Rating: Overall story rated T

Disclaimer: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and all related characters belong to Nickelodeon.

Warnings: Overall story contains disturbing imagery such as blood, gore and the like, and disturbing situations.

Summary: The world as they knew it has gone to ruins. The shadows, once their greatest allies, now harbour threats so great it's safer to risk walking in open daylight and Mikey and April will do anything to keep what remains of their family safe; even if it means abandoning home and everything they knew. This story is AU and a collaboration between sampsonknight and Zelgadis55.


The Butterflies: You're very welcome :-) Well, it's not that by nature Donatello is paranoid, it's because of how they were brought up. They were brought up to be wary and suspicious of humans for good reason and he's currently at that age where the training is really sinking in but not quite where he's questioning it and giving people the benefit of the doubt. He trusts Mikey but Father's rules and influence are law. If April had been more open with him about things sooner, it may not have led to this.

Minnie1015: But where's the fun in leaving you guys with a pretty scene of hugging and talking? XD Well, I promise this cliffie isn't as bad as the last and maybe somewhere in some story, I can manage to fulfil your request. Maybe? :-P

T420000: Thank you :-) I'm glad you've been enjoying it and you joined in at just the right time as lo and behold, here's the update XD


Sekai no Owari

Ch 19

"Mikey please don't do this to me," April pleaded to him.

She held him there, fearful to move, fearful that if he was turning she would give him the advantage to bite her if she did lay him back down and leave their brothers alone in this world with no one to protect them or look out for them.

What was she to do? She thought she could handle this but staring at the belly of the beast, it wasn't so simple after all. She couldn't tell if he was breathing, she couldn't tell if his heart had stopped and the longer the silence loomed, the more she stood there in this horrifying moment.

Could she really kill him if he turned? Would she even be able to face their brothers after this or explain what happened to Mikey? Was she strong enough either way?

Then when she was slowly moving one hand to go for the sai, Mikey suddenly gasped for air and she almost let go of him in shock.

Turning him back onto his shell she quickly checked his pulse finding it weak but that he was still fighting. Then she checked the fever and discovered, to her relief, it seemed to be starting to break at last.

The sweat on her brow trickled into her eyes as she smiled, "Mikey, you are the most stubborn turtle I have ever met and I'm so fucking glad you are."

Kissing him on the head, she adjusted his IV and refreshed the damp cloth.

Once she was done, she turned around to see if Donatello was still in the room; she wanted to apologise for her demeanour and make him understand that she had no choice due to the responsibilities that fell upon her being the only one who could handle this and what might have been the future decision she would have had to take.

Despite Mikey being out of the woods, the breaking fever meant the drug worked after all, that didn't mean she could leave his side yet. She needed to make sure he had no more incidents but the death row watch was finally over and that, on its own, was a huge relief.

Seeing Donnie wasn't in the lab, she sighed in disappointment. He must have left to check on his brothers, hopefully before Mikey's little scare. Sighing, she turned back to Mikey, trusting Donnie to watch over Leo and Raph until Mikey at least awoke.

-:-

"Don't eat me! I'm not a lime flavoured jelly turtle!" Mikey shrieked hoarsely, sitting up way too fast in terror and breathing harshly. Suddenly aware of a faint movement against his leg, Mikey cringed and looked down, seeing an exhausted April asleep with her head on his bed.

Mikey blinked. His bed?

He looked around, realising he wasn't in his bed after all but rather in the infirmary within the lab. Frowning in confusion as he gazed around, he wondered how he came to be here; the last thing he remembered was... "Leo!" he gasped in fright as the memory of his brother in danger came flooding back.

For a moment, Mikey was tempted to shake April awake and ask her what happened but when looking at the dark circles under her eyes and the pale complexion of her face, he thought better of it, instead sliding out from under the sheet, intending to go look for himself.

Still wobbly from the high fever he didn't know he'd had, Mikey made it a whole three steps before his legs gave out beneath him and with a cry of frustration, hit the ground. He pushed himself upright, only to sit there for several minutes, simply trying to get his breath and his dizziness under control.

"Mikey?" April asked, drowsy with sleep.

He flushed with embarrassment and glanced back, not seeing any sign of April so he spoke up in a soft, yet hoarse voice, reminding him of how thirsty he was, "Shh, go back to sleep Ape. It's the middle of the night." He had no idea what time it was but it sounded good. He then struggled to get back to his feet, succeeding after a minute, yet wobbling unsteadily once more.

