Displaced
Chapter 6
The smoke burned his eyes and the alarms rang in his ears. His muscles jerked with adrenalin and various small wounds and bruises were making themselves known despite the adrenalin pumping through him. Still Raphael pushed himself up to his feet, eyes already scanning for his brothers and allies.
I don't want to be here.
They were trapped in a burning fortress, surrounded by Foot bots and kraang droids. Many of their allies had been injured and were now barricading the doors to where they were making a last stand; a large space with an upper level catwalk to the various kraang machinery. Something Donatello had done had caused the computers to glitch; portals were opening and closing all over the place. There in the center of all of this; Leonardo and Splinter were locked in a losing battle with Shredder and Kraang Prime.
As Raphael watched, Splinter was dealt a hard blow and was knocked backwards; slamming his head into the metal paneling around them. Leonardo immediately jumped between their father and their opponents. He was losing steam through, and one of his blades had already been split in two.
Raphael could feel his lips pulling back into a sneer. There was no victory as things stood; only death. And that was unacceptable. He jumped over to where Donatello was trying to hack into the kraang controls with Michelangelo guarding his back.
"Donnie, can you create an exit rout for us?" He demanded.
Donatello didn't look up from the controls before them, "Leo wants me to…"
Raphael set his hand on Donatello's shoulder. That was enough to get him to turn wide, fearful eyes on his big brother. Raphael spoke with firm seriousness, "Make a path out of here. I'll get Leo and Splinter away from Shredder. You and Mikey grab them and lead our whole group out of here."
"What about you?" Michelangelo asked, sounding somehow younger and older than he should.
Raphael grinned, "I'll be the rear guard; right behind you."
I didn't mean to lie. I was going to be right behind you guys.
Donatello set his mouth in a thin line, "Done."
Raphael ginned at his lanky brother, and moved away. His sai twirled in his hand easily, as Michelangelo stepped up to his side. Raphael gave a vicious smile, "Kraang first."
Should have gone for Shredder first.
With that Raphael darted forward. He snagged a chain and ran around the edge of the fight, until he was behind Kraang Prime. With a flick of his wrist, part of the chain wrapped around Kraang's ankle. Then he darted across to Kraang's other side, pulling the chain tight.
"What the…?" Kraang Prime asked.
Right on cue, Michelangelo flew through the air, a cheerful battle cry on his lips. He kicked Kraang Prime on the head of the robot, unbalancing it. The lumbering robot tripped on the chain and tumbled through one of the portals opening right behind him. Whatever curse he yelled was lost as the portal snapped closed. Raphael turned to see where the fight stood with Shredder. Just in time to see Shredder knock Leonardo onto the ground and raise his bladed hand to strike.
Throw a shuriken, a smoke bomb, anything ranged!
In a heartbeat Raphael was there, tangling Shredders blades in his sai. He could feel the strain on his legs as he wrestled with the Shredder, strength to strength. His youngest brother flashed in his peripheral vision, grabbing Leonardo and pulling him clear of the battle. Raphael could hear the argument; but he quickly tuned it out, instead opting to abruptly roll backwards, pulling Shredder with him. Then he kicked the overbalanced Shredder into a portal. Unfortunately the portal closed just as Shredder reached it, letting him land on his feet and turn to face Raphael.
"You are far outmatched, turtle." Shredder rumbled darkly.
"Prove it." Raphael returned, quickly re-engaging Shredder.
He was right, I was outmatched.
He needed to keep Shredder distracted from their small band of mutants. Slash was concentrating their allies at what Raphael assumed was the chosen exit rout; defending it from the Foot and droids. Michelangelo and Donatello were pulling the injured Splinter and Leonardo toward the same. So long as Shredder didn't realize what was happening; they might get away. So Raphael focused. Trading blows one on one with Shredder was more intense than any battle he had fought before. And it was a fight Raphael knew he was losing. But for his Family to escape, he'd hold on.
