Chapter 5

The three brothers flared into existence in the middle of chaos. They shrank together, back-to-back, as the sounds of shouting and gunfire rang through the warehouse. Raph could hear Hun bellowing over the din – as well as echoes of his own voice and the voices of his brothers, which sent an eerie shudder through his body.

"Okay, guys," he said, "let's hurry up and get Leo out of here before - " His words cut off as the ground beneath his feet shook, rattling the building. "What the shell?" A harsh crackle like the sound of a downed power line cut through the din. The breath caught in his throat as the air in front of him seemed to rip itself apart, leaving a cold black breach with edges that glowed with blinding white light. Even as he watched, the breach trembled and seemed to grow. More rents appeared above and below them, and a sound like thunder shook the air.

"Guess this is what Renet was talking about," Mikey said tightly.

"Let's not stand around, then!" Raph said. "Come on!" The three of them darted off, clinging to the shadows, staying out of view of their past selves and taking down confused Purple Dragons. Raph set off at a dead run for the far side of the warehouse. "Raph, get that guy out of here!" The sound of Leo's voice filled him with both relief and dread – his brother was still unhurt, but he didn't have much time.

A gang member plowed into him from behind a stack of crates, sending him crashing across the aisle. Raph snarled as he bounded to his feet, trading blows with the taller man before managing to disarm him with a twist of his sai. The Dragon lunged after him, but Raph was faster. He ducked under the wildly thrown fist and came up swinging, sending the man sprawling in an unconscious heap.

The lights flickered as more rifts opened overhead, and he could hear the alternate Michelangelo yelp: "What the shell are those?"

"I don't know, but stay away from them!" Donatello warned.

"Ya think?"

Hun's enraged bellow rattled the walls. "You four! Go after him! The rest of you, take out the turtles!"

"Guys, scatter! The windows, in back!"

Breath hissed between Raphael's clenched teeth and he bounded to the side of the warehouse where he knew Leo would be. He heard Hun screaming and ducked behind another stack of crates, hunkering down as the explosion from the first grenade pounded the air. Heart thundering within his chest, he sprang up and started running again. He knew the second grenade would be launched any moment now, but he couldn't waste any more time...

The air tore open directly at his feet, and he skidded to a stop, arms pinwheeling wildly to keep from falling in. He dodged around the growing rift, but it the delay had caused him to lose count of the seconds between blasts. He wasn't sure when Hun would throw the next grenade, but he knew it wouldn't be long. All he had to do was get to Leo and –

BOOM!

A wall of debris crashed into him. It sent him sprawling, and he hit the ground hard enough to knock his breath away. He thrashed violently against the shattered wood and masonry pinning him to the floor, but it didn't shift easily. A flash of blue caught his eye, and he saw Leonardo streaking across the warehouse, springing up and over obstacles with fluid ease. Raph's heart turned ice. A wordless, anguished cry tore out of his throat. With strength born of desperation, he clawed himself free, but he was too late, he'd never make it to Leo in time now –

Across the warehouse, his cry reached Leonardo's ears, and the blue-banded turtle slowed and turned, instinctively drawn to his brother's voice.

Hun roared in fury and threw a third grenade.

Raphael picked up a brick - hefting it in his hand just long enough to mutter, "Sorry, bro" - and hurled it at Leonardo with all the strength he had left. He tarried just long enough to make sure Leo went down, then turned and raced back the way he had come. The grenade exploded in a cloud of flame and debris. Raph stumbled as shrapnel thunked into the back of his shell, the impact rocking him and sending a painful shudder through his bones, but he kept running back to where his brothers were waiting for him. He fetched up next to them covered in splinters and soot. "It's done," he said, panting heavily.

"Leo's okay?" Mikey asked. Raph nodded once.

The ground trembled beneath them, and the ice-cold rifts in time gathered around them. Raph wheeled around as more detonations tore through the air; the grenades had triggered a chain of explosions, and the fire was sweeping closer. Mikey and Don bumped into his shell, retreating instinctively from the dark void yawning open behind them. Raph turned to look at them. His mouth opened, but he found that he was unable to speak - but they just smiled at him.

