raph frowned, "Raphael," he said, snorting at the word 'spell.' Ssylvar grinned again and waved his hand about, drawing a shape in the air. Raph watched with limited interest until the air began to glow a bright blue. He gaped as a shape appeared in the air, burning with blue fire. It flew toward him, and before he could leap out of the way, it smacked into his right arm. He called out angrily, but the mark didn't burn, and the light extinguished a moment later. Raph noticed that he had a scar on his upper arm that matched the shape.
"What the HELL was that?!" he hollered, glaring at Ssylvar.
"Don't worry, it's just something I needed to do to get you into the Demon world. It doesn't hurt, does it?"
"No," Raph said sullenly.
"Good, now, if you'll just wait one moment." Ssylvar waved his hand in the air, and to Raph's amazement, Reality ripped in half. Ssylvar guestured for Raph to walk through. He hesitated for a moment, and then, with his fists clenched, he walked through the portal.
----
Leo was mad at himself. He'd only been tracking Raph for thirty minutes before he'd lost him. He thought he'd been quiet enough to escape his brother's notice, but Raph was an excellent ninja, and Leo hadn't been careful enough.
Cursing, he stopped on the roof of a movie theater to think. He had a few guesses as to where Raph was headed, but he couldn't be sure. Raph was so angry, he might just careen all over the city for the rest of the night.
Leo sighed and started to leave the roof when something suddenly blocked his path. He stumbled backward in surprise, but immediately had his katanas out and ready. The black shape didn't move, and Leo began to think he'd just run into a wall or something. Then, several moments later, the rustle of fabric could be heard, and the dark shape took a step back from Leo.
"Who's there?" Leo asked, his voice tense.
"Don't be afraid," a low voice said. It rattled like dry parchment.
"Who's there?" Leo repeated, raising his katanas. He could see two pale white hands move up to a hood covering the figure's face. Slowly, they pulled the hood down, revealing the face of a very old, bald and wrinkled man.
"My name is Orgo," the man said, "I mean you no harm. I want to help you."
Leo shook his head, "I don't need any help. If you'll excuse me, I have to go." Leo turned to leave, but before he could, the old man spoke.
"I know about your dead brother. I know who killed him." The man wheezed after he had finished speaking, his cough rattling worse than his voice had.
Leo stared at the old man. How could he have known about Don? "What is this?" Leo asked, louder than he had meant to.
"I'm sorry. I know this is alarming to you. I only assume that he was your brother. You see, I knew that he had been killed, and since he was a giant turtle, and you are as well..." the man shrugged.
Leo shook his head, disbelief evident on his face, "You're correct, he was my brother...but how am I supposed to know that -you- didn't kill him?"
The old man smiled ironically, "Yes, that possibility occured to me. Honestly, it will be hard for me to convince you that I am telling the truth. Though, if you're willing to listen, I'll explain everything to you. Be warned, it's rather strange."
Leo frowned, but nodded.
"Great," the man said, "Now, you must understand that what I am going to tell you will make little sense until I actually show it to you," he hesitated, appearing to collect his thoughts, "First of all...I may look human to you, but I'm not. I'm actually a Demon."
Leo made a face, but said nothing, so Orgo continued.
"I'm from another world. A place where people go when they die, including your brother. I can take you to him, but you won't like what you see."
"What?" Leo said, angry, "I said I'd listen, but this is nonsense."
The old man put up his hands. "I know it's weird, but if you'll allow me to show you, I think you'll be convinced."
Leo shook his head. Nonsense. Still, it couldn't hurt to humor the old guy. "Whatever," he said, putting his swords away.
The old man smiled, "I'll need to know your name to make this work. Mine's Orgo."
Leo shrugged, "My name is Leonardo."
Orgo nodded and waved his hand, drawing a shape in the air. To Leo's amazement, the air began to glow blue, the shape appearing to burn in mid air. Then, it flew at him and smacked into his shoulder, leaving a scar behind.
"Woah!" Leo yelled, "What was THAT?"
"Nothing much...just something I needed to do in order to take you to the Demon world. Now, off we go." Orgo waved his hand and tore open a portal in Reality. Leo gaped at it...he wasn't so skeptical anymore.
"Go on," Orgo said, smiling. Leo hesitated, and then, head high, he walked through, hoping to god he wasn't walking into some kind of trap.
**It's for Don,** he thought, **You -owe- him.**
----
"Ok Shayl, I've had it with this stuff. Can we please do something else?" Don rubbed his face tiredly.
