Outside Chance

by WhyIsThisHappeningToMe

(set post s4 of TMNT 2012) Leo has to make a lifechanging decision when the rebel-foot clan destroys their home. In a desperate attempt to escape, the turtles use the strange substance 'purple ooze' to temporarily become human as a means to an end. But when the brothers are sepperated during the seige, how will they be able to find each other again before their enemies does?

10. Despite what you've been told

He decided to wait until Bill had fallen asleep, somewhere out of boredom in his car at what Leo deduced to have been about two hours ago. He'd pulled his hood over his head, strapped the katanas behind his back and slit down the fire escape all in a matter of minutes. Well, that was his eventual approach. His first being a not so kind encounter with yet another black ford waiting on the other side of the building with an even gruffier looking cop in the front seat. So, instead of following Karai's approach to sneak around from above, he'd instead decided to bite his time until the coast was close to clear.

The rain had made the bars holding the fire escape together all wet and slippery most to Leo's inconvinence, and making it so that he had to be extra careful traversing them, which, luckily paid off as soon as he hit the pavement. He stayed low, knees bended, head down and carefully leaned against the car before slowly peaking inside. True enough, Bill was in a haze- even drooling to boot. Phew... and believe I'm somewhat glad most cops are idiots in this town... And with that, Leo no longer had any gripes about sneaking around, skipping ahead, down the street in front of the car at his heels and the subway station only a few blocks away.

Then, as had been a seemingly unrelenting pattern for him, fate stepped in again and of course, made Leo step on the first littered can someone had unceremoniously tossed on the road. Approximately two seconds of Leo mumbling "Oh no" under his breath,before sure enough, the car door opened with a very sleep deprived rookie stepping out of it.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going kid?!"

Time to run-

And he did. Really fast at that, past the sidewalk, into the crowded streets and further through the area where he never in his wildest dreams would've thought he would find himself running from a police officer with a gun. He heard two shots being fired behind him, jumping at each one until the bullet pierced whatever brick or trashcan he found himself lucky enough to stand next to. He kept on running however, after a couple of blocks of somehow not losing energy, noticing Bill faulter behind him. Poor Bill, probably about to get demoted because of him too... Leo couldn't help but feel a little bit bad- or maybe not too much, depending on which boss would yell at him when he called in, (most likely the one he apparently kept flirting with.)

"Wait up! I'm- I'm warning ya!" the cop heaved, and Leo suddenly had an idea.

So, as soon as he found the nearest corner to hide behind, he ducked into the alley where- with remarkable efficiency even Hopkins would be proud of, he managed to jump over the fence in an almost perfect flip, pulling off the sleeves of his jacket while still in the air. "Ha! You see that? Who're you calling lame now? G-… guys…" Leo looked back at the empty alley, not really sure where that came from, wherever burried deep enough in his subconcious, but managed to brush aside his momentary lack of escaping in favor of not getting captured by a stray bullet.

Bill clumsily swung his leg over the fence, still panting, completely out of breath, red in the face and with that almost desperate look on him that once again, spoke to Leo's sympathy for the poor guy. "Y-You… are… in so much… t-t- ohgodI'moutofbreath-"

He got on his feet, held his gun close to his chest and walked around as if he was surrounded from all sides by enemies. Finally, he caught wind of the blue raincoat sticking out from the crack in the nearby trashcan, which made Leo bite his tongue once the cop took notice- grinning in the discovery. He listed over to the lid, took a deep breath, and counted to three before with a slow paced yelp, he opened it triumphantly. "Aha! There you are, you little- wait what?" but as soon as he opened the lit, all he seemed to find was the raincoat, and no child.

Now or never.

Leo sprung forward from around the corner, swept the leg of the cop and managed with litte effort to push him in, closing the lit with a solid BANG. He only managed to yell out a few swears in retaliation, but Leo was quick to close the lock.

"Hey what are you- LET ME OUT OF HERE THIS INSTANT YOU PUNK!"

I can't believe that actually worked, he thought amazed at his own quick thinking. As Bill kept hammering on the lit non-stop, yelling and screaming, Leo couldn't help but wonder if maybe this wasn't such a good idea…

"I'll let you out when I come back! I promise!" he called, running towards the subway before any reinforcements would show.

…

Soaked would be an understatement, when detailing the state of Leo, as he found himself confused and befuddled in front of a 'noodle shop' of all places, having ran there all the way from the subway station through the pouring rain. Shivering and severely eager to get inside where it was dry, Leo hurried through the entry. Now, to be sure, he hadn't been exactly sure where he'd be able to find intel on two ancient Japanese samurai blades in New York city, but a noodle shop was definitely not what he was expecting. And yet as he stood there, something about the place seemed awfully familiar to him. Even more so when he actually went inside and every single detail of the place speaking to him like he'd somehow been there before, despite his more rational mindset urging him to focus on the mission instead.

He embraced the heat, carefullyclosing the door behind him as the bell rung overhead- making the man in midst of scrubbing the table on the other side of the front desk turn his head slightly towarsd the noise.

"Can I help you?" he said, not bothering to turn around as Leo pulled out a chair, hesitantly, because well... what if this was the wrong place? Or the cops were still on to him, given, if he wasn't mistaken, at least one cop stuck in the dumpster would probably be plenty to lure his collegues on his tail in no time. Hopkins better have a good explanation for this, Leo thought, unstrapping the weapons slowly, one by one before putting them on the table

The man behind the counter was relatively tall, young. He wore a chef's uniform and a small hat covering a set of dark hair, clearly unkept. When he turned around, Leo also noticed him sporting two pair of black kitchen gloves, hiding just a fragment of ink on his left arm with a peculiar sort of detail. This gave Leo a bad feeling. Something stirring in his gut, telling him that something was off, and one he wasn't prone to ignore very often, though the stranger looked at him as if that was exactly what he was thinking too. A small, crooked smile making its way over his almost pointy-looking face, in turn, not making it particularly easy for Leo to hide his paranoia.

"Are you Murakami-san?" he gulped, as the stranger absent mindedly scanned Leo from top to toe for a moment. Yep. Definitely not a friendly face…

"What can I do for you?"

"I was told you might know something about these" he said, shoving the blades forward for Murakami to get a better look and hopeful know what he was getting at without Leo having to explain it to him. The man was still looking at him, even after the blades reached him. Eventually though, he decided to pick them up in his hands, weighing them with what appeared to be a light chuckle somehow escaping the big guy's thick throat. Like the guy was a kid at Christmas, playing with a toy.

"Not every day you see a kid walking around with these" he smiled, pretending to slice an enemy in half, while also making Leo nearly jump in his seat- something which seemed to amuse him even more than the things themselves. "They're real too"

"So, do you know where you could get these?"

"Why are you asking me? They're your katanas" he said, shoving them back towards Leo who could gradually feel his negotiation skills wavering. He'd be eager to prove himself better of course, not to mention showing Hopkins that he could actually count on him to do this, if it wasn't also for that tingling feeling in his gut holding him back from being able to focus on what ge wanted to know and nothing else. Whether it was the chef himself, or the familiarity of the place making him uneasy, he wasn't sure... Remembering his situation however, Leo quickly pulled himself out of his head and back to why he came.
"Let's just say they were a gift. And I don't have much time, so… do you know anything about them? Anything at all? I was told you were an expert"
"I guess I sort of am. In a sense" the chef said, grabbing two knives and starting to polish them against each other. "Why don't you order something? You're soaking wet- I'll make you something hot"

"No, really there's no need-

"On the house"

Leo sighed, as the chef turned his back towards the kitchen. So, far, this was already a disaster… he'd been here for what? Approximately five minutes so far, and with nothing to show for it… Was this really the guy? He certainly hadn't denied it, but still… looking at him from afar, the way he acted, like there was something off, he didn't exactly seem like a blade expert. Not to mention someone eager to help. But then again, what if he did know something, but simply refused to say anything without getting paid…? Could that be it? Wait, no- he said it was on the house, don't be stupid, Leo.. But then why… why is he stalling? I mean sure, having a kid with ancient katanas come to your noodle shop in the middle of the night, probably wasn't something you'd seen every day but, still… Can't just be my head making me see things. It most likely NEVER did, the more he thought about it. And now Leo was starting to understand why.

"So, what brings you to my humble noodle shop by yourself? Where's your friends? I mean, people usually comes here in groups. Not a lot of loners here" the chef said, chopping vegetables in a remarkably slow pace, despite what the poster said out front. Guess 'efficiency' really isn't in their middle name after all…

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, just an observation" he said, whistling to himself. "What did you say your name was, kid…?"

"I didn't" Leo said, and he was starting to get more confused. He got up from his seat, a small ache appearing in the side of his head as soon as he did. He knew that feeling well by now.

It was the same ache that happened whenever he started to recall something important. And now again- great timing as always for a meltdown.

"Right, right mind my manners. Sorry, I'm used to regulars, and I swear I feel like I've seen you here before. Well, they all sort of blend together after a while I suppose- you want the blue bowl or the black bowl?"

Distracted, Leo tried not to let his discomfort show, gazing around the place eagerly trying to kick start his memories. Needless to say, it was easier said than done. "What? B-blue I guess…? But about the blades-

"Yeah?"

The smell of food filled the shop. Leo ran his hands over the desk like a magic genie was hidden inside iof it. But then he saw the bowl, the set of chop sticks placed on either side. Even the smell of the food was oddly enough off, and there was something important missing. Something he couldn't believe he'd forgotten about this place. After all, he'd been here so many times already, how could he forget something that pivitol?

"Wait a minute… this isn't how you order, is it?"

Leo felt the ache momentarily stop, sat down, and suddenly, it was like everything made sense to him. Not knowing how or why. Like he just solved the worlds hardest rubrics cube, without a clue as to how he did it. The same feeling he got when he fought the PD in the alley...

Murakami turned around, clearly offended, as shown by the way he made a fist around his cooking spoon. "You got a problem with the way I do things?"

Leo rubbed his temple, as the images started to come back to him one after the other. This wasn't how you did things here. It's NEVER been the way you did things here! It's all wrong... , he thought to himself. "No, no, no, you take a capsule first, then the chief feels the engraving on the side with his index finger to know what you ordered! Yeah! I remember now! And that's how this place got so popular. It's because he's actually…"

…blind. He's blind… unlike this guy. Which means… Oh no…

Leo backed away from the desk, a little bit around the corner and then he saw it.

He saw Murakami.

The real Murakami, tied up and knocked out cold behind the desk, hands behind his back and a big ghastly bruise over his forehead. Now was the time to panic, and coincidentilly Leo didn't waste any time, heading for the door, the hairs on his arms rising. Even the lights of the restaurant seemingly colder than before. "I gotta go-

"I'm afraid I can't have you do that"

He didn't get far however, too caught up in suspense to notice the guy sneaking up on him. without as much as a word. He grabbed Leo by the wrist, towering over him like a snake and pulling him away from the exit. Leo tried to reach for the katanas, but realized too late that they were still on the table- the table now in the other end of the room. He tried to kick him, loosen his grip, bite him or just anything, but the guy was too resilient and as immovable as a rock. He reached for a knife in his belt, and before Leo had any time to evade it, he felt the sharp sting of it slice across his cheek as he kneed the guy in the chin. This proved to be effective fortunately enough, giving Leo just enough time to free himself and make a run for it. He felt his fingers over the door handle, before being ruthlessly kicked in the side, making him crash into the chairs where his head nearly broke on impact. He tried to get up, but before he got the chance-

"ARGH-"

-that's when something sharp pierced through his hand. But it wasn't outside of it this time, not just a harmless cut no, Leo realized slightly later than his mind could process that the blood pouring from the inner side of his palm was from the knife sticking out of it- pinning him to the underside of the table, unable to move. He took one long look at the damage before allowing himself to scream. Grunting as the almost cold AND burning reds spilled out from it, the stranger kneeled before him and grabbing him by the chin. Leo was forced to bite the pain, pulling up a brave face though his heart beat like crazy in his chest and the wound on his cheek was being pulled apart in the act.

"You're a little nuisance, you know that? If you'd just waited a little bit longer, we'd both make it out of here unscathed. I could've taken you in like I was told to, but of course you wouldn't be that easy..."

Panting, Leo nearly bit the man's finger, his effort in vain as he quickly pulled away just as he did. He caught a glimpse of the man's tattoo again, now mucj more clearly, revealomg itself to be a dragon that of course- made his next question all the more dire, despite knowing the chance of him getting a cohesive answer was just about a hundred to one. Regardeles, he didn't waste his breath.

"What, argh... what do you want from me?"

"Doesn't matter. They'll be coming for us either way now. Alive or not. Might as well make good on my promise while I still got the chance. It's not personal, mutant... it's just the way it gotta be"

The guy wasn't even angry. If anything, he looked annoyed. Like he'd simply given up, despite having successfully stabbed Leo in the hand and rendered him immovable, the look on his eyes were just plain tired. Completely unnegotiable... great. But then Leo remembered something else… before he left.

Still in his pocket.

'If you change your mind, here's how you find us. Just consider it, okay? We're not giving up on you that easily…'

And that proved to be all the motivation he needed. Leo tried to pull out the knife, bit his lip and- despite the wound already looking worse than any horror episode pulled up on Space Heroes, he managed to pull out the tip just barely, not being able to drown a second scream. His attacker, however, didn't even seem to care.