He took his focus off Shredder for just a moment to check on how close everyone was to the exit. A second was all the ninja master needed. His long blades swept down and Raphael only had enough time to turn his back to the strike, hoping his shell would protect him.
It didn't.
Why did I think it would?
The blades sank deep into his shell and stuck fast. Raphael blinked in shock, even as the Shredder comically yanked him around trying to dislodge his blades.
"Raphael!" A horrified cry cut through the haze in his mind. He brought up his left sai to catch Shredders left hand before he could stab Raphael in the neck. Then there was a moment of stillness, as they were locked together, without clear means of breaking it. Shredder glanced over, and Raphael was close enough to see his eyes go wide and then narrow in understanding. Raphael met his gaze evenly when Shredder looked him in the eye.
"Ah, a distraction. I applaud your courage turtle; however their escape would only prolong the inevitable. This ends tonight." Shredder spoke quietly, just between the two of them.
"Agreed." Raphael hissed, never dropping Shredder's gaze, even as he tightened his grip on the sai in his right hand.
Then in an explosion of movement, Shredder ripped the claws free of his shell. Raphael also tore away, releasing the sai in his left hand, ducking low and stabbing up. Then there was a moment of stillness between the combatants in their new positions as something clattered on the floor beside them.
Raphael looked up from where he had stabbed his sai up into Shredder's left side. From Shredder's blank face, he had managed to hit Shredder's heart. All he had to do was pull out the sai.
I never killed anyone before that.
Several someone's were calling his name, with the kind of distress that normally captured all of Raphael's attention. At the moment Raphael was barely able to focus on the Shredder through the fuzziness of his mind and the pain at the edges of his awareness.
"At least I know you die with me." Shredder offered with a cold finality in his voice.
With furious strength, Shredder tossed Raphael through a portal. Raphael heard the terrible sound as his sai pulled free from Shredder.
He was airborne.
Could he not go through the portal this time? Can't he stay?
He flailed, and found himself tangled in sheets. A quick scramble later and he was sitting upright in his bed in the lair of a different dimension.
Raphael gasped in breath, trying to slow his hammering heart. Just a dream; the same dream he had since dropping into this dimension. The same memory he couldn't do a damn thing about. Shaking his head he hopped out of his bed. Then he quickly dressed and slid his sai into his belt. He rubbed at his damaged shoulder as he left his room; the tablet in his other hand. Waking up due to nightmares gave him time to work on strengthening his injured muscles; without Donnie or Leo breathing down his neck.
He froze, and itching feeling on the back of his neck. Someone was in the liar. And he had stupidly walked out into an open area. He shifted onto the ball of his feet.
And jumped.
Just as someone landed where he had been.
Raphael had darted forward, mindful to not roll onto his still damaged shell even as he dropped the tablet. Spinning to face whomever dared to invade the lair.
Karai stood there looking at him curiously; like she was looking at a specimen to dissect. Raphael suppressed a shudder; glad his poncho was hiding his injury. Suddenly Karai moved, and Raphael found himself on the defensive. He was horribly rusty, and the fight was quickly turning in Karai's favor.
They briefly grappled and Karai hissed, "You're the one who Tasered me, aren't you?"
"You kidnapped the turtles! And burned down a Research Lab!" Raphael yelled; hoping it would draw someone to help.
Karai twisted her wrist, and a small modified Taser shot out of her wrist guards. Raphael was so close he didn't have any chance to dodge; only able to yelp as he twitched backwards. The electricity burned across his muscles. Then he felt his foot miss the edge of the upper level.
Fortunately the fall pulled the Taser prongs off him; freeing him from the electricity. It was too late to save his landing.
Raphael landed hard on his back; a loud crack resounding through the lair. Raphael gasped; all the wind knocked out of him. He barely managed to pull himself together to roll out of the way as Karai dropped down with a strike aimed at his head.
