Alright everyone, sorry this chapter took so long to put up, but I've been so busy lately! Anyway this chapter ended up being way too long, so I have split it into two parts. I will probably post the second part tomorrow.=)

I hope this chapter ended up okay there is a lot going on...please enjoy.

Chapter 21: Part 1

Donatello lifted his head as he watched his brothers. Nothing had changed in nearly16 years. They remained as they had been, frozen in time; encased within clear crystal; bound around the magical amplifying crystal that Nightmare had created with the souls of Michael and Lucifer; and hidden within the Sacred Circle of the Primeval Forest.

He now even understood what the Forest was. The Primeval Forest was representative of The Forest. All forests and every forest since the Beginning, and was imbued with all of the magic, creatures and spirits that ever existed. The scientist in him had been fascinated. Any animal that ever existed lived out there, somewhere. All he had to do was search, and he had, when Nightmare had no need for him. He had seen prehistoric mammals, and dinosaurs. He had observed dragons, sphinxes, and unicorns wandering through the great trees of the forest and been left in awe of them.

Though the creatures that roamed the Forest seemed to remain away from the Sacred Circle, as if there were some great barrier, and for all Donatello knew, there was.

But he had found that the Forest called to him in a strange way. It wasn't as if he felt as if he couldn't leave, but there was a sense of home that rung within him. He had asked Nightmare, and she said it was because he was a creature of the Forest, and it would always beckon.

Thinking of Nightmare sent a pang on fear and longing through him. He hadn't seen her in over 5 years, and he missed her. He ached for her. He knew she was somewhere in Betwixt and Between, and alive, but that was all he knew. He could only hope that she would eventually come back to him, though he suspected that she would make it back in time for Shadow's 16th birthday in a couple months.

How she was keeping track of time he didn't know. In Betwixt and Between a few hours would have passed, but on Earth, it could be a few hundred years later. He knew that Nightmare was somehow able to counteract this phenomenon because of her ties to Hell, where time moved painfully slow in comparison to time on Earth. He had experienced Hell time by spending an inordinate amount of time in Hell. He was now over 200 years old, but here on Earth, just over 15 years had passed since he had talked to his brothers, and he missed them.

He curled himself more closely around his brother's encased forms as the Forest was rocked by what felt like an Earthquake, but was really another attack by the Fae. He could hear the trees falling and earth splitting and cracking.

He just hoped that Nightmare made it back soon before the entire place came down.

Shadow glared at her father. "I don't see why we had to move!" She complained for what seemed like the millionth time. She had spent her entire life in Anchorage Alaska, and now her parents had suddenly up and decided to move to New York.

Her father looked at her and gave her a strained smile. "We grew up here Shadow. We love it here, and we thought it would be good for you to be back here."

"I had to leave all my friends." She said angrily.

"You'll make new ones." Her mother told her gently.

Shadow glared at both her parents. They had been acting strangely for the last year, even more so the past few months. It was if they were really worried about something.

"Besides," Her mother continued. "This school has a gardening and botany program."

Shadow perked up a little. She had always had a thing for plants. She loved them. Half the time she liked them more than people. Probably more than half the time, if she truly admitted it to herself. And she could grow plants. Even if they weren't supposed to grow she could make them grow and thrive. Back home she had a bunch of fruit trees, that were really not supposed to survive the harsh winter, but seemed to anyway. "That is the only thing going for this school, and this uniform is stupid." She said pulling at the green and blue plaid skirt.

"You look beautiful dear. Have fun on your first day." Her mother said with a smile.

Shadow looked at the red brick school and watched as the other kids were dropped off by their parents. She got out of the car and watched as a few limos, a Ferrari ands a few other ridiculously expensive cars unloaded their passengers.

She leaned in the window. "Bye mom, bye dad." She grumbled as she headed off to start her first day at a new school, that was obviously populated by rich kids.

