Luna's mind whirled, thoughts lost among an endlessly circling cry of Michelangelo's pain and despair that melded with her own.
No! Get away, get your hands OFF! I don't want to! *Hold on, dear one!* This can't be happening. *Breathe, just breathe...* Luna! Luna where are you? Why won't you answer? *I hear you! I'm coming!* Leo? Raph? Anyone! *GET AWAY FROM HIM!* Please... no. NO! I can't be responding to this... I can't. *It doesn't matter. It's not your fault* Donnie why is this happening? I don't want this! *I'm going to KILL her!* Father! What can I do? There must be something! *I will destroy her utterly.* GET OFF! *The universe will shudder at her fate.* Something must be wrong with me. I can't WANT this. *I am so sorry.* No-no-no! I'll lose her, lose my chance... *Too late, too late!*
Trine is pure. I failed the test. How could it accept me now?
His final prayer was a question she could not answer.
*Michelangelo, forgive me...*
A blinding blue flash appeared to Luna's right and a violet glow split the air on the opposite side of the room as her mates arrived, but neither distracted the murderous goddess for one instant. Relentlessly her gigantic glowing hands pressed together around the Oracle's head as Serra screamed in pain.
Only the amulet kept her in one piece.
All around Luna, human guards tried to free their despicable mistress. She ignored them. They pierced her luminous form with spears and swords until she began to dim, light draining out of many wounds. Still she would not relent.
A deadly dance of silver swords, glowing with blue fire traced Leonardo's path across the room, cutting through the mass of humanity gathered around her. Where he went, death followed. His graceful moves and shining blades lethal to those who dared to attack his beloved. He reached her side and threw out a circular blast of power, forcing the ring of attackers to retreat in every direction.
April slid to a halt beside him, panting from the run. Her silhouette and sword also glowed blue as Sol hovered above her, coating her form. The little soul appointed itself her guardian the moment they arrived and was taking the task of shielding the mortal sister very seriously. She needed it too. Leonardo and Donatello were sending power spinning throughout the room, not always under the best control, and the celestial rage coming off Luna herself was staggering.
April batted an arrow out of the air and leapt to deflect a flung knife away from the goddess with her katana. Keeping up her guard, she moved to Luna's side and gazed up at the enraged face towering above her.
"Luna!" She yelled over the noise, tugging on her glowing robes. "You have to stop! Leave her! Let the guys take care of it!"
The goddess ignored her, calling out words of power in a booming voice which echoed throughout the room. Parts of the ceiling came crashing down around them. Two enormous chunks of marble headed their way, but Leonardo saw them falling. He sheathed his blades and backflipped between them as they landed. He tackled April in a flying leap and shoved her out of the way as a third deadly hunk hit the ground near where she stood. Together they slid across the floor with the smaller rubble.
"Stop her, Leo!" April said as he climbed off and extended a hand to help her to her feet. "She'll listen to you!"
Leonardo paused and a strange expression crossed his face. He tilted his head as if listening intently and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his steely blue orbs were hard as diamonds.
"She does not wish to stop," he said. His voice sounded odd, echoing with its own form of power and anger, "and neither do I."
He raised a hand and a plasma bolt sprang to life in his grip. Turning abruptly, he launched it across the room like a missile, striking part of the wall. It exploded in a frightening shower of gravel and small stones.
"Protect her, Sol," Leo ordered as if he hadn't noticed it already was. He drew his swords and began to carve a path back to Luna's side.
"Leo wait!" April shouted, wading after him. Slipping on the bloody floor. "What are you doing? You have to stop her before she kills Serra!"
She grabbed hold of his arm and Leonardo turned on her. He snarled and bared his teeth.
"I will do as my mate wills!" he roared.
April flinched away dropping her hand. She stood still for a moment, stunned by his unexpected behavior.
"Sol, what happened?" she asked, her voice numb.
luna is mad.
"I can see that! What happened to Leo?"
madness seeps through the bond.