He didn't seem to care, because of the mechanical instrument with a counter beeping in his hand. The smile on his face was haunting as he held it. Leo got on his feet, for a moment thinking he was done for when somehow-

"What the-?!"

Murakami all of a sudden pulled his cuffed hands around the guy's neck, pulling him back in the indeavpr.

"Run, Leonardo!" the shopkeeper yelled, before the PD knocked him out with just one solid blow. Leo pulled out the transmitter from his coat, struggled to remember how to work it and ran for the door as fast as he could. He heard the beeping, clicked a button, not sure where it was coming from. It was like everything happened in slow motion. Seeing Murakami fighting the attacker, nearly dropping the transmitter as he tried to work it in his hands, the beeping intensifying before finally-

"Message received"

And everything went up in flames.

---

"You know, I actually think it looks pretty good. Compliments your figure"

Raph was trying really hard to find something positive to say. Him and Mikey had joined Ernie around the fire, as underneath the bridge, New York city illuminated in the distance. The snow was getting heavy, making their new living conditions all the more unbearable though neither wanted to admit it. And while Ernie had fortunately kept their tents clean off of looters and thieves while they were gone, the brothers were still waiting on Donnie to come back from OLS, in the meantime, being treated to some canned beans and vegetables. A hunger driven meal that, as both quickly came to realize, was greatly appreciated. Apparently, the old man had fallen prey to another gang of you guessed it, Purple Dragons, trying to steal it, and prompting him to put his fighting spirit to good use- as a result, making him now sport a black eye to boot. Well, it was more purple-ish red really, thick and all crusted around his wrinkled iris, though he wore it proudly. Any chance to beat up PD's our just plain criminals, and you bet Ernie'd be there to take it.

"Not my first, won't be my last" he smiled and took a sip from his whiskey. Mikey, on the other hand was too busy stuffing himself with food to pay attention to anything else. It had gotten to the point where Raph was afraid he'd accidentally eat the bowl too, as he'd done once before during a bet that went a little... sideways, to say the least. Though to be fair, this was probably his first real meal in days.
"You know you keep going like that, you're gonna puke your guts out"
"Don't care- too delicious…must… eat….ahhhhhh. Thank you, Mr. Straat! I feel like I'm two noodles away from death and I don't even care!"

Raph wasn't sure he'd heard right, over his brothers intense slurping. "Straat?"

Ernie nodded, "You never did ask for my name, did you? And I never asked yours. Around here that's pretty common… "

Actually yeah… I never did ask him about that, did I?

"Huh… Must've slipped my mind" Raph muttered, thankful that they still had Ernie on their side. Somehow, their raggedy friend here was more well-adjusted than probably the entire East End when it came to dealing with strangers. It was impressive how easily he seemed to trust them, providing them with food, shelter, warmth. Granted their goals did align, when it came to dealing damage to scumbags, but still. Raph moved the fork up to his lips, but no food came on it- leading his gaze over to Mikey's half empty one while he leaned back over his chair preparing for seconds.

"Hey, Mikey, what's that over there?"

Like a big red questionmark he turned his head.

"Wh-HEY! Give it back!" he yelled, nearly dropping the chair entirely as Raph held out his bowl in a stretched arm, exactly just out of his reach. Laughing, he was just about to take a sip of it, Mikey desperately gnawing on his arm like an animal, when all of a sudden:

Beep-Beep-Beep-Beep

They both put had to put their fighting on hold, as the sound echoed from his inner pocket.

"Uhh, I think you're beeping dude"

Conceding his defeat, Raph sighed and put the bowl down. He reluctantly put the communicator up to his ear, as Mikey smugly finished the last soup leftovers and growled. "Yeah?"

"Where are you guys?" came it from the other side, Raph putting it on speaker.

"Donnie. You know, we were actually wondering the same thing. Where the heck have you been all night?!"

"Sure, I'm the one you should be asking that, 'Mr. leave in the middle of the night without the decency to bring your transmitter'. I'm sure you also spend every waking hour trying to figure out a way to save the world from the foot like I have, right?"

Raph was silently gritting his teeth, thinking up a decent comeback to put his brother in his place, but with not much creativity to spare...

Mikey lifted his gaze, "He's got a point, dude… Ouch!" before being promptly hit on the shoulder by yours truly. Donnie's exasperated sigh could be heard through the transmitter as if he was right next to them overseeing the scruffle with his own eyes.

"Look, I've figured something out. Meet me in the cellar at OLS and I'll explain"

"That freaky nuthouse? You're not seriously still working there-

"No! M-maybe… Look will you two just get over here?! We don't have a lot of time"

"You got it. Be there in ten" Raph nodded, thankful to finally get out of the cold for once, shutting off the signal- turning back to company.

"He's so still working there" Mikey smugly stated, his expression alone matching that of a guy who just singlehandedly solved world hunger in two seconds.

"You don't say" Raph muttered, getting up from his seat. "Sorry, Ernie. Duty calls"

"You boys need any assistance? I might not look like it, but I was a fine bouncer in my boxing days. Showed those dragon freaks what's comin' to them"

He emphasized this by promptly bashing his knuckles into his hand, with what Raph was guessing to be a very eager need to match the new color of his black eye with his not bruised one. And though they most likely needed all the help they could get, Raph knew that this was much bigger than even Ernie realized- not just street punks and what not. Not just the street gangs and criminals. This was their mess. Their responsibility to handle. Though, he did enjoy the old man's enthusiasm, all things considered.

"We appreciate it, but we've got this. Isn't that right, M-

He was just about to turn back to Mikey, only to find that he had, of course, SOMEHOW found a way to get his tongue attacked to the streetlamp in the other end of the dock, now trying desperately to free himself for a few solid kicks, until he eventually had to conceed his defeat.

"Uh… I phink y ongue issstuck"

Raph could feel himself actively missing all those weeks on his own. But hey, at least some things never change... And if there was any indication to the contrary, this just proved it all over again. It's still Mikey.

"Come on" he said, and him and Ernie shared that mutual look of yep, this is happening, nothing to see here, before grabbing his little brother by the shoulders and effectively pulling him off in one solid yank.

"Agh- hehe… thanks"

"Don't mention it"

Ever.

"Cya later Mr. Straat!" Mikey yelled back, waving at Ernie now left alone by the fire. When the old man reciprocated, he hurried back up to Raph, slinging his sai's in his hands to keep busy.

"Hey, you don't think the Straat is actually just Street with an a? Hey, what if that's his secret identity! You know, street- Ernie lives on the street, he used to be a boxer- a boxer's a kind of fighter. Street- fighter. Streetfighter. YES! It all makes sense!" Mikey yelled, jumping on ever surface not designed to walk on in the meantime.

"Okay, I'm about two seconds away from sticking you to that pole again"

---

When Hopkin first came to, he was on a bench, somewhere on the open street. His head was sore, his body throbbing and every nerve in him stiff and bruised. The sun reached his eyes, shooting past the skyscrapers and giving him a rude reminder that it was already a knew day. He tried to sit up, the first attempt not as fortunate as the second one, and he couldn't help but groan as his bones grinded in his chest when moving.
It took him a solid minute to fully awaken, feeling like he'd just spend last night on a bender that did not pay off well.

He tried to grab his phone, reaching inside his pocket only to find that there was no signal. Typical, he muttered, until finally his gaze landed on his shirt. His ripped, torn to shreds shirt, covered in blood from so many different areas at once, that it might as well have been another shirt entirely. I remember now… It was all coming back to him- granted in a very dizzy haze of events that he wasn't quite sure hung together in the right order, but still.

He remembered the church, driving up to it, he remembered the girl, Hamato Miwa in the flesh, proving to him once and for all that he had been right. That the Hamatos were still alive. He remembered their fight, that much was extremely apparent, and he remembered… (and this is where his mind started to tangle itself in knots that he struggled to make sense off). I had her pinned… I know that much, I even phoned the office for reinforcements, so… what happened then? A thought entered his head, in a moments panic making the cop quickly unbutton his shirt and feel his chest up and down like he was patting out a fire. The wounds... it was… healed up. What the hell is this?! Panting, Hopkins realized little by little that the tiny dots imbedded in his flesh was the only clue left he had to go on. It was the definite truth that what he saw last night wasn't a dream. It couldn't have been… Hopkins was at a loss for words, he was tired, exhausted, stumbling up on the street and not knowing left from right. He tried running through the events over and over again in his head, but every time he did, it always led him to the same dead end. Because as far as he was concerned, the markings on him spoke for themselves.

He knew what he saw. And like everything else, there had to be a logical explanation for it. And whatever that was, it still didn't change the fact that he was right. He'd found his suspect, he'd apprehended her even, so to hell with it if he was going to let her get away over a rookie mistake. Or well… whatever she was.

Problem remained, however, that going to the police station explaining this, would probably take more than just his badge in terms of reliable intel. He'd already went behind his superior's back and he was on a short leash. Revealing the fact that he ignored orders to remove himself from the case as well as have the most prominent lead in this case run away under his watch. This was all looking really bad, and especially since he, until now had nothing to show for it.

No, as far as Hopkins was concerned, there was only one person left in this town that might be able to help him… and it pained him to have to admit it, but even so, it seemed to him that the time for losing an old bet had finally come, further more for Hopkins to against his better judgement,

… say hello to an old friend.

---

The first thing to notice about the place, was probably the smell of chemicals burning through any trace of oxygen left in the room. Not to mention everywhere inside came the humming and simmering of the washing machines tumbling on full speed, perhaps nine or ten filled with what Raph figured was lab coats from the facility. Neither him or Mikey was sure this was the right place, despite Raph having almost beaten a guy to splinters just a couple hallways next door last week.

"Remind me again, why you thought bringing us to the sorriest excuse of a laundry mat in New York, was a good idea?"

As Mikey nonchalantly kicked his feet back and forth- sitting atop one of the washers, Donnie was on his knees, fumbling with yet another device from his cleaning cart. There was something… off about him, Raph noticed. Maybe it was just his big brother senses tingling but, didn't he seem a little bit… paler, than usual? Giddier too, as judging by the way he kept tapping on the side of one of the machines with his index finger, almost like he was trying to send a secret message in morse code.

"We can't risk anyone listening in on us. OLS got wire camera's set up on almost every floor, and this just so happen to be the one they don't check. Not to mention, no one ever comes down here except for me. It's perfect!"

"That's not the only thing they didn't check. It reeks in here"
"Yeah, try not to breathe in too hard, some of the chemicals on the lab coats might cause a neuro collapse in your motor functions"
"A what-

"Point is, I was sorting through my stuff and that's when I realized I still got this baby!" Donnie proudly held up what appeared to be… Raph's smile dropped from his face.

He can't be serious.

"Okay, I can't be the only one seeing the video game controller, right?"

The only one who didn't seem doubtful, was of course Mikey who's eyes instantly lit up like a super nova. "Are you saying we're going to save the world with video gaming?! This is like my top five favorite scenario!" he exclaimed, nearly jumping off of the washer just to get a closer look, if Don' wasn't quick enough to pull whatever it was he thought passed for something useful away the last second.

"No, it's the wireless controller for Metalhead 3.0."

"Wait-wait-wait, 3.0? You rebuild that thing?! Didn't it blow itself up? "

A gasp was heard as Mikey got back onto his feet, "So, THAT'S why we couldn't play Street crashers anymore! You said the controllers were busted! You… you liar! "

Donnie's face turned red as he nervously scratched the back of his human hair.

"Well, I mean, they, sorta were… in a way. Look, I've been testing out the ai system for a way to commute a wireless data-uploading into a neurological mainframe directly from the user's brain! But well, I didn't exactly get a chance to test it before the lair was breached, and I had to abandon my equipment. But- as my impeccable forward thinking once again proves, I remembered to bring it with me before we left"

Raph could feel his patience already beginning to falter, long since having given up on trying to talk his brother out of his usual technical rants, as if he didn't know not everyone spoke nerd. And if that wasn't enough, of course, he'd go on to rebuild that toaster eventually- should've guessed!

"Yeah, forward thinking. Just like the time when- oh yeah, the lair blew up in the first place"

"You took our videogames AND rebuild the face stealer?! HOW COULD YOU?! And you call yourself our brother…"

Donnie sighed- probably losing his patience as well. "As I was saying, we can use this to reconnect Metalhead-3.0. Just need to get somewhere in the right vicinity, log onto his transmitter, and bam! We're in!"

"Still not following"
"Well, I don't see a lot of other options here." Donnie said, looking at the controller with a mix of doubt and perhaps a sort of forced determination, "The only device effective enough to locate purple mutagen is stored on my computer which just so happens to be in my lab that also just so happens to be the only one not accessable to hacking by outside sources, which also just so happens to be our only way of effectively tracking down the foot and stop them before next week."

"What happens next week?" Mikey asked, making Donnie jump for some reason.

"Wha- Nothing, I just mean that uh…well, the foot knows we're alive now. What we look like. There's a very good chance that means that whatever it is they're up to, they're not stalling anymore. Doesn't that… I dunno, worry you?"

Raph and Mikey both looked at each other. "Uhh…" they both blurted out, taken a back by that tense glare right now aimed at them, as if the entire building was about to blow up.

