That Which Prowls in the Dark of Night:
Disclaimer: The TMNT belong to Mirage and other people. Not me.
Chapter 7 Perchance to dream
Michelangelo woke, hearing an unfamiliar voice in the lair. He opened his eyes, held perfectly still, and listened intensely in the darkness to the strange voice.
"Raphael, Raphael, come to me."
It was a woman's voice, but Michelangelo knew that it wasn't April. Curious, he got slowly out of his bed, and made his way to the doorway.
Peaking out, Michelangelo saw the lair awash with colored lights. There was no source to these lights. They simply existed, layers of red, waves of blue, bursts of green and violet, and swirls of yellow and orange. It was like living in one of the rainbow ices that he got at the pizzeria on Delaney street.
"Whoa!" Michelangelo said. "I think I just stepped into The Twilight Zone!" Was he dreaming again? This didn't feel like a dream. It felt as if it was real. Usually his premonitions felt real, but this was too real. And if this is some kind of premonition it is way up there on the weirdness scale.
"Raphael, come to me," the strange female called again. Just like those swirling eddies of light around the lair, the voice didn't appear to have a source.
Suddenly a strong wind began to form inside of the lair. Michelangelo could hear it howl and see miniature tornadoes form around the lair, but they affected nothing. No papers were being blown about. The curtains to Master Splinter's room were undisturbed. Even the swirls of color ignored the howling wind. As Michelangelo tired to make sense of what he was seeing, he saw the tornadoes fly into Raphael's room, and drag Raphael kicking and screaming out.
"No! Leave me alone! Let go of me!" Raphael was screaming, but to no avail. The golden bands around Raphael's wrists were clearly visible. They were attached to the tornadoes, and were pulling Raphael away.
I thought I just imagined those gold bands before. What the shell is going on? Am I dreaming or what? It all felt very real, but at the same time very surreal. How could a tornado drag Raphael from the room, and leave everything else in the lair intact?
Better question, Michelangelo thought as he watched amazed, how can they pull Raph THROUGH A WALL?
"Let me go!" Raphael cried angrily as the winds and threads pulled him right through the walls of the lair.
"Raph!" Michelangelo cried out. Movement on the first floor caught his attention. He saw Master Splinter at the door to his privet chamber. Splinter had heard Michelangelo. "Master Splinter, did you see? It pulled him right through the wall!" He cried out to his sensei.
Splinter looked up at Michelangelo, and to Michelangelo's complete and utter shock floated up to Michelangelo's side. Michelangelo didn't know what to say.
"How...how did you do that, sensei?" Michelangelo finally managed to sputter out.
Splinter, still hovering two inches above the floor, grabbed onto Michelangelo's arm. That felt solid enough. "There is no time," he said, "We must move quickly if we are to discover where your brother is being taken too." With that Splinter pulled Michelangelo into the air.
"We're...we're flying?" Michelangelo wasn't sure what to think,. He only had a few seconds to register that they were flying through the lair, when he saw that Splinter was flying them towards the same wall Raphael had passed through. Splinter showed no signs of slowing down.
"Uh Master Splinter, we're gonna hit the wall!" Michelangelo's voice became faster and higher pitched as they advanced on the solid red brick barrier. Michelangelo threw his free arm up to protect his face, and shut his eyes to brace himself.
Nothing happened.
Something should have happened by now. They should have hit the wall rather messily, but they hadn't. Uncertain at what he might see, Michelangelo opened his eyes.
To his surprise, he found himself floating high above the city streets with Splinter, unperturbed, at his side. Ahead of them he could see and hear Raphael still being dragged away
"Master Splinter, what is going on? How are we doing this?"
Splinter glanced ahead, checking Raphael's progress, and then answered Michelangelo. "You believe this to be a dream, my son?"
"Am I dreaming sensei? I mean everything seems real, but If it was real we wouldn't be flying or going through walls."