"You mean she's out of her mind?" April yelled. "I thought she was just angry!"
luna is lost in the orange one's pain.
April let out a string of very unladylike words.
"Can you help Leo? Cut him off from her somehow?"
no, sol must guard.
April cursed again and began to run across the room toward Donatello. Perhaps if she kept him from getting too close to Luna, he'd be able to stay in control long enough to talk her down.
She dodged another group of guards coming in the door, vaulted over the remains of a crushed column in the middle of the room, and slid under a small side table. She narrowly avoided a heavy sword as it shattered the table behind her, countered a knife thrust toward her side and rolled out of the way of another piece of falling debris. She regained her feet and surged across the open space toward Don, countering attacks from all sides.
The white marble under her feet began to glow.
jump!
Sol's agitated command came in the nick of time and April threw herself forward with all her might as the floor simply disappeared, dropping dozens of people to the level below. She flew through the air, stretching her arms as far as she could, but was going to fall short of the edge.
A strong paw grabbed her arm and swung her back to solid ground.
"April! Are you ok?" Splinter asked, whipping his tail through about to clear some space while she caught her breath.
"Yes, Sensei."
She raised her blade at an overhead angle, blocking a downward strike from a soldier behind her, slid her foot out and swept the man's legs from underneath him. He overbalanced and fell through the hole in the floor.
Warily she lifted her eyes to search for Donatello. He fought grimly in the corner, his bo in constant motion. Occasionally his palm glowed with devastating effect. He flung an empty arm out in a circle and shuriken appeared from nowhere, flying in all directions with deadly accuracy. He pointed and ropes formed, snaking up the ankles of the combatants around him. Walls materialized blocking off reinforcements.
Watching this, April realized the floor had been Don, cutting off a whole group of guards before they could reach this end of the room. He glanced up and she met his eyes, relieved to note intelligence and not battle madness there.
"Donnie!" she yelled. "You have to get through to Luna somehow! Leo got sucked into her rage and I can't get him to see sense. She's going to kill Serra!"
Don's eyes went distant for the briefest moment.
"I can't reach her. Medes says if I touch her mind, I'll be pulled in too!"
"What are we going to do?" April asked.
"What has affected Luna so?" Splinter countered with a question of his own.
"She's caught in Mikey's pain," she said, realizing she hadn't seen the orange banded turtle anywhere. Her eyes skimmed the huge room, seeking places Michelangelo might be confined but not finding him. "Where is he?"
"The bed," Donnie ground out between clenched teeth as he repelled another attack.
April focused on that area of the room and gasped. He didn't look conscious.
"Donatello," his father said, "Can you keep your wits if you get nearer to Luna?"
"Medes will help," Don said nodding.
"We will distract her and release the Oracle from her grip," Splinter said, "April, Free Michelangelo and try to awaken him, perhaps this will bring the goddess to her senses."
As April moved towards the bed, Don recreated the floor. Master Splinter charged across the newly formed surface engaging enemies as he ran. Donnie circled to the left and April lost sight of them among the heaving mass of people.
Glad to have a mission beyond the endless fighting, she waited for an opening and dashed through to the bed. But when she got her first solid look at Mikey, she froze, devastated; wishing this task had fallen to someone else. Her throat closed and her eyes prickled with suppressed tears as she examined him from three feet away. She glanced around quickly to see if Don was still nearby, or Splinter. Even Leo would probably break out of his desperate rage to help at this sight.
There was no one else, only hundreds of guards trying to kill them both.
Frantically she shook her head, attempting to organize her thoughts as another small group engaged her. Thankfully, years of practice had honed her responses and her body reacted without needing conscious direction from her mind.
She had to do this.
Mikey needed her.
Focus on the task at hand.
Tackle one problem at a time.
Resolutely swallowing back her horror, she raise her blade above her head and drove the attackers away with a violent series of blows. When they retreated and did not try again, she turned back to her friend.
Step one- remove the chains.
Three hard strikes with her katana freed him in short order.
