Man I hate colds. It slows down everything and makes you feel miserable. But I hope that this long chapter makes up for how long it took me to update. Not sure how long it took, but once I got going it kinda ran away with me. It was a wild ride. Anyway, enjoy the next chapter.

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Chapter 26

Mikey trudged on through the sewers doing his best to hold Leo up with his one good arm. Casey had Leo's other side. Neither said a word. Or any of the others for that matter. Splinter was leading the way to the lair, walking with April's help. Behind them Rai and Raph carried Don between them. So that left Casey, Leo and Mikey at the back of the pack. Mikey didn't care though. Before he woulda loved to run ahead, beating everyone home. But not today. He was still a little stunned that he was holding Leo, carrying him home. His brother was alive. He should've never trusted the Foot. They had thought Leo was dead, voicing their opinion to the Shredder, so Mikey had thought so as well. He let out a small sigh. Leo must have planned or used the Foot's actions to his advantage so they would think he was dead. Mikey was upset that he had let his big brother down. He had thought Leo had been killed and thus when the others had been captured, had given up hope of ever being rescued. He looked over at his brother, still out cold. As far as he knew, Leo hadn't even moved since he and Casey caught Leo before he fell to the ground. Splinter said it was exhaustion. Mikey had repeated that answer to Raph. But he was still worried. What if there was still a chance that he would loose his older brother?

"Hey guys?" Casey suddenly spoke up, breaking the thick silence. "You guys here somethin' or is just me?"

"You spooked Casey?" April asked whispering faintly.

"Shh..." Raph hushed the two.

Everyone stopped walking and listened. Splashes of someone or someones echoed through the sewer tunnel, getting louder by the second as if they didn't care that they could be heard by anyone else walking through the sewers dank tunnels.

"Someone is coming our way," Splinter said softly. He looked back at them and cocked his head to the right. He and April slipped into the shadows of the next tunnel, the others following behind them.

Mikey waited tensely as the splashing grew louder, the footsteps grew closer. Time seemed to slow. They would surely be discovered where they were. His heart beat faster. What if they were Foot, or Purple Dragons? Or even Hun himself with some of his goons? Mikey's mind raced with other alternatives, each of them worse than the last until he finally caught a glimpse of a black group of people.

"Foot," Raph whispered faintly.

Mikey gulped and watched, sure that the Foot soldiers would hear his pounding heart.

Half a dozen Foot soldiers ran through the tunnel the turtles and their friends had just been walking through. They ran crazy, out of their normal formation, giving no thought to being quiet or the echo of their running steps. Soon they were out of sight without the slightest stop at someone watching them run crazily through the sewers.

"Ok..." Casey murmured. "That was strange."

"Weird is more like it," Raph muttered. "You'd think they woulda been more quiet or somethin'."

Splinter watched the tunnel intently. "Maybe stealth was not what they were after."

"Then what [i]were[/i] they after?" Mikey asked hesitantly.

"I do not know my son." Splinter watched for a few more minutes, then he and April proceeded forward. "It seems they are gone. Though we will take another tunnel."

Mikey nodded absently following behind the rest of the others like before. He didn't pay attention to the new tunnel they took, or the fact that it took them ten more minutes to get back to the lair than it would've if they hadn't seen those rouge ninjas. He only noticed they were back at the lair when everyone stopped again. He slowly looked up, mouth nearly hanging open. The lair was a complete mess, like a tornado had come and brought another one with it to butt heads until they had dissipated, leaving a total mess in their wake. He didn't remember the lair being this bad when they had been taken from their home by Keith and the Foot ninjas.

They slowly made their way through the debris and into the lab. April helped Splinter to sit in a chair after she righted it, then quickly turned two cots back to their normal position. Mikey and Casey carefully laid Leo on one while Rai and Raph laid Don on the other.

"What do we do now?" Mikey asked. He stared at Don, still out cold like Leo, and unmoving. Blood dripped out from the makeshift bandage that had been stained red.

"What do you mean Mikey?" Raph asked gruffly. He sat down in a chair with a pained grunt. "We're gonna get everyone fixed up." He winced repositioning himself.

Mikey cringed. Raph had to be in a lot of pain. Lots of large spots were red with slight parts of skin pealing from the burns. He turned his gaze away, refusing to look to long at Don either. His poor purple banded brother was in the same condition as Raph with those burns. "But how do we get everyone fixed up Raph? Don does that and he's... out of it right now." He plopped down on the floor and rested his shell against the wall.

"I'm going to do it," April spoke up.

Mikey blinked, staring at her. She couldn't be serious.

"I'm serious," April added seeming to read Mikey's thoughts, hands on her hips. "I knew a lot about treating injuries before I met you all and have done more research on it since then. Never know when it might come in handy."

Splinter nodded slowly. "I trust you can do a good job Ms. O'Neil," he said firmly.

Raph grunted but nodded with the others.

Mikey swallowed and sighed, nodding as well. He sure didn't want Raph checking his broken arm. He cringed at the thought.

"You do know how to sew up a gash like Don's don't ya?" Casey asked.

