Chapter 10: The Shell…..

"What the shell was that thing?!" Raph yelled as the group watched Shredder's lair from a safe distance.

"Shredder must have used Donnie's DNA to create that thing," Leo said, knelling on the ledge.

Mikey shook his head. "That's not possible. Donnie said Shredder can't do that."

"When did he tell you that?" Leo asked, turning to their baby brother.

"A while back. I don't remember."

"Things can change," Raph said before turning on Mikey. "And why didn't you attack that thing? We could have used your help!"

"Something wasn't right," Mikey tried to explain. "He only attacked us because Shredder ordered him to. Did you notice that Shredder pressed a button and he attack?"

"So it's a he now? That thing is a monster and could have killed us!" Raph yelled.

"He's just scared."

"Scared?! Have you lost your mind?"

"Raphael. Michelangelo. Now is not the time," Master Splinter sternly said. "Your brother is still in there and we have no time for your pointless arguing. Michelangelo, when your family is in trouble, you must fight alongside us."

"Hai Sensei," Mikey bowed, a frown on his face.

Master Splinter turned away from the building to face his sons. "We must pull back for now. A frontal assault will not work. We must be smart. We'll infiltrate his stronghold and rescue Donatello."

Karai sighed as she reached through the small hole to give Donatello another pet. The giant turtle had begun to whimper from either pain or fear, she wasn't sure. She remembered the horror of watching him fall into the mutagen and knew that was how Leonardo must have felt watching her fall in. She managed to repress a shiver as she remembered his screams of pain from his second mutation. It wasn't his new appearance that frightened her the most, it was the fact he lost his mind along the way.

At first, Karai thought he was pretending like she was, that Stockman was lying to the Shredder like he did for her. It wasn't until when they were alone did she discover the intellect that Donatello possessed was gone, along with the caring, selfless person she had known. All that was left was a scared animal.

Karai leaned down to the hole, hoping to get a good look at Donatello to check him over. Now that he couldn't talk or even convey what was wrong, she had to make do with what she could see. The angular head rested on his clawed paws as he slept. Her eyes narrowed at a small scar that begun to form on his wrist. The small slash wasn't that painful for him or even very threatening, it was the fact that it came from a sai that sent Karai's stomach swirling.

She had learned from Stockman that Shredder had Donnie fight his own family. She hissed angrily at the thought which jolted the turtle awake. Glowing red eyes blinked up at her as he grumbled in discomfort. Karai reached out and stroked his head once again, electing a purr.

"I'm sorry, Donnie. I didn't mean to wake you." The turtle looked up at her before closing his eyes once again.

"He has some neural readings."

Karai slithered back in fright, hissing as Stockman spoke to her through Donnie's glass shield. The fly's eyes were focused on the sleeping turtle but his words were to the girl.

"They vary greatly but I noticed when he is calm and feels safe, they raise up to levels of more intelligent creatures. I think in the right environment, he could completely regain his mind."

Karai blinked at him as Stockman flew away from the glass. If he was right, there could be hope that Donatello was still in there, somewhere, buried under the animal instinct that was brought forward with the mutation. That was another thing, Stockman. For some reason, he was nice to Donatello and helped the two of them. She didn't know what Donnie had told the man but she knew they had an ally in this horrible place.

Donnie pushed his snout back into Karai's hand, wanting more pets. She sighed, giving into the giant turtle's demands. He was like an oversized puppy, wanting attention and love. The thing was he remembered those who hurt him clearly and if he was attacked by his family, it would be a terrible reunion. Donatello wouldn't trust them.

"Everything will be okay, Donnie. I promise. We'll get out of here."

"What's the plan Fearless?" Raph asked as they stood around their kitchen table.

Leo nodded before explaining, hoping Splinter would like it, "We sneak in as best as we can, without being seen or caught. We've done it before and we can do it again. Considering that monster we fought, I think they'll be holding Donnie in a laboratory. If we find Stockman, we can get him to show us."

"What if Stockboy doesn't do it?" Raph asked, trying to provide the needed hole punching of the plans.

"We force him," Leo said, punching his fists.

"That," Splinter interrupted. "Or we simply follow him."

"When do we go?" Mikey asked.

"Tomorrow. Shredder won't be expecting us so soon after retreating like that," Splinter answered, looking at each of his sons.

Leo paused for a moment, feeling guilt seep through his body, "I hate that Donnie isn't with us. He'd know what do to."

Splinter turned back to his eldest son, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Your brother will be back with us soon. I promise, we will not leave Shredder's lair without him.

Author's Note: I've been loving the reviews and your reactions! It's because of the reviews I've been getting, I've updated so frequently. I've got several chapters written ahead so even though I'll be starting work, I hope I'll at least be able to update in a good amount of time. Thanks to Pilyartquitect, Sonic155, Livvie13, .52, BipperCipher3, Turtle Lover101, Agentcocacola, and Pip for the lovely reviews!