Disclaimer: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is the property of Viacom, Nickelodeon, Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird and all organizations associated with said names. This is non-profit.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Exile
by BrownEyedBirdie

Author's Note: I am so sorry about not posting this last week. It wasn't my fault. The insane cold knocked out the power throughout most of my town. It also killed my car battery so I couldn't get to where I needed to go that DID have power. Fortunately, power was back by the next day. For your patience, I will post TWO chapters; think of it as an hour long special. Onto my chapter; I affectionately refer to this as my "Slender Man" chapter. Weiterlesen!

Chapter 15 – Nothing

In the days since cleaning up the barn, the air had grown steadily warmer. Snow had turned into rain practically overnight and had washed out the remaining snow the warm breezes had not dissolved away.

"I think we can submerge him in water in a couple of weeks," Donnie said, "His cuts are healed and the crack in his shell has sealed really nicely."

"I can't really see it anymore," Mikey said. But they all knew it was a lie. The jagged line that dipped along the outer edge of the shell wasn't easy to ignore, especially with what they had seen. It was not easy to forget what it had looked like a little more than a month ago.

"But the fever won't let up," Raph had said, "We're icing him down, keeping his skin from drying out, so why isn't it helping?"

"It takes time," Donnie said, "He's only been on medication a few days. It's a serious condition. Normally, I'd make up something, but my resources are limited."

"What about that mutagen medicine you've been squawking about?" Raph asked hotly.

"It's still in the works," Donnie said, "I'm trying to rewrite the chemical compound, but I've only got so much of it. We took only what was necessary from the Lair."

"You could have taken more!" Raph snapped, "No one would have faulted you for it."

Donnie winced and was silent. Raph immediately regretted his words. Still, he couldn't bring himself to apologize. Instead, he growled in frustration and left to watch over Leo. Raph sat in the dark of the bedroom. He watched Leo's plastron rise and fall as he took in short, labored breaths. Every few moments, Raph would run a wet sponge over his arms, head and legs as the fever continued to rise and burn at his skin.

"I wish you would wake up," Raph said, "I have no idea what to do."

Leo's only response was a sharp intake of air as fevered dreams caused his eyes to dance behind his lids.

"This isn't about being a leader," Raph said, "Donnie is doing that and he's…he's doing great, even though I'd never admit it. He won't admit it either. But this is…I mean, I can't be a big brother alone."

Raph bowed his head. The night drifted on and he heard the sounds of the rest of the house going about its business before finally settling in to sleep. Raph wondered if he might have an opportunity to sneak downstairs to get something to eat when something caught his eye. The bedroom window looked out over the lawn and towards the woods. The trees were still bare and it gave the whole forest a look of skeletal hands reaching towards heaven in supplication. At the edge of the tree line, a gray figure was strolling in and out of the light of the moon. Raph's eyes narrowed and he leapt through the window, landing nimbly on the ground. Outside, the air was cool, but with the faint scent of green in the air. Raph raced towards the trees as the gray figure continued to move in and out of the light. Raph was so focused on the shape that he didn't even register that it was leading him into the forest. Suddenly the shape of the figure vanished. Raph stopped, breathing heavily and rubbing his chilled arms.

"Where are you?" he said softly. This moonlight poured down through the trees, but Raph wished he had brought a flashlight. He heard a rustling behind him and turned. A rabbit poked out of a bush and stared up at him with wide eyes.

"Get lost," Raph said, "Or I'll have four lucky charms."

The rabbit twitched an ear and hopped away. Raph gave one last turn around and growled.

"Better get back," he said. As he turned towards the farmhouse, he saw it. A gray figure standing amongst the trees to his right.

"Hey you!" Raph shouted and took off at a run. The figure seemed to be floating away from him like a mirage. At the back of his mind, he was aware of his feet going numb in the cold. But he kept running. A mist grew around him and he felt the cold creep in around him. The moon disappeared behind a cloud and he was plunged into darkness. Raph stopped and realized he had lost his way.

"Wonderful," Raph said, "Didn't you learn nothing from Casey's little trek in the woods?"

The moon reappeared and lit up the forest. Raph was standing in a clearing at one end and the gray figure was standing at the other end. And between them was Leo.

