Chaltigas are long, gray vests only worn by the vao. It has a white symbol emblazoned in the upper right corner, near the shoulder. It was what looked to be a simple picture of a willow tree overlaying a hand all within an oval.

Anviao= lower ranked guards. Usually the more inexperienced fighters. Due to their inexperience, they are not allowed to be in charge of protecting the king or the people in the village. They can move up to the rank of vao once the current vao train and decide that they are ready.

vao= upper ranked guardian

Mir vao= my guardians

Tailaga ne gaido= Journey for Unity


Chapter 2

The next morning, April and Casey woke up in the living area of the guys' new home. Since the guys weren't expecting any guests, the best they could do for their friends was a couple of mats on the floor with hand-stitched pillows and blankets made by Avery and Nati.

They got up and began looking for the guys. Only to find that they weren't there. Passing by where they ate last night, April noticed what looked to be a piece of paper. Getting a closer look, April noticed the piece of parchment had a slight green tinge to it, but what got her attention was the writing on it. She read it out loud.

Hey guys

We had a few things to take care of. We'll be back in a little while. If you need anything, ask Avery or Nati. They're most likely in the infirmary across from us.

"Hm, I didn't think a place like this would have a way to write things to each other.

"Well, they aren't that old school, babe." Casey shrugged in response.

April ignored that little comment. "Alright, let's head over there, I guess." April said. Both of them left their friends' home. Heading across the dirt path as people were still decorating, they had to stop as some playing children ran by, not paying the two humans any mind. The older Verterrans, however, were very confused by the newcomers. They kept turning to look at the humans and then began talking among themselves afterward. They picked up the pace a little as they made their way to the infirmary.

Sliding the door open, they were lucky that the first person they saw was Nati, now dressed in her robes. She had just come out of one of her patient's rooms. She eyed the two humans before she spoke. "Hello, I assume you are looking for Donatello and the others?" she said with a nervous smile.

"Yeah, where are they?" Casey asked.

"They are... working right now." Nati answered, rather vaguely.

"Working?" April asked.

"Yes, they serve the Katu as his vao." she explained.

Instead of asking what those words meant, they just looked at her with a confused glance.

"Sorry, they serve the King as his guardians." Nati said, slightly embarrassed.

"And when will they be back?"

"Well, that depends on when their business is done. They asked us to watch you until they return. Until then, would you like something to eat?"

"Oh yeah, I'm starving." Casey said. He willfully followed the robed pink woman to the backroom to eat, while April stayed put, mildly annoyed by her husband.

"You coming, April?" Casey asked, looking back at her.

April sighed and rolled her eyes before following them.


Up in the palace, Beloose sat on his throne. He sat up straight with his legs crossed. His crown sat upon his head, and the stones embedded in them sparkled in the sunlight coming through the window behind him. His golden staff leaned against the throne to his right. The guys, dressed in their own chaltigas, flanked either side of him. Leo and Raph stood closest to him, only one step below the throne. Dax was the only one that stood right next to Beloose, standing in as a temporary advisor.

They all patiently waited as two of Beloose's anviao brought in a struggling person. He was cuffed and stripped down to the black shorts that the prisoners wore. He had lavender colored skin and shoulder-length violet hair that was an absolute mess at the moment. The two anviao forced him to his knees before the Katu at the bottom of the dais. The prisoner looked up at Beloose with a steely green gaze. Beloose, unwavered, met his gaze with his own. "Setor." the young king spoke his name calmly, and the prisoner sneered. "You have been brought here for being a willful follower of the false Katu and for another attempt at treason. Do you wish to dispute this?"

Beloose was different than his brother, Kai. He always gave people a chance to say what they wanted and never resorted to violence... or at least he tried not to. There was always a time when someone would have to fight on his behalf. He didn't like it, but he knew it had to be done. And he knew from the look in the prisoner's eyes that it was probably going to happen soon.

"I have nothing to say to you. You are not my Katu." the man known as Setor hissed.

