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?

14. Eve of Destruction

Mr. Gilgamesh was a fairly reasonable man.

Fell in love with science by the age of 3, collected enough odd jobs to gather a decent income, until finally he founded his own research facility by the age of fifty-eight. Sure, he wasn't particularly skilled in most fields, though his love for the unknown stood unrivaled for as long as he could remember. At least until he stumbled upon a scrawny kid at a convention, looking for opportunity. Sure, it wasn't exactly much the OLS had to offer, and the way the kid talked non-stop for hours about his annual planner for improvement in the field of not just anthropology, but for the mechanical sciences as well, least to say he was fairly impressed. Though, the moment he'd decided to hire him as a janitor, he couldn't help but feel like he was underselling the poor boy. Noticing the drive, the will and the almost ever-present curiosity that even when he wasn't around, shone through. Remembering how baffled he was that the kid hadn't even signed up for a scholarship with his knowledge! And with no discernible reason, besides money problems well, the day he got his letter was surely the day he'd turn things around. At least, that was the plan.

However, when poor Dontalio stopped coming to work, that's when Gilgamesh was starting to wonder if maybe the boy was being held back somehow. Having one day in particular upon hours upon hours of desk work to sort out the budget, after yet another hydro reactor had unceremoniously but not surprisingly exploded. It was then the complaints started coming, and of course, whenever the pipes caved in, who else but the janitor wonder boy could possibly fix it? But he didn't come, personal working over time as Gilgamesh searched the facility. Complaints regarding a buzzing or whatnot seemingly penetrating the walls like a haunting spirit. Of course, it wasn't until the thirtieth complaint that day it seemed to become rather serious. Gilgamesh hitting himself over the head for not having assured the boy had a phone he could call on- but given in his last months' worth of residence in the building and his consistent working schedule, it had never crossed his mind before now.

He felt something creep into his lungs, a cough or something making the old man rush down into personal, where he knocked thrice on the janitor door, each step making his lungs rustier. Ruth was right, I suppose. Eventually age will catch up to you… he thought, realizing that it was open. And not only that- shocked to find the entire window to the cabinet broken, papers scattered about and… was that blood on the wall? Gilgamesh could feel that something was very, very wrong. His stomach couldn't lie. And it didn't help that while his coughing continued to worsen on his way to the laundry mat, the buzzing that several of his crew had spoken off finally reached his ear as well. Deciding that the best way to figure out its source, must come from the frequency. Alas, he leaned his ear against the wall, followed it deeper and deeper into the complex, until finally he reached basement level, where the air seemed to get thicker around him. Truth be told, he almost never went down here, despite being in charge. Why would he? The only people working down here was either too young to drive or too old to care about maintenance. He had no place down by the boilers and the machinery.

And yet as he stood there, facing the door to the main room, the buzzing ever so loud inside… something seemed to move. He opened the door, looked around for a bit, hoping maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe he'd finally decided to collect his paycheck after all! WOuldn't be unlike that boy, always one step ahead of everyone.

"Dantilo? You here boy? HALOOOO!" he called, hearing his voice replayed back to him through the vibrating of the walls. But as no one seemed to return it, Mr. Gilgamesh turned his heel and headed back to the office.

At least, that was the initial idea, until he found the door to be locked, and a single open vent buzzing from above with two pairs of glowing purple eyes' starring back at him like a dark omen.

Then, the lights went out.

---

"You're Casey's what?!"

"I know right? I almost couldn't believe it either."

They all starred at the little girl in front of them with a mix of awe and confusion. Maybe it was the fact that Donnie was sitting there too, clutching a piece of wet cloth to his eye mopingly, or the fact that Lizzie was not only armored to a T with spray bottles and ice skates around the neck had placed herself on the shoulders of Metalhead 3.0. Fiddling with the gears in his head like an average Tuesday as the almost miniature version of their human friend goggled up at them like they'd always been there. Not even phased by the numerous bruises or even seemingly questioning the fact that their lair was situated underneath New York city, home to a dojo, a laboratory, and four teenagers seemingly on the run. As they all starred, the little girl now revealed to be none other than Casey's sister, the question of how and why she was there seamlessly brushed away for a moment of pure non-yielding bafflement- the thought that somehow, they'd never even seen her until now. The slight doubt that she might not be who she says entering their minds, if only for a brief moment. When you really looked at it, she had all the right features, all down to the messy dark hair and pale skin, just minus the stone-cold expression of pure hollowness- boarding on horror movie-ish right now digging itself into Leo and Mikey's core.

And then, as if a bell was rung, time snapped back into the world following Raph's longwinded face of absolute shock, approaching her as if he didn't trust entirely what he was seeing.

"But in what world would you just- I mean, did you consider- I can't even- why are you here?! How are you here?!" he proclaimed, Donnie shrugging in the corner still clutching his eye.

"I found her in corridor B. Right after she surprise sprayed me in the face with disinfectant but that's not important-

"Oh, so that's why your eyes are redder than usual" Mikey broke in, Donnie showing a small sign of relief upon hearing him open his big mouth again with the same goofy lighthearted earnestness he'd usually carry, "Yeah… yeah, that's why. But anyway-

"What's in the jar? It's filthy. I can clean it if you want-"

"DON'T!"

Once again, interrupted, the gang all collectively ran for the tube, now covered in a set of blankets and covers to shield the inside. Lizzie was just a moment away from removing said cloth upon looking at a missing spot in the glass covered with dust- was it not for everyone else screaming at her to stop, a heart attack away from collapsing right then and there. She looked up, Mikey shielding the tube with all his body, before the silence told him that maybe raising his voice at the mini-Casey doubleganger was probably not the best way to go.

"We mean, thanks but… it's just…" he tried, not hiding the nervousness on his face as suddenly a tap on the glass appeared through the small gap of blankets. A small glowing claw tapping silently from the inside and making Mikey gulp thinking of all the thoughts still left inside, terrifying night mutant or not, it was still Si. He was still in there, one way or the other. Probably scared out of his wits and it didn't make it any better that all Mikey could do to save his life was to leave him behind when the chips were down. (Even though chips could technically not feel any emotions, because if they did, them feeling down whenever Mikey took a bite out of one would make that fact alone even more horrifying when he really thought about it).

"Is it a monster?"

"He's not a monster." Mikey corrected her, sternly, although she didn't seem to mind this. She instead just continued looking at him, head tipping slightly to the side like she was a machine suffering a loose screw. Huh. Maybe she really is Casey's sister.

Pulled out of his stream of thoughts, Lizzie put her hand on the glass right were the claw inside were in the middle of tapping away at the barrier. And yet, just as she did, he seemed to sort of… still, and calm down more. Mikey in turn wondering if Lizzie was even human.

"How did you-

"What's his name?" she asked, Mikey gulping as a million different horror movies replayed in his mind.

"…. Simon" he muttered, as the others watched equally confusedly while she started drawing a ticktacktoe with her washing glove. Confused, a little bit terrified, and perhaps even a number of different kinds of curious, Mikey decided to indulge her, seeming as this strangely calmed Simon down a tad from the other side. The tapping stopped, the almost electric hum of the glass easing up as they without a word played each other. When he proceeded to successfully beat him by a spot, a smile crept over his face as Lizzie made a small line near the letter M on his side, as if to say you won this round, and all of a sudden… maybe she wasn't so creepy after all.

"Well, now I have to clean it." she then said, taking the cloth straight out of Donnie's hands, who at this point along with pretty much everyone else had been observing this exchange with a mix of worry and unparalleled confusion. Lizzie seemed to notice, chuckling as she proceeded to scrub the glass, "You guys are weird. I can see why Arnold hangs out with you"

"Thanks, now that you mention it, we are pretty cool actuall- Hey!"

"Lizzie, the message?" Donnie finally broke in, rubbing his temples like a frustrated mom although, who could really blame him. She picked up her phone, handed it to Raph who already by the first line seemed to grow question marks out of his skull as he tried to read it.

"Red alert. Serious problem at cop- copper station? - the fool clan are… something something, be in bars? What? Get over here owl o we're dooped-

"Give me that" Donnie muttered, grabbing it out of his hands, "He's saying the foot's infiltrated the station as one of the cops. They're probably going to unleash the mutagen inside any time now I just… don't know how long we've got"

"But, then… how are you here?" Leo added, gesturing towards Lizzie barely sparring them a glance- too busy making sure every last speck of dust was evaporated from the tube.

"Arnold said to go to the sewer to warn the guys. And then he apologized for writing so late in April for some reason, but I don't think he knows we're in November. Probably another concussion… I need to give him his mask back before he hurts himself more."

"No, you've done plenty." Raph broke in, fists in his pocket as if to hide the urgency in his voice. "It's bad enough that you're now involved in this mess when you were supposed to stay home and out of the way, but how the heck are we supposed to find this guy when there's an entire platoon of crazy ninjas out to get us, the PD is probably on their way to free their pals, and the entire police force thinks half of us are some crime craving juveniles?"

"Not to mention, if any of the mutagen gets released we've also got a skyscrapers worth of mutants to look out for too- " Donnie paused, Raph's death glance reading stop talking from a mile away.

"Right… not helping"

"This is impossible" Raph sighed, stopping himself one moment short from kicking the nearest table.

"No luck from Hopkins, then?"

"Not unless you count duct tape and handcuffs as luck"

Donnie then turned to Leo, hope in his eyes all the while a slight hint of desperation seemed to seep through the burned-out corners of where the spray hit.

"Leo, please tell me your memories have started to come back at least"

And as the events of today doubled back in his mind, reminding him that because of his actions, the other's might've been shot trying to save him. In other words, this entire trip had brought them nothing but wasted even more time trying to stop their enemies. The ones he'd at some point come to accept in his mind as the reality around him, no longer spoken to by the cut on his forehead seemed to have gone completely silent. No flashes, no memories, no clues… just, nothing. He let out a sigh, shaking his head as the light went out in Don's eyes little by little, "I'm sorry, but no. Although, I might have an idea about who infiltrated the lair"

"Wha- you do?"

His eyes seemed to follow back to where they'd found the bullet, as "Does Hamato Karai ring any bell?"

Donnie was shocked albeit, more understanding it seemed given that was the most logical explanation as to whoever managed to get behind their defenses. Well… everyone who wasn't Lizzie apparently.

Even Mikey peaked up when the name was uttered, abandoning his second victory in ticktacktoe as he sprung to his feet, "Wait, you met Karai?! And you didn't tell us?"

"It doesn't matter- god, we've been over this! Karai can protect herself! " Raph exclaimed, all too tired of repeating himself, though Leo of course didn't see it that way.

"But what if she can help us?! I mean she's in the foot, she might know something!"

"If she could help us, she would've. I mean, come on! She recognized you and didn't even say anything! Why would she help us now?"

"I don't know! Did it ever enter your mind that maybe she hasn't been able to help us because she was shot?!"

And then there was Donnie, his brain unravelling slowly in the corner as his brother's voices seemed to only grow louder and louder in the room. But it wasn't just the tedious disagreement amongst his older brothers giving him a headache, or even just the fact that his body was starting to weaken little by little. They were almost out of time. And he was almost out of his depth for every second that passed sending them closer and closer over the edge. He raised his voice, the effort of this a little more than he'd estimated, but alas, that wasn't enough to stop the almost growl-like impatience raptured in his throat,

"It doesn't matter! Look, whatever's going on at the CPD we can't do anything unless we get to OLS and I might be able to create enough cure for everyone infected, including but not limited to Simon, and that's starting to become not very likely if we keep standing around!"

Mikey looked at his brother, concern on his face. Of course, this wasn't unusual- Donnie was more or less known to have his outbursts, and especially when the mission got tense. But watching him now, the slight greyness around his eyes and the twitch in his body to the point it was as if he'd been zapped by lightning, something felt off to him. Not just, run of the mill stressed, but intensely so, making him and probably everyone else start to wonder if there was something he wasn't telling them.

"I thought you said you already had the cure?"

Donnie gulped, noticing the unease surface around the room, fearing most of it was coming from him as he sunk down into the chair, struggling for an answer that'd make sense. I could just say it… now, once and for all, let them know so they… before… if I can just-

"We- we need enough to safe everyone, I mean. Something I can't do, if the only place we might get the right tools turns into a monster zoo. We have to go to OLS"

"What about Casey?!"

"What about Simon?! He's going to explode if we don't help him!"

"You don't know that, Mikey"

"We're not taking that chance, Raph! We're going" Donnie said, standing by his side as the team seemed to rip apart at the seams, Lizzie's brow curdling slightly.

"Well, if it's that urgent then, why the shell would Casey go through the trouble of warning us in the first place?!"

"I don't know! Maybe he tripped over his shoelaces or somethin'" Donnie yelled, Raph solemnly tapping his finger on Don's chest as he'd done when they had chest plates to shield from the force.

"There's something you're not telling us, D. Admit it! You've been acting shading ever since we left to go get Leo"

"No, I haven't!"

"Oh? Really?! Then please, tell us what amazing upgrades you gave your toaster while we were gone, why don'tcha?!" he countered to the now completely out, gesturing towards Metalhead 3.0 just a few moments ago getting anxiously polished by Lizzie- now seemingly on her way out the door.

"And where do you think you're going?!" he called, grabbing her by the collar of her shirt as she struggled to get free.

"If you don't wanna help, I'm going"

"Oh no you don't. You're not going out there" Raph insisted, dragging her back to her chair where she continued to break loose.

"Guys! Clock is ticking!"

"Everyone shut UP!"

Leo's voice broke through the chaos like a knife cutting through flesh. As if the days when their fearless leader wasn't afraid to speak up had suddenly returned, now reminding everyone in the lab that despite the exterior, he was still in there. Right now commanding their attention almost without even trying, as if by sheer force of habit. He took a second, brows pulled together as he let out a deep heavy breathe making him seem relatively taller in the process.

"Okay, Look- memories or no memories, I'm still the oldest here. I might to be the leader I used to be, but that doesn't mean that I'm just gonna sit here and wait for you guys to pull your heads together and come up with a plan. And unless you guys wanna stand around here arguing all day while innocent people are turned into mutants, then I vote we split up. Donnie, you and Mikey'll go to OLS and retrieve what you need to distribute the cure and disarm the bomb. Raph and I will go get Casey. We'll hold the foot off long enough for you to rendezvous back with us in the basement, where we'll take care of the cure there too. Understood?"

There was a break in the room, soon followed by both Donnie and Mikey, without looking up nodding slowly, whereas absolutely no one would've guessed it, Raph remained unmoved.

"Nice plan. Except for maybe one minor tiny little detail? HOW THE SHELL ARE WE SUPPOSED TO FIND ONI-MAN?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it"

"Huh. Never heard that one before- Ow!" he scoffed, arms crossed as Mikey dashed him on the shoulder, only his impending moodiness suffering the blow. Leo rolled his eyes, the weight of this mission starting to take its toll, every nerve in his body shivering at the thought of what might go wrong if they weren't careful.

"Guys… It's now or never, are you in or not?"

