I really didn't think I'd last long, not running from all of those Foot goons, and I didn't, maybe about five minutes of leading them around in circles on the airfield. I fought, like any good TMNT agent would. I took down as many ninjas in pajamas as I could. They just kept coming, though. There was no end to the stream of enemy ninja flowing out of the Foot headquarters. The last thing I saw as they pummeled me into submission was Morales leaving the chopper and shaking hands with a man in a lab coat.

When I came to, I was on the ground in another laboratory. Boy had I had my fill of strange laboratories. I could go the rest of my life never seeing the inside of another whackbag's little lab of horrors. I struggled to a sitting position, lamenting the thick bindings on my wrists and ankles.

I looked around, taking in the slate, metal walls; the tables covered in monitors, readouts, and graphs, and finally, the dominating feature of the lab: two, large cryogenic chambers. It would seem my earlier hunch was correct. Shredder had caught wind of Dr. Morris' plans and had coopted them as his own.

I watched the two bodies floating in the ooze and swallowed back the bile rising in my throat. Whatever was in that ooze, whatever they had preserved so many years ago, it wasn't my parents. As they say in the horror movies, "There are some things man was never meant to tamper with." Ooo-WEEE-ooo.

I had to get out of here. I couldn't let them use me to finish this little scheme. I looked around for something, anything, I could use to start hacking off these ropes. I could probably pop my thumb out of place if I really had to, but that would be a last resort. I'd done it once before, and believe you me, it was nothing like the movies. Popping those suckers out hurt. I wouldn't be able to use that hand, and losing the ability to fight with one of my hands really wasn't appealing right now. I had just about gotten my feet under me when I heard the sound of a door whooshing open.

"And what do we have here?" A man swept into view, wearing a white lab coat and glasses. He had a smug smile on his face, and with the tilt of his head, I just knew he was one of those stuck up, know-it-all types. "Master Shredder told me he had a new specimen for me. I guess I was expecting something slightly less…alive. Most things I take apart aren't quite so whole."

He looked down his nose at me, and the smile widened, revealing more shining white teeth against his dark skin. "No matter. There are few challenges the brilliant Dr. Stockman is unequipped to handle."

Air vents are small. It's a fact most people probably take for granted. I've met few others who have actually tested that assumption. Honestly? I really wish I was among them.

I grunted as Raph's foot collided with my head. Again. "Can you watch it, you big galoot? That's my head you're crushing."

"Quit your grumblin', Donny. This ain't exactly a cake walk for any of us y'know."

"Keep it down back there, guys," Leo barked from somewhere ahead of Raph.

I sighed, but kept my head down and continued crawling. Raph, the largest of the four of us, did have a point. This probably was harder for him than for me or Leo. Maybe it was just nerves talking, too. We were infiltrating an enemy base filled with hundreds of Foot ninja. I felt my palms start to sweat and instantly cut off that train of thought. This mission was simple, straightforward. Get in, grab Mikey, get out. Easy peasy, right?

I heard the sound of footsteps below us and gulped. Leo held up a hand, calling for a stop. The sounds of dozens of running feet faded, and I heard Leo tap his comm. "April? We just heard… Yeah, yeah, Splinter's distraction must be working…Right, I think we're close. We'll drop down here…Got it. Thanks."

Leo shut off the communication and called softly over his shoulder, "Splinter just implemented Phase 3 of the plan. We'll drop down the next grate and the door on the right should be the lab where they've got Mikey. As soon as I give the signal, we'll –" Leo cut off as a blood curdling shriek echoed down the hallway.

We all shouted in unison, "MIKEY!"

This Baxter Stockman guy was a total wingnut, if I'd ever seen one. As soon as he finished going on about how brilliant he was, he'd waved over two Foot Techs and had them strap me to a lab table. He was now humming happily to himself as he prepared to jab a giant needle in my arm.

"As you know, Michelangelo," he said conversationally, shoving the needle into the crook of my arm, "your blood is just what the doctor ordered to revive dear old Mom and Dad." He attached the needle to an IV line, and I watched as fluid began to be sucked out of me.

"Any of your brothers might have done, but we had the fortune to grab the one TMNT agent we knew was a match." He crossed over to another lab table and began picking through a pile of shiny, sharp objects.