A wave of blistering heat washed over them as the explosions grew closer. Raph threw his arms around his brothers to shield them as they huddled together on the floor, walled in by fire and ice. The flames roared forward, but when the fire reached where they had been, the brothers had disappeared into the void.

xxxxx

"Fall back!" Leo yelled. "Raph, get that guy out of here!"

Raphael scrambled to his feet, dragging the cop up by the collar of his leather jacket. "You heard him!" he said, giving him a shove.

The cop hesitated for just a moment, then nodded grimly. "Thanks!" He darted for the door. Hun roared and fired the machine pistol again. Concrete chips flew up from the floor as bullets hit behind the running officer's heels, but he put on a final burst of speed and disappeared into the night.

The lights flickered and the ground shook, and Raph lifted his eyes in shock as a black rent rimmed by shifting white light appeared in midair. In the blink of an eye, more rips appeared, quivering and growing as if the room were threatening to come apart at the seams.

"What the shell are those?" Mikey yelped, hurling himself to the side as the ground beneath his feet quivered and gaped open in a black pit that threatened to swallow him whole.

"I don't know, but stay away from them!" Don warned.

"Ya think?" Mikey shot back.

Hun rounded on members of his crew. "You four! Go after the cop!" he bellowed. "The rest of you, take out the turtles!" There was a rush of running feet as the gang members moved to comply.

"Guys, scatter!" Leo ordered. "The windows, in back!"

Raph sheathed his sai and slipped his shuko spikes on his hands in one smooth movement as he ran, turning the prongs around to rest against the back of his hands. Splinter would frown to see the climbing tools used in such a manner, but when the pursuing gang members fell back as Raph's spiked fist whooshed inches from their faces, he figured his sensei couldn't complain too much.

He poured on the speed, sprinting between the tall stacks of wooden crates toward the back of the warehouse. He couldn't see his brothers but he could hear the angry shouts and sounds of fighting as the Purple Dragons chased after them. The staccato sound of gunfire came again. Bullets thunked into the wooden crates and ricocheted metallically off of used car parts and scrap metal stored inside.

He was almost there. Raph could hear Hun screaming another order but he couldn't understand the words over the tumult.

There were three seconds of silence.

The ground bucked under his feet and he hit the floor hard as the explosion from the grenade pounded the air. Wood and metal shards went flying, scraping over his shell. Raph scrambled to his feet, ignoring the stinging nicks the debris left in his arms and legs. When the next grenade went off, he stumbled, but he was ready for it. The wooden crates were burning and the flickering orange light made his shadow writhe against the walls.

He broke free of the maze of crates and ran headlong into the open area at the back of the warehouse. Mikey was already there, poised to climb the wall, pulling on his shuko spikes. The anxious lines in his face relaxed a little as he saw Raph and Don emerging from the stacks.

"Where's Leo?" Don asked, coughing a little from the smoke.

"There!" Mikey took a step or two back the way they had come, whole body strung tight with tension as he watched Leo run. He had sheathed his swords to free his hands, and he had almost reached them. He was coming as fast as he could - but then he slowed and half-turned, looking over his shoulder toward something Raph couldn't see...

A thrill of alarm coursed through Raphael as he saw debris come hurtling through the air and strike Leonardo on the side of the head. Leo staggered and fell - and in the next moment, Hun threw a third grenade. The blast rattled the walls, throwing Raph, Don, and Mikey to the floor. Raph struggled to his feet and bolted after Leo, ignoring the ringing in his ears and the sound of approaching gang members. Leo was huddled on the floor, clutching his head, his hands and mask stained with blood.

"Hang on, bro," Raph said, helping him sit up. Leo's gaze was unfocused and he leaned dizzily against his brother, panting for breath.

"How bad is he hurt?" Mikey asked, skidding to a stop in front of them.

