Chapter 27

Leonardo didn't know how long they sat there, or how they managed to get back into the lair. They tended to their wounds in a dazed state, none of them talking just concentrating on the task at hand. He eventually found himself back in his room, each brother tormented by their own private grief. She was gone. He didn't even know if that was the double goddesses within one body, or if she had somehow managed to not be consumed by the goddesses within her. He didn't know if she were alive or worse than dead and the anguish of not knowing was tearing him apart.

The next day the papers reported that someone had set off a massive amount of fireworks in central park which had resulted in the unexplained colours and lights that had been seen in the night sky, and a mild explosion which had caused a large crater near a sewer service tunnel. Leonardo was watching the news with Michelangelo. They were the only two who had managed to make their way out of bed this morning. Leonardo had thought about staying in bed, but when Michelangelo had knocked on his door, he had managed to pull his grief shattered heart together and get out of bed. Donatello and Raphael were locked in their rooms and hadn't answered his knocks.

Michelangelo was curled up on the couch with a blanket wrapped around him. Leonardo was sitting at the kitchen table his trench coat that still smelled like her in his hands. He closed his eyes in agony thinking about all the time he had wasted being angry at her, and hiding his feelings from himself, he felt a new tear rip through his heart.

"Do you think...do you think she's still alive Leo?" Michelangelo asked.

"I don't know Mikey." He whispered.

"I'd like to think that she's still alive." He said staring at the TV. "She's been through so much, suffered so much, fought against all odds. I can't see her just...giving up."He said, his voice small.

Leonardo looked over his shoulder as Donatello emerged from his room. He was bleary eyed and pale. He had bags under his eyes from lack of sleep. Leonardo knew he didn't look much better.

"I would like to think so too Mikey." He whispered.

Donatello slumped into a chair. He put his head down on the table. "So what now Leo?" He asked in a mumbled voice.

"I..." Leonardo turned his head. He felt something tingling along his skin. He stood up quickly as Master Splinter emerged from a portal.

"My sons, I came as quickly as I could, but my way has been hampered by scores of restless spirits and demons. A journey that should have taken moments has taken a full day." His face was full of grief. He walked forward and he closed his eyes. "A father should never have to outlive his son." He said sorrowfully. He walked over to Leonardo, Michelangelo leapt up from the couch. "How was...how was Raphael slain Leonardo?" Master Splinter asked placing a hand on his shoulder. A tear in his eye.

Leonardo looked at his father in shock. "Master...father, Raphael..." It felt like ages ago, another lifetime ago that he had watched Raphael cut down by the demon. If it wasn't for Her, Raphael would be dead. He closed his eyes against the rise of pain in his heart.

"Did he die honourably my son?" Master Splinter asked, eyes full of grief and understanding.

"No," He began. Mater Splinter's eyes widened in shock. "No I mean Raphael is still alive." He quickly corrected.

Master Splinter's eyes filled with relief. "I had thought, I swore I felt...My senses must not be what they once were."

"No, your senses are as keen as ever father. Raphael was slain by a demon over two months ago." Leonardo whispered.

Confusion filled Master Splinter's eyes. "Goddess brought him back." Michelangelo said from where he stood.

"Wait, did you say that your journey took a day?" Donatello broke in pulling his head from the table.

Mater Splinter closed his eyes. "I think there is a long story that will require much explaining. But first I would like to see Raphael. Leonardo I believe I will require some tea." Master Splinter sat at the table while Michelangelo attempted to pry Raphael from his room. Leonardo heated the kettle then took a mug from the cupboard, poured the water into the mug and placed it in front of his father. Master Splinter looked at the mug in confusion. "Tea Leonardo?"

Leonardo looked at the mug in front of his father. It was Her mug. She had always sat in the same spot holding the same mug. It was Michelangelo's favourite mug, with the picture of the white kitten with black ears staring at the camera, head tipped curiously to the side. How many times had she sat in that chair? How many times had he poured her a mug of hot water that she just held between hands that were cold from lack of blood, and she never complained once, just smiled at him as he grumbled about boiling and pouring the water. And yet he secretly revelled in her nearness, in the fact that it was always him that she sought out to sit at the table with. "Sorry father." He choked out taking the mug from the table and putting it aside. He focused on making the tea and set it in front of his father. Master Splinter opened his mouth, but Michelangelo entered the kitchen dragging Raphael behind him.