Beloose looked to the red-banded turtle when he heard an annoyed growl. "Raphael." he said calmly, silencing him. He had gotten used to Raph's temper, so he never really let it bother him. "I am the true Katu. I was the one chosen. Not my brother."

"You are not worthy." Setor stood on his own two feet, but the anviao forced him back to his knees.

"No, no." Beloose stopped them. "Let him stand, let him speak."

Setor shrugged the hands off his shoulders and stood up. "You are not fit to rule these lands. Only Kai is. If it was not for all of you." he made sure to make eye contact with all six of them on the dais. "He would still be on that throne."

Beloose nodded, then shrugged. "Well, he is not ruling now, and there is not much we can do about that. Is there anything else you wish to say?" he asked politely.

Setor smirked. "Yes, know this. This is not the end of Katu Kai. He will be liberated. And he will take his place back on the throne." the more Setor spoke, the more worked up he got. In the middle of his rant, Leo looked back to Beloose. He had already sensed that something was up with this guy. Beloose gave him a curt nod, and Leo braced himself by bringing a hand up to the hilt of one of his swords. He subtly cleared his throat, signaling to his brothers that he would take care of this one. "And I will help him! But first, I have to rid this world of you!"

He shoulder checked one of the anviao away from him in a swift motion and grabbed the spear from the other before pushing him down. With the anviao's spear in hand, he charged up the dais, toward Beloose, aiming to kill him. Beloose did not move. He didn't even make an attempt to get out of the way. He just sat there, as still as a statue. Setor was aiming to run him through and was only stopped by Leo.

His swords sliced through the spear like butter right before it reached Beloose. Setor was taken aback by his speed, he hadn't even noticed Leo move from his spot. He was distracted just enough for Leo to kick the prisoner back down the dais steps where the recovering guards were waiting for him. They held him down as Leo stood protectively in front of Beloose. "Thank you, Leonardo. I believe he understands."

Leo stepped off to the side, swords still drawn as he glared down at Setor. Beloose looked down at the prisoner. "Take him away." Beloose ordered. The two anviao bowed to him and forced Setor to his feet and out of the throne room.

Once they were gone, Beloose slouched on his throne with a heavy sigh, suddenly becoming less kingly. "Please tell me that was the only one today."

"It was, my friend." Dax said with a chuckle.

"Thank the goddesses." he sighed again.

"That guy was a real whack job." Raph spat angrily.

"Indeed, he was." Beloose stated firmly. "And I fear that there are more to come."

During the battle to remove Kai from the throne, quite a few of Kai's men managed to escape before his ultimate defeat. Since then, they have been running amok. Trying to spread the word of Kai and trying to gain more followers. It didn't work too well with the other two villages in the territory because they remember what Kai did to them. So as soon as the village leaders heard about Kai's men, they immediately told Beloose, and some of them were captured, like Setor. Beloose wasn't the type to have them executed like they were meant to, despite all of the awful things they have done. Instead, he kept them locked up but treated them respectfully and fairly as a form of rehabilitation. It obviously didn't work with everybody, but a couple of them did come around and, after checking with his vao, became Beloose's anviao.

"How many of them do you think are left?" Mikey asked.

"Difficult to say. There may be more than we think." Dax mentioned.

"Wonderful." Raph stated with an eye roll. "More people to talk to Beloose like he's the one with the problem."

Beloose smirked. "I appreciate the concern, my friend, but it is alright."

It was rough listening to the prisoners talk down to Beloose and act as if Kai was the greatest person to ever walk on this planet. Over the last two years, Beloose became more than just a king they had to guard. He became a friend, a brother. And hearing their friend get spoken to like that really ticked them off.

"I'll never understand how you can just sit there and take that." Don said.

"Part of my royal training, I know I cannot please everyone, so I do not try, and I do not let it bother me... I cannot let it bother me."

"Yeah, well, that doesn't make what they say less upsetting." Don stated.