Another pause, Donnie caught in his worried mind a few seconds before he leaned back from the counter, decidedly, "Leo's right. Stopping the viooze from imploding comes first."

"Told ya that would catch on sooner or later" Mikey whispered to a disgruntled Raph. And that reminded Leo, "Mikey, you're okay to do this?"

He nodded shortly, significantly more willing than he'd been after they found Simon. Although whether or not his demeanor was on pretense or not, his answer remained the same, "Like a turtle do!"

And finally, "Raph?"

All eyes on him, the red bandit seemed to find it hard to give in to the moment along the others. Pondering a good argument that would somehow win his case over, despite the odds of that at this point remained all but fleeting.

"Okay, fine. But you do realize the NYCPD aren't exactly our biggest fans, right? "

"I've been there enough to know the layout and Donnie's probably cleaned every corner of OLS by now, right?"

Donnie gulped from the chair, losing his collar with a shivering hand as if he still remained slightly unsure about this panning out the way it was supposed to pan out, but what choice did they have? "Y-yeah. Strategically, it would probably benefit the mission the most if I- if we went our separate ways. At least until its safe- which reminds me-

"Dude, you're sweating"

"Am I? Oh, would you look at that" he chuckled, as Lizzie put a hand on his shoulder. He smiled, maybe a tad bit awkwardly, but earnestly all the same before he got up from his seat, fishing for something inside a bag behind the nearest cabinet.

"Here"

What he pulled out, tossing to the others, appeared to be three small vials, each carrying an almost golden glow about them. Some sort of substance inside shimmering in the container.

"What is it?"

Donnie tried to relax his shoulders, fumbling a bit as he pulled out his own and stuffed it into his bag, "In case anything goes south, I guess you could call it plan B. Just, take one if it comes to that- not that it's gonna come to that but just in case it does come to that, it would be an energy saver. Just as a last resort, whatever you do don't take it unless it becomes absolutely necessary. Understood, Mikey? "

"Way to be specific, Donnie. Thanks" Raph muttered, stuffing it down his belt all the same as the others followed suit.

"Cool. Matches my eyes" Mikey whispered, despite very clearly having blue eyes and that statement not holding any truth to it whatsoever though Donnie refrained from actually telling him that, just this time.

"Guess it's settled then. Come on, we don't have much time"

They all made their way, Leo at the helm along with Raph and Donnie quickly following behind. Only Mikey seemed to linger, watching the rubbles and remains of their home as if nothing had changed- the tube down the hall starting the tapping once more from the other side.

"I'll come back for you. Don't you forget it" he whispered, with heavy steps joining the others towards the subway, as a realization then entered his head at once, out of the blue and seemingly of the greatest importance for a split second of ambiance.

"Wait a minute… who's Arnold?"

---

The building was a tall skyscraper of cement and glass, towering over New York city like the headquarters of some old organization from a comic book. You could barely see the top, darkened skies in the air threatening a storm all the while snow rained down around them in a myriad of white. They'd used the subway for the fastest short cut gone unnoticed, sliding across the concrete in hastened steps, one after the other before finally they were out in the clear, Raph already heading towards their destination.

However, as the brothers were about to march off to what was probably going to be one of their most difficult missions since the first split up, óne obstacle remained in their path. One they couldn't believe for just one moment they'd forget to consider, given Lizzie's presence in the lab had so far been as unusual as it had taken all of them by surprise.

Not sure if the fact that she was following them headstrong towards the tunnel, both arms leaning over the crutches heavily as she forced herself across the bricks, was endearing our nerve wrecking. And after the four of them realized this, finally came the ever-creative maelstrom of ideas for whatever to do with her- starting of the ball with a highly unnerved, conflicted and seriously non-comprehending Leo, in a conversation that went something like this:

"Should we tie her up?"

"Tie up a cripple?! Good job! I'm sure that won't make a headline or draw any unwanted conclusions about us!" Raph protested.

"Well, do you got any better ideas?"

"We could make her clean our rooms- ow!"

"She's just a little girl" Leo said, pity on his gaze.

"Yeah! A girl with disinfect!"

"It's disinfect-ant"

"What Donnie said!"

"Let her come"

It came from Raph, surprisingly calm in his tone, although he just uttered the words none of them would've ever guessed could be uttered by him.
"What?"

He squatted down, meeting her at eyelevel as he considered the options in his head, all of them reaching the same conclusion. Each reminding him of the impossibility of her probably escaping the nightmares of foot soldiers breaking into her home and breaking her brother. She's smarter than all of us put together. He remembered Casey's words clear in his mind, seeing the subdued but undeniable determination on her, like he saw it on himself. Like he knew he'd be like if this was any of his brothers'.
"Guys, we did this to her... And hey, if she's not takin' no for an answer, who are we to stop her? When we find Casey, we'll help you get home safe, okay?"

"It's not safe" Leo said, convinced this would only do more harm than good. She didn't ask to be involved in this, but hey- neither did they.

"None of us have been safe ever since we first got involved. At least this way we can protect her in case, bug eyes and his creeps pay her another visit"

And then, realizing talking Raph out of something most likely would only lead to him doing that thing anyway, Leo relented. "You sure about this?" he asked, Lizzie rubbing sanitizer on her glove for good measure before shaking Raph's hand solemnly.

"I am. He owes me a dollar"

After that, it didn't take long before Raph, Leo and Lizzie found themselves at the NYCPD, grey skies over the building and a streamline of people waltzing in and out by the front door. They lied in wait, observing carefully before making their approach. The irony of the situation didn't escape Raph though, remembering all too well what would happen if anyone misfortunate enough to cross paths with the weapon-armored green mutant sneaking around on rooftops. Being on the wanted list was almost a compliment, compared to that, however if there was anytime to become completely invisible, now would be the best time.

They scurried around, Lizzie carried for the most part behind Raph's back, as her crutches would be the most obvious contender to their not so stealth trained companion's give away, however she didn't seem to mind it. When they reached the other side of the building, a small hatch buried into the concrete roof, Leo was quick to drag the team back into the shadows as the sight of a security camera just above on the other end, was met in their path. Raph was quick to draw his weapons, all too eager to use them of course, but was left sorely disappointed when Leo used one of Lizzie's cans instead to spray paint the front in bright pink.

"You do know this is illegal, right?" she pointed out, seemingly the voice of reason for the day and not so amused when Raph proceeded to force the hatch open, leading down into the ventilation shaft as a result.

"Which is exactly, why you're staying here"

"What? No, I'm not." she protested, already on her way to commit a Mikey and jump straight down, if both Raph and Leo wasn't quick enough to pull her back.

"Look, we're not here for a bar mitzva. There's a lot of cops down there wanting to blow our freaking brains out, and you're not going to join that party. Even if I have to tie you to that pole over there, you're staying put until we get back, understood?" he said, the slight urge to find a bucket, the words leaving his mouth making him feel uncomfortably responsible. But his point still stood. Lizzie was a little girl with a broken leg and a scary overconfidence meant to stir trouble. She wasn't a trained fighter; she wasn't experienced, and she definitely wasn't easy to miss in a crowd. He wasn't happy about it, but one way or the other, this was how it had to be if they had any hope of getting out of there unnoticed.

Leo sighed, considering their options which, ultimately led to the same conclusion to prove it, "Raph's right, it's too dangerous for you, Liz"

"I'm sorry, can you- can you just repeat that? I didn't quite hear you"

"Knock it off" rolling his eyes, Leo put a hand on her shoulder, "Look, all we gotta do, is just get in there, grab Casey and get out. It'll be quick, okay? You won't even notice we were gone"

Lizzie shook her head arms crossed as her eyes wondered down to the hockey mask, almost as if she expected for it to talk back at some point, agreeing with her.

"You lied. That's a violation of the rules-"

"Sorry, but that's just how it's gotta be. And besides, we'll need a lookout when Arnold blows our cover on the way out. Who better than a Jones?" Raph stated, already climbing down the latch as Leo followed behind him, a tad more careful in his steps. Lizzie waited for a moment, most likely tempted to follow them down regardless, but was ultimately defeated by the look Raph sent her way, making sure she stayed exactly where she was.

"Here. Use the sharp end" she finally said, tossing what appeared to be a baseball bat from her collection of armories, this one spiked with nails and it made her look even more like a phenomenon than a person in doing so. Raph grabbed it, nodding shortly before closing the lid and venturing down- Lizzie left reluctantly to her own devices on the roof.

"Okay chief- where to?"

Leo led the way, elbows against the cold metal and with Raph close behind him still wondering how the heck he'd ended up with a cop of all people to look after him. Going here every day, not knowing that as soon as anyone inside recognized what he truly was, they'd either shoot him on site or sell him to a science lab. Not having the slightest clue that crossing paths with these guys, had not only been a detriment to their safety, but straight up banned by Master Splinter as long as they could remember. It could be anything; from an officer going to the sewers looking for a runoff kid, to an egghead patrolling the area certain they'd seen something green moving in the corner of their eye. Raph couldn't even count how many times they'd had to hide, even in the lair. To creep up inside a dark hole standing still for several long minutes all the while some geezer would waltz by the corridor with a flashlight and a gun. He'd run his fingers along the walls, trying long and hard to memorize his surroundings all the while master Splinter would encourage them to wait just a little while longer. Stories of boogeymen and looming figures being the result of these encounters, few as they might've been, but the lessons lingered. Their ever first venture topside, inviting the question of what might happen if an officer was unfortunate enough to as much as catch a glimpse of these creatures.

Least to say, Raph wasn't especially fond of their current hold-up.

"We there yet or do ya know where we're going?" he asked, more than a little done with crawling around the ventilation shafts.

"Shhh "

Just about to bite back with another remark about the stupidity of them venturing around like roaches, Leo stopped up, finger over his lips as he gestured towards the open light streaming in from the lid below. The room was presumably empty, nothing but a concrete floor and the almost absently sounding clang from a steel pipe somewhere, ringing hollow. "This should be the holding cell. There are usually guards waiting outside, so we have to be smart about this if we want to slip in unnoticed. We can't just- WAIWAIWAIWAIT what are you-

However, as he so patiently waited in silence for any trouble to show, Raph wasn't wasting any time. He kicked the lid open, twirled each sai in his hands and dropped down in one motion. Leo sighed, following suit. And while their assumption that the room for a fact wasn't preoccupied was partially true, that didn't account for the amount of PD prisoners starring curiously back at them from behind the bars. Each a face Raph seemed to recognize, and in turn making him wonder just how many was put in here by Jones, and how many was put in here by him. Judging by the number of faces he recognized slightly and the ones he didn't, he figured probably not as many, deciding the precise amount wasn't as important- though if anyone asked, he was definitely the one with the most.

"So much for stealth" Leomumbled, not hiding his disapproval as he dropped down next to him. "So, which one is it?"

There was a regurgitation of voices echoing, all of which ranging from pointing out how kids shouldn't be in a place like this to look guys, the entertainment is here, until finally, it seemed to dawn on them just who exactly it was that had dropped into their confinement. As Raph looked around, ignoring the loud screams and pounding of the steel bars from aggressive gang members, he felt his mind race trying to find a familiar face. However, when he wasn't looking for a gangly teenager with a hockey mask, the only thing close to it was one PD in the corner carrying a dragon tattoo on his neck. Definitely not him.

"Raph, mind hurrying it up a bit?"

"No need. He's not here"

"What?" Leo started to panic slightly, going around in circles, mind racing. Raph on the other hand, was less worried about the police showing up to notice the ruckus from behind the door, and more concerned about why in shell Casey wasn't here. Well, for starters, all of the prisoners in here seemed to be PD scumbags- nothing out of the ordinary. Secondly, if the police had any mind, trying to retain Casey without getting a bloody nose was something you usually learned from experience, which might carry an explanation as to why he wasn't in holding with the rest. But then again, the police for all their douchebaggery, Raph thought, are the least of our problems if the foot is here too. What if they got to him first? What then?

"Raph, whatever you're thinking, we should really get going soon, so can you maybe-

Raph grabbed a chair, channeled his frustrations as he put it against the door for cover, before he grabbed the first PD closest to the bar by the lapels, pulled him against the metal and aimed the sharp end to his throat.

"-or… do… that. Sure. That's- that's an option too"

"Where is he?" he said, solemnly as the PD seemed to force a quiver down.

"Where is who? Looking for your parents maybe?" he spit, Raph quickly losing his non-existent patience. He grabbed the PD by the wrist, forced him around in one swift motion, as he twisted his hand in a backwards lock that in turn- send him to his knees, back against the bars. "Casey Jones. Where. Is. He?!"

The PD shivered, clearly in pain, though that didn't seem to stop him from trying to mask it- the thought of the bars keeping them separated probably reassuring the guy of his safety.

"On a farm, why ya asking?"

Raph, ready for round two, forced the guy to lean back and meet his gaze. "Where did they take him?!

"Raph-" Leo protested, already taken aback by the brute force of his brother. It was almost funny how, the old Leo would've most likely forced him away from the bars, whereas this one was still convinced that he could drag his brother away from what needed to be done by simply asking. Raph thought about it for a moment, prepared to break the guy's fingers if he had to, the muffling voices of 'inmates' playing to his temper in his mingle of thoughts, as a snarling almost rusty voice came from somewhere next to the cell.

"You must be even out of your god damn mind, coming here! Ha! If I had known, it would be that easy to get you busted I would've seen hockey boy out myself! Seriously, red, what happened to you?"

There came a low register cackle, sickeningly hoarse- almost regurgitating laughter behind the bars like it was seconds away from going into a fit. Letting go of the thug, Raph twirled his sai prepared for another interrogation, as he turned his attention to who else but Davy clinging to the steel. Of course, THIS guy again… just my luck. He still looked the same- Crazy eyes, dirtied clothes and unkept hair, decorated with that homemade-looking purple dragon tattoo that had since been prone to bite marks and blunt weapons. Raph still remembered their brawl in the basement of OLS, the crazy ramblings and the look of pure horror on his face when he thought he was gonna be turned into Donnie's personal guinea pig.

"And you're the same piece of garbage since last time we beat you, I see."

Davey sneered with a grin, blotting his teeth with delight. "Ohhohoho I've been waiting for this, red bandit. Of course, I figured those cops was going to bring ya in here with me, but oh no. You were stupid enough to come anyway weren't ya!?"

"What do you want David?"

"It's Davey!"

"That's what I said"

"Raph, I think we have company" Leo called, noticing the intensifying sound of footsteps outside the hall. Soon to find it locked and most likely going to call for security if they didn't hurry.

"And to think all it would take is just one tiny little squeak, and you boys are done for. Guess you did me a favor bringing me here, after all. Personally, I have never been more comfortable in my-"

Raph didn't let him finish, aiming the blade for Davey's throat all the while keeping him in place. His breath was like a dead animal, the gleam in his eyes bright enough to mirror the angry mutant right now pulling his beard off, "Talk or I'll rip out your intestines and make them into a sweater"

The thug smiled, not even trying to struggle and it gave Raph a bad feeling.

"You wouldn't"

"And why not?"

