Brilliance kicked the turned over vehicle door open and climbed out, glaring daggers at her surroundings wondering who disturbed her rest but was instead greeted with a boulder. She blinked in confusion and flew up to the sky wondering what was going on but saw nothing. She immediately froze that thought, her eyes widening and searched around more. Nothing. There was nothing around her. No building. No Chompy. Nothing. "Guys..Guys! Mikey! Donnie! Kara! Dragan! Raph! Sara! Mira!" She screamed each and every one's names searching for them when she came across the wreckage of the hut, nothing but debree scattered where the hut once stood. No bodies to be found. She dropped to her knees in defeat, her wings sprawled around her, tears stinging her eyes. "No..it can't be.." Her body shook when the ground around her began to vibrate and she let out a startled yell when she was thrown into the sky. She spread out her wings, floating there for a second in confusion til her eyes shined in excitement.
"Chompy!" She yelled out as he began shaking sand off his body. Hearing his name he looked around curiously, panting softly, til she landed in front of him and hugged his muzzle. He smiled, his tail wagging happily and gave her a lick. "It is good to see you too, my friend." She gave his muzzle a gentle stroke but blinked when he began sniffing the air and walked away from her. He stopped at some debree and sniffed at it before grabbing it and pulling an unconscious Mikey from the ground and laid him down, giving him a lick to wake him up.
Mikey opened his eyes and looked up seeing him. "Uh, Chompy." He groaned til Chompy gave him another lick that picked him up sitting him upright. "Ugh, thanks for the save. I missed you too, boy."
"Mikey!" Brilliance ran to him and dropped down to his level, hugging him tight. "I thought I lost you again." She gave him a squeeze causing him to cough. "Oh, I'm sorry." She immediately let go and helped him to his feet. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine." He looked up hearing a soft meow and looked around til he found the source and with a gasp he ran towards a melting Ice Cream Kitty. "It's ok, Ice Cream Kitty." He pulled out his cooler from the ground and scooped him up in it. Brilliance walked up to his side and used her ice breath to keep it cold inside for him. "That should help." She smiled at Mikey but turned around hearing Chompy digging up something, seeing him pull Donnie from the ground.
"Ow, I'm ok. Put me down, Chompy." He dropped Donnie, giving him a lick before finding where Dragan was and pulled her out as well.
"Ugh, it's as if I was thrown tae Albuquerque." Dragan rubbed her head, despite the explosion leaving her unscathe it did shake her body to her core.
"Donnie! Dragan! Thank goodness you two are alive. What the heck happened?" Mikey and Brilliance walk up to the two while Dragan pet Chompy.
"Oh, man, Raph and Mira! They're out there somewhere."
"Kara an Sara must be wi them as well." Dragan noticed Chompy had stopped his search and wasn't with Brilliance.
"You don't think they were captured by Rex, do you?" Brilliance stared off into the distance concerned.
"Only one wye tae find out. Come on, guys, help me wi the vehicles." All of them followed after her.
Raph, Mira, Kara, and Sara were dragged to an arena of sorts surrounded by a moat of tar and goo. Behind chain link fences, three stories tall were the Honey Badger and Reptilian clan shouting and shaking the fence, itching for some action.
"Heh, almost feels like home." Kara chuckled to herself the scene seeming all too familiar to her. "I don't think this is a good time to reminisce, Kara." Sara whispered to her under her breath while staring at the literal animals around her.
"So, Raphael, have a plan?" Mira asks.
"Nope, except for this." Raph jerked his arms free, throwing them up and slammed them into one of the guards. Kara followed suit, stomping her foot onto one of the guards foot, causing him to yell out in pain and let her go before she punched the other one but was thrown into the chain link fence, getting punched in the gut and thrown to the ground, Raph beside her.
"Heh, itching for a fight, are we? Don't worry, you'll get your turn. As for you, not so tough now, are you, Red Stripe? Into the pit with you." The guards tossed Raph in the middle of the arena, Rex closing the door behind him as the guards took the other three away and to the side to watch the fight.