Raph scanned Leo's body for injuries, but aside from a few cuts and scrapes - and the head wound - he was unharmed. Several wicked-looking shards of scrap metal were embedded deep in the wall behind them, and Raph shuddered as he realized that Leo had been a hair's-breadth from being impaled. "I think he's okay," he answered, forcing his voice to remain steady. "Leo, you with us, buddy?"

"I – yeah," came the dazed reply.

Don gave a shout of alarm, springing forward and swinging his bo like a bat. The grenade falling toward them hit the solid wooden weapon with a terrifying crack. It arced away from them before it exploded – close enough to stagger them, but far enough away so they stayed on their feet. And it blasted a gaping hole in the side of the warehouse.

"There's our exit!" Raph barked.

Mikey bent and hauled Leo to his feet, slinging his brother's arm across his shoulders to tug him close against his side. The ground trembled as if there were an earthquake, and more icy black rifts were torn open around them.

"There they are!" Hun bellowed.

The brothers raced for the breach in the wall. They could hear the Purple Dragons yelling as more explosions shook the building, and a man screamed as a rip opened beneath him and swallowed him up. Hun cocked his arm back and threw a final grenade just as they reached the outside.

A great gout of fire came boiling out behind them when the grenade detonated, and the blast threw them into the air. Mikey wrapped himself around Leonardo, twisting like a cat in midair. They hit the ground hard, screeching roughly across the asphalt on Mikey's shell until they skidded to a halt. Raph was the first one up, scrambling to his feet to haul a dazed Leonardo off of Mikey's chest.

"Are you all right?" he asked, staggering as Leo listed unsteadily against him. Raph reeled him close against his side with one arm and reached for Mikey with the other.

"Yeah – just scuffed my shell. Nothing a little sandpaper can't fix," Mikey said dryly, catching hold of Raph's free hand for a lift up. His eyes skated over to where Don was getting up off the ground. "Donny, you okay?" His breath hissed between his teeth and he grimaced, seeing the gravel embedded in Don's plastron and hands. "Oh, man, you've got some serious road rash, Dude."

"I'll be fine," Don replied shortly.

"We gotta move, guys," Raph said sharply, tilting his head as the first distant shrieks of sirens reached his ears. "Mikey, you okay to drive?"

Mikey grinned. "Bro, Mario Andretti wishes he could be me." He hooked a hand around Don's elbow to hurry him along. They reached the Battle Shell first – despite Raph's natural strength and speed, he was inevitably hampered with his arms full of dazed, concussed brother. Mikey lifted the keys from Don's belt and started the engine as Raph boosted Leo into the back. Don slammed the doors shut behind them, ignoring the pain from his scraped and bleeding palms. The Battle Shell gave a lurch as Mikey floored it, steering the armored car out of the alley and away from the approaching sirens.

Raph lowered Leo to the floor. "Whoa there, don't lie down just yet," he said, catching hold of the rim of Leo's shell. He deftly unbuckled the straps that held the katana against Leo's back and set the weapons aside, then scooted around behind his injured brother to brace him up. "You've been awful quiet there, bro," he said. "You with me?"

"What happened?" Leo asked muzzily, reaching one hand up to his aching head. He tried to sit up but his spatial perception was off and Raph had to slap a hand against his plastron to keep him from pitching on his face.

"Hang on, Fearless! Just relax. We've got ya." Raph tugged him back to rest against his chest and curled one hand around Leo's forehead to hold his head steady against his shoulder. He gently slipped Leo's mask off and bunched it up in his hand, applying gentle but firm pressure against the cut on Leo's head. With one brother settled, Raph looked over at Donatello, frowning as he saw his bloody hands curled gingerly in his lap. "Yo, Don. You okay?"

"Well, I may never play the violin again." The pained lines around Don's eyes eased in gentle amusement as he saw Raph's frown deepen. Clearly Raphael wasn't at the point where he could find any part of the situation funny yet. "I'll be fine," he said reassuringly. "Just superficial scrapes, is all."

Leo tilted his head a bit against Raph's shoulder, squinting up at his brother. "Raph? Why'd you throw a brick at me?" he asked plaintively.