"No. You're -going- to learn this."
[Tell her that I said you need to do something else. More escorts, I think.]
Don sighed with relief. "Gaia says that I need to do more escorts."
Shayl frowned and appeared as though she was going to protest. Then, muttering, she stood up.
"Fine," she said, "After all, -I- don't know what you need to learn. There's no reason at all for me to be training you!"
Don chose not to honor that with a response.
"Come on then," Shayl said after a long pause, "Make a portal."
Don nodded and waved his arm, effortlessly creating a portal to Earth and stepping through. Shayl shook her head and followed. Don had only managed to create one portal in the demon world after four days of practice, but he could go anywhere on Earth without a problem.
They stepped out into a downpour. Don stared about in fascination; every raindrop was frozen in place, and as he walked they seemed to spread apart to allow him passage, like a great, shimmering curtain.
"Neat," Don said and earned a glare from Shayl.
"Our guy's over there," he said and walked away from her. She glowered and followed after him. Don ignored her as he came upon the scene. On the ground was a body, riddled with bullet holes. Standing over the body was a very angry old woman, holding a sawed-off shotgun. Don grimaced and looked around. He didn't see the soul he was supposed to escort anywhere. Scratching his head, Don closed his eyes and was bombarded with images; images of rape, murder, lies, hatred...everything Don had ever come to disagree with in life. He stepped back a few paces involuntarily, opening his eyes with a shudder. He hadn't seen -anything- good.
"This is...really bad," Don said. He hadn't been looking forward to something like this.
"You'll probably have to force him to go...are you gonna take him to the pits?"
Don shuddered. He didn't want to go back there. Shayl had warned him, but the sound of moaning from so many millions of voices had kept him up all night. The heat had had been unbearable as well...Don wasn't certain he could take anyone to that place, no matter how bad they are.
[You don't have to, Donatello, but do you really want someone who is truly awful wandering around killing Demons, collecting power from their souls?]
Don shuddered again. No, he did not want that to happen. He turned to Shayl.
"Ok, I want to really scare this guy. What should I do?"
Shayl smirked. "Well, pull up your hood, first of all, and I would suggest giving yourself a big scary weapon...and make your cloak all tattered."
Don nodded. He pulled up his hood, the easy part, and then closed his eyes. He thought about what he wanted his robe to look like, and he thought about having a giant sword, curved and notched, strapped to his back. When he opened his eyes, he was amazed to find that all had come true.
"Wow! Do I look scary?"
Shayl rolled her eyes, "Sure. Now, go find your soul before he gets away. You may have to physically drag him through the portal, but there's nothing wrong with that."
Don nodded and trotted away. He wasn't sure how he was going to find his guy, but something seemed to be directing him. After only a few minutes of running he nearly barreled into a man, the very man who'd been laying dead on the ground.
"No! Stay away!" the man yelled. He tried to run, but now that he had seen Don, he appeared frozen in place.
"It's time to go," Don said, trying to sound scary. He felt stupid.
"NO! Leave me alone!" The man's last words came out as a shriek. Don lunged forward and grabbed the man's upper arm. Don was reminded of Ssylvar, and it irritated him. He shook his head and began to drag the man along. Shortly a portal opened in front of him, provided by Shayl, and he dragged the hapless man through.
They stepped out into the Plains of Ur'lon. The man gasped in alarm, but Don ignored him. He dragged him for about 100 yards, until they came to a bubbling pit. A small, rabbit-like Demon greeted them.
"Ah...one for the pits..." he said, rubbing his paws together.
Don frowned. He really REALLY hated doing this. "Yes, take him." Don thrust the poor man toward the rabbit, who grabbed onto him, gave a heave, and threw the man into the bubbling pit. The man screamed in agony, and Don balled his fists.
"Out of here, NOW!" he commanded to Shayl, who complied instantly.
Don dove through the portal, fell to his knees, and began to vomit. Shayl cursed; she'd brought them back right in the middle of her living room. She ran into the kitchen, grabbed a bowl, ran back in and tossed it to Don. He took it thankfully, and Shayl left the room, barely resisting the urge to pull out her hair.
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A/N: I would like to thank all of you who have reviewed this story. It's been great to hear from people. Writing isn't really my primary form of expression, but you've all made it very, very enjoyable. Thank you!
Also, this is the second update of this chapter. I noticed a minor error regarding Leo and ORgo, and went ahead and fixed it. Not a big deal, but it would have made me nuts.