Another smile. "Because I know where they took the hockey boy"

This made Raph tighten his grip even further, going by the smug look on his face and the almost gleeful tone, he was inclined to believe him.

"Where?"

It seemed that interrogating scum had become a routine for him, picking up a few hints about one's credibility along the way, although if Davey wasn't behind bars right now, he surely wouldn't get off as easy. Tired of idiots like him not understanding when to walk away- but this one was flat out tiring. He pulled up both hands in a ninety-degree angle, opened his mouth seconds away from screaming bloody murder despite his neck being one inch away from getting stabbed. The last thing they needed was for Hopkins and his friends to figure out they were here. He pulled down the sai, weighing his temperament despite feeling his veins already boiling over. We don't have time for this.

"Okay, fine. What do you want? A freaking trophy?! If you don't tell us exactly where they took him you are only gonna make this worse for yourself, do you get that?! "

"Raph he is not going to tell us. Let's just go." Leo suggested, hand on his shoulder but Raph was far from done.

"Oh, I'm not going anywhere until this freak of nature spills his guts, so what's it gonna be?! WELL?"

Another snicker escaped the thug, each breath of air out of this guy sending Raph closer over the edge. "I might not be able to get a rematch from in here, but I am still going to enjoy imagining all the ways they're going to rip you apart piece by piece when we get outta here. You'll see. And if you survive, how's about telling me what it feels like when your spine breaks in half?"

There came 'crackling' the hit landing harder than a meteorite on impact. Davey tumbled back, blood seeping from his nose or at least- what was left of it. Raph, realizing a moment too late that that might've not been the best approach, felt his heartbeat faster, the chair holding their escape starting to shake from the other side. They were coming.

"Raph!"

Davey whined, clutching his nose for dear life in pain, before he locked eyes with the brothers threatening to yell out for the authorities once and for all, before-

"Y- you want a rematch?! Then let us help you. Help us save your life"

He stopped. Leo had an idea. Raph could see it on his dumb human face, as clear as when they were mutants and he'd have an idea of some kind. He approached the cage, slight panicky perhaps, but determined and this was enough for Raph to take a step back his knuckles still simmering from the blow. And now, for once the PD actually seemed to listen, Raph included.

"The foot is using you; I mean haven't you realized it yet? They're going to do the same thing you've been doing if you don't tell us where the vigilante is. They're going to mutate you, understand? This whole building, each and everyone of you before the day is done. That's why the foot won't come for you. Why your boss has abandoned you, left you here to rot without a second thought- it's because you're nothing but canon fodder. I mean seriously! Why would you agree to work for a guy like that in the first place?!"

The entire room went quiet. Thugs upon thugs of third-class wannabe's for once seemingly paying attention to what Leo was saying, and he had a point. The purple dragons had never been known for being… well, efficient, at least not unless the Shredder was involved some way or the other. He'd been the one pulling the strings, no sane person denying him their loyalty unless they had a chance of living left to decide for themselves. When people first went missing back on the streets, Raph had assumed the same would apply, someone else with more influence forcing them to work for them. And yet, each thug he'd pummeled to the ground, seemed to have always had the same thing in common. They were still loyal to them. Whoever they were, apparently intimidating enough to, even when they were down for the count, carry on as loyal little lap dogs. Whereas, with Shredder, when the chips were down, at least then the average gang member still valuing their life would have the common sense to safe themselves. So, who in the shell, would be so awe inspiring that even when their lives were threatened, their freedom even, the PD would still refuse to defy them? Not just out of fear… something else entirely.

"You think we have a choice?! We're lucky he didn't kill us"

One of the cellmates seemed to speak up, tremble in his voice poorly masked by his gall.

"Shut. Up, Kevin" his cellmate said, slapping him not so gently on the head.

Leo sighed, always the peacemaker, even if it came to the very same guys responsible for tearing up the city. "Look, just tell us where they took him. If you do… we'll let you out of here. Fair and square. We might be enemies, but like it or not we're still your best shot out of here. It's that or join the rest of your victims as burning atoms, how about that?"

Davey shook his head, though a little too much. Like he wasn't sure, but he didn't dismiss the fact out right, the very image of the transformation still lingering hauntingly in Raph's mind. He couldn't even imagen what a failed one looked like, and yet, these guys had apparently seen that front and center on a daily basis. Looks like Shredder wasn't just messing up his enemies… because these guys? These guys are messed up.

"No… No, you're just bluffing. I'm not falling for that again- do you really think I'm that dense? We'll be fine. He told us- the mutagen can't touch us even if it was true" he said, uncertain. Raph shrugged, heading for the door as Leo looked beggingly on.

"It's your funeral"
"Look, the only freaks crazy enough to stop these guys are already done for, if that gives you the idea. These guys are not messing around"

"You don't say"

"And why should we trust you?! Why the hell would we ever help you?! One way or the other we're dead meat, and it's all because you four bozos couldn't mind your own damn business"

That one hit a nerve. Raph wasn't even trying to hide it this time, the color of his face matching the color of his mask to a T. "Oh yeah, I'm sure we got fifty other piles of goo ready to agree on that! You chose this, Davey, all of you did. No matter how you look at it."

And he meant it. He really did- fury resurfacing as his mind seemed to recall the countless disasters unfolding around them, around their home, all the while these goons had been supplying it for free. If it wasn't for them, they wouldn't even have to go into hiding in the first place, Casey's sister wouldn't have a limb, shell, even Casey wouldn't have a burn mark the size of Atlantis on his ribs, Bernie wouldn't have been lost, mutants wouldn't have run around on a rampage trying to kill us, and Leo wouldn't have been stuck with officer gunman instead of remembering his family-

"Fourth floor, holding cell B. That's where all the 'bothersome' ones go. As far as I'm concerned, he hasn't come out since"

Davey sighed, not looking up. Who knows what was going through his mind, but whatever it was, remorse or not, Raph couldn't care less... He was only focused on one thing-

"We'll see about that"

---

Donnie was on his last nerve. He'd pocketed a timer just in case, ticking ever so loudly in his ear as his mind raced back and forth between trying to focus on the mission at hand and figuring out a way to magically create a cure in the nick of time. It was snowing. A sort of almost eerie air hanging around the facility when they approached, an entire street, usually crowded by the everyday ruckus of people pouring in and out of the complex, now laying almost desecrated below. He'd grabbed his janitor's suit, replaced his trusty bo for the mop to add to the illusion and was just about to push the handle down when he realized- he had no idea where to even start.

Mikey tapping almost gleefully by the edge, excited to see the lab for the first time in a way that almost made Donnie consider the possibility, that he too had somehow gained some sort of memory loss in the spam of twenty-four hours. Another side effect…?- no! He couldn't think about that now. There was still time- panicking was only going to make it worse. And if he was right, the chance that some of the canisters- at least one still remained safely stored in his room, meant that all he had to concern himself with, was making sure OLS wasn't blown to smithereens. Nothing more. Everything was going to be fine. It always is.

"Okay, it's almost noon. Mr. Gilgamesh should be on his lunchbreak by now, meaning the cafeteria is hopefully a good place to avoid, unless of course he decides to eat it at his office again meaning we'll have to avoid the second floor entirely, unless of course Lowell from folding is doing the routine again, in the case we'd have to avoid the elevator too or-

"Hey dude! Check me out! I'm totally a professional. Hey write that down! No you write that down! Do I have to fire you too?! I don't pay you for smack talk! You don't pay me at all! How Dare you- "

"MIKEY"

Donnie sent his little brother the death glare- his little brother, at the moment concerning himself with balancing the previous janitor (in this case a guy by the name of Kevin)'s nametag on his shirt instead of paying attention. He stopped dead in his tracks however as soon as Don came close enough, exemplifying the phrase 'if looks could kill' to a T. "The mission?! "

A nervous chuckle left him as he hid both hands behind his back apologetically, "Hehe. Sorry dude"

Donnie sighed, continuing. Or- trying to… "Okay, so we can't sneak in from above, but if I can get to my cleaning cart without getting noticed-

"You have a cleaning cart?!"

"Yes, Mikey, I do. Anyway, if we can somehow squeeze you in without getting noticed through that maybe we would have enough time to get to the storage room and clean out the basement level in time to locate the bomb! Yes! Except- no wait.I'd have to make the formular by then or it won't do anything, I can't just… but If I don't, then what-"

"Hey, Don, you ever notice how snow lands on top of the hair so you can't even feel it?! It's like totally not even there!"

Donnie, aka, if he had a stick in his hand, it would surely break, could feel himself lose his patience quickly, not understanding why after witnessing probably the closest thing to normalcy he'd gained in his time as a human being turned into a glowing monster, how in the shell he wasn't bothered.

"How can you joke at a time like this?!"

"Just try it dude! Your face is like, totally melting the flakes right now and you can't even feel it" he said, twirling around as the snowflakes piled up over his curls one by one.

"Michael. We have… approximately… TWELVE hours minimum to try to figure out a way to not only stop our archenemies from turning New York into a mutant petting zoo, find a way to somehow defy all the laws of chemistry on the slight chance that I might be able to recreate the cure just in time to stop a raging fiery viooze bomb of destruction from exploding and on top of that, try to do all of that with a cleaning cart and a MOP!" he yelled, feeling his voice crack, most likely louder than the average police siren.

Mikey paused, trying to the best of his ability to stand still for two seconds when he noticed the lingering echo that seemed to rummage around the area.

"My ninja senses tell me you're upset…"

"Upset?! UPSET? Why would I be upset! Bingo Mikey! You found the core of the problem, meanwhile I'm actually trying to save our shells, you're playing with snow like everything is fine! I mean come on, Mikey, don't you want Simon to be safe?!"

Donnie instantly clapped his mouth together, taking a step back as he realized the cracks reappearing around his sanity and it dawned on him how heartless that must've sounded just now. Knowing, probably better than anyone what's it like to have someone close to you fall victim to the mutagen… "Th-th-that came out wrong. I- I didn't mean-

But, perhaps not surprisingly, instead of the painful reminder hitting Mikey unfairly like a brick, he simply put his hand on Donnie's shoulder, voice calm and collected.

"Donnie… bro... I'm scared too. But listen, you got this. We all have each other's back on this, bromada. Just take a breath, okay?"

There was a pause, Donnie forgetting if just for a second or two that time was moving faster than they could afford it and complied. Grateful for Mikey's levelheadedness, given he was not likely to maintain his. He nodded shortly, sighed heavily and tried to force his doubts and fears of what might go wrong, to the side.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but you're right. I just have to… clear my head. Everything's going to be fine"

A smile formed over Mikey's freckled face, and he slung his arms around Donnie, gesturing towards the sky like he was absorbing all the confidence left in him, "That's what I'm saying dude! We got this! I mean come on, its us! B-team for the win or what?!"

He held up a fist- Donnie bumping it compliantly.

"B-team for the win" he said, and though that didn't excuse the lump in his throat and the pit in his stomach, Donnie made for the door as Mikey nodded resolute and if anything, hopeful despite their nerves telling them otherwise.

"Okay, let's go"

They entered the hallway, an almost hollow echo following their steps- ringing loudly down the stars as they went. Everything almost seemed… greyer than usual. And that's not to say the OLS was the most colorful of science labs, no, no- the lab was far from a sight to behold, but at least it wasn't cluttered and almost ghostly as the linoleum covered floors they right now were traversing with an intensifying cautiousness. With Donnie at the front, Mikey following as quietly as he could, eyes gawking at every empty corner in sight like it was the exhibit for a pizza gallery. And while his skills as a stealth- master as he'd so proudly called himself when they were younger, were admirable, as they went past the filing cabinets, the coffee room and the employee launches, one by one, Donnie couldn't help but wonder if they'd even need them. Not as much as a sound hollering in the usually preoccupied headquarters- this point even further emphasized by the still-hot contents of an abandoned coffee mug by the printer- or what was supposed to be the lab's failed attempt at a 3D one. One glance and Donnie realized the problem almost immediately, wasn't it for the fact that so far, and by some unnerving miracle that seemed to linger over them, no one had stopped them in their path. Not even the guys down by security seemed remotely present, inspecting broken equipment or failing high tech security cameras breaking down for the seventeenth time… no one was there. Just them, and least to say, Donnie wasn't particularly happy about it, trusting his scanners more than he trusted his eyes. And what they told him, was that if a highly toxic mutagen bomb was to be set off today, some floors at basement level, it would most likely be somewhere in the crowded hours. That is- now.

"Hmm. That's odd" he muttered, Mikey too feeling the chill as question marks seemed to appear over his head.

"I can't be the only one getting some major déjà vu' vibes from this place, right?"

Donnie nodded, remembering their last encounter with silence back in the tunnels like it was yesterday his favorite jacket got melted into cyanide.

"No, you're right... Where is everyone?"

They continued down, Donnie with a keenly expectant eye over their shoulder, as he waited for something to trigger a massive trap somewhere, or Steven from filing would tell him that oh right! The memo we once again failed to tell you about! That's why the entire building is seemingly dead of people. Or worst of all, Mr. Gilgamesh appropriately yelling at him for not having shown up for work in over a week now.

When they finally reached his office, the boys took one glance at each other, equally confused as they were eager to get it over with, and so Donnie unlocked the broken hinges of his door. Mikey's face of pure anticipation dying out as soon as he saw the massive shards from the broken window, the papers lying scattered about the floor and the crooked bed too big to fit the cabinet, and as a result leaning slightly to the side. "Wow, that's… awesome! Yeah, D! Tots better than the lab at home if I say so myself hehe..he… seriously, and you fault ME for being messy?" he muttered, quieting with immediate effect once Donnie sent him the look of 'can it'.

"Just look for the box with the yellow glow on it. Then let's get the shell out of here"

And so, they started digging. Revisiting the same cluster of materials most of which barren or dry due to the conditions of open-air winter wind exposure not doing his equipment any good. All that time and resources, collecting, reassembling, now nothing more than scrap and broken parts… Donnie would cry if it wasn't for the irritating buzzing that seemed to distract his mind as he searched underneath the shelf. It was then he had one of those moments that only a scientist mutant ninja teenager could have- and he realized the buzzing wasn't coming from himself for once, it was coming from something inside the walls.

"Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Mikey shrugged, sorting through a pile of canisters and empty containers. Donnie pushed his ear against the tapestry, feeling the vibrations inside it like a mechanism buzzing to life. This wasn't there when he'd last been here. It'd never been there, not even from when he used to sleep in here, could he have not somehow heard it. This was new somehow, something familiar he couldn't quite put his finger on it… He tried leaning closer, following the sound in the hope that it would somehow get louder as they went, his mind reeling with the endless possibilities of what might lie at the end of it. And then it dawned on him. These vibrations… what if it wasn't coming from the walls, what if… what if it was coming from the basement?! And interconnected tunnel of wires all intertwined simultaneously, hiding in plain sight, the source of it most likely powerful enough to fuel the entire complex if necessary.

And it was then, as if the universe itself had listened in on his thoughts, the lights went out in the room.

