Chapter Six: Encounters of the Strange Kind
"Come on Raph! You're not even trying!"
Raphael lowered the fake plastic red gun from the game screen and threw Michelangelo a dirty look.
"You're lucky this thing ain't real, Mikey." He turned his attention back to the large video screen just as an animated zombie attacked his character and the words YOU ARE DEAD appeared. Raphael growled loudly, then threw the gun back into its holster and slammed his tennis shoe into the black side panel of the arcade game. Donatello, who was down on the ground and leaning up against the House of the Dead game, jumped at the sound, and his hand bounced the eraser end of his pencil right into his eyeball.
"Geesh, Raph! Make me go blind, why don't you?" Donatello looked up at his brother from the notepad in his lap, covering his injured eye with his right hand.
Raphael let out a small laugh. " Like ya weren't before? You're the one who smacked into the wall on the way in here."
Donatello grumbled under his breath as he stood up, still rubbing out the pain in his eye, and watched Michelangelo play with the good one.
"Aren't you finished yet, Mikey? We've been in this arcade for three hours now!"
"Well, Master Splinter said we needed to get some air! Besides," Michelangelo fished a handful of quarters out of the pocket of his jeans and dropped them onto the console. " I've almost beaten the top score! Ready to go again, Raphie?"
"Naw, I'm sick of huntin' zombies." Raphael tugged on the sleeve on Donatello's white T-shirt. " Let's get outta here." He then pointed a finger at Michelangelo. "Meet us in the food court in an hour, and I mean it, Mikey!"
Michelangelo waved his brothers away without removing his eyes from the screen. "Yeah, okay. Bye-bye now!"
"Where to now?" Donatello asked with his nose buried in his notebook as the two brothers exited out of the arcade room and turned down the brightly lit tiled floor of the crowded mall walkway.
"Don't know. Don't really care, either." Raphael answered, keeping his eyes straight.
"Do you think Leo feels any better?"Donatello tried again to make conversation with his brother.
"He's not sick. It was an excuse to go see Karai." Raphael leaned in closer to Donatello and read over the scribbled words he had written on the paper. " Can I ask ya a question?"
"Shoot." Donatello answered without looking up.
"Do ya like bein' this way?"
This time Donatello stopped and raised his head, and Raphael could see from the expression his brother had that he was taking time to think about his answer.
"Well, it's okay, I guess. It's been nice being able to walk around above ground like we have."
Raphael shoved his hands into his jean pockets and the two starting walking again. "Yeah. It's been fun." The tone in his voice dropped down a few levels as he spoke. " I kinda miss bein' a mutant turtle." Raphael then let out a small chuckle. " Sounds stupid, huh?"
Donatello shook his head. " Not at all. Leo told me the same thing this morning, and I really do agree with the both of you. I never thought that I really would miss it, actually."
Raphael sighed, then reached up to his forehead and rubbed at the stinging pain that ripped through his skull. Donatello watched as he sat down on the edge of the fountain that sat in the center court of the mall and began to apply pressure to his temples.
"Have you been having a lot of those strange head pains, Raph?"
"Yeah," He pushed on the sides of his head and looked up at his brother. " Right here."
"That's something else Leo mentioned to me." Donatello cupped his chin in his hand. "Hmmmm...,"
"What?" Raphael felt the pain ease a little and he lowered his hands.
"It seems that every time we try to remember what happen to us, we have these headaches. But it also happens when we have those strange 'episodes', like the one Mikey had this morning, and like the one you had yesterday after the incident with that girl."
Donatello then realized he was pacing again, and he quickly turned back to face his brother. His left hand that held the notebook slammed into Raphael's shoulder, catching his brother off-guard as he fell backwards into the cold fountain water. Donatello stood still, holding his empty hand over his gapping mouth, not really sure if he should help his brother out of the fountain, or start running, but he came to a fast conclusion as Raphael stood up, the water running off of his black T-shirt and blue jeans as they clung to his body.
"Come here, Donnie," He gestured with his hand and Donatello found no comfort in Raphael's expressionless face.