"Meep." I tried to remain calm, but visions of those scalpels and drills being slowly lowered over me made my mouth go dry. I decided to try to keep him talking, anything to buy some time. "How do you even know about my parents? You didn't work for TCRI, too, did you?

"Ha!" Dr. Stockman turned to face me. "Those buffoons? They could never measure up to my level of genius. No. I had heard of your parents, of course. They were famous throughout the scientific community. 'Exceptional minds,' I believe I heard once." He scoffed and idly rummaged around on the table. "They were smart, yes, but their experiments were flawed, obviously. They had so much power and didn't know how to use it. I always wanted to get my hands on their research, to let a truly brilliant academic light shine on it. Now, I may finally have that opportunity." He picked up a wicked looking tool, with a sharp hook on the end and examined it before setting it back down.

"I heard about the explosion. The one that 'killed' them. I wrote them off, dismissing their lesser achievements, but then rumors started. Little whispers here and there of a rogue TCRI man. A part of the team that had almost designed the best fuel source known to man. He may have a way to restart that research, to win back knowledge I thought for sure was lost. When I informed the Shredder of this possibility, he was intrigued. He started investigating, and when you morons tried to infiltrate the Foot," at this point he looked up at me, sneering, "we saw an opportunity."

"We already knew about the TMNT agents in our midst, thanks to Agent Morales, and when you and your idiot brother showed up, it was like a present dropped right in our laps. We tried to grab two of you the night they were setting up surveillance on that warehouse, but Morris and his team interfered, blowing the whole thing to bits." He finally settled on a small, metal tube, about the size of a pen. He twisted it, and a narrow laser shot out the end. "It didn't matter, of course. With Agent Morales on our side, we knew exactly where you'd be." He walked toward me, the laser pen in his hand. "Enough talk. Let's move to the dissection portion."

TMNT agents are tough. We have to be, but when he started moving toward me with that homicidal look in his eye, you can bet I screamed at the top of my lungs.

I'm not scared of much. Heights, goons with swords and guns, riding my bike at 90 miles an hour, those things are fun. Exciting. Bugs. I might be scared of bugs, but don't tell Mikey that. He'd never let me live it down. There's maybe one thing on this entire planet that makes my blood run cold, and I'd just heard it echoing down the corridor.

"Leo! We gotta get down there now!"

"I'm on it Raph!" Leo kicked out the grate and dropped into the corridor below.

I followed him at top speed, charging through the doors of the lab the second Leo kicked them open. I heard Donny bringing up the rear, bo staff whirring in his hands.

The scene before me was oddly familiar. The creepy lab, the eerie glowing tanks, all topped off with a mad scientist.

I growled as I saw the man in the lab coat standing over Mikey. Mike, for his part, was grinning like Christmas came early.

"Leo! Raph! Don! Boy am I glad to see you guys. This lunatic was gonna dissect me! Can you believe that? I'm not some high school science project! I mean, here I was – mmmpphhm." The guy in the coat slapped his hand over Mikey's mouth, cutting off the stream of jabbering.

"Foot ninja! To me!" He yelled. "Defend me, while I finish bleeding this fool dry, then we can move on to his brothers." This last bit was aimed at us, with a devilish leer.

"You keep your hands off him!" I shouted, lunging forward.

"Raph, wait!" I heard Leo hiss, but it was too late. I was already charging at that lab coat like a bull to a red cape. Hot head? Who me?

My path was instantly blocked by three Foot ninja, and four more rushed in behind me, cutting me off from Leo and Don. I heard Leo sigh and could just picture him shaking his head. I grinned but didn't have time to turn around and look at him. I drew my sais and spun them, slowly circling around.

The Foot ninjas watched me for half a second before launching into action. Two of them jumped on me at once, one with a punch aimed at my head, the other with a sweep to my legs. I threw myself backwards into a back handspring. My feet caught one guy in the chin, and I knew it was an instant KO. I landed in a crouch and launched up with a spin kick, knocking back a few more.

I caught a glimpse of Leo and Don fighting back to back. Leo cleared out the three he was fighting, back flipped over Don, and quickly helped take down the rest. "Don, get to Mikey! Raph, make a path!"

"You got it boss!" I fired off my next series of kicks and punches in rapid succession, not giving the enemy ninja time to think or regroup. Master Splinter would have been proud. I ended up next to a lab cart. I spun around it and gave it a shove, and the Foot went down like bowling pins. Path mostly clear, I crouched and laced my fingers together. "Donny!" he heard me and sprinted over. He planted one foot in my hands, and I launched him in Mike's general direction.