Master Splinter looked at Raphael in shock. Raphael emerged only wearing pyjama bottoms. Master Splinter stood and walked over to him. He looked at his scars, and his fresh wounds from the battle with the demons. "My son, I had believed you slain. You were gravely injured, but some of your wounds have healed completely. How is this possible?" He asked. "And your brothers have been also been badly wounded in a recent battle. What has happened?

Raphael closed his eyes in grief. Michelangelo put a hand on his shoulder in comfort sharing the look of grief.

"If She was cut off from her powers, and the portals are themselves magic, but magic was still working, it is possible that without someone to keep the magic focused, a temporal disturbance was created when Master Splinter used the portal to return here. When She got her powers back order was restored and the temporal shift corrected itself." Donatello said suddenly.

"Huh?" Michelangelo said.

"Master Splinter has been caught in a time loop for two months because She wasn't controlling the magic anymore. So what seemed to be only a day was in actuality two months. And the restless dead and demons, explained by the fighting in Hell." Donatello said looking at Michelangelo.

Master Splinter looked at Donatello in confusion. "You had best sit down Master, it is a very long story." Donatello said as sorrow filled his eyes.

Leonardo took Her mug from the counter sat down and held it between his hands. Somehow it was comforting. Raphael threw him his trench coat which had been sitting on another chair. He put it in his lap.

"Our home smells like blood, sulphur, fire and...flowers?" Master Splinter said as he smelled the air around him.

Leonardo began the story, his brothers adding bits and pieces here and there until his throat felt raw and he couldn't talk anymore for fear of breaking down. He had to cling to the hope that maybe, against all odds, she would come back to them. Donatello took over the story when he was unable to go on. When Donatello finally reached the end even he could not finish.

"She sacrificed herself for us." Raphael said heatedly. He drew a hand over his eyes. 'It's my fault." Then he shook his head. "In the end, she paid for my arrogance with her life."

"We don't know that Raphael." Donatello said to him. "She might still be alive."

"Do you really believe that Donny?" Raphael questioned.

"I have to Raph, it's the only way I was able to crawl out of bed this morning."

Leonardo shook his head. "If I hadn't made her give me that dam oath, she...she."

"Would have died sooner Leo." Donatello whispered. "That promise is the only thing that kept her alive after Falling Leonardo."

"A lot of good it did her." Raphael growled. " I'm going to go hit something." Raphael said as he walked away from the kitchen.

Master Splinter was silent for a long time. "You share your grief equally my sons, but remember any choices that she made, she made knowing full well the price that she was going to pay."

Leonardo looked at his father. "We know, but it still does not make it any easier to accept." He whispered.

Leonardo got up off his chair walked to the sink and poured out the cold water. He placed the mug back in the cupboard unwashed. He closed the door and walked to the training room to find Raphael.

He had expected to see him hitting his heavy bag but instead found him sitting on the floor looking at the bag. "It's funny Leo. When I was all beat up, all I dreamt about was being able to hit that bag, and now that I can wail on it, I don't even want to. I'm angry, but I can't even summon enough rage to blindly go out and start beating up some low life punks." He rubbed his eyes. "I feel like we should have been able to do something to help her fight all of those demons, but we just stood there, doing nothing but watch as she offered herself up like a lamb to slaughter to that demon in exchange for our lives." He shook his head. "We have keep this city safe. It's...it's what she wanted."

He nodded. "Raph, have you tried to, I don't know, feel her? You are linked with her."

He shook his head. "I'm too scared to Leo. I feel like, I don't know I should have felt something, known if she had...died. I didn't feel anything so I hope..." He closed his eyes. The smell of flowers blew through the room.

Raphael opened his eyes. She was still alive. Leonardo looked at Raphael in shock.

A few days later Leonardo was called into Master Splinter's meditation room. "Come and sit my son." He said motioning to the ground in front of him.

Leonardo sat and looked at him questioningly.

"Yes Master?" He asked.