"I mean, it's not like we don't know how to stay in the shadows"

Mikey nodded, putting his hand on Don's shoulder, "Yeah dude, why are you so tense? Shellaaaaax, bro. Take a breather"

"And I still don't see how reactivating your toaster is gonna get us anywhere near the lair with those creeps surrounding it."

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong" Donnie held up a finger in the air like a magician, before promptly pulling out a big parchment that he folded out over the roof of the washing machine closest. "Here's the plan: So, according to this blueprint-

"You stole a blueprint of the sewer?"

"It's called a library, Raph. Don't worry, you'll understand when you're older- anyway" he muttered, quickly continuing- Raph forced to swallow his anger through gritted teeth. It wasn't hard to see that Donnie enjoyed this more than he'd probably say, annoying Raph to a certain degree, given so far, all they really had to go on was a half-baked plan that didn't hold any merit whatsoever and a leaderless team that didn't know up from down. Their brother was desperate. Well, more than usual. And while it made sense why he'd be,given so far, they hadn't exactly had the best of luck when it came to figuring out what the foot was up to, and yeah, Donnie probably only thought this up in the spam of last night, but there was something else too… he just couldn't quite put his finger on what.

"There are four different sectors leading directly into the lair. Now, two of them the foot has taken full control over, but because of the debris, it's almost impossible to enter it. All except for these ones right here. Now if I can just get close enough to activate a signal, Metalhead should be able to respond and help bust us in! So, Raph you'll cause a distraction in sector C, lurking the foot away long enough for Mikey and I to get close without being seen. Then after Metalhead's reactivated the security systems we'll be able to sneak in there, activate my computer, locate their base and bam! Mission complete!"

When he finally finished, the silence that ran through the laundry mat was almost staggering. A part of it most likely coming from Mikey's head being everywhere else instead of on the blueprint, and Raph trying his hardest not to say something too rash… though surprisingly- It didn't last very long…

"Alright, I'm just gonna say it. This is a horrible plan"

"You just lack perspective" Donnie concluded, crossing his arms defiantly. Then there was Mikey, who seemed to have suddenly lost all the color in his cheeks when a realization struck him, and the panic rose on his face.

"Uh, and what happens if we don't get Metalhead in time? Or worse… what if his mega robo arm flies right into my freckles?! I just got these! I can't do that again! Nuh-uh! Not happening!" he stated, creating a big, exaggerated X with his arms as he shook his head aggressively from side to side.

"Relax, buddy, he's perfectly harmless! …For the most part" Donnie said, and now it was his turn to put his hand on his shoulder. "And we won't fail..-"

"But if we do?"

They both looked at him for a moment. If there was one thing Donnie was never really good at… it was faking confidence. Which was also, probably the reason why he always relied on the facts to carry him through any argument- sometimes to an insane degree. And, which evidently almost always was a good indicator that he too, was scared out of his shell.

"Well, frankly speaking if we don't get to him in time, the foot might capture us again, use us as guinea pigs, decide we're not useful to them and dispose of us in the canal, Metalhead might malfunction again without the proper recalibration, they might've wiped the computer, one of us could get hit by debris on our way ou-

"Okay, okay, we get it! The plan is horrible! In other words- you got nothing"

"Hey, then you come up with something better! We can't always beat our problems away, Raph"

Smiling, he cracked his knuckles, "Now there's an idea I can get behind"

"Guys' hate to break up the fighting- but signs says we can't fight in here" Mikey broke in, pointing towards the small sign by the exit titled 'Only jerks fight in laundry rooms, Stephen'.

"Look, Mikey unless you got a plan, then it's really not the time"

"I do"

It was one of those moments where either party had trouble processing- in this case, most likely due to the fact that the only times the phrase I got a plan and Mikey went together, was over the last slice of pizza. Nonetheless, their little brother proceeded with… actually, not a bad idea. "Why don't we call April for help?"

"No!"

At least Raph thought so. Donnie… not so much. Both shifted their attention towards the now even paler personification of lack in subtlety titled their brother.

"I mean… we made an agreement to leave her alone, remember?"

"Yeah, and we don't even know if she's still in the city" Raph added, barely remembering the last time they'd even seen her. But even so, he couldn't help but feel that his brother had a point here. If they were to retake the lair, then they needed all the help they could get, and though Raph hated to admit it, April O'Neil was most likely their best shot at doing exactly that. He'd even tried searching for her himself after the sepperation, but had eventually given up, since by the time he'd found any trace of her, she was already long gone from New York. And for a long time, he'd believed that would mean for good too.

Truth be told, if she hadn't left them, chances were that they might've had a shot at getting home months ago. And it was that fact that seemed to bug Raph so much to the point that he just, couldn't seem to let it go- even now.

"Uh-huh and that is where you are wrong dear brother- but don't worry, I won't hold it against you. My classic superpower- underestimasation!" Mikey smiled, jumping onto the blueprint, probably crumpling it in the process, and held out his arm like he was trying to imitade 'Captain Ryan'.

"That's not a real w-

"Shh- let him have this"

Mikey cleared his throat, "Okay, so I was being tracked down by this crazy foot dude, and then like the awesometastic hero I am, I of course made chase, when I then fell right into- you'll never guess it- April O'Neil"

Donnie, once again, was not happy about this. Which was unusually strange, since, the news that their friend was still somewhere in the city, should probably excite him the most out of all of them. "So, you bumped into her on the street?"

"In simpler terms, yes" Mikey nodded, still impressed with himself.
"But you didn't say anything, right? RIIIGHT?"

"Dude, come on. You know me better than that"

Donnie let out a sigh of pure relief, his shoulders falling back and the tensity leaving his face as quickly as it came. At least that's how it was for five seconds solid, which seemed to be a new record at this point. But then he exclaimed-

"I just told her to stay in the city a bit longer"

"You WHAT?"

Mikey nearly fell off the table, "What did I do know?!"

"What you did, Michael, was forgetting the fact that the only reason we did not involve her in the first place was exactly so that we wouldn't put her in danger! And you told her to stay?!"

Huh. And I thought I was intense. Donnie looked like he was just about ready to burst a blood vessel at any moment.
"Okay, easy there, this is April. I mean, I know we agreed to give her some space, but she can take care of herself now. And if she's in the city, wouldn't the smart thing be to warn her about- I dunno the army of foot soldiers harvesting mutagen?!"

"We can't say anything! Not when…" Donnie paused, his gaze falling downward for a moment and his voice dimming. "Look, she wanted to be left alone, so that's what we're gonna do. We're not bringing her into this. It's just not… safe"

Okay, this was starting to get ridiculous, Raph thought, feeling himself start to get even more annoyed as time went on. "Right, of course! Why shouldn't we just blatantly ignore our biggest trump card against the foot when all she has to do is raise a finger! Oh, that's right, because you're too embarrassed to man up and talk to her for once!"

"It's not that!"
"No? Then what? Why are you so afraid of her all of a sudden?"

Donnie stumbled over his words, despite keeping up with a stare that for the most part would scare off armies on any bad day- but not Raph. What is his problem all of a sudden!?

"We have bigger things to worry about here, okay?! We need that computer"

"No what we need is for you to admit that you're just afraid she's going to dump you again"

Both brothers were all up in each other's faces, both not backing down which, usually wasn't a good thing since one of the few things they'd have in common was their very shared stubbornness. And with neither willing to ease up, of course it was down to the least likely team mate to take the initiative and stop what Leo had last time called the Hubris incident.

"Now, now, there's no need for violence guys! Why don't we all just sit down, and have a nice open discussion about our problems instead? Trust me, this always works in soaps. SO, just take a breather, clear your minds, let the awesomeness drown you in the ocean of c-larity hermanos… there. Nice and easy"

And by some miracle, both seemed to go quiet. The only thing they could hear was the tumbling of the lab coats being tossed around in their chemicals, and the sound of Mikey now demonstrating various breathing exercises. The silence was nice. As long as it lasted, anyway. But that was also about the same time that Raph decided now would be a good time to open his mouth.

"Your plan is going to get us all killed"

"Well, at least I've got a plan! What do you have, Raph?"

"Well- You're not the leader!"

"Neither are you!"

"I never said I was!"

Beep Beep Beep

The sound came from the floor, a communicator lying just near Mikey's feet and Raph realized too late that it was his. Before he could mention this though, he'd already picked it up from the ground.

"Oh, scuse me… Yeeeeello? Uh huh… uh huh… oh you know, the usual… Hmmm… tomato'ish I think? He kinda looks like he's more pouty than angry. Naw, he's annoyed. Definitely annoyed. Yep."

This went on for too long already. But before Raph could take the device back, and or continue arguing, Mikey's face lid up with realization.

"Wait- Casey?!"

Donnie's eyes spun around in shock, "You gotta be kidding me!"

Raph picked up the device quickly, cursing the day he decided that big pockets would solve all his problems. "Casey, what's the matter?"

Donnie and Mikey looked at their brother with caution. They'd known him for far too long to not realize when something was wrong- and judging by the look on his face, something was indeed very, very wrong. "What's the matter?"

He turned around, the fear in his eyes unmistakable and all three brothers' heart instantly sank.

"It's Leo"

---

The last time Hopkins had found himself in front of 351 had been approximately 10 years ago, during a rather hazardous run in after two days on stake out and a pile of reports waiting to be sorted. It had all been so easy back then, every murder case or robbery being like an average Tuesday for his department, as New York was at a standstill of crime. Nowadays it was like every crazy thing that ever happened, was either the result of a conspiracy or the NYCPD failing at keeping up, whether deliberately or not.

Hopkins took a deep breath, not even sure if his old partner was still living in the building after a decade of time, which in all honestly wouldn't surprise him. But with no research department to rely on for intel, and no cellphone to show for it, this was all he really had to go on. And with that in mind, the only person crazy enough to actually believe in any of this stuff, let alone knew about it, was right behind that door. What else could he do? It was the exact form of crazy that had caused his old friend to get fired all those years ago, and it was the same that was going to help him solve this case.

So, without further ado, he knocked on the door.

There came a silence, a moment of panic thinking no one was home, then footsteps, and then someone tinkering with the lock on the other side.

"Yes?"

The door opened slightly, a face meeting him through the crack looking extremely sceptic. Like he wasn't expecting visitors in the nearest century. And then, he looked up at the man hanging unbalanced in his doorway, looking like he just went through a blender, and understanding suddenly dawned on his face.

"Long time no see, Jack" Hopkins muttered, as his old partner glanced back at the belly of blood trying to look anything but impressed.

"Yeah, and from the looks of it, maybe not long enough." He said, still refusing to unlock the door. Hopkins let out a sigh, already regretting the words that was about to come out of him with a burning passion. But today was not the day to let his pride get the better of him.

"I need your help"

No response. Really… after ten years, and when he finally gets me to say it, nothing? Then, the detective actually bothered to look down to notice the open palm held out in front of him, and he then remembered what that silence meant. Oh, right. I almost forgot… Without further ado, Hopkins reached into his pocket thankful that he hadn't left his wallet in his car as well as his housekeys and pulled out ten dollars cash.

After counting them thoroughly, Jack closed the door, making Hopkins wonder if just for a moment if he was going to leave him stranded in the hallway, when at last he heard the sweet sound of the lock unclick and the door opened again. Greeting him with a geezer that, at least to him, hadn't aged a day, wearing an old suit and a reporter's hat with a flap that was in serious need of a patching.

"Get in" he said, nodding his head and Hopkins gratefully entered once again, even the air taking him back. If it wasn't for his entire body shivering and his head recoiling in what had been more than an intense night of work, he would've probably been a little more… well, conversive. "I hope you'll excuse the place I- I didn't expect any company before noon" Jack said, going into the kitchen past the stacks of papers and books piling up in messy towers of well… mess.

"So, nothing's changed I see"

"You make it sound like that's a bad thing" he said, starting the kettle as Hopkins found his way to the couch. "Coffee I take it?"

"No… no thanks"

This made his old partner blink, almost as if he had trouble processing. "There must really be something wrong for you to turn down a fresh pot, and I'm not just talking about the polkadots. What happened to you?"

Hopkins sighed, hunching forward trying to control his trembling. "That's what I'm trying to find out"

"So, you didn't come all this way just to say hello to an old friend?"

"This is serious" he said, as Jack came back over with the pot. He looked so… himself. As if it hadn't been a decade since they'd last spoken to each other but a mere two weeks, even the apartment having that same workspace overload that almost matched his own. Difference was that instead of files and homicide cases, there was conspiracy theories and crack heads on local forums spreading falls information on printed replicas. He probably still had that damn card too… for crying out loud this was just like middle school all over again.

"And that, just proves you need to get out more, Hopkins. You look like you've seen a ghost- and frankly, I've already covered that story, so it better be a good one"

"You're still working for that newspaper outlet? "

Jack shrugged, bringing the mug to his dry lips, "I got laid off. I know, same old story as it always was, but really its probably the best thing to ever happen to me"

Hopkins couldn't help but smile. Even in this mess of a place, with his career having gone down the drain, of course Jack would still find a way to stay confident. Happy even.

"Never met anyone so excited about retirement"
"Oh I didn't retire. No, see, I expanded my research and I managed to conduct a through-line all the way back from last year, working my way up through central to figure out the hidden mysteries behind the secret entities walking among us. Or well, used to. Lord knows you don't earn a living by living in peace and prosperity these days. Turned around bout' three months ago."

