Author's Notes: Thank you for the rapid and useful reviews. On the subject of commas: I know I probably use them where they don't actually need to be. It's my deep and abiding love of punctuation. I do promise to work on it. This is going to be a fairly short story – the end is nigh.

Chapter 3:

It was a trap. Some kind of alternate reality, or another dimension, but still a trap for me: possibly for my brothers as well, but I hadn't seen them yet. The door swung shut behind me, and I walked back to the aquariums. I halted beside the dog food as the pair at the counter repeated the same things they had said before. A moment later, Mark had left through the front door, which meant that in minutes the armed robbery would start again.

I spun and headed back to the door. I looked around wildly for anything to block the entrance. My eyes settled on a heavy wood aquarium stand. I shoved it towards the door, wrangling it into place.

"Hey! Hey, you can't do that," Alex admonished, coming around the counter and waving her book at me. I got a look at the cover art: a black cover with red flames around the bottom, and the title at the top – 'Dante's Inferno'. Strangely appropriate. I grabbed another stand, complete with 100-gallon glass tank, and dragged it over to the door as well. The aquarium wobbled for a moment, but I caught it before it could fall over.

"My boss is gonna freak," Alex insisted, not daring to actually interfere with me. I checked the clock. It had been nearly five minutes already. The door banged against my makeshift blockade.

"They're here," I noted, backing away. I pulled out my staff and waited. The door banged again, and then silence. "Maybe they're going away," I said, voicing my thoughts. My shoulders lowered a bit. A crash behind me caused me to whirl.

"Open that register," the man shouted, waving his gun. There was a back door.

I started forward. The second man grabbed Alex by the throat and slammed her against the wall behind the counter. I froze in place.

"What the hell are you?" The man with the gun asked. He must have seen my face. Alex made gasping noises – the second man was choking her. "Whatever you are, you're dead." I dove for cover as bullets sprayed around me. I hit the floor only to fall through it into darkness, and found my hand on the doorknob a moment later.

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I sat on the curb, my feet resting in the gutter, and considered my options. I had vacated the store. Mark had walked past me a moment ago on his way home. He had given me a strange look, but I ignored it. Cars drove by now and again, but I didn't pay attention that, either. Leo would have had something to say about the risk I was taking sitting out here in the open.

But exposure was the least of my problems right now. I needed to think. I was ensnared somehow, repeating the same slice of time over and over again. There had to be a way out of this.

A car pulled up across the street. Four very familiar men climbed out, and crossed towards me. I stayed where I was, and observed them carefully. Each man checked his pocket – obviously all were armed. They stepped into the store. Minutes later, a piercing scream came from inside. I shivered, but I forced myself to stay still. After a while, the men walked back out of the store. They were stuffing cash into their pockets, smiling. I stood up, and the world wavered away.

My hand was on the doorknob again.

"Call the police," I ordered, rushing past the counter and in a new direction. Staying out of the store didn't stop the cycle, so it was time for some more direct action. I headed for the curtained area I had noticed, and charged through. Back room, and beyond it the back door – I vaulted a box, and turned the lock, hearing a satisfying click. I shoved as many boxes as I could against it, and hurried back out front. Mark had gone, and Alex was looking at me like I was a madman.

"Did you call the police?" I questioned, starting to drag the aquarium stands over to the front door again.

"Not yet, but I think I'm going to if you don't leave right now," Alex threatened, the phone in her hand.

I glanced up at the clock. 9:45 PM. I had lost five minutes already. "Do it. Call right now." It wouldn't matter. The police couldn't possibly make it here in time. I looked around, trying to find something else to use. I saw some aquarium chemicals, and quickly pocketed them. Maybe I wouldn't get to use them this time, but I could try to take them with me for the next go.

The front door rattled, and then there was silence. Next, I heard someone trying to shove the back door open. Alex dropped the phone and looked at me, stunned.

"How did you … How did you know?" She questioned, her voice shrill.

"Alex, hide or something, will you?" I instructed, readying my weapon. Alex moved out from behind the counter, and went down the aisle to the aquariums. I watched her duck down, and then got ready. The back door finally gave, and I caught the lead man as he came through the curtain. He crashed to the floor, and I spun on the next one. Maybe I could stop it this time. I felt my confidence rise as the second man fell to the floor, clutching his knee.

Behind me, I heard a horrendous crash. The other two men had made it to Alex. She lay on the floor near the aquariums, her head caved in. Water splashed across the floor, and fish were flopping everywhere. They had topped over one of the tall tank stands. Glass glittered on the floor from the fluorescent lights.

