A/N: Thank you, thank you, thank you, to the reviewers. The reviews keep my plot bunny moving, and now, onto the next chapter.

Please note: Character thoughts are in italics.

Disclaimer: As much as I wish I owned the turtles, the cold hard reality is that I just don't.

Chapter 16-Reunited

Leonardo walked alongside the Shredder and his Elite Guard as they entered the TCRI building. On the lower floors they passed by the fallen bodies of the Utrom security guards and foot soldiers. From somewhere above their heads the six ninjas could hear the sounds of fighting.

The Shredder turned to his warriors as he ordered. "Find Mortu, don't let him escape. He's probably guarding the transmat. Kill anyone that gets in your way." With a quick nod the Elite Guard disappeared in a puff of smoke, while Leonardo flipped into the shadows.

As Leo ran silently through the halls of the TCRI building he fingered the device in his belt. The black clad turtle didn't know how to use the device he stole for Master Shredder, but after the neural interface with his brothers, the turtle had seen what the device could do. And there was only one turtle Leonardo could think of that would know how to activate the device. He just hoped his brothers were in the building somewhere. As Leonardo continued through a dizzying array of hallways that all looked the same, he heard the faint sounds of clashing weapons, followed by a jovial voice issuing one taunt after another. That must be Michelangelo!

Leo slipped into the room. Hidden in the shadows he watched the nunchaku wielding turtle for a moment. Although he had fought the orange masked turtle a few times already, this was the first time Leo had the opportunity to observe Mikey's techniques against another foe. And the hyperactive turtle's fighting style perfectly mimicked his personality. Michelangelo was fast and unpredictable. The agile turtle created distractions that served to keep his opponent on his toes, while delivering strikes and blocks with ease. With his plan starting to solidify, the black clad turtle threw a smoke bomb from his belt and leapt forward.

Fueled by the adrenaline of combat, Mikey chatted away as he knocked out one ninja after another. "Batter up guys." Twirling his nunchaku he taunted. "So boys who's next?" He wasn't sure how he had gotten separated from Raph, but Mikey was more than happy to continue knocking out foot soldiers on his own. Just as he turned to face the next group, a cloud of smoke filled the room. Mikey paused for a second before shaking his head. Well don't waste a good opportunity Mikey, keep fighting.

Shaking off the surprise, Mikey continued to knock out foes. Suddenly he realized that more ninja's were falling down than the nunchaku wielding turtle had managed to hit himself. Someone else is here. He tentatively called out. "Raph?"

Before he could ask again, a strong arm reached from behind him and pulled him backwards. The startled turtle began let out a yelp of surprise, which was quickly smothered by a second strong arm wrapping around his chest, the hand firmly clamping down over his mouth. A familiar voice hissed in his ear. "Quiet."

Mikey froze at the command. One of the Shredder's Elite Guard silently entered the room, looked around, then retreated back the way he came.

Mikey felt the arms around him loosen and he turned to his captor. "Leo? How did you know?"

The black masked turtle stepped out from the shadows. His face unreadable, he interrupted his younger sibling. "Where are the others?"

Mikey shifted from foot to foot, uncertain on whether or not to answer the question.

Noticing the youngster's hesitation, Leo let out a huff of frustration as he held up his hands. "Mikey, where are they? The Shredder is looking for Mortu and the transmat. We can stop him." He pulled the device from his belt and showed his uncertain brother. "With this. But we need to work together to do it."

Michelangelo let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding. Leo's going to help us! A huge grin spread across his face and he tried to engulf his eldest brother in a hug. "Leo!"

Putting up his hands to stop the eager turtle, Leo commanded. "Not now. Mikey, focus. We've got to find the others."

With a short nod Mikey stepped back and began rattling off facts as he tried to unsuccessfully contain his nervous energy. "I'm not sure where Raph is. We got separated during all the fighting. And Donnie was with Mr. Mortu in the transmat control room. He was helping the Utroms evacuate. But I don't know where the room is. Everything looks the same around here."

Leo nodded, his face impassive. "Then we have to find them, quickly." Mikey nodded and the two turtles fled out of the room to begin their search.

Raph was in his element, and continued to strike down one opponent after another. "Keep on coming boys, I can do this all day."

Leo had a moment to observe Raphael's fighting style as Mikey and he advanced on the hot headed turtle. Once again, Leo was struck by the contrast in fighting styles among his brethren. Raphael's style was the complete opposite of Michelangelo's. Unlike his youngest brother, Raphael tackled his enemy head on. Using his greater strength and size to his advantage, Raph would unleash a barrage of strikes and jabs on his foe until they fell, defeated.