"Hey, good idea Don! We'll find that box ten times faster now! Betcha I can find it first-

"Mikey! SHHH! " Donnie was quick to pull him close, hand over his mouth as Mikey in confusing noticed the rambling somewhere behind loom. There was no glow, no box seemingly anywhere as far as the eye could tell, and though the buzzing a few moments ago seemed to threaten to have been nothing less but a byproduct of experiment thirty two's lingering aftereffects- what was unmistakable was the silence that now rumbled in the floor below. Echoing, heavily, almost in an inhumanly slow way that seemed to come from the impact of something big making its way towards them. And as Donnie gestured for his brother to follow him, silence in their footsteps whilst they made their way to the door, something else seemed to linger too… Big, heavy… almost sliding its way at them through a now darkened corridor that used to be OLS, the low funded laboratory of unventured sciences- now turning into something straight out of a horror show. Donnie grabbed his bo tight- well, he grabbed his mop tight, shivering as Mikey grabbed the remnants of his nunchucks, both facing the growing crash nearing them louder and louder.

Until finally, the unmistaken glow of 'viooze' came from behind the corner in the form of an almost 2 feet tall chunk of flesh and teeth crawling towards them. Slight hisses escaping what from what at least Donnie could see, appeared to be several mouths and limbs sticking out, all of which covered in the spiked, venomous blades echoing throughout the chamber.

"Oh uh… Guess we figured out where everyone went…" Mikey gulped, not even the shadows enough to hide his shivering.

---

"Should've guessed"

Raph kicked the door twice, at this point bruising his ego more than he'd put a dent in the hinges. It was times like these he was starting to miss Donnie, though he'd rather take an arrow to the knee than admit it. If they still had their shells on them, they'd probably bust through here in record time. "I don't suppose you got an app for that?"

Leo shrugged, scanning the door up and down like he was the detective from some old-fashioned TV show solving crimes, "Shouldn't there be a guard out here?"

"Maybe they're on a break?"

"A little convenient, huh" he muttered, the PD's words still ringing in his ear. He wasn't sure if the right thing to do would be to release them or not, still undecided on whether or not his bargain was just that. A bluff. Nothing more than a ruse to get to the vigilante's location. But regardless of what they were gonna do with them, fact still remained that if they were at the right place, which they'd collectively assumed they were, how to actually get inside was still left unclear. Not to mention the possibility that there was a good reason for the entire section being on lockdown- one he wasn't too excited to explore.

"Davey said he was in the holding cell, so why would they go through all the trouble of guarding an entire hallway?"

"I don't know, Leo, maybe a secret rave we weren't invited to? Who cares- let's just go!"

Suddenly, footsteps echoed a little way down the hall- Leo not able to as much as blink before Raph vanished out of sight. Damn it, how do you do that…?! Apparently, he didn't have to waste too much time trying to figure it out, before he was unceremoniously pulled to the side- Raph signaling for both to keep quiet, as the fortunate barricade of a water fountain 'round the corner came to their aid.

"I know right?! Poor guy couldn't even unlock a doorknob if he wanted to! I'm telling ya, Joan guy's getting older than he can keep up" the officer said, letting out an overexcited chuckle to her colleague.

"Try telling him that. The day John resigns is the day the world ends. I swear, that poor guy just doesn't know what 'vacation days' means" the other one replied, quickly followed by a horse cough loud enough to burst the pipes if they were so unlucky. "Actually, I think I might be needin' some of that myself. My lungs are killing me today"

And suddenly, Leo had an idea, forgetting if only for a moment that they were supposed to be quiet, though the officers were nearly out of sight. "Hopkins!" he gasped, Raph already rolling his eyes at the sheer mention of him.

"Not this again-"

"No, his office. He has a drawer beside his desk where keeps his entry pass. I'm willing to bet we can get the key from in there"

"What makes you think officer douchebag would have the key?"
"Are you kidding? Hopkins stood for most of the safety precautions in holding. He basically designed it"

"And the award for most paranoid freak in NYC goes to…" Raph muttered, although following along. They mostly kept to the vents, an almost unusual buzzing starting to crawl through the floor, though neither seemed to question it on their way to the office. And though Leo and Raph both wouldn't be surprised if he was still trying to make his escape off the roof from their last encounter, the possibility that he might have somehow found his way back to HQ was just as plausible.

They checked the hallway, almost emptied out by the distant voices of people going about their day. Not surprising really. Hopkins was never the most beloved officer in this building, it was no wonder it lay mostly barren, even his office was situated as seemingly far away from everyone else's. Only problem- well, Raph was just going to spell it out,

"Do you also happen to know who we need to burgle to get through this door?"

Leo hadn't really thought about that. He'd been so used to walking right in without anyone stopping him, the alias of Hopkins' problem child usually granting him access with ease. However, now that he thought about… and it was then Leo had an idea, one he never in a million years would've thought worked, and yet-

The door clicked right open.

"Oh." Raph muttered, flabbergasted, following the awkward silence. And Leo, deciding that whatever miracle allowed them access inside would surely mean that no one would be waiting for them on the other side, they entered.

The office looked mostly the same, same files and papers unsorted, stacks of coffee cups filling up in the trashcans as well as the same blueish hues filling through the window like a cold fog. Only thing different, seemed to be the multiple sets of boxes set up in various corners of the room, most of which piled up with books and files- none of which, belonging to Hopkins.

"You know, for a guy obsessed with solving crimes in sewers, he sure knows how to tidy up" Raph commented, going through drawer by drawer until his eyes locked with a frame on the stand. Leo decided instead to rely on the officer's rather impractical habit of leaving sticky notes in-between pages of notes, though the ones situated by the desk had oddly enough been crossed out in black inc. Document after document, different cases and piles of evidence shoved to the side by one stroke. This doesn't look like something he would do… but why would anyone cover this up? It doesn't make any sense. Only file not among the censors seemed to involve a woman, fairly recently too, dating back only a few days, and a picture to boot. Though trying to fathom how the cop would've had any time whatsoever to look at the case, was beyond Leo. Who would've guessed the workaholic mentality didn't stop with alien goo, a classrooms worth of mutations and an old ninja clan conspiracy…?

"I don't think-

Leo froze- footsteps sounding just outside the door and Raph was the quickest to act- pulling Leo with him under the desk in one swift notion as a slim figure entered. Too busy trying to stay silent like his former self would've probably aced without delay, he almost didn't recognize Tom's rejectable red leather soles, weren't it for the familiar sound of his voice lamenting his return. Leo had only seen this guy once or twice, though he'd certainly made the fair impression. He walked into the room, from the sounds of it with something heavy in hand, a silent thump as he placed it on the table.

"Out with the old, in with the new" he whispered, the smug look on his face as audible as his hands clasping together triumphantly.

The next thing to happen was the surprisingly hoarse and oddly intensifying wave of coughs that streamed out of him- all as sudden as they were unexpected- each returned in more and more painful amounts. Leo could see his balance swagger to the side, culminating in the poor guy having to lean against the counter as he coughed what appeared to be all his internal organs out. When he finally left, waltzing at one point slightly towards their hiding spot, the boys could let out a sigh of relief upon hearing the door slap shut, his intense coughing still heard down the hallway.

"Yeesh… " Raph muttered, noticing a new box on the desk, right by a small nametag that read Tom Klister Garris. Guess that explained it. Luckily though, his visit wasn't all for not- no sooner had Leo left his tiresome search of keys and passes in the drawers, before he found the very same badge stuffed carelessly inside the box like a traffic cone.

"Got it!" Leo yelled, and upon his excitement over this, allowed his arm into the air triumphantly, Raph letting out a sigh of relief before something else seemed to cut their victory short. The light went out, blinking a few times in desperate survival before ultimately there was a loud k-tch of broken glass leaving them and as they quickly discovered, the entire hallway in complete darkness. And upon realizing this, both Raph and Leo seemed to share the exact same thought.

"That can't be good"

---

"HEY! I'M WARNING YOU! FOR THE LAST TIME, IF YOU DON'T UPON UP THIS DOOR, I'M GOING TO PERSONALLY… well… SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA HURT! A LOT! CASEY JONES WILL NEVER BACK DOWN FROM A FIGHT!"

Casey Jones was about ready to back down from the fight. He'd been yelling all day, his throat was sore, his ribs cracked, and he genuinely was starting to think that he was going insane. Well… more than usual. The only way to spend his time inside the cell when he wasn't yelling for cops to come let him out, playing with the mop he'd miraculously grabbed from the hanger. He'd used the very tip of it, stretched it out all the way his not at all noodly arms could manage, biting his tongue as he tried to type out a message on his phone. Not knowing if he'd even managed to press send, before he'd of course knocked his only communication device off the table entirely, leaving him alone with nothing but a mop and nothing to show for it. Fantastic! Thanks a lot universe! He'd tried imitating Don's spin a few times just to kill some time (not with much success aka it never happened)- that's how desperate he was, gathering enough energy to yell out to no one some more before retreating into his cell of solitude. Damn it guys. Where the shell are you!? He closed his eyes, the weird foot clan guy's visit still lingering. What the hell did he mean?! What was he doing here of all places and most importantly, why hadn't he come back since? What was their game? It was bad enough that the freak who nearly blew his head off hadn't shown, but that door had stayed suspiciously locked for a long time now. What if Lizzie was worried too? God, she's definitely going to have some questions this time. Sure, he'd gone off beat some skulls, taking names like it was second nature, and his little sister would rarely question it. Either trusting his dumbassery to be enough for him to make it out okay, as he'd proven times and times again, not revealing that the only reason he was probably still alive was the turtles. But that all seemed to change quite a bit when the foot clan paid them a visit.

He'd wondered for a long time how the turtles dealt, after shred head dealt the finishing blow. How Raph dealt, all those times he'd sonder off on patrol, or just completely change the subject whenever he'd asked, choosing not to bring it up if he could help it. But seeing those freaks in Lizzie's room that day… feeling the helplessness as her bones cracked against the window and all he could do was cry out for help. He hated it. Anger fueling him just thinking about it and he wished to god that he could just get out of here and let it all out.

As time went by he'd forced himself to drown his sentimentality the only way he knew how to… that landing him at stranger's parties, the bare bone of most down on their luck teenagers his age. Forgetting the days as he pretended not to care. Pretended not to look over his shoulder for any bullies nearby needing to be taught a lesson, or for any alien activity remotely worth checking out. He'd even sought out Karai and her forces, almost certain Shini and her would've returned from Japan by then, but nothing seemed to stick. The city that never sleeps somehow feeling like a big empty crater.

Psssshhhh

Snapping him out of his thoughts, something buzzing nearby sent Casey out into a panicked stance, thinking for a second it might've been a rat or something and he readied his 'weapon' like a hockey stick. Unfortunately, it wasn't. Realizing, just as a chill went down his spine, the buzzing emitting from inside the cell… in the corner… a small barely visible grate neatly hidden behind the bed where- to Casey's delayed realization, a thick purple gas-like cloud started to pour out. No way… viooze? Casey didn't waste a second.

He grabbed the bed by its hinges and flipped it over desperately, pressing it against the crate as if that would be enough but of course it just kept coming. Panic panic panic panic panic-

He then tried to rip off the linen, shoving it over the crate whilst struggling not to inhale or come into contact with the gas, but he was too scared to go anywhere near it at this point, reaching for his last possible option, though futile-

"HELP! ANYONE! LET ME OUT! COME ON! "

But as much as he yelled his lungs dry, as much as he clung to the bars or raised his voice, as the last couple of hours had already proven, no one was there. They did this, he figured, swearing to all things sharp and heavy that he was going to break the foot's kneecaps when he got out of here. But as the gas continued to emit, Casey creeping as far away into the corner as he could, mop still in hand as if that would somehow shield him- he seemed to loose all ability to breathe. Not from the gas per say, more his instincts running rampant, all at once culminating in his body just… freezing up like a board. What do I do? Come on, Casey, THINK! You're smarter than this! No way I'm turning into one of those glitter-zombie freaks! There's gotta be a way out… come on, come on, come on! They're counting on you!

And then, with an idea so desperately stupid that it was only natural for Casey to be the one who'd come up with it. And so, as the toxin was approximately two meters away from him, he grabbed the bars, reached out with his shoulder first and pressed on. Counting on the sweat right now bathing his body in every motivation to get the heck out of there, he struggled- biting his lip, using all he had to ignore force while he focused the ultimate weapon he still had in his possession: his skinniness. Any other day he'd smashed the lock in maybe, waited defiantly until whoever was unfortunate enough to let him out would receive a broken nose or simply try to break the damn bars if he had to, but not today. He pressed on, used all his strength, all his determination all hos panic, until finally-

-he was out. "Holy chalupa! That worked?!" he exclaimed equally surprised as he was grateful. "HA! TAKE THAT! Who's the coward now, HUH?! CASEY JONES FOR THE WIN! "

But of course, as the gas started to flow out passed the bars, Casey seemed to understand the celebrating before the fight was over, was probably not a good idea. And so, he went for the door, rolled up his sleeves, took a deep breath, and kicked the door upon- stumbling out into the darkened hallway.

But all of that relief seemed to dissipate, the moment he realized with his heart beating faster in his chest and the color leaving his cheeks that he wasn't alone.

---

Donnie tried to think of a plan, once again reminding himself how much he missed having Leo as the one being the plan-guy when he was too caught up in his mind to make one. But as it stood, it was them against what appeared to be the entirety of the chemistry department which- presented them with some good news and some bad news, not stating the obvious.

The good news: that if this contained most of the staff unfortunate enough to go to work on the eve of destruction, then they should be able to grab enough equipment from lab 3 without being followed. Not so good news… they were looking at a 2 feet tall mutant hybrid of what used to be former colleagues, and they were two un-mutant kids with a mop and one chain intact nunchuck to show for it. Okay, we're doomed.

"Okay, okay, okay… you go for Lab 3 and get the materials I told you about, meanwhile I'll try to distract- ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"

"BOOYAKASHAA!"

"MIKEY YOU DON'T HAVE ANY WEAPONS!" Donnie screamed, before of course, the ever-tenacious Mikey proved him wrong yet again by unceremoniously, and not to mention oddly effectively so, proceeded to throw two smoke bombs at the mutant. Though instead of a cloudy purple smoke to come out of it, what instead seemed to emanate was a mass worth of sparkly glitter. "Remember what sensei said, bro! Anything can be a weapon!" He hollered, as the creature let out a shriek of what he could only assume to be anger.