"I have meditated much on the events that occurred while I was away. You and your brothers have been training day and night with powerful weapons, and I know the grim task for which you train." Master Splinter said worriedly

Each of them had begun extensive training with the swords. They did not train with the bow, because it literally did all the work for them, all they had to do was point and shoot, then bleed. They had also begun patrolling the streets the day Master Splinter arrived home. The chaos that had been occurring on the streets mysteriously stopped. Even crime was at an all time low. It was as if the city were holding its breath waiting for something to happen. Leonardo knew it was the calm before the storm, he could feel it building, like a static charge that crawled along his skin.

They had told April and Casey what was happening and that if anything strange began happening to come to the lair immediately.

Leonardo focused on his father. "Each of you has changed so much in such a short time. Each of your hearts are filled with grief and pain. Michelangelo no longer jokes, Raphael is no longer angry at the world, Donatello's workshop is silent, and you my son look at your bookcase of books, but no longer read. You still bear the weight of the world on your shoulders, but whatever happened it was not your fault my son."

"I know Master." He said solemnly.

"It sounds as if this woman found a place in your heart as well as in each of your brothers." Master Splinter observed.

"How could she not father? She treated us like we were...normal. There was nothing about our appearance that ever bothered her. Right from the first moment she was curious, but never...repulsed or frightened. And for the first time in my life, in our lives, we weren't different. We weren't other, it felt as if we actually belonged someplace in the world. Donatello said it best, she felt like home."

"You say this goddess saved Raphael's life because he was one of hers, because you possessed magic." Master Splinter asked.

"I know what you are thinking Master Splinter, that we had to love her, or she us because we were hers, because she was our goddess, but she loved us for us, she treated me like I was a man, Master Splinter, not a...freak of nature to be pitied his existence. Of forever being alone, never having someone to love. But, but..." He closed his eyes. "I love her Master Splinter." He said closing his eyes. "And the not knowing if she is coming back...It is suffocating." He stood up and walked to the door, looking back at his father. "She loves all of us Master Splinter." He walked out. He knew that his father would be unable to understand. He had barely been able to understand or accept how she felt.

Weeks turned into months which turned into longer. April and Casey watched them with worried eyes as they battled the demons that appeared. They fought and fought well. Donatello had explained to them that most of the demons that were escaping hell were lower class demons, the goddess apparently giving him the lowdown on class structure in Hell. It basically meant that they were not the most powerful demons in Hell and for that they were grateful.

The demon attacks began getting less frequent until they stopped altogether. The human population believed they had been under attack but some strange mutated monsters, which was just as well, it would be hard for many of the humans to grasp that they were actually being attacked by demons from Hell.

"This is ridiculous!" Raphael yelled as he hit his heavy bag. "All of the demon attacks have stopped, so where is She!" He shouted. " And I still don't even get why K'emeth wanted her dead, why, why lure her out, why kill her?" Raphael questioned.

Donatello looked up from his examination of Her bow. He had been trying to figure out how it worked. How magic worked. "Because she is Heaven's greatest champion. She could be in Hell and not lose power. Without Her the chances of Lucifer winning dropped significantly. K'emeth knew if he eliminated Her, Lucifer would fall."

Leonardo sheathed his swords and looked at Raphael. "And just because the attacks have stopped here, doesn't mean that the fight in Hell is over." Leonardo said reasonably.

" "Leo's right Raph, we can't know how long a war like this could take. It could take years, decades, centuries. We are talking about a war between beings whose concept of time is fathomless."

"What?" Raphael asked.

"He said that they don't think like we do Raph." Michelangelo said picking himself off of the ground. Michelangelo had been watching Leonardo and Raphael work out.

Raphael looked at Michelangelo in shock. "Since when do you understand anything Donny says Mikey?"

Michelangelo shrugged. "Leo's got some good books."

Raphael shook his head in surprise. Raphael stopped. Something was wrong. He could feel it. He clutched at his chest as Raphael felt emptiness roar through him. He fell to his knees, he couldn't breathe, it was as if an all encompassing darkness was trying to consume him. His heart had ceased to beat.

"Donny!" Raphael heard Leonardo yell.