Thrilled at finally finding his hot headed brother, Mikey jumped into the fray, his nunchaku twirling wildly. "Hogging all the fun to yourself, Raphie boy?"

Raph smirked as he knocked another foot soldier unconscious. But before he could retort, Raph's eyes fell upon a black clad turtle, standing a little too close to his youngest brother. Completely missing the fact that Leo just helped them finish off the remaining foot ninja, Raph spun his sais. Still not trusting the eldest turtle, his cold eyes were locked on Leonardo as he spat out. "Nice to see where you stand, bro."

Leonardo narrowed his eyes at the remark, but he did not move.

Mikey moved, reaching out a hand to stop his impulsive brother. "Raph wait. He has a plan."

Raph stopped his advances but did not lower his weapons. He continued to glare at Leo. "Ya ran off and now ya given us orders, Fearless? Who says we're gonna listen ta you?"

Quickly losing his patience Leonardo barked out. "We don't have time for this. Where is Donatello?"

Raph tensed up, but did not move. Eyes full of distrust he countered. "And why should we tell you?"

Mikey once again tried to tug on his brother's arm. "Raph, just listen to him!"

Leo turned his back on the duo as he called out over his shoulder. "The Shredder is looking for Mortu and the transmat. We can stop him. But we need to work together to do it."

Raph glowered at his youngest brother. Mikey stared back with pleading eyes. "Just give him a chance Raph."

With a huff, Raph put his sais back in his belt and followed the black masked leader. "Mikey, we better not regret this."

The transmat control room was a hub of activity. Utroms were lining up in preassigned groups as they were sent back to the Utrom homeworld. Donatello was manning the control panel alongside Mr. Mortu.

As they approached the purple masked turtle, Leo tried to assess Don's fighting style. Unlike Michelangelo and Raphael, Leo had neither fought, nor been able to observe, Don in a fight. Then Leo's eyes fell upon the bo staff sitting on Don's shell. While a bo staff can be a formidable weapon, a staff allows it's wielder more space between opponents. And it was clear from Don's use of the Utrom neural interface, as well Don's repeated sneak attacks on Leo, knocking him unconscious and later paralyzing him with the Utrom syringe, Don preferred to use his mind before his body against his foes.

Mikey called out to his genius brother over the commotion. "Donnie!"

The bo wielding turtle's eyes went wide as he turned to the source of the voice. Leonardo was leading his brother's into the transmat control room. And the black masked leader was headed directly for him with a look of determination on his face.

Before Don could ask, Leo pulled a device from his belt and shoved it into Don's hands. "Can you activate this thing?"

Surprised for the second time that day, Don could barely stammer his reply. "Well, um, yes, of course. But where did, that is I mean, how did you get this?"

Leo cut off his stunned sibling. "Later."

Surrounded by his brother's, Leo's plan of attack to stop the Shredder crystalized. The plan was based on each sibling's strengths and weakness. Donnie activated the device and handed it back to Leo.

Leo began barking orders. "Mikey, you sneak in from the right and distract the Shredder. Raph, help Mikey by attacking head on and keep pushing the Shredder from the left. Mikey, when you have the Shredder distracted, attach this device to the back of his suit. Donnie, be ready to turn on the transmat to full power. I'll sever the power cords and hold him off while you guys get into position."

The three ninja's stared at Leo for a moment. Mikey broke the silence first.

"Wait, what is that thing?"

Already piecing together Leo's plan, Donatello answered. "It's a portable electromagnetic pulse generator. It can disrupt the Shredder's metal armor, rendering him defenseless. It works by…"

Leo's head spun to the doorway, his senses picking up on their approaching foes faster than his brothers. He hissed at the group over his shoulder. "Explain later. We need to move, now!" With a flick of his wrist, the fast thinking turtle tossed a few smoke bombs into the room, obscuring everyone's view.

The four warriors had finished moving into position in enough time to see the last remaining puffs of smoke clear. As the smoke cleared, behind the Elite Guard, stood Leonardo and the Shredder.

Leo has got to show me how he does that. Mikey was the first to address their newcomers as his nunchaku began to spin faster in his hands. "Guys, look at the giant cheese grater!"

Raphael smirked as he twirled his sais. "A little bit of metal ain't gonna stop me."

Mr. Mortu stepped away from the transmat control panel. "Ch'rell."

The Shredder barked out a laugh at the scene in the room. The turtles AND Mortu. Finally, I'll have my revenge. The Shredder addressed his Elite Guard. "Foot Elite, kill them but leave Mortu and the turtles to us."

Mr. Mortu turned to the Guardians and Donatello. "The transmat, go!"

