A/N: - Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry…and did I mention that I'm sorry? I really, really am! It's been far too long since I last updated! Anyway, I'm not going to bore you with a list of reasons why it's taken me so long; all you need to know is that I'm back on track and everything on the list (well, nearly) has been sorted! So you will not have to wait so long anymore! Thank-you to everyone who reviewed my last chapter for me! I hope you enjoy this one – and please review for me!
15 YEARS EARLIER CONT'D…
"Mikey?" Leo knelt by his youngest brother, "oh shell, not you too."
"I'm not going anywhere," Mikey's eyes opened and he smiled faintly, forcing out a painful laugh.
"Nowhere except home," Leo smiled back as April and Casey emerged, the latter with his arms around the shuddering April whom he was using as a vital support. It seemed he had regained some form of consciousness and was looking at Mikey with a distinct hurt in his eyes.
"Is he gonna be ok?" April asked quietly, her voice no more than a frightened whisper and her eyes filling with tears.
"But of course…" Mikey struggled to force another smile.
"You and Casey are coming with us back to the lair – it's not safe for you here," Leo told the humans – it was an order, not a request.
"How safe will we be there? They know where the lair is…they can find it…" Casey piped up; shaking with anger and the effort it took to stay upright.
"It will be safer there than here – at least then Splinter and myself can take care of you and we have all of Donnie's old medical equipment we can use." Leo trailed off at the thought of his younger brother, the first of them that had passed on because of his stupid mistakes and Shredder's heartlessness.
"Leo…" April placed a gentle hand on the turtle's shoulder and smiled warmly at him, still holding up Casey, "now, come on, pull yourself together – we can't dwell on the past any longer…we have to get Mikey and Casey back to the lair – and fast!"
"You're right – thanks, Ape," Leo picked his little brother up as he had done with Raph when he had been trying to get him back to the lair.
Getting home was a slow and difficult process and the journey was harder than any Leo had ever made before. But upon finally making it, no time was wasted in setting Mikey and Casey up with a bed and setting about getting the medical equipment set up. Leo was experiencing a strange feeling of déjà vu and it unnerved him. Casey had two cracked ribs and plenty of cuts and bruises, probably enough to last him a lifetime. But he would recover with only a few scars to show for it, which was a great relief to all around. However, Mikey, although in a relatively stable condition, has sustained injuries that were a far greater cause for concern. Leo sat in a bedside vigil, keeping a cold cloth pressed against Mikey's feverish forehead.
"My son," Splinter appeared at the door, his grey fur streaked with white and missing several whiskers on either side. There was a cloudy mist that glazed his eyes and he was walking slower and more carefully than usual, depending almost entirely on the walking stick; it was clear to Leonardo that his Sensei had not had much sleep lately and it was fast catching up with him.
"Master Splinter," Leo stood up and bowed, "We got April and Casey out but Mikey was wounded – I've done as much as I could and he seems to be improving slowly but surely," he explained.
"That is enough, my son; you are to now go and get some rest and I shall watch over your brother and shall speak with you later."
Leo entered the living room to find Casey asleep on the settee with April curled up on the floor next to him, holding tightly onto the man's hand which she held close to her tear-stained face. She was very drowsy, though not quite asleep, and spoke softly as Leo tip-toed past,
"Where are you going?" she yawned.
"Nowhere, April, just go to sleep, okay?" Leo sighed in response.
"Leo?" April tried again to get the turtle talking, "please…don't go out hunting for the Shredder – what good will that do any of us? It won't bring Donnie or Raph back and it certainly won't help Mikey or Casey heal any quicker. If anything, it will slow them down because they'll be worrying about you. So just stay here, yeah?"
"I can't, Ape, try to understand that!" Leo shut his eyes for a moment and re-opened them to see April stood right in front of him.
"You are going nowhere. You've never taken my advice before so why not try taking it now – you never know, it might do you some good to learn that you're not the only one your actions will affect and you're not the only one that is having their heart and their life slowly ripped in two by the Shredder and his gang." She scowled at the blue-clad turtle and defiant eyes met wild eyes as their gazes locked. Leo's jaw was set in grim determination,
"Tell Sensei I'm on a training run," he finally spoke in a low growl, "I'll be back in a couple of hours," and with that he turned and strode out of the lair, head high, his quest for revenge beginning.
