Disclaimer: I don't own the TMNT
A/N: Warning to everyone: this chapter is a little bit bloodier than my others.Hope that you don't think thatI'm too much blood-and-guts.
Jessiy Landroz: Has Splinter ever spanked any of them? I think that he's more the type to make them work out until they collapse. And I apologize about the spaces, I've gotten quite a few comments on them since I started writing this story and I honestly have been double checking, I'm either missing somehting or it's electronic and I'm just screwed. Tewi: I'm glad that Glory's appearance surprised you: I enjoy surprising people! hahaha! And you seem very excited about these admitted (ahem) feelings. Trust me when I say that I will not dissappoint you about that in the future! Hope you like that kinda stuff! Pretender Fanatic: I hope that the 'grinning madly' feeling you got didn't stick, then people might worry, you'd get a pretty white jacket and we'd never see you again! hahaha! But anyway, I'm happy to hear that my story is sufficiently amusing for you. I'll try to keep it up. artykidd: Happyto hear from you and I truly hope to see you again in the next chapter, I missed you in the last one (sobs!) Reijiro: Best lines? What's the contest up to so far? I'd like to hear what you consider to be the 'best lines' in this story, it sounds interesting to delve into. And spoil Raph? ME! Noooooooooooooo-okay. Yeah, I'm bad. I know. And the Vivid in the lap thing...don't you think that that would be spoiling him even more? Hmmmm. Yeah. And what's going on behind closed doors? I don't know, you might've given me an idea there! Mwahahahaha!
Chapter 15
Fighting in Heaven
Why y'all going all touchy-feely on me, hm? (you explain) Oh. Well, you know that guys can say things in moments of, um, stress. Not that I was stressed out or nuthin.' I mean, what sane guy would go on about love and so forth?
crickets singing in the background
Hey, so, anyway, here's the friggin story already.
I ran to the door, completely oblivious to any harm that might come towards me: Vivid was in trouble.
Ramming into the door like a pro football player I crashed in, sais blazing. Before I could even blink an eye three elentials were already bearing down on me. Obviously they never faced what Mikey kindly refers to as 'the secret weapon.'
Two of them were lined up so perfectly that I couldn't resist just toppling them over with a well-placed roundhouse kick. The contact of bone and flesh with my foot has never been so satisfying. The third, weilding what I could only guess was a pistol, jabbed it at me. Pity for her.
My fist closed around her wrist and twisted harshly. I could feel it crack. She immediately cried out and dropped her weapon, nursing her cracked wrist, temporarily forgetting the green fury in front of her. Big mistake. Using the butt of my hand I struck her nose with an upward swing. Cartilage from her nose crumbled like tissue paper and she fell to the ground unconscious.
By now the other two stupidly got back up instead of staying on the floor where they belonged. A swift kick to the chest, uppercut to the stomach, and yet another roundhouse kick since they were stupid enough to line up again finished them off.
"Well well now. Look who's here! I'm glad, it saved us all a search." That voice...
I whirled to face my other opponents. All that was left were three elentials and a fourth which was very familiar from the alley: Glory. Her dirty shawl was replaced with a bright and brilliantly colored robe made out of that same wispy fabric. Golden cuffs encircled her tiny waist, her neck, each wrist and ankle. Her hair and eyes were a dark brown, kinda close to The Dame's black. But looking at her face and the evil tint in those dark little eyes, it was unmistakable that she was The Dame's sister.
Then I looked for Vivid, the whole reason I was here. When I saw her, my breath caught in my throat.
Vivid was bound, her hands tied behind her and a cloth around her mough so tight her cheeks poked out and she couldn't close her mouth properly. She was on her knees before the other elentials, who had those pistols pointed at her head. Her hair was scuffed up, her cheeks bruised and tears were slowly coming out of her glistening eyes as she stared at mine. She jerked her head and somehow I understood immediately. She wanted me to go.
Over my dead body.
Something happened in that moment, something weird. It just boiled up inside my stomach and the scorching heat slowly seeped to every crevice of my body. Every muscle automatically tensed and my fists tightened around my sais as my whole body hardened. My vision hazed a violent blood red and I clenched my teeth so hard I'm surprised they didn't crack.
Yeah, you guessed it. I was royally pissed off.
