Episode 15: Signaling Devastation – Part 2

The sound of lasers shooting and Sub-Prime's buzz-saws spinning were getting a little too familiar to Ethan's ears. Throwing himself backward to avoid getting his already hurt legs sawed off, he heard Kaela call from next to him, "Have either of you noticed that Sam isn't here!" she narrowly dodged a volley of laser bullets and, throwing her hips into a spin, the dart slammed two Kraang droids from the balcony above to the ground with shrieks.

"Yes, I did notice." Ethan said with grim sarcasm, tumbling out of the way as Jess dropped another Kraang droid from above as she slashed her way through the second floor, kama's blazing in violet light. Kaela yelped and skirted against the cold, mutagen lit wall as Sub-Prime's gleaming buzz saws cut into the stone floor, throwing rubble and sparks in every direction. His one glaring eye gleamed as his flabby mouth split into a hideous, sharp grin.

Ethan felt a rage build inside him. "I'm sick of you smiling like that, creeper!" Ethan lunged and playing as if he were to strike left, swung his naginata around his shoulders and slammed the end of it into Sub-Prime's side.

"Back up you stupid fox!" he snarled, spinning his arms and blasting ashy holes into the floor as Ethan swerved to the right towards Kaela.

"I'm not a fox, moron!" Ethan snapped back, "I'm a Red Panda!"

"Whatever!"

Ethan nearly felt the blades slash through his chest, but Kaela leaped in front and blocked with her metal dart, sparks dousing her from head to foot as she screamed in defiance and threw Sub-Prime back out of their range.

"I'm a fox though!" Jess chucked a Kraang droid which came crushing down on top of Sub-Prime's fake Herma head and then it bounced away and slid across the floor, the Kraang inside shrieking as it extricated itself from it's metal toaster and it ran off towards the doors.

"I'm sick of these freaking ninjas in this freaking city!" The fake human, Herma hands retracted to reveal two large barrels that were beginning to light up an ominous color.

"I almost like the elbow rockets more." Kaela moaned, rolling her hand over her face.

"Yeah. Either way, we should move."

Kaela and Ethan separated, the ground blowing to bits practically beneath their feet. Ethan felt rock scratch across his back and bounce off his shoulders and winced, but none of them seemed to have done any sustainable damage. He quickly flipped back up to his feet just in time to see that Kaela had thrown her ribbon around Sub-Prime's leg and she wrenched as hard as she could, slamming herself onto her knees. Sub-Prime yelled and fell to the ground with a shriek. Ethan burst forward and spun his naginata, the pointed end at the ready. He jumped onto Sub-Prime's other leg to prevent him getting up and pointed the naginata straight into his face, the tip only an inch from his eye. "GAH!" he shrieked.

"Say bye to your minions." Ethan said and he rose his naginata, ready to pierce Sub-Prime in the face like Shredder should have done long ago.

"I wouldn't do that!" Sub-Prime quickly said, fear obviously in his voice. "Bring out the captive!" he yelled up at the Kraang droids. Even Jess had paused to look down her hands on the banister in suspense.

"Do it!" she called to Ethan, but before the Kraang droids obeyed their leader, Ethan had a sick feeling that he knew who it was and didn't want to believe it.

The sound of rotating gears sounded and suddenly the ceiling opened up, the stones sliding back away from the wall to leave a gaping black hole. The sound of rope being tugged and the clinking of metal could be heard from the black. A figure was appearing, tied from waist to shoulders in thick rope.

"No." Kaela muttered from behind Ethan and he felt the same crushing feeling inside him. Jess gasped from above.

It was Sam. His shoulders were slack, his eyes barely open. His face had been battered and was bleeding from one of the temples, his mouth a fat lip and his eye half shut with a black eye. The three sectioned staff clattered down to the ground from where it had been hanging from his shoulder. He groaned, but didn't seem to notice anyone. Jess pulled out several shurikans, ready to fling them to free him, but then, all three of the noticed simultaneously that he was hanging over the giant vat of mutagen.

Ethan tried to think of all the ways to get Sam out of it, but if he made a move to save him, he would be shot up by Sub-Prime or the Kraang who all now had their weapons pointed straight at Sam. Sam would probably be shot as well or his rope would be fried and he would be mutated. But if they did nothing –

Sub-Prime grinned again and his arm swung towards Ethan.