Beloose gave a small shrug. "You become used to the hate aimed at you."

"I don't think I will." Mikey crossed his arms.

"That is very much appreciated." Beloose said with a chuckle as he stood up. "But I am not going to worry too much about it. I have other issues to worry about."

"Such as what, Katu Beloose?" Dax asked.

Beloose rolled his eyes. "Dahwey, there is no one here, Dax. Stop being so formal."

Dax chuckled. "Sorry, it is a habit."

The king sighed. "Apparently, people in Emall village have been coming back injured when they enter the forest."

"Well, doesn't that happen sometimes?" Leo asked.

"From what I have been hearing, it is happening way more often than usual. As if something is out there targeting them."

"That is concerning." Dax said. "Do you know who or what is attacking them?"

"I hate to admit it, but I believe it is the lakras. I am waiting to hear back from the village leader to confirm."

"Alright, let's not dwell on that possibility. We'll wait for confirmation. Until then Raph, we have new recruits to train. We should probably get on that." Leo said.

"Goody." Raph said with an eye roll.

"Someone's got to train the anviao. We need more vao in Tarrin and Emall. The few that are there aren't enough to cover villages that big."

"Yeah, yeah. I know."

"In the meantime," Leo turned his attention toward his two younger brothers. "Why don't you two go check and see how our friends are doing."

"Friends?" Dax asked curiously.

"Yeah," Don said with a sigh. "Our friends from Earth followed me here last night."

"Interesting, perhaps I should speak to these friends of yours." Beloose added.

"Sure, whatever you want." Raph shrugged. "Maybe later on. We'll take you to meet them."

"Come on, Donnie." Mikey said as he headed for the door.

Mikey and Donnie left the rest of the group. They made their way through the palace halls that have now become so familiar to them before reaching the main entrance. Once outside, they were greeted by Luna and another lakra. This one had silver-colored fur like Luna, with the fur around his neck being a milky white. His blood-red eyes and horn made him look intimidating, but in reality, he's probably the nicest lakra you'll ever see. "Hey, Max." Mikey greeted the lakra with a smile and a ruffle of the fur. Max responded with several wet licks to the face, almost knocking the orange banded turtle off his feet. Mikey laughed and climbed on his back. "Come on, we're going home. We'll race you, Don."

Don had just gotten onto Luna's back when his younger brother made the challenge. "What do you say, Luna. Are you up for a race?" Luna responded with a happy chuff, eager to race her brother. "Alright, you're on, Mikey."

"Ready, set, go!" Mikey shouted. Max and Luna took off. Moving through the woods that split the village from the palace. The two lakras moved about nimbly dodging hanging vines and hopping over logs and other smaller animals.

They had been here for two years, but they were still fascinated by everything here. Looking up in the trees, they watched as furry ring-tailed animals watched from the branches. Colorful birds flew overhead. Startled zabarias quickly ran away from the incoming lakras. Different flowers shrunk in on themselves, protecting the blossoms from being trampled as they passed by. The wind caressing their faces as they moved through the woods was so freeing.

Max started to pull ahead as they neared the village. "Eat my dust, Donnie!" Mikey taunted.

"I don't think so, Mikey." Luna began to speed up and catch up to her younger brother. Just managing to inch by him before making it to the village. Don hopped off of Luna's back triumphantly. "That is how it's done, Mikey." he gave Luna a good scratch.

"Yeah, yeah." he turned to Max. "Don't worry, buddy. We'll get them next time." he pat him on the neck.

Don, Luna, Mikey, and Max started to head for the infirmary, where they met up with their significant others and their friends. Inside, they made their way to the back dining hall where everyone was eating. Nati was busy as usual, feeding all of the injured along with the other robed people. Casey and April were sitting at a table just talking amongst themselves. Nati saw them first and approached them, giving Don a quick kiss. "Hey, how has it been going here?"

"Well, your friend Casey seems to be adjusting quite well, but your friend April... I get the sense that she does not wish to be here, and she does not seem to be too fond of me or Avery."

