A/N: This one was a really tough one to write. I hate writing fight scenes, but with Ninja Turtles, you kinda have to. So without further ado, Chapter 4 ladies and gentlemen! I changed this one as well!
Chapter 4: Infiltration
Out on the surface world, inside the building that nearly towered over all the rest in the night time city of New York, Dr. Victor Falco was sat alone in his personal lab in the late hours of the night inside TCRI, long after all the other employees had gone home. Underneath a microscope, the scientist was closely examining a small sample of the last canister of ooze that they'd nearly cleared out earlier, if it weren't not for his quick thinking to take it back that is. What he discovered was truly amazing.
This extra-terrestrial substance contained massive amounts of metamorphosing qualities; the ability to mutate organic life forms. Of course, he'd heard of such a thing years previously, when he and his colleagues discovered over a dozen of similar, ooze filled canisters in a warehouse not fifteen years ago now. But back then, his research was very limited due to the fact that the professors before him had claimed the substance too unstable for him alone to examine. Now, however, because they were in the process of disposing said canisters, it was the perfect time to conduct some last minute examinations…
Frowning to himself, Falco leaned back from his microscope and put a finger to his chin, deep in thought as he furrowed his brows. He could continue to test it, as he and his partners had been doing for nearly fifteen years, but he himself knew next to nothing about how it worked. And if such a substance were to fall into the wrong hands, there could be disastrous results.
No. He couldn't continue with this any longer. He could not allow that to happen again as it had done all those years ago. Nodding to himself, Falco put away his equipment and stood up from his chair, his resolve clear and true. Despite the overwhelming urge to study it, he decided to properly dispose of the mutagen before any innocent people were harmed. It was the only way.
As he carefully picked up the mutagen canister, finally ready to put an end to this mutagen madness, he turned around in search for the exit to the lab, only to find instead that a large, heavily built man was standing behind him in full armour, his arms folded smugly across his chest with a smirk on his face as he stared down at the startled scientist.
Falco stumbled backwards, letting out a cry of alarm. When did he get here? How had he avoided security? "W-who are you? How did you get in here? What do you want?" he stuttered as he took a few cautious steps backwards.
The large man only chuckled in response, raising his hand and snapping his fingers once.
A hand from behind him slapped over Falco's mouth, muffling his cry of surprise. Bradford snatched the canister from Falco as Xever dragged the scientist away, despite his struggles. Bradford grinned down at the glowing substance, turning it over in his hands. "Mission accomplished…" he chuckled darkly. Now all that was left to do was to get out of here and leave no trace. Their master would surely be pleased with them for their success.
A Foot ninja appeared beside Bradford and gave a short bow in respect before speaking. "Bradford, sir, one of our men went outside to scout for any disturbance. He just reported back to me, telling me that the Turtles have been spotted. They're headed this way, sir."
Eyes widening slightly, Bradford growled in mild annoyance, dismissing the Foot soldier with a wave of his hand as he turned, stroking his bearded chin. He didn't need those wretched creatures ruining their chances of pleasing their master…
However, now that the thought of it, he didn't mind a challenge…it'd been a while since he'd actually fought against anyone worth a challenge, and he'd never actually seen the turtles himself before. It would be a great honor to fight and defeat the very creatures who had managed to best even his own Sensei.
Nodding to himself, he turned to Xever with a devilish grin. "Well, by all means then, let's finish this. Shall we?" he invited.
Xever chuckled, cracking his knuckles. "I say we shall. Besides, I've always wanted to try turtle soup…"
Meanwhile, in silent unison, the four mutant ninja turtle brothers leapt across the rooftops in the darkness of the cold night, running at high speeds with their sights set on the towering complex that was TCRI. As they bounded over rooftops and off of water towers, Michelangelo's teeth chattered as he shivered violently. "Dudes, were reptiles, we don't do cold!" he cried. Not even the blood pumping through his veins could warm him up at this rate. Maybe they should've listened to Splinter when he told them to put scarfs on before they left.
Donatello looked back at him as they ran, casting a sympathetic glance at his cold younger brother. "Well, theoretically Mikey," he began, "we are essentially a combination of warm and cold blood, because you see, after our mutation with Splinter our genetics were marginally altered so – "
"Donnie I swear to god I will smack you outta your shell!" Raphael barked near the front of the pack, and Donnie narrowed his eyes with a pout.