As he leapt across the buildings of New York City, he had a strong sense of déjà vu – he had taken this route many a time when he needed to get away and train separately and more intensely to help him think. Feeling the wind fiddle with his bandana tails, causing them to whip across his face and shell, he knew he was not alone. Turning, he was confronted by the shadowy figure of the Shredder.
"Greetings, Leonardo,"
"Keep away from me, Shredder," Leo snarled back at the villain. Shredder cackled maliciously, "I mean it," Leo continued, "keep away from me and keep away from my family! You've killed two of them already – what more do you want?"
"I've killed two of them? Oh no, Leonardo, you've assisted me both times."
"You lie…"
"Do I, Leonardo? What motive do I have for lying to you? None, whatsoever – I could kill you so easily," he examined his bladed helmet, which he had just removed, and raised an eyebrow, "although if you'd rather not know the real reason your youngest sibling is in such a state then so be it…" he turned and began to walk, very slowly, away from the blue-clad and now utterly baffled turtle.
"Wait!" he called; Shredder turned, "what do you mean 'the real reason'?"
"Ah, so now you'll listen to me? How amusing,"
"Just get to the point, Shredder,"
"This isn't my place to interfere – why don't you take this up with Mr. Jones…"
"Casey? Why, what has he got to do with any of this?" Leo inquired.
"If it wasn't for him interfering with my plans then I wouldn't have had to take them prisoner. He tried to take on the Foot Elite single handed and stop a simple robbery. I threatened to get you and your remaining brother involved if he refused to leave but it just didn't sway him."
"Why should I believe you?" Leo sneered, doubt thick in his voice and his eyes alert and wary, body tensing up and ready to fight.
"If it wasn't true then why would I have bothered to invade their meagre living quarters? What business do I have with them? I kill those who stand in my way and they are weak, pathetic excuses for human beings and they were never a dilemma – but you, Leonardo, have been a thorn in my side. Surely I wouldn't have wasted all this time lying to you when I could have just killed you if I didn't think you deserved some dignity and truth given to you." Shredder paused for a moment, knowing that his poison was working. At that moment, directly on cue, a scream was heard from the street below. Leo crossed to the edge of the building in three long strides and peered over the edge. There was no-one there; no doubt another of Shredder's tricks. He turned round to face the villain once more but he was gone. A small voice spoke inside his head,
"Leonardo – you must believe me – Mr. Jones even offered to join my side and assist me in killing you as long as I could guarantee his precious April's safety…"
"Liar," Leo spoke aloud, his voice wavering a little.
"Why else do you think we let the weasel live? We could have killed her – we were going to kill her…"
"No…NO!" the turtle screeched up at the night sky. The voice laughed, a vicious cackle, and was gone.
"Leo! What the hell were you doing out there? You could have been killed! And you really upset April – she's been worried sick! She's out looking for you at this very minute! So you'd better have a good explanation, dude, or else you've got me to deal with – and if anything happens to her then I'll – I'll -"
"Casey…" Leo growled, his mind a mess of information – no one thought clear and every one muddled and now accompanied by a torrent of doubt, fear or hatred.
"Uh, Leo?" Casey sat up on the sofa and eyed the turtle cautiously. There was a glint in his startlingly blue eyes that was boring straight through him; there was hatred in there – pure hatred and the human felt a flicker of fear. He guessed at once what must have happened, "the Shredder's corrupted you!"
"Corrupted me? Or just opened my eyes?" the turtle replied, his voice rough.
"Dude, you're starting to sound like Raph and you know it freaks me out when you do that!" Casey tried to force a faint laugh and reached for a hockey stick as Leo took a step forward and drew one of his katana, "Seriously, Leo, you're acting like a maniac and that ain't like you!"
"Don't bring my brother into this…" Leo snarled, "It's time for me to get my revenge…"
"Then you should be talking to Shredder, not me," Casey retorted, his blood beginning to boil, "get a grip, Leo, he's screwed you up in the head here – c'mon, you aren't seriously telling me you believe him, are ya?"
"I…I don't know any more, Casey," Leo's entire face darkened, "but what I do know is that I could sort this altogether by getting rid of both of you!" he lunged forward and the human barely had time to lift his hockey stick before he was pierced, straight through the heart, with a katana blade. He spluttered and a high-pitched scream erupted behind Leo, who felt a blunt, heavy object hit him over the back of the head and slipped rapidly into unconsciousness, only vaguely aware of the fact that there was blood trickling from a gash on the back of his head, though he didn't think it was too serious. Anger still flowed, red hot, through his veins and he held no regret for his actions, convinced Casey was somehow to blame for everything.
