A/N: Wheeee, this is so much fun!! Thanks for all the support, reviewers!

Scribe of Turesa: Haha, poor Don. Leo WAS very blasé about killing him off, wasn't he?

Livi-love: Sign in next time, you doofus! =P

Pig: Glad to hear it wasn't too confusing to follow. I really like stories that don't necessarily travel in a straight line, but I always worry that it'll be hard to keep up with.

You guys almost didn't get a chapter today. Is the document manager screwing up for anyone else? It wouldn't let me upload any documents AT ALL. I had to pull a Donny and sneak through a back door just to get this up today. Stupid website.

For people with high blood pressure (wink wink, you know who you are) I guess it's only fair to warn you… I really… REALLY… love cliffhangers. That's all I'll say. Heh heh heh… this evil genius thing is FUN! =D

"Where is Donatello?"

"As I've told you already, Donatello is dead!"

"If he's dead, where's the body?"

"I do not have the body."

"Where is it?"

Saki slammed his huge, armored hand into a wooden column, reducing it to splinters. He spun on Agent Bishop, who took a step back but continued to glare ferociously up at him. Saki was getting tired of this pesky government agent. This entire deal had just kept getting worse and worse. Without the turtle to make the helmet function, there was no need for the helmet… without the helmet, there was no need for Bishop.

"The other turtles took the body with them," Saki seethed through clenched teeth, removing his own helmet and setting it on the desk. "And if you drove all the way up here to see it for yourself, you've wasted your time. I don't have it."

Bishop drew in a deep breath. He was fighting to remain calm. As soon as he had heard the news, he had driven back up to the Tower with all the speed that could be offered by the government-issued sedan which he had never returned.

It was the only way, really. Bishop had spent a great deal of time in government service. He had worked with politicians, not known for their honesty. He had been in charge of many interrogations where people (or creatures) would say anything to save themselves. He had forged many dangerous alliances with people he didn't trust.

If there was one thing John Bishop was good at, it was detecting when he was being lied to. There was no way he was going to just take Saki's word for it over the phone that the turtle was dead. It could have been a trick, and Saki was merely holding out on him, keeping Donatello all for himself. True, Bishop had the helmet hidden, but he didn't put it past Saki to eventually find a way to get his hands on it. The only way to know how precarious his position was would be to see Saki face to face.

"Look me in the eye," Bishop said quietly. "Look me in the eye, and swear that the turtle is truly dead."

"Of course he's dead!" Saki exploded, his sinister demeanor making him appear truly demonic in the flickering candlelight of his office. "How dare you question my word? Donatello is dead, and his brothers will return soon to avenge him. I have more important things to attend to than you! They will come here, as the fools always do, and this time I will destroy all of them. I don't have time to sit here and argue with you over one dead turtle when there are three more waiting for me! Just… go!"

"Oh, I'll go alright," Bishop murmured. "But I warn you, if I find out that you have lied to me, I can assure you that you will regret it."

Saki spun to face him. To describe his expression as "unfriendly" would be the grossest of all possible understatements.

"Have a care, Bishop," Saki snarled. "I have killed men for much less reason than the disrespect you have shown me. If I were not so concerned with bigger problems, you would be dead already." Saki leaned in closer, but Bishop forced himself to stand his ground.

"You would do well to leave here, now, and not return," he cautioned. "Our deal is ended. If I see you again, I can assure you… my mercy will not be extended a second time."

oOo oOo oOo

"Leo, I really can't see Bishop running off to see Shredder and leaving this thing unguarded, just waiting for us to steal."

"Please, Donny, a little bit of faith. Why should it be guarded? You're dead, remember? It's useless now." Leo pushed on the door. "Dang it, it's locked!"

Leo had sent Mikey and Raph off on a mission of their own, while he and Don snuck into Bishop's private warehouse, in the hopes that they would find the mind-controlling device there. Luck had held, as the warehouse appeared to be quiet and silent; Bishop must be out. Unfortunately, they had hit a snag. The door refused to open, and Leo didn't see any discernible keyhole for them to work on.

"Watch out," Donny whispered, squeezing himself into the shadows in front of the building to take a look. There wasn't any keyhole, but only a discreet keypad on the side of the wall.

Donny examined the panel of buttons while Leo kept an eye on the street behind them. All seemed quiet, but then again, it always did right before something catastrophic happened. Don sighed.

"It looks like he's got this wired so that we have one chance to put the code in. If it's right, the door opens. If it's not…"

"What, if it's not?" Leo demanded, not taking his eyes off the empty street.

"If it's not, bad things happen. But, this is honestly just a simple set-up… it's not hard to get around if you know what you're doing. Probably, it's just designed to keep the general, unmotivated, untalented riff-raff out." Donny smiled. "Fortunately, I'm not general, unmotivated, untalented riff-raff."