By lunch she had decided that she hated this school and she hated this city. She felt odd in the city, as if somehow she were suffocating. She was used to the mountains and the forests of home, here it was all steel and concrete. And the school was full of a bunch of stuck up rich kids who had judged her to be a hick and had not wanted anything to do with her.

She slammed into someone. She had been so upset that she hadn't been paying attention to where she was going. Her books were scattered all over the ground and she felt as if the day couldn't get any better.

"Why don't you watch where you are going?" An angry male voice asked her in irritation.

Shadow felt tears prick her eyes. She would not cry. She told herself.

"I hate this city!" The male voice yelled in frustration.

Shadow kept her head down. "Well that makes two of us." She said in anger. "You could at least help me." She said as she looked up that the guy standing in front of her, back partially turned towards her.

"You walked into me, I don't have to help you with anything." He said as he turned his head to glare down at her. She glared at him and their eyes met. She felt as if her world tipped.

He knelt down in front of her, never breaking eye contact. He was the most beautiful guy she had ever seen. His hair was black, so black that it had blue highlights. His face was sun-kissed light brown, which made is piercing green eyes stand out that much more.

She blinked and was able to pull her eyes away from his gaze.

"I'm sorry." He apologized. "I've just been having a really bad day." He said as he began helping her pick up her books. "You must be new." He said politely.

"Yeah, my family just moved here from Alaska." She said with a blush as his hand brushed hers sending a fission of awareness through her.

He nodded. "My father sent me here last year. I hate this place. I want to go back home. I graduate this year, and my dad says once I graduate, I can go back home." He shook his head. "I feel like I'm being punished for something I didn't even do." He grumbled.

Shadow felt her heart sink as she realized that he wasn't even in her grade. She was a freshman and he was a senior.

"My name's Ryven by the way." He said with a smile that showed perfect white teeth.

"Shadow." She said as he helped her stand.

"Shadow. That's a rather odd name." He said with a friendly smile.

"So I've heard. Over and over." She said with a roll of her eyes.

"Well I should get going." He said as he turned to leave.

"Yeah sure." She said with a sinking heart.

"You maybe want me to show you around?" He asked.

She beamed at him. "Thank you." She said sincerely.

After Ryven had given her the tour of the school, her day had vastly improved. The other girls in her class were suddenly talking with her and wondering what Ryven had said, and wondered what he had found so interesting about her.

Apparently Ryven was the most popular guy in school. He involved in many of the athletic clubs, usually to do with various martial arts and fighting techniques.

She ran into him after school as she waited for her parents to come and pick her up

"Thank you." She said to him as she tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey, I know what it's like to be the new kid in a new city." He said with a shrug.

"So who is picking you up?" He asked her.

"My parents." She said. "You?"

"Don't know. My new boss." He said with a shrug.

"Your boss is picking you up? What type of job?" She asked curiously.

He shook his head. "No idea. My dad set me up with the job. I just hope it doesn't suck, and that it pays well, or if it doesn't pay well, is at least something that is useful. Knowing my dad though, the job could be anything." He grumbled.

Shadow smiled. "Good luck with your new job." She said as she frowned as something caught her eye.

Something slid from shadow to shadow.

"Did you see?" She questioned. "But shook her head as she convinced herself that she had been imagining things. "Never mind."

Ryven was frowning and looking at the garbage bin. He took a step back, and then another.

Shadow saw a flash of blue-white and there was a blood curdling scream. She covered her ears. Ryven looked at her and frowned, worry entering his eyes.

"Where is that coming from?" She asked in worry as she looked around, the sound abruptly cutting off.

A black limo pulled up to the curb. The window rolled down and a white envelope was passed to Ryven, who took it in confusion.

Shadow caught a glimpse of a handsome man, with sandy brown hair and blue eyes. The widow was rolled up and the limo drove off.

"Ryven, where did that scream come from?" She asked. "Shouldn't we call the police or something?" She asked him.

"What scream?" He asked, tapping the envelope in his hands.