Large, steel doors on the other side opened up revealing Imperius, out of tune music playing as he stepped forward. "My Scale-Tail Clan! A challenger has come upon us and agreed to fight in ultimate combat!" Imperius announced to the crowd as two Reptilians brought him weapons. "Now this foolish turtle must battle the Scale Tail's greatest warrior: Me!" Imperius stepped down to the arena, grinning fangs at Raph.
"No! I want to tear that turtle to pieces!" Rex shouted from the stands, jumping into the pit. "I will fight him!" He raised his chainsawed arm, getting cheers from the crowd.
"I say we let him go." Kara said aloud out of one side of her mouth, trying to sound like one of the Reptilians. Everyone quieted down and looked in her direction, glaring at her. When it was clear no one was falling for it she gave a shrug with a nervous smile. "Heh, worth a try." Sara stared at her while Mira shook her head with a sigh.
"We will both take him on!" Imperius shouted, getting the crowd going again, some of them jumping onto the fence and shaking it. Imperius and Rex began to surround him as the crowd cheered on, a horn sounding off for the fight to start.
"Hey, wait, don't I get a weapon?" Raph shouted as he stood to his knees and blinked when he was thrown a stick. "A twig?!"
"Anything can be a weapon, Raph! Remember Splinter's training!" Kara shouted struggling to free herself from the Reptilian's grasp.
"I don't reme-"
"Slice and dice, old turtle!" Before Raph could answer her, Imperius threw his shield at him, spikes shooting out from the outer rim and caught him in the face before he could fully dodge it. Seeing it coming back around he jumped out of it's path and landed flat on the floor. Raph slowly sat up, blood trickling down his cut.
"No!"
"Raph, get up!" Both girls shouted. Kara stared down at the arena worriedly, unaware that Sara had managed to escape due to everybody being in one place. Or so she thought.
"I'm gonna chop you down to nothing but shell, turtle!" Rex shouted, revving his chainsaw.
Sara landed on the outer wall and bend down so she wouldn't be seen and turned to see a handful of guards inside the perimeter. She clenched her fist feeling like a coward leaving her friends and sister behind but if there was a way to get some help for them then that was something she could do; but who could she call on? She loosened her hand remembering their friends were gone til she heard a loud bang and the wall shake to the point it caused her to lose her balance only to float in the air when she looked down to see none other than her friends fighting off the handful of guards.
When the fighting was done she flew over to them and hugged Mikey. "Guys! You're all ok!" She sighed in relief and set Mikey down before going over to Dragan. "We thought you were goners."
"We almost were til Chompy saved us all." Mikey said, smiling.
Sara floated over to Chompy and gave his chin a scratch. "When I go into town next time, you're getting a big helping of treats." Chompy chortled and licked her face.
"Sara, where are the others?"
"They're inside, Raph is being forced to fight Rex and Imperius on his own. Mira and Kara are being held captive."
"DonBot! Can you do a scan-y thing for Raph? Beep bop boop! Beep bop boop!"
"That's unnecessary. I know where they are. Follow me."
"And I don't "Beep bop", dummy." Donnie said as he and the others followed Sara.
"He isn't looking too good. He looks tired." Kara said in concern, stepping closer to the fence. Just when Raph had the upperhand, Imperius came behind him and slashed at him with his axe, sending him to the ground. "No, Raph! Get up!" She shouted as the two towered over him and sent him into the tar.
"Red Stripe! Red Stripe!"
"Get up, Raph! GET UP!"
Both of them sighed in relief seeing him emerge from the tar and swim back to the arena. "That's the Raph I know!" Kara shouted while Mira whooped and hollered, the crowd in shock at his appearance before roaring with excitement.
Rex was the first to attack, raising his chainsaw at Raph but he grabbed the twig and jumped out of the way, slamming the twig into the chainsaw's circuits causing it to spark and malfunction. "What?! That's cheating!" He wasn't left with much time to say anything else for Raph grabbed his arm and pulled the chainsaw off, tossing it into the tar, and began punching his stomach, then face, before sending an uppercut to his chin, throwing him to the other side of the arena, past Imperius. Imperius blinked and let out a startled yell before he was knocked out cold, dropping to the ground.