The four warriors advanced on the Guardians as Donatello and Mr. Mortu ran back towards the control panel for the transmat. The leader of the Guardians called out to the ninja turtles over his shoulder as he faced his foe. "Turtles, you cannot let Ch'rell near the transmat!"

Michelangelo and Raphael tensed up at the same time, in response to the Shredder's next orders. Staring directly at the red and orange masked brother's, the Shredder couldn't contain the excitement in his voice, as he ordered his young warrior. "Leonardo, kill them."

Donatello was inputting coordinates as fast as he could when the Shredder's voice reached his ears.

"Leonardo, kill them."

Donatello froze, causing Mr. Mortu to turn and face the stunned turtle next to him. "Donatello?" The Utrom captain's eyes grew wide as he surveyed the scene. The Guardians were slowly gaining the upper hand on the Elite Guard. And it looked like Ch'rell and Leonardo were about to face off against Donnie's brothers. "Donatello, go, help your brothers. We cannot allow Ch'rell to use the transmat. I can finish inputting for the final transport."

Donnie pulled the bo staff from the holder on his back and paused, looking at the Utrom captain. "Sir?"

"Go, help them. The auto destruct sequence for the building has already been initiated. In five minutes, this entire structure is going to explode. I'll finish up here."

Donnie nodded, giving the Utrom captain one last smile. "Thank you." He then turned to aid his brothers.

Leonardo's hardened eyes roamed over the faces of his younger brothers. Michelangelo was unconsciously shifting slightly from foot to foot, unable to contain his nervous energy. He looked at Leonardo with eyes full of sorrow and disappointment.

Raphael's stance was firm, his eyes were ablaze with anger and frustration. His fingers pressed harder against the sais in his hands, causing his knuckles to turn white from the pressure.

Donatello approached, standing tall and proud, ready to attack or defend. His eyes looked questionably at his eldest brother, waiting to see what he would do.

Leonardo's hands moved upwards to reach for the swords on his back. But before his fingers could grasp around the handles, his hands stopped, fingers hovering over the hilts. I cannot harm my own brothers. We must continue with the plan. Leo let his hands fall back to his side.

His eyes hardening with realization, the Shredder turned to Leonardo.

"Is anything the matter, my son?"

Not wanting to blow his cover yet, but unsure of what else to do, Leo turned to his old master as he replied. "No."

We shall see. His smile hidden beneath the mask, the Shredder swiftly withdrew the Muramasa sword from his belt, lashing out at the sword wielding turtle. Caught off guard by the unprovoked attack, Leonardo could not reach for his katanas fast enough. He raised his arm in a block, feeling the blade slice deeply through the delicate skin.

The black clad turtle hissed in pain as he fell to his knees, clutching at the injured arm. Blood quickly began to run down his arm. Leo pressed hard against the wound as he bit his lip to keep from crying out. That was a cheap shot.

The Shredder's eyes were a blaze with anger. "You were never a good liar Leonardo."

Three voices rang out in shock. "Leo!"

The Shredder's angry voice boomed throughout the room as he tried to lunge past the startled turtles, aiming for the Utrom captain. "Mortu, you are never going to leave!"

Letting out a roar, Raphael attacked first. Before his sais could reach their mark, his breath was knocked out of him from a kick to the gut, followed by a jab to the jaw. Then a metal hand gripped his wrist and he was thrown across the room. The red masked turtle hit the wall hard. His sais clattered to the floor as he slowly slid down the wall.

"Raph!" Mikey's worried voice cried out for his brother as he rushed forward to attack. The acrobatic turtle was able to land a couple of hits with his nunchaku, before he was grabbed by the ankle in mid flip. The surprised turtle let out a yelp as he too was tossed across the room. He let out a groan as he reached for the back of his head.

"Mikey!" Donatello spun the bo staff in two hands before charging forward. The Shredder let out a laugh as he easily disarmed the purple ninja before sending him crashing into a nearby console.

"Foolish turtles, you think you can defeat me? You are no match for Ch'rell, I am the Shredder!"

The Shredder took one step forward, towards the still dazed Michelangelo, before he found himself blocked by two crossed katanas.

Enraged Leonardo growled to his old master. "You will stay away from my brothers!"

The Shredder laughed as he began a series of offensive strikes against the black masked teen. "Stupid child, do you honestly think you can win?"

He knocked one of the swords from Leonardo's hands. "I've taught you everything you know."

The two warriors rushed forward again, the sounds of metal on metal ringing in the air. With the sword in his right arm pinned against his foe's sword, Leonardo struck out with his left fist, while quickly pivoting on his foot to follow up with a powerful kick. The kick was blocked and the Shredder was able to gain the upper hand, knocking the second sword out of Leo's grasp.