Metal contacted with the side of his head and the next second the stone ground was rushing up to meet him. Kaela screamed and threw her dart but Sub-Prime had righted himself and the dart glanced off his metal upper arm. "That's what I thought." he said smugly, his left eye spinning, the scopes on it expanding and then retracting again as the Herma face stared down at them with blank eyes.

If there was one thing that Ashina prided herself in, it was her speed. She moved quicker than anyone in the Shinotomo clan – save for Lord Nightshade himself of course. It taken a long time in her mutated body, but now she could direct her long, black fox tail, her ears and her arms in such a way as to have little to no wind resistance and she rocketed forward. Her katar glittered, twisting with elegant silver metal up her arm as she finally saw the lights from the docks appear below her. She jumped and for a blissful moment, felt her body free fall through the air, whistling in her ears and stirring the fur around her.

A second later, she landed just as she had been taught for years in such a way that even the three story drop didn't damage her legs or her feet. She smiled to herself, but that smile quickly vanished when she noticed that the door was open already to the warehouse and the same glow she had seen from McGrath's door was washing the ground in its eerie light. She quickly got to her feet again and, smoothing the fur around her face, quickly sprinted the short distance to the door and carefully slipped in.

The warehouse was several floors in height, the balcony leaning over a vat of mutagen. Kraang droids bordered all around each of the floors, save the second which had mostly been cleared out. From here, Ashina could see that it was likely from a white fox mutant with two kama's in her hands.

Wait.

Ashina's memories flashed her back to when she had attacked Shredder's lair some time ago. One of the three girls had two kama's as weapons – and now that she looked closer, this fox has strikingly similar facial features. On the ground level was the girl that had been there with the ribbon dart, starting up in horror. Next to her was the Red Panda she had fought with and who had helped her defeat the Dracodroid monster that had been unleashed on them.

Confronting them was a huge robot with artificial human limbs and a deformed Kraang in the center. But none of them were looking at each other, they were looking at another figure who was dangling in the air. A ninja that looked like he had been hit by a truck, tied with tight rope over the glowing vat of mutagen.

Immediately a familiar, terrifying screaming began to ring in her ears. She grimaced and gripped her katar tighter. She felt her arms shaking and she quickly steadied them. Memories were trying to break through the wall she had built over them long ago. Her mind was shaking and she could feel her heart beating against her chest. Calm down, Ashina. She tried to tell herself.

"Now, how about we make a deal. You stupid ninja's turn around and walk away and I won't mutate your friend. Or, you can keep fighting and this guy gets to take a swim." The Kraang glared at the three. The Red Panda – Ethan wasn't it? – slackened, his weapon falling to his side.

Ashina's memories burst again, the wall in her mind cracking. Didn't I do the same thing when I was – she couldn't even bring herself to think it and she began to shake again, adrenaline filling her body, willing her to move. I am not going to watch someone else get mutated. Not again. She could care less that this ninja was Hamato clan, judging by the emblems on his shirt. She wasn't going to watch this. The sounds of ravenous wolves ripping at human flesh rang in her ears and she clenched her fists tighter.

She had to act now.

"See, we can all play nice!" the Kraang continued. Then he paused and looked up. "Or not." his arm swung upward and with a blast that rang in Ashina's ears, the rope split in half and the Hamato ninja plummeted. For a single moment, time seemed to go into slow motion and the ninja eyes widening, disappeared over the lip and mutagen splashed out in his wake over the basin and onto the floor.

"NOO!" Even though the others had yelled it, Ashina heard it come from her own lips and, rage burning in her heart like a bonfire, she tumbled out, her katar flashing and she bridged the gap between her and the Kraang and with a violent, powerful slash, his arm tore off and slammed into the ground, falling and skirting across the floor, leaving the robot arm-less now.

He shrieked and Ashina could see the other three's surprised expression for only a split second but then she had climbed up the robot's side, her nails slamming intentionally hard into the metal and she flipped up onto the second floor.

She slashed a Kraang in half and he fell to the ground, but she paused, along with everyone else as suddenly a body fell from the tank, crawling on the ground. Ashina could see through the glimmering ooze that the Hamato Ninja's flesh had receded back to long white and brown feathers. His hands came out as claws much like EmberEye's but his eyes were wider. Some of the feathers furled up above his eyes like horns, his mouth was now a wide beak, much wider than EmberEye's own, more of his human shape seemed to have been sustained.

An owl.