"This is as much real as it is a dream, Michelangelo," Splinter explained. "With training one's spirit can fly free as a ghost. It may seem as a dream to you, Michelangelo, but this is very real." Then curious, and concerned, Splinter asked, "You did not will this? How then did you set your spirit free?"
"I don't know anything about that, sensei. I was sleeping, and I was worried about Raph. Then I heard that weird voice calling for him. That's when I got out of bed, or at least I thought I did."
"Your dreams before have shown you beyond what is now. Perhaps they now can take you beyond where you are."
Michelangelo didn't understand a word of what Splinter was saying. "I still don't understand, Master Splinter. Is this a dream, or is it real?"
Splinter sighed exasperated "You are dreaming Michelangelo, but in this dream are things that are real. Be wary of things that seem real to you. If you can touch it, it can touch and possible hurt you. Things that you cannot touch, you cannot effect nor can it effect you. If you feel you are in danger, close your eyes, and wish as hard as you can to be home."
Michelangelo still wasn't sure he understood everything, but he did know that even if he didn't understand Splinter's advice now he would when he needed to.
Movement to his left distracted Michelangelo. "Master Splinter look! It's pulling Raph down there!"
Splinter nodded. "Come," With a gentle tug on his arm, Splinter pulled Michelangelo with him down to the street. As they neared the rooftops they saw Raphael being pulled through the roof of a small out of the way shop between a darkened street and an even darker alley. The building gleamed an electric blue. Splinter and Michelangelo landed softly in the alley and both stared at the building.
"We must be very cautious," Splinter instructed Michelangelo. "The force who has taken Raphael's spirit knew how to take one against his will. They may be aware of other magics."
"Is that why the store is glowing?" Michelangelo asked as he looked up shielding his eyes as he did so."
Splinter turned to Michelangelo sharply. "The building glows to your eyes?" Splinter asked astonished.
"Is it like not supposed to?" Michelangelo answered. Splinter nodded for Michelangelo to continue. "Well, to me, the while place is like glowing blue." He turned back to his mentor. "I'm guessing that means something, like those bands on Raph's wrists."
"There is magic on this place," Splinter explained. We dare not touch the light less it will betray us to our adversary." Splinter shook his head sadly. "Nor can we pass through the walls to retrieve Raphael."
Michelangelo frowned then kicked the lock of the basement gate he was standing on. His foot passed through the lock of course, but it made him feel better.
Wait a minute! He was standing on the basement gate to this very building. There was no glowing blue light here.
"Hey sensei, look! It's not glowing blue here!" Michelangelo said. "Maybe we can get in this way, past the magic."
"You see nothing?" Splinter asked. Michelangelo shook his head no.
"Not a thing. I don't know what I should be seeing anyway, but this basement grate looks normal to me."
Splinter thought about it. "It is risky, but to find Raphael...Yes let us try. Michelangelo, the trick to being as a ghost in this dream reality is to remember that as nothing but spirit, you have no substance. If you wish to pass through solid matter you may." With that Splinter floated up, then down through the basement grate, and disappeared.
Michelangelo stared blankly at the grate for a few seconds. Finally he took a deep breath, and said to himself. "Okay Mikey, you can do this. If Master Splinter says I can pass through solid walls I can." The fact of the matter was that he had already passed through the walls of the lair, so it wasn't too hard to believe that it was possible.
With another deep breath Michelangelo looked down at the grate, thought to himself one more time that Master Splinter knew what he was talking about, and jumped down onto the basement grate.
Sure enough his feet and legs easily passed through the metal grate, and allowed him into the basement. "Cool!" Michelangelo said, pleased with himself. Without hesitating further Michelangelo moved down the steps.
In the basement Splinter was waiting for him. He looked rather pleased. "Well done, Michelangelo."
Michelangelo sighed as worried as his sensei was about Raphael, he was making this a lesson for him. He nodded in acknowledgment of the rare compliment, and said, "so where are we?" He looked around the basement. It was a little dark, but years of living in the sewers had accustomed his eyes to darkness, and he had no trouble seeing. A strange stone table was placed at the back of the room decorated with gold and white cloths bowls of incense, candles, and a curly type of dagger.