"Really?" Mikey asked, looking just mildly annoyed.

"I am not sure. I could just be imagining things."

"Don't worry. I'll talk to her, Nati."

Nati continued going to take care of the patients while Don and Mikey sat down with April and Casey. "Hey guys, welcome back." April said happily. "You finished working?"

"For now, yeah. We'll probably have to head back later if they need us." Don said.

"So, how do you guys like it here?" Mikey asked.

"I think it's great." Casey said before April could say anything. "And the food's awesome. I don't even know what half of this stuff is, but I like it." he said as stuffed his face full of this world's fruit.

Don and Mikey chuckled. "What about you, April? How're you liking things?"

"Oh... it's nice." she said hesitantly.

The brothers noticed this and knew that something was wrong "Is everything okay, April?" Don asked.

"Yeah, everything is just... great." she answered quickly. A little too quickly for their liking.

"You sure? There's nothing you want to talk about? We're friends here. You can talk to us." Mikey reassured her. Hoping she would say what was bothering her.

"I know, but I promise, it's fine." she said.

Both of the brothers looked to each other and knew that something was off about her. They silently decided to use their new abilities, the goddess' sight, to see what was up. Focusing on the subtle pulsations beneath them, they were able to see the aura surrounding their friends. Both of them had a gray aura surrounding them. Which was normal as they were both adults and that just happened by default. The outer layer of Casey's aura was a bright green with just a hint of blue. Meaning that he was mostly happy and just a little bit sad. They would talk to him about that later. April's was red and... brown. Red meaning that she was angry for some reason and brown meant that she was lying to them. "April's lying." Mikey said through their goddess speech.

"Yeah." Don said back.

"Should we tell her that we know or should we let it go?" Mikey asked.

Don decided to answer his question out loud. "Well, when you're ready to tell us what's wrong, you let us know okay." Don said to April.

"I said everything is fine."

"Yeah, but we know you're lying. Don't worry, we're not going to force you to say anything if you don't want to right now. Just know that if you want to talk to any of us, you can." Mikey reassured her.

"Right, sure." April said, confused as to how they knew that she was lying. She thought for sure that she was hiding it well.

Casey noticed how tense his wife was and tried to talk about something else. "So guys, what exactly is going on out there? What's with all the decorating going on?"

Don, happy for a change of subject, answered. "Oh, there's a festival coming up soon. It's called the Dance of the Tashin. It's when people here and those in each territory come together to remember and mourn the lives of those who have died. And a lot of lives were lost in the incident two years ago."

"Like Avery's father." Mikey said.

"And both of Nati's parents." Don added.

"So this is a pretty important time for them. It's okay if you don't really want to stick around for that." Mikey said.

"No, it's okay. We'll stay." April answered.

"Are you sure? You don't really seem to be enjoying yourself." Don asked.

"What do you mean? I'm fine. This place is great." April waved it off.

The brothers shrugged. "Okay, if you say so."


Back in the palace, Beloose watched from his throne as Raph and Leo trained all of his anviao. They knew the importance of needing more vao. After the incident with Kai and his minions, Dax and Beloose were so impressed with their fighting style that they both decided that it would be best for them to lead the training of the potential vao. So he watched closely as his guardians went through the moves they were being taught. Beloose only took his eyes off them when a bird call could be heard.

A bird, about the size of an eagle, flew through the grand window. It had a flat head with two dull horns protruding from the top of its head and a short sharp beak. It has a long, almost swan-like neck, a sleek, powerful body and strong wings. It was covered in an assortment of large colorful feathers, including its long legs. It landed calmly on the arm of the throne where Beloose sat. With large, powerful wings like theirs, they could fly for ages without ever tiring. They call them monapi, and people, specifically royalty, usually use these birds to relay messages to others.

This time was no different. Beloose untied the note from around the leg of the monapi and read it. A look of concern crossed his features. "Mir vao." he called out.