The crowd began to grow silent.
"By Word of the Wasteland Decree, the Turtle Warrior wins!" The transcriber announced, the guards letting Kara and Mira go.
"I knew he could do it!" Kara jumped into the air, throwing her fist up in excitement.
"Yes! Red Stripe! Red Stripe!" Kara joined in on Mira's chant and soon the whole crowd was as well.
The doors to the arena opened and Honey Badgers and Reptiles alike swarmed Raph, throwing him up into the air still chanting.
"No! That's not fair! He cheated, he cheated!" Rex tried to shout but his words went unheard before he turned and ran out the other door. "I'm telling Maximus!"
Mikey, Donnie, and the others burst through the other doors ready for a fight. "Oh no! They've captured him! I got you Ra-" Donnie stopped Mikey before he hurt himself and held his hand out towards them. "Wait, Mikey! These guys aren't gonna gonna him."
"Looks more like they're celebratin' him tae me." Dragan said with a raised brow.
Mikey and the others walked up to the crowd holding Raph, Imperius staring at them from the sidelines. He noticed the others and turned to them. "Yes, Red Stripe has beaten us in battle, and that means he is leader to both clans now. So what's next, Red Stripe?" Imperius asked Raph.
Raph looked at him then turned to Mira who gave him a smile and a nod.
"To Oasis."
Mira and Kara reunited with everyone, glad to see they were alive and well while everyone began to pack for the journey, Kara holding onto Donnie a little longer than she had to.
Dragan walked up to them and smiled, glancing at the two clans and the others working together. "I have a feelin' once we find Oasis, we'll be able tae live peaceful lives an no longer hae tae run anymore."
"I couldn't agree more."
"We're all ready, Red Stripe." Imperius shouted from his vehicle, giving them a wave.
"You heard the man, let's move out."
Everyone got into their own vehicles, Mikey staying on Chompy as they all left the compound to find Oasis.
Traveling through nightfall they eventually found one of the landmarks on the map.
"Is this the right place?" Kara asked, popping up from the roof, letting Brilliance out to stretch her wings.
We're looking for a strange antenna stuck in a fork in the road." Mira said to her, looking down at her map.
"Well, this is a fork in the road." Dragan climbed out but blinked when Brilliance landed beside her, both of their eyes showing surprise. "That's not an antenna.."
"I can't believe it.." Brilliance stared at the thing in front of her.
"No way..it's..it's-"
"It's a real, live tree!" Raph shouted, the girls staring at each other in excitement, jumping up and down.
"A-a-a tree?" Mira looked at them in confusion.
"It's an elogated perennial plant tha-"
"Yeah yeah yeah, thanks for getting all science-y, Don." Mikey shoved past Donnie, gently pushing Mira towards it. "A tree is beautiful and green and perfect, and Oasis is filled with them." Mikey picked a leaf off the tree and placed it in Mira's hands.
"Back in our time, before the explosion, the world was full of these babies. They provided clean oxygen to everyone and everything and some even had food growing out of them." Brilliance joined them staring at the tree in wonder, reaching her hand out and gave it a gentle stroke.
"Wow. I've only known sand and dust and death my whole life. I've never seen green things."
"Once we geit tae Oasis, that'll change for the better." Dragan placed her hand on top of her head while Kara grabbed a bottled water and poured some at it's roots.
"Hope this keeps you going for a long time, buddy. Maybe this is a sign that the Earth is healing itself? That life can start growing once more." She whispered to the tree before staring at the others.
"Only one way to find out, sis. The sooner we get to Oasis." Sara turned to Raph and smiled.
Raph walked up to them, placing his hand on Mira's shoulder's and smiled at her before looking ahead. "Come on, let's keep moving."
"Here we are, guys! Canyon Maze! Follow me from here or we'll be lost forever." Mikey shouted to them all before having Chompy go faster to get ahead of the group.
"Canyon Maze. It's nearly impossible tae navigate it. Even wi a map." Dragan watched Mikey before looking down at her map.
"That's cause not only is it unfinished, but the creature who made the map died before he could complete it. Maybe we should finish it for him?" Kara, who was driving, glanced at Dragan with a smile.
