WARNING: This chapter contains violence and character death.
Mikey
"I'm coming, Mikey!"
I looked behind Tiger Claw's big head to find Big Leo running after me; my brothers, especially the present Leo, lagged behind. He aimed his grappling hook at the closest roof and darted across the rooftops, his sight only fixed on Tiger Claw and me as he flipped over the gaps and sprinted with all his might. But Tiger Claw was zooming fast above the buildings. One slip-up from Big Leo, and he'd get away without a doubt. It was up to me to slow down the tiger's flight.
Using the Heiwa no Buki would be dangerous; I could hurt myself in this situation. But there was another way I could use it…
Gritting my teeth, I socked Tiger Claw across the face with the Heiwa no Buki, struggling enough to put his attention on me. He only growled and let me go enough to leave me dangling by one arm, his other paw snatching the Weapon of Peace. My stomach heaved at the sudden drop, and I screamed.
"If the Shredder didn't want you alive, I'd drop you and watch your guts paint the streets, cub," Tiger Claw said. At least, I think that's what he said. Between the roar of his jet pack and the wind vibrating my ear slits, I was nearly deafened.
"Come on, TC! Can we talk this over?" I screamed over the wind.
If I continued to fight, he could accidentally drop me, and I didn't want to be street pizza—It was my least favorite kind of pizza! If we were flying lower, I'd be able to wriggle out and land on a rooftop safely, but that wasn't an option yet.
My eyes darted around for a plan until I saw a billboard on a rooftop a few yards down. I gripped my kusarigama with a smirk. As we passed the roof, I slung my weapon toward the base of the billboard, and it linked around securely like I had hoped. Then I braced for the sudden jerking halt, and when it came, I thought my arms would pop out of their sockets.
Tiger Claw growled as we stopped, tugging painfully on my arm to loosen my grip. But I couldn't let go; I just couldn't! I strained as I felt all the muscles in my arms stretching to their breaking point, grunting through the pain. Looking down, I noticed I was suspended over the vacant space between two buildings, a dark and cold alley beneath me.
"Mikey!"
I looked ahead, seeing my big bro from the future rushing forward of the rising sun with nothing but whiteness in his eyes. He was catching up, but I didn't know how much longer I could hold on.
"Hurry, bro!"
There was a familiar click of a gun, and I turned around wide-eyed to find that Tiger Claw had managed to grip his heat gun in the same hand as the Heiwa no Buki, aiming it at my bro. I thought quickly to throw off his aim by struggling despite hurting my arms further. I gave his stomach a swift kick, though my legs could barely reach. It was enough to make his shot wide, and Tiger Claw bared his teeth at me.
"Let go, Mikey!" Big Leo ordered, evading a red beam.
I choked on my spit, widening my eyes. If I let go of my kusarigama, there would be nothing holding Tiger Claw back from flying away with me.
"But—"
"MIKEY!"
I hesitantly let the wooden handle slip from my grasp, gulping as I felt the sudden ascent in my stomach. Before we could fly a yard up, Big Leo hurled a handful of shuriken. Every single one lodged in the wrist that held on to me firmly, and Tiger Claw's roar mixed with the sound of tearing flesh made me cringe.
He let me go, and I felt my butt meet my stomach as my body suddenly dropped to the alley below. My eyes shut tight, and I screamed on the way down until a body slammed into me. Big Leo had leaped across the gap, catching me roughly before we touched down on the neighboring rooftop. I clung to him shakenly as we both looked back to find an enraged Tiger Claw ready to lunge at us, but Big Leo seemed to have a plan.
He ripped a katana from his back and threw the blade at the tiger before he had a chance. By the angle the weapon was thrown, I knew exactly where it was headed. I buried my head in Big Leo's shoulder and could only listen to the tip of the blade driving into Tiger Claw's stomach, a raspy gasp following. His body had dropped when I uncovered my face, and I flinched when I heard it smack the concrete underneath.
Big Leo turned to me without missing a beat, the blue hue in his eyes returning as he looked me over carefully. "Are you hurt?"
"You..killed…" my voice quavered.
My big bro shook me. "Mikey, look at me. Are you okay?"
"I'm… fine," I assured, my eyes never meeting his.
