"You've got some guts, Leonardo," Bishop spat, waving off offered help.
"I would say you have some, too, Bishop. You should know better than to approach me without asking." Leo's eyes were squeezed shut, and his words came out muffled because of the cloth someone gagged him with. He breathed out, and the cloth caught fire, falling to the ground.
"Huh. We just might have fun with you yet. Get him muzzled!" he ordered his men. "And make sure he can't burn it."
"Yes, sir!" A man came forward with a metal device. Raph stirred in anger, but Leo couldn't see it. He could only hear Raphael.
"Raph?" he asked, making the mistake of opening his mouth. Something cold, pointy, and metal was shoved in, and then it was tied around his head. He tried to kick at the human, but his legs were tied to the wall of the chopper.
The metal thing poked his tongue and gums, and spiked the roof of his mouth. It was tied tightly, pulling his lips back into a snarl.
Bishop chuckled at the expression of disgust and fear on Leonardo's face. The turtle chewed at the gag, but just cut himself up more. Finally, he relented and snorted, shaking his head much like a horse who has figured out that it won't be rid of the bridle and bit.
Bishop made a note to himself to test what temperature Leonardo's fire-breath burned at, and to get a better contraption made that would wire his jaw shut. Bishop could see the flame from Leo's throat working steadily to melt the gag away.
Growling to himself, Raph watched as Leo subsided to the bit in his mouth, blood dribbling down his chin. Stubbornly, he still hadn't opened his eyes, and Raphael was glad. It was bright in here, too bright for Leo's eyes to open and remain undamaged.
Don was also watching his brother, but with remorse. Leo was going to be the main subject of Bishop and Stockman's attention, and that was never painless. In fact, their leader could very well die in the next few days.
Mikey couldn't bring himself to look at his brother. After the flaming incident, he had turned away, not wanting to see his hero beaten down, and focused on April and Casey. They seemed to be waking, but their systems were not as good at purging poison as the turtles', due to their lack of reptilian blood and ninja training.
Leo was thinking, trying to plan a way out for them. April and Casey had their lives ruined; Bishop would tag them, if they got out, as their acquaintances, and they would probably be hunted. The bit gnawed at his tender gums and mouth roof. He could feel Bishop's eyes on him, but did not dare open his own. Even through his eyelids, he could feel the burn of bright lights.
Questions swirled in his mind. Is Master Splinter okay? Is Mikey hurt? Is Raph awake? Is Don planning? Where are we? Where's Bishop taking us?
Suddenly, he felt something invade his chi and ducked instantly. A chuckle came from right next to him, and it was Bishop. Somehow, Leo was not surprised. Bishop was trying to get him to open his eyes.
The helicopter jounced suddenly, and the motor started dying. They had landed.
Leo felt overwhelming grief. Mikey could get hurt! Don could suffer, Raph could be killed from one too many smart remarks. Master Splinter and the humans could be locked away forever!
"Stockman, prepare a containment cell for the turtles, and two cells for their human friends and the rat," Bishop's voice ordered as the side of the helicopter opened with a metallic hiss. "Then prep the dissection room."
The metal-bodied scientist was silent, but Leo felt humans untying him. One gave him a shot in the arm, at which he hissed, and it rendered him immobile. Unable to move, Leo was put onto a table and strapped tightly down. He heard shambling and cages unlocking; his brothers were being released.
He was pushed down hallways and counted the turns. Don's breathing next to him told him that he was not alone. Raph's mutters and Mikey's limping gait were clearly audible to the winged turtle. Lying on his shell was uncomfortable, but he didn't squirm.
Soon, the table stopped moving and a sliding door opened. Mikey, Don, and Raph were pushed inside, disarmed, and then Leo was shoved in as well. Paralyzed, he hit the ground hard, but his head was caught safely by Michelangelo.
The door slid shut and cast them into semi-darkness. Leo cautiously opened his eyes and tried to move, but the shot was not wearing off yet. It was a powerful dose.
"Leo, you okay?" Don's voice asked, his face appearing in Leonardo's vision.
"Yeah," Leo muttered, his words muffled by the metal. "Are you?"
"We're fine. I'm going to try to… get this thing off," Mike said, sitting their largest brother up. Don was helping Raph out of his restraints, and then the hothead helped him out of his. Mike's hands were already free, and he was working at the catch on Leo's muzzle.
He found it, and Leo spat the infernal contraption out, working his jaw to relieve the tenderness. His limbs obeyed him now, twitching and moving as he ordered them to, and Leo looked around. They were in a small, square cell with a faint glow coming from the small light above.
"Is everyone okay?" Leonardo asked, standing up and opening his wings, engulfing Mike. It was chilly in this room, no doubt kept that way to lull the reptiles Bishop had hoped to catch and put in there to sleep. Raph and Don huddled under the shelter as well, and the thermostat was turned even further down, or so it seemed. Soon, all four could see their breath.
"Ugh. I hate it when it's cold," Raph muttered, hugging his knees to his chest and sitting in Leo's open wings. Don nodded agreement and looked at Leo, who was staring at the wall across from them.
"Thanks, bro," Don whispered, curling closer to Leo, whose skin was actually warm. He was warm-blooded! However, the braniac sighed, not really interested, just grateful.
"No problem. How's everyone holding up? They go much lower and you might go into hibernation."
"I'm just peachy," Raph grumbled. He always felt the cold more than the others, and the cooler it got, the worse his temper.
"I'm fine," Mikey's voice called from the other side of Leo, forcefully cheerful. Leo wrapped his wings tighter around his brothers, trying to stave off the cold in the room around them.
Bishop looked at the feed, amazed. Not only did Leonardo seem impervious to the bitter cold, but he was expelling heat, enough to rival that of the cool air around them. Truly an impressive specimen. We shall have a field day with him.
"Stockman! Is the room ready?" he barked at the monitor. Behind him, the robot that held the super-scientist's brain turned around and glared at him. Bishop glanced over his shoulder lazily. "Well?"
"Yes, Bishop," the robotic voice finally alleged.
"Very good. Retrieve the one called Leonardo."
Stockman, muttering curses and obscenities, walked out huffily. Bishop smiled and turned back to the camera. Raphael seemed to be the coldest, and this didn't surprise the watcher. After all, his skin was the thinnest of them all, and his body was the least able to heat itself.
Leo looked up instantly as the door to their cell opened, letting in warm air. Stockman's metallic body was framed in the light. Leo shut his eyes and opened his wings, letting his brothers stand up in the warming air. Raph was shivering but seemed okay on the whole.
Protectively, Leo stood in front of his brothers and covered them with his open wings. Stockman's holographic face merely smirked and his three arms shot forward, the outer two grabbing Leo's wings and forcing them closed, the third clamping around his waist. Picking up his prize like a child would a prized doll, and to the protests of the other turtles, Stockman backed up and pulled Leonardo with him.
However, when his brothers came forward to help, Leo shook his head and pushed Mikey's plastron with his tail in a gesture that said, "Stay here and keep safe. I'll be back."
Sadly, his brothers obeyed, and were shut into barely-lit darkness again.
A/N: Sorry, a little short, I know, but I hope that I can keep updating. Thanks for all the great reviews! I'm doing my best to hurry up with the updating, but I can't keep up this pace. I've got school starting again soon, but I'll try to finish this quickly. Kameterra, thanks for your honest opinions! Puldoh, thanks for giving me an incentive to get my lazy butt in gear with the writing.