In Hand and Foot

By Michael Weyer

Sorry for the long delay with this. I was hit by a bit of writer's block but hoping to pick back up here. Sadly, this now seems a tribute of sorts to the now sadly axed Netflix Marvel block.

Jessica Jones was never what one might call a gourmet. In fact, her idea of fine dining was springing for a burger that cost more than ten bucks. Yet the sight of four turtles munching on some major pieces of pizza was enough to make her reconsider her own diet.

Michelangelo was munching on a piece of assuage as he sat on the nearby couch. The sewer was still a nasty place yet somehow the Turtles were making it home. He was watching as Colleen was sparring with Leonardo, the two trading quick blows and strikes. For her part, Jessica was starting to think that going back to the club with Luke wouldn't have been a better idea. She was also wishing there was some beer in this place.

Donatello was looking over Misty's arm with interest. "That is amazing, it looks so real! What kind of metal, is that the adamantium stuff I keep reading about? We don't have that on our world."

Misty just glared as Colleen and Leonardo took a break in their sparring. Colleen wiped her head with a towel as she examined the weaponry on the nearby shelves. "You got all this yourselves?"

"Rummaging around," Donatello confirmed. "I admit, the tech you guys got is a bit better than our world. You would not believe the stuff you find in the Stark garbage bins."

Jessica sighed. "I still say you guys should be turning to the Avengers of the FF. They know a lot more about this other-dimensions hit than we do. And do you guys have no beer here?"

"We keep our spirits free of such distractions," Leonardo stated.

"Plus, technically, we are underage," Donatello threw in.

Jessica still couldn't believe she was actually having this conversation. "I'm just saying, the big cosmic stuff is not us. We're the street-level folks."

"Your status is not bound by your station," Splinter intoned from his place on the ground. "Even the smallest of figures can become a giant in combat."

Jessica narrowed her eyes. "Do you guys have The Karate Kid in your universe?"

"Awesome movie," Michelangelo said.

Jessica shook her head as she looked to Colleen. "So...you and Danny talked?"

Colleen was moving into a series of sword stances. "Not yet," she flatly said.

"Still pissed he up and left you?"

Colleen stared at her. "Are you...actually trying...to give me romantic advice? The woman who redefined drunken one-night stands?"

"Hey, half the time I'm not drunk!"

"Jessica, come on," Misty snorted.

"Hey, you're in the same boat with Cage, Knight!" Jessica shrugged. "Just saying, you should clear the air. Get it all out so it's not distracting you."

"Oh you'd know about that," Misty snorted. "Your last guy even call you back?"

"No," Jessica allowed. "But in his defense, he's on a time-traveling ship in another universe so I can cut him some slack."

Misty's cell phone rang as she reached to answer it. "Wow, you get reception down here?" Jessica noted. "Very nice."

"Yeah, the new Richards FantastiPhones are cool," Misty had to note. She answered it. "Yeah? Huh." She paused to listen to the other end then raised her phone up to see an image on it. "Okay, I got it. Thanks, I'll check in later, Paul." She hung up but kept the image up. "Now that's…weird."

Colleen and Jessica both leaned in to see the image on her phone. It showed what appeared to be a trio of statues standing in the middle of a warehouse. "Vice responding to reports of a fight near the docks," Misty explained. "They found these." She focused on the statues to show one with a hand thrown before his face while the others were suited men aiming guns.

Jessica pursed her lips. "Why would someone leave a statue like that behind?"

Colleen was staring with wide eyes. "It's not a statue," she stated in a tone laced with wonder. "It's a warning."

"What?"

Coleen shook her head. "I can't believe…I thought he was just a myth…"

"Myth-taken," Jessica snapped. "What is this?"

"The Gorgon," Colleen replied. "That's the only name he's gone by. No one's sure who he really is or where he came from. Some say he's been alive for decades older than he looks, maybe a century or two. The name comes from how, with a look, he can turn anyone in his direct line of sight into stone."

"Mutant?" Jessica asked.

Colleen shrugged. "No one's sure. It could be that or one of those mystical Hand deals or a combination of the above. What's known is that even with his eyes covered, he's a superb martial artist and a killer of the highest order. Someone so deadly that the Hand leaders decided long ago to banish him rather than try to deal with him. He was supposed to be killed but it appears he's back."

Jessica threw up her hands. "That's it. I'll send you back the money, Knight, I'm out of this."

"There's no going out, Jones."