Leonardo rolled his eyes as he shushed them all. Seriously, they couldn't be quiet for less than five seconds, could they? Not breaking his speed, he took out his T-phone and dialled April's phone number. "April, are we going the right way?" he asked.
Back at the lair in Donnie's lab, April, her father, Casey and Splinter were all gathered around April's laptop, watching as a series of blinking blue, red, purple and orange lights appeared on the screen on a chain of mapped out areas. Keeping her eyes locked on the moving dots on the screen, April held the phone to her ear "Yeah, Leo, you guys are good," she replied, clicking an icon on the sidebar that brought up another window which listed the posts of what appeared to be over a dozen guards. "I gotta warn you though; TCRI is a heavily guarded scientific facility," she warned, "You guys will have to be extra careful, or you might wind up as their next test subjects. If you guys need any help, Casey and I will come and back you up ASAP."
"Will do April," he replied on the other line, "thanks again. Leonardo out."
Within the next few minutes of seemingly incessant running and vaulting over rooftops, the turtles reached the colossal building, leaping to the ground once they were sure they were alone. As the four brothers gathered, Mikey gazed up at the massive structure in amazement. "Whoa…" he breathed. It was a whole lot bigger than it was on T.V.
"Yeah, Mikey," Leo agreed, "Whoa indeed."
Donnie took out his T-phone and opened the app that he'd downloaded from April's laptop before they left. Using his thumb to scan through the transferred document, he found what he was looking for and nodded to himself. "Okay, according to April's map of the building she downloaded, we're supposed to go to the fifth floor. That's where they were supposed to be conducting the…wait a second, that doesn't look right…" Donnie muttered as he peered closer at the mapped out structure in confusion.
When Donnie had trailed off, Leo turned his attention from the building and faced his brother. "What is it, Don?" he asked, moving to stand beside his taller younger brother.
Donnie put a finger to his chin in thought, unable to take his eyes off the screen of his phone. "Well," he elaborated, "the bottom two thirds are normal offices floors as well as laboratories, simple right? But the puzzling thing is, according to the map, the top third…is completely blank…"
The turtles gathered around the map on Donnie's phone. He was right; the top third was blank. Not a single plan, sketch or drawing of any sort was on the structure.
"Why is it blank?" Raph asked, just as baffled as the rest of them.
Donnie shrugged. "Well, it says in small print underneath that it's off limits to all visitors and even regular staff. But that doesn't make any sense, because there's nothing up there. Unless, of course…"
"…Whatever they built up there, they didn't want anyone to know about it," Leo mused, glancing up at the tower suspiciously, narrowing his eyes. It appeared that there was more to TCRI than just the mutagen. He turned back to his brothers. "Change of plan everyone. We go to the top floor."
The others looked up at him in surprise. "But, Leo" Donnie argued, "The samples of mutagen are on the third floor. And besides, we don't know what's up there – "
"All the more reason to find out," Leo interjected, folding his arms over his chest. "Like Splinter said, we have to find answers to our past, and this is the only way."
The other three turtles shared a look. Leo was right; if they were ever going to find out what the true purpose of the ooze was, then they would have to take risks.
"Well, that's all great, Leo, but it's better said than done, dude," Mikey piped up, gaining all their attention. "I mean, how're we gonna get all the way up there? Climb up the building? Pack ourselves in a box and take the elevator?"
Leo, Donnie and Raph shared a look. Then they all turned to Mikey again, smiling devilishly. Raph wriggled his eyebrows.
Expression dropping, Mikey drew backwards. "Uh oh…" he whimpered. Whatever they had planned, it definitely was not in his favor.
Back at the lair, April and Casey were still inside Donnie's lab. Casey watched bewildered from the opposite side the desk as April tapped hastily away at the keyboard, busy hacking into TCRI cameras. It was lucky for her that Donnie had shown her his 'How To Hack Like A Pro' technique a few months ago, and even luckier that she was a fast learner; trying to keep up with Donnie was like trying to stop Mikey from throwing a water balloon; it was almost a lost cause.
"Okay, so far so good," she mused as Casey joined her, sitting beside her on a spare chair he'd brought from the kitchen.