"Huh?" April lifted her head slightly, turning it towards his voice, then almost fell off her chair in shock, "Mikey! What are you doing out of bed?" she cried in dismay.

Mikey turned a bright grin to her, "Uh... going to find Leo?"

"Uh, no you don't," she walked up to him giving him that look.

His face fell. "I have to see if he's okay," Mikey pleaded. "Last I remember, a zombie was about to chow down on him. By the way, what happened with the zombies? Did we get them all? I don't remember much of what happened after getting to Leo."

"You put him in the storage room after getting bitten. Once we cleared the biters, I brought you here and ordered Donnie to watch our brothers while I went through the protocols that were set up for this situation..." April explained feeling sick as she recalled what she'd had to do.

Mikey paled. "I was bitten?" At her nod he added, "I guess that explains why my arm hurts so much. Well, I guess the serum works then since I'm still alive and all. Ugh... I feel sick," he muttered, losing his balance once more. Thankfully he didn't fall this time but only because April was there to catch him and lead him slowly back to the bed.

She checked him over and even changed his bandage, "So how are you feeling other than sick?"

Mikey gave April his patented puppy dog look. "Everything's kinda a blur after snatching Leo from the jaws of death; I don't really remember anything other than being scared for him."

"You're forgiven for one reason," April stated, crossing her arms angrily.

"I am?" Mikey asked hopefully. "I mean, what reason?"

Suddenly she moved forward, quickly wrapping her arms fiercely around him as she fought desperately to hold her tears, "You didn't leave me too. You lived."

Startled, it took a moment for Mikey to realise how scared she must have been and he gently returned the embrace. "I'll never leave you guys, Ape. Donnie, Leo, Raphie... you, you're my world."

Nodding, she sniffled, "You are too, you're my brothers and I have no one else. I was so scared I'd lose you, Mikey. I didn't know what I would have done."

Mikey continued comforting April for a few minutes before carefully pulling back, though he refused to let go of her. "Speaking of our brothers, I need to see that they're okay with my own eyes. Please?"

"Okay, maybe it's for the best since Donnie had to take care of both of them since that morning," April reluctantly agreed. "I wouldn't be surprised if he's exhausted himself."

"Probably," Mikey laughed, grateful she finally relented. He pushed himself back off the bed and stumbled slightly. Quickly regaining his balance, Mikey began to lead the way out of the lab, stopping in shock at seeing the huge mess of gore and body parts still littered throughout the living room.

"We really need to clean this later, "April sighed, adroitly avoiding stepping into a congealed puddle of blood.

Mikey nodded, feeling a little greener than usual. They were never going to get the stink out; he had doubts they'd get the blood out either but he thought better of saying it. He only hoped his now much younger brothers hadn't seen this but knew from what April said, that Donnie had at least. "Do you know if they're in one of their rooms?" he asked, glancing towards the storage room he vaguely remembered leaving Leonardo in.

April shrugged, "I don't know. I haven't seen Donnie since some time after he went to check on Leo and came back and told me they were safe. After that, I asked him to check the cameras to see if he could catch anything odd that would explain what happened that morning. I was on death row watch so I couldn't and thought it was a good time to figure it out and make sure no other threats were about. He was gone by the time your fever finally broke."

Mikey shuddered at the term 'Death Row Watch' and wished to shell Raph had never coined it as such. "Well, I guess we'll check the storage room first since it's right here and hopefully Donnie wouldn't have let Leo see all this," he said, motioning at the room around them. "Then we can check the bedrooms if they aren't there."

-:-

The last room was empty with no sign of life and having completely searched the lair from top to bottom, April shuddered, "Mikey they're not in here either." After checking the main living areas, the storage room, kitchen and each and every bedroom, a sudden fear had started to settle in.

Mikey turned terrified, questioning eyes to April, "It's a big lair. What if... what if something made it past us and they're running from it or it got them or... or... What if they're dead?" he finished in a whisper.

Biting her lip she placed her hand on his shoulders, "I can't see that being the case. Donnie is smart and he would have made sure they're fine. Besides, I know we got them all. Why don't we try the Shell-cell, you did instruct him to have it on him all times right?"

Mikey took in a deep breath and nodded, his panic abated at April's reassurance. He went to pull out his Shell-cell, only to discover it wasn't tucked into his belt like usual. Glancing back towards the bloody living area nauseously, Mikey gulped, "I must have lost mine. Do you have yours?"

"Yes," April pulled hers out, seeing it a bit stained by blood.