Glory smiled, apparently mistaking my eery stillness for something else entirely. Slowly she walked over to the group that held Vivid captive, talking in a haughty air the whole time. "I'm glad that you showed up. It really saved you a lot of grief. We had just finished, ah, convincing her to talk, but, I can see that she can be quite stubborn. I apologize for the gag, we had just now put it on her for what we were going to do next. Screams can get quite annoying at times." she straightened out her hair and eyed the wicked tools that they were prepared to use on Vivid. "Well, anyway she wouldn't talk and now you've prevented us from having a little bit of fun with her. But luckily my sister still wants you so that gives you some bargaining weight. You get a chance to trade; if you turn yourself in, then I'll allow this wench," my muscles tightened more, "to live. If not, well, then you know."
I glared at her, but still didn't move. I don't know quite how to explain it, it was like everything was flooding my system so fast that my body didn't seem to know how to properly proccess it right off. Yeah, there was anger, a hell of a whole lot more than I've ever experienced in my lifetime, but there was also something else. Something that I've caught brief wisps of before but never fully had a chance to really experience any of it.
Glory cocked her head at me. "Well, aren't you going to answer?" I couldn't, if I let myself loose, I didn't know what would happen, if Vivid would be caught in the crossfire...I had a sudden imagery of myself exploding in a rage, attacking even those that I loved. I couldn't let it happen again, I almost did it to Mikey. I couldn't be responsible for losing Vivid...
She grinned menacingly. "Very well then..."
That's it, I was slipping, I was losing control!
"I guess that you've decided her fate..."
All that Master Splinter taught me, all that I've ever learned, it wasn't doing anything! I wouldn't let it break, I still had enough self control that I could hold onto that tenuous thread...
"Alrighty girls, kill her." With that she slapped Vivid hard on the cheek.
That slap echoed eerily through the realatively empty room like it was a mountain. It reached my ears and jarred the sleeping part of my brain awake. I still held that thread.
I let go. It broke.
I exploded into feirce action. I never had such a large energy rush in my life. I was going so fast, it was like the rest of them were moving in slow motion.
I was next to Glory literally before she could blink an eye and forcefully shoved both sai-butts straight into the center of her chest. She gave a strangled scream at the impact and flew back into the wall, nearly going through it as plaster and bits of wood crumbled from the impact.
The other three were bringing their pistols to ready. My sai twirled in my hand with lethality. With perfect precision and grace, they met their mark. Before they knew exactly what was going on I had delicately used the tip of the longest prong and sliced clean up the upper arm of two of them, right over that pulsing brachial artery.
Yeah, anatomy's good for something.
Blood spewed and pumped, painting the walls crimson. It took them a moment to break through their shock of what happened and realize their condition. When they did, everyone knew. Their screams filled the room as they frantically clutched at their arms, trying everything in their might to stop the lethal, pumping blood flow. I ignored them.
The third was just beginning to understand what was going on. With a blaze of panic she dropped her pistol and fled with all she was worth. Which, apparently wasn't much. I glared through my red haze at her retreating back and with a grim face I hurled a sai. It sailed through the air and buried itself directly in the center of her back, right between the shoulder blades. With a little 'ack' she fell to the ground rather quietly.
I twirled the sai in my hand and faced Vivid. She looked different in this red tint I was seeing through. Her hair was a brighter red, her eyes somehow darker and lighter at the same time. But I had to obey the emotions running through my head. I tightened my grip on my sai and stabbed it in.
She winced for a moment, then her eyes opened wide when the bindings on her hands and feet fell off. It took a moment to collect herself, then she immediately tore off the gag and scrambled to her feet as best she could with her legs asleep from the bindings and the position she was forced into. She clutched at me to regain her balance. It made me feel...powerful and strong, the way she was depending on me right now.
"I-I th-thought I told you to go."
I looked down at her and gave a quirky, half smile. "No way in Hell."
"How DARE you! You little son-of-a b!t#h!"
We both turned our heads and immediately I snarled at the sight of Glory slowly crawling out of the hole that she made in the wall. She glared right back.
Once again, I don't know quite how to explain it, but I could feel her drawing in the energy. I had just enough time to shove Vivid behind me when the wind came.
It was just like what I did before in the alley, only much bigger and much more powerful. I immediately leaned forward, bracing myself and crossing my arms in a block to protect my face. Thena solid wall ofwind/air hit me dead on.
It was like getting hit by a brick wall. It was all that I could do just to stay on my feet. It nearly knocked me off balance, and actually got me sliding a few feet back on the floor. I could feel Vivid being buffeted away from me despit my blocking and I immediately wanted to turn around and look for her but resisted. All that would do would put me out just like her, and in order to save her I'd need to fight.
