NOTE: There will probably be grammar mistakes that I will fix later.
Ego's Planet
Leo gazed at all the planet's beauty from a high balcony, but his heart was still heavy with worry.
Even though he was supposed to be relaxing in this magnificent paradise, he couldn't stop thinking about Mikey. He just had to make sure that his little brother was all right, otherwise he would never be at peace. So he was going to ask Gamora to contact Rocket and check on the group back on Berhert. He could be overreacting, but he could live with that, as long as he knew that Mikey was safe.
He left the balcony and walked back inside to look for Gamora, but as he went down the stairs, he suddenly heard her angry voice screaming, "I don't know what Cheers is!" Just as he reached the bottom of the stairs, the green-skinned woman came storming out of a room and didn't seem to notice him.
"Gamora?" a concerned Leo called out to her, catching her attention.
Gamora stopped for a moment to close her eyes and take a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Leo," she said in a calmer tone that still sounded angry. "I need to be alone for a while."
"What happened?" Leo asked her, but she ignored him and continued on her way, slamming a door behind her. He sighed exasperatedly and flung his arms in the air. What now?
...
"What was I thinking?" he mumbled to himself as he walked into a field of beautiful flowers that constantly changed colors. It was like walking on a rainbow, yet he was too upset to focus on the beauty around him. "We should never have left home. I almost got Mikey killed." He shook his head. "No. It's all that raccoon's fault. How can I trust him to take care of Mikey? He's a bad influence, and he doesn't care about anyone other than himself. And still Mikey wants to go with him and leave us behind."
He could feel the pent up anger within him rise again at the thought of Mikey stepping into the Guardians' ship and leaving his family back on Earth.
He kicked a couple of flowers off the ground and lifted his head to the sky. "What am I doing wrong?!" he yelled at the top of his lungs with his hands curled into fists. "What can I do to make you stay?! Why can't you just talk to me anymore?!"
Once he was done with his outburst and had regained his composure, he sighed heavily and sat down, resting his arms on his knees. "Father," he whispered in a broken voice, "I'm trying my best, but it's not enough." As he prayed to Splinter's spirit, he could feel his eyelids getting heavier. "I'm just so...tired. I don't know what to do anymore."
Before he even realized it, he was laying himself down on the grass and closing his eyes. "I just want...things to be...the way...before..."
He became silent as he fell into a deep slumber, unaware that some red glowing vines were growing out of the soil and wrapping themselves around the Turtle.
...
"...eo? Leo? Yo, dude, wake up!"
He felt someone lightly slap his cheeks and fluttered his eyes open. He was suddenly back in his own bed and Mikey was standing over him with a big grin on his face.
"Morning, Sleeping Ugly!" the youngest Turtle giggled. "You overslept. Splinter is so gonna chew your head off."
Leo blinked a couple of times before he rubbed his eyes. "Mikey...?" he yawned. Then he blue eyes popped open in realization. "Wait. Did you say...Splinter is here?"
Mikey raised an eye ridge in confusion. "Um...yeah? He's always been here, bro. He's in the dojo right now with Raph and Donnie."
The oldest Turtle began to stammer as he looked at his surroundings. "But-But I don't...he-he can't..." It looked like his bedroom, nothing unusual about it. Was he truly home? Or was this all just a dream?
"You okay, bro?" Mikey tilted his head. "You seem weirded out about something."
Without answering his brother, Leo jumped out of the bed and ran out of his room, making a beeline for the dojo. He slid the doors open and was dumbfounded to see Splinter lecturing to Raph and Donnie, who were kneeling down before him.
The rat turned his head to the entrance and looked directly at Leo with those same brown eyes that he had missed so much. "You are late, Leonardo," he said with some surprise in his voice. "This is not like you."
Leo opened his mouth to speak but all that came out were choked up gasps, his eyes beginning to burn with tears. He wanted to believe that this was real, that Splinter was really standing in front of him. But it couldn't be; they watched him die and buried him in North Hampton.
"Well, that's a first," Raph chuckled in amusement. "Our Leader in Blue overslept."
Donnie, on the other hand, seemed a little worried about his brother. "Are you feeling all right, Leo? You need coffee or an energy drink?"
"I-I..." All Leo could do was stare at Splinter, his legs wobbling so much that he felt that he was going to drop right there and then. "I'm just...so confused." He managed to wobble over to Splinter, who was puzzled by his son's strange behavior. "Father," Leo looked up at the rat with trembling wet eyes, "is it really you?"
"Of course, my son," Splinter said with a raised eyebrow. He touched his son's forehead to feel his temperature. "Are you not feeling well?"
Leo gasped softly at the touch. It was warm, and more importantly, it was real. With a sob, he wrapped his arms around Splinter and pulled him into a tight embrace.