"Step two- get rid of the cuffs," She mumbled under her breath.
She sheathed her sword, climbed rapidly up beside him and drew a lock pick from her boot. Seconds later, the manacles fell from his wrists and ankles. She hissed as she discovered the raw wounds underneath. His repeated struggles had torn the flesh and dug the bindings deep in to his muscles. Blood ran copiously from them.
Step three- evaluate the patient.
Breathing hard, she performed a field exam on the rest of him, as Donatello taught her long ago; searching for other injuries and ranking her treatment. She found the bullet wound in his thigh and the long bloody gashes Serra left in the thick muscles of his opposite leg. She turned his head, exploring the cut on his throat and gently probing the back of his skull with her fingers for contusions.
The revulsion and shame etched on his normally carefree face nearly broke her heart.
Crying openly now at the obvious nature of his torture, she reached for his exposed privates and tucked them back into place, before pulling a small pack from her back and removing a medkit.
Step four- treatment.
As odd as it seemed, outlining each action was the only way April was staying sane. It helped to keep her focused amidst the chaos of the battle raging around them.
She wrapped his wrists, ankles, and the long wound on his neck with gauze. The slashes in his thigh were shallow, but the skin kept pulling apart, causing massive blood loss, so she fumbled in the bag for Donnie's special 'field stitches'.
She peeled the strange kind of rubbery layer from its waxed paper backing and slapped it over the wounds. Instantly it dissolved, the edges puckering together and closing the slashes tight. The gunshot leaked slowly and it took her some time to remove the old wrapping, forced into the wound by Serra's thumb. She packed it with fresh gauze and applied a compression bandage over it.
Step five? Get off this thrice damned bed!
She needed to get Mikey somewhere more defensible. She gripped his hands, gritted her teeth, and tried to pull him to the edge. He was too heavy for her to shift.
We can't stay here!
Her frightened eyes flicked over the room again and her gaze landed on the little blue flame hovering worriedly above her.
"Sol, can you help me?" She pleaded.
Immediately, it flew to Michelangelo's chest and extended its glow. Little by little, his body grew lighter until April was able to shift him to the floor. She propped him against her legs so he sat upright, and knelt behind his shell, sliding her arms under his. Locking her hands across his plastron, she stood and dragged his unconscious form to a corner of the room, leaning him on the wall.
Anxiously, she tried to wake him. Calling his name and patting his cheeks with no response. Her tears falling freely across him.
"Sol, can you reach his mind?"
The little flame dimmed and flared, trying its best, but Mikey did not open his eyes.
Across the complex, a red light flashed brilliantly into existence then faded, leaving Raphael and Casey Jones hiding in the shadows. They ducked behind two nearby columns outside a huge pair of double doors.
Raph directed an irritated glare at Fina, who flitted overhead.
"Fina, turn it down, will ya? Ya gonna give us away."
The little red flame pulsed briefly in protest, but the bright light died away to a dim glow. Suddenly, Raphael realized there was no one else around, although he could feel Luna's rage nearby beating in time with his heart.
"Fina, where'd you take us? Where's the battle?"
our job is freeing trine, remember?
"You're worried about Trine when Mikey could be dying and Luna's trying to commit homicide?" Raph sputtered.
luna is trapped in a circle of anger and pain caused by michelangelo. he must wake if she is to recover. he will not without trine, so get a move on!
They were only a few feet from the room where the orange soul was supposed to be imprisoned, but the doors in front of them were so large Raph wasn't sure he'd be able to force them open at all, much less take whoever was inside by surprise. He eyed them a moment in consternation.
A slight, scuffling sound from behind them made them jump and Casey spun, dipping low to haul something small and struggling out from under a stone bench against the wall. It yelped.
"Who do we have here?" he asked, confused to find himself holding on to a child.
Fina flared a bit brighter so they could see. The child yelped again. His frightened eyes flashed from Casey's shadowed face, to Fina floating in midair, to Raphael. Raph winced and braced for the scream sure to bring guards running, but the boy's face lit with hope and he reached a hand towards the red banded ninja instead.
