I deeply apologize, really! Exams are taking all of my time at the moment, and they are still attacking me like dogs chase a piece of meat - sigh… And then I've moved away from home and gotten my own place… But enough of that.

Before we start, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to Quick Shot, who I'm praying for tonight - Hope is stronger than Death...

Here's the next chapter.

Enjoy…

The roads were silent, except for the footsteps walking through the rain. Michelangelo's eyes were mainly focused on the wet concrete, though not seeing much of it. Visions flashed through his head - what had happened to Raph, to Leo? They had found the last Sai, lying behind a dumpster near the alley. The turtle looked up, only to see his brother walk before him. None of them had spoken a single word since… their findings. Mikey winced slightly in the cold rain.

"Don…?" he asked uneasy, trying to catch his brother's attention. Donnie slowly turned his head. The rain made it impossible to what were tears and what was rain. The purple-masked turtle gave out low sigh.

"Yeah," he replied. Mikey stopped dead in his tracks, the words he was supposed to say getting stuck somewhere between his throat and lips.

"I," the turtle tried, taking a pause, "Shouldn't we go back? I mean, to tell Master Splinter?" Donnie looked to the ground. Blood still stained the pavement, making a small line through the streets.

"No. We have to follow the track before the rain washes it off," Donnie's voice sounded dry and rough. Of all the things in the world, he would have wished that they could run back to the lair for help. The urge to see their Sensei and tell him everything burned through his entire body, screaming for him to get help - but it could mean everything. Leo would have known what to do… Don sighed again. The trail of blood was starting to wash off and the turtle really hoped they could reach their brothers before it disappeared. With a nod, mostly to himself than to his brother, Don turned again to follow the red trail. And oddly enough, the trail led them away from the large skyscraper with the Foot logo on it. The purple-cladded turtle shivered, seeing the trail started to disappear before their eyes.

'No…' a voice screamed in his head. This couldn't be the end, he needed something to lead him towards his brothers, and now the rain was taking it all away from him.

"No," he started moving faster, trying to catch the last few glimpses of the blood getting washed away. Small marks in the concrete caught the blood, leading it along the streets with the rainwater and disappeared down a manhole.

"No!" he cried, falling to his knees. Donnie was desperate. Why was this happening to him? Why couldn't be one of the normal days, with Raph leaving the lair and coming back early in the morning like he used to do? At that moment, Don hated Raph for walking out like he did. What good did it do - could it really be so hard to hang around his own brothers in their own home? It was like the hothead was trying to escape his life by strolling off for adventures. Sure, it gave a good adrenaline rush to catch the Purple Dragons committing their crimes, stopping them and knowing they had served the city - again. But… Don was lost. The world would have spun around him, if it hadn't been for the fact, that his eyes were closed. A warm hand landed carefully on his shoulder, giving a soft squeeze. Donatello didn't move. His mind was still lost somewhere in the darkness, the rain pondering down on him didn't matter, the hand on his shoulder didn't reach him - everything was lost in the dark.

"Bro," a voice tried to reach him through the blackness and the turtle eventually opened his eyes, only to feel the pain coming at him harder, seeing that every single bloodstain on the road was gone.

"Come on, bro, we're gonna find them…" Mikey's voice was shaking lightly, as he looked down at his brother. He wasn't so sure about what he had said though. The sight of Raph's bloody sai had caught him off guard earlier and the feeling of not knowing what to do was still hanging around him - but he just couldn't give up. He refused to believe that his big brothers were dead.

"Are we?" Don's voice scared the young turtle. It sounded so dark, so - lifeless. Donatello's gaze rose, looking up, "It's too late, we're never go-"

"NO!"

The words echoed through the streets, sending the few pigeons on the rooftops fleeing for cover. Mikey's eyes were closed, tears streamed down his face, meeting his clenched teeth on the way.

"I'M NOT GIVING UP, DONNIE," he cried, his fists turned into tight, white knobs, "Master Splinter always says that one mustn't loose hope, and I won't! I'm gonna find them, with or without your help." With that, the youngest ninja turtle turned his shell to his brother, continuing down the wet roads in search of his family…