Splinter raised his brow and ears in surprise, then he placed his hand on the dome of Leo's head in comfort, gently stroking it. He could feel the Turtle's body shaking as he continued to weep softly. "Leonardo, what is the matter?"
Hesitantly, Leo broke away and dried his eyes. "I'm sorry, it's just..." He chuckled tearfully and smiled at his father. "I had the worst nightmare last night. It felt like it went on forever."
There was a flicker of understanding in Splinter's eyes and he nodded before he turned to Raph and Donatello. "Boys, you are excused. I must speak with Leonardo alone."
The two Turtles bowed to their Sensei and walked out of the dojo, though Raph gently patted Leo on his shell on the way out.
"Sit with me, Leonardo," Splinter knelt down on the mat under the tree and motioned for Leo to come, "and tell me all about this nightmare."
Leo sighed softly as he knelt down on the other mat next to his father. "It's very long and complicated."
"Take your time," Splinter said softly.
The Turtle took a deep breath. "Well, I dreamt that the Shredder mutated himself into a monster, and soon after that he..." He gulped and closed his eyes. "...he killed you right in front of us. We buried you and avenged your death, and we tried to move on. But our family just fell apart without you. I did my best, but it was just too hard." He looked back up at his father with hopeful eyes. "But it was all just a dream...right? You're not dead, and we're still together."
Splinter hummed softly as he rubbed his beard in thought. "Your nightmare seems to be the result of your inner turmoil and fears. I understand that it is a heavy burden to be the leader as well as the next clan master, and I can't help but feel partly responsible for your anxiety and restlessness. For that, I apologize."
Leo shook his head. "No, Sensei. You don't have to apologize for anything. If anyone should apologize it's me. I took on the role of leader without really thinking about the responsibilities that came with it. I guess I'll never be ready."
"You are ready, Leonardo, even if you do not believe in yourself. You are not perfect, but I do not expect you to be, and neither should you. I only expect you to do your very best, and so far, you have not disappointed me." Splinter stood back up and walked over to the shrine. "But nevertheless, you must be prepared for the day I do pass on. I will not be here forever." He longingly brushed his fingers over the picture of Tang Shen. "Death comes to us all, and we can never prevent that."
"I know, Sensei," Leo said, then he quickly changed the subject and stood up. "Well, now that I'm awake, I'm gonna make myself some breakfast."
Mikey suddenly poked his head in the dojo with a huge smile. "Did somebody say 'breakfast'? Leave that to the culinary maestro!"
...
"Breakfast is-a served, Monsignors!" Mikey announced in a fake French accent as he placed on the table plates with a pile of French toast on each one. The top toast on each pile had a smiley face made with a whipped cream smile and two strawberry eyes (except Donnie's which had blueberry eyes since he didn't like strawberries).
Splinter chuckled as he gazed down at his artfully prepared breakfast. "As usual, you start the day with smiles, Michelangelo."
Mikey beamed. "Thanks, Sensei."
As Leo sat down at the table, he looked around at his family. Everyone seemed so happy. Raph cut a small slice of his breakfast for Chompy, who chirped in delight at the taste. Donnie had a blissful look on his face as he took a sip of his daily coffee. Splinter continued to praise Mikey for his work of art. Mikey happened to glance over at Leo and grinned from ear to ear.
Leo smiled back at him, overwhelmingly relieved that he was finally out of that nightmare and back in the real world. Everything was going to be all right.
Gamora sat alone in a field, still fuming. She couldn't even hear herself think with the annoying clicking sound that two tall plants were making as they flittered against each other in the wind. She couldn't take it anymore and sliced them in half with her sword.
She sighed heavily and muttered to herself, "Dammit."
Quill was so enamored with this place, but something about it disturbed Gamora. She couldn't explain it, but it just didn't feel right. Earlier she tried to get him to see that all of this was a fantasy, but he instead got angry and accused her of trying to ruin everything for him. She could still hear him saying those words, I finally found my family! Don't you understand that?
If that's how he really felt, then what did the other Guardians mean to him? What did she mean to him?
A low whirring sound in the distance broke her from her thoughts and turned around. Flying toward the planet was an M-ship, and as it got closer, Gamora realized that it was coming directly at her, and the pilot was a furious, bloodthirsty Nebula.
Gamora got up and ran as fast as she could as the ship began to fire at her. "Psychopath!" she growled.
She sought refuge in a cavern that led down into earth, but Nebula, mad with rage, still pursued her. The ship was too large for the cavern and its wings were destroyed as it entered, but Nebula kept on going, firing at Gamora.