"How could you not have heard the blood curdling scream?" She asked in shock.

His intense blue gaze focused on her sending a wave of hot and cold through her.

"I think there is something special about you, Shadow Jones." He said as he stepped closer to her. "Something that makes me want to act counter to my nature." He said tipping her chin up and studying her.

She swallowed through the lump in her now tight throat. "And what is your nature?" She asked breathlessly.

He smiled. "I have a very solitary and destructive nature, but you make me want to be around you and protect you." He said softly, a worried smiled playing about his lips.

Shadow smiled up at Ryven. He was walking her to the curb where her parent were supposed to pick her up. Even though today was her birthday, she was going to have a big party on the weekend and invite all of her new friends. Ryven had offered to hold her birthday party at his apartment, (which was huge), and her parents had actually said yes, which was amazing! She had been apprehensive about introducing Ryven to her parents as her boyfriend, after all he was a senior, but he was only a little over a year older than her. But her parents had been oddly interested, even her dad. Though he had given Ryven a 'friendly' warning. But after all of the murders and disappearances that were happening, her parents were glad that Ryven was able to take care of her, and he had.

Her and Ryven had begun to see strange things, things that other people didn't seem to be able to see. Things that were from some of her worst nightmares. Also plants had begun to act oddly around her. It was winter, but sometimes she would look back at where she had walked and there was a path of flowers that had sprouted up. Also the plants in her gardening class had begun to grow unusually large.

Shadow took a step and tripped. She landed on her knees in shock. She felt something skim over her head. She looked up, and up, and kept going. A giant stood over her. As in an actual giant. He was a least 13 feet tall with light grey skin. He was human in appearance with overlarge cheekbones and brow ridge. His nose had a squashed broad appearance and teeth or perhaps tusks, jutted out from his bottom lip. He looked down at her. He was covered in ragged stained clothing of indeterminate colour, chains dripping from around his arms and neck. Hung around the chains on his neck were half rotting severed human heads, still dripping with blood. In his beefy hand he held a spiked club, the club that had nearly bashed her in the head.

She looked down at her foot where a vine had wrapped itself around her ankle, causing her to trip.

She rolled out of the way as the club came down beside her. She heard screaming and realized that her classmates had begun to panic. Which meant that for once, her classmates could actually see what only her and Ryven had ever been able to. But the screaming of her classmates had gained the attention of the giant standing in front of her.

"Hey big and ugly!" Ryven shouted. "Over here!" He said as he began jumping and waving his hands to attract the attention of the giant. Ryven looked at her over his shoulder. "Run!" He shouted. As the giant swung the club at him.

"...beautiful Case." Raphael said to his friend. Only his friend wasn't there. In fact he was no longer in the kitchen. He looked at his brothers who were looking at him in confusion.

Raphael looked around and looked at the dark purple, scaled body of something large that surrounded them.

He took a startled step back as he looked into the golden eyes of the dragon that looked at them.

He grabbed at his sais as the dragon's head rose up20 feet into the air. "What the hell is going on!" He asked as his carapace butted up against his brother's.

The earth moved beneath his feet as branches and trees began tumbling around them. A huge wing was quickly outstretched blocking several huge pieces of debris from falling on them.

Suddenly the dragon vanished, to be replaced by Donatello. Raphael looked in shock at his brother. He looked older somehow. His face hadn't aged, but there was a heaviness in his eyes that gave the impression of time. But his brother's appearance had changed. His brother was wearing metal shoulder guards, and a black breast plate over flowing purple and white robes. His face was badly scarred, with what looked like claw marks, some small, others large.

"Donny?" Leonardo asked in confusion. "What's going on? What happened, where are Casey, April and Shadow, and where is Nightmare?"

Donatello looked around as the forest groaned, another shockwave shaking the ground beneath their feet.