She handed it to Mikey who gingerly took it before quickly dialling Donnie's phone. He listened in dismay to the message recorded in Donatello's adult voice, 'The Cell you are dialling is switched off or out of range.'

In a flat, hopeless voice, Mikey repeated the message aloud, then switched to the tracking app, knowing if it was off or the battery had died, the tracker would still be able to be picked up if it was close enough.

"Nothing. His Shell-cell isn't even showing up on the tracker." He looked up at April anxiously.

Growing silent she pursed her lips a moment. "Maybe it's just not working right..." April had that feeling again, "like everything else around here."

Mikey shook his head, knowing Donnie built the Shell-Cells far better than that. The phones were literally their lifeline to each other, both before the apocalypse and since. "It was working fine yesterday," he offered. "Wait, was it yesterday that we were invaded or was it the day before? The week before?" he asked, completely unsure about how much time he'd been out. "And what do you mean, 'like everything else'?"

"Yesterday and you never know, since the cameras haven't been working properly... then. There was the emergency hatch, the lights and oh, about nearly everything we don't have enough power for," April trailed off. Suddenly, her words hit her and she started to panic, "Mikey we need to check the camera in case there was a breach!"

"Wait! What do you mean the cameras haven't been working?" Mikey asked frantically. "Since when?"

"Since two days ago..."

"And you didn't tell me?" Mikey squeaked. "April!"

"Sorry! You were asleep at the time and I forgot to tell you in the morning because we were so busy. I don't know, the first time I know of was when the first horde hit us during the cleanup, the second time was that last attack that could have wiped us out when they managed to invade the lair! I asked Donnie to look into it but what if he saw something and went to check it out? I thought him not coming back was because of the way I was acting and how sick you were. I thought him saying nothing was just a sign I was seeing things and hearing that damn whistle!"

"Damn whistle?" Mikey questioned in confusion as he followed her back towards the lab. Luckily, his balance had improved during the search for their brothers but he still felt weak and wobbly. "When did you hear a whistle or see anything?"

"The first time I heard the whistle was before the first attack and it was echoing behind us. The second time, I swore I saw a box above the door to the entrance and it was coming from that. Then Donnie said he saw nothing on the live feed but the recording clearly showed a horde there and... then the first zombies we killed when coming back to the lair had disappeared, yet my sai was still out there along with the brick. In the logs, the screen went briefly white and they were suddenly floating down the water yet no one was there or showed up on any cameras. I thought I was losing it from all the stress because you never commented on the whistle."

Mikey felt sick all over again as he listened to her story. "You still should have said something. You know I wouldn't have judged you, Ape."

"I was... I mean why would I hear it and not you? You have better hearing than me!" April pointed out feeling like she was some crazy turtle lady. "You always have had!"

"My bros and I have been training not just our bodies but our senses our whole lives," Mikey pointed out "But that doesn't necessarily mean anything. I remember Donnie once going on about how some people hear different frequency pitches better than others, like, how children hear higher pitches and as they grow up, they don't. It could be something like that. You're human, well, mostly human now with a little bit of Donnie DNA mixed in, and I'm a turtle with some human in me. It makes sense that you could hear something I mightn't," he explained unsteadily. "Does that make sense?" he asked anxiously. Unlike the Donnie of old, he wasn't an authority on the subject but thinking about it that way made sense to him at least, even if he couldn't give scientific details.

Thinking on it she gulped, "Yes, but that only proves Donnie did more to change me to take the immunity drug to work than we thought because I never heard that sound in my life and it actually drove me nuts."

Looking at the entrance doors, she now realised she could still hear it faintly through the thick material and a shiver coursed through her veins, "Someone was using it to draw them, the fresh must hear it so that is why they show up just after it started... Mikey, it's still going on out there, who knows how many have been pulled towards that door by now."

Mikey glanced uneasily towards the door. "Doesn't Donnie have some device thingie that picks up on sounds? You could try and see if it picks it up and analyse it, then you'll know what it is," he suggested helpfully.

"I think so but first we need to find where our brothers are. The lair cameras have been functioning properly as far as I can tell, so I'm guessing the outside ones have been tampered with which could explain everything." She rushed inside the lab stopping dead at the window up on the computer and seeing the front door camera paused on white noise, "This must have been the last thing he saw."

Rewinding the feed, she could feel Mikey's anxiety rolling over her. She ignored it, pausing the recording just before the camera filled with white noise as she saw a blurry hand that looked human.

