Disclaimer: Mirage owns the turtles and Master Splinter. I own Master Mao-Shi and Sarmon. Glad I got that off my chest.

Author's Note: Well, after a really long absence, I'm finally back. I apologize for how long it's taken me to get an update up. I got a job over the summer and I've started college now. I'm afraid that between the two, my time was extremely limited. But now that I'm on Christmas break, I can finally update (and hopefully complete) my stories and maybe even get some new ones up. We'll have to see. I hope everyone likes this next chapter. I already have the chapter following this one halfway typed so there won't be anymore drastically long waits once everyone is done reading this one. Um, I don't know if we are allowed to individually thank our readers for their awesome reviews anymore, so I'm just going to give one huge shout out to all of you: Thank you so much for your reviews! I love reading them! And a big amount of gratitude goes to all those who still wanted to read my story, even after I took so long to update it. Keep sending me those reviews. It really was your words of encouragement that urged me to continue this story. I hope you enjoy it and thanks once again.

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Chapter 6-Taken

Leo woke with a start. "Master Splinter!" he yelled. "Master Splinter!" Looking around wildly, it took a side-splitting headache to reacquaint Leo with the reality of what had happened. "What a minute! Master Splinter got kidnapped-ratnapped…by a cloud? Now this really doesn't make any sense! Oh man, what am I gonna do? I don't know what it even was that took him. I'm not even sure which way they went! This is bad! Really bad!"

By now, Leo was pacing in circles. Catching himself, he lightly batted himself on the face. "Alright Leonardo, it's ok. I just gotta calm down and think things through rationally. So, what do I know? Well, Master Splinter was taken by some strange cloud and I'm not sure where." Remembering something, he added, "Master Shi once said that anything in the spirit world has the potential to be another spirit, just in disguise. I wonder if that cloud was really a spirit that wanted to kidnap-ratnap-sensei. I suppose it's possible. If that's true, then Ihave togo after it."

A voice suddenly beamed through the lucid air. "Go after what young one?"

Startled, Leo whirled around ready to defend himself. After the craziness that had just occurred, he wasn't taking any chances.

"Whoa, whoa little one," said the voice. Leo watched as Mao-Shi came walking out of the forest. "It is only me."

"Master Shi," relaxed Leo. "Am I glad to see you."

"It would appear that way. But, why are you so glad to see me?" Mao-Shi was very quick to notice the distress in Leo's eyes. "Has something happened Leonardo?" Looking about, he added, "Where is Splinter sensei?"

"He's been taken!" cried Leo.

"What! Taken! By whom?"

"I don't know yet. We were resting when this big, huge, cloudlike hand came bursting out of the sky and grabbed him. I tried to follow, but I was still exhausted from our earlier sparring match. Another hand caught me off guard and knocked me out. When I came to, he was gone." Master Shi's eyes had grown as big as dinner plates as he listened to Leo's story. Seeing this, the turtle asked, "Master Shi? Are you okay?"

"What kind of hand did you say it was?" he asked.

Unprepared for the question, Leo had to think for a moment. "Uh…it was big and gray and it came out of a cloud, like it was a part of it or something. Master Shi, you said that in the spirit world, certain elements of nature could actually be other souls. Is it possible that Master Splinter was taken by another spirit?"

"I would very well think so Leonardo," replied Master Shi.

"But who? Who would have the guts to take Master Splinter in a place like this? Who would want to?"

"I could think of one distraught soul."

"Who?"

"It is a long tale, and one that I fear we have not the time to tell in its entirety."

"But I don't understand. Is this really that dire? Shouldn't both of us at least know what we'll be up against once we go to face whoever this is you're talking about?"

"Oh Leonardo, the two of us could never defeat Sarmon alone."

"Sarmon? Is that his name?"

"Yes."

"Well, what makes him so terrible?"

