Before this chapter starts, I want to thank everyone that has read my story! I'd like to especially thank tmntloveroop and haebcyea since they favorited and followed my story :)
Anyways, in this chapter, we learn some interesting info about my OCs.

Trigger Warnings: Mentions of death, killing, and torture

Disclaimer: I still do not own TMNT, unfortunately;-;

Donatello was absolutely stunned by the being that sat in front of him in his lab. Sure, he had seen some pretty strange things ever since he and his family were mutated, but this was just amazing. A teenage girl who was entirely made of bronze, a non-living substance, and was still moving, breathing, and functioning, just like a normal human. Most of his questions laid on how her blood and lungs worked, what her diet was like, how malleable her skin and organs were, but he held those back. He decided to start with the simpler queries first. They had just arrived at the lair, there was no need to overwhelm her so soon.

"What's your full name?"

She seemed to hesitate for a second. "Lilith Iona Collins." That's pretty, he thought.

He wrote her name at the top of a fresh page in his notebook and underlined it twice. "What's your height and... w-weight?" His cheeks blushed a light red. He and his brothers were well aware that they should never ask a woman their weight, but this question was necessary. For science, he reminded himself. No need to think about it like that, Donatello, this is just for science.

"5'2". I don't know my weight," she answered softly. Her lips moved just like a fully organic human's would, signaling that they were probably just as malleable and soft as skin is. His face reddened a little more thinking about that. "116 before the mutation."

He jotted that down, avoiding eye contact. "Birthdate?"

"December 7, 1996."

More notes.

"Mutation date?"

He could hear soft clinks as she fidgeted with her fingers. "I don't...Only Ethan remembers." He nodded. Understandable. Mutations were painful and traumatic. The date was probably the last thing she had on her mind after the ooze bath.

"That's okay." He puppy-eared the page he was writing on before closing the notebook. "If you can take your long-sleeved clothing articles off so I can examine your biology closer, that would be helpful." He knew the request sounded stupid and was worded weirdly, but how exactly was someone supposed to ask 'Hey, can you take your clothes off so I can look at your skin?' normally?

She nodded, her cheeks darkening slightly. He guessed it was her equivalent of blushing. Slowly, she removed her jacket, gloves, and bandana. She started to take her loose pants off when Donnie shouted, "Th-There's no need for that!"

She giggled slightly and pulled them down anyways, revealing a pair of shorts underneath. Thank goodness, he inwardly sighed. He walked up to her and gently touched her arm. It wasn't soft. Not at all. It was solid and very, very hard. He pressed two of his fingers down into her elbow and used her other hand to try and bend it. It bent. But the skin around it was still stubborn and immovable.

"It softens only when it needs to." The comment was so quiet he barely even heard it.

He nodded, looking more closely to see that the skin did move and bend normally. He poked it lightly and realized that it was soft while it moved and immediately hardened when it was still. Curious. "Brothers?" The one-worded question almost caught him off-guard.

"What?"

"Your brothers? Where are they?" Her gaze was set on the lab doors. She was tense, her body language screamed 'get me out of here, now.'

He left the elbow behind and moved up to the side of her neck, examining the veins. "Leo's meditating, Mikey's probably watching TV, and Raph's most likely beating up his dummy. Why?"

She didn't answer. Does she not like being in one-on-one social situations? he wondered. That is likely. Her friend, Ethan, did mention that the Kraang tortured them. That's usually one-on-one and behind... He looked at the closed lab doors and mentally slapped himself. Stupid! Of course she's tense!

She jumped when he stood up and walked over to the doors. They made a loud creaking sound as he opened them halfway. Hopefully, that made her a little more comfortable. Her features were still blank, but her muscles relaxed and she looked down at her hands. He could almost hear her saying 'you're safe, you're safe, don't worry, you're safe' to herself.

"Alright, now can you tell me about your experience with the Kraang?" he asked. Just like that, she tensed up again and froze. If he didn't know better he would've thought her to be a statue. "S-Sorry, if you aren't ready to talk about it, you don't need-"

"I remember when they gave me my numbers," she whispered.

Numbers? he thought. So many questions. But he stayed silent, not wanting to interrupt her.

"Right after the mutation."

More questions. But he kept his mouth shut. If he said anything now, she might stop, and he would lose the chance to learn about her - to help her.

"They labeled all of us." Her hand reached and gingerly touched a spot on the back of her neck. He moved silently behind her to get a better look at it. When she took her hand away he could see the numbers 35172589 branded right under the base of her skull. It was a serial number. The sight made Donnie's stomach churn. The digits were pressed deep into her bronze skin. He noticed that there were even hardened droplets of bronze running down her neck from where the brand had melted her skin. They had melted her skin; they labeled her like a machine part. Those monsters.

"Labeled Jade and Ethan."

He moved back in front of her and they made eye contact. "What happened in there?"

She shook her head. "Bad things."

Her answers were getting shorter. "Torture?" He figured it was better to stick to yes or no questions for now.

A single nod.

"All three of you?"

Another nod.