"Raphael Splinter-son! Help me!" he begged, barely above a whisper.
Casey practically dropped him in shock and the moment he was free the boy ran fearlessly to Raphael. He ducked behind the turtle's shell and peeked out to stare at Casey, eyes wide. His little hands fixed firmly to Raph's belt.
Raph blinked down at the little guy, confused to hear Splinter's name as well as his own from the mouth of a strange child and shocked the boy wasn't cowering in fear at his appearance. It took a few seconds for his mind to catch up. This must be one of the pages his father spoke of!
"It's ok kid," Raph said, turning to pat the head of the small form clutching at his side. "This big lug is with me."
"Are you here to save the little light too?" the boy asked, gazing up at Raph's face.
"Um..."
he means trine.
The child's eyes snapped up as Fina 'spoke'.
"You have your own?" he asked. "And it talks?"
"Do you know where they're keeping the orange one, kid?" Raph interrupted.
The boy pointed wordlessly to the room in front of them.
he has a name you know. it's jacob. you don't have to keep calling him kid.
Raph shot Fina another irritated glare but didn't respond to the barb. He turned back to the doors instead and cracked his neck. He took a few steps and, seeing no other way in than brute force, rolled his shoulders and prepared to charge.
Jacob tugged frantically at his belt.
"Don't! Splinter-sensei said the door will hurt us bad if we touch it when the Oracle isn't here!"
Raph paused and Casey smacked his stick into the bench next to them, breaking off a small piece of the corner. He tossed it at the door. One intense hum and tiny yellow flash later, the rock disintegrated.
"I'll say," Casey said with a grimace. "Any idea how we're supposed to get in there now, big guy? Mikey don't have a whole lot of time."
Raph frowned and the boy stared up at them. "Michelangelo needs help?"
The turtle started again at his brother's name. "Uh, yeah kid, I mean- Jake," he replied.
Jacob ducked his head, thinking.
"Ben knows how to get in. He went there after Splinter-sensei disappeared."
"Is Ben around somewhere?"
Jacob nodded and immediately trotted off down a side corridor. Casey and Raph exchange a shrug, following after. It wasn't far before they turned into a maze of much smaller hallways. These were obviously used by the staff and after a few turns the adults were thoroughly lost. Raph hoped the kid knew where he was going.
They were halfway down the next one when a thunderous vibration shook the complex, rolling through the marble halls like an earthquake.
"What the He-"
Raph elbowed Casey before he could finish the curse in front of their little guide. He was only about six and Raph swallowed back his own string of curses as debris knocked loose by the furor came crashing down at the little guy. He jumped forward to pull the him to safety, but the boy smoothy dove and rolled out of the way with perfect form. Casey's mouth dropped open.
Jacob smiled from further up the hall, gesturing them on. They raced ahead with a greater sense of urgency, until they reached a short door at the end of the corridor. The young boy burst through, slamming it against the wall and yelling.
"Ben! Guys! Get up!"
An older boy grimaced and said, "Jacob! What did you do this time?"
"Raphael is here!"
Across the room, five small bodies immediately struggled out of bed, leaving a very confused turtle facing an unfamiliar situation. He didn't know what to do with all these smiling children who greeted him by name, like a long lost friend, and hugged all the parts of him they could reach.
"Hey now, step back a minute guys, uh and girls," he corrected as he realized two of them were definitely female. "Which one of you is Ben?"
The older boy stepped forward.
"Are you here to help us escape like Splinter-sensei?" Ben asked.
"I'm trying to get to the orange light, so we can free my brother," Raphael said. "This little guy said you knew a way to open the doors of the receiving room."
Ben shook his head and Raph suppressed a growl at the wasted time.
"I can take you to the side entrance though," Ben said. "Only the servants use it."
"Lead the way."
He and Casey found themselves amid a veritable flock of children, hurrying down the darkened corridors of the Oracle's palace. They exchanged a loaded glance over the heads of their charges as they ran and both gave a nod. They would not be leaving without taking these six with them.
