DISCLAIMER: Don't own the TMNT's, Genesis, NASA, or the collected information therein. I do own the idea that 'said information' inspired me to use in creating this story. I do not claim any intelligence to understand the topic at large, but I decided to have some fun, regardless. Hope you do, too!
In addition, I've added bits and pieces to this from its original 'airing'. A bit more on Don's perspective re: how the dinosaurs might have died out, etc. Some extra comments by Raph, too.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
CHAPTER ONE – GET A CLUE
"Hey, DONNIE!" Raph yelled out from the living area.
No answer.
"DONNIE, GET YER GREEN BUTT OUT HERE!" Raph yelled louder, shifting his position on the couch a little to face the direction of his brother's bedroom.
Still, no answer.
"What's he doin', sticking his head in the toilet again?" Raphael grumbled. He then hoisted himself off the couch, getting more irritable by the second as he made his way down the concrete hallway towards his brother's room. Finding the door slightly ajar, he shook his head, "You'd think with those ninja ears of yours…." and then Raph pushed the door opened wider. There, staring at his computer screen was Donatello, obviously so engrossed with what he was reading from the monitor that he was oblivious to anything else, such as Raph sneaking up behind him.
"BOO!" the red masked turtle yelled.
Donnie reacted by jumping and nearly falling out of his chair, whipping around towards Raph to snap, "HEY, KNOCK IT OFF!"
"I've been calling for you, Brain-dead." Raph explained with a grin.
"I've been busy, okay?" his brother replied sharply, turning back around to stare again at his computer screen.
"With what?" Raph peered over Don's shoulder to see what was more important than responding to his commands.
"Nothing that would worry you, Raph, so don't sweat it." Don replied glumly.
"Worry, wha'd'ya mean 'worry'? Is there somethin' to be worried about?" Raph's interest was now piqued as he came around to grab a chair and sit next to his brother. "What'd ya find, Donnie?" He looked at the monitor and noticed that Don's start page showed a news article.
"Splat?" Raph said as he read its title. "What's 'splat'?" he asked, "A new drug on the streets, or maybe a new dance move?" He laughed a little, thoroughly enjoying his take on the title.
"No, Raph…like I said…nothing to worry about." Don replied absentmindedly as he continued to read.
"No, you said for me not to worry, nothing about not to worry at all…or, something like that." Raph stammered. He leaned in so he could read the news piece a little better. "Say, what's this thing called 'Genesis' about?"
"It was a NASA capsule that was sent to the sun two years ago to collect data and samples." Don explained wearily.
"Um, I'm no scientist, but – ah – isn't it kind of too hot on the sun to do that?" Raph scratched his head as he looked over at Donatello. He saw his brother roll his eyes and then shake his head sadly.
"No, Raph, it flew around the sun, collecting data that way." He finally explained.
"Oh, yeah – I- I knew that." Raph ignored Don's amused chuckle and continued to read. "It CRASHED?" he exclaimed, as he reached the point in the article about the disaster.
"Yes, it crashed on its return, it wasn't supposed to, but it did. They were counting on the parachute to deploy so a helicopter could retrieve it. It didn't, so the capsule crashed - over in Utah. Now, all of their experiments and collected data might be ruined." The purple-masked turtle explained patiently.
"Oh, that's too bad…all that work and then - nothing." Raph remarked, obviously quite bored now. He yawned and stretched his arms over his head, and then turned away from his brother, as if to leave.
"Well, that's the best case scenario." Don sighed worriedly. He leaned against his chair as he worked an air bubble around in his mouth, studying the article a bit more. He then folded his arms across his plastron, shaking his head.
Raph turned back to look at Don, again, his arms stopping in mid stretch, "Ah, what do ya mean by best case? What else could happen; the sun exploding?" Raph laughed at his joke as he now swung his arms about while walking around the room a bit, waiting for his brother's reply. However, he noticed right away that Don did not react to his question. In fact, Don's continued silence only implied his true concern. Walking over to him, Raph asked, "Hey, you seem more worried than these scientists are. What gives?"