Karai was quick to follow. Raphael pulled his arms under to push off the floor but Karai was to fast; slamming a knee onto his back and holding a blade to his throat. Raphael hissed, scrabbling at the floor. The pain was somehow worse than when Shredder tore his shell off in the first place. Bad enough to blind him; but not bad enough to slide into shock.
"Get off him." A cold voice demanded.
Karai abruptly pulled Raphael upright; her knife held just under his jaw, and his right arm twisted up behind his back in Karai's grip. Before him stood Leo and Raph. They didn't have any of their armor, or masks; having clearly grabbed their weapons and run out. Raphael looked to the side where Mikey and Donnie were trying to flank Karai.
"Who…did one of you have a son?" Karai asked; twisting Raphael's arm up higher.
Raphael winced, pain spreading across his back.
Donnie called out, "Did she hurt you?"
"Shell." Raphael hissed out, his eyes squeezed shut.
Karai's grip on him tightened as she pulled him backwards. The knife forced his head to tilt up, and Raphael risked opening his eyes. Leo and Raph looked absolutely furious.
"Listen turtles. I've a proposal for you. My ninja will be retrieving Baxter Stockman. You will assist him with the reopening of the Krang portal." Karai rested her chin on Raphael's damaged shoulder, "Given that you shut down his portal the first time, that shouldn't be a problem."
Raphael shuddered; he was rapidly discovering he did not like anyone touching his damaged shell.
"Let him go." Leo's voice was fridge; and he took a deceptively gentle step forward.
"Careful." Karai pressed the knife firmly against Raphael's skin, "This is who the shell prosthetic is for, isn't it?"
Raph growled from somewhere in front of them.
Karai started pulling the two of them backwards, "The lab will be set up in three days. I expect to see you there ready to help."
"Release him." Raph demanded.
"Sure. After you've helped with the portal…" Karai began.
"No. You damaged his shell; he needs medical treatment immediately." Leo's voice was firm.
"Hah, nice try. All of you have healing factors." Karai continued dragging them to the entrance.
"He's from a dimension where they don't have healing factors." Leo continued.
"A clever lie to get me to release my hostage." Karai laughed.
"It's not a lie! Why else would we make a shell prosthetic?" Donnie insisted.
Karai hesitated.
Then Raph spoke, "You need a hostage? Fine. I'll take his place."
"No!" Raphael managed to bite out.
"You?" Karai asked, her chin lifting from Raphael's shoulder.
"Me. I won't fight you either. Unless you try anything funky; like lab experiments. No promises then." Raph's rumble reassured her.
Karai tilted the knife against Raphael's neck, "Leave your sai, and bind his hands behind his back."
Raphael opened his eyes enough to see Donnie hesitantly binding Raph's arms. Leo stood by looking immensely unhappy with the situation; but he was holding his brother's sai regardless.
Karai hissed, "If you try anything, or if your brothers try to rescue you before opening the portal, remember that I know where you live and how to get in unnoticed."
Leo spoke next, "We understand Karai. We'll see you in three days Raph."
"You better." Raph's low rumble came again.
"No, don't…." Raphael tried; it was getting harder to concentrate.
"The Docks on the third day. Warehouse 24." Karai demanded. Then she tossed Raphael down to the ground.
Raphael caught himself on his hands; snapping his head up to watch Karai disappear down a tunnel with Raph. He tried and failed to lift himself up. Then he turned to the turtles converging on him, "Why didn't you stop her?!"
"Because Baxter Stockman is this dimension's genius on wormholes and portals. Problem is, he's in jail. The Foot however is nice enough to deliver him to us on a silver platter." Donnie reasoned
"Yeah, at the cost of Raph!" Raphael snarled.
"Better him than you, Raph can heal from most anything they do to him." Mikey pointed out.
"Mikey, trail them." Leo commanded. Mikey was quick to obey.