The ground collasped around Gamora and she fell to another level just as the ship darted over her and crashed into a wall. Lying on the ground next to Gamora was one of the ship's enormous blasters and she wasted no time in picking it up and activating it, intent on blasting her sister to oblivion.
From inside the already damaged ship, Nebula watched helplessly as Gamora aimed the blaster at her.
With a battle cry, Gamora fired at the ship until it exploded. Through the flames, she could see that Nebula was miraculously still alive and struggling to free herself from her seat, but both her legs were broken.
Gamora knew that the ship would soon explode again and then that would be the end of Nebula for sure. She could've walked away and left her sister to her fate, but she could not bring herself to do it, and against her better judgement, she ran to the burning ship and crawled inside to grab Nebula.
Just as Gamora pulled her sister out, the ship exploded once again and sent them both flying. They landed a few feet away from the burning wreckage, badly injured but safe, and Nebula's broken parts cracked back into place, one of the few perks to being part machine. She slowly lifted her face to her Gamora and stared at her with her large dark eyes. Gamora stared back, hoping that her sister would be grateful to her for saving her life and that their war with each other would finally end.
But then Nebula hollered and pinned Gamora to the ground, trying to strangle her.
"Are you kidding me?!" Gamora yelled as she kicked her off.
The two struggled and fought with each other until Nebula grabbed Gamora by the throat with one hand and raised her blade with the other. Gamora gasped for breath, close to losing consciousness, and Nebula prepared to stab her right through her heart.
Then Leo's words from the other night echoed in Nebula's mind, You'll always be sisters. And there's nothing in the universe more important than family.
Nebula clenched the dagger tighter as she struggled to win against her conscience. This was what she wanted...right?
"...RRRAAAAAH!" She angrily threw Gamora to the ground and put her blade away. "I win," she hissed. "I win. I bested you in combat."
Gamora coughed and shook her head. "No," she gasped and rubbed her throat. "I saved your life."
Nebula snarled at her. "Well, you were stupid enough to let me live."
"You let me live!"
"I don't need you always trying to beat me!"
"I'm not the one that just flew across the universe just because I wanted to win!"
"Do not tell me what I want!"
"I don't need to tell you what you want! It's obvious!"
"You were the one who wanted to win, AND I JUST WANTED A SISTER!" Nebula screamed in her face.
Gamora looked at her shocked, taken back by this outburst.
Nebula lowered her head, unable to look at her sister in the eye. "You were all I had," she said in a quiet voice that was filled with so pain. "But you were the one who needed to win. Thanos pulled my eye from my head...and my brain from my skull...and my arm from my body...because of you."
All of the pieces were finally coming together for Gamora. Since she and Nebula were children, Thanos trained them to be the most powerful wariors in all the galaxy. Gamora knew that she had to win in order to survive, because Thanos would destroy her if she couldn't prove her worth to him. So she won every single battle against Nebula, and as the years passed, Nebula became more machine than woman. Gamora always believed that Nebula replaced her body parts with robotics to improve herself so that she would finally win. But it was Thanos who did this to her.
Gamora lowered her gaze to the ground in shame, not knowing what to say to her sister.
...
They eventually agreed to a truce and explored the rest of the dark caverns, but neither one of them said a word to each other as they walked. The glowing red vines that spread all over the walls provided them with light, but then something caught Gamora's eye. Something green.
She moved closer to the wall and could see something green through a small crack. She lightly scratched at it, and it felt warm and scaly and-
Gamora's eyes became large. "Oh, my god."
She frantically began to dig at the walls, and a confused Nebula just stood by and watched. The dirt and rocks collapsed as she worked, revealing an unconsciousness Leo in the wall, bound by the glowing red vines. Some of them were actually sticking into his arms, legs, and neck like IV lines.
The caverns were consuming him.
"LEO!" Gamora began to pull at the vines, but they were too strong to break.
The four Turtles and their master stood on a rooftop, the full moon hanging high above their heads. Standing before them was an exhausted and beaten Oroku Saki, who looked like he was about to collapse. He was still human and hadn't mutated yet, but of course, that only happened in Leo's dream.
Splinter stepped forward. "You leave me no choice, Saki," he said with some sadness in his voice. "I had hoped that it wouldn't come to this."
The Shredder glared at him through the kabuto. "You will never defeat me, Yoshi," he growled. "I will have my revenge."
Narrowing his eyes in determination, Splinter charged at the Shredder, took one big leap, kicked him with full force. Saki screamed as he fell off the building and to his death below, and the silence that followed made Leo shudder, but it had to be done.
Splinter turned to his sons and smiled. They were finally free of the Shredder.
"I...I can't believe it's finally over," Donnie said to his brothers.
Raph nodded. "I know, but it is."
