Chapter 2: Darkness

New York City sat on the cusp of winter. There wasn't any snow yet, but the humans bustled about below me with ever increasing layers of clothing, and scarves, gloves, and hats grew more common as the air grew colder. The whole city seemed to buzz with a new energy, and everywhere I turned, there were talks of family holidays and upcoming meals and visits and gifts and parties.

Alone in the shadows, hiding in alleys and on rooftops, my focus was on other things at the moment.

It was night, and my normally slate blue eyes were narrowed and white as I surveyed the surrounding buildings from my position. I was crouched behind a wooden support pillar, hidden underneath an old water tower atop an apartment building. The city was lit up with a bright silver hue under a full moon, and I welcomed the deeper shadows the cover provided.

The crisp November air was carrying a chill that more then nipped at the tip of my nose and fingers, signaling the danger was just around the corner. Winters were always hard on my cold-blooded body, slowing my muscles and making me sluggish as I desperately looked for ways to keep warm. And now I was facing my very first winter alone.

It was going to be a hard enough for me as it was, but fact of the matter was, I was shamefully unprepared at the moment. I had no shelter, no food stored away, and no blankets or fuel to keep me warm.

It had been two months now since I had lost everything. Two months alone. I had not been back down in the sewers once since burying my Sensei behind a wall near our lair, pulling out the bricks to dig out a space behind it, and then, after laying him to rest, wrapped in the new comforter and a cup of his favorite tea, carefully replacing the bricks, one by one, until nobody could tell that the area had ever been disturbed.

After only a few nights alone in the Lair, I quickly realized that I would go crazy down there if I stayed. The pitch black stone and cement underground corridors that had once been my home felt more like a tomb. Empty. Cold. Filled with nothing but blackness and dripping water. Though I felt no love for humans, I had suddenly felt a desperate need to stay above ground, where I could hear and see that life still existed, that the city and the world moved on, even if I could never be a part of it myself.

And that, perhaps, had serious tactical mistake. Alas, I was coming to realize now that I had allowed my grief and emotional weakness, my need to not be alone, to override common sense, as now I found myself dealing with a new, serious problem.

I was being hunted.

My favored scavenging sites were under surveillance, my campsites were being scouted out while I was away, and even traps were being laid out in hopes of capturing me. And not just simple snares, but far more dangerous tricks like high tech spring cages with laser triggers. So far they had thankfully all been of the non-lethal variety, but how long would that last? And the thought that this human, whoever he was, wanted to capture me alive was not in any way comforting.

I should have been focusing on trying to survive the coming season. But this stalker and his apparent attempts to follow and capture me kept my attention directed elsewhere.

This was all my fault. I had been careless. I had allowed myself to become vulnerable.

I wondered who this hunter was. I had only caught a few glimpses of him, a wiry, impossibly thin man with ebony skin and a neatly kept mohawk. Had he been hired by the Purple Dragons? Heavens knew I hadn't been gently on them lately, as beating in a criminal's face turned out to be strangely cathartic when one was grieving. Perhaps they had grown tired of looking over their shoulders while accosting women and children. There also was the possibility that some cryptozoologist somewhere had gotten wind of a new trophy they wished to add to their exotic collection.

Or... just maybe... Agent Bishop had learned that I was alive?

I swallowed hard as the thought crossed my mind, and I shrunk further into the shadows, clutching at a wooden pillar for support. I had barely gotten away with my life the last time, and now I was alone. There was nobody left who would come to my rescue this time. Not a single soul in the entire world would care if I was captured, experimented on, and eventually dissected.

But then I shook my head, took a deep breath, and steeled myself.

No. I could not be afraid. I could not be weak.

This... hunter, whoever he was, he didn't move with the cold precision or methodical tactics used by the EPF government agents. I couldn't allow myself to get paranoid. But still, this was obviously not the ordinary run-of-the-mill bounty hunter. This person was skilled, persistent, and obviously very, very stubborn. I had noticed him stalking me for nearly a week now, and I was growing frustrated that I just couldn't seem to lose him.

Growling, I reached up and touched the hilt of one of my two old and chipped swords.

Perhaps it was time for the hunter to become the hunted...

I decided to play things simple.

I was simply foraging for food, that was it. I, of course, would be completely unaware of the small camera that had been set up since the last time I had been to this dumpster behind the Chinese restaurant.

And if the hunter came to try and ambush this innocently unaware turtle, he would find a dangerous ninja behind him instead.