"I don't know what's wrong with him Leo!" Donatello screamed in panic. But if he was dead why could he still hear his brothers? He thought to himself through the all consuming feeling of loss. Then as suddenly as it had stopped, his heart began to beat, air rushed into his lungs, and he clutched at his chest. He looked at his brothers in horror because he knew then that it wasn't his heart that had ceased to beat, it was Hers. He roared with grief because he could feel that something was gone, something had been broken.

"Raphael are you..." Leonardo began, but stopped as if he too felt something. Donatello closed his eyes in grief and Michelangelo fell to his knees. His brothers did not scream in agony but Raphael knew they now felt the same thing, that something was gone, something broke within them and they knew then, she had died.

Raphael closed his eyes against the welling of misery and grief. He pounded the floor. "Goddess!" He screamed. They stared at each other in their grief and sorrow, and there were no words. There could never be words to comfort each other in their loss.

April rushed into their training room. "Guys are you..." She paused when she saw their faces and she paled.

"She's gone April." Donatello managed choke out. She opened her arms to him and she offered what comfort she could. Raphael sat there as his brothers managed to get to their feet and walk out.

It wasn't supposed to end like this. She was supposed to fight, She was supposed to win, She was supposed to come back. But Raphael supposed life wasn't like movies or books where the ending was happy.

He didn't know how long he sat there staring at nothing when Casey walked in. He stood there awkwardly "Bro..." Casey began.

"Don't Case, don't try to say anything." Raphael said voice emotionless.

"I just wanted to tell you that something came for you guys." He looked at him.

"You came in here to tell me that what, we got mail?" He growled, anger trying to push down the grief.

"Big creepy book appeared on your coffee table with a note to all of you, thought it might be important." Casey said as he backed out of the room.

Raphael sat for a few moments then got to his feet. He walked out and found his brothers, Casey, April, and Master Splinter standing around the 'creepy book'. Raphael nodded to his family and looked at the book. It wasn't so much creepy as odd. It was bound in red leather with gilt edging. The pages looked thicker than standard paper, which was what was normal about it. There was a shiny gold lock that enclosed the top and bottom cover of the book. On the clasp were two rings each encircling a raven, wings outstretched, feathers falling from its wings and trailing their way across the front of the book in gilt. There was also a note affixed to the top. It was made of some sort of thick paper and sealed with a red blob of wax that held the same images of the ravens that were on the book.

Leonardo picked up the note and broke the seal. He spread it open on the coffee table. It was written in a language that he couldn't understand, but he didn't need to. The words whispered in his ears.

The promise made in our name has been fulfilled. We understand. She lies in the arms of Death...for now.

The paper began to burn with blue fire. Leonardo tried to get it off the table but it was already gone. It hadn't burnt anything on the table. He looked at his brothers who had apparently heard what he had heard. It had been two soft voices that felt and called of home. Master Splinter looked at them in surprise. April and Casey were looking at them in confusion.

"What just happened?" Casey asked.

"A note from the goddesses." Donatello whispered.

'You mean she..." April started.

Donatello shook his head. "She lies in the arms of Death." A tear rolled down his cheek.

Leonardo looked at the book. There was no key to fit in the lock. He touched the lock and the book opened. A blank page of thick paper greeted them. English script began writing itself on the page. It said simply,

For Raphael, Donatello, Leonardo and Michelangelo.

Leonardo flipped the page and gasped. It was a picture of Her. She was sitting at the kitchen table warm mug in hand talking with them while they ate breakfast. The picture wasn't really a photo, though it tried to be one. You could take it out of the book if you wished but the paper was more like really fine stiff cloth. They scanned all of the images on the pages. It was a photo album of the two months that she was with them. There were images of them joking on the couch together, there were candid moments where you could see her thinking deeply about something, or where she was laughing out loud with uninhibited joy. There were intimate moments where one or the other of his brothers were sharing a moment with her. There was one where the image managed to catch the look of utter want, need and misery on Leonardo's face as she stood near him head down as he gripped her arm. It was obviously one of the many times that they had fought, and the naked need on his face hurt just to look at. Leonardo stroked a finger across the image. There was the first time Raphael had kissed her. Her arm wrapped around his neck, another of her just standing in front of him touching his chest, naked desire in her eyes as she gazed up at him. There were pictures of her and Donatello sitting and enjoying a sunrise, of her and Michelangelo, dressed as the Turtle Titan and the Harbinger. Luckily there were no more intimate pictures than of them kissing her. He thought it would be harder to look at the pictures of his brothers kissing the woman he loved, but the images showed that she really did love them. And she looked so happy when she was with them, any of them, even the pictures where Leonardo was scowling she looked as if she were smiling a secret smile.