Dragan smiled and nodded. "On it." Dragan took out a pen and began mapping their direction when they drove by a plane. "Is that a jet?"
"I wonder if someone was able to get it this far or if this use to be some sort of airport."
"I guess we'll never know." Dragan was creating a trail with her pen when a sudden rumble shook them all, causing her to lose control of her hand, the pen marking away from where she wanted. "What the?" Both of them heard a train horn, Kara glancing out the side mirrors only to poke her head out the window and yell out in surprise. "What is that?!"
"Oh no, it's him! Maximus Kong!" They heard a Reptilian shout.
Kara looked at Dragan in confusion having no clue who he is.
Dragan shrugged and glanced out the window. "I don't know but I hae a feelin' he is bad news."
"Give us the girl, and I might let the rest of you live!" He said through a speaker but his voice was so deep that it was hard for Kara to make out.
"Who the heck is that?" Raph asked.
"I think his name is Maximus Kong." Kara said through the radio.
"You've never heard of Maximus Kong? King of the North? Warrior Chief of the Wasteland? Demagogue of the Desert?!"
"Seems he can't pick a name for himself." Dragan muttered unamused.
"Just get out of here. Go! Faster!" Mira shrieked, obviously in a panic.
"Run from that creep?" Raph shook his head and pulled down his mic, turning the loudspeaker on. "I don't think so, Maximus Moron! The girl has a name; Mira and she stays with us!"
All of them could hear him roar in anger, the girls chuckling at this. "I think you upset him, Raphie."
"Ye seriously need tae work on your people skills." Both girls giggled making Raph smile and shake his head. "Almost feels like old times."
Lasers began firing out of the eyes of the skull on Maximus' ride, taking two badger riders down. Two Reptilian vehicles and cycle bikers turned around to try and fight him off but they all eventually were destroyed in flames by Maximus' firepower.
Dragan glanced out the sideview mirrors and blinked seeing little creatures driving on tiny motorcycles hot on their tails. "Uh, little ooze creatures hot on our tails. What should we do?"
Brilliance stood to her feet and opened the back doors, dropping her foot over the edge and calmly walked out of the wagon, planting both feet on the ground. When their comrades were ahead of her she held out her arms and shot them upward creating a large wall of ice, the small creatures slamming into it. She noticed the massive vehicle wasn't stopping and grunted in annoyance, flying backwards as it crashed right through, the vehicle unfazed and unscathed. "Interesting." Was all she said as she flew back towards the others. She blinked when she noticed a familiar Badger following after them, killing off what was left of their little army. She flew into the van, closing the doors behind her. "Rex is still alive and not too far behind us. Got a plan?"
"Donnie, Brilliance, and Mikey take on the Synths. Mira, you take down the crazy Honey Badger. Kara, Dragan, you're with me. We're going for Maximus."
"On it!" Both girls exclaimed, driving beside him.
Brilliance took control of the van while the girls climbed out and jumped onto the Shellraiser before following close behind Chompy, Mira right behind them.
Kara activated her battle mode and grew taller. As the Shellraiser lost some momentum, getting closer to Maximus' ride, Kara picked Dragan up and tossed her onto the vehicle, she landing safely. She went to go throw Raph next but he jumped ahead but missed by an inch and began to fall til he stabbed his sai into the wall. Dragan bend down and helped pull him up just as Kara jumped and rolled right beside them, immediately helping Dragan pick Raph up. When Raph was on his feet he turned and watched the Shellraiser get destroyed. "Goongala, you gap-tooth-" the whole skull part of the rig exploded, causing them to stumble around til the caught their footing.
"What did you do, Raph?!" Kara shouted.
"Who cares? Let's get a move on before he hurts anyone else!"
"Destroy him, my Synthezoids! Rip the interloper to pieces!" Tiny creatures crawled out of everywhere wearing armor and having weapons, surrounding them all.
"Don't worry about them, Raph, go after Maximus."
"We can handle these little guys." Dragan smirked, her hand transforming into a sword while Kara puffed her cheeks, her needles poking out sharp as ever.