"LEO!" Raph shouted. Leo was kneeling on the ground in the same familiar position Raph had seen in training exercises. But his eyes were closed and his skin was pale, almost gray.

"Leo?" Raph asked. He looked at the gray figure and pulled out his sai.

"Who are you?" Raph said. The gray figure said nothing. Raph cautiously approached the kneeling Leo.

"Leo," Raph said again, "Are you with me, bro?" He knelt down next to Leo. Leo's eyes opened and Raph saw his eyes were constricted almost completely, his pupils barely the size of a pin. Leo stood and stared at him, but Raph was sure that Leo wasn't seeing him at all or anything around him.

"Raph?" Leo said and his voice had a distant quality to it, "Raph, I can hear you. Where are you?"

"I'm right here," Raph said, "I'm right with you." He grabbed Leo's hand and recoiled at the heat of his skin.

"It's so dark," Leo said, "Where are we?"

"We're in the forest," Raph said, "We're at April's farm upstate."

"New York?" Leo asked.

"It's overrun," Raph said. Leo's eyes went wide.

"Father!" Leo cried, "Where's Master Splinter?"

"Leo," Raph said, "We have to get back to the farmhouse. We're not safe out here."

"Where's Master Splinter," Leo asked again.

"Not here," Raph said, "Let's go back. I'll explain everything."

Raph looked up at the gray shape again. It hadn't moved. Raph straightened up and gave the figure a hard stare. It was dressed in a gray cloak that covered it completely. Raph couldn't even see his face.

"Who are you?" Raph asked.

"Raph, what's going on?" Leo said.

"We're not alone, Leo," Raph said, "Something…someone is with us."

"I can hear it," Leo said after a moment's silence, "It's calling me."

"What?" Raph asked.

"It's calling me to it," Leo said. Leo stood up on shaky legs and smiled.

"It's such a gentle sound," Leo said. He turned and began walking toward the shape.

"Leo, stay back," Raph said, "You don't have your weapons."

"Why would I need my weapons?" Leo asked. Raph looked at the shape in alarm. Suddenly everything clicked.

"Leave him alone!" Raph growled, "You can't take him."

"Raph, it's okay," Leo said, "I'm going to be fine now."

"No!" Raph said, "This isn't right. You've come too far to quit now!"

"I'm tired, Raph," Leo said, "I didn't realize how tired I was until now." The gray shape reached out a long gray arm and seemed to pull Leo toward it.

"Get away from him!" Raph screamed and lunged. The gray shape dissolved in the mist and reappeared next to Leo.

"You aren't going to take him!" Raph screamed, "Nothing will take him!"

Raph slashed out with his sai and the figure dissolved again but did not reappear. Leo sank to the forest floor.

"Leo!" Raph shouted and sat up out of the chair. He was sitting in the same chair with Leo still asleep. Looking around wildly, he realized he had drifted off for about an hour.

"Raph?"

Donnie appeared in the doorway and flipped on the light. Raph squinted against the brightness. April, Casey and Mikey appeared behind Donnie as he entered the room.

"What's wrong?" Donnie asked, "Is Leo okay?"

"I-I don't know," Raph said, "It was just a bad dream."

Donnie went to check on Leo and frowned.

"He's burning up," Donnie said. He ran quick hands along the length of Leo's prone form and then stood. He turned to look at all of them.

"I'm not surprised," Donnie said, "It's not unusual to see a surge like this. Sometimes when there's a fever like this, it gets worse before it gets better. This could be the last big push before Leo makes a full recovery."

"Or?" April asked. She knew Donnie was hesitating on the next part; she had been in the lab when he had studied this. And although she was still mad at him, she understood he would be unwilling to drop the other proverbial shoe. Donnie looked at her and sighed.

"It could also mean that Leo's just about to go," Donnie said slowly. Mikey gasped and Casey gripped the smaller turtle's shell. Raph stared at Donnie and then sank back in the chair. He looked at his brother's sleeping form and was sure he saw the same gray shape standing beside the bed, watching and waiting.

To Be Continued…

Next chapter will be up in a few hours.