"Good." Suddenly, Big Leo cuffed the back of my head, and it jolted forward with pain as I yelped. "That was for scaring the life out of me! What were you thinking?!"
I rubbed my head, blushing with my eyes glued to the ground. Words weren't forming in my head as I could only think about the fact that he killed Tiger Claw without hesitation. Just like how he had savagely attacked Bebop and Rocksteady last week. Luckily, I didn't have to speak because my other brothers rushed to the scene, bouncing over to the roof and tackling Big Leo and me in a group hug on the ground.
"Glad you're okay, little brother," Raph praised, rubbing my head like a dog.
"We were worried," Donnie added.
Silence hung over me as they swarmed me, my cheeks still heated and my mind racing. Their voices muffled in my head as if underwater, but I couldn't find the energy to rise to the surface so I could understand them. All the adrenaline from protecting myself had drained from me, replaced with fear. Tiger Claw almost had me; he would have succeeded if not for Big Leo. Not me, but Big Leo yet again! I would have failed alone, and I just couldn't eradicate that thought. Shredder would have gotten what he wanted, then I would have… I thought I was going to be sick. Strike that; I was sick!
"Mikey?" Leo asked.
I shoved my bros, crawling away on my hands and knees until I heaved and spewed the contents of my stomach on the ground. Tears pushed through my eyes as I convulsed with another lurch. Gentle hands were on my shell in seconds, and only after I finished did I hear Donnie's comforting voice.
"Mikey, try to calm down. Your body doesn't know how to handle so much stress at once."
Wiping my mouth, I allowed my immediate older bro to help me stand, his grip firm on my arms. My other bros were suddenly in front of me, their previous excited expressions now concerned.
"Let's get you home so I can look you over," Donnie offered.
"Good idea. Grab the Heiwa no Buki, and let's—" Leo was cut off by Raph, who leaned over the roof with a frown.
"Yeah," he dragged out dryly, "it's gone."
"What?!"
We rushed and looked over the alley below, shocked to find that Raph was right. Tiger Claw and the Heiwa no Buki had vanished! The Foot must have taken the body when we were reconvening. I couldn't believe it! That meant it was back in the Shredder's grasp.
Oh no…
Big Leo released an exasperated groan, his fist clashing with the ground. He stood up and paced, his body trembling with anger.
"This wouldn't have happened if you didn't show up, Mikey," he said. "You broke your promise, and now we've lost the Heiwa no Buki again!"
The nausea I had felt earlier bubbled up inside me, and I swallowed down the feeling to hurl again. Big Leo had never yelled at me like this, forcing tears to fill my eyes. "Master Splinter is hurt, and I didn't know what to do!"
"Sensei's hurt?" Leo asked, fear leaking from his tone.
My stomach dropped as I recalled that I hadn't told them yet! Before they could ask, I started sprinting toward home with my bros frantically following.
We busted through the laboratory doors to find Sensei sitting up with his head in his palm, bandages swathed tightly around where he had hit the ground. I couldn't stop myself from wrapping my arms around him, tears falling before I could help it.
"Papa!" I exclaimed.
Leo, Raph, and Donnie quickly joined the hug, and Master Splinter did his best to hold each of us with his warm furry face buried in my shoulder.
"I am so glad to see you all okay," he said.
"I am as well," Leatherhead said as he entered the room, a glass of water in his scaly hand. "He just woke up." He handed Sensei the glass with a toothy alligator smile that the rat returned.
"Thank you, Leatherhead," Leo said with a nod. "For looking over our father."
Leatherhead nodded back. "No need for thanks, my friends."
Dr. Donnie went straight to work, studying Master Splinter and asking him a million questions while shining lights in his face. As he did so, we told our father about tonight's events. Leo did most of the talking while I mindlessly looked around the room. When my eyes fell on Big Leo in the back of the room, his eyes narrowed, and he turned away with a scowl. Something pinched my heart at sight, and I turned back to find Master Splinter's ears drooping at the news of the Heiwa no Buki.
"This is most upsetting," he said. "You should never have left, Michelangelo."