The boy stared at the screens, surprised to find them lacking any people standing guard, or any people at all. "Huh," he muttered. "It doesn't seem like there's any night security around. I wonder why? Didn't you say that it was heavily guarded or something?"
Leaning back in her chair, April nodded as she hummed to herself in thought. "Yeah, I thought that too. If this place is seriously secured, then what happened to everyone?" Her brows furrowed as she stared at the screens. "Something must be wrong. Do you think we should tell the guys about this, or did we just dodge a bullet?"
Next to her, Casey shrugged, unsure of what to say. On the one hand, less humans around meant less chance of the guys getting spotted and caught, but on the other hand, it could mean that they weren't the only ones after the ooze. Depending on whose side they were on, it could mean trouble. Looking back to the laptop, Casey's eyes suddenly flung wide open, and his jaw nearly dropped to the desktop. "Wait! April, zoom in on that camera there! The one outside!" he urged, pointing at the screen.
Despite his slightly panicked tone, April did so as she double clicked on the camera Casey chose. Then all jaws went down in utter shock.
"What…are…they…doing?"
The turtles were gathered around the back of the building, dragging a large cardboard box from the dumpster. Mikey was ushering Donnie, Leo and Raph inside the box whilst he put on an old hat and worn, slightly ripped trench coat. He sealed the box shut and began pushing it around towards the front door.
The two humans stared in total disbelief. Then they simultaneously slapped a hand against their foreheads. "This is gonna end badly…" Casey muttered under his breath.
April could only nod her agreement.
"Special delivery!"
The woman at the front desk in the lobby looked up from her computer, and her brows raised as she stared in puzzlement as a young man, not taller than she was and wearing a hat and dirty trench coat, pushed a very large cardboard box through the door automatic doors. "Um…c-can I help you sir?" she asked hesitantly.
The young man turned around, his face slightly hidden from view from his strange hat. "Ah yes. I am here to deliver a special delivery! I hope-a you don't-a mind, it is so late after all!" he pleasantly explained. And, was that supposed to be an Italian accent?
Adjusting the collar of her shirt nervously, she chuckled. "Um, no it's no problem, um, go right up and I'm sure they will see your…special delivery is safely…delivered," she smiled awkwardly, slightly creeped out by this man.
"Grazie!" he said happily as he pushed the box into the elevator, discreetly pushing the very top button. As the elevator doors closed behind him, Mikey let out a heavy sigh of relief as he took off his hat and coat. "Okay guys, I think we're clear."
At his signal, the box burst open from the top as the three turtles inside erupted into uncontrollable fits of laughter.
"Oh-ho my god, Mikey! W-what the heck was that?!" Raph hooted, wiping a tear from his eye.
"I wish I got that on tape!" Leo snorted.
Mikey blushed deeply. "Shut up, you guys!" he cried defensively, "We got into the freaking elevator, didn't we? So it wasn't that bad!" he pouted and folded his arms over his chest.
The boys climbed out of their box as they sobered up a little. Donnie came out last, and he patted his younger brother's head reassuringly. "Yeah, Mikey, you did good," he praised, earning a small smile from the orange clad turtle. Donnie smiled back, and put his hands on his hips. "With the elevator going up smoothly, and no one suspecting a thing, we should be up and out of here in a jiffy!"
It was then that the elevator suddenly screeched and groaned to a stop, the sound piercing their ears as they froze on the spot. The lights went dark and everything became eerily silent. Well, that was until Mikey screamed, latching tightly onto Leo. "This is just like what happened in that movie where elevator stopped and whenever the lights went out, the Devil came and killed someone! We're next! I don't wanna die!" he cried.
"Mikey! Shut it!" Raph barked, slapping Mikey upside the head. "You watch way too many horror movies!"
Leo rolled his eyes and huffed in annoyance as he tugged his arm out of Mikey's grip, taking out his T-phone and quickly dialing April's number again. "April, the elevators' down," he said, ignoring his brothers' bickering beside him. "Do you know what's going on?"
"I don't, Leo," April said on the other line, "The cameras are all out right now too, so I can't see anything. But I do know for a fact that there are no night guards or security anywhere. I'm guessing something bad went down before you guys got there, so keep an eye out for anything unusual. As for the elevator, it looks like you guys will have to find another way up there."