"This is an alter of some kind," Splinter said thoughtfully. "I believe the owner of this place is your white witch."
Noting that, Michelangelo looked around again. On the far side of the room was another table. It was wood round and unadorned. On shelves above them were bottles and jars containing various items. There was also a human skull and a stuffed falcon on the shelves.
"This is a seriously creepy place," Michelangelo observed.
"Hush," Splinter had perked his ears and was listening intently. "I hear Raphael," Splinter pointed to a stair case next to them. "Up there, but take care Michelangelo."
Michelangelo nodded to reassure his sensei. Slowly and silently he moved in the direction Splinter had indicated. He came to a set at steps leading upwards into the shop and sure enough he could hear Raphael complaining.
"You can't keep me here forever! Le me go! Let me- Uhn!"
"Stop it," a stern but youthful female voice ordered. Michelangelo recognized it as the same voice that had drawn Raphael from the lair.
Michelangelo climbed the stairs poking his head through of the basement door so he could see. The walls of the room were still glowing a bright blue. Just like the walls had outside of the building. All around him were tables and shelves adorn with statues and stuffed animals. On a round table to his left was a massive rose quartz crystal sphere the size of a bowling ball. It hummed with power, and Michelangelo felt strangely drawn to it, but he heard Raphael's voice again and that snapped him back to what he was supposed to be doing.
He looked around until he saw Raphael. He seemed to be floating in a cage of bright blue and gold lights that radiated from a pentacle drawn in chalk on the slate floor.
Before Raphael stood a young human girl. She looked no older than nineteen with rich black hair. She was dressed in a simple white t-shirt and blue jeans over which she wore a robe of undyed linen. Around her neck she had a rose quartz pentacle and a small gold turtle on a chain, that pulsed and hummed with a glowing red radiance.
"I can't let you go," the girl was telling Raphael sadly. "If I did that thing you saw would be after you in a heartbeat. And if it got you, your brothers would be next on it's hit list."
"You could have told me that before!" Raphael insisted. "You didn't have to make me your slave!
Slave? What the shell is Raph talking about? Michelangelo wondered. And why does her voice sound so familiar?
"Unfortunately I did," She shot back. "I didn't know of any other spells that would protect you. I had to bind your spirit to mine so my defenses would be inside of you as well. It's not my fault that I'm only half trained."
Raphael glared at her. "What about the rest?" He asked.
The girl sighed. "If I hadn't bound your body you would have fought me. I think you still would, and as for your mind," she paused and looked at him directly. "If I had freed your mind after the spell was set you would have told your brothers."
"Yeah, so what?" Raphael answered sourly.
The girl frowned. "And they would come here, and try to force me to free you whether it was safe or not."
"Damn straight," Raphael growled back.
"The girl ignored Raphael's bad mood. "Therefore it is in your best interest for me to keep the spell on your mind intact. Your own mind knows this. That's why you couldn't remember. You did that to yourself because what you don't know, you can't betray."
Raphael roared in frustration and pounded on the walls of his magical prison. "You can't keep me your slave forever!"
"You are not my slave," she insisted. "I won't ask you to do anything. I'm just not going to allow you to jeopardize yourself or the others on account of your pride. The only reason I brought you here tonight is to answer the questions you have now."
That set Raphael aback. He paused, blinked, and looked at the girl questioningly. "You brought me here to answer my questions?"
She nodded. "I'm sure you have questions by now. If you want I'll answer them."
Raphael studied the girl carefully. "What's the catch?" He asked.
The girl smiled and shook her head no. "No catch Raphael. You ask, I answer, I send you home."
Raphael pondered this for a few seconds. Finally he asked, "that thing that Mikey and I saw that's what your protecting me from. "
The girl nodded "It's called a Dekabor. It's a kind of demon from another dimension. It lives off dark emotions, pain, fear, despair, and anger."