"So...what happens now?" Mikey asked.
Splinter walked back to his sons. "What happens next, Michelangelo, is that we go home." He turned to Leo and smiled warmly as he touched him on the shoulder. "Together."
With a heart full of joy, Leo nodded. "Right." He followed his family to rooftop entrance, eager to get back home.
"AARGH!" Gamora yelled in frustration as she continued to pull at the vines. She finally gave up and pulled out her sword. With one swipe, she cut through four vines all at once.
The building suddenly began to shake tremendously and the Hamato family cried out in unison as they all lost their ballance and tripped.
"W-W-W-What's happening?!" Mikey frantically cried out.
For a less than a minute, the entire building shook, then it suddenly stopped. Everyone froze and held their breath, and when nothing happened, they released a sigh of relief.
"It was probably just an earthquake," Donnie suggested.
"LEO, WAKE UP!" Gamora screamed as she cut through more vines.
Nebula finally joined in and helped her sister free the sleeping Turtle with her own blade.
Everyone nearly jumped out of their skins when thunder suddenly roared and shook the whole earth. Mikey looked up and his eyes became as wide as saucers. "Look!" he yelled as he pointed to the sky. Everyone else followed his gaze and gasped.
To Leo's bewilderment, the sky seemed to crack open, a great white light peeking through and shining down upon them. It was so bright that he had to shield his eyes with his hand.
LEO!
Wait. That voice. It sounded like..."Gamora?" He turned to his brothers. "Guys, do you hear that?" he yelled to them.
"Hear what?" Raph yelled.
Gamora's voice called out to him once again. LEO! WAKE UP!
Leo looked at his surroundings. Everything was literally falling apart. Buildings were collasping all around them. More and more pieces of the sky were dropping down to the city below. To his dismay, he realized that this was the dream. Splinter was really gone. Mikey was still going to leave the family. It was time for him to wake up and come back to the real world, but he didn't want to.
"Leo?"
He turned around and Mikey looked at him with a scared expression. "What's going on?"
Even though he knew that this wasn't the real Mikey, he felt love for him just the same and gently touched the other Turtle's freckled cheek. "Mikey," he said softly with a sad smile, "I haven't felt this happy in a long time. Everything seemed perfect. We were a family again."
From behind Mikey, Leo could see a monstrous heavily spiked figure climb onto the rooftop. Super Shredder glared at the family with his terrible glowing blue eyes.
Leo swallowed hard and redirected his attention to Mikey. "But none of this is real, as much as I want it to be. I can't pretend that you're happy when you're really not."
Splinter charged at Super Shredder, but the latter drove his claws right through the former's body. Raph and Donnie screamed in anguish as Saki lifted the limp rat and tossed him off the building like a rag doll.
Leo's eyes filled with tears. "I'm so sorry, bro. I tried my best, but I still failed both you and Splinter. I just want you to be happy again..." He hugged his little brother, hot tears flowing down his cheeks. "...even if that means letting you go."
Raph and Donnie were both knocked down by the Shredder, who then focused his attention on Leo and Mikey and stomped toward them menacingly.
Unafraid, Leo gently pushed Mikey away and unsheathed his swords, preparing to face his adversary. His eyes became white as he narrowed them. "You're not real. It's time to wake up."
With a roar, the Shredder charged straight at him. Leo did the same, ready to cut through this illusion. He swung his katanas with all his strength...
He woke up screaming and fell right into Gamora's arms.
All of the vines throughout the caverns pulled back into the walls, disappearing and leaving the trio in darkness.
Leo started to hyperventilate as he was being held by Gamora. He was disoriented and badly shaken from the experience, but he quickled calmed down after Gamora gently shushed him and soothingly rubbed his shell.
"Shhh," Gamora whispered to him. "It's okay. It's okay, Leo. You're safe now."
"What kind of a planet is this?" Nebula asked her sister, clearly disturbed by what she had just seen.
"I'll explain later," Gamora told her as she helped a still weak Leo back on his feet and supported him. "We need to get him out of these caverns now."
As Nebula rested Leo's other arm over her shoulder, he looked at her groggily. "Nebula?" he rasped. "What are you doing here?"
"It's a long story," she mumbled, too tired to explain it all to him.
The three headed toward a light that they believed to be the exit. But as they got closer, they realized that they had walked into a dead end and that the light was being emitted from vines that were even larger than the ones that grabbed Leo.
And then they made another horrifying discovery: piles of skeletons that belonged to various alien species, hundreds, maybe even thousands of them.
"Oh, my god," Gamora whispered in horror.
"What happened to them?" Leo gasped.
Nebula stared at the graveyard with eyes filled with fear. "We need to get off this planet."