Leo sighed heavily as he hung up. "Guys, April just confirmed an all-out power out throughout all of TCRI. It looks like we'll have to climb the rest of the way up," he said, ignoring their heavy sighs as he opened the top of the elevator by climbing onto Donnie's shoulders. "Stop stalling and let's move guys!" he ordered, climbing out of the top of the elevator.
Raph let out a heavy groan, but he didn't make any other comment as he climbed up to meet Leo, using Donnie's shell as a boost, much to his protest. Still shaking with fear, Mikey followed behind Raph, and once he was standing beside them, he hauled Donnie up with him. "I swear, if we get killed by the Devil, I'm totally blaming you guys!" Mikey cried, and was once again shushed by his older brothers.
Raph folded his arms, looking to his leader. "So, how far to the top?" he asked. Leo looked up, and he winced. The others followed his gaze, and their shoulders slumped dejectedly. There was still a long, long way to go. "Yikes…" Raph huffed.
Mikey pouted. "We're totally gonna die," he whimpered as he started climbing the elevator shaft after Leo, followed by an angry Raph and a mildly peeved Donnie.
The turtles scaled the elevator shaft, clinging onto wires and spaces in the metallic chute to make their way up. Luckily, they were already more than half way up when the elevator had decided to stop. So despite how long it seemed to take them, they didn't actually need to climb for very long, but it was no less tedious.
Leo tugged the doors open, grunting from the effort as they finally reached the top floor. His dark blue eyes looked cautiously from side to side, scanning the floor. The long hallway was empty and dark. It seemed as if all the power had gone out, true to April's word. "Okay, the cost is clear. Let's move, guys," Leo whispered down to his team as he climbed out of the shaft and onto the floor, helping his brothers out one by one in the process.
Having finally gotten over the jitters, Mikey struck a pose. "I love this spy stuff!" he laughed in a loud whisper. Leo smiled and shook his head, and motioning for the boys to move forward, not wanting to waste any more time here.
The turtles progressed through the dark maze of hallways without a sound, running past desks and labs like hard-shelled ghosts. Despite their size, their feet made no sound as they quickly navigated through the offices, looking for any strange labs or glowing canisters of mutagen. So far they saw none, and as the minutes dragged on, the results remained the same.
The boys came to a stop, catching their breath. "Well, not much to this place, is there?" Donnie sighed, slightly disappointed. He'd hoped to see larger labs with high-tech equipment in this building, especially if they were doing scientific research on extra-terrestrial goo. Thus far, he was less than impressed; they made it seem so grand and sophisticated during the interview with Dr. Falco.
"Donnie, it may look empty, but as Sensei always said, 'appearances can be deceiving'," Leo warned them in a hushed tone, "So we have to move quietly."
Despite his dissatisfaction, Donnie nodded firmly. "Yeah!" Mikey cheered beside him quietly.
Shaking his head, Raph pushed past Leo with a smug grin that made Leo inwardly wince. "C'mon, Leo, what do you say? Let's do it already!" he urged as he rushed off ahead of the others, ignoring Leo's earlier command about silence entirely.
Watching as Raph ran on ahead of them, Donnie and Mikey then shared a look. Then they grinned. "Let's do it!" they laughed as they performed a handshake, and then rushed off eagerly after Raph.
Leo sighed and shook his head, lifting a hand to pinch the space between his eyes. "Guys, I swear you're gonna get yourselves hurt if you carry on like this…" he muttered to himself crossly as he chased after his younger brothers.
After another long, endless maze of hallways with no sign of ooze or anything even remotely mysterious or unusual, Donnie finally spotted a door with lights illuminating underneath, and he skidded to a stop. "Hey, guys, this must be it," Donnie called quietly, beckoning them over as the others gathered around him.
Raph looked down to find that there was a black multi-coloured box drilled to the wall next to the door. It appeared that in order to enter, they needed to enter some kind of secret code. Well, that was just great. "So how do we get in?" Raph asked, his question more directed at Donnie than anyone else.
Donnie grinned as he dug into his belt. "Leave it to me," he said as he took out a small black device that they could only decipher as a flash drive of some sort, "I've got an app for that."
The others let out a groan. "Oh boy…" Leo sighed.
