*Insert trumpet call here* Hear ye, hear ye, the newest chapter of TMNTwo is now completed and posted. The author would like to offer her gratitude to her reviewers. Thou all be'eth most awesome. Pease fortify thineselves on my humble offerings.

Disclaimer: If I were to own such a show as TMNT, oh how different that world would be.

The speedboat was on me before I had a chance to twitch. I sucked in a breath to dive under the water, intending to kick off the boat, but found an iron grip fastened around my ankles before I got the chance. I was hauled out of the ocean, wriggling like a worm on a hook. I landed on my head and was stunned momentarily.

By the time I gained my feet, I was surrounded, but not by commandos. My brow scrunched in confusion, "Uh, aren't you guys supposed to be the bad guys?" I asked.

The people before me were all wearing navy uniforms, with a very familiar insignia on the left breast pocket. The symbol was a dove, swooping in front of a hawk with wings outspread. It represented the efforts of peace before war. It meant every effort at a peaceful resolution would be tried first before the bearer ever resorted to violence. It was the symbol for T.M.N.T.

"Yes!" I cried, pumping a fist in the air, "You're here to rescue us, right?"

A woman stepped forward, her blond hair pulled back in an efficient bun. She was about 5'6" and held herself with an air of authority. "Sir, I need you to calm down and tell me what exactly is happening here."

Whoops, seems I was getting a little ahead of myself. I might recognize them as kindred spirits, but they didn't know anything about me. I ripped open my duffle bag and rummaged around until I found my waterproof I.D. badge. "Special Agent Michelangelo Hamato, I'm with Team Renaissance. The rest of my team is still back there. If we hurry we can get to them."

The woman was already shaking her head, "I'm sorry, Michelangelo, but you're the only one we can rescue."

My elation deflated instantly. "What? Why just me?"

"Look behind you," she answered, pointing back toward the island.

I turned around and looked at the helicopters, at the masses of soldiers descending on the island, "So? You have a team of like –" I did a quick headcount, "fifteen. If we strike quickly I'm sure we can –"

She cut me off with a curt shake of her head. "No, I'm sorry. It's too risky. It's better we rescue one than lose another whole team."

I crossed my arms stubbornly. "I won't leave my brothers behind."

She nodded her head at my duffle bag, which I'd dropped at my feet, "Isn't that exactly what you were planning on doing?"

I felt myself stiffen; that had been what I was planning. I felt my frustration mounting. There was no winning in this scenario. I couldn't ask this woman to gamble her whole team against an island-ful of commandos on the off chance we could somehow make it off with my three brothers; but I couldn't just leave them to face who-knows-what on their own. What would Leo do? Leo wouldn't have gotten himself in this situation in the first place, I answered myself.

I reached out, wondering if I could somehow sense one of them if they were close by. My brothers and I seemed to be eerily connected sometimes. I didn't know if it was because of our upbringing, our ninja training, or what, but at times, if I concentrated really hard, I could feel my brothers, like on the edge of my consciousness. It was like feeling somebody's body heat when they were sitting close enough to you. You weren't touching, you may not even be looking in that direction, but you could still feel them. I gave up after a few moments. The only thing I could feel was the still warm air leeching the water out of my swim trunks.

I growled, guilt, anger, and worry all pushing at me. My stomach swirled, the conflicting emotions whirling around inside of me. The blond woman put a hand on my shoulder. I was sure she could feel the tension running through my incompliant body.

"There's nothing you can do for them now," she tried again, her voice low and soothing. "Come with us, and I promise you you'll get your chance. Together we can find a way to free them."

With a wrench of both my body and heart, I turned away from the island. "Ok," I whispered. In a stronger voice, "Ok, I'll go."

The woman stepped back and started shouting orders to her crew. "You heard the man!" she yelled, "Let's get this tub turned around."

This "tub" as she called it, was actually a high-performance, 800 horse power, streamlined T.M.N.T. original. I remembered going to one of the prototype demonstrations. Donny had practically slipped in his own drool. The memory brought the almost-pull of a smile to my face, but it was gone before it came.

"This way," the blond motioned, directing me to the hatch that would allow us below deck. I went down the steps, jumping the last couple. Below decks was cramped, but organized. The center of the room was devoted to a round table with charts on it. One wall held a weapons locker, stocked with a variety of weaponry from T.M.N.T. The other three walls were dominated by the radar system, tracking equipment, and a communications bank.

I took a seat at the table and looked across at the blond woman. "So what exactly is going on Captain…?"

"Morales," she supplied, "Captain Martina Morales. We saw the helicopters and headed down for a look. We just finished wrapping up a Cuban drug smuggling ring and were still in the area."

"Thanks for rescuing me," I said, realizing I'd never properly thanked this woman. "I'm sorry if I didn't seem grateful before. It was just…"

She waved a hand, dismissing the matter, "I could never leave a fellow agent in distress. I'm only sorry we couldn't save the rest of your team. Team Renaissance, right?"

"Yep, that's us."

"What were you boys doing down here, if that information isn't classified?"

I shrugged it didn't really matter now, "We were in a safe house, under protection."

"Really?" She raised an eyebrow. "What happened?"

I opened my mouth; it was going to be a long story, "Can I get a change of clothes first?"

The end of the chapter! Yay! I'm almost confusing myself as I write these chapters. Hopefully I can keep it all straight as the story progresses, haha. For comments, questions, and suggestions, please consult the review box at the bottom of the page.