"That hand doesn't look very zombie-like," Mikey pointed out doubtfully, feeling sick all over again. "Or green."

"And if it was a zombie, why would it aim for the camera... Mikey, I think someone did rig the cameras out there somehow. But the problem is what happened to Donnie after he saw this?" She looked over her shoulder towards him.

Mikey had a sudden fearful thought but didn't want to say anything and risk of hurting April. "Maybe we can track his movements through the lair with the cameras. Especially since you guys did put them everywhere against Leo's orders," he pointed out, practically hanging over her shoulder.

"Right and to think Leo thought it was a bad idea," April muttered before bringing up all the cameras including the labs that showed the medical area. "Do you want me to close that one?" April asked before rewinding.

Mikey shook his head, "Just track his movements through the lair, starting when you last knew he was in here."

"Okay." April rewound the footage, stopping when Donnie was in the lab looking things over. They watched the moment he discovered the interference on the recording, the way he froze and stared at the screen, sneaking a glance back at April. Not long after that was when Mikey seized and Donnie came closer before fleeing when even April thought he died. The horror hitting her all over again, her hand shook on the mouse, "I... I didn't know he was still in the room... Or... oh god, Mikey, is he missing because of me?"

For moments after her question, Mikey stared at the screen, horrified by seeing what she'd had to deal with on her own. Then, shaking his head, brought himself back to the present. "We don't know he's missing yet, just that we can't find him," he reminded her. "For all we know, maybe he thought I died then. Use the cameras to follow him out of the room and wherever he went."

Nodding slowly, she pressed play.

-:-

Terrified because he'd just lost the one remaining certain thing in his life, Donatello fled the room he knew had once been his sanctuary, even if he didn't recall it now. No longer caring what he stepped in, Donnie reached the storage room in seconds. Peering inside, he was relieved to see his little brothers still asleep, Leo curled protectively around Raph. "Stay there," he whispered brokenly, "I'll be back for you as soon as I can." Then, carefully closing the door behind him, Donnie raced for his bedroom where he remembered seeing a large duffle bag.

Pawing through the bag, Donnie was relieved to see it well stocked with first aid equipment, with ropes, a flashlight, a small handheld computer and other odds and ends they might need. Hefting the bag up, he realised it would be too heavy to cart around while also carrying Raph and as much food as they could carry so he removed everything but the tablet, a solar battery charger and a few other essentials such as a screwdriver which he tucked into his belt, dumping them on the floor. Then he ran for the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Donnie picked up the three plastic jars of turtle pellets, hoping they'd be able to restock in the near future, a few cans of food and the remaining bread for Leo and himself. Then, he made his way for the dojo and looked over the weapons.

He'd trained in several weapons in his short life but his favourite, feeling the most natural in his hands, was the bo. Unfortunately, the only bo in there was far too large for him to handle effectively and there weren't any hanbos.

Biting his lip, Donnie reached for a pair of kali sticks and studied them before tossing one aside; he'd never been very good at handling two weapons at once so there was no point carrying two when he had so much else to carry. He also grabbed a handful of kunai, shuriken and smoke bombs, stashing them in pockets on his belt and within his bag.

Then, feeling as ready as he ever would, Donnie raced back to his brothers and roused Leo. "Wake up," he demanded firmly, shaking his little brother forcefully.

"Is it lunchtime?" Leo yawned before snuggling his beak back into Raph warm body.

"No," Donnie said softly, his heart breaking at what he had to tell his little brother. "It's time to go." He turned and picked up Raph, who unconsciously snuggled into him.

"Where?" Leo asked, reluctantly getting to his feet and rubbing his eyes.

"Away from this place," Donnie replied curtly. "Shh! You don't want to wake up Raphie. We need to be quiet."

"Away?" Leo asked in confusion, "Where is sis and Mikey?"

Donnie cringed, wondering yet again where Leo picked up that nickname from. "Mikey's lost," Donnie explained, not wanting to explain that he, like their father was dead or directly lie and tell Leo that Mikey was okay when he wasn't. "As for April... she needed to be with other humans. We can't rely on her anymore."

Leo went silent at 'Mikey's lost', recalling his nightmare as his eyes started to water. Pushing the thought away he had to ask, "But sis is family, why would she want other humans? She doesn't smell like a human."

Donnie sighed, "She only doesn't smell like them because she's been living in the sewers with us. It's no life for a human," he explained, opening the door and leading the way out while blocking Leo's view of the carnage in the living room as best he could.