"Together?"

She shook her head.

"Separately? So you don't know how the other two were tortured?"

"Three," she breathed.

"What was that?"

"Other three. Isaac was there too." Her eyes unfocused and she stared at the floor. "Isaac was there." He decided that was enough questions for today. He would probably get more information out of Ethan anyways. Lily didn't seem to be all that talkative.

After a few minutes of silence Donnie spoke up, "I'll show you to where you'll be sleeping."

"Okay."

The genius turtle decided to tell his eldest brother his findings first. Luckily, he found Leo easily. The blue-clad turtle was sitting in the kitchen sipping tea. And to his surprise, he only had one question for Donatello by the end of their chat. "Who's Isaac?"

"I'm guessing another friend of their's that they met while in Kraang's custody." Donnie sighed. All he could do was guess. Sure, he knew a little about the mysterious bronze girl sleeping in the dojo, but it was barely anything.

"So there's four of them?"

He shrugged. "Probably not. She used past tense like he's not here anymore."

"So he's..."

"Dead. Most likely."

Leo shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Death had never been an easy topic for any of the four brothers. Leo and Mikey especially. "Did she tell you anything about him?"

"Only what I told you: he was tortured with them and he's probably dead. We can try and ask her more questions later about him-"

"No."

Don raised an eye ridge. No? But then how were they supposed to get answers?

"We'll wait until we see the other two again. They've been through a lot, she probably isn't comfortable being here alone with complete strangers. We need to be considerate and we need to trust her." Leo stood up, placing his teacup down. "Do you want to fill Raph and Mikey in or should I?"

"I want to do some research on these three. I think I found a backdoor into some of the Kraang's records of the past couple years, there might be some information in there."

"Well then get started on that. I'll go tell our brothers." And with that, the blue-banded leader left.

Donnie shook his head in disbelief. This was all too weird. It was too sudden. Too much all at once. Just two days ago they had all thought the Kraang did nothing more than experiment and come up with failed plans to take over the world. They were a bunch of stupid alien robots. But those same stupid alien robots had kidnapped, tortured, and mutated four teenagers. Those same stupid alien robots conditioned said teenagers to become a strike team whose sole purpose was to kill and eradicate threats to the Kraang. And one of those teenagers was currently sleeping in the next room over. He couldn't push the thought out of his mind.

"She was meant to kill us," he whispered. That small, quiet, teenage girl was meant to kill him and his family. The other two held the same purpose. Yet Leo insisted they help them. Who knows what kind of skills those three have? For all they knew, this could be a plot to infiltrate their home and murder them all. Why were they so quick to believe their story? They told us nothing that gives us reason to trust them. From what he gathered at Kurtzman's apartment, Jade's a lunatic and Ethan's way too mature for his age. It irked him. But Lily... that look she had in his lab. The one of pure fear when she saw the closed lab doors. The way she followed him dutifully and silently to the dojo as if she made the slightest sound or mistake he might whirl around and strike her. When he looked into her eyes, he didn't see a cold-blooded murderer. There was a certain sadness there that he couldn't quite place, but she wasn't here to kill them. She wasn't there for what the Kraang had told her to do. She was there for what she told herself to do. She wanted help. Who was he to deny that?

A quiet sigh escaped his lips. Way to be trusting, Donatello, he scolded. Jumping to conclusions about a person you barely even know. You're starting to sound like Raph.

"Hey, Don."

His head jerked up. Speak of the devil.

His hotheaded brother took the seat across from him. "Somethin' wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, Raph, I just... I'm- I can't-"

"Is it the kid in the dojo?" The way he said 'kid' made it sound like she was a toddler.

He sighed. Of course, Raph would know. Somehow, he always knew. "It's weird. She and her friends were - the Kraang mutated and tortured them so they could kill us. Yet one of them's sleeping in our home."

"I couldn't agree more." The red-banded turtle nodded. "I heard Fearless talking to Mike about her."

"He hasn't caught you up yet?"

"Caught me up on what?"

"He'll fill you in," Donnie answered. He didn't have the energy or time to explain everything again. He needed to start going through the data he found. "I have stuff I need to do."

"Stuff like what?" His brother snorted.

"Stuff like sort through all the Kraang records I found and see if there's anything on our new friends."

Raphael frowned. "Have fun with that," he said flatly.

Don couldn't help but scoff. "Thanks." He left his immediately older brother in the kitchen. Spending the day in his lab sounded amazing. Just him, his screens, and beautiful data. He loved researching; it was one of his outlets. And right then, he really needed an outlet.

It hadn't taken him long to find something on their new 'friends.' Actually, their profiles were the first things he saw.

"Ethan Ryan Butler, Lilith Iona Collins, Isaac Oliver Williams, and Jade Stone Olsen," he read. "Jade Stone... Creative. Now, what is your guys' story?" He clicked on the tab labeled 'Bio' under Ethan's file and put the alien symbols through his KraangEnglish translator. (**I don't know if he actually has one of these, I'd guess not, but for the sake of the plot, he has one now.)