Ben lead them confidently to the hidden entrance and Raph gestured for Casey to keep the kids back as he approached the door. He threw a small pebble at it and was reassured when it bounced and skittered across the floor in one piece. He drew a knife, cracked the door and angled the highly reflective blade through, using it as a mirror to inspect the room. What he saw made him gasp in surprise.
He pushed on the door and stumbled in, his mouth dropping open in shock. The room was expansive, at least a hundred times the size it should be from the outside dimensions. Inside stood row upon row of pedestals, each supporting a crystal sphere with a glowing orange light.
Casey peered around the doorframe and froze. There were thousands of them. He entered and shoved the nearest with his hand, hoping they weren't real. It tipped over with a crash, shattering on the floor.
It would take days to destroy them all.
A sharp bark of laughter near the ceiling drew their eyes. Zeus, King of the Gods of Olympus floated above the sea of endless orbs watching them, a smirk of derision on his lips. Raphael recognized him from that long ago rooftop. His eyes hardened as he recalled the king's amusement at Luna's broken heart.
"Zeus!" he roared. "What's this about?"
"Zeus?" Casey said, tugging on his arm. "Easy Raph, this is the head-honcho. The one we're not supposed to piss off. We don't want to start a war, 'member?"
"Warrior," Zeus acknowledge Raph with a small nod. "You expected to walk in, and claim it? Retrieving her soul is Luna's task. Why should I allow one who is only her agent to recover it?"
"Agent? I am her mate!" Raph spat.
Irritated, Zeus aimed a hand at them. Golden energy, reminiscent of lightning angled down toward them. Raph blanched. He knew his shields were not strong enough to stop it all and he didn't have enough power to cover himself and Casey.
In a split second decision he threw the shield over his best friend and raised an arm to protect his head, hoping against hope his natural fire resistance would keep him from turning into a crispy turtle kabob.
Before it reached them, Fina shot through the door, trailing flames, and collided with the bolt in midair. There was a bright flash of light. Fina wobbled a bit and circled slowly down to them. Zeus stared as Raph raised a hand and the little soul perched on it like a tiny bird, shivering. Raph's palm began to glow as he and Fina passed power back and forth between them for a moment, stabilizing the flow.
"Hmm... perhaps you are an extension of her will. We shall see if you are worthy," Zeus said, gesturing to the room. "You may attempt the puzzle, but you best hurry. I believe your precious goddess is about to break another law, and I will not be so forgiving of a second infraction."
He waved a hand and a huge projection of the battle raging on the other side of the complex appeared overhead. The screams of the injured and the desperate calls of Raph's family rang out, echoing across the space. But the furious goddess towering over the scene caught and held his eyes.
Luna was tearing the room, and the guards, apart with her bare hands. So infuriated she was beyond focusing her energy for any other means. Or perhaps she was simply worried about striking her family if she used her power for Master Splinter had Serra by the wrist, running, dodging and dragging the woman away from Luna's outstretched hands. Donatello followed a step behind, putting as many non-injurious barriers between the goddess and her prey as he could.
Holes opened in the floor, walls appeared in front of her, mirrors lead her astray. Leo kept pace at her feet, deflecting any humans away from her as best he could for she had no regard for her own safety. Her eyes still blazed a solid orange.
There was nothing but madness in them.
Michelangelo lay unconscious in the corner, April stood over him, trying everything in her power to get the youngest turtle to open his eyes.
"April!" Casey yelled, raising a hand in concern.
Zeus laughed mockingly at their predicament and disappeared with a clap of thunder; leaving them desperate and running out of time in a room full of possibilities.
The moment the sound died, Casey attacked the nearest orb, smashing it with his stick. He spun in wild circles, doing as much damage as possible. Raph concentrated and ten orbs at a time imploded in heat and flames. None contained Trine.
"Fina! Can you tell which one it is?" Raph yelled.
"Trine! Yo! Triny! You here?" Casey shouted.