Donnie plugged in his device into the box and began punching a series of numbers, each code he entered coming in as 'denied access'. Before long, the impatient red turtle appeared by his side. "I've got an app for that, too!" he grinned sarcastically, before brutally kicking the door open with his foot. Donnie pouted as Leo and Raph entered the lab, followed by Mikey who stopped only to grin at him, before Donnie himself entered with an expression telling them that he was so done.
The turtles peered inside the room, and their eyes widened to the size of saucers in awe.
The lab was beyond massive. Glistening silver metallic surfaces greeted them as they gawked upon the many whirring machines in the center of the lab. Three large glass pods stood in the far corner next to the large window that served as their only glimpse of the city below, which from where they stood, was a truly beautiful view. Silver stairs led down to a lower level of the lab that was littered with unfinished machines that roughly resembled small hovercrafts, android bodies and odd shaped weapons.
The four teenagers gazed around them in marvel. "Whoa! Time Square City, or what?!" Raph exclaimed as he walked father inside the lab, taking in their amazing new surroundings.
"I-I don't believe it!" Donnie gasped in incredulity, "Look at all of this! They're using a metal alloy that I don't even recognize!" His eyes were so wide with wonder, and he was so giddy with excitement that he feared he would burst from the immensity of it all. Leo was right; appearances were indeed deceiving. Even he couldn't have possibly fathomed to build or even look upon such beautiful technology. This lab was nothing like he imagined. In fact, it was so much better! "The past returns…I knew we'd find something special!" he said to himself as he began examining and exploring the machinery.
"It's like a video game in 3D!" Mikey laughed as he danced around the shiny silver objects, wanting so desperately to take one with him.
"Totally massive!" Leo gaped as he observed the unknown tech around him. He'd never seen so many machines, not even in Donnie's lab!
Raph approached a large control panel on one of the higher levels. "Whoa! Get a load of this crazy joint!"
Mikey followed him as he eagerly skimmed through the 'shiny things'. "Look at this! Hey, where do you the quarter in?" He began poking one of the machines curiously as he looked up and saw a glowing purple button, just waiting to be pressed. "Oooh, shiny!" He moved to press it, but yelped as Leo smacked his hand.
"Mikey! Will you stop screwing around?!" he snapped, "Remember what we're here for!"
The youngest turtle shrugged sheepishly as he smiled up at his brother. "Right, sorry Leo," he chuckled.
"Hey guys, over here!" Donnie called from the other side of the room. He was sat next to a strange looking computer that was oddly dissimilar to the ones usually created by humans. The other turtles gathered around as Donnie inspected the screen intensely, apart from Mikey, who'd noticed something else behind one of the giant glass pods on the other side of the room, and went to go investigate.
Leo placed an arm around Donnie's shoulders as he peered at the monitor, eyes narrowing as he read through the long list that flashed before them. This was completely beyond his comprehension, so he turned to Donnie. "What do you make of it, Donnie?" he asked his intelligent brother.
Donnie hummed in thought before answering, his brown eyes quickly scanning through the list. "I'm not sure, Leo, but it looks like an allocation of serial numbers…" He began typing on the keyboard, his large green fingers tapping away at the smaller buttons with ease. His three brothers knew that Donatello was not just a scientist; he was a master hacker, able to break down even the strongest of Fire Walls within mere minutes.
"Let's see…" he mused as he opened a file listed as 'Plan 9: Disposal'. He raised a brow. "Well, it appears that this data was taken from another lab lower down in the building complex." He read down the list of numbered objects, from 1 to over 50. Next to them, they all read 'Disposed', much to their confusion. "Disposed, disposed, disposed…Disposed of what?" Donnie mumbled to himself.
"Hey guys!" Mikey called as he picked up two empty canisters that he found lying behind the glass pods – two of how many dozens that were discovered beforehand. "I think we're too late! Like, 'No deposit no return, dudes."
Leo and Raph sighed heavily, slapping their foreheads in despair. "Great. All this way for nothing then…" Raph growled. With all the mutagen gone, what were they supposed to do now?
"Well, except maybe this one…" Donnie piped up, pointing at the screen. "Number 42…this one's still active! Someone must've forgotten to dispose of this one during the cleaning process. Lucky us!"
Leo grinned. "Good! So we still have a shot. Donnie, can you bring up the file?"