"The hell there isn't." Jessica got to her feet. "It's one thing to risk my life, that comes with the job. But I ain't winding up a museum piece!"

"Ms. Jones," Splinter announced. "Fate has bound us together for a reason."

Jessica rolled her eyes. "Do not give me that destiny crap!"

"It is only 'crap' if you do not believe."

"Then it's crap."

Splinter shook his head. "No, Miss Jones. Destiny is there. I know it. I believe it as it led me to my sons. It led us to become a force for good. It led us here." He waved a hand around. "You and your friends are proof. A bulletproof ex-convict. A rich boy turned into a martial arts master. A blind lawyer turned crimefighter. A troubled woman fighting for justice. A policewoman with a metal arm. And the new Iron Fist. Something had to bind you all together."

"Yeah, bad luck, ninja crap and..." Jessica stopped and threw up her hands. "What am I doing?! I'm arguing with a talking rat!"

"And you're losing," Colleen pointed out with a smirk.

"Shut up!"

"Sit down, Jones," Misty snapped. "You're in this with the rest of us."

Jessica glared but sat down. "For the record…"

"I know, I know, you're upping the fee."

"That and make sure I get to stone, you don't put me in a park where birds can shit on me."

Luke was hanging up the phone as Danny entered the main office of the club. "Just talked to a few of my guys," Luke stated. "I got them looking out for any signs of these freaks."

"You have guys now?"

Luke glared up at him. "I thought you said you understood what I was doing."

"I do. I never said I liked it." Danny sat at the other side of the desk. "You know my biggest problem when I got to New York and began my crusade, Luke?"

"Being a total moron with people? Thinking money solved everything? The whole 'white savior' complex you got in you?"

Danny ignored him. "Seeing things too much in black and white."

"Now, I know that's not meant the way it sounds."

"I thought there was clear right and wrong and no middle ground. It's why I cut off Colleen when she revealed she was Hand to me." He shrugged. "It took a while to realize the world doesn't work that way. You have to make some sacrifices to get things done."

"That's what I'm doing," Luke stated. "Like I said, someone worse could be taking over."

"Listen, Luke…I've made some changes in my life…"

"Yeah, how exactly does this new deal of yours work? I thought you just had the fist, now you're shooting glowing bullets?"

"It's not just bullets." He sighed. "It's complicated."

"I swear to God, you bring up punching a dragon again…"

"It wasn't…never mind." Danny wiped his face. "Luke, I know all about how the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. And how a good man can be corrupted by making too many sacrifices. I don't want that to happen to you."

"I'm no fool, Danny. I know how to handle things."

"In a straight-up fight, sure. This is something else."

Luke scoffed. "It says a lot I'm actually looking forward to fighting ninjas and walking animals than continuing this conversation."

"You can't avoid it forever, Luke."

The other man rose up and brushed at his coat. "You wanna talk frank, Danny? How about when you come clean to Colleen on what the hell happened to you?"

Danny looked away. "That's different."

"Is it?" Luke pressed. "You're talking to me on secrets, sounds like you're keeping a bunch from her."

"That's my issue. When the time is right."

Luke snorted. "Take it from me, rich boy. When it comes to breaking a dark secret to a woman, the time is never right."

The office wasn't fancy but it suited Matt well. New York had been rebuilding in the aftermath of the Dusting and there was a lot of real estate available. It was set in the lower level of a Hell's Kitchen brownstone which also allowed Matt to get a better apartment. True, it wasn't as if he needed the view but a somewhat bigger place was needed for his newly designed costume and a couple of spares in a closet that could only be opened by a complex lock sequence that required super-hearing to crack.

He didn't even bother looking up as the door opened. Even without being able to hear the heartbeat, Foggy Nelson was always easy to detect. No one else had the mix of that aftershave and a love of greasy sandwiches. Matt was going over some papers of his latest case as his partner entered. Foggy watched as Matt ran his fingers down the pages. "Least now I know how you managed to binge so fast at college when there weren't as many braille texts."

"Trust me, it was better than listening to your speed tapes," Matt stated. Foggy sat across from him as Matt paused. "Heard from Karen?"

"You can read with your fingers, Matt. I'm pretty sure you can work a phone."

"It's been…tense."

"Gee, just because you let us all think you were dead?"

"Foggy, what happened was…a mess…"

Even though he knew Matt couldn't see it, Foggy glared at him. "Blunt question, Matt. If the Dusting hadn't happened, would you have come out and revealed yourself? Or stuck to the shadows for a while longer?"

