(Part II of V)
April heard the cell phone vibrating on the coffee table and tore her eyes away from the television, her hand slowly reaching for the illuminated device as it moved along the edge.
An unknown caller. She hesitated.
Could this be another death threat? But after three years, why would someone threaten to kill her now?
Although her life hadn't been the same since she met the Turtles, the past years had felt like a god-given blessing. Her freedom, her sanity, a roof over her head; she gained it all back but with a price. Now the only family she had was broken and dispersed. No late-night movies or heartfelt conversations. She'd been hiding in miserable solitude. She even missed the tapping sounds on her window as they used to come by almost every night to check on her, making sure that she was home, safe and sound.
Times had changed. Her silent guardians were gone and April was no longer a friend but a presence to seek only when needed.
If she was killed, no one would care, she thought. Everyone seemed to leave so suddenly, never returning.
April answered the call. "Hello?"
"Hey! Sorry I had to use the payphone. My phone just died on me."
"Casey? Oh thank god." She got off the couch, a sense of relief washing over her. "Where are you?"
"I'm still in New York," replied Casey amidst a noisy background.
"What? Why?"
"I was on my way to Northampton when Raph called me. He said it was urgent so I drove back to the city."
"Wait." April started pacing the living room, one hand on her hip as she held the phone to her ear with the other. "Does this have anything to do with the sweepstakes?"
"Well, he—" Casey paused before replying, "Raph won a lottery?"
"About a week ago, I signed an express mail from Cowboy Cola Enterprises for Raph. Apparently he'd won something. He must have been here this morning since the envelope's gone."
"I don't know, he didn't say," replied Casey. "I tried calling but he ain't answering. Then I saw he'd parked his bike by the old Scooter warehouse. Been waiting for two hours and I still don't see him."
"Something's wrong." April sighed and took a seat at the kitchen table. "Raph hasn't been answering my calls either. What should we do now?"
"Is Splinter there yet?"
She took a deep breath, and exhaled, her tired gaze resting on the parquet floor. "No," she said, her voice heavy with worry. "I don't know where he is, or if he'll ever show up."
"He's gonna have to eventually," said Casey. "The Turtles can't survive in this cold."
"I'll check the barn to see if he's waiting there."
"No, April. Let him come to you. I don't want you leaving the house. As soon as I find Raph, I'll call you, okay?"
"Casey?"
"Yeah."
April held the phone tighter, pressing it closer to her lips. "Please be careful."
"I will," he said. "I'll see you tonight. I promise."
The call ended with neither of them saying their goodbyes. April placed her phone on the table and stared aimlessly into space. She remembered the pie in the oven but didn't feel like eating at all.
.
.
"The hand mudras: these exercises will teach you how to focus, and enhance the energy flow in your body. You only need to know these nine basic gestures so you can start practicing on your own."
"Why start with the hands?"
"You have four thousand nerve endings on each finger tip connected to various organs and the brain. Depending on how you pull, stretch, or curl your fingers, it can help you relax, so you can easily reach towards a balanced state of mind..."
"And what exactly is this 'balanced state of mind'?"
"It's a place of rest between the sub-consciousness and consciousness; a higher sense of awareness untouched by physical and emotional distress."
"So this so-called higher sense of awareness is really just a place to hide away from what's bothering you."
"No."
"You know, Leo. I wonder. Why do we need to numb ourselves from all the pain and suffering? I mean those are what we need to test our own capabilities with, right? The real sense of awareness is right here, right now...where our feelings are raw and not hidden away through some ancient technique of self-hypnosis."
"Self-hypnosis helps with taming the fear you're experiencing, not hide away from them."
"I'd rather keep it company, until it fears me instead. How's that?"
"Hmph."
"Oh you think it's funny? Is this why you're always so numb and cold towards everyone? You're just using this as an escape; a means to drift away from the real shit that's happening around us."
"You don't know what you're talking about."
"Hiding inside your bubble of awareness ain't gonna help us find food and water, Leo."
"But it will help me gain the focus and strength I need to maintain our father's clan."
"Yeah well the rest of us have done a lot more 'maintaining' than you ever have around here."
"You said you needed help with focus..."
"I just needed to know what the hell's going on inside that head of yours! And now I know. You just don't give a fuck."
"I care about this family as much as you do!"
"Then get out of your hazy bubble and do something."
.
.
"Seek balance. Seek balance. Focus. Focus."
Raph was going through the hand motions his brother had taught him when they were fifteen. He was all cleaned up now, with a bandage wrapped around his head, the leather jacket unzipped, exposing a black shirt underneath and the blueprint that was folded to fit inside an inner pocket.
His eyes were blood-shot, unblinking, glazed over with memories from times he could no longer distinguish from.
He kept pulling and stretching his fingers into several gestures to feel the connection and energy flowing within his body. He felt himself wading through timelessness, trying hard to resurface and find balance between the two states of awareness.
Tears ran down his face, not because of sadness but he was coming closer towards surrendering himself to sleep.
"You, uhm...you don't look so good. You should really lie down," said the creature. It seemed nervous, unsure of what to do while Raph kept on with the mudras as a way of forcing his mind to stay awake.
"No! No sleep. Seek balance. Seek balance. Focus. Must focus," he kept saying as he trembled. Raph started rocking back and forth, his breathing deep and heavy. The blueprint fell out of his pocket and onto his boots.
"Whoops!" The creature picked it up with one of its tentacles. "You dropped something."
"Focus," said Raph to himself. "Seek balance. Seek balance."
"Hmm...I wonder what this is." The creature began unfolding the paper. "Oh wow! A blueprint! You must be an inventor just like me!" It then leaned closer and whispered to Raph, "I'm really sorry but I just need to know where you're from. Your secret's safe with me, I promise!"
With its tentacles holding onto each side of the blueprint, the creature found itself immersed in the elaborate diagrams of the Omega State. "Amazing," was the only word it could think of, as eyes, wide with wonder and intrigue, studied every detail from left to right, top to bottom, before falling upon the names of the inventors responsible for the invention of a futuristic time machine.
"Don-a-tello Ha-ma-to," it read aloud. The creature's smile turned into a look of disbelief at the mention of the next inventor's name: "Dale Evans...McGillicutty?"
After realising that he was indeed a traveller from the future, the creature turned to look at Raph, who was now lying on the couch.
It wanted to thank him, but Raph...was already fast asleep.