Raph blinked in surprise as he met Leo's unfocused gaze. His mouth curled in an affectionate grin and a warm chuckle rumbled deep in his chest. "As much as I'd like to hurl a brick at that hard head of yours sometimes," he said, "you managed this without me. I'll take a rain check, though."

Leo squeezed his eyes shut, looking tired and young without his mask. "But...thought I saw..."

Raph gently rubbed Leo's forehead with the tips of his fingers.. "Don't worry about it. You got that brain of yours scrambled a bit, but you'll be okay."

"Hey, guys…" Mikey's brow furrowed worriedly. "The communications thingy shows a whole bunch of missed calls. From Master Splinter."

"What?" Don climbed to his feet, swaying slightly in the moving truck but maintaining his balance as he made his way to the front. Their shell cells had all been set in sleep mode, but Don had them rigged to forward all messages and missed calls to a voice mailbox in the Battle Shell. There weren't any voice mails, but the display showed a dozen missed calls, all from Splinter's phone.

The brothers exchanged a worried glance. Although Splinter kept his shell cell with him, Raph could count on one hand the number of times his father had actually used it. And considering that Raph only had three fingers to begin with, a phone call from their sensei was - if not exactly a cause for worry - definitely an attention-getter. Especially when Splinter knew they'd be out on patrol and would likely need to maintain complete silence.

Raph checked Leo's head wound. The bleeding appeared to have subsided, so he set aside the crumpled mask and wiped the worst of the blood from his hand before digging out his shell cell and calling home.

Splinter snatched up the phone on the first ring. "Raphael!"

Raph flinched, startled by the abrupt answer. "Master Splinter, is everything - "

"Are you all right?"

The desperation in his father's voice filled him with alarm, and he hurried to answer. "Yeah, Sensei, I'm - "

"All four of you? Your brothers are all right?"

"Yeah, we're...we're fine," he stammered. "We ran into the Purple Dragons and got a little banged up, but - "

"Come home," Splinter ordered. "Come home now."

"We're on our way," Raph answered, gripping his phone tightly. "Sensei, is everything okay?"

There was a long pause, and Raph's heart gave an uneasy thump under his shell before Splinter sighed and answered, "Yes, my son. Everything is fine. But please…hurry home."

"Will do." Raph stared at his phone as Splinter hung up.

"What was that about?" Mikey asked, glancing back over his shoulder.

"I dunno," Raph said, stuffing his phone back into his belt. "Master Splinter's really worked up about somethin' but says he's okay. He just told us to come home." Mikey didn't answer, but Raph felt the subtle pull of acceleration as he started to drive just a little faster. Despite Splinter's assurance that he was safe, Raph's stomach twisted uneasily.

Leo felt his tension and shifted against him, pulling back a bit to look him over. "You okay, Raph?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Raph answered, curling his arm more snugly around his brother's shoulders. Now that they were safe, it was starting to sink in exactly how close a call Leo had had and with the adrenalin starting to seep away, Raph was feeling a little shaky.

Leo's dazed frown deepened a bit as he looked Donatello over and saw the abrasions and dried blood on his hands. "'S'it bad?" he asked.

"Nah," Don said, although his shrug looked a little stiff. "It looks worse than it is. We're all okay, Leo."

"Mikey, too?"

"Mikey too," Don assured him.

Leo's brow ridges drew together a bit as he craned his neck to see Michelangelo. "He's bleeding."

"What?" Raph's head swiveled to pin Mikey with a scowl, and he noticed the welt burned in the side of Mikey's neck for the first time. A thin thread of blood had trickled down his shoulder and dried. "What happened there?" Raph asked gruffly.

"Huh?" Mikey reached up to carefully prod the stinging area with his fingerdips. "Uh...I dunno. I hadn't noticed. It's not that bad, though." Raph just huffed a little under his breath, not satisfied with Mikey's dismissal but unable to do anything about it. He settled back against the wall of the Battle Shell, holding Leo close, and watched the light and shadow from the street lamps chase each other across the floor as they drove home.