Eh, to tell the truth, though, I really should eat more anyways, I mused to myself as I surveyed the back alley that smelled of fried food and sweet sauces. I'd been shamefully neglecting myself the last two months. Food had been an afterthought. All that mattered at first was training until I was exhausted and couldn't think or feel anymore, and I could tell that I was starting to lose a lot of weight. Not something I wanted to happen with winter coming up. Master Splinter would be scolding me if he could.

I swallowed hard at the thought of the elderly rat, then shook my head, and my eyes narrowed and changed from slate blue to deadly white once more. This was going to be dangerous, and I needed a clear and focused mind. I couldn't think of the past. Only the present. I only needed to concentrate on surviving another night.

I hopped down and skirted the shadows at what I knew would be the edge of the camera's view, determined to catch the hunter's attention, but not wanting to show more then just glimpses of what I was. Just enough to peak his curiosity and bait the hook.

The stray cats surrounding the area looked at me curiously as I approached the dumpster, keeping my body low to the ground, but they apparently decided that this new animal visiting their turf wasn't a danger to them, and went back to napping or bathing. I lifted the lid of the dumpster slightly and gave a sniff. Ooh. What was this? A whole bag of dumplings? And they still warm and smelled fresh! Bonus! I snagged the greasy paper bag out of the dumpster and quickly turned to scurry up a fire escape to the roof above.

And now I would wait and see if the bait was tempting enough. If anything, I had actually found the best tasting meal I had had in weeks, so the effort wouldn't be a complete waste if nothing happened. I sat crouched in shadows, alert and scanning the area while eating patiently.

Sure enough, it wasn't long until I spotted movement as somebody carefully crept up on the roof of a flower shop across the street. I could catch the telltale flash of a glint, the light of a streetlight catching on the glass of binoculars. He was searching for me. Perfect.

Now if I could only get to the...

*thwip*

A small dart dug deep into my right arm, and my eyes widened in panic.

I slapped at my arm and yanked it out as quickly as I could, but it was too late. I could already feel my muscles start to slow down. Cursing under my breath, I tried to turn and run, dashing across the rooftops while I still could in a desperate attempt to find a hiding spot.

There was more then one hunter out there! How could I be so stupid as to miss that?!

I scrambled up the steep roof of an old church, hoping to vault over it and use it as a barrier between me and the sniper.

*thwip!* *thwip!*

Another dart bounced off my shell, but the third dug deep into my thigh. I swore. Where was the sniper?! I couldn't see him!

Feeling the drugs already coursing through my veins, I staggered, slipping to my knees and sliding down the steep roof several feet. I scrabbled at the shingles to try and keep my grip on both the rooftop and my consciousness.

The world was spinning around me, and I struggled to fight the fog that was trying to cloud my brain. I pushed myself up. No! I... I had to stay... stay awake! I had to... had to get... away...

And then, suddenly, I realized I was falling through the open air. Funny, I didn't even remember sliding off the last few yards of the rooftop...

CRACK!

My shell slammed hard against the metal railing of a fire escape, and pain shot through my numbed body. But before I could even finish registering that had happened, I crashed into a dumpster, smashing through the thick black plastic lid with a crunch.

I lay among the garbage and plastic bags, my limbs no longer responding and my chest heaving as I struggled against the darkness that loomed in my vision, threatening to completely envelope me.

And through the black fog that was folding around me and my unresponsive body, I could make out voices. Two forms loomed over the sky above me.

"Oh, dang, dawg! Look what you did! It ain't damaged, is it? The contract specifically said we weren't to damage it."

"Hm. Well, it's still alive, at least. Doesn't look too broken."

"Ya shouldn't have shot it so close to the edge of the roof, Strenko! You almost cost us the bounty!"

"Bah, be silent, Zeck. You hunt the freaks and monsters, and sometimes the accidents happen. The Hamato Clan is just going to have to understand that. Come on. Let's get him restrained and in the truck..."

The last sensation I was aware of was human hands grabbing me and dragging me up, and then I couldn't hold on anymore and everything faded away.

Where... where was I?

How much time had passed?

I felt so heavy...

I couldn't quite push my way back up out of this darkness...

"Oh, Leonardo!" Distant and far away... Echoing through the fog that filled my brain... "We found you at last! You really do exist!"

That voice...

Who was it?

"I'm so sorry, we never meant for you to get hurt. But I promise you, everything's going to be okay from now on. You're safe now, and nobody will ever hurt you again, brother. Not if we have anything to say about it."

I realized there were hands resting on my shell. Why were there hands touching my shell? And why wouldn't my body move?

And then, slowly, my world faded back into nothing.

Author Notes:

Yup, those bounty hunters are humanized Rocksteady and Bebop, if anybody's curious. I wonder who else will make an appearance in this story?