Donnie frowned in thought. "Well, I could try, but if the database is coded, the whole system might go down…"
"This is our only shot at finding that active canister if it's still hidden in the building…" Leo advised, "you're gonna have to go for it, Don."
"Yeah, Donnie, go for it!" Mikey cheered.
"Thanks for the commentary, Mikey" Leo smiled. Mikey gave him a thumbs up.
With a final nod, Donnie sucked in a deep breath, cracking his knuckles before he set to work, his three large fingers tapping away effortlessly on the small keyboard. His tongue protruded out of his mouth, a sign that the genius was in deep concentration, and his brothers were not to disturb him.
As they watched with silent anticipation as Donnie worked to bring up the file that could be the key to revealing their very origin, Raphael felt a presence behind him. It was an unfamiliar presence, and it sent an uneasy shiver running down the red clad turtle's spine. Sharply, he turned his head around, but saw no one. Still disgruntled, he drew out a Sai just in case and then looked back to Donnie.
Several shadows flew silently past them just as Raph looked away, watching the four turtles from the support beams above.
A single bead of sweat dripping from his forehead, Donnie hit one last button, praying that his decryption code worked. A voice from the computer rang through their ears and made them jump.
"That which is known as access is not granted to Kraang."
"Kraang?" they all crowed in unison, sharing confused glances. "Who's Kraang?" Mikey asked, looking to Raph for some form of explanation. Raph only shrugged his shoulders.
"That which is known as the computer database will now shut down."
The computer screen suddenly ruptured, and just as Donnie predicted would happen, the whole system shut down with a low whine. The turtles all groaned in agitation and defeat. "Damn it! So close!" Donnie cursed, slamming his hands on the keyboard in frustration. Mikey patted his shoulder consolingly.
"I'd say too close…"
Their hearts in their throats, the turtles spun around to find dozens of Foot soldiers surrounding them from where they stood in front of the computer. "Aw, Sewer Apples! It's The Foot Clan!" Mikey cried.
Narrowing his eyes, Leo cursed himself under his breath as he and his brothers drew their weapons. How had he not detected them? How could he have let himself and his team become so careless? Maybe their earlier cockiness over their 'victory' against the Foot really did get them.
From within the crowd of black clothed figures, Bradford and Xever stepped forward and gazed down at the turtles for the first time. They were just as hideous as their master had told them they were, and worse still, they were only teenagers. These couldn't have been the so-called warriors that had defeated one of the greatest ninja masters to date? They didn't even sense their presence before it was too late. Pathetic.
Spotting the two new goons, Raph narrowed his eyes and let out a low growl. "Who're you creeps?" he barked, pointing the tip of his Sai at the two of them in a threatening gesture.
Bradford smirked, unfazed by the threat. "I am Bradford, mightiest warrior of The Foot," he announced proudly.
"And the name is Xever. So you don't forget, I'll write on your shells," Xever declared as he flicked out two razor sharp knives from his pockets. "…with these!" he grinned. These turtles didn't look like much, but he wasn't about to let a chance to crack a few skulls pass him by.
Bradford took out a glowing canister and held it tauntingly above their heads. "Were you looking for this, freaks?" he sneered.
The boys gasped collectively. "Hey, it's the last canister!" Donnie exclaimed. That explains why it was still active on the system; these guys had gotten to it before they could.
"Get him!" Raph growled, preparing to charge them head on, but Mikey beat him to it as he rushed off ahead of him.
"I got him!" Mikey called as he flipped out his kusarigama chain, using the fundo end of the chain to snap it out of Bradford's hand like a whip. Bradford yelped in pain, holding his stinging hand as the canister slipped out of his grip and flew into the air.
Gathering power into his legs, Donnie leapt up into the air with a powerful jump, caught the canister in mid-air and flipped back down to the ground, landing soundly on his feet on the other side of the lab. "Ha, ha! I got it!" he cheered victoriously, "All hail me!"
His victory was short lived however, as several Foot soldiers swarmed him. His smile dropped instantly as he surveyed their numbers. "Oh boy…" he gulped.
"Foot Clan, attack!" Bradford commanded, and with that, the Foot rushed forwards in unison towards the terrapins, all their weapons at the ready.