"What are you saying?" Leo asked, not pointing out that he fell into the category of riff-raff who wouldn't have a clue how to get in. "Can you work some magic here?"

"Easy enough," Donny whispered to Leo. Taking the cover of the panel off, he took a minute to carefully study the tangled jumble of wires that led to a fairly complex circuit board. Don chuckled, shaking his head. This was child's play. Truly, it was almost insulting to his ability. Twirling a couple wires together, he heard a click from the door. "Try it now."

Reaching out, Leo pushed on the warehouse door and it immediately swung open wide. Leo grinned and clapped Donny on the back of his shell.

"Great work, Don. Now, let's hurry up and find that helmet. We don't need Bishop coming back too early and finding both of us here."

"Hold on," Donny cautioned, pulling out something electronic from his bag that Leo had no name for. "Let me make sure there's no extra security. Not that I don't trust you when you say the place is safe, but it is Agent Bishop, after all."

Leo nodded and waited patiently as Donny scanned the door and surrounding air with the something-electronic. Finally, it beeped quietly at him and he breathed a sigh of relief, giving Leo the all-clear sign. Together, the two turtles stepped inside the warehouse, shutting the door carefully behind them.

"What is all this stuff, Donny?" Leo whispered as they stared down the rows and rows of crates and boxes of varying sizes. Donny frowned and felt along the wall until he found the switch to turn on all the lights. Pushing it, both turtles had to blink several times until their eyes adjusted to the brilliant light that filled the warehouse.

"Wow," Donny muttered with an impressed whistle. The entire room was full and cluttered, but with an air of meticulous organization. Some of the crates were open, revealing gleaming metal creations of some sort. Others were bolted shut, labeled with technological words that meant nothing to Leo, but which filled Donny with awe. A workbench was in the center of the room, similar to Donny's back in the Lair, but covered with more disturbing-looking things.

The walls, normal sheet metal underneath, were covered with pictures and diagrams. Many were horrible blown-up copies of various creatures, strewn open on a dissection table and gazing lifelessly at the camera. Others were nothing but scribbles, notes and plans that Bishop had made for himself. Along the wall in front of the workbench, a cluster of these papers littered the area, all surrounding a crude sketch of the four turtles.

It was towards this area that Leo hurried over to, while Donny picked up a stack of notes from the floor.

"It looks like this is half the technological equipment that Bishop had access to in the government," Donny said, shaking his head. "He must have been collecting all this for a long time, though… some of these pieces are amazing. But where's the helmet?"

"I can't tell you that," Leo answered, glaring intently at the open notebook he was holding. "But I can tell you how he got it to begin with."

Intrigued, Donny moved to stand behind his brother, reading over his shoulder.

The Triceratons are filthy aliens, though I find it necessary to keep a contact among them, in order to monitor any further hostile activity. Their attack on this city only proves what I've been saying all along: none of these freaks can be trusted. I had believed the four turtles to be in league with the dinosaur aliens, but my contact, an easily bribed Triceraton, assures me that they are enemies of the terrapin creatures as well.

I learned from my contact that they had captured one of the turtles a while before, when they were attempting so foolishly to destroy the earth. This, of course, I had already known, but what I was not aware of was the device that they used on him. From what my contact tells me, it is some sort of instrument for memory-recall. I told him that I was most intrigued in this matter, and would trade him many precious stones in exchange for this technology.

He readily agreed, thinking that he had gotten the better end of the deal; after all, the turtle Donatello had destroyed the machine, and they had no use for it. He was a fool, and did not understand the potential that I now hold in my hands.

I do not believe this device has been destroyed at all. In fact, I think it may be able to serve an even greater purpose than it did before.

If my theory is correct, I will be needing the services of Donatello very soon. Today, I will be moving this helmet and all my papers on the matter to my secure warehouse… I fear my position in the government has become most precarious, and may be ending any day now.

They thought they could get rid of me. I will show them… I am not so easily rid of.

"Charming," Donny sighed. "He really is a basket case, you know?"

Leo didn't answer, but stood staring over Donny's shoulder. He grabbed Don's arm, grinning and pointing behind him. Donny turned around. There, hidden behind the row of stacked crates in front, was a second workbench. This one was mostly empty, but for two devices: the helmet, and Bishop's computer.

"Yes," Leo hissed triumphantly. Together, the two brothers made their way slowly to the bench, cautious of any further security that might impede their way. None were evident.

"You mean he really did leave it unguarded?" Donny wondered aloud. "Unbelievable." Leo grinned, dispensing with the "I-told-you-so" that was on the tip of his tongue.

"Ok, Don… grab it. We're running out of time."

Donny nodded and reached out for the helmet, while Leo had already started heading for the door, hidden from its line of sight by the crates.

The helmet was in Donatello's hands when the unlocked front door slammed open to reveal a thoroughly angered John Bishop.

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