The small turtle sniffled, unable to believe that April wouldn't want them, not after she said she cared about them. Even so, he obediently followed Donatello, whimpering all the way.

Donnie soon lead the way down to the floor below, taking them to something he'd discovered when reading the security details of the lair. Besides the main door, the helicopter launchpad and the emergency hatch into the lake, there was one other route out but it was a one-way trip as records showed there wasn't much fuel remaining. It would be enough to get them out of the city via the underground river and that would be about it. Donnie just had to hope when they had to abandon it, they'd be far enough away from any zombies to have a chance because they had no chance if they stayed here. The events of the last few hours were proof of that.

Taking a deep breath as he walked out onto the short jetty, Donnie crouched down and spun the wheel holding the door to the submarine closed, unlocking and opening it on its hinge. "Leo, I'll go in first," he said softly, "and you follow after me."

"Donnie, why would sis not want us?" Leo spoke finally, gazing up at the sub, unsure as to what it was.

Donnie stopped, only his head still poking up out of the submarine as he tried to keep a careful hold on Raph. "Because she's human. We're only a curiosity to her and with Mikey go... lost, there's no one to protect her. She doesn't truly care about us. When Mikey's not there, she lies and is always so cold. Kinda like Miss Minchin who runs the home in 'A Little Princess'," he explained, remembering how they'd watched the movie only a few weeks before from Leonardo's point of view.

"But Mikey wasn't around and she... she talk to me when no one else would and played with me too! She even let me talk about dad and understood how sad I was. She is not cold and even let me play tricks on you and Mikey if I leave Raphie alone! And Raphie really likes her too!" Leonardo stomped his foot to emphasise his point.

"She was just trying to gain your trust," Donnie explained, feeling sick as he remembered the way she reached for the sai in the infirmary. "Either way, we can't rely on her anymore. We have to leave."

"Why?" Leo took a petulant step back.

"Because it's too dangerous to stay here! There's not enough food and if the zombies made it inside once, they can do it again!" Donnie explained in exasperation. "And this time there won't be a Mikey to protect us... to keep you and Raphie safe..."

"NO! I don't want to go!"

"There's nothing here for us anymore, Leo. There's no one here for us..." Donnie said softly. "We're on our own and we only have each other now..."

"Out there is dang... dang... bad! Mikey and sis said so! There is monsters!"

"And the monsters managed to get inside..." Donnie pointed out, reminding Leo before heading further inside. "They know where we live and how to get in." His voice echoed slightly as it emanated from the submarine.

"No," Leonardo crossed his arms, pouting.

"Then," Donnie said sadly, "I guess you'll have to stay here on your own because Raphie and I are leaving with the last of the food." As he said that, he placed his duffle on the floor and Raph into a seat, working out a way to secure him safely in place.

"Fine!"

Donnie moved to the control panel, studying it. He'd feared it might be difficult but it actually didn't look too bad. He flipped on a switch turning on the lights and sat down.

Then studied the board a little more and smiled as he found the engine switch, turning it on.

"Goodbye, Leonardo! I'll miss you, little brother, and think of you at meal times!"

Suddenly Leonardo scampered inside, crying, "You're mean! You were going to leave me!"

Donnie looked at him askance a moment before climbing the ladder to seal the hatch. "Never," he smiled softly, giving Leo a noogie like Raphael used to do to him and Mikey.

Huffing, Leo grumbled under his breath and went to Raph, sitting beside him and sulking.

"Strap in, Leo, this might be bumpy," he warned as he settled in the seat and started steering away from the dock.

-:-

Mikey stared in disbelief as he watched the sub move away on the screen, his fingers clenching too tightly into April's shoulder.

"Ouch, Mikey, you're hurting me," April complained even as she placed her hand over his to show him he wasn't alone and she too was terrified by this turn of events.

"Sorry, Ape," Mikey replied faintly, still staring at the screen. Why, oh why, wasn't there audio outside the lab? "What were they thinking? How could they just leave and go out there like that?"

"I don't know but at the moment it doesn't matter. Right now we are stuck and we need to figure out what to do from here on out. Mikey, we might have to go to Raph's idea." She said, rushing over to find the piece of equipment that detected sounds. "Go get the hiking backpacks!"

"What we need to do is to catch up with them before they get themselves killed!" Mikey protested fearfully, watching impotently as April pawed through the lab. "But how are we supposed to do that now without the submarine? They'll get too far ahead and we'll never catch up with them!"