Leo and I came face to face in the hole we'd created and set our backs together, ready to finish these mooks off. Over the chaos of the fight, I heard the voice of the slimy scientist guy. "No! Nooooo! What do you think you're doing? Don't you know who I am? I'm Baxter Stockman! Greatest mind of this gen – Oof!" His voice cut off abruptly with the sound of wood smacking something hard.

"Sounds like Don got to Mike," I said to Leo over my shoulder.

"Yeah, we need to finish this and get out of here."

At this point, there wasn't much to finish. Most of the goons were lying in heaps or slumped over lab equipment. We made short work of the remaining guys and hustled over to Don and Mikey.

"Don, what's the damage?" Leo demanded, coming to stand to one side of the table Mikey had been strapped to. I watched him look down at Mikey and saw a range of emotions scroll across his features. He quickly shut them down, inscrutable as ever. He did put a light hand on Mikey's shoulder, though, and Mikey shot him a weak smile.

Don looked up from where he was bandaging Mike's left arm. "He lost quite a bit of blood. As Dr. whoever was yelling –"

"Backsore Stickman," Mikey supplied helpfully.

Don chuckled. "Right. Him. They were trying to bleed him dry." At this Don shuddered minutely. I didn't blame him. "But, luckily, it doesn't look like he got more than a couple pints. It's still not a safe amount, and Mikey you probably feel a little woozy." Mikey nodded. "But it's nothing a quick transfusion won't fix, provided we get out of here quickly. As for the bruises and contusions…"

I looked a little more closely at Mikey and noticed the shadow of a bruise forming on his jaw. He had a couple more on his arms, and I could only imagine what the rest of him looked like. I felt my stomach clench and my blood start to boil. I took a deep breath and tamped it down. Getting out of here was what was important right now. I could bust more heads later.

I tuned back in to what Don was saying, "I don't think anything is broken. How does it feel to you, Mikey?"

Mike rolled his head in my direction, "Raph's done worse," he answered with a smirk.

"I'll show you worse, goofball," I shot back, glad he had the energy to make jokes.

"Do it later, Raph," Leo said with a small smile. "We need to move. Up for some running, Michelangelo?"

Mikey nodded, and Leo and Don helped him off the table. He staggered a bit, but Donny slung one arm around his shoulders, and together they looked pretty steady.

"Everyone ready?" We nodded. "Let's move then."

"One more thing," I said, turning back to the tableside. I drew one katana and slashed the bag dangling from the IV line. The bag split neatly in half. Its contents drained onto the lab floor. I re-sheathed my katana and led the way from the lab, my brothers following behind.

I faded back against the wall of the corridor, motioning for the guys to do the same. "Raph, you take the rear and cover our backs. Don, Mikey keep to the middle and don't try to fight unless you have to. Don your job is to get Mikey out of here. Raph and I can fend for ourselves. Don't worry about us."

I heard Raph and Donny murmur in agreement. Mikey groaned, which I figured meant he understood. I tapped my comm and got April on the line. "April? We got Mikey. We're preparing to leave now. Have the van waiting on the east side of the building. We should be there in about ten minutes."

"Roger that, Leo. We'll be waiting."

I motioned for us to move, and we set off down the corridor. This end of the building was quiet, the only noise the soft padding of our feet on the hard metal of the hallway. We passed closed doors on either side, much like the one we'd knocked down to get to Mikey. Unlike most of our operations, this one seemed to be going off without a hitch. We'd gotten in successfully, Splinter's diversion had drawn most of the Foot from this area of the building, and no one had gotten seriously injured. All we had to do now was to make it to the pickup point. And of course, that was when the alarm started blaring.

Doors on either side of us opened and Foot began pouring into the hallway.

"Keep going!" I yelled, drawing my swords. I increased the pace, swiping right and left. I could hear Don and Mike behind me. Their normal measured strides distorted. I heard the slide of a foot missing a step and stopped instinctively. Donny cried out as he and Mikey both crashed to the floor.

"Sorry, Donny," I heard Mikey pant as he tried to push himself up. Mikey's skin was gray, and I could see him heaving for air in a way our training should've prevented.