"Raphael, can you move your legs?" Donnie asked, concerned.
"Of course I can…" Raphael tried to pick himself up. Again, nothing happened. "I..I can." He tried again. His arms cooperated, but his legs just laid there.
Raphael turned his wide eyed gaze over to Donnie. He only frowned, "I was worried about that. Leo, help me get him to the lab. Raphael?" Raphael's wide eyes never left Donnie's, "We're not going to abandon you. No matter what."
Mikey slipped through the lab as quietly as he could manage. He crept his way to where Donnie had once again pulled out the medical cot. Raphael looked small on the massive cot; the forced stillness of the green turtle didn't help.
"Raphael! I brought you Pizza." Mikey whispered with a happy grin.
Raphael rolled his head on the pillow to look at Mikey. Mikey held the depressed turtle's gaze until Raphael looked away, "Fine."
Mikey's grin widened as he pulled up a chair and set the pizza down on a nearby table. Raphael pushed himself up higher to sit up on the bed. Fresh bandages were across his torso, helping hold together a further cracked shell.
"So what did Donnie say?" Mikey asked, eyes wide.
"That I'm damn lucky to be a part human mutant. He was able to fix the pinched nerve; and my actual spine didn't get damaged. Still," Raphael waved his arm where an IV drip was attached to him, "Donnie has me so doped up I couldn't move much even if I wanted to."
"They're just worried you'd take off to rescue Raph without us." Mikey reassured him.
Raphael looked away. Called it, Mikey thought to himself. So he continued, "Raph's fine. Donnie slipped a tracker into his shell when he was tying up his hands. And he stabbed a knife in there too. If Raph decided he's done playing damsel in distress, he'll just let himself out!"
Mikey took a big bite of pizza. Raphael blinked morosely and nibbled at his own slice. Time for some distraction, "So…how's the sketchbook going?"
Raphael looked over at the book. Mikey had tried to steal it a couple times now; however Splinter or Raph usually got to him before Raphael noticed. Raphael sighed, "I don't know if it's making me more or less homesick."
That got Mikey's attention. Donnie must have put Raphael on the good stuff for him to be so honest.
Raphael continued, looking down at the pizza he was holding, "I'm almost out of pages. I think it helps though."
"Can I see?"
To Mikey's shock, Raphael just handed the sketchbook over. Then he returned to staring at a wall as he slowly ate his slice of pizza. Mikey eagerly opened the sketchbook. The drawings were good. Very good. Most were rough sketches; but some he had rendered with shadows and hatching. It was obvious who was who. His brothers looked a lot like him. Smaller, more human than Mikey and his family. There was Leonardo meditating in front of a tree. Donatello working on some machine. Michelangelo was talking to some sort of melting cat. Raphael's Splinter gave Mikey pause. He was very tall, and showed up a lot.
So did a turtle. Like an actual turtle, not a mutant turtle. "Who's the turtle?" Mikey asked.
"Spike. But he goes by Slash now." Raphael responded sadly.
Mikey wanted to ask more, but a gentle hand on his shoulder stopped him. Donnie had snuck up on them. He was looking at the pages with fascination. So Mikey kept flipping through. Two human teens showed up, they had to be April and Casey; though they bore no resemblance to the versions Mikey was used to. Then there were animals, squirrels and pigeons, some shots of parks and the zoo. More scenes from what had to be Raphael's home. There were even enemies; mutated creatures and robots.
As he reached the end of the sketchbook Mikey handed it back, "You should have said you were running out of pages; we'll get you a new one."
"Why do you care?"
Mikey glanced over at Donnie before looking back at their tiny guest, "Dude, because you're one of us."
Raphael looked away, unconvinced. So Mikey barreled on; holding up the sketchbook, "You're second oldest back home aren't you. You'd do anything for your brothers. Even when they're being annoying. Right?"
"They're my brothers. Of course."
"And Leonardo is your older brother."