Mao-Shi sighed. Though short on time, he realized that Leonardo needed to know more about his newly acquainted adversary. "Sarmon is a restless spirit young one. He is a soul who was tormented throughout his youth, abused and beaten, and left to find his own way in the world. As a result, he turned to a life of crime. He committed many wrongdoings, from murders to thefts to rapes to kidnappings. For him, there did not seem to be any limit. Ironically enough, he was never caught and lived for a great many years, well into an old age. It was when his time to die became apparent, that Sarmon began to worry about his future-not in life, but in death. It is accepted that he believed that due to his long list of misdoings, that he would suffer greatly after death, and that was when he began to plot how to conquer death."

Leo was confused. "Conquer death? But no one can conquer death."

"Sarmon did, or at least, he tried to. You see, he happened upon an astoundingly old book full of enchantments and spells, one of which included a spell that granted immortality."

"Really? That's amazing."

"Indeed. Sarmon thought that he had found the answer to his problems; that he had at last uncovered a way to defy death. On his dying bed, he read the incantation aloud, expecting to suddenly find himself rejuvenated with life once more. Yet, he mispronounced some of the terms in the spell, and thus, suffered the consequences for it."

"What happened to him?"

"He died, but it was no an ordinary death. You see, instead of either ascending or descending to his forever resting place, he became a spirit, forever bound to this world."

"You mean he became a ghost?"

"Yes….and no. Unlike normal spirits who are free to choose when they are ready to receive their final judgment, Sarmon had no choice. The spell which he had originally thought would save his life instead sealed it into an unstable form that could not leave the realm of the sprit world."

"That sounds awful."

"It is, and it would not be uncommon to have sympathy for the one under the curse. But you must understand that Sarmon is not a soul to have mercy upon."

"But why? I realize that in lifeSarmon may have beena bad person, but why are you still holding it against him now? Hadn't being trapped forever as a wondering spirit at least changed his behavior?"

"One would think so. But no. Sarmon's evil lies deep within the confines of his dismal soul. It seemed that the curse brought out the worse in him, rather than the better."

"What do you mean?"

"Sarmon is a vagrant. He pleases himself by tormenting the other souls in the spirit world. He kidnaps them and performs his own brand of torture on them."

"But souls can't torture one another. They don't have that kind of power."

"Sarmon does."

"What?"

"Before he passed away, Sarmon practiced other spells in his book of enchantments. Most of them faded after his life was gone, but a few remained and followed him into his cursed state. These spells were ones of great power and magnitude. They gave Sarmon amazingly abilities, including the "gift" to grant pain and suffering to those that are already deceased."

"And even ones who aren't?" askedLeo.

"Yes. And now you see why our time is so short."

Leo looked at the ground. "I do. But one thing still has me."

"Yes?"

"Sarmon-"

At that moment, a huge burst of lightning split through the sky, cutting Leo off. A loud clap of thunder followed pursuit. Leo and Master Shi gazed up into the swirling clouds. Before their eyes, an eerie mist surrounded them and began to collect in the sky above their heads.

"Master Shi, what's going on!" yelled Leo over the howl of the wind.

"I am not entirely sure Leonardo!" Master Shi returned.

As if the current state of things were not strange enough, a distorted face slowly appeared in the mist. The eyes were but black pockets in the clouds, empty holes in the foreboding mist. No nose was visible, but a thin line also crept its way into existence under the vacant gaps. Leo could only imagine that is must be the face's mouth.

As if in response to his thoughts, the crack opened and began to speak. "Associates of the rat spirit, I have come with proclamations to rain down upon your sorry excuses for souls."

Leo learned towards Master Shi and whispered, "Master Shi, is that Sarmon?"

"Yes Leonardo," Mao-Shi returned.

"What do we do?"

"We see what he has to say."

"Firstly," began Sarmon, "I must say that I was surprised with howpoor of a defense the so-called 'powerful' rat spirit put up. He came quite easily you know."

"What have you done with Master Splinter!" yelled Leo.

"My, my, you are an impatient one. I suppose I should expect as much from a souls as young as you."

Leo was taken aback. "How did you know I was so young? Aren't you startled by my appearance?"