Raph nodded at the two and smirked before charging with a yell, the two following his battlecry and began to fight off the Synthezoids.
Once the little buggers were taken care of, they heard a shout and saw Raph was in deep trouble. "We gotta find a way to stop this rig." Kara began to look around but stopped when Dragan looked to be concentrating real hard. She watched and waited blinking when she noticed Dragan's hair starting to twitch then an audible gasp escaped her mouth when one by one, strand by strand, her hair began to come to life, straightening itself out til her hair reached it's full length past her butt. She slowly walked up towards the edge of the rig and opened her eyes, staring down at the wheel til she whipped her head to the side, using her hair to slice at the wheel, cutting straight through and causing the rig to lose control.
Kara looked up seeing Maximus lose his balance and Raph break free of his grip making Kara holler excitedly and grab Dragan before climbing to their level. When they landed Dragan dropped to her knees, panting softly. "Sorry, Kara, that taks a lot out o me. Just..Just give me a minute."
"Don't worry, I got your back." Kara ran at Maximus and jumped on him, tangling her body around his limbs while punching his helmet. The more he struggled, the deeper her needles pricked his hide. He grunted and yelled as he tried to get her off him til he slammed his back into one of the pillars hard one, two, three times causing her to yell out in pain but she held on tighter despite the spikes in his back digging into her skin. It wasn't til the fourth time that he finally managed to loosen her grip and grabbed her by the face, throwing her aside. She smacked right into pillar next to Dragan and laid limp, groaning into the ground.
"Kara, Kara are ye ok?" Dragan asked worriedly, reaching to touch her.
"Gimmieaminute." She muttered into the floor, giving her a weak thumbs up.
Hearing Raph fighting off Maximus they both stood to their feet and walked up to him just as Raph sent Maximus onto his back, his helmet flying off his head.
Kara and Dragan got ready for a fight when all of them were caught off guard by the one called Maximus.
"No..are you serious?"
"It..It can't be."
"Leo." Dragan said his name barely at a whisper, her eyes widened in shock.
Leo stared at them, his eyes having an unnatural green glow to them, before standing to his feet while letting out a roar and smacked Raph into the wall behind them. Dragan and Kara stared at each other in shock but didn't have time to react for he was right on them.
"Leo! It's us! Your friends and family! Snap out of it!" She jumped onto him again trying to subdue him while keeping him from murdering Raph.
All Dragan could do is watch in shock.
Time around Dragan slowed down as she watched the one she loved, the one she almost thought was gone forever, the one whose hope was fading from her fight her friends. It was clear being in the center of the mutant explosion not only messed with his body but his mind as well for their pleas and cries weren't getting to him.
A sharp cry snapped Dragan out of her thoughts when she saw Leo snap Kara's arm in half and throw her at Raph. Raph held onto Kara as she grabbed her arm and tried to muffle her screams while Leo advanced on them breathing loud and heavy with every breath. Dragan narrowed her eyes and stepped between them, her right arm transforming into a sword and her left into a shield. "Stay back, Leo. I don't want tae hurt ye." She narrowed her eyes at him but made no move towards him.
Leo stopped in his tracks seeing the girl in front of him and sudden memories of a similar girl flashed through his mind. He grabbed at his head, his eyes frantically searching everywhere for something while letting out a yell.
Dragan watched him and slowly lowered her arms, them returning to normal when she noticed the rig was starting to fall apart. "Raph, tak Kara an geit out o' here."
"What?! Not without Le-"
"I'm not leavin' him either, Raph. Just tak Kara tae safety. Don't worry, I'll get our Leo back." She turned to him and gave him a smile.
Raph stared at her for a moment but nodded and picked Kara up and jumped out off the side of the rig. Dragan watched them go before turning her attention back to Leo. "Hamato Leonardo. I know you're in thare. I know we've been apart for so long, that you've been alone an scared an hurt but I'm here now. I an the others can help ye geit better; help ye remember who ya really are. Ye just hae tae listen tae m-" "RAAAAAGH!" He roared, slamming into her, the force pushing her through the floor. She closed one eye in pain but continued on. "Ye hae tae listen tae me! Remember me, Leo! Remember everything we've been through!" His eyes were wide in panic as he began to feel a sharp pain in his mind, his breathing becoming even more labored. "Silence!" He screamed jumping onto her body and slammed his fists into her. With each punch she was pushed into the ground til it broke from the weight of her body and the strength of his power and landed on the bottom floor.