"Technically we all mutated the same…" Raphael began, the ready tone of a common argument clear.
"Leonardo is your older brother." Mikey insisted.
Raphael just looked at him curiously.
"So, now that you have five older brothers, you know how this works. Quit acting like you're in a lab about to be dissected." Mikey concluded.
Raphael pointedly looked around the lab, with multiple implements for surgery at the ready.
Mikey sighed, "You know what I mean."
"Five?"
Donnie cut in, "Yeah, Leonardo, Leo, Raph, Mikey and me." Then Donnie bumped into Mikey's shoulder, "Honestly, Mikey here has been dying to try out this older brother business; best to just humor him."
Raphael snorted, but he had a light smile on now. Mikey looked up as Donnie puttered around checking on Raphael, "So, Dr. Don. When can Raphael come out to play?"
Donnie snorted, "Not right now. It's good you've got movement back in your legs but you still need to heal up. Think you can get some more sleep Raphael?"
"That's all I've been doing!"
"And that's all you'll be doing for a bit. Need I remind you how damn lucky you are that you have a human spine instead of a turtle spine?" Donnie reached out for the IV flow control.
Raphael yanked it away from him, "No more sedatives Donnie." Then he gave a small shudder, "That's still weird to think about. Isn't my shell supposed to be my spine?"
"If you were a turtle, yes. But you are actually part human, unlike us. And that saved you from a lifetime in a wheelchair."
Raphael blinked sleepily, "You aren't human?"
"No Dude. We're escaped lab experiments. Get some sleep. I'll save you some pizza for when you wake up!" Mikey offered.
As Raphael settled back to sleep, the two brothers slipped quietly out of the medical bay. Donnie tossed his arm across Mikey's shoulder, "When I asked you to trick him into taking the sedative, I honestly didn't expect you to do so well."
"Never doubt the Mikester! Just maybe don't any of this pizza." Mikey grinned, "Did Leo already slip out?"
Donnie looked over at the screen where Raph and Leo's trackers was showing, "Yeah. It's a good think Karai didn't say anything about the prosthetic in her demands."
Raph watched with mild annoyance as the various workers for the Foot scurried about the lab. He'd been their hostage for roughly a day. And in that time he had been transported to their headquarters; dragged in front of Shredder, and then carted down here to a warehouse presumably on the pier. The meeting with Shredder had been truly bizarre. He was apparently still deep in his recovery. Raph had been dragged past some physical therapy rooms. The kind you see amputees and old folks use. Then Shredder had been sitting upright; but he was hooked to an IV and various monitors.
And then, just to kill any sympathy Raph was about to feel; the Shredder asked him if he was the turtle who's shell he had broken. Raph figured silence was the path of valor and just sat down and shut up. Punching a bedridden man just didn't seem right, no matter how much he deserved it. It wasn't minutes of this act before he was being dragged away so Shredder could take his medicine.
It did make the whole situation even stranger to Raph though. Karai was clearly very motivated to open a portal for whatever reason. She had broken into the lair and apparently busted Baxter Stockman out of jail. Said jail bird was running about the warehouse bossing about the lab techs and eating a hamburger like his life depended on it.
Raph slid his gaze over to where Karai was observing from the catwalk. She was heavily armed; observing the whole affair with a scowl. Maybe Stockman's life did depend on his performance, Raph mused. He slid his gaze toward the table of prosthetics. For whatever reason Karai had brought them all here to the warehouse. He wasn't complaining; it enabled him to keep track of Raphael's shell.
It did admittedly bother him that he wasn't sure how badly Raphael was injured. Poor kid can't seem to catch a break. However, leaving him with Donnie was a far better choice than letting Karai drag him away; even if it did result in Donnie stabbing a knife into Raph's shell. He had been expecting the tracker to be tucked into his shell; not so much the knife. Now, he just had to sit here, pretending to be stuck, and waiting for his brothers.