Drawn by the noise, the children crept to the edge of the door, wondering what was going on. Ben pointed to the projection high above.
"Look there's Splinter-Sensei!" he said.
The other kids stared at the battle overhead with rapt attention, but Jacob watched Raphael and Casey dancing madly across the floor. He peered around the room suspiciously, trying to decide what they were doing.
Casey was swinging a big stick around very fast and Raphael struck in all directions with many advanced katas the little boy had never seen. The red light hovered, flitted and dove above them.
It was all very impressive, but what were they fighting in the middle of the room? Didn't they need to save Michelangelo?
Hesitantly, Jacob left the other children and crossed the empty space giving the men a wide berth. He passed the large stone throne with a glance of trepidation and walked to the single plaster pedestal at the back of the room.
As he approached a happy little chiming sound came from the orange light. Jacob glanced around to see if anyone was watching, worried this would get him in trouble. Convinced everyone was busy for a moment, he lowered his lashes shyly and looked up at the glow.
"Hi," the little boy said.
Trine pulsed in greeting.
"Do you want to come out?" Jacob asked. "I bet you'd like to fly like the red one does."
Trine flashed again and the little boy grabbed the edge of the pedestal, going up on tip-toe to reach for the orb. His tiny palm closed carefully over the glass ball. He pulled it down and stared into the bright glow. He tried to twist it, but it didn't move.
Jacob struggled with it, his little pink tongue poking cutely out the side of his mouth as he worked out how to get it open, but the crystal was smooth, slippery and hard to hold on to. A moment later, it jumped right out of his hand and smashed against the marble floor in a stunning burst of light.
Jacob stared at the shards around his feet in horror and raised his eyes to see Raphael, Casey and all his friends staring at him from across the room.
"I'm sorry!" Jacob wailed, "I didn't mean to break it!"
And the little boy burst into tears.
Donatello never felt so bone tired in all his life. His energy was fading fast, down to a dull lavender even with Medes support. The obstacles he created were weaker and it became harder to keep the Oracle out of Luna's grasp. Especially since Donnie wanted to kill the woman himself.
And the fact he was fighting his beloved was taking an emotional toll.
She wouldn't engage him directly. At least she wasn't so lost to the raging tempest she would harm her family. She wasn't attacking him, but every cry of frustration and scream of rage she uttered when she ran up against one of his impediments injured him deeply. He hated causing her pain, but he had to save her life.
He glanced to the corner where Mikey lay limply, supported by the wall. April was tiring. Sol was compensating for her fatigue as best it could, but it didn't have access to Leo's healing abilities. The only positive note was Luna and Leo had cleared most of the human soldiers from the room. There were only a few left trying to breach April's defenses.
He shouldn't have turned his back.
The moment he did, Luna lunged and caught Serra's trailing hair, jerking the Oracle from Master Splinter's hand and holding her high above the floor.
Luna laughed, loud and maniacally.
"I made a promise Serra and because of you it is broken. He is broken. Innocence turned to madness, joy to despair. For this I will give you a hundred lives and rend them from you one by one! I will make your pain last for a thousand years! I will see you damned to the darkest pits of Tartarus and by my will you shall burn for all eternity!"
However, before she could carry out any of these dire threats, the battle was over.
Ended by a single word. It sent chills down her spine. Made her release Serra unharmed and resume her natural size. It caused tears to pool in her now gloriously silver eyes.
One quiet word, whispered by an orange banded form who staggered to the center of the chamber. He leaned heavily on April. One arm thrown over her shoulder as blood seeped through the bandages wrapped tightly around his wounds. But he was awake.
And he would not let the goddess be corrupted by the demons of his mind.
He met Luna's tear streaked gaze and smiled. A smile filled with the purest joy she had ever seen. He raised a glowing orange palm in front of his face in wonder before placing it on her cheek. He wiped away a tear with his thumb and murmured the word again, this time suffused with a boundless adoration.
"Enough... my love. I am answered."