"Lemme guess," Raphael said with a pensive sigh. "A bad attitude is like a steak dinner with all the trimmings."
"Not quite," she answered with a grin. "It's more like you're the appetizer for the gourmet meal."
That actually sparked Raphael's curiosity. How come?
Because anger is such a strong emotion the Dekabor can suck everything out of you, including your soul. Then it takes over the body, and goes after your family, causing pain, fear, and despair."
"In everybody I ever cared about," Raphael said with a shudder. "You weren't just protect me, you were protecting all four of us. Wait, what about Casey. Why didn't you put your whammy on him?"
The girl gave a sly smile. "Casey has protections on him. I don't think he knows it though. It keeps dark forces and dark spirits away from him. Lucky for me it doesn't block white magic."
Raphael sighed and shook his head amused despite himself. "Leave it to Casey to have protections against evil spirits." He paused in thought , and then drew the illusionary sai from his belt. "What about my sai. You did something to this one. It could hurt him."
"To bind you to me, I needed a purified blade. The emotional attachment you have to your knives made the binding stick all the more."
"They're called sai," Raphael said sharply sheathing the blade again."
The girl shrugged. " It really didn't matter to me. It's a good blade, and it took the spell well."
Raphael didn't appear mollified, but he still wanted answers. "So I can kill that thing now, right?"
"You can hurt it," she said sadly," but you can't kill a spirit. I have to find a way to drive it back into it's own dimension."
"I suppose you want me to help you with that, right?" Raphael asked. He folded his arms over his chest in a classic stubborn pose.
"No," the young witch surprised both Raphael and the hidden Michelangelo with her answer. "I told you I wouldn't ask you to do anything for me, and I meant it. Of course if you want the spell on you off as soon as possible it would make sense to help me. As soon as the Dekabor is gone I can take my spells off of you, but helping me will be your choice. I won't force you to help."
"Humph," Raphael glowered at her. "I don't recall asking for your help."
A grey brown creature that looked like a cross between a cat, a monkey, and a bat, scampered by on a shelf of jars. It looked definitely feline, but Michelangelo could see that it's hands and feet could easily grip things for climbing, and grasping. It also had a pair of wings attached to it's back.
The girl's voice drew Michelangelo's attention back to the conversation. "I didn't do it for you. I did it because my cousin would be devastated if anything happened to the four of you."
"Your cousin?" Raphael asked puzzled. "Who? April? Casey?"
"I'd rather not say," the girl answered. "She doesn't know I know about you guys. She didn't tell me. I scryed and saw you in my crystal with her."
"You mean even your own family isn't safe from you and your hocus pocus," Raphael said annoyed.
"She would understand! You could be a little more understanding you know." She shot back at Raphael.
So far Michelangelo had only seen the girl in profile. He wondered if he should sneak around the shop and get a good look at her face. He began to finish his climb up the basement steps and entered the room, but suddenly the furry winged cat thing hissed and looked in his direction. Michelangelo jumped into the shadows and held absolutely still.
When the creature hissed the witch instantly became on alert. Raphael noticed her worry. "What is it?"
"I think Samantha saw something," the girl said. When Raphael gave her a curious glance she added, "My familiar."
"Oh, the Wizard of Oz reject," Raphael answered. He glanced at the creature for a second then followed her gaze."
Oh man! Michelangelo knew that he could hide from the witch, but he was always dubbed 'the turtle most often it during hide-and-seek, and Raphael was the turtle most often finding him. Michelangelo took in a breath to make sure he didn't move, but the very act of inhaling, betrayed him.
"There's something in the shadows over there," Raphael's voice dropped to a whisper. "I saw it move."
Raph! You're not supposed to help her find me! Michelangelo thought desperately.