"Jack, come on"

Hopkin's voice was rusty, not at all and Jack could probably tell. He got up from his chair, a chuckle leaving him as he realized he might've gotten a little carried away. "I nearly forgot. You're a sceptic. Oh, if you only knew…"

Just like old times…

It was almost annoying how self-assured Jack was, even when talking about the same nonsense years after it had cost him his career. Even when things took a turn for the worst in the old days, when he had nothing but empty promises, theories without value, when he lost pretty much everything, he still found a way to stay occupied. It was honestly, kind of endearing, if Hopkins was being honest. Of course, it was in Jack's own, weird alien crazed way, but still. At least the reporting life seemed to fit him nicely, instead of the law enforcing one. And it made Hopkins wander, what had taken him so damn long to visit in the first place. Past is in the past, he reminded himself, focusing on the now. On the markings all over his shredded shirt and on the events leading him here. What his head was too stubborn to accept as real, because it wasn't. I'm not you.

"That's why I'm here"

And he told him. Every detail, right from the moment he came to Greenwich, to the moment he woke up on the bench from his previous escapade. He talked about the PD's involvement, the witnesses accounts, the mutilated corpses, the accusations, the Hamato's, the strange kid that seemed to somehow be connected to it all… and finally, about the thing that attacked him last night. When he was done, Jack simply said there, nodding. Not even surprised in the slightest, it seemed, just… taking it in. As if he'd just been fed an hour-long rant about the economy and not the implications that right now made Hopkins more and more anxious for that cup after all. He tried to take a deep breath, but it came out all shivery and not at all a good way to let Jack know that he was anything but shaken up. Hopkins was a professional- he knew how to handle things. He knew how to pull himself together, and yet… for some reason, all he could picture was the image of fangs shooting at him and those animalistic eyes dragging him deeper and deeper into the dark.

"I don't know what I saw… it was almost like… some kind of snake monster. I know, it sounds crazy, but what else could it be?! She was on the ground for one second, then the next… I'm losing my freaking marbles here"

Jack finished his cop, hand under his chin speculative. You could practically see the gears turning in his head, but not because he didn't believe him. But because there was something about this that ironically wasn't news to him, like Hopkins had originally assumed.
"Well, it would explain your healing. She must've used her venom to heal your wounds, which is why you should be grateful you're still alive"

Hopkins chuckled, unable to hide his disbelief. Hoping that somehow in some way his friend could logically explain this to him. Could understand the line between reality and insanity. Because that's what this was. This is insane. Absolutely, completely insane… he has to realize that, right? "Those things are not real"

"Your shirt certainly seems to beg to differ"

His jittering started to shake the table, the clanking sound too unbearable for Hopkins to ignore and he got up from his seat, feeling his nerves give in.

"Must be poison… yeah, some sort of hallucination inducing drug, or- or…"

"Come now, you're a better detective than that"

"Then what is it?! It doesn't make any sense! People don't just turn into freaking monsters on a whim? I've seen monsters, Jack, and that wasn't it, but it was still… I've never been wrong before. I can't be now, not when I'm this close. I have the weapons, I- I have a reliable lead, intel from inside sources, the PD, but there… there's not a thing about this that fits. How she even survived, let alone became that, maybe… a parlor trick? Some secret Japanese I don't freaking know- s- something! " Hopkins was out of breath by the time he'd finished. He was desperate. Actually, really desperate… and for the first time in perhaps his entire career, he'd finally have to admit it… He didn't know what to do about it. He'd hit a wall that he couldn't break through, and that was a fact.

Knowing this, he turned back to his friend, sitting patiently in his chair, with that crooked smile of reassurance. Hopkins sat down too, head in his hands. "What am I missing here…?"

Jack paused again, thinking… pondering. Then he sighed, pity as he viewed the person who he used to know just a coffee table away, with sincerity looking him in the eyes. "Hopkins, maybe its time you consider that there are more things out there than just petty criminals and crooks to capture. "

Hopkins shook his head, "Petty crooks and criminals wouldn't go that far. These murderers are too elaborate. There's too many things pointing towards the Hamatos"

"Well, you're certainly not wrong there." he smiled, somberly. "But it's not how you think it is"

"Then what is it?"

Jack let out a sigh, a hint of frustration on him, simultaneously keeping his lips shut reluctantly.
"I can't just… tell you, I'm afraid… I've been keeping that promise for two years, and I'm not about to stop now. But in the spirit of old partnership, I will tell you what I know about the Purple dragons, even if they're not the primary culprit you're looking for here. Always be prepared as they say"

"Did you not just hear what I said?! People are being killed! If you know something, you tell me" Hopkins protested, but Jack didn't seem to take any threats to heart. If anything, this just amused him, given this was exactly how it used to go so many years ago and it was delightful to see that still hadn't changed with age. He got up from his seat and started sundering past the living room and into the room next door, Hopkins following hopelessly against his better judgment.

"Maybe coffee wasn't the best idea" he said, noticing Hopkins tapping his foot.

"You're hopeless"

"On the contrary," he went over to the curtains, but instead of sunlight filling the room as he pulled them apart, what was instead revealed impressed even the detective. "I'm brilliant" Because there on the wall was not a window… it was a billboard of clues, all connected by a bright red thread, and assembled over what Hopkins were to guess would most likely have been months upon months of research.

"What the hell… what the hell have you been doing all this time?"

Jack cleared his throat, pointing toward the first half which was mostly distorted pictures all bathed in some sort of purple-pinkish hue. As if wherever he'd taken the pictures where underground or made up off neon lights. This was already giving me a bad feeling…

"So, we know the kraang left earth years ago, but what they left behind wasn't exactly gumdrops and teddy bears".

"You're still not actually convinced that aliens are here to conquer us"

"Goodness no, no… They stopped doing that a year ago, pay attention" he said before continuing. That's when he motioned toward his working bench, where Hopkins noticed a very familiar canister emptied out on top of it. "They called it 'project Assimilation', and they needed these babies to do it"

"Wait… wait, I've seen these before. That's those freaky purple lava lamps stocked down on fifth. But what the heck does that have to do with your crazy-town lunatic talk about robots?" Hopkins pointed out, memories of the days before Jack became a sci fi obsessed journalist replaying in his mind. He didn't exactly know what he thought would've changed in ten years but this wasn't it.

"Maybe more than you think, based on the different accounts of death. Seems to me like this has more to do with the Foot clan than those tattoed goons the NYPD is so nuts about hunting. They're like puppets. An excuse to get more men to take their fall"

"Yep, I should've known… You're off your rocker, Jack." Hopkins sat himself down on the bed, feeling a migraine on the rise. All this talk of aliens and whatever he just used to describe a gang was, being too much to handle. And honestly if it wasn't for the fact that he had nowhere else to go, he probably would've already left a long time since. Reminding himself why they'd split in the first place, but for some reason… he stayed. "What the heck are you even talking about? What does any of this have to do with the snake girl that attacked me?"

"I forgot how stubborn you tend to be, old friend… listen," Jack began, "If the Foot clan is controlling the PD, then we've got bigger problems than you realize. And if they're collecting purple mutagen, then you better hope that we still have time to do something about it before they mess with something they shouldn't. The mutagen typically does exactly that, creates a mutation in the DNA based on what animal you've last come into contact with. But Purple mutagen, is even more dangerous because it's unpredictable. I've spend the last two years collecting them all over town, in hopes of finding away to dispose of them safely, but ever since crime has increased exponentially these last three months, someone's been retaliating my efforts. And not just the PD. This is way bigger than that"

"But the PD's are idiots… why would a clan use them to do their dirty work? And why would they even agree to work for someone else in the first place? What's their gain?"

"Probably just another day to breathe" Jack muttered, which did seem to hold at least some merit. Recalling the night of Layton's murder, the way they'd disposed of him so quickly, so efficiently… they were definitely not messing around. Jack continued, "There was recently a breakage in the clan, you see. Once their leader was defeated then their power diminished as a result. But now, something's changed… someone took away their weakness, and that's why people are disappearing" he picked up the canister again, looking through the shattered glass like a microscope. "My guess, is the Foot clan are using the purple mutagen to experiment on strangers, test it before determining the best way to use it. Tell me, were there any other connections between the victims despite the way they were mutilated?"

Having already disclosed more information than was legally allowed, Hopkins decided to be straight with him regardless, reaching into his pocket after the last photo-evidence he carried on him, not abandoned in his car that, honestly who knew where was at this point.

"No… Except for this"

And then, just like that, it was like Jack was the one who'd seen a ghost. His lips trembling almost, loosing composure as his eyes refused to leave the frame, making Hopkins think his old partner wasn't just a sci fi nut job, but a ninja one too.

"…t-they're back?" he heard him whisper under his breath, almost to muffled to understand.

"What?"

Suddenly, it was like he shot back to reality, eyes blinking rapidly, and he handed it back to Hopkins.

"Nothing, nothing…"

Getting back to the topic, Hopkins cleared his throat eager to get out of the apartment and back to the investigation while he still had at least some trace of sanity left. "Okay, but if these people are who you say they are, how the hell do I find them? Every location where the purple mutagen has been spotted disappeared the very next day! We've been running in circles for weeks on end looking like idiots, and they don't leave a trace behind… which is why… Layton paid the price"

This made Jack silent for a moment. He only knew Layton faintly from having worked on the Barber case back in ninety-four, but… even so, the gleam in his eyes suggested that there was something about this that didn't add up. And Hopkins was not sure he wanted to know where he was going with this.
"Are you sure he's really gone? Doesn't seem like the Foot clan to waste resources"

Resources…? Hopkins got up from his seat, not sure what to make of that, but very sure that unless Jack had a good reason to back up his claim, then he was very tempted to reach for his gun… that was… left back at the church… of course it is.

"You know an awful lot about this stuff, you know… Maybe I should have you arrested." He said, half jokingly, half serious. And then, a thought occurred to him. A thought that, in the grand scheme of things he was amazed hadn't crossed him early until this point. "Wait… you don't think?" And going by the look on Jack's face, he seemed lot sceptic about him being dead. A corpse without a body to show for it… but… no, that's ridiculous why would they-

"I'm just saying, it is a possibility. But don't get your hopes up. These people don't play nice, they're warriors. Assassins… they're everywhere you cannot see them, and trust me when I say, you cannot take them on by yourself. This isn't like back then, it's much bigger than you could ever imagine"

Hopkins took a step back, going through the information newly given to him trying his hardest to take it at face value despite reason telling him otherwise. "You said the mutagen mutates you into the animal you last came into contact with. I'm guessing that's the same for snakes right…?"

Jack let out a sigh, sitting back down, his voice going heavy. "I know what you're thinking, Hopkins… but don't. Trust me, you'll just make yourself a target. The best way to go about this would be to relocate the crates, they're stowing away before they can be put to use. And going after Karai won't change that."

"I can't believe I'm actually listening to you…" the words almost came out a whisper… But then, the detective once again in just one day had to admit a horrible truth. That maybe some part, deep, deep down inside, behind a wall of logical thinking and reasoning that begged his sanity to resurface, buried underneath years and years of experience… there was still a part of him that believed in Jack.

He got up from the bed, the jittering finally having stopped and prepared himself for the eventual regret and humiliation that would surely come from this once his superiors got a hold of him, "Okay. But where the hell do we even begin then? I told you, they always relocate, and they never leave a trace once it's gone. They could be anywhere in the city by now. And I'm not exactly in the best of favors with my employers at the moment"

Jack, once again with his hand under his chin, thought about it for a moment…

"When was the first location?"

"The docks. Why?"

"Then that's exactly it" he said, quickly noticing the confusion painted on his friend's brow. "Think about it, the most efficient way to fool your enemy is doing exactly what you'd least expect of them. Classic foot clan strategy. By storing their supplies the same location after moving it, you automatically create an improbability good enough to fool even the cops"

"You cannot be serious"

"Don't believe me? Go see for yourself. Trust me, I know more about these things than you think. I know how these people operate, and I also know that you're finally coming to your senses, so if I were you, I'd put those five dollars to good use, and save the city while you still can" he explained, as Hopkins grabbed his coat. Another thing that never seemed to change, was the determination his friend always seemed to inspire. It was annoying as all heck of course, but effective all together. He stood in the doorway to his apartment, ready to leave when-

"Kurtzman"

Hopkins paused for a moment, not turning around before he exited into the hallway. Starting the sentence confidently, but not knowing how to finish it, a simple thank you already out of the question. So, he instead replaced it with,

"It was good seeing you again"

-closing the door behind him.

---

They met Casey on the roof of an old building just a block away from Murakami's. Though the time for greetings was cut inevitably short, Mikey had promptly jumped into their friend's arms excitedly showing off his freckles and curly hair like he was his own excibit at a museum. Donnie on the other hand had resorted to a simple handshake, that proved to be rather fruitless, given their friends immediate response had been to undermine it by grabbing his shoulders and noggin his head aggressively with what Donnie noticed wasn't a gloved hand. He wasn't even wearing his skates, and didn't seem to have his Hockey sticks on him either, leaving the only trace that it was actually Casey Jones, to be his annoying personality.