"What we need to do is get prepared to leave so that when we reach them we can continue and not look back." April started to gather what necessary medical supplies they needed and some notes Donnie had she knew she could never leave behind. "Please, Mikey, the backpacks!" she insisted irritably.

"You're channelling a little too much of Raph for my liking there, Ape," Mikey pointed out, edging reluctantly for the door. He at once didn't want to pass through the massacre and needed to get after his brothers right that instant. "It's not a good look on you."

"You have the red you may as well embrace it," she smirked, flipping her hair before getting back to work.

Mikey eyed her suspiciously before finally leaving and going to the storage room for the bags she requested. It turned out they were already half-packed, ready for an emergency escape should it come to that. He said as much when he returned to the lab and April.

"Go to the kitchen and get what you can carry. I have some explosives to set up and a few other things, once I figure out what the hell that sound is."

"Great," Mikey mumbled, "now she's channelling Donnie too... So how are we supposed to escape this little death trap you're setting up, huh?" he called over his shoulder as he made his way to the door again.

"They are drawn to that sound so if I can figure out what it is, I can set all the speakers Donnie and I set up around the lair to beat out that same sound. It should draw them away from the door and to the middle of the lair. That'll allow us to escape before I blow the lab up and make the lair useless to whichever bastards had set those traps and... convinced Donnie with the idea that I'm the damn bad guy!"

Glad he was leaving the lab so April couldn't see his face, Mikey couldn't help but wince as he realised she knew what he suspected about just why Donnie left. "Okay," he replied doubtfully, before rushing out and to the kitchen.

After stuffing his bag with as many supplies as he could, food and a few light kitchen utensils, frying pan and saucepan, Mikey too paid a visit to the dojo to stock up on what he could carry, also taking a few extra pairs of shuko spikes, because you never knew when they'd come in handy and he didn't know if his brothers or April had them on hand. About to leave, he cast a last, longing look about the dojo before suddenly moving in to grab Donnie's spare bo. Then he went upstairs to the bedrooms, heading into Master Splinter's old room to take the one photo of them all as a family taken a few years ago, stuffing it carefully into the bag in a waterproof pouch.

Moving to the small shrine, Mikey lit a stick of Splinter's favourite incense and knelt down to pay his final respects, quickly explaining why they had to leave and promising he and April would find their family and never let go again.

When he was done, Mikey swallowed and stood, going to leave. Suddenly, he had the strangest feeling he wasn't alone and looked back. There seemed to be the barest flicker of movement where there shouldn't have been any but he couldn't make out anything and he smiled sadly before leaving.

Next, Mikey entered his own room, looking all about. He stared at the poster of the Silver Sentry on his wall, wishing the superhero was real and not just the product of comics and movies because if so, the world would never have come to this. He moved forward to his comic boxes, wishing he could take them with him and knowing he couldn't, but he figured one wouldn't hurt and that way, he'd at least have something to read Leo if, no when, they found them again. Picking one standalone issue and also stuffing it into the waterproof pouch, he left the room and went to each of his brothers', gazing inside for long moments, taking in the memories of who they used to be until only a few days prior.

Gulping, Mikey stopped at April's door, figuring as an afterthought that she'd need a change of clothes and a warm jacket. Hoping she'd forgive him for going through her underwear drawer, Mikey entered the room and picked out a few items of clothing, noticing just how much purple she actually had. He also grabbed her a pair of hiking boots she had tucked away, realising she was only wearing sneakers right now.

Then, and only then, did he make his way back to April, stopping only long enough to search the gore of the lifeless bodies for his Shell-cell and go clean it off.

Standing there before the door, April turned on the machine to figure out the annoying sound that was making her ears ring more the longer she was influenced by it.

Waiting for the analysis, she played out in her head all the places she had the C4 setup, ready to activate with one push of the button programmed in her Shell-cell. She figured it was perfectly set to destroy everything in the lab, she even went as far as setting some up in the kitchen without telling Mikey, knowing the idea would horrify him.

If someone wanted their home so badly she was going to give it to them but not before redecorating and making it worthless to them first.

Hearing someone approach her, she looked over her shoulder to see Mikey holding some of her stuff in his hands, smirking knowingly at the underwear that he tried to tuck out of sight, "At least you don't have my underwear on your head, Mikey," she joked, trying desperately to alleviate the situation they found themselves in. Mikey really had rubbed off on her a little too much over the years.

Mikey gazed at her mortified. "Yeah, I'm not Raph! I'd never desecrate a lady's unmentionables like that!" he protested.