Accepting the fact that retreating at this point wasn't exactly and option, despite the implications of an entire facility overrun by mutants, Donnie reluctantly joined the fight as his mind seemed to bend over itself- Mikey on the other hand easily leading it around in circles despite it's size. Maybe… maybe it wasn't a bomb after all then… maybe the wires, the buzzing… oh no. Donnie dodged another blow, using the useful end of the mop to lead a not-so well-meaning spike away from his brother's shoulder and into the ground- the sheer force enough to already make his arms shrivel weaker by the second. What if that's how they were going to use it? Emititing it through gas, not just the watersupply, the entire building little by little and THEN get rid of the evidence! But if everyone's already been mutated then how- he hit the creature on the head, backflipping away from it as the mutant, still shrieking, followed quickly behind- but then how long until the bomb goes off?! Did they know we were coming? Raph did say this might be a trap but… how the shell would we even bring this thing down if-

Donnie stopped, Mikey using his last chain to bind the creature to the nearest pipe through gritted teeth and nothing if digging his human heels into the ground. Donnie felt something warm exit the side of his head, as he tried to feel what it was- the entire hallway suddenly spinning a hundred degrees for his vision. Oh no, not now, not again! He tried to move, blinking rapidly in a desperate attempt to keep his eye on the creature as it attacked him, resulting in what he could only describe to be poor zigzagging maneuver. He looked at his hands, realizing in shock that the warm feeling leaking was blood from his ears, pouring, heart beating louder in his head, tick tock tick tock- until it was all he could hear, trying not to think at all. Trying to reclaim control of himself but everything was turning darker and blurry.

"Donnie?!" he heard Mikey called, though when he looked for the orange fabric in the shadows, what he instead saw seemed to be three identical mutants running toward him in records speed, Donnie too weak to do anything about it. He lifted his mop into the air, hearing the crackling sound as it broke into splinters, ground underneath his feet no longer supporting him as the pain in his skull became almost as unbearable as the night they transformed. But as the creature made its way to his neck and shoulders, he was instead blown back in the commotion- another glitter bomb imploding in front of him, and in turn making the mutant stumble backwards in pain. Mikey ran over to him, sliding to his knees as he lifted Donnie's arm over his shoulder, panic taking over. "Donnie!? Donnie what's wrong?! TALK TO ME! What do we do?!"

Donnie blinked, watching as the red color now dripped from his nose as well, no surprises there… his muscles completely stiffened and useless, he pushed himself up half-heartedly, feeling the sudden dryness of his throat as he tried to speak up, but it was almost a whisper that came out, "Got… get out… somewhere else… we gotta get out of… now!" he coughed, ignoring the feeling of a knife in his forehead as Mikey scared out of his mind, as well as determined, didn't waste a second dragging them down the hallway- the creature by some miracle still bound to the pipe he fixed six weeks ago.

Anything can be a weapon, he said… nice one, Mikey.

They made their way up the stairs, Donnie on the verge of passing out but forcing himself to keep consciousness, as Mikey barricaded their path, more creatures ruminating around them all at once. No doubt the power outage was an early present from their dear friend Oni as well. Who knew how many got out in time, Donnie praying his boss might be one of them though the thought lingered too long for him to stop the ticking shaking his brain loose.

"Hang in there, bro. You got this" Mikey muttered, heaving as his surprising strength managed to carry them through each hallway and empty corridor. It wasn't until Donnie noticed by pure luck the sign near the facility's recent ground for sponsors and tour guides, he lead them inside- barricading the door as mutants seemed to claw their way for their next victims. Each more mutilated than the next, the rarest of features recognizable to Donnie, though he preferred to avoid their gazes. Now he had to live with the fact that if it wasn't for him, if he hadn't decided to pick their lab, if he hadn't blown their cover, if he hadn't endangered every innocent person inside… this wouldn't have-

"Donnie! Donnie I'm here! What's wrong dude?! You're… you're hurt. Did they hurt you?! What do I do?! Tell me what's wrong!"

Donnie opened his eyes, finding himself leaned against what appeared to be Dave's desk, the door behind them barricaded by every available furniture in sight. The room was bright, apparently the only one not falling prey to the foot's sabotage, though Mikey didn't seem very relieved by this. He held up his hands, not knowing what to do as Donnie struggled to pull himself together, anxiously glancing around the room for anything that might be useful.

"I'll be fine… we have to… find that equipment… before-" he began, using the closest thing available to him, in this case a desk, to pull himself forward, the immediate after effect of this action charging him with another dizzy spell.

Tick tock tick tock tick tock tick tock-

"Stop it, stop it, stop it- " he bit, seemingly talking to no one, as Mikey looked on dreadfully.

"Dude, you're freaking me out"

Donnie sighed, focusing his vision on the room as the ticking grew louder. It was like forcing down a pool of acid without choking on it, but the look on Mikey right now was somehow even worse. Not because he was worried, of course he'd be worried, this was exactly the reason he'd kept this to himself, but it was also just the reminder that if he didn't pull himself together right now, he'd have to live with the fact that twice now he'd left Mikey behind.

And just as he fell to his knees, the sound of something crackling near by send a shockwave down Donnie's spine, his senses kicking in at once alerting him of the looming figure approaching.

"Behind you!" he managed to yell out, Mikey not looking as he with a near-inhuman reflex dodged the blow. He then proceeded to, in the spam of two seconds, grab on to his attacker's sleeve, before slinging him over his shoulder and down on the ground in a move that if it wasn't for their shell, would probably permanently damage a human spine.

"Wha- Dave?!"

And true enough there he was, the let me just toss my exploding failures into your cleaning cart why don't I, in the flesh. His lab coat was torn, hair messy and what looked to be scratches and bruises piling up over his body. He let out a groan, struggling to make out what could've possibly just done that, until he realized the only other "people" in the room was the half collapsing Donnie and a kid in a ninja costume and a quizzical brow.

"Dontoly?!" he exclaimed, Mikey more than ready to flip him again as he struggled to get back on his feet. And though as much as Donnie would've loved to see this imbecile kiss the floor, his symptoms were unfortunately not dire enough to waver his common sense.

"It's Donate- Oh forget it" he muttered, fighting down the sick enough to allow himself to sit down, "It's alright, Mikey. He's… harmless"

"Suuuuure" Mikey emphasized his skepticism by eyeing Dave's messy attire up and down.

"What the heck are you doing here?! You didn't call the police?!"
"And what about your smart guy? The only guy in a lab coat around here with light. Little suspicious, dontcha think…?"

"And who are you supposed to be?! Whe- when is someone going to tell me the police is on their way?!"

Dave shook his head, hands grasped around one of the reading lamps always sitting on desk like he was holding on for dear life. The sight of two children in his office seemed to somehow irritate him more however, than the mutated remains of his colleagues banging on the door outside.

"Hate to break it to you, Dave, but I think they're a little busy at the moment" Donnie said, noticing one of the alarm clocks on the desk being the source of his distress. Well, amongst others… He seemed to get a headache now too, which, to be honest when dealing with Dave was probably not the most unusual of circumstances. However, with his body breaking down more and more, came the rising suspicion that if they didn't hurry, none of them would be anything but limps by the time they'd reach the basement.

"Ah great! You try to get yourself a cop of mocca down at the shop one day, next thing you know you're stuck with these idio-

Dave paused, a wave of glitter hitting him in the face like it was shot out of a canon.

"Mikey!"

"Sorry, sorry, just had to make sure. You're in the clear… for now." he said, still keeping a safe distance, as his eyes caught wind of the decay of chairs stacked on top of each other in what Donnie was guessing, might be the scientist's poor attempt at a barricade for his 'inventions', "Hey, what are you doing in here?"

"Well, I WAS trying to, mind you, find a way to get the hell out of here before the whole bloody building crashes down, which was going SWIMMINGLY until of course you two lead those things straight to my hiding place!" he hissed, arms crossed like a child disappointed by their birthday presents. Donnie sighed, with a heavy motion struggling to get back to the point.

"How long has the power been out?" he asked, though Dave wasn't done complaining.

"If you will JUST let me finish! I am not done with you two, do you have the SLIGHTEST idea how much danger we are now in?! And what are you even wearing?! Do you think this is some sort of joke! Those monsters are going to come in here any minute if-

And it was in one of those moments, almost telepathically and exclusively experienced at the most inopportune times mostly, that being subjected to unrelenting stupidity, Mikey and Donnie shared that look. And before neither had to confirm this shared ambiance, Dave then made a second visit to the floor as Mikey whistled out into the air, pretending not to know what done it.

"Dave, listen. Tell us what happened here. Did anyone get inside before we came?"

Dave grunted, rubbing the back of his head in annoyance, "How should I know? Unlike someone I know I was perfecting my craft. I don't have time for kids games"

"Where's Gilgamesh?"
"Oh well why don't you just ask him?!" he said, motioning towards the door right now being jolted close off its hinges if the light emitting from inside didn't sting like acid when approaching it. Donnie felt his vision go black and white for a few seconds, trying hard not to imagen his boss being mutated and twisted into the creatures hunting them down- but this was already starting to make him tense up. Guilt and regret and horror long since making up residence in his mind, though the news of this didn't fail to shake him to his core… I need the cure. I need to fix this- I need to fix this, but we don't have time, what if we don't make it?! Is it too late to cure them? Is this the price? Is this how I repay him in the end? How much damage has been done without us even realizing yet? This is what I was afraid of, this is what I was afraid would happen- now it's happened, and I don't even… how do I even…?

Mikey put a hand on his brother's shoulder, reassuringly making up a half-kind of smile that seemed to communicate understanding between them. Donnie nodded, grateful that at least Mikey seemed to be able to keep a cool head when the chips were down. What kind of sick twisted world is it, where Mikey is the levelheaded one?

Dave continued, "Look all I know is that one minute everything was going smoothly! The reactor was stabilizing, everything was fine! And then, next thing I know Kevin is trying to take a big bite out of me. So, I used the lamp and I- he then proceeded to pick up the lamp on his desk and fling it into the air, as he made clicking noises to mimic his supposed landing blows- until everyone starts to grow spikes!"

He was about to say something else, to the boys' dismay, as suddenly the lights of the room started to flicker around them, the growling and shrieks of the creatures growing louder as a result.

"Oh god, oh dear- oh dear sweet jove not again! "

This in turn also seemed to make Dave lose all possible color in his cheeks, as his entire body seemed to go into a panicked state of shock. Donnie took a deep breath, thinking his skull to the brim. If whatever's affecting the lights is somehow reaching the backup generator here too, its only a matter of time before they'll reach us. But no matter the case, last time they'd faced one of those creatures, Donnie felt his body betray him yet again, flashbacks to his first few weeks as a human coming back to him. He was in no state to fight in, and he knew it. Reluctantly turning to the only person left in the room more than capable, though he hated the outcome of this mission so far,"Okay, Mikey, here's what we're gonna do. You're going to go through that vent over there and find the materials. Here lemme just-

Fumbling, Donnie stole a pen from the nearest desk he could reach, anxiously scribbling down ingredients at the top of his head over Mikey's palm, and hoping to all shell that it was waterproof.

"Dude…"

"Everything you'll find should be in Lab 5, that's right next to the elevator on the third floor. You're the quickest so once you have what you need, meet me back at the basement. And if anything goes wrong, use the communicator, okay? Just promise me no emergency prank calls, we've talked about this, and I still think they're inappropriate if we're going to"

Mikey was already shaking his head, starring at the words in his palm like they were from an alien planet he couldn't wrap his head around, "I'm not just gonna leave you here with.. with… what's his name! No way!"

"I'm sorry but I-I can't be of any help out there. I'll only slow us down, and we don't have time for this! Just- if Leo was here, he'd agree"

"If Leo was here, he'd tell us to stick together!"

"If we stick together, then we're all doomed!"

Mikey opened his mouth to argue back, usually fairly not so good at the firing back when it came to arguments, but quickly abandoned the need to be right as soon as he felt his hand over Donnie's forehead- face pulling once again into concern. Voice softening.
"You're burning up, D"

Donnie knew he was right. He felt like someone was trying to microwave his remains into soup, and then stuff it back inside like it was nothing, but he couldn't afford to think about that right now, shrugging it off as he desperately tried to convince Mikey to leave him alone. A challenge you'd soon learn after a good seventeen years together, was a fruitless task, but this mattered too much. And it was the only thing he could think of that might work. That would at least, if anything make it so that they could get enough cure for themselves if that's what it took. "I'm fine. Just get the materials and I'll find my way to the basement"
"Why is the child being sent on a suicide mission again…?" Dave asked, his legs pulled up under the table, but they both choose to just ignore him.

"Mikey, I'm sorry. I really wish I could help you here, but I think we're going to have to split up on this one"

"Dude, you look like a freaking zombie, and you wanna break rule number one of survival?! No! Nuh-uh. Not happening! We gotta get you some help"

"Mikey, come on. You gotta trust me on this" Donnie said- or well begging was probably more accurate in their current predicament. He tried to smile, hand on his shoulder in a faint attempt to reassure, because at the moment that was really all he had to work with from the lab's cold floor, "I'll be fine just… just please, for this once do as I say?"

Mikey, obviously still very opposed to this, seemed as if he'd given up on coming up with something convincing. There was a pause, a maelstrom of different emotions on him before eventually, somehow, he managed to stand up, tightening his mask around the eyes as he headed for the ventilation shaft. And then he stopped, a question still unanswered,

"What will you be doing?"

And this is where, despite his decaying body, Donnie's inner scientist sprang to the surface- along with his smugness, to Dave's dismay.

"We, will distract it"

"We will!?" Dave exclaimed, as Mikey had that this is a horrible plan look. "You better know what you're doing, man" he said, sparring one last glance at his brother, before he managed with ease to squeeze through the vent in one leap, closing the lid and disappearing into the walls. Dave was the first to speak up, confused, terrified and absolutely, positively mortified for the look on his janitor's face.

"Wha-what now?" he asked, as Donnie got on his feet, using the mop as a balancer. He made his way over to the desk, the ticking ringing his brain.

"Firstly," he said, before promptly and without warning he grabbed the mop and smashed the clock into scrap with one hit. "Secondly, Dave, do you still by any chance have the fluid sweeper?"

"Why in the hell would I-

"WELL?"
"YES of COURSE I have it! Why the hell is that relevant?!" Dave muttered, unhappily handing over the one thing he'd previously stated was his, and to quote: my lifework's greatest achievement paying off. Donnie grabbed the thing, previously bursting into flames and tested the weight for a sec as his mind stirred with probabilities. "Good. Now, get ready to throw it"

This nearly made Dave do a spit take, as Donnie led them both to the door, right now about to be kicked down by a hoard office full of mutated scientists with claws and venomous spikes. Smiling, mind you.

"Are you crazy?!"

"Look, the chemicals stored inside the heater, or not stable, if they come into contact with the viooze the reaction should be swift enough to ignite the recoil and buy us some time" he explained, handing the thing to Dave who was gulping down the facts along with pinballs of sweat. About to protest, he abruptly stopped, shivering intensifying as the lights yet again went out, now for longer intervals than the last one seemingly had.

"You know, Donly, we might've not always seen eye to eye you and I, but I just wanted you to know that I really do appreciate you, trying to make a difference around here, even if you're a tall child with diastema, no real degree-

"NOW!"