"The Fae are attacking the shields that circle both our world as well as this place. Since this place exists in a state of in -between the Fae have access to it. You three have been in stasis for 16 years." There was a crack as a tree fell. Donatello caught the massive trunk and threw it away.

"Holy super strength Batman!" Michelangelo said in shock.

Donatello rolled his eyes. "April and Casey are probably somewhere in New York. April called to say that they were moving back here as Nightmare instructed. As for where Nightmare is, I haven't seen her in 5 years, but she is somewhere in Betwixt and Between."

"Five years. Wait what do you mean we were in stasis for 16 years!" Raphael asked in confusion a thread of panic and anger leaking into his voice.

"Long story." Donatello mumbled as his eyes widened. "Nightmare!" He said in shock as Nightmare appeared out of nowhere. She hit the ground hard and skidded several feet away, where she lay still.

"Nightmare!" Raphael cried out in horror. He attempted to run to her, but Donatello held him back.

A dark haired woman, pale as the moon and bathed in darkness, appeared, walking towards Nightmare.

The entirety of the world spilt open. Behind the dark haired woman, thousands upon thousands of what he would consider to be monsters and things from nightmares, twisted, screamed and writhed.

Raphael looked at the army in horror and realized that this is what Nightmare had feared, what Nightmare had been trying to tell them wanted in, but he had never really understood, until now.

He drew his sais, his brothers drawing their own weapons. He took a step back. Donatello drew a huge halberd from his back. Gabriel appeared, drawing a glowing blue sword, the one he recognized as belonging to Nightmare.

Nightmare pulled herself up off the ground and wiped the blood from her lip. "I am impressed Medb" Her name sounded like Medin. "You are fighting your own battles. I did not think that the Queen of Air and Darkness would sully her own hands." Nightmare sneered.

Medb laughed and Raphael swore her heard the soft tinkling of bells. "When there is blood to be spilled, and the painful screams of my enemies to be heard, I want a front row seat." She said with a malicious smile that showed off her pointed teeth.

"You can't be here, you don't belong here, not anymore." Nightmare said as she pulled a black bladed sword from her back. It glowed red with bloodlust.

"My children are already here, and there are so many more awaiting to claim the human world as our own." She said with a satisfied smile which turned to anger. "For too long humans have ruled and dominated this world, forgetting what and who we are. We are the gods of the Earth. We, who were worshipped and revered; We who were sacrificed to and prayed to, have become pale shadows of what we once were. Now we are stories told to children that elicit not fear, and wariness, but laughter and ridicule. We are no longer feared and respected. A mighty race brought to our knees through disbelief and iron."

Nightmare smiled widely and began to clap then. "I do believe in fairies, I do, I do!" She mocked.

Whether Medb understood the Peter Pan reference or not, he wasn't sure, but Medb understood being mocked.

Something hit Nightmare sending her sprawling into a large crystal. A bloody smear was left as she tumbled to the ground.

"You are nothing." Medb said to her as she pet the creature beside her. It was pig-like, with black, oily wet skin, and huge tusks that were red with Nightmares blood.

"I've heard that before." Nightmare said as she shakily stood. Gabriel and Donatello were each standing in front of her, trying to block Nightmare from further harm.

The monstrous sea behind Medb advanced. "This world is ours! Our Raths and Carins have been destroyed and besmirched. Never again shall we bow to the will of man."

"Medb, Queen of Air and Darkness, Queen of the Unseelie, sister to Oberon, you wish to take this world, to storm it, to subjugate it. That is not who you are, it is not who you were. To be this, would make you human." She said softly. Nightmare's skin began to glow. "You are filled with so much anger, so much hate."

"You know nothing of me!" Medb yelled.