The cat-like creature jumped over to the witch's shoulder, clinging to her with the creature's monkey like hands. "Samantha go hunting," She instructed her pet. The hands clinging to the girl began to extend large cat like claws, as it dropped from her shoulder, folded up it's wings, and padded like a tiger into the shadows growing as it did so.
What do I do? What do I do? Michelangelo's mind raced as he tried to decide on a course of action This was not what he was good at. Leonardo and Donatello knew strategy. He just went along with it. Raphael of course, would just fight.
Maybe that was the answer. Strike hard and fast, and escape. He reached for his nunchucks at his belt, but found nothing.
Man, I've gotta work harder at this dreaming reality thing, he thought as he considered new options. The witch's familiar was drawing closer and it was growing to the size of a tiger.
Michelangelo didn't want to hurt the creature. The witch actually in her own way was being nice to Raphael. He just wanted to delay it long enough to get away. Fortunately Master Splinter had taught them how to slow down an opponent in addition to incapacitating them.
As the creature advanced on him Michelangelo dropped to the ground and attempted to kick the legs of the creature out from under it. Unfortunately his transparent legs passed right through it.
What the shell? At first confused Michelangelo realized that as a spirit he had no substance. He couldn't touch the creature.
The creature glared at him. A growl rumbled in it's throat, and suddenly it became transparent.
Uh oh! Can that thing touch me now? Before Michelangelo could think about it the creature bounded forward and in a single blow belted Michelangelo across the room. He passed through chairs and tables effortlessly but came to land a few feet away from Raphael.
"Mikey?" Raphael asked confused. "What the shell?"
Ow! A hot streak of pain was the first thing Michelangelo noticed. He wasn't hurt by the fall, but on his shoulder were three red streaks of blood. I can bleed in this dream? He didn't take the time to think about this though. He was busy trying to avoid a second blow.
"Annie!" Raphael said using the witch's name for the first time. "If your flying whats-it hurts my bro-"
Michelangelo didn't hear the end of the sentence. He ran down to the basement, but the creature leaped over his head through the floor and blocked his escape at the bottom of the stairs.
"Michelangelo!" Splinter called out.
"Sensei, get out of here! I'll keep it busy!" Michelangelo said as he ran back up the stairs. And into the back of the store with the creature hot on his heels.
In a last ditch effort Michelangelo ran for a wall hoping that he could just pass through it, and escape. That hope proved to be futile as he found out that the glowing blue walls of this store repelled him.
"Aww shell!" Michelangelo exclaimed. He had his shell up against the wall, cornered by this strange transparent creature. He didn't know where Splinter was, and he didn't know the rules of this dream reality.
Suddenly something Splinter had said earlier flashed through his mind. If you feel you are in danger, close your eyes and wish as hard as you can to be home.
Instantly Michelangelo snapped his eyes shut. "I wish I was home," he repeated over and over again.
"I wish I was home."
"I wish I was home."
"Mikey?"
"I wish I was home."
"Michelangelo,"
"I wish I was-"
"Mikey, wake up."
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Coming Soon Chapter 8 Explanations
"Leo?" It took Michelangelo a few seconds to reorientate himself. He was in his bed. He was home.
"You were having another nightmare, I think," Leonardo said calmly. "Are you all right?"
Michelangelo had a nagging headache at his temples, but he focused through the pain. "Yeah, Leo, but Raph! Leo, some witch or something had him, and Master Splinter and I were flying after them and we were like ghosts or something, and there was this flying cat-monkey thing that was after me. I couldn't touch it, but it could touch me and - ow!" Michelangelo suddenly noticed that he had a burning pain across his shoulder.
"Mikey?" Leonardo asked concerned.
"In my dream that monkey-cat-thing got me across the shoulder, but it was just a dream, right?" He winced again as he looked at his shoulder. "This is weird. Its like I feel it, as if it really did happen."
In a very small voice Leonardo answered, "That's because I think it did."
Michelangelo followed Leonardo's gaze to his bed sheets. To his shock, there were three streaks of blood just like the scars he should have had.