The silence was all the answer Foggy needed as he sighed. "I try to avoid this line as much as I can but the fact is you're blind in more ways than one, Matt. That woman cares for you. A lot. You can't just accept it."

"Foggy, the last woman I got close to tried to kill me and ended up dying. Twice."

"Fair point," Foggy allowed. "But I still think you should just talk to her. You really are horrible at communication, you always have been."

"I'm not…"

"Seriously, Matt, you can be terrible at talking to people. Which I know is ironic given your job."

"Alanis Morrissette truly ruined the definition of irony."

"Matt…talk to her. If only so I can get some peace and quiet."

Matt shook his head. "This is why I'm glad you dropped that idea to run for D.A."

"Worried I wouldn't be good at it?"

"No, worried you would be and make my job even harder."

Foggy just shook his head. "Okay, okay. Now can I count on you to help with the Scotts case?"

"Can't. I've got work tonight."

"What? Patrol? Come on, you can put it off."

Matt looked up at him. "I'm helping Luke, Danny and Jessica in stopping a war between ninja clans aided by a quartet of mutated turtles trained in martial arts by a talking rat from another reality."

Foggy just stared at him and snorted. "Fine, don't tell me."

"I got a hit!" Donatello called out from his computer. The Turtles and the women were moving to look over his shoulder as he tapped the screen. "It was tricky figuring out but going by records of sudden energy dips as well as some specific robberies, I think we've figured where Shredder would be."

Leonardo leaned over to see the dot blinking on a map. "Huh. By some sort of lab. That makes sense. He must be trying to find his own way back to our world."

"Which means we can follow him," Raphael stated.

"Not without us," Colleen declared.

Jessica rubbed her face. "As much as I need the cash, I still vote we call the Avengers."

"Or at least a SWAT team," Misty threw in.

"If you want them all killed, go right ahead," Raphael snapped.

Splinter nodded. "The Foot are a force beyond mere police. Only a force such as ours can defeat them."

Colleen nodded as she rose to her feet. "Call Danny, Luke and Matt. We go in fast and take the Foot down."

"Not the sentence I was expecting to hear when I got up this morning," Jessica noted as she got to her feet.

Calling something as being in a seedy part of Hell's Kitchen was saying a lot. The warehouse had been abandoned long before the Dusting and in an area where few dared to go. That made it a perfect place of operations for a group with dark intentions. The group of heroes were hanging outside the building as Leonardo looked through a pair of binoculars. "All right…not seeing any signs of sentries or alarms but that doesn't mean he's not watching."

"Plus, that's still a huge amount of Foot," Michelangelo noted.

"Where did he even get all these guys anyway?" Jessica asked. "There a huge market for ninjas in your world?"

"Ah, some are long-time Foot following family tradition," Donatello said. "Others are lost folks who got pulled into it and think it's a great thing."

"At least he's not using robots again," Michelangelo said.

"That was a really weird period," his brother agreed.

Luke stared at them. "Robots? You fought robots?"

Danny shrugged. "It wasn't that long ago that we were fighting an army of aliens, elves and Nazis."

"Robots?"

"Bright side, you can just smash the hell out of them without hesitation."

"I'm doing that anyway with these guys."

"We'd better Luke handle that Beebop and Rocksteady."

"Thanks, Misty."

Colleen pulled out her sword which glowed with light. "We need to be ready to cut loose, show no quarter."

"No problem," Raphael stated. "We were on a bit of a 'take it easy' kick but now we know we have to get gritty."

"No killing if we don't have to," Matt stated.

"Dude," Raphael snapped. "It's a batch of killer ninjas, we can't just play with kid gloves!"

"Plus, the Hand forces won't hesitate," Colleen stated. "It's kill or be killed, Matt."

"I just don't want to go down that path."

"Then don't, we'll take up the slack," Leonardo said.

"Whoever gets the most hooded punks gets the biggest pizza!" Michelangelo declared.

Jessica rubbed her head. "That's it. I'd rather die fighting ninjas then live another minute with you nuts."

The interior of the warehouse was mostly empty except for a large center platform. Various mechanical devices were put together as the Foot ninjas were busy moving more equipment around. Rocksteady was placing down a huge console, making sure it was in the right place. Beebop was nearby, scraping his teeth with a huge splinter of wood. "That's the last of it, boss!" he called out.

The Shredder nodded as he marched about the console, taking in the equipment. "This should be a decent start," he mused.

"Listen, boss," Rocksteady said. "Ya know…we don't exactly have any big science minds around here…."