Another terrified yell shocked him back into consciousness what must have been at least an hour and a half later. He glanced at the clock on the wall; one hour, forty three minute and fifteen seconds since he'd killed Casey, assuming he was dead. Leo scolded himself; of course he was dead – he'd been pierced right through with a katana blade. Pushing himself up onto his knees, he looked up and saw the limp body of Casey, the katana still embedded in his chest. Standing up shakily, he took hold of the handle and was about to remove the weapon from the man's body when a low voice stopped him in his tracks,
"Leave it."
"Yes, Master," Leo answered. What? Where the shell did that come from? Master? Who? Leo turned round to face whoever had spoken and paled instantly, suddenly feeling distinctly unwell, Shredder? No…he's not my Master – he – wait a minute, he turned back to Casey's dead body, the rooftops, the conversation – HE CORRUPTED ME! He drew the katana from Casey's heart with one strong, smooth motion and threw a blanket over the man's body.
"You dare to disobey me?"
"You're not my master," Leo spoke uncertainly, still fighting the Shredder's grip on him with as much strength as he could muster.
"I believe you have just sealed the fate of this young lady – shame, really, she's such a fetching creature."
"Get your hands off me, you fiend! Let me go!" April yelped, kicking and clawing at the Shredder in a vain attempt to escape. He hoisted her up over his shoulders and half jumped, half ran out of the lair with a grace Leo had often thought impossible for the Shredder. He shook himself from his daze and gave immediate chase, eventually catching up with his nemesis in one of the abandoned sewer junctions where the four reptilian brothers had often played as youngsters, in spite of having been forbidden from going there. An incident crossed Leo's mind from when they were eight years of age and he'd been giving Mikey a piggyback while Donnie was given one by Raph. They were racing round the sewers when Leo had dropped Mikey in the very spot he was stood in now and the youngest turtle had sprained his wrist. April's petrified sobs brought him back to Earth with a bump and he drew his other katana upon seeing April tied up and Shredder keeping her in check with an iron grip on her neck.
"Let her go," he pointed a katana threateningly at the Shredder, resisting the urge to change arms as the blade he held up was coated in Casey's blood and it sickened the turtle to see it.
"You mustn't blame him for Mr. Jones' death, my dear," Shredder ignored the eldest turtle, "he was under my control, see? Although maybe it would have been more fun to let you die thinking he did it out of free choice. You know what I told Leonardo? I told him that when we threatened you your husband offered to join us and help kill him and his parasite brother along with that wretched rodent. How does that make you feel?"
"You lousy, no-good, son-of-a---" Shredder clamped his free hand over her mouth to silence her.
"Language, Mrs. Jones," he snickered venomously, "you must learn to hold your tongue. So how about we tell Leonardo what really happened."
"April…I'm so sorry…" Leo choked on the words as the reality of what he'd done sank in and his energy drained from him. Mind clearing, he fell to his knees in exhaustion and helplessness.
"It's ok, Leo," April managed a shaky smile in spite of her current situation, "the truth is that when this scumbag," she emphasised the words carefully, "threatened to harm me, Casey offered himself as a sacrifice…"
"That will do for explanations," Shredder interrupted, "feeling better, Leonardo?"
"You tricked me," the turtle stood up slowly, his voice an ominous growl.
"Yes, it would seem that way. Well, now that the air is clear between you two, how about I drop her – we've had rather a lot of rain recently and it's a dangerous whirlpool down there – do you like swimming, April, my dear?" Shredder addressed her in a sickly tone. April glowered at him and spat back in his face causing him to let out a beast-like roar and lift her up by her flaming red hair, "So be it…"
A/N: - Uh-oh, a nice cliff-hanger there for you! I did warn at the beginning that there would be a shell of a lot of darkness and death…Um…are we allowed shout-outs in again yet or not? Can someone please help me out here? I'm going to stay on the safe side for the moment and not put them in but if we're allowed to then can someone let me know? And even if we're not, I'd still love for you to review the story as I love reading them, and if you're signed in with then I'll reply to them via email!
Thank-you!