Disclaimer: I don't own the TMNT
A/N: Well! Thank you to all who reviewed the last chapter! More people seem to be reviewing as the story goes on, unfortunately I can assure you that there aren't that many chapters left. Also, thanks for the suggestions of kids names on Stealthy Stories. It was pretty fun holding that thing. Oh yes, didn't mean to take so long to update! It wasn't for lack of ideas, I alread have three other stories, one my next Raph POV, I've just been sick as a dog for a bit. I'm still sick but writing this anyway so please forgive any difference in my grammar and whatnot. Not thinking straight right now. Plus work is rubbing me the wrong way, if you know what I mean.
This particular chapter is short, I hope that you like it.
Chapter 30
Back to Earth Empty
I know what you guys are thinking; YES! HONOR'S DEAD! Ding dong the b!t#h is dead! The wicked old b!t#h, the b!t#h is dead! YES! Nothing could make me happier at the moment. And a twin! Good God I'm doomed, there's no way in Hell that I can handle two little punks! Even though they are kinda cute, with their big brown eyes, their tiny little fingers...AHEM! Yeah. Ignore that part. Still, it was a surprise. I guess that having two squirts never really passed my mind, ya know? Hopefully my bros and master Splinter could help out a little bit, cause to be honest I don't know the first thing about kids other than that they like to crap thier pants. Yeah, I know. Shut up. But I want Vivid to be there too, I guess. I mean, it would be nice to have her around, maybe just to help with kids and that sort of thing, ya know? And, well, maybe also to help me out a little bit...not that I need help or nuthin! I'm fine by myself! Perfectly fine! Lone warrior! That's me! Still, sometimes when I think of her, I think that it would be nice...
The roof cracked like spider veins and it was all coming down. I knew that this wasn't the top floor so this wasn't the only thing coming down on our heads.
Across the room Amuke clasped his massive arms around his daughters and backed up into a corner where there was more stability. Unfortunately it got him further away from us. Leo continued to cling to the doorway, shouting at them to come. His screams were quickly drowned out by the monstrous blocks of building falling. Don shouted. I didn't completely understand what he was saying, but I caught the gist of it: we couldn't afford to stay here much longer.
I could see Vivid straining against her father's grip, reaching out to me calling. She was clearly prepared to sprint across the deathtrap to reach our ship. Unconsciously I drew my screaming babies closer. What could we do? I struggled to get up but once again slouched back to the seat as another contraction came on. This must be the placenta that Vivid was talking about.
Suddenly the door zipped shut, causing Leo to stagger back to keep from losing his fingers. Don and Mikey struggled with the controls but they were clearly not the one's in control. The controls moved by themselves and I felt the ship shudder as the engines kicked in. Slowly it rose in the air. Peices of building littered down around us. The sound of them striking the ship was akin to thunder, I was surprised that I didn't see our ship torn up like wet tissue paper.
But somehow the ship was able to rise, survive the bashing of building with minimal damage, and start to back out. I struggled to stand up again, but all I could do was look out the window at the wreckage that we were leaving be hind. The friends that we were leaving behind. My future wife that we were leaving behind. My throat choked and my eyes burned with something I couldn't quite name. Was I about to cry? No, I couldn't. There wasn't ever a time to cry. I shoved the painful lump in my throat and blinked back the tears. I noticed an empty ache somewhere in my chest. I don't know where it came from, and I don't know why it hurt so much. Just like I don't know why we're leaving.
Finally we were clearing the building enough for me to hear what my brothers were saying. The first thing that I heard was the arguing.
"Why are we blasing off!"
Don looked at the controls in exasperation. "Leo, I don't know! I think that it was the override! This type of Triceraton ship requires a destination to be inputed into the computers if the distress signal is ever pulled manually or the ship itself senses impending destruction."
"What are you trying to say?"
"We're going back to Earth, that's the last coordinates that was inputed. The ship's computer knew that we wouldn't have survived the building collapse so it overrided my commands to idle and used the last coordinates used."
"Can you override it? Fix it? Something!"
"I don't know! Kartal helped me with some of the stuff that I didnt' understand, we don't know nearly as much about Triceraton technology as he does. I can try though. Goddamnit I can sure as hell try."
I shook my head feircly. I didn't want to hear anymore. We were leaving her. I craned my head up to see out of an odd looking window to my upper right. It looked as though we had already cleared the building. Frantically I scanned the scene, anxious to see familiar tiny figures dart out of the building. The palace was surrounded by crowds of Elentials but I didnt' care. I'd recognize them anywhere.