"Obviously," Shredder muttered.

"And no offense, but it ain't like ya earned yerself a doctorate in dimensional stuff in the last few months. So how are we gonna get this thing working?"

"We don't need to open a full portal," Shredder stated. "All we need to do is send out a signal to Krang. He can access this dimension."

Beebop frowned. "Krang? Boss, he's parta the reason we're in this mess!"

"Krang has his issues but he can be open to making a deal," Shredder stated. He smiled under his mask. "Access to another Earth is just what he would wish. He can have this world and allow us to return to our own."

"Sounds good, boss," Rocksteady stated. "But what about da Turtles?"

"We shall deal with them in time," Shredder spoke. He paused as he looked about slowly. "For now…we have another issue." He stepped to the edge of the platform and spoke up. "You can come out. Face me as a man."

The Foot all paused, uncertain but somehow knowing their master had sensed something. From the shadows flowed a pack of figures in matching red and black uniforms. Beebop and Rocksteady both raised their guns as the Foot got ready. At the lead of the pack was a man in a dark white suit that was clearly designed to fight. He wore a solid red mask over his eyes but Shredder knew he could easily see. He also had the bearing of a very experienced warrior.

The masked man paused and bowed. "Tomi Shishido. The Gorgon."

After a pause, Shredder also bowed. "Oroko Saki. The Shredder."

Gorgon nodded as he straightened. "You have been interfering in our business. We have attempted to remain hidden in the shadows as is our way. But you have forced us into the light. This city is to be ours. Not yours."

"We have no desire to rule this city," Shredder intoned. "Merely to return to our own."

"Which will invite another force to attack," Gorgon noted. "We will not allow that to happen."

"Then it would appear we are at odds." The Shredder raised his arm as the blades extended from his gauntlet. The Foot instantly pulled out their own weapons. The Gorgon drew a pair of swords as the Hand also went into fighting stances. The two groups faced off, each waiting for the other to make the first move, the tension within the chamber thick with the preparation of battle.

"Cowabunga!"

The Turtles burst into the room from the side, ready to move on a quick strike against the Foot. The Defenders were behind them but they all stopped as they took in the two large groups who were now staring at them.

"Um…" Michelangelo began. "Were they just about to start fighting each other?"

"I think they were," Donatello said.

"Aaaaand, we stopped that."

"Yep."

"Aaaaand now they can decide to fight us."

"Yep."

"Kaaaaaaay. Hindsight 20/20, we should have approached this better."

"Rend them limb from limb!" Shredder howled. The Gorgon barked out an order in an odd language and the Hand moved to attack.

Jessica snarled as she kicked a ninja back. "Anyone want to help? I'm about to be rended."

Donatello smashed his staff against a Hand and the other end against a Foot. Leonardo was leaping forward to attack the Gorgon who blocked him with his own blades. The man moved almost inhumanly fast, stunning Leonardo with a slash. Colleen was there to block his sword with her own glowing blade. The two worked together as the Gorgon blocked their attacks easily to drive them back.

Rocksteady charged in, his head bent down with his horn at the front. Luke just managed to dodge it while grabbing the horn. He grunted as he pulled it along and sent the rhino smashing into a pack of ninjas who had been attacking Danny. The former Iron Fist managed to leap out of the way as Hand and Foot alike scattered.

The Shredder was wading into the fray as Daredevil dodged his attacking blows. He slashed and Matt used his club to catch the strike before kicking him in the face. Raphael was moving in, slashing with his sais as the Shredder avoided the attack to strike hard at the Turtle. Nearby, Jessica kicked another ninja back while Misty was using her service revolver to fire at anyone in her path.

An explosion ripped through the side of the building. Everyone spun around to see a figure stepping into the room. The smoke cleared to show the craggy face marked with scars as well as the massive machine gun in his hands. His face was set as hard as the giant skull that covered his shirt.

"Kung fu this," the Punisher snarled as he lifted the gun and began to open fire. Foot, Defender and Turtle alike scattered under the barrage of bullets. A few unlucky ninjas were cut down as the Punisher moved behind a pillar before firing off once more.

Michelangelo winced as a bullet struck inches from his head. "Holy crap, you guys have Rambo on this world too?" he called out.

"Frank Castle," Misty called out. "Former soldier turned nutjob vigilante named the Punisher."

Leonardo ducked another blast of fire. "Does he know he's just making things worse?"

"It's his way," Misty noted.