Sighing reluctantly, Donnie explained, "Well, we know so little about our solar system, the things that could be out there and all. We're just in the infancy of space exploration. It's kind of like Columbus when he ventured across the Atlantic on his way to the new world." He looked up at his brother, who still seemed to be lost on the topic. "Well," Don dug down to explain while looking at his brother as he leaned back into his chair, "After Columbus came to the new world, others followed, and they brought with them a lot of things for the natives, but the worse was diseases. It nearly wiped them out."
"Okaaayyyy… so this means – what to me?" Raph asked as he turned to face his brother full on. He didn't like the expression that Don gave him, as if his brother was hesitant to say anything more on the topic. Raph always knew when Don had bad news and if there was one thing that Don didn't like sharing, it was that. Still, it was obvious the turtle in purple was anxious to share whatever it was he knew.
"Well," Don began as he looked back over at the computer screen, "it's quite possible…that the capsule could have brought back more than just space particles."
"Ah – like what?" Raph's asked; his voice less harsh, almost as if he really didn't want to know. The weight of Don's words was quite apparent to him.
"Like extraterrestrial spores or diseases." Donnie said simply, looking back up at his brother, "There's a ton of unknowns out there, Raph. To have this capsule crash and then break open and expose what it's collected to the earth's environment, a reverse contamination could happen if it collected harmful bacteria!" He watched as his brother assimilated the information, but Raph's realization to the truth of the matter was too slow for Don's quick-mind, "IN OTHER words," Donnie said in near exasperation, "Our world could become contaminated; our way of life altered, mass extinctions, things like that. It's what scientists theorized how the dinosaurs became extinct – well, that and the meteor theory." Don turned his attention once again to the monitor screen and frowned a little.
"But, I didn't think dinosaurs had capsules." Raph countered, furrowing his eye ridge.
Sighing in near defeat and rolling his eyes, Don tried again, "They DIDN'T! However, there were meteors, Raph, rocks from space that could have had spores and bacteria already in them! The heat from dropping through our atmosphere could have activated them, so that by the time the rocks hit the earth, they were a viable threat. It's just a theory, but this capsule is more about fact, as far as I'm concerned."
Raph scratched his head as he remark, "You would think it would kill the bacteria, not activate them."
"Not if the bacteria lived deep inside the chuck of rock, though," Don explained softly, "It might have even happened with the meteor that supposedly killed off all the dinosaurs. Maybe…" he hesitated, nervously swallowing a little, "maybe it wasn't the meteor that did that, but what it brought with it after it crashed. I mean…" Don looked back up at Raph once again and said, "…the meteor had to be very big initially before crashing through our atmosphere and burning up. When it hit earth – and they think it might have been in the area near the Yucatan Peninsula, whatever was left of the rock, the spores or bacteria might have been close enough to the surface, so that when it crashed into the ocean, the resulting damage to the meteor might have released it. The fact that it supposedly landed in water, more than likely heated water after impact, might have been the right catalyst to ignite the bacteria to grow. It's a fact that all carbon-based life needs water of some sort. Then…" Don sighed as he swept his gaze back to the computer screen once again, "it was only a matter of time before it wiped out all the dinosaurs."
Raph just sat there and pondered what his brother had just told him. He nodded, as if finally getting it, "Yeah, okay, so…dinos are gone, humans reign, and we're still a minority." Then, another thought came to mind. He brightened, "Oh, almost forgot, there was this news report on the T.V.…I think it's about some probe that crash-landed in Arizona – I think." He saw Don slowly look over him, his expression becoming more animated as his eyes widened slightly. Raph furrowed his eye ridges as he corrected himself, "Or, maybe it was Utah?"
"Good grief, Raph," Don exploded, "That's the very same thing that I'm reading here." He gestured his thumb angrily at this computer screen.
"Yeah, well, the news guys said that, after the next commercial,they're going to be showing a video of it crashing! Thought you'd want to see it; that's why I yelled at ya!" Raph smiled.
"AHHHHH!" Don leaped up out of his chair with his hands up over his head in aggravation, and made for his bedroom door, "Why didn't you just TELL me!" he exclaimed in frustration, disappearing out of his bedroom and towards the main living area.
"I just did!" Raph chuckled as he followed his brother out, quite amused with him self.