Then a shadow passed over the skylight. Raph looked up; a whiteboard was being held up.
"R U OK?" was written on in.
Raph nodded slowly, trying to make it look like he was just stretching. The whiteboard dropped back down. Raph didn't need to wait long.
"Tiny is OK."
Raph gave another slow exaggerated nod. It had to be either Mikey or Leo. The whiteboard disappeared again before popping back up.
"Get Shell 2 me."
Raph didn't move. Sure enough the whiteboard disappeared and reappeared again.
"U stay. Shell needed."
Ah, Donnie must need the prosthetic for Raphael. He must have gotten more injured than they had though. Raph snorted; vindicated that he had made the right call offering himself up as hostage. His two guards turned to look at him; a mix of annoyed and fearful.
Now; how to get the shell without attracting attention? He didn't want to let anyone think he was escaping since that was the deal. The shell was on a table roughly twenty feet to his right. Karai was on the catwalk right above the table with the prosthetics. There was also a row of windows that had been cracked open on the wall across from Raph. Maybe seventy five feet? Give or take.
So; Karai, guards, lab techs, and a prosthetic shell. And he had a pocket knife and a tracker buried in his shell. What to do? Raph let his eyes rove over the warehouse some more. Whichever of his brothers had the whiteboard was trying to offer suggestions; but the drawings were too small and detailed to be of use to Raph.
Then he heard Stockman yelling at some tech about something flammable. Raph felt a grin cross his face. The mad scientist was standing beside some electrical cables and chemical containers.
The large turtle carefully grasped the knife, and with a firm yank, pulled it out of his shell. The brief flare of pain was easy to push to the back of his mind. Then he carefully grasped the tracker spike. It slid free of his shell as well. He had a very narrow shot at this. He cut through his binding; freeing his arms. Then he settled in for Stockman's next explosive yelling tantrum.
He didn't need to wait long. His guards were aptly distracted as Stockman bellowed orders about some glass instruments. Raph pulled his arm back and lobbed the small tracker toward the electrical cables. Then he followed it up with the pocket knife. He had timed it well; and the knife stabbed into the small tracker before embedding into the electrical cables. A small lightning arch shot out of the metal mess and struck the chemicals. In seconds a small fire was started; and frantic yelling spread around the warehouse. Raph was already halfway to the prosthetic table. His guards hadn't looked away from the chaos yet. So Raph grabbed the shell and flung it like a Frisbee across to the open windows. He was bolting back toward his guards before the shell even made it to the windows.
He was back to his seat and holding his arms behind his back just as his guards turned to check on him. Raph gave them an unamused glare to get them to look away. Sure enough they did; granting Raph time to review what he had accomplished. The fire was burning quite nicely, even with the techs working to put it out with fire extinguishers. The Shell Prosthetic, however, had gotten caught in the hinge of the window. It was just hanging there; painfully close to freedom. Raph felt his heart drop; now what should he do?
As he was pondering his next step, a katana blade reached up and freed the shell from the window. Leo's head cleared the window and he gave Raph a smile and thumb's up before disappearing again.
Raph grinned and settled in. He had played his part; Leo would see to their brothers. Now he just had to kick back and relax for another day and half.
Donnie checked and double checked the shell, "I can't believe we finally have it!"
Raphael stood at his side looking at it like it was a hostile animal, "Will it even work with the new crack in my shell?"
Donnie turned to the smallest turtle with an excited smile, "Yes; we'll use the dynamic adhesive in the new crack, while this will still be able to replace your missing shell." Then Donnie pointed to where Casey was supervising the adhesive heating up, "We have plenty thanks to Casey. It'll be ready for installation in about ten minutes."
Raphael's eyes went wide, "That soon?"
That gave Donnie pause. So he set down all the implements he was getting ready. Then he sat down in his wheeled chair to give Raphael his full attention, "Raphael, what's going on?"