And then there was Raph who as of now, had been starring out over the building for the entire exchange. And though he had his back turned, it didn't take a genius either to figure that the sight alone was plenty to piss him off. Meanwhile the remaining question that seemed to linger on Donnie's mind was: what exactly had led their brother to the noodle shop in the first place…? To Raph, the answer was probably the same as it always had been. But maybe there was more to it than that… could it be possible that Leo was starting to regain his memories? Taking a closer look, they all joined their brother at the edge of the building, staying just out of sight from by passers and police folk down below witnessing the wreckage.

You could see the smoke rise from all the way to Brooklyn, and as the gang approached, the louder the sirens from police cars and ambulances bellowed on the streets. The entire place was just… gone. Burned to a crisp, and from the looks of it, blown to smithereens too. Whatever had caused it, it didn't take a genius to figure out that the impact of it had been even worse than the catalyst.

"It was all over the news this morning. Police thinks it's some sort of gas leak" Casey said.

"They're covering it up?"

"But why?! They don't know what's going on out there. They don't know half of the stuff happening in this city" Raph argued, fists clenched tight.

"Maybe they know more than they're letting on"

"Why not just blame it on the purple dragons then? Everyone knows they're scumbags, and honestly, who else could it be? We know they're working for them"

"But there was another one caught inside it. News said three people was in there when the explosion happened… only one of them didn't come back out, the rest hospitalized by some miracle, but that's all. Must've been the attacker, right? "

They all looked at Casey, mesmerized by the fact that he actually had a point. With one person missing, the odds of it being a PD was too good to be true, though neither had any idea as to how they'd even escape the fire in the first place. Being at the center of it wouldn't have been enough, no, whoever set it off knew exactly that they wouldn't be getting out of it either. Donnie let out a sigh, looking to Mikey who was just about close to tears. We knew this would happen, he thought. If we'd just taken him with us when we had the chance… he'd be okay now. But the fact of this didn't change the outcome, and Donnie knew this better than anyone. But even still, looking at what used to be their favorite noodle shop, or well, what remained of it, he couldn't help but feel a throb in his chest, knowing that this was still partially their fault. And as per usual, Leo had to pay for it.

"I don't understand… why would anyone do this to Murakami-san?" Mikey asked, as Donnie put a hand on his shoulder. His eyes were watery too, unable to look away and lord knows what was going through his head right now.

"Why would anyone do this to Leo? It's gotta be them" Raph muttered, teeth grinding.

"They're gonna be okay though, right?"

"This is still Leo we're talking about here. Dude's tough as nails, right?" Casey pointed out, seemingly eager to believe it himself, though even he had to know not even their fearless leader would be able to escape an explosion unscathed.

"Yeah, except for the fact that he's also an amnesiac now with trust issues and a T-shirt collection"

"So what? The dude fought off the creep when he was still on one good leg and just out of a coma! He'll be fine! Right, Raph?"

He didn't answer. Maybe out of sheer anger or just, the shock of what'd happened getting to him in way that, god forbid he ever admitted to in front of the others. This was the second time Leo had fallen victim to their enemies and got badly hurt... and once again, it had been because they weren't there to stop it. Truth was, they all felt partially guilty of this, there was no getting around that. But for Raph it was usually admitting that openly that was the hardest part. Finally, as one of the ambulances drove by making all four of them actively sink down, he said, "We still don't know if it was really him in there. That kid could've been anyone-

"It was him. I know because my transmitter was active last night. I just saw it..." Donnie interjected, voice lowered as he fumbled with the device in his pocket. And just like he thought, the light had been activated without him seeing it. Too busy feeling sorry for himself in the lab to notice…

"Wait a minute, you knew?! You knew and you didn't tell us about it?!" Raph yelled, red in the face.

"It's not like I was snooping around waiting for him to blow up! I was at the lab! I must've… forgot to bring it. I was busy."
"Oh yeah, real smart, Donnie. Good job, that forward thinking's really paying off now huh?"
"And what about you? Why didn't you pick up the signal, smart guy?!" Donnie combatted, recalling himself telling the guys to be careful not to lose them in the first place, given the parts it took for him to even make them in the first place, nearly cost him his arm.

"Oh, that… might've been my fault" Casey said, putting up his hand like a kid who just got busted by their parents. Now Mikey, was the one raising his voice,

"Wait, you two met up without telling us?!"

"So, what if I didn't- Hey, wait a second…" Raph paused, his rather fruitless attempt to deny why he was out yesterday, swept to the side once Mikey started fiddling. The same fiddling, he always did whenever he felt guilty about something, and now all eyes were on him, because wasn't it just a 'little' bit odd that none of them had their transmitters on them last night? And didn't they tell him explicitly to stay put where it was safe? "…why didn't you have your transmitter?"

Mikey gulped, looking everywhere else but at their faces. "No reason"

"Mikey"

"What?! I was just… going for a walk?" Amazing… he's even worse at lying than I am. Mikey let out a sigh, going back to the ledge where he sank down against one of the support-beams his expression utterly defeated. "I'm sorry. I know should've, but I got distracted, okay? Like always…" he gulped, his blue eyes darting back towards Murakami's. "If I hadn't left, maybe Leo would be-
"It's not your fault, Mikey. We all should've been more careful." Donnie said, wishing he was any better at finding the right words for cheering people up. But it was usually the other way around, and that fact alone seemed to just make that look on his face even more unbearable. Because while it wasn't the face he was used to, it was still Mikey enough for it to ring true.

A 'bang' sound could be heard, abruptly behind them- coming from the nearest wall Raph had just unceremoniously kicked.

"It's his own fault for not coming with us in the first place. We warned him this could happen! Why didn't he listen to us?!"

"Yeah, I don't think that's helping" Mikey muttered, as Raph made his way towards the fire escape, looking anything but happy. The other's looked at each other, confused for a moment, before processing the fact that he was actually leaving. That's when Donnie's brain finally kicked in, encouraging him to follow. "Raph- Where are you going?! "

"To kick a wall"

"But what about the plan?! REMEMBER WHAT WE TALK- and he's gone… he's gone! … great"

They all stood there for a moment, processing what just happened, what to do and the sirens behind them only serving as a reminder that they were running out of time.

Let's see, Leo's in the hospital, Raph is gone and now Casey has downgraded to fulltime clown WITHOUT a stick… hooray.

"What now?" Mikey asked, as Donnie tried to ignore the minor dizzy spells, that right now slowly started to work their way through his system, but he could manage them fine. His health wasn't as important as getting the lair back and retake their home… Getting justice for Leo and Murakami.

Donnie stood for a while, thinking up speeches, or strategies Leo had used in the past, or just anything that would be sufficient enough to motivate, but to no avail. But then, without warning, almost completely but not totally surprising… he got an idea.

"Casey… do you still have your tazer glove?"

Mikey and Casey both exchanged a short look of mutual confusion as well as, maybe a slight hint of fear too.

"…why?"

---

He remembered the corridors for the most part. Those big bended pathways of black and green hues that always led further and further down underground. There was no rubble this time, just silence. Water dripping from the pipes, the water hitting the stone silently and the sound of tapping on every wall. As if someone was trying to find a secret entrance nearby, except it was a sort of metallic clang that Leo later realized to be a blade. "Are you sure we're going the right way?"

"Sure, we are. Come on" he called a little up ahead, turning a corner and making Leo wish he'd never gone on the training exercise in the first place. The others were still sleeping in their rooms, meanwhile they were now walking down into a layer of the tunnels not even they knew about. Of course, if it hadn't been for Raph continuedly pestering their father about it. "M-Maybe we should go back"

"You scared? Come on, we're almost there."

"Raph"

He stopped, Leo not saving enough time to stop himself from tumbling into him. It was like he was completely frozen. "I see something…" He whispered, motioning towards the dark whole in front of them just a little out of their reach. Leo started to shiver, teeth clanging, panicky reaching for his blade but Raph stopped him, instead starting to crawl inside, submerging in the shadows until the only sign that he was still there, was his continuous tapping on the bricks, until even that disappeared, making Leo nearly faint with fear.
"R-Raph…?" he called out. Nothing came back. Leo gulped, turning around in the dark tunnel searching desperately for their father to reveal himself. It didn't take him long however to realize that he was by himself, the courage leaving his stomach as he hesitantly crawled up into the whole. He called out again, the echo following making him wish to god, that they were allowed to bring flashlights. He took a step forward, swallowing his panic and tried to remember how he was supposed to hold it.

But then, there was a sound breaking him out of his focus, and then-

"BOO!"

He fell to the ground. It was too dark to see him, but the voice was unmistakable. His brother cackled loud enough for the entire sewer to come down crashing on them, and Leo wanted more than anything to just use the sharp end of the katana. "You should've seen your face!"

"Not funny!" Leo tried to get on his feet, angrily brushing of the mud and who knows what else. "You didn't seriously think I'd leave you alone, did you?"

"N-nO! You're such a jerk…"

Raph put his arms around his shoulders, brushing away a fake tear until the made their way out of the tunnel and back to the way they came. "Yep, I'm a jerk" he smiled, the echo that followed still continuing for several minutes until gradually, and very slowly that echo turned into a constant beeping.

And it wasn't until Leo opened his eyes again, that he understood why.

He recognized the fabric thrown over his bed like the back of his own hand, the monitor sound connected to a needle stuck in his arm. The intense whiteness of the room, not to mention the cleanliness, but no TV this time. Leo tried to move, noticing the pain of trying to do so quicker than the boy sitting in the windowsill. He turned around, thankful that the act of doing so wasn't too difficult, despite the bandages on his arms. His legs were still working- so far so good. He could still move his limbs, move his face, despite an intense cut on his cheek covered up by a patch. And even if the chance of it should have been very likely, even his head was starting to relax more as he got back to his senses, to be fair struggling to sit up properly and falling back into the pillow almost immediately after doing so.

"Wow" a familiar voice said, making Leo notice the breeze coming from the open window, as well as the gruffy looking kid sitting next to it. "You look… awful"

"Raph…" Leo sighed, not in the mood. "How did you get in here?"

Though despite the indication that he'd somehow climbed through the window, up to the fifth floor and also getting passed security in the process, Leo was still curious.

"Not my first time breaking into a hospital. Or well… this hospital. You too." he said, probably hoping that Leo would understand what he was referring to. Unfortunately for him, that wasn't the case, even if that accusation was the slightest bit believable.

"Where are the others?" Leo muttered, voice still sore from last night's yelling. But what he was sure he hadn't dreamt up too, was the two other ones that usually seemed to follow this one wherever they went. It was unusual to see him alone.

"Fieldtrip" he said, letting out a sigh of disapproval. "Donnie has this crazy idea that we can get the lair back through Metalhead 3.0. I still can't believe he actually rebuild that thing… I don't like it, but… seems it's we got"

"Metalhead? Is that some sort of secret code?"

"Wouldn't exactly be a secret since I just said it now, would it?"

Leo let out a sigh, once again struggling to sit up- choosing actively to ignore his injuries. Raph looked like he was tempted to help, but choose to stay effectively two meters away while Leo still had his thumb hovering over the emergency button. "What do you want? You're here to gloat? Tell me I told you so?"

"Actually no, but thanks for reminding me, because we did kinda tell you so" he smiled, that smug little gleam in his eyes pulling on Leo's nerves. Then, the image of last night came back to him, though this time it was like a sped-up version in his mind leading him to wonder how long he'd been out. But the reason behind why he'd been out- or out just in time more specifically, he already knew the reason behind. He remembered the chef yelling out, too panicked to realize what he'd been yelling, but stalled just in time for Leo to make it outside the shop before the explosion happened. It was all a blur, but it was somehow those details that seemed to stick. Just like his guilt, and the consequences that came with it.

"Is that chef…?" he muttered, hesitant to know the answer.

"Murakami? From what I could tell, they're still working on him. All we can do now is wait, but… it's not looking good. You on the other hand got lucky. Really lucky."

Leo let out a sigh. So, he was alive at least. Good… But even when knowing this, it still didn't change the fact that he was the one who brought him in any danger in the first place… if he'd just tore that damn note in half none of this would've happened, he thought, angry with himself for being so careless.

Raph started glancing around room warily, like every detail of the place came straight out of a Lovecraftian horror novel. "Man, what were you doing in there?" Then he looked at Leo, but instead of pity over the guy, what was instead even more annoying was the fact that he made it seem like he cared about him. Made it seem like he understood something Leo didn't, instead of just blindly pulling his strings for the heck of it. He really hated that look...

"I just… I wanted to know the truth"

"You know the truth"

"No, I don't. You cannot seriously expect me to believe that stuff about mutants and sewers or… whatever that was supposed to be. It's insane. You… are insane"

"I mean have you looked yourself in the mirror lately?"

Leo let out a scoff. What's his problem? Why even bother coming here? What's his game? Besides being a nuisance that is… One moment it was like they'd known each other all their lives, and the next it was like all that anger channeled into a one-sided argument that never went anywhere. Like they wanted to help each other, but just refused to for some reason. Too many factors pointing them in opposite directions, but at the same time, too much evidence suggesting there was more to this than met the eye… Now Leo might not be good for a lot, but he could tell when someone was lying easily. A part of the reason why Raph frustrated him to no end because, despite all the lies and the stories he told him… he wasn't lying. Even now, Leo just couldn't see it… but that still didn't mean that he was right either.