"Aw, shell..." Donatello wasted no time in pushing his body forward as he dashed around the fountain and down the wide mall corridor, pushing through the throngs of shoppers.
"Get back here, Donnie!" Raphael called out from behind him, his soaked shoes squeaking as he ran. "You are SO dead!"
As he turned his head back to find the location of Raphael's angry voice, Donatello tripped over his own feet and landed on the inside of a prominent musical instrument store. The sounds of a nearby piano and the figure playing it caught his attention and he stood up, no longer caring that his brother was going to beat him senseless.
"Mikey? What in the world are you doing in here?" Donatello scooted next to Michelangelo on the bench and watched in amazement as his blonde brother's fingers glided gracefully over the ebony and ivory keys. " How did you get here so fast?"
"I went out the south entrance of the arcade. And to answer your first question, I got bored. If you've played one video game, you've played them all." Michelangelo suddenly stopped playing, his fingers poised to hit the next note. " Could you do me a favor and turn that?"
Donatello glanced up at the sheet music that Michelangelo had nodded at. " Uh, okay." He flipped the page over and Michelangelo continued, the beautiful melody flowing throughout the store and out into the mall, stopping a few people at the entrance way.
"Liebestraume, 'Dream of Love'. One of my favorites." Michelangelo closed his eyes and let the music overcome him. " Frank Liszt was a musical genius."
"Mikey, I don't know what frightens me more," Donatello said as he turned another page.
"The fact that you can play that, or that you can speak German and know what it means."
"There you are!" Raphael shouted from the store entrance, water dripping from his loose auburn hair. "I'm gonna-!"
"SHHHHHH!"
Raphael looked to his left, watching as a nicely dressed, older blonde woman next to him lowered her long, boney finger from her lips.
"Have some manners, young man." The woman turned her eyes back to Michelangelo, and Raphael couldn't help himself from glaring in her direction. When his brother finished the piece of music and bowed to his enthusiastic audience, Raphael pushed through the crowd and grabbed Michelangelo's arm.
"Come on, I wanna get outta here!"
Michelangelo then pointed and laughed at Raphael's drenched clothing. "Dude, what did you do? Go swimming in the fountain?" He pulled on the black T-shirt and let it go, laughing harder at the smacking sound it made as it hit Raphael's side. " You know you're only supposed to throw pennies in there, right?"
Raphael let out a low growl and was about to responded when the older blonde woman came in and pulled Michelangelo out of his grasp.
"Oh, Alex! I knew that was you! I know my baby's playing technique anywhere!"
Michelangelo pushed on the woman's shoulder, trying to avoid the kisses she was placing on his freckled cheek. "Hey, lady! We just met! Aren't we moving a little fast?"
Raphael sighed at his brother's lame joke, and with Donatello's help, they managed to pull Michelangelo free.
"I knew I would find you again, Alex dear! I"ve missed you so much! I knew you didn't run away!"
"I'm sorry ma'am, but I think you're mistaking him for someone else." Donatello intercepted the woman as she again lunged for his shaken brother.
The woman gave Donatello a cold stare, tears forming from her overwhelm emotions.
" Don't you dare tell me I'm wrong! I think I would know my son when I see him!"
Michelangelo grabbed at his throbbing head and pulled on Donatello's shirt. " I don't feel so good, Donnie."
"I know, Mikey. We're getting out of here." Donatello placed his hands on Michelangelo's shoulders and pushed him to the store entrance, trying his best to ignore the many sets of eyes that watched their every movement.
"Alexander! Come back! Please come back!" The blonde woman called out through her tears as she began to follow them, but found a very aggressive auburn haired teenager blocking her way.
"Just back off, lady!" Raphael growled. "He ain't your kid!"
"You! I told Alex you were bad news!" The woman dabbed at her eyes with a tissue.
" You won't get away with kidnaping my son!"
Raphael blankly stared back at her, then slowly moved away and ran to catch up with his brothers, the woman's words still echoing in his head as they left the mall.