Maybe it was my ninja instincts, or maybe it was just my gut again. Anyway, I threw up my arm in a blocking stance as soon as the worst of the wind was over and was met by a surprise. Glory had used the wind as a distraction, when she was sprinting at us right on it's heels. Then she raised her hand for a strike but all she got was an arm. She tried to get a grip on my arm but I shoved hers away, temporarily knocking her off balance. Her position proved a fatal mistake for now her middle was completely unprotected. Idove in, sai in hand.
I made a vicious stabbing motion at her exposed torsoe and belly. With the reflexes of a cat she took a quick hop backwards, arms splayed out for balance to avoid the potentially lethal blow. All I heard was the ripping of fabric and for a moment I thought that I'd missed completely; until I saw crimson blood well up just below her ribcage. A fleshwound.It wasn't much, but I'd take it.
I continued with my momentum, taking giant steps forward, stabbing and slashing with my sai. Apparently she was in too awkward a position to do her wind attack and I was taking full advantage. Then she took a bigger step back and twirled, going around me to my side and misted into the air.
This trick again. It gets old.
Once again I stood still and took a deep breath, trying to feel my surroundings to guage where she was. To help, I closed my eyes. Peace.
Coolness, behind me. With lightning reflexes I reached behind me and snagged a slender wrist. Using her momentum against her I hurled her over my head with my grip still tight and crashed her down on the floor in front of me.
She gave a little grunt, but then managed to hop to her feet in a crouching position and swing out with her left foot. Catching me by surprise (how can anyone move that fast?) her foot snagged my ankles and I fell back.
Forcing my weight back further than it already was, I managed to land on my hands versus my shell and from there I easily flipped back on my feet, now further away from Glory.
No sooner had I landed then she was on me.
Her hand was clasped on my shoulder before I could even find balance and she smiled menacingly. Then I found out why.
Blinding, burning, stabbing, sizzling, throbbing, searing, cutting, pinching, there aren't enough words to accurately describe the pain that was blazing through my body. It hurt so much that I couldn't make a sound, I simply sneered with a gaping mouth, my tongue working at something it couldn't quite make out. It zapped through my muscles, my bones, my skin, everything in my body. Immediately I fell to my knees. My instincts were screaming. What I wanted to do was crawl on the floor, get in the fetal position and cry, or die. Whichever came first.
But I couldn't. Even now. I was brought even lower and nearly toppled over. I locked my arms, catching myself from the impact. The contact with the floor and my hands sent even more bolts of pain screaming through my system. I didn't know how much longer I could take it...
As suddenly as it began, it stopped. The memory of the pain was still throbbing through every cell of my body but it had stopped. Unvelieving, I looked up. What I saw was Glory's eyes open wide, her mouth open in an expression of disbelief. Of what? I looked even higher and saw it.
Vivid had snuck up behind her with my other sai and buried it in Glory's shoulder. Her face was locked in a snarl. Suddenly she heaved her weight against the weapon and dragged it as far as she could down her back. Glory arched her back and found her voice as she screamed in pain.
Without wasting time I snatched the sai I had with my and brought it up. From my position the best entrypoint was was just under her sternum, right between the wings of her ribcage. The ribcage that housed the heart and lungs. I took full advantage.
Warm blood splashed over my hand immediately, the bright red kind. I knew enough of the body to know what that meant: arterial blood.
With another scream Glory shoved at my head. Still a little weak from that pain spell she did I toppled backward, taking my sai with me. As soon as it was removed from her chest fresh blood spewed forth and onto the floor.
Already Glory was trembling. She didn't even bother holding the wound; she must've known that it wouldn't matter. Instead she shouted.
As she shouted another wall of air shot out of her. Not at me this time, but at Vivid. Catching her by surprise, she was knocked clear across the room...and crashed right through the window.
Glory laughed, pink foam collecting around her lips. "At least you can't have her, little pet!" she retched, flecks of blood coming from her mouth. "At least she can die, no one can survive a fall like that. All because she tried to help you!"
My heart sank and my pupils constricted as my breath came in tight gasps and I ran.
"VIVID!"
A/N: I know, you probably hate me for ending it like this, but once again it turned out longer than I thought that it would. I try not to make any of my chapters any more than 2,000 words and I've already breached my limit. Sorry guys. Well, I hoped you liked that chapter. Thank you to all who have reviewed. Remember, I only have 1 rule: If you Read it, you Review it! Hahahaha!
Toodles!