Raph sundered around the room for a bit, swaying almost, hands in his pockets, before he turned back towards the hospital bed, and they both seemed to enter some sort of brooding trance, one not backing down to the other. It lasted for about thirty seconds, before finally, Raph lowered his gaze, the veins in his neck seemingly about to pop, "You know something? You've always been a real jerk sometimes, especially with that leader spiel. As if that's an excuse to do whatever you like- well it's not."
"Gee, thanks."

"It's the same even since we were kids. Always thinking you're better than us just because you're the oldest, it's annoying" he continued, going back to the window, where he eyes the view from down below.

"Anything else I should know?"

"Yeah, there is" he said, pausing. Then he lifted his gaze, sternly, the kind of look that might as well have been a silenced don't you dare look away from me, which to be fair, was surprisingly effective at times. He sighed, hesitatingly for a moment but continuing nonetheless, "I know I don't say it a lot but… when father made you leader, I know he made the right decision. And even if you have no idea how much this sucks to say… truth is we're a mess out there… we need you. I know it don't mean much to ya, with the bump in ya head and all, and I wouldn't blame ya for thinking we're crazy. Because as far as I'm concerned, you can believe that we're freaks all you want, that we're talking nonsense or that we're criminals or whatever those idiots told you. But here's what is real. We're your brothers. You've saved our butts more times than I can count, and whether or not you remember it, we're still a team. Despite what you keep telling yourself. We'll be at forty sixth if you're curious." he said, tossing over a small flap wrapped in a bright blue fabric.

Leo took it, unfolding it slowly in his hands, to see it was identical to the one his friends wore too. Except this wasn't like theirs. This was old, a little torn even, and most definitely, unmistakably…

… his.
"Didn't take you for the sentimental type-

But before Leo could finish- he was already gone.

---

Casey leaned against the metal of the cart as the sizzling of Donnie's tinkering with the electric voltage of his tazer-glove, occasionally lit up on his working specs. Just like many of the old subway stations, finding one of the train carts kicked to the curve had been an easy task. In fact, Donnie remembered spending a good portion of his childhood fixing them up in his spare time for fun, and if his calculations were correctly, according to the blueprint, this one should take them straight to the opening sector. As Mikey practiced his katas on the roof of the cart (followed every five seconds or so with a hooo-ya! or a sleezy insult to imaginary enemies), Casey had been googling bored out of his mind on his used to be mutant rival. Now human somehow, just like the others of course, but still... It was weird. But as he usually did when there was something he didn't understood, he chose not to worry too much about it.

"So, how does it feel to be a part of the normal society for once?"

"You know, I was just about to ask you the same thing, Casey"

He let out a snicker, playing with the quarter in his pocket.

"Is that right, Donatello. Well, of course you haven't changed. You're still the same dork you've always been. Just… harrier. Seriously, dude, it's called a comb"

"And what about you, puck head? What happened to vigilantism as your extra curriculum?"

"Got busy"

"Doing, what exactly? "

The sizzling stopped, and Donnie turned away from the motor, taking Casey and extra second of two to realize he was being serious.
"Aww, don't tell me you were actually worried about me"
"Casey, this is serious." Until he of course said it himself… Donnie let out a sigh. 'Earnest' making its way into the conversation somehow. "I mean, we haven't seen you in months. We didn't know what happened to you. For all we knew, you were… gone"

"You should know better than to assume Casey Jones can't take care of himself" he argued, throwing the quarter into the nearest pipe to demonstrate his point. And that's my que to get back to work, Donnie sighed feeling the weight of an entire generation of intelligence washed away in just a little over two seconds.

"No doubt about it- argh…"

He felt his vision blur for a second, ten million different alarm clocks simultaneously going off in his brain, and Donnie couldn't stop himself for glancing over to his arm. Don't tell me…

"Hey, are you okay? You seem a little pale there"

"I'm fine… " Come up with something come up with something come up with something- "… Just not used to seeing your ugly mug without the mask"

Casey took a step back, going from concerned to cocky again in record time. Or maybe that was just his way of defusing the situation. Even Mikey peeked over the cart, concerned but not enough to distract him from doing his handstand, thanking the imaginary crowd praising him. Either way, the harsh truth was that neither had the time to worry about his well-being until they were back in the lair.

"Right back at ya- Or well… your new mug. Gaps still there though. Pretty hard to miss"

"For the last time- mutation does not cure diastema!" Donnie yelled, unknowingly slapping the engine with his bo until it began stirring. That's when Mikey jumped down from the car in an almost perfect backflip, holding the communicator in his hands.

"Guys, Raph said he's in position and Betty!"

Both looked at each other, blinking in synchronized doubt.

"Uh… do you mean, ready?"

"I thought that was a weird codename" he muttered, climbing through the doors as Donnie readied the jump starter. Home here we come.
"You sure you don't wanna come with, Casey? You might get some sweet head smashing on some of those punks! Yeah son!"

You could see how eager he was, but something kept him from going any further. It was honestly mesmerizing, seeing this whole new side to their usually reckless not very bright friend, when all he had to do was pick up a crowbar.

"As tempting as that sounds, I'm gonna have to say no. But are you two sure this is a good idea?"

"Oh, don't worry. This puppy can take a Dimension X crystal energy source, it should be able to take a little manual electricity" Donnie said, slapping the roof of it to emphasize his point.

"Yeah… not exactly the cart I was talking about. Raph's got a point. Maybe this is too dangerous"
"I can't believe those two words actually came out of your cave hole- are we suure this is the real Casey Jones?"

"I was actually wondering the same thing."

Initially red in the face, it seemed "cave-hole" still retained his ability to brush any insult away like he was swatting a fly. He put both hands in his pockets, leaning forward with a smirk.
"Who needs a mask when you got all this awesomeness instead?"

"Just start the engine please" Donnie sighed, Mikey saluting the command before reaching for the lever.

"Okay, it's now or never"

…

"Okay, Raph, we're making our way there now. How are thing's on your end?"

Mikey spoke into the receiver in the most business-like way he could muster, peering atop the moving subway cart as the abandoned tunnels were lit up by a half broken lightbulb Donnie managed to fix. And in hindsight, being the lookout was most likely the best way he could avoid pressing that big red button calling to him on the panel. Still don't understand what you make buttons for, if you're not supposed to press them!

"Coast is clear, as far as I can tell. You still failed to explain how I'm going to distract the bastards without getting caught" came Raph's voice disgruntled on the other side.

"Oh, I'm sure you'll figure something out. Just… be yourself, really."

"And people say you're not one for motivational speeches"

Donnie's voice came yelling from below, "We'll contact you again when the security system's online!"

"Roger that"

Aaaaaaaaand… already bored. Huh. Maybe lookout isn't as fun as I remembered. Should just call it "sitting out"- but well, of cause not if the look out is INSIDE, that would be insane. Well, I guess, those exists too, what do you call those? The look insides? Nah… Totally should have called it the inside scopers. Sounds much cooler than outside scopers…

"Hey, Donnie, you ever noticed how in horror movies the guys send out alone are usually the most expendable ones? Oh! And there was also that one episode- you know the one where they're stuck in that tunnel, and that weird alien worm thingy jumped out of the dark and ate their livers raw" Mikey than had a terrible, terrible realization. "Uh… there are no alien sewer worms down here, right?" he asked, crawling back inside where it was safe.

"You've watched too much of Leo's Space Heroes Next Gen tapes"

"Not my fault they're always lying around. And with no video games to pass time AHEM- what else was I supposed to do? I was desperate man! Desperate!"

Donnie let out a chuckle. Or, well- human- Donnie did. Still getting used to that. Only happened one time Mikey totally forgot what Human Donnie looked like, leading to a very awkward run in with a youth pastor.

"You haven't changed one bit. You'd think after everything we've been through you wouldn't still be such a scaredy cat"

"I'm not scared. Just mildly concerned. Yeah! Betcha didn't think I knew what mildly means-

The cart suddenly jumped.

-what was that?!"
"It's okay to be scared, Mikey. But don't worry, we've got this… I hope" he said, and now Donnie was the one checking the headlights around the tunnel. Besides the very disturbing not at all creepysounds of pipes and rats, probably roaches too, crawling around them like the shadows were ready to swallow them whole. "Actually… maybe we should change the subject" Donnie gulped, precariously rolling up the nearest window.

"Good idea" Mikey said, thinking for a moment. That is to say, three point five seconds. "So, what's the thing with April?"

And there was that usual Donnie-esque tea pot sound he'd been missing for so long. It was honestly hilarious to see his face become so red- especially now that there was no mutant skin to hide it.

"Not that subject- which there isn't! By the way, because… it's not anything… at all"

Okay, now there's REALLY gotta be something seriously wrong here. Because if there was anything in this world that the turtles knew with absolute certainty, it was that the only reason why Donnie wouldn't wanna hang out with April anymore was either A) Brainwashing or B) this wasn't the real Donnie, which to be honest, only happened once and was probably the most likely. But then again… Oh no- am I not real EITHER?!

But regardless of whether or not Mikey was stuck in an alternate reality created by his own mind in order to regain some shred of normalcy or not, he was getting to the bottom of this. Like it or not.

"Come on dude, it's me! You can tell me! I mean, you used to talk about her like, all the time it was always- April this, April that, April beat me at poker, April nearly turned me into a blender, blab bla bla, you know? What happened to those times?"

"I don't know! I just… " Donnie bit his lip, Mikey edging closer.

"Yeeeeees?"

Finally, he took a deep breath, leaning back on the passenger seat, defeated.

"Mikey, sometimes people are not who you think they are. A-and you realize that despite your best efforts, despite trying over and over and over again, maybe... there was something else there. Something you didn't wish to see. And now… I don't know how I feel anymore. But I do know what isn't there. What I hoped was there, I guess, but I-I… I was wrong, because she's… look, it's hard too explain. It's just become too complicated between us I guess."

Mikey was slowly starting to see what this was about, though he had absolutely NO idea where it was coming from. Something had happened between them, that much was clear, he just had a feeling his bro wouldn't be able to tell him what exactly or he would've done so already. Even still, Mikey tried putting his hand on Donnie's shoulder reassuringly, just like he'd always done to him when he was upset, in the hope that it would somehow return the favor.

"It's not her fault, D. She's been through a lot. She probably really misses us, but she's just… busy with school! Yeah! That's it. I mean most humans are too, right? I know after I failed my math test Mr. Bakely told me school is where the spirit is crushed, and your dreams are stomped on repeatedly until they're nothing but a smudge. Maybe that's totally why she's busy and haven't talked to us in half a year now! Oh, and also because of the thing with Kirby"

"I know- I know, I should just stop thinking about her but… Why wouldn't she try to reach out to us at least? What stopped her? Where were she when I- when we… needed her?"

Okay, what would cheer him up BESIDES April? Uh… biology? A knew stick? Wait no- he already has the mop… Oh god… there really isn't anything is there? No, there's gotta be a reason for this. Something! This isn't like April. She wouldn't leave unless she had a good reason to.

Stuttering, in the end all he managed to come up with was the first thing he could think of. "I… uh… girl stuff?"

Donnie sighed, head in his hands.

"Or maybe she's finally realized the freaks that we really are and got herself out of it…"

"Hey, come on dude! Don't be like that! Look- when I'm down you know what I always do?"

"Skateboarding?" he muttered, as Mikey jumped up in his seat, imagining himself on a stage.

"That too! But then, as Simon says- when we don't know what's ahead, hold onto what you do know! Or was it hold on to what you have? I always mess up those two- point is, don't worry about it, D. As soon as we've saved the city you can totally get her back with your awesome human thinking and… mop. Actually, scratch that, maybe not the mop actually- but trust me. You just gotta be honest with her. Talk to her. Humans love to talk. And you're basically a master at it!"

Donnie started to look up, forcing a smile whilst his eyes where probably still going through every worst possibility in his head. Truly, the suckiest thing about being smart… with great mind comes great relationship problems.

"Okay, I'm not really sure I'm following but, even so… thanks for trying, Mikey."

"Any time bro" he nodded, crossing his arms like Casey all did before he nearly tumbled onto the control center. As Donnie gave him the death stare, Mikey nervously chuckled his way out of the danger zone and down on his seat where, they said awkwardly for a moment.

"Okay, so this Simon guy… you two friends?"

"I know, awesome right? We totally ruled the schoolyard! Well, when we're not two against four hehe… or two against one… okay, maybe we're not ruling it, but we've still only been sent to the principal five times. Which is more than I can say for Billy Hudson and Liam Jones. You know, school is a lot stricter than I thought… But hey, not too shabby eh?"

"Well, it is High School" Donnie shrugged, blinking rapidly once a thought entered his mind. "Wait a minute… is that where you were last night?"

Once again, Mikey jumped up from his seat red in the face. "Noooooo…! No, no, I mean… I-I dunno… " Okay, what would Doonie say what would Donnie say- oh wait, I forgot…

"Wait- You didn't tell him about… you know… right?"

"What? Nooooo!"

"Mikey…"

"I didn't! Seriously! I know I'm not the best at keeping secrets and stuff (at least not the stuff you know about) but this time I swear I didn't tell him. I didn't tell anyone. Not even Mrs. Robertson knows" he explained, anxiously waving his arms back and forth to exonerate his very, very remorseful feelings about lying about where he was going. Which had, I guess, also led to Murakami and Leo getting toasted… Mikey dropped his gaze, and it was like all that excitement from before suddenly morphed into a dark shadow that hovered over him. Or well, maybe not a 'shadow' more like a raincloud? Something like that? Like with the thunder, and the lightning… oh, I'm doing it again, aren't I?
"Well, to be fair, it isn't exactly the sort of thing you just blindly go around telling people" Donnie said, already making Mikey feel a little bit better.