Daredevil just managed to dodge a strike as he leapt over to where the Punisher was. "What are you doing here, Frank?"

"Following a lead," the man grunted. "Just stay out of my way." He dropped his empty gun to pull out an Uzi from the belt under his coat. He opened up fire to cut down a trio of ninjas. Matt cursed as he went back into the fight.

Jessica ducked under a table to avoid another blast of gunfire. "Someone stop this lunatic before he kills us all!"

Michelangelo threw out his nunchucks, the chain wrapping around the Punisher's gun. He pulled it out of the man's hands as Raphael nailed him with a kick. The Punisher grunted as he fell back with Misty tackling him to the ground. "I know it's not a priority," she snapped. "But you're under arrest, Castle!"

A howl got their attention as a Hand moved to attack them with a sword. Castle pulled a pistol from his belt to shoot the ninja back. "Cuff me if we survive," he hissed as he got to his feet. As much as she hated to admit it, Misty knew he had a point and rejoined the fray.

The Gorgon was moving in when he felt a shadow move toward him. He lifted his swords to block the Shredder's claws. The two were soon moving into a wild fight, sparks flying from the clash of their blades. "Well, well," Shredder stated as he dodged a strike. "It's been far too long since I found someone close to my equal."

"Indeed," Gorgon agreed as he made several lightning-fast strikes the Shredder barely blocked. The two continued their solo fight as the chaos of the battle around them continued.

With no warning, a blast of light erupted from the platform. Everyone leaped back as they felt a wind blowing across the room. The light formed a circular field of energy that clearly was a portal of some sort.

"Oh, what fresh hell is this?" Misty groaned as a figure formed in the light.

The figure stood up from the field. It was dressed in a nice sweater vest, slacks and tie, a professional look which offset how he was basically a fly. There was no other way to say it; the insect head was featured by huge eyes that flickered about, a pair of extra arms extended from his mid-section and thin wings flapped behind him. "It worked.." he spoke in a voice that hissed with an echo. "Yessssssss, it worked!"

Donatello blinked in confusion. "Baxter Stockman?!"

"Friend of yours?" Misty said although the answer was obvious.

"Not exactly, he's a nutty scientist who got mutated by one of his own experiments."

Jessica threw up her hands. "Ninja turtles, rhino henchman, a mad scientist fly, what's next, a samurai rabbit?"

Another shadow fell into the light as someone else joined with Stockman. As the light faded, a figure stood before the group. While the Defenders stared in confusion, the Turtles looked downright ecstatic. "Oh, hell yeah!" Raphael yelled with more pure joy than the Defenders had seen on his face before.

The figure was in a pair of jeans and a torn sleeveless jacket over a tank top shirt. He balanced a hockey stick in one arm, tapping the end of it into his palm. His face was completely covered by a hockey goalie mask as he nodded at the Turtles.

"All right, you black-garbed Double Dragon rejects," he called out. "The school of pain is now in session with your instructor…Casey Jones."

Wilson Fisk sipped at his wine as he faced the figure sitting across from his desk. The skyline of New York was showcased in the window behind Fisk as the figure stood out in the ornate office. . His face was set in a hard expression as he looked to the other figure. The man was sitting with one leg crossed over another as he read a book. "You need to pay attention," Fisk stated. "I'm paying you a hefty sum to take care of this situation. Not to simply ignore me."

Fisk sipped at his win as he gazed at the figure. "I went to considerable cost to get you where you are. To heal you, to help train you, to get you into the business. That you went out on your own, I can understand given our…issues. However, I still expect you to be professional about this."

The figure kept reading his book while a gloved hand fiddled with a paper clip. Fisk sighed deeply. "Very well. You want money, I can give you more. An additional million to your asking price." He leaned in carefully, his face set in anger. "Can you do this or not, Poindexter?"

The fingers flicked the paper clip outward. It sailed across the space and the desk, cracking right through the top of the wine glass. It hit the cushioned chair behind Fisk and bounced right backward. The clip landed perfectly in between the pages of the book. "Sorry," the figure stated as he closed A Catcher in the Rye. "Had to mark my place."

He leaned back in the chair, showing the tight dark navy blue costume with white stripes around his shoulders and arms. A mask covered his face with what appeared to be a set of circles on his forehead. The same pattern seemed to be in his eyes as he gazed out at Fisk.

"By the way…Benjamin Poindexter died on that operating table. The name…is Bullseye."

Hopefully not as long before the next update and hope worth the wait on this.