My heart pinched in my throat and suddenly sank as I saw the massive palace suddenly crumble to the ground below. The surrounding crowd scattered in fear and an enormous amount of dust flew into the air forming a tremendous mushroom cloud. My heart was already low, but I continued to watch as the last towers joined the rest of the wreckage, collapsing onto the pile. It was beginning to get too small to see, but I still watched until we hit clouds and all vision was blurred in a haze of white vapor.
The air was cut with a peircing cry as Mikey sobbed. I ignored it completely, and slouched in the chair. The two infants in my arms seemed to know what was going on, or at least that's what I thought. In any case they were completely silent, looking up at me with big brown eyes. I cuddled them to me without thinking about it and let their smell consume me.
My brothers pulled Mikey away from the window as he sobbed. At the same time, some sort of machine chimed. Don immediately answered it. Kartal's voice echoed into the air followed by lots of static.
"Donatello, is that you? Where are you going?"
"The override sequence was initiated because of the collapsing building, how do I reverse it?"
There was a hesitation at the end of the line. "You can't, not until you reach your destination. Triceratons mental states can get easily altered if thier air changes or if they are exposed to different chemicals or microbes. The computer is designed to completely ignore the pilot in the instance that he's, uh, loopy. So you can't."
Don sighed frustratedly and pushed the comm button again. "What about Heartfelt, Vivid and Amuke? This stupid ship forced us to leave them behind. Are they all right? They were still in the building when we left."
The silence immediately following ticked by slowly as we impatiently waited for the answer. Finally it came. "They-they aren't with you? I was hoping that they were..." He stopped the line for a moment. "They aren't here. Blush and I have looked all over the wreckage, we can't find a single sign for them. They aren't answering the communication devices, and we searched the surrounding area with no luck. That's why I was hoping that they were with you guys. They wouldn't leave us hanging like this, wouldn't do this to usunless they were...Are you sure that you haven't seen them? That they didn't sneak aboard somehow?" Desperation etched his voice. We could tell what he wanted the answer to be.
Don took a ragged breath and Mikey clapped his hands over his mouth as his eyes brimmed with tears. "No, we don't know where they are either."
"...I see...well, I guess that I'll try to keep you updated. Um...keep a lookout for them okay? Over and out."
As the sad, depressed voice finished its message, Mikey continued his sobbing anew. Immediately Don and Leo reached over to comfort him. I looked at them consoling each other. They had forgotten about me at the moment, but I didn't care. My kids were enough company at the moment.
"It's alright Mikey, it'll be okay."
Don nodded at Leo's consoling and rubbed Michelangelo's shoulder.
With a sudden uncharacteristic fury Mikey shoved them both away. "NO! It's not okay! Don't you understand? They're dead! Do you know what else? Vivid was going to marry Raph, I heard him propose. They were going to get married and be happy and raise the kids, now that will never happen. So what are you helping me for? Raph's the one who lost her, I...I..." He choked off, and looked at them with wet eyes.
Don and Leo both turned their attention to me, their eyes big. "Raph, we didn't know...Is there anything that we can do..."
"Fu#k off, Leo." I grumbled and turned away from them slightly. Mikey pushed past his brothers and sat next to me. He didn't touch me or try to console me, he didn't say a word and for that I was grateful. Just his presence helped. I held my children to my chest as I felt the familiar emptiness in my chest get wider and more painful. The lump in my throat grew until I thought that it would rip it open and my eyes felt as though they were on fire.
Then Mikey touched me on the shoulder, he just laid his hand there. That one simple touch broke me like nothing else had done. Suddenly everything rushed at me. What had happened to me on that planet, I'd been raped, kidnapped, captured, abused, been forced to give birth to two children that I never wanted. I'd made friends, made love, found the woman of my dreams and found out that these unwanted squirts weren't really that bad. No, they weren't really that bad.
Without realizing it hot riverlets of tears coarsed down my cheeks and onto the bundles that I carried in my arms. I wiped off the tears but they didn't complain. I held them tighter to me and wept into them silently. For what I'd gained, for what I'd lost, for the woman that I'd loved who I'd see no more.
No, not the woman, the angel. The one who helped me through. The one I loved.
A/N: Alright, I respectfully request that ya'll not kill me! Please!
If you read it, review it. Only a few more chapters to go.
Toodles!