"Your appearance? Please! With all the sorts of spirits I have seen over my many years stuck in this horrid realm, little surprises me. But tell me little one: what sort of death did you come upon to cause you to die so early in life?"

"I'm not dead!" said Leo.

"Not dead?" questioned Sarmon. "My, that is interesting…"

Mao-Shi pulled Leo back. "Leonardo that is enough."

"What? I was just telling him the truth."

"Yes, but I fear that you may have said too much."

"What do you mean?"

Mao-Shi sighed. "I will tell you later if the situation presents itself."

"Huh?"

Master Shi ignored Leo's confusion and focused his attention on Sarmon. "Sarmon, villain! What news have you come to torment us with!"

As if he was shaken back to reality from a pleasant daydream, Sarmon looked down at Mao-Shi. "Oh yes, my announcements. Well, if you really wish to know them-"

"We do!" yelled Mao-Shi.

"Such rudeness. I must say I do not appreciate being INTERUPPTED!" The ground started to shake violently as Sarmon's voice rose. Leo and Mao-Shi were forced to the ground. "There now, that's better."

Leo grunted as he stood up. "Enough with the stalling Sarmon. Get to your point!"

"Well, as you have obviously already guessed, I have the rat in my possession. If you want him back, you have three days to attempt to do so. However, you have my solemn word that I shall have little mercy on any who tries to do so."

"I did not know you had any mercy left Sarmon," said Master Shi.

"Your sense of humor bores me Mao-Shi."

Master Shi glared at Sarmon. "I was not trying to be funny."

"Do I look like I care?" Sarmon stared down at the two souls. "I didn't think so." Sarmon paused to give a gloating glance at Leo and Mao-Shi. "Well, must be off. I don't want to keep my rodent prisoner waiting."

"Waiting? For what?" Leo asked.

"I don't think that you would really like to know," said Sarmon. "Ta-ta."

With that, the face became distorted as the gray cloud slowly dissolved and faded from view. Like the clearing of some deadly storm, the sky opened up and became clear as yellow light swept over the land once more. The sunflowers rose up towards the glow after an unexpected, gloomy sleep.

Leo turned to Mao-Shi. "Master Shi, what should we do?"

"We have to get Master Splinter back."

"I agree, but if Sarmon is as powerful as you say he his,then how are we going to do it?"

"We will call in some help."

"Help?" Leo's hopes whirled. "Do you mean you know of some other spirits who would be willing to aid us in fighting Sarmon?"

"I do not."

The blue-clad turtle felt his hopes nearly die. "Oh, then..."

"I do not Leonardo, but you do."

Leo looked up, flabbergasted. "I do?"

"Yes, but I am not sure if they would be ready to help us."

"I don't understand. Who are you-?" Leo looked into Master Shi's eyes as the older soul nodded and stared back into his. "You don't mean-?

"I do."

"Oh no!" Leo cried. "They wouldn't be ready to do anything like this! They're still having problems with basic meditation sessions. They could never concentrate hard enough to astral project. No, there's no way they could help us!"

"How will we know unless we try? And between the two of us, they are the only help we have."

"I don't know…"

"Leonardo, do you want to save your sensei or not?"

"Of course."

"Then you have to trust they will be able to learn and that their aid will benefit us in the end."

"You really think they can help us?"

"With the right training, yes."

"But we only have three days! We don't have the time to train them! It took me months just to be able to perform decent astral projection."

"I know. But we do not have much of a choice right now."

"Master Shi…"

Mao-Shi laid a hand on Leo's shoulder. "Leonardo, I have faith that you will be able to teach them."

"Me!"

"Yes you. You remember, I cannot return to the living world. I am bound to the this world, so the task of teaching your brothers lies within you."

"But I can't. I'm not skilled enough yet!"

"Leonardo, you just have to believe in their abilities and your own. I know you can do it. And once you bring them to the spirit realm, I will be here to assist in their training."

"But is it possible to teach them so much in such a short amount of time?"

"We will find out."