"Turtles! Attack!" Leo ordered as he, Mikey and Raph charged into the fray to defend the final ooze canister.
All hell broke loose as the turtles battled relentlessly against the mass amount of Foot Soldiers. Donnie couldn't use his Bo staff and hold the canister at the same time, so was struggling critically with his bunch of opponents. Sooner or later, they would overpower him and take the canister from him without a fight.
Upon seeing his older brothers' struggle from the other side of the room, Mikey turned and held up his hands. "Donnie, Donnie! Over here!" he called, waving his arms in the air desperately. "Throw it!"
Nodding, Donnie jumped up and drew his arm back. The brothers knew from experience that Mikey was the best at 'Keep Away', for he was far faster than the rest of them, as well as agile. He could trust Mikey to keep hold of the canister for a little longer than he. "Catch!" he shouted, and threw the canister over to Mikey with everything he had. Luckily enough, Mikey caught it with ease as he flipped, kicked and spun around attacking foot clan with the canister tucked safely under his arm.
Leonardo had both his Katanas unsheathed as he slashed and sliced his way through The Foot soldiers, avoiding various assaults around him as he did so. One soldier attempted to attack him by leaping towards him to restrain him, however Leo saw his attack coming, and performed a perfect split as he slid to the floor, watching as the soldier flew over his head and smacked into another. Leo smirked as he slid himself effortlessly to his feet.
Raph had seen the whole thing from the other side of the lab, and he winced. "Dude, how do you do that?!" he cried.
Leo drop kicked a soldier and grinned at his younger brother. "Because I'm me!" he teased, shrugging before he turned back to fell yet another unfortunate soldier. Raph only rolled his eyes with a smirk, and returned to the battle.
Seizing his chance to get a shot in, Xever charged at Leo with his knives drawn as the blue clad turtle was busy with another soldier, and before he could move out of the way, Xever slashed him across his left shoulder, drawing blood and leaving a nasty mark. Leo cried out in pain as he stumbled backwards, losing his footing as he fell down the steps and landed painfully on his shell on the lower levels of the lab.
Hearing the thump, Raph turned to where his older brother lay on his back, bleeding from his shoulder, and he gasped. "Leo!" Raph cried. Making quick work of the soldier he'd been fighting, Raph leapt down to their level and charged straight for Xever just as he was about to stab Leo in the neck, his green eyes ablaze with anger as he grabbed him. The two rolled across the floor before Xever kicked Raph off him, sending him flying towards a wall, but Raph managed to flip in the air and land in a crouch on his feet. He spun and pointed his Sais viciously at the human.
Xever scoffed at the display, flicking his knives. "You think you can beat me, turtle?" he spat.
Raph narrowed his eyes. "I don't think, I know I can, Afro Circus!" he retorted as a short but violent scuffle ensued between the two. Raph had to admit, this guy was good. He was no ninja, but he was fast, agile and those freakishly long legs of his gave him an advantage.
Back on the top floor, Mikey was tiring out and having trouble as he became surrounded by foot soldiers. "Uh oh!" he cried. With the last mutagen canister under his arm, he couldn't afford to mess up this time. He had to pass it over, but everyone else was busy with their own opponents. "Guys! I could use a little help up here!"
Raph heard his younger brothers' call from the lower floor, and he knocked Xever away from him. "Mikey! Down here! Throw it! Hurry up!" he urged.
Mikey looked down with a grateful grin before readying himself to throw. "Go high! Go High!" he called as he tossed the canister into the air. However, just before Raph could make a jump for it, Xever knocked him out of the way with a hard kick to the head, and he caught it instead with a smug grin.
Donnie growled in anger as he leapt down the stairs, using the momentum of his landing to roll along the floor. "One, two, three, punt!" he quipped as he rolled to Xever's feet and kicked the canister right out of his hands. The canister flew into the air once again.
"Leo!" Donnie called, "Catch it, quick!"
"I got it!" Leo leapt up high into the air and reached out, the tip of his finger just grazing it.
Suddenly, seemingly from out of nowhere, Bradford bounded upwards and grabbed Leo by the waist, forcing him to the ground with a hard thud, resulting in another Foot member catching it instead. Leo tried to shake off the dizziness after hitting his head on the ground, but Bradford grabbed him before he had the chance to get up, and lifted him up off the ground, pinning his arms to his sides in a crushing grip. Gasping for breath, Leo struggled in Bradford's muscular hold. "Agh! Hey, let me go!" he cried.