He looked everywhere except at Donnie. Looked toward the tablet with the feed, his prosthetic, the door. He looked immensely uncomfortable.
Donnie sighed, "Look, I know I'm not as empathetic as my brothers; however I do care. Leaving you with an incomplete shell leaves you open to further damage. If your shell had been whole, being knocked of the ledge by Karai wouldn't have done any real damage to your shell." Then Donnie rubbed at his eyes under his glasses, "We can prevent that in the future. Your shell will never be as strong as it once was, but it will be a whole lot better than leaving it this fragile."
"Donnie, can you pause for a second?" Casey asked.
Donnie looked over at him. Casey was wearing his cop face; so Donnie rolled back. The tall human pat Donnie on the shoulder as he walked past. Then Casey stopped in front of Raphael. Raphael just glared at him.
Casey grinned and asked, "Are my shoes a crutch?"
Raphael lifted an eyebrow, "What?"
"My shoes. I wear them every day to keep from scratching up my feet."
"Of course you do. Your feet are soft and squishy. You'd be dumb not to." Raphael looked well and truly annoyed at this point.
Casey lifted his hand and stabbed a finger into Raphael's chest, "Well, your back is soft and squishy; so wear your damn shoes. Or shell in this case."
Raphael looked away with narrowed eyes. A sure sign he was wrong and knew it. Then his eyes fell on the shell, "Paint it red."
Donnie sat up, "Now hold on, we tried really hard to get it to match your natural shell!"
Raphael and Casey shared a look. Casey grinned, "Sorry Donnie, the patient has spoken. One red prosthetic coming right up."
Donnie huffed, "Fine, but paint it after we install it. The materials are all set to bond with each other as is; the paint might disrupt that." Donnie met the unimpressed looks on the two punks he was stuck with, "Turtles honor; I'll even help with the paint job."
It was enough for Raphael, who stepped forward with much greater confidence, "What's the next step Dr. Don?"
Donnie motioned to the table, "Hop up, and lay on your stomach. Get comfortable, you're going to be here for a bit."
Leo tossed the blanket over where Donnie had fallen asleep. He and Casey had been working on Raphael for a long time. Sanding down the rough edges on Raphael's shell, doing one final clean of the under shell area, and then the layered installation with the adhesive. It was quite the process; and it had taken them eight hours easily. But they had done it. Raphael was asleep on the table; down through medicine to keep from moving. Casey was slowly weaving around the lab setting things right.
Leo gently put his hand on Casey's shoulder, "Casey, go to sleep. We set up the couch for you."
"Naw, I 've got to paint his shell." Casey yawned, pulling some cans of spray paint closer to his chest.
Leo glanced over. Sure enough; the shell was now a dark burgundy red. It was oddly fitting for Raphael; a bold declaration across his back of what he'd survived. And the fact that it annoyed Leo was probably just points in its favor to the red turtles eyes. "Looks painted to me." Leo explained.
"Gotta put the," Another yawn, "the top coat on it. Else it will wash away too easily."
Leo grabbed one of the cans from Casey, "This one? Just spray it over the shell?"
"Do a few passes," Casey pantomimed the motion, "Just to be sure you got it all."
Leo nodded and moved over to the smallest turtle. He shook the can; ensuring it was ready. Then with careful deliberate strokes; he swept the top coat over the composite shell of the turtle.
"Eh Leo?"
"Yes?" Leo tried to look closer at the shell. How should he tell if he missed a spot?
"When are we going to get Raph anyway?"
Leo sprayed a bit more just to be sure, "We're going tomorrow. We'll play along with this portal opening nonsense. It might actually help us get Raphael home. However the second it goes south; we're bugging out."
"How're you gonna know if you opened the right portal?"
Leo set the can down, looking at Raphael. He knew the answer, he just hated it, "We have to bring him with us."
Thank you for reading. And thank you to everyone who left a review! Writing Critique is welcome and appreciated.