Leo thought for a moment. He didn't like the idea of having to train Mike, Raph, and Don. He knew none of them were ready to begin astral projection, but at the same time, he recognized the fact that his brothers really were the only help he and Master Shi were to have. He could only begin to imagine the pressure he would be put under to get themto the spirit world in less than three days. 'How on earth am I going to accomplish this?' he wondered. 'But I have no choice.' Leo swallowed the lump that had accumulated in his throat.

"Ok, I suppose we could try. I mean, if they're the only help we have…"

"Then go; return to the living world. As I said, I will be here awaiting your return."

"By when should I be back?"

"As quickly as possible, but no later than tomorrow night."

Leo gasped. "Tomorrow night! That soon?"

"We have no other choice Leonardo. Sarmon has set his deadline, but I have a strong feeling that he will not keep to it. It is best if we attempt Splinter-san's rescue as soon as we can."

Now really starting to feel the pressure, Leo managed to utter, "I understand."He bowed to Mao-Shi. "I will try to have the others here before the sun sets tomorrow."

Master Shi bowed back. "Yes, let us hope that may be accomplished."

'Me too,'thought Leo.

Without anymore moment's hesitation,the oversizedturtlejumped into the sky and reverted to a blue orb.

"I'll be back Master Shi-with my brothers!"

"Good luck Leonardo! Splinter is counting on you but I have faith in you! Remember that!"

'I will,' Leo thought. Though he wanted to fly fast, Leo knew he couldn't use up all of his energy. Though still exhausted, he knew had to save as much as he could before the upcoming battle with Sarmon. 'I wish Master Splinter were here. He would know exactly how to train the others. I just hope I can do it too before it's too late.' With these thoughts swimming through his mind, the small orb moved further on towards the world of the still living.

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Back at the lair, threeverdant brothers were getting restless.

After finally finding Mike and apologizing to him for his comment about Leo and Master Splinter, Raph had retreated to the punching bag in his room. What Don had said about Leo and Splinter being in state of near suspended animation had him worried. 'What could those two possibly be so involved in that it has them acting like this?' he wondered. 'And why won't they tell us what's going on? Surely it can't be anything that we wouldn't understand.' Raph punched the bag relentlessly as he swam in his own thoughts. 'They'd better start providin' some answers soon before I have to wake them up and beat them out of them myself.'

Don meanwhile had also returned to his room to continue tinkering with his machines. But his mind wasn't on his work. 'I never thought that Master Splinter and Leo meditating together was something to worry about, but if they keep up this up for much longer, then this could really become a problem.' He had picked up a screwdriver and had started fixing an old radio he had found in a junkyard. 'I mean, what if their meditating starts having negative effects on them? What if they start getting thin from lack of food or dehydrated from lack of water? Will we have to force-feed them or something?' Don paused for a moment. 'Or…what if they never wake up?' Don heard himself gasp at the thought. He shuddered. "Whoa, where did that thought come from?" he asked aloud. "No, I can't think like that. Of course they'll wake up. They always do. I'm just being a little too paranoid or something-like Leo gets sometimes. No, I'm sure they're just really deep into whatever it is they're thinking about and they're not ready to come out of it yet. That's all." 'But could they be so wrapped up in their own minds that they forget about everything else, even their own bodies?' Shaking his head, the brainy reptile continued screwing. 'I'm sure we'll find out what's going on soon enough.'