"You're next, freak," one of the men hissed, grinning with crooked teeth.

And it started all over again.

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I walked back out the door, and pulled out my cell. I couldn't believe I had forgotten to try it. I turned it on, and waited for some contact, but there was only static. I stood in front of the store, my head down, and I wondered if I was, in fact, in hell.

For once in my life, I desperately wanted one of my brothers. Normally, I would have appreciated a break from them. Time to read, or experiment would have been welcome, but I would have traded a working motherboard for Leo. Or even Raph. I would have been overjoyed to have Mike around. Just one of them would have made a difference in this quagmire. I shoved a hand into my pocket, and found it empty. I looked back at the store, astonished. The chemicals were gone, which meant I couldn't create a bomb or any other device and hope to use it.

There just wasn't enough time.

Behind me, Mark left the store. Soon the car would pull up. I pressed my hands to my face and groaned. This was unbelievably frustrating. I just wanted it to stop.

I moved my hands down as I heard the car arrive at the curb. I noticed that the brakes had squealed, and the front passenger tire was up on the sidewalk. I turned back to the pet store, and some movement above caught my eye. The roof. I hurried into the alley, and found the fire escape. I climbed up the metal steps, and clambered over the edge and onto the rooftop.

Sitting near a vent was Leo. I ran over to him, and paused, panting, to stare at him.

"Leo," I called. His eyes were closed, and he looked like he was meditating. This was a fine time for it. "Leo, I need your help."

"Sorry, bro," Leo responded, his eyes still shut. "Can't help you."

"What?" I questioned sharply.

"I. Can't. Help," Leo repeated slowly as though speaking to a child.

"I can't do this alone," I argued bitterly.

"You have to," Leo replied, motionless save for his mouth. He didn't even appear to be breathing. I took a step back. "I'm not allowed to help you." His voice was so eerily calm, and so achingly familiar. I felt overcome by a wave of homesickness.

"Leo …" I wanted to plead with him, but it didn't look like it would work. I wasn't even certain if this really was my brother. The real Leo wouldn't leave me to fight on my own.

"We're waiting for you, Donnie."

I closed my eyes, and opened them to the sound of a bell over my head.

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"Abandon all hope, ye who enter here," I said softly.

"Hey, that's from my book," Alex noted cheerily. She held it up so I could see the cover. I nodded, and tried not to picture her shot or strangled or crushed beneath an aquarium. The only thing left was to drown her.

"You okay to lock up?" Mark asked.

"Don't worry about it, Mark," Alex responded. I waited near the door. I needed another tactic, because I was stymied.

"Be careful, Alex. I'll see you tomorrow," Mark said, heading for the door. I had had to control my urge to recite the lines along with them. I knew it so well by now. Once Mark was outside, I approached the counter.

"Why does this keep happening?" I questioned. Alex glanced up, and her eyes widened with horror. She stepped back from the counter, dropping her book on the floor. There was no hiding my features under the bright lights at this distance.

"What … Are you an alien?" Her voice was pitched high with fear.

"No," I answered calmly. "Look, something is seriously wrong here."

"I'll say," Alex breathed, her back pressed to a poster advertising dog treats.

"In a couple of minutes four guys are going to come in here to rob the store, and they're going to kill you," I explained rapidly.

"Are you threatening me?" She queried, her hands curling into fists. I took out my staff.

"All I have is this. Do you have any guns or anything here?" She shook her head, her eyes on my weapon.

"What is that?" She asked, puzzled.

"A bo," I responded, turning my head and checking the front door. They would be here soon, and I was no closer to an answer to the puzzle.

"Where are the arrows?"

I looked back at her, and tried to make sense of her question.

"Bows have arrows, right?" She was asking for clarification. I could feel a strange expression trying to break out on my face. It took me a moment to recognize it as a smile. It vanished quickly as the front door banged open. Alex looked past me, and her face paled. "This would be a good time to find those arrows," she whispered.

"Get down," I ordered, and leaped towards the men. I managed to keep three of them busy. The fourth slipped past me, and I shouted when the gunshot rang out. "No!" I dived over the counter. The four men fled out the front door, but it was too late. I knelt in the small space, and lifted Alex onto my lap. Blood was pouring from a wound in her chest. I put a hand over it, using pressure, but it wasn't enough. "This has to stop," I whispered, cradling her. She coughed, and blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. Her eyes were glazing over, the light slowly leaving them.

"I'm sorry."

I would give anything – anything at all – if this would only stop.