I woke up uncomfortably. I stretched out, eyes still closed and then stiffened.

It wasn't a dream.

I was stretched out on a cot and strapped down by stiff woven restraints.

I peered beneath my lashes, trying to get a look around. I could hear faint voices.

"...enough to knock out...twice her size," an irritated tone voiced.

"...next shifts problem...an hour..." Another voice responded, but they were growing more distant and muffled. It seemed safe to risk looking around more blatantly.

I lifted my head and tried to get my bearings. And flinched as the movement sent waves of dizziness and nausea through me. From what I could see, it looked a little like a lab. There were no windows.

To my right were two IV bags, both attached to my arm. One had a clear liquid. The other was steadily filling with blood. Both seemed ominous.

How long had I been out?

I strained to move my wrists from where they were strapped down. A frantic bubbling was growing in my stomach. I twisted in a sudden movement, pulling with all my limbs in an uncontrolled panic. It was several moments until I slumped back, eyes shut tightly. I tried to slow down my breaths, slow down my thoughts.

I had no idea what had happened to lead me here. The bright fluorescent lights gave no clue to the time. And I had no idea of why I was even here.

But I had to do something.

I blinked my eyes hard and looked around once more. It was a cold and sterile room. There was nothing in the way of décor. But as I turned my head as far as I could I was able to see a door. Now I just needed to get there. I focused my attention on the straps holding me down. Calm down. Slow and steady.

I pulled up with my right arm with all my strength. I could feel the queasiness in my stomach rising again, but I held my breath and focused on the pressure building in my head from the lack of oxygen. Slowly the thick material of the strap began to tear.

It took two more tries to get my arm free, the last attempt snapping the strap completely and ripping one of the IV needles out of my arm. It took several more precious minutes to clumsily remove the other needle and then undo the rest of the straps. I kept my head tilted towards where I had heard voices earlier. Although they were now inaudible, I wanted to be aware of the exact moment people started coming back towards me.

I braced against the cot to lift myself up, feeling a little lightheaded from the shift in position. I made my way to the door I had seen as quietly as I could. There was a long hall off to the side, but it felt like that had been where those voices had disappeared too. I wanted to stay away from there. Luckily the doorknob turned easily beneath my fingers. This hallway was empty too, I noticed, peering out through the door. As the door clicked closed softly behind me, I also realized the hallway was very long and brightly lit. There were still no windows or any sign of an exit. Nowhere to hide. I reached back to the room I had just exited. My mind raced, and a shiver ran down my spine at the thought of being so exposed. I hadn't fully explored the place, that hall back in the room might offer a better route despite the danger.

It was locked from the outside. There was no turning back.

It had fallen to Don to make the call to Leo and Raph. He knew that he could always count on his brothers at times like this, but he knew from Leo's slight pause that there would be plenty of questions to look forward to later.

Mikey had barely stuck around for that call. "I'll get some of the scouting done," he said, tone deceptively light sounding.

"Wait up, Mike," Don said hurriedly as he stowed away his shell cell. "I need to find an access point, and we need more information." And I'm not sure he might not go off alone if he sees an opportunity, he thought.

Regardless of what his original intentions might have been, falling into the familiar rhythm of his training helped clear Mikey's head a little. As long as he was concentrating on the delicate balance of staying hidden in the shadows while still getting close up enough to find whatever electrical point Don needed it made it easier to focus on the present.

Having Donnie there helped too. The temptation to just head in still called to him, but he knew his brother was determined to have at least an idea of a plan. Since when did I turn into Raph? He thought, a bitter smile flashing across his face for a mere second before disappearing. He breathed in the cool evening air and tried to clear his head.

It was harder to do each time Donnie had to stop and check each possible electrical panel, outlet, or entry route. That was when Mikey's thoughts started racing again, thinking back over and over again about Mikayla's kidnapping and the reasoning behind it. About the room in her apartment they had used as a hiding place from the Foot. About the familiar logo for this particular company and about how many areas Karai had connections to. Were he and his brothers the reason she had gotten caught up in all this?

The familiar sound of an engine brought an end to these thoughts, at least for now.

Hey there everyone! It's been...a little while. Hope you guys are all doing well.

With everything going on, I've taken the opportunity to get back into writing.

I'm close to finishing CH 20 and I'm also working on adding and editing previous chapter. So far I've gotten CH 1-9 done and there's about 1000 words of content added just from that. (Please let me know if ffnet mixed up the uploads XD )

There is probably going to be some significant scenes added to previous chapters, so I'll be sure to update you guys for any big additions. (I debated with myself, but decided against adding bonus scenes to current chapters just because of the story flow) It won't be any plot line changes, but there will be some fun scenes. :)

And as far as this story goes, we're getting back to basics. Chapters may be a little shorter for a bit, but they'll be coming out each week or two. And although things may be a little grim right now, things should be back to being lighthearted soon enough.

Thanks for reading! Hope to hear from you all and how you are doing!