---

Casey ran. Something he'd usually refrain from at all costs, though in this case, being surrounded by a hoard of mutated police officers and purple gas hell bend to make you join them in their distorted glowing repulse, made it a little difficult for the young vigilante to fight back. He'd made for the door, realizing little by little that everywhere he could possibly go was either blocked by the foot's victims or locked off entirely- fragments of light mostly stemming from the toxic veins in green and purple hues, growling as they crept closer and closer. But it wasn't just the mutants. Wasn't just the fear usually conquered by irrational mayhem that was the mind of Casey Jones, right now prohibiting him from making a jump for it or calling for help. It was almost like he, in his paranoid state of being, was back all of a sudden. As if just in the corner of his eye they were there too. Bug eyes and everything, their freaky electricity rods buzzing as they kept swinging.

And Casey was afraid he didn't know how to get out of this one. Nerves tightening, his gear missing and the screams of people horribly twisted into monstrous beings, the foot's new mutation strategy rivaling that of the Kraang when they invaded earth. And though he tried to follow the light- that weak little bulb left flickering down by the lower floor and staircase, the sight of the people just a few moments ago wandering about their day, now begging for whatever it was affecting them to just stop. Gurgling as their last shred of humanity was stolen from them. An entire building… mutated. Was it really possible that Casey Jones was the only one left? He was starting to believe it, as his lungs tightened, and his legs failed him. He felt the pain in his side intensify, phantom pains as the doctor had called it, the intense buzzing inside the walls driving him mad with fear and paranoia.

This wasn't him... This wasn't the trash tossing, hockey slinging vigilante who didn't fear anything. So why… why did he feel so hopeless all of a sudden? He'd done worth, truth be told. Faced worth, even before he got mixed up with the weird world of mutants and ninjas and gingers with telekinetic powers. He knew the chaos, and he reveled in it. But as time went on, and he struggled to find a way out of his predicament, unable to think or scream or just anything that didn't make him freeze up, instead of running, he instead felt himself curl up by the wall, thinking himself far away from here. Hoping that maybe he'd wake up any moment now, and this would proof to all just be some sort of messed up dream. He wasn't being attacked. He wasn't being shocked, his sister was safe and sound, his friends were safe and sound and everything was going to be alright. The mutants crept closer. Some faster than others, but ultimately, they were coming his way, their ominous spiked claws and almost vein-popping skin reaching out to the one prisoner left untouched. He could it feel them closing in. Closer, and closer and closer until inexplicably-

BAM

It was almost like it was happening in slow motion. Watching as Raph plastered a solid kick to the mutant's resemblance of a face- landing with a thump on the ground, weapons in hand as a prepared for another blow.

"Casey! It is you right?! We got your message- Come on!"

He looked up, not expecting the next friendly face to come from a stranger. The kid reached out his hand, not waiting another second for Casey's bafflement to set in before he with a surprising strength managed to pull him up on his feet. They started running, a light flickering brightly on the other end, and as Raph wrestled with one of the creatures- as a result kicking the thing into a wall before joining them, they found themselves not only amongst police firing their guns rampantly at their friends, but a maelstrom of purple fog threatening to close in on them.

Raph reached for the communicator, panting as he spoke, "Donnie! We got Casey! How long until it explodes?!"
"A little busy here!" came it, signal closing along with Raph's jaw as a mutant suddenly tackled him to the ground. The other guy tossed his vaguely familiar looking bat, using an office chair to break over the creature's back just harsh enough for Raph to get the upper hand.

Casey on the other hand noticed that his legs had seemed to stop working.

"Casey?!" he yelled, as visions of enemies surrounding his inner vision. He stumbled, eventually settling on creeping as far into the corner as humanly possible, all the while every last ounce of oxygen seemed to leave his lungs. The guy squatted down, worry on his face and if it wasn't' for the voice in Casey's head telling him that they would come for him if he tried anything over and over again, he might've been quicker to place the resemblance to a certain other mutant human he knew.

"We gotta go! Come on!"

"I- I can't. I can't move- there's too… it's too much I just can't-"

"Shut up and MOVE!" he yelled, and the commanding tone seemed to finally do the trick.

"Leo?!" he heard himself exclaim before another mutant started targeting Leo. He ducked quickly, throwing himself to the side and out of the way of the spikes very intend on turning him into a pincushion, before using the before mentioned bat to deflect its venomous fangs.

"Casey! A little help here?!" Raph yelled, barely managing to hold it together as not only was he fighting the mutant twice his size, but he was also as a matter of fact, struggling to stay in the clear of the mutagen turning everything in sight into what could only be described as a science experiment gone very wrong.

Casey tried to move, he did, but it was like his brain had unintentionally decided that moving would be the opposite of survival. And not to mention even if he did have his weapons on him, which he very much didn't, he just couldn't get the voice out of his head. Seeing them, again and again and again in his mind like a movie on replay- the mantra he'd adopted so desperately causing his panic to rise to dangerous levels never before experienced by the vigilante. Feeling the sting of the electricity coursing through him, hearing the panicked screams around him like echoes of the memory. He saw Raph pinned to the ground, Leo struggling to keep up and looking to be on the brink of getting his head ripped off.

Chaos all around in what to Casey felt like a never-ending nightmare, barely able to get off the ground when-

"DUCK!"

They all looked up towards the ceiling, even Raph somewhat managing to shift his gaze from the fight as without warning, completely unexpectantly the ventilation shaft sprung open on top of them- none other than Lizzie- face covered in the hocky mask, arms equipped with washing gloves and disinfectant as she landed on the creature's shoulders.
"Lizzie?! WHAT THE HECK DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" Raph was the first to yell, as the creature screamed in agony, Lizzie stumbling to the ground as she reached for one of her crutches- except it wasn't one of her crutches,

"Arnold! CATCH!" she yelled, tossing what Casey quickly found to be none other than his hocky staff and skates. Casey picking them up slowly, feeling them in his hands again like this was the first time in decades. Raph tossed the creature over his shoulder, shielding Lizzie alongside Leo from each angle, as she prepped a set of graffiti cans, ingeniously designed by yours truly.

"We told you to wait outside!"
"The door wasn't locked…" she muttered, slightly guilty though determined to help. She let out a scream, a quick warning for Raph to duck once again as he used the quick notion to kick two creatures in the face at once, each blow sending them into the wall though it didn't seem to help much. For every flicker of the light came another blow they couldn't see, the sting of their skin hitting heavily as the gang tried to fend off the monsters without touching them for that matter. Leo, despite not being equipped with his blades anymore, using every set of furniture he could come across around the, now swarming office, to his advantage. Everything from broomsticks to water bottles, to spinning chairs he could find, every little motion reminding Casey too of the Leo he used to know- eyes struggling to get used to the human that'd replaced him. Raph tried to shield Lizzie, Lizzie kicking and stomping at everything moving from the floor to little avail of course, all the while Leo was struggling to reach Casey whom they very definitely, most seriously needed right now as a matter of fact. He didn't get far though, a solid smack to his lungs sending him into a coughing fit, as he was picked off the floor and thrown into the nearest stall, solid enough to break his fall. Noticing the rising mass of purple gas seeping in through the vents however, he fumbled to get on his feet.

"Raph! I think we might have a problem"

"Tell me about it!" he grunted, Raph taking a solid hit to the chin, Lizzie left unguarded.

"ARNOLD!" she screamed, as time seemed to slow to a halt. Casey watched the scene in bullet time, creatures approaching his sister, his friends overmanned and the dark slowly turning the entire floor into an all you can eat buffet. As he blinked, the shock that plagued his side seemed to return, finding the resemblance of the glowing veins to the glowing eyes almost indistinguishable for just a moment.

Come on, Casey, pull yourself together man! They're counting on you! Come on! Show those freaks whose boss… it's not like that night… they didn't leave. You're not this pathetic! They're back now… Lizzie's here… She came too. And they're going to be okay unless you stay useless like a little wimp! Keep it together… no fear, no guts, no… GLORY!

Then, time continued. Lizzie's scream cut to a halt, as soon as Casey's dust collected skates managed to get him to the mutant just in time for him to swing his weapon. He used the sharp end of the bat in one hand, breaking at least seven different bones as well as a few spikes too, sliding past the creature through the blow- picking up his sister with the hocky staff and managing to make it so that the only thing between those bastards and his friends, was Casey Jones. Lizzie and Leo looked up in awe, shock and, well for Raph's case uttering the word showoff ever so silently to himself, but what did he know anyway?!

Instead of the cowering stick-figure shivering in the corner, stood instead none other than the hockey mask wearing, ice skating, staff slinging vigilante himself. Back from retirement.

"Get. Away. From my sister. Creep."

And with that, he charged. First hit, two points for teeth splattering, second hit leaving probably a month worth of concussions in the hospital, if the mutation hadn't granted its victims the relentlessness to move forward despite the pain. He focused each hit on the spikes, cracking as many as could come, kicking the ones jumping him into the dirt as he maniacally reached for the nearest table- stretching the thing all above his head before he with every ounce of adrenaline coursing through his veins shot it a hundred miles an hour into all five mutants left standing: "GOONGALAAAAAAAA!" He screamed, using the moment of distraction, to pick up Lizzie left stranded on the ground without her crutched. He grabbed her hand, slung her up on his back and started heading for the stairs along an impressed, though still amnesiac Leo, and a, no surprises there, fairly disgruntled Raph by his side,

"Finally came to your senses, or what?!"

"Shut up, Raph!" he slammed the door closed, all four sharing a moment of peace despite the ever-present hoard of monsters shrieking from every corner, "You guys have some serious explaining to do! Like oh- I don't know, WHY THE SHELL IS MY SISTER HERE?!"

"You told me you were on a field trip!" Lizzie yelled, her voice loud enough to still be ringing in Casey's ear long after she'd hollered into it.
"I was multitasking!"

"Liar liar pants on fire!"
"Look who's talking! What the hell are you doing sneaking out like that?! It's DANGEROUS! Man, I told you to stay away!"

"No, you didn't!"
"Did too!" he yelled, Lizzie fumbling to get back on the ground- or maybe a little bit away from Casey was more accurate, Leo ready to help her hold her balance.
"Then why did you text me?!"

"I DIDN'T! Don't you get it?! It was just a mistake! And you weren't invited!"

"You always say that!" she yelled, once again, her hair out of her face and he noticed her eyes doing the classic puppy dog spiel. Oh hoho, I'm not falling for that. Not this time, not here. Because no matter how sad she looked, no matter how annoyingly he wanted to- it still didn't change the fact that her being here was a bad idea. "I just wanted to help" she muttered, hanging her head, the gang subsequentially stopping at the first floor with Lizzie a few steps behind. And as she did, his stubbornness aside, there was still that annoying part of him that couldn't help but feel bad too…

Leo surprisingly was the first to break the awkward silence, putting a hand on the arms-crossed Casey, despite not remembering much of him, and it nearly gave him a heart attack, "Casey, I swear we didn't mean to bring her into this, but she really has been a big help if you think about it. We wouldn't even know about the attack if she hadn't warned us"

This nearly made Casey burst a blood vessel, Raph facepalming quietly in the corner, "You went to the lair?! Are you crazy?! That's like- violating ten rules at least! Hypocrite much?!"
"You owe me! I had to wear that thing! Are you aware that your mask freaking stinks?!"

"Hey, don't bring the mask into this-

"She also sprayed Don' in the face with disinfectant, so there's that" Raph interjected, and this almost immediately seemed to catch him off guard.

"I don't CARE IF SHE WENT TO THE FREAKI- wait, you did?"

Lizzie nodded, struggling to stop a proud smile from crossing her face. Next thing you know, it was like the act itself was so vivid in his brain that he couldn't stop smiling either, forgetting for a moment that he was supposed to be an angry stern older brother right now, that couldn't help but be proud- jealous even, that he wasn't there to see it. But instead of a big wind apology, of course the only thing Casey jones could manage to come up with in terms of wording, was the simplest. "Nice" he muttered, Lizzie, removing a strand of hair from her face, looked up, coming up with the closest thing qualifying as a heartfelt apology she could manage, this in the form of,

"I'm sorry your friends are weird mutant teenagers living in the sewers"

Raph scoffed, "Rude" Leo dashing him over the shoulder in response. Casey, knowing the rules all too well at this point, decided to say screw it just this once, and held out his arms stretched to Lizzie's defiant stare.

"Permission to access contamination zone?"

A lifetimes worth of anticipation later, the kid quickly pulled two punches to Casey's arm, each more painful than the other, before in the momentary fear of his life, she pulled her arms around his shoulders, "Access granted" she said, hugging him tight. The façade spilling a way a little bit- and it started to truly dawn on the both of them that Lizzie really was just a kid. Bat swinging, lethally hygienic, vent crawling kid and every bit as reckless as her brother it seemed.

Another bang on the door, made them all jump, the quick ruckus bringing the gang back to reality as Raph was pretty sure he heard a door nearby splintering off it's hinges.

"Not to break up the reunion, but can we maybe focus on getting the shell out of here while we still can?!"

"Right"

Casey nodded, Lizzie on his back and as they ran down the stairs at a pace not suited for the number of splintered bones and sore muscles that was starting to become apparent, one thing seemed to still linger- the whole reason they'd come in such a hurry. While each passage was more or less blocked, by some miracle chance it seemed that their way to the bottom floor was still available to them. Raph grabbed the communicator again, but to little avail,

"Donnie! We're going to the bomb- where are you guys? Donnie?! HEY!"

"Wait, what about Oni? He's still in the building"

"So is the emission bomb- come on!" Raph grunted, forcing the door to the basement open to the others, a bright light from below meeting them in the entrée way when,

"We can still get out before-

There was a great big shockwave, Casey managing barely with enough reaction time to see the small pinball drop by their feet, quickly springing forward. He shoved the others in front, not needing another second to think, before feeling the pressure sending him back into the wall, something almost burning by his fingertips, as he realized he wasn't dead.

But neither was the Oni-mask wearing bastard standing on the other side.

---

Mikey scavenged ever since he was a kid. Really, it was one of the few jobs Splinter assigned him that he didn't somehow managed to get too sidetracked to neglect, enjoying the scavenging for every new trinket he could find. Every little snippet of the world above, left behind for their enjoyment- even the others sharing in his excitement whenever they found something that actually worked. Whether it be a comic issue they'd been searching for, an old controller or maybe just a functioning printer, scavenging in the sewers had made it so every tiny little thing was a discovery. Longing for the days back before they had to worry about anything else.

However, as Mikey was elbowing his way down the vent, somehow escaping the growing claustrophobia he seemed to be developing, the enjoyment wasn't exactly there the same way it had been. He made his way through the lower half of the facility, trying not to shriek as the people seemed to bang their heads against windows and locks- anything to get out. He heard sirens in the distance, the murmur from bystanders edging closer as he snuck his way to what after following Donnie's scribbled mess of a brush stroke in his palm, he hoped was the right place. Of course, when he actually got there, the entry way to the door just so happened to be blocked, generosity of what looked to be a refrigerator thrown a good distance towards the door. Whether to block it simply let out some steam, Mikey didn't know- more curious about what was inside, though of course, instead of food finding only disheveled glass containers and a rainbow of discolored liquids spilled. Unsure how to get through, Mikey decided to follow his own intuition… that being calling Donnie.

"Eh, Donnie? Good news. Well… I found the lab!"