Bradford sneered as he began to crush the young turtle in his hold, squeezing the air out of his lungs.
"Hands off my bro, you creep!" Mikey growled as he charged headlong, and whacked Bradford over the head with his nunchaku. Bradford growled in pain and released Leo from his grasp. Leo kicked him in the face as he staggered backwards, trying to regain his breath. That guy was way stronger than he looked.
Making sure that Bradford wasn't getting up again anytime soon, Mikey rushed to Leo's side and helped him to his feet. "You okay, bro?" he asked, his features creased with worry.
Even as he huffed for breath, Leo sent his younger brother a reassuring smile. "Yeah, I'm okay…thanks Mikey," he panted, patting him on the shoulder. He was granted with a freckled smile and a nod as Mikey finally released him, but only after making sure he was alright.
Donnie and Raph leapt back up to the higher levels, and the turtles were shell to shell as The Foot surrounded them once again. "We've gotta get that canister back!" Leo growled, eyeing the Foot soldier that held it. He turned halfway to his brothers and instructed in a hushed tone, "Mikey, you go in the middle. Donnie and Raph, you guys take the sides. Got it?"
Raph and Donnie nodded once. "Got it!"
Mikey grinned. "I don't get it!"
The others rolled their eyes and prepared themselves as the Foot drew closer. Leo looked to Mikey, who's joking smile disappeared as he nodded back. Without further warning, he back-flipped towards the Foot with the canister, and once Mikey reached him, he head-butted him fiercely in the stomach. The Foot toppled forward, letting out a strangled cry of pain and releasing his hold on the canister as it sailed through the air.
Leo reached out and caught it just before it hit the floor. "Yes! Finally!" he cheered, but his smile faded in an instant as the remaining Foot soldiers pursued him. Letting out a little yelp, he took desperate measures as he jumped up and ran across the walls, the Foot unable to follow him due to lack of skill. Leo smirked in triumph, but his eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets when Bradford growled and leapt up at him again as he sprinted across the wall.
"Wah!" Leo cried as Bradford grabbed him again and the two fell to the ground. "Not again!" Leo yowled as the canister flew out of his grip, and landed back into the hands of Xever.
Upon their landing, Bradford grabbed Leo by the bridge of his shell and threw him across the room. Leo smacked hard against a wall, knocking him out cold as he slid down to the floor.
"Leo!" Mikey gasped as he ran to his unconscious brothers' side. He was still breathing, but a nasty bruise was slowly forming on the back of his head. Feeling anger course through him like fire, Mikey turned and glared at the man who'd hurt his older brother, but Bradford only smirked back coldly as he bounded over to the other side of the lab next to Xever, and held up a smoke pellet.
Raph's eyes widened. They were trying to escape?! No way! "Oh no you don't!" Raph snarled as he and Donnie charged for them.
The rest of the Foot gathered around Bradford and Xever in a circle. "So long, freaks!" Bradford laughed, and he threw down the pellet. White smoke exploded from the pellet and filled the entire room, blinding the turtles temporarily. The turtles coughed and spluttered as The Foot escaped with the last canister of ooze.
"Oh great!" Donnie coughed.
"Terrific!" Leo hacked as he woke up again, getting up on his hands and knees.
"Wonderful!" Raph chocked with a snarl.
Mikey rubbed his watery eyes as he spluttered. "Bummer!"
as the turtles fought to get their hacking under control, Leo's T-Phone began to buzz in his belt pocket. "Guys! Are you okay? What's going on in there?!" April's panicked voice rang out.
Shakily standing up again with some help from Mikey, Leo reached for his phone. "Uh, April, I-I think we might've screwed the city with this mission!" he coughed as the smoke finally cleared.
"Say what?! What happened?! Oh, y'know what, don't bother; you guys have gotta get out of there, now! The night guards have suddenly decided the Italian guy was a phony! They're looking for you guys!
Their eyes went wide. Their cover was blown? The security guards were looking for them? Panicked, Leo, Raph and Donnie all looked to Mikey. He shrugged sheepishly. "Okaaaaay…maybe that didn't work so well after all…"