"SAM!" Kaela yelled. He collapsed and then with a horrifying screech, he leaped to his feet and, spreading wide, brown and white wings, burst up and smashed through one of the glass panels above and vanished into the night sky, a three sectioned staff now lay alone next to a puddle of mutagen on the ground.

Ashina felt the bonfire burst as if someone had added an oil drum to it. Snarling and baring her fangs she leaped forward, cutting the neck of a Kraang and throwing it over the edge. Sub-Prime seemed to have gotten his act together as he called out: "GET THEM NOW!" Two metal doors opened down on the ground level and a mob of Kraang burst from the door, weapons aimed at the three who were now defenseless and caught off guard.

But Ashina didn't care about them – not right now. She ran across the balcony, circling it, taking down every Kraang that stood in her path. They fired their lasers at her, but she was too quick, she spun, ducked, and twirled expertly out of the way as she slashed their chests open, ripped their arms away from their bodies with her claws and bit into their Kraang bellies. The droids on the third floor screeched and began fleeing as she cleared the rest of the second floor, leaving metal bodies in her wake.

She jumped into the empty air and slammed her ankles into the bar above her and flipped up and over the metal and landed wolf-like onto the third floor, her black fur bristling, her katar flashing dangerously as it ended another Kraang's life as its scream vanished into a gurgle and the body fell to the ground, its lit up eyes flickering out. Others were trying to flee still on the fourth floor. "I'm not done with you yet." Ashina hissed, her rage fueling her forward as she burst forward and landing a spinning kick and a piercing blow to another Kraang droid.

A gurgling sound like liquid rang from below her and she turned to see that the red panda, Ethan, the wolf and the girl with the ribbon dart were being led towards a huge, glowing, pink triangle. A portal. The red panda caught her eye. They were weaponless now. Those items were in the hands of a nearby Kraang droid. Those three had failed and their friend was gone now – a mutant, perhaps even insane from the ordeal he had just gone through.

Ashina glanced up at the next floor. The Kraang had already fled out a passageway that likely led to an escape ladder or stair case. "Get these losers out of here now!" the Kraang below was yelling to the much shorter droids. Gritting her teeth and clutching her katar tighter, Ashina vaulted herself over the railing and landing on top of one of the droids, slicing its arm off in the process.

The Kraang with the spinning eye looked horrified as he stared at her and a moment later, the three teenagers were shoved into the portal and vanished out sight, just as the portal closed behind them.

"Are you insane?" The Kraang asked her, his voice getting louder as he spoke.

Ashina dashed across the room, slicing and dicing Kraang as she went. Not a single one of them got even close to hitting her even though they rapid fired their guns in nearly every direction. "I'll kill you for what you just did." I don't even sound like myself. She realized that her voice had become something else since seeing the Hamato ninja get mutated into an owl. It had gotten lower, more gravely, more filled with hatred and coldness – like Lord Nightshade's voice. She paused, a pile of lifeless Kraang around her, putting nothing between her and this other Kraang who looked like he was experiencing something akin to both rage and fear at the same time.

"You won't do anything!" This robot was without arms, so, with a final glare, pink flames burst from the robots feet and he rocketed into the air, leaving Ashina alone in the warehouse. "This isn't over mutant freak!" he shattered through the ceiling and glass shards rained down. Ashina jumped quickly and easily out of the way as they glittered around her on the floor, making soft noises almost like rustling leaves as they struck the ground.

Now being entirely alone with nothing but the mutagen glow, she felt the bonfire inside her heart dampen and dim out. She breathed in and out long and slow, trying to get her heart to stop beating so quickly against her chest. She closed her eyes and fought back tears – she was never really a crying kind of person and hated the feeling of it. It gave her a headache and made her fur glisten and her eyes looked pitiful. She shook it off. The past was the past – there was nobody she could blame but Lord Nightshade for how horrible things had ended up.

She tried to suppress that thought too.

If it wasn't for him, I would be dead.

Yes, another voice argued back, but if it wasn't for him, you wouldn't be a mutant.

Gulping down all these thoughts and choosing to think of something else, Ashina's mind immediately relocated itself to the three teenagers that had vanished and she felt a pit in her stomach. She felt bad for them – but she didn't have time to. There was nothing she could do about them now. And besides, they were an enemy to the Shinotomo Clan.

Getting back up on her feet, Ashina turned back to the doors. It was time to tell Lord Nightshade that they had a whole bucket of mutagen, and it was all here for the taking.