"Sure... I know you were the one that made that bet with him. It took a while but I got Donnie to finally confess to me a while back and I can see that you might have test driven them on him to make sure it fit over Raph's big head."

Shrugging, Mikey admitted with a sly smile, "Yeah, Raphie lost a bet but he should've known better than to bet against the champion! Here!" He thrust his armful of her clothing towards her.

"Uh-huh..." She smirked again leaning in with a wink as she took the clothes, "You should have got a picture of Donnie when you ambushed him while he was asleep."

Mikey snorted; that had been hilarious and the sad thing was that Donnie was way too exhausted from yet another all-nighter that he never even knew about it until well after. "I did, actually," Mikey admitted. "Managed to get a still from the recording in the lab before Donnie changed the password on me," he explained with an amused snicker, watching as April put her clothing into her bag.

"He never knew what I took, all he knew was that I did something and decided to make sure I couldn't do it again." He glanced anxiously towards the lair entrance, even though he couldn't see through the wall."Though I did crack the password again a couple of times after, until that last one, anyway. That stumped me and then things got so serious that there were more important things to worry about."

"Is that so? I always wondered the true nature of why you did it and if you had an image but figured you would be too shocked that I knew about your little game and how you used my underwear to rage your prank wars to ask." She smiled sadly, sealing her bag with the clothing shoved inside as she focused on the machine again when it started to beep at her.

"Heh! You got me!" Mikey chuckled sheepishly. "Sorry if I embarrassed you or anything, I was like sixteen at the time and way bored. Thanks for not spilling to Don; he'd have killed me. So would Leo. And Master Splinter," he added as an afterthought.

"Oh? Who said I was embarrassed? Why do you think I only had such lacy lingerie on view when I don't wear that kind at all?" April laughed, pressing the button. "Knowing I was hanging around a bunch of teenage ninja who hadn't exactly had much interaction with humans, I figured someone would try something so I thought I'd see who would be the first to indulge their curiosity only to find the most eccentric and unused, pairs I could find. I was only surprised that you never gave yourself away. Raph on the other hand got a bit... weird around me for a while after that."

"So what's it say?" Mikey asked, nodding towards the machine as he changed the subject; they really had been awful back then and he was secretly happy she'd anticipated such antics and moved to prevent them from doing so.

Looking down, she paled in embarrassment, "You got to be kidding me..."

"What is it?" Mikey asked, grabbing it out of her hands when she didn't respond, simply continuing to stare at the display instead. "Dog whistle? Really?" Mikey stared April up and down.

"You don't look like you have fur to me..." he said doubtfully. "Although, you are quite hairy... no wonder you don't wear the lacy stuff normally."

Blinking at him with her jaw open, she swatted at him, growling, "For your information it's natural for humans to have hair and it's not like I was going to borrow Leo's katana to shave my damn legs! It's natural and pointless to maintain when the world has gone to shit. At least my legs will be warmer when winter hits!" Huffing, she stalked away towards the lab to make the speakers play a dog whistle of all things. She was just happy he didn't say 'come here girl' or...

"Good girl!" Mikey smirked.

"Shell!," she cursed, then cringed, hating him all the more at the moment.

Mikey laughed, feeling a little better than before. He wandered off to Leo's desk in the living room, pleased to see it still standing and in one piece. Opening the drawers, he rifled through them, looking for the maps he knew Leo kept for when he was strategising. Finding what he was looking for, he pulled it out and began pouring over it as he waited for April to do her thing.

"Okay, I have everything set up but first, do we have everything we need?" April asked, walking up behind him. "Once I turn the speakers on we'll wait in the lab and open the lair door. When the horde thins out enough, we'll slip through them without a fight and exit through the main tunnel that brings us into the city. Whoever is around might think we would flee for the main manhole or the next one, since they're closer. Once we're at a good distance I'll set off the C4 and hope it will distract the people behind this enough to get away, as well as any biters around."

"No, we don't have everything," Mikey replied softly, lamenting that they had to leave their home and all their belongings behind, "but we have the absolute essentials and all we can realistically carry. Anything more and we won't be able to move fast enough if and when we need to."

Looking him over she, held her hand out, "Let me have it Mikey and can you quickly fetch me a sheet so I can use it to swaddle Raph in since I'll be the one carrying him and it would be nice to have my hands free."

"Have what?" Mikey asked, looking at her in confusion.

She pointed to the bo staff, "You're overburdened so let me have Donnie's weapon."