Dax, Leo, and Raph all turned to look at him. Beloose waved them over. The vao dismissed the anviao for the day before approaching the king. "What's up, Beloose?"

He passed the note off to Dax to read over. "It is as I feared. The lakras have been acting strangely."

"Strange how?" Leo asked.

"According to this notice, they were seen acting very aggressively toward anyone coming near them. They have been attacking people who have gone out to hunt. Fortunately, no deaths have occurred, but many have been injured."

"Why are they suddenly acting like this?" Raph asked.

"That is the important question." Beloose said.

"You think it might have to do with Kai's escaped guards?" Leo added.

Beloose shut his eyes as he thought about it. "That is a possibility. It is also possible that they may start attacking people in Ithri and Tarrin as well if something is not done."

"What will you have us do?" Dax asked.

"I am not quite sure yet. I do know that I would like at least one of you to assess what exactly is going on in Emall village, but only after the festival. It is tomorrow, and now I worry that we might be attacked by wild lakras."

"So you need all hands on deck?" Leo asked.

"Yes, at least for the festival, and then we can find out more about what is going on."

"Okay, we should let Don and Mikey know."

"And I shall accompany you." Beloose added.

"That will not be necessary." Dax said. He knew that Beloose just wanted to get out of the palace, but Dax was still very overprotective of his friend.

"I have to talk to Donatello about something, and besides, I would like to see these friends of theirs." Beloose explained, looking to Leo and Raph. "I am curious as to what kind of people they are."

Raph shrugged and looked to Dax. "The king has spoken."

"...Very well." Dax sighed. "Let us depart."

The guardians led the king out of the palace. Once out, they were greeted by Tam-Tam, Kuro, and Rocsi. Kuro was an all-black lakra. Black fur, black horn, the only thing that wasn't black was his eyes, which were a golden yellow. Kuro's sister, Rocsi, had the same golden yellow eyes, her fur was mostly black, only her paws and end of her tail were white. Dax and Beloose climbed onto Tam-Tam's back.

"Hey, Kuro." Leo greeted the all-black lakra by placing a hand on his horn. He responded by purring before letting the blue-banded turtle climb onto his back.

"Let's go, girl." Raph hopped up onto Rocsi's back and ruffled her fur.

All three lakras took off down the hill toward the village. Taking the same route that they always did. It didn't take long for them to reach their home. Once there, they dismounted. The villagers outside doing some last minute decorating for tomorrow's festival noticed the unexpected visit from their king and immediately bowed to him. Beloose quickly acknowledged them before moving on. Leo and Raph led Beloose to their home like they always did. It was the only place where Beloose could just be himself. Don, Mikey, and Casey were already inside, and they seemed to be in the middle of a conversation.

"So let me get this straight, you guys basically have to watch some spoiled snob?" Casey chuckled. He was facing away from the people that just walked in, so he didn't know that the "spoiled snob" had just walked in. Don and Mikey noticed, though, and they tried to warn their friend to stop talking. "That's so lame." he continued laughing. "Didn't think you guys would be convinced into being babysitters."

Beloose cleared his throat.

Casey flinched and turned around. "Um... hey. Are you...?"

"The spoiled snob that your friends are being forced to watch." Beloose answered. He suddenly had an idea as a mischievous look crossed his face. "I will not allow such disrespect in my presence!" he stated, tapping his golden staff on the floor of their home. The guys knew Beloose well enough to see where this was going. "Off with his head!" he told his guardians.

The guys couldn't help themselves; they had to play along. Leo, with a straight face, sighed and grabbed one of Casey's arms. "Sorry, Casey."

"Wait, what? Are you guys serious?" Casey asked, starting to panic a bit.

"Don't worry, Case. We'll make it quick. You won't feel a thing." Raph grabbed his other arm and had him stand up to lead him out the door.

"This is a joke, right?" Casey looked to Don and Mikey, who just looked away from him.

"We do not joke about disrespecting our king." Dax said, arms crossed.