The one who is known as Ethan Ryan Collins is that which is called an Orphan. A system known as Foster Care was the system the one who is known as Ethan Ryan Collins-

Don let out a hard sigh. This was gonna take a while.

He had never hated being right in his life up until now. It took approximately four hours to sort through the data, a small portion of which was used to convince his brothers that he was 'almost done' and 'didn't need to go to bed yet.' None of them believed him, of course, but they knew they couldn't get him to stop. Not until he knew everything there was to know about those three and their dead friend.

After the painstaking task of reading through the Kraang's awful attempt at English, he finally had some good notes. He wanted to read through everything a second time just in case he missed something, but honestly... the way those Kraang spoke and wrote physically hurt. So he decided to look through the notes he wrote down - in normal English - in his notebook instead.

Ethan Ryan Butler
Numbers: 19275734
March 22, 1996 - Alive
Height: 5'11"
Mutation Date: August 17, 2012
Pre-lab: All living family members are deceased. He was placed in foster care at age 3 and met Jade, Lilith, and Isaac in the system at age 4. They were captured whilst walking back to their group home after a particularly bad experience with a Mr. Klay. Ethan's right arm was injured in the fight against his captors.
Lab Experience: While in the labs, Ethan was subject to experiments and torture (although the Kraang referred to it as 'conditioning'). The purpose of this 'conditioning' is unknown. The Kraang said their attempts provided satisfactory results and they mutated him a week after they finished his 'conditioning.' He was the last out of the four to be mutated. His purpose to Kraang was to be the strategist and technological mind of the 4-person strike team. This strike team goal obviously failed, as one of the members died and the other three (Ethan, Lilith, and Jade) escaped.

He didn't see anything missing, so he flipped to the next page.

Jade Stone Olsen
Numbers: 91628527
June 19, 1996 - Alive
Height Pre-Kraang: 5'11"
Height Post-Kraang: 6'4"
Mutation Date: August 15, 2012
Pre-lab: All living family members are deceased. She was placed in foster care at age 2 and met Ethan, Lilith, and Isaac in the system at age 4. She had a black eye and fractured arm from their encounter with Mr. Klay before they were captured and broke her other arm and two fingers on her left hand whilst fighting against her captors.
Lab Experience: During her time in the labs, the Kraang 'conditioned' her to be some sort of weapon. Details are unknown. The Kraang stated themselves successful in these attempts but mentioned that they failed in getting her to believe she was their weapon. She was also experimented on to make her stronger and more tank-like. This is where the extra muscle and height came from. She was mutated second out of the four. She was meant to be the muscle for the 4-person strike team, handling the rough and bloody work, like killing, inducing serious injury, or even assisting in torture.

That one sent a shiver down his spine. He moved on quickly.

Lilith Iona Collins
Numbers: 35172589
December 7, 1996 - Alive
Height: 5'2"
Mutation Date: August 16, 2012
Pre-lab: Only her mother is currently living. She gave Lilith to foster care at age 3 due to financial reasons. She met Ethan, Jade, and Isaac at age 4. She fractured one toe on her right foot and three on her left, along with a laser to the lower right thigh in the struggle against her captors.
Lab Experience: Lilith was put under 'conditioning' as well, although goals were unknown. Once again, the Kraang noted down that the results were satisfactory and moved on. She was mutated third out of the four. Her place on the 4-person strike team was as the assassin and intel-gatherer. She was to listen in on conversations, silently eliminate unsuspecting enemies, and conduct any 'necessary' torture sessions.

Lilith's file had surprised him. She was supposed to be a silent and extremely dangerous assassin. But the way the other two treated her, it was like she was a mini ray of sunshine they were trying to protect. Like she was their Mikey. He shrugged the thought off and moved on to the last page.

Isaac Oliver Williams
Numbers: None
May 3, 1996 - August 15, 2012
Height: 6'0"
Mutation Date: August 15, 2012
Pre-lab: All living family members are deceased with the exception of an uncle, who is serving a life sentence in jail. He was thrown into the foster care system at age 4 and met Lilith, Ethan, and Jade at the same time. He suffered two broken ribs and a black eye in the fight against their captors.
Lab Experience: Isaac's 'conditioning' goals are also unknown. They were marked semi-successful. He was the first to be exposed to mutagen out of the four. Had he not died in the middle of his mutation, his position on the 4-person strike team would've been as their leader. Unfortunately, his body rejected the mutation and he turned into a solid statue, 100% made of zinc, and 100% dead.

"Poor guy," was all he could say. The story was beyond depressing. The four teens were already in foster care, going from abusive home to abusive home, then they were kidnapped, tortured, and mutated, and to top it all off, their friend had turned into a solid zinc statue.

He couldn't imagine losing one of his brothers. Ever. It would break him. He felt tears start to well up in his eyes. He struggled to swallow the lump in his throat and blink away the tears. He wasn't crying over hypothetical situations. He was just tired. He needed to go to bed.

So that's what he did.

And for the first time in a while, he slept undisturbed and for a full eight hours.