"Oh yeah! I actually grabbed it for you, figuring you'd need something to keep them at a distance," Mikey explained sheepishly, unable to believe he'd forgotten to tell her. "This is the one that converts into a naginata too, so you can pop out a blade at the end when you need it." He quickly unsheathed it from his belt and handed it over. Then he started to run off for the sheet – he had the sheet in mind.

Accepting the weapon then working out how to carry it as she moved towards the lab, she made sure everything was in order while waiting for Mikey to come back.

A few minutes later, Mikey returned, triumphantly holding up a large two-toned red cloth with numerous sai embroidered all over it. "Found just the thing!" he exclaimed proudly. "Made it for Raphie yonks ago but never got around to giving it to him with all the crap that went down. I was going to make matching sets for my other bros too but... yeah"

Smiling, April took it, "Ah, it's so cute and would work great, thanks, Mikey."

Mikey beamed proudly. "I'm glad I didn't have to leave it behind after all. I put a lot of work into that."

"I can tell, so I will take it that it's time we get this show on the road?"

Gulping at the finality of it all, Mikey nodded, looking around the lair one last time. He couldn't believe they were about to abandon another home. Again, due to uncalled for violence towards them.

"There's no turning back now, Mikey," April said as coolly as she could but her fear was very much on the surface; this might not have been a normal home but still, this was her home too and to leave it like this was heartrending.

Sighing, he nodded. "Farewell to yet another home," he said sadly, looking about the gore-splattered living room for the final time. "Goodbye TVs. Goodbye comfy couch. Goodbye, homely kitchen."

"I know how you feel," April admitted quietly, "but I prefer this to someone disgracing the memories that were here and defiling it when we leave. Just the thought of anyone touching Donnie's lab actually pisses me off for that was our place and..."

"Yeah... and now you're channelling Leo," Mikey chuckled softly. Slowly, he began following her into the lab. He really was anxious to get after his brothers and find them before anything else found them first but he felt overwhelmed at the thought of never seeing home again. "Goodbye butt groove," he called towards the couch and was set to continue when April grabbed his mask tail hard, pulling him along behind her.

"Mikey, we'll be saying goodbye forever if we don't do this now and get on our way already. We need to make this quick and I don't think the butt groove cares that you'll miss it or not. Besides, you can always honour its memory with another piece of furniture one day."

Mikey yelped as he was dragged along, interrupted from his coping method. He snorted derisively. "Somehow I don't think we're going to find any new furniture to call our own in this world. Nowhere is safe anymore." When she let him go, he sealed the door behind them. "Seriously. Where are we even going to go when we find them?" he asked, refusing to look at her. He knew there was no choice but didn't like it any more than she did.

"I take it you have Leo's maps?" she asked, having seen him going over them earlier.

Mikey shook his head. "Couldn't fit them in the bag. I spent the time waiting for you studying where the underground river leads. The sub doesn't have a lot of fuel, so..."

"I figured as much," April flipped her phone showing all the photos of every map Leo had and others Mikey probably hadn't seen, "He always had a plan even when it was against his current judgement."

"That's a relief," Mikey breathed. "But what happens when the battery runs out?"

"I have one spare set, but we can figure something out later," April pointed out. "After we find them I'll turn it off to save the battery life; we don't need to view the maps every second, only now and then to make sure we're still on track."

"Okay, sounds good. So... we going to do this?"

"Unfortunately, yes. So who will be responsible for flooding the lair with zombies and who will blow up the lab and kitch..." April coughed cutting her words off but too late.

Mikey shot her a look then shrugged. "Suppose that's better than any interlopers using my precious kitchen," he sniffed. "You flood the lair. I always wanted to blow stuff up but Leo, Raph and Donnie wouldn't let me! Donnie only because he wanted to do it all himself. Selfish turtle. Leo and Raphie just didn't want me to have any fun."

April rolled her eyes. "Typical male. Fine, here's my cell. Don't lose it or drop it!"

Mikey grinned as he took it, stroking it lovingly, "April's precious."

"Oh god... Let's just get this over with before you start doing something else weird." April ran to the computer, remotely released the lockdown and opened the front door. Then she activated the program to blast the dog whistle over the speakers in the living room.

The sound pumped powerfully through the multiple speakers in the neighbouring room and overwhelmed, she grabbed at her ears and stumbled back, no longer able to function or even remain standing.

-:-


Took a few chapters to get there *coughs* but they are finally about to leave on the promised journey.

Comments, thoughts and concrit are always welcome.