The communicator was silent for a few dreadful minutes, before the bright green light in the corner seemed to light up again, the hazy but breathing voice of his brother on the other side. "That's great! Good Job, Mikey."

"Not so good news! It's kinda blocked… by a refrigerator. Any ideas?"

Took D a few seconds to respond with anything that wasn't sounds of stress, collecting himself as Mikey started to fear the people closing in on him, their growling whines unmistakably drawing closer somewhere in the dark.

"Okay, try to go around back, there should be another door"

And as if the universe itself had overheard his frantic tapping against the floor, a panel came crashing down in the other end, followed by the herd glowing toxically in the dark. Luckily most of their legs had been so deformed at this point, that trying to walk at a fast pace was definitely a no-go by now, instead making them almost have to drag themselves across the floor tooth and nail. Not again! This is exactly like in my comic…

"Yeah, about that… I don't think your friends would like that, dude. Actually, I think they're on their way- WHAT DO I DO?" Mikey yelled, and this time he was really starting to panic. Donnie quickly joining him on the other end of the call, voice cracking and everything in between, "Are you kidd- Okay well uh… In that case, maybe you can squeeze through the- no, but that would be too small, even for you. Maybe the fire escape? No that retour would be way too long and we're already losing time-

But as he kept on rambling, a never-ending slung of words and worries piled up, Mikey's eyes wandered towards the window, neatly situated just by the doorway half-open and with the winter breeze howling from beyond it. And this gave Mikey an idea.

"Eh, so one question. How big of a chance does science say I'm going to be able to make it inside through the window?"

"Window? There's no window to the lab, you'd have to through the outside to even get NEAR- oh I see what you're doing now, MIKEY DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT-

But he was already one foot out the door, biting his lip as for just a second, he nearly lost his grip- tumbling forward if it wasn't for his quick reflexes build over a lifetime worth of near-death experiences to catch him in the fall. Okay. So far so good! Come on, dude, D is counting on you! And though the last time he'd attempted to climb a building went, least to say, not so good, he managed to not think about it. Just like they'd done it a thousand times before, ignoring the distance between him hurdling to the ground and breaking his shell open, and the actual distance, he prided himself on getting to the other side fastest. One of the reasons Leo hated playing hide and seek with him during training, most likely stemming from the fact that arguably, Mikey was the most intuitive climber out of all of them. This proving true furthermore, as he managed to use the blade side of his remaining nunchuck to force the windowsill open, springing inside as Donnie's frantic voice still yelled at him through the little speaker.

"Okay. I'm in. Wow… I'm starting to see why you became a janitor here" he muttered, the clutter of the abandoned laboratory rivaling Donnie's closet, which didn't even come close. Every piece of equipment, furniture or otherwise either torn to pieces or tilted over in every corner of the room that wouldn't qualify as orderly.

"Mikey, you can't just keep jumping into things like this. You'll get hurt" Donnie let out a sigh, relief or frustration or maybe just plain both of them at the same time, Mikey wasn't entirely sure. The only thing he cared about, was Donnie starting to sound like his healthy self again, if only for a brief moment. The superpower of worrying! Okay, maybe that sounds lamer out loud…

"Dude, chill-lax, I got it under control" he said, after promptly and poorly timed he managed to trip over a set of boxes, the ruckus not surprisingly catching the attention of mutated personal outside the door. He started rummaging through cabinets, struggling to see the writing in his hand overtaken by the dark atmosphere around him and he ended up holding it into the moonlight outside the window. After he'd managed to pick out at least three of the chemicals on his hand out of seven, he began searching- eyes running over an abandoned billboard of scientific slang and weird formulas that all pretty much went over Mikey's head. He caught the attention of a sticker in the corner, addressed to a 'Kevin' for not and he quoted: mixing up the coffee filters properly AGAIN, before he started searching the shelves for chemicals. When the silence became a little too much for Mikey to bare, he instead tried to fill it with the tiny light from the communicator, reminding him that he wasn't alone right now. So, there was that, at least.

"Hey, how are you doing?"

He could hear Donnie shudder from the other side, Dave presumably being the source of endless rambling complaining in the background, though he couldn't make out what he said. Donnie, however, took a deep breath, shivery though, but Mikey convinced himself that he was probably just freezing. And no kidding, the building must be at least at freezing point with all these open windows! Never heard of winter frostbite?! So careless, and here I figured scientists were supposed to be reasonable.

"Could be better. I'm more worried about you. There's… there's something I haven't been able to do, and it pretty much, put all us in danger. I wasn't there for you, when it counted"

Mikey continued gawking through the vials, half trying to listen, half trying to concentrate at the task at hand,

"What are you talking about, D? I'm fine, dude, I swear"

Another sigh, Donnie's voice grading a bit, not particularly convinced. And he'd be half-right. Of course, Mikey wasn't fine. Nothing about this was in any way fine, no that was a horrible way to describe it. The fear that if they didn't hurry bringing everyone back to normal again, Simon might not make it… But, while his mind was already speed racing- preoccupied with trying to empty out all his guilt and regrets, his heart still mindful of the fact that his brothers was doing everything they could to reverse it. Reminding himself of what Raph had said, of all the times they'd found themselves at the bottom of the barrel, not knowing what to do and still coming out on top. How was this any difference? Either way, sitting around sulking in the lair wasn't going to bring his friend back? He'd tried that, most times ending up in complete disaster as a result. But while the team might be a complete and utter mess trying to sort out all the things human had given them, the least he could do was try to stay positive. Even if it seemed hopeless. He'd tried escaping his problems before, and if there was anything he'd learned by that since this began, it was that Mikey was done running away.

Donnie seemed to pause for a moment, almost like he wasn't quite sure how to say what he was trying to say but did so anyway.

"Mikey, would you, after all this is over, I just mean, do you… want to stay… huma-

"FOUND IT!"

He didn't actually pay enough attention to respond, before all despair left in him seemed to evaporate, as soon as the bottles and vials he'd collected started to match the description, only unsure with one of them- enough for Mikey to instead split the difference and grab all the vials he could carry at once, eager to get back to Donnie.

"It's all here! Every drop of… nitro-coloso..losolite…irum- yeah all that stuff!"

"Good job, Mikey. We should be… on our way" he said, voice straining slightly.

"When this is over, you are so taking me to that pizza place!" he yelled, Mikey one foot out of the window, the silence making him stop all he was doing though, after a staggering fifteen seconds of silence. He checked the light again. It was definitely turned on, no scratch on it, that's for sure. After the 'T-pod' incident taking the protection of any technological possessions very seriously ever since. But still, there was no one answering. "D?"

Mikey started running now. He made his way into the hallway, using the windowsill to boost himself up into the vents where he with his heart stuck in his throat, climbed through too fast for his grip to hold on. He dropped a vial or too sure, the vein in his human-neck threatening to pop at any moment now, as the adrenaline took over his body. Basement. He said to meet at the basement. Right. Just gotta- Come on, move it human legs!

He leapt into the hall, managing with strained effort to jag the door open, before he sped down the stairs faster than should be mutantly possible, jumping various blown bits and pieces blocking his path- ignoring the panicked yelps from Dave the fluid-sweeper guy, as he with record speed made his way to the basement. Following the buzzing as it grew louder, vents overtaken by the purple gas by the time he made his way to the ground level again.

"Donnie!" he yelled, blood run cold as he saw him lying against the wall eyes closed. He slid down, knees first as he tried to wake his dangerously pale brother from his sleep. When he opened them, a little dazed perhaps but awake all the same, it was like the air in the room returned again and Mikey shoved him the collectibles.

"I got the stuff, D. Every bit of it. What do we do now?"

"What we do?! WhAT WE DO?! GET THE HECK OUT OF HERE THAT'S' WHAT!" Dave yelled out, his mouth thinning out into a line as soon as he met Mikey and Donnie's deathly gazes from the corner. "Sorry…"

Donnie blinked, groaning for a second as he mistakenly tried to stand up with little success. "No. I can still… I just need a little more time-

"You need help!" Mikey protested, knowing for a fact that despite how much his scientific genius was underestimated by his brothers, now was probably not the time for him to start mixing ingredients in the faint hope that it would do the trick- and that was even if he did have the final ingredient. Donnie looked to the side. The entire basement was a big wide-open space, containing a maze of corridors, the one currently occupied leading the way down towards what Mikey could only guess to be the root of the mutagen bomb. Heavily guarded by a rampage of gears grinding together and toxic gas dancing around the entrance like the entrance to hell itself. And yet, Donnie kept trying to go there regardless, not even his mind able to aid him in the effort,

"But what if… what if there's still time?! Maybe we can still save them, there's gotta be something I can do!"

Mikey recognized the look on his face like he recognized his own freckles. He'd seen it a lot lately, the ever so busy Donnie wearing it as if he didn't, everything would begin to crumble. So used to seeing D solve a problem in the span of a few seconds, to really realize how much it strained on his brother. Donnie always knew what to do, he always had an idea how to get out of a situation, thinking on the whim, so it baffled him that now was not one of those times. And it was that thought that simultaneously pillared on top of Mikey's already growing worry that there was something he wasn't telling them.

"Look at it man- there's no going in there. If Leo was here he'd agree. We need to get out of here and back to the others, okay? We won't be able to help anyone if we're dead" he said, Donnie furiously shaking his head from side to side as he stumbled to is feet. But as Mikey put his arm around his shoulder, their eyes locking before Donnie seemed to grasp the intense 'lethal'ness of the situation upon noticing the cracks around them begin to fill with the machine's ever-present buzzing. Gas seeping through here and there, Dave struggling to put some of it out by the hem of his lab coat- obviously not doing much to stop the out pour.

"I can't believe I'm saying this but… Dave's right. We were too late. I can't believe it.. I was too late, I couldn't- I couldn't keep it save and we don't have- maybe If I just-

"Dude! We gotta get outta here. Now"

"I agree with the small one!" Dave yelled, and Donnie stuck in his head appeared to be trapped between wanting to try and fix the situation and accepting that at this point there wasn't much they could do. Even Mikey realized as much, refusing though to give up on his brother.

"Come on, D. Hang in there"

And so, they made their way back, more and more mayhem following them up close. When the mutated scientists were in the way, it was up to Mikey to fend them off, tossing anything in their general direction, just buying them enough time to be able to escape the complex. Dave, having generously decided to bring along the last functioning, not prone to the foot's meddling, lamp, was anxiously glowing the thing to all sides. And Donnie was, although slouching a bit, managing to get through at a running pace, though his breathing was heavier than normal.

And then something strange happened. Just as they reached the last corner that would eventually lead them to the fire escape and outside the building. Mikey, growing more and more exhausted by the minute stood back, the last weapon he possessed in hand, ready to fend off their pursuers, though Donnie urged him to follow them out. That's when none other than the fluid-sweeper guy shoved him to the side, and Mikey noticed a small hand-looking device in his hands, the metal clanging in his arms as he shook in fear.

"Dave!" Donnie exclaimed, equally confused as he was slightly, oddly and in the weirdest turn of events, maybe even impressed. Didn't take him long of course to figure out what he was thinking, Mikey watching the scrawny guy's knees clang together like a frightened chihuahua.

"Just to be clear, gappy, I still hate your guts, but If I don't survive this," he said, turning a bolt, eyes squeezed together before he tossed the thing towards the mutants, yelling,

"REMEMBER WHOSE INVENTION SAVED YOUR ASS! ARGH!-"

before it exploded. And in a force so big that it literally sent him flying out the window, over the fire escape and down into the alleyway, both Mikey and Donnie watched in horror. However, as they leaned over the railing, they were equally relieved to see the scientist safely having crashed into the container closest to them. "I'm okay!"

They made their way down, Donnie stumbling a few steps in the hurry, though Mikey was quick to help him to his feet. It was only shortly after they'd made it a few feet away though, that the entire ground below began to shake- purple gass emitting through every crack of the building in a big fiery explosion of mutagen. He was right. They really were too late. And this only seemed to worsen, as the two watched the flames combust and ignite, screams still apparent after the commotion, though it wasn't coming from there. It was everywhere.

The entire city, plagued by flickering lights and people crying out help to the authorities, no longer in any position to help them. People ran, metal clanging following the pair as Mikey and Donnie made their way to the subway, the commotion and chaos erupting around them like it was the end of the world. It wasn't until they made their way underground, that the familiar sound of footsteps seemed to follow, the before spoken clanging revealing itself to be an unfriendly face. Or well, more accurately an unfriendly jaw. One mouser running toward civilians quicker than seemingly ever before, except this time it came with a surprise- one in the shape of a purple breath emitting from its throat, pouring out its metallic shriek.

"What the heck is happening…?"

"Mikey!" Donnie suddenly yelled, turning the young mutant's attention to the monstrous figure attacking two sets of mousers in one felt bite. Mikey's mouth dropped, breathing slowing to a halt and time froze for a second because he knew exactly who that mutant was, starring back at him unsure whether he was going to attack them again, or not.

"S-simon…" he muttered, not even realizing he was walking toward him, but he didn't get one step, before his friend started growling. Roaring out in a painstaking breath, that echoed for miles along the tracks, before he eventually turned the other way, Mikey feeling the tears well up inside him again,

"Simon!"

Donnie pulled him back begrudgingly where their brothers was waiting for them.

"We'll get him back! I promise" he said, as Mikey looked back towards the remains of the mouser, now torn to shreds, before he turned back around, New York City breaking apart piece by piece.

---

"Lizzie!"

It was like everything was happening at once. Raph saw the blast in bullet time- Lizzie hitting the wall with a loud thud, as he in turn felt the force knock him backwards, the crack of the entry giving way to the purple gas. And Casey fell right into it.

As Raph struggled to get back on his feet, his eyes caught glimpse of the Oni-man lingered in the end of the hallway, arms behind his back as he simply watched them stumble- nodded before he disappeared behind the corner. But before Raph could take as much as a step forward, he noticed his friend letting out a wince of pain. And that's, when he saw how the mutagen edged into his right arm, growing red and almost bubbly to the horror of Leo.

"Casey! You're going to-

Raph stopped abruptly, not believing what he was seeing until it was too late. He took a step forward, jaw agape and feeling like time itself had just collapsed, because this couldn't possibly be real. Unable to fully process, as his eyes flipped back and forth between the now unconscious Lizzie on the ground, and his friend starring horrified ahead of him. Raph tried to pull him out of the danger zone, his mind convincing him that there was still time, that he was still in the clear, though the sight of his skin slowly but surely starting to melt making him wanna puke, "Oh god, Casey y-your arm…"

"Let go of me!" he said, instantly pulling away, twitching in his movements and he spared Lizzie a glance, relieved to see her still breathing. And it was then Casey got that look in his eyes, one Raph was especially familiar with after fighting alongside him for so long now. It was the exact same look he'd get whenever he was about to do something incredibly stupid.

So, he just… smiled. Cavemouth and everything, quaking and shivering uncontrollably, though he did everything in his stubborn power not to show it.