Michelangelo could hear Raphael's punches and grunts and Donatello's mutterings. 'Those two must be worried as well,' he thought. Mike knew well enough that when his brothers retreated into their own rooms, then something was definitely bothering them. It was like they had on invisible signs that said, "Leave me alone; I have my own problems to deal with right now and I don't want to hear any crap from you." Mike couldn't understand how Leo, Raph, and Doncould usewithdrawal as a solution to their troubles. 'I always thought is was unhealthy to keep things all bottled up inside you.' Turning his back on the noises, Mike went over and sat down on the couch. Klunk hopped up and sat down beside him, waiting to be petted. "I could never spend that much time to myself Klunk. You know me: I'm a social butterfly;I hate to be alone." Klunk looked up at his owner and mewed. "Yeah, I know you don't like to left alone for too long either." But as he sat there stroking the cat, Mike's mind, like that of Don and Raph's, wondered to his oldest brother and master. 'Could meditating be really all they're doing in there? I've never known Leo and Master Splinter to meditate for this long or of this intensity.' "Maybe they're contacting the spirits Klunk. Or having one very long mental picnic or something." Klunk had fallen asleep in Mike's lap by now. "Sure, a mental picnic…" mused Mike. "With chocolate cake and sandwiches and lemonade. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it." Suddenly, Raph's quote snaked its gruesome self into the youngest turtle's consciousness:"You mean if they wait up." The horrid thought echoed relentlessly in the terrain's head. Mike winced at the memory. "No, they're not dead," he repeated to himself. "Like Don said, they're just in tawpa or whatever it was he said they were in. Suspended animation I guess. And besides, people always come out of suspended animation…eventually." He said the last part so quietly that he hoped not even he had heard it. Of course, he knew he had. Mike's fears welled up inside of him. He felt himself start to shake. "No, I'm overreacting!" he cried. "I need to relax-find something to occupy me." He looked around then stared forward. "I know; I'll just watch some TV. Yeah, that will get my mind off all this. Oh, maybe there's a Munsters marathon on somewhere. I could use a good laugh." Finding the remote, Mike readjusted himself and Klunk into a more comfortable position and flipped the television on. 'Master Splinter and Leo will tell us what they're doing when they're ready so why should I worry about it. Besides, it's not like anything dangerous has happened to them.'

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Quietly, yet abruptly, Leo's spirit appeared through the ceiling of Master Splinter's bedroom. "Man, I can't believe I made it," Leo mused. "That last trip back seemed to take forever." In reality, Leo had no idea how long it had taken him to return to the lair or how long he and Splinter had been gone in the first place. "I guess when you're in the spirit world, time just doesn't have much meaning anymore." However, upon remembering why he was here, he added, "But it does now."

But before he go any further, Leo felt a sudden lapse of energy. An unknown force gripped him in an icy hold, strangling him-if he could breathe. The invisible iron grasp dragged him, compelled Leo's blue spirit to draw closer to his still body. At first Leo wasn't sure what was going on. But it didn't take him long to realize that it was his body that was pulling him. Somehow, the empty vessel had recognized that its soul was once again in the vicinity and was desperate to reconnect with it. The pull was becoming stronger now. "Help, please someone help me!"Leo yelled. But his cries echoed only silence. 'I don't get it, why can't anyone hear me!' He resisted even more against the increasing pull. Suddenly, one of Splinter's early lessons in astral projection came flowing back to him. '"People can only see us if we allow them to. As spirits we have that option."' "That's right," said Leo. "They can only see us if we let them. But does the same apply for hearingspirits as well? It must. That would explain why no one is coming to help me. Then I guess I'll just have to help myself." Turning to face his body, Leo gave one final effort to abandon its calling. After a couple of seconds, his body gave up. It let its spirit go, sending Leo into a spin across the room.But herecovered quickly. "Glad that's over." Leo looked back at his body. He was sure he saw it sag just slightly in disappointment and disgust at its soul refusing to return to its home. "Sorry," Leo said, "but I'm not ready to go back just yet. I have to save Master Splinter first. And I can't do that if I'm back in my body." His body seemed to sigh in retaliation. Leo looked at the door. "But right now, I have to teach Mike, Raph, and Don how to astral project. And if I can't do that within the next three days, then all hope of saving Master Splinter will be lost."

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Author's Note: So, how was the chapter? Good, I hope. For those of you who may be a little tired of Leo being the main character, your rejoicing is soon at hand. As hinted at, Mike, Don, and Raph will finally be pulled into this huge mess and discover for themselves what has been going on. You'll just have to wait to read how each one will react to it and whether or not they will be able to learn astral projection in time to save Master Splinter. It's a cliffhanger all right. Until next chapter, GOD BLESS:)