April nodded. "Yeah. Why don't you help me see if there's any clean needle, thread, antiseptics, and bandages."

"Sure thing babe," Casey answered, starting to look through the mess of things in the lab.

April gave him a half glare before turning to Rai. "Can you see if there's any salve? We have to get something on Don and Raph's burns."

Rai gave a small smile and a nod, joining Casey in searching for the needed item.

Mikey watched all this in hopes that they would all be able to get fixed up. And that Don and Leo would wake up soon. He still had fears that the Foot would come back even though it would be the last place to look for your enemy in their destroyed home. He knew they wouldn't have come back if Master Splinter hadn't confirmed it thus saying it was safe. But he couldn't banish the thought. Or his still shaky feelings of loosing Leo then having him return in a short time. He blinked not realizing he had gotten a little teary and looked up when he felt a hand on his good arm.

"You ok?" April whispered.

Mikey nodded. "We're safe," he said weakly. "And together."

April smiled faintly. "Yes. We are." She paused watching him for a moment before going on. "How's you're arm?"

Mikey looked at his broken arm and thought about it. "It feels fine."

"Well I'll check it just the same." April ran her hand along the splint and nodded. "They actually did a good job."

"Who'da thought that?" Mikey half joked.

April's smile grew a little. "Yeah. Who would've thought." She stood and went over to Leo, looking over his bruises and cut arm. She frowned touching his arm then forehead.

Mikey bit his lip. What had she found? He was afraid to ask.

"What is it Ms. O'Neil?" Splinter asked, beating Mikey to the question.

"It's a fever," she said looking up. "I think he put too much strain on his arm and it opened up again and got infected soon after getting to the warehouse."

"Will he still be ok?" Raph asked gruffly, though the concern in his eyes betrayed the gruff tone of his voice.

"If we have the right antibiotics, yes." April looked around the lab a little worried.

"If not?" Mikey asked fearfully. He had seen shows where if someone's arm was infected and there was nothing to treat it with, the arm would have to be amputated. Or worse they died from a badly untreated infection. His heart raced, beating double time. There had to be something here. He wasn't going to loose his brother again. Not after getting him back when he hadn't really died in the first place.

"I'll send Casey to get something," April answered Mikey's question. "Leo will be fine."

Mikey numbly nodded. He sure hoped so, but that didn't keep his heart from beating so fast he could hear it in his ears. He started biting one of his nails on his good hand without realizing it.

"Found some!" Casey shouted triumphantly from across the lab. He quickly made his way through the mess to April and handed her the needle, thread, antiseptics, and bandages.

She took them and looked them over. "I hope this is enough. Now I need some antibiotics for Leo."

"And that looks like?" Casey asked with a confused expression.

April gave him a little stare. "I don't know. A little bottle or something. I'm sure Don would've labeled it."

"Oh yeah. That helps," Casey returned, giving her the same stare and raising one eyebrow.

"Just go fine some," Raph growled.

Casey turned muttering, going back through the mess.

April shook her head and went over to Don pulling away the makeshift bandage. She cleaned the area as best as she could and started to stitch up Don's side.

Mikey looked away, never being one for watching someone get stitched up. His eyes followed his tiger friend around the lab. Rai was still searching for that salve. Rai scowled, lifting large shelves then putting them down again. He turned and crawled under something. When Rai came up he was grinning. Mikey knew he had found some.

Rai quickly came back to April and stood next to her, patiently waiting and watching her fix Don up.

Mikey chanced a look back at Don and April and was relieved to find that April was finished with Don's side and now taking the container of salve from Rai, putting it on Don's burns. After she was finished she walked over to Raph. Mikey couldn't help a smirk. This would be interesting.

Raph glared at her and snatched the container. "I'll do it myself," he muttered, starting with putting the stuff on his leg.

April shrugged and turned to go check on Leo. She touched his forehead again.

"I can't find it April!" Casey yelled.

She looked up and sighed. "Can you go help him Rai?"

Rai nodded and turned, going back through the mess to where Casey stood and started helping to search.

Mikey watched them for the moment then turned to watch April again. She was checking Master Splinter's leg, fixing the splint a little. She was frowning a little, but it quickly disappeared.

"There, that should be better," April said standing.

"Thank you Ms. O'Neil."

"Oh you're quite welcome," she said with a small smile. "I'm going to go see if any of the water works anymore. We have to get Leo's temperature down."

"There should be some cloths and a bowl under the sink if it is still intact," Splinter said after a moments thought.

April nodded and left the lab, determination in her eyes.

The room seemed to quiet into a thick silence as soon as April left. Except for the rummaging that Casey and Rai were doing followed by Casey's frustrated murmurs. Mikey watched them intensely, fear coiling his muscles tight. Don always had antibiotics in here. He didn't know where he got them, but didn't ask. He just knew that Don would always have what they needed. Mikey continued to watch Rai and Casey go slowly back and forth from one end of the room to the other. Soon just watching them and his already tired body proved too much and he found his eyelids closing just as April returned with a bowl, pulling a wet cloth out and putting it on Leo's forehead. Mikey blinked trying to stay awake, but soon found himself sleeping lightly, chin resting down on his chest.