Leonardo let his eyes glide over the city skyline once more, taking in the bright sunshine as it reflected off of the many skyscrapers. He changed his line of sight to the tops of the dark green trees that grew around him, then back down to the large, crystal clear lake that sat in the upper half of Central Park where a flock of geese had recently landed. Everything was still the same, but with his human eyes, Leonardo felt as if everything was distant and alien to him. He drew his knees closer to him and folded his arms over them, resting his head in the small pocket he had made, trying to block out the pain that pounded deep within his head.
"Leonardo."
The gust of wind that blew through seemed to speak his name, and he slowly lifted his head, gasping as he noticed that it wasn't the wind who had spoken to him.
" Please do not acknowledge my presence, Leonardo," Karai warned. "I was followed here, and we are being watched this very moment."
Leonardo whipped his head back to the lake, taking in Karai's appearance and almost smiling at the fact she was not dressed in her Foot attire, but in a red pant suit.
Karai had also looked over Leonardo, noting the collared, long-sleeved blue shirt he wore over a white T-shirt and the loose fitting jeans that covered the top half of his shoes.
"I still find it strange to see you in human form, Leonardo." Karai commented, stopping herself from smiling.
"Yeah." Leonardo agreed. "That makes two of us. I can't seem to get comfortable with it."
A long pause then followed, both of them becoming uneasy with each passing second. Karai then silently decided that she needed to address the reason she had agreed to meet the sworn enemy of her Master and leave before the ninjas that followed her discovered what she was doing.
"I was there that night. I saw what happened to you and your brothers." Karai paused for a moment, waiting to see if Leonardo had anything to say, but when the silence became deafening again, she continued on.
" I was watching from a distant building, and the Foot army was already in that alley before your arrival. I watched as the four of you ran across the buildings and descended into the dark alley below. I could only hear sounds, nothing more, until-,"
Leonardo turned his head slightly, wondering why Karai had stopped. " Until what?"
"I never saw nor heard the vehicle approaching, but when those bright yellow lights appeared, I knew I had to move. When I entered the alley, I watched quietly as a set of enormous clawed mandibles attacked you and your brothers. But, just you. The Foot were left untouched and they could do nothing but stare at the evil machine as it knocked all of you unconscious and pulled your limp bodies inside of it. Then, as quickly as it had appeared, it vanished, and I thought that was last I would ever see of you."
Leonardo sat in a stunned silence, the pain increasing in his temples. "And when did this happen?"
"It has been three months."
Leonardo nodded as Karai confirmed what Splinter had told them the day before. "And you have no idea who could have taken us and done...this to us?"
He watched from the corners of his eyes as Karai shook her head sadly. " I'm sorry Leonardo. I have told you everything that I know." She was then startled by something behind her, and Leonardo could feel a sudden panic in the space between them.
"I must leave." Karai turned to depart, but stopped when Leonardo spoke again.
"Thank you, Karai. I know I put you in danger by coming here." Leonardo then ignored her previous request and turned to face her. "Would I be asking too much if I said I might need your help again later?"
Karai froze, not knowing exactly what Leonardo had in mind, and all she could think of was how irrate her master would be if he found out about her, but she could not help but feel drawn to the one she once called ally.
"I will not hold a promise to you as of now, Leonardo," Karai lowered her voice as she spoke. "But, if the time comes when you need assistance, I will try."
Later that night, April sat on her red couch, sipping a mug of hot tea and watching the evening news as her four teenage 'nephews' slept in a heaping pile of blankets on the living room floor. She strained to hear the anchorman over the snoring, holding back the urge to turn up the volume, but finally gave in, realizing that the four boys were too worn out to even stir from the sound of the T.V.
"And in other news, the search continues for four local teenage boys who mysteriously disappeared a little over three months ago."
April then spit out the mouthful of tea she had taken in as the pictures of the missing teens appeared on the screen.
"If you have seen any one of these boys, the N.Y.P.D. urges you to call their hotline immediately."
April then moved her wide green eyes to the sleeping pile on her living room floor, and did everything she could stop herself from reaching for the phone.