"It's ok, Mikey. No problem. We're fine," Don rambled, grabbing Mikey's arm and dragging them both back up. Mikey's legs almost immediately went out from under him again, and he looked up at me with something close to panic in his eyes.

I kicked out, driving the encroaching Foot back. Raph barreled up to Don's other side, having beaten back the tide behind us. "New plan. Raph, Don, go in front. Don't fight. Just make sure Mikey and I can get through."

They both nodded and took off.

"Ready, Mikey?" I asked.

"Ready for wha-"

I cut him off, grabbing him slightly above his knees and tossing him over my shoulder.

"Leooo!" he protested.

"Can it, Mikey! You're in no shape to run on your own." He quieted down at that, recognizing the gravity of the situation.

"I hate being the damsel in distress," I heard him mutter under his breath.

"What was that?"

"I said…" He adopted a high-pitched syrupy voice, "Oh, Prince Charming, you're too bold!"

I laughed out loud, shaking my head. Even running for our lives in a Foot ninja base, Mikey could always make us laugh.

Raph and Don made for an excellent bulldozing team. Raph plowed straight down the middle, arms swinging, and Donny darted from side to side, knocking down ninja with his staff that Raph had missed.

We rounded a corner, and I saw our exit dead ahead. The crashing of the fighting and the blare of the alarm faded into the background as I zeroed in on the target. I leapt over a downed Foot ninja and narrowly avoided a punch from another. I caught Raph's arm as he stumbled and sensed more than felt Don fall in line at my side. With one final crash, we tumbled through the doors and outside to freedom.

Watching the doors of the Foot compound open, my heart soared. I had been on the edge of my seat throughout the entire operation. After everything the guys had been through, they needed to make it through this last mission in one piece. They deserved a break, and I really hoped fate was willing to give it to them.

The doors banged open, and it looked like Lady Luck had finally smiled in our direction. The guys were battered but appeared to be mostly in one piece. Raph and Donny led the way, with Leo slightly behind him, Mikey slung over his shoulder.

I worried for half a second at that, but then dismissed it. They had Mikey. That was the important part.

Casey opened the side door to the van, and I could hear him yelling for the guys to run faster.

Raph reached the van first and leapt in with a thump. Donny hopped up a half second behind him, and they both extended an arm outward to take Mikey from Leo and haul him into the backseat. Leo jumped in and immediately barked, "Go! Go! Go!"

I didn't need to be told twice. I put the pedal to the metal, and we screeched down the street in a cloud of burnt rubber.

I kept one eye on the road and one on the scene in the backseat, trying to make out what was going on.

"Hold him up, Raph. I want to make sure the bandage is still tight." That was Don.

Raph was sitting in the far right corner, one arm around Mikey's shoulders, holding him still so Don could look at something on his arm. Leo was hovering, as much as was possible in the confined space of the back of the van. Mikey for his part, let his head fall back on Raph's shoulder, grinning dreamily.

"I knew you guys would get me out," he slurred happily. "Jus' a matter of time."

Raph, in a rare display of affection, ruffled Mikey's hair instead of swatting the back of his head. "Of course we did, bonehead. Now shut up and let Donny work."

I smiled and turned my attention back to the road. TMNT vehicles fell in behind us, providing a barricade between us and any Foot vehicles giving chase. It looked like our luck had finally improved.

One trip to the hospital, debriefing, and the time it took to get home. Maybe two days and a couple of hours, but after the week we'd had, it was nothing in comparison.

I sighed, leaning back and putting my feet up in our recliner. We were finally home. No more infiltrating the foot, no more island getaway, no more fighting for our lives. We were home. Just home.

There was still a lot of dust to settle, still the thought of the Foot and their whackjob scientist, Dr. Bagman Stickler, or whatever his name was. Dr. Morris had been apprehended, but his organization was still out there. Our parents. No, not our parents. Their bodies. Whatever was left of them was in the hands of the Foot, but if they truly needed our DNA to revive them, then they were out of luck. I'd made sure of that. And no one would be laying a finger on my brothers in the near future. Splinter had made sure of that.

No, for now, we could rest. We could relax. We could – The sound of a crash interrupted my serene thoughts.

"Nope! Don't worry about it Leo. It's no big deal. I'm just making us all a welcome home breakfast," Mikey called from the kitchen. He popped up wearing an apron, a chef's hat, and half a bag of flour. "Waffles or pancakes, bro?"