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Michelangelo crouched in the darkness, the concrete cold against his bare feet. The sterile walls of the Landfall Building rose above him like a bare cliff face, gleaming in the pale moonlight. He reached out and smoothed his palm across the cool stone, reaching out with his mind, trying to find a trace of Don, a glimmer of his brother's spirit. But there were only shadows, dark shadows that frightened him. Evil was here.
Mike glanced to the side, where he could barely make out Leonardo's form, standing stone still in the dark. At Mike's side, Raphael was drawn tight as a bowstring. Mike reached over and touched Raph's arm, and Raph glanced at him with a grim look. But he couldn't stop himself from laying his hand over Mike's with a reassuring squeeze. No matter his rage, he would do his damndest to protect his youngest brother.
But both Raphael and Mike froze as they saw Leonardo's body tense. He glanced over his shoulder, and motioned for Mike and Raphael to follow, then leaped straight up, snagging a chink in the bricks, and began to climb. Without any words, the other two followed, scaling the face of the building like silent spiders. Farther and farther below the street fell, until the cars looked like toys and the people like ants.
Leo hoisted himself over the parapet of the building, landing crouched with one hand lightly resting on the pebbled surface of the roof. Raphael knelt at his side, his face hard and angry. Leonardo rested a calming hand on Raph's shoulder, trying to telegraph calm, strength, control. "We'll find him." His voice was barely audible, but both Raphael and Michelangelo took strength from it.
Together, like a shadow cast by the moon, the brothers crept silently to the access door on the corner of the roof. Leo knelt at the door and pulled a shuriken from his belt, using it to pick the lock. The door opened with a loud creaking clang and Mike winced, expecting a rain of attackers to fall. But there was no sound other than the traffic on the street far below.
Michelangelo followed his brothers on silent feet as they crept down the stairs. The only light was a dim glow from the emergency exit signs, though far below there was the sound of activity. They moved swiftly, covering ten flights in less than a minute. Leonardo stopped in front of a door marked with numerous "Do Not Enter" and "Restricted" signs, behind which there rang the sounds of voices. He placed his hand on the door, made eye contact with both his brothers, then silently mouthed a count down from three.
Three
Mike grasped his nunchucks tightly in his fists, taking a deep and shaking breath.
Two
Raphael was almost vibrating with tension.
One
Leo yanked the door open and leaped out into the hallway with one smooth motion. Raphael vaulted after him with a feral snarl. Mike followed quickly, snapping his 'chucks into motion. But he nearly ran headlong into his brothers, who stood frozen just inside the door.
They were in what clearly was a lab, all sparkling white lights and shiny metal surfaces. Several technicians were standing, staring open-mouthed at the strange creatures that had invaded their world. Raphael was still growling, deep in his chest, gripping his sais with near-white knuckle strength.
"Where is he?" Leonardo's voice was low, dangerous. He pinned a small, mousy tech with his gaze, and advanced on her with menace. "Tell me now." The scientist cringed away from him, her hands shaking visibly.
"I…I don't know…" she whispered. The tip of Leo's katana came up and pressed lightly into the curve of her neck. She gave a little squeal of fear. "I swear, I don't know, I don't know! They keep the test subjects in another area, all we do is quantify and study results…" Her words came out in a babbling flood.
"What level?" Raphael shouldered past Leonardo, stopping mere inches from the now-cowering scientist.
"Sub…subbasement four…" she stammered, pressing her eyes closed as though she expected to be torn limb from limb in short order. Instead, Raph leaned around her and brought his sai down on a computer panel, sending sparks flying.
"If we hear one alarm, if you make one fucking phone call to tell them we're coming…" Raphael leaned so close to the woman that his breath stirred her hair. "I will come back and I will find you and I will make you scream…" This was enough for the tech to burst into tears, falling into a lump on the shining tile floor. Leo gave Raph a tight-lipped scowl, but said nothing. Instead he found the main power conduit for the room and severed it with a quick blow of his katana. The room plunged into darkness.
The brothers dodged into the hallway. Michelangelo pulled the door shut behind him, then smashed the electronic lock with a powerful blow of his fist. Raph pressed the elevator button with the butt of his sai and took a deep breath. Mike could see the anger in his face, but he seemed to be keeping it in control. Leonardo was grimfaced and quiet.
The elevator doors shushed open and the three stepped inside, turning to face the front and eying the digital readout as it descended toward the basement. Mike cleared his throat, then quietly spoke. "Did she say test subjects?" He felt Raphael stiffen next to him.
"Jesus." Leo's voice wasn't much more than a whisper. But he shook himself, straightening and putting on his best Fearless Leader voice. "We can't focus on that now. We find him, we get him out. We'll deal with the rest later."
A sudden shiver crept up Mike's neck and he shuddered, strangely afraid. If he had listened hard, over the hum of the elevator and the hammering of his own heart, he might have heard an agonized scream.