She grunted in pain as he grabbed her by the neck and held her over the edge, his grip becoming tighter. "Leo..Leo, please.." She reached her hand out, gently stroking his cheek causing him to gasp and freeze at her touch. "I love you, Leo."
He let out a gasp that caught in his throat, his eyes widening and the glow fading from them til he tossed her over the edge. Her eyes widened in shock til she noticed the canyon wall was dangerously close and she looked back at Leo trying to reach out to him. "Leo!" She shouted before she made impact to the ground, rolling safely away just as the rig crashed into the wall, Leo still on it.
Raph and Kara ran over to Dragan, helping her to her feet. The others close behind, everyone climbing off Chompy and Brilliance leaving the wagon.
Once the smoke cleared they could see Leo's body under the debree.
"Holy Chalupa!"
"Leo? I can't believe it."
"Leonardo!" Sara and Brilliance shouted happily.
"Leo..nardo? I-I don't know who you're talking about. I-I am Maximus Kong!" The glow was starting to come back to his eyes when he heard someone call his name. He looked up as the others parted ways, Dragan, Raph and Kara standing before him.
"It's gonna be ok, bro." Raph said softly.
Dragan walked up to him and sat down on her knees in front of him, placing both her hands on his cheeks. He stared at her, beginning to calm down as if just staring at her was hypnotizing him. She leaned close to him, touching her lips with his in a passionate kiss. He closed his eyes submissively and when the kiss ended and he opened his eyes, the glow had completely faded leaving the blue eyes everyone knew all too well. "Dragan?" He whispered in a hoarse tone making her smile brightly before she began to pull the debree off him, the guys joining her. Dragan stepped aside as Leo looked at himself then to his brothers.
"Brother!" Raph shouted before he, Donnie, and Mikey jumped on him in a family hug, Kara and the others soon joining them.
"Leo! You're back!" Mikey smiled.
"Oh, man, we thought we lost you forever. We looked everywhere for you!"
"What happened to you? The last time we saw you that Mutagen Bomb went off."
"It's starting to come back to me, piece by piece. I remember. I-I was there. I remember pushing you all to safety but I was caught in the middle of the blast. It mutated me into this horrible thing. The rage.." He closed his eyes, shaking the feeling away. "But now, somehow, I'm back. Thanks to all of you." He looked at everyone, his eyes stopping on Kara who was getting her arm taken care of with Sara and Brilliance's help. "Kara, I-I'm really sorry I hurt you. Hurt all of you."
"Ah, don't sweat it, you were in a bad place, I get it. Juuust try not to let it happen again or you'll owe me big time." She grinned at him making him smile before turning to Dragan, his eyes softening. He walked over to her and held her hands in his. "Thank you..for reaching out to me even when I..I.." He wasn't able to finish his sentence for Dragan tackled him to the ground, holding him tight. "I almost lost hope but I knew;I knew ya were out thare alive." They looked into each other's eyes and leaned in for another kiss when Mikey got in between them.
"We've got the map to the Green Place, Leo! Next stop, paradiiiiise!" Mikey sung as he somersaulted into his seat on Chompy.
"Paradise?" He stood to his feet, helping Dragan up and smiled at her. "Sounds good to me."
They did it. After years of hardship and survival. They made it.
Brilliance and Sara jumped into the water, laughing and cheering, Mikey soon joining him with a, "Booyakabungalaa!" and swam around them, spitting fresh water out of his mouth.
"It's so beautiful."
"Feel that cool air." Kara said softly, closing her eyes.
"Wow. It really is an oasis." Donnie whispered before looking over at Kara and pulled her close to him. She smiled and wrapped her arm around his stomach.
"Truly is paradise."
Leo looked down at Dragan and smiled, holding her hand. "Family, we're home."
Raph looked at them all then up towards the sun. "Yeah. We are home."