I meekly dropped my head. "I'm sorry, Master Splinter. You were hurt, and the only people who could help you were in trouble. I let my heart tell me what to do, and if there's one thing I've learned from you is to follow my heart. Please forgive me."
Sensei's expression softened. He lifted my head with a paw, his dark eyes shining with tears when they met my own. "You are forgiven, my son. I am just glad that you are okay."
My warm smile, directed at my father, withered as I heard a scoff from behind. We all turned our heads to see Big Leo roll his eyes before stomping out of the lab and slamming the door closed.
Silence hung stale in the air, and I felt that pinch in my heart again. I knew my bro from the future was mad at me, and I couldn't stand it any longer. The thought had been lingering in the back of my mind since he hit me over the head. I chased after him and slid open the metal door to find him marching away to who knows where, but I had to stop him.
"Bro, wait," I called. Big Leo only stopped but didn't turn to meet my desperate stare as I caught up to him. "I'm sorry I broke my promise."
His shell to me, I heard him mutter, "I told you not to be a hero."
"I know, but Master Splinter—"
"It doesn't matter!" Big Leo snapped, pivoting with furrowed eye ridges. "You promised that no matter the cause, you wouldn't throw yourself in danger. You were nearly taken from us. Do you want me to relive the same fear I felt five years ago?" I shook my head nervously as he continued with shaken words spilling out of his mouth uncontrollably. "Do you know what really happened when you were kidnapped by the Shredder?"
"Don't." I heard my Leo's voice behind me, and I turned to find my family standing at the lab entrance, their worried gazes stitched to the argument before them. Why did they look like that? What was Big Leo going to say? I shook with fear as I turned back to my future bro, my heart pounding.
"There's no other way to get it through to him," Big Leo retorted to his younger self. Then he looked at me, his ocean-blue eyes more serious than ever. "You refused to help him, so he killed you. The Shredder killed you!"
Fear grasped at my heart and mercilessly squeezed it. "You said… you said he brainwashed me."
"I lied to protect you," Big Leo explained. "But I don't know what to do anymore. You keep throwing yourself in danger, so you may as well know the real risk."
I turned to my family, seeing their teary eyes glued to me. "You dudes knew this?"
Their saddened faces answered my question. My lips trembled as the truth smacked me in the face. Their heartbroken stares and overprotective nature toward me these past few weeks made much more sense now. They knew I was going to die… and they didn't tell me!
"How could you?!" I yelled at them, tears spilling down my face.
They only stared at me regrettably. Even Master Splinter was at a loss for words. It was embarrassing to know I had been excluded from this secret for so long, a secret about my own fate!
"I told them not to tell you; you should be angry at me," Big Leo admitted.
I looked at him, his face distorted through my teary vision, then pushed him with all my might. "No worries there, bro!"
"Michelangelo," finally came my father's stern voice, "you must calm down."
"How can I calm down, Sensei? You guys lied to me! I don't… want to die."
I plopped down in the pit and sobbed into my hands. Nothing was said for what felt like hours; only my cries echoed through the lair. Then I sensed a body sitting next to me and an arm draped over my shoulder.
"You're not going to die, Mikey. I came here to ensure that," Big Leo said.
His voice struck anger in my heart, and I wriggled out of his comforting hold. "Then go back to your stupid timeline because I don't need your help! I don't want you here anymore!" Big Leo's eyes drooped, and I could have sworn they were shining with tears, but I didn't care; I was too busy stomping away. "This is my future, my fate, and I'm going to be the one to change it!"
"My son," Sensei called, but I continued ahead, my heavy footfalls bursting into a sprint out of the lair. "Michelangelo!"
My family frantically called for me; I could hear their footsteps chasing me in the subway tunnels. I wiped my eyes, ignoring every voice, every plea to come back. My trust in them was gone, and reality crushed me like a trash compactor as I darted into the shadows. I was on my own now, left to rewrite my future.
I had to get the Heiwa no Buki back and get rid of it myself.
Finally, the cat's outta the bag! I hope Mikey didn't seem too out of character at the end. Let me know what you think! Also, I wanted you all to know that I've made a twitter account, so if you'd like to chat on there so check for updates on my writing, you're more than welcome to follow! It's abz_the_turtle :)
I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I hope you have a wonderful day!