He opened his mouth, staggering backwards and deeper into the wall of toxins behind him, "Get her out of here… g-go…" he said, biting his teeth as he in one last jolt of action, grabbed the door by its hinges, and forced it shut- drowning them in the empty hallway.

The silence that followed, consisted mostly of Raph counting the seconds in his head, trying to wrap his head around what just happened, even though it was all perfectly clear. One moment where he looked away, and this happened. All of this, this entire mission, for nothing. Lizzie, now lying motionless on the floor, the building going down and with absolutely no word from either Donnie or Mikey.

Everything… for nothing.

Everything, for once again, after letting his guard down, and everyone around him paying the price. Raph looked at his sai, the one reassurance he had left at the moment, begging to be put to good use. He couldn't even speak, let alone cry, it was pointless for tears. Pointless to do anything, other than sharing in what might've been the one person he should've focused on. Instead of letting his stupid mistakes get in the way of their mission, instead diverting his attention towards the core of the problem. The one thing he could do something about. After all this time, making him think that as soon as they'd find each other again, become a team again, the world would eventually make sense. But that didn't erase the fact that even after so long of trying, they'd failed. And Casey was the one who paid for it.

"Raph… whatever you're thinking right now, don't."

Leo stood up, but Raph wasn't listening, feeling his fists close around the blades in his hand and the tightening of his nerves making his blood boil.

"Raph…?"

He didn't look back, not once, the grinding of his teeth or the fire in his eyes, not anything was going to stop him. Not sparring Lizzie or his brother a glance before he shouldered passed Leo at a force great enough to knock him backwards, before he sprinted down the hallway towards the basement. Towards the monster behind the mask

"RAPH!"

…

The first few weeks of the change, Raph had essentially made it his free time job to seek out anyone with any information on his brother's whereabouts. He came to smaller gangs, people in league with the foot, or who had previously been hired by Osaki himself, most times having been beaten to a pulp due to his newer body. Struggling for weeks to even walk properly, remove the stiffness in his limbs and let along do a flip without messing it up. But he'd kept trying. Over and over and over again, searching every street corner or bench, every park or building. He'd smashed down doors, he'd flipped a stranger here and there into a concussion, just out of the small hope that maybe, maybe this time was different. Getting back to his tent with his fair share of bruises and cuts, his bones crackling and his muscles bending over themselves just to keep up. First time he won a fight as a human, was the weeks before Halloween, a group of street kids being picked on by a group of bullies. After having successfully picked them off one by one, the fire seemed to grow back anew. Finding some sort of fulfillment in defending the weak, now without having to hide away.

He'd start to go places he'd never before go, fending off the average muggers and scumbags making life a little harder for everyone else, until the desperation grew. The intensifying loneliness that seemed to follow him, even when chatting with Bernie about the 'good old days'. He'd learned to see New York from the surface, as well as picking up some new tricks every now and again. Collecting information everywhere in the city's underbelly, each more brutal than the other. He'd follow clue after clue to nowhere, leading his temper to usually take the lead. He remembered one PD in particular, unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end of a bad day. Raph wasn't listening when he said he didn't know anything. He wasn't listening when he begged for mercy, or when he couldn't get back up because Raph had crossed a line that he didn't even know was there. Destroyed one broken body after the other, the anger building up inside of him leading him down to a place he'd promised himself he would never go to.

And yet, as he caught up with the Oni, all too easily, his head too fired up to question it at all, he wasn't holding back. Letting out a roar echoing all throughout the building as he smashed the guy against the underground pipes and cemented walls, kicking his ribs into splintered fractions, and not stopping as he spit out blood. He continued hitting him, over and over and over again, the images of all those who'd come before him piling up into an unbearable rage, finally but not indefinitely- with one last blow to the head, the mask cracked off, and the guy underneath fell to the floor, edging closer to unconsciousness. But Raph wasn't done. He couldn't stop, he didn't want to stop, not caring that the guy's face looked like blob of blood and purple. Hitting him again, roaring for each blow, angry that he didn't fight back, not paying any mind to the fact that he was wearing a purple dragon tattoo underneath. Instead, he remained unrelenting, desperation filling his senses as if this was the only way to let it all out in the only way he knew how.

"RAPH! STOP IT!"

Leo put Lizzie down, running full throttle towards his brother, about to deal the finishing blow if he hadn't grabbed his wrist. Panting, he desperately tried to hold it together, quickly connecting the dots as his eyes wondered to the purple ink on the decoy's neck, "It's not him… you can stop now."

"He deserves it" Raph said, non-hesitantly, and Leo couldn't believe what he was hearing struggling to keep him in check, but he was too strong.

"If you don't calm down, right now, you're going to kill him. Is that how you choose to honor Splinter's memory?! Pummeling a guy to death?!"

"Don't you dare bring him into this!" Raph got on his feet, voice raising despite the entire station already shimmering from the bomb's tremor, but he didn't care anymore,

"You don't remember. You don't know, even if you think you do, but it's not the same! It never was! I'm not the one who wanted to get involved with Karai's little entourage. I'm not the one who wanted to turn into this, you were. You made that decision for us, just like you always make the decisions for us, never stopping to even consider for a moment that maybe you were wrong?! That maybe we wouldn't have split up in the first place, if you'd just trusted us!"

"You are better than this! "

Raph was about ready to laugh, twirling his sai in his hand once before he folded Leo's arm around and held it in a lock, "You're saying these guys don't deserve to pay for what they've done?! You're saying we should just let them go?! Look around, Leo! If this isn't these bastards' doing, then who the hell do you wanna blame? Because if it's not you, then tell me why Casey's right now a mutated pile of flesh" he bit, pushing him away as Leo sternly refused to look away. But Raph was far from done- in fact he could feel everything inside him break down little by little, a half-hearted smile of unbelievability forming over his face, the truth spitting at him as he kept thinking about everything that had gotten wrong since they went to the surface. Everything, starting with Leo. Or, what was left of him anyway, hating the fact that the person looking back at him now, could never even begin to comprehend everything they'd gone through. Everything he'd done, failing or not being for the sake of everyone that didn't include himself- all of a sudden leaving way for Leo to stop pretending to be like Sensei. And then it dawned on him, the realization nearly making Raph chuckle in the absurdity of it all- his anger still blazing through.

"I've spent so much time trying to be like you. Trying to protect us, but I'm sick of it. I've been trying, for so long now, to keep this family together… Don't you get it? We're all we've got. Always have been, always will be. And no stupid human body is going to change that, understand? We have to stick together. "

Leo thought on this for a moment, probably about to agree, though his demeanor betrayed the guilt that crept over his mind whenever it refused to give him back the life he'd led. When he opened his mouth to respond however, the loud recache of a bullet gave echo throughout the floor and they both turned around to find Hopkins standing with a gun.

Hopkins, with a ripped-up coat, messy hair and look of pure unrivaled aggression intensifying in his eyes. He was heaving, obviously running, though the explanation as to how long he'd been free was left unclear.

"Step away from him if you know what's best for you"

Raph sighed, gulping as he got a good look at the damage below his feet, and he raised both hands in defense. Leo too, though the urging crackling of the facility as well as the numerous tremors infiltrating the ceiling above, like a thousand insects was crawling around, told them that time was running out. And yet, Donnie and Mikey was nowhere in sight.

"I'll give you one last chance to do the right thing" said the detective, gun not as steady as he usually held it- not to mention the rather almost crumbling sternness that would've usually served to overline his authority. Now a shadow of what it used to be, as the detective was at a limit, gun stretched out in front of him without proper aim, and pupils dilated into an unnerving degree.

"Which is?"

Hopkins gulped, gesturing to the entire room, until his eyes landed on Lizzie and this only seemed to add to his desperation, "Tell me how to stop this" he said, Leo taking a step forward slowly and sincerely.

"Hopkins,"

Another shot fired, just below Leo's feet, overruling every other noise building in the near-hauntingly echo-y underground.

"DON'T. Move."

Leo sighed, head falling over because they didn't have time for this. His compassion the only thing keeping him from knocking the guy out- Raph figured, though the way Leo usually talked about this guy, made him worried that it was something else.

"For the last time, you're after the wrong people, Hopkins! We didn't do this"

The detective scoffed, shaking his head from side to side, "Sure, that's believable"
"I know we haven't always seen eye to eye on things, but I swear to you, this isn't on us. We know who's doing this, and we can bring them down, but you have to trust us"
"Ha! Now that's the funniest thing I've heard all day! All this started with you. There's no denying that, Leo. If I take you guys with me, what'll happen to the city? Maybe that's exactly what I need to do. Put an end to this crazy nightmare once and all" he said, and judging by his tone of voice alone, Raph was inclined to believe him. It was the eyes however, that told a different story, Leo reaching on this as he continued to shorten the distance between them. Looking like he genuinely believed that there still was a chance.

"You used to tell me that a cop's job was to prioritize justice above all else. What happened to that?"

"You're out of your mind that's what-

"I know what I'm talking about! You used to put your job over everything else, your duty. Trust me, I know the feeling. But if you pull that trigger, you're going to regret it Hopkins!"

"Then what do you suppose I do?! Sit around twisting my thumbs?! Waiting for some god damn kids to safe New York? To turn these people back into people?! How the hell are you going to do that, Leo?!" he yelled, Leo letting out a sigh in response, and this is where even Raph knew that they were doomed.

"I can't tell you that"

The detective shook, once again you could clearly see the wheels turn in his head as the walls around them started to crumble, time running short and the fact was, if they didn't get out of here now, they would all be done for. But then, he by some miracle chance that perhaps not even the detective could fully wrap his head around, he lowered the gun.

"You're a pain in my ass, do you know that?! " he yelled frustration nearly making him burst a blood vessel, because why was it exactly that Leo was so fixated on going with the alleged criminals responsible for all of this? "I mean for gods sake, just look at what he's done! Family or not, I don't care! It's something you choose. So why… why are you siding with them?"

"I'm not siding with anyone! Hopkins, all this times, they've been trying to help figure out what the foot is up to, same as you! "

"By beating up gangs?"

"By trying to save me!" Leo yelled, hands down and he could see on Hopkins face that he was just as eager to not be fighting as he was. Leo calmed his voice, finding the wrapping to his bandages and without warning, he started to unbind them. Unraveling them more and more until all that was left was a worn-out reminder of everything there was- leaving it in Hopkins hands who finally seemed to see Leo for who he was. Not just a scared little kid in the hospital anymore, but something else entire.

"Trust us. Please. Just this once. Then, you can do whatever you want, but just trust us for now. There's still time to do the right thing"

Hopkins paused, sighing finally before he packed his gun back into its holster, eyeing Raph with a quizzical brow.

"If I do let you go… can you promise me that you'll stay out of trouble?"

And of course, the silence spoke for itself.

"Figures" he muttered, a third shimmer this time sending the entire floor into a small earthquake, dust and debris threatening to fall from the ceiling. Raph was quick on his feet, pulling Lizzie up in his arms as an idea started to grow in his mind- one he was only slightly reluctant to follow through on, but what other choice did they have?

"Here. Take her somewhere safe." He said, Hopkins hesitantly, but ultimately with a resolution taking her up on his back, where he assuredly nodded towards Raph. Probably their first and last interaction not trying to kill the other, he realized, but Raph was willing to take it for what it was. Not mutual respect by any means, but at least a truce of some kind.

"Hey, kid?" he called, making his way towards the fire escape.

"Don't make me regret this" -before vanishing out of sight.

It was then, as Leo and Raph made their way towards the bomb, communicators in hand but no signal to follow it, that a familiar voice rang through from the other side, Raph nearly forgetting that the whole building was coming down on them, as soon as he saw the others.

"RAPH! LEO! Something's wrong with Donnie!" he yelled, and it was then as they sprinted towards each other Raph noticed the even paler than before brainiac being supported by Mikey over his shoulders.

"What happened?!"

Donnie looked up, Mikey letting him go as he managed to pull himself into a standing position, though Leo still kept one hand firm on his back. "No time… to explain. I'll be fine. "

"Sure, looks like it"

"Where's Casey and Lizzie?" Mikey asked, Leo explaining everything as fast as the following events allowed. "We'll get him back. One way or the other" Raph muttered, leading the way outside as one question came to mind, "Did it work?" he asked, Donnie disappointingly shaking his head and they made their way outside as fast as they could, Raph too keen on not getting hit by a falling rock to let the news flood over him.

When they finally got outside, watching from a safe distance as the building used to be the NYCPD flickered with phantasmal decay and unrelenting chaos, Mikey was the first to break the silence speaking carefully, almost dreadfully the one thing lingering on all their minds,

"What do we do?"

It was then Donnie, spoke up, already making his way in the opposite direction, though he didn't seem too excited about it, "I know where we can go. Just, follow my lead"

---

None of them remembered it. At least not entirely. Sure, there were fragments here and there, stories vaguely resembling that of some distant memory, but it was always just that. Like when you remember something from childhood without really remembering. So when the turtles found themselves at the water tower, the place they'd probably only spend about a week or so hiding in, it wasn't surprising that something still stuck with them. Perhaps it was the killer robots always trying to capture them, perhaps it was the litter box or the moonlight shining through the broken curtain shimmering through. But when they entered, somehow, almost like a reflection of their first home, the irony was that it still held up. Standing atop the city in its own isolated area of the world. As if nothing could get to them in there, where they were safe from the monsters.

Even most of the clutter remained the same, though of course the equipment placed here and there was entirely Donnie's. Their own little hideaway, just a tiny lamp set up in the empty ceiling to illuminate the small space. Just barely big enough for all of them to stand, and as Leo made his way inside, surprisingly, it felt like something strangely fit. Gawking at the comic books, the renaissance paintings stacked and the traditional Japanese instruments left behind probably out of mentality from their mentor. Never before seen, until Donnie stumbled upon their first home again.

"Wait, I recognize this place… we've been here before, haven't we? Back when we were…"

"…kids." Raph finished, even he seeming to recognize the place despite how young they were back then. Just a nice memory at this point, too brief to even properly place in the mind.

"I can't believe you remembered" Leo muttered, Donnie chucking down a small vial into his arm,

"I can't believe this is where you've been hanging out all this time" Raph added, as Mikey with a worry intensifying starred out behind the curtain and into the city still occupied with the attack.

"What are we going to do?"

Donnie sighed, suddenly closing his eyes and, as if to properly convince himself one last time he took in a deep breath before facing the others, now with color back in his checks.

"I have to tell you something" he began, and already this felt like a sword in his stomach. And yet, he continued, the team non-comprehending at first. "I lied when I said the mutagen is stable. The truth is…"

Another deep breath, already wishing himself miles away, but the clock was ticking. Louder than it ever had before, and he knew it wouldn't stop unless he was honest. Unless he finally admitted the truth. No matter how horrible it was. What he'd done to them, how irresponsible he'd been, how selfish. Now out in the open, ready to show his true colors he said,

"We've got until tomorrow before it gives out. "

They still looked confused, Leo as always, the voice of reason.

"Before…?"

Tick tock tick tock tick tock tick tock tick tock tick tock tick-

"Before we all die"