Nightmare smiled. "I have known you. I have always known you. But even though you are mine, I shall not let you take this world, but I will offer you a new one, a new start. A world not corrupted by iron and disbelief. It will be a world full of magic, belief and power. A world where you will be as you once were. Creatures who lived within your Carins and Raths. Had mighty Tors that were feared and respected. I will take your memory, and that shall be your price for this gift. "

Medb threw back her head and laughed. "You, one small goddess, think to stop me? You offer me an new world, but wish to take my memory?" She shook her head in disbelief. "I can just take this one." Her voice grew dangerous."And because you are the goddess of magic, does not make you my goddess. I am my own, I rule the air and the darkness, and when I kill you, I shall rule Earth."

The monstrous horde burst through the veil and poured into the forest.

"Help Shadow!" Nightmare yelled.

"What!" He yelled back in confusion. "No!" But it was already too late. They were back in New York.

"Raph, where's Donny, and Nightmare?" Leonardo asked in panicked horror.

"Must still be with back at the tree." He said as fear rolled through him. "We have to get back to them! There is an entire army wanting to kill her, we can't just leave her there!" He said as he looked around and then up. There was a huge giant attacking a boy, with flaming hands, and a girl who seemed to be manipulating plant-life somehow.

The girl looked at them in shock as a vine whipped out of the ground, and snagged his foot lifting him into the air. She looked like she was straining, trying to keep her attention focused on him, his brothers and the giant at once.

"Shadow?" Raphael asked in confusion as he looked at the young teen who was April, if April was a teenager and had black hair instead of red.

Raphael felt strange. Literally a few minutes ago she had been a baby, now she was old enough to drive. A whole 16 years of his life was gone and Donatello had done nothing to stop what had happened to them. And he didn't even know what had happened to them. And now he was hanging upside down staring at the ugliest motherin' giant he had ever seen.

Raphael sliced through the vine holding his ankle and landed on his feet. "Hey ugly!" He shouted at the giant that was warily circling the young fire wielding teen. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size!" He yelled as he charged the monster.

His sais embedded themselves into its flesh and stuck there. The giant looked down at him in irritation. The fire wielder punched the giant in the face with his flaming fist. The giant stumbled back and Raphael was able to pull his sais free of the giant's chest.

"You idiot!" The young man growled. "A Jack in Irons is one of the few Fae impervious to iron!"

"A what!" He asked in confusion.

The giant shook himself off.

"A Jack in Irons, he's a fairy." The young teen told him in irritation.

"How do you know this?" Leonardo asked as they slowly backed up from the advancing giant.

"Forget how he knows it, how do we stop it? And what the hell are you?" Raphael asked.

"My dad made sure I knew all the legends about the Fae. And I'm a half demon." He said as he began backing up.

"You're a what?" Shadow asked in horror.

The giant roared at them.

"You two want to save the relationship issues till later?" Raphael grumbled feeling oddly old. "How do we stop this thing hell boy?" He asked in irritation.

"I've never been to hell. I'm a half demon you...whatever freakish thing that you are."

"Mutant turtle." Raphael growled.

"Uh, guys..." Michelangelo said as he slowly began backing up. "I think big, tall and ugly is getting mad."

"You're Baёl's son." Leonardo said in shock.

"What of it?" The teen asked as he launched himself at the giant again.

The giant grabbed the teen out of the air before he was able to get to the giant. His whole body was suddenly covered in flames.

"Aren't you supposed to yell, 'Flame on!' or something?" Raphael asked as he charged the giant. The giant screamed in pain and threw the flaming teen straight at him.

He caught the teen full on in the chest and they tumbled to the ground in a fiery heap. Luckily the teen managed to extinguish himself before he was burnt too badly.

"Ryven!" Shadow screamed.

"How do we kill him!" Raphael yelled shaking the slightly dazed teen.

"You can't kill a giant, you never kill a giant." Michelangelo said thoughtfully.

The giant charged swinging his club wildly. A spike from the club caught Leonardo across the side leaving a bloody gash in his arm.

"Leo!" He yelled at his brother who doubled over in pain. Raphael took a second look and realized that the spike had scraped through part of his brother's plastron.

"I'm okay. Mikey?" Leonardo asked in a pain strained voice.