"Why?" Mikey asked, looking up at his brother.

Truth be told, he thought he'd be furious with him, but strangely… he seemed a lot more understanding of this than he initially thought. That still didn't mean that he knew what it was like though… And Mikey knew this too. Three months was a long time away, and there were things now, people, a whole other life that he now had to deal with. And honestly? Mikey wasn't sure any of his brother's would be able to understand that, in turn, compelling him to push the problem aside. At least, for as long as he could…

"You know… because… " he began, proving that he was very good at not being able to hide the fact he did not know how to finish motivational speeches… like, at all. "… it's just how it is"

"Because we're freaks?"

"Look that's not what I meant-

"It's what you said"

"I just mean, if everyone knew what we do and who we are, they'd just be scared of us. I mean, why wouldn't they? We're not exactly the picture book of innocence, you know"

"But what if it's your friend you're telling it? Would they still be scared of you then?"

"Why are you so hung up about this stuff? I thought you'd know by now that we…" Donnie then saw the look on Mikey, no words needed to explain what that particular look meant. Even Human-Mikey can't fool his way out of this one…

"Oh. Oh, that's why you haven't…"

Mikey's voice was on the down low when he spoke, all of the emotions as if, collected from a long stream of thoughts and feelings suddenly bursting out in an uncontained rant of words tumbling over each other like a waterfall. Too much time keeping secrets was definitely NOT good for the health.

"I tried… I'm sorry- I know I shouldn't have, and if I hadn't, I would've brought the transmitter too, I just- I don't want to lie anymore! I just- can't… So, I thought… maybe if I told him, he'd understand and all but I totally chickened out. He's even forgiven me for ditching him, but how is he gonna feel when he finds out I'm not who he thought I was?"

Donnie listened patiently, Mikey waiting for his brother to scold him for nearly exposing the biggest secret probably in the history of secrets to a seemingly random human. But then he just smiled, looking down almost knowingly, which to be fair, who knew better than Donnie what being an idiot in front of a human was like?

"You really care about this guy, huh?"

Mikey sighed, nodded regrettably. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all.

"Mikey, I know it doesn't seem like it, but you did the right thing by not telling him. Not because we're freaks, but because you know as well as I do that it would only put him in danger too." he said, sitting down next to him.

"But it still wouldn't change the fact that I've been lying to him all this time" he muttered, hugging his knees like they were made out of pizza.

"Welp, sometimes it's necessary. Especially for people like us"

"But what if he'll never want to see me again?"

"Come on, it's you we're talking about here. Why wouldn't he wanna be your friend? And honestly…. if there's anything this whole weird experiment has taught me, it's that if someone cares about you… really cares about you, then it doesn't matter what you look like"

Mikey lifted his chin, feeling his optimism slowly start to return. "You sure?"

Donnie nodded, half failing- half trying to dash him reassuringly on the shoulder. "Definitely"
"Thanks D"

"Are you kidding? It's the least I can do…" he said, before his voice faltered, and he seemed panicky again, letting out a sigh before he forced himself to gaze back at his little brother. This time with the minor trace of sweat on his brow, "Mikey, there's something I should tel-

And then- without having realized it- the cart stopped abruptly, leaving both brothers at a loss for what to do.

"Ugh… why have we stopped?"

Donnie hurried into the control room, checking for anything wrong as Mikey started to shiver with the thought that there might, might not have been anything on their trail.

"But- no, that doesn't make any sense!" he heard Donnie yell in the other end.

"What?"

They tumbled outside, keeping their flashlights on and their weapons even closer. Mikey was already on guard, going through every possible kata he'd practiced in his head by name, though he kind of last track after the missile launch kick of doom. D brought out his map, scanning it feverishly whilst glancing around. "We're here. At least- that's what the scanner says. B-but I don't understand… it's all empty" he said, making their way away from the tracks and towards the sector.

"Uh…. I mean, I know the foot clan are ninja's and all, but isn't it a little… too quiet?" Mikey pointed out, still giddy knowing the last time he'd ventured here didn't end up very well.

"No, no you're right… it's almost like… no one's here" Donnie said, until finally they found the big pile of rubble caused by an all nightery of explosions, tearing most entrances to pieces. Except… no one was here.

"But why would they just leave…? Doesn't make any sense, leaving it wide open if… if…"

And then, as Mikey wandered around the rubble, a bit further away towards, what he had figured must've been someone's dropped flashlight nearby… he suddenly couldn't move his legs.

"Uh… Donnie?"
"I'm trying to think" he called back, Mikey stumbling backwards, quivering all the while the 'flashlight' seemed to follow him.

"Uh, yeah sure, that's awesome and all, but I was just thinking, so… the foot doesn't happen to have any pets, right?"

"They're ninja's, doofus, why would they?"

"Right, right, that makes sense and all but uhhh…" he gulped, his teeth agressively clanking together.

Donnie was on the ground, scanning the rocks and rubble for anything that might indicate if they were in the wrong place or not, before Mikey then forced him around his heels at a speed most likely manifested from the utter horror that hovered in front of them.

"…then what the heck is THAT?!"

---

"I still can't believe I agreed to this. They're gonna be seen! And Metalhead? Really?! That rust bucket couldn't clean a desk without tossing it across the room"

"Funny- remind you of anyone?"

"Shut up"

Raph checked the communicator again. Nothing… it's been nearly an hour, where are those guys? They'd found the main entrance, checking every rooftop in sight for any foot soldiers on look out, but so far all they really had to show for it was a crowded street of people hurrying to where they needed to be, and nothing to show for it.

Casey in the meantime, had kept himself busy shooting pebbles towards an inbuild goal of cardboard boxes with a steel pipe. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he misses the old days… At this point, the only thing Raph was now impatiently waiting for, besides somehow making up an effective distraction that would eventually win their home back, was for the B team to inevitably admit that this was a terrible idea. And going by the lack of murderous psychopaths in the area, he'd say that scenario was becoming very likely…

"Casey shoots… " came it from behind, and Raph rolled his eyes as the sound of a pebble breaking a nearby window hollered, "And he scores! The crowd goes wild! Casey! Casey! Casey!"

"Hey, wonderboy- inside voices?!"

Casey didn't seem to understand the urgency of the situation, shrugging nonchalantly all the while setting up his next match with himself. And for every hit, was another second of Raph's lack of patience getting on his nerves, culminating in a an almost animalistic grumble,that might as well have grinded his teeth to powder in his frustration. "What are you doing here anyway? I thought you had to keep a low profile" Raph asked, eager to change the subject of his thoughts.
"I am. But Lizzie's at school, and well, after I saw the news, I couldn't exactly go back to kicking my wall. You guys need all the help you can get"

Raph looked at the two-foot-tall stick figure in front of him playing gulf with a crowbar and a trash can. "You don't say"

Then his eyes dropped, and almost like a nervous teenager trying to ask their crush to prom, he kicked the ground below him and muttered, "So, how is he?"

Raph sighed, surprised for a moment, until logic kicked in and he realized it made sense… Of course, it's wannabe Jason who knows me the best…

"He'll live. Can't say the same for us, if this doesn't pan out. I swear as soon as we find that Oni-masked freak I'm going to make him wish he never had a spine"

A smile crept up on his face. "Didn't he technically beat you?"

"You're one to talk"

"Hey, no shame in loosing if you're up against five! I was caught off guard, no big deal… I'll pay them back as soon as this is over" he said, prominently slamming his fists together. Raph checked the communicator… again. Still nothing, no foot inside, no PD's, no cops… just them. Sitting on the roof, talking. Huh. Guess we haven't really done that in a while, now that I think about it…

And with that in mind, Raph came to the conclusion that to be fair he would've probably reached earlier if it wasn't for the nagging pit in his stomach, telling him that something was wrong- he decided what the heck. Maybe a distraction wouldn't hurt. Clear the mind and all that… "So, what? We stop the foot, and you'll go back to fightin' crime?"

And now Casey was listening, folding his arms under his head, "As tempting as that sounds, Casey Jones' got bigger plans. I'll get a job, save up some money, Maybe I'll even start my own bounty hunter business. I mean I'm practically a professional already. And that's just the beginning."

Raph couldn't believe what he was hearing right now. Not one bit. "Huh. So, no more bustin' skulls? I'm surprised"

He shook his head, still smiling. "Or they'll be plenty of that- just you know, with style. Now that you guys are back too, I'm not the only one to clean up the streets anymore. At least, once I retire from retirement"

"Sounds like the Casey Jones we all know and love" Raph muttered, regretting asking in the first place. Asking where Casey Jones might end up in a few years was like asking whether or not there was meaning in the universe. You could never know for certain.

"What about you? When are you going to do when all this is over?"

"What?"

Casey, hesitated before continuing, scratching the back of his neck in that particular way that just couldn't be because of an itch. "Well, I mean… are you guys going back to being turtles?"

This caught Raph off guard, way more than he'd ever like to admit- which also coincidentally meant that any coherent answer he could give now, wouldn't be very convincing even if this was Casey. But even more importantly, why did he ask like that should even be a question to begin with?

"I mean, yeah… That's the plan, so, that's what we're gonna do" he just said, thinking that would be the end of it.

"Is that really what you want, though?"

But of course, that was more wishful thinking that anything else. Raph could feel his knuckles tighten around the handles of his blades.

"Of course, it is! Why wouldn't it be? This is just temporary! Donnie even said he'd make the cure"

"Hey, I'm not saying you shouldn't go back, I'm just saying that there's another option here too. And I mean… you can't deny the perks that comes from being human"

"I know, I know, it's just… "

Casey got up from the ledge, arms crossed, lifting a brow. "What?"

"… we're not. That's what. Look, it's just- it's hard to explain, okay?" Raph felt his voice tumble over. This sucks… Since when did a recon mission turn into therapy? Give me a break! But Raph knew Casey well enough by now to know, that not even he'd back down when it came to stuff like this. And he had a feeling, that if not now then he would definitely bring it up again later. Probably, not with the luxury of not having the guys there to witness it too. He felt his eyes squint, taking in a deep breath and imagining himself anywhere else in the world right now, despite his better judgement. "Look, we've always been told that we should take pride in who we are. That it's our uniqueness that made us special. Doesn't mean I've never… thought about it, heck, I'm sure the other's could agree. We used to run around pretending what it would be like if we weren't different. Playing school, going to a store, sneaking into the movie theaters… But it's not our life. It's not… me. " Raph could feel that annoying pit in his throat trying to claw its way out of there… If they weren't on a mission, he'd probably just resort to screaming or kicking just anything that moved long enough until it would eventually go away.

"But Raph, if you've wanted it for so long…" Casey muttered, not understanding.

"I know that, but hey, I'm not exactly the picture-perfect example of humanity here in case you haven't noticed. In fact, I suck at it! And frankly, I ain't going to spend the rest of my life in some ditch waiting for the cops to arrest me. I'm not like you. I can't just go back on everything Sensei taught us… it's not what he would've wanted for us. " he finished, leaning against the wall as the events of these last three months replayed in his mind on a loop.

"Sounds to me like you're afraid they're gonna leave"

But just like that- it was like a shot gun was fired, for a moment making him wonder if he'd heard that right. Casey however, was dead serious.

"Hey wha- what are you getting at?!" he yelled, and now he seemed to forget the concept behind inside voices, as his roar echoed all through the stony pavement and probably to the other side of Brooklyn by now.

Casey looked down, tapping his food before reluctantly ripping off the bandage. But it was the silence that came with it that was the worst part… It was the worst part, because out of all the people on the planet, of course it was Casey who saw right through him when it was least convenient. "Raph, we're friends, that's why I mean it when I say… you're the biggest moron I know"

Raph, thought he just hit a wall or something, "Come again?"

"For the first time since they got ya out of that sewer, you and your brothers have a chance at a normal life, dude. And you're telling you'd rather pretend none of this ever happened instead of even considering the fact that you might never get another shot like this ever again? Just look at you, man. And what about Mikey and Donnie? What happens to them, once they decide they'd rather stay this way, and you have to choose?"

Raph didn't know what to say… lost for words most likely. But he supposed that was just what happened when you finally found a problem that hitting repeatedly with the sharp end of a knife wouldn't make go away. "Don't get me wrong, you know I miss my green buttkicking sidekick, but you can't tell me that it can't happen. And if it does… what will you do? " he asked, both hands on Raph's shoulder- Raph right now trying very hard not to either punch him in his stupid face, or sink down on the ground and just not say anything.
"I…- he started, seriously wondering, trying in what had been a very long time of not thinking about it, to imagine what would happen if that was the situation.

However, the time he spent pondering a potential rift in his life permanently, was caught short by the sound of screams roaring in the distance.

"What… was that?" Casey stuttered, Raph already jumping atop one of the crates to get a better view. And as he saw the smoke rising in the distance, ambulances and police cars shooting through the streets in their deafening sirens, a chill ran down his spine.

"It's coming from the docks"
"What?! "

"Looks like someone made a distraction for us" he muttered, snapping himself out of his trance. He motioned for both of them to go down and quickly, meanwhile jabbing at the communication device in his hands like it was a candy bar with a special treat inside.