Leonardo took a picture out of her and him dancing, of all things. She was wrapped in nothing but the couch blanket, and made it look good. The look on her face was pure unadulterated delight. Leonardo smiled at the picture. He placed it back in the album.

They flipped it to the last page. It was her as the Golden Goddess fighting K'emeth. She was looking back and you could just see them in the background standing within the shield. It was Her, moss green eyes looked back with sorrow, love, determination, and the absolute knowledge that she was never going to see them again. She knew she wasn't coming back. Leonardo gently closed the book.

"But how?" Michelangelo asked. "It was like someone was following us around with a camera."

Leonardo picked up the book and held it to his chest.

"They are the memories of the goddesses." Donatello said after some thought. "When we were in...Goddess' memories we were able to see her, it wasn't a first person view, the goddesses must have been watching, or at least they were remembering what she remembered."

The TV turned on and Raphael growled, "Mikey!"

"It wasn't me!" He said in shock as the TV 's volume turned up by itself.

It was turned to the news where the news anchor was talking about a car crash.

"In a strange and horrific turn of fate that has been making international headlines, three best friends from the small town of Ridgemont Alberta, who did everything together, were tragically killed in two separate accidents miles apart at the exact same moment. Katherine Brooks and friend Trevor Mitchell were involved in a head on collision involving a tractor trailer and a patch of black ice. The car slid into oncoming traffic as the tractor trailer crested the hill. And although the driver of the truck was uninjured he swears that he remembers seeing a white motorcycle fleeing the scene which may have contributed to the crash. Police are still investigating.

"The third friend, Charity Hamilton, was killed when the bank of a creek collapsed on top of her while hiking. No other hikers were injured in the incident, but these two accidents have hit the families of these three promising University students, as a triple tragedy."

There was a picture on the screen of three smiling faces. It was Katherine, or how she would have looked as a human. She looked as Ryn had, but she looked different. She looked a little dreamy in the picture, as if her mind was wandering, and her gaze was so innocent it hurt to look at. To know what her fate would be, to know that the innocence of that gaze was going to be shattered forever, hurt. But Raphael recognized her smile, her smile was the same. He glanced briefly at the other two pictures and recognized Charity as the one who had shot her, and Trevor as the brown haired man who had made Daemon turn her into a vampire. Now all three were together again. "So what , this is suppose to make us feel better!" He shouted at the ceiling, or wherever the goddesses were playing their little trick with the TV.

"Yes Raph." Donatello said quietly. "They are giving us her grave." He said voice filled with sadness.

Raphael angrily stood up, walked to his room and slammed the door. He lay down on his bed agony and hurt and sorrow filling him up like a cup that was already too full. He must have fallen asleep because when he woke up he was standing in a room that had no floor or ceiling. He looked at himself angrily.

Dark Raphael stood, his hat pulled down low over his eyes. "We lost her." He whispered angrily.

"I never had her. I never had the chance. She was gone too quickly." He said back miserably.

"But now...there is nothing left." Brown grief filled eyes rose to meet his. "No, there is something left." Eyes blazing they looked at each other. "We'll have to get stronger, much stronger, we will have to learn, and we will have to wait."

Raphael pulled his hat down over his eyes and adjusted his trench coat as his rage rose from smouldering embers. "Well you know what they say, Revenge is a dish best served cold."

To be continued...

Bad author, bad. I know, but if it is any comfort I am not through with all of them yet. MWAHAHAHA (evil laugh). And I am posting the first chapter of Darkness and Light, the sequel to this story. There are still some loose ends that need to be tied up.I hope you enjoyed this one and follow the next installment! Please read and reveiw!