"Jack and the Beanstalk!" Michelangelo yelled.

Raphael smiled. "The bigger they are, the harder they fall!" He said with a grin.

"Shadow!" He yelled as he and his brothers leapt at the giant. Ryven shook himself off, leaping up and hitting the giant in the face with a flaming fist.

The giant stumbled back, a vine catching his ankle and tripping him. He fell to the ground in a massive heap that shook the ground beneath them. The giant began struggling, but vine after vine began wrapping over and around the giants limbs and body, trapping him. The giant roared and struggled, but to no avail.

Raphael grinned. Ryven smiled and then lost his smile, a flash of pain ripping across his face. He fell forward, cut down by a creature with a huge axe. It's forehead wet with blood that dripped from its bloody cap.

"Ryven!" Shadow screamed as Leonardo leapt at the advancing goblin- like creature, with its gory, blood drenched cap. Leonardo's swords caught the axe as it swung at him. He tried to push the Fae back, but they Fae was so much stronger, and Leonardo was injured. Michelangelo leapt on the Fae's back, choking it with his nunchuks.

Shadow ran to Ryven cradling him in her arms, and talking to him softly.

"Oh hell." Raphael said as the world was ripped open. Fae spilled out by the thousands. Some slithered, some flew, some were so huge they moved along the skyscrapers which only reached their kneecaps, making the giant they just battled look like a child's play toy in comparison. "Oh shit." He said in horror.

The world seemed to flicker as a massive crystal appeared in the sky. It began to glow as the sky erupted with screams and a rain of blood. All Raphael could make out were flickers of movement and flashes of weapons, and Raphael was betting that Gabriel and Donatello were up there somewhere, battling part of the Fae army.

The world was then pulled asunder. The horizon became black and polished like that of a mirror.

Leonardo gasped. "Nightmare, what are you doing?" He asked in horror as the mirror began to ring. The army of Fae that were on this side of the mirror turned their heads and, as if in a daze, began to walk towards the mirror.

Raphael could just make out, in the depths of the mirror, the image of a tree, bigger and larger than what mortal eyes could even fathom.

The Fae on the other side of the mirror had crashed right into it, or at least Raphael had to assume that is what happened, since he could not see past to the other side of the mirror.

The goblin-like Fae that Michelangelo and Leonardo were fighting, turned and began to slowly make its way towards the mirror.

Raphael hear the mirror ring again, the sound reverberating down into his soul. It called something within him. It felt like it was calling him home.

He took a step towards the mirror and then another. He felt pain lash through him then, which snapped him out of his daze. He grabbed his brothers who had began to walk towards the mirror as well. They did not stop just brushed him off. He slapped both Leonardo and Michelangelo across the face hard. They both looked at him in shock.

"What's the?" Michelangelo asked him, his eyes wide as he rubbed his cheek.

He heard a crack of splintering shattering glass as another wave of red-tinged agony burst through him.

Michelangelo and Leonardo hauled him up from the ground where he had fallen. His eyes sought out Nightmare. He could see her floating behind the giant crystal. He could just make out the strain and pain that was flashing across her face.

"Nightmare!" He shouted at her as he struggled from his brother's grip. The crystal cracked again and Raphael couldn't breathe the pain was so intense.

"She's going to kill herself!" He yelled as he made it two steps before he fell again, his body a riot of agony.

"She's using too much power!" Leonardo shouted at him as the wind kicked up, bringing with it more creatures than just the Fae. All loping, flying and running towards the mirror. Nightmare pulled two swords from her back, the blue bladed sword, and the black bladed sword. She slammed both swords into the crystal. Pain split up and down through Raphael.

"Raph!" Leonardo said in worry. "Oh god you're bleeding." Leonardo said, but his brother's voice was coming from far away.

Raphael looked at Nightmare and knew that this would be the last moment he would ever see her alive. He knew it down to his very soul.

The crystal shattered.