"Donnie, Mikey, there's something happening down at the docks, where are you?"

Finally, it sprung to life as the signal received the other end, but not with the reassurance he was looking for as Donnie's voice screeched through the speaker.

"RAPH! Look! We made it to the entrance, but it's a trap. We're not alone, there's somethe-agHHADHdhsho- do-down here with us! We think itssssssrhhwhfhhhdh s-s-s- kind of m-tant"

"A mutant?"

"It's fine! We'll be fine- just eh, one minor thing… GET YOUR SHELL OVER HERE! I don't think we can hold it off, i-it's different s-s-s-shHHSHHhhshh- how… I don't know if- oh no-

"Donnie? DONNIE?!"

It caught out, actually the communicator was not even on anymore. And now was really the time to start panicking- because if there was another mutant on the loose, then Donnie and Mikey was right now trapped down there with it. And of course, if that wasn't enough, now someone had apparently decided to set fire to the entire compound they had used as a temporary base. The roof over Raph's head for months… the reason he was probably even still alive, not to mention the fact that if the entire NYCPD was on their way, that meant danger was too.

Ernie…

"What do we do?!" Casey asked, his face shot up with panic as people scattered in any direction not leading towards the docks. Raph tried to calm himself down, tried to remember to keep a leveled head before anything else… he had to make a decision and NOW.

Looking to his friend for guidance, Casey readied his downgraded hockey stick, doing his best to swallow the fear that something might've happened to Lizzie… But the mutant… maybe if it's three against one…? Casey did after all handle himself pretty well, first time he saw one, so the least danger would most likely be the sewers… oh, god I can't believe I actually wish Leo was here…

But if this was the wrong choice, then he'd have plenty of time to regret it later, after he'd saved Ernie. So, he ran in the other directing, gesturing for Casey to go in the other.

"Okay, okay you go after the others, I'll see what's happening. If I'm not back in fifteen minutes, stay out of sight!"

"Are you nuts?! "

"Just do it!" Raph yelled, running full speed towards the docks as if his life depended on it. He saw police cars, fire trucks, the smoke rose for miles and when he finally made it to the bridge, that's when he realized Purple dragons setting tents on fire. He put up his hood, tightened his mask and reached for his sai's swirling them affectively in his hands as anger and desperation motivated him to dash through the screaming hoard of people running for their lives.

"Ernie! Ernie where are you?!" he yelled, feeling the color leave his face, as the sight of Purple Dragons standing laughingly over the burning remnants of what used to be Ernie's tent. When they turned around, Raph was already out of sympathy.

"Are you kidding me- You again?!" one of them said, looking slightly paler than usual.

Ernie's tent burned, the sirens bellowed louder and louder in the chaos that ensued, and Raph was getting ready to make the Red Bandit into more than just a nickname.

---

Hopkins was headed for the warehouse when he saw the smoke. He'd managed to locate his car, grab his keys and race towards the docks in little under an hour, before even noticing that the road was blocked as a result. What the-? He got out of his car, his gun kept close to his belt as he shouldered past the incoming crowd, ushering further and further into the city. When Hopkins first saw the fires, his instinct told him to keep a low profile, initially thinking that if the PD knew that he was coming, then the chaos that had erupted had to be connected somehow. It couldn't have been a coincidence, he thought, scouting ahead for any other way inside before it was to late. Wouldn't be surprising really if by the time he'd get there all of it would've already been removed before he could do anything about it, once again having the NYCPD fooled when it was happening right in front of us.

He tumbled under the bridge, past the supporting beams and further enough till he stood smack in the middle of what he could only describe as hell on legs. PD's setting fire to everything in sight, kicking over and trashing everything invaluable as very few tried to fight back. Hopkins pulled his sleeve up to his mouth trying not to inhale, when he suddenly came across two bodies on the ground, both looking like they had been pummeled by a beast. But this wasn't just civilians- this was PD. Potential in-fighting? Or is it- The sound of a something almost crashing repeatedly into the concrete, made him turn the other side, and his eyes lit up as he finally understood why that was.

The kid didn't finish shoving the guy's face into the wall until he tumbled backwards, head purple and nose bloody. He wore the red mask over his eyes to compliment his ruby red hair, green eyes hiding underneath like they were on fire. He remembered what Davey had told him… shuddering, perhaps out of excitement, because he wasn't lying after all. And with that, Hopkins suddenly started to think. If the PD were setting up a distraction while the city wouldn't notice them relocating mutagen… wouldn't another mutant want to get a canister too? Especially if it was a kid, beating up criminals for fun, seemingly in all the right places.

Hopkins shuttered, "So, you really are a kid" slowly loading his gun, as the kid finally seemed to notice him. Least to say, he wasn't particularly happy about this.

"Well, you know what they say, age before beauty" the kid smiled, cracking his knuckles before already running full speed forward.

It happened so fast, that neither really seemed to understand who hit first before it was over, Hopkins' gun thrown out of his hands in a matter of seconds, before the kid quickly and effortlessly managed to unbalance him- making Hopkins nearly hit the ground. But as the kid began walking in the other direction,

"Oh, you're not getting away that easy"

Hopkins had already pulled out his handcuffs. And this time he was prepared. The kid tried to punch him in the face, but as he did, the cop managed to pull out the other ring and lock it over his wrist. This only seemed to anger him even more. Because as soon as he'd no longer had his weapons anymore, he made sure to plan his elbow right in Hopkin's nose. It happened so quickly that the old geezer didn't have any time to stop it before he felt the bones of his face start to crack, pushing the kid against the wall as he aimed the barrel of his gun directly at his side. "What? No mutant tricks to put me down easy?"

He seemed to think on this for a moment, finally deciding to drop his weapons to the ground in surrender. Good choice.

"Look pal, I don't know who the hell you think you are, but I'm having a real bad day, and I'm not in the mood. So, why don't you go back to the nursing home, and I'll let you keep all your bones in place. Waddya say?"

"You've got spirit, I'll give you that" Hopkins chuckled, noticing the same markings on his blades as those matching Leo's. He had him pinned- meaning any time to ask questions without having his superiors legally disposing of him, would be now and this is where Hopkins' mind began reeling back and forth. The details of every last encounter, or unwarranted crime scene entering his mind- paving way for the anger that fuel him to figure out the truth. .

"So, what was the plan? Setting tents on fire, causing mass panic… what do you gain from relocating so much mutagen I wonder…?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Tell me who sent you! Look, I don't wanna hurt a kid, not unless you make me-

"Does the phrase go suck a lemon, mean anything to you?" the kid smiled, making Hopkins shove him into the wall even faster than he could stop his chin from hitting it first.

"Thirty five" he said, doing everything in his power to keep his composure somehow, but there was just something about this kid that irked him the wrong way- and it wasn't just the thought that potentially he'd turn int o a big scaly snake monster too at any second now.

"That supposed to mean something?"

"That's how many people have been killed in the last two weeks. Thirty five. Now you can either tell me all you know about the Foot clan, or I'll let my superiors take you to juvenile hall where you can rot in a cell"

Suddenly the fire in his eyes started to almost, dampen for a moment as the news of this seemed to hit him a lot harder than Hopkins had expected. He opened his mouth to say something, most likely another insult, when without warning, something hard hit Hopkin's neck and he stumbled backwards.

"Hey- GRANDPA!"

"What…?"

He looked up- but too late. Before he knew it there was a 10 kg heavy cylinder coming his way, and it was already too late to duck before the guy wielding out swung it at his face.

"GOONGALAAAAAA! "

Hopkins dropped the gun, stumbling backwards the entire world spinning for a moment and the pain in his skull hurting more than his twentieth had done in college. When his vision finally began to come back to him, the sight of yet another kid holding a steel pipe appeared before him, relief and shock on his cuffed friend's bruised face.

"Casey?! I told you to-

"What's fun about that?!" he just yelled, revealing his set of missing teeth as he came at Hopkins again- this time with an intense ringing in his head and working on his last nerve. "Hey, mister- what was it- Ernie, right? Long time no see. How's the wife?"

That voice… are you kidding me? Hopkins dodged his blow, not believing it himself but it all made sense.

"Casey Jones…? I thought we arrested you months ago!"

"So did Bill!" the boy smiled proudly tossing his friend the keys that- too late, Hopkins just now appeared to be missing. He got ready to swing at the old man one more time, when before he got the chance, his friend pulled him in the other direction.
"What are you doing?! LETS GO!"

"Oh, right. Hang on" he muttered, Hopkins not understanding.

That's when yet another blow to his head made his body fall over and his limbs go numb. Even the fires were starting to blur out, sounds deafening in his ears as the pain threatened to pull him under.

"And that's how you bust some skulls, sucka!-

"We get it already, let's GO!" he heard them yell, weakly aiming his gun for one of their legs- he couldn't tell which from which anymore- ready to pull the trigger, before finally losing consciousness…

---

Donnie bit his lip, struggling to concentrate with the controller in his hands not responding and what appeared to be a five-foot-tall glowing skin monster crawling after him at full speed. "Damn it, stupid thing… Why won't you just work?!"

"Donnie?! I think we have a problem!" Mikey yelled, trying to destract the mutant from the other side.

"You think?!"

"I don't think our weapons are gonna be of much use"

"Why?"

He came up to Donnie, turning his head to see just the tip of a chain hanging agape the creature's mouth. Which also happened to be the only remnants of a face it seemed to posses, besides its sharp teeth and almost mutilated left eyeball hanging loosely in its socket.

"Because he just ate mine"

Donnie gulped, forcing a nervous smile as the creature approached them in slow, staggering steps. Don't panic, don't panic, just keep a cool head, and remember your training- Everything will be FINE…

"W…what do we do?" Mikey whispered, hiding behind his brother.

"Oh well, you know… AAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"

They both managed to dodge the glowing mutants razor sharp spikes, each in their own direction as Donnie breathlessly tried to stay by the worlds, hoping to hit a signal.

"Okay, okay, maybe if I reboot the signal and recalibrate using the power transmitted from the outside I can use the bolts stored in the IT drive in the lab which is only approximately one point two miles away… okay, we're doomed"

"You know it's weird… I feel like I know this guy" Mikey yelled, going for its head before jumping to the side.
"Sure make friends with it! I'm sure it'll make a fine plus one for Thanksgiving!"

"No, I'm serious! " he dodged again, this time followed by a deafening scowl that the more the creature tried to bite, the more it sounded like a wail. Like it was in pain. "I think I've seen him before… " he said, and almost immediately came that particular look on his face that always spoke disaster. Then, he stopped running and viewed the mutant from above the craters, clinging to the pipes in the ceiling like a monkey.

"Wait a minute- Suitpants guy?!"

"Suitpant's?!- ARGH!" Now Donnie was the one pausing- yet another nickname that didn't have any sense or meaning behind it. He would've thought for sure that it would be the glowing specot, or something chilling like… glowspike, or well just anything else. He pondered these questions for approximately two seconds, before the creature reached out for his head and Donnie dodged not long enough to safe his bo from being torn in half. "Oh, come oN!"

Mikey jumped down, dragging his brother with him in the other direction.

"He was my cellmate! I don't remember his name, but he was there too before they zapped me! Man, buddy I thought you were dead!"

"Do you want to be?!" he bit, a sharp pain shooting through his body all of a sudden and he felt blood coming down his nose. "Argh…"

"Donnie! What's wrong?"

"Nothing I… argh… "

He sunk to his knees, painfully. Of all the times…!

"Come on, D! Now's not the time for a siesta, bro!" Mikey yelled, shaking him like a ragdoll in the hope that it would somehow snap him out of it. When that didn't work, he went for the second worst idea either of them could come up with. "I've got this! HEY SUITPANTS GUY! OVER HERE! Come on! I'm right here! Nice and tasty!"

Donnie bit his lip, with a shaky hand reaching for the controller and hammering it desperately towards the concrete in the faint hope that brute force somehow was the answer.

"Come on , come on…!"

"Urgh, Donnie?!"

"It won't work! We-we're too far away from Metalhead! It won't connect!" Donnie yelled, as the momentary pain finally started to seize. Mikey let out a shriek in panic darting around the corridor with the creature right at his heels.

"Are you kidding- "Uh, oh…"
"Mikey!"

That's when the rubble made hid brother tumble backwards, no weapons to shield him from the incoming blow that hovered as the mutant got ready to strike. So, without further ado, Donnie did the first thing that came to mind- something he should've done weeks ago.

He jumped in front of Mikey holding out his arms in what would probably look like the world's worst yoga pose, squinting his eyes as he waited for the blow. Both of them waited in anticipation as the creature squealed and yelled out…

But nothing happened. That is to say, the creature didn't strike.

"Hey! Over here!"

They both turned around, slowly, not sure what just happened before it was happening, and they saw the creature almost fall backwards, crawling away from something brighter behind them, reaching it's eye like it was hit by the sun. Mikey and Donnie looked at each other for a moment of clarity, turning towards the voice that had just bellowed to find… probably the last person they expected to see. And rightfully so.

"Is that…?"

"Holy chalupa!"

Donnie stumbled to his feet, Mikey quickly following suit mouth agape, and neither sure if they were dreaming or not when they saw the figure approaching them with a flashlight.

"Leo?!"