"Wait, wait. I'm sorry, okay. I'm really sorry." Casey said, panicked. "You guys aren't really going through with this, are ya?"

Beloose suddenly began to chuckle a little at first and then full-on lighthearted laughter moments later. "Aye, that is enough. I had my fun."

"What?" Casey asked, confused as his friends let go of his arms.

They were all laughing at him. "Come on, Casey. Did you really think we would kill you?" Raph asked with a pat on the back.

"Uh... yeah."

"Things have changed, but not that much." Leo nudged him with his elbow.

Mikey was just starting to calm down. "Man, you should've seen the look on your face. Priceless."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Casey sat back down with his arms crossed, grumbling to himself.

"My apologies, Casey. I could not resist." Beloose added. He leaned his gold staff against a wall, removed the crown from his head, and handed it off to Dax. He also unfastened his one shoulder capelet and calmly draped it over Leo's waiting arm, so it could be hung up.

"Where's April?" Raph asked as he sat down next to Casey.

"She's outside in the back. She said she needed some fresh air." Casey shrugged.

"We'll introduce her later. In the meantime, Casey, this is Dax and Beloose. Dax, Beloose, this is Casey."

April walked in around that time. "April, right on time. This is Dax, Avery's brother, and Beloose."

"King Beloose." Casey grouched, putting emphasis on the word king.

The guys, as well as Dax and Beloose all chuckled. "I am not a king right now. I wear no crown. I am merely a man."

"A man that has some things to discuss." Dax reminded.

"Ah, right." Beloose got back on track. Face, and voice growing serious. "It has been brought to my attention that the people in Emall are being attacked by lakras when they go out to gather food."

"And we have no idea why?" Don inquired.

"As of now, no." Beloose said.

"Was anyone killed?" Mikey asked.

"Fortunately, only minor injuries, nothing fatal."

Mikey breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hold on, what are lakras?" April interrupted their discussion to ask.

"That's what Luna is." Don said.

"Oh." was all she could say as she remembered the giant beast that followed Don around.

"Alright, what do you want us to do?"

"For now, I want you all to be on high alert during the festival tomorrow. There are not many of you, so you may have to be more vigilant than usual. After the festival, I would like one of you to head over to Emall village and see if you can find out what exactly is causing this mayhem."

"I'll go." Mikey volunteered, with a casual shrug.

"Very well." Beloose said. "Thank you, Michelangelo."

"This sounds... dangerous." April spoke up. "Should you really be going alone?"

Mikey shrugged again. "It's not like we really have much choice right now. There aren't enough guardians around for more than one of us to go."

"Still, I don't think you should do this." the brothers looked at each other. Giving each other strange looks. They weren't sure why she was acting like this. They were always put in dangerous situations. Sometimes they would have to face those dangers alone. Why was now any different?

"I'll be fine." Mikey waved it off.

April quieted down and crossed her arms.

"Also, Donatello."

Donnie looked to the king, giving him his attention.

"You may go on Tailaga ne Gaido." These were the only words he said to him. "But of course, only after the festival is over."

"Of course, no problem. Thank you, Beloose."

Beloose nodded and stood up. "Now, I will take my leave. If any of you go anywhere, then please be safe."

"We will."

Dax collected the king's items and handed them to him. Once he placed the crown on his head, he left with Dax escorting him out.

Once he was gone, the brothers began to excitedly congratulate their brother. "Thanks, guys." he said with a laugh as Raph gave him a noogie.

"I'll help you plan out the fastest way there." Mikey offered. "You're gonna be on the road for a while."

"I appreciate it, Mikey."

"Wait, wait, what's going on?" Casey asked.

They looked to Casey, then to April. They remembered what she had just said when Mikey offered to go somewhere on his own. "Um, nothing. Don't worry about it." Don stood up. "I'm gonna head over to see Nati and tell her the good news. I'll see you guys later."

"Later, bro."


Hope you enjoy.