He pinned the angry teen to the ground beneath his foot. "But not everything I know. You are a fool. Those who are not with me, are against me!"

His foot pressed down harder on the trapped teen's plastron. Leonardo let out a hiss of pain. "And I will crush everyone who is against me."

With his cold eyes locked onto the rebellious teen beneath him, the Ninjitsu master raised the Muramasa sword above his head, preparing to deliver a killing blow. "Now traitor you will die, alone."

The sword was knocked out of the Shredder's hands by a sai as an irate voice rang out. "He's not alone!"

A blur of orange and green rammed the Shredder backwards. "Yeah metal dude, he's got us!"

Donatello used his bo staff to swipe the Shredder's feet out from underneath him as he snarled. "He's got his brothers."

The Shredder let out a roar as he jumped back onto his feet.

The genius turtle looked over his shoulder to see Mr. Mortu and the remaining Guardians fade away on the transmat. His eyes then landed on the timer, which was quickly counting down to zero, as he helped Leonardo get to his feet. Leo's voice was laced with pain as he ground out. "Stick to the plan."

Raphael had retrieved his sai and he tightened his grip on the two pronged batons. "No, we ain't leavin ya alone with him bro."

The black masked turtle did not turn to argue. "There's no time, go, now!"

Mikey grabbed his nunchaku from his belt as he hissed to his hot headed brother. "Dude, we've got to trust him, let's move."

The three brothers took off at a sprint towards their positions as Leo leapt towards his old master.

The Shredder sensed the oncoming attack and turned. He let out a roar of anger as he leapt into the air to meet Leo's attack. But at the last second the black masked turtle twisted his body and instead of slicing at his old master, his sword cut through the overhead power cords for the transmat. The black turtle let out a cry of agony as the Muramasa sword sliced through his thigh. His injured leg unable to support his weight, he landed on his side, waves of pain radiating through him. Gritting his teeth the injured teen struggled to stand. The blood loss from the earlier wound on his arm, and now the one on his leg, was making the black clad turtle lightheaded. Leo shakily rose, only to fall back on both knees with a groan.

Three voices screamed almost in unison. "Leo!"

Raph let out a battle cry as he rammed into the Shredder from the left, pushing him towards the falling power cords.

Mikey jumped in and attacked from the right, serving as a distraction. Raphael continued to attack from the left, driving the Shredder towards the target. As Mikey back flipped over the Shredder, he was able to attach the device to the Shredder's back. Instantly, the Shredder's metal armor seized. Unable to move, Raph and Mikey were able to push their foe into the power cords.

"Donnie, Now!"

Donatello pressed a series of commands on the transmat console. Electrical energy surged through the cords. The Shredder let out a cry in agony as the electricity made contact with the metal suit and surged through the armor.

With his weight supported against his youngest brother, Leo took a shaky hand and ripped the black mask from his face. With a look of disgust he threw the mask towards the Shredder's fallen body as he growled. "I am not your son!" He took another step and his knees gave out. A second pair of hands grabbed him. "We've gotcha Fearless."

Donnie's panicked voice rang out above the noise as he pulled the portable transmat device from his bag. He came up alongside his brothers. "Guys, hold onto my shell."

Just as the countdown hit zero, an explosion rocked the TCRI building and the four brothers closed their eyes from a bright white light.

Four battered, bruised and very tired mutant ninja turtles opened their eyes. Looking around, they were standing a block away from the TCRI building. The ground shook and they shielded their heads with their hands, trying to stay upright from the force of the nearby explosion.

Michelangelo shifted his arms to support his injured brother's weight as he groaned. "Guys, Leo."

"Just give me a moment." Donatello began to rummage in his ever present brown bag and pulled out a roll of gauze. He swiftly began wrapping it around Leo's arm and leg wounds to slow down the bleeding.

Raph turned his eyes to look over his three exhausted siblings. His eyes remained on the black clad turtle leaning heavily against Michelangelo. "So what now Fearless leader?"

Leo picked his head up. His eyes roamed over his three brothers. Donatello pressed hard against the wounds, trying to stop the flow of blood. Leo tried unsuccessfully to hold back a hiss of pain at the gentle yet forceful touch.

Donnie looked up and mouthed the words. SORRY.

Leo merely nodded at his brother. Glancing over the group he replied.

"Now, my brothers, we go home."

A/N: Yay, the Utroms got away safely, the Shredder's plans have been foiled, and the brothers are together again! This chapter was originally going to be the final chapter for this story. But thanks to your reviews, my plot bunny has decided that an epilogue is necessary for this tale to truly be complete. That will be ready in a day or two. Until then, thanks for reading and please write a review. Virtual blueberry brunch cake (which I made from scratch this morning, yum) to those who do!